"Alright, wow. This is nice." Itsuki commented as he and Dash walked through the locker rooms. "Warm, but nice."
"Welcome to the Wonderbolts' locker rooms," Dash replied, walking up to her locker and grabbing what Itsuki assumed was a flight suit.
"What's that?" He still asked as Dash put it on.
"My Wonderbolt suit."
Holy hell she looks good in that. "Hm. Nice." Itsuki looked around, seeing a couple of the pegasi staring at him in wonder.
"Hey." A female voice said next to him.
Itsuki looked over to find a light blue pegasus with white hair staring at him. She was wearing a suit similar to the one Dash was putting on.
"Oh. Hey."
"I take it you're new around here?"
"Uh... what?"
"New Recruit?"
"Oh! Uh, no. I'm not a recruit or whatever. Just uh, just visiting." Itsuki rubbed the back of his head. Real freaking smooth ya moron.
The pegasus tilted her head. "Then uh... why are you in here?"
"He's with me," Dash clarified, having finished putting on her suit. "Itsuki, this is Fleetfoot. Fleetfoot, Itsuki."
"Hello," Itsuki greeted.
"Hi. So what, are you just giving him a tour of the place?" Fleetfoot asked.
"Originally yeah. But Spitfire said I can teach him how to fly since, well." Dash pointed to Itsuki's horn, causing Fleetfoot's jaw to drop.
"Oh sweet Celestia..." the bewildered pegasus said.
"Yeah, I'm an Alicorn," Itsuki boasted.
"That..." Fleetfoot tilted her head. "Wait, you're an Alicorn, a male Alicorn, and you don't know how to fly?"
"I was a Unicorn before this."
"Oh. Makes sense."
"I'm surprised you aren't more surprised," Dash commented.
"I'm surprised. But we're kinda on duty here."
"Eh, true. Anyways, Itsuki? Wanna head outside to fly?"
"Yes!" The Alicorn exclaimed.
"Can I help?"
Dash was surprised. "Would Spitfire be alright with it?"
"Yeah, she'd be fine with it. I have a thing to do first, but then I can help."
"Alright. Tell ya what. Me and Itsuki will go out next to the runway, and you can join us whenever."
"Sounds like a plan. See you two lovebirds later!" Fleetfoot trotted off.
"Well she's nice," Itsuki remarked. "Wait... did she just call us?"
Dash sighed. "Welcome to the Wonderbolts. You start hanging out with anypony else that isn't a mare and they'll instantly jump to the jokes. Now let's go."
Outside, Itsuki couldn't help but watch in awe as he watched a bright yellow honest-to-god Supermarine Spitfire take off from the runway, along with a P-51 Mustang sporting a blue and yellow livery.
"Now," Rainbow Dash began. "Just to be sure, I'm gonna run some checks on you."
"Uh... checks?" Itsuki wondered.
"Just to make sure you aren't going to kill yourself when you try to fly."
Well damn, that got dark, he thought as Dash felt his wings, unfurling them.
"Ow!" he yelped as she tried to unfurl them.
"Sorry! Mind stretching the wings out?"
Itsuki blushed and did that, allowing Dash to feel out his wings. It tickled. It really tickled. So much that it took everything in him to not fidget or make dumb noises.
"How much does this hurt?" she asked, moving his wing up and down.
"Ow. Ow-owowOWOWOWOOWW!"
Rainbow Dash stopped doing what she was doing and laughed. "I wasn't even doing it that hard!"
"That doesn't- you were- I was-" Itsuki groaned after failing thrice at English. He grew more embarrassed as he noticed some of the other pegasi giggling at him.
Dash couldn't help but cringe. "This is gonna be fun..." she mumbled. "Can you at least flap?"
Itsuki focused on his wings, moving them up and down. It felt odd considering he was moving muscles that simply didn't exist on the human body.
"Keep going. Get yourself a rhythm."
Itsuki kept at it, taking a quick break before going at it again.
"Damn this is tiring..." he mumbled.
After about fifteen minutes, he was able to manage flapping without a weird feeling in his bones, and without taking a break every ten seconds.
"Think you're ready to lift yourself off the ground?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Um... maybe?"
By this point, several of the Wonderbolts had begun watching from a distance. It wasn't every day you saw a grown mare or stallion learning to fly for the very first time. It reminded them of their youth, which in turn planted smiles on their faces.
"Alright. Don't try to go too high. Just go, say, a foot off the ground."
