One Bolt, Moving Forward

Chapters

Hearts, Hooves, and Surprises!
New News and Royal Pains
What Is A Prince?
Problem? What Problem?
Memories
From Pony To Peacock!
Boltstinker
The Flying Filly's First Fog And Fall
The Fairest of Faires
Finding the Flurriest Foal
Soarin On In
Rainbow Remedy
Of Dreams And Discord
Such A Thing Is A Rarity
One Scary Sanctuary
Tricks and Tribulations
Ready for Takeoff!
Surprise Symptoms
One Lone Sentry
Soarin's Choice
The Sounds Of Singing
Rarity's Canvas
Forcing An Issue
The Experiment
The Very Persistent Princess
Sports Fright
Ready, Set, Qualify!
Up In The Clouds
Acceptance
His First Mission
When Scootaloo Soars
The Flashiest Gala Ever
The Project
Courtship
The Brightest Apple
Worry Takes Root
Overdoing
The Truth of the Matter
The Cold Shoulder
You Need A *BZZT* Break
Crunch Time
New Beginnings
One Bolt, Spreading Harmony
Prologue: Reunion
How Does A Filly Learn To Fly?
The Change Is A Parent
Not Playing Games Anymore
Is This What It's Like...?

Hearts, Hooves, and Surprises!

“I HAVE RETURNED!” a low bellow sounded from the foyer. Twilight’s head shot up at the sound, jumping up from her chair in the library. She went into a gallop through the hallway, but quickly stopped with a look of realization. She moved to a trot, clutching her belly with her wing.

She met up with the orange Pegasus in the hall, the two meeting in a tight embrace. “You’re home sooner than I expected.” Twilight started, pulling back and looking the stallion in the eye. “Did you use that trick you learned for your wings?”

“I did, indeed.” he confirmed, the two turning to head to their bedroom. “I need to practice at making it happen sometimes, after all. Besides, tomorrow is Hearts and Hooves Day. I am not missing that!”

Twilight smiled, putting her wing around him. “Well, don’t overdo it, okay?” Boltsinger nodded as the two sat on the bed. “I’ve got a surprise for you tomorrow. You’re going to love it!”

“Ooh! I can’t wait!” he said, moving the blankets and sliding in with a yawn. “Good night…”

Twilight smiled at the stallion, patting her belly and joining him. “Good night, Bolt.”

Boltsinger woke up the following morning to a loud knock at the door. He looked around, seeing Twilight still in bed, and smiled. The knocking continued, and Boltsinger headed for the source. He decided to cut out the middle-mare, opting to step out to the balcony, spreading his wings and flying down to the front door. There, he saw somepony he most assuredly didn’t expect pounding at the door, until he let out a defeated sigh. He was a white-coated Pegasus stallion with a long, messy black mane and tail and green eyes. His Cutie Mark consisted of a yellow lightning bolt striking through a vaguely heart-shaped storm cloud, and he had a bouquet of flowers in a rainbow arrangement tucked under his wing.

“You’re… Soarin, right?” Boltsinger asked, pointing to the pony. “One of the Wonderbolts?”

Soarin jumped, looking at Boltsinger with a hint of surprise. “Yeah, that’s me. Who’re you?”

Boltsinger motioned to himself, confused. “I’m Boltsinger.” he pointed to the enormous Castle of Friendship behind the white stallion. “I live in the castle right there.” He walked over to the Wonderbolt. “So, what’s with the flowers? Looking for somepony special?”

Soarin turned away, just a hint of red lining his muzzle. “Well… yeah… How’d you know?”

Boltsinger smiled, sitting next to him. “Well, it’s Hearts and Hooves Day, and I happen to be friends with a Wonderbolt mare that lives here in Ponyville.” he explained, moving a wing to open the door. “How about you come in and have some breakfast, and we can talk about it a bit further? I need to make something for my wife, anyway.”

Soarin opened his mouth to protest, but found himself interrupted by his growling stomach. “What’re you making…?”

Boltsinger smirked. “Apple pancakes.” Soarin’s stomach growled louder. “Granny Smith let me in on the recipe.” As the door opened completely, the white blur that was Soarin was already inside. “Nopony can resist Granny Smith’s recipe.” He followed his unexpected guest in, making for the kitchen.

As the smell of pancakes wafted into the dining room, Soarin’s mouth watered immensely. Boltsinger placed the flapjacks in front of the Wonderbolt, a number of apples poking out as he drizzled syrup on top, finally adding just a touch of whipped cream. “You’re my test subject. Tell me what you think.”

Soarin looked at the meal, licking his lips expectantly for a moment. “Are you sure? You don’t even know me!”

“I’ve heard about you from Rainbow Dash.” Boltsinger informed him, quickly going back into the kitchen and coming out with another plate. “Besides, what kind of Pegasus would I be if I didn’t welcome a Wonderbolt?”

At the mention of Rainbow Dash, Soarin stopped eating, his face turning red again. His muzzle showed a goofy grin as he looked at the flowers he brought, giving off a dopey laugh. “Yeah… Wait, you heard about me from Rainbow Dash?”

Boltsinger nodded, putting a few extra fixings on a second plate, finally adding a glass of juice. “Yeah, she talks about all of the other Wonderbolts. You all sound like some pretty awesome ponies.”

Soarin’s face sank. “Oh… yeah. The ‘Bolts are all pretty cool ponies. She ever… talk about me outside of all that?”

Boltsinger brought a hoof to his muzzle, puzzling for a moment. “Nnope. Mostly she talks about Spitfire. Your name does come up sometimes, though.” He smiled slyly, casting a knowing look at the embarrassed stallion. “I see, now… You know, you could have just gone straight to her house and given her the flowers.” Soarin’s head recoiled from the statement. “But… I’m not sure what she’d think of flowers overall. If I know Rainbow, she’d probably brush it off as some ‘frou frou’ thing for Hearts and Hooves Day.”

“I never said these were for her!” he yelled, hiding the flowers behind him. “I just wanted some… advice!”

“Oh? What kind of advice?” Boltsinger inquired, leaning closer. “And why would you go to the Princess of Friendship, one of Rainbow Dash’s closest friends, for it?”

Soarin’s eyes darted back and forth. “I… uh… I gotta go! Thanks for the meal!” He gobbled up the rest of his food and rocketed out the door as Twilight appeared in the hallway, looking confusedly at the fleeing Pegasus.

“Was that… Soarin?” she asked, looking into the dining room.

“Eeyup!” the orange stallion replied, lifting up the tray he had prepared and bringing it forth. “Happy Hearts and Hooves Day, Twilight! I was gonna bring it up to you in bed, but… I got a little distracted by the lovestruck pony that just fled to save face.”

Twilight tilted her head, floating the tray over. “Lovestruck?” she repeated, sitting at the table and inhaling sharply, her face melting with anticipation. “Are these Granny Smith style?” Boltsinger nodded profusely, finally dishing up his own helping. She gave him a peck on the cheek and floated a fork in from the kitchen. “Well, thank you. But that doesn’t explain why a Wonderbolt was here. And what do you mean by ‘lovestruck’?”

“Oh, he’s just trying to woo Rainbow Dash.” Boltsinger stated as Twilight took a drink of her juice.

Boltsinger found himself covered in juice a moment later, Twilight having performed a flawless spit take. “Trying to what Rainbow Dash? Why?”

“I dunno. I just met him today.” the stallion continued. He reached for a napkin, wiping his face off. “I kinda wonder why he came here first, though. Her house isn’t exactly hard to find.”

Twilight lifted up a morsel of her meal, tapping her nose with it as she stewed. “I suppose it makes sense for him to like her… But this still feels a bit sudden. Why was he running away from you?”

Boltsinger thought back on his conversation with the white Pegasus, considering what had gone on in detail. “I think it’s because I more or less figured him out.” He explained the conversation in as much detail as he could while his wife finished her meal. “And then he ran away, and you came in. So, what do you think? We gonna track him down?”

Twilight nodded. “Yup.”

“Should I apologize to him for making him freak out?” he queried.

Twilight nodded again. “Yup.”

“Should we tell Rainbow about all this?” he continued, getting up and taking the dishes to the kitchen.

Twilight shook her head, slowly getting up and following him. “Nope.”

Boltsinger nodded in agreement, setting up one more plate of breakfast as Twilight wrote a note for the dragon that would receive the pancakes. “You know, you do a surprisingly good Big Mac impression when you feel like it. Just need to extend them a bit at the beginning.”

Twilight gave her husband a playful glare, nudging him with her elbow. “Everyone’s a critic….” She looked forward, her face saying that she was ready to go. “Now, let’s go find that flustered flyer!”

“Right!” Boltsinger agreed, slapping his muzzle with his wings and taking off towards town.

Twilight stood there as the stallion’s turbulence blew her mane and tail forward, blinking a few times before continuing her steady walk. “He could have waited for me…” she grumbled, finally hunching over and taking to the air.

Twilight and Boltsinger came to a landing next to Sugar Cube Corner, heading inside to find the stallion they sought happily munching on a two-layer cake at a table. The two ponies came up on either side of the Wonderbolt, taking a seat.

“I told you he’d be in Sugar Cube Corner.” Boltsinger began, leaning against the table and putting his wing on Soarin’s back. “A hungry pony will generally go to the tastiest-looking place.”

Twilight nodded, putting her own wing over her husband’s. “You were right. He was definitely here.”

Soarin looked back and forth between the two, showing some confusion, and at the same time, embarrassment. “Uh… What are you two doing here?”

Boltsinger put his hoof on the table, looking Soarin in the eye. “I wanted to apologize for giving you the third degree back at the castle. And bring you the pony you were looking for, there.”

Soarin tilted his head. “Oh… Well, uh… Apology accepted.”

Twilight leaned forward a bit, looking at the pony they had come to see. “So, what did you want advice on?”

Soarin lowered his head, looking at the cake in front of him. “Well, your friend was pretty much spot-on.” He admitted. “I wanna get to know Rainbow Dash outside of the ‘Bolts, but I don’t know how to approach her.”

Twilight and Boltsinger looked at each other, giggling. “Is that all?!” The Princess wondered, standing up. “Approaching Rainbow Dash is easy!” She pulled the blue-maned stallion to his hooves. “Here, we’ll demonstrate. Bolt, you be Rainbow Dash.”

Boltsinger smiled, taking a cocky stance and flaring his wings confidently. “Oh yeah!” He exclaimed, doing his best Rainbow Dash voice.

Twilight laughed at the impression, turning to Soarin. “Okay, so here’s how you approach ‘Rainbow Dash’.” She turned to her fellow role-player, trotting up normally. “Hi, Rainbow Dash.”

“Hey, Twi.” Boltsinger replied in his impression, acting as cool as possible.

Twilight came up to Soarin, putting her wing on his back. “You see? Easy.” She lifted the Wonderbolt with her magic, placing him in front of Boltsinger. “Now you try. Just… try to imagine him as Rainbow Dash. I know it’s hard, but you can do it.”

Boltsinger gave Twilight a dirty look. “Everyone’s a critic… I think I do a great Rainbow Dash!”

Twilight adjusted her husband’s wings ever-so-slightly with her magic. “Your wings are off by 0.23 degrees, and your eyes don’t look as fierce.”

“Ah. Thank you.” He said, adjusting his performance accordingly.

“Okay, Soarin, just think of Rainbow when you look at him.” She instructed, pushing the white Pegasus along with her wing. “You’ve got this!”

Soarin took a look at Boltsinger, an image of the mare in question taking his place. He stepped forward shakily, swallowing a lump that had formed in his throat. “Uh… Hey! R-R-R-Rainbow Dash!”

“Hey Soarin.” The image greeted. “What’s with the stutter? You sick or something?”

“No! I’m fine!” He retorted, taking another shaky step. The image he saw stepped towards him, flipping her mane and fluttering her wings. Soarin felt his heart rate increase faster than the adrenaline of a daring flight maneuver. His wings instantly stood at attention, sending him airborne with the force of their ascent.

The image’s head recoiled. “Uh, Soarin?” it began, a deep baritone voice coming out of it. “Maaaaaaaaaaaybe don’t imagine that hard.”

Soarin snapped out of his trance, shaking his head to find Twilight and Boltsinger gawking at the sight before them. “What?” He looked around the room, seeing his rigid wings behind him. “Oh… Sorry…”

Boltsinger burst out laughing, coming up beside his fellow stallion and slapping him on the back with his hoof. “It’s okay, I understand what you’re going through!” He sat Soarin back down next to his cake. “Clearly, you need to get a little practice in before meeting her so… casually. Why don’t you come over every now and then? We can work on your… I wanna say ‘conversational skills’.” He looked over to Twilight. “What do you think, dear?”

Twilight nodded agreeably. “That sounds like a great idea. You’re welcome to come over anytime you need advice.”

Soarin looked between the two ponies, taken aback by their welcoming attitude, even if she did already know the Princess. “Wow, really?” Boltsinger smiled and nodded. “Thanks! But… uh… can you not tell Rainbow Dash about all this?”

“Tell me about what?” a raspy voice came from the entrance. Soarin and Boltsinger looked at the source of the voice, a cyan Pegasus mare with a rainbow-colored mane, hot pink eyes, and a Cutie Mark of a multicolored lightning bolt erupting from a cloud stood in the doorway, tilting her head in confusion. “Some kinda Wonderbolt emergency?”

Soarin’s jaw dropped. He scooped up what remained of his cake, making for the exit. “It’s nothing! Gotta go!” He sped out of the building in a black and white blur, the turbulence blowing back Rainbow Dash’s mane.

Rainbow Dash blinked, walking over to Twilight. “What’s with him?”

Boltsinger nonchalantly walked past his flight coach, patting her on the back with his wing. “It’s nothing. He just needed to talk to a friend.”

Rainbow directed her attention to Boltsinger, the confusion in her eyes still very much apparent. “And since when are you two so buddy-buddy?”

“Since I met him. He’s a pretty cool pony.” the stallion retorted, maintaining his relaxed smile.

Rainbow Dash pursed her lips, leaning towards him with an intense expression. “He’s a great flyer, but he’s a major goofball…” she told him, only just barely easing up. “I wouldn’t call him ‘cool’, but he’s not a bad guy.”

Boltsinger nodded, hopping over Rainbow and standing next to Twilight. “Exactly. Goofballs gotta stick together, you know?” He sat down at the table, coiling his tail around him.

As Rainbow Dash headed to the counter, Twilight sat next to Boltsinger, her eyes drifting towards the foals playing in the corner of the room. Her breathing became slow and steady, leaning against the table as she watched the Cake twins. Her heart raced, and her mind matched its pace. She felt a wing on hers, snapping her attention away from the little filly and colt.

“Hey, you okay?” Boltsinger asked, his concern evident in his gaze. “You looked a little distracted, there.”

“Oh, yeah…” she answered, returning her gaze to the foals. “I’ve just got a lot on my mind.” She quickly spun around to face him again, her mane moving with the momentum and framing her head as she flashed a brilliant smile. “Hey, how about we do something fun in town? It’s Hearts and Hooves Day, after all!”

Boltsinger beamed in return. “Sounds great! What do you have in mind?” The two ponies stood up, heading out of the sweet shop. Twilight went on about several ideas as they went, giving the stallion a mental tour of Ponyville.

Twilight and Boltsinger came in through the front door of the castle, a large barrel floating above the Princess in her magenta magical field. They were laughing and chatting about what they had seen in the antique store. Boltsinger didn’t understand much of the nuances as Twilight did, but he appreciated her appreciation and enthusiasm, and had seen several fascinating things of his own. Twilight had brightened up considerably from the mood she had displayed at Sugar Cube Corner, but the Pegasus could tell there was something eating at the back of her mind.

“So, you said you had a big surprise for me today.” he started as the two rounded the hall towards the library. “Care to elaborate?”

Twilight’s ears turned in his direction, folding them back and placing the barrel to the side. She brought her hoof up to her heart, taking a deep breath and extending her foreleg out upon the exhale. “So, have you noticed anything different about me, lately?”

Boltsinger cast his wife a serious look. “Of course I have.” he confirmed. “You’ve been moving slower. And don’t think I didn’t notice you staring at the Cake twins this morning.” The two sat on the sofa, getting comfortable. “Plus there was everything at the antique store. There were a few things you were lingering on.”

“So, what can you piece together about that?” she lead on.

Boltsinger took a deep breath of his own. “Are you… wanting a foal? ‘Cause that would be moving just a little fast, don’t you think?”

She slowly shook her head. “It would be moving a little quick, you’re right. But, do you remember that vacation we took last month?”

The stallion’s head leaned back, his face bringing out the goofiest of smiles. “Yeah… that was a great vacation…”

Twilight giggled, tickling him under his ear with her wing. She retracted her wing and turned around, leaning back into him. “Well… while it may be moving a little fast… some steps, you just stumble upon…” She took his forelegs with hers, bringing his hooves down onto her belly. Boltsinger’s eyes widened dramatically, feeling a new warmth from within. “Surprise!”

Author's Note

That's right, it's happening. I couldn't not do this with all the things flitting about my mind. This idea alone has me planning at least two seasons ahead. But, baby steps... No pun intended. :twilightsheepish:

New News and Royal Pains

“Surprise!” Twilight exclaimed, spreading her forelegs as her husband's hooves felt the new warmth in her belly. “Happy Hearts and Hooves Day!”

Boltsinger’s eyes returned to normal as he looked at the mare nestled against him. He brought his forelegs up, squeezing her gently. “That’s awesome news!” He shouted.

Twilight sat up, turning to face him again. “Really? I thought you’d be scared, or something.”

“Oh, I’m terrified.” He confirmed, raising a shaky hoof. “But I’m honestly not all that surprised. Brightling has been teasing me about being in his shoes soon. He’s gonna get a kick outta this news!” He laughed nervously, scratching his mane with his wing. “So, have you told everypony else?”

“Overall, he took it pretty well.” Twilight said, looking behind her. “Thanks for helping me get set up. I hope it doesn’t make you miss your train!” Twilight laid on a picnic blanket situated on a hill that overlooked Sweet Apple Acres. She had a basket of goodies ready to go, and Spike was coming up from behind, another basket in his arms.

“It’s no problem! If I miss the train, I’ll just send Bolt a message and he’ll come get me!” The baby dragon answered, placing the basket on the blanket. “But, why did you decide to wait until now to tell them?”

“We haven’t had a picnic in a long time.” She informed him. “Plus, it’s the perfect environment to share something wonderful!”

Spike shrugged, plucking a gem from the basket and stuffing it into his mouth. “Well, whatever works, I guess. I gotta go, see you later!” He waved his claw, running off towards the train station.

Twilight waved a farewell hoof, looking at the sky as a rainbow streak came in for a landing. As Rainbow Dash landed, drops of water from a number of clouds splashed against her, creating a rainbow above her. “How’s that for an entrance?” the Pegasus asked, trotting over to her friend.

Twilight laughed. “Familiar, but impressive all the same.” She patted the spot next to her. “Of course, you’re the first to arrive.”

“Of course! You expected anything less?” Rainbow affirmed, puffing out her chest. “So, where’s Bolt? I was hoping we could get some flight drills in!”

“He’s in Canterlot for a while.” The Princess started. “He said he wanted to be able to help me on the ‘royal side of things’, So Raven is going to be putting him through classes on ‘royal etiquette and decorum’!”

Rainbow let out a snort, giving away her encroaching laughter. She tried her best to resist, but the idea that popped into her head overcame her as she fell to the ground in hysterics.”Oh, wow! Can you imagine it? Blue-blood Bolt!” her laughter continued as hoofsteps trailed onto the blanket.

“Oh, please, darling, don’t say that name!” a posh voice called out. She was a pure white Unicorn mare with an expertly coiffed purple mane and tail that ended in fancy ringlets. She wore false eyelashes and light blue eyeshadow to frame her cerulean eyes, while her flank showed a Cutie Mark of three brilliant diamonds. She shuddered briefly. “I don’t even want to think of that awful excuse for a gentlecolt!”

Rainbow Dash sat up, looking at her friend in confusion. “Rarity, I’m gonna be honest with you. I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Rarity took a seat next to the Pegasus, resting on her fetlocks. “Be glad that’s the case. And let us never speak of him again!”

“Speak of who?” came a squeaky voice. Behind the three, a pink Earth Pony mare had poked her head up. Her mane and tail were a poofy hot pink, with light blue eyes and a Cutie Mark of three balloons.

“We were talking about Boltsinger going to Canterlot so that he can learn to be ‘royal’ when he needs to be.” Twilight explained. “I don’t know who Rarity was talking about.”

“And you should be thankful you don’t.” Rarity stressed, raising a poignant hoof. “Now, enough about that! Pinkie Pie, dear, did you bring anything to add to our little get-together?”

Pinkie beamed, pulling a large box full of cupcakes from the depths of her frizz and artfully slamming it down on top of the basket. “Why wouldn’t I? It’s not a picnic without cupcakes!”

“Well, I’d like to think it’d still be tasty, what with all I got here.” a drawling voice called from over the hill. The group craned their necks to see over the horizon, where an orange Earth Pony mare with bright green eyes trotted up. She wore a classic stetson cowboy hat over her long, blond mane and tail, tied at the ends with red hair ties. She had three white freckles at the corner of each eye, and three bright red delicious apples lighting up her flank. She was strapped to a wagon full of various apple-based treats, coming to a stop in front of the blanket. “I hope y’all’re hungry, ‘cause I brought enough ta feed the pigs fer at least three days!”

“Oh, I’m sure everypony is hungry by now, Applejack.” a softer voice said from above as a yellow Pegasus mare fluttered in for a landing. She had a long, straight, pink mane and tail with slight curls at the very ends, her eyes were a slightly darker shade of blue than Pinkie Pie’s, but not as deep as Rarity’s, with an overall welcoming look shaping her face. The Cutie Mark she bore consisted of three butterflies with pink wings and blue bodies. “I know I haven’t eaten in a while, at least.”

Applejack unloaded many of the treats from the wagon, looking concernedly at her friend. “Now, why in Equestria wouldja go without eatin’, Fluttershy?”

Fluttershy looked at the spread before her, her stomach rumbling. “I got a little distracted making sure all the animals were fed, I just… forgot.” Twilight smiled, lighting up her horn as several sandwiches, snack foods, and beverages found their way onto the blanket. The hungry ponies gathered round began taking various morsels and gobbling them up, a state of reverie taking hold as they talked about recent events.

“So, Twilight, you said ya had some kinda news to share with us, didn’tcha?” Applejack asked, most of the food having been happily consumed. “What’s goin’ on?”

Twilight sighed, mentally preparing herself. “Okay… So, prepare yourselves. This one is gonna be a doozy.” The other ponies sat and looked intently at the Princess. “I know that Boltsinger and I haven’t been married very long, but… There’s another big change coming.”

Rarity leaned in, curiosity practically bubbling out of her horn as she smiled. “Oh? And what kind of change would that be?”

“Well… Bolt and I are… going to have a baby!” Twilight finished, sitting up and putting her hoof on her belly. There was an eerie, calm silence about them, Pinkie’s face showed more excitement than she had ever shown, while Fluttershy’s mouth hung open with the barest hint of a smile at the corners of her mouth. Applejack’s gaze was warm, knowing, and accepting. Rarity had sat straight up, her forelegs hanging in the air in front of her as the bubbling changed from curiosity to joyous laughter that nearly saw fit to erupt from her very core. Rainbow Dash’s face was one of surprise mixed with curiosity, and something that Twilight didn’t see in her Wonderbolt friend very often. Fear. “I’m only about a month into it, but the doctor says that it’s healthy!”

After a few moments, four of the mares broke into simultaneous cheers. Rarity was the first to form words as she lunged forward, hugging the Alicorn with all of her might. “Oh, darling, this is wonderful news! We simply must celebrate!”

“Uh, didn’t we just sorta do that?” Applejack wondered. “Anyway, I had a feelin’ for a while, now. Y’all’ve been movin’ a might slower than ya normally do, an’ those wings o’ yers could sure use a workout.”

Rainbow Dash watched as the other ponies all rose up and offered their congratulations. Her mind wandered a bit, thinking on what this kind of change would mean. There was no stopping it, but… this was huge. Any other time, any other pony, and she’d be just as giddy as the others. But something about this felt different, and she didn’t like it. She shook her head free of her swirling feelings, keeping her cool as she put a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “Congrats, Twi.” she said simply, standing up and walking off of the blanket, spreading her wings and taking off as fast as her feathers would let her.

Twilight looked up at the speeding Pegasus as she flew away. “Is she okay?”

Mere hours later, the Friendship Express pulled into the Canterlot station, a purple dragon with green spines, translucent green ear-fins, green eyes, and a yellow belly disembarking with suitcase in claw. He looked around the platform, trying to spot the pony he came to see, but not finding a hint of the mixture of orange and blue he sought amidst the plentiful pastels of presently prancing ponies. He felt a slight breeze come down from above, a voice literally carried on the breeze.

“Spike, it’s a little too crowded to meet up with you on the platform. I’ll be just outside the station, okay?” it called, directing the dragon’s attention above him, where he saw the stallion he was looking for, flying above the platform.

Spike shrugged, heading to the area in question. “No matter how many times he does that, it still freaks me out…” He exited the station and went into Canterlot proper, where Boltsinger came in for a landing next to him.

“I heard that, you know.” he commented, grabbing the drake’s tail with his wing and propping him up to ride on his back. “Thanks for coming, Spike. I dunno how I’d be able to get through all this ‘royal business’ without someone with me.”

Spike showed off a cocky grin, hanging his suitcase from Boltsinger’s wing and leaning back against his neck. “It’s nothing. It gives me a chance to pay Celestia a visit! Besides, we all know you’re hopeless without a purple friend to help you through things!”

“Hey! I’ll have you know I’ve improved a great deal since I needed her help to… face most ponies on a personal level!” the stallion retorted, beginning his walk down the road. “It’s not like I found every new face I saw terrifying! Starlight and Star Swirl just have… a scary presence about them!”

Not long after Spike’s arrival, the dragon and the Pegasus found themselves standing before a white bespectacled Unicorn mare with a dark brown mane and tail, each done in a tight bun using simple red ribbon. She wore a white shirt collar that bore a red frill flaring out in front of her. She looked at the stallion before her through half-lidded brown eyes, adjusting her glasses with her magic.

Boltsinger was terrified. He turned his head to face Spike with his knees already shaking. “Why does she feel more intimidating than Star Swirl the Bearded?!” he whispered. Spike just smiled and shrugged, walking past the mare to the Princess enthroned in the back of the room. Boltsinger looked back at the deadpanning mare with his head hanging low, finding a lump in his throat.

“You’re supposed to be the one that needs… and I quote… ‘help on the royal side of things’, yes?” she asked. Boltsinger smiled and nodded, moving his hoof to respond. “Very well. I’m Raven Inkwell, personal aide to Princess Celestia. I’m going to be one of your instructors on this subject, at the request of Princesses Celestia and Twilight. First is going to be dining room etiquette, since dinner is coming soon anyway.”

Boltsinger perked up at the idea of dinner, raising his hoof once more. “Oh! Yeah, Twilight really likes to have good silverware placement! She even taught me whi--”

A magical field took Boltsinger’s jaw and snapped it shut, silencing him. “Speak more concisely. You are royalty. When you speak, you must be clear, and you must be heard.” She adjusted her magic to move his neck into place. “And sit up straight. You must always be the picture of royal dignity!”

Boltsinger felt a crack in his neck, wincing slightly from the sudden sensation. He snuck a look over Raven’s head to see Spike and Princess Celestia looking at the scene before them, with claws and hooves raised to hide their mouths as they snickered to each other. “I can be heard just fine, thank you…” he grumbled.

Raven stepped forward, her face mere inches away from his. “What was that?”

Boltsinger snorted, slapping his muzzle with his wings and taking a deep breath. Spike and Celestia ceased their snickering, moving to cover their ears as quickly as they could. He straightened his back, flaring his wings out to the sides and puffing out his chest. “I said… I can be heard just fine, thank you!” he repeated. Despite the lack of urgency in his tone, the overall volume of his voice boomed through the throne room, reverberating off of the walls for several seconds and shaking the glasses on Raven’s muzzle, along with Raven herself.

Having been moved several feet back by the sheer magnitude of the Pegasus’ voice, Raven let out a small cough, floating her glasses in front of her collar and wiping it down with the frill. “I see. Well, let’s get to dinner! You’ll be meeting your other instructor, there.”

Boltsinger rubbed his chest with his hoof, standing up with a sly grin. “I look forward to meeting them.”

The dinner table was exquisitely set, and Boltsinger took note of all of the fancy cutlery on either side of his empty plate. Spike sat next to him, resting his head on his hand and poking at the silverware, while Princess Celestia sat across the long table, smiling warmly at them.

“So, Boltsinger, how are you enjoying Canterlot?” she asked him, leaning her head only slightly closer. “And why the sudden desire for more responsibility?”

Boltsinger raised his head, doing his best to sit up straight as instructed. “Canterlot is wonderful, as always.” he began, enunciating each syllable as precisely as possible.

“You know, you don’t have to be so formal with me.” the Princess informed him.

Boltsinger breathed a sigh of relief, relaxing his neck. “Thank you… Anyway, Canterlot is great. And, as for the responsibility thing… Well, I was informed a while back that marrying the mare I did would give me a title of sorts… And I want to make sure that Twilight has an easier time with things, considering… what’s coming up.”

Celestia thought for a moment, then nodded knowingly. “Ah, yes. She informed me about your recent surprise not long ago.” She walked over to the stallion, sitting next to him and wrapping her wing around him. “I think it’s wonderful that you’re stepping up to help Twilight. But I’m not sure all of this posh royal training is really necessary, given the business Twilight typically deals with.”

“Probably, but I want to have my bases covered. I have to consider her reputation, after all.” he finished, lifting his pendant with his wing so as to get a better look at it. “There’s a lot to live up to, and I really don’t want to let her down.”

“Well, I’m sure you’ll do fine. Twilight wouldn’t have married somepony she doesn’t have faith in.” Celestia affirmed, moving back to her seat. “Now, everypony else is about to come in. You’d best get back into character.”

Boltsinger nodded, slapping his muzzle with his wings and returning to his dignified pose. “Of course, your Highness.”

The doors to the dining room swung open wide, Princess Luna stepping in and sitting beside her sister. She cast a glance at Boltsinger, gingerly waving a friendly hoof as she sat down. The stallion snuck a wave of his wing in as Raven made her entrance. She sat next to the orange stallion, her clipboard floating in front of her with a quill floating above it.

“I see you are maintaining your posture. That’s good.” She started, making notes on the paper in front of her. “Now, I know you were informed of table manners by Princess Twilight, but I’d like to take the time to see that you’re able to put them into practice. So, your second instructor will be serving as an example of how a proper Prince behaves.” She set her clipboard down, looking to the entrance. “Prince Blueblood, you may enter now!”

From the doorway stepped a white Unicorn stallion, considerably larger than the lean Boltsinger, with a long, flowing blond mane and tail and sky blue eyes. His horn was longer than those of most other Unicorns he had met, and he wore a black suit collar with golden buttons and a blue bow tie. His legs ended in grey hooves, and he bore a gold and blue compass rose Cutie Mark on his flank. He gave a cocky smile as he looked at Raven, maintaining flawless posture as he knocked Spike out of the way and sat down across from her.

“So, you’re the new Prince in Equestria?” he asked, turning his gaze towards Boltsinger. He examined him from head to haunches, his face fraught with confusion. “You’re… not what I expected.”

Boltsinger felt the words pierce him, but refrained from letting it show. He gave a smile as big as he got, doing his best to look as arrogant as possible. “Nopony ever expects somepony like me!” he told him, the words ringing too true to be comfortable.

“That’s not hard to believe.” Blueblood stated, resting his head on his hoof. “So… Where is your horn?”

“I don’t have one.” the orange pony replied, spreading his wings and making a twinkling motion with his feathers. “I’m a Pegasus.” Blueblood opened his mouth, ready to speak again, finding himself blown back by a loud noise as Boltsinger aggressively cleared his throat. “Besides that. Aren’t you here to provide an example for me to follow in… etiquette and decorum?”

“I… suppose.” the pompous pony reluctantly agreed. “But you and I are going to have words after this.”

Boltsinger closed his eyes with a pronounced nod, internally sighing as the meals came in. Blueblood quickly began eating in the most posh way the Pegasus had ever seen. He looked back and forth between him and Raven, who was explaining every detail of the Prince’s actions. What in the hay have I gotten myself into? He thought, seeing Princesses Celestia and Luna laughing and conversing happily with Spike on the other end of the table, not a care in the world. No… I’ve gotta see this through! For Twilight! For the baby! His eyes fell upon Blueblood again, who somehow made all of the ‘Canterlot elite’ ponies that he had met seem as welcoming and friendly as Pinkie Pie by comparison. For my sanity…

Author's Note

I've been wanting to have Bolt interact with Blueblood for a while now. This just seemed like the perfect opportunity.
In regards to Raven, I'm going with her depiction most seen in the comic books, where she's a Unicorn and the personal aide to Celestia. It's her most consistent portrayal, and she seemed like the right fit for the job I have her doing.

What Is A Prince?

Boltsinger walked through a hallway in Canterlot castle, Spike lounging on his back. Raven Inkwell walked on one side of him, with Prince Blueblood on the other. He carried himself with his head held high, his wings flared out in as regal a fashion as he could manage. Okay, so I basically need to do what this… I don’t even know what to call him… does? Doesn’t seem too hard… But why go through all of this when there’s plenty of other royalty I already know… Why do I have to… Well, she’s the expert. I guess I’ll just go with it.

“So, I can’t help but wonder… How in Equestria did a rough-and-tumble Pegasus become a Prince?” Blueblood asked, taking a mildly disdainful look at the performance pony next to him.

“The same way a captain of the royal guard became a Prince.” Boltsinger replied, returning his wings to their resting position.

Blueblood’s head recoiled. “You married a Princess?! What Princess would ever want to marry somepony so… plain?”

Boltsinger sighed aloud, looking at the hoity toity pony next to him with a straight face as he tried to maintain the composure he was working to obtain. “And how, dear Prince, did you become royalty?”

Blueblood smirked, looking ahead. “Quite simple. I was born into greatness!” he bragged, tugging on his tie with his magic. “I’m in the same bloodline as the Royal Sisters!”

The Pegasus tilted his head, genuinely curious about his less than humble companion for the first time. “But… They don’t have any immediate family besides one another. How in Celestia’s name… Pardon the phrasing… Are you related to them?”

The white stallion flashed a grin. “Why, I’m their nephew!”

“Seriously? I just said that they don’t have any other immediate family!” Boltsinger retorted, beginning to lose his patience. His composure was attempting to break as Raven put a hoof on his shoulder.

“Blueblood is a far-removed relative.” the aide explained. “Princess Celestia told me that he is her great great great great great great great great great great great nephew from their mother’s side of the family.”

Boltsinger slowed his breathing, putting what he was learning back into place. “I see…” Looking back at Blueblood, an idea crept into his head along with a smirk onto his muzzle. “So, that far removed… Does that truly make you a Prince? I would think that makes you more of a Duke.”

Blueblood scoffed, picking up his pace as they rounded the corner to the next room. Inside were a pair of Abssynian dignitaries, at which the Prince smiled and trotted over happily. “Ah! You’re here! Welcome to Canterlot!”

“Now, you’re going to see his diplomatic skills in action!” Raven stated. “Good diplomacy is key to maintaining relationships both in and outside of Equestria, and Prince Blueblood is a seasoned veteran of the art.”

Boltsinger watched as the Unicorn Prince talked up a storm with the visiting felines, laughing occasionally about matters that had little to do with the business at hoof. “Really? He doesn’t come off as all that welcoming, though…” He sat in a corner of the room, Spike sitting next to him and looking bored. “What do you think?” He asked the dragon.

“I think I wanna go to Pony Joe’s…” he responded, putting his head in his claws. “How is all this supposed to help you to help Twilight, anyway?”

“Well… I can see how diplomacy helps... “ He admitted. “But I have to admit I agree with you for the most part. Raven's the expert, though. I’m sure she knows best.”

After a three hour meeting, Boltsinger and Spike ran out of the room ahead of the dignitaries. The two looked at each other and cheered, the pony rearing up with glee while the dragon jumped happily.

“FREEDOM!” they exclaimed in unison, starting to run towards the wide hallway. As they took their first steps, Boltsinger felt the familiar sensation of magical immobilization. His eyes turned back as Blueblood stepped forward, his horn alight as he shoved Spike out of his way.

“Hey!” Spike began, moving to confront the pompous prince. Raven lit her own horn, wrapping him in her magic to pull him along.

“Don’t worry about it. Just focus on the task at hoof.” Raven suggested.

Boltsinger grumbled to himself, squinting at Blueblood as they were moved to the next destination. “And what is the task at hoof?”

“You didn’t think the meeting with our new friends was over already, did you?” Blueblood wondered, letting the Pegasus loose. “Why, we have to entertain them for far longer if we’re ever going to talk business! Now we’re going to treat them to lunch, so be on your absolute best behavior!”

“Do they even know who I am?” Boltsinger retorted, motioning a wing at himself.

Blueblood chortled to himself. “Well, of course they do! I told them! What’s better than one Prince coming to meet them? Two Princes, of course!”

Boltsinger sighed, rubbing his temples with his wings. “I see… And when were you going to tell me this?”

“Excuse me, I just told you!” He replied. “Now pay attention and see how a true master works!”

Boltsinger shook his head, turning and beckoning Spike over with his wing.

“Well, at least you’re learning something.” Spike mentioned, hopping on his friend’s back and lounging against his neck. “Wake me when we get to do something, okay?”

Boltsinger smiled back at his reptilian friend. “I’ll do that.”

The group made their way to the dining room, where a large meal had been laid out for them. The cats took their seats, looking at their pony hosts curiously. Boltsinger sat across from one of them with the same feeling.

“So…” the feline began, bringing a paw to his mouth. “You… are a Prince here in Equestria?”

“Technically, yes. I guess you could say I’m still ‘in training’ for the job.” the Pegasus answered. “I have to admit, I’ve never met an Abssynian before. Only other cats I’ve met haven’t been so… conversational and reasonable. It’s a magnificent change of pace!”

The dignitary sighed, leaning against the table. “You’re not going to fawn over me like that other one, are you?”

Boltsinger smiled and shook his head. “Not at all. You’re just like every...one... else, after all. You might not be a pony, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have dignity.” He leaned on the table in kind, casting a glance at the Unicorn laughing with the other cat. “Besides, I could use some intelligent conversation!” He smirked at the cat across the table, who looked between the two ponies and started laughing.

After a lunch enjoyable enough to offset the rest of the day, Boltsinger once again had a relaxing Spike on his back as he walked out, the Abssynian dignitary on one side with Raven trailing behind. Blueblood and the other dignitary strolling on ahead of them.

“So, I can’t help but wonder… How are you a Prince?” the dignitary inquired, looking between Boltsinger and Blueblood. “I was told that one was of royal lineage. But you are so remarkably different from him. Did you become as such in a different way?”

Boltsinger smiled and nodded, his recent training coming into play. “Quite astute of you, sir. I only became a Prince very recently through marriage.”

“I see… So, you were simply a normal citizen?” the feline continued, examining the orange equine more closely. “That explains why you look so much more… I mean no offense by this, but you look very plain. Perhaps a little messy. Which of the Princesses deigned to marry you?”

Blueblood’s ears turned to hear the conversation behind him. He slowed down, walking on the other side of the cat. “That’s something that’s been on my mind as well, actually. Why would a Princess want to marry a messy-looking Pegasus when there are so many better ponies out there to court?”

Boltsinger let out a small sigh, gritting his teeth at the Unicorn’s comment. “It’s a long story, but I married Princess Twilight a few months back.” he kept his gaze on the visiting Abssynian, doing his best to avoid looking at Blueblood. “I understand if you aren’t aware, but at least right now, the dragon in my company serves as proof to most as to my royal affiliation.” he pointed his wing over at Spike, who lazily waved a claw at the guest. “He serves as her assistant and aide, as well as the official Friendship Ambassador to the Dragon Lands.”

Blueblood looked at the purple reptile relaxing on the Pegasus’ back, putting a hoof to his mouth. “Ah, yes… a dragon… Auntie Celestia once had me meet with them for some... negotiations.” He brought his pace to a trot, flipping his mane and huffing about. “They were so… brutish. I can’t understand why a Princess would associate with one of their kind.” Spike sat up, spinning around and glaring daggers at the haughty pony.

As Spike opened his mouth to speak, Boltsinger’s face turned fierce. He stopped, stomping his hoof as hard as he could. “Excuse me!” he cried, the volume of his tone stopping Blueblood, Raven, and the dignitaries in their tracks. The Prince in question looked back at the Pegasus, a mix of shock and wonder in his eyes. “That’s my friend you’re talking about! Now, I can’t speak for Ember or the other dragons in the Dragon Lands, but if you’ve ever been to Fillydelphia, there are tons of dragons there, all as diverse and interesting as any pony you could ever meet! And Spike, here? He may be young, but he’s more accomplished than ponies that are three times his age, but you’ve been disrespecting him ALL DAY! I just can’t believe I even let you think of doing it, but NOT ANYMORE!” He stomped forward, flaring his wings dramatically as he brought his muzzle mere inches from Blueblood’s. “So I will not have you going around and bad-mouthing my friend, especially based on what kind of creature he is!”

Blueblood and Spike looked astonishingly at the orange stallion. Spikes face showed a measure of appreciation, while Blueblood quivered with fear. He lowered his head to the floor, covering it with his forelegs and shaking. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! Please, just don’t hurt me!” The Abssynians looked at the cowering pony , turning their attention to the now-furious Pegasus in awe, while Raven stared at the scene with her mouth hung open, dropping her quill and clipboard.

Boltsinger looked down at Blueblood, facehoofing. “I’m not going to hurt you. I just couldn’t stand for you disrespecting my friend.” He turned his attention to the dignitaries. “I sincerely apologize for my awful behavior just now. It was unfitting of someone representing Equestria, and I can assure you that most ponies you meet will not behave in such a manner. But, you see, my wife is the Princess of Friendship, and my values align with hers in most ways. When friends are insulted, or friendship is taken lightly, I tend to lose my patience. Again, I apologize for my actions, and I humbly take my leave.” He turned around, walking away.

Spike looked back at the scene they had just left, then turned back to Boltsinger. “Hey… um… Thanks for that.”

“It’s no problem.” the stallion replied, smiling back at him. “I’m just sorry you had to put up with that pompous pony.”

“Yeah, but what about your lessons?” The dragon asked, hopping off and walking beside him. “Without that prince, how are you gonna learn how to be a Prince?”

“I don’t wanna be a Prince if it means being like him.” Boltsinger spat. “I’ll help Twilight however I can, but I refuse to be a pompous meat-head.”

In the castle guest room, Boltsinger leaned on the balcony while Spike packed his belongings. The stallion looked out at the horizon, admiring his view of the city with a sigh as a knock came at the door.

“It’s open!” he called, turning to face the room’s entrance. The door swung wide open in a shroud of bright yellow magic to reveal Raven next to Princess Celestia. His eyes went wide as he scrambled to remember his royal composure lessons, standing up straight with his wings flared. “U-um… Your Highness! Welcome to my room! Um… Why are you here?”

Raven stepped forward, adjusting her glasses once more. “Actually, I wanted to see you.” she started. “I wanted to apologize for what you went through with Prince Blueblood. His behavior and remark towards your friend were uncalled for and reflected poorly on the royal element.” She brought up a hoof, her face brightening. “However, since you confronted him, he has improved his behavior! It should serve him better with the next guests we receive!”

“I see.” Boltsinger responded. “Well, that’s good for him. I’m sorry it didn’t work out, there. He’s just… Not what I would expect of someone representing Equestrian royalty.”

Celestia giggled and stepped forward. “He is rather removed from the bloodline, to be sure. But his heart is in the right place.” She stood next to Boltsinger, putting her wings in their resting position. “Actually, the dignitaries wanted me to give you a message when they left.”

The orange stallion tilted his head, confused. “Oh? What kind of message would they have for me?”

“They told me that they were quite impressed with your integrity, standing up for your friend the way you did.” she explained. “The way you stuck to your values really showed them what the ponies of Equestria are like. They also seemed to appreciate your candidness during lunch.” She put her hoof around him, smiling warmly. “And I have to say, I agree with them. Twilight seems to have rubbed off on you in a number of good ways.”

The Pegasus gave a sheepish smile, scratching his mane with his wing. “Thanks… But I still doubt I’m really 'Prince' material.”

“Perhaps you just need a better example. Somepony who is a bit… friendlier.” Celestia suggested. “I’d be willing to have you observe the goings on in my day for a while, if you believe you can learn from it.”

“Really? You’d be okay with something like that?” Raven asked, looking up at the Alicorn. She closed her eyes with a simple nod. “Well, that certainly would make my job much easier… If you don’t mind me explaining things to you during the process, Boltsinger.”

Boltsinger smiled and nodded. “I think that would be a wonderful idea.” He looked up at Celestia, doing his best to keep his composure. “Thank you, Your Highness. I think I will extend my stay awhile and take you up on your most generous offer.”

“Very well. But I have one condition!” the Princess declared, spreading her wings regally. Boltsinger’s practiced regality fell away entirely at the sight, his face and wings sinking. “Don’t be so formal with me. We’re friends. You don’t have to walk on eggshells.”

The stallion picked himself up from his slight panic, smiling weakly. “Oh yeah… All right!”

Author's Note

I apologize for the Abssynians not really having names. I don't really plan on going too crazy deep into a couple of dignitaries. But I am tossing around the idea of some other cats coming into play. It's a big world, after all.

Problem? What Problem?

Twilight awoke once more, the bed noticeably empty of any other ponies. She let out a sad sigh, knowing that Boltsinger was doing something important, but that didn’t mean she didn’t miss him. She went through her morning routine, taking it easy. Today was going to be a good day, and no amount of loneliness was going to get in the way of that! She had a quick breakfast, moving towards the library for some light reading. As she took a seat in her favorite comfy chair, she heard a familiar sound from behind. She looked down at her flank, seeing a flash coming from her Cutie Mark as smaller versions of the mark spread out around it, a magical image of the representation of her talent rising up into the room and out the door.

“Oh!” she cried, standing up excitedly. “Just what I needed!” She galloped off towards the throne room, making sure not to overexert herself. “I wonder who’s going to be called along with me! Maybe Pinkie? She and I have never been called just the two of us before! Or Rarity! Oh, I bet an adventure with her would lead to something gorgeous! Who am I kidding? No matter who goes with me, this is sure to be--” She skidded to a stop in front of the map, seeing the image of her Cutie Mark, floating solemnly above the image of Equestria, alone. Twilight’s heart sank, her ears drooping behind her and her wings falling dejectedly. “Oh...“ She examined the map further, seeing where exactly the mark had stopped. Her face lit up once more when she recognized the image of a lightning bolt with wings. “Ah! It must be a problem with the Wonderbolts! Rainbow Dash is there, now, so I must need to solve this problem with her! After all, why would the map call her all the way here just to go to a place she’s going to be for the next several days, anyway?” She trotted away from the map, packing a saddlebag and heading out the door.

Twilight made her way over a gathering of clouds, looking upon the mixture of land and cloud that made up the floating Wonderbolts compound. There were uniformed Pegasus ponies flying everywhere, some of them zipping by at breakneck speeds,while others struggled to keep up. She laughed to herself, knowing full well which category she would fall under if she were to train here. She set her sights on the runway, deciding to have a little fun with her arrival.

“Okay… I may not be as fast as Rainbow Dash, but I bet I could still make a magical entrance!” She angled herself for a low landing, propelling herself to her full speed. She kept her focus on the start of the runway as she lit up her horn, charging the magic within. Several Wonderbolts, Soarin and Rainbow Dash included, came out to the runway as the Princess sped by. They followed her movements, only finding them shockingly hard to follow as she vanished in a flash of magical light only to reappear at the start of the runway, speeding by again and building up more speed. The Wonderbolts jerked their heads back and forth, watching the lilac pony as she turned into a streak of purple and pink that became near-continuous over the pavement, magenta flashes on either side of the line. When Twilight reached the highest speed she knew she could handle, she turned up, shooting into the sky above the runway, where she created a magical image of her Cutie Mark that expanded in the air behind her. She performed an immelman turn, charging through the image of her Cutie Mark, causing it to shatter into showers of light that fell to the surface below like bright magical snow. Twilight flared her wings to the sides, slowing her descent and coming in for a soft landing in front of the Wonderbolts. “How’s that for an entrance?” she asked, smirking at Rainbow Dash.

The present Pegasi held a slack-jawed stare at the arriving Alicorn, never having seen a display quite like that before, save from other Wonderbolts. “Twilight…” Rainbow Dash started, trotting over to her friend. “That was awesome! How’d you do that?”

Twilight puffed out her chest, walking towards the barracks. “Just a little something I came up with.”

Rainbow laughed, walking next to the Princess. “Okay. But why are you here, anyway? Just wanted to see me?” She quirked her eyebrows, smirking.

“Actually, I was called here by the map.” Twilight corrected, motioning a wing to her Cutie Mark.

“Cool! What’s the friendship problem?” the Pegasus replied. “I’m sure we can knock it out in no time!”

Rainbow Dash felt a tugging on her tail, dragging her to the side. “Not so fast, Crash!” The mares turned their attention to the source of the voice. There, holding Rainbow’s tail with her wing, was a yellow Pegasus mare with a fiery orange and yellow mane and tail wearing her Wonderbolts uniform. “We got a lot more flying to do before the end of the day! You may have your duties for these missions, but you’re on my time right now! Now get to it!”

Rainbow’s body went rigid as she stood at attention, saluting with her wing. “Yes, ma’am!” she answered, easing up and turning to Twilight. “You heard Spitfire. I guess I’ll help you out later, okay?”

Twilight nodded, taking a seat as Rainbow took off alongside the other Wonderbolts. They began a series of drills, practicing a new routine for an upcoming tour. Throughout the drills, there were several moments in which Rainbow fell behind, causing another of the ‘Bolts to call out and correct her. She would always groan and pick up her pace, but was quickly growing tired of clipping her wings or nearly crashing into her fellow flyers. Meanwhile, Twilight made the rounds of the compound, walking up to various ponies and asking if they’ve had any kind of problems with their friendships as of late, more often than not being met with a resounding ‘no’ as they went about their business. After several hours, Twilight hung her head, moving slowly back towards the barracks as the bell for lunch sounded.

“What’s with you today, Crash?” Spitfire asked as she and the rest of the Wonderbolts landed. “I haven’t seen you flying that badly since your first day on the team!”

“Is something wrong?” Twilight wondered, fluttering over to them.

“Nothing!” Rainbow huffed, bringing her head low as she started for the mess hall. Spitfire and Twilight looked at the Pegasus, then at one another.

“Care to elaborate?” the Princess inquired.

“Ever since she got here, she’s been in a weird funk.” Spitfire explained. “Has something changed back in Ponyville?”

Twilight stewed for several moments, scratching her chin with her hoof. “Well, I don’t think anything has happened yet.”

“Yet?” the Wonderbolt captain repeated. “What’s going on?”

“Well, I haven’t seen her since I told everypony I was gonna have a--” She paused for a moment, realization hitting her like a weather pony on a storm cloud. “... baby.” She broke into a canter towards Rainbow Dash, slowing to match her pace as she came up beside her.

“How’s the search for that friendship problem going?” the disgruntled Pegasus queried. “Anypony stick out?”

Twilight nodded, taking a deep breath in preparation. “I think so.”

“So what’s the friendship problem?” Rainbow continued, brightening up slightly.

Twilight put her wing around her blue companion. “Rainbow, I think… You’re the one with the friendship problem.”

The Wonderbolt’s head recoiled at the statement, her eyes turning fierce. “What?! How can I be the one with the friendship problem if I’m supposed to help solve it?”

“Well, Rainbow…” Twilight started, pointing to her flank again. “I’m the only one that was called by the map. At first, I thought it was because you were already here, but… I can’t find anypony other than you that’s been having problems here. So, what’s your problem?”

“I told you, there’s no problems!” she huffed, picking up her pace. “Everything’s fine!”

“That’s not what Spitfire said.” Twilight retorted, matching Rainbow’s pace. “And you’ve been acting strange ever since the picnic! What’s going on with you, Dash?”

Rainbow Dash gave a frustrated groan, looking dejectedly at the Alicorn. “There’s nothing going on with me... Why don’t you just keep looking around? I’m sure there are some ponies you missed! You’re bound to find that friendship problem!”

Twilight stopped and tilted her head as the rainbow mare trotted onward. “Okay, but we’re not done!” She called, turning to head back outside.

Twilight came out of the classroom of the Wonderbolts Academy, a satisfied grin on her muzzle. She had gotten to appear as a guest speaker in the class, offering advice based on her experiences learning to fly as late in life as she did. The smell of books and paper, along with the chalk in her magical grip… It was invigorating to the studious mare. She felt renewed, energized, ready to take on any problem she was faced with!

“I DON’T HAVE A PROBLEM! GOT IT?!” a raspy voice shouted in the distance. Twilight would have thought it was her husband, had she had only the sheer volume to go off of, but the voice was unmistakably Rainbow Dash.

Twilight gave a firm flap of her wings, ascending into the air and quickly closing the distance between her and the landing Wonderbolts. Fleetfoot and Thunderlane were already headed inside, while Spitfire and Soarin stood in front of the frustrated mare. Spitfire wore a stern expression, while Soarin showed concern. Twilight stopped short of them, allowing the Wonderbolts to continue.

“A tone like that tells me otherwise!” Spitfire spat. “You’re talking back to me, you’ve been flying like a filly, and you yelled at your own friend! I’ve half a mind to put you on probation!” Rainbow’s eyes went wide at the suggestion, her ears drooping as she considered the possibility.

“Now, that seems a little harsh, Spitfire.” Soarin interjected. “So she’s not at a hundred percent today. That’s never stopped me!” Spitfire turned her glare towards the white stallion, showing the kind of fire in her eyes that gets every Wonderbolt to listen without question. “Okay, why don’t we just give her some time? I’m sure she’ll be back in the zone soon!”

Spitfire looked back at Rainbow Dash, her angry glare turning less serious. “Okay, you’re not on probation.”

Rainbow’s face brightened. She put her hooves on Spitfire’s shoulders. “Thanks, Spitfire! I promise I won’t let you--”

“But…” she resumed, stopping the cyan mare. “I am ordering you to take some time off. Sort yourself out! We’ll get some of the reserves ready, so you just sit back and get stuff figured out, okay?”

Once again, the blue pony lowered her head. “Yes ma’am…” She turned away, walking towards the locker room. After a brief stint of conversation with Spitfire, Soarin quickly caught up to her. “What do you want?”

Soarin smiled at her, glad that the Wonderbolt uniform obscured his now-reddening face. “Well, I thought it still wasn’t totally fair for you to be forced into time off, so I volunteered to stick around Ponyville for a while and make sure you’re still keeping up with your practice!”

“Where are you gonna stay?” she begrudgingly asked. “You seem to be all buddy-buddy with Bolt, now. Gonna go to the castle?”

“I don’t have a problem with that!” Twilight called out from behind, causing the Pegasi to jump. She smiled up at them, waving her foreleg. “We told you already, Soarin, you’re welcome whenever!”

Rainbow wiped her forehead in relief. “Whew! It’s just you…” She landed next to the Princess, resting her wings. “You find that friendship problem?”

“Nopony but you seems to be off today.” She stated.

“Well, then, the map must be on the fritz again,” she suggested. “‘cause I don’t have a problem!” Soarin raised a hoof, his mouth open only slightly as Rainbow glared daggers at him. “Right, Soarin?”

Soarin sighed, letting his hoof fall to the floor. “Actually, Rainbow Dash, I think the Princess has a point. Your performance hasn’t been good, and your behavior is worse. If that’s not evidence of a problem, I dunno what is. Why don’t you just tell her what’s going on with you?”

Rainbow Dash growled, shaking her head and beginning to seethe. “It’s not anything that’s going on with me that’s bugging me…” she admitted. She raised her head and flared her wings, turning around to point a hoof at Twilight. “It’s what’s going on with you that I don’t like! That thing that happened with you and… Boltsinger… It’s gonna change everything! And I’m not sure how I feel about that!”

The Princess sighed, knowing that Rainbow had a point. “Yes, the baby is going to be a big change. We’re all going to have to make some of our own changes to adjust to that. But why does that bug you so much? You were so happy when Cadence and Shining Armor were going to have a baby! What’s so different here?”

“Neither Cadence nor Shining Armor are one of my best friends!” she shouted, flaring her wings. “I don’t go out on epic, awesome adventures with either of them! I don’t team up with them to save Equestria, solve mysteries, help heroes, and kick butt with them! I do all of that stuff with you and the girls! And it’s the best part of my life!”

Twilight’s eyes widened as the impact of her friend’s words consumed her. She puzzled for several moments, shaking her head only slightly as she worked up what she wanted to say. “But… what about being a Wonderbolt? Wasn’t that your dream? And you’re doing that right now!”

“Yeah! Being a Wonderbolt is truly living the dream!” Rainbow admitted, looking around the barracks. “But going out and being heroes with my best friends? That’s better than any dream!”

Twilight let a smile explode onto her face as she nearly tackled her friend in a hug. “I had no idea you felt this way!” she cried, squeezing almost as tight as Pinkie Pie. “I love going on adventures with you, too!”

Rainbow reciprocated the embrace, pulling away slightly. “I’m glad to hear that, but… You’re gonna be a mom soon… Whether we like it or not, you won’t be able to just get up and go adventuring like you used to! I can’t ask you to drop everything just to go and risk your life! I’m happy that you’re happy, but… I’m not happy, okay! All this stuff changing, I just wish things would go back to how they used to be!” She broke the hug, walking towards the mess hall again. “Sometimes I just wish he never showed up…”

Twilight’s foreleg lingered in the air as her hindquarters dropped to the floor. “Rainbow…”

“No, don’t…” she started, looking somberly back. “Soarin’s right… I need some time… I’m going home. I don’t care what you do, just… leave me alone for a while.”

Twilight’s flank began to glow again, the images of her Cutie Mark flying into the central one as her head dropped down. She stood up, looking at the glowing mark as she plodded her way out of the compound. “How can my job be done? My friendship is worse off than it was before…”

Author's Note

I know, the problem here isn't necessarily "solved". Sometimes admitting to having a problem is a problem of its own. Rainbow is just too stubborn to admit it, especially when it means hurting a friend's feelings.
Starting on the next chapter soon! I hope you enjoy it!

Memories

Boltsinger and Spike approached the front door of the Castle of Friendship, laughing together as they reflected on their time in Canterlot. Once Celestia had taken over in instructing the stallion for his ‘royal training’, things had gone quite smoothly, and he had gotten to know both of the Royal Sisters a great deal more. He whipped his wing forward, using a small gust of wind to open the double doors just enough for the two of them to walk through.

Boltsinger took a deep breath to begin his standard bellow to announce his return, but a small sound in the distance crept into his ears. It was Twilight’s voice, a sad laughter softly reverberating off of the walls. He exhaled, starting towards the hall. “Do you hear that?” he asked the dragon.

Spike shrugged, not understanding what his friend meant. “I don’t hear anything. What’s going on?”

Boltsinger’s ears homed in on the sound. “Twilight’s laughing.”

“So? She laughs a lot!” Spike commented, spreading his arms. “Maybe she found a really good book?”

“I know she laughs a lot. But it’s the way she’s laughing.” the Pegasus clarified. He offered a wing, motioning to his back. “Hop on.” Spike stepped onto the outstretched wing, receiving a springboard-like boost that sent him into the air, landing on Boltsinger’s back. Once the dragon was in place and comfortable, he cantered off into the depths of the castle.

“Hey, Boltsinger!” a voice came from above. “Why’re you in such a hurry?”

Boltsinger stopped, looking up to see Soarin in the air above him. “Soarin? What brings you to Ponyville?”

“I’m here to make sure Rainbow Dash sticks to her training while she’s on break.” he elaborated. “I’m gonna be staying in Ponyville for a while.”

Boltsinger nodded, continuing on his way. “Ah. Makes sense.” The two continued in silence for a while. Boltsinger stopped again soon after. “Wait, why is Rainbow on break? Does this have anything to do with why Twilight is so… happy-sad?”

Soarin landed, bringing his hoof to his muzzle. “Um… I don’t understand… She’s both happy and sad at the same time?”

Boltsinger picked up his pace. “At least, that’s what it sounds like. I’m on my way to check on her now.”

“So, what happened with Rainbow Dash?” Spiked wondered. “And… why would it bug Twilight so much?” Soarin took a position next to Boltsinger, going with him the whole way as he explained his side of the events at the Wonderbolts compound. Spike and the stallion he rode looked at one another, nodding in understanding as they rounded last turn leading to the master bedroom, where Twilight’s reminiscent laughter could be heard by everyone. Soarin stepped back as those closest to the Princess stepped through the door. Twilight sat on the couch, looking over the original copy of the friendship journal. She was laughing to herself, but her breathing was staggered and heavy. She had a weak smile on her muzzle as she read through the rather roughly-written pages of Rainbow Dash’s section with small beads of water forming in her eyes.

Boltsinger stepped beside his wife, wiping the water from her eyes as Spike moved to stand between them. “Hey… You okay?” Twilight looked up from her book, her weak smile reminding Boltsinger of himself. She reached up to him, putting her hoof on his shoulder, to which he responded by pulling her into a hug. Her breathing grew heavier as the smile melted away. “You don’t have to hold it in, Twilight. It’s okay…” He wrapped his wings around her and rubbed her back. Spike climbed up onto the couch and joined the two, offering what support he could as the Princess wept her way through the next several minutes.

The Alicorn finally picked herself up, looking between her husband and her best friend. “Thank you…” She said, putting a wing around Spike and pulling the two of then closer. “I needed that. You have no idea what kind of day I’ve had…”

“Actually, Soarin told us on the way up here.” Spike corrected. “At least, what he could make of it.”

Boltsinger looked over at the friendship journal, recognizing Rainbow Dash’s mouth-writing. “So, what kind of adventures have you had with Rainbow, anyway? I’ve read about a lot of your exploits in the journal, heard about them from Celestia, but I never got a first hoof perspective. Would you care to help me fix that problem?”

Twilight gave her favorite stallion a wide, genuine smile. “I’d love to help you with that. But, I think we can handle that later. We have a hungry guest.” She got up from the couch, heading to the hallway. “He’s been waiting patiently for a while, now.”

“I can make dinner!” Spike offered, running ahead of them. “You two just have a good time ‘till then, okay?” Before the mare could open her mouth, the baby dragon had beckoned Soarin down the hall, already out of earshot.

Twilight looked at the now-empty hallway with a grin, happy to know that Spike always had her happiness in mind. She turned around, looking back at Boltsinger. “Well, then, I guess we have some time! Which story would you like to hear first?”

“The beginning, of course!” He replied, trotting up next to her. “I’d like to hear everything. Or, at least as much as you can bring yourself to share.”

Twilight nodded, starting to think up the best way she could tell him these stories. She knew that he’d be happy with just hearing about them from her, but she did know another way she could convey memories that was much more dynamic and interesting. She teleported the two of them to the library, sorted all of the books within, and saw to it that there was ample room to move around, turning to face her husband once more. “Are you ready?” she asked, spreading her wings and hunching over.

Boltsinger looked around the room, not quite sure what she meant. “Um… Ready for what? Aren’t you just gonna tell the story?”

Twilight shook her head gleefully, magic beginning to swirl around her horn. “Nope! Where’s the fun in simply telling you when I can show you?” she cast her spell, a bead of magic erupting from her horn and coming back, hitting her squarely over her heart. Boltsinger cried out, extending a foreleg forward as it struck her, the spell extending outward and enveloping the room.

Boltsinger stood in a field in Canterlot, where several Unicorns were going about their day. Under a nearby tree was a pony the stallion found all too familiar. He trotted over to Twilight, who was obsessively hunched over a book. “Twilight! There you are!” He started, letting out a sigh of relief. “I thought that spell did something awful!” He heard a giggle come from above him as he laid down in front of her. He took a good look at the mare, noting all of her features. It was then that he noticed something was… missing. “Um… Twilight? What happened to your wings? And… um… is your horn shorter than it normally is?” Twilight didn’t respond. She just kept reading her book aloud. It was the story of how Nightmare Moon came to be. She paused for a moment, wondering about the Elements of Harmony, then stood up, galloping off and phasing right through the unsuspecting Pegasus.

Twilight’s laughter could be heard from above, uproarious, but not at all cruel as her husband shivered. “I’m sorry! I couldn’t help but lead you on a little. You remember this spell, right?”

Boltsinger thought for a moment, finally raising his hoof. “Ah! This is the one Starlight used to help me show you my memories, right? So does that mean the Twilight I just saw was…?”

“That’s right! That’s me back when I was still a Unicorn!” She confirmed as the Pegasus followed the mare’s younger self. “This is the day it all began for me….”

To say the experience Twilight was giving him, seeing her memories as if he was present for the events, was unreal would have been an understatement. The scene changed many times, leading to what felt like a brand new tour of Ponyville along with a re-introduction to all of the other Element-bearers, plus more members of the Apple family than he could even comprehend. The memories showed him how all of them were long before even the friendship journal could date back to, and, as always, the ponies all of them were before he knew them fascinated him. He could see very clearly how they had all grown since these events, and it had him more in awe than ever. Twilight led him through their first trek through the Everfree Forest, where they each displayed the qualities that defined them, going into the Castle of the Two Sisters to find the Elements and face Nightmare Moon. After a morning celebration in Ponyville, the scene faded back into the Castle library, where the Twilight He was most familiar with stood before him.

“So, what do you think?” she inquired with a grin. “Would you like to make this a regular thing?”

Boltsinger looked at the Princess with wide eyes and a wider smile. “Absolutely!” He leaped over to the mare, giving her a firm hug and pulling back. “Learning more about all of you is always a pleasure!” He took a closer look at her smiling face. “And it seems like doing this helped you a little, too.”

“It did. I think I needed to share it with somepony.” She stated, sighing and hanging her head. “I still don’t know what to do about Rainbow Dash as things are now, though…”

Boltsinger put his wing on her chin, lifting her head to look at him. “That’s something we can figure out together. Right now, though, I think it’s best that we give her the space she’s asked for and let Soarin do his thing.”

Twilight gave a slow nod, leaning in closer to him. The two closed their eyes, steadily closing the gap between their muzzles, nearly touching their lips together until…

A loud rumble sounded, sending both of them reeling for a moment. Twilight corrected herself first, a sheepish laugh coming out of her as she blushed. “Are you hungry?” she wondered, putting her hoof over her stomach. “Because apparently a spell like that takes a lot of energy. I’m starving!”

The Pegasus let out a loud guffaw, clutching his belly with his wings as he struggled to maintain his balance. “Yeah, let’s eat!” He finally managed to say.

Twilight laughed as the two trotted into the hallway. “I wonder what Spike is making… I’ve had a strange craving for hot sauce on cupcakes lately…”

Author's Note

This is another one of those chapters that ended up on the shorter side, and I'm only a little sorry for that. In the end, though, I felt that trying to pad it out for word count would make it lose meaning. So, I decided to submit is as-is. And I've already got my idea for the next chapter! (I've got ideas for several chapters, actually. I just need to figure out the order in which I want to put them!)

From Pony To Peacock!

“And then, Twilight announced the big news!” Rarity began, tailoring her latest sale to the mare it was intended for. She looked up to see Roseluck’s excited face looking back at her. “Try not to make a big fuss about it, but… Twilight is going to have a baby!”

The flower salespony squeed in delight, raising her foreleg to her head and fainting from pure happiness.

“Yes, well, I suppose that is a rather appropriate response, now isn’t it?” she continued, taking advantage of the position to hem the skirt better. She hummed to herself as the bell rang, directing her attention to the door, where a lanky yellow Earth Pony stallion with an orange mane and tail and green eyes, along with a slight underbite and a Cutie Mark of three cubed cakes and a smaller, slightly chubby blue Earth Pony mare with a two-tone swirly pink mane and tail with pink eyes and three cupcakes as a Cutie Mark walked in. The stallion wore a red and white triangular hat with a bow tie and a pure white apron, while the mare wore bright pink spherical earrings and a yellow apron that flared out with pink lace. They waved happily at the couturier with smiles on their faces. “Oh! Mr. and Mrs. Cake! How do you do?”

“Fine, thank you.” Mr. Cake replied. “We’ve actually got a request for our coordinated wedding services, and thought we’d come over to discuss ideas.”

Stars flashed in the Unicorn’s eyes at the mention of the word ‘wedding’. She rushed over to the confectioners, giving the pair her full attention. “How did this come about?” she wondered, guiding them further into the boutique.

“Ever since Twilight’s wedding, ponies from Canterlot have been climbing over each other, right there on our doorstep!” Mrs. Cake elaborated, excitedly squishing her cheeks with her hooves and letting out an exceptionally happy giggle. “Why, there’s so many posh ponies at our doorstep, we’ve had to come up with excuses for why we can’t get to all of them right away!”

Rarity recoiled as delicately as she could muster. “Canterlot ponies?!” She shouted, stirring her client from unconsciousness. “You mean the Equestrian elite?!” Her head swayed back and forth as she brought her foreleg up to her forehead, fainting from the scope of it all.

Roseluck stood up and looked at the fallen fashionista. She looked over at the cakes, pointing a hoof at the Unicorn. “You know, I think that mare goes way too over-the-top sometimes!”

Rarity opened her eyes, finding herself on the floor of her boutique, the Cakes standing over her with concerned eyes. She slowly sat up, her hoof on the back of her head. “What happened?” she wondered, looking between her guests.

Mr. Cake wiped his forehead in relief. “You passed out when we told you about the wedding jobs! We were worried about you. Are you okay?”

Rarity stood up, brushing herself off. “Yes, of course, dear.” She pulled herself together, guiding them into another room of the boutique. “So, what was this you were telling me about Canterlot ponies wanting our wedding services? I thought interest had dried up!”

“Well, you of all ponies know how much the ponies of Canterlot are obsessed with royalty!” Mrs. Cake began. “They were all tickled pink by how we handled the most recent royal wedding that all the lovestruck couples in the city want to come to us for the same kind of ‘royal’ treatment!”

Rarity stepped back, bubbling up with joy. “That’s wonderful!” she exclaimed, beginning to push Mr. Cake out the door. “Well, what are we waiting for?! Let’s go meet our next clients!”

The Cakes quickly acquiesced to the designer’s desires, heading out the door. They made their way to Sugar Cube Corner, where a pair of Unicorns stood in front of the counter, smiling and waving at them. Mrs. Cake took her usual spot behind the counter as her husband stepped up to the couple.

“We’ve brought Rarity for you.” Mr. Cake said, gesturing to the pony in question. “What is it you have in mind?”

The Unicorns looked like average citizens of Canterlot, rather than the ‘elite’ Rarity had expected, but she smiled all the same. She loved the city for every kind of pony that lived there, not just the important or wealthy ponies she had come to know. The mare of the couple stepped forward, looking at Rarity pleadingly. “Um… Miss Rarity, would it be too much trouble if I asked for a dress just like Princess Twilight’s?”

And then there was the part of the Canterlot fashion scene that she didn’t quite resonate with. The tendency to want to be just like royalty instead of trying to shine on their own. Rarity took a good look at the mare, turning on her fashion sense. She wasn’t bad-looking in the least. Teal coat, dark blue mane and tail with a few tight curls strewn everywhere. Lovely blue eyes, and a number of yellow stars for a Cutie Mark. Her hoof came to her muzzle, gingerly tapping on her slightly pursed lower lip. “I’m afraid that dress in particular wouldn’t work for you, dear.” she informed her. “I feel like you would do better with something different.” She straightened her posture once more, putting a hoof on her client’s shoulder. “Rather than trying to imitate Princess Twilight, how about you and I work together to create something that will make you look just as radiant, but in your own way?”

The mare looked at Rarity, then back at her companion, who gave another smile and a nod. She turned back to Rarity with a smile of her own. “Okay. Let’s work together on it!”

“Excellent!” Rarity replied. She led the mare back over to the Cakes. “Now, Our wedding package involves coordination between the food, the decorations, and, of course, the outfits! And in the last year, I have expanded my fashion repertoire to include more stallion attire!” She looked over at the would-be groom. “I can design a dashing tuxedo for you, as well, if you’d like!”

The dark grey stallion dropped his jaw slightly, surprised at the offer. “Seriously? You can do that?” he asked.

“Oh, absolutely!” Rarity confirmed, putting a hoof to her chest with a proud smile. “I designed every single outfit that was worn at Princess Twilight’s wedding! The bride, the groom, and the entire wedding party! Designing for you should be no trouble, whatsoever!”

The stallion’s face lit up, his jet black mane and tail bouncing with his movements. He nodded profusely, pulling Rarity between them, where they turned to the Cakes to discuss plans.

This continued for several hours as more and more clients began to show up. Each of the brides wanted the same thing, to look just like the Princess, but Rarity was a crafty mare, and was able to convince them to go with something a little more their speed. As the couples all spoke with the Cakes, Rarity would look at them. She would lean on the table, resting her head on her front hooves as she sighed. Putting together a wedding had started to become second nature to her, but the pure romance of it all would always bring a tear to her eye. When the last clients for the day left, the fashionista let out a sorrowful swoon.

Mrs. Cake turned her ears towards Rarity’s sudden vocalization, trotting up next to her and sitting down. “Are you alright, dearie? You seem a little down.”

“Have you ever looked at all the romance around you and just… wanted it for yourself?” The couturier queried. “Where you see so many happy couples that get married and end up happily ever after, and you just want to find the stallion of your dreams and marry him on the spot?!”

“Dear, I’m already married with two foals.” Mrs. Cake retorted. She put on a warm smile and put her hoof on Rarity’s back. “Of course I know the feeling! You’re quite a catch, if I do say so, myself! And I’m certain you’ll find the one for you…”

Rarity looked at the swirly-haired pony next to her, wiping away a small tear. “Thank you, Mrs. Cake.” She stood up from her spot, raising a hoof in front of her in a determined pose. “Now, let’s go! We’ve got weddings to plan!”

“... and now we have so many clients we just don’t know what to do with them all!” Rarity finished, sitting across from Applejack in the spa’s steam room. “Oh, isn’t it simply wonderful? Business is booming, and so many ponies are getting their…” she swooned, laying on her side while propping herself up on her elbow. “... happily ever after…”

“Wonderful?” Applejack repeated, leaning closer. “How’s havin’ more customers than y’all can handle s’ dang ‘wonderful’?”

“Oh, Applejack, it’s not about the work. It’s about helping all of these ponies start their lives together!” she elaborated, raising her free foreleg dramatically. “Spreading love like that far and wide… It’s only the most beautiful endeavor one could hope to undertake!” She sat back up, scooting closer to her farmer friend. “The Cakes and I are going to be going to Canterlot tomorrow to talk with the clients in greater detail, and I was hoping that maybe... “ she brought herself next to the orange mare.

“Yeah?” the Earth Pony replied. “What is it?”

“I was hoping you might come with me!” the Unicorn requested, putting her hooves together beside her face.

Applejack looked slightly taken aback, her head having reared back almost instantly as her friend made her suggestion. “Why the hay d’ ya need me along? This is all fer that fancy Canterlot weddin’ business, isn’t it?”

Rarity took a deep breath and put her hooves on one of Applejack’s, lifting it in front of her. “Applejack, you were the one who got the Cakes and i our first client for our wedding service, and while I may have nearly ruined the whole affair, you were instrumental to its success! I feel like you would be a kind of… good luck charm! What do you say? Can you help me through this, please?”

Applejack’s face went softer than applesauce, looking Rarity in her pleading eyes. “All right, then. If’n it means so much to ya, I’ll do it!”

Rarity pulled Applejack into a big hug. “Oh, thank you, Applejack! You’ve no idea how important this is to me!” She pulled back from her hug, getting up from the seat. “Next treatment!”

The next day, Applejack, Rarity, and the Cakes stood in Canterlot Carousel. Sassy Saddles tended tirelessly to the customers while the first of many couples came in to speak with Rarity.

“How lovely to see you again!” Rarity greeted, hugging both ponies at once. “Now, I’ve got some ideas for how we can perfect your ceremony! I think we should go with a color scheme that reflects each of you…” She went on for several minutes, bringing them up to a piece of parchment with a mannequin on either side. She floated over her design tools and began drawing, looking between the two of them. With every glance, she added a new detail. Once the designs were set, the Unicorns turned to the Cakes, beginning a long discussion of what kind of cake they wanted, ranging from decoration, flavor, and the overall types of cakes they had in their massive library of baked goods, Rarity swooning all the while.

After a full day of designing and talking to a myriad of couples, Applejack stepped forward next to Rarity, nudging her on the side. “So, how’re y’all feelin’ after all that?” she asked, giving her a knowing glance. “It certainly looks like it took a lot fer you ta keep yer cool. Care to let me in?”

Rarity gave a lonely sigh, looking at the last couple to leave. “All of this wedding planning is wonderful for business, but it’s also reminding me of… well… the last wedding we were a part of… And the beautiful thing coming from it.”

Applejack saw the pining look in her friend’s eyes. “I… think I see what yer gettin’ at.” She put her hoof around the white pony. “An’ I mean I really see it.”

Rarity looked over at her, smiling weakly. “It’s that obvious, isn’t it?” Applejack nodded in confirmation. “I just can’t help but feel a little bit jealous. I see what those two have gained from each other, even if it was only after a short time, and I can only think of how much I want it all for myself!”

“Even though you were the one that egged ‘em on into gettin’ together?” the work horse reminded her.

“That’s part of the reason, actually.” she confirmed, looking ahead once more. “I was able to help them make something beautiful happen for them, and now I’m just wondering if I can do it for me.”

“Well, I think any stallion who has an idea on what ‘beauty’ is is gonna want a shot at ya.” Applejack stated, patting her friend hard on the back and accidentally knocking her onto the floor. “Ya just gotta let ‘em know yer interested!”

Rarity stood up, thinking about what she’d just heard. “Let them know… I see!” She turned to Applejack with a brilliant smile. “I just need to put myself out there! Let all those lucky stallions know that Rarity is on the market!” She puffed out her chest, raising her right foreleg as she took a wide stance, casting a confident look out through the front door behind her.

“That’s the ticket!” Applejack cheered, swaying her foreleg in front of her as Rarity began bubbling with laughter and excitement. “Just make sure ya don’t get too excited ‘n go--” in an instant, the glamorous pony ran upstairs. “... overboard…” She lingered in the moment, finally turning to follow her.

Rarity was in the back room of the boutique, sewing on pure instinct. She knew what to do to make herself stand out to the stallions of Canterlot. Appearing in her usual state of fabulosity wouldn’t say much, but if she were to step up her game then there wouldn’t be a single colt who could resist her! Feathers, fabrics of blue, green, and yellow, gold earrings, bejeweled earrings, bracelets, sequins, everything suited to put her on full display!

Applejack stepped into the room, where Rarity had already finished her work. She was dressed in a blue dress with downright sparkly yellow trim that extended out from the waist, hem, and collar similar to that of sunlight. The patterns on the blue fabric resembled the tailfeathers of a male peacock, the train of the skirt dragging behind her only slightly. Her mane was pulled up with extra curls, plumes of blue and green inserted to it so as to flare out behind her.

Applejack’s mouth hung open, slightly unsure as to what exactly Rarity was trying to say with it. “Well, that outfit sure is… showy.”

“Why, thank you!” the designer replied, striking a pose. “Do you think the boys will notice me?”

Applejack facehoofed. “Rarity, I think everyone’ll notice you, no matter what ya do.”

Rarity giggled, strutting out the door with a smile. “Why, thank you!” She took one more look at the farmer, waving a foreleg. “Be back soon!”

Applejack shook her head, sighing to herself. “I just hope she doesn’t get all crazy with the romance stuff. Then again, this is Rarity I’m talkin’ about…”

Author's Note

I understand that her actual efforts haven't been noted yet, but I wanna save those for later.
I've discovered a subtle difference between featuring Rarity as a major character in a chapter and actually writing something that follows her as the focal point. It's a little more difficult to have her be the centerpiece. However, I'm liking how the broader focus I'm trying is working out. It's letting a lot of characters sneak their way into my head, and I think it's working out for the best.

Boltstinker

The balcony door of the castle’s master bedroom swung open, and a Pegasus pony in a tight black sneaking suit entered. Hanging from her mouth was a box, which she was careful not to jostle. She lifted it onto the dresser, putting it center stage under the mirror as she pulled the string keeping it shut. The box unraveled to reveal a potted blue plant. The Pegasus backed off as quickly as she could as the leaves splayed out over the sides of its container, letting out a mischievous snicker as she turned around and left the room, closing the door behind her and flying off.

Later into the night, the bedroom door swung open, Twilight and Boltsinger yawning. Twilight headed straight for the bed, climbing in and throwing some of the blanket over herself while Boltsinger looked around the room.

“Oh, hey, there’s something new in here…” Boltsinger said groggily, walking over to the dresser. “Hey, Twilight, you ever see this plant before?” From the bed, all he heard was the soft snoring of a tuckered Twilight. He poked at the plant a few times, moving the leaves around and smelling it to the best of his ability. Once he had given it a thorough investigation, he shrugged with a yawn, taking his spot on the bed and giving way to the happy embrace of sleep.

Twilight slowly opened her eyes, a strange and unpleasant smell finding its way into her nostrils. She sat up, looking around for the source of the aroma. Under the blanket, she heard the sound of strained, wheezing breaths. She lit her horn, lifting the edge of the blanket to reveal the stallion she slept next to, sleeping in a definitively un-peaceful way, blue spots covering his neck. She put her head against his chest, feeling it rise and fall, but hearing the wheezing far more clearly. She pulled back and looked at his face. His mouth was wide open, and the wheezing noises came just as much from his mouth as from his chest. She leaned close to his muzzle, where a smell that almost turned the air green crept out, nearly singeing her nose hairs. A shout of disgust erupted out of her mouth as she reared back, covering her nose.

“Oh my gosh!” she cried, jumping off of the bed as his eyes opened. “What in Celestia’s name happened to you?!”

Boltsinger sat up, letting out a nearly inaudible groan and looking at the Princess. He mouthed some words in response, but no sound came out. His eyes widened as he brought his hooves up to his muzzle, looking absolutely terrified. He immediately regretted his action, however, as it brought the stench eking out of his mouth straight into his nose. His eyes contorted madly as the smell overwhelmed him, causing him to fall backwards out of the bed and hit his head on the floor. He moved his hooves away from his mouth, mouthing more words with only the sound of a slightly articulate wheeze coming out.

Twilight rushed to his side, examining his neck more thoroughly. “Wait a minute…” she began, noting the blue spots on his neck. “That looks familiar… But where could you have come into contact with…” She looked around the room, making note of everything. Couch, chairs, coffee table, bookshelf, dresser, mirror, Poison Joke plant… Poison Joke plant?! She helped her husband to his hooves, and the two of them walked over to the dresser. “So this is the culprit!” Boltsinger tilted his head, opening his mouth to try and ask what she meant, only to come up with a rancid wheeze. The Princess floated over a clothespin, clamping her nostrils shut. “It’s a plant called Poison Joke. Do you remember that time we helped Daring Do on one of her adventures?” The stallion nodded. “You know how I was a little out of it when we landed, and I said something about my horn going floppy?” Boltsinger shook his head. “Right… you were ‘working’ at the time. Jumbly memories.” She was met with another nod. “Well, Poison Joke is a little bit like poison oak, only the results are supposed to be funny instead of harmful.” She floated the plant closer, doing her best not to touch it. “But how could some of it have possibly gotten here? It only grows in the Everfree Forest!”

Boltsinger put his hooves up on the dresser, sniffing around like a hound on the hunt. His head recoiled as his eyes squinted, turning his body to rigidly point at a blue feather that lay on the top of the dresser.

Twilight lifted the feather with her magic, narrowing her eyes. “Rainbow Dash!” She stashed the feather away, moving the plant to another part of the room and encasing it in a force field. “Don’t worry. I know where we can get the antidote. Come with me.” She put her hoof around Boltsinger, leading him along. “Zecora gave us the recipe for the remedy a long time ago, so this isn’t really a problem.” Boltsinger nodded, following along with heavy breaths. As they went out into the hallway, the Princess went into a canter, prompting the stallion to follow suit. He went on for a moment, quickly feeling winded and slowing down. He let out a loud wheeze, holding his foreleg forward and panting in place. He hung his head, looking at the floor as he kept panting, his breath rising up and entering his nostrils again. He reared back, flailing his forelegs in the air in front of him as he fell back on his rump with a soft and nearly inaudible neigh. The Princess looked back through the hallway, seeing the Pegasus in a silly little position on the floor. She giggled slightly, receiving a pouting glare from him as she walked up to him. “I’m sorry. I told you the effects are meant to be funny! I just couldn’t help it.” Boltsinger scoffed silently, crossing his forelegs. Twilight rolled her eyes, lifting him with her magic. “Come on, Pouty-pants, let’s get going.”

Downstairs, Spike exited the dining room, looking around for any of the other castle residents. It was Boltsinger’s turn to make breakfast today, and he was remarkably late. He heard the clopping of hooves coming down the hallway, bringing his curiosity to the forefront. He headed for the source of the sound, finally coming upon Twilight, who was surpressing a snicker as she held Boltsinger in the air behind her with her magic. Boltsinger had a myriad of blue polka dots covering his neck. He ran over to the stallion, looking up at him with a claw to his chin. “So, what happened to Boltsinger?” The stallion looked in the dragon’s direction, opening his mouth to let out the same kind of wheezing he’d been loosing all day. The odor came forth once more, sending Spike stumbling backwards, plugging his nose. “Oh, wow, what was that? Forget Boltsinger... It’s more like Boltstinker!” The smelly stallion grumbled silently as the Alicorn lost the composure that stopped her from cracking up, her concentration failing her as Boltsinger fell to the floor.

Boltsinger groaned again, climbing to his hooves, walking to the front door with his head slumped over. Twilight sighed, mildly cursing herself for her lack of sensitivity as she galloped over to him. She put a wing on his back, opening her mouth to speak as he turned his head. His glare was both fierce and sad, letting her know that he didn’t exactly find his situation so funny. “You’re right, Bolt. It was wrong of me to laugh. It’s hard to hold it in, sometimes, especially when it’s with somepony I’m so comfortable with. I promise I won’t laugh at it anymore.” she looked back at Spike, who was still on the floor busting a gut. “And neither will Spike, right?”

Spike’s laughter ceased, the dragon standing up with a salute. “Right!” He hunched over a little, putting a claw in front of his face to hide one last snicker. Twilight’s gaze intensified, sending a jolt down the dragon’s spine. “I’ll go get that ingredient list for you…”

Twilight nodded approvingly. “Thank you, Spike.” Spike ran in the direction of the library. “Let’s go get that cure, then.”

Twilight and Boltsinger walked into the main thoroughfare of Ponyville, Spike sitting on the mare’s back with a quill and parchment in his claws. They checked various shops, trying to find the ingredients they needed. The general vendors had run out just before their arrival, leading them to Rich’s Barnyard bargains, which was similarly out of stock. From there they made their way to the pharmacy. Once again, nothing for the treatment they needed. Twilight let out a dejected sigh as her husband attempted to do the same, causing the pharmacist to nearly pass out. Finally, they found themselves at the scariest building in town, according to the afflicted.

The Ponyville Day Spa.

Boltsinger cringed at the sight of the establishment, painful memories coming back to haunt him. He whimpered to himself as the door opened and Twilight walked up to the counter.

“Hello. Do you have the Poison Joke antidote bath service available?” she asked. “My husband came into contact with it recently and needs treatment as soon as possible.”

The spa pony shrugged and shook her head. “I’m sorry, Princess, but all of the ingredients for that bath have been used up. Somepony came in and requested a long and luxurious bath, so we’ve temporarily run out of stock.”

Twilight furrowed her brow. “Can you tell me who ordered this bath?”

“We were paid extra to allow her to register treatment under an alias.” The mare continued, bringing forth a clipboard. “She asked us not to disclose her identity, but the name she used to register is right here.”

Twilight examined the clipboard, seeing many familiar names, Rarity chief among them. All of the names on the page belonged to ponies she knew that used the spa regularly, except one. It was familiar, but for an entirely different reason. “Zapp? Why in Equestria would one of the Power Ponies come to a spa in Ponyville?” She pushed the parchment back to the proprietary pony. “Thank you. We’ll be going now.” She gave a farewell nod to the pony behind the counter, turning to rejoin the boys by the door. “Somepony has been making sure we can’t get what we need for that treatment… And I think I know who…”

Spike tapped the quill against his chin as the trio exited the building. “Well, why don’t we just go and ask Zecora? Doesn’t she have what we need?”

“I would, if she was in town!” Twilight responded, drooping her ears. “But she’s with Fluttershy at a seminar on herbal remedies all the way in Trottingham, and they won’t be back until next week!”

Boltsinger gave a sorrowful nod, having heard about it from Fluttershy not long ago. He lowered his head, letting his wings fall limp to drag on the ground. Nopony else could tell, but this whole situation was getting to him in a lot of ways at once. First, there was his inability to talk. He may not talk as much as Pinkie Pie, but without the ability to speak, it felt like a part of his identity had been taken away. The smell wasn’t exactly a gift, either. But then there was the fact that Rainbow Dash was the one that left the plant in their room in the first place. She had pranked him on several occasions, but never with something that had this bad of an effect on him. It felt more hurtful than fun, which is something a pony like him could easily see the line between. He looked up at the sky, seeing a cloud bouncing around in the distance. Opening his mouth to try and say something, he remembered what happened every time his breath came out to play. He shut his yapper and snorted, making to flap his wings. Without much effort, he was in the air, opting to investigate the cloud. Several seconds into the flight, though, he discovered just how winded he was, as his ascent had made a sudden reversal. He fell back to the ground, plopping down ahead of his purple companions with his legs, wings, and tail sprawled out.

Twilight and Spike ran over to the fallen flyer. “Are you okay?” The Princess inquired, helping him up and dusting him off with her tail. He nodded and directed his gaze at the bouncy cloud in the distance. He turned his ears to better focus on the sound, flapping his wings while staying in place. A breeze began to flow through the area, amplifying the chatter of nearby ponies. The overall noise died down before long as the breeze reached the cloud, where the all-too-recognizable laughter of a cyan Wonderbolt echoed back at them. Twilight’s face turned serious as she started to flap her wings, only to have her husband place a hoof on the wing closest to him. He shook his head, then nudged It in the direction of his now twiddling wing, where an air pocket was beginning to form. The Princess smiled at the idea he had inaudibly communicated and leaned into the air pocket, speaking a message into it.

Rainbow Dash had been having a heck of a day. Last night, she played one of her best pranks ever, and now she was bearing witness to the fruits of her labor. Not only had she gotten Boltsinger to fall victim to Poison Joke, but she made certain that he was gonna spend the next week dealing with the result! She lay on a cloud overlooking Ponyville, where she could see all of the activities of her victim and how hilarious things got whenever he opened his mouth. Twilight and Spike were with him, of course, and their frantic searching through town for all the things they needed just made the situation all the more hilarious! She went on in her enjoyment for quite a while, until…

“RAINBOW DASH! GET DOWN HERE!!!” Twilight’s voice boomed out of nowhere with a force that defied her typical volume modification spell. The cloud she was laying on was blown away completely, letting her know exactly what method was used to deliver that message. She hovered in the air, looking down at the street where Twilight, Boltsinger, and Spike stood. She swooped down next to them, noting the not-so-amused looks on the ponies’ faces.

“Hey, you two, what’s up?” she greeted, feigning ignorance.

“I dunno, ‘Zapp’, you tell us!” Twilight retorted, making the Pegasus wince at the alias. “Somehow it seems Bolt came into contact with some Poison Joke, and all of the ingredients for the cure have mysteriously sold out everywhere! Even the spa can’t draw a bath for him! Can you explain all of it?”

Rainbow Dash took a look at Boltsinger, making note of the blue spots on his neck. “Okay, yeah… I put the plant there.” She admitted. “So, I’ve been watching you two, and it’s been hilarious! But I gotta know… What did it do to him?”

Twilight looked over at Boltsinger. “Why don’t you tell her, honey?” Boltsinger gave a confused look, wondering what she meant for a moment. As the idea hit him, a diabolical smile found its way onto his muzzle, nodding with a determined wheeze. Twilight lifted him up into the air, bringing him next to Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow poked at the stallion’s wings, looking between him and the pony holding him up. “What’s with this? Why aren’t you flying?”

“Tell her, Bolt!” Twilight instructed, moving him to better face her target. Boltsinger happily obliged, taking a deep breath and opening his mouth, letting out a heavy wheeze that pelted the Pegasus with the most pungent ‘parfum’ to assault her olfactory sense. Her wings snapped to her sides, sending her plummeting to the ground below with a loud crash, covering her nose. Twilight stood over the pranking Pegasus, bringing her companion to her side. “That’s what happened. Now tell me, why did you pull such a harsh prank? You’ve never used Poison Joke on anypony before!”

Rainbow Dash sat up, covering her nose and turning away. “I felt like he deserved it.” Boltsinger recoiled, stepping back and sitting down.

“Deserved it?” Twilight repeated. “How does he deserve it? He hasn’t done anything!” She looked intently at Rainbow Dash, seeing a distinct pout. “Is this… Are you still upset about the changes that are coming? That’s no excuse to lash out like this!”

Rainbow snorted, rising to her hooves and glaring at the stallion. “But he’s the whole reason this thing is happening! If I’d have known this was gonna happen so quickly, I would never have gone along with it all!”

Twilight gritted her teeth, lighting up her horn. “That’s. Not. Fair.” She fumed, rearing her head back as a massive pile of Poison Joke leaves appeared in the air above the Pegasus mare, simultaneously holding her in place. Rainbow Dash looked at Twilight with terror in her eyes, knowing just what would happen should she come into contact with the plant above her. “You need to sort things out, I get it, but taking out your frustrations on a pony who never did anything against you is taking it too far!” The plants were inched closer to the Pegasus, making her wince along with the impact of the words. “Now, tell me. Do you have the ingredients for the antidote bath?”

“I have them, yes! They’re up in my house!” Rainbow admitted, covering her head with her forelegs as she cringed in place. “I’ll go get ‘em! Just don’t drop those things on me!”

Twilight released Rainbow from her grip, moving the plants to make an opening for her. “That’s better. And we’re not done talking about this, you hear me?”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it!” Rainbow replied, completely dismissing the idea of further conversation. She flew off through the opening Twilight had made, the turbulence of her takeoff sending some of the leaves flying.

Back at the spa, the employees happily poured a number of magical and medicinal herbs into the central bath. Boltsinger stood on the platform above the water, looking questioningly at it. His previous experiences in this building had all been less than pleasant, but this couldn’t possibly be so bad, right? Besides, it was either this, or a lot more stinky wheezes and not being able to do much. He gave a relenting, wheezing sigh and stepped in.

And for once, his hope that it wasn’t going to be bad was spot-on. The smells of the herbs surrounded him as he let himself go deeper into the pool of pure warm. The bathtubs at the castle were great, but never so all-encompassing as this one. Noticing the fact that his neck was still covered in blue spots, he slapped his muzzle with his wings, taking as deep a breath as he could and plunging his head under so as to completely submerge. The effects of the bath were instantaneous, and he could feel his airways clearing up. Much to the surprise of the other ponies in the establishment, he brought his head out of the water with a much deeper breath.

“FINALLY!!!” He bellowed, causing the entire building to rumble. He looked around at the surprised ponies around him, sheepishly scratching his mane with his wings. “Oh… Sorry…”

Twilight let out a loud laugh as she put her hooves up on the edge of the bath. “It’s good to ‘hear’ from you, again!” She turned her head, looking back at the slowly-approaching Rainbow Dash. “Somepony else wanted to say something, too.”

“Hey, Bolt…” the Wonderbolt greeted with a soft wave. “I’m sorry for pulling what I did. You really didn’t deserve it. I’ve just been dealing with a lot, lately.”

“I heard about that.” Boltsinger stated, sitting back. “And I can’t help but wonder why it’s bugging you so much. I mean, Twilight told me about your day at the compound, but it still confuses the hay outta me.”

“If you know all about it, why does it confuse you?” Rainbow wondered, leaning against the bath next to the Alicorn.

Boltsinger held up a wing, raising up a single feather. “First, do you know just how long it’s going to be before the baby arrives? Twilight’s not exactly completely debilitated! She’s just gotta take things a little slower!” He unfurled a second feather. “And the next thing! Yes, having a foal is a big responsibility, but did you ever even consider that it’s not going to change the kind of duties you all as bearers of the Elements of Harmony have? And did you ever think about the fact that she’s not the only parent in this equation?” Through his questioning, he had lunged his head closer, mere inches from her face. “I’m here, too. None of us are in this alone.”

Rainbow Dash’s eyes were wide, her ears low and her mouth ajar as she leaned back. She took several steps back, planting her hooves and flaring her wings. “I understand all of that!” She retorted. “But have you considered just how dangerous those duties can get? How many times all of us have nearly been done in? Do you really think that I can honestly let my friend, Twilight, face danger like that when she has so much to lose?!” Twilight and Boltsinger’s jaws simultaneously dropped. “I hate the fact that things have to change, and I hate that it means I don’t get to adventure with Twilight anymore! But even more than that, I hate the idea of losing her after she’s gained so much! And that’s not confusing in the least!” She put her wings back at her sides, turning around and making for the exit. “You know what? I take it back, I’m not sorry! You really did deserve it!” With that, she galloped out, taking off as she cleared the door. Seconds later, the telltale boom of a Sonic Rainboom sounded in the distance.

Twilight and Boltsinger looked at one another with a mutual sigh. “Well, at least we got more of an explanation out of her?” he suggested with a weak smile. Twilight softly nodded, more than a little disheartened. “Hey, why don’t you climb in, too? The water is excellent, and you look like you could stand to relax a little.”

Twilight looked back up at him. He was offering a hoof and smiling, his messy mane splattered about all over his neck and in front of his eyes. He somehow looked even funnier than he did with the polka dots all over him, and she couldn’t stop herself from giving up the guffaw. After some giggles, she stopped herself, covering her mouth. “I’m sorry… I know I said I wasn’t going to laugh at you, but…”

“Hey, if it’s funny, it’s funny!” He affirmed as she fluttered her way into the water. “Sometimes you just can’t help yourself.” He pulled her close, nuzzling her a little. “But tonight, you’re telling me everything you know about that plant. I can only imagine what your first run-in with it was like!” Twilight nodded, beginning to tell him some of the details, all of which resulted in loud, booming laughter.

Author's Note

This chapter stemmed from one question. "What would happen to Bolt if he got hit with Poison Joke?" Well, first I had to find a good play on his name. Bolt'stinker' felt hilarious enough. Then came how it comes about. Originally I figured it was just gonna be he gets really stinky, but then, I discovered the merits of it preventing him from speaking, while also making it to everything that does come out of his mouth smell just awful. Then that writer's sense came back into play as I wrote the last parts of the chapter. And then it ended up furthering the plot a little bit. And now I just need to come up with the fine details on the next chapter! These are getting harder to start, but once they do start, it makes for something really interesting!

The Flying Filly's First Fog And Fall

Scootaloo shot out of bed, eyes wide with excitement. “Today’s the day!” She cried, gathering her things into her saddlebag. “Flight training starts today!” She put on her helmet, waving farewell to her aunts and scooting off to school. “I wonder what we’re gonna start with?” She sat in the classroom, Cheerilee doing her lesson. “How to take off, maybe?” She pulled her fellow Crusaders along to the clubhouse. “How to pick up speed?” She stared out the window as another foal got their Cutie Mark behind her. “Oh! Maybe he’ll have Soarin take me on a stunt flight so that I know how it feels!” She waved farewell to her friends and sped off, heading to the training field. “Or maybe he--”

The field was empty, save for Boltsinger, Soarin, a large cloud, and the towering Pegasus that was Bulk Biceps. Boltsinger trotted over to the arriving pony. “Hi, Scootaloo! Glad you could make it!”

Scootaloo took off her helmet, meeting him halfway. “Hi, Bolt.” She tilted her head to look past him at the muscular white pony. “What’s Bulk Biceps doing here? He’s… not exactly the best flyer out there…”

Boltsinger chuckled, trotting with her over to them. “Better than you are right now.”

Scootaloo reared back, glaring daggers at the stallion. “Hey! If I could fly, I’d be flying circles around him! My wings just aren’t big or strong enough for it, okay?!”

“Strong enough, maybe.” He started. “Big enough, I’m not so sure. From what I’ve heard about from the girls, and what I’ve read in the friendship journal, this big guy can fly pretty well when he needs to. And have you seen his wings?”

Scootaloo blinked, taking another look at Bulk. His wings were abysmally small, only just barely there on his hulking back. They flapped a few times, not really doing anything save for looking out of place. “He can fly well?”

Soarin laughed, walking over to Bulk to put his wing on his shoulder. “Good enough to fly with Rainbow Dash in the Aerial Relay against me and the other Wonderbolts!”

Bulk reared up at the compliment, flexing his forelegs and buzzing his wings. “YEAH!” He shouted, letting the hype overwhelm him.

Soarin’s smile was wiped away as he went into his ‘Wonderbolt mode’. “BULK BICEPS!” he yelled, sending the much larger stallion into a salute. “I WANT YOU TO SHOW THIS FILLY HOW TO FLY RIGHT NOW!!!”

“YES, SIR!” Bulk replied, dropping to all fours and buzzing his wings so fast that they looked like a fly’s in motion. He strained himself, the back of his body slowly but surely ascending. His hooves left the ground entirely, rising up far into the air after about a minute, where he hovered in place.

“All right! Perfect!” Boltsinger cheered, giving Bulk a thumbs-up with his wing. “You stay right there for now! Show her how it’s done!”

Bulk proudly flexed his forelegs again. “YEAH!” His wings stopped moving for a moment, sending him briefly plummeting down as he caught himself and flew back into his position.

Scootaloo looked up at the huge pony now flying above her. “But his wings are smaller than mine! How can he get up there and I can’t?”

Boltsinger looked down at the filly with a smile. “Only one reason for that.” He gave his wings a strong downward flap, propelling himself high into the air in nearly an instant, leaving a burst of wind in his wake that blew Scootaloo’s mane back. “Power!” He began flying around the cloud that had been brought in, packing it ever-tighter to condense it. Soarin joined in his efforts, quickening the result as the cloud fell softly to the ground, becoming a patch of localized fog. “So, now we get to the lesson proper. You’ve seen what’s possible for little wings, now let’s start you towards doing it yourself!” He landed in front of the fog. “Do you know how I built up the power in my wings before my Cutie Mark turned me into the endurance flyer I became?”

Scootaloo shook her head. “No, you only told me that you used to have weak wings.” She looked over at the descended cloud. “What does it have to do with the fog?”

“Everything.” The older pony began. “My family has a long history of weather work, and so cloud-busting was a common thing for us to do. The most effective way to do it, though, wasn’t by just plowing right through them.” He raised his wing, swiping it in a direction away from the cloud and sending another blast of wind through. “My brother, Brightling figured out that we can use the wind to affect more clouds at once. It’s also a good measure of how much power you can put into a single flap. So, first thing we’re gonna work on is…” He held out his hoof, motioning as if to offer that she finish the sentence.

“Making a lot of wind?” Scootaloo guessed.

Boltsinger patted her on the back with his wing, turning to face the fog. “That’s good, but about how much wind do you think you’ll need?”

Scootaloo looked at the fog more closely. “Enough to make quick work of that fog?”

“In your case, the goal is to be able to do it in up to five flaps of your wings.” He finished.

“Five flaps of my wings?” She repeated, looking wide-eyed at the large gathering of water and air. “Excuse me, but have you seen my wings?!”

Boltsinger laughed. “I don’t expect it immediately. That’s why it’s a goal.” He pushed the filly towards the fog with his wing. “Why don’t you give it a shot right now and see where you are. That’ll let me know what you’re working with.”

The Crusader swallowed a lump in her throat, walking up to the cloud. “Just my wings, right?” She asked, looking back. Boltsinger gave her a confident nod. “Okay… I can do this! Just… flap your wings, Scootaloo!” Her wings began to flap, directing themselves in front of her. Little by little, the section of cloud directly in front of her started to disperse. She stepped forward, the effect growing stronger as her wings started to buzz. Her excitement began to bubble as she sped up, cantering full-bore into the center. She beamed as she ran through the fog, dispelling it at every turn with a jolly buzz of the wings. From the outside perspective, she could be seen jumping around, sometimes landing on top to blow it away from above. Boltsinger smiled, the sight of the filly making him think of a cat playing in the snow. After about five minutes, the fog was gone, and a winded Crusader walked back over to him, wings hanging at her sides. “I know that was a lot more than five flaps, but… That was so much fun! I didn’t think cloud-busting could be done like that!”

“Well, we’ll be setting one of those up at every training session for you!” Boltsinger assured, letting his hindquarters drop to the ground. “It’s going to be… I’m gonna say our ‘measuring stick’ to determine just how much you’ve built up those flappers of yours.”

“All right!” She yelled, jumping into the air and hovering for a moment. “So, what’s next?”

Soarin landed behind Scootaloo, tussling her mane with his hoof as Bulk Biceps made a thunderous landing. “Next is dinner! I’m starving!”

Boltsinger turned towards the town, heading towards Hay Burger. “Then after dinner, we’re gonna go over your regimen. I know this goes without saying, but you’re gonna have to do some practice at home, too.”

“Okay!” the filly replied, following the stallion. The excitement she had lost upon seeing the venue had returned in full, now that she’d gotten an idea of what she was doing. And with that idea came dozens more! It was like trying to get her Cutie Mark all over again! Only this time, she was going to brainstorm ways she could bulk up those wings!

Scootaloo looked at a piece of paper on her desk in class, furiously drawing a number of symbols with descriptions next to them. She added boxes to the side, rolling the paper up and placing it in her saddlebag. As the lesson came to an end, she sprang from her seat, running for the door with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle following close behind.

“You ready to do some crusadin’?” Apple Bloom inquired as they galloped to the farm.

“Actually, Apple Bloom, I’ve got something else in mind for today!” the Pegasus corrected, pulling her parchment from her bag. “I’ve gotta get to work on these wings of mine! I figure if I push myself, I can get up in the air in no time, and then I can help even more ponies with my awesome flying skills!”

Apple Bloom looked concernedly at her orange-coated friend. “You sure about that? I don’t wanna have you go ‘n hurt yerself tryin’ to get up there too fast.”

“Come on, Apple Bloom, you know I can handle this!” Scootaloo assured. “Well, I’ll see you gals tomorrow! Got lots of training to do!” With that, she veered off towards the training field, wings abuzz as she galloped along.

As soon as she got to the training field, Scootaloo tossed her saddlebag aside, making for the center and dropping to the ground. If I do a whole bunch of wing-ups, I’m sure to bulk up! She figured, her forelegs extended out as she reached her little wings down. She stretched her feathers as far as they could go, but never quite felt the ground underneath them. If only my wings were big enough to reach the ground, anyway… She stood up and dusted herself off, looking around. What about weights? I could lift dumbbells like Bulk Biceps! She ran over to a set of weights, looking around for something she could lift. She pulled on some of the larger ones that her wings could almost grasp, but none would even budge. She finally came up to the smallest of them, picking one up with her mouth and reaching her wing forward in a grabbing motion. Well, I can at least lift this one… But there’s not much point if I can’t hold it in the right place… She breathed a sigh, dropping the dumbbell to the ground. What’s another way I could practice…? She looked around the field. Other ponies had started to arrive, including a number of Pegasus foals. They all chased one another back and forth, jumping up and hovering for a while before finally touching down. Seeing the buzz of their wings, she gasped. “THAT’S IT!” She shouted, drawing the attention of the other ponies. She sheepishly smiled, running over to the edge of the field. Once there, she took a good look around. Gotta make sure nopony else gets too close. I don’t wanna fall on anypony! Once the coast was clear, she closed her eyes and jumped up as high as she could, flapping her wings mightily. Rather than trying to get up high, she opted to try for a sustained hover, seeing just how long she could push herself to stay in the air. Her wings held her aloft as she felt the breeze in her mane. Yep! I think this is it! If I can’t lift weights on the ground or my own weight on the ground, then I can just test my endurance up here!

“Hey, everypony! Check out how high that filly got!” somepony from the crowd called out. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen somepony so young get that far up with just one jump!”

Far up? Scootaloo thought, opening her eyes. Directly in front of her was the vast blue sky. She looked down, where a bunch of ponies had gathered round. Wow! I got this high just by jumping? My wings may not be that strong yet, but I guess my legs made up for it! She raised her forelegs and cheered, the force of the motion throwing off her balance. She looked around again, letting the excitement get to her as she began to wish this proud moment could last forever. Her wings seemed to agree with her, because at that moment, they stopped. Uh-oh… Scootaloo plummeted back towards the ground. She let out a high-pitched scream during her descent, working desperately to move her tired wings. When the tiny limbs refused to flap hard enough, she closed her eyes, covering her face with her forelegs.

“I GOTCHA SCOOTALOO!”

The feeling of falling ceased, and a scared Scootaloo opened her eyes. Carrying her by her forelegs was a light grey Pegasus colt with purple eyes and a blown-back black mane. He was struggling a bit to stay aloft, his eyes fixed ahead of them. Scootaloo’s eyes widened, not even believing what she was seeing.

“Rumble? What are you doing here?” She asked.

“What’s it look like?” he responded sarcastically. “Saving your butt!” They came to a landing in the park, where Rumble turned to face the filly. “What the heck were you doing anyway? I thought your wings weren’t strong enough to fly!”

Scootaloo recoiled slightly, backing up a step. “Well… That’s what I’m working on. I’ve got a flight coach now, and he’s helping me work on my wing power… I guess I got carried away with the practice, huh?”

“You think?!” Rumble retorted, aggressively leaning in. “Who’s your flight coach? I wanna have a talk with him!”

A knock came at the door to the castle, letting the occupants know that company had arrived. Boltsinger rose from his chair in the library, heading for the balcony so that Twilight could continue her reading. He had been making a habit of using his wings to cut out the middle-mare when greeting visitors. It made for a neat entrance, along with saving everypony the trouble of waiting for him. When he landed, he saw a sorry-looking Scootaloo with a rather unfamiliar colt.

“Are you Scootaloo’s flight coach?” the colt inquired.

“Eeyup.” The stallion replied. “My name is Boltsinger, and you are…?”

“Peeved is what I am!” Boltsinger and Scootaloo both winced at the colt’s language. “How could you let her go out and try to fly on her own?! What the heck were you thinking?!”

“Rumble, it’s not his fault!” Scootaloo interjected. “I was the one who decided to go by myself! Bolt didn’t know what was going on!”

Boltsinger’s face went stern. “And what exactly was going on, Scoot?”

The filly faltered a moment, looking up at the older pony. “Well… I was hoping to get some extra practice in for my training, and so I went to the field to try a few ideas I got for exercises. But I couldn’t do wing-ups or lift weights or anything else because my wings are too small! Then I saw a bunch of foals hovering and I thought that maybe if I tried to hover for as long as I could then that would help and then I jumped too high and… I fell… My wings got tired, and Rumble saved me…”

Boltsinger looked at the colt next to Scootaloo, seeing the fierceness in his eyes as he looked back. He was clearly concerned about the filly, and was none too pleased with the day’s events. “I see…” he started, stepping closer to them. “I appreciate your enthusiasm, Scootaloo, but what you described is a bit outside your training regimen. Hovering is a great way to build up strength in your wings, but it’s also really easy for that to end badly, as you just learned.” He turned to face Rumble, holding out a foreleg. “Thank you for being there for her. I didn’t think she’d get quite so overzealous with her training.”

