Stormy Nights

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3

Chapter 1

Stormy Nights

The pegasus hovered over the roiling sea of black clouds, looking over her domain. The earth ponies would not be seeing the moon tonight. The clouds trembled in anticipation as Stormy Nights dove towards them. They were full of power, and the deep purple pegasus knew the best way to release it. The ponies below watched the sky in wonder as lightning rippled overhead, with tremendous booms as stray bolts lashed the earth below. Stormy Nights expertly weaved her way through the inky blackness, her dark grey mane flapping behind her. The way was lit for her electric blue eyes only by million-volt flashes. All of Equestria marveled at her skills.

And then Stormy clipped a tree.

The filly skidded to a halt across the grass. “Ow ow ow ow! Moooooom!” Stormy patiently waited for three whole seconds for her mother to come running out. “MOOOOOOM!” Ten seconds and still nothing? Mom and Dad must be arguing again, she thought.

Stormy got to her feet and glared at the large oak tree looming in the darkness. That tree provided hours of cool shade out of the scorching sun during the day; how could it have betrayed her like this? Stormy could only hope that her daytime ally wouldn’t make a habit of sampling her feathers.

She walked towards her house as the moon set behind her. The moonlight on the soft blue paint seemed to dim as the rising sun overwhelmed it. The new dawn lit up the surrounding sands, glinting off the artificial oasis the house called its lawn. Stormy briefly considered flying up to the balcony connected to her room on the second story, but her wing changed her mind.

“Because books are too expensive out here, Vanilla. Besides, children learn faster from experience than just reading. It’s better for her to learn on her own.”

“But you can’t just throw a filly off a—” Stormy’s mother stopped as the back door opened. Stormy walked in, sat down on the floor, and extended her wing.

“I hit the tree.”

“You need to be more careful where you fly, sweetie. It's time to get ready for school anyways; go on upstairs,” her mother said. She turned to her husband as Stormy made her way across the room. “See? This is what I’m talking about.”

“She could stop flying in the dark,” her father replied.

“I can see just fine, Dad!” Stormy shouted back down the stairwell.

“Stormy, I said get ready for school,” her mother called back. “Sterling, you can’t expect her to learn everything she needs to know on her own. She might never figure out the weather.”

“Not every pegasus becomes a weather pony, you know. Besides, somepony as clumsy as her...” Stormy shut the door to her room. She slung her backpack on and saddled up her water tanks as she heard the familiar sound of her mother raising her voice. She exited onto her balcony, closing the door behind her, then hopped the railing and glided down to the ground, despite her wing’s protests. It was better not to risk going through the house while her parents were yelling.

Sunlight shone through the classroom windows and mingled with the dust riding the breeze through the open doors. Stormy sat at the back of the group of about twenty students, taking notes on Equestrian history. A page with various equations stuck out of her bag. There was a circled B- in the header.

The teacher, Orange Blossom, started on her next lesson. “Yesterday, as I hope you’ve all written down, I taught you all about unicorns and how their magic behaves, with a nice demonstration by Steel Valor here.”

The colt in the front row beamed.

“Today,” Ms. Blossom continued, “We’re going to learn about pegasi.” A sense of dread hit Stormy as she realized where Ms. Blossom’s line of thought was going. “Now Coltumbus was founded by unicorns and earth ponies, and we’ve had no pegasi in the town as a result. Normally I have to use paintings and a mannequin to teach this lesson. But today we’re lucky to have Coltumbus’s only pegasus right here in our class. Please come up to the front, Stormy Nights.”

Stormy gulped as every face in the room turned towards her. She stood up and slowly made her way to the front of the class. She was used to ponies staring whenever she flew anywhere, but a room full of other foals was something else.

“Do you mind showing the class your wings?” Ms. Blossom asked. Stormy hesitated, then spread her wings. “Now as you can see, a pegasus’s wings are very small relative to its body.” The students began taking notes as Ms. Blossom lectured. “If its wings were proportionally sized to its weight, a pegasus would have a wingspan the width of this room!”

Stormy began to sweat, although whether it was from the hot breeze passing through, or the twenty pairs of eyes on her, she couldn’t tell. She felt like a museum piece to be studied and criticized. She wished that Ms. Blossom would finish soon, and that none of this would be on the test. “So the question is,” the teacher asked, “how can a pegasus fly with such small wings? Anypony know?”

Stormy did not know how she could fly and at the moment she did not care. Oh please don’t ask me to fly, she silently prayed, I don’t think I can do it right now. I’d probably bounce off a wall or run into the board or something. Her dark coat was developing a visible sheen.

“Anypony? No? The answer is, of course, magic.” That wasn’t the answer Stormy was expecting. Ms. Blossom elaborated, “Pegasi have magic like unicorns do. But they can’t control it directly like a unicorn can. Their magic is passive, that is, it works without them having to think about it.”

Stormy couldn’t believe it. She was actually learning something potentially useful in school! She listened intently.

“In addition to giving it the ability to fly with a small wingspan, a pegasus’s magic enables it to alter the weather. Here in Coltumbus, we have to hire pegasi from other towns to fill up the reservoir every few years. In towns with a native pegasus population, like Fillydelphia or Ponyville, the weather changes much more often. Of course, not all pegasi become weather ponies. A pegasus can get any ground-based special talent, or get a talent based on its flying skill. If you ever get the opportunity, you should see a group like the Wonderbolts perform. They do all sorts of spins and loops and upside-down speed flying. Oh, thank you, Stormy, you can sit down now.”

