The sun peeked into the window waking Soarin and his wife up.
It was only 7 months since Rainbow Dash and Soarin had been married, but they still agreed it was the best decision they had ever made.
"Good morning, Rainbow Dash," Soarin said as they arrived in the kitchen.
Rainbow Dash yawned and looked at him. "Good morning," she said.
Knowing Rainbow Dash, she was not a morning pony. Her eyes were still heavy and she didn't have her usual energy yet. Considering she was walking instead of flying to the kitchen, Soarin knew she was in her tired morning state.
"Any plans for today?" Soarin asked her.
"Wonderbolts meet at 2:00 today," Rainbow Dash said. She smiled. "It's the last time we're practicing this routine before performing."
Soarin almost forgot about the Wonderbolts meet which was unlike him. He was very passionate about flying. He never missed a single practice. He was glad Rainbow Dash was there to remind him on this one.
"Do you have your moves down?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Yup!" Soarin replied, happily. "Been practicing ever since Spitfire assigned them."
Soarin picked up his Wonderbolts jacket and looked at it. Memories flowed back into his mind and he smiled. He remembered his first day of Wonderbolts, clipping his wing on the flagpole, earning the nickname Clipper from his teammates. He remembered explaining to Rainbow Dash why the Wonderbolts nicknamed each other. Making her feel better like that really lifted his spirits. He knew that was the day he felt different towards Rainbow Dash. He remembered the time they practiced together just the two of them on the field. They helped each other with their moves and Rainbow Dash showed him the Sonic Rainboom which Soarin had cheered and applauded at. Then, he grinned as he remembered their first kiss. He was feeling awful for losing the games against the Crystal Empire and he thought the other Wonderbolts blamed him for the loss. Rainbow Dash came to comfort him, but nothing was making Soarin feel better. That's when everything was a blur. Rainbow Dash put her lips up against his. His happiness came rushing back to him like a hurricane. He loved it.
"Soarin?" Rainbow Dash asked.
Soarin nearly dropped his jacket. "Rainbow Dash, you startled me."
"Yeah, you were just staring at that jacket," Rainbow Dash said. "Why?"
"Memories," Soarin replied, with a smile.
"What's your favorite one?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Our wedding day," Soarin said. "Best day I've ever had."
Rainbow Dash smiled. "That's my favorite, too."
They looked at the clock upon the wall.
"The Wonderbolts meeting!" they exclaimed in unison. They flew at their top speeds to the stadium.
"Now, this routine has to be precise," Spitfire said. "There will be no mistakes because we are doing this as a fundraiser for the Ponyville Hospital. Ponies only want to see the best of the best to pay."
Those words made Soarin feel nervous. No mistakes, he thought. How was he going to manage a perfect performance?
"Now, this is our last practice," announced Spitfire. "And if somepony messes up, I'm not going to be happy! We've been practicing for 3 months now and I know you all can do this! Are you ready?"
Soarin gulped, but joined the rest of the Wonderbolts in saying, "Yes, ma'am!"
"Then, let's go!" Spitfire exclaimed, taking off into the air.
All the other Wonderbolts followed her. Soarin was doing perfect at first. He didn't miss any turns or any of the moves. But, it was too good to last. Disaster struck. Soarin accidentally flew off course and bumped into Misty Fly. Misty Fly, because of the crash, missed her next cue causing Fleetfoot to go off course. Fleetfoot was supposed to be guiding Lightning Streak along the routine, so Lightning Streak also missed her trick. Lightning Streak accidentally hit the flagpole and spun out, hitting Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash yelped and bumped right into Spitfire. Once it got to the captain, it was all over.
Spitfire removed her goggles and she looked angry. "Who started this?!" Spitfire shouted.
Everyone pointed to Soarin who laughed nervously.
"Soarin," Spitfire scolded. "Why do you have to mess everything up today?!"
"I'm sorry, ma'am!" Soarin exclaimed. "I didn't mean to!"
Spitfire took a deep breath, calming down. "Practice dismissed."
Soarin went to play games with his friends. Gaming with them always made him feel better.
He had three awesome friends: Orange Breeze, Cloud Blaze, and Dust Storm. They loved to tease him, but they were also great in cheering Soarin up.
"Okay," Orange Breeze said. "Frosty Night, Thunder Hoof, and Soaring Cloud run into a huge dragon. It's the biggest dragon you've ever seen. It's ready to breathe a blast of fire. What are you going to do?"
