The Fire Maned Pegasus of Cloudsdale

You sit there in the VIP Room of the Cloudosseum, watching everypony take their seats for the Air Show. The Princesses calmly wait, formally greeting any passerby that has the courage to talk to them. You? You aren’t concerned with such things. Your mind is still back in the dressing room, where you not only had sex with your best friend, but your V-Card has been launched into space, and blown up by a missile.

I apologize for doing this again, but you do know what a V-Card is, right? Virginity? Okay, just making sure.

The camera that recorded the entire act is in your hooves, you replay the event over and over, watching how something you only dreamt about became a reality.

“This is a trip.” you whisper to yourself.

Suddenly, the music of the Cloudosseum blares all around. The show is about to begin.

You look back at the tape. You did promise Spitfire that you would record the show. Then again…sex tape, dude! Okay, okay, I was just throwing that out there, no need to get all snippy. You rewind the tape all the way to the beginning. Press the record button, and before your eyes, every second of you two’s lovemaking is erased by footage of the air show.

“Don’t want this falling in the wrong hooves…” you think to yourself, “Especially not the paparazzi.”

Good idea. Such a waste; getting rid of a perfectly good tape, though. Even though it was ripped from your body, the angle that it settled on was absolutely perfect. But, you seem to know what you are doing, so it’s all good.

As for the show itself, it’s quite a sight to see. You watch as various members of the Equestrian Air Force fly around the Cloudosseum, performing all kinds of tricks that would make somepony, even one as well trained as you, shake in their hooves. The crowd goes nuts at every turn, every flip, every barrel roll that they performed, and being where you are, you get it all on tape.

One after the other, different teams from all over the world come to show their stuff. Unlike last year, there were no crashes, but that’s not to say that there weren’t any close calls though. The flying team from Filly Delphia were off during their routine by just a fraction of a second, causing two to clip each other and go into a dive. They luckily managed to balance out, much to the relief of everypony that was watching.

The Wonderbolts were the last ones to go, as they were the most popular, and the most talented. Outside the Cloudosseum, their posters were adorned all around the walls, with the highly detailed artwork of each of the members greeting everypony on the way in. You have your own posters in your house, and a limited edition Spitfire poster, which she signed for you. She did wonder why you wanted it signed so badly, when you were already her friend. You told her that you always wanted an autograph from her, which was as good of a reason as any.

Being so famous, they got the biggest applause of hoof stomps from the audience. It’s no surprise, too. They are, and will always be the best flying team in all of Equestria.

They began their routine as soon as the applause died down. Epic orchestral music blared through the speakers, as they flew into the skies, and performed a variety of amazing tricks. You were there for almost every training session, so everything that you saw, you’ve seen before. However, you had never seen in front of an audience before. They ate it all up like it was the most delicious candy ever created. Still, your heart did race as they cut through the air with the greatest of ease, being as flawless as they ever been. The crowd reactions made it almost seem to you like you were watching this for the first time. That must be why your heart is pounding so much.

When the last trick is performed, and the music stopped, everypony burst into applause. But, it wasn’t over yet. The main event, especially for you, is about the begin.

The Announcer floated up on his podium cloud, and talked in that overly dramatic voice he was well known for.

“And now…performing her first solo flight in her entire career, fillies and gentlecolts, I give you….SPITFIRE!!!!”

The crowd roars upon the Announcer saying her name, as Spitfire separates herself from her team, launching into the sky, leaving a trail of flames lingering in the air, and opening her hooves to take in the applause. She is all smiles out there in the sky, and you are capturing every second of it.

She takes a deep breath, loosening herself up, and within seconds, she is off. You’ve never seen her practice this routine; she would tell you that she wanted to practice alone. Like a good friend, you adhered to her request, and stayed at home or did your job. This was your first time watching her, and like the crowd watching her now, you are in awe. Everything she is doing in that sky is the most incredible display of awesome that you have ever seen. To repeat what has been seen would only serve to do it no justice, just know that if you ever attempted anything like what she is accomplishing right now, not only would you fail spectacularly, but you would also be struck by a random bolt of lightning just for being such a failure.