Stormy returned to her seat and fumbled for her water bottle. I have magic? Me? She drank thoughtfully. As in, real magic? Her mind began to wander. I can move stuff with my mind... or put together the things I break... or, I don’t know, turn ponies into frogs? Hah, maybe I can make it rain. Stormy took a few minutes to ponder. A stage performer? The Incredible Stormy, performing great feats of magic!

“Stormy?” Ms. Blossom interrupted Stormy’s train of thought. “I said class was dismissed. I’m sure you’re eager to see me demonstrate my earth pony abilities, but you’ll have to wait until tomorrow with everypony else.”

Stormy noticed that every other desk in the room was empty. “Oh, sorry Ms. Blossom!” she said as she hastily gathered her things and left.

Outside, she opened her wings in her excitement, but the desert sun convinced her to stay on the ground. Ugh, way too hot to fly. Maybe... magic can wait just a little longer. Stormy took another drink of her water as she started the walk home.

Stormy leapt into the air and alighted on the railing of her balcony, then gently stepped down onto her deck. She entered her bedroom and dropped her supplies on the floor. Her room finally made sense now. The ceiling was black, with stars and constellations painted across it. Three of the walls transitioned from the darkness of the sky to the blue carpet. The remaining wall was a bright orange, with a painting of Princess Celestia raising the sun.

The pine bookshelf sported a modest collection of books on magic techniques and history, as well as a thin layer of dust. The rest of the shelf’s space was filled with toys shaped like various magical symbols, and some magical doodads that Stormy never was able to figure out.

The bedroom door opened and Stormy’s mother appeared. “Oh, I thought I heard you come in, Stormy. Did you learn anything new at school?”

“Mom! I learned I have magic powers! Like, um... magic!”

“Well,” her mother chuckled, “I always told you you were my magic little princess. Oh Stormy, you’ve covered in sweat.”

Stormy noticed how wet she was. “Heh heh, I guess I am. I’ll go get in the shower.”

“Actually...” her mother pretended to ponder, “the lawn needs watering, so—”

Stormy was out the door and over the railing before Vanilla could finish her sentence.

It was the match of the century: Stormy Nights, the dark pegasus, versus The Mighty Lever, Keeper of the Sprinkler, the One with the Power of Rust. The pegasus pushed her forehead against the lever with all her might, but alas, the pony was covered in sweat, and slipped off! The tension was tangible as round two began. The dark pegasus swung to the opposite side, gripped the lever in her mighty jaws and pulled as hard as she could. Her muscles strained and her wings flapped, but sadly, the immovable object won this bout.

Stormy silently renewed her vow of vengeance as her mother exited the house. Vanilla’s horn illuminated and the lever flipped in a burst of rust. Around the yard, sprinkler heads popped out of the soil and began to renew life in the little slice of desert.

Stormy cheered and took flight. She flew laps around the house, over the sprinklers, past the tree and the mailbox again and again. Her hooves skimmed the wet grass. Her wings cut a path through the sprays of water. Her head was filled with thoughts about magic.

A lawn’s thirst was quenched, a day was ending, and a pegasus was soaked. Happiness was wet feathers.

“All right, let’s get you dried off before you go inside,” her mother said, horn glowing.

“Aww Mom, do I have—” A sparkling towel flew into her face.

One vigorous drying and several complaints later, Stormy entered the house. “Hi Dad! Did Mom tell you that I have magic?”

“Oh really?” her father’s horn dimmed as he set down his newspaper. “TK me my cider then.”

Stormy looked at the bottle on the kitchen counter. “Um... well... I don’t think I know...”

“Of course you don’t. You’d probably drop it anyways.”

Crestfallen, Stormy started up the stairs. Her mother walked in as Stormy left. “What did you tell her this time, Sterling?”

“Nothing she didn’t already know.”

I’ve got to have some magic in me, Stormy thought as she closed her bedroom door behind her. I just need to figure out how to use it. Telekinesis, mom and dad both do that, so I have to be able to, too! Stormy spied a simple magical toy on her shelf, a small fake-crystal lamp. She had experimented with it in her younger years; according to the text on its base, it lit up in the presence of magic, but Stormy had never been able to get it to work.

She stared intently at the device. Now... move. Move. She visualized the toy moving through the air, but the real one didn’t budge, or even flicker. She strained and concentrated with all her might, but there was no reaction. Move? Please? Come on, move. Move ... Stormy sighed. Dad’s right, as always, she thought. I’m not magic at all.

Stormy perched on the corner of her roof as the sun set. It had been several days since Ms. Blossom told her that pegasi were magic, but she had failed to manifest any latent magical abilities, so she decided to take a break and do some flying. She loaded herself up with water; the lack of sunlight was good, but it was still fairly warm out.

She took off and headed towards the town. The air moving over her wings always felt good. Sometimes she would spend hours just drifting around over the town, her deep purple coat blending into the sky where nopony could see her, with only the occasional flap to keep her airborne. But not on school nights. At least none that her parents knew about.

Tonight though, she had a destination – but there was still no rush, plenty of time to enjoy the journey. She looked down on all the buildings in the dark. There were so many little forgotten treasures up on the roofs that nopony ever bothered to fetch. Sun-bleached frisbees, balls of every sport imaginable, three wagon wheels, a backpack that had been there as long as Stormy could remember. There was nothing new tonight, though.

