Cloud Cover

by sunnypack

Rating: everyone
Tags: Slice of Life, Twilight Sparkle, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Rainbow Dash
Length: 4560

Twilight and Rainbow have been taking flying lessons for a while. But when an accident happens, she learns a little about the local weather management from her friend.

Twilight didn't think weather management would be hard, but it is, surprisingly.

Edited by the ever-faithful Word Worthy.

Published 2015-02-22 23:30:01 UTC
Last updated 2015-02-22 23:30:01 UTC

1 - Crash

Chapter 1: Crash

The trick to crashing without being hurt is to know when to execute a roll. Downwards momentum is transferred into forward momentum and you’re less likely to break your bones. The rolling, though, will cause you to be bruised all over.

They say practice makes perfect, so the art of crashing was mainly instinctive for Rainbow Dash.

“Look out!” she yelled in desperation. She saw Twilight’s eyes widen and imagined that the subsequent hesitation was more of a result of her deciding whether or not to dodge Rainbow or cushion her fall, rather than because of her slow bookworm reflexes.

“Oof!” Twilight had decided to stand there gawking like a chicken.

Tangled limbs, a muffled exclamation resulting from a hard poke of a horn in sensitive areas and a mouthful of feathers were all little things that Rainbow processed as she came to rest from the tumble.

Rainbow winced as she picked herself up, freeing herself from the dazed alicorn.

“Uhh sorry Twilight,” she said sheepishly, rubbing a hoof on the back of her head. “I kinda lost control there for a second.”

Twilight got to her hooves, her legs still shaky from the collision.

“Ooh,” she groaned. “You know, I think I might have second thoughts about this week’s flight lesson.”

Rainbow affected a hurt expression. “Okay, okay! I’m sorry I crashed into you. Don’t worry,” she spoke quickly. “We’re not going to try anything advanced. Just a couple of exercises to get your wings under control.”

Twilight had a guarded expression that told Rainbow she wasn’t one hundred percent convinced. Rainbow grinned broadly, but her smile felt a little forced. Twilight studied her for a moment longer, then nodded slowly.

Rainbow perked up, with a few experimental flexes she nodded and took to the air, hovering a few feet above the ground.

“Okay! We’re going to learn a little about gliding and wheeling. Are you feeling up to it?”

Twilight splayed her wings out, like Rainbow had shown her, and flexed it into several positions. After a few strokes, Twilight indicated her readiness.

“Awesome,” Rainbow commented in approval. She remembered the first time she ignored her instructor’s advice to check her wings before flight. For her troubles she had busted her nose and twisted a wing on that fall. Her nose twitched a little but Rainbow shook her head of the recollection, concentrating on leading her friend.

“Alright, Twi’ just follow alongside me and remember to focus on your primaries when you make a turn. We’ll start with gentle turns and then move to wide circling and then wheeling. Ready?” There was a quick nod. “Okay, go!”

Both took to the air, with Rainbow shooting forward quickly before checking herself and glancing back to see if Twilight was following. Their first lessons had been rocky. Rainbow hadn’t been used to teaching anypony before, so she had darted ahead whilst still instructing, only to find that Twilight had been left far behind. Rainbow grinned toothily. She didn’t make that mistake now.

As they made a few gentle flaps of ascent, Rainbow was gratified to see that Twilight had vastly improved. She no longer laboured, her expression wasn’t of one of deep concentration but rather heady and free, enjoying the sensation of flowing wind and wild currents surrounding them. Seeing Rainbow looking back at her, Twilight waved.

Rainbow waved back but nonchalantly added, “Heh, don’t get too distracted, Twi’, we’re going to do a turn now. Just remember, watch out for clouds, concentrate on the tips of your wings and make the turn slowly.”

Twilight nodded, her face set into a frown. As Rainbow tilted slightly to make the turn, Twilight followed.

“Don’t slow down too much!” Rainbow exclaimed as Twilight’s wings flared instinctively to make the turn slower. “You’re gliding! You need to keep your speed if you want to maintain lift!”

Biting her lip, Twilight did as instructed but a wobble that had been present from the beginning of the turn had Rainbow worried. Did she notice? Maybe she should say something.

