The walk was entirely more simple than Tempest had been imagining. Rainbow led her pretty much in a straight line down the Ponyville main street, pointing out random things she found interesting enough to talk about. Sometimes it was historical sights that any tourist would be intrigued by and other times it was just a particularly dented tree the fast flyer had crashed into on more than one occasion. Everything had a personal significance, however, and Tempest was continually surprised at what Rainbow deemed important.
For instance, right now they had stopped at the town hall, certainly a place of history and political change.
“Then Cheese Sandwich grabbed me and we did the ‘boneless flop’, named after his weird rubber chicken pet thing.”
And Rainbow was telling her about a comedy fight two ponies had over her.
“And then Pinkie! Oh, Pinkie…” Rainbow continued moving and swooping all around in a crude reenactment of the event, her face positively glowing whenever she mentioned one of her friends, “She got this trampoline out of, like, nowhere and bounced up to where me and Cheese were to show us her dance with her pet alligator. Those two were just getting more and more insane bouncing off each other!”
“So, Pinkie and this Cheese stallion,” Tempest said when Rainbow paused to catch her breath, “They set up all these elaborate party activities to try and impress you?”
“Yep!” Dash said, puffing out her chest, “I was the judge of their goof off so I was going to pick the winner. Of course, that was before Pinkie forfeited…”
Tempest raised a brow. “Why did she do that? It sounds like both of them were completely infatuated with you.”
Rainbow froze in mid-air and blinked dumbly at Tempest.
Then she laughed loudly and did a flip. Tempest honestly wasn’t sure if it was a subconscious action out of mirth or if she was showing off some more.
“Infat… you think they were fighting for my attention? Like, romantically?”
“Yes?” Tempest replied, slightly irritated at being laughed at. There was some joke here she just wasn’t getting and it made her feel like a little foal again. “Isn’t that what was happening? You said they were trying to impress you.”
“Yeah cause I was the one having the party,” Rainbow explained. When Tempest still looked absolutely baffled she continued, sinking down until she was eye level with the Unicorn, “They’re party ponies. They just wanted to prove who could be the funniest in general. The fact that it was me, particularly, judging was barely a part of it. They were way more focused on one-upping each other. Pinkie quit cause she felt she was hurting my happiness getting so obsessed with him.” She paused and gazed off thoughtfully. “Hey, now that I think about it those two were way more into each other than even the party stuff.”
Tempest shook her head. “They threw a town-wide fight because they wanted to impress each other? That seems counterproductive.” She paused for a moment as a dawning horror slowly descended on her. “Pinkie Pie said she wanted to throw a party for me…”
Rainbow Dash interrupted her with a laugh before she could even finish her thought. “Don’t start jumping to conclusions miss tall, dark, and handsome. Pinkie throws a party for every new pony in town. I’m just surprised you’ve managed to dodge it for this long.”
“Hmm,” Tempest hummed non-committedly, thinking over all Rainbow had told her, “Would you inform her I’d prefer not to have one in that case? I don’t know if you could tell but I’m trying to keep a relatively low profile.” She waved a hoof vaguely at her own head. “Don’t really want to remind everypony about the crazed Unicorn that forced them into slavery for a few days.”
Rainbow sucked air through her teeth and rubbed the back of her head. “That… is a good point, but I think showing ponies how cool and chill you are will make them feel better than the idea of a scary mare holed up in Twilight’s crib, planning her next move or something.”
Tempest considered this angle. She, of course, would rather have a potential enemy out and about where she could keep an eye on them. But she was not some average civilian. “Won’t they feel safer knowing the Princess is keeping watch over me?”
Rainbow waved her hoof back and forth in the air. “Eh, who’s to say? The ponies here get spooked by the weirdest things and tough out others. But it doesn’t really matter since you aren’t getting out of the party.”
Tempest’s brow raised as she shook her head. “I don’t want a party. Even if it would help my image. I’m not really a ‘party pony’.”
“Doesn’t matter,” Rainbow said, patting Tempest’s shoulder in a gesture that attempted to be comforting, “It’s Pinkie. You’re getting a party.”
