//------------------------------// // Special: Dance Magic // Story: Flash Sentry's EQG Chronicles // by Banshee531 //------------------------------// After the whole Camp Everfree situation, many people at CHS had hoped that they wouldn't hear about the place being in trouble again. However, they soon learned it wasn't in as great a condition as they had hoped. Despite having raised enough for Gloriosa and Timber to keep the place, more issues such as the breaking old equipment, along with everything that was broken thanks to Gaia Everfree's rampage. Gloriosa had not told them about this, but a storm hit the town and did a lot of damage. Now the camp was no longer suitable to be opened to the campers, meaning no more money. Luckily, those at CHS were used to dealing with serious issues. "To the right! To the right! To the left! To the left! Now up! Now up! Bring it down! Spin it around! Wash that car like you mean it! Come on!" This marvellous musical performance was brought to you by Pinkie Pie, who was with the rest of her magically charged friends in the school's parking lot. The group were busy cleaning up Big Mac's filthy truck, with Sunset, Applejack and Flash scrubbing the mud and dirt off the metal work. Once they had done this, Fluttershy pointed a hose at the truck and blasted the soap off before Rarity took out a hairdryer and began blow-drying. After that, Pinkie jumped up holding a pair of polishing gloves and with an almost Rainbow level of speed, she managed to polish every surface of the truck until it sparkled. "Nice," Flash commented as Rainbow took Mac's money. "Thanks, Big Mac." The teen saluted before starting up the vehicle and driving off. "Sweet! More cash to add to the stash!" "Woo-hoo!" Pinkie cheered, swinging her wash gloves around like pompoms. And as she did this, Rarity let out a sigh, "How about a little break? All of this sunshine and suds are doing a number on my hair." The others nodded, all heading to a nearby cooler and each taking out a bottle of fizzy liquid, Flash using it to cool his head before opening it. "Hey," Rainbow spoke up, "Anybody seen Twilight lately?" "I'm here," they turned to see Twilight Sparkle walking up with a metal box, "I was just going over the numbers again." "Have we raised enough to make all the repairs to Camp Everfree?" Sunset asked, smiling before she saw Twilight shake her head. "We've only raised half. I counted the money four times just to be sure." The others all groaned, Flash remembering all those dirty cars that had shown up earlier, only to drive off after learning that the girls would be washing the cars in their normal clothing. "That's all right," he commented, "We can just wash more cars. There's gotta be some we missed." But then they turned to the parking lot, now seeing it was completely empty, "I uh...think we're gonna have to come up with a new plan." Sunset countered. "But we're running out of time!" Rainbow chimed in, "The camp fundraising deadline is next week, and Pinkie Pie's already hosted a bake sale, Twilight and Fluttershy had that doggie day care, and Sunset Shimmer and I planned this car wash!" "Maybe we should have asked some of the others to help," Flash added, remembering back to Iron, First, and Heather saying they couldn't help due to other obligations. "Not to worry, darlings." They turned to Rarity, "It's my turn to devise a plan, and I already have something amazing in mind. It will be the most profitable of all of our fundraising events! The pièce de résistance!" "Hee-yoo!" Applejack cheered with a swing of her hat, "Now we're talkin'! What's your idea?" "Meet me in the music room later this afternoon and I will explain everything." The others nodded as Rarity ran off, the group all splitting up until all that was left was Flash and Twilight. "So what do you wanna do until then?" Twilight asked, Flash shrugging as Spike walked up to them. "I don't know about you, but it's been ages since I got to run around a park." He looked up at them at this, both chuckling at the dog before walking him over to the nearby park. And as the dog got to run around, Flash went to a nearby vending machine and got a drink for him and Twilight, taking it over to the girl as she sat down on a bench while looking at her phone. "Thanks," she replied as she took the drink. Flash sat down and nodded, only for Twilight to add, "So any idea when you and Scootaloo are gonna hang out again?" Flash shrugged back while thinking about the last few weeks. The pair had been hanging out more and more since the pair had confirmed their sibling status. They had gone to the movies, played laser tag and had been introduced to the other's foster family. The only event together they hadn't really enjoyed was going to their parent's burial site, though it did grant them a state of closure. "She's been a bit busy with her friends, and I've been working with you girls to fund-raise the money we need. Hopefully, once the deadline passes, we can make some time to hang out...and us as well." Twilight nodded with a slight blush before the pair turned to see Spike run around, laughing