“Watch out Twilight you’re getting a little—”

Rainbow didn’t have the chance to say a word more as Twilight’s wing cramped on her left side, sending her corkscrewing violently in mid-air.

“Twilight!” Rainbow yelled, diving to catch her friend as she plummeted to the ground. Rainbow instinctively knew that though there was a lake below, she had catalogued it in her pre-flight check. She bit her lip. Crashing into it would be like slamming into a brick wall at this speed. Straining hard, Rainbow flapped furiously, her hooves automatically stretched out to streamline her body. Rainbow flattened herself, trying to squeeze more speed as she rapidly caught up to Twilight.

Rainbow’s mind raced, her body going into overdrive trying to think of the consequences of crashing into the lake. At this speed, Rainbow could catch Twilight a few feet above the water, but with only a split second to arrest their speed, all she could do is shield her friend from the impact.

She gritted her teeth. Of course she would do it. No matter the consequences, she was responsible for teaching Twilight. She would never be able to forgive herself if she let her friend get hurt under her care.

Her wings felt like they were made of steel, cleaving the air with every stroke. Rainbow wanted to go faster, faster, faster!

Hooves out stretched, Rainbow grabbed Twilight just in time, wrapping around her just—

The impact felt more like a reverberation through her soul than a shock to her body. Rainbow noted belatedly that she had hit the water on her back. The angle of her tackle had transferred some of the energy sideways, but they had still hit the water pretty hard. Rainbow dimly noted that she couldn’t breathe, but for some reason it didn’t bother her.

Because she felt her friend’s heartbeat, and it was beating strong, even as Rainbow felt a little weak…

–––––

Twilight paced around the reception her hooves tapping out a relentless rhythm on the floor. A couple of other visitors looked up with an annoyed expression, but when they caught her expression, their own ranged from sympathy to pity and they did their best to block out the noise.

Twilight’s thoughts swirled around in her head. She couldn’t help but feel the situation was her fault. It had been an accident of course, a terrible twist of fate, but the worry gnawed at her gut, twisting it into uncomfortable knots of guilt.

“Princess Twilight?” The words jolted Twilight out of her vicious cycle of anxiety.

“Yes? You have an update on Rainbow Dash?” Twilight queried hopefully.

Nurse Redheart smiled. The small action sent a wave of relief rushing across Twilight, the emotion so palatable her legs threatened to give way.

Nurse Redheart held out a clipboard in her hoof.

“Rainbow Dash seems to be fine for now. The main problem was the blunt force trauma to her spine but after several scans we’ve determined that there was no permanent damage. Her wings were broken in the impact as well, but there were no complications. Regardless, there are still multiple fractures so she’ll be in the hospital for the better part of this week. Apart from that, she is very, very lucky.”

“Oh thank you, thank you, thank you! That’s the best news I’ve heard all day!” Twilight gushed, the emotions overwhelming her. She pulled the nurse into a hug and Nurse Redheart patted her on the back awkwardly.

“I’ve seen Rainbow here several times, we’re practically friends now,” Nurse Redheart said, pulling away from Twilight. She rolled her eyes. “Though tell that mare that I’d rather have less friends than hurt ponies, no matter how invincible they think they are.”

Twilight nodded sheepishly. “I’ll tell her that.” She neglected to mention that it was her fault this time. That had to be fixed. “I need to thank her, she saved me from crashing into the lake directly,” Twilight admitted.

Nurse Redheart’s eyebrows shot up briefly and a slow frown spread across her muzzle.

“Hmm,” she said. “When I first saw you dragging Rainbow in, sopping wet and almost hysterical, I thought you had seen her spin out of control with one of her crazy stunts and you were there just in time to rescue her from drowning.” Her eyes narrowed. “No offence, Your Highness, but I don’t want to be friends with you as well. Make sure you don’t get into the same trouble as Rainbow Dash.”

Nurse Redheart sighed then gave her a light smile. “Rainbow is in room twelve. She’s in a lot of bandages and dosed with some strong pain medications. You might not have the most lucid of conversations at the moment. I have other patients to attend to, so with your permission, Princess.” With that, Nurse Redheart bowed slightly and retreated, signing a few documents quickly before leaving.