Rumble put his hoof forward, giving the stallion a hoof-bump. “It’s no problem. I know she’d do the same for me. Just don’t let her do stuff like that alone again, ‘kay?”

Boltsinger nodded, looking back and forth between the foals. “You know… that gives me an idea…” his gaze fell on Scootaloo. “I would be willing to let you keep doing training like that, but only under one condition.”

Scootaloo looked quizzically at the elder Pegasus. “Really? What’s your condition?”

Boltsinger smiled, pushing Rumble towards her. “You’re only allowed to do that kind of training with a partner. Preferably somepony who can fly decently. You think you'd be up for it, Rumble?”

Rumble looked at the Crusader, then back at Boltsinger. “Wait, what?” He directed his attention back at Scootaloo, who was now looking at him in an adorably pleading way. He averted his gaze, a tinge of red appearing in his cheeks. “Okay, I’ll do it… I could use the extra practice, anyway!”

“Excellent!” the stallion exclaimed, flaring his wings. “And now, we go to Scootaloo’s house!” Scootaloo gave him a confused look. “I mean, we have to tell your aunts about what just happened. Rainbow Dash will wanna know, too. But… That’s if she’ll even talk to me.”

The winged Crusader brought her head low, drooping her ears as the boys began the walk. “Aww man…” She moved her eyes to look at the pony that saved her life. “Well, I guess a little punishment is worth it…”

The Fairest of Faires

“There’s something that’s been on my mind, lately.” Twilight said, looking up from her book at the stallion she leaned against.

“Oh?” Boltsinger replied, his attention falling on her from the same pages. “Care to let me in on that?”

Twilight pointed a hoof at her Cutie Mark. “Both during the incident with the Alicorn Amulet as well as during our wedding, I think I went through the same thing that happens to you. I felt… charged. My magic was stronger, my wings were tingly… I can only wonder if my Cutie Mark was moving somehow… Do you know how that could have happened?”

Boltsinger put a wing to his muzzle, thinking hard enough to nearly have steam billow out of his ears. “Well, that first time was also the same day that I learned the trick to ‘activate’ the lightning to get to you. Maybe that magic getting stronger rubbed off on you?” He put his hoof on his wife’s pendant, feeling a faint electric spark coming from it. His eyes went from relaxed to curious, moving his hoof back. “Or… maybe it’s this?”

“My pendant?” Twilight wondered, lifting it closer with her magic. “But it’s not magical… You said that yourself when you gave it to me.”

“Maybe it took in some magic when it touched another pendant that is magical?” the stallion suggested, pulling his own pendant into view and brushing it against hers. “I mean, how many times have these things clanged together when we get… well... “ He squeezed his favorite mare lightly with his forelegs. “... close? There could be some effect of that that’s getting into you as well.” As the necklaces separated, a small bolt of electricity arced between them, going from the lightning bolt into the star.

Twilight’s trained eye saw the subtle magicks doing their work, then dropped her pendant to look up at Boltsinger. “I think you might be right… Do you know what this means?”

“It means we can… um…” He blew a raspberry in defeat. “I’m drawing a blank.”

Twilight ignited her horn once more, disappearing in a magenta flash and reappearing next to the couch, leaning forward excitedly. “It means I can go with you when you take off!” She jumped up and down, prancing around the couch. “~I get to go with you! I get to go with you!~” She sang, repeating the jingle as her bounce continued.

Boltsinger held out a wing with a laugh, her forelegs landing on it and knocking him off of the couch to create a large dust cloud. As the dust settled, Boltsinger lay on the floor, the Princess splayed out on top of him, holding herself up by her forelegs. Boltsinger smiled weakly at the mare above him. “You know, you’re adorable when you’re excited.”

Twilight smiled, inching her head closer to his. Her wings began to stand straight up, a tingling feeling coming into play as sparks of magenta lightning appeared in her wings and horn. Her eyes went wide as she saw a spark of electricity in her husband’s eyes, blue lightning discharching from his wings. She jumped up, lifting him with her now charged magic to bring him to his hooves. “Is this what I think it is?”

Boltsinger nodded. “Eeyup! Let’s get outside!” The two ponies went into a gallop, heading out to the nearest balcony as their bodies tensed up and hunched over. With a furious thunderclap that slightly singed the balcony, the two of them were off, headed northward.

The speed was something Twilight had experienced before, but the last time she had this kind of velocity, she had the magic of three other Alicorns within her. She looked over at Boltsinger, who seemed perfectly at home with the wind blowing so fiercely through his mane. It was blown back in its entirety, the stallion squinting his eyes so as to not dry them out, hooves in a raised yet relaxed position. She looked back at his Cutie Mark, which crackled and whipped around, letting out charges of electricity. She looked back at his face, squinting her own eyes as she did so. “Well, you look perfectly content up here!”

Boltsinger laughed, looking back at her. “Chalk that up to experience. You seem to be handling yourself well at this speed!”

“This speed gets comfortable when you’ve melded minds with Rainbow Dash!” She bragged, crossing her forelegs and giving a confident smile.

“We’ll see how you do when we’ve been at this for a while!” He pulled an apple out of his mane, holding it forward. Twilight smiled and floated it between the two of them, breaking it in half and floating one to each as they flew on.

Late in the evening, what sounded like a bolt of lightning echoed through the Crystal Empire. In the point of impact, Boltsinger lay on his stomach, Twilight sitting on top of him, the two of them in a less than flattering position as they looked around. Crystal Ponies gathered around, staring at the couple with their dancing Cutie Marks and remarking on how they had arrived. Several made note that one of them was Princess Twilight, and how it would make the Faire even better than they had hoped.

“Twilight?” a mare’s voice called from the crowd. “Bolt? What are you two doing here?” From amid the throng of Crystal Ponies came a pink-coated unicorn with a wavy dark purple mane and tail that featured a teal stripe. She had purple eyes, and her Cutie Mark consisted of a pair of blue streaks of light that ended at a magenta four-pointed star perpendicular to a white four-pointed star. She trotted up to the pair, noting their condition. “Wait… Twilight, why is your Cutie Mark moving?”

Twilight looked up at the mare. “Starlight? So that means…” she looked around at the Crystal Ponies. “Ah! We’re in the Crystal Empire!” She cantered over to Starlight, holding her in a tight embrace. “It’s so good to see you!”

Starlight Glimmer reciprocated her mentor’s embrace. “It’s good to see you, too, Twilight.” She stepped back, taking a look at Boltsinger. “But that doesn’t answer my question. Is there somepony that needs your help with something? And… why in Equestria is your Cutie Mark dancing like his does?” She pointed to Twilight’s flank, where the small white stars made a twinkling motion as the central stars spun around slowly, amplifying the sparkle effect of the image. “How did that come about?”

Boltsinger stood up, looking at the mares. “Let’s just say I’ve rubbed off on her.”

Starlight smirked, walking up to the orange stallion. “From the letters I’ve gotten, it seems like you’ve ‘rubbed off on her’ in more ways than one!”

The Princess and the Pegasus recoiled, looking at one another with a furious blush. “Well, I wouldn’t put it that way, but… yes.” the Alicorn admitted. “So, what’s going on that needs our help?”

“Well, perhaps you should talk to the Princess.” the Unicorn suggested. “She’s got her hooves full with the Crystal Faire coming up along with all of her other responsibilities.” The trio walked to the nearest castle entrance. “Sunburst and I are doing everything we can to help, but I think she’s still a little too stressed out.”

In the castle proper, Twilight, Starlight, and Boltsinger entered the throne room, where a tall, pink-coated Alicorn sat. Her eyes were a mixture of purple and pink, and she had purple wingtips. Her long mane and tail were a three-tone pattern going from purple, to pink, to a shade of pink that was nearly white. She wore a golden necklace and shoes, with a small gold crown that bore purple jewels resting against her horn. Her Cutie Mark was a crystal heart with golden adornments on either side of it. She was sifting through a number of documents with her magic, going over everything they would need for the upcoming Faire, but it was proving to be a busier affair than she had expected. Not only was she dealing with the festivities at hoof, but she would be entertaining a number of guests from all over Equestria, to give the representatives a taste of the love and unity that holds the Empire together. And that was on top of her responsibility to take care of Flurry Heart. She was positively swamped. Shining Armor agreed to help with the guests, while Sunburst volunteered his usual services to help with the foal, and Starlight was all over the place, but everypony’s needs had seriously run her ragged. She only wished she could find more help on such short notice.

“I know you probably heard the thunder earlier, but I still have to say this…” a stallion’s voice called from across the room, taking a deep breath. “I HAVE ARRIVED!” He bellowed, sending his voice through the entirety of the castle.

“Boltsinger?” Cadence wondered, looking up from her documents. Before her stood the stallion in question, along with the mare she missed the most, both ponies smiling with their wings standing straight up. “Twilight!” the Crystal Princess dropped her papers, leaping off of her throne to land in front of her fellow Alicorn.

The two embraced for a moment, then trotted in place. “Sunshine! Sunshine!” They started, then hunched over with their heads on the floor, hiding their eyes. “Ladybug’s awake!” They uncovered their eyes, rising to a sitting position and bumping hooves a couple times. “Clap your hooves…” Finally, they rose up to stand again, bringing their flanks forward and shaking their tails in the air. “And do a little shake!”

“Twilight, how did you get here? I never got word that you wanted to visit!” the elder Princess said. She took a good look at her sister-in-law, noticing the way her Cutie Mark moved. “And why is your Cutie Mark dancing?”

Twilight giggled, looking at her sparkling flank. “I’ll explain it in detail later. If I can remember it all. But the short version is that Bolt can somehow share his magic with me. So, what do you need help with?”

Cadence looked between the visiting ponies, wondering what the lilac one was getting at. Once she caught sight of the stallion’s flank, his own Cutie Mark doing its dance, it all clicked. “Oh! So you came because I needed help!” She floated the mass of documents over to them, explaining the situation as Boltsinger and Starlight joined in.

Upon his familiarity with the situation, Boltsinger chimed in. “So? Why don’t we split into teams? With Twilight and I here, that makes six of us. We can cover a lot of ground if we each cover different things.”

“I agree.” Twilight affirmed, motioning to herself. “I can take care of organization, of course!” She gestured to her husband. “Obviously, Bolt is best suited to handle announcements for the Faire. We can keep that party going while you and Shining Armor handle your other royal business!”

Cadence nodded. “That makes sense. But I’ll still need to know what’s going on at the Faire. I’m supposed to appear at a number of events.”

Starlight lit up her horn, floating the documents in a circle around her head. “Well, I can get around pretty fast, and finding everypony isn’t exactly difficult. Leave it to me!”

“So that just leaves Sunburst with Flurry.” Cadence stated. “She’s not flying away all the time anymore, so Sunburst should be able to keep up with her.”

“Unless she teleports.” Boltsinger added. “She’s pretty crafty with that horn of hers.”

“Okay, then! Let’s put on a Crystal Faire!” Twilight exclaimed, walking up to her husband and pulling him along with her wing. “We’ll get everything scheduled, and meet you back here tonight!” As they walked, she looked at Boltsinger. “As much as I want to go visit Flurry right now, I feel like it wouldn’t be the right choice… I can’t think of much else besides working on that schedule and making sure everything goes smoothly. Is that normal?”

“The lightning does tend to make me focus pretty hard on the task at hoof.” He confirmed. “And the harder the task, the more it jolts me into doing it.”

“Well, This should be easier to set up than the last time I organized the Faire.” She noted, thinking back to the Empire’s return. “Last time, I only had one book to go on. This time, I’ve got experience behind me!”

“Twilight! Cadence! I am so sorry!” Starlight shouted, rushing into the throne room.

“What do you have to be sorry about?” Cadence queried. “Has something happened?”

“Yes! Something terrible has happened!” the Unicorn continued. “So, last night, Sunburst and I were going over the plans for the Faire, and we each started to come up with ideas for spells that we could use to make things easier!” She started to sheepishly avert her gaze. “Well, one thing led to another… and… Now his hind legs are broken! He can’t look after Flurry Heart today!”

“How did his legs get broken?” Twilight asked.

Starlight thought back on the night’s events, remembering in particular how Sunburst had gotten overzealous with his piling up of the books in his house, and how, while Starlight was reading the details for one such spell, her magic extended out of her horn, nudging the precariously-placed paperbacks ever-so-slightly. After a loud crash and a yelp of pain, she had turned around to hear muffled screams and see white hooves poking up from under the pile. She left her memories behind, turning to Twilight. “You don’t wanna know.”

Cadence stepped forward, taking a deep breath and extending her foreleg. “Okay… So, I guess I’ll have to cancel my appearances at the events… It’s too important to keep these representatives appeased today, and if Flurry doesn’t have somepony looking after her…”

“We can handle Flurry Heart!” Boltsinger called out, trotting up next to Twilight. She turned her gaze towards him, a knowing smile on her muzzle.

Cadence gave a wondering look at the purple and orange ponies. “What about your jobs for the day?”

“If it were just me, I would say it’s a little too much.” Twilight admitted, smiling confidently at Boltsinger. “But I think both of us together can keep an eye on her and still get everything done.”

“I see. Well, I’ll leave you to it, then.” the Princess acquiesced. “If you take her out into the Faire, make sure you keep her close. Last year, she flew off to look at everything that looked interesting, and that was…”

“Everything?” the stallion deadpanned.

“Yes.” she confirmed. “She visited every stall before I could find her. You’ll have your hooves full if you aren’t careful.”

“Well, I wouldn’t be the B.A.E. that you know if I couldn’t handle this!” Boltsinger cleared his throat, giving his wife a bit of a surprise. “I mean… we… We can handle this!”

Cadence laughed, turning to walk into the hallways of the castle. “Okay, then. I’ll go get her.”

Twilight and Boltsinger smiled at each other, bumping forehooves together gleefully. “Glad you’re on board.”

The Princess of Friendship beamed brilliantly. “Why wouldn’t I be? It gives me a chance to spend time with my favorite filly while still doing the job!”

Boltsinger smiled, taking a breath to respond as he found himself tackled by a pink and purple blur. Standing on his chest was a tiny pink Alicorn filly with a swirly violet mane and tail with a blue streak in each swirl. She smiled down at him with her big blue eyes, trotting in place. “Hello to you, too, Flurry Heart!” the stallion greeted, reaching up and tussling her mane with his wing. “I know somepony who has been super excited to see you!” He pointed his hoof in Twilight’s direction. The tiny Alicorn followed the hoof to gaze upon her aunt.

“Aunty Twily!!!” She cried, pouncing into the Best Aunt Ever and giving her a tight hug.

Twilight lifted the filly with her magic, nuzzling her cheek. “Are you ready for the Faire?” She asked, receiving some excited noises from the foal.

Cadence returned to the room, pulling along a stroller and saddlebags. “Here’s everything she’ll need. I’ve got to go meet up with Shining Armor. Our guests are expecting to see the Princess.” She floated Flurry over to her, giving the filly a kiss on the cheek. “Now, you be good for your aunt and uncle, okay?”

Twilight floated Flurry back to her side as Boltsinger stepped up next to the Crystal Princess, putting a wing around her and turning her back towards the hallway. “Don’t worry, we’ve got this!” He told her as he pushed her along further. “You just focus on the task at hoof, and everything will be alright!”

“Okay! I’m counting on you!” the relenting Princess called out, galloping down the hallway.

Twilight and Boltsinger turned to Starlight, who simply rolled her eyes. “You just want some practice, don’t you?”

Boltsinger recoiled, smiling weakly and scratching his mane with his wing. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Anyway, let’s get started!” He walked past the Unicorn out to the main balcony, Twilight and Starlight following close behind. He looked out at the gathering of Crystal Ponies that formed in front of the castle, taking a deep breath in preparation and flapping his wings. “Fillies and gentlecolts! Ponies of the Crystal Empire! Princess Cadence and Prince Shining Armor do cordially invite you to the annual Crystal Faire! I pray you enjoy the festivities and activities at your leisure, and tonight we will all gather, that we might empower the Crystal Heart!” The crowd below erupted into cheers, many of the Crystal Ponies growing distinctively brighter and shinier as they looked at the various attractions. Boltsinger turned back to face the mares he accompanied, slapping his muzzle with his wings. “Okay! What’s first?”

Twilight and Starlight entered the dining room, where Boltsinger was picking up an empty bowl from Flurry’s high chair. She looked at the filly, then at the wall behind the stallion, not seeing a drop of food on the crystal surface. “What happened here?” the Princess wondered, walking over to the two. “Did she seriously eat everything without a fuss?”

“Mm-hm.” Starlight confirmed. “She got over that phase not too long ago. Feeding her isn’t the issue. It’s…” Flurry lit up her horn, vanishing from sight and appearing across the room with a giggle. “... catching up with her.”

Boltsinger looked at the now-flying filly across the room, throwing up his forelegs in mock defeat. “Well, that’s officially beyond my horn-less capabilities! You’re up, honey!” Twilight rolled her eyes and cast a playful look at Flurry, vanishing in a flash of magenta and appearing next to her with a playful growl. Flurry laughed and poofed away, the lilac mare following suit. Boltsinger rolled his eyes in return, trotting over to Starlight. “So, what’s next on the itinerary?”

Starlight floated a document in front of her. “Let’s see. There’s a jousting match coming up soon. Everypony here loves a good joust. Why don’t you announce it to the city?”

“Jousting, huh?” the Pegasus repeated. “Maybe once we’ve done the announcement, we can all go check it out?”

Starlight thought for a moment, coming to an agreeing nod. “Princess Cadence and her guests are all supposed to be there, too. We could enjoy it together!”

Boltsinger smiled and stepped out to the balcony once more with a deep breath. “Fillies and gentlecolts, there will be a jousting tournament taking place in the next ten minutes! I repeat, there will be jousting in ten minutes! Don’t miss out!” He turned around as the crowd cheered, heading back inside. He moved over to Flurry’s things, pulling her stroller over. “So, then… What all do we take with us?”

Starlight laughed, putting her papers aside and directing her magic at the saddlebags, the stroller, and the stuffed snail. “You’ve taken care of Flurry before, haven’t you? This should be an old hat by now.”

“I’ve taken care of her at home where I know where stuff is and everything has been prepared.” he corrected, sifting through the bags to learn their contents. “This is my first time foal-sitting for her here in the Crystal Empire. Let alone taking her places.” He looked up at the ceiling, where the pair of Alicorns flew in.

Flurry stopped on an instant, seeing her favorite toy. “WAMMY!” The little pony dove at the snail, squeezing it tightly in her forelegs as Starlight floated the filly into her stroller.

Twilight landed next to the stallion of the group, looking at all of the preparations. “What’s going on?” Boltsinger began to explain the situation, putting his wings on the stroller’s handle as he began the walk to the Faire.

The Crystal Faire was a sight to behold, and Flurry Heart made sure they saw everything possible. She would frequently spot something of interest, such as a snack vendor or a toy prize, then teleport off to try and obtain it. More often than not, it fell to Twilight to go get her, as only she had magic that could keep up with the baby Alicorn. Upon her beginning to fuss at being forced back, Boltsinger would swiftly place her ‘Wammy’ in front of her, resulting in a calm and happy filly.

“I dunno what Cadence was so worried about!” Twilight stated confidently. “We’ve got this down!”

“We’re one knight down!!!” a deep voice called from the distance. “One of our knights couldn’t make it!”

“Really?” Starlight began, looking over at Boltsinger. A mischievous smirk appeared on her muzzle as she lit up her horn, teleporting herself and the stallion over to the official. “I know somepony who’d love to volunteer!”

The Pegasus’ eyes grew instantly, looking at Starlight with panic on his face. “Wait, what?!”

“Wonderful!” the knight before them exclaimed, putting his hoof around the unwitting volunteer and taking him backstage. He brought forth a suit of purple and silver armor. “Put this on, then head out to the field! What’s your name?”

“Um… Boltsinger.” he replied, reluctantly putting the armor on. “So, why am I doing this?”

“Your friend volunteered you. You know how to joust?”

“I have no idea.”

“Run forward, point the lance at the other pony, try not to get knocked over.” The knight explained. “You’ll be performing in front of the Princess and her guests, so give it your best!”

“Ooooooooookay…” Boltsinger said, putting on the helmet. His mane poked through the top, inadvertently taking on a mohawk style. “I guess I’ll do it! Should be fun!”

Stepping outside, Starlight stepped up next to him, floating a lance into the slot on his side. “You ready? Twilight and Flurry are watching!”

Boltsinger looked at his opponent. He was a larger yellow Pegasus with a dark blue short-cut mane and tail and light blue eyes. He wore a suit of golden armor with a light blue star and saddle, and golden shoes on each hoof. He gave Boltsinger a somewhat sour look, snorting and dragging his hoof on the ground. Boltsinger looked at Starlight. “Why does he look so angry?” He directed his gaze back to his opponent, then returned it to the now-shrugging Unicorn. “Like, I know he’s my opponent, and he’s supposed to look like he’s ready to fight, but…” He repeated the previous motion, further noting the look on the knight’s face. “He looks like he’s mad at me, in particular.” Cue another quick look back at his would-be foe. “I feel like he seriously wants to hurt me.” He began to back away, Starlight’s magic keeping him in place.

“I can’t say what you did to make him so mad, but that doesn’t matter right now!” Starlight told him, putting him back in his starting position. “Just focus on beating him! Your wife is watching!”

Boltsinger looked on at his opponent once more, slapping his muzzle with his wings multiple times. “Right! Let’s do this!” He snorted in return, mimicking his opponent’s gesture of hoof-dragging as the announcer stepped forward. He was a white Unicorn stallion with a blue mane, tail, and hooves, with a lighter blue stripe going down his mane and tail. He had blue eyes, and his Cutie Mark consisted of a magenta six-pointed star over a blue shield with three smaller stars at the top.

“Announcing the knight, Flash Sentry!” he started, gesturing towards Boltsinger’s opponent. The crowd erupted into cheers, the pony in armor waving at the crowd. The announcer cleared his throat, calming the masses down. “And his opponent, the knight-- Bolt?” The crowd looked at Boltsinger, many of them confused. “Um… Yes! The knight, Boltsinger!”

Twilight’s head recoiled at the name of Boltsinger’s opponent, recognizing it from some of her previous adventures and other encounters. “I wasn’t expecting something like this…” She raised her foreleg and spread her wings, Flurry Heart taking a peek from the mare’s back. “Go, Bolt! You can do this!”

Boltsinger slapped his muzzle with his wings one more time as the announcing Unicorn raised his foreleg, bringing it down in one swift motion. The opposing Pegasi simultaneously snorted, dashing forward as fast as their hooves could take them. The orange stallion found the armor and lance to be heavy and cumbersome, but forced himself into a decent speed as he charged, turning the lance to point at Flash. He felt the cheers of the crowd empowering him with each step, focusing hard on the point of impact as the two inched ever closer. Finally, the point of impact arrived, and a blue-maned Pegasus was sent flying into the distance with a loud crash upon his landing.

“First lance winner is… Flash Sentry!”

Boltsinger let out a pained groan, slowly getting up from the rough landing and looking back at the pony that had knocked him for a loop. He trotted back to his starting position, taking a stance again. “I can do this!” The announcer repeated his previous gesture as the two charged once more. After moments of cheers, the impact sounded again, and Boltsinger had flown farther back than before. He made his way back, beginning the next lance of many. Always beginning with a charge, and ending with a crash on Boltsinger’s end. Twilight let out a cheer with every new lance, cringing at the sight of her husband’s soon-to-be expected crashes. Her attention was fixed on the match as a tiny ewe pranced by, grabbing Flurry’s attention. Finally, the announcer cleared his throat.

“The winner of the match… Flash Sentry!” The announcer finished, the crowd cheering once more. Flash removed the lance from his side, trotting away with a mild huff while the Crystal Ponies dispersed. The announcer stepped down from his position, cantering over to the downed Pegasus. “You okay, Bolt? That looked like it hurt.”

Boltsinger lay on his side, his eyes showing a state of delirium as he raised a foreleg. “I’m okay, Shiny-winy, I just need a new pair of wingies…”

The Unicorn laughed, lifting the lance away and helping the stallion to his hooves. “Looks like you’ll be fine.” He looked around, raising a hoof over his eyes. “Now where is that sister of mine?”

Twilight strolled over to the stallions, taking a look at her dazed husband. “Wow, he really took a beating this time, huh?” She stepped up to him, tapping his forehead with her horn, where a spark passed between the two and shocked the Pegasus back to normalcy.

“Huh? What?” Boltsinger groggily started. “Did I win?” He turned his attention to the stallion holding him up. “Shining Armor? Aren’t you supposed to be with Cadence?”

Shining Armor chuckled. “Heading back to her right now. Just wanted to make sure you were alright, first. I don’t know why, but Flash seemed to have it out for you, there.”

“So I wasn’t the only one who noticed that.” Boltsinger replied, turning to Twilight. “Is there any reason for that?”

Twilight averted her gaze, a mild flush on her cheeks. “I’ll explain later. We have more important things to worry about right now!”

“Okay. I’m gonna head back to where Cadence is.” The Unicorn stallion stated, turning to leave. “You two keep up the good work!”

Twilight and Boltsinger each waved a foreleg. “You can count on us!” the Princess assured with a smile, mirrored by her husband.

Boltsinger kept his smile as he directed his eyes to look at Twilight’s notably unoccupied back. “Honey?” he began, his smile un-faltering.

“Yes?” Twilight responded, her smile doing the same.

“Where’s Flurry Heart?”

“She’s right here on my--” Twilight's smile fell away as she turned her head to look back. “Oh no…”

Boltsinger put a hoof on her shoulder. “Shh… Calm down… Shining Armor is still in earshot... “ He told her, looking nervously back at the trotting Prince. “We can freak out when it’s safe…” Twilight nodded, her breaths rapid and her eyes wide. The two turned to go back to Flurry’s stroller, Boltsinger removing his armor and making sure that their sibling was at a safe distance. Once that was assured, they looked each other in the eye and let out a simultaneous scream.

Author's Note

So, believe it or not, this is only about half of what I've been working on for this storyline. I didn't realize it was so long with just this, and I'll admit it felt a little bit all over the place. It only just now occurred to me to put the next part in as a new chapter rather than pad this one out. Looking at the word count, I'm glad that idea came into my head. Next part should be up before too long! And it should be a good one!

Finding the Flurriest Foal

“What do we do? What do we do?!” Twilight asked, clutching her head with her forelegs. “Flurry is lost somewhere in the Faire, and you and I both still have work to do! We can’t keep up with all of it!”

“Um… uh… Okay! Let’s split up, search every corner of the Faire, and see if we can find her!” Boltsinger suggested, spreading his forelegs for emphasis. “We’re fast! We pay attention! We got this, right?!”

“Obviously not enough to keep track of a teleporting foal!” the Princess reiterated. “I’ll go get Starlight! She can make this go faster!”

“Okay. Just don’t tell Cadence or Shining Armor that we lost their daughter!” the stallion said, putting the saddlebags in the back of the stroller. “I don’t wanna know what they’d do to us if they found out!” He slapped his muzzle with his wings. “Don’t think about it, Bolt! We’re the ‘Best Aunt Ever’ and ‘Uncle Bo-bo’! We’ve got this handled!” He took off down the road with the stroller, his speech devolving into a fit of nervous laughter.

Twilight ignited her horn, willing herself to Starlight’s location. She appeared behind the mare, creating a bubble of silence around them and covering her mouth from behind. The Unicorn mare gasped, trying to let out a scream as the Alicorn hushed her further. “Starlight, I need you to be quiet and listen to me.” Starlight nodded, prompting Twilight to withdraw her hoof. “Flurry has gone missing and we’re going to go find her. We need your help, but you can’t tell Cadence or Shining Armor!” Starlight quietly nodded again. Twilight teleported the two of them back to her previous location. “Okay, now you can talk.”

Starlight looked around, taking a deep breath. “HOW DID YOU LOSE FLURRY HEART?!” She yelled, her body rising from the force. “It was just a jousting match! Were you seriously so fixated on watching Bolt lose that you didn’t notice her run off?”

“I… well…” the Princess hung her head. “You’re right… But that’s not important right now! We need to find her!”

“Right. We can talk about it more, later.” Starlight concurred. “We can meet back here in an hour!”

The search commenced. Twilight ran towards the petting zoo, where the ewes were all playing and hopping up to the pony visitors. She walked up to the pony looking after the place, asking if she had seen the filly.

“She came by not long ago, following one of the ewes, but then something caught her eye.” The Crystal mare explained. “Next thing I knew, there was a yellow flash, and she was gone!”

“Can you tell me what she was looking at when she vanished?” Twilight asked, leaning in hopefully.

“I think she was looking at the berry treats some fillies were eating.” the mare answered.

Twilight gave a graceful bow. “Thank you very much, ma’am.” with that, she darted off into the distance.

Starlight’s luck fared no better. She had asked around various stalls regarding where the petit Princess had gone, getting shaken heads and general negative replies. She sighed, moving onto the berry fields. She saw one of the bushes begin to rustle, hearing a foal’s laughter coming from within.

“And what’s this I hear?” She called, receiving a louder giggle in reply. “I wonder where she went… Maybe I’ll have myself a few of these yummy crystal berries to help me think!” She wrapped her horn with magic, picking all of the berries off of the moving bush.

“Yummy!” the filly cried, flapping out of the bush and snapping up one of the berries. She fluttered in place, laughing.

“Hi, there, Flurry!” Starlight greeted, feigning surprise. “Are you ready to go back now?” Flurry shook her head, flying over and eating berry after berry. Starlight began floating the berries all over, causing the filly to chase them around. Each time she would get close, the target berry would fly away, and she would pursue. After the tenth berry was munched, a Crystal Pony walked by with a hoof-crafted hat on. She gave a squee of excitement, flying away from the field and disappearing in another flash. Starlight groaned, cantering off to where she hoped the foal might have gone to.

Meanwhile, a frantic Boltsinger was galloping through the Faire, calling out Flurry’s name. He stopped at every stall he could see, asking if they had seen a flying filly, but no results came his way. He slapped his muzzle with his wings, calming himself down and sitting on the ground. His ears sat up as high as his stiff wings, listening closely for any signs of uproarious toddlers. Every time a laugh sounded, his ears twitched in its direction. Each new fit of laughter led to another filly or colt, not a wing or horn in sight.

“You’d think finding a single filly wouldn’t be so difficult…” he grumbled, finding his way to the stand where traditional crafts were made. He attuned his ears again, hearing a much more familiar giggle. Perking up, he ran to the source of the laughter, seeing the flying filly flitting about over a number of hats and other crafts. “Flurry! There you are!” He stepped up to the stall, where the little pony landed and approached him. “Do you want a pretty hat to wear?” Flurry nodded profusely, trotting in place. “Okay. If you come with me, I’ll get you a hat, and we can go meet up with Aunty Twily! How does that sound?”

“Aunty Twily!” Flurry repeated, rearing up. She turned around and faced the proprietor of the stall, who smiled down at her. The Crystal stallion presented her with myriad options, with Flurry picking out materials, colors, and styles. She ended up with a coned hat that fit snugly over her horn, flying alongside Boltsinger as they left.

“Flurry, I’d feel better if you got in the stroller.” He suggested, motioning to the empty seat. She shook her head and flew ahead. “Please, Bug, I need you to come here!” ” Flurry blew a raspberry at him, flying further ahead. Boltsinger let out a low growl, “Flurry, PLEASE!” His raised voice echoed through the streets, sending Flurry reeling. She looked back at him with tears budding in her eyes. “Oh no…” He began to step forward, but was stopped in his tracks by the loud cries coming from the filly. He stepped over to her, promoting her to fly farther away, erecting a magical bubble around herself. He bent down next to her, pressing his face against the bubble. “Hey, little one… I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to raise my voice at you… Can you forgive me? Please?” The bubble dissipated, her crying continuing as she flapped her wings, flying off into the distance. Boltsinger looked up at her, desperately. “Aww crabapples…”

A minute later, Twilight and Starlight trotted up to the sorrowful stallion. He was looking at the horizon, pawing at the ground with his hoof.

“I screwed up…” he told them as they stopped on either side of him. “Flurry will never trust me again…”

“What do you mean?” Twilight wondered, sitting next to him.

He looked at the lilac pony. “I raised my voice to her…”

Starlight tilted her head. “Do you mean normal raising your voice? Or… Bolt-level raising your voice?”

Boltsinger gave the Unicorn a flat look. “Considering I’m the ‘Bolt’ in question, what do you think I meant?”

The mares cringed, knowing just how bad it can get when this particular Pegasus decides to make himself heard. Twilight put her hoof around him, patting his back. “I know how scared she gets when you have to yell at her, but it doesn’t mean that she’ll never trust you again. Just let her know how much you care!”

Boltsinger breathed a heavy sigh. “You’re right. But I can’t do that by moping, huh?”

Twilight nodded, standing up. “Right! Now let’s go find that filly!”

“Right!” He replied, standing firm and spreading his wings. He directed his eyes back to Starlight. “Can you take care of Flurry’s things? I can’t exactly hold onto them where I’m going!”

Starlight gave a nod, letting the orange pony take off, a streak of orange with a blue lightning bolt inside following behind him. She looked over at Twilight, a little dumbfounded. “You’ve got handling him down to an art form, you know that?”

Twilight beamed, taking to the air. “He does the same for me all the time. We’re a team, and we pick each other up when we fall apart. It’s not really any different from how it is with any good friendship.” She started flapping after Boltsinger, looking back for a moment. “Thanks for all your help! We’ll see you back at the castle!” With that, she sped off after her favorite stallion.

Twilight caught up to Boltsinger with relative ease. The two divided the horizon between them, each scanning the city for signs of the littlest pony in their family. Boltsinger attuned his ears to her cries, while Twilight’s horn remained lit, hoping to detect signs of her magic activating. The sounds and sensations of the Faire around them filled their senses, overpowering what they could normally handle and throwing their wings off balance for a moment. Gritting his teeth, Boltsinger powered through the vertigo, righting himself as he descended towards the town, Twilight quickly following suit. Below, the Crystal Ponies were going about their business, all of the typical activities seeing full utilization. After a number of minutes, Twilight’s horn twisted her head around, acting like a rudder that turned her in the direction of the magic she sought. She beckoned her companion along, coming to a landing just outside the jousting arena.

There, flitting above the crowd and unbeknownst to anypony but those specifically searching for her, was Flurry Heart. She was looking around with a panicked expression, as if trying to find an adult to bring her home. The knights took their places, dragging their hooves on the ground as Shining Armor stepped up to announce. As his voice sounded, Flurry’s ears perked up.

“Begin!” Shining Armor called out, his daughter flying towards his voice. The knights began their charge while the filly flew perpendicular to them.

Boltsinger’s eyes went as wide as possible. The world slowed down for him as an orange light shone from his pendant. Gotta be honest with Flurry… Honest… Direct… STRONG!!! The lightning of his wings came about once more, flashing in the same color orange as the light from his necklace. He charged headlong towards the crowd, following behind the filly and leaping over the masses in one swift motion. Onward, he galloped as the knights came ever closer, the little pony unaware of the impending danger. He picked up his pace, overtaking the filly and diving under the now-crossing lances. He performed a furious buck on the lances above him, denting them to point at a ninety-degree angle as the ponies flew into the air with their weapons, landing behind the stands as the stallion reared up, spreading his forelegs and bracing himself. Flurry barreled into him, sending him skidding back a few feet as he caught her in a tight hug.

“Boltsinger?!” Shining Armor wondered, noting the strange color of his lightning as the Pegasus fell over onto his rump. “What’s going on?”

The stallion ignored his fellow Prince, looking down at the filly that now cried into his chest. “Thank Celestia you’re alright…” He squeezed the foal, causing her to look up and struggle a bit. “I’m so sorry that I raised my voice to you… But you had your aunt and I so worried all day!” The littlest Princess ceased her struggle, looking into the stallion’s concerned eyes. “We could barely get anything done ‘cause of how crazy we went trying to find you!” He nuzzled her tiny cheeks, pools of water forming in his eyes. “I love you, Flurry Heart. Please, never make us worry like that again…” The orange light faded from his pendant and wings as his strength left him. His forelegs fell limp as his eyes closed, falling over completely. Flurry hovered in place, lighting up her horn’s yellow aura and wrapping it around her uncle, struggling to pick him up as she landed. She gave all of her concentration, lifting him off the ground and holding him in the air, where Twilight stepped up to the two, positioning herself under her husband and bringing her head low enough to nuzzle her niece.

“Thank you, Bug.” she started, lifting the foal into the air and bringing her close as the stallion fell limp on her back. “Why don’t we go back to the castle?” Flurry nodded, giving a nuzzle to her aunt as the Princess of Friendship began to walk off.

“Now, wait just a minute!” Shining Armor cried, stopping Twilight in her tracks. “What in Equestria is going on here?” A shiver came down the mare’s spine, turning her to face her now-approaching brother with the biggest, most nervous smile she could muster and laughing awkwardly.

Twilight stood before Shining Armor in the castle, Boltsinger laying in a nearby bed with Flurry curled up next to him. Starlight was going through Flurry’s things, putting them aside and listening to Twilight’s explanation. The elder brother’s expression was a mix of sternness and relief as he put his hoof to his muzzle.

“I can’t say I’m not disappointed that you lost track of her.” he started, casting a look at the passed-out pony. “But you both came through in the end, and that’s what matters. What on earth happened to Bolt, though? The way he moved was… different. It kind of reminded me of Applejack.”

“I don’t know… Whatever happened, it took everything he had…” She took a seat next to to the pony in question, putting her hoof on his. “I hope he’s okay…”

As if on cue, Boltsinger’s eyes began to open. He put his free hoof on top of his wife’s, smiling at her. “I’m fine… I don’t know what hit me, but I just used up too much energy. I feel okay now.” He sat up, stretching his wings and tussling the sleeping filly’s mane. “So, what time is it? Any announcements left?”

“All that’s left is the final unity ceremony.” the Prince informed him. “We’ll all be there for it, but you can still announce it if you want.”

Boltsinger got out of the bed, limbering up his legs as he made for the balcony, wings spread in preparation. He looked behind, seeing Twilight and Shining Armor join him. After a few moments, Cadence stepped onto the balcony as well, followed by a number of ponies from all over Equestria, all of them smiling and having a good time. The Crystal Princess stood next to her husband, the two leaning against one another as the performance pony inhaled deeply. “Citizens of the Crystal Empire, it gives me great joy to bring the Crystal Faire to a close! May the love and unity within us all flow into the Crystal Heart, that its power may continue to protect us!”

The crowd cried out, cheering like Boltsinger had never seen. They all planted their hooves on the ground, bowing regally as the Crystal Heart below them spun rapidly. Lights emanated from their bodies, surging through the ground and into the relic, which shined brightly and shot a burst of magic upward, through the entire castle in a magical shockwave that erupted out of the top in a magnificent aurora. Boltsinger looked up at the lights, admiring their beauty for a moment as his wings and Cutie Mark finally returned to normal. He let out a happy sigh, turning to see everypony else. He stopped dead as his eyes fell on Twilight, whose entire body had a crystal sheen to it, ornate earrings hanging from her ears, with her mane pulled up into a bun and a tight curl in her bangs. She looked at him through half-lidded eyes, stepping towards him as his wings demanded to stiffen up again.

“You look… beautiful… Like, a different kind of beautiful... Is this normal here?” he asked, trying desperately to hold his wings in place. “I mean the whole ‘crystal’ thing for Princesses, not the beautiful thing.”

Twilight laughed, holding her pendant up to show the stallion his reflection. “It’s not just Princesses. Everypony that isn’t already Crystal gets to have a taste of it when the Crystal Heart’s magic activates.” The reflection Boltsinger saw in the sparkling pendant showed crystal facets through his body, his mane having gone from its typical messy and wind-blown style into a windy, swirling style, creating spirals in what otherwise looked like how his hair was whenever Rarity would prepare him for a formal event. “And, I have to say, you look great!”

Boltsinger waved a hoof in front of him. “Meh. I dunno about great. I look okay.” He walked up to Cadence and Shining Armor, taking a bow. “It was an honor to assist you in this important event. And I’m sorry about what happened with Flurry.”

Cadence jumped slightly. “Something happened with Flurry?”

Her husband pulled her closer. “I’ll explain it to you later. Everything’s fine.”

Boltsinger took a bow, flourishing his wing. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, there’s one more thing I feel I need to do tonight.” he informed them, turning to walk into the room again. “Flurry’s gotta go to bed, after all.” He trotted over to the bed with Twilight following close behind, picking up the now-Crystal filly with his wings. She opened her eyes, wrapping her wings around his neck.

“Bo-bo!” She cried out, pulling herself in for as tight of a hug as she could manage.

“I’m glad you’ve forgiven me, Flurry. But it’s bedtime right now.” he said, rounding the corner to her bedroom. “Aunty Twily and I are gonna tuck you in, okay?” Flurry nodded, snuggling up to her uncle. He looked back at Twilight, who was smiling warmly at the two of them.

“To think, this is going to be an everyday thing for us soon… But with our own little foal…” she mused aloud, shortening the gap between them as they trotted. “I just hope that the ‘everyday’ thing isn’t as crazy as it was today.”

Boltsinger chuckled softly. “Yeah, I don’t think I could handle it if every day was this weird. I could barely handle it when super-focused from the lightning. If I had to have an adventure like that on a constant basis, I think I’d literally fall apart.”

“I think you handled yourself well when you weren’t moping.” Twilight corrected. “You’ll be a great father!”

The stallion looked softly at the toddler he carried as the two came to a stop, lowering her into her bed and sitting beside it alongside his companion. “I hope so…” Twilight magically grasped the blankets, pulling them over the little pony. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath as the foal’s parents appeared in the doorway.

“~Slee-eep, sleep, my love, my only…
Deep, deep, in the dunge_ and the dark…
Be__ not afraid, and be__ not lonely…
For this_ is the hour, when frogs_ in the brush…
Praise___ the world from the woods and the rush…
Rest__ from caring, my love, my only…
Dee-e-eep, deep, in the dunge_ and the dark…~”

Twilight looked at her husband, her own eyes appearing as tired as those of the young one below. She leaned into him as the deep breath came again.

“~Slee-eep, sleep, my love, my only…
Dee-e-eep, deep, in the dunge_ and the dark…
Be__ not afraid, and be__ not lonely…
For this_ is the hour, when frogs_ in the brush…
Praise___ the world from the woods and the rush…
Rest__ from caring, my love, my only…
Dee-e-eep, de-e-eep, in the dunge_ and the dark…~”

The lullaby came to an end as the song’s target fell back into a deep slumber. Boltsinger lifted his head and turned to his tired companion. She picked her head up from his shoulder. “That was beautiful…”

“It’s a lullaby my mom used to sing for me.” he explained, standing up and offering a wing in assistance. The Alicorn put her wing in his, rising to her hooves. “You seem tired, though. Let’s head to bed, okay?” He was met with a nod that led to more weight on his wing than he expected. He rolled his eyes, hoisting the mare up and making for the door. “Good night…”

Author's Note

I'm very glad I decided to split this chapter. It gave me some much-needed perspective. Next one should be an interesting one in a myriad of ways!

EDIT: I forgot to mention the song I used. It's known as "The Frog's Lullaby". I sadly don't know where it originally came from, but the version I heard first was done by a "Draco Stormdancer". A friend of my mother's. As always, I claim zero ownership.

Soarin On In

Soarin flew happily over Ponyville, looking around at the town. Twilight and Boltsinger had taken off somewhere, like Boltsinger had explained to him, so he was going to take this opportunity to approach Rainbow Dash. She was still avoiding those two, but she hadn’t been neglecting her flight training in the slightest. However, before he went to see her, he decided it was probably for the best that he confer with other ponies that knew her. He swooped down into the street, looking around for signs of somepony who knew the mare. His search looked to be in vain for a while, until a fabulous white Unicorn caught his attention.

Before he could open his mouth, the Unicorn looked in his direction. “Ah! Soarin!” she cried out, trotting over to him with a smile on her face. “How wonderful to see you! Why, we haven’t met face-to-face since Rainbow Dash got framed back in Canterlot, have we?”

“Uh… yeah!” he confirmed, continuing his walk.

“So, what brings a strapping Wonderbolt like you to Ponyville today?” She wondered, walking beside him. “I heard you’re staying with Twilight and Boltsinger, but the real reason you’re here is Rainbow Dash, isn’t it?”

Soarin smiled, looking fondly up at the clouds. “Yeah, I’m making sure she keeps in shape for when she’s ready to come back to the ‘Bolts.”

Rarity giggled, giving him a knowing glance. “Yes, that’s clearly the only reason you’re here.”

“Of course.” he stated, trying to look as stoic as he could. “Why else would I be here?”

“Oh, please, you can’t possibly believe Twilight hasn’t told me about your little crush.” she stated, nudging him in the side. “I only wish I’d been there for your little ‘display’ at Sugar Cube Corner!”

“Okay, okay, fine. You’re right.” He admitted, simultaneously sighing with the mare beside him. “I was hoping I could get some insight on how to approach her.”

Rarity tilted her head, wondering what he meant. “Didn’t Twilight show you how to do that?”

“They seemed to treat it like a joke.” He told her. “I’m getting advice from them, but things have been rocky. I wanna see what everypony else has to say.”

“I’ve heard about the situation.” She affirmed. “But they’re not exactly wrong. Approaching Rainbow Dash is easy. But what you are trying to do is much more difficult.” She stepped ahead of him, stopping him in his tracks. “What you want is romance. And that is an entirely different game!” She encased him with her magic, pulling him along behind. “Come with me! We’re going to get you all set to woo that Wonderbolt!”

Soarin found himself inside the Carousel Boutique, the excited Unicorn getting a number of measurements before zipping over to her sewing machine, making adjustments as needed. “Normally, I wouldn’t say that a new outfit would catch her eye, but I’ve come to understand what Dash thinks as ‘cool’ to a greater degree than I used to. I think if you show up with something appropriate, she’ll get the idea you’re trying to put out there!”

“Are you sure about this?” Soarin wondered, looking cautiously at the piece of fashion coming together on the mannequin. “This doesn’t seem like something she’d go crazy for.”

“You asked for my help, this is the best I can offer!” she stated, sliding a changing curtain between them and floating the outfit over.

A knock came at Rainbow Dash’s door. She didn’t quite notice it as of yet, though, as she was caught right in the middle of the latest Daring Do adventure. It was one of the more action-heavy stories, and she knew it well. Daring Do and the Army of Claws was based on an adventure that she had gotten to take part in, after all. She was getting to the part in which Daring Do and her longtime friend faced off against a massive army of vicious feline warriors, raised by the dreaded Ahuizotl, before they could attack a helpless village. The heroes made their charge, a wall of claws closing in on them, when…

More knocking. She groaned, marking her book and getting up. She came to the door, opening it to be blinded by a brilliant sequin flash. There stood Soarin in what she could only describe as a bedazzled Wonderbolts uniform with a gold-crested circlet, pointed up to accentuate his mane. “What are you wearing?” She wondered, a look of genuine confusion in her eyes.

Soarin scratched his mane with his hoof, averting his gaze. “Rarity said it would be something you’d like. I wasn’t so sure, but she wouldn’t let me go until I was wearing it.”

“You look… Well, I can’t really say ‘bad’, but it’s definitely not what I expected.” she told him, looking at the outfit from various angles. “What the heck made her do this, anyway? And… why are you here? I don’t have practice today.”

Soarin laughed, looking at his fellow Wonderbolt with a smile. “Well, I was just wondering if… you…”

“If I what?” She interjected. “Is Rarity tryin’ to set us up, or something?”

“Oh, it’s nothing!” he fibbed, brushing the question off. “I’ll catch you later, Rainbow Dash!” He turned, taking off into the distance.

“What’s going on with that pony?” Rainbow Dash asked herself, returning to her abode.

Soarin left the castle once more, the outfit from before removed. It was a nice outfit. Rarity’s efforts were appreciated, but they certainly weren’t what he was hoping for. He decided that it would be a good idea to ask somepony else. He saw several ponies in town that looked familiar, but none that offered the kind of perspective he needed. It wasn’t long before the perfect choice appeared, coming out of the tea shop with a smile on her ever-gentle face.

“Hey! Fluttershy!” he called, trotting over to her.

Her ears perked up as she looked his way, letting out a soft yelp. She lowered her head, hiding behind her mane as the white stallion approached. “You’re… Soarin, right?”

Soarin nodded. “Yeah. Hey, you alright?” he asked, bending down to get a good look at her. “You look like you just saw a ghost!”

Fluttershy pulled her mane aside, standing at her full height again. “I’m fine. You just startled me, is all.” She continued on her way to her destination, Soarin following at a respectable distance. “So, what brings you into town?”

“Well, I was hoping to find somepony that knows Rainbow Dash pretty well.” he told her, scratching his mane with his hoof. “You grew up together, right?”

“Ever since we lived in Cloudsdale.” Fluttershy confirmed. “She gets along really well with my family. Especially my brother! He won’t admit it, but I think he has a crush on her!”

“A crush, huh?” he repeated, kicking up some dust with his foreleg. “Gee, I wonder what that’s like…”

“So, why do you need to know about Dashie?” the mare asked, oblivious to his bit of sarcasm. “Don’t you see her all the time at Wonderbolts practice?”

“I only ever see her up at headquarters or events.” he elaborated. “I’ve never really had a casual conversation with her. I don’t really know how to approach her. I don’t know what she likes, or what to say, or anything like that.”

“It’s not really any different from talking to her any other time.” She assured, starting her walk towards the cottage. “And anything past that, you can simply ask her. She’s a pretty open book.”

“You sure? ‘Cause there was this one time, when she first became a Wonderbolt, where her attitude was all over the place.” He started, calling upon the memory with a small laugh. “She did all sorts of different things with her mane, and each time she had a completely different personality. Heck, one of them sounded a lot like Rarity!”

Fluttershy giggled at the thought of her brash friend trying to come off as a fashionista. “Oh, my! That sounds like it was an interesting experience!” She looked confidently at him. “I’m sure that was just a one-time thing, though. She’s really quite direct. And besides, you already have some common ground.” She paused, putting her hoof on her chin. “Or, I guess it’s more like ‘common sky’, isn’t it?”

“You mean flying?” he queried, receiving a curt nod from the animal expert. “Okay… I think that’ll work!” He flapped his wings, rising into the air. “Thanks, Fluttershy!” He twisted in the air, shooting into the distance.

Fluttershy looked up, waving at the speeding stallion, her mane blowing in the wind. “You’re welcome!”

Once more, a knock came at Rainbow Dash’s door. She sat up, putting her book aside again. “Ugh! What is it this time?” She came to the door, opening it in a huff. “What is it?!” Soarin stood in the doorway again, looking normal. He smiled with his wings spread. “You need something?”

“I just thought you might enjoy going for a fly.” He said, beckoning her along.

“Haven’t we practiced enough already?” She asked, readying to turn around.

“Who said anything about practice?” the white stallion corrected. “I just wanted to go for a casual fly with you. Help you unwind.”

Rainbow turned her head to look back. “Really? You just wanna ‘casual fly’ with me?” She turned to face him again. “What’s the catch?”

“No catch! Honest!” He affirmed, waving his forelegs in front of him. “I just thought it would be good for both of us.” He extended an offering hoof. “So, what do you say?”

Rainbow Dash looked up into his eyes. No ulterior motives, no prying, no deception in the green orbs before her. She took a calming breath, letting a smile onto her muzzle as she walked past him out the door. “Okay. Try to keep up!” She jumped off of the edge of the cloud her home sat upon, diving to the ground and swiftly swooping upward, ascending at a breakneck speed.

Soarin followed her movements with his eyes, excitement bubbling up inside him as he unintentionally trotted in place, making a strong flap of his wings to rise up and pursue her. Much to the blue mare’s surprise, he quickly caught up to her. They performed a number of stunts, ranging from aileron rolls to barrel rolls, loops to banks to immelmann turns, plowing through cloud after cloud. Every so often, Rainbow Dash would sneak a glance at Soarin. A wide grin was plastered onto his muzzle, the wind blowing through his mane as his every graceful movement mirrored her own. They went on for several minutes, eventually coming to a rather large cloud and going in for a landing, sitting in silence while looking at the evening sky

Rainbow Dash looked down at Ponyville, taking a relieved breath. “Thanks…”

Soarin looked over at her. “For what?”

Rainbow directed her gaze at her fellow Wonderbolt. “You were right. I really needed that fly. I’ve done a lot of flying already, but having somepony with me, just enjoying the flight… It helped me clear my head some.”

“You still thinking about the thing with Twilight and Bolt?” he inquired.

“You really wanna know?” she asked. Her black-maned companion nodded, his gaze unflinching. Rainbow Dash looked to either side, trying to see if anypony else was looking. “I haven’t really stopped thinking about it. Bolt raised a pretty good point last time I talked to him… But I still don’t like it. But, you know what’s even worse?” She gathered up some cloud with her forelegs, resting her head on it with a sourpuss expression. “Not being able to see my friends. I want to be mad, but I can’t stand being alone so much!”

“You haven’t met up with anypony else?” Soarin wondered, scooting closer to her. “I know you’ve got other friends to do stuff with.”

“Not without the risk of randomly meeting up with Twilight.” She stated, extending a foreleg in front of her. “The prank certainly didn’t go how I hoped, and since then it’s just been… weird. So, I’ve only ever seen you.” She scooted a smidge closer to him, nudging him in the side with her elbow. “But, that’s not really a bad thing, huh?”

Soarin smiled, his cheeks gaining a distinct red tint. “I hope not. I had a lot of fun flying with you!” He replied, nudging her in return. “I’m kinda hoping we can make it a regular thing…”

Rainbow smirked in his direction. “I can get behind that idea. But I still miss everypony else.”

“So, how ‘bout you talk to them?” Soarin suggested. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned staying with those two, it’s that they’re pretty forgiving. Even if you haven’t sorted things out, you shouldn’t isolate yourself. You saw what it did to your performance at practice.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” She said, looking at the castle in the distance. “Besides, it’s not just about me.” She gave Soarin a playful punch to his shoulder. “Thanks, Clipper.”

Soarin winced slightly at the hit, giving a mildly pained smile. “No problem, Crash.” He looked out at the sunset again. “No problem at all."

Author's Note

This chapter takes place at the same time as chapters 10 and 11, while Twilight and Bolt are in the Crystal Empire, so that you know.

Rainbow Remedy

After a hectic day in the Crystal Empire and a long train ride home, Twilight and Boltsinger disembarked. The entire way home, Twilight made mental notes of what their Cutie Marks had done, talking at length about the difference in how their individual marks danced. She was used to the way Boltsinger’s lightning crackles and whips around, but she hadn’t gotten to observe it for such an extended period. He had informed her that the stars of her Cutie Mark had a distinct sparkle to them, dancing like those she saw through her telescope every night. The moment they made it home, there was a magenta flash as Twilight teleported to the bedroom, floating her quill and the research book over and writing down every single detail she could remember.

After a few minutes, Boltsinger entered the room, having taken the long way. “Getting it down while it’s still fresh in your mind?”

“Of course!” she said, writing furiously. “As crazy as that trip was, it was extremely informative! If I don’t get this down now, we may lose it forever!”

Boltsinger sat on the couch next to Twilight, sneaking a peek at the book. “Well, while you’re getting this all down, I think I’m gonna go check on Spike and Soarin. We did sorta fly off without warning.” He planted a peck on her cheek, flying up from his seat and zooming out of the room.

“Way to go, Soarin!” Boltsinger exclaimed, giving the Wonderbolt a high wing. He had just heard about what happened between the white stallion and Rainbow Dash during his absence. “So, when is your next flying session?”

“Couple days from now.” He replied. “She also might be more open to seeing you guys soon. But don’t tell her I told you!”

Boltsinger made a zipping motion over his mouth. “So, if she is open to the idea… Perhaps we can give her some incentive…” He began pacing through the room, mumbling about ideas to appeal to the cyan mare as Soarin followed his movements. “I think I may need some help…” he stopped pacing, looking over at Soarin. “What would you do to appeal to her?”

“Me?” he repeated, pointing to himself. “I only just started, and all I did was ask if she wanted to fly with me! You’re on your own here.”

Boltsinger smirked, looking into the hallway. “Am I, though?” He trotted out of the room, searching the castle for its resident dragon. He found the baby drake sitting in the library, reading a comic book with a smile on his face. “So, where are you at in the story?” he asked, bringing his head next to Spike’s.

“They’re introducing a new supervillain!” He excitedly said, raising the book slightly. “The Power Ponies are facing a whole slew of problems they’ve never dealt with before!”

“Sweet!” Boltsinger replied, eyeing the page to see the Masked Matterhorn clashing rays with an unfamiliar Unicorn stallion. “Mind if I borrow it soon?”

“Sure!” Spike affirmed, looking up at him. “So where did you two go?”

“Crystal Empire. We’ll tell you all about it later.” He told him. “First, I need your help.”

Spike closed his comic, putting it aside and jumping up. “What do you need?”

“What can I do to encourage Rainbow Dash to come out of hiding?” he inquired. “I’m told she’s willing, but I think she needs incentive.”

“Got any cider?” he suggested. “She’ll go pretty far for good cider.”

Boltsinger sat down, grasping his chin with his wing. “We don’t have cider at the moment, but… Zapapple season is coming up! Thanks, Spike. I think that’s the idea I needed!”

“Rainbow!” a drawl came from below, shaking Rainbow Dash from her state of rest. “Rainbow Dash, wake up! It’s Zapapple harvest day!”

Rainbow got up, heading to her window to see Applejack looking up at her from the ground. “That’s nice, but what does it have to do with me?”

“We’re needin’ yer help!” she explained. “We gotta get all those apples picked before they vanish! We’re gettin’ all hooves on deck, and it ain’t all hooves without you!”

“All hooves, huh?” she repeated, holding a pondering hoof to her muzzle. It is getting pretty lonely around here… I suppose I can afford to go help everypony out. “Give me a minute, I’ll be right down!” Moments later, the Pegasus landed next to the Earth Pony, and they began the walk to Sweet Apple Acres. “So, why are you getting everypony together for this year’s harvest? Is it a big one?”

Applejack nodded, looking ahead. “There’s that, but we also had an idea that everypony might like. ‘Specially you.”

“And what would that be?”

Applejack beamed, just barely able to hold it in. “We’re makin’ Zapapple cider!”

Lightning struck on the Wonderbolt’s brain. “Zap… apple… CIDER?!” She repeated, a feeling of awe emanating from her being. “Why didn’t you tell me that before?!”

Applejack shifted her face from excitement to bewilderment. “Um… Thought I just did.”

Rainbow Dash brushed the statement aside, rising to the air. “Never mind, not important! I’ll see you at the farm! BYE!” She shot off into the distance, leaving a rainbow streak behind her. Applejack chortled to herself and galloped after the lightning-fast mare.

Applejack galloped up to the barn, where Rainbow Dash had left skid marks from her landing. She was standing in front of Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders, talking excitedly with all of them about the project ahead. “Well, that’s almost everypony.” She started, getting a head count. “We’re still missin’ four. Then again, one of ‘em’s never been to the farm before, and another sleeps in a bunch. I wouldn’t be surprised if--”

CRASH.

“We’re here!” Twilight cried from a cloud of dust. She had landed safely, but her husband wasn’t so lucky. He had landed on his back, the lilac mare sitting on his stomach. He brought his wings forward, flexing the feathers and testing to see if they were okay and letting out a sigh of relief from the lack of pain. Twilight hopped up, trotting happily over to Applejack. “What do you need us to do?”

Rainbow Dash stepped up beside Boltsinger, looking down at him. “Didn’t we work on your landings? I thought you were past crashing by now.”

“Twilight has been pushing herself when we fly together more recently.” He told her, standing up and dusting himself off. “I’ve been… cushioning her landings for the baby’s sake.”

“That seems a little extreme.” She commented. “Not that I have the right to talk about extremes, these days.”

“I think all of us are going a little crazy, lately.” He assured, trotting to the main group.

“Okay, once Soarin ‘n Spike get here, I’ll give ‘em their jobs, but we ain’t got time to wait!” Applejack began, marching in front of the group like a drill sergeant. “Those apples ain't gonna pick themselves, so we need to divide up into sections an’ get as much done as we can! We’ll be splittin’ up into groups of two!” She stopped at Pinkie Pie. “Pinkie, you’re with Fluttershy. She’ll get ‘em offa the trees while you catch ‘em! Ya gotta be movin’ fast, ‘cause we don’t wanna waste even one o’ those magical fruits!”

Pinkie stood tall, saluting with her foreleg. “Okie dokie loki!” She answered, speeding off and grabbing Fluttershy by the tail to pull her along.

Applejack continued her march, stopping at Rarity. “Rarity, you’ll be workin' out there with Sugar Belle. She’s already out pickin’, but with your help it’ll go that much faster!”

“Sugar Belle is here?” Rarity asked, leaning in closer to receive a confirming nod from her favorite farmer. “How lovely! I’ll go find her right away!” She stepped into the barn, coming out a moment later in a frilly pink attempt at farmer’s attire before sashaying into the fields.

Applejack chuckled at the fashionista’s antics, moving onto Boltsinger. “Bolt, you ‘n Big Mac are workin’ together on this one. He’ll do the buckin’, you do the haulin’!”

Boltsinger nodded, giving out his best “Eeyup!” as he took off towards the orchard.

Applejack looked at Twilight and Rainbow Dash, smirking. “Twilight, RD, you two’re teamin’ up! Got any problems with that?”

Twilight shook her head. “No problems here!” She turned to Rainbow Dash with a smile. “You ready to get some apples picked?”

Rainbow looked at Twilight’s fond smile, thinking back on what Soarin had said on that cloud. She knew he was telling the truth, but it had been a while since she had seen evidence of it like this. She grinned back at her. “Definitely! You get them off the trees, I’ll get ‘em to the barn! Between the two of us, this’ll be done in no time!”

The two mares shared a hoof bump, galloping for the trees where the rainbow apples grew. When they came upon the first tree, Twilight’s horn began its work, lifting the fruit carefully and placing it into the buckets, with Rainbow taking them one at a time to the barn as fast as she could manage at such a low altitude. A few trees in, Twilight looked up at the Pegasus. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen you so happy. What changed?”

Rainbow Dash’s eyes widened for a moment, returning to normal as she looked back with as aloof of an expression as she could manage. “Yeah, well, Zapapple cider is just too good of an idea to resist! It’s not like I’m doing this just to see all of you…”

Twilight rolled her eyes, emptying another tree into the buckets below. “Of course. It’s all about the cider.” she teased. They moved onto the next tree, repeating their work. “So, how have things been with Soarin?”

“Why does that matter?” the rainbow streak asked, taking the next bucket. “We fly together sometimes, but that’s pretty much it. Why are you so curious?”

“No reason.” she fibbed, moving on. “Just curious. Have you seen how Scootaloo’s been doing with her flight training?”

“Haven’t seen anypony but Soarin till today.” Dash stated, eagerly approaching the next tree. “But he tells me she’s made some great progress. I’m lookin’ forward to taking over teaching her when she’s ready!”

“She’s even got a flight buddy when she practices outside of training!” Twilight added, performing her assigned task. “You know Rumble, right?”

“Thunderlane’s brother?” Rainbow guessed.

“Uh-huh.” Twilight confirmed. “He saved Scootaloo when she first tried practicing on her own.” Rainbow’s face began to sour exponentially at the idea of Scootaloo practicing full-on flight all by herself. “Without Boltsinger or Soarin’s permission, mind you.” the cyan mare’s face slowly shifted back to normal. “She jumped so high when she tried to hover that he had to save her when she fell. Bolt tells me that the colt was as mad as you just were, so they agreed that Rumble would be her practice partner.”

Rainbow lightly nodded, picking up the next bucket and running it to the farm and back. “The kid’s a good flyer. He’ll be a good partner for her.” The two continued their task, talking about a number of things, including the adventure Twilight and Boltsinger had in the Crystal Empire, along with Rainbow Dash gushing about the latest Daring Do book, which her fellow fans had yet to finish. The sound of their shared laughter echoed out of the orchard, bringing smiles to the muzzles of the ponies on the farm.

In another part of the orchard, Rarity and Sugar Belle were hard at work. The fashion expert gingerly picked the apples, one at a time as the baker followed suit. They would walk back and forth to the barn with their haul together, Rarity looking at Sugar Belle every now and then with a question burning in her heart.

Eventually, she couldn’t take it anymore. “So, Sugar Belle, when do you intend to settle down with Big Mac?”

Sugar Belle dropped her buckets, the apples nearly becoming bruised from the potential fall as Rarity extended her magic to encompass them. “What?!” she shouted, turning around to face the glamorous one. “Settle down? You mean, getting married? That’s just…” she blushed furiously, averting her gaze. Her eye sneaked back up to look at the pony she was working with. “Why are you so interested in all of that?”

“Let’s just say that weddings have been on my mind a lot, lately.” Rarity said, passing the extra buckets back to Sugar Belle. “I’ve been designing many wedding outfits, and the way that Twilight and Bolt have been… I must admit I’ve been doing a little pining of my own.”

“I see.” Sugar Belle replied, resuming the walk to the barn. “Well, Big Mac and I haven’t talked about that kind of thing. So, is there anypony special on your mind?”

“Nopony, really.” the fabulous filly admitted. “I’ve been putting myself out there, but so far, I’ve had no luck. Besides, my search for love still has to make way for my work. There’s a lot of ponies looking to be fashionable, and I can’t simply abandon them, now can I?”

Sugar Belle gave an understanding nod as the barn came into view. “That’s true. I like Big Mac a whole lot, but even with our relationship, I still concentrate on my bakery the most. Just like he still puts the farm first.”

“It must be difficult, living so far away from your special somepony.” Rarity mused.

Sugar Belle sighed softly. “It’s true that we don’t get to see each other very often, but…” She perked up, smiling as she looked at Big Mac and Boltsinger making their way to the barn. “We make it work. I’ll always need apples, after all!”

Rarity let out a swooning sight of her own, looking dreamily at the sky through the trees. “What I wouldn’t give for somepony special of my own… You have no idea just how beautiful what you have truly is. You hold onto it as tightly as you can, darling. You never know when you’ll come across something that amazing again.”

Sugar Belle smiled warmly, moving closer to Rarity and putting her hoof around her. “I will. You just make sure you find something just as beautiful.”

The fashionista gave the baker a weak smile, offering up a dainty nod. “I’ll do my best.”

Applejack returned from the orchard, wiping her brow and turning to look out at the orchard. Every single one of the magical trees had been emptied of the Zapapples. Granny Smith and the Cutie Mark Crusaders were well on their way to making the best darned jam anypony had ever had, and a special bunch of the fruits had been set aside for their big project. Her friends and family all emerged from the orchard, each of them having worked up a sweat and an appetite.

“So, do we have enough apples to make the cider?” Rainbow Dash asked eagerly, speeding over to the orange mare.

“Yeah, Rainbow, we got plenty to make the cider with.” AJ answered, pointing to several buckets of the prismatic fruit. Nearby was a cider press and several barrels to store the beverage when it was made.

“YES!” She cheered, doing loops in the air. “I call first cup!”

“I take it we’re ready to start pressing?” Boltsinger suggested, placing another bucket in the barn.

Big Mac stepped forward, looking at the equipment. “Eeyup!”

“Nice.” He replied, looking out at the orchard where the rest of the mares were coming back to join the gathering. “I guess we should get started so these ladies can have their cider, huh?”

The red stallion was way ahead of his smaller winged friend, getting set up on the treadmill on the side of the press. “Eeyup!”

Boltsinger smiled and looked at the girls one more time. “You ladies sit back and enjoy yourselves. Big Mac and I will handle making the cider!”

Applejack nodded greatfully, holding her hat over her heart. “Why, that’s mighty generous of you boys! I think I’ll go ahead and oblige ya.” The mares looked at one another, turning and making for the main house, grouping up around the kitchen table. “So, while those two’re doin’ all that, whaddaya say we do sumthin’ together?”

Fluttershy smiled at the idea, turning to look at Rainbow Dash. “It has been a while since we were all together like this.”

“Oh! Oh! I know!” Pinkie started, jumping around the table. “Why don’t we make a cake? I would suggest a pie but Rainbow Dash doesn’t like pie even though pie is one of the most wonderful amazing terrific and delicious things in the whole world, but so is cake! And we have three great bakers here with a whole bunch of magical delicious ingredients!”

Sugar Belle looked around the room at the rustic decor, getting a confident look on her face. “Sounds like fun to me!”

“So, not only are we having Zapapple cider, but a cake to go with it?” Rainbow summarized, starting to shake like a teapot approaching a boil. “This… is… AWESOME!!!”

The mares all set to work, getting the ingredients together and experimenting with different recipes. They all shared stories and jokes, letting the good times sink in as the batter took shape in the oven. The time flew by as at least four different cakes featuring rainbow-colored frosting and decorations were gathered up on the counter, each one featuring the fruit they were working with in some decorative fashion at the top.

As they put the last Zapapple slice on the last confection, Rarity turned to Twilight. “I have to say, I’m a little surprised with Bolt, lately.”

Twilight raised her ears, coming out of her concentration. “What do you mean? What’s so surprising?”

“Come now, you live with him!” Rarity started, nudging her with her elbow. “Clearly you’ve been privy to how he’s been behaving!”

“You mean the royal training he got?” the Princess wondered. “Or are you talking about teaching Scootaloo how to fly?”

“Honestly, both of those are a little surprising to me.” Fluttershy chimed in. “I never thought he was the type to take on responsibilities like that so quickly.”

“He does normally take a lot more convincin’ to get started on a project that ain’t some fancy performance.” Applejack concurred. “I wonder what got into ‘im?”

“I think I have an idea…” Rarity began, smiling at her currently-pregnant friend. “But no matter what it is, it’s wonderful to see such confidence out of him, don’t you think?” Everypony else, save for Twilight, gave their own bits of confirmation as the door swung open. In walked Big Mac, Boltsinger, Soarin, and Spike, with the ponies each carrying a barrel full of cider.

“Okay, ladies, who’s thirsty?” Boltsinger asked, putting his barrel on the counter. “There should be enough for everypony, provided we divide it up equally.” He put extra emphasis on his last word, directing his eyes to Pinkie Pie, who was already holding onto at least ten mugs.

Rainbow Dash was the first one forward, filling her mug in what felt like an instant with the sweet liquid. Like the apples it came from, every color of the rainbow swam about in the cup, sparks of electricity surging harmlessly out to invite her to consume it. She stepped aside, letting each of the other occupants of the room fill their cups and gather round. They all raised their mugs with a cheer, downing the drink in a single gulp. A flawless mixture of sweet and tart washed over their taste buds, along with a sensation they didn’t quite expect. There was a tingle and a jolt going through their bodies, causing the ponies unaccustomed to the feeling to jump. Rainbow Dash looked around at the gathering, where every hair in the room, hers included, was standing on end, causing everypony’s manes to look like a porcupine. As they all caught sight of one another, the entire room burst into uproarious laughter, the cyan mare chief among them. She pointed her muzzle at her now-empty mug, keeping her eyes fixed on her friends. Okay… I’ll admit it. I really missed this!

Author's Note

So, don't think that story arcs are coming to a close just from what you see in this chapter. I've only just barely gotten back into my groove on the idea front. At least, I think I have. Jury's still out on that one. Either way, I look forward to releasing more soon! And I hope you all look forward to reading it!

Of Dreams And Discord

The morning sun rose over Canterlot, and Princess Luna turned from her nightly vigil to meet her dear sister for breakfast. This had been a particularly long night. One pony in particular had been suffering from frequent nightmares, and she was growing concerned, if not a little tired. She found her way to the dining room, where the happiest pancakes in the world awaited her alongside a steaming cup of black coffee, freshly brewed to help her through the day.

“Good morning, sister.” Celestia greeted from across the table. “How was the dream realm?”

Luna brought her muzzle to her beverage, smelling it with anticipation. “Some ponies have the most… interesting dreams… I must say, sister, your protege married the most neurotic stallion in all the land.”

Celestia swallowed a mouthful, looking quizzically at her darker sibling. “What’s been going on with Boltsinger?”

Luna sighed, poking her meal with her fork. “He has been having nightmares each night for the past month. Each of them different, yet centered around the same thing.” She snarfed down a bite of her breakfast. “I thought that his tendency towards dreams of that ilk would have diminished after the evil presence in his mind had been removed, but that seems to not be the case.”

“Oh, dear…” Celestia replied. “Have you stepped in to help him?”

“If I came into his dreams every night, he might come to rely on me.” Luna stated. “However, I am growing more worried with each dream. Perhaps he could use some help from a friend…”

Boltsinger’s voice echoed through the castle halls as Twilight made her way back to the bedroom, whipped cream in a tortilla floating in front of her. She opened the door, where the stallion tossed and turned, throwing the bedspread all over. Her jaw and breakfast dropped simultaneously as she ran to his side. His eyes were still closed, so she was certain no danger was present, but the simple fact that he was having nightmares caused her a level of worry.

“Boltsinger!” She called out, reaching forward and shaking him with her hoof. “Wake up!”

Boltsinger’s eyes snapped open, a panicked look on his face as he shot out of bed and fell into the food his wife had dropped. “DIAPER DUTY CALLS!!!” He yelled, sitting up with a face covered in whipped cream. He shook his head, bewilderment in his eyes. “Why am I on the floor and covered with whipped cream?

Twilight cantered up next to him, sitting in front of him. “You were having a nightmare and I woke you up.” She wiped the whipped cream off of his face, flicking it aside. “And… I may have dropped my breakfast. You okay?”

Boltsinger let out a fake smile and a weak chortle, rising to his hooves. “I’m fine. I’ve just been having trouble sleeping.” He explained, offering a hoof to the seated Alicorn.

Twilight accepted the offer, looking at him with concern. “Has Princess Luna stepped in at all?” The Pegasus shook his head, starting towards the hallway. “Well, if she’s not interfering, then it can’t be that bad. What happened in your dream? You were screaming something about diapers when you woke up.”

“Let’s just say it’s a smell I’ll never forget…” he told her. “Anyway, it looks like I owe you breakfast. What do you want?”

“The same thing that smushed into your face.” Twilight replied with a giggle. “In between tortillas.”

“So, like a quesadilla?” he suggested.

Twilight’s eyes went wide. “No! Not one of those! Please! Anything but one of those!”

“What’s wrong with quesadillas?” he asked, thinking about the cheesy goodness. “Are you scared of them or something?”

“I’m not scared!” She blurted out with a blush. “They’re just so… cheesy…”

“Well, now you’ve got me wanting one.” He teased, moving to a trot. “But first, your breakfast!”

After another research session finished up, the Cutie Mark Crusaders headed to their respective homes while the castle’s residents went to go about their typical business. Twilight returned to the library to continue her research while Spike pulled out the latest Power Ponies issue. Soarin flew off to Rainbow Dash's house for another leisurely fly with her, and Boltsinger…

Vanished in a white flash.

“Hello, friend!” a familiar male voice enthusiastically greeted. The stallion looked around, finding himself in a house that defied all reason. There were stairs leading nowhere, a volcano on the ceiling, and the various things one would normally find on the floor were scattered about everywhere in all possible directions. He looked back, seeing the serpentine frame of the only Draconequus he knew. “Welcome to my humble abode!”

Boltsinger flapped his wings, flying up to meet the creature in his goat-like face. “Oh, hey Discord. I thought this place felt chaotic.” He stopped flapping, remaining airborne nonetheless. “So, why the surprise ‘visit’?”

Discord let out a fiendish grin. “So, I was gallivanting around Canterlot a couple days ago when who should I spy on the balcony but Princess Luna! I like to call her ‘Lulu', though. It’s much more fun that way! And she says to me, she says…“ He altered his features to resemble the color of the night Princess’ coat, with his mane replaced by her starry one. “‘Oh, Discord, you handsome devil, you! Come here to me that I might give you a job!’ and I did, and she says ‘You should help your disturbed friend, Bolt, because he’s having bad dreams and it’s too much for poor little me to handle! I’m trusting you with this, you big, strong, hunk of a creature, you!’" He fluttered his eyelashes, bringing his hands together next to his still Luna-fied head in a swooning fashion, finally snapping his claws and returning to what he would call ‘normal’. Another white flash came about, the stallion now laying on a couch with Discord sitting in an elaborately comfortable chair in a suit, tie, and glasses with a bushy beard replacing his typical goat beard. “Now, vat kind of dream haff you been haffink zat you haff been so schcaret to admit to?” he spoke in the strangest accent Boltsinger had ever heard.

Boltsinger sat up, looking puzzlingly at his host. “Really? You’re just gonna ask me what’s wrong?” he asked, his forehooves on his knees. “None of that cryptic riddle-filled and deceptive roundabout ways of both showing support and being a chaotic nuisance all at once that I’ve come to know?”

Discord’s clothes flew off as he brought his eagle talon up to his beard, stroking it intellectually as it, too, returned to its usual state. “I admit, that would be a lot more fun, but I’m trying to be kinder and more directly supportive. For Fluttershy.”

“I think Fluttershy might find this directness weird, too.” The Pegasus added. “It would be strange if you weren’t strange. I love that you’re still giving it all your patented ‘Discord' flair, but seeing you as a psychiatrist is just… I dunno.”

“Are you saying you don’t want my help?” the Draconequus aggressively inquired, bringing his head forward.

“Now, that’s not what I’m saying, here.” He corrected, holding his forelegs up in front of him. “I appreciate your willingness to help. And I can’t exactly say that Princess Luna is wrong. She’s a dreamwalker, after all. I’m just… a little confused. I know we’re friends, and all, but I didn’t think you’d take this task she gave you with such… enthusiasm. Since when do you show that much concern for me?”

“Tell you what, Princey-pie, you tell me your spiel and I’ll tell you mine.” he offered, holding out his lion paw.

Boltsinger reached out his wing, grasping the paw with it. “Okay, fine.” He stood up, heading over to the stairs and sitting on them. “Did Luna tell you how long I’ve been having these bad dreams?”

“Can’t say she did.” he stated, floating next to him. “She told me you needed a friend, and you aren’t telling your dearly beloved about it. She thought you might tell someone a little farther from home, so she asked moi to be of assistance! How long has this been going on, anyway?”

“Ever since Twilight told me she was pregnant.” He said. “Every night some new thing about fatherhood or something surrounding all that tends to plague my mind, and then my dreams.” He began drumming on the stairs with his hooves, swishing his tail forward to send a bottle flying from within the hair that he quickly snatched up with his wing. “I've started going to Zecora’s place on a regular basis for something to help me fall asleep.”

Discord scratched his beard with his talon, making the bottle appear in the air in front of him. “Hmm… So why not tell your wifey-poo about all of this? Isn’t she the Princess of Friendship? Don’t you think she, of all ponies, would understand your plight? Surely it must be easier to talk to her than something like me about it!”

“Because she has more than enough to worry about without adding my little insecurities to the mix.” He elaborated, flying forward and looking around the room. “I’m glad that Rainbow is talking to us again, but I know she’s still got her… issues… to work through. Plus there’s the ‘subtle nuances’ of pregnancy! And she has her own duties on top of all that… Plus, now she seems to get roped into the thing my wings do sometimes! She has a lot on her plate. I’m just afraid of stuff. It’s not like I can’t work past this, right?”

Discord removed his own eyes, throwing them behind him and rolling them across the room. He blinked, his eyes appearing back in their sockets. He coiled around the pony in the room, bringing his head above him. “Like you were able to work past your fear of your precious wifey feeling hatred and having it turn her into a monster all on your own?”

Boltsinger dropped to the floor, landing with a distinct thud. “That’s a good point... “ He looked up at the coiled-up creature. “So what do you suggest I do, then?”

“Oh, I don’t have any suggestions!” Discord admitted, appearing beside his guest. “It’s too much fun seeing how it’ll all play out!”

Boltsinger’s eyes did a roll of their own. “I figured as much…” He got up, walking around the room. “So, now it’s your turn. Why are you so invested in this little task Luna gave you?”

Discord’s head recoiled. “Hm. I thought you’d have forgotten about that part by now.” He joined the stallion on his romp through the room, snapping his claws to appear in the tuxedo he wore at the wedding. “You included me in something that was important to you.” He told him with a heavy sigh. “Even though I was nothing but trouble to you when we first met. Even with all the times I’ve tried to remove you from the equation with Fluttershy, and all the arrogance I’ve shown you in our every little meeting or get-together… You wanted me to share that special thing with everyone you considered a friend! Nopony has ever asked me to be a part of something that big before. I wanted to repay that kindness.” He brought a paw to his chin, stroking his beard. “I suppose that’s a little bit of everypony rubbing off on me, isn’t it?”

Boltsinger smiled, flying up beside his crazy companion’s head. “I think that’s only because nopony ever had the chance to involve you in something like that before.” His hoof came upon the Draconequus’ mane. “You’re my friend. Why wouldn’t I want you involved?” He chuckled to himself as he took a seat on the couch. “Besides, who else was I gonna ask to throw the bachelor party? Spike doesn’t really know what it is, and you’re one of the best party animals I know!”

Discord smirked, his tuxedo disappearing as he puffed out his chest, buffing his talon with the fur on his neck. “Yes, I have to admit, you made the perfect choice, there. It was quite the little celebration!”

“Exactly.” the orange pony affirmed, landing on the floor below, taking a deep breath. “Well, even if you don’t have any suggestions or solutions, this did help a little. But… I think Twilight might be a little worried that I suddenly disappeared. Care to take me home?”

“Oh, yes, of course.” the chaotic one agreed, holding up his lion paw.

“Thanks, Discord. You’re a good friend.” the stallion said as the fingers snapped.

Discord hung in the air for a moment as the pony vanished, his eyes wide. “I’m… a good friend?”

In a flash, Boltsinger appeared once more in the castle foyer, a smile more genuine than he had shown in a while showing up on his face. “I HAVE RETURNED!” he bellowed in his usual way. Before the echo could even begin, Twilight appeared in a poof of light, her face contorted with worry.

“What happened?!” she asked. “I looked all over for you and there was no sign! It was like you vanished somehow!”

“Calm down… I’m okay. Everything is fine.” he assured her, putting his wing on her cheek. “Discord decided that he wanted to hang out with me for a little while, so he poofed me over to his place.”

Twilight scowled at the mention of Discord. “Why couldn’t he have told us?!” she asked in a huff. She turned around, beginning her walk back to the library.

“Since when does he ever tell us when he plans to do something?” he added, trotting up beside her. “He didn’t mean any harm by it, and it was an enjoyable visit. Even if I had to cut it short.” Twilight gave him a wondering glance, the idea in her head showing as plain as a spark of magic. “He did take me away in a literal flash. And I knew that would freak you out.” He looked forward, tilting his head slightly towards her. “Aaaaand, to be fair, that’s exactly what happened. But, I will ask him to give some heads up next time he plans to do something like that.”

“Good…” she replied, calming herself. “I don’t know about you, but I’m getting tired. I’m going to bed.” She gave her husband a kiss on the cheek. “Good night.” With that, she lit her horn, disappearing once more.

Boltsinger looked ahead, the thought of sleep egging at him as it had before. “Gotta do this at some point…” He took a deep breath and began his walk to the bedroom, flipping the bottle from his tail and taking a sip from it, stuffing it back into his tail.

Boltsinger stood in what looked like a nursery in the castle, looking around with a grin on his muzzle. Now, where is that little foal? He wondered, peeking under furniture to see if he could spot little ponies.After a few minutes of searching, a tiny streak flew past him through the door. He spun around, looking into the hallway as another streak flew by, followed by another, then another. With each new flying streak, his face grew more panicked. Since when are there this many of them?! The streaks increased in speed and number, forming a veritable vortex of petit pastel Pegasus ponies that sped by so fast as to be unrecognizable. He brought himself low, looking worriedly at what had become his surroundings. “I can’t keep up with all this… Not on my own! Where’s Twilight?” he called out, rising up. “Where is Twilight?!”

At the sound of the question, the vortex froze in place, everything still looking like streaks around him as a blue light emerged from the middle of it. Out of the light came an Alicorn that Boltsinger was all-too-familiar with. “Well met, fair Boltsinger.” The Night Princess greeted, looking around the dreamscape. “I know I am not the Princess you were hoping for, but I pray I am an adequate substitute for the moment.”

Boltsinger smiled at the friendly face before him. “What do you mean ‘substitute’? A friend is a friend. There’s no such thing as a ‘substitute’ for that.” He stepped up to the Alicorn, giving her a weak smile. “And, besides, I think in this situation, you’re probably the better choice... “

Luna smiled, walking past the stallion. “I am pleased to hear it. Although it troubles me that you have not gotten a hold of these dreams of yours. Did your visit with Discord not go well?”

Boltsinger sat down, looking back at the dark mare while scratching his mane. “It went fine, and he was able to help. But direct solutions aren’t Discord’s thing. It’d feel weird if he were to be anything but his unabashed self.”

Luna nodded, taking a seat of her own. “This is true.” She poked at one of the many streaks surrounding them, sending a ripple effect through the reality around them. “This dream seems less intense than others you have been having. Perhaps, having an outlet has assisted in your road back to normalcy?”

The Pegasus shrugged, unsure of the truth of her suggestion. “Probably. If it can help me deal with all this without having to bother Twilight with it, I guess I’ll talk to Discord more often.”

Luna stewed for a moment, her eyes brightening as she raised a hoof. “Actually, I have a better idea.” She stood to her full height, her royal wings spread wide. “Until further notice, you, Boltsinger, shall send letters to Princess Celestia and myself, so as to inform us of your personal progress, vent your fears and frustrations, and inform us of what you have learned. This is a practice that Twilight Sparkle made use of before she became the Princess she is now, and it has continued to serve several others to this day.” She returned her wings to their resting position. “Does this sound like an acceptable idea?”

Boltsinger’s head and wings were blown back, his eyes wide. Unbeknownst to the Princess, she had made her decree with the volume of her Royal Canterlot Voice, which packed more power than even the loudest Pegasus in Equestria had expected. He nodded nervously, his pupils the size of a pinprick. “Yeah, sounds good.” he brought a wing to his ear, trying to loosen it up. “So that’s what it’s like on the receiving end…”

Luna looked confusedly at him, falling into a laugh as she sat back down. “My apologies. I sometimes get carried away with my declarations.”

Author's Note

This chapter reminded me of just how much fun Discord is to write for. I only wish other characters I plan to use were as quick to write themselves.

Such A Thing Is A Rarity

Spike gingerly opened the door to Carousel Boutique with a carton of ice cream balanced precariously on his tail, the sounds of sobbing were intermixed with the noise of dejected nomming coming from upstairs. The dragon had grown familiar with the sound over the past month, and he was getting increasingly worried. “Rarity!” he called, cupping his mouth with his claws. “I brought you some more vanilla oat swirl!” He made his way up the stairs to Rarity’s room, where the mare lay on her favorite couch in a white robe with yellow fluff lining the collar and hem, tied shut with a purple sash. Her mane was disheveled slightly, still retaining its typical shape from all the product she used, and her mascara ran from her eyes as she melodramatically wept. There were ice cream cartons of the same kind that the dragon had with him strewn about the room, a spoon held in the mare’s magical blue grip.

“Thank you, Spike…” she said through her cries. “You truly are… a wonderful friend!” Her speech dissolved into further sobs as she floated the new helping of ice cream, opening it up and digging in.

Spike stepped up next to Rarity’s couch, bringing his claws together. “Is there anything else I can do?”

Rarity nommed another spoonful of her comfort food, wiping some away from her mouth. “I would love it… if you were able to get somepony to like me…” She buried her face in her forelegs, heaving.

“What are you talking about?” the Dragon asked, putting his claws on his hips. “Everypony likes you!”

Rarity raised her head, smiling at her small friend. She was noticeably more calm, thanks to the compliment, but there was still a great deal more sadness behind her cerulean gaze. “That’s very sweet of you, Spike, but all the ponies I’ve seen this past month would have to disagree with you.” She raised herself to a sitting position. “Nopony I’ve seen in my dating escapades have ever wanted a second date…”

“Second… date?” Spike repeated. “You’ve been… dating?”

“I haven’t told you?” she wondered, patting the spot next to her on the couch. “I’m sure I’ve told everypony about what I’ve been doing.” Spike shook his head, letting himself grow a little somber. She put her hoof on his shoulder, explaining the situation that led her to her efforts to find love. “And then, last month, I finally started making some headway…”

Weeks before, Rarity was sitting across the table from a dashing Unicorn stallion, looking longingly at him. He flashed a bright, sparkly grin at her with half-lidded eyes, leaning against the table on his foreleg. “I can’t believe I’m having dinner with the most successful up-and-coming fashion designer in Equestria!” He exclaimed for all to hear, leaning forward. Gasps were heard from all over the restaurant, all heads turning to look at them. “Why, Rarity, you are truly a gem!”

Rarity gave up a giggle as she swished a dainty hoof in front if her. “Oh, please!” She started, reveling in the compliments. “I’m not any different from any of you. I just… love to create!”

The stallion carried on, showering her with compliments and praise while inching his hoof closer to hers. Their muzzles were a mere inch away from each other as the dinner came to an end, hooves almost touching. Finally, he gave a steady blink, smiling. “Well, this was nice, but I don’t think you’re what I’m looking for! Goodbye!” He sped off out of the establishment, a sizable receipt under Rarity’s hoof. The glamorous mare blinked in confusion, the moment having escaped her. She looked down at the paper she inadvertently held, a large number of zeros lining the total price. Her gasp was loud enough to make ponies across the building jump in fear as she dejectedly emptied her wallet, walking out of the restaurant in a huff.

The process repeated itself two nights later. The stallion she had met with showered her with adoration, only to leave her with the bill and a sour look. The next date was far more timid, and Rarity talked almost nonstop. She was certain she had found the one, and was going on and on about all of the plans she had for their future together. She had gotten up to ‘powder her muzzle’, only to find him gone upon her return, before the waiter had even arrived at their table. Six dates in, and there was still no stallion decent enough or willing enough to give her a chance. Seven dates. Eight dates. Ten dates in. Still nothing. Finally, when her business and leisure in Canterlot was complete, she had returned home, wrapping herself in her comfiest robe and exasperatedly falling onto her favorite fainting couch, the ice cream already on its way from the kitchen.

“You mean you… put yourself out there… And not one stallion was able to appreciate you?” Spike asked, receiving a teary-eyed nod from the miserable mare. He punched his palm, gritting his teeth. “How dare they take somepony so gorgeous for granted! When I get my claws on them, I--”

Rarity put her hoof on Spike’s shoulder, wiping the last of the ice cream from her lips. “Spike, darling, those ponies aren’t worth the time or the effort.” She lowered herself to rest once more on her fetlocks. “And, it seems… neither am I…” She breathed a sad sigh, resting her head on her forelegs again.

“Come on, Rarity, you know that’s not true!” the young drake assured, putting his claw on her back. “Just because some guys don’t know any better, that doesn’t mean you’re not worth it!” Rarity had closed her eyes, drifting off into a sound nap. He got up, heading for the door while looking back at the pony. “Don’t worry, Rarity… I’ll get you out of all this…”

“You say you’ll get her out of all of it, but you come to us for advice?” Boltsinger started, looking up from his book at Spike.

“I had to!” He replied, clenching his fists. “She never takes my feelings for her seriously! So with this problem, I don’t think I can be of much help… I had to come to you two!”

“Spike, you know that’s not true!” Twilight corrected, sitting up and putting her book aside. “Rarity values your opinion just as much as anypony else’s! Why do you think she wouldn’t take it seriously?”

“Probably ‘cause it involves dating.” The stallion suggested. He marked his book, giving the dragon his full attention. “You know how particular she is on that subject.”

“I’ve had a crush on her for so long…” Spike continued, hanging his head and loosening his claws. “Now she’s started ‘dating’... and she doesn’t even bother to look my way…” He looked pleadingly at the equines before him. “Please… I may not be able to get the message across, but you can! Can you give it a shot?”

Twilight’s expression shifted to one of pure empathy as she brought the heartbroken dragon in for a hug. “Oh, Spike… I know it must hurt to see somepony you love look the other way... “ She looked him in the eye, smiling warmly. “But I’m so proud of you for thinking of her feelings first, even if it hurts…” She went in for a tighter hug, the dragon’s arms coming around her.

Boltsinger sat next to the two of them, putting a wing around the youngest one in the room. “We’ll do our best. I promise.” The embrace fell apart, Boltsinger sitting next to Twilight as the three of them brainstormed.

The next morning, the door to the boutique opened, calling for Rarity’s attention. “Just a minute!” she called, getting up from her bed and rushing to her mirror.

“You’d better hurry up, or we’ll miss the train!” a baritone voice stated, sounding as if it was right next to her in the empty room. “Plus there’s breakfast! Can’t go out on an empty stomach, now, can we?”

Rarity stopped in her routine for a moment, looking around to see nopony in the room with her. “Boltsinger?” She finished her routine as quickly as she could, rushing downstairs to see Boltsinger standing in the center of the room, with Spike flipping the open sign around, indicating onlookers that the shop was closed for the day. “What are you two doing? I’ve got to get to work today!”

Boltsinger trotted over to Rarity, putting a wing around her and leading her to the door. “You can take a break for one more day. This is important!” He held his tail out behind him, where Spike used it as a springboard to hop onto his back. “We’re going to Canterlot today! Just the three of us!”

Rarity looked around frantically, confused by the hurriedness of the boys’ actions. “But… wait! I’ve only just gotten up! What will I wear?!”

Boltsinger beamed at her, keeping up his push. “Don’t worry about it! We’re going shopping, anyway!” He held out his free wing, unfurling a feather. “And then there’s lunch,” he unfurled another feather. “Dinner,” another feather. “Maybe see a show if we can. Really, we’re gonna be taking in the culture. You’re the expert on that subject, so it’ll basically be up to you where we go in some cases.” He returned his wing to normal as they turned to head to the train station. “Anyway, let’s go!”

“Where is this all coming from?” Rarity wondered, looking between the boys as she matched the Pegasus’ pace. “This sounds suspiciously like a date! Does Twilight know about this?”

Spike and Boltsinger snickered to one another, the stallion speaking up. “This whole thing was her suggestion! Just relax, unwind, and have fun today. Okay?”

On the train to Canterlot, Boltsinger ordered the heartiest thing he could find from the snack cart, one for each of them. Rarity took hers with a graceful, ladylike nod and looked out the window. “I just don’t understand what all this is about. Why are we going to Canterlot, exactly?”

“‘Cause you need a good time!” Spike informed her, spreading his arms wide. “Everypony can see it!”

“Every dragon, too.” Boltsinger added.

Spike retreated into himself slightly, trying to hide an embarrassed smile. “Yeah…” He looked over at Rarity, finishing his breakfast. “We just wanna show you that you are appreciated.”

“Yeah, those ‘gentlecolts’ that you went to dinner with all sound like they don’t know what a catch they had.” the stallion said, prompting Rarity to cast her gaze at them. “So, just forget about them! Today is all about you!”

“And why didn’t Twilight come with us?” the couturier queried, finally coming to a resting position in her seat.

Spike and Boltsinger looked at one another, then back at Rarity. “Princess duties.” they simultaneously told her.

The trio walked through the cobblestone streets of Canterlot, Rarity taking the lead as they found a lovely little shop full of all sorts of supplies. They stepped in, and Rarity instantly went into her shopping mode. She passed by each and every shelf, picking up each little thing that caught her eye. Spike and Boltsinger followed her every move, once again in awe of the mare in her element. She came to the front counter, piling everything on in one big, organized, heap. The register rang its bell, and the three were on their way again, Boltsinger hanging at least six shopping bags from each wing, with Spike hoisting three more onto his back.

“These materials will make my next collection absolutely divine!” Rarity mused, having brightened up considerably. The stallion and the dragon gave wordless responses of encouragement and confirmation as the fashionista stopped in her tracks, causing her companions to bump into her and fall over. “You know, I could stand to get a new outfit from an up and coming designer…” Before them was a large boutique that she knew featured the work of designers she had set on their way to the fashion big leagues. “I need to show my support, after all!” She floated all of the bags, giving the boys a chance to stand up. She smiled back at them, excitement preparing to billow out of her horn like steam from a teapot. “Come on! Let’s go in!” With that, she trotted in with a giddy giggle.

A dressing room curtain opened up, revealing Rarity in a dramatically frilly and lacey dress that poofed out in the back in a sunny yellow. She raised a hoof and struck a pose, receiving cheers from Spike and a nod from a smiling Boltsinger. She beamed back at them, closing the curtain to come out seconds later in a pitch black coat with belts and buttons strategically placed about the outfit, an elaborate cloak draped over her back in the same black, gothic patterns decorating the edges in a somehow even darker shade that peered into the souls of onlookers. She looked to the side, a hint of stoicism in her expression as she crossed her forelegs. Spike looked on at her in an enamored daze, while Boltsinger’s pupils grew to an enormous size, seemingly hypnotized by the sheer darkness before him. Rarity returned to her usual smile, clopping her forehooves together in front of the stallion to shake him from his stupor. He laughed nervously, giving a thumbs-up gesture with his wing. The glamorous mare laughed out loud, returning to the dressing room only to come out moments later in a sparkling white outfit consisting of a jacket and pants, a dramatically flared out collar on her jacket, tiny blue and red jewels lining the edge of the collar, the cuffs of the sleeves, and the seam of the pants, lightning-like streaks of the same colors forming patterns on either side of her. The outfit gave the observers thoughts of what the future might hold several decades to come. She struck one more dramatic pose, looking up to the sky with a raised hoof, as if looking into the endless expanse of time.

Spike jumped up and down, pumping his fists into the air. “Yeah! You rock it, Rarity!”

Rarity smiled at the little reptile, closing the curtain and coming out looking like her normal self, the three outfits in her telekinetic grip on hangers. “So, what do you boys think? Which one do you like best?”

“I have to choose one?” Boltsinger asked, bringing his wing up to scratch his mane. “I dunno… You pretty much owned each look. Makes it hard to choose just one.”

“I’m with Bolt on this one.” Spike concurred, looking at the outfits. “They were all so different, but you really brought out what made each of them special.”

“So, all three, then?” Rarity suggested.

“All three.” The boys replied. Rarity beamed, heading for the counter.

The group sat down at the Tasty Treat, Rarity’s favorite restaurant in the city, enjoying some exotic cuisine as Rarity cast a look at the Pegasus and the dragon that had gone so far out if their way for her. “Boltsinger, Spike…” she started. The boys looked up from their meals, both with bits of food lining their faces, making them look remarkably goofy. The fashionista laughed, raising a napkin to each of them and wiping their faces clean. “Honestly, I don’t know how Twilight manages to worry so much with you two around all the time.” She trailed off, tilting her head back in remembrance. She shook her head from her sudden trance, returning to her objective. “I wanted to thank you both for today. I’ve been absolutely miserable lately… And I really needed this. But… Why did Twilight suggest something of this nature at all? It really does feel like the kind of experience I’ve been trying to achieve with all of the stallions I’ve gone out with over the past month.”

“Well, Twilight and I hadn’t even known about your situation until Spike brought it up.” He stated, pointing his wing at the fire-breather. “He really cares about you, you know.”

“Oh, Spike…” Rarity started, lifting him up with a light of her horn and bringing him close, hugging tightly. “It means so much that you went so far just to make me feel better!” She pulled back, giving him a firm kiss on the cheek and putting him back in his chair.

Spike blushed like mad, his cheeks turning nearly as red as the mark the mare had left on his face. “Aww, it was nothing…” he replied, sheepishly shrugging.

“Don’t sell yourself so short, darling.” She corrected, crossing her forelegs on the table. “It’s everything. And I couldn’t ask for a more supportive friend!” She turned her head to look over at the smiling stallion. “But my question remains unanswered. Why did Twilight suggest this?”

“She and I figured you needed a positive experience with a guy.” He elaborated, his own hoof hitting the table. “Not to mention, a stallion’s perspective on the matter.”

“A stallion’s perspective? What do you mean?” Rarity wondered.

“Spike told me all about your previous… experiences… with those other guys.” He started. “And, while I do agree that they didn’t know what they were missing out on, I think there’s more to it than just them being mean or taking you for granted.”

Rarity leaned forward, looking suspiciously at him. “And what kind of ‘more’ are you talking about?”

“If I’m gonna be honest, I think you probably scared them.” he informed her. Rarity recoiled in as radiant a way as she could muster as he raised a hoof. “Wait! Before you get defensive, let me finish!” The mare calmed herself, giving him a nod. “Now, I may be inexperienced in the world of dating overall, since I’ve only ever romantically seen a single pony, but… That doesn’t stop me from, in fact, being a guy. And most guys would be a little intimidated by you when you get those stars in your eyes.”

“Intimidated?” Rarity repeated. “Whatever do you mean?”

“So, nopony can deny that you, Rarity, are nothing short of ‘fabulous’.” Boltsinger continued. “It radiates from your very being.” The mare’s cheeks went pink as she nodded at the compliment. “And then there’s your personality. You are a strong, independent mare who rarely takes no for an answer, and is always going out of your way to make ponies happy in your own way. That’s part of what makes you so awesome!”

Rarity giggled, swishing a hoof in front of her. “Oh, do go on!”

“But in the love market, you’re trying too hard.” He deadpanned. Rarity’s flush faded instantly as she tilted her now wide-eyed head. “Like I said before, you rarely take no for an answer, and that powerful personality of yours makes a lot of stallions who like to think of themselves as ‘in control’ feel a little inadequate.” He put his hoof on that of his friend. “Besides, if you try to rush into love, I can’t imagine it not ending badly.”

Rarity’s confusion had reached its peak as she scooted closer. “How am I rushing things? Isn’t the whole point of dating to find love?”

“Yes, that is the point.” Boltsinger confirmed. “And it’s okay to seek out love. But if you try too hard to make it happen quickly, it may not happen at all.” He brought his hoof back, pointing at himself. “I was adamant in not rushing things with Twilight. So much so that if you hadn’t pushed things forward the way you did, it probably never would have happened! But I made sure of one thing before anything else.”

“And what’s that?” the couturier questioned.

“I put friendship first.” He answered. “Love is wonderful, don’t get me wrong. But I feel that it’s a lot like... “ He thought for a moment, trying to come up with an analogy. “This is probably the farm work talking, but… I think love is a lot like a good batch of cider. It takes a good eye, a lot of effort, and, most important of all, time.”

Rarity laughed at the comparison. “You really do spend a lot of time with Applejack, don’t you?” She thought for a minute on her friend’s words. “So, it’s like my Rules of Rarity… I need to give it some TLC! Only… Only it’s not ‘couture’ that I’m after… What would the ‘C’ stand for in this case?”

“Comfort.” the Pegasus suggested. “The whole point is to get comfortable enough with somepony to be able to admit those feelings, after all.”

“Yes, that does feel appropriate.” She lifted her beverage from the table, looking into it. “But I was only able to have such a good time with you two because we’re already friends. When I’m out there, dating, there’s a different expectation.”

“Does there have to be?” Spike asked, putting a morsel into his mouth. “What if you treated it like you were making a new friend?”

“I agree.” the stallion said, patting Spike’s back with his wing. “You know that you’re looking for love, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make a bunch of friends in the process! And if you take your time, I’m sure the right guy will come your way!” He reached out and put his hoof on her shoulder, bringing her smile back in full force.

“Thank you…” she began, getting up from her seat and pulling the two in for a hug. The embrace became mutual as an idea popped into the designer’s brain. “Ah! I know just what to do to repay your kindness!” She broke the hug, finishing her meal and going to the counter, paying for their meals before they had a chance to respond. “Come, now! We simply must get back to Ponyville!”

That night, Boltsinger sat at a desk in the castle library, a quill clenched firmly in his teeth with a parchment beneath him. He put pen to page and quickly began to write.

“Dear Princess Celestia and Princess Luna,

You’d be surprised what you’ll find when helping out a friend. I already knew that love is hard, but seeing it from the perspective of not just one, but two of my friends sheds a whole new light on the situation. Spike’s unrequited feelings for Rarity have been more than a little heart-wrenching, but I think he’s become stronger for them. Rarity’s dealings with dating, though… I think she might have some things left to learn before she can finally find her special somepony. There’s so many different kinds of love out there, and they all come from the same genuine place. It makes me a little more confident that I’ll be able to give the right kind of love to the baby when it arrives. As always, thank you for your time.

Your friend,

Boltsinger.”

He placed the quill on the desk, rolling the letter up and sealing it with what he had on hand. He looked to the corner of the desk, where a pair of flight goggles with a lightning motif splayed out backwards, as if to conform to his head, sat, and smiled. He swept the goggles up with his wing, putting them in his mane as he galloped out and called for Spike.

Author's Note

Yes, I'm following through with what Luna suggested last chapter. He's going to be writing the occasional letter to the Princesses. Both as a kind of moral summary, and as his way of getting stuff off his chest. He really needs something like that.

One Scary Sanctuary

“Oh, it’s so wonderful!” Fluttershy started, tending to some of the animals at Sweet Feather Sanctuary. “Baltimare’s animal sanctuary is coming along so well, and Chorus tells me that they’ve gotten more volunteers than they ever hoped for in the last fundraiser!” She swooped down to pet a lazy sloth, pouring some food in front of her. “Oh, I wonder what kind of adorable critters are going to show up! Or what kind of ponies are gonna be taking care of them!” She tended to another few animals, then came in for a landing next to a little white bunny. “I wonder if they would mind a visit? What do you think, Angel-bunny?” The bunny shrugged, shaking his head and turning towards the exit. The yellow mare followed suit. “You’re right. I should probably ask, first.” She picked up the bunny, putting him on her back as she began flying. Before she really got started, she thought for a moment. “I wonder if my friends might want to go with me? Let’s go find out!” She took off at her full speed, the bunny hanging onto her mane.

Two days later, Twilight, Starlight, Boltsinger, Spike, Sunburst, and Soarin sat in the dining room, enjoying breakfast. The Unicorns in the room talking at length about their recent progress in magical research and exploits. Boltsinger and Soarin were, at the same time, going over the next step of Scootaloo’s flight training, since the filly’s wingpower was making vast improvements. From the foyer, Boltsinger’s ears caught wind of a soft rapping at the door, too soft for most ears, but something he’d learned to pick up on, given how quiet one of his friends is.

“Sounds like Fluttershy is here.” he announced, standing up from his seat. “I’ll go greet her.”

Starlight looked at the stallion as he left the room. “I forgot he could do that.” she mentioned, returning to her food.

“What are you talking about?” Twilight asked.

“I forgot that he can hear something that subtle.” she elaborated. “Then again, I guess that comes with his talents, doesn’t it?”

Fluttershy stepped into the room, smiling at her friends. She perked up further when the pink-coated Unicorn caught her eye. “Oh! Starlight! Lovely to see you!” She greeted, taking a seat at the table. “What brings you to Ponyville?”

Starlight smiled back. “We’re just here for a visit.”

“How wonderful!” the pink-maned Pegasus stated. She looked between all of the friends in the room. “So, I’m glad I caught everypony here. I’ve been sending letters back and forth with Chorus Plum in Baltimare…”

“Really?” Boltsinger wondered, looking at the shy one as he took a seat. “How is she doing, lately?”

“She’s doing great!” Fluttershy replied, spreading her wings. “The sanctuary is coming along great, too!”

“Awesome!” the stallion affirmed, flaring his own wings in kind.

“Chorus Plum… Isn’t she the one that led the choir you two helped out last year?” Twilight inquired.

“Yes, she is.” the oft-interrupted pony continued. “In fact, it’s almost complete! I asked her if she would like for us to come and visit, and…”

“And…?” Boltsinger repeated.

“She said yes!” she softly exclaimed, rising from her chair and hovering in place. “She wants you and I to come, Boltsinger, and she said we can bring any friends who want to join us!” She looked over at Twilight and Starlight as her rump touched down again. “So… If you don’t have anything planned…”

Twilight beamed at Fluttershy. “Of course I’ll come along!”

Starlight nodded. “I’ve never been to Baltimare! It should be interesting.”

“Of course I’m coming along.” Sunburst added. “Not much point in visiting everypony if I don’t do anything with them!”

Fluttershy let out a combination of a giggle and a squee at all of the friends coming with her. She looked over at Spike and Soarin, a hopeful look in her eyes. “What about you? Would you like to come with us?”

Spike shook his head. “I want to, but I promised Big Mac we’d meet up and talk hoofball.” He got up from his chair, beginning to gather the now-empty plates. “You all have fun, though!”

Soarin shook his head as well, flying out of his chair. “I gotta be here in Ponyville. Rainbow Dash has practice today, and I’ve got orders to be there when she does it. Sorry.”

Fluttershy’s head sank as the two of them left the room. “Oh… okay…”

Boltsinger flew over the table, landing next to the mare. “It’s alright. It’ll still be fun with all of us going!”

A shade of pink made itself known on Fluttershy’s cheeks as the corners of her mouth turned up again. “You’re right! Let’s go!”

The train ride to Baltimare was a long one. Nearly as long as one from Ponyville to Manehattan, and certainly longer than the flight there that Fluttershy had shared with Boltsinger. They spent the rest of the day in the train car, everypony quickly growing tired. Boltsinger noted the mellow feeling early on and began one of his standard humming songs, the sound of a breathing cello echoing through the car. Fluttershy smiled all through the music, once again remembering that flight as Twilight leaned into her husband. After his song finished up, the stallion smirked at Fluttershy, starting up a song that the mare instantly recognized as the very same one the two had performed with the choir when they first met their mutual friend. She closed her eyes with a fond grin, joining him as her parts approached.

As the music ceased, Boltsinger looked around the room. “Brings back memories, huh?” he mused, directing his eyes at Fluttershy.

The animal expert nodded happily. “It does. But I think it’s even better this time.”

“‘Cause we’re not going at supersonic speeds?” he suggested.

“And because we have our friends with us!” She concluded. “Plus, I don’t have to sing in front of a big crowd.”

“There is that.” he concurred, putting his wing around Twilight. “How surprised do you think Chorus is gonna be?”

“You mean bringing Twilight along?” Fluttershy wondered, looking at the dozing Alicorn. “Well, she knows who I am, so I don’t think it’ll come as a surprise.”

“You’re probably right.” He agreed, looking out the window and starting the music again.

Finally arriving at the Baltimare train station the next morning, the drowsy ponies disembarked. Fluttershy looked around, seeing a large number of ponies doing the same, leaving the station until the platform was empty. Nopony but her and her friends were there, even though she told Chorus when they would arri--

“There’s my favorite soprano!” an alto voice called out. Fluttershy looked to the entrance to the station, seeing a dark purple Unicorn mare with hazel eyes smiling at them. She had a long, curly, black mane and tail, and a Cutie Mark of three notes forming a chord on a musical staff. She trotted up to the yellow mare, giving her a hug.

“Oh, I don’t know if I should be your favorite soprano…” Fluttershy deflected, hiding behind her mane.

“Nonsense. Your performance saved last year’s fundraiser!” She looked around, spotting the orange stallion. “And there’s the surprise bass! How’ve you been, Boltsinger?”

Boltsinger stepped forward, putting a hoof on Chorus’ shoulder. “I've been alright.” He told her, looking back at the guests they had brought. “More importantly, we brought friends!” He moved aside, gesturing to Starlight. “This is Starlight Glimmer,” he pointed to his fellow stallion. “Sunburst,” finally, he stepped up next to Twilight, putting his hoof around her. “and last, but not least, Twilight Sparkle!”

Chorus perked up further, trotting over an offering a hoof. “A pleasure to meet you all!” She shook hooves with the Unicorns, friendly smiles abound, then turned her attention to the likewise-purple pony. “Twilight Sparkle, huh?” She started, her hoof already extended.

“That’s right!” She replied, fervently shaking the greeting foreleg. “It’s great to finally meet you! Boltsinger and Fluttershy had nothing but good things to say!”

