Blue Angel

by V-Pony

The Running-Pt 1: On Your Mark...

Notes: Woohoo, here we go! New story Arc!!! 8D
Volare: *facehoof* So much for remaining semi-professional...

Scootaloo was never one to back down from a thrill, but the roller-coaster of emotions she was rocketing along on here was almost too much for the little filly to handle! A little over an hour ago, she’d been admiring Rainbow Dash as the amazing prismatic Pegasus performed a new stunt, smashing apart clouds and drawing her own lightning bolt-shaped cutie mark in the sky with the water vapor which glistened in the sun as it fell, filling the blue sky with a myriad of colors as her personal hero fluttered to the ground.

Despite Scootaloo being the only member of the Rainbow Dash Fanclub to see the trick (the rest of the members having lost interest and run off into town, though Scootaloo couldn’t imagine why), the older Pegasus hadn’t seemed too terribly disappointed with the lack of viewership. Instead, she’d surprised the fuchsia-maned filly by asking her to help name the trick, which she’d quickly and fittingly christened The Rainbolt. But soon after, Dash abruptly changed gears from brash and cocky to almost worried, an emotion the younger Scootaloo had rarely seen in her personal idol.

When pressed for what was bothering her, Dash only muttered something about “somepony messing with her friends” and “that she had forgot about multiple somethings.” Scootaloo had no idea what she was talking about; hadn’t she already finished her weather duties for the day?
Dash said she’d be fairly busy for the rest of the afternoon and told her number one fan to run along into town and that she’d catch up with her later.

A little disappointed and more than a little miffed that Rainbow Dash wasn’t letting her in on what she still needed to do (since she had promised her that she would be free that afternoon to show off her tricks), Scootaloo nonetheless conceded and headed back to Ponyville while Dash shot off along the town’s southern border, headed in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres.
Hrm, wonder if she’s got something planned with Applejack…oh well, maybe I’ll see her near the clubhouse later….yeah!

And with that optimistic thought lifting her spirits, Scootaloo put on a grin and a fresh burst of speed as she buzzed along on her scooter, zipping over the eastern bridge that spanned the Ponyville Stream and entering the town proper, looking for nopony in particular, though she wouldn’t mind speaking with one of Dash’s friends like Rarity or Pinkie as she hadn’t seen them in a few days. At the irritated behest of Rose as Scootaloo whizzed past the florist pony, she slowed her scooter down to a fast trot speed, still skillfully maneuvering around the meandering ponies in the market place as she went along, but not spotting the ponies she was looking for.

That’s weird…Rarity is normally out and about promoting her designs while Pinkie is usually hopping around and chatting it up with everypony in sight-

“Hey Scootachicken!” a snide young voice called from her left, breaking her out of her inner musings. She knew the voice well, and she did her best to ignore the red-coated Pegasus trotting her way with a wicked little grin pulling on the corners of his mouth. “Hey Scootachicken, I’m talking to you; unless you’re deaf too!”

“Urgh, what do you want, Pinion?” Scootaloo growled lightly as the young colt approached, a small group of his friends (Pinion's minions, Scootaloo thought) trailing behind him. He’d been on her case for one thing or another almost from the day he’d met her, and lately, ever since he’d learned how to fly short distances, he’d begun to berate her for not being able to fly; apparently the newest form of which involved calling her names of flightless birds. And different varieties of “chicken” seemed to be the words of the week.

“Nothing, just wondering if you laid any eggs yet, chicken,” Pinion sniggered, his friends following suit. “Grade F for flightless, right? Hahahaha!” Despite Scootaloo’s urge to wipe that smirk off his face, she held back, knowing that if she made a move his friends would likely be all over her in an instant. She may have been fast on her scooter, but she certainly couldn’t fight half a dozen colts and fillies at once…

And so, she made do with ignoring him for as long as she could, but the more she buzzed away on her scooter, the further he followed her, calling her a chicken, a coward, a flightless blank-flank filly and every other name his young vocabulary could spit out. And the fact that Scootaloo couldn’t turn and confront him without the fear of being ganged-up on made it all the more maddening!

“Bawk-bawk-bawk, Scootachicken can’t and never will fly, heeheehee!!” Pinion cackled as he pursued her, doing everything he could to make her turn around and face him. But by this point, tears of embarrassment were dripping down Scootaloo’s orange cheeks, and she wasn’t about to give him the pleasure of knowing that he was getting to her by turning around and showing them to him. She quickly wiped them away and rolled on, praying to Celestia that they’d just stop…or for somepony to tell them to stop! She looked up pleadingly at the eyes of the adult ponies milling along the sidewalk, but they seemed to either be too busy to care or assumed that it was all harmless play and just part of growing up. But it didn’t make it hurt any less!!!

Perhaps it was then that fate intervened or perhaps her little prayer had been answered (either way, she wasn’t about to argue) as a dark blue Pegasus with a crippled wing that she’d never met before stood up from under an oak tree shading half the street across from the Ponyville Spa and placed himself between Scootaloo and her harassers. He stood an entire head taller than even the somewhat tall Pinion and faced him and his little gang down with an intensity that evoked memories of Fluttershy’s Stare she’d used on a cockatrice a couple of years ago. Whatever the case, it worked, and the stranger soon sent Scootaloo’s bullying peers packing with a growl and a stomp of his hoof.

To say that Scootaloo was elated was an understatement as she grasped the Pegasus’ friendly hoof and shook it heartily as he introduced himself as Volare. But no sooner had he done so than he got a strange and exhausted look on his face, as if he’d just run a marathon. He blinked his silver-blue eyes heavily and staggered forward a step before giving her a crooked grin that was soon devoured by the dirt of the street as he collapsed face-first into it, his non-bandaged wing giving a slight twitch before he lay still.

