Chapters Twilight Sparkle’s new room in Canterlot Castle was luxury unlike any Rainbow Dash had ever seen. The floors were carpeted in thick velvet that muffled even the heaviest hoofstep. The bed was broad enough for six ponies, with impossibly soft downy pillows and midnight-purple curtains. Tall glass doors opened onto a small balcony from which most of the city was visible and the rise and set of the Moon and Sun could be observed.
But most important, apparently, were the rows and rows of bookshelves lining the walls. Dash was almost getting dizzy from flying back and forth between bookshelves and suitcases, shelving Twilight’s books in the unicorn’s crazy-specific ordering. Dash really didn’t see what the big deal was if she happened to file “Diamond Dogs” after “Elements of Harmony” instead of before. But hey, it was the egghead’s room, so she did as Twi asked no matter how fussy it seemed.
Finally all of the suitcases were empty and the last of the books were shelved away. Twilight turned to Dash and grinned. “All done! Thanks again for your help, Dash.”
“No worries. Wouldn’t want a princess to have to break a sweat.” Rainbow smirked at Twilight, who rolled her eyes in response.
“Hey,” added Rainbow. “Are you sure you’re going to be alright here in Canterlot without us?”
Twilight nodded. “I’m a princess now, Rainbow. I have duties to uphold and a court to host. Besides, I’ll have Spike and the Princesses to keep me company.”
“Whatever you say. Keep in touch though, okay? Anything goes wrong, just send one letter and I’ll fly straight over.” Rainbow stepped out onto the balcony and spread her wings. “Anyway, I’d better be heading back. I told ‘Shy to help me with my practice today.”
Twilight bid her farewell, and Rainbow took off. The hot city air rose beneath her wings and lofted her high into the sky. Within minutes she was above the clouds, leaving Canterlot behind as she glode across the landscape.
The grand expanse of Equestria yawned out below her. Endless acres of farmland, lush forests, sparkling streams, and rolling verdant hills stretched from one horizon to the other. Little white puffs of cloud speckled the view like powdered sugar on a muffin. As she got further from the city there were fewer and fewer signs of civilisation, with the obvious exception of the Canterlot—Ponyville railway which wound between the hills below Rainbow, its path hilariously squiggly to the pegasus who soared in a straight line above it.
Rainbow Dash closed her eyes. The air was fresh and crisp in her nose, firm and supportive beneath her powerful wings. The breeze streamed through her mane and tail. She savoured the warmth of the sun on her back.
She would never admit it to her friends – come on, she had a reputation to uphold – but Rainbow Dash didn’t have to be racing and doing stunts all the time. One of her favourite things in the world to do was simply … fly. Up here, far above the world, it was impossible to feel anything but calm and free.
Within a couple of hours, she arrived above Ponyville. She caught sight of a butter-yellow pony and a hovering green tortoise on the front step of her cloud home. She descended in a wide, gentle spiral and alighted next to the pony. “Heya, ‘Shy. Hope I didn’t keep you waiting.”
“Oh no, not at all. Tank was keeping me company! Weren’t you, you adorable little guy?” Fluttershy nuzzled the tortoise.
Rainbow opened the door and invited Fluttershy in with a toss of her head. The inside of Rainbow’s house was spacious and spartan. Partly that was because, in an earthen town like Ponyville, it was hard to find things that were enchanted to stay on clouds. But mostly it was because she was Rainbow Dash, and Rainbow Dash was too cool to tie herself down to objects.
The front door opened into her living room, which featured a couch, a table with a discarded letter and a couple of Daring Do ’s on it, and a single Wonderbolts poster on the wall. A gap in the ceiling led to the kitchen on the next floor up.
“Psh! Adorable?” Rainbow replied. “Tank is awesome!”
“Well, um.” Fluttershy glanced at Rainbow and looked away, a small smile on her face. “Those aren’t always mutually exclusive.”
“He’s like, an armoured knight or something,” Rainbow went on smoothly, pretending Fluttershy wasn’t being so … so Fluttershy. She tapped Tank’s shell, and he raised his head proudly. “Best, pet, ever . Look at him! He could stand up to a tiger!”
“Oh, dear. I really wouldn’t recommend …”
Rainbow lit into the kitchen. She wasn’t really bothered that Fluttershy had trailed off: the timid pegasus often did. Rainbow poured a couple of bowls of oats and held them in the crooks of her forelegs as she glode back into the living room.
She found Tank and Fluttershy seated on the couch. Fluttershy was grinning widely, her eyes alight, as if she’d just seen a seal do a triple flip in the air. Whatever it was, she didn’t say anything as Dash returned and hoofed her a bowl.
The couch was meant to seat two ponies, so with two ponies plus a tortoise, it was a tight squeeze. Rainbow flopped down, feeling Fluttershy’s coat rubbing against her own. Fluttershy wouldn’t let many ponies touch her, but with as long as they’d known each other, Rainbow Dash was one of those ponies. Dash took a strange pride in that.
Something felt off, though. Her wing was pressed against Fluttershy’s, and something was jabbing her. “Your feathers are crooked,” she said.
“Oh! Thank you.” Fluttershy extended her wing to look at it, but the crooked feathers were on her upperwing, which was always a bit tricky to reach.
“Hang on, I got it,” said Dash. She leaned in and took the worst-offending feather between her teeth, gently teasing it straight. She eyed the wing critically and did this a few more times. She could feel Fluttershy’s warm body next to her. Fluttershy’s downy feathers tickled her muzzle, and the weird mixed smells of spa perfume and animal fur filled her nostrils.
“There.” Rainbow sat up again. “That feel any more comfortable?”