Stormy landed at the edge of a rocky field and set down her water supply. The flight had provided a nice warm-up for her performance.

The moonlight shone down into the arena and the crowd murmured in anticipation of Stormy Nights, the newest Wonderbolt, as she prepared for her debut performance. The ponies in the audience cheered as Stormy took to the air and performed... performed...

What do the Wonderbolts do, anyways? Stormy thought, looking out over the field. I’d better figure it out. If I’m not magic, I can at least fly.

Ms. Blossom had said something in class about flying upside-down. Stormy had never tried, but there was a first time for everything. She started at a slow flight, just above the ground, and then carefully rolled over.

Hey, this isn’t so bad. Feels kind of funny for my wings to be holding me like this. I think I can go faster than this... there we go. Hehe I can see the stars below me. This is fun! Now just a quick left turn and glide on over to—

Chapter 2

“Mrs. Crescent? Mrs. Crescent! She’s coming around.”

“Stormy! Oh thank Celestia, I was so worried about you! You've been unconscious for three days. The doctors said that you might never... might never... wake...” Stormy heard her mother’s voice choke up.

Stormy was lying on her stomach with a pillow under her head. She saw that she was in a large bed in a white room. Stormy heard the soft gurgling of unknown fluids somewhere nearby. That faint smell that always accompanied cleaning chemicals drifted into her nostrils.

“Mmm... mom? What happened? Where am I?”

“When you didn’t come home, we went looking for you. I found you lying in that field you like to fly around in, oh Celestia, there was so much blood, I thought you’d...”

“Mom, mom, it’s okay. I’m fine now,” Stormy winced as a bolt of pain shot through her shoulder. “Fine-ish. Ow. My wing really hurts.”

“It’s broken, Stormy. Compound fracture of the left pterohumerus.”

Stormy started. “It’s what?”

Vanilla quickly put her hoof on her daughter. “Hold still, Stormy! Don’t try to move! You need to rest.”

Stormy collapsed back onto the bed, although more from sudden dizziness than anything else. “But...” it was her turn to cry, “my wings... my flying...”

“They set the bone the best they could, but you’re the only pegasus the hospital’s ever had. They just don’t have any experience with wings.”

She heard her father mumble something out of view. She only caught the word ‘klutz’.

But her mother apparently heard the whole thing. “How dare you say that about her! While she’s right there! ‘She’ll learn better on her own’ you said. ‘She’ll come home when she gets hungry’ you said! If I’d followed your advice Stormy would be dead!”

Stormy shut her eyes and tried to bury her ears under her hooves. Please, not so loud.

Sterling replied, “If you had followed my advice Stormy wouldn’t have gone out in the first place.”

“We can’t ground her just because we can’t fly after her.”

Sterling motioned towards Stormy. “We should ground her exactly because we can’t fly after her! You let her go out at night and look what happened!”

“It’s not Stormy’s fault she got hurt!”

“It’s exactly Stormy’s fault that she got hurt! Once she’s out of the hospital, we’re finally getting her feathers clipped so I don’t have to go through this again.”

“Stormy is a pegasus! She’s meant to fly!”

At the moment, Stormy would have rather been able to dig.

“Well I can’t levitate my flank after her!” Sterling shouted.

Stormy weakly tried to interject: “Mom... can you please...”

Vanilla didn’t hear her. “I am not cutting the feathers off of my daughter just because she wants to enjoy herself!”

“Then I’ll do it!” Sterling stepped towards Stormy.

Vanilla quickly moved between them. “Don’t you lay a hoof on her! Get out! Get out of my sight, out of my house, and out of my daughter’s life!”

Stormy heard the sound of hoofsteps, followed by a door slam. There was only silence for a few seconds before Stormy slowly opened her eyes. “Mom?”

Tears were running down her mother’s face. “Don’t worry about it, sweetie. You just need to work on getting your rest and concentrate on getting better.”

“But...”

“Ssh. It’s all right. I’m so, so, sorry, Stormy. For all those years I put you through this. I hope you’ll find it in your heart to forgive me some day, for everything I’ve done to you. I’ll find a way to make it up to you, I promise.”

Stormy didn’t understand, but her mother began to leave the room. “There are some letters I need to write; I’ll visit you tomorrow.”

In the bed, alone in the hospital room, lay Stormy Nights, the unmagical pony, the flightless pegasus, destroyer of her parents’ marriage. Her mother only visited for a few minutes that day, giving some excuse about “other things that need taking care of.” She would not even say what was more important than her own daughter.

On the third day, Stormy awoke to find that she had gained a roommate.

“Hey, you’re awake.” The pale pink filly, a little younger than Stormy was, shifted herself to face the pegasus. “I was starting to think that I got paired up with a vegetable.” She looked away for a second. “Uh, no offense.”

“I might as well be, for all the good I am.”

The earth pony tilted her head, letting part of a fluffy rich red pigtail dangle. “What did you do, hit your head and break your happiness?”

“I hit my head all right, because I’m a stupid klutz. Broke my wing right in half, too.”

“Your wing? What?”

Stormy half-heartedly flapped her working wing. “Yeah yeah, I know, I’m the freak.”

“Are you kidding? You have wings! That’s awesome! Hey I know you; you’re Mrs. Crescent’s kid! She works for the reservoir, right? She comes by the farm every few weeks. I know your name, it’s Slinky... Steamy... Stealthy... um... begins with an M...”