It was at this point that Scootaloo’s emotions plunged off of a drop-hill of the roller coaster and she began to get that feeling in her stomach that one gets during such a fall. “Volare, Volare, are you ok, dude?” she cried as she poked him with a hoof. But when he answered with a groan that wasn’t even audible due to his close proximity conversation with the ground, Scootaloo left worry-ville and crashed smack-dab into panic-town. She looked about with wide lavender eyes, searching out the nearest adult pony to help, but to her surprise, the street had become somewhat deserted; the nearest adults were far to the west near the Town Hall. Her vision then alighted on the spa across the street where she was almost positive she could hear the voices of adults that could help.

“Hang on Volare, I’ll think of something,” she hesitated for a moment, looking down at her would-be savior in worry before deciding on a course of action. “I’m gonna get help; just sit tight!” She galloped across the street to the spa, her ears picking up on a particular voice of a pony she was ironically semi-searching out earlier: Rarity.

The owner of the voice in question was as deep in conversation with Fluttershy as she was in the deliciously hot and soothing spa bath she was sharing with her long-time friend. Adjacent to them was Spike who was snoring lightly on a padded table as the cerulean spa pony Aloe massaged his claws while her lavender sister Lotus applied a heated towel to his face. For a male dragon who often worried about his perceived masculinity in front of other mares, especially Rarity, he was willing to dare the most masculine creature in all of Equestria to admit that such a treatment was anything short of heavenly.

“Heh, seems Spike has fallen into this routine fairly well,” Rarity giggled before turning back to Fluttershy. “So let me get this straight: Volare’s wing is beyond your ability to rehabilitate?”

“Yes, unfortunately,” Fluttershy replied glumly. “Because of the magical nature in which it was put back on his body, the extent of which I can help him is really out of my hooves. All I can really do now is help him build his strength back up and keep his spirits high.”

“Which is why you’re in town searching out a training partner for him in the first place, right?”

“Mhm, that’s right,” the yellow Pegasus nodded, having recalled how Volare had been spending time with Shae but had become frustrated over not being able to fly and feeling like he was being left behind. “It seems he really hates hitting his own physical limits.”

“Heh, sounds like another certain Pegasus I know,” Rarity chuckled before a frown creased her face. “A certain Pegasus whom I still owe for conspiring with her pink prankster partner for turning my coiffure an absolutely un-couth shade of chartreuse! Ah, I’m sorry darling; I got off-track. Please continue.”

“Well, that’s just it; for now, we’re kinda stuck,” it was Fluttershy’s turn to frown. “He won’t be fully recovered until Twilight gets back into town, hopefully with a spell to fully fix his wing.”

“Indeed,” Rarity winced. “It seems almost like a combination of wonderful but horrid luck that Volare made it through such an ordeal, but at the cost of his current situation…I know what it’s like to fly, but that was different. That was temporary. I’m sure a Pegasus unable to fly is like a Unicorn who can’t use her horn…I’m not sure if I could handle such a trial if I were in his place.” She leaned up in the bath and absent-mindedly popped a few fragrance bubbles on the surface of the water. “Makes me wonder what keeps him going…Fluttershy, what is his motivation right now, as he knows that you can’t help him any further until Twilight returns.”

“Well that’s yet another reason why we were looking for a training partner,” Fluttershy explained. “Volare hasn’t really told me anything about his inspirations or about his past beyond the promise he made to his little sister years ago to always push himself to do better.” In all honesty, he hadn’t told her anything else about his family or his friends back on Earth, saying he wasn’t comfortable with talking about them, and she’d been having to grasp at straws a bit in order to figure out the best method of training and rehabilitation, a task which was beginning to wear upon her…it also made her wonder exactly why that promise to his sister was so important to him that he’d been willing to risk his own physical safety just to prove…prove what, though?

It seemed that the only thing that motivated him to push himself before was his sense of personal pride in the perfection of his abilities, but that had been grievously wounded by his horrific experience that proved that he was just as vulnerable to the whims of life and death as everypony else. True, it had made him a wiser pony, but also an almost overly-cautious one who was now merely seeking simple motivation rather than being driven by it. And now, without that cocky sense of invincibility to drive him, he obviously needed someone to motivate him to continue his rehabilitation, but they needed to strike a good balance with whomever they picked for the job.

As said, they’d tried Shae, but she was too impatient after a while, and Dash would probably be even more so, to say nothing of the fact that she’d promised Twilight that she’d leave Volare alone (a promise that Fluttershy was more than a little uncomfortable with helping to bend the boundaries of by letting her stay near the recovering stallion). Fluttershy herself didn’t have the time to devote to his recovery due to her duties with her own animals. And Iron Will, as nice as he was, would likely hurt Volare on accident. And to make matters worse, Volare had revealed that he wished to participate in The Running of the Leaves in two weeks so unless they found him a suitable rehab program soon, not only would he be disappointed in himself, but Fluttershy would be disappointed that she couldn’t help him at least achieve that goal.
“So you see the dilemma we’re in?”

“Yes, I do see,” Rarity rubbed her chin with a hoof. “Volare needs someone to motivate him, but not someone to break him in half or leave him behind and frustrate him…a tough balance to strike indeed.” She idly popped a few more bubbles with her magic before the action of which sent a single small bubble floating off into the air and nearly falling back into the bath before a slightly larger bubble bumped into and merged with it; the combined warm air of the two pulling the linked bubbles towards the ceiling and out of sight in the cloud of steam that rose from the hot water. Within a few ticks of a thought, the imagery of the situation caused an idea to click into existence in Rarity’s brain.
“Fluttershy, I think I have the solution to the problem,” she smiled for a moment at her friend’s curious expression before she continued. “I believe Volare needs a training partner with the same interest in flying as he does.”

