The Little Pony Legend: Tales of Equestria

by MaggiesHeartLove

Chapter 11– Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3

Twilight's purple eyes scanned the papers, while Korra held the book next to her. She looked back and forth from the pages to the book, silently. An anxious firebender sat in a lotus position on the grass, while fiddling with his fingers nervously. Finally, Twilight looked up at him and sighed.

"I can't believe it's come to this." She placed the papers down and Korra cringed at what she was about to do. The firebender watched in anticipation as the alicorn inhaled a large amount of hair before saying……

"Mako's the smartest, most handsome and most amazing firebender cop this side of the universe and I am humble to even be in his presence!" Twilight said the words so fast she was literally out of breath.

Mako jumped up from the grass and pounded his fists into the air, "Yes! Aced it!"

Korra simply chuckled while face palming herself and shaking her head. "I don't know what's more incredible. That you got every single question right, or that you bet Twilight to say all of that if you did."

"Hey, serves her right not thinking I could do it."

"I never said you couldn't!" Twilight protested, "I said you were bound to get at least one or two wrong. Since, you kind of did before."

"But I didn't this time, did I?" he said with a smirk, making Twilight sigh in annoyance.

"No. You got a perfect score. I must say, I'm impressed."

"Well, I did have a great tutor. I couldn't have done it without you Twilight."

"Awww, that's sweet….but don't ever make me do that again!"

"Ah come on! Let me have a little fun once in a while!" Mako was then surprised when Korra hugged him.

"You're gonna ace that final! Just think, by this time next week, you'll be wearing your new, official, Republic City Police uniform."

"I know! Wow, I still can't believe it."

Twilight smiled proudly as well, "All of your hard work is about to pay off."

"Speaking of tests, isn't Rainbow studying for her history of the Wonderbolts exam for next week?" Mako asked.

"Actually yeah." Korra responded, "Where is that speedy little filly?"

To answer her question, a blur of blue and rainbow colors came speeding on by, causing the two teens to fall backwards into the ground, and blasting all of the papers into the wind.

"There's your speedy little filly." Mako said with an annoyed expression, which matched Korra's.

Twilight used her magic to gather up the papers while the teens got back on their feet. The alicorn grunted in frustration, "How in Equestria does that pony expect to pass her history of the Wonderbolts exam tomorrow if she's wasting time flying?!"

"Maybe she's just taking a break." Korra suggested.

"She's been doing this for the past five days!"

"Oooooookay. That could be an issue."

Twilight then smirked and flapped her wings, "Well, I'm just gonna fly right up to her and tell her what I think about her lackadaisical approach to studying!" she said as she flew up at her own speed towards Rainbow Dash, "Won't she be surprised!"

"Surprise!"

Twilight was startled when Rainbow Dash appeared right in front of her, "What? Huh? How did you—"

"Puh-lease, Twilight." Rainbow scoffed as she rested on a nearby cloud, for which Twilight struggled to stand on. Now that she was an alicorn, she could do that now. "That was the worst sneak attack ever."

"Wha? But—"

"I saw you giving me the stink-eye from the ground and heard you flying towards me and muttering from a mile away."

"Well, if you heard me "muttering", then you must know what I was "muttering" about."

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah, the Wonderbolts history test. No big deal." she leaned backwards and fell from the cloud, falling gently with her front legs behind her head. Twilight rolled her eyes and flew down after her as the two neared the ground beside the teens.

"No. Big deal. Really big deal. It's a test! A test that will determine if you can join the newly-formed Wonderbolts Reserves, and being part of the Wonderbolts Reserves means you'll have the opportunity to live your dream as a Wonderbolt! This is the most important test of your life!"

"She's got a point, Rainbow." said Korra, "I mean, I know you're not the most studious pony around, but preparing for a test is a pretty big deal. I had to work my butt off when it came to my other bending tests, I had to learn and memorize every practice forms if I was going to get it right."

"I had to stay up all night just to memorize every single law enforcement in the book." said Mako, "Being a cop is no joke."

However, the blue pegasus rolled her red eyes in disinterest, "Come on you guys, not everybody gets all freaked out when they don't get things perfect right away like you do."

The three gasped in shock, feeling insulted, "We don't get "all freaked out"!" they stated defensively.

"Uh, seriously? Twilight's freakouts are so epic, you sing whole freakout arias about freaking out. When Mako gets freaked out he goes all "Mama Mako" on everyone and Korra, you go blasting anything that can't scream back."

The three opened their mouths to speak, but quickly realized they didn't know what else to say. Korra and Mako tried to come up with a compact, but nothing good came out. Eventually, they gave up.

"I can't argue with that." said Korra.

