//------------------------------//
// While Dash Is Away... 
// Story: Geoverse Part Six: A Season Of Adventure 
// by GeodesicDragon 
//------------------------------//

Pinkie Pie sat next to the mailbox, her gaze fixed intently on the small metal object in front of her. Nothing else seemed to matter as the party pony kept up her vigil, occasionally opening the hatch and peering inside before letting out a sigh.

Soft footsteps behind her caught her attention and she swivelled around on the spot with a small gasp of delight.

"Is that you Derpy?" she asked, "Do you have mail for me?"

"Sorry Pinks," Ace replied, "but it's not and I don't."

Pinkie's face fell as she turned her attention back towards the mailbox. Ace sat down next to her and put an arm around her neck. Pinkie leaned into him slightly, but still seemed focused on what she was originally doing.

"Come on Pinkie," Ace said gently, "it's only been a few hours. Give Dash some time to settle in first. I'm sure she'll write to you when she gets a spare moment. In the meantime, why don't you come inside and get yourself warmed up?"

"But what if I miss the mail?" Pinkie replied, "If I was inside then Derpy could deliver a letter in the next few minutes, and I wouldn't know it was there until tomorrow."

"Or," Ace said, "I could leave a note on the mailbox asking Derpy to bring all the mail inside. That way she can deliver it to you personally, and you can keep warm and eat something."

A small smile crossed Pinkie's face as she looked at Ace. She nodded and went inside the bakery, much to his relief. Removing a scrap of paper from his pocket, Ace scribbled down a note for Derpy and attached it to the mailbox with a small magnet before following his wife into the building.


***


I sat in Sugarcube Corner with the remains of a plate of pancakes in front of me as I sipped on a banana milkshake. Sitting next to me was Spark Plug, who had been moping for the last half an hour about how much he missed Rainbow Dash.

"Come on Spark," I said to the downtrodden unicorn, "it's only been a few hours. I'm sure Dash will write to you when she's ready, but you've gotta remember the fact that Pinkie Pie is also expecting to receive a letter from her."

Spark Plug sighed wistfully.

"I know," he replied, "but it just feels kinda weird with her not being around. We've been together all this time and now we're apart. It's not something that is easy to adjust to."

I patted him on the shoulder.

"At least it's only for a couple of weeks," I replied, "and not several months like Twilight and I had to go through."

"Sorry," Spark mumbled, "I forgot about that. John was telling us your story at our guy's night out the other evening. And then he told us his. I had no idea he was a spy."

I sighed.

"That's all in the past Spark," I muttered, "and I've forgiven him. He's moved on from all that, and so have I. You should as well."

Spark nodded.

"Let's concentrate on the positives then," he said, "such as Dash getting into the Academy. I just know that she's gonna blow them away with what she can do. And I also know that they are gonna be begging her to join them by the time the semester is over."

I chuckled.

"Damn right," I replied, "but you need to stop worrying about her. Give the mare a chance and let her get settled in before expecting a letter. It's Monday today, so I say that you should only worry if you don't receive one by the end of the week."

A small smile spread across Spark's face.

"That's the spirit." I chuckled, "Now you keep telling yourself that she's gonna write to you. And that when she gets back, you two are gonna have a wonderful heart-warming reunion and tell you all about her epic adventure that would make Daring Doo jealous."

The door jingled and Pinkie Pie trotted in followed by Ace. She saw Spark and I and came over.

"Hi guys!" she said before giving Spark Plug her full attention, "Hi Sparky! I guess you miss Dashie as well huh?"

"Yeah..." he said wistfully, "... but I bet you miss her more."

Pinkie shook her head so fast I could have swore that she actually managed to create a small breeze.

"I'm Dashie's best friend," she replied, "but you're her special somepony! That means we're both super-important to her, and therefore get to miss her equally!"

Ace leaned over to me.

"Thank Celestia for that." he muttered, "I thought for sure she'd turn it into a competition."

I replied with a snicker and resumed listening to the conversation.

"So how do you suppose Dash is fitting in up there?" Spark asked, "I'm guessing she'd be pretty popular given the fact she's an Element bearer who has saved Equestria a bunch of times."

"True," I replied, "but I seriously doubt that the Wonderbolts will care. From what I've heard, they're a pretty serious bunch. Reputation means fuck all to them. If you don't have the skills, you don't make the cut. It's as simple as that."

Spark and Pinkie were looking at me with raised eyebrows.

"Not that I'm saying Dash doesn't have the skills of course," I defended, "but you've got to admit that I'm right. The Wonderbolts want ponies with skills, and Dash has them. They'd have to be fucking crazy not to accept her into their ranks."

