Spitfire left the locker room of the Cloudsdale Coliseum, pleased with herself. Even though the Wonderbolts were in their off-season, she still practiced for two hours a day to stay in shape. Today she had put in nearly three, and was ready to go home.

On the other side of the Wonderbolts training Cloudsdale runway sat a rainbow-haired girl, just packing up from watching a few Wonderbolts finish up their off-season training. Rainbow Dash was entranced by everything Wonderbolt. She had initially been exercising her own wings out of boredom from being stuck in Cloudsdale with no one to hang out with, flying by the runway when she noticed the Wonderbolts were training today. Rainbow was well aware it was the off-season, so she hadn't expected to catch a show like this! So she had stuck around and was lucky enough to have even caught glimpse of drills, routines and even the Wonderbolts Captain, Spitfire. Spitfire was someone Rainbow had great admiration for.

Spitfire had everything she wanted in life, as well as the leadership skills, strength and skill needed to lead the flight demonstration team. Rainbow had immense respect for anyone who had the determination and focus to hone a certain skill, like her and flying.

Skills aside, Rainbow had a thing for fliers. Being born in Cloudsdale, a fairly isolated community of fliers, Rainbow enjoyed being in the company of other pegasi. Rainbow sighed as she prepared to fly home.

Spitfire glanced across the track at Rainbow Dash. This girl who had saved her life once and who was so loyal to her friends that she not only risked her life to save them on more than one occasion, but she had almost given up on her dreams to stay true to who she was.

For reasons the fire-haired girl couldn't explain, she had a fondness for this creature. Her quirks and excitability were two things Spitfire found adorable. Beyond this, the girl's voice was funny and beautiful to listen to at the same time, the way it cracked periodically.

And her eyes. God, those eyes. Spitfire could stare at them for hours if given the opportunity. She was never able to pinpoint what it was about this girl that captivated her so completely, but the eyes were her best excuse for the time being.

Dash was rooted to the spot as she noticed the red-headed captain leaving the base. There was still quite a bit of security separating them, namely a barbed wire fence and a gated driveway, but Rainbow could see her well enough. And boy did she look good today. As Rainbow vaguely brushed that mental comment off, she studied the captain from afar, debating whether or not to go over and meet her at the gate. They had meet before at past competitions and royal affairs, and knew each other from the Wonderbolts Academy when Dash had been accepted into her week of training there.

Rainbow Dash considered herself lucky to be one of the few that Spitfire actually seemed to talk to on a somewhat regular basis, which usually happened at official event they both attended. And Dash really enjoyed talking to the captain. Although it was extremely difficult for an avid fan such as Rainbow with the initial excitement, Spitfire was actually kind of fun to hang out with. Spitfire had a lot to talk about and was a generally nice person. She was, in Dash's book, about 20% cooler than anyone else the young athlete had ever known.

Spitfire decided to see why the rainbow-haired girl was there. Slowly flying over, she saw disbelief on the girl's face.

Still a bit of a kid, I guess.

"Hey, kid! What's up?"

Rainbow stared in awe as Spitfire landed next to her, surprised she had even been noticed.

"H-hi! ...Spitfire," She stumbled out. "I watched your practice!"

Dash was ready to smack herself at any imperfection in her words. Now she sounded like a stalker or something! But Rainbow Dash still couldn't stop a smile from having her biggest idol come out of her way to come talk to her. Spitfire was a little taller and about three years her senior, so it wasn’t like they couldn't make good friends because of the age difference. Rainbow respected the captain all the more for rising through the ranks as quickly as she had.

Spitfire couldn't help but giggle at how awkward Rainbow Dash was when speaking. The girl didn't seem to be able to keep her thoughts in order, and that uncertainty showed in the cutest way.

"Oh really? Well, that's pretty cool. What was your favorite part?"

Dash's eyes were glazed over as her hero talked to her. Spitfire had even giggled like she was potentially enjoying Rainbow's company. Rainbow stared at the captain. Spitfire looked gorgeous in the sunlight. Her hair was standing up straight after having practicing for so long and so fast. Rainbow liked it.

"Uh..." she stuttered. She had seen all of their routines and drills go by. And she knew what each of them was, being an avid fan and all.

"The downwind speed drill was very impressive, but the 5 person tailspin at the end was my favorite." Rainbow answered thoughtfully.

Spitfire pursed her lips as Rainbow demonstrated her striking knowledge of the particular weather patterns today and their drills. The downward tailspin was a custom Wonderbolt form used in many a show, where the participants would climb to a breathtaking height then plunge, wings tucked, to within inches of the ground then rise out of it. Rainbow looked back up at the Wonderbolt, hoping she had answered what Spitfire wanted to hear.

Wow, Spitfire thought. She really does pay attention to us, doesn't she?

Now that Rainbow was staring at her, the red-haired captain could look into her eyes without feeling creepy about it. There was so much emotion in that girl's face: excitement, anticipation, maybe a hint of shame...why was that? Did Rainbow Dash somehow feel inferior to Spitfire?

"Well, that's cool." The way the rainbow-haired girl's face lit up, she had been hoping to hear that validation.

Suddenly, the light of the setting sun flashed in Spitfire's eyes. Shielding herself from the blinding flare, she turned to see Soarin' gliding toward them.

"Hey, Spits! Oh, hi Rainbow Dash. How are you?"

Two Wonderbolts? Rainbow Dash was about to keel over. She couldn't believe her luck! Spitfire turned and greeted her teammate, while Rainbow stumbled for words.

"Hi Soarin!" She said excitedly. She didn't put much thought into whether or not it was polite for her to be talking to the Lieutenant Wonderbolt in such a way. "I saw your practice."