"Me neither, she's got us pegged."

Twilight narrowed her eyes, "Fine, I may tend to take my tests a little seriously, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't be studying for yours!" then, the alicorn's eyes winded in realization and smiled excitedly, "Oooh! And I know just the pony who can help you: me!"

"That's a great idea!" Mako said with a smile, "Nopony else is better for the job than Twilight!" then he realized something as well, "Oh! And I can help out!"

"Me too!" said Korra, "I can show you everything I know that helped me memorize everything I needed to know before my tests!" she then took Rainbow into her arms and hugged her tightly, "This is gonna be so much fun!"

But Rainbow was not amused, "Sure. Fun."

Rainbow snoozed while leaning against Twilight's small wooden podium inside the Golden Oak Library. She wore dark shades to hide the fact she was napping. She was only woken up when a large book landed in front of her. Her shades fell off and she looked down.

"Wha– huh?"

Twilight instructed as she showed her friend the book, "This is the most complete—"

"And ginormous!"

"—book on the history of the Wonderbolts."

"Okay, but how am I supposed to get what's in there into here?" she pointed at the book and then at her head.

"With my handy-dandy study checklist, of course!" twilight levitated the said list up to Rainbow's face. Th peony groaned.

"Of course."

"Korra, Mako and I have arranged a set of methods to help you pass your test!" she levitated the list firs to the firebender.

"First up, reading and highlighting."

Korra crossed her arms and pouted, "How come you get to go first?"

"Because I beat you in rock, paper, succors. Twice."

The Avatar grunted in annoyance, she hatted admitting defeat.

Mako clear his throat and walked from side to side while Rainbow, using a yellow highlighter pen in her mouth, was marking the words on the book as the firebender instructed. This was one of the techniques he had mastered while studying to become a cop at the academy.

"Reading and highlighting is the foundation of any good study method. It allows the student to hone in and boil down on what's really important, separating the good from the bad, the wheat from the chaff, getting to the crux of things."

While he talked, Korra mumbled what he said while Rainbow marked the words she believed were important. Mako gently took the book, "Let's see what you've got so far!" he opened the book and was nearly blinded by all of the yellow in every…single…word….on the pages. Korra and Twilight noticed this too and the Avatar couldn't help but snicker a little.

"Well, by highlighting everything, you don't really separate the wheat from the chaff…" she said.

Mako flipped through the pages, seeing more highlights and even a few drawings of Rainbow herself. "Or the good from the bad." he then found a pretty bad drawing of himself, stretching out through the entire page, "Hey, I am not that tall!"

Korra and the two ponies giggled until they received an angry glare from Mako and they silenced themselves. Twilight sighed, regaining her composure, "Okay, Rainbow, clearly reading and highlighting is not your style of studying, so let's move on to the tried and true: History lecture!"

Twilight stood in front of a blackboard with a symbol drawing of the Wonderbolts emblem. Korra and Mako sat on the floor, and Korra, suspiciously, was taking a few notes. It was all a part of her own plan. Rainbow Dash then raised up her hoof in question.

"Yes, Rainbow?"

"Is it snack time?" she asked, opening her lunch box.

Twilight narrowed her eyes, "No."

"Recess?" she appeared at the window with a soccer ball.

"No."

Rainbow sighed as she crawled towards her chair, "Can't we just watch the history of the Wonderbolts movie?!"

"No! Now, just get comfortable, and experience the magic of learning."

While Korra and Mako took the notes, Rainbow whispered to them, "Psht! Help. Me!" she whispered pleadingly. The two teens only pointed their fingers towards the black board, much to her dismay and Twilight began her teaching with chalk drawings.

"Ahem. Prior to the great Celestia/Luna rift, there was no need for the Earth, Unicorn, Pegasi, or E.U.P., Guard."

Rainbow sighed and tumbled on her stool. Noticing the squeaky sound it made, Rainbow started tipping back and forth, making rhythmic squeaking sounds with the stool, rather than listen to the lecture.

" But after Luna's banishment, the Protective Pony Platoons were formed. On the anniversary of the first Celestial year of peace, a celebration was held."

But while the others were occupied with the lecture, Rainbow kept on making noises with her stool. Owlowiscious started hooting along to the sound and Spike started drumming with a smile.

"Headed by General Firefly, an elite team of aerial performers were chosen to help celebrate this auspicious occasion. The first performance was so full of energy, so highly charged, that magical lightning showered down on the crowd. Everypony was so filled with amazement and wonder that General Firefly dubbed them "the Wonderbolts"!"

Twilight dropped her chalk once she realized the commotion that was going on behind her. Even the teens found it a bit amusing. But once the dragon and the owl noticed the princess looking at them, the immediately stopped and zipped away.