The raised eyebrows disappeared and were replaced with wide grins. I returned them with a grin of my own as the bell jingled again. As you do when someone enters a room, we turned to look at them. It was Fluttershy and Doctor Haywick. They saw us at our table and came over.

"Hello everypony," Fluttershy said, "is it okay if we join you?"

We all nodded and the two of them squeezed into the booth. Pinkie rushed into the kitchen and came back with a plate of pancakes for everyone. I was reluctant to eat them given my full gut but I dug in anyway, because one does not simply refuse Pinkie's pancakes.

"So Fluttershy," Ace said nonchalantly, "did Dash get up to the Academy all right?"

Fluttershy swallowed her pancakes and nodded.

"Oh yes," she replied, "she did. She was really excited about it. I've never heard her talk so much. I could hardly get a word in... but that was fine. As long as she was happy."

Spark let out a small whine and flattened his ears against his head as he lamented to himself about how he should have hired a chariot to fly the two of them up there, thus allowing him to share in Dash's flurry of excitement.

"I didn't see her all the way to the Academy though," Fluttershy continued, "as I wasn't allowed in. They're very concerned about security up there, as you can imagine."

"I can," I replied, "given that the Wonderbolts are technically part of the Equestrian military."

Fluttershy gasped and I realised what I had just said.

"But Equestria hasn't seen a war for nearly a thousand years!" I said quickly, "So I highly doubt that Dash would be required to do any actual fighting."

I cocked my head towards Ace.

"And even if a war does break out, we've got Doctor Robotnik here to protect us," I said, "so there's nothing to worry about."

Ace developed a smug grin while Fluttershy simply relaxed.

"I guess you're right," she said, "and I know Ace will look out for everypony, especially after what happened with Pinkie and the Diamond Dogs."

Pinkie visibly shuddered, prompting Ace to rub her shoulders and wrap an arm around her neck.

"As a doctor," Haywick chimed in, "I worry about the many different ways Rainbow Dash could get herself hurt. I've treated a few pegasi who fell afoul of the Wonderbolts recruitment process. Broken wings and legs seem to be the most prevalent of injuries."

Fluttershy let out a small squeak and Pinkie's mane deflated. The two mares looked at Haywick as if begging for him to continue. Which he did after I nudged him.

"But we all know that Rainbow won't become another statistic." he said, "Her speed alone should help her blaze through the trials that lie ahead. The only way she could hurt herself would be if somepony were to subject her to potential risk."

The atmosphere around the table was as thick as treacle. Haywick seemed confident in what he had said, but the looks on Fluttershy and Pinkie's faces said otherwise.

"What the good doctor really means," I said, "is that Dash is going to be absolutely fine. She may be a daredevil, but that doesn't mean she will take any unnecessary risks. And I seriously doubt that anypony would be stupid enough to risk their life, let alone hers, for a bit of personal glory."

These words seemed to relax the two mares and they smiled, Pinkie's mane re-inflating to its original puffiness. The bell rang again and we all turned around to see who it was. It was Rarity and Spike, with Twilight and the kids close behind.

"There's my favourite mare!" I said as I rose from my seat and walked over to them, "... how are you doing Rarity?"

"I'm fine darling," she replied, "but I do think that you are confusing me with Twilight."

"Oh crap," I said in mock surprise as I turned to face Twilight, "so I am. Can you ever forgive me dear wife?"

"I can," Twilight said as she dramatically brought a hoof to her forehead like Rarity would, "but you will have to make amends for hurting me like this."

I grinned and gave her a peck on the cheek.

"Of course I will," I replied before looking to the kids, "but not now.  Hello Azure and Evening! Did you come to see dad?"

The two foals nodded eagerly.

"Hi dad!" Azure said.

"Daddy!" Evening added.

A goofy grin appeared on my face as I launched a tickle attack on two unsuspecting little stomachs. The two of them giggled uproariously as Twilight, Rarity and Spike joined the rest of our group at the table.

"Judging by the look on Spark's face," Spike said, "would I be right in assuming that Dash is the current topic of conversation?"

Spark nodded.

"We're just talking about what she might get up to while she's there," Fluttershy said, "although Haywick here thinks she's going to hurt herself."

Haywick smiled sheepishly and slunk back from everyone's gaze as he attempted to hide under the table. I came over to the table with two foals sleeping in my arms, having worn them out with fun.

"If everypony is so worried about her," Twilight said, "then why don't we go up and see her? Let her tell us herself that she's fine and that we have nothing to worry about?"

"That..." said Pinkie, "is a GREAT IDEA! You have your hot-air balloon and that cloud walking spell! Ooh, we should totally prepare a gift basket and take that with us!"

"A gift basket?" a voice chimed along with the bell above the door, "Why, what's the occasion? Is it somepony's birthday?"