Itsuki nodded. He got his wings into a rhythm, going a little faster. He could feel the weight going off his hooves. It was by far the weirdest feeling ever. Because as a human, when you jump, your feet come off the ground immediately. You don't get the chance to register the feeling of the weight coming off of them.
Itsuki flapped a little harder. Without warning, he felt all the weight come off his hooves. With a quick yelp, he stopped flapping and landed back on the ground.
Everyone watching, including Dash, couldn't help but laugh a bit. Itsuki's heart was racing. God dammit you idiot. Look at all these girls laughing at you! I can do better!
"If there's one thing none of us did, it was that we didn't instantly stop flapping the moment we got off the ground," Dash commented.
His face heating up, Itsuki grew more determined. He raised his wings and flapped hard, wanting to get the hell off the ground.
What he didn't expect was him rocketing upwards. His whole body ached as internals were forced upwards, slamming against his skin. He instinctively screamed, but somehow kept a rhythm going.
His eyes squeezed shut, he could hear everypony below and even some in the air, laughing at his sudden predicament. His body was shaking, his heart was quaking, this whole day had just gone to hell. He didn't want to open his eyes, afraid of what he might see screwing over whatever delicate balance held him in the air.
He could hear planes somewhere nearby, the engine noise getting closer and closer before he finally heard two sets of tires squelch.
"How the heck are you still up here?" he heard Rainbow Dash ask, her voice sounding closer and closer.
"I don't know, but I want down. How high up am I?" Please don't say I'm like three feet up...
"A hundred and three feet."'
Itsuki yelped and nearly threw himself off balance. He felt something grab the forward part of his barrel.
"Calm down! Just slow down your rhythm, and I'll get ya down," Dash slowed her rhythm and slowly began bringing the Alicorn down with her.
Soon, they both touched the ground. Itsuki's heart was pounding, his face was a little redder than usual, it sucked. It REALLY sucked what just happened.
"Holy... crap..." Itsuki opened his eyes and stared at the tarmac, his breathing heavy and shaky. You messed up hard. He thought. Now everyone here is laughing at you because you can't keep yourself in the air without panicking for even three seconds.
He could feel tears welling up in his eyes. He shut them. Your nothing but just some sore loser who can't fly even though you have wings. What kind of a winged creature am I if I can't fly? They might as well just exile me. I'm useless to them...
Itsuki felt a hoof begin to caress his hair. It felt nice.
"Are you alright?" he faintly heard Rainbow Dash ask.
"Yeah! Yeah, I'm fine." You messed that up. They know. SHOOT.
He felt a hoof touch his jaw and bring his head up. He slowly opened his eyes to find, not Rainbow Dash, but Fleetfoot holding his head up. Dash was off to the side, looking both relieved and slightly annoyed at the same time.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Fleetfoot asked, giving a caring smile.
"..."
"..."
"No..." he finally conceded.
"Ok, well, this-" Fleetfoot paused to take a breath in. There was something so weirdly funny about a fully grown stallion being this scared to fly. "This... is something you'll get used to. All pegasi, and Alicorns, get used to it at some point."
"Still. I just... shoot... how does Takumi get used to it immediately, when I can barely get myself off the ground?"
Fleetfoot looked at Dash.
"Friend of his," Dash clarified.
Fleetfoot nodded and looked back. "First off, you got yourself pretty far off the ground with that one flap. Even Spitfire talked over the radio about how impressive it was."
"Th-... Thanks..." Itsuki just stared at Fleetfoot. The mare was definitely older than him, but she still looked amazing. Why do all of the members have to be so damn hot... he wondered. Even better, why the hell am I super into ponies?
"All of us have gone through issues learning to fly. Take me for example," Fleetfoot began. "I was so excited when I started flying, that I ended up tiring myself out and rolling down a hill. Smacked my jaw into the hood of an R32 Skyline."
"Oh is that where your little lisp came from?" Dash asked.
"Yeah. Hehe, it's kinda embarrassing. At least it wasn't moving. And- hey, you barely notice my lisp."
Itsuki lightly smiled. "At least it wasn't."
"Soarin also had a hard time," Fleetfoot continued. "He couldn't control where he was flying and broke his wing on the back of a Mustang Shelby GT350."
Itsuki blinked. "With... an optional Paxton Supercharger?" He smirked.
"Yep." Soarin hovered above. "I ended up buying the exact car that broke my wing."
Everypony shared a laugh.
Itsuki noticed Spitfire standing nearby, looking very amused. "What? Did you slam into an S14 when you began flying?"
