Fleeting Romance

Chapters

Chapter 2: Chance Encounter
Chapter 3: What Are the Odds?
Chapter 4: Lectures and Lies
Chapter 5: Where We Stand
Chapter 6: Meet the Team Part One - Introductions
Chapter 7: Meet the Team Part Two - The Dinner
Chapter 8: Self-Doubt
Chapter 9: I Smell a Rat
Chapter 10: Where Do We Go From Here?
Chapter 11: The Game Plan
Final Chapter: Let the Games Begin!
Epilogue: The New Arrival
Chapter 1: Who Are the Wonderbolts?

Chapter 2: Chance Encounter

The human and the pegasus looked at each other silently for a second before one of them spoke up.

“I guess I should watch where I’m going, huh?” Fleetfoot chuckled.

“Nah, I wasn’t watching where I was going, either,” said Cory. “Wait, you look familiar. Have we met before?”

“I doubt it,” said the mare. “I haven’t met many humans, so I probably would’ve remembered you.” She gave the human a good look and saw that he was as small as she was. She couldn’t help but smile at that.

“Oh,” he said. “Well, you do look familiar… Oh, wait! You were on TV this morning! You’re one of the Wonderbolts, right?”

“Ah, that,” Fleetfoot said, thinking that Cory was another fan. The Wonderbolts had been garnering human admirers lately. “I’m guessing you want an autograph?”

“Oh, no. I wouldn’t want to be a bother,” he said. “Besides, I’m not really into the whole sports scene. I don’t even know the names of any the members.”

“Well, you can start with me,” the pegasus said with a smile. “My name’s Fleetfoot.”

“Nice to meet you, Fleetfoot,” said the human. “My name is Cory. Maybe I’ll see you around while your team is staying here?” With that, Fleetfoot said goodbye to Cory and continued on towards Bite of Heaven. As she walked, though, she got that strange feeling that someone was following her. She turned around to see Cory walking a couple of feet behind her.

“I’m not following you, if that’s what you’re thinking,” he said.

“I hope not,” she joked. “I wouldn’t want to be followed on my way to the diner.”

Cory’s eyebrows rose at this. “Really? I was heading to a diner, too. Which one are you headed to?”

“Bite of Heaven,” she answered. “One of my teammates recommended it to me.”

“That’s where I’m headed, too,” said Cory. “My roommate took me there once.”

Fleetfoot smiled at him and decided to use this coincidence to keep from having to sit alone at a table. “Wanna sit together? It beats sitting by myself,” she decided.

“By yourself?” Cory asked. “I assumed that you were going there to meet up with your teammates.”

“Nah,” said Fleetfoot. “Some of them are at the hotel and others are at the gym. Apparently I’m the only one that wants to enjoy our time here in Canterlot. So, my offer still stands; wanna sit with me?”

Cory was taken aback by the request. It’s not every day that a celebrity asks you to have a meal with them, let alone so casually. “Oh…” he said apprehensively. “Well, would that really be a good idea? I mean, if anypony saw us together, rumors of a secret relationship would spread like wildfire.”

Fleetfoot showed a small smile. “Don’t worry, I have the perfect solution,” said the pegasus. She runs her hands through her mane several times so that it’d stay down instead of retaining its wind-blown look. She then took a box of contacts out of her pocket and put the contacts in her eyes, making them appear pink rather than the usual green. To top it off, she put on a set of fake glasses. “Ta-da!” she said.

“Wow,” Cory said, “so even non-unicorn ponies can easily disguise themselves.”

“Yup, all you need is a clever mind,” she said. “Well, let’s go get a table.”

Fleetfoot and Cory walked into the diner and asked for a table. The mare at the front of the establishment raised her eyebrow at Fleetfoot for a moment, but she shook her head and led the duo to a table.

“Oh, man. I thought she saw through your disguise for a sec,” said Cory.

“That hasn’t happened for a while,” said Fleetfoot. “She’s a smart one, that mare.”

“Who are you, James Bond?” he joked.

“Who?” she asked.

“Oh… he’s a fictional character from human films,” Cory said meekly. “Well, that joke went down the drain,” he thought.

“I’m screwing with you, man,” she said with a laugh. “I’ve watched my fair share of films from the human world.”

Cory nervously chuckled. Fleetfoot’s casualness was… disarming, to say the least. She was acting as though she’d been his friend for the longest time.

“C’mon, Cory. Throw me a bone here,” she said. “At least give me a genuine smile.”

“Oh, sorry…” said Cory. “I’m just a little… intimidated, is all.”

“Intimidated? By me?” Fleetfoot asked. “You’re funny. I know I’m a famous flyer, but right now, I’m just a regular mare.”

“Okay, well, how about we try and get to know each other, then,” Cory said, trying to man up.

“Now we’re getting somewhere,” said Fleetfoot. “Since you already kinda know who I am, why don’t you tell me about yourself first?”

“Okay,” Cory said. “Well, I’m a transfer student at Canterlot University, and I’ve been living here for two months.”

“College kid, huh?” said Fleetfoot. “So how do you like Equestria?”

“To be honest, I really like it,” the human admitted, finally getting comfortable. “It’s a lot livelier than my hometown, for sure, and I was really desperate for a change of scenery before the move.”

“Interesting,” said the mare. “Have you declared a major yet?”

“Nah, not yet,” he said. “I’m not really sure what I want to do with my life. I know I’m only nineteen years old, so I shouldn’t rush things, but I just feel that there’s something more out there for me.”

“Nineteen, huh?” Fleetfoot thought. “I think it’d be best if I didn’t tell him that I’m four years older than him. I might intimidate him again.”

“I’m actually kind of jealous of ponies,” Cory admitted.

Fleetfoot was simply just trying to get Cory to relax, but now she was intrigued. “Jealous of ponies?” she asked. “How so?”

“Well, you figure out what your purpose in life when you’re little,” Cory explained. “When you’re a human, finding out what you’re destined to be can end up to be an endless cycle of trial and error. I just don’t feel like going through that cycle.”

Fleetfoot was surprised at what Cory said. It was a perspective that she’d never heard before. Then again, she hasn’t had many conversations with humans, or any other non-pony species, for that matter. After mulling it over for a minute, she finally had a response. “I’d have to disagree,” she said. “I think that half the fun of finding your purpose lies within the search.”

Cory chuckled. “It’s not often that you hear such a profound statement from an athlete.”

“The same could be said for a nineteen-year-old, Cory,” Fleetfoot retorted.

“Well, enough about me and my lack of a life,” he said. “I know you get this question a lot, but what is your life like?”

“Actually, I don’t usually get that question,” she answered. Whenever I make an appearance with the other Wonderbolts, all the questions go to either Spitfire or Soarin. They’re pretty much all most of the fans talk about, aside from the hardcore buffs that know all our stats by heart.”

“I guess it sucks to be the one that doesn’t stand out,” Cory said with a consoling voice.

“Oh, no. It’s nothing like that at all,” Fleetfoot says, waving her hands in front of her. “Sure, Spitfire and Soarin get a lot of attention, but I have my fair share of fans. Besides, neither of them let the popularity go to their heads. We’re all like a big family, a big, dysfunctional family.”

Cory laughed. “Really, now? So I guess it’s not that bad, then.”

“Not at all,” Fleetfoot laughed back. “You know, there’s one thing that not many fans know.”

“And what’s that?” the human asked.

“I was the first pony Spitfire recruited to be on the team,” said the mare. “We’ve been best friends since foalhood.”

“Really?” he said. “That’s interesting.”

“You know, Cory, I’m gonna be honest with you,” said Fleetfoot. “At first, your quietness was starting to bore me, but I gotta say that you’re pretty interesting.”

“Well, that’s not something I hear often,” he said. “What makes you think I’m interesting, Fleetfoot?”

“You’re a guy searching for his purpose in life,” she said with a matter-of-fact tone. “How could that not be interesting? Like I said, half the fun of finding your purpose is the search.”

The waitress finally came and took Cory and Fleetfoot’s orders. She gave Fleetfoot the same look she received from the mare that seated them, and like said mare, she shook her head and walked off.

“I don’t think your disguise is as effective as you claim it to be,” Cory snickered.

“Oh, whatever,” said Fleetfoot.

She and Cory continued to converse over their lunch, and when the bill came, Cory took out his wallet. “It’s only fair that I pay my half of the bill,” he said.

“Nah, I got you. Consider it as a thank you for making my lunch more enjoyable,” Fleetfoot said.

“Oh, I can’t accept that,” Cory said modestly.

“Just shut up and take the favor, kid,” the mare chuckled.

“Alright, alright,” he said. “And where do you get off calling me kid? You can’t be that much older than me.”

“Care to take a guess?” she said as she paid the bill and got out of her seat.

“Most females usually don’t allow guys to guess their age, but I’ll give it a shot,” he said, accepting the challenge. “Twenty-one.”

“Twenty-three.” Fleetfoot corrected.

“Heh, most ladies would just say ‘Yes, I am twenty-one,’” said Cory as he and Fleetfoot walked out of the diner.

“Well, I look the same way now as I did two years ago, so it’s no difference to me,” she said, waving it off.

Cory smiled at the mare. This was arguably the most interesting lunch he’s had since moving to the pony world. “It was nice meeting you, Fleetfoot,” he said. “Thanks for picking up the tab.”

“Don’t mention it, man,” she said. “Thanks for making my lunch less lonely. Oh, and it was nice meeting you, too. Maybe I’ll run into you again sometime, Cory.”

“Maybe,” he said. “See you around.” With that, Fleetfoot and Cory parted ways; Fleetfoot was headed back to the hotel, and Cory headed back to his house.

“Well, I see the house doesn’t look like a war zone,” Gaffer said as he returned home to see Cory playing a video game.

“You really should have more faith in me,” said the human. “I may not be that old, but I’m responsible.”

The unicorn scoffed. “You didn’t stay in here and play video games all day, did you?” he asked.

“No, I also watched TV and took a nap,” Cory retorted.

“Very funny,” said Gaffer.

“Joking aside, though, I did leave to get some fresh air,” said Cory. “I went to Bite of Heaven.”

“By yourself?” Gaffer asked as he took a seat next to his roommate. “You must’ve looked real lonely in there.”

“Actually, I wasn’t alone,” Cory corrected. “There was somepony with me.”

“Really?” the unicorn asked. “Who?”

Cory was about to answer, but then he realized that he was about to tell Gaffer that he went out to lunch with a celebrity. A comment like that would most likely garner some questions from the unicorn, questions that Cory did not feel like answering.

“You don’t need to know her name,” he said.

“Her? You went to lunch with a girl?” Gaffer asked in disbelief.

“Why do you sound so shocked?” Cory asked, feeling a little offended.

“Well, it’s just that you don’t have any female friends here that I know of, so it’s a bit of a surprise,” the unicorn said.

Cory grunted. He really dodged a bullet there. He would eventually tell Gaffer about who he had lunch with, but he’d do that later, when he was more in the mood to play Twenty Questions. In the meantime, he reflected on his afternoon. In contrast to Cory’s usual idea of celebrities, Fleetfoot seemed really down to earth. She also seemed to be pretty insightful, her remark about “half the fun bring in the search” sticking in his mind the most. He wouldn’t mind running into her again. It’d be nice to have somepony other than Gaffer to have a good conversation with.

But she was a famous athlete with a schedule. What were the odds of that happening?

“Ah, that was a good workout!” Spitfire said as she entered her and Fleetfoot’s room, where Fleetfoot was lying on her bed, reading a magazine.

“If you’re trying to get me to feel guilty about not going to the gym with you, you’ll have to try harder,” she said.

“C’mon, Fleetie. You know I’m not like that,” said the captain. “If you didn’t want to go, you didn’t want to go.” She sighed. “You did miss out on an awesome post-workout shower, though. Canterlot Gym has the most awesome showers!”

“You made sure that Soarin wasn’t peeping, I hope,” Fleetfoot said, chuckling to herself.

“You know he doesn’t have the stones,” Spitfire scoffed.

“You wish he did, though,” the smaller mare said, looking up at the larger one with half-lidded eyes.

“Quit doing that,” said Spitfire.

“I don’t see why you two broke up when you both still liked each other,” Fleetfoot said. “I mean, if you both love each other, and there were no complications, then why break it off?”

“There was a complication, Fleetfoot,” Spitfire corrected. “Our careers. We couldn’t have a serious relationship AND focus on our responsibilities to the team.”

“Why not?” the blue pegasus asked. “The main strain on relationships involving athletes is the separation when one of them has to go away for a long period of time. Since you two are on the same team, that problem is nonexistent.”

“It’s more complicated than that,” Spitfire lamented. “There’s also the constant hounding from paparazzi, and whenever we made an appearance while we were together, the questions would always gravitate towards our relationship. With all that in mind, Soarin and I decided to end it before the stress made us say things that we’d end up regretting.”

Fleetfoot sighed. “I don’t know why you two would willingly suffer through that. If you ask me, I’d say that it would’ve worked out.”

“That was one risk that I’m not willing to take,” said Spitfire, her eyes then took notice of Fleetfoot’s discarded contacts case and fake glasses. “Did you go out today, Fleetie?” she asked.

“Oh, yeah. Just went out for a quick bite to eat,” she said. “I ran into this guy and we ended up eating together?”

“Oh really,” the captain said with a raised eyebrow. She took a seat on the bed and got her ears ready. “Spill.”

“He was a human,” said Fleetfoot. “Nice kid, nineteen, college student, and he was a pretty good conversationalist once I got him to open up.”

“Wow. Didn’t take you long to tell me at all,” said Spitfire.

“You’re my best friend, Spit,” said the small mare. “You know there are no secrets between us.”

“Well, I’m glad you didn’t spend your lunch sitting at a table by yourself,” Spitfire said as she got off the bed.

Fleetfoot chuckled as she thought back to earlier that afternoon. Cory seemed to be a cool guy. He was a nice contrast to Soarin and Rapidfire’s gruff natures. Sure, he wasn’t sure of what to do with his life, but like he said, humans don’t have it as easy as ponies when it comes to that. All in all, Fleetfoot wouldn’t mind getting to meet him again.

But he was a college student with a schedule. What were the odds of that happening?

Chapter 3: What Are the Odds?

“Fleetfoot!? You had lunch with Fleetfoot!?” Gaffer exclaimed in disbelief. It was the day after Cory met the aforementioned mare. He was at work at the comic book store, and he had just told Gaffer who his lunch companion was.

“Will you be quiet?”Cory said with a hushed yell. “This is exactly why I didn’t tell you the first time you asked me. I didn’t want to spend my time answering all your questions.”

“I only have a few,” said the unicorn.

“Well, make it quick,” said the human.

“What was she like?”

“Not what I was expecting. She was really relaxed, almost too relaxed. She was also pretty smart, too.”

“Did you get an autograph?”

“No. I didn’t want to bother her.”

Gaffer looked at Cory with an unamused face. “I swear to Celestia, I almost jumped over this table and punched you in the face.”

“Don’t be such a fanboy,” said the human. “I was lucky enough to have her offer to eat with me and cover the bill out of her own pocket. I didn’t want to push it.”

“Well, you got a point there…” said Gaffer.

Meanwhile, Fleetfoot was walking through the city, undisguised, talking to somepony on the phone. “Remind me again of the name of that book you wanted, Soarin?”

“C’mon, Fleetfoot. It’s not that hard to remember,” said the stallion on the other line. “Kick-Flank 3, Issue#2, Cover Variant #4-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” the mare interrupted. “You actually care about which cover art you want?”

“For collector’s value!”

“Why not just wait for the digest edition with ALL the covers to come out?”

“IT’S NOT THE SAME!!!”

“Alright, alright, chill…” said Fleetfoot. “I’ll get you your precious comic, okay?”

“Thank you,” Soarin said, calming down a little.

“So where’s the comic book store again?” she asked. “I heard they changed locations- oh wait, never mind. I found it.” Fleetfoot found herself staring at the sign for the store. “I’ll call you back when I find it, okay?” she said.

“Alright,” said Soarin.

Fleetfoot entered the store and made her way to the checkout counter. She saw a unicorn talking to a human clerk with dark skin, short black hair, and bluish-green eyes- wait a second.

“Cory?” she asked.

The clerk raised his head and looked at her. “Fleetfoot?” he asked.

“Hey! What’s up! Who knew that you worked here?” she said.

“Yeah,” he said. “I don’t normally work on Sundays, but one of my coworkers called in sick so I had to cover his shift.”

Gaffer simply stood there in awe, his mouth hanging agape. Was Cory having an idle conversation with one of the Wonderbolts? Impossible!

“Oh, this is my roommate, Gaffer,” said Cory. “As you can tell from his idiotic expression, he’s quite the fan.”

“Oh right,” she said, turning to face the unicorn. “Cory mentioned you yesterday.”

Gaffer continued to silently stand there, so Cory smacked him across the fact to get his brain working again. “Oh, he did, did he?” he said, finally getting it together.

“Yeah. He mentioned that you were a big fan of the Wonderbolts,” she said.

“Well, I’m a little familiar with you guys, yes,” he said modestly.

“Riiiiiiiiiiiight,” Fleetfoot said with a raised eyebrow. “Would you like an autograph?”

Gaffer tries and nearly failed to contain a squeal, but then he cleared his throat. “Sure, why not?” he said, trying to sound like he wasn’t about to burst with excitement. He took an autograph book and a pen out of his back pocket and handed both items to Fleetfoot. She and Cory both raised an eyebrow at the fact that Gaffer has such items on hand, but they decided not to ask. Fleetfoot signed the unicorn’s book and handed it back to him.

“Thanks,” Gaffer said as he stowed the book and the pen back in his pockets. “Well, Cory, I gotta get going. See you after you get off work, kay?”

“Sure,” Cory said as Gaffer walked out of the store. As soon as the door closed behind him, he and Fleetfoot could see the unicorn jump for joy like a colt that finally got that video game he wanted. He then ran off in the direction of the house, most likely to frame the autograph he just received.

“Your roommate is a trip, Cory,” she said.

“Who’re you telling?” he laughed. “So, what brings you to Canterlot Comics?”

“Soarin wanted me to get him a specific edition of a certain comic. Kick-Flank 3, Issue#2, Cover Variant #4,” she said.

“I think we just got those in stock,” Cory said as he led Fleetfoot to where the comic in question was.

“Can you not give it to me so I can fuck with Soarin and say that you didn’t have it in stock?” she asked. “It’ll totally ruin his day.”

“He wants the book that badly?” he asked in disbelief.

“Oh, you should’ve heard him on the phone!” she laughed. “He was whining like a foal! Before I left the hotel, he went on and on about how much he needed it for his collection.”

“Well, I wouldn’t want you to cause him that much distress,” Cory said as he took the comic off the shelf. “Follow me to the counter and I’ll ring you up.”

“You’re no fun,” Fleetfoot said, sticking her tongue out at Cory.

“Well, I’d rather make a sale than have you punking one of your teammates,” he said. “I have a job, you know.”

“Point taken,” she said as Cory rung her up.

“Six bits,” he said.

“So Soarin owes me six bits then,” said the mare as she handed the money to him. Cory put the comic in a plastic sleeve, put the sleeved comic in a plastic bag, and handed the bag to Fleetfoot.

“Thanks, Cory,” she said. “Nice seeing you again.”

“Same here,” he smiled.

Fleetfoot smiled and headed towards the door, but then she stopped and turned to look at Cory again. “You know,” she said, “since we’ve run into each other two days in a row, why don’t we exchange phone numbers? It’d be nice to have someone outside of the Wonderbolts to hang out with.”

Cory was a little surprised at this; yet another instance of Fleetfoot’s casualness. Even so, his only friend in Canterlot, in Equestria, even, was Gaffer. Maybe being friends with a Wonderbolt will expand his social circle.

“Uh… sure,” he said as he took out his phone. After exchanging numbers, Cory decided to take a chance, just like Fleetfoot did when she asked for his number in the first place.

“Well, I don’t have work tomorrow, and all my classes are in the morning that day, as well, so if you’re free tomorrow afternoon… you want to catch an early movie?”

Fleetfoot chuckled. “Sure, why not? I’m gonna be training tomorrow morning, so I’ll stop at noon and get ready to meet you around… one-thirty?”

“Sounds good,” Cory said. “See you then.”

Fleetfoot smiled and left the store to head back to the hotel, where Soarin was impatiently waiting for his comic.

“Welcome back, Cory,” Gaffer said as his roommate walked into the house.

“Hey, G,” said Cory. “Did you get your autograph laminated yet?”

The unicorn rolled his eyes. “No, the office supply store was closed for the day.”

“Aww, that’s too bad,” Cory said with a mocking voice. Just then, his phone vibrated in his pocket and let out a ring. He took a look at the phone and saw that he had gotten a message from Fleetfoot.

