Learning to Fly

Chapters

Learning to Fly
Making an Acquaintance
Out of the Comfort Zone
Preparation
Moment of Truth
Tea and... Cupcakes?
In the Dark of Night
Kindred Spirits
The Sky Divided
Against Better Judgment
The Calm after the Storm

Learning to Fly

Ever since he was a young colt, he would stare up at the sky with a sense of longing. The blue skies called to him, the fluffy clouds always appeared so inviting. That's where he wanted to be. But fate was a cruel mistress. He was trapped on the ground, held back by blood. He was but a simple Earth Pony. No matter how much that young colt wished, begged or prayed; he would never be a Pegasus. He would never have wings. He would never fly.
As the colt grew into a stallion, he came to terms with this fact. He couldn't change his blood, but he was adamant about fighting it. His first attempt at flight was shortly after he graduated from school. It turned out that a glider was only fit for one thing however; which was gliding. He launched himself off the roof of his house a great many times, but each time offered little variety in results. This didn't satisfy his thirst for flight at all. It was nowhere near good enough. He went back to the drawing board.
Since he wasn't a Unicorn, he couldn't rely on magic. His only option was to turn to technology and make use of his brain; of his smarts, to create a machine that could propel him into the skies. His parents claimed he was delusional, that he was wasting his time. But he would show them. He would fly!

His designs started out simple. He had never done anything like this before after all. But his first design was also his biggest failure. His lack of experience caused a serious error and the machine exploded upon activation. The young stallion was rushed to the hospital with severe burns along his back and a nasty case of concussion. To this day; his back is scarred, his steel blue coat unable to grow back through the damaged skin.
His second design finished with another; though less serious, failure. The device failed to start upon activation. If he had decided to test it before jumping off his roof in the experiment, then it wouldn't have been a problem. But so confident was he that it would work... He got out of that one with a broken leg and major bruising.
The trial and error testing continued almost endlessly, the stallion only stopping to nurse any injuries acquired from the reckless methods he used to test his inventions. He did learn his lesson though, slowly but surely it was drilled into his head with every accident. Everything that went wrong over the years; every scratch, bruise and broken bone, had molded his design into what he was currently standing in front of. There was a large sense of pride within the stallion as he looked over his invention. He was filled with confidence, more so than ever before. Nothing could go wrong this time!
His invention had long been dubbed his 'Mechanical Flight Propulsion Pack.' Or 'Jetpack' for short. Essentially it was a rocket strapped to his back, but if anypony asked him to explain it to them then he would always make it sound far more complicated than it was. Not that he ever had much company to inquire about his invention to begin with.

Needless to say, it was time for launch test number one hundred and seventy-six. With the utmost care; the stallion dragged his invention off of the table it was situated on, positioning it onto his scarred back. With a little difficulty, he was able to get the harnesses around his torso, securing the Jetpack so it wouldn't fall off, or leave him behind when it took flight. The stallion had a surprisingly high amount of physical strength. No doubt in part to do with him being an Earth Pony, but also because of the amount of times he'd carried his heavy inventions upon his back.
Satisfied that the Jetpack wouldn't slide off his back at the slightest bit of movement, he set off for his testing grounds. Certain incidents in the past had forced him to seek large, open spaces for these tests, since he couldn't afford to pay for any damages that might occur if he were to try using his Jetpack in town. The stallion lived just on the outskirts of Ponyville. He had been there his entire life; but since he never felt he belonged on the ground, he hadn't become particularly attached to the town. His fellow ponies considered him strange for his obsession with flight and he had been dubbed the "Mad Scientist" by the townsfolk because of it. It had bothered him at first, but time had helped him grow used to it. He wasn't out to make friends after all.

His chosen testing grounds happened to be a vast clearing with a huge lake, a convenient crash landing location to minimize possibility of injury. But this clearing was on the other side of Ponyville, far away from his house. The trek through Ponyville was always an awkward one, since he got strange looks from anypony he passed by. He didn't get this reaction from everypony, but enough to make him feel like an outsider. He didn't let it bother him a great deal; but his heart wasn't made of his namesake, so it did make him feel a little disheartened.
Thanks to his hasty pace, the walk took roughly twenty minutes before he found himself at his desired location. There were a few other ponies in the area, but that didn't deter him from starting his experiment. This wasn't the first time he'd had an unsuspecting audience.
The stallion made his way up an incline, venturing to the top of a reasonably sized hill so he could gain some altitude before attempting launch. Once he had made it to the top, he glanced back at the Jetpack resting on his back, giving it a brief look over to make sure everything was ready. Satisfied with his check, he turned his attention to the scenery in front of him. After a deep breathe, he steeled himself for what was to come. There was no turning back now.
With every ounce of energy he could fathom; he began to gallop at full speed, before leaping into the air with all his strength and slamming his hoof down on the ignition switch. There was a heart stopping moment were nothing happened. Visions of plummeting down the hill from another failed attempt flashed before the stallion's eyes. But suddenly the engine within the Jetpack choked to life, coughing out some smoke before flame poured from the exhaust. The sudden burst of momentum sent the stallion catapulting into the sky at an alarming rate, leaving his poor stomach behind. It didn't register for a moment, so shocked and nauseous was he as his invention sent him further and further away from the ground below. But a huge grin spread across his lips as the revelation began to sink in and his stomach started to settle. He looked down at the startled ponies staring at him, the thrill of the experience giving him a massive adrenaline rush. They looked like ants from where he was! The fruits of his labors had finally ripened!

"YEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" The stallion yelled out at the top of his lungs. His joyous screaming was turning heads from all around as he soared through the sky, but he gave little regard to the attention he was receiving. This was like nothing he had ever experienced before, but at the same time it was everything he had imagined it would be. The wind blowing in his face, the vast space for him to explore with no boundaries, and of course the beautiful view. He had never felt so alive before. Nothing could ruin this moment for him. Nothing!
Or at least, that's what he thought. The noise of his Jetpack's engine beginning to struggle quickly put a dampening on his euphoria, his head snapping round to investigate.

"Oh no. Nononononono..." Fear and panic set in as he began to lose altitude, the rush of different emotions overwhelming the stallion. The engine had fought hard for him, but eventually it staled, leaving him to free-fall toward the ground. He had flown too far away from where he had taken off, so he couldn't crash land into the lake like he had originally planned. He cursed that he had gotten so caught up in the experience of flying for the first time, or he could have prevented the dire predicament he was currently in.
Desperation drove his actions as he hit the Jetpack with his hoof, though it didn't have the desired effect. His situation was sinking in and it was becoming apparent to him that there was nothing he could do to prevent his inevitable demise. This hadn't been how he expected to die, but the irony wasn't lost on him even in this life or death situation.
A sigh escaped his lips as he watched the ground get ever closer. Maybe this wasn't such a bad way to go for him. A sudden feeling of tranquility overcame the stallion and he closed his eyes, completely oblivious to his surroundings as he accepted his fate.

The impact he felt wasn't quite what he had expected though. He felt something collide with him from the side, the momentum of whatever had struck him drove him back upward. His eyes snapped open to find a cerulean Pegasus holding him, flapping her wings desperately to try and slow their descent enough for it to not be fatal.

"Too... Heavy..." She grunted between clenched teeth. Her wings were beginning to fail her from the weight of both the stallion and his contraption, but she refused to just give up. He could only stare at her with wide eyes for a moment, at a complete lose for words. Somepony appearing to try and rescue him had never been a possibility in his mind. If he weren't so shocked, it might have moved him to tears. But he could tell she was struggling, there was only one way for them both to get out of this unscathed. He looked down at the straps holding his Jetpack to him, hesitation flooding his mind even if he knew what he had to do. He flinched as he unfastened the harness, the Jetpack slipping from his back and plummeting downward now that there was nothing holding it in place.
The strain on the Pegasus was immediately halved. A sigh of relief slipped through her lips as she gripped onto the stallion, making sure he wouldn't fall as she calmed the flapping of her wings to a level were they could simply hover.

With the crisis over, she began their descent toward the ground, which happened to be slap bang in the middle of Ponyville. A huge crowd had gathered around the two ponies as they touched down, which wasn't all that surprising considering what had happened. The Pegasus took a step back as she looked over the stallion she had just rescued. There were whispers in the crowd around them, but she paid them little attention. The stallion was visibly shaken up, he was her priority right now.

"Hey... You alright?" She asked with a look of uncertainty on her face, gently placing a hoof on his shoulder as she tried to look him in the eye. He had been looking downward since they had landed, but with her touch he finally raised his head to look at her. His deep green eyes met her magenta eyes and he offered a quiet nod in response. To tell the truth, he wasn't alright at the present time. His heart was beating at a million miles a minute and his breathing was ragged, but he knew he would be fine once he had the chance to calm down a little.
Now given the chance, the stallion gave his savior a proper look over. Her coat was a soft cerulean colour, which felt strangely soothing to his eyes. But his gaze was briskly dragged away from her coat to her magnificent mane, a multitude of colours that matched the rainbow. It was truly a sight to behold. That's when it clicked. He knew this pony. Not personally, but he definitely recognized her.

"Y-You're... Rainbow Dash, right?" He asked her with a shaky voice, gulping down a mouthful of saliva in an attempt to regain his composure. A huge grin plastered across Rainbow Dash's face upon mention of her name. It wasn't surprising that just being recognized without having to introduce herself was a huge stroke to her ego.

"Yeah, that's me! What's your name, buddy?" Rainbow inquired, raising an eyebrow as the smug look that had quickly governed her face remained very much present. Her prideful behavior bothered the stallion a little bit, but since she had saved his life he decided to let it slide.

"Uh... I'm Steele Bolt." He introduced himself, letting out a sigh after he had finished his sentence. While Steele Bolt was starting to calm down, the fact that he was sitting next to Rainbow Dash was unsettling to him. She was practically a celebrity in Ponyville, if not the whole of Equestria. But that wasn't why he was uncomfortable around her. She had what he wished he could have; wings. She was basically the best flyer around as well, just to top it off. He was envious of Pegasi, but especially of her.

"That stunt you pulled just now was crazy, Bolt! What is that thing?" Rainbow spoke with a great level of enthusiasm, intrigued by the speed in which an Earth Pony had been able to travel across the sky. She pointed toward the wreckage of his Jetpack, curious to know more about his invention. Steele Bolt's expression darkened slightly at the sight. This would set him back months, but at least he was alive to work on it. The crowd had started to die down already, no doubt losing interest after realizing it was just another stunt by the "Mad Scientist." He got up off his flank and trotted over to the scrap metal that used to be his Jetpack, gently poking it with his hoof.

"It was my Mechanical Flight Propulsion Pack." Bolt muttered with a bitter expression as he surveyed the wreckage. It had been pretty much obliterated upon impact, the condition of the parts were far worse than he had hoped. He would have to start from scratch, there was no way he would be able to repair something so heavily damaged.
"But now, it's just a pile of junk." He finished as he turned his attention back to Rainbow Dash, only to find that she had followed him over to the wreckage. A look of surprise sprung to his face as he stumbled away from the mare, desperate to put more room between them. Though the action only really gave Rainbow a reason to laugh at his expense.

"You're an... Interesting stallion, eh." She commented with a smirk and a raised eyebrow as her short lived snicker came to an end, though she had struggled to find the appropriate word to describe her company. It earned a quizzical look from Bolt, whom was unsure how his actions had gotten such a reaction from the mare. Now that he thought about it, that was the first time anypony had called him something that could be considered a compliment. He was used to be being referred to as weird or creepy. It made him feel kind of happy, though he would never admit that to a stranger.

"Right... Well I had better get this scrap back to my lab. Thanks for saving me." Bolt muttered words of gratitude, hoping that Rainbow would accept them and go on her merry way. However, as he began to collect the junk metal together, he noticed that she was doing the same. He hadn't the foggiest idea why she would want to help him any further; but the assistance would let him take his leave and return to his lab sooner, so he decided not to complain.

"Hey, it was no problem for yours truly! I'll help you get all of this back to your lab." Rainbow didn't miss the opportunity to gloat as she dumped a few shards of metal into a pile the two ponies had amassed. While it appeared that she was merely offering a helping hand, beneath that she was really curious about Bolt's lab. There had to be more inventions there and she really wanted to see them. His flying contraption had really interested her, mainly because she thought it had been really cool. Before it had become a pile of scrap anyway.

"I really don't need the help tho-" Bolt went to interject as he placed the last piece of scrap metal on the pile. The last thing he wanted was to spend any more time with the Pegasus, but she didn't even give him the chance to finish his sentence.

"Lets get moving then!" Rainbow exclaimed as she took roughly half of the pile of scrap, leaving the other half for Bolt to carry. He couldn't think of a way of getting rid of her other than bluntly telling her to leave him alone. But it would probably be rude to say that to his savior. Eyes were still on them and his reputation with the townsfolk was bad enough already, so he swallowed his pride and gave her a nod as he scooped up the remaining wreckage. Truth be told, having an extra pair of hooves to get the remains of his Jetpack home would certainly speed up the process, but there was no way he could tell Rainbow that he actually appreciated her help.

Author's Note

And there's the first chapter done. I wrote about half of this in WordPad about a month ago, but only just sat down to finish it today. It was also going to be way shorter than this, with Bolt meeting Rainbow in the next chapter. But I decided that the first chapter should be longer than it was at the time. So this is what it became. I hope you all enjoy!

Making an Acquaintance

Rainbow Dash could only describe the walk back to Steele Bolt's home with one word; uneventful. The stallion avoided conversation at all costs, anything she asked was answered with one word sentences that left her with little material to continue the conversation. She was tempted to take to the skies so she could speed up the agonizingly slow process, but sadly she didn't know where the stallion lived. In a desperate attempt to stave off boredom, Rainbow started to look over her company in more detail. His coat was a steel blue colour, reminiscent of her own coat but with a much duller tone. It wasn't well maintained and she was curious if he even bothered to bathe regularly. Rarity would throw a fit if she saw him in such a state, but he didn't seem to care at all. His mane and tail were an appropriately dull colour as well, as brown as the dirt they were walking on. His tail and mane could be considered shaggy; just as unkempt as his coat, but met a pretty average length. His mane just barely stopped before it would cover his eyes; traveling down his neck until it reached his back, while his tail would just about reach the bottom of one of his rear legs.
Eventually her attention was drawn to the stallion's most defining feature, the nasty looking scar along his back. It seemed his coat couldn't grow back from the damage done to his skin, and the colour of his flesh was warped from what looked like burns. Just from it's appearance; Rainbow could tell that it would be rough to the touch. Not that she wanted to touch a stranger's back. This discovery obviously brought questions to mind. How had he gained such terrible scars? Was he self-conscious of it? Did it hurt? Even if her curiosity begged for answers, she knew better than to ask such personal questions, especially to somepony she had only just met whom didn't want to talk at all.

Once her analysis of the stallion was complete, Rainbow Dash noticed that they were stopping outside a house. Steele Bolt wasted no time kicking open the door with his rear hooves, motioning for her to follow him inside with a flick of his head. Her eyes lit up as she followed in his shadow, her head darting about as she took in her new surroundings. The outside of his house had a rather bland appearance. Possibly to not draw attention to it, but it was up for debate whether that had been done on purpose or he just hadn't bothered to customize the outside of his home. But the inside was like she had jumped into an entirely different dimension upon entry.
The room that welcomed them inside appeared to be the living room, which had some pretty standard furniture in it. A sofa, an armchair, a few tables, etc. The walls were void of any sort of decoration save for the paint job, which was a plain black. It made the room feel much smaller than it actually was. But what made the room so interesting for Rainbow was the abundance of inventions placed all around the room. She had no idea what any of them did; and she had to be careful not to trip over the many wires that lay across the floor, but it was exciting none the less.
Bolt didn't give the mare much of a chance to investigate her new environment though. Instead he hastily led her down a flight of stairs, which connected to what was clearly his laboratory. The room was an absolute mess; with unfinished inventions, scrap metal and tools littered about everywhere. He approached the table that his Jetpack had been situated on earlier before setting down his pile of the invention's wreckage, before turning his attention to Rainbow Dash. It wasn't surprising that she was once again taking in the sights the room offered, a look of great interest on her face. He cleared his throat to get her attention.

"If you could place the parts here, that would be great." Bolt spoke to her once she gave him her attention, motioning to the table with a fore hoof. She glanced toward the table before trotting over to it and rather unceremoniously dumping her pile of the wreckage. Now with free hooves; she turned her attention back to the messy room, getting a closer look at some of the inventions that were laying around, collecting dust.

"What do you make here, Bolt?" Rainbow asked as she looked up from the current invention she was investigating. It looked to be an incomplete toaster, but she assumed there was more to it than that. She wondered if he made a living from this or if it was just a hobby. It had to be expensive, so she couldn't imagine him being able to sustain his projects if he wasn't earning income. Bolt didn't bother hiding his irritation at her question, a frown sitting firmly on his face as he rolled his eyes. He didn't appreciate her breach of his privacy, but he found himself answering her regardless.

"I mostly work on my Jetpack. But I come up with other things that make household chores simpler as well, though I don't typically sell these inventions. I offer repairs too, but since I'm known as the 'Mad Scientist', I don't get a lot of business." His explanation was the most talkative he had been since Rainbow had met him. It felt refreshing that he had actually bothered to engage her in proper conversation. What he had told her also explained why the house seemed so well kept. It was doubtful that he would do the chores if he didn't even bother to look after himself, so some of his inventions must handle that for him.

"If you stopped crash landing in the middle of Ponyville, maybe everyponies opinion of you would change!" Rainbow teased with a playful grin, though this was only met with another irritated look from Bolt. This time because he actually took some offense by her comment. He was a prideful pony, he didn't need her reminding him of his failures. Rainbow seemed to pick up on this, as an apologetic look appeared on her face.

"Hey, I didn't mean anything by tha-" She began; but was briskly cut off by Bolt, which caused her to flinch slightly as he unexpectedly raised his voice.

"Are you done here? You're hindering my work." Bolt retorted with a hint of bitterness in his voice. What she had attempted to say hadn't registered in his mind, so determined was he to get this bothersome mare out of his mane. The initial look of regret in her eyes made him hopeful that she would leave, but that quickly changed as she became defensive from his aggressiveness.

"I was trying to say that I was sorry! Jeez, let a mare finish!" Rainbow responded with her typical feisty attitude; approaching the stallion so she could prod his chest with her hoof, just to drive her point further home. Naturally, Bolt tried to withdraw. Rainbow was far too close to him for his own comfort, but she wouldn't let him retreat. Whenever he backed away, she would close the distance. This continued until the stallion accidentally stumbled into a pile of scrap metal that had been laying around on the floor. The sudden distortion to his balance caused him to topple backwards into the pile; and Rainbow followed soon after, not expecting his sudden stop and abruptly tripping over his downed form.
There were a mixture of groans from the two ponies as they recovered from their fall, though this was briskly replaced with a shocked silence as they realized the situation they had gotten into. Rainbow had fallen on top of Bolt, and now their faces were only inches away from one another. They were so close to each other that they could feel each others heart beat, as well as breathe brushing against fur. For that moment, neither of them were able to do anything since their minds had locked up. They merely stared into each others eyes with a similar speechless expressions on both their faces. That was until Rainbow finally came back to her senses. She began to flap her wings desperately, shooting up and away from Bolt's downed form with cheeks so red that it appeared her coat was changing colour. Now that the source of his discomfort had vanished; Bolt's brain slowly began to function as well, though his entire face remained a bright red as he stared at the flustered Pegasus across the room from him.

"That was an accident! I-I tripped! There's no way I'd do that on purpose!" Rainbow exclaimed as she pointed toward Bolt with one hoof, while covering her blushing face with the other. She couldn't believe she had gotten into such a situation with a stallion she barely knew. It was so embarrassing that she couldn't even begin to put it into words.

"O-Of course! W-Why would I want to be so close to a mare like you anyways!?" Bolt quickly retorted as he too attempted to hide his embarrassed face, though his comment annoyed Rainbow Dash far more than he expected.

"W-What do you mean by that!? Who wouldn't want to lay with me? I'm awesome!" Rainbow countered with a raised voice. If she was thinking straight then she'd probably wonder why she even bothered to interject, but at that moment pride took priority over logic.

"Is that really the point right now!?" Bolt yelled back at her, finally bringing about a moment of silence between the two. Both of them had become so worked up that they were softly panting for air, tension running throughout their bodies. They continued in silence for a small while, both of them sitting on their flanks and averting their gaze from one another as they attempted to regain their composure. But the damage had been done. The atmosphere was far too awkward between them to start up any sort of normal conversation, if both parties had even wanted that to begin with.

"Well I can see you're busy! So I'll come see you another time!" Rainbow Dash announced as she got up onto her four hooves in a hurry. She had completed her task anyway, so there was no real reason to stick around. She would have liked to look around his lab some more, but right now she couldn't stand the atmosphere. She wanted out as soon as possible. Though it annoyed her that it took her departure for Bolt's expression to light up for the first time today.

"Y-yeah! I'll see you out!" Bolt got up from the pile of scrap he had been seated on hastily, following Rainbow up the stairs to his living room. Truth be told, it looked more like he was chasing her out of his house, but he wouldn't have even bothered to see her off if he wasn't so adamant about getting her out of his house and far away from him. So technically this was the politest he'd ever been. He opened the front door for her and feigned a goodbye wave as she took off to the skies, streaks of rainbow following her as the Pegasus made her speedy exit. He practically slammed the door shut once she was out of sight, a gruff sigh leaving his lips as he slid down the door into a sitting position.

"What a day..." Bolt groaned as he rest his head against the wooden door, the tension that had built up in his body finally easing away. He'd never felt so tired before in his entire life. This was mainly why he'd always thought other ponies were too much trouble to have around, other than the judgmental stares he often received from them, they were too much work to entertain.
But even so, it felt eerily quiet in his house now that the rainbow maned mare had left. He found himself idly looking around the living room, trying to think of something worthwhile to do. When that task failed, he settled with getting an early night. He could always start work on fixing his Jetpack the next morning, and right now he wasn't sure if he actually had the energy for anything else anyway...

Author's Note

This chapter... Thiiiis chapter... It caused me some real pain. Mainly because I didn't quite know what to do with it. At first I was thinking of doing the first chapter in Rainbow's point of view, to give her a proper introduction. But then I realized that anyone reading this is going to be more than familiar with the character, and felt it would be a waste of time. Then finding the inspiration to start the chapter was a nightmare. I have lots of ideas for future chapters, but none came to mind for this one. Maybe that's why I'm not that satisfied with the result.
Fun fact though. This chapter was originally going to be named "Doomed to Fail". Since Bolt's attempt to fly had failed once again. But after I finished writing, it was pretty clear that the title had no correlation with the chapter itself, so I changed it. Not the most ambitious of titles, but the other one I tossed around was "Uncomfortable Acquaintances" and I didn't feel like that was any better. Eh.
But I digress. I hope you enjoyed the chapter folks! There will certainly be more to come, and I already have plans for the next chapter! Peace.

Out of the Comfort Zone

It was yet another beautiful morning in Equestria; with the sun shining brightly in the cloudless sky. The weather Pegasi had been hard at work as usual, that much was clear to Rainbow Dash as she flew at a steady pace down to Ponyville. Usually she'd speed down there at full throttle, but for some reason today she felt like taking her time and enjoying the stunning scenery the world had to offer. It happened to be one of her days off work, so she hoped to spend it with her friends. Of course, this decision had been spontaneous, there was no guarantee that any of her friends would be available. Just because she wasn't busy today didn't mean that everypony else was so lucky.
The cerulean Pegasus gracefully leveled herself out once she entered the bustling hub of Ponyville's center, her entrance immediately drawing attention to her. It didn't surprise her at all, not when she had appeared so abruptly. She received a few greetings from some ponies and she gave a laid-back reply, trying her best to practically ooze chilled out and cool. It made her public image after all and she was adamant to keep it up, not that she had any reason to have to fake it today. If she was in a bad mood then she would force it, but that wasn't an issue since she was content right now.

Rainbow began to glance around at her surroundings as she tried to decide who to visit first, there were quite a few ponies for her to check on. If she was going by distance closest to her current position then it would rule out Applejack and Fluttershy, but she could easily make it to either of them in a short amount of time so it didn't matter. She held all her friends in high regard, so deciding to drop in on one of them unannounced wasn't easy. Thankfully, an outside factor helped make up her mind in an instance.

"Daaaaaaaaaaasssssssssssshhhhhhhiiiiiiieeeeee!~" A familiar voice caught the mare's ears, causing her to look around for the source. Finally her magenta eyes fell on the culprit; a pink pony whom was galloping toward her at an alarming pace. Pinkie Pie. Rainbow only had enough time to widen her eyes in surprise as the hyperactive pony practically tackled her, causing both of them to tumble to the ground.

"It's terrible Dashie! The end of the world as we know it!" Pinkie exclaimed with an exaggerated look of horror on her face as she stared down at Rainbow, whom she was currently standing over.

