Rainbow Dash stretched her wings and prepared to launch, crouching down on the small, fluffy cloud that floated high above Ponyville. Practice, practice, practice -- always improving, keep adding more flash and dazzle. You don't get into the Wonderbolts by sitting on your flank all day. She pushed off. Soaring through the sky, picking up speed, she circled around the Town Hall, then flew towards the outskirts of town. She felt gravity tug at her as she performed a series of aerial loops, leaving her trademark rainbow-colored trail, then righted herself and shot back through the middle of the loops before the trail could fade. It was a trick she had come up with a few months ago called "Lancing the Loops." She smiled as she slowed to a stop. Four loops this time. She was getting better. She touched down to a perfect landing, just a few feet from Pinkie Pie, who was bouncing and cheering wildly.
Dash smirked, striking a pose. "Oh yea! Am I awesome, or am I awesome?" Her stomach grumbled loudly, interrupting her crowning moment of awesome and causing a slightly embarrassed blush to rise to her cheeks. "Heh. And awesomely hungry. C'mon, Pinks, let's go grab some lunch," she said, taking off in the direction of the Ponyville Cafe.
"Okie-dokie-loki," replied Pinkie, bouncing along beside her.
As they went along, Dash glanced over at Pinkie and smiled. Pinkie had always been a big support to her, cheering her on, even when some of her tricks went haywire. At first, Dash had just assumed that it was part of the party-loving pony's bright and bubbly nature - just "Pinkie being Pinkie" as some put it. It wasn't until after the Gilda incident a few years back that she had really started to notice that Pinkie was just a little extra bright and bubbly around her. When she had finally confessed her feelings six months ago, Dash hadn't been all that surprised. She was the awesomest pony in Ponyville, after all. What was there not to love?
The couple moved along through the hustle and bustle of Ponyville's streets. Dash was half-listening to Pinkie's animated chattering about a variety of ever-changing subjects. As they passed by Iron Hooves' smithy, the clanging of metal filling the air and Pinkie started talking about how she really should get some new shoes. They passed a stand selling a variety of handcrafted soaps, and Dash forced herself to wait as the bubbly pony bounced over to examine and sniff at them. Dash was careful to take a route that avoided the Joke Shop. If they passed that place, she would never get lunch.
As they got near the cafe, they spotted Twilight, who was carrying a load of scrolls in her bags. She waved at them and trotted over, beaming. "So, how's Ponyville's newest happy couple?"
"Oh, hi Twilight. We're doing great!" Pinkie gushed. "Dashie was just practicing some new tricks this morning."
Dash tried to look nonchalant. "Oh yea. I was totally awesome, as always."
"You should have seen her just now, she was all, like, 'WOOOOOSH' and then she went 'loop and loop and loop' and then 'SWOOOSH' back through the loops -" Pinkie pantomimed the actions, waving her hooves about wildly - "and then she landed and her tummy was all like, 'Grumble!' and so was mine and so we're going to get some lunch. Do you wanna have lunch with us?"
Twilight smiled and shook her head apologetically. "Um, I just ate, actually. I was headed to the library to drop off these supplies and then Fluttershy had asked me to stop by and help her with her animals. Maybe some other time, though."
"Okie-dokie-loki," replied Pinkie, bouncing onward, Dash flying along beside her.
Dash and Pinkie took a seat at a table near the hedge that bordered the outdoor pavilion of the cafe. They had no sooner placed their orders, when a head popped over the hedge. Dash turned to look and saw the familiar wall-eyed face of the local mail-mare, Ditzy Doo. "Oh, hi Ditzy. How are you?"
"Fine as a plate of fresh muffins." Ditzy rummaged in her pack for a moment before producing a letter in a big, official-looking envelope, along with a small form. "I've been trying to get you this letter for a week, but it says you have to sign, and I could never find you home when I came by."
Dash rolled her eyes. She considered mentioning that the the usual procedure was to leave a notification and take the letter to be held at the post office, but decided there probably wasn't much point. She signed for the letter, and waved as Ditzy continued on her rounds, wincing as the klutzy pony crashed into a street lamp, a market cart, and several ponies along her way, demonstrating just why she had earned the nickname 'Derpy'. Dash just shook her head. It was a wonder any mail got delivered in Ponyville.