“But we already tried that with Shae.”

“A-ta-ta,” she chided softly. “Shae was already flying. We need somepony who’s in the same boat as Volare: not quite able to fly but sharing that same fiery desire to get airborne and shatter the very winds with their wings!” she exclaimed with a dramatic flair, slinging water from her violet mane as she half-stood in the bath with a grin that shone through her green mud mask.

“Ah, I see what you mean now,” Fluttershy nodded and smiled approvingly, though her face quickly creased with mild worry again. “But who fits that description around here?”

“Well, isn’t that the million-bit question?” Rarity huffed slightly and settled back in the bath, a bit crest-fallen; she hadn’t even considered the options before she’d created the solution and she scolded herself a bit for it. Gah, this is like deciding on creating an outfit before even taking into account the materials one has at her disposal; it does nothing but create a false sense of excitement…excitement that will ultimately be quashed once one realizes that she lacks the materials required in order to-

“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, help!!” a cry accompanying the crash of the spa door flying open tore Rarity from her inner beratings. The fashionista pony looked up to see a very flustered Scootaloo galloping towards the spa bath, a look of fear filling her already-anxiety-riddled face as she clattered to a stop just as Rarity was sure she was going to collide with the bathtub.

“Why Scootaloo,” Rarity exclaimed, standing up in the tub. “Whatever has you so worked up and worried, darling?”

“Yes, what’s the matter, Scootaloo?” Fluttershy queried, her sea-blue eyes wide with her own version of waxing worry.

Scootaloo looked from the yellow Pegasus to the white Unicorn before inhaling a deep breath and rattling off her explanation in such a way as to make one wonder exactly how much air her little lungs were capable of holding.
“Ok I came into town and these bullies started following me but I tried to ignore them but I couldn’t take it anymore and then this weird-looking blue and yellow Pegasus with a crippled wing that I’ve never met before stood up for me against them but now I think he’s dead cuz he’s lying on the ground outside and he won’t even move and so I promised him I’d go get help so here I am and can you please please please please please help cuz if he really is dead I don’t want him haunting me later cuz I didn’t try! Oh and he said his name is Volare!” Her lavender eyes were full of an innocent yet intense sincerity that demolished all thoughts of this just being some crazy joke; the rambunctious little filly was totally serious!

The absolute silence that filled the air between them all in the aftermath of the orange filly’s explanation was even more palpable than the steam that curled up around Fluttershy and Rarity’s absolutely shocked visages, their minds filled with images of Volare somehow being beaten to a pulp by a gang of young ponies. The yellow Pegasus looked to her Unicorn friend, her hooves pressed tightly over her mouth; she didn’t need to say a word, as her eyes spoke her mind more clearly than she ever could at that particular moment. Rarity on the other hand managed to utter no more than a distressed squeak from her slack-jawed mouth before both she and Fluttershy practically exploded into motion. The two leaped from the spa tub in unison and thundered towards the door of the building in a dual-pony stampede of hot water and suds, the commotion of which even managed to arouse Spike from his heavy sleep.

“Hurgh-huh, what’s happening? Ah, I’m blind!” Spike cried before he tossed the hot towel from his face in time to see Rarity and Fluttershy and…Scootaloo?! racing out the front door of the spa, the younger pony shouting loudly all the way there. He looked questioningly towards Aloe and Lotus.

“Scootaloo said that a pony outside named Volare is dead!” Aloe explained with worry.

“Do you know him?” Lotus asked at Spike’s sudden expression of disbelief.

“You gotta be kidding me-yeah, I know the guy!” Spike grumbled as he hopped from the table and hurried after his friends. “And he’s been a real pain in my scales since day one…I swear if he’s really not dead, I’ll murder him with my own bare claws! Murder, I tell ya!” He liked the guy, just not enough to let him interrupt his spa session like this…gah did he really just say that?!

The last thing that Volare saw, or even remembered doing before his vision shrank to pin-points and finally darkness, was grinning at Scootaloo before he felt himself falling, blessedly losing consciousness before his face hit the ground. It was a short drop to be sure, but it was a no less a comfort.
Crap…I passed out again…dammit, at least this time is kinda peaceful and my thoughts don’t seem to be trying to scare the hell outta me…aww man, I hope I didn’t freak out Scootaloo too badly; poor girl looked worried enough already…and now here I am, face-first in the dirt, leaving her alone in the street...what if those bullies come back and mess with her…oh shit, what if they come back and mess with ME?!

It was about that time that he felt himself being shaken rather violently back and forth, and not in a subconscious way; no this felt very real.
Yep, that’s it, those brats came back and are kicking my ass while I lay here…just great!
But beyond the shaking sensation, he felt no real pain, just light-headedness and mild motion sickness as the shaking intensified. Strange that his sense of balance would return first…maybe he really was getting better. His other senses began to arrive in short order, starting with his hearing, the receptacles of which were greeted not by the sounds of giggling kids as they wailed on his limp body, but an entirely different and rather unexpected voice.

“Volare, Volare, wake up! Ah, he’s not dead-speak to me, Volare!” the voice cried in a cultured accent that was nonetheless cracking a bit under the apparent stress of the situation. Volare’s vision expanded from darkness, to pin-points of light, to full-blown blurry color vision, and within an instant, he focused on the creature shouting his name and shaking him back and forth. It was white and dripping wet, with indigo hair that nearly dragged on the ground, a green face that seemed to be melting off, and bright blue eyes surrounded by wet drooping eyelashes. Volare couldn’t help it: he screamed at the top of his lungs.

“AAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHH, WHAT THE HELL?!” he cried and tried to push the creature away before it suddenly wrapped its arms around his head and squeezed, cutting off his air as it squealed in…joy? Just as he was about to hit it, the thing let him go and held him at arm’s length again and smiled with relief. His vision drifted past the thing’s shoulder to see a yellow shape with dripping pink hair standing behind it, and on the opposite side of the green-faced thing, a small orange shape with fuchsia hair that seemed to have a mix of joy and relief all over its grinning face. And further behind them all was a familiar short purple and green shape shaking its head as it crossed its arms in annoyance. It was then that he twice blinked heavily and his vision cleared…and he blushed with extreme embarrassment.
“Agh, jeez,” he moaned as he realized that the creature shaking him was none other than Rarity wearing a mud mask, and that what he’d thought were…gawd, he didn’t know what he’d thought…they were his friends and they’d obviously come to see if he was ok.

“Ah, Volare darling, are you alright?” Rarity hugged him again before shaking him gently, though the expression of irritation seemed overshadowed by relief. “What’s gotten into you-scaring us like that?”

“Scaring you like what?” he managed to shake his head before he grabbed his forehead with a groan, trying to stem the pain of a migraine that slammed his skull like a hammer.

“Hey uh, Rarity,” Spike poked her in the shoulder with a claw. “I know you’re never one to not make a scene if you can’t help it, but uh…”

Rarity looked up to see that ponies up and down the street were poking their heads out of their shops in curiosity at the sight of Rarity kneeling in the dust of the road, dripping wet and shouting and shaking a blue Pegasus like she was in the grip of an epileptic fit. The white Unicorn quickly blushed pink and hauled Volare to his hooves without warning, nearly sending him toppling back to the ground in surprise. With a burst of strength that belied her lady-like figure and demeanor, she hauled flank into the spa, half carrying, half dragging Volare out of the sight of the prying eyes of the public street before almost unceremoniously dumping him on a padded couch and diving back into the spa tub.

Her mud-covered face barely peeked over the edge of the tub, wide blue eyes peeled for anypony that might wander in and ask what she’d been doing while Aloe and Lotus rolled their own; they thought they’d seen it all with Rarity, but she apparently had a few more tricks up her proverbial sleeves. But when no such pony arrived for well over a minute, Rarity breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed for a moment before turning her glare on Volare, who was just now sitting up and holding his head in his hooves, the sight of which tempered her embarrassment and instead reignited the fires of concern that had fueled her rather rash actions in the first place.

“Volare, pray tell, just what in Equestria happened out there!?” the Unicorn asked as politely as she could, given the circumstances.

“Yeah, why was Scootaloo saying you were dead?” Spike queried as he re-entered the spa, followed closely by Fluttershy and said orange Pegasus filly. Fluttershy didn’t return to the bath but instead began to towel off her mane while Lotus quickly grabbed a palm branch and fanned the flush-faced Volare.

Volare and Scootaloo quickly explained the situation with Volare adding that he was already fairly tired to begin with, which was why he’d sat down beneath the tree in the first place, but that when he’d seen Sootaloo being harassed like that, the adrenaline in his system must have kicked in. But once it was over and the adrenaline in his system subsided, his blood pressure dropped and *click* he was out like a light, he punctuated the fact with a loud tap of his front hooves. He turned to Scootaloo and gave her soft smile. “I’m sorry if I worried you all…I just couldn’t stand by and let her get treated like that…sorry.”

“Volare, there’s nothing to be sorry about,” Fluttershy patted his hoof comfortingly. “You did what you thought was right, and while I doubt those little colts and fillies would do anything too terribly serious to Scootaloo,” her eyes trailed to the small Pegasus who was staring intently at the floor, convinced this was all her fault. “I know how badly words can hurt…so no, we’re not mad at you, nor at Scootaloo for over-reacting just a tiny bit.” She lifted the smaller Pegasus’ chin up and wiped her face with the towel before giving her a comforting smile.

“Well then…I’m sorry for freaking everypony out,” Scootaloo said, her face still frowning a bit despite the encouraging smiles from everypony save Spike, who’d gone back to sleeping under a hot towel anyway. “I’ll just get outta your manes and”-

“Now hang on a sec, kid,” Volare shook his mane again and blinked his eyes, still somewhat fighting off the migraine and light-headedness it brought with it. “I’m sure that what you did wasn’t anything more than what anypony would expect of you to do…perhaps a little bit more than what was necessary, but even so, it was much better than leaving me to lie in the road like that,” he grinned his thanks.

“But you could’ve really gotten hurt,” Scootaloo protested. “Those bullies could have jumped on you and then…then what would I have done? They were too many to fight alone!”

“Heh, come here, Scootaloo,” Volare patted the bench and the smaller Pegasus obeyed, hopping up and sitting next to him before looking up with trusting eyes. “Lemme tell you a little something about bullies. I’ve dealt with them in the past, and the one thing I’ve learned with them is it’s mostly all an act; a bit of a show of bravado they put on to prove they rule the roost, so to speak.”

“But Pinion had his friends with them, and they outnumbered us,” Scootaloo replied with a furrowed brow and crossed her little forehooves in an adorable expression of frustration that nearly made Volare hug her right then and there.