"What? What's going on, Pinkie?" The Pegasus asked as pulled herself out from under the over-excited pony, a quizzical look apparent on her face. Knowing her friend; the whole situation was blown out of proportion and it wasn't that big of a deal, but it would make for a fun distraction so she decided to go along with it. It saved her having to decide who to visit first as well. A happy coincidence.

"It's my party cannon! It won't fire! And I have 3 parties to do today too!" The pink pony slammed down the cannon in front of Rainbow, pulling it out as if from nowhere. If you wanted to keep your sanity, it was best not to question how Pinkie did some of the things she did. Rainbow had learned that a long time ago. It certainly sounded like a serious problem though.
The rainbow-maned mare stroked her chin thoughtfully as she glanced over the cannon. It didn't look any different from normal; but she was no engineer, so of course she couldn't know what was wrong with it. But her face lit up at the realization that she knew somepony who would be able to find out.

"Pinkie, don't you worry. I know just the pony for the job." Rainbow Dash reassured her friend as she wrapped an arm around the pink pony's shoulder, a confident grin on her face. Of course, just because she knew he could help didn't immediately mean that he would... Couldn't hurt to try though.

___________________________________________________________________________

It was abnormally early in the morning when Steele Bolt rose from his bed. He really wasn't a morning pony; noon was usually when he would stir from his rest, so it felt strange to be awake earlier. The blame for this phenomenon was obvious, the events of yesterday still fresh in his mind. It was a mystery to him why it was always so exhausting for him when dealing with other ponies, blissful ignorance leaving him unaware of his anti-social issues.

The stallion made his way down to the living room from his bedroom, passing through on his way to his laboratory. Since he was never usually awake at this time; it was unusual for him to ever eat breakfast, not that he ate very often anyway. His lifestyle could easily be considered unhealthy, but his work was far more important to him than his health. His parents would be furious if they knew of his habits, but that didn't matter. He wasn't living with them anymore, and rarely made time to see them anyway.
Even though it was bright and sunny outside, Bolt had to turn on the lights for his lab. It was in the basement of his house, so there were no windows to let natural light in. He wouldn't be able to work if he couldn't see a thing. He wasted no time and approached the table that the remains of his Jetpack lay upon. It was disheartening to see his invention in such a pitiful state, but it was nothing new either. He had repaired and rebuilt the device so many times that he couldn't quite recall the exact number. The stallion set to work sorting through the wreckage so he could identify the different parts and hopefully learn what went wrong with the test flight yesterday. It was an arduous process, but for his passion the stallion had limitless patience.

As the hours passed by, Bolt slowly but surely made progress in his task. The different parts were moved around the table as he put them into suitable piles so there was some semblance of order. This way of working seemed a little out of place for the stallion; since the rest of his lab was a mess, but that was the case only because he was always working on something and never had spare time to clean up.
As he was nearing the completion of his task, there was a knock on his front door, barely audible from his current location. So engrossed in his work, Bolt didn't notice it at all. After roughly a minute the knock could be heard again, much louder this time. But just like last time, it fell on deaf ears. It wasn't until the front door was practically being punched that Bolt finally took notice, turning his head upward to the ceiling. The sound of the banging on his door made it seem like someone was trying to break in, which instantly put him on edge.
He made sure to grab a wrench that was laying idly with his mouth before cautiously making his way up the stairs, peeking round the corner to make sure there was no pony waiting for him there. All the while, the banging on the door continued. He was sure he could hear voices on the other side of the front door, but the thumping was obscuring them.
The stallion took in a deep breathe, steeling himself as he made his way across the living room. Since the door wasn't already broken down, he realized that the noise wasn't caused by robbers. But his next assumption didn't make him any happier. He had received angry complaints from residents of Ponyville before, but never this aggressive. He gently put down the wrench on his sofa before finally making his way over to the front door, putting his hoof on the handle.

The stallion hastily opened the door; eager to get this over and done with, only to be met with a cerulean hoof to his nose. The blow made him fall back onto his flank as he clutched his nose with both hooves, looking up to identify his aggressor. His green eyes fell upon a shocked Rainbow Dash, still holding her hoof out as she stared down at him in surprise. She had obviously gone to bash on his door again, only for his face to replace the door. She hastily retracted her hoof, a sheepish grin spreading on her face as her ears pinned backward. Since she was here to request his help, that wasn't the greatest start...

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Rainbow Dash had hurried inside Bolt's house with Pinkie Pie after the incident, immediately beginning to hunt for something like an ice pack to put on his nose. Pinkie stayed by the stallion's side while her friend searched, trying her best to cheer him up. It was safe to say that he was a challenge.

"Hey, hey! Tell me if you've heard this one before! What's the similarities between 2+2=8 and a left hoof?" Pinkie asked with an energetic grin on her face, leaning a little too close to the stallion for his comfort. He not so subtly shifted away from the pink pony, silently wishing she would stop talking for just a minute.

"Neither of them are right!" Pinkie announced the punchline, bursting into a fit of giggles at her own joke shortly afterwards. Bolt turned back to look at her, a displeased expression on his face as he held a tissue to his bleeding nose with his hoof. That had been her fifth joke now and while he could appreciate what she was trying to do, he was not in a laughing mood. He couldn't find it in himself to tell her to stop though either; since he could see her honest intentions, so he offered a simple sigh in response to her comedy routine.

"Hmm... Tough crowd!" Pinkie reacted to the stallion's sigh with a mock pout, her brain already at work selecting the next joke to try on her company. Just as she settled on one, Rainbow Dash returned with a soaked towel. There was an apologetic look on her face as she approached the stallion. She held out the towel for him and he wordlessly accepted it from her, setting down the bloodied tissue next to him so he could replace it with the towel.

"Really sorry about that, Bolt." Rainbow spoke with an embarrassed smile. She felt guilty about what had happened even if it was an accident. She had apologized twice now, but the stallion hadn't verbally accepted her apology yet. This left her unsure where she stood with him, and she couldn't let what happened go either. How could she ask for his help with Pinkie's cannon after hitting him square in the nose? It was reasonable to assume her chances of him agreeing had diminished significantly.

"Was there a reason you came to my house? I assume it wasn't to assault me." Bolt inquired as the cerulean mare sat in front of him. There was a dull throbbing pain in his nose, though the cold, wet towel was helping numb that pain. The Pegasus pitiful display was starting to make him feel bad for his attitude, even if he was in a really sour mood. He knew perfectly well that she hadn't meant to hit him from judging her reaction to the event, it had just been an amazing coincidence. He was astounded that he could think that without a hint of sarcasm.
Rainbow audibly gulped as she felt a growing pressure apply from his words. Since he had inquired, she had to answer. She searched her mind for the right words to say, but Pinkie beat her to the punch.

"Actually! We came to ask if you would fix my party cannon!" She announced enthusiastically, a familiar grin spreading across her lips. Rainbow Dash's magenta eyes jumped between the two ponies in front of her. Judging from her brief past encounters with Bolt, she imagined that he'd yell at them for being selfish or rude, then briskly throw them out of his house.

"You... Want my help?" Bolt replied as he turned his head to look at the pink mare sitting next to him. He had expected that they had been passing by and decided to waste some time tormenting him or something, a business visit was the last thing he had envisioned. Pinkie nodded at Bolt's query, her hyperactive nature not slowing down for a second.

"Yeah! Dashie said that you're really good with machines, so you could fix it!" She explained, somehow managing to bounce up and down on the spot even though she was seated. Bolt turned his attention to Rainbow Dash, raising an eyebrow at her quizzically. She thought so highly of his skills? Even though all she had seen his inventions do was fail? That baffled him.

"Right... And what's wrong with this 'party cannon'?" Steele Bolt asked as he brought the towel away from his nose so he could inspect it. It would appear the bleeding had stopped, much to his relief. As he returned his gaze to his client, he caught what looked to be relief in Rainbow's eyes as well. He made a mental note to let her know there were no hard feelings later. For now he needed to concentrate on what Pinkie was saying.

"It just won't fire! I've tried kicking it! Jumping on it! Rolling it around on the floor! I even took it out to lunch, Boltie!" Pinkie continued to talk even while Bolt was checking on his nose, speaking the same nonsensical things she was well known for. When the stallion returned his gaze to her, there was a look of vague confusion on his face.

"... Boltie?"

"Boltie!"

He decided not to dwell on the new nickname he had abruptly acquired from the pink mare, or her methods of trying to 'fix' the cannon. He'd only been with her for roughly fifteen minutes and he had already learned it's better to just go with her bizarre flow. Trying to fight her logic would be like trying to swim up river rapids.

"Well, I don't mind giving your 'party cannon' a look over." Bolt concluded rather hesitantly, his words causing both mares in his presence to brighten up. He couldn't quite comprehend what a party cannon was, but if it was anything like a standard cannon then he was sure he could manage. Besides, the looks of appreciation he was getting made him feel rather good about himself.

"Great! Here it is!" Pinkie leaped up from where she had been sitting, pulling the large cannon as if from nowhere and dumping it in the middle of Bolt's living room. Both he and Rainbow Dash stared at it in mild surprise, though for completely different reasons. He couldn't even begin to fathom where she had gotten that out from, while Rainbow couldn't believe that Pinkie had just unceremoniously dumped the thing in the middle of the living room.

"Pinkie, you can't put it there! He'll need to work on it in his lab!" The cerulean Pegasus got up as she tried to talk some logic into her pink friend, her eyes flicking between the pony and the cannon. It felt strange that she was being the voice of reason here, but since Twilight was absent she would have to pick up the mantle.

"Oh! Oopsie!" Pinkie giggled awkwardly as she rectified her mistake, the cannon vanishing as quickly as it had appeared. Both mares glanced over at the stallion in the room, noticing his silence. He was still rooted to the floor, staring at where the cannon had been with a blank expression on his face. Upon feeling eyes on him; he blinked and came back to his senses, turning his attention to Rainbow and Pinkie.

"Ah. Lets head down to my lab then..." The stallion spoke absentmindedly as he got up from where he had been sitting, following after Rainbow while she led the way downstairs to his laboratory. It would take him a good few minutes before he'd regain his wits.

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Steele Bolt took his time examining the party cannon, his analysis being as thorough as possible. Currently half his body was down the barrel of the cannon so he could inspect the interior more clearly. He had been a little hesitant of this method, but he had settled with it after Pinkie promised that it wouldn't fire in his face. He clutched a flashlight between his teeth as he examined the inner workings of the cannon, though the problem was easily identifiable. There was a large amount of cake within the cannon, clogging up all of it's inner workings. No wonder it wouldn't fire.
He awkwardly shuffled his way out of the cannon, blinking a few times as his eyes adjusted to the bright light of the room. He glanced around to locate the other ponies in the room so he could update them. Finding Rainbow Dash wasn't difficult. She was standing by his workbench, looking over a certain part of his wrecked Jetpack curiously. Once she noticed he was looking at her, she hastily dropped the part and put her hooves behind her back, grinning at him sheepishly. He raised an eyebrow before shifting his attention elsewhere, trying to find Pinkie. Strangely, she was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Pinkie Pie gone?" Bolt asked aloud as he looked back at Rainbow for aid. When he had turned away, she had gone back to inspecting the parts of his Jetpack. His words had startled her, causing her to almost drop the part she was holding. After a comical juggling act as she attempted to stop the part from hitting the floor, she put it back and looked around. As the stallion had suggested, her friend couldn't be seen anywhere.

"Huh? She was here a moment ago..." Rainbow muttered, baffled by the pink mare's sudden disappearance. A moment of silence surrounded the two ponies as they tried to think of where Pinkie could have gone. Truth be told, the playful pony was hiding in the pile of scrap metal Bolt had tripped over yesterday. She watched them eagerly, waiting for the perfect moment to execute her prank.
As Bolt gave a brief look over the room to see if he could find her, he strayed close to the pile Pinkie was hiding in. Her eyes lit up as she prepared herself, suddenly leaping out of the metal as the stallion passed by. Evident by his facial expression, she had surprised him. So much so that he fell backward onto his flank, his eyes wide and his eyebrows high until what was happening sunk in.

"I got you, Boltie!~" Pinkie yelled with a grin on her face, a look of triumph in her bright blue eyes. The stallion looked none too pleased about being the butt of a joke though. He grumbled as he stood back up, trying to make it look like nothing had happened at all in a desperate attempt to retain some of his pride.
The exchange had Rainbow in hysterics. She was holding her sides with both hooves as she laughed, her eyes shut tight. It was only when she opened them a peek that she noticed Bolt staring at her with a look of distaste, forcing an awkward cough out of her as she quelled her laughter.

"Anyway... I've found the problem with your cannon." Bolt announced, eager to get the conversation moving so he could forget about that little hiccup. This caught the attention of both mares and appeared to have his desired effect, Pinkie bounding out of the metal to land in front of him while Rainbow listened on with interest.
"There's a blockage inside. Cake, to be precise." He explained, gesturing toward the cannon with his hoof as he spoke. Pinkie giggled at his explanation, bouncing over to the cannon with Bolt following after her.

"So that's why the cake didn't fire out at that party I held last week!" She exclaimed, giving some insight into the cake situation. Bolt didn't question it, instead moving onto what he expected she would like to know.

"I'm going to need to give the inside a thorough clean. There might be some parts that need replacing as well. But I can have this done in an hour or two, depending on the condition of it's inner workings." Bolt concluded as he gave the cannon a pat with his hoof. Since the insides were literally covered in cake, it had been difficult for him to judge the condition of them. He would have to find out as he worked.

"Really!? Then I can make it to all the parties today! Great!" Pinkie gave the biggest grin imaginable, almost to the point were it looked uncomfortable to achieve. But she held it none the less, to which Bolt gave a quiet chuckle. The fact that the stallion had laughed for the first time didn't go unnoticed by Pinkie or Rainbow, both mares stared at him with a look of wonder. It made Bolt feel self-conscious, since he was unsure why they were staring at him with such intensity.

"W-What?" He asked, his ears pinning back as he averted his gaze downward, revealing his insecurity.

"You laughed! You finally laughed!" Pinkie beamed as she bounced up and down energetically, clearly ecstatic by the revelation. Bolt's ears shot back up now that the situation was cleared up, any signs of anxiety fading away in an instant.

"I didn't think you had it in you." Rainbow piped in with a smirk on her face, clearly trying to tease the stallion. Unlike her last attempt at this, Bolt took it in a much more lighthearted manner. He offered an amused smile and raised an eyebrow as he glanced toward Rainbow.

"Funny. Now if you'll excuse me, I'd best get to work." The stallion spoke in a more relaxed manner as he turned his attention to the cannon, both Rainbow and Pinkie going back to exploring the lab to entertain themselves in the meantime. Not something he had expected, since it couldn't be too exciting in his lab. He had assumed they would leave for now and Pinkie would come back to pick up the cannon in an hour or two. He didn't pay it too much thought though, centering his attention on the task set to him.
He didn't realized it at the time, but he was slowly getting wrapped up in their pace and becoming more comfortable around the two mares.

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Over the next hour, the stallion worked endlessly to clean the interior of the cannon. It was a difficult task since he had to crawl into the barrel, but dismantling the device would take too much time. Since Pinkie needed it done as soon as possible, he had to complete his task this way. He could hear all kinds of commotion and chatter going on around him, but he concentrated on his task and ignored most of it. The only time he'd pay attention was if his name was called.

"Hey Boltie! Do you like parties!?" Pinkie asked enthusiastically as she hopped over to the cannon; standing next to the only part of him that wasn't currently engulfed by the device, which happened to be his flank. His brown tail twitched slightly as if a sign to show he'd heard her, his muffled voice could be heard from inside the cannon a moment later.

"Not really, Pinkie."

"What!? Really!? How can anypony not like parties!?" Pinkie exclaimed, genuinely surprised and even slightly horrified by his answer. Everypony loved her parties, so he clearly hadn't been to one of hers! Bolt wasn't sure what all the fuss was about. He had heard of Pinkie before meeting her, but only that she was hyperactive and a handful, nothing to do with parties. He shrugged as he wiped away from more cake residue from the machine, a splodge of it falling onto his nose in the process.

"I don't really feel comfortable in large groups of ponies." Bolt informed her honestly, figuring there would be no point in lying about it since the fact didn't really bother him all that much. He hadn't been to a lot of parties either, which didn't help much. Pinkie pondered upon this for a moment, determined to think of a way to get the stallion to come to a party. Past experience had shown that the aggressive approach didn't work very well for these kinds of ponies, so she considered working him slowly into that kind of environment. That's when an idea hit her.

"My friends and I are having a picnic at the end of the week! You should come!" Pinkie threw her hooves up in the air as she announced her idea, even though Bolt wouldn't be able to see the gesture. The idea immediately made the stallion's stomach sink. He wasn't fond of social situations to begin with, but events like those were something that made him particularly uncomfortable. It sounded like a pain in the flank to him, especially since he could be working on his Jetpack instead.

"I don't know Pinkie, I'm pretty sure I'm-"

"That sounds like a great idea, Pinkie! You'll definitely come, right Bolt?" Rainbow suddenly cut in after hearing their conversation, thwarting Bolt's attempt at making up an excuse. He cursed under his breathe, not expecting the Pegasus to interfere.

"It's like I was trying to say-"

"You can think of it as a thank you for fixing my cannon!! There will be great food there! I'm bringing cupcakes!" Pinkie interjected with a flurry of quickly spoken words, swiftly cutting Bolt off in a similar fashion to Rainbow Dash. It was obvious that both mares really wanted him to join them, though why they'd go so far to spend time with a stallion like him left him baffled. Begrudgingly, he decided to agree. He couldn't find the energy to argue anymore.

"Fine..."

"Hah! You won't regret it!" Rainbow grinned in triumph; thoughtlessly patting him on the back, though it was more akin to a smack than a pat. The sudden foreign contact made the stallion jump, which in turn made him rear his head backward. The thud that followed echoed around the room, leaving an awkward silence in the aftermath as the mares stared at the cannon. After a moment, Bolt's form slowly slid out from the cannon's barrel and he turned to look at Rainbow, an irritated expression on his face as he rubbed his sore head with his hoof. The cerulean Pegasus could only offer him yet another one of her sheepish grins...

Author's Note

Chapter three: Complete! I was worried that I wouldn't get it finished in the time frame I gave myself, so I only gave it a brief proof read. If I missed anything and something needs editing, please don't hesitate to let me know! Enjoy folks.

Preparation

The magnificent sun began to rise into the sky to mark the start of a new day. While this phenomena was expected; and no doubt the doing of the lovely Princess Celestia, Steele Bolt was rarely awake to witness it personally. Late nights in the workshop dictated the stallion sleeping in after barely making it to his bed to pass out from exhaustion. Yet there he was, laying in bed with eyes wide open as sunlight began to sneak in through his bedroom window.

He hadn't slept a wink. How could he? Social anxiety was wracking his brain. Thoughts and feeling raced through his mind, leaving him with little solace. He had been invited to a social gathering; and for reasons that perplexed him, he had agreed to attend. The mechanic had never done that before. Not that he was frequently invited to a get-together to begin with, but that was besides the point. Until now, he could never have imagined that he would attend something like a picnic. He had no idea how he should act, how to prepare himself, or whether he should bring anything with him. These thoughts had kept him up all night. It was those two mares fault...

A rough sigh left his dried lips as he summoned the strength to leave his comfortable bed. He needed a drink. And considering that he hadn't slept at all, coffee seemed like the logical choice. Content with that decision, Bolt began to sluggishly make his way downstairs, a comically large yawn escaping him as he trod down the stairs, taking it step by step.
He wearily looked around once he reached the bottom of the staircase, his green eyes scanning his living room for anything out of the ordinary. Other than the wrench sitting on his sofa, which he had brandished in self defense after hearing the banging on his door the day prior, everything was as he left it. He trudged over to the tool and picked it up with his mouth. Best to not leave it there, lest he forget about it. With wrench in mouth, his next destination was obvious. The kitchen.

An hour, and multiple cups of coffee later, Steele Bolt actually felt like he might be able to function. Bags still hung heavily under his eyes, but at least his brain was sharp for the moment. He couldn't help the occasional yawn though, of course. Even with his drowsiness dealt with, he still had the pressing issue that had robbed him of sleep in the first place. The picnic. He would need to conduct some research in preparation for this event, or he'd risk getting no sleep until the day of the picnic itself. That would be a catastrophe. With that in mind, there was only one pony he could turn to... The thought alone brought another sigh out of him.

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A trek across Ponyville found Steele Bolt standing outside of a modest sized home, with a lively colour scheme that would leave the likes of Pinkie Pie impressed. A very vivid combination of purples and yellows. Complimentary, but also a little painful on his green eyes. It was far too bright for his tastes. Regardless of his choice in decor, the stallion stepped closer to the front door, his hoof rising to knock but then lingering as second thoughts appeared in his head. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea...

As if somepony had read his mind, the door abruptly opened at that very moment, causing both Steele Bolt and the pony behind the door miraculously opening to gasp and take a step back. Green met green as both ponies stared at each other, a moment of silence enveloping them before finally the mare broke the silence.

"Steele Bolt?" She asked quizzically, the look on her face making it clear that she had not expected to see him. Fitting, considering how close he had come to losing his nerve and making a hasty retreat. There was no turning back now though...

"Yeah, it's me... Hi Mum..." The stallion replied stiffly as the mare cocked her head to the side, her beautiful purple mane spilling down the corresponding side as the look of wonderment remained on her face. Her coat blended in with that colouring as well, though it was a softer lavender hue. Other than their distinctive eyes, Steele Bolt really didn't look much like his mother at all; especially because of how unkempt his own coat was. Regardless, a smile began to cross his mother's face as she stepped aside, offering the stallion access to his parent's home.

"I didn't realise you would be stopping by today! Come in, sweetie." She insisted with a motherly tone, to which Bolt obliged and slowly entered. His mother; aptly named Lilac Petal, had always been friendly towards him. It was difficult for a mother to stop loving her child after all, even if his name had been tarnished by his obsession with flight. It would be incorrect to say that she wasn't disappointed in how he put his talents to use, but she had long since given up on trying to change his mind. He was hopelessly stubborn in that regard.

"Were you about to go out?" Bolt asked curiously as he turned to face his mother, whom was in the middle of closing the door behind them. That was the only reason he could think of as to why she had so abruptly opened the front door. Unless she had noticed him there... Judging from her reaction to seeing him, he didn't think that was the case though.

"I was, but that can wait. It isn't every day my son comes to visit!" Lilac chirped as she strode over to the kitchen, with her son in tow. Bolt's green eyes danced around at his surroundings as he walked, admiring the plant life that surrounded him. Unsurprisingly, his mother was something of a gardener. She took a great deal of time and care to nurture all sorts of plants, to which her work is even coveted. No doubt she had been heading out to start on an order in fact, since a lot of ponies loved to buy plants from her for their own gardens. That wasn't why he was there though...

"Is Dad home?" He asked as he waited in the kitchen, while his mother prepared them both something to drink. Another cup of coffee wouldn't hurt his sleep deprived mind. Talk of his father always put him on edge. While his mother had accepted his determination towards his goals, though she didn't approve of it, his father had been strongly against it from the get-go. They had butted heads many times in fact, with every accident that developed from his failed experiments earning him a "I told you so" from the older stallion. He would rather not face that ridicule at the moment.

"Oh no. He went off to work a while ago." Was the answer he had expected from his mother, whom set his cup of coffee down in front of him as she spoke. He offered a nod of gratitude to her before taking a sip from the beverage. The bitter taste was more than enough to bring alertness back to him. He smacked his lips to savor the taste as Lilac sat across from him, looking far more dignified than he.

"So! To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?" His mother inquired with a soft smile, though the underlying curiosity in her eyes was unmistakable. Bolt could only imagine how she might react to what he had to say, and it was filling him with dread. But ultimately, she was the only pony he could turn to in this situation. He had to rely on her. So with a sigh, he bit the bullet.

"Well... You see... I've been invited to a picnic... By a couple of mares..." The stallion began, though his words steadily became quieter as he went on. He felt bashful about the circumstance he found himself in, even if it wasn't that uncommon to meet with other ponies. That was just how unused to the concept he was. Apparently his mother wasn't used to the thought of her son going to a picnic either. She had frozen in place, midway through taking a sip from her cup of tea, her large green eyes staring straight at Steele Bolt with a slack jaw. He felt she could have at least tried to hide her surprise... Bolt couldn't help feeling a little insulted.

"I-Is that so?" She asked after finally regaining her composure, as though she was checking to make sure he wasn't joking about this. Bolt frowned a little, but nodded his head to confirm his statement. There was no way he was going to repeat it.
It still took a few moments for the information to sink in for the mare. Bolt watched as his mother digested what he had told her, the inital surprise slowly but surely turning into wondrous joy. He hadn't exactly expected her to react the way she did; practically diving across the table in excitement, with statements of her little colt finally growing up. He couldn't help feeling a little overwhelmed. Was it really such a great thing that he had been invited to this picnic...?

