//------------------------------// // On Eagle's Wings (Part 1) // Story: Tales of the Rainmaker // by BleedingRaindrops //------------------------------// Blue skies stretched for miles over the scattered clouds of the Equestrian landscape. Rainstream’s wings beat tirelessly, propelling her forward through the upper troposphere. She had been flying for an hour, but Rainstream felt no more tired than the moment she’d launched herself from the deck of the school auditorium. The sun rose high, illuminating the landmarks Rainstream would need to find her way. Or rather, had needed. Below her stood the coastal city of Baltimare, surrounding its unmistakable horseshoe bay. A tingling fire built up in Rainstream’s belly as she sped onward, forcing her lips to curl upward in a wide grin. Rainstream blinked, and she was no longer over land. With the shoreline beneath her, Rainstream’s only guide now was the sun at her back to tell her she was headed in the right direction. She looked up toward the horizon. Hello, tomorrow. Rainstream glanced back over her shoulder at the retreating shoreline. Cloudsdale. Stormfeather. Fleetfoot. Dragon? Rainstream frowned. Surely she’d made more friends than that? Oh well. She liked solitude anyway, and she was about to get a lot of it. Rainstream smiled wide and turned back toward her destination. Goodbye, Equestria. I’ll see you in a month or so. Here I come, Griffonia. ~   ~   ~ Several weeks earlier Rainstream barely made it to the end of the stadium hallway before she was ambushed by her former tutor, Fleetfoot. “Hey, you forgot something!” The older mare slid gracefully in front of Rainstream, stopping her dead in her tracks, and holding out a golden cup with wings for handles. Fleetfoot smirked, then took a few steps forward. “Well the award is usually a day with the Wonderbolts, but when Stormfeather came to pick up the trophy instead of you, well… just color me surprised. What gives? You don’t want to hang out with your awesome old tutor and be best buddies again?” Fleetfoot brushed past Rainstream and ran a wing down her back, then filed up next to her. Rainstream shivered slightly at the touch, but Fleetfoot she was used to. In response, she tucked her shoulder up against her face, hiding mostly behind her mane, and looked down. Fleetfoot scoffed. “What, you’re not still shy in front of crowds are you? Come on, you totally just wowed all of them. That was one of the best performances I’ve ever seen, and I’m a wonderbolt!” Rainstream rolled her eyes and kept walking. Fleetfoot could get pretty full of herself at times. Maybe she’d talk herself out of time. The exit was close. “I guess we can’t getcha to join when you graduate then, huh?” Rainstream shook her head slightly without pausing. “Oh come on. Captain Windrider’s all over that… cool lightning thing you did. You’ve really been working on your weather magic huh? Creativity like that is exactly what the wonderbolt shows really need. You should totally join up. Then you’ll be best buddies with the rest of the crew too.” Rainstream stopped, turned and spoke softly. “I appreciate the praise, but I don’t like attention. I did this for Stormfeather. That’s all.” She did her best to give Fleetfoot a pleading look, but she couldn’t stop herself and quickly turned quickly toward the nearby cloud edge. “Rainstream wait!” Rainstream paused, wings already unfurled, and turned just her head back. Fleetfoot wore the most mixed expression Rainstream had ever seen. Pride, in herself for what she had achieved. Pride, in Rainstream, for her achievement. Regret, but for what Rainstream could not tell. Longing, perhaps that Rainstream might stay with her. Anxiousness, for something… soon. And loss, or perhaps just the fear of it. And one more Rainstream couldn’t quite place. Rainstream put her hoof down, and offered a patient—but not too patient—expression. “Just… good luck out there. I know the year’s not over yet but… I’ll see you around, right?” She held the trophy out for Rainstream to take. Hope. Hope that she would say yes. Rainstream smiled fondly. She took the trophy with one of her hooves. “Maybe someday. Thanks for everything.” Rainstream launched herself from the cloud and held her hangtime for as long as she could, savoring the playful grin Fleetfoot gave her in response. The older mare offered a brief salute, before turning swiftly around. Then Rainstream disappeared beneath the cloud. She flew for a long while; it felt good to get away from everypony, and really free her wings. She didn’t do many acrobatics this time. Just basic gliding, and enjoying the