Chapters Chapter 1: Standin' In The Rain
Chapter 1: Standin' In The Rain
Rain was pouring down in morning hours of Ponyville. Grey clouds encompassed the normally bright and cheery sky. Sadly for the residents of the small town, the rain meant a limit of the day's activities for many. In the library, however, the rain only added to the librarian's frustration.
"I don't know what to write about, Spike!" the purple unicorn spoke in irritation at herself.
The dragon finally started paying attention to what was going on. With a yawn, he replied, "What are you talking about, Twilight?"
"The letter to Princess Celestia. I know she said to not worry about sending a letter unless I discovered something about friendship, but it has been quite sometime since I sent a letter. It would be unprofessional of me if I didn't send one soon!" Twilight stressed the end of her sentence.
"You're not a professional anything, so don't worry about it," Spike calmly replied as he moved over towards the door.
"But it feels just so wrong and against everything I was taught by her!" the mare seemed to have more anxiety by the second.
Spike sat on the floor near the front door and pulled his rain boots on, "Just take your time with it, I guess. The subject of the letter will come to you soon enough."
Finally being able to break out of her non-stop stress, Twilight looked to her assistant, "Fine. What are you doing anyway? Do you plan to go out in that rain?"
"Yeah, I told Rarity I would help her out today with her shopping for supplies," Spike stood up with his yellow rain boots on his feet. Opening the door, Spike headed out, "I'll see you later."
Just as Spike closed the door, an idea was formed in Twilight Sparkle's head. Quickly, she rushed to get her saddlebag, some parchment, a quill, and an umbrella. Using her magic to open the umbrella, she followed behind Spike to the Carousel Boutique.
The small dragon noticed the unicorn following him, "What are you doing here, Twilight?"
"Oh nothing," she smiled, "just observing."
Spike shrugged it off as they arrived at Rarity's shop. He hopped onto the porch to knock at the door. A white unicorn with a highly fashionable purple mane answered.
"Oh, Spike! It's wonderful for you to show up! I must admit, I feared that the rain might deter you away," Rarity welcomed the dragon who was covered in rain.
"Nah, I'm a tough dragon, no rain will stop me from my promised duties!" Spike sounded very proud in his statement.
"Wonderful! I'll be out in just a moment."
Standing just off the porch was Twilight under her umbrella. Using her magic to both write down notes of what she was seeing and keeping herself and the parchment dry, the pony seemed to have found something interesting already.
Rarity returned as fast as she promised but with a purple coat around her white body and an umbrella floating by her magic. "I'm ready!" she chimed as she stepped out on the porch. Looking at the falling rain, she commented, "Those grey skies show no sign of letting up do they? Oh darn, and Sweetie Belle is using the other umbrella today."
Spike interrupted, "It's okay, I'll just use the one to keep you dry!"
"Are you sure?" Rarity asked, "It's only big enough for one."
"Sure I'm sure! It's no big deal!" the dragon took the umbrella and opened it up and used it to cover Rarity.
"Oh, thank you very much, Spike," Rarity trotted slowly down from her porch into the falling rain, protected by the closely following dragon with the shield against the weather. As Rarity trotted down, she saw her fellow unicorn friend, Twilight, "Oh, hello there, Twilight, didn't see you there. What are you doing out in this nasty weather?"
Twilight continued jotting notes down as she replied, "You know me, always the student, no matter what the weather is like."
The white unicorn simply smiled back as she trotted towards the town center and the marketplace. Despite all the rain hitting Spike, causing him to shiver quite a bit, he refused to let a single drop hit Rarity. While she might not know if rain had fallen on her, Spike would know and that was enough to bother him.
The two trotted down the street, with Twilight following behind, scribbling on her sheet of parchment, to find a vacant town center. Save a few other ponies, it was if the place was deserted.
"Oh dear me, it seems that all of the shops are closed due to the rain. I understand that it is raining and many places in the marketplace would have to close, but this is very troublesome for me," Rarity stated, turning her head to look at Spike.
"Why's that?" the dragon asked.
"My order is already approaching a deadline and it would be just awful if I am unable to get it done in time. I do have a reputation to keep up in the fashion world," Rarity's voice was slightly crestfallen.