Chorus smiled sheepishly, retracting her hoof. “You wouldn’t happen to have some connection to Princess Twilight, would you? I know she’s friends with Fluttershy, and all, but--”

Twilight unfurled one of her wings, sending the choir pony reeling. “I am Princess Twilight!”

Chorus’ jaw dropped, looking wide-eyed at the magnificent wing before her. “You mean… You actually came here, wanting to meet me?” Twilight smiled and nodded, resting her wing again. “All to take a look at… Oh, my… Why didn’t you tell me you two were bringing a Princess?! I’d have dressed more appropriate!”

Boltsinger and Fluttershy looked at each other with a laugh, turning to face the musical mare. “You invited us to bring friends. That’s just what we did.” Fluttershy explained.

“Besides, you don’t need to go out of your way just for me.” Twilight informed her, walking towards the station’s exit. “I’m no different from anypony else.”

“Except that you’re an Alicorn…” Chorus muttered under her breath. She looked back at at the Pegasi, who were still laughing to themselves. “So, you two wanna come see the sanctuary?”

“Oh, we all do!” Fluttershy answered. “But we need to get settled in, first… if you don’t mind.”

“No problem at all, dear. You all take your time.” She stated, following Twilight’s lead and making for the city proper.

Boltsinger started a trot of his own, patting Fluttershy’s back as he went. “I told you she’d be surprised!”

“So, it’s not complete yet, but there have been a few animals that have shown up.” Chorus explained as the six ponies came through a large wooden gate. The area around them was densely wooded, taking full advantage of local flora. Along the road, squirrels, bunnies, and other small creatures scampered around, jays of all colors flying overhead. “My friend has been having a few issues with some of the more… interesting creatures, but it’s mostly safe!”

“Mostly safe?” Sunburst asked, craning his neck to look past her. “Why would an animal sanctuary only be mostly safe?”

Chorus scratched her head, looking back at the orange Unicorn. “Well, it’s about some of the animals... “

Boltsinger cocked an eyebrow, flapping his wings and ascending just enough to get a view over their heads. “What kind of animals would make the sanctuary less sa--” An ear-piercing roar sounded, snapping the stallion’s wings to his sides. He fell to the ground, tripping over his front legs and getting a mouthful of dirt. He sat up, spitting the soil out and giving a panicked look ahead. “What in Equestria was that?!”

“That was one of the animals…” the black-maned mare stated, looking ahead. “We’d… best get there quick…” She broke into a canter, Starlight picking Boltsinger up with her magic as the group followed suit.

“What kind of recovering animals are there?” Twilight wondered, the roar reminding her of previous encounters.

Chorus laughed nervously. “Well, you see… These animals are a bit of a special case. I just don’t know why they all came here, but… We’re actually in a bit of a bind.” She looked back at Fluttershy. “That’s part of the reason I was so happy that you offered to come visit, Fluttershy! I was hoping you and your friends, with you having such a way with animals… Maybe you could help us to get them comfortable?”

Fluttershy nodded, another roar blowing the ponies’ manes back.“You know I’d be happy to, but I agree with Twilight. What animals do you have?”

“Let’s see…” Chorus started, thinking on the answer. “I know there’s at least ten Orthros…” Already, Boltsinger’s neck hairs were standing on end. “... a Manticore...” His teeth clenched, Twilight looking worriedly forward. “... two Bugbears…” Boltsinger’s legs stopped moving, causing him to rapidly trail behind. Starlight sent a stern look back at him, lighting her horn to pull him along, leaving drag marks in the ground. “... and… Exactly one Ursa Minor…”

Twilight, Starlight, and Sunburst skidded to a stop, looking at Chorus like she was completely insane. Boltsinger was released from Starlight’s magical grip, sending him straight back to his earlier position in the dirt, while the mares in the lead looked questioningly back at them all. “What’s wrong, everypony?” Fluttershy asked.

“I’m sorry, I just didn’t expect you to have those kinds of animals!” Twilight answered, standing tall and stepping forward boldly. “I’ll do my best to help!”

Boltsinger got up in a flash at his wife’s statement, rushing to her side. “Pardon me, dear, but…” He took a deep breath. “ARE YOU CRAZY?!” he shouted, his body rising to the air from the sheer volume. “I know you can handle yourself in a bind, but this is just…” Twilight gave him a firm glare, showing her determination in full. He raised a hoof to reach out to her, not quite sure if he should make contact. “Are you sure…? What about… you know… the baby?”

“Bolt, I understand if you’re scared, but I’m not going to turn my back on them.” she said, starting the walk again. “The baby’s not due for another nine months! And, besides, it’s nothing I haven’t dealt with before!”

Boltsinger retracted his hoof, letting her words sink in as his head sank. Starlight walked past him, looking back. “Don’t worry so much, Bolt. We’re all in this together!”

Sunburst stepped beside the now sorry-looking Pegasus, giving him an empathetic smile. “It’s okay. I’m scared, too. But they might need our help!” He darted off after the mares, who were now much farther ahead.

Boltsinger looked at his friends, his hoof finally falling back to the ground as he stared. What am I thinking… getting scared like this? He thought, raising his head. Come on, Bolt! This can’t be any scarier than fighting your sister-in-law turned horrible monster or a hypnotized Princess! He slapped his muzzle with his wings as hard as he could, the sound of the impact audible to everypony in a one mile radius. He dashed forward, coming up between Twilight and Fluttershy. Twilight and Fluttershy each snuck a glance at him as they ran. His cheeks were swollen and red, partially obscuring his eyes. “You’re right! They might be big… towering… and…” He swallowed a lump in his throat. “... utterly terrifying… But that doesn’t stop them from being animals in need! We’ve totally--”

“--got this?” Boltsinger finished. The group stood on the hill that overlooked the sanctuary, Fluttershy already tending to a pair of Orthros. Each of the heads on the two-headed dog was of a different breed, ranging from husky to dane to corgi to the scrunched up face of a pug. No matter the breed, they were all equal in the sheer amount of slobber they produced. He looked at the large, inviting habitat to see the Manticore licking their paws, looking around suspiciously at the smaller, cuter animals. The Bugbears sat separately, each in one of the largest trees in the sanctuary and roaring at any birds that flew in proximity. Towering over the trees was a giant bear whose coat looked like a vast night sky, suckling on a giant bottle full of milk. Boltsinger’s rump hit the ground almost instantly at the sight of the giant bear, his entire body quivering. “Eeyup! Totally got this…” He pawed the ground beneath him with his hoof, his breathing growing rapid. “I don’t got this…”

Chorus stepped forward, turning to face her guests with a nervous smile. “Well, for what it’s worth, welcome to Feather Note Sanctuary!”

Twilight looked at the Ursa, a fond memory returning to her as she headed over to Fluttershy, starting up a conversation. The otherwise timid Pegasus took charge, giving the Princess explicit instructions on how to calm the Orthros as quickly as possible, prompting the Alicorn to run headlong into the thick of it. Seeing her friend taking initiative, Fluttershy calmed her subjects and trotted over to everypony else, her expression at its most confident. “Everypony, I need your help with these creatures!” She turned to Chorus. “Chorus, could you help Twilight with the Orthros?” The purple Unicorn nodded wordlessly, galloping over to the bi-cranial canines. “Starlight, Sunburst, I’d like you to examine the Manticore. It wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t hurt somehow. If you can find out why, that will make things ever-so-much simpler.”

Starlight looked nervously at the chimera-like creature. “If you say so... I can’t make any promises, though!” She looked over at her special somepony, the two nodding in unison as they made for the Manticore.

Fluttershy stepped up to Boltsinger, sitting down and bringing her head close, looking the bewildered colt straight in the eyes. “Boltsinger, I understand you’re worried, but I need your help here. I won’t try to force you, but we’ve got our hooves full, even with Twilight and Starlight’s magic.” She stood up again, turning to head back. “I’m going to tend to the Bugbears. You go ahead and start with whatever you feel comfortable with whenever you’re ready.”

Boltsinger’s breathing slowed at his friend’s kindness, looking around. Twilight and Chorus had done a good job of calming the Orhtros, and were piled under a number of playful double-doggies. Starlight and Sunburst had lifted the Manticore into the air, Sunburst examining one side while Starlight checked the other. Periodically, the creature would swipe its claws at one of them, only to bounce off of a magical barrier that the mare had erected. He started to calm himself more at the sight of his friends handling the creatures as well as they had, wondering if he might be able to fight past his nerves and be of help as he looked at Fluttershy. She had done just as she said she would, and flown over to the bee and bear hybrids, gingerly approaching them. Fluttershy’s situation alone seemed like it was not going well. Each time she would come even an inch closer, one of them would swipe at her with one of its four arms, letting out an angry growl. Is she okay? I thought she’d dealt with Bugbears before… He turned his ears in her direction, trying to listen for anything wrong.

“I know I said I would tend to them… But I don’t know anything about Bugbears…” Fluttershy whispered to herself, looking worriedly at the animals before her. “Even with just one, it took all six of us just to send one away! Now I have to connect with two of them…” She shook her head, turning her eyes fierce. “No! I can’t let my fear get the best of me! Not after what I just said to Boltsinger! You can do this, Fluttershy! They’re just big… flying… bears…”

There she goes again, showing how she’s the bravest pony in all of Equestria… And here I am sitting here like a coward… the stallion stewed, starting to stand. It’s not like they’re attacking anyway… I just need to show them some compassion... His wings grew rigid, standing straight up with a tingling sensation as his friend narrowly dodged another swipe. Understanding… Fluttershy dodged another oncoming claw, letting out a yelp that caught the attention of all of her friends. They looked at her as she flew back, a claw cutting a single hair in her mane. Starlight immediately dropped the Manticore, causing it to land on its rump and let out an infuriated roar. At the sudden noise, the Orthros all got up, glaring at the lion-like beast and barking. The Manticore followed suit, jumping down to face the dogs with a mighty roar. Fluttershy backed up further, rushing over to the quarreling creatures as the Ursa stirred from its peaceful snacking, its bottle now empty. As the yellow Pegasus reached the other creatures, the Bugbears rose from their perches, flying stingers-first at her. KINDNESS!!! Boltsinger’s pendant glowed a bright pink, electricity of the same color discharging out of his wings as he took off, full-speed, towards the Bugbears.

Chorus looked up at the streak of orange and blue that flew overhead, the choir pony absolutely baffled. “What does he think he’s doing?” she wondered.

Twilight, likewise looking at the stallion, smiled at the sight. “Working!” she announced.

Boltsinger came to a stop directly in front of the Bugbears, breathing calmly and looking the closest one in the eye. The creature roared as loud as it could, raising its arm to swipe at the orange Pegasus. Before the attack could begin, there was a sudden motion on the pony’s part. He had moved in close, putting his forelegs around its neck in a loving embrace. “There, there, you big lug… Now, why don’t you calm down and tell me what’s bothering you?” The Bugbear in question looked down at the pony, then made the closest expression it could get to a smile, wrapping him in its upper arms in a return hug and descending to the ground in a soft landing.

All equine eyes fell upon the scene that was Boltsinger’s sudden understanding. Fluttershy, especially, showed a hint of surprise at the gesture, turning her attention to the now-envious second Bugbear. She opened her forelegs wide. “Come on over! I know you want one, too!” The Bugbear roared happily, pulling the kind pony in for a hug of its own and landing. “Aww, you just needed a little love, now didn’t you?”

Boltsinger flew up above his Bugbear’s head, giving it some good scratches behind the ear. “Now, you be good for the other ponies, and I’m certain you’ll get plenty more hugs and love, okay?” The beasts nodded, standing up and walking over to their trees. He turned to the Manticore and the Orthros, standing next to Fluttershy. “And what about all of you? What’s all the arguing about?” He walked over to the Manticore, listening intently as his friend joined in. He nodded, as if listening to one side of an argument, turning to her. “What do you think?”

“Oh, it sounds like our Orthros friends were just a little startled!” she stated, reaching over to pet the beast.

“I agree.” Boltsinger concurred, walking over to the nearest Orthros and scratching the closest chin he could reach. “They’re just little doggies. It’s not like they meant any harm. You just scared them when you roared!”

Twilight and Starlight stood next to each other, their confusion reaching their peak. “Just little doggies?” Starlight began, tilting her head. “This is the same pony that, just a minute ago, was trying to run away from all of this, right? Now, suddenly he’s as good with them as Fluttershy? What’s going on, here?”

Twilight rubbed her temples with her wings. “I’m not sure… This is different from the other times his lightning has kicked in…” She looked closely at his wings, the pink discharge still erupting from it. “This is gonna take some more research…”

Once the quarreling quadrupeds had ceased their attempt at a scuffle, Fluttershy was looking over the Manticore, finding scratch-marks on its foreleg. She guided it to a more secluded part of the sanctuary, swiftly returning to the main group as the loud roar from earlier sounded again, the Ursa crying out angrily. The Orthros and Bugbears crouched low at the overpowering noise. Boltsinger and Fluttershy were blown back a bit. They looked at one another, nodding, and swiftly flew at the absurdly large cub, scratching it in various places. “Oh, you’re just a cranky little boy, aren’t you?” Boltsinger cooed, his forelegs almost completely buried in its starry fur. “Do you wanna take a nap? Would that make you happy?” The Ursa leaned into the scratches next to its ear, where Fluttershy was happily at work. He backed up, going closer to Twilight and Chorus and beckoning them up as he opened his mouth, a soft tune coming out of him. Chorus perked up, bringing her hoof up over her heart and coming out with a sound that harmonized with his. Twilight looked between the two of them, her eyes and horn lighting up as she began lifting Chorus with her magic and taking flight. She brought herself next to her husband, where she brought forth her own harmony that carried itself along with the other two. They flew back closer to the Ursa, the impromptu lullaby growing in volume with each beat of the stallion’s wings, but maintaining the soothing effect it had started with. As the sound reached Fluttershy, she started her own high melody, a resonant fifth note rounding out their sound as the Ursa’s eyelids grew heavy. It wobbled back and forth, starting to fall over as Starlight and Sunburst ran forward, lighting their respective horns and easing the beast to the ground. Once it was comfortably lying down, Starlight directed her attention to the bottle, sending it to the nearest source of milk and filling it up, only to place it back next to the giant baby sleeping in the sanctuary.

As the lullaby finished, Boltsinger let a content smile find its way onto his face, his eyes closing as his wings fell limp. The lightning from his wings was gone, and his pendant had ceased its glow as gravity took hold of the Pegasus .”Boltsinger! No!!!” Fluttershy cried, going into a nosedive. Faster than any of them thought possible, two yellow forelegs found their way around an orange barrel, desperately trying to slow his descent with straining flaps of her wings. She held him up for as long as she could, soon giving way to his weight and landing as carefully as possible.

Blackness became blurs as the vision of his friends came to life above him. Boltsinger groaned, feeling utterly drained, even though he had just been free of consciousness. “Hey…” he greeted. “How’d it go with the… um… animals?”

Before any words came, the stallion was overwhelmed by a group hug. Twilight, Fluttershy, Starlight, and Chorus had all practically tackled him in what he thought could only be a bed, while Sunburst smiled from the other side of the room, waving his hoof. He wrapped his forelegs and wings around as much of the embracing mares as he could, looking around the room. Fluttershy looked up from the embrace, tears streaming down her cheeks. “We were so worried about you…!” she managed to say, burying her face in his shoulder again.

Starlight was the first to pull back, looking at him sternly while wiping away a bead of water that threatened to escape. “You have some explaining to do, mister.” She put her forelegs on the edge of the bed. “What, exactly, happened to you back there? I’ve seen your lightning make you do a lot of things, but this was something completely different!”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” he deadpanned. “Would anypony like to clue me in on what I supposedly did?”

Chorus got up, calming herself down and sitting by the bed. “You did what Fluttershy does. Almost as well as she does, too!” She went on to explain the entire situation as she saw it, Twilight and Fluttershy soon releasing their grips on the stallion. “Why, I don’t think I’ve ever seen lightning of that color before, except during a Wonderbolts show! How did you do it?”

Boltsinger put a hoof to his muzzle, wondering that for himself. “That’s a really good question. My lightning is normally blue.”

Chorus cocked an eyebrow at him. “‘Normally’? You’re telling me you have lightning coming out of you on a regular basis?”

“Well, yeah, that’s how we met in the first place.” he confirmed, sitting up and looking around. “I’ll tell you all about it, later. Anyway, why did I pass out? I mean, fuzzy memories is one thing, but actually losing consciousness? That’s never happened after… well… ‘working’.”

“I don’t know what happened.” Twilight informed him. “But I’d like to find out. When we get back, we’re adding this new phenomenon to our research itinerary.”

Boltsinger looked at his favorite mare, giving an agreeable nod. “Sounds good. But first…” A low, yet desperate, growl came from the depths of his stomach, mirrored by the bellies of everypony else in the room. “Food.”

Author's Note

I debated adding and removing a lot of things in this chapter, but I ended up keeping the vast majority of it. It kinda made sense as I went over it before finally putting it up here, and I went over it a number of times, just to be sure. Next chapter is already started. So, hopefully, it should be out soon!

Tricks and Tribulations

Applejack looked over the orchard, taking a deep, soulful breath. “Today’s gonna be a good one, I can tell!” She said, the smell of apples finding its way into her nose. “Jus’ lookit all those crunchy, perfect apples just waitin’ to be bucked!” She reared up, letting out an excited holler as the sound of summoning came from her flank. She stopped in her tracks, looking at the glowing Cutie Mark. “Really? Right now? But I’ve been lookin’ forward to this harvest fer weeks!” She hung her head with a dejected sigh, then picked herself up. “What am I sayin'? I’ve got a responsibility to come whenever I’m called!” She looked longingly back at the orchard. “I’m sure Big Mac and Apple Bloom can handle all o’ this, anyway…” She shook her head, looking forward and breaking into a gallop.

Arriving in the Castle of Friendship, Applejack spotted Twilight looking over the map. The Princess looked in her direction and landed in front of her. “Applejack! You’re here!” She turned to look at the map again. “That means we just need to wait for one more pony to arrive.”

“Who else is comin’ along?” the farm mare asked.

“It looks like… Starlight!” Twilight declared, the Cutie Mark of the pony in question floating into place next to Applejack's.

Applejack smiled. “Well, this is gonna be one heck of a treat, then! Why, I haven’t spent good quality time with Starlight in months!” Realization lit up her face as she looked around. “Wait a sec… How is she supposed to get here fast enough that we can get goin’ anyway?”

As if to answer her question, a thunderclap sounded outside. The front door to the castle swung open wide, Starlight walking into the throne room with a glowing Cutie Mark, a face of shock, and a mane flared back and disheveled to the point of being completely unrecognizable. She stepped up to Twilight, her flashing flank falling flatly to the floor. “How in Celestia’s name do you put up with speed like that without magic?!” She asked, leaning in as Boltsinger walked in behind her, taking off his flight goggles and stowing them away.

Twilight laughed, lighting her horn and moving her friend’s mane back into place. “So, the reason Bolt’s wings activated this morning was to get you?” she wondered, casting a look at the blue-maned pony. “That’s oddly convenient. To answer your question, I cheat. I use magic to go that fast, and it’s not too big of a deal.”

Boltsinger sat next to the Princess’ throne, looking at the horned ponies. “Well that explains why your horn is glowing whenever we race…” He shrugged, looking over at the map. “So, where are you two going?”

Starlight sat by the map, looking at the floating symbols. “It looks like…” the marks finally stopped, floating over a city of clouds. “Cloudsdale.”

Applejack’s eyes went wide at the sight of the floating town. “Um…” she looked at Starlight, then at her own hoof. “The map is sendin’ us to Cloudsdale?” She tapped the table tentatively. “How do we know the map ain’t busted? Y’all told me it did sumthin’ weird with Bolt, once, and it’s not exactly been makin’ a lot o’ sense with some o’ the ‘missions’ it’s been sendin’ us on…”

Starlight sat back, turning her attention to the hat-clad mare. “I think we’ll do fine.” She stood up, turning to the door. “I’m gonna go make sure I’m ready to go. See you later!” At that moment, she cantered out the door, calling for Spike.

Applejack walked through Cloudsdale, being mindful of her footing with every step. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used ta all this cloud-walkin’ stuff…” she said, looking back to see Starlight trotting along like it was nothing. “I sure am glad you know the spell the lets us non-flyers do it, though.”

“It is a useful spell.” a cocky tone stated from behind the pink Unicorn. “Thanks to it, the Grrrreat and Powerful Trrrixie can give the ponies of Cloudsdale the show of a lifetime!”

“An’ I can’t believe yer even here…” Applejack muttered, turning her head away.

“What’s wrong?” Starlight asked, glancing at her farmer comrade. “It’s not like I had any reason to say no. Especially with how much she begged for this!”

“I just don’t feel right, havin’ her along on our friendship mission!” she stated. “We’re supposed to be here to solve a friendship problem, not put on a dang magic show!”

Trixie trotted forward in her signature pointed hat and cape, her wagon rolling behind her as she put a reassuring hoof on Applejack’s shoulder. “And I promise, I won’t get in the way of your mission. But you can’t possibly expect me to stay behind when I have the opportunity to bring my show to the one city in Equestria to thus far be deprived of my greatness!”

“I dunno ‘bout ‘greatness’, but… If y’all ain’t gonna get in the way… I guess I don’t have a problem.” she relented. “Jus’ don’t get all high ‘n mighty ‘bout all yer ‘magic’. Okay?”

“You have my Grrreat and powerful guarantee!” the illusionist declared, raising a hoof dramatically, a small firework erupting from the wagon in a bright and colorful flash. “I promise that I won’t go overboard with--”

“Oh my gosh, it’s the GREAT AND POWERFUL TRIXIE!!!” a mare in the distance shouted. In an instant, the three wingless ponies found themselves surrounded by throngs of screaming and hollering Pegasus ponies, all peeking over one another to get a look at the blue Unicorn. She was met with a barrage of questions, ranging from how she was in Cloudsdale, how she got there, whether or not it was due to her great and powerful magic. Trixie beamed at the attention, reveling in the praise as she turned to look at Applejack with the biggest, smuggest smile that was possible for a pony.

Applejack gave a hearty groan, rolling her eyes as she jumped over the sizeable gathering to continue on her way. “Last thing I need is her gettin’ all up on ‘er high horse…” She looked disdainfully back at the eager group, seeing Starlight float herself down behind her. The extra-magical Unicorn had a fond smile on her muzzle, clearly happy for her friend’s sudden upsurge of fans, but her face moved to one of sudden concern when she looked back at Applejack. Applejack, in turn, wondered what her friend was so worried about. She turned to look forward again to see what was going on, only to feel the impact that came with bumping into another pony.

A beige-coated Pegasus stallion, standing a head taller than Applejack with a heavy-set and athletic build, was knocked to the cloud by the sudden collision. He had a spiky tan mane with a short-cut spiky tail, along with off-white hooves. He got up with a huff, squinting his orange eyes at the wing-less mare in front of him. His Cutie Mark consisted of a yellow lightning bolt running horizontally parallel to a white lightning bolt. He looked at Applejack, a mix of irritation and confusion in his eyes. “How are you standing here, Earth Pony?” He asked, paying special attention to her legs.

Applejack stepped back. “Same way y’all are. With my legs.” She raised a foreleg, pointing up. “I know they’re some mighty fine legs ‘n all, but my face is up here.” The stallion raised his head, his attention drawn as directed. “Sorry fer bumpin’ into ya like that.” She held her hoof out in greeting. “Name’s Applejack!”

He reluctantly brought a hoof forward. “Storm Chaser.” He said averting his gaze. “If you’ll excuse me…” he looked over the mare, walking past her towards the larger crowd.

Applejack looked back at him, her expression reminding Starlight of an unripe apple. “Pleasure t’ meetcha…”

Starlight trotted beside the farmer, putting her hoof on her back. “Don’t worry about him. We’ve got a friendship problem to find!” She raised her foreleg, venturing into the town.

“Hey, A.J.!” Trixie called, cantering to catch up with the work horse. “I think I can help with your little mission!”

Applejack stopped, turning around to face the incoming illusionist. “I thought you said you weren’t gonna get in the way of our job here?” She reminded her with a glare.

Trixie skidded to a halt, smirking at her. “I did! But this won’t get in your way!”

Starlight tentatively stepped up between her friends. “Oh? What is it, Trix?”

“Well, I don’t know if I want to say it anymore.” She teased, turning away from Applejack. “Not if all it does is ‘get in the way’!”

Applejack recoiled, raising a foreleg. “Now, I never said gettin’ in the way was all you would do!” She put her hoof back on the cloud below, jutting her head forward. “Jus’ that I didn’t want ya to mess things up! If’n you can give us sumthin’ we can use, then… I guess I got no choice but ta hear ya out.”

Trixie smirked further, hiding it with the collar if her cape. “Well, if you insist…” She looked over at Starlight. “I found a couple of ponies in the crowd that looked like they weren’t getting along very much. Maybe you should talk to them?”

“Did they look like they were friends?” Starlight inquired. “They could have just been standing next to each other.”

“Please, I’ve seen a lot of audiences in my time, and I know when somepony has dragged a friend along that… isn’t a fan.” Trixie explained, motioning grandly, as if to a crowd. “That spiky-haired stallion did not want to be there with all the fans that fawned over their favorite magician, but the maroon mare with him was grabbing him so tight and screaming my name…” She let her rump fall to the clouds, her speech devolving into a delirious laugh.

“Spiky-haired stallion, huh?” Starlight puzzled, looking over at Applejack. “Didn’t we bump into somepony like that, earlier?”

“That’s puttin’ it nicely…” she confirmed. “I coulda guessed he’d be part of… whatever it is we gotta do here. That’s generally how this sorta thing goes.” She walked past the droning mare, swishing her hat off with her tail. “Storm Chaser, right? Let’s go ‘n find ‘im…”

Starlight walked ahead, looking around. “Well, that shouldn’t be too hard. They’re both heading this way.” She pointed forward, the beige Pegasus walking begrudgingly down the road with a maroon Pegasus mare talking his ear off. She had opal eyes and a long bluish black mane and tail, looking to be combed back at the bangs, with the hair from the back of her head pulled back in a loose ponytail, tied with a blue scrunchie, with another one pinching the end of her tail. Her Cutie Mark was a treble clef with little zig zag lines around it, as if to indicate it to be vibrating.

“Oh, Storm, I can’t believe she’s here!!!” she squealed, shaking Storm’s head repeatedly. He rolled his eyes, letting out a bemoaned laugh at her antics. “Do you think she’s gonna do a show? How did she even get here?! I bet she used some amazing magic to be able to stand on the clouds!”

“I bed she had somepony else do it.” Storm argued, lowering his head. “Her ‘magic’ doesn’t even look real enough to be a convincing fake! I swear, Aria, I don’t understand why you like that fraud so much!”

“I can’t understand why you don’t like her!” Aria retorted, fluttering her wings and rearing up excitedly. She let out a gasp as a familiar shade of blue caught her eye. “Oh my gosh, she’s over there right now!” She hopped in place, taking a leap and closing the gap between herself and her idol in an instant.

Applejack and Storm simultaneously groaned, looking candidly at the daydreaming deception artist. Storm’s ears perked up as he heard the farmer’s annoyance, looking over to her. “You, too, huh?”

Applejack chuckled. “Y’all don’t know the half of it.” She affirmed, walking up to him. “She came here with me an’ our mutual friend, over there. Personally, I don’t even know why she had ta come along.”

“I’m sorry.” he joked, looking at Starlight. “And how did she come to be friends with that one?”

“Jury’s still out on that one. I reckon it’s their… similar history.” she answered. “They both made a few bad decisions in the past.”

“Well, that’s not surprising…” he replied, the two ponies sharing a laugh.

Trixie snapped out of her delirium, seeing the maroon mare looking at her with stars in her eyes, squeezing her own muzzle with her forehooves. “You… are… totally… amazing!” she cried out in a sing-song tone. “I can’t believe I finally get to meet you!”

“Huh? What?” Trixie droned, standing up. “Oh! Yes… I’m glad to meet yet another fan!” She brushed herself off, straightening her hat. “I’m planning on holding a show tomorrow, if you’d like to spread the word!” Aria began a long and loud squee, reminding her of a boiling teapot. Trixie smirked, then looked over at the gruff-looking stallion. “So, is he a friend of yours?”

Aria looked over at him, a big smile forming on her muzzle. “Only my best friend!” she stated, rushing to his side and putting a hoof around him. “He even came all the way out here to see you with me! He’s been a bit mopey for a while, though… I wonder if he’s okay?”

“Oh?” Starlight began, stepping up beside Aria. “Why has he been moping?”

“He’s… not exactly a fan like I am.” she told her, looking at her hooves as she pawed the cloud.

“He does look pretty disgruntled. What made you a fan in the first place?” Starlight wondered.

Aria bubbled up again, looking at Starlight with a smile. “Well, I don’t know exactly why, but I really fell into the fandom last year, when she was in Las Pegasus! She’s got such a flair for the dramatic, so over-the-top and amazing! And the astounding cocky character she plays onstage is just so cool!”

Starlight had to fight to keep a sarcastic laugh from erupting out of her. She managed to eke out a small, awkward chortle, struggling to keep a straight face. “Yeah! Cocky… character... “ She faked a cough into her hoof. “She can be pretty great when she needs to be.”

“And powerful!” Aria added, buzzing her wings.

“Oh, come on!” Storm interjected, stomping his foreleg. “She’s a total fraud! How do you not see it?!” He stepped forward and aggressively pointed his hoof at Trixie. “None of the magic she does is real! She may be a Unicorn, but that doesn’t mean she actually knows what she’s doing!”

Trixie gasped, dramatically raising an offended hoof. “I don’t know what you’re talking about! I know exactly what I’m doing!”

Storm snorted, stomping over to the magician. “Prove it!” he demanded, pointing at a nearby piece of cloud. “Turn that into something else!”

Trixie smirked, looking at the thing the Pegasus pointed out. “You’re serious? That’s all you want to see?” Storm nodded, snorting again. Aria squeed, looking at the target. Trixie lowered her head, her horn glowing fiercely with sparks flying out in all directions. She loosed a beam of magic at the unsuspecting tiny cloud, entrapping it in the force of her will. The cloud rose up into the air, glowing and changing in form as the magic did its work. As the light faded, a purple teacup with a swirl pattern fell to the cloud below, sitting rather unimpressively. “You see? I truly am magical!”

“Only if’n ya need a teacup…” Applejack mumbled.

Storm looked at the teacup, then back at Trixie, then at Aria, then once again back at Trixie. “That’s it? A teacup? This is a joke!”

Trixie scoffed, turning away from him. “I’ll have you know I put a lot of time and effort into learning that spell!” She began a haughty walk away, motioning a foreleg to the pink Unicorn. “Come on, Starlight! Let’s go!”

Starlight shook her head. “Sorry, Trix, I have business to take care of.” She looked back at the fuming stallion and the now-surprised mare. “I’ll be along later to help you with the show.”

Aria walked up to her friend. “Why are you going so far out of your way to prove she’s a fraud?” She asked, getting in close. “I know you don’t like her show very much, but why can’t you just let ponies enjoy it instead of ruining it for all of us?”

Storm growled, spreading his wings wide. “Because all she’s ever done is lie to everypony! Bragging about some ‘amazing feat’ that she never even came close to doing!”

Aria put her hoof up between the two of them. “You know what? I don’t care! I’m not gonna let some stubborn stallion stop me from having a good time!” She turned around in a huff of her own, whipping him on the nose with her tail as she left. Starlight recoiled, trotting up to her.

Starlight, Aria, and Trixie walked through the streets of Cloudsdale, nearing the weather factory. Trixie was busy setting up her stage in a nice and open area, while Starlight sat with the maroon mare. “What you said to Storm, back there… That was a little harsh…” she stated, giving her a concerned glance.

“No harsher than what he said…” Aria retorted, a disgruntled tone permeating her usual cheery one. “He’s been like this for a while, now. Chasing ideas without even thinking of how other ponies might feel about it…”

“Sounds like he’s pretty stubborn.” Starlight mused. “Reminds me of a friend of mine. But, he’s not entirely wrong. Trixie and I have both made some pretty rotten choices in the past. And that cocky demeanor you like so much isn’t really an act.”

Aria’s expression perked up at the new information. “Really?” she asked, seeing a solemn nod from the magical mare. “But how did you all get up here to Cloudsdale if not for her magic?”

Starlight lit up her own horn, floating a number of props overhead. “When it comes to ‘magic’, I’m the one with all the practical stuff.” She floated the items over to an appealing position on the stage. “She’s learning how to do it as well, but her speciality is fireworks and ‘stage magic’.”

“I see…” Aria responded, feeling a little let down. She looked over at the stage, where the pony of prestidigitation was making small adjustments to her setup, giving the stage an appeal that reminded the observing ponies of the night sky. “But what she does do for real is still pretty amazing. Doing all of those tricks without any magic? That only makes it more impressive! So why does he think she’s so awful?”

“I only wish I knew…” Starlight admitted, watching as Trixie spun to face her would-be audience, flaring her cape and raising her foreleg with a confident grin. “I know she hasn't always been the most reliable pony, but that doesn’t seem to be what’s bothering him…”

“You know what’s bothering me?” Storm asked as Applejack approached. “I’ve seen proof that she’s nothing but a sham!” He started walking in the opposite direction from where his friend had gone, Applejack following. “Have you ever been to Ponyville?”

Applejack resisted the urge to facehoof, deadpanning at the stallion in her company. “Do y’all remember my name?” she asked him.

Storm looked at her flat expression, thinking back. “You said your name was Applejack, right?” Applejack nodded, her face unchanging. “What’s so important about that?”

“Ya ever hear of Sweet Apple Acres?” she continued. “Or the Apple family?”

Storm stewed for a few moments, attempting to find the connection. Moments later, he made a sharp inhale. “Best apples in all of Equestria! So, you live in Ponyville!” Applejack smiled, nodding in confirmation. “Then you were there when she was bragging about ‘vanquishing an Ursa Major’, weren’t you? You know just how much of a fraud she is!”

“Storm, I was the first one ta call ‘er out on all ‘er boastin’!” she confirmed, stomping her hoof. “She made a fool outta me, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity that day! You were there, too?”

“I was learning some weather work in Ponyville for a while. Rainbow Dash is a great example of efficient weather patterns and cloud-busting.” he explained. “And I know full well that Princess Twilight proved just how much of a blowhard that poor excuse for a Unicorn is!”

“Oh, I know first hoof what yer talkin’ about.” Applejack confirmed. “I can’t say I’m ‘er biggest fan, either. When she came back to Ponyville, she was as evil as a swarm o’ vampire fruit bats on an unsuspectin’ orchard!”

Storm nodded, trying to understand the metaphor. “That doesn’t surprise me at all… How in Equestria can somepony as good as Aria fall for her tricks?”

“I reckon it probably had sumthin’ ta do with her turnin’ over a new leaf.” the farmer continued. “See, that other pony I came here with, Starlight, is pretty good friends with ‘er. Both o’ them’ve come a long way since I met ‘em.”

“Is she doing actual magic in her show?” the Pegasus queried. “Or is she a charlitain like I thought?”

“Well… when it comes to ‘magic’, that’s more Starlight’s thing.” she admitted, sitting on a nearby bench. “Without her, I couldn’t even be up here.” She patted the bench beside her, where Storm took a seat. “Maybe you should talk to yer friend again. Less screamin’, and more listenin’ this time.”

Storm looked at the street, seeing ponies walking everywhere. “I suppose she hasn’t done anything to send Cloudsdale into chaos…” The sky turned a shade of orange, announcing the hour of twilight and Celestia’s setting of the sun. “I’ll talk to her tomorrow. Thanks, Applejack.” He gave her a nudge on the shoulder, spreading his wings and flying off.

“Eeyup.” she replied, looking around. “Now I just… need to figure out where we’ll be sleepin’ tonight…”

From two houses in the residential area of Cloudsdale, Storm and Aria emerged. They set off for the day, trotting towards a common destination in the weather factory. As they converged, they exchanged a pleasant greeting, their mutual workplace coming into view. Off to the side, a stage stood. It had a purple backdrop, with star patterns dotting the curtains and several props lining the back portions. Storm looked at it with a scowl on his muzzle, while Aria beamed as brightly as possible. They looked at one another, Storm trying to open his mouth to speak. He was interrupted by a loud huff from his maroon-coated friend, who turned her nose up and accelerated her way into the facility.

“Aria, wait!” he called, trotting after her. By the time he caught a glimpse of her again, she had clocked in and headed to her station in water management. He breathed a sigh, resigning himself to his duties.

Hours later, at lunch, Storm sat down at his usual table, Aria following suit through sheer force of habit. Storm waved a hoof, smiling as she took a begrudging look at him. “So what are your plans for tonight?”

“I… was thinking of seeing a show.” he hinted, taking a bite of his lunch. “I hear there’s one going on tonight. Thought I’d see what all the fuss is about.”

“Are you sure you can stand to go to a magic show without any magic?” Aria asked, still looking a slight sourpuss.

Storm gulped, looking at his friend in shock. “So you know she's a charlitain and you’re still a fan?”

“Starlight told me a lot about her!” she affirmed, putting her sandwich on its plate forcefully. “And all it did was make me a bigger fan!”

“If you know everything she did, everything she is, then you know why I can’t stand her!” he fumed, his own sandwich hitting the plate with a surprisingly loud thud. He stood up, forelegs on the table. “She’s a liar, a cheat, and a fraud! There’s nothing about her to be a fan of! I just can’t understand why you’re so enamored with her!”

“You know what? Sometimes I just can’t understand you!” Aria argued, meeting his gesture in kind. “It's stubbornness like this that keeps ponies from ever making new friends! And sometimes, it can even cause you to lose the ones you have!” She flared her wings, rearing up and turning around to trot away.

Storm’s mouth hung open, his ears low as his wings drooped to the floor below. “Lose them…?” he repeated, reaching a hoof forward. “Aria, wait a second!” He lingered a moment, finally falling back on his hindquarters. “I never wanted to lose my friend…”

The whistle blew at the weather factory, Storm and Aria making their exits. Aria made an immediate beeline for the stage, meeting up with an orange Earth Pony mare. “Oh! Hi…” she greeted, eyeing the pony. “You’re that other one that was with Starlight and Trixie, right?”

“Eeyup. Name’s Applejack!” she confirmed, extending her foreleg. “You here fer the show?”

“Of course!” she stated, some of the light returning to her eyes. “I wouldn’t miss this for all of Equestria!”

“Well, we got a little time before it starts. How ‘bout you ‘n me talk a bit first?”

Aria poked her lower lip with her hoof, looking over the farmer’s shoulder at the stage behind. Trixie was setting up, and Starlight was nowhere to be found. She brought her attention back to Applejack. “Sure.” She turned towards the town. “How about dinner?” Applejack smiled and nodded. “Great! Where do you want to go?”

Applejack smirked, tipping her hat. “Aww, shucks, we don’t gotta go anywhere!” She walked over to a bag next to the stage, pulling out an apple pie. “I never go anywhere without at least sumthin’ to eat!” Aria looked at the pie with a hint of drool seeping out of her mouth. Applejack’s smirk turned to a full-muzzle smile as she opened the bag further, revealing more morsels inside. “An’ there’s more where that came from!” She laid out a number of treats on a blanket, making sure they had a good view of the stage as Aria stuffed a fritter in her mouth. “So, how’d it go, talkin’ with Storm?”

Aria looked wide-eyed at Applejack, quickly moving to an uncharacteristically sour face. “It didn’t… He’s too stubborn to understand me, or why I admire ponies who can put on a show like Trixie can.”

“Well, why do ya admire Trixie s’ dang much?” the Earth Pony wondered, her gaze fixed on the magician of note. “It’s sumthin’ I’ve been wonderin’ for a while, too.”

“Well… She’s able to stand onstage with confidence!” She elaborated, looking back at her Cutie Mark. “I love to sing, but I can’t stop shaking whenever I get in front of other ponies. She can do all of that so confidently, and she can’t even do magic! Even more than her performance, I wish I had her kind of attitude.”

Applejack smiled, settling into a comfortable position as she looked at the pony next to her. “I’ll admit, Trixie’s come a long way since I first met ‘er. But it’s hard to get past how ponies are when ya first meet ‘em sometimes. An’ Storm’s first encounter with that one was certainly memorable. I know, ‘cause I was there, too.” She told the maroon mare about the first time Trixie had shown up in Ponyville, sparing no details.

“But she’s gotten better since then, right?” the Pegasus stressed. “You said it yourself, she’s come a long way!”

“I did. But if he’s as stubborn as I used to be, then he sure as heck ain’t gonna see that.” she said. “Besides, just ‘cause he’s not a fan, that don’t mean y’all can’t still be friends! Stop thinkin’ about what might be drivin’ you apart. Why don’tcha tell me what all you like about ‘im?”

Aria looked down at the cloud beneath her, poking at it with her hoof. “Well, he’s stubborn, yeah… But he’s very down-to-earth. He’s got a level head that you don’t find much of here in Cloudsdale. It’s kept me from making some pretty bad mistakes in the past… Maybe… I was too hard on him earlier, huh?”

“Just a little bit.” Applejack agreed, placing a hoof on her shoulder.

“Storm, can we talk?” Starlight called, seeing the heavy-set Pegasus trotting away from the factory. He stopped for a moment, looking over at her.

“You’re that friend Applejack mentioned, aren’t you?” he asked as she made her way over to him. “Star… bright… something?”

“It’s Starlight Glimmer. And yes.” she corrected. “I heard from Applejack that you were gonna talk to your friend today. How’d that go?”

Storm sank as low as he could, looking away. “I doubt she even considers me her friend anymore… I tried to talk to her, but it just turned into a fight.”

“And because you had a fight, you’re suddenly not friends anymore?” the purple-maned pony wondered, tilting her head as she influenced their direction towards the stage.

“We disagree on everything, anyway… Maybe she’d be better off without somepony like me mucking up the things that actually make her happy!” he argued, beginning to drag his hooves as he walked. “She gets excited so easily… And that gets her into so much trouble… Maybe she’d learn her lesson if I didn’t bail her out of it so much? Yeah, I’ll miss hearing her singing in that beautiful way she does… All the hilarious jokes she’s always cracking… The way she can smile at something so… so simple… like that charlitain you came here with... “

“Sounds to me like you like her a little too much to let your friendship end over just one fight, huh?” Starlight suggested, sitting in the back of a gathering crowd. “You could probably stand to be a little less stubborn, but I think you know what’s important in the long run.” The lights came on in front of the stage as Storm took a seat next to Starlight. “So, why don’t you enjoy the show, and see where things go from there?”

Storm looked at the stage, seeing Trixie standing in the spotlight. His face scrunched a little as he looked over at Starlight. “You planned this, didn’t you?”

Starlight gave him a sly grin. “Just watch.”

Trixie stepped forward onstage, clearing her throat. “Ponies of Cloudsdale, thank you for coming to the final stop on the Humble and Penitent Trixie’s Equestria-wide Apology Tour!”

Storm recoiled at the words, looking at Starlight, then back at the stage. “Apology tour?”

“I know that it’s late, but I was never able to get up here to Cloudsdale to finish this tour, because I lack the… magical ability… to make it here on my own.” the illusionist continued, averting her gaze at her admittance. “I started the Apology Tour as a way to make up for all of my mistakes in the past. And as a way to show everypony how much I’ve changed! How much I’ve improved! So please, enjoy the show!” From there, the show began. Trixie began with some of the simpler tricks, often taking volunteers from the audience in order to perform them. Each trick grew more complex than the last, eventually coming to some things that looked downright dangerous. The crowd repeatedly went into cheers as each trick was completed, the pony onstage showing a kind of finesse that Storm hadn’t seen before. At the end of it all, she took a bow with a flourish of her hat. “Thank you! Thank you! You’re all too kind!” She struck a cocky pose, smiling at the crowd. “Until the next time! Farewell!” She brought up a hoof, slamming a smoke bomb onto the stage that plumed up all over. When it cleared, all the audience saw was the tail end of the cloak she wore, sneaking its way backstage.

Applejack and Aria stood up as the crowd dispersed, trotting over to a rather dumbstruck Storm Chaser. “Well, Starlight, I have ta admit… I’m glad ya brought Trixie along… Even though she was the source o’ the problem.” She sat next to the pink mare, looking back at Aria. “She had a mighty fine reason fer comin’ up here.”

Aria sat in front of Storm, rubbing one foreleg with the other. “Storm… I’m… really sorry for what I said at lunch.” she started, looking at the cloud below her. “And my behavior since yesterday. I should have been more considerate of your feelings… You don’t have to be a fan of Trixie to be my friend! You just have to be yourself!”

Storm sighed to himself, looking his friend in the eye. “I’m sorry, too. I was too stubborn in my thinking. I wasn’t willing to give her another shot.” He stood up, Aria joining him in the gesture. “I thought that she was just some big fake, since she wasn’t doing actual magic and calling herself a ‘magician’. But that show was pretty impressive. And, I can see how she’s changed. I should have listened to you about all of it, instead of trying to bull-headedly convince you to see things my way.”

“I’m just glad that I didn’t drive you two apart.” Trixie stated, poking her head up next to them. “I know I don’t have the best reputation out there, but it wouldn’t be very grrrrreat or powerful of me to have driven such good friends apart after how far I’ve come!” She raised a foreleg, directing it at Storm. She made a flourish of her hoof, a bouquet of flowers appearing that she raised with her magic. “Can you accept my apologies?”

Storm smiled weakly, looking around the mare’s hoof. “How did you do that?”

Trixie smirked, hiding her muzzle with her cape. “A good magician never reveals her secrets!” Aria nodded, emphasizing the expression.

The stallion let out a loud laugh. “All right, fine! Apology accepted!” Aria let out a gleeful squee, tackling her friend in a hug.

Starlight and Applejack looked at each other with a smile, the light of their Cutie Marks informing them of a job well done.

Author's Note

This chapter was kind of a challenging one to write. The idea was solid, but slow-going. Especially with Storm and Aria. Never before have I had characters that I thought were going to be temporary be so... well-themed, I guess? Everything about them just kinda flowed together, so there's a good chance those two are going to be making a comeback!
I've already got at least the next three chapters in my head, but I'm trying not to fret too awful much about them so that I can deliver good quality stuff now.

Ready for Takeoff!

“One…” Scootaloo started, giving a hard flap of her wings. In that moment, a portion of fog was sent flying away, dissipating into nothing. “Two…” Another flap, and a larger portion of the heavy cloud was sent away. “Three…!” The process continued, this portion of the fog smaller than the ones before. “Four…!” Another flap came, some cloud falling away again, the filly in the thick of it panting. From an outside perspective, roughly a quarter of the cloud remained, and it looked daunting.

“You don’t have to push yourself too hard, Scootaloo!” Rumble called from the sidelines. “I’m sure you’ll get it next time! Just keep at it!”

Scootaloo snorted, rearing up. “And this… is…” she flapped her wings one more time, sending a massive gust of wind through the area, blowing back the manes of Boltsinger, Soarin, and Rumble as the last chunk of cloud near the ground was completely dispersed. “FIVE!!!” She stood on her hind legs, her forelegs flared out at her sides, and her wings spread wide. She was hyperventilating, quickly beginning to lose her balance.

Boltsinger rushed to her side, catching her as she fell backwards. “You okay?” he asked her, feeling the rising and falling of her breathing. “That last flap was pretty impressive. I understand if you’re tired.”

Scootaloo grinned, sitting up. “No, I’m fine. That was just a hard flap.” she told him, standing on her own. “So… Did I do it?”

“I think you know.” he stated, motioning to the empty field with his foreleg. He looked over at Soarin. “Okay, Soarin, tell Pinkie to get everything ready!” He turned to Rumble. “And Rumble, can you go tell everypony else? We meet at Sugar Cube Corner in an hour!”

Soarin and Rumble simultaneously nodded, each taking off in a different direction as Scootaloo cast a confused look at Boltsinger. “What do you mean?”

“Well, we have to celebrate somehow.” he informed her, heading in the direction of Ponyville at a leisurely pace. “I mean, it’s not every day you pass the first stage of your training!” The Pegasus filly’s eyes lit up, a squee coming from her that reminded him of a teapot coming to a boil. “I suggest you take it easy for a few days, because when we come out here again, you’re getting a brand new lesson!” he declared, spreading his wings excitedly. “So, have a good time, tonight. ‘Cause it’s only getting harder from here!”

Scootaloo jumped in place, letting her wings hold her up as she remained in the air a few feet above Boltsinger. “YES!” she shouted, the stallion stepping into position for her to land on his back. “I’ll do my best!” She hopped off of him, rushing over to the confectionery shop as fast as her legs would take her.

“And so will I…” he told himself, scratching his mane with his wings as he continued his walk. “Just as soon as I figure out what to teach you next…”

Twilight poked her head into the library, where a pile of books was stacked in a corner of the room. She trotted inside the room proper, looking at as many spines as she could. There was a slightly more noticeable bulge in her belly than there was before, but the Alicorn paid it little mind as she made her way. “Boltsinger?” she started, floating a book in front of her and skimming through it. “Are you doing research?”

The pony in question popped up from a pile of pages, looking around. “Huh? Oh, yeah. I am.” He buried his face in the books again. “No… this won’t work… How do I even do that?!” He put the book aside, picking up another one and starting again.

“What are you researching?” the Alicorn asked, fluttering next to him. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you hit the books this hard!”

Boltsinger raised his head, facing her with a nervous grin. “Have you seen how well Scootaloo has been doing in her flight training?”

“Of course. We just had a party to celebrate!” she confirmed. “She’s progressed remarkably fast!”

“Eeyup.” he agreed, burying his nose in the book again. “A little too fast. I have no idea what to do next!”

“But aren’t you working with Soarin and Rumble?” the Princess wondered, looking over her husband’s shoulder at the pages. “I love research as much as the next bookworm, but I’m not sure how much these books will help when you’ve got experienced flyers to talk to.” She floated another book in front of her. “But, if you still want to do research, I’d be happy to join you!” She leaned into him slightly, opening the book. “New teaching techniques are always a good thing to learn! And I haven’t had any chance to do any teaching since you ‘graduated’ from my lessons!”

Boltsinger spurted out a nervous laugh, wrapping his wing around the Princess and pulling her close. “I suppose you have a point. But, yeah, let’s keep going! Should be useful no matter what!” He turned another page, looking intently at the words before him.

After what became a thoroughly enjoyable research session, Boltsinger trotted through Ponyville. Talking with Soarin would have been great, but he had a better idea for who might help to bring up Scootaloo’s confidence, while also getting a thorough lesson across. He looked up, a house situated on clouds floating overhead and seeming to loom over him. He flapped his wings, jumping up and ascending to the front door where he reached out and knocked a number of times.

The door opened, revealing a tired-looking Rainbow Dash. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, getting a good look at her guest. “Bolt? What are you doing here?” she asked. “Something you need?”

“That’s part of it.” he affirmed. “Also, it’s been a while since you and I have done anything together. I thought this was a good time to fix that.”

Rainbow Dash blinked. “Okay… What do you wanna do?”

“I figured I’d leave that up to you.” he told her, taking off again.

Rainbow smirked, rising into the air with him. “Fine! Race you to the Castle of the Two Sisters!” Boltsinger’s eyebrows rose dramatically. “READYSETGO!!” She shot off into the distance, leaving a rainbow streak behind her.

The stallion smiled, flapping his wings harder in a revving motion. “Oh, it’s on!” He sped off after her, a streak of orange and blue following the rainbow one.

Rainbow Dash flew in a relaxed position, her forelegs behind her head as she lazily looked back at her former flight student. “You’re doin’ pretty good, Bolt!” she called, waving her foreleg. He smiled in the distance, slowly but surely gaining on her. Her face turned infinitely more smug, twisting around into her normal flying position as she accelerated, the distance between them increasing in a mere instant. She continued on, quickly reaching her top speed as their goal came into view. She chuckled to herself, going into a dive that looped her around the bridge over the chasm and creating what looked like a rainbow tube around the bridge. Boltsinger made his approach as the mare showed off, shooting straight up into the sky. The stallion hovered above the trees, watching his friend’s ascent shatter the light spectrum in a bright rainbow flash.

“Heh… Always the show-off…” he said, making a beeline for the castle as the Wonderbolt banked her way down to the same destination. He landed in the throne room, panting heavily as he looked around. “Did I win? I have to have won! She spent the whole race showing off!”

“And I still beat ya by a mile!” came a raspy tone from the seat of a throne. “You’re not a bad flyer, Bolt. But, maybe next time you should tap into that lightning of yours! You’re too slow without it.”

“Believe me, Dash, if I could use the lightning like that, I would have.” he fluttered up to the thrones, where Rainbow Dash was lounging in the one that once belonged to Celestia. “And I would’ve smoked you in the process!” He gave her his best attempt at a cocky grin, not quite sure if he believed his words.

“You say that, but has your lightning ever made one of those before?” she inquired, pointing up at the circular rainbow lighting up the sky.

“Um… Maybe?” he lied, the corners of his mouth falling flat. “Fuzzy foalhood memory, remember?” his nervous laugh started up, causing Rainbow to sit up and smile confidently.

“Yup. ‘Cause you totally have all the skills and speed needed to pull one off.” she teased, rising to her hooves and walking up next to him. She placed a hoof on his wing, making a mock-flapping motion with it. “It’s not like you needed special training from Equestria’s number one flyer just to get as good as you are, right?”

Boltsinger put a wing to his muzzle, stroking his chin slightly. “Oh? And who would Equestria’s number one flyer be? Soarin?”

The cyan mare stifled a laugh. “He’s a great flyer, but I dunno about ‘number one’! Guess again.”

Boltsinger smiled. “How about Twilight? She’s pretty good in the sky.”

“And it’s for the same reason you are!” Rainbow reminded him, walking past him entirely and turning around. “Ya got one more guess!”

“Okay then…” Boltsinger replied, accepting the challenge. He turned around to face her, sitting down and puzzling as best he could. His face lit up as he raised his forelegs, pounding one hoof into the other. “I’ve got it!”

“Oh? So who is Equestria’s number one flyer?” she asked, giving him a cocky smile with a side-eyed look.

“Scootaloo!” he declared, proudly spreading his wings with a smile.

A loud thud reverberated through the throne room. Rainbow Dash’s face had hit the floor from her fellow flyer’s statement. She raised her head up and began laughing. “Really? That’s your last guess? Scootaloo’s doing great with your little ‘lessons’, yeah. But she’s nowhere near being Equestria’s number one flyer!”

“Not yet, at least.” he agreed, standing up and offering Rainbow Dash a hoof to do the same. “Care to help me make that a reality?”

The laughter ceased entirely. “Wait, what?”

“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about.” he continued. “You’ve seen for yourself how well she’s done. And, frankly, I’ve… pardon the phrasing… hit a wall on what I’m gonna teach her. I was hoping Equestria’s number one flyer, and my personal flight coach, could help me to help her.”

“Huh…” she started, a little surprised at what she was hearing. She accepted the hoof and stood up. “You really think she can get up to my level?”

“She’s Boltsinger-tested, Soarin-approved for incredible flying potential!” he affirmed. “And now, I think she’s ready to… well… take off!”

Rainbow Dash stewed for a moment of her own. “Maybe that should be the next step?” she suggested, pointing her hoof at him. “Of course, with how hopeless you can be, sometimes, it might be a good idea to have at least one more expert along. Just to be safe.”

“Are you volunteering to join in on this?” he queried. “Are you sure? It means you’ll be spending more time with the pony that’s supposedly responsible for that change you’re not so fond of.”

“So? That’s my issue.” Rainbow retorted, a slight scowl trying to form on her face. “This isn’t about you or me, right?” Boltsinger smiled and nodded. “This is about Scootaloo. And I’m sorry it took me this long to join in this thing!” She started to walk to the door. “Besides, it’s fun to kick your butt in a race every now and then!” She flapped her wings again, taking off into the air, the stallion letting out a chortle as he followed suit.

Finally, the next training session had come. Scootaloo put her helmet on, grabbing her scooter. She gave a determined look forward, kicking the ground below her as she sped off down the road. She made a beeline for the Carousel Boutique, where Sweetie Belle stepped out of the door. She tied a rope to the scooter, putting on a helmet of her own as the Pegasus accelerated in the direction of the farm. Sweetie Belle squeaked as they reached top speed, the velocity having increased since the last time she went along with her extreme friend like this. It took only a couple of minutes, they were at Sweet Apple Acres, Apple Bloom standing at the ready.

Thanks for coming with me to this lesson, you two.” Scootaloo began. “I can’t imagine not having you there when the next lesson starts!”

“No problem, Scootaloo!” Apple Bloom replied, putting her helmet on. “I know you’d do the same fer us!”

“Can you just… take it a little slower, this time?” Sweetie Belle asked. “You were going way faster than you used to!”

“I know! Wasn’t it great?!” the fledgeling flyer responded, extending her wings out. Sweetie Belle’s expression went flat as she expressed her disagreement. “I mean… uh… sorry about that. I’ll dial it down for you ponies.” Apple Bloom set herself up for her friend to tow her along, giving an affirming hoof. Scootaloo smiled once more, buzzing her wings, softer this time, and zooming off into Ponyville.

“So, Rumble get his Cutie Mark yet?” Apple Bloom wondered.

“Not yet. He’s been pretty busy helping me with my flying.” Scootaloo answered. “He’s been really focused on it. Almost as much as he focuses on his own.”

“I hear he was pretty worried when he caught you out of the sky that day.” Sweetie Belle mused. “Almost like he liked you…” She looked at her with a sly grin, a sparkle in her eye reminiscent of her older sister.

“Come on, now, Sweetie Belle, it’s not like that.” Apple Bloom interjected. She looked over at her friend’s face, seeing a small tinge of red showing up on her cheek. She tilted her head, trying to get a better understanding. “Is it?”

“It’s not like that at all!” the Pegasus nervously blurted. “He’s just interested in helping me fly! It’s nothing beyond that…!” Her face flushed some more as she hunched over. “Enough about that! Let’s get to the training field!” Her wings picked up their pace again, going full bore to the place where she was to have her lesson with her fellow Crusaders letting out a yelp and a squeak at the sudden increase in speed.

Reaching the field, Scootaloo skidded to a stop, her friends sliding forward in a daze. She heard a clapping noise, prompting her to look around. Rumble, Boltsinger and Soarin sat there, each waving a foreleg in her direction, but the clapping continued. “Pretty good entrance, squirt!” a fondly familiar rasp said.

“Rainbow Dash?” Scootaloo guessed, looking up. There, Rainbow Dash was sitting on a small cloud, clapping her hooves with a smirk. “You’re actually here?!”

“You bet I am!” she replied, jumping off of the cloud to land in front of her honorary sister. “Like I’d be able to stay away from this for long! You’re learning to fly! I gotta be there for you!” She brought Scootaloo into a hug, tussling her mane. “So, you ready to take off?”

“Take off? But, aren’t we doing stuff right here?” the filly wondered.

“Not that kind of ‘take off’.” Boltsinger corrected, trotting up to the two. “She means that you’re going to be ‘taking off’ quite literally!”

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle shook themselves free of their daze, seeing that their fellow Crusader had already begun her new lesson. They opted to sit next to Rumble, observing the goings on. “So, what’s goin’ on?” Apple Bloom inquired, watching Scootaloo jump up excitedly.

“Looks like those two are gonna teach Scootaloo how to take off into the air.” he replied, keeping his focus on the other young flyer. “I just hope it goes well this time!”

“What do you mean by that?” Sweetie Belle wondered. “She’s taken off before?”

“Just watch. They’ll explain it.” the grey colt instructed.

“So, how do you think taking off works?” Boltsinger inquired, moving behind the filly.

“Every time I’ve tried taking off, I just flapped my wings.” she told the older Pegasi. “It never really gets me more than a few inches off the ground, though.”

"I can think of one time you took off splendidly.” the stallion mused, looking over at Rumble. “At least that’s what Rumble said.”

Scootaloo’s thoughts went back a ways, pondering on past events.“You mean that hover thing I did? All I did was jump!”

“And you got up pretty high!” Rainbow stated. “There’s a reason for that. Watch me! Bolt, you explain!”

Boltsinger nodded as the cyan Wonderbolt hunched over. “So, one misconception I’ve noticed from various wing-less sources is that all you need to fly well is a pair of wings, and the rest just works. But that can’t be further from the truth. Wings add to how much lift you get, and maintain it while you’re hovering or accelerating, but in order to really fly, or even take off, for that matter, you need to put your whole body into it!” Scootaloo looked closely at her idol. She was hunched over with her front half low and her wings spread wide. Her gaze was fixed on the sky above, and her tail twitched with anticipation. “When you did that jump back then, you made it pretty high up. Now, watch what happens when you combine a jump like that with the power of your wings!” Rainbow Dash took the cue, springing into the air and flapping her wings. In a tenth of a second, she was high in the sky, hovering next to a cloud. “You already had the basics of taking off down. You just didn’t know how to apply it!”

“Ya see, Scoot? It’s easy!” Rainbow called, lowering herself to a more manageable height. “Now, you try!”

Scootaloo recoiled at the suggestion, remembering how badly it went with her first attempt. “What?! You want me to try right now?”

“Eeyup!” Boltsinger affirmed, putting a hoof on her back. “It’s simple. Jump and flap, and then keep flapping.” He jumped up into the air and hovered next to Rainbow Dash. “This is what we did all that strength training for! I know you can do this!”

“Okay…” she started, bringing the front half of her body low. “Just jump… and flap… jump… and flap…” She raised her forelegs high as her hind legs snapped into a straight position, her head facing the beautiful blue sky above. She felt the wind rushing against her face and blowing through her mane, bringing a big smile to her muzzle. As she reached the top of the jump, she looked around, the ponies beneath her looking tiny in comparison as she lingered. “Wow! I’m so high up! And I did it with just one jump! But…” the wind picked up again, this time coming from beneath her. “... I feel like I’m forgetting something…”

“Come on, Scootaloo! Flap those wings!” Rainbow Dash cried out, snapping the falling filly out of her awe.

Scootaloo looked around again. She was still above everypony, but the distance between them was getting shorter by the second. She squealed in fright, defensively raising her forelegs. “Jump and flap! Jump and flap! Jump and flap!” With a whine at the end of the last word, she began furiously flapping her wings, her descent beginning to slow dramatically.

Rumble immediately shot into the air, making a beeline to catch her only to be stopped by Boltsinger’s hoof. “Give her a chance, Rumble. She’s come a long way in the last two months.

She finally came to a stop in the air next to the other airborne ponies, opening her eyes. “Did I land?”

“Nnope!” Boltsinger said, a wide smile on his muzzle. He pointed at the ground, then at her wings.

Scootaloo followed the stallion’s hoof with her eyes, seeing the buzzing wings behind her, holding her up with far less effort than she thought she would need. “You mean…” she began, her smile growing wider as the excitement boiled over.

“You did it, squirt!” Rainbow Dash announced. “You are officially flying!”

Scootaloo turned around in the air, shaking a little bit as she twisted. She looked at Rainbow Dash, who had a tear-stricken smile on her face. The cyan Pegasus was very clearly overwhelmed with pride, and Scootaloo was overjoyed to be the reason. “I’M FLYING!!!” She cried out, diving into Rainbow Dash for the biggest hug she had ever given.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been so proud!” Rainbow continued, catching the filly’s embrace and descending to the ground. “Just think about it! Once you’re ready for it, we can fly together all the time, just you and me!”

“That’s gonna be amazing!” Scootaloo replied, jumping up only slightly. She turned over to Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, running over to them to be tackled by group hug. “Did you see?! I finally flew! For real!”

“I saw! I saw!” Apple Bloom said, squeezing tightly. “I can’t believe you finally did it!”

Sweetie Belle let out a squeal of her own. “Think of how many more ways you’ll be able to help ponies with their Cutie Marks!”

Rumble came in for a landing next to the fillies. “I don’t think you’re quite there, yet. But you’re definitely on your way.”

Boltsinger landed next to Rainbow Dash, looking at the ecstatic young ponies with a smile. “So this is what a teacher’s pride feels like, huh?” He looked over at his rainbow companion. “I’m glad you could be here for this.”

“Bolt, I could never have missed this.” she told him. “I wasn’t even sure it would ever happen! And now…” She breathed a satisfied sigh. “I’ve always been a strong flyer. I didn’t even know the first thing about building up wingpower like that. I’ve never really trained anypony whose wings can’t actually reach out to build up their wingpower. Well, except Bulk biceps, but he can’t do much beyond pure power. What I mean to say is... “ She stomped her hoof, shaking her head and looking honestly at him. “It means a lot that you’re doing all of this for Scootaloo… Even while I was so mad at you. So… thanks.”

Boltsinger smiled, offering a wing. “You said it yourself. It’s not about either of us. It’s about Scoot.” he told her.

Rainbow smiled, slapping his wing with her own. “You’re right.” She looked back over at the fillies, nodding solemnly. “Whatever issues I might have, they don’t matter. This is what’s important.”

Author's Note

That last scene... Oh, man, did it give me the warm and fuzzies something fierce! She's nowhere near done with her flight training, but the "flight" part of it is well on its way. I just couldn't not have Rainbow Dash there for the first takeoff, though. It would have just felt wrong.
As always, I've already at least started brainstorming for the next chapter! Should be out in due time!

Surprise Symptoms

THUD.

Applejack shot up from her bed, looking around frantically for the source of the noise. “What the hay?! What’s happenin’ this early in the mornin’?!” In her window, she saw a panicked, bright orange muzzle and purple eyes squished up against her window, a hoof on either side of it.

“Applejack…” he said, muffled by the glass.

The farm pony opened the window, causing the Pegasus to fall on his face into the room. “Bolt? What’s goin’ on?”

Boltsinger pulled his face up from the floor, looking pleadingly at Applejack. “I need your help… Twilight is crying, and I have no idea why!”

Applejack’s eyes widened, having some clue as to what was going on. “Aw, horse feathers…” She helped him to his hooves, looking calmly into his eyes. “So why’d ya think I would know what to do?”

“Because you’re the most level-headed pony I know!” He informed her. “She just woke up and started bawling! Spike is staying with her, and I came to get you ‘cause, well, I can get places faster. But I really think we need to get back there quick, so grab on!”

“Grab on? What in tarnation’re you getting at?” she wondered, stepping back a ways.

Boltsinger pulled the mare’s foreleg over to hoist her onto his back, grabbing her hat with his wing and placing it on her head. “No time to explain! Just hold on until we land!” He hunched over, facing the window again with his wings flared.

Applejack looked at Boltsinger like he was insane, but tightened the sudden tingly grip she had on the stallion’s barrel. “I dunno what yer talkin’ ‘bout, Bolt, but you better not be thinkin’ about takin’ OOOOOOO-” before she could finish, they were in the air and out the window, speeding off towards the castle.

Spike sat with Twilight in the bedroom, his claw stroking her back as she sat on the bed. She had been crying almost nonstop for several minutes, occasionally going into an unintelligible ramble about friendship or magic or some impending disaster that she just had to stop before it happened. He was scared that she might be going insane, and wondering what was taking Boltsinger so long.

After a telltale thunderclap, Applejack’s muffled drawl came from the balcony. “Why of all the gosh-darn unexpected un-courteous unfortunate and un-gentlecoltly things I ever did see! Why the heck didja have ta go ‘n do that?!”

Boltsinger stepped through the door with Applejack following angrily behind. He pointed over at Twilight, who raised her head to reveal her teary-eyed face. “Applejack…?” she started, another sob threatening to come out. She started to smile a little, but found even her own emotions cut off as her cheeks puffed out, eyes wide. She ran to the wastebasket in the corner of the room, hanging her head over it as the sound of heaving rang throughout the castle.

“Okay… that’s also new…” Boltsinger said. He rushed over to her side, putting a hoof on her back and rubbing it slowly. “Twilight… are you okay?”

Twilight raised her head, looking at him with a mixture of sickness and sadness. “Am I okay?” she let out a few hics, leaning into him. “I don’t even know anymore!” She offered up more sobs, throwing herself against him as he put his forelegs around her, looking over at Applejack.

“I think I know what’s goin’ on, here.” she started, walking up to the two of them and taking a good look at Twilight.

“Really?” Spike asked in a hopeful tone. “Tell us what it is! Please!”

“She’s pregnant.” the Earth Pony deadpanned. “An’ this is one of the side effects.” She looked at the stallion. “Of all the ponies in Ponyville, how can you two not ‘ave researched this?”

“Would you believe me if I told you that neither of us thought it would be a big deal?” he asked her, holding back his wife’s mane as she heaved once more into the wastebasket. “Neither Shining Armor nor Cadence mentioned any of this kind of stuff, so… We didn’t think… I didn’t think to look all of this up.”

Twilight raised her head from the refuse bin, wiping her mouth and nose simultaneously. “I wanted to look it up, but he convinced me that we should go with the flow…” She turned around and looked at Applejack, her sobbing state having left her. “And… this is where that flow has led us…”

“I admit, I was in error.” Boltsinger said, rubbing Twilight’s back. Twilight began to stand up, Boltsinger helping her to her hooves. “You think you can hold down a meal?”

“I think so… I don’t really feel sick anymore.” she replied, starting towards the hallway. “Do you want to have breakfast with us, Applejack?”

“I’ll do ya one better.” she began. “How’s about I make breakfast? Whataver y’all’re fixin’ to eat, I’ll make it for ya!”

Twilight smiled warmly. “Thanks, Applejack. That sounds wonderful.” She turned her gaze to her favorite stallion. “And after that, we can do some proper research into what all we can expect.”

“Eeyup. And then I can panic properly!” he jokingly affirmed. “Now, let’s get down there and fill that belly of yours. I’d imagine you’re hungry after all you just… lost...”

The Princess groaned. “Don’t remind me…”

The walk to the kitchen was an interesting one. Twilight was insisting that she go at full speed, even despite her recent episode. Boltsinger and Applejack looked at each other, showing mirroring expressions of concern as Spike ran ahead. “Has she been doin’ this for a while?”

“Only since her trip to Wonderbolt headquarters.” he answered. “You remember how we landed on Zapapple harvest day?”

Applejack thought back on the day in question, remembering a loud crash and a cloud of dust. “Didn’t y’all crash? Twilight was on top o’ ya!”

“That’s how we normally land when we’re together these days.” he explained. “She’s been… pushing herself… And I’ve been cushioning her landings when we get a little too fast in our descent. I haven’t brought it up, ‘cause it’s not really any kind of danger. It’s not like she’s been looking for trouble, after all. But if she keeps it up…”

“Worried ‘bout the baby?” Applejack interjected.

Boltsinger scratched his mane with his wing. “When am I not?”

Applejack chuckled. “You got a point, there. Anyway, let’s go get some breakfast.” She went into a trot, catching up with Twilight and looking back. “Y’all went ‘n dragged me here before I could make my own, after all!”

“Okay…” Boltsinger began, looking up from his book. “It says here that common side effects include strange food cravings…” He looked over at Twilight, who had a bowl full of beans, cheese, and blueberries. “Like that. And then there’s mood swings, like you had this morning…”

“Those are going to take some getting used to…” Twilight added, taking a bite and reveling in it.

Applejack looked over at Twilight from a spot next to the stallion. “I think those weird cravings o’ yers are gonna be harder to get used to…”

“And then, next there’s… Well, it seems like you’re going to be having a lot of… emotional changes… during this period.” he stated, looking closely at the pages. "Nausea seems to be a common thing, too.” He looked at her again. “You were right, dear. We really should have researched this from the start.” He tucked the book under his wing, trotting over to the Princess and sitting next to her. “Wanna take a look?”

Twilight nodded, swallowing her current mouthful. “Sure!” Her horn ignited in its usual way, wrapping the book in her aura and floating it over to her and opening it up over her bowl. “This is a pretty big list. Do you think we might need…” Before she could finish, there was a flickering in her aura, quickly fizzling out completely from both her horn and the items she was holding. With a crash, the bowl fell onto the couch, rolling off to land open-end down on the floor with its contents spilling out, while the book fell, spine-first, into the mess. The eyes of the ponies widened, pupils like pinpricks as they looked down at the result. “That’s never happened before…”

Applejack ran to the mess, looking between it and the surprised mare. “You okay?” she asked, kneeling down and putting her hoof on her royal friend’s cheek.

“I don’t know…” she brought her attention to the book below. “Was that in the book?” She closed her eyes and strained in concentration, magical sparks shooting out of her horn to fizzle away. “I can’t… I can’t do it…!” She admitted, going into a fit of hyperventilation as Boltsinger wrapped his forelegs around her.

Applejack’s face showed something Boltsinger had never seen her express before as she stood up. “You stay right here!” She ordered, pointing at the couch. “I’m gonna go get the doctor!”

Boltsinger looked at Applejack as she galloped out of the room, moving as fast as her legs could take her. Something is definitely wrong… I don’t think I’ve ever seen Applejack panic before… “Spike, can you take a letter, please?”

Spike ran into the room, quill and parchment in claw and looking at the scene. “What the…? What in Celestia’s name happened here?!”

“Take the letter, please. I’ll be explaining the situation there, anyway!” He told the drake. Spike nodded, raising the quill. “Okay… Here we go…” He took a deep breath as the dictation began.

“Dear Princess Celestia,

HELP! Twilight has… Um… W-well… There’s something clearly wrong! Her magic is on the fritz and we have no idea why! Applejack is getting the doctor, and I don’t know if it’s because she’s pregnant or not. I know you’re really busy, but any advice you could give would be really, really, really, REALLY appreciated!

Your friend,

Boltsinger”

Spike finished his writing, looking up from the parchment at Twilight. She was hunched over, hyperventilating still, and clutching her head with her forelegs. He rolled up the scroll and tossed the quill aside, reaching over to her. “Twilight… are you…” Before he could reach her, he retracted his arm, unsure if contact was the best idea.

“Spike, could you send the letter, please?” Boltsinger requested, rubbing Twilight’s back. Spike nodded silently, blowing fire onto the scroll as it was magically delivered. “I just hope she has an ans--”

A crashing noise sounded on the balcony outside, and frantic galloping reverberated throughout the halls. Finally, the doorway to the library framed the entrance of Princess Celestia, who wasted no time in coming to her student’s side. “What’s wrong with her?!”

“I wish I knew, Princess…” the Pegasus admitted. “It wasn’t in any of the books. Like I said, Applejack is getting the doctor, but I thought you might have some perspective on this, too.”

Celestia lit her horn, clearing away the mess on the floor as she sat in front of her fellow Alicorn. “Twilight… look at me.” She put her hoof on the lilac pony’s chin, lifting her head up. Her eyes were in a state of constant panic, her horn loosing constant sparks, and her jaw was clenched shut. “I know this is a shock. It will be hard to face, but I need you to calm down.” The Princess of Friendship remained unresponsive. The Sun Princess’ eyes only grew more concerned as she pulled Twilight in for a hug, wrapping both forelegs and wings around her, pulling her off of the couch and even managing to wrap the smaller pony in her flowing mane as tears crept their way out of her eyes. She tightened her embrace, slowly creating a white radiance that warmed the room. “Please… Please, come back, Twilight… I can’t help you if you don’t let me…”

Twilight’s panicked breaths slowed as she loosened up. She leaned into her mentor, burying her face in her shoulder, her eyes closed. “I don’t know what to do… I just…”

Celestia patted her on the back, squeezing her with her wings. “It’s alright, Twilight… We’ll find out what’s going on, and we’ll work through it together.”

“But… what am I without my magic…?” Twilight asked, lifting her head.

Spike stepped forward first, standing tall. “Well, you’re my best friend in the whole world!”

Boltsinger flapped his wings, hovering next to his spouse. “You’re my wife, my friend, and basically the one that turned me into the pony I am now.” He extended his hoof, wiping away a falling tear.

“And you’re the pony I’m most proud of!” Celestia added, turning Twilight’s attention back to her. “You reunited me with my dear sister. You proved to me how important it is to trust your instincts, and passed every single test I sent your way. You proved that you have what it takes to be a Princess, and went further beyond my expectations! And your ability to use magic had nothing to do with any of it.” She put her hoof on the younger Alicorn’s chin, looking her in the eye with a face that reflected the feeling of a mother with her child. “You are an inspiration to all of us, myself especially. You don’t need to use magic for that.”

Twilight smiled, putting her forelegs around her longtime mentor. “Thank you… All of you! “ She looked around at everyone in the room as Celestia lifted them with her magic and pulled them into the hug.

“Princess Celestia?” came a stallion’s voice from the doorway. The occupants of the library turned to see a cream-coated Unicorn stallion with cyan eyes standing in the doorway, surrounded by Applejack and the other Element-bearers. The stallion wore a white jacket with a shirt and tie, a stethoscope hanging from his neck.His mane and tail were a dark, caramel-like shade of brown with an ECG monitor as his Cutie Mark, and his expression was one of both confusion and worry. “What’s going on here?”

Celestia smiled, releasing her embrace and lowering everyone to the floor. “Hello, Doctor Horse.” she greeted, stepping aside.

The doctor stepped up to the group, standing before Twilight. “And what seems to be the problem? I was told there was an emergency.”

“Thank you for coming, Doctor.” Boltsinger said, taking a position next to Twilight. “Twilight’s been suffering from a few of the symptoms that come with pregnancy, and… Well, something happened that’s out of the ordinary.”

Doctor Horse brought his stethoscope forward, examining Twilight. “What’s happening that’s so ‘out of the ordinary’?”

Twilight sat down to give the doctor easier access. “My… magic stopped working…” she admitted, eliciting gasps from Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy.

“You mean you can’t use your telekinesis?” Rarity asked. Twilight shook her head.

“Or teleport?” Rainbow suggested. Still more shaking.

“Not even the teeniest light from your horn?” Fluttershy wondered.

Twilight hung her head in defeat, breathing a sigh. “Nothing. All I can manage is a few fizzling sparks…”

“That’s certainly odd.” Doctor Horse confirmed, bringing his examination to Twilight’s belly. “Normally pregnancy doesn’t have that kind of effect on the mother’s magic.” He listened for a moment, eventually pulling his stethoscope back. “The baby is perfectly healthy, and it seems you are, too. I’m afraid I haven't a clue as to what might have happened. But I’d like to know what you find.”

“Of course, Doctor.” Twilight confirmed.

Doctor Horse nodded, standing and turning to leave. “Very well. I’ll see you at your next appointment, Princess.” With that, he headed out the door.

“So, if the doctor can’t explain what’s happening… Where can we go to get the knowledge we need?” Celestia inquired, her hoof on her muzzle.

“You mean you don’t know?” Pinkie asked, speeding up to the tall Princess. “But you’re the big shot Princess ruler of Equestria who knows everything! How can you not know what’s going on?”

Celestia laughed, directing her attention to Pinkie Pie. “Yes, I have a lot of knowledge, but that’s due to my experiences and teachings. This is something I’ve never encountered before. Do you know anypony else who might have an idea?”

“I don’t think anypony has faced this issue before.” Boltsinger started, patting his wife’s back with his hoof. “But I think I know some zebra who might be able to figure something out!”

Spike looked up at Boltsinger. “Zecora?”

Boltsinger nodded. “Zecora.”

In a hollowed out tree in the Everfree Forest, Twilight sat on a stool with Boltsinger and Spike on either side of her. Celestia, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie all sat at the edge of the room. Approaching Twilight was a zebra with an ornate black sun marking her flank. She put her ear to Twilight’s belly, listening as best she could.

“Hmm… I see your conundrum, and it might feel tragic, but you haven’t permanently lost your magic.” she rhymed, raising her head and looking at the couple.

“Really?” Twilight asked, receiving a nod from the zebra. “That’s wonderful!”

“How can you tell?” Spike queried.

“I can’t directly see, but I do get a feeling.” Zecora explained, putting a hoof on Twilight’s belly. “And this little foal is sending me reeling!” She pulled her hoof away, backing up so as to face the entire group. “The raw magic power in which you take pride has mingled with your husband’s more… erratic side.”

“So, does that mean that the foal has some of my lightning in it, and that’s messing with Twilight’s magic?” the stallion guessed.

“Her body, alone, isn’t up to the test. So her magic chimes in to handle the rest.” Zecora affirmed. “There will be times in which your magic shorts out, but, dear Twilight, that’s no reason to pout.”

Twilight nodded with a warm smile as she looked around at her gathered loved ones. “I know that, now. As long as I have my friends, I can face anything. Even--” her cheeks puffed out once more, sending her running to the edge of the room and heaving into a wastebasket.

Author's Note

This is another chapter that ran away from me a little. I was planning for it to be more on the pure funny side, but the way things turned out... well, you just read it.
Next chapter will likely be a little slow-going, as I'm going to a convention this weekend, but I'll still be working on it in my down time. I hope you enjoy it!

One Lone Sentry

Twilight sat in the throne room, a number of items laying on the map before her. Boltsinger and Spike sat on either side of her, hopeful looks on their faces as the Princess pointed her horn at the first item, a teddy bear. “Okay… I can do this… my magic should be working fine by now!” She closed her eyes, concentrating as a line of magenta light made its way up the spiral of her horn. The teddy bear became enveloped in a magenta aura, slowly being lifted from its spot and into the air.

“Yeah! Go, Twilight!” Spike cheered, breaking the Princess concentration and forcing her to drop the plush onto the table. She glared at the dragon. “Oops… sorry…”

Boltsinger patted the Alicorn on the back with his wing. “It’s okay, Twilight. You were able to lift it with no problems!” He looked at the myriad items around them, ranging from the teddy bear to a teacup to an egg, each getting more and more fragile as they looked on.

“At least you didn’t drop the teacup!” Spike added.

Twilight giggled a bit. “You’re right. It’s progress. I just never thought I’d see the day where the basics of magic were so difficult again! It’s a pretty big change from what I’m used to. I feel… weaker without it.”

“Isn’t that what friends are for?” the stallion asked, leaning on the map. “Spike and I are here, and all of our friends explicitly said they’d be here at the drop of a hat.” He let out a small laugh as he thought of some of them. “And I bet Pinkie meant that literally!”

Twilight and Spike laughed out loud at the idea, certain that he was spot-on. After a moment of levity, Spike began to heave, quickly letting out a loud, flame-filled belch that formed a scroll in his claws. “A letter?” Twilight wondered. “What does it say?”

Spike opened the scroll, looking at the writing in front of him. “‘From the desk of Princess Celestia. It has come to my attention that Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship, has entered a state of vulnerability during her pregnancy, and may require additional protection.’”

“Protection?” Boltsinger repeated. “But who in Ponyville would want to harm you?”

“Nopony I can think of.” the Princess affirmed. “Ponyville is the friendliest place in Equestria!”

“It keeps going.” Spike stated. He cleared his throat and continued on. “‘However, due to the nature of her home and the town in which it stands, I do not believe a full regiment of guards is required. Therefore, until further notice, she shall be assigned… a personal bodyguard from the ranks of the Royal Guard.’” He rolled the scroll up. “The rest is all the details on when he’ll be arriving. I wonder who it’s gonna be…”

Boltsinger stood alone on the boarding platform at the Ponyville train station, twitching his tail as he waited. Why does Celestia think Twilight needs protection, anyway? He thought, letting himself grimace a little. Spike and I are with her all the time! And even without magic, she’s still an Alicorn! That’s gotta amount to something, right? And even after all of that, she’s got the girls to back her up! I don’t wanna see what happens to the pony that gets on Applejack and Rainbow Dash’s bad side… He took a deep breath as a large crystal-decorated train made its way towards the station. Oh well… doesn’t matter… It’s Princess Celestia’s decision. It’s not up to us…

The train pulled in, the door opening to reveal a familiar yellow Pegasus from the Crystal Empire. He stepped onto the platform, looking around. “Where is everypony?” he asked himself, walking past Boltsinger.

The messy-maned stallion raised a hoof, moving to follow the armored pony. “Um, excuse me, sir!” He started, trotting to follow. The Pegasus stopped, causing Boltsinger to bump into him and fall over as the new arrival looked back.

“What was that about?” he inquired, looking at the orange pony. He examined for a moment, remembering the details he saw. “You’re the pony I jousted against at the Crystal Faire, right?”

Boltsinger rubbed his head with his wing, standing up again and taking a look at him. “I… think so? Flash Sentry, right?”

The guard nodded. “That’s me.” He looked around the station. “Why are you here? I was supposed to meet somepony important to take me to the castle.”

Boltsinger sighed, stepping up to him. “That’s me.” He stated. “I’m Boltsinger, and I’m the one who is here to meet you.”

“I don’t believe you.” Flash deadpanned, turning around and walking away. “Oh well, it’s not like I can’t find the castle from here.” He spread his wings, ascending into the air to get the lay of the land, easily catching a glimpse of the crystal structure. He pulled back, making ready to shoot forward as he was met with a pair of purple eyes.

“Well, that was rude.” Boltsinger started. “I wasn’t lying, you know. I’m the pony you were supposed to meet here.”

Flash scowled at the living lightning bolt. “Who are you, then?”

“Princess Twilight’s husband.” He answered, his gaze and tone firm. “I’m pretty sure you knew that, given how angry you were during our match.”

“I know who you are…” he confirmed. “But that’s not important. Princess Twilight is what’s important.”

Boltsinger relentingly averted his gaze. “You’re right. She’s the most important one.” He turned around, motioning towards the castle. “Come on. I’ll show you the way.” He gave a hard flap of his wings, shooting off in the direction of his home.

“Fine…” Flash huffed, following the Prince’s lead.

“I HAVE RETURNED!” came the stallion’s bellow from the foyer. Twilight jumped for a moment, slowly lowering the teacup in her magical grip back down to the map.

“I’m in the throne room!” She called, heading for the room’s entrance. She opened the door with a smile, a blue-maned stallion she loved to see coming into view. “I’ve gotten back to where I can handle the teacup! At this rate, my magic will be back in a--” Another blue mane caught her eye, the pony it belonged to appearing to be shockingly familiar. “Flash?!” She jumped back slightly. “You were the guard Princess Celestia appointed?!”

For the first time since reaching Ponyville, Flash smiled, looking upon the Princess of Friendship. “When I heard you needed additional protection, I volunteered as soon as I could.” He explained, walking over to her. “It’s wonderful to see you again, Princess Twilight.”

Twilight smiled in turn, her face flushing at the guard’s reasoning for being there. “It’s nice to see you, too, Flash.”

Boltsinger cocked an eyebrow, noting the sudden redness in his wife’s cheeks. “That’s right, you two know each other!” He stated, the twitch of his tail picking up its pace. “Okay. I think I’ll give you some time to catch up. Either of you want anything from Sugar Cube Corner?”

Flash shook his head. “Nothing for me, please.”

“Something chocolate for me, please.” Twilight requested. Boltsinger nodded and turned to walk out. “Oh! And Pinkie Pie’s strawberry cinnamon cilantro swirl cupcakes!”

Both stallions’ eyes went wide, looking back at the adorably smiling Princess. They both let out an enamored sigh, goofy grins making themselves known on their muzzles. Upon hearing one another, their heads simultaneously recoiled as their eyes came to meet. “Well, I’m gonna go get those cupcakes! Don’t have too much fun without me!” Boltsinger nervously said, his tail looking like it could whip a whole swarm of parasprites out of the air.

So, I guess Twilight wasn’t kidding when she said she and Flash have some… ‘history’... I just wish the lightning mindset hadn’t erased her promise to tell me about it! He thought, kicking up a cloud of dust on the dirt road behind him. He snorted a few times, trying not to let his temper get the better of him. I mean, those two seemed downright flirty! And what’s this about him volunteering the moment he knew she needed protection, huh? I mean… It’s great that she has a good friend among the Royal Guard, but… I mean… his head sank, slowing his pace as his tail calmed down. “I shouldn’t get in the way of their friendship… I’m just... “ he let out a defeated sigh. “... jealous… and probably overreacting… “ He lifted his head up, slapping his muzzle with his wings and going into a trot. “Besides! What do I have to be jealous of?”

“Jealous of what?” a high, squeaky voice asked from beside him. The stallion gave a sharp yelp, jumping to the side and looking at the source, where stood Pinkie Pie's inquisitively beaming form. “Something on your mind?”

“Cupcakes!” He blurted. “Just… just going into town for some cupcakes! Twilight wanted something chocolate! As well as some… strawberry cilantro cinnamon something…?”

“Strawberry cinnamon cilantro swirl cupcakes? Why in Equestria would she want that?” Pinkie asked, giggling as the two continued on their way. “Then again, she is gonna have a baby in just seven months! And when you’re gonna have a baby, you start wanting really weird food!” She bounded a little closer to him. “So, what else is bothering you?”

Boltsinger’s tail twitched. “Bothering me?” he repeated, putting on a fake smile with another snap of his tail. “Nothing! Nothing’s bothering me!” Another twitch. “What could possibly be bothering me?” Twitch, twitch, twitch. “Everything is just great! The new guard arrived, and he and Twilight know each other and he makes the same goofy face I do when he looks at her and she blushed at the very first thing he said to her and…” His tail twitched so hard that it cracked like a whip. “... I’M JUST FINE WITH THAT!”

“New guard?” Pinkie repeated, putting her face a mere inch away from his. “You mean the guard that Princess Celestia assigned to protect Twilight that turned out to be her old crush Flash Sentry that beat you seven embarrassing times in a jousting tournament in the Crystal Empire and seems to really really really dislike you because you married the mare he likes and got her pregnant with a baby that’s messing with her magic?”

Boltsinger blinked a couple of times, his rump hitting the ground. “Yes.” He said. “That’s it exactly.” He got up, attempting to continue his walk as his own tail whipped him in the flank with realization. He turned around and looked at Pinkie in a panic. “Wait, her ‘old crush’?!”

“Yeah! Didn’t she tell you?” she asked, backing off and pulling down a projector screen from… somewhere, where images of Twilight in crayon began following the events she described. “They met just after Twilight became Princess, and she had this big adventure in some other place and the guy she liked over there had a counterpart here, and those two were all laugh-y and flirt-y and blush-y and it was so cute it would make you wanna EXPLODE!”

“I see.” Boltsinger started, his tone flatter than Pinkie had ever heard from him. He turned to continue to Sugar Cube Corner, followed closely by the frizzy mare. “That’s nice…”

Pinkie stopped for a moment, tilting her head. “What the…?” she started, making to carefully follow him.

Twilight and Flash sat in the throne room, the Royal Guard inspecting the chamber for any possible dangers while the Princess continued practicing with her magic. “No threats here.” Flash said, fluttering down beside the mare. “So, what are you doing?”

“Covering my magical basics.” she explained. “My magic is still a little weak after that initial shorting out, and everypony agreed that taking baby steps is the safest way to get back into the swing of things. I don’t want to overdo it and suddenly fizzle out again!”

“That would be bad. But that’s why you have me here.” He told her, sitting next to her throne. “I’ll make sure nothing bad ever happens to you!”

Twilight allowed a small flush to escape onto her face, nodding curtly. “Why, thank you, Flash. But you’re not the only one here who can help me. Boltsinger and Spike are always here, and my other friends here in Ponyville have promised to come by whenever they can, too.” She began to concentrate on the next item, floating it gingerly into the air. “I appreciate your dedication, but don’t push yourself too hard just for my sake.”

Flash raised a hoof, attempting to bring a point along with it, but was stopped short by the sound of the castle doors opening with a crash, galloping accompanying a squeaky soprano voice. “TWILIGHT!” Pinkie called, skidding to a stop next to the Alicorn. She knelt down, bringing her forehooves together above her head. “I’m sorry!”

Twilight put her object back down on the map, getting out of her throne and looking quizzically at the party pony. “What are you so sorry about?”

Pinkie got up, looking frantically to either side, most noticeably out the door before she came in close to her royal friend. “I broke Bolt!”

Twilight cocked an eyebrow. “Pinkie, what are you talking about?”

Pinkie looked back at the door, where Boltsinger was silently walking in. He slowly made his way to the throne room, a box on his back with his tail twitching a mile a minute. He entered the throne room with a blank stare, sliding the box onto the map, giving his wife a lifeless peck on the cheek, and making his exit towards the stairs. Twilight had a flabbergasted face, furrowing her brow at what had just transpired. “I broke him…”

“How did you ‘break’ him?” the Alicorn inquired.

The pink pony prodded the purple Princess, parading her way farther from the resident guard. Once the yellow stallion was safely out of earshot. “You know how I tend to start talking and then never stop talking until I’ve said the worst possible thing I could say to the pony I’m talking to and they feel worse than they did before like it’s some kind of exposition for a third party to understand what’s going on?”

Twilight shook her head, attempting to fully grasp what it was her eccentric friend was getting at. “I… guess…? What does that have to do with ‘breaking’ Boltsinger?”

Pinkie put her hooves on Twilight’s shoulders, bringing herself muzzle to muzzle with the magical mare. “EVERYTHING! I told him about your history with Flash! And then he suddenly went all--” She made the same kind of blank face the orange stallion had been wearing, her mane imitating his to a degree, quickly returning herself to normal. “--- and then we went to Sugar Cube Corner to get his order, and he tried a strawberry cinnamon cilantro swirl cupcake, and… He didn’t gag!” She shook Twilight rapidly. "HE DIDN'T GAG, TWILIGHT!!!"

Twilight slowly floated one of the aforementioned cupcakes over to herself, taking a gleeful bite. “I don’t see how that’s so strange, Pinkie.” She told her, her mouth stuffed full of the supposed treat and swallowing with a smile. “These are delicious!”

“Twilight, I’m gonna be honest with you.” Pinkie said, her face flattening out. “You’re pregnant, so right now what tastes good to you doesn’t really count.”

Twilight smiled sheepishly, wiping the green frosting from her mouth. “I suppose you’re right… Are you sure Bolt is… broken, though?”

“Well, he did say something about being jealous when I first saw him today.” she added, looking at the hallway. “And his tail was a-twitchin’ worse than when I get my Pinkie Sense!”

Twilight put her hoof to her muzzle, remembering what she saw. “His tail was moving a lot… I’m gonna go check on him!” She walked to the door.

Flash Sentry soon followed suit. “Don’t forget me.” He started, coming up behind the Princess.

“Um… Actually, Flash, could you… um… escort Pinkie home?” Twilight suggested, motioning back to the party pony. “I’d feel safer if my friends were safe, too.”

Flash looked back at her, seeing a cheerful and enthusiastic wave coming back. “I… think she can handle herself.”

Twilight stopped, turning around and looking at her friend. “Are you sure? Did you see her when she came in? She was so… um… helpless and distraught!” She sent a wink at Pinkie, who smiled and winked back with a giggle. There was a moment of silence, Twilight coughing into her wing. “I said… SHE LOOKS SO HELPLESS AND DISTRAUGHT!”

Pinkie’s eyes widened, getting the picture and falling to her knees. She let out a number of fake sobs, bringing her forelegs to the floor and pounding it with her hoof. “Oh noooooooo! I feel so bad about what happened that I am now completely helpless and distraught! Woe is me!”

Flash recoiled at the unexpected change, looking back at Twilight. “You see?” she said, pushing him towards the mare who cried such crocodile tears. “She can’t possibly get home by herself! I’d really appreciate it if you would make sure she gets home safely!” She raised her head, leaning in close and batting her eyelashes. “Please?”

Flash internally swooned. “Okay, I’ll do it.” He replied, immediately acquiescing. “Just make sure you stay safe.”

“I’m in my own castle. I couldn’t be safer!” She affirmed with a smile. “You go and make sure Pinkie Pie is just as safe!” She waved a wing, then paused. “And all my other friends, too! You should check on all of them, just to be sure.”

Flash tilted his head, finally shrugging and turning around to escort the living bubble of laughter back to Sugar Cube Corner. “Come on, Miss Pie. Let’s get this done quickly.”

Thanks, Pinkie… I’m gonna have to make this up to everypony tomorrow… Twilight thought, turning to gallop into the depths of the castle. She went to the library first, thinking that he would bury his troubles in a book. Finding nopony there, she sat for a moment, shifting her ears to listen in several directions for the sounds of music. Again, no signs of the stallion. She thought for a moment more, finally slamming one forehoof into the other as the “Aha!” came out. “The music room!”

The pacing had begun on the music room floor. But the rambling was nowhere to be found. Instead, Boltsinger unconsciously whipped his tail around, occasionally hitting a shelf or stand. He kept going like this for several minutes.

“Bolt?” Twilight called from outside. “Are you in there?” Boltsinger jumped, moving to a corner of the room silently. “I’m coming in, okay?” The door opened slowly, a lilac hoof appearing from beyond to be followed by the Princess it belonged to. She looked around the room, her eyes falling upon the Pegasus she sought. “Hey, Bolt… Are you okay?”

“I’m fine…” he told her. “I’m fine, I’m fine, I’m fine I’m fine I’m fine I’m fine… I’m… fine…”

“Are you sure you’re fine?” she asked, walking up next to him.

“Yep. I’m fine.” He continued. “Totally fine…”

“I’m not so sure you’re as ‘fine’ as you say you are.” she stated, sitting down and scooting closer.

“No, I’m exactly as fine as I say I am, because ‘F.I.N.E.’ is an acronym!” He blurted out, his eyes finally returning to normal as his nervous smile came on full display.

“An acronym?” Twilight wondered. “What does it stand for?”

His breathing slowed down as his head drooped. “It… It stands… It stands for ‘Fractured’...” His wings sank to the floor. “... ‘Insecure’... ‘Neurotic’... and… and... “

“Go on…” the Alicorn encouraged.

“... ‘Emotional’... So, yeah… I’m F.I.N.E… Totally… totally fine…”

“Boltsinger, be honest with me.” Twilight started, putting her wingtip on his chin and lifting his head. “Are you uncomfortable with Flash being here?”

Boltsinger took a deep breath, slapping his muzzle with his wings. “I don’t have anything against Flash…” he told her, pulling his head back. “And, it shouldn’t make me… uncomfortable…” He shook his head, repeating his wing-slapping gesture. “Oh, who am I kidding? It makes me very uncomfortable!” He averted his gaze to the floor, pawing at what he saw below. “You… You liked him… really liked him…” he looked back at her, his face contorted with pain. “And right away, too! And… He still likes you… anypony can tell... But… but..” His breathing grew staggered as he once again slapped his face with his wings, his tail whipping the wall behind him. “You… chose… me…” Another slap to his muzzle came as he raised his hoof, bringing it down hard upon his reflection. “You could’ve had better... Had a Royal Guard! But you chose me…” Tears began flowing out if his eyes at this point. “You chose me…! You could have had somepony who could really protect you and make you happy and you chose me…” He fell forward, his head resting against her as she wrapped him in her forelegs and wings. He reached his foreleg forward, putting his hoof on her belly. “And now we’re having this foal… and it’s messing with your magic and making you feel so weak… and it’s all my fault…! You could have had so much better… and you chose me…” He continued in his repetitious ramble for another minute, eventually devolving into incoherent sobs as he put his forelegs around the mare he loved. Finally, he took one more deep, staggering breath. “Why in Equestria did you choose me?!”

Twilight squeezed him tighter than she ever had before, resting her head on top of his. “Bolt… I chose you because I love you… You know that!” She pulled back, putting her hoof on his cheek. “Come with me.” She stood up, offering her hoof to assist him in the same. “I want to show you something.”

He put his hoof in hers, slowly rising. “What is it?”

She coupled her wing into his, leading him out of the music room and into the halls proper. “You’ll see when we get there. Come on.” The two of them walked in silence for several minutes, eventually heading into a room with a number of jewels that resembled the ornaments on the chandelier of the throne room. On a desk at the edge of the room lay a sewing set and a selection of photos. “Rarity and I set up this room a long time ago, so that we could create more ornaments for the chandelier.” She guided him to the desk, sitting him in the chair and laying out several photographs. She pointed to the one on the far left, showing a spooked orange stallion in the fetal position in the Castle foyer, six mares and a dragon all gathered around him. “This was the night you arrived in Ponyville. You were so excitable back then!” She pointed to the photo next to it, a picture of him staring up at the chandelier. “This was the day you realized you were home here…” The next picture showed Boltsinger at Sweet Apple Acres, his mouth open as if he were letting out a bellow. “Your first day working the farm…” Another picture showed him sitting at a school desk in the library, writing fervently with Twilight at a chalkboard. “Our first tutoring session!” She showed more and more photos, some of them during times he could have sworn there was no camera there. She sat next to him, directing him to look her in the eye. His tears still flowed, but they were softer and more reverent. “Don’t you see? You shared so many wonderful memories with all of us! You are so much more than just a crush I had! You started off as my friend, and that makes all the difference in the world!” She reached forward, pulling him into another hug. “You do so much more than a fun little flirt… truly enriching all of our lives…” She pulled back enough to look at him again, leaning in and giving him a firm kiss to the lips. After a moment, the two separated, she beamed at him, wiping his tears away with her wing. “Choosing you was the best decision I could have made! I couldn’t possibly have had better!”

Boltsinger smiled, pulling his wife in for another embrace. “And here I thought I was supposed to be there while you cried during all of this…”

Twilight packed him on the back, laughing. “At least you had a good reason for it. I just go into random fits of crying or laughter every now and then.” The two shared in a laugh, finally getting up and moving back to the throne room.

The next morning, Boltsinger sat on a chair that had been brought into the throne room in his typical spot, quill in his teeth and parchment beneath him. Twilight was in the middle of enjoying her cupcakes as Pinkie Pie brought more in from the kitchen. Flash Sentry stood on the other side of the open doorway, keeping an eye out for potential dangers.

“Dear Princesses Celestia and Luna,

Sometimes, it’s easy to forget your worth when somepony more outwardly impressive shows up. You might start to think that if that pony had taken your place, then things would have been better, even if they didn’t spend as much time with your loved ones as you have! But the memories you make with those same loved ones always creates something irreplaceable. If you weren’t a part of their lives, then those lives would be remarkably different. But that doesn’t necessarily mean it would be a good kind if different, and that’s the part that’s hard to remember. That lesson, there, lets me know to make sure I create as many good memories as possible with the baby, so that that foal doesn’t have to learn lessons like these the hard way, like I did.

Your friend,

Boltsinger”

Boltsinger rolled up his letter, tucking it under his wing and standing up. He walked over to the Princess and the Pinkie, an inquisitive look lining his face. “So, I have to know… How did you all get those photos? I could have sworn there weren’t any cameras at half of those events!”

“Ask Pinkie!” Twilight stated, pointing at the party pony. “She’s the one that took all of them.”

Boltsinger turned his head towards the pony in question, the question in his eyes as obvious as the color of her coat. Pinkie gave him a smug smile, putting her hoof around him. “Let’s just say I have a sense for these kinds of things.” Twilight performed a spit take with her cupcake, giving off a guffaw like the stallion had only rarely heard before. Pinkie’s knees began to shudder, followed by a whipping of her tail and a shivering of her back, making her jump and let her whole body vibrate for a moment. “Ooh! Excuse me!” She exclaimed, twisting her head and poking into her mane with her prehensile forelock. From the far reaches of the frizz came a camera, which she hung from her neck, speeding out of the castle with a hearty giggle.

Author's Note

First chapter released via my phone! And, man, did this one hit me in my feelings. I've been at a convention since Friday, but I never really stopped writing. And once this was ready, I just had to submit it. I hope you enjoyed it! And I hope you enjoy the next chapter just as much!

Soarin's Choice

Soarin stood in a castle bathroom, looking into the mirror with determination. “Rainbow Dash, I think you’re ready to come back to the Wonderbolts!” He said, practicing his ‘lines’. “And I’ve also come to a decision! I’m gonna… gonna…” he wiped his forehead, the gravity of what he wanted to do hitting him again. “Gonna do this… Gonna move forward and make it happen!” He pumped his hoof, turning to leave the restroom with confidence.

Soarin stood at Rainbow Dash’s door, knocking on it with his hoof. Without hesitation, it opened, revealing Rainbow Dash with her flight goggles on. “You ready to fly?” she asked, stepping out past him and playfully bumping him with her flank.

“Oh, you know it!” He replied, pulling his own goggles into place. “Try and keep up!” he closed the door that Rainbow had left, taking off from that position in a single, fluid, motion.

Rainbow smiled, shooting into the sky after him. She overtook the stallion with ease, looking back at him. “That’s my line, you know!” She waved at him, making an extra hard flap that sent her farther ahead.

“I thought I’d give it a shot!” he answered, quickly matching her acceleration and flying next to her. “Can’t have you making me look bad when we go to next week’s practice, can I?”

“Wait, what?!” If there was a bit in front of her, Rainbow Dash would have stopped on it. Her deceleration was so instantaneous that Soarin looked back, nearly injuring his neck from the whiplash of the motion as he hit a tree. “What do you mean about next week’s practice? Aren’t I supposed to keep taking time off?”

Soarin emerged from the tree, shaking the twigs and leaves from his mane. “I think you’re ready to go back! Your funk is as good as gone, and your flying has been incredible!” He flew up next to her, landing on a cloud and standing proudly. “We’re ready to go back to training!”

“Really?” she inquired, landing in front of him. “That’s awes-- Wait…”

“Wait?” Soarin repeated. “Wait for what?”

“I’d love to come back to the Wonderbolts, but I’m not sure if I can…” she told him, looking back at the town.

“Why not?”

“I don’t think it’s best for me to be away from Ponyville for long periods right now.” She elaborated. “The thing happening with Twilight… There’s no telling when her magic is gonna short out, or when she’ll need help with something. I’m sure Vapor Trail can handle the tour this year… Right now, my friend needs me.” She turned around, not letting him see her face. “I understand if you wanna stop now. You probably have a lot of preparing to do for the routine and the tour and--”

“No, I understand. I’ve been staying at the castle, so I know what’s going on. I’m sure Spitfire would understand, too. I can keep flying if you really want to.” Soarin told her, giving his wings a small warm-up flap. “I kinda wanted to talk to you about something later, anyway.”

Rainbow looked back at him, bending her wings out slightly with intrigue. “Really? What is it you wanna talk about?”

Soarin waved a hoof in front of him. “Aw, it’s not important right now. Let’s fly!” He took off, dissipating the cloud below the two.

Rainbow Dash hovered in the air a moment with a cocky smirk. “Five… Four… Three… Oh, what the heck, that’s enough of a head start!” She took off after him, passing him with little effort and waving at him as she went.

The flight continued for another two hours, the pair of them lost in the speed, the adrenaline, and each other’s company. They turned their course to fly over Ponyville, naturally going into one of the two-pony routines from their Wonderbolt repertoire. They created stars and flowers with the trails that followed them in the sky, several townsponies taking notice and gathering underneath the spectacle. They flew a fair distance from each other, each pulling an immelman turn to fly at one another, full speed. Their velocity increased dramatically as they closed the distance, each of them giving off a smirk. The crowd gasped as they came to be less than a foot away from each other, only to see them both pull a ninety degree turn upwards, leaving competing turbulence in their wake that pushed against them. They soared ever higher, speed approaching their limits as their wingtips began to glow. They spun in the air in opposite directions, wings almost touching each other with each rotation with a spark of lightning passing between them. At the apex of their ascent, they separated, and an explosion of magical lightning burst forth from between them, showering harmlessly over the watching ponies below as they cheered. They came to a landing on either side of the footbridge, turning around and looking up at what had just happened. There in the sky was the Wonderbolts insignia, flashing in a residual charge of rainbow-colored lightning. Rainbow Dash and Soarin’s mouths both silently hung open at the vision above them as they trotted forward onto the bridge, bumping into each other in the center. They simultaneously jumped back a ways, looking at each other. The rainbow light emitted by the magical insignia glowed on Soarin, lighting up his canvassed white coat with color. Rainbow’s jaw remained dropped as the stallion smiled at her, a thump in her chest growing louder and faster.

Soarin looked at the lights again, resting his forelegs on the railing. “Wow… That sure is pretty, huh?” he started, looking back at Rainbow. “Don’t you just love seeing your favorite color light up the sky?”

“It is pretty awesome.” she confirmed, putting her own weight on the railing. “What is your favorite color, anyway?”

Soarin blushed a little, scratching his mane. “You’d just call it silly…”

Rainbow definitively shook her head. “No way! I could never judge you based on something that small!” She scooted closer to him. “So, spill. What’s your favorite color?”

Soarin smiled warmly, positioning himself to face Rainbow Dash in full while still leaning on the rail. “I like all of them.” he told her, the flush covering his muzzle. “I love the whole rainbow!”

Rainbow Dash’s heart skipped a beat as a bright shade of pink appeared on her cheeks. She looked away, back at the fading lights above. “Yeah, rainbows are cool.” she said, doing her best to keep a calm and cool face. “So, what did you want to talk to me about, anyway?”

“Oh yeah! How would you feel about a new neighbor?” he inquired. “‘Cause I need to figure out a place to put my new place.”

Rainbow looked puzzlingly at Soarin. “New place? What do you mean?”

“I mean that I’m moving to Ponyville, of course!” He announced, flaring his wings.

The mare’s eyes went wide. “Really?” Soarin nodded profusely, bringing himself back to all fours. Rainbow’s face gave way to her emotions, showing off a bright smile as she jumped forward and tackled the stallion in a hug. “That’s awesome!” The two rolled to the road on Soarin’s side of the bridge, the cyan pony laying over the white one with the excitement still clear on her face. A gasp sounded from the distance, sending Rainbow Dash back to her senses as she realized the position she was in. She jumped back with an embarrassed laugh, scratching her mane with her hoof. “Wait a minute… Why are you moving to Ponyville, anyway?”

Soarin smiled, working his way to his hooves. “I’ve been staying in Ponyville for a while, now, and I really like it here. It’s a nice town, and it just feels right to be here.” He walked past her, back onto the bridge. “Plus, all of my favorite ponies live here.” He swished his tail in front of her nose as he continued on his way.

The pink returned to Rainbow’s face as she recoiled, looking back at Soarin. “And you… want to move in next to me? But I live in a cloud house! I literally don’t have any neighbors!”

“That means the location’s open, right?” he asked, looking back. “Besides, Pegasus ponies are meant to live on clouds! So, what do you say? Want a neighbor?”

Rainbow smiled, rising into the air and turning around, whipping his flank with her tail. “Come on! Let’s go talk to everypony about building a house in the sky!”

A gathering of Pegasi flew around Rainbow Dash’s house, the mare in question giving orders and pointing to a clump of clouds nearby. They would each respond by moving to the clouds and pulling off a chunk, shaping it into something that looked like a building material. She waved her hoof, directing them to guide the pieces to various locations that put them together, slowly but surely forming a house that had a design that complimented that of the one that floated beside it. It lacked the waterfalls of rainbows that flowed out of Rainbow’s house, but had an intricate wing design, as if it were soaring through the sky, even though it was simply floating in place. Rainbow nodded confidently at the progress, inspecting every pony and their work. As her eyes finally fell upon the one the house was made for, she felt a strange kind of warmth in her chest, making her wings falter in the air for a moment.

“What the heck is going on lately?” she asked herself, putting her hoof over her heart. “Maybe Twilight has an idea!” She turned towards Ponyville, making a beeline for the Castle of Friendship. The cyan mare landed just outside the front door to the castle, pushing in an attempt to open it. For the first time since it sprouted from the ground, the door was locked. She tilted her head, wondering what the heck was going on and pounding on the door. “What the heck, Twilight?! You’ve never locked the door before! What’s going on?”

A slot in the door opened up, Flash Sentry’s face appearing inside it. “What do you need?” he sternly inquired.

“I’m here to see Twilight!, obviously!” she replied, putting her hoof on the door. “You gonna open up, or what?”

“Okay, come on in.” The slot closed, the door opening wide to let the Wonderbolt inside.

She walked past the lone guard, twitching her tail in a slight huff. “Thanks.” She received no response, only the sound of the door latching shut once more as she passed the threshold. “So, where is she, anyway?”

“Oh, she’s in the library working on her magic.” He told her, getting back to his station. “Spike is with her.”

Rainbow Dash nodded, spreading her wings to take off to the library entrance. She paused for a moment, looking back again. “And what about Bolt?”