sensation of being carried by rising wind currents. Little swirls of air gently pressed up against her coverts. She felt safe and secure on their capable... hooves? Rainstream came to rest on a cloud near where she had told Stormfeather to meet up with her. This would be a good spot. She leapt up one more time to quickly gather some clouds together, and pressed them into a tight ball, then gave it a soft kick. It sprang to life instantly, spilling out a gentle stream of rain onto the cloud she would be resting on. Rainstream then returned to the little cloud beneath the rain and spread herself out. Fleetfoot had always enjoyed basking in the sun. Rainstream liked the rain as well. Here, with her little raincloud, she had the best of both worlds. Rainstream closed her eyes and listened to the swirling song of the upper air as it lulled her off to sleep. Her ears stayed awake, though, and the wind woke her up as it carried the familiar wingbeats of the only pony she wanted to see right now, right to her. He’d come from the south instead of the arena, probably to sneak up on her, but Rainstream had keen ears, she smiled triumphantly as she suddenly rolled over to greet him. “Hey, Stormy! Did you—huh?” Instead of Stormfeather, a gray pegasus mare with a bright fushia mane was rushing toward her. The other mare pulled up at the last second, buffeting Rainstream with her surprisingly large wings. Rainstream dropped to a crouch and covered her head with her hooves, burying her face in the cloud. “Oi, whoa there. Easy, mate. Ye startled me. Funny little raincloud ye got here. ‘Was just gonna ask if ye knew where the flyin’ competition was.” Rainstream opened one eye. The other pony had settled down on the cloud a few feet back and folded her enormous wings. Rainstream couldn’t help but stare for a few moments. Goodness those were huge. She stood up, gaping. The other mare must have noticed her staring, because her eyes widened and she lifted one “Wha—oh is it the wings? Yeah I get a lot of comments about those. I think I get ‘em from me mother. Name’s Dragon—Dragomena, really, but all me friends call me Dragon. Nice to meet ye, mate.” Rainstream opened her mouth to comment on the strangeness of the pony’s name, but then she saw the other mare’s cutie mark beneath her wing. A piece of parchment crossed with a quill! Rainstream’s mouth hung open as she looked up at this strange mare who came out of nowhere. “Oi, you’re freakin’ me out, mate. Ye’alright?” Dragon waved her gray hoof in front of Rainstream’s face for a moment. When Rainstream continued to stare, Dragon gave up. “Eh whatever. Anyway, I’m a traveling novelist. I heard there was a young filly with some extraordinary weather capabilities up here, so I came to check out the flying competition. I was going to ask for directions but then I saw ye lying under a raincloud and figured if anypony knew where to find this filly it might be you. So, how about it. Ye got any ideas, miss….?” Rainstream opened and closed her mouth several times. not panicking not panicking oh is that the back of the cloud oh my gosh say something say something “T-t-t-t-the arena’s back that way!” Rainstream pointed, never taking her eyes off the mare. Finally her legs gave out and she collapsed, dangerously close to the edge of the cloud. Not that it was actually dangerous because she could fly but it was really close and oh thank goodness there’s Stormfeather “Stormy!” Rainstream called out, dancing in place as she willed him here faster. She should have known he wouldn’t be flying. He was still hurt from that stupid accident. A nursepony was pushing a small cloud that held up his wheelchair. So much for privacy. Rainstream all but leapt on him when he finally got close enough. “Whoa, Rainstream, hey, how’ya doin’? Relax I’m fine. Who’s this?” He pointed toward Dragon, who was still standing on the other end of the cloud. Dragon straightened her stance immediately and extended a hoof. “Dragomena, Traveling novelist. Pleased to meet ye, mate. Came up here about a weather making prodigy I heard might be at this competition. Ye haven’t seen her have ye?” Rainstream would love to have slapped Stormfeather for the face he made next, which looked like he was trying to blush and swallow a laugh at the same time. His dark blue coat turned crimson very quickly, and he grinned at her as he snickered silently. “Yeah, I’ve seen her around. She finished her routine about a half hour ago. Best use of lightning I’ve ever seen. It’s a shame you weren’t there.” It would have been a great cover up if the idiot could have kept a straight face, but