his head off as he enjoyed himself. The fun then ended when Spike caught sight of a squirrel and began to chase it, forcing the pair to run after him until he got to a tree. "Twilight!" He exclaimed, "Use your magic to lift me up into the branches so I can get him!" "I don't think so," Twilight replied as she used her magic to pull him into her arms, "You really need to get over this squirrel grudge you have." "Never!" he growled, Flash staring at the rodent on the branch, swearing he saw the squirrel blow a raspberry at Spike before they left. The three made their way to the exit of the park, only for something new to catch their attention. The revving of a supercharged engine, making them turn to see a muscle car in the park's parking lot. "Awesome..." Flash whispered with stars in his eyes. While he wasn't as mechanically dept as Twilight, he had taken an introduction class of auto repair back at Crystal Prep, being one of his favorite courses and one he sadly had to say goodbye to after transferring to CHS. The one type of car Flash loved more than anything were fast cool looking sports cars, one that he hoped to one day own...once he had won the lottery and donated a kidney. The pair watched as the driver drove around the parking lot, doing a few stunts in his vehicle before racing off so as to not get arrested. After that, the three enjoyed a little more time together until they got a text from Rarity asking them to head to the music room. Despite the distance between the school and the park, they actually arrived there before Rarity. Though she showed up a minute or so later, completing their team of fundraisers. "Alright dearies, are you ready to hear my idea for getting the last of the money needed to fix up Camp Everfree?" They all nodded as she went into long-winded explanation, which Flash easily summed up once she was done. "You wanna enter a dance music video contest?" Rarity nodded. "And you've already come up with an idea for the video?" Sunset asked, Rarity nodding again. "It's simple. Each of us will dance in a different style, like flamenco, hip-hop, or street ballet. And we'll wear costumes to match each genre." The others blinked at this, making her giggle, "See? It's a wonderful plan. We'll write some lyrics for our new song, and we'll choreograph some dance moves. Then our video will win a cash prize, and voilà!" "You make it sound simple as pie," Applejack slowly replied. "That's because it is!" Rarity exclaimed, "The girls at Crystal Prep even agree." This statement made them all go wide-eyed, "They're making a video too." "They are?!" "What for?" Flash added, "Crystal Prep has hardly ever been short of funds." "I think they're trying to get enough money to have their spring dance on a yacht." She replied, only to turn to Twilight, "Is that a problem, darling?" "Oh no," Twilight replied while shaking her head, "It's not." She began to rub her arm, "I just...haven't heard much about my old school since I left, I guess." "Speak for yourself," Flash chimed in, "I've been talking to Lightning online every now and then. Plus, Cadance can't help but talk about how much things are changing over there." Spike chuckled at this, "Well if you ask me, Crystal Prep has got nothin' on CHS! I love it here!" Fluttershy smiled as she reached down and started scratching him under the chin, making the puppy shudder in joy. "See what I mean?" Flash laughed at this before showing everyone a thumbs up, "Alright, I say we go for it. It's about time CHS got a win over Crystal Prep, even if it's just a dance contest." The others nodded, only for Rarity to flinch as she replied, "That's great darlings...but before we get started with the choreographing of our dance moves and-" She mumbled a few extra words with a spiral of her wrist. "-there's just one tiny, teeny-weensey, little thing I forgot to mention." "What's that?" Sunset asked, the others raising an eyebrow. "Uhhhh..." She groaned before saying the next part rather quickly, "I would need to use our fundraiser money to buy costume materials for the video!" This made everyone react, Rarity seeing the surprise on their faces followed by doubt and fear before Sunset added, "Um...Rarity? How much is the grand prize worth?" "More than double what we need to fix up Camp Everfree!" Rarity responded, only to get an excited laugh from Rainbow as she stood up. "Then of course you can use the money for costumes!" Applejack let out a sigh before standing up as well. "Oh, what the hay, why not?" "Sweet!" Rainbow cheered as Pinkie ran over to Rarity. "Whee-hee!" She hugged her as Sunset gave Rarity a gentle punch of the shoulder. "Well...according to my calculations, if we lend Rarity the funds we've already raised, we stand to gain four times as much money as we have now." Twilight chimed in, the others cheering as Twilight remained stoic as she continued, "But if we lose the video contest, we'll be completely back to square one and zero dollars." Everyone's joy suddenly dropped, making everyone grimace. "Anyone else think this is an awfully risky endeavour?" "No way," Flash replied, "Don't forget