Twilight hesitated, then headed down the corridor that led to room twelve.

Twilight wryly reflected that this was the same room that Rainbow had been kept in when she broke her wing. She had embraced reading after being bored out of her mind. Twilight smiled as she recalled Rainbow sneaking back into the hospital to read the book when her friend ran the local library. The experience had bonded them over the same passion. Her hoof reached out to touch the knob but she hesitated. Will Rainbow be alright with seeing her? She set her jaw and pushed the door open. It was time to find out.

Author's Note

Crashes aren't fun. I've been in a lot of them. Doesn't stop me from enjoying what I love.

Next Chapter: Hospitals aren't fun. Don't end up in one, kids.

As always, my ferocious and fearless readers, thanks for reading!

2 - Splash

Chapter 2: Splash

The room was empty apart from the bed that Rainbow occupied. Unlike the last time she had been in the room, there was no pony in the other bed and it was silent in the room, making the simple act of closing the door sound deafeningly loud.

“Rainbow?” Twilight ventured, her voice warbled as she tried to maintain a grip on her composure.

“Ugh, Twilight? Is that you?”

Twilight swallowed thickly, nodding as she replied, “Yes, I’m here.”

Before she could say anything, Rainbow let out a breath and smiled weakly.

“I’m glad,” she said shifting in her bed. The motion made her wince. “I just woke up and I couldn’t bear the thought that you might have been hurt despite what I did.”

Twilight’s mouth gaped and Rainbow chuckled.

“What’s the matter, Twi’? You feeling alright?”

“Y-Yes,” Twilight replied quickly. “I just thought— it was my fault that you’re in hospital…”

Rainbow chuckled. “Don’t be silly. I was your trainer. It was my fault for not watching you. I saw you wobble, and I made a bad judgement call.” She paused. “It was my fault this all happened. I’m glad you weren’t hurt.”

Twilight shook her head. “No, no! Don’t you see? I lost control. You warned me not to take it too fast, but I thought I could handle it. It’s my fault!”

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Ugh, I have a feeling that we could sit here arguing all day as to who’s fault it is. Let’s just put it behind us,” she said. She pointed at the reading cart loaded with books. “I’ve read all the books here, so there’s nothing to interest me. Want to stay here for a while?”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “What, here? Just us?” She didn’t think they would have anything interesting to talk about.

“Yeah, you’re my flying buddy, right? We can talk about flying. Or the Wonderbolts. Or clouds. And why they’re so fluffy…” Rainbow trailed off, staring at the ceiling.

Twilight frowned. That didn’t sound like Rainbow Dash. She glanced at the machine connected to the intravenous drip. Ah, it had just increased the dosage for Rainbow.

Twilight grinned. “We can talk about clouds, or flying, whatever you want.”

“Good, I like flying…” Rainbow slurred, then her eyes fluttered shut.

Twilight dragged over a book from the reading cart. She chose the one with the thickest spine. Somehow, she had a feeling she was going to be staying for a long time. But she didn’t mind.

–––––

Rainbow had been recovering for a few days in the hospital. Throughout the time, Twilight had visited almost everyday, but all her friends had dropped in from time to time.

Applejack left her a bushel of apples and baked Apple family goods. Applejack couldn’t stay very long, she said something about cider season coming soon. The prospect made Rainbow’s mouth water, but Applejack had remained coy and danced around the date for when it would be released. Rainbow made her promise to reserve some cider, but the pony smiled slyly and stated: ‘First come, first serve’. Though that made Rainbow roll her eyes, she also chuckled.

Rarity and Fluttershy had also dropped by to give her a bouquet of flowers, a get well soon card, and some chocolates. Rainbow ate the flowers morosely, they were more for the looks than flavour (typical of Rarity) but at least she enjoyed the chocolates. Fluttershy later brought Tank to visit and got a small bird to sing for her. She smiled, remembering how Fluttershy had once brought a small bird to sing for her when she was down in a funk at times during Flight School.

