Waking up in Equestria

"AHHHHHHHH!"

CRASH!!

"Oh crap! Are ya' alright, Harry?" asks Dash as she watches Harry get up from the impact crater below him.

"Yeah, fell completely fine. Why?" he asks.

"It's just um..."

"What? Is there blood?"

"You...could say that..."

-Silence-

"Dash, what's wrong?"

"Don't freak out! But um..."

"Yeah?"

"Your back is kind of...sticking out..."

"Huh, I was wondering why things were starting to go dark..." mutters Harry as he falls to the ground in a heap.

"OH CRAP! Uh, uh, uh...I'LL GO GET HELP!"

"GOD DAMN EVERYTHING! THIS HURTS LIKE HELL! AND WHAT HAPPENED TO MY WING!?"

Rewind, about three hours prior.

It was a Saturday morning, and the sun had just started to peak over the horizon. On the ground below, Harry was walking to the field where Rainbow Dash's cloud home was. It was his day off today, but he didn't want to sit at the library, bored out of his skull.

Earlier that morning, as he was washing up in the bathroom, an idea flitted across his mind as he stared at his reflection in the mirror. Twisting his torso a bit, he looked at the metallic appendages that adorned his back. Extending them a bit, he smiled a bit as the idea in his mind started screaming Do it. DO IT!"

He wanted to learn how to fly.

After getting washed up and dressed, Harry left a note for Twilight and left the library, setting his mental GPS to Dash's home.

Now, standing and staring up at the pegasus' home, a thought came to mind.

"Damn, how can I wake her?". Looking around, no rocks were present. Just a grassy field that sat on the outskirts of town, the grass gently blowing in the morning breeze. Tapping his chin, a horrible, awful idea came to mind.

Harry was going to trick Rainbow Dash.

Cupping his hands around his mouth, Harry took a deep breath and unleashed.

"HOLY CRAP! THE WONDERBOLTS ARE HERE! What's that? You're looking for Rainbow Dash? And ask her to be part of the team?" hollered Harry. Looking up to one of the windows, he could see a tuft of prismatic hair sticking out a bit. "WOW! You're going to put on a show? Just for Rainbow? WOW!"

Suddenly, a rainbow landed in front of him, the cyan pegasus looking about frantically.

"Where are they!? Where are the Wonderbolts!?" Dash questioned quickly. Laughter followed her questions and she looked to see Harry, rolling around on the ground and clutching his sides. Dash snorted and pawed the ground, ready to pounce. "Why I..." she began. Harry sat up suddenly, noticing the tone in her voice.

"Whoa, whoa! Easy there Dash! It was just a joke." he said, raising his hands in a defensive gesture. "I couldn't think of a way to wake you up."

"Knocking on the door would've been nice." Dash growled. At this, Harry pointed a thumb at his back.

"Uh, don't know how to fly exactly. That's why I'm here, to be honest."

"Wait, what?"

"I wanna fly. I have wings, minus well use them, right?" Harry asked. Now it was Rainbow's turn to break into laughter.

"F-Fly? You? A-as if!" she said, falling to the ground and slamming a hoof into the dirt repeatedly. Harry put on a scowl and folded his arms.

"What's funny about that?" he asked. Dash sat up and wiped a tear from her eye.

"Be-because! You're too large to fly! Your wings wouldn't be able to support you! And hello, have you heard? Metal can't be used as a flight material. The only thing that can be used to fly are feathers and unicorn magic." Rainbow said, pointing a hoof at his wings.

Raising an eyebrow, Harry readied his wings.

"Then prepare to be shocked." he said. In a flourish of metal, Harry's wings expanded, reaching to a span of nearly four feet on both sides. Rainbow's jaw dropped open as her eyes traced along his wingspan.

"H-how...?"

"Turns out, the metal can fold within itself, like a stacking mechanism. Really handy if I want to keep their profile small." Harry explained as the wings retracted.

"W-well, that maybe impressive, but you still can't even get off the ground. Metal is too heavy. Hello? Have you taken high school science?" Dash asked, rolling her eyes and shaking her head. Harry let out a hearty laugh.

"Now what?" Dash asked.

"Rainbow, have you forgotten that I'm from a different world?"

"No, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"Back on my world, we have these machines called 'airplanes'. Giant, metal contraptions that soar through the sky. No, they don't flap their wings like a bird; they have these devices call engines that help them fly. We use airplanes for a variety of uses; travel, recreational, and even combat." Harry told her. Rainbow gave a small, impressed scoff and smirked.

"Alright then. But last time I checked, you have just the wings, not one of those 'engines', as you call it."

"Ugh, stop picking over the details! Can you help me fly, or not?" asked Harry. Dash put a hoof to her chin and considered this.

