Feathers of Blue and Gold

by Ruirik

Rating: teen
Tags: Spitfire, Main 6, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Soarin, Rainbow Dash, Romance, Fleetfoot, Comedy
Length: 40554

Spitfire and Rainbow Dash come to grips with the aftermath of a thunderstorm gone wrong, crippling injuries, and the struggles of a young relationship in the sequel to Fire & Rain

To say that the Wonderbolt's last trip to Manehatten was eventful would be an understatement. Spitfire broke her wing, met Rainbow Dash, dated Rainbow Dash, and a planned thunderstorm went out of control landing many ponies in the hospital. Now with Spitfire getting "promoted" to command of the Wonderbolt's Academy and Rainbow Dash on the mend from her own injuries, the two will learn just how much life can still throw at them.

Meanwhile, Soarin and Rapidfire must come to grips with their new roles as leaders of the Wonderbolts. Soarin doesn't know if he's up to the task, and Rapidfire doesn't know if he even wants to stay. All these trials and more await them further on up the road...

Pre-reading and Editing: LoyalLiar, The24thPegasus, SolidFire, Sorren, and Skeeter The Lurker.
I do my own cover art.

Published 2013-12-24 03:10:05 UTC
Last updated 2015-07-08 15:33:41 UTC

Further On Up The Road

Spitfire laid awake in the comfortable hotel bed, her half-lidded eyes staring vacantly into the sleep tousled mane of her marefriend. The younger pegasus was still sound asleep, taking soft, easy breaths through her open mouth. Spitfire closed her eyes and let the sound soothe her mind, like the gentle crash of waves on the beach.

Leaning forward, Spitfire pressed her lips to the sky-blue mare’s forehead. There, she lingered for a few moments, feeling the warmth of the smaller pony. She sighed to herself, her forelegs gently wrapping around Rainbow’s waist.

The action caused Rainbow to stir awake, a little groan emanating from her throat followed by a soft yawn. She slowly opened her eyes and blinked the sleep free of them. For a moment she glanced around, her mind still caught between sleep and wakefulness.

“Morning,” Spitfire whispered, a little smile pulling at the corners of her mouth.

“Mornin’,” Rainbow mumbled before yawning again.

Spitfire nuzzled her snout into the soft hairs of Rainbow’s mane. Rainbow’s unique smell, like static and spring rain, filled her nose and broadened the smile on her lips. She nuzzled between Rainbow’s ears, earning a soft giggle from the mare.

“Sleep good?” asked Spitfire, her left hoof rubbing Rainbow’s back.

Rainbow nodded a little, rubbing her eyes with a fetlock. “Mmhmm. You?”

Spitfire’s stomach churned as she got a good look at Rainbow. Her coat was singed all over her body, some spots the sky-blue hairs were burned away entirely; blood trickled from her mouth, and her left wing was bent at an unnatural angle. Spitfire didn’t need a doctor to tell her the wing was badly broken.

“Not good, not good,” Flash muttered.

“How... how..." Spitfire whispered, her trembling hooves hovering millimeters over Rainbow’s still body, afraid to touch her for fear of what they may not feel.

“Pretty good,” she lied, nuzzling between Rainbow’s ears.

Rainbow didn’t question the answer. She mumbled a sleepy reply into Spitfire’s chest, nuzzling the former-Wonderbolt’s warm coat. Spitfire kissed the top of Rainbow’s head before giving her a gentle nudge with a hoof.

“We should get up,” Spitfire said, resting her head on top of Rainbow’s mane.

“Don’t wanna,” Rainbow mumbled.

Spitfire gave an amused snort and another little nudge. “Well it’s not my dad who’s coming over to take us out to lunch.”

Rainbow went still for a moment, the comment doing wonders for her wakefulness. She slowly looked up, her magenta eyes locking with Spitfire’s. “That’s today?”

Nodding, Spitfire glanced at the clock on the nightstand. “Well, it’s quarter past nine now. He’ll be here at ten-thirty, right?”

“Dad’s always early,” Rainbow groaned, pushing away from Spitfire and rolling onto her back. “I’ll be surprised if he’s not hiding in the hall right now.”

The golden mare gave a quiet laugh. “Well, at least he’s not sleeping on the couch. That’d be creepy.”

“He wanted to, actually,” Rainbow admitted, feeling a little burn in her cheeks.

“Oh...” Spitfire gave a sheepish laugh. “He doesn’t trust us?”

“More like he doesn’t trust you to “keep her hooves to herself”,” Rainbow mimicked her father’s voice while making air quotes with her front hooves.

Spitfire gave Rainbow a playful look and kissed her cheek. “As I recall, your hooves were getting pretty grabby too, missy.”

Rainbow smacked Spitfire’s shoulder, the blood rushing to her cheeks even as she laughed. “Shut up!”

“That’s not what you said last night,” Spitfire sang.

Rainbow groaned, putting her hooves over her eyes. “You’re evil, Spitfire.”

“Morally flexible,” Spitfire corrected. She reached up with a hoof, gently cupping Rainbow’s cheek and turning her head so they were facing each other. “And I love you.”

Rainbow smiled, leaning forward until lips met in a quick kiss. “Love you too.”

Spitfire gave a content sigh, her hoof sliding up Rainbow’s cheek and through her mane. She stole another nuzzle before sighing and forcing herself into an upright position. She tugged at the blanket that covered Rainbow up to her forelegs.

“Come on, let me see how your scar is.” Spitfire lifted the blanket and pulled it away.

“Didn’t you get a pretty good look last night?” Rainbow asked with a grumble.

“Well I was a little focused on other stuff.” Spitfire winked and flashed a toothy grin at Rainbow.

Rainbow’s blush only deepened, her ears folding back.

Spitfire tousled her mane. “You’re so cute when you blush.”

“Uhg.” Rainbow flopped her head back against the pillow. “Of all the mares…”

Pulling the sheets down to Rainbow’s hips, Spitfire felt a shiver run down her spine. The scar, nearly six inches long, had gotten the stitches removed only a week earlier. The mending flesh had an angry red coloration and a few areas where the scabbing hadn’t fallen away yet.

“Does it hurt?” Spitfire asked, pulling the sheet back up as she took Rainbow’s hoof in her own.

The smaller mare shook her head. “Nothing I can’t handle.”

“Dash.” Spitfire gave her marefriend a serious look.

Rainbow sighed. “It only hurts if I move too fast, and then all I gotta do is rest for a minute and I’m good.”

“And what about your wing?” Spitfire asked, motioning to the wrapped limb.

The question made Rainbow frown, her eyes drifting to the crippled limb. A pervasive sense of sadness seemed to radiate from her. Taking a deep breath, Rainbow sighed and bit her lip uncomfortably.

Weights pulled down at the corners of Spitfire’s mouth. She reacted immediately, wrapping her forelegs around Rainbow and pulling her into a tight hug. Her lips pressed against Rainbow’s cheek before giving her an affectionate nuzzle.

“You’re gonna fly again, Dash,” Spitfire declared in no uncertain terms.

Rainbow gave a sad laugh; closing her eyes and holding onto Spitfire like a liferaft. “Sorry, I... I didn’t wanna—”

Spitfire gently pressed a hoof to Rainbow’s lips to silence her. “Hey, none of that.” She smiled tenderly. “You’ll be back to doing rainbooms before you know it.”

Rainbow gave Spitfire an appreciative hug. “How’s your wing?”

“The drugs help,” Spitfire answered, her bandaged wing having been part of the reason she had been awake so early. “Have you been taking your pills?”

“Only the one last night before bed,” Rainbow said, looking disappointed in herself.

Spitfire nodded, kissing Rainbow’s forehead. “Why don’t you hop in the shower, I’ll make us some coffee.”

“You’re not planning on sneaking in, are you?” Rainbow asked with a cheeky grin.

Spitfire laughed once and shook her head. “So I can slip on the soap and crack my head open? No thanks.”

“I thought Wonderbolts had world-class balance,” Rainbow chided, wincing as she hefted herself upright.

Spitfire slid a hoof under Rainbow’s back, gently helping her up. “We’re weak to hot soapy showers.”

Rainbow snorted, stretching her back out which yielded a series of satisfying pops. “I’ll have to remember that one.”

“Have mercy, oh beneficent one,” Spitfire implored even as she helped Rainbow out of bed.

“Bene... what?” the weather mare asked, her face scrunching in confusion. She made an uncomfortable groan as she got to the floor, steadying herself against the bed with a wing.

Spitfire hopped down beside her, wincing from the movement it caused her wing. “Nevermind, Dash.” She gently nudged the younger mare with her nose. “You go shower, I’ll get the coffee going.”

After one last hug, Rainbow nodded and slowly made her way towards the bathroom. Spitfire’s eyes followed her until the bathroom door clicked shut. Taking a deep breath, Spitfire made her way to the kitchenette.

Having filled the pot with water and fresh grounds the evening before, Spitfire simply flipped the ‘on’ switch to begin the caffeinated brew. The pot gurgled to life, heating water from the chamber and beginning the slow drip of the aromatic brew. Spitfire closed her eyes and smiled; she loved the smell of coffee in the morning.

Or pretty much anytime, really.

She heard the rush of water through the wall as Rainbow started the shower. Spitfire stared at the wall between her and the bathroom for a moment, a shiver running through her. She took a quavering breath, biting her lip and hugging herself with a foreleg.

“Calm down,” she whispered, closing her eyes and bowing her head. “She’s fine. Calm down.”

The panicked feeling didn’t subside. Spitfire took a deep breath and reached for an empty glass. Filling it with water from the sink, she then trotted back to the bedroom and grasped a small, orange tinted bottle from her nightstand. Unscrewing the cap, she tilted the bottle down until a single white pill fell into her waiting hoof.

Replacing the bottlecap, she returned it back on her nightstand and stared at the innocuous pill. Her eyes drifted to the bathroom door, trying to picture the mare hidden on the other side. Another heavy breath escaped her.

“Come on, Dash, wake up,” Spitfire pleaded, tears welling up in her eyes as her voice cracked, “please wake up...”

The memory stung her like a slap to the face. Sitting back on her haunches, Spitfire rubbed her face with her free hoof and sighed.

“Get a grip,” she chastised herself in a hushed tone. “Get a grip.”

After a vigorous shake of her head, Spitfire popped the pill into her mouth. She held it on her tongue until she got to her water glass in the kitchen. There she swallowed the pill with a mouthful of water and a look of disgust.

By the time Rainbow Dash emerged from the shower, still towelling off her damp mane, the pill had begun to work its magic. Spitfire was relaxing on the couch, a cup of coffee in her hoof and her eyes closed. The radio was playing a song that was at once melancholic and celebratory. Guitars, horns, strings, drums, and vocals all built in an intricate dance which Spitfire swayed her head in time with.

A tender smile tugged at the corner of Rainbow’s mouth. She limped over to Spitfire, climbing up onto the couch and leaning against the older mare. Spitfire eagerly obliged, wrapping her left foreleg around Rainbow’s shoulders.

“Hey there, stranger,” Spitfire greeted, placing a gentle kiss on Rainbow’s cheek.

“Hey yourself.” Rainbow nuzzled under Spitfire’s chin, her eyes closing and a content sigh escaping her.

“Still feeling okay?” Spitfire asked, her hoof gently rubbing Rainbows shoulder.

Rainbow nodded. “This feels pretty nice too. I’ll give you about an hour to stop.”

Spitfire scoffed. “I quiver with fear.”

Smiling, Rainbow snuggled against Spitfire’s soft coat. Her body still ached terribly, worse than she’d ever felt with a normal crash or fall. Her father, Spitfire, and the doctors had all told her many times how lucky she was to not have broken more than a wing in the fall. Rainbow wasn’t so sure, but she didn’t remember much of that day.

Spitfire leaned forward for a moment, taking her cup in a fetlock and sipping at the hot coffee inside. Rainbow followed the motion with her eyes, waiting until Spitfire had finished before speaking up.

“Can I have some of that?”

The Wonderbolt pretended to think the request over for a minute. “I don’t know... were you a good filly this morning?”

“Oh, shut up,” Rainbow giggled.

Spitfire snickered, offering the cup to her marefriend. Rainbow put her hoof over Spitfire’s, tilting the cup to take a sip as well. Spitfire liked her coffee a little stronger than Rainbow did, but Rainbow didn’t mind the taste as much when she could drink it like this.

“Thanks,” she said, wiping her lips on her foreleg.

“Anytime, Dash.”

Both mares relaxed, content to hold, and be held in each other’s hooves. They remained in that position for a while, listening to music on the radio. Rainbow even fell back asleep in Spitfire’s embrace, at least until a quick succession of knocks at the door roused her.

“Bet that’s your dad,” Spitfire commented, stretching out her forelegs and yawning.

“Or your brother,” Rainbow grumbled, rubbing her eyes before she slid off the couch to answer the door.

On the other side was indeed Rainbow’s father. The aging stallion offered his daughter a happy smile as the door opened. “Heya, baby-girl.”

“Dad!” Rainbow cringed, her cheeks flushing. “Don’t call me that in front of other ponies!”

Bifrost shrugged. “Suit yourself, Squirt.”

“Uhg!” Rainbow slapped herself in the forehead.

Chuckling, Bifrost pulled her into a tight hug. “How are you feeling?”

Rainbow returned the hug for a moment before pulling away. “I’m good Dad, really.”

“Hi, Mr. Bifrost,” Spitfire greeted him as she trotted up beside Rainbow.

“Spitfire,” he smiled warmly to her, “keeping your filthy hooves to yourself I trust?”

“A sweet, innocent filly like me?” Spitfire put a hoof to her chest and faked a mortified look. “I would never be so uncouth!”

Rainbow’s intense blush told Bifrost all he needed to know.

“Celestia kill me now,” she whimpered.

“You two all packed up?” Bifrost asked, dropping the topic for the moment. He’d have plenty of opportunities to torment them later.

Rainbow nodded. “I barely had anything in the first place.”

“I gave Rapid most of my stuff, he’s got the spare key to my place in Cloudsdale, so he’ll just drop it off there for me.” Spitfire shrugged.

“Speaking of,” Bifrost motioned them to the hall. “Soarin and your brother should be waiting at The Eighth Note.” He scratched the back of his head for a moment, his golden eyes looking upward as he thought. “What time does your train leave for Ponyville?”

“Tomorrow at nine,” Rainbow answered, sticking her tongue out in disgust. “Which means we gotta be there at eight-thirty.”

“First class cabin, though.” Spitfire smiled, her good wing nudging Rainbow. “It shouldn’t be so bad like that.”

“I guess,” Rainbow acknowledged.

“Well come on, chop chop!” Bifrost lightly stomped a hoof on the floor. “Daylight’s burnin’!”

“Why did you have to be born a morning pony?” Rainbow asked, levelling a glare at her father.

“Just to drive you crazy,” he answered with a far too happy smile.

Rainbow hung her head, defeated.

The Eighth Note was considered one of the finest coffee and breakfast shops in Manehatten. Built into an otherwise unremarkable block of locally owned shops, it seemed almost like it was intentionally hidden. Still, it never failed to have a large crowd of ponies waiting to get in whenever it was open.

Bifrost also had another motivation for selecting it as the place where they could all have breakfast. Rainbow wasn’t admitting it to anypony, but he could tell she was having trouble walking, far more than she let on, even to the doctors. The ponies at the hospital had assured him that it was merely bone bruising, and that she would recover in a month.

He would have worried less had she been somewhat less stubborn in refusing to use the pain medicine they had prescribed to her.

The three pegasi easily found Soarin and Rapidfire upon arriving at the cafe. The two Wonderbolts had managed to secure an outdoor table with enough space for all five of them. Between them was a small notebook with various notes scribbled into it that they were quietly chatting about when Bifrost, Rainbow, and Spitfire arrived.

“I don’t know how I’m gonna do it,” Soarin sighed, rubbing a hoof through his mane.

Rapidfire frowned, his eyes drifting down to the notebook. “We’ll figure it out, somehow.”

“Ich brauche einen Drink,” Soarin grumbled.

“Writing love letters?” Spitfire asked, plopping into the seat next to her brother.

“I’d say shove it, but you’d enjoy that too much,” Rapid shot back, his tongue sticking out at her.

“Hey, Boss, Rainbow, Bifrost,” Soarin greeted them all, pointedly ignoring Spitfire’s quip.

“Hey guys!” Rainbow grinned from ear to ear, sitting next to Spitfire. “What’s new?”

“New Yoke, New Hoofshire, New Hasey,” Rapidfire flubbed, desperately wracking his mind for more puns. “Uhh.”

Soarin shook his head and sighed. “Dude, stop. You’re gonna hurt yourself.”

“Only if I don’t smack him first,” Spitfire promised, shaking her head and rubbing her face with a hoof.

“Meanies,” Rapidfire pouted, his forelegs folding across his chest.

“So, who wants drinks?” Bifrost asked, smiling in amusement. “My treat for you all.”

“Can I have a hot cocoa?” Rainbow asked, grinning with foalish excitement.

Bifrost snorted, his hoof tousling her mane. “Oh, I suppose.”

“Coffee for me, please,” Spitfire said.

“Same,” Soarin said, motioning to Spitfire with a hoof.

“Surprise me,” Rapid shrugged.

Rainbow stared at Rapidfire in horror.

“What?” he asked, noticing her look.

Rainbow shook her head slowly. “You poor dumb bastard.”

“... what?” Rapid almost mewled, an actual look of fear on his face.

Bifrost was nowhere to be seen, having already vanished into the Eighth Note.

“So... erm... anyway,” Soarin began, trying to push what he’d just witnessed out of his mind. “We’ll be leaving for Cloudsdale this afternoon. Just gotta wrap up a couple last meetings.”

Spitfire nodded, resting her elbows on the table. “Arcus and everyone else already head out?”

“Mmhmm,” Soarin nodded. “We’ve got a meeting next Monday to start planning routines.”

Nodding, Spitfire felt a pang of regret in her heart. She sighed and forced herself to push those thoughts aside for now. That part of her life was over. “Any word on Fleetfoot?”

Rapidfire answered her this time, shaking his head left to right. “According to Blaze, she packed up a bag and flew out of town last week. She said she’d come back when she was ready.”

Nodding, Spitfire opened her mouth, only to close it promptly as Bifrost returned, setting a coffee in front of her.

“How are you balancing all that on your wings?” Soarin asked, genuinely impressed by the older stallion.

“You learn a thing or two when you’re a single parent,” he answered simply. His hoof carefully took another cup from his right wing and set it in front of Soarin.

“Thanks Dad!” Rainbow grinned brightly as he set her cocoa on the table.

“Anytime, Rainbow,” he said before coming to Rapidfire.

The ‘drink’ he put down in front of the golden stallion positively reeked of sugar. It came in a decorative glass malt cup and had a light caramel color. Topping the concoction was a small mountain of whipped cream covered in sprinkles and little sea salt-caramel squares. A pink crazy straw that had five loops in it topped off the monstrosity.

“Oh no. No way am I drinking that.” Rapidfire folded his hooves across his chest, turning his nose up at the sugary concoction.

“Oh, come on, you drank that whole thing Arcus bought a couple weeks ago,” Soarin teased, his lips pulled into a toothy grin. His hoof gave a light prod to Rapidfire’s ribs, only to be swatted away by the smaller stallion.

“That’s ‘cause you bastards made me.” Rapid shuddered at the memory, his forelegs hugging himself like a traumatised pony. “I think it gave me turbo diabetes.”

“There’s no such thing as turbo diabetes.” Soarin rolled his eyes, hoof smacking Rapidfire’s shoulder.

“Yes there is, I could feel it man!”

“That was probably just gas,” Soarin deadpanned.

Bifrost sat down and propped his elbow up on the table, resting his cheek in his hoof. He watched the two stallions argue for a few minutes, a ghost of a smile pulling at his lips. Rainbow Dash groaned, putting her head in her hooves. She knew that look all too well.

That said, she wasn’t about to give Rapid or Soarin any warning. That would ruin the fun.

With his free hoof, Bifrost took the string of his teabag and began lightly dunking it into his cup. All the while he kept his gaze fixed on the bickering Wonderbolts with that phantom smirk plastered on his face. Rainbow’s eyebrows knitted together and she tilted her head in confusion. Spitfire, on the other hoof, snorted in amusement, biting her tongue to keep quiet.

Rainbow looked to her marefriend, the confusion plain on her face. “What? What’s so funny?” she asked in a hushed voice.

Wrapping a golden hoof around Rainbow’s shoulders, Spitfire pulled her close and whispered into her ear.

The younger mare listened carefully, her confusion shifting to a faintly nauseous look. She pulled away from Spitfire, shaking her head in disbelief. “They do that?”

Spitfire nodded. “Mmhmm.”

Rainbow stared at Soarin and Rapidfire. Suddenly being a fillyfooler seemed like winning the genetic lottery.

Soarin seemed to notice it after a few minutes as well, shooting the elder stallion a puzzled expression. “Can I help you?”

“Oh, no, no. Don’t mind me,” Bifrost answered, his lips pulling up into a little smile. He waved his free hoof at them in a shooing motion. “Carry on, carry on.”

The two stallions exchanged an uncomfortable look.

Dip. Dip. Dip.

“Stop that,” Soarin finally said.

Bifrost gave a lazy shrug of his shoulders. “Stop what?”

“That!” Rapid pointed a hoof at the offending teabag.

“What, this?” Bifrost looked at the teabag in his fetlock. “Something wrong with an old pony like me brewing some tea?”

“Oh, no.” Soarin pointed an accusatory hoof at Bifrost. “No, no, no. You’re way too evil for anything that mundane.”

Bifrost tsked and shook his head. “Evil such a loaded word, I prefer--”

“Morally flexible?” Spitfire offered, grinning like a foal.

“I was gonna say mischievous, but you know what, I like that one more!” Bifrost excitedly cheered.

“Teufelsweib,” Soarin grumbled under his breath.

Rainbow giggled, her tail brushing against Spitfire’s. The Wonderbolt cast her a sidelong glance, a little smile on her lips. Spitfire returned the gesture, flicking her tail against Rainbows and nudging Rainbow’s side with her good wing.

Bifrost sipped at his drink, making a satisfied sigh as he set the cup down. “Rainbow, did you send grandpa your thank-you letter yet?”

“Huh?” Rainbow thought for a moment before she nodded. “Yeah, I sent it yesterday. I thanked him a ton for paying the hospital bills.”

“That’s my girl.” Bifrost smiled. “Next time you’re in Cloudsdale, make sure you visit him for a while too. He misses you.”

“I will, Dad.”

“Oh, Luna’s balls.” Bifrost sat upright and dug in his saddlebag for a moment. He pulled out a pristine white envelope with the weather factory seal emblemized on the front. “I almost forgot about this.” He proffered the envelope to Rainbow, looking unsure about what it contained. “I got it yesterday, but it’s addressed to you.”

Her eyebrows pinched together and her lips pulled into a frown. Taking the letter in her hooves, Rainbow clasped the end in her teeth and tore it open. Pulling the folded paper free, she opened the letter and began to read.

Silence settled over the table, the four other ponies waiting to hear what the contents of the letter were. Rainbow shook her head slowly, as though she couldn’t believe the words she was reading. Her mouth opened and closed, but no sound came forth.

Spitfire reached out with a hoof, gently resting it on Rainbow’s shoulder. “Dash?”

“What’s it say?” Bifrost asked, his own concerns mounting.

“I…” Rainbow swallowed hard, dropping the letter onto the table. “... I’ve been fired…”

Best Laid Plans

“I…” Rainbow swallowed hard, dropping the letter onto the table. “... I’ve been fired…”

Spitfire’s eyes went wide with the revelation; a hoof covered her mouth as she gasped.

Bifrost took the letter in his hooves and read it over. His eyes carefully analyzing every word, nuance, and detail on the page. It brought his blood to boil and pulled his lips into a heavy scowl. Only after he had read and re-read the letter several times did he put it down on the table, his attention returning to his daughter.

“Hey,” he began with a gentle voice, wrapping his forelegs around her shoulders. “We’re gonna fix this, Dash. I promise.”

“Can...can I take a look?” Spitfire asked, pointing a hoof at the offending parchment.

Rainbow gave a simple nod, the sense of heartbreak all but radiating off of her. Her eyes glistened with tears she stubbornly refused to shed, her lips twisted into an agonized scowl, and her breaths came in heavy, trembling pants. Even with Bifrost’s wings and forelegs holding her in a protective embrace, Rainbow felt nothing more than isolation.

To Rainbow Dash
Manager, Ponyville district.

Ms. Dash, we hope this letter finds you well. Indeed it was cause for a great deal of concern when the Weather Commission learned of your accident in regards to the Manehattan Storm. An internal review has been conducted over the preceding weeks, and we have taken steps to ensure accidents such as this are not repeated in the future. As such, the Manehattan team has been audited, and there will be significant changes to the management structure pending further disciplinary actions.

Manager Headwind’s resignation has been accepted, and his weather licence has been revoked. Likewise Manager Flash Cloud and Manager Dewdrop will be removed from active duty pending the completion of a yet to be decided probationary period. Senior Manager Downburst will resume command of the Manehattan team until further notice.

Finally, it is with no small amount of consternation that we must also address your place in the situation. The chain of critical errors, personal safety violations, and lassitude in your management style have left us with little choice. Effective immediately, you will be relieved as manager of the Ponyville Weather Team, and your lightning certification will be revoked.

The Weather Commission thanks you for all your service, and wishes you a speedy recovery.

Spitfire set the note down, her temper flaring in her eyes. It was enough to give Rapidfire cause to worry, and he reached out to her with a cautious hoof.

“Spits?” he asked with a quiet concern.

She took deep, measured breaths in an attempt to quell the righteous indignation that burned in her breast. They did little to help, and Spitfire found her head shaking in disgust.

“Weather Commission,” she spat. “They weren’t here, what do they know.”

“They’ve probably got the mayor of Manehattan and every pony that got injured or had property damage breathing down their necks,” Bifrost answered. “We’re gonna fix this, Dash, don’t you worry.”

“How?” Rainbow asked, her voice betraying the crushing despair she felt inside.

Bifrost hesitated, biting at his lip as his mind stalled for time. He was used to being able to fix problems when they arose, especially when they concerned his baby girl. This was a situation that was out of his hooves, and he didn’t see a clear way to resolve it. Bifrost felt helpless, and there was no feeling that he hated more.

He hugged Rainbow tighter. “I don’t know yet, Rainbow. But I swear I’m gonna raise hell until I find out.”

“Can’t you appeal?” Rapidfire asked, eying the note and his sister with equal concern. “I mean, it wasn’t your fault, right?”

Bifrost’s eyes lit up and he gave a hopeful smile. “Actually… you could, Rainbow. It’d be a messy process, but you’ve definitely got a case.”

“You were there, dad.” Rainbow sighed, looking down into the cup of hot chocolate before her. “I told the princesses it was my fault...and I...I did screw up.”

“The violation of a personal safety rule, such as sitting on a live thunderhead, isn’t grounds for termination,” Bifrost countered, releasing his daughter from the hug. “Similarly the presence of an untrained civilian wandering on site is not your fault. You can’t be expected to account for those factors.” He shifted his attention to Spitfire, who was fidgeting uncomfortably. “Any blame for what happened lies with Fleetfoot.”

Spitfire flinched at the off-hoof comment.

Rainbow listened, but didn’t speak; her mind a jumbled mess of concerns. She wasn’t normally the kind of mare prone to indecision. Still, there was more to consider than she was used to, and the Weather Commission was a very powerful group of ponies.