"No. I was smart when I started flying unlike all of you guys," Spitfire replied, glancing around at the recruits in the area. "I mostly practiced in a field, away from roads."
It was now that Itsuki realized how much of a burden he was probably being to the Wonderbolts. He was distracting them from their practices. "I uh... hope I'm not being annoying." He blushed.
"Oh please." Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "I doubt we'll forget any of our skills because we hung around for ten minutes. Now. Let's try this again. I got a good feelin' about this."
Celestia, Luna, and Cadance all sat down at a table in a small room. There were no windows and only four lights. The only pieces of furniture were the table and the four chairs around it. With the six-inch wooden door being the only way in or out, aside from two small vents in the corner for air circulation, It was very private.
"Now," Celestia began. "I hope the three of us know why we're here?"
"To talk about Takumi Fujiwara and Itsuki Takeuchi," Luna replied.
"It's all anypony who's seen them can think about," Cadance deadpanned.
Celestia nodded. "True. Now, to start things off, I have a plan for them. It's a little work in progress, but it should make for a good baseline."
"Let's hear it," the younger princesses said in unison.
"So." Celestia took a breath in, then let it out. "They are both Alicorns. And like it or not, an Alicorn is considered royalty. So they'll both become princes at one point or another."
Luna and Cadance nodded.
"So what I'm thinking... Well, first off, let's remember how they both act."
"Sudden change of thought is sudden," Luna jested.
Celestia rolled her eyes. "Anyway. From what I learned about Itsuki during our meeting yesterday, and simply spending a little time with him, is that he is a rather rambunctious pony. He is very cheerful, always excited about cars, and is extremely optimistic. He seems to be the kind of pony that will look at a dire situation and think it will still work. Now Cadance, you've spent a little more time with him than me. What can you say about him?"
"Well..." Cadance collected her thoughts. "He's what you said. But there are a few negatives."
"Negatives?" Celestia was intrigued. "Do tell."
"While he is pretty keen on becoming a prince, he doesn't grasp things in a very big picture. He simplifies things. Which, while it is better than a meticulous pony that takes forever to do one thing without going through a thousand-page book."
The three cringed.
"But he oversimplifies things. And he thinks when he becomes a prince, he'll be able to get everything for free. Specifically car parts. No seriously, he wants to use him being a prince as a way to get parts for his car. Not gonna lie, that's much different than many ponies I've talked to. Kinda cute. But he literally has the mindset of a colt or filly. But, he seems eager to learn. if we can just get him to start grasping the bigger picture..."
"Mhm... well, for him," Celestia began. "We should work on that. Get him out of that mindset. It's that kind of thing that will get him hated. Anything else?"
"Well, that being said, he seems like the generous type. I'm sure he could find a pony that's having issues paying for something, and happily offer some of his own money."
"Really? Maybe that would even things out. As long as he doesn't give away hundreds of bits each day, that would work very well in his favor."
"One last thing is that he's very boastful. And a bit of a motormouth if you ask me. So that would need to be sorted." Cadance rubbed her eyes. "And then there's Takumi, who none of us have spent much time with."
"No. Luna here has spent time with him." Celestia eyed the dark Alicorn suspiciously, raising a brow. "An awful lot of time with him..."
Luna suddenly said something in what sounded like a completely different language, ending with 'Fujiwara'.
"The ONLY word I understood of that was Fujiwara," Cadance commented as Celestia rolled her eyes.
"That is because Fujiwara is not a word in old Ponish."
Celestia sighed. "Anyways. Sister. Do you have anything to say about Takumi?"
Luna nodded. "Takumi is very different from Itsuki. While Itsuki is unphased by the thought of spending the rest of his life here, Takumi is more focused on getting back to his old life. He has friends and a father he cares about."
"No mother?"
"He never mentioned anything about his mother, and I never inquired. Anyways, he is not completely against becoming a prince. During our time together in day court, he showed some interest in the prospect. And last night, he did mention something about being alright with it, so long as he has an advisor. But that is where the issue lies."
Cadance tilted her head in wonder.
"He does not know how our world works. He personally told me, and I quote, 'You know what? I'm just going to assume that everything that happens is normal'. The issue with that mindset is how there are some things that are not normal in our world. He could be easily manipulated if the manipulator knows what they are doing."
"Yes, that does pose an issue." Celestia agreed. "He would need one of our most trusted advisors, should the need arise for him to become a temporary ruler."
