//------------------------------// // A Mare of Sense // Story: Thunderbolts // by Beakwood //------------------------------// "What do you think Rainbow dear? I'm sure being a Wonderbolt is your heart's desire." "It is Rarity. Yet I would feel awful abandoning my friends like this." "I'm sure they would understand. Honestly I want you to stay, but this is a choice only you can make." "What should I choose then Twilight?" Rainbow asked to her alicorn friend. The purple mare has been unusually quiet during the whole conversation. " Rainbow Dash..." Twilight started very slowly. "...I'm not sure of what to think of this. Celestia forgive me for saying this, but....I chased after my dream of being a prodigy in magic and being recognized by Princess Celestia herself. Yet that costed me so many friendships along the way that I ended lonely despite having everything I could possibly dream off. Please keep in mind I speak through personal experience. A dream does not have the same value of the friends you make." Rainbow stood surprised while looking at Twilight. The cyan mare expect some kind of support or assurance, but what she got instead was a very meaningful advice. "Ah'm think that Twi got a point Rainbow Dash. A dream ain' a dream if ya got nopony to share it." Applejack said surprising Rainbow even further. "Ah'm not saying ya should give up yer dream, but keep in mind ya might sacrifice everythin' else because of it." "Well...if you all think that way..." Rainbow looked around looking for a different opinion. Her magenta eyes fell on the yellow pegasus crouching nearby the nearest table. "Fluttershy, what do you think?“ Aside Gilda, Fluttershy was Rainbow's fillyhood friend. The shy mare wasn't really the greatest of the advisers but Rainbow Dash valued her opinion like nopony else. "Well, I....think the girls do have a point. I wouldn't want to do things I like without my friends." Fluttershy said sounding more convinced than usual. Rainbow seemed visibly conflicted with all the answers she got. Aside Rarity, all the others were more into the idea of Rainbow staying in Ponyville. "I don't know why you're so worried Dashie! It's not like that you won't have a better chance at becoming a Wonderbolt after the event!“ Pinkie said before stuffing herself with lots of cake. " Tfhe Wongfulbts woufdn igfnire yagh if yeg wunf thie evetfh!“ "Actually," Twilight said looking slightly impressed with Pinkie's opinion. "She does have a point. What better way to show your ammount of talent and experience than by competing against the Wonderbolts? You will show how much more qualified you might be than most of their team." Rainbow blinked. Twilight, especially Pinkie, did have a point. If Ponyville's team could give the Wonderbolts a run for their money then Spitfire wouldn't have a choice but promote Rainbow Dash into a full fledged member right at the finish line! Who knows? Maybe even other Wonderbolt reserves such as Cloud Chaser, Star Hunter, Thunderlane and others could get promoted too. 'But what about Lightning and Gilda? What would they get?I don't think Spitfire would let Dust back into the academy and the Wonderbolts never had a griffon as a member before.' Rainbow's thoughts were only interrupted when she felt somepony nudging her with their hoof. "Maybe you should go after her Rainbow. You need to give Gilda a reason to believe in you. The only way to get there is by insisting. Don't let her push you away if things are not going well." "I'm not sure I can do it Twi, she's not been easy to talk with for a long time." Rainbow replied unsuredly. Twilight sighed. For how long those two would keep bickering their problems away? Were they really this stubborn to not let go of past grudges? "Rainbow Dash," Twilight started very seriously. "Does the word 'forgive' mean anything to you?“ "Oh, I feel ya in that one!“ Applejack commented while taking a drink of cider. "What?!“ Rainbow didn't look pleased at all. "What's that supposed to mean?!“ "Everypony knows that you can carry grudges for a long time. Also I get the feeling that you, Gilda and Lightning didn't really solved all the issues between each other." Twilight pointed out sounding somewhat disappointed. "Oh, huh..." Rainbow seemed uneasy at that sudden remark. "...we just need time. I know things ain't looking great now but they will." "Ya don't sound very sure sugar cube." Applejack pointed out while raising an eyebrow. "Pfff, please. I got this, once we start our training exercises tomorrow I'm sure everything will go back to normal." Rainbow replied though without the usual smug face she normaly displays. The other members of the Mane Six eyed each other doubtfully. "There's something we need to talk about tomorrow Rainbow. Can you show up at the castle in the end of afternoon? “ Twilight asked. The purple mare have been internally debating all the issues regarding Lightning and Spitfire. It didn't make much sense for LD to receive a mark for her curriculum for a mistake that already costed her a place among the Wonderbolts. What Twilight wondered, and to some extent feared, was that curriculum marks only really have a huge impact if signed by Royal members of Canterlot. In which case includes the Princesses, Prince Blueblood, and Shining Armor. Twilight knew her brother had no reason to get involved in Wonderbolt affairs, neither Cadance or Luna. Blueblood wasn't the most charming pony around but he also never interfered or interacted with the Wonderbolts in any sort. Which only left Princess Celestia who had a more than real great interaction with the Wonderbolts. Twilight reflected for hours in the previous days if the academy incident involving the Elements of Harmony, including Celestia's faithful student(Twilight herself), could've