“Stormy Nights.”

“I was about to say that! I’m Strawberry Blossom, pleasure to meet you. Wanna know why I’m in here? I was on the farm, bucking the branches off a dead tree, when this real big one fell on me. Hit me right on the rump. Broke my... my...” Strawberry’s yellow eyes pointed at the floor for a few seconds, before looking back up. “...big leg bone.”

“I don’t even remember what I did. I don’t remember any of the two days beforehand.”

“Hey, look on the bright side, Stormy. Tomorrow’s the first day of summer break!”

Stormy chuckled. “Yeah, that’s a plus. But I’d rather have my wing.”

The sun shone down on two fillies, fresh out of the hospital, walking through the town. One sported a cast over her wing and saddlebags full of water, the other’s rump was supported by a brand new wheelchair.

“How can somepony like you not have any friends?” Strawberry asked as Stormy took a drink.

“How? Because I’m a freak, remember?” Stormy flapped her wing. “When I’m out with my mom, ponies look at me and whisper to each other when they think I’m not looking.”

“You’re not a freak, Stormy. And if you see somepony talking about you behind your back, go over there and tell them to say it to your face!”

“I... I guess...”

“Anyways, we’re here! The Great Blossom Farm! My family’s run this place since Coltumbus was founded. I can’t wait to show you around!” Strawberry led Stormy through the gates, the view opening up onto acres of greenery.

“Actually, I’d like if you did wait until sunset; it is pretty hot out.”

“Hm... you know what? I’ll show you around the the wine tunnels until sundown. Deal?”

“Deal!”

The sun set as Vanilla Crescent found her daughter and her friend in the farmhouse. Glasses containing different varieties of juice sat on the table as the two fillies staggered around, acting out their theories of what inebriation was like.

“No no no, you have to lean more.”

“Lean more? If I lean any more my wheelchair will fall over!”

“Maybe some more ‘red wine’ will help.”

Vanilla cleared her throat.

“Aww, is it time to go home already? We were just... uh... ‘sampling’ some of Strawberry’s harvest.” The two fillies giggled. “Oh! Can I sleep over here tonight? Please please please please?” Stormy begged.

“Well...” Her mother pretended to hesitate. “If you absolutely insist.”

An older mare entered the room as the fillies cheered. “Mrs. Crescent, I got your letter. This must be the Stormy I’ve heard so much about. I’m sorry about your wing, dear. Oh my, I haven’t introduced myself. I’m Cherry Blossom, owner of the farm.”

“Hello.”

“Well now, Mrs. Crescent, you wrote that you wanted to talk to me about the water supply?”

“Since your farm takes up the majority of the reservoir’s water supply, your usage is the primary determinant of our water level. Over the past year or so, your water usage has risen by about fifteen percent, running us low much earlier than we anticipated.”

“Oh dear, is that going to be a problem? We planted a few new rows of peach trees, and they need plenty of water to get going.”

“No, it just means that we’ll have to order some more rain earlier than we thought. We’re still in the early phases of negotiation, so we don’t have an exact date, but it should be in about two months. I’m just letting you know early so you can prepare for the bad weather.”

“I appreciate the warning, Mrs. Crescent. I’ll be sure to pass the information on to the staff. Have a nice day, and it was nice to meet you, Stormy.” Cherry left the room.

“Mom?” Stormy asked. “You said rain? It’s going to rain? In two months? How long will it last?”

“Yes Stormy, we’re sending for some rain clouds to refill the town’s water supply. With our magic helping to gather water, it takes about a week to fill the reservoir.”

Stormy’s eyes slowly went wide. “A whole week... of rain?!”

A younger Stormy awoke early one morning to a noise that she had never heard before. Looking out her window, instead of the black or orange or blue that she had always seen, the sky was dark grey, with vertical streaks blocking the scenery. Stormy slowly made her way downstairs, and carefully opened the back door. A wave of cold humidity blew through the door and past the filly. It felt... nice, soothing.

Stormy inched her way out, until a stray drop fell on her snout. She scrunched up her nose and stared at the odd wet thing. It was just water! It was a bath, falling from the sky! Stormy had stuck her head out into the downpour when a bright flash spooked her back into the house.

Seconds later, a deep rumbling passed her ears. Something inside her resonated with that sound, a special harmony only the little pegasus could hear. She ventured outside again as the rain continued to fall.

Another flash, but... it wasn’t that scary, once Stormy got used to it. The same rumble, what a wonderful sound. The cold rain on her back felt so, so good. The little filly jumped with joy. She didn’t understand why this was happening, but it was wonderful! She closed her eyes and leaped higher and higher, stubby wings flapping in delight. On the last jump, she didn’t come back down. Stormy opened her eyes and gasped in amazement at the ground that refused to return to her hooves.

“MOMMY! DADDY! LOOK! LOOK! I CAN FLY! I CAN FLY!”

“And that,” Strawberry boasted, “is how you start a campfire.” The newborn fire grew steadily as Stormy watched. “If you ever find yourself in the woods and get lost, this might save your life.”

“Well if I ever get lost, I can just fly up until I see where I need to go,” Stormy noted. “When my wing heals, anyways. I’ll just have to make sure I don’t run into any forests out here in the desert until then.”

“Use your wings to find your way out? And miss out on the opportunity to make s’mores?”

