Harmony University: Blind Streak

“On your marks!”

Wildfire, with Air Raid by her side holding her hand, lowered herself down to the running track, balancing her weight on her fingertips. She squared her running shoes into the blocks and took a slow, deep breath. As one, down the line, the rest of the track team got into the same ‘ready’ position following the race organiser’s order.

“Get set!”

Wildfire and Air Raid, moving together as one, raised up in preparedness for the nest order, which was mere seconds away. The athlete was ready for this. She had trained for this. She lived for this. She took another deep breath to centre herself.

“Go!”

Wildfire ran. In less than the space of a heartbeat, the teenager and her pace runner went from zero to twenty six miles per hour. Air Raid sped along by her side making sure all the time that she was just keeping Wildfire straight ahead, never, ever leading her.

The elite athlete had no idea if she was winning or not, all she was focused on was running as fast as she could. This was going to be the race. This was her time. It felt good. She felt good. She was covering ground at a pace of knots and she knew it was going to be good.

Even though she was running as fast as she could, Air Raid found herself starting to slow, while Wildfire was going as strong as ever. The pace runner, out of the corner of her eye, could tell her best friend was three paces ahead of all the others. By the time they were on the final thirty metres, Air Raid couldn’t keep up any longer, so she cheered her on, “Go! You got this, Wily, run!”

‘I got this!’ the thought ran through Wildfire’s mind as she forced herself to keep on going, even as lactic acid started to build up in her thighs and calves, even as her lungs burned and her blood thundered in her ears, all she thought was, ‘I got this!’

With her body screaming for her to stop, Wildfire defied herself and she put on a final spurt, forcing herself to run and run and run until she crossed the finish line, running so fast she was sure her heart was going to explode in her chest.

Moments later, and Air Raid caught up with Wildfire, whose momentum had taken her ten metres past the finish line. “You did it!” the lime green girl squealed out in congratulations, almost drowned out by the massed applause from the watching crowd, “Way to make your mark!” she clapped her best friend on her back and sent her crumbling to her knees, “You did eleven seventy four!”

Eleven seventy four.

It didn’t seem possible.

Eleven point seventy four seconds.

She’d done it!

Wildfire, now down on her knees over the finish line, could barely believe it. Above the cheering of the crowd, above the thundering of blood in her ears and above the pounding deafening drum beat of her heart, Wildfire processed the fact she had done it. “W-We...” she gasped, barely able to speak at all, “We d-did it...we did?”

Extending her left hand, Air Raid heaved Wildfire back up to her feet while she shielded her eyes from the late July sun with her right. “Walk it off, Wily,” she grinned at her best friend, “Come on, let's head for the water table.”

“I wanna puke…” choked out Wildfire in between deep desperate wheezing gasps for air as she walked with the much taller lime green girl. After a few steps, when her lungs had stopped trying to explode from her chest, she sighed, “False alarm.”

“That's okay,” said Air Raid when they got to the water station, “Here's some water. Slow sips.”

Cloudchaser, a cute sky grey teenager who was taller even than Air Raid came up with a water of her own, just as exhausted as the rest of the track team, “Good run, Wily!” she clapped the sweaty Wildfire on the back.

Trotter, one of the few boys on the team, came to offer his congratulations too, with a genuine, “Great time, Wily! You'll be in the Olympics soon, like this!”

After several slow sips of the water, Wildfire at last had her breathing under control and her heart rate was back to normal, and she could stand without her legs giving out from under her, asked, “Raid, did we really just do an eleven seventy four?”

For a split second, Air Raid was tempted to prank her diminutive best friend, but she decided against it. Not the time. “You did,” she clarified, “And you made Cloudy push herself, she was still point twenty of a second behind you. Trotter’s running at point thirty of a second behind.”

“That means...” Wildfire’s milky white eyes widened, “I got the record!” she jumped and punched the air, “No, shut up!” she exclaimed, joy all over her tired face, “Really? Did I really?”

Playfully, Air Raid bopped Wildfire's head, “You did, doofus!” she laughed and hugged her sweaty friend close, just as the next race in the track meet was about to start. Enviously, she looked over at Trotter, wishing he was hugging her like she was hugging Wildfire. Maybe. Just maybe, something might happen between him and his girlfriend and she’d have a chance. Maybe.

“Please say that counted!” Wildfire exclaimed, adrenalin still pumping through her system, “There's a proper official here right? There’s gotta be! It must've counted!” she turned her head left and right like she was actually looking for said official, “We've been chasing that record for ages!”