that old saying: Nothing ventured, nothing gained." He turned to the girls, "This is our only chance to make enough money. If we can't raise the money any other way, then who cares if we're one dollar short or a million dollars short." The girl's expressions went back to happy, nodding before Rarity clapped her hands, "All right girls!" She turned to Flash and Spike, "And...boys. Who's ready to shoot our winning dance music video?" The others all cheered as Applejack handed over the box of money they had already earned, causing Rarity to squee, "Looks like I have some fabric shopping to do!" She then ran off, the rest now beginning to workon a new song while Flash agreed to help behind the scenes of the music video. Twilight went online and started researching different dance moves of the multiple genres they would be using, each Rainbooms finding one they liked. So once the song and music were completed, though it lacked the keyboard that Rarity would need to record once she finished her work, they spent the next few days watching the videos and trying to learn to mimic them. But they soon discovered that dancing wasn't as easy as those on the videos made it look. It took those people years to acquire that level of skill...while the Rainbooms had less then a week. Luckily, their magic allowed them to do everything else super quickly along with Principal Celestia allowing them to use the gym and the stage they would be using was completed in a few lunch breaks, along with all the decorations and special effects. Vinyl Scratch had agreed to play the music for them along with Photo Finish to record the video, which meant they had everything they needed. Rarity had also managed to complete the outfits and the day before the video deadline, making them ready to shoot. "Let's take it from the top one more time," Rarity declared as she sat in her director's chair. The rest of the Rainbooms were on the main stage, all dressed in different clothing while Flash was backstage with Iron, Heather and First also helping the girls with their clothes and makeup. "Rainbow Dash, don't forget your cue. It's when Fluttershy does her triple pirouette, okay?" "Her what?" Iron asked as he and Flash hoisted a fake sun out of view. "I have no idea," Flash groaned, "Just go with it." In that moment, Photo Finish activated the camera and Rarity turned back to the stage. "And...action!" With that, Vinyl hit play on the music and Sunset strutted out onto the stage. The dress she was wearing didn't allow for a lot of leg movement, coupled with the high heels on her feet meant she was very unbalanced. Once she was in position, she started dancing around while Fluttershy did a ballet leap onto the stage next to her. Fluttershy's costume allowed for more movement, but when she spun around to do her pirouette, but accidently kicked Sunset. "Whoa!" Sunset yelped, barely managing to stay on her feet, only for Rainbow to slide onto the stage. "Cut!" They then heard Rarity cry, making the music cut out with a record scratch. "Hey!" Rainbow yelled, "What happened to the music?" They turned to Rarity and saw her gripping the chair, her eye twitching before she took a deep breath before getting out of her chair. "Fluttershy..." she sighed as she walked over to the stage, "It's supposed to be a triple pirouette." "I know," Fluttershy replied while glancing away, "It's just that um...uh, I-I-I don't think I can do one of those." Rarity grabbed her shoulders. "Darling, of course you can." She pulled her close, "I believe in you." "How about you try jazz paws instead?" The puppy sitting on the floor in front of them suggested, showing the dance move, making Sunset chuckle before reaching up to correct a flower piece in her done up hair. "Thanks Spike, but all these moves are pretty hard." "Maybe you should have picked something a little easier," Flash groaned as he and Iron continued to struggle holding up the sun. "Oh," Rarity waved her hand as Twilight used her magic to hold the sun up, "We can't do that. If we want to win, we have to bring our A-game!" "But you guys don't have an A-game," Iron responded as he tied the sun up. "At least not when it comes to dancing. You guys have never done anything like this before." "We have to try," Rarity replied, "This is our only hope of winning the contest." "I just hope Crystal Prep are having as much trouble as us," Twilight sighed, "They're excellent dancers, and you know how they love to compete." "True," Flash added, "But none of them have a creative bone in their body. I bet they don't even have a concept yet." Applejack then walked up to Rarity. "How about we forget about the other teams and get back to dancin'?" "Great idea, Applejack!" They turned to Pinkie, who was dancing in such a manner that you could just hear the synth drums as she did. "It's really fun! I haven't stopped this whole time!" She let out a few pants as she danced on the spot, making Rarity glare at her. "Let's take it from Rainbow's entrance," she moved back to her director's chair while letting out a sigh. "And...action!" The music started again as Sunset and