Thunderspite

Thunderspite was the first to wake the next morning. Blitzwing was still snoring loudly in the tent next to him. He decided to let him sleep a while longer while he gathered some firewood for breakfast and made some other preparations for the day’s journey.

The sun’s rays were just starting to light up the high peaks on the west side of the valley. Thunderspite stoked up the fire and put the kettle on, then started packing up everything they wouldn’t need for breakfast. As he stowed his own tent in the gondola’s storage area, he noticed that the door to Dawn Glimmer’s stateroom was open.

He entered the gondola, but she was not there. “Miss Dawn Glimmer?” he called softly, peeking his head in her room. She was not there either. In a panic, he ran outside and looked around the valley, but she was nowhere to be found. He was just about to wake Blitzwing when the happened to look up at the valley’s eastern wall. There, silhouetted against the bright light of the coming dawn, was the figure of a unicorn mare. She had her head held high, eyes closed, and her mane fluttered delicately in the wind. Even from this distance, Thunderspite could see a faint smile on her lips. Not for the first time, Thunderspite found himself thinking that Dawn Glimmer was the most beautiful mare he had ever seen.

“Wow,” he said under his breath.

Although it would have been impossible for her to hear him at that distance, just at that instant she turned her head and looked directly down at him, as if she had. Suddenly, there was a flash of light, and she was gone. A split-second later, she materialized again, standing directly in front of him.. Thunderspite took a half-step backwards, startled.

“Oh... uh... ” he stammered. Dawn Glimmer’s beautiful, sea-foam colored eyes were not making it easy for him to gather his wits. “I uh...good morning, Miss...that is uh, Dawn Glimmer.”

“Good morning, Thunderspite.” She smirked, apparently enjoying watching him stumble over himself.

“Were you just...” he nodded and pointed at the ridge where she had been standing only an instant before. “That is, are you able to... ”

“Teleport? Yes. Over short distances, and only with good line-of-sight.”

“Ah.” He shut his eyes for a moment, then with great effort, summoned his military bearing. “Ma’am, the Lieutenant and I would appreciate being notified anytime you leave the campsite. For your own safety.”

“I didn’t mean to alarm you, Captain.” She took a step closer to him. “Were you worried about me?”

His bearing melted away again under the closeness and intensity of her gaze. “Yes.” Was all he could manage.

“Your concern is touching, Captain. I’ll try to be more considerate in the future.” She trotted back towards the campsite, brushing past him as she went.

* * *

After a quick breakfast, the three ponies broke camp, stowed everything away, and lifted off. Once they were at altitude, Thunderspite volunteered to take the first shift towing. He needed time to think.

Dawn Glimmer’s question last night had got him thinking. Why do you hate me? What was her name? The fact that she thought he hated her came as quite a surprise. Certainly, his professionalism necessitated a certain distance, and he supposed that could be mistaken for rudeness or even hostility. He must seem particularly standoffish when compared to Blitzwing, who seemed to be treating this mission more like a holiday with friends. But despite what she thought, Thunderspite did not hate her.

Except, as the day wore on and Blitzwing took his turn in the harness, Thunderspite realized that she was absolutely right. He did hate her, and what’s more, he hated her because she reminded him of Sky Dancer. Dawn Glimmer was kind, and warm, and absolutely beautiful, and whenever she was nearby he found himself dumbstruck and tongue-tied. He hated her for having that kind of power over him, and he hated himself for being vulnerable around her. He had let himself get too vulnerable, too close to Sky Dancer, and when she left, well...he had been wounded. He also hated Dawn Glimmer for being able to read him so easily, and he hated himself for being so transparent.

“You alright over there, Thunderspite?” Dawn Glimmer asked.

Thunderspite looked up, startled. “What?”

“You’ve been on that same page for over an hour now.”

Thunderspite looked back at the book he had been holding. “Oh. Just...thinking about stuff, I guess.”

Dawn Glimmer closed her book and cocked her head to the side. “Anything you’d like to talk about?”

“No. Thank you,” he said, too quickly.

“Do you think you’d prefer a different book?” she asked.

“Uh... no. This one’s fine.”

“Alright. Well, let me know.” Her voice was both concerned and inviting.