“Yes. Th-thank you.” Fluttershy was blushing.
“Nah, what friends are for. I keep telling you, ‘Shy, you gotta look after your wings. How else are you gunna get into the Wonderbolts?”
Fluttershy giggled. “I’m not the one trying to get into the Wonderbolts, Rainbow. But congratulations.”
“… Congratulations?”
The yellow pony gestured at Rainbow’s table. There was a letter sitting open on it, where Rainbow had left it the previous night. It was too far away to read from where they were sitting, but the top of the letter bore the Wonderbolts crest.
A pit opened in Dash’s stomach. “Oh, yeah … That.”
“I’m so excited for you!” Fluttershy flung her forelegs around Rainbow’s neck. “We should get Pinkie to throw you a party!”
“Oh, no. No no no no.” Dash held up her hooves. “It’s really not a big deal.”
Fluttershy let go. “I, well, if you say so. But you’re finally in, right? That’s what the letter is?”
“I … I’ve got the invitation, yeah. To the training squad, I mean. … Look, ‘Shy, I just don’t want to make a big fuss.”
Fluttershy nodded empathetically. “Oh yes, I can understand that. But a small party, at least? Just us girls?”
Rainbow looked at her excitedly wriggling friend, and she sighed. “Okay. We can have a party.” She put aside her untouched bowl and made for the door. “Hey, you know what? Let’s start with that flying practice.”
Fluttershy followed her outside and watched as she soared through the air, doing cloud slaloms and death spirals and showy kaleidoscopic displays. Dash couldn’t concentrate on her moves. Her mind kept leaping forward to that party. But Fluttershy cheered so loudly that Dash could almost actually hear her, so … maybe somehow it wouldn’t be so bad.
*
Rainbow Dash’s confidence had evaporated by that evening.
Pinkie Pie had somehow acquired a whole bakery’s worth of Wonderbolts-themed decorations in a matter of hours. Balloons, streamers, flags, confetti – everywhere Dash looked she saw white wings and yellow lightning bolts on blue. Rarity was sipping from blue punch. Applejack and Fluttershy were dancing to the poppy music beneath a “Congratulations on the Wonderbolts Dashie!!!!” banner. Pinkie herself was wearing an impressively bad Wonderbolts Nightmare Night costume.
Rainbow stood at the side of the room, watching the festivities glumly. Pinkie Pie sidled up next to her. “What’s the matter?”
“Hngh?” said Rainbow. “Oh, nothing. I’m fine.”
“Nuh-uh. I can tell when somepony’s not having fun at a party, Dashie, and somepony’s not having fun at this party.” Pinkie sat herself down next to Rainbow. The pegasus closed her eyes wearily, feeling the attention of all her friends falling on her. “Is it the music? I didn’t think it was Wonderbolts-y enough. Or did you want a bigger party?”
“No, really, Pinkie. I’m fine. The party’s great.”
“Is it ‘cause Twilight’s not here? I’m pretty sure she’d come visit if we asked! This is a pretty big occasion!”
“No, Pinkie.” Rainbow put a hoof over her face. “Look. This is all wrong. You shouldn’t be celebrating anything. I’m … I’m not accepting the invitation.”
Nopony said anything, and the music alone filled the room. Rainbow’s eyes traced the tiles in the floor. She swallowed, but the lump in her throat wouldn’t go away.
“You’re … not going to join the Wonderbolts?” Rarity asked hesitantly, as if unsure what she was actually hearing.
“No. I mean, yeah, eventually! It’s my dream! But I’m not ready.”
“O’course you are, Rainbow,” said Applejack. “You’ve been trainin’ day in and day out for as long as I’ve known y’all. You’re the readiest mare I ever knew.”
“Yeah! You can do it!” said Pinkie. “We believe in you, Dashie!”
“No, girls.” Rainbow raised her hooves to ward off the attention. “I know I can do it. I’m awesome. I just don’t want to do it right now. You know I can’t be a Wonderbolt in Ponyville, right? All the ‘Bolts live in Cloudsdale. I’d have to leave you all.”
“Darling, wherever you need to be to achieve your goals, we’ll support you. We won’t lose touch. We are pony friends forever, you remember?”
“That’s not the point!” Rainbow’s tone was sharp. “I just …” She felt her eyes lifting. She wasn’t sure why, exactly, but her gaze was drawn to Fluttershy. She looked into her oldest friend’s eyes and said, “Things are fine as they are. Can’t it wait?”
Fluttershy’s eyes widened at those words. Then her brows drew together in a frown. “I thought you wanted to be a Wonderbolt, Rainbow Dash.” The pegasus spoke slowly, carefully, and with a coolness and firmness that Rainbow Dash very rarely heard from her timid friend – and always feared.
Rainbow flicked her tail and half-opened her wings defensively. “I do! Of course I do!”
Fluttershy ignored her. “I thought this was your passion. I thought you were chasing your dreams . I thought …” She closed her eyes and breathed out. “I suppose I thought a lot of things.” She turned away and stalked towards the door.
“… ‘Shy?” croaked Rainbow.
Fluttershy opened the door but paused on the threshold, chilly night air flooding into the room. “You can’t keep waiting forever, Rainbow Dash.”
The door swung shut behind her, but the warmth didn’t seem to return.
Fluttershy beat her lanky wings as hard as she could. Her legs kicked out in the air erratically, trying to gain purchase on nothingness. She panted hard, but she knew she could do it. Rainbow wanted her to do it. She just had to believe in herself.
“Awww, yeah. This is awesome,” came the voice of the little blue filly from above. Fluttershy heard a small splash before the voice called out again, “Come on, ‘Shy! What’s taking so long?”