Beside her, Spitfire braced her hooves on the table. Her eyes staring down at her neglected coffee as she forced herself to take deep, steady breaths. With each one the screams in her mind grow louder, the pain in her wing burned hotter, and darkness encroached on the edges of her mind. All the while the voices around her grew more and more distant, until they were like echoes from a cave. Spitfire gritted her teeth and closed her eyes, lowering her head until it was resting on the table.

“Spits, you okay?” she heard Rapid ask, his hoof touching her shoulder.

Rainbow’s concern was a bit more apparent in her nervous tone. “Spitfire?”

“I’m alright,” Spitfire said, holding up a hoof in the apparent hope it might placate them. “Just...just a bad twitch in my wing.”

“I can go inside and get some ice,” Rainbow suggested, one of her hooves resting on Spitfire’s.

Spitfire shook her head, lips pulling into a tight line. She sucked in a deep breath and forced herself upright. With a little extra effort she even managed a passable smile. “I’m good, just needed a second.”

Rainbow didn’t look terribly convinced. “You sure?”

Spitfire nodded. “Positive.”

After a moment, Rainbow seemed to give up on the issue, returning her attention to Bifrost’s questions. Spitfire waited for a few minutes, finishing the last of her coffee before excusing herself into the Eighth Note under the pretense of wanting a second cup. Instead, she made for the restroom and locked herself in one of the stalls.

There, she let out a trembling breath, her hoof fumbling around in her saddlebag for the bottle of painkillers. Pulling it out, she stared at the translucent bottle for a moment, regarding the little white pills inside with a sneer. One pill, it seemed, wasn’t enough anymore.

With a sigh and the shake of her head, Spitfire unscrewed the bottlecap and tapped out a second pill into her hoof. Swallowing it dry, she carefully packed the bottle back into her bag and left the restroom. After buying a second coffee, if for no reason than to keep up appearances, she went back outside where her friends, and marefriend, were waiting.

“Welcome back,” Rainbow greeted her with a smile.

Spitfire leaned over, kissing Rainbow’s supple cheek. “Miss me already?”

“Maaaybe,” Rainbow drawled.

Soarin made a gagging noise. “Get a room!”

“Oh, no. Nuh-uh, no way, no how. ” Bifrost shouted, shooting Soarin a death glare. “Don’t you be giving my daughter ideas!”

“I think she’s got em already,” Rapidfire chimed in.

“You’re not helping!” Rainbow cried out, her cheeks burning for what was unlikely to be the last time that day.

“Oh, hey, Spits,” Rapid turned to his sister, eager to change the subject before Bifrost’s glare turned him into a puddle on the ground. “ I’ve been learning Germane from Mallow.”

A concerned look crossed Spitfire’s face. “Really? What’d he teach you?”

“Ich bin eine kleine hübsche Prinzessin,” Rapid said with a proud grin.

Spitfire raised her eyebrow. “And what’s that mean.”

She couldn’t help but notice the way Soarin was conspicuously grinning, or the odd way that Bifrost had choked on his drink.

“Hi, it’s really good to meet you,” Rapid said, oblivious.

“Really,” Spitfire drawled, watching Soarin with a wary eye. “Anything else?”

“Ich lutsche nachts an meinem Huf,” Rapid said with a confident nod.

Bifrost quickly excused himself from the table, making a beeline into The Eighth Note.

“That’s great, Rapid, really” Spitfire said, patting him on the shoulder. “Would you excuse me for just one sec?”

Soarin bit on his tongue as hard as he could without drawing blood. Ironically, when Spitfire’s hoof grabbed him by the ear and dragged him off, it only helped him. She hauled his flank behind the diner before she released him.

“The hell, Soarin?” she demanded, stomping a hoof against the pavement.

The poor stallion couldn’t hold in his laughter any longer. “Y-yeah, boss?”

“Are you picking on my baby brother?”

“You’re twins,” Soarin noted, still giggling like a foal.

Spitfire seemed unimpressed by the fact. “I’m older.”

“Can’t prove that.”

Spitfire scoffed. “Yes I can!”

“Were you there?” Soarin asked.

Spitfire stared at Soarin with a flat look.

“...Okay,” Soarin said after a minute to think. “Bad question.”

“Ya think?”

“Shut up.”

Spitfire patted Soarin’s head and flashed him a grin. “Maybe someday, if you ask real nice”

The larger pegasus rolled his eyes and couldn’t help a rueful smile. “Hey, I was meaning to talk to you anyway. Got a minute?”

“Sure,” Spitfire answered, sitting down and leaning against the wall. “What’s on your mind, Soarin?”

The large stallion didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he chewed on his lip until he began to anxiously pace for several long moments. Concerned, Spitfire reached out with her good wing to block him. The gesture made Soarin halt his motions and sigh.

He rubbed his cheek with his left wing. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine, Soarin.” Spitfire offered him a sincere smile. “Just…tell me what’s eating you.”

“I…” He sighed again, running his hoof through his unkempt mane. “I don’t know if I can do this, Boss. Run the team, I mean.”

“You were my lieutenant for years, Soarin. You know how to do all the work, and Arcus will be there to help with anything that comes up.”

“That was different,” he responded, his head and wings sagging. “You were always there to make the calls and keep me on track.” Soarin looked at her with sad eyes. “I just...I don’t know if I can do this, Spitfire. The planning, running the practice session, handling the meetings, coordinating scheduling agreements with Arcus and the local sponsors. I don’t think…” He sighed, his posture deflating even further. “I can’t do this.”

Placing her hooves on his shoulders, Spitfire lifted his chin with her wing. She smiled at her best friend; a warm smile brimming with trust and supreme confidence. “Soarin, you can do this. Not only can you do this, but there’s nopony I trust with it more. Everypony on the team looks up to you. And they all trust and respect you. Arcus will be there to help too, so you’ll never be flying alone.”

“But leading the shows—”

“It’s just like when you flew lead on the shows I was out sick for, the only difference is you get top billing now.” Spitfire patted his shoulder before pulling away. “You’ll be fantastic, and Rapid will be there to help you too.”

Soarin was quiet for a time, his mind processing her words. “You think so?”

Spitfire nodded, giving him a light hug. “I know so, buddy.”

Returning the friendly embrace, Soarin sighed. “I’m gonna miss flying with you.”

With a sad laugh, Spitfire pushed away from him. “You’re gonna do great.”

Rapidfire trotted over after a few minutes. He glanced back over his shoulder from time to time with an omnipresent look of consternation on his face. Spitfire followed his gaze, but only saw Rainbow and Bifrost in quiet conversation.

“What’s up, Rapid?” she asked, “you look like you just got your feathers pulled.”

Rapid shuddered a little. “Rainbow’s dad is scary.”

“Oh he’s harmless,” Soarin said with a flippant wave of his hoof. “...probably.”

“Well you go test that theory.” Rapid shooed Soarin back towards the table. “When he sticks a pointy stick up your ass and roasts you over an open fire, then you can tell me how harmless he is.”

Soarin shot Rapid with his best bedroom eyes. “Sharing your fantasies again, babe?”

Spitfire groaned and gave Soarin a gentle push. “You two can flirt later, scram.”

Giggling from his perceived victory, Soarin saluted the twins with a wing and made his way back to the table. Once he was firmly ensconced and chatting with Rainbow and Bifrost, Spitfire turned her attention to Rapid.

“What’s on your mind?” she asked.

Rapid pawed at the ground for a moment. Spitfire felt a bit of concern when she noticed he wouldn’t look her in the eye. “I’m, um...I’m thinking of retiring. Hanging up the uniform and trying my hoof at other work.

Spitfire was surprised, but bit back most of her questions for the moment. “Any reason?”

“It’s just, well,” he sighed, shaking his head and finally looking at his sister. “I joined up cause you asked me to, and we had a lot of fun over the last few years.” He offered her a genuine, but melancholic smile. “But, now that you’re not gonna be around, and Mallow’s got his hooves full. I just…” Sighing again, Rapid scratched his temple with a wing. “I just don’t think it’s—”

“Rapid, you need to stay,” Spitfire said with no amount uncertainty.

“But, I—”

“No, Rapid,” Spitfire placed her hooves on his shoulders, her lips pulling into a frown. “Look, this mess is my fault. I bucked it up from the get go, and I’m sorry for all the trouble it’s put everypony though. I’d be right there with you if I could, but since I can’t, Mallow is gonna be in charge. He’s gonna need your help now, Rapid.”

“I don’t have command experience,” Rapidfire noted. “I’m a marathon flyer, planning and logistics is—”

“Is what Arcus does. You’re the El-Tee now,” Spitfire smiled and patted his shoulder. “You’re there to back Soarin up, and be the intermediary between him and the rest of the team. And you know what Rapid?”

“What?”

“You’ll be fantastic at it. Wanna know why? Because you’re already popular with everypony in the team. They like you, they trust you, and they all listen when you talk.” She paused for a moment, sitting next to her brother and draping a foreleg across his shoulders. “I know, it’s not what you expected, hay, I know it’s not what you wanted, but you’re a natural leader, Rapid. Soarin’s gonna need your help in the months to come, and I need you to stick it out and see this through.”

Rapidfire’s ears splayed out as he shook his head a little.

Spitfire’s foreleg gave him a gentle squeeze. “Please?”

“Alright, Spits, alright. I’ll try, okay?” he consented, looking her in the eye as he did.

A smile blossomed over Spitfire’s face and she pulled him into a tight hug, which her twin reciprocated. “That’s all anypony can ask.”

“So,” Rapid asked after pulling away from the embrace. “What’s next for you? You’re not exactly the stay home and rest kinda pony.”

Spitfire looked back to the table where Bifrost and Rainbow were quietly talking while Soarin glanced through a notebook with a dutiful look on his face. She smiled again, her eyes settling on Rainbow’s form. Rapidfire might have described her expression as swooning, but he knew that couldn’t be right. Spitfire swooned for nopony.

Well, except for that one time, but that was entirely Princess Cadence’s fault.

“Rainbow invited me to stay with her in Ponyville until my wing is better,” Spitfire answered after the not insignificant pause.

Rapid balked a little. “Ponyville? Didn’t you once call that place the most boring town in Equestria?”

“In fairness, that was before we visited Appleoosa.”

“Fair enough, but still, Ponyville?” Rapid shook his head. “You’ll go out of your mind within a week there.”

“Oh, I think I’ll have an outlet to entertain me.”

“Wouldn’t that be an input?” Rapid asked.

It took Spitfire a minute before she realized the implication. She smacked Rapid’s foreleg, her cheeks flushing. “Pervert.”

“Takes one to know one,” he laughed.

Spitfire really hated when Rapid was right.

The Way Home

The next morning, bright and far too early for Rainbow’s liking, Bifrost had dutifully returned to the hotel. There, after Spitfire had checked out and they had ensured that nothing was left behind, he escorted them to a waiting cab that took them to Manehattan’s Grand Central Station. He sat on the far left side of the bench with Rainbow in the middle and Spitfire on the right.

“Are you sure you wouldn’t rather spend the time in Cloudsdale?” Bifrost asked, looking to his daughter. “There’d be plenty of space for both of you.”

Rainbow shook her head. “No offense, Dad, but your place is kinda small.”

“Hey, it’s cozy!” Bifrost put a hoof over his chest, faking a hurt look. “Besides, you could always stay with Grandpa. He’s got plenty of space.”

“Well, Grandpa’s loaded,” Rainbow mumbled.

Spitfire eyed her marefriend, her face twisting into a quizzical expression. “Who is your Grandpa?”

“Silver Lining,” Bifrost answered. Noting Spitfire’s wide-eyed surprise, he rolled his eyes and sighed. He brought his right wing up, holding his longest primary feather under his nose like a moustache. “Yes, the Silver Lining.”

Spitfire could only mouth a silent ‘wow’.

“Have you ever seen Grandpa without that moustache?” Rainbow asked, looking at her father’s antics with minor amusement.

Bifrost shook his head. “Rainbow, your Grandpa was born with that moustache.”

“Probably,” Rainbow agreed with a laugh.

“How are you even gonna get up to your house?” Bifrost asked after a few moments.

“Twilight’s got a balloon, I’ll just ask her if I can borrow it for a couple weeks,” Rainbow answered, her hooves fidgeting with her good wing. Her anxiety didn’t go unnoticed by her father or her marefriend.

“Dash,” Spitfire gently nudged the smaller mare. “Something wrong?”

“No... no,” Rainbow chewed at her lip. “I’m just nervous.”

“About going home?” Bifrost asked, his large wing slipping around Rainbow’s back.

Rainbow shrugged, her eyes looking to her marefriend. “It’s just... you know, looking them in the eye and telling them about us.”

A rueful smile came over Spitfire. “Ahh, the old ‘coming out’ chat.”

“Didn’t you ask Celestia to tell them you had a marefriend?” Bifrost asked, trying to recall the specific conversation.

“Yeah, but I don’t know if she did.” Rainbow lowered her head, her cheeks burning with embarrassment.

Bifrost hid his disappointment for the most part, though he gave Rainbow a little squeeze with his wing. “Why haven’t you told them yet, honey?”

Squirming like a worm on a fishhook, Rainbow avoided her father’s gaze. “It just never came up, you know?”

Concern pulled at Bifrost’s features, and he gently lifted Rainbow’s chin with his hoof. “Are you afraid they wouldn’t accept you?”

Spitfire took Rainbow’s hoof in hers, giving it a gentle, reassuring squeeze. “You told me your friend Fluttershy knew, and she’s still close to you, right?”

“Yeah, but--”

“Rainbow,” Bifrost interrupted her. “They’re your friends. They’ll understand, and they’ll accept you without a second thought. You know why?”

Silence answered his question, though Rainbow’s eyes remained locked with his.

With a tender smile, Bifrost tapped her nose with a hoof. “Because you’re perfect just the way you are, just like your mother.”

Rainbow blushed, her free hoof wrapping around Bifrost and hugging him tight. “Love you, Dad.”

“I love you too, hon,” he said, nuzzling atop her head.

After a few moments, Rainbow pulled away from her father and leaned against Spitfire.

“They’re your friends, Dash,” Spitfire added with an affectionate nuzzle. “True friends stand with you no matter what.”

“Yeah,” Rainbow agreed, looking a little more at ease with the idea.

“And if they don’t I can always kick their asses,” Spitfire said with a proud nod.

Rainbow laughed. “I’m pretty sure that’d really make the Princesses angry.”

“Can’t be any worse than running head-first into Luna’s ass,” Bifrost suggested.

“It was a freakin’ accident!” Spitfire shouted in mortification.

Rainbow glanced once at her father, and once at her beleaguered marefriend. Her lips pulled back in a toothy, impish grin. Revenge was in the air, and Rainbow’s mouth watered to drink of its decadent nectar.

“So, Spitfire,” Rainbow began in a far too casual manner. “How’d it taste?”

Spitfire groaned, placing her head in her hooves as Bifrost burst out laughing.

“Cheesy,” she answered.

Bifrost nudged Rainbow. “If you dump her, can I have her?”

“Dad!” Rainbow smacked Bifrost’s shoulder.

“Bifrost,” Spitfire reached past Rainbow and patted the older pony’s back. “You have literally nothing I want.”

“Suit yourself, I’m easy.” Bifrost shrugged.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, all stallions are.” Spitfire smiled.

“Ohh,” Bifrost put a hoof to his chest, “that one hit!”

Spitfire saluted with a hoof. “All in a day’s work, Sir.”

Rainbow let out a pained moan. It was going to be a long cab ride.

Manehattan’s Grand Central Station was regarded by most as the pinnacle of earth pony architecture. Built of solid marble hewn from the finest quarries, its cavernous main concourse was a long barrel vaulted structure with intricate carvings and murals decorating it on almost every surface. It was an exemplar of earth pony design: strong, enduring, and practical.

Hundreds of ponies moved through the vast space at all hours of the day. Earth ponies, unicorns, and even pegasi took advantage of the dozens of rail lines which linked Manehattan to almost every terrestrial city in Equestria. There was even a special line that took pegasi to a small town just south of Cloudsdale so as to minimize flight time for pegasi with young children, elderly ponies, or some kind of infirmary.

Bifrost, after paying the cabbie, escorted Rainbow and Spitfire up the stairs and into the concourse. They trotted in silence through the crowd of commuting ponies until they came to the Ponyville terminal. Stopping, Bifrost turned and pulled his daughter into a tight hug.

“You sure I can’t persuade you to come back to Cloudsdale while you recover?” he asked again.

Rainbow wrapped her forelegs securely around his chest and gave a content sigh. “I need to go back home, Dad. At least for a little while, but I promise to visit soon.” She briefly turned her head to look at Spitfire, who offered a patient smile. “And when I do, can I bring Spitfire?”

“Hmm.” Bifrost rubbed his chin, pretending to consider it. “I suppose.”

With a soft giggle, Rainbow hugged her father again. “Love you, Dad.”

“Love you too, Rainbow.” He smiled, holding her close before releasing her.

After Rainbow had moved away, Spitfire approached him with an earnest smile, offering an extended hoof. “It’s been a real pleasure to meet you, Bifrost.”

Bifrost tapped his hoof against hers and gave it a quick shake. “Likewise, Spitfire. You take good care of my baby girl now, and no funny business on the train. My daughter is an innocent flower of innocence.”

Noticing both the irony and Rainbow’s blush, Spitfire sensed a perfect opportunity for righteous vengeance. “Don’t worry Sir, I promise I won’t knock your daughter up.”

“I’m not worried,” Bifrost smiled, “hers is bigger anyway.”

“I’m just gonna go lay down on the train tracks now,” Rainbow mewled, her face burning red.

“Canterlot line, all aboard!” shouted an engineer from the far end of the terminal.

“You two better go.” A sad smile pulled at Bifrost’s lips. “You don’t want to miss your train.”

Throwing herself at her father, Rainbow pulled him into one last hug. “We’ll see you again soon.”

Bifrost leaned down, kissing Rainbow’s head. “I’ll write you when I find out more about the appeal.”

Saying their goodbyes, Rainbow and Spitfire made their way to the train and boarded. Spitfire had paid the extra bits for a first class car, having justified it as a worthwhile expense given that the ride would take the better part of three days to complete. Granted, at least half a day would be wasted on a Canterlot layover where they had to switch to the Ponyville Line.

The interior of the cabin was paneled with rich looking cherry. Tables covered by white tablecloths and decorated with pristine silverware were tucked between bench seats that could hold two ponies each. The seats themselves had cushions that were a warm red color with intricate designs woven into the fabric.

Rainbow climbed onto their assigned bench, giggling like a filly and making herself comfortable. “This is so cool!”

“It’s nicer than I remember, but it’s been a long time since I took the train anywhere,” Spitfire commented, sitting next to Rainbow and pulling her into a sidelong hug.

“Don’t the Wonderbolts take the train from city to city?” Rainbow asked.

Spitfire nodded, leaning over to kiss Rainbow’s cheek. “Some of us do, but a bunch of us preferred to fly over as a group. We’d camp out at night, tell spooky stories, and be up early in the morning to keep flying.”

“That’s so awesome!” Rainbow almost squealed. “Was it your idea?”

“Nah, that was all Rapid.” Spitfire stole a little nuzzle on Rainbow’s cheek. “He likes long flights. Trains he’s not so fond of.”

“Whats wrong with trains?” Rainbow asked. “The ride is smooth, there’s comfy beds, good food, and you get to hang out or sleep until you get where you’re going.”

“I agree, but I’m not claustrophobic.”

Rainbow blinked once; the ghost of a grin pulling the corner of her mouth up. “Rapidfire is claustrophobic?”

Nodding, Spitfire couldn’t help a laugh in spite of herself. “Yeah. It made hide and seek when we were little really easy though. He’d never try hiding under the bed or anything.”

“Your brother’s really cool. I hope we can all hang out again sometime soon.” Rainbow grinned up to her marefriend.

“He certainly has his moments,” Spitfire said with an agreeable nod. “But frankly, I’m looking forward to just a little time for you and I to hang out.” She leaned in to kiss Rainbow’s cheek. “We’ve barely had any time since the accident.”

Rainbow nuzzled against Spitfire, one hoof wrapping around the older mare’s waist. “I missed you too.”

The two remained in that position until well after the train pulled away from the station. A few ponies in the cabin that spotted their affections shot them with disapproving glares, but never spoke up. Rainbow and Spitfire didn’t mind. They had each other, and the opinions of other ponies were far removed from their interests.

“Rainbow?” Spitfire asked in a quiet voice.

“Mmhmm?” she answered, her eyes closed and her head resting on Spitfire’s chest.

“What…” Spitfire sighed a little. “What do you remember from that day?”

Rainbow slowly opened her eyes; forelegs reinforcing their grip around Spitfire. “I remember waking up that morning. I remember we preened, and then Fleetfoot showed up and then I woke up in the hospital. The rest I know is from what you, Dad, and the doctors told me.”

Spitfire forced a nod, biting her tongue as hard as she could stand. She held Rainbow tighter and took steady breaths to calm herself. What she wouldn’t give to forget that day.

“Hey, Spitfire?”

“Yeah?” she replied quickly, glad for the distraction from the memories.

“What was it like when you came out to your friends?” Rainbow sat up a bit so she was eye level with Spitfire.

“Terrifying,” Spitfire answered, her hoof taking Rainbows. “The only thing more scary was telling my parents.”

Rainbow nodded once.

“You nervous? About telling them, I mean,” Spitfire asked, bumping her nose against Rainbow’s.

A sheepish laugh escaped Rainbow’s lips. “Kinda... yeah.”

“It’s like your dad said, Rainbow. They’re your friends, and true friends are there for you always.”

“You think so?”

Spitfire nodded. “Well, unless it’s a poker game, then you’re on your own.”

Rainbow snorted. “Gee, thanks.”

An orange hoof pulled a crumpled old stenson back from blonde strands of mane. There the mare wiped away the band of sweat that had accumulated on her brow after a few hours of hard work. Applejack hummed to herself as she walked through her family’s orchard. Even though the year’s first apple harvest wouldn’t be ready for another month, at least, there was still plenty to be done.

All things considered, this was possibly the most difficult time of the year for the Apple family. They had to check every field in the orchard constantly for weed growth or other plants taking root. They had to trim off the dead branches and keep the rows clean of detritus. Then there was the less enviable task of working the compost heap and fertilizing all the trees in the orchard, a task even Big Mac required a little help with for the sake of efficiency. That didn’t even count the other chores around the farm, or the livestock that the Apple family kept as well.

That was before trying to wrangle the weather team into getting the proper amount of rain at the proper times.

It was constant, long, and physically demanding work, but that’s what also made it so satisfying. Still, there was a simple reality of farming that Applejack couldn’t deny anymore. Every so often, they needed a little help.

So it was with minimal surprise that Applejack found a strange pony waiting by her front door that morning. She was a washed out shade of blue and her windswept mane was an icy white. Perhaps the most surprising thing about the mare was that she was a pegasus instead of the usual earth ponies they got for help.

“Lookin’ fer the weather team?” Applejack asked with a friendly smile. “‘Fraid yer in the wrong place, darlin’.”

“I’m not good at weather work,” the mare answered quietly.

“Really?” Applejack arched an eyebrow. “Well, I mean that’s great and all, but what brings a pegasus down to the farm?”

“I’m just travelling around, trying my hooves at something different for a change,” the mare said with a simple shrug of her wings.

“Have much farm experience?”

The mare shook her head. “Nothing more than a garden when I was a filly. But I can fly up high and break off dead branches, I move really fast so I can relay messages from one end of the farm to the other, and I’m pretty strong, so I can help pull carts and supplies.”

Applejack thought it over for a minute, her hoof pawing at the grass. “Well, why not. We could sure use the extra hooves. We can’t pay ya much, but we’ll throw a few bits yer way for the help. Y’all got a place to stay?”

The pegasus shook her head. “If you could point me to a boarding house or hotel or something, that’d be great.”

“Pfft, hay with that, sugarcube!” Applejack laughed the notion off. “We got us a nice spare room you can stay in ‘til ya get back on yer hooves. Or wings... I guess.”

The mare gave Applejack a genuine smile. “Thank you.”

“My pleasure,” the farmpony took the mare’s hoof and shook it vigorously. “What’s your name?”

“Fleetfoot,” the mare answered, “my name’s Fleetfoot.”

The Long Road

Fleetfoot’s first couple nights with the Apple family had been largely peaceful affairs. Granny Smith, the elderly matriarch of the family, had gone out of her way to make Fleetfoot feel at home; seeing to it that their guest room was immaculate, the sheets were clean and soft, and there was even a place for her at the family dinner table. It had been the first time in a very long time that Fleetfoot had enjoyed a fresh, home-cooked meal, and she wouldn’t deny that it had left her feeling somewhat spoiled.

The rest of the family had been just as hospitable to her. Applejack, a straightforward and blunt mare, had shown her around the property and given Fleetfoot a basic idea of the tasks she’d be expected to do. Applebloom, an energetic little filly with a sizable bow in her red mane, had been relentless in her attempts to ensure the Wonderbolt’s comfort. As far as Fleetfoot could tell, Applebloom seemed to think her cutie mark revolved around it. Still, Fleetfoot had taken the lively introduction with understated class and style.

Lastly she had been introduced to Big Macintosh, the eldest of the Apple family siblings. He towered over Fleetfoot and the rest of his family, with a coat as red as his namesake and an unkempt ginger mane. Yet despite his broad chest and massive size, he had a gentle disposition and was quite possibly the most soft-spoken pony Fleetfoot had ever met. The fact that he made for decent eye candy, at least for an earth pony, was also a plus.

The guest room they had provided for Fleetfoot wasn’t very large by anypony’s standard. A simple twin bed was covered with a patchwork quilt hoofsewn by generations of the Apple family. Every panel of the quilt read like a tapestry of the different family branches, showing a small slice of life forever captured in the fabric. Fleetfoot didn’t understand the context of the images, but that did little to take away from the nostalgic beauty of the quilt. It also helped that the bed was surprisingly comfortable for a terrestrial mattress.

Her third night there, Fleetfoot had enjoyed a fitful sleep, blissfully uninterrupted by some of the bad dreams that had been hounding her since she’d left Manehattan. However, as she began to wake, she couldn’t shake the feeling she was being watched. Forcing her eyes open, Fleetfoot quickly noticed she was face-to-face with the Apple family collie, Winona.

Winona greeted Fleetfoot with a big, wet slurp to the face.

“Thank you... dog,” the pegasus grumbled, wiping her face on the quilt. “I really... appreciated that.”

Winona gave a happy bark before running out of the room.

Pushing herself upright, Fleetfoot let out a loud yawn and stretched out her wings. After a quick preen, she slipped out of bed and trotted to the bathroom to wash her face. There wasn’t a point in showering yet, not when there was a full day of hard work ahead of her.

Making her way downstairs, Fleetfoot saw Granny Smith helping Applebloom patch a red cape that seemed to be covered with old tears and what looked like dried tree sap. Her old hooves worked the needle with remarkable dexterity and the whole time she explained what she was doing to her granddaughter so one day Applebloom would be able to do it on her own. The sight made Fleetfoot smile; she recalled similar times spent with her grandmother when she was small.

Noticing their guest, Granny Smith briefly halted her work. “G’mornin’ there, Miss Fleetfoot.”

“Good morning, Ma’am, Applebloom,” Fleetfoot nodded respectfully to both.

“P’shaw!” Granny Smith waved a hoof at Fleetfoot. “How many times I gotta tell ya ta call me Granny Smith?”