Even though she was panting after Trotter, Air Raid gave Wildfire an eye roll, one she knew her friend could hear, “Fine, this way, c’mon Tiny,” she then escorted her over to the scorer's table.

Male official, who had an idea he would be getting a visit any moment, had a pleasant smile on his face as he sat under the temporary gazebo that kept the officials out of the harsh summer sun. “Congratulations to you Miss Wildfire,” he greeted her and shook her hand, “The Equestrian record for the one hundred metres is yours.”

“YEESSSSS!” Wildfire cheered, she didn’t care where she was or if it was ‘improper’, she was so damn happy there were no words to adequately do it justice. She jumped up and punched the air so many times that Air Raid had to steady her lest she fell over, “Best birthday present ever!”

“Hey,” Air Raid said once she had her best friend under some sort of control, “I got a couple of tickets to go see ‘Player One’ for someone’s eighteenth birthday over at the Starcast, now you got your record, you wanna blow this sweat fest and go with me?”

“Yuppers!” Wildfire loved the Starcast, it was the best cinema place on the east coast for sight assisted viewing. “But, after a shower, huh?” she asked after she had caught a good strong smell of her own good strong smell. “Ewww, I stink like unwashed feet!” suddenly, she blushed really hard.

Mistakenly, Air Raid assumed her friend was blushing because she stank really bad, and, to be fair, she really did stink, “Okay, let's go hit the locker room first. Just you keep those hands to yourself, missy.”

“Raid,” now it was Wildfire’s turn to roll her eyes, “It's been over a year. Are you ever gonna let me live that down?”

Thoughtfully, Air Raid tapped her chin and, loudly she 'hummmed' like she was really thinking about it. “Nope!”

~ ~ ~

One much needed shower later and the two best friends were on the bus making their way to the Starcast theatre. Air Raid would have driven them there, but she couldn’t, not without an adult licensed driver with her.

Wildfire didn’t mind the bus. It was at least cheaper than the subway and, besides, there was a bus stop closer to the cinema than the train, which meant less to walk when they got there. “So...” she said presently, “Are you gonna make a move on Trotter, or what?”

Air Raid, who had been busy staring out of the bus window thinking very hot, very lewd thoughts about Trotter bending her over and properly ruining her, jerked up, “What?”

“C’mon, Raid,” Wildfire snickered, “It's obvious even to me that you fancy him. You had this cute little ‘thing’ with your voice when you said his name back at the track.”

“You caught me out,” sighed Air Raid. She knew she couldn’t fool Wildfire’s sharp ears, “Slingshot and I broke up last week. My exercise routine was too intense for him to keep up,” she continued by way of explanation, “I think Trotter could keep up with me, though.” Air Raid was sure Trotter could do many things with her.

“I knew it!” Wildfire grinned smugly and sat back on the back seat of the bus, “My ears are never wrong.” Then, as the bus turned a corner, she sighed, “I suppose he's okay, for a boy.”

Air Raid delivered her thoughts on that by giving Wildfire a loud raspberry that made an old woman on the bus tut at her. “Yeah,” she said once her friend had stopped laughing, “The only problem is, he’s with Shimmy Shake right now and she has more curves than I do. He'd have no trouble keeping up with her.”

“Well, you are a bit flat, from what I felt, anyway,” Wildfire giggled, her mind taking her way back to that wonderful, glorious time in the showers when she had copped a feel of her friend’s B cup chest. “Then again, maybe Trotter secretly likes ironing boards?” Not that she had room to criticise anyone, not with her A cup wasp stings.

Her smile quickly slipping, Air Raid leant in and whispered, “I could always go and find some homeless person to take you to the movies instead…”

Instantly, Wildfire knew she had crossed a line and she stopped giggling, “Please don't do that, I'll behave, Raid.”

“I’ll believe that when I see it.”

Beside her, Wildfire came up with a way to cover her faux pas and a way to continue the birthday celebrations. “Do you want to come back to my place for dinner after the movie? Dad's a great cook, and he always has extra.”

“For sure,” Air Raid reached her arm around Wildfire and she gave her a hug, “I can't stay mad at you, especially if you dad is cooking. Besides, your teasing skills are terrible.”

“Yuppers,” Wildfire let out another sigh, “Seriously though, I hope you get to be with Trotter.”

“I can dream,” Air Raid snickered, because she did dream about him. A lot. “I hope you finally figure out how to flirt so you can get a girlfriend.”