Pinkie's eyes widened as she craned her neck to look at the envelope's golden seal. "Ooohhh. Looks important. Are you gonna open it, Dashie? Are you? Huh? Huh?"
Dash looked at the envelope. Her heart started racing as she read the sender's name. "Cloudsdale Flight & Racing Commission - Events Planning Department". Hurriedly, she tore open the envelope and began reading.
Dear Miss Rainbow Dash:
It is with great pleasure that The Cloudsdale Flight & Racing Commission hereby informs you that you have been selected as a contestant in this year's X-treme Flight Spectacular, to be held in the royal city of Canterlot on November 17th. Enclosed you will find the required paperwork, waiver of liability, etc. Please return all required forms as soon as possible. Also enclosed is a ticket for a private suite at the raceway for the accommodation of any friends or relatives you may wish to invite.
Best Wishes,
Star Cloudmane, Planning Supervisor
Cloudsdale Flight & Racing Commission
Dash's face glowed with excitement. "Sweet! This is so awesome! Do you know what this means?"
"A PARTY!" exclaimed Pinkie, now out of her seat and bouncing around wildly once more. As she said this, she threw her hooves in the air and streamers and confetti appeared out of nowhere. Several nearby patrons turned to stare at the commotion.
"Yea, yea, that too," Dash continued excitedly, brushing a streamer out of her mane. She still wondered where exactly Pinkie's seemingly limitless supply of the things came from. "But more important, this could be my big chance! The Wonderbolts are always at the X-treme Flight Spectacular, looking for new talent. When I win, they'll notice me and sign me up for sure."
"YAY! Wonderbolt Dashie!" interjected Pinkie. "WOOOSH! SONIC RAINBOOM!" She pantomimed the move, bringing her foreleg down quickly to mimic the steep vertical descent. As she leveled her foreleg off, there was a faint 'pop' and multicolored streamers flew out from her hoof.
Dash rested her chin on her hoof. "Y'know, I've already done that a few times now. Hell, I even used one to demolish Applejack's old barn. It's old hat. I should come up with something even more extreme, some kind of new variant..."
"More extreme than a SONIC RAINBOOM? That's gotta be impossible, but then everypony thought the Rainboom was impossible until you did it that one day when we came to see you but then Rarity decided to compete..."
Dash's mind was already racing as she half-listened to Pinkie's rambling account of the near-disaster at the Young Flyers Competition. She pondered what kind of new stunt she could perform. What, indeed, could be more awesome than her signature Sonic Rainboom? Her thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of their food. As she brushed streamers aisde to make room for her plate, she paused, examining the corkscrew shape of one. "Hmmm. That gives me an idea."
Dash marveled at the decor as she flew into Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie had really outdone herself this time. A huge congratulatory banner hung from the ceiling, stretching the length of the room. There were streamers of every color, along with a rainbow of balloons that bore the likeness of her cutie mark on one side and the X-treme flight logo on the other. She slowly flew across the room, basking in the cheers and congratulations. As she landed near her friends, Applejack reached over and gave her a friendly poke in the side.
"Careful there, sugarcube. Your head's gotta fit back out the door, y'know." The others all giggled at the comment, except for Pinkie, who appeared to contemplate it rather seriously before producing a measuring tape from somewhere and moving off toward the door.
Dash tuned her snout up with a haughty air. "Hmmph. You're just jealous of all my awesome adoring fans." A starry-eyed Scootaloo thrust a small notepad and pen at her, and she scribbled her name down.
Applejack rolled her eyes at the comment, but said nothing further.
Pinkie, now sans measuring tape, stood on a small podium that had been put up at one end of the room. "Hey everypony, let's hear it for the bestest flyer in Ponyville. Dashie's superawesome tricks and stunts always make even the dullest days spectacular..."
As Pinkie continued her excited, rambling speech extolling Dash's awesomeness and flying prowess, the rainbow-maned pony struck dramatic poses based on the action being described.
After the speech, there was lots of food, punch, and dancing. The crowning moment came when Pinkie disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a large three-tier cake, frosted the same color as Dash's coat and decorated all over with the likeness of her cutie mark, the familiar rainbow striped thunderbolt. Dash was underwhelmed at first, until the cake was cut open. Each tier had seven thin layers, each layer having a different color. It had to have been the awesomest cake ever, which was only fitting, after all. After the cake eating and another round of dancing, the party gradually wound down.