“I like the way you think, Strawberry.”

“But first! I brought some markers. Let’s draw on each others’ casts! You do mine first.”

“Hmm... I know, the cast is covering up your cutie mark. I’ll draw it back on. Of course it’s strawberries. So start with a little red... some green on the side... oh... okay I can fix that... maybe... there!”

Strawberry looked at her new “cutie mark” and nearly fell out of her wheelchair laughing. “They look like mutant apples! Or maybe they’re red grapes, no no no, peppers!”

“If you think you can do better, let’s see yours.” Stormy turned her injured side towards Strawberry.

“Let me show you how real art is made!” Strawberry started. “Just... oh, yeah.”

“What’s wrong?”

“You don’t have a cutie mark.”

“I never really thought about it. Dad always said I’d get one if I ever found something I was good at. You can draw something else.”

“Hmm... how about you, flying?”

“In the rain!”

“In the rain? Um, okay, in the rain.”

Strawberry Blossom, the expert artist, went to work on her masterpiece. Carefully selecting her colors, every stroke deliberate, yet graceful. A master working by firelight, producing a true work of art, proudly displayed on her friend’s wing.

Stormy observed her cast. “Is that cotton?”

“Those are clouds, duh!”

“Why’s the sea red? And what are those green bits?”

“Those are pomegranate trees.”

“I guess I’m the purple blob in the middle?”

“Yes! The Great Stormy Nights, soaring tri... trium... um... greatly across the sky!”

“Hmm... I think I did a better job with yours.”

“Now now, we can talk about how much better my art is than yours, or we can make some of those s’mores!”

A dozen s’mores, four chocolate-coated pomegranates, and a batch of apricot soup later, two rather full fillies sat by a dimming campfire.

“You know,” Strawberry started, “I forgot to tell you, that when a Blossom gets hurt by a tree limb, it’s traditional to burn it. That fire right there, it’s mine. That branch might have taken my leg, but it’s ashes now, and I’m not. I’m going to heal, and it won’t. That’s a victory, right there.”

Stormy watched the lights flicker amongst the remnants of Strawberry’s assailant. “I wish we could burn whatever it was I hit. It was probably a rock anyways. Can’t burn those.”

“Not a problem! We’ll find that rock and haul it to the nearest volcano to throw it in!”

“Only if you carry it,” Stormy chuckled.

“Hey I’m in a wheelchair; you still have four working legs.”

“And we don’t know where any volcanoes are around here, any ideas?”

“We can go on a quest to Canterlot, to ask Princess Celestia where we might find a volcano mighty enough to defeat Stormy’s Bane!”

“I can see it now! The Great and Wise Princess talking to two fillies dragging a rock!”

The two broke down laughing.

“All right, Miss Nights,” Doctor Spring said, “are you ready to have your cast taken off?”

“I’ve been ready for a MONTH! Besides, look at what Strawberry’s been drawing on it. Are those supposed to be oranges?”

Rejuvenating Spring chuckled. “It won’t matter soon. Markers don’t work too well on feathers, I imagine.” The doctor’s horn illuminated and a split appeared in Stormy’s cast. It bisected something that was nominally a drawing of a unicorn, then reached the other end of the cast. The two halves split off, revealing a dark purple wing.

Stormy spread her left wing for the first time in weeks. It was stiff, but the feeling of cool air flowing over it sure felt good.

“Now Stormy, we wrote a pegasus specialization clinic while you were injured and got plenty of recovery information for you. It’s in these pamphlets, but the general idea of it is that you haven’t used those wing muscles for a month, so you shouldn’t try to fly until you’re sure you can fly safely. I don’t want you back in here tomorrow, okay?”

“Awwww.”

“You should also try to find a way to exercise those wings while staying on the ground. Push against a wall, or push some object around the house while flapping, for instance.”

“Thanks, Doctor Spring, I’ll be careful.”

Push something? Stormy racked her brain for a few seconds. Well, there’s Strawberry’s wheelchair, but it doesn’t push too well... unless...

Stormy got a brilliant idea.

One wine tunnel. One wagon. One earth pony. One pegasus. Two wings.

The tunnel stretched into the distance as Stormy hopped on the wagon behind Strawberry. She lowered her head and spread her wings.

“This is going to be awesome!” Strawberry shivered with anticipation.

Stormy hesitated, then lowered her wings. “If Dad was here, he’d tell me how stupid of an idea this was and how we were going to hurt ourselves.”

“Your dad isn’t here, is he? Come on, Stormy.”

“Still, maybe we shouldn’t. I’m clumsy enough we’re going to get hurt.”

“Hey, I’m doing the steering, you just push. Please, Stormy? I really want to do this.”

“It’s still pretty dangerous...”

“Hey, just say you hit your head again and you forgot who came up with the idea. Besides, remember how we burned that branch? What happens if we run into a barrel?”

Stormy considered. “You don’t think...?”

Strawberry put on her best ‘adult voice’, “Strawberry, Stormy, you better drink that entire thing. It’s tradition!”

“Oh my gosh, do you think so?”

“I know how to find out!”

Stormy smiled, spread her wings, and mentally aimed down the tunnel. One flap, and the wagon began to roll. Stormy flapped her wings again, and again. The little wagon picked up speed. The cool air rushed past Stormy’s face as she flapped harder and harder, accelerating the wagon to its limit. Barrels blurred past. Stormy had missed this feeling so badly.