"Rainbow Dash!"

Rainbow immediately stopped her foolishness, and the teens snickered, earning a glare from the alicorn, making them stop.

"Can you repeat any of my lesson?"

Rainbow made her stool creak one last time and smiled. Twilight teleported the stool away from Rainbow and Korra stood up. "Okay, obviously Highlighting and History Lecture aren't flying here. So, how about we try my method next."

Rainbow stood opposite Korra on the fields. The two were about to have an Agni Kai.

"How exactly is this suppose to help me?" Rainbow asked.

"My firebending masters taught me that one of the best ways to learn is by doing. Keeping my body moving helped me focus and I was able to memorize an entire generation of Fire Nation history in one day. Since you're not one to stand still for long, I suspect the same applies to you too."

"Well, let's give it a shot!"

"Good. Twilight, you got what we need?"

The alicorn smiled, "Yep! Flashcards!"

Rainbow arched an eyebrow, "Oh, does that mean I'll learn in a flash?" she said as she speeded around.

"One can only hope. Alright. Get ready." the two got into their stances, "And….go!"

Korra hurled the first blow and Rainbow immediately dodged it in mid air. Korra unleashed another attack and Rainbow flew out of the way, hurling a blast at Korra who dodged it as well. Rainbow unleashed another attack and Korra deflected it by moving her hands in a circular motion.

While they fought, Twilight read the words from the cards, "Colonel Purple Dart, the leader of the Wonderbolts in the Fourth Celestial Era, was known for his– what?"

"Uh. Mustache?" Rainbow dodged another incoming attack from Korra.

"Wrong!" said the Avatar, "Next question!"

"After becoming the official flying squadron for Princess Celestia, she honored them with–"

Rainbow flipped in mid air. While yes her brain activity was at its best, but she had a hard time remembering the lessons from before. She knew she had read something about this Colonel guy, but couldn't place what it was.

"Um…uh, whoa!" she dodged another fire attack and hurled another at Korra, who did a backflip away from the impact.

"You gotta be quicker than that, Rainbow!" the Avatar instructed.

"Okay, but go easy on me here!"

"I am going easy on you." she stated, right before unleashing another fire blast, which Rainbow redirected and Twilight read the flash cards once more.

"The original Wonderbolts lightning bolt insignia was–" Twilight winced when Rainbow Dash was knocked down to the ground, already out of breath and exhausted.

She grunted as she stood up and Korra stopped the Agni Kai. "How is this going to help me remember anything?! I bet you don't even--" before she could continue, Korra began talking.

"Colonel Purple Dart, the leader of the Wonderbolts in the Fourth Celestial Era, was known for his impeccable timing, hight speed flight and ability to calculate the altitude of any pegasus while in mid flight. After becoming the official flying squadron for Princess Celestia, she honored them with their official Wonderbolts uniforms, which were originally grey at the time before changing to blue over the years, adding the lightning bolts. The original Wonderbolts lightning bolt insignia was only a fair of wings with a star to represent their dazzling performance. I was changed in the following two years to a lightning bolt to best represent their determination and speed of flight."

Rainbow, Twilight and Mako all dropped their jaws, their eyes the size of saucers.

"See? It does work. I'm sure something must have sunken in."

"Only one way to find out." said Twilight, "With a pop quiz!"

"Bring it!" Rainbow said determinedly and Twilight teleported them into the library.

"The initials E.U.P. stand for what?" Twilight asked.

"Ernie's undercooked pancakes." Rainbow answered.

"The original aerial team performed for…?" Mako asked.

"Celestia's cereal celebration."

"The Wonderbolts were given their name by this famous Pegasus. Who is she?" Korra asked, before muttering to herself, "Please don't say Colonel Waffle…"

"Hello? General Blazing Donut Glaze!" Rainbow scoffed, "So, did I ace it or what?"

Korra, Twilight and Mako all face/hoffed palmed themselves, "Or what." said Twilight, "You didn't get one answer correct."

"What? But– but how?"

"I don't know. I've never heard answers so wrong! And so breakfast-related!"

At that moment, Rainbow's stomach started to growl.

"If you had taken the official test today…"

Rainbow Dash gasped in realization, "My dreams of being in the Wonderbolts Reserve would have been totally crushed!" she covered her face in shame with both her hooves and her wings.

"You just now figured this out?" Mako stated, earning a punch on the arm from Korra.

Rainbow began flying around the room in a frenzy "What am I gonna do? I'm running out of time! I don't know any of this history! I'm gonna fail!" she ran out the door, panting, her heart racing and her anxieties growing with each breath, "I'm gonna fail, I'm gonna fail, I'm gonna fail! And it's all your fault!"

