What's in a Nickname?

by Moon Glow

Rating: everyone
Tags: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Soarin, Alternate Universe, Rainbow Dash, Spitfire, Drama
Length: 1813

An alternate version of "Newbie Dash" where Rainbow Dash leaves the Wonderbolts instead of messing up the Air Show.

An alternate version of "Newbie Dash" where Rainbow Dash leaves the Wonderbolts instead of messing up the Air Show. Upon finding Rainbow's resignation letter and discarded Wonderbolt uniform with jacket by Soarin, Spitfire goes and confronts the AWOL Rainbow Dash.

Author's Note: I know Rainbow's not a quitter. But she came in close in episodes like "Testing 1,2,3) and (Rarity Investigates).

Published 2016-05-12 19:40:01 UTC
Last updated 2016-05-12 19:40:01 UTC

Resignation

Author's Note

I've came up with this idea after sharing it in a comment on Dr Wolf's review video of "Newbie Dash." A couple of people asked me to put this idea on the site and I spent the last couple of days doing so between fishing and preparing for Finals.

I do not own MLP.

Resignation

Rainbow Dash looked at the jacket she received from Spitfire in both dismay and disdain. Thanks to that mortifying nickname, “Rainbow Crash,” she was now the laughing stock of the Wonderbolts.

She tried and tried again to remove the nickname with various plans from impersonating her friends’ personalities that either freaked out or annoy the other Wonderbolts, to aerial acrobatics that went horribly wrong. With Spitfire, the captain of the Wonderbolts, calling her “Rainbow Crash” and giving her a jacket that permanently labels her, Rainbow has finally reached her limit.

Tossing the jacket on the floor, Rainbow removed her Wonderbolt uniform and began pulling stuff out of her locker. She had one idea, but that meant risking the air show. And she didn’t want to give the Wonderbolts even more reason to tease her. There were so many times where she wanted to pick a fight just to get them to stop like she did in Flight Camp. But these ponies were not those foals, but professional fliers who, despite their shortcomings, were a part of Equestria’s military. It would make a civilian look foolish for striking a soldier.

After gathering her gear, Rainbow collected her discarded uniform and the jacket. She approached a trashcan and tossed the clothing in. She then took a piece of paper and wrote on it with a pencil, the finished product being placed in the ventilation slit. With a saddened gaze at her uniform, Rainbow walked out the door.

“I guess I’m not Wonderbolt-material after all…”

Two Hours before the Air Show…

As Spitfire finished the paperwork she needed to get done before the air show, a desperate-sounding knock on her office door. Not looking from her papers, the Captain of the Wonderbolts spoke out. “Come in.” Bursting in was none other than Soarin, her second-in-command. He panted a bit, a stressed look on his face.

“Spitfire! We’ve got a problem!”

Spitfire groaned as she placed a hoof on her temple. What could go wrong now? Especially with the Air Show in a couple of hours.

“What problem?” she said irritably.

Soarin gulped, knowing the information he held was going to make Spitfire angry.

“It’s Rainbow Dash! She never showed up! Her bed’s been empty all night! We thought she was getting in some things done late, so we didn’t question it! But a few minutes ago, we found these in the trash!”

He held out a hoof, showing the discarded clothing of the rainbow-maned mare, including the jacket Spitfire had given her the other day. Spitfire’s eyes widened as her jaw dropped. But before she could speak, Soarin pulled something from his suit’s pocket.

“We also found this sticking out of her locker. It’s a resignation letter.”

Swift as lightning, Spitfire took the letter and read it over and over again. It was a formal letter, so the reason why wasn’t specific other than one line.

“I regret that I may not be fit to be a member of the Wonderbolts, after all.”

After moments of silence, Spitfire slammed her hooves on her desk in anger.

“I’m going to find her!”

Soarin was taken aback by his captain’s outburst, but found himself asking a question.

“What about the air show?”

Looking at the address of the rainbow-maned mare in her address book, Spitfire gave him his answer.

“You’ll take over until I get back, with or without Rainbow. If one or both of us aren’t back in time, start the show without us.”

Soarin saluted and left to get the Wonderbolts ready. Once she got Rainbow’s address, Spitfire grabbed the discarded clothes and the letter before she burst out the door and flew in the direction of Ponyville.

“That mare’s got a lot of explaining to do.”

It took little to find Rainbow Dash’s cloud home in the Earth Pony-built town. With the elaborate architecture and rainbows, it stuck out like a sore hoof. Spitfire didn’t even need to know if the occupant was home or not as the mare in question was dragging a trashcan filled with something blue and gold out the door. It wasn’t until Spitfire got closer that she recognized the discarded items.

Wonderbolt memorabilia.

This worried Spitfire, but her anger was still raging as she landed on a cloud in front of Rainbow. Seeing the Wonderbolt, Rainbow found herself between shock and indifference as she continued to pull her trashcan out.

“Spitfire? What are you doing here?”

“The better question is ‘Why are you here?’”

The Wonderbolt held out the items she brought with her, causing Rainbow to frown. “A resignation?! After a day and a half?! And right before the Air Show?! After I gave you this jacket, too! We’re about to go on and here you---!”