Fluttershy danced, Rainbow once again sliding in. But before the blue skinned girl could get started, Sunset kicked her leg back and caught the back of her jacket. "Whoa!" She yelped as she lost balance and pulled her leg down, the sound of ripping filling the air. That was followed by Rarity's gasp, the girl running onto stage and grabbing the jacket. "This is a disaster!" "Whoops," Sunset blushed. "Sorry, Rarity." "Oh..." Rarity replied, her eyes about to tear up, "Well, I can fix it, but I'll have to run to the fabric store before it closes." She removed it from Rainbow and began to run for the exit. "Keep practicing while I'm gone!" And as she left, they did as instructed and kept dancing, though only after they changed out of their outfits to make sure there weren't any more damage. But even in more movement allowing clothing, they could barely get any of the moves right. The practicing soon came to a stop though when they received a text from Rarity, telling them to meet at her house to discuss an emergency. The fact she didn't even have time to put a 'dear' at the beginning and a 'sincerely yours' at the end told them she was being serious. And as they ran over and knocked the door at the house, they found Sweetie Belle answering. Gesturing them to go to Rarity's room, Rainbow ran ahead and slammed the door open. The group glanced in, Pinkie jumping up and clinging to the ceiling as they saw Rarity at her sowing machine. "We're here!" The party girl exclaimed as the rest walked in. "We got your text," Twilight added, "You said it was an emergency?" They then saw the giant frown on Rarity's face, her eyes twitching as Applejack asked, "Everythin' all right, sugarcube?" Rarity took a deep breath before standing up. "Well..." she moved over to her drama couch and sat down, "Since you asked..." She brushed her skirt...only to burst out sobbing. "The answer is nooooo!" She started crying into her couch, Flash raising an eyebrow and resisting the urge to call her a drama queen. "Oh no!" Fluttershy gasped before sitting down on her couch, "What happened?" "Sour Sweet," Rarity sobbed, "And the...Crystal Prep girls...stole our video concept!" "Of course they did," Flash sighed. "I should have seen this coming." Twilight shook her head as Rarity sniffed, "I saw them filming at the mall. They copied my design ideas and everything!" For a moment, she seemed to shine at this, "So of course they looked absolutely fabulous." Only for the shine to vanish, "But the worst part is that they're all incredible dancers!" This was met by a gasp on Pinkie's part, "Major bummer in the summer!" She held up a hanky, "Tissue for your issue?" Rarity sniffed before accepting it, "Ta." She used it to wipe up the running makeup on her face before blowing her nose, "Everyone is counting on me, on the video to win us the prize money for the camp." She laid back on the couch and sighed. "Oh, how could I have been such a fool?! Of course those Crystal Preppers stole my concept!" She sat back up, her eyes now narrowing as they burned with anger. "I practically served it to them on a platter!" "Don't be too hard on yourself," Twilight replied, "It's gonna take more than one Friendship Games for those Crystal Prep girls to learn that winning isn't everything." "And I doubt their video will be as good as yours," Flash added, "Like I said, no imagination. Unless they steal someone else's original song, I doubt they'll be winning that contest any time soon." "Eh," Applejack shrugged, "Maybe this was all for the best." "Hmm?" Rarity asked, "W-what do you mean?" "Uh..." Applejack hummed while glancing away, "Yer concept and costumes are nice and all, but uh...the dancin..." "Nnnnot so much," Sunset finished for her, making Applejack laugh. "We could barely get in a two-step without trippin' over each other's boots." She laughed again, the others laughing with her. "You can say that again!" Pinkie nodded, only for Rarity to speak up "Nonsense!" She cried, standing up. "You all looked great!" She then got a bunch of stares, making her flinch, "Okay, maybe not great, but...but it was getting there!" She began to march back and forth through the room. "And the point is, we don't have to let them win! That is our video concept! And I am going straight to Crystal Prep to let them know that they have messed with the wrong girls!" She turned to them, "Who's with me?!" Flash and the Rainbooms all remained silent, making Rarity take a deep breath and clear her throat. "No, seriously. Who is with me? I have no idea how to get to Crystal Prep." "I'll go," Twilight sighed, "Maybe I can try to reason with them. We were classmates once." "And I'll go to show you the way," Flash added before nodding at Twilight. "I doubt this one would be able to find her way around." Twilight glared back at him, "What are you talking about?! I went to that school just as long as you did!" Flash turned to her with a smirk, "How do you get from the front door to the dance studio?" "There's a dance studio?" "My point exactly," Flash replied before turning to leave. "Let's go." "That's the spirit!" Rarity cheered