Pinkie stood at the doorway waving as the last of the guests departed. Dash walked over and put her foreleg around the pink pony's shoulders. "I gotta tell ya, Pinks, that was one awesome party."
"Only the bestest and most awesomest for my super-awesome Dashie," replied Pinkie, leaning over and nuzzling against her. The two stood like that for a long while, staring out at the stars. After several minutes had gone by, Dash drew Pinkie into a long kiss.
As their lips parted, Dash reluctantly stepped outside. "Well, I guess I better get heading home myself, Pinks."
"Silly. You can't leave yet, you haven't had dessert," objected Pinkie, a sultry tone creeping into her voice.
Dash was momentarily confused. "Huh? I had, like, five slices of cake."
Pinkie giggled. "No, silly. I have some special dessert," she whispered into Dash's ear, her voice becoming even more sultry. She began leading Dash towards the stairway that led to her apartment.
"Oh." Dash grinned slyly as she got the idea, fixing her lover with a hungry gaze as they ascended the stairs.
Rainbow Dash stretched her limbs, basking in the morning sun as it streamed through the window. She rubbed her eyes, beginning to adjust to the light, when a shadow crossed in front of the window. A bouncing shadow.
"Good morning, sleepyhead!" came the cheerful call as the shadow resolved into the familiar pink-hued form of her fillyfriend.
"Mmm.. wha? Oh. Morning, Pinks," Dash mumbled, sitting up. Suddenly she was jolted into full wakefulness by a loud, shrill noise. It was then that she noticed that Pinkie had a whistle hung round her neck and was wearing a baseball cap printed with the word 'Coach'.
Pinkie giggled. "Time to rise and shine and start training!" She grabbed the blue pony by the hooves and drug her out of the bed. Dash groaned. With Pinkie as her coach, she wondered if she would even survive till November. The party-happy pony was probably the only one that could outmatch her for sheer energy.
"Can I at least get some breakfast first? I don't train well on an empty stomach."
"Well of course, silly. I've got pancakes and omelettes all ready to go downstairs. C'mon."
As the pair chowed down, Dash pondered the situation. If she was going to develop a crowd-stunning new stunt, she wanted to keep it a secret. Considering she was planning a variation on the Sonic Rainboom, and that her first Sonic Rainboom had been visible from Ponyville to Manehattan, a remote location would be needed.
She expressed her concern to Pinkie, who concentrated for a moment, then exclaimed, "Appleoosa! We should go to Appleoosa. That's far away. Plus we can see all our friends there again like Braeburn and Silver Star and Chief Thunderhooves and Little Strongheart. It'll be so much fun. Can we train there, Dashie? Can we?"
It was, Dash had to admit, as good an idea as any. Appleoosa would be decently remote. And it would be nice to see the buffalo again. Plus, she was looking forward to spending some time with Pinkie without other things getting in the way. Between her awesomeness attracting so many fans, and Pinkie playing hostess for an almost constant stream of parties, their lives were insanely busy in Ponyville.
Dash glanced nervously at the clock on the wall as she paced back and forth. The train was due in fifteen minutes and Pinkie was nowhere to be seen. She tried to keep herself occupied by mentally working through possible flight routines. She looked up at the clock again. Ten minutes. Still no Pinkie. Then she spotted her in the distance, a bouncing pink figure headed towards the station - and four others with her. Dash frowned. Had Pinkie invited the others along? That wasn't what she had in mind. She managed a forced smile as the group arrived. "Hey Pinks. Hey everypony. What brings you all here?"
"Oh, come now darling," said Rarity. "You simply didn't think you could give us the slip that easily did you?"
"Look, guys. I don't know what Pinks told you, but I'd really rather...," Dash started to protest. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate the sentiment but she had really planned on just taking Pinkie. Less ponies made less distractions. And there were... other reasons.
"Oh, relax sugarcube," Applejack reassured her. "We know you'd rather train with as little distraction as possible. Ah'm the same way when it comes ta rodeos. And ah'm sure you'll have enough distraction with Pinkie there as it is." The orange earth pony winked slyly, prompting a somewhat embarrassed blush from Dash.
"We just came to see you off and wish you good luck with your training," explained Twilight, apparently oblivious to Applejack's innuendo. "We're all really proud of you and we can't wait to see you compete."
"Umm. Yes. We're, umm, really excited for you. We'll all be there, cheering for you," managed Fluttershy, meekly. She followed up by attempting a cheer, which came out as a subdued, "Yay."