Dash leaped off the top of the cloudtop and buzzed down to Fluttershy, then grabbed her from behind and pushed her straight up. Fluttershy squeaked, but a moment later she felt spongy cloud beneath her hooves. She sighed, letting her wings sag. Looking around, they were on the very top of a huge pillar of cloud. Beside them was a big spring of rainbow, which flowed over the other edge and fell to Cloudsdale below. The rainbow falls made a deep rumble, but so far above the city there wasn’t much other noise. Even though Fluttershy knew she was so high up, it was kind of calming.
“There! You alright?” said Dash, flitting around in front of her.
Fluttershy took a few moments to catch her breath, then nodded.
“Oops.” Dash snorted and pointed at Fluttershy’s flank. “Now you’ve got a new cutie mark!”
Fluttershy gasped and spun around, very nearly tripping over her own hooves. “A … A rainbow horseshoe? Wh-what does it mean?”
“It means you’re gunna need a bath, doofus.” Dash waved a hoof, which was dripping with rainbow. The splashing sound earlier must have been her dipping it in the spring. “Come on! The thing I wanted to show you’s over the other side.”
The two of them trotted across the cloudtop, following the bank of the rainbow stream until it plunged over the precipice. Rainbow Dash cleared her throat and swept her foreleg out in an artistic arc. “Fluttershy, I give you: Cloudsdale.”
The whole city spread out below them. Pegasi bustled to and fro everywhere, on the roads and through the air, looking as tiny as fleas. In the distance they could see the towering pillars of temples and libraries and government buildings. They saw the enormous bulk of the Cloud Factory, with elegant, wispy cirruses being released from its tallest chimneys. Way down below, they saw houses, shops, and their very own flight school.
And overlaid in front of it all was a swirling mist in every hue and shade that emanated from the roaring rainbow fall.
Fluttershy gasped. “It’s beautiful.”
Dash grinned. She flipped onto her back, hovering with her hooves casually crossed behind her head. “Told ya. I knew it’d be up your current.”
“You find so many, um, awesome things, Rainbow.” Rainbow snorted when Fluttershy said ‘awesome’, and she felt herself blush. “I … I really like you, Rainbow.”
“Hah. That’s what all the fillies and colts say. Heartbreaker Dash, that’s me.”
“No, I – I’m sorry. I just …” Fluttershy lowered her head and looked away, her face falling behind the curtain of her mane. “Um, I meant it. I really like you.”
“Woah, you better not be getting mushy on me, ‘Shy.” Dash flew in front of Fluttershy, putting her hooves on her hips. “We got a reputation to uphold, you and me. We’ve got no room for mushiness.”
“I … Um, n-n-no. Of course not.”
Dash nodded, then crouched and spread her wings. “Hey, wanna see how far we can glide to from this high up? I bet you a million bits I can get to the other end of Cloudsdale!”
*
Rainbow tried going to Fluttershy’s cottage immediately. She heard crying inside. She pounded on the door until it was answered by one of the rabbits, who glared up at Rainbow and refused to let her in.
She yelled at the rabbit. It didn’t help. Eventually she relented and returned home.
Over the next few days, Rainbow barely saw Fluttershy. She caught a few glimpses of the yellow pegasus – once entering the spa with Rarity, once busy with the twins at Sugar Cube Corner – but never had a chance to actually speak to her. After talking her other friends about it, it became clear Fluttershy was avoiding her.
Fluttershy had been angry at Rainbow a few times before – that filly had an impressive stare, Dash would happily admit – but this was different. She never normally avoided her. In all the years they’d known each other, they had always turned to each other for company first.
Dash tried not to worry about it, but every time she tried to take a nap her thoughts went inexorably back to Fluttershy. She tried to keep active with stunt training instead, but she found that she spent more time looking around for the butter-yellow audience that was supposed to be there than she spent actually performing. She tried to distract herself with books, but after the first couple of days she ran out. Now that Twilight had moved to Canterlot, Rainbow didn’t know how to find more good books.
So with little else to do, Rainbow found herself hanging out with her friends for as long as they would put up with her.
A week after the party, Rainbow was in Carousel Boutique, standing patiently on a dais while Rarity fussed over yet another dress. “How does this one feel, darling?”
“Fine.”
Rarity gave a small sigh. “You say they all feel fine, Rainbow. Is it too heavy?”
“No, the weight’s fine.”
“Is it obstructing your wings?”
“Nah, the wings are fine.”
“Rainbow, dear, the purpose of the exercise is to understand how wearable my designs are. I cannot adjust them if you do not tell me what is wrong with them. You cannot tell me that all of these designs are fine . Are your hooves free enough?”
Dash obligingly shook one of her legs. “Mmm, yeah. The hooves are fine.”
Rarity took a deep breath to unleash some scathing retort or another, but before she could speak, heavy hooffalls and a familiar voice echoed from the front room. “Howdy, Rares! Got yer apples here!”
Rarity rolled her eyes. “Let me see, I wonder who that is. There are two ponies in all of Ponyville who don’t know how to knock, and one of them is standing in front of me. Who does that leave?” She removed the pins that were holding Dash’s dress together, finally freeing the pegasus to stretch, and magically opened the door to the front room. “Thank you, Applejack, you can put the box oh Celestia what are you doing?” she screeched.
Applejack paused midstride, holding a small crate of apples by the handle, and blinked at Rarity. “Whah am I ooim?” she echoed, speaking around the handle.
“Your hooves!” Rarity pointed. Applejack’s hooves were covered in mud, and she had tracked hoofprints onto Rarity’s otherwise spotless floor.
