Okay, I just want to point out first of all that this whole stupid idea is Twilight’s idea, okay? Not. Mine. ~~I mean, I don’t even want to be doing this~~

~~This is stupid~~

Okay, fine. Positive attitude about the whole thing. I’m doing this on my own free will, nopony’s making me, blah de blah blah. ~~I mean, in a technical sense I suppose you could say I even asked for it~~

~~This is really, really stupid~~

~~Okay. Cut to the chase. Right.~~

~~Okay.~~

~~Okay, I’ve been writing “Okay” down way too much and it’s really starting to annoy me. Can I just scrap everything and start over?~~

Ugh. Fine. And I guess everypony gets to read all the stuff I crossed out, too

WHATEVER FINE

So. Hello, future me. My name is Rainbow Dash – otherwise known as past you – and if you’re reading this, we both know that you’re still the best, most awesome, most radical, most amazing, and definitely the most cool pony in all of Equestria. No doubt you’re leading the Wonderbolts at this point and know all about that, but I just wanted to tell you that I’m excited to be you in however many years in the future you are. Unless I get excited and dig this up super early

~~I hope I don’t do that~~

~~Twilight, stop looking over my shoulder~~

You might have noticed that I stuck some of my super cool stuff in here, which is just a reminder of how much I managed to do before I even got to your age. I didn’t get to send you my flight leader badge because I still have to talk to spitfire about that, but I did send you some of the posters the little squirt drew of me for my fan club. Then there were the souvenir photos of the Wonderbolt tryouts, the photos of the elements of harmony starring me, and generally just pictures of me being super cool. Once I get to how old you are, they’re probably going to be worth ten million bits each, or something like that, so that’s cool.

I guess I’m supposed to give you a reminder about what my life’s like right now, ~~since that’s what Twilight wants~~ since you might have forgotten which totally would never happen. As you already know, I. am. AWESOME. I recently just moved into a castle that’s almost literally made of awesome, because I

~~so I’m only writing what I’m about to write because Twilight’s using magic to hit me over the head with a book until I “get it right”, as if that actually means anything~~

~~Twilight, stop trying to rewrite my time capsule~~

I am not

~~You are too~~

I just want you to stop saying that you’re the only pony that’s done anything important

Well, I’m not going to stop unless you stop messing around with my time capsule and stop hitting me with that book already

Thank you.

Okay, so we defeated Tirek and got super powerful and now we have a castle made almost literally of awesome and our own thrones and everything so I guess that actually sort of makes us like princesses. Except for Discord, who’s still kind of actually lame.

So I guess Twilight’s not going to make me cross out that last bit

But apparently that one? And this one? Whatever.

Point is, we’re awesome and we live in a castle. I finally feel like I’ve got enough space to store all my Daring-Do books without worrying that some cloud-clod accidentally crashes into my wall when there’s a storm going on, and – bam – books soaked and ruined. I’m thinking about moving some more of my stuff in here, too – I got my bed and my books and other water-unfriendly stuff already, but I’ve been a bit lazy about getting actually everything. But I’m allowed to take a bit of a break, right? I mean, we just saved the world – again – and I’m allowed to spend a week or two just kind of, y’know, enjoying it before I have to worry about working again.

Right?

…Okay, future me. You probably know better than I do about what to do with the fact that I maybe sort of feel guilty about this. I mean, we did a good job and everything is awesome and Equestria is safe once again, right? So…why do I feel like I’ve still kind of screwed up? Like, we stopped a bad thing from happening, but we didn’t stop all the bad things from happening. You probably know all about all the stuff I did in the future, right? So I wish you could tell me whether or not I should worry about this. If things do eventually stay better, that means I’m worrying for nothing – right? But if things don’t say better, then how do I do that?

I know that that whole time-travel thing doesn’t work – Twilight told me it doesn’t, flat-out, but – it’d be really helpful if you could just tell me the answer. Trying to talk with you through this whole time…capsule…thing feels kind of weird, anyway.

Anyways, I guess I’m just not sure what else I should say. You know about how I live, you know about the sort of stuff I like at this point in time, you should know about most of my friends.