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He hadn't needed to tell his mother anything else. Lilac had already known well enough that her son wasn't prepared for this sort of interaction. She still fondly remembered how awkward he had been during his youth, far worse than he was now. With that in mind, she immediately insisted that he clean himself properly. Even though he cared very little about his public image, she didn't want him to scare away his potential friends with his less than pleasant body odor and greasy mane. Naturally, he had put up some resistance to the idea. He didn't understand the point behind it. But it was foolish to try and disobey his mother, and he was quickly reminded of that. So while he thoroughly cleaned his neglected coat and mane, his mother set to work on preparing some sandwiches for him to bring along to the picnic.
When Bolt finally re-emerged in the kitchen, the difference in his appearance was night and day. For one, his coat and mane looked far smoother, and was softer to the touch. With the muck and grease out of it, the dull colouring actually looked a tad more vibrant. He almost looked like a brand new stallion!

The scent of food had him drifting towards the counter in an instant, drool practically leaking from his lips as he admired the sandwiches that had amassed there. All of them were jam-packed with salad, vivid green filling the space between the slices of bread. But as he went to take a bite out of one, his snout was firmly smacked by a hoof, causing him to withdraw and furrow his brow at his assaulter.
"These are for the picnic." His mother stated bluntly, a similar look on her face as she frowned at her son. Her expression lightened a little after a moment though, and she went back to her task. Bolt didn't really want to get in the way of his mother's expert culinary skills. He could prepare a sandwich, but not nearly as quickly and neatly as Lilac could. It did help that she was a unicorn though. Magic made everything easier. So he sat and waited, his green eyes watching his mother as she worked.

"There should be enough for all of you here. If you put them in the fridge, they should remain fresh until the day!" Lilac informed him as she finished the final sandwich, placing it carefully on the monstrous pile she had created. In Bolt's opinion, she had probably made too many. He hoped that his company had a large appetite, because there was no way he was going to be able to finish all of them on his own. On the bright side, if they weren't all eaten then he would be set for meals for a little while.

"And don't you dare eat any of them beforehand." She concluded with an all-knowing look, causing her son to chuckle awkwardly. It was as-if she could read his mind. He certainly hadn't intended to eat them all, but the thought had crossed his mind to snack on one or two. They looked so delicious after all! But he decided it would be better to honor his mother's request, and not risk her wrath...

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With all of the sandwiches neatly packed away in a backpack, Steele Bolt found himself outside his families house again, his mother offering him the same smile that she had greeted him with. He was feeling a little more confident after spending some time with Lilac, and had taken any advice that she had offered to heart. The anxiety hadn't vanished, but at least it had been quelled somewhat.

"Have a good time, sweetie. And remember, be yourself! But... Not too much like yourself..." Lilac told her son with an uneasy smile, causing him to raise an eyebrow at her. That seemed like some backwards logic. Should he, or should he not act like himself? His eccentric behaviour was lost on him. He didn't see anything wrong with it, while every other pony could clearly see that it was borderline obsessive. He didn't realise the significance of his mother's words.

"Is there something wrong with being myself...?" He asked slowly, his gaze slowly looking to the dirt below his hooves as his brow furrowed. He couldn't help feeling self-conscious after hearing such words from his mother, even if he wasn't sure what she was getting at. The mare immediately shook her head, as it became apparent that she might have chosen her words poorly.

"Oh no, no, no! I just don't want you to waste this opportunity to make some friends!" She insisted with an earnest voice, coaxing Bolt to raise his head to look at her. He could see the honesty in her eyes, yet he couldn't help remaining pessimistic after hearing what she had to say prior.

"So you think I'll blow it." He retorted with a hint of malice in his voice, a faint glint of hurt hidden behind the frown on his face. He knew his parents didn't condone to his passions, but he thought only his father had viewed him as a screw up. Apparently his father's venom had infected his mother...

"That's certainly a dreary way of looking at it. I want you to make friends. That's all." His mother replied simply, a sigh following her words. Dealing with her son always felt like stepping on a minefield, especially when her partner was involved. He was a handful, but she still loved him, and wanted him to be happy. She tried to portray that in her expression, though Bolt simply looked away, the same disheartened look on his face.

"I'll be going then... Thanks for the help, Mum." He left his farewell as short and to the point as possible, Lilac's reply barely registering as he trod away from the home he grew up in. His mother had been a great help, yet she had damaged his spirit at the same time. That fact made him question the usefulness of the trip he had made today for a moment. A glance at the backpack full of sandwiches he was carrying erased that feeling though, and filled him with a sense of guilt for snapping at his mother. In the end, he knew that she was just trying to help him. If only he weren't so prideful, maybe he would have gone back and apologised. But instead, he returned to his home, where he did as Lilac had instructed and stored the sandwiches in the refrigerator in his kitchen, before becoming lost in his work as he always did.

Author's Note

I've really kept everyone waiting with this chapter, huh. I hope it was worth the wait! I lost most of my motivation to continue this story, but decided to pick it up again abruptly today. It's a good job I still remember where I want to go with it, haha. Anyways, enjoy!

Moment of Truth

Things were finally starting to come together. After working tirelessly for the last couple of days, Steele Bolt had been able to sort through the wreckage of his prized jetpack, and even figure out the malfunction that had almost caused his untimely demise. Too much fuel had been flowing into the engine, causing an overload of sorts. Learning from his mistakes had been how he had gotten this far, so knowing this issue thrilled him more than it disheartened him. He was so close to reaching his dream; he had actually been able to maintain flight for the first time after all! The thought alone was enough to fill him with excitement, and motivate him to continue his work.

Sadly though, work on his jetpack would have to wait for later. As much as his anxiety would happily have him forget, today was the big day. The day of the picnic. Looking in his refrigerator had been more than enough of a reminder for him over the past couple of days; when he had wandered up there during his short breaks for a snack. He could ignore sleep, but it was rather difficult to work through a grumbling stomach. It didn't help that he had a somewhat insatiable appetite. At least he had kept his promise to his mother. Not a single sandwich was missing from the collection she had prepared for the picnic.

A yawn left his lips as he made his way out of the darkness of his workshop, natural light pouring through the windows and greeting him as he stepped into his living room. He groaned as his sensitive eyes winched from Celestia's harsh light. She couldn't give him a break, could she. He contemplated complaining to the weather Pegasus; requesting more cloudy days. A meaningless thought that he would never act upon, but it amused him as he made his way to the kitchen.

Minimal sleep and a busy day ahead of him meant that coffee was a requirement for him this morning. Another yawn escaped Bolt as he waited for the kettle to boil, passing the time by idly looking around his kitchen. It was quaint, and filled with electronics. Not surprising, considering who was living there. Everything did something, though some were more practical than others. The custom-made, four slot toaster, for example, far outweighed the use of the salt dispenser. It had seemed like a good idea at the time, but in hindsight it wouldn't have hurt to just stick with a typical shaker. If it wasn't broken, don't fix it, as they say.

The centerpiece of the small room was a wooden table, just big enough for two ponies to sit at. Bought with a guest in mind, even if Bolt rarely had them. The only other pony to have sat at it with him was his mother. He didn't really care if it stayed that way though; it wasn't like he spent a great deal of time outside of his workshop anyway. It did allow for him to take his work with him to the table when he was indulging in larger meals that took him longer to eat, which was something he appreciated.

Just as he sat down to enjoy his cup of piping hot coffee, a knock came at his door. At first, Bolt pondered who it could be at this time in the morning. He knew it wasn't early in the scheme of things; but it wasn't even midday yet, and that was early for him! No matter how much he thought about this though, the knocking at his door wasn't going away any time soon. So with a sigh, he pulled himself up from his seat and made his way to the living room. Whomever he owed this pleasure to, they didn't have to be so loud...

Bolt honestly had a pretty good idea of who might be waiting for him on the other side of his front door. It wasn't like he received many visitors after all, and considering his plans for today, it really limited who it could be. That left a horrible sinking feeling in his stomach. He couldn't help feeling nervous; especially after being locked in his workshop for the last few days. He had said he would go though, so he couldn't ignore the boisterous visitor. He audibly gulped as he reached the front door, his hoof raising to meet the handle. Here goes nothing...

He opened the door slowly, mindful of what happened last time somepony banged at his door this roughly. Leaving the door ajar just enough for him to peek through to the outside, Bolt's green eyes peered into the bright light that slipped through the crack. A familiar pair of magenta eyes stared straight back at him, long eye lashes fluttered as the owner of the eyes blinked.

"Ah, so you were awake! I was starting to think you were still on a snooze cruise!" The cerulean Pegasus on the other side of his door grinned at Bolt as he opened the door further, since he was now confident that he wouldn't get a hoof to the face like last time. He hadn't been able to drink his coffee yet, so Rainbow Dash's energetic voice was more than enough to make the tired stallion cringe. He was much too tired to deal with somepony like her.

"Rainbow Dash...? Why are you here? Is the picnic starting already...?" Bolt queried with a strained voice, his discomfort at being disturbed before he had properly prepared himself clear on his face. Whether she picked up on that or not was a mystery to him though, since she didn't seem to show any consideration for his condition at all and marched on with the topic at hand with a similar tone of voice.

"Duh! What time do you think it is?"

"Uh... Not midday...?"

A silence grew amongst them for a brief moment as Rainbow Dash gave Steele Bolt the most deadpan stare he had seen in his life. It spoke heaps on it's own, but it wasn't like Rainbow Dash was the type of pony to not speak her mind. She raised an eyebrow at him quizzically.

"Do you usually wake up this late or something...?" Her bemused stare made it obvious enough that she was questioning his way of life, though he was no stranger to such looks. The stallion rolled his eyes and turned to disappear back into his household. If he was going to get treatment like this, then going to the picnic was starting to seem like a bad idea. His company seemed to clock onto his intentions a little too quickly however. He had barely raised a hind leg to slam the door before he found the familiar cerulean Pegasus standing in front of him, having slipped round him at a blistering speed. It left him startled, and unable to say a word.

"Whoa there, buddy! You didn't think I'd let you skip out on the picnic, did you?" Rainbow stated with a playful grin on her face, the condescending look that had previously graced her features nowhere to be seen. Bolt couldn't help feeling confused as he looked down at the cerulean hoof that prodded him. Was she or wasn't she judging him like the others? The fact that she had jumped back to treating him as she had been told him she wasn't, but he was no mind reader. Her pushiness did make him frown though.

"I'd much rather work on my jetpack, thank you." The stallion retorted as he tried to step around the obstacle in front of him, his sights set on the kitchen. Once he finished his coffee, he could continue his work on his contraption. Or at least, that was his hope. Rainbow Dash didn't seem content with giving up just yet. She moved to intercept him yet again, though this time she tried to forcefully turn him around and out the door.

"C'mon! You made a commitment! We're gonna' be late if you keep this up, and I don't do late!" The renowned flyer insisted, proving that she was more than a match for the natural strength of an Earth Pony as she adamantly shoved him towards the door to the outside, using her powerful wings to make up the difference in physical strength. Bolt's hooves skidded across the floor as he fought against Rainbow, his teeth gritting as his brow furrowed in frustration. Why was she going so far? Was she just the type of pony that wouldn't take no for an answer? With an almighty sigh, he stopped resisting her, which almost caused the two of them to topple over. Thankfully though, a repeat of last time did not occur.

"Fine, fine! Just stop it already!" He shouted out in a voice that was much louder than what he was used to. The shoving came to a stop not a moment later, Rainbow appearing from behind him with a smug grin, which only grew smugger when she saw the look of exasperation on the stallion's face. He didn't have the energy to argue with her. Maybe things would have been different if he had been able to finish his coffee...

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Steele Bolt really didn't get a lot of time after that. He could hear Rainbow impatiently tapping her hoof in the living room as he hastily made his way into the kitchen, guzzled down his now cold cup of coffee and threw the sandwiches his mother had prepared into a satchel for transport. He wasn't long, yet Rainbow Dash made it seem like he had kept her waiting forever. He couldn't really say he was surprised though, not while she was hurrying him out the door.

He had half expected her to question what he had brought along with him, yet no such question came. Maybe it was because she was so focused on forcing him to run faster, as she glided along in front of him, leading him towards the location of the picnic. He wasn't the fastest runner, and Rainbow Dash made sure to remind him of that, condescending him at every turn as they sped towards their destination. If he hadn't been so heavily invested in trying to keep up with her, he might have had a retort for her. He just had to grit his teeth and endure her egotism. One thing was for certain though. The idea of actually racing her was dreadfully unappealing.

By the time they finally arrived at the picnic, Bolt had received a thorough workout. More than he had experienced in quite a long time. Naturally, he was left panting for air, while Rainbow Dash had been left unaffected by the supposed light jog. A tinge of jealousy coursed through him. If only he had been born with wings, he might have been able to keep up with her... That just gave him one more goal though. What he wouldn't give to wipe the smug grin off the Pegasus's face.

"What's the matter, Bolt? Tired already?" Rainbow Dash quite happily applied salt to the wound as they made their way towards the gathering of ponies, which quite ironically was taking place at the same location that Bolt typically used for his experiment tests. It was a nice location, with lavish scenery, so that really didn't come as a surprise. The stallion retorted with a grunt as he soldiered on, trying to mask his irritation to the best of his ability. He was a competitive pony, and prideful to a fault. But even though he was frustrated that he couldn't even keep up with Rainbow Dash, he wasn't about to give her the satisfaction of knowing that his loss bothered him. Thankfully, the topic was lost as their presence became known, the five ponies waiting for them turning to look their way.

Steele Bolt's gaze immediately fell on the only recognizable pony amongst this group of strangers. Her insanely broad smile, curly pink mane, and matching pink coat were unforgettable. Pinkie Pie wasted no time bounding up to him and Rainbow as they approached, literally bouncing circles around them as they walked.

"Boltie! You made it!! I knew you would! You couldn't resist the cupcakes, right?!" The pink pony bounced to a standstill in front of the stallion, causing him to abruptly come to a halt in an attempt to avoid walking face first into her. He was successful, though left uncomfortably close to the mare.

"Uh, yeah... Sure..."

"Yay!! You get to have first pick then! C'mon!!" Pinkie Pie seemed truly ecstatic over his answer, even if he had only said it because he figured that was what she wanted to hear. The handful immediately began to prance away to lead him toward the treats, though he made little effort to hide his relief upon regaining his personal space. A glance towards Rainbow Dash, whom was still standing beside him, revealed an amused grin on her face. Bolt rebutted with a frown.

Even if he frowned at her though, Rainbow Dash was currently an anchor for him. He could feel unfamiliar eyes on him as he followed in Pinkie's hoofsteps, and that attention gave him an unpleasant feeling in the pit of his stomach. He didn't usually attract this much attention unless one of his experiments had gone horribly wrong, thus he considered any attention to be a bad thing. He could tell that the gazes pointed his way were friendly, yet that did little to calm his nerves. He just wasn't used to this sort of situation. There was no doubt that his anxiety was picked up on. It wasn't like he was hiding it very well; with his eyes darting about the place, often drifting back to one of the only familiar ponies present, Rainbow Dash.

"Hello there!" A welcoming voice caught his attention, his green eyes finally concluding their erratic dance to land upon a purple coated pony. Now that he was looking at this mare, he actually found her to be a lot less intimidating to face than he had anticipated. Her soft, purple eyes were welcoming, and matched the colour of her coat, which vaguely reminded him of his mother's. That wasn't the only thing that was reminiscent of his mother either. A horn sat proudly upon her head, defining her as a Unicorn. His gaze led from her horn to her mane, an interesting combination of different shades of purple, and then to the wings on her back... Wings?

His eyes had began to wander away from that oddity before bouncing straight back to them. If this mare had both a horn and wings... That would make her an Alicorn... Bolt's eyes widened as that realisation sunk in. He wasn't standing in front of just any pony, he was standing in front of a Princess.

"You're Steele Bolt, right? I'm Twilight Sparkle." The same voice broke him out of his stupor, his green eyes blinking a few times as he regained his focus, his mouth flapping a few times as his brain struggled to compute his situation. He could have sworn he heard a snort from this thoughtless reaction, but that was the least of his worries. His first social gathering would involve a Princess? Truth be told, she wasn't quite as regal as he would have expected... She seemed quite down to earth. But that didn't tone down the magnitude of the situation that much for him. He didn't know what to say.

"Um, yeah. I am. You're an Alicorn, right..? That makes you..." His words began to trail off as he stared at Twilight with wide eyes. The initial shock was starting to wear off, and a curiosity blossomed within him. The mare seemed somewhat uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was going though.

"Yeah, I'm a Princess... You don't need to treat me differently though! I'm a pony too, just like you." Twilight insisted, her expression practically pleading with Bolt to not put her on some pedestal. The stallion tilted his head a little to the side, his confusion apparent. He couldn't imagine why she would be so sheepish to show off her royal connection. Her humble attitude was certainly refreshing though, compared to a certain Pegasus...

"It's a pleasure to meet you, darling. I'm Rarity." Another voice spoke up before Bolt could say anything more, turning his attention away from the Princess in front of him. His gaze fell upon a Unicorn with a pure white coat, her large blue eyes radiant and beautiful. The same could be said for the rest of Rarity, especially her well-maintained purple mane. The mechanic could only stand in awe at her grace as she took a step forwards, inspecting his appearance quite curiously.

"I must ask; how do you keep all that grease and oil out of your coat? You look lovely!" Rarity chimed, leaving Bolt at an even greater loss for words. She was complimenting him? He rarely received such things, especially with the grotesque scar upon his back. The satchel was keeping that hidden right now though, which could be why the beauty queen had no comment on it. The awkward part was that he didn't take any lengths to protect his coat from his work. It usually got quite messy in fact. If it hadn't been for his mother insisting he rectify that for this gathering, it likely would have stayed that way as well.

"Um... I don't." Steele Bolt replied honestly. He felt there was no reason to lie about it after all, though the reaction he received left him feeling like it might have been a better idea to give a little white lie. An awkward pause formed around the group, with all eyes peering at him. This didn't last nearly as long as he feared though. A charming laugh left Rarity's lips. Even if it was a little strained, brought on by the awkward silence that had arisen from Bolt's reply, it was more than enough ease the tension that had begun to build.

"Well whatever you do, darling. It simply works!" It felt quite nice to hear Rarity's optimism over the inclination that he didn't wash very often. So far this group of ponies completely shattered the norm that he had become accustomed to while dealing with the general public. It was a little disconcerting when he thought about it... There was nothing wrong with these ponies, right...? He didn't get a lot of time to ponder on the mental health of his company though. The next mare stepped up to introduce herself shortly after his interaction with Rarity concluded.

"Howdy, sugarcube! Name's Applejack." The first thing Bolt noticed was the heavy southern accent of his fellow Earth pony. It was quite endearing, in his opinion. Added a lot of character to somepony that he didn't even know yet. He couldn't help offering her a timid smile as he turned his gaze in her direction.

"Nice to meet you." He stated simply, his green eyes meeting her own green orbs for a brief moment. Her orange coat and blonde mane strangely suited her, though he couldn't quite put his hoof on why exactly that was. Her cowboy hat just brought her whole image together. She seemed as friendly as the rest, but there honestly wasn't much else for them to talk about. Thus, all attention shifted to the last remaining member of the group, a very timid looking Pegasus. Another pang of jealousy stabbed at his heart as a brief look on envy was cast on the wings upon her back, but he quickly pushed that down. It wasn't like this was his first time seeing a Pegasus. Her blue eyes darted about in a familiar fashion, reminding him of himself a fair amount. Maybe that was why it bothered him a little. Was he really that intimidating to her?

"Come on, Fluttershy. Introduce yourself!" Twilight was the first to speak up, offering her friend an encouraging smile as she approached the mare. Bolt's gaze briefly shifted to the Alicorn before ultimately landing back on the supposed Fluttershy. Her focus finally fell on him, though her eyes drifted to the ground a few times as she fought with her shy nature.

"U-Um. Hello... I'm Fluttershy..." Her voice was almost a whisper, that was close to being inaudible. The introduction washed away any irritation he had felt prior, instead it was replaced with pity. She appeared to deal with newcomers just as badly as he did, so it would be wrong of him to hold it against her. He offered her the most comforting smile he could muster, which really wasn't much from somepony as socially inept as himself...

Author's Note

This was getting a little tough to write towards the end there... I'm really not used to having so many characters active at once! Not a bad learning experience though, and I hope I'm portraying the Mane 6 accurately! I honestly stopped watching the show just after Twilight became an Alicorn, so that's really where this story takes place. Who knows though, I might pick up where I left off eventually!
I decided to cut the chapter off where I did because it was getting pretty long... The picnic itself will naturally continue in the next chapter! Anyway. Enjoy!

Tea and... Cupcakes?

With introductions out of the way, everypony naturally settled down to begin with the main event. The picnic itself. Everypony had brought something with them, so it looked like Bolt's mother had made the right call with the sandwiches. Pinkie Pie brought along cupcakes, as she had suggested earlier in the week. It looked like a few had already been snacked on in fact... The pink party pony was likely the culprit. Steele Bolt could understand her impatience though. After being the first to taste one, as Pinkie Pie had promised, he had to admit that the cupcake was rather tasty.

Pinkie Pie was practically on the edge of her non-existent seat as he tried the cupcake. Seeing her watch him taste her baking with such intensity naturally made Bolt feel quite uncomfortable, but it also added a sense of importance to his opinion. She clearly wanted him to enjoy her cupcake. So when he offered her a smile and a nod of approval, Pinkie bounced for joy, emitting a pleased squeal as she reached the maximum height of each bounce.

After the tasting session with Pinkie Pie, he was offered a cup of tea from Rarity. She had brought along an elegant teapot filled with finely made brew, as well as dainty cucumber sandwiches. It was lucky that their sandwiches had different fillings, or it could have made for an awkward unveiling. His mother had filled his sandwiches with watercress and rocket though, which still brought it's own complications to the table.

"Wasn't expecting you to bring anything along, Bolt!" Rainbow announced between bites from one of Pinkie's cupcakes, her magenta eyes watching curiously as he lowered the satchel he had been carrying to the ground and began offloading the generous stack of sandwiches.

"They look delicious though, darling! Did you prepare them yourself?" Rarity added, a cup of tea hovering in front of her with the aid of magic. The question caught Bolt a little off guard. He hadn't anticipated anypony asking the origin of the sandwiches, and it left him in a bit of a moral conundrum. Would he take the credit for their creation? If he did, then it could come to bite him on the flank later on... It would probably be safer to tell the truth.

"Ah, no. I don't have much culinary skill, to be honest. My mother made them." Bolt admitted, his gaze shifting timidly to the ground. He wasn't sure whether it was a good thing or a bad thing that he had relied on his mother for this, but he couldn't help feeling like it was the later. He suddenly felt self-conscious. At least, until a light blue aura enveloped one of his mother's sandwiches and allowed it to gently defy the laws of physics. His green orbs lifted to watch as Rarity brought the sandwich to her and took a modest bite from the corner; really taking her time chewing on that one bite. Finally though, she smiled Bolt's way.

"You'll have to thank your mother for us then. This sandwich is delicious!" The Unicorn spoke warmly, offering the tense stallion some solace. A small smile crossed Bolt's lips as he nodded his head earnestly.

"I will."

With Rarity's approval, the other mares began to curiously try Lilac Petal's sandwiches as well. All across the board, everypony seemed to agree with their friend's review of his mother's cooking prowess. It brought a smile to his face, the concern that had nagged at the back of his head briskly vanishing without a trace.

"Why don't you try one of these, Bolt?" A familiar voice abruptly caught his attention from his left side, causing his gaze to shift in that direction. He found a cookie hovering not far from his face, surrounded in a distinct purple aura. Glancing past the small animal shaped treat revealed Twilight Sparkle, whom offered him a smile and gestured towards the cookie. It would seem that this was her addition to the picnic. Bolt gave a nod of gratitude before biting onto the cookie so that Twilight could let go of the shortbread.

"Pinkie said that you're a mechanic of sorts?" The Princess continued curiously as she watched him take a bite out of the cookie she had given him, his hooves raising to hold onto the remainder of the cookie while he relished the sweet and savory taste of the bite he had taken. Bolt nodded his head in response to her question while he did this, just as Pinkie Pie abruptly entered the conversation upon hearing her name.

"Yup! He sure saved my flank! The party cannon has never been better!" The never-ending pink fluff-ball of energy announced with a big grin, that seemed to mostly be aimed at Bolt. Probably as a show of gratitude for his work earlier in the week. Cleaning up the party cannon sure had been a pain though. He had insisted multiple times afterwards that she not load it with things that could clog it up like that. Whether she took his advice to heart or not... He was unsure of.