“And you wanna know something else about the bullies that lead around a buncha friends like that? It’s because they’re too cowardly to go out and do their own dirty work by themselves,” Volare growled lightly in his throat and tapped the edge of the bench loudly with his hoof, as if speaking from memory. “But the thing is, if you can stand up to the leader, show him you’re not afraid, that’ll often rattle him enough that it’ll scare his buddies too when they see that their “mighty leader” found something he suddenly couldn’t handle,” he smiled and patted Scootaloo on the shoulder. “And once the leader realizes you can’t be scared, more often than not he’ll go find somepony else to mess with, and that’ll be the end of that.”

“Hrm, makes sense,” the orange Pegasus smirked and nodded. “The only problem is that Pinion doesn’t just wanna scare me; he likes to make fun of me because he can fly and I can’t,” she frowned. “Guess it’s cuz he feels all special or something…”

“Exactly,” Volare nodded. “And he tries to hang that over your head, but you wanna know why I think he does that?” Scootaloo cocked her head curiously. “I think he does that because he’s already a little scared of you.”

“Huh, how?”

Volare knew he took a risk in what he was about to say, but he figured it was a small enough one… “You fast on that scooter?”

“Heh, yeah,” her face brightened. “Rose and other grown-up ponies are always telling me to slow down in town,” she said with a small sense of pride.

“Faster than Pinion can fly, I take it?”

“Huh-yeah, way faster. Why?”

“Then the proof is in the pudding, Scoots,” he nudged her playfully. “He’s scared that since you’re already faster than he is simply on your scooter, that you’ll really show him up once you do get airborne. So he’s trying to knock you down and discourage you before you even get off the ground.”

“Ah, that does make sense,” Scootaloo nodded. “And here I thought he was doing it just because he was a jerk.”

“Well, there might be some of that in play as well,” he chuckled. “But the point is, you’re not the one who should be scared; he is, and that’s why he’s acting that way. Unfortunately, it sounds like this guy is pretty persistent, so there’re really only two options of how to put him in his place and get him off your back for good.”

“How?”

“Knock him on his flank now, which I think we’ve already discussed isn’t the best way to go; from personal experience I’ve found it only tends to escalate from there. Or option B: learn how to fly and really shut him up.”

“Aww darn,” Scootaloo groaned. “But I’ve been trying to fly for forever now and the closest I’ve come was falling out of a tree…”

“Why’re you trying to fly at such a young age, though? It can’t all be because of Pinion, can it?”

“Well, um…” she motioned for him to lean in closer. “The truth is, I’m the founder of the Rainbow Dash fanclub but I can’t fly and it’s kinda embarrassing, especially when a few of our members already can.”

“Ah, I see,” Volare nodded, remembering how Scootaloo strongly wanted to emulate Rainbow Dash…well, isn’t that funny, Volare ol’ pal?
“So I take it you’re her biggest fan?”

“Hay yeah I am!” Scootaloo grinned. “I know all her tricks and everything,” she pulled out her scrapbook from her saddlebag and showed it to him. “I even got to name her newest trick earlier today! Do you know Rainbow Dash?”

“Heh, we’ve um,” he looked to Rarity, Fluttershy, and Spike to gauge their reactions to Scootaloo’s question, and they were all expressions of sudden concern of what exactly he’d say. If he told her the truth…nah, he didn’t wanna put a damper on the young filly’s enthusiasm for her personal idol. “Let’s just say we’ve met a few times.”

“Awww, cool dude!” Scootaloo gave him an impressed grin. “What’d she say about your wing being all hurt like-um, sorry,” she trailed off, realizing how awkward the question was.

“It’s alright Scootaloo. I hurt it in an accident, but why do you ask?”

“Well, it’s just that…well, urgh,” she bowed her head for a moment before finally saying it. “I was gonna ask you if you could teach me to fly because I’m kinda too nervous to ask Dash to help me…plus she’s too busy with her weather duties and personal training anyways…”

“And napping,” Volare chuckled, lifting Scootaloo’s spirits somewhat and reassuring her that she wasn’t bothering him. “Lots of that!”

“Ha, no kidding. But since you’re hurt, I didn’t wanna bug you with asking you to help…soo yeah, sorry…”

“Hey, just cuz I can’t fly right now doesn’t mean I can’t in the future,” Volare nudged her again. “Just like you, I believe.” Instantly, Fluttershy and Rarity, who’d been silently watching the little interchange between the two Pegasi exchanged glances of their own at his statement. Rarity beckoned for Fluttershy to come closer and her friend subtly trotted around the spa tub and stopped next to her, leaning on the tub wall and continuing to watch the flightless Pegasi for the moment.
“I don’t know much about teaching other Pegasi to fly, but I’ll stand by you at the very least if those bullies come a-knockin’ again. Us flightless birds-of-a-feather gotta flock together, eh?”

“Heh-heh, yeah,” Scootaloo clucked loudly and pecked Volare’s shoulder with her muzzle before dissolving in a fit of giggles. “Except we’ll really show those bullies who’s chicken if they bug us again, right?”

“You got that right, Scoots,” Volare grinned, allowing himself to be reminded of someone from his past…the feeling was faint but familiar…
“Till we learn how to fly, we’ll tough it out together.”

“Fluttershy,” Rarity whispered. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

“I think so,” her friend nodded and smiled. She hoped so…

“Ahem, Scootaloo,” Rarity spoke up, surprising the younger Pegasus who thought that the fashionista had gone to sleep for sure; she’d been so quiet. “Perhaps there’s a solution to both of your flight problems.”

“Ooh, did you hear that Volare?!” Scootaloo hopped up on the bench, grabbing Volare’s shoulder excitedly, making him chuckle audibly. “What is it!?”