After their friends had said their goodbyes, Dash and Pinkie made their way through the ticket booth and got to the gate with two minutes to spare.
The next day, the train arrived in Appleoosa. They were greeted by none other than Braeburn, as Applejack had sent a telegram ahead of them, letting her cousin know of their arrival. He was eager to show them how much the town had changed in the years since they had last been there. Dash, however, was more keen to find a out of the way place where they could stay while she trained. In the end, they all headed to the town hall, Dash leading the way while Pinkie and Braeburn followed, chattering animatedly.
Dash left Pinkie and Braeburn to converse about the growth of Appleoosa, while she consulted a map of the town and its environs. She noted a marker indicating an old fort about fifteen miles out of town. When she asked about it, Braeburn stated that it had been abandoned for a few years, since relations with the buffalo had grown more peaceful. After some more talk, they took a stagecoach out to see the old fort, Braeburn pointing out sights along the way.
When they arrived, Dash examined the fort. It was a rather sturdy sort of building, despite its abandonment. With a little cleaning out and some supplies from town, it would serve as a fairly decent place to stay for a couple months.
It had been six weeks since their arrival. Dash had practiced long and hard. For the first two weeks she had concentrated on her new 'Lancing the Loops' trick. She was now able to do eight loops with it. The next two weeks had been occupied by refining older stunts and planning out how her flight routine would go. Amidst all this, they had also squeezed in some trips to town and a visit with the buffalo tribe. And of course, there were the nights. Oh, the nights. It was probably a good thing they were so far out of town as anypony within earshot at night would certainly not have been able to sleep.
Most recently, Dash had spent the past two weeks practicing the two elements of her newest idea, the Twisted Rainboom. The Sonic Rainboom part was already familiar to her, of course, but she still went through it a few times. The new element, which Dash had taken to calling the 'Streamer Spiral', had been a bit more difficult. The hardest part had been overcoming the natural dizziness that came with high-speed spiraling. Now, with the competition only two weeks away, it was time to combine the two and unleash Equestria's first ever 'Twisted Rainboom'.
Rainbow Dash stretched forward, her wings flaring out behind her, making sure her muscles were good and limber before starting. Pinkie, meanwhile, sat on a nearby wooden fence, kicking her legs idly and humming happily to herself.
Seeing that Dash was ready to start, Pinkie hopped off the fence and trotted over. "Kiss for luck!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around Dash, and planting her lips firmly against the blue pony's.
Dash returned the kiss, holding the embrace for a moment. As the kiss ended she lightly gripped Pinkie's shoulders in her hooves and looked in her eyes, grinning widely. "Okay, Pinks. Are you ready to see some serious awesome."
"Oh boy, are you gonna do your new trick now? I can't wait to see it, Dashie. I just know its gonna be superspectacular, cause you're the bestest flyer ever and all your tricks are superspectacular but this one's gonna be even more superspectaular!"
Needing no further encouragement, Dash took to the sky. She went far higher than she would for an ordinary Rainboom, since she would have to transfer some of the momentum into the spinning motion once she leveled off. Finally, reaching the right height, she looked down. Far, far below, she could see a tiny pink speck bouncing about wildly. She smiled. This is gonna rock!
Dash began her descent, picking up speed as she flew towards the ground at an angle just shy of being straight on. Soon she felt the familiar tug of g-forces, feeling for all the world like her hide was about to be ripped straight off her body. At what she judged to be nearly twenty feet from the ground, she adjusted her wings slightly, leveling off, still accelerating. So far, so good. Here we go, then. She tilted her wings slightly in opposite directions and began to spin. Straight past a madly cheering Pinkie she went, still accelerating and spinning faster and faster. She had both front hooves extended now. Just... a little... more.
BOOM! Large, bright, multi-colored spirals ascended into the sky flowing upwards like party streamers. Pinkie jumped up and down and proceeded to do cartwheels. "YAY!!! RAINBOW STREAMERS!!! YOU DID IT, DASHIE!!!!"
Dash felt the familiar jolt as she went supersonic. Mentally she counted off. When she reached ten, she adjusted her wings, gradually righting her spin, then slowing, and finally touching down. She turned around and watched the spiraling rainbows spread upwards and outwards. "YES!", she shouted, giving a hoofpump, "I am so gonna win! Wonderbolts, here I come!"