before grabbing Twilight's arm, "Come on!" With that, the three left the room and headed out the front door. The rest of the Rainbooms just stood there, blinking a few times until Fluttershy spoke up. "So...do we just stay or...what?" One long bus ride later... The trio had arrived at Crystal Prep, Rarity now dawning a disguise despite almost nobody at the school knowing her while Flash and Twilight wore their usual clothing. The three chose to sneak into the school by travelling to the side of the building, skimming along the wall to reach the front door while managing to get inside without anyone noticing. "Alright," Flash lead the girls through the hallway, "The dance studio's not to far off. Hopefully, they'll be in there." But as they turned a corner, Flash found himself almost bumping into someone. "Whoa!" "Whoa!" a feminine voice called out before the two staggered back. As this happened, Flash and the girls' eyes went wide when they looked up to see Ruby Scarlet. "Flash?" She asked before turning to the girls. "What are you three doing here?" "Uhhh..." Flash gulped, his eyes darting back and forth, "Twilight and I...forgot something. Yeah, we left something here's that's really important." "Really?" Ruby asked with a raised eyebrow, "if it's important then why did it take you this long to come and get it." Flash flinched as he saw Ruby squint her eyes at him, only for Rarity to look away from the others, "Wait..." She whispered as she heard something, "That's their music." She turned to an open door, "Bingo!" She ran past Ruby, only for Flash and Twilight to quickly follow her before Ruby could react. And as they reached the door and looked inside, they saw the four girls in their costumes. They were spinning and dancing, Rarity's jaw dropping as they did this...only to also notice Lightning Blitz standing on the side. "Not bad," he told the Shadowbolts once they finished. "Yeah, I think I can write something for you." "Perfect," Sour cheered before turning to the trio. "Hey, girls!" She yelled, only to hear Flash cough, "And guy." She acted like she was looking at her nails, "What did you think of our routine?" She glared at them, "Scared yet?" Rarity glared back before pointing at them, "Don't change the subject, Sour Sweet!" Everyone else raised an eyebrow at this. "But you didn't bring up a subject," Sugarcoat stated. "You, either!" Rarity barked, Lightning turning to Flash. "Is she okay?" "It's a long story," Flash replied, "Like...a week's worth of nonsense." "You know why we're here!" Rarity screeched, "You stole my-" She looked over at Twilight, "Our...music video idea!" "Huh," Flash shrugged, "Guess it wasn't a long story." Lightning went wide-eyed at this, "Really?" "Oh yeah." Flash responded. "Now...change your concept, or else!" Rarity crossed her arms and glared at them, only to see Sour Sweet smirking. "Sorry, heh, but we can't." The all laughed, Flash and Lightning frowning while Twilight stepped up. "And why is that?" "Because we care about winning," Sunny Flare replied, "Duh!" "And we will," Sour continued, "Because we're just about to submit our video once Lightning's written the music we can add to it." They laughed again while Flash turned to Lightning. The teen was now showing a small frown, Flash about to talk to him until another voice spoke up. "You're what?" Rarity stammered before shaking her head viciously. "It doesn't matter! Because we are still doing our video the way we planned!" "Go ahead," Sour told her. "But there's just one flaw in your little plan." Sunny nodded. "By the time you submit yours, it'll just look like you copied us." "Except the worse version," Sugarcoat finished before Lemon Zest turned the music back on and the girls started dancing around. Rarity hissed at them at this, only to march out of the room in a huff. Twilight followed after her while Flash just stood there, glaring at the girls. "You know," he told them as they stopped dancing. "I never liked how you always belittled others and flaunted your achievements over them, but I at least respected that you actually earned those achievements." The girls all turned to him at this, "Crystal Prep's always stating it's the best. But now I'm starting to wonder just how much of that is true." He turned to leave, "I'm glad I left this place." With that, he strode out of the studio and slammed the door shut, only to find Ruby leaning against the wall outside it, "Did ya hear that?" "I did." "Can you do anything about it?" Ruby sighed and shook her head, "I'm afraid not. It's not like there's a rule against using the same idea, even if they admit to stealing it. I'll see if Cadance can do anything to make them change their minds, but I wouldn't hold my breath." Flash nodded, but sighed as well before leaving the school, soon managing to catch up with the girls. When they got back to school, they met up with the rest of their friends and explained everything they had learned. "Lightning's writing them a song?" Sunset yelped, getting a nod from Flash. "Well...I guess they really will have their video ready before us." "Oh, this is all my