"I find technology so fascinating! What drove you to start working with machinery?" Bolt blinked a few times as Twilight took the conversation in a direction he hadn't expected. She was the first pony in his whole life to actually show interest in his work on a deeper level. Sure, some ponies thought the concepts were cool; Rainbow Dash being a good example of that, but few were interested in the inner workings and his motivations. He was a little taken aback. He swallowed his mouthful of cookie hard, his eyes quickly dashing around to see if anypony else was paying attention to them. The rest of the group seemed quite happy chatting amongst themselves; Pinkie having drifted out of the conversation just as abruptly as she had entered it. It seemed this chat was truly between just him and Twilight now.

"Actually, it's because I want to fly." He answered truthfully with a slightly hushed voice, as if he didn't want everypony else hearing him. His eyes shifting so that he wasn't looking at Twilight directly as well, insecurity showing in his mannerisms. No pony ever seemed to take his life goal seriously. An Earth pony that wanted to fly like a Pegasus? Preposterous! With that in mind, he didn't have the courage to look Twilight in the eye. He expected the same reaction from her. He could still see her face in his peripheral vision though, and her expression didn't mask her surprise at his answer. However, that quickly turned to excitement.

"Oh really? How have you set about doing that?" The Princess asked as she rose the cup of tea Rarity had prepared for her before this conversation to her lips, taking a short sip before turning her full attention back on Bolt. The stallion turned his gaze back to meet her eye to eye, his eyes slightly wide as no judgmental look or comment came from his company.

"Um... I've created a sort of propulsion system... It's not quite perfected yet though."

"Propulsion? Are you using rocket power? Or something else?"

"Ah, yes. Rocket power has been the most reliable. I tried making artificial wings once. That didn't go so well..."

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Before he knew it, Steele Bolt was in an in-depth conversation with Twilight Sparkle about his 'Mechanical Flight Propulsion Pack'. Or 'Jetpack', for short. Truth be told, he had never felt so invigorated before. Being able to talk about his work to an individual that was just as interested and intellectually adept as he was excited him - made him more talkative than he had ever been before. The two of them quickly became immersed in their conversation, sharing ideas on how to perfect his schematics. Twilight gave him some valuable insight, in fact; like proposing that he use a fuel source for the jetpack that would allow it to be self-sustaining. He had been so determined to just make it flight worthy, that he hadn't considered what would happen once he succeeded. It seemed a little anti-climatic to finally gain this ability, only to have it limited to short amounts of time before he would need to land and refuel. The sky wouldn't be the limit then, his fuel supply would be. She gave him a lot to think about.

"I would love to visit your workshop and have a look sometime!" Twilight said enthusiastically, her eyes seemingly sparkling from the passion their conversation had worked up. Bolt honestly wouldn't have been surprised if he looked the same. He certainly felt like it. He always tried to keep himself motivated, yet he hadn't felt this inspired in a long time.

"Sure, you're welcome any time. Your insight would be a great help." Steele Bolt spoke with a smile. It felt strange; inviting another pony over to his humble abode so freely. A mare, no less. But he hadn't felt a connection like this with any other pony before. It was like he had found his best friend or something, though he tried not to let himself get too excited. This was still drastically out of his comfort zone after all, so it felt unrealistic to expect anypony to call him their friend.

"I don't mean to interrupt you two eggheads, but would ya'll like some pie?" The distinct accent of Applejack had both ponies turning their heads to find that she had scooted closer to them, a hoof pushing a lovely smelling pie towards them. The scent alone had Bolt resisting the urge to lick his lips. Instead, he gave a soft, restrained nod.

"Yes, please."

"I'd love some, Applejack." Twilight added with a smile to her friend. With an okay from both ponies, Applejack gave a hearty chuckle before grabbing a knife with her mouth and beginning to cut the pie into slices. Soon enough, two slices were presented to Bolt and Twilight, one for each of them.

"I don't mean to toot my own horn, but ya'll never tasted an apple pie before ya' had one with Apple family apples!" Applejack spoke with undeniable confidence, which was clearly written all over her face. Bolt couldn't help wondering if the pie was going to be as good as she claimed it to be. She was certainly proud of her baking, and the apples that went into it. There was only one way to find out... He leaned down to the slice of pie and took a bite out of it, slowly chewing on it as he taste-tested it. Regardless of the confidence that she had displayed, Applejack was now staring intently, as if she had baked that pie to win a competition, and Bolt was the judge. Needless to say, it was delicious.

"This is really good." Steele Bolt confirmed with a lick of his lips, before leaning down for a second bite. Another hearty chuckle left Applejack as she looked away humbly, as if she hadn't had a doubt in her mind that he would enjoy the apple pie. Maybe she hadn't. He certainly couldn't read minds.

"Glad ya' like it, sugarcube! If ya' want more, lemme' know." The southern pony spoke cheerfully, her green eyes shifting to watch as Twilight finished swallowing her second bite from her own slice of pie. A smile from the Princess was enough to tell Applejack how much she approved of her baking, bringing an even bigger grin to the Earth pony's face.

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"Shame Spike couldn't join us." Applejack stated with half a mouthful of scone and jam, courtesy of Fluttershy. Every other pony was also indulging in this simple, but delicious treat. The timid Pegasus seemed absolutely thrilled that everypony was enjoying her baking though; a big, yet soft smile plastered to her face as she watched her friends eating. Bolt noticed that she hadn't eaten a lot herself the whole time. He wasn't sure whether that was because of his presence, or that she simply didn't eat a lot. He didn't have the heart to ask her. So long as she was enjoying herself, that was all that mattered really.

"There were some library duties that needed taking care of. I did offer to help, but he insisted I attend the picnic instead..." Twilight elaborated after finishing her first scone, a soft sigh leaving her lips. It would seem that she was none too happy with leaving Spike to deal with the tasks alone, but Bolt was more curious about who this 'Spike' was.

"Spike?" He asked with a humble voice, loud enough to be heard but quiet enough to not draw too much attention to himself. It appeared that at that moment it had only just dawned on the mares that he hadn't been introduced to the last member of their group yet. Twilight was quick to rectify that.

"Ah, you haven't met Spike yet! He's my assistant. A baby dragon." The Princess explained quickly and simply, which was appreciated. Bolt gave a nod as he mulled over the information disclosed to him, before pausing suddenly.

"Dragon?"

"Yes. I hatched him as part of my entrance exam for school." Twilight seemed quite proud as she announced that, though Bolt really couldn't blame her for that. Hatching a dragon was no small feat, and certainly not one he had heard of in his modest lifetime. It was a testament to her power, though that was hardly surprising, considering she was an Alicorn.

"... Aren't dragons typically rather... Mean-spirited?"

"Oh no, not our Spikey-Wikey! He's lovely." Rarity slipped into the conversation at that point, causing Bolt to turn his attention away from Twilight, his eyebrow raising from the added comment. A friendly dragon was unheard of, at least for him. He couldn't help feeling a little curious about meeting such a dragon. He was sure it would be an interesting experience. Ah well. Maybe next time.

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The picnic continued on for another hour or so, but once the food was gone, it was decided that now would be a good time to pack up and call it a day. They had spent a good portion of the day together after all, and each of them had things they still needed to do for night was upon them. The blanket that they had all been sat on, that had been donated by Rarity, was neatly folded by the two ponies that could harness magic while the remaining ponies packed away the utensils. Naturally, Bolt assisted in this. After being treated to free food and surprisingly pleasant company, he felt obligated to do his part.

The seven ponies made their way back into Ponyville at a steady pace, enjoying small talk along the way. The weather had been consistent through out the day, with the sun shining brightly down on them, while a nice breeze stopped them from getting too hot. Bolt closed his eyes as he felt the wind brush through his mane, leaving him feeling quite relaxed as he gravitated towards the back of the group. Upon opening his eyes, he found himself walking beside Fluttershy. Out of all the mares present, he had spoken to her the least. Neither of them were socially confident ponies, so that fact was unsurprising. It felt wrong to get along with her friends, but not make an effort with her, so Bolt bit the bullet.

"Uh... Did you have a good time?" The stallion asked with a soft tone of voice, which somehow managed to startle the timid Pegasus. Fluttershy let out a quiet little yelp as her big, blue eyes fell on him, a look of surprise on her face. It would appear that she hadn't expected him to try and strike up a conversation with her.

"U-Um... Yes... I had a nice time..." She muttered quietly, her gaze falling to the ground she walked on as a small smile crossed her lips. A silence began to surround them immediately afterwards, the sound of chatter from the ponies in front of them, and their hoofsteps, filling the air. That was, until Fluttershy suddenly spoke up again.

"U-Um... Oh dear... D-Did you enjoy yourself as well?" Bolt's focus had wandered off elsewhere, so her words were nearly lost on him. His head slowly turned to look her way, his green orbs peering at her curiously as he tilted his head to the side. He hadn't quite caught what she had tried to say.

"Did you say something?"

"U-Um... Did you... Enjoy yourself too?" Fluttershy tried again, straining herself to raise her soft spoken voice to a more audible level as her timid gaze rose to look Bolt in the eye. The eye contact didn't last for very long, but at least he had actually heard her this time.

"Ah, yeah, I did." He replied simply, unsure of what else he could add in response to her question. So with that, their conversation came to an abrupt end. Neither pony really had anything else to say, and both of them probably appreciated the silence more than another attempt at small talk anyway. Thus, the quiet remained around the two until the group made it back to Ponyville.

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The group slowly dissipated once they reached Ponyville. Rarity and Pinkie Pie wandered off first, since they're destinations conflicted with those of the remainder of the group. Fluttershy slipped away after that, mumbling that animals were waiting for her and she needed to hurry. Bolt wasn't quite sure if he understood what she meant by that. Did she look after animals or something? It left him perplexed for a few moments, before the next distraction popped up.

Next, they ran into a bulky red stallion, whom turned out to be Applejack's brother. She decided to go along with him to help with the chores he was doing for Apple Acres, and thus the southern mare took her leave as well. The group had finally fallen to a number Bolt was more comfortable dealing with.

"Well, this is my stop." Twilight spoke up as she came to a halt, her head turning briefly in the direction of a grand looking tree that looked to have been converted into a building. Her attention shifted back to her remaining company not even a moment later, a smile on her face as she looked Bolt's way.

"Would you mind if I stopped by for a visit tomorrow? I'd love to see some of your inventions." Her request was honest and harmless enough, but it surprised Bolt none the less. He'd had more visitors in this past week than in his entire life. It was a little overwhelming when he thought about it, but at the same time, he didn't really mind the prospect of sharing some of his work with Twilight. If today was anything to go by, she might have some useful insight to offer.

"Uh, sure."

"Great! I'll bring Spike along too! See you tomorrow." The Princess of Friendship offered Steele Bolt an enthusiastic smile before taking her leave, her tail swishing from side to side in a thrilled manner. That naturally brought attention to her flank, which caused Bolt to look away hastily. He didn't typically indulge himself in looking at mare's rears, and he wasn't about to start now. This brought his focus onto Rainbow Dash though, whom surprisingly hadn't taken off yet.

"Alright, champ. I've got some time before I have to scoot. What do you wanna' do?" The renowned flyer inquired with a raised eyebrow, causing Bolt to raise an eyebrow of his own. She was expecting him to entertain her until she had something better to do? He frowned and shook his head softly, stepping around her so he could begin his short journey home.

"No thanks. I'd rather get back to my workshop." He stated honestly, and rather bluntly. Considering how insistent she had been earlier though, he doubted it would be that easy. He assumed right. The sound of beating wings made it abundantly clear that he was being followed; he didn't need to turn around to check.

"Well, I'd better make sure you get home safe and sound then, huh." Not exactly what he had expected from her, but it was better than being dragged around for her amusement.

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Soon enough, Steele Bolt found himself outside his humble home. It was a reassuring sight, even if he had admittedly quite enjoyed himself today. There really was no place like home. But as he stepped forwards to let himself in, he realised that his company was still standing next to him. His hoof lingered against the frame of the door as he turned his head to look at Rainbow Dash, who seemed dead set on following him inside.

"Well, thanks for today. I'll be seeing you." He tried to make his intentions as known as possible. He just wanted to be left alone. Yet she didn't leave. The playful grin that crossed Rainbow's face made it seem that she simply didn't care, rather than being too dense to notice.

"What? Not going to invite me in for coffee?" The multi-coloured Pegasus asked as she held up her grin. Bolt gave her a deadpan stare in return, unsure whether she was being serious or not. Her faltering poker face quickly made it clear that she wasn't though, and the laughter that followed just cemented the fact.

"You're a regular comedian." The stallion stated dryly, his brow furrowing as his green eyes stared blankly at Rainbow's magenta orbs. His words were enough to help her recover from her fit of giggles apparently, as she raised a hoof to wipe away a non-existent tear.

"Yeah. I crack myself up too." Rainbow's familiar grin quickly re-emerged after she spoke, her wings extending as she stretched her back in front of Bolt, which earned her a raised eyebrow from the stallion. What on Equestria was she doing?

"Welp. It's been fun, dork." With one mighty flap of her wings, Rainbow took off into the sky, staying within earshot of Bolt just long enough to offer her farewell before catapulting off at an unimaginable speed. It would seem that she had decided to respect his wishes after all. No doubt she would come to collect for her kindness later though. Bolt stood there for a moment, with his hoof still on his door, as he waited for the vapor trail she had produced to vanish from view.

"... Rude."

Author's Note

Another chapter already? I'm spoiling you folks! Honestly though, I wanted to get this out because I might not be able to prepare another chapter for a week or so. I'm heading to a convention tomorrow, and I'll likely be busy on Monday, or Tuesday. If I'm not busy on Monday then I should be able to work on the seventh chapter! I return to work on Wednesday though, so... I'll be sure to keep the writing up as much as possible. Don't worry!

Talking of writing, I was surprised how enjoyable it was to write this chapter. It just all kinda' fell together, which is always such a pleasure! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this new chapter!

In the Dark of Night

The sun retired below the horizon once more, leaving darkness to fall across Equestria. A lone Alicorn stood upon a balcony, overlooking the city of Canterlot from the grand castle in which she resided. With her majestic power, the Princess of the Night rose the moon into the starlit sky. From there, beautiful moonshine shone down onto the land below, glimmering in any reflective surface. It was beautiful in her eyes, and it brought her joy to know that many ponies shared in her delight of the night. Had her night been so appreciated one thousand years ago... Maybe Nightmare Moon would have never been created.

A rough sigh left Luna's lips as she looked up at the moon in the sky, her clear blue eyes staring intently at her namesake. Regret made her heart ache every day. In her mind, she simply could not atone for her sins. Her only solace was in the joy of her subjects. Overseeing their smiling faces and pleasant dreams helped alleviate the pain, if only for a moment. A longing for such visions filled her at the thought, and so with an intense burst of magic, she dove into the dreamscape.

The Alicorn Princess found herself in a featureless land of bright light, surrounded only by hovering orbs. Closer inspection showed them to be moving pictures, depicting scenes of various themes. She knew them to be dreams; the dreams of her subjects. She settled in front of one and watched as a filly played in a field with what seemed like thousands of blossoming flowers; filled with boundless energy without a care in the world. A smile crossed her lips from seeing the glee on that filly's face. She moved to the next dream, watching with intrigue as a stallion ventured forth on an adventure, garbed in knight's armour. She lingered at this dream, finding the events unfolding exciting. This blonde maned stallion certainly had an imagination!

There were no ponies plagued with nightmares at the moment. She doubled checked, and then triple checked to make sure. With that knowledge, and her heart up-lifted, Luna returned to the familiar scenery that was granted to her from her balcony. She could indulge herself in watching dreams all night long, but it felt like such a huge waste to not enjoy such a beautiful night. The stars were glimmering so brightly, like little pearls in the sky. After a powerful stroke of her wings, Luna felt like she was among them, her mane dancing beautifully behind her as she soared through the night sky. She closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of the breeze brushing through her coat and mane, the slight chill that came with it sending a soft shudder across her flesh. It was invigorating.

She became immersed in this sensation, and before she knew it, Luna had traveled far from Canterlot. She looked around curiously from her high altitude, trying to gain her bearings, until her gaze fell on a familiar town in the distance. She could recognise it quite easily, even from how far away she was. Ponyville. A smile crossed her features as memories of her visits to the town came to mind, drawing her closer to it. Her pace picked up, her wings flapping heavily as she propelled herself faster towards the sleepy town, with barely a light to be seen. Ponyville was a lot less lively at night than Canterlot, so it wasn't surprising to the Princess. It didn't leave Luna with a bitter feeling now either. She held a new appreciation for how her night was used. She could indulge in some more dreams this way.

The Princess of the Night soon found herself overhead, staring down at the quiet town as the residents slumbered. Her head turned as she observed the abandoned streets below, her eyes traveling across the scenery that she could see so well thanks to the moonlight. It looked like there wasn't a soul awake right now. With that in mind, she went to dive into the dreamscape, just as she had done in Canterlot. Yet, something caught her eye just before she did so. A light; which had suddenly illuminated from a house on the outskirts of town. Who on Equestria would be up at this time? Was it simply somepony that was thirsty and making a late trip to the kitchen? Luna couldn't help the curiosity that boiled up within her. She quietly flew in that direction, mindful of the noise she was making as to not wake the town in the process.

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A tired yawn left Steele Bolt's mouth as he sat in front of the counter in his kitchen, his kettle boiling up some water so he could quench his thirst for coffee. Anypony might think that he had some sort of addiction to the beverage, but he would adamantly tell them that wasn't the case. He was indifferent to the bitter taste; the only reason he really drank it was to help him stay awake. Or at least, that's what he told himself anyway. It helped him work through those long nights. Nights like tonight.

The stallion had decided to retreat to his workshop after concluding his eventful day with the mares, since his chat with Twilight earlier had really inspired him to work on his jetpack. He wasted no time disappearing downstairs upon getting home, and had finished identifying the parts he needed to reconstruct his invention. That should have left it as a simple task, but sadly it wouldn't be that easy. The destruction of his last prototype left a few vital parts in a state of disrepair, and he didn't have any suitable replacements... He would need to look around for new ones, or try to create them himself. One was obviously faster and more reliable than the other, since there was no guarantee he could replicate the parts perfectly, while the other was more cost-effective... He would have to consider his options carefully.

Bolt was brought from his thoughts as the kettle began to hiss, making it quite clear that the water was ready. He unceremoniously yawned once more as he reached for the kettle and slowly poured some of the hot water into his mug, that was filled with a teaspoon worth of coffee beans. Once satisfied with the height of the water, he grabbed a spoon with his mouth and used it to stir the mixture, until the water was a deep, dark colour. Safe to say he liked his coffee black.

He hummed happily as he lifted the cup of coffee, turning away to start trotting out of the kitchen. He could continue his work while he enjoyed his beverage, so there was no point sticking around in the kitchen. But as he reached the door, he paused. It had only been a split second, but he could have sworn he saw something through the window just above the counter, that overlooked the kitchen. Slowly, Bolt turned to investigate his suspicions, expecting not to find anything at all. What he found, was a pair of blue eyes peering at him through the glass.

There was an awkward pause as he stared at the mysterious pair of eyes, his brain processing what he was seeing before he finally let out a startled yell. His reaction seemed to catch the owner of the eyes by surprise as well, a muffled yelp coming from the opposite side. Bolt hadn't even realised that he'd dropped the mug in his panic. Whomever was on the other side of the window must have had magical powers, because the mug was surrounded in a deep blue aura and halted before it could crash into the floor, but that sadly didn't stop the coffee being housed within. The burning hot liquid was flying straight towards him, and all he had time to do was raise his hooves to protect his face...

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"I am deeply sorry for startling you..." Bolt blinked a few times upon hearing the apologetic voice. For a few minutes now, he had been in a state of shock over who was in his house right now. He could hardly believe it actually. But the flowing mane, that clearly depicted the night sky, meant that it was difficult to mistaken her identity. Princess Luna was in his home, tending to the burns across his fore legs. It hurt like hell, but he was only just registering the pain now. That was just how shocked he was. Meeting two Princesses in one day? His life had certainly gotten crazy recently...

"It's alright. Really." The stallion insisted, forcing a small smile through the flinch that was caused from the pain of having his burns treated. It meant that his attempt at comforting her wasn't very convincing though, and just seemed to concern the Alicorn further.

"It certainly is not! I must make it up to you!" Luna insisted, the guilt of being the source of his harm clear in her large blue eyes. He didn't actually hold it against her to begin with, it had been a simple accident after all, but her earnest display would have made that difficult anyway.

"No, really-"

"Please!" The Princess cut him off with a raised voice, causing his ears to pin back for a brief moment in surprise. She really had a voice on her when she wanted to... Bolt was starting to lose his will to argue with her. This wasn't something that mattered to him that much, so he didn't feel the need to keep refusing her. If that helped her move on, then it would be best for both of them.

"If you insist... Could you make me another cup of coffee? Please...?" He asked simply, his eyes drifting shyly away from Luna to glance towards the kettle that was likely still lukewarm. It felt a little odd requesting such a menial task from royalty, but he didn't actually want anything from her; except maybe for her to leave. He doubted that would give her the closure she seemed to seek here though, so he settled with replacing the cup of coffee that had been lost from their encounter.

Luna seemed quite surprised about his request, judging from the wide eyed look she was giving him. Apparently he wasn't the only one that found it odd to ask for a cup of coffee from royalty. Regardless of that though, he noticed the Princess stand from her seat and make her way over to the kettle out of the corner of his eye. His kettle was custom made, and thus she had to learn where all the switches were, and what they did, but soon enough she had the kettle boiling.

"If you'd like, you can have a cup too..." Bolt offered, having suddenly remembered the manners his mother had tried to hammer into his head as a colt. Lilac Petal would have no doubt been disgusted if she learned that her son had failed to offer a beverage to royalty for so long, but it was unlikely that she would ever learn of this visit, so Bolt didn't let that bother him.

"I would like that, thank you." The Princess of the Night replied after looking back to look at the seated stallion, leaving him somewhat surprised. He had expected her to decline. He probably should have pegged her as a coffee lover; she just seemed like the type. Thus, another cup joined Bolt's on the counter before the two began their wait for the water to boil.

Waiting for the water left the two ponies with time to waste. Both of them ended up seated at Bolt's kitchen table, which allowed him time to think about how bizarre the situation he was in actually was. Princess Luna; the Princess of the Night, was sitting in his kitchen. He hadn't received many guests up until this point, but a renowned Princess like herself had never even crept into his imagination as being one of them. A somewhat awkward silence had began to build around them, until Luna finally broke it.

"If you don't mind my asking, why are you awake so late?" Her query had Bolt tilting his head to the side quizzically. That was a rather personal question for somepony to ask when they had just met, not that he particularly minded answering it. It wasn't like he was trying to hide it from anypony after all. It left him wondering if that had been why she had been peering through his window to begin with.

"I was working. In my workshop."

"Workshop? Are you an engineer?" Luna asked curiously, staring intently at Bolt for answers. It would seem that this Princess had a thirst for knowledge. He could relate to that. He nodded softly, as he offered her a small, somewhat uneasy smile. He wasn't exactly used to talking to royalty so freely, even if he had spent a large portion of the day talking to Twilight. It felt alien to him.

"Um, yes. Sort of. I build things, mostly. I work on my Mechanical Flight Propulsion Pack mostly. Or Jetpack, for short." Bolt explained with a little more confidence, since what he was talking about was so important to him. He never shied away from bragging about his work, he was truly proud of it. It seemed to peek Luna's curiosity enough for her to continue her inquiry, though it might have been just to relieve boredom while the water boiled.

"Jetpack? What exactly does it do?" The look in her eye made it seem that she already had her assumptions, since the name of his device had some pretty major clues to it's function already.

"It will allow me to fly, once it's finished. I've always wanted to fly, ever since I was a colt." Bolt looked down a little timidly as his childhood goals finally came into the topic, his ears pinning back a little to further emphasize his insecurity over the matter. He couldn't imagine a Princess being so judgmental of him, yet he didn't put it past any pony to be so spiteful. Even royalty. To his relief, no signs of such thoughts came to Luna's face. She seemed to think quite deeply about something after hearing his words actually, leaving him both curious and concerned.

"Would you follow me for a moment?" Luna asked as she wasted no time standing up, staring intently at Bolt for a response. He really wasn't sure how to respond to such a vague request. What could she have planned? She didn't even offer him a clue. But that same earnest look on her face had him letting out a defeated sigh and nodding his head, getting onto his hooves so he could follow her.

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The night sky looked so beautiful, so captivating, once Bolt got outside. He couldn't help staring up at it for a moment, before turning his attention to Princess Luna. He wondered what she could have possibly wanted to show him outside. The night sky? It was certainly beautiful, but was it worth dragging him outside over? He couldn't say for sure. It's not like it was the first time he had seen it.

Because of all this thought into Luna's intentions, Bolt hadn't noticed that his body had become surrounded by the deep shade of blue magic that had engulfed his mug earlier, or the fact that his body had begun to levitate. The moment he did though, he began to flail wildly, a look of shock on his face as he tried to compute what was happening to him.