"Our fault?!" the three friends exclaimed in shock.

"We're the ones helping you!" Twilight stated.

"Maybe your famous study methods aren't all they're cracked up to be, eh, teachers?!"

Rainbow's response left the others with their jaws dropped. What she said was completely uncalled for. Mako and Twilight narrowed their eyes while Korra remained the only one concerned.

"Excuse me, I've used them to study for many a test and passed!" Twilight stated.

"Yeah, right." as Rainbow attempted to fly away, Twilight flew behind her.

"Do you know the name of the premiere Wonderbolts choreographer?"

"Uh, well—"

"Commander Easyglider."

"Do you know how many Pegasi flew in the original squad?" Mako asked an uncertain Rainbow.

"Um—"

"Seven!"

Do you know Princess Celestia's favorite flight pattern?!" Twilight asked, "The Icaranian Sun Salutation!"

"See? Even I could pass the test." said Mako, "And I'm not even a pegasus!"

Rainbow Dash lowered down, sitting on the ground, "Fine! Rub it in, why don't ya? Besides, I don't see why I have to take this lousy test anyway. I've proven I'm one of the best flyers around."

"Knowing their origin and being able to properly represent them for all of Equestria is just as important." said Twilight.

Unbeknownst to them, Fluttershy was standing a few feet away, overhearing the conversation. Alongside her was the young airbender Jinora.

"Yeah, right. Some history buff like you must have made that up to bring us flyers down."

"Knowing history actually is beneficial, Rainbow."

Rainbow blew a raspberry at Twilight's face, "Beneficial for eggheads!"

Fluttershy then spoke out, "Guys."

Korra came in between them, "Okay, that's enough! Rainbow, I get you're frustrated, but Twilight was only trying to help. We all are."

"Oh, and like your Agni Kai worked wonders?" Rainbow said back at the Avatar.

Mako then said, "It's not her fault you can't memorize a single sentence from a book."

"Hey, that's way too harsh Mako!" Korra exclaimed.

"Well, it's true! She's the one who's been waisting all of her time slacking off!"

Fluttershy then spoke out again, "Guys!"

"You wouldn't have to worry about this if you had studied beforehand."

Korra then stood before him, "Hey! She's feeling bad enough already, don't make things worse!"

"Why are you defending her? You know it's true!"

"Try being a little more sensitive!"

"I've been trying to help her out as much as you have and I'm the one who's insensitive?!"

Fluttershy spoke out again, "Guys!"

"Enough!" Rainbow exclaimed, "You both messed up!"

"What?!"

"I can't believe you would say that Rainbow!" said Twilight.

"You were the ones bombarding me with all of this history stuff!"

"Well, this pony knows history and can fly. Maybe I should become a Wonderbolt."

"Just 'cause you've got wings, doesn't mean you can fly! You're barely able to just get off the ground!"

Twilight gasped and the two grunted when Fluttershy finally came in between them, shouting louder than she ever did before.

"Guys! Stop! "

Everyone fell into silence, each taking a moment to reflect on what they had said to one another.

"Now, is that any way to talk to a friend?"

The four of them looked at one another with sincere regret. They had all felt so frustrated they didn't even think about what they were saying.

"Sorry." Twilight said.

"Yeah, sorry." Rainbow turned to the humans, "I'm sorry you guys. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."

"It's okay. Sorry we blew up like that." Korra said honestly.

Mako hung his head in shame, "Me too. Guess we all got a little frustrated there."

Jinora walked up to the grouped, "Don't you have more important things to do? Like prepare Rainbow for her big test?"

"We've tried everything, Jinora," said Twilight, "but none of our study methods work for her."

Fluttershy smiled, "Well, no offense to your teaching methods, but I think I may have a way to help Rainbow."

The group sat in front of a wooden stage, decorated with a day and night setting, with Spike sitting in a director's chair, wearing a director's hat, holding a script, while Angel Bunny and Rarity's cat Opal wore a Celestia and Luna wig, respectively.

"Oh, who's that, who's that?" Rainbow asked.

"Celestia and Luna, back when they were happy." said Fluttershy while Opal and Bunny danced with one another.

Mako arched an eyebrow, "You sure this'll help?"

Korra shrugged, "It's worth a shot."

The two animals stopped their dancing and Bunny looked as if he had caused Opal to faint by shouting at her. Owlowisious took Opal up and placed her on a wooden moon prop as more of the pets arrived onto the stage. Applejack's dog had a unicorn horn on her forehead, Rainbow's pet tortoise, who flew on a small helicopter on his back, wore a headband with wings on them, and Spike pushed Pinkie's pet alligator onto the stage.