“How come I’m not a Ma’am?” Applebloom asked.

“Cause yer still a saplin’, darlin.” Granny Smith tousled Applebloom’s mane.

“So,” Fleetfoot began awkwardly, “where can I find Applejack? I’m eager to get to work.”

“Ain’tcha gonna have some breakfast first?” Applebloom asked, perking up with excitement.

Fleetfoot rubbed her stomach with a hoof. “That... sounds pretty good, actually. Whatcha got?”

“We got flapjacks in small mountains with fresh apple butter, hayfries, sandwiches, and cereals too!” Applebloom exclaimed as she bounced up and down on the couch. “Big Mac and Applejack put a mighty fine dent in em, but there’s still a ton left for you to pitch in!”

“Flapjacks are... pancakes, right?” Fleetfoot asked, feeling rightly like a foal.

Granny Smith barked a laugh. “Where’re you from that’cha don’t know a flapjack anyway, missy?”

Heat blossomed in Fleetfoot’s cheeks and her feathers ruffled as she fidgeted her wings in the approximation of a shrug.

“Hey now.” Applebloom hopped off the couch and darted up to Fleetfoot. “Ain’t no need to get embarrassed, we’re just funin’.”

“I’m not embarrassed, I just... erm... had a hot flash?” Fleetfoot suggested.

Granny Smith snorted. “Jus’ you wait, young’n.”

“Pan... Flapjacks, please,” Fleetfoot said quickly, eager to end the awkward conversation.

“Right this way!” Applebloom hollered, charging into the kitchen in a yellow and red flash.

‘Please, Celestia,’ Fleetfoot thought, following the hyper filly, ‘let there be coffee.’

To no small amount of relief, Fleetfoot had indeed found nearly half a pot of coffee left from the elder Apple siblings in addition to the promised ‘mountain’ of flapjacks. Fleetfoot didn’t know how Granny Smith had made such an insane amount of food so quickly, nor did she have the slightest idea who was going to eat it all. Perhaps, she decided, some things were best left unexplained.

Filling a plate with half-a-dozen pancakes and a generous scoop of what Applebloom assured her was homemade apple butter, Fleetfoot sat down to enjoy her breakfast. The flavor was nothing shy of decadent; sweet and salty, with the apple flavor prominent, but not overwhelming. It was a wonder everypony in the apple family wasn’t morbidly obese, Fleetfoot thought.

Forcing herself to forgeo a second—or third—helping, Fleetfoot took her plate to the sink and gently set it with the other dirty dishes. More or less the entire time she’d been eating, Applebloom had kept up a non-stop barrage of questions, comments, and a host of non sequiturs that left Fleetfoot entirely baffled. Fleetfoot wondered if the little filly was attempting to get her cutie mark in annoyance. She also wondered what a cutie mark in ‘annoying’ would look like anyways—maybe a picture of that pink-maned mare from town?

Finally, when she could take no more of the incessant chattering, Fleetfoot held up a hoof and interrupted the filly. “Hey, Applebloom, could you tell me where your sister is? I kinda wanna get started with work today.”

The question gave the filly only a moment’s pause to nod her head. “Applejack had to go inta town fer some stuff. She said to talk to Big Mac an’ he’ll give ya yer chores!”

“All right, do you know where he’s at?” Fleetfoot asked.

“He should be in the south field. I bet if ya fly around you’ll find ‘im right quick!”

Nodding, Fleetfoot thanked Applebloom and made her way outside.

The smell and atmosphere of the farm was wholly different than anything Fleetfoot was used to. Dirt and mud, the blossoms of apple trees with their delicate scent, and the fresh country air that rustled through the leaves. It was different than the pure, crisp, Cloudsdale air, and subtly charming.

Fleetfoot leaned back, her body coiling for a moment before she sprang into the air. Her wings flared open, catching the warm morning’s air under her feathers before giving a mighty flap to gain altitude. She flew just above the treeline, high enough to avoid hitting any of the branches, but low enough that leaves occasionally brushed against her stomach. Big Macintosh was easy enough to find, his red coat stuck out quite nicely against the ocean of green that surrounded him. Fleetfoot found him sitting in front of one of the trees with his neck craned upward and his eyes focused on a dead branch.

Coming to a soft landing behind him, Fleetfoot waited for a moment to see if he had noticed her arrival. When the large stallion made no indication he was aware of her presence, Fleetfoot stepped closer and politely cleared her throat. Big Mac slowly turned to face her with a friendly smile.

“G'morning’,” Fleetfoot said with a bright smile.

Big Mac gave her a polite nod. “Eeyup.”

Awkward silence filled the space between them for a time, with Fleetfoot not sure what to say, and Big Mac seemingly uninterested in initiating conversation. She couldn’t tell if Big Mac was just trying to be extremely polite or if he was just very boring, or he could just be shy around mares, she supposed.

“So,” Fleetfoot finally broke the silence. “Got some work for me?”

“Eeyup,” Mac answered, nodding his head once. He turned towards the tree he’d been contemplating mere moments earlier and pointed his hoof at the dead branch. “We gotta get all the dead branches gathered up.”

“Just for cleanliness or ‘cause they’ll damage the trees or somthing?” Fleetfoot asked, looking a bit confused.

“Eeyup,” the stallion answered before turning to fetch a large cart with a few branches already piled in it.

Fleetfoot lowered her head and sighed to herself. How had she fallen to this, she wondered. She was a Wonderbolt, and one of the very best to boot. So how was it that she found herself hiding in one of Equestria’s smallest backwater towns plucking dead branches from trees?

She flinched and quickly slapped herself in the cheek. She could never forget why, no matter how badly she wanted to.

With a dutiful frown, Fleetfoot looked up to the dead branch. “It’s gonna be a long day.”

“Is is too late to bail? It can’t be too late to bail, right?” Rainbow Dash muttered for approximately the fiftieth time that morning.

“It’ll be fine, Dash,” Spitfire said, calmly turning the page in the newspaper she was reading.

Darting over to Spitfire, Rainbow grabbed the older mare’s shoulders and gave her a frantic shake. “I’m tellin’ you, it’s gonna be a disaster! They’re gonna freak out! Applejack’s gonna have a tree, Rarity’s gonna pass out, Pinkie’s gonna explode in blast of confetti and streamers!”

“Wait, what?” Spitfire asked, looking both amused and concerned.

Rainbow didn’t seem to notice the interruption. “And Twilight’s head is gonna spin like her creepy-as-buck owl and drag me into the basement to get hooked up to her creepy machine and—”

“Are you describing a dungeon or the setup for a kinky sex scene?” Spitfire asked, peripherally aware those two options were not mutually exclusive.

Rainbow halted her pacing for a moment, considering the question. “... Yes?”

Spitfire reached out with her forelegs and pulled Rainbow into a small hug. “You’re learning; I’m so proud.”

Rainbow returned the hug for a moment before squirming free of Spitfire’s embrace. “Can we bail? Pretty please?” she asked, pressing her front hooves together.

“Rainbow,” Spitfire pulled the smaller mare into a firm hug. “Your friends aren’t gonna pass out, birth a tree, have their heads spin, or turn into a walking confetti bomb, okay?”

“I still think I’d rather bail,” Rainbow mumbled as she rubbed her front hooves anxiously together.

“Well I’d say go for it, but given we’ve only got one working wing a piece, I’d say that makes a speedy escape a bit tricky,” Spitfire said, a little frown pulling at her lips.

Rubbing her chin with her good wing, Rainbow pondered the issue for a minute. Her eyes widened and she clapped her front hooves together. “I got it!”

“I’m sorry, it’s not contagious is it?”

“Hardy har har, smartass,” Rainbow said with a roll of her eyes.

Spitfire laughed, sitting up and pulling Rainbow into another tender hug. “What’s your idea?”

“We get a two by four, hang on to opposite sides, and we each flap our good wing until we’re somewhere that’s not here.”

Spitfire scoffed and shook her head. “I see absolutely nothing that could go wrong with such a carefully thought out plan.”

“Okay, wait, I got it!” Rainbow turned to face Spitfire. “We need a rope!”

“Well, it’s not my cup of tea, but if that’s what makes you happy…” Spitfire winked.

“No, not... uhg.” Rainbow put her head in her hooves, unable to resist a giggle in spite of herself. “You wanna?”

“Wanna what, try and fly away?” Spitfire asked.

Rainbow shook her head. “No; you wanna get tied up?”

Spitfire didn’t think it was possible, but Rainbow had actually managed to make her blush. She leaned over, wrapping a hoof around Rainbow’s shoulders and nuzzling her cheek. “I don’t know... are you good with a rope?”

“Maybe Applejack will teach me a couple of tricks,” Rainbow said, returning the nuzzle. She was glad the train from Canterlot to Ponyville was almost empty, Rainbow always felt more relaxed when she had a little privacy.

Spitfire held Rainbow close and gently kissed her cheek as her good wing wrapped around Rainbow. Closing her eyes, Spitfire allowed the world around her to fade away. All that mattered was the mare snuggled against her, and the steady beat of her heart.

“Look, Rainbow,” Spitfire began slowly, nuzzling Rainbow again. “I know it’s scary, coming out to your friends I mean. Believe me. The only thing that ever scared me worse was seeing you after the accident.”

Rainbow had no reply to Spitfire’s comments save for the tightening of her grip around the older mare’s waist.

“But believe me, once it’s all out there, you’ll look back and wonder why you ever waited so long,” Spitfire said, kissing atop Rainbow’s mane. “Living with a secret like that constantly hanging over your head is the fastest way to a gray mane.”

“Daring Do has a gray mane,” Rainbow mumbled.

“Probably ‘cause she didn’t get laid,” Spitfire teased.

Rainbow snorted and gave Spitfire’s foreleg a playful smack.

“Besides,” Spitfire continued, “even if we could fly, your lung still isn’t ready for that kind of stress. Your dad will kill me if I let you overdo things before you’re ready.”

Rainbow’s ears folded back and she absently touched a small, fading scar on her left side where the chest tube had been. “I can breathe fine.”

“Rainbow, honey.” Spitfire’s hoof lifted Rainbow’s chin so they were eye to eye. “You were exhausted walking from the train station to the cafe we got lunch at in Canterlot.”

“I was just…” Rainbow sighed, leaning forward until their foreheads bumped together. “I hate this.”

“How’s your pain been, by the way?” Spitfire asked in a quiet voice.

Rainbow made a little shrug, nestling herself against Spitfire’s body. “Okay, I guess. The bumps aren’t a lotta fun, but I’ll deal.” She looked up to Spitfire and gave her cheek a little kiss. “What about yours?”

“I took one of the pills when we left the Canterlot station, so it’s been pretty good,” Spitfire answered, neglecting to mention the one she took before they got to the station and the one she took when Rainbow had been napping earlier on the ride.

Rainbow nodded. “I might take half a’ one, but then we’ll be in Ponyville in a few hours.”

“So?” Spitfire gently nudged Rainbow. “Take a half a pill, we’ll take it easy, and by the time we get to Ponyville you’ll be good to go.”

“You think so?” Rainbow asked, looking uncomfortable with the idea.

Nodding, Spitfire planted a kiss on Rainbow’s forehead. “I promise, Dash.”

Rainbow’s forelegs gave Spitfire’s waist a little squeeze. “Hey, Spitfire?”

“Hey, Dash?”

“I love you,” Rainbow whispered into her ear.

Spitfire smiled, her lips pressing against Rainbow’s in a tender kiss. “I love you too.”

Home Again

Rainbow Dash could feel the train slowing as they approached the Ponyville terminal. All too soon, like a good flight on a clear blue morning, the journey would end, and she would be forced to face the inevitable. For all her bluster and bravado, all the flash and flair that seemed to radiate from her like sunbeams, Rainbow had never truly mastered her fears.

She often wondered if, in some ways, it was better like that. To have an active fear was just another goal, something to be faced down, challenged, and conquered, preferably with an awesome after party. Yet in conquering that goal there was another, far more unsettling prospect: the dreadful fear that there was nothing left. No more barriers to break, nor records to set. Just a life of sitting back and remembering.

Or worse still, failing.

‘So how?’ Rainbow wondered, her magenta eyes drifting up to the ceiling. ‘How do you beat that?’

‘Fake it til you make it,’ her father would say.

A sharp breath exited her nose and the ghost of a smile pulled at the corners of her mouth. Her father had done his best to raise her on his own without getting remarried or seeming to find any mare to settle down with after her mother passed. He was the bravest pony she knew.

Not for the first time, an uncomfortable thought crossed her mind. ‘What if he’s still faking it? How in Equestria could I beat my fear if he’s still fighting his battle? If he hasn’t made it yet—’

“What are you thinking?”

The voice snapped Rainbow free of her introspective moment. A better pony might have been upset by that, Rainbow couldn’t have been more relieved. “Hm?”

“Whatcha thinking?” Spitfire asked again

“Nothin’,” Rainbow answered in a quiet voice.

Spitfire leaned closer to her marefriend and pulled her into a hug with her good wing. “I can see your hamster wheel turning in that head of yours, so come on, spill it.”

“Maybe I like to keep a fit hamster,” Rainbow suggested with a faint red tinge in her cheeks.

Spitfire shrugged, her lips pressing against Rainbow’s cheek in a tender kiss. “If it’s half as cute as you, then I’ll love your hamster too.”

Rainbow felt that all too familiar blush blossom across her cheeks. Her elbow lightly prodded Spitfire’s ribs. “Shuddup!”

A mirthful laugh escaped Spitfire, and her forelegs gently tightened their embrace around the smaller pegasus. “You really are cute when you blush.”

Folding her forelegs across her chest, Rainbow tried to maintain a put-out expression in protest. Eventually, though, she relented to Spitfire’s affections. “... Thanks.”

“Mmhmm.” Spitfire nodded, releasing Rainbow from her grip. “So, what were you thinking about?”

“How much I still wanna bail on this mess,” Rainbow answered, chewing anxiously on her primary feathers.

“Hey now.” Spitfire’s hoof carefully pushed Rainbow’s wing away from her gnashing teeth. “Don’t chew on those, you’ll set a bad example for the children.”

“You and me are literally the only two ponies on this train,” Rainbow noted with the certitude of a math teacher addressing a particularly dense student.

Spitfire rolled her eyes. “Look: it’s all gonna be fine. I promise.”

“B-but what if they freak and—”

“Seriously, they’re not gonna freak just because you like mares, though they may be stunned into silence, basking in the glory that is us.”

Rainbow snorted and shook her head. “They’re gonna be so mad at me.”

“Why?”

“I dodged them in Manehattan.”

“You were unconscious for almost a week, and after that you were on the mend.”

“I knew they’d be in town, so I dodged them.”

Spitfire took Rainbow’s hooves in her own and looked her marefriend in the eye. “Okay, let’s pretend I’m your friend... erm... what was her name?” Spitfire asked as her brain took an unscheduled snack stop into a bout of early-onset alzheimers. “Purple Prose?”

For her part, Rainbow looked almost as confused as Spitfire, though that quickly melted into laughter at the horribly flubbed name. “You mean Twilight Sparkle?”

“Sure, we’ll roll with that!” Spitfire grinned, sitting herself up straight and clearing her throat. “Why didn’t you let us see you, Rainbow Dash?” Spitfire asked in a voice that sounded less like Twilight and more like an anal librarian.

On further reflection, maybe it wasn’t that far off.

Rainbow took a deep breath and winced, her hoof instinctively rubbing at her aching side. “I... I didn’t wanna. No, no that’s dumb,” she bemoaned, her hooves rubbing at her face.

Spitfire, having noticed Rainbow’s discomfort, frowned, but decided against commenting on it. “Take your time.”

“I didn’t, um…” Rainbow’s front hooves rubbed anxiously together, and her gaze dropped to the floor. “I didn’t want th-you... all... to see me like that.”

Reaching out with her good wing, Spitfire gently ushered Rainbow’s head up so they were eye to eye. “Why not?”

The whistle of the train rang out again, and both mares felt the train slow as it pulled towards the station. Rainbow gulped and hopped off the bench where she immediately started pacing up and down the cabin. “I can’t do this!”

“Rainbow—”

“Maybe I can hide out on the roof! Or maybe we can sneak out the caboose and make a break for—”

“Okay, down girl!” Spitfire wrapped her forelegs around Rainbow’s chest and pulled the squirming mare onto the bench beside her. “Seriously, Rainbow, you gotta relax before you, like, retroactively pop a stitch or something.”

Rainbow’s squirming came to an abrupt halt as she considered Spitfire’s comment. “That doesn’t make any sense.”

Spitfire rolled her eyes and leaned over where she pressed her lips against Rainbow’s cheek. “It makes more sense than your constant freaking out about this.”

“Freaking out? Who’s freaking out? I’m not freaking out!” Rainbow almost shouted, though her actions were rewarded with a sharp stab of pain from her chest. Her forelegs wrapped around her core and she let out a low groan, her eyes squeezing shut and her ears folding back against her head. She doubled over and let out a series of weak coughs, her small body trembling against the bench.

“Rainbow?” Spitfire put her hooves on the smaller mare’s shoulders, concern flooding her voice. “Rainbow, are you okay?”

“I…” Rainbow wheezed, “I ca… can’t breathe.”

Spitfire reacted instantly, even as her heart seemed to freeze in her chest. Her forelegs wrapped around Rainbow, pulling her close while a golden hoof stroked through Rainbow’s mane. “You’re okay, Dash, you’re okay,” she repeated in a calm voice, even though her mind raced with fear and anxiety. “Remember what the doctors told you: nice, easy breaths. Shh... it’s okay... everything’s okay. Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out.”

Pain, as Rainbow had come to learn, was much like wild weather. Before it got better, it always got worse. The stabbing pain that lanced through the left side of her chest made her muscles tense, which only served to make it harder to breathe. Her lung, while it had improved significantly since her stay at the hospital, still had not fully recovered. All too frequently the simple act of walking from place to place left her winded. Worse still, she all too often jarred her ribs, which were laced with hairline fractures from the fall.

Tears built in the corners of Rainbow’s eyes, and she leaned her head forward until it bumped into the soft coat of Spitfire’s chest. She made a piteous whimper, her hooves grasping at Spitfire’s shoulders and squeezing until the ex-Wonderbolt had to bite back a yelp of discomfort. The flood of pain was enough to make Rainbow nauseous and dizzy.

“Hurts…” Rainbow whispered.

Spitfire nuzzled between Rainbow’s ears, doing her best to keep Rainbow calm. “I know, Dash, I know. You just gotta breathe through it though.”

“Can’t…”

“Yes you can, Dash. Yes you can,” Spitfire reassured Rainbow, though it did little to calm her own concern.

Rainbow bit down on her tongue almost hard enough to draw blood as the pain reached its zenith. Then, almost as quickly as it had started, the pain began to recede. Every breath became easier, every movement drew only a familiar dull ache, and by the time the train pulled into Ponyville Station, Rainbow could finally breathe again.

“You’re taking the other half of that pill,” Spitfire said, knowing full well the mine she was jumping on.

“I don’t need it,” Rainbow argued, though with far less bluster than she normally exuded.

Spitfire leaned back and pushed Rainbow slightly away so they could see eye to eye. Concern creased across her brow and pulled her lips into a tight frown. Rainbow shriveled somewhat from the look, her ears splaying out.

“Rainbow,” Spitfire started, her tone cautious, patient, and gentle. “You’re a tough pony; I get it. Everypony that knows you gets that. There’s no reason to suffer needlessly through this, and I’m scared that you’re gonna hurt yourself worse if you keep at it.” She leaned forward, her lips meeting Rainbow’s and sending a tingle through both mares. “Please, Dash… Please don’t hurt yourself like this.”

“I just,” Rainbow sighed, wiping at her eyes with her good wing. “I don’t like pills.”

Spitfire nodded once. “I know, Dash. Believe me, I know, but they have a purpose, you know? Kinda like, um.” Spitfire stalled for a moment as she struggled to think of the right words. “Kinda like... okay, forget the fancy analogy. They help you breathe better because your ribs won’t hurt as much.”

Rainbow didn’t seem convinced by the argument, but she nodded all the same.

“Now, since I really like it when you’re breathing, and as I know for a fact that your dad will hunt me down and kill me if something happened to you, I’m asking—as your marefriend—to please use them at least for a week or two more. Just give your body time to finish healing.”

Rainbow let out a long breath and thought on the request for a moment. On one hoof, she was deeply uncomfortable with pain killers just on principle. On the other hoof, even her notable pain tolerance was stretched to the limits by the last few weeks.

With a self-disgusted shake of her head, Rainbow slipped free of Spitfire’s forelegs and dipped her hoof into the saddlebag with her cutie mark emblazoned on the side. She pulled out the orange bottle, still mostly full of pills. Tapping out a few onto her hoof, she found the other half she’d refused to take earlier and popped it into her mouth.

Spitfire waited until Rainbow had swallowed and put the rest of the pills away before speaking again.

“There. Was that so bad?” she asked, her hoof rubbing Rainbow’s back.

Rainbow thought for a second. “How honest do you want me to be?”

“I’ll settle for fifty-fifty,” Spitfire answered.

“Well in that case it was pretty okay,” Rainbow said with a snicker.

The door separating the passenger car from the engine slid open and a lanky earth pony stallion dressed in a well pressed uniform trotted in. His brown eyes scanned the car for a moment before settling on Rainbow and Spitfire.

“Last stop, Ponyville. Thank you for choosing Equestria Rail; we hope to see you both again soon.” The stallion bowed politely and trotted down the cabin to check the next car.

Once he was out of sight, Rainbow and Spitfire exchanged a glance: Rainbow’s pensive, Spitfire’s relaxed. Spitfire moved first, sliding off the bench and put her saddlebag on, wincing as it bumped against her bandaged wing. She looked to Rainbow and held out a hoof.

“You ready?” she asked with a loving smile.

Gulping back her concerns, Rainbow nodded and took the proffered hoof. The two made their way to the threshold where Rainbow stopped, staring at the closed door as a nervous tremble ran down her spine. Beyond the door was Ponyville. Beyond the door were all her friends and coworkers. Beyond that door was her home.

Rainbow steeled herself with a deep breath and took a step towards the door. She immediately followed it up with three steps backward. “L-let’s just hang out here a little longer.”

“I really should’ve made you take more than the other half of that pill,” Spitfire noted, muffling her laugh behind a hoof.

“Do we really have to do this?” Rainbow asked, looking to Spitfire with a pleading expression.

Spitfire gave Rainbow a small push forward and moved towards the door. “Yes; we really do.”

Rainbow grumbled, trudging past Spitfire like a pony on her way to an execution, or worse, the dentist’s chair. “I hate you.”

Spitfire rolled her eyes and gave Rainbow’s backside a little swat, earning a very satisfying yelp from the younger mare. “I love you too, babe.”

No sooner had Rainbow taken three steps onto the wooden deck of the Ponyville terminal than a blur of colors seemed to burst forth from the station, crashing into Rainbow with enough force to send her crashing to her back. Rainbow’s cry of both shock and pain sent a wave of horror through Spitfire.

“Get off her!” Spitfire shouted, springing towards the pile of mares with her good wing flared out.

Her forelegs grabbed a pink mare around her torso and hefted the earth pony off of Rainbow with an almost violent force. Before she could go for another, the remaining four scrambled away from Rainbow as though her flesh was made of fire, each apologizing profusely. At the bottom of the pile was Rainbow, curled into a ball and clutching her chest.

Spitfire was at Rainbow’s side in an instant. “Rainbow? Rainbow can you hear me?”

A lavender unicorn crouched . “Rainbow, are—”

“Where’s the hospital?” Spitfire asked, not caring for any of their apologies.

“No,” Rainbow grunted, suddenly glad Spitfire had made her take the half pill. “I’m... I’m okay.”

“We’re so sorry, Rainbow,” an orange mare with a thick drawl said, chewing at her bottom lip.

“What in the world would possess…” Spitfire’s words died in her throat. She had long since lost count of how many times she’d been tackled by her teammates. Her sense of hypocrisy only went so far.

“Possess what?” a very familiar looking white mare asked, her voice laced with a thick Canterlot accent.

“Rainbow, are you sure?” Spitfire asked, concern flooding her voice even as she and Twilight helped Rainbow to her hooves.

“Yeah.” Rainbow let out a slow breath, her right foreleg protecting her chest. “I’m good... I just needed a sec.” She forced a grin. “Well, that was fun.”

The orange mare moved close to Rainbow and grinned. “Serves you right, I reckon. Givin’ yer friends the slip for a whole month.”

Rainbow’s ears folded back and she bowed her head low. “Yeah, Applejack. I’m... I’m sorry about that. I really am.”

“Why, Rainbow?” a canary-yellow mare with a flowing pink mane asked, her voice scarcely more than a whisper.

“I just,” Rainbow sighed, limping towards the mare. “I just needed some time. I’m sorry.”

“Time is good! Everypony likes time!” the bubbly pink mare all but shouted, literally bouncing around the group. “Well, except for Time Turner, but he’s a funny pony. Who’s your friend, Rainbow? She looks really familiar!”

Rainbow made a sheepish laugh and shook her head. “Pinkie, th—”

Before Spitfire knew what was happening, the pink mare whom she had very recently tossed like a sack of potatoes was suddenly snout-to-snout with her. The annihilation of Spitfire’s personal space caused her to lean back so far, she found herself sitting on her haunches.

“Um, hi?” Spitfire said, unsure of proper etiquette after having thrown a pony.

“Hi there; my name’s Pinkie Pie! What’s your name? Oh-oh wait! Don’t tell me, I know this!” She darted down by Spitfire’s hip, making the pegasus feel rather uncomfortable. “Firebird? No, no, that’d be too obvious, wait…”

“Pinkie, dear, that’s Spitfire, the captain of the Wonderbolts,” Rarity said with a small shake of her head. An almost embarrassed smile pulled at her lips as she turned her attention to the Wonderbolt. “It’s quite a pleasure to meet you properly, Captain... and I’m rather sorry about the Best Young Flyer competition." She offered a polished white hoof, which Spitfire promptly shook. "I’m Rarity."

'Oh. You.’ Spitfire thought with only a slightly bitter tone. Forcing a pleasant smile, she nodded to the unicorn. “No funeral, no foul. Nice to meet you too, particularly when I don’t have a minor concussion.”

“Hot dang, Rainbow,” Applejack chuckled, adjusting the old stetson on her head. “What brings a Wonderbolt down to the ground?”

Rainbow glanced at Spitfire in one last silent attempt to run away. Spitfire merely smiled and subtly motioned towards the expectant ponies before them.

“S-so, um,” Rainbow mumbled, pawing at the ground with a hoof. “Guys, this... this is my marefriend.”

Twilight seemed surprised, though her expression remained supportive. Applejack discreetly held out a hoof to Rarity, who quietly grumbled even as she hoofed over ten bits. Fluttershy simply blushed, while Pinkie seemed confused.

“Easiest bits ever,” Applejack said with a proud grin.

“Don’t brag; it’s unbecoming,” Rarity grumbled.

“Don’t you be makin’ up words at me,” Applejack said, sticking her tongue out at Rarity. “Jus’ cause you lost.”

“Wait,” Rainbow balked, “you two had a bet on this?!”

“R.D., no offense darlin’, but I had you figured years ago,” Applejack said, making a dismissive wave with her left hoof.

“But, I—”

“You’re not that subtle with what you were watchin’ in them apple trees, missy.” Applejack winked at her friend.

