Rainbow Dash stood alone in a dark cloud hallway. Behind her was a T intersection, illuminated by only a single fluorescent light. Going to the left would lead to the stallions’ locker room and restroom. To right would be mare’s locker room and restroom, and beyond that the lobby. The hallway was decorated with a plethora of posters for different pegasus sports teams. Rainbow Dash read them while she waited anxiously. The Cloudsdale Hurricanes, a well-known Hoovesball team, was but one of many sports team she regularly followed.
In front of her was the exit into the flyers’ pits, where light shown in and helped to brighten the dimly lit hallway. Beyond the low wall, Rainbow Dash could see the stands. Soon, all of the ponies would be sitting there with their popcorn and banners, waiting for her to come out and make her big appearance. Currently, there was no pony to be found in the seats, but that didn’t stop Rainbow Dash from getting hyped up and wanting to throw up.
She waited a few more minutes, but when no pony arrived she concluded that she must be either early or late. Rainbow Dash never was the best at tracking time… She began walking forward. When she was outside she took in a breath of fresh air. The Cloudsdale stadium was massive. 100 rows of seats surrounded the field, which was really just an empty space, in an oval. Above the seats were magnificent columns holding up a ring of engraved clouds. On the other side of the stadium, directly opposite of Rainbow Dash, was the opposing teams’ flyers’ pits.
Above her were 7 pegasi performing several different warm up exercises in their Wonderbolt uniforms; Laps, wing-ups, cloud maneuvering. Among those ponies were Spitfire and Soarin.
Spitfire hung high above the ponies and watched. She came down and gave two mares her orders, then blew the the whistle hanging around her neck. As the two mares went off, Spitfire looked around at the other pegasi. She yelled something inaudible at Soarin, who transferred the information to a pair of stallions performing wing ups on a cloud. Spitfire looked around one more time and then noticed Rainbow Dash. She flew down to the flyers’ pit and landed softly on the cloud platform.
“You’re late.” Spitfire said teasingly.
“Am I?” Rainbow Dash said nervously. She looked to her left hoof, only to realize that she never had a watch.
“Where’s your uniform?”
Rainbow Dash looked down at her bare chest. “I wasn’t given a uniform. I figured I would get one when I arrived.” She laughed uncomfortably.
“Hmm...” Spitfire scratched her head. “Wait here.”
Spitfire flew off to Soarin. She said something to him and Soarin shrugged. They exchanged a few more words and finally Soarin pointed somewhere beyond Rainbow Dash. Spitfire waved a thanks and came back.
“I’ll find you your outfit when practice is over. First, I'll go over the basic rules of practice.” Spitfire cleared her throat. “Practice takes place every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. Practice will begin at 8am and end at noon. The first hour will be basic warm-ups; Laps, hoof-ups, wing-ups, all of which I assume you’re familiar with…” Spitfire waited, and when Rainbow Dash nodded her head slightly she continued. “After warm-ups, we shall spend a good 20 - 30 minutes going over the routine. Usually, it just the same boring thing over and over. You do this, go here, do that, blah blah blah. But every once in a while we will think up a new trick, and then every pony is totally thrown off. Kinda funny actually.” Spitfire chuckled then straightened up. “Lunch is at 11 and you’ll have thirty minutes. The last 30 minutes will be pacing around the stadium. Any questions?” Rainbow Dash shook her head. “Then get started! 30 laps, NOW!” Spitfire blew the whistle.
Rainbow Dash straightened up, raised her right hoof to her right temple and shouted: “Yes Ma'am!” She flew off into the stadium and began her warm-up.
Two mares were already performing laps before her. Rainbow Dash followed behind them, not too far but also not too close. She flew at a mediocre speed, trying not to seem slacking but also resisting the urge to show off.
She felt as if everypony was watching her and was not entirely wrong. Her very existence seemed to create a wave of silence. Everypony stopped once or twice to look over their shoulders, see what the new pony would do and then quickly turn away when they made eye contact with her. Rainbow Dash was not entirely sure what she was going to do either… Should she demonstrate her full capabilities? Or would she come off to the other ponies as cocky? She didn’t want the other Wonderbolts to think she was lazy or over-confident, but she also wanted to make a good first impression.