"However, he is a very logically thinking individual. He knows what common sense is, and seems to easily sense when something is off, or when somepony is using him. And he is by no means very submissive. That may be why he trusts me the most."
"He trusts you the most?"
Luna nodded. "I, so far, have shown the most 'down to earth' as he would put it, to him. I have shown him most of what our world can be like, and have generally been a very good friend to him. I may need to ask who he considers a friend and who he doesn't, but I digress."
"Hm..." Celestia drew out a plan, creating and eliminating different factors and choices. "What I think... We should take this slow for Takumi. Work him up to being a prince."
"Like the way you did it with me?" Cadance asked.
"In a way, yes, but slower. We should give them a tour of the most prominent places of Equestria. Familiarize them with the land and its residents. Maybe even fill him in on some recent events."
"But the question is, where would be the best place to start?" Luna asked. "Starlight did mention in our meeting yesterday that he had explored much of Ponyville. In fact, he is already down there again on account of taking Trixie, Rarity, and Scootaloo home."
"Yeah, he is. And it somewhat terrifies me that we don't know what he's doing."
Luna rolled her eyes. "What could he be doing? He is only nineteen in a now-familiar town."
"Ponies will see him? Rumors will spread all over Ponyville of a new Alicorn?"
Luna's eyes widened. "Well, when you put it like that... wait, no? Hold on, Twilight is there. He went there because Twilight was going. Twilight and the rest of the Elements will make sure that he is not found out."
"Oh... true. So, to recap," Celestia began. "Itsuki is a cheerful, optimistic but slightly boastful stallion who wants to be a prince... to get free car parts."
"And also to eat good food," Cadance added.
"Hm. And then Takumi is a laid-back, drowsy pony who wants to get back to his world. He thinks logically, probably would go by way of common sense if he were to become a prince or ruler, and..."
"Possesses hoof-eye coordination way off the charts," Luna blurted out.
Celestia looked at Luna, tilting her head in wonder. "Really?"
"He has catlike reflexes and a photographic memory," Luna remembered last night when she inquired about some of the things he could do. Though he tended to say 'at least that's what my friends would tell me' after each listing. "He does not seem to be the fondest of magic, aside from opening and closing his car door which is understandable. But, his reflexes are razor sharp. Not to mention how smooth and graceful his movements are. Even rivalling you, sister."
That last bit made Celestia scrunch up her muzzle a little.
"Jesting aside, he is very different from any of us. Despite being an Alicorn even when first coming into this world, through dreams I might add, he is more Earth Pony than anything. While he doesn't seem to know quite how to use his hooves, if we could get him to know his hooves better, I do not know about you, but I personally think having an Alicorn who doesn't rely almost entirely on magic and can really handle themselves in serious combat could prove invaluable."
"That's one heck of a contrast to Twilight," Cadance commented. "The 'not relying on magic' part."
"Indeed," Luna agreed. "But who is going to teach them?"
"Well," Celestia instantly began. "I'd rather we not have just one of us mentoring them. Itsuki I believe should be tutored by both Twilight and Cadance."
"And Rainbow Dash," Cadance abruptly added.
"Pardon?"
"I've noticed how Itsuki and Rainbow Dash act around each other. It's actually pretty cute if I'm being honest. I never thought Rainbow Dash would find her match."
Celestia couldn't help but smirk. "Rainbow Dash is in love with Itsuki?"
"And not because he's an Alicorn. Surprisingly. But I wouldn't call it official. Itsuki on the other hoof is definitely showing feelings towards Dash."
"Hm. Well then. I guess it would make sense to let her in on it."
"And then there is Takumi Fujiwara," Luna reminded. She resisted the urge to smile, knowing that Celestia was going to say that they would be the ones to mentor the young white Alicorn.
Celestia nodded. "Yes. With Takumi, you and I will tutor him. Having already teached two students, both from fillyhood, I'm sure tutoring him won't be too much of a problem. Of course, the different gender does pose different factors."
Luna tilted her head as she realized something. "What exactly will we be teaching him?"
Celestia tapped her chin. "Well... hm... I haven't thought of that yet. I only say me and you will tutor him because of his calm personality. In fact, for you sister, this will be a good learning experience. You have wanted a student of your own for some time. Seems that wish will come true."
Luna giggled. "True." Only difference between Celestia tutoring Twilight and me tutoring Takumi, is that Takumi will be tutoring us as well. On the art of the mountain pass.
She quickly remembered something. "Sister?"
"Yes?"