"Uh… now what?" Rainbow asked, having a difficult time understanding the play.

"Gummy's an Earth pony, Winona's a unicorn, and Tank is a Pegasus."

"They're the E.U.P., helping to protect the Princess." Twilight stated, already tired for having to repeat the information all over again.

"She's mentioned it eleven times already." said Mako, "And I have been counting."

But Rainbow was still a bit lost, "Uh, how are you getting all this?"

The owl took Angel and placed him on the sun prop, behaving all regal. Tank flew around, accidentally colliding with the wooden sun, causing Angel to fall.

"Oh, no!" Fluttershy exclaimed

The owl managed to grab the rabbit in time, but he then collided with the moon, which caused the cat to fall, and the moon to get loose. Spike ran up and caught Opal as the moon landed and rolled down the stage like an Indiana Jones rock ball. Rainbow Dash couldn't take it anymore.

"Stop, stop, stop! That was aw—"

"Awesome! I give it three woohoo's! Woohoo, woohoo, woohoo! And an extra "woo" for good measure! Woo!"

"Pinkie?" Mako was surprised to see her appear out of nowhere, "When did you….never mind."

"Well, I give it a "whoa, whoa, what?"" said Rainbow, "I'm totally confused and I just wanna go home…" she started to fly away until she was pulled down back to the ground by a yank of the tail from Pinkie Pie. "Whoa– hey!"

"Whoa your woes there, woeful. Some ponies learn through theatrical presentation, but other ponies learn through musical intervention."

Mako covered his ears quickly, "Oh no, not again!"

The scene changed back to normal, and Pinkie was out of her getup. Except for Meelo and Bolin.

"So, d'you get it?"

Rainbow Dash smiled with glee, "Yes, Pinkie Pie!" she then, very, very poorly, tried imitating the rap-style sounds, "General This and Colonel That, they're the Wonderbolts, something that rhymes with that! Word!"

The others cringed and Pinkie Pie lowered her ears, "That… was pretty terrible."

Now Rainbow was even more anxious than before, "What?! No... really? But I've gotta learn this stuff! Now!" she started to gallop away, only to be stopped by Rarity, who was now wearing a general's uniform.

"And I am just the pony to help!" said the fabulous unicorn.

Korra couldn't help but chuckle at the getup, "Rarity, you look ridiculous."

But the unicorn did not seem fazed at all, "I am going to ignore that comment out of my desire to help Rainbow Dash."

Rainbow looked behind her at her hopeful friends and then back at Rarity, "Good luck."

"Get ready, Rainbow Dash, for I am going to take you on an historical adventure in fashion!"

Rarity led Rainbow Dash into the boutique, where a spotlight shinned on top of them. Rainbow noticed various mannequins in the shadows in parts of the room that were unlit.

"I am now modeling the rather unattractive, and frankly itchy, original Wonderbolts flying costume. Fortunately, thanks to the vision of Flaire De Mare, the Wonderbolts ensemble became more streamlined in a wonderfully breathable fabric. Of course, there were fashion hits... and misses."

The light shined over Pinkie Pie, who was wearing a blue flying admiral jacket with a matching hat and gray pants.

"Just look at those dreadful bell-bottoms. What were ponies thinking?"

"I dunno. I bet General Flash rocked these thangs!" Pinkie said cheerfully.

Rainbow Dash yelped in shock, originally thinking it was a fake Pinkie, "Pinkie, you're real!"

"Of course I'm real! I mean I'm not the real General Flash, the tenth leader of the Wonderbolts, but I, Pinkie, am really real."

Fluttershy walked up to her, wearing a more light blue unicorn and cap, "And I'm Admiral Fairy Flight, from the seventh squadron."

Twilight Sparkle emerged, wearing a grey jacket with matching hat and black shades, "And of course you recognize Commander Easyglider."

Applejack appeared as well, "And I'm sportin' some sort of getup worn by Colonel Purple Dart."

Rarity then gestured to Korra, who was also wearing a dark blue unicorn with golden badges and a hat with the Wonderbolts emblem on it.

"And Korra is wearing the uniform of General Firefly." Rarity addressed and then gestured to Mako, "And Mako is dresses as Admiral Fairweather."

The firebender was not amused with wearing the uniform or the large captain styled hat. "You said you'd pay me!"

But even with all of these names, Rainbow couldn't remember what these ponies did in the past. She was feeling the anxiety growing inside of her as she started to breath in panic.

Rarity; "Just look at us."

Twilight Sparkle; "Look at us."

Pinkie Pie; "Look at me!"

Mako; "Still waiting for that money."

