“There you go, Sweetie Belle! You did it!” Ocellus cheers as she claps her forehooves.

“I did, didn't I?” I acknowledge proudly as I look back at my rapidly flapping wings.

While I look away from Ocellus, however, my smile subtly drops since part of me is convinced I'm picking up these skills too quickly. I'm not complaining since this is helping me get more quickly proficient with basic changeling skills, but what else am I subconsciously absorbing?

“Uhhhhhh,” Scootaloo blinks. “She has yet to take off from the ground, though,” she remarks in some disappointment. “All she's really done so far is flap her wings really fast. I can do that.”

“Yeah, but that's an important fundamental lesson,” Ocellus lectures my orange filly friend. “Changelings don't fly like you ponies do.”

“What do you mean?” Scootaloo asks innocently with a curious tilt of her head.

“Yeah,” Apple Bloom agrees who is sitting next to her pegasus friend as they both sit on a white and red checkered blanket which is resting comfortably under the shade of a tree. “That's what Ah would like tah know, too. Pegasi and changelings can both take off into thah sky. That's more than we earth ponies can do.”

“Yeah, but the method is different,” Ocellus points out, “and we changelings have to learn each method's if we wish to fly in those forms.

“Pegasi, hippogriffs, and griffons all have feathered wings. There's more lift per flap for them, and the curve of the wing determines the angle of their flight.”

“Oh, here we go again,” Gallus, the light blue griffon with a white underbelly groans as he rolls his light blue eyes. As he says this, he is lazily laying comfortably behind Scootaloo and Apple Bloom and beside Smolder and Silver Stream on the same checkered blanket. “More lectures,” Gallus complains in a nasally voice. “I feel like I'm back in school right now. Normally, when I leave the classrooms, I try to get away from school work.”

“You consider this work?” Silver Stream, the lilac-colored hippogriff with deeper purple rear hooves, forward claws and beak, and two alternate shades of blue hair, asks with excitement mixed with doubt. “Because I sure don't! All these new lessons seem exciting and fun to me!”

Smolder, the deep orange dragon with yellow chest, purple fins along her head and neck as well as a spade at the end of her tail, upward curved horns, huffs a bit of smoke out her nostrils before saying, “It's nice that we're all hanging out again, but it's also a little boring to see you teach another stuff I've learned since I was a hatchling.” She looks at me with a little interest in her light blue eyes. “That said, I know you changelings can assume any form but don't let that get into your head. If you dare to take dragon form, I warn you not to assume mastering flight as a changeling, or even a pony, is going to teach you how to fly like a dragon.” She lifts her right claw and uses one finger of it to point up. “Spike made that mistake while attempting to learn from Twilight. He nearly crashed all over the place.”

“Agreed,” Ocellus concurs as she looks from her teenage dragon friend to me. “Every wing type has its own flight method so you'll have to learn them one by one.” She squints slightly as she adds, “It's kind of like learning a new language.” She lifts a hoof. “On top of that, each form has its own individual equilibrium. Changing forms, even if it's within the same species, can completely throw you off. Most other creatures have to learn how to fly in only one form if they are capable of it at all.”

Out of the corner of my left eye, I see Scootaloo looking down with a frown on her face for that comment, but Ocellus didn't notice.

“But a changeling has to continually adapt depending on the form they take. That is why most of the hive doesn't know how to fly at all except in their base form.”

“Is that true?” Silver Stream asked with surprise as she lifts a clawed finger gingerly near her lips. “I didn't know that about you changelings.”

Ocellus looks at Silver Steam as she smiles a bit and says, “We learn something new everyday, don't we?”

Silver Stream closes her eyes for a few seconds as she agrees brightly, “We sure do!”

Ocellus looks back at me as she continues to lecture, “And each species tend to have their own advantages. Griffons, hippogriffs, and pegasi can be the fastest fliers but they tend to need a lot of training to get the most out of their potential. Most of the time these species are fairly comparable to all the others.”

“Then there's pegasi like Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo cheers. “She's the fastest flier ever!”

“Oh, definitely!” Ocellus strongly agrees with Scootaloo. “For that reason, I consider Rainbow Dash in a league of her own that even the Wonderbolts can hardly top, especially when Rainbow does her Sonic Rainboom. Speed is part of her cutie mark talent, though. It isn't really fair to compare her to the standards of any average flier.”

“No kidding!” Scootaloo enthusiastically agrees.

