//------------------------------//
// Chapter 1 
// Story: Ace Flier 
// by nixf 
//------------------------------//

This should have been a fun night, but instead, it was quickly turning into one of the more boring nights that Rainbow Dash had experienced with the team. When Spitfire had told her that the team was going to be having a fun night clubbing throughout Cloudsdale, Rainbow Dash had pictured a very different night. To be fair, it had started with a pretty fun set of bars, and Dash had enjoyed a fair number of spirits at each one. However, the night had taken a turn when they trotted into the last place on Spitfire's list.

Spitfire and Soarin had both been incredibly eager to go to the undercloud club, and one look at the sign over the door had told Rainbow Dash everything she needed to know about it. Rainbow Dash wasn't an idiot, and it would be difficult to describe her as a prude. She knew exactly what happened in places like this. She knew that the dancing mares and stallions on the stage waving their rumps at the crowd were going to attract some attention., and she also knew that personal dances were often a lot more than just dances.

A part of her was actually surprised that there was a lot of talent being displayed on stage. Some of the upper body strength demonstrated by one of the younger unicorn mares was downright impressive. However, despite the show, it did little to keep her interest. Rainbow Dash sighed as she slowly swirled the cider in her glass. Passively watching the amber liquid's surface smoothly spin as she ignored the world around herself. This was a whole new level of boredom, and yet it somehow was the most expensive place they had gone to yet. In Rainbow Dash's book wearing weird clothes and gyrating did little to make up for the drinks being twice the price they should have been.

Rainbow Dash was far from sold on the idea of the place, if she wanted to see a mare shove their plot into her view she'd just walk anywhere with Pinkie Pie. Sometimes Rainbow Dash wondered if the pink pony even knew what it meant to be modest. Of course, she was aware that Pinkie didn't actually mean anything by it, and she did seem to only do it when they were just with their friends. Either way, it did mean that pony butts were not something Rainbow Dash was all that drawn to.

So far, It had been an hour of waiting at the gentlemare's club and she still didn't really find anything redeeming about the place at all. She was definitely not one for lavish locations, but she was discovering that there was actually a way to not reach her incredibly low standards. She eyed up the tacky magiLed strips behind the bar and frowned at the suspiciously sticky floor. Many glasses of cider had clearly lost their lives to the floor beneath her hooves. She hoped it was only cider and beer.

"Having fun," Soarin appeared from beside her, throwing an arm around her as he settled down beside her. Rainbow Dash couldn't help wrinkling her nuzzle as the strong smell of the sweating stallion hit her. "If you want your own private dance with one of them, I'll cover it. Interested?"

Rainbow blinked. Normally Soarin wasn't this willing to spend bits, but he did seem to be in a very good mood. "Maybe later," She responded her tone a lot meeker than she intended. A dance really did not sound all that interesting at the moment. "Just enjoying my cider right now." She held up the glass as if he required proof.

"All good didn't want to pressure you," Soarin responded as he waved down one of the mares to order himself a drink. "I just wanted to make sure that we properly celebrate you finally joining us on tour next week. Well, that and the newbies joining the team. We've got to make sure that you all feel properly welcome."

"I'm sure that we are all feeling very welcome after this night," Dash responded before taking a gulp of her cider. Sure, she knew that it was a drink designed for sipping, but where was the fun in that. "Thunderlane looks like he has been having a very welcome night."

"He's had quite a few private shows this evening." Soarin chuckled as he took a sip of his newly ordered drink. A sip that was followed by a frown. "Okay, the lager at the last bar was better than this."

Dash just gave a shallow nod and returned her focus to her drink. Then a thought occurred to her.

"Doesn't Thunderlane have a marefriend?" Dash muttered to herself as she stared into her now empty glass. She wondered where the sub-par cider had gone. She swore that, along with being over-priced, the drinks here were smaller as well. Either that or she was drinking them faster.

"I wouldn't bring that up with either of them," Spitfire interrupted as she sat down on Rainbow's other side. "He's only buying dances anyway. No happy endings... I think? Either way, that's something that's between them. So, I wouldn't get involved."