“Just checking 2 make sure u didn’t give me a fake number :)”

Cory smiled and sent a message back:

“I was just wondering if u did the same 2 me. lol.”

“Who was that?” Gaffer asked.

“No one, Dad,” Cory said sarcastically.

“C’mon, tell me,” the unicorn pleaded. “I just want to know who it is.”

“Is your life so lacking that you need to find entertainment in knowing who I’m texting with?”

“Yes, and I have no shame.”

Cory rolled his eyes and walked past Gaffer. “You’re pathetic. I’m heading upstairs,” he said dismissively.

The unicorn smirked and used his magic to take the phone out of Cory’s hands. “HEY!” he said as he dived at Gaffer, knocking them both to the ground. The two of them ended up fighting for possession of Cory’s cell phone. Eventually, Cory was able to pry the phone out of Gaffer’s hands and ran upstairs, only to be tripped by the unicorn’s magic at the halfway point. He tumbled down the staircase and lost his grip on the phone. Gaffer victoriously walked over to Cory and picked the phone up off the ground.

“You dick…” Cory said weakly.

“You should’ve given me the phone the first time I asked,” Gaffer said in a matter-of-fact manner. He looked at the cell phone and his jaw dropped for the second time that day.

“No. Fucking. Way,” he said in disbelief. “You got Fleetfoot’s number!? How? When? Where? Why?”

Cory sighed as he lied on the ground, and answered the questions in order. “Yes, she gave it to me, earlier today, at the comic store, and she wanted someone other than her teammates to hang out with.”

“And she chose you?” asked the unicorn.

“Somepony’s jealous,” the human chuckled.

“Am not!” Gaffer said defensively.

“I guess I shouldn’t tell him that I’m going to a movie with Fleetfoot tomorrow,” Cory thought as he got up off the floor. “Well, now that you know who I was texting, can I have my phone back?”

“Sure, whatever,” the unicorn said as he handed back the phone. “I’m gonna go upstairs.”

Gaffer walked past Cory and headed up to his room. Just then, Cory felt another vibration, this time coming from his stomach.

“I guess I can cook some hay fries in the oven,” he said to himself.

Meanwhile, at Garden Ridge Hotel, Fleetfoot was lying on the floor in her room, clutching her stomach.

“You bitch…” she said weakly.

“You should’ve given me the phone the first time I asked,” Spitfire said in a matter-of-fact manner. She looked at the cell phone and raised an eyebrow. “Who’s Cory?” she asked.

Fleetfoot sighed and decided to tell her. “He’s the human I met at the diner yesterday. He works at the store that I got Soarin’s comic from.”

“So you guys exchanged numbers, then…” said Spitfire. “I guess you guys will be hanging out, then.”

“That’s kinda the point of exchanging numbers,” Fleetfoot said.

“Just don’t’ get distracted, okay?” said the captain. “We have a big day two months from now, and we need to be at the top of our game.”

“I know my responsibilities more than you give me credit for, Spitfire,” the smaller mare said, feeling somewhat offended.

“I’m just saying,” said the larger mare. “I know you’ve been wanting friends outside of the team, but you can’t get distracted. I know firsthand what it’s like to lose focus on what’s important.”

“This isn’t like you and Soarin,” said Fleetfoot. “Cory and I are just friends.”

Just then, there was a knock at the door, both Spitfire and Fleetfoot looked at it with curious expressions. Fleetfoot got up off the floor and went to answer the door. The pony on the other side was a stallion with a gray coat and a white mane and tail that resembled clouds.

“Oh. Hey, Rapidfire,” she said.

“Hi, Fleetfoot,” said the stallion. “You know, I’m free tomorrow after practice, so would you like to hang out with me and walk around the city for a bit?”

“Just us?” the mare asked.

“Well, yeah,” Rapidfire said nervously. “But only because Misty Fly and Blaze are going shopping, and Soarin is gonna be reading his comics over pie, and Spitfire’s probably busy…”

Spitfire raised an eyebrow at this. She wasn’t going to be busy at all after practice.

“I’m sorry, Rapidfire,” Fleetfoot said, “but I’m busy tomorrow, too. Maybe some other time?”

“Sure, just let me know, okay?” the stallion said with a smile.

“Sure thing,” she said as he left. She closed the door and let out a deep sigh.

“So you’re busy tomorrow, huh?” said Spitfire.

“Yeah,” said Fleetfoot. “I was going to catch a movie.”

“With that Cory guy, I’m guessing.”

“No, by myself.”

Spitfire furrowed her brow. “If you’re going by yourself, then why didn’t you just take Rapidfire with you?”

“I enjoy movies better that way,” Fleetfoot said. “Besides, Rapidfire might get the wrong idea.”

“Get the wrong idea? You’re teammates, and it’s not like you guys haven’t hung out before. How could he ‘get the wrong idea’?”

“I don’t know, Spit, I just feel like being alone tomorrow afternoon,” Fleetfoot said, annoyance subtly laced within her tone. She really didn’t want Spitfire to know that she was going to the movies with Cory. If she did, then she’d assume that they were going out, and then she’d get on her soapbox and give her sermon on relationships… again. Thankfully, Spitfire dropped the issue.

“Alright, then,” she said. “We should turn in early so we can get an early start tomorrow morning.”

“Right…” said Fleetfoot. She quietly sighed to herself. I hurt her to lie to her best friend, but it was something she felt that she absolutely had to do. Hopefully her movie would take her mind off of it.

Chapter 4: Lectures and Lies

NOTE: For those that read and liked Chaos Next Door, I think you'll like the beginning of this chapter.

“I’m headed off to class, Gaffer,” Cory said as he got ready to leave the house.

“Alright,” the unicorn said. “I have work today until six, so I won’t be home when you get back.”

“Got it,” Cory said, relieved that his roommate would be gone for practically the entire morning AND afternoon, so he’d be able to get home before Gaffer.

“Later,” he said as he left the house and stopped a taxi carriage. “Hopefully, if all goes well, Gaffer won’t find out about this.” he thought.

When Cory got to Canterlot University, he made his way to the lecture hall where his class, Writing 101, was being held. He got there with a few minutes to spare, so there were only a few students there.

“I guess I can catch up on some reading,” he said to himself. He found a seat and got himself comfortable before taking a book out of his bag. As Cory read it, the time seemed to pass by, and before he knew it, everypony arrived to class and the professor was standing at the lectern. He was a human, one of the few human members of the faculty, at that. He was a middle aged, light-skinned man with brown hair and a beard, and a stocky build. The professor cleared his throat before he began to speak.

“Good morning, class,” he said. “As opposed to my normal lecture, I have brought in a visitor to speak to you, instead. He is a recently published author, and he’ll be telling you about his experience in the field of writing.”

Cory looked up from his book when he heard this. At that moment, another human walked up to the lectern. He was pretty skinny, like Cory, and had fair skin and medium-length black hair. He couldn’t tell his eye color from where he was sitting, though. They looked to be brown. But Cory wasn’t sure.

“Please welcome Mr. Eric Quincy,” the professor said as the class applauded for Eric. Cory recognized his name and looked down at the book he was reading, and sure enough:

“Chaos Next Door, by Eric Quincy,” he mouthed to himself.

“Thank you, Professor Gordon,” Eric said as he took his place at the lectern. “This is my first time presenting to a college class, so bear with me if I mess something up. I’m looking at a lot of you, and you’re not that much younger than me. I’ve been a published writer for six months now, and it’s been a really interesting experience. When I was growing up, I really wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. Even through high school, while my classmates were talking about what they wanted to be, I had no idea in the world what I was going to do.”

If Cory’s interest wasn’t piqued already, it certainly was now. Eric went through the same identity crisis that Cory was going through. “I wonder how he got out of it,” he thought.

“By the time I went to college, I was an undeclared major, and I was totally lost,” Eric continued. “I felt like I was wasting my time as well as my parents’ money.

“I know that feeling,” Cory thought.

“Then one day, I had to do a creative writing project for a class I was taking, and when I started writing it, the words seemed to just flow, like I had a natural talent for it. By the time I had finished the story, I felt the need to write more, so I did just that. I ended up declaring my major in Creative Writing, and the rest was history.”

Eric went on to talk about his experiences in the writing business, but Cory’s mind was stuck on Eric’s backstory. They both went through the same struggles with trying to figure out what they wanted to do, and it gave Cory hope. Maybe he’ll find his purpose soon enough.

By the time the class was over, it was eleven-o-clock, and Cory worked up the bravery to go up to Eric and ask him something.

“Excuse me, Mister Quincy,” Cory said.

“Just Eric is fine,” he said.

“Eric,” Cory corrected himself, “I’m kind of going through the same rut that you went through, and I’m not entirely sure what to do about it. So I was wondering-”

“If I could help you figure out what to do?” Eric said for him. “What’s your name, kid?”

“Cory?”

“And how old are you?”

“Nineteen,”

“Well, Cory, here’s my advice to you:” said the author. “When I found my passion for writing, I didn’t search for it; I let it come to me. You’re still young, man. If you spend your time searching for your passion, you’ll end up more lost than ever. Just relax and let it come to you. You’ll know it when you see it.”

Cory let Eric’s advice sink in for a moment, and then he looked up at him with a smile. “Thanks, Eric.”

“No problem,” he said with a smile. “Want me to sign your book?”

Cory blinked, then looked at the novel in his hand. “Oh, yes. Thank you,” he said gratefully.

“Don’t mention it,” said Eric as he signed the book and handed it back.

Cory smiled as he received the book back from Eric. At that moment, he finally felt at ease about his future. It wasn’t because he found his purpose, but because he knew it would come to him eventually.

Meanwhile at Canterlot Fitness Center, the Wonderbolts had just finished their training session. Fleetfoot purposely took it easy that day so that she wouldn’t be too exhausted and fall asleep during the movie she’d be watching later. She was hoping that nopony would notice, but…

“Hey, Fleetie.” Spitfire said as she and the other mares on the team left the changing room.

“Yeah, Spitfire?”

“I noticed that you weren’t at the top of your game today,” said the captain. “Something the matter?”

“I dunno,” Fleetfoot lied. “I guess I just wasn’t feeling it, today.”

“Alright then,” said Spitfire. “I’m sure you’ll get it out of your system by the time the competition comes.”

“Right,” Fleetfoot said, letting Spitfire believe what she wanted to believe. “Well, I’ll see you guys later. I gotta go,”

“Go where?” Rapidfire asked out of nowhere, frightening Fleetfoot and the other mares, but mostly Fleetfoot.

“Oh, well… I’m going to do that thing I told you about last night,” she said.

“Well, you didn’t actually tell me,” he corrected. “You just told me you were busy.”

“Yes, I am very busy, so I’m gonna go now before I’m late for that thing I’m doing,” Fleetfoot said in a hurry before rushing out the gym. Spitfire sighed as her teammate left. Fleetfoot was normally an honest mare that rarely kept secrets, but now she’s doing nothing but keeping secrets. Something told Spitfire that it had something to do with this Cory guy that Fleetfoot mentioned, but it was still too early to tell.

“Man, Rapidfire. If you were thirsty, you could’ve just asked for some water.”

“Shut up, Blaze.”

Meanwhile, as Fleetfoot left the gym, she decided to walk back to the hotel instead of flying. She had just finished an intense workout session; the last thing she wanted was to injure her wings. When she made it back to Garden Ridge, she tossed her workout back next to her bed and looked in the mirror. She was wearing a white tank top and sweatpants. While she wasn’t going on a date, she still wanted to look decent. She decided to exchange the sweatpants for some jeans. Fleetfoot then looked at herself again, and noticed that her mane was a little messy. Nothing would be wrong with combing it a little, right?

“Why am I fussing over my appearance?” Fleetfoot thought as she combed her mane. “Cory and I are just friends, and it’s not like he’s expecting me to make myself look pretty.” After deciding that she looked decent enough, Fleetfoot let her mane down, put in her contacts, put on her fake glasses, and headed out to meet Cory at the movie theater.

“Why am I so concerned with how I look?” Cory thought to himself. He was in the restroom at the movie theater, giving himself one of many once-overs in the mirror. He had on a hoodie with a T-shirt underneath it and a pair of skinny jeans, and he was debating on whether or not he was underdressed. “Fleetfoot and I are just friends. She shouldn’t care how I look, so why do I feel like she will care?”

After finally deciding that what he had on was enough, Cory washed his hands (despite the fact that he was only looking in the mirror) and walked out of the restroom. He made his way back to the ticket counter, where he saw Fleetfoot walk in. Both of them were looking at the clothes the other was wearing.

“Thank God. She went for the casual look, too,” Cory thought.

“Hey,” she said as she met up with Cory. “How goes it?”

“Pretty good. Can’t complain,” he said. “So why don’t we look and see which movie we want to go to?”

“Sure,” she said as they perused through the list of movies. While Cory was looking up at the list, Fleetfoot’s eyes wandered over to him. “Thank Celestia. He didn’t dress up too well,” she thought, and then she noticed the skinny jeans that he was wearing. She couldn’t help but look at how they hugged against his legs, not tight enough to suffocate him, but tight enough to give the mare a rough idea of his shape. Her eyes trailed from his ankle all the way up to his butt, and her wings started to twitch a little before slowly opening up.

Despite the busy scene, Cory heard the soft sound of Fleetfoot’s wings opening and turned to see what it was that brushed his shoulder. Realizing that she was at full mast, the mare averted her eyes before Cory could turn and look at her. He saw her looking up at the movie list nervously, arms crossed. He gave a questioning look and asked a question that Fleetfoot was not expecting.

“Are you cold?” he asked.

“What?” she asked back, surprised at the question.

“Your arms are crossed, and your wings are stiff,” he said. “That’s what pegasi do when they’re cold, right? I can lend you my jacket, if you want.”

Fleetfoot gave him an incredulous look. “Is he serious?” she thought. “Does he really not know what a wingboner is? Well, he’s only lived in Equestria for two months, and his roommate is a unicorn, so it’s not like he had anyone to tell him…” Rather than tell him the real reason her wings were spread stiff, she nodded her head and accepted Cory’s offer, taking his jacket and putting it on. “Thanks,” she said.

“No problem,” he said. “So, what do you think about the movie in theater four?”

Fleetfoot looked up at the movie in question. “Kick-Flank 2?” she asked. “I remember the first one, and it was pretty good, so I think it’s a good idea.”

“Alright then,” Cory said as he and Fleetfoot walked up to the ticket counter. “Two for Kick-Flank 2, please,” he said to the stallion at the counter as he handed him the money. Without even looking up, he pressed a button to dispense the tickets and handed them to Cory.

“Enjoy the movie,” said the stallion.

As Cory and Fleetfoot walked to theater four, Fleetfoot chuckled to herself. “Well, the guy at the counter didn’t raise an eyebrow at my disguise.”

“That’s because he didn’t even look at you,” the human retorted.

“Whatever, Cory,” the mare said with a grunt. “My disguise is awesome.”

“That’s debatable,” he chuckled.

Fleetfoot playfully shoved him as they entered the theater their movie was playing in. The movie turned out to be pretty good. They laughed at the funny bits, got pumped during the action sequences, and felt emotional at the sad scenes. By the time they left, they were convinced that the movie was pretty awesome.

“Wasn’t expecting to like the movie that much,” Fleetfoot admitted.

“Yeah, it was better than the original,” Cory agreed.

“Say, have you ever been to the mountainside spire?” she asked.

“Mountainside spire?” he asked back.

“You mean you haven’t heard of it?” she asked in disbelief. “It’s got the best view in Equestria! I went there the last time the Wonderbolts came to Canterlot and I gotta tell you, you haven’t lived until you’ve seen that view.”

“In that case, I’ll make sure to go there when I have free time,” said Cory.

“Well, if you want, I can take you there right now. It’s still three thirty in the afternoon,” Fleetfoot offered.

“If you insist,” the human accepted. The mare smiled and positioned herself behind him. “Wait, what are you-”

Before Cory could finish his sentence, Fleetfoot wrapped her arms around his midsection and spread her wings. “I promise not to drop you,” she said before taking off.

“Wh-WHOA!” Cory said as he and the pegasus holding him flew through the air towards their destination. Naturally, he was scared at first, but he eventually got a little comfortable with the feeling of flying through the air. While he didn’t like being up that high with the only thing keeping him from falling being Fleetfoot’s arms, he did like the feeling of the wind on his face. When they reached the mountainside spire, Fleetfoot slowly lowered herself to the balcony and let go of Cory once both his and her feet were on the ground.

“So, did you enjoy your flight?” she asked him.

“Not at first, but I thought it was pretty nice by the end of it,” he answered. “You could’ve warned a guy, though.”

“I’ll keep that in mind next time,” the mare chuckled.

Cory looked out to see the view, and he saw that Fleetfoot was right about it. He could see across most of Equestria from there. Granted, he didn’t know the names of the cities and towns since he’d never been outside of Canterlot, but the view was spectacular nonetheless.

“You should be here during the sunset,” Fleetfoot commented, snapping Cory out of his mind. “It’s even more beautiful then.”

Cory looked at Fleetfoot to thank her, but then he noticed something about her. “Hey,” he said, pointing to her mane. “Your hair’s back to the way it was before.”

“Really?” she asked, checking her mane. “Must’ve been from the flying. Oh well, it’s not like there’s anypony here, anyway.” Fleetfoot took off her glasses and removed the contacts from her eyes. Once they were removed, though, Cory noticed how her green eyes shone in the afternoon sun. Even though Fleetfoot wasn’t all dressed up, somehow she still looked… well, pretty. His face slowly started to turn red at the sight of her.

“Why are you blushing?” she asked.

“I dunno,” he lied. “It must be because I’m so high up.”

“That’s not a thing,” she said with a smirk.

“I didn’t know you were a doctor,” he retorted.

“Oh, whatever,” Fleetfoot said. “Well, I’d better be getting back. My teammates are probably wondering what I’m doing.”

“You didn’t tell them?” Cory asked, receiving a shake of the head as a response. “I don’t blame you. I didn’t tell my roommate about our day, either.”

“Want me to fly you down, or do you want to walk?”

“Meh, I don’t feel like walking down this huge tower.”

Fleetfoot smiled and stood behind Cory again, getting a good grip on him and taking off into the air. As they flew to Fleetfoot’s hotel, they both took in the sight of Canterlot passing below them, and they couldn’t help but smile. They landed at the hotel’s front entrance, and said goodbye, parting ways for the day.

That night, Cory was in his room, thinking about what had happened at the mountainside spire, when he blushed at the sight of Fleetfoot’s eyes. He had seen them before, so why did he react that way? On top of that, something in his gut told him that the mare’s wings didn’t go stiff because she was cold. He was filled with mixed emotions, and he wasn’t sure what to do. After pondering it for a while, he decided to call Fleetfoot. Gaffer was asleep in his room, so Cory walked out of the house to the back porch and looked for the mare’s number, just as he was about to call her, however, his phone started to ring.

“Heh, she beat me to it,” he said to himself.

Chapter 5: Where We Stand

“Hello?” Cory answered.

“Hey, it’s me,” said Fleetfoot with a hushed voice. “Can we talk?”

“I was just about to call and ask you the same thing,” he said. “Are you alone?”

“Yeah. I’m on the balcony outside my room,” she answered. “You?”

“On my back porch,” he said.

“Good,” said Fleetfoot. “I was thinking about earlier this afternoon, and… I was wondering if you could meet me at the mountainside spire again tonight, if it’s not too much trouble. I’d rather say what I want to say to your face.”

Cory thought about it. It was an odd request, no doubt, to meet up with Fleetfoot at nine-thirty in the night. Then again, he felt like he had to see her in person, too.

“Okay,” he said with a sigh. “I’ll be there. I have something I want to tell you, too.”

Later that night, Fleetfoot made it to the spire first, and she got increasingly nervous as she waited for Cory to arrive. Meanwhile, Cory was on his way to said location. At that moment, they were both having similar thoughts, and similar fears.

I know what I want to tell him…

I just don’t know how to tell her.

What if he gets nervous again?

What if she laughs at me?

Why am I so worried about this, though?

I mean, we’re just friends, right?

But if that’s the case…

…if we really are just friends…

Then why did I invite him to the mountainside spire at this time of the night?

Cory, in particular, was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn’t even notice that he was near the top of the mountainside spire by the time he was done thinking. He shook his head and continued to the top, where he saw Fleetfoot looking off the edge of the balcony.

“Hey,” he said.

The pegasus flinched and turned around in surprise. “Oh, hi…” she said with some relief. “You made it.”

“Like I said I would,” he said as he approached her. “So, do you want to go first? You seemed pretty urgent on the phone.”

“Well, I made you come all the way over here, so why don’t you go first…” she said.

“Okay…” Cory paused, and then he took a deep breath. “Fleetfoot, after what happened today… I’ve been feeling really-”

“Confused?” she finished for him.