"I figured out how I'll make it up to you! I'll help you experience your dream!" The Princess of the Night told her stallion companion with a big smile on her face, finally helping him clock onto what was happening. She had picked him up with magic. It was interesting that he could move his body, even though she was holding him with magic. Regardless, he didn't get time to dwell on that. With an almighty flap of her wings, Luna had taken off, taking Bolt with her.

The wind through his mane as they ascended; that was the first thing he noticed. His eyes darted from left to right as he watched the land below become smaller, his heart beginning to race as his mind fought to keep up with the events. He was flying. Thanks to Luna's magic, but he was flying! There were no words he could give to her, nothing he could do to show his gratitude. He knew this was her way of making amends for accidentally hurting him, but he felt like he owed her so much for this one experience.

Once they reached a decent altitude, they flew at a steady pace, trying to keep the noise to a minimum so that the whole of Ponyville wasn't woken up. That was at least until they reached the outskirts of town, that was when their speed started to pick up. Luna took him through loops and spins, sometimes leaving his stomach in the dust as she got his adrenaline pumping. After a few minutes of this fast flying, she finally slowed down the pace, her body turning in midair so she could face him while her wings continued flapping to remain airborne.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" The Princess of the Night asked with a large grin on her face, showing her own enjoyment in a more subtle way. Steele Bolt couldn't muster the words at first, the adrenaline wouldn't let him. He panted to catch his breathe, though the broad smile on his face gave insight into his feelings way before he regained enough composure to speak.

"Yes!... Thank you!... This is... Incredible!" Bolt replied enthusiastically, causing Luna to laugh happily and clap her fore-hooves together, apparently thrilled that her prediction on how she could repay him had been an accurate one. Not another word needed to be said. Luna could see it in Bolt's eyes. It was too early to finish their midnight flight; the night was much too young.

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Hours passed by as the two ponies soared through the air, filling the activity with twists and turns that would make a rollercoaster appear redundant. It was lucky that Bolt didn't suffer from motion sickness, or this might have been hell for him. But instead, it was a thrill ride, from start to finish. He was practically bouncing when they finally touched down outside his home again, the euphoria and adrenaline wouldn't let him calm down. He felt like a colt on Hearth's Warming.

With shaky legs, Bolt stepped towards his home, before stopping at the door and turning to face Luna, whom was already in the process of getting ready to leave. Her wings had extended, in the middle of the motion of beginning to flap when she noticed his focus on her. Her wings settled back down as she turned her attention to him, a soft smile upon her face.

"Thank you, Princess Luna. That was... I don't have words to describe it." The stallion spoke softly, both from a lack of energy to project his voice and so he wouldn't wake up the slumbering ponies of Ponyville. Luna's smile broadened ever so slightly as she nodded her head softly, her magnificent mane flowing behind her.

"I am glad you enjoyed yourself. Maybe we'll meet again, Steele Bolt." The Princess responded formally, her wings once again extending as she looked upon the tired Earth pony. The sun would be rising soon. She felt the need to return to Canterlot before that happened. So with a nod and a wave, Luna took to the skies once again, leaving Bolt to watch in her wake. He felt rooted to his spot as he stared, waiting until the Princess that had kept him company for a majority of the night vanished from view.

A heavy yawn left his mouth as he made his way inside his humble home. The lights were still on, just the way he had left them. No doubt the water they had boiled before leaving had grown cold once more. That didn't matter now. Bolt was much too tired to even consider having a cup of coffee. All the excitement had finally gotten to him, and had worn him out. The stallion couldn't even make it to the staircase to ascend to his room. He settled with collapsing on his sofa, his eyes falling shut not a moment later. The realm of dreams claimed him almost immediately, with a familiar voice echoing in his mind as he fell into a sweet sleep.

"Goodnight."

Author's Note

Well as you might have guessed from the fact that this chapter came out, I ended up having some free time today! It took most of it to finish this chapter actually. I'd like to mention that I got a lot of inspiration from this song for this chapter!
As I said, I probably won't be able to write again until the weekend, so I hope this can tide you all over until then. Anyway. Enjoy the new chapter!

Kindred Spirits

The blaring sunlight pouring through his living room window was the first thing to greet him as Steele Bolt weakly opened his tired eyes. How long had he slept? Judging from the fatigue he felt, he assumed it couldn't have been for a more than a few hours. His body felt heavy, and didn't aid in any attempt at waking himself up. But just as he was about to give in and drift off to sleep once more, the reason he had awaken in the first place caught his attention again. A soft knock came from his front door, quite different from the brash knocking of Rainbow Dash. Bolt's tired mind couldn't figure out who might be behind it at first, resulting in him going over every pony he knew that might fit the bill. This wouldn't have been a very long list normally, but after the events of yesterday his list of acquaintances had doubled. That was when it dawned on him. He had agreed to see Twilight Sparkle today.

He couldn't keep a Princess waiting any longer; even a shut-in like Bolt knew that. So with a grunt, he forced his body to move, allowing him to crawl off of his sofa and towards the front door. His mouth opened wide as he let out a yawn, one hoof raising to wipe sleep from his eyes, which held heavy bags beneath them. It was quite clear just by looking at him that he hadn't slept well last night. There were no regrets though. Not after experiencing such an incredible event; with the Princess of the Night no less.

Quiet voices could be heard from the other side of his front door once he reached it, peaking Bolt's interest. He leaned closer, pressing his ear up against the wooden surface so that he could try to hear his visitor more clearly. It quickly became apparent that there wasn't one visitor, but two. That's right... Twilight had said she would bring Spike along so he could meet the dragon.

"Are you sure he's here, Twilight?"

"I would think so... Maybe he's sleeping?"

"But it's morning already..."

The conversation was amusing enough. Bolt couldn't find it within himself to feel self-conscious about his sleeping habits. In the end, he was enjoying life in his own way, so why would he care if other ponies didn't approve of his decisions? Never the less, it was time to stop eavesdropping and actually make himself known to his visitors. He couldn't stop the small smile that crept onto his lips as he opened the door, witnessing the surprised expression of the Princess and her dragon assistant; whom had continued to chat amongst themselves until his interruption. His appearance had certainly been abrupt.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." He spoke with a rough voice, yet another testament to the fact that he had just woken up. The stallion hastily cleared his throat to rectify that though.
"I just woke up." He continued, offering an apologetic smile toward Twilight before turning his attention to the small purple dragon by her side. It was a curious thing, to see such a tame dragon. The raised eyebrow upon Spike's face spoke volumes. Bolt's sleeping habits really came as a surprise to him, apparently.

"I told you so." Twilight spoke with a soft giggle, nudging Spike with her hoof before tredding forwards, moving past Bolt after he had stepped aside to invite them into his humble home. The little dragon seemed mildly bemused after his initial shock wore off, offering the stallion a quizzical look as he approached and looked up at him.

"You don't look like you sleep much..."

"You're not wrong..." Bolt half-heartedly chuckled, seemingly unaffected by Spike's honest opinion. He could only imagine how he looked right now, with his typical messy mane and the dark rings around his eyes. It had become a part of his identity, in a way. Why sleep when there was work he could be doing? It was strange though. The look on Spike's face almost gave Bolt the impression that he had seen that kind of behaviour before...

Bolt didn't offer much in the way of a tour of his home. The furthest his guests got to see was his living room, before they delved into the depths of his basement; where his laboratory resided. Neither of them brought up the rest of his house, so Bolt could only assume the interest wasn't there. That suited him just fine. He didn't feel close enough to Twilight or Spike to warrant showing them, and that wasn't why they were visiting anyway.

The stallion stepped into his workshop first, the light still on after he had neglected to turn it off before spending the night with Luna. He had intended to return after all. That didn't matter now though. His interest was in his guests, and their reaction to his underground lair. His head turned to watch them as they stepped inside after him, both sets of eyes dancing about to look at their surroundings. There was certainly interest in Twilight's eyes, but he got the impression that she felt slightly overwhelmed by it all. His workshop was far from tidy, and he was unaware of her complex regarding that. Spike on the other-hoof, seemed immersed in the mixture of junk and gadgets that surrounded them. The little dragon wandered over to the closest thing; which happened to be the toaster that Rainbow Dash had been interested in on her first visit.

"What's this?" Spike asked, carefully lifting the contraption to get a better look at it. The toaster looked the part, but Bolt assumed that the dragon's imagination was running wild, coming up with some surprising purpose for it. The Earth pony almost felt bad about crushing those hopes...

"A toaster." He replied honestly after approaching the dragon and his fascination, causing his pair of large green, serpentine eyes to look up at Bolt with a mixture of disappointment and surprise. There was a brief pause as the two individuals stared at each other, as if Spike were expecting Bolt to suddenly laugh and say he was joking. But that never came, and the dragon let out a defeated sigh upon realising his hopes were futile. The most ambitious thing Bolt had created was his Jetpack; he didn't know what Spike had expected to find down here, but he wasn't going to find any spy gadgets or the like.

"So you're a dragon, huh..." The stallion inquired as he squinted his eyes, peering closely at Spike as he put the toaster back where he had found it. The purple dragon raised an eyebrow at the pony, before putting his little hands on his hips and smiling broadly. The slightly smugness in his attitude wasn't lost on Bolt; apparently Spike was quite proud of his heritage.

"Duh, of course!" The little dragon responded confidently, puffing out his chest a little as he put on his act of bravedo. Bolt wondered if Spike ever got a moment to shine. That would probably explain why he was acting like this; taking whatever he could get to boost his ego...

"I've never seen one before... Can you breath fire too?" Steele Bolt tilted his head slightly as he continued both his observation and inquiry into Spike, who seemed to bask in the attention he was getting.

"Yup! Wanna' see?" A look of excitement crossed Spike's features as he stared up at Bolt, maybe a little too eager to show off his abilities. It would certainly be an interesting sight to behold, but the stallion couldn't shake the feeling that letting the little dragon do such a thing inside his home was probably a bad idea.

"Uh, I'm fine, thanks." Bolt quickly shot down Spike's proposal, shaking his head softly to further put the point across. Spike certainly seemed disappointed by that response, but he didn't argue. It was likely he realised the risks of breathing fire inside a building as well. But just as the two were ready to move on; a thought suddenly crossed Bolt's mind, causing his gaze to shift away from the purple dragon and over to the carcass of his Jetpack. The chassis needed to be welded back together. A task that Bolt was more than capable of doing, but a more interesting way of achieving the goal had suddenly presented itself to him...

"On second thought..."

"Alright, so you understand what you need to do, right?" Steele Bolt asked for clarity, a serious look upon his face. His hooves were on either side of the fractured chassis of his Jetpack, holding the pieces together as Spike stood on the opposite side, staring down at the chunks of metal before looking up at Bolt and nodding his head.

"Yeah. I breath fire along the line, right?" The little dragon responded with a little uncertainty, which didn't fill Bolt with confidence. His tiny claw pointed towards the crack down the chassis that indictated the seperation of the two pieces. A nod from the engineer confirmed his question, causing him to turn his attention back to the metal in front of him. The look of hesitation on Spike's face told Bolt that he had never attempted something like this before, but he felt there was no turning back now. He had asked for the demonstration, and he wondered upon the negative effects that changing his mind might have on the dragon...

After taking a deep breathe, Spike exhaled a spurt of flame from his mouth, though it was not controlled and poured out everywhere. Bolt yelped in surprise and hastily pulled his hooves back, narrowly avoiding being harshly burned by the blaze. Realising his mistake, Spike quickly put a stop to the fire, holding his claws over his mouth for a second as he stared at the Earth pony with a look of concern and guilt in his eyes.

"A-Are you okay?" The little dragon asked hastily, quickly stepping around the workbench to find out with his own eyes. Other than some singing on his coat, Bolt was completely fine. But even if he had been burned by the fire, that sadly wouldn't have been the worst injury he had ever attained from this line of work.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry." While troubled by the event, Bolt summoned the most comforting smile he could manage as he nodded his head softly; showing off his hooves to make it clear to Spike that no harm had been done. While relieved to see that, it was quite clear on his face that guilt remained for his lack of control over his own fire, resulting in the little dragon looking down at the floor timidly. A distant comparison to the confidence he had shown earlier.

"Sorry... I messed up..." Bolt let out a soft sigh upon hearing this, his ears drifting back as he looked around uncertainly. He wasn't sure how to react to this situation. It wasn't like he had to comfort somepony on a regular basis. He inhaled deeply as he tried to set his thoughts straight, settling on something to say that could hopefully defuse the self-pitying atmosphere that was building around Spike. His hoof came to rest on the dragon's shoulder, which drew his downward gaze upward.

"It's fine, really. You just need to learn to control your fire. That's all." Even with his best efforts, Bolt's words didn't seem to give Spike much solace. Thankfully, he wasn't quite done with his little speech. He had an idea that might help the little dragon reign in his ability. "Why don't you try limiting how much you open your mouth? That should funnel the flames." With that suggestion, the stallion placed his hooves on either side of the broken chassis again, holding the pieces together like he had before. While his words seemed to give Spike something to think about, the dragon's expression made it obvious that he didn't quite understand what Bolt was implying. So he gave an example; pouting his lips as if he were about to deliver a kiss to somepony.

"Like this."

His words came off muffled as a result of his pouted lips, making the sentence sound odd and almost un-intelligable. That just seemed to amuse Spike though, who let out a quiet snort, his tension seemingly lifting after witnessing Bolt's little display. A smile crossed the stallion's lips, Spike's enjoyment over his act filling him with an alien sense of glee. He had never known that bringing laughter to somepony could feel so good. He had finally defused the situation - completely by accident.

"Alright! Lets try this again!" Steele Bolt announced with renewed determination, which seemed infectious for Spike. With a firm nod, the dragon stared down at the metal once more. He mimicked the stallion and pouted his lips, before taking in a deep breathe and letting fire pour from his mouth again. This time, as Bolt had predicted, the blaze was unleashed in a far more controlled manner, spewing out in a neat line that followed the shape created by Spike's barely parted lips. A look of surprise and glee covered the dragon's face upon this discovery, though he didn't lose his concentration. Slowly, Spike dragged his fire upwards from the very bottom of the crack in the chassis, to the top; welding the metal together neatly.

"See, I knew that you could do it." Bolt spoke words of encouragement as Spike closed his mouth, a small puff of smoke spouting from his nostrils as the fire came to an end. The pleased grin on the little dragon's face spoke volumes, and coaxed Bolt to return the smile. He had honestly done that as an experiment. He had wanted to see if a dragon's fire was hot enough to weld steel. That had certainly proved that hypothesis, but it seemed that Spike would even be able to take something from this experience as well. Overall, a win-win on both sides.

"Wow, did you do that, Spike?" A feminine voice caught the attention of both males, their attention falling on Twilight as she stepped closer to them, inspecting the neatly welded metal. She certainly looked impressed as she examined it, before glancing towards her assistant, whose smile broadened as he nodded. She returned his smile, and pat him softly on the head with her hoof, but that got Bolt to thinking... What had she been doing this whole time? He and Spike had been interacting for the last half an hour at least, and he didn't recall her saying anything during that time. It wasn't until he considered this that he noticed the faint glow of her horn, suggesting that she was using her magic for something. His gaze shifted, his eyes widening slightly as he looked upon his lab. It looked a lot neater all of a sudden...

"Uh..." Bolt murmured, unsure of what to say in this situation. The noise was enough to catch the attention of both Twilight and Spike, whom looked Bolt's way, and then followed his gaze curiously. A sheepish smile quickly crossed the Princess's face, her ears pinning back like a foal that had been caught doing something bad.

"Oh... Your workshop was so messy... So I did a bit of tidying..." Twilight admitted, an awkward chuckle following her words. A distinctive thwack echoed around the room as Spike's claw met with his face, an appropriate reaction to such a lack of consideration for consequence.

"You can't do that, Twilight! This isn't your workshop!" The little dragon insisted, his firm tone bringing both ponies to look his way. Bolt was quite surprised to see Spike speak to Twilight that way, since it wouldn't be inaccurate to consider her his mother. She had raised him, after all. His mother would have smacked him upside the head if he'd used that tone in his youth...

It had been rather interesting; watching Spike scold Twilight. Steele Bolt wasn't quite sure how to react to that, or the significant change to a good half of his workshop. While it had definitely been messy, it had been his mess. He had known where everything was in that organised mess, so it was a little disheartening to find that over half of it was now not where he thought it was. Nothing could be done about it now though. While Twilight Sparkle did offer her apologies, Bolt insisted that it was alright. It would no doubt return to the messy state it had started in before the week was up anyway...

"So this is your Jetpack!" Their attention had settled on the remains of his Jetpack; a welded chassis with many different parts laying across the workbench in a seemingly random order, each with varying levels of quality. Both Twilight and Spike peered with interest at the pile of junk, while Bolt shrunk away a little. It wasn't in a state that he was happy to show off, especially to somepony like Twilight. A Princess.

"What's left of it anyway..." He murmured as he looked over every piece that lay upon the table, spotting one part that was in a state of disrepair, one that he must have missed before. With a sigh, he shoved it from the table with one hoof, the metal making a loud sound as it collided with the floor. His mood seemed to effect his company, a troubled look crossing their faces as they looked at one another.

"I heard what happened from Rainbow. At least you're alright though!" Twilight spoke up, trying to put a positive spin on things. It didn't seem to bolster Bolt's spirits much though, a crestfallen look governing his face as he stared down at his wrecked invention. It was difficult not to feel saddened at times, not to wonder if he was working towards an impossible goal. With the amount of failures he had seen...

"What needs to be done to repair it?" Bolt blinked, his gaze shifting from the disaster on his workbench to the Princess sitting next to him. He gained a strange sense of reassurance from looking into Twilight's violet eyes; for some reason he could tell she was dependable just by looking at her. He turned his gaze back to the remains of his Jetpack.

"A lot of parts were badly damaged in the fall. They'll need replacing."

"Then lets get to it! How can we help?" Twilight responded a lot faster than Bolt had expected, his eyes widening slightly as his ears perked up, his gaze not lingering on his invention for long before turning to the adamant Princess. The look of determination she gave him made it difficult for him to sit around and mope over his failures. She reminded him of his drive; to prove all the ponies that had doubted him that they were wrong. But one thing baffled Bolt.

"You'll help me?" He asked, uncertainty reflecting in his eyes as he tilted his head a little and raised an eyebrow. What could they possibly gain from helping him with his project? He didn't understand at all, which just seemed to amuse Twilight and Spike. He was definitely missing something here.

"Of course! What are friends for?" Spike interjected with a grin, stepping up to pat Bolt on the side - as if he were trying to repay the stallion for his help earlier. He looked down to the dragon in surprise. They considered him a friend? But they hardly knew each other... He looked to Twilight, expecting to find that she didn't share Spike's sentiment, but his assumptions were crushed by the smile upon her face. This left him with a warm feeling inside; one he wasn't very familiar with. After moving out of his parent's home so many moons ago, he hadn't been able to rely on anypony. He had forgotten how pleasant it was to have companionship.

Bolt prepared a list for them to use as reference, as well as familiarizing both Twilight and Spike with the particular parts that he needed replacing. Once they were all confidently on the same page, the stallion led the mare and dragon from the depths of his workshop, the three of them finally emerging up into the light for the first time in a couple of hours. There was a junkyard on the outskirts of Ponyville; which was well known by the residents. If there was something that somepony wanted rid of, it typically went there. That held true for electric appliances as well. Thus, Twilight and Spike naturally assumed that would be their destination. So when Bolt drifted away from the main road almost immediately, and began heading for the back of his home, his company was naturally surprised.

Once they caught up to him, they found a rather distressing sight. Junk lay everywhere; crushing any signs of plant life that might have once thrived behind the stallion's home. Bolt didn't seem particularly fazed by this revelation though, and began to sieve through the abundance of scrap that lay about his garden. It wasn't until he noticed Twilight and Spike standing at the edge of his property, gawking at the sight, that he turned his attention back to them.

"Bolt... What is all this?" Twilight finally asked, her purple orbs darting about as her surroundings finally began to sink in. There was so much here that it looked like his garden was being used as a secondary junkyard. All sorts of rubbish was dumped here, from general waste to the aforementioned electrical appliances; which mostly demanded Bolt's attention.

"Hm? Other ponies have been dumping their stuff here for a while now... They leave things outside the front of my home too. I have to move it back here." The stallion spoke with a half-hearted chuckle, trying to seem unaffected even though Twilight's suspicions had been accurate. Sure, he could scavenge parts from what was being left here, but that didn't change the fact that the ponies of Ponyville were using his property as a dumping ground.

Twilight had heard rumor of the stallion long before meeting him; whom had aptly been named the 'Mad Scientist' by the other residents of Ponyville. She had heard of the damage his invention had caused to the town on a few occasions as well; which no doubt had given him a bad name. She hadn't been able to find it within herself to hold it against him though, since she resonated with what she had heard about him in more ways than one. That just made it all the more painful to see that he was being abused like this. She found it difficult to tell whether he was blissfully unaware of this mistreatment, or simply choosing to ignore it though.

"You're really alright with that...?" The Princess asked with a pained expression, scanning Bolt's expression for any kind of insight into how he was feeling. The stallion looked away from the peering eyes, his gaze falling to the littered ground below him. Truth be told, it did bother him. It felt like a deliberate attack on him. He knew he had inconvenienced the town with his actions in the past, but he wondered if that alone was enough for him to deserve such treatment. He hadn't meant any harm, and he had apologised after every instance. Or was he treated this way for his incredibly ambitious dream? He had always been looked at strangely for refusing to fit the norm the way he did. Maybe both factors played a part. Regardless, Bolt always tried to make a brave face over the matter. It wasn't like he didn't benefit from the situation at all. Sometimes he found valuable parts in the things dumped in his garden. If he didn't complain, then hopefully things wouldn't get worse.

His head finally began to rise so that he could return Twilight's glance, before offering her a simple nod in response. His distress wasn't particularly well hidden, but the Alicorn couldn't go against his wishes. If he didn't want things to change, she couldn't force him to act. So with a defeated sigh, she nodded as well. A sign to show the end of the discussion. She nudged Spike softly with her hoof before treading into the mess that Bolt was knee deep in, offering her aid in the search for the parts needed. She still didn't like it though. She didn't know Bolt very well, but nopony deserved such abuse.

The three of them searched in silence for a while; an awkward atmosphere having surrounded them after the previous discussion. The occasional question was asked, pertaining to the task at hoof. But these didn't lead to any form of conversation and were quickly, as well as rather bluntly, answered. At the moment, it was clear that Steele Bolt wasn't in the mood for small talk. Neither Twilight nor Spike tried to force him to talk, so this silence continued as they slowly checked off the list. Eventually it became apparent that they wouldn't be able to complete the checklist from Bolt's personal junkyard alone. They would have to head toward Ponyville's official junkyard in the hopes of getting the last few items.

"Ah. Give me a moment." Bolt suddenly interjected after the three of them made their way around to the front of his home. The Alicorn and dragon looked at each other as they watched the stallion disappear into his home, genuinely curious as this had been the first time he had properly spoken up in a few hours. He didn't keep them waiting long. He returned with a trailer in tow, bringing a quizzical expression to both Twilight and her assistant. With assumptions alone, she inquired about the trailer.

"Are you bringing that to help carry the parts back from the junkyard?" Bolt shook his head softly as he turned to head toward the back of his home once more, dragging the trailer along with him. His company followed after him, increasing their pace to catch up to him before matching his own.

"Then what...?" Twilight continued, her words drifting off as her trot came to a halt a little before reaching Bolt's littered back garden. The stallion didn't stop though, and continued until he had reached the mess before letting go of the trailer. He began to gather what seemed to be random junk, and briskly dumped it into the back of the trailer.

"I take what I don't need to the junkyard. So it doesn't get out of hoof back here." He explained to them as he worked, his words giving meaning to the specific items he was dumping into the back of the trailer. None of it was electrical, and thus wouldn't serve any purpose for him. It made sense. Satisfied with that answer, Twilight nodded - her horn lighting up as she aided the stallion with her magic. This sped up the process drastically, especially as Spike hastily led a claw as well; the trailer was filled to the brim in no time.

Bolt could feel eyes on them as they wandered through Ponyville. No surprise there, since the Princess of Friendship was walking alongside him. Twilight had insisted on helping him push the load, and so both of them were sharing the cramped harness at the front of the trailer while Spike rode atop it. He could only imagine that the onlookers were thinking; wondering why Twilight would be spending time with him. First Rainbow Dash, and now her? He hoped they weren't coming up with outlandish ideas about him brainwashing them with some invention or something... Bolt shook his head firmly. Now he was just being paranoid.

So lost in his self-conscious thoughts; Bolt hadn't noticed their pace was quickly coming to a halt, almost resulting in him toppling forwards over the harness. His head turned to question Twilight, only to find that her attention was elsewhere. His gaze followed hers, eager to learn what was distracting her so much, to find an orange filly fiddling with what appeared to be a scooter. Normally he wouldn't concern himself in such things. The stallion would deal with his task and then return home as soon as possible. Sadly, he had company this time, and couldn't do that.