Applejack snorted and set the crate down on a table. She winked over Rarity’s shoulder at Rainbow Dash. “Sorry, Rares, but somepony’s gotta keep up the traditions ‘round here.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Ah thought y’all would like my hoofprints. Nice and familiar, y’know, with everything changing around us. First Twi’ and Spike moving away, and now Fluttershy.”
“Wait,” said Dash. “What?”
Rarity looked back at Dash, frowning. “Fluttershy is moving to Baltimare in a few weeks. There’s a vacancy for a vet there. Did you forget?”
“Baltimare ?”
“She told us each last week, Rainbow,” said Applejack. “Couple o’ days after … the … party …” The colour drained from the farmpony’s face. “But she ain’t been speaking to you. Ah’m sorry, Dash, Ah didn’t realise you didn’t know. I woulda –”
Rainbow never found out what Applejack would have done. By that point she was out the door and racing across Ponyville. “Fluttershy!” she shouted as the cottage came into view. “Fluttershy, you in there?” The front door cracked open to show a glaring rabbit. Rainbow dodged to the side and flew through a window instead. Her hooves thudded on carpet as she landed in –
Fluttershy’s bedroom. Oops. She hadn’t meant to intrude quite that much.
Fluttershy was curled up on her bed. She raised her head as Rainbow entered. For a moment the blue pegasus thought her friend had been crying, but no: Fluttershy’s eyes were dry and clear. Her body, though, was slumped and listless, with drooping wings and a heavy frown. “Rainbow?” she whispered.
Dash stared at Fluttershy. She flexed her wings a few times, waiting for good words to enter her head. “‘Shy, is it true? You’re leaving Ponyville?”
Fluttershy stammered something too quiet for Rainbow to hear. When Rainbow raised an eyebrow, Fluttershy nodded.
“Why?”
Fluttershy lowered her head to stare at the bedcovers, letting her mane fall in front of her face. “It’s, um … It’s a really good, um, job opportunity …”
“No, that’s not why,” said Rainbow, her tone harsher than she’d intended. “You’ve got a good job here. You take care of practically all the animals in Ponyville. Why would you leave?”
Fluttershy’s wings twitched and her ears flattened against her head. “Because … it hurts.”
“… Huh?”
The yellow pegasus raised her head again, fixing Rainbow with one baleful eye. “Because it hurts to be here,” she said, her voice rising in volume. “It hurts to, to, to see you every day, to be your friend, never knowing whether that’s all there is!”
Fluttershy rose to her hooves, standing above Dash on the bed with her wings raised in fury. Her eyes burned like the Sun itself, making Dash stumble backward and fall onto her hindquarters. “What’s keeping me here, Rainbow?” she demanded. “Answer me that! What do you think is keeping me here?!”
“Uhh …” Rainbow stammered, put on the spot. “There’s your animals, and all our friends … and me …”
“Exactly!” she roared. “You, Rainbow Dash! Don’t you realise what you mean to me?! Don’t you realise how much I need you?! Don’t you realise what you’re doing ?! You …” Her anger suddenly dissipated and she slumped forward. She looked very small. She mumbled into the bed, “Rainbow Dash … How many years?”
“I – I don’t …”
“I once told you that I loved you, Rainbow Dash.”
The breath caught in Dash’s throat.
“I still do,” Fluttershy continued. “But you … You wouldn’t tell me how you felt. You just told me to wait. I – I thought I was waiting for a reason , Rainbow. I thought you – you weren’t sure or you had other priorities or, or something . But now you’re stalling with the Wonderbolts too, and that’s the one thing you’ve never been unsure or unfocused about. C-compared to them, what hope do I have?”
“‘Shy …”
“I j-just want to know, Rainbow. If … If you love me, that’s wonderful. If you don’t, then I can – I c-can cope. You’re a wonderful friend, and that would be enough. But … I’ve waited so many years to know. I don’t think I can do it anymore.”
Rainbow’s tongue was thick in her mouth. She tried to say something, to form her lips into shapes and make sounds come out, any sounds as long as they would make things better, but she didn’t know how.
She moved toward the bed, but as soon as she took a step Fluttershy spoke again. “I’m leaving at the end of the month.”
Dash stopped. She tried to speak again. Then she swore, kicked the air with her hind hooves and leaped through the window.
It was a beautiful day. Squirrels skittered through the trees and bunnies scampered across the fields. Birds sang and bees buzzed. The Sun shone down on the village of Ponyville and everypony was smiling and happy.
Fluttershy sat on a fuzzy blanket on a hill just outside of town. The blanket was obviously newly bought and a bit obnoxiously colourful, but that was okay. Fluttershy liked colours. Beside her she had a picnic basket, but she wasn’t inclined to open it just yet.
A few feet away a small cloud hung just above the ground. Rainbow Dash lounged on the cloud, lying on her back with her eyes closed.
“So, um … This is Ponyville,” said Fluttershy.
“Yup,” said Rainbow Dash.
“I, um, I like it so far. Don’t you?”
“Yeah, I guess it’s cool. It’s nothing on Cloudsdale, but hey. At least here I can get a cushy weather job.”
Fluttershy kneaded the blanket beneath her hooves. “I’m really grateful, Rainbow Dash.”
“Hey, don’t worry about it.” Rainbow waved a hoof in the air. “I wasn’t gunna let you move here all on your own. We’re friends, right?”
Fluttershy lowered her head still further, making sure her pink mane hid her blush. “I – I mean it. I’m really grateful. F-for everything you’ve done for me.”
Rainbow twisted in her seat and opened her eyes. “‘Shy?”
“You’re, um, y-you’re always there for me and you like me even when other ponies think I’m too shy and you’re so amazing and I r-really don’t deserve it and –”
“‘Shy.”
