With Undiminished Wonder

by DJLowrider

Rating: everyone
Tags: Princess Celestia, Twilight Sparkle, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Original Character, Rainbow Dash
Length: 5421

Twilight Sparkle tells Rainbow Dash about the stallion who introduced her to science.

A discussion between Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle about faith vs. science leads Twilight to tell Rainbow about the stallion who introduced her to science when she was just a filly, and who forever changed how she looks at the world around her. This fic is inspired by the artwork of the same name drawn by Esuka.

Published 2012-07-24 19:34:02 UTC
Last updated 2012-07-24 19:34:02 UTC

With Undiminished Wonder

While most of the time she preferred to meander the skies of Ponyville in a leisurely and carefree manner, there was purpose in Rainbow Dash’s flight today. The letter she'd received just moments ago had her on a mission of utmost importance, much to the dismay of passersby below. Any other day she’d treat them to a few tricks as she flew by; not today, however. This was flying with a purpose, and one from which she would not be deterred.

She circled the library once to come in for a landing and quickly headed inside, not bothering to knock as she figured Twilight Sparkle would be expecting her.

“Twilight!” Rainbow exclaimed her friend’s name as she made her entrance to the library. “I got here as quickly as I could. Is my book still here? Please tell me it’s still here and someone else hasn’t checked it out already!”

The only response Rainbow received, however, was dead silence.

“Twilight?” Rainbow called out, beginning to look around. “You here? Helloooo?”

Rainbow began searching the tree for her unicorn friend, only coming across her as she entered the observatory. There sat Twilight with her eye pressed to one of her telescopes. A pencil and notebook hovered telekinetically next to her taking notes down as she dictated them.

“Uh, Twilight?” Rainbow said, hoping to get her friend’s attention. “What’re you doing?”

Twilight stopped dictating to the pencil and notebook and looked down in surprise at the Pegasus mare. “Oh, Rainbow! I didn’t hear you come in. What can I do for you?”

Rainbow cocked an eyebrow and tilted her head a bit at her. “What can you do for me? Twilight, I just got your letter about Daring Do and the Galaxy Gemstone! Why do you think I’m here?”

“The letter was only to inform you that the book was here, Rainbow. It wasn’t intended to be a summons.”

“Whatever, it doesn’t matter. What does matter is I’m here now for that book. I’ve been craving some more Daring Do goodness for weeks, Twilight!”

Twilight giggled a bit and turned back to her telescope. “I appreciate your enthusiasm for reading, Rainbow. Just give me a few minutes and I’ll get the book for you to check out. I just want to finish what I’m doing first.”

“Yeah, what are you doing in here anyway?” Rainbow asked, flying up to where Twilight was seated. “It’s still daylight out, after all. Princess Luna hasn’t brought the night sky yet so there’s nothing to see.”

“On the contrary,” Twilight said, pressing her eye to the telescope’s eyepiece. “With a powerful enough telescope - like this one - it’s possible to see into space even in broad daylight. And to answer your question, I’ve been observing some amazing cosmic phenomena since early this morning. I’ve recorded everything I’ve witnessed and intend to write a paper to submit to Equestria’s scientific community on my findings.”

“Uh... what’s a cosmetic muhna-muhna? That sounds like something Rarity would be into.” Rainbow asked, being completely lost from Twilight’s science babbling.

Twilight sighed and looked back at her with mild annoyance. “Cosmic phenomena. I’ve been seeing interesting things going on in space thanks to my telescope.”

“Is that really such a good idea, Twilight?” Rainbow asked a bit worriedly.

“Why wouldn’t it be?”

“Well for one thing, isn’t that kinda Princess Luna’s domain? I’m not sure she’d appreciate ponies spying on her.”

Twilight chuckled a bit as she continued to peer into her telescope. “That’s a common misconception, Rainbow. Princess Luna doesn’t actually raise the moon and stars at night, just like Princess Celestia doesn’t actually raise the sun in the morning.”

Rainbow’s brain put the brakes on as soon as Twilight finished her comment. “Whoa! Hold on! What kinda crazy talk is that?”

“It’s not crazy talk, it’s fact,” Twilight told her, turning away from her telescope to face her. “Do you honestly think Princess Luna goes around recreating the night sky in its entirety every single night? There are billions upon billions of stars, planets, and other things out in space! It would be simply impossible to consider-”

“Don’t go trying to confuse me with your weirdo science mumbo jumbo, Twilight!” Rainbow said, cutting her off. “I know what I see every night and every morning. The princesses work miracles with their awesome powers to make sure we can have day and night. They don’t need everyone to go questioning them or their greatness just because of a few doubting donkeys who say that there’s some other wacky, unproven explanation for how things work.”