Ocellus spreads her ladybug-like wings and gestures back to them with a hoof as she lectures, “Now changeling wings, at least in our base form, is very different compared to most other sentient species because they are very thin and multi-layer. For us to achieve lift, we have to flap much faster, and while we might not be the fastest species in the air, you'd be hard-pressed to find a more maneuverable species in the sky.”

“Including Rainbow Dash and the Wonderbolts?” Scootaloo asks with doubt.

“Quiet, Scootaloo,” Apple Bloom requests to her adjacent friend. “Let Ocellus finish her lectures before constantly interrupting with new questions.”

“But I want to learn too,” Scootaloo objects.

“Well, it's fairly clear that Rainbow Dash is a unique case,” Ocellus points out. “But even she would have a lot of trouble rivaling the best of our species when it comes to maneuverability in the sky.

“Check this out,” Ocellus invites before she takes off into the air. The first thing she does is fly backwards while also going diagonally upwards and veering to the left. Then she stops abruptly, hovers in place for a few seconds, spins in a circle several times over, then sharply zips in several zigg-zag patterns. Sometimes she's spinning or looping while she does it.

“Whoa!” Scootaloo marvels. “That is impressive,” she admits.

“The reason I can do that is because of my flight method,” Ocellus explains as she gently lands in front of me again. “We have to flap our wings super fast to get into the air. You just saw the advantage of that. The disadvantage is we can't fly as fast as other species unless we change our form and learn how to fly in those forms. Also, this method of flying is very exhausting. We can't glide using our natural wings either because they are too small and delicate to support our weight in the air without flappipng.”

“Huh. I never thought about that before,” I realize.

“Me neither,” Scootaloo agrees.

“Me three,” Apple Bloom also chimes in.

For a quick second, I glance past my friends on the picnic blanket to yet another picnic blanket where my parents are trying to train Button Mash how to use my horn. He has summoned magical light to my body's horn which is already something I'm astonished at. It seems he's picking this up unusually fast, too.

Maybe it's like muscle memory. Our bodies just remember how to do these things even if our conscious mind does not.

Even if I go with that excuse, however, that would only lead Button so far. Even I'm still working on mastering my race’s innate magical abilities. If Button actually catches up to my level of skill then he'd have to learn to surpass it on his own.

“So when are we going to get to the actual flying part?” Scootaloo asks impatiently.

“It is unwise to rush,” Ocellus cautions. “Sweetie Belle should get used to the basics of changeling wing flaps before she takes off into the sky. The reason I say that is because, the further up we go, the more dangerous the consequences grows if she gets this wrong.” Ocellus focuses on Scootaloo as she asks, “You don't want your good friend, Sweetie Belle, to get hurt, do you?”

“No,” Scootaloo admits with a frown. The mere thought of that possibility already hurt her.

“Then we have to be careful,” Ocellus reasons.

“Pardon, but Ah reckon Ah have a question,” Apple Bloom announces with a raise of a hoof. “Can ya changelings trot on clouds too like pegasi and griffons? Ah ask because Ah never seen it.”

“Normally, no, especially in our base forms,” Ocellus answers the young filly. “But some of us have managed to pull it off by assuming a form that can.”

“Dragons can't,” Smolder puts in. “We dragons just plow through the clouds.” She looks off to her side as she muses, “Imagine if we could stand on clouds, though. The clouds might be a great place to store our treasure since it's inaccessible to land-bound species, and sleeping on clouds looks kinda fun. I wish I could do that. Whenever I see Rainbow Dash do that, I just-”

“Gwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh! This is so frustrating!” Button Mash screeches in a way that definitely sounds distinctive to me. “Why can't I do this? I should be levitating things by now!”

“Are you kidding me?!” my father exclaims in surprise. “You've been practicing this for only oneday, kid, and you can already summon and channel magic to your horn. Cut yourself some slack. You're doing better at this than my own daughters did. Shoot! You're even doing this better than me at your age!”

“A lot of unicorns struggle with this at first,” my mother consoles Button. “Patience is a virtue. Just like you're cutie mark, you just need to give yourself some time.”

“And practice,” Apple Bloom says to Button over her shoulder. “Typically no pony gets his or her cutie mark without some effort.”

“By the way, how does it feel?” Scootaloo asks over to Button. “To channel magic, I mean.”

“Ah,” he rubs the side of my head as he thinks about that before answering, “It tingles. It feels slightly itchy but I feel it in a place that my mind isn't trained to recognize. I also feel that sensation around my horn. It sorta permeates all throughout my skull but the sensation is strongest near the horn.”