Having enough, Rainbow turned around and, for the first time, shouted at the Wonderbolt in anger.

“You wanna know why I quit?! I’ll tell you! It’s that nickname!”

Spitfire froze in confusion. Her nickname?

“What about it?” She asked.

Ignoring the concerned look on the Wonderbolt captain’s face, Rainbow let loose the rant she had held in for the past day and a half.

“I HATE BEING CALLED ‘RAINBOW CRASH!’ You wanna know why? Because I got called that A LOT in Flight Camp! And not as a good joke! It was a name I got teased a lot with! I’d let it wash over before when those jerks call me that to this day! But to have the Wonderbolts, my heroes, call me that… You know what it did?! I’ll tell you! It…was…HUMILIATING! I tried to get you guys to stop! From telling you that my name is “Rainbow DASH,” not “Rainbow CRASH,” to acting like my friends from Ponyville! Heck, if it weren’t for the fact that it would’ve ruined it for everypony, I would do something reckless during the Air Show JUST so I can get you guys to STOP CALLING ME THAT NAME!”

Spitfire remained frozen as Rainbow Dash unleashed her rant. Did she really hate the nickname the Wonderbolts, including Spitfire herself, gave her? It was a normal thing in the Wonderbolts to call each other some sort of nickname. It was a practice that had lasted since before the time of Commander Hurricane and Private Pansy. It was then that Spitfire remembered how poorly Rainbow Dash had been performing ever since that incident with the trashcan. She and everypony in the Wonderbolts knew how good a flyer Rainbow Dash was. Did it really take a mortifying nickname to bring her, the Element of Loyalty, down?

Wanting to end the conversation, Rainbow proceeded to drag the trashcan out the door while struggling to keep her tears at bay. She was not about to cry in front of a Wonderbolt, no matter how less she thought of them now.

“I should’ve learned my lesson when Soarin and the others accused me of sending you away in Canterlot. Everypony must look after themselves. Dreams don’t matter. It is a fool’s endeavor to dream of being great. That jacket you gave me? That was the final nail in the coffin. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to clean my house out before I get my old job back within Ponyville’s Weather Team.”

Hearing Rainbow talk so cynically about dreams being foolish shocked Spitfire even further. And the jacket she gave Rainbow as a well-meaning gift having the opposite effect had made the feeling of guilt the Wonderbolt was having grew even further. She and the others meant well. So how come they didn’t consider how Rainbow Dash felt with the nickname? Or even notice the effect it was having on her? Seeing the rainbow-maned mare throwing her dream away literally right before her was a wake-up call.

Rainbow halted as Spitfire touched a shoulder with her hoof.

“Look at me, Rainbow.”

Still upset and angry, Rainbow reluctantly turned to her former captain. She forced herself to look at Spitfire’s eyes. But finding them in a saddened gaze caught Rainbow by surprise. What she said next took her completely off guard.

“I never realized how much being called ‘Rainbow Crash’ bothered you. None of us did. It’s a tradition to give each other a nickname in the Wonderbolts. Soarin’s nickname, ‘Clipper,’ was because he clipped a flagpole on his first day. Heck, you don’t wanna know my nickname. At least, not in public. The point is we should’ve taken notice about how you were feeling. And the bit about ‘not being Wonderbolt-material?’ You cannot be more wrong than that.”

“How? Everything I did ever since joining the Wonderbolts has been nothing but disaster.” Rainbow asked, wondering where this was going.

Spitfire continued.

“You’re one of the best flyers we have ever seen. You’ve won the Best Flyer competition after saving me, Soarin and Fleetfoot, not mention your unicorn friend, while performing a Sonic Rainboom. Not to mention that you’ve saved Equestria more times than even we in the Wonderbolts could ever do. So it baffles me as to why none of us noticed how much your nickname was bothering you when you began to perform poorly despite us knowing better.”

The Wonderbolt then scratched her head with her hoof.

“What I’m trying to say is I’m sorry. I’m-was your commanding officer, yet I didn’t act professionally. And I’m sure the others will be just as sorry once we’ve explained the situation. You’re a great flyer, Rainbow Dash. We need you in the Air Show. Not as the comic relief, but as a fellow Wonderbolt.”

She then held out the Wonderbolt uniform to an uncertain Rainbow. “So what do you say? Still wanna be a Wonderbolt?” Rainbow was hesitant. At first. But after taking into consideration of what Spitfire had just said, she cautiously took the uniform and put it on, a slight smile on her face.

“I’ll help with the Air Show. However, if anyone calls me ‘Rainbow Crash’ again, it’s back to Ponyville’s Weather Team for me.”

Spitfire released a relived smile as she led the new Wonderbolt back to the Air Show. The matter about the nickname will be dealt with after the show. But one thing’s for sure, Spitfire learned a lesson.

Not everypony can fully relinquish their emotions to others. Next time somepony has an episode like Rainbow Dash, Spitfire will be sure to check for any subtle signs. Because the difference between a good friend and a bad one is noticing what’s wrong and dealing with the problem before things go out of control.