Rainbow was fully prepared for this disagreement to turn into a shouting contest. To her surprise, however, Twilight just chuckled some more as she made her way down from her telescope.

“What’s so funny? I meant what I said, Twilight!” Rainbow asserted to her.

“I know you did, Rainbow,” Twilight told her with a smile. “I’m not laughing at you, honest. Part of me was rather surprised to hear this sort of thing from you. Then I stopped and reminded myself that you represent the Element of Loyalty, and that another word for loyalty is faith; a quality you’re exhibiting in spades at the moment.”

“And how’s that a bad thing?” Rainbow asked, still sounding fairly agitated. “Any more there’s lots of ponies who’d probably be better off if they just let themselves believe in things a little more easily. Instead we’ve got a buncha eggheads making things all murky and confusing.”

Twilight stepped closer to her, some of the mirth gone from her face now. “Would that include me?”

Rainbow took a deep breath and considered Twilight’s question for a few moments before answering. “Twilight, you’re my friend first and foremost. I’ll never stop being your friend, no matter how much I might not like the things you say or do. Like you said, loyalty’s kinda my thing. But... why do you care about science so much? You’re Princess Celestia’s own student, after all. I’d think you’d have more faith in her and her power than anyone else. How could you, of all ponies, doubt her?”

Twilight smiled at Rainbow once again and motioned for the Pegasus mare to follow her back into the library, which she did. As they went, Twilight brought an old book down off of a shelf telekinetically, setting it down and opening it in front of her on a table. It was a science textbook, and it looked as though it had been read many times from the worn cover and binding.

“A long time ago I thought exactly the same as you do now, Rainbow,” Twilight told her as she flipped through the book’s pages, feeling rather nostalgic as she did. “But then I learned one of the most important lessons I’ve ever been taught: That skeptical scrutiny is the means, in both science and matters of faith, by which deep thoughts can be separated from deep nonsense. It’s something that has stuck to me ever since I learned it as a filly, and it’s an intrinsic part of how I look at the world and everything in it ”

“You want me to believe that Princess Celestia herself taught you to doubt her?” Rainbow asked incredulously.

“Princess Celestia didn’t teach me that. It was someone else; probably the most important teacher I had besides the princess herself...”

Many years earlier . . .

Twilight Sparkle did her best to keep up with Princess Celestia as the regal pony monarch strode the halls of Canterlot castle. Still being such a young filly she had a hard time of it due to her small legs, but her enthusiasm for learning fueled her enough that she didn’t think about being tired.

“You’ve been my student for a little over a year now, Twilight,” Celestia said as she led Twilight onwards, a serene smile on her face as usual. “In that time you’ve proven yourself to be as capable and amazing a student as I knew you’d be.”

“Thank you, Princess!” Twilight said, beaming a proud smile at her. “I’ll always work hard to make sure you stay proud of me!”

“I have no doubt of that, Twilight,” Celestia said, laughing lightly at her student’s fervor. “However, there are some subjects for which I must admit I’m not the best one to act as your teacher. So starting today you’ll be spending some time every day with another pony who I’ve personally chosen to instruct you on certain topics.”

“But Princess... I thought I was only supposed to learn about magic?” Twilight asked, suddenly rather intimidated by the idea of learning from someone other than the princess herself.

“Magical knowledge alone does not a well-rounded pony make, my faithful student,” Celestia chided her. “There are many other subjects at which I, and your parents, want you to become learned. Today you will begin your study of science, and I have personally selected a pony whom I feel will be an excellent teacher for you.”

Twilight just nodded and tried to swallow her nerves down as the princess opened a set of double doors for her into a large room that had been set up as a fully functional scientific laboratory and astrophysical observatory. As Twilight looked around in amazement at all of the scientific books and instruments the room held, her eyes fell on another pony who was standing next to a chalkboard contemplating something. He was a gray-colored Earth pony with a neatly combed brown mane and somewhat wavy tail, and his flanks bore a cutie mark of a blue spiral of some sort with a spot of white at its center. He turned his head upon realizing he had guests and gave a deferential bow to Princess Celestia as they approached.

“I trust you’ve found everything here to your liking, Dr. Haygan?” Princess Celestia asked him.

“And then some, your majesty,” Haygan replied with a smile. “I couldn’t possibly ask for better facilities for the task you’ve assigned me to oversee.”