She glanced back at Spitfire, who was smiling, then got sidetracked due to the Wonderbolt's bright and lovely smile. And boy, did Spitfire have a nice smile

"Uh..." Rainbow realized it was still her turn to talk, and the famous, busy athletes were waiting on her.

"You guys looked really great!" She wanted to ask why they were still talking to her. Didn't they have better things to do? But Rainbow dearly wanted them to stay, especially Spitfire.

Soarin' guffawed at the sight of Rainbow Dash staring at his friend.

"Well, thanks for that. I felt pretty great, you know?"

Spitfire rolled her eyes as Rainbow chuckled nervously. The Lieutenant turned to his captain.

"I'll leave you and your girlfriend alone," he whispered, an evil amusement in his voice. It was meant as a joke, but he was still one of very few people who knew Spitfire was a lesbian.

The next thing he felt was intense pain as Spitfire kicked him between the legs. What he heard was her speaking loudly in order to get the attention of everyone else on the team.

"Yeah, Soarin'! Good luck with your ED meds! Maybe you and Rapid can finally get it on tonight, huh?"

A playfully evil smile touched her lips as he limped away.

Dash squinted as she tried to hear what Soarin whispered to the captain. She felt a little awkward that he felt he needed to whisper while Rainbow was around. But the younger girl immediately stepped back when Spitfire kneed her best friend in the crotch. Rainbow wasn't so dense that she couldn't see that Soarin had clearly whispered something that both upset and embarrassed Spitfire, as Rainbow Dash could tell by the blush that had just begun to grace the captain's cheeks. Then Spitfire startled Dash with a loud shout that made Dash notice the rest of the Wonderbolts fliers now leaving the base.

Soarin limped away after that, Dash following him with her eyes as she was amazed further by the presence of the other Bolts.

Spitfire turned back to Rainbow, still interested. Rainbow tilted her head, eyes back on the captain, sort of confused about her last comment involving the other Bolts. Their time together was dwindling, Rainbow could feel it, but she didn't want it to. The urge to ask Spitfire what she was doing next overwhelmed her, but she couldn't quite get it out in the presence of such a famous celebrity.

"I- uh... what're you. I mean... would you like to...?"

"Yes?" Spitfire said, leaning in slightly.

Dash tried her best to look cool, leaning back on the airfield chain-link fence. RD changed tactics, deciding to ask the captain what on earth she was still doing here. Dash usually wasn't the most observant, but with a Wonderbolt she could transform into Twilight Sparkle. She was picking up all these minor details about the captain, like how she giggled at Rainbow's antics or the length of how long she looked at Rainbow. But being so dense as she was, Rainbow still couldn't piece these puzzle pieces together.

"So where ya heading off to? Another Wonderbolt thing?" Rainbow asked coolly, trying not to sound jealous or spiteful. Rainbow liked hanging out with the captain, and staring at Spitfire for as long as she had, she realized Spitfire was pretty easy on the eyes too. Rainbow silently hoped that the Wonderbolt would stay longer.

Spitfire shook her head, smiling.

Well, that was about as subtle as a baseball bat.

Looking back at Rainbow Dash, she found herself lost in those eyes yet again. Why couldn't she look away? Spitfire had always been intuitive, able to pick up on someone else's emotions almost immediately. With this girl, though, there was a lot to read at once. Her trying to look cool was too adorable and made Spitfire blush a bit (thankfully, Rainbow hadn't seen that). There was also how intently the rainbow-haired beauty was trying not to stare at her.

The captain also figured that, by now, she was being pretty obvious with her own staring and occasional giggling: a trait that had increased in its occurrence these past few minutes. Had Rainbow Dash put it all together by now? Or was she oblivious too?

Better to speak now, Spitfire.

"I was actually about to go home." Spitfire giggled again. Damn you and your nervous habits! "Long day, you know."

"Oh yeah," Rainbow said, giving a light laugh and flashing Spitfire a lopsided grin.

Looking up, she saw the sun setting. Where else was she going to go? Dash fidgeted heavily. But there was nothing really to fiddle with so her star-struck and nervous mind convinced her to play with the fence next to her, which Spitfire seemed to briefly notice and smirk at.

Why is she smiling? Rainbow wondered how obvious she was being at trying to ask out her hero. It had occurred to her that she liked the captain a while ago, after the many times that they’d met and meshed really well. And the idea that Rainbow Dash liked girls wasn’t exactly news to her. Spitfire was certainly attractive and not too far off in age for someone that Rainbow could date. But she was jumping way ahead of herself as a blush made its way back onto her face.

Spitfire giggled again, but it wasn't a girly giggle necessarily. It was more of a tug at the lips and some turbulent, quiet breaths that resembled a giggle. Nonetheless, Rainbow realized she had somehow made the captain laugh.

Rainbow Dash, while unaware of it, was becoming increasingly more and more comfortable with just the two of them around. However the idea that she was being too invasive struck her again. It was likely true that Spitfire was just waiting to go home and Dash was holding her up. The rainbow-haired girl started to move aside as that occurred her. Even while she still wanted to spend more time talking to her favorite captain, she felt bad for being in her way.

"Well, me too. I was just- I mean, if you have to go."

Spitfire was enjoying being around the little ball of spunk, energy, and talent decided to take a leap of faith.

"Why don't you fly with me for a while, Dash?" With that, Rainbow Dash's face lit up with a wide grin, after realizing it was a real request. Her wings fluttered up and down and she squeaked an "Okay."

Author's Note

Here's the first 2,200 words in a more easily legible format. Every horizontal rule denotes a change of perspective between Rainbow Dash and Spitfire, and not a time lapse! Happy reading and I'll see you all when the next update comes!