When Rainbow Dash halted right before two certain ponies, she rubbed her eyes, stretched her hooves, inhaled and exhaled.
Standing not so far away from the clock tower at the center was a pegasus couple, both of them wearing clothes. Bow Hothoof, the husband, had a trimmed rainbow-colored mane with a lightning-shaped tail of the same colors; like Zephyr, he had stubble on his chin, though neater. Windy Whistles, the wife, had bedraggled hair, dainty freckles, and an orange sweater.
"Honey, why didn't you visit us earlier?!" Windy shouted to her, breaking out into a tight hug. "You know you can't keep a secret from us, especially if it's about becoming a hero!"
Rainbow chuckled. "Yeah...I was definitely trying to keep it a secret but, whoops!"
Bow approached them and ruffled Rainbow's mane, swelling to tears. "It's not the same as becoming a Wonderbolt, but it's close enough! Our only foal, an Equestrian champion, guardian, protector, warrior, vanquisher—"
"Dad, you sound like you just read a thesaurus," Rainbow called out.
Bow nodded, holding up a little thesaurus. "It helped me prepare our speech for all of Cloudsdale at sunset."
Rainbow blinked. "You planned that far?"
Windy let her go from her hug. "Of course, we did! It's a day to celebrate what you and your friends have done for all of us, and we felt that making this day yours would be fun."
Bow nodded. "Yeah! I already organized the dodgeball tournament and named it 'The Dodgeball Dash' 'cause I named it after you!"
"They'll be building statues and naming institutions after our little baby!" Windy said, rubbing Rainbow's cheeks, tears dripping from her own face.
Bow raised a hoof to his chin. "Wait! We didn't even get to ask about your adventure!"
Rainbow lowered her head, trying to avoid their looks. "It went well, Dad, and—"
Windy checked her daughter's wing, unfolding it. "Were you hurt? I heard the Everfree Forest is a very unnatural place!"
Rainbow nodded. "Yeah, it's unnatural, but we got through it. We took down Nightmare Moon, and that's that. It's no big deal."
Windy gasped. "No big deal? Why, that's a big deal! It's not that easy to take down a fairy-tale creature!" Placed a hoof on her own cheek. "And to think I told you those very same bedtime stories to scare you at night, believing she was just made-up!"
Bow ruffled Rainbow's mane again, unraveling it further. "So, how's Fluttershy? I guess you brought her home to let her visit her folks."
Rainbow bared her teeth, anxious. "Yeah...speaking of Fluttershy, could you please let me go? I forgot to tell her something very...important."
Windy grabbed her by the tail. "Haven't you forgotten something else? The Wonderbolts will be performing in a few minutes!"
Rainbow smiled—then suppressed it.
"We'll be busy making sure our dodgeball games will go without a hitch," Bow said. "As fun as their aerial shows are, they get old pretty fast without something personal."
Windy tapped Rainbow on the head. "But, I know you'll get there. I heard you've been practicing in Ponyville almost everyday for the Best Young Flyer Competition just to hang out with them! Such dedication!"
Rainbow let out a nervous laugh. "Y-Yeah. That, too. Look, I really got to go and—"
Pointed behind them.
"Is that Fluttershy I see over there?" Rainbow yelled, cupping her mouth. "I think you two should go talk to her first because I'm pretty busy, too, you know!"
Windy nodded. "If you say so, dear!"
"We'll be seeing you very soon, Miss Loyalty!" Bow said, saluting the Element-bearer.
And the two of them waved their wings off to her as they flew to a Fluttershy that was not there.
Rainbow wiped the sweat off of her forehead. "Phew! Now, let's see where the Wonderbolts are!"
At the end of the square was a road closed off by a few improvised fences. Over there, a varied crowd of young and old watched the Wonderbolts themselves set up a game of dodgeball—these uniformed ponies covering their eyes with thick goggles and donning themselves with blue and yellow uniforms displaying striking lightning imagery.
Murmurs and whispers rose, as one of them held up a red ball, yelling directions and orders to each of her cadets.
Rainbow approached the crowd, holding her hooves to her mouth while she saw the Wonderbolts get ready for the dodgeball game."I c-can't believe they're right i-in front of me! They're r-right here!"
A pony in the crowd turned her head round and saw Rainbow. "Hey, everypony! It's Rainbow Dash, our Element of Loyalty!"
Half of the crowd proceeded to fly out of their places and swarm her, forming a prattling circle of fans around her. There were those who opened their windows by the street only to fly out of them to meet the famed mare.
Rainbow hovered over the cloudy ground, putting on a smirk for them. "Alright, guys, let's slow down and make room for all of you."
A sharp-haired stallion flew to her. "I don't know if you remember me from ice archery class—"
"Ah, Stormbreaker!" Rainbow said, bumping hooves with him. "The Equestria Games are a bit far out, but I like your passion!"
A smile emerged on Stormbreaker's face as he took out an ice arrow. "I got something for you."
