Chapter 4:
Now that the opening performance for the Wonderbolts visit to Ponyville was over, Soarin could prepare to start his search for the rainbow-maned mare in the photo from the royal wedding in Canterlot. His first stop was his room in the Motel so he could remove his suit.
'Back in the western movie flick of a room.' thought Soarin as he entered his motel room.
He now had the privacy and freedom to remove his Wonderbolt suit and recover the photo from his back.
'Why did I even place the photo on my back in the first place? Maybe it gave me some good luck in the performance.' Soarin thought.
Soarin then placed the photo along with a water bottle and a small bag of money into his saddlebags and left his motel room with his mind focused on his search.
'This search for that mare could be a good chance to know Ponyville inside and out.' Soarin thought.
As Soarin made it outside the motel, he began to explore Ponyville's streets. His first destination was the Market Square. It seemed very quiet other than the few mares walking into the spa and a unicorn mare walking out of what looked like a posh clothes shop.
'Not a busy time of day I'm guessing.' thought Soarin as he took a stroll through the Market Square.
Without a thought of what was happening around him, he bumped into someone, knocking him and the pony he collided with over. As Soarin landed, his photo flew out of his saddlebags.
"Watch where you're going!" yelled the voice of a mare.
Soarin looked up to see a white unicorn mare with a stylish, dark purple mane and ocean blue eyes glaring down at him.
"Sorry, must have daydreamed for a sec." said Soarin as he got himself up from the ground and picking up the photo.
The photo caught the mare's eye as she saw something familiar about it.
She asked "Can I see that photo you just picked up?"
"Huh? Why?" asked Soarin.
"I'll explain when I see it." replied the mare.
"Ok then I guess." answered Soarin.
A blue aura then surrounded the photo as the mare's magic picked up the photo out of his hoof and faced the mare.
"Oh by Heavens! Is that YOU with one of my FRIENDS?" asked the mare in a shocked voice.
"I know I'm in that photo but I don't know who the mare is in it." replied Soarin.
"Are you one of the Wonderbolts by any chance?" asked the mare.
"Heck yeah! Name's Soarin!" replied Soarin.
"Well Soarin, I think my friend would love to meet you in pony." explained the mare as she handed the photo back to Soarin. "She's a huge fan of you lot you know."
"Almost everypony is!" boasted Soarin.
"I'll be sure to tell her once she gets back that you lot are exploring Ponyville." explained the mare.
"Wait, she's not here?" asked Soarin.
The mare replied "She's getting some fruit for my friend Fluttershy. Knowing her dazzling speed, she'll be back in less than an hour."
"And I don't think you've mentioned her name to me yet. And yours as well." explained Soarin.
"Oh how rude of me. I'm Rarity. And my friend's name is Rainbow Dash." replied the mare. "Is there any reason why you have that photo of you with her?"
Soarin sighed. He knew that this would lead to him telling Rarity who he only knew for two minutes about his affection for this Rainbow Dash. 'Well, Spitfire didn't react badly to me saying it, and Rarity seems like a nice mare, hopefully she doesn't react badly to it.' he thought.
"The photo is with me to help me find this Rainbow Dash. When I look at the photo, I see that cute mare smiling and it makes me feel as if something's missing from my life." explained Soarin. "You understand, right?"
Rarity looked puzzled "Are you telling me that you have a crush on Rainbow Dash?"
Soarin sighed and confessed "Yes." as he dropped his head down.
"I just don't know what to say. The moment Rainbow Dash hears that there's a Wonderbolt that is attracted to her, she'll go crazy! I know that you two would get along pretty well and she'll adore you for the fact that you're a Wonderbolt." explained Rarity with a positive attitude.
"And nothing else?" asked Soarin.
"Well, if you show that you're a nice pony then you may see Rainbow's true affection." replied Rarity. "But we've never seen her showing
any form of affection so it may take some time."