Maybe I’ll come back some other day if I think of more stuff I want to tell you, and stick it down here with the rest of the junk you’ve got. You know – just so you don’t forget about a time when I wasn’t quite as awesome as you.

Okay, Twilight just said I could do that if I wanted to, so I guess I’ll stop over tomorrow and talk to you a bit more if I feel like it.

But I’m out of stuff to say for now, so I’m gonna head out and get some more flight practice in.

Your biggest fan,

-Rainbow Dash.

P.S. If the time travel stuff ever does work out, visit me sometime, okay? I want to see what all our medals look like, if nothing else.

P.P.S Don’t forget that even if Twilight’s pretty cool for an egghead, she’s *still* an egghead.

///////////////////////////////////////////////

Hey, awesome older me. It’s me, slightly less awesome and younger me again. I decided to stop back over and add a bit more to the other capsule, ‘cause there were some things that I wanted to tell you that I totally forgot about! (am I still forgetful when I’m older? Do I get more forgetful? Ugh. I know I’m going to grow older, but I hope I don’t grow old, like OLD-old, you know what I mean?)

But yeah – yesterday was a pretty awesome day. I mean, it was a bit chilly, kind of cloudy, but we’re supposed to have the longest stretch of nice weather in just a few days. Besides, we like it kind of cool, right? Makes flying that much easier – we don’t get tired as much, and I need that kind of energy to pull of the Buccaneer Blaze just right. (Though maybe you got better at it then I did. Probably did, actually, since if anypony could be more awesome than me – it’s you.)

I figured I would write about some of the other ponies I know – you know, just in case they’ve gotten some of their less-then-awesome ideas into your head, or just in case you forgot! I’ve got the clearest mind for this sort of thing. Not that I don’t trust you, but I know these guys at this point in time better than anyone else I know, even you, so that’s got to count for something, right?

So, Twilight Sparkle. She’s the one that started first with this whole idea about “let’s-make-time-capsules-so-we-don’t-ever-forget-that-we-were-best-friends” thing. Which is kind of cool, actually, I mean – even if she phrased it in a really kind of mushy gushy sort of way, it doesn’t necessarily mean that she was wrong about it. ‘cause here I am and here you are, right?

But that’s Twilight in a nutshell. Half of the time, she’s constantly lovey-dovey about us being friends and sticking together and having fun and blah de blah de blah, as if we didn’t already know all of that in the first place. Like I said – cute, yes, but definitely not cool. Maybe you’ve warmed up to that? Does it start getting more…whatever she wants over time?

Still, if you ever get to be as nerdy as she is – and that’s the other half of the time – go soak your head in a bucket of water. Seriously. You’ll thank me for it later. I refuse to believe, even if you’re giving it to me from the horse’s mouth, ~~no pun intended~~ pun totally intended because that was awesome, that I’ll be able to start getting interested about differential equation this and integer that and covalent bonding et cetera et cetera. And if you somehow do get interested – why, older me? Why? You’re cooler than that, trust me on it.

But back to the lovey-dovey stuff, you would not BELIEVE what Fluttershy is like these days. Or would you? It’s like every time I see her, she’s got some picnic basket full of cucumber sandwiches or a snorkel and a set of flippers and ~~SHE DOESN’T EVEN LIKE SWIMMING OR AT LEAST DIDN’T EVEN LIKE SWIMMING SHE’S A PEGASUS HOW DOES THAT MAKE SENSE~~

~~I don’t think any of us know what she sees in him~~

Okay, so does she get any better about the whole “extra-special-best-friend” thing with that creepy and totally not funny Draconequius? Like, ever? Or is she just going to get worse? ~~Please don’t tell me they get married I will actually beat my head against a wall until I pass out from brain damage~~

Buuuuut at any rate she’s totally happy about finding her part in the world and being able to still take care of animals and being in some…kind of relationship ~~there I said it are you happy whatever,~~ it’s none of my business. And I mean, I guess if anypony deserves to be happy that way, it should be her, because there was like no way I could ever imagine anypony less likely than her to actually get into a happy relationship.