“Celestia... Luna... anypony... kill me,” Rainbow mewled, her face turning red as Spitfire snickered behind a hoof.

“So, when Celestia said you had a marefriend,” Twilight stated, her eyes drifting from Rainbow to Spitfire.

Spitfire smiled at the unicorn, draping her good wing across Rainbow’s back.

Twilight started to smile, although she seemed unsure of something. “That’s—”

A sudden outburst of uproarious laughter from Pinkie Pie startled them all. They looked towards the bouncy mare, who seemed thoroughly tickled by whatever had set her off.

“Pinkie?” Rainbow looked at her friend, feeling a peculiar sense of unease building in her gut.

“Oh-okay, Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie managed between her fits of laughter. “That was a good one!”

What had been the cacophonous whirlwind of thoughts that had dominated Rainbow’s mind up to that point came to an abrupt halt. “Huh? Um, Pinkie, it’s not a joke.”

Pinkie darted between Rainbow and Spitfire, her forelegs draped across their backs. “Of course it’s a joke! I mean, really, what else could it be!”

“You’re a very strange pony, aren’t you?” Spitfire asked, though her words seemed to fall on deaf ears.

“We gotta throw you a big party!” Pinkie explained, throwing her hooves to the sky in a jubilant exhalation at the very notion. “Oh, I know just what we can do! You and Dashie can do a super-mega-totally-awesome fly—”

“We can’t fly,” both pegasi deadpanned at the same time.

“Ohh, wait, I can work with that!” Pinkie grinned almost literally ear-to-ear. “Oh, where’s Spitfire gonna stay anyway? I mean, the Cakes don’t have an extra room and, well, Twilight doesn’t have that—”

“Pinkie, Spitfire’s staying with me,” Rainbow said.

“Silly filly, you can’t get up to your house if you can’t fly! Well, I guess you could, but then you’d need Twilight’s balloon or a really, really, REALLY big ladder! Do you even have a guest room? I just realized I’ve never even been in your house cause earth ponies can’t stand on clouds, well, unless Twilight uses her cloudy walky spell, but that probably wears off after a while and—”

“Pinkie!” Rainbow interrupted her friend with the feeling of exasperation rapidly overwhelming her.

“We don’t need a guest bed,” Spitfire said, earning a fresh blush from Rainbow and another five bits from Rarity to Applejack.

“Well of course you need a guest bed, silly! I mean a regular bed’s too small for two ponies to sleep in, and even then it’d just be really weird! It’d probably be a lot like sharing a sleeping bag with another pony, which would be kinda funny for a prank but, really, that’s about it,” Pinkie said, leaving all to wonder if she ever bothered with a thing called “inhaling”.

“You can use my balloon anytime you need, Rainbow,” Twilight spoke up and offered an awkward smile.

“Thanks, Twilight. Look, Pinkie,” Rainbow started, feeling more and more uncomfortable with how the conversation was progressing. “Spitfire and I don’t need two beds. We can share one.”

“Well of course you need two, silly! Why would you want to—”

“Oh for the love of peat,” Spitfire groaned in exasperation. “What part of “We’re marefriends” didn’t you get? I mean seriously, did she stutter?”

“Well of course you’re marefriends!” Pinkie said with a roll of her eyes. “I mean, you don’t look like a stallion, so you’d have to be a mare!”

Spitfire slapped her hoof against her forehead. She couldn’t decide if the pink pony was born this dense, or if she had to work at it. “Marefriends, fillyfoolers, lesbians, ho-mo-sexuals! Take your pick, but please, for the love of all things good and sacred, stop talking!”

Five ponies gasped at Spitfire’s comment, with Rainbow looking anxiously between the mare she loved and Pinkie Pie. For her part, Pinkie stared at Spitfire with a blank, almost confused expression. The quiet stillness to her concerned Rainbow more than anything.

“Well, that’s not right,” Pinkie said, rubbing her chin with a hoof. “Dashie’s not one of them.”

Spitfire felt her blood start to boil. “I beg your pardon?”

Sensing they might very well be serious, Pinkie ignored Spitfire’s question and leapt over to where Twilight, Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy had gathered. She looked back at Rainbow and Spitfire, then turned to her friends and spoke in a forced whisper.

“You guys, I think we need the Elements of Harmony!”

Fracture

It was very rare for Spitfire to ever meet a pony she genuinely hated. Sure, there were always pugnacious recruits who were all too eager to prove to her that they were the greatest flyers of Equestria. Or maybe the perpetual swarm of paparazzi ponies that congregated like mosquitos around Spitfire’s home in Cloudsdale. By no means did she like any of them, but it was difficult for her to hate.

The mare named Pinkie Pie was seemingly doing her best to push Spitfire in that very rare direction.

“Excuse me,” Spitfire interrupted, keeping her good wing draped protectively across Rainbow’s back. “But what in the hay do you mean by that?”

Pinkie turned so her bright grin flashed at Spitfire and Rainbow. “Don’t you worry, we’ll get you and Rainbow Dash fixed up in a jiffy!” Pinkie turned back to where she was huddled with Twilight, Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy.

Spitfire held up her right foreleg, her eyebrows furrowed together and her mouth open in a wholly confused expression. “You what? This is a joke, right?” She turned to face Rainbow, who seemed equally flummoxed. “This is some kinda weird joke, isn’t it?”

Rainbow shook her head. “I don’t think so.” She took a plodding step towards her friends, her hooves trembling under her. She felt a pain, like a shard of ice growing in her chest along with a knot in her throat “Guys?”

“I don’t know about this, Pinkie,” Fluttershy said in the quiet manner that she was known for.

“Why in the world would you even suggest using the elements?” Twilight asked, seemingly indignant from the mere suggestion.

“Well duh!” Pinkie exclaimed with a roll of her blue eyes. “That’s how we fixed all of the crazy stuff Discord did, so that’s how we fix this!”

Five ponies stared at Pinkie with matching confused expressions.

“Pinkie Pie,” Rarity said loudly, “I simply cannot believe you’d suggest such things! What in Equestria has gotten into you?”

“What are you suggesting?” Rainbow demanded.

“All right, look, this is jus’ plain ridiculous!” Applejack said with a mighty frown and a shake of her head. “You’re barkin’ up the wrong tree, Pinkie. I think you had a bit too much sugar today.”

“Would somepony please talk to me!” Rainbow shouted, earning a look from her friends and a few passing ponies as they boarded the train. She cringed and cutched at her aching ribs with a foreleg.

Spitfire momentarily forgot about the other five mares as she focused her attention on Rainbow. “Dash, are you okay? What’s wrong?”

“Fine,” Rainbow muttered through clenched teeth. “I’m fine.”

“You need to sit down,” Spitfire said, her wing pushing lightly on Rainbow’s hindquarters to encourage the action.

The conversation forgotten, all five mares moved back to Rainbow and Spitfire, Twilight leading the way. “What’s the matter? Do we need a doctor?”

“I’m fine!” Rainbow spat with far more venom in her tone than she had intended.

“All right, look,” Twilight started, separating her friends with her forelegs and trotting over to Rainbow. “This isn’t the place to discuss this. How about we all meet up at the library in an hour. That way, Rainbow can rest for a little while and we can all collect our thoughts.” Twilight shot a glare at Pinkie.

Much as she wanted to contest the point, Spitfire held her tongue. She preferred to confront problems head on, dealing with them quickly and decisively. Still, she couldn’t exactly argue against Twilight’s point. The platform of the Ponyville Station seemed to be getting more and more crowded with every passing moment as the train prepared to make the return trip to Canterlot.

“How far is it?” Spitfire asked.

“Center of town,” Rainbow answered, though she didn’t lift her head.

“Can you walk that far?” Spitfire asked, glancing over to Twilight with a concerned expression.

“I can teleport us there,” Twilight said, smiling to her friend and Spitfire.

“Both of us?” Rainbow asked, genuinely surprised. “I didn’t know you could teleport more than one pony.”

Twilight shook her head, her ears folding back slightly as a small frown pulled at her lips. “Well, I don’t think I can do it for more than myself and one other pony. I was reading up on dragon magic and really studying Spike’s dragon fire when I first moved to town. You see, when a dragon creates a horde, they attune their magic to that specific location. That way, they can send or receive anything they want at any time.”

“Who’s Spike?” Spitfire asked.

“Baby dragon,” Rainbow answered.

“Wait, a dragon?!” Spitfire blurted, her eyes going wide.

Nodding, seemingly more to herself than anypony around her, Twilight continued. “So I theorized that using a crystal, artifact, or something capable of arcana alignment, I could create a facsimile of a dragon’s horde attuned to my magic and—”

“Twilight, we don’t speak egghead!” Rainbow groaned.

With a blush and a modest chuckle, Twilight smiled at her friend. “Sorry. Simply put I made the library into a pseudo horde and within a certain range I can teleport myself and Spike there.” She rubbed her chin with a hoof. “It should work with ponies too.”

“Should?” Rainbow seemed unconvinced.

“Well it works for Spike and me, and ponies are less innately magical than dragons are, so it’ll be fine.” She broke out into a wide, excited smile. “Ready Rainbow?”

“I think I’ll just walk.”

“Rainbow, let the nice pony help you,” Spitfire said as she petted Rainbow’s back.

“It’ll be fun!” Twilight promised with a proud smile that quickly gave way to a thoughtful look. “Or you’ll lose your lunch…”

“Wait, what?” Rainbow skirted away from Twilight.

“Oh, don’t mind me, just thinking out loud!” the unicorn gave a nervous laugh before sitting next to Rainbow. “On three, okay?”

“Are you sure this is safe?” Rainbow asked.

Twilight nodded. “One. Two. Three!”

With a flash of purple light, Rainbow and Twilight were gone, leaving only a static tingle lingering in the ponies around them. Spitfire stood still for a while, staring at the spot where her Rainbow had been only an instant before. She took a deep breath into her lungs, which she slowly let out before turning to the remaining Elements.

“So, could one of you maybe show me where this library is?”

With the electric crackle of magic and a blinding flash, Twilight and Rainbow materialized in the foyer of the Ponyville library. For Twilight, the spell had left her coat with a fun tingly sensation that she surreptitiously enjoyed. For Rainbow Dash, the side effects were somewhat less pleasant.

"Hmm..." Twilight rubbed her chin with a thoughtful expression. "We're supposed to be four feet closer to the center of the room. I guess I need to realign the spell."

Rainbow made a quiet groan.

"So, Rainbow, how do you like teleporting?”

Rainbow Dash melted to the cool wooden floor, her face taking a peculiar shade of green. “I think I’m gonna be sick.”

“Isn’t it grea... oh, wait, no! Let me get a bucket first!” Twilight ran as quickly as she could towards the library basement, where Spike tended to stash most of the cleaning supplies.

While Twilight searched frantically, Rainbow squeezed her eyes shut and slid progressively lower until she was laying on her uninjured side. She felt a chill run through her even as a cold sweat broke out all over her body. Darkness creeped at the edge of her mind and she tasted bile in her mouth; it took all of Rainbow’s will to keep things together.

“Not here,” she hissed through clenched teeth. “Not here... please... Celestia…”

Rainbow didn’t know how long she laid on the cold floor of Twilight’s library. What had to be only a minute or so felt like hours as the sweat matted her coat and only served to intensify the chill in her bones. Even when she heard Twilight’s frenetic hoofsteps approach her, they sounded muted and distant.

“Rainbow!” Twilight sounded afraid. “Rainbow, open your eyes! S-should I call an ambulance?”

“‘Mm okay,” Rainbow slurred her words. “Jus... just a minute…”

“Wait, wait! I know what to do!” Twilight shouted to nopony in particular before running off to the kitchen. A moment later she returned, draping a cool, damp cloth over Rainbow’s face. “Okay, Rainbow, nice, easy breaths.”

Rainbow gave a slow nod before taking as deep a breath as she could and slowly letting it out. She repeated that process, each time filling her lungs with as much air as she could bear to give them before releasing it in a trembling, soft breath. Slowly, Rainbow felt the nausea begin to dissipate along with the darkness that crept at the edges of her vision. The sweat that had dampened her coat kept a chill in her body that Twilight easily took notice of. Rainbow was distantly aware of the sound of Twilight’s hoofsteps moving around the library just before the soft warmth of a blanket draped over her.

“Thanks, Twi,” Rainbow mumbled, nuzzling her face into her foreleg

“Anytime, Rainbow.”

Rainbow felt a smile pull at her lips. While Twilight could be an overbearing presence from time to time, there was an earnest desire to help in the mare that Rainbow appreciated.

“I’m so sorry, Rainbow. I know teleportation can be hard on some ponies, but I’ve never seen a reaction that strong before.”

“Wanna take notes on it?” Rainbow asked sarcastically.

Twilight was quiet for a moment before Rainbow saw a quill and parchment float into view. The unicorn regarded Rainbow with a far too excited grin. “Can I?”

Much as Rainbow wanted to loose a put-upon sigh, she couldn’t stop the quiet laughter that escaped her instead. Twilight’s voice joined hers in a soft chorus, the quill and parchment surreptitiously returning to wherever Twilight had gathered them from. As their laughter died down, a serious look returned to the librarian’s face.

“Seriously though, Rainbow, are you okay?” Reaching out with a hoof, she gently touched Rainbow’s shoulder.

“Yeah, definitely,” Rainbow answered with a little nod. “I think I’m just tired. Tired and hungry, or something. I don’t know.” She shook her head and rested it on her foreleg.

“Wanna lay down in a bed?”

Rainbow shook her head. “I’m okay, Twilight, really.”

“If you insist,” Twilight acquiesced. “So, um… You and Spitfire...”

“What about us?” Rainbow asked, her reply as wary as her tone.

“I guess, hm,” Twilight paused, her hoof itching her temple as she decided how she wanted to phrase her question. “I guess I just have one question.”

“Only one?” Rainbow shot her friend a snarky grin. “Don’t tell the Princess.”

“Oh ha ha ha, Rainbow.” Twilight felt a particularly annoying burn in her cheeks. “I reserve the right to ask follow ups.”

“Well you kinda gotta ask one, first.”

“I’m going to! Yeesh, give a girl a chance, Rainbow,” Twilight said, shaking her head and making a self-effacing chuckle.

Rainbow stretched out her good wing and draped it lazily across Twilight’s back. “Well, I ain’t getting any younger Twi.”

Twilight snorted and shook her head. “I guess I’m curious how you two met.”

Thinking back for a moment, Rainbow wiped her hoof through her mane. “Well, I guess it all started with a sandwich…”

“Beggin’ yer pardon?” Applejack asked, her mind flat-out refusing to acknowledge the veracity of what her ears were hearing.

Spitfire groaned, her eyes rolling so far back that she swore she was able to see her own optical nerves for a moment. “I said I think apple pie is kinda overrated. I prefer cherry.”

Applejack’s expression shifted from horror to one of betrayal. “You’re dead to me.”

Sensing an opportunity to amuse herself, Spitfire leaned close to Applejack until her lips hovered just over the farmpony’s ear. “Does this mean we won’t get a second date?”

“I will tie you up and hang you from the tallest tree in the fields,” Applejack threatened.

“Mmm.” Spitfire feigned a shiver of excitement. “I’ve never tried rope play before…”

“Are all you flyponies so crazy?” Applejack asked, a playful grin pulling at the corner of her mouth. “Is that what got you and R.D. to hook up?”

“Nah, I just have a thing for cunning stunts.”

As Applejack let out a despondent groan, Spitfire took pride in herself. She always was a cunning linguist.

“Oh, look, here we are!” Rarity piped up from her place behind Applejack and Spitfire. She cantered past them and pushed the door open with a rough burst of magic. “Twilight, might we come inside?”

Spitfire snorted, earning a disapproving glare from Applejack.

“Really?” the farmpony asked.

“I make no excuses.”

Twilight appeared at the door, a welcoming smile on her face. Floating beside her in the glow of her magic was a porcelain cup full of a hot cup of tea. Spitfire could smell the aromatic blend as she approached and stifled a frown. She’d never understand how anypony could like hot leaf juice.

“Hey girls, come on in. Rainbow’s just resting on the couch.” Twilight stepped aside, making room for the group to enter.

Spitfire hesitated as she entered the library, taking a moment to look around until her eyes settled on the familiar sky-blue of Rainbow’s coat. She didn’t notice the smile that broke across her face as she trotted over to the couch where Rainbow greeted her with a little grin.

“Hey there, stranger,” Spitfire said, leaning over to plant a kiss on Rainbow’s cheek.

“Hey yourself,” Rainbow answered, returning the kiss with one of her own.

“Feeling better, Dash?”

“A little, yeah.”

“Need something for the pain? I can get your pills.”

“I got an ice pack under my wing, a comfy chair, a really sexy mare,” Rainbow said, her voice dropping to a whisper so her friends didn’t hear the last part.

“Who needs a comfy chair when you got me?” Spitfire asked, shooting Rainbow a playful wink.

“Get a room!” Applejack shouted.

“No, no, silly filly,” Pinkie teased in a singsong tone as she bounced from the foyer over to the couch. There, she hooked her forelegs around Spitfire and Rainbow, squeezing herself between the two and smiling. “We gotta get you two all straightened up... hehe, straightened up…”

Spitfire’s happy smile burned into a fierce scowl. “You have exactly three seconds to back away.”

“Come on now,” Pinkie protested, darting around Spitfire to get to her opposite side. “We’re all friends here, right?”

“Coulda fooled me,” Spitfire answered.

“Alright,” Twilight said as she moved into the fray with Applejack and Rarity close behind her. “I think we all need to take a step back. What’s important here is that Rainbow Dash is home and we’re all very happy to see you. You scared everyone pretty bad when Celestia told us about the accident.”

“And don’t you think I’m jus’ lettin’ you off the hook for hidin’ out on us!” Applejack said, playfully jeering her friend.

In spite of the situation, Rainbow couldn’t help but laugh. “That from the mare who bailed to Dodge Junction for not getting first place in a rodeo? Hello pot, I’m kettle.”

Applejack’s lips momentarily pulled into a horrified frown as her eyes opened wide. She cleared her throat, quickly regaining her composure and polishing a hoof on her chest. “I ain’t got no idea what yer talkin’ about.”

The assertion fooled absolutely nobody.

Twilight chuckled and sipped a mouthful of tea which she promptly spat across the room as Pinkie Pie appeared beside her.

“So, Twilight, do you know where Spike is? We gotta write a letter and have her ship over the elements of harmony! Oh! Do you think she can just send them through Spike’s dragon flamey breath? That’d be so cool and would save us a lot of time and then we can have a great big awesome super-duper party!”

“What are you talking about?” Rainbow winced as she slipped off the couch and onto her hooves, stomping once and earning a sharp stab of pain into her chest.

“Rainbow.” Applejack stepped towards her friend. “Take it easy there, Sugarcube, yer gonna put yer plot in a sling at this rate.”

“Pinkie,” Rainbow said, her voice choked and moisture welling in her eyes. “Why are you—”

“Shh, there, there, Rainbow.” Pinkie zipped over, pulling the pegasus into a brief embrace. “Pinkie’s gonna fix you right up and then we’ll have a super-duper-extra awesome party to celebrate!”

Rainbow shoved her friend away, burning tears welling in her eyes. “I don’t need to be fixed! I don’t have a problem! I’m just the way I’m supposed to be; what don’t you get about that? W-why are you being so mean?”

Pinkie Pie simply nodded, her face holding a patient smile and soft, understanding eyes. “It’s okay, Rainbow Dash. I know it’s hard, and I really, really, really, am sorry. But I’m your friend, remember? And I’m gonna help you, cause that’s what friends do. Even when they think they don’t need help.”

“I DON’T NEED HELP!” Rainbow shouted, her voice cracking as the tears she had struggled so hard to repress spilled down her cheeks. “I’M JUST THE WAY I’M SUPPOSED TO BE! I’M JUST THE WAY I WAS BORN!”

“You are,” Pinkie said with a nod, “and it’s not your fault. If you think about it, it’s a lot like crooked teeth.” She smiled to Rainbow again. “We’re gonna fix it, and Spitfire too!”

“We don’t need to be fixed!” Spitfire hissed through clenched teeth.

“That’s what everypony says when they don’t know they have a problem,” Pinkie said, nodding at her own words.

“I think you’re the one with the problem here,” Spitfire said in a venomous tone.

Pinkie sat down and shook her head, looking like a mother disappointed in a group of foals. “Look, it’s not your fault that you’re confused, but you have to accept this isn’t right.”

“And how in the hay do you figure that?” Rainbow asked. “We’re in love, when did that become wrong?”

“You can love each other, that’s fine. I mean, I love all of you guys like my own two sisters!” Pinkie sprouted a face-splitting grin for a moment before returning to her serious expression. “But nopony would love a sibling like the way Mr. and Mrs. Cake love each other. And that’s because two mares can’t make a baby, neither can two stallions. I mean, that’s why there are colts and fillies, right?”

“Well, not exactly,” Twilight started, “I mean it’s a bit more—”

“I mean really,” Pinkie continued, oblivious to both Twilight’s comments and the untimely arrival of Spike, who bore a confused expression at the scene he’d stumbled across. “There isn’t any logical reason for two mares to get together like that.”

Spitfire smirked. “Sure there is. Stallion’s are one and done, mares are one and the fun’s only just begun.”

Five ponies and one baby dragon stared at Spitfire with gaping mouths and wide eyes. Twilight’s hooves pressed over Spike’s ears in a too-little, too-late attempt to protect him from the adults in the room. Rainbow was not so discreetly looking for a deep hole to crawl into, or at the very least a decent length of rope. The best reaction was reserved for Fluttershy, who looked as though the vast majority of blood had taken up residence in her head. Spitfire didn’t know it was physically possible for a pony to get that red, but it was certainly an entertaining discovery.

“S-Spike,” Twilight began with a sheepish laugh. “Can you—”

“I’m out!” the little dragon answered, walking right back outside. The heavy oak door slammed shut behind him.

Pinkie continued, seemingly undeterred. “Anyway, it’s just not natural. And you know where unnatural things come from? Discord made ‘em, that’s where!”

“That’s ridiculous,” Rarity said with a tsk and a shake of her head. “Pinkie, dear, you are being quite peculiar today.”

In a pink blur, Pinkie grabbed Rarity and gave her a little shake. “Don’t you see! Cotton Candy Clouds! Chocolate Rain, dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria, stallions kissing other stallions and mares kissing other mares! It’s textbook Discord!”

Twilight bit her hoof and looked at Rainbow and Spitfire. Rainbow felt her heart sink from the worried expression on her friend. Looking to Fluttershy, she noticed her oldest friend pointedly refuse to meet her gaze.

“Fluttershy?” Rainbow asked, her tone pleading.

“If you’re happy that’s wonderful,” the soft-spoken mare began, her pink mane covering her eyes as her head sunk lower and lower. “I just...it just makes me a little uncomfortable.” For the first time, Fluttershy looked up, her teary gaze meeting Rainbow’s. “I’m sorry, Rainbow Dash.”

Rainbow took a step back, her expression as horrified as if Fluttershy had slapped her. “But why? Why didn’t you say anything years ago? I mean, you’ve known longer than anypony!”

Fluttershy sniffled, tears welling in her eyes and saturating the coat of her cheeks. “B-because I didn’t want to hurt your feelings.”

“Hey there,” Pinkie moved to Fluttershy and pulled her into a friendly hug. “It’s alright, Fluttershy. We’re gonna have Dashie all fixed up in no time, I Pinkie Promise!”

Rainbow turned her attention to Twilight, her jaw hanging open. “Twilight, you can’t believe this, right?”

Twilight bit at her lip and pawed at the floor with a hoof. “Well, no I don’t. But Discord’s power was enough to reshape reality as we knew it. So I can see where Pinkie’s coming from to a degree.” She shook her head and sighed. “But no, Rainbow I don’t believe that Discord is responsible for anypony being born a certain way.”

“Okay, ya’ll, I think we need to take a break.” Applejack stepped forward, placing herself between Rainbow and Spitfire and Pinkie, Twilight, and Fluttershy. “Why don’t we all jus’ be glad Rainbow and Ms. Spitfire are okay, and we’ll just get settled down for a couple days.”

A chorus of agreement met the farmer’s ears.

Spitfire leaned over to Rainbow and stole a quick nuzzle. “Wanna catch the first train to Cloudsdale?” she asked in a whisper. “We can write your dad and have a balloon waiting when we get there.”

“No,” Rainbow answered, emphasizing her response with a vigorous shake of her head. “No... I,” she paused and sighed, a hoof rubbing at her forehead. “I gotta fix this... I gotta see this through.”

Spitfire was quiet for a moment, her mouth pulled into a concerned frown. “Okay, Dash. I’ll be here for you.”

Rainbow offered Spitfire a sad, but genuine smile. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Fluttershy pawed at the ground with her hoof, an almost palpable air of discomfort radiating from her. Twilight and Rarity discreetly ushered her and Pinkie out of the library, all four engaging in quiet conversation as they stepped out.

Rainbow moved closer to Applejack and sat down next to the farm pony. She pawed uncomfortably at the floor, her hoof drawing dainty circles over the worn oak surface. Applejack raised an eyebrow and cast her friend a peculiar look with a hint of a smile.

“Hey, AJ?”

“Hey, R.D.?”

“Thanks... for being there for us.”

The taller mare smiled to the pegasus and gave her a pat on the shoulder. “Anytime, Sugarcube.”

Rainbow made a quiet chuckle, and watched as Twilight closed the door behind Pinkie, Fluttershy and Rarity. The librarian stood in the foyer a moment longer as though lost in thought. Eventually she drifted back to the reading desk and half-heartedly sorted through a pile of returned books Spike had yet to reshelve.

“So... yeah,” Rainbow started, her eyes avoiding Applejack’s gaze.

“Can you be helped?”

“I don’t know, can I?”

“I reckon that depends on the problem,” Applejack said with a sage like nod.

Rainbow snorted. “Apparently I got a list of ‘em.”

“What about a list?” Twilight asked, her attention suddenly distracted from her pile of books. “I love a good list! How’s it sorted? Chronologically? Alphabetically? Oh, what about autobiographically!” She beamed at her friends, causing both Rainbow and Applejack to share a worried glance.

“Autobio-what now?” Rainbow asked.

“I think she just called us a bad name,” Applejack suggested.

“Wouldn’t be the first time.”

“I hear that.”

Twilight blinked once, an eyebrow slowly arching upwards, forming curious lines on her forehead. “You two are so weird sometimes.”

Both Rainbow and Applejack burst into fits of filly-like giggles.

Take Two, They're Small

Bouncing her way through the streets of Ponyville, Pinkie Pie hummed a merry tune as she thought over the morning’s events. Well, perhaps thought over was too strong a term. They were certainly clattering around in her head, but so were other important things like what to make for lunch, or when to feed Gummy, or how many gallons of ice cream could she eat in a single sitting! Or what new games she could play with the twins when she had to foalsit them next time.

Pinkie wondered what their cutie marks would be when they grew up. Maybe Pumpkin would become a talented magic user like Twilight, or a fashionista like Rarity. Pinkie doubted that though, not that Pumpkin couldn’t do it cause anypony could do whatever it was they set their minds to. But Pumpkin probably would follow in her parents’ hoofsteps and become one of the greatest bakers in the history of everything!

Her brother Pound was a harder guess. Pinkie certainly hoped he’d stay in the family business; after all, if he left to become a weather pony or a fancy flyer like Rainbow Dash then she wouldn’t get to see him anymore. Not that he shouldn’t grow up and start a life of his own somewhere; everypony had to grow up one day, that was just a part of life.

