Blitz

1

They walked side-by-side, passing by Mr. Mint's darkened stand which had since closed for the night.

"So, tell me how you got your cutie mark." Dash had been curious about it since meeting the young colt. She had been barely older than him before discovering her own special talent, but he seemed as if he'd already had the mark for a while. Blitz almost seemed to strut at her inquiry; she couldn't help but giggle at his pride, having been the same way not long ago.

"Well... I can't fly yet..." he rolled his eyes, embarrassed to admit to one of the best fliers in Equestria about his inability. It wasn't from a lack of trying. He would frequently jump off his bed and flutter his wings as fast as possible, the result always being him on his haunches. His parents had eventually stopped coming upstairs after every little thud. "And one day I was just galloping around the park in central Cloudsdale-" Rainbow Dash's face broke out into a wide grin, having played there herself during foalhood, "when nopony was looking so they wouldn't see when I fell flat on my face, ya know?" She nodded, understanding the feeling all to well.

"Well, I tried putting my wings in all sorts of positions! Flapping didn't work, straight out didn't either. I was about to give up and go home when I brought my wings straight back, like this." He demonstrated the act, stretching his wings as far back as they'd go. Dash's eyes widened a bit in surprise; the wings stood stiffly at a thirty-five degree angle. Only pegasi in a steep dive would bother with that angle, and even then it was only used to gain incredible speed.

"I was still running around, going faster as I got more frustrated, until I got mad enough that my back legs actually pushed me off the ground! With every stride, I could stay off the ground longer... it always feels like a little bubble of air is carrying me. I've been practicing it ever since! Now I can do it without even thinking about it." Rainbow Dash laughed inwardly, knowing exactly what happened. The boy had used his wings as fins to cut through the air, not that it was particularly thick up here in Cloudsdale to begin with. She silently wondered what he could do closer to the ground.

"I was so tired after that I didn't even notice my cutie mark until dad pointed it out. He was so proud of me! Hey, look! It's my house!" They had come up to a rather modest two story cloud-house. A light was still shining in the living quarters, although most Cloudsdale residents were asleep by now. The door slowly opened as an aged, well kept white face with soft lavender eyes peeked out from behind a curtain.

"Welcome home, honey." Winter's voice bore its usual gentle tone. Blitz trotted inside as Blaze rounded the corner, having stopped his reading to come and meet his son. Rainbow Dash stood just short of the threshold, patiently waiting for an invite before stepping in.

"I see you've made a new friend," Winter commented, turning her attention to their unexpected guest. She extended a hoof in greeting; it was returned in kind. "Won't you please come in?"

"Thank you." Dash stepped into their entrance hallway as Winter closed the door behind her, catching only glimpses of the house before being properly introduced. Blitz jumped to her side, giving preliminary introductions.

"Rainbow Dash, this is my mom and dad! Mom, dad, this is Rainbow Dash. She's a Wonderbolt and she offered to walk me home!"

Blaze's moustache contorted with his grin. "Is that so?" he teased. "I had a feeling there was something special about that ticket." Knew it, in fact. He had reserved the ticket as soon as it was advertised, taking a week of extra shifts to afford it. His hooves throbbed from overuse, but the soreness was worth it. "Welcome to our humble home, Miss Rainbow Dash. Dinner is a bit late for obvious reasons. Would you care to join us? A salad with various plants and hay fries are the meal of the night."

"Well... I'm not really that hungry," her stomach chose to make an honest mare out of her with its growling. "Oh what the hay, I'd love to!" They all walked to the dining room, laughing and anxious to fill their stomachs.

2

"So, Miss Dash," Blaze began as he passed the salad bowl to his wife, "how long have you been in the Wonderbolts?" Dash swallowed her leaves, taking a drink of water to chase before answering.

"I just started this season. Today was my first official show, in fact." She let her pride seep out a bit; she had done an awesome job after all.

"It must have been nerve-wracking," Winter commented, putting on a motherly tone of sympathy as if it were her own child performing. Rainbow Dash thought about it for a second.