made Princess Celestia make an irrational and biased decision against Lightning Dust. Twilight Sparkle refused to believe that Princess Celestia was the main reason for Lightning Dust to be living so miserably. Celestia was perfect and she would never make one of her ponies suffer cause she made a bad judgment of character. Right? Twilight had to confirm this by asking the Princess herself. If it wasn't true she would request for Lightning's name to be cleared. If it was true then Twilight still would request for the clearence albeit feeling terrible that Celestia had gone that far for Twilight's sake. "Sure thing. I'll be there." Rainbow said without a worry. "I better get out and look for those three. Be back in a sec." The cyan mare added before rocketing away from the group. Even though Rainbow's abrupt departed created a gust of wind strong enough to knock ponies nearby. *CRASH* "Ma'h drink!!!“ Berry yelled in pure rage and disbelief. "Curse you *hic* rainbow meteor!!“ "Alright, that's enough cider for you." BonBon said while taking Berry's glass away. "You ain' my mom *hic* cotton mane! Go hump Lyrastrings or *hic* something!“ Berry replied waving her hooves in all directions. BonBon felt her face heating up tremendously while dragging her wasted friend away from the intrigued crowd. Lyra observed the scene looking incredibly amused. Probably satisfied to see BonBon receiving her punishment for gossiping things she shouldn't. "Ah'm know Berry's a cider gal but she ain' one of getting her face full like that for no reason." Applejack said sounding a bit worried. "Don't worry dear. I'm sure Berry it's just trying to enjoy herself to her fullest. Now..." Rarity turned around to face her alicorn friend. A mischevous glee in her eyes "...perhaps we should talk about the uniforms." Twilight mentally sighed. Of course, how could she have forgotten that detail. "I'll make sure to have everypony dropping by your Boutique tomorrow. If you're not too worried of course." "Ah, splendid!" Rarity replied enthusiastically. She then approached Twilight while covering one hoof over her mouth."Now between you and me, I was looking forward to make some measurements on those fascinating stallions." Twilight blinked several times while trying to process what she just heard. When the words finally clicked into her mind she stared dumbstruck at the fashion-obsessed mare. "Huh..." Was all Twilight managed to say in response. It was one of these very rare occasions in which her brain failed to function properly. Rarity took notice of the odd response and rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Frankly dear you need to get out more of that castle. I know you hang with us quite a lot, but you could make some stallion friends around your age for a change." "Urgh, Rarity no offense, but you sound like my mother." Twilight replied with a frown. Rarity giggled amused at Twilight's reaction. "Indeed. Say....I expect Rainbow's griffon friend to not cause any troubles. I'll have her modeling so I can make her an outfit. It would be for the best if she presented herself as a cooperative customer." Rarity said sounding more business-like than usual. Twilight wasn't really sure about what Gilda would say in regards to spending her time dressing up. "I think she would react in a similar way Rainbow Dash would." Twilight pondered uncertain. Rarity made a very lady-unlike snort. "Of course. These two have more in common than one would like to admit. At least Rainbow can be more civilized." "You really didn't thought that when you first meet her, did you?" Twilight asked while smiling fondly at the memories of the Mane's first encounters. "Well, she was such a ruffian back then. Making friends improved the pony she is today." Rarity replied as if it was an obvious statement. "And what says that Gilda can't be a better griffon if she makes some friends? Would it be that bad to get to know her better? And don't use that Fluttershy crying excuse please. What Gilda did was rude, but we've done worse with each other before and we have always forgiven for our mistakes." Rarity sighed in defeat. Twilight was right despite Rarity's feelings telling otherwise. "You certainty do have a point dear." Rarity replied sounding distant from reality. "Do you think such event would require any special outputs for the outfits? I'm more inclined to think they would need more than just a fabulous uniform." "Now that you've mentioned..." Twilight said while pondering over the subject carefully. "...I expect them to go through harsh conditions provided mostly by the weather. Storms, hurricanes, lightning, snow storms, intense heat or cold, physical collisions. There's a number of key factors that could inflict some damage uppon them that a special uniform could alleviate." Rarity blinked at the ammount of things that a flier could endanger themselves with. "Oh my, dear. I'm not really an expert on those things. Do you think you could help me design the outfits? I wouldn't know where to start if I had to provide safety measurements against harsh weather conditions." Rarity asked sounding unusually anxious. "I can't Rarity. I'm sorry. You should look for a scientific expert around for that matter. I'm not too deep in the knowledge regarding flying and climate. Actually I just finished page thirty-eight of the fifth volume of 'Flying Patterns and Dive Approaches'. A series written by an experienced ex-Wonderbolt member. I never imagined how much you could lear- "Yes, yes. Very exciting darling. Could we please skip to the next trot?