"I don't know," Soarin said. "Spitfire getting mad at you is a pretty big thing to stitch up."
"I was talking about the game," Orange Breeze said. "Are you okay, Soarin?"
Soarin sighed. "I just feel so bad for messing up the routine."
"No one can stay mad at you for long," Dust Storm said. "I know that because I'm your friend!"
"Thanks, Dust Storm," Soarin said. "But, I just want to go home."
"What?!" Cloud Blaze exclaimed. "But, dude, we need your help to defeat this dragon."
"You'll do just fine without me," Soarin said. "I've seen you do game nights without me before."
"But, it wasn't as fun," Cloud Blaze protested.
"I'll play when I'm more in the mood," Soarin said. "Goodnight."
Soarin left and his friends all stared after him, sadly.
"Why does he have to mess everything up today?" Orange Breeze asked, sadly.
Soarin heard that sentence and tears stung his eyes. He didn't want to cry, so he took a big breath, held it all in, and kept walking away.
Soarin came home and Rainbow Dash was mopping the floors. She hated to clean the house, but it had to be done.
"Oh, Soarin!" Rainbow Dash said. "You're home! How did the game night go?"
Soarin grabbed a bowl of soup from the fridge to microwave. "It was fun."
"Good!" Rainbow Dash said. "I'm glad that you have awesome friends!"
"Me too," Soarin said. "Nothing has been going well for me today."
"We all have our days," Rainbow Dash said, dipping the mop in the bucket.
But just then, he forgot how wet the floor was and slipped, spilling the bowl of soup all over the floor.
Rainbow Dash gasped. "Oh, I have to start all over on that spot!"
"I'm so sorry," Soarin cried.
But, Rainbow Dash, hating to clean as much as she hated to be kept from flying, forgot every ounce of her forgiveness. "Why do you just have to keep messing everything up today?!"
Soarin was done. He ran out of the kitchen, straining not to cry.
The next day was the Wonderbolts performance. But, Soarin didn't feel like going after all the incidents yesterday.
Soarin looked around the house to see that Rainbow Dash had already left. She loved her performances so much even she would get an early start.
Soarin sighed and sat at the table, eating his breakfast.
After getting in his Wonderbolts uniform, he set out the door.
"I wish there was a way I could just... disappear," Soarin said.
"Maybe there is," said a strange pony, stopping him in his tracks.
"Who are you?" Soarin asked.
The strange pony let down her cloak, revealing she was a unicorn with a grey coat. "My name is Storm Whirl. I may have just the cure for your accidents."
Soarin followed Storm Whirl, forgetting about the performance.
He entered Storm Whirl's house after her. He began to feel uncomfortable, seeing all the strange artifacts and bottles of liquid. He stepped on something and his stomach heaved, hoping it wasn't a rattlesnake tail.
"What exactly is your special talent?" Soarin asked.
Storm Whirl removed her cloak and revealed her cutie mark to him. It was a star with a strange circle in the middle. "It's stopping ponies from ever making accidents again."
"Really?" Soarin asked.
"No, dimwit," Storm Whirl said. "Like anypony is perfect. It's making portals to show ponies how much they may actually be loved."
So, that's what the strange circle on her cutie mark was. A portal.
"So, what's the plan then?" Soarin asked.
Storm Whirl smiled. "Now, listen closely."
Soarin worried.
Storm Whirl began to speak this to him in a mysterious rhyme:
"Yesterday, you fear you have made too many mistakes
But, now there is another path which you have to take
All these twists and many turns you will have at stake
You will have to do these things before it is too late
I am sending you to this place from the path you chose
With nopony and nothing with you but this magic rose
This magic rose loses its petals and it begins to wilt
And when the magic destroys love, it cannot be rebuilt
Rainbow Dash will not recognize you when you arrive
Then when you are there, for this one thing you'll strive
Get her to fall in love with you before the last petal falls
If not, you disappear
Are you daring to risk it all?!"
"So, if I get Rainbow Dash from this universe to fall in love with me, I get to go home? And if I don't, I vanish?" Soarin said.
Storm Whirl gave a sinister smile and nodded. "You never existed in this universe. Nopony knows your name and nopony is your friends or family. You made this choice and there's no turning back now. Good luck, Soarin!" She laughed.
Soarin saw nothing but a swirling vortex of multiple colors. He felt extremely sick and dizzy. Make it stop, he begged silently. He was tossed and thrown through the portal, violently.
Then, he landed and the world was painted black.