Strangely absent was Pinkie who had left to visit her family. But she had somehow known about the crash and had sent a variety of get-well cakes and confectionary. When Rainbow signed the parcel delivery, the postal mare had chuckled at her expression as she opened box after box of ‘Get Well Soon, Dashie!’ cakes. She also sent a picture of her family looking stoically at the camera with Pinkie grinning wildly in contrast. That brought a chortle out of her bored doldrum.

On the fifth day, she received an urgent notice from Cloudsdale.

Dear Miss Rainbow Dash,

Due to an error in our manufacturing database, a cloud shipment allotted for Ponyville has been made above specifications (technical specifications attached below). Due to water resupply shortages and a high influx of orders, we cannot make, or remake, another cloud to your specifications for the next three months. Our suggestion is that the cumulonimbus cloud delivered be manually broken down to achieve your overcast/light shower schedule for this week. Cloudsdale apologises for the inconvenience, we have enclosed a coupon for a free shipment on your next delivery.

Appendix I: Technical Specifications
Model: Cumulonimbus-XT-110 (Anvil Top)
Density: Maximum (2.0 ddp)
Spell Matrix: Limit — Town (Desig. 0027)
Spectral extras: N/A
Lightning and other weather effects: Limited/Thunder Only

Yours faithfully,

Cloudsdale Weather Factory

Rainbow gaped at the letter for a few moments before trying her hoof at rolling off the bed. The sudden spike of pain arrested her movement and she sat back, trying to calm her whirlwind of thoughts. Rainbow considered calling for the nurse, but noted that the time was nearing four o’clock. Twilight would be here soon, she just had to wait.

Tick. Tick. Tick.

Though in reality the gap was only a few minutes long, it felt like forever as Rainbow mulled over the letter and anxiously stared at the clock.

Gotta keep it cool, gotta keep it cool, she reminded herself as the door clicked open.

“Twilight, hey!” she greeted. Her smile felt a little fake on her face.

This was going to be harder than she thought.

“I need a favour,” she blurted out, despite herself.

Okay, maybe not too hard.

–––––

The doctor had his face set in stone as soon as they approached with the idea of discharging Rainbow early.

“No,” he said flatly. “Miss Dash, you’ve had a bad accident. Modern medicine is good, but it doesn’t work miracles. Give your wing a rest.” He glanced at Twilight, frowning. “You might have authority as Princess,” he added for good measure. “But the hospital is my castle.”

Twilight nodded as Rainbow shook her head. She held out a hoof in case Rainbow said anything to inflame the situation. She could see the impatience threaten to overwhelm the pegasus, so she spoke quickly.

“I know, Doctor. I didn’t mean to imply anything. Rainbow Dash is needed to coordinate the oversized cumulus—”

“Cumulonimbus!” Rainbow blurted.

“—cumulonimbus headed towards Ponyville. If it breaches our town without being broken up, we’ll have torrential rain that might result in flooding and storm-damage.”

The doctor considered the statement. He shook his head, sighing, then walked over to the chart hanging off Rainbow’s bed.

“Okay,” he said reluctantly. “But no flying and use a wheelchair. I trust you will supervise your friend as well?”

Twilight nodded. “Absolutely.”

“No flying! How am I supposed to–mmph!” Rainbow’s speech was muffled as Twilight clamped a hoof over her mouth.

The doctor looked between Twilight and Rainbow sceptically. He wrote something on Rainbow’s chart and scribbled on a prescription pad. He tore the prescription from his pad, handing it to Twilight.

“She might need some minor pain meds. Don’t strain her wings and make sure she doesn’t even walk,” he muttered, whilst fixing Rainbow with an intense stare that even made the excitable mare shrink a little. “Remember, no flying,” he repeated, pausing only to note Rainbow’s nod, and then he trotted out of the room, the door closing with a soft click.

Twilight let go of Rainbow’s muzzle as she relaxed. She felt like a storm had passed.

“Don’t worry Rainbow, I’ll take care of your part of the work,” she said giving her friend a confident smile.

The ensuing silence did not bolster Twilight’s confidence.