“ Rarity interrupted unfazed by Twilight's explanation. Twilight pouted annoyed at the interruption but decided to keep the conversation on track. "I would suggest asking a pegasus for advice or you can ask Doctor Whooves. He's well know for studying weather, gravity dynamics and others things related to environmental research." The suggestion of asking Doctor Whooves for advice seemed to please Rarity tremendously. The stallion was a quite the gentlecolt and she always enjoyed helding a conversation with him. Before anypony could say anything else a generalized silence brought the attention of the Mane Six members currently present. At the entrance of the establishment stood Rainbow, Lightning, Thunderlane and Gilda. The later had missing specs of feathers at her wing tips while Rainbow Dash had a noticeable swollen eye. Despite the visible injuries both stood side by side seemingly content, but the griffon was clearly avoiding looking at the cyan mare as much as possible. Thunderlane and Lightning seemed oblivious to the whole thing as they trotted inside towards a specific corner to talk privately. Rainbow approached towards her friends while Gilda hesitated and choose to follow the other two pegasus instead. Everypony around them stood silent while thinking on the possible reasons for their injuries. " Rainbow Dash." Twilight said sounding extremely aggravated. "Please don't tell me you got into a fight." "Ok, I won't." Rainbow replied humorously. Applejack rolled her eyes in disbelief. "That ain' the answer we expected. Ya better tell us what in the hay happened with ya both." The farm earth pony said not leaving room for argument. "Just two best friends catching up. That's all really." Rainbow said rather evasively. "By exchanging hoofs and claws? What kind of friendship is that?" Applejack asked astonished. "She didn't claw me!" Rainbow protested vehemently. "I was caught off guard, that's all. She would never claw me!" "Then what happened? I really need to know Rainbow Dash, especially since I appointed her as captain I better have a reason to not change my mind." Twilight said with severity. The cyan mare felt her nervous smile slowly melting off of her face and being replaced with an upset pout. "She was....feeling a lot about my choice." Rainbow Dash said, but that didn't explain much. "What do you mean, dear? Did she hated you for not wanting to stay with us?“ Rarity asked confused. "No! She doesn't really hate me, but...it's not about us....rather....well....she said.....she said if I go after my dream she won't be able to follow me around anymore. Like....when we were at Flight Camp we always talked about growing up and doing awesome things togheter." Rainbow paused for a second as she tried to find the correct words to explain Gilda's feelings on the matter as well as her own. "And now I can finally become the awesomest thing a pegasus could want to be!" Rainbow said excitedly but it was short lived. "But Gilda...she...." It finally clicked in Twilight's mind what the whole issue was and it astonished her to see how deep Gilda and Rainbow's bond has been formed. "Griffons can't be Wonderbolts." The alicorn princess said as if finally the world made sense. "Yeah..." Was all Rainbow Dash could say before adding. "...I kinda said that and got an swollen eye right after." "Oh, really? Ya said that with these exact same words?“ Applejack asked ironically. Rainbow chuckled nervously. "Maybe I could've been less....huh....what's the word you say for saying something all of sudden without being nice?" "Blunt?“ Twilight suggested although she was sure that was the answer was something like 'rude' or 'insensitive'. " Yeah, pretty much that." Rainbow said while still feeling guilty. " I didn't know that meant so much for her. She never said anything about wanting to be a Wonderbolt. We talked about it at Flight Camp though..." "Which probably was ya sayin' how much of a great Wonderbolt ya would be." Applejack said not surprised in the slightest. Rainbow chuckled embarrassed. "Yep, I guess I really never bothered to ask her anything she wanted to be..." Twilight Sparkle never saw Rainbow Dash held so much regret for her actions as she was doing now. Perhaps the consequences of her old self-centered personality were finally coming back to haunt her. "This is your chance to do what you should've done a long time ago. Just know of this Rainbow, independent of what you choose we will support you no matter what." Twilight said much confidently as possible. Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, and somewhere else Pinkie Pie, all were in agreement with Twilight. "What about Gilda?“ Rainbow asked worriedly. Twilight blinked at the cyan mare's concern despite receiving support from her friends. It seems that just the Mane Six wouldn't be enough to calm her mind. "Gilda probably will be disappointed, but she will come to accept it over time." Twilight said hoping that was an enough answer. Rainbow Dash frowned slightly but didn't say anything in response. Instead she nodded before turning around and trotting away to the nearest food table. "You think she will be alright?“ Rarity asked feeling extremely sympathetic towards Rainbow Dash. "She can be risking her friendship by accepting the Wonderbolts." "If Gilda is truly a friend then she will be happy for Rainbow Dash no matter what she chooses." Twilight replied assured of her beliefs. "What if it isn't about friendship?" Fluttershy asked timidly. All the other mares stared at the yellow pegasus. The sudden drive of attention made Fluttershy nervous. "What else could it be?“ Twilight asked puzzled. This was a very unlikely scenario, but maybe Fluttershy saw something that they didn't. Unfortunately Fluttershy felt too nervous to speak with so many ponies looking at her. The mare retrieved back to the nearest table leaving a bunch of confused mares wondering. What really was the issue between Gilda and Rainbow Dash?