But somepony caught Rainbow Dash’s eye. A blue pegasus stallion that wouldn’t normally catch anyone’s attention, but for some reason caught her’s. He set up a table in the Wonderbolts’ flyers’ pit and place on top of it a plastic orange container. The stallion laid out several clear plastic cups and began filling them up from the spout.
“It’s just the watercolt,” Rainbow Dash muttered to herself.
Rainbow Dash was tired, but still had enough energy to get her through practice. She couldn’t slow down now, she told herself, not yet. It’s only been an hour. She still had 3 hours to go.
Spitfire blew the whistle and everypony stopped. “All in, everypony!”
The lead pegasus flew down into the flyers’ pit and exchanged a few words with the mysterious blue stallion before drinking from one of the cups. One by one the Wonderbolts landed and drank from the cups lined up on the table, and then exited the flyers’ pit.
Rainbow Dash was the last to do so. She landed softly on the cloud platform and lowered her head. She inhaled slowly and exhaled, allowing herself to regain control of her breathing. She breathed in and out until she finally felt she had enough energy to follow.
“Thirsty?”
Rainbow Dash looked up and her eyes met with the stallion’s. “Me?” She asked.
“There’s no one else here,” he said politely. Rainbow Dash looked around. There wasn’t anyone else there.
Rainbow Dash took a deep breath and exhaled. “Sure.” She grabbed one of the clear plastic cups and drank. When it was empty she crumbled the plastic in her hoof and threw it in the trash bin. Her eyes turned to turn the orange container. It was large, probably 2 x 3 feet, and was adorned with a large white cap. In the middle of it above the spout was a crude drawing of a pony’s head, presumably the stallion’s, with a cocky grin done in sharpie marker. “Thanks.” She nodded.
“No problem,” the stallion said.
Rainbow Dash walked into the decorated hallway not knowing where the other ponies went.
“Ms. Rainbow Dash!” The pony called to her. Rainbow Dash stopped and turned. “Good luck today!”
Rainbow Dash waved her hoof in thanks and went to catch up.
To the right of the stallions’ locker room was an old wooden door with a white sign that said “EMPLOYEES AND PLAYERS ONLY”. Rainbow Dash took an educated guess and went inside. The room shared a resemblance with the locker rooms. It was a small space surrounded by cracked and dirty tile floor and walls. In the middle of the room was a single wooden bench, currently occupied with the members of the Wonderbolts. In the back of the room Spitfire and Soarin stood on opposite ends of a whiteboard marked with random Xs and Os. They pointed to the board then pointed to a pony and explained their roles in the routine, but it wasn’t as if they hadn’t heard it before.
When Rainbow Dash entered the room, all heads turned to her. Spitfire nodded to Soarin, who, in turn, nodded back.
“Wonderbolts!” Soarin roared. “This seems like a good time to introduce our brand new member! Ms. Rainbow Dash!” RD stiffened. “Would you please come to the front and introduce yourself?”
“I-” Rainbow Dash stuttered. “S-sureeee…” Rainbow walked to the front of the room with all eyes fixed on her. “Well… my name is Rainbow Dash. You might remember me as the one who saved your captains at the the Best Young Flyer Competition and performed the Sonic Rainboom. Hehe…” She looked to Spitfire for inspiration, who motioned for her continue. “I live in Ponyville but I was born here in Cloudsdale. Um… Well I - I would just like to say that it’s… it’s such an honor to be working with you guys! I’ve been a huge fan of the Wonderbolts since I was a filly!”
Silence. Then Spitfire began the slow clap, then Soarin joined her and one by one the members the Wonderbolts joined in on the applause.
“Well said, Rainbow Dash!” Spitfire commanded, “Come up to the front and meet your new teammate!”