Author's Note

Hitting water at terminal velocity is akin to hitting concrete. Though Twilight and Rainbow weren't falling at terminal velocity they were pretty close and it would hurt really bad. Rainbow is lucky Equestrian medicine is so advanced. I mean how did she heal her wing so fast? MAGIC.

Next Chapter: To defeat a cloud. It's harder than it sounds.

As always, my well-informed readers, thanks for reading!

3 - Dash

Chapter 3: Dash

The cumulonimbus roiled ominously as it approached the outskirts of Ponyville. Twilight and Rainbow were situated on a hill overlooking the town. The cloud seemed to dwarf even the new castle that dominated the town.

“This doesn’t look good,” Rainbow muttered, staring at the cloud. Twilight nodded silently, staring at the shifting puffs of water vapour.

“Okay, first thing’s first, we need to stop that cloud,” Rainbow said. “We’ll need the whole weather team, maybe some of pegasi in ponyville to do this as well as your magic, Twi’.”

Twilight looked confused. “Why would we need so many pegasi?” I’ve seen you move quite large clouds.”

Rainbow snorted. “I thought you would have already read up on this. A cloud that size and density is easily over one million tons. The ones that I’ve moved around are barely a few hundred pounds.” She hesitated, then added, “I don’t think even you could handle this on your own.”

Twilight’s eyes bulged slightly and she looked at the cloud apprehensively. “You’re right, that’s surprisingly heavy.”

“That’s why I told you this cloud is serious business. We need everypony pushing on it to slow it down and a few other pegasi to break it up and spread it out. Even if I were at my best it would be a challenge, but I never leave Ponyville hanging.” Rainbow paused and dropped her gaze. “But I’m not fit to do anything right now,” she added softly.

Twilight could see that the fact Rainbow was confined to the wheelchair—to watch as her friends and her colleagues were all tackling the approaching monstrosity—was killing her. She forced a confident smile and brushed her wing along the edge of Rainbow’s, like Fluttershy had taught her. Rainbow looked up in surprise.

“Friends will always be here to help another friend,” she said, taking off.

Twilight didn’t see what Rainbow’s reaction was to that, but she liked to think it was a smile.

–––––

In the air, Twilight yelled out towards the loosely gathered weather team. Her ear crackled as Rainbow spoke to her through the small magical link that allowed quick communication between them at a distance. It was experimental, but today it would be given one heck of a field test.

“The push will have to be along the south edge of the cloud’s front. Make sure you have a few on either side or the cloud may bend inwards and break into three sections. That’ll make it much harder to manage,” Rainbow instructed through the link.

Twilight nodded. “Okay, got it,” she said.

Louder, she addressed the others. “We’ll fly in—” she paused briefly to listen to Rainbow “—in delta formation. Cloud Kicker and Cloud Chaser break up and go to the East side. Cerulean Skies and Drizzle take the West, please. Everypony else, with me, I’ll need help out front, using magic to help slow this cloud down.”

Twilight headed the group, the fliers bound together in a loose v-shape formation. A crackle through the link disrupted Twilight’s quick calculations on the velocity and momentum of the cloud.

“You know…” Rainbow started, her voice distorted, then it faded away. Twilight thought the unstable link had broken up but the thought died when Rainbow muttered, “Never mind.”

“What? What is it?”

“I just realised that you sounded different all of the sudden. You’re leading, like a natural. For a moment you sounded a bit like Spitfire.”

“I-I’m just organising ponies, Rainbow Dash.”

“No it’s different. You’re flying on your own now,” the voice was heavy with emotion, uncharacteristic of the overconfident pegasus.

“Don’t say that, Rainbow, I’ll always need you, just like I’ll need everypony else. How am I supposed to know about wind currents or how heavy that cloud was? Or tight manoeuvring? Or any of the practicality that comes with wings? I can’t replace that.”

The link fell silent again and the seconds dragged on with Twilight anxiously listening to the transmission. The little pops and clicks transmitted across the link somehow made it worse. Twilight gritted her teeth.

With only a hoof-full of seconds left to reach the cloud front, Twilight tentatively called out through the link again.

“Rainbow?”