"It's too much for my eyes!" Rainbow zipped away from them as the light came back on and she covered her eyes with her hooves. Applejack walked up to her and removed her hat.

"Now, don't you fret, Rainbow. This fashion show nonsense wouldn't help me learn nothin', either."

As the hat fell to the floor, Rarity looked at her with a beaten expression.

"Really? Well, what special study trick do you have, AJ?" Rainbow asked as the two walked together towards the door.

"Who, me? Oh, I got nothing. Why, I could tell you every little thing there is to know about the history of apples, but I picked all that up over years in the field as a labor of love. How much time you got?"

"Twelve hours."

"Oh, then you are up a creek."

Rainbow Dash sat down on the ground, already ready to give up, until Twilight levitated the flash cards around her. "Oh, I think we should just go back to old-fashioned studying."

"What about our play?" Fluttershy asked, while she had Bunny and Opal on her back.

"Just look at these costumes!" said Rarity, "Surely something resonates with your inner Wonderbolt!"

Applejack shoved the unicorn aside, "And Granny Smith discovered the first granny smith in Fillydelphia, when she was just a filly!"

Pinkie Pie put her hat back on and started rapping again, "Commander Easyglider was the real cream of the crop—"

"Pinkie, stop rapping!" Mako exclaimed, "That isn't gonna help Rainbow!"

"Well, I suggest you put down your silly cards of flash, For I know that they cannot help our good friend Rainbow Dash!"

"Maybe we could try the Agni Kai one last time." Korra suggested, "Or the meditation method."

"You really think Rainbow's gonna want to sit around meditating?" Mako asked.

"Well, I don't see you coming up with anything!"

It didn't take long for the entire group to start arguing with each other about how to teach Rainbow the best method of studying. But all this was causing was nothing but more anxiety for the poor pony. Finally, she could take no more.

"Enough! No rapping, no cards, no costumes, no Agni Kai, no play," Spike weeped sadly in the corner, "and no apples! I am never gonna pass this test, ever! Just forget it!"

The now depressed Rainbow flew up into the sky, leaving all her friends feeling regret over their foolishness.

Rainbow needed to get away from everything, so she traveled to Republic City, in hopes she could forget about this whole thing for a while.

Twilight and Korra managed to catch up to Rainbow, who was hovering over the city. Korra used her air glider to fly with the two. The Avatar called out to the pony, "Rainbow, we're sorry about all that!"

"We didn't mean to overwhelm you!" said Twilight.

"It's okay. You were just trying to help. It's just too bad I'm too dumb to learn anything."

"You are not dumb!" Twilight stated confidently, "You just learn differently!"

"If by "differently" you mean "not at all", then you're totally right."

"No, that's totally wrong." said Korra.

"See? Wrong again."

"Oh, come on R.D! I don't know anypony that's read more Daring Do books than you, or who's managed to master firebending almost as quickly as I have."

"Well, that's not going to get me into the Wonderbolts."

"And your knowledge of jokes and pranks is only rivaled by Pinkie and Bolin." said Twilight.

"Great. My years of being a class clown prevented me from actually learning how to learn!" as they continued their conversation, Rainbow's eyes were scanning the city down bellow.

"That's not what I meant. You're smart, creative, inventive, and–" Twilight was interrupted when Rainbow Dash suddenly zoomed downwards. "Hey! I was still talking!"

Both Twilight and Korra zoomed down after Rainbow Dash, who was flying at top speed.

"Rainbow, wait!" Korra shouted, but Rainbow just kept going. It was then, they both realized what the pony was really trying to do.

Rainbow Dash collided with a man, who was running away with a bag in hand, and knocked him down to the ground. Korra and Twilight landed on the ground and an elderly woman rushed on by.

Rainbow kicked the man square in the face and took the bag from his hand, giving it to the elderly woman. "Oh my! Thank you so much, dear! That horrible man stole my purse!"

"Don't mention it."

Twilight and Korra had their jaws dropped in awe when the police sirens were heard and the metalbenders rushed on over to arrest the man. One of the cops congratulated the pony, "Great job there, Rainbow Dash. We've been after this crook for weeks."

"No problem. Glad I could help."

The cops dragged the still unconscious man to the police car and drove off. The elderly woman took out something from her purse, some hard candy and tossed them to Rainbow, who caught them in her mouth.

"Thank you again." she said before walking away peacefully.

Korra and Twilight had to take a comment to analyze this. "Wow! I didn't even notice that guy!" Korra said, still impressed.

"I know." said Rainbow, "That's because you were both jabbering on so much."

"But how did you notice?" Twilight asked, "You were listening and talking to me the whole time!"