One by one the Wonderbolts got up and formed a straight line in front of Rainbow Dash. Each member exchanged a friendly hoofshake and welcomed her with a friendly, “Nice to meet you,” or, “Welcome to the team,” before sitting back down and resuming their gossip. Rainbow Dash looked to Spitfire who motioned for her to sit down as well. She did.
“Alright, Wonderbolts!” Spitfire began. “Our next performance is in six weeks in Las Pegasus.”
The first six weeks of practice went by fast for Rainbow Dash. Too fast. The impending day hung over her head like a dark cloud, and Rainbow knew that this was her first real chance to prove herself. In six weeks her first performance would be in Las Pegasus in front of a crowd of 30,000. Practice was all stage and scenario, but this was going to be the real thing. The crowd would be watching her at all times, waiting to see if she would slip up. Anticipating it.
And that’s all they want to see, Rainbow knew, for the new pony to fuck up and make a fool of herself, just like those assholes at the academy. Always watching and picking at every little move you make.
Don’t think like that, Rainbow told herself. It’s going to be okay. It’s your first performance as a Wonderbolt. If you make a mistake, it’s okay. It was just because you were nervous. They’ll understand.
But what if they don’t?
They will.
And that was that.
After her 2nd day of practice, Rainbow Dash put her suit in her locker and headed for the exit.
“Rainbow Dash!” Spitfire called. Rainbow Dash turned to face her captain. “Leaving already?”
“Um… yeah.” Rainbow Dash said. “I’ve still got to fix the clouds above Ponyville.”
“Aw that sucks.” Spitfire patted her on the shoulder. “Great job today, though. There’s zero chance that any other pony could pull off that new routine, and I think the other ponies are really starting to warm up to you.”
“I hope so, and thanks. Take care.”
“You too.”
Rainbow Dash opened the door and took flight.
The moving of the clouds took longer than what was usually expected. Flu season had just rolled into Ponyville and three members of the Sky Maintenance Team were out sick. On top of her four hour practice sessions, she was now pulling the weight of three other ponies.
Her normal work days involved being given a list of the weather condition every day at the beginning of the week, and required moving the clouds strategically and precisely in a way which no earth pony or unicorn could conceive. Of course, Rainbow Dash had nothing to do with this, but some days she would be lucky enough to get a less boring job and pull the clouds down to make mist.
After work, Rainbow Dash still had plans to meet with Pinkie Pie and Rarity for tea, but she felt more like blowing them off and taking a nap. They’d be upset, Rainbow knew, but whatever. There will be more tea parties.
Rainbow Dash clocked out and headed for home. She unlocked the door and hung her team vest on the coat rack and keys on a hook, then headed for the fridge.
Rainbow Dash looked at the calendar posted on the refrigerator. Clear skies on Tuesday, Bring down mist on Wednesday, Thunderstorm on Friday.
Shit, she thought.
She grabbed a carton of milk from the fridge and took a swig.
A thunderstorm will take all day. I’ll have to miss practice.
She wiped her mouth and put the carton back.
Not on my first week of practice… Maybe I can get Blossomforth or Honey Rays to fill in for me.
Rainbow Dash sat at the kitchen table and thought it over. Tank flew in and began doing laps over the table, then began to slowly lick Rainbow’s face. She patted his shell.
“Hey buddy,” she said. “D’you miss me?”
Rainbow Dash went the fridge and pulled out a baby carrot from the bottom drawer for Tank to munch on. She tossed it in his bowl and he immediately went for it. She went to her bedroom and plopped down on her bed. Her room was filled with a luxurious dresser and single person bed with a nightstand littered with a lamp, alarm clock, and CD’s. The walls were covered in a variety of posters from different bands, and on the dresser was a small hand mirror and a framed autograph from Spitfire. Rainbow Dash had gotten it when her father won her VIP passes when she was a filly.
Rainbow Dash plopped down on the bed. Her alarm clock read 6:21. Not even dark yet, but Rainbow Dash was tired. She grabbed the blanket and wrapped herself in it, then Tank came in and nuzzled himself a little bed between her hind legs.