“Well, Volare is rehabilitating his wing over at Fluttershy’s cottage as well as working to recover from his injury in time to participate in The Running of the Leaves next week. We’re rather pressed for time in this, but if you’re interested, we believe you could help Volare’s recovery and maybe even learn a thing or two about flying from him and Fluttershy too.”

“Whoa, you really mean that?!” Scootaloo’s grin practically encompassed her face as she looked from Fluttershy to Volare and back again, her little wings buzzing with excitement.

“Heh, I guess if Fluttershy is ok with it,” the blue Pegasus looked to the yellow one for confirmation.

“Well, as long as you don’t completely destroy my cottage”-

“Sweet!!” Scootaloo shouted and hopped off the bench, striking a dramatic pose on the edge of the spa tub. “We’re gonna be kick-flank fliers in no time-whoa!” She slipped and splashed into the tub, causing everypony present to facehoof. Even Spike, who was somehow aware of the situation even while under the towel, gave her “dive” two thumb-claws down.

“Um, lesson number one, Scootaloo,” Fluttershy chided gently as the smaller Pegasus surfaced and spat out the sudsy water in embarrassment. “Know your limits, right Volare?”

“Heh, yep,” he smiled and helped Scootaloo out of the tub. “I’ve learned that the hard way more than once…welp, I’m up now, sooo…you good to go, Fluttershy?”

“Oh yes, I am,” she grabbed her saddlebags and peeked inside before groaning lightly. “No wait, not yet. We forgot to get food for ourselves and the pets.”

“Ooh, I’ll help!” Scootaloo galloped outside and hopped on her scooter with a confident grin. “Gimme some of your list of stuff you need and some bits and I’ll meet you back here in no time!”

The twin hooded figures of two Unicorn siblings peeped out from the underbrush that flanked the grounds of Fluttershy’s cottage. They looked up towards the solitary cloud that had become commonplace above the cottage and even from this distance they could hear the soft snores of the rainbow Pegasus snoozing on her fluffy perch.
“Heh, she’s out like a light; come on,” Ray hissed all the same and motioned for Jill to follow him. They quickly slunk out of the woods and headed for the shrubs that lined the western end of the property, pressing their bodies into the foliage as they reached it in order to keep out of sight. Trixie had sent them to confirm for certain the location of Volare, and since their real boss hadn’t sent them any new orders yet…it seemed like a good chance to make a few extra bits…so here they were.

“You’re positive this is where he’s at?” Jill whispered as she peeked around the shrubbery and into the backyard at the myriad of animals milling about. She saw no sign of the blue Pegasus nor the yellow owner of the property; only the animals. “And where’s this giant blue minotaur you were raving about?”

“You actually want to see that guy?! He’s bucking huge!”

“Well, I don’t see him, so let’s go search the place. Maybe Volare’s inside,” Jill slipped around the side of the shrub and swiftly snuck over to the cottage and peeked in the window. The animals in the yard shuffled about nervously at the sight of a strange pony in the yard, but didn’t do anything to indicate fear just yet. “Argh, I don’t see him in there,” Jill reported and looked back to see Ray still standing by the edge of the shrub. “Ray, what’re you doing?! Get over here!” she hissed angrily.

“I’m standing watch in case that minotaur shows up!”

“Gah, fine, fine…just keep quiet,” she returned her attention to the door and grasped the knob with her hoof. “Maybe that Pegasus is upstairs resting…”

But as she turned it, the knob squeaked loudly and a nearby creature awoke from her nap. But it wasn’t Rainbow Dash…no, this creature was potentially worse than her or even Iron Will. Her golden eyes snapped open and focused on the source of the noise that had roused her from her slumber: the knob of the backyard door. But it wasn’t Iron Will, Fluttershy, Volare, or any other pony else she recognized turning said knob and intruding on the property…and this particular osprey didn’t take kindly to intruders in her territory…especially familiar-smelling intruders…

Ray looked on from the edge of the shrub as Jill slowly opened the door. She had just gotten a hoof over the threshold when a faint flutter of feathers behind her grabbed her attention. She turned just in time to see a black and white mass of beak, claws, and burning golden eyes swooping down at her head, said claws ripping right for her face! Jill ducked just in time as the bird zoomed past her head and climbed up into the air, landing on the roof and screeching angrily at the intruders and clacking her talons on the roof before taking off and diving again.

“Holy buck, Ray!” Jill cried as she dove flat on the ground, though the bird’s claws ripped a long tear in the hood of her cloak. The Unicorn got up and galloped as fast as she could, cursing under her breath all the while. “You were supposed to be standing guard, dammit!”

“I was watching out for a bloody minotaur, not some damn attack bird!” Her brother growled back as the pair turned as one and charged their horns, prepared to blast this crazy osprey from the sky. But just as they sighted in on her, a loud groan and a cry of confusion rang out from the cloud above them; Rainbow Dash was awake! They could fight this bird without much trouble, but not an Element Holder!
“Buck it; run!” Ray and Jill hoofed it for the underbrush of the Everfree, narrowly avoiding one last minute swipe from the osprey before she returned to her tree, chereeking haughtily as the intruders disappeared into the forest.

Once they were about 50 feet into the trees, the two Unicorns whirled about, breathing hard and half-expecting that crazy osprey to continue her pursuit. But instead, they were treated to the sounds of Rainbow Dash asking “what the hay was going on down there.” “Heh, good thing that bird is territorial,” Ray gasped. “Or else it’d still be on our flanks. You ok, sis…sis? Oh buck!”

“You idiot!” Jill grabbed up dirt clods and twigs from the ground with her magic and hurled them at brother for a few moments before finally calming down somewhat.