Pinkie couldn’t wait to plan their cutecenaria parties. Maybe they’d both get their cutie marks at the same time, and then she’d get to plan an extra super-duper humungous party! The thought alone was enough to make Pinkie squeal in delight.

Continuing her hop down the trodden dirt road, Pinkie happened to glance into one of the many open cafes that were dotted along mane street. Inside one of them she spotted a familiar canary mare sipping quietly on a cup of tea. The mare’s eyes were downcast, as though to avoid accidentally catching the attention of any other ponies in the cafe.

Pinkie giggled to herself; Fluttershy clearly needed company.

Darting into the cafe in a blur of pink, Pinkie Pie was at Fluttershy’s side almost instantly. She draped a hoof across the pegasus’ shoulders and greeted her with a loud hello that easily drowned out Fluttershy’s startled yelp.

“Whatcha up to Fluttershy? Having a tea? Tea’s great, especially if you put milk and sugar in it, then it’s amazing!” She paused to rub at her chin with a hoof. “Well, maybe not the most amazing thing ever, that would probably be cupcakes or rock candies, but still pretty amazing, am I right?”

“Um, I think—”

“So, whatcha doing here with that sad face?” Pinkie’s voice dipped low and she pulled her lips into an impossibly deep frown. “It’s a sunny day, the little birdies are chirp-chirp-a’cherpin’, and our Dashie’s come home and brought a new friend for everypony to meet!” Pinkie squealed and excitedly clopped her hooves together.

Fluttershy’s face darkened and her ears fell flat at the mention of Rainbow, a small gesture that didn’t go unnoticed by Pinkie.

“Hey,” Pinkie said, her voice and tone instantly shifting to a quiet, some might say indoor voice. “What’s the matter, Fluttershy? You look all sad all of a sudden.”

“Oh, um…” The canary mare blushed and her gaze shifted back and forth as though she was looking for the nearest escape route. “I’m sorry. It...It’s nothing, really.”

“You can tell me,” Pinkie said, a reassuring smile on her lips. “We’re friends, and a friend is always there to listen when you need it, right?”

Fluttershy’s ears perked, then splayed out again as her eyes drifted down to the checkered tablecloth. Indecision gripped at her mind and held her tongue into a long silence that settled between them like a heavy cloud over rain soaked fields. Hesitantly, she nodded and looked up to meet Pinkie’s gaze.

“That...yes, yes they do.”

Pinkie gave a self-satisfied nod. “Well come on, I’m all ears! Well, maybe not literally all ears cause that’d just be silly, but the ears I got are the best at listening!”

“It’s just, well, I was thinking,” Fluttershy began, her hooves fidgeting with the cup in front of her. “About Rainbow Dash and how upset we made her today.”

“Oh, that reminds me,” Pinkie darted around the table so she was sitting next to Fluttershy. “Dashie said you’ve known about her…” Pinkie rolled her hoof through the air in tiny circles as she struggled with how to phrase herself. “...thing for a long time, right?”

“Yes,” Fluttershy answered, unable to shake a certain level of discomfort in where the conversation seemed to be heading. “She, um, she told me before her dad, I think.”

“Tell me about it?”

Fluttershy looked away from her friend, her hooves rubbing together anxiously. “I don’t know Pinkie…”

“I Pinkie Promise not to tell a soul,” Pinkie said, crossing her heart with a hoof.

With a weary sigh, Fluttershy lowered her head and went quiet for a few moments. Pinkie waited patiently, giving the introverted mare all the time she needed to gather her thoughts. As the seconds stretched into minutes, a pink hoof came to rest on Fluttershy’s shoulder. The simple contact was enough to draw Fluttershy’s attention back to the moment, and more importantly, to her story.

“I was sixteen, Rainbow had just turned fifteen. I guess I never really noticed when she started acting...well, different.”

Fluttershy’s wings fidgeted at her sides. “She asked me to go flying with her one day after school and after a little while we found a really nice cloud that was off on its own.” A nostalgic sigh escaped the canary-colored mare. “It was a really nice talk we had. I think it might’ve been the first time we had a real heart to heart conversation.”

Pinkie Pie nodded her head once, her expression momentarily neutral. “What happened then?”

“Rainbow said there something she wanted to tell me,” Fluttershy voice trailed off into near silence and she squirmed uncomfortably in her seat.

Pinkie nodded, understanding what Fluttershy was referring to. “And how did you feel at that point?”

Fluttershy hesitated for a time and her eyes shifted to and fro as she struggled for the right word. “Uncomfortable, I guess.”

“That’s good, that’s how it’s supposed to feel.” Pinkie’s tone was gentle and her expression offering a sense of understanding.

“It is?” Fluttershy leaned back, her wings stretching half open and her eyes widening.

“Look, Fluttershy.” Pinkie reached out to place her hooves on the pegasus’ shoulders. “I just wanna help Rainbow through this.”

“You keep saying that, but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with her. I mean, is it really wrong for..." Fluttershy’s canary-yellow cheeks flushed to a subtle shade of pink. “Well, you know.”

Pinkie tilted her head and furrowed her brows. “Well of course it is, silly filly.”

“But how do you know that? I mean lots of ponies are born lots of different ways, right? Isn’t that kind of like saying it’s wrong to be born with brown eyes instead of blue eyes?”

Pinkie giggled behind a hoof and shook her head. “No, cause that’s just natural.”

“And, erm,” Fluttershy mewled, not wanting to say the word out loud, particularly in such a publish space. “What Rainbow likes isn’t?”

“Well it is, I suppose, but think of it like crooked teeth or a broken leg. They’re accidents, but they’re fixed with a bit of time and a whole lotta love!” Pinkie said with a bold confidence.

“But—”

A pink hoof stopped Fluttershy’s response easily enough. “Think about it this way, Fluttershy: Gummy is a baby gator. He’s s’posed to have lots of sharp teefs for nippin’ and a’ nommin’ on stuff. But he doesn’t!” Fluttershy leaned in until her nose was literally pressed against the older mare’s. “You know why?”

A spark of anger flashed behind her blue eyes. She knew better than anypony why Gummy lacked teeth; poachers often did terrible things to animals, the results of which were sold to alchemists, jewelers, and who knew how many other interests. Her lips formed a thin tight line as Fluttershy offered the slightest of nods.

“Through no fault of his own, Gummy is what he is. That doesn’t make him less of an alligator though, just a bit different. Still, he gums at us because that’s what gators do. That’s how nature intended it to be.” Pinkie allowed herself a confident nod. “It’s the same with this...well not exactly the same cause ponies don’t chew on each other, well, except for Pound and Pumpkin with they’re fighting but that’s not the point!” Pinkie took a breath. “Anyway, mares and stallions are supposed to be with each other. Mares and mares, stallions and stallions, they can love each other like I love my sisters, but that’s a different kind of love. You get what I mean?”

“I...I think so,” Fluttershy answered with a little nod.

Pinkie smiled again. “Then will you help me?”

“Help?” Fluttershy seemed confused for a moment. “With what?”

“Fixing Dashie! And Spitfire too!”

“I don’t know, Pinkie…” Fluttershy shook her head. “I don’t know if it’s right….I-I wouldn’t want to hurt their feelings.”

“We’re not gonna hurt them, Fluttershy. We’re gonna help them to help themselves.” Pinkie promised, her hoof giving Fluttershy’s shoulder a reassuring pat. “Rainbow Dash and Spitfire are like big knots of yarn inside. They just need a little help to untangle.” She smiled almost sadly. “I feel so bad for them, Fluttershy. I just can’t stand to see Dashie and Spitfire hurt themselves like this.” Looking her friend in the eye, Pinkie silently pleaded for the older mare’s aid.

“I…” Fluttershy felt her will shrivel away. “Alright, Pinkie...I’ll..I’ll help.”

Pinkie’s grin brightened and her hoof patted Fluttershy’s back. “You’re a great friend, Fluttershy.”

Fluttershy wished she could share in the earth pony’s confidence. “What do we do?”

“Hmmm….” Pinkie tapped her hoof against her chin, pursing her lips in thought. “You know where Scootaloo is?”

Across town, Applejack, Twilight, and Spitfire finished piling several bags of groceries into the woven basket of Twilight’s balloon. Nearby sat Rainbow Dash, her set jaw and splayed ears complimenting the irritated look on her face.

“Can I please help with some of that?” Rainbow asked, not at all for the first time. “I can lift a grocery bag, you know.”

Spitfire shook her head and offered Rainbow a sympathetic smile. “You have a strict weight limit and doctors orders to take it easy. Heck, if your dad knew I let walk all over town today he’d personally tan my hide.”

“We ain’t never met Rainbow’s pa,” Applejack said after setting the last canvas bag into the basket. “What’s he like?”

Spitfire chuckled, her eyes moving from the farmer to her weathermare. “If Rainbow dumps me he said he’d take me.”

“What...really?” Twilight’s jaw fell open. “That’s just—”

“He was joking, Twilight!” Rainbow shouted, immediately cringing from the effort. “Stupid chest.”

Applejack shook her head, watching with concern as Spitfire instantly moved from the balloon to Rainbow. “Y’okay, Rainbow?”

“Yeah.”

“You lyin?”

“...Yeah.”

“Alrighty then, just checking.” Applejack said with a satisfied nod.

“Are you sure you’ve got everything you need, Rainbow?” Twilight asked, looking from the stuffed balloon to her friend.

Rainbow nodded once. “Yeah, we should be good for be basics. Besides, with your balloon it’ll be easy to just float back down whenever we gotta.”

“And I’m sure the both of ya featherheads’ll be flappin’ round town just like new.” Applejack said,

Despite the optimistic tone, Applejack’s words did nothing more than remind the pegasi what they had lost. Both Spitfire and Rainbow let their faces fall to a sullen expression as they considered their situation. To a pegasus, even a day without flight was an all but unbearable trial. It denied them of their very nature, of everything that was central to their being.

Sensing the downturn in their moods, Twilight moved closer and offered a bright, optimistic smile. “So what do you two plan on doing while you’re back in town? Ponyville may not be the biggest place, but there’s lots to do.”

“Thanks, Twilight.” Rainbow wrapped a hoof around Spitfire’s back and with a grunt hauled herself onto all four hooves. “I think we’re gonna take it...easy.” Rainbow’s face twisted like the word itself was a bitter apple left to soak in a bath of lemon juice and vinegar. “At least for a couple days.”

A pointed snort escaped Applejack. “Well I’ll be darned, Rainbow, it’s almost like you developed a sense of personal responsibility. I’m guessin’ a bit a city life was jus’ the thing.”

“Maybe the night life,” Spitfire shot back with a wink.

“Night life?” Twilight head moved right in a quizzical tilt. “Oh, like the plays on mane street? I hear they’re amazing! Did you catch any of them?”

“Well there was the one I caught,” Spitfire’s hoof rubbed at her chin. “I don’t remember much of the plot, but there was this really interesting cat in the middle.”

“You’re the worst,” Rainbow mumbled under her breath as her cheeks burned furiously.

It only took a moment for Applejack’s eyes to widen as the implication hit her like a bout of gastric distress. With one ochre hoof she reached up and pulled her crumpled stetson down and over her eyes. Once her face was sufficiently covered, she let loose a mighty groan.

“I don’t get it,” Twilight said.

“I’ll tell yah when you’re older,” the despondent apple farmer promised.

“Okay!” Rainbow forced her body forward. “I’m gonna go home now! if you see Fluttershy could you have her bring Tank around when she’s got a minute?”

“Sure thing, Rainbow,” Twilight answered with a smile. Leaning forward, Twilight wrapped her forelegs around Rainbow, pulling the smaller mare into a gentle hug. “We’re all so glad you’re back.”

Rainbow hugged her friend back. “I’m sorry I dodged you guys for so long, I just...I just needed a little time.”

Applejack offered a simple shrug. “Aw, shucks, we understand, R.D. Even if one or two are a teeny bit confused.”

“Thanks, Applejack,” Rainbow said, pulling away from Twilight’s embrace and moving towards the farmpony.

Unlike Twilight, Applejack leaned away from Rainbow’s open hooves. “And jus’ what are you doing there, missy?”

“I…I thought you wanted to hug…” Rainbow’s ears folded back.

Applejack snorted and shook her head as an almost bemused grin pulled her lips into a bright smile. “Wow did you read that one wrong, Rainbow.” Applejack started to turn away, only to suddenly pull Rainbow into a tight embrace. “I was just funnin’ with ya, R.D.”

“Oof, easy on the ribs there, Applejack!” Rainbow wheezed, through her forelegs did return the embrace.

“Sorry, sugarcube,” Applejack chuckled as she pulled away. “You two featherheads remember to come down to Equestria now and again.”

“We will,” Spitfire promised, stepping forward to drape her good wing across Rainbow’s back. She gave her marefriend a little squeeze, earning a shy smile from the younger mare.

Together, Rainbow and Spitfire stepped into the balloon’s loaded basket and pulled the door closed behind them. After ensuring once again that Rainbow knew how to operate it, Twilight released the anchor line and waved as the pegasi slowly ascended to their natural altitude. They sat in silence for the few short minutes that the ride took, their bodies gently resting against each other as they gazed across the green fields and rolling hills that surrounded Ponyville.

“Dash?”

“Yeah?” Rainbow nuzzled her cheek into the crook of Spitfire’s neck.

“How’re you feeling?” Spitfire asked, her good wing stretching out to wrap Rainbow in a soft embrace.

“With my hooves.”

Spitfire snorted. “Smartass.”

Rainbow chuckled to herself and gave Spitfire a small shrug. “I’m okay, Spitfire, really.”

“You sure? You look like you’ve just flown a marathon.”

A sigh, soft and melancholic, escaped the younger mare. “I’ll be fine in a minute.”

Spitfire’s wing tightened its grip around Rainbow. “You know, Dash, it’s okay to take it easy. No pony’s gonna think any less of you, especially not me.”

Rainbow said nothing, her eyes gazing out across the peaceful, sunlit fields of Equestria.

As the balloon reached the cumulous platform cloud that formed the foundation of Rainbow’s home, Spitfire took the anchor rope in her teeth and hopped out of the basket. Her hooves landed on the soft cloud with an almost inaudible whompf, and it took Spitfire considerable restraint not to frolick in the soft clouds. Weeks of being forced to live like an earth pony or unicorn did strange things to the mind.

She made quick work of securing the balloon to the platform while Rainbow tossed one of the anchor bags over the side to hold it there. Once both mares were sure the balloon was stable and safe, Rainbow opened the basket door and promptly melted into the soft cloud with a loud, approving moan. Spitfire was about to join her, at least until she got a proper look at Rainbow’s home.

Well, perhaps ‘home’ wasn’t quite the word she was looking for.

“Holy crap, Dash!” Spitfire’s good wing flared out as she gawped at the extravagant mansion before her. “This place is huge!”

Rainbow’s cheeks flushed and she lowered her head to rest in the cloud. “It’s not that big.”

“Is that real liquid rainbow in those fountains?”

“Yeah…”

“Did that come with the place or how did you get that?” Spitfire shook her head in disbelief. In Manehattan, Rainbow had been frugal with her spending. It had left Spitfire with the mental image of a mare that lived in a small apartment, or perhaps roomed with another pegasus to eek out a living. The mansion before her had to cost more then Spitfire had earned in her career.

Sensing the disconnect, Rainbow slowly pushed herself onto her hooves and moved closer to Spitfire. “I think Grandpa had them installed. This was his summer home back when I was little. Dad and I would come visit him here all the time when I was a filly.”

“He doesn’t still live in there does he?” Spitfire made a nervous chuckle. “I mean, I’m sure your grandpa’s an awesome pony, but--”

“No, no,” Rainbow waved a hoof frantically. “Grandpa hasn’t lived here in forever. He stays in Cloudsdale pretty much year round now.”

“Ah.” Spitfire stared at the residence for a few moments longer. “It’s a beautiful place, Rainbow.”

“Grandpa would be thrilled to hear you say that, he designed it himself.”

“Very cool!” A bright, genuine smile pulled at Spitfire’s lips as she draped her good wing across Rainbow’s back. “So, how much for a tour?”

Rainbow snickered and lifted a hoof to her chin, pretending to think on the question. “Hmm….I don’t know….How about a kiss?”

With a soft chuckle, Spitfire leaned closer until her lips pressed against Rainbow’s. Both mares felt their eyes drift shut as they leaned into the kiss, and Spitfire lifted a hoof to stroke through the back of Rainbow’s unkempt mane. Their eyes opened as they parted, small, affectionate smiles on their lips as they looked into each other’s eyes.

“Hey, Dash?”

“Hey, Spitfire?”

Spitfire leaned in again, her voice dropping to a whisper. “Take two, they’re small.”

Their lips met for a second time as Rainbow let out a little giggle. Her right foreleg lifted up and slid around Spitfire’s neck in a loose hug. The kiss lasted only a few short moments before they separated, both mares wearing small smiles and gazing longingly into one anothers eyes.

“Love you,” Rainbow whispered.

Spitfire nuzzled at Rainbow, her own forelegs returning the hug. “Love you too.”

“Come on.” The former weathermare motioned her head towards the waiting home. “Let me show you around the place.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Spitfire nodded as she moved to the basket and bit down on one of the canvas grocery bags to lift it. Rainbow’s offers to help fell on deaf ears, as did her complaints when Spitfire prodded her towards the door.

Stepping inside the mansion, Spitfire almost dropped the bag she had been holding. Setting it down, she shook her head and rubbed at her eyes. The foyer led to a wide open space that held the stairs to the upper floors and two alcoves that split into the kitchen and living room. Perhaps the most striking thing Spitfire noticed off-hoof were the twin wonderbolts statues that guarded the impressive cloud doors.

Spitfire’s lips spread into an impish grin as the better angels of her nature took a poorly timed lunch break.

“Dash, why is there lipstick stain on this mare’s lips?” Spitfire asked, her hoof prodding one of the statues.

Rainbow stiffened noticeably as she turned to face her marefriend. “What? N-No there isn’t!”

“Wrong lips, Dash.”

“...oh for the love of…” Rainbow groaned, her hoof slapping hard against her forehead. “Do you actually kiss your mother with that mouth?”

Spitfire looked to Rainbow with half lidded eyes and a sly grin on her lips. She sauntered around the statue before walking over to Rainbow where she nuzzled at her marefriend, a golden hoof running through the younger mare’s mane.

“I certainly kiss you with it,” Spitfire whispered into Rainbow’s ear.

Rainbow couldn’t help a soft chuckle. “You’re terrible.”

“I know, I’m a bad filly.” Spitfire stuck out her tongue. “Go lay down, I’ll put the groceries away and then we’ll just relax for a while.”

“You sure?”

Spitfire nodded and smiled. “I got this, don’t you worry.”

Escorting Rainbow into the living room, Spitfire got her marefriend settled onto the plush cloud couch. With one final hug, the Wonderbolt moved back to the balloon and gathered up all the bags she could carry. Three trips later, and ten minutes gawping at the elaborate architecture, she had finished her task and moved back into the living room.

For the first time she actually took stock of the opulent room. While Rainbow’s personal possessions weren’t that out of the ordinary, they stood out against the classical look of the home. Flight magazines from multiple publishers, Daring Do books piled haphazardly onto the bookshelves, a semi-organized record collection next to an ornate record player that looked older then Rainbow and Spitfire combined.

“Whoa,” Spitfire gasped, approaching the player with a sense of reverence. “This thing is amazing, Dash!”

Rainbow looked to the mare from her spot on the sofa. “It’s grandpa’s, he left it here when he moved to Cloudsdale.”

“Can...can I try it out?” Spitfire asked, tapping her forehooves together like an excited filly.

“Go for it, some music sounds good.”

Spitfire looked at the record that was currently sitting on the table of the player. The name caused her to raise an eyebrow. “Who’s Bit Crosby?”

“Oooold artist,” Rainbow answered, pushing herself slowly onto her hooves and off the couch. “Grandpa said he met him once.”

“Very cool.” Spitfire nodded.

Her dexterous feathers took the arm with care and set it onto the vinyl surface. Pushing the play button she stepped away from the box and moved closer to Rainbow. There was a soft set of pops and scraps as the needle found the groove. A quiet guitar began to play a bluesy, muted pattern. It harkened the image in Spitfire’s mind of dark wood lounge with gilded furniture and the subtle tendrils of smoke creating a dim fog around the stage. She leaned up against Rainbow as the singer began, his deep vibrato resonating in their chests.

Kiss me once, then kiss me twice
Then kiss me once again
It's been a long, long time

“Rainbow?” Spitfire nuzzled the smaller mare.

“Mmhmm?”

Spitfire moved so she was standing in front of Rainbow, their noses lightly brushing together. She smiled an almost shy smile as she took Rainbow’s hoof in her own. “May I have this dance?”

Heat bloomed beneath Rainbow’s cheeks, though it was soon replaced with a small smile. “Always.”

Haven't felt like this, my dear
Since I can't remember when
It's been a long, long time

Ever conscious of Rainbow’s limitations, Spitfire led them in a slow waltz. Their bodies swayed gently in rhythm to the music. Rainbow closed her eyes and leaned against Spitfire, content to let to older mare lead her. In turn, Spitfire nuzzled Rainbow’s mane, breathing deep the scent of static and spring rain.

You'll never know how many dreams
I've dreamed about you
Or just how empty they all seemed without you

“Hey, Rainbow?” Spitfire whispered, her nose bumping the weather mares.

Rainbow giggled and smiled to her marefriend. “Take two, they’re small.”

“Yes ma’am.” Spitfire leaned forward, her lips gently meshing with Rainbow’s.

So kiss me once, then kiss me twice
Then kiss me once again
It's been a long, long time

Author's Note

I'm back, bitches!

Dibs

“So, miss Fleetfoot, how’re you likin’ bein’ a farmhoof?” Applebloom grinned up at the worn out pegasus mare.

Fleetfoot bit back a groan. There had been a time when she had thought she wanted foals of her own. Upon further reflection she had come to realize that ‘time’ had been somewhere between her fourth and fifth shot of tequila, though the involvement of other alcohols was not at all out of the realm of possibility.

Allegedly there was also a fair bit of crying that night. Fleetfoot had no such memory of that accusation.

Sensing that in this case honesty was in fact the worst possible policy, Fleetfoot took a moment to think up a more diplomatically acceptable response. "You get used to it." Offering the filly a small but genuine smile, Fleetfoot continued. "I'm just glad I get to fly so much. It'd be a real drag to be stuck pulling carts around all day."

The stunned look on the fillies face probably should’ve been Fleetfoot’s first clue she had once again fumbled on diplomacy.

“I mean, not that there’s anything wrong with hauling carts!” Fleetfoot reared back on her haunches, her front hooves waving in front of her and her wing spread for balance. “It’s a totally good and noble, erm, profession? Yeah! And I totally, totally, respect the work your brother and sister do! Hay, I wish I was a big and strong as an earth pony, then I could do a rain—” Her words died on her tongue and Fleetfoot’s posture sagged.

The sudden shift was more than enough to catch Applebloom’s attention, and the small filly took a cautious step closer to the pegasus.

“Um, miss Fleetfoot?” Applebloom’s hoof gingerly prodded Fleetfoot’s side. “Miss Fleetfoot, are you alright?”

The touch, gentle as it was, seemed enough to pull Fleetfoot from her thoughts. With a quick shake of her head, the mare stood up. Her wings twitched at her sides and her heart started to race. “Yeah, yeah, sorry, kid. I just...”

Applebloom tilted her head at the older mare, one eyebrow arching upwards as she waited to see if Fleetfoot intended to finish that thought. Instead of speaking, Fleetfoot gave a quiet laugh and tousled Applebloom’s mane.

“Sorry, kiddo. I gotta step outside for a bit. Clear my head, you know?”

“Um, okay?” Applebloom answered, though her confusion wasn’t hard to miss.

Fleetfoot walked out of the living room and past the kitchen on her way to the door. The aromatic smell of roasting vegetables, onions caramelized to a rich golden brown, succulent carrots glazed in their own sugars, crisp celery tenderized by an even heat, and the earthy aroma of a perfectly baked squash, all of it made her mouth water. On top of the counter sat five cups of cooling raspberry crumble, the brown sugar crust still glazed from the oven. It was all Fleetfoot could do to avoid sampling the decadent treats as she hastened her pace outside.

On the porch she discovered Granny smith, the elderly matron of the Apple family seemed comfortably ensconced in her rocking chair which rolled back and forth with a gentle creak. Fleetfoot paused a moment, memories of her own grandmother rushing into her mind. Nostalgia swept her up in its evanescent wings and carried her far from the dirt fields of the orchard to the pristine skies of Cloudsdale.

Noticing she was no longer alone, Granny Smith put on a warm smile and turned to look directly at Fleetfoot. Her kindly expression dimmed at the sight of the pegasus, replaced by cautious worry.

“What’s the matter, darlin’? Ya’ll look like ya jus’ laid yer dog to rest.”

"Huh?" Fleetfoot leaned away with her wings half open as though the simple comment had startled her. “Oh, um, I’m sorry, ma’am. What’d you say?”

A patient smile grew on the old mare’s face. “I asked what’s the matter, darlin’. Ya’ll look like you got’cher head up in the clouds.”

Fleetfoot shook her head, her wings stretching out and fluttering anxiously for a moment. “It’s nothing, Ma—”

“Pshaw!” Granny Smith cut Fleetfoot off with a wave of her hoof. “Call me Granny, I ain’t nopony’s ‘ma’am’. Ma’ams are for princesses and fancy ponies. Round here we ain’t nothing but simple farmers."

Fleetfoot gave a quiet laugh, the old mare's words putting her somewhat at ease. "I'll keep that in mind...Granny."

"See, ain't that easier then ma'am?" Granny Smith's head bobbed in a self-satisfied nod. "Now then, what's eatin' atcha, darlin?"

"It's..." Fleetfoot paused for a moment, unsure of what exactly to tell Granny Smith. The Apple family had been nothing but kind to her. And, with the exception of Apple Bloom's foalish inquiries, they had been extremely respectful of her privacy. "Just a little homesick I guess."

"Ahh, I see." Granny Smith closed her eyes as her head nodded. "Well, iffin there's anythin at all we can do round here to help ya feel more comfortable, jus' let me or Applejack know."

"I will, Granny." Fleetfoot said, a small smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. "I think I'll just take a little flight to clear my head."

Granny Smith waved her off with her withered hoof. "Off you get then. Oh, and iffin' you should see Big Macintosh wandrin' round, tell him to git his hinder in gear and come on home. Supper's almost ready."

Fleetfoot sat back on her haunches, her back straight and her breast puffed out. Her right foreleg shot up into a crisp salute. "You got it, Granny!"

Stepping off the wooden porch, Fleetfoot took a moment to stretch her wings and look up into the vast blue skies. She crouched low, legs coiling under her before she leapt into the air, her wings giving a quick set of powerful flaps to gain altitude. She turned her ascent into a tight corkscrew, rocketing above the treetops with total ease.

Her wings flared out and her feathers spread wide to catch the air, stalling her ascent and holding her aloft mere feet from the treetops. A warm breeze danced through her coat and tousled her icy mane. She savored every moment her feathers spent drinking in the gentle Ponyville air.

With a burst of energy, Fleetfoot threw herself into a tight loop, the world inverting briefly in her view before she stabilized herself on a straight line to the north. The trees flashed below her as she flew faster and faster with every flap. The full, healthy leaves rustled in the wind like thousands upon thousands of muted applause for her performance.