Tempest rolled her eyes. “Joy.” She did not look forward to spending an evening with all eyes on her. But, even so, she didn’t think arguing the point would improve her standings with anypony in town.
“Aw, lighten up,” Rainbow said playfully, “They’re actually really fun when you get into it. And in the meantime I can show you the cubby holes Fluttershy always slips into when she gets too nervous.”
Tempest narrowed her eyes and gave the hovering Pegasus a good-natured shove and continued to walk away from the town hall. “I will not get nervous. I’ve been to plenty of social gatherings in my time.”
“Councils for the terms of surrender don’t count.”
Tempest ignored her. “I just don’t find the idea of a wild party appealing and would rather not have one forced on me.”
“Why not?” Rainbow asked, flipping upside down in midair while still keeping pace with Tempest, “Didn’t you say you want to stay on Princess Twilight’s good side? Going to Pinkie’s party would definitely help with your whole ‘creepy loner’ vibe you’ve got going on.”
Tempest shot a glare at the cheeky Pegasus, but they both knew who had won. “While that’s true, I am already friends with her.” She paused as painful memories of friends made and lost long ago entered her mind. “...I have two friends now. I don’t feel the need for anymore.”
Rainbow’s eyes and smile grew so wide that Tempest was sure her entire face would slip off her head. The Pegasus giggled and did a little twirl in the air before landing on Tempest’s back belly first so her chin was pressed against the taller Unicorn’s neck. “So we’re officially friends now, huh?” Rainbow let out a long sigh that tickled Tempest’s neck. “Awesome.”
Tempest craned her head to try and look at the pony on her back. She could have easily shaken her passenger off but found she didn’t actually mind being Rainbow’s ride for a few moments. Like most Pegasi, Rainbow was lightweight and very easy to carry, but the heat that she gave to Tempest’s exposed coat, as well as the gentle rise and fall of her chest, was… relaxing. As if a soft, downy blanket had been placed over her withers. “Where did that reaction come from? You’re one of the ‘Elements of Harmony’ or whatever Princess Twilight calls her little group. Don’t you have many friends?”
“Oh sure,” Dash agreed, turning over so their backs were pressed together and she was using Tempest’s skull as a headrest, “I’ve got tons of friends. But none of them are you.”
Tempest didn’t know how to react to that as heat clawed at her cheeks. She just kept walking, making sure not to dislodge her passenger. “What do you mean? How am I any different?”
“Well, I got the feeling you didn’t really want any friends,” Rainbow replied and Tempest swore she could hear the frown in her voice, “Even though you’re totally cool now and you don’t want to hurt anypony anymore…” She shrugged, brushing the fur on Tempest’s back with her own. “I got the sense you didn’t feel like you deserved friends. But… maybe I’m totally off, I’m not great with this introspective stuff.”
“I simply…” Tempest began before stopping herself. Was Rainbow Dash right? It was true that she hadn’t really been trying to get to know any of the ponies around her. But it wasn’t like she was trying to punish herself or anything, was it? She just didn’t want to scare them but, because she didn’t know how to interact with others as an equal, instead of an oppressor, that was almost guaranteed to happen. “...I simply don’t have anything in common with most ponies,” she said at last. “To be friends you need some sort of mutual connection, don’t you?”
Rainbow snorted and flipped off of her perch and into the air, causing a cold breeze that made Tempest shiver. “You don’t know that. Sure, you haven’t been to Equestria in a while and spent that time being a flank-kicking badass conquering other lands...”
Tempest was unsure if that was supposed to be a compliment or an insult.
“But we have something in common,” Rainbow continued, “And you would have never had found that out if I hadn’t forced you to talk to me.”
Tempest would have argued the point further but there was a nagging irritation in the back of her head that Rainbow should just land and talk to her close up. Not always hovering, just out of reach. Of course, Tempest didn’t say any of those things. She simply shook her head with a grunt. “I get it. I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover and such, yes?”
