Fire & Rain

by Ruirik


Promises to Keep

“Okay everypony, that’s all for today!” Rainbow shouted to her (mostly) unharmed lightning wrangler trainees. “Remember what we went over today, and be ready for tomorrow. We’re gonna’ practice handling these lightning clouds ‘till your primaries fall off.”

Landing on the cloud platform that she had turned into a training ground, Rainbow took a deep breath and smiled. So far, her plan to train Manehattan’s new lightning wranglers had been going splendidly. After some natural trepidation on Monday and Tuesday, the former cloud pushers were slowly starting to warm up to their new task. There were also plenty of singed feathers to go around, but that was why Rainbow had them working with very small clouds to start.

Despite the occasional zaps and Rainbow’s admittedly stringent demands, some ponies even seemed to be enjoying their new duties. Rainbow made a mental note to have their team leaders keep a close eye on them whenever she wasn’t around. Lightning wrangling was a bit of a catch twenty-two for pegasi. Lightning wranglers had to love their work, but they couldn’t let that passion override the fear they had for Thunderheads.

Without that fear of the power held in those ominous grey clouds, a weather pony was more likely to take shortcuts with them. The more shortcuts they took, the more they risked themselves or others. Rainbow had to catch herself on occasion when she started to forget her fear.

She brushed those thoughts aside as Flash Cloud approached. He was smiling, likely as pleased with the day’s progress as Rainbow was.

“So far, so good. Right, boss lady?” Flash asked.

“Yup,” Rainbow began, “if we keep on at this rate, we’ll get all these ponies ready in time for the storm.”

“Even if we only get half of them ready, the extra help would be amazing,” Flash commented, his eyes looking over the pegasi that hadn’t flown off yet.”

“Tomorrow, during the lunch break, you and I are gonna sit down and go over the city’s storm procedure,” Rainbow told Flash. “I need to know how Downburst ran things, and I want you to come up with a set of pros and cons for it. We’ll improve on what’s good and cut what’s bad.”

“Sounds good to me,” Flash agreed. “Oh, the senior managers are still meeting you for breakfast tomorrow morning, right?”

“That’s the plan,” Rainbow said.

“‘Kay, I’ll remind Dewdrop and Headwind when I see them,” Flash said, smiling pleasantly at Rainbow.

“Awesome, thanks,” Rainbow said, grinning brightly as she outstretched her wings and took to the skies. She had some time before she and Spitfire had planned to meet, and Rainbow intended to make the most of it.

It took Rainbow the better part of an hour to get everything set up right, mostly because she had to keep at sub-rainboom speeds and certain shops were busier than others. Still, Rainbow didn’t consider herself the fastest mare alive for nothing, and fittingly, she was still a little ahead of schedule when she arrived at Spitfire’s hotel.

Rainbow flew around the building once, trying to recall which window was Spitfire’s. After getting her bearings, she flew to the window in question and peered inside. She spotted Spitfire easily enough; the Wonderbolt was lying on her bed with a book in her hooves and a rather bored look on her face. Rainbow could sympathize with that feeling rather well.

Lifting her hoof to the glass, she gave it a gentle knock to draw Spitfire’s attention. The Wonderbolt jumped at first, the book fumbling out of her hooves and onto her face. Rainbow snorted and quickly moved to hide her smirk behind her hoof. Spitfire soon made her way over to the window, opening it wide enough for Rainbow to fly in.

“Hey Rainbow,” Spitfire greeted her with a hug, “have a good day at work?”

“Yeah, it was pretty good,” Rainbow answered quickly. “Hey, are you free, like right now?”

“Um, yeah, but—”

“Great!” Rainbow turned around so she was facing the open window. “Hop on my back, I wanna show you something.”

Spitfire stared at Rainbow dubiously. “You’re not gonna pull a rainboom again are you? Cause I think that might break a few windows right here.”

“Nah, not this time. I got something else in mind,” Rainbow promised.

Spitfire hesitated; she had been hoping to talk to Rainbow first. At the same time, she was curious what Rainbow had in mind. She mentally cursed herself; she couldn’t resist a good surprise.

“Okay, Rainbow,” Spitfire relented, carefully climbing onto Rainbow’s back.

Rainbow suppressed a shiver when Spitfire’s strong forelegs slid around her. The warmth of Spitfire’s breath washed over the back of her neck as she made herself comfortable. Rainbow let a slow breath out of her mouth and waited, eventually Spitfire’s lips ghosted over her ear.