Your steady hooves keep the camera on her at all times. It’s like every move she makes guides you, even though you have never seen her do these tricks before. You can almost anticipate them, nevertheless.

Just then, the big finish happens. She creates a massive fire ring in the sky, before powering through it with a sonic boom, taking out any trace of the fire. It’s an incredible sight. The moment she is done, the crowd goes wild. It takes every ounce of you not to do the same thing; you’re the one holding the camera after all. Once she sees the tape, you would hate to have spoiled the final trick with your shaking and loud cheering.

Spitfire floats down to the center of the Cloudosseum, waving at crowd in appreciation. She takes a bow for the Princesses, and then...her eyes glide over to you, watching her from the VIP Booth, looking directly into the camera. Her smile widens, as she then jets towards you, past the crowd.

Quickly, you shut off the camera the moment she enters the booth. She is ecstatic, sweating, breathing heavily, and as happy as can be.

“I did it!” she squealed, “Sweet Celestia, I did it!” She jumps into your forelegs, embracing you tightly. You return the gesture with your own hug.

“Yes, you did! How did you do that thing with the fire?”

“Special liquid on my tail; completely fireproof.”

“That’s amazing!”

“How was I? she asks you, “Was I good?”

“You were perfect. Just like I said you would be.” you say.

“Is it all on the tape?” she takes the camera, “Let me see.” She rewinds it to the last trick, she is amazed how well you captured that. “Oh, wow. This is so cool!” she looks at you, beaming. “Thank you so much! I can’t wait to show this to everypony!”

“It’s nothing.” you downplay it.

“No…” she puts down the camera, and gets closer to you. Gently, she moves her hooves on your head, bringing you face to face, resting your forehead onto hers. “It means the world to me. Thank you…” she whispers.

Your lips are dangerously close to hers now. You can practically taste her breath. She licks her lips, and lets out a deep breath. If you wanted to, you could kiss her right then and there, but you hesitate to do so. You remember the last time that happened. Then again, the two of you just made love for the first time, maybe she wouldn’t mind. She can see the conflict in your eyes.

“Do you want to go?” she wonders.

“Only if you do.” Good response.

Suddenly, Reporters and Paparazzi burst into the VIP room. Instantly, the two of you separate yourselves from one another, hiding a potential story away from them. She holds onto your hoof, bringing you out of the VIP room, pushing past the crowd, and heading towards the exit.

“Come on.” She says as she pulls you.

When the two of you exit, you immediately take to the skies before the stampeding press could catch up with you both. You and Spitfire fly high in the sky, the rush of adrenaline pulses through her, having been through one hell of a day. She laughs and whoops as she goes faster, and you can catch up with her. That rush she is feeling is also pouring through you, as you go faster and faster. All those months of training have paid off. She’s still faster than you, though, and she knows it.

“Let’s go, slow poke!” she shouts, “I can fly ten laps before you can do one!”

“That’s an over exaggeration and you know it!” you smile, “You can do at least four laps, before I can do one!”

“Bet you can’t catch me!” she challenges.

“You’re on!”

You chase her through the clouds, the both of you having the time of your lives. She dives down to the mountains, and you follow her through. You know these mountains; she took you through them one time during a training session. You had trouble before, but now, you are almost a master. She still beats you, but you’re not that far behind.

She takes to the skies again, and you catch up to her. You fly side by side with her, and grab her by the shoulder.

“Got you!” you yell.

You two stop. Breathing like you two are breathing your last breaths, exhausted from the race, looking to each other with smiles on your faces.

“You’re getting better.” she admits, “But you had the advantage.”

“Being what?”

“You didn’t have a show to perform ten minutes ago.”

“I guess you’re right.” you chuckle. “So, where would you like to go next?”

