//------------------------------//
// First Day at Flight Camp 
// Story: Making Friends and Sacrifices 
// by Kiba Klassic 
//------------------------------//

	Gilda knew this day would come. Didn't mean she had to accept it. “But why?”
“You can't spend the rest of your life moping around in the house. You need to meet the locals, make some friends.”
“I like moping! I'm comfortable with it!”
“You're going and that's final!”
In the three months since they'd...moved, Gilda had managed to avoid exploring their new home. Her mother cut her some slack, it was a big change living in Equestria, but eventually enough was enough. Time to act.
“But mom!” Gilda moaned, still unrelenting. “Why do I have to go to some stupid flight camp? I can fly perfectly!”
“That's not the point and you know it! We're living here, we need to fit in more. We can't be hermits.”
“Maybe you can't...” Gilda grumbled, slowly realizing that this wasn't going to go her way for once.
“No, I can't. It's not just you you know, I'm going to try to join some groups around here.”
Gilda fidgeted on the couch. “But I'm not like them...what if they make fun of me?”
“Then you hold your beak up high, and carry on.” Carol finished packing Gilda's bag. “How do you think you're father would react to how you're behaving?”
Gilda's face grew stern. “You're right mom. I need to face this as a proud griffon.” She flopped back on the couch. “Next week.”
Carol shoved her off, Gilda letting out a squeak as she unexpectedly hit the floor. “No. Today.”


“I don't want to do this.”
“Noted. And ignored, you'll be fine honey.”
Carol and Gilda hugged each other at the archway that served as the campground entrance. Gilda audibly swallowed as her mother attached her bag to her back and gave her a gentle shove towards the arch. “Just have fun, be nice, and try to meet someone you can spend time with."
“Easier said than done.” Gilda took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, gave her wings a brisk shake and stepped through the arch, taking in the grounds.
Like everything in Cloudsdale, the campground was made entirely of clouds. Say what you like about pegasi, but they can do amazing things with clouds. It was a bit disconcerting, having the slightly yielding material under her claws instead of good firm stone, but she'd get used to it.
Ponies were already hard at work, flying through cloud hoops, doing laps, stretching. It was a bustle of activity, everyone had something to do and others to do it with.
Except for her.
Well, who needs them? She strolled forward as confident as she could be, and pretty soon she was noticed. Ponies stopped and stared as she walked by, not a word was said. With every step, and every additional onlooker, Gilda's confidence fell, until she almost crawled up to the pegasus she presumed was in charge.
“Um, excuse me? Are you the instructor?”
The pegasus, a large and imposing dark gray stallion with a triplet of cloud rings as his cutie mark, looked down at her quiet voice, blinked once, then carried on unfazed. 
“You must be Gilda. Welcome to Junior Speedster's Flight Camp!”
Gilda just stared in disbelief. “Is that seriously the name?”
“Yes. Now, lets get you introduced to everypony.”
Her eyes widened in alarm. “No, no, it's fine! I don't want to cause a fuss-”
“Nonsense.” The instructor motioned for everyone (or everypony, Gilda realized, remembering what he said before) to stop what they were doing and come down. Gilda wished she could fall through the floor as they gathered, all still staring.
“Everypony, this is Gilda. She's going to be joining us here at Junior Speedster's Flight Camp. I know you'll all make her feel welcome.”
Silence. The instructor sweated nervously as Gilda stared out at the blank faces surrounding her. “Um, hi?”
Still nothing. The instructor quickly indicated for Gilda to follow him. “Well, they'll warm up to you, I'm sure. Anyway, I'm Joe, if you ever need anything just let me know, okay? Now, lets show you to where you'll stay.” He trotted off, a glum griffon trailing behind.
She followed Joe to a cluster of buildings to the side of the main grounds, rows of cabins with little number signs. They stopped in front of cabin 12. “This is you. You'll have three other roommates, I'm sure you'll be best friends in no time.” He walked off, failing to notice Gilda's panicked expression, and rejoined the other foals, all returning to their activities.
She entered the room, already regretting letting her mother take her here, and checked out where she would be staying for the next few weeks. First thing she noticed, bunk beds. Great. The covers for three of them were already messed up, leaving a single bottom bunk clean and pristine. Waiting for her.
She was already halfway out the door when she bumped into something solid and fell backwards. She looked up to see two filly’s blocking her path. The one she bumped into, an amaranth colored pegasus with a green mane and tail, gazed down at her with a look of disgust. The other, a beige pegasus, huddled behind, constantly adjusting her glasses with a hoof.
“So, you're new?”
“Um, yes?” Gilda stood up and offered a claw. She might as well try to do what her mother wanted. “I'm Gilda.”
“I couldn't care less.” The filly breezed past her, jumped onto her bed, the other bottom bunk, and dragged out her bag from beneath it.
Gilda stared after her, utterly confused as to what she did wrong. She was interrupted in her musings by a tap on her shoulder. The other filly had crept up behind her and was fidgeting nervously. “Don't mind Orchid, she's not very welcoming. I'm Solar.”
They shook, Solar only barely touching Gilda's hand with fear of being hurt. “So, you're a griffon huh?”
Gilda looked down in mock surprise. “Really? I never noticed.”
The pegasus laughed, Orchid scoffed in the distance. Solar ignored her and carried on trying to be welcoming. “Never had a griffon here, why'd you come to flight camp?”
“My mother thought it'd be a good idea. Meet the locals, make some friends, yada yada yada.”
“You live around here? Why'd you move?”
Gilda's face fell. “I'd rather not talk about that.”
“Okay. Well, I guess we'll talk some more tomorrow.” She headed to her bunk, the one above Orchid's.
“Wait, it's time to go to sleep already?”
“Well yeah, we get up really early.”
Gilda took a count of the room's occupants. “Shouldn't there be another pony here?”
Orchid laughed. “Yes, but she never is. She'll be off flying somewhere, won't come back till late.”
“Is that allowed?”
“No, but only if you're caught.” With that, Orchid turned over and pulled up the covers. Solar was already snoring above her.
Gilda climbed onto her own bed, ignoring the covers and curling up on top of them. All in all, not a bad day. She might have even made a friend.
But she was painfully aware that there where a lot of ponies here, and not all of them will be as accepting as Solar.