“Giddy up little pony,” Spitfire whispered playfully.

Rainbow’s cheeks burned and her heart fluttered. She cleared her throat and managed a nod before she leapt out of the open window. Her wings spread, catching the air and holding the two mares aloft. With a series of powerful flaps Rainbow quickly gained altitude.

Spitfire closed her eyes and savored the feel of the wind over her coat again. She resisted the temptation to stretch her wings. As much as Spitfire longed to feel the wind beneath her wings again, she knew very well how much that act would mess up Rainbow’s flying.

Rainbow flew at a casual speed, giving Spitfire ample time to enjoy the facsimile of flying as well as the Manehattan skyline. Spitfire noticed that Rainbow was flying higher than the weather ponies to keep from being spotted, a fact that Spitfire was very appreciative of. They didn’t talk during the flight; there wasn’t much of a point to it at any rate. They would have had to yell awkwardly to hear each other over the wind rushing over their ears.

Eventually, Rainbow began her descent towards the hills outside of the city. Spitfire peered over Rainbow’s shoulder, spotting a red and white blanket laid out under a large maple tree. Spitfire waited until they landed before she spoke.

“What’s all this, Dash?” Spitfire asked, sliding off of Rainbow’s back and onto her hooves.

“One sec,” Rainbow answered, taking back off and disappearing into the dense tree for a moment. She returned with a wicker picnic basket held firmly in her teeth.

Spitfire could see the shy smile at the corners of Rainbow’s mouth and the faint blush of pink in her cheeks as she landed on the blanket. Setting the basket down, she opened the lid and pulled out a bottle of cider, two glasses, several sandwiches, and a small fruit tray. Rainbow’s blush seemed to deepen with every passing second, Spitfire tried not to giggle.

“Sorry it’s kinda lame,” Rainbow said with a sheepish smile, her hoof rubbing the back of her head.

Spitfire felt a familiar heat fill her cheeks again. She found the simple gesture oddly flattering. It had been years since a date had done something like this for her. It reminded her of the good days with Zephyr, before the Wonderbolts and before the responsibilities.

Spitfire almost flinched thinking about her responsibilities. Rainbow noticed the Wonderbolt’s turmoil.

“Don’t like it?” Rainbow asked, her ears flattening slightly as she tried not to be disappointed in herself.

“No! I-I mean, yes, yes I do like it! Its—uuggh,” Spitfire sat down and pressed a hoof to her forehead. “I’m sorry Rainbow, I’m havin’ kind of a rough week.”

Rainbow let out a relieved sigh; glad she hadn’t bucked anything up. She walked over to Spitfire and sat down beside her. After a moment of psyching herself up to it, Rainbow put her wing around Spitfire’s back.

“Wanna talk about it?” Rainbow asked.

Spitfire gave Rainbow a tired smile. “It involves you anyway.”

“Should I be nervous?” Rainbow asked, half in jest and half serious.

“Well, truth be told, I am,” Spitfire answered.

The statement caught Rainbow’s attention. She scooted closer to Spitfire and pulled her into a sidelong hug. “Well, what’s up?”

“Well, Rainbow,” Spitfire began letting a long sigh out as she spoke, “I find myself in an awkward position, and I honestly don’t know the best way to proceed.”

Rainbow nodded, giving Spitfire her undivided attention.

“You remember what I told you about Arcus?” Spitfire asked.

“He’s the pony who told you to keep things with your marefriend secret, right?”

“Pretty much,” Spitfire confirmed with a nod. “I’ll spare you the grisly details, but he found out that you and I were a thing.”

Rainbow’s brow furrowed, thin lines forming across her face as she started putting the pieces together in her head. “I’m guessing he wasn’t too thrilled?”

“That would be putting it mildly,” Spitfire answered with a weary laugh. “He ordered me to break it off with you and cease all contact.”

Spitfire couldn’t blame Rainbow Dash for the shocked gasp or the way she recoiled as though the words physically struck her. “That is such a pile of donkey—”

“I know, I know!” Spitfire interrupted, taking Rainbow’s hoof in hers. “I don’t want to do that to you, Dash.”

The words seemed to settle Rainbow down, slightly. Though Spitfire could tell the weather manager was still on edge, not that she could blame Dash for that.