Rainbow grinned at her and it was equal parts friendly and teasing. “Isn’t that why you were so nervous in The Corner? Didn’t want people judging how you ate without magic?”
Tempest jerked to a halt and stumbled over her hooves as a result. She hadn’t thought Rainbow even noticed her discomfort, let alone perceive the reasoning behind it. Heat rose to her cheeks as she remembered not even a half-hour ago. How the Pegasus had seemed twitchy and distracted but was apparently paying very close attention.
She schooled her features quickly and gave her friend a blank stare. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Any discomfort I felt in the bakery had to do with ponies staring at their recent attacker. Embarrassment over how I choose to eat is a juvenile worry.”
“Awesome argument. Did you plan that script out in advance, egghead?” Rainbow stuck out her tongue and winked. Tempest could not remove the heat from her face no matter how hard she tried and she silently thanked genetics for giving her a dark coat to hide it. “Don’t worry. I get the whole pride thing. I get it a ton. Just know I’m here if you ever decide to open up.”
Once again, Tempest was filled with an overwhelming urge to poke into her companion’s past. The references and switch from fun-loving to overly mature were captivating in their oddity. But she held herself back. Rainbow’s life was her own and Tempest knew she would hate if someone was to go around digging in her own past.
Instead, Tempest flicked her tail and subtly shifted her weight. There was a tension in her shoulders, and watching her student hover overhead gave her an idea.
The two were still in town square but barely anypony was around at that moment. It was the middle of the workday so most ponies were inside or simply passing through. That meant the two had plenty of space to work with.
“You really love this town, don’t you?” Tempest asked, pacing around Rainbow in precise measured steps. Most of the road had a layer of relatively loose dirt. She just had to find…
Rainbow blinked, undoubtedly thrown by the sudden shift in topic. “Well, duh. It’s my home and where I met all my best friends. It’s the awesomest village in Equestria.”
Tempest’s hooves struck a hard patch of dirt, packed down by years of trotting. She stopped there and, making sure to keep her facial features as neutral as possible said, “Then you better try not to break anything.”
She lunged before the last word had even left her mouth. By the Pegasus’ yelp, Tempest assumed she had successfully managed to catch Rainbow off guard. But, even completely unprepared, the Pegasus was still lightning-fast and with one flap of her wings pushed herself out of harm’s way.
Fast, yes, but predictable. Tempest countered her movement before it had even begun by shifting her stance mid lunge, coming at Dash from an angle rather than head-on.
Tempest’s hoof clipped Rainbow’s wingtip, not a direct enough hit to cause any damage, but with enough force behind it to send her spinning through the air and crashing into the ground.
“Funny,” Tempest said cooly but not without a hint of a smile. She took a few steps back in case of a counter strike. “I thought you said I couldn’t ‘get the jump’ on you.”
Rainbow spat out some dirt and turned fiery eyes onto Tempest. “I let you get that shot in.”
Tempest rolled her eyes. “Sure you-”
“AHHH!” The battle cry cut her off as Rainbow Dash barreled towards her like a living battering ram.
The shout had given Tempest enough warning to jump into the air just before Rainbow would have slammed into her. The leap was high enough to clear the charging Pegasus but low enough to flatten her on the way back down.
Tempest snorted as she shifted her weight to keep Rainbow pinned without pinching anything sensitive. “Announcing your attack never turns out well.” She looked down but, instead of Rainbow’s face, she was met only with her toned rump and softly flicking prismatic tail. Of course, because of how Rainbow had rushed her they had ended facing opposite directions.
“But it gave me a great view of your cutie mark,” Rainbow wheezed, humor still in her voice even as she struggled to get her breath back.
Tempest almost choked as she whipped her head around only to frown in annoyance. While the way they were positioned had given her a view of Rainbow’s colorful tail the Pegasus’ face was pressed firmly into the dirt by Tempest's back hoof. From that angle there wasn’t any way she could even glimpse her firework of a cutie mark, much less be anywhere close to it. “Very funny.”
Somehow, Rainbow still managed to grin cheekily at her. “Made you look.”