"Nah." She shook her head to supplement the word. "There's another rookie named Flash. It's not so bad when you're not the only one. We joined up at the same time; he's the technical flier and I'm more about speed. He does kick one mean snowball, though." Her nose wrinkled at the very thought of another pelting, accompanied by a light chuckle from all around the table. "So what about you guys?"

Blaze volunteered to answer this one. "I work at the weather factory. I can handle a number of tasks, but my specialty is creating snowflakes, as my cutie mark can prove." Dash tilted her head, her face a mask of confusion.

"But... your wife's name..." Blaze let out a hearty laugh, having heard it a hundred times. To him, it would never get old.

"Yes, her name's Winter, but I make the snowflakes. Funny enough, she's a chandler." He nodded toward the table centerpiece. It was a three branched, gold-leafed ornate Candelabrum. Each base held a hoof-crafted wax candle, the flames dim in the artificial light. A strong but not overpowering aroma of cinnamon wafted from each stick, with similarly scented candles were spread around the rest of the house, giving it very comfortable feeling. "It was a very fun first meeting we had." Dash giggled. Her tough exterior would never allow it to be admitted, but she enjoyed cute stories like that.

The chatter grew as the salad bowl emptied, each pony finished with their second helping. Rainbow Dash offered to clear the table to show her gratitude; Winter politely refused, claiming a guest needn't raise a hoof in somepony else's home. She balanced each dish with a skill that only years of practice can bring, almost tiptoeing into the kitchen.

"Hey Dash!" She looked over as Blitz spoke up, eyebrows raised on her soft features. "Wanna come see my room?"

"Sure!" He led her upstairs, opening his room door and allowing her in first, as he was always taught to do. She trotted in, amused by all the Wonderbolts memorabilia. Just like my old room. A smirk came to her face as she looked around, taking in every detail. The room itself was of decent size, allowing Blitz the chance to grow up in it without having to move anything. A moderately sized bed faced her from across the room, sitting under a window that would no doubt let Celestia's sunlight wash over its occupant every morning. A three-level bookshelf sat to her left, packed with Wonderbolts reading material and the Daring Do series.

"Well..." Blitz had become sheepish; one of his idols had just entered his private sanctuary. "This is my room."

"I love it!" Rainbow Dash could barely manage the words through an amused laugh. "It looks just like when I was a filly. Well, with different posters. And more books." She leaned toward his ear, whispering as though she held some deep secret only he could appreciate, "I didn't like reading very much when I was a filly. But I did learn to love it after being hospitalized." A sly grin was shared between them as a voice gently floated up the stairs.

"Blitz, honey, it's time to go to bed!" His ears flopped; it also meant Rainbow Dash had to leave. She saw his face lose its spark, and came up with an idea.

"Say, kiddo. Tomorrow's an off day for us; why don't you and I hang out for the whole day?" He couldn't believe it. An entire day spent with Rainbow Dash! He nodded, words failing to make their escape. "Cool! I'll make sure it's okay with your parents. Now, you oughta get to sleep."

"Oh... alright. Goodnight, Dash!"

"Goodnight." He trotted toward his bed as she shut the door, moving downstairs to give her proposal.

As soon as he heard the footsteps fade, Blitz tiptoed to the door, listening in on the conversation below. A hoof was raised in triumph when he heard both parents give their consent to his day with his new hero. Satisfied, he crept back to his bed, looking up and pinning his ears slightly at the poster arrangement on the ceiling. He grabbed a stool, carefully standing on his hind legs, with wings as a balance, and tore down the Spitfire poster which hung in the center. It was replaced with Rainbow Dash, striking a daring pose in her uniform, hood drawn back and goggles resting on her forehead.

Happy with the new arrangement, he let himself fall back on the plush bed, smiling upwards at the blue pegasus staring down at him. That smile of pure bliss never left his face as he drifted off to sleep, eagerly anticipating what tomorrow would bring.