fault!" Rarity cried, "All the money we raised is gone, and now we have no music video! I should never have convinced you all that we could pull this off in so little time..." "Are you crazy?" Rainbow chimed in, "We're great at doing stuff super-fast. I mean, look at Pinkie Pie." They turned to the girl, seeing her standing on the music room's piano. "She just built that castle made entirely out of chocolate bars while we were talking." She then put a chocolate star atop a nine foot construct, then took one of the tower walls off before taking a bite. "Want some?" She asked, holding it out for Rarity as she sighed. "What I want is a new video concept!" The girl crossed her arms as Pinkie shrugged, then finished off the chocolate bar. "So let's create one!" Rainbow exclaimed, making Rarity turn to her. "Really?" She replied, only for the others to all let out chants of agreement. Sunset then stepped up, "I'm sure if we all put our heads together, we'll come up with something even better than before." "Okay..." Rarity nodded, only to show a small smile, "I suppose it's worth a try." But as she said that, Pinkie leapt off the piano and grabbed Rarity's arm before grabbing everyone else's, pulling them together until their heads were touching. They stared at each at this, Pinkie giggling, "I think it's working!" "Yeah!" Applejack nodded, "Ah...ah got somethin! Okay, so we're in home-ec class-" They all closed their eyes and imagined themselves in the class, the strange thought of them wearing cowboy themed clothing somehow getting into each of their minds, with Rarity looking down and screaming at what she was wearing. "...bakin' some apple fritters!" Trays of the sweet treat suddenly appeared in everyone's hands. "And then, a fresh batch comes outta the oven." The batch appeared in her hands, the girl taking a sniff before sighing in joy. "And everybody's havin' a great time!" They all did just this, Rainbow and Flash pretending to have a western duel with their sweet treats while they laughed and conversed. But as Rarity was about to take a bite of her imaginary fritter, "Wait..." She turned to Applejack, "So basically, we're eating pastries at school in our music video?" "Uh..." Applejack let out a chuckle, "Ah guess ah'm just kinda hungry." Rarity rolled her eyes, "Anyone have another idea?" "Oh, oh!" Rainbow held up an arm, "I do! So...we're in the middle of the jungle." Their imaginations kicked in and they envisioned this, all now in explorers outfits while Rainbow began to run on the spot. "And we're being chased by henchmen who are shooting poison arrows at us!" Everyone screamed as they imagined this, only for Rainbow to add, "When suddenly, out of nowhere, the shadow of a giant beast appears!" She pointed to a nearby wall as an animal shadow reflected on it and it let out a roar. But before Rainbow could continue, Twilight spoke up, "Wait a second! Isn't this a scene from the latest Daring Do book?" They all turned to Rainbow, the girl letting out a laugh, "Oh yeah. That's why it seemed so cool." "Er..." Flash grumbled, "Honestly, I didn't much enjoy that book. Felt like the author just copied and pasted a bunch of action scenes from her older books into this one." He could see both Rainbow and Twilight glaring at him, the teen now gulping, "Anyone got any other ideas?" "Okay!" They turned to Pinkie, "I've got it!" As she said that, a spear hit the tree that Rarity was hiding behind. "Please!" she called out, "Do tell..." Pinkie smiled before reaching out of frame, then pulled a new backdrop down. "We'll start out on...the moon!" Everyone opened their eyes and found themselves staring at a large board with a moon image on it. "And we'll be wearing really sparkly costumes." Pinkie placed a bunch of stick figure cutouts of them onto it. "No, wait!" She pulled a bunch of astronaut helmet cutouts out of her hair and slapped them on the stick figures. "We'll be in spacesuits!" "Nice," Flash nodded as Pinkie took a bunch more cutouts from her hair. "We're surrounded by gorgonzola cheese! But then, a space doggie walks over and start to eat the cheese!" She held up a cutout of Spike, which she placed on the board next to a cheese cutout. "Mmm!" she then said, somehow mimicking Spike's voice. "Rich with buttery undertones." The others were all giggling at the image as Pinkie made the cutouts dance around in zero gravity. "STOP!" Rarity suddenly screamed, making Pinkie jump and accidently throw the board away. "This will never work!" "Aww...why not? Rarity's teeth chattered at this, making everyone flinch as she added, "Because the contest is for dance music videos, and not one of your ideas included dancing at all!" "Huh," Flash turned to the others, "I guess she has a point." They all shrugged, Pinkie now giggling, "But they were pretty funny, huh?" She then turned to the blue skinned girl next to her, "I liked yours, Rainbow Dash." "Thanks, Pinkie!" Rainbow chuckled, only for the sound of Rarity growling as her blood pressure filled the air. "Are you okay?" Fluttershy asked. "Okay?!" Rarity exclaimed, "No, I am not okay!" She pointed at them. "The