With forcefully strong wingbeats, Rainbow Dash flew into the open skies. She squinted due to the harsh sunlight, but quickly regained her cool and continued with the confident wingbeats confidently.
The little filly looked around her. Fillies and colts who couldn't have been much older than her. Some were bigger, sure. Some seemed to be more confident with their wingbeats than the rest. But none of that mattered. They could be alright, but Rainbow Dash was the best flyer in Flight School. Her parents had said so!
It’d be foolish to think she was nervous. Not at all. It was just excitement! Excitement over getting to show everypony in Flight Camp how cool she was! She was gonna wow everyone with her cool moves, and the name “Rainbow Dash” would go down in history as the coolest pony to come out of Cloudsdale.
“Are you gonna stay there all day?” came a raspy voice behind her.
Turning around, Rainbow Dash saw the one non-pony in Flight Camp. She still wasn’t sure how her friend managed to smirk with that beak, but that didn’t matter.
“You mean ahead of you, Gilda? Sure!”
The griffon simply rolled her eyes. “Psh… You wish.”
Showing off how much better lips were at smirking, Rainbow Dash shot back another taunt. “How about you put your wings to work instead of your beak?”
Determination lit in the griffon’s eyes. Good. “Oh, you’re on, Dash!”
There was no need for words. With radiant smiles, the two friends immediately jumped and started flying as fast as their wings would let them. Somewhere, they could hear the stern cries of one of the teachers, but neither paid any mind. Right then and there, the only thing that mattered was the beating of their wings, and the wind against their faces.
Rainbow Dash lazily hovered just above the crowd. Despite most creatures being winged, almost everyone seemed content with walking in the improvised streets. Groups of wood and fabric stalls marked haphazard blocks around which the masses flowed. Games, small attractions, and enough kinds of fried and baked food to make Pinkie start vibrating.
All in all, not that different from the festivals back in Ponyville.
With soft wing beats, Dash moved around, sometimes staying still for just long enough to take in whatever a stall was offering. Was that why they were called “stalls”? Eh, whatever.
Most of her mind was focused on the ticket safely packed in her saddlebags, between the pages of the latest Daring Do novel, right when she got knocked down in an avalanche in the Ashvalaya mountains. The chapter where the lost yeti civilization rescued her and brought her to their hidden magical fortress in the mountains held the letter that had come with the ticket.
She still remembered the worn leather envelope that arrived in her mail one morning. Equestria’s postal system was highly efficient, if you ignore the freak accidents. There was only one reason for heavy duty envelopes: Overseas mailing.
A strongly scented aroma distracted her. Looking down, she saw an open stand with a weird rotating contraption.
“Eh, it’s still early. Why not?” she muttered to herself.
Landing on an empty patch, she walked up to the stall and eyed the lanky griffon cranking a wheel to make a pile of… something rotate against a red hot piece of metal.
“Yo! What are you selling?”
The griffon swivelled his head until he found Rainbow Dash. “Ah, pony client! Welcome! Have some delicious roasted treats! Look! There are vegetable options for ponies!”
The seller animatedly waved towards a pile of heavily spiced slices of vegetables, rotating on a separate gadget.
“Sweet. Guess you’re really taking this whole integration thing in stride, huh?”
A smile worth half a Pinkie Pie split the griffon’s beak. “Are you kidding me? This is great! I work more, but I make twice as much! Everybody is happy! Ponies are great! I love Equestria! Haha!”
Hehehe… Friendship.
“Happy for you, dude. Gimme one of those veggie things,” she said, sending a couple of bits flying towards the counter.
“On it, missy!”
With quick motions, Dash’s snack was ready less than a minute later. Steamy, covered in tasty juices, and probably packing a punch for her tongue and her digestive system. Just like she wanted.
“Thanks. Hey, you wouldn’t know which way to the arena, right?”
Still holding a big knife, the griffon pointed somewhere behind him. “Ah, yes. The event. They must’ve finished setting that up. You can check if you want, but I doubt you’ll still find tickets!”
“Oh, you don’t have to worry about that. Thanks again, mister,” Dash replied and, offering a small salute, flew away as she chomped on her vegetables.
“Have fun, young filly! Oh, and Happy Hearth’s Warming! Haha!”
Dash smiled. Partly because the griffon’s good spirits were infections, but also because the snack was really good. As she kept flying away, her eyes settled on a large banner on the other end of the festival.
The Griffon Empire Wishes Equestria a Happy Hearth’s Warming
How nice.
Honestly, she wasn’t sure how those new friendship treaties were supposed to make Ponies and Griffons into friends, but whatever worked. And when she heard about how the new embassy of the Griffon Kingdom was going to make a festival to “promote cultural exchange” and other legalese words with many syllables, she’d had her doubts, but this had turned out pretty nicely.
Plus, it gave her something to do during the Holidays.
So, with good spirits and a tasty snack, Rainbow Dash flew towards the large arena in the back of the festival.
With a graceless thud, Rainbow Dash landed on a cloud, sending half of its mass flying away in formless tufts of vapour.