Flash cast a confused look back. “Who?”

Rainbow’s eyes narrowed, a feeling of frustration beginning to smoulder inside. “You know, her husband… the pony she married? Any of that ring a bell?”

“Oh yeah, him.” He affirmed, turning back to face the door. “I dunno where he is. I heard some thunder a while ago, even though it’s a sunny day. Maybe that was him? Oh well, doesn’t matter. Enjoy your visit!”

Rainbow ascended to the second floor with a small scowl. “I’ll do that…” She opened the library door, stepping in to find a large number of books hovering above the room while surrounded by a magenta aura. Underneath was the Alicorn she was looking for, Spike sitting next to her with a worried look on his face. “Hey, Twilight.”

The magic flickered for a moment, giving way as the Princess lost her concentration. The books fell to the floor, prompting Spike to dive forward and grabbing Twilight, where the two fell to the floor in front of Rainbow Dash. Spike gave the Pegasus a glare, getting up and moving to the pile of books. Twilight sat up, brushing herself off. “Hi, Rainbow. How is construction coming along?”

Rainbow looked between Twilight and the mess she had inadvertently caused. “It’s going… fine. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” she answered, lighting up her horn again and moving the books back into place. “Just working on my multitasking. What brings you over today?”

Rainbow Dash scratched her mane, averting her gaze. “I’ve been feeling… weird… lately. I don’t really know what it is. You think I might be sick?”

Twilight beckoned her friend over to the couch, where the two sat together. She placed her hoof on Rainbow’s forehead. “Well, you don’t have a fever. Have you been feeling warm at all?”

“Yeah, it’s been strange.” she admitted. "I’ve been getting really hot randomly. Just a little while ago, it threw off my balance in the air.” She looked at her chest, then at Twilight with a panic-stricken expression. “Do you think I might be cursed? I really hope I’m not cursed…”

“You’re not cursed, Dash.” Twilight deadpanned. “I think this is a different kind of thing.” She gave her friend a sly look, getting up and moving to the exit.

Rainbow stood up hopefully, trotting alongside her royal friend. “Really? What is it?”

The Alicorn stifled a giggle, twitching her tail. “Oh, you’ll figure it out!” She teased, breaking into a canter and heading for the kitchen.

Rainbow growled audibly, following after her. “That’s what I came to you for!!!”

Author's Note

Hard to believe that this chapter qualifies as one of my shorter ones, now. I like how it played out, though, so I'm gonna keep it where it's at. Next chapter is gonna be a pretty fun one! It's one of those I've had in my head for a while, and it's gonna be interesting to see how it goes.

The Sounds Of Singing

Ponyville was bustling like never before. The citizens were all going about, making preparations for an upcoming event that had them all excited, some beyond reason! The mobile speakers of DJ PON-3 were seen speeding through town with Octavia sitting atop them, playing her cello to the beat. Rarity led the Pony Tones down the road to Fluttershy’s cottage, the group going over their harmonies as they walked, and the front doors to the Castle of Friendship opened wide, the resident Princess taking in the sights before her with a smile making itself known on her muzzle.

“I can’t believe how excited everypony is for the Ponyville Music Festival!” she exclaimed, taking a look back at the approaching Spike. “I haven’t seen the town this active since the last big celebration we had!”

Spike nonchalantly walked past his best friend, shrugging. “Doesn’t Ponyville hold big celebrations like this all the time? What’s so hard to believe?”

Twilight laughed, trotting alongside him. “Oh, hush! Just because it’s a town that parties a lot, that doesn’t mean the excitement is expected.” She took a look around, where several Pegasus ponies were stringing up decorations in the shape of musical notes. On every street corner, there was a treble clef, and melodies could be heard from many of the buildings they passed. “I think it’s wonderful that so many ponies are getting into the spirit of things!”

Spike turned around, walking backwards as they proceeded. “I’m surprised Bolt isn’t out here, what with how much of a music fan he is.”

“He’ll be along. I doubt he’d miss out on all of this!” she stated, looking back at the castle. “He’s probably got something amazing planned for everypony!”

Boltsinger walked through the halls of the castle, a brown and tan monkey swinging around on his wing as he went. “So, Abu, how much you wanna bet they think I have some crazy and elaborate performance planned for the Ponyville Music Festival?” he asked, prompting the simian to come to a landing on his back. Abu shrugged, sifting through his owner’s mane and jumping off. “Yeah, with all the talent coming to town, I don’t think they expect all that much out of me.” His monkey sidekick ran off into the castle as he passed by the bedroom currently used by the Royal Guard. He knocked on the door with his wing, clearing his throat and turning on his Princely composure. “Flash, the festival has started, and Twilight is in town. I’m going to meet her there, if you’d like to join me.”

The door opened, and the guard stepped out in full armor. “That sounds like a good idea.” He admitted, walking beside the Bolt.

“I thought you’d appreciate it.” Boltsinger stated, heading for the door. “Have you ever been to one of Ponyville’s festivals before?”

Flash kept a stark gaze forward. “Can’t say I have.”

The orange Pegasus beamed. “Well, you’re in for a real treat, then! We’ve got the biggest musical sensations in Equestria showing up for the charity concert!”

“What about you?” the yellow Pegasus wondered. “You’ve literally got the word ‘singer’ in your name. Are you gonna put on a show?”

Boltsinger waved a hoof in front of him. “Nah. I couldn’t possibly get an entire performance ready in time for the festivities. Not without Twilight’s magic, at least!” He twiddled his wingtip, making a tiny air pocket. “Getting these filled with the right sounds takes time, and I have to make sure they can last long enough to do it. And improvising a song is totally beyond me.” He sliced through the pocket, dissipating it. “No, I’ll leave the performing to the big names, today.”

“And which ‘big names’ would that be?”

Boltsinger tilted his confused head. “You don’t know? You were standing guard when Twilight and I went over it with everyone!” He received a dignified shake of the head. Boltsinger sighed, holding out a balled up wing and raising one feather. “First, we’ve got Sapphire Shores, or as she’s also known, ‘The Pony Of Pop’.”

Twilight and Spike continued their way to the main stage where the charity concert would take place, looking excited the whole time as Trixie galloped over to her. “Twilight, I’m afraid I have some… bad news.”

Twilight looked puzzlingly at the illusionist. “What’s going on? Did something happen with the effects?”

Trixie’s face contorted a little at the suggestion. “Well, yes… and that led to something worse!”

Twilight stepped forward, one foreleg raised. “What happened?”

Trixie backed up a step, sitting down. “Well, one of the movers that’s handling Sapphire Shores’ equipment ended up… accidentally setting off all of the fireworks for her show…”

Twilight gasped. “Oh no…”

“And it was right next to Sapphire, herself!” She continued, standing up again.

Twilight’s eyes grew wide. “You don’t mean…?”

“So Sapphire Shores’ outfit got all singed as well! She doesn’t have anything she needs to perform! I’m… afraid she can’t make it…” she finished, hanging her head. “I’ve got to get going so that I can set up a new display for her and deliver the backup outfits Rarity made, but… I can’t finish the display before the performance, so she’ll have to cancel…”

Twilight gawked at the idea, quickly closing her eyes and running through her well-practiced calming breaths. “Okay… You go and make sure everything’s okay. Thanks for all your help setting up today, Trixie.” Trixie smiled and nodded, making a flourish with her hat before galloping away.

Boltsinger unfurled another feather. “And then we have Applejack’s foalhood friend, Rara, or as she’s known more widely, Countess Coloratura. I helped her with some sound amplification for a performance once. She’s got a beautiful voice!”

Twilight continued down the road, where Applejack galloped over. “Twilight, I got some bad news!”

“Is the stage not ready?” the Princess asked.

Applejack shook her head. “No…”

“Is someone trying to stop the concert?” Spike suggested.

Applejack shook her head again, putting her hat over her heart. “Rara can’t perform! Some o’ her fans are a little too crazy ‘bout her… She’s havin’ to lay low so that she can get ‘em to back off! She says she’s real sorry, but she can’t afford to go out in public right now.”

“I understand.” the Alicorn affirmed. “When you write back to her, tell her to let us know if there’s anything at all we can do to help.”

Applejack nodded as she turned to walk away. “Will do. I jus’ hope we can still get a good concert in…”

“Me, too.” Twilight confirmed.

Finally entering the foyer, Boltsinger unfurled another feather. “And then there’s Songbird Serenade! Last time she did an event like this was the Friendship Festival! Even Twilight couldn’t believe that she agreed to come to Ponyville!”

Finally making it to the apple-themed stage, Twilight looked around, checking on everypony’s progress. She took special note of the full complement of the Pony Tones going over their signature piece. She started to trot over to the harmonies when Pinkie Pie zipped in front of her.

“Twilight! Big trouble!” She shouted.

“Don’t tell me…” Twilight started, looking at the stage. “Songbird Serenade can’t make it?”

Pinkie recoiled, then jutted her head forward. “How did you know?” She examined the purple pony Princess from horn to haunches, looking as closely as she could. “Did you develop some kind of ‘Twilight sense’ that tells you what kind of bad news is gonna happen?”

Spike shook his head. “No, it’s just easy to figure out, since neither Sapphire Shores nor Countess Coloratura were able to make it either.”

“Oh no!” Pinkie gasped, jumping back. “But that means we don’t have any of the big stars we promised everypony!”

“I know. Everyone is counting on that concert...” Twilight said, looking back at the castle. “I just hope the one performance pony we do have on hoof can give them a show. Otherwise…”

Flash let out a small smile, looking out the now-open doors. “It seems like there’s a great show planned, then. I look forward to the festival.” With that, he flapped his wings and started towards town.

Boltsinger smiled, completely undeterred by the guard’s stoic attitude towards him. “Yeah, this festival is gonna be great!”

“This festival is going to be a disaster!” Twilight concluded, her face already lined with panic. She darted off into town, hoping to find Boltsinger somewhere amidst the busy ponies there.

“Princess?” a deep voice called from above. Twilight looked up, seeing Flash Sentry coming in for a landing next to her. “You look like you’ve just gotten some pretty bad news. What’s going on?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.” she sarcastically blurted out. “I just found out that all three of our star performers for the concert tonight can’t make it, which means we don’t have a ‘concert’ at all!”

“I see…” he replied, putting his hoof to his muzzle. “So, what are you looking for? Any chance I could help you find it?”

Twilight looked hopefully at her bodyguard. “Have you seen Bolt?”

Flash grimaced at the name. “Why do you need him?”

“He’s the only pony in town who has experience doing shows for crowds like the one we’ll have tonight!” she elaborated, remembering the performance she had helped with in Las Pegasus. “Plus, he doesn’t even need any equipment to work! He can do it all by himself! Maybe if he did something for a show, it might get some ponies excited enough for the festival to succeed!”

Flash grunted, relenting to the Princess’ argument. “Okay. I think I know where he might be. Follow me.” He started into the streets, then looked back at her. “And stay close!”

Twilight rolled her eyes, following close behind the yellow stallion. He led her back through town towards the castle, where she heard several ponies talking excitedly about how their favorite artists were performing later. She let out an audible sigh as she listened, keeping her head low, but her gaze forward as the performance pony she pined to see pranced into proximity.

Boltsinger stopped his forward motion as Twilight and Flash came into view, smiling wide and waving his wing. “Hey, Twilight! How’s concert prep going?”

Yet another sigh came from the Alicorn’s mouth. “It isn’t.” She dejectedly stated.

Boltsinger cocked an eyebrow. “What do you mean ‘It isn't’? Is there something wrong with the venue?” Twilight shook her head. “Nopony coming to see the show?” Another head shake. “So… What’s wrong?”

Flash stepped between the Princess and the Pegasus, casting a stern glare at Boltsinger. “Apparently all of those ‘big music stars’ you said were gonna be here tonight can’t make it.” He spat, stepping closer. “And now, for some reason, she needs you to fix everything!” Boltsinger took several steps back, the guard before him showing clear signs of agitation. He gave a panicked look to his wife, only to be blocked by Flash’s wing. “So, what are you gonna do?”

Flash was encased in a magenta field, quickly being slid to the side. “Flash, that’s enough.” Twilight scolded, walking up to her husband. “What he said was pretty harsh, but he wasn’t wrong about the situation. Is there anything you could possibly do to save the concert?”

Boltsinger’s rump hit the ground. “I see…” A nervous smile crept onto his muzzle. “How long until showtime?”

“Not long…” she answered, hanging her head. “At most, six hours.”

“Oh, wonderful!” He exclaimed with tense laughter. “That’s… not enough time.” He mirrored his favorite mare’s position, drawing a circle on the ground with his hoof. “Not even close.”

“Didn’t you perform in Las Pegasus once?” Flash queried. “Why don’t you do what you did there?”

Boltsinger slapped his muzzle with his wings, looking up at the sentry named Sentry. “Because I don’t have a full day to prepare everything!” He explained. “Even the performers we got can’t set up a whole concert so quickly! They have a lot of stuff already prepared way in advance! And my performing style requires a lot more additional prep!”

“He’s got a point.” Twilight affirmed. “His last performance in Las Pegasus was as good as it was because the two of us spent the entire day setting up each part of each song, organizing them so that I could send out the parts he needed when he needed them.”

“Uh-huh. And even though she’s back into the swing of things, there’s still a chance Twilight’s magic could short out mid-show!” Boltsinger concluded, gesturing at the lilac Princess. “That’s a risk I do not want to take. For the crowd’s sake, and for hers.”

“So… what do we do?” she asked, looking hopefully between the stallions.

“Um… uh… Something?” the orange pony jokingly suggested, his tense laughter continuing. “Yup. We’ll do… something.”

The walk back to the stage was slow and deliberate. Twilight and Boltsinger spent the entire time going over ideas for how the concert might be a success, but none of them were reasonable enough for them to confidently move forward with. After an hour that felt like three, they made it to the stage. Looking around, the three ponies saw a small gathering of scowling citizens gathered in front of the stage.

“What do you mean Sapphire Shores can’t make it?” one mare asked.

“I promised my little girl she would see Countess Coloratura tonight!” a stallion shouted, shaking his hoof. “Are you gonna make a liar out of me?”

Applejack stood on the stage above them, smiling as genuinely as she could and putting her hooves in front of her, pushing down in an effort to calm them down. “Now, now, everypony! Y’all know how busy a celebrity’s life can get! They have lives o’ their own! But that doesn’t mean we don’t have a concert!”

“Yeah! We’ve got the Pony Tones!” Spike added, standing beside the farm mare. “And even a headlining act from Las Pegasus!” He looked around over the crowd, catching a glimpse of the approaching ponies. “There he is, right now!” He exclaimed, pointing his claw at Boltsinger.

All eyes immediately fell on the stallion in question, who froze in place and sent a glare at Spike. “Hey everypony!” he started, trying his best to look calm. “How are you doing today? Wonderful day for a festival, isn’t it? Speaking of which, we’re super busy getting everything ready for tonight! SEEYOULATERBYE!” With that, he shot into the air, flying back behind the stage where the Pony Tones prepared.

Boltsinger landed with a small tremor, kicking up a cloud of dust as Twilight and Flash swooped in next to him. Twilight looked at him with her nervous grin. “No pressure, right?”

He smiled back. “None at all!” He slapped his muzzle with his wings, calming himself as much as he could. “I take it this is a familiar kind of pressure for you?”

“Well, everything I plan does generally turn into some sort of disaster.” Twilight admitted, turning to go backstage. “I’m gonna see if everything we do have is ready to use.”

Boltsinger nodded, turning to face the Pony Tones. “Rarity, could you come here for a moment?”

The practice ceased, Rarity turning her head and trotting over to the stallion. Like every member of the quintet, she wore a cyan and gold tuxedo jacket, shirt, and bow tie with her back half bare. “Yes? What do you need?”

“How is rehearsal coming along?” he inquired.

“Big Mac is a little off in the rhythm, but Toe Tapper is helping him through it.” She explained, looking back at the other performers. “Fluttershy has been doing remarkably well, even though we’re performing before such a big audience tonight. I just wish she’d open those beautiful eyes of hers when she sings.”

“Easier said than done.” He stated, waving back at Fluttershy, who smiled and waved back. “I used to do it all the time when I had stage fright. So, how many songs do you have down?”

Rarity put a hoof to her chin, pulling out the information. “We’re set to perform at least three numbers. I know the other performers can’t make it, but with you here, we still have plenty to make a concert out of!”

Boltsinger sighed, shaking his head. “Once again, easier said than done. I don’t have enough time to get more than one song ready at this point.”

The soprano couturier looked back at the rest of her ensemble, giving Fluttershy a mildly sad look. “Oh my… We would need to familiarize Fluttershy with more of the repertoire before we can alter the set list.”

The orange stallions head hung once more, letting out a dejected groan. “All right…” He turned around and walked towards the stage, waving his wing. “Thanks, anyway.” He came into the room behind the main stage, where Twilight was taking inventory of everything in the room. She was completely in her element, her parchment and quill floating in front of her with her lips pursed while she took a close look at even the tiniest details. She hummed a soft melody while she worked, eliciting a harmony from the approaching Pegasus as he sat behind her. The small song continued throughout the Princess’ work, finally fading as she made a satisfied check at the bottom of the page. “You know, that, right there, is what I was looking forward to most about the music festival.”

Twilight rolled up her scroll, tucking it under her wing and facing him. “What do you mean?”

“The thing we just did!” He continued, grandly raising his foreleg. “You had a song that you wanted to sing, and I added something of myself to it! Ponies making music together, no matter what the scale of it is. That is what I was hoping to see and hear today. The concert was just a bonus.”

“That sounds wonderful.” the Alicorn affirmed. She walked over to the curtain, poking her head out to see the crowd. “But these ponies are expecting to hear more music than they want to make for themselves.”

“Well, maybe I can help fix that.” He suggested, standing up tall. “Performing is just one of my talents, after all.” He flared his wings, gaining a confident look. “I need to show these ponies just what all I have to offer… What I can really give!” In that moment, his wings turned stiff, a purple light shining out of his pendant as his feathers discharged a current of the same color. “THAT’S IT!”

Twilight recoiled, looking carefully at her favorite stallion. He had a starry look in his eye that reminded her of the fashionista just outside, and his smirk was just as familiar. “What’s it? Are you okay?”

Boltsinger’s head snapped into position to look at her head-on. “Oh, dear, I just had the most amazing feeling of inspiration! I know exactly what to do to help the festival, and just how I need to do it!” He walked over to her, putting his wing on her back. “Come to the town square soon. I’ll have something positively divine ready for everypony!” He walked out to the stage proper, spreading his wings and flying off towards town.

In the town square, the citizens of Ponyville gathered in front of town hall. Spike had rapidly spread word of a big announcement for the festival, and many ponies were excited to be there. From inside the building, Boltsinger stepped out, his wings still rigid and sparking with purple electricity. He looked out at the audience before him, smiling wide. “Fillies and gentlecolts! My little ponies of Ponyville! I’ve got an announcement to make that will change everything about this festival of ours!” He paused, letting the onlookers all discuss what might be happening amongst themselves. “I know you’re all excited about the concert happening tonight. The three biggest names in Equestrian music!” Cheers erupted all around him, sending him flying into the closed door behind him. “Yes, yes, I know! However, the lives of celebrities can be… How shall I put this…? A little busy. I’m afraid that none of them were able to make it for tonight’s performance…” As quickly as they had cheered, the crowd turned to boos and heckling. Several of them stood up in a myriad of huffs, attempting to storm off as the stallion on stage cleared his throat loud enough to make everypony in the gathering freeze. “However, just because we don’t have them, that doesn’t mean we can’t have a concert tonight!” He trotted down from the steps, walking amongst the townsponies. “I happen to know that this town is full of musical ponies. You don’t need a musical note or a microphone as your Cutie Mark to know that much.” He looked around at the confused faces surrounding him, his smile ever-present. “Why, as I stand, I can hear a number of amazing voices just waiting to burst out a tune!” He pointed to a group of four Earth Pony stallions, one red, one blue, one yellow, and one white, each of them with a short black mane and tail, brown eyes, and each of them with a Cutie Mark of a different section of pie. “You gentlecolts, right there! Have you ever sang a song before?”

The red one spoke first in a deep bass voice. “No, can’t say I have.”

The blue one took a breath, letting a baritone voice out. “But we always liked listening to music!”

Next came the yellow pony, a low tenor coming from his mouth. “Why, we even learned some lyrics along the way!”

Finally, a shrill tenor voice belted out of the white stallion. “But we dunno the first thing about how to do it ourselves!”

Boltsinger practically melted at the sounds he had just heard. He cantered over to the foursome, putting his hoof around the red pony. “My dear fellows, I can’t believe my ears! Why, I don’t think I’ve ever heard such flawless pitch!” He stood in front of the first pony he’d approached, producing a low note and looking at him. “Okay, you, sir… ~Say ice creeeeam…~”

“Uh… Ice cream…” He repeated, filled with confusion. “But I don’t know what that has to do with singing.”

“Trust me, it has everything to do with singing.” he stated, getting in closer. “Now… ~Do it agaaaain… Talk sloooooow…~”

“Uh… Okay…” He took a deep breath in preparation. “~Ice creeeeam…~” He reeled back, not believing what he had just done.

Boltsinger clapped his forehooves together, standing on his hind legs. “Yes! That was fabulous!” He pointed at the blue pony. “Now you, sir! Same thing, but higher!”

“~Ice creeeeam…!~” he repeated with a sudden smile as his red-coated friend resumed his note.

Boltsinger pointed at the yellow one. “And you, sir!”

“~Ice creeeeam…!~” he followed suit, a resonance beginning to form.

Boltsinger gave an encouraging hoof to the white stallion. “Now, you!”

The stallion nodded proudly, taking a deep breath. “~IIIIIIIICE CREEEEEEEEEEAM!!!~” As he joined in, five notes came from the four ponies, The crowd around them looked on in awe, one of them mentioning how they had never even considered those four singing before.

“And that, my little ponies, is how you sing!” Boltsinger declared. The stallions looked happily at each other, walking off to a beat as they started into their own song. He waved a farewell to the ponies and flew back up to the steps of town hall, facing the crowd again. “No, we don’t have a big celebrity rock concert. But who needs that? I am proud to announce the Ponyville Musical Showcase! Starring… Everypony!” He walked back into the gathering, now greeted with cheers. “I’m here to help anypony who doesn’t quite have a firm grasp on music. And it’s not just me! Anypony who is willing to help should offer up their skills!” He rose into the air above him, taking on the stance that was his ‘performance hover’ as he took the deepest breath he could.

“~We are well met, my friends, in this place to night!
Though none of us are strangers to each other!
The many paths that led us here shall mingle, and unite,
As we wa-alk down the sa-ame road together!~”

He twisted in the air, facing another section of the citizens.

“~And so, when the music staaarts,
Open up your heeearts!
Let it soar like a lark in early morning!
Sorrow, care, or fear!
Tonight, have no place here!
They shall all soon disappear
In the sounds of singing!~”

He landed amidst the ponies once more, his hoof placed over his heart as he walked forward.

“~This crowded age we live in gives us little time or choice…
Small, simple dreams are often derided!
But tonight, we shall sing in a common pony’s voice!
Toni-ight we shall be-e not divided!

So for these few hours, at leeeast…
Let your spirits be releeeased!
Ma-ay you find peace, If peace is what you’re seeking!
The frantic, ceaseless roar,
Of the world outside our door,
Shall on this night, fade before…
The sounds of singing!~”

He stopped, turning around and going back into his performance hover with his eyes closed.

He opened his eyes, looking into those of all the other ponies and taking another breath. “So, what are we waiting for? Let’s get singing!” With that, there was a mixture of applause and the sounds he had hoped to hear. Many ponies had begun letting their voices out, with some not doing quite so well as others, drawing his attention like a baby’s cry.

Twilight watched from the steps of town hall, looking intently at her husband as he flited about town, guiding ponies through whatever problems they might have had and guiding them to ponies that could help them further. From a group of fillies who learned their scales, to a pony who could never get past a whisper in their speaking. Not all of them sang, but all of them came out better for it. The light from his pendant shone the entire time, his Cutie Mark crackling like he was working. It reminded her of their time in Baltimare, only this time, he was doing something entirely different. She smiled, flying to his side and helping him in his endeavors.

Finally, the evening arrived, and what was once to be a rock concert was set to begin. Ponies gathered all over the stage, each taking their turns to come up and perform as Twilight and Boltsinger looked on from behind the crowd, Flash standing behind the Princess.

“Just listen to that...” he started, fluttering his wings. “This is the best part of the music festival! Everypony making music together, sharing their talents, and creating something beautiful.”

“It really is amazing what ponies can do with a little encouragement.” She agreed, turning her gaze towards him. “I’m sorry I tried to make you put on such a big show on such short notice.”

Boltsinger waved his hoof in front of him in a dismissive gesture. “It’s alright. I know how freaked you were. I was a little frazzled, myself. But, suddenly, I just wanted to share the ideas I had with everypony! And it turned out so lovely!”

Flash took a position on the other side of Twilight, taking in the sight before him. “I’ve got to admit, this is pretty great. Although I would like to have seen those big names you mentioned.”

Twilight looked over at her bodyguard, nodding in agreement. “It would have been nice, but I think I’m with Bolt on this one. Bringing ponies together is much more important than just having a conc--” As she looked back to the orange stallion, her face went from happiness to concern as she spotted him passed out on the ground. Part of her had expected this, but that didn’t stop the reality of it from being a shock. “Bolt!” She cried, going to the ground next to him and shaking him in an attempt to wake him. There was no response, as if all of his energy was completely drained. “Not again... “ She stood up again, looking at Flash. “Get him back to the castle. I’ll be flying ahead, so I’ll meet you there!”

Flash stood at attention, saluting with his foreleg. “Of course, Princess!” He hoisted the passed-out Pegasus into his back, holding him in place with his wings and galloping off.

“I’m gonna get to the bottom of this… even if it takes me all night!” She declared as she took off, full speed.

The next morning, Boltsinger walked groggily into the throne room. He let out a yawn as he looked around. The room was filled to the brim with books, and Twilight was pouring over them from her throne. “Morning, Twilight.” He greeted, pulling his chair up next to her. “Whatcha researching?”

Twilight turned to face him, dark circles having formed under her dry eyes. “I’ve been researching you… The thing that keeps happening, I mean. And I think I have a lead.” She motioned to the books in the room. “None of the books had anything to say about when you suddenly… change. How, in the Crystal Empire, you suddenly had enough strength to buck two knights away when you couldn’t even make one budge just an hour before. Or how, in Baltimare, you were able to work with animals that clearly terrified you. And then there was yesterday, when you went out, commanded the town’s attention, and gave all of them the gift of song!” She tapped the map for emphasis. “But then I thought about it… Each time it happened, your lightning changed color, and then you displayed traits from one of our friends mixed in with your own talents.”

“Okay… But what does that have to do with the map?” he wondered, looking at his own reflection.

“The colors your lightning turned were the same as Applejack, Fluttershy, and Rarity’s Elements of Harmony.” She continued. “I tried for a long time to think of why that might happen to you, and then it hit me! Do you remember when you first came home after your wings broke? How you talked to the map?”

“You mean when you, Spike, and Starlight eavesdropped on me and the map grabbed a hold of me with my own lightning?” he deadpanned, leaning on the table.

Twilight let a little red onto her cheeks, nodding bashfully. “Yes. That.” She lit her horn, clearing away all of the books piled on top of it. “I think the map really did listen to you. It’s connected to the Tree of Harmony, after all, and that’s the source of the Elements.” She directed her magic at his wings, which sparked slightly in their normal color. “I think that, at a time where you really need it, the Tree of Harmony is letting you draw from one of us Element-bearers. It lets you channel one of us, be it our abilities, like with Applejack and Fluttershy, or our personalities, like you showed with Rarity yesterday. And then your lightning kicks in and changes to correspond to that.”

Boltsinger tilted his head, the gears inside turning so fast as to be heard from within. “That’s… pretty cool, I guess… Does that explain why I don’t remember actually doing any of it?”

“I think so.” She confirmed, pulling up the research book and a quill. She began writing as she spoke. “But I don’t think it’s something you have any control over. And honestly, I’m glad that’s the case.”

“Why are you glad?” the Pegasus asked. “Wouldn't it be good if we could double up on somepony’s talents when we really need it?”

“Maybe, but you pass out every time it happens!” the Alicorn elaborated, bringing her wing up to his cheek. “It helps you to come through, yes. But it takes so much out of you that… Bolt, it has me really worried. I’m not sure if such a mixture of magic is good for you, even if it is useful in a bind!”

Boltsinger put his wing on hers, smiling. “You’ve got a good point, there. But there’s not much we can do about it at this point.” he told her. “If I can’t control it, then it’s bound to keep happening. Best we can do is not force it to happen, right?”

Twilight somberly lowered her head. “I guess so…”

Boltsinger returned his wing to its resting position, looking closely at the mare. “So… How late did you get to sleep last night?”

Twilight gave off a sheepish laugh, retreating into herself. “Um… I didn’t!”

Author's Note

The song that was used is "The Sound Of Singing" by Eric Bogle. I claim no ownership.
You can find my own recording of the song right here.

Rarity's Canvas

“Tell me again why you needed me to come with you to Canterlot.” Rainbow Dash requested, hovering above the streets of Canterlot with the friend she understood least.

“Why, it’s very simple, darling. I need somepony to give me an excuse to leave any stallions that are… A little too undesirable… Without seeming like a complete prude!” Rarity explained. “Besides, it’s been too long since you and I spent some quality time together! It’ll be fun!”

“So I’m your wing mare, huh?” Rainbow started, thinking on the idea. “Yeah, I can get behind that. But why do we have to do this in Canterlot? There’s plenty of guys in Ponyville.”

Rarity rolled her eyes. “Dashie, Ponyville is too familiar. All of the ponies there feel too much like family to try and… romance. I’d much rather look around somewhere more sophisticated!”

“So, it’s too much of a hick town?” the Wonderbolt clarified, making the designer jump in place. The rainbow mare dropped to the ground laughing, soon picking herself up and walking alongside her friend. “Don’t worry, Rarity, I’ve got your back!”

“Thank you.” she replied. They walked in silence for a few minutes, Rarity eyeing a number of notable stallions as they passed. Eventually, her attention turned back to Rainbow Dash, a question beginning to tug at her lips. “So, how is your little romance going, dear?”

Rainbow shot Rarity a confused glance. “Uh… What are you talking about? I don’t have a romance going on.”

“Oh, right!” The couturier corrected, turning her attention forward again. “Of course you don’t! I just assumed that, with you spending so much time with Soarin, that things were… well, you know!”

Rainbow thought on what her friend had mentioned, the stallion in question coming to mind with a measure of pink crossing her muzzle. “No, I don’t know.” The warmth she had been experiencing made a triumphant return, slowing her down. “There it is again…” she mumbled.

Rarity chanced a glance back at her suddenly-slower friend. "What was that?"

Rainbow Dash tensed. "Uh... Nothing!"

A wry smirk formed on the coutourier's lips as she continued her trot. "Very well, then. Let's get to the boutique! There's much to be done!"

Rarity stepped out from behind the changing curtain, modeling a particularly elaborate black gown to offset her white coat. It had a simple gold belt and bracelets, each featuring a single appropriately-sized amethyst in a diamond cut, and knotwork covering each layer of fabric. “So, what do you think?” she asked, glancing over at Rainbow Dash.

“It looks cool.” Rainbow answered nonchalantly. “But why do you need some fancy outfit when we’re just going for a night on the town?”

Rarity laughed into her hoof. “Oh, darling, why would I not need to look gorgeous?” She strutted over to Rainbow Dash, looking her over and floating some measuring tape up to her. “It’s as much to attract attention as it is to make me feel good about myself! And I don’t intend to be fabulous alone, tonight!”

“Uh, what are you talking about?” the cyan mare inquired, squirming at the proximity of the measuring tape. “I don’t need some frou-frou getup!”

“Oh, please, darling, let me make you something!” Rarity pleaded, pouting. “I promise it will be simple!”

“Simple, huh?” the flyer repeated. “Will it be cool?”

“I guarantee it will fit you to a ‘T’!” She assured her, putting her outfit on a hanger and getting to work. “Let’s see… if I’m designing for Rainbow Dash, I need to take advantage of her… attributes.” She looked back at the mare she had in mind, who was leaning against the pure white wall, trying to look aloof. In the seasoned eyes of the designer, the colors of her mane popped out against the blank canvas that was the wall. “I see it!” She declared, her eyes showing stars. In that moment, she floated over a rather large roll of white fabric and scissors, the outfit slowly taking shape.

After several minutes, Rainbow Dash peeked over Rarity’s shoulder. “So, what kind of outfit are you making, anyway?”

Rarity let her gaze turn to Rainbow, another smile forming as she picked up the pace. “I’m thinking something fetching, alluring, form-fitting… Yet also powerful, evocative, and intriguing! A canvas upon which your true colors can shine!” She sewed each piece together, creating a solid white dress with a thin profile, slots made just so for wings to poke out. The skirt went as far as her knees, allowing room for her tail and lacking any frills. The shape clearly had flight in mind. On the hooves, shoes and straps of a glorious gold were placed, the straps coiling themselves up the legs to stop just short of her joints. The collar flared out, but only slightly, so as to accentuate the wearer’s mane, should it be long enough, and a tight, but not choking necklace placed just above the collar, a brilliant sapphire crested over the heart. When the shape was complete, Rarity backed away. “Well, dear, what do you think?”

Rainbow looked at the outfit, letting her mouth hang open. “What do I think?” she repeated, finally blinking. “What do I think?” She jumped into the air, hovering in place as she spread her forelegs. “This is awesome! Are you sure I can have this?”

“Darling, I made this specifically for you! Of course you can have it!” She gathered up the various pieces of the outfit, guiding her friend behind the changing curtain. She floated the garments over to her, using a simple spell to help her into them. “It looks good, but it’s still… missing something. Aha!” She lifted several products over, creating a veritable cloud of beauty products as the bell rang. The fashionista paused, pulling away. “Just a moment, dear, somepony at the door!”

Rarity trotted down to the main room of the shop, where a large-chested and mustachioed white Unicorn stallion stood, looking around at the wares. His wavy blue mane and tail had a gloss to it that made it clear he took exquisite care of it, and his eyes and hooves matched the hair’s color almost perfectly. His Cutie Mark consisted of three golden crowns with purple gems situated in them, and he wore a black tailcoat with a purple vest, white button-up shirt, and a purple bow tie along with a monocle over his left eye. He turned to the owner of the establishment, giving forth a smug but ecstatic grin. “Why, Rarity, how wonderful to see you!” he greeted, walking up to the mare. He took Rarity’s hoof in his, giving it a proper greeting kiss. “How have you been, my dear?”

Rarity raised her hoof to hide her muzzle, where she had felt a blush creep in. “It’s good to see you, as well, Fancy Pants. I’ve been well.” She moved to the counter, standing at the register. “What brings you to my shop?”

“I had heard that the most beautiful thing in my favorite boutique in Canterlot was finally on the market, and wished to partake.” he started, walking over to the register. “I do hope that is still the case.”

“Oh? And what’s the most beautiful thing here?” Rarity wondered, looking around.

Fancy Pants took her hoof once more, leaning against the counter and looking into her eyes. “Why, you are, my dear.”

For the first time since her dating escapades began, Rarity’s heart skipped a beat. Her free hoof rose to her mouth as her eyes grew wide. She looked at his hopeful, smiling face, finding herself at a complete loss for words. After a moment, she mustered up the strength to speak. “I-I-I don’t know what to say!”

“Say you’ll accompany me on the town, this evening, of course!” He suggested. “I’ll see you at precisely eight o’ clock, yes?”

Rarity began nodding rapidly. “Oh, yes! Definitely!” She confirmed, walking shakily back out from behind the counter. “I just… need to finish some things up here… Ta-ta~!” She raised her hoof, gingerly waving it as she went up the stairs. Fancy Pants smiled and took a bow, making his exit.

“Hey, Rarity!” Rainbow Dash called from upstairs. “What’s going on? Don’t leave me hangin’ like this!”

Rarity snapped back to normalcy, finishing her trek back up. “Yes, of course, dear! Coming~!” She entered the workroom, once again lifting the beauty products and putting them to use. “I just had the most wonderful customer, darling!”

“Yeah, I heard it from up here.” Rainbow stated, her face obscured by the cloud of mane care. “That Fancy Pants sure is a smooth talker. You still gonna need me to play wing mare tonight?”

Rarity smiled, finishing her work and taking a step back. “Well, I wouldn’t want you to be looking so lovely without setting you loose on the world, now would I?” She floated a mirror over, giving the Wonderbolt a good look at herself. Her mane had a water-like wave to it, both her bangs and the hair on the back of her head somehow showing every color present rather than the usual three-color split between them, and there was a touch of pink only slightly evident on her face that didn’t come from her natural blush. She recoiled a little at the sight, then took a look at her tail, which had the same wave treatment as her mane. “I knew you wouldn’t want too much in the cosmetics department, but I felt that a hint of blush would help to accentuate your features.” She pulled the mirror away, guiding her over to one that would show her entire body. “So, what do you think?”

Rainbow took a look at her full reflection, raising her hoof and flexing her wing. She felt like she could go top speed in this getup without any trouble at all! The pure white was something she wasn’t so used to wearing, since most of the outfits she got were tailored to mirror the colors in her mane, and this was a stark offset. Looking closely, she could see how the offset was complementary. While her outfit was a single white, her cyan coat and her rainbow-colored mane and tail, admittedly along with the blush on her cheeks, seemed to pop out more vividly than ever before. She found herself smiling at what she saw, striking poses as if she was being photographed. Rarity released a giggle from her lips, snapping the Pegasus back to reality, quickly stepping back and putting her ‘cool’ expression back on. “Uh, yeah! It looks cool, I guess…”

“Well, we’ll both be turning heads tonight!” The designer declared, floating her own outfit back over and going behind the curtain. “Even if I already have the best date in TOWN!” Her speech quickly devolved into excited, squeeing laughter as she robed herself, earning a laugh from the mare in the room with her.

Evening came, and Rarity stood in the showroom at Canterlot Carousel, making some minor adjustments to the displays even despite wearing the gown she planned to go out in. She hummed softly as she did her work, excited for the evening before her. Rainbow Dash was upstairs, keeping herself busy with a Daring Do book as she waited. At long last, the bell rang with the opening door, Fancy Pants coming inside with a relaxed smile. Rarity stopped her work, turning with a flip of her mane to face the big-horned stallion. “Welcome back, Fancy Pants.” She greeted with a curt bow.

“Good to be back, my dear.” he replied, offering his own bow in return. “And I must say, you look lovely this evening!” He walked up next to her, offering his foreleg. “Shall we, then?”

Rarity coupled her foreleg into his. “We shall!” She looked back, directing her gaze upstairs. “Rainbow, darling, we’re leaving!”

“Okay. Have a good time!” she called back, closing her book and heading to the window. She took off into the main streets of the city, watching her friend begin her date. She followed behind them on the ground, where the two Unicorns began conversing. Rarity would often recoil with a laugh. Smooth talker and a comedian, huh? She looked around, where several passing ponies stopped in their tracks, their heads turning to get a look at the mare in black while commenting about Fancy Pants’ sudden interest in her. Rainbow looked on with a smile at the reveling Rarity.

“And who is that mare behind them?” somepony asked, drawing Rainbow’s attention. She looked around, seeing just as many heads turning to look at her as the glamorous mare she followed. She found herself unsure of what to do or say with all of these eyes having fallen upon her. Standing out, she was used to. But that was for something like flying or just being awesome. This was a new kind of attention, and she wasn’t sure how she felt about it. This became even more clear when a haughty-looking stallion trotted over and offered his hoof.

“Ma’am, would you be so kind as to allow me to escort you this evening?” He asked, his eyes hopeful.

Rainbow reeled back. “Uh… well… No, I’m just out to meet up with a friend!” She explained. It wasn’t a complete lie, either. Rarity was right there in front of her, completely lost in her own little romantic world. Rainbow cantered ahead to both get away from the stallion and to get a little closer to Rarity. “Hey, Rarity,” she whispered, causing the Unicorn’s ear to fold back to face her. “You seem to have this all in hoof… I’m a little creeped out by some of these guys, so… I’m gonna go get a little insurance of my own. Be back soon.” Rarity nodded, her gaze still on her companion for the night as the rainbow streak flew off into the distance.

There was a knock at Soarin’s door, causing his head to poke up from the pile of his possessions to look around. He carefully rose out of it, making his way to the door as he loosened up his wings. Finally, he opened the door…

And all looseness in his wings went away completely. “R-R-Rainbow Dash?!” He began, looking her over with a face so red it looked as if he were about to burst into flames. “What’s going on? And… why are you dressed like that?”

“Get dressed and come with me!” she told him, her face stern and pink. “I need your help.”

“Dressed?” he repeated, looking confused. “What are you talking about?”

Rainbow’s face grew pinker still. “Put on something fancy and come with me! Rarity needs me and…” She paused, unsure of how to phrase her thoughts. “... And I need you!”

Soarin swore he had never seen this mare looking quite so bashful, among other things. He lingered for but a moment, then quickly acquiesced, retreating into the house to find the closest thing to formal wear he could. He emerged in a simple black jacket with a sheepish smile on his face. “How about this?”

Dash reached forward and grabbed his hoof with hers. “That’s perfect, now let’s get to Canterlot!” She hurriedly stated, pulling him out of the house and taking off towards the mountainside city.

Soarin fought his wings for control, loosening them up again as he flew beside the white-clad mare. “What are we doing in Canterlot, anyway?”

Rainbow groaned, slowing down to let him properly keep up. “Rarity is on a date with some high-class pony named Fancy Pants, and she had me follow along to give her an excuse to leave in case it all went south.”

“Well, that explains the… uh… outfit.” He said, the red returning to his face. “You look beautiful, by the way!”

Rainbow Dash’s wings faltered, sending her plummeting a few feet before she caught herself, putting her hoof over her heart. Again with that weird feeling… She looked back at Soarin, a smile unconsciously forming on her muzzle as she turned to face her destination again. “Thanks… Anyway, she made this outfit for me, and as soon as I went out, some hoity toity stallion trotted up and wanted me to go with him! So, I figured I’d get some… insurance… of my own. Nopony is gonna try and ask me out if I’m already on a date, right?”

“A date?” the wide-eyed Wonderbolt repeated, skidding to a stop. “You mean we’re going on a real date?!”

Rainbow Dash sighed, stopping and facing him. “We’re going to be there for Rarity, and you are coming with me while I follow them.” She elaborated, looking stern. Soarin’s face sank a little, evident that he was making an attempt to hide his disappointment. She softened up, turning around. “But… We will be going to dinner, probably seeing a show, or something like that. Just because we’re following Rarity, that doesn’t mean we can’t still have a good time!”

Soarin perked up, flying forward and taking his companion by the hoof as they flew to the city. “Well, then, what are we waiting for?”

The pair of Pegasi landed in the same street Rainbow had taken off from, the mare looking around to find her friend to no avail. “Okay, she’s not here, but I figure Fancy Pants probably took her to some fancy place to eat. You wanna get some grub while we wait for them to show up?”

“Oh, definitely!” Soarin replied, offering his wing. “I know the best place to eat, too!”

Rainbow looked at the outstretched wing tentatively, stewing for a moment as she looked around at the gawking stallion's that beheld her. She looked back at Soarin. His eyes, alone, took in the sight if her without a single hint of ulterior motive or scheming. Only his green eyes looked at her for who she was, and the warmth made a powerful return because of it. “All right, then! Lead the way!” she declared, finally coupling her wing together with his.

They found Rarity and Fancy Pants shortly after a dinner at the Smoked Oat, where Rainbow Dash had to admit the food was delicious. They followed shortly behind the Unicorns, taking in the sights around them. Rarity had eased herself into a state of comfort with the Canterlot noble, walking closer to him as they made their way to the next destination.

After a while, Rainbow Dash and Soarin found themselves standing outside the opera house. They looked at the building, then at each other, Rainbow making a gagging motion. “Wanna go do something else until they’re done?”

“Definitely.” Soarin confirmed. “Wanna take a walk? That way we can come back and check on them whenever.”

Rainbow nodded, offering up her wing. “I think I can go along with that.”

Soarin happily took her wing. “Excellent.” He started down the road, the rainbow mare in tow, and looked around at the sights. They were both familiar with the city, but never got the chance to take in what it had to offer after dark. The lamp posts were lit, but that somehow didn’t stop the stars from shining so brilliantly that they lit up the city below, as if the whole town was designed to look it's best under the moon. They found their way to the fountain, looking into their reflections in the water. “I really meant it when I said you look beautiful tonight.” Soarin stated, drifting his gaze to look at her properly.

Rainbow smiled, stepping closer to him. “I know.” She responded, nudging him with her foreleg. “You’ve only ever been honest with me. More than I can say about a lot of ponies around here. I… really appreciate that. And, you know, coming out here with me.”

Soarin smirked and turned back the way they had come. “No problem, Crash. You can always count on me.”

Rainbow turned and walked ahead, looking back on her companion fondly. “Well, we’d better get back. Don’t wanna lose Rarity again.” Soarin nodded, catching up to her as she stumbled a little. That darn feeling again… Well, maybe it’s no so bad...

At evening’s end, Rarity and Fancy Pants stood outside the entrance to Canterlot Carousel, looking dreamily into each other’s eyes. “Oh, Fancy Pants, this was a truly splendid evening…”

“Indeed. Your company was exquisite.” he replied, leaning in closer. “I do hope you’re free to join me again soon.”

“Of course…” she confirmed, lighting up her horn and opening the door. “I’m going to be going back to Ponyville for a while to fill a number of orders, but you’re always welcome to come by. I can show you a good time there like you’ve shown me here!”

“That sounds positively delightful!" The noble exclaimed, taking his lady’s hoof and planting a kiss on it. “Until next time, my dear!” He began his walk home, waving at the mare as he left.

Rarity waved back, swooning as she walked inside. “Yes… Next time…”

“Good to see you had a good time!” Rainbow said from the stairway.

Rarity jumped out of her dreamy state, looking at the Wonderbolt. She looked like her normal self, having removed the outfit made for her. “Indeed. And how, may I ask, is Soarin?”

Rainbow scratched her head, averting her eyes. “You saw him, huh?”

“Please, darling, you’d have to be blind not have noticed the two of you!” Rarity teased, walking up the stairs. “You looked so adorable together, walking wing in wing like that!”

Rainbow’s face went pink again, putting her hooves in front of her. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! You’re not saying what I think you’re saying, are you?”

The fashionista shot a playful look at the flyer, a notable twinkle in her eye. “Just that you two make a magnificently cute couple!”

Author's Note

I know I didn't go into the details of Rarity's date, but I'm seriously not glossing over her romance. I guarantee you, her arc is only just beginning at this point!

Forcing An Issue

Flash Sentry flew along in Ponyville, surveying the town for anything out of the ordinary. He had just checked with all of Twilight's best friends to ensure their safety, and was, thus far, having a good day. Twilight was happy, the town was doing well, and nothing strange seemed to be happening. He let out a satisfied sigh, knowing all was well.

That is, until the strangest thing he had ever seen happened right in front of him. The trumpeting of an elephant sounded directly behind him, prompting him to tense up and immediately dart out of the way. There flew the pakiderm in question, completely out of place in the sky. It looked relatively normal, save for the tiny wings protruding from its back. It trumpeted again, flying past at breakneck speed as the guard looked on, slack-jawed.

“Well, now I’ve seen just about everything…” he said, starting back into his steady pace.

“You know, I was really hoping you’d say something more original.” came a playful voice that permeated the area around him. “Something like… ‘Oh, I do wish I’d have known he’d be here! I’d have brought peanuts!’”

Flash tensed up once more, backing up into a fighting stance. “Who’s there?! Show yourself!”

“What, you mean you don’t already recognize me?” it asked, sounding nothing short of offended. “Oh, Flash, you positively wound me! Haven’t you heard about me from the Princess you’re so smitten with?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about…” he spat, looking around fiercely. “Now, come out and face me!”

“Oh, fine…” the voice huffed. A bright flash formed in front of the Pegasus, revealing Discord floating there in a relaxed position. “I’m sure you’ve heard of me, at least.”

“Discord…” he confirmed, narrowing his eyes. “What do you want?”

Discord brought his face close to the guard’s, a mischievous smirk lining his fanged muzzle. “I just wanted to finally meet everypony’s second favorite member of the Royal Guard!” He playfully caressed the stallion’s muzzle with his eagle talon, lingering a claw on his chin, eliciting a firm scowl that made the Draconequus’ smile widen further. “What’s wrong? Annoyed with the truth? Well, you’re certainly no Shining Armor, after all.”

“Since when does a monster like you ever tell the truth?” Flash growled, turning and continuing his flight back to the castle.

Discord brought his lion paw over his heart, raising his eagle talon above his head and throwing his head back in mock agony. “Oh! My, you really have a knack for offending poor, defenseless chaos spirits!” He disappeared, reappearing in front of the stallion again. “I’ll have you know I’ve become a paragon of truth since my reforming!” He raised his paw like a scout. “I only ever lie when it’s fun and in no way inconveniences any of my friends! Any other time, I’m as honest as Applejack!”

Flash weaved around the snakelike creature, bumping his haunch deliberately into him. “Whatever… Just tell me why you’re here and then go away.”

Discord gasped, snaking his way beside him. “You want me to say it out here? Where everypony can hear me? Why don’t we go somewhere a little…” He snapped his claws, creating a flash that transported the two of them into the guard’s room in the castle. “... quieter?” He looked around the room. Save for the standard bed that adorned every bedroom in the castle and some basic furnishings, the room was barren. His face looked like he had eaten soda pop, potato chip, and earthworm cupcakes as he took in the complete lack of decor. “Ugh… How positively boring! Here, let me spice things up in here!” He waved his talon as the room filled with two comfy chairs, a couch, and a coffee table, all the same color as Twilight’s coat. Additionally, the walls became strewn with a number of photos and portraits of the Princess in question, some of them being candid shots she wasn’t aware of, with others being Discord’s own artwork. “There! Much better!”

Flash shot into the air, looking at each addition to the room with a face of shock. “What is all this?!”

“What? I just filled the room with your favorite thing!” The chaos spirit replied with a smirk. “Do you not like it?”

“If anypony saw my room like this they would think I’m some crazy stalker who worships Twilight!” He explained, taking down as many of the pictures as he could. “Change it back! Now!”

“Fine, shoot yourself…” Discord said with a relenting sigh.

“Don’t you mean ‘suit yourself'?” Flash corrected.

“Oh, yes. That works, too, I guess. I was just kidding, anyway.” Discord snapped his claws again, the room appearing back to normal. “But it’s not like my choice of decorations was inaccurate… Even if they were a bit weird... I mean, she is the reason you’re here!”

“I know that better than anypony.” He affirmed, heading to the window. “She needs protection. I just wish everypony wouldn’t make it so difficult for me.”

“And why have they been making it so difficult?” the Draconequus wondered, popping his head out from above the window. “It couldn’t possibly have anything to do with the way you’ve been treating their friend, is it?” He patted Flash on the head, snaking his way back into the room. “I can’t say I blame you, though. I mean, he only crashed into the picture out of nowhere, stole away the mare you liked, married her, put a baby in her, and now that baby has put her in such a weakened state that she needs a guard with her at all times. And the worst part of it all is how plain and common he is! I don’t blame you for having a case of green eyes.” He waved his paw in front of Flash’s face, causing his eyes to glow a bright green for a moment.

Flash’s head sank. He turned back towards the door, where the sound of galloping echoed through. There was a loud knocking at the door. “Flash…! Come… quick!” a baritone voice called. The guard stallion opened the door, panic-stricken, to see the pony Discord referred to with a wide smile on his face as he hyperventilated. “Twilight… baby… KICKING! Come on!”

“What? Kicking?” Flash repeated, going from panic to puzzled. “What are you talking about?”

Boltsinger’s breaths spaced out, growing more calm. “The baby is kicking, and I thought you would want to come feel!” He looked around the room, spotting his not-so-orderly friend. “Hi, Discord! You come, too!” He grabbed Flash’s hoof with his tail as he turned around, speeding off towards the library.

“Oh! The baby is kicking!” Discord cooed, putting his forelimbs together beside his head. He made another snap of his claws, appearing above the running ponies. “Are we going to have a baby shower?” he tauntingly inquired, pulling a string that hung out of nowhere down, images of foals crying and falling around them. “Ooh! Are we going to sing a song? It’s been awhile since I’ve been part of a charming musical number!”

“Why are you even bringing me along for this?” Flash asked as they came to the foyer entrance to the library. “I’m just the guard! We’re not friends.”

“But you’re Twilight’s friend. I’m not about to leave you out.” he retorted, opening the door. “Unless… you don’t want to feel the baby kicking?”

“I never said that!” snapped the Sentry, turning into the library. Inside, Twilight sat on the couch with her hoof on her belly, giggling at regular intervals. Flash stepped up in front of the Princess, smiling. “I’ve been told the baby is kicking. Do you mind if I…?”

“Feel free.” Twilight told him, moving her hoof away. “It’s quite the little drummer in there.”

Flash sat on the floor, bringing his hoof forward. He stopped for a moment, looking uncertain, but tentatively placed it on the mare’s larger-than-normal belly. “I don’t feel anyth--” Before he could finish, a sudden ‘thud’ came to the forefront. His eyes widened, looking up at the Princess’ smiling muzzle. “Wow... “

“I know, right?!” Boltsinger exclaimed, cantering over. “There’s a little pony in there!” He sat next to Flash and eagerly placed his hoof on the rhythmic tummy. “Our little pony…”

Flash looked between the smiling orange and purple ponies, his smile quickly turning upside down. He retreated his hoof, backing away. “It’s an honor to be included in this… moment… Princess. Now… I feel I must…” he looked around the room, trying to find something. His eyes fell upon some books sitting on the floor. “Put away these books! Don’t want loose books falling on your head!” He rose into the air, getting to his work.

Twilight looked over at the Draconequus in the doorway. “Come on, Discord, you can have a turn, too.”

Discord pointed a claw at himself. “Really? You don’t mind?”

“As long as there’s no mischief, go ahead.” Boltsinger stated, waving him over.

“Mischief?” Discord teased. “Who? Me?” He teleported his way over to them, appearing behind the couch with his paw raised over Twilight. “What kind of beast do you think I am? Mischief…” He placed his paw on her belly, feeling the same kind of thud that Flash had experienced. “Oh, my… This is new…” He looked at the fur beneath his forelimb, feeling a distinct spark coming from within that sent his entire body shaking. He retreated his paw as quickly as possible. “And that is something I’m familiar with! I’d rather not get dragged all across Equestria for two straight days again!”

“What do you mean?” Twilight wondered, looking up at him. “Did you feel the lightning inside him?”

“It’s not important.” he retorted, brushing off his arm. “Thank you for trusting me with this, but now…” He smirked, snapping his claw to vanish and appear in front of Flash. “You and I still have so much to catch up on!”

Flash reeled back in the air, dropping the book in his hooves. “What are you talking about?! I barely know you!”

Twilight cast a scowl at the amalgamation creature, her glare piercing his very being. “Discord, leave him alone! He doesn’t need you bullying him.”

Discord made a sound of mock offense, looking down at the ponies and putting his talon over his heart. “Why, I’ll have you know I’ve been nothing but nice to your little bodyguard, here! No bullying whatsoever!” He turned to Flash, putting his arm around him. “Isn’t that right, Flashdance?” He squeezed tightly, Flash struggling to free himself.

“I’m sure you’ve been as model of a citizen as you can be.” Boltsinger affirmed. “But he looks as freaked out with you as I was when I first met you. Only… Not as frozen.”

“Oh, fine…” Discord responded, releasing the stallion from his grip.

Flash sped away from Discord, slamming into the wall and falling to the floor along with several books. He brought his head out of the pile, grimacing and pulling himself out the rest of the way. “I don’t need this... “ he grumbled.

“Hey, you okay?” Boltsinger inquired, reaching his hoof towards the guard. “That looked painful. You need some help after that?”

Flash shot a fierce glare at the orange stallion. “I don’t need help from anypony! Least of all, you!” He shouted, storming out.

“Oh, my! Did someone happen to push his buttons, today?” Discord teasingly queried, tapping his chin with his paw. Twilight and Boltsinger each cast a sour look at the floating creature. “What?! It can’t possibly be my fault! All I did was have a conversation with him!”

“Your conversations tend to push ponies’ buttons.” Boltsinger stated.

“And this time, it’s only making things worse!” Twilight added. She got up from the couch, moving over to a table. “I’m gonna take care of this before it gets out of hoof.”

“How so, honey?” the stallion wondered.

“I know you asked me not to, but I think it’s best of we request a different pony to take over Flash’s duties.” She clarified, floating a quill and inkwell over. “I’m happy that you’re moving past your discomfort, but, clearly, he hasn’t been. Everypony sees it.”

“And every Draconequus, too!” Discord chimed, raising a poignant paw.

Twilight nodded, noting the chaos spirit’s addition. “Exactly. The way he treats you has even gotten on Fluttershy’s nerves!”

Boltsinger gave a wide-eyed blink, knowing full well what it would mean. “Wow.” He walked up to Twilight, putting his hoof on the parchment. “Listen, I appreciate that you’re willing to do this kind of thing for me, but… He’s your friend. And he came here with a genuine desire to protect you. That’s something I can’t possibly find fault with. His problem is with me, so I’ll talk to him.” He put his hoof on Twilight’s cheek with a smile. “We already have some common ground. He sees how amazing you are, just like I do. That alone is a good place to start.”

Twilight put her hoof on his. “Okay. You’ve convinced me. But if he keeps being a jerk to you, I’m going to take care of it myself.”

Boltsinger stepped back and took a regal bow. “Of course, Your Highness!” He went in for a hug, giving his wife a good squeeze and her belly a good pat before turning to Discord. “And you, sir, will be coming with me.”

“Why me?” Discord asked, landing next to him. “Certainly you can resolve this whole thing on your own, can't you?”

“Because you forced the issue.” the Pegasus deadpanned. “And, like with that whole thing with Fluttershy last year, you’re going to be a good friend and see this through. Okay?” He shot an uncharacteristically fierce look at the creature.

Discord winced at the mention of his favorite pony. “All right, fine! I’ll keep proving how good a friend I truly am!”

Boltsinger smirked, strutting into the hallway. “Thank you.”

Flash Sentry marched across the front steps of the Castle of Friendship, his face blank and his movements rigid. Stopping on a bit, spinning in place, and marching forward. He repeated the process ad nauseum, letting his mind spin with each rotation of his march. Discord was right, and he knew it. And that bothered him to no end. He kept marching, the pace of his hooves matching the wingbeats that sounded above him.

“Attention, soldier!” came a voice that irked his ear. He instinctively tensed up, saluting with his foreleg. The voice chuckled as the same orange pony he was trying to avoid along with the very monster that had been pestering him all day.

“What do you want?” he grumbled, easing up.

“Honestly, I want to talk.” Boltsinger answered, landing beside him. “I know you’ve got issues with me.”

“Oh? And what gave you that idea?” the guard asked with an extreme measure of sarcasm. “Could it have anything to do with you just showing up out of nowhere and stealing away the mare I liked even though you’re so… so… plain! Not to mention, look at the state she’s in!” He stepped up to the slightly smaller stallion, aggressively pointing his hoof at him. “You put her in that state! You screwed up her magic! And you still lean on her for almost everything!” He turned around, trying not to lash out physically at him. “It’s not fair…”

“Not fair?” Discord repeated. “Well, we can’t have that, now can we?” He twirled his beard for a moment, his face finally brightening up. He snapped his claws, and the scene around the three of them turned into a bright festival with ponies all running around, a grand time had by all. “There! Much better! This is much more ‘fair', don't you think?” The stallions each cast a look at the Draconequus. Boltsinger’s was slightly amused, but Flash’s was a pure scowl. Discord offered up a cheeky smile that quickly devolved to a pout as he saw the guard’s disposition. “Oh, poo…” he lamented, returning them to their previous location.

Boltsinger nodded at his disharmonious companion, taking a deep breath and turning to Flash. “Would you believe me if I told you that I agree with you?”

“No, I wouldn’t.” he spat, facing him again. “What kind of pony would complain about being in your position? What could possibly make you not happy with your life?”

“Now, wait a second. I never said I was unhappy with my life.” the performer corrected, holding up a single feather on his wing. “I said I agreed with you.” He stepped closer, pointing his hoof at Flash. “Nopony ever expected somepony like me to… well… marry a Princess. And I’m no exception. Heck, when I first learned about your history with Twilight, I thought she had made a mistake in choosing to be with me! But she reminded me of some things, and I decided to push my own lack of comfort aside.” He stood beside the dismayed defender, holding out his balled-up wing. “Here’s a list of things I never expected to have in my life, especially before I met Twilight.” He unfurled a single feather. “Friendship.” He brought out a second. “Love.” A third. “Self-worth.” A fourth feather revealed itself. “Self-confidence.” Finally, a fifth feather came to the forefront. “And last, but not least…” He waved his wing at the castle before them. “A home.” He faced Flash again. “All of these things… And I mean all of them… are things Twilight and our friends gave me. Loving that beautiful purple Princess was a no-brainer.”

A smile snuck it's way onto Flash’s muzzle, looking up at the gargantuan crystal structure. “She does have a way with spreading friendship around, huh?”

“Eeyup.” Boltsinger said with a definite nod. “And I appreciate that you see every wonderful thing about her that I do. But you’ve been too stiff.”

Flash cocked an eyebrow. “Stiff? I’m a guard, I have to be stiff.”

“You’re guarding the Princess of Friendship.” He continued. “So there’s nothing wrong with making friends while you guard! Loosen up! Explore Ponyville! Besides, if you keep being a rigid jerk, Twilight is gonna send you away.”

“It’s that bad, huh?” he wondered. “Then why hasn’t she?”

“I suggested that you get a second chance.” Boltsinger informed him. “And Twilight agreed. You are friends, after all. I don’t want to change that. I just think you need to make some more.”

The guard turned to look out at the town, finding himself intimidated by the sheer number of ponies going about their lives. “Who would you suggest, then?”

“That’s entirely up to you.” Boltsinger replied. “But if Twilight’s example holds true, then I have a couple of suggestions on where to start.” He extended his wing out to the other stallion. “What do you say?”

“Seriously? After the way I’ve treated you, you wanna be friends?"

Boltsinger kept his wing extended, his smile widening. “If I can reconcile with my brother, then forgiving you and becoming friends is a cakewalk.”

Flash took a closer look at the purple-eyed pony in front of him. From what he could tell, he was being completely genuine. He extended his own wing, the orange feathers grasping his yellow ones. “Twilight definitely rubbed off on you in a good way, didn’t she?”

“We teach each other. That’s how friendship works.” He stated, retracting his wing.

Flash nodded, returning his gaze to the town. “I see. Well, I hope I can learn a lot.” He turned to Discord, offering his hoof. “From both of you.”

Discord grasped the hoof gently, shaking the guard’s entire body. “A new friend? How wonderful! I dare say this is the second best result I could have asked for today!”

“And what’s the best result?” Flash asked, tilting his head inquisitively.

Discord gave his companions a malicious grin, tapping his fingers together with a dark chortle. He spread his arms, the three of them appearing in a large, domed cage surrounded by stands. Filling the seats were several more of the reality-bending creature in their company, all cheering madly and demanding a fight. “A cage match!”

Boltsinger sent a glare at Discord. “And why would you want something like this?”

“Oh, Bolt, it’s nothing bad!” the Draconequus teased. “There was already a sense of disharmony between the two of you. I just wanted to play with it, is all! I knew you two would tough it out and be friends in the end. That’s how these stories always work! And before you start getting worried, anything that happens here, stays here. Injuries included.”

The Pegasi looked around at what looked like the masses, then looked back at the main beast next to them. “A fight, huh?” Boltsinger guessed. Discord nodded emphatically, causing the ponies to immediately bust a gut and fall to the floor. Boltsinger finally stood up, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. “I don’t think there was ever any intention of fighting from either of us. Sorry, Discord.” He walked towards the edge of the cage, closing his eyes confidently and shrugging. He looked back at Flash with a cocky grin. “Besides, I’d totally kick your butt.”

Flash Sentry stood up as quickly as his name suggested, giving his own smirk. “Excuse me? Your jousting ability says otherwise.”

A loud laugh erupted from the orange stallion’s mouth as he turned to face his would-be opponent. “First of all, jousting isn’t a fight. It has rules. Second, I was in heavy armor and using a lance that I had no idea what to do with.”

Flash took a stance on the other end of the cage. “Care to put your money where your muzzle is?”

“You sure?” Boltsinger asked, planting his hooves. “I don’t want any hard feelings, no matter the result. Got that?”

Flash smirked, lowering his stance. “Bring it!”

The Discords cheered even louder, the main one raising his lion paw to appear in a referee’s shirt. “All right, boys, I want a nice, clean bout, here! No rules, but no getting too crazy, okay? Don’t want the ladies to think badly of us when we get back!” The stallions nodded, turning their faces as playfully fierce as possible. “Okay, boys…” Discord took a step back, melting through the cage as he lowered his paw. “Go!” With that, both stallions flared their wings and jumped towards each other.

Author's Note

Finally! One of the chapters in my backlog has found its place! Discord may not be evil, but that doesn't mean there aren't times when he wants to play with a lack of harmony. No harm intended, just some chaotic fun.
Next chapter is another one I have backlogged, but it still may take a little while so that I can iron out the kinks. I hope you enjoy it!

The Experiment

Starlight Glimmer walked down the streets of Ponyville with some heavy saddlebags hanging on each side of her. She had three different books floating in front of her, her attention divided evenly between them. “Let’s see… There’s not much reference for how something like this might work. Transfiguration, but on a timer, and… How do we do this part? Well, Twilight and I should be able to bridge those gaps when we come to them.” She looked up from her books, where Rarity caught her eye. “Oh! Hey, Rarity!”

Rarity stopped her forward movement, turning to see her friend coming down the street. “Ah! Starlight! Good to see you!” She trotted over to the pink mare, giving her a quick hug. “So, what are the books for, dear?”

“I can’t tell you outright.” she replied, stowing them away in her bags. “But, you’re more than welcome to come to the castle and see for yourself.” She pointed her head to the castle with a smile. “It’s going to be… interesting, to say the least!”

Rarity cocked an eyebrow, her curiosity coming to the forefront of her mind. “Why, I think I will!” She turned alongside her fellow Unicorn in her trot to the enormous purple building, her thoughts racing regarding what possibilities there are between the most magical mares she knew.

“So, are you ready for today?” Twilight asked, walking with Boltsinger through the castle halls. She reared up, waving her forelegs in front of her and fluttering her wings. “I know I’m excited!”

The stallion scratched his head with his wing. “It would help if I knew what the hay we were doing today. All you said was…” He rapidly shook his head, his mane appearing like a blue version of Twilight’s. “‘Wake up! You’re in for one magical day!’” His face turned flat, the impromptu hairstyle quickly zapping back into its typical mess. “And then stuffed some oats in my mouth.”

Twilight laughed, hiding her muzzle with her hoof. “Okay, I admit I haven’t been all that informative with you.” She splayed her wings excitedly, leaping forward. “But Starlight is coming! Aren’t you excited to see her?”

“Okay, that, I know I’m looking forward to.” He admitted. “I haven’t seen her since we had to send her off to Cloudsdale! We definitely don’t get to see her enough.”

“I know! And today we’re going to be trying a brand new experimental spell!” She continued, beginning to hover as she kept pace with him. She squeezed her cheeks with her hooves, scrunching up her face. “If this works, we could contribute to friendships all over Equestria by providing a level of understanding that nopony ever dreamed they’d have!”

“I figured you had some kind of spell in the works. What kind of spell is it?” He wondered, gently pulling her back down to the floor.

Twilight gave her husband a knowing look, an air of smugness about her. “Oh, you’ll find out. We can’t perform this spell without you, after all!”

A confused blink occurred on the stallion’s face that repeated itself three times. “But… I don’t have a horn… How do you need me for it?”

Twilight landed and trotted ahead of him, swishing her tail on his muzzle. “Oh, you’ll find out!”

Boltsinger looked at her with a tinge of bewilderment. “I don’t know whether I should be excited or scared…”

“Both.” Spike suggested as he ran by to join his best friend.

Twilight led Boltsinger to a normally unused room in the castle, where a table had been set up with several chairs. There were a number of items placed on the table, reminding Boltsinger of the things Twilight had set up to build up her strength again after the first time her magic shorted out. He opened his mouth to ask a question when the sound of hoofsteps came up behind them.

“So, everything’s ready?” Starlight asked from the doorway, trotting in ahead of them. She looked around the room, laying eyes on the other ponies in it and perking up more. “I’m really excited for this!”

Boltsinger chuckled and stepped up to his friend, putting his wing on her shoulder. “Good to see you, too, Starlight.”

Starlight pulled the Pegasus in for a hug. “Hi, Bolt. It’s been too long.” She pulled back and moved her saddlebags to the corner of the room, taking a few books and piling them on the table as she turned to Twilight. “So, I have most of it ready, but there are some parts I haven’t quite figured out. You think you could help me out?”

Twilight nodded. “Absolutely!” She walked over to one of the chairs and sat down, opening the books as Starlight joined her. From there, they started into a discussion about the nuances of the spell in question, going over several techniques that threatened to overwhelm Boltsinger’s not-so-magical mind.

“I wonder what kind of spell those two are working on…” a posh soprano started, standing next to the baritone.

“That’s what I’d like to know…” he told her, directing his eyes to the source of the voice. “Rarity? What brings you by?”

“Starlight invited me to see what’s going on.” She stated, looking curiously at the Princess and her former pupil. “It tickled my curiosity, so I decided to pop in and find out. Whatever it is, it must be terribly advanced.”

“Twilight tells me she needs me around for it to be a success.” the performer added.

Rarity softly smiled at him. “Oh, that’s so sweet! You’re like her good luck charm!”

Boltsinger shook his head, looking tensely at the seated mares. “No, I think there’s a different reason for that.”

The books slammed shut, Starlight moving them back over to her saddlebags and floating a freshly-scribed parchment in front of her. “Okay! We’re ready!” Starlight declared, pointing her hoof at the center of the room. “Bolt, you stand over there. Rarity, have a mirror ready!”

Boltsinger did as instructed, letting a little fear creep into his expression. “So I am the guinea pig for this spell… Gotcha…” He plopped his rump onto the floor, waiting patiently. “Not the first time experiments have required this kind of help.”

Rarity stood beside Twilight, floating a mirror over from the closest bathroom. “Darling, I can’t help but wonder just what’s going on.”

Twilight looked over the parchment she and Starlight had worked on, triple-checking for errors. “Do you remember when we all helped that group of Breezies to get home, and I used that spell to turn us into Breezies for the trip?”

“How could I forget, dear?” she replied, her hoof on her cheek. “They were all so adorable! And their home… Oh, it was positively captivating!” She pulled herself out of her memory. “But what does that have to do with all of this?”

“Well, that spell was able to change ponies into other creatures, but it didn’t allow me to do much between ponies.” The Alicorn elaborated. “Like it or not, there are still some ponies who don’t understand what it’s like for other kinds of ponies. So, Starlight and I have been working on a spell to help fix that problem!” She trotted over to Starlight, floating the paper between the two of them. “Everything is all set. Let’s do this!”

Boltsinger closed his eyes, slapping his muzzle with his wings to prepare his mind. “My body is ready…” he told himself, repeating the phrase as if he had practiced it for some time.

Twilight and Starlight ignited their horns, loosing magic from them that swirled together into a blue ball showing the magenta silhouette of a Unicorn’s head that flew into the air. They pointed their horns at Boltsinger, the orb flying into him and creating an explosion of blue and magenta light that enveloped the room.

Boltsinger opened his eyes, seeing Twilight, Starlight, Spike, and Rarity all standing around him. All of them had mouths agape. “What happened? Did it not work?”

“Oh, it worked, all right.” Spike informed him, slowly nodding. “I just can’t believe my eyes!”

Twilight stepped up to him, offering a hoof. “Now, take it slow. The effects of the spell are going to take some getting used to.”

Boltsinger nodded, making to extend his wing towards the hoof. “Something’s wrong...;” he started, looking at where he thought his wing should have been. “Where is my wing?” His rump rose from the floor as he looked at either side of his barrel. Not a wing in sight. His pupils shrank, lowering his ears as he looked at the horned ponies in the room. “What happened?!”

“I… think you should see for yourself, darling.” Rarity suggested, floating the mirror up for him to look into it.

His jaw dropped. In the mirror, he saw his face, which was entirely normal. Nothing much had changed, except for the thing protruding out of his forehead. A horn, the same color as his coat, with a spiral going from base to tip. He backed up until his rump hit the chair, knocking over some of the more precariously positioned items as he let out an ear-piercing whinny. He reared up, charging forward and into the hallway. His head hit the wall, his newfound horn embedding itself into it. He put his hooves on the wall, pushing with all of his might to get his head unstuck. After a particularly strong shove, he flew back from the wall on his hind legs, falling backwards onto the floor.

“Are you okay?” Twilight asked.

Boltsinger sat up, trying to slap his muzzle with his wings, but finding no impact. “Oh, I’m F.I.N.E., just feeling like I wanna disappear!” At the last word, he saw an electric blue light forming just above his eyes. There was another flash of blue light, and he found himself on top of the castle, “Did I just…” He heard the poof of teleportation, turning to see Starlight behind him. He raised his hoof to address her, but saw another flash that took him to Sweet Feather Sanctuary. He looked around once more, spotting a large number of animals with open books in their paws and Fluttershy gawking at him. “Yup… I did…” He waved his hoof. He heard Starlight’s teleportation again. He looked in her direction, gaining a pleading look in his eyes. “Help…” His horn lit up again, the flash taking him to the roof of Sugar Cube Corner. He got up, trying to move around, but with his movement, he vanished again, appearing in the streets of the Crystal Empire, where Trixie was performing some tricks for a gathering of Crystal Ponies. He paid his surroundings no mind as he started to gallop forward, vanishing again. He next found himself in the Everfree Forest, running past Zecora, then in Canterlot. “SOMEPONY MAKE IT STOOOOOOP!” he shouted, the Royal Sisters each jumping to one side as he poofed away again. He appeared in Fillydelphia, Baltimare, Appleoosa, a lost temple past Daring Do, and finally the mountain just over the castle, where he skidded to a stop and slammed his rump down on the ground beneath him, putting his hooves up on the part of himself he was least familiar with. “Don’t… go… anywhere… Don’t… go… anywhere…”

Another poof sounded in front of him. “You’re really easy to follow when you teleport, you know that?” Starlight teased, putting her hoof on the stallion’s temporary protrusion. “But, how about you let me take us back.”

“Probably for the best.” he confirmed, smiling weakly. Starlight’s horn ignited once more as the two of them were instantly transported back to the room they started in, Twilight, Rarity, and Spike standing around them. Boltsinger stood up, concentrating as hard as he could on not doing anything with this strange new part of him. “So, the ‘experimental spell’ was to turn me into a Unicorn?”

Twilight’s face lit up at her husband’s calmness. “Yup! It’s a spell to change what kind of pony the subject is for a few hours! The idea came from the fact that I’ve always wanted to give you some horns-on experience in all of the magical concepts I taught you, so I asked Starlight if she could collaborate with me on this! We can use it when different kinds of ponies are having a dispute, to let them walk a mile in each other’s hooves! Isn’t it great?”

Rarity giggled to herself as she approached him. “I must say, you do make a rather dashing Unicorn, Bolt!”

“Thanks, Rarity.” he said, not breaking his gaze from the lilac mare. “So how the heck did I suddenly start teleporting?”

“What were you thinking at the moment you went?” Starlight inquired. “Were you thinking of a particular place?”

“I pretty much said how I felt.” he told her. “I didn’t really care where I disappeared to, though.”

“So you teleported to random places.” Starlight guessed. She moved to one of the chairs and waved the group over. “That’s a big part about how magic works. It responded to your feelings.”

“Well, right now I’m ‘feeling’ that I want my wings back.” he huffed, taking a seat. “I may not be able to control their magic, but at least I have an idea what I’m doing there…”

Rarity sat at the table opposite him, putting her front hooves up on the surface. “Isn’t that the idea of… well… all of this?” she wondered, motioning to the myriad items laid out. “And besides, you’ve got three experts in how Unicorn horns work right here to help you!”

“I know it’s not exactly your element, but you might as well make the most of it while you can, right?” Twilight suggested, pulling her chair up to sit next to him. “Why don’t you give it a try?”

Boltsinger groaned, looking at the teddy bear in front of him. It looked as if it peered into his very soul with its gaze, and he suddenly felt a desire to pick it up and mess with it. “Not like I have much of a choice… Okay, bring on the magic.”

“Yay! Magic lessons!” Twilight sang as she clapped her hooves, bringing herself forward onto the table. “Okay, so the first thing anypony needs to know when it comes to magic is how to lift things with your mind! Try picking up the teddy bear.”

“Pick up the teddy bear. Got it.” he repeated, reaching his hooves forward and lifting the bear. “Wait… No… That’s not what you meant, is it?” The mares all definitively shook their heads. He blushed slightly and put the plush back on the table. “So, I use this for it…” He flicked his horn, pointing it at his target. “How does this work, anyway?”

“Just concentrate on picking up the thing you want to move and how you want to move it.” Twilight explained. She confidently shut her eyes, putting her hoof over her heart. “It’s the simplest form of magic, but it can take some getting used to. Don’t be too discouraged if you can’t--”

“Lifted it.” he blurted out, the teddy bear floating shakily in the air in front of him, it and his horn surrounded by an electric blue magical aura that was charged with magical lightning. “Next is the pillow, right?”

Twilight blinked, shaking her head. “How did you…? Wait, is your lightning kicking in?”

Boltsinger blinked as well, the aura disappearing as the bear fell back to the table below. “I… think?” He looked back at his Cutie Mark, which had begun to crackle. He looked at his friends and his spouse, shrugging with a sheepish grin. “Talk about timing, right?” His pendant began to shine as electricity shot out of his horn like fireworks, extending out to the mares in the room with him. “Like Granny Smith says, ‘magic is as magic does’!”

Rarity squealed as the lightning touched her flank, pulling her closer. “That may be, but it could still be a little more thoughtful of where it… grabs me!”

Twilight and Starlight looked at each other, then at the lightning that now grasped them. “Wait, without your wings, how are you going to get to the place you’re supposed to--” Starlight began, cut off by the feeling of being lightly electrocuted as the ponies all saw a bright blue flash, appearing in a park in Manehattan, the stage for the Midsummer Theater Revival lit up and ready to go. “-- go?”

The stallion looked down at the ground, where the grass had been scorched. “Well, looks like we teleported.” He looked around, stifling a snicker as he saw every mare’s mane standing on end, the ends just a little bit singed.

“What are you laughing at?” Rarity demanded. “Is there something funny going on behind me?”

Boltsinger fought his way through the laugh and pointed to the nearby pond. “You might want to see for yourself!” he suggested. “All of you!”

Twilight and Starlight looked at each other again as Rarity made her way to the water and looked at her reflection. The more magical ponies each burst out laughing at each other’s manes, while Rarity shrieked. “MY HAIR!” she cried, rising up to her hind legs and stepping back. She quickly twisted around, landing back on all fours and pointing her hoof at Boltsinger. “How could you have done such a thing?!”

“Hey, if there’s one thing I know about magic, it’s that I can’t control it!” he shrugged, getting up to his hooves and looking around. “And it looks like Coco needs help again this year.”

“Wait, we’re in Manehattan?” the couturier asked, taking in her surroundings. “Then we’re close to Rarity For You! I’ll be right back!”

Boltsinger walked towards Twilight and Starlight, counting down silently to himself as his fashion-forward friend ran off. “Can one of you catch Rarity? She’s about to come flying back this way.”

Starlight looked quizzically at her latest guinea pig, wondering just what he meant as a shrill yelp was heard from the distance. Rarity came zooming back, pulled by a magical lightning against her will. “I got her!” she answered, encasing the flying fashionista in her magic and stopping her in place.

Rarity squirmed in the air, prompting Starlight to let go of her and allow her to land. “What in Equestria was that?!”

“That’s right… This is the first time you’ve come with me on a fli-- is it really a ‘flight’ this time?” he started, bringing his hoof to his muzzle. “Anyway, whenever somepony comes with me on one of these, they can’t really leave proximity of me until the job is done. Just like I can’t really get too very far away from where the work needs to be done. So you ladies are stuck with me until we’re done.”

“So what do we have to do this time?” Twilight asked, shaking her head to calm her mane. “You said something about helping Coco?”

“Rarity?” a mare’s voice called from the stage. The ponies turned to face the source, where the aforementioned off-white mare stood. “And… Is that Boltsinger?”

“Hi, Coco!” Boltsinger greeted, walking towards her. “Something tells me the Revival needs reviving again?”

Coco nodded, her eyes wide and unblinking. “Um… yes, but… There’s something different about you…”

“Just an experiment. Don’t worry about it.” He told her, waving his hoof. “What is it you need?”

“Right now we’re just a little short-hooved.” She motioned to the stage, which stood barren. “We have everything we need, we just need to get it all set up and do a sound test.”

“Well, you definitely have the right ponies for the job, then.” Twilight declared.

Starlight stepped forward. “I’ve helped Trixie set up her stage lots of times, so that’s no big deal.”

Rarity perked up, rushing over to her fellow seamstress. “And I can help you go over the costumes! It’ll be just like that first little play we put on! Oh, won’t it be simply divine?”

Coco nodded nervously. “I certainly look forward to it!” She looked over at Boltsinger. “Could you take care of the sound testing?”

“Absolutely.” He said, looking up at the brightly-lit stage. “Just let me know when you need me.”

“And I can organize the whole thing!” The Princess proclaimed, fluttering her wings. “What do you think?”

“Sure! I’ll go get you what you’ll need for everything!” She affirmed, trotting off.

Twilight turned to Boltsinger, her horn aglow. “And in the meantime, we can pick up where we left off!”

“So, more magic?” he guessed.

“More magic!” She squeed, bringing him over to the sound equipment. She went into an involved lesson on handling delicate objects, including the ability to focus on a small part if a larger object, moving two things in tandem, and only grasping a part of an item for added finesse. After about an hour, he was making the technical preparations for the sound test by himself, with only a little supervision from Twilight.

“We’re ready for the sound test onstage!” Coco called. Boltsinger trotted over, seeing a set that looked like an old farming village in a snowy region.

“Trotter on the Roof, huh?” He hopped onto the stage, tapping the mic that had been set up and taking a deep breath.

A deep voice sounded from the stage, Rarity, Starlight, Twilight, and Boltsinger laying in the audience and resting on their fetlocks. The performance of the evening had begun, and many a magic lesson had been learned by the stallion whose Cutie Mark had finally returned to normal.

“So, this horn is definitely handy, but… I still miss my wings.” Boltsinger said, looking at his wife. “It’s harder to just reach out and hug you when I don’t have them.”

Twilight’s gaze went from the stage to the stallion, a knowing smile on her muzzle. “Well, that brings me to the last thing I wanted to do while you have this horn, here.”

An eyebrow was cocked. “Oh? And what’s that?”

Twilight leaned her head close to his, placing her horn perpendicular against the one that still came from her favorite stallion’s head. A powerful spark of magic flowed between the two of them, with a small discharge of magenta and blue circulating betwixt the locked horns. The sudden surge sent a chill down Boltsinger’s spine, accompanied soon after by a deep warmth. “This.” she replied, looking him in the eyes with as much warmth as he felt. “This is the unique way that Unicorns express their feelings for each other. The horn is where our magic comes from, and our magic is the purest representation of who we are… And now ours is intertwined…”

Boltsinger shuddered from the sheer sensation of the magic between them, bringing his hoof to her cheek. “Wow…” He brought his head closer, putting his forehead against hers as his body began to glow. From the tip, the horn began to scatter into bits of light. “That’s something I’ll have to treasure…” The horn vanished entirely, his wings returning in their full glory and spreading wide. Still lost in the moment, he reached them towards her and hugged her tight. “And if you ever want to do more ‘advanced lessons', you can count me in!”

“I’d like that…” she told him, giving him a kiss on the cheek and looking back at the show. “I was hoping we could do this once every couple of weeks! It would give me some time to build up my strength so I can cast the spell myself, and it wouldn’t get in the way of our other responsibilities, but if you want, we can have Starlight come over more often and do it on a weekly basis! Ooh! Or we could teach Rarity how it’s done and--” Boltsinger’s hoof came over her mouth.

“Honey?” he started, receiving a muffled response from the Alicorn. “Let’s just watch the play for now.”

Author's Note

This chapter stemmed from three things. The first was that Starlight wanted some attention, and I wanted her to have some. The second was that Twilight really needed to relax and nerd out about magic. She's been pretty serious as of late, and she needed a break from that. And third was the fact that I'd been playing around with the idea of having Bolt being turned into a Unicorn against his will (at least temporarily) for a while now. It all kinda melded together into what you just read.
And, before you ask, no. Bolt will never, ever, become an Alicorn. He is a Pegasus. And except during those "advanced lessons", that is all he will ever be.

The Very Persistent Princess

The thumping of a heartbeat sounded in the stethoscope. Doctor Horse bobbed his head in time with the beating, eventually raising his head and smiling at the Princess whose sizeable baby bumped belly he examined. “Well, Princess Twilight, your foal is nice and healthy. But you should make sure to keep it that way by taking it easy. Don’t push yourself too hard, and come to see me again next month!”

“Of course, Doctor.” she replied, getting down from the examination table. She turned to Boltsinger, who sat in a chair across the room. “Come on! Let’s go to Sugar Cube Corner to celebrate!”

Boltsinger’s head went askew as he walked up to the Princess. “What exactly are we celebrating?”

“It’s been five months since I told you I was pregnant, right?” she lead, seeing a reluctant but conforming nod from the stallion. “Which means that the pregnancy is six months in! We’re past the halfway point!”

“It’s been that long, huh?” the Pegasus wondered with a smile. “And here I hadn’t noticed you getting bigger at all.”

Twilight laughed and nudged him with her elbow. “You’re just saying that.”

“You have no proof of that!” He retorted, sounding almost deliberately guilty.

Twilight gave him a cocky look after a roll of her eyes. “Uh-huh, sure.” They exited the clinic and looked up at the clear, blue sky. Twilight made a deep, happy breath, letting out a wide grin upon her exhale as she looked back at Boltsinger. “It’s such a beautiful day, why don’t we go for a fly?”

Boltsinger looked up at the infinite blue expanse, feeling the inviting breeze for himself as he closed his eyes. Before he could even respond, his wings were flapping and he was in the air.

“I see you agree with me!” The Alicorn stated with a giggle. She had already flown up level with the stallion, hovering in front of him. “Come on, let’s go!” She turned around, speeding off into the distance.

The turbulence of her initial acceleration sent the Pegasus flying back a little. He quickly righted himself and smiled at the purple and pink streak rocketing off into the distance. “Gonna play it that way, huh?” He chuckled to himself and gave a single, hard flap of his wings that sent him forward after her, leaving a shockwave of wind behind him.

After an hour of constant flying, Twilight came to a stop, hovering high in the sky. She looked around for her flying partner, seeing nopony around in all horizontal directions. “Did I lose him? I know I’ve gotten faster, but I don’t think I’ve made that much improvement…” Her breathing got a bit heavier, the consistent flapping taking its toll on her body.

“Finally made it, huh?” Boltsinger asked from above.

Twilight looked up, putting her hooves on her hips. “What do you mean ‘finally'?” She ascended so as to hover next to him.

“Exactly what I said.” He teased, booping her horn with his hoof. “You’ve definitely gotten faster, but I’ve been getting a lot of practice in with Scootaloo’s training.”

“I can still keep up, at least…” she told him, her face turning to a pout and looking away.

Boltsinger’s confident demeanor quickly diminished as he put his hoof on her chin, turning her head to look back at him. “Ease up, Mrs. Pouty-pants. I know better than most ponies how fast you are.”

The pursing of the Princess’ lower lip receded, her own confident look making a return. “Why, thank you.” She took a look around, seeing most of the town going about its typical business.

“So, how are you feeling?” he asked, circling around her.

Twilight’s smile weakened as she swung her foreleg in front of her. “Great! I could go for another few hours at this rate! How about you, Mister Endurance Flyer?”

Boltsinger smirked, noticing the more panting breaths her Highness was taking as she held herself aloft. “I think now’s a good time to stop and rest a bit.” He flew off, quickly coming back pushing a large, fluffy cloud. “How about you and I take a load off before heading to Sugar Cube Corner?” Twilight raised her hoof in reply, but found herself being pushed over to the cloud. “It was more of an instruction than a request. Doctor Horse says take it easy, and I agree with him.”

Twilight stepped onto the cloud, the sheer softness overtaking her legs as she melted into it. She fell onto her side and rolled onto her back, clutching some of the fluff in her forelegs. “Okay, you’ve convinced me… This is just too comfy!” She lit her horn and shaped the cloud in her hooves into the shape of a book, looking at it longingly. “All it would take to make this perfect is a good book.”

“And the right company.” He added, landing next to her and laying on his stomach. He pulled up a pillow of the cloud’s surface and rested his head on it, letting out a soft and low melody. The cello-like sound rang true in the Alicorn’s ears, causing her to close her eyes and hum along in a high harmony. They continued on for several minutes as Twilight’s breathing returned to normal.

She rolled over, scooting closer to the stallion in her company. “Well, I feel rested enough. Ready to go?”

Boltsinger smiled and nodded. “Eeyup!” He stood up and stepped off of the cloud, flapping his wings and hovering. “We’re here!” He announced, pointing down.

Twilight moved to the edge of the cloud, looking down to see the delicious-looking roof of Sugar Cube Corner not too far beneath them. Her eyes widened slightly, looking back and forth between the building and Boltsinger.

“Hi, Twilight! Hi, Bolt!” Pinkie Pie called, her head poking out of her window.

The couple both waved a foreleg at the bubbly mare beneath them. “Hi, Pinkie!” they simultaneously replied as the mare of the two began her descent.

“How did I not know we were here?” Twilight wondered as they touched down.

Boltsinger shrugged, directing his attention to the wide-open doors. “You got me.” His eyes wandered back towards his wife, showing a smidgen of worry in them despite his otherwise forward gaze.

“Well, it’s certainly convenient that we ended up here!” She entered the building first, looking around and licking her lips expectantly. “I wonder if they have anything with garlic… I could really go for something with garlic!”

The next morning, Twilight trotted through the halls with Spike following close behind. She patted her belly with her wing, feeling the drumming of the foal inside with her every step. “Do you have the checklist, Spike?”

The dragon pulled out a quill and parchment, looking confidently at his best friend. “Of course! I’m ready when you are!”

“Excellent.” She affirmed, moving towards the kitchen and past Flash. The guard stopped in his tracks, looking back at the Princess and her assistant. “So what’s on the list for today?”

Spike took a closer look at the list. “After breakfast, we’re supposed to help Fluttershy prepare the sanctuary for the arrival of some…” he swallowed a lump in his throat. “... big cats…”

“Shouldn’t be too big of an issue.” She told him, thinking back on the last time she had to deal with such creatures. “After that?”

“Let’s see… Rarity is running low on gems and needs us to help her find some more.” He continued, moving down the list. “Then Applejack needs help to feed the animals.” He looked up from the parchment. “All of the animals.”

“Well, with how we’ve helped her to streamline her chores, that shouldn’t be too hard!”

“Okay…” he returned to his task. “Pinkie wants us to help her help Maud bring some rock samples back to her cavern… Isn’t that a bit of a heavy load?”

“I have to agree with you there, Spike.” Flash chimed in from above. He landed in front of the two, taking a look at the checklist. “Are you sure this isn’t too much to do in a single day?”

“All I’m doing is helping my friends. I’m sure I’ll be fine.” She informed him, turning her attention back to Spike. “Anything else?”

“Not much. Rainbow Dash wanted your input on some maneuvers to teach Scootaloo.” He said, rolling the parchment up. “After that, you have dinner, and some astronomy research.”

“Perfect!” she declared, finally rounding the corner to the kitchen. She made a quick breakfast and walked to the dining room. “So, Flash, do you plan to come with us today?”

“Is Bolt coming with you today?” he inquired, sitting down with his own meal.

“No, he has his own plans for today.” She answered. “Scootaloo has flight training, and he promised Big Mac he’d help him deliver a shipment of apples to Sugar Belle after that. Something about keeping him on task.”

“Then yes. I feel it would be best if I accompanied you today.” He confirmed. “Especially with what all you have planned.”

Twilight quickly finished up her meal, standing tall and walking back to the hallway. “Okay, let’s go!” She looked back to Spike and Flash with a smile,. “You two ready?” Spike and Flash were still sitting over their full plates, Spike having his fork up to his open mouth. He dropped his fork, letting it fall to his plate as the boys took a look at her. She smiled sheepishly, sitting back in her spot at the table. “Sorry…”

Twilight, Spike, and Flash walked through the gate to Sweet Feather Sanctuary, where many of Fluttershy’s animal friends were hiding behind the caretaker in question. She had turned to them, giving each of them a reassuring pet or hug to let them know they were safe. “It’s okay, little friends, the new arrivals today aren’t going to hurt anyone! They’re just here to recover from a harsh ordeal!”

“What kind of ordeal are you talking about?’ asked the Alicorn, sendling Fluttershy jumping to a nearby tree branch.

The pink-maned Pegasus calmed down, fluttering down from her perch and landing in front of her royal friend. “The jaguars coming in today from southern Equestria were dug out of an old temple with a bunch of rocks piled on top of it! I don’t know how they managed, but they were able to survive for a whole year, and were rescued last week!”

At the mention of a temple in southern Equestria, Twilight’s face scrunched up. The last time she dealt with big cats in that area, she was dealing with much more than just jaguars. “I see… Well, we’re happy to help however we can!”

“Wonderful!” Fluttershy exclaimed. She looked over the Princess’ shoulder, where several ponies were leading a pair of sizeable felines into the sanctuary. “Oh! And here they are!” Twilight turned around to see the angry-looking cats walking up on their leashes. She let a fake smile onto her face, waving at the cats as the bearer of Kindness trotted over to them with her wings spread wide. “Welcome to Sweet Feather Sanctuary!”

“Um… Fluttershy, maybe you shouldn’t get so close to--” Twilight began. Before she could finish, Fluttershy had already embraced the jaguars, which immediately began purring and nuzzling her face. Twilight rolled her eyes, approaching the cats as well. “You never cease to amaze me with animals, you know that?”

“They’re just a couple of hungry kitties. It shouldn’t be that big of a surprise.” Fluttershy stated, guiding the cats to a spot where they could rest.

“I suppose you’re right.” Twilight said. She reached for one of the jaguars with her hoof. “You’ve just had a hard time this past year, haven’t y-- EEP!” She crouched as low as she could, dodging a swipe from the large feline. As quickly as she moved, so did Flash, diving in between the Princess and her assailant. He brought his head low, flaring his wings and dragging his hoof on the ground.

“Princess, I request that you keep your distance!” he shouted, snorting fiercely at his would-be foe.

“Flash, I’m sure I can handle myself!” she retorted, stepping forward while keeping her hoof raised. She looked hopefully at the pony comforting the cats. “Right, Fluttershy?”

Fluttershy frowned at the pleading Princess, shaking her head. “Honestly, Twilight, I agree with Flash. It might be better if you didn’t… well… help with these two. They say you smell like one of the ponies that locked them into that old temple, so they don’t really trust you all that much…”

Twilight’s ears drooped. “Oh…” Her head followed suit as she turned away. “Okay…”

Spike stepped between Flash and Fluttershy. “Is there anything else we can help with?”

“I wouldn’t push it, Spike.” Flash suggested, easing up and following his charge.

Fluttershy softly nodded, looking over at Twilight. “I’ll come by later and tell you how they’re doing, if that’s okay!”

Twilight looked back with a meek smile. “That sounds wonderful…” she told her. She thought ahead to the rest of the day, lifting her head again. “Besides, there’s plenty of other friends who need my help today! I won’t let them down!” She flared her wings confidently, accelerating into a trot.

“Yeah! That’s the spirit!” Spike encouraged, jumping onto his favorite Princess’ back. “Next up is Rarity!” He imagined the contents of the caves they were set to enter, licking his lips hungrily. “And all those…” He slurped up some falling drool. “... delicious gems!”

To say the rest of the day was ‘interesting’ would have been, in a certain dragon’s opinion, a gross understatement. Twilight, Spike, and Flash went into the gem cave with Rarity, where they were supposed to remain as quiet as possible so as to not alert the bats. Twilight looked around, just barely shining the light from her horn, and saw her reflection in the facets of many gems. She admired their beauty for several moments, then found herself overwhelmed by her emotions. Her eyes overflowed with tears, letting out an absurdly loud sob that intensified the light she emitted. Spike, Rarity, and Flash dropped their jaws as the bats’ eyes simultaneously opened.

Moments later, the cave entrance burst forth with bats, Flash and Rarity galloping out while Spike lingered at the entrance. From inside, Twilight’s laughter could be heard. She was in absolute hysterics, with two bats having their feet entangled in her mane as they attempted to escape. Rarity shrieked at the state of her friend’s hair, quickly using her magic to free the bats. She trotted up behind her laughing companion and began to push, directing her to the boutique so she could correct the tragedy before her.

Later, at the farm, a freshly re-coiffed Twilight pulled a wagon behind her with several buckets in it. Flash hovered above her, while Spike stood in the wagon, going over a list of the animals. She poured the pigs’ slop into their trough, then looked at the food inquisitively. She floated up a small portion of it, sniffing it. Spike tilted his head in confusion at his best friend’s antics, recoiling in disgust as she took a bite of the supposed morsel. She smiled, finishing off her tidbit and satisfying her curiosity. She continued about her business, trying some of each animal’s feed, much to the surprise of the approaching Applejack.

Once again underground, Twilight and her companions accompanied Pinkie and Maud Pie. The Alicorn held numerous large rocks in her magical grip, floating them next to the geologist as she went over each type of rock carefully. Pinkie bounded between the other two mares, giggling happily as they found their way into the cavern in which Maud took residence. Twilight lifted the rocks up high, performing a flourish with them by creating a figure eight in the air. She hummed to a rhythm that popped into her head as she did so, Maud standing under the display and observing the stones. After a few moments, the humming stopped while the magical aura flickered away. The rocks plummeted to the cave floor, piling up high. Pinkie squealed in horror as she jumped up to the top of the pile, looking down to see what became of her sister.

There she was, standing in a pile of fresh rock powder as she soothed her pet rock, Boulder. Pinkie looked back to see what had happened with Twilight, finding her hunched over a wastebasket and heaving. Spike held her mane back while Flash patted her on the back.

“And then, Scootaloo went into a sweet nosedive! Rumble actually had a hard time keeping up once she got into it, and right as they were about to hit the ground, she turned up so fast that it shot her back up into the sky!" Rainbow Dash rambled, sitting at the castle’s dining room table. “You really should have seen it, Twi, it was awesome!”

Twilight rested her head on her hoof, a mildly sour expression on her face. “That’s good. I’m glad to know Scootaloo’s flying is coming along well.”

Rainbow calmed down from her hype, giving Twilight a concerned look. “You okay? You look like something’s getting to you.”

Twilight sighed, raising her head and putting her hooves on the table. “Do you think I’m weird right now? Or a burden?”

The Wonderbolt recoiled, unsure of what was being asked. “What?! Why would I think that?”

Twilight’s expression grew more dejected as she continued. “Because all day I’ve either freaked everypony out with what I’ve eaten, or I’ve caused some kind of problem thanks to something I don’t have control over!” She extended her foreleg for grand emphasis, quickly plopping her head down on the table. “I just want to show that I can still keep up and help everypony…”

Rainbow got up and flew over to her forlorn friend, placing a wing on her back. “Of course you can still help everypony! I don’t think any of us have thought any differently. You’re just…”

“Pregnant, moody, queasy, and have no sense of taste…” the Alicorn angrily rambled. She put her hoof on her horn, flicking it hard enough to make it vibrate. “Oh! And my magic has a tendency to completely fail! That’s sure helpful…”

Rainbow waved a hoof, dismissing the negative thoughts. “We all have hard times! You’re still there for everypony, and that’s what counts!” She moved her wing back and forth, providing some comfort. “I promise you this. I won’t let your issues get in the way of us having a good time or getting things done. Okay?”

Twilight looked up at the rainbow mare, her expression still serious. “Pinkie Promise?”

Rainbow smiled confidently, sitting on the floor and crossing her heart with her hooves. “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” She went through the remainder of the motions, ending up with her hoof over her eye. “There, now you have an unbreakable promise.”

Twilight turned her muzzle to a smile, pulling her friend in for a hug. “Thanks, Rainbow Dash.” She got up, moving towards the hall. “So, what kind if maneuvers were you wanting to show me?”

Rainbow Dash lit up, rising from her spot and rushing outside. They flew up to the largest balcony, where Rainbow started into a series of aerial techniques. They ranged from the simplest possible to some of the more advanced moves Twilight herself was capable of. She would nod at things she felt were safe enough for an inexperienced flyer to do, while some of the more dangerous techniques received firm denial. This continued on for quite a while as Twilight brought out a quill and parchment, writing down a list of the things they had agreed upon. When all was said and done, the Wonderbolt waved farewell, heading home as the Princess stood tall with the door opening behind her.

“She’s right. I’m not a burden!” she declared, flaring her wings confidently. “And I’ll keep proving it from here on out!”

Unbeknownst to Twilight, Boltsinger stood behind her in a case of unwilling eavesdropping. He cringed slightly, showing a mixture of happiness and concern on his face. “Just… don’t prove it too much…” he mumbled.

Author's Note

Not the backlog chapter I initially wanted to do, but still something that felt right.

Sports Fright

Fluttershy sat in Sweet Feather Sanctuary, cuddling with the animals with a blissful smile on her muzzle. Twilight had been off with the other Princesses on official business for the past several days, and told her that she had some exciting news for everypony. It had been a long time since anypony had visited the sanctuary, so Fluttershy decided to organize a picnic for all of her friends, that Twilight might have a comfortable place to share it.

“I wonder what kind of news it’s going to be…” she started, waving her bear friend, Hairy, over to set the blanket. She pulled over the basket she had brought and set up what she believed to be a delightful spread. Angel sat nestled against her mane, shrugging at her question. “Well, whatever it is, I’m sure it’ll be nice and pleasant!”

The ground shook Fluttershy from her comfy spot as a loud boom sounded with a dust cloud. “Pleasant? I sure hope not!” Rainbow Dash declared, flapping away the dust. “I’d rather have something to do!”

“You could always come back to the Wonderbolts compound and get to know the routine.” Soarin suggested as he came in for his own landing.

Rainbow smirked, nudging the white stallion with her elbow. “You’d like that a lot wouldn’t you?”

Soarin smiled back, returning the gesture. “You know it!” He looked over at the spread Fluttershy had set up, taking a seat beside the blanket. “You set all this up, Fluttershy?”

Fluttershy took a moment to stop shaking from the impact, sitting back down and relaxing again. “It was the least I could do for everyone.”

“Looks good, Fluttershy.” Rainbow said, settling down next to her. “Anypony else here yet?”

“No, you’re the first to arrive.” She looked to the main entrance on anticipation. “I’m sure they’ll all be along soon.”

As if on cue, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack trotted in. Applejack had a basket of muffins in her teeth while Pinkie carried a couple boxes on her back. They all took a seat around the blanket, exchanging greetings and laying out their contributions.

“So what kind ‘o royal business do ya think Twilight’s been up to, anyway?” Applejack asked, pulling over a plate of cucumber sandwiches. “I tell you, that castle's been emptier than Big Mac’s normal vocabulary!”

“Are you talking about as he is now?” Rarity queried, leaning in. “Because I remember, years ago, Big Mac was quite the chatterbox.”

“Eeyup.” the farmer confirmed. “So I can’t help but wonder what needs them all gone fer so long!”

Pinkie gasped, swallowing the cupcakes she had shoved in her mouth. “Do you think Equestria might be facing another super powerful scary demon threat? Is another big emperor guy like the Storm King invading?! Do we need to go all ‘BOOM! FLASH! RAINBOW FRIENDSHIP LASERS!!!’ And save the day again?!”

“That would be awesome!” Rainbow exclaimed.

“That would be awful!” Fluttershy cried in sync with her friend.

The fashionista noted the concern shown by her kindest of friends, placing a hoof on her hoof. “Oh, I doubt it’s something that dire, darling. It’s probably just some big event that we all get to participate in! It should be a truly lovely affair!”

The animal caretaker nodded in agreement as the topics changed. They continued for several minutes, covering every relevant subject that came to mind as a baritone voice echoed from afar.

“Twilight, I think you’re going a little too fast!” He started. “No, seriously, honey! You’re coming in too hot! Oh… Sorry, Spike!!!”

The ground shook again as a pained groan sounded from the newly-formed dust cloud. “Princess, I have to agree with Bolt, here. That landing was far too rough.” another male voice stressed. “I suggest we walk from here on out.”

“Seconded!” the first voice affirmed, sounding winded and crushed.

“Okay, okay. We’ll walk home when we’re done here.” Twilight relented, getting up and clearing away the dust. She stood just over Boltsinger and Spike, the stallion of the two lying flat on his stomach, and the dragon sitting up deliriously while clutching the orange Pegasus’ tail like his very life depended on it. Flash was crouched next to Boltsinger, reaching his hoof to help him up as Twilight looked back at them. “Are you two okay?”

“Spike is okay, mama, he just needs a widdwe nappy-wappy…” Spike rambled, falling over.

Boltsinger climbed to his hooves, laughing at the dragon’s delirium. “We’re okay. Just a rough landing.” He moved over to the picnic in progress, waving his wing.

Rainbow looked over her flight student and at the approaching Princess. “Okay, Twilight, spill. What was it that was so important that you all had to be in Canterlot for that long?”

The Princess of Friendship beamed, taking a seat next to her husband. “Well, part of the reason was so that we could visit with Celestia and Luna. We went over what’s going to be happening for the Grand Galloping Gala in a couple months.”

Rarity rose up to a sitting position, her forehooves on her cheeks. “That’s right! The Gala is coming up so soon, and I haven’t gotten anypony’s outfits ready!” She rose up further, making ready to dash away. “If you’ll excuse me, I have to be going! I only have two months to get it all done!”

Before she could start moving, she found herself encased in Twilight’s magic. The Alicorn gave off a giggle as she eased her friend back down. “That’s not all there is to it, Rarity.” She released the mare from her magic, continuing. “We also did a little research in the library, but we can go into that more, later. Most importantly, there’s another event coming next month that finally got a decision in for the location this year!”

Rainbow Dash rose to her hooves, looking anticipatingly at her lilac friend. “You don’t mean…”

“That’s right!.The location for the Equestria Games has been decided!” she announced, spreading her wings emphatically. “That’s what we were mainly there to talk about! We had to talk at length with Ms. Harshwhinny about what to do regarding the city that was selected, and it’s going to take a lot of work! Especially since we have to accommodate for all the creatures that can’t walk on clouds!”

The already-excited Rainbow Dash’s jaw nearly hit the ground. “So… It’s finally coming to Cloudsdale?!”

Twilight smiled and nodded. “That’s right! The Equestria Games are headed for your hometown, Rainbow!”

Before anypony could even blink, Rainbow Dash was airborne and making a figure-8 in the sky while she cheered. Moments passed, and she landed with yet another rumble in the ground. “I am so in for the aerial relay! Soarin, you gonna join the Ponyville delegation this time?”

“You know it!” he confirmed, jumping to his hooves and giving Rainbow Dash a high wing. “I wouldn’t miss this for all the apple pie in Equestria!”

“Sweet! With you on our team, Ponyville might have a chance at gold in every event!” She looked around at the other ponies gathered. “Now, we just need a third… Bolt, what about you?”

“Nnope.” he answered, decisively shaking his head. “Can’t do it.”

“What? But you’re one of the best flyers in Ponyville!” she retorted, stepping closer. “Thunderlane and the other Pegasi all have other events, but this team needs all the help it can get! Why can’t you compete?”

He pointed to the mare next to him. “Same reason she can’t.”

“What do you mean? She can’t compete because she’s an Alicorn!” Rainbow argued, motioning back and forth between Boltsinger and Twilight. “You’re a Pegasus, just like me, so it should be fair game!”

“Actually, we talked to Ms. Harshwhinny about it.” Twilight interjected. “Boltsinger can’t compete at all because he’s my husband, and being my husband makes him…” she rolled her hoof, hinting at someone else to finish for her.

“A PRINCE!” Pinkie finished, jumping up and putting a cardboard crown on Boltsinger’s head. “Just like Shining Armor when he married Princess Cadence! He’s a normal pony with royal standing ‘cause he got hitched to a Princess!”

Rainbow Dash’s head, ears, wings, and tail drooped. “Oh yeah… Forgot about that…”

Boltsinger chortled a bit, picking up an nearby muffin. “That’s okay. I forget that little fact all the time.” He took a bite, looking over at the pony hosting their little gathering as he swallowed. “Besides, I can think of another good flyer sitting among us right now.”

Fluttershy’s head recoiled, gesturing to herself with her hoof. “Me? You want me to join the aerial relay team?”

Rainbow Dash perked up, giving her foalhood friend a hopeful face. “Of course! You were our second flyer in the last delegation and we won silver ‘cause of how well you did!”

“Well, yes, but… That was because we didn’t have enough strong flyers to fill out the team with experts like you two!” She stated, sinking into herself. “And that was in the Crystal Empire, where… um… nopony knew me…”

Rainbow sighed, trying to calm herself down. “Fluttershy, out of all of the flyers for the last team, you were the best choice that wasn’t, well, me.” She explained, sitting next to her and putting her wing on the yellow mare’s back. “And you’re somepony I trust completely to have my back!”

“Even though ya almost quit the Ponyville team just ta fly with the Wonderbolts ‘n win?” Applejack deadpanned.

Rainbow and Soarin simultaneously winced at the work horse’s bluntness. “Okay, yeah, but… I learned my lesson! And it was Fluttershy who helped me to realize what I was doing wrong!” She turned back to her most introverted companion. “So, what do you say? You wanna fly with me and Soarin?”

Fluttershy brushed her mane aside, her face less scared, but still rather uncertain. “Can you maybe give me some time to think about it?”

“Sure. I don’t want to force you to do something you don’t want to.” the cyan pony assured, patting her on the back. “Well, I’m gonna go get some practice in!” She stood up and flexed her wings, looking at her fellow Wonderbolt. “You coming?”

“On my way.” Soarin answered, getting up in kind. He looked over to Fluttershy with a smile. “It’s no pressure if you wanna join the relay team or not. I’m sure there are other Pegasi that can join up if we need them!” He turned to look ahead, spreading his wings and taking off alongside Rainbow Dash.

Spike sat up, his hand on his head as He sat next to Twilight. “He doesn’t know many of the Pegasi here in Ponyville, does he?”

Knocking came at the door to Fluttershy’s cottage, and the house’s resident came to welcome her guest in. Boltsinger made his way through the threshold of the abode, looking around. “So, what’s up? You said you had something important to talk about, right?”

“Um… Yes, I did.” She confirmed, motioning to the couch and pouring some tea. “It’s about the Equestria Games and the relay team.”

Boltsinger took his cup and looked at her inquisitively. “What about it?”

Fluttershy wrapped hee tail around her hooves, looking sheepishly at him. “I was wondering… if you don’t mind… maybe… you could… possibly… if you have the time…”

“You can just say it, Fluttershy.” he interjected. “No need to be embarrassed.”

Fluttershy took a deep breath. “Could you train me?”

Boltsinger’s eyes went wide, slowly putting his cup on the coffee table. “Um… Define ‘train’...”