Well, except for one, but we both know who she is.

Rarity, on the other hand, I could totally imagine having some colt slung over one shoulder, but still nothing. Gee, do you figure that “more glitz and glitter than a disco ball” is going out of style? ~~couldn’t happen fast enough~~ okay, that was mean, even by my standards. Still – she’s got at least one little purple devotee, so why she hasn’t gotten together with anypony is a little beyond me.

She’s having a field day with the whole princess-thing, though. Out of any of us, even Twilight, I think she’s really loved how things have turned out. About the only way she could play the princess more is by wearing some stilts for the legs, and getting herself a fake crown or something. The latter probably wouldn’t be too hard for her, anyway. Still, she gets to live in a castle and act pompous and be hailed by the entire upper crust, so – happy ending, I guess?

What does she do after this? Because if that’s the culmination of her life, then I can’t imagine how she must be taking having her life peak this early. I mean, I guess you could say the same thing about me, but I don’t doubt that I’ll think of something awesome to do – a dragon to beat up, or a town to save from rampaging changelings, or something. There’s a lot that you can do with radical flight skills, but glamour for the sake of glamour feels pretty monomaniacal.

Wait. “Culmination”? “Monomaniacal?” is Twilight rubbing off on me? Oh, man, it really is going to get worse, isn’t it. Just like before. Ugggggghhhhhh I hope she doesn’t rub it in my face

Different subject

Uh

Pinkie Pie is Pinkie Pie. I don’t think I need to say anything about that.

And Applejack…she’s always been the most consistent and reliable of us, but still just a little unreachable. I think there’s something at the edge of her tether that she’s not telling us about. Hey, do you know it? I guess I should ask “if”, but I’m pretty sure there’s *something* there. It’s always the most self-confident ones that have something beneath the surface.

oh look at me I’m a psychologist wheeeeeeeeeeeeeee

but that’s my friends. Short draft, anyway – there’s still Tank, and Spike, and Squirt, and I guess I could probably talk about spitfire and maybe soarin if I thought about it for a bit. But I don’t want to get bored and do a lame job of this when I could be out, like, trying to see how fast I could weave through all the buildings in ponyville without running into anything. I’m pretty sure I can beat last year’s record by a lot, and if I’m going to go about besting the best, that’s not a bad place to start.

Speaking of – I was kind of curious about the contents of their time capsules, so I went around and asked them. Twilight’s basically got a novel in there. Probably needs it, though, what with the whole alicorn thing. You think she’s going to live for thousands of years, like princess Celestia and princess Luna? I bet she becomes an even bigger pain in the neck as time goes on.

Pinkie crammed some cupcakes into hers along with “a list” that I’m not sure I want to know actually has on it. You figure that the cupcakes would go bad after a while, but I guess Pinkie is Pinkie, so if anything I bet they’ll have bred inside there and there’ll be hundreds of cupcakes when she opens it up in the future. It seems like the least possible thing to happen, which is why I’m guessing it – Pinkie is Pinkie, right?

Everypony else kept things pretty normal, though. Same as me: note, keepsakes, reminders, all that. I guess it’s kind of comforting to know that I’m not all that different from everypony else after all – I mean, I had to be prodded into this because obviously it isn’t super amazingly cool, but when things break down we’re all kind of the same. Like good friends, right?

Okay, future me, I’m going to go stretch my wings. Catch you later (obviously)

-Rainbow Dash

///////////////////////////////////////////

3

okay, Whoever did this. Not. Funny.

You know, when you’re supposed to plant a time capsule, the stuff in it’s supposed to stay in there until, you know, time passes. It’s not like I was going to take anything out of it after two days, so answer me this – why is it empty?

I mean, not empty. You left all the awesome photos and posters there in it, and I mean, what the hay? The only thing you’re going to take are my letters? That took a lot of time to write, and they aren’t even collectible or anything.

But what’s your problem? Do you hate me or something? Are you jealous? Because stealing the letters out of a time capsule is not. Cool.

