“Alright, Knuckleheads. I’ve got an important announcement to make, so listen up!”
The various recruits of Equestria’s elite air squadron stood at rigid attention in the bright green fields of the Wonderbolts Academy. Most of them were reservists, cadets who served as stand-ins and provided assistance whenever they were required. And at the front of the group stood the core team of the Wonderbolts themselves, their heads held high in pride, with a smug-looking Rainbow Dash among them.
Pacing back and forth before her entire platoon, Captain Spitfire made her voice loud and clear, deafening any hushed whispers from those she faced.
“Firstly, I would like to congratulate all of you for a job well done last week. I know it had been tough pulling off multiple air shows in five consecutive days, but you have once again proven yourselves to be the exceptional flying squad that I’m confident all of you are.”
If a rowdy celebration was allowed, the recruits would have done so already, but instead, they continued to stand still in disciplined silence.
“So, because of all your hard work, and I don’t normally do this so don’t expect anything like this from me ever again, I’m giving you all an extra weekend off for the upcoming Hearth’s Warming, adding to the weekly break you’ve already got.”
Smiles began to form on some of the cadets’ faces but a glare from their superior removed any trace of any smugness they had felt.
“However, I expect all of you to be here the day after at eight o’ clock in the morning to resume your training! And any late-comers would have to do a hundred push-ups, a hundred sit-ups and a hundred laps around the track! DID I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?”
“Ma’am! Yes, Ma’ am!” came the thundering reply of the squadron.
“Good! You’re all dismissed!”
***
“So Crash, what are you gonna do with your extra weekend?”
Rainbow Dash turned from her locker to see her fellow Wonderbolt, Soarin, wrapping a towel around his bare, pale blue flank. The room was abuzz with excitement as the other members of the flight team got ready for a relaxing shower after a day of routine exercise.
“Well, I dunno. To be honest, this is the one Hearth’s Warming I don’t want to be back at Ponyville for.”
“What do you mean?” flowy-maned Fleetfoot asked from beyond her own locker, a confused look on her face. “Every-pony’s excited to go back for the holidays.”
“Not me. ‘Cause I won’t get to enjoy it with the rest of my friends. Twilight and Spike’s gone off to the Crystal Empire along with their family to celebrate with Princess Cadence and Starlight’s coming along with them, Pinkie and Applejack’s visiting their relatives on the rock farm, Rarity's bringing her parents for a holiday in Manehattan, and the CMCs have even convinced Fluttershy to join them on their hiking trip with Zecora! Everyone’s got something to do outside of Ponyville except for me!
The rest of the Wonderbolts looked at each other, concerned, before the rainbow-maned Pegasus continued.
“And it’s not like I minded all of them going away for a bit. We’ve been celebrating Hearth’s Warming together for a few years now and have all agreed for a change of pace, that’s all fine and good to me. But it’s close to the holidays already and I’m the only one who still can’t find a way to spend it!”
“Why not go back to your folks’ place?” Thunderlane suggested as he entered the room, his coat still damp from the shower he took earlier “I’m sure they missed you a lot!”
“I …” sigh “... I still don’t think I’m ready to see them yet …”
“Why not? They’d be so proud of you, considering all that you’ve done for Equestria and the ‘Bolts!” Misty Fly chimed in.
“Yeah, that’s what I’m afraid of.” Rainbow responded curtly.
There was silence in the locker room for a few moments as her colleagues exchanged puzzled glances at each other. Hearing no response from her fellow teammates, Rainbow Dash slunk off to the shower room, clearly not in the mood for more conversation after what had been brought up. When she emerged sometime later wiping herself with a towel, she noticed the other Wonderbolts coming out of a group huddle and turning to her, determined looks on their faces. After a few moments, Soarin stepped forward to speak first.
“Well Crash, we’ve had a quick discussion and have decided that you could spend the holidays hanging out with us for the time being.”
“Really?” Rainbow’s face lit up with a hopeful smile.
“On one condition” Blaze added with a serious tone “You’ve got to spend at least one Hearth’s Warming day with your parents. We’ll back you up, but you’ve got to do this, if not for them, at least for yourself to get over your feelings about them. What do you say?”