She chuckles, as she flies downwards. You follow her. She’s leading you somewhere. Somewhere familiar. Somewhere you’ve been before, but only through the lens of unconsciousness.

Spitfire lands in the middle of a gorgeous grassy field and you follow suit. She looks around the area, remembering events that have long since passed. She looks to you with a gentle smile.

“Do you remember this place?” she asks.

“Of course.” you survey the area, “This is where we first met.”

“You came down from there…” she points to the center of the sky, “All the way over here.” She leads her hoof to a dent in the ground, now covered by grass, “Right next to where I’m standing.”

“I almost crashed into you?”

“Yeah. It was lucky that you didn’t hit me. Scared the crap out of me, though.” she chuckles, then looks at you with loving eyes. “Do you remember when you first saw me?”

“How could I forget?” you walk closer to her, “Wet mane, a concerned expression on your face, cradling me with your forelegs, yet… you were still so beautiful. I think I even called you that.”

“It was the first thing you said to me, before you passed out.”

“Good to know it left an impression on you.” The two of you share a chuckle. “You never did answer my question, though. Not really anyway.”

“What question was that?”

“About why you were out here, in the middle of a rainstorm.”

Her smile turns into a look of sadness; a painful memory she locked away has been reopened, thanks to you.

“You don’t have to answer.” you quickly say, “I’m sorry.”

“No. It’s okay.” She takes a deep breath. “I knew that I was going to have to tell you sooner or later.” She thinks carefully about her next words. “Did I ever tell you why Soarin and I broke up?”

“You said that you weren’t feeling it.”

“That…wasn’t entirely true. At the time, I didn’t know you well enough to tell you, but considering the circumstances…” she pauses for a few moments, “When Soarin and I were dating, it got pretty serious.”

“How serious are we talking about?”

“Like ‘sleeping with each other’ serious.”

“Yeah, I get the picture.” Judging by what happened earlier today, you can piece it together that she was quite experienced with the art of lovemaking. Still, imagining Soarin having sex with Spitfire made your stomach turn, even if the two of you are now on friendlier terms.

“The thing was…I wanted to be more than that.” Her words get you curious, “I told him that one day, I wanted to quit being Captain of the Wonderbolts, settle down, and have foals.”

“Woah.” you are shocked at this turn, “What happened?”

“He didn’t like that. He didn’t want me to quit, much less get married, and have foals. We fought, said some things that we both regretted. It was a pretty tough moment of my life. After hours of yelling and screaming, he walked out on me, and our relationship was over.”

“But, that couldn’t be why you were out on the field. The two of you were buddy-buddy when I was at the Cloudosseum.”

“That was almost a year before I met you. Since then, we became friends again. Eventually, he wanted to start over, but I didn’t want to. I knew that the day would come when I would bring up the topic again, and I was scared. Until…”

“Until what?”

“The day before I met you, I was at the hospital for a checkup. The Doctor did some tests, standard stuff, when something came up.”

You feared the worst. Please oh please, let it not be cancer. This story already sounds depressing as it is! You would die right there if she told you it was cancer, or any other sort of life ending disease. On the high chance of you embarrassing yourself, you held your tongue.

“I found out that…” her eyes begin to water, “I was infertile.”

It wasn’t cancer, but your heart still dropped like a stone.

“What?” you gasp in shock.

“I couldn’t have foals. No matter how hard I could try, I wouldn’t be able to create life. There was nothing they could do to help me.”

“Spitfire…” you walk up to her, putting a hoof on her back.

“That’s why I was out here. I wanted to be alone. I didn’t want to talk to anypony. Just me and my thoughts; my pain. But then…” she looks up at you, “…then you showed up.”

“I’m sorry that I ruined your alone time.”