“– and I love you, Rainbow Dash.”
Fluttershy squeaked and flattened herself against the ground, covering her head. A few silent seconds passed.
Rainbow’s hoof touched Fluttershy’s shoulder, and she peeked up at the blue pegasus. “Wow,” said Rainbow. “I, uh. Okay.”
Fluttershy squeaked again.
Rainbow gulped a few times before speaking again. “This is gunna sound worse than it’s supposed to, but … Can this wait? We only just moved to Ponyville. There’s, you know, a lot of stuff going on. Maybe we can talk about this again in a few months. Okay, ‘Shy?”
Fluttershy gave a trembling nod, and Rainbow’s shoulders visibly relaxed. “Sweet. So, uhhh. What’s for lunch?”
Fluttershy nosed open the picnic basket, and, even months later, they wouldn’t say another word about it.
*
“Damn it, damn it, damn it!”
Rainbow Dash flung herself into a cloud. It broke apart with a totally unsatisfying puff. Dash twisted in midair, spotted another cloud, and darted over to punch it with all her strength. She almost wrenched her elbow when it failed to offer any resistance.
“Argh! Clouds suck!” Rainbow shouted. She flitted upwards, found a larger cumulus, and cannoned through it. “The sky sucks! Flying sucks! Rrrgh!”
With nothing left nearby to attack, Dash flapped her wings hard and launched herself northwards. In seconds Ponyville vanished, left behind as she raced across the sky. Houses and ponies were replaced by farms and woods. Rainbow Dash ignored all of it. She climbed higher, seeking thinner air so she could fly even faster.
Miles burned away by the dozen. Dash’s wings were hot with exhaustion, but she refused to let herself do anything but fly harder and faster. Her coat was matted with sweat. Her breaths came in sharp hisses through her gritted teeth.
She had never had a destination in mind, but she wasn’t surprised when she found herself orbiting Canterlot. She searched the walls of the castle, found the right balcony, and closed her wings to swoop down onto it. She waited until the last moment to flare her wings and brake. Her hooves landed heavily on the tile.
Inside, two ponies looked up at the sound: a purple alicorn with a tiara, and a fiery orange pegasus wearing sunglasses. The glass doors lit up in a purple glow and opened for Dash. “Rainbow Dash!” said Twilight. “I’ve missed you! Oh, ah, let me introduce you.” She gestured to her guest. “Rainbow Dash, this is Spitfire, captain of the Wonderbolts. Spitfire, Rainbow Dash.”
Rainbow stepped into the room, still panting, and nodded at Spitfire. “Yeah, we’ve met.”
“Nice entrance, Rainbow Dash. You just come from training or something?”
“Hngh? No.” Rainbow wiped her brow and tried to slow her breathing. “Just flew from Ponyville at, like, top speed.”
Spitfire raised her eyebrows. “Huh. That’s some impressive endurance, Miss Dash. I had you down as a sprinter.”
“Uh, I guess? I dunno. Sprinting is my focus, but I’m flying pretty much constantly. It’s no big deal.”
Twilight interrupted. “Uh, maybe you should excuse us, Captain. I think Rainbow came here to talk to me. Would you mind coming back another time?”
Spitfire nodded, her eyes still on Rainbow. “Not at all. I’ll be in touch.” She turned and let herself out.
After the door closed, Twilight frowned at Rainbow. “That was the captain of the Wonderbolts. I’ve never seen you react so calmly to anything Wonderbolts-related. Plus, well –” she looked Rainbow up and down, taking in her windswept mane, heaving breaths, twitching wings, and watery eyes – “you look kind of awful. Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, sure. Fine. Just wanted to drop by.”
“You’re not a very good liar, Dash.” Twilight eyed Rainbow thoughtfully. She trotted over to her bed and hopped onto it, then patted the spot next to her. Rainbow gingerly climbed up and sat. “This is about Fluttershy, isn’t it?”
Rainbow blinked. “H-how’d you know anything about that?”
“Fluttershy sent me a letter the other day, saying she was thinking of moving to Baltimare. I figured that would hit you pretty hard, since you two are in … I mean, since you two have been friends for so long.”
“Yeah, well.” Rainbow looked down at her hooves. “Some friend I am.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s my fault she’s leaving.” Rainbow wiped her hooves down her face and gave a long groan. “‘Shy’s got this huge crush on me.”
“Yeah, I kinda figured. But isn’t that a good thing? Why would that make her leave?” She looked at Rainbow’s expression. “You do like her too, don’t you?”
“Well yeah, of course I like her.”
“The same way she likes you?”
Rainbow hesitated. “Yes. I mean, maybe. I don’t know.”
“… Dash, why did you come to me? I know I have the crown and all, but I’m really not the expert in this sort of thing. Why not somepony like Rarity?”
“I dunno. I wasn’t really going to anyone. I just –” Rainbow waved a hoof vaguely. “I was angry, I needed to fly. This is just where I ended up.”
“What were you angry about?”
“Fluttershy leaving, duh. Who wouldn’t be angry about that?”
“You weren’t that angry when I left. Rainbow? Rainbow, can you look at me?” Slowly Rainbow lifted her face and locked eyes with Twilight, who gave a gentle smile. “Were you scared?”
“What? No!”
“Really? I would be.” Twilight spread her wings. “You know, Rainbow, when I got these wings I was pretty scared at first. I really liked the way things were before, and I didn’t want it to change. Heh, do you remember that night? The first question out of my mouth was whether I’d get to stay Celestia’s student. I’ve always been her student. I was terrified of losing that.” She closed her wings and smiled at Rainbow. “There were a lot of sleepless nights and soul-searching, if I’m honest. But in the end I accepted the crown – and you know what? I’m so glad I did. Now I can stand shoulder to shoulder with the greatest ponies in the kingdom. I can personally make a difference in Equestria. It’s incredible.”