I think I’ve earned myself a good rest, she thought as she allowed herself to drift off into dreamland.
The next day, Rainbow Dash called in and asked Blossomforth to fill in as captain on Friday. Before practice, she stopped at Rarity’s to apologize and asked to schedule another tea party for Thursday. She agreed and they parted ways.
It wasn’t until the fourth week of practice when Rainbow Dash felt it, and she REALLY felt it.
It was Tuesday, her second day of practice in the week, and Rainbow Dash was so rudely awakened by her alarm clock which was set to 6:30am, allowing herself an hour and a half before practice to prepare for the day.
Rainbow Dash’s eyes shot open and slowly she began nodding back into her sleep, but the alarm clock wouldn’t let her.
Rainbow Dash! Time for school! She remembered fondly.
Five more minutes, Dad!
Rainbow Dash reached one hoof out and quickly pulled back. A sharp pain like being pricked with a needle stung her ankle and hung there for several seconds. She tried once more and hit the snooze button on her alarm, then quickly pulled her hoof back and cradled it. The pain like tiny needles went all up and down her leg.
She forced herself up and threw her hind leg over the side of the bed. Every muscle in her body seemed to be screaming in harmony, but her wings got the worst of it. Her joints hurt like a bitch. Rainbow Dash did her best not to move her wings too much but found that hurt even more, so she just let her wings hang limply at her side. She rubbed the base of her spine and laughed to herself.
I feel like an old stallion, Rainbow Dash thought.
She brought her hind legs down onto the cloud palace floor, then her front legs and quickly collapsed onto one knee. Her legs felt like spaghetti. Rainbow Dash kneeled on the floor for a few seconds until she told herself to get the fuck up and get ready.
How did I allow myself to end up like this? She asked herself. I’m too young to be dealing with this. I have to get ready for practice.
She forced herself up and took slow, steady steps to the door. Every little movement she made was tremendously sore and awkward, and by the time she had her hoof on the door handle she was ready to collapse again.
You can’t go to work like this, she thought. Rainbow Dash opened the door and stepped into the hall. And you sure as hell can’t go to practice.
Fuck you, I can’t! She replied to herself.
Rainbow Dash took two steps then stopped to let the pain pass, emitting a long, soft grunt through her lips. She took another, paused, then another. The next one was particularly painful, so much so that Rainbow Dash quickly took her hoof off the floor and stumbled against the wall. A great deal of pain shot into her elbow and echoed throughout her whole body. She let out a small cry but quickly muffled it behind the walls of her gritted teeth.
You wanna tell me that again? Her body questioned stubbornly.
I’m just a little sore is all. She answered.
Rainbow Dash calmed herself then slowly but surely made her way into the kitchen. She reached into the freezer and pulled out a box of toaster waffles. She walked to the toaster sitting on the kitchen counter then dropped the box and moaned when she thumped her leg on the table. She rubbed her leg with one hoof and picked up the box with the other, then popped two waffles into the toaster.
Rainbow sat down at the kitchen table and continued to rub her leg, cursing under her breath while doing so. The toaster DINGed and Rainbow Dash grabbed the butter and syrup from the fridge and ate. She threw her plate into the sink, then grabbed a head of lettuce from the fridge and bent down to put some pieces in Tank’s bowl.
Rainbow Dash soon found herself unable to stand up straight. She tried to stand up, then was stopped by a sharp pain at the base of her spine. She placed her hoof again on her back and forced herself up, gritted her teeth through the pain, then stopped at the sound of nasty POP. She let out a sigh of relief and twisted her back until another loud pop squeezed through her bones. Rainbow Dash rubbed her back, feeling much better but still terribly sore.
That's what you get when you don't do your hoof-ups right, she thought. Back pains in your twenties. Maybe just ONE day off wouldn’t hurt…
Rainbow Dash thought this over, then concluded that one day off would be best for her health. Doctor Rainbow’s professional diagnosis. She called in too sick to practice or work, doing well to avoid any questions thrown at her by Spitfire or her boss, then slept in her bed for another six hours.