Rainbow brought the arrow closer to her eyes.
It was a cold arrow, featuring an icy blue color which made it look like a sharpened icicle.
Etched on one of the fletchings was a painting of a cloud spurting out a lightning bolt of red, yellow, and blue.
"No way!" exclaimed Rainbow, surprised, looking at the arrow then back at Stormbreaker. "That's my cutie mark!"
Stormbreaker nodded, smiling. "What else can I do? They're not Equestria Games Standard, so there's no chance of them being in the Games, but we'll remember you this way."
Rainbow smiled, doing her best to curb a merry laugh.
Another stallion budged his way past the circle, his eyes covered by his brown bangs.
Rainbow crossed her forelegs and wagged her head at him. "What do you have to say for yourself, Hoops?"
That bulky pegasus gulped. "Uh...it's peer pressure!" Faced away from her. "When this all blows over, it'll be back to normal!"
Rainbow blew her mane off of her eyes. "Try me."
Hoops gave her a dirty look.
Then saw all those ponies looking up to Rainbow Dash.
He flew away, growling as he left.
More murmuring and whispering from the crowd as they made way for yet another pegasus.
A pegasus in Wonderbolt uniform.
She took off her goggles, revealing her purple eyes.
Rainbow gasped, held on to her head. "I-Is this r-real?! Is this really h-happening?! A Wonderbolt...a fan of me?!"
Fleetfoot, that Wonderbolt, shook her head, letting her white mane whip about. "Nah. I'm not really much of a fan. However, Soarin told us we should be keeping an eye on you. Saving the world is no easy feat, and, if you can do that, then maybe you could land yourself a spot with us."
Rainbow bit her hooves in disbelief.
Fleetfoot tilted her head a bit. "Don't get your hopes up, though. Captain Spitfire's in talks with Princess Celestia about some reorganizing, so take my word with a grain of salt."
Rainbow grinned. "I'll definitely bring in lots of salt!"
Several ponies in the audience laughed.
Fleetfoot laughed, too. "Starstruck, eh? You'll love it when you're part of the Wonderbolts—trust me."
And Fleetfoot hovered away from the crowd and back to her buddies discussing the rules of the upcoming dodgeball tournament.
As more ponies closed in around Rainbow.
"What was it like over there, Rainbow Dash?"
"Was the Everfree Forest really that dangerous?"
"What does it mean to be the Element of Loyalty?"
Rainbow raised her hoof, slightly smiling. "Take it easy! You'll get your turn. Now, line yourselves up nice and straight..."
Noon passed by and the festival's vigor had not abated at all. In fact, it only grew. On the square, a concert was going on, with a band playing on stage as ponies danced about while they were served heavy snacks like multi-decker sandwiches, canned cauliflowers, and stacks of pizza.
Yet, the home of the Shy's remained unfazed and unscathed by all the action surrounding it, ever threatening to take it over but, somehow, failing every time.
By the front door, Rainbow downed another bottle of soda and threw it at the garbage wagon some city workers were busy pulling through town, their job being to pick up the ever-replenishing party litter of confetti and streamers, among other sorts of trash like gift wrappers.
Rainbow sighed. "Ah, the perks of being famous at last! Too bad Twilight wants all of us to be treated like normal ol' citizens. I need my respect around here!"
She knocked on the front door.
Was quickly opened by Zephyr. "Ah, Dashing Rainbow! We meet again!"
Rainbow groaned. "Where's Fluttershy?"
"Oh, talking with your parents."
Rainbow's eyes widened. "What did you say?!"
"I said—"
Was pushed down to the floor by a speeding Rainbow.
She whirled her head round to the table.
Saw Fluttershy conversing with Bow and Windy—and Pinkie Pie, too, who tied several balloons to her body, floating above the clouds that way.
Windy stood up. "Oh, Dashie! There you are!"
Bow hovered to her. "It's been so long!"
Rainbow rolled her eyes. "It's been five hours."
"I know!" Bow said, proceeding to squeeze her in another hug. "Such a long time, isn't it?"
Windy patted her on the head. "We shouldn't delay anymore, because we set up a Rainbow Dash exhibition debuting in ten minutes!"
Rainbow groaned yet again.
Pinkie waved a hoof at her. "I'm here for the party, even though Twilight told me it was absolutely untenable to do this!"
Fluttershy swallowed her bite of gelatin. "If only we could have all of us together, maybe we could do something like...cheer you up when you're very nervous."
Rainbow glared at her, her mean expression unseen by the snuggling faces of her parents.
"So," Zephyr spoke, looking at Pinkie, "are you that, hm, Sprinkle Pie she's been talking about lately?"
Pinkie laughed. "No, silly, but I do like the idea of putting sprinkles on pies! I've tried it before and it's delicious!"
Rainbow closed her eyes, stuck in the family embrace. "Ugh."