"So anyway, can you take me to her?" asked Soarin.
"May I recall that I said that she's currently running an errand for one of my other friends." replied Rarity. "And I have to deliver an order to Canterlot."
Soarin then noticed the saddlebags on Rarity's bag.
Rarity continued "I could take you to my friend Twilight who could give you a personal tour of Ponyville. I'll explain everything to her once we get to her library and I'm sure she'll be happy to help you out. Maybe she could take you to Rainbow Dash once she gets back."
"Sounds great. Lead the way." replied Soarin.
Soarin followed Rarity out of the Market Square. They went through the peaceful streets of Ponyville until they found themselves at what looked like a large tree with windows. Rarity approached the door on the large tree and knocked it.
The door opened, revealing a unicorn mare with all shades of purple on her coat, mane and eyes.
"Oh, hey Rarity." greeted the mare.
"I need to speak to you about something Twilight." said Rarity.
"What do you need?" asked Twilight.
Rarity began a small speech "I have a stallion with me who is looking for Rainbow Dash but she's getting some fruit for Fluttershy. I thought you could give him a tour of Ponyville to pass the time and then take him to Rainbow Dash once she gets back."
Twilight raised an eyebrow. "Any reason why he's looking for Rainbow Dash?" she asked.
Rarity whispered what Soarin had told her in Twilight's ear.
"WHAT!" shouted Twilight in shock. "But how?"
"He's the one to ask about it. We only bumped into each other." explained Rarity.
"I just don't know how Rainbow will react to this. She wouldn't want any random stallion coming up to her like that." said Twilight.
"Wait, did I tell you he's a Wonderbolt?" asked Rarity. "I must have forgotten to mention that."
"I still don't know how she'll react to it though." sighed Twilight. "I mean, he's a Wonderbolt and Rainbow's a big fan of the Wonderbolts. I can tell that something fishy is going to happen."
"I understand how you feel about it Twilight." assured Rarity. "I didn't get what he was on about at first either. But we've got to do something about this."
Twilight then took one look at Soarin who was standing around casually. "I just don't know what to do." she explained.
"We could just do what I suggested to do in the first place." suggested Rarity.
Twilight sighed. "I know that Rainbow's been doing a lot of practice for when the Wonderbolts visit Ponyville. This could be a chance of getting help for her if she was to have a Wonderbolt see what she's been doing lately. I'll do it for her."
"That's more like it." said Rarity. "Now I have to travel to Canterlot to deliver this order. I'm already late as it is. See you later Twilight."
"See you soon Rarity!" said Twilight as Rarity began to turn and leave.
Now it was just Soarin and Twilight.
Twilight left the library, closing the door behind her with her magic.
"So, are you Rarity's friend Twilight?" asked Soarin.
Twilight smiled and replied "Yes, my name is Twilight Sparkle. Since Rarity has to deliver one of her orders to Canterlot, I'll give you a tour of Ponyville. This is to allow some time for Rainbow Dash to finish her errand for my friend Fluttershy. What's your namr by the way?
Rarity didn't mention it."
"Name's Soarin!" replied Soarin. "I'm one of the captains of the Wonderbolts!"
"Nice to meet you Soarin." said Twilight. "So, to start the tour, you're stood near the Ponyville Library at the moment."
"I'm guessing you live there?" asked Soarin.
"Yes. I live there with my assistant Spike." replied Twilight. ""He should be napping now. Now if you'll follow me, I can show you the rest of Ponyville."
Twilight took Soarin down the path to the Market Square.
Soarin said "I've been here. This was the place I walked into Rarity."
"I was going to ask where did you meet Rarity." explained Twilight "But anyway, this is the Market Square. We usually have market days here every Saturday. Also, this part of Ponyville is where Rarity lives."
Soarin raised an eyebrow in interest.
Twilight continued "She lives in her Boutique. If she didn't tell you, she makes beautiful dresses. She made the dresses my other friends and I wore at the Grand Galloping Gala and the bridesmaid's dresses at the Royal Wedding in Canterlot."