I asked everypony else about it, and they have no clue. Applejack swears that everypony’s telling me the truth that they don’t know anything about it, but I guess I’m going entirely on her word here. But then again, what does she have to get from stealing my letters? It doesn’t make any sense.

I’m writing this from that place by the watering hole, by the way. Not from cloudsdale OR the castle. I hope you know that I’m going to watch over the capsule after I finish writing this, to catch you in the act.

Did I mention you’re awful? Like, really, really, bottom-of-the-barrel scum, and I hate you.

~~seriously, what’s the point~~

I obviously don’t know the point, and I bet you’re not going to explain it to me. I could write out how cruddy you are all over the page, but it’d get boring and you’re not worth my time.

Whoever you are – friend, enemy, stranger – give them back. I mean, not that you’re actually going to just because I tell you to, but there are a lot easier ways of getting my attention.

Sincerely,

-Rainbow Dash

P.S. there are easier ways of getting my attention, you know. You could have just *talked* to me.

P.P.S You’re still a jerk.

//////////////////////////////////////////

4

“I’m Sorry”? “Please keep writing”?

What the hay is that supposed to mean????? Writing this by the watering hole again, by the way. But am I going to have to expect something totally unexpected every time I check up on the stupid capsule?

I guess the whole “write-a-letter-of-your-own-and-slip-it-in-the-capsule” thing was kind of cool. I didn’t see it coming, if anything else. But you still didn’t return any of my letters, so you’re obviously not listening.

But I can’t tell if you’re sarcastic or not, and that’s the real problem. If you’re going to steal my stuff and not bother to apologize

~~You technically apologized I guess~~

But why is your hoofwriting so neat? You look like you’ve gone to some sort of fancy-hoofwriting-school, and I’m pretty sure that if you hadn’t practiced before that it would have had a bunch of scratches in the paper, or at least some ink blots, which is what it looks like every time I try to write in cursive.

But your writing looks like Twilight’s. I mean, it’s not Twilight’s, obviously, but you probably get what I mean. Because if you’re spying on me, you’re probably spying on most of the elements of harmony, right?

~~But you’re awfully polite for a villain~~

~~-uggh too many “but”s~~

~~hee hee hee “too many butts”~~

So either you’re a crazy polite villain or you’re some kind of stalker. Do you like me? I mean, and if you did, why couldn’t you tell me to my face? Are you shy?

Okay, so if it turns out you like me and you’re just too nervous to tell me to my face, then you know I’m probably cool with it, right?

~~unless you’re in love with me~~ if you’re in love with me, this is kind of a creepy way to show it.

Uggh I honestly don’t know what to think about all of this.

I could try and ask you for proof that you were doing this for good intention or not? But I guess if this is some kind of prank then you would probably try to fool me anyway. And honestly, since I have no clue who you are or not, there’s no way that I’d be able to meaningfully figure this out.

Whatever the truth is, you’re giving me a headache.

I don’t want to think about this right now. You’re going to take this letter too, right? Are you going to reply back?

Anyways.

-Rainbow Dash

/////////////////////////////////////////////

5

In case you were wondering why I started numbering these notes, it was originally so that I could have some kind of record that I didn’t write all the notes at once in case…okay, I guess it sounded better in my head. In case I had some kind of evidence against you that I could use in court? I mean, if we’re supposed to use “taking-things-to-court” now as a diplomatic response. Ugh, it’s a Twilight idea in all likelihood, but this whole thing is kind of her fault anyway.

But yeah. Fifth letter, I guess? I mean, obviously not all the same length, but I figure you’re probably not paging it out. Okay, maybe you are. How am I supposed to know one way or the other?

Seriously, I know you’re probably not going to, but I wish you’d just tell me who you are already.

No letter, I noticed. Maybe that last time was just that one exception? Or will I only be seeing them occasionally, but I’ll still be seeing them? wait and see, I guess. There’s probably some big word about waiting until the future so that I can talk about stuff that I’d like to tell my older self in the future, but I dunno. That’s not exactly my cutie mark.

So what do I say here?

I mean, I’ve got no real reason to keep writing, so I could just stop. Nopony’s forcing me to do it, and I don’t have much that I *need* to say – I mean, I didn’t need to write anything or do this time capsule at all in the first place.