“Pfft,” Wildfire snorted, “I need to find a girl who's interested first. Someone who doesn't just see 'blind' and backs away, scared she might break me.”

“I’m sure she's out there somewhere, Wily,” Air Raid assured her, “Here’s our stop, let’s go see if this movie is as good as advertised.”

~ ~ ~

After the movie had finished, and the two girls were on the bus back to Wildfire’s home, Air Raid passed her judgement on the cinematic experience. “That was campy, but it was a fun campy. I don't feel like my life was stolen.” She then turned to Wildfire by her side, “Did they do a good job on the narration?”

“It was fun,” Wildfire agreed, picking a couple of stray pieces of popcorn from her hoodie, “And yuppers it was well narrated, I got what was going on.” Sometimes the narrator of the movies was a warden from a women’s prison.

“Any idea what I'm eating tonight?” asked Air Raid, who was thinking ahead to filling her belly. Cinema popcorn only filled her so much, and there was no way she was eating the processed abominations that were the hot dogs.

“Dad mentioned something about his famous fish and chips,” replied Wildfire with a definite longing in her voice, “He does them really well.”

Air Raid liked the sound of that. From experience, she knew that Heatwave’s fish supper was legendary, not just famous, and anyone would be crazy to turn down an invitation like that. “Wily, you had me at fish and chips.”

A smug smile crept over Wildfire’s face, “I'll have to remember that. The way to a girl's heart, through her belly!”

The taller girl shrugged her shoulders, “Works for me,” she nudged Wildfire in the ribs, “I bet you haven't texted you parents about your record yet, have you?”

A look of dawning realisation crossed Wildfire’s face. She hadn’t messaged her parents! Luckily, she had an excuse to hand. “I haven't had the chance. Someone kidnapped me from the track meet and took me to the movies,” she giggled and she reached into the smaller pocket of her backpack for her phone. She avoided the larger pocket. That had her sweaty running kit. Nobody wanted that opening on a bus. “I was totally gonna do it.”

Smirking, Air Raid put her hand on the phone, “Too late now, we’re not far from your place. It will be a total surprise. I think that's better anyway, just to hear you squeal again.”

“Raid,” Wildfire said as she put her phone away back in her bag, “It's senior year next year. I really want to go for the two hundred and the four hundred metre records before we graduate.”

“Aaah,” Air Raid laughed, “I see how it is. Now I’ll have to up my game just to pace you at all.” Still, the challenge was exciting, “I'm okay with that.”

“It’s like you said when you first started working with me,” Wildfire pointed out, not ashamed to use her friend’s words against her, “Nothing to it but to do it, remember?”

Air Raid snorted and rolled her eyes, “That was years ago, Wily, but yeah. I have to do the same for myself.”

“And I'm glad you did,” Wildfire leant into her friend and she rested her head on her upper arm, “Remember me back then, the blind kid nobody gave a chance, now look, the Olympics beckons!”

“Dream big,” Air Raid reached an arm around the smaller girl’s shoulders and hugged her, “Better than going home to mope. You can believe I'll be cheering you on, Wily.”

“Of course you will,” Wildfire stated like it was the most obvious thing ever, “You'll be there with me, right? Only three years away now!” she didn’t see the saddened look on her friend’s face, she was more distracted with where the bus was, “Oh hey, this is our stop coming up!”

A laugh escaped Air Raid. She was always amazed at how easily Wildfire seemed to get around places she took for granted. Then again, she did have eighteen years’ experience. “I’m glad you're my guide, or I'd get lost.”

“Yeah, right,” Wildfire giggled as the bus stopped and they got off, “Like you've never been to my place before, Raid.” It was a point of fact that Air Raid had spent as much time at her house as she herself had.

“Lead the way, my faithful guide!”

“You got it,” when they were both on the sidewalk, Wildfire held Air Raid’s hand and she led the way back to her home. It was only a few hundred metres from the stop. There was no need for her cane, she didn’t even have to cross a street. The diminutive teen knew exactly where she was going. “I cannot wait for dad's fish and chips,” she giggled playfully, “At least mom isn't cooking.”

“True,” Air Raid conceded with a wry smile, “But she’s still better than me. My dad calls whatever I do, ‘cooking by smoke detector’.”

“How did you manage to burn the fruit juice, anyway?”

“Hush you.”

“E-Eeeek!” Wildfire squeaked as Air Raid dug her elbow into her ribs, “Yes ma'am, hushing up right here,” she shivered at how submissive she sounded then, though Air Raid didn’t notice, the taller girl happy to walk along in the bright summer sun. “And here we are!” she said after ten minutes when she was stood in front of her door. She didn’t bother to knock, she just shoved open the front door of the two storey town house and let herself inside.