"With us tutoring Takumi, we must remember his well-being. Both physically and mentally. We must take this slow and when I say slow, I mean slow. He will not like needing to learn things when he does not want to, and may grow agitated. I would hate for him to..." Luna trailed off as she remembered the terrifying form of Takumi she had seen last night. She gulped. "...snap."
"You look frightened, sister."
Luna took a breath in, then exhaled. "It is nothing."
Celestia eyed her. "Hm..." She sighed. "Well, we've been away from our duties for long enough. We should get back to them. Cadance, are you heading back to the Crystal Empire anytime soon?"
"Maybe tomorrow. Or the day after that. I rarely get away from the Empire so I try to savor these little vacations as much as I can." Cadance cheerfully replied.
"Very well. Cadance, if you want to, feel free to travel down to Ponyville and let Twilight know of the plan. You two should work out your own plan of how to approach Itsuki. Find out his learning pattern."
"Will do."
Celestia stood up. "Thank you two for coming. This should prove quite fun if you ask me."
Luna only cringed and rolled her eyes. Though, Celestia was right. It probably was going to be a lot of fun.
"Ok, here we go." Rainbow Dash began. "Ready to fly?"
"After being forced through like an hour of these exercises? I think so," Itsuki replied, his wings unfurled as he stood beside the runway.
"Alright. Ready?"
"Yep. Ready and raring."
"Pfff. In that case, have at it."
Itsuki and took a deep breath in, something Dash said was a great way to calm yourself, before letting it out. He slowly began to flap his wings up and down, getting into a rhythm, faster and faster. He felt the weight begin to lift off his hooves. It felt normal now, considering Dash made him stand in place and flap his wings so that he had barely any weight on his hooves.
After a second, he flapped hard and shot himself up. He instinctively shut his eyes as he steadiesdhimself, slowing his flapping. He slowly opened his eyes and found himself ten feet off the ground. He smiled.
His smile broadened. "Ok, holy crap."
"Come on! Fly forward ya dolt!" Dash encouraged.
Changed his wing pitch, Itsuki allowed himself to fly forward. The class he took about aerodynamics proved to be helpful as he began cruising through the air at ten miles an hour.
"Holy shit... I'm flying. I'm flying! I'M FLYING! WOOOOH!"
Dash laughed. "Yes you are! Go Itsuki!"
Feeling invigorated, Itsuki permitted himself to go faster, exceeding thirty, then forty. He suddenly angled his wings upwards, pulling up and doing a full loop before righting himself. "I DID A LOOP! YES!"
Every pegasus in the area could help but smile and reminisce about their maiden flights, some even bringing tears to their eyes. Even Spitfire smiled.
"I bet I could fly straight to Canterlot and back! It feels like I've rediscovered street racing!"
"I doubt you could fly to Canterlot AND back in one go, but if Spitfire would let me, maybe we could fly there for an hour." Dash flew alongside Itsuki around the Academy, making sure to not cross the flight path of anypony else, or a plane. "I take it you haven't sat on a cloud before?"
Itsuki looked at her with wide eyes. "Bullcrap. No way in hell we can do that."
"Yes way in hell we can do it!"
Itsuki eyed a small cloud a little ways above, smiling and shooting up towards it. He could feel his insides press against each other, which caused him to instinctively slow. Within seconds, he slowed and descended upon the cloud, ready to start flapping quickly again. Surprisingly, he landed on it.
"Woah..." The feeling was odd. It was like standing on a damp pillow. A very soft, damp pillow. As he laid down, he couldn't but feel all warm and fuzzy.
Dash landed next to him. "Well, whaddya think?"
"I... I like it. I could sleep on this. Itsuki almost settled into laying down before realizing who was staring at him. He quickly stood back up.
"I do it all the time," Dash laid down on the cloud, rolling over once. "It's nice."
Itsuki's face reddened more than usual. Rainbow Dash looked reeallly good. And adorable. "Uh... you do?"
"Yeah. Gotta keep my sleep in check if I wanna stay the fastest in Equestria!"
Itsuki gave her a stare.
"Uh... fastest in the air," she corrected.
"Hm. So uh, wanna go for a fly? If that's what you call it?"
"To where?"
"Just um... around. You know. Maybe around Ponyville. Maybe we could meet up with Twilight and Starlight?"
"Well, here's the thing, uh..." Dash looked down towards the Academy, seeing the other pegasi practicing. "How about you go to Twilight, and I'll catch up later?"
"Oh." Itsuki let out a disappointed sigh. "In that case, I'll just drive my 86 there." He unfurled his wings and looked down at the ground below, shuddering a bit.