"Ha-hah, you're such a rookie. An experienced flyer like me knows how to multitask."

"While you fly?" Korra asked, still impressed.

"It's essential! Yes, I was paying attention to you, but was also scanning the sky and the ground for any problems."

"Really?" Twilight asked.

"Flying's not just flying! In order to stay safe in the sky, I've got to hear and see everything down to the littlest details. For instance, I saw Tahno and the Wolf bats come out of Narook;s, and from the looks of it, one of them ate waaaay too much noodles. And I'm thinking Mr. Chung sold a huge order of his phonographs. I also noticed that guy take the lady's purse while she was talking to a friend. Once I saw where he was going, I beat him to it. I always make note of everything when I fly. No biggie."

"Everything?" Korra asked, and the gears in her head started to turn. That was when she got a great idea, "Oh, my gosh!"

"What?"

"Gotta go! Come on, Twilight!" Korra opened up her glider and flew up with Twilight right behind her, leaving Rainbow behind.

"Yeah, I get it. I wouldn't want to hang out with a loser like me either." she said sadly before flying away to rest on a cloud, which turned grey, matching her mood.

Back at the Golden Oak Library, Korra and Twilight had everyone gathered together, even the airbender kids.

"Thanks for meeting us, everybody."

"What is it, Korra?" Jinora asked.

"We finally found a way to help Rainbow Dash."

"But how?" Fluttershy asked.

"We've tried every kind of studying." said Rarity, "My way, your way…"

"Yes, but we haven't tried Rainbow Dash's way." said Twilight.

"Hmm, I'm intrigued." Pinkie Pie placed on her hip-hop hat.

"Okay. Listen up, here's the plan"

Rainbow Dash was still laying on a cloud in Ponyville this time, feeling depressed. Her hope of getting into the Wonderbolts was fading more and more by the minute. But, the more she thought about it, the more she wondered if maybe her lack of interest in the history was a sign that maybe she didn't want this dream as much as she believed she did. The pony was awoken from her thoughts when Twilight Sparkle appeared.

"Hey, Rainbow. Wanna go for a fly?"

Figuring that there was not much to do now, Rainbow sighed, "Sure. Got nothing better to do." she flew off of the cloud with Twilight beside her. "Didn't we just do this?"

"Yes, but like you said, I'm such a newbie, I need all the practice I can get."

"Yeah, well, I'm sure you'll become a great flyer in no time. After all, you're good at everything." Rainbow flew on ahead and Twilight looked down at the ground for brief moment before smiling back at her friend as she caught up with her.

"So… what's going on?"

"Oh, nothing. Just getting my dreams crushed." Rainbow said sadly.

"Uh… read any good books lately?"

"Just history books. I'd tell you what they were about, but my brain is as dry as a rock."

"Speaking of rocks, did you know Pinkie Pie grew up on a rock farm?"

"Maybe I'll go work there as I have no other plans for the rest of my life."

"Oh, come on now, Rainbow. You can't give up on your dream!"

"Seems my dream has given up on me. Maybe I'll learn to shine shoes, sell hats, dig ditches…"

"Or maybe you'll be a Wonderbolt." Twilight said with a happy flip.

"Twilight, give it up! I have." Rainbow flew down, spotting her house in the clouds, while Twilight followed. Wearing a knowing smile on her face.

The two landed at the front door. "So, what do you remember about that flight?" Twilight asked.

"Nothing important. Except after Luna was banished to the moon, Celestia needed protective forces, so Earth, unicorn, and Pegasi formed the E.U.P. Guard of the Protective Pony Platoons."

Rainbow's eyes widened in realization. Did she just remember something from the history lesson?

Twilight Sparkle smiled, "Yes…?"

Rainbow's brain kicked into high gear as more knowledge came to her mind. With each word, she grew happier, and happier, "And, at the celebration of the first Celestial year of peace, an elite flying squadron performed, headed by General Firefly, who later named the group the Wonderbolts!"

"Uh-huh…?"

"Commander Easyglider established flight choreography that is still used by the Wonderbolts today!" due to her happiness, Rainbow flipped into the air.

"Yes!"

"I… I know the history! I know it all! But how in Equestria did that happen?"

"You learned it!"

"Yeah, I got that! But how?"

Twilight spread her wings open and led Rainbow Dash back down to the ground. The rainbow pony was amazed to see a large portion of the town, including Team Avatar, even the arisender kids, all standing before her with all sorts of Wonderbolt themed items, posters and costumes. Fluttershy and Rarity were dressed up as Luna and Celestia.

"Wha--what's going on?" Rainbow asked, still confused.

Korra walked over and explained, "Well, on our first flight, we discovered that you catalog everything that happens all around you when you're flying, without even thinking about it!