"Sounds like her through and through." said Soarin. "She sounded like the kind of mare who would be a fashion designer. Shame she doesn't make our suits."
Twilight then turned which gave Soarin the signal that she was going to take him to another part of Ponyville.
As Soarin followed Twilight through the streets of Ponyville he thought 'I wonder if she's taking me to another part of town that I've already been to...'
"I'm sure you've been to the Town Centre where Town Hall is located?" asked Twilight.
"I've been there but I didn't get a decent look at the area." replied Soarin.
"Then we're going there next!" explained Twilight as she lead Soarin to an opening which turned out to be Ponyville Town Centre.
Soarin took a look around as Twilight lead on, explaining the sights and sounds of Ponyville Town Centre like a tour guide.
Twilight explained "As you can see, Ponyville Town Hall is the tallest building in the main district of Ponyville. The Hospital and Motel are in another district of town. The Town Hall is where most of the events are held in Ponyville and it's where the Mayor does her speeches. We did try to have the Summer Sun Celebration there but I'm sure you would have heard about what happened then."
"You mean the mare who wanted night to last forever?" asked Soarin.
"Yes, that was a legend which happened to come true but Nightmare Moon was stopped by the Elements of Harmony." answered Twilight.
"I've heard of the Elements of Harmony." said Soarin. "I've heard that six ponies from Ponyville had their power."
"You've heard it right Soarin." said Twilight. "You're looking at the Element of Magic now."
Soarin gasped "You wield the Element of Magic?! Who wields the other Elements?"
"Rarity has the Element of Generosity, my friend Pinkie Pie has the Element of Laughter, my friend Applejack has the Element of Honesty, my friend Fluttershy has the Element of Kindness and Rainbow Dash has the Element of Loyalty." explained Twilight. "I made friends with all of them when I first moved to Ponyville from Canterlot but I didn't believe that I needed friends to stop Nightmare Moon."
"But it turned out that you did?" asked Soarin.
"You got it." answered Twilight.
"So now I know that this Rainbow Dash is the wielder of an Element of Harmony." said Soarin with a grin. "That sounds awesome even thinking about it!"
"I imagine you'll like Rainbow, Soarin. You do have a lot in common with her and you have a similar personality to her." explained Twilight.
"And she's incredibly cute." sighed Soarin.
"She'll be back soon. But for now, we best go to the other side of Town Centre." said Twilight.
"Yeah, I guess you're right." explained Soarin.
Twilight lead Soarin towards a building which looked as if it was decorated by a baker since it has such bright colours and a giant cupcake at the top of the building. This gave Soarin the idea that it was a cake shop.
"This is Ponyville's most popular cake shop." explained Twilight. "It's called Sugar Cube Corner and it's where my friend Pinkie Pie lives."
"Pinkie Pie? Just hearing her name makes her sound like a funny pony." said Soarin.
"She runs the best parties in town." said Twilight.
"Sounds like an awesome pony." said Soarin with a grin.
"The Cakes are the owners of Sugar Cube Corner and they let Pinkie live there as a lodger." explained Twilight.
"The Cakes? You mean this cake shop is run by cakes?" asked Soarin.
"No." replied Twilight "It's run by Mr. and Mrs. Cake. Two earth ponies who make amazing cakes and other bakery food."
"Wait, bakery food? Does this include pie?" asked Soarin.
"Well, maybe. I'm sure they'll do some pie." answered Twilight.
'Oh man! So I can get some pie here!' thought Soarin.
"If you get the chance, I'm sure you'll get to have a good look at Sugar Cube Corner but we'd better move on." said Twilight. "We're going to the outskirts next."
Soarin then followed Twilight out of the Town Centre and kept going through the streets of Ponyville until they found themselves at the train station.