Rainbow closed her eyes, lost in thought and struggled to come up with an answer. When she opened them again, she sighed and made her choice.
“Alright!” Fleetfoot cheered “And I think we know who you’d like to hang with first …”
***
“Are you enjoying your meal, Rainbow Dash?”
The cyan Pegasus nodded, her mouth still busily chewing the meal she had sampled, the flavours resting on the tip of her tongue so mind-blowing, that words alone cannot describe them. It is the same for this occasion as well. Spending casual time with her superior was the furthest thing from her mind, but a pre-Hearth’s Warming dinner with her family at a fancy restaurant in Cloudsdale? She would have laughed at the prospect if it wasn’t happening before her very eyes.
In the meantime, Spitfire regaled her mother with tales of her work at the Wonderbolts Academy, its ups and downs, and some interesting moments that had occurred this year, and through all of it, Stormy Flare hung on every word she spoke.
“And so, these Knuckleheads got the brilliant idea to try and pull a prank on me, and got Rainbow Cr- … I mean Dash, to pull it off, since she’s our newest member and apparently an amateur prankster back in Ponyville. So, I come out of the shower the following day and noticed every-pony looking away and trying not to giggle. Next thing I knew when I looked myself in the mirror, my hair got dyed a nice shade of red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple! Everyone, even the new recruits got a good laugh after that. I did too … eventually … after I instructed every single Wonderbolt to make sure the recruits’ toilets are spotless every day for a whole week!”
The older pony gave a hearty chuckle while Rainbow Dash tried to hide her reddening face behind her hooves. Her friends had always tried to reign in her mischievous behaviour and a recent cookie epidemic in Ponyville had taught her to know when her pranks had gotten too far. But she couldn’t help herself this time, and now, as long as they both lived, her Captain is never going to let this go. Noticing her fidget uncomfortably, Stormy Flare tried to change to a different subject to make her feel at ease.
“Well,” *ahem* “besides that … incident … you’ve been a pretty good flyer from what I have seen and heard multiple times from the other ponies who watched you. It’s kind of a wonder, pardon the pun, that you haven’t got into the Wonderbolts sooner! I’m sure your parents must be so proud when they’ve heard you’ve got the acceptance letter from the Academy!”
Surprisingly to the two other ponies at the table, instead of puffing out her chest and bragging like she always did, Rainbow Dash avoided their gazes, only keeping her eyes on the half-eaten grilled vegetables on her plate. As she behaved this way at the mere mention of her parents, that could mean only one thing.
“They … they did know you got accepted into the Wonderbolts Academy, right?”
Rainbow shrank back into her seat, not daring to make eye contact.
“You did tell them, right?”
Her continued silence gave a more thorough explanation than that if she were to speak at all. Spitfire and her mother looked at each other for a few moments. The subject of her own family seemed to be a sore one for the newbie Wonderbolt and she never brings it up. As soon she got herself her own home in Ponyville, Rainbow Dash never seemed to look back at her origins in Cloudsdale, except for her early friendship with Fluttershy, which resulted in the Sonic Rainboom. She didn’t mind putting her parents’ names in the Wonderbolts’ register when she had signed up, but not a single pony she associates with is able to tell any-pony anything about her parents other than that she has a father and a mother.
Seeing Rainbow uncomfortable for the second time, Stormy Flare began to try and change the subject one more time before her daughter shot her a serious look. Things have got to change and they’ve got to change now. It’s a miracle she hasn’t flown off in embarrassment yet, but she is going to use this opportunity to get through to her.
“Listen, newbie. I’m sorry your parents got brought up, but we have a right to know what’s going on. You’ve been tight-lipped about them ever since you joined the Academy and from what I’ve heard, not even your friends outside knew what’s up either. We didn’t mind it at the time as it didn’t affect your performance that much, but even on Hearth’s Warming too? Look, if there’s anything wrong between you and them, just let it out. I’m technically not even your superior officer now that we’re off duty, so feel free to rant if that makes you feel better. We won’t judge!”
Silence.