"Why?"
"Because I want it nearby." He jumped off the cloud suddenly, yelping as he quickly stabilized himself. Dash giggled as she did the same, smoothly following him.
"Well, see you later then?"
"Buh... bye."
Knock Knock Knock
"I'll get it."
Spike walked down a hall to the front doors, bored as ever. He reached up at the handle and opened the left door, and was quickly surprised at the pony he found standing there. "Itsuki!"
"Oh hey! Spike! How's it going?" Itsuki greeted.
"Uh- Just fine! What brings you here?"
"Oh well, I just kind of uh... just sort of decided to come over because Rainbow Dash is working. Practicing."
"Nice. Means we can hang out some more!"
"Who's at the door?" They heard Twilight call out.
"It's just Itsuki!" Spike called back.
Within two seconds, Twilight landed right in front of Itsuki, surprising the Alicorn.
"Itsuki! Uh, hi!" Twilight greeted. "Why are you here?"
"Rainbow Dash was busy working so I thought I'd drop by. Plus I wanted to check out Spike's indoor go-kart track again. That thing is sick."
"Ah yes, that. The one thing that keeps him from sleeping all the time. And from doing his chores..."
"What was that?" Spike asked.
"Nothing."
"So uh... can I come in?" Itsuki asked.
"Uh- Of course! Of course you can! Come on in!" Twilight stepped aside. Itsuki bit his lip as he walked past the excited princess. She is such a cutie...
A minute later, the three plus Starlight were in the Cutie Map Room. Itsuki just so happened to be sitting in Rainbow Dash's chair.
"So this thing is a map?" Itsuki asked, rubbing the table in the center.
"Yep," Twilight cheerfully replied.
"Doesn't look like one."
"You wanna see it turned on?"
"I mean... Sure. Why not?"
With a quick flash of purple magic, the table lit up and suddenly turned into a 3-Dimensional holographic plane.
"Wow..." Itsuki waved his hoof around a holographic mountain. It passed through easily. "This is... huh. Color me impressed. This is actually pretty cool."
"Mhm. This is the Cutie Map." Twilight went into exposition mode. "It allows us to see parts of Equestria and sends ponies off to different locations to solve Friendship Problems."
"Friendship Problems?"
"You know. An argument between ponies that matter to the map. It doesn't happen as often as you think."
"Hm. Sounds fun."
"It is when you aren't being sent to a rural village to be captured and stripped of your cutie mark." Twilight nonchalantly joked. Itsuki bit hard on his lip when he saw the pissed-off look on Starlight's face.
"So uh, heh, how does it send them there?"
"When a problem arises, a pony, usually me or one of my friends, Cutie Mark will show up on here. Sitting over a location. It's always been two, but on the first Friendship Problem, me and the other elements were sent to a rural town. And then we met Starlight. We usually just take a train or drive there."
"Oh nice. How'd that go?"
"Well-"
"AH BABABAP!" Starlight suddenly interrupted. "We are NOT talking about that and you KNOW IT."
Twilight leaned away from Starlight. "Okay. Sheesh."
WHY IS EVERYONE HERE SO FREAKING ADORABLE!??! Itsuki internally screamed.
"So. What is uh, what was it, Japan like?" Twilight asked. "It was Japan, right?"
"Yeah. It's... well, I don't know what to tell you."
"How about the landscape? Let's start with that."
"Oh that's easy. There are sweet mountains everywhere, everything is COVERED in forests, oh and there are mountains passes everywhere. You should see for yourself."
Twilight scribbled notes down on a notebook. "Alright. Towns? County's?"
Oh god dangit I'm gonna be here for a while, aren't I? "Well, me and Takumi come from a place called Shibukawa."
Twilight attempted to write a note down. "Shi- Shibu-... How do I spell that? Shibukawa?"
"S H I B U K A W A."
Without missing a beat, Twilight wrote the word down. "Alright. Anything else? Counties? Territory's?"
"Tokyo. Massive city in Saitama."
"Toh-kee..."
"T O K Y O."
"Tokyo. What's Saitama?"
"A Prefecture. I guess you could call them counties, but we call them Prefectures."
"Prefecture... That's actually a really nice term. I like it. I might start calling Equestrian counties that from now on. Ooooo maybe I could get Celestia to officially rename them to that! Just think! Ponyville Prefecture, Canterlot Prefecture, Crystal Prefecture- Ooo that's a good one. Manehattan Prefecture-"
"Twilight?" Spike interrupted.
