The stamina that Rainbow Dash's months with Trixie had made stunts take a lot less physical effort. It was easy to forget everything—all her cares and worries were behind her. Rainbow Dash did five, quick aileron rolls.

"Rainbow! Trixie does not like stunts!" Trixie, meanwhile, was not enjoying the flight quite as much as her fillyfriend. "We have been over this!"

"What's that?! More?! Okay!" When Rainbow Dash had to make a choice about where to take Trixie for their second date, the answer was easy: Cloudsdale. Their afternoon had started (after they finished their practice for the new stunt) with a trip to Canterlot. From there Rainbow Dash had borrowed a chariot, and hooked up and taken to the sky with Trixie safely aboard.

Cloudsdale was just south of the Crystal Empire, and that meant that the ride from Canterlot should have been a long one, but not for a single-pony chariot, and not when it was pulled by Rainbow Dash. The loops Rainbow had flown, and the frequent rolls had added a little time to their flight, but not enough for Rainbow Dash to consider not doing them.

By the time Rainbow Dash landed the chariot in Cloudsdale, the sky was growing dim. "Don't forget to cast that cloud-walking spell." She unhooked the chariot and walked around to greet Trixie with a kiss on the cheek again.

"The Great and Powerful Trixie has been learning a lot of new tricks." Trixie prepared the spell, focused on herself as the target, and let loose. Her own magic energizing her limbs, Trixie Lulamoon tested the cloud with just one hoof first. Finding it solid, she stepped down onto the—now—solid surface.

Rainbow Dash watched Trixie Lulamoon walk, and was struck (not for the first time) by how physically fit she was. "Come on. There's a fancy place up here that Soarin told me is nice."

"Slowly. Trixie is still getting used to the ground—err, clouds—being down. She does not like whatever that trick you did was." Trixie's words were absolute truth. She walked slowly, getting a feel for having everything up the right way again. She fought down her squeamishness and made her way up beside Rainbow Dash.

Taking note to be a little more gentle on the way home, Rainbow Dash stepped a little sideways so her shoulder and thigh brushed against Trixie with each step. "So, about this trick?"

"Great and Powerful Shadowbolt? Yes?" Trixie was well aware of Rainbow with each casual touch of their bodies. Rainbow Dash was slightly in the lead, guiding Trixie along. For a brief moment Trixie considered using a leash, but then she reminded herself this was Rainbow Dash she was on a date with, not Shade.

"Would it be best if we had an actual patsy from the audience? Somepony we can tell in advance? I just don't want to freak out somepony too badly." If Rainbow Dash had learned one thing about pranking, it was that some things were going a little too far.

Trixie let out a sigh. "You're probably right. Trixie has tried these tricks before, and on several occasions she had to make a hasty retreat because the audience pony got scared and stirred everypony into a stampede. "Do you have somepony in mind?"

"A friend: Scootaloo." Reaching the right street, Rainbow Dash turned to lead the way toward the restaurant.

"The filly? Hrmm, that would help play up the danger aspect. And if she's in on the trick, we can easily make it look like she's in a little danger." While Trixie spoke, she watched as the shops progressively became higher and higher class. By the time Rainbow Dash turned toward a particular restaurant, Trixie was just coming up with the last good point. "And who stops a foal from getting to go on stage?"

Rainbow Dash walked into the restaurant. There was a big VIP chain covering the entrance. "Hey! What gives? I sent a friend to book a table and—"

"Hey, Crash." Soarin was inside the restaurant, and leaned against the little podium. "We heard you got a promotion. I know you only wanted to book two seats, but when Captain Spitfire heard the news, she booked the whole place for the night."

"What?" Rainbow Dash's wings loosed at her sides, and she felt anger start to grow. "This was supposed to be—"

"Crash, don't sweat it. Of course, you and your plus one are coming in. I still can't believe the news." Soarin, casually, pulled the chain aside for Rainbow Dash. When he recognized Trixie Lulamoon, he got even more excited. "You're still together?"

"Soarin thought it was a phase, Trixie." Waiting just inside the chained off area, Rainbow Dash kissed Trixie on the cheek.

Raising an eyebrow as she watched Soarin's face fall a little, Trixie smiled. "Trixie doesn't do phases—they are too tiring." She could see the entire Wonderbolt team around a big table in the middle of the room. One or two of them she could be reasonably intimidating toward, but the whole team was a united force of awesome.

Trixie Lulamoon didn't know how to be meek, however. She quickly cast a new spell Starlight Glimmer had taught her: invisibility. "Close your eyes."

"Whoa. You made us invisible?" Holding up a hoof before her own face, Rainbow Dash was stunned to be able to look right through it. "How'd you do thi—" An invisible hoof poked into Rainbow dash's mouth.

Stepping right up to the table, or so she hoped (her eyes were closed), Trixie tossed a smoke bomb at the floor and dispelled the invisibility a moment later—when she hoped the smoke was thick enough to hide their appearance.

One thing Trixie hadn't planned for was combat-trained pegasi. When she opened her eyes, Trixie saw three members of the Wonderbolts fanning their wings—the smoke was practically out of the door behind her.

"Nice try!" Spitfire knew Trixie Lulamoon from the times she and Rainbow Dash had put on shows after the Wonderbolts' own. "You and Crash still an item? Good for you."