“How did you-”

“I’ve been feeling the same way, Cory,” she explained. “All that’s happened today made me think really hard about my feelings. Remember when my wings were stiff and you thought I was cold?”

“Yeah…” he answered, not sure where she was going.

“I wasn’t cold,” she said. “It’s something that happens to pegasi when they’re… excited…”

“Excited?” Cory asked, confused. “You mean-”

“When you weren’t looking, my eyes kind of… lingered on you,” Fleetfoot explained.

“Oh…” Cory said with a blush. Seeing the red on his face reminded Fleetfoot of another thing.

“That reminds me,” she said. “I know you couldn’t see me, but when I was holding you while we were flying, I was blushing, too.”

“You were?”

“Yeah.”

“So, what does this mean?” Cory asked. “I mean, are we friends, or…”

“I don’t know,” Fleetfoot answered, daring to get closer to Cory. “I mean, I do think you’re a great guy. This is the first time in a long time that I’ve had someone outside the Wonderbolts that I can relate to, so I don’t know if my interest in you comes from that or something else.” She paused for a moment, contemplating whether or not she should say one particular thing on her mind. Deciding that she had nothing to lose, she went for it.

“I do think you’re kinda cute, though…” she said apprehensively, hoping that Cory wouldn’t take offense.

Cory’s face got even redder before he said “I think you’re cute, too…”

“You do?” she asked.

“Yeah, but I’m sure you get that all the time,” he said.

“Not really,” Fleetfoot admitted. “Most of the ‘you’re cute’ comments go to either Misty Fly or Blaze.”

“That’s surprising,” Cory said. “Sometimes, I get a little disappointed when you have to wear your disguise. I really like the way your mane looks normally, and I think that your green eyes are a lot more beautiful than your pink contacts. That’s why I was blushing so much the last time we were here.” By the time he was finished saying this, Cory covered his mouth. Had he gone a little overboard just then?

Fleetfoot looked at him with wide eyes. “You really think so?” she asked, unsure if he was serious or just flattering her.

“Yeah, I do…” Cory said as he looked down at his feet, afraid to look Fleetfoot in the eye.

“Look at me,” she said softly, not wanting to scare him. He complied with her request and looked up at her, and he found himself staring into those green eyes that he found so beautiful. Conversely, Fleetfoot was staring into Cory’s brown eyes. Because they matched his skin tone, his eyes weren’t his most striking feature, but for some reason Fleetfoot got lost in them.

They kept staring at each other; their voices were silent, yet they had so much to say. While their minds were unsure about how they felt for each other, their hearts had somewhat of an idea.

Fleetfoot made the first move. She, albeit apprehensively, wrapped her arms around Cory’s neck, and he made the next move, wrapping his arms around the mare’s waist. They held that position for a moment, each taking in each other’s warmth. Cory savored the felling of Fleetfoot’s soft fur around his neck, while she relished in the sensation of his smooth skin around her exposed sides. They soon started to lean into each other, their lips getting closer and closer…

But at the last second, Cory hesitated and pulled back a bit, still unsure of whether or not this was what he wanted. He saw the surprised look on the mare’s face and decided to try and explain himself.

“Fleetfoot, I don’t know if I-”

Cory’s explanation was halted by Fleetfoot’s lips as she swiftly-yet-gently placed them on his. Her arms pulled him closer to her, making him instinctively reciprocate the action. He eventually closed his eyes, returning the kiss. As the moment went on, many thoughts ran through each of their heads.

Her lips… They’re really soft…

I wonder if I’m the first girl he’s kissed.

I don’t know why, but…

I’m really glad this is happening right now.

Somehow I feel…

like I don’t want this moment to end.

The two finally separate, staring into each other’s eyes again. They didn’t need to say that they liked each other now. The kiss they shared was enough to get that message across.

“I guess we know how we feel about each other now, huh?” Cory asked.

“Uh-huh,” Fleetfoot said with a nod.

“I’m really flattered, you know,” he said. “It’s not often that a guy can say that someone famous has feelings for them. I feel really lucky.”

“Well, I feel pretty lucky myself,” she said.

“How’s that?”

“Well, on the day we met, I was lucky enough to bump into you,” she explained. “Most of the stallions I meet aren’t as sensitive as you. I don’t know if it’s a human thing or if it’s just you.”

“I think it’s just me,” Cory answered, thinking about all the muscle-headed guys he grew up with throughout his childhood.

“I must be luckier than you, then,” Fleetfoot smiled. As much as she wanted to stay with him in her arms and herself in his, she knew that she had to leave him, for now. “I should get going,” she said.

“Me too,” he replied. “I guess I’ll call you tomorrow?”

“Nah, I’ll call you,” she said as she spread her wings. “See you around,” she said before taking off.

Cory looked up at Fleetfoot as she flew away, a smile growing on his face. “Yeah. See you around.”

Even in the dark night sky, Fleetfoot could see the balcony to her hotel room. She lowered herself down, landing gracefully and silently on the floor. Being as quiet as she could be, she slowly opened the sliding glass door and stepped into the room, shutting it behind her just as slowly. She took a glance at Spitfire’s bed. It looked like she was still asleep, and Fleetfoot made an inward sigh. The mare continued to quietly make her way to her bed. She shifted the sheets and began to climb in when-

“Where were you?”

Fleetfoot’s heart stopped for a second when she heard that voice. No way! she thought. I thought Spitfire was asleep. I saw her!

“I heard your voice when you were talking on the phone earlier,” she explained, “but the door was closed so I couldn’t hear exactly what you were saying. If I had to take a guess, though, I’d say it had something to do with that Cory guy.”

Fleetfoot knew that there was no point in lying. “I guess nothing gets past you, huh,” she said.

“I know you don’t want to hear this, especially from me, but I don’t like the sound of this guy,” Spitfire said, plain and simple.

“What do you mean!?” Fleetfoot said, getting offended.

“You’re lying to your teammates just to spend time with him, and then you’re sneaking off at night to see him,” she said, laying out the facts for the smaller mare. “I care about you, Fleetfoot, and I don’t want you throwing your career and your livelihood away just because this guy tells you to.”

“You don’t even know what’s going on, Spitfire!” Fleetfoot said with a hushed yell. “I was the one that suggested our meeting tonight, and we were only just friends until now! He’s nothing like what you think he is. Maybe if you took the time to get to know him-”

“How can I when you’ve never introduced him,” Spitfire argued. “I wouldn’t have to be suspicious if you hadn’t been keeping secrets.”

Fleetfoot growled at the realization that her captain was right. “Alright then,” she said. “In that case, why don’t I introduce him tomorrow, to you and everypony else on the team, and then you’ll see that you’re suspicions were wrong.” She couldn’t help but say that with contempt, and she realized how much she really liked Cory; defending someone against her closest friend in the way that she did doesn’t happen often.

“Alright then,” said Spitfire. “Tomorrow, find out when he’s available, and we’ll plan things out from there.”

“Deal,” said Fleetfoot.

With their confrontation out of the way, the two mares went to bed without saying another word. I’ll show her, Fleetfoot thought as she slowly drifted to sleep. Cory’s nothing like Spitfire thinks he is.

As Cory arrived home, he walked as quietly as he could. While he knew that Gaffer was a heavy sleeper, he didn’t want to risk anything. He crept up the stairs and walked down the upstairs hallway to his room. The sound of Gaffer’s snoring filled the hall. Yeah, there was no way he was gonna wake up.

At least, that’s what Cory thought until he tripped over his own feet and fell to the ground with a thud.

MOTHERFUCKER! He thought as he lay on the ground. He prayed that Gaffer wouldn’t wake up, and he listened to hear if his snoring had stopped.

It didn’t.

Cory sighed and got up on his feet before going to his room. He kicked off his shoes and jumped into the bed, his mind shifting back to the kiss he shared with Fleetfoot. Up until that moment, he wasn’t sure how he felt about her, but now he was certainly sure: he really liked her. He thought she was the most beautiful mare, no, the most beautiful female he’s ever gotten to know, inside and out.

All it took was one kiss for him to realize that.

Chapter 6: Meet the Team Part One - Introductions

Cory woke up at seven-thirty the next morning to the sound of his phone ringing. “Ugh!” he said to himself, exasperated. “I swear to God, this better be important.” Without looking to see who was calling, he answered the phone and put it to his ear.

“Hello?” he said. Cory wasn’t expecting to get the response he got.

“HELLO, STUDENT OF CANTERLOT UNIVERSITY. WE ARE SENDING YOU THIS AUTOMATED CALL IN ORDER TO INFORM YOU THAT YOUR CLASS, ‘Equestrian Philosophy’ SCHEDULED FOR ‘9:00 AM’ WILL BE CANCELLED TODAY. GOODBYE.”

“I thought schools sent e-mails when classes were cancelled,” he said groggily as he got out of his bed. “Well, there’s no going back to sleep now. I might as well head downstairs and get something to eat.” Cory went downstairs and cooked up some waffles for breakfast. Once they were ready, he got some juice, plopped on the couch in front of the TV, and turned it on.

“Really? News again?” he said as the logo for the Equestrian News Network showed up on the screen.

“This is Steamy Scoop reporting live from Vanhoover field, where preparations for the Annual Equestrian Flying Competition, where the best flying teams from all over Equestria will compete for aerial supremacy.”

“Talk about exaggeration,” Cory said to himself.

“With the competition less than two months away, teams across the country have already claimed cities to train in, the first team to do so being the Wonderbolts when they claimed Canterlot, which has the best training facility in the country,” said the newscaster.

“So Gaffer was right,” said Cory. “Canterlot’s gym is pretty good, not that it would matter to someone like me.”

“With the best gym already claimed by the Wonderbolts, other teams that were en route have now changed course to Las Pegasus, whose gym ranks just below Canterlot’s,” Steamy Scoop continued. “Currently, there’s no word on which team made it there first, but you can be sure that Equestria News Network will keep you updated as the story develops.”

“Man, I guess this flying competition is a big deal,” Cory said as he swallowed a gulp of juice. Just then, his phone rang again. This time, he checked who was calling, and was happy to see that it was Fleetfoot.

“Hello?” he said with a cheery voice.

“Hi, Cory,” said Fleetfoot. “Sorry for calling you so early in the morning, but do you have a minute?”

“Sure, what’s up?” he asked.

“Well, I was wondering, since we’re kind-of together now, that I could introduce you to my teammates,” she explained. “Are you free today?”

“Actually, classes are cancelled for today, and I don’t have work until three, so yeah,” said Cory.

“Okay, great,” Fleetfoot said with a mixture of relief and nervousness. “We’re going to be at the Canterlot Fitness Center at nine AM. I’ll wait for you outside and when you get there, I’ll take you to meet the team. Sound good?”

“Sounds great,” he answered. “I’ll see you then.”

“Alright then. Bye,” she said as she hung up.

Cory felt a little glad that he was going to meet Fleetfoot’s friends. Sure, he was nervous that they wouldn’t like him, but that’s a common fear when meeting your significant other’s friends, right? Cory finished his breakfast and looked at the clock.

“Seven-fifty,” he said. “I got about an hour before I have to leave to meet Fleetfoot. That’s more than enough time to get ready.” Cory headed upstairs to get ready, looking forward to meeting the rest of the Wonderbolts.

Fleetfoot, on the other hand, was as nervous as she could be; more nervous than she was at her first ever professional race. At the moment, she was leaving the breakfast buffet at the hotel and heading back to her room, thinking about everything that could possibly go wrong. She knew that Cory wasn’t the kind of guy Spitfire thought he was, but what if she found some other reason not to like him? What if some of the other Wonderbolts found a reason not to like him?

“No, I’m just psyching myself out,” she thought. “Cory’s a nice guy. Why would they not like him? Sure, Spitfire’s a little suspicions of him, but she won’t be after she meets him, right? Right?”

“Hey, Fleetfoot. You alright?” somepony asked. The mare turned around to see Soarin catching up to her with a concerned face.

“Oh, I’m fine,” she said. “I was just… in thought.”

“Nervous about the competition?” the stallion guessed.

“Uh… yeah! That’s it, the competition,” Fleetfoot said, thankful that Soarin unknowingly gave her an alibi. “I’m a little nervous.”

“It’s fine,” he said. “The competition is less than two months away, and we have Equestria’s best gym to train in. Those other teams won’t even be able to touch us when the big day arrives. Don’t worry so much, Fleetfoot. It’s not like you.”

“Thanks, Soarin,” said the mare. “With an attitude like that, it’s a wonder why you and Spitfire split.”

“Oh… right,” the stallion said, his demeanor suddenly taking a turn for the worse. Fleetfoot, quickly realizing her mistake, tries to fix it.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “Did I cross a line?”

“No, no. It’s fine,” he said. “Anyway, we’re going to be leaving in a few minutes, so make sure you have your gym bag and whatever else you need.”

“Thanks for the heads up,” said Fleetfoot. “See ya.”

“See ya.”

Fleetfoot made her way to her room, which was empty, making her assume that Spitfire was already downstairs and ready to go. With that in mind, Fleetfoot quickly changed into her flying suit, got her gym bag and left the room the fast way: off the balcony. Of course, she did make sure to lock the doors before leaving. Once she met her teammates at the hotel entrance, they all set off for the Canterlot Fitness Center.

As they were walking, Spitfire and Fleetfoot hung back and talked amongst themselves. “So when do we get to meet this guy?” the captain whispered.

“He’s going to meet us at the gym shortly after we get there,” Fleetfoot whispered back.

“Alright, then,” said Spitfire. Fleetfoot could tell by her tone that she still wasn’t looking forward to meeting Cory. Hopefully her attitude will change after she meets him. Just then, she got a text, and when she checked her phone, she saw that it was a message from Cory:

“I’m on my way :)”

The mare wasn’t sure how she should look forward to the inevitable introduction. Should she be worried, or should she be optimistic?

When the Wonderbolts arrived at the gym, Fleetfoot stayed outside to wait for Cory to arrive. She felt her heart stop when she saw him round the corner of the block, but she was somewhat relieved to see a smile on his face. “At least *one** of us is happy,”* she thought.

“Hey, Fleetfoot,” said Cory.

“Hi,” she said, trying to hide her apprehension.

“This is the first time I’ve seen you in your flying suit. You look nice,” he said.

“Oh, thanks…” said Fleetfoot.

“You alright?” the human asked.

“To be completely honest, I’m a little nervous,” said the mare. “I don’t know how my teammates will react.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” he said. “I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about.”

“It’s not like you to be this relaxed.”

“Well, it’s not like you to be this nervous.”

Fleetfoot chuckled at Cory’s sudden sense of humor. “Touché,” she said. “Well, let’s just get this over with, then.” The two of them walked into the gym, where the other Wonderbolts were waiting. Varying looks of surprise appeared on each of their faces, even Spitfire. Despite the fact that she knew Cory was human, she didn’t expect him to look so… so…

Is there a nice way to say “wimpy”?

Fleetfoot cleared her throat and began to speak. “Guys, I’d like to introduce you to someone,” she said. “This is Cory, and… he’s my boyfriend.”

The mare flinched in anticipation of the collective “WHAT!?” from the others, but instead she heard nothing. She took a look at their faces, and most of them were neutral, with the exception of Misty Fly and Blaze. Misty seemed almost ecstatic and Blaze had a smirk on her face.

“About fucking time,” said Blaze. “I was starting to think that you were into mares.”

“Aww, I’m so happy for you!” said Misty. “I think it’s great that you have a colt- I mean boyfriend. I didn’t know you were into the exotic types, though.”

Cory began to blush. He never considered himself to be “exotic,” but when you’re a human in a world of ponies and other magical creatures, you’d be considered exotic no matter what you looked like.

Fleetfoot’s nervousness started to disappear, but only a little bit. While Blaze and Misty obviously had no problem with Cory, she was still waiting for what Rapidfire, Soarin, and especially Spitfire had to say.

“Well, that explains why you’ve been so out of it,” said Soarin with a smile.

“Yeah… That does explain it…”Rapidfire said, but… was that a hint of lament in his voice? Nah.

Spitfire remained silent, still skeptical about Cory, but then the human decided to speak.

“Well, I didn’t mean to cause Fleetfoot to be so distracted,” he said with a semi-nervous chuckle. “I didn’t even know I had that effect on her.”

The other Wonderbolts started to laugh. Well… except for three of them. Fleetfoot was busy looking at Spitfire, Spitfire was still looking at Cory with an unamused face, and Rapidfire was still taking in the fact that Fleetfoot was now spoken for. As she stared at him, Spitfire noticed that Cory looked a little… young. She had imagined a large, athletic-type guy. Cory, on the other hand, looked nothing like that. He didn’t even look the least bit threatening, but that only made her wearier of him.

“Excuse me for asking, but… how old are you?” the captain asked.

“Nineteen,” Cory answered.

There were varying degrees of surprise on the Wonderbolts’ faces, particularly on Rapidfire. It was a crushing blow; not only did Fleetfoot not want him, but she chose to be with a nineteen-year-old human instead of him. Meanwhile, Spitfire was starting to think that she may have been wrong about Fleetfoot’s new beau. She let out a sigh and began to speak.

“It was nice meeting you, Cory,” she said. “Would you like to join us for dinner later tonight? It’d be nice to get to know you a little better.”

Fleetfoot let out a sigh of relief when she heard this. “Thank Celestia,” she thought.

“Sure, I’d like that,” said Cory.

“Okay, then. Once we work out the details, I’ll have Fleetfoot call you, ‘kay?”

“Sounds good!”

To Fleetfoot, this meeting couldn’t have gone better. All her teammates had accepted Cory as her boyfriend. Sure, some took more time than others, but she was still happy that they all liked Cory.

At least… she thought they all liked him.

After Cory had left, Rapidfire went to lift weights with his wings with Blaze as his spotter. “I can’t believe it,” he said to her. “For Fleetfoot to like somepo- somebody else is one thing, but the fact that it’s some wimpy kid is just adding insult to injury.”

“I understand why you’re upset, Rapid, but don’t be a jackass,” Blaze said, half-scolding him. “So what if he’s younger than her? At least Fleetfoot’s with a nice guy.”

“How can you be so sure about that, Blaze?” the stallion asked.

“Did you not see him five minutes ago? The kid’s harmless!” said the mare.

“That’s exactly what he wants you to think,” Rapidfire argued. “Fleetfoot needs to watch herself around him.”

“That’s just your jealousy talking,” said Blaze. “Don’t start meddling, Rapidfire, ‘cause you’re gonna end up regretting it, mark my words.”

The stallion stubbornly grunted. “What are you, a soothsayer?”

The mare grunted back. “No, but I’m surprised the word ‘soothsayer’ is in your vocabulary.”

Meanwhile, Soarin and Spitfire were doing wing-ups together while Fleetfoot and Misty Fly were flying laps around the gym’s outdoor field.

“So, Fleetfoot has a boyfriend now,” Soarin said in a hushed voice on the off-chance that the mare he was talking about would hear him despite the fact that she was flying at a fast pace.

“What of it?” Spitfire said, but then she realized how cold she sounded. “Sorry…”

“It’s fine, but… I noticed that you were looking at him funny for a while,” said the stallion.

“Well, I wanted to make sure that he wasn’t some scumbag,” the mare explained. “Fleetie’s my best friend, and I didn’t want her to waste her time with some scrub.”

“So how do you feel about him now?” he asked.

“He’s not what I thought he’d be, but I still don’t like the idea of Fleetfoot dating someone while she still has commitments to the team,” she explained.

“What’s so bad about her dating?” Soarin asked.

“Didn’t you notice that she’s been off her game lately?”

“Well, maybe that could be because she was afraid you would bite his head off,” Soarin said before looking at Fleetfoot fly around the field. “Besides, now that everything’s out in the open, Fleetfoot’s been doing much better lately.” Soarin stopped talking for a moment and pondered his next statement.

“I know you want to say something, so just say it.” Spitfire said.

“Well, I was just thinking that if Fleetfoot doesn’t seem to be affected by her relationship, then maybe you and I could-”

“No,” she interrupted. “It’s different for us, Soarin. We can’t get distracted from our commitments.”

“I thought that our relationship was a commitment,” Soarin argued while still maintaining his hushed tone. “I was committed, you know. I even convinced the others that our breakup was mutual when it was actually you that broke it off.”

“I didn’t ask you to do that.”

“You didn’t have to, because I wanted to do it. I didn’t want the others to think badly of you. That’s how far I’m willing to go for you.”

“Look, Soarin. This isn’t the time or the place for this,” the mare argued. “Just drop it, okay?”

“…Fine.”

Spitfire sighed, relieved that Soarin finally stopped harassing her. Why couldn’t he understand that there was just no room for a relationship? Maybe after they retired, they could try again, but right now, between public appearances, competition, and the added annoyance of paparazzi and celebrity gossip, a serious relationship was simply impossible. The mare shook her head. Even thinking about getting back with Soarin was distracting her. Hopefully her mind would be at ease once dinner comes around.