"-Cloudsdale Prefecture- would that even work?"
Spike sighed and held a message in front of Twilight's face, snapping her back into reality.
"Oh. Thanks Spike." Her horn lit up and the scroll started magically floating. After unrolling it, she silently read it.
Dear Twilight,
Me, Celestia, and Luna have been talking, and we've come up with a plan to 'tutor' Takumi and Itsuki and slowly warm them up to becoming princes. It may sound a little sudden, not to mention how early it is to start doing this, but we've decided to give them a few months, maybe a year, to get situated in our world. During that time we'll be giving them a few tidbits of information here and there, and also take them for trips around Equestria to various places. With their consent of course.
The current plan to teach them, is that we'll be taking things slow. Me, you, and Rainbow Dash will be tutoring Itsuki about this world. (Don't ask why Rainbow Dash is helping, just roll with it.) Celestia and Luna will be doing the same with Takumi. That doesn't mean you and I can't be with him though. Likewise for them with Itsuki. We need to find a good learning style for Itsuki, so Luna says, and they will do the same for Takumi. They said to take things slow. So do not unload information onto Itsuki, and if you happen to be with Takumi, don't do it to him under any circumstances.
This should be fun though. I've always wondered what it would be like to have a student. Sunburst did somewhat fill that, but Itsuki will be a true taste of it. And hopefully this means you and I can see each other more! When Equestria or the Crystal Empire isn't on the verge of death and destruction!
Your favorite foalsitter, Cadance.
Twilight bit her lip as she smiled. "I think that's the first time she's written to me."
"Who?" Starlight asked.
"Cadance. This is- oh hello. Missed this little bit." Twilight narrowed her eyes.
P.S, Seriously, take things super slow with Takumi. Just let him know about certain things when it's both suitable and alright with him. Aunty Luna was extremely adamant about that. I don't know what's gotten her so paranoid, but considering she's way older than either of us, I'd just take her word for it.
"All...right then."
"What?"
Twilight sighed. "I really should have just read it out loud the first time..."
That night, Dream Realm.
Luna idly floated through the realm, watching orb after orb float by. All of the ponies were doing what ponies did. Surfing, Juggling, becoming a princess, all trivial things that didn't garner her attention.
Her mind was on racing, thinking about how she was going to improve her driving once the clock struck midnight. Her job was no longer number one on her to-do list, having been reduced to her only doing it an hour after the sunset to midnight. That didn't mean she abandoned ponies when it struck midnight, nor did she rush to finish helping whoever she was with when it struck midnight. But once she was done, she would leave the Dream Realm and go to drive.
Sure, it was a little selfish, but most ponies tended to have nightmares right after they go to sleep. And she usually missed other nightmares when dealing with one, so it wasn't like she kept everypony from having nightmares. And ponies these nights didn't seem to have many nightmares anyways.
She thought about how she was going to take the corners. How to tackle the four wheel drift. Takumi showed her that both the Four Wheel Drift and Slip Angle were the fastest ways to take a corner, the former of the two being the outright fastest.
Oh, and if there was one thing she hated about Takumi, it was how flippin' good he was. He made such an advanced technique look so simple. He knew how to do it whenever he wanted. He used the correct speed, gear, revs, engine control, and steering, all while continuing to drive with the smoothest ride she'd ever ridden in.
BANG!
A quiet sound echoed through the realm, causing Luna to look around. Her eyes quickly fixed themselves on a dark orb, one slightly pulsating.
What the? She wondered as she stared at the orb. This is intriguing. I've never seen such a dark orb. And where is the host? Shouldn't it show me?
She could just barely make out the features. A mountain road, the night sky, a forest, but she couldn't see anypony in the dream.
Is this some kind of... dormant dream? She wondered. A dream without a host?
braaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAp- KSH! -braaaaaaaaaaa
Is that... an engine we art hearing?
BANG!
The orb lit up in a bright fiery yellow. Without missing a beat, Luna jumped into the dream, both frightened and intrigued at what it had to offer.
Once inside, she found herself standing in the middle of a mountain road. A forest surrounded the tall mountains that sat everywhere. On one side of the road, a small cliff face. on the other side, a near-sheer drop leading to a valley below, a river flowing through said valley.
She could feel the cool breeze blowing against her coat, feathers lightly ruffling. She didn't know where she was, and assumed this was a fictional place.
"All dreams have hosts, right?" She asked herself. "If there is such thing as a host-less dream, then this could be an interesting find."