by the time he finished, Stormfeather was struggling so hard to keep from laughing it was a wonder he could even breathe. Dragon certainly noticed, offering a very sideways glance and a raised eyebrow instead of answering immediately. “What are ye on about, mate? Do ye know where she is or what?” At this, Stormfeather burst out laughing, the Nurse rolled her eyes while staying just outside of the stream of rain, and Rainstream could feel the water evaporating off of her back while she tried very hard to be very small. “Oi! Come on now, what’s the joke. What are you loonies on about?” Rainstream all but melted into the cloud, meanwhile Stormfeather struggled to keep from falling out of his wheelchair, a feat that gave the nurse quite a bit of concern. “Oh, sorry. Sorry it’s just… the irony!” Stormfeather sputtered out as he wiped a tear from his eye. “You’ve been standing next to her this whole time, and it’s even raining!” He didn’t make it any farther than that before another fit of laughter overtook him. It was enough though. Dragon blushed a bit, but turned immediately to Rainstream. “Oi, what? This young mare here? And here I thought I was looking for a filly. You’re a real gem, mate.” She turned back toward Rainstream. “Mind if I ask ye a few things about the weather ye make?” Rainstream could feel her heart racing already. She wasn’t going to last much longer beneath this onslaught. Fortunately Stormfeather came to her rescue. “Now’s probably not a good time, sorry.” He wheeled himself between her and Dragon. “Rainstream’s just a little exhausted and needs to get back to her room. Come visit me by the hospital tomorrow, Ask for Stormfeather. I’ll see if I can convince her to show up.” Rainstream made note of how much Dragon looked Stormy up and down before she answered with what almost looked like a sultry sneer. “Oi I’ll certainly do that. Ciao for now.” The gray pegasus beat her wings once, and banked away out of sight. Rainstream hugged Stormfeather as she left, glaring after her with the heat of the sun. Only after the other mare had left did Rainstream notice Stormfeather wincing beneath her. “erm. Rain. Wings. Pain. Leggo.” Rainstream looked down. She'd completely forgotten about his wings. Her forelegs were wrapped tightly around his shoulders, just over the sensitive wing joints. “ohmygosh I'm sorry!” she said flinging herself from him. She cowered under the disapproving gaze of the nurse, then winced as she saw Stormfeather trying and failing to rub his own back. She lowered her head and opened her wings, preparing to take off, when Stormfeather stopped her. “Hey, Rain, it's okay. It's just sensitive. I'll be fine in a minute. Why don't you help me back to the hospital? That performance was awesome and I'd love to hear it from your side.” ~   ~   ~ Joy lent strength to Rainstream’s wings as she soared over the open ocean. The Celestial Sea wasn’t much of an ocean really. More of a very large lake, according to most maps—including the one Rainstream had taken with her—but it took about a day to cross by wing, so it could be called an ocean. It was sad that Stormfeather couldn’t join her on this first trek of hers. She would have loved him to come along, but there was no getting around it, and he had insisted. Up ahead, a squall was forming. Rainstream laughed out loud to the open air as she sped toward it as fast as her wings could carry her. Nothing could ruin this day. ~   ~   ~ The nurse taking care of Stormfeather stubbornly refused to ‘let a pegasus knowingly prone to panic attacks escort her charge back to the hospital unattended, no matter how great of a flyer she was’. Rainstream wasn’t disappointed though. It just meant a little more time enjoying the sky with Stormfeather. Few ponies realized just how much Rainstream really loved just being in the sky. Nothing below you, or nearby, you can just see for miles, and the cloud formations that took shape on their own if somepony let them be were nearly as breathtaking as the ones Rainstream herself created. She never got bored of it. Not once. Upon return to the hospital, Stormfeather was taken straight to the same ICU room that he’d been in earlier, but there were a lot less ponies this time. Which was just fine. Rainstream was more comfortable away from crowds. After the nurse got Stormfeather plugged back in to a bunch of softly beeping machines, she left the two of them alone and closed the curtain. Rainstream collapsed onto the couch in the room, and laughed. It wasn’t a hearty chuckle like when something is particularly funny, or a giggle, like when something is silly. No, this was a slow, labored laugh one might use when they’ve finally finished a long day. “Tired, huh?’ Rainstream nodded, closing her eyes. “Well don’t go to sleep yet, you’ve still got to tell me how you made that big raincloud. Come on, out with the details.” Stormfeather obviously wasn’t tired, but then again, he hadn’t just flown for a competition. Rainstream groaned in response, wiping a hoof over her brow. “Come on, you made a promise. I’m going to be up for hours. Who’s going to keep me from going crazy from being stuck in this chair?” Rainstream shot him a feigned look of annoyance, then rolled over and sat up. “It wasn’t hard, really. Fleetfoot taught me how to gather clouds two years ago. It’s just second nature to me, now. Same way I made that big storm last month.” Stormfeather laughed nervously, and reached for the cup of water on the tray the nurse had left. “I should teach you someday.” Stormfeather stopped with the cup halfway to his mouth, still open. He stared back at her, eyes wide. A smile slowly grew on his mouth, pulling it wide into a look of excitement and joy. “You mean it?” Rainstream shrugged. “How else is your dad gonna be proud of you?” She smiled, curling one side of her lip into a lighthearted smirk. Stormfeather dropped his cup, remaining frozen in place, hoof halfway to his mouth, still hanging open, all despite the now growing wet stain on his sheets. Rainstream continued smiling for a moment, then suddenly felt like she’d been punched in the gut. No, no no no she had not just said that. Rainstream stuffed her hooves in her mouth, but there was no taking back the words that had already left. Tears built in her eyes as she watched Stormfeather visibly deflate, dropping his now empty hoof and staring down at his wet sheets. She leapt off the couch, grabbing his hoof and holding it to her forehead. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry that was stupid I’m so sorry please forgive me I shouldn’t have said that.” Stormfeather didn’t respond. He let out a low sigh, barely above a whisper. Rainstream’s breath caught in her throat, forming a solid lump that pressed against it. Her mouth hung open, but her eyes did the talking, screaming her apology as loudly as they could. When it seemed that Stormfeather had gone catatonic, Rainstream slumped against his legs and just cried into the sheets. They were wet anyway, so it wouldn’t make a difference. Stormfeather’s hoof moved to the back of Rainstream’s head, and rubbed at her mane. She looked up. His expression hadn’t changed much, but there was depth to it now. He looked… defeated, like all hope had left somehow. “S—” “Do you ever feel like running away?” His question pierced the silence, cutting off her next attempt at words. She stared unblinkingly at him, unable to say anything if she wanted to. Her brain fought to find an appropriate response. He should know she had done exactly that. What a jerk! Why would he bring that up? Didn’t he know how badly she wanted to avoid that topic? But what if he just needed a friend right now? What if she hurt him by getting angry? She should be hugging him. Maybe he’s suggesting something? Should she be considering the notion of actually running away with him? Maybe he’s looking for someone to open up to. She should tell him about the time she ran away. How she probably hurt somepony when she left. She hadn’t even asked about the anonymous donor who had paid for her schooling. … What had her parents thought when she’d run away? “Sorry.” Stormfeather broke her reverie with a single word. He was staring at her with concern now, all of the defeat from earlier gone. “That must be a touchy subject for you. I was just thinking, you know. My parents never really seemed to want anything for me, for me. I thought—” “Please, Stormfeather, just stop it.” Rainstream spoke softly. She wanted to punch him, and hug him, and slap him, and cry with him, and talk at him, but her net emotion finally became zero. She got up off the bed and faced the window. “You don’t understand what you have.” It should be raining outside. It wasn’t. Rainstream closed the blinds, and pretended it was. “When I was a little filly, I ran away from home because my parents cared so little about me, I knew they’d never notice.” She sniffed, running a hoof through the layer of dust that had collected on the window sill. “The nobles in Pegasus society aren’t what the Unicorns of Canterlot are, but they do a great imitation. If my dad thought being friends with someone could raise his status or wealth, they were over for dinner the next day. There were alway so many people in the house, I couldn’t even reach the table some nights. I had to hide in the kitchen or in my room, and that’s if there were no Unicorns in the group. On a good day, Dad just thought of me as an annoying pet that my mom kept around. On the worst…” Rainstream rubbed behind her ear. She could still feel the scar from where she’d hit her head on that mantle. She shook the rest of that awful memory away. “If Eyrie hadn’t taken care of me, I might not have... I might have never… learned...” The next words caught in Rainstream’s throat, which then knotted up. A dam had burst, and there was no stopping the tears that came gushing out in the next second. Rainstream held herself upright through sheer determination as she turned and cried broken words at Stormfeather. “At least your parents notice you! At least they want you to succeed! I’ll bet they even bothered to teach you how to fly instead of holding it over your head for half a year until you finally had to ask your butler how it worked!” As the words left her, Rainstream’s strength finally left her legs and she collapsed to the floor. Stormfeather stared open mouthed and unmoving as Rainstream’s tears dripped from her cheeks. “I never even said goodbye.” She sobbed into her hooves. Eyrie Plum had been so kind to her. He’d held her when she cried. He’d given her dreams of other places. He’d rescued her after that… thing. She should have at least said goodbye. “Rain I… I didn’t know.” Rainstream didn’t look up. “Yeah, I know,” she sighed. “Eyrie used to tell me stories, about another cloud city, about the Cloudsdale weather factory. He left the back gate unlocked during a rainstorm one day. I got to watch the rainfall from the hills nearby. I’d never seen anything so beautiful.” She looked up, smiling through fresh tears. Her voice grew strong, and she stood up, placing her hooves on the bed. “Eyrie Plum is the reason I came here. He said I could learn to really make weather here, and that nopony had ever shown so much love for the rain as I had. He said I could see the world from up here. Travel anywhere, meet anypony. Nopony had ever inspired so much adventure in me. He was too old to make such a trip, but he said he knew I’d make it here someday. And here I am, and I feel like I can do anything now. I want to fly across the sea and see the griffons. And it’s all because he believed in me, like my parents never did.” Rainstream spoke more softly now, but not from timidness. “Your parents have always thought you could be great. That’s why they push you. You don’t realize what you have, and I hate how you keep hating them. They just want to see you be the best you can be. You should really thank them.” Rainstream crawled up onto the bed, laying across the open area near Stormfeather’s feet and smiling with pride at him. Pride for the love she hoped he now realized he had. Pride for who she’d become, and pride for how far he had come. He finally closed his mouth, and looked down at his own hooves. He let out a sigh. “You should just leave me here.” Rainstream looked up in alarm, then rushed to hug her friend. “What? No, I could never—” “Rain, I can’t fly. I don’t know if I’m ever going to fly again, and you can’t just drag a cloud with you to Griffonia for me to lie on. Besides…” He looked down, smiling warmly at nothing. “I think you might be right. I should spend more time with my parents.” Something broke inside Rainstream’s chest in that moment. She wanted to hug him, because she didn’t want to go if he was staying, but she wanted him to come with her. She wanted to hug him and never let go, because he needed a friend. Because he was her friend. Because he had listened to her, because… oh forget it. Rainstream hugged him, and then laughed, and cried, caught somewhere between joy and grief. The pain in her chest grew more potent by the second, but Rainstream didn’t care. Right now she just wanted to remember the scent of his mane, the feel of his chest fur, the sweet soothing sound of his voice. He caressed her feathers and she hummed into his neck. The seconds became minutes as she listened to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. The minutes became hours as his breathing matched with hers, and they fell into a slumbering embrace. ~   ~   ~ The sea was quiet as evening fell. No screaming squall to ravage her ears, no soothing toss of the waves below. The air was cool, tickling her coverts as she glided onward. The salty scent of the sea wafted up to where Rainstream flew just ten meters above it, filling her nose and reminding her of an old myth she’d heard about pegasi’s rather unique pony diet. She could almost taste the fish below. On the dark horizon, a small bump stood out from the flattest of surroundings. There, the far shore. Rainstream’s destination was close, which sent a warm shiver through her belly. She beat her wings harder and raced on, eager to arrive. Suddenly, Rainstream twitched. There was a disturbance on the wind. It was almost too easy to hear amidst the silence of the sea, the subtle whistle of wind over wingtips. Rainstream swiveled her ears, searching for the sound. But it seemed to be coming from everywhere at once. But that could only mean… Rainstream folded her wings and dove swiftly, snapping them open just in time to kick off the water, and corkscrew skyward. The sound of wings followed closely behind. Rainstream rose quickly, flying higher and higher, as fast as she could go. The horizon grew, until she could make out lights on the distant shore, and still she climbed, the sound of heavy wingbeats following close behind her. Kicking off the bottom of a cloud, Rainstream thrust her wings upward to propel herself straight down, just glimpsing a massive dark shape rocketing past her as she changed directions. A long, thin tail whipped her across the face as she went past, confirming that this was not her imagination. Rainstream pulled up and banked hard around a cloud. The soft whoosh of an object passing by a cloud sounded not a few meters off her tail. Huh, whoever this is is pretty agile. Well, they won’t be able to keep up with this Rainstream banked around another cloud, hugging it tight with her wingtips. She then extended her magic to sort of grip the cloud, and pressed on the speed. Faster and faster she flew, using the cloud to pull her in a tighter and tighter circle. The blood drained from her head. Her wings grew heavy, but Rainstream would not budge. Slowly, slowly, the fuzzy tip of a whip-like tail came into view. Rainstream had never actually met a griffon before, but judging by the curve of her flight path, this griffon was fast, but far less agile than most pegasi. Or at least me Rainstream allowed herself a satisfactory smirk, and pulled the loop tighter until the tail came into reach. She grabbed it with her hooves and put the brakes on, hard. There was a sound somewhere between the screech of an eagle and the roar of a lion, and the two fliers went spinning apart. Rainstream recovered instantly, of course, but her… pursuant? “CRAAAHHHOW-wowowowow, WHY would you do that?” the griffon barked. Now that Rainstream could get a decent look at her, she realized just how young this griffon was. She wasn’t much larger than a filly; her wingspan was barely wider than Rainstream’s own. Her wings and tail feathers were a rich, chocolate brown, while her head plumage was a light, silvery gray. Rainstream also noticed that the tips of her primaries were the same silvery gray. Her beak and talons were dark grey. She glowered at Rainstream while massaging her rump. “That really hurts, you know. I was just trying to say hi.” Rainstream’s lip curled. Part of her was screaming to run and hide, but her lungs and wings were too tired to respond. Rainstream flicked her eyes to a nearby cloud. Perfect. She folded her wings and fell, rolling over and sliding backward through the sky. She watched as the young griffon’s eyes widened. “Oh my gosh, are you okay?” She folded her wings and fell after Rainstream like a bomb. Rainstream laughed silently. No need, I’ll just—oof! Rainstream landed on the cloud, just like she’d planned, but she forgot to spread her wings to catch herself, and hit harder than she’d expected. Clouds were, by nature, soft, so it didn’t really hurt. It just startled her. But Rainstream didn’t get much chance to process that before the griffon landed next to her and placed her claws on her shoulders. “Hello? Are you—Ooh! Stop that!” Rainstream couldn’t help it. Those talons were sharp, and the griffon girl just invaded her very personal space! She kicked out instinctively and caught her right in the beak. “What is wrong with you? You just see a stranger and attack them? What’s the deal? Who even are you? Where did you—” “STOP!” Rainstream let out a cry, then covered her face with her hooves. Her whole body was trembling, her heart was beating way too fast. Rainstream grabbed the cloud and focused on the softness of it. Yes, soft cloud. Not sharp… claws.... Rainstream’s head was spinning. She was falling. The cloud was falling. She was looking through a cloudless night sky into the abyss. She was too high. There was no air. Rainstream pumped her lungs but no air came in. She was falling through an endless sky with no wind and no air, and there was a sharp taloned griffon chasing her. A long, slow wail escaped Rainstream’s mouth that quickly became a scream. A set of talons clamped down over Rainstream’s face, cutting off her scream. Rainstream’s eyes snapped open. The crazy griffon was trying to kill her and eat her. She screamed harder through her new gag and kicked up with her legs, using her wings to lift her body off the cloud. Her rear hooves missed the griffon’s head entirely, but they gave her enough leverage to twist out of her attacker’s grasp. And roll right off the edge of the cloud. A quick jab with her hooves sent Rainstream away from the griffon and out into the open air. Normally, falling would not be a problem for a pegasus; Rainstream was a very skilled flyer, and had already shown she could outfly this young griffon. But for some reason her wings weren’t responding. She kicked her legs uselessly as she spun through the unusually silent air. She couldn’t even trust the wind right now, and there was no rain to reassure her. This is it. This is how I die. As the world spun around her, Rainstream closed her eyes and listened for the ocean to finally swallow her as she plunged into it. ~   ~   ~ The thickening silence of an early summer afternoon was finally pierced by the shrill ring of a school bell. Cheers rang out. Papers flew. Teachers groaned. And students fled the classroom as fast as their wings would take them. Well, most of them anyway. An orange mare and a dark blue stallion lagged behind. “Well, another year down, huh?” The stallion groaned as he stood, stretching his legs and back. The mare smiled and remained sitting. “That was our last year, you know,” he said, walking over to her. “No more classes, no more being stuck in the big city. You can actually go travel now, like you’ve always wanted to.” The mare got up, beckoned by some unseen force, and trotted toward the front of the classroom with an eerie grace. She continued on out the door without pausing, down the hall, and outside, stopping only when she reached the edge of the cloud. There she stood, facing the open sky. Before her, Equestria’s plains, Canterlot Mountain, Unicorn Ridge, the distant horizon. “Three years,” she said. The only indication of emotion was she slight smile on her face as she gazed at the southern horizon. The dark blue stallion trotted up next to her, staring at her at first, but then following her gaze. “Are you going home?” he asked. It was a neutral question. He said it as though curious, but there was concern on his face, and worry. “Yeah,” she said, stretching her wings. “And no. There’s somewhere I have to go first.” He chuckled slightly. “You gonna take Dragomena up on her offer to visit her wacky friends down south?” The mare shook her head. She folded her wings and looked sideways at him. “I’m nervous.” “Why?” he asked. “I don’t want to leave you behind,” she said, frowning at him. He smiled back, and nudged her with his hoof. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll be staying with my parents, remember? Dad’s gonna help me get a job at the weather factory, which I’ll be able to do thanks to your lessons. Heck, maybe by the time my wings heal I’ll have my own house and you can move in with me.” “Really?” she asked, tears forming in her eyes. “Yeah,” he said, smiling warmly at her. She smiled back, and wiped a hoof under her eyes. Then she leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. He got up and stumbled back. His cheeks turned her favorite color of the sunset as he rubbed the spot where she’d kissed him and stared back like she were some dream he wasn’t sure he was really having. “Rain I…” She giggled, grinning with delight. He cleared his throat, then stepped one hoof forward like a stallion on a mission. “Rainstream, I don’t know exactly how to tell you this, but I…” The mare’s heart skipped a beat. Her mouth parted as her lips became dry, her wings flared out on their own, and her lungs became incredibly light. “I—I think I… I think I love you. A-and I’d like to be with you wherever you go a-nd… but I don’t want to keep you from your trip because I know you really want to go and I can’t really fly and I’m not really sure where I was going with this but could I maybe just like… do you want to be my special somepony? Please?” He swallowed hard and rubbed the back of his neck furiously. “I know it’s a really awkward time to say it but I feel like… when you kissed me a moment ago...did you—” Rainstream took a step forward, silencing him as their lips