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// Chapter 6: Report Cards 
// Story: Flying Low 
// by Word Wizard 
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	"Alright class, have a good summer!" Cheerily announced the end of yet another school year, handing report cards to her many students.
"You all did such a good job, here you go, be sure to show these to you're parents!" Cheerily added, handing a report card to a smug faced Diamond Tiara.  Tiara's face fell upon seeing the card, but, to maintain her reputation she propped it back up again.  Thunder watched in amazement as the schoolyard bully fought a losing battle with composure and emotions.
"Here you go Thunder, I hope you have a good summer too!" Cheerily said, handing a white card to the little colt.  Thunder took it eagerly, looking at it in his hooves, he wished he hadn't looked at it in the first place.  All his grades were C's....passing, but MUCH worse than the past year.  He gulped thinking of his parents.
Trotting out of the red schoolhouse, Thunder Rain noticed Twist proudly holding her report card between her teeth.  Behind those glasses was a glistening soul, and when Thunder caught notice of what was on her report card, he knew why.  Twist had gotten all A's.
Cringing slightly after thinking of his own card, Thunder took to the sky.
It had been a few weeks since the glisten of hope in Rarity's shop, and the summer was upon him, and so was the Young Mare's Sewing Competition in one week's time.  Thunder and Rarity had been working almost every afternoon, after Rarity closed her shop for the evening and Sweetie Belle was off playing with the rest of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, they would work on a very special project.
It was Thunder's most  advanced piece of work yet, a jumpsuit.  Not just any jumpsuit, but a flying jumpsuit.  You see, since Thunder had started flying, he noticed something very annoying, the cold.  Flying at a high speed in any altitude made him shiver, so it made sense to create something that might fix that.  So even if he didn't win, at least his entry could be set to a practical use.
Thunder's jumpsuit also had a flair about it.  The young colt had an impressive eye, not only for the mechanical aspects of sewing, but of fashion.  Dressed on a dummy at Rarity's shop, the suit looked quite impressive.  The all blue jumpsuit, covering everything except the mannequin's feet, neck and head, had orange stripes on either side, followed by a sleek  appearance to show off the pony underneath.  Along with the stripes, it also had apropriate orange starbursts at each of the ankles.
Thunder was very proud of his new piece of work, designing and sewing every moment he got determine to show his parents his true colors in a weeks time.  For this new garment, Thunder was allowed to use Rarity's sewing machine, a lovely piece of equipment.  After carefully paying attention to the instructions and warnings Rarity gave him, Thunder took the machine into his own hooves.  Gliding across stitch after stitch, enjoying every minute of it, the base of the suit got done in the first two weeks!
The jumpsuit itself was made of a stretchy cotton fabric with a zipper going down the front, splitting the otherwise perfect covering in two.  The zipper was what Thunder and Rarity were trying to put on now.
"Ok, just a little it more, that's, that's it..." Rarity coaxed as her student, Thunder Rain, pulled the needle carefully through the hoops of one side of the zipper.  It was after the last day of school, after Thunder had dropped his report cards off at his parent's house.  
"Am I doing alright?" Thunder asked through braced teeth, his voice thick and slow because of the concentration he was giving his work.
"You're doing great!  Almost finished...." Rarity continued to guide her pupil.  This was the only zipper she had that would match the garment, also, it was one that would not take well to being removed if put on wrong.  Since the intent of the jumpsuit was to protect pegasi flying at high speeds, neither Thunder nor Rarity wanted the zipper to come off, so Rarity purchased a special zipper, one that fused with the fabric after being fastened on.  So this was a one shot deal, screw it up, screw up the project.  
Thunder's hooves were shaking with nerves when he pulled the last stitch through.  "Yes!" He called, but then turned to his teacher, "Is it all right?"
Rarity was nodding her head, agape with what her student had created.  The sleek jumpsuit lay out in front of them, the sky blue fabric glinted as it reflected the light.
"Now," Rarity said, regaining her composure, "We have to add the wing holes."  The tricky thing about designing things like jumpsuits for pegasi was that wings are very different in size and shape, and the garment had to be made and worn before the holes could be marked.  "But that will have to be tomorrow's subject, it's getting late and I think I hear Sweetie Belle coming back.  Goodnight!"
Stuffing the stretchy blue jumpsuit into his saddlebags, Thunder trotted out the front door.  After exiting the torchlight of Rarity's store, he noticed the sun was almost down.  The sunset hung, beautiful in the night sky, yet threatening to go away at a moments notice.  Thunder's dark coat was affected by the orange and pink lights coming from the waning sun, making him look as colorful as a painting, yet his body motions and the way he carried himself made him look as humble as a carpenter.
After a soft landing on the cloud on which his home rested, Thunder Rain walked up the front steps, his hooves making a familiar squeak as the ascended the wooden stairs.  Throwing open the door, Thunder shouted to his parents.
"I'm home!" He called.  But he wasn't greeted by the regular warm welcome that his parents usually gifted him with.  After setting down his saddlebags with a soft thump, Thunder walked into the living room.  His parents were sitting on the sofa, looking gravely at Thunder.
"Have a seat," Thunder's father instructed, "We have to talk."