“I want you to make me a stronger flyer.” She told him. “Somepony that can keep up with Dash and Soarin!”

“And you think I’m the best one to do it?” he inquired, pointing a wing at himself. “What gave you that idea?”

The mare inched closer to her guest. “Well, you’ve been doing so well with Scootaloo’s lessons that I thou--”

“Well, first of all, Scoot is a natural at flying. I just had to get her up there. She’s actually been doing so well that I don’t think I have much left to teach her. Especially since Rainbow joined us in her training.” He clarified. “And that brings me to my second point. My lessons for her were to get her off of the ground. Get to the point where her wings were strong enough to fly on her own. You don’t exactly have that problem.”

“But my wingpower could still go up, right?” she suggested, inching closer again.

“Well, that could be said of any Pegasus. All of us can improve.” He answered. “What is this really about, Fluttershy?”

“I just don’t feel like I’m good enough for this…” she admitted, hanging her head in defeat. “Soarin and Dash are just so fast and experienced… I would just look like a joke next to them…”

Boltsinger softened up, knowing where that kind of sentiment might come from. “I… can’t say I agree with you on that one.” He inched closer, putting his hoof around her. “You’re a great flyer!”

“You’re just saying that…” she retorted.

“No. No I’m not.” He affirmed, concern growing more evident in his expression. “What in Equestria could possibly make you believe otherwise?”

“Have you ever seen me keeping up with Rainbow Dash?” she asked, looking more defeated with every word. “Or even Twilight! She wasn’t even born with wings and she can fly better than I can!”

“Okay, now you’re just not being fair to yourself.” He retorted, putting his hoof on her muzzle. “I don’t think there’s a single pony out there who can truly keep up with Rainbow Dash. It’s just not possible! And Twilight? Half the time she’s flying at super speed, she’s using magic to go faster, and the other half? That’s when my lightning is affecting her, and then neither of us has a choice but to go that fast!” The mare opened her mouth, but found it muffled by the hoof already pressed against her muzzle. “And before you start comparing yourself to me, the only reason I fly so well is because magical lightning forced me into having good wings, and then Rainbow worked out the kinks from there. And even then I still can’t keep up with her!”

Fluttershy pulled the hoof away, her eyes starting to water as her gaze turned into a glare. “Maybe it’s not fair! But that’s what it feels like! Especially since it would mean having to fly for a competition in front of all of the ponies who used to make fun of me for not being a good flyer!”

Boltsinger was considerably taken aback. His mouth hung open for a few moments as Fluttershy’s tears intensified. She swiftly got up from the couch, running off to her room as she cried. Sitting there in silence, he thought back on his own foalhood. This was something he was all-too familiar with, and he knew full well that he had royally screwed up. Slowly, he got up from his seat and made for the hallway while mulling over just what to say. Finally, he was at the door to Fluttershy’s bedroom, slapping his muzzle with his wings.

“Um… Fluttershy?” he softly called, raising his hoof to the doorknob.

“Go away…!” She cried, the sound of her sobbing growing louder.

“Fluttershy, I want to apologize for how I spoke to you earlier.” He continued, putting his hoof on the door. “I should have known better, considering how familiar I am with what you’re going through…”

The sobbing died down, replaced by hoofsteps approaching the door. It slowly opened, revealing a still misty-eyed mare. “You know what I’m going through? How is that?”

“For what little time I did get to spend in school, I was made fun of a lot, too.” He informed her, scratching his mane with his hoof.

“But… wasn’t your family the only group of Pegasus in Vanhoover back then?” she wondered, waving him in.

He sighed, entering the room. “Yeah, we were. I was the only pony in my class who had wings. And I wasn’t able to really use them at the time. So, not only was I different, but I was different in a way that didn’t even stand out, on top of my being a blank flank.”

“Oh my… That must have been awful…”

“They mostly went after the fact that I couldn’t fly.” he gave off a quick laugh. “Some of the Unicorns would lift themselves up with their magic just to float above my head and say ‘I can fly and I don’t even have wings!’ Honestly, it was pretty clever in hindsight. But, that doesn’t stop it from hurting.”

“The foals back in flight school would always tease me with a silly rhyme about how I could ‘hardly fly’...” She told him, the two taking a seat by the window. “They’ve all apologized since then, but… I still can’t help but think about it whenever I think of them, and it scares me so much that I… I don’t know if I can face them!”

“I just don’t understand how you’re not confident in your flying… I mean, I likely wouldn’t be here if not for you…” he stressed, looking out the window at the forest beyond. “Twilight told me what happened after I passed out at Feather Note Sanctuary. You reacted faster than three Unicorns and a Princess! If that’s not some incredible flying, I don’t know what is!”

“But that was an emergency!” she argued, leaning forward. “If I hadn’t done that, you could have been… well…”

“That doesn’t stop it from being you that did it!” he stated. “It was all you. No magical lightning, no speed spell, and no Wonderbolts to compare yourself to.”

“I don’t think I can do something like that when it’s not important, though.” she stated.

Boltsinger brought his hoof to his muzzle, trying to come up with ideas. “True… in the end, it’s just a game, and that’s not something you tend to go out of your way for…”

“Well, it’s not that I’m bad at games.” She said, raising a hoof along with her point. “I’m even better than Rainbow Dash at Buckball!”

“Buckball?” came the stallion’s confused reply. “Tell me more…”

Fluttershy smiled, telling him at length the rules of the game she and Pinkie had learned from Applejack and Rainbow Dash. She talked about how she had figured out her own fun way to perform her task on the team, and how not even her fastest friend could keep up. After her explanation, she went on about the time she learned the game, and how they had discovered that the very reason they found the game so easy was because of the sheer fun of it.

“Fun, huh…” he started, a smirk coming into view. “Why don’t you just do that, then?”

Fluttershy took her turn in being confused. “Do what?”

Bolsinger spread his wings and forelegs, his smirk turning into a smile. “Have fun with it!”

“But all I’m doing is flying…” she pointed out, looking at the sky outside. “What’s so fun about that?”

The loudest ‘thud’ Fluttershy had ever heard shook her from her spot. Boltsinger had hit the floor with a dumbfounded expression. A moment later, he sat up, putting his face an inch away from Fluttershy’s. “You mean to tell me you’ve never had fun simply flying?”

“Not really.” She confirmed, standing and offering her friend a hoof. “Flying has always been something I just do. I normally prefer to be on the ground. It’s certainly convenient to be able to fly, but I never saw it as anything fun.”

Boltsinger accepted the help, standing tall. “Well, okay then.” he faced the window completely, putting one wing around the mare and gesturing out with the other. “I know just what to do. Come to the castle tomorrow morning and we’ll fix this problem of yours!”

Author's Note

And thus begins an arc I've been wanting to do for a while now! I hope you enjoy how it plays out!

Ready, Set, Qualify!

The morning came quickly. Fluttershy met up with Twilight, Spike, Flash, and Boltsinger inside, where they shared a breakfast that felt like it was pure carbo-loading. Once plates were empty, Boltsinger stood up. “Okay! Everypony ready?”

“Ready when you are!” Twilight replied, standing up with a fluff of her wings. “I’ve been looking forward to it!”

“Ready for what?” Fluttershy wondered, following suit.

“You’ll find out when we get to the balcony, come on!”He said, pulling her along with his wing as he trotted past. They made their way up to the balcony at the front of the castle, where Rainbow Dash and Soarin warmed up.

“Dash? What are you doing here?” the caretaker asked, trotting up to her foalhood friend.

Rainbow got up from her exercises. “You mean Bolt didn’t tell you?”

“I was just about to, actually.” he told her, standing at the edge and flexing his wings. “Fluttershy, come over here for a second.” His friend did as suggested, standing next to him as they looked out at Ponyville. “We’re going to have a race.”

Fluttershy looked out at the expanse, letting some confusion show itself on her muzzle.“A race? Why are we having a race?”

Soarin stepped up beside Fluttershy with a smile. “For fun, of course!” he stated, stretching his wings. “Why else would we do it?”

“To win some kind of prize, or to prove you’re the best or the fastest or--” the yellow mare said, finding herself cut off by Boltsinger’s wing.

“Or just to enjoy going as fast as you can with your friends!” He finished for her. “That’s the reason I do it.”

Twilight joined the gathering at the edge, nodding in her agreement. “That’s the reason I do it, too! It’s feels amazing to have the wind blow against you as you pick up speed!”

“But what if the wind is so strong it disorients you and you can’t tell where you’re going?” Fluttershy asked.

Rainbow Dash came to a hover above Fluttershy, dropping a pair of flight goggles to hang from her muzzle. “That’s what these are for!”

“Okay, but what if you get tired and lost and can’t find your way back?” the inquiry continued as she put the goggles on her forehead.

“Can’t you just land?” Soarin responded. “Besides, it’s hard to get lost when you have a bird’s eye view of everything!”

Fluttershy raised her hoof. “But…”

“Okay! We’re almost ready!” Boltsinger announced, strapping on his electrically-styled goggles. “First thing’s first, the rules.” He pointed his hoof at Twilight. “No magic! Wing power only!”

Twilight nodded, tapping the tip of her horn and saluting from there. “Got it!” She put her own goggles on, clipping her pendant into her mane. “And I might even go easy on you, too!”

“Oh, there’s no need for that, your Highness!” Boltsinger retorted with a smirk. He turned to Fluttershy, causing her to recoil. “Next thing: You are not allowed to worry. Not about failing. Not about falling, ‘cause we do all have wings, here. And you are most certainly not allowed to worry about winning! You are to do one thing, and that is to do your best, got it?”

“Um… Okay…” she affirmed, sliding her goggles into place. “I think i can do that.”

“Awesome.” he stated with a twinkle of his wings. “Spike, you got a course for us?

“First one to Sweet Apple Acres and back wins!” the dragon announced, taking a position at the end of the line that had formed. “On your mark!” He raised his claw, the six winged ponies facing the farm in the distance. “Get set…” Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Soarin, Flash Sentry, and Boltsinger hunched over, Fluttershy slowly easing herself into doing the same. “GO!” Spike brought down his claw, sending a tingle down everypony’s spines.

Rainbow Dash and Soarin took off in an instant, streaks of rainbow and white lighting up the sky. The next to shoot off was Twilight, faltering at little, but eventually settling into a decent speed that slowly gained on the Wonderbolts. Flash took off immediately after the Princess, turning around and giving Boltsinger a cocky grin as he lifted off. He turned around, hovering for a moment.

“Come on, Fluttershy! Just do your best!” he shouted, waving his hoof and turning back towards the farm. “It’ll be great!”

“Oh… I’m not so sure about this…” she told herself. She looked down at the ground below, then at her flying friends ahead of her. They all moved with their own levels of grace and velocity, each of them performing a number of aerial stunts and plowing through smaller clouds. “I don’t think I can do things like that…” She slowly began to back away. “Maybe this was all a bad idea… Maybe I should just sit these games out! Nopony would think any less of me if I backed out here, right?” Her mind began to wander into a state of worry when her friend’s words rang in her ears again. “Who am I kidding? I would think less of me! And Boltsinger said that worrying wasn’t allowed in this race! I just have to do…” she brought her head low, still facing forward as she began moving forward again. “... my…” She erupted into a gallop, making for the edge of the balcony. “... BEST!” She jumped, her wings spread wide. She began descending, picking up momentum as she neared the ground. This was the one technique she knew she could do well, since it always helped her to help animals in need. Finally, when she was about to touch the ground, the pink streak that was Fluttershy veered up, ascending at such a rapid pace that she quickly overtook the neck and neck heat of Boltsinger and Flash, sending both of them spinning. The two stallions quickly righted themselves, stopping to look at the shy filly flying ahead. Boltsinger let out a cheer at the top of his voice, spurring her on. She began flapping harder, gaining on the Princess of Friendship. She looked at her lilac-coated friend and waved a hoof, doing her best not to open her mouth and have it blown back. After soaring past her, she once again spotted Rainbow and Soarin. Am I really catching up with those two? Do I actually have a chance? She asked herself. Looking around, she could see the orchard rapidly coming into view as the streaks of the professional flyers turned around.

“Hi Fluttershy!” Rainbow exclaimed as she zoomed by.

“Nice flying!” Soarin added, not too far behind the mare in the lead.

Fluttershy beamed at the compliment, spotting the barn nearby. That’s right! I can do this! I can fly with them without fear! She twisted her body to the left, attempting to turn around, but finding her direction difficult to influence. I… CAN’T TURN AROUND!

There was a large ‘poof’ of a cloud. As it cleared, Fluttershy sat up, rubbing her head. “Ow… How does hitting a fluffy cloud hurt like that?” She turned around, watching her friends fly happily away from her. A defeated sigh sounded from the mouth of the mare, She fell onto her side, pulling off her flight goggles. “I can't do this after all… How can I help my team if I can’t even turn while I’m finally catching up?”

Soon after the unexpected landing, Twilight caught up and spotted her. “Hey, Fluttershy. You okay?” She asked, landing next to her.

“I don’t know why I even tried this…” she lamented, looking up at the Alicorn.

“Haven’t you been having fun?” she wondered. “I saw that smile on your face when you passed me, and you were going really fast!”

“It was fun for a little while, but once it was time to turn around, I couldn’t stop myself… I couldn’t turn around, and I hit this cloud instead…” she explained, sitting up. “How can Dash expect me to keep up during the relay if I can’t even turn correctly?”

“I don’t think she expects you to do that much.” Twilight mentioned. “The only thing we ‘expect’ out of you today is to just enjoy yourself! Why don’t we fly back together?” She stood up, reaching her hoof towards her dejected companion. “Don’t worry about the race. We’ll just fly.”

Fluttershy climbed to her hooves, spreading her wings. “I think I can do that.” she said, looking back towards the castle. She jumped forward, not quite letting herself descend so much this time. She was quickly followed by Twilight, settling at a nice, leisurely pace.

“So, why is this whole business with the Equestria Games bothering you?” the Princess asked as the last two racers passed them. “You didn’t seem to mind the last time you competed.”

“Last time, I wasn’t in Cloudsdale competing.” Fluttershy answered. “There’s no telling how many ponies from flight school are going to be there! If I do this, I’m going to be flying in front of all of them, and I’ll be doing it with two members of the Wonderbolts!”

“Isn’t it a dream for most Pegasi to fly with Wonderbolts, though?”

“Maybe to most Pegasi, but I feel like it would just make me look worse in front of all of them… Boltsinger suggested just enjoying the flying, but… You saw how that turned out…”

“So the race didn’t go as planned.” Twilight started, performing a small loop. “That doesn’t mean you can’t still have fun flying! Aren’t you enjoying yourself now?”

Fluttershy looked around, thinking. Her friend was with her, the breeze was nice, there was no danger, no expectations, and no problems. She smiled, facing forward again. “You know what? I think I am enjoying myself! If only some of my furry friends could be up here with us…”

“Hmmm…” Twilight stewed for several moments, the words sparking an idea in her mind. “I think I have an idea!”

“So, let me get this straight…” Rainbow Dash said, pointing between Twilight, Fluttershy, and Boltsinger. “You practiced this whole time by… flying with birds?”

“Eeyup!” Boltsinger replied, looking over at Fluttershy. “Racing just… wasn’t doing it for her. I understand that much. Luckily our favorite Princess is a certifiable genius!”

“Well, I wouldn’t say genius…” Twilight denied, a modest blush adorning her cheeks. “I just thought she might enjoy it more with her animal friends.”

Rainbow laid down in her spot, trying to make sense of it all. She shook her head in relent, looking at Fluttershy. “I don’t understand… Can you explain it one more time?”

Fluttershy laid comfortably in her seat, a falcon and an eagle each perched on her back, with an owl on the other. “It’s simple, really. I didn’t like the racing, so much as I liked flying with good friends! And flying with the fastest flyers at the sanctuary let me see how fast I could go! Of course, Twilight and Boltsinger came by every now and then to join in. And when we tested my wingpower yesterday, I’d made a big improvement since the last time!”

“Well, if it helped you make up your mind, and helped you train yourself, I don’t see a problem.” Rainbow told her, sitting up and eyeing the familiar birds. “But I wouldn’t mind seeing this improvement for myself, if you’re okay with showing me.”

Boltsinger looked over at Fluttershy, who smiled back at him. “You’ve got this, Fluttershy.”

Fluttershy nodded confidently. “I think so, too!” She wrapped her wings around the birds nestled with her, pulling them in for a hug. “With all we’ve done, I’m sure I can do this!”

The train pulled in and the group disembarked. Rarity was hard at work in getting her new idea for uniforms ready, and pulled a rather large cart full of supplies behind her. Applejack, as well, had a sizeable load. She had packed an ample amount of her prized Apple brown betty, and was ready to help any hungry ponies looking for some eats. Pinkie Pie cartwheeled off of the train in her cheerleading outfit, pom poms fully stocked, and backed up by Bon Bon and Lyra Heartstrings, who laughed as they made their way. The winged ponies of the gathering all exited the train in the air, Soarin and Rainbow Dash flying side by side, quickly followed by Twilight, Fluttershy, and Boltsinger, who headed straight for the training field.

“Well, I’ll be!” Applejack started, noting the smile evident on her bashful friend’s face. “I know she’s been hard at work, ‘n all, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen Fluttershy so excited to just be flyin’!”

“Indubitably!” Rarity confirmed. “I think these new uniforms are going to be just the thing to keep that confidence going, too!”

Landing in the training field, Spike ran into position, placing the anemometer by the track. “Okay, everypony, it’s all set up!” He told them, readying a quill and parchment. “You’re up, Fluttershy!”

“Right!” She said, getting into position and flexing her wings. Rainbow, Soarin, Twilight, and Boltsinger all sat by the anemometer, eagerly awaiting as the yellow pony started flapping her wings. She leaped forward, flying past the fan device at such a speed that Rainbow Dash almost didn’t recognize her. She quickly landed, turning and confidently facing the dragon monitoring the feed. “So, how did I do?”

Spike took a close look at the number the needle pointed to, turning around and spreading his arms. “You did amazing, Fluttershy! That was nine point four wingpower!” He announced.

“Oh, my!” Fluttershy replied, taken aback by the result. “That’s a whole point above yesterday!”

Rainbow Dash looked at the still-spinning fan with eyes wider than she could manage. “Nine… point… four?! But wasn’t it only at six during the last games?”

“It was a solid five point one back then!” Twilight corrected.

Rainbow dashed over to Fluttershy, her hooves placed firmly on the mare’s shoulders. “That’s awesome!” the blue Wonderbolt exclaimed, shaking her friend rapidly. “Do you know what this means?” Fluttershy took a breath to speak, only to be shaken more. “We have a real shot at Ponyville gold!”

“You really think I make that much of a difference?” Fluttershy asked. “Even though you and Soarin are so much faster?”

“Every pony on the team counts, Fluttershy.” Soarin mentioned. “There's a lot of ponies out there who can’t get that high, and you did it after just a couple weeks!”

“I know, right?” The rainbow mare replied, pulling Fluttershy into a hug. “I can’t wait for the qualifiers!” She jumped into the air, hovering in place. “Come on! Let’s get practicing! Gotta learn the course so we can make the best time!” She sped off towards the starting line for the practice course, Fluttershy giddily following suit.

“Now that’s a wonderful sight, wouldn’t you sa--” Boltsinger started as he looked over at Twilight. She had a mischievous look on her face, floating over an outfit much like the ones worn by Pinkie, Bon Bon, and Lyra, with a pair of pom poms and a poofy rainbow wig. “--ay… What is that, and why am I scared right now?”

“Don’t worry so much!” Twilight teased, inching closer. “Just show your friends some support!”

Boltsinger bolted, finding himself stopped dead by Rarity’s magic. His eyes widened, looking frantically between the mares as they closed the distance. “No… No! NOOOOOOOOOO!!!”

After several hours of practice, it was time for the qualifying rounds. Cloudsdale, Griffonstone, Fillydelphia, and Stratosburg had all qualified. Next up: Ponyville! Spitfire, Fleetfoot, and Blaze looked down at the track, where each competitor flew into position. They all wore a form-fitting, bold yellow uniform that featured violet accents, the Ponyville flag featured on their flanks. The official stepped into place at the finish line, eyeing the stopwatch that marked a qualifying performance.

Fluttershy looked at her section of the course, then at the horseshoe in her hoof. Nerves began to set in, and her entire body began to shake. I know I trained for this, but… I didn’t expect stepping up would be this… scary… Oh, what would my friends do? As her friends came to mind, the realization struck like lightning. She ascended a few feet, giving herself a bit of air, then reached both of her wings forward, striking her muzzle firmly on each side as she fell back into place. At the moment if impact, everything came together. The rapid thoughts and emotions that bombarded her swirled together to a single point, dramatically intensifying her focus. She knew it for certain now. She could do this.

“Wait… Did she just…” Twilight started.

“Eeyup.” Boltsinger finished, his face looking flat.

Twilight directed her attention to her husband. “You could sound a little more excited…” She wore her cheerleading outfit and wig, Pinkie, Bon Bon, and Lyra positioned behind them in a pyramid of ponies.

“This is about as excited as I’m gonna get right now…” he deadpanned. Like his spouse, he wore the cheerleading outfit, complete with skirt, pom poms, and the wig. “Considering you put me in a dress…”

Rarity, who sported the same outfit, laughed to herself. “Oh, come now, Bolt, everypony is dressing up! We just wanted to let you in on the fun!”

“Everypony but Applejack…” he corrected, pointing at the farm pony. She sat by her wagon, still wearing nothing but her hair ties and her stetson as she munched on some apple brown betty. “Why didn’t you dress her up?”

“They couldn’t hold me down long enough if they tried!” Applejack stated, taking another nonchalant bite.

Boltsinger sighed, looking back up at Fluttershy. “Can’t say I’m surprised.”

Fluttershy waited patiently as the official looked down at the competitors. “Ready…” he started. Fluttershy performed one more muzzle slap, setting herself up to fly her best. “Set…” A single bead of sweat trickled down from Soarin’s forehead. “GO!”

Fluttershy let out the strongest flap she could muster, shooting off to the course. She darted between each hoop with a level of grace akin to an eagle, quickly coming to a sharp turn. She slowed down considerably, turning upward and taking off again. Within the next few seconds, she reached Soarin, giving him what he needed as he shot off like a rocket. Several seconds later, the rainbow streak was off, bursting through the cloud that was the finish line with ten seconds to spare. Rainbow kept the momentum going, immediately turning towards Fluttershy and catching her in a hug as they landed in front of their friends.

“Fluttershy, that was nothing short of epic!” She shouted, standing and helping her up. “How did you…? That was just like a bird!”

“Well, I have been flying with them for the last two weeks…” Fluttershy said, pawing the ground sheepishly with her hoof. “I guess that helped me in more ways than one!”

Everyone from Ponyville jumped for joy, cheers coming from the dedicated cheering section. Even the embarrassed stallion couldn’t hold himself back. He jumped up, going into a hover as he waved his forelegs with a holler that shook the mountain. Pinkie took full advantage of the situation, setting a camera up on a tripod and triggering a delayed picture. She quickly sped back over and returned to her pony pyramid as the flash shined, lighting up the moment forever.

Author's Note

This little arc has been giving me some... interesting ideas for future interactions. Look forward to them in the next chapter!

Up In The Clouds

Soarin moved about his bedroom, a suitcase on his desk that was gradually being filled with necessities. “Haven’t been back to Cloudsdale since I moved away… I wonder how everypony is doing...”

“I’m sure everyone’s fine.” Rainbow Dash said from the next room. “How’s the packing coming along? Everyone’s meeting up pretty soon so Twilight can cast the cloud-walking spell.”

“Almost done!” He called back, putting one more item in and latching the suitcase shut. “So, you gonna see your family while we’re there?”

“See them? I’m staying with them!” She replied, standing in the doorway. “If I didn’t, they’d just come to wherever I’m at and gush over how proud they are, anyway!”

“Yeah, I bet they’re already over the moon about the games.” Soarin noted, hooking his tail into the suitcase handle and pulling it along behind him. “Well, I’m ready! Let’s get going!”

Rainbow Dash nodded, running out the door. The two Pegasi made their way to the balloon station, where Twilight, Flash, Fluttershy, and Boltsinger stood before their more aerially challenged friends. They landed on either side of the group as Twilight closed the book in front of her.

“It’s been a while since I’ve had to cast this spell, but I’m ready now!” Twilight announced, starting to light her horn.

“Can’t I have those lovely wings again?” Rarity asked, fond remembrance crossing her face. “Flying was simply wonderful, and those wings…” She began drooling, letting out a delirious laugh.

“I’m sorry, Rarity, but I don’t think I have enough in me right now to cast that particular spell.” Twilight explained. “Besides, if I only did it for you, it would leave everypony else out! Better we all go there as equals than to have one pony stand out too much.”

“Said the Princess to the regular citizens.” Spike teased.

“Okay, that’s something we can’t help.” the Princess stated, acknowledging her assistant’s comment. “Anyway, let’s go!” Her horn lit up completely, sending beads of magic into every wingless pony in the area, and Spike.

“Okay, everypony in the basket! We’ve got a long flight ahead of us!” Flash directed, waving his hoof as the ponies came forward. Pinkie bounded on board, leaning over the edge on the other side, while Applejack passed with a tip of her hat. Rarity then trotted up to the guard, a ludicrous pile of bags floating behind her. “Rarity, I think we’ll need to put your suitcases on… another balloon. What exactly is in all of those, anyway?”

Rarity coyly looked back at the bags. “Oh, just a few essentials. You know how cold it gets up in the air. I packed a scarf. And an extra scarf. And a few extra outfits, just in case I need to do an emergency costume change. And some extra things I always bring along just in case somepony needs my help in an emergency!”

Flash looked impressed at the designer’s last statement. “You have emergency training? I’ll be counting on you if something comes up, then.”

“Nonono, darling! I mean a fashion emergency!” She corrected with a wave of her hoof. “You never know when you’ll find a pony in desperate need of a new look!”

Flash’s face fell flat. “Just climb aboard, please. We’ll take care of your… essentials… somehow.” Rarity nodded and boarded the balloon as she placed her bags on the ground. He turned to the balloon operator. “All right! Let’s go! Everypony who can fly, feel free, but if it gets to be too much, get in the basket!” Twilight, Rainbow, and Fluttershy took off first, leading the way, while Soarin, Flash, and Boltsinger stayed closer to the balloon as it took off.

“So, Soarin…” Boltsinger began, looking over at the white flyer. “I can’t help but notice you arrived with Rainbow Dash.”

Soarin looked back at him. “Yeah, what about it?”

Boltsinger smirked, looking forward again. “Well, you two seem to be doing a lot together. Have you maybe made any progress towards your goal?”

Flash cocked his eyebrow. “And what ‘goal’ would that be?”

Soarin opened his mouth to reply, Boltsinger chiming in before he could form his statement. “Oh, he’s got a thing for Rainbow Dash.”

The white Wonderbolt went into a furious blush, putting his hoof in his mane. “Come on, Bolt, you didn’t have to just tell him!”

“He’s right. You didn’t.” the guard affirmed, smirking at Soarin. “I already knew.”

Soarin groaned as Boltsinger burst into laughter. “So I guess it’s obvious to everypony, huh?” Soarin guessed.

“Everypony but Rainbow Dash.” Boltsinger confirmed with a chuckle. “She’s been… sorting through her own feelings. Honestly, I think you might be approaching a golden opportunity.”

Soarin shifted his expression to show a hint of confusion. “I’m not sure I follow.”

“Oh, don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll understand once you’ve won.” Boltsinger said, letting out a soft, yet devious laugh as they flew onward.

Ahead of the stallions, Twilight, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy flew at a leisurely pace, a soft silence found in the presence of good friends and the expanse before them. After several minutes, Rainbow Dash let out a bored groan. “That’s it, I’m bored! What do you wanna talk about?”

“Oh! Um…” Fluttershy started, a little surprised at the sudden conversation. “So, Twilight, my parents are oh-so-excited about having you and Boltsinger over for the Games! My parents have already got everything set up for you two.”

“You’re staying with Fluttershy’s family?” Rainbow asked, casting a look at her lilac friend. “How’d you pull that off?”

“They invited us, of course!” Twilight answered. “I don’t know what brought it about, but I don’t want to turn down hospitality like theirs!”

Rainbow nodded, crossing her forelegs. “Cool. I’m staying with my parents, too. They wanna be there for every heat we have in the relay, but even that won’t be enough for them!”

“Oh, I’m sure Windy and Bow aren’t that bad about it anymore…” Fluttershy suggested. Rainbow Dash took a long, deadpanning look at Fluttershy that seemed to question her sanity. “Or… you know… they could have gotten worse… So, what about Soarin? Is he staying with family, too?”

“I dunno. He hasn’t told me where he’s shacking up.” she replied, sneaking a look back at the white Wonderbolt. Her cheeks turned a mild pink as she faltered in the air, catching the attention of the Alicorn next to her.

“You could invite him to stay with your family, you know.” Twilight suggested, giving a knowing glance.

Rainbow faltered again, quickly swooping up in front of the Princess with her hooves waving in front of her. “Why would I want to do that?!”

“Well, you do spend an awful lot of time with him.” Twilight noted.

“And you also seem to talk about him a lot, lately.” Fluttershy added. “It seems like you think pretty highly of him!”

“What?! You’re just reading too much into this!” She insisted, turning around and continuing. “He’s a good friend! It’s not like I like him, or anything!” She turned away, hiding the mad blush that had overtaken her face.

Twilight giggled. “Well, enough about that. I’m really looking forward to the Games, and getting to know your families better!”

“They are pretty great.” the blue mare assured. “I just hope you don’t have to deal with…”

“Oh, my Flutter-butter big sister!” a tall, skinny Pegasus stallion shouted. He was a light blue, only a shade darker than Rainbow Dash, with purple eyes and a straight, long, yellow mane and tail. His mane was done up in a messy bun, and he had five o’clock shadow, despite it only being noon. His Cutie Mark showed a fiery red feather riding on a breeze. He and Fluttershy stood just outside of their foalhood home, the yellow mare being held extra tight by the blue stallion. “How I’ve missed you! Why, you have no idea just how bad some ponies’ manes can get when they let all the stress and pressures of life get them--” he stopped mid-sentence, gawking at the other ponies that walked up. His eyes fell upon the unruly blue mess that found itself positioned on the orange stallion's head, his jaw going slack. “What in Equestria happened to you?!”

Boltsinger tilted his head. “What are you talking about?”

“That-that-that mane! How did it get so… I can’t even come up with a word to describe it!” He ran over to Boltsinger, clutching his head and pulling his mane every which way. “There’s so much… everything in there! Do you even brush, boy?”

Fluttershy stepped forward, putting her hoof squarely on the stallion’s shoulder. “Zephyr Breeze, could you please not suffocate our guest?”

Zephyr looked down at the blue mess beneath him, seeing that he had clamped his forelegs around the pony’s head and neck so hard that he struggled to breathe. “Oh!” He released Boltsinger from his grip, backing up. “Sorry about that. Ever since I ‘found my way', I just can’t help myself when I see a mane in need! And your mane has a heck of a story to tell!”

“Well… You’re not wrong.” Boltsinger said, offering a hoof to the stallion he just met. “It’s nice to meet you, Zephyr. My name is Boltsinger.”

“Oh! So you’re that new friend my big sis told us about!” He bumped his hoof against the extended one. “Good to finally meet you! And I hope to see more of you soon! We have… business… to discuss!” He smiled and started off towards town. “Well, I’ll be back! If you’re all gettin’ here, then that means Rainbows is arriving, too! Gotta let her know I haven’t forgotten about her in all my success!”

Boltsinger waved a hoof, soon joined by Twilight and Fluttershy. “So… he’s… interesting…” he told the mares. “I look forward to meeting the rest of your family!”

Rainbow Dash and Soarin approached a house in Cloudsdale, Soarin looking around the neighborhood. “So, this is where your parents live, huh?” he asked.

Rainbow gave a small nod. “Yeah, it’s not much, but it’s home.” She looked up at the pony in her company. “So, you really don’t have anywhere to stay in Cloudsdale? I thought you only just recently moved to Ponyville!”

Soarin scratched his head with his hoof. “Yeah, I never had much here in Cloudsdale, anyway. Besides, it’ll be great to get to know your family better!”

“Well, you know me, so getting to know them should be a snap.” Rainbow said, approaching the door. She raised her hoof, making to knock as it was flung open from the other side.

“WELCOME HOME, RAINBOW DASH!!!” a pair of voices screamed. Inside stood a faded blue Pegasus stallion with white hooves, amber eyes, and a short-cut mane and tail with the same color pattern as Rainbow Dash, the tail ending with a little lightning bolt. He wore a green button-up shirt with a white one underneath, and his Cutie Mark showed a rainbow coming out of a cloud behind a horseshoe. Next to him stood a pale blue Pegasus mare with purple eyes along with a bowl cut scarlet and orange mane and tail. Her Cutie Mark showed a cloud emitting a gust of wind, and she wore a yellow track jacket. They ran out of the door, nearly tackling their daughter in a hug.

“We’re so happy you decided to stay with us during the Games!” the stallion literally cried. “You make this old colt so proud!”

The ponies stood up, with the mare looking to Soarin. “And you brought your boyfriend with you!”

Rainbow Dash and Soarin both jumped back, faces bright red as they looked at each other. “What?!” Rainbow started, shaking her head rapidly. “No! He’s not my boyfriend! He’s just a really good friend! We’re both Wonderbolts! We fly together! You’ve met him before!”

Soarin joined in with nervous laughter. “Yeah, come on! Bow, Windy, you know me!”

Windy smirked, trotting to the door. “Whatever you say. Well, everything is all set up for the both of you!”

Rainbow smiled, giving Windy a quick hug before trotting in. “Thanks, Mom. We need to get to the stadium for opening ceremonies, soon. You gonna be there?”

“Of course we’re going to be there!” Bow shouted, guiding Soarin to his room. “You think we’d miss your first time competing in the Equestria Games?!”

“Uh… yeah! My first time competing!” Rainbow nervously repeated, heading back to the door. “I’ll see you there!” She sped out the door.

Soarin looked wide-eyed at the spot his friend had been standing in. He quickly shook his head, waving to the parents and running out the door. As he found the mare, he matched her pace beside her. “Did you not tell your parents the last time you were in the Games?”

Rainbow’s face became stricken with guilt as she slowed down, looking at the street beneath her. “I didn’t…” She raised her head and turned sharply to look at him. “You didn’t tell them, did you?!”

Soarin shook his head. “No, I didn’t. But why didn’t you?”

Rainbow gave a relieved sigh as she looked ahead. “It’s the same reason I didn’t tell them when I became a Wonderbolt. I love how supportive they are, but it can get super embarrassing when they… go overboard…”

“Yeah, I remember when they first showed up at the compound.” He replied with a snicker. “They’re pretty great ponies, though. You’re lucky to have them!”

Rainbow nudged Soarin with her wing, giving him a relaxed smile. “I’m lucky to have a lot of ponies!” She jumped into the air, flapping her wings. “Come on! We gotta get ready for the ceremony!”

Soarin happily followed suit. “Right behind you, Crash!” He zoomed onward, the turbulence of his flight blowing the tail of a blue stallion gawking from the side of the road.

Cloudsdale stadium was packed to the brim. For the first time in many years, the stands were filled with ponies, and other creatures, of all kinds. Twilight sat in a special seat next to the other Princesses, her royal decorum in play. She leaned forward, waving to Cadence and looking around. In addition to several noble ponies from Canterlot, Twilight spotted Thorax, a Hippogriff representative, as well as the Yak Prince, Rutherford. The most interesting sight to behold was Rarity, leaning comfortably against Fancy Pants, who talked at length about something or other. She gave a contented smile, pulling a bucket close, just in case.

Meanwhile, in the crowds, Pinkie Pie sat with Applejack, Spike, Starlight, and Sunburst, waving up at the royal box.

“Hi, Prince Rutherford! It’s me! Pink Pony!” Pinkie called. The large furry Prince glanced in her direction, waving and laughing. The poofy mare directed her attention up a bit higher, noting all of the Alicorns, but somepony was missing… “Hey, Applejack, why isn’t Bolt up there with Twilight? I mean, Shining Armor is next to Cadence, and he gets super airsick! So why doesn’t Twilight get to have her Prince along?”

“Fillies and gentlecolts!” a baritone voice boomed, carrying through the stadium in an instant. “Creatures of all kinds! Welcome here to Cloudsdale for the Equestria Games!”

“That’s why.” Applejack said, pointing at the source of the voice. There, Boltsinger stood center-stadium, his practiced composure on full display. “I mean, who else wouldja pick fer that job?”

“Oooooooh!” Pinkie replied, returning to her seat as Boltsinger’s announcements continued. “That makes sense.”

The announcements came with cheers from the crowd. Each of the regions of Equestria getting their due. Finally, the moment came. “And, finally, the delegation from…” Boltsinger gestured a hoof toward the entrance. “Ponyville!”

Through a hoop bearing the Ponyville flag, Scootaloo burst out, flying high with Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Belle, along with their friends Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon pulled on scooters behind them. They jumped off of their respective scooters, Apple Bloom and Silver Spoon sliding into place as Sweetie Belle lifted herself and Diamond Tiara onto their backs with her magic, with Scootaloo hovering in place at the top. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Diamond Tiara, and Silver Spoon all extended a foreleg on the inside of the formation, creating a star pattern as one final scooter rolled behind them with the flag propped up. “PONYVILLE FOREVER! YAY!” they exclaimed as the athletes of Ponyville made their entrance. Last to arrive was the aerial relay team, who landed with utmost grace behind the flag, Rainbow Dash taking it from the scooter and placing it with the others before enthusiastically trotting up next to Soarin.

After the delegations took their places, Boltsinger cleared his throat. “Now, to light the torch, it is my privilege to introduce… Dragon Lord Ember!” With that, a small blue dragon, roughly three times Spike’s height, stepped forward by the torch. She had long, dark blue spines with a frill of the same color at the end of her tail. Her underside, as well as a number of spots throughout her body, were a lighter blue, with hooked white horns and fiery orange eyes. The leather of her wings was a bright violet that became deeper as it went up the bend of the limb. She took a deep breath, letting out an ear-piercing roar along with an immense purple flame that engulfed the torch. The flames turned to a more natural orange as more cheers commenced. “I now declare these Games… open!” The loud stallion concluded, raising his foreleg as the throngs of spectators exclaimed their approval.

The ceremony came to a close, and the ponies made their exit. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity met up with their sisters and their friends. Words of praise were passed around from the mares to the fillies as the remainder of the group gathered.

Apple Bloom perked up the moment Twilight and Boltsinger came into view, trotting over to them. “Twilight! Bolt! What’dja think of our flag-wavin’?!”

Twilight beamed at the yellow filly. “That was even better than the last Games! I liked your friends’ contribution a lot!”

Apple Bloom looked back at the other Earth Pony fillies in their gathering, reveling in the feeling of friendship she got from her former rivals. “I did, too!” She looked back at Twilight. “We spent so much time competin’ back then, we never even knew how good it could get when we all work together!”

Twilight tousled Apple Bloom’s mane with her wing, giving her a warm smile. “All five of you have come a long way! I’m very proud of you!”

“Thanks, Twilight. That means a lot.” Apple Bloom said. She turned to Boltsinger. “So, what did you think?”

“Best flag-waving I ever saw!” He exclaimed. He leaned in closer to Twilight, whispering out of the corner of his mouth. “Also the only flag-waving I ever saw… But, still, really good!” He returned his full attention to the farm filly. “So, how do you like Cloudsdale? Isn’t this your first time walking on clouds?”

Apple Bloom nodded, jumping and spinning on the cloud below her. “Yeah! I knew they were soft ‘n fluffy, it this is sumthin’ else entirely! And Pegasus ponies really live most ‘o their lives up here?”

Boltsinger nodded, starting his walk to the other Crusaders. “Most Pegasi, yeah. It depends on where they’re born and various other circumstances. I spent most of my life on the ground. I can tell you all about it sometime if you’re interested.”

Apple Bloom’s head made a slight tilt. “Tell me ‘bout what?”

“Oh, various things… Things like what it was like living in Vanhoover when I was little… finding out what I liked to do…” he lifted his wing, pointing a feather at his flank. “How I got my Cutie Mark…”

Apple Bloom stopped, putting her hooves on the stallion’s head and pulling him close.“Really?! You’re finally gonna tell us how ya got yer Cutie Mark?!” Boltsinger nodded. “I can bring the other Crusaders along, right?”

The Pegasus chuckled, giving her a grin. “I’d be surprised if you didn’t. Heck… I’m surprised I waited this long to tell you!” he stated, turning to Scootaloo and letting out a prideful holler. Apple Bloom, in kind, let out an excited squee.

Meanwhile, Soarin made his exit, catching up to Rainbow Dash. “If I wasn’t pumped for the relay before, I definitely am now!” he told her. “How ‘bout you?”

“Heh. I’m always pumped for a good competition!” Rainbow replied, keeping her cool. “Not that I’m not used to it after all this time.”

Soarin laughed, looking back to see Bow and Windy making their approach. “Oh, I remember. Your parents told us all about your first race, remember?”

Rainbow averted her eyes, her cheeks pink. “Don’t remind me…”

“Aha!” came a stallion’s voice from the entrance. “There you are, my little Dashie!” Zephyr Breeze confidently walked out of the building. “Can’t believe it took me this long to catch up with you!” He got in close, putting his foreleg around her. “Ya didn’t miss me, did you, hun?”

The jaws of all present Wonderbolts plummeted, a faint noise coming from Rainbow Dash. Soarin looked between his friend and this new face, noting the shocked expression she wore. He finally clamped his jaw shut, clearing his throat. “Excuse me. I don’t think we’ve met!” He started, extending his hoof. “My name’s Soarin. What’s yours?”

The tall stallion retreated his foreleg from the mare, holding it out to meet Soarin’s hoof. “The name is Zephyr Breeze, and it’s good to meet you!” He said, looking at Rainbow out of the corner of his eye. “Rainbows and me go way back! Ever since she and my sister got to be friends!”

Soarin squinted his eyes, leaning in. “And your sister is…”

“Fluttershy, of course!” Zephyr exclaimed. “Can’t you see the family resemblance? Though, I can’t say I blame you. My dazzling good looks tend to make ponies like Flutter-butter turn all invisible and stuff. Isn’t that right, Rainbows?”

“Uh… Yeah, Zeph… Something like that…” Rainbow droned, trying to inch away. “Um… if you’ll excuse me… I need to--”

Zephyr pulled her back in, holding her close. “Oh you don’t have to be so shy, Rainbows! Just let it flow naturally! I know how you feel already!”

Rainbow pulled her head out of Zephyr’s fur, looking pleadingly at Soarin. He recoiled at the sight, but approached the blue ponies. “Hey, Rainbow Dash, don’t we have to go through some practice runs for the event?” He held out his hoof, which Rainbow grasped with her wing. “We should…” he pulled, giving off a grunt. “... get to that…” He pulled again, Rainbow adding her own effort to the mix. “... right…” With one final yank, Rainbow was pulled free of the Breeze. “... away!” The two Wonderbolts fell to the clouds with Soarin on his back and Rainbow leaning over him, looking down at him. He looked at her with a nervous laugh and a flushed muzzle. “Don’t you think?”

Rainbow pulled her bangs out of her face, lingering for a moment. “Uh… yeah!” She shook herself free of her trance, sitting up. “I’ll go get Fluttershy!” She spread her wings, rocketing off towards the yellow mare.

Soarin slowly stood up, brushing himself off with his wing. “Right behind you!” he called, following along while Zephyr sent a scowl in his direction.

“Was it really that bad?” Fluttershy asked, flying with Rainbow and Soarin to a practice field situated on a nearby cliff.

“It was worse!” Rainbow exclaimed, spreading her forelegs. “He seriously refused to let go of me! I’m used to him being embarrassingly flirty, but this was at a whole other level!” She looked to Soarin. “I’m just glad you were there to…” she snickered to herself. “... pull me out.” The two Wonderbolts started into light laughter, Fluttershy twisting to fly above them.

“Oh, my…” she whispered, noting the atmosphere. “You two have certainly gotten close, haven’t you?” no response came from the stunt flyers, continuing on into a conversation. Fluttershy giggled to herself, swooping down to the field prematurely.

Rainbow and Soarin flew on for several minutes, talking about a number of subjects. All the while, a yellow and pink streak shot back and forth between the city on the clouds and their destination, completely unnoticed by the pair. She had just finished regaling her fellow Wonderbolt about her favorite book series, and heroine, Daring Do, when she took a look around. “Hey, have you seen Fluttershy? I coulda sworn she was with us!”

As if to answer her question, a soprano melody soared by on the wind, accompanied by the singing of a number of birds. Fluttershy sat on a picnic blanket, surrounded by animals with a fully-stocked basket next to her. She sang a soft, but happy tune as the birds whistled and chirped with her. As Rainbow and Soarin landed, her song stopped. She opened her eyes and looked at them with a smile. “Oh! You’re here!”

Rainbow looked around, astonished by the sudden animal presence and the picnic. “How did you…?”

“You mean you didn’t notice? I’ve been going back and forth with my little bird friends to gather everything!” The caretaker explained, holding up her hoof to have a bird land on it and chirp to her. “Why, yes! It was difficult to get all of this here so quickly! Thank you ever-so-much for all of your help, Mr. Bird!” She nuzzled the bird, letting it fly off. “I thought that, since you were mostly just trying to get away from my brother, it would be nice if we had some lunch before we practice!”

Soarin took a look at the basket, taking a peek inside. “Really? Thanks, Fluttershy!” He sat on one corner of the blanket, sifting around inside to see what all was available.

Rainbow sat on another corner, looking at her fellow flyers. “This is all pretty sudden. You sure you wanna have a picnic when we should be flying?”

Fluttershy nodded, taking a sandwich out of the basket and passing it to her friend. “Absolutely! We need to keep our energy up, anyway.”

Rainbow Dash looked at her sandwich, wincing as a rumble came from her belly. “Okay, fine. I’ll have some!”

“How wonderful!” Fluttershy reached into the basket again and laying out a sizable spread. “I hope you enjoy it!” She reached for a nearby piece of fruit when another bird flew up to her, chirping into her ear. “What? Oh, that’s just awful! I’ll be right there!” She got up, looking between her companions. “I’m sorry, but I need to get going right away! This little birdie’s chicks have fallen from their nest and need my help as soon as possible!” She stepped off the blanket, looking back at them with a sly grin. “I’m afraid I’ll have to leave the two of you all alone…” she ran past a bush, turning back and poking her head out. “... with this picnic…” she turned and smiled back once more. “... Alone. Bye!” She flew off, leaving the two on their own.

Soarin swallowed his latest morsel, looking at the exiting Pegasus. “Wait… did she just set all of this… just to…?”

Rainbow Dash smirked, taking a bite of her own and scooting closer to Soarin. “Yeah, I think she did. Might as well make sure all this doesn’t go to waste, right?”

The white stallion let a goofy grin appear as he scooted closer in turn. “You’re right about that! Let’s go for it!”

Author's Note

What do you call Fluttershy when she's being devious or clever?
...
Fluttersly.
:yay:

Acceptance

“What did I do?” Rainbow Dash asked herself. She was sitting in her bed, wearing her robe and clutching the shell of her pet tortoise, Tank. “I know what I did, I guess, but why did I do it?!” Tank poked his head out of his shell, looking up and slowly smiling at her. She scoffed, patting him on the head. “Don’t give me that look! I know what you’re getting at… I just… don't know if it was such a good thing to do.” She stewed on her previous actions for a while longer. She was in such a panic after the race that she flew straight home to her house in Ponyville. The Equestria Games had since ended, and she was hoping against hope that everypony would leave her alone for a while.

The knocking at the door dashed her hopes entirely. Rainbow Dash got up from her bed, slowly plodding her way to the door. She breathed a sigh, opening the door to reveal Twilight and Flash, a warm and patient smile present on the Alicorn’s face. “Hi, Rainbow.” the Princess greeted. “We missed you at the closing ceremonies.”

“Hey, Twi…” Rainbow replied. “What do you need?”

“I just wanted to see how you were doing.” she said, stepping inside and waving a wing at Flash, who turned around to stand guard. “That, and you never got your medal.” She ignited her horn, pulling a brilliant gold medal from a bag that hung from Flash’s back and floating it in front of her friend. “Congratulations, Rainbow Dash. You deserve it!”

Rainbow held out her wing, letting the medal fall into it. She looked at it with a sense of pride. Ponyville gold… Something she had dreamed of since her first run at the Games was now a reality. “So how is everypony?”

Twilight walked past, looking around the house. “For the most part, everyone is worried about you. Boltsinger wanted to come with me today, but I convinced him to let me take care of this.”

Rainbow gave off a chortle, sitting on the couch. “Yeah, I bet he was ready to fly off after me when I left!” Twilight laughed in kind, nodding as she sat next to her. “So… what about Soarin?”

Twilight drew circles on the couch cushion, lowering her head. “He’s… confused. He was really happy about… what you did, but…”

“Doesn’t know why I flew away?” the Wonderbolt finished. She kicked off her turtle slippers, leaning back. “I don’t even understand why I… you know…”

“Kissed him?” Twilight suggested. Rainbow's face went pink with a nervous smile, telling the purple pony all she needed. “I think you know perfectly well why you did it. Is it really that much of a surprise?”

“Yes!” Rainbow shouted, throwing her forelegs apart. Twilight narrowed her eyes, prompting her to lower her limbs and groan. “No… I know why…” She hung her head over the edge of the couch. “Can we talk about something else, please?”

Twilight rolled her eyes, getting up and walking over to the bookshelf. “Okay. But you know where to go if you need to talk.” She pulled out the latest Daring Do book, looking it over and returning to her seat. “So, I finally read this, and…”

Another knock came at Rainbow’s door. The house’s resident looked out her window to see a hot air balloon parked outside. “Who could it be this time?” she asked herself, opening the door to reveal… “Rarity? What brings you over?”

“Do I need a reason to pay my good friend a visit?” the couturier countered, strutting in and looking back. “Why, you took off in such a flash that I never got to congratulate you on your victory! Or congratulate you on your ‘victory’!”

Rainbow furrowed her brow, closing the door and guiding the glamorous one to her kitchen. “Um… Why did you say that twice?”

Rarity giggled, putting a hoof on the racer’s shoulder. “Well, the first time should be obvious. But the second time…” she giggled even more, a hint of enhanced glee coming out in her tone. “The second should be even more obvious! I can’t believe you kissed him in front of that entire crowd! I knew you were bold, Rainbow Dash, but I didn’t know you were that bold!”

An exasperated groan came from the rainbow mare as she put a teapot on the stove. “Why do you have to bring that up?” she asked.

Rarity tilted her confused head. “Why not, darling? Didn’t you know what you were doing?”

Rainbow sat at the table, letting her head fall to the surface with a thud. “I knew what I was doing, but I didn’t want to do it… I mean, I wanted to do it, but I didn’t want to! Ugh… Why does everyone have to bring this up?! Can’t I just talk to my friends about something that’s not so… weird?”

“Darling, if you don’t let it out, you’ll never be able to live with yourself.” the fashionista advised, floating the whistling pot over with a pair of cups. “Besides, I don’t see what’s so bad about you kissing him. He seemed to enjoy it!”

Rainbows head rose from the table. “It’s not about whether or not he enjoyed it. I just… I dunno…” She sat up further, an idea striking her like lightning. “So, How’re things between you and Fancy Pants, anyway?”

Rarity instantly swooned, stars appearing in her dreamy eyes. “Oh, things are going swimmingly, darling! He and I have been going to parties, dinners, all sorts of cultured social events! He’s a perfect gentlecolt, and I’ve expanded both my influence and my customer base at the same time!” She raised her finely-polished hoof, holding it in front of her as she squished her cheek with the other. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he opted to PROPOSE before too long!”

“Propose, huh?” Rainbow repeated, leaning towards the designer. “Don’t you think that's a little fast?”

Rarity leaned her head on her hoof, staring off into space. “Isn’t that the goal, though? Get married, have babies, live happily ever after?”

Rainbow rested on her own hoof. “I guess so. You just don’t strike me as the ‘happily ever after’ type. You’ve got too much planned to just give into some guy for the rest of your life!”

Rarity sipped her tea, musing for a moment. “I believe that depends on the ‘guy’ in question. I mean, take a look at Twilight! She married Boltsinger, and she has yet to ever ‘give into him'.”

“Yeah, but Bolt is… well… Bolt. What’s there to give into?” Rainbow stressed.Rarity stifled a laugh. “But you’re with, well, Fancy Pants.”

“I admit he’s much more commanding than Boltsinger, but he’s extremely supportive!” she continued, crossing her hooves on the table. “He’s introduced me to so many customers, and boasts about me all the time! It’s been simply divine!”

Rainbow crossed her forelegs on the table, resting her head on them. “I guess that’s nice…”

“And now you’re getting together with Soarin!” Rarity cheered.

Rainbows head rose up, her full stare snapping to encompass the Unicorn. “Hey! I didn’t say I was ‘getting together’ with anypony!”

Rarity reared back, taken completely by surprise. “But you kissed him! I just assumed--:

“Yeah, you sure did!” The Pegasus spat, getting up from her chair. “I never said I wanted to do any of that! I just moved, that’s all!”

Rarity followed Rainbow’s lead, getting up and following her. “I… understand, dear. You certainly have a lot on your mind, so I’ll leave you to your thoughts.” She headed out the door, looking back with concern. “It was lovely to see you, Dash. Let’s do it again soon.”

Boltsinger walked alongside Soarin and Big Mac at Sweet Apple Acres. The farm stallion pulled a wagon of apples behind him, sharing a one-sided conversation with the orange Pegasus of the gathering. Soarin hung his head, walking in pace with his friends, but paying little mind to their conversation. Boltsinger looked at the white pony, denoting a hint of sorrow in his usually bright green eyes.

“And then Rainbow Dash said…” he started, getting a confused look from Big Mac as Soarin finally raised his head. “Nothing. I haven’t seen her since the Games.” He looked over at Soarin with a smirk. “Glad you could join us!”

Big Mac glared at Boltsinger, his disapproval more obvious than his response to any given question. “Bolt, don’tcha think that was a bit under-hoofed?” he asked. Boltsinger let out a sheepish smile, nodding back. Big Mac looked over the orange Pegasus to get a look at the white one. “How’re ya holdin’ up, Soarin?”

“Okay, I guess.” he replied, plodding along with his eyes focused firmly on the dirt. “I just don’t know what I did wrong. I mean, why did she have to run away like that? It doesn’t make sense! What do you think?”

Big Mac groaned, shaking his head with annoyance. “I dunno what it is with you Pegasus ponies and comin’ ta me fer romantic advice…” He unbuckled himself from the wagon, walking up to a nearby tree and giving it a hardy buck. “What makes y’all think I’ve got the answers ya need?”

Boltsinger and Soarin each took a deep inhale. “Well, you’re big.” Boltsinger started.

“Strong.” Soarin added.

“Dependable.”

“Humble.”

“Kind.”

“Hard-working.”

“Honest.”

“A good listener.”

“And if Sugar Belle has any insight, easy on a lady’s eyes.” the orange stallion concluded.

Big Mac sat down, putting his hoof to his forehead. “And you think all that matters to Rainbow Dash? Or to any ‘o those mares?” He pointed his hoof at Boltsinger. “Bolt, you ain’t anythin’ like me, and you ended up marryin’ Twilight Sparkle! And that’s one mare that nopony expected to get married!” He turned his attention to Soarin. “An’ you never did anything wrong! If she’s got issues, I’d bet the farm her issues ain’t with you.”

“What do you mean? How are her issues not with me?” Soarin wondered, gesturing to himself.

“No, I think Big Mac has a point, here.” Boltsinger said, planting his rump and putting a hoof to his muzzle. “I mean, the way she was looking at you reminded me of how this one looks at Sugar Belle.” He pointed a wing at Big Mac, who recoiled with a slight flush. “Anypony could tell she wanted to do it…” He pounded one forehoof into the other, standing up again. “I’ll tell you what. Give me a couple days. I’ll talk to her, see what all is going on.”

“Why do you need a couple days to do this?” Soarin asked, following suit. “Why not just go see her right now?”

“I’ve gotta give her time to cool off.” he clarified, picking up a bucket of apples to add to the wagon’s load. “Have you ever stared down an angry Rainbow Dash? Or when she’s flustered? Or any kind of emotion that might turn her aggressive?” Soarin and Big Mac simultaneously shook their heads. “It’s not an easy feat. That mare can take on an army if given the right reason. So I’m gonna let her have her alone time, then I’m gonna go and wreck all of that. Make sense?” The other stallions gave a confirming nod, making their way to the next tree.

Three days since the Games. Three days since her moment of unexpected honesty. Three days since her freak-out. Nopony is gonna pry after this long, right? Rainbow Dash stepped up to her door, opening it and grimacing as audibly as she could.

“What do you want, Bolt?”

Boltsinger stood, smiling, in the doorway. “Just wanted to talk. I haven’t seen you since the Games, and I wanted to make sure everything was cool on your end.”

Rainbow brushed past him, closing her door and preparing for takeoff. “Everything’s fine…”

Boltsinger gave her a look that reminded her of Twilight’s ‘I know something’s wrong and that you’re just trying to hide it’ face. “Fine, huh?”

“Yeah. I’m fine…” she confirmed, taking off. She flew towards town at about half of her top speed. She looked back, certain that Boltsinger had decided not to follow.

“You realize that can mean a lot of things, right?” he continued, keeping pace with her. “I mean, I know you’ve got a lot on your mind, and I don’t blame you if you don’t wanna talk about it.”

Rainbow air-skidded to a stop, yanking on the stallion’s tail to force the same out of him. “Then you’re not gonna pry, right?”

Boltsinger simply smiled and nodded. “No prying. Just flying.”

Rainbow breathed a sigh of relief, starting up again. “Good. Last thing I need is another pony assuming that Soarin and I are suddenly dating.”

“That does sound annoying.” he agreed.

“I mean, I get what happened. I understand why everypony is jumping to that conclusion!” She continued, gesturing angrily with her forelegs. “I acted on impulse, I tackled him, and I planted one on him! But I never said I wanted to start dating him! I don’t want for things to change!”

“I understand. He’s a good friend.” Boltsinger affirmed, smiling and keeping his ears directed towards her.

“Exactly! Why do things have to change? Why can’t we just keep a good thing going?” Rainbow rambled. “I love my friends the way they are! Why should any of that change?”

Boltsinger slowed down, just barely moving forward in his hover. “This isn’t just about the thing with Soarin, is it?”

Rainbow stopped and turned to her friend. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that your feelings for Soarin aren’t what’s bothering you, is it?” he elaborated, moving over to her. “You said something about not wanting things to change. Are you still having issues with… Well, you know what I’m getting at…”

The Wonderbolt hung in the air, rubbing her foreleg with her hoof. “I dunno… Maybe? I haven’t thought about it much…”

“Well, you’re thinking about it now. Why not tell me what’s bugging you?” he suggested, pulling up a cloud. He plopped down onto it, patting the spot next to him.

“I thought you weren’t gonna pry...” she reminded him.

“I wasn’t. Then you put me in a prying mood.” he said with a sheepish smile. “So, spill. I promise you’ll feel better.”

Rainbow looked at the town. It was a good distance away. Nopony was flying around, either. She turned back to Boltsinger, relentingly flapping over to the fluffy cloud and sitting down. “Okay… So, ever since I became a Wonderbolt, life has been… pretty amazing. And when you came along, it didn’t screw with things all that often. Friends, a great job helping Ponyville with the weather, living the dream as one of the Wonderbolts, and saving Equestria with the ponies I like the most! How could it possibly get any better?!”

Boltsinger leaned forward, resting on his fetlocks. “I can think of a few things…”

“But with you two having that foal, that cuts into the adventures!” She flared her wings. “Then there’s all this stuff with Soarin… Why in Equestria does he have to look at me like that?” She hung her head, pawing a small hole in the cloud. “I don’t want to accept it, because that means that things really are changing…”

“And what makes you think these changes are going to be so bad?”

“What are you getting at?”

“I’m getting at this…” Boltsinger stood up, moving closer, slapping his face with his wings. “You were honest with me, so I’ll be honest with you. I don’t think I can do this whole ‘dad’ thing without everypony, you included.”

Rainbow looked flatly at the stallion, raising a hoof to him. “But you are the dad. You’ve been preparing for this for, like, eight months! All the stuff you’ve been doing, all the responsibilities, and the confidence you’ve showed off? How are you not sure about this?”

“Well, you’re right that I’ve been preparing myself.” he stated. “But I haven’t been confident at all. Meeting a Princess? I can do that. Making friends while in a state of utter panic? Not too hard. Facing off against a twisted Alicorn version of the pony that made my life miserable? Easy as pie. Facing the idea that there will be a pony in this word who depends on me for basic needs, molding their mind and morals so that they can be a better pony than I ever was? That is terrifying! Like, nightmares in a regular basis terrifying.”

“Really? But you’re so good with Flurry!”

“That’s being an uncle. Being a father is something else entirely. Twilight and I both believe that we’re going to need everypony’s help.” He jumped off of the cloud, starting to hover again. “Raising a foal is hard work, and we figured it would be good for both us and for the baby to have all of the best friendship teachers in Equestria on deck to help out.” He held out his hoof. “What do you say, ‘Aunt’ Rainbow Dash? You wanna teach that foal some loyalty?”

Rainbow Dash stood up, stewing on what she had just heard. “That doesn’t sound as bad as I thought…” She flapped her wings, hovering over and giving him a solid hoof bump. “Yeah! I’ll give the kid a hoof!”

“Awesome!” He replied, turning towards Ponyville. “Oh, and don’t tell Twilight about my… issues. She has enough on her plate without my little problems.”

“Got it.” She started to follow the stallion, but looked back at the cloud houses behind her. “Hey, you go ahead into town… I think I owe somepony an explanation.”

Boltsinger smiled, waving his hoof. “Sounds good to me. See you later, Dash!” With that, the rainbow streak was off.

“Soarin!” Rainbow Dash called, pounding on the stallion’s door. “Hey! Soarin! You here?!” She stopped her knocking, turning around. “Probably not… He probably doesn’t wanna talk to--”

The door creaked open. “Rainbow Dash?” Soarin answered. Rainbow looked around to see his face, where a sense of uncertainty was made evident. “What do you need?”

“I need to apologize.” she informed him, turning back around.

“What do you need to apologize for?” he retorted, backing into the house. “For kissing me? For making me think I had a chance? For flying away after all of that with no explanation?”

The mare winced, Soarin’s words stinging like a flyder swarm. “You’re right. I should have explained things to you. I’ve been so focused on keeping things as close to how they’ve always been as I can that I’ve been denying the obvious!” She took a step closer to him. “I shouldn’t have flown away. I should have let you know how I was feeling!” Another step closer, crossing the threshold of the house. “I’m really sorry for how I’ve been acting… But…” She closed the distance between herself and her Wonderbolt colleague, planting a kiss on his lips. Soarin’s eyes went wide, all uncertainty fading out of them as he leaned into it. A moment later, Rainbow pulled back, her face a bright shade of red. “I’ll never apologize for that.”

Author's Note

This went... differently from how I expected. I suppose the characters had their own way with things for a little bit. I guess the event I had planned for this part is going to have to take place under different circumstances. Should be interesting, though. And, who knows? Maybe I'm wrong, and things are still unfolding. Seriously, even I don't know at this point.

His First Mission

Twilight sat in the throne room with Spike, enjoying a good book she hadn’t read in years. Spike was nestled up with her in the throne, listening as she read aloud. She went from page to page, the words acting like a lullaby to the young dragon. She came to the end of the chapter, marking her book and putting it aside as the reptile next to her began snoring.

“Out like a light.” she said, kissing him lightly on the forehead. She lit up her horn, lifting Spike into the air and moving him to his room, where she tucked him in and turned off his light. She passed the door to the balcony, where Boltsinger was making a landing. He inhaled sharply to announce his return like always, but found himself shushed with a single feather on his wife’s wing. “Shhh…”

Boltsinger looked behind her, his ears picking up the sounds of snoring. “Ah. Spike asleep?” Twilight gave a relaxed nod, continuing her journey. The stallion caught up, trotting beside the noticeably pregnant mare and thinking for a moment. “You know, I think I finally understand why you’re so confident in your ability as a mom.”

An intrigued Princess glanced her Prince’s way. “Oh? And why is that?”

“Spike.” he told her. Twilight tilted her head away from him, as if brushing off the statement. “You raised him. Therefore, you have experience.” He widened the gap between the two of them as he walked. “All I’ve got is an electric shock, uncle notes, and a few bad jokes..”

“I wouldn’t say that.” Twilight argued. “You have a lot to offer!”

“Such as…?”

Twilight smiled examining her favorite stallion extensively. “You have a strong voice, good morals, a glowing Cutie Mark…” she paused, stopping in her tracks. “Wait… glowing Cutie Mark?” she looked more closely at her husband’s flank, where a light shone repeatedly, smaller versions of the mark coming out of it from all sides. An ecstatic gasp quickly escaped her lips as she brought her hooves up to her cheeks. “Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh! You’re being summoned by the map!” She sprang into the air, prancing around him and laughing excitedly.

Twilight looked at Boltsinger’s Cutie Mark. It was glowing. She looked at Rarity’s Cutie Mark. That was glowing, too. Then she looked at her own Cutie Mark. Not even a little sparkle. She plopped her head down on the map, where Boltsinger and Rarity’s marks circled the town of Vanhoover. Boltsinger was writing a letter, his sight lingering on the town he once called home with a hint of confusion and uncertainty in his gaze.

Rarity stepped up next to her royal friend. “Oh, darling, I know you wanted to go, too.”

Twilight let out an exasperated sigh. “I wanted to be there to help Bolt out on his first friendship mission… But, I guess that’s just how the map works.”

Boltsinger stood up from his chair, tucking a letter under his wing as he joined the mares. “You know, you could come with us, anyway.” He told her, putting his wing around the lilac pony. “I mean, we have family in town. Plus, you could still give me advice!” He looked back at the map, his weak smile making its triumphant return. “I dunno why the map would even call me, let alone send me there. I could use all the help I can get...”

“Why does it surprise you that the map summoned you?” Rarity wondered, turning her vision towards the floating marks. “You’ve certainly earned your place here, it only makes sense that the map would acknowledge that.”

“But what if it’s malfunctioning? I mean, Twilight’s magic and my magic have mixed before! Maybe it means to call her, but it shows my mark instead!” He brought his wings forward. “I mean, every other time my talents are needed somewhere, these things take initiative and take me straight there. Why not this time?”

“Darling, I can’t even remember how many times we’ve been called someplace by the map and not even come close to needing to use our talents!” Rarity stated.

At Rarity’s words, Twilight brought a hoof to her muzzle, floating forward an abacus, quill, and parchment. “Well, aside from the three times all six of us have been summoned, each of us has been called in pairs with another Element-bearer twice. I’ve been called twice by myself, and Starlight has been called twice. Once by herself, and once with Applejack.” She had her nose buried in the sudden work, writing and computing furiously. “So… carry the four… Oh! Can’t forget Spike getting called to Ponyville for the problem he inadvertently created between Ember and Thorax! Let’s see… Oh yes! The CMC’s trip to Vanhoover, too… That’s fifteen total missions! And you, Rarity, have been on exactly five of them!”

Rarity looked at Twilight, utterly aghast. “Really? I’ve only been called five times?”

“Six, now that you’ve been called with Bolt.” She corrected.

“Either way, I’m not so sure… But, I guess I don’t have a choice.” Boltsinger started, looking at his Cutie Mark. “I’m the one with a glowing butt, after all… But why did it have to be in Vanhoover…?”

“Well, there’s only one way to find out, dear.” Rarity advised, heading for the door. “And that is to go and accomplish our mission!” She glanced over at Twilight. “And, you know, it would be simply resplendent if you and Spike would join us!” Twilight pondered the offer, a smile coming to her muzzle.

Knocking came to the door of a Vanhoover home. Brightling trudged through the house, coming to see who it was. As he opened the door, he found a small, purple dragon.

“And you are…?” he asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

“Spike!” The reptile replied, holding out a claw. “Nice to officially meet you, Brightling!”

The yellow stallion loosely gripped the outstretched claw with his wing, yawning into the other one. “Yeah, that’s nice… Doesn’t answer my question, though…”

“He’s my assistant!” Twilight called, coming into view with her personal guard behind her. “I’m pretty sure you saw him at the wedding.”

Brightling perked up at the familiar voice, leaning in to take a closer look at Spike. “Oh yeah, you were one of the non-ponies in Bolt’s half of the wedding party… Good to meet you, too. You’re the one who sent that letter from Bolt, right?” Spike crossed his arms, nodding proudly. Brightling poked his head out of the door, looking around. “So, where is Bolt?”

“He’s off with Rarity, looking for whoever might need their help.” Twilight explained. “We came along to visit.”

“Well, there isn’t much to visit.” he told her, turning around with a yawn and beckoning the guests inside. “Sparks is out helping some new friend she made, and I’ve got work.”

“What about Oathsinger?” the Princess inquired, an idea flashing into her head. “Do you need someone to take care of him?”

Brightling poured a cup of coffee, already brightening up. “Sweet Pear was going to come over. Why?”

“Well, Spike and I could look after him, if you want.” she suggested, moving to the stairs. “Since we’re here, and all.”

Brightling looked at Twilight with a mixture of surprise and intrigue. “Well, you do know how to handle foals… I bet you handle Princess Flurry Heart even better than Bolt can.” He took a sip of his beverage, coming out of it with a smile. “Okay. I’ll tell Sweet on the way to work. In the meantime, I think I’ll make a list of things to keep in mind for Oathsinger.”

“Like a checklist?” Twilight asked, her eyes brightening up. “That would be--” She stopped herself, looking back at Spike. “Actually… I’m not sure just how necessary that will be. I’ve got experience with babies, after all!”

Brightling smirked, pulling down a pen and paper. “That’s all well and good, but I’d feel better if you had something to fall back on.” He began writing, unrolling more and more paper as he went. Eventually, there was so much list that the parchment partially fell off of the table. “And… Yeah, this should be enough. If you find yourself stumped, look at this. Oathsinger is a wing-full, but nothing a Princess can’t handle, right?”

“Right!” She affirmed, magically rolling up the list and passing it off to Spike. “We’ve got this covered!”

“So, we’re supposed to just ‘go with the flow', huh?” Boltsinger asked.

“We are, indeed!” Rarity answered. “That’s how it’s worked every time, so far.”

“Okay. Did the flow include this?” The stallion pointed to himself. He was wearing a loose-fitting, black hooded jacket with electric blue stripes down the sleeves, a pair of dark blue pants hugging his hindquarters. He wore a pair of dark sunglasses, more to hide his eyes than to protect them. His tail had been hastily brushed, and extended out to nearly its full length, and his wings poked through improvised holes in his jacket. Both ponies had saddlebags hanging from their backs as they went.

“You told me that ponies in this town didn’t like you, so I made do with what I had!” She explained. “You’re lucky I brought enough fabric with me to make something this good on such short notice!”

“I guess…” They continued walking for a while, Boltsinger looking around at the various ponies, while Rarity took in as many sights as her greedy eyes could find. After a time, Rarity let out a gasp. Boltsinger snapped his head in her direction, trying to figure out what she saw. “What’s going on? Is everything okay?”

“That mural! Why, it’s so… so… Breathtaking!!!” she told him, pointing her hoof at a wall mural. It showed an image of a deep blue bat pony stallion with eyes glowing almost white with a cyan outline. Wrapped in his reddish brown tail was a spear, pointed in the same direction the pony was looking. His wings were flared and his fangs were bared, ice spikes forming on all sides of him to face still an unseen enemy. Surrounding him further was a wash of color, mixing and weaving in such a way as to dazzle onlookers into a trance. Much like the fashionista feasting her eyes on the painting. “The color… The intensity! The handsome stallion! Oh, we simply must find the artist responsible and commend them on their exquisite work!”

“We'll, it’s certainly pretty.” he agreed, turning to Rarity. “But how would we track down the artist?”

“It’s quite simple, my dear Bolt!” She announced, pointing again at the image. Her hoof was directed at the lower right corner of the mural, where a picture of a white quill leaving a trail of fire instead of ink made itself known. “We simply have to track down the pony with that Cutie Mark!”

Boltsinger followed his friend’s hoof, only just barely able to make out the image. “How in Celestia’s name did you notice that from so far away?”

Rarity puffed out her chest, wobbling her head pridefully. “Why, it’s all about the specifics! Attention to detail is the tool of the trade…”

“For the great detective, Shadow Spade!” Boltsinger excitedly finished, jumping into the air with a cheer. “I love those books!” He landed with a wide grin. “You must have really studied her methods, then!”

“Boltsinger, have I ever told you of the time Rainbow Dash got framed for a crime she didn’t commit?” she asked, walking towards town. Boltsinger shook his head, following her. “Well, we were in Canterlot…” she told him the story of when Wind Rider had framed the then-reservist Rainbow Dash for sending Spitfire away under false pretenses, not leaving out a single detail as she looked around at the townsponies. There were a number of generic Cutie Marks, but nothing containing anything resembling a quill and fire. She pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. Clearly, this was going to take a closer look. She walked up to a nearby mare, tapping her ever-so-lightly on the shoulder. The two got into a conversation about the local fashions, going on for several minutes until the couturier led the discussion in the direction of who they sought. She returned to her friend in disguise. “We’re looking for a pony named Ink Rider!”

Boltsinger gave her a dignified nod. “Impressive.” He turned to walk with her. “But… We could have just asked somepony first.”

Rarity rubbed her neck, looking to the side. “Yes, well, we got the information we needed! Her home is this way!” She walked ahead, pointing dramatically with her foreleg.

The stallion chuckled into his wing, following his fashionable friend on their way to their destination. They soon came upon a bright blue house with a red roof, various colors scattered throughout the paint job. “How did we not find this place earlier?”

“It certainly does stand out, doesn’t it?” Rarity affirmed. “Well, then, shall we?”

Boltsinger took a bow, gesturing to the door. “Ladies first.” Rarity bowed in return and went to the door, delicately knocking at the front door.

From inside, Rarity could hear the thumping of rapid hoofsteps scrambling for the door. There was a faint muffled voice coming from farther inside, followed by a louder one just on the other side of the door. She couldn’t make out what they said, but she could tell there was a bit of friction between the two of them. At last a cyan magical field surrounded the doorknob, opening wide to reveal a teal Unicorn colt with a slightly scruffy turquoise mane and tail. He had cyan eyes and a Cutie Mark of three ice cubes, each in one of the three primary colors. “Hello. What is it you need?”

“Ah! Hello. My name is Rarity, and I couldn’t help but notice a beautiful piece of artwork in town!” she started. The colt groaned and rolled his eyes, giving the mare pause. “... And I was told that the artist… lived… here…?”

The colt sighed, turning to look into the house. “Inky! You’ve got a fan!” he called, walking back into the house.

“All right, I’m coming!” a mare’s voice called back. As the colt disappeared into the house, a coal black mare stepped into view. She had a blood red mane and tail, parting her bangs in a mildly spiky fashion with a brown feather beaded into her mane. On her flank was the very Cutie Mark they had searched for.

“Ink Rider, I presume?” Rarity asked.

“And you’re… Rarity, yes?” the mare replied, holding out a hoof.

Rarity gave the artist a hoof bump, giggling to herself. “I see my reputation precedes me!”

“No, you introduced yourself to my brother. I just gathered from that.” she corrected. Rarity blushed a bit, averting her gaze. “But I have heard the name before, if that helps.”

“Well, I’m at least glad you know good fashion! And exceptional artwork!” she stated. “My friend and I just had to commend you on your work on that mural in town!”

“That’s just a character I created. It’s no big deal.” She looked back at the pony behind her guest, cocking an eyebrow. “Why is your friend wearing a disguise?”

Rarity looked back at him. “Disguise? What disguise? Why would he need a disguise?!” She rambled. “I just made him an outfit, and he simply enjoys wearing it! It’s not like he’s trying to hide his identity from the locals or anything!”

Ink Rider stepped out of the house, walking up to the orange pony. “Looks like he’s trying to do just that.” She narrowed her eyes, examining what she could see of him. “So, who are you, anyway?”

“Nopony important. Just a friend of Rarity’s.” he half-lied, avoiding her gaze. “We’re… uh… here on official friendship business! You wouldn’t happen to have any friendship problems, would you?”

“Not that I can think of…” She followed his movements, getting a look at his coat and a small glimpse of his mane. “There’s something… familiar about you. Is this your first time in Vanhoover?”

“Nnope.” he admitted, backing up. “I’m mostly just here because of friendship business, though. You sure you don’t have a friendship problem?”

“I have one problem.” she told him. He looked her in the eye with a smile. “I just have to find out who you are!” She lit up her horn, pulling off his sunglasses and hood, revealing his purple eyes and blue mane. She looked at the new features, a hint of familiarity coming to her. “We went to the same school, didn’t we? You were one of the older colts… couldn’t fly, right?”

Boltsinger sighed, his eyebrows going low. “Eeyup.” He took a spot next to Rarity. “My name’s Boltsinger.”

“Oh!” She exclaimed, the name striking a chord. Memories of her foalhood came back to her, seeing an orange colt being made fun of on the playground. He was the only one in the whole school that had wings, so he stood out a lot. She remembered how he had disappeared after that big storm, and then the name came back to her. Her expression flattened, her eyes narrowing and her ears going low. “Oh… Well, I see why you need the disguise…” she pulled his hood back onto his head, shoving the sunglasses onto his nose as she turned back to the house. “Good luck finding your friendship problem!”

As Ink passed her, Rarity put a hoof on the mare’s shoulder. “Excuse me, I don’t quite see what the problem is.”

Ink looked back at the stallion aggressively. “Don’t you know who he is? That’s Boltsinger!”

“I know full well who he is.” She confirmed, smiling back at him. “He’s been a good friend of mine for a couple of years, now.”

Ink snapped her head to look at Rarity. “Then you clearly don’t know what he did!”

Rarity’s smile vanished entirely as she puffed out her chest, standing tall. “I know his history, and I know what you think he did! He has suffered enough from what happened that day. He doesn’t need you adding to his conscience!” She turned to Boltsinger in a huff, trotting over. “Come, now, Bolt. Clearly we won’t be finding our friendship problem here!”

Boltsinger took some tentative steps behind her, looking back at the house and attuning his ears. There were sounds of the occupants interacting normally, but the stallion could hear the familiar tone of a hidden resentment in the both of them. He put his hoof up to his chin, pondering on the situation. “I’m not entirely sure…” He looked forward, following behind Rarity. “Oh well, you’re the one with experience…”

Twilight and Spike stood next to a crib in the house’s nursery, a tiny white Unicorn sleeping soundly. Twilight had a relaxed and content look in her eyes. “He’s beautiful, isn’t he?”

Spike climbed up to get a peek. “Looks kinda squishy to me.” He looked up at Twilight. “Were you that squishy when you were a baby?”

Twilight sat down and thought about the question, drawing a blank. “I don’t know. It’s been a long time since I saw my baby pictures.”

“Uh, Twilight? I think he’s waking up.” Spike informed her, pointing into the crib. Twilight looked at the baby bed, smiling as the little pony began stirring from his rest. He opened his eyes, spotting the faces looming over him. Twilight and Spike both smiled wide as the baby suddenly did the oppisite. “Is he supposed to do that?” Spike asked, his smile turning to a grimace.

With that, Oathsinger burst into tears, wailing at the top of his tiny lungs. Twilight and Spike covered their ears as the crying grew progressively louder, shaking the room. “How is one little baby this loud?!” The Alicorn asked, putting her wingtips into her ears and standing up. She reached into the crib, picking up the flailing infant. “I don’t even think Flurry was this loud at this age!” She gently shushed the baby, slowly rocking him. “Quick, Spike, what do Brightling’s instructions say about this?”

Spike ran to the corner of the room, pulling a parchment from the changing table. “Uh… Let’s see… It says that after a nap, there are two things he’s likely to need. The first is food, and the second is… well…” He took a quick inhale through his nostrils, immediately regretting it as his entire body tensed up. “I… think he needs a diaper change…” he concluded, falling over like a board.

Twilight brought her head close to Oathsinger, taking a whiff of her own. Suspicions were confirmed instantly as the Alicorn’s entire body shivered. “Okay, we’ve got this!” She declared, setting him on the changing table. She lit up her horn, bringing out everything needed for a diaper change. They slowly floated towards her, stopping all motion in the center of the room. “Oh no…” The aura around her horn began to flicker. “Not now…” her magic fizzled out entirely, sending the objects falling to the floor.

“I GOT IT!!!” Spike shouted, diving to the floor with his arms outstretched. A cloud of baby powder formed, the young dragon sitting in the aftermath with a nearly white body and a dejected look on his face. He got up and walked over to the changing table, putting the items on. “Here… I’m gonna go wash up…”

Twilight laughed at her dusty assistant, waving him off. “Thanks, Spike.” The dragon ran off to the bathroom, leaving the Princess with the baby. She smelled the air around him, scrunching her face and shaking her head. “Okay… So… Stinky diaper, no magic… I’ve... got this…” She internally cringed, holding her breath and proceeding with her task.

“No friendship problems here.” Rarity announced coming back from a conversation with many ponies. They had been going all over town, careful not to reveal Boltsinger’s identity as they asked as many ponies as possible whether or not they had friendship problems in need of solving. So far, no luck. “They did say that the mural Ink created has changed since since it was initially created. As if part of what we saw was added much more recently. But I don’t think they really have any problems that we should worry about.”

“You sure? What if the art was changed without Ink’s permission? She might have a problem with whoever did that.” he suggested, turning back towards their home.

“But she said she didn’t have a friendship problem.” The seamstress stressed. “Why don’t we just leave it at that? Besides, the way she treated you was--”

“Totally expected for anypony living in this town.” he deadpanned. “How they feel about me isn’t what’s important. It’s about helping ponies with problems. Even if they have a problem with us.”

Rarity looked back at the townsponies, thinking on what they might do if they saw her friend without his disguise, then sighed. “I… suppose you’re right. We can’t exactly spread friendship if we pass up the problems we don’t like, now can we?”

“Exactly.” He confirmed. “But first, I need to get out of this outfit. It’s nice but it gets stuffy.” Rarity nodded, making a note to create a more breathable version of the outfit for him when she had the time as they made their way back to the house where Ink lived.

Not much time later, an un-disguised Boltsinger approached the door to the artist’s colorful dwelling. He gave it a swift knock, quickly seeing the orange aura around the handle. It opened to reveal Ink Rider, a flat look on her face. “No.” The door quickly swung to close, but it was stopped by an outstretched wing followed by a cry of pain. “Why are you here? Didn’t you have to look for some friendship problem?”

“As a matter of fact, yes.” He confirmed, clenching his teeth to keep from crying out more. “That’s why we came back!”

Ink opened the door again, getting up in his face. “My only problem is that the most hated pony in town is insisting that I have a problem!”

“And that your art is being altered!” He added, rubbing his sore wing.

Ink’s eyes went wide. “My art is being what now?”

“Rarity was told that the mural we saw didn’t always look the way it does.” He clarified. “Do you know anyone who would change your artwork?”

Ink Rider’s eyes shifted towards the inside of the house. “I can think of somepony… Why are you so interested in helping me, anyway?”

“Well, the immediate reason is because a magical map table in the castle I live in made my Cutie Mark glow and told me I needed to come here with Rarity.” He started, gesturing to his flank with his hoof. At the mention of a castle and a map, Ink’s jaw dropped. “But, truth be told, I really do want to help keep friendship alive for anypony I can. Friendship saved me, made me who I am. I want to make sure it can help everyone else out there, too.”

“You… wait… You live in a castle?” she asked, looking completely bewildered. “But only Princesses live in castles!”

“And Princes.” Rarity corrected. “Much like the one standing before you!”

Ink’s face went from bewilderment to sheer disbelief. “Prince?” She poked his chest with her hoof. “You, of all ponies, are a Prince? What did you do? Marry a Princess?”

Boltsinger’s face flushed as he rubbed his neck with his hoof. “Princess Twilight, actually…”

Ink’s eyes widened some more, her head swaying back and forth. “You... Princess… TWILIGHT?! How…? But…” She groaned deliriously as she fell to the floor.

Boltsinger looked down at the fallen mare. “Ooh… That must have hurt…”

“Inky!!!” The colt from before shouted, rushing to his sister’s side. He knelt down, holding up her head. “Are you okay? Did these ponies do something to you?”

Rarity ran up to the collapsed pony, picking her up with her magic. “She just had a problem believing what we had to say. I’m sure she’ll be fine.”

Boltsinger examined the colt, paying particular attention to his Cutie Mark. “You wouldn’t happen to also be an artist, would you?”

The colt’s ears lowered. “I am… Why do you ask?”

“You wouldn’t happen to ‘help’ your sister from time to time, would you?” he wondered.

“Um… Define help.” he stated, looking back into the house and scratching his mane. “‘Cause I haven’t been adding a bunch of colors to all of her work without her permission, if that’s what you’re thinking!”

“I KNEW IT!” Ink screamed, jolting up from her unconsciousness and glaring at her brother. “Splotch! Why do you keep doing that stuff!”

The colt tensed up, backing into the house. “I dunno what you’re talking about! Anypony could have done that kind of thing!”

“Except you’re the only one who has the supplies to do it!” she stressed, getting up and following him.

Rarity and Boltsinger looked at each other, then back at the siblings. The Pegasus gave the Unicorn a sly expression, making her turn away. “Okay, you were right. They are the ones we’ve come to help!”

Ink’s ears turned back to the visitors, prompting her to look their way. “If you’re here to help, then help him stop messing with my work!”

Rarity smiled, strutting up to the colt. “I believe that can be arranged!” She smiled down at him, eliciting a weak smile and a nervous laugh.

Twilight exited the nursery with Oathsinger nestled in her wing, a green fog seeping out behind her. She let out a deep exhale, followed soon after by hyperventilation. “That… was… not as easy as I expected!”

Spike walked up, plugging his nose as he approached the room while waving a claw. “Oh, man! What kind of bomb went off here?”

“Changed the baby…” Twilight started, beginning to droop her head. “No magic…” she drooped further. “Had to do it…” Her horn touched the floor, heaving a little as she remembered what she had just experienced.. “With my mouth…” Spike reared back, cringing at the very idea. “So... much... stinky… But at least he’s not crying anymore!”

Oathsinger responded to his aunt’s comment with further house-shaking cries. He squirmed his way out of Twilight’s wing, landing on his hooves and galloping off. Spike put his claws on his hips, looking flatly at the Alicorn. “You were saying?”

Twilight made a playful mock of Spike’s words, nudging him with her elbow and making to chase the little pony. The baby weaved through the hallways, his knowledge of the house proving to be superior to that of his current foal-sitter. He looked back, catching the lilac pony galloping after him and lighting up his horn. Twilight skidded to a halt, reaching out to him. “Oathsinger, no… Anything but that!” The bawling baby shook his head, turning away and vanishing in a hazel light.

“You okay, Twilight?” Spike asked, walking up and placing his claw on her side.

“Do the instructions say anything about when he gets like this?” she queried.

Spike pulled out the list, scanning it until something caught his eye. “It says that he teleports, but always to one of three rooms!”

“Which ones?”

“The dining room, the living room, and his room!”

“Okay, you check in his room, and I’ll check the living room!” She commanded, darting down the hall. “We’ll look in the dining room together!”

Spike nodded, turning back to the room in which their adventure had begun. “Got it!”

“You’re what?!” Rarity exclaimed.

“Colorblind.” Splotch repeated. “It’s not that I only see in black and white, but it’s more that a lot of colors blur together for me. Like… Take the grass and the dirt road. What colors are they?”

Boltsinger took a look at the things the colt pointed out. “Grass is green, road is brown.” He answered.

Rarity gasped, looking dramatically at the stallion. “Excuse my interruption, Bolt, but, ‘green and brown’?” She put her hoof around him. “Just how much do you know about color?”

Boltsinger put his hoof to his chin. “Let’s see… Ah! Here’s a good example!” He pointed a hoof at his mane. “Blue.” He pointed at Rarity’s mane. “Purple.” He pointed at Ink’s mane. “Red.” lastly, his hoof pointed at Splotch’s mane. “And… um… green?”

Ink Rider and Splotch simultaneously facehoofed while Rarity gasped again. She raised a hoof to talk about all of the nuances he seemed to be oblivious of, but quickly calmed down. “It’s alright. I’ll help you correct your… grievous mistake… later. Splotch, if you would be so kind as to continue?”

The colt nodded politely at the couturier.“Thank you. Now, I know you’re right, but that’s not what I see.” Splotch continued. “I just see a bunch of brown.”

“But the colors you added to the mural were all so vibrant!” Rarity said, pointing to town. “It was a beautiful addition!”

“To a piece that was just fine as it was!” Ink added.

“Yes! I get it! It was perfect and you didn’t need anypony to add anything or get some recognition of his own because you’re the artist of the family!” He yelled, stomping his hoof. “I know just as much as you do about drawing, color, and all of that! I just can’t see it that well!”

At this point, Ink was fuming. “It’s not my fault that nopony wants to look at the stuff you make!” She jutted her head forward, taking an aggressive stance. “Maybe if you would learn to coordinate your colors more instead of just using every color under the sun in one image, you’d make something of your own that’s ACTUALLY WORTH SOMETHING!!!”

A moment of silence ensued. Ink was panting heavily, and Splotch had taken a step back, one foreleg raised as he looked, wide-eyed, at his older sister. Rarity and Boltsinger remained quiet, both of them unsure of what to do or say. At last, the colt took a deep breath, tears streaming down his face. “I tried that… And nothing turned out right! Nothing I make ever turns out right! Maybe if I could see things normally, I’d be able to do it… But I can’t… I just can’t!!!” He turned around, galloping out the door in tears.

Boltsinger looked out, then back at Rarity. “I’m gonna go talk to him.” he told her, going into a hover. “I know a thing or two about a challenge like his.”

Rarity gave a nod of agreement as her Pegasus friend flew away. “So… Did you happen to see his contribution to your mural?”

“Can’t say I have.” she replied, stepping curiously towards the door. “I thought it was painted over or washed away already.”

“It’s simply remarkable, to be honest. Come, see for yourself!” Rarity ignited her horn, pulling the black mare behind her.

The living room was empty. So was Oathsinger’s room. So there was one option left.

The dining room.

Twilight and Spike stepped into the room as carefully as possible, doing their best to not make a sudden noise. “Oathsinger…” the Princess whispered. “Where are you, Bug? Aunty Twily just wants to give you lunch!”

The small whimper of a baby pony was heard from somewhere in the room, bringing the Alicorn’s ears to attention. “That seemed to help…” Spike suggested. “What are you making for lunch?”

“Hmm… I don’t know…” she playfully mused, putting her hoof up to her chin. “If only somepony would come out of hiding to tell me what he wants!” The whimper turned into a giggle, bringing a smile to the mare’s muzzle. “And then, after lunch, we could go to the playground! Oh, but I’m sure Oathsinger would just hate to go to the playground, wouldn’t he?”

“We could always just go without him, you know!” Spike told her, spreading his arms. The giggle turned to a whine as the door to the cupboard magically opened. Oathsinger floated himself out, reaching for Twilight with a panicked look on his tiny face.

“There he is!” She cried, reaching out her foreleg and pulling the baby out of the air. She gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead, just beneath his horn. “You know we love you, don’t you, little guy?” Oathsinger nodded and reached for the refrigerator. “Now, what are we going to make for lunch?”

Boltsinger flew above the town, listening for the sound of Splotch’s voice. There were a number of voices speaking out in surprise or protest at his presence, but he quickly tuned it out, focusing intently on the task at hoof. He listened for a while longer, finally picking up a voice that wasn’t calling out in protest, and fixed his attention on it. He found himself in the playground of the school he went to as a colt, where the teal pony sat on one of the swings with his head hung low.

“Hey.” The stallion greeted, landing and taking a seat in the swing next to him.

“Aren’t you supposed to be in disguise or something?” Splotch asked, glaring tearfully at him.

“Meh. Ponies can say what they want.” He dismissed, swiping the air in front of him with his hoof. “I’m here to help you.”

Splotched eyed the older pony in disbelief. “Oh? What? You got a magic spell to take away my colorblindness?”

Boltsinger laughed, giving the colt a smile. “Sorry, kid, but I don’t exactly have a horn. Although…” he paused, thinking about the idea. “I bet between Twilight, Starlight, and Sunburst, they could probably come up with a spell to… Yeah, but I don’t think that would solve your real problem, would it?” He chuckled to himself. “Otherwise the map would have called Twilight here instead of me, huh?”

Splotch’s disbelief switched to confusion as he listened to the stallion. “I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about. If you can’t cure my eyes, then how in Equestria are you supposed to help me?”

“The way I see it, you’re facing a challenge.” He began, turning his gaze forward. “There’s something you want to do that you can’t do right now.” He turned to look back at the colt. “What do you think that challenge is?”

“I want to make art that’s as good as Inky’s.” he answered, raising his head some. “But I can’t do that with these eyes of mine…”

“Maybe if you kept focusing on the ‘can’t’ part, that would be true.” Boltsinger brought the tip of hos tail to the ground, nudging himself back a bit on the swing. “I used to look at my wings and think ‘I can’t fly’ all the time. But now…” He made a strong flap of his wings, sending himself, and the swing, backwards at a rapid pace, swinging over the pole that held the two ponies up. “Now I can do that. After that, flying was easy.”

“And how did you do it?” Splotch asked. “Just flap your wings a bunch ever since you were little? It's not surprising that a Pegasus can fly. They start just about when they come into this world!”

“Most Pegasi, yes. Me? I just cried.” Boltsinger corrected. “A lot. Shook the whole house, according to Brightling.” He chortle softly to himself, then cleared his throat. “But, I digress. The thing that got me flying was hard work, determination, and a lot of help from a pony who cared about me. And when I first flew entirely under my own power, it was the best feeling ever!” He thought back to his first time flying with his parents, taking a reverent breath. “It was back then that I first learned that nothing worth doing in this world is ever easy. But overcoming that challenge will always make you come out of it a better pony.”

“Wow… So, what does that mean for me?” Splotch wondered. “It’s not like I can just work on seeing better.

“Well, maybe it’s not me you should be asking that question.” The stallion suggested, standing up from his swing. “You want your art to be as good as your sister’s. Who better to ask?”

“I want to ask him why he didn’t show me just what he did here…” Ink stated, staring at the mural she had painted with her brother’s color splotches framing it. “He didn’t change the artwork at all… He just… accentuated it!”

Rarity admired the image alongside her. “You see what I mean? My little sister, Sweetie Belle, used to always try to help me with my work, as well.”

Ink looked questionongly at Rarity, a curious smile coming to the forefront. “Oh? How did it turn out?”

“Let’s just say that fashion is not her gift!” She replied. The black and white mares enjoyed a laugh for a moment. “But it was the thought she put into it that mattered. I admit I had a teensey bit of resentment for it at the time, but we’ve been as close as can be ever since! All it took was a little compromise!”

“I guess you have a point… I shouldn’t have been so hard on him.” She affirmed, starting the walk home. “Him or your friend. It wasn’t fair.”

“If I know Boltsinger, he doesn’t really care about all that.” Rarity said, following suit. “Just focus on your brother for now, all right?”

“Okay.” Ink agreed. She went into a canter into town. “I bet I know where he went, too!”

Rarity matched Ink’s pace, the two mares making their way to the local school. Next to the swing set was an unmistakable orange stallion. He was talking with the very colt they were looking for, a far less distressed look on his face. Boltsinger’s ears snapped in their direction, turning his head to see them. He waved his wing, inviting them over.

“Just the mares we wanted to see!” Boltsinger greeted. “Splotch has something he’d like to say to his big sister.”

“Actually, I have something to say to him, first.” She interjected, stepping up to him. “Rarity showed me what you did to my-- No… Our mural.”

“‘Our’ mural?” the colt repeated.

“Yeah, Splotch. Our mural.” She confirmed. “Your additions, simple as they were, were beautiful. I can’t not give you credit for your efforts! And I’m sorry for what I said earlier. I was angry, and I wasn’t thinking very clearly.”

“But you weren’t wrong.” He told her, getting up from his swing. “My artwork has never been very good. I always wanted to do something like yours, but I could never really do it… That’s why I started putting my own touches on your pieces. That way ponies would look at something I did and see something beautiful, rather than a brown mess…” He brought his gaze to the ground, drawing a flawless circle in it with his hoof. “But Boltsinger had a point. I was avoiding my real challenge. Adding to your work was easy, but it wasn’t helping. I need to use your art as an example instead of a template.” He brought his head up, looking her in the eye. “And… I was thinking… Maybe you could help me out? I can only get better with your advice!”

Ink Rider lit up her horn, pulling the colt in and wrapping her forelegs around him. “Of course I’ll help! The more art we can make, the better!”

Rarity and Boltsinger smiled warmly at the siblings, giving one another a definitive hoof bump as a familiar chime emanated from their flanks. “Oh!” Twilight’s voice sounded from behind. “I see you two accomplished your mission!” The glowing ponies turned around, seeing Twilight smiling at them from behind Oathsinger’s stroller, Spike popping his head up from her back and Flash smiling from behind her.

Boltsinger beamed as the siblings came out of their hug. “Hey, honey!” He called, trotting over and giving her a hug. “How are Brightling and Sparks?”

Twilight looked down at the baby in the stroller with a soft smile. “Brightling had work and Sparks wasn’t home. So we’re taking care of this little Bug today!”

“He give you any trouble?” Boltsinger wondered, leaning in towards the tiny colt.

“No trouble at all!” Twilight hurriedly answered with a nervous laugh.

“Except when her magic shorted out and she had to do everything without it.” Spike deadpanned. “That diaper was something else!”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “I’ll admit, taking care of a baby without magic was a challenge. And I got a little overconfident in my abilities thanks to…” She eyed Spike with a smile. “Prior experience.”

“I don’t blame you!” Spike boasted, putting his claws on his hips. “You can’t go wrong with perfection!”

Twilight laughed, tussling the dragon’s spines with her wing. “Whatever you say, Mr. Perfect!” She drew her attention to the Unicorn siblings. “So, was the map confused, after all?”

The Pegasus shook his head happily. “Nnope. It seems it knew what it was doing!”

“You see? Next time, don’t be so quick to write yourself off.” The Princess proclaimed.

“Eeyup!” He knelt down by his nephew. “Now, if you’ll excuse me…” Oathsinger gleefully reached out, sticking his forehooves straight into his uncle’s nostrils as a pair of orange wings hoisted him into the air, where the two began running around the playground.

Ink Rider gave a wide-eyed look at the Princess before her, receiving a bright smile in return. Rarity trotted over and started conversing with her as if it were nothing, only intensifying her nervousness. Finally, after a brief conversation, Rarity beckoned the artist over. She shakily approached the Alicorn, giving the best bow she could. “So, Rarity tells me you’re an amazing artist!" Twilight started.

Ink’s ears went low, the words leaving her for a moment. “Sh-She does?”

“Oh, absolutely!” Rarity declared. “There was something about that stallion that just…” She shuddered slightly, licking her lips. Twilight looked slyly at her fashion-forward friend, prompting a blush as Rarity immediately straightened herself up. “Oh, my! Sorry for that…”

Twilight laughed, looking back at Ink. “Okay. Now I need to hear more!”

Ink Rider smirked, putting a foreleg on each mare’s shoulder and huddling up. “Okay, so…”

Author's Note

Wow. Wasn't expecting this to be so long, but I guess that's what happens when you include the B-story in the chapter instead of doing it "Brotherhooves Social" style. It was fun to write, and things still ended up kind of writing themselves, too!

When Scootaloo Soars

Scootaloo was truly in her element. She, Rumble, Boltsinger, Soarin, and Rainbow Dash flew over Ponyville along a course of Soarin’s design. Several cloud rings had been placed in various locations, and they were having a mock race.

And Scootaloo was in third place.

Rainbow was in a commanding lead, followed by Soarin, while Rumble flew shortly behind Scootaloo. Boltsinger was lagging behind in the speed department, but he was going at a steady pace. They rounded the last corner before the finish line, each participant accelerating as much as their wings would let them. Finally, Rainbow skidded to a landing, her special somepony not even a second behind. Scootaloo landed with a skid, but her momentum sent her tumbling. She raised herself up as Rumble and Boltsinger each landed, looking back at them.

Scootaloo let out a cheer, spreading her forelegs. “That was awesome! Did you see how fast I was going?”

“You were pretty good.” Rumble affirmed, walking up beside her and smirking. “For a beginner.” He stretched his wings, strutting onward. “I was going easy on you, you know.”

The filly gave the colt a knowing look. “Of course you were. Might wanna wipe yourself down, though. You’re sweating pretty hard!”

Rumble’s wings snapped to his sides, a blush showing up on his cheeks as he tensed up. “Only because it’s such a hot day today!” He brought his hoof next to his mouth. “Hey, Rainbow Dash! Did you have to do such a good job clearing the skies this morning? Jeez!” Rainbow looked up at the sky, where there were still several clouds hanging overhead, then looked at the grey colt, shrugging. Rumble shrugged back, laughing awkwardly. “Anyway, I’m gonna head home. Thunderlane has dinner cooking, and I don’t wanna miss that!”

Scootaloo waved a hoof as Rumble shot off in the direction of his home, laughing to herself while Boltsinger walked up beside her. “So, Boltsinger, would you say I’m doing pretty good?”

Boltsinger gave out a laugh that sounded proud, yet contained at the same time. “Scoot, you have no idea how good you’re doing.” He waved his wing to invite the others along. “Come on, everypony! Dinner at the castle! I’m cooking!” Soarin immediately perked up, making a beeline for the castle as Rainbow Dash let out a sigh, settling for a hover alongside the rest of the group.

On the way to the castle, Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash talked endlessly about the sheer joys of flying. How amazing it felt, how fast they could go, and, in Scootaloo’s case, how she was able to help so many more ponies alongside her fellow Crusaders. She had kept it within a safe limit, but her new skills were quickly becoming the norm. Not to mention how fast she had become on her scooter. Boltsinger smiled back at the filly, thinking hard on what was to come next.

They entered the castle, where the guests quickly made their way to various locations. Rainbow Dash went to the library first, emerging with the latest Daring Do book for her own enjoyment, with an earlier entry in the series for Soarin. Scootaloo went straight for the dining room, pulling out a list of ponies that needed help that she was to meet with the next day. Soarin was already waiting in said room, hungrily waiting as Boltsinger found his way into the kitchen.

Boltsinger opened the refrigerator, poking his head inside to look for something to cook. He found one thing that piqued his interest, he heard the door open from behind. “Welcome back.” Twilight greeted, peeking over his shoulder.

Boltsinger jumped, his head hitting the roof of the fridge. “Ah! Twilight! Hey…” He groaned with pain, rubbing the back of his head.

“Sorry about that.” She said, rubbing his back with her wing. “You okay? You seem a little preoccupied.”

The stallion pulled out the meal fixings he sought, bringing them to the central table. “I’m… okay, I guess. Just thinking about something.”

Twilight leaned in. “Something like…?” she led, making a beckoning motion with her hoof.

“How did it feel when Starlight graduated from being your student?” he asked, leaning his elbows on the table.

“Oh…” Twilight replied, magically pulling up a stool and sitting down. “Is this about Scootaloo?”

Boltsinger nodded, giving his wife the “Eeyup.” he had grown so accustomed to saying. “I really do have nothing left to teach her. For the past couple weeks, all I’ve really done is fly around with her or race or something along those lines with her, Rainbow, Soarin, and Rumble. She’s ready to move onto better coaches, but… I really enjoy seeing her blossom like this. Is it weird that I want to keep things as they are?”

“It’s not weird at all.” Twilight assured. “When Starlight and her friends saved Equestria from the Changelings, I thought things were going to continue like normal, but… You know how good Discord is at forcing an issue, right?” Boltsinger rolled his eyes, imagining what that must have been like. “Eeeeyeah. Anyway, he did have a point. Starlight was way beyond simple friendship lessons. I felt like I had to send her somewhere, like Princess Celestia did with me. I even got her advice on it!”

“Wasn’t she already graduated when I showed up?” he inquired.

Twilight nodded. “She was. She just didn’t feel ready to leave, yet.” She stood up, putting her wing around him. “And... I wasn’t ready either.”

“And you still weren’t when she finally was ready.” He added. The couple laughed for a moment, and then the stallion sighed once more. “I know she’s ready to move on. And I know who will be teaching her next. But… I dunno… I can’t just say ‘You’ve graduated! Go do the thing with the other ponies!’ And leave it at that. I want to do something.”

“What do you mean? Even just knowing that she’s graduated is sure to make her happy!” Twilight pondered ideas for a few moments. “I suppose you could get her a gift…”

“I’m thinking something more along the lines of a way to tell her she’s graduated.” He elaborated, starting work on the evening’s meal.

Twilight squeezed her husband, a jolt from the drumming foal within passing to him at the same time. “I understand. Well, the Grand Galloping Gala is coming up soon. What if you do something around then?”

Boltsinger’s hoof met his chin as he continued his work. “Maybe… Speaking of the Gala, I actually got my own invite this time around.”

“Oh, I know. Who do you think gave Celestia the idea to invite you?” she informed him. “You have somepony in mind to bring along?”

Boltsinger smiled, turning on the stove. “I’ve given that opportunity to Flash, actually.” He began stirring. “I mean, yes, he’s a guard and was gonna be there regardless, but there’s gonna be lots of guards! And more Princesses! And our friends! You’re gonna be as safe as can be, so I ordered our local Sentry to take the whole day of the Gala off, and just enjoy the party!”

“That’s nice.” she affirmed, adding some ingredients to the mix. “Especially after how he acted when he first got here.”

“Friendship is magic, after all.” he reminded her. “Although it was admittedly a pretty rocky start. So, who do you have in mind to bring? I’m sure either of your parents would love to go.”

“That’s true, but I decided to help another friend get a break from all of her studying.”

“Moon Dancer?”

“Moon Dancer.”

“Interesting.” Boltsinger took a seat by the pot, stirring occasionally. “Well, this is gonna be a bit longer. Everypony else is in the dining room if you want to join them.”

The Alicorn beamed, walking to the door. “To quote a good friend… That sounds lovely!”

Boltsinger walked with Applejack and Apple Bloom through Sweet Apple Acres. The younger pony was bouncing all around the older two, talking about the upcoming Gala and how excited she was for it. “I’m gonna show off my dancin’ skills, visit with a bunch ‘o my friends, and eat all the party food I can take!”

“Ya better not eat too much, else yer gonna get one heck of a stomach ache.” Applejack warned.

“I know! I’m just so excited!” Apple Bloom stated, stopping and facing her sister. “I mean, it’s the biggest night of the year, and we’re all goin'!”

Applejack chuckled. “I know that, sugarcube. But we go to the Gala every year. Is it really still that excitin'?”

The filly gave an enthusiastic nod, matching the pace of the ponies next to her. “Maybe not fer somepony like you who goes off savin’ Equestria all the time, but for a little pony like me, it’s amazin’!” Boltsinger nodded at her statement, letting out a distracted sigh. “You alright, Bolt? Ya look a little sad.”

Boltsinger snapped to attention, looking down at Apple Bloom’s curious face. “Huh? Oh, I’m fine. Just… got a lot on my mind.”

“What kinda stuff is it?” The yellow pony wondered. “You worried ya might get punched through a wall this time?”

Applejack put a hoof on her little sister. “Now, Apple Bloom, I don’t think that’s the kinda thing he’d worry about.” She sent him a glance, seeing his eyes darting in different directions as he mouthed various rumblings to himself. “I’m thinkin’ it’s sumthin a little closer to home. Ain’t that right?”

“Something like that.” He confirmed, returning to his mumble.

“Uh, Bolt?” The farmer started, poking her friend in the side. “Wouldja care ta let us in on what yer so worried about?”

“Eeyup.” he said, his pace steadying.

Applejack furrowed her brow, scrunching her muzzle as she tried to figure out just what was going on with him. “Let me guess… It’s not about the Gala.”

“Nnope.” he answered.

“So it is about the Gala?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Nnope.” he replied.

“So, ‘nnope’, it isn’t about the Gala?” Applejack clarified.

Boltsinger closed his eyes and nodded. “Eeyup.”

“It’s about the baby, then?” Applejack wondered, raising a hoof.

“Nnope.”

The orange mare stewed further. “Sumthin else, then… Twilight pushin’ herself too hard, still?”

“Eeyup.”

“But that ain’t what’s gettin’ to ya right now, is it?”

“Nnope.”

Apple Bloom hopped forward. “Is it about Scootaloo?”

Boltsinger sighed. “Eeyup.”

“Is it ‘cause she beat you in the race yesterday?” the filly continued.

“Nnope.”

“You jealous that she’s gotten to be so good so fast?” guessed the Crusader.

Boltsinger shook his head profusely. “Nnope.”

“I bet it’s about the fact that she’s gotten so good that ‘e doesn’t have anything left to really teach her.” Applejack guessed in kind.

Another nod came from the stallion. “Eeyup.”

“An’ that’s been the case for a long time, now, hasn’t it?” she inquired, leaning closer.

“Eeyup…”

“And you’ve been selfishly livin’ yer ‘daddy dream’ in bein’ all proud of ‘er whenever ya see her flyin, so ya don’t wanna give up the way things are just yet.”

Yet another sigh. “Eeyup.” His pace slowed.

Applejack’s face softened as she looked back at him. “But… You know she’s gotta move on from all this, right?”

Boltsinger took a deep breath. “Eeyup…”

“So yer tryin’ ta come up with a way to do sumthin memorable while ya tell ‘er she’s graduated from yer class, huh?” she concluded.

“Oh yeah…” he confirmed, stopping his forward motion entirely.

“Oh! I’ve got an idea!” Apple Bloom exclaimed, bounding in front of him. “How ‘bout ya give ‘er one last test?”

Boltsinger tilted his head, thinking about the idea. “What kind of test?”

“I think I see where yer comin’ from, little sis…” Applejack started, an idea coming to her. “You started teachin’ her to fly based on how you learned, right?”

“Yeah. She needed to build up power in her wings. I’d say she’s got that, now.” he stated.

“Well, what if ya tested her with something that you do as a flyer?” she suggested, bringing her hoof up and stepping towards him.

The Pegasus scratched his chin with his wing, his own brow making a furrow as the metaphorical steam began billowing from his ears. “Hmm… I think I see what you’re getting at…” He raised a hoof with a smile. “I’ve got it!”

“Good! Now can we please get back to work?” Applejack asked, moving forward again. “We got a lotta trees left to check fer blight!”

“Eeyup!” he affirmed, following the mare’s lead.

Applejack rolled her eyes, smiling back at her friend. “Boltsinger, I gotta say, y’all’ve been hangin’ out with Big Mac too much. Yer startin’ to sound just like ‘im!”

“Okay, Spike, you got the list?” Boltsinger asked.

“Right here!” The dragon replied, holding up a quill and parchment. They stood on the boarding platform of the Ponyville train station, two days before the Gala. Twilight and Flash on either side of the young drake.

“You’re really going all-out for this, aren’t you?” Flash asked. “Checklist and everything. You’re starting to remind me of your wife!”

Boktsinger took a bow, flourishing his wing. “I’ll take that as a compliment!”

“I haven’t seen you prepare for something like this since your first Nightmare Night in Ponyville!” Twilight noted with a flutter of her wings, wiping away a prideful tear. “Anyway, back to the checklist!”

“Right!” Boltsinger agreed, turning his attention back to Spike. “How is the venue?”

“Pinkie’s adding the finishing touches right now!” Spike stated, putting a check mark on the parchment.

“Awesome! How about weather?” The stallion continued.