Once again, Stormy Nights awoke to find herself in a bed. The ceiling of this room was painted with dark clouds, as pouring rain adorned the walls. Several flashes of lightning completed the effect.

She rolled out of bed and stretched as the smell of fresh waffles wafted past her nose. It must have been some special occasion to warrant her favorite breakfast. She groggily headed towards the door out of her bedroom, when the bookshelf caught her eye.

That’s odd, she thought, I don’t remember those books ever... being... she noticed a title, dusted...

Downstairs, Vanilla Crescent was busy cooking when she heard galloping hooves, followed by her daughter skidding to a halt in the kitchen.

“Good morning, Stormy. Are you planning on going to the farm again today?”

“Mom! Mom! My books! They’re... different!”

“Really? Different how, sweetie?”

“There’s books on flying and weather and stuff!”

“Must have been the Book Flutterpony.”

“Book Flutterpony? Seriously, mom?”

“Oh yes, the Book Flutterpony is a purple pony with butterfly wings who travels all across Equestria giving books to needy foals. How many waffles do you want?”

Stormy wiped away a tear. “Thanks, ‘Book Flutterpony’.”

After the fastest meal of waffles that she ever had, Stormy laid on her floor, nose deep in Basic Weather Control for Young Fillies and Colts, Chapter One.

“So... pegasi do have magic? But I thought... oh it works different so I don’t have to... wait, what? WHAT? WHAT?!”

Downstairs, Vanilla heard her daughter’s voice echo through the house, “I CAN MAKE CLOUDS?!”

The sun approached the horizon as Strawberry Blossom, finally free from her wheelchair, approached Stormy’s house, pulling the wagon behind her.

“Stormy?” she called up, “Are you home?”

Stormy landed on the edge of the roof. “Hey Strawberry!”

“Stormy! You’re flying!”

“Flying? That’s nothing! Come around the back and check this out!” she took off and went out of sight.

On the other side of the house, Strawberry found a large dark raincloud, with Stormy standing proudly on top of it.

“Whoa. Where did it come from?”

“The bathtub! This thing is incredible and it’s mine!” Stormy jumped on the cloud, which responded with an electric crackle. “I have no idea why it does that, but it’s awesome!”

Strawberry took a step backwards as she started to sweat. “I don’t know, it’s scaring me.”

Stormy flew down, landing just in front of Strawberry. “Scared?” The dark pegasus stood, wings spread, before Strawberry, with an ominous cloud looming behind her. “How can this be scary?”

“It’s just...”

“Here, remember when you showed me how to light a campfire? I’ll show you my way of lighting one!”

Stormy didn’t hear what Strawberry said as she flew under the cloud, which was situated over a small pile of wood. She could sense an irregular column of potential leading from the cloud to the campfire-to-be. She slowly flew around, shaping the column as the power built. Then, strangely, the column started bowing outwards. She concentrated on pushing it back, but it was drawn to the metal wagon that her shivering friend was standing next to. Stormy’s eyes widened as the power reached the tipping point.

“STRAWBERRY!”

Stormy flew down as fast as she could, shoving Strawberry away from the wagon as a bright flash sundered the vehicle.

Stormy looked up into a face filled with terror. Strawberry shrunk away from her, took several steps backwards, then turned and ran.

“Strawberry?”

Moments later, Vanilla Crescent hurried out of the house. “Sweetie, are you okay? I heard this big crack.” She spotted the remains of the wagon. “What happened?”

Stormy was dismantling her cloud with tears in her eyes. “I almost killed Strawberry. I shouldn’t have made my cloud, any cloud!” She punched the black mass. “I should have just... just... I don’t know!” She took a moment to breathe. “I don’t know what I should do. Just... not this.”

Stormy dissipated the last piece of the cloud with a kick, landed, and slowly walked inside the house.

Stormy landed outside the farmhouse, just before dawn. She hesitated, then knocked on the door.

“Strawberry? Are you in there?”

A minute passed, then a voice on the other side answered, “Go away.”

“Strawberry, I’m sorry about what happened. Why don’t you come on out and talk to me?”

“Because I’m scared, okay?”

“Scared? Scared of what?”

“Of you! Of that... thing you did!”

“Please come out, Strawberry. I know it’s my fault, but I’m really sorry.”

“No! I don’t... I don’t want... Just, just go away.”

“All right. If it’ll make you feel better, Strawberry.” She blinked away some moisture. “I’m leaving.” She slowly turned, and with one final look behind her, took off. It was a long flight home.

Chapter 3

Stormy laid face-down on her bed. It had been three days since the lightning strike. Dad was right. My clumsiness almost killed me, it almost killed somepony else, and it lost my only friend. I really am a freak. The books on flying and weather were scattered across the floor, awaiting their turn under the dust. Magic. What use is magic if all it does it hurt ponies? She flapped her wings dejectedly. I was happier when it was broken.

There was a light rapping on her door.

“Stormy?” her mother called. “There’s somepony here to see you.”

The door slowly opened. Stormy looked up and saw Strawberry standing in the doorway.

“I thought you were afraid of me,” Stormy said gloomily.

“I kinda still am, but I’ve been doing some thinking,” Strawberry said, avoiding eye contact, “and I still want to be your friend, and I feel really bad that you feel bad, so I think... I mean I want...” She took a deep breath. “Can you make the cloud again?”