"Yeah, I've been around here alright." said Soarin. "I'm staying at the motel here and I arrived at the train station with the guys earlier."
Twilight raised her eyebrow. "Maybe I should have explained to you about this part of the outskirts but oh well." she explained. "Maybe I should show you Sweet Apple Acres. It's not too far from here."
The two ponies then began to travel past the hospital and kept traveling until they reached a long pathway surrounded by apple trees.
As they were walking down the pathway, Soarin said "You said this place was called Sweet Apple Acres? I can see why it's called that since there are so many apple trees here."
"You can say that, but it's the farm that makes this place full of apple trees." explained Twilight. "It's run by my friend Applejack who is a very honest pony."
"Didn't you say that she wields the Element of Honesty?" asked Soarin.
"Yes, I think I did." answered Twilight. "But anyway, I've heard that the Wonderbolts were touring Equestria. Is Ponyville your first stop for the tour?"
"Well, no." answered Soarin. "Ponyville's our fourth location. If you wanna know where we were first, we went to Manehatten."
"Where else have you been?" asked Twilight.
"We've been to Fillydelphia and Trottingham." answered Soarin. "Those were long journeys as well. I felt as if we were going to leave Equestria at one point."
Twilight giggled. "I'm sure it wasn't that bad."
Soarin raised an eyebrow. "Ok, I'll get you a ticket from Ponyville to Fillydelphia and you can see for yourself how long the trip is." he explained.
Twilight just giggled even more.
Soarin just sighed in disgust.
Suddenly, Twilight and Soarin soon found themselves facing a large, brick-red barn with paper-white wooden beams holding the structure of the barn. It was surrounded by small patches for growing vegetables.
Soarin was amazed at this sight. He had never really seen many farms due to his life as an elite flyer entertaining crowds in Canterlot and making appearances in Cloudsdale. It gave him the feeling that he had missed for years.
Twilight came to a halt followed by Soarin.
"What's going on?" asked Soarin.
"I'll see if Applejack is around before I can take you to see the actual farm. She knows it a lot more than I do." explained Twilight.
"Fair enough." said Soarin.
"You stay here while I see if AJ's around. If she isn't then I'll take you to the western outskirts. That's where my friend Fluttershy lives." said Twilight.
"Sounds good to me." said Soarin.
Twilight strolled up to the barn and knocked on the door.
There was no answer.
Twilight knocked the door again.
There was still no answer.
Twilight waited around until the door suddenly opened to reveal a yellow filly with a red mane and tail. Her mane had a pink bow tie on the back of it.
"Hi Twilight!" said the filly with a cowpony accent.
"Hey Applebloom, is Applejack around?" asked Twilight.
Applebloom took a moment to think. "Oh yeah, Ah think AJ's buckin' some apples at the far end of the acres. Ah don' think she'll be back until the evenin'."
Twilight took a deep breath. "That's a shame. Maybe I'll explain everything to her later. By the way, did you see the Wonderbolts performing over Ponyville earlier?"
"AJ and ah saw them from Town Hall! They were amazin'!" replied Applebloom. "Never seen anypony fly so good like that in mah life!"
"Glad to hear that you liked it. Have a good afternoon." said Twilight.
"See ya later Twilight!" said Applebloom as Twilight began to turn and leave.
Twilight returned to Soarin and said "Applejack's not around. Come on, I'll show you the western outskirts."
Soarin nodded and followed Twilight back through the vast apple orchard.
'Shame that this Applejack wasn't around. Hopefully I'll get a chance to meet her and see that farm later in the week.' thought Soarin.
As they left the site of Sweet Apple Acres, Twilight pointed Soarin in the direction they needed to go to reach the western outskirts.
They trekked through more of Ponyville's streets until they came to a fountain which was surrounded by fields and trees as far as the eye could see.
Soarin gained the feeling as if he was starting to explore Equestria's countryside rather than a part of Ponyville.