“Cloudchaser and Blossomforth have you covered!”The dragon confirmed, giving a thumbs up. “Clear skies all the way!”

“Sweet. Guest list is set?”

“Got an RSVP from everypony invited!” Spike added more checks to the list. “All that’s left is for us to get there and for you to begin.”

Boltsinger took a deep breath. “Okay. You three go on ahead. I’ll see you when we get there.”

“Right.” Twilight said as her travel companions walked toward the arriving train. She stepped up to him, leaning in and giving him a kiss. “Don’t worry so much. You’ll do fine, and I’m sure she’ll do better than that!”

A weak smile crossed the Prince’s muzzle. “Yeah, you’re right. I’ll see you soon, okay?” The Princess nodded, catering over to her assistant.

Boltsinger gave his muzzle a firm wing-slap, heading for the training field. Listen to your wife, Bolt. She’s one of the smartest ponies of all time. She knows what she’s talking about! You’ll do fine. You can get this done. She’ll move onto better teachers, and you can move onto other things…

“Hey, Bolt!” Scootaloo called from behind. She pulled up next to him on her scooter, matching his speed. “I’m ready to fly! How about you?”

“Always, kid.” He told her, plastering a smirk onto his face.

“Great! So, where is everypony, anyway?” she asked as they arrived at the field. “I haven’t seen Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle all day. Not even Rumble! Rainbow Dash is gone, too.”

Boltsinger brought his wings together on his face one more time, turning to face the filly. “They’re waiting for us at our destination.”

Scootaloo removed her helmet, tilting her head. “Huh? What destination?”

“The one we’re going to fly to as your… well…” He gave pause. This was it. No turning back now. If he continued, that meant this change was sticking, and he had to see it through. He looked down at the younger Pegasus. Her wings had grown, her eyes were bright, hopeful, and a little confused, and he felt a swelling of pride. She had grown so much since he offered to take her under his literal wing. But she needed to move forward, despite his feelings. “... Your final test.”

Scootaloo’s face slowly changed from confusion as she let out a deep gasp, showing a hint of shock, then brightening up with sheer excitement. “You mean…”

“Eeyup!”

“And so…”

“Indeed.”

“What are we waiting for?! Let’s go!” She buzzed her wings, lifting off almost instantly.

Boltsinger clenched his teeth on her tail, pulling her back to the ground. “Now, wait just a minute! I haven’t even explained the test!”

“We have to fly somewhere that everypony is waiting for us so that we can prove just how far I’ve come as a flyer!” She stated. “Not hard to figure out.”

“Well, you’re not wrong.” He affirmed. “But there’s rules to this. The test is to do what I do on the regular.”

“What do you normally do?” Scootaloo wondered. “You’ve talked about having power, and Rainbow Dash mentioned something about stamina…”

“Long-distance endurance flight.” He declared. “On the way to our destination, we will not be allowed to land or rest in any way. I even had the skies cleared just for this flight.”

“No breaks at all?” she repeated, her eyes going wide. “What about food? How will we keep up our energy?”

Boltsinger’s smirk went from fake to real as he reached into his mane, pulling out a bag stuffed full of edible items. “That’s what this is for!” He stuffed it back in, pulling out his flight goggles and putting them on. “By the way, our destination…” He pointed his hoof at the mountainside city in the distance. “Is there!”

“Canterlot?” Scootaloo started, her jaw dropping. “We’re flying straight to Canterlot?! That’s a pretty long distance!”

“I fly that far all the time. No breaks, no problem.” he told her. “But, I can see why it would be a challenge for you. Hence it being a test.” He walked up next to her, turning to face Canterlot proper. “So, what do you say? You up for the challenge?”

Scootaloo nodded, turning to face the city with a determined face. “Let’s do it!”

“Right!” he took a position just on the side of the track. “Here’s the starting point.” Scootaloo stood next to him, spreading her wings. “Remember, this isn’t a race. I’m just here to make sure you don’t fall out of the sky if you can’t quite make it.”

“Okay. I trust you!” She replied, beaming. Boltsinger felt his heart twisting in a moment of pride, forcing him to slap his muzzle again and take a ready stance.

“Now’s as good a time as any. Let’s go!” He declared, flapping his wings and jumping into the air, where a little orange streak shot past him. He let out a devious grin, giving a hard flap of his wings that sent him rocketing past his student and sent her spinning out. She quickly righted herself, winding up and buzzing her wings as fast as she could muster.

“I thought this wasn’t a race!” The young flyer said, gaining on him.

“Doesn’t mean I can’t show off!” he boasted, twisting to fly with his back to the ground and looking back at her. “Come on! Follow me!”

Scootaloo did more than simply follow him. She went into a nosedive, racing towards the ground only to pull up and shoot past him in a leisurely glide. She looked back at him, giving him a salute and speeding ahead. He smiled, his eyes turning fierce as he settled into a cruising stance and put more effort into each flap. He passed above her, snickering as he went and leaving an orange and blue streak behind him. Scootaloo laughed, in turn, picking up her speed to create a darker orange streak and catching up to him. She splayed her wings out, settling into a glide again as her flight coach mirrored her movements.

They continued for a while longer, enjoying the breeze. Boltsinger pulled out his food bag, tossing an apple to Scootaloo while he munched on a flower. “You know, this is really nice.” Scootaloo started. “I knew flying was gonna be great, but I never imagined it would be this liberating! I feel like I could stay up here forever!” She flew ahead, turning to look back at him as she flew. “I can’t thank you enough for helping me get up here!”

Boltsinger sent the filly flyer a warm smile, filled with so much pride it was about to secrete from his eyes. “It’s been my pleasure, Scootaloo!” He answered as the sky before them turned black.

“Come on! They need these clouds in Appleoosa as soon as possible!” a weather pony called. “You ponies went and missed two scheduled showers, and now their apples are shriveling up! So GET A MOVE ON!”

At the sudden voices, Scootaloo turned around. There were several Pegasi in the air, pushing storm clouds along. She found herself directly in the path of one of the black clouds, and attempted to slow down. Her momentum, however, refused to give way. She frantically flapped, putting her hooves up in front of her as she seemed to skid in midair until finally slamming into the cloud.

Boltsinger’s pupils shrank as he flared out his wings, coming to a complete stop. His jaw hung open with shock, watching the cloud discharge electricity with Scootaloo plummeting from the middle of the mass, small discharges of lightning surrounding her partially blackened body with smoke trailing behind. White noise filled his ears as he cried out, repeating her name. “Wake up… Wake up-wake up-wake up!!!” he screamed. The weather ponies bearing witness to the event hung in the air, full of hesitation. “No-no-no-no-NO!!! I GOTCHA SCOOT!” He shouted, his voice bursting the nearest cloud to his location into small puffs of black as he looped into a dive. Scootaloo was falling fast, and Boltsinger’s nosedive wasn’t building up nearly enough speed. He started flapping his wings faster than he knew he could. “Not fast enough… Gotta be faster… Faster…! FASTER!!!” Red discharges of electricity surged from his wings as he picked up speed with the same color light shining from his pendant, the G forces beginning to blow his face back as he reached his forelegs out. Scootaloo fell further, but Boltsinger kept accelerating, a mach cone forming around him. His acceleration reached its peak, the cone forming a rainbow light that spread out in all cardinal directions with a loud boom. He caught up to the falling filly in an instant, wrapping his forelegs around her and swooping upward towards the Equestrian capitol. He looked at the young pony in his forelegs, breathing a sigh of relief as he felt a sudden impact, everything fading to black.

Boltsinger opened his eyes, seeing the blurred vision of several ponies above him.Twilight, Fluttershy, Soarin, Princess Luna… “Princess Luna?” He blinked a few times, the royal figure not going away. “Did I hit a wall again…?”

Luna nodded, taking a step back. “Alarmingly fast. I feared you and young Scootaloo were gravely injured when I found the two of you on my balcony. Thus, I alerted your friends and loved ones. I pray you are alright?”

The stallion’s eyes shot open as he sat up, looking frantically around the room. “Scootaloo! Where is she?! Is she okay?!”

Twilight put her hooves on her husband, resting her wings on his cheeks. “Hey! Look at me!” He followed her instruction. “Calm down. Scootaloo is fine. You caught her, and she’s with Rainbow Dash right now.”

“We were more worried about you.” Fluttershy stated, leaning on the bed. “You hit that wall pretty hard, and you had some red sparks coming out of your wings!”

“That’s neat.” Boltsinger replied, getting out of the bed. “Can I go see Scootaloo, please?”

Twilight encased the room’s entrance with her magic, opeining it. “Of course.”

Boltsinger immediately started for the door, a pony on a mission. Soarin ran ahead, putting a hoof on the orange stallion’s shoulder. “I’ll go with you. You shouldn’t be pushing yourself after a crash like that.”

Boltsinger nodded, quickly crossing the threshold of the room. “That’s fine.” He went into a canter, bolting down the hall with Soarin hot on his haunches. After about five minutes of running, they came upon the room where Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo conversed within. He opened the door, seeing the filly sitting on the bed, looking as if nothing had happened to her at all while Rainbow Dash and the other Crusaders sat beside her. Before he even knew what he was doing, Boltsinger had lunged forward and pulled the filly in for the biggest hug he ever gave. “Thank Celestia!” He exclaimed. “I saw you hit that cloud, and the lightning… and I know what happens with lightning... and then there was the falling… and… and… Oh, I’m just so glad you’re okay!”

Scootaloo patted the relieved stallion on the back. “It’s not your fault, Bolt. I wasn’t paying attention…” She broke the hug, drooping her head, ears, and wings. “I guess that means I failed the test, huh…”

Boltsinger shook his head, lifting hers with his hoof. “No… No, you didn’t fail anything!” He told her. "The whole test was just a formality anyway!” He sat down on the bed, taking a preparatory breath. “You are the best young flyer I’ve ever seen, Scootaloo.”

Scootaloo’s ears perked up again. “I am? Really?”

“Really really.” He confirmed. “And it makes me so ridiculously proud to see you fly and know that I helped get you up there!” His head sank as he continued his explanation. “And I wanted to hold onto that for as long as possible… You’ve been ready to graduate for a long time, now.”

“Then what was this ‘final test’ all about?” Scootaloo asked.

“I just wanted to do one last thing with you… as your coach. Especially since the one you’re moving onto is so much better.” He explained, motioning to Rainbow Dash. “You have officially graduated from my flight course!”

Scootaloo looked at her honorary big sister, then at the stallion who pointed to her with a bright smile. She leaned into Boltsinger, putting her forelegs around his barrel. “Thanks, Bolt! For everything!” She exclaimed, promoting Boltsinger’s liquid pride to begin gushing out. “I promise I’ll keep making you proud!”

He hugged her back, wiping his eyes with his wings. “That’s not hard to believe…”

Rainbow Dash nodded, leaning up against the bed. “Okay, enough with all the mushy stuff! It’s not like you’re not gonna be involved anymore, anyway!”

Boltsinger looked confusedly over to Rainbow Dash. “What do you mean? You’re basically taking over as her flight coach, right?”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean I won’t need a consultant. Who better to ask than another pony who knows how awesome she is when she flies?” she elaborated, offering out a hoof and a smirk. “What do you say? Wanna help me help her?”

Boltsinger smirked back, bumping his hoof into hers. “Oh, you have got yourself a deal!”

The Flashiest Gala Ever

“You are hereby ordered to take the entire day of the Grand Galloping Gala off.” Boltsinger’s words echoed in Flash’s mind as he stood in, of all places, a guest room at Canterlot castle. He was without his armor, and he felt just a little bit awkward about that. Sure, there were going to be other guards there. Princess Twilight couldn’t possibly be safer with all of the ponies and other creatures there to assist. But to simply enjoy himself while all of those other guards are on duty? That felt weird…

A knock came to the door, shaking him from his thoughts. “Yes? Who is it?”

“I’ll give you three guesses!” a baritone voice teased.

Flash smirked. “It’s either Twilight, Fluttershy, or Discord, clearly.”

The door opened to reveal a deadpanning Boltsinger standing alone in the doorway. “Well, you got one right.”

Flash’s head tilted, unsure of what he was talking about. “I did? Which one?”

The telltale white flash gave the guard his answer. “Why me, of course!” Discord exclaimed, appearing in the air above him. “Did you think K.K. would throw the biggest shindig of the year and not invite yours truly?”

“Come on, everypony’s waiting for us!” Boltsinger said, waving them towards the hallway. Flash and Discord followed, and they made their way to the castle foyer. On the way, Boltsinger shot a glance over at Flash. He gave him a sly grin, moving to a trot. Flash gave a grin of his own, moving to a canter.

“Oh, are we having ourselves a race?” Discord asked with a dubious smile. He put his feet on the floor, dragging his cloven hoof as he the ponies galloped past him.

Twilight stood in the castle foyer, Starlight, Sunburst, Rainbow Dash, Soarin, Pinkie Pie, Maud, Fluttershy, Trixie, Rarity, Applejack, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders surrounding her. They were waiting for Boltsinger, Flash, and Discord, ready to go for a day about town as they picked up the last of their guests. Most of them held idle conversation, letting time pass as the sound of galloping came from the halls. The thundering grew louder, as if it were headed their way. Finally, Boltsinger and Flash rounded the corner, looking at each other with playful ferocity as they ran full bore. They finally looked forward at the gathering, smirks on their muzzles as they ran neck and neck, each gaining a slight lead in alternation.

A finish line appeared before them in a white flash, Discord materializing just in front in a track runner’s outfit and a long, flowing blond mane, running through triumphantly. “I win!” He declared, rising into the air and celebrating as the stallions skidded to a stop. “Oh yeah! Go Discord! Team Chaos!” he chanted, dancing in the air.

Flash and Boltsinger glanced at each other, then looked up at Discord. “You cheated.” they simultaneously told him.

“So? It’s all in good fun!” Discord retorted, landing on the floor and returning things to normal. “It’s not like either of you care who won, right?”

“Nah. ‘Cause it was definitely gonna be me.” Flash bragged, motioning to himself with his hoof.

Boltsinger put a hoof on Flash’s shoulder. “Uh, excuse me, I think you got your words mixed up. You were trying to say ‘It was gonna be Bolt’, right?”

Flash let out a loud, fake laugh. “No. I would have won for sure.”

“Okay, fine, you let yourself think that.” Boltsinger said, walking over to the group. “Better to have confidence than to accept facts, right?”

Flash nodded confidently. “Right.” And then he realized what he’d agreed with. “Wait… Hey!”

Twilight let out a laugh as they approached, giving her favorite stallion a hug. “You boys ready to go? We still have one more pony to get before we set out into town.”

“Ready as I’ll ever be.” Boltsinger confirmed, pumping his foreleg. “How about you, Flash? Ready to have some fun for once?”

Flash feigned taking offense, joining the group. “What do you mean ‘for once’? I know how to have fun!”

“Oh? Could’ve fooled me. You’re always so stiff and guard-y.” the orange stallion teased.

“Well, I’m under orders to loosen up.” the yellow stallion clarified.

“Oh. Well, that makes sense.” Boltsinger jokingly admitted. By this point, the two were alone in the doorway, everyone else having already set out. “Maaaaaybe we should catch up with the rest of the group, huh?” They both laughed a little, spreading their wings and quickly rejoining them. Boltsinger landed next to Twilight, looking around. “So… Where is Spike?”

“He’s with Ember and Thorax.” she told him. “It’s their first Gala, and they wanted to spend it together.”

“That’s cool.” he affirmed. “So, does Moon Dancer know what’s in store for today?”

Twilight shook her head. “Well, she knows about the Gala, but I haven’t told her about our other plans.”

Boltsinger’s smile turned devious, looking at the road ahead. “Interesting… Well, you did say she needed a break from all the studying.”

The gathering continued through Canterlot, going to the stadium. They came upon a ramshackle house just outside the gigantic structure, where Twilight turned to the group and put her hoof in front of her muzzle, shushing them for the sake of surprise. The Princess stepped up to the door, quickly knocking and taking a step back. The door opened, and out stepped a white Unicorn mare wearing a thick black sweater with pink buttons, and black-framed glasses. Her mane and tail looked shockingly similar to Twilight’s, but with red as the primary color, and the stripes bearing two different shades of purple. Her bangs were pulled up with a pair of pink beads to keep her mane out of her eyes, and her Cutie Mark showed a purple crescent moon with three magenta four-pointed stars surrounding it. Her nose was buried in a book that she floated in front of her, her dark purple eyes fixated on it exclusively. She stepped out of the house, not even looking up for a second. “Yes? What is it?”

“Moon Dancer, it’s me, Twilight! The Alicorn informed. She lit up her horn, taking the book and floating it aside. “And not just me, either!”

Moon Dancer’s eyes widened as a plethora of ponies, plus one creature she’d never seen before, suddenly encompassed her vision. “Surprise!” Boltsinger and Pinkie yelled, raising a foreleg each.

Pinkie looked around at the others. “Seriously? No one else wanted to yell ‘surprise’?! How was she supposed to know it was a surprise, then?!”

Boltsinger laughed, patting the pink pony on the back. “They might not have known, Pinkie. But it’s okay.”

“Oh well.”Pinkie shrugged, turning her attention back to the pony they had come to see, waving a hoof emphatically. “Hi, Moon Dancer!”

Moon Dancer waved back while she eyed the congregation of companions, her mouth slightly agape. “Oooookay… Why are all of these ponies here?”

“We’re going to spend the day together before the Gala tonight!” Twilight answered, putting her wing around her foalhood friend and pulling her along. “And that means everyone! Come on!”

The bookish pony gave off a grin, trotting forward and looking at Twilight. “Okay, okay, I’ll join y--” She bumped into something, causing her to fall over, her glasses falling off of her face. “Ow… What was that?” she asked, feeling around for her glasses.

The source of the bumping offered a hoof containing the eyewear. “Sorry about that. You okay?”

“I’m fine…” she replied, climbing to her hooves and taking the glasses. “Thanks for finding my glasses. I can see okay without them, but I can see a whole lot more...” she put them on, getting a look at the pony who helped her. “... with… them…” She saw a well-built, handsome yellow Pegasus stallion with a blue mane and blue eyes smiling back at her. She retreated into herself slightly, a small amount of red eking its way onto her cheeks as she waved a hoof. “Um… hi!”

Flash laughed, waving a wing at her. “Hey. You sure you’re okay?”

Moon Dancer laughed nervously, walking past him. “I’m fine. No need to worry about me! Just fine!”

“Good. I’m Flash. It’s nice to meet you.” He assured.

Moon Dancer shot him a grin. “Likewise.”

As the two joined the group, Twilight and Boltsinger shot each other knowing looks. “That was just like how Flash and I first met…”

“Oh, really?” Boltsinger started. Twilight looked at their friends with a nod. “That gives me an idea…”

Twilight leaned in, turning her ear on his direction. “Oh?” Boltsinger began whispering into her ear. “Hmm… I see where you’re going…” He let out one more whisper, causing her eyes to widen. “Ooh… I like it! Let’s do it!”

Twilight and Boltsinger joined the walking crowd, each going to different ponies and having a conversation or two while Flash and Moon Dancer seemed to pull ahead. Flash looked around, having not been to Canterlot for some time, and Moon Dancer would tell him factoids about each of the sights. “Did you know that it was actually Princess Luna that designed the city?” she asked, her face bright with the wonder of knowledge. “It was back when she and Princess Celestia were still learning! She was having some trouble at first, but a powerful sorceress came by and helped her understand what she needed!”

“Wow. That’s actually really cool!” He responded, looking around at the city’s design. “I always did feel like this place looked better at night.”

“Me, too.” Moon Dancer affirmed. “Twilight and I are always comparing notes on astronomy and astrology. It’s a fascinating subject!”

“Sounds like it.” He sent her an inviting look. “Maybe you could teach me more sometime?”

From behind them, Boltsinger started a low riff at a steady rhythm, Discord moving his body to the beat with various percussive sounds coming with each twitch. They were soon joined by every grown mare in the gathering besides Maud and Moon Dancer, providing a different complementary part as what sounded like an impromptu musical number went on for another measure. At the head of the group was the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Sweetie Belle taking point in the middle, taking a deep breath.

~When the night… has come
And the land is dark…
And the moo-oo-oon… is the only… light you see!~

Flash and Moon Dancer looked back, the mare tilting a confused head. “Are they…?”

Flash gave a definitive nod. “Yup. They’re singing. They do that sometimes. Supposedly it helps their friendship.”

~No I won’t… be afraid!
No I___ won’t… be a-fraid!
Just as lo-o-ong… as you stand… stand by_ me!~

Apple Bloom and Scootaloo joined in as backup vocals, putting a three part harmony on the forefront.

~So darlin’, darlin’ stand… by me!
OH-OH! Stand… by me!
Oh, stand… stand by me! Stand by me!~

“It’s a nice song, though.” Moon Dancer commented, bobbing her head to the beat as Apple Bloom and Scootaloo moved back.

~If the sky… that we look upon…
Should crumble and fall…
Or the mounta-ain… should tumble… to the sea!

I won’t cry! I won’t cry!
No, I___ won’t … shed a tear!
Just as lo-o-ong… as you stand… stand by me!~

The accompaniment intensified as Apple Bloom and Scootaloo chimed back in.

~So darlin; darlin, stand… by me!
OH____ stand… by me!
Oh-oh sta-and… Stand by me! Stand by me!~

Sweetie Belle went into a massive refrain, belting out the chorus with her fellow Crusaders. The accompaniment continued on with them, seeming to go on for quite some time as Flash and Moon Dancer continued their conversation. After what felt like a fade-out, the ‘performers’ collapsed, laughing in hoarse hysterics.

“That was the first time I’ve gotten to really sing with everypony!” Boltsinger declared, raising his forelegs from his position on his back. “And it was the BEST THING EVER!” His last few words came out so loud that they echoed through the whole city.

Flash took a long look at his rival and friend, letting out a loud laugh. “Okay, Bolt. I admit defeat. You’re definitely louder than I am!”

“You’re darn right I am!” he replied, sitting up and pointing his hoof at the guard. “So, did you like the song?”

Moon Dancer laughed and nodded. “It was great. But… why did you do it?”

“There’s a few reasons.” Boltsinger started.

“It’s really fun!” Sweetie Belle squeaked, hopping up to her hooves.

“It also fosters friendships.” Twilight added, slyly eyeing the two of them. “Of all kinds.”

Trixie stepped forward with a flip of her cape. “And you get to put on a grand performance!”

The studious Unicorn laughed into her hoof, turning to continue. “Okay, I get it! So, what’s next on the agenda?”

The rest of the day had gone well. A trip to the history museum, where Moon Dancer, Sunburst, and Twilight talked at length about the history of Equestria as a whole. When Rainbow Dash, Soarin, and Scootaloo had finally grown bored, they went to a local park for the more energetic amongst them to burn off some energy. Flash took that opportunity to get to know the newest face in their crowd some more, finding out what all she had been studying. Once the mare had finished listing the things she had her eye on, even Pinkie Pie was tired. After a meal, Rarity had declared it time to prepare for the Gala, so the group headed for the castle.

In the foyer, everyone was beginning to head their separate ways. Boltsinger started to follow his spouse to their room, but found a hoof on his back before he could begin. He turned back to see Flash giving him his most serious of looks. “What’s up, Flash? Need something?”

“Did you know we were going to see Twilight’s friend today?” he asked.

“Eeyup.” Boltsinger replied. “Why do you ask?”

Flash averted his gaze to the red-headed mare, who was walking with Rarity and most of the other ponies to a changing room. “Well… I’m not sure. But it felt like it did when I first met Twilight.”

Boltsinger smiled. “That’s what Twilight said, too. You seemed to hit it off pretty well.”

“Yeah. Probably had something to do with the atmosphere.” Flash affirmed, giving Boltsinger a wry grin.

The electric stallion shook his head rapidly in denial. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He flared his wings. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, Twilight and I have much to go over before the Gala. We’re alternating our greeting duties with the Royal Sisters, and I need to be briefed on what all I have to do.”

Flash retracted his hoof, waving his fellow Pegasus along. “Yeah, yeah, go do your thing. I’ll see you later.”

Boltsinger waved a wing, taking off after Twilight. Flash let out a heavy sigh, starting towards his room. As he walked, he felt a sudden weight on his back that was somehow also leaning against his head. “You know, this is the first time I’ve done something like this with everypony. I have to admit, it was most enjoyable!” Discord’s voice told him, a higher pitch than it normally was. “Fluttershy and I had so much to talk about! Not to mention that romantic musical number!”

“I don’t know how ‘romantic’ it was. It seemed pretty tame, to me.” Flash argued. “Why? Does it have to be romantic?”

Discord vanished, appearing this time in front of Flash in a swanky orange suit and top hat. “I suppose not, but it’s not as fun unless somepony is at least a little uncomfortable. Like you are, right now!”

“Gee, thanks.” the stallion deadpanned, trotting onward. “Sorry, but it’s not your little romance teasing that has me uncomfortable.”

Discord’s face literally lit up. He leaned in, putting his face just next to Flash’s to make him avert his eyes. “Oh? And what is making you so uncomfortable?”

“Why does it matter to you?” Flash wondered, pushing the Draconequus’ face away by his fang.

“Oh, you know me. I just love a good gossip!” he admitted. “Like, did you know that Princess Celestia is thinking of changing things up tonight? I hear she wants to explore her darker side!”

“I’m not sure how comfortable I am with you gossiping about the Princesses… But that’s the point, isn’t it?” Discord nodded profusely as they passed one of the guards on duty. Flash tensed up in the armored pony’s presence, feeling out of place.

The tension did not go unnoticed by the spirit of chaos, who put his paw and talon together maliciously. “Oh, I think I know what your problem is…” He vanished in his usual white flash, leaving the pony to his business.

It was evening. Flash walked into the castle ballroom, adorned in a flashy white suit jacket that was dotted with black stars. He wore a black button-up shirt under it, tied up at the top with a black bow tie. His mane was swept back in a suave style that Rarity had insisted would be ‘a hit with the ladies’, and he was looking around for anypony familiar. So far, all he could catch was the guards at the doors. Their faces stoic, their bodies almost completely motionless, save for the rise and fall of their breathing. And then there was their eyes. Never before had he felt such a penetrating gaze, as if they bored into his very soul.

That is, until another pony bumped into him. He stopped his forward motion, drawing his full attention to the pony that now sat on the floor. He leaned down, offering his hoof. “Hey, you okay?”

The red-headed mare accepted his hoof. “I’m fine. For some reason, this keeps happening time today. I’m just glad I’m not wearing my glasses this time!” She rose to her full height, revealing herself to be Moon Dancer. She was wearing a black and purple dress with crescent moons going back-to-back along the skirt, which rode slightly high on her flank and trailed behind her to a degree. All along the back were little stars, the same shade of red as her mane. As she stated, her glasses were noticeably absent, her dark purple eyes seeming to shine brighter than before. Her mane was done in such a way as to let her bangs fall freely, creating a look much like Twilight’s, but it had been given a treatment to make it more wavy with more of a part where her horn poked out.

Flash could do nothing but stare for a moment. He knew Rarity did good work, but this was something else entirely. “Oh… Hi, Moon Dancer.” He started, shaking himself free of his own gawking. “You know, we really need to stop meeting like this.”

Moon Dancer stifled a giggle. “We really do. Especially when we’re all dressed up like this!”

Flash looked around, trying to spot other familiar ponies. “So, where’s Princess Twilight? Aren’t you her guest tonight?”

“She told me that it was her and Boltsinger’s turn to greet the guests. They’re out in the foyer.” she explained.

“Well, then, would you like to hang out with me tonight?” he offered, holding out his hoof. “I could use some friendly company.”

“Sounds good!” She agreed, linking her foreleg with his. “How are you liking the party so far?”

“To be honest it’s making me a bit uncomfortable.” He admitted, his gaze passing by the guards again. “It’s not my first Gala, but it is my first time wearing formal attire for it instead of… well… armor.”

Moon Dancer let a little confusion slip onto her brow, taking a long, hard look at him. “Wait a minute… Are you the guard that was with Twilight on all of her more recent visits?”

Flash rubbed his neck with his wing. “Yeah, that’s me.”

Moon Dancer tilted her head in his direction, nudging him with her shoulder. “You should come in next time. It can’t be very fun just standing outside.”

Flash nudged her back. “I just might.”

Moon Dancer’s ear turned away for a moment, tilting her head as if listening to something. She looked back at Flash with a knowing grin. “By the way, I don’t think any of the other guards have anything against you having a good time.”

Flash's eyes went wide, looking at his companion quizzically. “How did you…”

“Some… thing… let me know what you were thinking.” She clarified. “And from what I’ve seen, you’re good at your job. You deserve a break every now and then!”

The guard made a deep exhale, sitting on her words. He certainly had been giving his most recent post his all. Plus he had made new friends along the way. “I think you’re right. Then again, you’re probably right a lot.”

“I do know at least eight thousand three hundred forty-one trivia facts.” She pointed out, puffing out her chest pridefully. Flash showed a look of shock before finally breaking down into a laugh.

The pair found their way to the far wall, where Moon Dancer pulled up a couple of chairs. They sat down, looking at the goings on around them. Rainbow Dash and Soarin were in the private section for the Wonderbolts, talking and eating while both in full uniform. Rarity was leaning against Fancy Pants, enjoying a conversation while wearing a maroon gown with black lace lining every edge. Fluttershy, in a white frock that had a vine pattern cascading in multiple colors down the sides and back with her mane in a braid that encircled the crown of her head, sat talking with a couple of other ponies about animal care. Applejack was able to keep her usual hat on, but also wore long cowboy boots on her front hooves, dressed in a red dress with thick borders the same shade of green as a Granny Smith in a design reminiscent of overalls. She was making the rounds, mostly staying near Fluttershy and giving other ponies a kind greeting. Pinkie was on the dance floor, wearing an outfit that looked like it was practically made of cake, performing what looked to be a tango with her sister, Maud, twirling her about the floor, doing various dips, spins, and lifts, half of the time being the one lifted by the stoic mare. Starlight wore a dark purple, form-fitting dress that didn’t bear too much in the way of elaborate designs, but felt more contained. Trixie was the complete opposite. Big, white, and covered in star, moon, and fireworks patterns. The colors seemed to change depending on how the light fell on it, giving the feeling of watching a display whenever one would look at her. Sunburst sat with the two if them discussing magic, clad in a black tuxedo, a fiery red bow tie situated at the collar of his white shirt. Starlight and Sunburst would talk at length about a concept, then explain their meaning once Trixie’s eyes began to wobble.

“Enjoying the party?” Twilight asked, stepping up alongside her husband and taking a seat. She was wearing a dress the same color as the night sky, a constellation pattern running throughout the outfit that came up to a six-pointed star on her back, with her mane having been given the same treatment as Moon Dancer’s, with the addition of her crown on her head, and her pendant clipped into her mane by her right ear. Boltsinger, in turn, wore a black suit littered with lightning bolts. Rather than sticking with the normal blue, however, they were spread about in blue, orange pink, red, purple, and magenta, all coming together on his back in the shape of a six-pointed star. He wore a blue bow tie in the collar of his white shirt with his pendant resting just on top of it. His mane was as it always was, an erratic and tangled mess.

Moon Dancer turned to look at her oldest friend, giving a swift nod as she returned to pony-watching. “I know a lot of important ponies…” she spotted Thorax and Ember on the dance floor with Spike, trying to figure out how dancing worked. “... And other creatures… at this party, but you really do see beings from all trots of life, don’t you?”

“Seeing all the different kinds of ponies there are, making friends with them… That’s one of the best parts of the Gala!” Boltsinger noted, taking a seat of his own. He looked around the room, spotting some familiar faces. “Like them, for instance!” He rose into the air, waving a hoof at the friends he spotted to beckon them over.

“Who is it?” Flash leaned forward to get a look at the friends Boltsinger had spotted, tensing up like never before when he saw their faces. Walking up to them was none other than the Royal Sisters, Celestia and Luna. The former was garbed in a sleek, form-fitting black evening gown, a golden sun encrested at the base of her neck. Her shoes and crown were still ever-present, and she had one of the most confident expressions the ponies had ever seen plastered on her face as she strutted over. Princess Luna’s face, however, was as dejected as a pony could get. She wore a bright pink dress that poofed out more than something made for Pinkie Pie, with frilly white trim and lace lining every hem. Her step was more timid and contained than that of her sister, an air of embarrassment all about her.

Twilight waved at the Princesses, stifling a laugh. “I still can’t believe Princess Luna is wearing something like that!”

Flash let out a hint of a snort, quickly slamming his hoof into his own gut to stop himself. “Why is she wearing that, anyway?”

Luna cleared her throat, making her presence within earshot known. “If you must know, I was… defeated in a contest against my sister… This… outfit… is my penalty for losing. I am to wear it for the duration of the Gala.”

Boltsinger fell to the floor laughing, his forelegs wrapped firmly around his stomach. Flash sent him a glare, motioning his head towards the Princesses. The orange stallion sat up, calming down as Celestia busted out laughing as well.

Everypony within a ten foot radius stopped what they were doing to look at the hysteric Alicorn, who stopped laughing to take a look around. “What? It’s funny!” She stated. The gawking ponies slowly backed away.

“And the award for ‘cutest couple if the evening’ goes to…” Discord's voice began from everywhere at once. A drumroll sounded with spotlights searching the room randomly. Various couples in the room looked around wide-eyed for the source of the voice as the lights homed in on their target, nearly blinding Flash and Moon Dancer. “Flashdance!”

“But they’re not even a couple!” Boltsinger whispered.

“Shh!” Twilight interjected. “Let them have this.”

“Uh-huh, you just think it’s cute.” He retorted, nudging her with his wing.

Twilight recoiled with a mild blush. “What?! I do not…” She returned her attention to the highlighted ponies, smiling dreamily. Boltsinger noted the look on her face and gave a smug little grin, putting his wing around her and squeezing.

Moon Dancer and Flash looked at one another awkwardly. “Discord being Discord, I guess…” Flash suggested, standing up and offering Moon Dancer a hoof. “Wanna dance?”

The studious Unicorn turned away. “Oh, no… I… don’t dance. Too much hoof-eye coordination… and then there’s having a good partner, and--” She gave out a loud yelp as the yellow Pegasus took her foreleg, pulling her out to the dance floor.

He gave her a relaxed smile. “You know over eight thousand facts, right? Well, here’s another.” He put her hoof on his shoulder, getting into position. “Just feel the music, and trust your partner. It’s simple and fun. And I’ll forgive you if you step on my hoof.”

Moon Dancer looked around the room, seeing a great many eyes falling on her. “Um… Are you sure?”

“Positive.” He confirmed as the music began. He started with a simple swaying motion, easing her into the idea.

Moon Dancer followed her partner’s movements, swaying into steps. “Well, if you say so… Okay!” She said, the two dancing through to the end.

Author's Note

First off, the song. It is the Ben E. King classic, Stand By Me, of course. And I don't claim any ownership.
Second, I feel like I need to explain myself a little with this chapter.
I've not been doing much with Flash, but there were a few things I really wanted to do both with him and for him. I wanted to show how his and Bolt's dynamic has changed over the course of his role in the story. He's the only pony that really brings out that "Pegasus competitiveness" Bolt has on a constant basis. They're just as much rivals as they are friends. I hadn't really gotten a chance to show that, so here was a golden opportunity. Discord also has a tendency to mess with everyone, and he gets his own Gala invite all the time. And then there's the situation with Moon Dancer. This leads me to the point of needing to explain myself further.
I am not a Flashlight shipper. Not even close. Why? Because they never really do anything together aside from little flirts every now and then. That does not a relationship make. I guess I explained that a while back, though, huh? What with Twilight explaining it to Bolt. I believe that a good relationship, and a marriage, is built on friendship. Expanded upon friendship. That's part of the reason I waited twenty-five chapters to have Bolt and Twilight even get together, even despite all the hinting and teasing everyone was doing. Flash just didn't spend enough time with her. But I couldn't ignore his feelings. Hence his treatment of Bolt early on. In this case, it kinda does feel like he got the short end of the stick. He fancied Twilight for a long time, and now suddenly some scrawnier, plain-looking pony comes in and sweeps her off of her hooves when he's not looking? Then goes as far as to impregnate her? That's gotta hurt.
In Moon Dancer, I saw the potential for a real relationship. She's the studious type, like the mare he already liked, and the situation Twilight is in right now in the story gives him ample opportunity to really get to know her and build that relationship he never had with our dear Princess. So, that's basically what I'm doing.
Okay. Tirade over.
Next chapter starts writing soon. I hope you enjoy!

The Project

Twilight walked through the halls of the castle on a chill fall morning. She was feeling refreshed, having done a relaxing sorting of the library over the weekend, and was finally getting out for some fresh air. “Good morning, Spike!” she greeted, waving to the passing dragon as he ran by. He turned and waved back, hurrying on his way. The Princess smiled and continued on her way. She stretched her wings, feeling stiff from the hours of inactivity her weekend had wrought. “Oh! Hello, Big Mac!” she said, not having expected to see the Earth Pony that day. The farm stallion stopped and gave a respectful nod, quickly trotting onward. Maybe she would do some flying with Rainbow Dash and… “Soarin? You, too?” she waved at the Wonderbolt, seeing him trotting around the corner.

“Oh! Hey, Twilight!” Soarin replied, coming to a stop. “Bolt told us you might be done with your… book-sor-something or other…”

“Book-sort-cation.” she corrected.

“Yeah, that! He said you might be done with that, soon. How was it?” he asked.

“Overall, it was very relaxing.” she told him. “So, what’s going on? What’s with the ‘gathering of guys’ today?”

Soarin shot a look behind Twilight, seeing the tail end of Big Mac’s tail ahead of him. “Oh, nothing you need to worry about. Just doing… uh… guy stuff! I gotta go. Important business to attend to!” He flapped his wings, shooting past the Alicorn and blowing her mane back as he disappeared from sight.

“Guy stuff?” she repeated, tapping her lower lip with her hoof. “Important business? What’s going on…?” She continued down the hallway, puzzling on what kind of ‘business’ Soarin might have referred to. “He said that Boltsinger told them about my book-sort-cation…” She eyed the now-approaching orange stallion carefully, extending her wing to stop him moving.

He did as hinted, giving her a smile. “Hi, honey! How was your book-sort-cation?”

“What are you planning?” she asked, ignoring his question. “I just saw Spike, Big Mac, and Soarin all going in the same direction, and Soarin sounded like he was keeping something from me. Why is that?”

Boltsinger took a step back. “What?! Planning something? I have no idea what you’re talking about!” He tugged at his pendant with his wing. “We’ve just been doing guy stuff! You know… A long, rousing game of O & O! Too bad Discord couldn’t make it… He always spices up that game!” He trotted in place, trying to get by. “Speaking of which, they need me back there! I’m the GM this campaign, so they can’t play without me!” He leaned in and gave his significant other a loving kiss on the cheek. “Love you! See you later!” He jumped up, buzzing his wings and speeding forward like an old jalopy. He quickly sped back into view with a hoof raised. “Oh yeah! There’s some company coming for a few days! Should be good times!” He started off again, leaving a cloud of dust below him.

“Okay, now I’ve got to see what he’s really up to!” She declared, following him to whatever destination he might have. Her spouse led her through much of the castle halls, finding their way to their bedroom. She tilted her head curiously, casting an invisibility spell and stepping gingerly forward. “What could they want to do with the bedroom?” she wondered. The answer came quickly as Boltsinger passed the door entirely, instead opting to move into the room just past it. “Wait, what?” She waited until the door was closed, then carefully leaned against it.

“Okay, so, we all know our roles here, right?” Boltsinger began. There were sounds of conformation coming from the others in the room. “All right. The rest of the team should be here, soon. I’ll be heading to the train station before long to meet them. Big Mac, can you start setting up plans?”

“Eeyup!” Mac’s voice answered.

“Awesome. Soarin, you’re the fastest, so you’re on item transport. Anything Big Mac needs that we don’t already have, it’s your job to snag it, okay?”

“You got it, Bolt!” Soarin affirmed.

“And Spike, you’re with me on info gathering. We’ve got a lot of experts on the team, but we can always get more to work with.”

“Okay!” Spike sounded off enthusiastically.

“Okay! Let’s do this!” Boltsinger declared. The sound of bumping hooves could be heard along with the opening of a window.

“Oh, they’re up to something, all right…” Twilight told herself, walking away from the door. “And I’m going to find out what it is!”

Boltsinger stood at the train station, having gotten a plethora of facts alongside Spike most of the day. All that was left, now, was waiting for everypony else to arrive. One of the trains he was waiting for pulled up rather quickly, opening up to reveal Shining Armor, Cadence, Sunburst, Starlight, and Flurry Heart. They disembarked the train, the foal noticeably without her stroller, and looked around.

“Aha! You’re here!” He called out, rushing over to them. He was met with an immediate tackle from his niece, sending him to the floor. “And who is this giant of a pony? And what have you done with little Flurry Heart?” he teased, Hugging the filly tightly. She laughed and climbed off, magically helping her uncle to his hooves. “It’s good to see you, too, Bug.”

“So, what’s this ‘project’ you need so much help with?” Shining Armor asked, stepping up beside Boltsinger.

The Pegasus quickly put his hoof over the Guard Captain’s mouth. “Let’s not mention the ‘project’ around the ladies… I’ll tell you when everyone who needs to know is together at the castle, okay?”

Sunburst adjusted his glasses, cocking an eyebrow. “But… Why don’t you want the girls to know about it? Shouldn’t they know what’s going on?”

“Not if it’s a surprise.” Boltsinger stated. “Anyway, you all head to the castle. I’ve got one more train to wait for.”

“What do we tell Cadence and Starlight?” Shining Armor wondered, lifting up the group’s luggage.

“Umm… Do stuff with Twilight?” he suggested, shrugging his shoulders. “She already seems to be curious about what’s going on. She could use a distraction. And it would be good for them to get together.”

“Okay. We’ll see you soon, then.” Shining Armor said, waving a hoof and beginning his walk to the castle with the other ponies in tow.

Boltsinger waved back, turning back to the platform as the train departed. “Okay… one more brother left to arrive…”

Twilight walked through the foyer, still pondering what it was her husband was up to. He was prone to setting things up without her knowledge sometimes, but this was the first time in almost a year that he’d been so adamant to hide the truth from her in this regard. What could be so important that he had to be so absolutely secretive? Not to mention… “Who in Equestria did he invite over for the next several days?”

And then there was a knock at the door. Twilight trotted over, opening it to see her brother, his wife, their daughter, and two good friends. At the sight of them, all of her concerns vanished. “Surprise!” Shining Armor and Cadence exclaimed, Flurry flying between them. Twilight shot forward, hugging the white stallion.

“Wow…” Starlight started, eyeing her former teacher’s enormous baby belly. “You’ve gotten pretty huge over the last few months, haven’t you?”

Twilight backed up, putting her hoof on her belly. “Oh! Yeah, it’s really growing in there. But, I’ve got a good handle on the side-effects, lately!”

“That’s good to hear.” Cadence affirmed, giving her sister-in-law a hug of her own. “But do you know what to expect when the day comes?”

“Oh, I’ve read plenty on the subject.” Twilight boasted, making for the inner parts of the castle. “I assure you, I’m very well prepared!”

“That’s good, but I’d like to see for myself.” the Crystal Princess suggested. “Is there any room in the castle we could go to where we can go over it?”

The Princess of Friendship brought her hoof to her muzzle, looking into the castle with a mischievous grin. “I can think of one place…” She led her guests through the hall to the room she was most interested in, right next to the master bedroom. “Right here.”

Shining Armor and Sunburst looked at the door, remembering what Boltsinger had told them earlier about Twilight’s suspicions. The orange Unicorn came forward, putting his ear to the door. “Are you sure this is the best room? It’s awfully close to yours. Why don’t you just use that?”

“Nnope!” came a deep voice from inside.

“Big McIntosh?” the scholar guessed, peeking into the the room. Big Mac, Spike, and Soarin were huddled up in the middle of the room, the Earth Pony pouring over what looked like building plans.

“Oh? Is this the room you’re playing Oubliettes in?” Twilight mused, peeking her head up to try and look over the stallion. “How is the game going?”

“Uh… it’s great!” Spike fibbed, poking his head out the door. “We’re just going into the evil witch’s fortress! Gotta get back to that!”

“But… You’re all--WHAA!” Sunburst gave off a shrill yell, being pulled into the room as the door slammed shut.

The door creaked open again, Spike coming out. “Actually, Shining Armor, do you wanna play too?”

Shining Armor looked back at the mares, just a little bit befuddled. “Um…” Spike pulled his mane, bringing his head down to his level so that he could whisper into his ear. The older stallion kept his best poker face. “Oh! Yeah, sounds like fun.” He headed over to his wife, giving her a hug and whispering something incoherent into her ear. “I’m gonna join them. You have a good time with Twily, okay?”

“Okay. you boys have a good time, then.” Cadence affirmed. She put her wing around Twilight, guiding her to another place in the castle. “We’re going to go over a few things. It’s going to take a while, so take your time.”

Shining Armor smirked. “Sounds perfect.” He bent down and gave Flurry a kiss on the cheek, then went with Spike into the room.

Twilight walked with Cadence, looking up at her. “How long is this going to take, anyway?”

“We have to go over a lot of the things you’ll be doing when the time comes.” the elder Alicorn explained. “There’s quite a lot, so I imagine it’ll be several hours.”

Twilight’s face grew ever more dejected. “I see… That can wait a little while, right? There’s something I really want to do.” She stopped, turning back to make for the door again. She found her hooves dragging on the floor with a tugging on her tail. She looked behind her, seeing a blue aura surrounding the end of her now-outstretched tail.

Cadence, her horn alight, had a curious yet stern expression. “And what’s so important that it’s distracting you from these exercises?”

Twilight hung her head. “I want to find out what those boys are really up to!” She told her. “I just know they’re doing more than just Ogres & Oubliettes, but they’re being so secretive about all of it!”

“Do you think there might be a reason for them to be secretive?” the pink Princess suggested.

“I know that Boltsinger likes to surprise me sometimes, but there’s no reason for it right now!” She released herself from Cadence’s magical grip, moving towards the door again. “If he would just let me in on it, I could help!”

“He seems to have plenty of help, already.” Starlight noted, pointing her hoof at the door. “Are you sure you’re not just letting your curiosity get the better of you?”

Twilight opened her mouth to find no words coming out. She made several attempts to explain herself, but all that came was silence. Cadence giggled, pulling her sister-in-law close again. “I won’t stop you from trying to satisfy your curiosity, but only after we’ve gone over what we need to. It’s too important to pass up, and you of all ponies should know that it’ll go better if you’re prepared.”

Cadence’s point hit home, the words feeling almost like they stabbed into her. She turned around once more, walking along. “Okay, you win.” She looked back at Starlight, who was giving the door her best interpretation of Fluttershy’s ‘Stare’, Flurry doing the same beside her. “You coming, Starlight?”

“Huh? Oh, no. You two go on.” She said, waving them off. “I'm not really concerned with all the ‘having a baby’ stuff, anyway. I’ll watch Flurry!” She patted the filly on the head, giving the two a smile.

“Okay, then. Don’t go too crazy.” Cadence stated, waving a wing.

Starlight and Flurry waved in return, waiting until the Alicorns left. Once they were out of sight, Starlight looked down at the filly with a devious smile. “You wanna find out what they’re doing?” Flurry laughed and nodded, facing the door and lighting her horn. Starlight put her hoof on the tip of the foal’s horn, shushing her. “Not like that. We don’t want to interrupt them, just see what they’re up to, okay?”

Flurry looked back up at the mare, giving an understanding nod. “Okay!” She flew up to land on Starlight’s back, leaning in closer to the door while the mare put her eye to the keyhole.

“NNOPE!” Boltsinger’s voice called from down the hall. Before Starlight could get a look at the goings on, there was a bright orange wing between her and the keyhole. “Nopenopenope!”

Starlight reared back, Flurry hovering above her. “Hey! What’s the big idea?!” She spat, glaring daggers at the Pegasus.

“You’re on the ‘do not tell’ list!” He declared. “Sorry, but that’s the way it is this time!”

“And why can’t you tell me?! It’s not like I would go and blab to Twilight!” She reasoned, stepping aggressively closer to him. “Don’t you trust me?”

“Trust isn’t an issue here.” He retorted, looking at the door. “I’m not telling you, Twilight, or any of our friends what’s going on here.” He looked back. “I have my reasons, but this is something I really need to do this way, okay?”

“Well…” she started, looking at the stallion’s purple eyes. There was an earnestness in them where she normally saw doubt, an electric spark passing through his pupils. “Okay… At least you’re still treating everypony equally about this.” She thought for a moment, finally perking up. “Tell you what. You don’t tell me what you’re doing, but I’ll still help out. I’ll… keep Twilight busy so that she can’t just barge in! How about it?”

“I guess so. But I think I have ‘barging in’ covered.” Boltsinger informed her.

“You could watch the baby while we’re not able to.” another mare’s voice suggested. “From the looks of it, we’re both going to be pretty busy.”

Starlight turned to look in the direction the voice came from, seeing the grey mare she knew to be Dimming Sparks next to her husband, Brightling. “Oh! Sparks… Hello.” she greeted, rigidly waving a hoof. “I haven’t seen you since the wedding.”

Sparks trotted up with a soft, only slightly fake smile, pulling along a stroller. “Hello… I’m sorry, I haven’t seen you very much. You’re… Starshine, correct?”

“Starlight…” the pink mare corrected, offering her hoof. “Starlight Glimmer. Nice to officially meet you.”

Sparks gave the offered hoof a hearty bump. “Likewise.” She turned to the stroller, tickling the baby inside. “Starlight, huh? I’ll have to remember that.” Her horn lit up, lifting the tiny Unicorn in the stroller and floating him gently over to Starlight. “This is Oathsinger. He’s a little rambunctious with the baby magic, but he’s a good little colt.”

Starlight smiled at the baby, taking him from his mother’s levitation. “He sure looks like it.” She put her hoof up to tickle his belly, causing him to let out a laugh. “You wanna meet a Princess, little guy?” He laughed further, looking up to see Flurry hovering above. He ignited his own horn, reaching for her and encasing himself in magic. The colt floated up to the filly, extending both forelegs out to her. She bumped hooves with him, flying around in circles. “I think they’ll get along fine.” Starlight stated, looking back at Sparks. “I have to say, after all I’ve heard, I wasn’t expecting you to be so… sociable.”

“A lot can happen when you’ve used a powerful relic to turn completely evil and tried to control the minds of everypony you’ve ever known only to be transformed and defeated by Twilight, her friends, your own husband, and his brother.” She stated, almost too matter-of-factly. Boltsinger and Brightling nodded in unison, chuckling to themselves.

“Oh, believe me, I know exactly where you’re coming from.” Starlight assured, stepping up and patting the grey mare on the shoulder. “You’re not the first ‘supervillain’ Twilight has reformed.”

“Correction!” Brightling started. “Twilight isn’t the one that ‘reformed’ her!” He pointed his wing between himself and his brother. “That was us. We did that.”

“You, too?” Sparks asked, setting up all of her son’s things. Starlight nodded. “What did you do to earn her wrath?”

Starlight chortled to herself. “I’ll tell you all about it, later.”

“Sounds good.” Sparks affirmed, turning back to face the magical mare. “Say, can you show me where Twilight and that other Princess went? I know nothing about this place.”

Starlight pulled Flurry and Oathsinger closer, waving a hoof to beckon the foals along. “Sure. She’s this way.”

Boltsinger and Brightling looked at each other while the mares and foals made their exit. “So, you ready to meet the team?” Boltsinger asked.

Brightling cocked an eyebrow. “Don’t I know most of them already?”

“Yes, but you’ve never worked with them before.” He said, reaching for the door. “There’s a difference.” As he turned the knob, he took a deep breath. “‘Tis I, the great rogue, Boltstinger! Come to claim the Crown of Kindness in the name of the Princess!”

From inside, Spike’s voice came to them. “Enter, brave warrior, and join the party once more!”

Brightling brought his wing to his muzzle, quietly laughing to himself. “Such a dork…”

Boltsinger looked back at his brother as the door opened, looking exasperated. “Everyone’s a critic.” He walked in nonchalantly. "I thought it was really cool.”

“No, little brother, Wonderbolts are cool.” Brightling corrected. Soarin perked up immediately. “Royal Guard captains are cool.” Shining Armor smirked. “Wizards, awesome!” Sunburst smiled and adjusted his glasses. “Speeches like that? Not so cool.”

“Says the pauper to the Prince.” Spike noted.

Brightling looked over at the dragon. “I don’t care how royal he is. He’s still my little brother, and he’s still a dork.”

“Well, I’m a wizard and I think speeches like that are cool.” Sunburst mentioned.

“Royal Guard captain here and I liked it.” Shining Armor added.

“I’m a Wonderbolt and I don’t think he’s a dork!” Soarin stated.

Brightling looked around the room, getting a good look at the ponies who had just spoken up. “Well… maybe even cool ponies can be dorks, too.” He did a double-take, looking at Boltsinger. “Wait, you have, in this room, working on something as ordinary as this… a Wonderbolt, a captain of the Royal Guard…”

“And Prince. Don’t forget that he’s married to Princess Cadence.” Boltsinger reminded.

“Yes, that too… And a wizard…”

“Crystaller to Princess Flurry Heart, to be precise.” Sunburst corrected, wiping his glasses with his cloak.

Brightling’s hoof met his forehead with a surprising amount of force. “... That. You have all of these high-class ponies helping you with something this simple?!”

“Eeyup!” Big Mac confirmed, going over several cans of paint.

Brightling shook his head, giving up. “Of course you do…” He took a deep breath, once again facing the other stallions. “Okay, then. Bolt tells me I’m here to help streamline things. What are we doing?”

Breathing techniques. Birthing exercises. Breathing techniques… Birthing exercises… For six… hours… Twilight had been put through the ringer. And it only got more intense once Sparks arrived, and she and Cadence began comparing notes. The two mothers were now in a heated debate about whether to have the birth at home or in a hospital. Cadence, on her experience having Flurry in her own castle, advised a hospital for a more safe and controlled environment. Sparks, having also had her foal at home, advised as such, saying that it would be a good test of her fortitude and a show of strength as a Princess. All the while, Starlight was running back and forth with Flurry and Oathsinger, doing her best to keep up with them to very little success.

“ATTENTION, LADIES AND FOALS!” Boltsinger echoed from somewhere deeper in the castle. “DINNER IS NOW READY!”

Twilight took the sudden disruption of the debate as an opportunity. “Oh! Good! Dinner!” She rubbed her belly, which gave an honest growl of hunger. “I’m starving. Listen, thanks for all of your advice. I’m sure I’m fully prepared for the big day! And you know what? I’ll even make it up to you tomorrow with a full day in town! But first, let’s eat!” She ran forward, charging between them and out the door, where she quickly turned towards the kitchen.

In the dining room, several tired stallions and the Princess’ favorite dragon sat, a number of extra chairs having been pulled out with a large meal laid on the table. Twilight trotted over to her significant other, taking a seat next to him. He looked over at her and smiled. “Hello, honey. How was your time with Cadence and Sparks?”

“It was… informative.” She replied, portioning her plate. “How was Ogres & Oubliettes?”

Boltsinger tensed up a little. “Went great! Got the Crown of Kindness. I was super sneaky, Spike did the magic, and Sir McBiggun yelled a hearty…” he motioned to Big Mac.

“Eeyup!” the red stallion said on cue.

“... as he struck down throngs of bad guys.” he continued. “Then our shiny paladin defended us all from the evil witch’s trap, and our alchemist concocted an escape for us! Quest successful!” He scrambled to grab himself a fork, stuffing some salad in his mouth.

“So what do you have planned tomorrow?” she queried. “Is there anything I can help with?”

Boltsinger shook his head as He swallowed. “Nnope! Just hanging out. Soarin’s been learning the art of ‘chillaxing’ from Rainbow Dash, and he’s gonna show us non-chillaxers how to do it just right!”

Twilight let out a sigh, deciding not to pry any further for now. “Okay… Well, if you need me, let me know.”

“You’ll be the first pony I ask.” he assured her.

The next morning, Twilight walked up to Sweet Apple Acres with Cadence and Sparks following close behind. Cadence had a curious yet content expression. She knew what her sister-in-law was really up to, but deigned to go with it. Sparks, however, was looking around with an air of caution, remembering her last visit to this farm.

The party of ponies quickly came upon the farmhouse, where Applejack was heading out to do her chores. She stopped a moment when the visiting mares came into view. “Well, howdy, Twilight!” She greeted, waving. As they were closer, the Princess’ guests caught her attention. “Princess Cadence, Sparks, good ta see y’all.” She bowed with a flourish of her hat. “What brings ya over?”

Sparks’ attention was immediately brought to the farm mare, her head going low. “Oh… Hello, Applejack. Good to see you again.”

Twilight patted the grey mare on the back, helping her calm down. “I’ve been getting some coaching on ‘motherhood', and I thought I’d thank my coaches with a day of doing things in Ponyville!” She floated forward a quill and parchment. “And the first stop is Sweet Apple Acres for some of the best pie in Equestria!”

Applejack gave off a mild blush. “Aww, shucks, Twilight. I dunno if it’s really the best…” She perked up, unable to keep a straight face. “Oh, who am I kiddin'? I’d be lyin’ if I said our pies were anythin’ other than the most scrumptious, sweetest, flakiest pies ya ever had crossin’ yer taste buds!” She waved her guests along towards the house. “Come on, y’all, make yerselves at home!”

Applejack led them all into the house, seating them at the kitchen table. “So, Applejack… What has Big Mac been up to, lately?”

Applejack shrugged, starting up the baking process. “Frankly, I got no idea what he’s been doin'. Why, just this mornin’ he ran off with a big ol’ block o’ applewood, lookin’ all shady like he was tryin’ not to get caught! You got any idea what he might need that much wood for?”

Twilight shook her head. “No, I can’t say I do. But he has been doing a lot with Boltsinger, Spike, and all the other guys…”

“Weren’t they playin’ that game y’all egggheads like s’ much?” the Earth Pony inquired.

“That’s what they said, but I’m not so sure.” Twilight stated. “They were way too secretive about it.”

“Well, whatever it is they’re doin’, I’m sure they’ll let us in on it when the time is right.” She reasoned, chuckling to herself. “Besides, I haven’t been able to get an answer outta Big Mac no matter how much I tried. He’s quiet, yeah, but this is the first time he’s ever been so tight-lipped ‘bout sumthin’.”

Twilight nodded in understanding, getting up to help her friend with the baking. The four of them talked all the while, discussing the upcoming cider season and just how long the line can be expected to be. Twilight offered her services to make things move faster, but was turned down. After pies were made, cooled, and consumed, the orange mare went back to the orchard while Twilight, Cadence, and Sparks took their leave. The next stop on their visit was Sugar Cube Corner, where Mrs. Cake stood behind the counter, Pinkie Pie playing energetically with the twins.

Upon their entrance, Pinkie's attention instantly fell upon them, the young ponies firmly latched onto her back and mane. “Hi, Twilight! Hi Princess! Hi Sparks!” she greeted, emphatically shaking each of their forelegs. “Whatcha doing today?”

“Just walking around Ponyville.” Twilight answered, sitting next to the toybox and floating a pair of miniature hot air balloons over to the twins. “Seeing if anything interesting has been going on lately.”

“Interesting like…” Cadence began, leaning in inquisitively.

Twilight flashed a look at the older Princess that had a feeling of ‘Don’t make it too obvious!’ to it, then gave her poofy friend a smile. “Like whether or not you’ve seen Boltsinger, Spike, Big Mac, Soarin--”

“And Shining Armor and Sunburst and Brightling?” Pinkie finished, putting the little ponies down, where they each jumped up and grabbed a toy. “Well, just yesterday, Soarin was whizzing around all over the place with a bunch of different things! He had a whole rainbow of paint, plus a few other colors! Along with brushes, a bunch of nails, some quills, some paper, some books--”

“What kind of books?” Twilight inquired, finding herself an inch from Pinkies face.

The party pony shrugged. “Dunno! He was moving too fast for me to see what they were! But then this morning, I saw Big Mac with a big block of wood and his tools! And then Sunburst and Shining Armor trotted by with a bunch of boards and a blueprint! Brightling was walking with Bolt and they were talking about keeping it a secret from everypony because it was super duper important that nopony knows a thing!” A loud gasp found its way out of the pink pony, her body lifting up off of the floor. “What if the thing he’s doing is so big that it completely violates your trust and uprooted your relationship, sending everypony into a downward spiral that leads to bitterness as everyone rushes to defend the ones they care about most, and then we all get sick of each other and end our friendships and then all of Equestria is doomed the next time evil rears its ugly head!”

Twilight sat back down, wide-eyed, with a blink every other moment.

“That, or they could just be making a nursery. Who knows?” Pinkie concluded. She reached behind her, pulling out a strawberry cinnamon cilantro swirl cupcake and offering it out to the Princess. “Cupcake?”

Twilight leaned forward, eating the cupcake as she processed the information. As she swallowed the morsel, she stood up. “Okay… I have to see what they’re doing.” She ignited her horn, vanishing in a flash of magenta light.

Boltsinger and Brightling walked back to the room they had been spending their time, deep in discussion. “So, you really think it’ll work? ‘Cause I’d really like it if the baby--”

POOF.

Twilight stood in front of the door, her eyes fierce and her horn alight. The stallions stopped in the moment, gazing at the opening door. Boltsinger stepped up to the purple pony, bringing his wing forward. “Ummm… Twilight, honey… You really don’t want to do that.”

Twilight’s attention jerked over to see her husband. “Why? Because whatever is inside will be a big violation of my trust and is gonna make everypony hate each other?”

The brothers stepped tentatively back, looking at each other. “Hate…? Where did she get that idea?” Brightling wondered.

“I’m guessing Pinkie.” Boltsinger replied. He came closer to the now-stern mare. “Nothing like that. I just don’t think you should go in there!”

“Well I think I should.” she retorted, swinging the door open and haughtily stepping forward. “If it’s really nothing to worry about, then you shouldn’t keep it-- Ouch!!” She pulled back, repelled by a magenta barrier that looked to fill the doorway. She looked closely at it, seeing it lining the opening and surrounding the room as a whole. “A barrier? You had Shining Armor put up a barrier?!” The Princess of Friendship was fuming. She lit her horn, striking the magical field with the full force of her magic and stepping forward.

Boltsinger ran to her, clamping his jaw down on the end of her tail and pulling with all of his might, Brightling following suit the very next instant. “Twilight…” the blue-maned stallion said through his clenched teeth. “Please! Don’t force your way in! Just trust me! Please!”

“I’ll trust you when you start trusting me again!” she argued, continuing her slow and steady charge. The magic of her horn intensified, sparks of blue lightning forming around it as the beam turned white in the middle, making cracks appear in the barrier. “What in the name of Celestia could be so important that you can’t trust me with it?! Why can’t you just let…” the cracks spread further. “... me…” The cracks now covered the entire doorway. “... IN!!!” The barrier shattered, the sound of breaking glass echoing into the room and out to the hall. She charged into the room, dragging the brothers along with her. She looked around the room, seeing Big McIntosh staring back at her while sitting over a block of applewood being carved into a distinct shape, but not quite there yet. In another part of the room, Shining Armor and Sunburst floated a number of boards, forming them into the shape of a large set of shelves, similarly gawking at the arriving Princess, while Spike and Soarin stood by the wall, where an outline for a design was beginning to take shape. Boltsinger and Brightling lay on their stomachs, sprawled out behind the Alicorn, who fell to her rump with her jaw going slack. “What… what is this?”

Boltsinger got up, taking a seat beside Twilight. “Well… I was gonna wait until it was ready before I showed you but... Surprise?” he declared, motioning his wing and hoof to the room. “It’s… It’s the baby’s room!”

Twilight’s head slowly turned to look at him, her eyes still wide. “So… Having everypony come over from so far away…”

“I needed help. I knew I couldn’t do a lot of this, but I wanted to at least organize everything.” He pointed his wing at his brother, who was dusting himself off. “But he’s way better at that, so I brought him in for consulting.”

“And all the secrecy…”

“I really wanted to surprise you. Everyone got together and provided some information to make the whole theme of the room amazing!”

Her face returned to normal, taking another long look at her surroundings. “But… Why didn’t you just come to me? Or the rest of our friends? Why did you bring in all this help and not talk to the ones closest to you?”

“Because… Well…” Boltsinger gave his face a solid wing-slap as he made a deep inhale. “I wanted to do this without your help. Be in charge, have a plan, follow through, get it done.” He began pawing at the floor, drawing circles in the gathering of sawdust that had formed. “I’ve relied on all of you for so much ever since I met you… I’ve done some stuff, yeah, but nowhere near as much as you’ve all done for me.” He half-shrugged, directing his eyes at the purple Princess again. “I guess I just wanted to prove myself. Besides, I am the dad. Shouldn’t I contribute at least this much?”

Twilight surrounded her favorite stallion in magic, pulling him close and squeezing him tight with both wings and both forelegs. “Oh, Bolt… You don’t have to prove anything!” She released him, giving him a warm smile. “If you want to do this without our help, that’s okay. But you didn’t have to hide it from me.”

“Well, if I wanted to surprise you, yes I did. But I know what you mean.” he told her. He leaned in and gave her another hug. “Now, no coming back in here until I say so. Okay?”

“Got it.” she agreed with a laugh.

Three days later, Twilight stood outside the same room with a blindfold on. Boltsinger stood between her and the door, a huge grin erupting from his face. “Okay, Twilight, when I say so, you can take off the blindfold.” The Alicorn nodded, walking into the room under his guidance. The two of them stopped in the middle of the room, where Boltsinger took a position behind her. “Okay. You can look now.”

Twilight pulled off the blindfold and immediately gasped, marvelling at the room around her. The walls had a repeating image to them, with three pink butterflies pulling apple-shaped balloons with blue diamonds on the sides along a rainbow path, with a backdrop of a night sky that was littered with four and six-pointed stars. There was a large, dark blue bookshelf that came all the way to the ceiling, seeming to be bolted down. Lastly, in the middle of the room, there was an applewood baby bed, much like the one Applejack had provided for Flurry Heart, with a mobile hanging over it. The mobile featured six shapes hanging from a center that formed a magenta six-pointed star. The shapes in question were a blue diamond, a set of three balloons, one yellow and two blue, a big pink butterfly, a tri-colored lightning bolt coming from a cloud, a bright red apple, and a four-pointed star with two streaks of blue light trailing behind. “This room… It’s like a…”

“An homage to the most important ponies this baby will know.” Boltsinger explained. “Sunburst told me that the imagery will help the baby to recognize everypony more easily and become comfortable with them. Brightling agreed, so we came up with a design to match that wasn’t just your Cutie Marks all over the place, but still got the message across.”

“It’s beautiful… But, why isn’t there anything representing you in here?” she asked, giving the room another look.

“I did say it was an homage to the most important ponies.” he repeated, scratching his mane with his wing. “Besides, it’s not like the baby won’t recognize me. I’ll be here, probably taking care of it a lot. No need for a constant reminder of me if I’m already around all the time!”

“I’m sorry, but I have to disagree with you.” Twilight insisted, stepping firmly in his direction. “You’ve done a wonderful job, but I simply have to add something to the room that will remind the foal of its father.” Boltsinger opened his mouth to protest, but found it forced shut. “And I’m not taking ‘no’ for an answer.”

“Okay, okay, fine.” he relented, giving her a content grin. After a moment looking into her eyes, a thought came to him. “Oh! That’s right! There is one thing I can really surprise you with!” He walked over to a corner of the room, where a box was sitting. He reached in, pulling out an item that he quickly tucked under his wing. “You would not believe just how much cajoling it took to get Big Mac to give this up…” He returned to stand before her. “This…” He brought his wings forward, revealing a ragged and patched grey pony doll with string for hair, along with a pink button and a blue button for eyes that wore blue pants with white polka dots. “... is Smarty Pants! This doll is really special, ‘cause it belonged to the Princess of Friendship when she was just a little filly! Isn’t that cool?!” He beamed in his explanation, seeing his spouse’s jaw drop entirely, her eyes starting to well up with tears. “And now, I’m giving her to you!” He thrust the doll forward. “Isn’t that great? And look!” He held his hoof up, where rested an impossibly tiny pen and notebook. “She even comes with her own pen and notebook, just in case you want to have her do her homework!” Twilight’s horn slowly flared to life, floating the doll and its accessories closer. “Personally, I really like her mane. What do you think? Wanna give it to the baby?” No words came out of the mare’s mouth. “Or… you could keep it for yourself. I hear you have a lot of fond memories with it.”

The doll floated over to Twilight’s back, sitting perfectly in place in the middle. She floated the accessories to fit flawlessly between the doll’s ear and ever-so-popular mane, receiving a pat on the head as Twilight nearly tackled Boltsinger in a hug, knocking him to the floor where she clung to him. “Thank you!” she cried, tears of nostalgic joy flowing freely. “Thank you so much…! This will be perfect for the baby!”

Boltsinger gave his wife a kiss on the cheek, patting her back and smiling. “Anything for my Twilight…”

Author's Note

This was a fun one to write, but I gotta say, while I know where things are going, I'm not 100% sure on what exactly is coming next. I've got an idea, but I need to find a way to start it.
I just mean the next chapter. I've got ideas for at least another whole season ahead. With some other things to boot. But i'm taking things one chapter at a time, 'cause if I don't, I'll get too absorbed in what's to come, and it'll make current chapters slower to release.
Anyway, I've rambled enough. Enjoy this and all future chapters!

Courtship

The city of Canterlot. Boltsinger had to admit he’d been coming here a lot over the past year. There was always some reason to be there, and this time was no different. He trotted down the cobblestones, a bag hanging from his wings and humming a tune to himself. Before long, he found a much larger pony trotting next to him.

“I say, you’re Prince Boltsinger, are you not?” The pony asked. His voice was ten times as posh as the other high society ponies he’d met, and it struck a chord in his memory. “Might I inquire as to what brings you to Canterlot today?”

“Oh, hello, Fancy Pants!” He replied, turning on his royal decorum. “While I don’t usually need a reason to visit such a lovely city, this time I’m here in service of a friend.”

“Oh?” Fancy Pants adjusted his monocle, looking more squarely at the Pegasus. “And which of your lovely friends would that be?”

“Fitting that you use the word ‘lovely', good sir.” He told the Unicorn, lifting up his bag. “For it’s that word and others like it that she lives for! I speak, of course, of Rarity.”

“Rarity, you say?” The posh pony repeated, bringing a hoof to his muzzle. “She hadn’t told me she was coming… Are you headed back to her boutique right now?”

Boltsinger nodded. “I am, indeed. But I’ll warn you, she’s frightfully busy at the moment. Been working on a new collection while filling various custom orders. Not only that, but with Nightmare Night coming soon, she has a lot of costumes to make so she can sell them to the young ones.”

“I see. Well, no reason not to be cordial, at least!” Fancy Pants concluded, casting his gaze forward with a smile.

Fabric, thread, designs, mannequins, and half-finished outfits. Rarity was swamped. She had help from Sassy Saddles and Coco Pommel, and even Fluttershy with her outstanding knowledge of the art of sewing, but she still had a lot of things to do with not a lot of time to do it.

“Rarity! I’m back!” Boltsinger called from the entrance. The fashionista immediately perked up, running to the display room.

“Splendid! Did you get what I asked for?” she asked, trotting down the stairs.

“Of course. You kinda made sure I couldn’t get it wrong!” He held his bag out, where Rarity took it and floated out a number of rolls of fabric. “The color examples helped a lot.”

“Oh, Bolt, these are just perfect!” she exclaimed, looking over the product. “Thank you for coming along. It’s been wonderful to have someone to fetch things for me.”

“You brought him to Canterlot to… fetch things for you?” Fancy Pants queried, stepping into view.

Rarity’s attention fell upon her special somepony like an eel on its prey. “Oh! Fancy Pants, I didn’t see you there!” She trotted over to him, nuzzling his mustachioed nose. “Yes, I asked around Ponyville for some help with all of my work, and Bolt and Fluttershy were the first to volunteer!” She looked back at her friend with a grin. “They’ve both been a tremendous help.”

“But, Rarity, darling, you could have just asked me for assistance.” the white stallion stressed. “I could have gotten whatever you needed toot sweet, no questions asked!”

Rarity turned back to him, putting a hoof on his cheek. “I know, and it’s sweet of you to offer. But I simply didn’t have time to consider all of my options before I left! My first priority was getting help and getting here.”

Fancy Pants looked the gorgeous mare in the eyes, giving off a small smile. “All right, then. Do let me know of you require my help!”

“You’ll be the first to know.” She assured, turning back to the stairs. “Boltsinger, could you come with me for a moment?”

Boltsinger made a miniscule recoil, looking over at the visiting Unicorn and then back to the shop’s owner. “Yeah, sure.” He took off, making quick work of the gap between floors and landing next to her. “What’s up?”

“Did you, by any chance, tell Fancy Pants I was in Canterlot?” she whispered as they walked.

Boltsinger nodded, just a little confused at the question. “Yeah. Was that a mistake?”

A look of uncertainty crossed her face. “Well… Yes and no… How do I put this…? Right now he’s having one of his better days.”

Boltsinger cocked an eyebrow. “Better days?”

“He’s reasonable.” She clarified. “Don’t get me wrong, I adore him, and all that he does for me, but… sometimes he gets a teensey bit pushy…”

“Pushy how?”

“So pushy he makes my landlord in Manehattan seem like a doormat.” she deadpanned. “Lately he’s been talking about what it will be like when I move to Canterlot.”

Boltsinger stopped, gawking at her. “You’re moving to Canterlot?” he asked, pointing a hoof at her.

“No, no! Not at all!” She told him, raising her hooves defensively. “But he talks about it like it’s a certainty… Even though I’ve expressed no such intent!”

“Have you told him that?” he wondered.

“Of course, darling! Several times!” She looked back at the important pony, showing both a swoon and lament at the same time. “But he seems downright convinced that things are going to go his way… Always mentioning how I’ll ‘come around’ and agree with him.”

“Sounds like somepony else I know…” the stallion teased. Rarity quickly nudged him in the side as hard as she could, making him wince with pain. “What? You know I’m right…”

“That’s beside the point, dear.” Rarity huffed, turning back towards the work room and floating small bits of cloth to him. “Here are some samples for the next fabrics I need. And if you could get some jewels, I would be most appreciative.”

Boltsinger took a look at the samples, stowing them away in his mane. “Got it. I think I’ll take Fancy Pants with me. He should be able to help.”

“Yes, yes. Go ahead and do what you need.” she said, waving him off. “Do come back soon, though.”

The Pegasus took a cordial bow. “But of course.” He jumped back down to the floor, putting a hoof on Fancy Pants’ shoulder. “And we’re off!”

The day was done. Outfits for the collection were complete, and Rarity was enjoying a much-needed rest. She had a mud mask on, laying back with a contented sigh in the local spa, a pair of ponies taking files to her hooves. She heard hoofsteps beside her, a rump hitting the floor. “You see, my dear? This level of comfort is what will be the norm, someday!”

“I don’t know what you’re on about, Fancy Pants.” Rarity retorted. “I assure you that my usual spa is quite blissful!”

“Yes, but it doesn’t have the regality that you’ll find here.” he stated, resting on his fetlocks.

“That’s true, but I’ve come to prefer the simple ways they do it.” she reasoned. “And that’s one of the many reasons I have no intention of moving to Canterlot.”

“That is what you keep saying, but I know better.” he said, convinced that he was absolutely right. He stood up making for the door. “After all, if we’re to wed at some point, you’ll have to come live here.”

Rarity sat up, removing the cucumbers from her eyes and looking at him. “Whatever do you mean by ‘if we’re to wed'?”

Fancy Pants looked back, wiping his monocle with a handkerchief. “Oh, nothing. Just putting ideas out there!”

“Putting ideas out… That was practically a proposal!” She shouted, almost ready to get up from her seat. The spa ponies convinced her otherwise by grabbing her hooves and continuing her hooficure, causing her to ease back into a state of relaxation.

“What did you say about a proposal?” Fluttershy wondered as she sat in the chair next to her, only a miniscule amount of the facial treatment on her cheeks.

“Oh, Fancy Pants is talking about ‘if we’re to wed'.” Rarity stated, giggling a little at the mention of it. “I think he really means it this time, too!”

“Oh my! That’s…” Fluttershy paused, trying to decide if the next word was appropriate. “... wonderful!”

“Isn’t it, though?” the designer dreamily asked, a definite swoon in her voice. “I know that marriage was the goal and all, but… To think it might actually happen!” She gave off a content sigh.

“That certainly sounds exciting, but…”

“But…?”

Fluttershy sat up and gave her an honest look. “Are you sure you’re ready for that?”

“Darling, of course I’m ready! I’ve been wanting a ring on this horn since before he even thought to come into my shop!” She reasoned, her voice strong and confident. “Why wouldn’t I be ready?”

“Oh… No reason. I just… Oh, never mind.” Fluttershy lowered her head, slowly getting up from her chair. “I hope you get exactly what you need!”

Rarity turned to look at Fluttershy, lifting herself up on her elbows. “What’s wrong, dear? You look like there’s something on your mind.”

Fluttershy waved a hoof in front of her. “Oh, it’s nothing important. You don’t need to worry about it.”

“Fluttershy, if it wasn’t important, you wouldn’t have brought it up.” she stressed. “Please, tell me what’s bothering you.”

The yellow mare brought her forehooves together, making a sort of twiddling motion with them. “Well… okay…” She looked Rarity squarely in the eye. “If you marry him and leave Ponyville, wouldn’t you have to close your Carousel Boutique?”

Rarity fell back again, a sharp laugh escaping her ordinarily calm form. “Oh, darling, that’s preposterous! Getting married wouldn’t force me to close my Carousel!” Her laughter died down, letting her composure take its usual place again. “It’s not like Fancy Pants expects me to give up my home base and the foundation of my life’s work just for him!” She fell back into her relaxation for but a moment when the thought passed again. “Right…?”

Finally, the collection was done. The showing was that night, and all that was left was to fill some Nightmare Night orders, which Rarity was certain she could finish at her leisure. She did a few last minute alterations to a particular piece, still stewing on the idea Fluttershy had placed in her head days ago. Changes happen, yes. Especially when one considers the possibility of matrimony… she thought, the needle hanging in the air by the outfit she worked on. There was much to consider, but the most important thing right then was making sure the presentation of her new ‘Be Jeweled’ collection goes off without a hitch. Or, without a smudge, as the case may be.

“Rarity!” Boltsinger called from just outside the room. “Everypony’s here! You ready?”

“Just about…” She finished one final stitch in the outfit, setting everything into place. “Done! Let’s begin!”

Boltsinger nodded as Rarity lit up her horn, trotting out into the showroom with the mannequins floating behind in her magical grip. “So, ‘Be Jeweled’, huh? Where’d you get the inspiration?” the stallion inquired, eyeing the dresses that now surrounded him.

“That would be telling, dear.” Rarity teased, looking coyly back at him. “You’ll find out along with everypony else!”

Boltsinger blew a raspberry. “Well, fine, I’ll just find out the hard way, then.” he said in mock offense, flapping his wings and heading into the crowd below, where Twilight and their friends stood in front.

Rarity happily trotted down the stairs, taking her position onstage as she floated the mannequins over and behind the curtain. She faced the crowd with a smile as the room went dark, a spotlight shining upon her. “Fillies and gentlecolts! Thank you so much for coming to the debut of my new fall collection!” The gathered ponies all stomped and clapped, showing their enthusiasm in as many ways as there were ponies. “Thank you! Thank you! But I haven’t even shown you all the outfits!” She walked back and forth on the stage, noticing many ponies in the crowd. “As you may know, I’ve always had a tendency to splash a few gems into many of the ensembles I’ve created…”

“A few hundred gems!” Boltsinger added, eliciting a laugh from the crowd.

Rarity giggled into her hoof. “Yes, I know, I use a lot of gems!” The laughter died down as the stylist cleared her throat. “Anyway, I use a great many gems in my creations, yes. You see, gems and other crystals have always been fascinating… and dazzling to me! Why, I got my Cutie Mark by being able to find them with just the magic of my horn! But I never really knew the full extent of their value! At least, not until I had a long and involved conversation with my good friend Maud!” She floated a small quartz crystal over, looking at her reflection in its facets. “These magnificent rocks can be so much more than beautiful. They can help you to ease your mind and soul, making you feel better about yourself and your place in the world. Thinking about all of that, I couldn't help but be inspired!” She stepped aside, opening the curtain behind her and raising her foreleg to highlight the outfits that were revealed.”Ponies of Canterlot, I present to you, Rarity’s ‘Be Jeweled’ collection!” From the second floor, Sassy Saddles ignited her own horn, lifting the outfits into the air and floating them all over the crowd. They all had more of a crystal theme than the gems that were typically used. One was a deep garnet dress in a Victorian style, a flared up collar with poofy shoulders and a long train. The crystal in question lined many seams and hems, but in small doses, so as to not weigh it down. Another was a bright pink with white accents, pieces of rose quartz along the waist and the seams of the sleeves. It looked to puff out, making the wearer appear bigger than they actually would be. Several more dresses, each inspired by a different crystal, were presented to the audience placed in their midst as Rarity stepped down from the stage. “With this particular collection, I feel that it’s better to show than to tell, because the outfit that draws you in may very well be the outfit you need most! For that reason, the ‘Be Jeweled’ collection is going without a signature piece, celebrating the highlights of each outfit’s unique splendor!”

The ponies in the shop gathered around each of the dresses, all marvelling at the works before them and sharing their thoughts. Rarity spent a great deal of time approaching each group and giving a full explanation of each dress, along with the properties of the crystal that inspired them. As she finished up with each group, numerous orders came in for the dress in question. After an hour of showing, somepony in the crowd audibly cleared his throat, catching the attention of the entire gathering.

“Wonderful showing! Simply marvelous, dear!” Fancy Pants called, the ponies around him making a path while he approached the shop’s owner. “But there’s one gem you forgot to mention in the night’s revelry.”

“And what gem would that be, darling?” Rarity queried, walking up to him with a definite saunter to her step.

“Why, the most beautiful gem of all!” he answered, lighting up his horn and pulling forth a box. “The diamond!”

Rarity’s eyes widened considerably as a gasp sounded all throughout the room. Fancy Pants had dropped to one knee, letting the box he carried rest in his outstretched hoof, open wide to reveal a diamond ring cut to resemble one of the three that made up her Cutie Mark. Rarity gingerly raised her foreleg as she stepped back, mouth hanging open. “You mean…”

“Rarity, darling, I positively adore you!” The posh pony declared, reaching farther forward. “Would you so me the honor of becoming my wife?”

Rarity was speechless. Everything she had wanted in the last nine months, her pining, her fancy outfits, date after date with no success, all of it. It came down to this moment. Here she was, right at the moment of truth, and all she could think of was the things her friends had said to her.

“You just don’t strike me as the ‘happily ever after’ type.” Rainbow Dash had said, the words repeating themselves over and over. “You’ve got too much planned to just give into some guy for the rest of your life!” And she was right. She had a fashion empire to run! But this was love she was talking about.

“Wouldn’t you have to close the Carousel Boutique?” Fluttershy had asked her. But that clearly couldn’t happen. Sure, Fancy Pants had been on the pushy side more often as of lately, but he’s not unreasonable.

And then there was the biggest question. How do I feel about him? He’s certainly pleasurable company, and our evenings together are positively resplendent, It’s everything I wanted, but… is this how I wanted it? She stepped forward, eyeing the beautiful diamond in front of her, and the smiling stallion that presented it to her. She gave him a warm smile in return, bringing her magic to life again and closing the box. “Fancy Pants, I appreciate all of this. Really, I do. But… I’m not entirely sure at the moment. Could you maybe give me some time to think about it?”

Fancy Pants’ face was the next to change. He retreated the box and returned to all fours. “Time to think? You don’t mean…?”

“I mean exactly what I say, dear. I require time to think.” She put her hoof on his cheek, looking into his eyes. “This is an awfully big decision, and I want to make sure that it’s what I want before I give you my answer.”

“But… This isn’t how this is supposed to work…” he started, completely overcome by his confusion. “I courted you, and we had a wonderful time! Then… Then… After all that, I’m supposed to propose, and you’re supposed to say yes! This just…” He put his hoof to his forehead, trying to make sense of it.

“Is it really so hard, my dear?” The designer asked, coming in closer. “It’s not as if I’m breaking up with you. I’m just going to get my bearings.”

A heavy sigh came from the noble stallion. “All right.” he finally said, remorsefully relenting. “But do come up with an answer soon, if you can.”

Rarity gave Fancy Pants a kiss on the cheek. “Of course, darling. You’ll be the first to know.”

Fancy Pants strolled through Canterlot the next day. How could his courtship have gone so awry? Turning him down? Time to think? What sort of noble pony does these things? All of this rushed through his mind, and it made the beautiful Rarity all the more enticing to him. Now, more than ever, he hoped his now-strange courtship would succeed.

“I say! You’re Fancy Pants, are you not?” a baritone voice asked in a bad imitation of a posh accent. Fancy Pants cocked an eyebrow, raising his monocle as Boltsinger came to a landing next to him. “How are you doing?”

“Quite well, old chap. Quite well.” the suave stallion told the messy one.

Boltsinger gave him a flat face. “You sure about that?”

“Of course!” he retorted, replacing his monocle in a huff. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Because of what happened last night.” he replied. “It’s not every proposal that goes… quite in that way.”

“Yes, I suppose you’re right. It is on my mind today.” he admitted. “I just don’t understand. Every proper courtship I’ve seen has always ended with marriage! It’s how every noble pony goes about it!”

“That’s acting on the premise that Rarity is a ‘noble pony’.” the Prince pointed out, raising a poignant hoof. “You know that Rarity is originally from Ponyville, right?”

“Of course I know that! I learned that shortly after meeting her.” he stated, thinking back on that period all those years ago. “That somepony from Ponyville could get a room at the castle, show such refinement, and yet still be able to stand up for her friends… I was thoroughly impressed!”

Boltsinger chuckled, remembering his own experience with the fabulous mare. “Yeah, she’s a real gem, that one.” he put his hoof on the posh stallion’s shoulder. “You’re lucky to have her.”

Fancy Pants hung his head a little, maintaining as much composure as he could. “If I even still have her after all this…”

Boltsinger nudged him hard in the side with his wing. “Don’t sell yourself so short. I’m sure she isn’t going to leave you. She just needs to sort things out.”

The noble winced, straightening up and looking curiously at his current companion. “You seem… different today… More direct.”

Boltsinger shrugged. “I’m just not being as formal with you. That’s something you’re going to have to get used to.”

“I see…” There was a moment of silence as Fancy Pants cleaned his monocle lens. He turned to the orange pony again, a question burning in his mind. “If I may be so bold… How did your courtship of the Princess come about?”

A short, almost sarcastic laugh burst out of Boltsinger. “‘Courtship'? Oh, that’s a good one!” He exclaimed. “I didn’t ‘court’ her or anything. Heck, I tried to keep things at a friendship level for a long time!”

“No courtship? For a Princess?!” Fancy Pants wondered, seemingly bewildered at the mere thought. “Well then how did… whatever you call it... go?”

“So, you remember that Grand Galloping Gala where my brother punched me through the wall?” he led.

“Yes, of course. It was only the biggest disturbance I’ve ever seen at the Gala.” He pondered the various Galas he had been to over the years, a few more events coming to mind. “Well, save for that time the chaos spirit brought his ooze friend…”

“Well, that was kind of the start. There was an unwitting confession at that point, just before I got beaten up.” the Pegasus continued. “Let’s see… I spent a few days in Las Pegasus after I flew away, and then Twilight kinda tracked me down. We stayed two more nights there, and then went home. Then I sorted out my feelings, told her about them… I told her I wanted to be friends more than anything else, but before I could even finish, she kissed me.” He thought for a few moments more. “Then… I think it was about a year, give or take a few months… I decided I was gonna propose.”

“And then you did, of course!” Fancy Pants guessed. “And live happily thereafter!”

“Nnope. Not that simple.” Boltsinger corrected. “I had a bit of a major freak out that caused me to willingly run away. Then after about a week, Twilight simply needing me in her life brought me back to her.”

Fancy Pants blinked at the statement. “Her ‘need’ for you? How can one’s ‘need’ for you suddenly whisk you away to them?”

Boltsinger chortled. “I’ll go into detail about that later.” he assured, not wanting to talk the stallion’s ears off any more than he already was. “That landing, though, sorta broke my wings. So I waited ‘till I was better before I finally popped the question. And, boy, was it a doozy of a pop! Then, we saved Equestria, then we got married.”

“You talk of saving Equestria like it’s a side note!”

“It probably is, for Twilight. Besides, you asked how the relationship developed, not what we did in the meantime.”

“I suppose you do have a point.” Fancy Pants admitted, coming to a stop in front of a fountain in the plaza. “But you’ve been living happily ever since, yes?”

“Happily is subjective.” Boltsinger countered. “Are we happy with one another? Yes. But… That doesn’t mean we’re without worry. Life is always an adventure. Especially lives like the ones Twilight, Rarity, and all of the Element-bearers lead. Besides that, just ‘being happy’ isn’t the point of all of this.”

“And what is the point, exactly?” the monocled pony inquired.

“You heard me say that it took me about a year or so to propose, right?” he started. Fancy Pants nodded, easily recalling the information. “That’s the thing. We didn’t rush into the proposal. We took our time, lived our lives, and continued to cement our places in each other’s lives.” He sat down on the edge of the fountain, taking a look into the water. “Rarity told me a while back that the thing she was wanting with her big dating escapade was to have something like Twilight and I got. She actually admitted to jealousy. Something like that normally takes a full-on half-hour long friendship lesson to do!” He looked back at the stallion his friend had come to call her special somepony. “So, tell me. How much do you know about Rarity as a pony?”

Fancy Pants’ eyebrows rose significantly, taking his own seat on the fountain’s edge. “Why, she’s gorgeous, charming, brilliantly stylish, and fiercely independent!”

Boltsinger nodded in agreement. “All of those things are most definitely true. But what else?”

“Well, she… she… She runs a business remarkably well!” The noble kept thinking, his eyes darting around frantically. “I… I’m afraid that’s all… I must admit… that makes me… uneasy.”

“And why is that?" Boltsinger asked, giving him a look that was his best imitation of Shining Armor’s ‘stern royal captain’ face.

“I feel like it’s not enough.” Fancy Pants continued, standing up. “Certainly not enough to simply marry her! I need to know more! Her tastes, her dreams, everything! I can’t simply marry her and never know who she is!” He turned to Boltsinger, taking his head between his forehooves and kissing the air on either side of his muzzle. “Oh, Prince Boltsinger, I can’t thank you enough! I know just what to do!” He dropped the now-flabbergasted stallion’s head, letting him fall to the path below and waving his wing as the Unicorn galloped off towards Canterlot Carousel.

A loud knock came to the door of Canterlot Carousel, stirring Rarity from her current work. She stopped the sewing machine and came to the door, wondering why on earth the customer in question didn’t simply come in. She removed her glasses, fixed up her mane, checked herself in a nearby mirror, and proceeded to open the door.

“Ah...! Rarity... dear... I’m glad... I’ve caught you!” Fancy Pants greeted, panting heavily with his mane tussled and his coat flared out in every direction, his tie undone and hanging loosely, as if he’d been running with reckless abandon. “I needed to speak with you right away!”

A chord was struck in the fashionable mare, who immediately pulled him inside with her magic, taking him to the nearest stool and pulling out a hair brush. “Not with a mane like this you’re not!” she declared, beginning her work on the newly-formed mess. “What in Equestria happened to you, anyway?”

Fancy Pants let his breathing calm down as he returned his monocle to its resting place. “There’s something I simply must say to you before you give me your answer to my proposal!”

The designer stopped brushing her guest’s mane, looking him in the eyes. “You must? And what is it you ‘simply must’ say to me?”

“I’ve realized that I don’t want to marry you just yet!” he announced, a large smile creasing his muzzle.

“Don’t want to…?” Rarity repeated, taken aback by the sudden retraction of the previous evening’s popping of questions. “Are you… Are you breaking up with me…?!” she asked, her eyes beginning to water.

“Not at all, my darling!” he corrected, taking her hoof in his. “Rather, I want to wait until the time is right. I realized today that I don’t know nearly enough about you! I know about you in public, and from your businesses and reputation, but I don’t know you. It came to my attention that knowing who you are as a pony is going to take time. I can’t expect to marry you if I don’t have a concrete place in your life, now can I?”

The tears continued to build up in Rarity’s eyes as her shock shifted to a smile. The bitterness of the now-streaming water faded into joy as she lunged into him, giving him a solid kiss right on his lips and wrapping her forelegs around him. Fancy Pants couldn’t hide his surprise at the sudden action, but placed his hooves on her shoulders as he pressed himself against her in return. When the need for air overtook their moment of passion, Rarity smiled at him with mascara running down her cheeks. “Oh, Fancy Pants, you have no idea what it means to me that you think this way…”

Fancy Pants averted his gaze and smiled back, wiping down his now-foggy monocle. “I’m sure I’ve got at least some idea, dear.” he assured her, facing her properly again. “Your friend was quite eloquent in my earlier conversation with him.”

Rarity laughed as she began her work on his mane once more. “I see. Well, then, I’ll be sure to let him know, as well.” She finished her brushing and proceeded to expertly fix the stallion’s outfit, soon having him looking like his usual, trussed up self. “So, what’s next? Shall we go out on the town tonight?”

Fancy Pants shook his head, putting his hoof on Rarity’s shoulder. “Not this time, my dear.” He looked out the door, his face returning to its usual relaxed state. “I was thinking of spending some time in Ponyville soon, if you would have me.”

Rarity followed his lead, putting her hoof on his. “That sounds positively divine!”

Author's Note

I know. Finally, something that goes into Rarity's thing with Fancy Pants!
I've been mulling over this relationship of theirs for a while, now, and I was almost going to have them break up at the end of this chapter! But then it hit me. Why end it when I can better explore it? Fancy Pants has only ever shown himself to be reasonable and accepting, after all. He may be a posh Canterlot elite, accustom to the ways of nobles with their fancy courtships that even Rarity once dreamed of, but if he wasn't able to adapt to something like this, I feel like it would have been a betrayal of character for him. And we can't have that, now can we?

The Brightest Apple

“BOLTSINGER, YOU GET DOWN HERE RIGHT THIS INSTANT!” a thick feminine drawl screamed from the foyer. Boltsinger shot out of bed, hitting his head on one of the lightning rods and falling to the floor.

“I swear the baby was like that when I got there!” He deliriously yelled, standing up and getting his bearings. He calmed himself, looking out at the hallway. “Wait, what?” He made his way to the foyer, where a furious Applejack stood, her mane full of splinters and seeds, her fur all wet and sticky, and applesauce dripping off of her. “What the hay happened to you?”

“Your brother’s what happened, that’s what!” She spat, stomping closer. “What kinda ‘idea pony’ goes ‘n uproots evrythin’ we do at the farm with their fancy machines? It just ain’t done, I tell ya!”

“Applejack…” Boltsinger began. Applejack raised a hoof as she took another furious step towards him, but the stallion reached forward, putting his hooves on her shoulders. “Applejack, calm down!” She exhaled, glaring daggers at the Pegasus as her breathing began to ease up. Boltsinger got a sudden chill down his spine at her piercing gaze, but did his best to keep his cool. “Okay… I understand that you’re angry… Why don’t you tell me what happened… calmly… and we can figure stuff out?”

Applejack took a deep, calming breath. “All right… You remember how we were havin’ issues gettin’ ready for cider season, and you said you’d bring in an ‘expert'?” Boltsinger nodded. “Well, it all started off pretty good…”

Applejack trotted over to the sign at the edge of Sweet Apple Acres on a brisk fall morning. The stand for cider season had already been set up, and a massive number of tents were lined up just outside. “Wow…” she said, noting that the line went all the way into Ponyville proper. “I don’t think the line’s ever been that long…” she trotted down the line. Pinkie’s tent was, of course, first in line. She sat outside, munching on a s’more and waving at her passing friend. Many more ponies were lined up along the way, making the farm mare wonder where in the world Rainbow Dash was.

“Are you kidding me?!” came her answer. Rainbow Dash and Soarin stood outside a tent halfway down the line, the cyan mare slamming her hoof into her forehead. “How are we supposed to get any cider when Pinkie’s first in line again?! She always buys like, twenty cups worth of the stuff!”

“Oh, come on, Dash, it can’t be that bad!” Soarin assured her, putting a hoof on her back. “Remember when we had the Zapapple cider? She only got as much as everyone else, then!”

Rainbow Dash gave her boyfriend the flattest look she could muster. “This is your first cider season, isn’t it?”

“Ain’t it obvious?” Applejack asked with a laugh. “Sorry ‘bout the long line, Rainbow. We really are workin’ hard on bringin’ up supply, I promise!”

An exasperated groan left Rainbow Dash’s throat. “You literally say that every year! And there’s still never enough!”

“I know! I know! An’ it’s the truth!” she stated, putting her hoof between them. “We’re workin’ as fast as we can, but ya still gotta be patient.”

“You say that every year, too…” Rainbow mumbled, turning back to her tent.

Applejack frowned a bit at the hopelessness in her friend’s tone. I know Dash gets like this every cider season, but she ain’t the only one with this problem… We were able to make enough that one year ‘cause o’ special circumstances, but I dunno if we can keep that kind o’ production up fer as long as it would take to get to the whole dang town… She continued down the line, many grouchy ponies all poking their heads out to catch a glimpse of her. Their faces grew more and more sour as she got closer to town, with the last face in line reminding her of an apple that only just barely started fruiting. Aw, heck! Even if we can’t get that whole mass production line we had that year again, I bet we can still get a lot more ready if we add more ponies! She hurried off towards the castle, where she knew at least two ponies would be willing to come help.

“Twilight! Bolt! Y’all here?” Applejack cried out, trotting through the foyer. She could hear Twilight’s voice in the distance, but no distinct words as she ventured towards the master bedroom. “You two okay? Ya don’t sound so well…”

Spike ran past the Earth Pony with a nearly sparkling bucket in his claws, looking back only briefly at her. “Twilight’s having some issues today.”

Applejack cringed, remembering the last time she was over on an ‘issues’ day, and went into a gallop beside the dragon. “Well, I hope those ‘issues don’t last long! I could really use some help at… the...” She started, coming to the door. Inside the room, Spike brought the bucket to the Princess, who was in a state of sheer exhaustion on the floor with her husband sitting next to her, slowly rubbing her back and holding her mane in place. “Wow…”

“Hey, Applejack. Need something?” Boltsinger asked, looking over his heaving spouse.

Applejack shook her head, stepping forward and giving Twilight a comforting hoof. “Oh… Well, I was hopin’ y’all could help out makin’ the cider come out a bit faster this year, but… You got bigger concerns.”

“Oh, come on… We can help out!” Twilight declared. “First you take an apple, then you smoosh it flat! Then you take all the stuff that comes out and you pour it in a glass! How hard can that be?!”

Boltsinger patted Twilight on the back, causing her to hurk a few times, dragging the bucket over and letting out that which had decided to emerge. “The nausea has been making her a little… loopy. Once it's over I’m gonna make sure she eats something. Not so sure if we can help with cider this time around. Even when she wasn’t like this, she wanted to go over the things Cadence and Sparks taught her with me… Wait a minute… When does cider season actually start?”

“In a couple days. But we already got most o’ Ponyville lined up outside the farm!” She answered. “Why do ya ask?”

“Because I know somepony who might be able to help out!” Boltsinger stated, helping Twilight up. “I’ll send him a letter soon. He might not be great at doing the work, but I bet he can make doing the work easier!”

The farmer’s eyebrow rose up, looking to cause her head to lean to one side. “What in the name o’ down-home apple pie ‘re you talkin’ about?”

Boltsinger smirked as he led Twilight into the hall. “Trust me. It’ll work out fine! I promise”

Applejack stood in silence for a moment, wondering who he might be talking about. “Well, okay. As long as things get done, I guess.”

Boltsinger reached one of his wings back, performing a ‘thumbs up’ gesture with it. He continued through the hallway as the seemingly-tipsy Twilight raised a hoof. “~We got this to-ge-theeeeeeeer!~”

“So, Bolt said he’s contacting an ‘idea pony’ to come help us out for cider season?” Apple Bloom inquired. She sat on the living room floor and thought for a moment, recalling who she might know that fits the description. “Wait, ya mean Brightling’s comin’ over?!”

“I guess so.” Applejack confirmed. “But I don’t understand how his ideas are gonna make it all go faster.”

“He does help out a lot at the Pear farm.” Apple Bloom noted. “Maybe he’ll bring some o' those ideas here?”

“Eeyup!” Big Mac affirmed, walking past.

“I don’t know… I guess I’ll give ‘em a chance…” Applejack headed to the door, taking a look outside. “But sumthin’ about this whole thing just don’t sit right.”

“It might help if you gave me a chance to see what’s going on before passing judgement.” a tenor tone called from just outside. Brightling poked his head into the doorway, smiling at the family within. “Hey, Apples!”

“Hey, there, Brightling!” Apple Bloom greeted, bounding up to meet him.

“Hey, little filly! It’s been a while!” Brightling replied, tussling the yellow filly’s mane. “Apple Bloom, right?”

“Eeyup!” Big Mac confirmed, offering his hoof.

Brightling gave the red stallion a hoof bump. “Good to see you, Big Mac.” He turned to the emerald-eyed mare that was looking him over. “Which must make you the ‘Applejack’ my little brother mentioned.” He offered a friendly hoof to her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Applejack finished her examination of the Pegasus, shaking his hoof. “If you can help us up our cider production, then the pleasure's all mine!”

“That’s what I’m here for.” He stated, looking over at the orchard. “So, first thing’s first, let’s see how you do it now.”

The stetson-toting Apple kin gave her guest a smug grin. She took a deep breath, bringing her hooves up to cup her mouth. “ALL RIGHT, APPLES! LET’S GET TO PRESSIN’!!!” She rocketed out the door, Apple Bloom quickly joining the endeavor, sending Brightling spinning until he landed on his rump.

“Well, they seem excited!” He said, getting his bearings again.

“Eeyup!” Big Mac replied, mozying on at a slow and steady pace with Granny Smith moving on at a similar speed.

Brightling followed the family to the orchard, where several apple-filled buckets were laid out. Behind them was what he could only describe as a chute, leading to a press connected to a treadmill. He could already hear the sounds of trees taking hard bucks as Granny Smith began sorting through the apples already in place. She would toss most of them into the chute, but there were always a few that she would toss to the side. Brightling made his way to the end of the chute, where Big Mac ran on the treadmill to work the press, the juice inside flowing through a faucet into a large barrel. This went on for several minutes, Applejack and Apple Bloom adding more apples to the stack in front of their grandmother as they proceeded to fill five barrels to the brim, Big Mac replacing them carefully each time.

Brightling took a hard look at the process, seeing the sense behind it and bringing images forward in his mind. “I like your system.” He told them, stepping over to Granny Smith. “Efficient, while not compromising the quality.”

Granny Smith stood up, puffing herself up with pride. “Well that’s the idea, ain’t it? If it ain’t the best darned cider ya ever did have, it ain’t Apple family cider!”

“I’ll take your word for it for now.” He said, looking up at the chute. “Do you think it might be possible to make another one of these? Maybe a lighter version you could move around?”

“Why would we need to do that?” Applejack asked, approaching from amidst the trees.

“I was thinking that, maybe, you could have one of these that you could put under a tree.“ he elaborated, examining further. “Then you buck the tree, apples fall into a scoop at one end, then they roll down the chute straight to Granny Smith.”

“That would mean I wouldn’t have to carry those buckets on my head!” Apple Bloom reasoned. “I could get involved with buckin’ the trees so that it all goes faster!

“That’s what I was thinking.” the yellow stallion confirmed. He turned around and made for the press. “So, Big Mac, do you have to be the one doing all this running?”

“Eeyup.” He said with a nod.

“You don’t, say, have something else that can move the millstone?”

“Nnope.”

“Do you have animals on the farm?”

“Eeyup.”

Brightling smirked. “Got pigs?”

“Eeyup!”

“They hungry?”

“Oh yeah!”

“Well, then, I have an idea!” Brightling rubbed his wings together, a bright smile forming on his muzzle as he sprinted into the house.

“Whatever idea he’s workin’ on, I hope it’s as good as Bolt says…” Applejack muttered, looking at the family members that surrounded her.

The following morning, the Apple Family was nothing short of muddled at what they saw before them. The press was set in place, the chute leading to it as always. But there was something… different. The squealing pigs were one part of it, along with the other chute that had been placed.

“What in tarnation are ya tryin’ to do, Brightling?” Applejack asked. “And… what exactly are ya doin’ with those pigs?”

Brightling perked up, standing next to Applejack. “They’re gonna be doing Big Mac’s pressing job.”

“An’ how do you expect ‘em to do that?” she inquired, giving him a stern look. “Tie some food to a stick an’ hang it in front of ‘em?”

Brightling giggled, holding a pair of sticks with pie tins tied to one end. “Actually…”

Applejack facehoofed. “And what exactly is Big Mac gonna do?”

“Two sets of eyes ‘re better ‘n one!” Granny Smith pointed out. “Y’all’ve been doin’ this get so long any of ya can pick out the best apples at a glance, now!”

“And pilin’ the barrels?”

“I can handle a buncha barrels, no sweat!” Apple Bloom said, doing some practice bucks. “And I can help with buckin’ at the same time!”

A flash of concern crossed Applejack’s face as she looked between her little sister and the trees ahead. “You sure you can handle all that?”

“No problem!” the filly assured her.

“So that extra chute is for…” Applejack started, pointing at the new apparatus.

“Set it up under a tree and then it goes straight to Granny Smith and Big Mac!” He finished. He walked over to it, picking up one of the supports and dragging it along. The chute seemed to accordion out, extending to approximately twice the original length. He brought it to a tree, where the scoop at the end seemed to wrap around under the fruit. “Like this!” He balled up his wing and punched the tree, causing its fruit to fall in and funnel over to a spot not too far away from the other chute. “Give or take some distance. Still working that out.”

“Okay, then, let’s give this a try…” Applejack finally said, trotting over to the trees.

Brightling nodded, taking Big Mac along to get the pigs set up. He took a position not far from Granny Smith as the pigs began running in place.”All right, let’s do this!” He shouted. Instantly, he could see the new collection chute moving to another tree with a hard buck sounding soon after. A steady supply of apples flowed down, landing not far from the ponies doing the sorting. From there, the pig-powered press did its work, squeezing out fresh cider into a nearby barrel. Brightling smiled at the expedited process, the barrels filling in half of the time as before.

And then the press stopped.

A loud squeal came forth, sending Applejack running to check on the pigs. Her face went stern as she spotted a number of vampire fruit bats flying around the pie tins, slurping and spitting as they do while the pigs squealed and panicked. The bats turned to the pigs, spitting seeds at them and sending them running. Applejack took off after them in an instant. “All Apples, front ‘n center! We got some wranglin’ to do!” She cried, catching up to the pigs with Apple Bloom and Big Mac now close behind. The bats flew behind them, swooping down and scarfing down as many of the fruits as they could and spitting the seeds at the ponies. They dodged to the best of their ability, weaving back and forth as they closed in on the somehow-speedy swine. Applejack centered her focus, accelerating to the point of making a giant leap that overtook the animals. She looked back, seeing her siblings take a place on either side of them. She veered to one side, Big Mac and Apple Bloom directing the pigs to follow until they made a full U-turn. The dodging continued all the while as Applejack turned around, running backwards to see how things were. She directed her siblings to take the pigs back to the farm, turning back around as a sharp pain hit her in the back of the neck. She cried out, losing her balance and tumbling into the barrels of cider, which fell on top of her and broke into pieces. All the while, the bats continued their bombardment, dropping the drained apples in her vicinity at the same time.

“I’ve got your back!” Brightling shouted, charging forward and skidding in front of the farm mare. He planted his hooves, spreading his wings wide. With a single flap, the bats went flying, eventually righting themselves and returning to their part of the orchard. Brightling turned around, offering his hoof to Applejack. “You okay?”

“I’m fine… just a little beat up, is all.” she told him, standing up and looking at the giant mess before her. All that good cider, ruined...

“Great! So you’re good to go again?” he put his wing to his muzzle. “I’ve got some ideas for how we might improve it next time around...”

“Next time?” she growled, getting up in his face. “You wanna have a ‘next time’?! Y’all weren’t any help this time! Bolt was busy singin’ yer praises about how you’d make it all go faster ‘n easier, but all you’ve managed to ‘make’ is a mess!” She gestured to the pool of cider she stood in, surrounded by splinters.

Brightling stepped back defensively. “I’m sorry… I just wanted to help out! I didn’t know this was going to happen, honest!”

Applejack fumed further, poking his chest with her hoof. “We had a perfect system goin’, and you went ‘n mucked it all up with yer fancy ideas! Now why don’tcha listen ta my idea and just get on outta here!”

“Applejack!” Granny Smith shouted. “Is that really how ya treat somepony who came from so far away just ta help us out?!”

“But, Granny, look at what happened to the cider!” She argued.

Granny Smith scoffed. “Accidents happen! Ya can’t just blame it on one pony when he didn’t do nuthin’ wrong!”

“But… I…” Applejack stuttered, looking between her grandmother and her guest. “What about tradition? We had things workin’ perfectly!” She stepped back, receiving no response from them. “Aww… Horseapples!” She turned around, galloping off.

“And that’s when you came here to complain to me.” Boltsinger stated.

Applejack nodded. “I was hopin’ I’d get yer help talkin’ with everypony, seein’ as you know Brightling best, an’ all.”

“How do you think I’d be able to help?” he wondered. “From the sound of it, Granny Smith knew what she was talking about.”

“Whaddaya mean by that?” The Apple asked.

“I mean that you’ve been stubborn the whole time.” He explained. “You didn’t want his input in the first place, did you?”

“Well… Yeah. He wasn’t makin’ all that much sense with some o' his ideas.” she admitted, averting her gaze. “He was messin’ with tradition, how we do things! An’ all it led to was a big fat mess with a big load o' ruined cider!”

“On the first try, yes!” the blue-maned Pegasus retorted. “When was the last time you tried something new and did it flawlessly the first time?”

“Well, I… Ya see…” she rambled on for a moment, trying to come up with a response. “There was that time that I… No, that don’t work…” She breathed a heavy sigh. “Okay, I got nuthin'! Happy now?”

Boltsinger smirked. “Mildly. Besides, Brightling would never try to break up your traditions. He’s an innovator, not an intruder.” He lifted Applejack’s sopping and sticky bangs with his wing. “Why don’t you get cleaned up, then we head over to the farm? See about giving that ‘next time’ a shot.”

“Yeah, that sounds like a good idea.” she agreed, walking with him into the castle proper.

Brightling looked over his work one more time. “So, the pigs were distracted by the bats this time, so maybe don’t fill the tins with fruit… But they could get distracted some other way, too…” He lit up with an idea. “Blinders! They only see what’s ahead!” He looked over at the chute he had set up before. “And then there’s that… How do we make sure the apples get to sorting faster?”

“How ‘bout ya have ‘em fall in a wheelbarrow, then I can rush ‘em over lickity-split?” a drawling mare suggested.

Brightling followed the sound of the voice, seeing Applejack and his own younger sibling making their approach. “I thought you didn’t want my help…”

“Well, at first I didn’t, but I took some time… and a shower… to think about it, and…” she removed her hat, holding it over her heart. “It just wasn’t good o’ me to treat you the way I did. Granny Smith was right. Yer only here to help, and I was too stubborn about keepin’ things traditional to really give it a shot. Will you accept my apology?”

Brightling glanced over at his brother, who nodded with a smile, then eyed Applejack again. “Perhaps. On one condition.”