Chapter 7: Meet the Team Part Two - The Dinner

Lame title is lame title.

“No. Fucking. Way…” Gaffer said in disbelief. “You’re going to dinner with the Wonderbolts!?”

“Could you be any louder?” Cory asked, annoyed. “Yes, I’m going to dinner with them.” He didn’t want Gaffer to know that he was going out with celebrities, but what choice did he have? Gaffer would end up asking him where he’d be anyway, so Cory just decided to tell him.

“Why did they invite you?” the unicorn asked. “Was it because you were friends with Fleetfoot?”

“We’re… more than just friends now…” Cory struggled to say.

“What do you me- wait… You’re not saying-”

“Yeah… Fleetfoot and I are sort-of together now,” the human admitted.

“WHAT!?” Gaffer yelled, and Cory shushed him again. “When did this happen?” the unicorn said with a more quiet tone.

“Last night,” Cory explained. “We were at the mountainside spire, and we just gave it a shot, but that’s not important right now.”

“You’re right, but you still didn’t answer my question regarding why you were invited to dinner,” Gaffer reminded.

“Well, Fleetfoot wanted me to meet the other Wonderbolts so she could introduce me as her boyfriend,” the human explained. “I noticed how nervous she sounded on the phone, so I faked excitement so that she could be more at ease.” He sighed before continuing. “You won’t believe how nervous I actually was. I mean, having to meet your girlfriend’s-”

“Marefriend’s” the unicorn corrected.

Cory rolled his eyes. “Having to meet your marefriend’s teammates and anxiously waiting for what they had to say can take its toll on your sanity.”

“I doubt that things turned out that bad, Cory,” Gaffer said with a reassuring smile.

“It didn’t,” he said. “Misty and Blaze were ecstatic, and Soarin seemed happy, too, but Spitfire didn’t seem so thrilled. I could feel her gazing at me the entire time, and it was near impossible to keep a happy face through it all. I could tell that she didn’t like me. Then there was Rapidfire; I couldn’t really tell what he was feeling. He didn’t seem excited like Misty and Blaze, but he didn’t look as threatening as Spitfire, so I have no idea what he felt. Matter of fact, he was the only pony that didn’t say a word.”

Gaffer chuckled. “Maybe he and one of the other Wonderbolts had a bet going that he lost, and his expression was one of disbelief.”

Cory chuckled as well. “Yeah, that might be it. Anyway, Spitfire decided to invite me to dinner with her and the others.”

“What exactly did she say?” the unicorn asked.

“Her exact words were ‘It’d be nice to get to know you a little better.’ She also said that it was nice meeting me, but if you ask me, it sounded a little forced,” Cory explained.

“Well, don’t assume that just yet,” Gaffer advised. “Maybe she’s just trying to see if you’re a good guy. I’ve heard that Spitfire and Fleetfoot were really close, so it’s natural for a mare to want the best for her best friend. I’m sure human women are the same.”

“You’re right,” Cory admitted. “Anyway, I’m waiting for Fleetfoot to call me and tell me where we’re going to be eating, and then I’ll know how I’ll need to dress for the occasion.”

Just as he said those words, his phone started to ring. “Speak of the devil,” said Gaffer.

“Hello?” Cory said as he answered the phone.

“Hey, Cory,” Fleetfoot said. “We’ve decided where we want to go for dinner. It’s a place by the mountainside called Jack’s Bistro.”

“Jack’s Bistro?” Cory repeated so that Gaffer could hear. He didn’t like the nervous look on the unicorn’s face.

“Yeah, it’s a really fancy place,” Fleetfoot explained, “and we’re gonna be dressing up really nicely, so… shoot for semi-formal. And before you ask, I don’t expect you to pay for your share of the dinner, Spitfire said that it’s a courtesy to you.”

“That’s a relief. As you can imagine, working at a comic book store isn’t a very lucrative career choice,” said Cory.

Fleetfoot giggled at his joke. “Thanks for the laugh. I really needed that,” she said. “Anyway we’ll be ready to go at around seven in the evening, so meet us at the main entrance at Garden Ridge Hotel.”

“Okay. See you then,” said the human.

“Bye, Cory,” said the mare.

Cory hung up the phone and sighed. “Jack’s Bistro, huh?” Gaffer asked. “That place is mad fancy,”

“That’s what Fleetfoot told me,” said Cory. “I think I have a semi-formal outfit in my closet. Hopefully this will all go over well.”

“Oh, before I forget,” said Gaffer, “the company I work for is having a special event for college students. They’re going to be offering a workshop in game design on Saturday.”

“That sounds cool,” Cory said. “I’m there. For now, though, I need to get ready for tonight.” As he walked upstairs, Gaffer called his name, and he turned around to see what he wanted.

“Good luck tonight, man,” he said.

“Thanks, G,” Cory said with a smile.

That night, Fleetfoot went out to the hotel entrance before everypony else so she could look out for Cory. As she waited, she kept tweaking her short, blue dress and making sure that she looked absolutely perfect. Fleetfoot normally didn’t care about appearances, but she didn’t think it was fair to ask Cory to dress his best without her doing the same. She even decided to wear earrings for the occasion. The poor mare’s heart nearly jumped out of her chest when she saw Cory walking down the block. She was also relieved that he dressed for the occasion; he was wearing a dark red blazer and matching pants with a white shirt underneath.

“Hi, Fleetfoot,” he said as he approached her. “You look pretty tonight.”

Seeing him and hearing the compliment put Fleetfoot at ease. “You mean I don’t look pretty the rest of the time?” she teased.

“Oh, well of course you do! I was just saying that-“

“I’m screwing with you,” said the mare.

“You’ve got to stop doing that,” said Cory.

“It’s the only thing that’s easing my nerves,” said Fleetfoot, “so too bad, sweetie.”

“Ah well,” the human conceded. “So, where are the others?”

Fleetfoot turned around and saw Spitfire, Soarin, Rapidfire, Blaze, and Misty Fly exiting the hotel. “There they are,” she said as they approached her and Cory.

“Good night, lovebirds,” Blaze said with a smirk.

“This is gonna be exciting!” said Misty.

“So when does our ride get here, Spitfire?” asked Soarin.

The mare looked around and spotted a large carriage. “There it is,” she said, pointing it out.

Cory looked at the vehicle with curiosity. Despite living in Canterlot for a while, he never really paid attention to the vehicles ponies drove since he pretty much walked everywhere. The carriage had a mix of Equestrian antiquity and human technology. It was powered by a motor, but it still had that medieval look to it. When it stopped in front of Cory and the Wonderbolts, they all loaded in, with Cory letting Fleetfoot enter before him.

Despite the fact that there were seven of them, the carriage was actually quite roomy. The atmosphere reminded Cory of a stretch limo, not that he’d ever been in one.

“So, Cory,” said Soarin, “is this your first time going to Jack’s Bistro?”

“Yeah,” the human answered. “To be honest, I’ve never even heard of it before Fleetfoot told me about tonight. Even so, the place sounded expensive, and when you’re a college student working in a comic book store, you don’t make that much.”

“Hmph, you must be new to Canterlot then,” Rapidfire said with a hint of passive aggression.

Cory had a slight feeling that something was off about the stallion, but he decided to shrug it off. “Yeah, I am new to Canterlot,” he said. “As a matter of fact, I’m pretty much new to Equestria.”

“Well, you can tell us more when we get to the restaurant where we can sit and relax rather than in a stuffy carriage,” Spitfire joked, causing the others, minus Rapidfire to laugh. The aforementioned stallion simply let out a fake chuckle.

“Okay, Spitfire seems to be warming up to Cory a little,” Fleetfoot thought, relieved that her captain wasn’t glaring holes into her boyfriend, for once.

When they all arrived at the restaurant, Spitfire went up to the mare at the front. “We have a reservation,” she said. “Spitfire, party of seven.” She then took out some bits and handed them to the mare. "If the press asks, we were never here."

The mare looked at the reservation list and found Spitfire’s name, and then she took the bits “Of course, ma’am. Right this way.” The Wonderbolts and Cory were led to a table large enough to fit all seven of them, and where they were sitting had a great mountainside view.

“Man, there are a lot of places in Canterlot with great views,” Cory said.

“Yeah, next to the Mountainside Spire, this is the best view you’ll get,” Fleetfoot added.

“And you get to eat, so it’s that much more awesome!” said Soarin, his mouth watering at the thought of eating a hearty dinner.

As they all sat down and got their menus, Cory looked at his options. In the five years that humans and ponies have been in contact, Equestrian food establishments have adapted their menus to accommodate the humans’ more… carnivorous tastes. Cory saw some familiar items like steak and lobster, but he decided to play it safe and looked for a good meal that had no meat in it. He didn’t want to make anypony uncomfortable. The question was: what was he gonna eat?

“I’m really feeling the hay quiche,” said Misty Fly.

“You can make a quiche with hay?” Cory thought. “Ah, what the hell, I’ll go with that.” Making up his mind, he said “I think I’ll get that, too.”

Rapidfire raised an eyebrow “Hmph, that’s a surprise,” he said. “I thought you’d choose one of the items from the carnivore section of the menu.” His voice still had that slight tone of passive aggression. Like last time, most of the others didn’t notice it, but Blaze heard it clear as day, and she shot Rapidfire a glare.

“Well, one of the reasons why I moved to Equestria was a change of atmosphere,” Cory explained. “With that in mind, I thought I’d try some of the native foods.”

“Oh, in that case, you should try hay fries. They’re delicious!” Misty Fly said excitedly.

“I second that,” added Soarin.

“Actually,” said Cory. “I’ve tried them before, and you’re right. They really are delicious. I’ve even heard that they’re actually healthier for you than regular fries.”

“I like this kid,” said Blaze.

Spitfire looked at Cory and her teammates in disbelief. “I can’t believe it,” she thought. “He’s getting along so well with the others. He seems to care a lot for Fleetfoot, and he’s even willing to try new things for her sake. I’d hate to admit it, but I was totally wrong about this kid.” She then looked at Rapidfire, who had a somewhat sour look on his face. “What’s wrong with Rapid, though? He looks like he smelled something rotten. Come to think of it, the guy’s been sulking all day. I wonder…”

“So you mentioned in the carriage that you work in a comic book store, right, Cory?” Soarin asked.

“Yeah,” he answered. “Fleetfoot actually showed up the other day to get a comic for you.”

“Do you get employee discounts on purchases?” the stallion asked.

“Don’t get any ideas, Soarin!” Fleetfoot scolded.

“Yeesh! I was just asking!” he said.

“Well, you also mentioned that you were in college,” Spitfire said, changing the subject before Soarin could go on a tangent about his love for comics. “What’s your major?”

“I’m undeclared at the moment, but I’m going to be attending a workshop for game design that my roommate’s company is holding,” Cory answered.

“Wait a sec,” said Soarin. “Does this roommate of yours happen to be Gaffer?”

“Yeah, you know ‘im?” Cory asked.

“I went to school with him, but he was in the class above me, so we didn’t talk much,” the stallion explained.

“That explains why he’s never mentioned you,” Cory thought.

After dinner, as Cory and the Wonderbolts made their way back to their carriage, Spitfire tapped Cory’s shoulder.

“Hey, can I talk to you for a sec?” she asked.

“Sure, Spitfire,” he said.

As the other Wonderbolts continued towards the carriage, Spitfire and Cory hung back and talked.

“I’m going to be honest,” she said. “When Fleetfoot first mentioned you, I was suspicious. Very suspicious. When she introduced you, though, my mind started to change. I had imagined some scruffy looking punk, but you were a complete surprise. You’re sensitive and caring, and I can tell that you really care about Fleetfoot. After getting to know you better tonight, I think you’re perfect for her.”

“Thanks, Spitfire,” the human said gratefully. “Although, I do get why you were so suspicious. Fleetfoot told me how close you two are. You were only looking out for your best friend.”

The mare chuckled. “I’m glad you get where I’m coming from. You’re a good kid, Cory,” she said as she and Cory caught up with the others.

As the carriage pulled up in front of the hotel, everyone unloaded from it. “It was nice meeting you, Cory,” said Soarin.

“Yeah, you’re pretty cool!” said Misty Fly.

“We should all hang out again soon,” said Blaze.

“I’ll definitely keep that in mind,” said Cory. “It was nice meeting you guys, too.”

“Alright, everypony, let’s get inside,” said Spitfire. “See ya around, kid.”

As the other Wonderbolts walked towards the hotel, Fleetfoot stayed behind with Cory.

“I think that went well, don’t you?” she said.

“I do,” he said. “Your teammates are really nice.”

“Even Rapidfire?”

“Okay, maybe he’ll be a tougher nut to crack, but for the most part, I think it’s safe to say that I’ve earned your team’s approval,” he said with a chuckle.

Fleetfoot smiled slyly. “You know I’d still want to be with you even if they didn’t like you, right?”

“Of course,” said Cory. “At least, I think so.”

The mare chuckled. “You think so?” she asked as she leaned into him before locking her lips with his. Just then, they heard some whistles coming from nearby. Fleetfoot opened an eye and saw that it was Misty Fly and Blaze whistling.

“Get a room, you two!” Soarin teased.

“You’ve swapped spit for long enough!” Spitfire added.

Fleetfoot merely gave a smug look and raised her middle finger at her teammates as she continued to kiss Cory. The other Wonderbolts laughed uncontrollably, except for Rapidfire, who was trying to contain his envy, his efforts being in vain.

“Who does this kid think he is!?” he thought angrily. “I can’t believe Fleetfoot likes him! Well, not for long. I need to do something to knock that punk down a peg!”

Chapter 8: Self-Doubt

It had been a month since Cory and Fleetfoot met; a month since they admitted their feelings for each other; a month since they announced their relationship to the other Wonderbolts...

And a month since Rapidfire promised himself that he’d break them up.

Things were starting to look up for the happy couple. Fleetfoot broke her personal flying record at the gym, and after Cory attended the game design workshop that Gaffer invited him to, the company, Crazy Colt Games, offered him an internship there, which increased his chances of getting an entry-level job in the field.

Cory and Fleetfoot went on several dates together, making sure to be as discreet as they could so that they wouldn’t arouse attention from the media.

Cory and Fleetfoot were at the Mountainside Spire again, with Fleetfoot in her disguise, still convinced that it was effective.

“You got the time?” she asked.

“Five thirty,” he answered.

“Good, the sun should be setting any minute now,” said Fleetfoot.

“I hope this view of the sunset is as good as you said it was a month ago,” said Cory.

“I’m telling you, it’s amazing! If Misty were here right now, she’d back me up on that,” the mare insisted. “But anyway, how’s the internship going?”

“Great, as usual,” Cory said happily. “I’m learning a lot from all the workers there. The staff is pretty diverse, too. Ponies, humans, even some griffons are working there. I think I might have found my calling.”

“That’s good to know,” said Fleetfoot. “I told you that if you’d just let it come naturally, then you’d find your talent in no time.”

“I know, I know,” said the human. “Oh, look! The sun’s setting!”

Cory and Fleetfoot looked out over the balcony and watched the sun as it slowly lowered below the horizon. Its rays illuminated the surrounding mountains, making them look like a hallway towards the afterlife. A bit spooky to hear, yes, but it was awe-inspiring to see.

“Okay, you were right about the sunset,” Cory admitted.

“Am I ever wrong?” Fleetfoot gloated.

“Well, you’re wrong about your disguise’s effectiveness,” Cory said. “I’m telling you, one of these days, a press pony is gonna recognize you.”

“Whatever,” the mare said, waving him off. “Speaking of press ponies, though, remember what happened at that party last week?”

Cory thought back to the party that Fleetfoot was talking about, trying to see what she was getting at:

It was just about a week ago when the Wonderbolts received an invitation from the royal sisters to attend their garden party, and each member could bring one guest. While the other Wonderbolts had opted not to bring a guest, Fleetfoot decided to take advantage of the plus-one and invited Cory. Cory felt bad that Gaffer would be missing out, but Gaffer insisted that he go without him. After telling Fleetfoot about this, she got Soarin to take Gaffer as his plus-one.

On the night of the party, Everypony split up to mingle with the other guests, while Cory and Fleetfoot stayed together. As the couple meandered through the royal garden, Cory felt a gentle tap on his shoulder. He turned around with a confused look on his face, a confused look that turned into one of surprise.

“Mr Quin- I mean, Eric!” he said in surprise.

“Hey there, Cory,” he said. It turned out that Eric was invited to this party, too, along with a mare that Cory assumed to be his marefriend judging by the way she was holding his arm. She was a unicorn with a coat that was a darker shade of blue than Fleetfoot’s, with a long, flowing white mane and tail. She also had green eyes behind a pair of purple glasses.

“This is my fiancé, Azure Gem,” said Eric. “We’re good friends with the royal sisters. In fact, it was Princess Luna herself that hooked me up with a place here in Canterlot two years ago.”

“Really? That’s amazing,” Cory said before he received a nudge from the mare next to him. “Oh, right. This is Fleetfoot, she’s my marefriend.”

“Wait a sec,” said Azure Gem, “Aren’t you one of the Wonderbolts?”

“Yeah,” said Fleetfoot.

“Impressive, Cory,” Eric said. “Only nineteen years old, and you’re dating a celebrity.”

“Yeah, but we’re just trying to keep it low-key,” Cory explained. “We don’t want to be harassed by the press.”

“I can imagine,” said Azure. Suddenly, she winced for a second and put her hand on her stomach. That’s when Cory noticed that it was bulging a little.

“You okay, Az?” Eric asked.

“I’m fine, sweetie. Just felt a little kick, is all,” said the unicorn.

“Aww! You’re pregnant?” Fleetfoot said. “How far along are you?”

“About five months,” said Azure.

“I always wanted to be a mom,” said the pegasus.

“You hear that Cory? Better get crackin’,” said Eric, causing the younger human to blush.

“Eric!” Azure said, hitting her fiancé.

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding!” he said. “I guess you-know-who is rubbing off on me.”

Cory continued to go through his memories of that party, skipping over the part where he and Eric exchanged numbers and the part where all the eligible stallions crowded Princess Luna when she made an appearance at the party. He then found the part of the party that Fleetfoot was referring to:

It was just when they were about to leave when it happened. Cory, Fleetfoot, Blaze, Misty Fly, Rapidfire, and Spitfire were waiting for Soarin and Gaffer, wherever they were. Just then, a random earth mare came up to the group with a disarmingly happy demeanor. She had a short black mane and tail with a gray coat. She was wearing a white dress which, combined with her mane and coat colors, made her look like she was pulled out of a black-and-white movie.

“Why hello, there!” she said. “My name’s Inkblot, and I’m with the Canterlot News Network, may I ask you some questions?”

“Not right now,” Spitfire said, bluntly. “We were just leaving.”

“Oh really? But where’s Soarin?” she asked.

“Wherever he is, I wish I were there instead of here dealing with this mare,” Blaze whispered to Misty, who responded with a quiet giggle.

“He’s catching up with us,” Fleetfoot said. “If you don’t mind, we’d rather not answer any questions right now.”

Inkblot furrowed her brow then turned her eyes to Cory, and she blinked when she got a good look at him.

“And just who is this?” she asked curiously with her eyes staying on him. “Is he with you guys?”

Cory didn’t have much experience with the press, much less Equestrian press, but he had enough common sense to know that it was best to keep his mouth shut.

“Yes,” Spitfire answered, “but like I said, we can’t really answer any questions.”

“Oh, come on,” Inkblot annoyingly pleaded. “You guys are waiting for Soarin, right? That means you have a moment or two to spare.”

“Can’t you take a hint, lady?” Blaze said. “Go away!”

Inkblot simply huffed. “Well, I never!” she said, offended. “I guess I’ll just take my business elsewhere!” With that, the mare left the group alone and went off somewhere else.

“Does this happen often?” Cory asked.

“Thankfully, no. Most press ponies aren’t as persistent as her,” Misty explained.

“Hello! Anyone home?”

“Huh?” Cory said as he snapped out of the flashback.

“I asked you if you remembered what happened at the party last week,” said Fleetfoot. “You know, with that mare from the Canterlot News Network?”

“Yeah, I remember,” said Cory. “It was really awkward, wasn’t it?”

“I’d say it was more annoying than awkward,” said the mare. “Anywho, I should be getting back to the hotel. I’ll see you around, sweetie!” With that, Fleetfoot gave Cory a quick kiss on the cheek and flew off.

Cory softly smiled for a second, but that smiled disappeared when he realized something.

“Fuck!” he said. “I forgot to ask Fleetfoot to fly me down to the bottom of the Spire!” Cory sighed to himself and made his way to the staircase. “Oh, well. At least I’m going down the stairs instead of up.”