Peering down, Fleetfoot spied herself a perfect practice course among the thick trunks of the apple orchard. It was by any definition a reckless idea, and she could already hear Spitfire, Soarin’, and Arcus in her ears calling her a madmare for even thinking of it.

Fleetfoot scoffed. Spitfire’s hypocrisy on what constituted a reckless idea was no standard to live by.

Folding her right wing in, Fleetfoot rolled beneath the canopy and powered forward. Her senses focused entirely on what was in front of her. She dodged the trees that whipped past her, sometimes cutting it close enough to feel the rough bark graze the tips of her primaries. Adrenaline surged through her veins; she needed to push it further.

She flew as low as she could, her wings fighting for every millimeter of lift they could provide. A hill filled her vision and Fleetfoot narrowly managed to keep from crashing headlong into it. She flew along the incline, spotting a tree at the top she would pivot around to make in a different direction. What she didn’t see was the stallion relaxing on the other side of said tree, at least until she crashed headlong into him.

Both ponies let out a loud, indignant yelp as they tumbled down the other side of the hill. Fleetfoot cursed and moaned as she bounced and rolled down, coming to a stop only as her back hit a tree. There she waited a while, head spinning on the grass while her hips and back rested on the trunk.

She’d had more dignified landings. Then again, she’d had one or two less.

“Ow,” Fleetfoot groaned, rubbing at her forehead with a hoof. “Anypony get the number of that train?”

“I think y’all ran into a different kinda caboose there, missy,” a baritone voice answered through a groan.

Fleetfoot’s eyes shot open, and in her inverted view she observed the sprawled form of a large red stallion. He made a quiet groan as he pulled himself back onto his hooves, rubbing at his backside with one hoof while grimacing. Fleetfoot didn't know what was worse; that she'd crashed into her boss, or that she'd plowed head first into his plot.

Scrambling to get herself into an upright and at least somewhat dignified position, Fleetfoot silently thanked the heavens that she hadn't broken anything before launching into a flurry of apologies.

"I am so, so, sorry, Mac! I was just having a little fly through the trees for some fun! I didn't think anypony would be out here at this hour!” Fleetfoot apologized, her hooves brushing the grass and dirt from his coat.”Are you okay? Please tell me I didn’t just bust the bosses ass!”

Big Mac opened his mouth, only to close it and raise an eyebrow at Fleetfoot’s comment.

It took a moment for Fleetfoot to realize why the stallion was staring at her, and a faint heat built in her cheeks as the realization took hold. “Pardon my mouth,” she said in a sheepish laugh, her ears folding back. “I swear, it’s like the thing’s got a mind of it’s own sometimes, heh, hah...eheh…” Fleetfoot’s hoof pawed at the grass anxiously. “So, um… are you okay?”

“Eeyup,” Big Mac answered simply, unsure of exactly how to follow up the answer. He silently thanked his lucky stars Applejack was off with her friends and Granny Smith was well away from where they stood. He could already hear their endless badgering in his ears. “Are you alright?”

“I’m okay,” Fleetfoot said, her wings stretching out to show they were unharmed. “Just bruised my pride a little.”

“Well that’s good,” Mac said with a nod and a simple smile. “I’d hate ta think you’d hurt yourself.”

Fleetfoot pshawed and waved Mac off with a wing. “It’ll take more than that to stop me, but thanks for worrying.”

Mac nodded, though his attention was more on the ground than Fleetfoot. After a few moments of silence, Fleetfoot realized that the earth pony was actively looking for something. She squirmed anxiously as she tried to decide if she should stay and help or quietly nip off. Mac answered the question for her as he found what he was looking for and quickly tucked the small item into a rugged saddlebag he’d left leaning against the tree. Fleetfoot strained to get a look at what he had, but found her view blocked by Mac’s large hoof.

“So,” Big Mac said, turning to face the mare. “What can I do for ya, Miss Fleetfoot?”

“Huh?” Fleetfoot startled, jumping back so she wasn’t so conspicuously trying to spy on Big Macintosh’s business. “Oh, um, nothing really! Your grandma said that dinner was ready though.”

The oversized stallion nodded once before tucking his snout under the strap of his saddlebag. With a flick of his head, the rugged leather bags were tossed into the air where they landed securely on his back. He adjusted them with a hoof to ensure they were sitting comfortably before turning to Fleetfoot.

“You comin?” he asked with a smile.

Fleetfoot felt that peculiar heat in her cheeks again. With a smile and a nod, she moved astride Big Mac and looked up at him. “Lead the way, boss.”

Nodding again, Big Mac motioned his head in the direction of the farmhouse and started walking at an easy pace down the hill. Fleetfoot kept pace beside him, her mind swirling with unspoken questions and concerns. If Mac noticed her consternation he made no comment on it, which Fleetfoot certainly appreciated.

Well, to a point at least.

“Say, Big Macintosh?” Fleetfoot asked hesitantly.

He spared her the smallest of glances as he responded. “Mmhmm?”

“I just wanted to say...well, thanks.”

“What for?” Big Mac asked, genuinely unsure what he’d done.

Fleetfoot shrugged, her wings fidgeting at her sides. “You know, for being so nice to me since I got here.”

“T’ain’t nothin’.”

“Still, I really do appreciate it.”

“Mah pleasure.”

Fleetfoot smiled up at the large stallion. She would never be a farm pony, it wasn’t in her blood, it wasn’t in her soul. But maybe, just maybe, there was a couple of bright spots to farm life.

Far from the idyllic hills and valleys of Ponyville, the floating metropolis of Cloudsdale drifted over the fields of Equestria. The mighty city was abuzz with activity, even as the sun drew closer to the horizon heralding the arrival of night. If anything the coming darkness only brought a new side of life to the ancient city as ponies gathered all around for various festivities.

Away from the city center, near the legendary Cloudsdale Colosseum sat the polished cloudstone towers of the Wonderbolts Headquarters. The facade of the building, made to resemble a basilica from the era of Hurricane, was lined with expertly crafted columns in the Ionic style. Each of their capitals was carved in the form of legendary pegasi, each supporting the weight of decorated tympanum on their backs. The tympanum itself was an elaborate relief carving, telling the history of the Wonderbolts in solid cloudstone.

Inside the building, the main doors were locked and the lights were dimmed. To the outside world it was meant to appear that the Wonderbolts had closed up shop for the evening, with the legendary fliers having all gone to their disparate homes. It was a simple deception however, as in reality the entire team had gathered in the main break room along with a substantial assortment of alcohols and catered food. A large multicolored banner was strung above the doors with the word “CONGRATULATIONS!” written in big, bold, letters.

The focus of the festivities was Soarin’ and Rapidfire, both of whom stood side by side in the center of the room, shaking hooves with the ponies that made up the flight squad. Rapidfire revelled in the moment, Soarin’ couldn’t help but feel a lingering sense of trepidation that had soured his mood since well before they had returned to Cloudsdale.

“Check it out, Boss, we got Jager shots!” Wavechill called, his face split in a toothy grin and two empty shot glasses held in his right wing. “You want a couple?”

“Sweet Celestia, no!” Soarin’ said, almost leaping away from the offending stallion.

“What’s the matter, Soarin’?” Blaze asked as she slid up to him and draped a wing over his back. With a wicked grin she leaned up until her muzzle was hovering millimeters from his ear. “Chicken?”

“Twenty bits says that regardless of how hard we party tonight, I’m the one that’s gonna have to actually work in the morning.” Soarin’ said with a frown.

“Probably!” Blaze nodded, her bright grin splitting her face. She hopped up and pulled Soarin’ into a tight hug. “Congrats again, boss!”

Soarin’ chuckled and returned the hug. He felt a modest smile pull at his own lips despite his personal misgivings. “Thanks, Blaze.”

After the two parted ways, Blaze made her way to the long food table and secured herself a disposable plate. Soarin’ moved to a table where he had a small plate already filled with fruits pilfered from the appetizer trays. He didn’t know where Arcus had gotten the catering on such short notice, but he was in no way about to complain or question it.

He barely had time for more than a bite of pineapple before Rapidfire wandered over with two shot glasses balanced precariously on his foreleg. He slipped onto the table for Soarin’ and sat back on his haunches, grinning like a foal as he raised his glass.

“Have a drink, buddy?” Rapid asked.

With no small amount of hesitance, Soarin’ picked up the glass and sniffed at the dark contents. Immediately he recoiled at the smell, his nose scrunching and his lips curling in a sneer. “No thanks, Jager is nasty.”

Rapidfire giggled and slapped Soarin’ on the back with a wing before parking himself in a chair. “Relax and have a drink, Mallow, we’re celebrating our promotions!”

“Jager is not a celebration, its a pathway to destruction.” Soarin’ said with a frown.

“Oh don’t be such a sourpuss,” Misty said, brushing up against Soarin’ with what he was sure was her fourth shot in hoof. “S’not everyday we get a—” Misty paused for a hiccup that sounded more like a vomit warning. “A new bosslady.”

Restraining a growl, though just barely, Soarin’ carefully extricated himself from Misty’s grasp and moved to a safer spot. “I’m am nowhere near properly equipped to be anypony’s bosslady.”

“I don’t know,” Wavechill teased, a wicked grin on his lips. “You do got some nice hips there, boss.”

“Hey, I got dibs on those! Find your own!” Rapid said with a raucous laugh.

“Says who you got dibs, that’s a mighty fine ass.” Blaze gave Rapid’s shoulder a playful jab while her eyes lingered on Soarin’

“You’re all bastards,” Soarin’ grumbled, feeling slightly self-conscious with the sudden attention.

Sensing things might be getting out of hoof, Rapid hopped off his chair and moved to the center of the room. “Oi, listen up you crazy bastards!”

“That’s Mr. Crazy Bastard to you, brats!” Arcus shouted back.

A loud laugh escaped Rapid, and he held up his shot glass to Arcus. “Yes sir! Mr. Crazy Bastard, Sir!”

“Get on with the show!” Lightning Streak called from the far end of the bar. “The booze is getting warm and the food’s getting cold!”

Soarin’ snorted; Lightning clearly missed the memo regarding cold cuts.

“Fine, fine! Yeesh, you’re more impatient than a buncha greenwings waiting for their flight suits.” Rapid shook his head and cleared his throat. “Friends, very close enemies, and ugly sons-a-bitches—”

Most of the room cheered loudly at the term while the rest flashed lewd, but good natured, gestures at Rapid. The golden stallion grinned brighter, his tail swishing and his wings flicking at his sides. Even Soarin’ couldn’t help an amused shake of his head.

“I don’t know about the boss here,” Rapid said, motioning to Soarin’ with a hoof, “But flying with all of you has been one of the greatest honors of my life. I never expected to be here, and I never expected to become El-Tee, but damned if I’m not gonna give it all I got.”

“Here, here!” the Wonderbolts cheered, their hooves stomping in approval.

Rapidfire gave them a moment to quiet down before he continued. “Really though, I have big shoes to fill.” Turning around, Rapid shot Soarin’ a respectful smile. “Soarin’, you were the best Lieutenant a Wonderbolt could ask for, and I know you’ll make a fantastic Captain.”

As a renewed wave of applause, whistles, and cheers filled the room, Soarin’ felt his cheeks burn. He rose from his seat and took a deep but discreet breath as he surveyed the ponies that filled the room. Where they had all looked to Spitfire for leadership, now their attentions were focused entirely on him. Now more than ever before their lives would be in his hooves. His decisions, his plans would have a direct impact on all of their lives, be that for the best, or the worst. It made Soarin’s mouth dry and his heart race; he had never wanted that kind of responsibility.

Sucking down another lungful of air, Soarin’ spoke softly. “All my life… all my life I never thought I’d be here. Here, surrounded by some of the best fliers in the world.” Soarin’ paused a moment to look each pony in the eye. “There’s been good times, there’s been bad, and there will be more of both in the future. Still, there’s no ponies in the world I’d rather fly with.”

Reaching over, Soarin’ took his drink in his hoof, and likewise the team mirrored his action with their own drinks. “We few who call ourselves Wonderbolts are more than a sleek uniform whistling through the sky. We’re more than a team bound by contract and routine. We are an ideal. We are a symbol to all Ponykind. And most important of all…” Soarin’ hefted his drink into the air. “We are a family. And there’s no ponies in the world I’d be more honored to fly with than you guys.” Soarin’ put a brave smile on his face, though inside he felt like a leaf trembling in the autumn wind.

“Well,” he said, lowering his drink to his snout. “That’s my speech. So, as they say in Germaneigh; prost!”

With that Soarin’ led his team as they slammed back their drinks.

Bifrost’s wings twitched as he walked through the ornately decorated halls of his father’s Cloudsdale home. Extravagant carpets imported from the furthest corners of the world lined the floors, and beautifully crafted tables of rich walnut wood had been bestowed with expensive enchantments to keep them from passing through the strong cloudstone floors. Paintings, many priceless in nature and done in all styles and mediums lined the halls in golden frames. There was at least one in his father’s study that was a very expensive family portrait commissioned when Bifrost and his siblings were young.

It was one of the few times Bifrost had ever worn a proper suit.

A quick shake of his head jarred the nostalgic thoughts loose, and Bifrost moved just a bit quicker down the hall. His trek came to an end outside of a heavy set of polished walnut doors. From inside he could hear soft music playing, a sign his father was at the very least in his office. He never left his gramophone playing if he wasn’t there to enjoy it.

Lifting his right forehoof, Bifrost gave the door two gentle knocks before pushing it open.

His father stood towards the back of the office, standing in front of an old gramophone built of zitan wood that had been hoof carved with a rich tapestry of pegasus inlays. The engravings ran the whole length of the cabinet, telling the storied history of the pegasi from the ancient times, to the Era of Hurricane, to the founding of Equestria. Bifrost felt a nostalgic shiver run down his spine at the sight of that priceless cabinet.

The head and arm were no less opulent, made of gold and decorated with expertly crafted filigree, they seemed formed less for practical use than for being locked away behind a museum display. Certainly they hadn’t been intended for half the music Bifrost had played on them when his father hadn’t been home.

Bookshelves lined the back wall of the office with every shelf stuffed to the brim with well organized books. Several were stacked on Silver Lining’s massive desk with note cards slipped into certain sections to mark them for whatever it was the old stallion was working on. Along the far wall was a large portrait of the legendary Commander Hurricane. Silver often spoke of how the painting was commissioned by Celestia herself.

The legends also said their family line was directly descended from the Commander, though Bifrost had personally not cared if that was true or not.

“Hi, Dad,” Bifrost started, only to stop once he recognized the song playing. His expression fell flat and he shook his head. “Really?”

The older stallion merely chuckled and tutted. “What’s the matter, Frost? Lose your sense of taste while you were away?”

Bifrost straightened up his posture and put on his best aristocratic face. “Father, you’ve all the class of a noble.”

“Oh, come now, son,” Silver Lining said as he turned to face his son, a playful smile hidden behind his moustache. “There’s no need to say things we can’t take back.”

At a glance, most ponies would have never guessed the familial relation between Silver and Bifrost. Unlike Rainbow, who had taken after her father’s appearance quite heavily, Bifrost couldn’t have looked more different from his father. Silver was a tall, almost wiry stallion with a light gray coat and a black mane that was streaked with white from age. The same effected had bestowed him with a salt and pepper moustache that he had worn seemingly since birth.

Bifrost had tried to grow a moustache like Silver’s when he was a teenager. He was very glad that no photo record existed of that period.

The two pegasi stared at each other for a moment before a quiet laugh bubbled up from each of them. They shared a quick embrace before Silver moved to his desk and sat in his plush chair. Bifrost sat on the opposite side of the desk, leaning on the wood with his left foreleg.

“How are you doing, Dad?” Bifrost asked.

“Oh, Frost.” Silver leaned back in his chair with a sigh, his front hooves gently pressing together. “I’d say I was angry, but that would be the greatest understatement since the papers reported the Royal Wedding experienced some minor hiccups.”

Bifrost gave an involuntary wince; he knew where this was going. “Look, Dad--”

Silver slammed his right hoof down on the table, silencing Bifrost. “My granddaughter nearly died, and I found out in the newspaper!” Silver pointed a hoof at his son, his lips bent in a mighty scowl. “You don’t keep things like that from me, Frost. You don’t cut out family like that. Your mother and I taught you better.”

“There wasn’t time, Dad!” Bifrost shouted in his defense. “I got the message at work! Was I supposed to track around Cloudsdale and find you before going to see if my daughter was still alive?”

Silver shook his head. “Of course not, Frost. But you should have contacted me sooner. I could’ve helped.”

“And what could you have done, Dad?” Bifrost asked, his eyes meeting his father’s. “Stirred up a ruckus with the hospital board? Gotten the mayor involved?”

Silver listened to the younger stallion, a sense of sadness in his brown eyes. When Bifrost finished, Silver only made a quiet sigh. “I’d say I could have gotten specialists involved faster, ensured any missing details were taken care of, but mostly…” He paused to look his son in the eye. “I could have been there for you. Your brothers, your sister, we all would have been there for you.”

“I was fine, Dad.” Bifrost lied, earning another small sigh from his father.

“You know we all love you and Rainbow.”

“Yeah.”

“We just want to be part of your lives, Frost.”

“I know… and I’m sorry I’ve been distant lately.” Bifrost lowered his head to the floor.

It took Silver a moment to realize what Bifrost had been alluding to. His ears sank ever so slightly and a frown pulled at the corners of his mouth like tiny weights. “The Anniversary is coming up soon, isn’t it?”

Bifrost was silent, his eyes cast down. When he spoke his voice was hushed. “...Yeah.”

“You still haven’t told Rainbow, have you?”

Bifrost shook his head.

Silver leaned forward, his chair gently creaking. “She has a right to know, Frost.”

Bifrost sighed, his posture sagging noticeably. “I know. I just…. I just need more time.”

“It’s been over twenty years.” Silver said, his voice soft.

“I think I’m the last pony you need to point that out to.”

Sliding out of his chair, Silver made his way around the desk and gently put a hoof on Bifrost’s shoulder. The younger stallion at first stiffened from the contact before he settled, placing his own hoof on top of Silver’s.

“Thanks, Dad.”

Silver offered a sympathetic smile and a small nod before he removed his hoof. “So, what brings you by? Other than saying hello to your old stallion, which is always welcome.”

“It’s about Rainbow, actually.” Bifrost said, his forehooves rubbing anxiously in his lap.

“What’s wrong?” Silver asked, an eyebrow arching and his wings tensing.

“She got a letter from the Weather Commission informing her she was fired and her lightning certification was revoked.” Bifrost’s ears fell flat as he looked to his Father. “I’m trying to help her find a way to appeal the decision, preferably without months and months of bureaucratic runaround.”

Silver’s eyes narrowed as Bifrost talked, though the irritation wasn’t directed at Bifrost. “I may know a few ponies that can help.”

“Say, Dad, are you still friends with those ponies on the Weather Commission? What was the stallion’s name? Snowball? Iceface?”

“Cloudjumper?” Silver asked, his expression flat.

Bifrost only shrugged with his wings. “Sure, we’ll go with that. Does he still work on the Commission?”

Silver thought for a moment, his hoof scratching at the bottom of his moustache. “Cloudjumper...ah, no. He retired two years ago. Bought himself a winery.” Silver shuddered. “I swear he was trying to poison me with paint thinner when I tried it.”

“Maybe you deserved it.” Bifrost chuckled.

“It’s always possible.” Silver agreed with a shrug.

“Think he’d know the best way to go forward at least? Or maybe could he give us the name of the pony to talk to about the appeal process?”

“I can certainly ask him,” Silver said, pulling open his desk drawer to pull out a clean sheet of paper. With his right wing he reached over and took hold of a quill and ink. Dipping the quill, he began writing a letter.

Bifrost waited a moment, the soft scratches of the quill his only entertainment. “Did you get Rainbow’s letter?”

“Yes I did, it was quite lovely.” Silver answered as he dabbed the tip of his quill into the inkwell.

“Dad?”

“Yes, Frost?”Silver said, looking up from his paper.

Bifrost shuffled for an uncomfortable moment and chewed at his lower lip. “Did, uh, did Rainbow mention she’s found a marefriend?”

The revelation earned a modest smile from the aging pony along with the slight upward arch of an eyebrow. “Really? She hadn’t mentioned anything in her letter about it. That’s wonderful!”

“So, um, you’re okay? With her preference, I mean?” Bifrost asked, holding himself back from a sense of relief.

“Your mother had a marefriend once.”

“No she didn’t,” Bifrost said, shaking his head and glaring at his father.

Silver Lining made the smallest of shrugs with his wings and leaned back in his chair. “It was a bit before your time, Frost.”

With a mighty groan, Bifrost slapped his hoof against his forehead. “And they say I’m bad.”

Silver Lining merely chuckled and shook his head as he returned to his letter. “If Rainbow is happy, then that is all that matters.”

A relieved smile pulled at the corners of Bifrost’s lips. “Thanks, Dad.”

With a casual wave of his hoof, Silver motioned for Bifrost to leave. “This will only take a moment. Why don’t you head on over to the kitchens and make us a couple cups of tea.”

“Sure. You still like the usual stuff?”

“Of course. You remember where it’s kept.”

Bifrost nodded once before turning and exiting the office. Silver waited until he heard the doors click closed and Bifrost’s steps faded completely from his hearing. With a heavy sigh, he looked up from his letter and stared at the empty spot where his son had been mere moments earlier. He felt an old and all too familiar ache in his heart.

“Oh, Bifrost,” He said with a sigh. “If only you could find somepony to share your heart with again.”

Mornings

Like every morning since she had first woken up in a sterile room of Manehattan General Hospital, pain was the first thing Rainbow Dash felt. At the time it had been all consuming; a constant and terrible pain that stubbornly clung to every nerve in her broken body. Over the weeks, and with the aid of more drugs than she cared to admit, it had lessened to the point she was at now: less crippled and miserable than she could be.

Her face tightened, eyes squeezing closed and lips pulling into a grimace that exposed her clenched teeth. The pain she could deal with, at least most of the time. Far worse, however, was the lack of independence her injures had saddled her with.

Gone were those early morning flights through the crisp dawn air, watching the first rays of sunlight glimmer and dance across the hills and valleys of Ponyville. Gone too were the scents of dawn where the clear winds smelled of dew and grass. She couldn’t even fly over the bakeries to savor the scent of their work, and often land for her post-flight breakfast.

A pair of golden forelegs readjusted their gentle grip around Rainbow’s waist as though pulling her into a hug. Despite a mildly uncomfortable feeling from the pressure, Rainbow smiled. Even fast asleep, Spitfire had a knack for making Rainbow feel better.

Rainbow took a slow breath through her nose and carefully tried to pull away from Spitfire's grasp. The Wonderbolt's hooves only held her tighter as Spitfire's snout nuzzled into Rainbow's mane.

"Five more minutes," Spitfire mumbled.

Rainbow opened her mouth to protest, then promptly snapped it shut. What, after all, did she have to get up for anyway? She was flightless, bound to the ground, or tethered to Twilight's balloon for at least a few more weeks. Her morning flights were a thing of the past, much like her job as a weather manager.

'What?' she asked herself. 'What do I have to get up for?'

With a quiet sigh, Rainbow allowed herself to relax in her marefriend's embrace. The gentle nuzzle along the back of her neck sent a pleasant tingle down her spine and brought a smile to her lips. Closing her eyes, Rainbow let her hooves slide down and over Spitfire’s. She savored the warmth in the embrace, the unspoken promise of safety it brought. As much as she longed to be independent once again, soaring through clear skies and dancing among the endless white clouds over Equestria, perhaps there was at least one benefit to being stuck in bed.

Just for a moment, Rainbow caught herself wondering what mornings had been like before she had started dating Spitfire. She wondered how she had slept through the nights without those hooves wrapped around her belly and the warm breath that washed rhythmically across the back of her neck. How had she woken up and gone about her day knowing that she didn’t have anypony waiting for her at home?

Granted, the answers to that were laughably simple by any standard. It was a difficult thing to pine for something you’ve never experienced. Nights spent alone never felt that bad when you spent all day with your friends and coworkers. Sometimes it was those quiet moments Rainbow had longed for more than anything. As much as she loved her friends, even she needed a minute alone from time to time.

All too soon, Rainbow felt Spitfire begin to stir. The sheets dragged and crinkled as the former Wonderbolt stretched and yawned. Rainbow struggled valiantly to stave off a yawn of her own, yet soon caved in to it.

“Mornin,” Spitfire mumbled, her voice coming in a gravely purr that made Rainbow shiver.

Taking care not to move too quickly, Rainbow rolled over so she was nose to nose with Spitfire. The flutter in her heart matched the smile that blossomed across her lips when her eyes met Spitfire’s. “Hey there.”

“Mmm, I think I could get used to this,” Spitfire said, her hoof sliding along Rainbow’s side in a gentle manner.

“Laying in bed all morning?” Rainbow teased.

“Well, that too,” Spitfire said with a slight shrug. Her smile broadened as she stared into Rainbow’s eyes, a hoof reaching up to gently caress the weathermare’s cheek. “Have I told you that you’re beautiful?”

Heat blossomed in Rainbow's cheeks and she playfully jabbed Spitfire's chest with a hoof. "Quiet, you."

The gentle tap yielded a quiet laugh from Spitfire just before she leaned forward to steal an all too quick kiss. “How’re you feeling?”

A now familiar tingle ran down the length of Rainbow's spine from the kiss. Rainbow always wondered if that sensation would fade the more their lips met. So far, and so very many kisses later, it had remained as strong as the first time their lips had met on that starry Manehattan night, and Rainbow couldn't have been happier about it.

Not that she'd ever admit that to anypony.

"Sore,” she answered honestly with a small shrug. “Nothing I can’t handle though.”

“You sure?” Spitfire’s gentle hooves slid across Rainbow’s back, making the younger mare shiver in their wake.

“Hey, would I lie to you?”

The flat look on Spitfire’s face was all the answer Rainbow needed.

“You know what, on second thought, don't answer that question.”

Spitfire shrugged, her nose bumping against Rainbow’s. “How's about we get up and get some breakfast, Ms. Tough Pony."

“Food sounds good,” Rainbow agreed, forcing herself upright with a bit of effort and a stifled groan. Spitfire reached out with a foreleg to steady Rainbow if she needed it. “And maybe a shower.”

A fresh smile blossomed on Spitfire’s face, her hoof giving Rainbow’s mane a playful tousle. “I don’t know, that bedhead looks pretty good on you, Dash.”

“Right back at you,” Rainbow said, mirroring the gesture on Spitfire’s ginger locks.

“Hey, now!” Spitfire laughed, carefully batting at Rainbow’s hoof with her good wing. “I got an image to maintain!”

Sensing a precious opportunity for vengeance, Rainbow’s lips split into a cheshire grin. Leaning forward again so their noses bumped together, Rainbow slid her forelegs around Spitfire’s waist and held the mare close. “Is that what you were doing last night with the mirror?”

The Wonderbolt sat in stunned silence for several long moments as she tried to process a response. Rainbow smiled and gave herself a mental pat on the back from her moment of triumph. Stories would be told for generations of the day that Rainbow Dash had finally—

“Did you like it?”

“I...what?” Rainbow squeaked.

“I mean, all evidence certainly suggested you liked it,” Spitfire said, her tongue poking out from her lips as her eyebrows suggestively waggled.

Rainbow stared at Spitfire with a gaping mouth and an incredulous look. "You're, like, too good at doing that."

A simple shrug was all Spitfire could manage without looking too proud of herself. "It's a gift."

