//------------------------------// // River Rafting // Story: Diamond Gold // by Super Spike //------------------------------// Spike and Diamond Gold were so tired from the lack of sleep that they got the night before, that they fell asleep the moment they got in their sleeping bags.  Before Spike fell asleep, he thought about what Diamond Gold said before they got to school. Am I really still a girl?  I mean, I’m pink!  Is it wrong for a boy to be, or even like, pink? Spike took a deep breath upon thinking about Diamond Gold’s statement. Diamond Gold, he thought.  It doesn’t matter what color you are or like.  You are entitled to like whatever you want to like.  I mean, it’s just a color.  What’s the big deal about that?  My favorite color is purple and I’m also purple. Not wanting to feel tired for tomorrow’s river rafting trip, Spike decided to get some sleep. *  *  *  * The night ended in a flash and before long, several foals were waking up for today’s river rafting trip.  As Spike got out of his sleeping bag, with Pipsqueak, who was sharing the tent Spike was in and was still asleep in his sleeping bag, he saw the sunrise and smiled. Beautiful, he thought. Within moments, Diamond Gold and Silver Spoon joined him. “Isn’t the sunrise beautiful?” Spike asked the duo. “It sure is,” Diamond Gold said. “It’s gorgeous,” Silver Spoon said. “Are you looking forward to river rafting?” Spike asked Diamond Gold. “I sure am,” Pipsqueak said, who walked up to the group. “Uh, I don’t know,” Diamond Gold responded. “Why?” Spike asked. “It’s just…” Diamond Gold stammered.  “I’ve never camped before.  I’ve never even experienced much of the outdoors.  If I got hurt, my parents might sue every pony. “Don’t worry,” Thunderlane said, who joined the group.  “These rapids aren’t too hard.  Our trip is going to be about fifteen miles long.  It’ll start here at Camp Everfree and end at Fluttershy’s cottage.  Afterwards, Fluttershy will provide dinner for us there.  The rapids are mainly class IIs with a few IIIs, but no worse.” “So, when are we going river rafting?” Rumble asked, who joined in as his older brother was discussing about the trip with the group. “Well right now, it’s only 6:30,” Thunderlane responded.  “So, it’s time to have breakfast.  Afterwards, we will pack up our camping gear and place it in one of the rafts.  We should be ready to go at about 8:00.  Our trip should end at around 5:00.  Now then, shall we have some breakfast?” Within minutes, everypony was eating the food that they brought from home.  As they were eating, Diamond Gold stood up. “Hey Thunderlane, are we going to wear lifejackets and helmets during the trip?” he asked. “Oh yeah,” Thunderlane responded.  “It’s going to be a rough trip.  But don’t worry.  I’ve gone through this river many times and never had a problem?” “Is it because you’re a pegasus and thus, can fly away from any obstacles?” Diamond Gold asked. “Nope,” Thunderlane said.  “I never fly when I’m on a raft.  I always stay on it when I’m rafting.” “So, you rafted without ever using your wings?” Shady Daze asked. “That’s right,” Thunderlane said.  “Most of the trip should be easy for rafting.  The rafts are mostly soft for the first half of the trip.  At around noon, we’ll stop somewhere for lunch.  Afterwards, we’ll start rafting again and during the second half of the trip, the water will get rougher, but it will still be doable.  Now then, let’s get ready.” After breakfast, everypony packed up their camping gear, placed it in their backpacks, and tied it on the raft. “I hope my stuff doesn’t get all wet,” Diamond Gold said. “Don’t worry,” Thunderlane said.  “The backpacks that I gave all of you are waterproof.  So you have nothing to worry about.  You’re stuff is safe.  Now then, shall we begin roll call?  There are fifteen of you here.  Rumble?” “Here,” Rumble said. “Spike?” Thunderlane called out. “Here,” Spike responded. “Diamond Gold?” Thunderlane called out. “Here,” Diamond Gold responded. The roll call continued for another minute.  Eventually, it came to an end. “Lastly, Featherweight?” Thunderlane called out. “Here,” Featherweight responded nervously. “Alright then,” Thunderlane said.  “We will now pick rafts.  Each raft will contain five of you.  As for me, I’ll be on the raft with all of the camping gear.  But don’t worry, I’ll be sure to stay with all of you the whole way.  So stay close to each other so that we can be sure that we all stay together.  Now then, let’s decide who goes on what raft.  We’ll be doing a schoolyard pick, so I’ll need three volunteers.  How about one earth pony, one unicorn, and one pegasus?” “I’ll do it,” Rumble said. “I guess I can give it a try,” Spike said. “I’ll volunteer,” Pipsqueak said. “Alright then,” Thunderlane said.  “Now let’s make our teams.  Rumble, you’re picking for team number one since you chose to volunteer first.  Spike, since you were the second to do so, you’ll go second.  And Pipsqueak, you’ll go third because you were the third to choose to volunteer.  Now then, who will go with who?” “I choose Lickety Split,” Rumble said. Lickety Split happily trotted over toward Rumble.  