Thunderspite went back to staring at a book, immediately regretting missing the opportunity to talk to her. Though he may not be ready for a relationship again, he realized that he had been being rude to Dawn Glimmer ever since he met her, under the convenient guise of professional detachment. Dawn Glimmer, meanwhile, had done nothing but try to befriend him, in spite of his misplaced ire. Though socializing with her would make him uncomfortable, continuing not do so would be cowardly.

Ten minutes or so passed while Thunderspite gathered his courage. Then he sighed and lowered his book.

“Sky Dancer,” he said, addressing Dawn Glimmer.

Dawn Glimmer lowered her book, surprised. “Pardon?”

“The reason I hate you. Her name was Sky Dancer.”

Without taking her eyes off him, Dawn Glimmer lowered her book and set it on the couch beside her. “You must have really cared for her.”

Thunderspite nodded. “I...didn’t really realize that I was being so rude to you. I apologize.”

Dawn Glimmer crossed the gondola, sat next to him, and looked into his eyes with that piercing, all-knowing gaze of hers. “I forgive you, Thunderspite. I know you’ve been hurt.”

Thunderspite was uncomfortable with both her proximity and the topic at hand, but he forced himself to continue. “Am I really that easy to read?”

Dawn Glimmer smiled bashfully. “Partially. I also have some empathic abilities. I can sort of sense things about ponies sometimes. Not specifics, but in your case it was pretty easy to fill in the gaps.”

“Really.” Thunderspite had heard that some unicorns had that ability, but had never met one in person. He suddenly felt very exposed, realizing that she had probably been reading his feelings the whole trip. He wondered if she had picked up on the fact that he was attracted to her.

“Mm-hmm,” Dawn Glimmer said. “I have a special knack for seeing the good in everypony. I imagine that’s why the Princess chose me for this mission.”

“I suppose so.” There was a brief silence that passed between them. Then Thunderspite set his book down on the couch next to him, turned back to her, and said, “Dawn Glimmer, I think you may be the most interesting pony I’ve ever met. Will you please tell me about yourself?”

Dawn Glimmer smiled broadly. “Alright. But only if you return the favor. Deal?”

“Deal.”

* * *

Thunderspite listened intently, hanging off every word, as Dawn Glimmer talked about herself. She grew up in Canterlot, and both her parents were professors at the university. She had an older brother and a younger sister. Each of her family were very talented unicorns in their own right. When she was old enough, she had been accepted into Princess Celestia’s special program for gifted unicorns. Her empathic abilities, as well as other specific magical talents, gave her a particular knack for building and repairing relationships.

“You can also teleport. What other abilities do you possess?” Thunderspite asked.

Dawn Glimmer smiled at him and winked. “Ask me later.”

She continued. She had done a few diplomatic missions for the Princess, but otherwise she worked as a relationship counselor in Canterlot. “Now enough about me. What about you, Thunderspite? Tell me everything.”

“I’m not sure there’s much to tell.” Thunderspite’s parents were two ordinary pegasi from Cloudsdale. He was the youngest of four siblings. He joined the Guard straight out of high school, rose through the ranks quickly, and was promoted to Captain just last year.

“Did you always want to be a Guard?” she asked. Thunderspite nodded. “Any particular reason?”

Thunderspite shrugged. “Well, I had the physical aptitude for it.”

“Any other reasons?”

Thunderspite stopped and thought. “I guess I liked the idea of being a force for good? Protecting ponies?”

She smiled at this. “I thought as much.”

Thunderspite and Dawn Glimmer spent the rest of the morning getting to know everything there was to know about each other. Favorite foods, first crushes, favorite books, childhood friends, irrational fears. As lunchtime neared, Thunderspite helped with the sandwiches. When Blitzwing came in to eat, Thunderspite participated much more in the conversation. Since Blitzwing had told an embarrassing boot camp story about Thunderspite the day before, it seemed only fair that Thunderspite returned the favor. All through lunch their stories about each other grew more and more exaggerated, until Dawn Glimmer was literally rolling on the floor laughing. When they had all had their fill, Blitzwing volunteered to fly the entire afternoon. “Since you too are getting on so well,” he said. Thunderspite would have normally objected, but he was actually quite glad for the chance to get to know Dawn Glimmer better.

They had been flying over desert for the majority of the day. By late afternoon the landscape below them had transitioned from sand dunes into a landscape of red rocks with high plateaus, mesas, and arches. When the sun was getting low on the horizon, Thunderspite took up the harness alongside Blitzwing, and together they set the balloon down atop a high plateau overlooking a wide valley and made camp.