As it happened, Wildfire really ought to have knocked. This was the thought that ran through Air Raid’s mind when she reached the open door to the living room. She had been in the midst of saying something to Wildfire, but whatever it was died on the way out of her mouth.

There, in the middle of the living room, was stood a very, very naked Fireflight. The dark green woman was tied up in a full tortoise shell rope harness, complete with a breast bondage that increased her double D cups by at least two whole sizes. Her hands were tied behind her back touching her elbows so her forearms rested on top of her head, and she was sporting a bright red ball gag.

By contrast, Heatwave was fully clothed in black pants, white shirt, black tie looking like he was going to see his bank manager. He was holding his slave’s hair in a ponytail in his left hand whilst brandishing a paddle in his right. The smell of arousal hung heavy in the air like a room air freshener. “Hey there, Wily, Air Raid,” he greeted the two girls like he was doing nothing out of the ordinary. “Didn't know you were bringing company for dinner.”

Upon seeing her daughter and best friend stood there watching her, the cheeks on Fireflight’s face turned an intense shade of red, but at least they matched her other set of cheeks. She mumbled something indistinct around the gag, causing drool to drip down her chin and spatter on her bound breasts. Helpfully, Heatwave was on hand to translate. “Come on in and make yourselves comfortable.”

Air Raid though, didn’t come in and make herself comfortable. She was stood like she had been petrified, staring open mouthed at the scene that greeted her. By her side, Wildfire breathed in deeply through her nose and listened to the unintelligible mumbles. They could only be one thing. “Hey dad! Has mom been in the chocolate cookie jar again?”

Wearing a prideful smile, Heatwave put the well-used paddle under his arm and he let go of the ponytail so that he could untie the ball gag. He hadn’t even broken a sweat during his slave’s hour long punishment session. “No,” he commented, “Just having a bit of fun waiting for the birthday girl to get home. How did the track meet go?”

“We got the one hundred metre record!” Wildfire dropped her back pack in the hall that connected the living room to the kitchen and she squealed in sheer delight, “We did it! We did it!”

“That's wonderful, dear!” Fireflight congratulated her daughter. She would have gone in for a hug, but for a couple of reasons. She hadn’t been allowed to move and her hands were tied to her head.

Seeing as his wife was otherwise immobile, Heatwave instead crossed the room wrapped Wildfire and Air Raid up in a tight bone crushing hug, “That is fantastic news! Equestrian record or Manehatten record?”

“Yes!” Wildfire bounced on her feet in her dad’s arms, “We got the Equestrian record! Eleven point seventy four seconds! And it was officially recorded too, right, Raid?”

Air Raid though, was not really listening. In fact, she wasn’t really in the room at all. Fireflight and her current predicament was taking up all her attention. “U-Um...y-yeah, official, recorded…”

“I'm really proud of you, Wily!” Heatwave lifted his daughter up and he showered her forehead in kisses, “And thank you Air Raid, for being with her for this.”

“Our jobs take up too much of our time,” put in Fireflight, the blush on one set of cheeks fading away, “so I'm glad she has a friend with her.”

“I-It’s uh…um…it’s ah, my pleasure, really…” Air Raid murmured, not removing her grey eyes from the tied up Fireflight stood like a statue in the living room. It was funny, she never considered herself attracted to women before, not until she saw Wildfire’s mother, naked and helpless, “Um, I’m sorry, for walking in on your uuuh...alone time…”

“Well,” Heatwave shrugged, speaking like he was discussing the weather over the garden fence with the neighbour, “We were expecting Wily, but the more the merrier, right love?”

Eagerly, Fireflight nodded her head, which made her bound breasts jiggle, which in turn made Air Raid drool. “Yes, that’s right. You may as well go get the dinner ready, Master.”

“Right you are,” Heatwave sighed internally, recognising their little scene was, for the moment, at an end. “Do you want to help me?” when his wife nodded again, he untied her hands and arms, but he left all the other ropes where they were.

Wildfire, who had decided to go up to her room with Air Raid, suddenly remembered she hadn’t hugged her mother yet. “Oh wait, mom! Hugs! I need mom hugs first!” she followed the potent aroma of feminine arousal to her target and hugged her mother tight, “By the way, nice perfume, mom!”

“Thank you, dear,” Fireflight tried to be careful where Wildfire put her head due to the rope harness she was wearing, “I think this is the one you got me last Hearth's Warming.”