We looked around and saw that Applejack and John had turned up and that both of them were looking at us blankly.

"Hi AJ! Hi Johnny!" Pinkie chirped, "We were just about to go up to the Wonderbolts Academy to see Dashie and take her a gift basket! Do you want to come with us? Please say yes!"

"Uhh," John replied, "you do realise she's only been there for a few hours, right? Let her get settled in."

"That's what we've been saying." Ace muttered as he pointed at me, "But they're not having any of it."

"Well Ah guess," Applejack said, "if y'all really want ta do then, then who am I ta stop ya? Heck, I'll come along too."

"I might as well come too." I said, "After all, I've never been outside of Ponyville before."

"Me neither..." John said glumly, "... fucking hell, we're a pair of hermits! So I'm coming too!"

We both looked at Ace. He sighed and nodded, much to Pinkie's immense delight. She rushed into the kitchen and came back a moment later with a basket on her back.

"Ready!" she squealed, "Twilight, go and get your balloon ready!"

Twilight smiled and rolled her eyes before leaving, taking Spike and the kids back to the library. The two little bundles of joy were still fast asleep, the smiles on their faces making me feel like my pancreas was crying out in despair.

"I guess we should go with her." I guess, "I have to say that I'm looking forward to this trip. I've never been on a hot-air balloon before, so this should be a rather pleasant experience."


***


Half an hour later, Twilight's balloon made its slow ascent into the clouds. Normally it would rise faster but given the fact there were ten passengers on board, the speed had been severely reduced.

"So where is this place anyway?" I asked over the sound of the hot air being blasted into the balloon. "Is it far?"

"It's just outside Cloudsdale," Twilight replied, "which is a few minutes away. Now before we land, we need to make sure that everypony has a cloud-walking spell on them. Fluttershy, would you be so kind as to find a small cloud?"

Fluttershy nodded and took off. She flew to a nearby cloud and grabbed it, tearing a small chunk off. She brought it back and placed it in the middle of the basket.

"Okay," Twilight said, "I'm going to cast the spell on each of you one at a time. When I do, step on the cloud. If your hoof, or foot, goes through, then I need to cast the spell on you again."

With the exception of Fluttershy, Twilight then proceeded to go through us one at a time, enveloping us in her aura. Eventually everyone was able to walk on the small cloud, which Fluttershy then returned to the sky.

Soon a small area came into view. It was reminiscent of an airfield, with a landing strip and several hangars dotted around. I could make out a sign saying 'WONDERBOLTS ACADEMY', with the all-too familiar lightning bolt emblem emblazoned across the top.

"There's the Academy." Twilight said, "We'll be there in a couple of minutes. Everypony get ready to land."

Pinkie suddenly developed a wide smile on her face as she pointed a hoof to the sky excitedly.

"Hey look," she squealed, "there's Dashie!"

We looked up and sure enough, there was Dash. We all put on big smiles, ready for when we landed.

Those smiles soon faded when we saw the tornado approaching.

"Well fuck me," John grinned, "it looks like we're about to get the mother of all blowj—"

I clamped my hand over his mouth and shook my head fiercely. Removing the appendage I then gripped the basket as hard as I could and got down.

"Brace yourselves!" Twilight yelled.

Panic set in as the tornado grabbed us in its vortex. Panic gave way to terror as we were tossed around like clothes in a washing machine. Screams faded away to nothingness in the face of the unrelenting wind.

And to top it all off, I lost my grip on the basket. The winds picked me up and carried me away. I could make out Twilight's anguished cries as she watched me disappear from sight.

"Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck..." I muttered as I fought the urge to bring up the two plates of pancakes I'd eaten.

Suddenly the tornado vanished completely. My ears rang as I began free-falling towards the ground. I could see that the balloon was upright again, but I could also make out several horrified faces looking down on me.

I shut my eyes, and prepared to meet my maker.

FLUMPH.

I hit something soft. I slowly opened my eyes and looked up. The horrified faces had been replaced with relief.

"Sorry I took so long," a voice said, "but I had to take care of the tornado first."

I looked around and saw Dash standing on the cloud. Without thinking I grabbed her and gave her a crushing hug.

"Thank you." I whispered. "That's twice you've saved my life now."

Dash squirmed free from my grip and blushed.

"As I said the last time I done it," she replied, "it's all in a day's work for Rainbow Dash!" She paused before adding, "And don't make me feel all sappy. Only Spark is allowed to do that. Now come on, let's get you back up there."

And so, for the second time, Dash picked me up under my arms and carried me into the air.

She dropped me in the basket, whereupon a purple blur latched itself onto my chest. Twilight buried her face into my chest as she squeezed the life out of me. As she removed her face from my chest and kissed me, I saw that her eyes still bore the signs of crying. I returned her kiss and ran my fingers through her mane.