Outside, under the oak tree, Strawberry stood staring at a cloud barely larger than she was, mostly white with a dark underside. There was only the sound of wings flapping as Stormy brought the fluffy object down to ground level.

“Sorry about the grey,” she said, “I tried to make it as light as I could.”

Strawberry swallowed. “It’s all right. Can you please sit a little farther away?”

Stormy moved to the other side of the tree’s shade. Strawberry was looking at the small cloud like it was going to bite her. It was like she was a different pony. What happened to the energetic thrill-seeker flying down bumpy roads in the wagon? This pony was just... staring at it.

Minutes passed as the pink filly watched the hovering cloud. A slight breeze blew through the tree’s branches, making the spots of light on the ground dance.

Finally, Stormy grunted with frustration and plopped down onto the grass. Strawberry started, but then looked over with a sheepish grin. “So what did I do,” Stormy asked, not bothering to lift her head, “zap you and break your happiness?”

Strawberry sighed. “I know it isn’t your fault. I know you didn’t try to hurt me.” She paused. “I guess I should tell you why, because I really do want to be your friend again.

“A few years ago, the last time it rained, I decided to explore the farm, play in the mud, you know? I’d never seen rain before and it made everything all wet and slippery. I had gone pretty far into a grove of... apricots I think.

“It was before sunrise, I think, and the wind was starting to pick up, and I tried to be brave, but then, all of a sudden... there was a flash, and... you know...” she trailed off.

“So when I saw you,” Strawberry continued, “and the big cloud, it reminded me of that, and then you...”

“Almost killed you,” Stormy finished the sentence. “So that’s how it goes. I find something I like to do and my clumsiness nearly kills somepony. Figures.”

“But,” Strawberry went on, “I thought about how the rain is coming again in another week. I was planning on being curled up in some corner during the rain while you enjoyed yourself. But then, I thought about how bad I must have made you feel. And knowing you... no offense Stormy but you’re awful hard on yourself.

“So I decided, I don’t want to be afraid anymore. And I don’t want you to be sad anymore. So, I figure you can help me get over this. Hay, just talking to you makes me feel a little better.”

Stormy looked up, and saw Strawberry looking at her for the first time since the accident. Stormy was feeling a little better herself. “Let me know if there’s anything I can do, then.”

“Actually, I was curious... what were you planning on doing during the rain?”

“Well, I was going to try some really stupid trick, but it would be pretty dangerous, and also be scary for you, I’m sure.”

“Do it! You can spend the week practicing, and I can watch, and maybe seeing you do it again and again will help.”

“If it will make you feel better, I think I will. Hmm, I’m going to have to get some of those books back out.”

The sun set on Stormy’s house as she began her routine’s practice. All right, fly up, around, and down. The flying’s the easy part. She took to the air. Up... a narrow- WIDE, a wide turn to the left. Forward a bit... maybe I’ll add a small loop before I head down... uh oh. UH OH. Up-up-up-up-up-up! Stormy panted heavily as she hovered inches above the ground. No loop. I don’t need a loop. The trick is fine without a loop. It’s not a flying trick.

She hoped Strawberry didn’t see that. Fortunately, Strawberry was busy incrementally befriending her cloud.

All right, let’s try this again. Up, a nice big arc around, back down, and stick the landing. Into the air again. Up to... about this high should do, keep up the speed... nice graceful arc, and dive. Pull out... and now for a graceful landing... OOF. All right, maybe I should flare just a little first. Ow. Let’s try that again.

The next day, after several hours of practicing in the sun, Stormy landed under the tree, opposite Strawberry and her cloud. Stormy visited her water supply again, then walked over and asked, “How’s your cloud doing? It your friend yet?”

“It’s not as bad as I thought, really. It is just water, after all. And for some reason my hoof goes right through it.”

“Want me to...?” Stormy motioned vaguely at the small cloud.

“Not really, but, I guess I have to at some point. Go ahead,” Strawberry cringed.

Stormy firmly prodded the cloud, which responded by sending a spark to the ground with a loud pop. Strawberry opened her eyes. “Well, that wasn’t bad. Kinda sounded like wood snapping.”

“But,” Stormy said, “I need to bring out the big cloud again for my practicing. Sorry.”

“Maybe if you... just put it far away, you know, so I can look at it without being, um, close.”

“I’ll see what I can do, Strawberry. I’m glad you’re putting up with me for all this.”

Several hours later, on the opposite side of the house from where Strawberry was taking shelter under the tree, Stormy was putting the finishing touches on the large black cloud. There. Now all there was to do was fly into it. Piece of cake.

Forty-five seconds later, Stormy landed hard under the tree. “Ow ow ow ow ow ow!”

“There was a lot of noise,” Strawberry said, “are you okay?”

“My fault. I got... well... zapped.” Stormy rubbed her side. “Didn’t think it would hurt that much. I just need to be a little more careful, that’s all. How are you doing?”

“Um... I think I’ll stay under the tree.”

I can do this. Just have to keep my speed up going through. Let’s go. And... yes! Easy as pie. One more time! Ooh that was close, gotta be careful. Next time, down.

In... dive... ... pull up... get ready FLARE and... land. BOOM! Yes!

I hope Strawberry’s okay.