“No…” she laughs through the tears, “You didn’t ruin anything.” She puts a hoof on your cheek. “You took away what I was feeling, and replaced it with concern for your life. I wasn’t going to let you die out here, even if I didn’t know the first thing about you.” Gently, she caresses you. “I know I told you that I became friends with you, because I felt sorry for you…”

“But you warmed up to me, eventually.” you smile.

“Yes. But it was more than that. You helped me forget all the pain I was feeling. Every moment I spent with you made me happier than I had ever been. The video games we played, the movies we watched, the walks, the training, every comforting word you said to me, was like medicine to me. I was with you for so long, that it got to the point where I…I…” she blushes, looking down on the grass, “Where I developed a bit of a…a crush on you.” she blushes.

What? Did she just say…? Holy shit. Seriously? A crush? On you?

“You did?”

“And…I still do.” she looks deep into your eyes, “I wanted to tell you for a while. But, I thought that you only saw me as a friend, or a sister.”

“If I only saw you as a sister…I wouldn’t have done what I did.”

“I know. When you kissed me that day, it was something I always wanted. I wanted you to take me into your hooves, and kiss me like it was your last day in Equestria. But…you pushed me away. Before I could tell you everything, before I could say what I truly felt about you, you shut me out. Why did you do that?”

“I…I thought that I was taking advantage of you. You came by to cheer me up, and I thanked you with a forced kiss, and almost more than that. I never thought you had a crush on me. I actually thought you only saw me as a friend…or a brother.”

“If I only saw you as a brother…I wouldn’t have done what I did.” she smirks.

“I figured as much.”

“The day after you kissed me, you came by and said you only wanted to be friends. I tried to remain strong on the outside, but on the inside, I was heartbroken. The instant I closed that door, the instant you were out of my sight…I cried.”

You’re about to cry right now, dude. I told you to let her go; that wanting a relationship with her would destroy your friendship. But, I was wrong. She wanted to be with you, and I, your stupid brain, told you not to go through with it. Wait; there is still time to save this.

“I held onto this feeling for over a year. I watched you continue to be a good friend to me, the best even. But deep down, I wanted to be your special somepony. I tried to move on, to date others, but I just couldn’t! All I could think about was you! Today, I just finally snapped. I couldn’t take it anymore. I wanted you for so long, that…”

In an instant, you rush to her, and bring her to you for a tight embrace. You hold her close, eyes shut, feeling her warmth against your coat. Slowly, you feel her hooves come up, caressing your back.

“I am so sorry, Spitfire.” you whisper to her, “I didn’t know. I thought I was helping you, but instead I hurt you. I told you I was stupid.” your eyes now water, and the resulting tears roll down your cheek.

“It’s okay…you’re not stupid.” she tells you in a caring voice, “It’s okay.”

“No. It’s not. I wanted to tell you for such a long time how I felt about you. How I loved you from the first time we met. I was so alone for all my life, but every day I spent with you made me forget all that. That there was somepony out there, willing to be my friend. I know that sounds creepy and sad, but…”

“No…no it doesn’t.” she kisses you on the cheek, “I understand…”

“I’ll never hurt you again! I swear to Celestia! I’ll be with you for as long as you want me.”

“Shhh…” she caresses your mane, “Don’t cry.”

“I can’t help it. You’re just going to have to deal with it.” you laugh between sobs. She laughs too. “I guess I really walked into that one, when I told you that you can have anything you wanted.”

“You sure did.” Another chuckle from the both of you; levity is taking away the sadness you two are feeling.

“I have to tell you, Spitfire. Today was…my first time…doing something like that.”

“It was?” She feels you nod your head. She sighs in embarrassment, “Not exactly your ideal first time, was it?”

“No.” you smirk, “But it could have been worse. Much much worse. Could have lost it to a Manticore named Bubba.” You hear Spitfire crack up.

“Well, there’s that.” she says, the laughs dying down. She removes herself from you, wiping away her own tears, but retaining her beautiful smile. “Follow me. I’m taking you home.”

“My home?”

“No…mine.” She unfurls her wings, and takes off. You follow her.