Tempest’s couldn’t help the startled grunt from escaping her as Rainbow twisted sharply and used her back legs and wings to sweep Tempest’s forehooves.
She fell to the side, knocking her jaw on the road as Rainbow slipped out from underneath her. Tempest rolled, anticipating another strike, and sprang back to her hooves. However, no such counterattack came. Rainbow was hovering a few dozen hoof lengths out of Tempest’s reach, gazing around with a proud, relaxed smile.
“Good distraction,” Tempest complimented, ignoring the stinging in her jaw, “you caught me off guard enough that I wasn’t paying attention to keeping you pinned. But next time try to immobilize your opponent while they're down instead of wasting your advantage.”
“Just wanted to give my teach a little leg up in our spar,” Rainbow said loudly and, while they were keeping eye contact, Tempest got the impression she wasn’t talking to her at all. “Why don’t we put on a classic show? No wings or horns.” She dropped to the ground on the other side of the square and winked. “Gotta keep things fair. Right Tempest?”
At this point, despite the words, Tempest was sure Rainbow wasn’t really addressing her. Keeping her opponent in her peripheral, Tempest glanced around the little arena they had created only to see ponies clustered in a loose circle around the two, as if an invisible force held them back. Most had confused looks upon their faces, some worried, and even a few looking nothing less than frightened by what they were witnessing.
But, as Rainbow kept her friendly and relaxed smile on her face and talked casually to Tempest the crowd’s trepidation eased away to be replaced by interested grins and excited chattering. Some ponies even settled down on their haunches, as if they were about to watch some kind of performance.
Tempest’s ears flicked back as a small wave of guilt hit her. While she had indeed checked that they wouldn’t damage anything with their spar she had failed to consider what it would look like to the average civilian to see one of their heroes fighting with a known villain in a public square. Violence in the streets wasn’t as common here as somewhere like Klugetown, and ponies didn’t know when to turn a blind eye and mind their own business.
If Rainbow Dash hadn’t noticed the crowd when she did they could have quickly had a mob on their hooves.
Tempest tried to smile politely at the watching ponies but those she turned her gaze to only grew more nervous. Dropping that useless endeavor, Tempest turned back to face Rainbow Dash, who was still crouched in preparation for her next move.
Rainbow waggled her eyebrows. It was an invitation and a taunt at the same time. Daring Tempest to put on a compelling show for the onlookers.
Tempest huffed. She had never been one for theatrics. But if this was how she could save face with the citizens of this town then she could bear a little public humiliation.
She crouched down, matching Rainbow’s stance. She was aware that the Pegasus was waiting for her signal to begin again, her permission as the teacher. Tempest eyed her pupil, sizing her up, while making sure to keep the growing crowd in her peripheral. If nothing else, this was sure to be an interesting challenge.
“It ends when one of us forfeits,” Tempest said, waiting until Rainbow nodded her understanding before finishing, “We start now.”
They rushed each other in sync. Rainbow’s wings were spread open but, true to her word, she did not lift up off the ground. She was slower without being able to fly. Not by much but enough that Tempest was able to read her movements and roll under the first punch thrown.
Tempest jabbed upward with her back leg right into Dash’s stomach. The kick sent the lighter pony flying a few body lengths straight up into the air.
As predicted, Rainbow couldn’t stop her instincts as her wings spread out to slow her fall. Tempest ignored the appreciative gasps of wonder from the crowd as she used Rainbow’s time stalled to jump and launch herself off the Pegasus’ back, sending herself even higher while at the same time driving Dash into the ground.
In the few seconds of free fall she had, Tempest looked down to assess the situation.
Their audience had grown large enough by this point that not everypony seemed to have a proper view of the action. Some children were even standing on parent’s backs in an effort to see better. A few ponies, however, near the back, were trotting away quickly with looks of disgust, obviously not a fan of the little show they were performing.
Tempest couldn’t blame them, she had been their enemy only a few weeks ago and seeing her beat a local hero into the ground probably did nothing to calm their nerves. Even those eagerly watching would probably be put off if she won easily, despite Rainbow’s assurance earlier that Tempest was acting as a teacher.