“Name it.” Applejack replied.

The yellow Pegasus flashed a smile. “I get to have some cider. The way you make it, no matter how long it takes.”

“You got yerself a deal!” she affirmed, swinging her foreleg in front of her. “Now, let’s get to it!” She trotted over to the barn, intent on finding the aforementioned wheelbarrow.

Brightling turned his attention back to his now-approaching brother. “So, what did you do?”

Boltsinger tilted his head. “What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean.” the elder brother said, nudging his brother with his wing. “How did you get her to ease up and apologize?”

“I didn’t do anything.” he told him. “She told me what happened, and I talked to her. She’s pretty reasonable once you hear her out, you know.”

“Whatever you say, little brother.” Brightling finished, making for the barn. “If you don’t wanna tell me, I’ll just find out from somepony else.”

Boltsinger’s brow furrowed at the comment, causing him to leap over and catch up with his sibling. “I just told you! I seriously didn’t do anything!”

The line had finally shrunken down. Hours ago, Pinkie had walked past with more mugs of fresh cider than was logical for one Earth Pony to hold, and yet it kept moving. Rainbow Dash was astounded by this fact alone. As they stepped forward again, curiosity hit, and she jumped into the air to see just what was making it all move so fast.

“What the…” she started as her mouth began to hang open. Piled high over the trees was a veritable pyramid of barrels, only slightly disassembled from the day’s events. She looked to see if there was a more realistic stack of full barrels, but the only other pile she did find was nothing but obviously empty containers. “How are they gonna get through all that in just one day?!” She came to a landing next to Soarin, digging her wallet out of her mane and looking inside. “I think I know how…!”

“What’s up? Is there a lot of it?” Soarin asked.

Rainbow couldn’t hold in the sheer joy she felt from the anticipation as she gave off a loud guffaw. “You have no idea! Oh, this is gonna be great!”

Author's Note

So, I'm really glad I was able to actually do at least a halfway-decent Applejack-centric chapter! Her kind of dilemma has thus far eluded me, but this timing and bringing in that particular pony... It felt like it would push the right buttons and make her leave "background pony" mode. Which it did! And it makes me glad. This story has been more difficult than the previous one (but it does have longer chapters on average, so I think it's worth it! However, if you've been following the general time-frame, you might notice that it's getting to a point where things are down to the last few months.
To those who may not have already noticed, it's already been nine months since Twilight got pregnant (remember that she was a month into it in that first chapter). When it comes to the time frame of carrying this foal to term, I decided to go with the maximum number of months an equine pregnancy lasts. Roughly 11 or so. Not much time left, now!
And with that, enjoy the next chapter!

Worry Takes Root

“You’re doing what now?” Boltsinger asked as he and Twilight looked over the map, which had expanded considerably.

“I’m going to open a school here in Ponyville!” she told him, lighting up her horn and moving the thrones back into position. “It’s like I said, the map expanding out this far tells me that we need to spread friendship, not just all over Equestria, but everywhere! But it’s a little unrealistic to go everywhere at a moment’s notice, so…”

“So having a school that teaches the value of friendship lets everypony come and learn from the best possible source!” the stallion concluded, his face lighting up as he spoke.

“Not just everypony…” she corrected. “I haven’t told the girls this part, but I’m inviting creatures from all over to come and learn at the school! Ponies, yaks, dragons, anycreature that wants to come learn about friendship is more than welcome!” She spread her wings gleefully, a bright smile on her face that Boltsinger hadn’t seen in quite a long time.

“You’re brilliant, you know that?” he told her through his goofy grin.

Twilight nuzzled her husband’s nose. “So I’ve heard!” She returned to her work, slowly getting the thrones in their optimal position. “So, with that in mind, I’m going to be doing a lot of studying. Princess Celestia told me who I’ll need to talk to in order to get my school accredited, but we also need to come up with a design for the building, a location, the layout, curriculum… It’s a lot to do!”

“Sure sounds like it. Anything I can do to help?” he asked, pulling his personal chair forward and trying to find a place for it.

“I’ll let you know if I need something.” she told him. Looking hard at the massive crystal chairs now situated around her, she made one final adjustment. “Aaaaaaand… done!” She landed in the middle of the map. “Perfect!” As if to match the timing, sparks flew out of her horn, the magic fizzling out. She groaned, stepping down from the map. “And then this happens on top of all that!” She put a wing on her belly, feeling a drumming and a jolt all at once. “You know, sometimes I wish this baby would just be born already! I’m tired of these side effects, and the magic shorting out thing!”

Boltsinger gave his favorite mare a nervous laugh. “Yeah… That would definitely make things easier…”

“You know what I mean.” she replied as she started towards the door. “Spike is going to be in Fillydelphia for a while visiting a friend, so it’s just us ponies for now.”

Boltsinger made to follow her, a curious streak taking hold. “Oh? What kind of friend are we talking about?”

“Another dragon.” she elaborated. “He met her a long time ago, and from the pictures I’ve seen, she’s pretty cute! You think he might finally be getting over Rarity?”

“That, or he just wants to spend time with his friend.” He reasoned. “Just because we turned into what we did, that doesn't mean it has to go that way every time.”

“That’s true.” she agreed, putting her wing around him. “But it is fun to think about!” She went on about what Spike had told her about the dragon, how they met in a comic shop, how she had helped him solve a mystery that he had helped Princess Luna with, and everything the two had talked about since then. After a while, they stood outside the library, all gossiping done. “I’m going to get started on that studying. I'll see you later!” She waved her wing, heading inside the large room.

“Don’t stay up all night!” He suggested, beginning to turn around. A thought came to him, sending him back to the door. “And don’t forget to eat!”

“I won’t forget!” she assured.

Another turn, another thought. “And pace yourself! Don’t move too fast!”

“Don’t worry so much!” She told him. “I’ve got this!”

“Okay!” He slapped his muzzle with his wings, finally walking away from the door. “She’s got this, Bolt. Don’t worry so much.” He took one last look back at the library, completely botching his attempts at ceasing his worry. “She’s got this…”

“And she hasn’t left the library for the past four days!” Boltsinger said, sitting in Sugar Cube Corner. Pinkie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Fluttershy all sat in various places around the shop, listening to their friend’s grievances. “I know I should just trust her on this, but… I just can’t shake it. Probably ‘cause of the baby. I dunno… What do you think?”

“Personally, I think yer frettin’ over sumthin’ little ‘cause o’ sumthin’ a whole lot bigger.” Applejack stated.

“Yes, it’s not like Twilight hasn’t had absurdly long study sessions before!” Rarity noted, flipping through a magazine. “I’m sure she knows what she’s doing.”

“And you’re probably right.” Boltsinger affirmed, beginning to pace around the store. “I dunno, I’m probably overthinking things… I just can’t get these thoughts out of my head!”

Pinkie Pie jumped up, raising her hoof excitedly. “Oh! I know! Why don’t you bake a cake to take your mind off of things? Or a pie! Or a pie cake! We’ve got everything to make it right he-eere~!”

“A cake does sound lovely. We could make it together!” Fluttershy suggested. “Just… one question…”

“What is it?” Pinkie responded.

“What’s a pie cake?” the yellow mare asked.

Pinkie met the question with an infectious giggle, bringing forth a strangely-shaped cupcake. “It’s a cake that looks like the ‘pi’ symbol, silly!”

Fluttershy blinked. “Oh… Okay.”

Boltsinger felt a rumbling in his stomach that refused to be denied as he shook his head. “I dunno. I don’t think a cake will be enough to get my head clear.” He admitted. “But… food would be good right about now.”

Every mono-color-maned mare in the room voiced their agreement with the cake-baking idea, heading into the kitchen as Rainbow Dash stepped beside her fellow flyer. “This about that thing you told me about?”

Boltsinger nodded. “Eeyup.”

“Care to give me details?” she queried.

“After food.” He told her, making for the kitchen himself.

Rainbow Dash smirked, following suit. “Okay. But no pie! Pinkie’s tried way too much to force it on me!”

Knocking rapped the door to the library, pulling Twilight from her impromptu slumber. She worked her way out of her chair and rubbed her eyes. “Come in…!” She called.

The door swung open, with a cart and a cake taking center stage. “Surprise cake delivery!” Boltsinger declared, wheeling it in front of her. The cake was simple and brown, likely chocolate. “I haven’t seen you in… I think it’s three and a half days, now… So, I thought I’d give you something to munch on while you worked!”

Twilight eyed the cake hungrily, realizing that she had not eaten since the previous morning, and only just barely at that. She took a look at the orange pony with a smile, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. “Thanks, Boltsinger, this was really sweet of you!”

Boltsinger giggled to himself. “Quite literally!”

The Princess of Friendship laughed in turn, putting her wings on the cart’s handle. Why don’t we take this to the dining room? I needed a break, anyway.”

“How is your progress so far?” he asked, trotting down the hall.

“I’ve got an idea for the curriculum, but I’m going to run it by Princes Celestia to make sure it meets E.E.A. standards.” she explained, soon going into a long-winded explanation regarding the nature of the E.E.A. and why she needed their approval in order to open her school. By the time she was done talking, they were at the table, a slice of cake in front of each of them. “So what made you go to the trouble of making a cake, anyway?”

“Mostly Pinkie and Fluttershy.” He stated. “I’ve had a lot on my mind for a while and they suggested this as a way to clear my head.”

“A lot on your mind?” she started, swallowing the morsel in her mouth. “Like what?”

“Oh, nothing you need to worry about!” He dismissed, stiffly waving his hoof in front of him. “You’ve got enough on your plate already, no need to worry about my little problems.”

The Alicorn’s eyebrows furrowed intensely, giving him her most inquisitive glare. “Okay… You know that I’m always here for you, right?”

Boltsinger put his hoof on her cheek, wiping off a smudge of chocolate that had built up on them. “I know, but you’re a Princess, and soon to be head mare for a whole school! My issues aren’t big enough to get in the way of that.”

Twilight let an irked curl onto her lips, putting her hoof on his. “While I don’t agree with that sentiment, I’ll go along for now.” She got up, stretching her wings and heading for the door. “I’m gonna head back to the library. You wanna come?”

Boltsinger shook his head. “Nah, I don’t want to distract you more than I already have.” He waved her off with a half-sincere smile. “Have a good time studying!”

Boltsinger trotted through the endless halls of the castle, humming a tune to himself on the way to the library. He was feeling surprisingly refreshed, like all of his worries had melted away. The only thing that could make him feel any better in that moment would be to see his favorite mare in their favorite book-filled room smiling back at him, and that’s just what he was looking to see.

“Oh, Twilight~!” He joyfully called, the sound of his voice echoing across the halls. The echo travelled further than he expected, as it eventually panged his ears from behind at the same volume he had used. He shrugged it off and continued on his way.

After another minute or so of his trots, he finally heard a response from her. She was making a strange groaning sound. Loud. Almost painful. As it grew in intensity, the stallion’s face went from content to concerned, sending him into a gallop. “You won’t make it…” a familiar distorted voice told him from the shadows. He paid it no mind, shaking it out of his head as he ran, tendrils of darkness beginning to encroach on the hallway. “She’s suffering, you know!” The voice said, louder this time. Boltsinger grunted, picking up speed as he heard the pained noise from beyond. “It’s so cute how you're trying to ignore me! You know you can’t get to her in time! Both of them, actually!”

Boltsinger’s ears turned in the voice’s direction. “Both of them?” he repeated, thinking on the words. He gasped as the thought took root. “The baby!” his eyebrows lowered as he brought his wings up, a spark of electricity arcing between them. With a single flap, he shot like the lightning on his flank to the library door, where the shadow tendrils had only just barely ceased their advance.

As he stood at the door, hyperventilating, he heard slow, deliberate hoofsteps walking up to him. A mare with a form much like his sister-in-law approached, her body wreathed in the same tendrils that covered the walls, veining out into her fur and stopping just short of her hooves, entangling into her mane and tail to give them a false mist-like quality, wrapping around and extending her horn, and spreading out like dark wings. Around her neck, seeming to meld into it, was a black amulet with a blood red jewel inside, bearing the image of an Alicorn. The mare’s body underneath looked cracked, as if it had been broken to pieces several times and reassembled. From her blank eyes and the cracks in her form came a dark red glow. She sneered at the stallion so focused on the door, sauntering up and standing over him. “You’re too late, you know.”

“You don’t know that…” He told her, refusing to look her way. “How are you even here, anyway?”

The creature’s head recoiled from the sheer candidness of his response, a smirk creasing her muzzle. “From Boltsinger to Boldsinger, I see!” She put her false wing to her chin. “Going to have to fix that…” She waved it off, dismissing the thought for the moment. “Very well, if you must know… I never actually left!” She sauntered around him as Twilight’s cries grew louder. “You can have your precious Princesses come in and fight me, or have that tree of yours zap me, and it might make me quiet for a while, but…” She brought her muzzle next to his ear, delicately placing her false wing around him. “You can never be rid of something that is part of who you are…”

Boltsinger's eyes flashed a bright green and shrank as his ears pointed towards the floor. He shot to the door, pounding on it in a panic. “Twilight! TWILIGHT! LET ME IN, TWILIGHT! PLEASE!” There was no response, the shadow tendrils slowly worming their way onto the door. He slowly looked back, seeing the creature in full. “How did you... get like that…?”

“Why, thanks to you, of course!” She declared, pointing her hoof at him. “The beautiful form comes from your memories. But the power? That comes from your worries! All of your doubt! Every little thing you fret over makes me stronger!” She laced the tendrils of her wings together by her head, striking a melodramatic pose. “‘Oh I don’t think I’ll be a good daddy! I feel like I don’t do enough for my Twilight or my friends!’” She lit her horn, pulling the stallion from the door and slapping him with her wing with a sharp laugh. “Utterly delicious!” She directed her magic to hold him up by his mane, swinging him around and tossing him against the wall opposite the door.

Boltsinger slumped over on the floor, looking up at the blackening door. “Go… away…” he said, struggling to stand. “And let me… see her!”

“Go away? You want me to go away?” she mockingly asked. She lingered for a moment, then brought her hoof up to her muzzle, laughing like a spoiled rich filly. “Okay, then, fine. You want me to leave so badly? I’ll leave.” She began a slow saunter back into the shadows, the tendrils on the door wrapping around the handle. “I’ll leave you to your ‘little problems’. Have fun!”

The tendrils around the handle twisted ever-so-slightly, turning it and swinging the door open wide. Boltsinger rushed in at full speed, finding himself, not in the library he was familiar with, but a cave. The walls were lined with books, twisted and distorted like the drawings of primitive ponies from before the three pony tribes took root. He stepped carefully onward, the cries of his wife bouncing off of the walls from every direction. “Twilight? Can you hear me?”

No response. The crying was all he could hear.

Come on, Bolt… if that monster was here, then this has to be a dream! He reasoned, closing his eyes tightly. So if this is a dream, then… He put his rump on the cave floor, putting all of his focus into the task at hoof. A rumbling began, the books on the walls moving in layers while rocks fell from the ceiling. The movement got faster as time went by, the pony’s surroundings changing to a more familiar sight, forming into the library he knew. In the middle of the room, Twilight sat, her wings, head, and ears drooping as she hung over a shadowed mass in the shape of a small pony.

“Why weren’t you there…?” the Princess asked through staggered breaths.

“What do you mean? I’ve been here this whole time!” he told her, stepping forward.

Twilight snapped her head around, glaring daggers at him. There were tears streaming down her cheeks, and the whites of her eyes had turned a shade of grey. “But you weren’t! You were so obsessed with whether or not you would be a good father that you couldn’t even be one!” She pointed her hoof at the shadowy mass. “And now look what’s happened!”

Boltsinger looked at the object of Twilight’s grief, his eyes flashing green as they built up their own supply of tears. “Twilight, I swear, I didn’t mean--”

“Get out…” she told him in a low growl. She began walking towards him, her eyes turning a solid and expressionless bright blue with a flaming aura of the same color forming around them. Her coat shifted from its usual lilac to a darker shade with a splotch of a purple so dark it was nearly black forming around her Cutie Mark, with her wings turning a deep purple that bore a line of the same blue magic. Her mane and tail began moving on their own, the colors going from straight and uniform to wild and fiery as the hair flowed in much the same way, a central purple spot appearing just above her horn, which now pulsed in the same color as the budding magic. All the while, armor appeared on her head, neck and hooves in a color and style that looked like a dark and twisted version of her Cutie Mark, keeping a sense of uniformity, but growing ever more sinister with hot pink accents. With one last step, her hooves glowed in the same magic that had overtaken her eyes, wings, and horn.

The Pegasus stepped back, the image before him having shocked him to his core. “But… I--”

“Get out…!” she repeated.

“How can I help you if I’m not here for you?!” Boltsinger argued, his rump hitting the door. Behind him, he could hear someone banging on the door with a muffled voice calling out.

“I SAID GET OUT!!!” she screamed, her voice distorted with a lower pitch added onto her usual one. She let out an ear-piercing scream, building up power in her horn as she reared up. She kicked the air in front of her, slamming her hooves down hard enough to crack the floor beneath her and loosing a blast of magical power at him.

Boltsinger reared back, bringing up his forelegs and wings in a defensive stance. “Twilight, please! Twili--” The magical blast hit home, and everything went black.

Author's Note

Yes. It's back. Because our demons never truly leave us.

Overdoing

“TWILIGHT, PLEASE!!!” Boltsinger shouted as he sat up and reached forward. His words echoed almost endlessly through the castle, ringing in the ears of all of its occupants. He sat still for several moments, taking rapid, panicked breaths. “I’m awake?” he asked himself, letting his foreleg fall limp. “Oh, good… But… What if that still…” His wings came forward, delivering a sharp, yet welcome pain to his cheeks. “No… Don’t think about it, Bolt… Just do everything in your power to prevent it…” He got out of the bed, which was still notably empty at the time, and scratched his chin with his wing. “But how do I prevent it?” He headed out into the hallway, moving into the nursery. He sat next to the carriage, rocking it back and forth as he looked around the room. He laid his eyes on the walls, taking note of the star patterns littered throughout. “Aha! I know who might have an idea!” He jumped to his hooves, running out the door and back to the bedroom, where he began writing.

Boltsinger walked down the streets of Ponyville with a letter tucked under his wing. Out of all the things he had taken for granted, this was the one that hit him the hardest. He had grown so used to having Spike around to send his letters that not having him there changed up the game completely. He looked around the town, trying to find one of the few places in Ponyville he had never been to.

The post office.

The one service in town he never thought he’d need. And now he needed it. He sighed to himself as he walked, keeping his gaze focused and forward as he came to a street sign.

As he turned his focus laser-sharp, a mare came and sat next to him. “Hey.”

“Hey.” Boltsinger replied on auto-pilot.

“Whatcha doing?” she asked.

“Looking for the post office.” He told her.

“Oh? Got a letter for somepony?” she wondered.

“Eeyup. But Spike isn’t home, so I gotta do it the long way.” He stated.

“Who is it for?”

“My friend, Starlight Glimmer, up in the Crystal Empire.”

“Oh, well in that case, just give it to me now!” She suggested.

Boltsinger tilted his head. “What do you mean--” He turned his head, the face of Starlight Glimmer coming into view. “Ah! S-S-Starlight!” He leaned in and gave her a hug. “You have the best timing ever!” He pulled back, bringing the letter forward. “Th-this is for you!”

“Thanks.” Starlight took the letter with her magic, shifting her expression from delight to something more akin to concern. Something about her friend seemed remarkably different. He was still himself, but it felt like it wasn’t the Bolt she had come to see over time. “Hey… Are you okay? You look like you had a heck of a nightmare.”

A fit of nervous laughter erupted from the stallion, quickly dying down. “Oh, you have no idea!” After another short laugh, he returned to normal. “But, seriously, I’m fine.” He began trotting back to the castle, beckoning her along with his wing. “Come on! Twilight’s…” He let out a depressed sigh. “… in the library…”

“She holed up in there doing research?” she queried, following him.

“Eeyup.” He confirmed. “She’s going all-in on making this school happen.”

Starlight gave him an understanding nod. “Yeah, seeing that map expand was a bit of a shock, but it did get Sunburst and I started on a new project!” She pulled a crystal from her saddlebag, magic pulsing inside. “The Crystal Empire crystals have properties we’ve only just barely tapped into! Maud really wasn’t kidding that the right rocks can have incredible power, because Sunburst and I have discovered a way to store a spell inside a crystal! With multiple uses!”

“Store a spell? So, something like bending the entirety of a village to your will?” Boltsinger teased.

A sarcastic laugh escaped Starlight’s throat. “Very funny… But, no, I was thinking something more like teleportation. I’ve got another crystal just like this one set up at another location, so they’ll basically be linked! All you need to do is touch the crystal directly, and then, POOF! You’re at the other place!” She looked into the magical rock excitedly, considering all of the possible applications. “It’ll need to be recharged every once in a while, but it’ll make getting around a lot easier! Plus, if it catches on, it’ll let anycreature go seemingly anywhere! We could set up a whole ‘teleport service’ for everyday creatures!”

“Sounds like you’ve got some big plans ahead.” Boltsinger affirmed as they approached the castle’s front door. “Why don’t you go set that up where you need to, and I’ll go get Twilight?”

Starlight nodded and headed for the throne room while Boltsinger took flight down the hall. She quickly sat down in the stallion’s chair, stowing the crystal away for the moment as she opened the letter she had received. “I wonder what it is he had to write me about. He doesn't do it all that often…” she unfolded the parchment, looking at it closely.

“Dear Starlight,

I think I need some advice… Normally I would go to Twilight for something like this, but it sorta directly concerns her. And the baby. And me.

You see, Twilight doesn’t know this yet, but I’ve been in a very well-hidden state of constant freak-out ever since I learned that Twilight was pregnant. So far, the only ones who know about it are Princess Luna, Discord, and Rainbow Dash.”

Starlight rolled her eyes. “He probably doesn’t think he’s gonna be a very good parent…” She returned her attention to the words below.

“There’s been a few things on my mind. I’ve been worried that I might not be a good dad, but I’ve also been worried about Twilight this whole time. Ever since Rainbow spoke out about not wanting things to change, she’s been pushing herself harder. Normally not enough to cause real harm, but she got more reckless in her flying, taking more risks than necessary, and, most recently, overdoes it with all-night studying…

What’s worse is that all of this seems to have… brought something back. I’ll explain it more to you when I see you, but… I just don’t know what to do… Let me know what you think might help, and come visit soon! We miss you!

Your friend,
Boltsinger”

Starlight folded the letter up, putting it in her saddlebag as the residing ponies of the castle entered the room. “Twilight! Good to see you!” She exclaimed, getting up and hugging the Princess. “Did you get my letters?”

Twilight beamed at her former student. “Of course! I even added my own notes on the topic!” She waved her wing with a small yawn, prompting Boltsinger to come forward with an enormous stack of documents. He lifted with all of his might, hoisting them onto the map with a thunderous thud. “Not to mention, if this works, we get to see each other whenever we want!”

Starlight guided the Alicorn to her throne, where the mares poured over the notes that Twilight had made. They talked at length about methods for recharging the crystals and making it as easy as possible for anycreature to use. Twilight repeatedly yawned through the conversation, looking more tired with each passing minute. Finally, the ladies stood up, Starlight bringing the crystal forward again. “So, you ready to test this out?” she asked. Twilight nodded enthusiastically. “Sunburst is on the other side, waiting to work the crystal on his end. When both of them are charged and in place, they’ll glow, liiiiiike…” She pulled a number of other crystals forward, setting many up in a pattern that reminded them of a four-pointed star, with a long one situated at the edge like a podium. She took the original crystal and put it in place at the top of the long crystal, causing the main crystal and all of the other ones in the array to glow a bright white “... this!”

No sooner had the array lit with power did magic build within the circle. With a bright, white, poof of light, Sunburst appeared before them, sitting on the floor with one hoof over his ducked head and the other reaching out. He shivered in place for a moment until Starlight planted a kiss on his forehead. He looked up, seeing her smiling face alongside Twilight. “So, it worked?” He sprang to his hooves. “It worked! Yes! Accessible long-distance teleportation is possible! I knew it!” He jumped forward and gave Starlight a hug like he’d never hugged before.

Starlight met the embrace in kind, laughing as they fell to the floor. Boltsinger looked at the ecstatic couple with a sly smirk, nudging Twilight. “I see they’ve certainly gotten ‘closer’.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if they had plans to tie some knots in the future!” The Alicorn remarked, the two sharing a laugh behind their hooves.

The embrace ended that instant, both ponies jumping to their hooves and raising a defensive foreleg with faces more red than a Draconequus’ pupils. “What?! No! We’re just…” Starlight started, glancing over at her special somepony.

“Hey, what you choose to do is all up to you.” Boltsinger said, walking back towards the door.

Starlight looked between Boltsinger and Twilight, the Princess’ eyes drooping with the weight of her fatigue. She gave her mentor a soft pat on the shoulder. “You should get some rest, you look like you could use it.”

Twilight let out a soft yawn, shaking her head. “Thanks, but I feel like I can keep going.”

Starlight looked firmly at her, trying to come up with a way to convince her otherwise. At last, she relented with a heavy sigh. “Okay… but don’t push yourself too hard.”

Sunburst adjusted his glasses, letting his curiosity get the better of him as he turned to Twilight. “And what’s been keeping you awake so much?” The Princess perked up again, going into a long and detailed explanation of her plans to open a school.

Starlight rolled her eyes, amused at the wizard’s enthusiasm as she trotted out. “Hey, Bolt, wait up!” She called, quickly catching up to the stallion. She hadn’t noticed earlier, but getting another good look at him, and having read his letter, she could see that he was carrying himself differently than he usually did. His head was lower, slouching, even. His step wasn’t quite as springy as it was before, either, with the faint sound of a hoof dragging on the floor coming forth as he took a step. “Are you sure you’re okay? You look… off.”

Boltsinger raised his head a bit, flashing a half-hearted grin. “I’m fine.” He made a deep exhale, turning his attention forward again. “Juuuust fine…”

“Because you would totally send me a letter asking for advice if you were ‘just fine’.” she deadpanned. “You said you’d tell me in detail when we met up. What’s going on?”

A quiet, yet indignant groan came out of Boltsinger, a different kind of fatigue having set in. “So, do you remember the thing that Twilight and Luna fought against inside my dreams?”

“The one that basically drove you so crazy that you flew away and sent Twilight into a book-sorting frenzy for an entire week?” she guessed.

Starlight’s words were like a knife to his gut, he cringed in pain for a moment. “Yeah… That…” He gave his face a thorough slap, regaining his focus. “So, anyway… It’s back. But that’s not even the scariest part!”

Starlight’s mouth hung open, a small sound escaping before she finally found her response. “How is the representation of an evil influence on your mind coming back after having been destroyed not the scariest part?!” She inquired, reaching out with her foreleg.

“Because it was my fault she could even do it!” He clarified. “But… What if it had a point? What if I can’t be there?” He stopped his walking, sitting on the floor and clutching his head with his hooves as his eyes glowed green. “What if something happens to the baby and I’m not there and it’s all my fault and Twilight turns into a midnight-y nightmare Princess thing that shoots magic at everyone and corrupts the Elements and plunges Equestria into a millennia of darkn--”

Boltsinger's ramble was cut short by a hard hoof to the cheek, knocking him to the floor. “Boltsinger, calm down!”

The stallion took several panicked breaths, gathering his senses and working his way back up. His wing came to his now severely reddened cheek, rubbing it gently. “Thanks for that, but… Ow… That really hurt!” He took a calming breath, facing her properly. “And I thought Brightling hit hard…”

“You good now?” she asked. He rubbed his cheek some more, giving her a solemn nod. “Good. Now, tell me everything.”

The pace of his explanation was rapid, yet intelligible. As if he’d studied Pinkie’s method of rambling and put it to good use. He went on for half a minute explaining how he had been feeling since Twilight had decided to prove that she wasn’t a burden to anypony while pregnant, and how she had been behaving, all leading up to the dream he had the previous night, which he explained in such vivid detail that she could almost see it in her mind. “... and then I freaked out an you slapped me.” He rubbed his cheek one more time. “Still hurts, too.”

“Okay… So from what I’m hearing, you feel like you’re not able to be there enough.” she reasoned. “But haven’t you been with her as often as possible?”

“That’s what I thought, but then that thing--” he started, cut off by a hoof on his shoulder.

“Forget ‘that thing’ and think clearly for once!” she ordered, putting her face close enough to nearly touch his. “You’ve done everything in your power to prove you’re good enough, and from what I’ve seen, you’ve proven that in spades! And I can’t think of anypony who would disagree with me!”

The stallion’s eyes went wide, with his ears turning towards Starlight so as to fully absorb her words. “I can think of at least one…” he informed her, raising his hoof.

“Well, whoever it is, they’re wrong.” she replied, backing off. “And they clearly don’t know you very well.” She patted him on the shoulder reassuringly. “I’m going to go back and talk with Twilight and Sunburst. Come join us when you’re ready.”

“Okay…” he answered, letting his head hang there as she trotted off. That one pony was me…

“So, have you noticed Bolt acting a bit… strange… lately?” Starlight asked.

Twilight put a hoof to her chin. “Strange? No, he’s been his usual self. Why?”

Starlight rolled her eyes. “You sure? He hasn’t been at all jumpy or overly freaked out?”

“Starlight, this is Boltsinger we’re talking about.” the Princess deadpanned. “That’s like asking if Pinkie is being hyper or crazy!”

Starlight gave a playful scoff, waving her hoof. “I know that, but I mean… Has it gotten worse lately?”

Twilight pondered the question for a moment. “Well, he’s nowhere near as jumpy as he was when he first arrived.” Thinking on his more recent behaviors, there was one grain of truth that she found. “He’s been really… helpful ever since I started my studying for the school. Perhaps a little too helpful… Why do you ask?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.” the pink mare fibbed, bringing up some papers to obscure her face. “Her just seems a little off today. Not like there’s anything that could be bothering him, right?”

“Now that you mention it, he has been getting the occasional nightmare.” Twilight mentioned while a pleasant aroma wafted in. “But I’m sure it’s nothing…” She took a sharp inhale. “... too…” another sniff. “... Okay, I can’t be the only one smelling this!”

Sunburst took a whiff of his own, getting up and following the scent. “I smell it, too… What do you think it is?”

“ATTENTION EVERYPONY! LUNCH IS NOW READY!” Boltsinger bellowed in the distance. The horned ponies all made their way to the dining room, where a large pot of steaming vegetable soup sat at the center of the table. Boltsinger trotted out of the kitchen holding four bowls in his wings.

“So what brought this on?” Twilight inquired, taking a seat.

“Well, it’s noon, for one.” Boltsinger replied, setting the table. “Plus, I’m willing to bet you haven’t eaten in hours. Maybe longer.”

Twilight sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck, pulling her bowl closer. “Not since yesterday…” She looked around, met with a stern stare from Starlight and Sunburst.

“I thought so.” Boltsinger said, pouring her an extra large helping. “And well, we have friends over! Why not cook something?”

Twilight licked her lips expectantly as her reflection in the soup stared back at her. She quickly picked up the bowl and took a sip of the broth. “Mmmmmm…. Okay, this is good… But, you didn’t have to do so much, you know.”

Boltsinger let out a nervous laugh. “I kinda did.”

Twilight shook her head, putting her bowl down. “No, you didn’t. We could have done this together.”

Boltsinger’s head shook in return. “No, you need to take it easy. Doctor’s orders.”

“I feel fine! You don’t need to worry about me so much!” she retorted, rising from her chair. Sunburst and Starlight looked at the two of them, the simple fact that they were married becoming more evident than ever.

“Do I really? Because going for three days with no sleep and minimal food seems like something worth worrying about!” he snapped back, pointing towards the library.

“All I’m doing is studying for the school!” the Alicorn stated, raising her voice. “What’s so bad about that?”

“Nothing is bad about that! When you pace yourself!” he reasoned, stepping closer. “I know you know how to do that! I saw memories of you reading a book on how to not overexert yourself! Or have you forgotten the contents of that book? ‘Cause you’ve been pushing yourself way too hard for a while now!”

Twilight rolled her eyes, snapping her head back to face him. “Oh, and now you’re supposed to remind me of what I know? Are you my keeper, or something?”

“I’m your husband, and I’m just trying to be there for you!” he informed her, getting his muzzle just barely to the point of meeting hers.

Twilight gave off a loud, irritated groan, flaring her wings and lighting her horn as she reared up, towering over him. “I DON’T NEED YOU HOVERING OVER ME ALL THE TIME!” she finally screamed, slamming her hooves on the floor.

Four words. Four simple words had pierced him like none before. Boltsinger was thrown back a bit by the display of force, his eyes now wide and glowing a bright green. There was a kind of jolt inside his mind as his breathing sped up. “Okay… Okay… I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I-I-I’ll get out of your mane… I’m sorry… I… I’m gonna go...”

Twilight’s own breathing slowed as she began to calm down. Her wings returned to her sides and her horn fizzled out once more. “Okay…” She turned to her chair as Boltsinger’s apologies continued. As her rump hit the chair, she felt an eerie chill down her spine as a piercing gaze came upon her. At the source of the glare was Starlight, looking at her with almost as much anger in her eyes as when the two had been enemies.

Starlight forcefully rose from her seat and stomped over to the Princess, placing her hoof firmly on her former mentor’s chest. “You and I are going to talk about this later.” She said through gritted teeth. “But right now, there’s something more important I need to attend to…” She trotted past the purple pony, quickly picking up speed into the foyer. There, Boltsinger was moving from a nervous walk to a frantic gallop. “Bolt, wait up!” She cried, vanishing in a blue flash to appear in front of him. He weaved around her, not missing a beat in his beeline for the door. “Come on, Boltsinger! Talk to me!” She teleported again, appearing in front of him with her horn still aglow. She wrapped the stallion in her magic, lifting him into the air. He struggled for a solid thirty seconds as she sat there, tapping her hoof on the floor. Eventually, he fell limp. “Now, talk to me. What’s eating you?”

Boltsinger shook his head in vehement denial. “Nothing. Nothing’s eating me! I’m fine! I’m fine… I’m fine… Just fine…”

Starlight looked at him flatly. “No, you’re not.”

Another crazed-sounding laugh burst forth from the stallion. “Oh yes I am! Perfectly F.I.N.E.! Absolutely nothing wrong!”

“After a fight like that? I doubt it.” She deadpanned. “Why don’t you come back with me and we can all--” She felt a shock in her horn, breaking her concentration. She looked up to see Boltsinger floating above her, lightning surging around him. His entire body curled up, as if winding up for a takeoff. “Bolt, wait!” She called, reaching her hoof to him. A spark of electricity shot out of the mass to hit her hoof, sending her flinching back as a thunderclap boomed through the castle, the Pegasus taking off at a speed faster than she could comprehend. She looked on at the electricity that sparked in the air, unsure of how to respond.

“Starlight! Come quick!” Sunburst yelled from the dining room. Starlight hopped to her hooves, running back to the kitchen.

“What’s wrong?!” She asked, looking towards the wizard. He pointed his hoof at the table, where Twilight had fallen asleep, using her bowl as an impromptu pillow.

Author's Note

Starlight gets scary when she's angry. Seriously, she's even starting to scare me a little.

The Truth of the Matter

Twilight woke up, more rested than she had felt in a long time. She looked around the bedroom, stretching and rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “Wow… I must have really been out if they had to carry me up here! I wonder how everypony is doing?” She went through her standard morning routine, then headed down the hallway. Her mind wandered between various things that had happened recently. Starlight had shown up, and they conducted the first test of a brand new long-distance teleportation method that was so simple to use that any creature in the world could access it. She also had an in-depth conversation with her and Sunburst about the school she planned to build. After a while, they had lunch, but the rest of the day was a blur.

“So, do you think she’s woken up by now?” The soft voice of Fluttershy asked from the throne room.

“I’m not sure.” Starlight’s voice replied. “I’ll go check!” From there, she heard hoofsteps approach the door, Starlight exiting the room and looking around. “Ah! You’re awake!” She exclaimed. “How do you feel?”

Twilight stretched her wings with a soft flutter. “Actually, I feel great!” She said with a smile.

Starlight’s face soured immensely. “Really? After all of that you feel great?

Twilight nodded. “A night’s sleep that good? How else would I feel?” She walked past Starlight and into the throne room, where all of her best friends looked rather coldly at her.

“I don’t know, maybe a bit of regret?” Starlight stated, reaching her hoof out for emphasis. “Perhaps remorse for what you said? Nopony has seen Bolt since your fight, and that was two days ago!”

Twilight’s surprise was about as obvious as the Cutie Mark on her flank. “Two days? Wait, we had a fight?” She shook her head to try and make sense of things, rubbing her temples with her wings as she made her way to her throne.

“You two got into a screaming fight over some soup!” the pink Unicorn fumed. “I mean, I know you two are married, but do you really have to get so mad just because he cooked by himself?”

Twilight’s wings left her head as she heard what her friend had to say. At that moment, she understood what she had been missing, as the details of the argument came to her in force. “I got mad because he wasn’t giving me a choice! He’d been checking in on me every ten minutes while he was home, and when he wasn’t, he had Flash doing the same! I’m a grown mare, and I can handle myself just fine!”

“You’re a grown pregnant mare, darling.” Rarity corrected. “That foal is due any day, now, so it’s easy to see why he’d be so worried about you. Especially with you depriving yourself of proper rest!”

“Then why didn’t he just say so?” The Princess asked, looking around at her friends. “He knows he can tell me anything!” Rainbow Dash and Starlight each tensed up, one turning her gaze to the ceiling while the other pawed the floor with her hoof. “Unless… Do you two know something?”

“What?! No! I don’t know anything!” Starlight lied with an adamant head-shake. “What about you, Rainbow Dash, you know anything?”

“Uh… Nope!” the Wonderbolt confirmed. “Don’t know anything at all!”

Applejack leaned towards Rainbow Dash, putting on her sternest expression. “You sure ya don’t know anything we might need ta hear?”

“Totally! I haven’t heard anything!” Rainbow continued. “And I’m sticking to it!”

Applejack turned to look at Starlight, joined by Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Twilight. Every pair of eyes, save for Pinkie’s, seemed to bore into her, poking at her resolve until it finally began to ebb. “What? I haven’t heard anything! Nothing about nightmares almost every night, or him having doubts and fears and worries that were so bad that they brought back a monster that lives in his dreams and now he’s got so much of that thing’s influence in him that he’s almost back to the way he was when he first got here!”

“WHAT?!” the Alicorn snapped, recoiling and splaying her wings. “But Princess Luna and I destroyed that thing! And… How come he told you, but not me?”

Rainbow Dash groaned, giving up her charade. “Because he thought that you were dealing with a lot of stuff already and he didn’t think his ‘little problems’ would be worth distracting you.”

Twilight looked down at the map, the image of the land having faded to reveal her own reflection. “But it wouldn’t be a distraction… I’m happy to help him sort things out! But… why was he so worried about me, anyway?”

“Maybe because ever since Rainbow Dash got mad at you all those months ago you’ve been trying to push yourself to do everything you normally do even though you’re pregnant and were told by the doctor to take it easy as much as possible and he got scared for both you and the baby and had to do things like cushion your landings when you fly or help your research go faster or just do extra extra extra stuff until you actually started doing what the doctor says?” Pinkie rambled, walking nonchalantly towards the Princess of Friendship.

Applejack nodded. “He did say sumthin’ like that at least once.”

Twilight looked at her baby belly, rubbing it with her hoof. “I suppose I haven’t been the most careful pony out there, have I?”

“Well, why don’t you tell us what happened that made him fly off?” Fluttershy suggested.

“Didn’t you hear all about it from Starlight?” Twilight wondered.

“I was… pretty mad once all was said and done.” Starlight admitted, rubbing her mane. “I don’t remember the actual argument all that well…”

Twilight closed her eyes in reflection. “Okay…” She went on to explain the events of the day, how Boltsinger had been helpful to a fault for several days before, and then how the day with Starlight and Sunburst had gone. “Then, in the dining room, Boltsinger insisted that he had to do all of that cooking by himself, and that turned into an argument… He talked about the… fact… that I’ve been pushing myself too much, and then I said that I don’t need him hovering over me. Then he backed off and… well… ran off.”

Fluttershy’s soft eyes widened like never before as she listened. “Wait a minute. You said what?”

“I said that I didn’t need him--” the Alicorn began, her mouth suddenly covered by a yellow hoof.

“You told him that you didn’t need him?!” the pink-maned Pegasus inquired. “Why did you even think that?”

Twilight moved the hoof from her mouth, recoiling defensively. “I said that I didn’t need him hovering over me! I never said that I didn’t need him at all!”

“And with the state he was in, do you really think he heard all of that?” Fluttershy reasoned, getting ever closer to her royal companion. “I get that you know how to handle Boltsinger when he goes into a panic, but do you know how he thinks when he’s scared like that?” Twilight shook her head, failing to understand the mare’s meaning. “When he’s like that, he’s a lot like I used to be! Do you remember how we met, Twilight?”

Twilight thought back, searching through the years to find her first day in Ponyville. “You panicked at the sight of me, hiding behind your mane and refusing to say anything higher than a whisper.”

“Exactly! And I was too scared to hear everything you were saying!” she added. “I’ve talked with Boltsinger about his past a lot, and when he wasn’t being forced into a certain way of thinking by his lightning, he used to be the same way. And when that kind of panic sets in, we only hear key words! Words like…”

“Like ‘I don’t need you’...” Twilight finished.

“That’s right.” the Pegasus said. She brought her wings forward, pulling Twilight’s head to look straight at her as her eyes turned fierce, a look of immense disapproval in them that sent shockwaves of guilt through the Alicorn’s very being. “Now, I think you owe somepony an apology. So you need to find some way to track him down and say you’re sorry right to his face!”

Everypony in the room stared at the staring pony, all of their mouths agape. “Whoa…” Rainbow commented. Whispers regarding ‘The Stare’ began circulating amongst the group, Fluttershy and Twilight oblivious to the lot of it.

As the shock subsided, Twilight’s wide eyes blinked. She hung her head sorrowfully, looking at the pendant dangling from her neck. “You’re right… I need to find him.” She looked back at Fluttershy with a genuine smile. “Thanks. I think I needed that.”

Fluttershy smiled back, pulling her friend in for a hug. “Happy to help!”

After a hearty meal provided by Applejack, Twilight returned to the throne room, her mind set on her task. Finding Boltsinger. This was beginning to become a yearly thing, but she knew that he never goes away like this while he’s thinking clearly. Plus, he was going to have a much better reason to stay around soon. She sat down at the map, looking at the various locations for any sign of his Cutie Mark. “He’s still got his pendant, and Starlight says that he took off with his lightning… He has to have shown up on here! But where?”

The door creaked open, small footsteps coming in slowly. “Twilight?” Spike began, approaching his throne. “How’s it going?”

Twilight looked at her dutiful assistant with a bit of surprise. “Spike? Aren’t you supposed to be in Fillydelphia?”

Spike folded his arms and gave her a stern look. “You think I wouldn’t come back for you after what happened? Starlight sent me a letter all about it, and I got on the next train as soon as I could!”

Twilight pulled the dragon close, nuzzling him affectionately. “Thank you, Spike. I’m trying to figure out how to track Bolt down right now.”

“Hasn’t he shown up on the map?” he asked, looking at the image of the nation. “If he’s got his pendant, then he should have shown up by now!”

“Normally, yes, but the map did transform recently.” She stated. “I’ve been pouring over it for a while, now, and there’s not even a little bit of lightning. I could use it to get an estimate if I knew what direction he flew in, but I was unconscious while Starlight only saw him fly out the door…”

“Huh… So no luck there…” he affirmed. “But you’ve got friends all over the place! Why don’t you send letters to each of them asking to keep an eye out for him?”

“Are you sure you’re up for breathing that much fire?” she queried.

“Does a dragon eat gems?” He retorted, flexing his muscles as best he could. “I could send a hundred letters and still not get tired!”

“Okay, then. Be prepared to put your money where your fire is!” Twilight declared, hopping up and starting to the library.

Spike gave her a cocky huff, standing up and following her. “You got it!”

Several hours later, Spike was on the floor of the library, clutching his chest in pain. He gave off a loud groan, sitting up and wheezing. Twilight looked back at him. “You okay?”

“I’m… fine…” he answered between breaths. “How many letters does that make?”

“All done! That was the last one.” she replied. “We should get a response any time now!”

An hour passed.

“Any time…”

Another hour.

“Just gotta be…”

One more hour.

“... Patient…”

Spike yawned into his claw, finally standing up and stretching. “Well, I’m going to bed. I hope you hear back from somepony soon!”

Twilight groaned in frustration, stomping on the table in front of her. “Why isn’t this working? The first time he flew off like this, the map showed me where to go! Then the next time, the simple fact that I need him brought him back!” Realization struck as her statement concluded, and her face showed just how dumbfounded she was. “But he thinks I don’t need him…” She lifted her pendant with her wing, taking a long, hard look at it. “But I do need him… and he needs me! Now, more than ever!” Her face grew more determined as her wings began tingling. She looked back at the suddenly-rigid appendages, seeing sparks of magenta lightning surging out of them. Knowing full well what this meant, she went into a gallop for the nearest balcony, speeding past Spike.

The dragon spun from the turbulence the Alicorn created, left sitting on the floor. He looked at her quizzically, reaching out. “Twilight! Where are you going?!”

“I’m going to get Bolt!” She announced, not slowing for a second.

Spike jumped to his feet, running after the Princess on all fours. “Not without me you’re not!” He leaped forward, quickly clutching onto her tail with all of his might as he felt an electric shock run through him, holding him in place as she took off with a clap of thunder.

Finally, he landed. This had been the first lightning-induced flight in a long time to last two whole days, but he was on the ground at last. Boltsinger shook his head as he sat up, his hooves slipping a little on the shifting sand beneath him. Looking ahead, he saw a large city that looked like it was scraping to keep itself together. It was built into a large plateau with little more than a dingy grey stone and wood that seemed old enough to be rotting. The sun was hot overhead, turning the sky orange, even though it was midday. As he listened to the goings on around him, there was nothing that struck a chord of familiarity to him. Not a pony in sight, nor in earshot.

He stood up, getting his bearings in the sand and walking forward. “Okay… wherever I am… I don’t think I’m in Equestria anymore…” he told himself, looking around. As he entered the town, he spotted many different creatures, all of them filthy and ragged. Each time one of them would look at him, a chill would pass down the stallion’s spine. As he started to understand just how large the creatures around him were, he started to understand why his kind were often referred to as…

“My little pony, would you happen to be lost?” a grimey voice called out. Boltsinger looked to the source of the words, seeing a fishlike scaly creature with beady eyes looking at him, offering out what he could only guess was a fin. “We don’t get much of your kind around here. Could fetch a fine price if you did the right job.”

“A-A job? What kind of job?” he asked, taking a step towards the creature.

“Something only a little pony like you can do!” it answered. “Come with me, and I’ll show you!”

Boltsinger took a step back, shaking his head. “On second thought… I-I-I think I’m fine…” He flapped his wings again, flying up to a nearby balcony.

“Hey! Watch where you’re flyin’ there!” another, angrier voice yelled. Boltsinger turned around, seeing a bipedal turtle creature looking furiously at him and shaking its fist.

Boltsinger let out a yelp, jumping off the edge of the balcony and zipping down to an alleyway. He put his rump on the ground, curling up as he shivered in fear. “I’m sorry!” he cried out, beginning to repeat the words as often as his breath would let him. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” he continued, earning nothing but scoffs from those who passed him.

“And what are you so sorry for, my little pony?” another, slimier voice inquired, crouching down next to him. “Is there something I can help with?”

Boltsinger raised his head, getting a glimpse of the speaker. He looked like a hairless rat creature, wearing goldenrod goggles. Unlike the other residents of the town, he was as dressed to the nines as one could get while still looking haggard, wearing a red tailcoat over a tan vest and white shirt, all tied up with a red bow tie. He wore black pants with a single patch on the left leg. On the top of his head was a tattered black top hat with a bright red band. “I don’t know if any… um… anyone can help me right now…” he stated.

“Well, why don’t you come with me, and I’ll see what I can do?” he offered, extending his claw. “I’m Verko, and you look like you could use a friend…”

Boltsinger eased up, putting his hoof forward. “A friend would be really nice right about now…” he admitted. He stood up and reached for Verko’s wiggling, antsy claws, noting a smile that was beginning to widen on the creature’s face.

“I agree! You certainly do look like you need yourself a friend, my little pony!” a suave voice declared from above. The two looked up to see a tan-coated Absynnian in a red coat standing on the roof. His paws, face, and the tips of his ears and tail were all a darker shade, while also bearing a tuft of lighter fur on his chest. He gave them a side-glance with his bright green eyes, jumping down from window to window until he landed on the ground between them. Getting a better look at the cat, Boltsinger could notice a piece of purple bandaging wrapped around a small part of his tail, with what he could only think of as a mane of indigo hair forming a curly-Q sitting between his ears. “But this guy? Not who you wanna go with. Not if you ever wanna see home again!” He flourished his tail, gesturing to himself. “Now, me, on the other paw…”

“You, Capper, had better leave well enough alone!” Verko spat, stepping between the cat and the pony. “I found this one! And you still owe me for that airship!”

“Trust me, Verkey, you don’t want this pony.” Capper retorted, reaching into his jacket. He produced a scroll with a red ribbon and a gold horse shoe seal. “You see, I just got a letter from royalty to be on the lookout for a pony in these parts. Sounds to me like she’s pretty desperate to have one, too!” He leaned in close to the hairless creature, giving him a sly smirk. “I bet she’d pay handsomely for him…”

Verko looked back at Boltsinger. “Royalty, eh?” He huffed and turned back to Capper. “You’d best know what you’re doing! I expect your debts be paid sometime in this lifetime!”

Capper chuckled, taking a low bow. “Of course! I promise you’ll get everything that’s coming to you!”

Verko turned to leave. “All right. I’ll leave this pony to you.”

Capper waved, walking up next to Boltsinger. “Bye Verkey! You have a good day!” As the rat creature left their view, Capper looked over his shoulder, where he saw the equine rising into the air. “Hey! Don’t fly away, little pony!” He reached up and grabbed Boltsinger’s tail, attempting to yank him down, but instead finding himself lifted up.

“And why should I stay with you!” Boltsinger snapped, looking down at the cat. “You’re just gonna sell me!”

Capper gasped in mock offense. “Now who said I was gonna sell you?”

“You did! To some… ‘royalty’!” The stallion barked, flapping harder and shaking his tail.

Capper tightened his grip, shimmying up the pony’s tail. “Okay, I admit I wasn’t totally lying! But I said it that way to get Verko to back off! I promise I’m not planning on selling you!”

Boltsinger shook his whole body as they cleared the rooftops, throwing the Absynnian off of him and to a nearby building. “Good!” He yelled, looking down at him. “It’s not like anypony needs me, anyway…”

“That’s not what I read.” Capper pointed out, opening up the letter. “In fact, it looks to me like you’re exactly what this Princess wants.”

“Exactly?” he repeated, landing in front of the cat. “That’s a laugh.”

Capper grinned, going over the letter he had received. “Let’s see… orange coat.” He peered over the top of the parchment. “Sure looks like you already. Blue hair?” He swiped his tail against the stallion’s mane. “Well, ain’t that a coincidence, you have blue hair! Purple eyed and a pendant that looks like a lightning bolt?” He moved the letter aside, flicking the pendant with his tail. “I see ya got that covered, too. Larger than average wings?” He laughed to himself. “Well that does explain how both of us got up here. Finally… Hm. a ‘Cutie Mark’ of a microphone with a lightning bolt on it… Those ‘Cutie Marks’ are the little pictures you ponies got on your butts, right?”

Boltsinger’s face took on a state of shock as his tail coiled around his flank, covering his Cutie Mark. “Um… Yes, that’s the mark on our… It’s called a ‘flank’, you know!”

Capper snickered, sitting next to the equine and putting his arm around him. “Listen, Boltsinger, isn’t it? That Princess that sent this letter? She’s a friend of mine. And she also said you might not be in your right mind. Why don’t you come to my place, and you can tell me what went down?” He raised both of his paws so that they were in plain sight. “I promise, no one is gonna sell you.”

“No one at all?” Boltsinger stressed, looking suspiciously at him.

“No one, period.” he confirmed. “Least of all, me.”

Boltsinger glared suspiciously at the cat, trying to get a read on him. He seemed genuine, but there was something about him that said he wasn’t this way often. “If you really mean that, then… okay.”

Author's Note

If it wasn't already obvious, this little story arc is winding down, as is this season. Next story arc is going to be the last one for "One Bolt, Moving Forward", but that doesn't mean that it's going to be the last bit of Bolt you get to see. I already have at least two more stories planned, and more if I don't run out of ideas after that.

The Cold Shoulder

Boltsinger looked out the window overlooking the place he had come to know as Klugetown. He had been staying with Capper for two days, now, and was settling into a degree of comfort. Living up to Capper’s promise, not a single creature tried to use him for their own profit, and the two of them shared an exchange of histories. Capper’s history had been more trying than he had expected, having had a best friend betray him to serve his own ends, but he was ecstatic to learn that the very ponies that changed his own life had also helped this suave cat mend his ways after a long period of swindling. Capper, in turn, was enthralled by the life Boltsinger had led. They would often find themselves sharing individual stories of their lives as the hours passed.

“And that leads me to how I got to your…” Boltsinger looked out at the town again. “... quaint little town.”

Capper slapped his knee, laughing hysterically. “Quaint? Now that’s a good joke!” He called down, waving his paw between them. “Nah, this place is a dump on the best days!”

Boltsinger laughed in turn with his new friend. “Yeah, it’s definitely no Ponyville!” He let out a sad sigh, looking out into the distance.

“You missing home?” Capper queried.

“Who wouldn’t?” he affirmed, casting his eyes at the sky. “But she doesn’t need me, so I’m not there.” He turned away from the window, laying on the floor. “That’s just how it works…”

“If that was the case, she wouldn’t have sent this out.” Capper noted, holding out the letter. “I’d send her a reply, but I have no idea how to do it.”

“Yeah, I’m not sure, either. I think it involves magic.” He admitted with a shrug. “Everyone I get letters from that way has a horn, after all.”

“So, how do you send mail out?” The feline wondered, leaning in inquisitively.

“Spike.” the equine replied. “Got so used to having him around that I’m pretty sure no one in the castle knows where the post office is in Ponyville.”

Capper chuckled some more, walking over to the window and looking out. “You know, it’s real nice to hear about all o’ them again. This place is good for turnin’ a profit, but it’s pretty isolated, too. Can’t wait to pay my debts and get outta here…”

“About how much do you need to pay Verko back, anyway?” Boltsinger asked.

“Depends. How much is an airship?” Capper replied. “The cost was in storm bucks, but with no more Storm King to enforce ‘em, we’ve got a bit of a currency lag. I’ve just been using those ‘bits’ you ponies are so fond of.”

“Well, if there’s anything I can do to help… besides letting you sell me… let me know.” the stallion offered. “It’s the least I can do to repay you for all this.”

“Nah, it’s fine.” he stated, waving a dismissive paw. “Besides, my kind of work is too fun to take shortcuts!”

“Okay, then…” Boltsinger said, getting up and looking out the window while he leaned on the sill. “Just means there’s not much to do around here…”

“And just what is there for you to do back in your precious little ‘Ponyville’?” Capper inquired. “Can’t possibly be any better than this town!”

“Excuse me?” Boltsinger replied, turning to Capper with a look that said ‘You must be kidding!’. “There’s lots to do in Ponyville! I can read books in the library, help Twilight with research, talk comics with Spike, jam with PON-3, help Rarity when she needs it, help out at the farm, fly with Scootaloo, fly with Rainbow Dash, have tea with Fluttershy, have random fun with Pinkie, get a cake at--”

“Okay! Okay! You got me!” Capper interjected, holding his stomach with his paws. “Sounds like heaven.”

“Only the best place in all of Equestria!” The stallion stressed, looking back with yet another sigh. “No place like home…”

Capper nodded, “Yeah, I get that.” A soft silence permeated the room, both of its occupants thinking on their homes with smiles on their faces. After a minute, Capper stood up. “Tell you what. You got nothin’ to do here. Why don’t I take you to where you can hitch a ride back home tomorrow? You look like you need to be there more than anything, anyway.”

“I…” Boltsinger took a deep breath, his eyes still fixed on the horizon. “I’ll think about it. I’m just not sure right now.”

Capper shrugged, heading for the door. “Heh. Whatever works for you, I guess. I’m gonna get us somethin’ to eat. You have a good time.”

“Eeyup.” he replied, his gaze unflinching. Should I just go back? I mean, the last few times I left, there was this feeling of never going back at all… This time… I don’t know, it just feels different… He looked up at the stars that began dotting the sky, reminded of his favorite set of them back home. A particular star in the distance had a distinct sparkle to it. It seemed new in the cosmos. Especially considering all of the star-mapping his wife had done, and shown him. He tilted his head, wondering where it came from as it increased in size. “Wait a minute…” He grabbed a nearby pair of binoculars, getting a better look at the supposed star. There, where he thought was a celestial body, was a lilac Alicorn sheathed in magenta lightning, her eyes shut and rocketing at a speed she was still not quite used to towards him with a purple and green dragon latched desperately onto her tail. Boltsinger’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. “Twilight?! What the…? If she crash lands at that speed… Oh, no… The baby!” He took a step back, flaring his wings as his own lightning surged forth. It sparked around, knocking over various things as his Cutie Mark crackled. “DADDY’S COMING!!!” He shouted, giving one flap of his wings and shooting off towards the mare of his dreams.

To the onlookers below, an orange and blue streak barreled towards a purple and pink one, faster than any airship they had ever seen. Capper looked at the source of the orange one, a smirk lining his face once more as he recognized the purple one. “Go get ‘em, Bolt.”

Back in the sky, Boltsinger sped onwards, drawing closer to the Princess with each passing second. Right as they were about to collide, he reached his forelegs forward, wrapping them around her. Twilight opened her eyes to see what just happened, recoiling as she saw the stallion now holding onto her. “Boltsinger?” She leaned into him, nuzzling him with her cheek. “I’m so glad I found you!”

Boltsinger squeezed tighter. “Shh! Brace yourself!” He ordered, stopping his own propulsion to line his body up with hers. “Gonna be a rough landing!” He wrapped his wings around her, bracing his hind legs around her belly and lowering his head. Twilight looked ahead at the tiny opening they were headed for with a squeak, lowering her own head as they met their mark.

With a thunderous crash, the two ponies and their dragon companion found themselves in a decidedly more wrecked state of Capper’s home. A cloud of dust obscured their vision as Spike sat up with a pained groan. “Whoa… what hit us?” he asked, waving away what he could of the dust.

In the center of the room, Twilight and Boltsinger lay on the floor. Boltsinger was on his back, all six of his extremities wrapped around the purple pony Princess and holding on for dear life. The Princess raised her head, looking around and finally catching the stallion in her sights. She tightened her grip around him. “Oh, thank Celestia! I thought I’d never see you again!”

“How could you have thought that?” Boltsinger queried, letting his legs and wings fall to the floor. “I took off with lightning. Wouldn’t my Cutie Mark show up over the map?” He moved the mare’s forelegs to break the embrace, rising to his hooves.

Twilight let her rump hit the floor, a little surprised at his behavior. “I thought so, too, but this time it didn’t. Maybe it’s because the map itself has changed, but what matters is that I found you!”

Boltsinger looked at her with a hint of stoicism. “I thought you didn’t need me…”

Twilight flinched, raising her foreleg. The words stung, far worse than a thousand stares from Fluttershy. She hung her head in silence, letting it all sink in. “What the heck was that for?” Spike asked, standing up and staring Boltsinger in the face. “She just went so far as to trigger your magic inside of herself so she could come all this way to find you, and this is how you treat her?”

“Spike, don’t.” Twilight pleaded, reaching her hoof out as her husband huffed and walked out the door. She rose to her hooves, trotting past the bewildered dragon to follow him. “Bolt, wait! I really need to talk to you!”

“Oh, now you need something from me.” he spat, dragging a hoof on the floor.

Another flinch crossed the Alicorn’s entire body. “Okay… I deserve that. But, could you at least listen to me?”

Boltsinger breathed a heavy sigh, dropping to the floor and looking back at her. “I’m always listening to you. You know that.”

“You’re right.” she confirmed, taking a tentative step in his direction. “I’m sorry for what I said. I never should have said I didn’t need you, no matter what I meant by it. You were only looking out for me…”

“Twilight… It really hurt when you said those words… Like… worse than a monster living in my brain saying them.” he stated.

“I know… And I wish I could take them back.” she affirmed, stepping closer still. “Can you forgive me?”

A soft smile creased the Pegasus’ muzzle as he shuffled his way around to face her. “Well, I admit I was… probably a little on the annoying side.”

Twilight tilted her head towards him. “A little?”

“Okay, I was an overbearing helicopter husband.” he admitted. “But can you blame me? You’ve been trying to do way too much for MONTHS! And… I’m willing to bet Starlight and Rainbow Dash told you all about the things that have been on .. and in my mind?”

“Yes. And I have to ask. Why didn’t you just tell me straight out?” she wondered, finally sitting in front of him. “We could have worked through it all together, and then that thing would never have come back!”

“Because you already have so much to deal with!” he told her, spreading his forelegs. “You have your duties as a Princess, all the stuff dealing with being pregnant in the first place, which, by the way, is my fault, along with handling so much of the goings on in Ponyville on top of your new plans for this school of friendship! I didn’t think I was good enough…”

Twilight paused for a moment as the gears turned in her head. After a rapid series of thoughts on the matter, she busted out laughing. “Not good enough? For what?” Boltsinger recoiled from her response, looking away. Twilight brought her wing forward, cradling his cheek in her feathers. “Sorry… I didn’t mean to laugh, it’s just that the idea of you not being good enough for anything is funny to me.”

“Funny?” he repeated, looking back at her sternly. “How is it funny? What if I’m not the father our foal deserves? What if I can’t handle it? What if, because I’m so bad at all of this, something awful happens to the baby and it sends you into a rage that changes you forever and--"

Twilight brought her hoof forward, covering his mouth. “You honestly think you won’t be a good father? Seriously? Have you seen what you’ve done this year?”

The Pegasus moved his honey’s hoof away, giving her a confused look. “What are you talking about?”

“Teaching Scootaloo how to fly when even Rainbow Dash didn’t fully believe it was possible.” she started, lighting her horn with a magenta lightning charge to it. Between them, a kind of window formed that showed Boltsinger and Scootaloo’s lessons, ending on an image of the filly flying high with Rainbow Dash. “Helping Soarin.” The images changed to depict their first time with Soarin at Sugar Cube Corner, going through the various events that led up to the surprising end to the Equestria Games. “You were able to befriend Flash when he flat-out hated you! And helped Fluttershy get some real confidence in her flying!” More images went by, showing the budding friendship between Boltsinger and Flash Sentry, followed by his talking with and helping Fluttershy for the Games. “You’ve channeled the gifts of at least four of our friends to help ponies, even though it knocked you out each time!” The next images showing displayed Boltsinger in different scenarios. The first with orange lightning coming from his wings as he saved Flurry from an oncoming impact, the second with pink lightning as he calmed a manticore and an ursa major with Fluttershy, the third with purple lightning as he helped the ponies at the Ponyville Music Festival learn the value of their own voices, and the final image of an orange and blue streak flying by the mountain that held Canterlot moving so fast that it created a Sonic Rainboom. “And… you’ve been looking after me, even when I haven’t quite been thinking clearly.” The image cycled through almost endless moments of the two of them, times when she was suffering the side effects of pregnancy and he stuck to her like glue, when her magic was weak and he gave constant support, all of the hard landings where he cushioned the impact, and every tender moment the two of them had shared since even before he knew she was pregnant. With each passing image, his face softened more, even growing damp as tears began to fall. “Practically everything you’ve done has proven to everypony, without a doubt, that you are going to be an amazing father to our baby. And if you were to ask anypony else, they’d say the same.”

Boltsinger smiled, wiping his eyes. “You are… just… impossible to stay mad at, you know that?”

Twilight giggled and puffed out her chest. “I do my best!” She moved to sit next to him, the two of them putting a wing around each other. “I missed you.” she finally said, squeezing him lightly.

“I missed you, too…” he echoed. “I love you.” He gave her a kiss on the cheek, finally getting comfortable. “Even when I’m mad at you.”

Twilight nuzzled into her spouse’s neck. “I love you, too. And I promise, I’ll never take that love for granted again.” They sat in silence for a minute, enjoying one another’s warmth.

“Aww, such a sweet little moment!” Capper cooed, opening his eyes behind them while bringing his paws together next to his head. Twilight and Boltsinger simultaneously shot into the air while the con artist laughed. “You ponies are so easy!”

The equines landed, the female of the two glaring at Capper, while the male giving him a nervous, yet still amused laugh. “How long have you been there?” Twilight asked.

“Since ‘can you forgive me?’ and a neat little light show.” he replied, swinging a bag back over his shoulder. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, there is much to consume.”

Boltsinger stood up, following his new friend back into the abode. “So, we’re going home via airship, right?”

Twilight smirked, spreading her wings and looking at the starscape above them. “Well, that flight did get pretty interesting. I don’t get to fly that far very often, you know.”

Boltsinger rolled his eyes. “Yes, because we totally want to repeat a flight that took us two days with lightning enhanced speed without the same kind of benefit and try to make it in one go while bringing along a wingless dragon.” He looked her in the eye with an unshakable resolve. “We go by airship, okay?”

Twilight laughed and nodded. “Okay.”

The stallion gave off a small sigh of relief. “Thank you…” His stomach began growling as the satchel Capper brought with him opened, letting the smell of dinner enter his nostrils. He perked up once more, trotting inside.

Twilight lingered outside, watching her favorite stallion in the whole world as he satisfied his hunger. “No, thank you.”

Author's Note

Okay, this one ended up a little short. I wanted to do more, but... it just didn't feel right to do some of the things I had ideas for, and others, it felt like it was the wrong time. So, we're left with this. Really getting down to the wire, too. I hope you enjoy what comes next!

You may expect a little bit of fluff coming up. One that's a big event, and another just 'cause I wanna.

You Need A BZZT Break

Twilight sat in the throne room, stamping papers, writing responses to letters asking for advice, and overall duties that befall a Princess. Flash sat by the door in full armor, doing his due diligence as per usual. The Princess had made significant headway in her work, the piles quickly switching sizes, but she had to admit she was getting remarkably tired. As the last of the papers hit the stack, galloping hoofsteps were heard beyond the door.

“TWILIGHT!” Boltsinger called, nearly throwing the door open with so much force that the completed stack flew apart. “Important thing! Come with me! Now!”

Twilight lit her horn, catching the papers with a now-practiced grace and stacking them again. She looked over at the stallion, letting some worry cross her muzzle. “What’s wrong? Is everything okay?”

Boltsinger ran up to the mare, pushing her from behind. “You’ll see! It’s super important! Just trust me on this!”

“Okay! Calm down!” she told him, moving to a trot. He jumped over her, beginning to lead her down the hall with a goofy grin etched onto his muzzle. They made their way through the familiar halls, finally finding themselves in coming upon the door to the master bedroom. “What’s in here that’s so ‘super important’?”

“Just this.” he responded, kicking the door with one of his hind legs. The door opened to reveal the bedroom in a state that looked ready for a long, uninterrupted stay.

Twilight entered the room, looking around curiously. “And this is…?”

Boltsinger stood beside her. “You are stressed.” he said, putting his hoof on her side. “I am stressed.” He pointed to himself with the same hoof. “I think that both of us…” He motioned his hoof to indicate both of them. “... could really use a break. Especially since this little one…” He put his hoof on Twilight’s belly, where he felt an electrical discharge. “... is likely to add to that stress. We have books, we have food, we have a comfy bed overflowing with pillows. So, our ‘schedule’ for today is this.” He brought forth a parchment with a single sentence written on it.

Twilight leaned in, gripping the parchment with her magic and beginning to read. “Stay in bed, read books, talk, nap, and otherwise be comfortable… all day long.” She lowered the paper, where a pair of purple eyes pleaded with her. “Sounds like a perfect day.”

Boltsinger squeed, excitedly flaring his wings and turning towards the bed. “Great! ‘Cause I’ve been looking forward to just relaxing with my favorite mare for a we--"

“Princess Twilight! There’s a crisis in Ponyville!” a pony’s voice called from the hallway.

Boltsinger froze in place, his grin stiffening as his eye twitched. “Crisis? What kind of crisis?”

“There’s a monster attacking Ponyville!” the pony answered. Twilight gasped, immediately turning to the door.

“I’m sorry, Bolt. I just have to take care of this!” she told him, galloping out the door. “I’ll be back as soon as this is taken care of!”

Boltsinger’s head dropped faster than a clashing outfit in Rarity’s closet. “Yeah… Yeah… Go deal with the monster…” he said.After a few seconds, his eyes opened again. “Wait… MONSTER?!” He broke into a gallop of his own, speeding down the hallway as fast as he could. This is not stress-relief! This is excess stress at the very least! I promise you now… With Celestia as my witness, you are going to have a relaxing day of snuggles and books! And I swear I’m going to do everything in my power to make you SMILE!!! His thoughts lit a spark within him, causing a blue light to shine from his pendant, with the same color of lightning surging through his wings. As he crossed the castle’s threshold, he brought all of his hooves together, bouncing in a way he never thought possible, bounding high into the air, where he made a mighty flap of his wings and shot off towards Ponyville proper.

Twilight Sparkle and her best friends stood firm, staring down a monstrous beast. It stood, cat-like, on all fours, black fur covering its body. It hunched over, fixing its yellow eyes on the heroines of Ponyville.

Twilight turned to Fluttershy, a desperate look on her face. “Fluttershy, you’re an animal expert! Can you talk to it? Maybe calm it down?”

Fluttershy shook her head, taking several shivering steps back. “I don’t think it’ll listen to me at this point! It’s so angry I can’t make out what it’s saying!”

Twilight sighed, looking back at the savage creature. It let out a roar, blowing the hair back on all of the mares in front of it. “All right, then. We’re going to have to do this the hard way!” She took a confident step forward. “Ready girls?”

Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie stepped forward. “READY!”

Twilight looked to Fluttershy again. In her spot was a settling cloud of dust with a few pink hairs floating to the ground. “Well, she’s gone… Oh, well.” She looked back at the monster, rearing up and kicking the air in front of her ferociously. “CHA--”

“NNNNNNNNO!”

Twilight stopped, letting her hooves fall back to the ground. “No? Who said that?”

In that instant, her question was answered. Slammed into the side of the cat creature’s face was Boltsinger, furiously kicking with both of his hind legs. His wings were charged with blue electricity, with his pendant shining in the same color. “THIS IS OUR DAY! NO AT-TA-TA-TACK!!”

Everypony's jaw dropped in that moment. The image of the creature’s face crumpling from the sharp impact of the stallion’s hooves etched itself into their memories. The strange moment became stranger still when the monster finally recoiled from the blow, as the flightless creature flew off into the distance disappearing like the twinkling of a star.

Boltsinger landed hard, kicking up a large dust cloud as the lightning continued to discharge from his wings. His breathing was heavy, and he seemed twitchier than usual. Twilight slowly approached him, unsure of what exactly was going on. “Boltsinger? Are you alright?”

The stallion perked up with a jolt that ran through his whole body, putting a wide smile firmly on his face. “Twilight! I’m fine-fine-fine. Never been better! Abso-tively posi-lutely A-okay!” he told her, rigidly swinging his hoof. “The big monster problem has been taken care of! You ready to go home and unwind?” He twisted his wings together, letting them naturally unwind.

Twilight’s lips turned upward slightly. She didn’t fully believe that he was ‘fine’. The sudden monster attack had put her in a heightened state of awareness. The lightning coming out of him didn’t look any different. But he certainly behaved--

“Um… Princess Twilight?” a filly started, tentatively stepping forward. “Can you help me out? My friends are having a big fight right now, and I don’t know what to do…”

Twilight approached the filly with a tender look on her face. “Of course I can help… Bolt, I’m going to go help this--" As she turned to look at her spouse, he was gone, leaving little more than a faint electrical discharge where he stood. “Bolt?” She returned her attention to the little pony, extending her hoof. “Lead the way!”

The filly nodded, taking the outstretched hoof and trotting back the way she came. They easily found their way to the park, where a baritone voice was heard giving a well-meaning lecture. “... And that’s why you shouldn’t let such a little thing get in the way of your friendship! A little compromise can go a long way, and your friendship is far more important than something this small, don’t you think?”

“I agree!” the Princess stated, announcing her presence and walking towards the conversing ponies. “Whatever problem you might have, your friendship is strong enough to guide you through it!”

“Princess Twilight!” the foals cheered, springing up and running over to the Alicorn.

Twilight grinned, sitting down as the foals approached. “So, what seems to be the issue?”

One of the foals hung his head. “We got into an argument over what we wanted to do today… I wanted to go to Sugar Cube Corner, ‘cause I think it’s the best place in all of Ponyville!”

The other foal cleared her throat. “And I wanted to visit Sweet Apple Acres, because I think that’s the best in Ponyville!”

Twilight nodded to each of them. “Those are both great choices! But, you know, there’s a whole lot of day left. You could go to both places!”

“That’s what he suggested!” the filly told her, pointing back towards the source of the voice. “He’s really smart, just like you!”

Twilight looked in the indicated direction. “I’m sure he is, given what I--" When her eyes fell upon the spot he was supposedly sitting, there was nothing, save for a residual spark. “-- heard…”

The colt turned to follow their gaze, tilting his head in confusion at the lack of ponies there. “Huh? Where did he go?”

Twilight shook her head. “I don’t know… But, you should follow his advice. He definitely knows a thing or two about friendship!”

“Um… excuse me, Princess Twilight?” a thick-accented mare called out. “Could you possibly come to spa? We are having… what you call it…? Big problem!”

Twilight waved the three foals off, turning to face the pony she immediately recognized as one of the spa employees. “What kind of problem?” she asked, starting her walk towards the spa.

The door to the spa opened, letting in the Princess as she wrapped her mind around the issue at hoof. “So, just the roar from the creature that attacked scared him to the point where he dropped every mane care product you have in one big pile?”

“I am afraid so…” the employee confirmed, offering a sad smile. “I would handle sorting myself, but…” she gestured to the waiting room, which the Alicorn soon discovered was filled nearly to the brim with disheveled ponies. “We are quite busy.”

“I… see.” Twilight said, looking around. “Well, I’ll do my best!” The spa pony smiled and nodded, returning to her position. “So, storage room… Let’s see what the damage is.”

Twilight trotted through the building, waving to various ponies as she went. She quickly moved past the areas where the patrons would typically see, anticipating what she might find as she approached the door to the storage room. Inside, an orange and blue blur moved rapidly through the rapidly-organizing room. “And this one goes he-he-he-here, and thi-this one goes over here, and then this one goes…” the blur stopped, revealing Boltsinger as he put the bottle into place. “... here!”

“Boltsinger?” Twilight started, slowly approaching him. She looked around the room, taking note of the way the room was arranged. “Did you… sort all of this yourself?”

“Eeyu-u-up!” he replied with a sudden shake of his head. “Organized by size, sm-sm-smell, and POP-ularity!!” He flared his electrified wings, trying his best to strike a charming pose. “So, what do you think? Ready to go home and unwind-unwind-unwind?” With each strange pronunciation or word repeat, his head jerked in such a way that it tilted to the side.

Twilight furrowed her brow, approaching him with an extended wing. “Bolt, honey, are you okay?”

His smile widened. “Of course! Just excited to go and take that break with you!”

“Okay… We’ll do that soon… How did you know to come here, anyway?” she wondered, still inching forward.

“Bolt sense!” he informed her.

“Bolt sense? But you don’t have… a…” She trailed off, looking at his wings, then at his face, then at his blue-glowing pendant. In that moment, she realized just what had caused his current behavior. “I see… You’re channeling Pinkie, aren’t you?”

“Channeling? Why would I be channeling? There’s no more cri-cri-crisis!” he reasoned, heading for the door. “I’m gonna double-check the town. See if there’s anything e-else going on.”

Twilight lit her horn, pulling on his tail to keep him in place. “Not so fast, Jolty-Bolt. I wanna figure this out.” She encased his entire body in the glow of her magic, dragging him along with her as they left the spa, leaving a trail of electrical charges in the stallion’s wake. “Whichever aspect of Pinkie Pie you’re… accessing, it’s clearly messing with you, somehow.” She looked back at him, starting to feel a tingling in her horn. The best word she could use to describe what he was doing in her magical grip was ‘vibrating’. “I… think we should get some help!”

Twilight held a vibrating Boltsinger in place in Zecora’s hut, the zebra looking over the Pegasus with curious eyes. “So you come to me wondering why this Bolt has ‘channeled’ Pinkie Pie?”

“That’s right.” Twilight confirmed, working her way to sit in a nearby chair.

“I don’t quite understand the situation.” Zecora began, turning to face the Princess. “Could you provide me with an explanation?”

Twilight took a deep breath, recalling as much as she could. “So, sometime a couple years ago, when Boltsinger broke his wings. He’d finally come home and come to his senses after a bit of an emotional fiasco, and he touched the map.”

“And then the map grabbed me by the lightning!” Boltsinger interjected, pulling out of the magic and standing on his hind legs, wings outstretched. “And it pulled on me over and over and over ‘till I was standing in the middle, where it made the lightning swirl all around me and then it knocked me over! We didn’t really know what it was doing, though.”

Twilight moved the aura back into place, applying pressure on his back to calm him down. He figuratively melted into it, slumping over as the Alicorn continued. “Anyway, he’s right. We never found out why for the longest time, but over the past year, he seems to be showing a new kind of magic that connects him to the Elements. Under the right circumstances, namely when it’s needed most, he’s become prone to taking on some of the attributes of our friends. The typical sign is when his lightning comes out in a different color, usually the color of that friend’s Element of Harmony.”

Boltsinger perked up again, but opted to remain in the magic. “Like when we were in the Crystal Empire and I smashed a couple of lances before they could hit Flurry! Or when we were in Baltimare and I helped Fluttershy calm a bunch of really scary creatures! Or the Ponyville Music Festival, or…” his mouth was forcibly shut, letting him ramble in a muffled voice.

“But each time he does it, it takes everything he’s got.” Twilight explained further. “Using talents and magic he’s not used to takes a huge toll on him, so he generally passes out afterwards.”

Zecora continued her examination, putting her hoof to her chin. “I see what you mean, but now I must ask… Why act like Pinkie Pie? And for what task?”

“I just wanted to make sure Twilight got the brea-brea-brea--" He reached his hoof up, smacking himself in the head. “--BREAK that she deserves!”

Zecora smiled, turning back towards the lilac mare. “So with all of the things that he’s opted to do, the entire time, his focus was you.” she said, pointing her hoof at Twilight. “I’m afraid this is something a potion can’t mend. For his condition, it’s time you must spend.”

Twilight gave Boltsinger a wide-eyed stare, slowly working her way back up and stepping closer. “All of this just so that we can enjoy a lazy day in bed?” She released him from her magic, pulling him into a loving embrace. “You are the sweetest stallion I have ever met!” she declared, nuzzling his cheek affectionately.

“I am not!” He retorted. “I’m not even made of sugar!” Twilight pulled back a moment, looking into his eyes with a teensy bit of shock on her face. He simply stared into her eyes with a rigid, yet goofy grin plastered onto his muzzle. She completely lost her composure, bursting into a fit of laughter as she clung to his neck. Boltsinger’s smile lost its rigidness, the light from his pendant beginning to fade as he held her close. “That’s all I needed to hear…” he told her, falling limp.

Twilight strained a little, holding the Pegasus up as she re-ignited her horn. The stallion floated in the air above the mare, who gave their zebra friend a thankful nod. “Thanks for your help, Zecora. I think I can handle things from here.”

Boltsinger groggily stirred from his slumber, trying to bring his wings forward to rub his temples and alleviate at least some of the headache that throbbed within. His left wing came with ease, but he found that his right wing wouldn’t cooperate. He tugged a little more, but couldn’t get it free. He opened his eyes, finding a mass of lilac fur with purple and pink mane hair laid on top of it covering his field of vision. He shuffled his forelegs, finding them wrapped around a familiar warm body. Finally realizing where he was, he squeezed the pony in front of him tight, blowing into the ear that just barely leaned in his direction.

Twilight’s eyes shot open from the sudden sensation. She raised her head, looking around for the source. She heard a light chuckle behind her, prompting her to roll over and spot Boltsinger with a soft smile on his face. “Oh! You’re awake!”

“And I was comfortable.” he replied, putting his hoof on her. “Get back over here.”

Twilight giggled, rolling back into him with enough force to knock some of the wind out of him. He put his wings and forelegs around her again, resting his hoof on her pronounced baby bump. “I was a little worried today. It was the first time you’ve channeled Pinkie Pie.”

“I channeled Pinkie Pie?” he repeated with a laugh. “I guess that explains the headache…”

“Yeah. I’m used to you acting like whoever you’re channeling, but this was something else entirely!” Twilight elaborated. “You were so… glitchy!”

Boltsinger’s brow furrowed immensely. “Really? I remember doing lots of things really fast, but… glitchy? I wonder why…”

“Your guess is as good as mine.” she told him, shrugging. “I gave up on understanding anything Pinkie-related years ago!”

Boltsinger smiled and drummed a little on his wife’s belly. “That’s probably for the best…”

Author's Note

Originally, this chapter was gonna have a few gags, then be pure snuggles and fluff. But then I got to thinking... If he's channeling Pinkie Pie... what does that do to his already lightning-charged brain? The anser? He gets glitchy. Her Pinkieness is strong, and it messes with his mind more than the previous four ever could. So, what you saw was the result.
And now...
It's crunch time!

Crunch Time

In the castle foyer, Starlight, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Spike, and Discord stood in a line at attention. Ahead of them, the doors to the throne room opened wide, Boltsinger walking towards the group with a fiercely stern expression. “Ladies…” he started, his attention turning to the mares. He looked over at Spike. “... Dragons…” Finally, he looked at Discord, who quirked his eyebrows playfully. “... Discord.” He stood tall, addressing them all. “It is officially crunch time.”

“Crunch time? What do you mean, crunch time?” Fluttershy asked.

Pinkie Pie giggled. “Crunch time? Silly Bolt! You can’t actually eat time!” She brought her hoof up, thinking more on the idea. “Though, if you could, I bet it’d be more chewy than crunchy!”

A loud crunch was heard from above them. The ponies looked to the source to find that Discord was happily munching on a clock. He tossed the remaining half into the air, flapping his ears to float his head up and consume the rest of the device. As he got his head on straight again, he looked at all of the eyes boring into them as if there was something strange going on. “What? He said it was ‘crunch time’, and it made me hungry! Why? Were you using that clock?”

Boltsinger let out a frustrated groan, slamming his hoof into his forehead. “No… just… just no. That’s not what I mean by ‘crunch time’...” He slapped his muzzle with his wings, facing the entire group once more. “Twilight has been having… contractions.”

The entire group, save for Spike, audibly gasped. “You mean the baby’s comin’ right now?!” Applejack inquired.

“Oh, Celestia, I hope not!” the stallion told her, clutching his head with his hooves. The mares all breathed a sigh of relief while their friend worked to regain his cool. “No, no, the doctor says it’s a different kind of contraction, but we still need to prepare, ‘cause the baby could be here any day now. And that leads me to why I’ve invited you all here.” His composure fell, nearly as fast as his rump did, as his head drooped. “We can’t handle this by ourselves! Help!”

“What do you mean, can’t handle it yourselves?” Starlight asked, approaching the blue-maned pony. “You’ve got a nursery, you and Twilight have gone through all the steps, you’ve decided to go to a hospital… What’s the problem?”

“You clearly haven’t seen her contractions…” he retorted with a nervous laugh.

“Well, they can’t possibly be as bad as you think.” Rarity reasoned, stepping up to Boltsinger and putting her hoof on his nose. “Are you sure you aren’t letting your fears get the--" Before the glamorous mare could finish, the loudest cry of pain any of them had ever heard resonated through the castle, originating from the expecting mother in the master bedroom. Boltsinger and Spike immediately tensed up, taking off into the castle and leaving their guests standing in a stupor.

“That sounded pretty bad…” Rainbow Dash stated. The other ponies nodded in agreement, breaking into a gallop down the hall as Discord vanished in his telltale flash.

Spike and Boltsinger stood on the side of the bed, a hoof and a claw extended. “Don’t worry, Twilight, we’re here!” Spike informed her, clutching her extended wing. “And all of our friends are here, too! You’re gonna be fine!”

“He’s right.” Boltsinger affirmed. “Besides, the doctor told us this would happen! We can totally--" Twilight let out another loud cry of pain, forcing a cringe out of her husband. “... handle this… Although I don’t think it’s supposed to be this painful…” He added his other foreleg to his hold on her hoof, then looked over at Spike. “Can you send a letter to Celestia and Luna? I feel like they should be here.”

Spike nodded. “I’ll get right on that!” he agreed, turning and running to the library.

No sooner had the dragon left and the Princess’ pain subside did their friends arrive. “Is everything okay?” Applejack queried as they surrounded the bed. “Ya sounded like you were in some serious pain, there!”

Twilight sat up, hyperventilating, and smiled at her friends. “I’m okay, really.” she said, putting her free hoof on Boltsinger’s trembling ones. “These contractions definitely hurt, but it’s nothing we haven’t expected.”

Boltsinger sighed, trying to calm himself. “The doctor said there would be pain, I know… but…”

“But nuthin’, sugarcube.” the farm mare interjected, putting a hoof on his shoulder. “That’s the whole reason ya called us over, ain’t it?”

Boltsinger took a calming breath, returning to his hooves. “Yup… That’s right!” he confirmed. “And I have jobs for each of you.”

“You name it, we’ll do it!” Rainbow chimed in, hovering above them.

Boltsinger nodded, flaring his wings. “Okay then… Ladies, come with me, and I’ll delegate your duties.”

Twilight reached for her spouse, putting her hoof on his flank. “Hey, are you sure you can handle this?”

Boltsinger looked back with a shaky smile. “Yeah! I’ve got this. You… You just feel better, okay?” He swished his tail, brushing the end against her muzzle as he walked forward.

“Wait a minute, you said ‘ladies’! What do you want me to do?” Discord wondered, speaking from no particular place.

“You, my mismatched friend, are entertainment!” Boltsinger declared. “As long as you don’t use any magic that directly targets her, you can do pretty much anything to keep her entertained.”

Discord appeared in a flash in front of the stallion, a devilish smirk forming above his singular fang. “Anything, you say?”

“Just… don’t go too crazy.” the orange Pegasus advised, turning his face stern. “And if I learn that any complications in this already-going-to-be-complicated birth come from you using chaos magic on Twilight and the foal, I will drop kick you in your squeedily spooch!”

Discord blinked a few times, not quite sure what the pony was talking about. “My squeedily what, now?” he wondered, scratching his head. “I’m not sure I even have one of those…”

Boltsinger reached his wing forward, grabbing the Draconequus by the beard and pulling him in close. “You will…” His face returned to normal as he let go, waving a farewell wing to Twilight as he turned to leave. “Okay, I’ll see you later!”

A full day had passed, and Twilight’s contractions hadn’t calmed down in the slightest. Boltsinger had given each of the mares fitting duties for this period, ensuring that everything was running as smoothly as his organizational skills could get it. Pinkie Pie had been put in charge of food. Anything Twilight might want to eat, Pinkie was to make, regardless of how weird it was. Applejack was working cleaning and maintenance. Her hard working skills were keeping everything in the castle working properly. She also made sure to have a wagon parked outside, just in case of an emergency. Rainbow Dash was to keep the skies as clear as possible. Boltsinger had reasoned, and Rainbow had agreed, that having the best possible weather was going to make the trip to the hospital that much faster, so she busted a great many clouds.

Rarity, Starlight, and Fluttershy sat with Twilight in her room, ensuring that she remain comfortable, and providing whatever support the could while the pain of contractions took hold, while Discord used his skills to yank the yuks from the purple pony Princess. In preparation, Starlight had looked up a great many spells to try and ease discomfort and stabilize her whenever her balance decided to leave her. Rarity did her best to beautify the room while she went about the general duties of caring for an ailing friend. Fluttershy’s tasks were mostly the same as Rarity’s, providing general care with a brilliant smile on her face. Boltsinger, with Spike in tow, rapidly ran between the other ponies, making sure everything was being handled. Once he finally did find himself idle, the nerves set in.

Boltsinger paced around the foyer, wracking his brain. “Let’s see… let’s see… She’s got all the food she could want, Discord is keeping her occupied… What am I missing? I know I’m missing something!” He walked over to a nearby pillar, banging his head against it. “Think! Think! Think! What are you missing?!”

“I think you might be missing a calmer second opinion.” A warm, maternal voice suggested. Boltsinger felt the assurance of an unusually large wing being placed on his back and shoulder. He raised his head from the pillar and looked at the source to see Princess Celestia smiling down at him. “Although, I understand why you’d be nervous.”

The stallion’s face brightened up considerably at the sight of the Princess. “Celestia!” He reached up, giving her the best hug he could, which she happily reciprocated. “Thank… uh… you… you’re here!”

Celestia softly squeezed him, feeling a trembling in him that put any nervous behavior he had before to shame. “With what’s coming up, there’s no place I’d rather be.” She loosened her grip, letting the Pegasus fall back to the floor. “How has Twilight been?”

The Sun Princess’ question was answered immediately by the pained screams of the mare in question. Boltsinger tensed up again, his wings flaring straight up as he spun around. “About as peachy as a pregnant pony with permeating pangs of perpetual pain can possibly be!” He pointed his wing toward the hall. “If you’ll excuse me…” He flapped his wings, leaving a faint discharge on the floor where he stood as he vanished into the castle.

Celestia let her composure go for a moment, looking back at the sister she had arrived with. “You don’t think she…?”

Luna stepped up to her elder sister, putting a hoof on her shoulder. “Go, sister. Your student needs you.”

“Thank you, Luna.” Celestia replied, placing her hoof on her sister’s. With that, her horn flared to life, and a bright yellow flash took her place. She appeared once more in the master bedroom, where, surprisingly, Boltsinger was already knelt on the floor beside the bed, holding one of the writhing Princess’ forehooves in both of his.

“You’re okay, right?” he asked, the tremble from before now evident in his voice. “This isn’t the big one, is it? Just… pain, right?”

Twilight’s squirming calmed down as Rarity and Starlight placed their hooves on her, their horns emitting their blue glow. The straining Alicorn opened her eyes, catching the ponies in the room in her gaze. She raised her hoof up to her husband’s cheek, showing him a weak smile. “I’m fine, honey… Really, I am.”

“Okay…” he replied with a weak smile of his own. “Okay… Just… keep me informed, all right?”

Fluttershy placed a reassuring hoof on his shoulder. “You’ll be the first to know.” she told him. She held a smile on her face as he directed his gaze at her, desperately trying to hide the quivering of his lower lip.

Boltsinger flapped his wings, pushing himself up and landing on his hooves. “Okay, then. I’m gonna… go… check on Rainbow Dash! See how she’s doing!” he announced, turning to the exit. “I’ll see you ladies later, okay?”

The mares all waved as the stallion took leave. Once he was gone and the door was shut, Twilight’s head fell back to the pillow. “He’s really not handling this well…”

“Actually, considering the circumstances, I think he’s doing pretty good.” Starlight argued. “Delegating tasks, checking on you whenever you might need… I mean, it’s obvious that he’s nervous, but he’s not breaking!”

Twilight, Fluttershy, and Celestia let out a simultaneous sigh. “You didn’t look into his eyes…” the Princess of Friendship reasoned.

“Or touch him.” Fluttershy added.

“Or see him take off once he heard his beloved cry out.” Celestia concluded. She approached the bed, placing her hoof on her former student. “How are you feeling, Twilight?”

Twilight sat up, resting on her elbows. “In pain… but I’ll manage. How are you?”

The white Alicorn raised a hoof to her mouth, hiding a small chortle. “I’m fine. Just worried about a dear friend.”

“I’m glad you’re here, Princess.” the lilac Alicorn stated. “I just wish you didn’t have to see me like this…”

Celestia brought her hooves forward, guiding her fellow Princess back to a laying position. “It’s better than not seeing you at all. Now, get some rest. Luna and I are going to be here for as long as we’re needed, so don’t worry about anything.”

Twilight gave a sleepy nod, yawning a little. “Okay… Thanks, Princess… I think I’ll do that.”

Evening had come, and Celestia returned from the balcony, her literal day’s work complete. She walked through the castle halls, admiring the brilliance of the castle while she thought upon the ponies that dwelled within. As she travelled through, she found herself trotting beside a freshly-landed Rainbow Dash. She smiled down at the Wonderbolt. “Hello, Rainbow Dash. Are you done with the weather for the day?”

Rainbow’s ears turned in the Princess’ direction, the rest of her head quickly following suit. “Oh, hey, Princess. Yeah, I was just gonna turn in for the night. Got another busy day, tomorrow!”

“Indeed.” she affirmed. “So, how was Boltsinger? Was he doing better this afternoon?”

Rainbow tilted her confused head. “Bolt? Haven’t seen him since this morning.”

Celestia’s head recoiled from the statement, not having expected such an answer. “That’s odd. He said he was going to check on you when I saw him last.”

The cyan mare shrugged. “Well, I guess he never made it. I’m sure he’s fine, though. He’s a tough pony when it counts.”

“I suppose that’s true…” she replied, looking back. “Well, good night, Rainbow Dash.” She stopped and waved her hoof, letting the Pegasus round the corner before she cantered back the way she came.

“Princess?” Fluttershy called out from above her. “What are you doing?”

Celestia skidded to a stop, putting her composure back on. “Oh! Fluttershy! I was just… well… I was…” She breathed a defeated sigh, hanging her head. “I’m looking for Boltsinger.”

“You, too?” the yellow mare wondered, landing in front of the Princess. “I’ve been worried about him ever since Twilight’s last contraction.”

The Sun Princess lifted her head up once more. “Have you, now?” Fluttershy let out a small, squeaky yelp, quickly hiding behind her mane and nodding. Celestia giggled, using her hoof to part the mare’s mane and look directly at her. “Well, then, how about we search for him together?”

Celestia and Fluttershy stepped through the door to the music room in the hopes that they might find their missing friend. As they crossed its threshold, they heard heavy, trembling breaths from the middle of the chamber. There he sat, slapping his own face repeatedly with his wings, his back to the door.

“Boltsinger?” Fluttershy started, taking slow steps towards the stallion. “Are you okay?”

Boltsinger’s ears twitched as he tensed up. He brought his forelegs up, wiping his face without bothering to turn around. “Yeah, I’m fine… Just fine…” He bobbed his head from side to side. “Fine, fine, fine…”

“Are you sure?” she queried, reaching ahead. “I know if I was in your situation, I certainly wouldn’t be fine.” Just before making contact, she retreated her hoof with a look of uncertainty. “I’m not even fine in my situation…” Her expression grew more determined as she reached for him again, her hoof making contact with his shoulder. “But Twilight needs us to be brave, so that’s what I’m doing!”

A sad weight fell upon the stallion’s breathing. “I know… but…” He turned his head to look at Fluttershy, the fur on his face still wet from the tears he had wiped away, with more of them threatening to burst out. “She’s in pain…” The threats were realized, and the water spilled forth from his eyes as his head sank. “She’s in so much pain and it’s all my fault…!”

Fluttershy’s hoof dropped. This was a sight she had never seen before. She had heard that Boltsinger had gotten emotional before, but nothing like this. He was sobbing relentlessly, repeating to himself that his Twilight was in such horrible pain because of him. “I know… I know how horrible it is to see somepony you love in pain…” She tried to continue with her point, but her own heart finally gave way. She turned him around and pulled him into a hug, joining in his cries.

Celestia stepped forward, wrapping her wings around the Pegasi. “I know full well how you feel, Boltsinger. It brings me no end of anguish to hear Twilight in the state she’s in. But I know that I must keep going. She needs all of us to be strong, especially you.”

The stallions sobbing subsided as he sniffed some of it away. “I know… But I’m weak… I’ve always been weak… I have to put in one hay of an act to even look like I can be as strong as you are…”

“So do I.” Celestia told him. Boltsinger and Fluttershy both shot the Princess of the Sun a wide-eyed look. “I can’t be proper and regal all the time, you know. And I worry, care, and hurt just as much as anypony else.” She tightened her grip. “Besides, at the end of all of the pain will come something truly special. We can’t let ourselves fall apart when such joy is just around the corner, now can we?”

“You’re right… When all is said and done… We’re gonna have a baby…” he told himself, turning the corners of his mouth up. “We’re going to have our own little foal, and that foal is gonna learn friendship’s magic from the best possible sources in all of Equestria! And from me!”

Celestia smiled, rolling her eyes and releasing the smaller ponies from her embrace. “So, can I count on you to pull through?”

Boltsinger made a deep inhale through his nose, held it for a moment, and let it out through his now-smiling mouth. “I think so. Thank you.” He pulled Fluttershy into another hug, squeezing tightly. “Both of you.”

After a loud popping noise, Discord managed to materialize above the ponies with a mocking smirk. “Aww… what a touching moment! If only I had a camera.”

Celestia directed her attention to the Draconequus, giving him a friendly smile.“Ah, Discord. Aren’t you supposed to be with Twilight?”

Discord snaked his way to the floor, landing in the middle of the group. “Yes, about that. I just thought I’d ‘pop’ in and let you know that Twilight’s water just broke.” He raised his lion paw, waving gingerly. “Toodles!” He walked towards the door, vanishing in a flash of white.

Author's Note

Eeyup. It's beginning.
Special thanks to DoctorMcCrimmon for input. Next part already has a large semblance of a plan, but it may take a while still. Enjoy!

New Beginnings

It was a calm evening in Ponyville. Many of the citizens filled the streets, either heading home from their jobs or just visiting friends as a thundering boom sounded from the edge of town. The nearby ponies jumped, looking at the Castle of Friendship. Barreling out the door and down the road was a wagon, pulled by Rainbow Dash and Applejack, with Spike, Starlight Glimmer, Fluttershy, Boltsinger, and the Princess of Friendship herself, Twilight Sparkle, inside. Twilight was breathing hard, practiced breaths with the Unicorn’s magic keeping her position in the wagon stable, making every effort she could to not pass out from the pain going through her at the time. Pinkie Pie and Rarity ran alongside the wagon, calling out for ponies to clear the way, while Princesses Celestia and Luna each flew above, creating magical walls just slightly ahead of them to guide them on their path.

“THE BABY IS COMING! THE BABY IS COMING!” Spike announced as they sped through town. “EVERYPONY MAKE WAY! THE BABY IS COMIIIING!”

“The baby?” a passing pony repeated, galloping after the wagon.

“Princess Twilight’s baby?” another pony guessed, looking to a shrugging friend nearby.

“It’s coming?!” one of the florists asked, looking at the other two. The three of them gasped with glee, fainting and falling to the ground.

In the wagon, Boltsinger sat behind Twilight, propping her up with his body and placing his hooves on her belly. “Okay… We can do this… We prepared for this! Just… breathe… Juuuuuust breathe…” He matched his breathing to Twilight’s, quick, calm, practical. Before long, they were at Ponyville General, slowly getting out of the wagon and heading inside and meeting up with the doctor.

“Boltsinger, you come with us.” Doctor Horse ordered, helping Twilight into the gurney. “Everypony else will have to stay in the waiting room. I’m afraid we can only allow family in with her.”

Celestia stepped forward and raised her hoof. “Excuse me, but I’m technically part of her family!”

Doctor Horse quickly shook his head, turning his patient to the door. “I’m sorry, Princess, you’re not immediate family, so I have to say no.”

Celestia hung her head. “I understand. Best of luck, Doctor!”

Boltsinger took to the air, keeping pace with the doctor and the nurses as they transported Twilight to a room. He kept his eyes glued to hers, his hooves on her cheeks the whole way. When they reached their destination, the room became a buzz of activity. Doctors and nurses scrambling about, Twilight being eased off of the gurney and into a resting position on the bed. Boltsinger could do little, save for backing off and letting them do their work. He searched for an opening that would let him near her as one of the nurses floated some scrubs onto him. When all was as calm as it would get, he rushed over to her, placing his hooves on hers.

“How are you feeling, honey?” he asked.

Her face was scrunched up with a combination of effort and pain. “I’m fine… Just…” She gave off a loud, straining grunt. “... peachy!”

Boltsinger gave his wife’s nose a quick nuzzle, then looked around the room. Doctor Horse, in scrubs and mask, was positioned behind her, ready to work. Boltsinger recoiled, returning his attention to the mare’s face. “Okay, the doctor is ready. You ready? I think I’m ready! Let’s make sure everypony is ready before we--”

Boltsinger’s mouth was clamped shut by Twilight’s magic as she glared at him. “The baby is ready, that’s all that matters!”

Boltsinger nodded as the medical staff began their work. For hours, Twilight strained, feeling as much agony as she did relief. The doctor’s instructions were calm and precise, telling her just what to do and when to do it. All the while, the only Pegasus in the room talked to his wife, giving her a point of focus while attempting to calm both of them down. They looked out of a nearby window, talking about all the lessons they were gonna teach the little foal just as soon as it was big enough. The sun began to rise in a shaky manner, prompting a nervous laugh as the stallion looked the mare in the eye once more.

“Just keep at it, honey! Everyone is here for you, so you just need to keep it going! Breathe… Breathe…” He repeated the word ad nauseam until Twilight’s wings came forward and slapped his muzzle.

“Breathe, Bolt!” She gave another push as instructed, letting out a small tear as Boltsinger followed her advice.

“I see the head!” Doctor Horse announced. “Just a little more, Princess!”

“You hear that? Not much longer!” Boltsinger stated, smiling wide. Twilight smiled back, then tensed, putting all of her effort into that one last push.

A little whinny carried through the room, followed by a cry. With that tiny voice, everything else fell silent. Twilight and Boltsinger’s eyes went wide, the little noise etching itself into their hearts. “Did you hear that?” Twilight asked. “It sounded like…”

“It’s a colt!” the doctor declared. After a minute, presumably to clean the foal, he came forward to the parents, a little bundle wrapped in cloth held safely in his foreleg. “Princess Twilight, Prince Boltsinger, I’d like to introduce you to your healthy baby colt.”

The cries grew louder still as a magenta aura wrapped around the bundle. Twilight floated it between herself and her husband, unfurling a part of the cloth to reveal a tiny dark orange pony with big violet eyes. He had a wild, straight purple mane with a jagged cyan stripe running through it, parting only slightly to make way for the horn that protruded from his forehead. The baby screamed as loudly as his little lungs could handle, and he reached upward, as if trying to touch something.

The ponies were speechless. In that moment, all they could feel was love. Instantaneous, unrelenting, and unconditional. There was nothing else in the world that mattered more. They didn’t care what life threw at them, they would do anything to protect and support this little foal.

“Hey, there, little guy…” Boltsinger finally said, reaching his wing forward and caressing the foal’s head. “I’m… I’m your daddy!”

Twilight leaned her head in, nuzzling the newborn with her nose. “And I’m your mommy…” She put her foreleg on Boltsinger’s neck, pulling him close. “And we’re going to teach you everything you’ll ever need to know, okay?” The foal’s cries finally calmed as he took a sleepy-eyed look at his parents, spreading his forelegs while the rest of the cloth fell away.

The waiting room was filled to capacity with friends and royalty as Celestia re-entered. Not long ago, she had to raise the sun as per usual, but it had been the least comfortable sunrise of her life. “Any news?” she asked.

Luna looked up at her, shaking her head. “I am afraid not, sister. I fear they may have trouble with the birth at this--”

Boltsinger burst through the door, speeding to the center of the room. “It’s a colt!” he announced, trotting in place and looking around with a frantic smile. The gathering cheered as Starlight held out her hoof. Pinkie gave off a mild pout, putting five bits in Starlight’s hoof. “And… it’s.. that is to say he’s.. an… an…” Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Starlight leaned in intently, their eyes pleading for the information. “... an Alicorn!”

“YES!” Pinkie shouted, pumping her foreleg and swiping back her bits. Applejack and Rainbow Dash shrugged, giving the bubbly mare five bits each. “I knew it would be an Alicorn!”

“Really?! You could have told me!” Boltsinger replied. He sat for a moment, letting the fact sink in. “I have a son… and he’s… an Alicorn…”

“Well it’s not like he didn’t have the genetics going for him!” a cocky tone chided from nowhere. Discord pulled his head out of the floor, roping his way upright and looking down at the orange stallion. He smiled wide, reaching down and giving him a hug. “Congratulations, panic pony! You’re a daddy, which means you have every reason to freak out over every little thing! Doesn’t that sound fun?”

“Better than a hundred Daring Do books!” Boltsinger declared, returning the hug. He quickly separated from the Draconequus, looking around at the group. “You wanna meet him?” After a resounding and cheerful ‘yes’ nearly knocked him against the wall, Boltsinger guided his friends through the hospital. “Now, keep in mind that Twilight’s in recovery, and the baby is still a bit sensitive.” He focused his attention between Pinkie Pie and Discord. “You’ll need to be quiet, okay?” Discord simply smiled and responded by delicately grasping his fang, using it like a zipper to seal his mouth shut.

“Better than a hundred Daring Do books, huh?” Rainbow repeated, flying up to land next to him. “Whatever happened to being terrified?”

“Oh, I’m more scared than ever!” he admitted, widening his grin. “I just can’t help but be excited, though! You’ll see what I mean when you meet him!”

Starlight trotted to his other side, looking curiously into all of the rooms they passed. “Have you picked out a name yet?”

“Nnope. We haven’t thought of anything that really sticks.” Boltsinger informed her. “It’s actually pretty hard to come up with something like that… Giving a pony a name they’ll go by their whole life. I don’t know how Twilight did it before.”

Applejack laughed, looking over at the dragon in the group. “I think it was probably pretty easy back then.” she reasoned, playfully flicking one of Spike’s spikes.

“Well, when you’ve got it, ya might as well show it off, right?” the dragon replied, running his claw over his spikes.

Boltsinger turned another corner, heading into a room that was filled with a baby’s crying. “Ladies, dragons, Discord…” Boltsinger started.

The group made their way into the room, where Twilight was resting in a hospital bed, a wide-winged bundle of a baby nestled in her forelegs. She smiled up at them, stroking the foal’s mane. “We’d like to introduce you to Equestria’s littlest Prince!” The baby yawned, spreading his wings wide to cover the width of the bed.

The teapot in Pinkie’s mind came to a boil as she threw herself upward. “CUTEST… BABY… EVER!!!” she proclaimed in a voice that half whisper and half yell.

Rarity looked between the parents with veritable stars in her eyes. “You two certainly have a glow about you. I have to say it’s absolutely beautiful!”

Twilight smiled softly, lighting her horn and lifting the baby so that everyone could get a closer look. Spike sat on the bed and scratched the foal on his chin, while Applejack gave him a quick nuzzle behind her hat. Rainbow Dash took a close look at the baby’s wings, talking to herself about how much she had planned for his flight lessons. Fluttershy was the first of the group to hold the baby, laughing to herself when he yanked on her mane. Rarity came forward and presented the foal with a pacifier that featured a fittingly-colored baby blue sapphire, which was quickly pulled away by Twilight. After an ecstatic Pinkie was pulled away, Celestia approached, taking the baby in her wing.

“I must say, I’m surprised to see a male Alicorn.” she stated, looking at her student. “But, I suppose he does come from excellent breeding.”

Boltsinger raised his wing, a spark of electricity coming out of one of his feathers. “And from me!’

“That’s what I said.” the Sun Princess affirmed, nuzzling the foal. “Excellent breeding.”

Boltsinger shrugged, taking hold of his son and smiling down at him. “To each their own, I guess.” He looked around the room one more time. “Anypony else want to hold him?”

“Um… actually…” Discord began, raising his lion paw. All eyes in the room fell upon the Draconequus, a sense of shock filling the room. “Would it be alright if I…?”

Boltsinger looked over at Twilight, who gave him a gentle, approving nod. “Well, I mean, you are here, and you are our friend, so…” He trotted over to the chaos creature, holding the baby up. “Just make sure you support his head. He hasn’t been using it very long.”

Discord grinned, scooping the young pony up in his furriest arm and bringing his face close. “Yes, of course!” He extended his eyeballs to examine the baby, noting a particular spark of electricity passing between it and himself. “Ooh! Well that explains the tingling! You know you really are a cute one, aren’t you?” The baby opened his eyes again, getting a solid look at the creature above him. At the sight of the strange-looking eyes and single fang, a large welling of tears began. “Um… Oh, this isn’t good…” the Draconequus looked around for some kind of support, finally bringing his talon up. “Baby want a rattle? Uncle Discord can get you one!” He snapped his claws, causing a Discord-shaped rattle to appear in a white flash.

It was too late. The cries had begun, and with them came a flash of magic from the foal. He rose up into the air, his horn alight with magic and electricity that shorted out the lights of the hospital. The wailing grew louder as the window shot open, the light of the morning seeping into the room and towards the foal’s horn. Within a minute, even the air around them was pitch black.

“DISCORD!” Twilight shouted, the sound of her flapping wings permeating the area. “What did you do?!”

“I promise you, I didn’t do anything!” he retorted. “He just started crying for no reason!”

“You sure ‘e wasn’t just scared o’ yer ugly mug?” Applejack suggested. “I know I’d be if I were a newborn!”

“As funny as that was, no blame right now!” Boltsinger commanded. “Where is the baby?!” All mouths in the room shut as their ears opened up. The crying had faded into the distance, a subtle breeze flowing into the room. Boltsinger followed the wind to its source, poking his hoof through the open window. “He’s… outside…” He leaned his head out, trying to find some hint of his newborn. “Uh… Celestia, it’s morning, right?”

“Of course.” she confirmed. “I just raised the sun not long ago. Why do you ask?”

“Because… um…” the stallion started, his voice turning shaky. “The sun... is… well… gone!”

Author's Note

So... this chapter has been... difficult to write. Not only is it really close to the end, obviously, but the emotions in it are really hard to convey. My only reference to the feeling Bolt and Twilight feel during... that moment... stem from a dream I had once, but every parent I know stated that my interpretation is pretty spot-on. It's also coming at a fairly hard time in my life, so I am a bit distracted. If I need to, I'll come back later and make some edits to this chapter to improve quality. As for the length, I don't think I really can make it longer. This is just about as long as I can make it without really overdoing it with the padding. I really hope you enjoy this chapter, as well as the next one. I'll be starting it as soon as I can.

One Bolt, Spreading Harmony

Blackness.

That was all anypony in Ponyville could see on this joyous day. The sun was black, the sky was black, even the light that shone from a Unicorn’s horn was quickly snuffed out. On the wind, they could hear a baby’s cry. Talk spread through town about the baby that was said to have been born, and many ponies wondered if, by chance, it was the source.

How right they were.

After some time fumbling through the hospital, Twilight and Boltsinger made it outside, their best friends following close behind alongside Discord and the Royal Sisters.

“My… You weren’t kidding when you said the sun was… gone!” Princess Celestia pointed out. She raised her foreleg over her eyes, trying to find a mote of light somewhere in the distance. “How in Equestria is he doing this?”

“I don’t know!” Twilight admitted, looking around in an attempt to see something beyond the color of pitch. She brought her horn to life, catching a glimpse of the ponies around her, but felt a tugging at her horn. She turned her head In the direction of the pull, finding her own magic to be yanked away from her in a way she swore she recognized. “I think… maybe he’s absorbing it! Or at least… somehow redirecting it!”

Boltsinger looked over at the magenta glow, watching it pull away from its owner. “Redirecting it? You mean like…?”