Twilight explained next, "So, we made use of your special skills by enlisting everybody to help you learn the history of the Wonderbolts!"

Rainbow started to remember everything she had seen previously during the flight, thinking only about what she saw down bellow.

………

The first thing she noticed was Fluttershy, dressed as Princess Celestia, and Rarity, dressed as Princess Luna.

"I, Princess Celestia, banish you, Princess Luna, to the moon."

"Noooooo!" Rarity dramatically said.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders shouted from down bellow,

Apple Bloom shouted, "Earth!"

Sweetie Belle shouted, "Unicorn!"

Scootaloo shouted, "Pegasus!"

In the same order, they each jumped onto the back of Big Macintosh.

"E!"

"U!"

"P!"

"Eeyup!"

Fluttershy flew in her Celestia costume, "Let us celebrate our first Celestial year of peace!"

"Yeah, let's party!" Pinkie Pie shouted in her costume, "I'm General Firefly! Gee, my costume is itchy and unattractive, but I'm gonna assemble an awesome flying team!" she pulled the cord on a small cannon, unleashing paper stickers of the Wonderbolts symbol. "'ll call them... the Wonderbolts!"

Rarity walked on over with her uniform from before, "Streamlined style by Flaire De Mare!"

Jinora, Ikki and Meelo flew on their gilders, dressed as various Wonderbolt flyers.

"Admiral Fairweather!" Jinora shouted while gliding in her costume.

"Colonel Purple Dart!" Ikki shouted.

"Admiral Fairy Flight!" Meelo shouted.

Bolin waved from down bellow, wearing a costume and fake pegasus wings on his back, giving a salute.

"General Flash!" he shouted

Korra even wore a costume as well as she flew on her glider, "Commander Easyglider!"

All throughout the flight, more and more ponies held out posters and pictures of the wonderbolts as they spoke more facts from history. Asami even had Spike shoot fireworks which were released into the sky while Korra and the airbender kids carried a banner with the Wonderbolts logo on it while Fluttershy flew beside it.

"The history of the Wonderbolts!"

………..

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh! Thank you! Thank you all so much!" Rainbow couldn't contain herself and jumped into Korra's arms and she hugged her in return.

"You're welcome, but it all came from you."

"She's right." said Mako, "You learned without knowing you're learning. Your main focus is flying, but then your brain is also absorbing lots of other information! It's actually really brilliant!"

Rainbow Dash smiled her signature arrogant smile, "Ha, I always knew I was brilliant!"

The rest couldn't help but laugh along with Rainbow Dash. At long last, she finally mastered the history of the Wonderbolts. And it was all thanks to her friends.

"I just know you're gonna ace that test!" said Mako proudly.

"Thanks Mako, and I just know you're gonna ace your final police exam tomorrow."

The firebender's eyes then snapped wide open, "Gah! I completely forgot about that! I need to get back home and re-study!" he ran at full speed away from the group, before slowly returning back, "Can anybody give me a ride?"

A large crowd of people stood outside of the Police Headquarters, as the Polcie Academy's graduating class stood before the Chief of Police, Lin Beifong. She approached Mako, placing the badge on his new uniform and the young man saluted.

"Welcome to the force, kid."

Korra, Bolin, Asami and the Mane Six all cheered happily for their friend. Pinkie Pie gave a mighty "Whohoo!" while tossing confetti everywhere. Once the new cops dispersed to meet with their respected families, Mako was welcomed into a group hug from his friends, but Asami voluntarily remained out of it, but still smiled proudly at the firebender.

"We're so proud of you!" Twilight said. She and the others flinched when a confetti cannon went off, releasing the colorful papers all over them.

"Congratulations Officer Mako!" said the pink pony.

"Thanks you guys." Mako couldn't be happier. He now had his dream job and the best friends a guy could ask for. "So Rainbow, you didn't tell us, how did you do on the test?"

"Well, I don't want to brag but…." she took the paper from behind her and showed them the results of the test, "I got 100%, baby!"

More cheers were heard as the rainbow pony flipped in mid air.

"Rainbow, that's fantastic!" Mako said proudly.

"Now you're close to being a Wonderbolt!" Bolin said happily.

Before Rainbow could respond, Lin walked on over and petted the pony on the head. "I never got a chance to tell you, I was mighty impressed with how you took down that thief last week. You'd actually make a pretty good cop one day. You know, if ponies could be cops that is."

For some strange reason, the idea, to Rainbow Dash, didn't sound all that bad. She forced herself to chuckle, "Yeah. Me a cop? That'll be the day." she said with a giggle.

If only she knew at the time….if only she knew.