Wildfire though, felt the ropes her mother was wearing. “Nice outfit too. It suits you,” she giggled and she squeezed out a second hug. “Can you give us a shout when dinner's done?”

“Will do, honey,” Heatwave promised as he and Fireflight walked through to the kitchen, “It’ll be about twenty five minutes, give or take.”

When they were both left alone in the hallway, Air Raid shook some sense back into her body. “So uh, that was something…”

Up in her bedroom, Wildfire flopped down hard on her bed, bouncing happily like it was a trampoline. Then, she picked up on the hesitant tone in her best friend’s voice. “Hey, Raid, are you okay?”

‘Am I okay…’ Air Raid snorted, “Am I okay…” she couldn’t believe that her best friend had even asked that of her. Was she okay! “Wily. Wildfire. Your mom was tied up like a Hearths Warming turkey, your dad had a paddle in his hand and your mom's butt was bright ted. Damn if that wasn’t hottest thing I’ve ever seen.”

Not to mention Fireflight’s big breasts bound like they were, and her pudgy belly, and her wide thick hips… Air Raid shook her head firmly. She liked boys. She liked cock. She didn’t like girls. ‘But Fireflight’s not a girl, she’s a woman…’ and just like that, the teenager had a whole new fantasy to explore when she got home.

“I know, right?” agreed Wildfire as she kicked off her sneakers, “It's their special thing they do. Mom is dad's slave, he's her Master.”

“I wonder if Trotter would be my slave?” Air Raid mused out loud, then, to herself, ‘Or Pom Pom, or both of them at once…’

“I bet he would,” Wildfire commented supportively, now moving back on her bed so that she was half sitting / half laying down, “I'd love to be a slave like that to a hot girl.”

Slumping down on Wildfire’s bean bag, Air Raid laughed out loud, “We're quite the pair, aren’t we?”

“Aren't we just?” laughed Wildfire, now removing her socks and giving them what she hoped was a surreptitious sniff before tossing them to the floor, “Except you like the boys and I don't,” she giggled, “So, thinking what you'd do with Trotter, huh?”

“I'd tie him up like your dad did to your mom,” Air Raid answered her in a heartbeat, “I mean, n-not the breasts part, obviously, but uh, I'm sure I can find a book to tie up his dick instead.”

“That sounds like fun, Raid,” Wildfire agreed, “Me...I want to be tied down on my knees, the hot girl's feet in my face and I'm ordered to lick them clean.”

“Feet,” Air Raid mused, tapping her chin deep in thought, “Now that's hardcore, Wily.” She had noticed of course her best friend’s growing fascination with feet, the way she would casually sniff at her dirty socks like she did. She hadn’t mentioned that she knew though, that wasn’t for her to say.

“I mean, yuppers!” exclaimed Wildfire, sitting up and crossing her legs, “Mom's done it to dad a few times while I've been in the same room. It's so hot listening to her sucking and licking at her Master’s feet, or when dad uses her as a foot stool when he watches TV.”

Air Raid laughed so hard she almost fell from the bean bag and spilled on the bedroom floor. “From what I just saw, you're parents are hardcore.” Especially Fireflight… she shook herself and rubbed her arms, but no matter what, she couldn’t stop thinking about her best friend’s mother.

“Tell me about it,” agreed Wildfire eagerly, “They revealed all this to me back when I was sixteen. I can tell you; it was a relief to discover the house wasn't haunted after all.”

Air Raid actually did spill from the bean bag and as she sprawled on the floor she asked, “Were the ghosts always moaning?”

“And screaming, and panting, and begging for more…”

For almost ten full minutes, Air Raid completely lost it. She was laughing so uncontrollably she very nearly peed herself. “I was ten,” she said when she was able to speak, “When I walked in on my parents doing the nasty. I ran off, and about twenty minutes later my mom found me and gave me the 'talk'.”

“Aw, you poor thing!” Wildfire opened her arms for a hug, “Mom and dad don't go all the way when I'm in the room, but they do 'play' as they call it. I've got used to it by now.”

Only too happy to give her needy friend a hug, Air Raid mused that she wasn’t attracted in the slightest to her. Then again, she wasn’t as full and ‘developed’ as her mother was. “Mine don't do anything other than kiss and hold hands in front of me,” she sounded almost jealous.

Wildfire simply shrugged, “Everyone has their own normal, I guess.”