“And then you left us and moved to Canterlot,” said Rainbow. She winced at the accusation in her tone.
Twilight nodded. “And after being here a week, I’m pretty sure that was a mistake. I forgot how empty this city is – there’s so many ponies but it’s as if none of them mean anything. The time I spent with you girls was the best in my life. It’s what got me the wings. I never should’ve left.” She grinned. “So I’m thinking about moving back! If anypony wants to visit my court, they can come to Ponyville.”
Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? A princess living in Ponyville?”
“Why not? Stranger things have happened to the town.”
“Heh. Is that why Spitfire was here, then? Some Royal Military business for your safety in Ponyville?”
“Actually, she was here about you.”
Rainbow’s expression darkened.
Twilight spoke slowly, as if even she wasn’t entirely sure what she’d heard. “She said you refused an invitation into the Wonderbolts training squad. They don’t get a lot of refusals, apparently, so she came to me hoping to find out why you’d do that. I told her I had no idea. You’ve been trying to get in for as long as I’ve known you.” Twilight waited, but Rainbow didn’t respond. “Rainbow? Is it the same problem? You’re scared of the change?”
“I’m not scared,” Rainbow snapped. She turned her head away, facing a book-filled corner of the room. “But I can’t have both, can I? I’d have to move to the ‘Bolts base in Cloudsdale. I can’t be a Wonderbolt and be with ‘Shy.”
There was silence for a few moments. Then Twilight gently said, “I understand now. It’s not just the fear of change. You’re scared of choosing between Fluttershy and your dreams.” She put a hoof on Rainbow’s shoulder. “There’s no easy way to say this. Neither one is going to wait much longer, Rainbow. Maybe you need to ask yourself: if you’re out of time and you really, truly have to choose …”
“If I’m out of time and I really, truly have to choose,” said Dash, “then it isn’t even a question.”
Rainbow got to her feet and nodded at the alicorn. “Thanks, Twi’. I know what I’m doing now.” Dash stepped out onto the balcony and dove into the air.
Given how long they’d been talking, Spitfire couldn’t have left the palace long ago. She should still be – There! Rainbow caught a glimpse of the standout orange mane walking down a street just beyond the palace grounds.
Rainbow’s wings ached with exhaustion, but still they propelled her after her charge. She caught the fiery pegasus as she was turning onto a main thoroughfare. “Spitfire!”
Spitfire turned toward the voice and her eyebrows rose. “Rainbow Dash? Is there something I can do for you?”
“No,” Rainbow said as she landed in front of Spitfire and set her hooves proudly. “There’s nothing you can do for me. There’s no way I’m leaving Ponyville, so you can just forget having me on your team.”
Spitfire lowered her shades and stared. After a few seconds, Rainbow shifted uncomfortably. “Yeah, uh. That’s what I wanted to say.”
“You just flew all the way from Ponyville to Canterlot at high speed, right?”
“… Yeah.”
“You do that regularly?”
“Sure. I mean, not usually that fast. I’ve flown back and forth a few times to help Twi’ move in. It only takes like an hour with a good wind.”
“You frequently fly between nearby cities, and consider it routine travel, and yet you think you would be required to leave Ponyville to join the ‘Bolts. Seriously.”
Rainbow paused. Her ears flicked. “Don’t all the Wonderbolts live and work in Cloudsdale?”
“It’s typical, yes, but our typical trainee can’t fly like you can fly, Rainbow Dash. Even if it was in the rulebooks, which it isn’t, we are always willing to make accommodations for a good recruit.” Spitfire straightened her shades. “You can join the ‘Bolts and still live in Ponyville. You will simply be required to fly to base in the morning and return home in the evening, assuming, of course, that you can handle it after a hard day’s training. That’s your responsibility.”
“So … That’s it? That’s all my problems solved?”
“Far as I’m concerned, there never were any problems. Why? Do you want there to be a problem?”
“Of course not!” Dash stepped back and half-spread her wings. “Why would I want there to be a problem?”
“Rainbow Dash, if you don’t want to join my team, that's your prerogative. You don’t need an excuse. If you’re looking for an excuse, then it sounds to me like there’s something in your life you need to sort out. That’s on you.” Spitfire stepped past Rainbow, then paused a moment more. “Consider your prior invitation to be valid again. I await your written response. Excuse me.”
Rainbow watched in silence as Spitfire continued down the street.
The cafe was crowded and noisy, packed with ponies having their lunches, all trying to talk over each other as well as over the noisy coffee machine. Normally Fluttershy hated this place, but today it faded to a mere background dislike. Fluttershy was smiling so much her cheeks were hurting, and every time she thought her smile might fade, another pegasus pony trotted past and complimented her on her great flying today.
And then, of course, there was Rainbow’s reaction.
“You. Are so. Awesome!” Rainbow said for the thirtieth time today. “We only had seven hundred and ninety-five wingpower! I thought we weren’t going to make it! And then you flew in and, whoosh, eight hundred! The whole reservoir sucked straight up!” Rainbow’s hooves mimed out the story as she went, nearly knocking over a waitress pony as she passed.
Fluttershy blushed, again, and looked down into her coffee, again. “I only added five wingpower or so …”
“Which is ten times what you had when we started training.” Rainbow banged the table for emphasis. “I’ve never seen anypony improve that fast. That must have taken serious guts. You are so awesome,” she said for the thirty-first time today.