Stormy washed the lather off of her body. She enjoyed the spray of the cold water, but all good showers must come to an end. She twisted the valve off, but the water didn’t stop. The shower was broken. The tools to fix it were in her room. She made her way out of the bathroom, shower head washing her the whole time. The shower head above the bathroom door was on, too. That needed fixing. She made her way down the hallway, still being drenched. It felt good, she couldn’t deny that. She opened the door to her room, and there was a bright flash.

Stormy awoke. She wasn’t in her bed for some reason. She was on the roof. Because she went to sleep there. Because it had started raining overnight! Thunder boomed across the landscape and through Stormy’s heart. She had produced dark clouds, rain, and lightning, but this was so much bigger. In the distance, a multicolored glow hovered around the horizon as reservoir workers magically gathered as much water as they could out of the air.

Stormy leaped off the roof and flew as fast as she could through the torrential rain. She landed at Strawberry’s door and knocked loudly. “It’s raining! It’s raining!”

The door opened, and a bleary-eyed Strawberry looked out. “I know,” she stated matter-of-factly. Lightning flashed and Strawberry cringed.

Stormy’s mood dampened, despite being rained on. She didn’t want to pull her friend through this. Strawberry seemed to notice how conflicted she was, and added, “but I can still go and see your big trick. I want to see it, really.” Another bolt of lightning sent Strawberry cowering. “You have to do this, and I have to do this, too. Let’s... let’s go.”

Stormy lead Strawberry to the field, wondering if this was really a good idea. She tried to reassure Strawberry: “It’s all right, as long as I’m here. I’m a pegasus, remember? I can control the weather; you’ll be fine.” I hope, she added mentally.

Stormy looked up at the rolling clouds as the rain washed down her. “Maybe I shouldn’t do this after all.”

“Please Stormy, I came out here, in this, to see you perform. Come on, show me what the great Stormy Nights can do.”

Stormy swallowed. “All right. Stand right there. Don’t move, and you’ll be safe.” Was she trying to convince Strawberry, or herself? The sky above rumbled. It was reassuring, in its own way.

It worked every time in practice, so it’ll work now. I hope. Here I go.

Stormy began her flight upward without incident. The wall of blackness approached. Stormy entered the massive cloud. Immediately, she was buffeted by fierce turbulence. She gritted her teeth and tried to power through it as best she could, but it was taking much more effort than she anticipated. It felt like the winds were trying to tear her wings off. How far had she turned so far? Was it even possible to tell? And she felt the energy in the clouds around her, there was so much power, too much power.

She heard her father’s voice in her head, “Well now you’ve done it. Your idiocy has finally gotten you killed. And not only you! What happens when you fall out of the sky? Guess who’s going to go running across the open to your corpse? Then there will be two orders of zap-fried ponies, hoof-licking good!” Shut up shut up shut up! She flapped as hard as she could.

How long had she been turning? Did it really matter with the turbulence throwing her around? She was getting too tired; she had to start her dive. Stormy dropped below the cloud layer and quickly attempted to get her bearings.

She had not turned nearly far enough. She looked for an alternate landing spot, and quickly found a decent candidate, despite the low light. As she descended, she could sense that electrical potential following her path, steadily getting stronger.

Not yet, not yet! she thought to herself. She pulled out of the dive and flew low across the ground towards the small flat patch of land. A blue glow flickered around her wingtips. That line of potential, running past her, THROUGH her, grew and grew. A little too late to change my mind. Stormy had sorely underestimated how much power these clouds could hold.

This is it, she thought. My clumsiness will mess up the landing, and then I will die. Just... remember to flare. The ground rushed past as she began to hear an electric buzzing. Not yet, Celestia not yet...

...

NOW!

Strawberry, still glued to the spot, watched her friend come down in the distance. Suddenly, there was a brilliant flash, a bolt leading from where Stormy left the cloud, down towards the ground, along it, and right to where she stood.

And around her.

The bolt of electricity had, just inches from her tail, split into eight smaller ones, arched around her, and landed in eight spots around her feet.

The thunder boomed past. Strawberry exclaimed, “Holy cow that was awe—”

Another bolt came straight down on Stormy.

Strawberry closed her eyes as tight as she could. Through her eyelids she saw more flashes, less than half a second apart. Thunder rolled nonstop as she curled into a ball.

The lights and noise soon subsided, replaced only by the sound of the pouring rain. Strawberry slowly opened her eyes.

Something was moving up ahead. Strawberry, forgetting the instructions she had been given, ran to her friend. Fortunately, the clouds’ power had been exhausted, if only temporarily, and no surprises met her on the way.

Strawberry found Stormy laying on her side. “Stormy! Are you all right? Tell me you’re okay!”

Stormy stirred, then opened her eyes. “Yeah... I’m fine... but in hindsight... that really was a bad idea.” She struggled to her feet. “And I have to admit... I didn’t expect that last part.” Stormy tried walking. It seemed to work. “I hope you were watching; I don’t think I can do that again anytime soon.”

“I saw it. It was awesome.”

“I’m glad I had an audience,” Stormy chuckled. The rain helped soothe her aching wings. “Come on, let’s get inside before anything else happens today. Oh geez, look at these.” She extended her wings. They were in tatters, many of her feathers were missing, and most of the remaining ones were singed. “Good thing feathers grow back.”

Stormy looked back towards the site of her stunt, but it wasn’t the landscape that caught her eye, but herself. Rainwater splashed off her ragged wings, and ran across her back. But the water sheeting off of Stormy could not wash away the three yellow lightning bolts newly emblazoned on her flank.