Twilight and Soarin followed a long pathway surrounded by beautiful trees and fields filled with the sound of birds singing and the fresh smell of cut grass.
As they walked, they saw the view of what looked like a green-roofed grotto which felt like a safe haven for animals and plants since it had a lot of bird houses and animal dens around it.
"What is that grotto?" asked Soarin.
"You'll find that it's a cottage." replied Twilight. "It's where my friend Fluttershy lives. She may be a little shy but she's very good with animals."
"So she's a vet of some kind?" asked Soarin.
"She's an Animal Caretaker." replied Twilight. "I'll give it to you for the guess of her being a vet though. She'll nurse a sick animal back to health even if it took her everything in her cottage."
"Sounds interesting." said Soarin.
They soon reached a small bridge going over a small stream. The cottage was directly over the other side of the bridge.
"I'm sure Fluttershy will be in since she's waiting for Rainbow to deliver her the fruit. Let me explain everything to her before you come to the door." explained Twilight.
Soarin nodded and stayed in silence.
Twilight then approached the door of the cottage and knocked.
It only took a few seconds for the door to open which revealed a pale yellow peagsus mare with a long, flowing pastel pink mane and tail.
She greeted "Hi Twilight." with a calm, soothing voice.
"Hey Fluttershy. I have something to tell you." explained Twilight.
Fluttershy stood still and asked "What is it?"
"I've been showing one of the Wonderbolts around Ponyville since Rarity couldn't do it and it turns out that he has a crush on Rainbow." explained Twilight.
"What! A Wonderbolt who loves Rainbow Dash?" gasped a shocked Fluttershy "B-But how?"
"He has a photo of him and Rainbow at my brother's wedding and he's using it to help find her. He happened to bump into Rarity who explained who Rainbow was to him and he's now stood on the bridge waiting for me to finish explaining this case to you." replied Twilight.
Fluttershy took a peek around Twilight to see an unfamiliar pale blue pegasus stallion with a navy blue mane and tail. This caused her shy side to kick into play as she began to shiver.
"Are you alright Fluttershy?" asked Twilight.
Fluttershy hesitated for a while and answered "W-Well, I've n-never seen that s-s-stallion before."
Twilight then explained in a soft voice "It's ok Fluttershy. He's a nice stallion. His name is Soarin and I hope that everything will be fully explained to you when Rainbow Dash gets back. Just don't have any fear of him. Maybe while you're waiting for Rainbow Dash to get back, get to know him."
"B-But..."
Twilight interupted "It'll also be a good letter to Princess Celestia. You know that she expects us all to give reports on friendship now."
"Y-You really think so?" asked Fluttershy.
Twilight nodded confidently.
"I still don't know." said Fluttershy.
"Just have confidence in yourself. Soarin's a nice pony. You'll get on with him pretty well." explained Twilight.
Fluttershy took a big gulp of air and said "Ok. I'll do my best."
"That's what I like to hear." said Twilight as she beckoned to Soarin.
Soarin was by Twilight within five seconds.
"Soarin, this is Fluttershy." said Twilight.
"Umm, nice to meet you." said Fluttershy.
Soarin reached his hoof out to Fluttershy's and said "Nice to meet you too Fluttershy."
As Soarin's hoof was touching Fluttershy's, she looked at Soarin and gave him a cute smile.
Twilight observed on Soarin and Fluttershy and said "I'm sure you two will get along really well. Since Rainbow Dash will be coming here, this is the end of the tour Soarin. I hope you enjoyed it. Maybe tomorrow you can see Sweet Apple Acres in full if Applejack's around."
"Sounds good." said Soarin. "Catch ya later Twilight."
Twilight smiled and turned to leave. This left Soarin outside Fluttershy's cottage.
"Umm, Mr. Soarin, did you want to come in? Rainbow Dash will be here any minute now." offered Fluttershy.
"Sure." replied Soarin as he walked through the door of Fluttershy's cottage.