The princess nodded and turned towards her faithful student. “Twilight Sparkle, this is Dr. Haygan. He will be your science teacher for the foreseeable future.”

“Um... how is a doctor supposed to teach me about science?” Twilight asked. “Shouldn’t a doctor be treating sick ponies?”

Haygan couldn’t help but chuckle at her comment. “A valid question, young Miss Sparkle, but I am not a medical doctor. Rather, I am a pony who has devoted much time to my field of study. So much, in fact, that I have been awarded a doctorate degree in it. So as you can see, I am a doctor. Just not the sort who’ll take your temperature or prescribe medicine if you happen to be sick.”

“Dr. Haygan is one of the foremost scientific minds in all of Equestria,” Celestia told Twilight. “Though he and I may not always see eye-to-eye on some things, I can think of few others more suitable to introduce you to the world of science. I want you to give him the same level of attention and respect as you give me during our lessons. Can you do that for me, Twilight?”

“I’m always eager to learn, Princess,” Twilight told her with a smile. “And I’ll do whatever it takes to become an even better student of yours.”

“I’m glad to hear that, Twilight,” Celestia told her. She then looked back to Haygan and nodded. “Dr. Haygan, she’s all yours.”

Haygan bowed to the princess in deference once again as she turned and left, only turning his attention to the eager, young unicorn filly after she’d left the room.

“So what’ll I be learning about first?” Twilight asked as she telekinetically lifted a nearby quill and some parchment. “I’m ready to learn whatever it is you’re going to teach me, Dr. Haygan! I want to make Princess Celestia proud of me.”

“I admire your zeal, Miss Sparkle,” Haygan said as he walked back to his chalkboard. “However, I believe you’re mistaken about the nature of what I am going to teach you.”

“The princess said I was going to learn science from you. Isn’t that right?”

“That is indeed correct; however, unlike most teachers who have lessons and plans in mind for how to teach their students, I have a different approach to what I’ll be teaching you.”

Haygan raised a forehoof to the chalkboard and flipped it to reveal its other side, on which he had written a single word. “Can you tell me what word this is, Miss Sparkle?”

“Sure, it says ‘Truth’.” Twilight said, reading the word on the board.

“Correct,” Haygan told her, beginning to pace a bit in front of her. “Truth, you see, is what all scientific endeavors seek to uncover. Not just about matters that some think are inherently scientific in their nature, though. Science seeks truth in all things. What I will be teaching you is to be a scientist. A truth seeker, if you would.

“We scientists wish to pursue the truth no matter where it leads. But to find the truth, we need imagination and skepticism both. We will not be afraid to speculate, but we will be careful to distinguish speculation from fact.”

“This sounds kind of scary,” Twilight said. She’d taken down some notes from what Haygan had said so far, but she nonetheless felt a bit daunted by what he was proposing. “What if finding out the truth about something turns out to hurt someone’s feelings? Or what if it’s something others don’t like hearing?”

Haygan nodded to her as he continued to pace. “The truth may be puzzling. It may take some work to grapple with. It may be counterintuitive. It may contradict deeply held prejudices. It may not be consonant with what we desperately want to be true. But our preferences do not determine what's true. The simple fact is, the truth may not always be convenient... but that doesn’t make it invalid.”

Twilight nodded and took down some more notes. “So if this is how science works, how do we get started?”

Haygan turned to the chalkboard and wrote on it as he spoke. “To get started you must understand, Miss Sparkle, science has two rules. First: there are no sacred truths; all assumptions must be critically examined; arguments from authority are worthless. Second: whatever is inconsistent with the facts must be discarded or revised. We must understand the Cosmos as it is and not confuse how it is with how we wish it to be.”

“The... Cosmos?” Twilight asked, unfamiliar with the word. “What’s that?”

Haygan turned and smiled at her, then ushered her over to one of the many telescopes situated around the room. Twilight approached it curiously and looked into its eyepiece once directed to by Haygan. Suddenly, she found herself peering into what looked like a night sky with hundreds of stars shining and twinkling against the blackness.

“B-b-but it’s not nighttime!” Twilight exclaimed, quickly looking back up at Haygan with wide eyes. “How can I be seeing the night sky if it’s not nighttime?”

Haygan simply smiled at her and turned her to look back into the telescope. “Science has enabled us to do things previously thought impossible, Miss Sparkle. One such thing is the ability to see things which we once could not: Things obscured by the light of day, things incredibly far away, even things so small we couldn’t see them and didn’t even know they existed before today.”