Spike gripped the umbrella's handle tightly as he offered words of encouragement, "I know you will get it done in time, Rarity! I mean, you're you! You have one of the most awesome fashion shops in all of Ponyville, if not Equestria! And if you ever need help for any of your orders, just let me know and I'll be more than happy to help you out! Well, as long as it is okay with Twilight, though."
After hearing his rallying speech, Rarity couldn't help but giggle slightly, "Well then, thank you very much for believing in me, Spike. With words like that, how can I not do well?"
"I mean every word, Rarity!" Spike proudly stated, still shielding her from the falling rain, getting drenched himself as he stood in the rain.
"Oh, Spike, you are quite the gentlecolt," Rarity smiled as she leaned in to give him a small peck on his forehead. This caused the dragon's face to become flushed a bright red which led to Rarity giggling again.
Just within hearing distance, Twilight finished taking notes between the two. "I think I should make my way elsewhere and leave those two be for now," she softly spoke to herself with a small smirk. She then began to trot to the edge of town towards Sweet Apple Acres, "I'm sure others will be out today despite the rain."
Chapter 2: Big Wheels
As the rain continued to pour down from the heavens, Twilight trotted along the path to Sweet Apple Acres. Being careful where she was stepping, she jotted down a few notes on her parchment as they came to her mind. Keeping her umbrella overhead, she raised her head as she arrived at a fork in the road. She figured that she should see if anypony was in the apple orchard first. While highly unlikely, she was one to check despite the odds not being in her favor.
Trotting amongst the trees, the rain hitting the treetops created a very unique sound for the unicorn to hear. It was quite loud but not cacophonic. In fact, the sound was even relaxing to Twilight.
As she ventured farther into the grove of trees, she saw a red stallion with a cart attached to him. Near the stallion was a bundled up mare in a dark blue coat with her pink mane flowing out from her hood. Twilight stayed hidden as she listened from a far.
“Big Mac, why are you out in the rain?” the meek voice spoke.
“Getting’ some work done, Miss Fluttershy,” the red pony replied in a low voice.
“Oh….um….but it’s wet….and….um….you can get sick, you know….” Fluttershy spoke softly.
“Ah know….”
“Y-You could catch a cold….or worse, like something like pneumonia. Are you sure you’ll be okay?” Fluttershy’s voice was worried and almost pleading.
“Eeyup….” the stallion’s voice didn’t sound different from his normal speech patterns, “Ah gotta keep workin’ the farm, no matter the weather. Guess that’s how the wheel turns, ya know?”
“Oh….um….okay then….but….um….” the pegasus began to speak, but paused midway in her statement, trying to find the right words to say next.
Big Mac edged on, “But?”
“But….m-maybe you could wear a coat….or something….th-that is if you want to, B-Big Mac….” she continued to trip over her words.
“Ah did have one, but it had a few holes in it. So, it was kinda pointless ta bring it out with me,” the stallion explained his situation to Fluttershy.
Looking down at the muddy ground, Fluttershy responded, “I-I do have a spare coat y-you could borrow from me….um, i-if you want to that is….”
This puzzled Big Mac, “Come again?”
“W-Well, when it rains,” Fluttershy began “I like to take an extra coat with me in cause of an emergency. Most of the time, it doesn’t get used or anything, but I have it just in case somepony or some woodland critter needs some help in keeping dry from the rain. And, um….you can use it if you’d like….”
Pausing to think about what she said, Big Mac then asked a question that he thought might be very important, “Would it fit on somepony as big as me?” It wouldn’t be the first time he would be offered something to only be unable to use it due to his size.
“Oh, I would imagine so,” the mare reached to her saddlebag and pulled out a dark green coat, “it’s fairly large, and I think it would fit you just fine.”
“Okay,” was all Big Mac said as he unattached himself to the cart filled with barrels of now soaked apples.
Fluttershy then took it upon herself to help Big Mac put on the raincoat. Digging it out of her saddlebag, she draped the coat over the stallion’s large body. Big Mac then slowly began to put his limbs through the sleeves of the warm coat. With Fluttershy’s assistance, and whether or not Big Mac wanted the help or not, the coat was buttoned up. Putting the hood over his head to protect him from the falling rain, Big Mac was dry.