At the cloud park—which was like an ordinary park except the grass was made up of clouds and the other plants grew on specialized "cloud soil"—many gathered, some eating at the wooden tables. It was decorated with rainbow-colored balloons, paintings, statues, and even hats; colorful hats for all to wear, also with matching mini-flags.
Rainbow Dash, following her parents as they flew above the cloud path, sighed, wearing sharp brows and pursed lips while passing by several reporters flashing their cameras and snapping pictures of her—a few even charging in to ask her questions before a guard or two shooed them away.
"See?" Bow said, looking back at her. "You're such an awesome pony, and now all of Equestria's seeing that! But, they haven't realized the full extent of your spectacular awesomeness!"
Windy nodded, smiling. "Which is why we pulled out all our Dash-mentos and put them up on display for a limited time only! Not for fifty percent off, mind you, because—"
Leaned her head closer to Rainbow's ear.
"—they're not for sale!"
Rainbow heroically kept up that smile, though she was twitching. "Yeah, that's...totally fine! Not for sale! You shouldn't sell those trophies about the time I learned how to fly or the time I grew my first tooth!"
Windy giggled, passing by a pond where a family was having a boat picnic on. "Why would we? But, if we would sell them, they would have to be at a trillion bits to be worth it!"
Bow nodded. "Yeah. Wouldn't have it any other way if it's for you, Dashie."
Rainbow smiled. "Eh-heh...thanks, guys."
"We even preserved a sample of your favorite sandwich and, to raise bits for your inclusion into the Wonderbolts Reserves, we're going to sell that because, unlike trophies, sandwiches can rot!"
Rainbow smacked a hoof on her head again. "I already know that, Mom."
As they landed in front of the Rainbow Dash exhibit.
There, underneath a hued canopy, were all the Dash-mentos that could fit inside the stand. Golden trophies shining under the sunlight, medals and ribbons hanging round those trophies, certificates and personal letters and foalhood photos framed and tacked on to the temporary wall at the back, preserved baby books and letters by the shelves.
Rainbow smacked herself on the head. "Oh, no...this is super embarrassing..."
"What was that?" Bow asked in a light-hearted tone, bending his head closer.
Rainbow bit her lip. "Uh, I said, 'Oh, yes! This is super interesting! Everyone's going to love it because of all your hard work and effort in setting this up just for me!"
Bow smiled, wrapped a foreleg around her neck. "You're the best pony there ever was, and it'd be rude of us to hide that from everypony else. So, you could think of this as our way of saying, 'Thank you'."
Rainbow breathed in, breathed out. "OK, Dad. Thank you, too, and you're very welcome. How long are we staying here?"
Windy giggled. "Funny that you ask, because we changed the schedule and decided to have the sunset speech right at the debut!"
Rainbow's jaw dropped at that.
"And, don't you worry about missing out!" Bow said. "Actually, you're going to be standing right there on that stage—" pointed at a small wooden stage beside the exhibit, containing a microphone stand "—and you'll be the star of the show! We'll go through with the speech, and you'll say the final words!"
"And, the surprise is that there's no final words!" Windy continued, spreading her forehooves in the air out of joy. "You'll make up the final words, and I'm sure you have something very meaningful to say in front of everypony in Cloudsdale!"
Rainbow clattered her teeth. "E-Everypony?!"
"Everypony, Dashie!" Windy said. "Plus the tourists from Appleloosa, Baltimare, Trottingham, Stratusburg, Choctown—"
"I get it, Mom, I get it!" Rainbow interrupted, holding a hoof up and putting some distance between her mother and herself. "Lots of ponies will be seeing me...standing beside those...mementos..."
Bow looked up. "Oh! We'll be starting in three minutes! We'll call you when it's time!"
And the two parents flew away to the exhibition, now answering visitors' questions about their fearless daughter.
Who, on the contrary, took out a paper bag, and huffed and puffed into it out of fear.
"Hi, Dash!"
"Agh!"
Rainbow shot up to the air and turned around, only to see a Pinkie floating around with her balloons.
"Don't scare me like that!" Rainbow yelled, still having a grip on that feeble paper bag. "What do you want?"
Pinkie shrugged. "Just wanted to see how you are! I'm excited for your big speech. I sure hope there won't be any emergency happening back in Ponyville that'll need your help, but that's why I asked Spike to be today's firefighter!"
Rainbow scratched her head, confused. "What?"
Pinkie took out her balloons and hoofed it to her. "By the way, I didn't have the time to bake you a 'Happy Tenth Equestria is Saved Pie!', so please accept this!"
Rainbow grabbed it.
Leaving Pinkie floating in mid-air.
Pinkie looked down at the cloudy "ground" below her.
"I didn't think this through, did I?" she asked.
Then, fell down screaming through the sky below.
Rainbow sighed buried her face in her hooves, scared.
As more ponies gathered round her parents by the exhibition, seeing all those Dash-mentos on display.