When she woke up the second time that day it was 12:46pm. She felt much more energized and slightly less sore, but still very much so. And hungry. She dragged herself out of bed and microwaved a pack of ramen noodles from the closet, then thought about what she was going to do that day.
Perhaps she would go Sugar Cube Corner and have a few drinks and sweets with Pinkie, or maybe she’d drop by Rarity’s and see what was up. But she would probably want to put bows in her hair and make her try on a new dress... Rainbow grimaced. Applejack might be able to get off the farm for a bit to get a few drinks, if not maybe Twilight or Fluttershy, or all three. Rainbow Dash decided she would try and see if any of her friends had any free time, and if not, there was no harm in going for a few drinks by herself.
She sniffed her pits.
But maybe I should take a bath first…
After eating, Rainbow Dash went into her bathroom and ran the water. Her luxurious bathroom was filled with a white tile floor and a granite countertop and sink. A cabinet and mirror hung above the sink filled with a variety of creams and headache pills and shampoos. Rainbow Dash opened the cabinet and pulled out a packet of scented bath soaps. She would probably kill herself if the other ponies found out she used something so… “fru fru”, but she was only one of two of her friends that could actually stand in her house so there was no fear. She ripped open the packet and watched as it bubbled and popped when it ran under the faucet.
She turned to examine herself in the mirror and notice several new additions to her beautiful face. Her mane was a mess, her eyes were red and blood shot from exhaustion, and several new bags had appeared under eyes. She looked like shit; She felt like shit.
"Damn..." She said, examining the bags under her eyes.
When the tub was about three quarters of the way full she turn off the faucet and slowly slid herself down into it. All of her muscles let out a sigh of relief as she slid deeper and deeper into the water, and Rainbow Dash too let out a long sigh. She breathed in and out slowly, basking in the scent of cherry blossoms and enjoying the moment for as long as she could, knowing she wouldn’t be take a day off like this again.
Can't let myself get lazy, she thought. No more days off. I've been letting myself go too slow already.
She had. Rainbow Dash noticed and was almost certain that Spitfire and the other Wonderbolts had noticed too. The constant exercise and work was beginning to get to her. The soreness, the tiredness, getting up at 6:30, working late and weekends, the upcoming show, the dread, the excitement, the nervousness, the fear, it was all starting to show in her tired eyes...
Rainbow Dash lowered her head in the water, leaving her nostrils just above to breath, closed her eyes and cleared her head.
She thought about her friends and family, and how proud they must be for her. She thought about the show and saw herself perfecting that new routine and wowing the audience. They would all be clapping and cheering and waving banners. Her friends and family would be there, hopping up and down and calling out her name. Rainbow Dash would casually give a friendly wave , trying to not over do it but also trying act cool. Kids would want her autograph, and everything would be fine.
Perfectly fine.
Unless she screwed up.
Rainbow Dash took a deep breath and fully submerged herself underwater.
And just the very thought horrified Rainbow Dash, and every time she thought of it she tried to push it away but it always came crawling back like a bad itch.
What if I forget what to do or mix it up and make a complete fool out of myself? What if I clip my wing and crash just like First-Aid did? What if I’m too tired and fall behind and everypony laughs?
What if I couldn’t do it in the first place?
This was Rainbow Dash's greatest fear. Maybe she just wasn't able to keep up with the physical endurance and stamina that the other Wonderbolts possessed. And worse yet, what if the other Wonderbolts realized this?
Rainbow brought herself up again and pushed her mane out of her eyes.
Rainbow had prided herself on being the fastest pony in Equestria, but the fact was she just wasn't a natural born athlete like Soarin or Spitfire. Sure, she won the Young Flyers Competition, but was that really all that much of an accomplishment? It was just pure adrenaline that allowed her save her friend and perform a Sonic Rainboom. Could she do that at anytime? Stamina and speed aren't worth shit if you can't maintain it.