“Well, at least we know for sure that’s where they are,” Ray investigated the rip in Jill’s cloak and when he saw no blood or torn fur beneath it, he zapped it with his horn, instantly mending the fabric. “Come on sis, let’s get back to the Great and Powerful Bungler before that minotaur shows up.”

“Grrr, you and your minotaurs,” Jill growled and followed him. “I keep telling you, there’s no damn minotaurs around here, but no, you just carry on, and on, and on about them…I swear Ray, the one bright brain cell you’ve got in your head sleeps almost as much as that damn Rainbow Dash…”

Said rainbow Pegasus stretched and looked about at the sound of Shae’s alarmed screeching…but she didn’t see anything amiss! She yawned and looked down towards the Everfree Forest, seeing nothing weird (for the Forest’s standards anyway) there either. “Shae, what the hay has gotten into you?” she called down at the chattering osprey who sat preening her feathers in her roosting tree and overall looking very proud of herself. Dash shook her head and finally turned towards the road leading into Ponyville, spotting Iron Will lounging on a pile of firewood he’d been breaking up for the winter some distance off the side of the road. The blue minotaur’s snores barely carried past the beefy forearm he had thrown over his muzzle and face, shielding it from the afternoon sun…which had quickly become an early evening sunset.

“Wish I had a camera to prove I’m not the only one who enjoys the hay outta a good nap, heh-heh,” she chuckled before looking further past him towards town when she noticed movement. There, coming down the path from Ponyville were Fluttershy and Volare; that was the normal part. But what she didn’t expect was the small orange and fuchsia shape buzzing along the ground on a scooter before them, alternating between leading the way and zipping back around behind the older Pegasi who seemed to be sharing a good chuckle at her antics.

“Scoots…what the hay are you doing here…” Dash flopped down on her belly and pondered to herself as the trio of Pegasi neared the cottage. Iron Will awoke for a moment at the sound of Scootaloo’s buzzing wings but quickly fell back to sleep, worn out from breaking all that firewood earlier. Soon, the Pegasi were within earshot and what she heard shocked her.

“Wow, I can’t believe this is finally gonna happen!” Scootaloo giggled as she buzzed about, shooting Volare an excited grin as she skillfully flipped around and began rolling her scooter backwards along the road as she continued to speak with the older Pegasi. “First you save me from those bullies, and now you and Fluttershy are gonna teach me how to fly! And once I’m up in the air, I’ll finally be able to show Rainbow Dash what I’m made of!”

“Now Scootaloo,” Fluttershy rebuked her gently. “It’s not an instant process. It takes time and concentration and”-

“Yeah, yeah, I know that Fluttershy!” Scootaloo smiled and laid her scooter up against the cottage wall before suddenly galloping forward and jumping onto Volare’s back, nearly knocking him over in surprise, though he covered that up with a loud laugh of his own. “I’m just excited, that’s all! Are you excited, Volare?”

“Hahaha, sure am, Scoots.”

Scoots?! But that was HER nickname for the squirt Dash thought, swatting at a stray piece of unfortunate cloud fluff that drifted into her line of sight.

“Hey, pretty soon you’ll be back in the air too, and then maybe I’ll have to start you up a fanclub also, huh?” Scootaloo didn’t expect her innocent expression to cause what happened next.

Say WHAT?!?! Dash fumed and swore under her breath. That Volare was stealing her number one fan?! But how!? What the buck had he done that was so special, huh?! What had he-how did he-argh, she HATED losing!!!! She couldn’t help it anymore. Thinking quickly before she exploded, she grabbed up two hoof-fulls of cloud fluff and jammed them over her mouth before she angrily shouted out a long, drawn out NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

“Whoa, did you hear that?” Volare looked up and flicked an ear towards the sky.

“No, what was it?”

“I dunno,” the stallion looked up but all he saw was a solitary cloud…a familiar solitary cloud. “It sounded like that cloud was screaming or something.”

“Yeah...I think you hit your head kinda hard when you fell in the street, dude,” Scootaloo chuckled and mussed his spiky mane before they followed Fluttershy into the cottage to prepare dinner. “Cuz that just sounds crazy!”

“Yeah, so it would seem,” Volare eyed the cloud one last time before the overhang of the cottage roof obscured it from his vision and he set his mind to helping Fluttershy plan dinner…hopefully without burning down the kitchen like he’d nearly done two days ago…yeah, that’d make a great impression on Scoots…

Meanwhile, as Spike lay under layers of hot towels, completely relaxed and alone with Rarity save Aloe and Lotus, he swore he felt more at ease than he ever had. Oh yeah…life was good…
But he found it wasn’t to last as a sudden feeling of pressure welled up in his gut. He quickly sat up, sending hot towels flying every which way as a claw shot to his mouth.

“What’s wrong, Spikey-wikey?” Rarity cried in alarm as he coughed and belched embarrassingly. The belch soon became green flames that flew from his mouth, finally abating and revealing the rolled up and Sun-sealed scroll they’d carried with them and dropped onto the padded massage bench. “Ooh, it’s a letter from Princess Celestia! Perhaps it’s about our Twilight! Open it Spike, open it!”

“I’m workin’ on it,” Spike groaned, completely mortified at the way in which he’d played mail-dragon just now. He leaned forward and opened the scroll:

Dearest Spike, I believe I’ve located Twilight Sparkle; she’s just fine so no worries in that regard. Please tell your friend that Twilight and I will get to work on solving his problem to the best of our abilities as soon as we can. Oh and please tell Pinkie Pie that the cupcakes she sent were simply divine!

Will keep you posted.

Best regards, Princess Celestia.