"You should think about returning it."

"Buck no!" Spitfire laughed out loud. Climbing out of bed, she reached out with a hoof to help Rainbow down. "Besides, how would I have fun if I did?"

"You're evil, you know that, right?" Rainbow asked, taking Spitfire's hoof and letting out a quiet grunt as she got onto her hooves.

Spitfire answered with another shrug before nuzzling alongside Rainbow. “Think you could find it in your heart to keep me?”

“Oh, I think I can do that,” Rainbow said, a little smile turning the corners of her mouth up. She leaned over to nuzzle Spitfire’s cheek, a gesture which the older mare all too happily returned. Pulling away, she motioned her head towards the kitchen. “I’m not much of a cook, but it’s pretty hard to buck up milk and cereal.”

“What about cereal and milk?”

“I hear tell only the fanciest, spiffiest, and most awesome chef in Prance is capable of cereal and milk.” Rainbow looked around conspiratorially, her eyes shifting left and right several times. She lowered her head and beckoned Spitfire closer like she was about to share the greatest of secrets. “Everypony thought it was just an old mare’s tale, but I’ve seen the truth…”

“And?” Spitfire asked impatiently, fighting to restrain her amusement.

Rainbow leaned back, flashing Spitfire a toothy grin. “And it was delicious.”

Spitfire snorted and shook her head, sending tendrils of her ginger mane drifting past her eyes. “Meet you downstairs? I’m just gonna wash up real quick.”

“I’ll be waiting,” Rainbow promised.

“With bells on?”

Rainbow lifted her hoof to her chin and pursed her lips. She made a small show of considering the question before coming to an answer. “For Hearth’s Warming, if you’re lucky.”

“Really? Spitfire asked, her curiosity peaked, though not as much as she’d let on.

“Maybe," Rainbow began, moving to gently nip at Spitfire's ear. Her voice dropped to a low whisper, allowing the natural scratch of her voice to become a sensual whisper. "If you ask real nice that is."

Spitfire grinned, bumping her hips against Rainbow’s. “Go get your breakfast, Dash. before I toss your flank back in that bed.”

“Who says I wouldn’t toss you in first?”

A simple, almost disinterested shrug was all that answered Rainbow’s challenge. With a deliberate, lazy, turn Spitfire two three paces towards the bathroom, her side rubbing against Rainbow’s. She stopped when her cutie mark was flush with Rainbow’s and craned her neck over her shoulder. The contact made Rainbow shiver and silently curse Spitfire’s less public talents.

“Any questions?” Spitfire asked with a knowing smile.

“...No,” Rainbow grumbled.

“No…” Spitfire rolled her hoof in the air expectantly.

Rainbow sagged, her cheeks burning despite their privacy. “No, ma’am.”

“That’s my girl,” Spitfire said, puffing her chest out and turning to give Rainbow a sidelong hug. Rainbow returned the embrace and gasped as she felt Spitfire’s lips on her cheek.

“Love you, Dash.”

“Love you too,” Rainbow said, her foreleg squeezing Spitfire’s shoulders. She grinned again and winked. “Ma’am.”

Pulling away, Spitfire sat back on her haunches and pointed down the hall. “Breakfast time, cadet!”

Rainbow leaned back and saluted the best she could, though it was all she could do to raise her hoof to muzzle level. “Yes, ma’am.”

Their eyes met, though neither mare spoke, there wasn’t a need for that anymore. Spitfire’s brow creased as she worried over Rainbow’s limitations. Rainbow’s eyes darted away and her ears fell ever so slightly. The Wonderbolt allowed her gaze to linger a moment before she sighed and made her way into the bathroom. Rainbow waited until she heard the shower start before she finally made her way to the kitchen.

Pale fog glazed the bathroom mirror as Spitfire gazed into it with a pained glare. The face that looked back at her hardly seemed to be her own. Her mane now hung down across her face, the windswept look that she’d built up over the years had vanished in her time bound to the ground. The days, which had at one time been more or less bearable, had ground on and on, steadily wearing away at Spitfire.

Her eyes drifted away from her own unyielding glare to the base of her crippled wing, the gauze wrap she had worn to brace it sloppily discarded on the bathroom counter. Her feathers had regrown, for the most part, making the scar where the surgeons had worked on her wing invisible to all but the most discerning ponies.

What was more obvious, however, was the atrophy. Both her wings had lost muscle mass after the accident; that was to be expected after any injury. Her right wing, however, had fared noticeably worse. Any passing pony could see how withered it was, how the once proud Wonderbolt had been reduced to a sickly cripple with one wing and one useless, quivering appendage.

Cringing, Spitfire gritted her teeth and scraped her hooves across the cloudstone counter. She could see the traces of bags starting to form under her eyes. When the pain in her wing and the endless string of worries that clouded her mind finally let her sleep, nightmares all too easily stole it away.

She could still hear the cacophonous blast of thunder. She could see the blinding light filling the skies. She could taste the static in the air. Worst of all, she could still see Rainbow, broken and motionless on the cold earth.

Spitfire slammed her hoof against the cloudstone counter, sending a bolt of pain up her foreleg and through her crippled wing. She gritted her teeth and stifled her growl as best she could, one eye clenching shut while the other glared into the mirror. Her grimacing reflection stared back at her, a poor facsimile of what she should have been.

Her eyes drifted to one of two orange bottles set upon the counter. Both contained the same type of elongated white pills to ease their pain. Rainbow’s was almost two thirds full, Spitfire’s was barely half. Two pills at a time would quickly eat away at her supply, and she didn’t know if the Ponyville doctors would fill her prescription as easily as Cloudsdale or Manehattan doctors probably would.

An angry scoff escaped her as she grabbed the bottle and dropped two pills into her waiting hoof. Popping them into her mouth, she took a disposable paper cup from the counter and filled it with water that she pulled to her lips. Swallowing the pills with a grimace, she set the cup down and shook her head.

Running her hoof through her mane, Spitfire gazed at her reflection again. With a resigned sigh, Spitfire turned and walked to the shower, letting the hot water saturate her coat and mane in a futile attempt to wash away the troubles plaguing her mind.

Despite her reputation, Rainbow kept her home in good order. Sure, there were papers, trinkets, cups, and the odd magazine or two scattered about the various counters, coffee tables, and couch cushions, but to her mind they just proved that an actual pony lived there.

Not that Twilight wasn’t an actual pony, despite her occasionally overwhelming need for order. Well, unless it was Spike who really ran the show.

The thought gave Rainbow pause as she placed two bowls on the counter. Every time she’d been to the library Spike was usual shelving books, dusting, cooking, or helping Twilight with her experiments. Rainbow was, in fact, hard pressed to recall a single time she hadn’t seen the dragon attending to some task that Twilight needed.

Rainbow gave a thoughtful hum, her hoof lightly scratching her chin. It was a perfectly silly idea of course. Twilight was anything but a phoney. Complete bookworm, obsessive compulsive, perfectionist, pedantic, anal retentive nerd? Absolutely. But certainly not a phoney bookworm, obsessive compulsive, perfectionist, pedantic, anal retentive nerd.

‘And may she never change,’ Rainbow thought, chuckling to herself.

Pouring herself a bowl of cereal, she ate quietly as she looked through the small pile of mail that had built up during her extended trip. Much of it was unimportant, reminders from the Weather Factory on shipping schedules, a shipment of updated forms for the manager-on-duty to pass out to the local weather team so they could request time off, and a few of the flying magazines Rainbow subscribed to.

Setting those aside, Rainbow gave her attention to the mail she actually cared about. Aside from a new Daring Do book that must have arrived a few days after she’d left, there had been a letter from her Grandpa that contained his semi-regular care package of fifty bits. Rainbow made a mental note to herself to write him a thank-you letter later, and another gentle appeal to get him to stop.

Of course he never would. Not for Rainbow, not for her dad, not for her aunts, uncles, or cousins. Nothing pleased the moustachioed stallion like providing for his family. It also made him insufferably hard to find Hearth’s Warming and birthday gifts for. There were only so many ways to creatively frame a family picture.

Maybe her dad’s idea of photographing a bag of mixed nuts wouldn’t be the worse idea after all.

Spitfire’s voice cut through Rainbow’s thoughts. “Hey there, stranger.”

To Rainbow’s eyes, Spitfire practically sashayed into the kitchen, her mane still damp from the shower.

“Hey yourself,” Rainbow said with a bright smile. “Have fun in there?”

“Mmhmm.” Spitfire nodded, taking the seat opposite of Rainbow and letting loose an easy sigh. “Not gonna lie, Dash, the water pressure you get in here is amazing.”

Rainbow chuckled as she nodded. “It’s pretty great, yeah.”

“No, seriously, Manehattan hotel showers don’t get pressure that good! How the hay did you get it in a cloud house?”

“Grandpa has black magic super powers,” Rainbow suggested with a slight shrug of her shoulders.

Spitfire’s jaw dropped to speak, but no words came out. After a moment she closed her mouth, lips pursed and brow furrowed as she thought. She rubbed her hoof thoughtfully against her chin for a moment before shrugging and holding her hooves up in defeat. “Fair enough.”

Chuckling, Rainbow motioned to the extra bowl on the counter. “Hungry?”

“You know it!”

Pouring herself a bowl of cereal, Spitfire and Rainbow settled into a comfortable silence. Only the hushed ruffle of papers and the muted crunch of cereal accompanied their morning. They didn’t mind the quiet, and in fact there was a strange comfort in it. Neither mare needed to fill the silence with vapid noise just to indulge in the sound of their own voices. They each had other’s company, and for the Wonderbolt and the weather manager, that was more than enough.

Glancing over her mail, Rainbow’s lips pulled into a delicate frown as she observed Spitfire. She wordlessly slid one of the flight magazines to Spitfire, who took it with a grateful smile after finishing her breakfast.

“So, what should we do today, Dash?” Spitfire asked, her tongue licking a bit of milk from her lips.

“Well, I figured we could bum around town for a bit and maybe get lunch with the girls if they’re free. Sometime this afternoon I gotta mosey on over to the hospital and check in with the doc, otherwise I’m sure Grandpa will have the National Guard drag me in.” Rainbow’s head sunk as her tongue slipped from her lips with distaste.

Spitfire somehow doubted that Rainbow had been joking. “Anything else?”

Rainbow hummed thoughtfully for a few moments, her hoof tapping against her chin. Shaking her head, she looked up to Spitfire. "What about you?"

"I think that's more of an evening activity, Dash, but I'm certainly game," Spitfire teased, waggling her eyebrows and winking at Rainbow.

The low groan from Rainbow echoed off the walls of the kitchen. Placing her head in her hooves, Rainbow took a moment to peel herself off of the mental brick wall she'd slammed into. "Were you born this way, or did you have to work at it?”

“Yes.”

“Ugh!” Rainbow grunted, her shoulders sinking.

"It's a dirty job," Spitfire said, walking around the table to pat Rainbows back. "But some pony has to do it."

"I'll do you with a gourd."

Spitfire chuckled, a tender smile pulling at her lips. Reaching under Rainbow’s chin, she lifted the younger mare’s head until their eyes met. “Kinky,” she whispered, leaning forward to press her lips against Rainbow’s.

Rainbow felt Spitfire’s hooves slip around her body to rub at the sensitive muscles between her shoulder blades. Her body shivered from the touch, the hair on the back of her neck stood on end, her ears folded back, and felt a rush of heat blossom across her cheeks.

The world around them faded away along with all their worries. For those precious few moments Spitfire and Rainbow Dash focused only on each other. The beating of their hearts, the sound of their breaths, and the feel of one another’s—

“Hey Rainbow Da—” Cloudchaser’s words died as issue #112 of Wonderbolt’s Annual collided with her face.

“KNOCK FIRST!”

Trust

“So, um, Rainbow,” Cloudchaser started, her hoof drawing small circles across the cloudstone floor.

“What’s up, Cloudchaser?”

Well, I was just wondering something, what with you and Spitfire being a thing." A flush of crimson blossomed across the mare’s cheeks. “Well...does it get awkward?”

Rainbow cast her friend a bemused frown. “You’re really gonna need to be a bit more specific on that, Cloudchaser.”

The silver-maned mare flitted her wings and bit her lip. A gentle flush of crimson blossomed across her cheeks as she spoke again. “I mean, she's in all those magazines and calendars and photoshoots..."

"And?"

"So...Doesn't it seem a bit...I don't know, weird? I mean you’ve got everypony in Equestria checking out your marefriend in tight uniforms and sexy poses.”

“Pfft!” Rainbow leaned back and waved her hoof dismissively. "Nah, I'm used to everypony in Equestria wishing they could be me already, besides,” Rainbow said, smiling and looking over to her marefriend. “I get to come home to the real thing."

“Woo!” Spitfire cheered from her spot at the table. “You tell it, girl!”

Rainbow flashed a grin back at Spitfire despite the flush of crimson in her cheeks.

“So,” Thunderlane started, his front hooves rubbing together slowly as he struggled to shift the conversation. “Have a good trip, Rainbow Dash?”

Rainbow looked at the stallion with a flat stare, her mouth pulled into a half-frown from the admittedly innocent question. She gave him a few moments to squirm before her attention drifted to Spitfire, who was engrossed in a conversation with Cloudchaser about heavy weather flying. A smile came to Rainbow's lips and she turned her attention back to Thunderlane. “I've had worse."

He chuckled quietly and nodded. "Sorry we busted in," Thunderlane said, his ears splaying out a little. "We um, we didn't think you'd have company."

“It’s fine, Thunderlane,” Rainbow said with a flippant wave of her hoof. She still felt her cheeks burning despite the assurance, though she refused to call attention to it. “I guess I should've expected that, honestly." Rainbow allowed herself a soft chuckle and shook her head. “I swear almost nopony in this town ever knocks.”

"Yeah..." Thunderlane drawled, his face twisting into a knowing grimace. "Yeah, that can get a little awkward."

Rainbow snickered, hiding her mouth behind a hoof. "Rumble walk in on you and your special somepony?" she teased, leaning over to gently prod his ribs with a hoof. "It was Blossomforth, wasn't it? C'moooon, be honest."

"Blossomforth is dating that unicorn, remember?" The gray stallion scowled, brushing her away with a half-hearted flap of his wing. "And I don't wanna talk about it!"

Rainbow barked out a loud laugh that quickly shifted to a grunt of pain. Clutching at her ribs, she sucked in a few breaths through gritted teeth. Thunderlane's ears folded back and he lifted his hooves up, hesitating before he reached out to Rainbow for fear of making things worse. He bit down on his lip and glanced over to Spitfire and Cloudchaser who rushed over at the sound.

"Dash, you okay?" Spitfire asked, her hooves carefully wrapping around the smaller mare's shoulders.

"Yup," Rainbow answered with a wheeze. She forced her eyes open and flashed a grin up to Spitfire. "Just a little turbulence. Nothin' I can't handle."

Thunderlane and Cloudchaser exchanged a wordless and worried glance.

After a moment, Rainbow managed to compose herself and look her friends in the eye again. She made a small laugh, quite mindful of her body's limitations. "Sorry guys, I guess I gotta let my body catch up a bit more."

"Oh sure, now she says that," Spitfire mumbled, earning a playful smack from Rainbow. The Wonderbolt snickered and stuck her tongue out at Rainbow while her hoof rubbed the mare's back.

"Anyway," Rainbow said, her hoof gingerly rubbing her aching ribs. "What brings you two by? I mean, it's great to see you and everything, but I'm not the manager anymore." Her ears folded back and her head sank from the statement.

Reaching into his satchel, Thunderlane produced a stack of envelopes thicker than a Daring Do novel. He placed the stack, held together with a violet ribbon, down on the coffee table before leaning back in his seat. “The whole team was shock...errr...stunned—OW!” He yelped as Cloudchaser’s hoof smacked the back of his head.

Cloudchaser rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Sorry, Rainbow Dash. What featherbrain there means to say is that we all really missed you while you were away, and the whole team was worried about you after the accident.” She smiled to Rainbow, but it was a tense, awkward smile that Cloudchaser used to balm a festering wound. “It’s not much, but...well, we just wanted you to know we’re here for you, whatever you need.”

“Thanks,” Rainbow said, her voice dropping to an uncharacteristically soft tone.

Thunderlane stepped forward, wings flitting at his sides and his eyes dropping to the floor for a moment before he dared to look Rainbow in the eye again. “We, um, we also needed some advice.”

Rainbow’s ears perked from the admission, and she looked to the stallion with a perplexed blink. “Advice?”

“Yeah,” Cloudchaser said as she stepped into the conversation. “The Weather Commission wants us to have a new permanent manager installed within the next month.” Her hoof kicked awkwardly at the floor and her eyes glanced away from Rainbow's. "We, um...well, if you could...you know..."

Shaking her head, Rainbow reached out and placed her hoof gently onto Cloudchaser's shoulder. "Cloudchaser, it's cool, really. Just say what you gotta say."

The periwinkle mare nodded and took a deep breath, which she exhaled slowly. "Well, Rainbow Dash, we were hoping—and if you don't want to it's totally understandable—but we were hoping you'd help us pick your re—I mean, the new manager."

Rainbow had known the simple words were inevitable. From the very moment she had received the letter in Manehattan she had known. Still, knowing had done little to lessen the cruel bite of it all. Her tongue flicked out to moisten her lips before she drew a shallow breath.

Cloudchaser wilted, her head sagging while her ears splayed out and her wings drooped. “I’m sorry, Rainbow Dash. We—”

“Hey,” Rainbow said, her voice rough and quiet. Plastering the best smile she could onto her face, she turned her attention back to Cloudchaser. “It’s fine, I’m fine,” she said, giving her words a moment to sink in for Cloudchaser. “Let’s just get through this, rip off the bandaid, right?”

Cloudchaser nodded, but couldn’t bring herself to smile in return.

“My top picks,” Rainbow said, sitting back on her haunches and rubbing her chin thoughtfully. “Either you or Thunderlane would be my first choice, actually.”

Thunderlane’s ears perked from the sound of his name, though he quickly felt a tinge of concern. “Wait, what?”

“You’ve been on the team longer than I have here,” Rainbow said in a frank manner, her eyes glancing over to the stallion. “You know the whole setup inside and out. On the other hoof, Cloudchaser is better at the whole management thing.“ Rainbow couldn’t help a sad laugh as she rubbed the back of her head with a hoof. “You and me, Thunderlane, we like to be buddies first and bosses second.”

Thunderlane nodded his agreement while glancing away almost self-consciously.

"Cloudchaser," Rainbow turned to her friend and smiled. "I think you'd make an awesome manager here."

"Me?" the mare balked at the idea, her wings flaring out with surprise. "I don't know, Rainbow Dash, I'm not really manager material." She kicked at the floor with her hoof and lowered her head. "I don't want to be the pony in charge."

“Hey,” Rainbow put her hoof on Cloudchaser’s shoulder. “I know how it feels. I was in your horseshoes a few years ago when I took over the team.” Rainbow smiled to the mare and patted her back. “Besides, Thunderlane will be your fixer. He knows who to bug for what, and I’ll be around if you have any questions at all.”

Cloudchaser sighed, only looking up when Thunderlane put a wing over her back and offered a friendly smile.

“I got your back,” he promised.

“I…I’ll give it a try,” Cloudchaser relented, her wings flitting at her sides. “But if it doesn't—"

"It will," Rainbow said.

"But if it doesn't," Cloudchaser continued, refusing to allow her thought to be derailed. "I reserve the right to step aside and let Thunderlane or another pony take charge. Fair?"

Rainbow made a single nod. "Fair."

After a moment's pause, Cloudchaser moved forward and wrapped her hooves around Rainbow. The two hugged for a moment before pulling away and Cloudchaser smiled to her friend. "You two need a lift to the ground?”

"That'd be great," Rainbow said as she sat back. "We just gotta take care of a couple small things and we'll meet you outside in a minute, okay?"

"Are you gonna hop in the balloon, or just on our backs?" Thunderlane asked, his wings flitting at his sides. "I mean, it's totally cool either way."

Spitfire stepped forward and spoke first, her good wing draping across Rainbow's back. "I think the balloon, if that's alright," she said, glancing down at Rainbow and thinking for a moment. "That way if we remember to buy anything it's easy to get it back up without bugging anypony."

"Wouldn't bug me," Thunderlane said, turning to get a look at Cloudchaser. "You?"

"Hay no it wouldn't!" Cloudchaser said with a bright smile, her hoof lightly patting Rainbow on the back. She was careful and kept her touch light enough so as to not cause Rainbow any unnecessary pain. Rainbow caught Cloudchaser's eyes with her own, and offered the newly appointed weather manager a smile in return.

Rainbow's smile grew a little wider, though it was a hollow gesture. "Cool, we'll meet you outside in a minute, okay?"

"Sounds good," Cloudchaser said, her smile only growing wider. She looked to Thunderlane and motioned him outside with a simple gesture of her wing. He chuckled and nodded, saluting Rainbow and Spitfire with a hoof.

“Cloudchaser?” Rainbow added suddenly, her tone serious.

Peering back into the cloud mansion, Cloudchaser arched an eyebrow at Rainbow. “Yeah.”

“Nopony likes being told their picnic has to move or get delayed because the fields need rain,” Rainbow said keeping her gaze locked to Cloudchaser’s. “Don’t let it ruffle your feathers.”

Cloudchaser smiled to Rainbow. “I won’t.”

“You know what to do with the mail, right?”

A pause filled the air before Cloudchaser nodded slowly. “Yeah.”

Rainbow nodded to her and offered Cloudchaser a small smile. “You’re gonna do great.”

Cloudchaser nodded again and smiled. “Meet you outside?”

“Yeah.”

“No rush,” Cloudchaser said before disappearing out the door.

Quiet again settled over Rainbow and Spitfire in the opulent cloudhouse. A silent discomfort filled the air, though it was a different sort than any that either mare had experienced before. The seconds, heavy and cold, seemed to tick on interminably before Rainbow finally spoke with a brittle voice.

“Spitfire?” Rainbow said, her voice barely more than a whisper

The former Wonderbolt stepped closer, her brows knitted together in concern. “Yeah, Dash?”

A sniffle, so quiet that Spitfire almost didn't hear it escaped Rainbow

Spitfire didn’t bother with a response, instead tucking her nose down and wrapping her hooves around Rainbow's shoulders. Rainbow took a slow, deliberate breath through her lips and let it out with equal care. She fought the lump in her throat for as long as she could.

Tears, bitter and salty, drew burning lines down Rainbow’s cheeks.

"Okay, so Cutie Mark Crusaders: Construction Workers was maybe a bit of a bad plan," Sweetie Belle said, shaking her head and clucking her tongue.

Scootaloo fluttered her small wings, the orange filly nursing a sore spot on the back of her head. "At least Mr. Mortar only needed a couple stitches, right?”

Her friends groaned, too tired, too irritated, and (most importantly) too sore to dispute the point. All three were covered head to hoof in dirt and grime, with more than a few black and purple bruises to complement the mess. Applebloom in particular had a decent sized goose-egg on the back of her head. Not that she seemed to mind, though. One couldn't really see it under her red mane and oversized bow anyway. And the Apple family had thick heads.

At least Scootaloo hoped.

"Well, what're we gonna do now?" Applebloom asked, her thick drawl dragging out the last word into a borderline whine. She flicked her tail in aggravation and kicked at a stone in their path which skittered down the road and came to a stop just ahead of them. "I mean, we're not allowed in the hardware store anymore without a grown up."

"Maybe we can get our cutie marks in sneaking in?" Scootaloo asked reflexively. The unimpressed look both her friends shot her made the young pegasus rethink the idea. She groaned and flitted her wings quickly. “At this rate we’re gonna get our cutie marks in not getting cutie marks.”

“Is that even a thing?” Sweetie Belle asked after pausing mid step to consider it. “What would that even look like?”

Apple Bloom turned and looked at her pale flank for a moment. “I dunno, maybe we already got em?”

Silence enveloped the Crusaders while they pondered that possibility.

“No.” Scootaloo shook her head. “No way.”

“That would just stink!” Sweetie’s voice cracked as she shouted.

Scootaloo fluttered her wings again and shook her head. Like a stubborn pebble caught on the sole of her hoof, that thought would bother her all day now. She huffed and spat on the dusty path, comforted only by the fact she wouldn’t be alone in her paranoia.

Ahead at the crest of a small hill she observed Pinkie and Fluttershy walking. Well, Fluttershy walked. Pinkie simply hopped along as per her usual manner. Scootaloo smiled on the outside but inwardly groaned. They were nice ponies, but after another bit of failed crusading all she wanted to do was go back to the clubhouse and relax with her friends.

Pinkie bounced over to them, her ever present smile plastered on her lips. "Hiya girls! How you all doing today?"

"Oh my goodness, are you okay?" Fluttershy asked, peering at the lump on Scootaloo's head. "You should really put some ice on that before it swells up worse."

"I'm fine, Fluttershy, really!" Scootaloo insisted, brushing off the concern with a wave of her hoof and a flutter of her tiny wings. "A knock like this would never keep Rainbow Dash down, and it sure as heck won't keep me down either!"

Pinkie seemed to tense for the briefest of moments before her gaze softened. Moving closer, she stepped up alongside the young filly and smiled once again. “Speaking of Rainbow Dash,” she said, her hoof wrapping around Scootaloo’s shoulders. “She’s finally back home.”

Instantly Scootaloo forgot about the pain in her head. She bounced in excitement and grinned from ear to ear at the very idea. “R-really? That’s so awesome! Come on you guys.” She turned to her friends with buzzing wings and flashed them that same bright grin. “We gotta go see—”

“Tiiimeout,” Pinkie said, squeezing the orange filly’s shoulders a bit tighter. “Dashie’s not feeling very well right now.”

Scootaloo’s ears folded back as her eyebrows pinched together and her posture sagged. “But, but I thought she was gonna come back when she was all better.”

Fluttershy stepped closer and lowered herself so she was eye to eye with Scootaloo. “Don’t you worry about Rainbow Dash. She’s gonna be right as rain before you know it.”

“But there’s some stuff she needs help with,” Pinkie continued, giving Scootaloo’s shoulders a gentle tug to usher her forward. “And this is where you three can help her out.”

The Next Ten Minutes

Fleetfoot lay in her bed, vaguely aware of the dawn chorus chirping just outside her window. Clutched above the staccato beat of her heart was her faithful teddy bear, though his soft fur did little to comfort her that morning. She nuzzled it, eyes closing for a few moments in an attempt to push the thoughts which had awoken her from an uncomfortable sleep.

When that failed she let out a single sigh and gingerly tucked the bear into the safety of the saddlebag kept at the foot of her bed. Maybe a flight would do her some good.

Moving from her bed, Fleetfoot pulled the window open and poked her head out. Earth pony windows were smaller than windows designed by pegasi, but there was just enough room for Fleetfoot to wriggle her way out of the cramped frame.

“Ow,” she growled, her back hitting the top of the window. Falling more than jumping, Fleetfoot pumped her wings, fluttering up alongside the window which she regarded with a withering glare. “What was that for?”

The window had no answer.

Fleetfoot shook her hoof menacingly at the window, clearly at fault for the unpleasant bump.

Twisting in the cool morning air, she flapped her powerful wings, surging up and over the tops of the apple trees. Her wings flared out, catching the air under her pale blue feathers and holding her aloft. On the horizon she could see the thin fog of morning collecting in the valleys, dew sparkling like diamonds on the leaves and grasses below, and the thin wisps of smoke from the chimneys of Ponyville’s bakery.