At dinner that night, Thunderspite was much more amiable, and Blitzwing was astonished at the change in his friend’s demeanor. He laughed when the other two made jokes, and even cracked a few of his own.

They all said their goodnights, as Blitzwing headed back to his tent and Dawn Glimmer headed back to her stateroom. Thunderspite lingered by the fire, poking at it with a stick. He didn’t much feel like sleeping just yet. Instead, he wandered out to the edge of the plateau.

There was no moon out that night, but here away from the city lights, the stars shone so brightly that Thunderspite had no trouble seeing. When he got near the edge of the mesa, Thunderspite found an inclined boulder and lay on top of it. The air had just a slight chill to it, this high above the desert floor, but the red rock against his back still felt pleasantly warm from the hot day’s sun. He lay looking up into the night sky, thinking about everything and nothing in particular.

“Sleeping out under the stars, Thunderspite?”

Thunderspite had been lost in thought, and hadn’t heard Dawn Glimmer approach. Her voice from behind him startled him. Sitting up, he replied. “Maybe.”

“It’s a little chilly up here for that, don’t you think?” she asked.

“The rocks are actually quite warm.”

“Oh yeah? Skooch over,” Dawn Glimmer said, not waiting for him to respond before settling herself on the boulder beside him. There was only just room for two ponies on the boulder, and Thunderspite was keenly aware of her flank pressed against his.

“There’s supposed to be a meteor shower tonight. Seen any yet?” she asked.

“Not yet.”

“Well, maybe we’ll get lucky.”

“Mm-hmm,” mumbled Thunderspite. If Dawn Glimmer caught the double entendre, she wasn’t letting on.

“Oh look!” Dawn Glimmer pointed. “It’s Starswirl’s Comet. It’s not supposed to be visible for another week!”

Thunderspite scanned the night sky but could not see what she meant. “Where?”

“There. See the three stars in a line? That’s Orion’s Belt. And just south of that... see the the sort of fuzzy star?”

“Oh, yeah.” Thunderspite did see the fuzzy star, but was much more interested in the sensation of Dawn Glimmer’s cheek pressed against his as she guided his outstretched arm. He swallowed. “You study astronomy, then?” Thunderspite asked.

“Oh, yes. It’s one of my favorite subjects. You?”

“No. I can find the north star... ” he traced his arm in a few arcs, finding his bearings with a few constellations, then pointed. “There. Night time navigation, you know. But that’s about it. I always enjoyed looking at them, though.”

“Yeah. Whoa!” Dawn Glimmer gasped as as a meteor flashed across the desert plain.

“Wow,” Thunderspite agreed.

“That was amazing!” Dawn Glimmer sounded as giddy as a school filly. Then she gasped again, apparently having just remembered something.

Thunderspite looked over at her. “Are you alright?” he asked. Silhouetted against the desert night, he could just make out her face. Her head was tilted back, her eyes closed, and she had a faint smile on her lips.

A long moment passed before she answered him. “I was making a wish, silly.”

“Oh.” He decided to take a chance. “What did you wish for?”

“I can’t tell you!” She seemed shocked that he would even ask. “If I tell you, it won’t come true!”

“I thought that was only for birthday cakes.”

“All wishes, silly! Don’t you know anything?”

“Apparently not,” Thunderspite sighed. She giggled at his ignorance, then she sighed deeply and they both resumed staring into the night sky.

“Dawn?” Thunderspite asked softly.

Dawn Glimmer rolled onto her side. It was the first time Thunderspite had called her that, and he now had her full attention. “Yes?”

He swallowed, not knowing exactly what it was he wanted to ask her. “Um...earlier you said you had other powers?”

“I can see the future sometimes.”

“Oh.” He thought a moment. “Have you seen anything about our journey? Will our mission succeed?”

In the darkness beside him, she yawned and shook her head. “Nothing about the mission, no.”

Thunderspite nodded, then realized there was a gap in her statement. “And anything about the journey?”

“Mm-hmm.”

“And?”

She reached over and caressed his mane. “I saw that I would meet the bravest, strongest pony in all of Equestria, and that the two of us would fall in love.”

Without thinking, Thunderspite kissed her. The two stayed like that for what seemed like an eternity, oblivious to the meteor storm that swelled and almost completely illuminated the desert sky around them.