The Collected Adventures of Tyro

Chapter 2: Invitation

Rainbow Dash yawned, stretching lazily on his bed of fluffy clouds. There was nothing quite like that feeling, waking up after—

There was a knock at the door.

"What the hay!?" Rainbow Dash was startled into flight. "Who in their right mind would come here this early in the morning?"

She quickly flew over to her front door, opening it to see what was the matter. A note was tacked to her door.

Rainbow Dash,

You have been chosen to join the ranks of the greatest fliers in Equestria. At midnight tonight, a dark cloud will be visible over the Everfree Forest. Meet us there. Tell nopony of our request.

There was no signature. The blue pegasus wondered at that for a moment, but then dismissed the thought. Of course there wasn't a signature. Everypony know that the greatest fliers in Equestria were the Wonderbolts, so none was needed.

Rainbow Dash was incredibly excited. She had been hoping to perhaps audition for a chance to join that illustrious group, but this was an outright invitation! Had it been the performance at the Best Young Fliers competition that had caught their eye? Perhaps her dedication to her duties in Ponyville coordinating the weather?

It didn't matter, the pegasus decided, as she flew down to Ponyville to share the news with her friends. Rainbow Dash stopped abruptly. She wasn't supposed to tell anypony about the letter. The Wonderbolts were a very special group, she knew, and often had to be told of things that needed to stay secret. This imposed silence might be some kind of test. She chuckled to herself, as she flew. There was no need for them to worry: as the Element of Loyalty, Rainbow Dash would never betray a secret...

Except that one time, she thought, with a sharp pang of regret. That one time, that could have destroyed the bond between her friends, and almost did. Rainbow Dash still didn't know how Tyro had managed to find her that night, after she had left Sugarcube Corner. The storm raging outside had been little better than the one she had fled, and her wings had become heavier and heavier as the water soaked into them.

Finally, the pegasus had become too weighed down by the water to fly, and so she walked down the street in the pouring rain and raging wind. However, her attempts to stay aloft had taken their toll, and she had little stamina left. Tyro had finally found her under the library tree, trying to take shelter there from the storm. Tyro... At the time, she had only felt worse at the identity of her rescuer. She'd readily given up the location of her friends, not realizing what Tyro was planning, and not realizing that Tyro had seen that her face wasn't just wet from the rain. And so she could only struggle uselessly as he'd magically carried her back to Sugarcube Corner and presented her dripping form to her friends, in all her misery.

That one time, she had let a secret be told, and it had almost destroyed everything. No, this summons would remain unspoken of, even to her closest friends.

And so Rainbow Dash resolved to say nothing of the invitation, and tell nopony of her excitement. It wouldn't be easy, but she could do it. She had to.

Author's Note: Sorry for the short chapter, but I'm covering multiple things all going on at once, so it becomes somewhat necessary.

Also, feel free to make suggestions in the comments!