Apple Bloom gives Scootaloo a grin as she says to her, “Ya know, if Twilight was feeling better and not so bogged down with Princess duties, Ah bet'cha she'd be all over this to do some grand research paper. This is 'er chance to study cross-species lessons. Ah bet she'd get a kick outta it.”

“It does kind of boggle the mind, huh?” Scootaloo asks Apple Bloom with a grin. “Have you ever wondered what it might be like? To have a horn, I mean?”

“Ooo! I had a dream that I had a horn once!” Silver Stream excitedly chimes in. “It was neat, but it felt really uncomfortable if something bumps into it. It's kinda like that sensation of hitting our funny bone except the throbbing sensation was up on my forehead.”

“That's a real thing,” my mother expresses to Silver Stream. “I mean, about that uncomfortable feeling if our horns ram into something. Some creatures seem to think we could use it as a piercing attack, but no unicorn I've ever known would dare to try that. That's much too painful.”

“Bah.” Smolder waves a dismissive and disdainful claw at us. “We dragons don't need magic horns. We're powerful enough as it is.”

“You got that right,” Gallus agrees with yet another roll of his eyes. “With your lifespan alone, you'll outlast us all by far.”

“And you're going to miss us dearly when that happens, huh?” Silver says to Smolder sympathetically.

“Probably,” Smolder admits. She tries to sound nonchalant about it but I can tell there is a little bit of pain in her eyes at the prospect. I even get the distinct feeling that she would not have dared to admit that much in earlier years.

But then she goes on to say, “My plan is to make new friends along the way to help occupy my time.” She shrugs. “That's the reality of our situation and we dragons have to face that.” She crosses her arms as she frowns while looking down. “That might be why we dragons typically don't go out of our way to make bonds with others, especially other much shorter-lived species because, if we did, we'd have much longer to suffer those consequences.”

Suddenly, Smolder shifts her eyes narrowly and sharply at Silver Stream as she warns, “Don't hug me.”

Silver Stream was indeed about to do that so she shrinks back sheepishly instead.

“Don't worry. I wasn't gonna,” Gallus honestly promises with a bit of an amused chuckle.

“I know you weren't going to,” the dragoness agrees with her griffon friend. “Silver Stream, on the other claw . . .”

“Yeah. I get’cha,” Gallus acknowledges.

“How come Yona and Sand Bar aren't here anyway?” Scootaloo wonders aloud.

“We already told you that,” Gallus says with a bit of irritation. “Weren't you listening?”

“Really? You already said it?” Scootaloo wonders.

For the third time, Gallus rolls his eyes again as he says, “Apparently you weren't listening.”

Scootaloo smiles sheepishly as she expresses, “Sorry.”

“We think Yona and Sand Bar are out on a date with each other,” Smolder says indifferently. “We're not sure where, though. We didn't pry.” She narrows her eyes at Scootaloo as she adds sharply, “Because we didn't consider it our business.”

“Aw! That's so romantic!” I swoon. “I sure hope that they are both happy together.”

“Me too!” Silver Stream agrees in a gushy way as she clasps her claws together and swings them to the side of her head.

Ocellus giggles. Gallus and Smolder look at each other dryly for a second before they both roll their eyes simultaneously and look away from each other, but they secretly seem very amused too.

“Well . . . come on! Let's get back to practice,” Button impatiently urges.

“Why is this so important for you to master so quickly?” my mother asks him while feeling perplexed.

“Because I need to know how to do this so I can use these talents to protect Sweetie Belle!” Button expresses with determination. “As her special somepony, it is my duty to protect her . . . but doing that as her complicates things. Only by mastering her magic can I protect her in a way that’s safe for her body, too.” He gestures to my body. “and her mind.” He then gestures to me.

In response, I blush while Silver Stream presses both claws on the side of her face as she gushes, “Aw! That's so sweet and cute.”

“Cute?” Button reflects in objection at Silver with a wince of disgust. “This isn't cute. This is a serious promise. My pride as a colt is at stake.”

“Your conviction is admirable,” my father approves. “But son . . . you are not going to master magic in one day. That just isn't going to happen.”

“Unless you're a baby unicorn,” I half-joke. “Seriously, yearlings are sometimes the most powerful unicorns in the world.”

“It's a phase,” my mother explains to Button as she looks from me to Button. “When we're born, we have an overabundance of magic that hasn't entirely stabilized yet. When it does, the next phase is rather difficult to break through. It's almost as if our lives are compensating for our earlier youth. During that time, it can be a struggle just to turn a doorknob with our magic.”