“Well, finally some good news,” Spike smiled as he finished the letter out loud and rolled it back up before laying back down and pulling the towels back over himself. “Now I can really relax…”

The towels kept him from hearing the soft chuckling laughter of disbelief that rolled from Rarity’s lips before she too settled back in the spa bath. She knew she’d likely have wrinkly fur if she stayed in for too much longer…but she had the place rented out for an hour more yet…although the fact that she did have Volare’s unfinished special gift waiting for her at Carousel Boutique gave her pause…decisions, decisions…sorry Volare, but priorities come first…and slighty-wrinkly fur won’t stop me from making your gift…sooo….zzz

Twilight Sparkle was just about at the end of her rope! For the past three days she’d scoured the Canterlot Library from top to bottom. She’d searched from Anatomy all the way to Zoology in regards to what had happened to Volare’s wing, but after not finding one single reference to it, she’d soon ventured outside the realm she expected answers to be in. She delved into Calculus, History, Alchemy and even into Cryptozoology, and on and on, into more and more ancient tomes that contained forms of Ancient Equestrian she didn’t quite recognize.

All around the corner of the Library she’d made camp in was a veritable fort-wall of stacked books that didn’t have the answers she was looking for but was in too much of a hurry to put back immediately, the gateway of which was topped by the two volumes of “Spells and Incantations” leaning against one another like a pointy-roofed gatehouse. As the wall of books grew, so did her frustrations, both at herself for not being able to find what she was looking for and at the old Library itself for not being able to offer her the assistance she needed.

And as her search dragged into its third consecutive evening, those frustrations came to a boil and with a cry of DAMMIT, she grabbed up a book with her magic and hurled it over the book wall…but to her surprise, she didn’t hear it hit the ground.

“The Chemistry of Geology,” a soft but regal voice sounded from outside the wall, the book itself floating back up into Twilight’s line of sight as if in evidence. “I know it’s probably not the most entertaining of reads, but I could have sworn you had a copy of this and enjoyed it nonetheless…I never thought it boring enough to hurl through the air though I suppose it has the potential to add some entertainment value to it, hmm-hmm-hmm,” the voice chuckled as its owner popped her white, crowned head over the wall, causing Twilight to fall back in alarm.

“P-Princess Celestia!” the studious purple Unicorn cried, realizing she’d very nearly clocked her teacher in the head with a book. “I-I’m so sorry!”

“It’s ok,” the Alicorn princess nodded and smiled, setting the book down on top of the wall and looking back to her student. “Permisson to enter your fort, Ms. Sparkle? I swear I come in peace.”

“Oh, y-yes, of course!” Twilight nodded emphatically, to which Celestia took wing and gently floated down inside the make-shift shelter of tomes, taking care not to topple the structure with her mighty wings. “What brings you here?”

“Oh, well, it’s evening and Luna has taken over the moon’s nightly path for now,” Celestia gestured towards the window. “But those are near-certainties nowadays. What you mean is why I’m here in the Canterlot Library instead of resting my weary mind, as you should be, especially after having searched for so long…”

“How’d you know I was looking for something here?”

“I received a letter from Spike requesting information on how you were doing, and I figured ‘where else could Twilight Sparkle lose herself for three days but a library?’”

“Heh-heh, that’s true,” Twilight nodded sheepishly.

“That letter also mentioned something about you searching for a solution for the problem of a friend of yours,” the Princesses’ eyes twinkled, whether in divine knowledge or simply due to the candlelight flickering behind Twilight, she wasn’t sure. “And since you’re a more than a little late for the meeting we were supposed to have…”

“Oh my gosh Celestia, I’m sorry, I completely forgot!”

“It’s quite alright, Twilight. My, but you seem stressed out. And I rather doubt you built this fortress of knowledge here out of sheer boredom. So my question that I raise to you that I believe addresses all of these issues at once is: what’ve you been looking for these past three days here?”

“Heh, very perceptive, Princess.”

“I sometimes have to be,” Celelstia winked and settled down on one of the many cushions Twilight had dragged into the corner. She patted the cushion adjacent to her and Twilight obediently sat down, and became visibly less flustered.

“Well, it’s kinda a long story,” Twilight explained, but Celestia simply smiled again, as she always seemed to do.

“We’ve got all night to chat, and catch up, Twilight,” she gestured idly with a hoof. “If that’s ok with you, that is.”

“Heh, I suppose I kinda owe you for missing our meeting earlier today, huh?” She floated her saddlebags over and pulled out the thick stack of hoof-written notes.

“As long as you were spending your time doing something constructive like helping your friends, I suppose I can’t really fault you for it,” she gently patted her student’s hoof. “However, I feel I owe you the time to speak with me, especially after such a busy summer…I’ve missed speaking face to face with you, my dearest student.”

“So have I, Princess,” Twilight’s face fell for a moment before her eyes moved back to her notes and brightened. “So, I suppose we can catch up and talk about what I’m looking for all at once! Hold onto your seat cushion, Princess…this gets a little…scientific.” She tried to put on a serious face until she looked over to see Princess Celestia literally grasping the cushion she was seated on, a very un-Princess-like, silly grin on her face, the very image of which caused Twilight to burst into helpless chuckles. It felt good to be spending time with her mentor again.

“I don’t think it’s going anywhere, Twilight,” she returned the chuckle with another wink before her student finally opened her notes and began…

More Notes: Ok, this may be the only update this week due to my temporarily increased work schedule, but I have Friday off and the next chapter already planned so...maybe...in any case, I wonder how Dash will react once she realizes that Volare has no intention of "stealing" Scoots, as well as what Celestia will say once Twilight tells her what's been going on in Ponyville for the past few days...and with whom...

Oh, and I forgot to add this:
8D
Volare: *facehoof again*