"I'll be right back." Twilight announced suddenly, sparing a passing glance in Bolt's direction as her horn began to flare up with a familiar glow. With help from her magic, she rose the harness up high enough for her to slip out from under it, before it came slamming back down in front of Bolt. His ears pinned back slightly as wood crashed against wood, causing a loud bang that drew more attention in his direction than he would have liked. His green eyes danced around at the ponies looking his way, offering them a sheepish smile. Their interest quickly began to wane and they drifted away after a moment, much to the stallion's relief. That didn't solve his issue though. His Princess companion had run off. With a begrudging sigh, he began to pull the trailer in the direction of Twilight as she trotted over to the filly. The thing was noticeably heavier without the mare's help...

"Scootaloo, what's wrong?" The Alicorn's voice caught the young filly's attention, drawing her gaze away from what it was she was doing to look up at the purple pony standing beside her. A somber smile crossed her features as she looked down at the scooter in front of her, drawing attention to the issue. From what Bolt could see from his angle, both of the back wheels had fallen off somehow.

"Ah, hey Twilight! My scooter broke..." The orange Pegasus pouted slightly as she explained the situation to her elder, holding up one of the small wheels that had broken off between her hooves. It would seem that she had been trying to fix it herself before they had turned up, with lackluster results. The Princess looked carefully at the wheel, and then at the scooter it had broken off from, trying to piece together what had gone wrong and how to fix it. Meanwhile, Bolt had already realised the issue. The rear bearing had snapped. While he was sure that Twilight would figure it out eventually, he figured he would save them all some time...

"Uh... The rear bearing... It's broken." The stallion spoke up, using his hoof to point towards the bar that typically held the two rear wheels in place. Both Twilight and Scootaloo's gaze followed to where he was pointing. Sure enough, it was snapped in various places. No doubt this scooter had seen a lot of use, and had slowly worn down as a result. This wasn't really his business... But Twilight and this filly clearly seemed to share a relationship of some sort, and if Twilight considered him a friend, then Bolt felt obligated to try and help Scootaloo.

He pushed the harness up so that he could slip out from under it and made his way to the back of the trailer. There had to be something in here that he could use as a replacement bearing, so the stallion began to search through the messy pile. The area around him quickly became cluttered as he sorted through everything, until finally he found a pole that would be a fitting replacement. Grabbing it with his mouth, he pulled it free and brought it towards the mare and filly, whom had been watching him curiously up until that point.

"Can you fix it, Bolt...?" Twilight asked as she watched him drop the pole to the floor, before raising her eyebrow at him. The pole was much too big for the scooter, that much was clear. But Bolt had a plan. With a nod, he turned his attention to Spike, whom hadn't budged from the trailer this entire time. Apparently the little dragon was quite comfortable.

"Lend me a hoof, Spike?" The stallion inquired as he nudged the pole on the floor with his hoof. Without hesitation, Spike began to climb down from the edge of the trailer he had been seated on and approached Bolt, looking at the stallion, and then down to the pole in-between them.

"Sure. What do you need?" With that question, Bolt placed both his hooves on the pole to keep it steady, before pointing towards a particular spot on it. So engrossed in his work, he hadn't noticed that heads were starting to turn in their direction again, no doubt curious about what was going on.

"Use your fire to heat up this bar right here." Steele Bolt explained carefully to the purple dragon, receiving a nod of understanding from his new friend. He pulled his head back a little as Spike concentrated on the pole he was holding down, since he really didn't want to get any backlash from the flames. After a moment, a thin stream of fire shot from Spike's mouth, beginning to briskly heat up the metal pole at the desired area until it glowed a bright orange.

"Enough!" Bolt called out, and Spike brought an abrupt end to his fire. Good thing too. Bolt was starting to sweat from the intense heat of Spike's fire breath. He could have sworn it was hotter than it had been when the little dragon had used it back in his lab. That would explain why it had taken significantly less time to complete this task than the last though. With the metal weakened from the heat, it wasn't difficult for Bolt to bend the pole at the heated point until it snapped completely, cutting it to the perfect length for the scooter. Not the most efficient way of doing so, but he was lacking the appropriate tools.

After removing the remains of the broken bearing, Bolt used the makeshift pole to replace it. Once it was in place, all that remained was to put the wheels back on. Not the easiest task without tools, but he would manage. He took one wheel and began to hammer it to the end of the pole with his hoof, letting out quiet grunts every time his hoof connected with the wheel. It was a gradual process, but eventually the wheel was firmly in place and he moved onto the second one. Once everything was in place, Bolt gave the wheels a testing spin. It was a relief to see them spin as intended.

"Wow! You did it! That's so cool!" Scootaloo chirped, practically bouncing on the spot as the stallion rolled her scooter towards her. He watched as she hastily jumped onto it, her wings going into overdrive as she began to run circles around him, Twilight and the trailer, before coming to a skidding halt in front of Bolt. "It's better than ever! Thanks, uh..." She sure was full of energy...

"Steele Bolt. Glad I could help." Bolt introduced himself quietly, a little unsure on the attention he was getting. At least it wasn't bad attention, but he still wasn't used to it. The bright expression on the filly's face was enough to subside his doubts though. It felt nice to be able to help another. His skills were coming in use for somepony else, instead of just his own personal goal. Pinkie's party cannon had been the first time in a long time that he had done something like that, but the experience had been soured by all the misfortune that had come from the visit. Rainbow Dash seemed to be bad luck for him...

"Good to meet ya', Bolt. I'm Scootaloo." The Pegasus filly flapped her tiny wings as she introduced herself, bringing the stallion's attention to them. He wondered why she would be using a scooter if she had wings. It was unheard of for a Pegasus to use any other mode of transportation when they could fly. He wondered the reasoning, but was too afraid to ask. It could be a touchy subject, and it wasn't really any of his business anyway. He simply smiled and nodded.

"I'd better dash! Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom are waiting! See ya' Bolt! See ya' Twilight!" Not even a moment after their hasty introduction, and Scootaloo was speeding off on her scooter, waving back to her elders before disappearing from sight in a matter of seconds. Her speed almost put Rainbow Dash to shame... Bolt was left blinking in her dust, while Twilight giggled softly and waved a hoof in farewell.

"What a bundle of energy..." The stallion murmured, turning back to his trailer with Twilight, both of them making their way to the back of the trailer to clean up the mess that Bolt had made earlier while looking for a replacement bearing. It wasn't difficult with a dab of magic, which taught Bolt a new found envy for Unicorns. His work would be so much easier if he had magic at his disposal...

"Aren't all foals like that though?" Twilight retorted with a cock of an eyebrow, her magic still engulfing the harness as she brought it up so they could slip under it, before bringing it softly back down in front of them. A stark contrast to the rushed manner she had operated it earlier.

"I suppose you're right..." Bolt replied, sparing the mare a glance before looking back at the road ahead. It only just occurred to him that it seemed busier around them all of a sudden, as if the spectacle that had just unfolded had been watched by passersby. A hint of self-conscious doubt lingered in the back of his head, wondering how they might use his honest actions against him somehow. But he brushed it aside, reaffirming his resolve. Who cared what other ponies thought. Unless those ponies were his new found friends, anyway...

The junkyard finally came into view as the duo of ponies reached the outskirts of Ponyville, while their dragon tag along napped soundly in the trailer. The sun was half way through it's journey across the sky at this point, indicating that it was midday. To think that he would usually be waking up around now... If he'd had a choice in the matter, Bolt certainly would be only waking up now. He stifled a yawn at the thought, his fatigue from a lackluster night's sleep slowly catching up on him. The sooner he finished this chore, the sooner he could return home, and hopefully take a nap. It wasn't that he disliked his company; Twilight and Spike were very easy to be around, but when a pony is tired...

First on the list of things to do was dump the junk from his garden, so the two of them hauled the trailer into the junkyard itself and began to unload it. This resulted in Spike's rude awakening, but he only gave a slight grumble before helping toss the rubbish away. Very little was said during this activity, though smiles were shared once it was complete. Next came collecting the parts that Bolt required for his Jetpack. A much larger job in the scheme of things, considering the vast size of the junkyard. But instead of beginning to search, Bolt guided Twilight and Spike towards a kiosk that sat towards the entrance of the junkyard, to which a scruffy looking stallion sat within.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't my favourite customer." The stallion offered a smirk and straightened his posture upon noticing he had company, even going as far to straighten out his dirty looking cap. This one article of clothing fit the Earth pony pretty well, since his dark brown coat, and lighter brown mane followed a similar trend. It was hard to say if he neglected to wash, or had just become dirty from working at the junkyard over the course of the day though...

"Hey, Scrap Iron. I was wondering if you had any of these in stock." Bolt spoke surprisingly comfortably as he placed the list he had made on the counter of the kiosk for Scrap Iron to see, with the parts they had already found marked off. Twilight couldn't mask her shock at Bolt's confidence in interacting with the caretaker of the dump, though that likely hinted at how frequently he actually visited the place. Scrap Iron was likely the closest thing he'd had to a friend before being somewhat forced into their social circle.

"Are you in lucky, Bolt, my boy! I have just what you're looking for." The messy stallion spoke with a grin, turning around momentarily to fetch a rather hefty looking box before slamming it down on the counter. After a quick rifle through, the objects of Bolt's desire were revealed and placed upon the counter. Each were in surprisingly good condition, hinting that Scrap Iron might have repaired them, or at least been incredibly lucky in finding them in such a state. "And, of course, you get the special repeat customer discount." He continued, wagging his eyebrows a little for added charisma. But that last sentence rubbed Twilight the wrong way.

"He has to pay?" The Princess spoke up, taking a step forward as her eyebrow cocked upwards. That seemed backwards to her. This was a place for everypony to dump unwanted or faulty belongings. It should be up for grabs for anypony. It seemed wrong for Scrap Iron to be allowed to snatch things up and then try to sell them when he would always get first dibs, especially when his prices were questionable. How could she know that they weren't acquireable for cheaper elsewhere and he was simply upping the prices to take advantage of the naive? She didn't like it. He didn't seem to like being questioned either.

"Everypony has to, Princess. These are my products, after all." Scrap Iron spoke with a false sense of professionalism, a frown crossing his features. This coaxed a frown on Twilight's face as well, since his tone had been somewhat condescending. She wouldn't let him take advantage of somepony like that. As a Princess, it was her duty to stand up for her subjects, even against swindlers like him.

"That's not right. Just because you work here, doesn't mean you can monopolize on what's dumped here!" The Alicorn insisted, pointing her hoof at Scrap Iron in an accusing fashion. The stallion's eyes narrowed at her. He was losing his temper with her, even if she was royalty. Naturally, it was a little refreshing for her to not be given any special treatment, though ideally she would have preferred it in a positive circumstance.

"Look, Princess. Everypony has to make a living. You know how much they pay me? Two bits. A day. I have mouths to feed. A little filly. Barely a year old." The testy stallion stated bluntly, a little venom in his voice as he spoke. This revelation caused Twilight to shrink back slightly. She didn't know what to do; whether to trust his word or not. If he were lying, then that was inexcusable, but if he wasn't... She couldn't blame him for trying to support his family as much as possible. She was at a loss. It was at that point that Bolt finally interjected, laying his hoof on Twilight's shoulder for reassurance. He had felt overwhelmed when the argument had started up, and thus hadn't gotten involved. Not until now, anyway.

"It's alright, Twilight. I don't mind paying." He spoke, trying to reassure the Alicorn Princess. With that said, he placed the right amount of bits on the counter, to which Scrap Iron counted them to make sure the amount was right. Once satisfied with his findings, he gave a nod and shoved the parts towards Bolt. The heavy atmosphere that had built up was unbearable for everypony present. Twilight made a quiet retreat back to the trailer as Bolt gathered up the parts he had purchased and followed in her wake, loading his haul into the back of the trailer with Spike's help. A moment later, and he found himself under the harness with Twilight.

"Thanks, Scrap. See ya'." The stallion called out to the worker behind the counter of the kiosk, whom simply offered him a half-hearted wave before staring into space. It was clear that things would be awkward for a while between them, but since the dispute hadn't been with Bolt, it was likely that things would heal with time. Twilight still seemed quite crestfallen though, as they made their way back towards Ponyville.

"I'm sorry about that..." She spoke up softly, her purple eyes aimed towards the ground as they took each step slowly. Bolt's ears slowly leaned back as he glanced her way, his mouth opening to speak, only for hesitation to grip him. He searched for the right words to say, something that would help the situation. He wasn't used to being in this kind of situation though. Comforting others wasn't his strong suit. His gaze slowly drifted away from her, following hers to the floor.

"I don't know if he has a family to feed or not... But I get that you were trying to protect me. I appreciate that. Thanks." Steele Bolt spoke with a soft, unsure voice. He was speaking his mind, when he wasn't really sure if the situation called for it. His green eyes darted about a little as he stared downward, before finally raising his gaze, finding that Twilight had already done the same to look his way. There was a soft smile on her face, though guilt and uncertainty was still plain to see in her eyes. He hadn't erased the pain, but he was given the sense that he had helped ease it at least.

"Thank you, Bolt." Were the last words spoken for the rest of the journey, the two ponies walking in silence, simply enjoying each other's company.

Author's Note

Phew. Another chapter down! Honestly found that one a little difficult to write at times, what with everything I wanted to include in it and all. But I got it done, and I hope you all enjoy!

The Sky Divided

With a long sigh, Steele Bolt raised the welding mask that had been protecting his face. His green eyes scanned over his work, the chassis of his beloved Jetpack finally taking shape. Two sides of the shell had been assembled, leaving the final act to be to weld the two pieces together. Naturally though, this hadn't been all he had done in the last few days. Aside from occasionally eating and sleeping, he had been tirelessly working on the internals for the Jetpack. Thanks to his visit to the junkyard with Twilight, he'd had everything he needed to piece together the inner workings of the device. All that was left was to put it all together!

Being this close to his goal naturally filled him with excitement. He had learned from his previous mistake and installed a limiter to the fuel reserve, so that fuel wouldn't flood the engine again. His imagination ran rampant, dreams of flying through the sky with his machine flooding his mind. Nothing could go wrong this time! He had definitely done it, he had finally succeeded!

But alas, he was getting ahead of himself. Bolt turned his attention to the inner workings of the Jetpack, grasping the welded piece of machinery with his mouth so that he could raise it and slowly lower it into half of the chassis. It was quite heavy, so he ended up having to raise his hooves to take some of the strain off of his mouth. The last thing he needed was a hospital visit because teeth had fallen out from trying to carry the Jetpack's internals.

Once everything was aligned just the way he wanted it, Bolt flipped his welding mask back down over his face, and carefully grasped the welder between his two front hooves. He adjusted the angle of the output nozzle so that he could begin to weld the internal parts to the chassis, his concentration focused on this one task. That was, until a voice suddenly caught his attention, and nearly caused him to drop the welder in shock.

"Hey, whatcha' doing?"

An audible gasp left the stallion, his back straightening as he stumbled to put distance between himself and the intruder. His masked gaze fell on the source of the voice, a pair of magenta eyes staring back at him in a mixture of amusement and confusion at his reaction to her sudden question.

"Rainbow Dash, you startled me! That was dangerous!" Bolt stated rather angrily, putting the welder down on his workbench so that he could raise the welding mask, revealing his scowl to the mare in his company. She just huffed and shrugged her shoulders, turning her attention away from the irritated stallion and to the nearly complete Jetpack.

"A little danger never hurt any pony! Looks like you've nearly completed your Jetpack though, huh. Cool!" The Pegasus replied, clearly trying to avert the conversation away from the topic at hoof. She probably realised how dangerous her actions were, but didn't want to take responsibility for them, so Bolt simply sighed and turned his attention to the device in question, nodding his head solemnly. It wasn't his place to lecture her; especially when his dream involved a huge amount of recklessness on his part.

"Yes, I've made a great deal of progress. No thanks to your interruption." His brow furrowed as he glanced in Rainbow Dash's direction, finding that her gaze had drifted back to him, with a puzzled expression appearing on her face not even a moment later.

"I'm pretty surprised you can work on it at a time like this though; with what's going on around Ponyville and all." The mare's words were ambiguous at best, filling Bolt with questions that his knowledge-thirsty mind needed answering. His confused expression was more than enough to clue Rainbow Dash into how aware he was of current events, giving her reason to furrow her brow this time.

"You have seen what's going on outside... Right?"

"What in Equestria..." Bolt murmured, his green eyes wide as he looked around at his surroundings. Pitch black, thorny vines ensnared a large portion of Ponyville; even his own home. Dark, thorny clouds filled the sky as well, which brought attention to the most prominent feature of this strange new world. Both the sun and the moon were in the sky, giving the illusion of day and night appearing at the same time. Bolt found it difficult enough to keep track of time already- this certainly wasn't helping. It was safe to say that he hadn't anticipated this when Rainbow had guided him out of his laboratory...

"What in the name of Celestia is going on?" The stallion briskly turned his attention to his uninvited guest, hoping for the multi-coloured maned mare to shed some light on the baffling events that were unfolding before him. But she simply shrugged her shoulders, her wings flapping softly to keep her hovering slightly off of the ground.

"Dunno'. But the girls were heading to Twilight's house to see if any books could help us figure that out. I thought I'd come to you though, and see if any of your gizmos could do the trick!" Bolt watched as Rainbow's magenta eyes surveyed the carnage around them, before turning her head to grin in his direction. The fact that she put so much faith into his science both baffled and pressured him. There was nothing any of his simple inventions could do to slow the out of control vines, nor remove the thunderous clouds in the sky; and he knew for a fact that no pony could do anything about the sun and the moon bar Luna and Celestia. He was at a loss.

"I-" He began, though his words were quickly cut off by a sudden feeling of something wrapping around his left front hoof. His gaze shot down to find a vine snaring it, a hiss leaving his lips as he hastily yanked his hoof away before the vine could get a good grip. The stallion had been so overwhelmed by learning what was happening, that he hadn't noticed how close the vines had gotten to them.

"Bolt, look out!" His ears perked up at Rainbow's voice, his head turning to find a vine lashing out at him. He couldn't move his body in time, his eyes simply widening at the threat, until something crashed into his side. He felt himself tumble to the floor momentarily, before there suddenly wasn't any ground beneath him at all. The Earth pony's eyes snapped open to find Rainbow Dash's face in front of his, though looking directly in front of them instead of at him. His head spun on a swivel to figure out what had happened, soon realising that they had taken to the air. He might have found this flight thrilling, if not for the vines trailing behind them.

"Dash, they're behind us!" He yelled out, his hooves wrapping around her to secure his safety. He could feel her holding onto him with her front hooves, but it was better to be safe than sorry. Normally, this kind of close contact would have embarrassed the stallion to no end; it was probably thanks to the adrenaline and danger that he had better things to concern himself with.

"Don't you think I know that?" The snarky response from his Pegasus companion was hardly appreciated, but it wasn't something he could complain about at the moment. He could feel Rainbow Dash shifting her weight, weaving skillfully through the thorny clouds that blocked their path. It felt like nothing could stop her, like she was some unstoppable force. Bolt couldn't help gulping as he witnessed her remarkable flying feats. He knew she was good, but this was something else entirely.

His euphoria came to a blunt halt after she had done an aileron roll to dodge an outstretched vine though, Rainbow's curse hinting at what was to come. She had spun directly into the path of a cloud, and at the speed she was going, there was little room to maneuver. They crashed into the cloud, and the first thing Bolt noticed was how thick the seemingly fluffy cloud was. He struggled to move in it, ultimately just squirming hopelessly as he tried to fight against the constrictive nature of the cloud. It wasn't until he felt something strike his stomach, which almost left him winded, that he was able to get free from the cloud.

He gasped as he felt gravity take a hold of him, his limbs flailing in a futile attempt to gain traction in the air. The stallion was falling, and there was nothing he could do about it. His green eyes widened as his life flashed before his eyes. He had been so close to finishing his Jetpack... Why did it have to end now? He grit his teeth in frustration, just as he felt his back hit something. He hadn't fallen long enough to reach the ground though, and the impact was softer than he had anticipated. Gravity wasn't done with him yet either. The stallion began to slide down whatever it was that he had collided with, causing him to hastily spin around to get a better grip on his only lifeline. It wasn't until that moment that he realised what he had landed on. One of the menacing looking vines. The thing that was out to attack him had saved his life... He couldn't help but laugh at the irony.

Bolt's gaze shot upwards to try and figure out how he had gotten free, his eyes falling on the struggling form of a familiar mare within the cloud he had fallen from. It was a little bizarre to find that the cloud wasn't as far away as he had assumed; it had felt like he'd fallen for a lot longer than he actually had. He noticed almost immediately that Rainbow Dash's wings were stuck almost as much as the rest of her body, meaning that she couldn't rely on them to escape from the cloud. She must have kicked him or something, which had pushed him out of the cloud... His freedom had come at her expense.

"Rainbow Dash!" He yelled out to her, his hooves clinging to the vine so that he wouldn't fall. He couldn't help feeling useless as he watched her squirm, his call bringing her attention away from her predicament and over to him. Was there nothing he could do for her...?

"This is nothing! I'll be outta' here in a moment!" Even with her attempt at reassurance, Bolt didn't feel particularly comforted. He was still far from the ground below, and there were a great deal of thorns along the vine, which stopped him from simply sliding his way downwards, so he was effectively stuck there anyway. She had saved him three times now... He felt indebted to her. There had to be something he could do to return the favor...

He studied the cloud carefully from his location, taking note of where Rainbow was situated within the cloud. She was close to the cusp, so close to being free, yet so far. That was truly a testament to show difficult it was to escape the quicksand-like grasp the cloud had on anypony that got stuck within. But it wasn't quicksand... Going down would grant freedom... A plan started to formulate in Bolt's head. He just needed enough altitude to get it to work.

Slowly, the stallion began to climb the vine. It was lucky that this vine was still growing upwards, and remained close enough to the cloud Rainbow was trapped in, or his little plan wouldn't work. His gaze occasionally drifted over to the Pegasus to check on her struggle as he climbed. It was difficult to tell if she was making any real progress, but that wouldn't matter if his idea worked. The worst that could happen is the two of them being stuck again, but that could at least let Bolt free her this time, instead of vice versa.

He took a deep breathe once he was satisfied with the amount of altitude he had gained. This plan was stupid. Reckless. Which fit his forte perfectly. The stallion lowered the welding mask that was still upon his head as he set his sights on his trapped companion, cautiously raising himself to stand upon the vine. The rounded shape of the vine made this awkward, but not too difficult. One more deep breathe helped him steel himself for what he was about to do.

"Please, Celestia, let this work..." He murmured to himself, before diving from the vine that had offered him safety. He held his breathe has he began to fall, his sights still set on Rainbow Dash. She didn't notice him at first, not until his shadow was cast upon her. She looked up with wide eyes as she saw the stallion falling towards her, a startled cry leaving her as his heavy frame landed directly on top of her. The force behind his descent at the desired effect, pushing both of them downwards, through the thin layer of cloud that had trapped Rainbow.

"You crazy Pony!!" Rainbow Dash yelled out as they began to plummet towards the floor, though the shrill laugh that followed made it quite clear that she approved of his actions more than denouncing them. Her wings; now free from the cloud, spread majestically, halting her fall and allowing her to scoop up Bolt before he became a pancake on the ground below. There was a sense of relief and security that came from Rainbow's embrace, coaxing Bolt to wrap his hooves back around her as she steadily descended to the ground below. She was dependable, which made him feel safe. Hopefully next time he took to the sky, it would be his own choice though...

Rainbow Dash had taken them straight to Twilight's house after their little battle in the sky with the clouds and vines. Bolt had never felt so relieved to feel his hooves back on the ground, which felt a little hypocritical considering how desperate he was to break the boundaries and fly. He didn't feel he was quite ready to take on threats like that while flying though... Foal steps, as they say.

So now he found himself in a foreign house, with five mares, searching through a huge supply of books. Truth be told, he wasn't entirely sure what he was looking for. Had there ever been an issue with giant dark thorny vines and clouds in the past? His knowledge of Equestrian history wasn't what it could be, so he really couldn't say. Twilight's books weren't helping shed any light on the subject either though, judging from the progress that the other five were making. Confusion and concern were clear on each of their faces. That was, until a certain Princess came barreling in as if from nowhere. Bolt had wondered where Twilight had gotten to...

"Oh thank goodness!" Rarity was the first to speak up, now that everypony's attention had fallen on Twilight, whom hadn't had the most graceful of landings. Bolt wouldn't be surprised if she felt that one in the morning...

"Oh... I hope you know we wouldn't normally go through your books without permission..." Fluttershy, surprisingly, was the next to say something, her gaze drifting away as if she were ashamed of the actions of her and her friends. Desperate times called for desperate measures though, and Bolt had a feeling that the Princess of Friendship wouldn't be opposed to her friends searching through her books like they were...