“You said it, Honey,” my father agrees with my mother while hugging her from the side in order to be supportive.

“But I have to do this! I have to get this right!” Button swears in stubborn determination.

“Protect her from what?” my father asks Button. “This is Ponyville.”

“Exactly!” Button shot back. “While we're here, this happened to us!” He gestures at my body again. “I don't plan on being unprepared next time.”

“Well, even diligent practice needs a break,” my mother decides. “Who wants cookies?” she asks while she lifts up her picnic basket with her magic.

“Will they crumble like your namesake?” Smolder teases my mother with an amused smirk.

“Ah . . . no. They shouldn't. I used the recipe given to me by the Cakes,” my mother, Cookie Crumbles, replies. “Here.” She floats the basket closer to Smolder. “Try some.”

“Ooo! I'll take some!” Button requests excitedly as he makes my body do a short, excited hop. He squeaked in a very familiar way when he spoke the conjunction words, “I'll”. Then he goes on to say, “I love me some cookies! In fact,” he makes my eyes go all shifty as he wears a mischievous grin on my face, “When I am at home, I like to pretend the kitchen is an ancient and dank dungeon. Traps lay everywhere! A pony has to stay sharp, especially if he pursues the ultimate dungeon treasure . . . the ever mystical cookies from the cookie jar!” He suddenly tumbles my body on the blanket as he looks sharply left and right. “Another day . . . another dungeon!”

“Hey! You stole that line from Daring Do!” Scootaloo accuses.

“Of course,” Button agrees with a suddenly more casual expression to Scootaloo. He shrugs my shoulders as he adds, “It's a good line. Why wouldn't I steal it? Besides, it's true.”

“Eh.” Scootaloo shifts her head to the side and continues to look at Button with her narrowed left eye. “As long as you realize that and give credit where credit is due, I guess that it's okay for you to say that.”

“Ooo! I want some cookies too!” I cry out excitedly then scramble over to the blanket with my parents on it.

“I guess we're taking a break, then?” Ocellus figures questioningly.

“Kids will be kids,” Gallus says with an amused smirk on his beak.

“Hey, if you all think that is good, you should try dragon scones,” Smolder encourages.

“Ooo! What's that?” Silver Stream asks her dragon friend excitedly.

“A delicious dragon secret,” Smolder answers. “Try to steal our treasure and we'll burn you!” She lifts a finger. “But if you partake of our treats when we willingly offer them, we consider this very polite.”

“Wait a second.” Gallus narrows his eyes at Smolder with shrewd suspicion as he asks, “Does dragon scones require us to be fireproof to eat them and expect to continue to live?”

Smolder suddenly hissed through clenched teeth as she's reminded of something before she says, “Um . . . you know what? Nevermind. I withdraw the offer.”

Gallus's facial expression deadpans as he asks, “They're molten rocks, aren't they?”

Smolder grins shyly as she admits, “Pretty much. Yeah.”

Upon hearing that, we Crusaders giggle together.

It's nice to have a pleasant day like this where we all hang out together as friends and family. I love this.

Author's Note

A calm before the storm chapter that fulfills promises made in earlier chapters.

One of my editors, Onxy Rose, commented that she grew hungry for cookies the moment Cookie Crumbles offered such a thing to those around her. I'm curious if any of you experienced a similar reaction.

While writing this story, I actually grew surprised at how Occelus's role in this story almost suddenly dropped off after but her absence was explained in Chapter 23: Makeover. One thing I had to keep in mind is, although many chapters have passed since then, not much time has passed within the story itself. It's just a few days. Another thing to keep in mind is Ocellus has other friends to hang out with too and they'd start to complain if she's absent from them for too long. She has some secrets to protect, too, so Ocellus couldn't explain all the reasons for her absence back then. Without that explanation, they'd pressure her to join them a little harder which is honestly something she wanted to do anyway. Sweetie herself was the real clincher to that decision. She encouraged Ocellus to join her friends in order to help alleviate some of her own guilt.

But here Occelus is again, fulfilling the promise of trying to help Sweetie learn to fly using changeling wings. At the same time, Button is focusing on magic lessons with Sweetie's parents, and Sweetie's parents are there because Sweetie made up with them on the chapter exactly before this one. It all comes together.

By examining the way this chapter turned out, it's easy to imagine that they all agreed to do this together since the two of them were focusing on learning new skills. Everyone else just decided to hang out together while they're at it. Since they went that far, might as well bring a picnic blanket and picnic basket full of food too.