Fluttershy smiled, “A perfect fit.”
Big Mac smiled back to Fluttershy, “Thank ya, Miss Fluttershy.”
The pegasus’ face was flushed a shade of pink to match her mane, “Oh, it’s no trouble at all….”
A bit of distance away from the two ponies, Twilight was still under her umbrella, taking notes of the scene that was unfolding before her. She put her parchment away and took a small sigh. As much as it pained her to do so, she moved forward to make her presence known.
“Hello Big Mac and Fluttershy!” Twilight called out as she trotted towards them. She could tell she was interrupting something, “I hope I’m not interrupting on something.”
“N-No….” Fluttershy replied timidly.
“Well, I’ll make this quick either way,” Twilight insisted, “I was looking for Applejack, if you happen to know where she might be.”
“Ah think she’s back home or in the barn,” Big Mac stated.
“Okay, thanks! By the way, Big Mac, that coat color really suits you. I have to say whoever picked it for you really picked right,” the unicorn stated as she trotted away.
As Twilight trotted away, both Big Mac and Fluttershy blushed at the statement that the purple pony had left them with. They looked towards each other for a brief moment before blushing red again and looking away.
Chapter 3: Summer And Lightning
Chapter 3: Summer And Lightning
Making her way though the pouring rain, Twilight was looking over the notes she had taken while observing her friends. The shielding umbrella protected the parchment as she read her work. She made a few mental notes in her mind as she read the sheet. Putting them away, she picked up her pace as she drew closer to the barn of Sweet Apple Acres and the Apple family’s home.
A bolt of lightning streaked across the sky suddenly, followed by a roar of thunder. This caused the unicorn be frightened slightly and wanting to find shelter quick. Taking the instruction that Big Mac gave earlier, she headed straight toward the barn.
Once inside the barn, she quietly lowered her umbrella and closed it up. The thunder roared again after a flash of lightning occurred. Shaking off the rain on her coat, Twilight set her saddlebag down on the ground. It was then she heard two familiar voices. Keeping silent, the purple mare listened in.
“You’re kidding me, right?” one of the voices spoke in disbelief.
“Hush up, will ya Rainbow? Ah’m not exactly proud of mahself fer this,” the other voice replied, sounding as if it was distressed.
“But it’s just a little thunder and lightning. Nothing to be scared of, AJ,” Rainbow Dash assured.
Peering over a bale of hay, Twilight saw her two friends Rainbow Dash and Applejack sitting amongst the hay. The orange earth pony seemed to be wrapped in a blanket. She then spoke, “Well, tell that to mah phobia. Ah’ve had it fer a long time, alright?”
Dash snickered, “Heh, really?”
“Ah’m serious! Ah’m tellin’ ya this cause I trust ya….”
From behind the hay, Twilight quietly used her magic to retrieve her quill and parchment to continue taking her notes.
Rainbow Dash was puzzled, “And you’re telling me this why?”
“Again, ah trust ya, Rainbow Dash. Ah mean, Big Macintosh knows ‘bout this, but ah really don’t want any other pony to know. Ah can only imagine what would happen if Applebloom found out ah’m this much of a scaredy pony durin’ a lil’ storm.”
Just as Applejack finished her sentence, a crackle of thunder boomed throughout the entire barn. Applejack jumped at the sound and cuddled herself in the blanket that enveloped her. She was trembling from the shock.
The blue pegasus was fighting back her laughter, “Really? That scares ya?”
Applejack tried to be tough with her response despite her shaking, “Y-Yeah, what about it?”
It dawned on Rainbow that it was something that really bothered her friend. With seriousness, she spoke, “Alright, I admit that was mean of me to be like that to you. I just didn’t think a small storm like this, of all things, would be something to bother you.”
“This ain’t small….” Applejack corrected, still shivering in her blanket.
“Well, for a summer storm, it is fairly large. Anyway, I guess I do know where you are coming from though, AJ,” Dash admitted.
“Beg pardon?”