“Yeah, yours are pretty cool though,” Air Raid bought up her mental image of a tied up Fireflight. She added to that image a Heatwave paddling her ass and herself on her knees in front of the older woman and she felt herself getting very hot. “They just accepted I was there and I could see what they were doing. I'm sure you got a nose full though.”

“Yuppers,” Wildfire tapped her nose, “Honestly, as I say, I'm used to it now. Sometimes in the living room I don't notice it, it's just 'there', y'know?”

“Yeah,” Air Raid settled back into the bean bag and she enjoyed her little fantasy some more, “Your parents are cool.”

~ ~ ~

Wildfire’s nineteenth birthday party was at last on the wind down. Air Raid, her friends on the track team and her parents had all sung her the happy birthday song and now they were on to the second best part of the day. “Cake!” Wildfire exclaimed happily, “I want cake, anyone else want cake?” she was so excited she was bouncing on the couch, “Raid, Cloud Kicker, Cloudchaser? You want cake?”

“Everyone wants some of the red velvet cake!” Air Raid was greeted by a round of general cheering from the other teenagers just as Fireflight came in with the running shoe shaped birthday cake and lit the two candles, a number 1 and 9.

“Now to blow them out! Raid, steer me in,” once she was in position, with her face a few inches from the burning candles, Wildfire took a deep breath and she blew them out, accompanied by much cheering from her friends.

When she had removed the candles, Fireflight put the handle of the cake knife in her daughter's hand. “You cut, and I'll serve.”

“Alrighty mom,” beamed Wildfire, “I got this!” carefully, she cut the running shoe cake into eight – more or less - equal pieces. She was having a great time really in her early birthday party, which had been moved to June instead of July due to everyone being able to be there for it. College acceptance letters had arrived the month before and people were moving on.

Once the cake had been cut, Fireflight handed out each slice as Wildfire put them on a paper plate. “Eat up guys! I helped make it, it's extra yummy!” Cloudchaser and Cloud Kicker both giggled at that. Air Raid rolled her eyes at the sisters, knowing what they were both thinking.

Wildfire joined in the round of giggles, knowing that she had to help, as her mother couldn't whisk stuff with her arms tied. She took a huge bite of her cake and she was transported to heaven. Cake heaven. “Oooh yes!” if she did say so herself.

Lighting Dust , who was one of those annoying straight A students, asked in between mouthfuls of cake, “Who's ready for finals next week!?”

That was a cue for several deep groans and Air Raid punched her playfully in the arm, “Dusty, I'm just ready to leave MHS behind me.”

“Come on,” defended Wildfire, “Manehatten High wasn’t that bad. But, I am ready for what's coming next,” she giggled giddily, “Mom can I tell them yet?”

Fireflight, her face all smiles, agreed, “Based on what I hear the others whispering, I think you can, dear.”

Like she was in class, Cloudchaser put her hand in the air, to much mocking laughter from the others, “Oh, I can guess this if Ms. Fireflight overheard us!”

Cloud Kicker elbowed her dorky un-cool sister firmly in the ribs, “Hush, give Wily her moment.”

“Well, okay, here goes,” Wildfire set down her half eaten slice of cake and took a deep breath to steady herself, “I got accepted to Harmony College in Canterlot! Full track and field scholarship!”

Cheering, the loudest yet, erupted from the gathered friends, but Air Raid was a little late joining in with it, not that anyone noticed. “Wow,” gushed Cloudchaser, “I only got into Manehatten U on my scholarship!”

“Good news Wily!” Cloud Kicker clapped her friend on the back before sharing a high five with Lightning Dust, “Me and Dusty are going to Princeton.”

Soarin, who had been sneaking some of Lightning Dust’s uneaten cake, spoke up, “Yeah, I'm joining the Air Force. See if I can get some college action that way.”

“Too bad they won't let us race each other,” put in Trotter, who was about to ruin Air Raid’s hopes and dreams of seducing him, “I'm going to Canterlot too.”

“Way to go Wily,” Air Raid congratulated her best friend, and for once she was glad that the diminutive girl couldn’t see that her smile didn’t reach her grey eyes, “I'm sure you'll do great.”

“Thanks you guys!” Wildfire, all smiles, got in a high five and a hug from each of her friends, “Canterlot is the training ground the Olympic team picks from!” she then turned her face to her best friend’s direction, “Of course I'll do great, you know I will. You're my running mate, right?”

“Hey,” teased Lightning Dust, who had just whapped Soarin for stealing her piece of cake, “you're just not egghead enough to go to Princeton.”

Cloud Kicker rolled her eyes, “They've had gold medallists, Dusty.”