Fluttershy looked up through her bangs. Rainbow Dash was looking at her, grinning unabashedly. Fluttershy licked her lips and said, “You’re pretty awesome, too, Rainbow.”
“Aw, come on.” Rainbow waved her hoof and winked. “Everypony already knows that.”
Fluttershy giggled. “There’s, um. There’s a lot to like about you. There’s … a lot I like about you.”
“Why are you going on about me? This is your day, ‘Shy.”
“Do you remember, a few years ago … I said I loved you?”
Rainbow’s smile died. “Yeah. I remember.”
“… Is something wrong, Rainbow?”
Rainbow shook her head. “No. No, I mean, there’s nothing wrong at all. Things are fine the way they are, Fluttershy. You’re the best friend I could ever have. Can’t this wait?”
Fluttershy swallowed. “Y-yes, Rainbow Dash. It can wait.” She sighed and pushed her coffee cup away, suddenly uninterested. At least her cheeks didn’t hurt anymore, since she wasn’t smiling.
Her ears flattened against her head. It was too noisy. She hated this cafe.
*
Rainbow Dash lay on the floor of her home. She had closed up the windows, but daylight still leaked through the cloudy walls.
In her hooves, she held a Wonderbolts figurine. It was a little model of Sunspear, one of the greatest ‘Bolts who ever lived. She had one hoof extended in front of her, and her wings were in mid-beat. She was held up in the air by a thin rod connected to the base. It was meant to look like she was racing through the sky.
She wasn’t really. She was just a figurine. She never went anywhere. If she was flying, she was flying in place.
Rainbow Dash was flying in place, too.
Even knowing that she didn’t have to completely abandon her friends to join the Wonderbolts, she still hesitated. She’d come up with a million reasons why. She wasn’t a good enough flier yet. She had responsibilities on the weather patrol. She didn’t have the free time. She didn’t want to cramp her style.
But none of that was really why.
And somehow, even as her mind kept circling around and around over the Wonderbolts, it kept going back to ‘Shy. She saw so many scenes from her memories, heard so many hopeful and trembling words. How long had Dash known? How long had she just … put it off? Yeah, what they had now was fine, but when had Rainbow Dash ever settled for “fine”? She couldn’t even think of an excuse for that one, and she was good at excuses.
The choice she’d made had been easy. Sacrificing a dream had been easy. Making a dream real, though? Maybe Twi’ was right. Maybe she was scared of changing things. Messing things up.
Rainbow was never scared. That was her rule. Fear was totally uncool. She feared nothing and nopony. But if she was scared …
Fluttershy was practically always scared. But Fluttershy faced her fear, time and time again. Fluttershy stared down a dragon. Fluttershy flew the tornado. Fluttershy confessed her feelings.
If there was one pony in all of Equestria who Rainbow Dash could borrow bravery from, it was Fluttershy.
Rainbow put down the figurine and flew to the door. There were some things she needed to get ready.
*
Later that day, as the Sun got low in the sky, Rainbow Dash returned to Fluttershy’s house. This time the pegasus answered the door herself. She stiffened when she saw Rainbow.
“Hey, ‘Shy. Could you come with me?”
“Um. I really need to feed the, um, otters soon …”
Dash didn’t keep very good track of when Fluttershy fed the animals, but she didn’t think otters got fed at sunset. “It’s kind of important,” she said.
Fluttershy scuffed the floor with a hoof. “Okay.”
Rainbow turned and took off. A few seconds passed before she heard Fluttershy take wing behind her.
The two pegasi flew across Ponyville. Rainbow kept looking back to make sure Fluttershy was still following, and Rainbow’s own hooves kept fidgeting, crossing and uncrossing as she flew. Soon enough they closed in on a fluffy white cumulus with a small spring of rainbow on it. The rainbow poured over the edge, leaving a narrow pillar of brilliant colour beneath the cloud.
Rainbow landed on the cloud and waited for Fluttershy to land beside her. “Alright. Now just wait.”
“For how long?”
Rainbow Dash froze. She turned to look at Fluttershy. The yellow pegasus had a frown on her face, but it was a calm frown. Resigned.
“Thirty seconds,” Dash said. Not waiting to see Fluttershy’s reaction, she turned and flung herself off the cloud.
She dropped down to ground level, stopping a ways away at a thornless rose bush she’d made sure was nearby. She snatched up a rose between her teeth and turned back around. In the distance, the rainbow fall sparkled in the sunlight like a many-coloured beacon. Dash lined herself up, crouched low, and launched herself forward at full power. If this was gunna look any good, she had to be going fast .
Rainbow barrelled across the landscape. She worked her wings harder and faster. Wind whistled through her ears and pushed back against her body. She drew her legs in, more aerodynamic, and pushed harder still. She felt the wind cone building around her, clipping at her primaries. Narrower. Harder. Faster.
Fluttershy’s cloud raced up above her. Dash closed her eyes and slammed through the rainbow falls. At this speed the impact stung, like she’d flown through a hail of gravel instead of bowdrops.
She flared her wings and tilted them back, braking rapidly and swooping up into the sky. And her mouth was hot hot hothothothot–
Dash landed on the cloud and dropped the rose in front of Fluttershy. Then she started spitting and coughing.
“Rainbow!” said Fluttershy. “Are you okay?”
Dash wiped her mouth with a foreleg. “Yeah, I’m fine,” she croaked. “Just got some rainbow in my mouth.” She gagged and spat again.
Fluttershy gave a dainty little snort. Then she giggled. Then she laughed harder, covering her muzzle with her hooves. Dash glared at her incredulously before she snorted and began to laugh as well. She flopped down next to the other pegasus, rolling onto her back as her sides heaved.