"Yeah, I suppose I can. But you have to follow everything I tell you, got me?" Dash asked. Harry smiled and gave a nod. "Good! Training starts in one hour. Meet me at the track in that time." Rainbow Dash said, taking off and heading in the direction of their meet-up.

"Alright, see ya' then!" Harry called. Pumping his fist in victory, he began to walk back to the library to tell Twilight the news.

*     *     *

"That's great to hear Harry!" Twilight said happily after Harry told her.

"I know, right? Maybe after I get really good at it, I can take you for a nighttime cruse around. How about it?" Harry proposed. Twilight smiled a bit and nodded.

"Sure, that sounds fine!" she said. Taking a large gulp of orange juice, Harry turned and left.

"See ya' later!" he called, walking out.

"Good luck, and be careful!"

"I always am, ah ha!"

*     *     *

"Come on Harry! Flap those junk heaps!" Rainbow yelled. Her tone was equal to that of an Army Drill Sergeant. As she stood on a cloud, she watched below as Harry's wings whirred and flapped, trying their best to raise him.

"I'm. Trying." Harry grunted, his face going red with exertion. The internal gears and servos worked in flawless unison to drive the wings.

"TRY HARDER, MAGGOT!" yelled Dash. Suddenly, Harry's head snapped up, a determined look on his face.

"MA'AM, YES MA'AM!" he yelled, forcing his wings to flap harder. Soon enough, his hooves began to raise from the ground, making a five foot space between him and and the ground. Rainbow hopped from her cloud and hovered next to him.

"Now, pace yourself! Flying is all about pacing each wing beat. If you flap too fast, you'll get tired more quickly. Time your wing beats, and you'll conserve energy. How do you think I've managed to become the best flyer in Equestria?" she asked, smirking as her ego was being stroked.

"How about less ego, and more helping?" Harry asked sarcastically.

"Don't sass the instructor!" Dash said, smacking Harry on the back of his head.

"GAH! Alright, alright! Just get on with it!"

*     *     *

"That's the spirit! Remember to watch your altitude!" Dash called from the ground. In the skies above, Harry was simply a metal flash in the sky. His wings flapped every three minutes or so, thanks to the aerodynamics of the metal. The design allowed Harry to coast at a fast speed, while conserving energy that would otherwise be wasted on maintaining the speed he was traveling at.

But who cared about the science?

Harry felt alive!

Wind blew through his mane and over shirt, making them rustle like crazy. Harry could even pick up smells at his height and speed: wood smoke from the bakery, freshly cut grass, the smell of a fresh water lake nearby.

He loved every bit of flying.

"Alright Harry, come on down!" Dash called. Nodding at the order, Harry angled his wings to start a even descent. Suddenly, the wind ripped upwards, causing the control surface on Harry's right wing was snapped to a ninety degree angle. Harry screamed as he felt his entire wing go numb, pain bolting up his spine and into his brain. This sudden event forced Harry to stop flapping his working wing as he spasmed in pain. On the ground, Rainbow Dash could only gasp in shock as she watched him fall.

"AHHHHHHH!"

CRASH!!

*     *     *

The first thing Harry heard were the heart beat monitors as they beeped in the darkness. Grunting, Harry tried to open his eyes, only to see that everything was black.

"Hey, who turned out the lights!?" he asked. A sudden hoof on his shoulder caught his attention and he snapped his head in that direction.

"Easy there. You're in the hospital. Again." Doctor X-Ray said gently.

"Doc? Is that you? What happened?" Harry asked.

"You crashed; that's what happened. Compound fracture in the right ulna wing bone, followed by a concussion and cracked cheekbone. You're lucky to not be in a coma." X-Ray said. "And I've had the local blacksmith take a look at the wing. He says he can repair it."

"Oh thank God!"

"But we have to remove it to let him do so. It's a good thing the metal is screwed in to your bone, or else the entire thing would've had to been amputated." X-Ray said with a small chuckle. He looked to see that Harry had gone pale. "Ahem, anyway. Recovery period should be one to three months. The metal will take four months to be repaired. Until then, try not to fly." X-Ray said.

"What about Twilight and Rainbow Dash?"

"Rainbow Dash has been told to go home and come back tomorrow. As for Ms. Sparkle, she's been less...well, take a listen." X-Ray said opening the door. Down the hall, the screaming voice of Twilight could be heard.

"NO! I WILL NOT LEAVE UNTIL I SEE HIM! I WANT TO SEE HIM RIGHT THIS INSTANT!! I- GET YOUR HOOF OFF ME! THINK ABOUT TOUCHING ME AGAIN, AND I'LL SEND YOU TO THE MOON!"

Harry smiled a bit.

"That's my girl." he said. X-Ray simply sighed and left the room.