“I thought the night sky didn’t exist until Princess Celestia made it herself,” Twilight said, now sounding a bit troubled. “It’s kind of scary to think I can see it now, but at the same time it’s... beautiful. And also fascinating.”

“That’s good,” Haygan said with a smile as he turned his gaze to the same sky Twilight was peering into via the telescope. “You’ve taken your first step into a larger world.”

“From that day on, I looked forward to Dr. Haygan’s science lessons as much as I did Princess Celestia’s magic lessons.” Twilight told Rainbow as she continued to flip through the book in front of her. “And the effect it had on me was almost instant. I began seeing things in a completely different light and asked questions about things I’d never considered before.”

Rainbow laughed sarcastically. “I’ll bet that didn’t go over all that well.”

“Actually, it wasn’t all that bad,” Twilight said, smirking at her. “I’m sure I got a little annoying with some of the questions I asked-”

“A little?”

“Okay, probably more than a little. But I almost always got better answers by being inquisitive and skeptical than by simply accepting what I was told at face value. And like Dr. Haygan said, sometimes the answers I got weren’t what I was expecting or even wanted them to be, but that didn’t make those answers false just because I didn’t necessarily like them.”

“I guess you’ve got a point there,” Rainbow said as she thought on what Twilight said. “I mean, remember when I got Tank for my pet? I sure wasn’t expecting that the perfect pet for me would be a tortoise, but that’s what the answer to my pet question ended up being.”

Twilight giggled a bit at Rainbow’s revelation. “I suppose it even applies to things like that.”

“So this Haygan pony-”

“Dr. Haygan.” Twilight said, correcting her.

Rainbow rolled her eyes at the correction. “Sorry. This Dr. Haygan must be a pretty smart pony.”

Twilight nodded, looking back to her book. “Yeah... he was.”

“But still, I can’t imagine Princess Celestia was all that happy about you questioning so much about her and what she does because of what he taught you.”

Twilight sighed in response. “Yes, well... the princess did humor me and my questions at first, though as time went on I could tell even she was beginning to tire of having to satisfy my curiosity. After a while, she began giving me only partial answers to some of my questions, which of course only caused me to pry further and further.”

“Did all of your questioning end up getting you in trouble?” Rainbow asked, suddenly concerned for Twilight and the memories this whole conversation was causing her to remember. Twilight shook her head at her, though, to dismiss the notion.

“She never once got upset with me for it. Dr. Haygan, however, wasn’t so lucky...”

Twilight walked along through the halls of Canterlot castle reading her science textbook as it floated in front of her for what was now the sixth time. Currently she was on the chapter regarding constellations; one particular aspect of the Cosmos with which she was rather enamored. She was killing some time as she waited for her next class that day as her science class had been unexpectedly cancelled that day. She worried that something had happened to Dr. Haygan, but figured he’d want her to continue her studies in some manner during his absence. Her walk took her past Princess Celestia’s throne room, though she had no intention of bothering the princess with her worries about her science teacher.

“My patience with your approach to teaching Twilight has grown thin, Dr. Haygan,” Princess Celestia said, loudly enough that Twilight heard her clear as day from outside the throne room. Twilight turned around and quietly peeked inside, finding Dr. Haygan standing at the foot of the stairs that led up to the princess’ throne where the princess herself sat glaring down at him.

“Have I taught her something that is erroneous, your majesty?” Haygan asked.

“That’s not what has angered me and you know it,” Celestia told him, not interested in playing a game of question and answer with him this time. “I have enough to concern myself with in a given day without my most important student questioning every single thing I do. It does me no favors to have to explain the intricacies of my abilities or the reasoning behind every decision I make to a filly, especially when other pony officials and dignitaries are within earshot and ever ready to find a reason to take issue with me. I don’t blame Twilight for all of this, she’s only doing exactly what I asked of her. You, however, I do hold chiefly responsible for all of this as you have apparently seen no problem whatsoever with disobeying me.”

“Majesty, I never intended to incur your ire through my teachings,” Haygan told her calmly. “But I must take exception to the notion that I have ever been anything but loyal to you.”

Celestia found herself becoming even more angered now by his apparently unflappable nature. Normally when she was clearly upset over something, lesser ponies fell all over themselves to please or appease her. Yet here stood this simple stallion who continued to smile at her despite her displeasure.