“Wooo! Go Rainbow Dash! Yeah!” Those still watching, however, gasped and cheered at the duet Tempest and Rainbow making.
Speaking of Dash the Pegasus was… gone. As gravity started to reclaim its hold on Tempest she could not make out any multicolored spot that stuck out from the candy-colored crowd below. Rainbow wasn’t stupid enough to hide among the civilians so where had she disappeared-
“Oomph,” Tempest couldn’t stop the grunt escaping her as a sudden jolt yanked forcefully on her tail. Being in freefall, she had no control over her momentum and could only watch helplessly as Rainbow pivoted in midair, Tempest’s tail clenched firmly in her mouth, and slammed the Unicorn back down to the unyielding ground.
Tempest paused a moment after landing, working to regain her lost breath and watching as Rainbow dropped heavily a few hoof lengths away, skidding on the dirt in an attempt to regain her footing. She was playing fair and obviously hadn’t used her wings in the jump to reach Tempest but as such throwing her opponent down had sent Dash flying back just as far. The move gave Rainbow a slight edge but it wouldn’t have been enough to turn the tide of the battle had Tempest simply rolled with the impact and regained her footing.
“Heaaaah!” But she hadn’t and now Rainbow had the opportunity to rush her again with a mighty battle cry. Tempest scrambled to her hooves just as the Pegasus reached her, still moving at full speed. What Rainbow’s plan had been would never be realized as Tempest didn’t give her a chance to act it out. Instead, she pivoted to the side just as Rainbow rushed past and grabbed one of her student’s front legs. “Araaa-Eep!”
The plan was to use Dash’s momentum and flip her over Tempest’s head so she’d fly off in the other direction. However, just when Tempest had raised the smaller pony into the air, Rainbow jammed her free foreleg against Tempest’s scalp, finding purchase in where her horn met her forehead. With the new leverage, Rainbow adjusted her direction just enough that, instead of going over Tempest’s shoulder, she slammed her full weight and speed into the small of the Unicorn’s back.
“Oof.” A rush of air left Tempest’s lungs as she was forcefully shoved to the ground yet again. This time, however, Rainbow stayed on top, pinning Tempest in place. Tempest could have pushed her off but Dash had managed to twist Tempest’s previous hold into a dominating leg lock. It left Tempest’s hoof pinned behind her back at an odd angle and without a lot of leverage to work with.
Unlike when Rainbow had rested on her back, having the Pegasus’ knee dig into Tempest’s ribs wasn’t particularly comfortable. Hmm.
“Ha...ha!” Rainbow laughed in victory even as she panted. She wasn’t shaking, which was good, but Tempest could feel the Pegasus’ sweat dripping off in streams. “How… how do you like that?”
“I… don’t…” Tempest grunted and made a show of squirming a bit before slumping limp in defeat. “Alright fine… You win this one.”
Rainbow’s face lit up in pure joy, as if Tempest had just given her all the riches in the world “Aw heck yeah!” She cried, launching off of Tempest’s back and into the air with a loud victory crow. “Ha ha! That, fillies and gentlecolts, is how you do it!”
The sound of hooves stomping in applause shook the ground as Tempest slowly regained her footing. Everypony was focused on the victor with cheers, congratulations, and ‘you rock, Rainbow Dash’ being thrown her way.
“Thank you, thank you!” Rainbow said, giving a few over-exaggerated bows as she basked in the positive feedback, “Me and Tempest both hoped you liked that show. Just a little demonstration on how to kick flank and take names!”
There were more cheers and Tempest had to actively keep herself from snorting at the dramatization of a fairly regular sparring session.
The crowd was starting to disperse by now. A few eager fans stayed around a little longer to congratulate Rainbow Dash again but even they left after a minute or two with a friendly wave.
No one bothered to talk to Tempest Shadow.
Shrugging off that thought, Tempest made her way over to where Dash was waving goodbye to the last of her adoring fans.