Bolt's gaze shifted away from the still disoriented Princess as the front door opened; in coming a rather shaken up Spike, who crawled along the floor like he had just been through quite the ordeal.

"Oh, ground... Sweet, sweet, wonderful ground." The little dragon recited. Bolt had a feeling he could sympathize with Spike's plight, considering what he had just been through with Rainbow Dash...

"Okay, I get it. I need to work on my flying." Twilight retorted, rolling her eyes in displeasure. Possibly a touchy subject for her, since she apparently hadn't adjusted to using her wings for flight. That gave Bolt the impression that she had only just recently acquired them... And left him feeling quite self-conscious that he wasn't up-to-date on a lot of things. How could he have not known that a Princess resided in Ponyville sooner? Had he really been living so deeply under a rock? Technically so, and he hadn't had much of a reason to pay attention to the world around him until recently, but that was besides the point.

"I don't know if you've noticed, but the Everfree Forest is just a teeny-tiny bit... Out of control." Pinkie Pie suddenly piped up, her fluffy tail quivering not even a moment after she had spoken. That was what was going on? Truthfully, Bolt should have put two and two together and realised the ominous looking vines were coming from the Everfree Forest, but he just hadn't had the time to really think about their situation until now... He still didn't get that opportunity either, since a vine came smashing through a window, taking down poor Rarity with one heavy blow.

"Uh... Are you alright, Rarity?" Steele Bolt asked as he trotted over to the Unicorn, offering a hoof to her as he raised an eyebrow. She seemed a little disoriented, but once she was had taken his hoof, and was back on her own four hooves, she seemed right as rain. Apparently, the beauty queen was a lot more resilient than she appeared.

"Oh yes, thank you, darling." The pure white pony replied with a sincere smile, before turning her attention back to the only Alicorn in their mists, the concern that was plaguing all of their minds quickly showing on her face once more. "But dear Twilight, perhaps you already know what is causing all of this calamity. Has Princess Celestia sent you to dispel it, post-haste?"

All attention was back on Twilight Sparkle, who seemed a little troubled by the question pushed upon her, her eyebrows arched as her feelings were shown on her face. Bolt had a bad feeling about this...

"Not exactly... You see, Princess Celestia is... Well... She and Princess Luna have both..."

"Gone missing!!" A gasp from everypony in the room followed after Spike so kindly finished Twilight's sentence for her, the look of shock clear on each of their faces. The royal sisters, missing? How was that possible? They were considered to be the most powerful beings in Equestria, or at least that was what Bolt had thought anyway. He couldn't help feeling concern for Luna in particular, having spent that magical night with her not even a week ago.

"I don't know who has taken them. But I've got a hunch that they're going to need the Elements of Harmony to get them back." The Princess spoke with a sudden sense of confidence in her voice, like just being with her friends was enough to bolster her spirits. Bolt couldn't say he understood that, but he was far more enticed by the necklace like jewelry that Twilight had brought out from beneath a display within the library. He had noticed them earlier, but hadn't paid them much mind. Those were the Elements of Harmony?... Rather underwhelming in appearance, in his opinion.

"Oh yeah! Just like old times!" Rainbow Dash grinned, pumping her hoof as her element was clipped around her neck, as the others were given this treatment as well. Pinkie even gave Twilight a hoof bump as her own element was given to her. Seeing them together like this really gave Bolt the sense that they were a team, and also made him feel really out of place... He couldn't see how he could help them any further than this... He wasn't needed anymore. It was almost as if the rest of them detected his self-doubt, as their attention suddenly shifted towards him. He couldn't help feeling intimidated.

"You've been a great help so far, Bolt! But maybe you should head home... It's just gonna' get more dangerous from here on." Rainbow Dash spoke up as she lowered herself to the ground by his side, patting him on his scarred back with her wing. His green eyes glanced in her direction, before drifting over the remaining five mares. It was clear by their expressions that they agreed with Rainbow Dash. They didn't need to say anything. If they didn't need him anymore, there was little point in him hanging around...

"Alright... Good luck out there." He spoke softly, his gaze falling to the ground as he slowly made his way to the door, looking back at the seven individuals in the room once he reached it to offer a sombre wave, before finally taking his leave from the library. It was funny. Bolt wasn't one to go out of his way for others. It had never been in his nature. But now that he was getting closer to other ponies, he couldn't help but feel the sting of not being needed. It cut him deeper than he ever would have thought. A rough sigh left his lips as he wandered back to his laboratory. At least he would be able to do those finishing touches to his Jetpack now...

Author's Note

Another one down! As you can probably tell, this chapter is based on the events of Princess Twilight Sparkle part 1. I wasn't going to involve any canonical events from the show in my story at first, but a friend of mine is writing a story of her own that coincides with my own in a way, and hers starts off with this event happening, so I felt it necessary to at least include this much in my own story. If you'd like to read her story, you can find it here!

Anyways. This is to be continued in the next chapter, so I hope you enjoy this one and I'll see you again in the next one!! Ciao!

Against Better Judgment

The searing heat of the welding torch melded the two sheets of metal, marking the end of his work. A sigh left his lips as Steele Bolt raised a hoof, pushing the welding mask up so he could look over his handiwork. His Jetpack sat before him; in a remarkably complete state compared to what it had been a few days prior. The cylindrical appearance of the dull, grey coloured invention almost made it look like a barrel - a few switches lined the right side of the device for operation while an exhaust nozzle sat at the base; which was naturally where the propulsion came from. This should be a joyous moment. His pride and joy was back in one piece and ready for testing again, but the stallion was plagued by a heavy heart. Thoughts of the six mares and their dragon companion kept crossing his mind, much to his dismay. Were they okay? Had they figured out why the Everfree Forest was invading? It had been well over an hour since he had left their company, and he couldn't help but feel some degree of concern for them, even if he could only consider himself friendly with a few of them.

Bolt trudged upstairs, his troubles coaxing him to find a change of scenery. He found himself in his kitchen; the lone window that overlooked his counter was covered in thick, black vines, reminding him of the situation outside. Was it really alright for him to be sitting pretty like this when other ponies were working hard to try and deal with the bizarre events occurring? Usually he wouldn't have cared in the least. He had never felt like he owed any pony anything - especially with the lack of understanding he shared with a majority of the residence of Ponyville. Yet, things were different now. He had formed a connection with at least two of the mares in that group, and the other four were welcoming to him. It was new to him, alien, but he felt obligated to try and lend a hoof. At the very least, he could check to see how things were going...

Slowly, the stallion drifted towards his front door, conflicting interest still lingering in the back of his skull. There had to be some way he could help, yet there was a nagging voice in the back of his head telling him that he owed them nothing. It was dangerous out there. That much had been proven with the run-in Rainbow Dash and he'd had with the vines earlier. Why should he risk his personal safety for this stinking town? His hoof hesitated as he reached for the door, his brow furrowing as his gaze fell to the floor. He wasn't doing this for Ponyville. He was doing it for the first ponies he felt comfortable calling friends. With that resolve instilled, he extended his hoof and pressed it against the door firmly... It didn't open.

A sense of dread filled Bolt as he pressed his body against his front door, trying to force it open with brute force. Why couldn't he get out? Could vines have blocked the door? How would he get out if that were the case? A growl vibrated from his throat as he lightly hit his head against the door, frustration building within him. He had spent the last five minutes steeling himself to do something completely out of his comfort zone, only for out of control nature to impede him. He turned and slid down the door, until he sat down, leaning against the wooden surface. There had to be a way out of here... The kitchen was a no-go, judging from his memory. After a moment of pondering, an idea came to mind. Maybe he could use his bedroom window...

"You've had some pretty stupid ideas in your time, Bolt. But this one takes the cake." The stallion stated flatly to no pony in particular, his neutral tone translating to his expression as he looked down to the ground below him from the open window in his bedroom. Quite the fall, from the second floor of his home. But he didn't have a choice. With a quiet gulp, he clambered out of the window, holding onto the window frame with his front hooves so he could lower his body down to the ground as much as possible. It was a pretty futile attempt to soften the fall he was about to experience, but it put his spirit slightly at ease.

He adamantly refused to look down, since there was little reason to remind himself of how foolhardy this idea was. He had committed to the idea of helping his friends, and this was the only way out of his home. This had to be done. He took in a deep breathe to steel himself for the drop, closing his eyes before pulling his hooves back. Gravity immediately took a hold of him, but his stomach remained above as he plummeted to the ground. Thankfully, the sickly feeling in his belly was quickly overshadowed by the impact he had with the dirt below him, a grunt leaving the stallion as a result. His eyes snapped open to look around at his surroundings, and then over himself. Still in one piece. That had been a lot less painful than he had anticipated.

Once he was back on his hooves, Bolt made his way around to the front of his home, curiosity driving him to find out why he hadn't been able to open his front door. He found his suspicions had been correct; heavy vines blocked the door. He would need equipment to remove it all, which he didn't have access to right now, and he simply didn't have the time. So with a sigh, he moved on. He needed to find the mares. He'd worry about gaining access to his home later.

His first stop was the very same library he had visited earlier in the day; Twilight Sparkle's home. He knocked politely on the door, but no answer forced him to open the door to peek inside. Once he found no pony within, he moved on. The problem was... He didn't really know where to look next. So he wandered, whilst hoping to avoid trouble from the crazed vines and clouds that were causing havoc all over Ponyville. That proved to be easier said than done though.

The stallion soon found himself galloping at full speed, vines sprouting out of the ground in his wake as if they had some mind of their own, and were very determined to ruin his day. He was by no means a fit pony, but even he could run for a fair amount of time. Desperation pushed him to duck and weave around town, with no objective but to avoid being grabbed. A vine finally caught up to him as he came close to the edge of town though, the origin of the raging nature in view. A gasp left him as he staggered because of the vine clinging to one of his back hooves, ultimately resulting in him crashing to the floor. He hissed while hastily rolling onto his back, his other back hoof lashing out to try and kick away the vine and free the trapped hoof. Sadly, this just resulted in both of his back hooves getting trapped. The ground was pulled out from underneath him as the vines hoisted him into the air, leaving him hanging upside down like a drowsy bat. His mind was reeling, trying desperately to figure out someway of getting him out of this mess.

"Bolt!!"

The call startled him, drawing his gaze away from the vines that trapped his hooves to the source, just in time to witness a flash of purple magic to hurtle towards him, striking the vines. Said vines immediately vanished without a trace, leaving the stallion to tumble to the floor, a grunt appropriately leaving him as he hit the ground.

"Are you alright?!"

Bolt shook his head softly to remain his bearings, before raising his gaze to see whom he owed for lending him a hoof. A very familiar pair of large purple eyes stared into his green ones. Really, he should have recognized her from the colour of her magic alone...

"Twilight... Um, thanks." The stallion spoke softly, pushing himself back into a standing position before flashing the Princess of Friendship a small, somewhat sheepish smile of gratitude. These mares were really dependable when one got into a pinch... He really hoped that he wouldn't end up relying on them too heavily...

"It's no problem! But what are you doing here? I thought you went home." Twilight Sparkle returned the smile that Bolt offered her, before a quizzical expression quickly replaced it. Bolt lightly kicked at air with his back hooves for a moment; he could still feel the vines grasping him, and that bothered him a great deal. Sadly, a few light kicks didn't get rid of that sensation. Hopefully it would subside on it's own. With that in mind, he turned his attention back to Twilight.

"I did. But I figured I would check on how things were going. Why are you here?... Where are the others?" The interrogator quickly became the interrogatee as Bolt turned the tables on Twilight, his observant gaze noticing that the Alicorn was on her own when she most certainly hadn't been before he had taken his leave. The sudden question seemed to dishearten her, much to Bolt's surprise. Maybe he had stepped where he shouldn't have...

"Ah... Well, we figured out the cause of all this chaos. The others are dealing with that now... They figured it was too dangerous for me to accompany them, since I'm a Princess and all..."

A silence surrounded the two ponies after Twilight finished explaining what had happened, a conflicted expression upon her face as she looked downwards. Bolt could even see a hint of frustration from her slightly furrowed brow. She had to be feeling powerless right now. He could sympathize with that. In fact, seeing Twilight like that gave him an eerie sense of deja vu.

"You know, wouldn't you be safer with all your friends?" Bolt spoke up with a quiet tone of voice, his gaze drifting away from Twilight as her head raised to look his way. He couldn't summon the courage to look her in the eye. Maybe because he didn't really know what he was saying, or that it wasn't his place to be telling her what to do. He was just following his gut, and trying to say what he felt Twilight needed to hear. Either way, he avoided looking at her as he continued.

"Together, you're stronger than you are apart, no? Besides, you each wield an element of harmony right? How can there be harmony if certain elements are separated...?" Bolt's logical way of looking at the situation certainly held ground, and gave Twilight something to think about. She didn't reply immediately, and that caused the stallion to glance her way; concerned that he might have stepped over his boundaries. Who was he to lecture a Princess? What he found was a smiling mare, which caught him by surprise.

"You're right, Bolt. We've always faced everything together, as a team... It was a mistake for me to leave them... I have to go. Thanks, Bolt!" The Alicorn Princess stepped forward to offer Bolt an appreciative hug with one of her wings, which caused his breathe to get caught in his throat for the brief moment of contact they shared. Physical contact really wasn't something the stallion was used to, but this time there was no adrenaline or danger to distract him from the fact. He absentmindedly waved as Twilight ran off with Spike in tow, whom apparently had been there the whole time, but just hadn't said a word. It wasn't until the two were out of sight that Bolt regained his composure, gulping loudly as he blinked a few times. Had he been helpful? He wasn't sure... He seemed to have motivated Twilight, yet it didn't feel like he'd done anything...

"My, my. Who do we have here." The stallion almost jumped at the sudden voice; he hadn't heard any pony approaching... He turned his head to find out who had snuck on him, only to find a rather baffling sight before him. The masculine voice belonged to a long, serpentine like creature, with a mismatch of limbs. That explained why he hadn't heard the being approach at least. He couldn't put his hoof on it - while Bolt had definitely never met this creature, he was certain he had seen him before.

Silence encompassed the two as Bolt mulled over the identity of the stranger, his hoof tapping against his chin thoughtfully as he delved deep into the recesses of his memory. He assumed he might have seen the species in question in a book at some point, but he had rarely indulged in anything that would expand his general knowledge after he had graduated. That meant that he'd had to have learned this creature's identity while he was at school. The creature, in the meantime, shifted to hover on his back, his arms crossed over his chest as he waited rather impatiently for the stallion to have an epiphany. That didn't happen soon enough for the spirit of disharmony though.

"You don't know who I am?" He broke the silence, forcing Bolt to finish reminiscing over past times. He shook his head honestly; pondering to himself if he should. A long sigh left the creature as he pinched the bridge of his nose, before closing the distance between him and the stallion to stare eye-to-eye with him. "I ruled over Equestria." The creature's clue didn't seem to help at all, as Bolt simply offered him a blank stare. "I'm the spirit of disharmony!"

"Oh! So you're... What's the name... Discord?"

"Finally! Have you been living under a rock?!" Discord exclaimed; unaware of how close to the truth he was, as he threw his hands into the air, quite literally. The reality bending act left Bolt momentarily speechless. But his mouth quickly shut as he raised an eyebrow, honestly more curious about the spirit than afraid. Discord seemed to notice this, as he returned his hands to their appropriate places. "You... Don't seem frightened of me." The spirit of disharmony stated, seemingly more surprised than anything. Considering the reaction he received from just about every other pony, that was understandable. Steele Bolt wasn't like every other pony though.

"When you've fallen out of the sky as much as I have, you kind of get desensitized to fear." The stallion responded honestly, his brow furrowing slightly as memories of numerous failures involving his jetpack came to mind. Far too many. A playful grin crossed Discord's face upon hearing that, which gave Bolt a really bad feeling. Leaving was starting to seem like a good idea to the stallion now; he never got the chance.

"Is that so." Discord hummed as he clicked his fingers together, a flash of light engulfing Bolt's gaze, before he suddenly found himself far away from where he was originally standing. The first thing he noticed was the lack of ground below him, his eyes widening as he hastily looked down. Nothing but clouds as far as the eye could see - he was that high up. The stallion began to flail his legs wildly as he descended towards the ground below, the wind blowing through his mane and tail to make them even messier than they usually were.

"You don't seem so steeled, anymore!" The draconequus chimed, chuckling at his own pun as he hovered by Bolt's side, matching the speed of his descent while holding a casual, relaxed posture, which completely contrasted Bolt's bewildered state.

"You're a mad pony!!" The stallion yelled out desperately, his eyes still set on the quickly approaching ground below, though his words only brought laughter from Discord.

"Flattery gets you nowhere, you know!" How the spirit found any amusement out of this situation completely eluded Bolt. It was difficult to think of much of anything when his impending doom was briskly approaching; adrenaline pumping through his veins in high volumes. He didn't want to die... He wanted to finish his Jetpack... He wanted to keep inventing... And though he'd be loathsome to admit it verbally, he wanted to get to know his new friends more. Never before had he considered life so precious.

"I-I... I don't want to die!!" Steele Bolt insisted frantically, turning his head to the only thing that could possibly save him. Pride wasn't even something that came to mind right now; the instinct to survive had completely overridden something so foolish. He also failed to realise that this admittance had been exactly what Discord had wanted. A huff of mock disappointment came from the spirit, acting as if his fun had been ruined. But he heeded Bolt's implied request, and with click of his fingers, the two of them were suddenly safely on the ground again. The shock of the jarring experience had Bolt immediately collapse to the floor, his chest heaving as his brain tried to compute what had just happened, and digest the fact that he was safe again.

"I'm going home." The stallion stated angrily, after he had finally regained his composure. It had taken a good few minutes, considering the level of trauma that he had just been subjected to. His legs shook as he walked away from the spirit of disharmony, showing that he hadn't quite recovered yet. He felt so humiliated now that the events that had just transpired had sunk in. The smug look on Discord's face told him volumes; that his pleading for his life had been exactly what the draconequus had wanted. His once forgotten pride now ached, having been used as nothing but a simple plaything for a greater being's amusement. It seemed that Discord wasn't content yet though, as he hovered by Bolt's side whilst the stallion staggered home.

"Leaving already? But what about them?" The draconequus insisted, gesturing towards the Everfree Forest with a flick of his wrist. Bolt's shaky pace began to slow as his head turned in that direction, his ears pinning back as he was reminded of his previous worries. He now knew Discord's agenda. He knew that the spirit was simply messing with him, trying to get a reaction out of him. But he couldn't help but worry. Every pony knew how dangerous the forest could be. He reminded himself that the six of them possessed the elements of harmony. They didn't need him.

"They'll be fine." Bolt stated simply, his gaze falling to the ground as he turned his head away from the forest and began on his journey home again. The vines and clouds would vanish at any moment now, and the six of them would come wandering back out of the forest with victorious smiles on their faces. Even with that conviction in his mind though, there was a hidden doubt, that Discord voiced.

"But what if they never return?"

The Earth pony came to a halt once more, his brow furrowing as he stared intensely at the ground beneath him. He hated to admit it, but Discord had a point. What would happen if the six mares never returned? What would Ponyville do? What would Equestria do? Without Twilight, Luna and Celestia, who would the ponies turn to? Who would stop the expanding forest? There were so many questions floating around in his mind that it left him momentarily overwhelmed. He had to shake his head firmly, to clear it of unnecessary things. Right now, he needed to concentrate on what to do. He needed to help them, any way he could. And there was only one way he could...

"That's the spirit!" Discord chimed with mock enthusiasm as Bolt broke out into a sprint, his previously vulnerable state having vanished to make way of what he had to do. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him, ducking under rambunctious clouds and out of control vines, until his home was in sight. But that just reminded him of an issue that he had put off before. His front door was blocked by vines... The stallion came to a halt outside and bit into one of the vines, trying with all his strength to pull it away. It didn't budge. He hissed with frustration, spinning around to thrust his back hooves out, bucking the vines roughly. Still nothing.

Hope was starting to drift away from the stallion. There was only so much he could do, and nothing he tried was working. His ears drooped as he stared at the vines that still blocked his way, his mind moving at a million miles a minute in an attempt to think of some outlandish scheme to get back into his home. Maybe if he could launch himself upwards, he could climb back in through his bedroom window... He was being stupid and desperate. There was nothing he could use to launch himself.

A click of fingers caused him to perk up, spinning his head round to see Discord hovering nearby, his gaze set on the stallion as he tried to deal with his dilemma. Bolt raised an eyebrow and turned back to the vines, his eyes widening once he did. The vines... They were gone. Slowly, he turned his head to look back at Discord, confusion and shock on his face. Had the spirit of disharmony just... Helped him?

"Don't get me wrong. I just want to see what you will do next." Discord rolled his eyes softly, his head propping back against his arms as he hovered in midair like he were sitting on a deck chair. Regardless of his motivation, the way to Bolt's home was now free thanks to the spirit. So he offered him a simple nod of gratitude, before hastily making his way inside his humble house.

He charged downstairs, stumbling and almost falling down the stairs because of how much he was in a hurry. The stallion caught himself though, and stormed into the dimly lit room. A few of the lights had gone out down here... He would have to fix them later. Now wasn't the time. His gaze, and full attention, was set on his pride and joy. His Jetpack. This wasn't exactly the optimal testing environment, but he had never been against a trial by fire. The Earth pony moved over to his workbench and pulled the Jetpack from it with his mouth, dragging it onto his back before fastening it to him. Once he was content that it was properly secured to his body, he briskly took his leave. There was no time to waste!

"What is that? A toaster?" Discord inquired curiously as the stallion re-emerged from his home, a hand quizzically stroking his chin as he inspected the device strapped to Bolt's back. A firm shake of the pony's head, and a scowl, corrected that preposterous assumption. But he didn't indulge Discord in an explanation; instead he looked around frantically, which just made the spirit more curious. "Is that a new craze you're trying to start?"

"What? No! I need a place with elevation so I can take off with my Jetpack!" Bolt spun his head around to look at Discord, scowling at the spirit's attempt at a joke and quickly correcting him. His ears pinned back as Discord offered him a toothy grin, quite reminiscent of the one he had given Bolt before leaving him to plummet down from the heavens. His mouth opened in an attempt to quell the mischievous thoughts of the spirit of disharmony, but he was far too late. Discord's fingers clicked before he could say a word, the ground suddenly raising up and catapulting him into the air like a giant spring.

"I haaaaaaaaaaaaateeeeeeeeeeee yooooooooooooooooooou!" Bolt's voice trailed off as he was sent flying into the air, quickly leaving earshot as Discord waved enthusiatically at his departure. At least that meant the spirit would no longer be a thorn in his plot, but that didn't change the fact that if he didn't do something soon, he would be a pony pancake on the ground below. Thankfully, he had his Jetpack now. Though truth be told, there was no telling if it would actually work. He took a deep breathe and prayed to Celestia as he reached back, slamming his hoof down on the ignition button. Without hesitation, the engine within came to life, flames pouring from the exhaust nozzle. A grin crossed Bolt's face as he felt the Jetpack propel him through the air. It was working! Just like last time! Well, hopefully it wouldn't work like last time... He didn't need it stalling now. Rainbow Dash might not be around to catch him if he fell this time.

After getting his excitement under control, Steele Bolt started to focus on maneuvering with the Jetpack, weaving around a few thorny clouds as he swooped around, flying above the treeline of the forest as he tried to spy any of the six mares he was looking for. The problem was, the foliage was dense, which really hindered his ability to identify anything below it. With a sigh he came to the uncomfortable conclusion that he would have to pass under the treeline if he was going to find anything.

Begrudgingly, the flying Earth pony turned skyward, before curling back around and heading straight for the ground. He raised his hooves to protect his face as he smashed straight through the dense foliage, his eyes shutting tightly until the sensation of leaves and branches hitting him ceased. He opened them again just in time to catch himself from meeting the dirt below face first, pulling his body back to direct himself away from the ground. Once his flight path was straightened out, he found a new hindrance in his progress. Trees. Trees everywhere. The stallion was forced to weave around them, occasionally colliding into the hard bark and bouncing off of it. He wasn't an ace flyer by any stretch of the imagination. It was a miracle that he was having so much luck at the moment.

Bolt hurtled through the forest, mentally kicking himself for not bringing some goggles with him, or at least his welding mask, to keep the wind out of his eyes. The brutal breeze left him squinting his eyes, until he spotted a familiar blob of purple up ahead. He closed the distance between himself and this mysterious splash of colour in seconds, the scene unraveling before him. Vines with what appeared to have Venus Fly Traps on the end were assaulting a pony, spraying her with some sort of gas that was incapacitated her. Bolt recognized her immediately.

"Twilight!" His call caught the weakened Alicorn's attention, her ears raising slightly as she rose her head to look his way. Bolt didn't slow down at all. He charged headlong into the fray, his sights set on the Princess. Holding out his hooves, he scooped her up as he passed by, speeding off and leaving the vines in his dust.