After a few minutes of going down stairs two steps at a time, Cory finally made it to the bottom of the Mountainside Dpire, and he headed in the direction towards home. Along the way, he spotted somepony familiar.

Grey coat, white, cloud-like mane… Yeah, that was somepony familiar. It was Rapidfire, and he was talking on the phone with somepony else.

“No problem,” he said into the phone. “I’m glad to be of help.”

“Hey, Rapidfire,” said Cory, surprising the stallion.

“Hey, Cory,” Rapidfire said, trying to hide his disdain. “What’s up?”

“Nothing much, just heading home,” said the human, blissfully unaware of Rapidfire’s dislike for him, in Cory’s defense, though, the stallion had gotten pretty good at hiding emotions like that. “What’s up with you?” Cory asked.

“Same as you, nothing much,” said Rapidfire. He was going to ask Cory a question, a question that he did not want to hear the answer to, but it was a question that he needed to ask if he wanted his plan to go the way he wanted it to. Swallowing his pride, Rapidfire took a deep breath and asked “How are you and Fleetfoot doing?”

“We’re doing great,” said Cory. “We’re doing really great. I’ve noticed that she’s been happier than usual lately. She told me that she’s been breaking her personal records, and that she’s sure to be in top condition for the flying competition next month.”

“Well, I can confirm that,” the stallion said with a fake chuckle. “That mare’s at the top of her game. It seems like you’re her new motivation. It’s a shame, though…”

Cory raised an eyebrow in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“Well, Fleetfoot’s trying so hard for you, and she’s so used to seeing you almost every day, now,” Rapidfire explained. “After the competition, however, we’re all gonna have to leave Canterlot and continue traveling, which means Fleetfoot won’t get to spend time with you.”

Cory’s eyes widened. The fact that Fleetfoot would have to leave after the competition went completely over his head.

“She’ll start to miss you really badly, and her performance will most likely suffer for it,” Rapidfire continued. “Having to choose between you and her team may tear the poor mare apart. I sure hope that doesn’t happen.”

“How are you so sure that it will?” Cory asked fearfully.

“Oh, I guess Fleetfoot never told you,” said the stallion. “Then again, it isn’t her place to say. Matter of fact, it isn’t my place to say, either, but for the sake of you and Fleetfoot, I’ll tell you.” Rapidfire took a deep breath and began to tell the story. “About two years ago, Soarin and Spitfire started dating. They were quite the item, too. I don’t think they ever had a single fight, but then things started to go bad, and it wasn’t even their fault. Their relationship went public, and the constant distraction led to a decrease in their performance in the skies. Because of all that, they decided that it’d be best if they just broke up.”

“That’s… really sad,” Cory lamented.

“It is,” said Rapidfire, “but sometimes you have to make that kind of sacrifice. Then again, you’re a smart guy, Cory. I’m sure you’ll make the right choice, whatever it is. I’ll see you around, ‘kay?”

“Sure,” Cory said dejectedly.

As Rapidfire walked away, he took a second to look over his shoulder at Cory. As he had hoped, the human had an unsure look on his face, as if he was heavily pondering something. Rapidfire continued toward the hotel, satisfied that his plan to deceive Cory was starting to take effect. Why break the couple up himself when the human’s self-doubt can do it for him.

As Cory walked home, Rapidfire’s words kept playing over and over in his head. He totally forgot about the fact that Fleetfoot would have to leave with the other Wonderbolts once the competition in Vanhoover was over. Rapidfire had a point, too. When Fleetfoot leaves, she’ll be too distracted by the separation to concentrate on her flying. While Cory loved Fleetfoot dearly, he did recognize that she has a commitment to her team as well.

“I shouldn’t force her to choose between me and the Wonderbolts,” he thought as he reached his house. “That wouldn’t be fair to her.”

When Cory entered the house, he noticed how quiet it was, which was odd considering that Gaffer was usually home at this hour. He then noticed a piece of paper on the table in the living room. Cory picked up the paper and saw that it was a note to him from Gaffer:

Dear Cory,

Left for a convention for three days. Forgot to tell you. Don’t forget that the light bill is due in two days. I left my half of the payment in the bottom of my sock drawer. See you when I get back.

Gaffer

P.S.: If you have Fleetfoot over, and I know you will, don’t go too crazy, if you catch my drift.

Cory set the paper down on the table, rolling his eyes at the postscript. With what he just heard from Rapidfire, having Fleetfoot over probably wouldn’t be the best thing for either of them. He decided that he should probably turn in early for the night, hoping that he’d feel better tomorrow. Cory made his way up to his room and changed into some sleeping clothes. As he was about to get into bed, however, he heard a knock on his window, and his head instinctively turned towards it.

“Fleetfoot?” he said in surprise as she waved to him. Cory walked to his window and opened it so he could talk to the mare on the other side.

“Hey, Cory,” she said. “Can I come in?”

The human hesitated for a moment, but he ultimately said yes and let the pegasus in. “What brings you here?” he asked.

“I forgot to give you something when we were at the spire earlier,” she said as she reached into her pocket. “I was able to pull some strings, and…” Fleetfoot then took out what looked like a slip of paper. “I got you a V.I.P. pass to the flying competition in Vanhoover! Before you say anything, I’ve already made arrangements for you to travel with me and the other Wonderbolts to the event.”

Cory stared at the ticket in awe. “Wow… That’s really nice of you, Fleetfoot, really…”

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

The human stayed silent for a moment, pondering whether or not he should voice his concerns.

“I’ll know if you’re lying, Cory,” Fleetfoot said to him.

He decided to fess up and tell her what’s been bothering him. He walked towards his bed and motioned for Fleetfoot to follow as he took a seat. “I’ve been thinking lately, about our relationship, and I never really considered the fact that we’ll be apart a lot of the time, and I’m afraid that it might stop you from doing your best when you’re out travelling.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I just don’t want you to feel like you have to choose between me and your career.”

“But I don’t feel that way.”

“Really?” Cory asked. “The possibility of our relationship being a distraction never crossed your mind?”

Fleetfoot paused for a second. “Okay, maybe a few times,” she admitted. “But that doesn’t matter. I don’t care if we’re separated, and you really need to give yourself more credit, Cory. You keep thinking that you’re holding me back just because I’m famous and you’re not, but that doesn’t matter to me.”

“Even so, you still have a commitment to your team!” Cory said raising his voice.

SMACK!

The sound reverberated through the room as Fleetfoot hit Cory with her palm. The impact was soft enough not to hurt him, but hard enough to get her point across.

“I have a commitment to you too, you know,” she said to him. “Even if we’re apart, I’ll still do my best. You’re not a distraction, Cory. You’re my motivation. That’s how much I love you.”

Cory looked at Fleetfoot and saw how brightly her eyes appeared to be; as if they matched the emotions she was feeling at the moment. “Do you really love me that much?” he asked.

Fleetfoot pushed Cory down and crawled on top of him, looking him right in the eyes. “More than you’ll ever know,” she said before she softly kissed the human underneath her. She wrapped her arms around him, and he soon did the same to her. After several minutes of making out, the two of them decided to take it further, starting with Fleetfoot removing Cory’s shirt.

The next morning, Cory woke up with a soft yawn and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Once his hands were removed from his face, he looked around the room. On his right, he saw a pile of discarded clothes. On his left, he saw a lump under the covers that was steadily rising and falling, accompanied by the sound of light breathing.

“I guess this proved that last night wasn’t a dream,” he thought. He figured that now was a good a time as any to get back into his clothes. Then again, why was he so worried about Fleetfoot seeing him naked after the events that had just transpired the night before? He started with his pants, and just as he threw his shirt on, Fleetfoot began to stir. The pegasus let out a yawn before turning to Cory.

“Morning,” she said.

“Morning,” he replied, and then he started to twiddle his fingers. “So… about last night.”

“I’m not gonna get pregnant, if that’s what you’re wondering,” Fleetfoot said. “Mating season isn’t for another five months.”

Cory was going to ask Fleetfoot what she meant by mating season, but decided to let it lie for the time being. “Well, I’ll be downstairs making breakfast, okay?”

“Sure,” she said. “I’ll be down in a minute.”

By the time Cory was done making breakfast, Fleetfoot was downstairs on the couch waiting for him. “I hope you like waffles,” he said.

“Don’t worry, I do,” she said with a giggle.

“Good, ‘cause I don’t know how to make much else when it comes to breakfast,” Cory said as he reached for the remote on the table and turned on the TV.

“Welcome back to Canterlot News Network,” was the first thing that popped up.

“Why is the TV always on the news channel when I turn it on?” Cory asked, more to himself than to Fleetfoot.

“Well, we can always change it,” Fleetfoot said, but then something on the TV caught her attention. “Wait, what the-?”

Fleetfoot’s eyes were glued onto the headline. She read it, reread it, and re-reread it, and she still was in disbelief. She read the headline aloud in horror.

“Fleetfoot Dating Mysterious Human?” she said slowly, and Cory immediately spit out the juice he was drinking.

Chapter 9: I Smell a Rat

Fleetfoot and Cory continued to stare at the headline as it was displayed on the television screen. They then looked up to see who was reporting the story, and their eyes widened even more, if that was even possible.

It was an earth mare that had a short black mane and tail with a gray coat.

“Good morning, Canterlot,” she said with a disarmingly happy demeanor. “I’m Inkblot, and here’s your daily celebrity gossip.”

Fleetfoot nearly choked on her food when the mare said her name. “I knew I recognized her! That’s the mare from the party!” she thought.

“In case you’ve been living under a rock, the Royal Sisters held a garden party last week, and everypony’s still talking about it today,” said Inkblot. “The sisters were even generous enough to provide every invitation with a plus-one pass, and some ponies have taken advantage of that. I had the pleasure of meeting the Wonderbolts right when the party was about to end, and I saw that there was one pony, or should I say person, that was with them that caught my attention. The Wonderbolts said that he was merely their companion for the evening, but thanks to an anonymous tip, I’ve found out that this mysterious human is actually the boyfriend of the Wonderbolt Fleetfoot.”

Fleetfoot began to rub her temples, “This isn’t happening, this isn’t happening, this isn’t happening,” she repeated to herself.

“The tipper couldn’t give me the human’s name,” Inkblot continued, “but I was able to catch a picture of Fleetfoot and her beau getting into a carriage limo with the other Wonderbolts.”

As the mare said that, a picture of the scene she described appeared on the screen. If it was any consolation, it was very dark at the time, the only illumination coming from inside the carriage, and Fleetfoot and Cory’s backs were turned to the camera.

“We’ll have more on this story as new information surfaces,” Inkblot said before Fleetfoot muted the TV and slammed the remote on the table.

“That BITCH!!!” she shouted and she clenched her free hand into a fist. “I swear to Celestia, if I see her on the street-”

“What I don’t get is who she got that tip from, and why they didn’t mention my name…” Cory pondered.

Fleetfoot let out a deep sigh and calmed herself down a little. “Well, the tipper probably didn’t give your name in case we decided to look for him or her. You don’t know that many ponies in Canterlot, so that would really narrow down the search.”

“Withholding my name wouldn’t help, though,” Cory said. “It’s obvious that it had to have been somepony that knew about our relationship.”

“Well, we’ll find out who ratted us out, Cory, whoever it was,” Fleetfoot vowed.

“And then what?” he asked.

“… I don’t know…”she said after a pause. “I should get going.”

“Hold on,” Cory said as he ran upstairs to his room. He came downstairs a minute later and tossed something to Fleetfoot, after taking a good look at it, she saw that it was a black hoodie.

“Here’s a pair of shades, too,” Cory said. “It’d be a bad idea to stay here, but you can’t go out in the open, either, so this should keep anypony from recognizing you. If you fly to the hotel, it’ll help even more.”

Fleetfoot looked up at him lovingly. “Thanks, sweetie,” she said.

“No problem,” he replied.

Fleetfoot threw on the hoodie, put the shades on, and pulled the hood over her head. Cory walked her up to his bedroom window and opened it for her. Not a word was exchanged as she zipped out the window towards the hotel.

“That BITCH!!!” Blaze yelled. She and the other Wonderbolts were all in Spitfire and Fleetfoot’s hotel room, watching Inkblot’s gossip exposé. “Who does she think she is, taking pictures when nopony’s looking!?”

“Damn, Blaze. If you’re this mad, I don’t even want to know how Fleetfoot reacted, assuming she’s seen this,” said Soarin.

“Where is Fleetfoot, anyway?” asked Misty Fly.

“I don’t know,” Spitfire answered. “I haven’t seen her since last night. She said was going to Cory’s because she forgot to give him his pass to the flying competition.”

“You don’t think…” Misty trailed off.

“Looks like Fleetfoot had a sleepover at Cory’s house,” Soarin said with a laugh, and Rapidfire choked on his morning coffee. “You okay, Rapid?” Soarin asked.

“I’m fine,” he said bitterly. Soarin didn’t hear the venom in his voice, but Blaze picked it up in a heartbeat, and she narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously.

“Anyway,” she said, not taking her eyes off him, “I’d like to know who tipped the media. Whoever they are, I hope they covered their tracks, for their sake.”

“Regardless, we’ll just have to help Fleetfoot through this,” Spitfire said.

“Well, I’m going back to my room,” said Rapidfire.

“I’ll catch up with you later, Rapid,” said Soarin.

“I’m gonna head out, too,” said Blaze. She looked at Misty and signaled for her to follow, and the young mare picked up on the hint.

“Oh, me too,” she said as she followed Blaze out of the room. “Where are we going?” she asked once they were out in the hallway.

“You’ll see, kid,” she answered as she led Misty down the hall and caught up with the pony she wanted to see. “Hey, Rapidfire!” she called out.

The stallion was just opening the door to the room that he and Soarin shared. “Yeah, Blaze?” he answered.

“I need to talk to you for a sec,” she said, and she let herself and Misty into his room.

“Sure,” he said cautiously as he closed the door behind him.

“I noticed your reaction when you heard that Fleetfoot spent the night at Cory’s house,” said Blaze. “That was quite the response.”

“I was surprised,” Rapidfire said.

The mare scoffed at him. “I’d would be too, if I were you. I bet that’s the last thing you wanted to happen, especially after selling Fleetfoot out to the press.”

Misty Fly gasped and Rapidfire’s ear twitched as he turned to look at Blaze. “How did you find out?” he asked.

“I was never really sure,” she replied. “I just acted on a hunch. I knew that you didn’t like Cory, but that wasn’t enough to prove it was you, so I just took a guess, and I happened to be right.”

“Rapidfire, how could you?” Misty asked.

“Because I think that Fleetfoot deserves better,” the stallion argued.

“Don’t give us that bullshit,” Blaze snapped. “You think that Fleetfoot deserves you.”

“It all makes sense now,” Misty said, more to herself than to the others. “You barely say a word when Cory’s around, and you’ve been so bitter ever since we met him. It was so obvious, and we didn’t even notice!”

“I warned you that you were gonna regret meddling in other ponies’ business, Rapidfire,” Blaze threatened.

“What, are you gonna tell on me?” the stallion retorted. “Real mature, Blaze.”

“As much as I should, and as much as I want to, I won’t tell anypony,” she said.

Misty Fly’s eyes widened at this. “What!? But Blaze-”

Blaze raised her hand in front of her, and Misty promptly stopped talking. “I’m only keeping quiet because I know that Fleetfoot is gonna find out on her own. If not now, then later. Once she does, she’ll never forgive you, and I think that’s punishment enough. You’ve done nothing but dig your own grave, Rapidfire.”

Without another word, Blaze stormed out of the room, with Misty following close behind. The older mare slammed the door as hard as she could, leaving Rapidfire to his own thoughts.

Meanwhile, in Spitfire’s room, she and Soarin were still talking about what they had just seen on the news.

“I was afraid this would happen,” the captain lamented. “I knew that their relationship would eventually get out.”

“It wasn’t her fault, though,” Soarin reminded her. “Somepony sold her out.”

“You implying that I did it?” she asked, sounding a little offended.

“No, no!” Soarin said, waving his arms in front of him and shaking his head. “I know you wouldn’t do that. I’ve seen how well you and Cory have been getting along since we all went out to dinner last month. I know that you trust him with Fleetfoot.”

“So what are you trying to say?” she asked.

The stallion sighed. Why did Spitfire always have to assume that there was some hidden meaning behind everything he said? Then again, it was one of the things he liked about her. “If I’m trying to say anything, it’s that you shouldn’t be too hard on Fleetfoot when you see her. Try to think about how she feels. I know you’re mad, but-”

“I’m not mad at her,” she interrupted. “I’m just mad that she and Cory have to go through the same hell we went through. All this exposure is gonna ruin their relationship.”

“That’s not necessarily true,” Soarin said. “If they try, they can get through this. They don’t have to just give up.”

Spitfire merely stayed quiet as the words sunk in.

“Funny,” Soarin thought. “The one time that there was a hidden meaning behind what I said, she doesn’t say a word.”

Just then, Soarin and Spitfire saw something coming towards the balcony. It looked as though somepony was flying towards them, but they couldn’t recognize who it was. Whoever the pony was, the black hood and shades combined with the shadows completely obscured their face from view.

“Who is that?” Soarin asked.

“I dunno,” Spitfire answered, “but I have an idea of who it might be.” She got up and walked towards the glass door leading to the balcony. After unlocking it, she opened the door and waited for the hooded pony to reach her. The pony gently touched down on the balcony and removed her hood and shades.

“Fleetfoot?” Spitfire asked.

“I’ll give you two some time alone,” Soarin said as he got up and left the room.

Spitfire led Fleetfoot into the room, and Fleetfoot sat on her bed, placing a hand on her forehead.

“I saw the news,” the captain said. “We all did.”

Fleetfoot said nothing.

“What’s wrong?” Spitfire asked her.

“Nothing,” she said. “Just preparing for the shitstorm.”

“I’m not mad, Fleetie.”

“How could you not be mad? You told me that all this would happen and it did.”

“Yeah, but it wasn’t your fault,” Spitfire said consolingly. “Why didn’t you come back last night?”

“Well, I went to Cory’s to give him his ticket, like I told you, but then we started talking… and I ended up staying the night,” Fleetfoot nervously explained. “Hopefully she won’t ask if we did anything else,” she thought.

“I wonder if they… Nah, they wouldn’t,” Spitfire thought.

“I don’t know what I’m gonna do,” the small mare said desperately. “I don’t want drag Cory into all this drama, but I don’t want our relationship to end, either.”

“You don’t want to end up like me and Soarin,” said Spitfire.

Fleetfoot shook her head. “No, I don’t. I know it was a mutual think between you two, but-”

Spitfire didn’t really catch the rest of what her friend was saying. The word “mutual” was stuck in her head. All this time, everypony thought that her breakup with Soarin was mutual, when it was anything but.

“Fleetie,” she said somberly.

“Yeah?”

“There’s something that you should know about me and Soarin,” the bigger mare said as Fleetfoot looked at her with a questioning look on her face. “He and I… our breakup wasn’t mutual at all.”

“It wasn’t?” Fleetfoot asked in surprise.

Spitfire shook her head. “No, it wasn’t,” she said. “It was my idea to break it off. I couldn’t handle all the heat from the press, and I thought that I had to end it before things went sour between me and him.”

“How did Soarin take it?” the small mare asked.

“He wasn’t happy about it,” Spitfire answered bluntly. “While he understood where I was coming from, he thought that we could get over the hurdle. I wasn’t so sure, though.”

“Does he still feel that way?” Fleetfoot asked, receiving a nod of the head as a response. Then, she saw something that she hadn’t seen in a long time. She thought she was just seeing things, but then she heard a sniffle.

There was no doubt about it, Spitfire was crying.

The two mares held each other tightly, and neither of them said a word, because there wasn’t anything more to be said. They just stayed there, shedding tears.

Meanwhile, in the hallway, Rapidfire was making his way to Fleetfoot and Spitfire’s room, but when he got there, he could hear a strange sound coming from inside. He moved his head closer to the door so he could hear better, but once he did, he wished that he didn’t.

The sound of crying and sniffling was too much for him.

He had hoped that the exposure from the press and the self-doubt that he ignited in Cory would cause the couple to break up, allowing him to swoop up and have Fleetfoot to himself, but his actions did nothing but make the poor mare miserable. Rapidfire’s mind then flashed back to when Blaze first warned him about this.

“Don’t start meddling, Rapidfire, ‘cause you’re gonna end up regretting it, mark my words.”

“Dammit, Blaze,” he whispered to himself as he walked away from the door.

Chapter 10: Where Do We Go From Here?

“Hello?”

“Hey, Cory. It’s Gaffer.”

“Oh, hey, man. What’s up?”

“Not much. I saw the news this morning. You and Fleetfoot okay?”

“We’re fine. Fleetfoot texted me earlier saying that she made it to her hotel without any trouble.”