While the rest of the track team were congratulating Wildfire and ribbing her lack of math skills, Air Raid was busy quietly reflecting on things that were going on with her. However, she wanted to wait until the party was over to drop her little bombshell.

“So Trotter the Golden Boy is going to Harmony U too, huh?” asked Lightning Dust.

“Yeah, well,” Trotter defended himself, “Everyone knows I spent more time on the track than on school,” he blushed and rubbed the back of his head.

“And what does Pom Pom think about that?”

“She loves the idea,” he shot back to Lightning Dust, “She’s coming too.”

“Ditto!” Wildfire exclaimed to Trotter, “Getting the Equestrian record for the one hundred metres went a long way towards getting me into Canterlot, too.”

“Hey,” said Air Raid, who had hiked up a very hearty smile on her face, “I'm sure nailing the Manehatten record for the two hundred metres helped as well. Maybe you can get the four hundred metres in college.”

“We'll obliterate it, Raid!” Wildfire cheered herself before she took a last bite of her birthday cake. “Hmm, that is nice, but I better lay off that, the training for the four hundred is brutal.”

“There’s no way I’m giving up cake,” asserted Cloudchaser, earning her a fist bump from her sister, “Just need to pace the training.”

Just then, Fireflight walked back into the living room carrying the gifts the teenagers had bought when they came to the party, “Presents time!” she sang happily.

“Woot!” Lightning Dust whooped, “I was waiting for a chance to get rid of those old sneakers of mine,” she added to much general laughter.

“Really, Dusty?” Wildfire protested, despite that though, she had a few very racy thoughts of actually getting a pair of old sweaty running shoes to sniff, “Seriously thanks guys, whatever you've all got me, I know I’ll love it!”

Fireflight then gave the gifts to Wildfire one at a time while she told her who they were from as she opened them. All the gifts were inexpensive, and mostly they were college supplies, such as a stapler from Trotter, lever arch files and refill paper from the two sisters. Lightning Dust's gift was a book store coupon worth twenty bits.

Wildfire opened each present with a smile, until she had opened them all. “And I was really hoping for sweaty sneakers too!”

Wrinkling her nose, Lightning Dust grimaced, “Really? Girl you're so weird!”

“I do love the book token though,” Wildfire said with a laugh, “I'll pen my first novel with it on the paper the sisters got me.” To Air Raid though, who had not given her a present yet, she said, “Raid, you didn't forget, did you?”

“I'm saving mine for the after party,” Air Raid replied, which of course drew lots of Oooohs and aaaaahs from the crowd, which in turn made her blush, “Hush, just don't want to show all of you up.”

“Well,” Lightning Dust sighed happily, “I guess it’s back to the books for me. I'm going to ace the finals.”

After Lightning Dust had hugged Wildfire, Cloudchaser got her hugs in too. “I'm getting a beer,” she whispered. Then, louder, she said, “See you next week and keep those dots clear so I can copy.”

Trotter and Soarin made sure to hug the small girl too. “That was a great party Wily. Next time, you'll have to salute me.”

“See you next week and this fall over in Canterlot,” Trotter bade Wildfire a fond goodbye before he left with Soarin to get a ride in his car.

Cloud Kicker, after a tight hug that threatened to make Wildfire’s cake reappear, said, “Laters Wily. I'll let you know when Chase is cheating,” then she ran out the door before her dorky sister could drive off without her.

Once the track team had all said their goodbyes and left, Fireflight decided it was best she started the clean-up operation before her Master came home from work. She didn’t like being bad naughty and leaving a mess. Air Raid, who had stayed behind, was going to help until Wildfire stopped her. “C'mon then Raid,” she squealed delightedly, “It’s pressie time!”

Smiling, Fireflight waved Air Raid to the couch. The lime green girl walked over solemnly and she took Wildfire’s hand in hers, “Hey there.”

“Hey, you.” Wildfire turned her head up to her best friend, a wide happy smile on her face.

Air Raid looked down, but at the floor instead of her best friend’s smiling face. This was the moment. “I guess I need to say something before I give you the present. About Canterlot…” all of a sudden, her throat was drier than the San Palomino dessert. “I'm…I’m…not going.”

In an instant, Wildfire’s happy smile evaporated, leaving behind a most unwelcome frown. “What?” she spluttered, “Sure you are, you're my running mate! How can I run without you!?”

“Hey,” said Air Raid softly, her voice cracking as she fought back tears, “I'll always be your running mate, but I can't be your pace runner. I'm not going to college, and there isn't what my future holds in Canterlot. That's still here in Manehatten.”