“Right, like when my magic shorted out all those times!” the lilac Alicorn confirmed. She turned to Discord, magic beginning to emanate from her horn. "And if you hadn't scared him, he wouldn't be up there, scared, alone, and crying!" She stomped over to the Draconequus, rising to her hind legs and pulling him down by the beard. "If something happens to my baby because of you, I promise that turning back into stone will be the most comfortable outcome!"

Discord's eyes grew visibly wider. "A-and what do you mean by that?"

"Do you know what happened to the Storm King?" She asked.

"Can't say I do..." the chaos spirit fibbed. Twilight lifted a rock with her wing, encasing it with her magic. She scrunched her face for an instant, and with that, the rock was powder.

"Twilight, stop!" Boltsinger called, racing to his wife and putting his trembling hoof on her shoulder. She looked at him through the dimming light of her horn, releasing Discord's beard. His face was awash with distress, sweat and tears rolling indistinguishably down his face as he stared into her eyes. "I know how you feel, believe me, I do. But this isn't the time to be pointing hooves! We need to get up there and save our son, no matter what!"

Twilight took a moment to gather her emotions, dropping back to all fours. She brought her hoof to her heart with a deep inhale, extending her foreleg as she exhaled. "You're right. It's not important how it started..." She turned around to look back in the direction her magic had been pulled, the calmness she had forced quickly fading once more. "We need to get our baby back..."

Discord put his paw up over his eyes, letting out a sigh. “Well, I guess since this whole thing is my fault, you want me to fix it, yes?”

Boltsinger shrugged, giving the chimera like creature a shaky smirk. “Your magic is pretty handy. If you want to get our baby back for us, I see no reason to not let you.”

Discord smirked back, giving off a dishonest huff. “Oh, fine, I’ll do it! You don’t have to be such a nag, you know!” He raised his eagle talon, snapping his claws to appear atop a winged elephant. “Discord, away!!!” The elephant took off at a speed that seemed unreal for such a large creature, speeding towards the center of town.

“Does he remember what happened the last time he got close to something that can suck out magic?” Starlight asked, raising a hoof to her ear. “Three… two… one…” CRASH. Discord could be heard in the middle of town, groaning in pain. “I guess he didn’t.”

“So even Discord’s magic gets sucked in if it gets too close… How do we help him… how do we help him?!” She stewed for a moment, coming up with as many solutions as she could. “Bolt… I know this is sudden, but I think you might be able to get to him!”

Boltsinger flared his wings, the lightning within sparking to life in an instant. “Already on it, dear!” the blue glow the lightning created lit up a small area around him. He hunched over, his Cutie Mark crackling like mad as he lifted off. “DADDY’S COMING, LITTLE GUY!

Twilight and her friends looked on at the lightning bolt that was Boltsinger, barreling towards the one speck of light that flew above the town. As he drew closer, his speed began to decrease. The lightning continued to move to the baby, but the blackness only grew deeper. In the distance, they heard a loud crash, eliciting a gasp from the gathered mares. Twilight looked around, igniting her horn one more time. “Everypony, get close!” she directed, waving them to her. Once she confirmed they were all close by, she turned to Celestia. “Princess Celestia, do you think you could manage a teleportation spell to take us all to Bolt? I don’t want to risk running through town like this!”

Celestia nodded, bringing her horn to life. “I believe so.” She turned her attention to Luna. “Sister, would you be able to help me with this?”

Luna lit her horn, adding to the glow around them. “Of course, sister.” she brought her horn forward, making contact with her sister’s. “Everypony, put your hoof on the pony next to you! We do not want to lose one another in this darkness!” The ponies did as directed, soon finding themselves in a blue and yellow flash that landed them next to the castle. Near the door, they heard a familiar groan.

“Okay, so… my lightning just gets absorbed, too! Good to know!” Boltsinger said, shaking his head as he rose up. He looked back at the mote of light, letting his composure fall away. “I promise you, I’ll get to you and bring you home…”

“Bolt! Are you okay?” Twilight asked, nearly bumping into him as her gallop came to a halt. She found his face with her hoof, bringing her head close. “Did you see him?”

“I did.” he confirmed. “He’s scared, Twilight. Scared and alone… My lightning couldn’t get me up there…” He turned to the wall, punching it as hard as he could with his foreleg. “Right when I need them to do their thing, these stupid wings aren’t good enough!”

Twilight reached forward and put her hoof on Boltsinger’s, looking him in the eye. “You know that’s not true! We just need to find a solution!”

“What kind of solution will work?” he wondered, retreating his hoof. “He’s pulling in every kind of magic he can! It wasn’t just my lightning that stopped working, but my wings couldn’t keep me in the air anymore! Not to mention what he did to Discord!”

“So he even took your innate Pegasus magic?” Twilight inquired. Boltsinger nodded, looking back to the speck that was his son.

“The ability to take magic on that level… I haven’t seen something like that since Tirek!” Celestia reasoned. “Can you fly again now?”

“I can, but if I get too close, he just sucks it all up again.” he informed her. “I don’t think we can get to him through normal means…”

“Well if normal means won’t work, what if we used something different?” Fluttershy suggested. “There has to be something we can do.”

“Well, there’s the Elements of Harmony, but those are with the Tree.” Twilight stated. She brought a contemplative hoof to her muzzle. “I doubt we could get through the forest unscathed with darkness like this… But we need that kind of power!” She huddled up to her friends, discussing different strategies and possible methods.

Boltsinger trudged his way along the wall, finding himself at the door. He sat on the steps, looking up at his newborn foal. “No lightning, no Elements… What the hay are we supposed to do? It’s not like we have some always-available super powerful magical solution!” As if to retort, a pulse of light came from behind the door. “No, that sounds wrong…” he stated as his wings began to stiffen. The light pulsed again, a faint magenta glow beginning to shine from his pendant. “What do you mean, ‘Rainbow Light’?” Another pulse came, prompting a magenta discharge to surge from his wings. “I get it… Yeah! That’s it!” The stallion peeked behind him, seeing a slit of light under the door. “Twilight! Girls! Come here! I know what to do!”

Twilight brought her head out of the huddle, looking over at the sparking stallion. “What is it?” she asked, breaking the formation to face him. “Wait a minute… are you…?” She paid special attention to his wings, noting the color of the discharge. She waved her friends and teachers along, cantering to her spouse. “Okay, so what do we do?”

“Follow the light!” he directed, giving the front door a buck. It swung open, booming as it hit the wall. Inside the castle was a pulsing light that refused to ebb. They entered the gargantuan crystal structure, which lit up further with their hoofsteps, and made their way to the source of the light. Boltsinger took a single flapping leap over them, coming to a stop in front of the throne room, where the door had opened itself and revealed a fiercely glowing map. “Princess, you said yourself that you haven't seen something like what the baby is doing since Tirek, right?”

Celestia nodded, stepping forward and investigating the map. “Yes, but I’m not sure what that has to do with the map.”

“Well, how did you all defeat Tirek?” he asked.

“Oh! I remember!” Pinkie cried out, rushing to the map. “First, Twilight took in the magic of all the other Alicorn Princesses after Discord betrayed everypony! Then when Tirek found out that Twilight existed, he captured all of us and stole our magic! Then Twilight and Tirek had a BIG magic fight that looked like it was straight out of a story book that destroyed the library she was living in, and then he said…” She swept her hoof through her mane, appearing with a white mane and beard. “‘WE ARE AT AN IMPASSE! GIVE ME YOUR MAGIC AND YOU GET YOUR FRIENDS!!!’” She shook her head, appearing normal once more. “And so she did! And we all went free and Discord saw that friendship is magic and we put Twilight’s key in the chest and grew these super long colorful manes that let us shoot a big friendship laser at Tirek and give Equestria its magic back!” She took a deep inhale, making ready to speak more. “And then--" Boltsinger’s hoof found its mark over Pinkie’s mouth, where she continued rambling in a muffled voice.

“So… what if you used the same thing you used to defeat Tirek?” he suggested.

Twilight shook her head. “But we don’t have the chest anymore. It--”

Boltsinger removed his hoof from Pinkie’s muzzle. “--the chest dug into the ground outside of Ponyville and this whole castle we’re standing in grew out of it where the map--" The discharging Pegasus replaced his hoof, pointing his wing at the glowing map.

“Call me crazy, but I've just started hearing this voice in my head telling me to use the ‘Rainbow Light’.” he explained. “At first, I didn’t know what it meant, but then I remembered that we needed the most powerful magic there is, friendship! It’s the only kind of magic that can’t be stolen away, and you six can channel that like… well… I channel all of you!”

“And if we don't have the Elements…” Twilight started, looking around at the thrones. “I get it now! Everypony, to your throne!” She jumped over her husband, taking a seat in her throne, her best friends quickly following suit. As each mare landed, the Cutie Mark on their respective thrones flew off, encircling the image of Ponyville on the map. “I knew it! Everypony, touch the map on my mark!” She raised her hoof. “Ready… Now!” The six of them reached forward, placing their hooves on the edge of the map in the same manner as their respective keys so many years ago. In response to their touch, a rainbow light exploded out of the map, wrapping itself around each of them. Boltsinger sat back in awe as his favorite ponies were all transformed by the magic. Their manes grew longer, taking on colors, accessories, and shapes that complemented their natural styles, with additional marks accentuating their hooves and Cutie Marks and added color coming to wings of Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Twilight. They floated in a circle above the map, the light of friendship surrounding them.

“Absolutely beautiful…” Boltsinger stated, staring adoringly at his wife and their best friends. “But… will it work? It doesn’t feel like enough…”

“Let’s find out!” Twilight declared, shooting out the door. The other Element-bearers cheered, following suit at full speed. Starlight, Boltsinger, and the Royal Sisters galloped after them, the stallion’s wings still alight with magenta lightning.

“Okay, so they’ve done the big friendship transformation… But I’m confused.” Starlight admitted as they raced through the foyer. “Is that what your channeling was meant to do?”

“Um… Wait, I’m channeling right now?” Boltsinger wondered, looking back at his wings. The lightning surrounding them sparked out at him, as if to remind him it was there. “Hm. Apparently I’m channeling! Never had this color before. Which do you think it is?”

“Seriously? That should be obvious.” she deadpanned, tilting her head to the flying ponies ahead of them.

Boltsinger’s head reeled back for a moment as the realization struck him. “Ah. Twilight.”

“Eeeyah.” Starlight droned. “Anyway, is that whole friendship magic thing what you were meant to do with it? Or is there something more?”

“I’m not sure.” he told her, looking ahead again. “Normally, I do what I’m supposed to, then the magic ends and I pass out, so… I’m guessing I’m not done.”

As they made it outside, the light of the mares’ transformation shined bright, not giving way to the blackness around them despite the baby’s cries. Twilight flew ahead of the group, coming to a hover in front of her son. “Hey… shhhhh… Don’t cry, little one.” she softly said, inching closer. “Don’t be scared… Mommy’s here with you…” She extended her forelegs out to the foal, attempting to take hold of him. “Come here…” The baby’s cries continued, his horn letting out a spark of lightning that pushed the powered-up Princess away. She reeled back at the shock, turning to face her friends. “He’s not listening!” She took a tentative look back at the foal, getting as close as the lightning would allow. “Mommy will be right back, sweetie. I promise!” She returned to her friends, her face fraught with concern. “I don’t know what to do… He’s not listening, and when I try to get close, his lightning just pushes me back!”

“Couldn’t we use this power of ours on him?” Rarity mused, looking at her hooves. “We’ve gone to the trouble of transforming, it only makes sense that we use the power we’ve been given!”

“Yeah! Let’s fire one of those friendship lasers and get rid of this darkness!” Rainbow added, pumping her foreleg enthusiastically.

Twilight brought her hoof to her chin, pondering on the idea. “I don’t think I’m comfortable firing any kind of laser at my newborn son…”

“Then how about firing it at me?” Boltsinger suggested from below. The mares all turned to face him, each of them looking utterly flabbergasted by the idea as he smiled up at them. “No, seriously, fire it at me!”

“WHAT?!” Twilight shouted, descending to the ground and trotting up to him. “That’s just as bad! Who knows what that kind of magic would do to you!”

“Wouldn't you know?” he retorted, stepping closer. “The way I see it, you six have control over just what your big friendship magic laser does every time. So, why not take advantage of that?”

“But… I…” Twilight started, putting a hoof on his cheek. “I don’t want to hurt you…”

“I know…” he replied, putting his hoof on hers. “But for our son, it’s worth the risk.”

Twilight looked back at the foal in the black sky above them, her worry only increasing. “Well…” She looked back into her favorite stallion’s eyes, seeing in them a determination she had never seen before. “... Okay…” She leaned in, giving him a solid kiss on the lips before flapping her wings once more. “I hope you’re right!” She returned to the gathering of her friends in the air, facing her husband in earnest. “Okay, girls, let’s try his idea. Use the magic on Boltsinger, but focus on something that will help the baby!”

“Right!” the five mares responded in unison, facing their friend below. They all closed their eyes, concentrating the power within. Around the group, a rainbow aura began to form, quickly starting to spin and expand. The mares opened their eyes, all glowing a pure white as a white bean flew out, surrounded by the rainbow aura, rocketing towards Boltsinger. As the blast hit its mark, The rainbow surrounded the stallion, lifting him into the air in a manner reminiscent of the other six.

When the rainbow dissipated, Boltsinger emerged, floating in place without the use of his wings. Said wings had nearly doubled in size, a light blue leading to a darker shade on the tips of his feathers, while lightning bolts of the same colors coiled around his hooves. His mane and tail had similarly grown, reaching twice their original length with a jagged yellow stripe running through the middle of each, sparks of electricity discharging from them almost constantly. His Cutie Mark, while unchanged, was now accentuated by a number of musical notes that looked to be formed from the same kind of lightning as the microphone’s cord, all of it moving and crackling around wildly. He shot up into the air, leaving a trail of electricity behind him as he approached the mares. “WOW!” he exclaimed, shaking his head rapidly. “What just happened?!”

Twilight and her friends looked at the supercharged stallion in shock, their mouths hanging open. “I think you just transformed... “ Twilight said, getting an agreeing nod from the other Element-bearers. “But… how?”

Boltsinger brought his wings forward, making grasping motions with his feathers. “I… have no idea. But I do know one thing…” He gave his friends a wide smile, a spark of lightning gleaming in his eye as he swept his wings in different directions. With each swipe, a trail of electricity followed, finally ending in a dramatic flare that shot lightning out six different ways. “I have complete control over my lightning in this state!” He looked up at the crying baby above them, softening his expression as the metaphorical lightning hit. “And I… I think I may know what to do… Follow my lead, ladies.”

Boltsinger flapped his wings, slowly moving closer to his foal. Twilight quickly followed suit, the parents taking a position on either side of him while their five friends made a circle around them. Boltsinger’s flaps continued, creating a familiar breeze throughout the town as he opened his mouth.

“~Slee-eep, sleep, my love, my only…
Deep, deep, in the dunge, and the dark…
Be not afraid, and be_ not lonely
For this is the hour… when frogs in the brush…
Praise the world from the woods and the rush…
Rest from caring, my love, my only…
Dee-e-eep, deep, in the dunge, and the dark…~”

Over the course of the lullaby, the orange stallion and his royal wife closed the distance between themselves and the littlest Prince. The verse repeated itself, joined in harmony by the six mares as the foal lashed out with his lightning again, only for the shocks to be absorbed by his father. The lullaby kept going, the parents making contact with the baby and bringing him into an embrace. At the contact, his cries finally began to fade. By the end of the third verse, his eyelids felt heavy, and the family had begun their descent.

From below, Starlight, Celestia, and Luna stepped forward. They looked up at the descending ponies, smiles widening as the blackness began to give way to the sun’s warmth. “It’s working! Oh, thank Celestia! It’s working!” Starlight exclaimed. She heard the clearing of a throat behind her, causing her to tense up and look at the source. “Oh, you know what I mean!”

“I think it may be more appropriate to say ‘Thank Twilight’ in this case.” Celestia suggested, giving her former pupil a proud smile. Starlight beamed, nodding up at the Princess of Friendship.

The descent came to an end along with the lullaby, the light having returned to the world. The baby let out a sleepy yawn, nestling himself into his parents’ outstretched wings. They both leaned in and gave the foal a kiss on each cheek, the magic that transformed them finally fading away and returning the ponies to normal.

“Mommy and Daddy love you very much, little one…” Twilight told the baby, caressing his head with her hoof. “Never forget that…”

Boltsinger looked up from the newborn, giving his wife a smile. “So… home?”

Twilight nodded, rising to her hooves with her son in her wings. “Home.”

The next morning, Twilight, Spike, Boltsinger, Celestia, Luna, and Starlight sat in the throne room, the baby cradled in the lilac Princess’ wings. The previous day’s chaos had taken its toll, and the hospital’s discharge procedure had not made it any easier on them. But, at last, they were home and ready to start their new chapter together.

“So, after all of that, are you still not sure about the baby’s name?” Starlight inquired.

“Actually, I’ve thought of something that I think might fit.” Twilight informed them.

“Oh? And what sort of name might you give the foal?” Luna wondered, looking curiously at the mare.

“I was thinking… Nova.” she said, looking lovingly at her baby.

“Nova?” the Sun Princess repeated, getting up and trotting over to the couple. “And why would you give him that name?”

“Because, when a star, like the sun, goes out and reaches the end of its life, it’s called ‘going nova’.” the Princess of Friendship clarified, creating an image of a star that expanded outwards, then faded away entirely with her magic. “And, considering the first big thing he did in his life was blacken the sun, it feels right that he has a name that reflects that!” She looked around the room. “What do you think?”

Boltsinger put his hoof on Twilight’s back, sitting on the arm of her throne. “I think it’s perfect.” He reached his wing forward, running it through the foal’s mane. “Don’t you think so, too, Nova?” The smallest pony in the room giggled, taking his father’s feather in his forelegs and sticking it in his mouth. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

Celestia smiled, reaching over and tickling Nova with her hoof. He let out another laugh, refusing to let go of the wing he held. “I think it’s a lovely name.”

After a few minutes, Nova gave off a small yawn, smacking his lips as his eyes closed. The grown ponies took the opportunity to move from their spots, taking him through the castle and into the nursery. They laid him down in his bed, slowly rocking him back and forth. He opened his eyes halfway as he heard the sound of the door closing, taking in the sights of the room. All around him, he saw apples, balloons, butterflies, jewels, rainbows, and stars. They reminded him of the ponies he had met, all willing to come to him and soothe him when he was scared, no matter how much he lashed out. The biggest star made him think of his mommy. If there was one pony he knew at a glance, it was most certainly her.

The roof of the room held another interesting image. All around it, he could see bolts of lightning, spiraling, coiling, and forming occasional musical notes. They reminded him of his daddy. He seemed a little strange, but he was funny, and he was the first one to start singing that song he liked. As he remembered the song, sleepiness began to set in again. He happily gave into its demands, drifting off to dreams of lightning, music, and stars.

Author's Note

EDIT: I felt like I didn't capture all of the emotions running through them well enough on my initial publishing of this, so I went and added something to drive it home. I hope it's not too much!

That's right, folks. That's it.
Season 2 is officially over. The end of a season going along with the end of an era in my own life. Kinda ironic.

To all of you who have read my work so far, all of you who look forward to my future work, and all of you who can relate to my little story, I give my utmost and heartfelt thanks. I can assure you, without a doubt, that there is going to be more. I have much more planned for Boltsinger, and it'll not only be incorporating the events of season 8 so far, but also the little guy you were just introduced to!
But, I will say, season 3, "One Bolt, Spreading Harmony", won't be coming for a little while. Why? Oh, you'll find out soon. I promise you'll like the reason!

Prologue: Reunion

In the town of Vanhoover, an orange Pegasus stallion sat in front of a pair of headstones. His mane and long tail were a wind-blown blue with an electric blue strewn throughout. His Cutie Mark was a black microphone with a streak of lightning coiling itself around the device. He wore a white crystal pendant in the shape of a lightning bolt, adorned with topaz cut to look like an electrical discharge. He looked at the headstones through his purple eyes, a hint of sadness showing itself. Behind him sat another Pegasus stallion with brown eyes, a bright yellow coat, a dirt brown mane and tail with a short cut, and a Cutie Mark of a brightly lit light bulb. The orange pony was looking hard at the headstones, trying to bring forth a smile.

“I can’t believe I’m actually back here…” he began, looking around at the place in which he found himself. “A year and a half ago, I wouldn’t have even been strong enough to look at this town on a map, let alone actually pay it a visit. But, a lot can change, huh?” He laid on his stomach, crossing his forelegs. “Mom… Dad… It’s me, Boltsinger. Sorry I haven’t been able to come see you. I didn’t even know you were… um… in this state… ‘till a few months ago. You two are gonna love this… I got married! And you won’t believe just who it was I married!” He spread his wings in glee. “Princess Twilight Sparkle! Wait… You probably have no idea who that is…” He scratched his mane sheepishly with one of his wings, lowering his head. “You did pass out before she was even an Alicorn… But, yeah! I married a Princess! I thought you might appreciate that. But… The fact that she’s a Princess is just a perk in the end. She’s really just the best darn mare in the world. I think you would like her. She has a knack for bringing ponies together, even after a big rift tears them apart.” he looked back at the stallion accompanying him. “Right, Brightling?”

“Definitely.” the yellow pony replied, standing up. “Listen, I’ve gotta get back home. Sparks has been having trouble handling Oathsinger alone for long periods. I’ll see you later, little brother!” He received a farewell wave from his brother, galloping off towards home.

Boltsinger turned his attention back to the headstones, breathing a sigh. “You know that thing that happened when I got my Cutie Mark? The thing that… lead to your current state? Well, it’s done a lot more good since then.” He fluttered his wings in place, swallowing a lump in his throat. “Every time that lightning comes out, it means that somepony somewhere needs help. Then I take off like a Wonderbolt with a sugar rush, not stopping until I get there. Then when I meet the pony that needs my help, I’m always the one with the skills to help them! I’ve helped a lot of ponies over the years, and with all that Twilight has taught me, I’ve only improved at that.” He laughed to himself, sitting up. “And then there’s all the friends I’ve made besides her!” He went into a lengthy description of all of his best friends, practically introducing Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, Starlight Glimmer, and Spike. He went on for so long about all of his favorite ponies that he nearly forgot that time even existed. The hour of twilight fell upon him, casting an orange light on the orange stallion. He looked once more at the headstones, finally coming to the end of his veritable rant. “I’m… I’m really sorry about what happened... “ he snorted up a sizable sob, wiping his eyes with his hoof. “Everypony keeps telling me that what happened was beyond anyone’s control, but… that doesn’t stop me from feeling responsible sometimes. I know that you don’t blame me. It was never in your nature, after all. I want you to know that you don’t need to worry about me. I’ll be fine. I’ve got the magic of friendship on my side, after all!” He slapped his muzzle with both wings in an attempt to calm himself, standing up. “Well, Brightling’s not the only one with a wife who needs him. I’ve gotta get home, myself.” He bowed his head respectfully, proceeding to turn around. He flapped his wings, taking to the air towards the town proper.

Boltsinger came to a landing in front of a house in the residential district of Vanhoover, taking a nostalgic look at the place. He stepped through the front door, where Brightling ran by with a crying white Unicorn colt in his wing. The baby had hazel eyes and a black mane and tail, and his horn was lit with a hazel light that floated a number of household items behind his father, moving almost as fast as the stallion himself.

The younger brother raised a hoof, looking at the yellow pony as he ran. “You… need any help?”

“I’ve got this!” Brightling answered, panting. “You should get packed and head home! Twilight needs you, you know.”

Boltsinger chuckled, looking at the frantic scene that was his brother’s fatherly antics. “Kinda makes me glad I don’t have a foal… Looks like you’ve got your work cut out for you!”

“This is coming from somepony who has a natural affinity for taking care of Princess Flurry Heart?” Brightling argued, looking back at him.

“Flurry is a toddler. And I mostly just play with her.” he explained, gathering some apples into his food bag. “The way she treats meals is a lot like playing as well. Plus she’s past her ‘baby magic’ phase.”

“Just you wait, little brother. You’ll be in my shoes before long.” the yellow stallion warned, placing his foal on the changing station and getting to his work.

Boltsinger laughed, patting his brother’s back. “Don’t work yourself too hard, big brother.” He turned to the exit, waving a wing farewell. “I’ll tell Twilight you said ‘hi’!”

He exited the house, walking out into the road. “Okay… Let’s give this a shot…” He hunched over, flaring his wings. Twilight needs you… She always needs you! And what happens when somepony needs you, Bolt? He felt a familiar jolt and tingling in his wings, a spark appearing in his eyes. That’s right…! Blue streaks of electricity began to discharge from his wings, his Cutie Mark’s lightning crackling and whipping around everywhere. He took off, leaving behind a streak of orange with a blue lightning bolt inside along with a booming thunderclap.

Author's Note

I felt that this part was more fitting by itself as a prologue than the "chapter 1" it led into. Otherwise it might have run on too long! And now, the story begins anew! Enjoy!

How Does A Filly Learn To Fly?

On a private, secluded part of Sweet Apple Acres stood a clubhouse with hearts decorating the windowsills situated on one of the many apple trees. Boltsinger stood before the entrance to the building. From inside, he heard the voices of a certain three fillies he knew talking about their various activities they had planned. He brought his wings forward, slapping his muzzle on either side and taking a deep breath. He reached a hoof forward, quickly rapping on the door. It opened wide, revealing the fillies in question. One was a yellow Earth Pony with a bright poofy red mane and tail and bright orange eyes, a pink hair bow placed neatly on the back of her head. The next was a darker orange Pegasus with a wild dark pink mane and tail and purple eyes. The last of the three was a white Unicorn with a pink and purple mane and tail that curled at every possible end with bright green eyes. Their Cutie Marks all featured a shield emblem of three colors ranging from hot pink to a lighter pink to a violet, with each individual mark featuring a personal emblem in purple and pink. The Earth Pony’s emblem was an apple with a heart inside of it, while the Pegasus had a feather with a lightning bolt inside, and the Unicorn displayed a star with a music note inside of it. The fillies looked up at the orange stallion at their door, smiling.

“Howdy, Bolt!” the Earth Pony greeted, trotting up to him. “Welcome to the Cutie Mark Crusaders clubhouse!”

“Hello, Apple Bloom!” he responded, turning to the other fillies. “Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, how do you do?”

Sweetie Belle, the Unicorn, performed a welcoming bow. “Just fine, thank you.” she said, floating the clipboard in front of her over to the side of the clubhouse.

Scootaloo raised a hoof. “I’m alright. What brings you over here?”

Boltsinger looked confidently at the little ponies gathered around. “So, Twilight and I have come to a bit of a lull in the research on my Cutie Mark.” he began. “We talked it over, and we decided we’re going to need some help to further things along. In particular, we need the help of some… Cutie Mark experts.” the fillies’ faces lit up, Scootaloo’s wings abuzz. “So, we agreed to go to the most knowledgeable ponies we know on the subject! I guess the best way to put it is like this…” he cleared his throat, flaring his wings and standing as regally as he could. “Cutie Mark Crusaders! We need your help!” He belted out, nearly shaking the clubhouse with his volume.

Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle jumped into the air, screaming with delight. The Pegasus filly’s wings fluttered the entire time, keeping her airborne for several seconds before she hit the floor, catching the attention of the older pony. Apple Bloom sped over to Boltsinger, her eyes wide and shining. “So, when do we start?”

The stallion’s Princely facade fell away as he chuckled. “Twilight told me to tell you that we’ll be doing this three days a week, after you’ve taken care of other clients. My Cutie Mark isn’t really an issue, so be sure to keep putting those blank flanks and troubled ponies first! Got it?”

The Crusaders each raised their right forelegs in salute. “Yes, sir!” they simultaneously exclaimed, quickly loosening up into excited laughter.

The next day, Boltsinger and Twilight waited at the front door to the Castle, Soarin hovering above them. The two stallions were deeply engaged in a conversation. It had started with how he might loosen up when approaching a certain blue-coated Wonderbolt they all knew, but the topic had shifted to something more in line with what they were about to do.

“So, that’s my idea.” Boltsinger finished, seeing Soarin rub his muzzle in contemplation. “What do you think? Can you help me out?”

Soarin looked at the arriving fillies, pondering a little more. “I think I see what you’re getting at. Let’s see what we’re working with!”

The Cutie Mark Crusaders stood before the adult ponies at the castle, different looks of excitement all around. Apple Bloom was the first to speak up. “Okay, we’re here as requested!”

Scootaloo stepped forward next. “What’s up first?”

Twilight floated a book over to the fillies that showed an image of Boltsinger’s Cutie Mark on the cover. “Well, now that we have more eyes and hooves involved, we’ll be doing two things at once today!” She directed her attention to Sweetie Belle. “Sweetie Belle, I’m going to need your help in the library.” the smaller Unicorn nodded in understanding.

Boltsinger stepped in front of the younger Pegasus. “Scootaloo, you’re gonna be coming with Soarin and I. We’ll be conducting a controlled experiment, and I need another set of eyes to observe how my Cutie Mark reacts under the conditions we set up. And there’s one facet of the experiment you may enjoy, what with how much of a kick you get out of going fast. Although I can’t go quite as fast as Rainbow can.”

Scootaloo smiled, buzzing her wings some more. “You can count on me!”

The couple turned to Apple Bloom, the Princess speaking up once more. “And Apple Bloom, until we all get together again, I need you to be the intermediary between the two groups.”

Apple Bloom looked between them all, looking confused. “I can do that, but, why not have Scootaloo do that job? I reckon she can do it a sight better ‘n I ever could, seein' as she’s got that scooter o’ hers!”

“You make a good point, Apple Bloom,” Boltsinger affirmed. “But I need somepony with me who can handle really high speeds. Scootaloo is already used to going fast for the exact reason you just mentioned, so she’s the most likely to keep her cool and observe what she needs to when the time comes.”

The young farm pony took a look at her winged friend, then back at the older Pegasus. “I get the idea! Okay! Y’all have a good experiment, ‘kay?”

Scootaloo jumped up again, hovering for a few moments. “We sure will!”

“Okay, then, let’s get started!” Twilight decreed, rearing up excitedly with her wings spread. She turned to enter the castle, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle following close behind.

Boltsinger turned towards town, readying his wings for takeoff with Soarin beside him. The two looked back at Scootaloo, who was standing on her scooter, her helmet on and her face determined. She began flapping her wings rapidly, reminding Boltsinger of how he used to propel himself when he was younger. “We’re headed pretty far. You sure you can keep up, Scoot?”

“Just watch me!” she replied. With that, she kicked her hind leg on the ground, increasing the speed of her wings as she took off down the street, leaving clouds of dust behind her. Soarin looked at the little Pegasus as she went, showing a hint of surprise in his eyes.

“I told you she’s good.” the orange stallion said, hunching over. “Come on! Unless the elite Wonderbolt wants to get outrun by a filly!” He flapped his wings hard enough to create a small gale, taking off after the young pony.

Soarin’s head recoiled, thinking on what his friend had just said. He lifted off effortlessly, taking mere seconds to overtake the other two. He kept a close eye on Scootaloo as she sped through the streets, performing a number of tricks at every opportunity. “Pretty good for a filly who can’t fly…” he whispered to himself, putting a hoof to his muzzle. The filly’s maneuvers grew more advanced the farther they all went, despite the bustle and obstacles of the town growing farther away. Eventually, they reached a cliff that looked high over Ponyville, the Castle of Friendship beginning to be obstructed by the horizon. Soarin landed first, looking at the view in awe as Boltsinger and Scootaloo caught up. “Wow… Ponyville sure is pretty!”

“You’re only just now realizing that?” Boltsinger queried, landing next to him. “Haven’t you been coming here for a long time?”

Soarin shook his head. “No, I’ve never really been in town for very long.”

“So, you’ve only ever seen Rainbow at the compound?”

“And some other places. But never really in Ponyville until… Well, you were there when that happened.”

Boltsinger snickered. “Yeah, that certainly was interesting.” He looked out at the town with a smile, the wind gently blowing through the stallions’ manes. “Well, I’m glad you like it here, ‘cause chances are that if you succeed in your endeavors with my flight coach, you’ll be living in this town before too long.”

Scootaloo blew a raspberry behind them, causing Soarin to jump and turn around. “Bor-ing!” she started, taking off her helmet. “Since when do even full-grown stallions get all sappy like that?”

Boltsinger laughed, turning around and approaching the filly. “Since this one had some of the most touchy-feely mares in all of Equestria show him what friendship was.” he informed her. “So, you ready to do this?”

“Of course! What do you need me to do?” she replied, taking a look around. “I don’t see any equipment or anything. What’s my job?”

The blue-maned pony smirked, motioning to his back with his wing. “You need to hop on, hold on, and pay close attention to my Cutie Mark relative to how my wings behave.” He made a twinkling motion with his feathers. “I have a trick that lets me ‘activate’ my wings based on the fact that I now have somepony, namely Twilight, that always has need of me. It’s something I still need a little practice with, but if I can get it down, I can get home from any of my ‘flights’ with no trouble at all!”

Scootaloo nodded with only an inkling of understanding. “Okay, but how does this relate to your Cutie Mark?”

“Well, when my wings ‘activate’ and I go on a flight, as well as the entirety of the time that I’m actually doing the job I came to do, my Cutie Mark is doing the crackling thing, according to the ponies that have seen me in that state.” he continued. “So, what you’re going to be doing is seeing just how quickly it responds when I induce the effect to get back to the castle.” He pulled a stopwatch out of his mane, handing it to her. “You’ll need this.”

Soarin trotted up next to the young pony, putting a wing on her shoulder. “Now, this is gonna be a pretty big test of endurance for you. I’ve heard that when he does this thing with his wings, he’s just about as fast as Rainbow Dash. I’m gonna be following you two just to be sure you’re safe, but I wanna make sure you’re ready for this. Can you do it?”

Scootaloo’s face became brighter than Brightling’s Cutie Mark, taking the stopwatch greedily and hopping onto Boltsinger’s back. “Flying as fast as Rainbow Dash? That’s living the dream! I can do it, easy!”

Soarin’s face grew serious. “You sure? I don’t want you biting off more than you can chew.”

Boltsinger made a thumbs-up gesture with his wing. “Don’t worry, Soarin. Scootaloo’s a tough little pony. She’s been Rainbow’s honorary little sister for a few years now, and she doesn’t give titles like that lightly.”

“Okay, fine.” the Wonderbolt said, relenting. “I guess you’re right… But I’m still gonna be paying close attention!”

“I wouldn’t expect any less from the Wonderbolts’ second-in-command!” Boltsinger exclaimed. He turned his head just enough to catch Scootaloo in his peripheral vision. “So, your signal to start the clock is when my wings get all rigid. You might feel a teensey… possibly more than teensey… shock, since my wings tend to get a bit on the electrical side when this happens, but since I need your help with what I’m doing, you shouldn’t be harmed. It just means you won’t be able to let go until we land. Make sure you stop the clock right when you see my Cutie Mark start to move, okay?”

“You got it!” Scootaloo responded, securing herself into a position where she could look at the stallion’s Cutie mark.

“Okay… Let’s do this!” Boltsinger declared, flapping his wings dramatically in place. He hunched over, keeping his feathered appendages flared out at his sides so as to provide the filly with the best possible reference for when the change takes effect. He closed his eyes, breathing with a slow intent that seemed to resonate in the ears of the nearby ponies. After several moments, his wings went from their place at his sides to a completely upright position, a spark of electricity arcing between them as Scootaloo started the clock. A mere two seconds later, another click was heard from the stopwatch as Boltsinger took off towards the castle, Soarin following close behind.

During the flight, Scootaloo kept a close eye on Boltsinger’s crackling Cutie Mark, noting how it behaved. However, her full attention wasn’t on the mark in question. The feeling of speed had begun to overwhelm her in a way she knew she could easily become addicted to. The clouds rushing by, the wind in her mane, the sheer G forces of moving faster than most ponies could dream… This was something her favorite pony in the world experienced all the time! Scootaloo could see why she enjoyed it so much. Too bad she couldn’t get off the ground on her own, though. She would have loved to feel this a lot more often.

With a loud thunderclap, Boltsinger landed in front of the Castle, his wings and Cutie Mark returning to normal. He turned to look back at Scootaloo, who had a mixture of glee and lamentation on her face as Soarin landed behind them. “So, what did you think?”

Scootaloo hopped off of his back, turning and looking at him excitedly. “That… was… AMAZING! Can we do it again?!”

Boltsinger laughed, shaking his head. “Sorry, Scootaloo, but doing that tends to take a lot out of me. I generally need at least a meal before I can do it again, or more, based on what all I’ve done. I’m glad you enjoyed it. And I’m even more glad that the speed didn’t freak you out.”

Soarin trotted over, a big smile on his muzzle. “You sure looked happy up there!” He stated, tussling the filly’s mane. “Well, Bolt, I think you’re right about her!”

Scootaloo looked puzzlingly at the white stallion. “Right about what?”

“We’ll tell you and the other Crusaders after the research is done for today, okay?” Boltsinger replied. “Plus, we still have a few more ponies to talk to about our idea before we can move forward with it.” He directed his gaze to Soarin. “Can you be a kind of intermediary between us and Rainbow Dash for the time being? I don’t know if she really wants to talk to me right now, given her current funk.”

Soarin thought for a moment, his own goofy grin sliding onto his muzzle. “Sure! Whatever you need!”

Boltsinger gave another thumbs-up with his wing. “Awesome.” He faced the filly once more. “Now, let’s get your findings to the Princess, Crusader!”

Scootaloo stood at attention, saluting with her foreleg. “Right!” with that, she galloped into the castle as fast as her legs could take her.

The research for the day was complete, and the books closed. The fillies in the room resting their heads on the tomes in front of them, having been reading until their eyes hurt. They were more tired than bored, but the hours of research still took its toll. Twilight sat back with a satisfied smile, the help and input of the Crusaders allowing her to make more headway than she ever thought possible. Her stomach gave off a telltale rumble as she turned to the Crusaders. “That was one of the best research sessions I’ve ever had!” She flared her wings happily, trotting over to the door. “So, what do you say we have dinner? All Crusaders are invited!” Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle perked up, springing out of their chairs.

Boltsinger was the last to rise, slapping his muzzle with his wings and finally clearing his throat. “Before we eat, I wanna let everypony in on something that’s been on my mind.” He trotted over to the Crusaders, looking at Scootaloo in particular. “So, while I did come to your clubhouse with the top priority of talking to you all about needing your help with research, there’s something else I’ve been wondering for a while, now, and it’s made me a little curious.” He put a wing on the younger Pegasus’ head. “Scootaloo, I can’t help but notice I’ve never seen you flying. Is there any particular reason for that?”

Scootaloo’s face turned slightly sour, the lamentation from earlier on full display. “It’s because I can’t fly… My wings just aren’t strong enough for it.”

Boltsinger gave an understanding nod. “I thought that might have been the case, honestly.” he told her. “It reminds me of another young Pegasus I once knew. One who had wings that were too weak to really be useful for the longest time.”

Scootaloo looked hopefully up at Boltsinger. “Who was that?” she wondered. Twilight looked at the two orange ponies and snickered, getting the idea her husband was trying to convey.

Boltsinger spread his wings wide. “Me! Back when I was a little older than you are now, my wings still couldn’t keep me off of the ground for more than a few seconds. I could hover a bit, but it took me a long time to build my wings up to the state they’re in now. And part of that wasn’t of my own volition.” He returned his wings to their resting position. “While we were out, I asked Soarin to keep an eye on you. Not just for safety, but also for his professional opinion of you as a Wonderbolt.”

Scootaloo looked over at the Wonderbolt in question, looking hopeful. “So what did you think of me?”

Soarin sat next to her, putting on his work face and looking her in the eye. “You’ve got speed, and you’ve definitely got endurance!” He proudly said. “If you can just build up your strength to keep yourself in the air, I think you’ve got what it takes to be a great flyer!”

“Are you serious?” the filly questioned, buzzing her wings. “So, you’re gonna help me fly?”

Boltsinger cleared his throat again. “Actually, the one that would be doing the teaching is me.” he stated. “Soarin is a great flyer, and good at teaching the advanced techniques, but even he admits that helping to learn something so basic as taking off and staying in the air is something he’s not used to.” Soarin nodded in confirmation. “But I spent a lot of my foalhood learning how to build up wing strength, and those are details of my life that I remember pretty clearly. So, with your aunts' permission, and Rainbow’s approval, too, of course, I’d like to become your official beginning flight coach!” He finished, flaring his wings with a wide grin.

Scootaloo reared up, cheering and hollering with excitement. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle ran up to their winged friend, each catching one of her forelegs, where the three began holding each other up on their hind legs as they danced around in celebration. The impromptu dance was cut short as several stomachs slowly and sternly sounded off. Everypony in the room let out a faint blush as they started towards the kitchen.

As they trekked through the halls, the Cutie Mark Crusaders talked amongst themselves, while Soarin took off at full speed to the dining room. He had smelled the aroma of dinner after a while and could no longer contain himself. Twilight cast her husband a warm look, trotting beside him. “So, what made you decide to do this for Scootaloo?” she asked. “It seems pretty bold… Ambitious, even. I wouldn’t peg you for the flight coach type.”

Boltsinger smiled weakly, looking upon the excited orange filly. “To be honest, it’s just as much for me as it is for her.” He admitted, pulling Twilight close with his wing. “It’s also for…” he moved the feathers closest to her stomach, patting softly. “... this little one.”

Twilight smiled in return, putting her wing on the one he had extended. “I see… But how does this help you? Or the baby, for that matter?”

“I read in the library that a foal's first teachers are their parents.” He explained. “And then it hit me… What if our foal has wings? Even scarier, what if our foal has wings like mine?! That’s a fate no Pegasus, or any other winged creature, should suffer!”

“What, you mean the lightning?” The Princess inquired. “But that helps you do so much good for everypony!”

“Not the lightning.” He corrected. “the kind of wings I had before the lightning. You’ve seen the memory. It took me way too long to just fly with my parents, let alone muster up the kind of strength that it took to get my Cutie Mark.” Twilight relented with an understanding nod. “It breaks my heart just to see Scootaloo having trouble like that. If our foal has wings, I want to make sure that little pony doesn’t have to worry for one second about flying!”

Twilight put her hoof around Boltsinger, squeezing him tightly and giving him a kiss on the cheek. “Well, I’m certain Scootaloo is in good hooves!” After a couple minutes of silence, she spoke up again. “So… what if our foal has a horn, instead?”

Boltsinger’s goofy grin made its appearance as he opened his mouth. “If we had a Unicorn filly, I’d be ecstatic!”

Twilight tilted her head, just a bit befuddled. “Why a Unicorn filly?”

“Because Equestria would be that much brighter with another pony like you in it!" he said with a slight squee in his voice. "Especially if she was purple, and had purple hair with an adorable pink stripe like a mare I know!"

Twilight giggled, thinking for a second. “And what if it’s an orange Pegasus colt with a blue mane?”

“Then I feel sorry for the foal.” He responded, sounding half-serious. Twilight looked taken aback at the statement, unsure of how to reply. “Don’t get me wrong, I love my life. But I wouldn’t want anypony to end up like the nervous wreck I became.” The Alicorn calmed down upon hearing the explanation, still looking unsure. “Well, at least I know one feature the baby is gonna have, regardless!”

Twilight turned her head to look into Boltsinger’s eyes, seeing a slight shine in the color she saw. “Purple eyes?”

“Purple eyes.” He confirmed. The couple laughed out loud, catching up to the conversing Crusaders as they turned their way into the dining room.

Author's Note

Some folks at home have been asking me "why put Soarin in?" and stuff like that. Well, originally I wasn't totally sure where he was going to fit in besides my original plans for him. But I knew I wanted him in here. He'd been talking to me as characters often do. And this just cements my decision to bring him into the fold. He's finding his place, and that's what matters.

The Change Is A Parent

Twilight and Boltsinger walked through the streets of Vanhoover, heading for the home the stallion once shared with his family. “So, I know you’ve seen the town in memories, and heard about it from Pinkie and the CMC’s, but, now that you’re here, what do you think?” Boltsinger asked, looking around at the ponies around town. Some of them waved, looking friendly enough, but there were a number of others that glared daggers at him, huffing and going about their business.

Twilight took her own look around the town, noting the mixed response. “It’s a… nice town. I thought Sparks’ negative influence went away, though. Why do some of these ponies still look like they hate you?”

Boltsinger sighed, looking ahead at their destination. “The resentment she put in there wasn’t all magical. There’s a lot of ponies here, namely friends of my parents, that honestly believe I… well… you know.”

Twilight gave him an understanding look, turning her attention forward as well. “I guess not everypony can come to terms with it so easily.” She put a wing around her husband, squeezing him a little as their pace quickened. They came upon the house in question, each breathing a sigh of relief as the stallion rapped the door.

From behind, a slow and deliberate rhythm came. A green light appeared around the doorknob, the door opening wide to reveal a grey Unicorn mare with eyes the same color as the magic on her horn. Her mane was white at the root, fading to black as it fell down her head and neck in a shorter, messier version of Fluttershy’s hairstyle. The Cutie Mark that was only just barely visible was an image of three smouldering sparks. She had a white-coated Unicorn colt in her foreleg, a hazel aura lighting up his horn as a number of toys flew around the room. She had a small smile on her face, trying her best to look friendly. “Hello, Bolt. Brightling told me you’d be paying us a visit.” she greeted. She looked over at the Princess of Friendship, the smile faltering just a little. “Princess.” she said with a bow of her head.

Twilight’s royal composure came into play, offering a polite bow in return. “Sparks.” The mares brought their heads back up, a smile appearing on each of them. “It’s a pleasure to see you.”

“Likewise.” Sparks replied, stepping aside to allow her guests in. “So, Boltsinger has informed us that you’re with foal, now. Congratulations.” She put her foal on the couch, offering a hoof to the lilac pony.

Twilight, not one to turn down a kind gesture, reached out, placing her hoof against the one pointed at her and giving a firm shake. “Why, thank you.” She sat on the couch, the black-maned colt looking up at her.

Boltsinger looked at the mares as they began a very stiff conversation. He sat on the couch and reached past his wife, picking up the little pony. “Hi, there, Oathsinger!” he greeted, nuzzling the colt lightly. “Looks like your mommy and Aunty Twily are still all stiff when they talk to each other, huh?” the colt laughed, putting his hooves in his uncle’s nostrils. “And you’re still a grabby one, aren’t you?”

“That he is.” a tenor voice confirmed from the kitchen. Brightling put his forelegs on the back of the couch, leaning over so as to come into view. “Aren’t you excited to have one of your own soon?” Boltsinger laughed nervously, scratching his mane with his wing as his brother let out a chortle. “Good to see you, little brother! What brings you by?”

Boltsinger moved his head back, letting the little hooves leave his nose. “Actually, today’s visit was Twilight’s idea!” He put the baby back on the couch, where his father picked him up and tucked him into his wing.

“Oh?” Brightling turned to face Twilight, who was still having a rather uncomfortable conversation with his wife. “Can’t say I’ve ever had a visit from a Princess. It’s lovely to have you over, Your Highness.”

Twilight perked up, her conversation ceasing as she directed her gaze at him. “Just Twilight is fine. We’re family.” She told him, smiling genuinely as he faced Sparks again. “And… that goes for you, too.”

Sparks’ eyebrows raised considerably. “Seriously?” she wondered. “What brings this about?”

Twilight opened her mouth to reply, but before any sound could escape, a loud knock came to the door. Brightling hopped over the couch, opening the door to see a mailpony holding a strange-looking letter in her teeth. He reached out with his free wing and took the letter. “Thank you.” The mailpony saluted and flew away, the yellow stallion closing the door and examining the envelope more closely. It looked like it was made from something… different from paper. He opened it, finding a normal piece of parchment inside. “It says…

‘To Dimming Sparks of Vanhoover,

It would be very nice if you and your family could please, please, please come to the Changeling Kingdom. There is a really, really important thing that we need to do, and it involves you. So, if you don’t mind, could you please come and see us. Please?

Sincerely,

Thorax’

That was… oddly polite... “ Brightling put the letter aside, looking over at Sparks. “What could the Changelings want with you, dear?”

Sparks shook her head, not even trying to comprehend what she just heard. “I’m not sure. This ‘Thorax’ is their leader, right? I suppose we should go and hear him out…” She turned back to the Princess. “You’re royalty. Do you happen to know him?”

Twilight nodded. “I’ve been friends with him since before he came to lead the Changelings. He’s particularly close with my assistant, Spike. Why do you ask?”

The Unicorn took a slow, deep breath. “It says to bring ‘family’... And you are friends with him, so… Would you and Bolt be willing to come with us?”

Twilight looked at her husband, then back at her most recent sister-in-law, smiling. “We’d be happy to, right, Bolt?”

“Absolutely!” He concurred, flaring his wings. “Do you have somepony to watch Oathsinger?”

Brightling nodded, swaying the foal in his wing. “Sweet Pear is always willing to look after him. Gives him a chance to play with the other foals. I’ll go talk to him. You two might as well head to the train station. Pretty sure you don’t wanna deal with the locals just yet.” Boltsinger nodded, standing up and making for the door, his wife followed suit soon after.

The four ponies stood on a cliff overlooking a vast field, where a spire-like structure stood in the distance. “That…” Twilight said, pointing to the structure. “... is the Changeling hive! It shouldn’t be too much of a walk.”

“It seems… brighter than I expected.” Sparks commented, having a look at the surrounding foliage. “Wasn’t this place supposed to be a desolate wasteland?”

“It used to be. That is, until my amazing student and her friends came and saved all of Equestria, along with the Changelings, themselves!” the Princess bragged. “Thorax was part of that group, and from then on he became their king!”

“Spike has told me a lot about him, but this will be my first time getting to really meet him.” Boltsinger stated, giving an excited buzz of his wingtips. “I really look forward to it!”

Brightling looked ahead, putting his wing around his wife. “I’m most interested in what he has to say about Sparks. What kind of thing has to involve her?”

“I wish I knew.” Twilight admitted, looking at the now-towering structure before them. “Thorax is friendly enough, though. I’m sure he’ll explain everything.”

As they reached the base of the hive, a number of creatures that looked like a mixture of ponies and insects walked up to them. Their eyes were each a solid color, rather than the normal eyes of ponies and other mammals. They each bore a shell on their backs, spread apart to reveal colorful, translucent wings in the same vein as their tails. Some had Unicorn-like horns, and all of them had what looked like three white crystals embedded in their necks. One of them waved to the visitors. “Hello! Our leader is expecting you!” it greeted, motioning as if to guide them in.

The visiting ponies were led through the hive, seeing a number of Changelings engaging in different activities, ranging from discussions to arts and crafts to anything anypony could think of. A larger, black one was training several others to fend off potential danger. He looked at the visitors with a slight glare, but smiled when he saw the Princess. They came to the top of the vast structure, where a wooded throne sat under the open sky. Upon the throne was a larger Changeling with an exoskeleton of bright green, with a gradient into orange at the base of his neck. His tail was a translucent purple, with a darker green underbelly. The jewel-like decorations on his neck were larger than those of other Changelings, and his shell was a bright maroon. He had welcoming purple eyes, and large, orange mandable-like horns protruding out of his head in addition to the same kind of horns the other Changelings often had. He smiled wide as he caught sight of the guests to his kingdom, raising his shell to reveal his purple wings. He buzzed his translucent appendages, rising to the air to land next to them a mere moment later with a hoof extended in greeting.

“Hello! Welcome to the Changeling kingdom! I’m Thorax, the leader, and…” his eyes fell upon the purple pony Princess. “... Twilight? Why are you here? I sent for Dimming Sparks and her family, but…”

“That’s exactly what you got!” Twilight confirmed. “Sparks is my sister-in-law!”

Thorax recoiled slightly. “She is? Is she related to Cadence?”

Twilight shook her head. “No, Thorax. She’s related to my husband! You remember the wedding, right?” Thorax brought up a foreleg. “She was there with her husband, too! I’m surprised you didn’t recognize them!”

Thorax took a few tentative steps back, looking at the other ponies. He turned his attention to the Unicorn mare. “Oh! I remember you!” He excitedly said. “It’s so nice to meet you!” He extended a hoof, taking one of Sparks’ forelegs and giving it a hearty shake. “I’ve wanted to meet you for such a long time, now, but I never got any response to my letters… I figured you might be too busy, and that maybe you didn’t know or care who I was… But that’s all in the past, now!”

Brightling took a stance between his wife and the large Changeling, a challenging look in his eyes. “Why does the leader of the Changelings need my wife, anyway?” He jutted his head forward, clenching his teeth. “From what I hear, your kind has done more than enough to her!” Thorax shook, reeling away from the intimidating Pegasus and bringing himself low while hiding his face.

“Brightling, calm down.” Boltsinger started, reaching out towards his brother. I’m sure King Thorax has a perfectly good explanation.” He came up to Thorax, moving one of his hooves away from his face. “I’m sorry about my brother. He tends to get a little… protective. Provoking him isn’t all that difficult. “

Thorax looked at the orange pony smiling at him, beginning to sit up. “Thanks…”

“It’s no problem. If there’s one thing I’m familiar with, it’s panic.” he assured. He turned his eyes to look at Sparks. “But, I do agree with Brightling. Why is it you need to see Sparks so badly?”

Thorax stood up to his full height. “So, I’ve been working with the other Changelings on how they could be happier with themselves, because some of us are… less happy than others…” he explained, hanging his head. “It’s been great to see them all opening up and learning to be friends, but some Changelings have a… checkered past. We did a lot of bad things when Queen Chrysalis was in charge, and a lot of Changelings regret that.” He led the four of them to a chamber where several Changelings were discussing their problems. “So, I’ve been talking with everyone, and every Changeling with regrets is gonna talk to whoever they may have hurt. That way they can apologize and make things right! And, that’s why…” He motioned his foreleg to the gathering.

“Ganglia, have you managed to talk to the pony you’ve wronged?” the head of the gathering asked. “Or did she not come again?”

“I haven’t…” a voice came from the group. From the gathering stood a Changeling with white chitin and a black shell. She had a bright pink translucent tail, a single-pronged horn, and emerald green eyes, standing as tall as an average pony. “I only hope she can forgive me for what I’ve done… But it’s been so long, that--” She was cut off by the sound of a clearing throat.

“Ganglia, would you come with me, please?” Thorax requested. “There’s someone here I’d like for you to meet.”

Ganglia looked at her leader, bringing her hoof up to her chest. “Okay…” She walked over to him, where she saw the ponies behind the larger Changeling. She was used to occasionally seeing Princess Twilight, due to her friendship with Thorax, but the other three ponies were even more shockingly familiar to her. She reeled back, the faces burned into her mind. “Boltsinger?” she started, pointing at the orange one. Her attention turned to the yellow one. “Brightling?!” The brothers each nodded at her, expressions of immense confusion showing up on their faces. She pointed a now-shaky hoof at the grey Unicorn mare. “Then… that means… Dimmy? Are you really my little Dimmy?!”

Sparks’ eyes grew remarkably wide, showing a sense of shock. She slapped the shaky hoof aside as hard as she could, pointing angrily at the white Changeling before her. “How do you know that name?!” she asked, her face going from shock to rage. “Nopony calls me ‘Dimmy’! Nopony!!!” She stomped her hoof. “Nopony but my--”

“Mother?” she finished with a weak smile.

Sparks squinted at her. “Exactly…” She leaned in, putting herself muzzle-to-muzzle with Ganglia. “Who are you, and how do you know that nickname?”

Thorax pulled Sparks away from his fellow Changeling, looking between them. “Miss Sparks, this is the reason I called you here. I wanted you to talk with Ganglia.”

Sparks looked at the kind ruler, then at the creature that had infuriated her so. “So, what do you have to say?”

Ganglia’s face sank as she stepped forward. “I wanted to apologize for all of the things I did to you.” she told her. “Back when Queen Chrysalis was in control, we all acted on instinct, replacing ponies who were surrounded by love…” She raised her head, a light forming around her. In a flash, she appeared as a white Unicorn mare with emerald green eyes. She had a black mane and tail, with her bangs parted to accentuate her face and horn and a loose, bouncy bun poking out from the back of her head. Her Cutie Mark featured three star-shaped fireworks exploding in the sky, the top one in a pink shade with the bottom two in a light blue. “In those days, this is what I looked like…”

Boltsinger, Brightling, and Sparks looked at Ganglia, slack-jawed and wide-eyed. If his rump wasn’t already on the floor, Boltsinger would have made cracks in it with how hard it would have hit. Brightling reached out a foreleg, baffled to the point of nearly losing reason. “Aunt… Aunty Joy?” He guessed, stepping forward. “Is that really you?”

Ganglia nodded, closing her eyes. “Not the original, but… yes.” She looked at Sparks, who stared speechlessly at her. “I’m the Changeling that… replaced your mother when she went to the hospital. I wasn’t the reason she passed. All I did was replace her.” She stepped closer to the Unicorn, holding her hoof over her heart. “She was just surrounded by so much love… I fed off of it, and then took her shape. The doctors thought it was a miracle, and I was allowed to go home with you and your father, where… Where I fed off of the love that the two of you had.” She looked her in the eye, putting her hoof back down. “What I didn’t expect was that, not only was I allowed to stay there with you, but… I was enamored with you, in particular, Dimmy. I wanted to raise you as my own. So, I did.” She averted her gaze, keeping it fixed on the entrance to the room. “But the only one I ever had for an example of what a ‘mother’ is was…”

“Queen Chrysalis…” Thorax stated, his own face turning somber.

“Yes... “ Ganglia confirmed, looking back at her. “So, I taught you in much the same way that… I was taught…”

“Everypony for herself… Why others are friendly… and what I needed to survive…” Sparks said, as if in a trance. She looked up at the face she recognized as her mother’s. “All of that was you?”

The disguised Changeling nodded, refusing to open her eyes. “I’m afraid so… I took your real mother’s place when you were still a very little filly. I taught you such… awful things… And I know, now just how wrong all of that was…”

“I came to realize that, myself, recently.” Sparks admitted, diverting her gaze to Twilight and Boltsinger. “It took a lot, but I think it was all worth it.” She looked back at the white creature in front of her, her face softer than the fluff of a bunny’s tail. “I can’t believe you’re still alive… You disappeared years ago! What happened?”

“Like all Changelings, I was summoned to take part in the Canterlot invasion.” she elaborated, looking over at Twilight. “That one, there, hits particularly hard with that horn of hers.” Twilight recoiled, a mild blush appearing on her cheeks. “When we were driven from Canterlot, all of us returned here, to the hive. No one ever went back, so I never could see you again… Until now.”

Sparks took a deep breath, closing her eyes in contemplation. A moment later, she looked firmly at Ganglia, lunging forward into a tight hug. “It’s a miracle…” she said, stifling an oncoming sob. “Oh, Mom… It’s wonderful to see you again!”

Ganglia’s eyes widened and watered simultaneously, her forelegs moving to the grey pony’s shoulders and pushing her only slightly away to look into her eyes. “What are you talking about? I’m not your mother… I just… I just replaced her!”

Sparks smiled, some of the water streaming out of her eyes. “You said it, yourself. You took her place when I was just a little filly! And that was before I could even remember anything!” She pulled her mother in for another embrace. “You’re the mother I’ve always known… And, over the course of my life, there have only been three ponies I’ve ever truly loved. My husband, my son, and you… And I have all three of them, now!”

Ganglia’s mouth hung open, her disguise falling away as Brightling came and joined the hug. The white Changeling broke down in the embrace of the one she now knew, for certain, was her daughter. Brightling patted her back with a smile. “It’s good to see you again, Aunty Joy… We’ve missed you.”

Twilight looked at the scene with a sad smile, wiping a tear away with her hoof. “They’ve really become better ponies, haven’t they?” she asked, looking over at Boltsinger, whose expression mirrored that of his wife.

“Eeyup…” he said, reaching over and pulling her close. “I blame you… and our friends.”

Twilight giggled, leaning into him. “That’s a blame I’ll happily accept!” She moved away from the orange stallion, standing up and walking over to Sparks. When the Unicorn had finally pulled back from her reunion, the Princess put a hoof on her back. “Sparks.” She said with a genuine smile.

Sparks’ smile stiffened a little, looking back at the Alicorn. “Princess…”

Twilight returned her hoof to the floor, stepping closer to her. “I’m glad you got to reunite with your mother. Truly, I am.”

The stiffness of the smile faltered, revealing more truth. “Thank you very much.” she replied, giving a curt nod. “So, I’ve got a question for you…”

Meanwhile, Thorax took a look over at Boltsinger. “So, you’re Boltsinger, yes? Twilight’s husband?” he asked.

Boltsinger looked up at the green Changeling. “That would be me. Spike has told me a lot about you.” He got up, walking to Thorax with an outstretched wing. “It’s wonderful to finally meet you!”

Thorax put his hoof in the wing, the two sharing a firm shake. “It’s nice to meet you, too!” He put his hoof back on the floor, looking at Twilight. “So, Spike tells me that Twilight is something called… ‘pregnant’... What does that mean, exactly?”

Boltsinger cocked an inquisitive eyebrow, looking at his new friend with a sense of bewilderment. “It means that she’s going to be having a baby, of course. How do you not know that?”

Thorax pawed the floor with his hoof, drawing a circle. “Well… Changelings are all born from eggs in broods, and I hear from both Spike and Ember that dragons are born from eggs, as well… How do ponies have babies?”

Boltsinger looked at Thorax, then over at Twilight, repeating the motion a few times, utterly dumbstruck. “Wow… I can’t believe the first one I have this discussion with is a king…” He sat on the floor, slapping his muzzle with his wings. “Well, when a mare and a stallion love each other very much…”

“What do you need to know?” Twilight wondered, tilting her head.

“Why did you want to pay us a visit?” came the question burning in the back of Sparks’ mind. “What made you decide that it was a good idea to come and see us, even though you dislike me so much?”

Twilight scratched her mane with her hoof, pondering on how to phrase her answer. “Well, you see… The plan was…” She brought a hoof up over her heart, taking a deep inhale, only to exhale as she extended her foreleg. “I feel like it’s time you and I buried the hatchet.”

“Bury the hatchet?” Sparks repeated, earning a confirming nod from the Princess of Friendship. “But… what I did to your husband was nothing short of unforgivable! Why would you ever want to… to forgive me?”

“I’ve been thinking… It’s true that what you did to Bolt wasn’t a good thing. That much is obvious.” she started. Sparks’ head sank at the knowledge and regret. “But, some good came of it. If you hadn’t… done what you did to him… He might not have slammed into that wall, or met up with my friends and I. We might not have gotten married, and…” She patted her belly with her foreleg. “We wouldn’t be waiting for the greatest gift in the whole world…” She looked at Sparks with a spark of her own in her eye. “There’s a lot that I have to thank you for, Sparks. There’s no way I can hate somepony who has done so much to make my life better! Even if you didn’t mean to.”

Sparks’ face was one that showed shock, awe, confusion, and pure joy all at once. Her mouth hung open, and her ears hung low. Her eyes dilated, and her breathing was surprisingly calm. “It seems… today… my family just keeps getting bigger, doesn’t it?” she pointed out, stepping closer to the Princess. Twilight nodded, pulling her in for a genuine hug. Sparks returned the embrace, the water from earlier flowing forth once again from her eyes. “Thank you, Prince-- I mean… Thank you… Twilight!”

The mares separated, each letting out a great big smile as a scream sounded. They looked over to the source of the noise, seeing Thorax reared up defensively.

“That’s how ponies have babies?!” he asked, showing a great deal of disgust in his voice. “Wow… That’s just… wrong!” Boltsinger and Brightling looked at one another and shrugged.

Author's Note

In a story about moving forward, we must also look back. This is but a taste of something that I felt was... incomplete in the last season. So much so, that I'm simultaneously working on a full explanation of the situation. Look forward the the oneshot story, no release date due to not having any idea when I'll finally finish it...

O The Sparks, How They Dim

Edit: I've decided to put that oneshot story into one of my Bolt-shots when I can better flesh it out. Should be fun!

Not Playing Games Anymore

“On your marks…” the official started. Fluttershy was hunched over, tense, beads of nervous sweat dripping down her face. “Get set…” Soarin and Rainbow Dash looked down at their teammate, watching as she slapped her muzzle with her wings in a way reminiscent of another mutual friend. “GO!!!”

Fluttershy rocketed forward, her team’s emblem held in her hoof. Beside her soared a pony from Stratosberg, their pace roughly the same as they passed through each hoop. Fluttershy’s training was evident, as she displayed her eagle-like grace with each twist and turn. Unlike her opponent, she effortlessly passed through the obstacles, relishing the opportunity to fly like this with her good friends as she reached out, passing the emblem to the waiting white Wonderbolt.

“And there’s the hand-off for Ponyville!” Boltsinger announced, holding his hoof over his eyes. He flew up to get a better look at the race. “But Sky Stinger isn’t far behind in the least! His job is done, and Stratosberg’s second flyer is already off! She and Soarin are neck and neck, and it’s anypony’s game!” The racing ponies showed speed and grace in equal measure, weaving back and forth through the course until they reached their destination. “And it’s a simultaneous hand-off! It’s down to Rainbow Dash versus Vapor Trail, folks, and it shows no signs of slowing down!”

“That’s Vapor Trail?” Twilight noted, leaning in to get a better look at the misty white mare. “I didn’t recognize her! I can’t believe she’s the third flyer for her team!”

Rainbow and Vapor eyed each other as they ascended towards the finish line, each giving off a smirk. “You’re good, Vapor, but not good enough!” Rainbow gave another hard flap, shooting upward and through the finish line in an instant.

“And it’s Rainbow Dash at the finish! Ponyville is the winner!” Boltsinger cried, doing his best to look as unbiased as possible. “Next heat between Cloudsdale and Griffonstone begins in thirty minutes, everypony! Be sure not to miss it!” Rainbow came to a landing with her teammates on the stadium floor, their opponents landing in front of them as they all exchanged respectful hoof bumps.

The crowd cheered as the competitors landed, the whole arena turning deafening. Rainbow got ready to speak, but there was one set of cheers that rose up over all of the others. “YYYYYYEAAAH! GO RAINBOW DASH!!!” her parents cheered, sending a turbulent reverberation through the stadium. The flyers all winced, plugging their ears with their wings.

“Well, at least they waited until after the race was over!” Rainbow noted, turning to wave at the screaming Pegasi. “We can catch up later, when my parents aren’t drowning us out!”

That evening, Rainbow and Soarin sat in Bow and Windy’s living room, deep in discussion. Rainbow was looking closely at a silver medal she held in her hooves, looking around for signs of her parents.

“I really think you should do it, Crash.” Soarin insisted, putting his hoof on her shoulder. “It’s only fair.”

“You’re right… I can’t keep hiding things from them.” She confirmed, shining the medal to show her reflection in it.

“Hiding what from us?” Bow asked, his face showing up on the medal’s surface. “Is there something you wanna tell us?”

Rainbow Dash jumped, turning around to see her parents in the doorway. “Oh! Uh… yeah…” She got up, tucking the medal under her wing. “Mom, Dad, I have something I want to give you.”

Windy brought her hooves to her cheeks. “Really?! What is it?”

Rainbow Dash stepped forward, pulling the medal forth again. “It’s this…” she said, presenting it to the older Pegasi.

Bow and Windy eyed the piece of silver in front of them, looking between each other, the medal, and their daughter with a befuddled look on their faces. “Wait… Is this…?” Bow began.

Rainbow Dash gave a swift nod, lowering herself to the floor. “Yes! That’s the silver medal I won… at the last Equestria Games…” She looked at her parents, getting up again. “I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you I was in the Games the last time! It was years ago, and I was still… kind of embarrassed back then… But Soarin is right! It wasn’t fair to you! So… I hope this makes up for it!”

Windy picked up the medal, looking at her favorite pony with a frown that quickly gave way to a warm smile. “Of course it does, honey!” She came in for a hug, her husband in tow. “It is a little disappointing that you didn’t want to let us know about something that important… But, no matter what, we love you!”

Rainbow accepted the family hug in full, her Wonderbolt colleague resting his head on his hoof as he watched with a dopey grin. “Thanks. I love you, too!”

“It’s not hard to understand why you’d want to keep something like that from us.” Bow stated, squeezing the mares tightly. “I’m just happy you told us about it!” He released his daughter, swiping the medal from his wife’s wing. “And that you gave us more to add to our collection! Come on, dear! Let’s find a place for this!” Windy squeed, clapping her hooves as the proud parents galloped to their favorite room.

Rainbow sat next to Soarin again, pawing at the couch. “Thanks.”

Soarin’s dopey smile faded. “For what?”

Rainbow smiled, punching him in the foreleg. “Encouraging me to tell them, being a great flying buddy, getting me to come out of my house and hang out with everypony… pick one.”

“Nah, no need to thank me.” He argued, rubbing the spot where she punched him. “I just did what any good friend would do.”

That warm fuzzy feeling came again as Rainbow Dash looked into Soarin’s eyes. Those green orbs of his seemed to speak volumes recently, and the feeling she got when looking at them was starting to feel less funny and more welcome. She let herself drift closer to him, the emotions setting in and rousing her mind. All the while, Soarin simply smiled at her, feeding the warmth further. She stopped moving, her eyes going wide with a face so flushed she would have been mistaken for Big Mac. “Uh… I’m... gonna go to bed. Got another race tomorrow!” She backed up, quickly rising to her hooves and running towards her room. “See you in the morning!”

Soarin recoiled, more than a little dumbfounded by the sudden change in her actions as he raised a hoof. “Uh… yeah! Good night!” he called, making for his own place to rest for the night.

“And, there! It’s done!” Zephyr announced, pulling back. “You weren’t kidding when you said it was hard on brushes, but it’s all fixed, now!” He held up a mirror to show Boltsinger his reflection. His mane was in its straight and streaked form with his bangs parted to one side. The hair on the back of his head was pulled back in a ponytail just at the base, keeping its length, but not getting in his face at the same time. He looked down to see that his tail wasn’t quite so messy as well, then gave the mane therapist a smirk.

“I must admit, you do good work.” He told the blue stallion, standing up and trotting over to Twilight. “Now I know who to go to when I need help and Rarity’s not around.”

Zephyr Breeze took a bow. “Thank you, thank you very much!” He paused, looking back at the orange and purple ponies. “Wait, what’s this about Rarity?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.” Twilight said, smiling and turning to leave. She leaned in towards her husband, putting her hoof up to her mouth. “He doesn’t know that it’s not gonna be like this for long, does he?”

“Eh, let him dream.” Boltsinger replied, waving a hoof in front of him. “At least I look better for the announcements, right?”

Zephyr trotted past the two, looking back at them and waving his wing. “Well, thank you for your business, but I simply must go cheer on my sweet sister and my darling Rainbows! I’ll see you at the stadium!” Twilight and Boltsinger waved back, smiling at each other and flapping their wings. Within seconds, they flew over Zephyr and were halfway there. Zephyr huffed, continuing his strut. “Show-offs.”

“And Fluttershy makes the hand-off, quick as a diving falcon!” Boltsinger announced. The race was in progress, with Ponyville facing off against Fillydelphia in a heated match. Fluttershy landed on the clouds below, wiping the sweat from her brow as she watched the competition continue.

“I say, those Wonderbolt friends of yours are doing quite well for themselves!” Fancy Pants declared, Rarity leaning dreamily against him. “Do they practice together often?”

Rarity sat up and gave him a dainty nod. “Oh, all the time! They’ve taken to flying together on such a regular basis I hardly see them apart!” She laid on her stomach, putting one forehoof over the other and resting her head on them. “It’s quite charming, if you ask me…”

“Hm. Yes, well, I have to say I agree with you, dear!” The noble confirmed, resting similarly. “One could say that Ms. Dash finds her partner quite dashing, indeed!”

Rarity and all of the creatures around the couple felt a sudden blast of cold. Prince Rutherford shivered as if he had just been frozen completely, and Thorax quickly changed into a pony with an impossible amount of fluff. Rarity paid it no mind, letting the pun have its place and giving off a mildly less-than-sincere giggle as the race carried on.

“What’s this? Rainbow Dash hasn’t taken off even though the hand-off is a success?” Boltsinger queried. Rainbow was hanging in the air, her hoof on the horseshoe that still lingered in Soarin’s outstretched hoof. “Is she giving her opponent some time to catch up? How sporting of you! Everypony give her a round of applause!”

As the crowd clapped, Soarin looked quizzically at his teammate. “Come on, Crash, you need to get moving!” He leaned in close. “What’s going on with you?”

The proximity snapped Rainbow from her trance. She pulled her hoof back, the horseshoe right where it needed to be as her opponent took off ahead of her. “Oh! Yeah! Right, I’m off!” She told him, turning around and shooting off at full speed.

The course was finished in a matter of seconds. “And there you have it, folks! Yet another Ponyville victory!” Boltsinger declared, landing on the arena floor. The crowd cheered the moment his mouth closed, the parents of Ponyville’s star flyer sounding above them all, and joined by the firing of a number of party cannons littered throughout the entire structure.

Rainbow Dash landed next to Fluttershy, panting from the exertion as Soarin came in for his own landing. “Are you okay, Rainbow Dash?” Soarin inquired. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you space out like that during a race before.”

Rainbow turned around, heading for the locker room. “I’m fine. Just got distracted for a sec. I’ll be good for the final race tomorrow, I promise!””

Fluttershy observed her foalhood friend closely, the corners of her mouth turning up ever-so-slightly. “I wonder what could have been on her mind that would make her lose focus like that.” She said, looking back at Soarin.

Boltsinger came to a landing next to Fluttershy, his own muzzle showing a hint of smugness. “I think I might have an idea.” he told her. “But I don’t want to soar to conclusions.” Fluttershy laughed into her hoof. “Anyway, you all were awesome. Best of luck tomorrow!” He waved his wing, taking off again.

Outside the arena, Rainbow waved farewell to her sobbingly proud parents as they left. She took a deep breath, preparing herself for anything that might come next.. “Stay cool, Dash… Stay cool…”

“Oh, there’s no need for that Rainbows!” an annoyingly familiar voice told her from behind. “You know you can relax with me!”

“Zephyr, I’m really not in the mood for this right now.” She stated, making to fly off.

Zephyr smiled confidently, coming up next to the mare. “I don’t know what you’re talking about! I’m just here to congratulate a friend and invite her to dinner! Then we can just go from there and see what happens…”

Soarin exited behind Fluttershy’s brother, wondering what he was up to. From behind the lanky stallion, he spotted the telltale tail that told him Rainbow was present. He got ready to walk in the other direction, stopping himself when Rainbow's rasp reared up. “Please, Zeph, I don’t want any of this today. Can you just leave me alone?”

“Oh, come, now Dashie, we all know that’s not how you really feel!” The stylist stressed, reaching his wing closer to the mare. “Better to just let your feelings out instead of keeping up that ‘I’m the coolest’ charade you always put on for me!”

Rainbow turned to look at Zephyr with a snort, taking a breath so that she could really lay into him how she truly felt. Before the words could come out, though, Soarin cleared his throat. “Excuse me, Zephyr Breeze, right?

Zephyr turned around to face the white stallion, his smile showing snarky confidence on every inch. “That would be me. What do you need?”

Soarin puffed out his chest and flared his wings aggressively. “I need you to leave my friend alone.” He stepped closer. “It’s obvious she doesn’t want you bothering her right now, and it’s bothering me that you refuse to take the hint! She has a lot to worry about right now, and she doesn’t need your little games making her uncomfortable in the middle of it!” He brought his face close to Zephyr’s, squinting his eyes. “So, please, leave her alone.”

Zephyr dropped his rump to the floor, going into a cold sweat and raising his hooves with a nervous laugh. “Uh… Yeah! Yeah, I can do that!” He got up and turned to Rainbow Dash, shakily bowing his head and closing his eyes. “Sorry to bother you, Rainbow Dash!” Small tears started to fall from his eyes as he spread his wings wide. “I’ll be… going now!” He flapped as hard as he could, flying away at his top speed.

Rainbow gave Soarin a wide-eyed stare, the anger from before starting to fade. The stallion in question began to ease up as well, returning to his usual bright-eyed smile. “You… didn’t have to do that, you know. I was handling myself just fine.”

Soarin shrugged. “Yeah, I know. That was more to save him from whatever you had to say.” He turned around, making ready to fly. “Besides, it really did bug me.” He went into a hover, looking back at Rainbow Dash. “Anyway, I’ll let you have your alone time. See ya later, Rainbow Dash!”

Soarin flew off into the distance, Rainbow sitting there in a flabbergasted fluster. “Yeah. See ya later….”

“Are you sure she was that distracted?” Twilight asked, wiping her mouth with a napkin. “I know she paused a little during the race, but she seemed fine at dinner.”

“Let’s just say the look on her face reminded me of how I look at you.” Boltsinger elaborated, picking up their plates.

Twilight gasped, leaning in excitedly. “You mean she…?”

“Eeyup.” he affirmed, nodding as he came out of the kitchen.

“Wow…” she started, walking with her favorite stallion to the door. “It must be bad if it’s distracting her during a race.” She put a hoof on his chest, looking him in the eye with worry. “You don’t think it’ll get in the way today, do you?!”

“Nah, she knows what’s on the line. “ he told her. “Racing against the other Wonderbolts, and going for Ponyville gold? Nothing could distract her from that.”

The couple continued on their way to the stadium, Twilight pondering for a moment as they went. “What if she’s so confused by her emotions that she forgets to show up? What if she misses her mark? Or the finish line? What if she can’t even keep a hold of the--”

“Honey, calm down.” Boltsinger interjected. “I’m sure she’s fine. I know you’re worried, but the worst that can happen is that she gets a silver medal in the Equestria Games.” He looked up at the stadium, taking a preparatory breath. “I mean, it’s not like… I dunno… some rapidly-freezing cloud is falling on top of an entire stadium and threatening to kill everypony inside!”

Twilight recoiled, a nervous laugh giving away her thoughts. “Well, actually…” she began.

Nerves.

Lots and lots of nerves.

That is how Rainbow Dash felt in that moment. She sat in the locker room, her team uniform on. Fluttershy sat next to her in much the same way. There was a lot going through Rainbow's mind. This was their chance for Ponyville gold. She was going head-to-head with Spitfire in the final leg of the aerial relay. She was flying alongside Soarin-- and there was the biggest thing. What was with that guy? She knew she was feeling some things about him, lately, but ever since the start of the games, it had gone to a whole new level! No! She had to keep her head on straight! This was for Ponyville! She’d flown with all of the Wonderbolts for a long time, now! Fluttershy had made huge improvements, up to ten point five wingpower since the games began! Everypony was ready, and they were all counting on her! “Yeah… That’s the spirit, Dash! Get out there and crush the competition!” She slammed one hoof into another in a punching motion, a confident smile lining her muzzle.

“Crush, huh?” a lower mare’s rasp repeated. Rainbow turned around to see Spitfire looking back with a mildly conceited grin, Fleetfoot and Blaze on either side of her, with all three of them sporting the Cloudsdale team uniform. “Glad you don’t try that at practice, otherwise we’d have to tap into the reserves a lot more!”

Rainbow lit up, trotting over to the Wonderbolt leader. “Hey, Spitfire! You… uh… you know I didn’t mean that literally, right?”

“Of course I did.” the fiery mare confirmed, looking over Rainbow to get a look at Fluttershy. “I just wanted to get a good look at the competition this time around. From what we’ve seen of you three, so far, you might have a chance to win this thing! Not that we’ll make it easy for you!”

“We’ll see!” Rainbow retorted, moving back over to Fluttershy. “But don’t be surprised if we blow you away!”

“We’ll see about that, Crash!” Spitfire replied. The five mares stepped out to the stadium, Fluttershy slapping her muzzle with her wings to ease her nerves. “Let’s have ourselves a good race!”

As they made their exit, Soarin trotted over, putting his hoof on Rainbow’s back. “Hey, you gonna be okay for this?” he asked.

“Yeah! I’ve got this!” She confirmed, splaying her wings with excitement.

Soarin beamed, looking up at the course. “Awesome! Just remember, I’ve always got your back, Crash. Always.”

Rainbow gave a nod, nudging him with her wing. “Thanks, Clipper.”

“Fillies and gentlecolts! It’s at last time for the final race in the aerial relay!” Boltsinger announced, hovering in the center of the stadium. “Will the participants please take their positions?” Fluttershy and Blaze flapped their wings, rising up to the start line while Soarin and Fleetfoot followed suit. Finally, Rainbow Dash and Spitfire smirked at each other, shooting into the sky and taking their places.

The official flew into place in front of Fluttershy and Blaze, a single hoof raised. “On your marks…” Fluttershy took a deep breath, tightening her focus. “Get set…” Soarin looked at Rainbow Dash, noting the unflinching determination the mare displayed. “GO!”

Blaze shot forward in an instant, sending Fluttershy spinning. The yellow mare quickly righted herself, rocketing forward as fast as she could. She caught up quickly, weaving through every obstacle with practiced ease.

“And Blaze is the first to hand it off! Just look at Fleetfoot go!” Boltsinger shouted. Fluttershy looked ahead, picking up her pace and quickly handing the emblem to Soarin. “But Soarin isn’t far behind! It’s Wonderbolt vs. Wonderbolt in the most heated race this pony has ever seen!” Soarin pushed his wings to their utmost, catching up to the small and swift mare with a cocky grin.

“I guess all that flying with Crash helped you more than it helped her!” Fleetfoot mentioned, flapping more rapidly. “But it didn’t help enough!” She accelerated further, blowing past Soarin and meeting Spitfire a moment later.

Soarin laughed, rearing back for a half-second, then rocketing onward to finish the hand-off. “You got this, Rainbow Dash!” She looked at him for a moment, lingering on his hoof, then turned towards the finish line. Her wings buzzed, and she was off like a lightning bolt. “Go! Go! Go!”

Rainbow Dash soared forward, racing towards the finish line. She was excited to be racing, but somehow, she didn’t feel tense like she normally did when competing. There was a new kind of calmness, a serenity that sent her through each obstacle with ease, soon finding herself next to Spitfire herself. She chanced a look in her direction, giving the Wonderbolt leader a mock salute as she looked forward again. With one, steady flap, she shot past the fiery pony, bursting through the finish line.

“And Rainbow Dash takes it! Ponyville wins! Ponyville wins!!!” Boltsinger cheered, followed quickly by the crowds.

Rainbow kept flying upward, seemingly lost in the moment of victory. When the crowd’s cheering finally reached her, all of that calmness vanished. “YYYYYYYEAH!!!” She exclaimed, twisting in the air. She performed an immelman turn, swooping down to the ground and landing with a skid the puffed up the clouds. Her eyes were wide with joy as she looked around. Both her team and their opponents had gathered around her, Spitfire stepping up.

“That was some incredible flying, there!” She said, offering up her hoof. “You sure you wanna keep your break from the ‘Bolts going?”

Rainbow gave her friend a solid hoof bump, shaking her head. “I’ll be back once things with my friends aren’t so crazy.” Spitfire nodded understandably, heading back to her teammates. Rainbow looked over at Fluttershy, who was grinning as wide as Pinkie Pie.

“We did it, Dashie!” She shouted, jumping into an embrace. “We actually did it! And I didn’t even slow you down!”

Rainbow squeezed her fellow flyer as tightly as possible. “We couldn’t have done it without you!”

She pulled away, looking at the last of her teammates. As he came into view, the whole world slowed down. Finally, Ponyville gold! She felt so happy she could just…

Spitfire, Fleetfoot, and Blaze gawked at what they saw. “... Are they…? Did she seriously just…?”

“Eeyup.” Boltsinger replied, landing next to them.

Soarin had been thoroughly tackled by a certain rainbow-maned mare. Her forelegs were wrapped around his head, her wings were fluffed affectionately, and her lips were thoroughly pressed against his. Soarin’s eyes were wide as can be, but he quickly gave way to the moment. After a moment, Rainbow’s eyes snapped open. She flapped her wings, propelling herself several feet away with a furious blush. “Oh my gosh… I… I’m soooo sorry! I… I didn’t mean to…” She looked around to see several smiling faces, laying her eyes on Soarin again. He had the goofiest smile she had ever seen, but he didn’t seem disappointed. Her heart began racing, and the nerves from before had come back with a vengeance. “I… I’ve gotta go!” she cried, taking off at full speed. Not even a second had passed, and a Sonic Rainboom exploded out above the stadium as Rainbow Dash vanished from view.

Author's Note

I figured this was the most fitting way to make this happen. After all, when is Rainbow more emotionally honest than when she's just won something big? Now we get to see where it goes...

Is This What It's Like...?

Scootaloo left her room on a chilly morning, her scooter at her hooves as she made her way downstairs. She looked around the house, trying to spot her aunts, but there was nopony in sight. She headed to the kitchen, where a bowl of oats waited for her. She sighed to herself, eating her breakfast and continuing to the door. “I’m going to school!” she called. She heard a muffled response from deeper within, prompting a sigh, an eyeroll, and a swift exit from the abode.

On her way to school, the winged Crusader looked up at the sky. She remembered how desperately she once wanted to be able to go there on a whim. She had told herself that if she ever got to fly for real, she would never come down, spending as much time as possible among the clouds. She laughed to herself. Now she could be up there as much as she wanted. Not only was she able to fly, but she could out-fly nearly any Pegasus her age, save for more practiced stunt flyers like Rumble. The call of the sky wasn’t as strong now, but she still relished it. Recently, though, something else had begun to occupy her mind.

“Hey, Scoot!” Apple Bloom greeted, trotting up to match her pace. “Whatcha thinkin’ about?”

Scootaloo shook her head, freeing her from the enthrallment of her thoughts. “Huh? Oh, hey Apple Bloom.” She cast her eyes forward towards the school house. “Nothing, really. Just remembering everything that’s happened this year.”

“Yeah, I bet it’s been a doozy for ya.” the Earth Pony affirmed. “Learnin’ to fly, an’ doin’ it so dang fast! Why, before Bolt talked about teachin’ ya, I was about ready to say you might never get off the ground!”

“Yeah, he surprised both of us with that one.” Scootaloo stated.

“You mean all three of us!” a slightly squeakier voice corrected. Sweetie Belle trotted into place on the other side of her scootering friend. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo both nodded, waving a hoof in greeting. “What are we talking about, anyway?”

Apple Bloom tripped, both on her fellow Crusader’s words and on a larger-than-average rock in the road. “We were talkin’ about Scootaloo learnin’ to fly. Sayin’ how Bolt went ‘n surprised us when ‘e said he could teach her how to get up there.”

Sweetie Belle’s face lit with recollection. “Oooooh, yeah. That was really sweet of him, though.” She scratched her chin with her hoof “I wonder why he did it…?”

“He told me that I reminded him of himself when he was younger.” Scootaloo clarified. “He even used the same techniques he learned how to fly from to teach me!”

“Well, intentions aside, it was still pretty great!” Apple Bloom commented as they approached the school house. “Meet up after school?”

“Of course!” Sweetie Belle affirmed.

Scootaloo looked back towards Ponyville, that same thought burning in the back of her head. “Maybe… I’ll let you know when school is out.”

The day was almost over. The fillies and colts in the room chatting amongst themselves while a cerise-coated Earth Pony mare sat down behind the desk at the head of the school house. She had a fluffy pink mane and tail with a lighter stripe going down the middle, bright green eyes, and a Cutie Mark of three flowers with smiling faces. “All right, everyone, calm down! I know you’re excited for the weekend to start, but I have one announcement to make before I let you go!” The foals ceased their chatter, turning to face their instructor. “Thank you. Now, I want you all to know that we’re going to be holding an open house on Monday!” One of the colts, a chubby blue-coated and buck-toothed Unicorn with a messy orange mane, raised his hoof. “Yes, Snips?”

The colt lowered his hoof, tilting his head. “Uh… Miss Cheerilee… What’s an open house?”

Cheerilee beamed, pointing an approving hoof at Snips. “That’s a very good question, Snips! An open house is an event where we invite our families in to see how the school operates and show them just what you’ve all learned!”

“So, it’s like when we had a family member come in to talk about their lives, but instead they’ll be lookin’ at what we do?” Apple Bloom inquired.

“That’s right! You’re allowed to invite up to three family members to the open house, so make sure you pick the ones who you know can make it, so they can appreciate everything you’ve learned!” the teacher declared, turning to the door and raising her hoof grandly. “And with that, I will see you all on Monday!” The foals all cheered, running for the door.

“Well, I know who I’m bringin’ in!” Apple Bloom announced, trotting onto the road and turning to face her friends.

Scootaloo put her hoof to her face in feigned ignorance. “Let me guess… Applejack, Big Mac, and Granny Smith?”

“Is it that obvious?” the yellow filly wondered.

“Pretty obvious.” the orange filly affirmed.

“Well, I’m going to bring Rarity and my parents!” Sweetie Belle stated. “I’m sure they’d love to see what we’ve been doing in school!”

“Parents, huh…?” Scootaloo mused aloud, looking over to Ponyville.

“So, Scootaloo, you gonna invite Rainbow Dash?” Apple Bloom asked, leaning closer to her.

Again, the filly flyer was pulled from her mind, looking at her best friends. “Huh? Oh, yeah! Of course I’m gonna invite Rainbow Dash! She’s practically my big sister, after all!” She rubbed the back of her head, letting her eyes drift back to the subject of her pondering. “Hey, I’m gonna head into town. You two have a good day, all right?”

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle exchanged confused glances, finally coming to a nod. “Okay. We’ll see you later, then!” Sweetie Belle said, waving as Scootaloo scooted away. She looked to Apple Bloom once more. “Does she seem… distracted to you?”

Boltsinger walked through the castle foyer with a wagon of books strapped to his barrel. Twilight had been looking forward to this day for a while now, and he had to admit the excitement was infectious. He looked back at the books with a giant smile plastered on his muzzle, trotting happily towards the library he loved.

Until a knock came at the door. Boltsinger stopped his trot, wondering who it could be. He un-strapped himself, making for the door and opening it to reveal Scootaloo looking up at him. “Oh! Hey, Scootaloo! This is a pleasant surprise.”

“Hey Bolt.” she responded, removing her helmet. “Can I come in?”

“Of course!” he told her. He waved the filly inside, taking her scooter to rest by a bench. “What brings you over?”

“Oh, not much. I just wanted to spend some time with you.” she told him, walking up to the wagon. “What are you up to?”

The stallion smiled wide, getting the wagon ready to move again. “I’m helping Twilight reorganize the library!”

“Again?” the young pony queried, cocking an eyebrow. “Doesn’t she reorganize that library, like, every other week? Why does it suddenly make you smile so much?”

“Because this time, we’re making room for a bunch of new books that just came in!” he explained, flaring his wings excitedly. “And as excited as I am to start reading, we’ve got to make sure everything has a place. So, we decided to organize the whole library from A to Z!”

Scootaloo eyed the books the stallion was pulling along. They looked like they were brand new, never been cracked to the point where they nearly shined with how pristine they were. “So… You need any help?”

Boltsinger’s eyes shot in her direction. “Really? You want to help us sort books? That doesn’t exactly seem all that exciting… Well, it’s exciting for Twilight and I ‘cause we’re a couple of eggheads, but… Doesn’t seem active enough for somepony like you.”

“It would give me a chance to practice my flying!” the smaller Pegasus reasoned.

Boltsinger chuckled. “That’s true, but you don't need a special reason. You’re welcome to help out if you want. I just don’t want you to be bored out of your mind.” He stopped for a moment as they reached the hall, giving Scootaloo a smirk. “Race you to the library?”

Scootaloo smirked back, dragging her hoof on the floor. “You’re on!”

The two ponies broke into a gallop, winding through the halls as the books in the wagon jostled about. Boltsinger would look back every now and then, making sure he hadn’t lost part of his haul, only to see Scootaloo ahead of him when he finally looked forward again. The process continued for a while until the two of them skidded to a simultaneous stop in front of the open door to the library. “I’m back!” Boltsinger announced with a pant.

“Welcome back, Bolt.” Twilight greeted, floating another book to its place. “Is that the last load?”

“At least for today.” he replied, going to the back of the wagon and proceeding to unload it. “We also got ourselves a surprise volunteer!”

“Oh?” The Princess looked away from the three books she had floating in front of her, spotting the orange filly. “Ah! Hi, Scootaloo. Are you here with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle today?”

Scootaloo shook her head, fluttering over to one of the many piles of books that still littered the room. “No, it’s just me today. I felt like I…” she looked back at Boltsinger, then returned her attention to the spines before her. “... needed to be here today.”

A smidge of confusion crossed the Alicorn’s expression as she returned to her work. “Oh, well we’re happy to have you. Although I’m not sure why you’d want to sort books all day.”

“Well, actually, I did have another reason for coming over.” she admitted, coming to a landing. “You see, there’s this open house thing going on at school on Monday, and…”

“An open house?!” Twilight repeated, dropping her books and rushing up to the filly. “As in an event where students’ families get to come in and see just how everything works and what they’ve all learned?”

Scootaloo scratched her mane. “Um… Yeah, that.”

“You’re going to invite Rainbow Dash, aren’t you?” the lilac pony wondered. “But will Rainbow Dash really appreciate all of that classroom stuff? Every time I’ve seen her in a classroom setting, she’s fallen asleep almost instantly.”

Scootaloo nodded.“Yeah, I’m going to invite Rainbow Dash, but… We were told we could invite at least three family members.”

“How about Rainbow's parents?” the Princess suggested. “I’m sure they’d be happy to come and support you!”

Boltsinger raised an eyebrow, walking over to the other ponies and putting his hoof on the mare’s shoulder. “Honey, if she was going to talk to Bow and Windy about it, I doubt she would sound so uncertain.” he advised, turning his attention to the filly.

Twilight looked at her husband, then back at their guest. “Oh. Sorry.”

“It’s okay. You’re not wrong. I’m sure they would love to come down, too, but they live all the way in Cloudsdale. That’s a long way off.” she stated. “I still haven’t figured out who else to invite.”

“Are your parents gonna be in town?” Boltsinger asked.

Scootaloo huffed, averting her eyes. “That’s like asking if Cutie Marks grow on trees!”

Boltsinger felt a stern bitterness in the filly’s words, sending him reeling a ways. “Ooh… That bad?”

“I’d be lucky if they showed up for anything lately…” she confirmed. She walked over to a stack of books, putting her hoof to the spines. “Can we just… sort books now?”

The two older ponies looked at one another with a soft smile, then walked to either side of their junior, each placing a wing on her back. “Of course.” Twilight answered, lighting her horn and lifting more books. “Okay, so…”

The sorting process began in earnest, Twilight pointing to a book and having one of the Pegasi flying over to retrieve it. She would then read off the title, listing what the topic of the book was, or its genre, and then another Pegasus would take it and put it on a shelf. They kept up this routine for several hours, with Scootaloo often making a game of her task. Sometimes she would see how fast she could do it, while other times, she would challenge herself to fly a specific way while finding a book’s place. When ideas didn’t come to her, Boltsinger would chime in with a suggestion, always managing to spice things up.

Eventually, the time came for the evening meal. The ponies walked down the hall, Twilight giving her legs and wings a good stretch. “Wow. I haven’t sat in one place for so long since my last--”

“Book-sort-cation?” Boltsinger finished, leaning towards her with a smirk.

The Princess of Friendship gave off a guffaw. “How’d you know?”

“Because that’s the only time you stay in one place for that long.” he explained. “Even when you’re researching, you’re still all over the place!”

“I am?” she queried, thinking back on it. “How so?”

As Twilight and Boltsinger went into an involved conversation on the various differences in her behavior between sorting books, researching, and simply reading a novel, Scootaloo looked back at them. She could hardly understand all of the nuances they went on about, but she couldn’t help but smile and laugh. It felt right. Like something she had been missing for a long time. Similar to how she felt with Rainbow Dash, but… different at the same time. At long last, they found their way to the dining room. When everyone was seated, Scootaloo cleared her throat. “So, uh… Today was really fun!”

Boltsinger smiled back at the young Crusader. “Oh? I’m glad we could make library sorting interesting for you!”

“Do you think, maybe, I can come back and help you tomorrow, too?” she requested.

Twilight took a look at the filly, taking special note that her eyes were mostly fixated on the stallion next to her. “I don’t see why not. You know you're welcome anytime, Scootaloo.”

Scootaloo squeed, pumping her foreleg. “Yes! Thank you, Twilight!”

“It’s no problem.” the Princess replied. “So, you have any homework?” Scootaloo’s eyes widened momentarily and darted back and forth. She attempted to stall for a moment, but quickly relented, speeding off to her saddlebag. As the young pony left the room, Twilight and her husband turned to each other. “You’re planning on going to that open house, aren’t you?”

“Not even Celestia could tear me away.” he confirmed.

Scootaloo had never imagined she would enjoy a weekend of books as much as she did, but it happened. It had less to do with the books, and much more to do with the ponies she had spent it with. She had returned to the castle for both of the days that encompassed the weekend, sorting books for the most part. Every now and then, Twilight and Boltsinger would agree to break up the monotony of sorting with an activity of Scootaloo’s choice. Alas, as with all good things, the weekend came to an end. Monday morning had arrived, and Scootaloo left her house once again. She started her scooting, knowing that Rainbow Dash was to meet her on the way. She dearly loved her honorary big sister, but she still felt like there was something missing. She wanted more ponies to come along with her today.

“Oh well.” she told herself. “It’s not like having Rainbow Dash around is ever a bad thing, right?”

“You got that right, squirt!” Rainbow answered from above. She came to a landing next to the orange filly, trotting in time with her wingbeats. “You ready for the open house?”

Scootaloo smiled at her idol. “You know it!” She lowered her head, readying her wings for a higher speed. “Race you there?”

Rainbow met Scootaloo’s stance with one of her own. “Of course! But don’t feel bad when I leave ya in the dust!” With that, the two of them zoomed off, leaving a trail of dust in the turbulence behind them.

The speedy ponies blew through the streets, bypassing several groups of students and their families. Sweetie Belle, Rarity, and their parents found themselves with wind-blown manes, causing the fashionista to let out a frustrated groan. Soon after, they found Diamond Tiara with her parents, Filthy and Spoiled Rich, crossing the road. Rainbow and Scootaloo smirked at one another, jumping high into the air and flapping their wings to soar over the now-surprised family. They landed with a laugh, keeping their pace and finally rounding the corner to the school house, where the sight before them sent Scootaloo skidding to a stop so hard that her scooter flipped over. She tumbled over in the dirt, landing with a thud at the hooves of three older ponies.

“So, let me get this straight… You two are here… for Scootaloo?” Cheerilee asked.

“That we are.” the orange stallion affirmed, nodding matter-of-factly.

Cheerilee nodded in kind, scratching her mane. “I see… I was under the belief that her… parents… would be coming.”

“Unfortunately, no.” he retorted with a tinge of resentment. “But, we’re here for her. Is that okay?”

“Of course!” the teacher stated, stepping aside to let the ponies in. “You’ll be in the back of the room with, I’m guessing, Rainbow Dash. You’re certainly not who I expected to show up, but thank you for being here for Scootaloo!”

Scootaloo, shaking herself to make sure she just saw what she thought she saw, slowly stood up. “Was that…?”

“I was wondering if they were here already.” Rainbow remarked, walking past her honorary sister. She waved a wing at the instructor as she passed. “Hey, Cheerilee.”

Cheerilee bowed her head. “Glad to see you, Rainbow Dash.” she turned to Scootaloo, who was removing her helmet. “Ah! Good morning, Scootaloo! Did you know that Princess Twilight and her husband were coming today?”

Scootaloo shook her head, still mildly baffled that they showed up. “No, ma’am. I told them it was happening, but I didn’t think they would actually be here.”

Cheerilee smiled warmly at her young student, ushering her inside. “Well, you don’t want to keep your family waiting, now do you?”

The filly flyer’s focus faltered for a moment. “My… family?” she mused out loud. In a flash, she shook her head clear of distractions, meeting her teacher’s smile with one of her own. “No, ma’am!” she made a brief hover, shooting into the classroom and taking a seat at her desk.

Scootaloo looked around the room as it steadily filled with ponies. Apple Bloom gleefully trotted in with Applejack, Big Mac, and Granny Smith following her, heading to a corner of the room. Diamond Tiara sauntered in soon after, flashing a smile at her friends and taking a seat, while her immensely proud father smiled, taking a seat near the front while his aptly-named wife sat next to him in a huff. The room filled out, pony after pony arriving with families in tow, until finally Sweetie Belle arrived with Rarity and their parents. Rarity looked completely different from when she had last seen her. She now sported a fancy dress with a modest up-do in her mane. Scootaloo giggled to herself, thinking on how much that little bit of wind must have set the fashionista’s family back on the way. Finally, she looked to the back of the room, where Rainbow Dash, Twilight, and Boltsinger sat. Rainbow was on the verge of falling asleep as Twilight nudged her in the side. Boltsinger’s eyes were fixated on the filly he had come to support, an excited smile on his muzzle. Scootaloo squeed, waving gingerly at the ponies in the back.

The school day went about as normally as it could with such a full classroom. Lessons ranged from language skills to math, science, and other fundamentals. All throughout, hooves were raised, giving each student a chance to show how much they had learned. While the foals went out for recess, the older ponies met up, various families reacquainting with one another. As Boltsinger was conversing with those of his friends who were present, the most uptight pony in the room, Spoiled Rich, made her approach.

“You’re that pony that moved to town a couple of years back, yes?” the haughty mare inquired. “The one who married Princess Twilight?”

“Eeyup.” Boltsinger confirmed, turning to face her. “You’re… Diamond Tiara’s mother, right?”

She gave the stallion a cocky smirk. “Yes I am. I’m here to support my amazing daughter, and see how the school is doing. I am on the school board, after all!”

A bit of surprise crossed the Pegasus’ eyes. “Wow, you are?” Spoiled nodded confidently. “Well, I have to say I think it’s wonderful that you’re helping so many young ponies get the education they need! It’s really a special thing to see a foal’s face light up as they learn new skills and facts.”

“Yes, yes, I’m incredible, but that’s beside the point.” she stated, waving a dismissive hoof. “Why are you, and the Princess, for that matter, here? You two may be expecting, but that doesn’t give you any reason to be here on a day reserved for families, now does it?”

“Oh, that’s easy. We’re here for Scootaloo.” he informed her, looking out the window at the playing students.

“But you’re not part of her family. By all rights, you shouldn’t even be here!” she argued, poking his chest with her hoof. “And the simple fact that you’re here for such a pathetic excuse for a Pegasus gives me… concerns… about what you and Princess Twilight prioritize as royals. For that matt--”

Boltsinger raised his hoof to his mouth, aggressively clearing his throat at the top of his voice. Every other conversation in the room came to a halt as the school house rumbled, the fillies and colts on the playground all coming to the window to see what was going on, Cutie Mark Crusaders chief among them. “Excuse me… What did you just call her?”

Spoiled Rich’s face went stern, looking Boltsinger in the eye. “You heard what I said. Any Pegasus who takes as long as she did to get off the ground clearly doesn’t know what she’s doing with those wings of hers. Now--"

“No.” he interjected, muffling her with his hoof. “You’re done talking. Now you listen.” Myriad gasps sounded from some of the parents and students, many of which had never seen such treatment on a pony in such high standing, let alone a prominent member of the school board. “Scootaloo, who you just called ‘pathetic’, is a natural in the air. She just needed to get off of the ground to prove it. You wanna know how I know that?” Spoiled Rich nodded. Boltsinger removed his hoof from her muzzle, motioning to himself. “I’m the one that taught her to fly! And even before she could fly, she has, time and again, proven that she is one of the bravest, strongest, and most dependable fillies in all of Equestria, and I could not be more proud of that hard, proven, scientifically accurate FACT!”

The haughty mare rolled her eyes. “You can’t possibly be talking abou--”

“Yes! That is EXACTLY who I’m talking about!” the stallion retorted, stomping his hoof. “How it is that you can’t see that when your daughter was able to become friends with them is beyond me!” He loomed over her, angrily splaying his wings and snorting steam from his nostrils. From Spoiled Rich’s perspective, there seemed to be a fiery image of a stallion with lightning surging forth from its head, furiously protecting an unseen child. She dropped to the floor, shaking all over. Boltsinger’s glare died down as he calmed himself. “But… from what I understand, it’s the dream of every parent to see their offspring turn out better than they did.” He turned around to see his friends, whipping her in the face with his tail as he did so. “You must be so proud…”

The entire school house lingered in silence for several moments, a calm air taking hold. Rainbow Dash stepped up to Boltsinger, giving him a punch to the foreleg. “That was awesome.” She shot a fierce glare at the terrified mare on the floor, quickly turning back to her friend. “I’d have laid into her myself if you hadn’t. Wouldn’t have been so nice about it, either…”

“And that’s why I held you back in the first place.” Twilight reminded her. She trotted over and gave her spouse a kiss on the cheek.

Outside, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo pulled back from the window. Scootaloo’s pupils were like pinpricks, with her ears laying flat against her head. The wingless Crusaders each kept an outstretched foreleg on their friend. As they reassured their friend, Diamond Tiara made her own approach, taking a seat in front of her. “Hey, Scootaloo. I’m sorry about my mom.”

Scootaloo blinked, her eyes returning to normal. “It’s… It’s not okay, but it’s expected.” she replied.

The former bully reached forward and added her hoof to the gathering of friends. “I know… And that’s what I’m so sorry for. You know I don’t think you’re pathetic, right?”

“I know…” she affirmed. “Thanks, Diamond Tiara.”

“You’re welcome.” She pulled her hoof back, looking at the adults in the window. “So, I’ve gotta know… Who is that pony who stood up for you? He seemed really mad, but in kind of a cool way!”

“Him? Oh, that’s Boltsinger. Don’t you remember? He was the announcer at the Equestria Games.” Scootaloo explained, looking that way herself. “He’s my…” Flight coach? No… He’s not that anymore. I guess he’s still a kind of mentor… But that still doesn’t feel right…

“Hey, Scoot, you okay?” Apple Bloom asked. “Ya look like yer searchin’ for sumthin’.”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, I’m fine.” Scootaloo assured.

“So, what is he to you?” Diamond Tiara repeated.

“I… I don’t know…” she admitted. There was an idea in her head, but she wasn’t sure.

The open house finally came to a close. Scootaloo had been quiet for the rest of their lessons, only responding when called on for a question. Likewise, Spoiled Rich spent the rest of the day in relative shock, refusing to say anything for fear of retaliation. As steadily as the school house had filled that morning, it now emptied. Cheerilee thanked everypony that had shown up, assuring the parents that their foals would continue to be well-educated. As Scootaloo waved goodbye to her still-concerned friends, she found herself surrounded by Rainbow Dash, Twilight, and Boltsinger.

“Hey, Scoot.” the stallion began. “I want you to know, I’m really sorry you had to hear what happened during recess. She was out of line and I just… I snapped.”

“No, it’s okay.” the filly affirmed, waving her wing. “I’m actually really happy that you did it.”

Boltsinger let a grin onto his face, giving her a small hug. “That’s good. But… you still look a little distracted. Everything okay?”

Scootaloo looked up at the living lightning bolt, her nerves setting in. “Yeah! I’m fine! Totally fine! Let’s go and sort those books, okay? Yeah!” She began to accelerate, flapping her wings and lifting off with zero effort.

Rainbow Dash recoiled, looking over at Twilight. “Sort books?”

“It’s been a busy weekend.” the Alicorn stated.

Boltsinger leaped forward, catching the foal’s tail in his teeth. “Not so fast, Crusader!” he called, using his weight to pull her back to the ground. She acquiesced, letting her hooves touch down, followed soon after by her rump. “I know full well what the word ‘fine’ means. It’s not always good.” He sat next to the little pony, putting his wing around her. “Whatever it is, it’s keeping you from concentrating on… well, on anything. Why don’t you tell us what’s wrong?”

Scootaloo looked into the purple eyes that now peered into her very being. A kind of warmth filled her. It was familiar, like the feeling she got from Rainbow Dash, but at the same time, it was new and different. “Okay, but… Can we talk about it someplace away from other ponies? I don’t want everypony to hear this.”

Boltsinger nodded, turning his attention to his wife. “Honey, if you would be so kind?” Twilight gave him a curt nod, lighting her horn as a translucent magenta bubble formed around the four of them. Boltsinger nodded in thanks, returning his gaze to the other orange pony. “Bubble of silence. Complete privacy, even in public!” He made a grand gesture with his foreleg, emphasizing how amazing the spell was. “Okay. Spill.”

Scootaloo breathed a heavy sigh, preparing herself for what she had to say. “So… I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and… You know what the situation with my family is like, right?” Each of the older ponies in the bubble voiced their affirmations. “Then you know it gets pretty lonely. Nopony to be there for me or support me… Nopony to send me off to school with a good breakfast, even! I’d all but given up on things like flying. I didn’t have the confidence to even think my wings could get stronger! Then…” She looked up at Boltsinger. “... Then you said you were gonna be my flight coach… Just… out of the blue! You showed me how to get off the ground with my own power, you took pride in every little accomplishment I made, did a Sonic Rainboom to catch me when I fell, and… And then today you were there for me without me even asking you to be… I mean, I know that I have the most awesome older sister in the world, but I look at you and I feel something that’s like that but different… and I just can’t stop asking myself…” As her explanation continued, her eyes had begun to water, a steady stream of tears flowing down her face. “Is this what it’s like to have a dad?”

Inside the bubble of silence, there was still more. The usually-talkative Boltsinger found himself at a loss for words. “I… I-I-I…” He reached for Scootaloo with both forelegs, hoisting her up and pulling her into an embrace that cradled her in every upper extremity his body could offer. “Yes! Yes, Scootaloo, that is exactly what it’s like to have a dad!” His breathing grew staggered as his eyes gave way. This was easily one of the happiest and proudest moments of his life, but he found that he couldn’t help but let the waterworks run. Scootaloo wrapped her forelegs around his neck, returning his embrace as he finally pulled his head back. “And I’m gonna keep being there for you, no matter what. Okay?”

Scootaloo pulled him in again, squeezing ever tighter. “Okay!”

Twilight stepped up to the two of them, wiping a tear away with her wing. “You know, Scootaloo, I can have a room set aside for you at the castle if you want. You don't have to move in, but you’ll always have a place there.”

The filly pulled back once more, looking hopefully at the Princess. “Really? You mean I can come by anytime?”

“Any time.” the Alicorn repeated.

Scootaloo flashed a bright smile, reaching for the most royal of her friends. “Thank you so much!” Twilight leaned in, joining the embrace with her forelegs and wings.

Rainbow Dash took a hard look at the three of them, her own sense of pride having welled up to a near-breaking point. She refused to let her cool give way, though. She had a reputation to maintain. And then they all looked at her.

“Come on Rainbow. Join the hug.” Boltsinger suggested, waving her forward with his wing. “You know you want to!”

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, giving into her emotions at least for the moment. “You asked for it!” she warned them. She dove headlong into the three of them, catching as much of them all in her embrace as she possibly could, while simultaneously sending the lot of them to the ground. The bubble of silence burst open with a loud pop, followed instantly by the laughter of four ponies sharing in a hug.

Author's Note

This one... This was one of those chapters where a particular character has been talking to me, almost demanding that I address the question she asked.
This was Scootaloo asking just what was going on with her.
I had previously read up on her family situation. It's an actual thing that she almost never sees her actual parents, and that she lives with her aunts with almost no real direct support from them. Why do you think she was so jealous of the way Bow and Windy supported their daughter to a fault? So it made sense that she doesn't have much experience with... parental affection.
Bolt has been spending all this time preparing to be a father. He took responsibility for Scootaloo in a way that even Rainbow Dash had yet to even consider! And after all of that, it became pretty obvious that they had bonded in such a way that felt like family. Chosen family. Much like what Bolt has done, and what Scoot started when she asked her idol to be like her big sister.
I wrote this because I had to.
I wrote this because the characters wanted me to.
I wrote this chapter... because it just felt right.
:scootangel: