//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 Archery Training // Story: Scaled Heights // by Zephyr Spark //------------------------------//             When Spike went to the gym that morning, Rainbow Dash was waiting for him. She led him away from the gym into the shooting range, explaining it was time he got used to the bow. The bow he used two and a half months ago stood on its side like a harp, right where he last saw it. He felt almost as though it had been waiting for his return, like a long-lost friend. Rainbow Dash stopped him from rushing straight to the bow.             “Don’t shoot just yet,” she said. “I want to see if you can draw without straining yourself. Been reading those books on archery?”             Spike nodded with unmasked eagerness. Dash motioned for him to begin with a gesture at the bow. Quickly grasping the bow, he nocked the arrow and drew back the string without much of a strain. Compared to last time, the bow yielded to his strength more readily. Somehow, Spike felt like the bow was finally acknowledging him; as though he finally became strong enough for the mighty weapon. Of course, he still had to master archery and develop the proper muscle memories. At least now, he would be strong enough to repeatedly draw the string.             “Alright,” Dash nodded, “I think you’re ready to start archery.”             Spike brought the string back to its resting point. Dash wondered why he had not fired the arrow. He pointed to his arm.             “Could I get an arm guard?” He asked Rainbow Dash, “Don’t want to hurt myself after all.”             “Yeah, sure,” Dash replied. “I almost forgot.”             She reached into her saddlebag and drew an arm guard. She glanced at the guard shaped for a pony’s broad hoof and then at Spike’s slim, dragon arm. A frown spread across her face.             “This won’t do,” Dash muttered. She shifted through her bag, looking for a different arm guard. Half a dozen arm guards and not a single one suited for a dragon. “Why didn’t I think about this? There aren’t any archery arm guards shaped for dragons.”             “There aren’t?” Spike blinked. A heavy feeling began to form in his stomach. “Are you sure?”             “I meant that I don’t have any,” Dash raced to cheer Spike up. “It doesn’t mean we can’t get one. I just…” she shrugged in honest defeat, “Don’t know how.”             Spike scratched his chin. A thought crossed his mind. “Maybe Rarity could help.”             “What?”             “Maybe Rarity could make an arm guard for me. She’s made clothes just for me before, so I’m sure if she had some instructions, she could make an arm guard.”             Dash beamed, “Good idea. Let’s go ask her.”             Rainbow Dash flew them to Carousel Boutique within minutes. Spike dropped from her back, feeling a bit nauseated. Dash just didn’t do slow. The pegasus trotted straight to the door and knocked.             “Just a minute!” Rarity’s voice sounded from within. A loud crash followed by notably unlady-like cursing rang from the house. Spike and Rainbow Dash exchanged nervous glances, hoping Rarity hadn’t hurt herself.             “Rarity, you alright?” Spike called, “It’s me, Spike.”             “I’ll be there in a moment, darling.”             The door opened, and Spike managed not to flinch at Rarity’s ragged appearance. Her mane had a few hairs out of place, a grievous sin to the orderly mare, while her eyes behind the lens of her working spectacles had red creases. Spike had a bad feeling she was overworking herself. She still managed to greet him and Rainbow Dash with her usual enthusiasm and invited them inside, though the inside was not pretty.             The shop had bits of parchment, bills, and cloth on the ground. A mannequin had toppled to the ground and split at the neck. Spike had no further doubts the mare was working over-time. Before he could suggest coming back at a better, less stressful time, Rainbow Dash explained their situation.             “So the bottom line is we need an arm guard specially tailored for Spike. Can you do it?”             “Should be simple enough.” In her mind, Rarity already imagined the ideal arm guard for Spike. Thankfully, she had constructed similar sporting equipment before.             “I’m imagining you’ll want this soon?” Rarity had apprehension about another chore on top of her numerous requests.             “Yeah, if you could,” Dash nodded. “The sooner Spike can start training with the bow, the better.”             “I suppose I could have the arm guard finished in two or three hours.” She glanced at a clock hanging in the living room. “I’d need to take Spike’s measurements of course.”             Dash reached into her saddlebag and offered Rarity a hoof-full of bits. Rarity shook her head and pushed the bits back.             “You don’t have to pay me.”             Rainbow Dash pushed the bits back to Rarity, “I want to.”             “Why?” Rarity frowned.             “I just do, alright?” Dash admitted with some exasperation, “You’ve been working all day. You deserve it.”             Rarity smiled and scooped the bits into her purse. Dash asked if Rarity would need her for anything else, to which Rarity shook her head. With that handled, Rainbow Dash excused herself to go practice for the Games, promising to return for Spike in a few hours. With Dash gone, Rarity led Spike into a corner of her room with three tall mirrors. He took a seat on a bench, while Rarity returned with a yellow measuring tape and a clipboard. Spike offered her his hand. A wave of heat rose in his chest as he thought about her marble white hoofs grazing his scaly claws. Sadly, she just levitated the tape measure onto his arm with magic. A little disappointing, but they were still kind of touching.             “I hear Rainbow Dash has been putting you through daily workouts,” Rarity remarked as she measured his wrist. “She’s not pushing you too hard, is she?”             Spike puffed out his chest. “It’s nothing I can’t take.”             Amused, Rarity rolled her eyes at his bravado. “Yes, I’m sure you’re the toughest little dragon at the gym.”             “The only dragon at gym,” Said Spike with a nonchalant shrug. “But Dash definitely pushes me to try hard.”             “Do try to be careful,” she remarked while recording his wrist size onto her clipboard.             “With Dash?” Spike deadpanned.             Rarity paused a moment, considering Dash’s personality.             “Good point. Just be as safe as you can.”             Rarity measured the width of Spike’s palm, noticing how it trembled.             “Are you worried?” Asked Rarity.             “About the Games?” Spike’s smile did not reach his eyes. He let out an innocent but revealing chuckle. “Yeah, I guess so.”             “Nothing wrong with a little worry. In moderation, it keeps you sharp.” Rarity recorded the width on her clipboard and went to measure the length of his forearm.             “Well, I’m more worried about being the first dragon to participate.”             “Why’s that?”             Spike’s gaze turned down, his eyes grew cloudy. “What if I’m not as good as the other archers? I mean all those unicorns have been doing this forever. They’re probably so much better than me.”             “That’s why you’re practicing, dear.” Rarity said as she recorded the length and wrapped the tape measure around his forearm.             “Yeah, but…” Spike’s free claws rapped the bench in a troubled melody, “What if something goes wrong and I let Ponyville down?”             “Rainbow Dash wouldn’t have chosen you if she didn’t believe in you.”             Rarity wrote the final measurement she needed and asked Spike to wait in the living room, while she went upstairs to her sewing room. Spike waited for thirty minutes before deciding to make himself useful. He pieced the shattered mannequin back together, then picked up the tattered pieces of cloth lying around. By the time he finished cleaning her dirty dishes, Rarity came back downstairs.             “Oh, Spike.” She overlooked his work with a smile of relief, “You really are a mare’s best friend.”             “I’m just happy to help,” Spike grinned.             Rarity hugged him, “Oh, you are just the cutest little friend a girl could ask for.”             She levitated the arm guard and placed it into his hands, which he wasted no time in putting on. Spike had to admire Rarity’s expert handiwork. The Tuscan red brace fit snuggly onto his arm, wrapping around his forearm and over his palm. She even etched a fire-breathing dragon into the forearm piece. However, what really caught his eye was the message stitched onto the texture: We believe in you.             She beamed at him, “When I catch up with my orders, I’ll come watch you practice. Alright?”             Spike blushed, “I’d be honored, and thanks.” He flexed his arm, lifting the arm guard to his eye level. “I’ll treasure it forever.”             Rarity’s lips curled into a genuine smile that showed her pearly white teeth. Spike’s compliment lifted a weight from her shoulders. Spike smiled back, flustered and pleased to make Rarity smile. He tore his eyes from the mare so his mind would not overload from delight and deteriorate any further. Instead, he turned his gaze to the clock.             “Rainbow Dash said she’d be back in a few hours,” Spike twiddled his claws and shuffled his foot. “Maybe I could help you until then?”             “Oh, would you? That would be wonderful.”             Twilight shoved the scroll to the corner of her desk into a scroll pile. She stifled a yawn from the sleepless nights at the desk, as she quietly drew out a blank paper and her quill.             “Dear Mayor of Fillydelphia,” she dictated as her quill scribbled. “I appreciate the concerns of your council, but forcing all nonponies to register with the government would only breed distrust and dissension. We have entered an age of peace between dragons and ponies. Thanks to Princess Ember, dragons see us as allies. A registration act would undermine everything she is working for. Furthermore,” she stopped to gather her thoughts.             Out of the corner of her eye, Twilight noticed Starlight, and she jumped in surprise at her sudden appearance.             “Sorry,” Starlight apologized. “Something came in the mail for you.” She offered Twilight a white envelope from a children’s publishing company.             “They finally answered my letters?” Twilight took the note. “I’ve been writing to them for the past two months.”             “What were you writing for?” Starlight asked.             “I want them to stop circulating an old story.”             “Wait a minute. You, Twilight Sparkle, the biggest bookworm and most avid reader of Equestria, want someone to stop publishing a book?” Starlight’s jaw dropped. “There’s only one explanation.” She turned to the ceiling, “Discord! Stop messing with Twilight.”             A sheet of paper poofed before Starlight with a single message from Discord: Never. In a second, the letter burst into chocolate rain, which Twilight dispelled before it could drench her scrolls.             “Starlight, what did we say about talking to you-know-who in my study?”             “Don’t do it?” Starlight guessed with a weak smile. “Anyways, I don’t need him putting a book-hating spell on you.”             “Discord had nothing to do with this.” Twilight rolled her eyes. “And it’s not that I want them to stop publishing it. I want them to add a note warning young readers that the views reflected in the story do not reflect reality. The story was written centuries ago when ponies and dragons were bitter enemies. I feel that it paints dragons as cruel, manipulative, and selfish. It spawned a line of dragon and griffon-hating literature that enforced false assumptions. I’d like the publishers to add stories of kind, noble dragons and loyal griffons to the storybook. To give a more balanced, complete perspective.”             Starlight blinked. Twilight sighed, realizing she lost Starlight.             “You know how some ponies automatically assume all dragons are mean and dangerous or all griffons are greedy?” Starlight nodded. “I’m worried this story gives fillies and foals the wrong ideas.”             “Oh, I see,” Starlight said. “What’s the book called?”             “Sir Knight of Trottingham.”             Starlight’s face lit up, “I read that all the time as a filly.”             “It’s a classic,” Twilight admitted. “However, the subtext is not flattering.”             “It’s just a kid’s book,” Starlight said. “I’m sure most ponies know dragons don’t kidnap princesses and griffons don’t –,” she paused. “Alright, I guess I see your point. If I hadn’t met Spike, I guess I wouldn’t know better.”             Twilight took out the letter and read, “Dear Princess Twilight Sparkle. Thank you for sharing your concern. Our office receives dozens of letters addressing similar concerns every day. We assure you that we intend to address these concerns in an updated volume. Unfortunately, it is difficult to find many fairy tale stories from centuries ago that paint a positive picture of dragons and griffons or find modern stories that portray noble dragons and griffons, as well as have enough merit to stand alongside Sir Knight of Trottingham. Please have patience with us. Thank you for your time.”             Twilight placed the letter into tan file in her desk drawer containing dozens of letters, all organized from earliest to latest. Starlight bet Twilight had a meticulous organization system only she and Spike would know.             “So why the sudden interest in children’s books?” Starlight asked.             “I’m sure you know Spike’s auditioning for the Equestria Games in a few months,” Twilight explained. “I want to make it easier for him in anyway I can. That’s why I’ve been writing to the mayors of various towns; to make sure they are on board with Spike in the Games.”             “And are they?”             Twilight gave light scowl. “Difficult to say. The Crystal Empire is overjoyed to hear Spike wants to compete. Sadly, other towns have some reservations.”             Starlight did not like the way Twilight said, “reservations.”             “I don’t believe this.” Starlight scowled as she paced across the room. “Spike is a national hero. Nopony should treat him like that.”             “Some of their concerns aren’t baseless,” Said Twilight. “Some towns worry being a dragon gives Spike an unfair advantage or that he’s too young. Now, I answered that he has to learn archery from scratch because no other dragon has ever used a bow. So he’s already at a disadvantage, and and psychologically at least, he’s much older than most fillies his age.”             “I guess,” Starlight said, still disgruntled at the thought of any pony mistreating her friend. “Anyways, are there any big objectors?”             “Yes, three or four,” Twilight nodded. “I’m most concerned about Baltimare’s position. They’re hosting the Games this year and they haven’t made their position clear.”             Starlight tapped her hoof. She had a suggestion in the front of her mind, but felt advising her own mentor would be inappropriate.             Twilight noticed Starlight’s expression, “Do you have something you want to say?”             “Yeah,” Starlight conceded. “If you really want to support Spike, maybe you should, you know…” She lifted a hoof, attempting to think of an appropriate gesture. “Help him with his archery. Cheer him on when he practices, get him a teacher, that sort of thing.”             “A teacher?” Twilight blinked. She wore the expression of a mare who realized she had overlooked an important task for the past two months. “Actually, that’s a good idea. If Spike has somepony to work with him one-on-one, Dash can focus on her own training.” Her left desk drawer magically flung open as she plucked a blank piece of paper from her desk.             “Dear Princess Celestia,” she dictated as she wrote. “Hello, this is your humble student, Twilight Sparkle. If you recall, I informed you a few months ago about Rainbow Dash picking Spike as Ponyville’s archer for the Equestria Games. Shining Armor originally coached Spike in archery, but now has his hoofs full with Flurry Heart. Could you recommend an archery teacher for Spike? Thanks for your time, Twilight Sparkle.”             When the ink dried, she rolled up the scroll and bound it with a seal.             Twilight turned to Starlight. “Do you know where Spike is?”             “Training field. Same place he is everyday.”             With that, Twilight headed to the training field. She found Rainbow Dash doing her best to train Spike with a bow. Twilight counted maybe three-dozen arrows in the target, but Dash remained unimpressed.             “Come on, Spike. You got to shoot faster than that.”             “Okay, but how?” He asked. “I’ve been reading that archery book, and I still don’t know how to shoot quickly and accurately.”             “You just…” Dash’s voice trailed off. “Look, I don’t know how the other archers shoot so fast. They just do.”             Spike sighed. “So you can’t help me.”             Twilight cleared her throat. Spike turned around, a little surprised to see Twilight in the training field.             “What are you doing here?” Spike asked. He noticed she was levitating a scroll. “Do you need me to send something to Princess Celestia?”             “I was thinking,” she began.             “Congrats,” Dash chuckled, “that’s quite a feat.”             “I guess it would be to somepony who doesn’t think too often herself,” Twilight snickered, causing Spike to snort. Twilight smiled, hoping she hadn’t offended Dash with her little jab, but the pegasus seemed only irritated.             “Anyways,” Twilight said. “I thought Princess Celestia could recommend an archery teacher for Spike. With her connections, she’s bound to know somepony who could train him, so you could focus on your own training, Dash.”             Spike perked up. “You could get me my own archery teacher?”             “Should be easy enough,” Twilight nodded.             “That would be great!” Spike beamed. “I’d love to learn from a professional.” He turned to Dash. “No offense.”             “So what do you think, Dash?”             Rainbow Dash shrugged. “If you want to help, be my guest.”             She handed Spike the letter and in a puff of green flames, it vanished. A few minutes later, Spike’s stomach became queasy, before he belched out Celestia’s response letter. Twilight opened the scroll and read.             “My Dear Twilight Sparkle,” Twilight read. “I believe I know the perfect stallion to teach Spike. I contacted him and he is both willing and excited to mentor Spike. He can only visit for a few months but I have no doubt he would make Spike into a fantastic archer. His name is Lightning Star—.”             “What?! The Lightning Star?” Dash exclaimed with wide eyes.             “The name does sound familiar,” Spike murmured.             “It should,” Said Dash. “He’s the Crystal Empire’s archer for the Equestria Games. A few years ago, he set the new records for ten different archery contests. Nopony’s ever come close to beating his ice archery record.”             Twilight lifted the letter. “Well, he’s happy to teach Spike. If we say okay, Princess Celestia will tell him and he’ll come right away.”             “Awesome,” Dash grinned. She held back prideful, excited tears. “With him teaching Spike, we’re so gonna win this thing.”             “Thanks for the help, Twilight,” Spike smiled.             Twilight returned his smile, “Anything for you, Spike.”