"Sorry." I mumbled.

"Don't be," Twilight replied, "it wasn't your fault... this time."

With those words, Dash led us back to the Academy, whereupon I leapt out of the balloon and kissed the ground.


***


We all stood and watched as Dash gave one of her fellow recruits a verbal tongue bashing.

"You nearly killed my friends, Lightning Dust!" she roared, "What the hell were you thinking, creating that tornado?!"

Lightning Dust simply ruffled her wings and snorted.

"I was thinking outside the box," she replied, "because you don't get through life without making rational decisions."

"And you don't get into the Wonderbolts by endangering the lives other ponies... and people." another voice snapped.

Another pegasus mare stepped forward. She was a shade of orange similar to Applejack, but lighter. Her mane and tail were also orange, and she was wearing a suit. Rainbow Dash saluted, so I assumed that this was one of the Wonderbolts.

"Sorry Captain Spitfire," Rainbow Dash replied, "I know it's not my place to scold Lightning Dust like this, but I felt I had to."

Spitfire walked over to Lightning Dust, who was still wearing her cocky grin. Her grin soon faded when Spitfire reached out and tore something from her tunic.

"Rainbow Dash was right when she came to see me earlier," Spitfire remarked, "in the sense that I was being blind to your risk-taking on account of your skills as a flier. I've come to realise that having somepony like you in the Wonderbolts is not a risk I am willing to take, and this tornado stunt proves it. You are hereby dismissed."

Lightning Dust opened her mouth to say something but instead closed it and trotted away slowly, hanging her head.

Spitfire turned to Dash and presented her with the object she had taken from Lightning — a golden pin shaped like a pegasus.

"Rainbow Dash," she said as she pinned it to Dash's tunic, "for demonstrating loyalty, skill and a hell of a lot of guts, I am officially promoting you to lead pony. Do us proud, kiddo."

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!" Dash repeated as she began fluttering her wings eagerly. She saluted Spitfire, who then came up to me.

"I apologise profusely for any harm my recruit may have caused." she said, "I feel that you should be compensated somehow."

I shook my head.

"There's really no need," I replied, "because I wasn't hurt thanks to Rainbow Dash getting that cloud. Just as well my wife put that spell on me, otherwise I'd have been royally fucked. But I'm alive, and that's all that matters. You don't need to give me anything."

Spitfire blinked a couple of times in surprise before nodding.

"As you wish Sir," she said with a salute, "but the offer still stands. Should you require anything of me in the future all you need to do is ask, and it shall be done."

I returned her salute sceptically and she flew off.

"What the hell was that all about?" I muttered.

"You mean you haven't worked it out yet?" Ace said from behind me, "I figured that you would have, given how long you've been married to Twilight."

I raised an eyebrow at him, causing him to sigh.

"Twilight's brother is Shining Armour, correct?" he asked. I nodded and he continued, "Right, and he married Princess Cadence. So that would make him a Prince."

"Go on." I said, my curiosity piqued.

"Since Twilight's brother is a Prince, that makes her a Duchess. And since you're married to her, that makes you a Duke."

I copied what Spitfire had done and blinked in surprise.

"So you mean..." I said hesitantly, "... that I'm technically a member of the Royal Family?"

Ace nodded.

"That's right." he replied, "Which is why Spitfire called you 'Sir', because you actually outrank her. Hell... you even outrank me."

I thought for a moment before shrugging.

"Well it's a nice surprise," I said, "but I've gone this far without knowing, so I'll just leave it that way. And I certainly won't use my new-found rank to get what I want. But I'll still keep what Spitfire said in mind."

Ace nodded and the two of us went to join Dash and the rest of our friends, who were chatting away happily. She and Spark were holding each other close, muttering about being separated.

Twilight came up to my side.

"Are you all right?" she asked, "You've had quite the scare today."

"As have you," I replied, "but I'm fine. That's twice Dash has saved my life now. I hope almost dying doesn't become a habit of mine."

Twilight shook her head.

"Agreed," she said softly, "because as I've said before, the thought of losing you again is too much to bear."

"Likewise." I responded as I ruffled her mane, "But the fact is I'm here and I'm all right. And apparently... I'm royalty."

Twilight cocked her head at me.

"... you've only just worked that out?" she asked.

"No," I replied with a sheepish blush, "Ace had to explain it to me. But I assume you've always known?"

"Yes, I have." she groaned, "But I don't like using that title. I don't want everypony thinking of me like royalty to be fawned over."

"Then let's be thankful that this is as far up the ladder as we're going to get." I said.

Twilight nodded and we stood in silence, each of us happy to simply enjoy and appreciate the company of the other.