contest deadline is tomorrow, and we've just been wasting time!" With that, she ran out of the music room, the teens all glancing at each other before Sunset sighed, "She's right. If we don't think of something, we'll never win that contest and help Everfree." "Come on..." Flash added as he stood up, "We've written a bunch of different songs before. How much harder can it be to come up with a concept?" They all shared uneasy expressions before they began to talk, all giving different ideas. But each and every idea that came to their minds was soon shot down, either for the lack of time, lack of skill or lack of sanity they required. "AHHH!" Flash slammed his head into the wall, "How is this so hard?" "It's a miracle Rarity came up with the first concept," Rainbow added as she laid out on the ground. "So does this mean we're giving up?" Fluttershy asked, the others grimacing at the idea. "It's gonna take a miracle to get this done by now," Rainbow moaned. As she said that, Flash's phone vibrated, the teen pulling it out to see he had gotten a text. "Huh?" He read the sender's name, "What does he want?" He opened up the message, his eyes slowly going wide, "Girls...I think we just got a miracle." They turned to him as he added, "Lightning's decided not to help the Shadowbolts." "So?" Applejack asked. "Lightning was the one writing the original song for them," Twilight chimed in, "If he's pulled out, then the Shadowbolts won't have a song to use in their video." "Exactly," Flash smirked. "And like I said, those girls have zero imagination. There's no way they're gonna be able to make their own song." Now the Rainboom's eyes were beginning to go wide as Rainbow cheered, "That means we can still use it!" "We need to call Rarity," Sunset added, only to turn to Flash, "I wonder why Lightning decided not to help them. And why did he text you?" Flash smirked at this, "Lightning was there when we told them off. That probably made him not help them." Fluttershy frowned at this, "I'm happy he did the right thing, but I hope the students at Crystal Prep don't take losing out on him." "Eh, Lightning's tough," Sunset replied, "He can handle it. And even if they give him a hard time, Lightning will know he did the right thing. Now come on, we've got a dance video to finish." "Small problem with that." Twilight spoke up, "Even though we can still use the concept, our dancing's still not exactly award winning. How are we supposed to deal with that?" The others grimaced at this, only for Applejack to speak up into her phone, "Hey Rarity, ya'll never guess what-" She stopped and raised an eyebrow, "What? Alright." She pulled the phone away and put it on speaker phone, "Yer live." "Girls," Rarity's voice called back before Flash let out a cough, "And Flash. I have an idea for a new concept. One that's even better then the last one." "Really?" Flash asked, "What is it?" "Meet me outside the Gym tomorrow at noon. And please, no showing up early. I want this to be a surprise." With that, she hung up, the seven sharing glances with raised eyebrows. Deciding to do what Rarity asked, the group headed home, spending the rest of the day trying to figure out what Rarity's new plan was. The next day, that being Saturday, they ran to the school as soon as it neared noon. And when they got to the gym, they found Rarity excitedly waiting outside. "There you all are!" she waved, "Come on. You're gonna wanna see this." They all headed inside, as Applejack asked the question on everyone's mind, "So what's the big plan you were excited about?" They got their answer when they looked into the room and everyone gasped. The gym was decorated even better than before, with lights, crystal borders and a multicolored disco floor. It was just like Rarity had described to them when she pitched her original concept. "Wait..." Sunset turned to Rarity, "I thought you said you came up with a new idea. Isn't this the same one?" "It is," Rarity replied, "But with a few extra tweaks." She then turned to the stage. "Girls, you can come out now!" With that, the four Crystal Prep girls stepped out from behind the stage. They looked a little nervous to be there, while Flash and the girls were wide-eyed at the sight. "I know it's hard to believe, but the Crystal Preppers here helped me to realize that competing against one another was getting us nowhere. Lemon Zest nodded at this, "And Rarity helped show us that winning was the only thing driving us." She then glanced away, "We didn't even care if we had to steal to accomplish it." "But that's not who we are," Sour Sweet added, "Anymore." Rarity stepped up onto the stage at this, "The Crystal Prep Academy girls have offered to help with dance moves if we'll help them with an original song." "Combining our talents is the most logical thing to do," Sugarcoat pointed out. "We'll make one epic music video together," Sunny Flare finished while Rarity turned to her friends. "So, what do you all think?" She then gave them puppy dog eyes, "Are you in?" Flash and the girls all glanced at each other, Flash and Twilight both grimacing as the others showed