Trees of all types swayed and shook their branches, rustling their leaves in verdant appreciation of the subtly choreographed dance unfolding before them.
Only a fleeting half hour previously, the field surrounded by these excitedly waving trees had been basking at its ease in the sunshine, blissfully unaware of any concerns that may have existed beyond.
That was before the violet unicorn had emerged from along a path that led to the pony town and unpacked what looked like a brightly coloured artificial bird from her bag, and then walked half way across the field. She had stood up on her hind legs and pulled sharply back her forehooves, like a conductor in front of her orchestra, but instead of music beginning, the stunt kite had risen at her command.
The pony edged backwards, forwards and side to side over the flat expanse of field, delivering a series of jerky commands in response to which the kite danced ever more exquisite routines in the azure sky.
Suddenly, she felt a gentle caressing around her middle and gasped in surprise, before her expression changed to a happy smile, recognising the light blue forelegs encircling her. Letting out a quiet sigh, she relaxed back to indulge in the warm feeling the familiar touch gave her, managing to focus just enough to recover the stunt kite from its ambitious aerial routine and settle it into simply holding station on the wind.
“Hey” a gentle voice whispered into her ear.
“Hey yourself” she replied feeling her pulse quicken, turning to catch a glance of her marefriend, “Want a go?”
“In a minute, Starlight” said the new arrival squeezing her forelegs around the middle of the violet unicorn a little tighter and closing her eyes in happiness, a big sappy smile across her muzzle, “But first, you need a great and powerful hug.”
“You know Trixie, it isa little distracting trying to fly a kite when being on the receiving end of one of your hugs” said Starlight in mock indignation, not keen for it to end, but equally as keen not to crash her new stunt kite.
“If you insist” said the light blue illusionist, raising her head and peering over her marefriend’s shoulder and suddenly focusing on how she was controlling the kite, “Hey, it’s got two lines – one for each of us?”
“No, that’s not the way it works, come round in front of me, and I’ll show you.”
Trixie released Starlight from her embrace and moved round in front, facing the kite and feeling the handles passed to her.
“Right Trixie, if you pull the line on your right, it goes to your right, and if you pull the one on your left …”
“Yeah, it goes left, right?” completed Trixie.
“Um, there’s a bit more to it than that, but basically, you’ve got it.”
“Right, prepare for the show-stoppingest display you’ve ever seen!” announced Trixie taking the lines.
She pulled hard to the right and the kite immediately entered a tight spiral, quickly tangling the lines and driving the kite towards the ground. Trixie stared fixated in shock, still keeping a tight grip on her right line.
“The other line!” called Starlight, “Pull the other line!"
The sharp words cut through Trixie’s shocked paralysis and she pulled as hard as she could to the left. Then, she watched as the wild corkscrewing action reversed and the kite set off in an equally tight counterclockwise direction. Her purple eyes grown wide, Trixie let out a scream and shot a stream of pink energy from her horn towards the kite, which was now well into its death dive.
It froze in place just before impact with the ground and Trixie released the handles, both of which stayed precisely where she left them in mid-air, attached to the unnaturally firm control lines that were also under the same temporal enchantment spell.
“Your turn now” she said, gesturing to Starlight and walking away.
“Um” replied her marefriend, “Tell you what, let’s take a short walk.”
“Oh, where are we going now?” asked the illusionist enthusiastically.
“To pick up the kite before it crashes” Starlight deadpanned, raising an eyebrow.
“Oh, that” replied Trixie, reaching eagerly for her violet forehoof so they could turn even the short walk into a special bonding moment.
The trees kept waving their branches, just like each was a foal in class, trying frantically to gain their teacher’s attention, while before them, the kite and its lines remained frozen in space.
“Thanks for saving it in time” said Starlight.
“Hmm?” came a faraway sounding response, “Sorry, Trixie was just wondering how she could work a kite into her act.”
“You can’t guarantee the wind will be blowing from the right direction at the right strength at the right time for when you need it.
“Ah, but I have one of these” she said, tapping her horn conspiratorially, “Frankly, I don’t know why you wouldn’t fly that thing using your horn instead.”
“That … that’s hardly the point” Starlight hesitated to compose her response, “It’s more about your skill in mastering the air to weave a subtle symphony, using the wind to make your kite dance like a prima ballerina.”
They arrived at the kite and Starlight reached up to pluck it from the air as Trixie released it from her spell, unwinding the twisted lines in her magic, like ribbons being unwound from around a maypole.
“Ready for my second lesson, oh wise and artistic teacher?” she asked, showing the lines to be untwisted and ready for flight once more.
Starlight eyed her marefriend, shaking her head gently, but finding herself unable to resist the smile that Trixie knew she could always coax from within her.
They walked back down the field once more, with Trixie voicing her increasingly ambitious fantasies for how she could incorporate kites into her act. Fortunately, she hadn’t got too far into the realm where physics would have had to completely invert itself to satisfy her inventive, if not totally impractical imagination, before they arrived at the control handles that she was holding aloft in her magic aura.
Starlight directed Trixie to one side, then took hold of the handles, gently taking up the slack on the lines to confirm they were clear of any snags on the ground, then waited, poised. She didn’t have to wait long before a gentle gust of wind nudged her from behind, ruffling her purple and aquamarine mane. Immediately, she focused as the breeze continued on its path past her, rippling the field where it touched the individual blades of grass lazing in the sunshine.
In the instant before the breeze reached her kite, she pulled back sharply with both forehooves, raising it at exactly the same time as the breeze hit and lifted it into the air, tugging on the control lines.
“Whoo hoo!” she called in delight, watching the kite riding the wind and climbing swiftly to a position high above them.
“The great and impressed Trixie would like to learn how to do this!” called her marefriend.
“OK” agreed Starlight, smiling, “Come over here and stand in front of me like you did before, but this time we’ll both hold the lines together. Just follow what I do, and you’ll get it in no time.”
Trixie moved in as she had been invited, and found that when they both reached for the control line handles, this caused Starlight to squeeze up very close behind her, causing a pleasurable rush of blood to her cheeks.
“Right, now follow my hooves as we go gently to the right … and then left …”
She followed diligently while Starlight developed the manoeuvres from simple turns and loops into more complex routines, until she felt that her student was ready to pilot the kite for herself. Then Starlight leaned forward to whisper gently into her ear, a little more huskily than she had intended, “Over to you now.”
Trixie felt both a surge of pride and a sense of rising admiration for her marefriend as she took control and made tentative inputs, watching in delight when the kite responded to her wishes, instead of plunging into another uncontrolled death spiral.
Starlight leaned in with a mischievous smile crossing her muzzle to whisper into her ear, “Keep up this progress and you can be my great and powerful assistant.”
“Trixie would like that” she replied, as she felt Starlight release her grip on the lines and slip her forelegs down to wrap around her waist, squeezing gently.
Trixie let out a soft gasp, allowing her features to melt blissfully into a contented smile, and lit her horn briefly to freeze the kite in its place once more, before turning slowly to look into the sparkling eyes of her marefriend.
“I think we can finish the lesson later” whispered Starlight, as they both closed their eyes and kissed.
