The crunch of grass under my hooves, the cursed tone of my own singing, and the happy smiles of ponies, who are completely unaware of my existence. How we've missed this peace.

It was a little after noon by this point, and I was doing some snooping on the local pegasi population. At almost all hours of the day, pegasi would fly about from place to place, their wings engaged in a magical dance with the wind.

Dreams wash like waves, ebb and overflow.

My hooves matched the chorus of other hooves on the sidewalks of Canterlot, as I moved into position.

Donut Joe had a donut shop not too far from the gates of the rich people's district. Easily recognizable from the giant pink donut he has hanging from the second floor. I've never been inside before, but I have passed it by once or twice on my walks.

The walk over was unremarkable, beyond seeing Minuette walking down the street at one point, but that's unimportant.

Donut Joe's donut shop was packed with ponies. Not a table was left empty, and Donut Joe was serving up hot cocoa and donuts for his patrons at the bar. All around him were delicious looking donuts, slathered delicately in frosting, some sprinkled, some glazed. I didn't see any other employees, though. Not sure how he does it all. The floor was checkered tile, as most of Canterlot's flooring was; greenish grey and white tiles lined his floor. His confectionery styled stools really sold the idea of a bake shop, and the entire building smelled of sugar and fried dough.

Had I the capacity to hunger, I'd likely be salivating as I sang.

I moved past the dining area and ventured into the back, where the Kitchens were. Multiple fryers filled with clean and bubbling oil were spotted nearby, and numerous devices for pumping donut shaped dough were placed sporadically around the kitchen. I also noticed a collection of spices along the wall, neatly placed on shelves.

Most of the spice was sugar, though.

Up the stairs I went, onto the second floor. I was greeted by a hallway with 2 doors, likely personal rooms? A bathroom and bedroom, I'm guessing. I wasn't here to intrude on Donut Joe's privacy, though. There was another set of stairs, leading up to the roof of the shop.

I had seen a mare fly over here onto his roof before, and Donut Joe would bring out some donuts for her. So unless she was a special case, it's technically fine that I'm up here too. Besides, I'm just here for the view.

Based on my observations, Pegasus wings beat with a balance of power and grace, in an organized rhythm. I spread my wings to mimic them, while maintaining my singing.

Wings spread wide— I begin to flap, slowly at first, but picking up speed quickly. On uneven standing, my wingbeats grow faster, and soon I'm a few feet off the ground. Quickly after, I fall back down onto the roof with a clomp.

2nd attempt, and I produced roughly the same effect, and realized that I'm going to have to stabilize myself If I want to improve.

5th attempt, and I was evenly standing, both wings working in robotic unison for a few seconds before I clomped back down onto the roof.

My practice continued on, even as the hot sun and the exercise brewed sweat onto my brow.

30th attempt, and I was able to reliably fly for a few seconds, and decided to incorporate gliding into my practice.

40th attempt, no more clomping , once I reached the apex of my fly, I would spread my wings out and glide in a circle until I was standing on the roof.

60th attempt, I was confident enough to leave the roof and fly around, reassuring myself that I'd be able to glide to safety in the event that something happened.

Flapping wings and wretched tone paved my soundtrack of progress, and soon, my singing filled the sky.

100th attempt, and I was breezing through the skies above Canterlot at an easy pace.

128th attempt, I began to incorporate gliding into my flight patterns, allowing me to turn easily.

I would have kept going, but by then the sun was beginning to set. I was caked in a layer of sweat, that I found uncomfortable.

Practicing flying one more time, I flew all the way back to the castle, and formed a mini tornado when it was time to land.

When I returned to my room, I found Gilded Spear gone, but I didn't mind. Him not being here just made it easier to get back inside.

Finally back in my room at the castle, I stopped singing and enjoyed the silence again, before a loud crash came from my bathroom as Gilded Spear, looking like he had just remembered something important, burst through the door.

"Have you been in here, this entire time?!" He asked me frantically, embarrassment plastered on his face as he barely held onto his helmet.

"Yeah," I lied, "You may not have seen me. I was sort of obscured behind the dresser, leaning against the wall and reading a book."

He seemed to calm down, "I... right... that makes sense." He then looked at me and noticed all the sweat I was caked in, "Are you okay? You look like you just ran a marathon."

"Oh, y'know... I was just..." I pulled out a lie from the show, "Reading an exciting book, is all."

His eyes showed confusion, before quickly turning into acceptance, "Oh, hey, if you need any help with that..." He then gestured to me.

I narrowed my eyes at him, "What do you mean?"

"I don't mind helping out a fellow stallion in need..." He then blushed and gave me a flirtatious stare, "Especially when those stallions are so well hung." He bit his lower bottom lip.

It then occurred to me just what he meant by 'help'.

"Ok, get out." I pointed my hoof towards the door. To his credit, he didn't hesitate, and I was left alone in my room again.

Author's Note