“That’s good to know. Have you two figured out what you’re gonna do?”

“Not yet. I’m not sure how we’re gonna get through this.”

“Well, I’m sure you two will figure something out. When I get back, I’ll help you out in any way that I can.”

“Thanks, G.”

“No problem, C.”

Cory hung up the phone and sighed deeply. “Man, I am deep in it,” he said to himself. “It’ll only be a matter of time before ponies start stopping random humans on the street to see if they matched the picture on the news.” Just then, Cory’s phone rang, and when he checked the ID, he saw that the call was coming from Fleetfoot’s phone.

“Hello?” Cory answered.

“Hey, Cory. It’s Spitfire,” said the mare on the other line.

“Hey, Spitfire,” said the human. “How’s Fleetfoot?”

“She’s doing fine,” she said. “She’s not in the room right now, so I wanted to call you while she was gone.”

“Really? Why?” Cory asked with a raised eyebrow.

Spitfire sighed. “I don’t know if you know this, but I was in the same position as her once upon a time. I used to date Soarin,” she explained. “Unlike you and Fleetfoot, though, we were open about it. Eventually, I felt like I was forced to choose between him and my career, and I think that’s what Fleetfoot is going through right now.”

While Cory did know about Spitfire and Soarin’s relationship, he never directly heard about it from either of them. He immediately understood what Spitfire was getting at. The recent exposure to the press backed Fleetfoot into a corner, and she was in a state of helplessness.

“The more I think about it, though, the more ridiculous my ‘dilemma’ sounded,” the mare continued. “I think the reason why I made such a rash decision and ended the relationship was that I was too afraid to talk to Soarin about how I felt, and I ended up making a decision that didn’t benefit either of us.”

Spitfire suddenly realized that she was beginning to vent and redirected her train of thought.

“What I’m saying is that you have to help Fleetfoot so that she doesn’t make the same mistake I did,” she explained. “With you there to straighten her thoughts, there’s a smaller chance of her doing something that she’ll regret.”

“I get it,” Cory said softly, realizing what he had to do. “There’s one problem, though. I’m sure that the ponies in Canterlot are wondering who the ‘mysterious human’ is. I’m worried that somepony might stop me on the street or something.”

“Well, you don’t have to talk to her now,” Spitfire clarified.

“I know, but judging from what you told me, I think it’s better to deal with this now instead of later,” said Cory.

The Pegasus thought for a moment and said “You’ve got a point. In that case, how about I call a cab for you?”

“That’d be great, Spitfire,” the human said gratefully.

“I’ll let you know when it’s coming for you,” she said.

“Sure,” said Cory. “And Spitfire…”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for telling me all this,” he said. “Fleetfoot’s lucky to have you around.”

The mare let out a chuckle. “She’s lucky to have you around, too.”

After hanging up the phone, Cory looked at the clock. It had been an hour since the newscast, and he had already showered and changed since he saw it, so he was ready for the cab, whenever it’d show up.

“I hope Fleetfoot doesn’t decide anything rash before I get to her,” he said to himself hopefully.

Meanwhile, Fleetfoot was walking down the hallway of the hotel floor. She wasn’t really going anywhere; she just felt like she needed to just walk, regardless of whether or not she had an actual destination. She made sure to let her hair down, put in her contacts and put on her fake glasses before she left. Fleetfoot continued down the hall, lost in her own thoughts, when suddenly…

“Um… Fleetfoot?”

The mare flinched and spun around quickly to see who said her name. She sighed when she saw who it was.

“Oh. Hey, Rapidfire,” she said. “I thought that you were some fanpony.”

“Nope, just me,” said the stallion. “Can I talk to you?”

“Well, Rapidfire, I’m not really up for talking right now, considering all that’s happened,” Fleetfoot explained. “I’d rather be alone right now.”

“I know, I know, but I swear this is really important,” said Rapidfire.

Fleetfoot sighed and said “Okay, what is it?”

Rapidfire hesitated for a moment. “Well… I… It’s just…”

“Come out with it already,” the mare said exasperatedly.

“Sorry, this is just really hard to say,” he stalled. “The thing is… I was the one that ratted you out to the press.”

Fleetfoot’s heart skipped a beat in shock. “…What…?” she barely managed to say.

“I got Inkblot’s contact information yesterday and tipped her off,” Rapidfire explained. “After that, I started filling Cory’s head with fears so that he’d want to break up with you.”

“Why would you do that?” Fleetfoot asked fearfully, feeling more and more hurt by the second.

“Because…” he hesitated, “because I like you too, and I was jealous that you were dating him instead of me.”

“So that’s why you never said a word when Cory was around,” she said.

“Yeah…” he admitted. “But I-”

THWACK!

Before Rapidfire could get another word in, Fleetfoot’s fist collided with his muzzle, sending him flying a few feet before landing on the ground.

“I deserved that…” he said weakly as he sat up.

“You sure did,” said Fleetfoot as she gave him a deathly stare. She would have been crying had she not used up her tears mere minutes ago.

“Fleetfoot, the reason why I’m telling you all this is because I’m sorry,” Rapidfire explained. “I heard you crying in your room and I felt terrible about what I did. I never wanted you to be so miserable. If I knew this would happen, I never would’ve told Inkblot anything.”

Fleetfoot continued to stare coldly at the stallion as he spoke.

“I know that it’s too late to change anything, and I’m not expecting you to forgive me,” he said, “but I just needed to get it off my chest and let you know that I really regret what I did.”

The mare closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. “I don’t know if I can forgive you just yet,” she said.

“I understand,” Rapidfire said as he got up and walked past Fleetfoot.

“Where are you going?” she asked.

“I’m going to tell Spitfire that this was all my fault…” he explained, “and I’ll accept whatever punishment she gives me.”

Rapidfire walked away without another word, and Fleetfoot looked at him in surprise. He actually owned up to his mistake and was about to face the consequences like a real stallion. It almost made her want to forgive him right then and there.

Almost.

Fleetfoot continued to walk aimlessly down the hall, when she spotted another familiar face.

“Cory?” she asked in disbelief.

“Hey, Fleetfoot- OOF!”

Cory was interrupted by an unexpected half-tackle/half-hug from Fleetfoot, who buried her head into his shoulder. “You’re here!” she said happily. “What are you doing here?”

“I caught a cab,” he said. “You might not want to go down to the hotel lobby, though. It’s crawling with paparazzi. Thankfully the hotel staff doesn’t allow them up here.”

“How did you get past ‘em?”

“When I got there, they were all at the concierge desk clamoring to get permission to go up to the rooms. I just stuck to the walls and stayed out of their sight.”

“Not that I’m not happy to see you or anything, but why did you risk coming here?”

Cory smiled. “Something told me that you needed me to be there for you and help you through this.”

“Heh, something…” he thought. “More like somepony.”

“Thanks,” Fleetfoot said with a soft smile, and then she remembered something important. “Before I forget… I found out who told the press that we were dating.”

“Really?” Cory said in surprise.

The mare nodded her head. “It was Rapidfire.”

“How did you find out?”

“He admitted to it just a minute ago,” Fleetfoot said. “He said he felt guilty because of how miserable I was, and that he tried to fill your head with fears.”

“That explains what he told me yesterday after I left the Mountainside Spire.”

“What did he say?”

“He said that our relationship would force you to choose between me and your team, and that I would be a distraction.”

“So that’s why you were acting so insecure last night…”

“Pretty much,” Cory paused for a second. “Where’s Rapidfire at now?”

“He’s telling Spitfire everything,” said Fleetfoot. “I think he really is sorry for what he did, but that’s beside the point. What I’m really concerned about is what we’re gonna do to get through this. I don’t want this to end between us.”

“Neither do I,” said Cory, “but I think we’ll be able to figure something out.”

“Well, we can’t stay out here,” said Fleetfoot. “One of those press ponies might sneak their way up here. Let’s see if Blaze and Misty will let us crash in their room.”

Meanwhile, in Fleetfoot and Spitfire’s room, Rapidfire had just finished confessing what he had done to the captain.

“So it was all you, huh?” she asked for confirmation.

“Yeah,” he said. “I shouldn’t have done it, and I’ll take any punishment you give me.”

Spitfire pondered the idea for a second. It went without saying that there needed to be repercussions for Rapidfire’s actions. What he did not only put a lot of emotional strain on Fleetfoot and Cory, but it also created a bother for the other Wonderbolts, too, because of the press exposure. Spitfire was also personally offended because of how much this affected Fleetfoot, her closest friend, and she felt a little bit of personal resentment toward Rapidfire just for that.

So the question wasn’t whether or not Rapidfire would suffer any consequences. The question was what the consequences were going to be.

After further consideration, Spitfire finally decided on a suitable punishment.

“I really should boot you off the team for this,” she said, then she looked up at him, “but since you were honest, and since you seem to have already gotten a beating from Fleetfoot, I’m gonna be generous. I’ve decided to suspend you for three months, but since we need all our members for the competition in Vanhoover, your suspension won’t start until afterward.”

Rapidfire let out a sigh, relieved that his punishment wasn’t as bad as he thought it’d be. “Thank you, Spitfire,” he said gratefully.

“You’re welcome,” she said back. “Now, I need to tell Soarin about this, since he’s the only one that doesn’t know, according to what you told me.”

“Okay,” said the stallion as he and Spitfire left the room.

“So you DID spend the night at Cory’s house!” Blaze said. “I knew it!”

“Okay, okay, I did,” Fleetfoot said. “Don’t make a big deal out of it.”

“Sorry, my bad,” said Blaze.

“So, did you two… well, you know…” Misty sort-of asked.

“Don’t ask them that, kid! That’s personal!” Blaze said. “But since it’s already out there, did you?”

“Nah, we didn’t do anything except cuddle,” Fleetfoot half-lied. There was some cuddling, but only after the main event.

“I call bullshit~” Misty said in a singsong voice.

“Whatever,” Fleetfoot said.

“So have you two decided what you’re gonna do about your relationship?” Blaze asked.

“We’ve thought about it a little,” Cory said, “but we haven’t made a full decision yet. What we did decide was that we’re going to tough this out and stay together for now.”

“How romantic!” Misty swooned. “You’re both sticking it out till the end and battling all the odds in the name of love!”

“You’ve been reading too many romance novels, kid,” Fleetfoot said with a chuckle.

“Seriously,” Blaze added.

Everyone had a good laugh at that. Despite all that happened that morning, Cory and Fleetfoot still had a reason to laugh. Things were starting to look up after they had reached their lowest point, and there was hope for a future together.

Chapter 11: The Game Plan

It had been a week since the newscast, and the hype around Canterlot was starting to dwindle in favor of the approaching competition. During that week, the Wonderbolts decided to lay low and not leave the hotel at all, hoping that the gossip seekers would give up. Despite that, though, Cory and Fleetfoot stayed in constant contact. They called each other every night during that week and kept each other company with their voices. One night, Fleetfoot had something to tell Cory, something important.

“Hello?” Cory answered.

“Hey, Cory,” said the mare on the other line.

“Hey, Fleetfoot,” he said.

“It’s good to hear your voice again,” she said. “How’s everything going?”

“Things have been going well,” he said. “My bosses at the game company are thinking about paying me for my time there.”

“Some extra cash is always good,” Fleetfoot said, “but anyway, I wanted to tell you something.”

“What is it?”

“We’re finally leaving the hotel tomorrow,” said the mare. “There’s less than three weeks left before the competition, so we’re going to spend that time training almost every day, especially since we lost a week of practice.”

“That’s great!” Cory said excitedly. “You sure all the hype has died down yet?”

“Not completely, but just enough so that we can go out without being harassed by every pony we pass by,” Fleetfoot said somewhat confidently. “I was wondering if you could meet us at the gym. It’d be nice to see you after all this time.”

Cory felt uneasy at this. “Not that I don’t want to see you, but do you think that that’s a good idea, Fleetfoot?”

“If we arrive there at different times, I don’t think that anypony will suspect anything. I talked it over with the team and they don’t have a problem with it,” she explained.

“If you say so…” Cory said.

“I’m looking forward to seeing you, sweetie,” she said happily.

“Me too,” he said just as happily.

The next day, Fleetfoot was getting the last of her things in her gym bag. “You almost ready, Spitfire?” she asked.

“I’ve been ready,” Spitfire said. “I’m waiting on you.”

Fleetfoot turned around to see that her captain was already at the door with her bag slung over her shoulder. “Is Cory still coming to see you?” she asked.

“Yeah,” said Fleetfoot. “I can’t wait to see him!”

“I know,” said Spitfire. “You’ve been mumbling his name in your sleep for days.”

The smaller mare’s eyes widened in embarrassment. “I-I was!?” she said in a panic.

“I’m fucking with you, Fleetie,” Spitfire said, sticking her tongue out.

“That isn’t funny,” she said.

“I’d beg to differ,” the captain retorted. “Well, that’s enough of that. Let’s get going.”

“Right behind you.”

The Wonderbolts arrived at the gym fifteen minutes later. After they all got changed, Fleetfoot kept her eye on the gym entrance, waiting for Cory to show up. It took about three minutes for him to arrive. When Cory got in, he waved to the Wonderbolts and walked up to them.

“Hey, guys,” he said. “Good to see you after all this time.”

“Same here,” said Soarin.

“Well, now that Cory’s here, we can head to the exclusive training area that the gym set off for us,” said Spitfire.

“How did you manage that?” asked Misty Fly.

“What do you think I’ve been doing all week, kid? Kicking up dust?” the captain asked back as everyone followed her to the exclusive training area, which was towards the back of the gym.

Everyone’s breath was taken away by the sight of the place. There was a competition-sized track complete with trick hoops, and there was top-grade training equipment, too. Not only that, but it was closed off from the rest of the gym, so there was zero chance of some nosy pony barging in. However, the sense of wonder was suddenly interrupted by the sound of Spitfire’s voice.

“Alright, Wonderbolts!” she said loudly and sternly. “We got less than three weeks ‘til the national flying competition, and we just lost a week of practice! We need to get our shit together and train harder than ever if we wanna take home the trophy this year! We’re gonna be here six days a week from noon to five, and I expect you all to give a hundred and ten percent! No breaks, no 'but's, and no bitching! Is that understood!?”

“YES CAPTAIN!” said the other Wonderbolts.

Cory was surprised at this. This was the first time that he saw the Wonderbolts actually training for a competition, the first time that he’s seen them in a non-causal setting. It was really something to see how strong of a leader Spitfire was, and how loyal the others were to her. What surprised him the most, though, was Fleetfoot. He had never seen such an intense expression on her face before. She had always been a sweet, laid-back mare, and to see her with such a hardened expression was quite the sight. When the other Wonderbolts got to training, Fleetfoot stayed back and walked up to Cory. He opened his mouth to say something, but was silenced by the mare’s lips pressing against his aggressively.

“There,” she said as she broke the kiss. “That should keep me going for a while.” She then took off towards the track, leaving poor Cory flustered and confused.

“That’s Fleetfoot for ya,” said somepony from behind him.

“What do you mean, Spitfire?” he asked as he turned around.

“Normally, she’s very calm and relaxed, but when it’s time to get serious, she gets more aggressive than me,” she explained.

“Wow, I’ve never seen this side of her,” Cory said in awe.

“Not even when you had sex with her?” Spitfire said, elbowing the boy in the side, causing him to panic and blush.

“W-who told you that!?” he asked.

“Fleetfoot finally told me two days ago,” she said. “She said you were better than any stallion she’s been with.”

Cory’s face instantly went red, and he began to stammer, which made Spitfire laugh.

“Dude, relax! I’m messing with you!” she said in-between fits of laughter.

This put the human at ease and he took a deep sigh. “Oh, okay,” he said. “Don’t do that, though.”

Spitfire laughed again as she flew off to train with her teammates. Cory found a nice bench to sit on while he watched the Wonderbolts practice for the big competition. Every twenty or so minutes, Fleetfoot would go up to him and kiss him fiercely before returning to whatever she was doing.

“I need to refuel,” she’d say every time.

“Is this the same mare that I’m dating?” Cory thought to himself. “She really does get aggressive when the time calls for it. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.”

Sometime later, Rapidfire started to approach Cory, who didn’t see him coming. Fleetfoot, however, did see the stallion approaching the human, and her protective instincts flared up.

“What does he think he’s doing!?” she said to herself. She prepared to zoom towards Rapidfire and tackle him, but somepony held her back.

“Ngh! Let me go, Blaze!” she said angrily.

“Chill out, Fleetfoot,” the other mare said calmly. “Just watch.”

Fleetfoot took a deep breath and did just that, but she was prepared to take action in the event that Rapidfire tried anything.

“Hey, Cory,” said the stallion.

Cory looked up and was surprised to see the grey stallion before him. “Oh… hey, Rapidfire,” he said with a hint of contempt.

“Look, I know I’m not your favorite pony in the world right now…” the stallion said admittedly, “but I just wanted to apologize for selling you and Fleetfoot out and putting all those fears in your head. I know you probably don’t believe me, but I really do regret it, and I just want you to know that I’m sorry.”

Cory didn’t say anything for a while. He thought and thought about what was just said to him. Rapidfire had just apologized for what he did, and Cory was wondering how sincere he was. It definitely sounded sincere, but he could only be doing this as part of his punishment.

Then again, if that was the case, then the apology wouldn’t have sounded sincere at all, knowing Rapidfire’s attitude. Plus, something was telling Cory that he would’ve done the same thing if he were in Rapidfire’s position.

“Alright, we’re cool,” Cory said as he offered his hand for a shake. Rapidfire smiled and shook Cory’s hand.

“See?” said Blaze. “He was just going to apologize.”

“Sorry,” said Fleetfoot. “I was just worried for Cory, is all.”

Blaze smiled at her white-maned friend. “You really love that kid, don’t you?”

“More than anything,” she said.

“Have you guys decided on what you’re going to do about your relationship after the competition?” asked Blaze

“We’ve talked about it over the past week, and we’re starting to come to a solution,” explained Fleetfoot. “Once it’s set in stone, we’ll tell you and the others while we’re on our way to the competition.”

“Okay, then,” said Blaze, and she and Fleetfoot continued to practice.

When the training session ended and the Wonderbolts had all taken showers, Fleetfoot caught up to Cory before he left.

“Thanks for coming, Cory,” she said. “Same time tomorrow?”

“Sorry, Fleetfoot,” he said. “I have classes tomorrow. I won’t be able to make it to every session, but I promise that I’ll come to see you here whenever I’m free. Deal?”

The mare softly chuckled and said “Deal.”

As Cory promised, he stopped by the gym whenever he could so that he and Fleetfoot could see each other. He still had to get used to Fleetfoot’s… “aggressive state,” as Spitfire called it, but that was a minor thing. Besides, there was a small part of Cory that liked it.

This went on for almost three weeks, until the day came when they all had to take the train to Vanhoover for the competition. It was also the day that Fleetfoot and Cory would tell the other Wonderbolts what they had decided to do after the competition was over.

“WHAT!?” they all said in shock.

“We know it’s a risky decision, but we think that it’s for the best,” Fleetfoot explained.

“Are you absolutely sure you want to do this, Fleetie?” Spitfire asked.

“I am, Spitfire,” she replied. “Cory and I put a lot of thought into this, and we thought that this would be for the best.”

“If you say so,” Misty said worriedly.

When they all got to Vanhoover, it was late in the afternoon, so the Wonderbolts and Cory simply ordered takeout and ate in their hotel room.

“Welcome to life on the road, Cory,” Soarin said with a chuckle. “Cramped rooms and takeout dinners.”

“Don’t mind him,” Spitfire said to the human. “It’s only like this when we’re staying at competition venues. The hotels really like to screw the teams over when it comes to accommodations.”

“Don’t forget that I’m a college student, you guys,” Cory reminded. “I’m used to this.”

Everypony else got a good laugh at that statement.

Just as everyone was about to turn in for the night, Cory approached Fleetfoot at her bed.

“Big day tomorrow,” he said.

“I know,” she said. “I always get a little nervous the night before a competition. It’s the good kind of nervous, though.”

“Well, that’s good to know,” said Cory. “I know you’re gonna do great out there, and I’ll be right there cheering you on.”

“Thanks, Cory,” Fleetfoot said as she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. “G’night.”

“Good night,” he said back.

“Hello, and welcome to the fifteenth annual National Flying Competition, where teams from all over Equestria come to battle over who deserves this year’s title of ‘Best Flying Team in Equestria’! I’m Instant Replay, from the Equestrian Sports Network, here to bring you coverage of all the goings on at this big event.”

“Man, the reporters sure like to play this up,” said Cory.

“Why not?” asked Blaze. “It’s their job.”

Cory and the Wonderbolts were watching the TV coverage of the event from inside their prep room. Once Spitfire got herself ready, though, she switched it off and began to address her teammates.

