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// 'Bolt Boot Camp (Spitfire) 
// Story: Potty Training Tales 
// by SuperPinkBrony12 
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There were all kinds of ponies from all walks of life who could play a part in shaping a young one’s mind for better or for worse, leave an impact so great that they would be remembered for all time. And in some cases even serve as a role model or source of inspiration later in life when looking back.

Such was the case with the captain of the Wonderbolts, Spitfire. The inspiration behind her infamous, tough as nails drill sergeant persona was not something that she was willing to share with others. There was only one pony besides her who knew where the inspiration had come from, a pony she had been foalhood friends with and a pony she was certain could be trusted to keep the secret: Soarin.

For you see, Spitfire’s drill sergeant persona was inspired by one she had been a witness to as a foal. But not in the traditional sense. No, this drill sergeant had been one for what could best be described as a potty training boot camp. A crash course intended to get young ones fully trained or at least on the right track with their training.

It wasn’t that Spitfire had wanted to remain in diapers forever, she quickly discovered how such bulky things could weigh a pony down and make flight difficult. From the day she’d turned two her mom had tried to teach her about the potty as best she could, which wasn’t easy considering Stormy Flare was not only a single parent but also a working one. Though not a Wonderbolt any longer she still worked for the team as an equipment manager. And after her first attempt to take her toddler daughter to work had resulted in a scare when little Spitfire had wandered away, Stormy Flare decided it better to leave her little one at home with a sitter.

That was a problem since no sitter was truly on Spitfire’s level. They all failed to realize just how driven and determined she was, once she set her mind to a task there was no stopping her until she had found a way to accomplish it.

Still, the revolving door of foalsitters was sufficient enough for Spitfire to at least get a basic understanding of potty training, sufficient enough for her mom to graduate her to pull-ups by the age of three and a half. But the little pegasus couldn’t help but feel ashamed when she was starting to lag behind her peers, many of whom were already out of pull-ups and fully trained.

As her daughter turned four, Stormy Flare began to grow concerned. Her daughter was old enough for preschool which wouldn’t mind her still being in pull-ups, but in a year there would be kindergarten to worry about and every kindergarten was insistent on having fully trained ponies: No diapers and no pull-ups.

Fortunately for Stormy Flare, she learned through word of mouth that there was a program that seemed like it could finish what she had started. The program was called: Junior Wonderbolts, inspired both by the namesake Wonderbolts and the Junior Speedsters flight camp.





“Hey, Spity,” Soarin greeted his best friend when she was dropped off at the designated location (it looked sort of like a small flight camp, but there was only one building). “Guess your mommy signed you up for the Junior Wonderbolts Potty Training Program too, huh?” He didn’t seem to mind as he made his pull-up wiggle and crinkle.

Spitfire nodded, at least she could trust Soarin not to make fun of her for still being in pull-ups. “Yeah. She says she doesn’t have enough time to finish training me herself. She’s always so busy. But someday, I’m gonna be just like her! I’ll be an even better Wonderbolt than she was!”

Just then there came a whistle, and a jet black pegasus stallion of tall and slender build came trotting forward. He wore a light blue jacket that had the Junior Wonderbolts symbol (the signature Wonderbolts lightning bolt, but it looked like it had been drawn in crayon) stitched on it, and his mane and tail were dark brown and in the style of a buzz cut. His eyes were a dark green in color, and his cutie mark depicted a whistle. “Alright, cadets,” He spoke in his booming tone of voice. “You’re all here because your mommies and daddies agree that the time has come for you to get out of diapers and pull-ups, and start using the bathroom the way big ponies do. Now, despite what you might have heard, we pegasi don’t simply do our business on clouds. We are a civilized species, and as such we take care of our business the way civilized creatures do.”

Soarin shot up a hoof. “Uh, sir, we already know this.”

The pegasus stallion just replied in his booming tone. “Do not interrupt me when I’m speaking, cadet. Junior Wonderbolts will speak only when spoken to!” He then cleared his throat. “Now, my name is Comet Tail, and it’s my job to get you all up to speed on your potty training. By the time I’m done with you all, you won’t need any kind of protection around your bottoms and you’ll know how to take care of your bodily needs the way all big ponies should,” He gestured a hoof. “As you can plainly see, there is only one building at this little camp. Inside it is the bathroom which is off limits except for designated potty times and the occasional potty emergency. You have free range of the surrounding area to do whatever you want. Now then, each of you will pick out a potty chart to keep with you at all times. At the end of each week we’ll compare the charts to see who’s at the head of the class and who’s falling behind.”

Spitfire was the last one to pick out a potty chart, getting a hoof me down one featuring Princess Celestia and her sun. Her chart was hung up outside the building along with all the others. She then looked briefly down at her pull-up, it was still clean. But she knew it had been a while since she’d had breakfast. For the filly that was always the biggest problem, knowing when she had to go. Sometimes she could figure it out, other times she wouldn’t realize until too late. She was getting kind of better at this but progress had been very slow.

“Alright then,” Comet Tail spoke up. “Now, each of you will get to pick out your own potty to use for the duration of this camp. Just like your potty charts it’s first come first serve, and potty swapping is not allowed. Any cadets caught cheating on their charts or trying to potty swap will lose all progress currently recorded and have to start over. And if you have too many accidents, you’ll have to go back to diapers and will be dishonorably discharged from my camp! Do I make myself?!”

All the cadets gulped, Spitfire and Soarin especially, Comet Tail seemed to be the kind of pony who was scary when he was angry.





Stormy Flare was most definitely impressed by the amount of her progress her daughter showed by the end of the Junior Wonderbolts program.

“Mommy, I did it!” Spitfire proudly called from the bathroom! “I made it to my potty and went poopy!”

Stormy Flare smiled as she trotted over to clean her daughter up. “Excellent job, Spitfire! You’re getting so good at this that I don’t think I need to keep you in pull-ups any longer.”

When the wiping job was done she took her daughter’s training potty and pouring the contents inside to the toilet, where they splashed into the waters inside the bowl below.

As Spitfire flew over to the toilet tank, she suddenly remembered something Soarin had told her the last they saw each other.

“Mom,” She spoke up as she landed on top of the tank. “My friend Soarin said that he gets to use his mommy and daddy’s potty. He showed me how to do it, and it’s so easy. He even showed me how to flush it, and told me that he was always fascinated seeing how the potty works! So, can I flush it?! And do you think I could try using your potty next time?"

“Sure. If Soarin believes that you can do it, then I do too” Stormy Flare happily replied. “However I don’t want you using it without me or a grown-up around to help you out. You might fall in or even worse, go down the drain.”

“I’m not afraid of anything anymore!” Her daughter protested as she placed a hoof on the handle and pushed it down.

“FWOOSH!” The toilet roared as it started to flush. Spitfire then looked inside the bowl and watched her waste floating in the water, spinning and swirling around and around for a few seconds before it all got sucked down the drain. “Someday, I’m gonna be just like you and Dad, a Wonderbolt for you to both be proud of!” She told her mother as the toilet bowl started refilling with crystal clear water. “I’ll bet I could even become captain!” All the while she thought to herself “The next time we see each other, I'm going to tell Soarin that he was right about what he said. Seeing the potty flushing is totally fascinating! I’m sure he'll be amazed when I tell him that I get to use my mom’s potty too!” 

After washing her hooves and helping her daughter to do the same, Stormy Flare chuckled. “Oh my, that’s quite the healthy imagination you have, my dear. Besides, you shouldn’t be in a hurry to grow up. You’re only young once you know.”