small frowns. The sight on Flash's face made him want to tell Rarity 'no', only for Pinkie to suddenly speak up. "Best! Music! Video! IDEA EVER!" The Rainbooms all went wide-eyed, Flash seeing Twilight's frown slightly go away. The sight made him chuckle before he patted her shoulder, making her turn to him, "Oh, what the heck." He glanced up at the Crystal Prep girls, "Let's do this thing!" The Rainbooms all nodded in agreement, Flash turning and nodding to Twilight. They knew it was time to bury the hatchet. And so, the eleven girls all changed into their outfits, Flash now heading up to make sure the spotlights were all working. Once they were dressed up, Fluttershy showed Sunny Flare their song. "We can start by teaching you the words to our song." Sunny took the sheet and looked it over, "But this is just about the Rainbooms. There's nothing about us in the lyrics." "Yet," Fluttershy giggled before holding out a pen and winking, "Wanna help me make some changes?" Sunny smiled and nodded as Rarity skipped out on stage. "Anybody else care to work on some music?" As she said that, Sour Sweet slid up to her. "We'll get to it after I teach you some dance moves," "Music first," Rarity replied. "Dance first," Sour countered as they glared at one another. "Music first!" "Dance first!" "MUSIC FIRST!" "DANCE FIRST!" "The order is irrelevant," Sugarcoat chimed in, the pair turning to her as she gave them a deadpan stare. "Oh...yeah," Rarity giggled before the two started to laugh. And so, the Rainbooms and Shadowbolts got to work, managing to rewrite the song to include the Shadowbolts while they taught the Rainbooms how to properly dance. It was a lot of hard work, but it slowly came together. And once there, Rarity exclaimed to Flash, "Lights!" He turned on the spotlights. "Camera!" Sour ordered as Photo turned the recorder to the stage. "Action!" With that, the music and video recording began. One week later... Lightning Blitz was now making his way through the Canterlot Mall, thinking about the past week. He had expected to be an almost social pariah, given he was the reason Crystal Prep couldn't have their dance on a yacht. But instead, nobody seemed to know this, and his reputation was completely unharmed. As he made his way through the food court, he noticed a nearby TV. "Alright everyone," the announcer on the screen announced, "It's time to reveal the winning entry of the Canterlot Mall Chance to Prance Competition!" Lightning came to a stop and stared at the screen. And as he did this, his eyes went wide as he saw who appeared on the screen as the music began to play. "Well I'll be damned," Lightning chuckled halfway through the video. And when it came to the an end, he heard a familiar voice fill the air. "Yee-hoo!" He turned to see Applejack along with the rest of the Rainbooms. "We've got enough to make Camp Everfree look just like new!" "We're having the spring dance on a yacht!" Another voice called out, making him see the Shadowbolts there too. Lemon and Applejack high fived while Pinkie wrapped an arm around their necks. "Who's up for a celebratory Aunt Orange smoothie?!" "I am!" Flash called out, "Just watching all that dancing made me thirsty. I don't know how you girls did it." They laughed and cheered before walking off, Rarity and Sour being the only ones to stay behind. In that moment, Rarity let out a gasp and patted Sour Sweet. "Ohhh-ho-ho-ho-ho! I have just had the most brilliant idea! Maybe Crystal Prep could use an award-winning band to play at their spring dance? It'll be the perfect way to show off your new dance moves!" Sour Sweet went starry-eyed, "That would be amazing!" She then flinched, "Of course, then we'd have a new dilemma to deal with." "Oh no." Rarity replied, "What?" Sour then smirked, "Figuring out what we're all gonna wear." "Oh," Rarity chuckled back, "I already have some ideas that I'd be willing to share." "Me too." The pair laughed and were about to follow their friends, only for Rarity to glance back. "Lightning?" The teen, who had only been paying half attention at this point, turned to them. "I didn't know you were here." "Well..." he responded while moving over to them, "I didn't have anything else to do." Rarity smiled at this, making him raise an eyebrow, "What?" "I guess we should be thanking you." Lightning blinked at this, "If you hadn't refused to help the Shadowbolts, we wouldn't have ended up teaming up and winning the contest." "Yeah..." Sour added, "And we're sorry about what we said when you backed out. You were right to do that." Lightning glanced away at this, "Eh, no harm done. Everything turned out alright, so let's just forget about it." Rarity and Sour both nodded before the fashionista grabbed his arm. "Come on. You can join us for our celebration." Lightning was about to retort, but Rarity gave him a yank before he could argue. It had been an interesting time in Canterlot, but one everyone would look back on fondly. They had raised the money they needed, and a new page had been turned over for CHS and CPA. Now only time would tell what wacky events were waiting to unfold next.