”Woah…” the filly whispered as regained her bearings. Once the dizziness faded, however, the adrenaline still kicking through her body soon took over once more and she started buzzing in excitement. “That… was… a—!”
Suddenly, Rainbow Dash was sent right through the cloud as something heavy collided with her. Spinning out of control, it took a moment for her to realise just who was the culprit.
”Amazing!” Gilda cried out. Her voice barely audible over the wind against their spinning bodies. They kept going for a while before finally slowing down. Their emotions did not diminish, however.
”That was a Sonic Rainboom!” they both yelled in unison. Delighted laughing followed as they both turned around. The chromatic aura of the Rainboom had mostly dissipated, but the faint traces of light were enough to keep the fire of their excitement burning.
”How did you do that?” Gilda asked.
”I don’t know,” Dash replied in earnest.
Gilda let out a guffaw. “Well, you better figure it out, because you’ve got to teach me.”
”Heh… I don’t know, Gil. You’ve got to be at least as cool as me to pull off something like that.”
”Tsk.” Gilda gave her a light punch on her shoulder. “I didn’t hear you complaining when I was showing you my tricks.”
”Hehehe… Yeah, sure. Let’s go. I want to see the looks on Dumb-Bell and Hoop's faces.”
No more was said. After a quick exchange of smiles, both friends flew away.
As she waited in line to be let inside the arena, Dash had nothing to prevent her thoughts from drifting back to the letter in her saddlebag.
Just over a week ago, she woke up to see that thick envelope jammed in her mailbox. A mix of emotions, headlined by confusion, had taken over her until she read the sender’s name.
It had been a few months since she last saw Gilda. Their little adventure in Griffonstone had ended up with them rekindling their friendship. They hadn’t kept in touch, however. Making the trip all the way from the Griffon Kingdom to Equestria wasn’t something you just did at the drop of a hat.
Writing wasn’t something that had crossed Dash’s mind, sadly. But at least Gilda had taken the initiative. It had been… nostalgic. Honestly, she was glad to have the griffon back in her life. As much as the falling out between them hurt, it all seemed like such a small memory now.
“Dear guests, please enter orderly! The show will start soon!” Came an announcer’s voice, breaking Dash from her reveries. Ponies and griffons alike started moving inside the makeshift arena. Looking up, Rainbow read the banner hanging over the entrance.
Wings Across Borders: Bridging Realms Through Friendship and Flying.
It was so cheesy, but she guessed it drove the point across. The first time she read the name in Gilda’s letter, she’d actually let out a snicker. Good thing she’d gotten it out of her system in the days since.
Most of the letter had been Gilda talking about the festival. How this had Griffonstone abuzz, seeing how it was the biggest thing the kingdom as a whole has done in centuries. There was a whole political undercurrent to it, but the main idea was that the kingdom wanted to show good faith to Equestria and Hearth’s Warming was the best chance in their eyes. And now, here she was, enjoying griffon cuisine and lining up for a flight show put up by the best flyers the kingdom had to offer.
Unsurprisingly, that included Gilda.
Dash turned in her ticket and walked in. The stands were simple wooden benches with a slightly tilted backrest. She supposed that was more feasible than making high stands at cloud level, and it made it easier for ponies without wings.
As she settled on her seat, she thought back to the rest of the letter. Friendship could get sappy at times. Just hanging out with Fluttershy or Pinkie would attest to that. But she was cool with it. Still, it was kinda weird seeing Gilda act like that. Sure, she’d gotten a taste of it back in Griffonstone, but that didn’t make it any less curious.
She talked about the friends she’d make back home, and the friends those friends had made. They all seemed pretty happy about the whole thing. And when it was decided to hold a festival in Equestria, setting up a flight show had been Gilda’s idea.
And she wanted Rainbow Dash to be there.
Well, she wasn’t gonna say no. It’d been a while since she’d last checked her friend’s flight moves. Years, really… They used to always practise together back in Flight Camp, and some time afterwards. A smile tugged at her lips. She supposed she’d just have to take mental notes on how the griffon would fly and help her get better afterwards.
“And now, esteemed guests, get ready to witness the flight prowess of the Griffon Kingdom’s premiere flight team: The Blitzkralle!”
Ah, yes. The lightning claw. As much as she wanted to say the Wonderbolts were better—because they were—theirs was still pretty cool.
Somewhere on the other end of the arena, trumpets started playing. Just as they hit their crescendo, the gates opened and several griffons started flying into the air, one after the other. They pulled a very tight loop-the-loop before flying around the arena, quite close to the stands. It took only a second for Dash to recognise her friend’s face.
Right there on the front. Spearheading the group, was the determined look of a griffon on a mission. She still wondered how you smirked with a beak, but it still didn’t matter. She was far too familiar with that expression. It’s how she felt every time she pushed her body to the limits while flying.
Soon enough, Rainbow Dash found herself mirroring the smirk as she saw Gilda and her teammates pull off increasingly elaborate stunts. Stunts that, she realised, seemed familiar.
The continuous spins followed by an upwards trajectory. The way they split in two groups and flew in intertwined spirals. None were super original, but she remembered those tricks. Those are the ones she practised with Gilda back in Flight Camp.