Another burst of thunder echoed through the barn. It was obvious that the earth pony was not enjoying the storm. Ignoring the interruption, Dash continued, “Yeah, I had the same fear when I was a filly. I mean, sure, it scared me. Heh, I even hid under the bed when I was scared of a storm coming in. But I think it was when my parents took me to a Wonderbolt show. When I saw them just jet across the sky without a care in the world, I knew what I wanted to be. And if I was going to be doing that, it’s obvious that I can’t be scared of a little thunder and lightning, right?”
Applejack took in the story and replied, “Ah see where yer comin’ from on that.”
“So yeah, I had to get used to it, ya know?”
“Just ain’t easy ta get over somethin’ so quickly, Rainbo-“ a loud boom of thunder interrupted the orange pony. She jumped up and covered her head with the blanket.
“Oh come on,” Rainbow Dash was very annoyed, “this is something I’d expected from Fluttershy, not you!”
“Ah ain’t gettin’ over it overnight, Dash,” Applejack retorted.
“Whatever, just remember you’re gonna have to get over it sooner or later. Unless, you know, you like to hide out in a barn every time a storm comes in,” Dash commented.
“Ah will,” the orange pony stated, “Just don’t be tellin’ ‘bout this ta anypony.”
“My lips are sealed.”
Twilight, who just finished writing her notes, quickly placed the parchment in her saddlebag. Being quiet, she opened her umbrella and exited the barn undetected by her friends, who seemed to moved on to different topic.
Outside, the rain continued to fall from the sky and the occasional thunder and lightning was enough to cause anypony to be slightly startled if not more. Twilight trotted along the path back to center Ponyville and back to the library.
Chapter 4: Mr. Blue Sky
Trotting back to the center of Ponyville along the muddy trail, Twilight was deep in thought. She was thinking of what she had seen today. She saw another side of her friends that she didn't think she normally would have. She saw Spike be a true gentlecolt to Rarity, protecting her from the falling rain. She saw the bashful Fluttershy emerge from shy and timid nature and express her feelings in a small yet meaningful way. And finally, Twilight looked on as Applejack confided in Rainbow Dash a personal secret, to which Dash not only promised the secret was safe, she admitted a fear she once had. It certainly was enough for the unicorn to think about as she trotted through the rain. But one thing that also caused Twilight to ponder was a pink pony standing in the middle of Ponyville with a mask and snorkel on her face as she looked straight up into the sky at the falling rain and the grey clouds.
Coming closer to the pink mare, Twilight spoke, "Uh….Pinkie Pie? What are you doing?"
"I'm waiting for the rain to stop!" she cheerfully stated as she took the snorkel out only to put it back in her mouth. The rain continued to hit her mane, but it stayed as poofy and big as it usually would be.
"Uh huh….and why do you have a snorkel?" Twilight asked, tilting her head.
"Well, duh, Twilight! So I don't drown! Honestly, for a bookworm of a pony, you sure are silly!" Pinkie happily explained as she took the snorkel out of her mouth again and raised the mask up off her eyes to rest on her forehead.
The unicorn was still confused, "So you are staring up at the clouds until it stops raining?"
Pinkie bounced, "Yup! And then when the rain stops, the sun comes out to play! And with Mr. Sun comes Mr. Blue Sky!"
The purple pony was still puzzled with Pinkie Pie, "You do know the rain can last quite a bit of time, right?"
"That's just it!" Pinkie shouted, "My tail says it's going to end soon! And I want to be right here when it stops!"
"May I ask why?"
"Sure you can! It's because while I love the rain, I love the sun! And when the rain stops and the clouds disappear, it's such a magical sight!"
Twilight's interest was sparked, "Magical?"
"Yeah! It was really magical the first time I saw it happen! It was a super small little filly. I had just arrived in Ponyville and it was raining like today. I was really sad seeing I had just arrived and no pony knew me then. But then, when I looked up to the clouds and rain, it stopped! And when it stopped, the clouds cleared up and I saw the bright blue sky and the sun," the pink pony paused to catch her breath, then continued at the same fast speed as she had before, "and the most BEAUTIFUL rainbow ever! It was so magical and fun! It was then I knew that everything would be okay! And look at me now!"