Wildfire lifted up her hands until she reached Wildfire’s face, where she thoroughly but gently caressed her cheeks. There, she felt the tears on her fingertips. Air Raid never cried. “Y-Yo-You're serious, aren't you?”

Air Raid didn’t flinch when her friend touched her flowing tears, “Yeah, I’m sorry Wily, I’m serious. But, I know you can do this. You're great, greater than me. I mean, come on, I haven't finished a race with you for months, now.”

“I mean, well, yuppers, it’s like running with a snail by my side,” Wildfire smiled and she sniffed out a few tears of her own, which she tried to stop. She failed, utterly, and began to cry like a new-born baby. “You'd better win those races of yours, I'll be watching, I mean, listening.”

“It will be some time before I'm actually racing. I'm joining Windcharger's racing team. I sent my resume to a few teams and she accepted mine. I start in the pits and I’ll be diving for her in the future.”

“Pfft,” Wildfire snorted, “Don’t sell yourself short, you were amazing in those Derby Racers downhill runs, all those trophies you won? You'll be racing in no time.”

“I'll stay in touch so you can listen when I do,” Air Raid smiled through her tears, “I'll be cheering you on, and you better cheer me on.”

“You'd better believe it!” Wildfire hugged Air Raid so tightly both girls couldn’t breathe, “I'm gonna miss you, Raid.”

“Present time!” exclaimed Air Raid as she wiped her eyes dry, “I got you a couple of things, things I didn’t want to explain to the rest of the group.” She placed the first present, which was small and softly wrapped, into Wildfire’s hands, “You’ll see why.”

“Thanks Raid!” Wildfire took the present and she tore into the wrapping. Once she was in, she could feel the then metal chain, but the clasp was highly unusual. From her knowledge, she realised they were tiny handcuffs.

“The chain is white gold,” explained Air Raid, “And yeah, best clasp ever. You can wear it in front or back under your hair.”

“Raid...I love it!” exclaimed Wildfire joyously, “Put it on me! I want the cuffs in front, please.”

Smiling, Air Raid put the chain around Wildfire’s neck so that the handcuffs were at the front, like she had requested. “I've been here often enough that I wouldn't be surprised if Dusty did give you old shoes. She didn't, so I got you this.” She gave her a slightly larger package that was very squishy.

Giggling very excitedly, Wildfire ripped open the larger squishy package like she was tearing her way through Hearths Warming morning. The first thing that hit the diminutive girl was the smell. It was utterly rancid and overpowering. It was unmistakeably a pair of extremely sweaty gym socks, the bottoms of which were a bit crusty. “I've worn those for our last six, maybe seven races, and they've not been washed.”

“Oh Raid...” Wildfire lifted the stinky feet bits of the socks up to her nose and she inhaled, breathing in the musty smell of feet until her milky eyes crossed and she almost came on the spot, “These are amazing!”

Smiling, though her eyes were watering at her own foot stench, Air Raid hugged her best friend. “Hey, take a sniff before a race and you'll know I'm chasing your ass across the finish line, because you'll never be chasing me.”

“You got it, Raid, and thank you, really,” Wildfire held the socks under her nose, “I'll win for sure now.”

“I do hope you find a pace runner faster than me. Make them work to stay with you.”

“You bet,” when Wildfire hugged Air Raid, she did at least put the socks down on the couch first, not that the smell was diminished in any way. “I'm gonna run so hard, you see.”

“I know you will, Wily, and once I climb out of the pits I'll have the pedal to the metal.”

“You'll see me off at the station, right?”

“Pfft,” Air Raid snorted, “That's ages away. I'll be over to hang out before that happens. If only to watch your parents carry on doing what they do. I won't be a stranger, and neither should you.”

“Stranger?” Wildfire looked shocked, “We're besties, always will be, no matter what!”

“No matter what,” Air Raid bumped Wildfire’s closed fist, “It was a fun party. See you next Saturday. Thank you Ms. Fireflight!”

From the kitchen came Fireflight’s voice saying she was welcome, but Wildfire wasn’t finished just yet. “Air Raid. Permission to kiss your cheek.”

“Go for it.”

Although she had to get up on the tips of her toes, Wildfire placed a chaste little kiss on the taller girl’s cheek. “Thank you for coming. And thank you for my wonderful presents. I love them both.”

Smirking, Air Raid bent at the waist and kissed Wildfire's cheek. “Some of us know what you really like. Good night, Wily.”