Trixie had learned a rule when it came to showing off: sometimes somepony is "good" enough that you cannot win against them directly. Spitfire seemed that, but there was also the compliment she paid, which appeased the Great and Powerful Trixie.

"Wait." Thunderlane looked from Trixie to Rainbow, then back again. "Soarin, when you said Crash wanted you to book two seats…"

Even Spitfire colored at the realization of what they had accidentally crashed. "This is my fault, too."

Soarin looked between Spitfire and Thunderlane. "Wasn't it a celebration of her promotion? I don't get it."

Standing up, Fleetfoot walked over to Soarin and pressed her mouth to his ear. "They came here on a date."

"A date?!" Soarin stared around at the other Wonderbolts. "Aww pony-feathers. And we're all intruding on it!"

"No, you're not." Trixie stomped up to the table the Wonderbolts were sitting at and parked her plot on a spare seat. "Trixie and Rainbow have plenty of other times they can go on a date. What's this about a promotion?"

"Princess Luna sent it with her fastest courier." Spitfire pulled an important looking scroll from the table. "You're now an honorary Wonderbolt, you'll always have that rank, Crash. But now you're Captain of the Shadowbolts." She passed the scroll to Rainbow. "Don't know what Shadowbolts are, but I know a royal promotion when I see one."

While Rainbow Dash read the decree, she felt a chill run down her spine. At first, she thought it was from the news, but the chill got stronger and she felt something swell inside her. Tilting her head away from the note, away from her squadmates, she looked right at the moon (though there was a wall blocking her view, she knew where it was).

"If you don't mind, the Great and Powerful Trixie needs to talk with Rainbow Dash." Pushing back to her hooves, Trixie floated Rainbow into the air just a little, and levitated her to a table in the far corner of the restaurant. "This is big news."

"Y-Yeah. I didn't know things would change this much." Rainbow Dash got to the end of the decree and returned to the start—unfortunately, nothing had changed from one reading to the next. "I mean, I'm still a Wonderbolt?"

Trixie rolled her eyes. "You've saved Equestria so many times they should make you two Wonderbolts."

Under the circumstances, a giggle was exactly what Rainbow Dash needed. "I don't think that's how it works, Trixie."

"What does this mean for you? For the Shadowbolts?" Trixie asked.

"Yeah. That's what I don't get. So I'm a captain, but captains need a command." Reaching to the middle of the table, Rainbow Dash snared a bread-stick and bit the end off it. She chewed thoughtfully for a moment before gulping the bread down. "We'll need to go to Canterlot and speak with Princess Luna."

Trixie nodded. "But first Trixie thinks you need to celebrate with your friends."

"Trixie can be pretty smart sometimes. Damn unicorn egg-heads." Closing her eyes, Rainbow Dash pressed her lips to Trixie's. They were soft, warm, and moving back against her own. They were locked in the kiss for nearly four whole seconds before cheering came from the main table.

"You go, Crash!" was the loudest cry from among the cheer.

Between nuzzles, Trixie let out a sigh. "We need to go back over there, Captain Crash." Flicking her tongue over Rainbow's lips, Trixie let out a little giggle at the hungry/happy look on Rainbow's face. "Come on."

Rainbow Dash stole another kiss before she turned toward the table of her comrades. As she strutted back over, Trixie by her side, she felt her curiosity rise about one subject in particular. "So, why's Cloudsdale all the way up here? Last time I checked the Crystal Empire didn't need its weather worked on."

"That's just the thing, something's whipping up a huge storm here. A few of the weather egg-heads think it's just some minor retaliation against the sunshine and warmth the Crystal Heart's producing. Princess Celestia asked us to deploy the best weather ponies we have against it." Spitfire had picked up a piece of fancy toast and now crunched it in her mouth.

Another chill ran down Rainbow Dash's spine, but this time she couldn't find a reason for it. Sitting at the table, she reached out and grabbed some of the toast for herself. "Well, it's lucky you have the best weather pony in all Equestria here."

"All the best," Spitfire said. "I'm sure we'll have the weather back to normal in no time. Now, eat up, Captain." She held her hoof across the table to Rainbow Dash.

As Rainbow reached across to clop hooves with Spitfire, she noticed something odd. Just before their hooves met a purple arc of light flickered. The chill ran up her spine again. "There's only two types of weather that make Princess Elmo's Fire." As she drew her hoof back, the purple light kept burning on her own and Spitfire's hooves.

"Thunderstorms over water." Soarin recounted the drills that his training had instilled in him. "A-A-And—"

"Grab your gear and get on the field! I want you all ready to fly in under five minutes!" At her best when yelling, Spitfire never failed to bring her voice to bear when there was an emergency. "Now you bunch of fillies!"

Trixie Lulamoon looked confused. She turned to face Rainbow Dash (the last Wonderbolt left in the room now the rest had turned and bolted). "What else can do that?"

"The enemy of all ponies. Windigo." Rainbow Dash turned toward the exit. "Are you coming?"

"Well, of course I'm coming." Taking a step after Rainbow Dash, Trixie was surprised when Rainbow clopped her forehooves together. "What are you doing?"

"I don't think Princess Luna did any of this just for show." As Rainbow spoke she felt Shade baying inside her head. Together. We need to fight this together, Rainbow Dash thought.

Author's Note

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