"Point made," Rainbow faked a smile, not really liking the idea herself. She wondered to herself why Thunderlane had so little self-control that he would risk making his marefriend angry just for a dance. It's just a dance. Why risk ire just to see some mare shake their rump? "I have to say, the drinks here are a lot of bits."

"It's pretty common for a place like this," Soarin told her with a laugh. "Most of the clientele are willing to burn a few bits to enjoy the other features." He paused to glance over at one of the hostess mares.

However, before the conversation could become any more awkward, Spitfire trotted over. She gave Soarin a friendly shove with her rump.

"Speaking of bits, did Soarin remember to tell you that we have a party fund to cover your costs for a private dance or two? '' Spitfire asked, looking over her sunglasses and raising an eyebrow at Soarin as she sat down on Rainbow's other side.

"Of course, I did." Soarin quickly interrupted before I could respond. "Rainbow just wanted to finish up her drink before she went for a dance of her own. Right?"

"Yeah, he told me." Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes at Soarin's worry. She wasn't about to tell Spitfire that Soarin had neglected to mention that HQ was footing the bill when he offered. Rainbow Dash glanced down at her glass and grimaced as she remembered that it was now empty. Groaning, Rainbow decided that she may as well try to be a little more honest with them. "I'm not sure I'll go for it though. It's not really my scene, you know?"

"Come on, they have mares and stallions here," Spitfire told her with a weirdly wide grin. "They might not have any alicorns, but I'm sure you just need to step out of your comfort zone a little and try it. I had fun."

"Nah, it's fine." Rainbow waved a hoof before yawning, making an effort to ignore the alicorn comment. Sometimes it was easier to just pretend that she didn't hear. "It's getting late so I need to head off anyway."

"You sure?" Spitfire asked with a frown. "If it's about the drinks, I'm sure the fund can cover a round or three for you."

"Maybe next time, I've gotta fly. I have a friend who needs me for something earlyish tomorrow." Dash paused as she checked the time, wincing a little as she realised what time the clock actually said. "Okay, a friend who needs me for something later today, I guess. I didn't realise it was getting that late."

Dash pushed away her empty glass and pulled herself back off the seat. The world shifted awkwardly around her as the alcohol in her system made itself known. She took a careful breath before turning back to the other two. "I'll see you next week for training."

Soarin and Spitfire just gave her back a wave as she trotted outside. She stepped out into the cool air of Cloudsdale. The night was quiet, few pegasi liked to be up this late in the evening. Rainbow frowned, wondering if it counted as late night or early morning by this point. Either way, her sleep cycle was not going to enjoy this night.

Rainbow cast her eyes back to the club, frowning as she eyed the rather tacky exterior. She had been rather surprised that Spitfire had led the team there to celebrate. It was not the type of venue that Dash had ever seen herself going to. Sure, there had been some level of curiosity at what actually happened in them, but that curiosity was now very much sated.

She was more than a little disappointed by the reality. It was just a bar with overpriced subpar drinks with staff that liked to get a little too close. Even with some impressive dancing, Rainbow Dash could admit to herself that she had not enjoyed it. To be fair to Spitfire, it also hadn't been all that bad. Though the mares and stallions there were a little weirdly insistent at times, at least they backed off after Rainbow Dash told them off.

Sighing to herself, Dash began the long trot back to the team's hotel. Staying out so late was not the best decision she had ever made. Unfortunately, Rainbow Dash's next day was not one to stay hiding under the covers recovering from a proper hangover. She promised a friend that she would be in Canterlot to support them, so she was going to make sure to be there. Even if it meant that she would regret every single wingbeat in the morning. Loyalty was a curse at times.

So it was with a groan and a frown that Rainbow Dash curled up in the hotel room. She was already wishing that she had drunk less. Unfortunately, drunk Dash was not the best at counting her drinks, so sleepy Dash had to deal with it. Morning Dash was not going to be a happy pegasus. She rolled over onto her side, ignoring the strain she was putting on her wings and tried to sleep.