Dash watched with some concern as Pinkie began on her fifth mug of hard cider. She wondered if coming to one of Appleoosa's myriad taverns to celebrate had been such a good idea. "Umm... Pinks, don't you think you'd better go easy on that stuff?" They had only been there an hour and Dash herself was only barely starting her second mug.
"Oh, don't be shuch a shpoilery McShpoilshports, Dashie. Theresh nothin like a good schider to make thingsh more funner." The pink pony paused, blinked, then leaned toward Dash and whispered. "Shay, Dashie, you didn't tell me that they shpin the roomsh around here. Ish really shuper fun. I bet if I shpin around too, it'll be twish ash fun. Wheeee!"
Dash just shook her head and buried her face in her hoof as Pinkie whirled around several times, sloshing the contents of her mug all over the place, before tripping over her own hooves and collapsing on the floor. Everypony in the bar was staring now. "Okay," said Dash, quickly settling up with the bartender, "time to go." She scooped her inebriated companion off the floor and flew off towards the fort.
As Pinkie finished a second round of vomiting, Dash gently stroked her mane and wrapped a wing around her. She felt sorry for her fillyfriend, knowing well from past experience how bad a hangover could be, especially the first one. She also felt kind of guilty. The bubbly pony threw so many parties, Dash had just assumed she had tried alcohol before, or at least knew what it was. It wasn't until Pinkie woke up at 3:00 a.m., sick and complaining that the 'fizzy sour cider' must have been bad that Dash began to suspect she had no idea what she'd been drinking.
Dash helped Pinkie get cleaned up and get back to bed. There was no ice about the place, so she wet down a clean rag with cold water and placed it on Pinkie's forehead. She watched until Pinkie drifted off into sleep, then gradually succumbed to her own fatigue.
The remainder of the couple's final week in Appleoosa went much more smoothly... and soberly. Pinkie, in fact, swore she would never touch alcohol again, which Dash concluded was probably a good thing, since she was crazy enough when she was sober.
Over the course of the week, Dash had run through her complete routine several times. She was certain she would win. Nopony could top her Twisted Rainboom, after all, and the rest of her routine was equally stunning and flawless.
It was late in the evening when Dash and Pinkie stepped off the train in Ponyville to find their friends already waiting for them. Applejack was the first to speak up.
"Howdy, sugarcubes. Y'all have a good time in Appleoosa?"
"Oh, we had a super-duper fantastic time," bubbled Pinkie. "Well, except for the bad cider, but that was only one day and Dashie was really nice and took care of me." Here she paused, smiling and giving Dash a slight nuzzle. "Oh, but you should have seen all of Dashie's flying! She trained super-duper hard. She was always like 'WOOSH' and 'ZOOM' and rainbows and loops and everything! And then there was her new trick. I can't tell you what it is, cause it's a secret and if I told you it wouldn't be a secret anymore, but it was superamazingly spectaular and awesome!"
"Oh yea. I'm guaranteed to win this show," said Dash. "I bet the Wonderbolts will have me signed in ten seconds flat after my awesome performance next week."
Applejack and Twilight both rolled their eyes at the blue pony's cocksure attitude. As the group left the train station and started to go their separate ways, Applejack sidled over to Dash. "What's this about 'bad cider'?" she whispered. "Ah know Braeburn's orchard makes all the cider for Appleoosa, and Ah don't want anypony lookin' badly on the Apple family name."
"Oh that," Dash snickered. "It wasn't bad cider. Pretty good, actually. It was just Pinkie's first time trying hard cider. If I'd known she didn't know what it was, I would have stopped her before she bolted down five mugs in under an hour."
"Ouch. Poor Pinkie. Ah know Brae makes some right powerful hard cider. Ah'll bet that was a doozy of a hangover."
"As your brother would say, 'Eeyup'." Both ponies chortled at that before Dash flew over to rejoin Pinkie, who was bouncing merrily along towards Sugarcube Corner.
After sharing an extended kiss goodnight with Pinkie and stopping by Fluttershy's to pick up Tank, Dash flew back to her house. She put Tank back in his terrarium and crawled into her familiar comfortable cloud bed. The past two months had been exhausting - day and night - but it was going to be so worth it. She drifted off to sleep, dreaming of what her debut as a new member of the Wonderbolts would be like.