But…okay, I guess part of me doesn’t want to stop? Because I guess there you are, and whoever you are and whatever you think about me, you’re reading what I have to say. And I don’t have to have anypony talk back, or worry about context, or anything like that. So if you’re not some kind of villain or otherwise completely lame pony, then it’s like I can have somepony to talk to. Or like a pen-pal? I never really had one of those, so.

And I mean, I can always kick your butt if I need to. Because if you start trying to make fun of me, I’ll eventually find out and trace it back to the source and – pow!

But on the off chance that you’re not, are you just waiting for me to say something? Should I keep writing? What exactly do you want me to say?

It’s weird. This is weird. I feel like I’m giving a speech to an audience of one. There’s the responsibility of being an element of harmony, there’s a responsibility of being a wonderbolts trainee wing leader, and then there’s this.

Why me?

I mean, it’s not like we didn’t all make time capsules. And Twilight swore that nopony else had their contents raided, so maybe you’re checking them out and then slipping it back – but it still doesn’t explain just taking mine?

uggggh this is so confusing

Look, I feel like I’m overthinking this, so I’m just going to go out and…do something, I don’t know. Not that I’m not having fun sitting out here, ~~writing to somepony on a piece of paper who’s not even talking back~~

You get my point. Not the one on the top of my head. That doesn’t exist, I’m a unicorn, don’t explain the joke, blah blah blah.

Whatever. Maybe I’ll talk to you later. No promises that I’ll remember, but.

-Rainbow Dash

P.S. in case you’re curious, things have been going pretty well over the past few days. Twilight asked for help demolishing what was left of the old library – I didn’t ask if she was eventually going to try to regrow something from there or if she just wanted to get the husk cleared away once and for all. AJ wanted to make it a “contest”, so she asked me and that one mailpony with the weird lopsided eyes to see who could destroy equal sections of the tree faster. I have no idea how she won, but whatever. I may be a loser, but she’s still got dumb eyes.

After that, I’ve just helped “clearing things away”. You figure that something that’s already basically destroyed wouldn’t need any more destruction, but I guess everything has to be down to a science. Or maybe it’s just Twilight being finicky. Or both? Point is, I’ve been aerating the husk and hauling away tree fragments, and taking picnic breaks at Pinkie’s request. LONG picnic breaks. She kind of goes overboard.

And besides that…just flying with Tank, you know? Trying to make sure his propeller is working right, maybe see if I can boost it up a little higher. I know that he wants to try and keep up with me as much as he can (I still have to take it pretty slow when he comes along with me), so I figure if nothing else I can get him accustomed to some banked turns and slipstreaming. Somepony’s got to look out for him on this flying sort of thing, you know?

Uh. In the future, don’t expect me to be this chatty. I’m not normally, y’know, the kind of pony that just likes to stand around and chew the fat all day. But I figure of you’re going to be so interested in listening to something, I might as well give you something to listen to. I dunno – I just kinda felt guilty about not really having anything to say ~~as if that makes any sense~~ so I just figured I’d tack on a bit about what I’ve been up after I said all the rest of that stuff. That’s what you want me to do, right? Just…say something? Anything?

//////////////////////////////////////

6

So I think I’ve been giving you a note every single day, right? So that makes it six days, six letters. Almost an entire week. Which feels…kind of obsessive? But I’m still here.

Stump removal’s finally done. Twilight came and watched me today while I taught tank how to do a proper barrel roll. He…did okay. It’s hard with a propeller, you know? And anyway, he certainly did better than Twilight did.

Her neck should get better soon.

She wasn’t even going that fast when she ran into Sugarcube corner, and it honestly can’t be more than just a little bit sore.

Hey, why are you still reading these? If anything, what exactly do you want me to say? Or do you still just want me to talk about anything? Everything?

You know what? Hold that thought. I’m going to show your note to Twilight, see what she thinks about this. I should have done that a long time ago, actually.

Back Later,

-Rainbow Dash

//////////////////////////////////

7

I have never seen anypony look so smug in her entire life.