She let gravity pull her down, angling her wings to carry her forward along the tops of the trees. Leaves tickled at her stomach as Fleetfoot skimmed low, only flapping her wings just enough to keep from a sudden and probably unpleasant arboreal stop. When she began to slow down and the soft leaves began to graze her belly, Fleetfoot flapped her wings to build more altitude.

Her path followed the curve of the Apple orchard's steep hills and shallow valleys, an easy flight by her standards. For a moment, at least, it seemed to help her escape the thoughts that had driven her from sleep before the first light of morning had shone through her window.

Lightning flashed in the back of her mind, and her heart began to palpitate uncomfortably. Gritting her teeth and shaking her head quickly, Fleetfoot pumped her wings until the muscles started to burn beneath her feathers. Faster and faster she flew, wanting nothing more than to outrun the terrible light.

The Apple family house disappeared behind her, and Fleetfoot folded her left wing while angling the right to carry herself into a tight corkscrew along the incline of yet another hill. Flaring out both wings, she paused near the crest, a whiff of smoke catching her attention. It was a sickly sweet scent reminiscent of the apples that made the farming family’s livelihood yet with a heaviness that felt altogether different. For a moment she wondered if her nightmares were starting to get worse.

When the smell persisted, and Fleetfoot had a moment to calm herself, she tucked her wings and dipped below the thick canopy of trees. Branches and leaves scraped her wings, hooves, and face, yet she pushed through the discomfort, the all too real concern of a fire at the forefront of her mind. Yet when she landed, Fleetfoot found no flames at the source of the smoky scent, only Big Macintosh, an old wooden pipe held firmly in his teeth.

He startled at first, leaning away from Fleetfoot with a hoof held slightly aloft. Then, as though resigning himself to judgment, he relaxed and made a single, heavy sigh. A lone hoof moved up again to steady the bowl of the pipe while he waited for her to speak.

“You know that junk is terrible for you, right?”

Big Mac’s cheeks caved inwards, bringing a faint orange glow from the chamber. He let it out slowly, watching the wisps of smoke dance lazily in the still summer air. “Eeyup.”

“So, why smoke it?”

“Reasons,” came the simple answer.

Fleetfoot arched an eyebrow and frowned. “What sort of reasons?”

Another breath and more smoke blew out from the stallion’s lips. “Reasons.”

“Fine, Red,” Fleetfoot said, flitting her wings as she moved beside him, upwind of the smoke, and sat down. “Be that way.”

“What’s got a pony like you out here?” he countered, glancing over as though to study her reaction.

Fleetfoot tensed, her lips compressed into a thin line. “Reasons.”

The corner of the large stallion’s mouth twitched upwards and he drew another breath from his pipe.

“Still, up mighty early, eeyup.” he observed after another drag from his pipe.

“Thought I’d go for a flight.”

Big Mac nodded once and didn’t inquire further. Instead he turned the old pipe upside down, tapping it lightly on a rock beside his flank. Fleetfoot watched the ash tumble from the chamber where it filtered away on the gentle morning breeze. However, the sickly sweet odor seemed to linger in the air around them despite the breeze that danced across their coats.

“I’m gonna stick around here a bit longer,” Big Mac said, seeming relaxed on the shallow hilltop under the shade of the trees. “Ya’ll enjoy the flyin’. I’ll meetcha at the barn in an hour or so.” He clamped his teeth back around the bit of his pipe and closed his eyes.

Fleetfoot nodded, but stopped short of standing or spreading her wings. Instead her attention drifted to Big Macintosh, drawn by the soft morning light catching his muscular frame. He had a certain pulchritude that was plain to any mare who cared to look, broad chested with an unkempt ginger mane and green eyes that bore a tenderness to the large stallion.

That he was soft-spoken and rarely if ever seemed to pass judgement on others didn’t hurt either, particularly when she could hardly look at her own reflection since that terrible day.With a sigh, Fleetfoot rubbed at the back of her neck and lowered her head. “Hey, um, Mac?”

The quiet stallion tilted his head towards her, still smiling just a little bit.

“Mind if I hang out here? Just for a bit.”

A subtle arch crawled ever so slightly up his heavy brow. Big Mac smiled politely and nodded once. “Alright, Miss Fleetfoot.”

She chuckled. “Please, just ‘Fleetfoot’.”

Rainbow Dash glanced up at the wall, frowning with the metronomic tick of the clock. She along with Spitfire had arrived at Ponyville Hospital mid-morning where they had taken up a pair of seats in the waiting room that were flanked by abstract paintings. The so-called “art” could generously be described as colorful spillage on a canvas, if one were so inclined.

Neither mare felt particularly generous.

There were few other ponies loitering in the room while waiting for their names to be called, and those few sat with several empty seats between them. Most spent their time perusing through the months old magazines laid out on small corner tables, distracting themselves from the boredom or anxiety. No amount of distraction would have helped Spitfire or Rainbow Dash though.

Rainbow's wing throbbed in the soft wrap that held it to her side. She glanced at it for a moment then sighed before grasping for Spitfire’s hoof. Spitfire glanced at her and offered a demure smile, which Rainbow returned before leaning her head against Spitfire’s shoulder. Rainbow felt Spitfire’s cheek, soft and warm, nuzzling at the top of her mane, and she tilted her head up so the top of her muzzle touched Spitfire’s jaw.

“Spitfire and Rainbow Dash?” the nurse called, a rarely welcomed interruption to their private, yet public moment.

Moving from their seats, Rainbow and Spitfire walked at their slow pace towards the waiting mare. She smiled politely then ushered them down the hall into one of the empty exam rooms. “Doctor Stable will be here in just a moment,” she said before closing the door, leaving the two alone.

Together, they moved to a pair of floor cushions set out beside a counter and cabinets, no doubt full of all sorts of medical supplies. Spitfire’s good wing slipped around Rainbow’s shoulders while her foreleg hooked around her waist. Rainbow didn’t need much more encouragement to lean closer to her marefriend, and let out a quiet sigh as she settled against Spitfire.

“Nervous?” Spitfire asked.

“Yeah.”

“Me too.”

Nodding her head, Rainbow moved her own foreleg around Spitfire’s waist, which she gave a gentle squeeze to. Saying she was nervous was nothing if not an understatement. Rainbow was, in fact, utterly terrified of what news their check-up might deliver. Of course she wanted to hope for the best, but with her continued troubles breathing, the pain, and the difficulty sleeping, Rainbow was hard pressed to be optimistic.

In some ways the sleeping issue had become the worst for Rainbow. Physical pain was real, something tangible. Something that she could understand and account for with a bit of will. The insomnia, on the other hoof, was not a problem she could just brute force away. An abstract sense of anxiety kept her awake, but she wasn’t sure what caused it. At times her heart would race and she’d feel a sense of panic build in the recesses of her mind, but so far she had managed to keep that at bay.

Spitfire’s hooves, always wrapped around her waist, coupled with her steady breaths and heartbeat gave Rainbow something to focus on. It relaxed her to focus on those sensations, even if it didn’t help her sleep. Still, Rainbow was fairly sure she couldn’t handle going to bed alone anymore.

Two knocks preceded the door’s opening with Doctor Stable and Nurse Redheart walking into the room a moment later. Doctor Stable, Rainbow’s general practitioner since moving to Ponyville, was a unicorn with an ochre coat and a light brown mane. He kept it well trimmed and combed to the left with his horn and kept the look in check throughout the day. While a very amiable stallion, Stable had a no-nonsense attitude that Rainbow had grown fond of over the years. It tended to make appointments short and to the point, which in the past had let her get right back to the skies.

Her heart sank at the thought. It was always the little things that got to her the most.

Nurse Redheart, in contrast, was a fine boned earth pony with a white coat and a long pink mane tied into a tight bun. She radiated a motherly warmth with a gift for making even the most troublesome patients relax. Yet underneath that serene appearance was a fire that Rainbow was convinced would make most dragons run screaming.

“Good morning, ladies,” Stable greeted the pair after closing the door, a pair of charts held aloft in his blue magic.

“Morning,” Rainbow and Spitfire answered, each forcing a pleasant smile to their lips.

“Now, I already know the answer, but bear with me as I have to ask.” He smiled warmly to Spitfire and Rainbow Dash, watching them over the rims of his wire glasses. “Are you two comfortable with some tests and the results in the same room?”

“Yes,” the answers came in tandem.

“Well, that certainly settled that.” Stable bobbed his head and opened the chart. “Let’s start with you, Rainbow Dash.” He motioned her towards the door. “Up, and to the x-ray room with you. Nurse, if you’d be so kind as to run Miss Spitfire through her exam.”

“Of course,” she answered with a smile. “Spitfire, if you would please climb up onto the exam table.”

“Yes ma’am,” Spitfire said, withdrawing her hoof and wing from Rainbow before standing up.

Their absence disappointed Dash, but she pushed it from her mind for the time being. With a bit of effort she stood and made her way to the door, which Stable held open with a hoof. “See you in a minute,” she shot to Spitfire.

Spitfire chuckled, her tongue poking out at Rainbow. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

“Take away all my fun.”

“Yup, that’s me, Captain Funsucker.” Spitfire jutted her hoof in the air and sat up straight, striking a heroic pose that brought soft chuckles to the room.

Rainbow scoffed, wisely keeping her retort to herself. That, after all, was private time talk.

Leading them down the wide halls, Stable consulted his file, his eyes quickly skimming over pages of notes, charts, and scans. “So tell me, Rainbow, are you still having difficulty breathing?”

“Sometimes, yeah.” Rainbow’s voice grew soft with the admission and her ears folded back. “Mostly when I move too quickly or if I try and shout. And…” She sighed, her head drooping. Rainbow stopped in her tracks and Stable paused as well, taking a step closer to her out of concern.

“Are you alright, Rainbow?”

“No,” she answered in scarcely more than a whisper. “I hate feeling like this.”

“Is it about your breathing?” Stable asked before his eyes moved to the heavily wrapped wing. “Or your wing?”

“Both.” Her lips curled back into a snarl. “I can’t even walk from here to my house without getting out of breath.

Nodding, Stable made a note and motioned her on. “Let’s get you x-rayed, then we’ll talk about it and see what we can do, hm?”

Rainbow nodded, though she took a few moments to collect herself before walking again.

The X-ray room was cramped and cold with hard tile floors and a solitary wooden platform lined with a thin cushion for patients to lay on during the exam. Stable used his magic to easily remove the bandages around Rainbow’s wing, which he deposited into the trash bin as soon as they were off. Rainbow bit her lip, both from the discomfort of the unsupported wing drooping as well as the embarrassment at the state of her wing.

Where months earlier had been immaculate feathers and toned, solid muscle, now her feathers were ragged and dull, though at least most had regrown to hide the scar that lined her flesh. It looked sickly, weak, and Rainbow could almost see her bones through what little muscle tissue was left. Almost instantly she felt a knot form in her throat, the icy talons of pain, disgust, and regret clutching at her heart.

“How far can you stretch your wing?” Stable asked, bracing the limb with his magic.

Rainbow gritted her teeth and strained to move her wing. It trembled like a dry leaf in the autumn breeze, barely flexing halfway open. As hard as she tried, Rainbow couldn’t will it any further than that. “Th-that’s it,” she growled through gritted teeth.

“Alright, Rainbow, that’s very good,” he assured her, his telekinetic grasp growing a little stronger to support her wing. “I’ll hold this while you get up on the table. Lay on your stomach, please.”

With a few painful steps and more discomfort than she cared to admit, Rainbow got onto the table, biting back a groan when she laid flat. With great care, Stable laid her wing down and placed an iron skirt on Rainbow’s back, covering the mare from her hips down to the knees. He then disappeared behind a heavy brick wall for the first photo.

The process repeated itself, with Rainbow moving into different positions and Stable posing her wing for more photos.By the end of it she wasn’t able to help the tears that stained her cheeks, nor the shiver of her flesh.

“Sorry, Rainbow. We’re all done here,” he said after the seemingly interminable wait. “Would you like something for the pain?”

“Please,” she mewled, defeated and unable to open her eyes.

Rainbow was faintly aware of the sharp clop of Stable’s hooves fading into the distance until they disappeared out of the room. She focused on her breathing, trying her hardest to will away the pain, though it had no real impact.

“Dammit,” she cursed softly and sniffled.

Stable returned a few moments later and stopped beside the table. “Okay, Rainbow, can you sit up for me?”

Nodding, the mare started to move, then immediately cringed from a spike of pain in her side. Stable was there instantly, his foreleg sliding under her head with another carefully over her waist. “Easy, easy. Nice deep breaths for me, Rainbow.”

“Sorry,” she gasped.

“It’s perfectly alright,” he reassured her. With Stable’s help, Rainbow was able to get up to a sitting position. He braced her shoulders with a foreleg, then, with a bit of magic, lifted a small plastic cup to her lips. It smelled faintly of cough syrup, though less pungent with a more watery appearance.

“What’s that?” she asked in a raspy voice.

“A drinkable version of your prescription.”

“They make that?”

Stable nodded. “Yes indeed. It’s usually prescribed for patients with difficulties swallowing, but it also acts more quickly than a pill does.”

Rainbow mouthed a silent ‘oh’ and moved a hoof under the floating cup. Tilting it back she tasted the slightly cherry-like flavor splash over her tongue and swallowed the liquid down. Stable tossed the cup away, then gathered fresh wrappings for her wing. It took him a few minutes to bandage her and in that time Rainbow felt the familiar buzz of the narcotics building in her head. It numbed the pain in her wing, which she was grateful for as Stable presented her a black sling to help support it.

With his help she was able to get the sling on and adjusted, and the sense of relief it provided her was both surprising and fulfilling. “Thanks.”

“It’s what I do.” He smiled to her and offered a hoof. “Let’s get back to the room, shall we?”

With a nod, Rainbow took his hoof and slipped off the table. Her steps were awkward, with the painkiller making her feel slightly drunk, but easier than before. Soon enough she was back in the exam room laying on the paper covered table while Spitfire disappeared for a test of her own.

Nurse Redheart listened to her heart and lungs, then ran Rainbow through a small gauntlet of physical tests, between which she took copious notes in the stuffed manilla folder. Again Rainbow was grateful for Stable’s offered medication. Even with the drug she ached by the time Nurse Redheart finished and Stable returned with her marefriend. She didn’t want to think of how terrible it would have been without it.

With the help of Spitfire and Doctor Stable, Rainbow got off the table and made her way back to the floor cushions. While the doctor read through both reports and listened to Redheart brief him on Rainbow’s details, the two pegasi exchanged an exhausted smile.

“So Rainbow,” Stable began, levitating a pen and pointing it to the streak of white in her X-ray. “Here is the plate that the surgeons installed in Manehattan when you had your wing fixed. The smaller lines you see here,” he continued, motioning to four smaller lines which were pointed into her bone, “are the screws holding the plate.”

“They showed me the x-ray in Manehattan,” Rainbow said, leaning on Spitfire. “I guess the break was pretty gnarly.”

“Indeed it was,” he agreed, changing the picture to one with a different angle. “You’re quite the lucky mare, Rainbow Dash.”

“It doesn’t feel like it,” Rainbow said.

Spitfire feigned a gasp. “Well gee, thanks, Dash.”

“Shut up,” the younger mare giggled.

“Your breathing has improved, and your ribs look to be mostly healed as well. That said I’m concerned about the continued problems you display. So for the time being I want you to keep walking a little every day and take a journal of about how long you walked and how your breathing was during the process.” He flicked the light off on the lightboard and turned his attention fully to the listening mares. “Also note any instances you have of pain or difficulties breathing, and obviously seek emergency attention if it lasts for more than a few minutes. Spitfire, I trust you to keep an eye on her for the meantime.”

“I’ll keep two eyes on her,” Spitfire said with a casual smirk. “What about her wing though? Should she be trying therapy or what?”

“Yes, about that. I would like to schedule her for surgery. We can remove the plate and screws, and after a week or two you should begin physical therapy.”

“H-how soon?” Rainbow asked, shrinking into Spitfire’s embrace with her heart threatening to beat out of her chest.

“I’ll speak with our surgeons and they’ll get in touch with you for a solid date.” After making a note in her folder, Stable set the pen down and regarded the weather mare with a serious expression. “I would recommend sooner than later, Rainbow. The longer we keep your wing immobile the harder it will be to rehabilitate you.”

“But she’ll fly again, right?” Spitfire interrupted, her foreleg holding Rainbow tighter.

Stable pursed his lips, picking his words carefully. “I’m optimistic that, with a bit more treatment, we can rehabilitate your wing, Rainbow.”

His sentiment did little to comfort Rainbow, though she nodded for the sake of acknowledgement. She felt Spitfire’s hoof rub at her back in an effort to comfort her, and leaned closer to the older mare to feel her warmth.

“Spitfire,” Stable continued, turning his attention to the Wonderbolt. His pause seemed deliberate which made Rainbow uneasy, and once more her hoof reached for Spitfire’s. “Your range of motion shows limited recovery, muscle atrophy is significant, and your pain has remained fairly constant, yes?”

“Yeah.” Spitfire nodded, her voice sounding fragile to Rainbow.

“On average, how many pills are you taking every day?”

Spitfire hesitated before answering and glanced to Rainbow with a sorrowful look. “Six... maybe seven.”

Rainbow’s eyebrows shot up, but she said nothing.

“I see.” Another note was scrawled into her file. “Spitfire…”

Spitfire raised her hoof to cut him off “Please, just tell me straight. Am I gonna fly again?”

The doctor cleared his throat and took a moment to fix the glasses perched on the bridge of his nose. “I need to consult with a specialist, but at this moment I don’t have the confidence to tell you either way.”

A silence filled the room. and Rainbow could only watch helplessly as the look of heartbreak spread over Spitfire’s features. She let out a trembling breath and swallowed heavily. Rainbow could see moisture building in her eyes that she blinked away quickly. “I see.”

“There are possibilities,” Stable continued, not wishing to quash Spitfire’s heart. “Intensive physical therapy, water training, maybe more surgical options. I’d like write to a specialist in Cloudsdale and get a second opinion before making a recommendation though.”

This time it was Rainbow’s ears that perked. “What would surgery do?”

“That depends on the issue,” Stable answered. “If your problem, Spitfire, is muscular, then I’m not sure what we could do. A tendon issue can be repaired surgically to a degree, but more tests are required first.”

“But there’s hope, right?” Rainbow asked, feeling a sense of desperation as her foreleg wrapped around Spitfire’s waist. “Somepony can fix her wing?”

“We will certainly do every last thing in our power,” Stable answered. “I’ll have a letter sent up to your home, Rainbow, when we have some news. And I’d like to see you again next week to schedule your surgery.”

“Would that be done here?” Rainbow asked, feeling squeamish about being under the knife again.

The stallion nodded his head while closing both their files. “Yes. We’d admit you overnight for the procedure, then we’d ask that you stay groundside for the first ten days after. You’d come back here, get the stitches out, and we’d set up a physical therapy schedule to get your wing moving again.”

Rainbow nodded once and glanced to Spitfire again. “What should she do for the pain?”

“I would suggest that she continues her painkillers for now, but if they’re not providing a notable relief then we should look into alternative methods,” Stable answered. “Spitfire, I’d like to set you up with a pain management specialist. Would that be alright?”

A simple shrug preceded the mare’s answer. “Sure.”

“Very good. Nurse Redheart, would you go up front and let the desk know to set up an appointment for Spitfire?”

“Of course, Doctor,” the mare answered. “I’ll get the next patient set up as well.”

“Excellent, thank you.”

With a polite nod, Nurse Redheart took her exit from the room. Doctor Stable waited for the door to close behind her before addressing Rainbow and Spitfire again. “Are there any other questions the two of you have?”

Both mares said nothing, with Spitfire offering a slight shake of her head.

“Alright,” he said, collecting their files in his telekinetic grasp. “I’ll head out then. When you two are ready just head down the hall to your left. Stop by the desk and set up your appointments and I’ll see you both soon.”

“Thanks, Doc,” Rainbow said.

“Sounds good,” added Spitfire.

As he stepped out of the exam room, Stable craned his neck to look at them one last time. “You two take your time. And don’t hesitate to get in touch with me or Nurse Redheart if you need anything at all.” With that he slipped out into the hall, gently pulling the door shut behind him.

Only a moment after the door closed Rainbow threw her forelegs around Spitfire’s chest and held her tightly. She nuzzled at the soft, golden fur, while her mouth strained to hold back her anguish. Spitfire’s hooves moved around Rainbow’s back and soft lips kissed at her forehead.

“Dash?”

Rainbow didn’t respond to her name. Instead she held Spitfire tighter, disregarding the ache in her chest. Her body trembled and shook yet she clung to the mare tighter still, as though she’d lose everything if she let go for even a moment.

“Hey,” Spitfire’s hoof dipped under Rainbow’s chin, guiding her up until their eyes met. She smiled, though Rainbow could see the pain lingering in the back of her eyes. “Hey, it’s gonna be okay, Dash. We’re gonna be alright.”

Rainbow’s hoof moved, gingerly stroking at Spitfire’s bandaged wing. Her mouth opened and closed several times, yet no sounds came from her. Instead tears spilt from her eyes, drawing dark lines down her cheeks.

“I’m so sorry,” came the first few words, choked out between gasped breaths.

Spitfire recoiled just a little, confused. “Sorry? What do you have to be sorry for?”

“It’s my fault,” she mewled, her eyes glancing from the wing to Spitfire’s own gaze. “I-If I—”

“Stop.” Spitfire pressed her hoof to Rainbow’s lips. “Don’t you ever say that, Dash. Don’t you ever.”

“But, I—”

“You did nothing wrong,” Spitfire asserted once more. Her hooves moved up to cup Rainbow’s cheeks. “It was an accident.”

“I was in charge! I was supposed to keep everypony safe!” Rainbow countered, her voice cracking with her face contorting from the spike of pain it caused. Dropping to a fragile quaver, she leaned her head forward, her brow resting on Spitfire’s neck. “I... I crippled you…”

“No you didn’t, Dash,” Spitfire shot back, pulling Rainbow back up and kissing her lips. “You needed help, that’s all there was to it.”

“It shouldn’t h-have taken away your wings,” Rainbow wept.

“I love you, Rainbow Dash.” Spitfire’s voice trembled, the hooves on Rainbow’s cheeks moving up through her mane where they came to rest on the back of her head. “And if I had to make that choice again I’d still do it in a heartbeat.” She paused to sniffle, her forehead bumping tenderly to Rainbow’s. “Just like I know you would for me.”

“All this,” Rainbow began quietly, “I couldn’t do this without you, Spitfire. I… I can’t...”

The hooves around her waist squeezed tighter. “I’m never leaving you, Rainbow. Even if I’m a crippled old hag mopping floors in a bakery for the rest of my life.”

Rainbow chuckled, but she hadn’t missed the tremor in Spitfire’s voice, the raw pain that her future could be tied forever to the cold, hard ground. Shuddering, she held Spitfire tightly, unable and unwilling to let go for even a moment. Nuzzling against Spitfire’s chest, Rainbow pressed her ear over the other mare’s heart, taking comfort from the steady drumlike beat.

Bit by bit the rhythm soothed her, and after a few minutes she at least felt some semblance of control once again. “What are we gonna do?”

“Ten more minutes,” came the quiet answer.

“Hm?”

Spitfire adjusted her grip, her hooves rubbing along Rainbow’s back. “Think we can just sit here for ten minutes? I… I need...” Her voice cracked just as her nose touched Rainbow’s mane once again. “I just need a little longer…”

Rainbow simply nodded, her hooves rubbing Spitfire’s back in return. “Anything for you.”

For several moments after, neither mare dared to move nor speak. The only sounds between them being their breaths and muted sniffles. It was Spitfire who broke the silence, though her tone was defeated. “I don’t know what I’d do if I can’t fly.”

“You’re gonna fly again.” Rainbow looked up so her gaze caught Spitfire’s. “We both are.”

A humorless chuckle bubbled up from Spitfire. “But if I can’t—”

Rainbow held her hoof up to Spitfire’s lips. “If you can’t fly,” she started, never once flinching away from Spitfire’s eyes. “Then I guess I’ll just have to learn to live like an earth pony.”

Spitfire recoiled, but the wall stopped her from moving too far back. With her good wing flaring halfway out, she shook her head. “Dash, no, you’ve got—”

“Maybe I could get into farming like Applejack does." Rainbow put on a stern face then leaned back, scrunching her mane up into a ponytail. "Hi, ahm Rainbow Dash. Ah sell raw apples, cooked apples, apple juices, apple ciders, apple pies, and apple accessories.”

“...What's an apple accessory?"

“You really don’t wanna know.”

“Hey, you brought it up, little miss green hoof.” Spitfire grinned while lightly prodding Rainbow’s chest once. “Do you even know which end of a trowel goes in the dirt?”

Rainbow giggled and poked Spitfire’s belly in retaliation. “I’ll have you know that my garden is the best garden in Ponyville.”

“What?” Spitfire laughed. “You don’t even have a lawn, Dash!”

‘Pff, don’t need no stinkin’ lawn for an awesome garden.” Rainbow asserted with a wave of her hoof.

“Okay, I’m gonna get the doc back in here,” Spitfire said, tapping her hoof against Rainbow’s temple. “Cause you’ve gone round the bend, sweetheart.”

“Hey, the Ponyville Market is totally my garden.”

Groaning, Spitfire shook her head, yet despite the terrible joke she couldn’t help a slight laugh. Making a content sigh she petted Rainbow’s mane and smiled. “What in the world am I gonna do with you?”

Dash considered the quiet intimacy they shared for a moment, and decided it was time to capitalize. "Let's get a donut." She said with a quiet smile.

Spitfire blinked and tilted her head. "Well, that was a bit out of nowhere. Not that I don't mind a good donut, but..."

Dash laughed softly. "Of all the things my friends have taught me, Spits, one thing has always been true." She quietly took Spitfire's foreleg and draped it over her neck. "No matter how tough things seem, they always seem a bit easier on the other side of a donut." She felt a grin rise to her face. "You do remember what happened that one year at the Gala, right?"

“Ummm…” Spitfire rubbed at the back of her head and flashed a grin at Rainbow. “Kinda?”

“Ugh, hopeless,” Rainbow chided her with a dramatic roll of her eyes. “You’re lucky you’re so hot.”

“Heh, Sorry, Dash. I know we talked briefly, but I had a bunch of schmoozing to do that night as part of my job.” Spitfire offered in her own defense.

“I figured, but that’s not my point,” Rainbow said. Together they stood up with Rainbow leaning heavily on Spitfire’s side. “That night looked like a total disaster. But after everything blew up we all went to this doughnut shop and talked.” Pausing just in front of the door, Rainbow smiled then turned so she could see Spitfire’s face. “We realized that even though the gala had gone horribly, together we could still make the night worth while.” Her smile shrank with sadness, but stubbornly refused to leave her lips. “I can’t do this anymore. Surgeries and therapy and...just...all of this. Not without you.”

Spitfire smiled as well with her wing slipping protectively over Rainbow’s back. “Then you’ll have me Dash. Just so long as I’ve got you, too.” Her head lowered with her hears splaying shamefully outwards. “And… and I need you now more than ever.”

Rainbow nodded and kissed Spitfire’s cheek. “Come on. Let’s get a doughnut. I can make it to Sugarcube corner, I think.”

“I’ll just give you a ponyback ride if you get out of breath.” It was both a promise and a threat.

“Yes ma’am,” Rainbow said while saluting with a hoof.