met. She felt him relax against her. She felt the softness of his lips, felt their warmth. She could almost hear his heart beating. Or was that her own? Her wings flapped several times in that moment, and when she leaned back, there was an electricity in the air, like the moment right after a bolt of lightning strikes, vaporizing the rain and leaving that static tingle. For a moment, the two of them stared at each other, each enjoying the crimson flush to their cheeks, or the deep sky blue color of his eyes. The rugged shape of his muzzle, or the cute tuft of fur that sat funny on his nose. Or— Rainstream’s thoughts were cut off as Stormfeather leaned forward and kissed her, holding the back of her head with a hoof. She pressed back into him, heart beating a thousand times in the ten secondsminutes she spent locked in his embrace. There was no other thought than the soft lips pressed against her own, the warm fur against her chest, and the gentle hoof in her mane.  This time as they parted it was like waking up from a dream, to find that the pony you were dreaming about was lying there in front of you, and you didn’t really have to leave. She smiled giddily at him, admiring the tone of his shoulders and the tossing of his short mane as the wind caught it. The rose in his cheeks held a special affection for her, and she had no doubt her own face looked similarly starstruck. “Yes,” she said, leaning in for one last quick peck, before sitting back and just looking at him. He let out a sigh, smiled even wider, then laughed. “You know, I never thought I’d get the chance to say that before you left.” “Why not?” she asked. He rubbed the back of his head “I wasn’t going to say it. But then you kissed me and well… I don’t know, I guess I just decided I should finally say something.” He put his hoof back down and smiled proudly at her. She laughed, “Well, I think I’ve got a story for you when I get back. So you have to be here to hear it, okay?” “Okay,” he laughed. “So you decided then?” “Decided what?” “Where you’re going.” Rainstream turned eastward, past Canterlot. Past Neighagra Falls, past Foal Mountain and the distant horizon. Her smile widened, becoming one of joyful anticipation and excitement. “Griffonia.” “Griffonia?” Rainstream flared her wings “Yeah.” The little orange pegasus threw herself from the main cloud ledge of Cloudsdale Flight Academy, spread her wings, and soared eastward, toward the Celestial Sea. I’ve always wanted to meet a griffon. ~   ~   ~ The first thing Rainstream noticed when she came to was that she was no longer falling. She could hear the whistle of wind in the lower troposphere, but she could tell she was still well above the ground. The gentle rise and fall of gravity and the altitude told her she was flying. But her wings weren’t moving. Rainstream looked down. There was enough moonlight to see the ocean flying by beneath her hooves. Yep, definitely flying. But how? Rainstream looked up, and screamed. The griffon girl had her in her talons, and was carrying her back to her nest. “Ugh, no stop screaming. Relax. I’m a friend. Hey. Come on. Calm down!” The talons holding her, suddenly squeezed tighter, causing a bit of pain. Rainstream instantly curled up, pinning her wings to her sides and pulling her hooves tight to her chest. “Relax. I’m not going to hurt you.” the griffon said, exhasperatedly. “I’m really sorry about the talons, but you sort of passed out or something and I’m not sure how best to carry you. Do you think you can fly on your own if I let go of you?” Rainstream focused on her breathing, focused on the salt on the air, and its taste and smell. She focused on the sound of the wind, and the way it felt on her hooves. She focused on the moon’s reflection on the water, and how it shimmered in the night. She let out a long sigh, then nodded. “Mmhm.” “Okay.” The talons released her, and Rainstream spread her wings. The familiar embrace of wind under her wings relieved some of the stress Rainstream had felt in her chest. She flapped to regain altitude, and reassessed her new... companion in the sky. The two of them hovered in place. The griflet wasn’t even remotely out of breath, nor was Rainstream, but this was not a conversation for the air. Rainstream pointed to a nearby cloud and angled down toward it. The griflet followed her and the two of them landed gently on the cloud. For a while neither of them said anything. Rainstream focused on lowering her heartbeat, meanwhile the griffon sat and fidgeted, obviously waiting for something. Finally she rolled her eyes, and reached forward with a talon. “Hi. I’m Gwen.”