“You were brought here to teach her science, Dr. Haygan,” she said commandingly. “Not to teach her to doubt me and everything for which I am responsible. I am in no way comfortable with the ideas that you have seen fit to instill in my faithful student’s head. Especially when it comes to notions regarding my most important and sacred duty: The rising of the sun in order to bring its warmth and light back to Equestria every day. ”

"I never meant to offend or upset you, majesty,” Haygan said deferentially, his calm and smile ever present despite Celestia’s anger at him. “Your mornings are indeed beautiful and glorious. We in Equestria marvel, and rightfully so, at the daily return of our single sun.”

Haygan’s gaze then shifted slightly to look out of one of the many windows that lined the throne room as he continued. "But from a planet orbiting a star in a distant globular cluster, a still more glorious dawn awaits. Not a sunrise, but a galaxy rise. A morning filled with four hundred billion suns, the rising of the milky way. An enormous spiral form with collapsing gas clouds condensing planetary systems, luminous super giants, stable middle aged stars, red giants, white dwarfs, planetary nebulas, super novas, neutron stars, pulsars, black holes, and, there is every reason to think, other exotic objects that we have not yet discovered. And discover them we will when we do reach the stars."

"Ponykind is still quite a ways away from that sort of capability, Dr. Haygan," Celestia said, unable to refute his assertion. “I rather doubt such a thing will happen even within Twilight’s lifetime, much less yours.”

Haygan nodded in concession to her. "Perhaps, but I would not expect one with your immense power and longevity to remember what it is like to aspire to something as great as what I try to challenge Ponykind with, your majesty. Still, I would think you would not wish to impede your faithful student's progress by hampering her imagination with thoughts of what is possible or impossible."

Celestia considered Haygan’s words for several moments in silence, until her face slowly broke from its concerned expression to a small yet warm smile.

"I suppose you're right, Dr. Haygan, and I do apologize,” she said to him. “You must understand my position some, though. You may fancy yourself a truth seeker of some sort, but some of the truths you would seek to reveal would be incredibly difficult for most ponies to deal with; Twilight Sparkle especially. She does mean quite a lot to me, you know. She is unlike any other student I have taken under my wing. She is incredibly gifted and... unique."

Haygan smiled and nodded in agreement with her. "Indeed, she is as unique as each and every one of the billions of stars in the sky, majesty... and every bit as fascinating."

As the conversation between the princess and the scientist turned to less intense matters, Twilight decided it best to continue on her way. Witnessing the whole confrontation had scared her at first, but upon hearing what both of her teachers truly thought about her she resolved to work harder than ever to live up to both of their expectations and ensure they would both have a student to be proud of someday.

“Whoa... so Dr. Haygan really managed to talk his way out of Princess Celestia’s fury?” Rainbow asked, amazed by the story. Twilight just nodded in response to her. “For an egghead, he sure has some courage in him. That was an awesome story, Twilight.”

“I’m glad you liked it, Rainbow,” Twilight said, closing her old textbook and levitating it back up to its shelf. “Dr. Haygan was my science teacher for a full year, and then he had to leave to continue his own research. The lessons he taught me about how to look at things have stayed with me all this time, though, and they’re what have helped me become the pony that I am today.”

“So what’s he up to now? I’ll bet you write to him all the time about science stuff, not to mention everything we’ve done with the girls.”

“He’s... not up to anything, Rainbow,” Twilight said, some sadness creeping onto her face. “He passed away a few years after he stopped being my teacher.”

“Oh... oh Twilight I’m so sorry,” Rainbow said, now feeling utterly awful for having dragged all of this up.

“It’s okay, Rainbow,” Twilight assured her. “There’s no way you could’ve known. It’s alright, though. I like to think his legacy will endure as long as there are ponies like myself and other scientists - truth seekers, as he called us - around to question things and look for answers, no matter what those answers might turn out to be.”

“I guess this explains why you don’t have any faith in the princesses then,” Rainbow noted.

“That’s not true at all, Rainbow,” Twilight said, stepping up to her. “I have plenty of faith in them and I believe in what they do and how they work to watch over and protect us all.”

“But... you have science, don’t you? Doesn’t that take the place of having faith? Doesn’t it make it kind of, what’s the word... it means something that doesn’t agree with something else you said or believe in...”

“Hypocritical?”

“Gesundheit.”

Twilight rolled her eyes at Rainbow. “I didn’t sneeze, that’s the word you were looking for. And no, it’s not hypocritical to hold ideas based on faith and science. I wouldn’t be where I am today without both. Science and faith both have answers to give us all, just on different matters. They don’t necessarily have to conflict with or invalidate each other.”