“I’m sorry I got angry,” Rainbow apologized, her hoof tracing small circles on the blanket.

Spitfire held up a hoof to Rainbow’s lips. “It’s fine, Dash. I’d be ticked too. Hay, I am. But Arcus did have a few legitimate points that I think you should know first.”

Rainbow took a deep breath before she nodded. “Okay, okay, lets hear ‘em.”

Spitfire leaned her weight against Rainbow, just for once, letting another pony bear the weight on their shoulders. She was quiet for several minutes as she considered how to say things. Rainbow didn’t seem to mind, her wing slightly adjusting so both mares were comfortable.

“Being a Wonderbolt… it’s, um… no, no let me start again,” Spitfire said with a sigh, running her hoof through her mane. “Arcus is really concerned about what the, um, implications would be if we stayed together. He’s concerned that the media will slander us, what the team would think, and how it could hurt everypony in the long term.”

“I don’t see how us hanging out would be anypony else’s problem,” Rainbow said.

“I’m sure you’ve noticed by now, Rainbow, but Wonderbolts are just normal ponies too. We get jealous, we get mad, we get sick, we act dumb, and the list goes on. There’s some ponies on the team who would see us and think that because we’re dating I’d be going easy on you or giving you special privileges.”

“I’d never forgive you if you did,” Rainbow said, giving Spitfire a playful nudge.

Spitfire snorted in amusement and tousled Dash’s mane with her hoof. “That’s my girl.”

Rainbow batted Spitfire’s hoof away with a giggle. “So, what happens if we keep doing this?

“Absolute worst case scenario,” Spitfire began, rubbing her chin with a fetlock, “the media makes a scandal that I’m taking advantage of an Element of Harmony, Celestia sends me to the moon, and you’re out a marefriend.”

“Maybe if I was Twilight she’d send you to the moon,” Rainbow said, her mouth a lopsided smirk.

“Realistically speaking, I don’t know. I could be fired or you could be blacklisted. Honestly, Dash, I don’t know what would happen. And to be frank, I’m afraid to find out,” Spitfire said, her posture sagging as she put her head in her hooves. “I don’t know what to do, Rainbow. I mean, I’ve loved spending this time with you and I don’t want to stop, but at the same time I don’t want to see you get hurt by office politics or media smear campaigns. Those fights get ugly fast, and some ponies aren’t afraid to fight dirty.”

Silence again settled between the two. Spitfire’s thoughts sullen, Rainbow’s contemplative. After a few moments, it was Rainbow who broke the silence.

“Hey, Spitfire?” She began, her voice soft as she looked up at the setting sun.

“Yeah?”

“When I got this assignment to run the Manhattan weather team, I was convinced it was gonna be a two month long borefest,” Rainbow began with an amused grin, “then you trotted up and tried to kill me with a sandwich.”

“Hey it’s not my fault you inhaled your lunch,” Spitfire chided with a smirk, “besides, I knew you were too cool to let a sandwich beat you.”

Rainbow smiled and chuckled. “Anyway, last week was the most fun I’ve had in long time. And I really don’t want that feeling to end, but I don’t wanna hurt your career either.”

Spitfire nodded, her left foreleg sliding around Rainbow’s waist. “So what do you want us to do, Rainbow?”

“I… I want us to be an “us” until we decide to end it, not because some old pony told us to,” Rainbow said, turning so her eyes locked with Spitfire’s. “I’m not gonna be told by anypony how I should live my life or who I can or can’t be with. I don’t care what the press says or what other ponies say. I’ll just work harder and prove them all wrong.”

“What if those other ponies are Wonderbolts who think you made the cut by being with me?” Spitfire asked.

The question sparked a fire in Rainbow’s eyes. “Then I’ll prove ‘em all wrong. I’ll prove to them that I got the team because I earned it. No matter how long it takes.”

Spitfire nodded, a warmth filling her chest from the younger mare’s determination. “So, you want to stay marefriends? Even knowing things could get nasty in a hurry?”

“Promise me one thing?” Rainbow asked.

“Yeah?”

Rainbow pulled Spitfire close, her head resting on Spitfire’s shoulder. “Promise me that no matter how this ends, we can stay friends?”

Spitfire smiled, pressing her lips to the top of Rainbow’s head in a gentle kiss. “I swear on my pinions, Rainbow Dash."