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
She could hear tires squealing in the distance, along with revving engines. The sound made her a little giddy.
Until she could feel it.
It was a feeling he knew well from her experience in the Dream Realm. It was the host's fear. Something they were either running from or chasing, but it drove them crazy when they couldn't grasp it. She could sense the speed the fear was traveling at. It was fast. Much faster than anything she'd ever encountered before.
And as the tire squeals and revving came closer, she could feel the fear coming closer as well.
"Very well." She whispered. "Let's see where the host is. If there is any, this should allow me to sense them."
Once her horn lit up, she pinpointed exactly where the host of this dream was. The host was moving just as fast as the fear, but said fear was right behind the host.
Initial D Fourth Stage Sound Files vol.1 - Pinch! starts playing.
"Is this the dream... of a street racer?" She wondered. "Intriguing. We shall connect with the host and see what they are-"
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
Before she could even begin to cast the spell, two sets of headlights flew from around a corner of the road, speeding straight towards her. A horn blared, and the Competition Yellow-colored car swerved out of the way. She yelped as she quickly lunged forward, feeling the car graze her tail.
Stabilizing herself, she looked behind to identify the cars. One was a modified Mazda RX-7 FD3S, while the other was interestingly enough a black Ferrari 365 GT4 BB Koenig Special with golden wheels. Both car's engines revved high as they accelerated around a bend, disappearing from sight.
Without missing a beat, Luna launched herself into the air and took off after the two speed machines. She smiled as both cars braked and sped around a hairpin. The RX-7's 13B-REW Rotary revved loudly with the Ferrari's F102A Flat-12as they exited, both shifting gears.
Luna couldn't help but squee and smile in delight at the sight. These cars were both very fast, and their drivers were skilled. Her horn lit up as she connected herself with the host, who happened to be driving the RX-7.
Dammit! She suddenly heard the host say. It sounded like a male in his mid-twenties. No matter what I do, no matter how fast I'm on the throttle, I can't out-accelerate him!
Luna's excitement quickly faded as the RX-7 and 308 tore around a left hairpin.
Shit! The RX-7 driver thought. Why can't I beat you goddammit!? You've been messing with my dreams ever since you beat me in real life!
It suddenly dawned on Luna that the fear wasn't anything like she'd ever encountered before.
Fear was the Ferrari.
"Oh my..." She quietly said.
Despite how much the driver of the RX-7 accelerated, the Ferrari continued sticking to his bumper. The Ferrari sounded naturally aspirated, while turbochargers whirred from the RX-7's engine bay. Luna had to admit, the Ferrari sounded amazing.
But the feeling was quickly lost as they exited another right hairpin. The RX-7 went to the outside of the road while the Ferrari stayed inside, suddenly revving the Flat 12 high and loud as it accelerated next to the RX-7.
No! The driver mentally yelled. How?! I thought I covered that line! You shouldn't be able to accelerate that fast! Damn natural aspiration! Alright, calm down. I'll be on the inside of this next corner. If I can just keep him on the outside, I'll pass!
Luna was genuinely surprised. Whoever this RX-7 driver was, they feared the Ferrari. They were desperately trying to get away. She wanted to intervene, but having never been in a dream like this before, she chose to let it continue.
BANG!
The RX-7's exhaust spit flames as it went into a long sweeping left corner, quickly followed by the Ferrari. By the sound of, both cars had their throttles wide open through the whole thing. The RX-7 understandably got ahead, forcing the Ferrari to swerve in behind and begin tailgating. It was tailgating so close to the RX-7, Luna couldn't believe it wasn't hitting the bumper.
They braked suddenly and swerved into a hard left corner. The RX-7 skidded towards the outside while the Ferrari stuck inside, swiping the inside right out from under the RX-7.
Fuck! I can't turn for shit! The driver yelled in his mind.
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
Tires squealed as both cars exited the corner. The RX-7 swerved in behind the Ferrari, sticking to its bumper for only a second before the Ferrari accelerated away and around a right corner. Luna flew in close to see if she could make out what the driver of the RX-7 looked like as they exited.
She was most surprised to feel that the fear was gone. Looking up and ahead of a straightaway, she saw nothing. The driver clearly saw the same.
"FUCK!" The driver yelled out loud. He pressed the brake and pulled to the left side of the road, putting the RX-7 in neutral.
Music ends.
Luna hovered above as she watched the right door open, and the driver get out.
To say she was surprised at the driver's appearance was... very accurate.