However, when one tries to sleep it often leads to them being entirely unable to. Rainbow Dash groaned and rolled over again, hoping that her other side would be more comfortable. However, there was no luck. She could feel the evening's drinks still in her stomach as she once again vowed to not drink heavily again. A promise she had made many times, that she knew she would never actually keep. Tipsy Dash was not very good at keeping her promises it seemed.

Time passed as she tried to will herself to sleep, with little success. She tiredly looked over at the clock and sighed when she realised that it was only an hour or two away from sunrise. She briefly considered going to Canterlot and begging for a few more hours to sleep, before giving up. Princess Twilight might owe her a favour or seven, but Rainbow Dash knew that no favour would ever stop Twilight from being perfectly punctual.

Rainbow Dash rolled onto her back and stared at Cloudsdale through the hotel window, her mind deciding that now was the perfect time to think about everything she had done wrong that evening. The night had been a bit of a disaster. Dash had wanted to show that she was a mature mare who could hang with them. Unfortunately, she knew that she had utterly failed at it. She just hadn't liked being at the club. There was no doubt in her mind that the others probably thought she was some silly child who got skittish around a few scantily clad ponies. She didn't even know if they were wrong.

Rainbow Dash huffed and rubbed her forehead with a hoof. However, the annoying pounding refused to go away. She was going to have a horrible headache. She checked the clock again, this time managing to only yelp a little as she saw the time. She didn't have time to keep worrying about her stupidity from that night. Her bed was calling and she needed her rest now.

So, it was with no small amount of reservations still spinning in her mind, that Rainbow Dash curled up in the hotel's soft bed and closed her eyes. Eventually the quiet lulled her into a proper sleep, pushing away her worries for the night.

The next morning, and after a rushed flight, Rainbow Dash was shocked to realise that she had achieved the impossible. She had managed to finally find a place that was more awkward to be at than that gentlemare's club. She was sitting surrounded by hundreds of ridiculously gussied-up mares and stallions. Each looked like they had spent hours preparing every strand in their manes to produce the perfect shimmer. Meanwhile here she was sitting in just her coat with a pair of wings that had gone a week without preening and a mane that was still windswept from the flight.

Canterlot fashion shows were the absolute peak of pony fashion, and Rarity was going to be presenting some dresses as a part of some fall fashion group. Rainbow Dash wasn't all that clear on the details, but she knew the important part. Rarity wanted her friends to come to see her accomplishments, so Dash made sure that she turned up. However, that didn't mean that she had to like it.

She was already getting some strange looks from the mare next to her, she was staring way too much at Dash. Admittedly Rainbow Dash was not a mare that minded attention, but the mare wasn't looking with eyes of adoration at her awesome flying. There was something else that Rainbow Dash could not quite recognise.

"Mare Jacobs is the peak of culture, don't you agree?" the mare asked Rainbow Dash, leaning closer to her.

"I literally know nothing about fashion," Rainbow Dash sighed in response as she checked the setlist to try to work out how much longer she would have to wait. She was already regretting not having a decent excuse to skip out on the rest of the day. "I'm just here for a friend."

"Is she a model in the show?" the mare asked, though she was more interested in looking at Rainbow than the question being answered. "Your paramour, perhaps?"

"She is a dressmaker," Rainbow paused as she tried to work out the second question, before giving up. "I have no idea about that paramount thingy?"

"You're fun," The mare laughed, though Rainbow couldn't help cringing at how false it came across. "Has she captured your heart, or are you still on the hunt for hers?"

"We're friends," Rainbow rolled her eyes, as she finally found Rarity's name a considerable distance down the list. There was going to be a bit of a wait. Rainbow briefly considered taking a quick nap but knew that she would never hear the end of it if she slept through Rarity's section. May as well try to make small talk to distract herself. "What about you, here for a friend?"

"You're curious about if I'm a free mare?" The mare blinked her own eyes a few times. "Why, I keep my horizons open. I'm just waiting for a nice mare to fall for me, or at least sit beside me."