“Remember, you promised Soarin and the others.”
A sigh.
“Fine, you wanna know what’s wrong between me and my parents? Nothing. That’s what.”
The expectant stares continued.
“Nothing … Except for the way they babied me too much. Ever since I was a foal, they’ve been proud of ‘their little Dashie’, celebrating every milestone I’ve gotten throughout my life, no matter how small. My first steps, my first words, my first flight, my first day at school, my first friend. They celebrated everything that I am and did, everything. And yeah, it was nice to know that your parents constantly have your back at first, but it started to get a little overwhelming for me, y’know? Plus, if the news that I had just become the Wonderbolts’ newest member reached them, I would never hear the end of it!
Do you know what it’s like to have some-pony constantly watching over you, tracking your every move and ready to smother you with kisses and praise once they found out you did something noteworthy? Yeah, I appreciated it if it happened to me once in a while, but they did it constantly! It got so bad, that I began to feel paranoid and jumpy, even in my own home! Believe me, I considered telling them to slow down with the celebrations once in a while, but I was scared I would hurt their feelings. So, when I left for Ponyville, I just put them out of my mind … and I haven’t been feeling ready to go back to them ever since. I still don’t!”
Both the Captain and her mother sat slack-jawed, not knowing what to make of Rainbow Dash’s outburst. Yes, it sounded unreasonable, selfish and even ungrateful to those who had supported her throughout her life, but she seemed genuinely upset about the matter and the emotional toll it had on her was visible on her face. After a few moments of thought, it was Stormy Flare that spoke up first.
“Rainbow Dash, I have been taking care of Spitfire from the day she was born to the day she left for the academy, and I would be lying to say that I wasn’t proud of her throughout these moments. I can’t really say that I understand your position but if there is a problem between her and I, we talk it out until the problem gets solved. Sure, not all of our problems get solved right away or even amicably, but it’s better than keeping those feelings bottled up inside you for all these years.”
Rainbow Dash continued to avoid their gazes, but she managed a reply.
“I – I’ll think about it. In the meantime, can we talk about something else?”
The older mare nodded, and the dinner continued, the awkward moment passing in a few moments of conversation. But as mother and daughter continued to talk and share stories with each other, something awoke inside the young Pegasus, and she was momentarily brought back to a simpler time in which she was happy to talk and share her achievements with her own family.
***
“Oh! You’re early!”
Thunderlane greeted Rainbow Dash at the entrance to his humble home. His younger brother, Rumble, was swiftly by his side, practically hopping with joy to see the famous Rainbow Dash at their doorstep.
“Wouldn’t wanna miss a day with one of the gang, would I?” the cyan Pegasus replied with a smirk “So, what are we doing today? Racing? Hoofball?”
“Actually, we have to decorate the house for Hearth’s Warming.” a voice called from above them. Rainbow promptly looked up to see a tough-looking older winged stallion, busily decorating the white, snow-covered roof of their house, a string of coloured lights in his mouth. “Lights don’t put themselves up, y’know?” he continued.
“Aww … but Daaad. Can’t we spend time with Rainbow Dash first, since she’s already here?” Rumble whined.
“Only if she can help get these lights up for the whole house – “
Before the stallion could finish his sentence, Rainbow disappeared in a multicoloured streak, picking up the long, decorated wire as she spun around and around the house. Before long, the roof of the house was wrapped in bulbs of red, yellow, blue and green as she screeched to a halt at the house’s porch with a smug grin on her face.
“Done and done! What’s next, Pops?”
The stallion flew up to the decorative lights and inspected them, feeling the direction of the long wire he held in his hooves closely. After a few moments, he turned towards Rainbow Dash.
“Pretty impressive speed you got there. But speed isn’t everything when it comes to decorating. Start over. And try doing it neatly this time.”
“WHAT? Aww, c’mon …”
“Well, it does look pretty messy.” his son then said, looking at a spot in which the wire got severely tangled in his own hooves “I think you should slow down a notch.”
“You too, Thunderlane? Decorating can’t be that hard! You two are seriously beginning to sound like Rarity. She never gets satisfied when I help her decorate!”