“I... I’m not sure I buy that at all, Twilight,” Rainbow said, looking at her friend oddly now. “I mean, I’m no scientist. Or truth seeker for that matter. I know what I believe in, and I’m not sure I’m ready to change my mind about stuff just because someone tells me the truth about something means what I believe in is wrong. Does that make any sense?”

“I think I understand what you mean, Rainbow,” Twilight told her with a smile. “And while I don’t agree with that way of thinking, I respect that it’s how you feel right now. Just like how I believe that faith and science can coexist in harmony, I don’t see any reason why a pony who prefers faith and a pony who prefers science can’t be best of friends just like you and I.”

Rainbow smiled and nodded at her. “Thanks, Twilight. I wouldn’t ever want to stop being friends with you over something like this. Like I said earlier, loyalty is kinda my thing.”

“Without a doubt.”

“Anyway, thanks for the talk and all, but can I get that book now?” Rainbow asked, once again finding herself eager to claim the book for reading. Twilight giggled some more and levitated the book over to her friend.

“Here you go, Rainbow: Daring Do and the Galaxy Gemstone,” she said as she presented her with the book. “That happens to be my favorite of the entire series.”

“Really? Why’s that?”

“Oh I think you’ll figure it out yourself as you read. Enjoy!”

“Alright, then. I’ll let you get back to your studying and stuff. Thanks again, Twilight!”

Rainbow held the book in one foreleg and took off from the library as Twilight waved to her from the door. As Twilight closed her door and headed back towards her observatory, she stopped to look up at her old science textbook where it sat on its shelf.

“I did my best to get through to her, Dr. Haygan,” Twilight said to herself, as if talking to her one-time teacher. “But I think Rainbow’s the kind of pony who’s going to have to see it for herself to understand.”

It was no use. No matter how much she tried to relax or how comfortable she thought she was, Rainbow just couldn’t get to sleep that night. She tossed and turned on her bed. She tried taking a quick flight around her home to tire herself out some more. She even tried a glass of warm milk, but none of it did her any good.

“This is what I get for spending so much time talking to Twilight,” she muttered to herself. “My brain’s all full of nonsense and I can’t get it to shut down.”

She sighed and flopped back onto her bed again, wondering what she could do to cure her insomnia. Her eyes eventually fell onto the book she’d borrowed from the library that day. She grabbed it and flipped it open to its beginning.

“Might as well get some Daring Do action in my head,” she figured. “Maybe it’ll get rid of some of that mumbo jumbo Twilight was talking about.”

Rainbow quickly found herself lost in the pages of this chapter of Daring Do’s adventures, but it wasn’t long before she came to a section that gave her pause for thought once again.

“C’mon, Daring,” her faithful sidekick said eagerly. “All this nonsense doesn’t matter! You’re the most amazing adventurer around! You’ll figure it all out once we get there, just like always.”

“I believe in a lotta stuff, kid, and I’ve seen a lot of weird things in my time adventuring,” Daring replied as she adjusted the glasses on her face, “but I have always been a scientist first and foremost. My adventures are an extension of that. I adventure so I can find out the truth about the amazing things we find, but I never go into an adventure not knowing about what I’m going after. My faith in myself and in ancient things may have gotten me through some tight spots, but my scientific knowledge is what’s helped me find those things in the first place. I wouldn’t be where I am today without both.”

Rainbow slowly closed the book after reading the passage, suddenly thinking back on all of the other Daring Do adventures she’d read.

“Just like Twilight said,” Rainbow said to herself. “Maybe... maybe there’s something to this after all.”

Rainbow put the book back on her nightstand and flew out of her house, up to a nearby cloud that she reserved for napping or outdoor sleep sometimes. She lay back on it and looked up at the night sky, thinking back on the day in its entirety. Thousands of points of light dotted the black veil of night.

“Dr. Haygan thought someday ponies might actually go there,” Rainbow said to herself. “Out into that blackness. He and Twilight both think there’s stuff out there to be found. It sure does look interesting up there. Kinda pretty, too.

“Maybe I’ll give that a shot someday. After I’m in the Wonderbolts, of course. Gotta have a dream to chase after I do that, after all. I dunno if it’s even possible for a pony to get all the way up there, though. Maybe that’s a bit of truth I’ll try to seek out myself...”

Rainbow put her forelegs behind her head and settled back for some stargazing, smiling as she looked up at the wonders that spread across the sky before her. She eventually drifted off to sleep doing so, but from that time on she would have a new appreciation for the splendor of the night. She would look at the moon and stars above from now on with great aspirations, and with undiminished wonder.