Okay, so let’s take this calmly. I know you, even if I don’t know you. You are a secret admirer, though what type wasn’t implied, and you want me to keep writing because you’re genuinely interested in what I have to say. So there’s nothing really pernicious about any of this, and I can actually assume the best, relatively speaking.

Wait – more Twilight-speak? If you can get her to stop rubbing off on me I’d really appreciate it. And while you’re at it, tell her to rub that stupid smile off of her face. She’s got one up on me, and she *knows* it, and it’s just…ugggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhh

if she starts bragging about it then I swear to Celestia that I’m going to punch her right in the face. And it’s not like It wouldn’t hurt. I mean, you probably know how I bucked a dragon in the face or beat up a bunch of changelings with my bare hooves, to name two things out of, like, a million awesome examples. Again – would be more boring to write them out than it feels like it’s worth, so do the research.

But talking to you is like talking in a mirror. So what would I tell my mirror?

Maybe just what goes on in the mind of the one and only Rainbow Dash? Like a sneak preview, or a behind-the-scenes special. But you gotta promise not to tell anypony else, okay?

And no secrets. Secret admirer or not, I don’t know you (even if, I guess, I technically do). And I’m not gonna say anything weird to a complete stranger.

So this was more than I was expecting to write. Moved this letter-writing back to cloudsdale; privacy is nice, and I’m not keen on the idea of snoops snooping in on my letters.

Speaking of Cloudsdale, though, this place gets emptier almost every day. ~~It’s almost kind of sad, actually. I mean, not that I’m not happy to move in with a bunch of my friends in a sweet castle. It’ll be like getting penthouse accommodations mixed with flight camp. But this home was, like…I don’t even have a word for it a home, duh. I lived here. I built it, designed it – it’s mine. It’s not like I’m going to be taking it down cloud by cloud, but the fact that it’s just sort of hanging there in empty space, unused and unlived in, feels a little bit lonely. It’s got some of me in it doesn’t it? So isn’t this like moving away from myself?~~

Uh…that was kind of odd. Ignore it and move on, okay?

Well, maybe I’ll see if the squirt wants to move in to my old house, though. I mean, when/if she starts flying properly. Or maybe if someone can get her fixed up with some magic wings or horseshoes or something. I could probably look into that. I mean, it’s not like we aren’t already celebrities; probably should be easy for some starstruck magician to magic up some cool loot for us, and it’d be a heck of a hearth warming’s present for her.

Okay, secret admirer, look: are my friends really rubbing off on me? Am I the real, genuine rainbow dash anymore? ‘Cause besides all the Twilight Sparkle speech, I felt like that was a bit of Rarity rubbing off on me. I mean, I’m not sure that’d you’ld really know off the bat, but – did you like it better when I felt more dash-y and less everypony-else-y? It’s the sort of thing that I warned my future self about. But out of all the bad feelings I have, making friends with Twilight and Rarity and Fluttershy and Applejack and Pinkie Pie isn’t one of them.

Y’know, even given that one’s an egghead, one’s a diva, one’s clinically shy, one likes to think she’s as awesome as me when she’s not, and one is Pinkie Pie.

So that’s a lot of weird feelings for me today. And I feel like I’ve had a lot more since you started getting my letters. Hey, are you ever going to return those, by the way? I figure that even after you grow bored and leave, future me might still want to read them. If nothing else, current me would probably make for a good laugh.

But anyway, I think I’ll write more for tomorrow. Writing’s slow without magic – surprise, surprise! – and that could cramp any pony’s mouth/hoof after a while. Plus, I don’t want to run out of things to say to you, creepy feelings and random bits of blugh-emotion aside.

Tomorrow. Same place as usual. By the way, don’t show these to anypony, even Twilight. ESPECIALLY Twilight.

-Rainbow Dash

///////////////////////////////////////

Author's Note

Formatting issues mean that i can't vary the font type between select passages; at least, not to my current level of (limited) knowledge. I indicated who's writing what by font color - a bit gimmicky, but it's the best i can manage for now. Apologies.