Spike looked at the remaining possibilities. “I choose Diamond Gold,” he said. Diamond Gold happily trotted toward Spike. “I pick Featherweight,” Pipsqueak said. Featherweight trotted toward Pipsqueak nervously.  The schoolyard pick then continued. “Chip Mint,” Rumble called out. “Silver Spoon,” Spike called out. Diamond Gold smiled as his best friend trotted toward him.  Featherweight then looked at his friend, Shady Daze.  Pipsqueak smiled toward them. “Shady Daze,” he called out. “Truffle Shuffle,” Rumble called out. “Chip Cutter,” Spike called out. “Tender Taps,” Pipsqueak called out. Rumble looked at the three remaining colts and saw Button Mash playing a Game Boy, while Snips and Snails were grinning toward him. “Snips,” Rumble said. Snips happily trotted toward Rumble.  Spike then looked at Button Mash and Snails and made his choice. “Button Mash,” he said. Button Mash put his Game Boy in his camping gear and trotted toward Spike. “I guess that means I’m with Pipsqueak,” Snails said, as he trotted toward him. “Okay,” Thunderlane said.  “Let’s put our lifejackets on and get on the rafts.” With that said, the foals put on their lifejackets, pushed the rafts into the water, and got on their rafts.  As their rafts began moving throughout the river and Thunderlane put on his lifejacket, pushed the raft containing all of the camping gear, and got on it, Diamond Gold got a little worried. “I don’t know about this,” he said. “Don’t worry, Diamond,” Silver Spoon said, as she began paddling.  “I actually went on a river rafting trip with my parents and it was actually on this very river.  It’s pretty easy actually.” “Okay, Silver Spoon,” Diamond Gold said.  “I trust your word.” “That’s the spirit,” Silver Spoon said.  “Now let’s have some fun!” Diamond Gold smiled as the trip began.  After a few minutes of rafting on soft running water, the foals approached their first rapid. “Okay, everypony,” Thunderlane said.  “We are now coming toward our first rapid of the day: Bumper.  It is a class II rapid, so it shouldn’t be too hard of a rapid to get past.  Just look carefully at where you raft.” The foals cheered in excitement as they began going up and down while riding the rapid.  Within moments, the water slowed down and everypony began rafting at a normal pace. “So, Diamond Gold,” Spike said.  “How do you like river rafting so far?” “It’s…” Diamond Gold began.  “AWESOME!  That was totally fun!  What about you?” “It was cool,” Spike said.  “I want to do it again!” “Well, you’ll be given plenty more chances,” Thunderlane said.  “Our next rapid is about a quarter of a mile away.  It’s called Pinball.  It’s a class II+ rapid, so it’s going to be a bit harder, as it may make your rafts move left and right.” “I guess that’s why it’s called Pinball,” Button Mash said.  “I love pinball!” The foals then began riding on the rapid and after a few twists and turns, they cheered as they exited the rapid. “Whoopee!” Pipsqueak exclaimed. “Here comes the next rapid: Old Turtle!” Thunder lane exclaimed.  “Class II!” The foals shouted in happiness as they went through the rapid.  As they continued rafting, Featherweight got a bit scared of what he saw ahead of him. “Uh, Thunderlane?” he called out to him. “Yes, Featherweight?” Thunderlane responded “What is that rapid coming up?” “That rapid is called Rusty.  It’s a class III rapid.  Because of that, we need to do something to avoid falling out of our rafts.  We need to steer our raft away from the spiraling rapids or we might spin around, hit a rock, and get knocked into the water.  Now then, are we all ready?” “Let’s do it!” the foals exclaimed. Everypony paddled to the right and managed to avoid the dangerous part of the rapid. “Phew, that was close,” Diamond Gold said. For the next three hours, Thunderlane and the foals rafted through many rapids: Tide Pullers (class II+), Bouncing Moguls (class II+), Needle Thread (class III), Fresh Ride (class II), Rock Slide (class II+), Canyon (class III), and Back Flip (class III-). Eventually, at 11:30, the crew found a resting place at a beach. “Okay, everypony,” Thunderlane said.  “It’s time to stop here and have lunch.” Upon hearing Thunderlane’s announcement, the foals docked their rafts on the beach.  Everypony then pulled out their food from their camping gear and began eating on a picnic table.  While Spike and Silver Spoon ate their lunches, Diamond Gold looked at the other colts as he ate his.  He saw Snips and Snails eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and getting rather messy.  Then he saw Tender Taps eating a turkey sandwich and afterwards, dancing on the beach.  Diamond Gold sighed. I guess not all ponies have to be female to take dance lessons, he thought.  I mean, come on.  Even I think it’s wrong to say that one gender can’t associate him or herself with activities that are usually performed by the opposite gender.  I think it’s cool that he can dance. Curious to learn how Tender Taps is able to dance that well, Diamond Gold walked up to him. “Uh, hey Tender Taps,” Diamond Gold said.  “How’s everything going?” “Great, I guess,” Tender Taps responded. “I see that you’re dancing,” Diamond Gold continued.  “I was wondering how you do all of those dance moves.” “Well, it’s pretty easy, actually,” Tender Taps said.  “I was about to do a spinning top as part of my dancing routine.  To do that, I have to stand on my hind legs, place one of them on the other, place my forelegs together, hold them up high, and then spin.  Watch.” Tender Taps spun himself as if her were a spinning top or a ballerina.  Diamond Gold watched him do so and looked amazed. “What do you think?” Tender Taps asked Diamond Gold after finishing his dance move. “That was amazing!” Diamond Gold exclaimed.  “You should be in a dance recital.” “Really?  You really mean it?” “Of course I do.  You would be great.” Tender Taps got a bit nervous. “Y-yeah, about that,” he said nervously.  “You see, I get a little stage fright when I’m performing.  I’m a student at Hoofer Steps’ Dance Class and I’ve been trying to become a better dancer and I’ve been a great student.  However, ever since I started taking dance lessons, I’ve been worrying that I would mess up and get laughed at for tripping or missing a move.” “No one’s going to do that to you,” Diamond Gold said.  “If you do perform, I’ll watch you and make sure that nopony goes laughing at you.” “Really?  You would do that for me?” “Of course I would.  Now then, I should probably clean up my lunch. “Okay.  See you back on the raft.” “You got it.” Diamond Gold trotted back to the picnic table and cleaned up her lunch.  After about an hour of resting, the foals got back on their rafts and resumed their trip through the river. “Okay, everypony,” Thunderlane said, as he got on his raft.  “Before we begin the second half of our trip, we need to make sure that we’re all here.  So stand still so I can count all of you.” All of the foals obeyed and Thunderlane was able to finish the count within fifteen seconds. “Okay,” he said.  “It looks like we have everypony.  So let’s go!” Everypony began rafting down the rapids.  Diamond Gold was having a blast throughout. “Okay, everypony,” Thunderlane said.  “Here comes the biggest rapid we will be facing today: Splinter!  It is a class III+ rapid, so hang on tight.  It’s going to be a bumpy ride!” The foals took heed on Thunderlane’s warning.  Some of them looked scared as they approached the rapid.  Others looked at the upcoming sight.  Once they made it to the rapid, the foals’ rafts rocked rapidly. “This doesn’t feel safe!” Diamond Gold shouted. After about fifteen seconds of intensity, Thunderlane and the foals made it past the rapid completely unharmed. “Phew,” Diamond Gold said. “What did you think about that?” Thunderlane asked. “That was awesome!” Snips exclaimed.  “Let’s do it again!” “Well, there are seven more rapids until take-out,” Thunderlane said.  “So let’s enjoy them while they last.” As the trip progressed, Diamond Gold got a bit tired.  After going through three more rapids, Spike turned toward him. “Are you alright?” Spike asked. “Yes,” Diamond Gold responded.  “I’m just tired.  This trip has worn me out big time.” “Don’t worry, we’re getting close.  Just four more rapids until take-out.  Then you can rest.” “Okay, I believe you.” “Okay, everypony,” Thunderlane said.  “Here comes another big rapid: Slippery Road!  It is a class III rapid, so be on the lookout for bumps and rocks.” The foals looked ahead and steered their rafts away from the rocks.  Before long, everypony made it past the rapid without any problems. Within fifteen minutes, the foals were down to their last rapid. “Alright, everypony,” Thunderlane said.  “Here’s the last rapid: Spiral Slide!  It’s a class III rapid, so be prepared to spin around as this rapid isn’t called spiral for nothing!” The foals shouted in excitement as they spun around the rapid for a few seconds.  Afterwards, the foals made it beyond the rapid feeling dizzy. “Whew,” Silver Spoon said.  “That was close.” “Tell me about it,” Diamond Gold said.  “I almost threw up from spinning around like that.” After a few minutes of passing through some mildly rough water, the river became calm. “Okay, everypony,” Thunderlane said.  “We’re almost there.  Just about a quarter of a mile to go and then we’ll be at Fluttershy’s Cottage.  So forward paddle, every pony! The foals did so and before long, they made past the bridge just outside of Fluttershy’s Cottage.  Diamond Gold stretched his sore forelegs as he paddled to the beach. “Nice job, everypony,” Thunderlane said.  “Now let’s get our rafts out of the river and go see Fluttershy.” The foals cheered as they got out of their rafts and pulled them out of the water. “Whew, I’m exhausted,” Diamond Gold said.  “But it was fun!  I hope to do this again someday.” “I’m glad you had fun,” Spike said.  “Now let’s go have some dinner with Fluttershy!” “You got it!” Diamond Gold said. With that said, the foals walked to the front door of Fluttershy’s Cottage. Spike walked to the front door and knocked on it three times.