"Any luck with that?" Rainbow Dash asked with a raised eyebrow. "Most of my friends seem to think that I would need to actually put the effort in to find somepony. I still think I can prove them wrong. For a pony as awesome as me, I don't try, I succeed."

"My luck in the past hasn't been that great, but I think my luck has just changed." The mare responded, moving closer to Rainbow Dash until they were practically touching. "Are you interested in helping me?"

"Is there somepony that you have your eye on?" Rainbow asked, looking back at the fashion show's runway to try and gauge how far through the show they were. "I mean I'm here to see Rarity's stuff, but if I have time, I'm sure I can help you find yourself a mare, I guess. Are you interested in somepony specific?"

"Surely you can guess what I am interested in?" The mare rested a foreleg around Rainbow Dash's shoulder and leant in close, her cheek practically pressing against Dash's own. "A mare who is daring, somepony who is sporting, and has a colourful mane. A cute Wonderbolt perhaps who is also the best stunt flyer on the team. Something tells me that you might know somepony who fits that description."

"Could you not do that? You should ask before doing something like that with a stranger." Rainbow Dash responded, frowning as she pulled the mare's arm back off of her and leant away. She wasn't the biggest fan of random strangers being all touchy-feely. The mare at least had the good graces to look somewhat chastised for her actions. "Anyway, sorry to say that I am at least eighty per cent sure that Spitfire is kind of taken. Most of the Wonderbolts are, so you're probably not going to have much luck."

"What about you?" The mare asked quietly. "You said that you were an unattached mare?"

"Meh, the tour is coming up. Got to dedicate myself to the team and be the best. Dating co-workers when you're focusing on work probably isn't exactly a smart way to earn your way onto the team." Rainbow Dash shrugged, as she checked the setlist again. Realising that her wait was finally over, she looked over at the runway to see the tell-tale flash of Rarity's purple mane from backstage. "Finally, time to pretend to enjoy Rarity's prissy dresses."

She quickly sat up in her seat and got ready to wave to Rarity. After all, she had to make sure that Rarity understood the sacrifice that Rainbow Dash was making. A full morning surrounded by fashion stuff was something she would only do for a friend, she even had to get up only a few hours after the sun.

The actual dresses on display looked ridiculously uncomfortable to Rainbow Dash. She watched the third mare in Rarity's line-up nearly fall over from the clearly cumbersome clothing. Thankfully the other ponies there were far too distracted by the extravagance on display and there was a crowd of smiles. After barely a minute had passed, they were all gone and Rarity had ducked back behind the curtain.

Rainbow Dash sighed, slumping back in her chair now that she no longer needed to pretend to be interested in the prissy nonsense before her. However, her chance to relax was abruptly ruined.

"Ah, you actually made it!" A familiar voice called out from beside her. Rainbow Dash turned and saw Rarity trotting over to her. Rarity didn't hesitate before taking a seat right beside her. "Have you enjoyed the show so far?"

"It's not exactly my sort of scene, yunno," Rainbow Dash didn't really want to tell Rarity that she was bored out of her mane. Rarity actually cared about this stuff, and Rainbow was trying to be tactful these days. Though she did sometimes wonder why she bothered when every other pony in the room could clearly see through her. "It's been okay so far."

"Just, okay?" Rarity looked away from the runway and frowned at Dash.

"She has been enjoying herself just fine," The mare from Rainbow Dash's other side interrupted, holding out a perfectly manicured hoof to Rarity as she leant over Rainbow Dash. Naturally, Rainbow's response was to shove the mare away with a glare.

"It was fine," Rainbow Dash huffed as she did her best to stop glaring at the annoying mare who just didn't seem to understand the concept of personal space.

Rarity sighed, "I suppose the runway is not your scene, but I thought you would enjoy some of the other things on display here? Some of the stallions are just a whole new tier of yummy."

"If you say so?" Rainbow Dash replied, not really sure how to respond to something like that.

"There were also some nice mares," Rarity paused, "you make it rather difficult to know which you prefer you know."

Rainbow Dash didn't bother even responding, wishing that the awkwardness would end.