Had she ever once bothered to stretch before practice? How many hours had she spent sleeping and eating junk food when the Wonderbolts were out practicing and perfecting their techniques?
Too many, she thought. And she kicked herself over and over again for that.
How could I be so stupid as to let myself do that!? I’ve anticipated this my entire life but never thought to prepare for it?! I’m an obese old mare compare those ponies! Stupid! Fucking stupid!
Rainbow Dash massaged her mane with shampoo and conditioner, got out of the tub and dried herself off, mumbling under her breath.
Oh jeez, she thought, Rarity! That’s right!
Rarity had invited her and the rest of her friends to tea at two o'clock. Rainbow Dash had completely forgotten. What time was it now? She went to kitchen and checked the clock on the wall; it read 10 minutes to 1:30.
Rainbow Dash didn't really feel like going a tea party, but she already blew them off once before.
At quarter to two, Rainbow Dash grabbed her coat and stepped outside to be embraced by the wind and figured out her first problem. Rarity’s home was in Ponyville several miles away, on the ground. Her home was on a cloud several miles into troposphere and the only way to get down was flying.
Rainbow Dash rubbed her hooves and flapped her wings as a test. Still pretty sore but manageable for a short time. She dug her hoof into the cloud platform and felt the soft sting like needles in her muscles. It hurt, but again, manageable. The wind blew against the right side of her face at maybe 20 miles per hour. She imagined in her head how get to the ground with minimal pain and figured out how she wanted to do it. Instead of actually flying she would unfold her wings and glide down, twisting her body left and right to steer like any foal does when they’re first learning to fly. The only tough part would be the landing; slowing down without moving her wings too much would be a problem but she was sure that she could land safely if a bit rough.
Rainbow Dash unfolded her wings completely, flinching at the pain in her joints, then kicked herself off the platform.
She soared freely through air, enjoying the familiar feeling of the wind against her feathers and face. She tilted her body to the right and crashed head-first into a cloud which disappeared with a poof, then glided to her left and flew back and forth between the oncoming clouds.
Rainbow Dash could clearly see Ponyville a few miles ahead and tilted her body into a nose dive, picking up speed. Right before hitting the ground she pulled up into steady glide just a few feet above the dirt. She placed her hooves down and dragged them across the ground, slowing herself to a dead stop.
“Hi, Rainbow Dash!”
Rainbow Dash looked down. Scootaloo was on her trusty scooter, looking up at her idol with her big adorable eyes.
“Hey kid, what are you doing?” Rainbow Dash asked
“We’re going to get our cutie marks for animal herding!”
“Animal herding?” Rainbow Dash sneered. “Couldn’t you go for a cutie mark in something more… fun?
Scootaloo frowned. “We need to try everything or else we might miss our special talents. I haven’t seen you in forever, Rainbow Dash!”
“Yeah… Sorry Scoot, I’ve been so busy with practice and work, I haven’t had time to do much else.”
“What’s it like flying with the Wonderbolts? It must be so cool! I asked my mom to take me to see you guys in Las Pegasus, but she says she doesn’t have time to fly all that way. I think she’s just being cheap.”
Rainbow Dashed ruffled her mane and she blushed deeply. “Well, it ain’t cheap, kid. Don’t worry, though. You’ll get to see us when we come to Ponyville. Now run along before Applebloom and Sweetie Belle forget you.”
“But… where are you going?”
“I’m heading over to Rarity’s for some tea.”
“Can we hang out sometime this week?”
Rainbow Dash pretended to think about this. “Weeeeellllll…” She started. “I’ll have to move some stuff around, but yeah.”
Scootaloo squealed in delight. “Awesome! Okay, I gotta go. See ya later!” Scootaloo hopped back on her scooter and zoomed down the street.
Sweet kid, Rainbow Dash thought.
She began towards Rarity's when she was met with a familiar wobbly feeling in her legs. Rainbow Dash sighed. She was still very tired but simply shook it off. She still had the whole day ahead of her.