It felt good to laugh together like that. It felt like the wall they’d built between each other over the last week had come tumbling down.
Eventually the laughter died down and the two pegasi lay side by side on the cloud. Fluttershy peered over the edge of the cloud, down at the rainbow fall. “Why did you do that, Rainbow?”
Dash shrugged. “I was trying to get some proper spray. You know, like the big falls at the top of Cloudsdale. Looks like it all went away too soon, though.”
“Oh.” And then again, quieter: “oh.” Fluttershy’s cheeks turned a little pink beneath her fur. “Just like when we were fillies … Is this what I think it is, Rainbow?”
“I hope so. ‘Cause otherwise I’m gunna look pretty dumb in a few minutes.”
Fluttershy looked down at the rose, still flecked with bowdrops in every colour. “And you brought me …”
“Yeah. Uh, don’t pick it up. Might be a bit spicy.”
Fluttershy giggled again, but quietly this time. Her eyes turned back to the view. Ponyville stretched out before them, with rolling green hills and little cottages with thatched rooves and pastel ponies going this way and that by the golden light of sunset.
Dash watched Fluttershy’s eyes roam. “You don’t really want to leave Ponyville, do you?”
Fluttershy shook her head. “I’ve, um. I’ve been sitting on that job invitation for a while. I never planned to accept it until last week. There’s too much I love here.”
“Like what?”
Fluttershy glanced at Dash, then looked away again. “That’s a leading question, Rainbow.”
Dash snorted. “Yeah, well, guess what. I’m leading you. So, like what?”
“I love … Ponyville itself, the town and the river and the grasses and the woods … I love all the little animals … I love our pony friends …” Fluttershy turned to face the blue pegasus and said softly, “And I love you, Rainbow Dash. But you already know that.”
Dash nodded. She finally tore her own eyes away from Fluttershy to look at the town. Her throat seemed suddenly tight. “Could those things make you stay?”
“That’s up to them.”
They let a few minutes pass in silence. The two pegasi sat beside each other like they hadn’t done in a week, simply watching the village below.
Rainbow licked her lips and took a deep breath. “If I join the Wonderbolts … things will be different. I can still live here, but either way I’ll have to spend a lot of time at base in Cloudsdale to train. You won’t see much of me.”
“I’ve always known that, Rainbow.”
“You’re fine with that?”
“No,” said Fluttershy. Rainbow’s head snapped around. Fluttershy gave a tiny smile and continued, “I’m not fine with it. It frightens me, to think of you so far away, flying so dangerously. But not as much as some other things frighten me. Things like you giving up and settling for what you have. I fell in love with the Rainbow Dash who never stops dreaming, and always strives to make her dreams real.”
“Well, I …” Rainbow faltered. She gave an annoyed flick of her tail, swallowed, and tried again. “Sometimes those dreams are scary, you know? Even I can get intimidated. A little. Sometimes. But I fell in … I fell in love with the Fluttershy who never stops caring, and always tries to make others feel just as strong as she is. I fell in love with the Fluttershy who was always there to cheer for me and make me dream, and who’s here now to make me wanna take this chance.”
Fluttershy stared at her. Her face turned bright pink and she lowered her head, letting her mane slip in front of her eyes. “Is that true?” she whispered.
Rainbow reached out and gently brushed Fluttershy’s bangs aside. She picked up the rose and tucked it behind the yellow pony’s ear. “I love you, Fluttershy. Do you wanna go out with me?”
“Yes,” Fluttershy breathed. “Yes, Rainbow, I do.”
“Then let’s go. We’ll find a nice restaurant or something. Candlelight and all that sappy stuff.”
Fluttershy blinked and drew back. “R-right now?”
“No more waiting.” Rainbow grinned, and gradually, Fluttershy grinned back.
*
A few months later …
Rainbow Dash was exhausted. Every muscle in her body was on fire, and every bone felt like jelly. She beat her burning wings as slowly as she dared, gradually losing altitude as the cool evening air flowed through her feathers and mane.
It was getting dark, and the stars were coming out. But as she closed in on the sleepy little village of Ponyville, one house was lit up like a beacon.
Dash stopped flapping entirely and let herself descend into the branches of Twilight’s library. Her hooves connected with a wooden balcony, and her legs nearly buckled beneath her, but she managed to keep her footing.
The ponies inside heard her land, and within a few moments they found her and flung open the door for her. They cheered her name and drew her inside with hugs and hoofbumps and the promise of hot chocolate.
“Oh, Rainbow Dash, you look simply wretched!” said Rarity cheerfully. “Are you well?”
Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Yeah, we got pushed pretty hard today. But nothing the Dash can’t handle.”
“You sure about that, Dash?” said Applejack. “We can always have the party another day.”
“And you’re the one to lecture me about working to hard, right, AJ?”
While the farmer guffawed, Rainbow locked eyes with the pegasus across the room. Fluttershy smiled. Rainbow smiled back. They each crossed into the centre of the room, and Rainbow heard the distinctive sound of her friends pretending not to be there.
They drew each other into a kiss. Fluttershy’s lips were warm and soft, and she smelled the weird mixed smells of spa perfume and animal fur. And she was so, so beautiful.
“Happy birthday, ‘Shy.”
“Welcome home, Rainbow.”
“Love ya’.”
“I love you too.”
They turned back to their friends in time for Twilight to levitate them each a cup of hot chocolate. Applejack put on some country music. Pinkie started suggesting silly games. Rarity brought out Fluttershy’s presents. Spike ate more sweets than he really should have. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy never left each other’s sides.
It was a pretty good party.