“Alright, Wonderbolts,” she said. “This is the day we’ve been training for. We’re all aware of which events we’re doing, right?”

“YES MA’AM!!!” said the other Wonderbolts.

“No surprise there,” Cory thought. “They were all practicing for their specific events. I’d be worried if they didn’t know which events they were doing. Misty and Blaze are doing acrobatics, Soarin and Rapidfire are doing endurance, Spitfire is doing the recovery event, and Fleetfoot’s are doing the obstacle course. After that is the team relay.”

“Now we didn’t win last year, but this year, we’re gonna kill the competition!” said Spitfire. “We worked our flanks off these past three weeks, and now we’re gonna go kick some flank!” She then stretched her arm out and said “Everyone in!”

The other Wonderbolts got up and put their hands in, with Cory looking at them from the side. Before Spitfire said anything, she looked at Cory and smiled.

“Well, what’re you waiting for?” she asked. “When I said ‘everyone,’ I meant you, too.”

“Me?” Cory asked in disbelief.

“Why not?” Soarin asked.

“You’ve been helping us out and supporting us all this time, Cory,” said Misty Fly.

“As far as we’re concerned, you’re part of the team,” said Blaze.

“Blaze is right,” said Rapidfire, which caught EVERYONE off guard. “Come on in.”

Cory smiled and joined the Wonderbolts, standing next to Fleetfoot and putting his hand in.

“Wonderbolts on three,” said Spitfire. “One… two… three!”

Everyone raised their hands and shouted out loud:

“WONDERBOLTS!!!”

Final Chapter: Let the Games Begin!

This. Is the longest chapter. I've EVER. Written.

“Wish us luck,” Blaze said as she and Misty Fly were about to leave the prep room. The competition’s first event, acrobatics, was about to begin.

“You guys don’t need it,” said Soarin. “Go out there and kill the competition!”

“You got it, Soarin!” Misty said as she and Blaze left the room.

“You think they’re gonna do well?” Cory asked Fleetfoot.

“Well, Blaze has this on lock. I know that for a fact,” said the mare. “As for Misty, this is her first time at this competition, but she’s proven to be a skilled acrobat. She’ll do fine, too, as long as she doesn’t let the pressure get to her.”

“Pressure?” the human asked.

“Well, unlike smaller competitions, this one has the biggest number of attendees every year,” Fleetfoot explained. “I’ve seen ponies break down under the pressure of all those eyes watching them. Misty’s still young, just a year older than you, so I’m a little worried for her.”

“You’re talking as if you’re that much older than her, Fleetfoot,” Cory chuckled.

“I know, but still,” she said, “I can’t help but think that she might crack.”

“It’s not like you to worry this much Fleetie,” Spitfire interrupted. “Has Cory turned you soft?”

“Hell, no!” Fleetfoot said defensively. “What makes you say that!?”

“You’ve never been this worried about a teammate before,” the captain explained. “So you must be turning soft. That or you don’t believe Misty can do this.”

Fleetfoot rolled her eyes. “I’m not falling for it, Spitfire. You just want to get me mad.”

Spitfire smiled. “Damn, Fleetie. I never thought you’d catch on that quick.”

“I only let you get away with it because I know it’s your way of keeping your nerves under control,” Fleetfoot said, which made Soarin laugh loudly.

“Shut up, Soarin!” Spitfire said, not noticing how red her face was. No one could tell whether it was from embarrassment or anger.

Probably a combination of both.

Just then, Instant Replay, the announcer on the TV, said something that caught everyone’s attention.

“Representing the Wonderbolts in the Acrobatics event, give a round of applause for Blaze and Misty Fly!!!”

Everyone’s heads turned to the TV when the announcer said those very words. The first thing they saw was Blaze and Misty flew out of their starting area and up into the sky. As they did their routine, Fleetfoot looked at Misty carefully, and was surprised at what she saw.

Misty was totally composed. She showed no signs of nervousness at all. Even with all those eyes watching her, the young mare seemed calm, almost too calm. In fact, she looked as though she was enjoying the fact that everypony was looking at her, like it was fueling her fire. By the time the routine ended, Blaze and Misty Fly were both winded, and they were awaiting their scored from the judges. The event was being scored on a one to ten scale, with ten being the best, of course.

The first judge raised her scorecard. Nine.

The second judge raised his scorecard. Nine.

The third judge took a while, but he finally made his decision and raised his scorecard.

Ten.

Fleetfoot, Spitfire, Rapidfire, Soarin, and Cory cheered from inside the prep room. No team in the history of the competition had EVER gotten a ten from the third judge. Not only did Blaze and Misty take the lead in the event, but they made history.

The Wonderbolts continued to score first for the next two events. Soarin and Rapidfire annihilated the other competitors in the endurance event, and Spitfire’s time in the recovery event was a competition record.

Then it came down to Fleetfoot’s event: the obstacle course. By then, Fleetfoot had gotten back into her aggressive state again. She had been pounding away at a punching bag for the past five minutes, and Cory took the risk to approach her to see if she was okay.

“You alright?” he asked.

“Alright?” she asked back. “I’m more than alright. I’m friggin’ PUMPED!!! I am so ready for the obstacle course! Bring it on!”

Cory chuckled nervously. “Heh-heh, I’m glad you’re not nervous.”

“Why would I be?”

“Well, because twenty minutes ago you told me that you were…” Cory reminded worriedly. Did Fleetfoot really not remember that she was nervous? This “aggressive state” of hers seemed more and more like a real psychological thing that she goes through.

Just then, there was an announcement over the PA system.

“All contestants competing in the Obstacle Course Race please make your way to the starting area. Again, all Obstacle Course contestants report to the starting area, please.”

“That’s all you, Fleetfoot,” said Blaze. “Knock ‘em dead.”

“You know I will,” she said confidently as she strode out of the prep room. Everyone else turned their heads to the TV so that they could see the action.

“I was able to take a look at the course with Fleetfoot earlier,” Spitfire said. “It’s pretty standard for the most part. You got your hoops, your tunnels, and the like, but what concerns me is the final obstacle.”

“What is it?” everyone asked.

Spitfire sighed. “They’ve got automated mini cannons shooting at the competitors.”

“Shooting what?” Soarin asked worriedly

“Rubber discs,” said Spitfire.

“That doesn’t sound too bad,” said Rapidfire.

“It’s worse than you think,” the captain lamented. “The cannons are stationed in a tunnel-like area, and these discs that they’re shooting not only have high elasticity, but they have an almost abnormal ability to ricochet.”

Looks of fear appeared on everyone’s faces when they realized just how dangerous this was.

“So there’s gonna be a bunch of rubber discs bouncing around a tunnel at high speeds!?” Misty asked in disbelief. “What were the officials thinking!?”

“There’s no way this shit’s legal!” said Cory.

“Apparently they’ve tested it and it’s been approved for safety,” Spitfire explained.

“’Approved for safety’ my flank!” Soarin objected. “Somepony could really get hurt in there!”

“It’s not like there’s anything we can do about it now,” Spitfire reminded everyone. “The event’s gonna to start in less than two minutes, so all we can do now is hope.”

Everyone looked at the TV with mixed expressions of worry, frustration, and most of all, hope.

“The Obstacle Course event is about to begin!” said the referee. “Contestants on your marks! Get seeeeeeeet…”

BANG!

The referee’s horn shot out a gunshot-like blast of magic and all the contestants, including Fleetfoot, took off, and the Instant Replay gave his commentary on the event.

“The racers are approaching the first obstacle, Gauntlet of Hoops, an arrangement of moving rings that each racer has to fly through. Now remember, folks, for every ring that a racer misses, there will be a one-second penalty to that racer’s time.”

Fleetfoot narrowed her eyes and focused on each hoop as it came to her. Thanks to her petite figure, she was able to swoop through each and every hoop with the greatest of ease.

“Don’t forget, everypony,” the announcer reminded, “there’s a hidden gold hoop that will grant the team whose racer passes through it a special bonus that will be revealed after the final relay race concludes and the sores have been tallied.”

Fleetfoot didn’t need a reminder; her mind was already set on finding and clearing that gold hoop. While one half of her concentration was on the normal hoops, the other half was fixated on finding the golden hoop. Fleetfoot finally found what she was looking for; the golden hoop was the last hoop of the course, on the lower left-hand corner, which was a blind spot for most pegasi.

For Fleetfoot, though, the position of that hoop couldn’t have been clearer.

“Aaaaand Fleetfoot makes it through the hoop, leading the pack after the first obstacle!”

Everyone in the Wonderbolts’ prep room cheered, and the watched as Fleetfoot made her way through the second obstacle, the artificial clouds.

“You can feel the tension in the air as the racers zoom through these artificially made clouds, generated thanks to technology provide by PonyTech, Inc.,” Instant Replay announced, squeezing in that last bit for the sake of endorsement.

Cory rolled his eyes at the lack of subtlety. Then again, when is endorsement ever subtle?

No one could see who was where thanks to the thickness of the clouds, but a few racers fell out of them when they collided. Thankfully, Fleetfoot wasn’t among them, so she was still in the race. Finally, three racers made it out of the clouds, and while Fleetfoot was one of them, there was one racer in front of her.

“Crap! Fleetfoot’s in second!” Soarin exclaimed.

“Don’t count her out yet,” Spitfire reassured him. “There’s still that last obstacle.”

“With only three contestants left in this event, the race moves on to the final obstacle, the Disc Cannons of Death!!!”

The name did little to ease Cory and the Wonderbolts’ worry.

“This deadly tunnel of disc-firing, motion-detecting cannons is the most dangerous obstacle we’ve ever had in the history of this event!” the announcer yelled with unnecessary bravado. “Will our three remaining racers survive this gauntlet of terror!”

“Forget the others,” Cory thought. “I just hope *Fleetfoot** survives.”*

When the three remaining racers made it into the tunnel, the cannons immediately activated and started shooting. It started off simply enough, with only a few discs rebounding across the tunnel. However, the cannons just kept shooting, and the tunnel was soon overrun with the rubbery projectiles. It became apparent that the longer one stayed in that chamber, the less safe it was to stay in there.

It was at this point that Fleetfoot started to fear for her safety.

“Dammit!” she thought vehemently. “Trying to dodge these things is becoming a hassle, and it’s only gonna get worse! Not only that, but I’m STILL in second place!”

Just then, a disc came flying at Fleetfoot from behind and-

POW!!!

The disc hit the unfortunate pegasus in the back. Thankfully, Fleetfoot wasn’t that pegasus. She was lucky enough to fly downward and dodge it since she was trying to avoid another disc that was coming at her from another direction. When she ducked, though, the disc hit the racer in front of her, causing him to crash and allowing the small Wonderbolt to take the lead.

“Thank Celestia that wasn’t me,” she thought. “The exit is up close, now all I have to do is make sure the guy behind me doesn’t pass me.”

Fleetfoot continued to duck and weave through the onslaught of projectiles. She was going to make it; she was in the clear. But then…

CRACK!!!

Just as Fleetfoot was about to cross the finish line, a disc struck the tip of her left wing. “Fuck!” she quietly cursed. She tried to recover as best as she could, but she knew that it wouldn’t work, so she just tried to stay airborne long enough to cross the finish line.

“And Fleetfoot finishes first, earning the Wonderbolts another first place win!” Instant Replay declared. “Oh! What’s this? Fleetfoot is down. That last disc must have done more than just graze her!”

A pair of medics flew down to get Fleetfoot to the medical ward while several more medics went inside the tunnel to retrieve the pegasus that was struck down earlier.

Meanwhile, everyone in the Wonderbolts’ prep room, especially Spitfire, Rapidfire, and Cory, were in a panic. They all rushed to the medical ward to see their injured teammate, except for Misty Fly, who was told by Spitfire to check on the team’s standing in the competition with Fleetfoot’s injury. When they got there, they saw that their small companion was already patched up, with a bandage on the tip of her left wing. Everyone clamored over her, asking various question about her condition.

“I’m fine, I’m fine!” Fleetfoot insisted, waving her hands in front of her.

“Can you fly?” Cory asked.

“I don’t know,” she answered. “Let me see.” Fleetfoot started to flap her wings as she got herself airborne, but she suddenly winced in pain and lowered herself down.

“Shit,” Spitfire cursed.

“Bad news guys,” Misty announced as she returned from talking to the competition officials. “The ponies upstairs said that if Fleetfoot is too injured to participate in the team relay, then we’re disqualified.”

“WHAT!?” everyone yelled in outrage.

“Yeah… Remember the pony that got knocked down by one of those disks earlier? He suffered a severe fracture in his wing along with some damage to his ribs, so his team is out of the running.”

“That is such bullshit!” Spitfire objected. “Those cannons shouldn’t even be legal, dammit!”

“It’s fine, Spitfire,” Fleetfoot reassured. “I’m still gonna race.”

“Are you crazy!?” Rapidfire asked incredulously. “That wing of yours is gonna get worse!”

“He’s right,” Blaze agreed. “As much as this competition means to us, we can’t have you risking your health. You were lucky enough to get off with just a scratch compared to what could have happened.”

“Participating in the relay is a bad idea,” Cory added. “The last thing I want, the last thing any of us want, is for you to get hurt.”

“I’m not gonna drag this team down because of a small injury,” the small mare persisted. “If I race, and we lose the competition, so be it, but I’ll be damned if we lose by forfeit.”

Everyone looked at Fleetfoot and saw the intensity in her eyes. Deep down, they knew that they couldn’t change her mind.

“Fine,” Spitfire conceded. “We’ll continue on to the last event. We’ll have to figure out, where to put you, though.”

“We could put her first and get it over with,” Soarin suggested, “then we can pick up the slack.”

“It’ll be a lot of slack to pick up though,” Cory countered. “Maybe she should go last, and then everypony else can cover as much ground as they can so Fleetfoot won’t have to exert as much effort in the final stretch.”

The Wonderbolts considered Cory’s idea for a moment, wondering if it was the best course of action.

“Cory’s right,” Rapidfire said, shocking everyone else for the second time that day. “We’ll put Fleetfoot last in our lineup and do most of the work for her. Then, all she has to do is make sure none of the other teams catch up to her.”

“It does make sense…” Misty Fly agreed, and the other Wonderbolts nodded their heads in compliance.

“It’s decided then,” said Spitfire. “We’re still in this thing.”

“We’ve finally reached the final event of the competition folks, the team relay race is about to get underway!” the announcer said. “Before we get started, though, let’s take a moment to remind the folks at home about how the teams are scored.”

Cory sighed as he sat in the Wonderbolts’ pit and listened to Instant Replay’s explanation.

“After each event, the teams earn points based on how well they did in that event. For example, the team that won first place in an event will receive ten points while the team that placed second will receive only eight or nine points. At the end of the competition, we add up all the points that each team has earned, and that will decide our winner! For the final event, I have a special guest commentator with me. Please welcome veteran flyer Contrail!”

“Thanks for having me here, Replay,” said the veteran.

“So, Contrail, so far the Wonderbolts have earned first place in every event. Do you think they’ll be able to relax a little during this event?”

“Not likely. This event weighs heavily point-wise, so while the Wonderbolts don’t need to win first place in this event, they can’t place any lower than second if they want enough points to win.”

“You heard the stallion, folks! The Wonderbolts can’t let their guard down for a second, but can they pull through when one of their fastest flyers had an injured wi-”

Just then, the TV shut off.

“You don’t need to hear that, Cory,” Soarin said as he patted him on the shoulder. “Fuck what they say. We’re gonna win this.”

Cory smiled up at him and said “You’re right. I shouldn’t worry.”

Soon, an announcement played over the PA system.

“All starting racers please make your way to the starting line.”

“I guess that’s me,” said Blaze as she made her way to the track. “I’ll try to keep the others from getting ahead of me.”

“We all will,” Spitfire smiled.

Cory looked up at the giant monitor over the track, which displayed the lineups for each team, including the Wonderbolts. Blaze was first, then Misty Fly, then Rapidfire, then Soarin, then Spitfire, and finally Fleetfoot. Once the first racers in the lineup left, the following racers had to get into position for their lap of the race. Cory decided to sit right next to Fleetfoot and help her wing heal as fast as it could in the short amount of time that they had.

The referee prepared his horn so that he could start the race. “The final team relay race is about to begin!” he yelled. “Contestants on your marks! Get seeeeeeeet…”

BANG!

Every single racer took off and flew as fast as they could, while the next racers in the lineup, Misty included, took their places at the starting line. As the first batch of competitors zoomed down the track, Cory was in deep thought.

“Okay, so the track is a standard figure eight, and the average lap time is two and a half minutes, so that gives us about… twelve-and-a-half minutes before Fleetfoot’s lap starts.”

Just then, Cory felt a warm hand take hold of his, and looked up to see Fleetfoot smiling at him warmly.

“Don’t worry about me,” she said. “I’ll be fine.”

“Okay,” he sighed.

So the minutes passed as each of the Wonderbolts taking their turns in the race. Cory kept a soothing ice pack on Fleetfoot’s wing tip all the while. Soon, it was Spitfire’s turn, and when she took off, Fleetfoot had to get into position.

“Wish me luck,” she said to Cory as she got up to leave, but before she left, she turned around and kissed him softly on the lips.

“Good luck,” Cory said as Fleetfoot made her way to the track.

Cory looked up at the race monitor and found a reason to smile; Spitfire was way ahead of the pack, and was nearing the end of the lap while the other teams were only halfway there. She could see Fleetfoot at her position and tagged her when she caught up to the small mare, prompting Fleetfoot to take off and fly as fast as she could without straining her wing.

“And the Wonderbolts make it to their final lap, but it seems that Fleetfoot isn’t going at her top speed,” Instant Replay announced.

“She’s most likely doing this to keep from straining her injury,” Contrail commented. “On top of that, she’s way ahead of the other teams, so there’s no need for her to go all out just yet. You have to commend her dedication.”

“I know! She’s risking her health for the sake of her team. Talk about martyrdom!”

“I don’t think that’s a good use of the word ‘martyrdom’,” Cory mentally argued. “She is making quite the sacrifice, though.”

Fleetfoot was doing well at first, but when she reached the track’s halfway point…

“Oh! And the other teams have finally begun their final lap!”

“Shit!” Fleetfoot mentally cursed. “I need to haul flank!”

The mare started to flap her wings a little harder, and she picked up speed.

“Looks like Fleetfoot is starting to get serious now that the other teams are on her tail.”

“Sweet Celestia, will you shut the fuck up!?” she thought, annoyed. She looked behind her and saw two of the other racers turning the corner behind her; she looked ahead of her and saw that she was about to turn the final corner.

“Okay,” she thought, “after this turn, I’m gonna give it my all, regardless of how much it hurts.”

Fleetfoot finally made it to the final stretch, and she immediately started going at full speed. She was surprised, at first, because she didn’t feel any pain…

But then it came at her like a ton of bricks.

“AGH!” she yelled as she felt her wing writhe. She struggled to recover, but eventually got it back together. Because of that, her speed went down significantly. Fleetfoot looked behind her and saw that the two racers that were on her tail were now even closer, and the finish line was so close.

“Crap!” she thought at she tried to speed up just a little bit. “C’mon wings! At least give me enough power to place second!”

Fleetfoot tried as hard as she could to make it to the finish line first. She felt her opponents gaining on her with each passing second, but she was so close to the finish line. She still had a chance!

“Come on, come on, come on come on come oooooooooooooon!”

“And it’s a photo finish! That was way too close to call!” Instant Replay said. “Somepony roll the recap!”

A video appeared on the monitor hanging over the middle of the track. Fleetfoot was just about to cross the finish line when the two racers that were behind her had caught up. They both passed her before she could make it.

Fleetfoot placed third.

Once all the other teams finished, their scores were tallied up and the final results were revealed.

The Wonderbolts lost by two points.

By this time, Fleetfoot had already made it to the team pit, where her teammates and Cory were waiting for her. She fell to her knees, but it wasn’t because her legs were tired. She had barely used them.

Her spirit was broken.

Fleetfoot didn’t even pay any mind to the aching pain in her left wing. It was small compared to the feeling of letting down your teammates.

And it was microscopic compared to the feeling of letting down the one you loved.

“It’s okay, Fleetie,” Spitfire said. “It wasn’t your fault. You did your best.”

“Yeah, you did great out there,” Rapidfire assured.

Fleetfoot looked up at everyone, and her gaze focused on Cory. “I didn’t win, Cory,” she said with a barely audible voice.

“I don’t care about that,” he told her. “My opinion of you won’t change just because you lost a stupid race, and I’m definitely not gonna stop loving you because of that, either.”

Cory got out of his seat and walked over to the melancholic mare. “Besides,” he said, “this isn’t over yet.”

Everypony looked at him with confused faces.

“Remember the obstacle course?” he asked them. “Fleetfoot flew through the golden hoop, and they said that that would grant a special bonus to our team. We still have a chance.”