“You did well today,” Tempest complimented, successfully gaining Rainbow’s attention. She looked a little bruised and disheveled but thankfully none the worse for wear after getting tossed around a bit.
“Pffffffff,” Rainbow scoffed. Or she was impersonating a leaking balloon. Tempest almost couldn’t tell. “Come on, get real. You let me win.” At the last sentence she flicked her tail up to brush against Tempest’s nose. Quite a feat with how much taller the Unicorn was.
“Perhaps,” Tempest conceded. She was fine lying to all those ponies who had been watching. But she found a sour taste in her mouth at the thought of lying directly to Rainbow’s face. “But that does not mean you didn’t do well. I was impressed by how you handled the crowd.”
“Huh?” Rainbow asked, tilted her head to the side, “What do you mean by that? I wasn’t doing anything special.”
That was… strange. Tempest was about to clarify when she was interrupted by-
Clap. Clap. Clap.
The two paused in their conversation to turn and look at where the slow and steady applause was coming from.
Princess Twilight Sparkle was watching them off to the side, clapping her hooves together in an exaggerated fashion as she smirked knowingly at Rainbow Dash. “Great show you put on, Dash. Really impressive.”
Tempest bowed her head in greeting. “Princess.”
Princess Twilight waved the greeting off with a friendly smile as she trotted over to the two. “Please, Tempest, I told you there’s no need for the formalities. Just Twilight is fine.” She glanced over to her friend and her smile dropped into a slightly more scolding tone. “As for you and that stunt that just happened…”
Rainbow chuckled awkwardly and rubbed the back of her head. “Uh… heh… I’m in trouble aren’t I?”
Twilight rolled her eyes and the smile was back, though not without a bit of exasperation covering it. “No, not really. The show was impressive and no one seems to have gotten hurt. I’d just wish you’d tell me you’re doing these things before I get a dozen ponies dragging me out of my house to watch two of my friends beat each other up.”
Rainbow grinned guiltily. “Oops.”
“We apologize Your… Twilight,” Tempest spoke up, correcting herself away from another honorific. She wasn’t enjoying how Rainbow was getting all the heat from their public mishap. Tempest was the one who initiated the fight. She should be the one taking the blame. “I simply wanted to show Rainbow another fighting tactic. We didn’t mean to draw in a crowd.”
Twilight gave her a bemused look. “You started a hoof fight in the middle of town square and didn’t think ponies would take notice?”
“It was kind of a spur of the moment thing,” Dash explained, taking back control of the conversation, “I was showing Tempest around town and we wanted to get another sparring session in. One thing led to another and… you know?”
Tempest didn’t think Twilight did know. She nodded along to the explanation half-heartedly, before her eyes perked up in surprise. The Princess turned to Tempest with a delighted grin creeping onto her features. “You two were exploring the town? That’s great! I’m glad you’re getting out and about Tempest.”
Tempest nodded in acknowledgment but internally winced. The Princess had been inviting her to events and meetings for the past few weeks, encouraging her to get out and meet more ponies. Every time Tempest had politely declined. She got the impression Twilight Sparkle was inexperienced with the whole ‘royalty’ position she was performing. Tempest knew having a foreign general at any kind of strategy or diplomatic or whatever those brunches actually were would only cause unneeded tension and undermine Twilight’s authority as a leader.
Or she wanted Tempest there for the intimidation factor and in that case Tempest would rather avoid looking like hired muscle if she could help it.
“Heck yeah!” Rainbow replied, saving Tempest with her exploding enthusiasm. “She needed to see where all my most daring stunts took place first hoof.”
Tempest found herself mirroring the Princess’s facial expression as both purple ponies rolled their eyes with barely hidden smiles.
“Alright, alright,” Twilight conceded, “It sounds like you two were having a good time. Just try to tell me before you show off in public again, okay?”
Tempest glanced at Rainbow out of the corner of her eye. From the Pegasus’ playful grin she was unsubtly shooting Tempest, she didn’t think they’d be keeping that promise any time soon.