"Bolt...? What are you..."

"Are you alright?" The stallion inquired, paying more attention to the frail looking mare in his grasp, leaving flying as an afterthought; which was probably not in his better judgment. She looked so weak right now. He couldn't help wondering what that gas had been... A soft nod from Twilight helped relieve him of some of his concern though.

"I'm fine. Just a bit groggy." The Princess of Friendship reassured him, shaking her head a little to try and clear her mind of the effects of the gas. It didn't seem to be wearing off quickly though; Bolt could tell from how weak her hold on his neck was, since she had wrapped a leg around him to help support herself.

"Lets try and find somewhere safe to touch down-" Bolt began, the foolishness of his statement not lost on him. A safe place in the Everfree? That was unheard of. Proof of this appeared in the form of vines sprouting in front of them, trying to block their path and interrupting Bolt's chain of thought, and thus what he was saying. He clicked his tongue as he tilted his body, spinning out of the way just in time before they crashed into the wall the vines were forming. But more were pursuing, and sprouting out around them, seemingly attracted to them. Bolt glanced over his shoulder, noticing a vine lashing out at them quickly, moving faster than he could react. But before it could connect with him, or his Jetpack, it was blasted by a flash of purple magic.

"You fly... I'll shoot..." Twilight affirmed as the stallion glanced towards her, her horn glowing with the aura of her magic. He simply nodded his head, turning his attention to what was in front of them, concentrating on dodging incoming obstacles whilst the Princess of Friendship shot down incoming vines with her magic. She was far from full strength though, and the vines continued to gradually gain ground on them, until finally one struck Bolt's Jetpack. The machine sputtered, it's speed decreasing as smoke joined the flames that spilled from the exhaust.

"Damnit... What's the damage?" Bolt asked Twilight, his attention shifting away from his surroundings as he recovered from the impact, which shook him from his flight path momentarily. Hastily, the Alicorn leaned over to inspect his Jetpack, finding a heavy dent in the side of the invention.

"It's been hit pretty hard. The chassis is dented. I can see the inner workings from here..." Bolt gulped as he listened to Twilight's diagnosis. It sounded like the vine had struck harder than anticipated, considering it had been able to breach the hull. He would need to use a more sturdy material on the chassis in the future... That was the least of their worries right now though. The loss of speed had practically doomed them. Another vine lashed out, wrapped itself around both Bolt and his Jetpack, journeying into the device, possibly attracted to the heat source like plants typically grew towards the sun. The grasp of the vine abruptly stopped their momentum, the jolt that occurred as a result sending Twilight flying out of Bolt's grasp.

"Twilight!" The stallion yelled out, reaching out with his hooves, as another vine wrapped around him and his invention. He could only watch as the Alicorn hit the ground with a grunt. She got onto her hooves as quickly as she could, her horn glowing as she set her sights on the vines binding Bolt, but she never got the chance to attack. The Venus Fly Trap vines from earlier re-emerged, and Twilight briskly got a face full of the gas that had incapacitated her before.

His ears drooped as he watched the Princess of Friendship shakily fall back to the ground, coughing as the gas smothered her and weakened her. Frustration, and a desire to help her, pushed him to reach back with his one free hoof, hitting another button on his Jetpack to push it to the limit. The output of both flame and smoke doubled, the metal of the chassis slowly turning red as the metal overheated with the overwork of the engine. The tactic was a double-edged sword. On one hoof, it burned the vines, forcing them to recede and freeing Bolt. But it also burnt his already scarred back, causing him to whine in pain as he crashed into the ground, since the Jetpack quickly failed as a result of his actions. At least it hadn't failed by accident this time...

Bolt only had enough time to throw his invention off of his back to avoid further burning, before the Venus Fly Trap vines turned on him, spraying him with the gas that had left Twilight helpless. His eyes widened as he coughed violently, stumbling backwards as he felt the strength in his body suddenly sapping away. By some cruel fate, Twilight's limp form remained in his sight as he collapsed to the floor, his eyes narrowing as he cursed himself. Was this all he was capable of? He hadn't helped at all... Just delayed the inevitable... The shadows of the Venus Fly Trap vines were looming over them. Would they eat them? Bolt had no idea. He'd never seen plant life like this before. Today sure has been a bad day...

But just as this bad day seemed to be getting worse, and one of the Venus Pony Traps went to lash out at Twilight, a lasso made of the very vines that had been chasing them wrapped around it, rendering it harmless as it was yanked to the ground and subdued.

"Listen here, ya' rabid rhododendrons! Ya' mess with one of us, ya' mess with all of us!" A familiar southern accent filled Bolt with relief, his head turning to confirm what he already suspected. The remaining five mares, whom had been missing until this point, stood proudly before them, a determined look on each of their faces. And then there was Pinkie Pie, blowing a party horn... Morale support...?

The Venus Pony Traps emitted an audible screech that Bolt hadn't heard from them until his point, his weakened hooves moving to cover his ears from the unpleasant noise for the brief moment it lasted. An eye remained open though, watching as Rainbow Dash swooped forwards with a familiar, smug grin upon her face.

"Up here!" The Pegasus taunted as she flew towards the Venus Pony Traps, moving so fast that only a multi-coloured streak could be seen by the naked eye. She left the vines reeling as she brushed past them, causing two of them to spin around each over until they were wrapped together and left immobilized.

"Yoo-hoo!! Come and get me!" Pinkie Pie cried out, bouncing around without a care in the world as one of the vine traps chased after her, it's fangs bared. It really baffled Bolt how she could seem so confident and care-free in this situation, but it wasn't just her. All five of them wore smiles and grins, which radiated the confidence that they got from working together. Rarity joined the act, ducking and weaving around the vine of the trap that was chasing Pinkie Pie. "Don't forget about me!" She chimed in, glancing over her shoulder momentarily to check for the vine trap that was following her, before hopping over a vine. This forced the pursuing vine trap to slip under the vine of it's brethren so it could give chase, bringing something to Bolt's attention. If this kept up, they would get tangled... Was that the mares plan all along...?

Fluttershy and Applejack did their part as well. The shy Pegasus flew around a tree, causing her pursuing vine to snare around it, while the southern Earth pony slid under the vine that remained out stretched as a result, causing the vine chasing her to slip under as well to try and catch up. But just as it was about to lash out at her, it came to an abrupt halt, before snapping back into the pile of vines and traps that had amassed from the five mares little run around. They had done it... They had dealt with the Venus Pony Traps... Bolt was amazed...

"Ta-da!" Pinkie Pie announced enthusiastically, hurling confetti up in the air as if this was a moment worth celebrating. Maybe it would have been, if not for the lone vine trap that had eluded the five of them. It had succeeded at sneaking up on Pinkie, but didn't get any further than that. It was blasted by a flash of purple magic before it could lash out, courtesy of the resident Princess. The effects of the gas were starting to wear off, allowing both her and Bolt to shakily pull themselves back to their hooves, with Spike dashing up to Twilight to help her. Where had that dragon gotten to beforehand...?

"I sure am glad ya' came looking for us." Applejack spoke up with a smile, the five mares flocking to their friend, whom returned their smile with her own, instilled with a bit of relief. Bolt could understand why. There was no telling what would have happened if they had not turned up...

"Not as glad as we are that you found us!" Twilight replied, gesturing towards Bolt with one hoof, coaxing a nod of agreement from the stallion. But that brought the attention to him, his ears drooping slightly as all eyes were on him.

"Why are you here though, Bolt?" Rainbow Dash spoke up, her wings flapping softly to keep her airborne as she approached him, her head tilted with an eyebrow raised as she questioned him. A natural inquiry. Twilight had tried to ask the same thing earlier as well, though too much had been going on for him to answer her.

"I wanted to help..." The stallion answered honestly, whilst glancing downward in fear that this wouldn't be good enough reasoning. He didn't look up again until he felt a wing upon his back, finding that Twilight had approached to try and reassure him.

"Thank you, Bolt. You saved me back there." Her voice was sweet and honest, but Bolt couldn't take those words to heart. His actions had just endangered himself as well as her. He couldn't help beating himself up over his recklessness, which was so typical of him. He was never the type of pony to look before he leaped. An orange coated hoof came to rest on his other side, a welcoming smile coming from the southern mare that had joined her two friends by his side.

"Well, ya' here now. Might as well tag along!" Applejack's words had Bolt looking around, as if to affirm that it was alright with the rest of them. Nods came from each member of the group, including Spike, after they had looked amongst themselves and smiled with confidence. A strange feeling welled up within him. Being accepted like this was certainly something he wasn't used to; especially as no hesitation had been shown. He couldn't stop a smile from sprouting on his lips as he nodded as well.

In the end, the day was won. They ventured to the Tree of Harmony, where the Elements of Harmony were returned to it so that it would regain it's power. That rid Ponyville of the thorny vine and cloud infestation that it had been experiencing. All that, had been achieved by Twilight and her five friends, with Bolt and Spike sitting on the side lines. The stallion hadn't done a thing. He hadn't even been morale support. They didn't need him for that. Yet, even though he hadn't contributed, he now found himself in Canterlot to take part in the Summer Sun Celebration.

He stood in the crowd, beside five of the six mares that had saved Equestria once again. Truthfully, he felt out of place surrounded by so many ponies, in an audience that was here to watch three Princesses. He hadn't even met royalty until recently; yet now the only royal left that he hadn't met, to his knowledge, was Celestia herself. It felt surreal.

It felt like a dream to be Canterlot alone. He'd never been to the grand city - only having heard tales of it. The high class nature of the city naturally left him wondering what kind of resources might be available to him in such a place. Surely there were advanced parts and materials just waiting to be discovered. He made a mental note to try and find the time to explore proper, if they had enough time before returning to Ponyville.

"Citizens of Equestria!" The noble voice of the Princess of the Sun caught Bolt's attention, drawing him from his fantasies of upgrades for his battered Jetpack. Once again, he would need to work on repairing it when he got home, but it wasn't as daunting as before. He'd had a successful test flight with it, so now the only way was up. He would continue to improve it, until it surpassed even having wings! The thought alone brought a victorious smile to his face. Maybe he was getting a little ahead of himself...

"It is no longer with a heavy heart, but with great joy that I raise the summer sun. For this celebration now represents not the defeat of Nightmare Moon, but the return of my sister, Princess Luna!" Silence completely overtook the crowd as they listened to Celestia's every word like their lives depended on it, drawing Bolt into that intensity. It felt like it would be considered treason just to breathe too loudly, even though he knew that to be an exaggeration. That was just how much the citizens of Equestria cared for, and loved Celestia. Their respect for her ran far deeper than any one pony could ever truly understand. This silence was only broken once she finished speaking, cheers and hoots coming from the audience to truly celebrate the conversion of a once darker day.

Bolt watched with anticipation as Princess Luna leaped into the air, her wings carrying her upwards as her horn began to shine with a magical aura. As she summoned her magic, the moon began to descend, as Celestia followed her sister's example and joined her in the air. The sun began to rise from below the horizon, meeting with the moon as it sank towards the very same line that had obscured the sun. Just as the two of them past each other, a blast of magic filled the air, originating from a streak of purple that zipped through the sky at impressive speeds. The shape of the magical blast resembled the shape of the Element of Magic, which heavily hinted towards who was behind the little stunt. As if to confirm that suspicion, Twilight Sparkle swooped down to meet Princess Celestia and Luna as they landed back on the stage.

The cheers from the crowd became louder, having clearly been entertained from the spectacle. Steele Bolt looked around at the surrounding ponies silently, watching their enthusiasm, before turning his gaze back to the stage. There he saw the Princess of the Night - looking straight at him. His eyes widened slightly once he realised this, her expression softening as she looked his way, offering him a friendly smile before moving her gaze onwards. It would seem that she remembered him... He couldn't help feeling happy about that.

"Darling, did Princess Luna just smile at you?" Rarity suddenly spoke to him, her voice quieter to keep the conversation just between her and the stallion. She didn't really need to do that though, considering how loud the audience currently was. Bolt became stiff at the realisation that another pony had noticed it. Did that mean others might have as well? Would that be okay? He didn't want to cause any trouble just by being on friendly terms with the Princess of the Night... He decided to try and play it cool, shrugging his shoulders as he turned his head away from Rarity - attempting to hide the embarrassment on his face. Because of that though, he missed the knowing smile that crossed the marshmallow Unicorn's face from his poor acting.

Author's Note

Hey all! I admit that I procrastinated with this chapter a little, but I finally got down to it today at least! This will probably be my only spin on canonical events, honestly. Though, admittedly, there's no telling what can happen in the future, or how inspiration will strike! Regardless, I hope you all enjoy the chapter! Any feedback will be appreciated as well. I always read my comments, even if I don't reply all the time! Til' next time!

The Calm after the Storm

The quiet rattling of the train upon it's rails resounded, moonlight blanketing the land of Equestria. This would typically be more than enough to lull Steele Bolt off into a blissful slumber; especially after such an eventful day. Yet he found himself fighting any fatigue he felt, his emerald eyes staring out at the scenery through the train's window. He found a certain level of wonderment from observing the world at sleep. The way the moonlight reflected off of pools of water, the gentle blue of the night sky leaving a mellowed tone to Equestria. It led to his mind drifting to thoughts of the Princess that related to it; he could understand why Luna might be so proud of this period of the day. It was a shame that it was still quite under-appreciated.

"Either way, that stunt was awesome, Twilight!" Bolt turned his head to look at the pony sharing his seat on the train; Rainbow Dash. She and Twilight Sparkle had been sharing a vivid conversation for the past hour, as their train made it's way from Canterlot to Ponyville. Likely to pass the time, since the journey was far from exciting. He hadn't really been paying attention to what they had been talking about until now though. It appeared to be a discussion on Twilight's role in the Summer Sun Festival, or at least, that's where the conversation had led to at this point anyway.

"Thanks, Rainbow. Maybe you could call it my... Sonic Twilight Boom?" The Princess of Friendship's attempt at humor had mixed results. On one side of the spectrum, Bolt simply raised an eyebrow, remaining quiet so he wouldn't get roped into the conversation. That name hardly rolled off the tongue... On the other hand, Rainbow Dash seemed to find it at least a little amusing; judging from her unladylike snort. How like her, Bolt thought to himself.

His gaze wandered away from the two winged mares as they continued their conversation, his emerald orbs falling on a familiar pale yellow Pegasus whom sat across from him. Fluttershy was the last member of the group that was still awake; the remaining three having fallen into a quiet slumber a while ago. He watched the shy pony as she looked between her two friends while they spoke to each other, content with simply listening in and not contributing to the conversation. He could relate.

He was happy to leave it at that. But as he considered adjusting his gaze, their eyes met. Bolt's mind had a hiccup as he stared into Fluttershy's cerulean eyes; the stallion completely taken by surprise at her attention suddenly shifting to him. This eye contact remained for a brief moment, before both ponies looked away from each other in silent embarrassment. Bolt's eyes shifted sheepishly to the ground, wholeheartedly expecting that to be the end of his interaction with Fluttershy. They were both quite socially awkward after all - not typically the type to strike up a conversation. His expectations were crushed in an instant however.

"Um... Did you... Have a nice time?" The stallion's emerald eyes rose to look at the source of the stammering voice, finding Fluttershy's gentle gaze had returned to him. Unlike the first time, their eye contact didn't waver; possibly because it was intentionally done this time. Bolt searched for the words to say in response to that question. The Summer Sun Festival had taken up most of the day, filling it with activities found typically at festivals such of these. Novel games to take part in, plenty of food and drink to experiment, a large variety of ponies to meet. All of this was rather alien to Bolt though, and he hadn't gone into it with high expectations. He wouldn't have gone at all, if not for the insistence of the group of mares. According to them, he had played a role in the events that allowed the festival to happen at all. He felt that was an exaggeration though. Regardless, he had actually ended up enjoyed himself somewhat. The new experience wasn't as painful as he had anticipated - largely due to his company, most likely. He wasn't sure if he would be enthusiastic about attending another event like it though.

"Oh dear... Didn't you enjoy yourself?" Bolt blinked as he heard Fluttershy's soft tone once again, which brought attention to just how long he had taken to reply to her question. He had simply gotten lost in his thoughts, but that pause could have easily been seen as hesitation, especially by somepony like Fluttershy. He shook his head softly, quickly dispelling the misunderstanding.

"Oh no, that's not it. I had my doubts beforehand, but I was pleasantly surprised." Bolt's words seemed to ease Fluttershy's spirits, as evident by the smile that crossed her features. She wasn't the only pony listening to his thoughts on the events of the day though. A rough nudge into his side forced his attention to shift to the pony next to him, his gaze falling on a smug Rainbow Dash looking his way.

"I told you it would be great!" The rainbow maned mare chimed in with a confident grin on her face. True to her word, Rainbow Dash had told Steele Bolt that the Summer Sun Festival would be 'awesome.' It was her contribution to the groups cooperative attempt at convincing Bolt to tag along to the festival; which had obviously succeeded. He simply rolled his eyes in response; not wanting to add any fuel to her insufferable ego.

A pause came about after that conversation dried up. Tired minds hardly helped productive thought after all. The ambient sounds of the train chugging along and the unceremonious snoring of Pinkie Pie filled the carriage, hindering the chance of golden silence from surrounding them. That was probably a secret blessing though; since it would be all too easy to fall asleep in such a setting. This somewhat awkward pause didn't remain for long, thankfully.

"You seem to be fitting in well, Bolt." The stallion raised his head from it's resting place on his upturned hoof upon hearing that, the voice belonging to the Princess of Friendship. He offered her a quizzical expression, a little bemused over where this topic had suddenly come from. He hadn't expected it, but it was certainly better than no conversation at all. "I'm relieved, to be honest. I was worried you wouldn't open up to us." Twilight elaborated; a smile upon her face that was so gentle that it could contend with Fluttershy herself.

"Well I wasn't worried for a second!" Rainbow Dash interjected with a surprising amount of energy, considering her no doubt fatigued state, going as far as wrapping a wing around Bolt. The Earth pony's ears flattened as he looked in the multi-coloured maned mare's direction, whom was a little too close for comfort at the moment. He detected subtle wafts of her scent, that was how close she was to him... Her words didn't help his discomfort either.

"Why do you sound so confident? There's nothing special about me." Steele Bolt spoke with disdain, his gaze dropping as thoughts of self loathing crept through his brain. Here he was, surrounded by six incredibly significant mares. Each of them had heavily assisted in saving Equestria multiple times, even if this was relatively recent news to a recluse like him. Regardless, his accomplishments paled in comparison to theirs. When considering this, it didn't feel right to be spending so much time with these ponies. They were practically celebrities!

"What makes you say that? The fact that we're friends proves how awesome you are!" Rainbow quickly countered, her grip on the crestfallen stallion tightening slightly as she offered him a disapproving scowl. Her words of encouragement came as a surprise to him, but her bear-like grip was even more so. Bolt could only squirm. There was no way she was letting him go until he conceded, but he wasn't entirely convinced. That must have been obvious by his expression, as Twilight quickly picked up where Rainbow Dash left off.

"Rainbow has a point. You've made exciting progress in the field of engineering, and your perseverance in the face of failure is to be admired." The Alicorn spoke positively, enthusiasm in her tone of voice. She definitely meant what she was saying, which only served to embarrass Bolt, bringing a light crimson colour to his cheeks. He wasn't used to being complimented like this, or at all for that matter. Everypony had always thought his quirks and ambitions were weird and unnatural, yet here were six mares that saw merit in them instead. He could feel an alien feeling filling his chest, a warm, fuzzy feeling.

"You might be too hard on yourself..." A quite, meek voice concluded, the owner obvious before Bolt had even looked in her direction. Fluttershy sat with a gentle look on her face, a tender smile that sort to comfort the insecure stallion. What a kind mare... He couldn't help but return her smile, his eyes beginning to water as the moving comments from his new found friends filled him with emotion.

"Maybe..." The Earth pony muttered quietly, looking away from the three of them as his lip quivered subtly. He wasn't one to let others see him in a moment of weakness, but there was nowhere for him to run to. He swallowed his pride, but refused to let the waterworks start. That was not a bridge he was willing to cross. Not right now.

Looks were shared between the three mares; whom seemed pleased that their comments hadn't been completely shot down by the stallion. Some semblance of progress had been made on building Bolt some self confidence. From there, the conversation continued onto other topics, so that Bolt could be spared from further embarrassment. But throughout the remainder of the trip to Ponyville, Rainbow Dash didn't remove her wing from around the dull coloured pony.

A yawn left Steele Bolt's lips as he wandered away from the train station. They had arrived in Ponyville roughly ten minutes prior, but that time had been filled with tired farewells as the group split up to return to their respective homes. It was safe to say that each and every member was eager to get some much deserved rest, and Bolt was no exception. He wasn't entirely alone just yet though.

"Sleepy?" His companion asked softly, her pale pink mane blowing softly in the evening breeze. Bolt hadn't been aware of this until tonight, but he and Fluttershy actually lived pretty close to each other, and thus the two of them had decided to walk home together. A modest yawn of her own slipped out after her enquiry, which made it all too clear that the stallion wasn't the only one feeling the effects of the fatigue built up over the day.

"I think we all are." The Earth pony responded to the Pegasus with a crooked smile, coaxing a quiet giggle and a nod of agreement out of her. And then silence. That was one thing that Bolt could truly appreciate about Fluttershy's company. There was very little pointless small talk. Just the enjoyment of having another's presence by one's side, a pleasure that he still wasn't entirely used to.

He stiffled another yawn, actually bothering to raise a hoof to mask it this time. His eyes naturally closed during this action; his gaze falling upon the sight of his home in the distance once his eyelids opened again. The sight was a welcoming one. Thoughts of his warm, comfortable bed crossed his mind, motivating his tired body to push on, his pace increasing so that he could reach his destination that little bit faster. Slowly, but surely, his home grew closer to them, until they finally stopped outside.

"Well, this is it for me." Bolt spoke as he turned his head to face the Pegasus standing next to him, whom was currently admiring the view of his home. She smiled softly as she looked over the property, before turning to look the stallion's way.

"You have a lovely home." She spoke with a tone of voice so sweet that it could give somepony a toothache, the compliment taking Bolt by surprise once again. He couldn't quite grasp what part of his worn down, grubby home was lovely, but considering how genuine she sounded, he doubted Fluttershy was simply saying that to be polite. She didn't seem like that type of pony anyway.

"Uh, thanks. Want to come in for a drink or something...?" The stallion offered, echoes of the manners his mother had hammered into his skull passing through his mind. He failed to realise the implications of asking a mare into his home for a drink though, so when Fluttershy's cheeks turned a faint shade of pink, he was more than a little confused.

"O-Oh no, thank you. I really should get home... Thank you though..." The Pegasus shyed away from Bolt, her gaze fluttering around in a desperate attempt to avoid eye contact with the stallion in front of her. His eyebrow raised as he watched her reaction, equal parts curious and confused by how uncomfortable she seemed by his offer.

"Uh... Are you alright? Did I say something wrong...?" Steele Bolt asked, tilting his head to the side as one ear followed the motion, tipping to the side while the other remained pointed into the air. It was uncanny how much the gesture mimicked that of a dog, yet he didn't even seem aware of that fact.

"O-Oh, it's nothing... I'm just really tired..." Fluttershy's attempt at playing off her reaction only served to make Bolt suspicious, his eyes narrowing slightly as he tried to pick up any hints that she might be lying. Sadly, he wasn't all that great at reading other ponies, and he had no reason to doubt Fluttershy's word, even if her behaviour did seem a little odd... He decided to shrug it off, much to the mare's relief.

"W-Well, I'm glad you enjoyed yourself today, B-Bolt... Um... If you ever need anything... You can come see me..." Fluttershy muttered her farewell to the stallion with a voice that gradually diminished in volume, her new found shyness likely brought on by his accidental advance on her moments prior. Not that the dense stallion was aware of this... He simply smiled at her, and nodded his head.

"Same to you. Though you'll probably have to let yourself in... I don't always hear when I have guests..." Bolt replied honestly, raising an eyebrow as he glanced towards his home. He couldn't help it. When he became invested in his work, the world around him just melted away. Which was probably why Rainbow Dash found it so easy to sneak up on him... He huffed at that thought.

"G-Goodnight!" The stammering Pegasus spoke quickly, taking a few steps back before turning around so she could begin on the short trip from Bolt's house to her own home. The stallion rose a hoof into the air and waved to Fluttershy as she took her leave, before crudely yawning, not bothering to even muffle it now that he was finally alone. It was time to head to bed, and he couldn't be happier.

Author's Note

Kept you waiting, huh. Sorry this chapter took so long to come out, I've really struggled with completing it. Probably not my best work either, but I just wanted to get it done towards the end there, haha. I was aiming to start building a bond between Bolt and Flutters, since they're basically neighbors. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy. See you in the next one! Whenever it comes out...