The looks on everypony’s faces changed from confusion, to understanding, and then hope.

“Alright folks, those are the scores, but we have one last thing to do before declaring the winner!” Instant Replay announced. “During the obstacle course, Fleetfoot of the Wonderbolts found and cleared the golden hoop, which granted her team a special bonus, and that bonus is…”

Everyone looked at the monitor intently, hoping for a miracle.

“Three whole points added to their total score!”

When those words, were said, the monitor immediately added the three points to the Wonderbolts’ score, giving them the lead by one point.

“And with this surprise bonus, the champions of Equestria’s National Flying Competition are the Wonderbolts!!!”

Everyone in the Wonderbolts’ pit cheered in excitement, and they all went towards the main stage, where Contrail was waiting to present their championship trophy to them. Cory, however, opted to watch from the crowd.

“On behalf of the officials at this competition,” he announced, “it is my honor to present this trophy to you and declare you this year’s Champions!”

Spitfire accepted the trophy on behalf of the team, and walked over to the lectern to address the audience.

“I… I don’t know what to say,” she admitted. “I could go on about how we had a plan and how we knew we were going to win from the start, but the truth is, we had no idea what would happen. What we did know was that we were either going to win with dignity or leave with our heads held high, and because we didn’t give up, even when things seemed bleak, we were able to win. I’m not gonna stand here and take all the credit, because I have a great team behind me. There are some things that I can’t do that these guys could to in their sleep, and I’m lucky to have them with me.”

Spitfire looked back at her teammates as the crowd cheered, and then she looked back at the crowd, the crowd that continued to cheer. She stepped down from the lectern and returned to her team, but then the crowd started to chant a certain name.

“FLEETFOOT! FLEETFOOT! FLEETFOOT! FLEETFOOT!”

The mare that they were chanting for widened her eyes in surprise. Usually when the crowd called out a name, it would be either Soarin’s or Spitfire’s. Fleetfoot apprehensively walked up to address the fans, and she began to speak.

“Thanks for all the praise, everypony,” she said. “This really means a lot.”

Just then, somepony from the crowd yelled “How did you do it? How did you get that far with an injured wing?”

Fleetfoot chuckled. “To be honest, I don’t even know. I’d like to think that it was the love my team had for me that I was able to go so far. Hell, they were willing to forfeit for the sake of my health. Just a minute ago, Spitfire said how lucky she was, but I think I’m even luckier.”

“What are you and your fellow Wonderbolts gonna do next?” somepony else shouted.

“Well, that brings me to something I’ve planned on announcing today,” said the mare. She looked at Cory, who she easily spotted in the crowd minutes ago, and then she took a deep breath.

“I’m taking a leave of absence from the Wonderbolts.”

This immediately resulted in an uproar from the audience, but they weren’t boos, they were just concerned yells.

“Don’t worry, I’ll only be gone for a year,” Fleetfoot assured. “There are some personal endeavors that I want to pursue, and I feel like I need a break from the professional flying scene for a while. I’m not sure what will be in store for me over the next year, but whatever happens, I’ll definitely be cheering for my fellow Wonderbolts when next year’s competition rolls around.”

The audience remained quiet for a while, but then it erupted into cheers. Comments like “Good luck” and “We’ll miss you” were being thrown at Fleetfoot as she stepped down and returned to her teammates.

“There you have it, folks!” said Contrail. “Let’s get one more round of applause for the Wonderbolts!”

As if it weren’t impossible, the crowd cheered even louder for the team of pegasi as they left the stage, trophy in hand.

Back in the team’s hotel room, everyone was still basking in the afterglow of victory.

“I can’t believe it…” muttered Misty Fly. “We actually won…”

“Believe it, kid,” Spitfire smiled.

“So, lovebirds, what’s next for you now that Fleetfoot is on leave?” Blaze asked.

“We don’t know,” answered Cory.

“We’ll just make it up as we go,” added Fleetfoot.

“Sounds good,” said Soarin. “Well, I’m gonna go get a celebratory soda. I’m parched!”

When the stallion left the room, though, Spitfire followed after him, making the others raise their eyebrows.

“Hey, Soarin…” she said nervously.

“’Sup, Spitfire,” he answered.

“There’s something that… I want to tell you,”

“I’m listening.”

“Well, after seeing Cory and Fleetfoot. All the things they’ve been through, good and bad, it’s made me think about things for a bit. It’s made me reevaluate some decisions I’ve made and… basically what I’m trying to say is…”

Soarin put a reassuring hand on his captain’s shoulder. “Go ahead. What is it?”

Spitfire took a deep breath and said what she needed to say. “I want to give you another chance. I want to give us another chance.”

Epilogue: The New Arrival

It had been three months since Fleetfoot took her leave of absence from the Wonderbolts. The public was still saddened at the fact that she decided to take a break, and they were even more saddened, when Rapidfire announced his “break” two days afterward.

By “break,” he meant “suspension”.

It didn’t matter now, though, because Rapidfire’s suspension was now over and he was back on the team. Meanwhile, Spitfire chose one of the Wonderbolt Academy recruits to stand in for Fleetfoot.

Speaking of Fleetfoot, after she left the Wonderbolts, she found a cheap place in Canterlot that was close to Cory and Gaffer’s house. As you can imagine, the two lovers visited each other often.

Cory had remained in constant contact with Eric and even visited his house a few times. Even Azure and Fleetfoot started hanging out. The first time Cory visited Eric and Azure, the house was in total disarray thanks to a certain neighbor of theirs.

It was a Sunday afternoon, and Cory was at Fleetfoot’s apartment having lunch with her.

“So, a little birdie told me that Crazy Colt Games is paying you for your time, now,” said the mare.

“You heard right!” the human smiled. “With the money from there on top of my job at the comic book store, I’m a lot better off, now. They still pay Gaffer more than me, though.”

“Speaking of Gaffer, is he still working on developing that trading card game?”

“Actually, they just finished developing it. They’re having a sneak peek at the comic book store next week, and then the official release will be the week after.”

“Sounds exciting! Soarin will probably want me to pick up some cards for him,” Fleetfoot sighed. “Man, I sure do miss those guys, even Rapidfire.”

“How have you two been, lately?”

“It took a while, but we’re on good terms now, but Soarin and Spitfire are on even better terms, if you catch my drift.”

“Oh, right,” said Cory. “They got back together. I forgot.”

“You tend to forget a lot, don’t you?” the mare teased. “Anyway, they’ve decided to keep it hush-hush like us.”

Cory paused in thought for a moment. “You ever thought of revealing our relationship one of these days, Fleetfoot?”

“A few times,” she admitted, “but I think we should wait until our relationship becomes strong enough to handle all the attention. Thankfully, everyone’s stopped caring about that photo of us that got out all those months ago.”

“That’s definitely a relief,” Cory chuckled. Just then, his phone rang, and he was surprised to see who it was. “Hey, it’s Eric!” he said. “I haven’t heard from him in a while.”

Cory answered the phone and put it to his ear.

“Hello-”

“THE BABY’S HERE!”

Cory jerked the phone away from his ear reflexively. “Whoa, whoa, calm down,” he urged. “So what happened?”

“Azure Gem just had the baby!” Eric shouted excitedly. “We just got home and we’re having a party to celebrate!”

That was all Eric said before he hung up.

“No need to tell me what he said,” Fleetfoot told Cory. “I heard him from here.”

“Well, we’d better go and see the new baby,” he said.

“You remember where the house is, right?”

“Of course I do.”

Eric and Azure’s house was a short ten-minute walk from Fleetfoot’s place, but Fleetfoot opted to fly Cory to their destination, which would cut the time in half. Once they got to the house, they knocked on the door and Eric promptly answered.

“Great, you’re here!” the new father said. “Come in, come in!”

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were excited about this,” Cory joked.

“That would explain why you forgot to tell us if the baby was male or female, or whether it was a pony or a human,” Fleetfoot chimed in.

“Fine, that was my bad, but can you really blame me? I’m a dad, now!”

Eric, Cory, and Fleetfoot walked up to the master bedroom, where Azure was lying in bed with the baby.

“Hey, you guys made it,” the mother said softly.

“Of course we did,” Fleetfoot replied. “Why would we miss this?”

“I’m sure Eric forgot to tell you what the baby looked like, huh?” Azure joked. “Well, it’s not like me to keep others in suspense, so gather round and take a look.”

Cory and Fleetfoot waked to Azure’s side, with Eric following close behind them. Azure held the baby closer to her friends so that they could have a better look at it.

Cory and Fleetfoot almost gushed at what they saw.

The baby was a beautiful unicorn filly that had her mother’s coat. Her mane was the same color as Eric’s hair.

“She’s so adorable!” Fleetfoot said quietly. “Did you name her, yet?”

“We decided to give her a human name,” said Azure, “so we named her Erica, so her name would resemble her father’s.”

Eric nervously chuckled at his fiancé’s remark.

“She arrived just in time for your wedding next month,” said Cory.

“Yep. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect,” Azure agreed.

Erica started to stir in her mother’s arms, and then she let out a yawn, which made Cory’s eyes widen in surprise.

“Her teeth are in already,” he said in astonishment, “and they’re human teeth.”

“It’s another trait she inherited from me,” Eric chimed in, “although the doctors couldn’t explain why her teeth were already in.”

“That’s not the last thing she got from you,” Azure commented.

Erica opened her eyes, which were a dark brown, just like her father’s. She smiled up at Cory and Fleetfoot and started to giggle.

“See, Erica? That’s your Uncle Cory and Auntie Fleetfoot,” Azure told her daughter, who continued to giggle.

Suddenly, a puff of smoke appeared, followed by the sound of nosemakers. Everyone turned their attention to the smoke cloud as it cleared, and a large draconequus was standing in it, holding a noise maker in his mouth and balloons in his paw and claw that all said. “It’s a boy!”

“Congrats on the baby!” the draconequus said loudly.

The loud noises made Erica start to cry, and her voice filled the room, making everyone stare at the sudden guest in annoyance.

“What did I do?” he asked.

Everyone continued to glare as they shouted:

“DISCORD!!!”

THE END

Chapter 1: Who Are the Wonderbolts?

“YAAAAAAAAAAAWN!!!!”

The human boy let out that terrible sound as he woke up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. After slowly getting out of his bed, he made his way to the curtains. He took a deep breath and prepared for the morning light to hit him like a pile of bricks. The human opened the windows and instinctively flinched, but found that the light wasn’t too bright this morning thanks to the clouds in the sky. He sighed in relief and started to make his way downstairs, but took a quick look in the mirror before leaving his room.

He had bags under his greenish-blue eyes, which was an unnatural color for someone of his dark complexion. A good breakfast and shower should take care of those bags. The human scratched through his short, black hair and proceeded downstairs, where his roommate, a unicorn stallion, was making breakfast. The unicorn had a light brown coat with sections of cream colored fur on his forearms, his hooves, and running down the middle of his face, including his horn.

“Morning, Cory,” he said.

“Morning, Gaffer,” said the human. “I thought it was my turn to make breakfast today.”

“Yeah, but remember when you made breakfast last week, even though it was my turn?” he asked.

“When you overslept? Yeah, I remember,” Cory answered.

“Well, I’m making up for the deficit,” Gaffer said with a smile.

“Thanks, man,” Cory said with a smile.

“No problem,” the unicorn said, smiling back and handing him a plate. Cory and Gaffer walk over to the couch and turn on the TV.

“Ugh, local news on a Saturday morning?” the human said with an exaggerated tone of boredom. “Change it!”

“Hold on!” Gaffer said. “Check out the headline!”

Cory raised an eyebrow and looked at the headline Gaffer was referring to. “Wonderbolts Arrive in Canterlot?” he read with a questioning tone. In the short two months that he’s lived here, Cory’s heard the name of the famous flying team several times in idle conversation. Judging from the way ponies talked about them, he assumed that they were kind of a big deal.

“They must be here to train for the national racing event in Vanhoover,” Gaffer surmised.

“And that is…” Cory asked. He had never paid attention to sports in the human world, and he was even more out-of-touch with sports from the pony world.

Gaffer chuckled. “Oh yeah, I forgot you’re still new to Equestria,” he said. “Basically, every year, one city in the country hosts an annual flying competition between the best flying teams. Last year it was in Las Pegasus, and this year it’s in Vanhoover.”

“Okay…” the human said, starting to get the gist of it. “So why are the Wonderbolts in Canterlot when the competition is in Vanhoover?”

“Well, the competition isn’t for another two months, and none of the other teams have taken advantage of the state-of-the-art training facilities that Canterlot has, so they most likely wanted to take care of that before any of their rivals do.”

“Oh, now I get it,” said Cory. “Can we watch something else now?”

“Equestrian sports don’t tickle your fancy?”

“NO sport tickles my fancy.”

Gaffer chuckled as he gulped down the last of his breakfast and stretched out his arms. “So, got anything planned for today?” he asked.

“Not necessarily,” Cory answered. “It’s Saturday, so I don’t have any classes. I do feel like getting some fresh air, so I might go out for lunch and maybe even catch a matinee movie.”

“Wish I could join you, but I’ve got to go to a meeting in an hour,” said the unicorn. “I’m meeting with some executives to discuss that trading card game we’ve been working on.”

“Sounds like fun,” said the human.

“Not when you’re in the development stages,” Gaffer corrected. “At this point, we’re just discussing target demographics, game rules, production costs, all the boring shit.”

“Meh, that doesn’t sound too bad,” Cory said.

“If you say so,” Gaffer replied. “I’m headed upstairs to get ready, and then I’m out. Don’t burn down the place while I’m gone.”

“That joke gets old after the eighty-seventh time,” said Cory.

“Screw you,” said Gaffer. “My jokes are awesome!”

“Whatever floats your boat, pal,” the human chuckled. Gaffer simply rolled his eyes at him and went upstairs.

Cory sighed as he was left alone in the living room. He thought to himself how lucky Gaffer was to have the kind of job he had. The guy didn’t know how good he had it. Gaffer was working for a game design company at twenty-four years old, while Cory was a nineteen-year-old transfer student at Canterlot University with an undeclared major, working at a comic book store on the weekdays to make money.

The one good thing about Cory’s situation was that his parents were paying for school, so the only expenses he had were food and living costs, which he had split with Gaffer. His folks would even send some extra money for him since school in Equestria was much cheaper than any school in the human world.

All in all, Cory’s situation wasn’t bad in any sense of the word, but he still felt like it was lacking. He still had yet to figure out what he wanted to do with his life; he was stuck in a rut.

A few hours later, after Gaffer had long since left the house, Cory got ready to go out for the day, since it was better than staying cooped up in his house. As he stepped out into the early afternoon sun, he wondered what he should do to pass the time.

His rumbling stomach answered that question.

“Lunch it is, then,” Cory said to himself. “I could probably go to that diner that Gaffer took me to once. Bite of Heaven, I think it’s called. Now if I can remember where it is…”

Cory shrugged his shoulders and continued on his walk towards the diner, figuring that he’ll remember where it was along the way.

“Hey, Fleetfoot!”

“AGH!”

THUMP!

It was earlier that same day at Garden Ridge, one of Canterlot’s most renowned hotels, and somepony was woken up from her nap a little earlier than she wanted to be.

“What is it, Spitfire?” Fleetfoot said groggily as she lay on the carpeted floor.

“You’re taking a nap when we just got here?” her captain said.

“Well, being hounded by the news at eight in the morning takes a lot out of me,” Fleetfoot retorted as she stretched her arms and wings before getting up off the ground. “Besides, the beds here are really comfy, so how could I not take a nap.”

Spitfire sighed. “Well, you got a point there,” she admitted.

“I know, right!” said Fleetfoot. “They have velvet sheets, too! They’re sooooo smooth!”

“Yeah, you can’t go wrong with velvet- HEY! Don’t change the subject!” Spitfire yelled, figuring out what Fleetfoot was trying to do.

The smaller mare shrugged her shoulders and scratched an itch in her snow white mane. “So, Captain, if I may ask,” she said with mock respect, “Why have you disturbed my slumber?”

The golden-coated mare chuckled. “Well, Soarin, Rapidfire and I are headed to the gym for some conditioning, and I figured that I should offer my roommate an invitation.”

“Thanks, but no thanks,” said Fleetfoot. “We just got here this morning, and I think I’d rather spend my first day with some R and R.”

“Suit yourself,” said Spitfire. “I’m only going because I can’t trust Soarin’ and Rapidfire alone. You know how those two can be.”

“That’s very leader-like of you,” Fleetfoot laughed, “taking on foalsitting duty like that.”

“It’s called ‘taking one for the team’, Fleetie,” said the captain, receiving a playful punch from her teammate.

“Don’t call me that!” she said. “You know I hate that name!”

“Really?” I can never tell from the way you always chuckle when I call you by that name.

“Get out of here before the colts leave without you,” Fleetfoot teased.

“Fine, fine. Since you want me out so badly,” Spitfire pouted as she left the room.

Fleetfoot sighed to herself as she stretched again, getting all the kinks out of her, sky blue-coated body. She and Spitfire were always close, even though Spitfire was a year ahead of her in school. They were the two original members of the Wonderbolts, with Spitfire being its founder and Fleetfoot being its first recruit. Soarin was next, followed by Rapidfire, then Blaze and their most recent member, Misty Fly.

Even though Fleetfoot was Soarin’s senior on the team, Soarin was the most well-known member, next to Spitfire, of course. While Fleetfoot was the smallest and the fastest of the Wonderbolts, she had the lowest endurance, which was Soarin and Spitfire’s specialty. Because of this, she was usually the anchor of the races, or in laypony’s terms, “the last pony to race”. Fleetfoot was perfectly content with her position on the team, though. She still had a decent number of fans, and it wasn’t like she was an unimportant member of the team. She was responsible for putting new recruits through speed training in order to whip them into shape. Misty Fly still had those infamous drills fresh in her mind. Compared to other twenty-three-year-old mares, she had it pretty good.

“Well, I guess I can’t go back to my nap,” Fleetfoot thought to herself. “I can never go back to sleep again once I wake up.” She made her way to the window, which had a nice view of the Canterlot city square. “It is a nice day today. Maybe I’ll go out for a bite to eat.” She thought of the chances of being stopped and asked for an autograph.

“Meh, I think it’s safe,” she thought. “Most of the Wonderbolt fans are probably flocking to the gym to see Spitfire and Soarin, with Rapidfire being a bonus.”

With her plan set in her mind, the pegasus went to take a quick shower before getting dressed and heading out. As she walked down the hall, she spotted a mare with a yellow coat and a medium length blue mane walking in the opposite direction.

“Hey, Misty,” said Fleetfoot.

“Hi, Fleetfoot,” she said. “You trying to catch up with Spitfire and the boys?”

“Nah, I’m gonna take it easy today,” Fleetfoot replied. “I’m heading out into the city to get something to munch on.”

“Oh, in that case, there’s a really great place that opened since we were here last!” Misty Fly said enthusiastically. “It’s called Bite of Heaven. It’s a small diner not too far from here.”

“Really?” Fleetfoot asked, intrigued. “How far is ‘not too far,’ Misty?”

“When you leave from the hotel’s main entrance, make a right and walk three blocks. It’s right on the corner,” she explained.

“Thanks for the recommendation, kid.” Fleetfoot said. “Looks like having a member that grew up in Canterlot is more of a benefit than we thought.”

“When are you and the other’s gonna stop calling me ‘kid’?” asked Misty.

“It’s a Wonderbolt tradition,” the older mare explained. “The most recent member is called ‘kid’ until somepony else joins. Soarin had to go through it, too, y’know.”

The younger mare sighed. “In that case, I can’t wait until that Rainbow Dash filly becomes part of the team, then we can call her ‘kid’.”

“You’ll get used to it, Misty,” Fleetfoot chuckled. “Well, I’d better get going while all the fans are still flooding the gym to see Spitfire and Soarin.”

“Good call. Better haul flank, then,” she said.

“Later, kid,” Fleetfoot said as she parted ways with her. She smiled to herself as she walked away. She always found it ironic that she called all the new recruits “kid” when she’s always been the smallest Wonderbolt. Even Misty Fly was taller than her, and she was three years younger than her. If anything, Fleetfoot should be the one called “kid,” or some other nickname that reflected her size. She didn’t mind it, though. After all, what she lacks in size, she makes up for in speed.

Fleetfoot left out the front entrance of the hotel, following the directions given to her by Misty. As she got to the corner of the first block, she bumped into somepony that was walking in the other direction, the impact knocking them both back and staggering them a little. After getting herself together, she realized that the pony she bumped into wasn’t a pony at all, but a human. He had a dark complexion with contrasting bluish-green eyes and short, dark hair.

She looked at him.

He looked at her.

“Sorry about that,” they said simultaneously.