Her smirk slowly turned into a full smile. Nostalgia coursing through her mind just as much as excitement did. After a while, she simply felt content with watching her friend show off her moves, and joined the crowd in cheering whenever they pulled off a particularly daring stunt.
A while after the show was over, Rainbow Dash flew towards the back of the arena, from where the flight team had been. The sun was on its way down, giving the evening a comfortable orange lighting. A gentle breeze swept across the open field. Somewhere in the distance, a bird chirped.
Suddenly, she heard the rustling of paws and claws, and a creaky door opening. She turned around in time to see a few griffons walk out. They all made the effort of smiling towards her. A few gave her a polite nod before flying off, and one stopped to ask if she enjoyed the show.
Finally, the one she’d been waiting for came out. Gilda looked tired, but happy. The content weariness of having pushed yourself to your limits. The joy of a flyer.
“Hey,” Dash said.
Gilda’s head whipped around until she made eye contact with her. Her beak formed a huge smile, but she was quick to tone it down into a small one. Dash saw, though.
“Hey, there. You made it.” Gilda walked up to her and, pausing for only a brief second, she lifted her claw and formed a fist.
Gladly, Dash lifted her hoof and bumped it as she reciprocated the smile. “You didn’t think I’d leave you hanging, would you?”
“Of course not.” She let out a short laugh. The humour quickly left her, however. With a serious, and even somewhat shy expression, she talked again. “So… What did you think? Of the show, I mean? We worked really hard these past months to put it together.”
There was this immediate reaction of wanting to make a snarky comment, or a sarcastic reply. It really seemed like a good idea. But… She really wanted to do something nicer.
“You did well, Gilda. That was pretty good.” To that, the griffon let her smile grow once more. Immediately, she put on a playful smirk. “I could barely tell you’ve been out of the game for years.”
“Wha… Hey!”
“No, really,” Dash continued, shrugging and fluttering her wings for extra swagger. “You really were well above amateur level.”
Gilda’s chest feathers ruffled as her expression turned sour. With heavy struts, she closed the distance between them and lifted a pointy finger towards her.
“Now, listen here, you d—”
Quickly, Dash opened her saddlebags with her wing and pulled out a small package, bringing it between them.
“Happy Hearth’s Warming, Gilda,” she said, smiling in earnest.
The griffon blinked. With the quick burst of annoyance washed away by confusion and curiosity.
“Go on, open it,” Dash said, pushing the gift towards Gilda.
Smiling once more, Gilda wasted no time in tearing the wrapping paper apart and opening the box. She scanned the contents and her eyes grew larger once she saw the very special detail Dash had made Rarity include in the gift.
“That’s the…” Gilda trailed off.
“Yup. The Summer Flight Camp logo. Thought it would be a neat detail.”
With happiness clear in her features, Gilda pulled out the long strip of fabric, copper with beige details that Rarity had assured her would compliment Gilda’s colours.
“Dash… thanks. This is pretty good.”
Rainbow shrugged. “Not as cool as tickets for an awesome flight show, but I hope you like it anyway.”
Gilda immediately wrapped the scarf around her neck, her smile growing by the second until it was worth at least two thirds Pinkie Pie. Good.
“Thank you, I mean it.”
“Don’t sweat it.” Wink. “Oh, and speaking of cool. I know you’ve made Griffonstone look a whole lot better, but it’s still a pretty cold place. Hope that helps.”
“Really funny, Dash. Since when were you a dad?”
“I just don’t want you getting all sappy on me.”
“Yeah, yeah. Thanks, anyway.” She fiddled with the scarf a bit more, making sure the logo was visible. “Say… Wanna grab a bite?”
“Sure. I only had a roasted skewer before watching you perform.”
“Ah, yes. Gerwig. Good griffon. His skewers are the best.”
“That they were.”
Somehow, Dash found herself back when she was a teenager, hanging out with Gilda when she dropped by to visit. Yeah, it was no wonder she never asked Dash to visit her in Griffonstone, but it kinda made sense now. She was definitely gonna rectify that. They’d wasted enough time.
“Hey I have a stall, too,” Gilda said. “You should check it out. I got a few more baking tips from Pinkie.”
“You stayed in touch with Pinkie?”
“Yeah, she wrote to me as soon as she returned to Ponyville. That’s how I got your address. Sent me a whole crate of baking powder, too. She’s taught me a lot about baking and cooking.”
“Sounds like you’re really gotten a liking for baking, huh? Probably should’ve gotten you an apron for Hearth’s Warming, instead.”
“Pfft… Dweeb. I’d like to see you bake something half as awesome as my improved griffon scones.”
Yeah. This was good. And Celestia willing, it would continue to be.
Gilda and Rainbow Dash sat on a cloud, looking at the sunset. Their breathing was heavy, and both were sweating a bit after outflying the Flight Camp teachers.
Neither said anything. They were content to just sit there, enjoying the moment.
”Friends forever, Dash?”
”Awesome friends forever.”
Dash didn’t know how it was called when you hoof bumped somepony who didn’t have hooves, but the sentiment was what was important.
No matter what, Dash and Gilda would be the coolest friends ever.