“And if this Rarity finds good sense in time and patience when working on something, then she sounds like a good mare to me.” the older stallion mused.
As Rainbow Dash fumed, her Wonderbolt colleague came over to calm her.
“It’s alright, Dash. Let me and Rumble help you, alright? We’ll get it done quicker that way.”
“Actually, I think you two should work on the Hearth’s Warming tree inside while I help Rainbow Dash with the lights outside.”
Rumble began to protest, but Thunderlane obediently shuffled him into their home, giving a sheepish grin to his Wonderbolt friend as he went. And so, the cyan Pegasus got to work on slowly dismantling her handiwork, grumbling as she went. It took quite some time, and most of Rainbow’s patience, due to the nit-picking of the older Pegasus at certain points, but when it was finally done, even she had to admit that it looked leagues better than her previous attempt when she first decided to help. A smile and a pat on the back from the patriarch of the family was a nice surprise to her and it brought back repressed memories of Hearth’s Warming decorations with her own parents when she was a wee filly, to which they cheered her on when she put the star on top of the Hearth’s Warming tree for the first time.
Speaking of trees, Thunderlane and Rumble then emerged from the house, proudly proclaiming the completion of their task decorating their own Hearth’s Warming tree. Their father then promptly flew inside to inspect the tree and when he came out, declaring their work satisfactory, the brothers cheered along with their friend who now knew the feeling of a job well done. They continued their celebration in the kitchen, where their sweet, loving mother served cups of iced grape juice, which Rainbow Dash sipped quietly as she watched the dynamic of the family before her, reminding her of the drinks she shared with her own family after past impromptu races with her father.
***
And so, for the rest of the week, Rainbow Dash continued to spend each day with her Wonderbolt colleagues, and each day was spent with their families as well. Whether it was watching a theatre play of A Hearth’s Warming Tale with Misty Fly and her mother, having a few mugs of Appleoosan cider with Soarin’s mother at one of Cloudsdale’s dive bars, volunteering for a soup kitchen with Surprise and her parents, visiting Fleetfoot’s relatives at her place, participating in a winter games event with Blaze and her father or visiting High Winds’ ailing grandparents at a nursing home, there was never a dull moment with them and the multicoloured-maned Pegasus seemed to enjoy the company of her teammates wherever she went.
And with each day spent with different, and yet equally warm and loving families, the iciness in Rainbow Dash’s heart concerning her own family began to slowly melt away and soon, she felt herself longing for the days when she felt happy to spend quality time with her parents, before her own feelings prevented her from seeing them again. Sensing a change in Rainbow Dash, the Wonderbolts decided it was high time for that big reunion and started to help Rainbow plan for the big day that was to come.
***
This was it, the moment of truth. Rainbow Dash was standing in the front porch of a lonely house in Cloudsdale, looking up at the brightly lit windows on the soft fluffy exterior of the cloud-covered walls. She shivered a bit, not by the chilly air of the morning of Hearth’s Warming Eve felt even through her scarf and wool hat, but of what she was about to do that has been overdue for a few years now.
In her hooves were two neatly wrapped gifts, both of the same size, both wrapped using the same dark blue wrapping paper and purple ribbon and both addressed to Bo Hothoof and Windy Whistles respectively. Within them were two Wonderbolts jackets, both containing the signatures of each member of Equestria’s elite flying squad. Curious souvenirs for the both of them, if not made more valuable by the presence of their Rainbow Dash’s own signature, placed front and center on the wrapped pieces of clothing. Looking back, she could make out the silhouettes of her colleagues in the morning mist, giving her encouraging signals from behind their various hiding places.
The sound of the door opening made the rainbow Pegasus turn around. Two older winged ponies were silhouetted in the lighting of the house’s interior, but she could tell who they were at a glance. When they saw who it was on their front porch, they were stunned speechless and could only put their hooves towards their slack-jawed mouths. With a hesitant smile, Rainbow Dash held up the two gifts meant for them in her wings, a sign of their reconciliation and of her long-awaited return.
“Hey, Mom. Hey, Dad. Happy Hearth’s Warming!”