As Pinkie finished speaking, taking her time to breath, Twilight thought about what she said as the rain fell on to her umbrella. "Maybe you have a point there, Pinkie. You really brought up something that I have been looking for."
"Glad I could help! By the way, what did I help with?" Pinkie smiled and tilted her head, edging on for an answer. However, she interrupted herself, "Wait, I think it's going to happen soon!"
Just as Pinkie spoke, the falling rain seemed to not only ease up, but began to stop. The puddles on the ground stopped gathering drops of water and the sound and pitter-patter of rain ceased. With this, Twilight quickly closed her umbrella and looked up to the sky with Pinkie Pie. As the pink party pony predicted, the clouds began to leave the Ponyville vicinity by what seemed to be wind. Hiding behind those clouds was a boldly colored blue sky, emerging from the clouds. Along with the sky, the sun pierced it's light through the gloomy clouds. Finally, after a few minutes of this dance in the atmosphere, the clouds had vanished from sight and it was just as Pinkie described, even with a brilliant rainbow stretching across the sky.
"And it's done! Woo-hoo! Hello there, Mr. Blue Sky! Please tell us why you had to hide away for so long!" the pink mare cheered, hopping up and down.
"Astounding," Twilight remarked.
"Told ya! Now, if you'd excuse me, I should be baby-sitting the Cake twins! Those little rascals think we're playing hide and seek, but don't tell that I was here!" Pinkie Pie said as she quickly bounced off, leaving Twilight staring up at the blue sky.
Twilight turned her head slightly to see her friend leave and then back to the sky above her. After a few more minutes of looking at the now cloudless sky, the unicorn gathered her belongs and trotted back to the library.
Once inside the library, she was quick to put her things away except for her notes. Levitating them with her magic, she made her way over to her desk, where she set them down. Taking out a quill and some fresh parchment, she began to write a letter.
Dear Princess Celestia,
Today was a very interesting day for me to learn about friendship. I learned not only about the said subject, but also about something that I normally found trivial and quite uninteresting. While visiting my friends, I learned different things about friendship.
In one instance, I learned that friendship sometimes means putting others before yourself. I discovered this as I was watching my assistant Spike be a gentlecolt to my friend Rarity, holding the umbrella for her in the rain while he was being soaked by the falling rain. He just of easily could of used the umbrella for his own use, but instead put the needs of others before himself.
Another occurrence today happened at Sweet Apple Acres where I saw Fluttershy and Big Macintosh. The former visited the latter while he was working in the rain out in the grove of trees. Worried about him, she offered him a coat for him to wear to help fight off any sickness that he might get while working. While it was a small gesture, I imagine it had a large impact on their friendship, which I see becoming stronger all the time.
The third example I witnessed was in the barn of Sweet Apple Acres where my friends Applejack and Rainbow Dash were sitting amongst the hay, finding shelter from the storm. It was here that Applejack admitted to Rainbow that she had astraphobia, or the fear of thunder and lightning. While Rainbow found it humorous, she did comfort her friend by stating she used to have the fear as well. I found this to be a very excellent example of friends confiding in one another and sharing their problems in order to strengthen the bond between them.
Finally, this last example goes hoof-in-hoof with the other subject I learned about today. On my way home, I came across my friend Pinkie Pie, who was looking up at the sky, waiting for the rain to stop. While I did not understand what she was doing exactly, she explained that she watched the sky for it to stop raining to relive a moment of her youth. Upon describing it, I stayed with her and watched both the rain stop and the clouds leave to bring out, what she called, 'Mr. Blue Sky'. While it was simple weather patterns happening, it fascinated me to no end as I watched nature unfold before my eyes. It is one thing to read about something happening as a natural occurrence, but it something entirely different to watch it happen in front of you. And it took a friend to help me see something I might of missed out.
Perhaps it was the weather that brought forth all that I saw today. Or maybe I was at the right place and the right time for each one. Whatever the cause, I learned a lot today, and this is why I'm writing you, Princess.
Your Faithful Student,
Twilight Sparkle
P.S. Please don't tell my friends I was eavesdropping