There was a raspy chuckle and Rainbow’s voice came back stronger than ever.

“Sorry, Twi’, I guess I was thinking about things too much. I’m turning into an egghead, no offence.”

Twilight smiled. “None taken, you’ve just been cooped up too long. Nopony likes sitting alone with their thoughts.” Twilight could imagine Rainbow nodding during the pause.

“You got that right.” There was a pause. “Sorry for being mopey, I don’t know why I was like that, especially at a time like this,” Rainbow muttered awkwardly. Twilight smiled, banking and fluttering. The forced inactivity while watching on must be taking its toll. She gestured to the sides and the pegasi took their positions at the storm front.

“When you see the glow, you’ll know I’ll be actively trying to push the cloud back. That’s your cue to jump in while the spell is holding most of the force back. The push and the break-up team will then come in and start breaking off chunks of clouds. Before we do this, any questions?”

Everypony shook their heads and Twilight was gratified to see the determination etched into their expressions and stance.

“Alright, let’s do this!”

With Rainbow muttering commands through the link, and Twilight relaying them to the team, the cumulonimbus rapidly slowed down. A magenta sheen encapsulated the front half of the cloud, buffering the impact. Twilight briefly checked the time and glanced at the ground. She had to remind herself to keep perspective, from this altitude the distance will be different to the ground. She frowned, the cloud was slowing but not enough.

“Rainbow! I’m slowing the cloud and the pegasi are trying to break it up as fast as they can but it looks like it’ll still reach Ponyville.”

A sharp gasp echoed down the link. There was silence for a few tense moments as Rainbow grunted trying to think of a solution.

“If the cloud is more than half within the city limits, the spell inside the cloud will break and it’ll start raining. It’s designed to break connected so as long as we break it up so more than half is done, it shouldn’t break and we can control the downpour.”

Twilight was impressed, she assumed weather working was a fairly relaxing job what with Rainbow always taking naps and relaxing on the job. Now she knew the wealth of experience behind Rainbow’s command and she smiled, saying slyly through the link.

“If that’s not leadership I don’t know what is, Rainbow.”

As Twilight rounded up the pegasi to break up more of the clouds, she heard a faint chuckle across the link that made her grin.

It took them almost three hours but the monstrous cloud was finally broken up and divided. Exhausted pegasi collapsed to the ground as worried onlookers sighed in relief. Twilight observed as the last of the pegasi cut into the cloud and she released the magic quickly, the cloud rubber-banding enough to disperse the remains.

Twilight landed in front of Rainbow, her first thoughts being that her wings felt like they were made of jelly. They drooped, unable to take any more punishment. Twilight reflected that she wouldn’t do any flying for a few days. She glanced at Rainbow as she sat in her wheelchair beaming at her friend.

“That was awesome!” Rainbow exclaimed. “Not bad for a first time weather worker.”

Twilight gave Rainbow a weary, but hearty, smile.

“I was worried a bit there, but you carried me through.”

“I never leave a friend hanging.”

Twilight was distracted by movement in her periphery. She looked down to see the rest of their mutual friends galloping towards the hill. Though weary to her bones she straightened up and waved with Rainbow to the rest of her friends.

The rain continued to pelt down from above, but Twilight and Rainbow were not kept down. Though sopping, freezing and wet, they were still buoyant and elated and among friends with kindred spirits. They had pulled together and pushed back the clouds

And nothing could take that away.

Author's Note

Additional notes for anyone interested: I did (very basic) calculations of an actual weight of an average cumulonimbus cloud (using some generous rounding of course). Average height is about 6 km, diameter typically 24 km (reducing to about 20 km for anvil shape), taking the volume of a cylinder total quantity would be around 1.88 x 10^12 cubic metres, cumulus cloud density is roughly 0.5 grams per cubic metre so it'll be roughly 0.94 million metric tons. Since the density of the cloud is assumed to be slightly greater for cumulonimbus clouds I'm going to assume it's roughly in excess of one million tons. Which would make what Rainbow said somewhat scientifically accurate (correct me if I'm wrong).

Next Chapter: They all lived happily ever after.

As always, my tuned in readers, thanks for reading!