Rainbow Dash was actually curious and confused enough to limit her speed and after the first turn in the course her and Star Shine were side by side. They were close enough to talk but to Scootaloo it would look just like the race was a close one. That it would make the race more exciting for Scootaloo to watch was an added benefit. Star Shine was beginning to feel that Scootaloo could do with all the happiness and excitement she could get.
“So what’s this all about?” Rainbow Dash called over to Star Shine, keeping her voice raised to be heard over the wind ripping the air between them. Star Shine wasn’t as fast as Rainbow Dash but he wasn’t that slow either.
“I don’t suppose you know somepony who would have something that can detect magic power? I have one but I left it at home. I didn’t think I’d be needing it.” Star Shine called back.
“My friend Twi might have one, but why would you want something like that?” Rainbow Dash asked, confused. She couldn’t think of a reason a Pegasus might need a device to measure magic power.
“I just need you to go borrow it for me while I give Scootaloo her first lesson. While you’re at it pick up something to measure wingpower too.” Star Shine said. The pair passed through one of the cloud rings. Occasionally one of them would fly a little further in front than the other to give Scootaloo a good show and help build the tension.
“Star Shine tell me what’s going on! Scootaloo’s getting scared! She thinks you can’t help her.” Rainbow Dash pleaded as they turned a few corners. That she had used his full name showed Star Shine just how serious Rainbow Dash was. Now was not the time to lie or hide something from her.
“That’s just the thing Rainbow, I don’t think I can.” Star Shine said so quietly Rainbow Dash almost missed it.
“You have to help her! You can get any filly to fly can’t you?!”
“There are some things even I can’t fix. I hope to Celestia I’m wrong, but I might not be.”
“Tell me what this is about! What might be wrong with her?!” They passed through another ring and were coming up on the end of the first lap.
“I think she might have Vacuus Medeis Syndrome. The magic tester will let me know, and knowing her wingpower will let me know if she needs to be tested.”
“What’s this Vacuus Medeis thing?” Rainbow Dash asked. She had never heard of it, and from the sound of Star Shine’s voice, it must have been terrible. She didn’t even know there were problems regarding flight he couldn’t solve.
“It’s a fancy way of saying ‘without magic’ and it’s the one problem I can’t fix. It’s the worst problem a Pegasus can have. She’s a lot older than I thought she was too. I was expecting a little foal, but she’s as old as you were when you graduated Flight Camp. If she can’t fly at her age, and after training, I’m worried she might have it. I’ve actually only ever seen it once in my life, but the signs are there.” Star Shine said dejectedly as he picked up speed and pulled ahead of Rainbow Dash. The first lap was over and it was time for the race to begin properly.
“What’s this ‘without magic’ thing?” Rainbow Dash asked as she caught up to him. Star Shine said nothing and continued flying and trying to pull away from Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash could tell he was focusing on the race now, and she wouldn’t get an answer out of him yet. She focused on the race herself, a silent oath that she would get to the bottom of everything playing out in her head.
Rainbow Dash caught up quickly enough but would lose a little ground on the turns, like she would when she was younger. She was better than that now but her mind wasn’t completely on the race and she wasn’t focusing. Her eyes wandered and she found herself looking down at the smiling face of Scootaloo. It was then that she realised that she was losing the race, in front of the filly that idolised her. She shook her head clear and focused solely on the race. There was no way she could lose in front of her number one fan, in front of the filly that had come to rely on her so much. Star Shine was better at the corners when they were younger but Rainbow Dash had trained and grown and wasn’t the speed freak she had been before. Not totally anyway. Now she had more control and she used that to her advantage.
In all the time she had been thinking the race had progressed to the last turn and Star Shine was about to finish it and head for Scootaloo. He was about to head for victory. Rainbow Dash laughed to herself at the notion she might lose a race and picked up speed, leaving a rainbow trail behind her as she zoomed around the corner and passed by Star Shine before touching down in front of Scootaloo. Scootaloo cheered loudly and jumped up and wrapped her forelegs around Rainbow Dash’s neck so she was giving her a dangling hug. Star Shine himself touched down a few seconds later.
“Geez Rainbow, you’re better than I remember. Where’d you learn that kind of control?” Star Shine asked.
“It was all the training I did for the Best Young Flyers competition. I did a trick where I weaved between clouds and I really had to practice that one hard.” Rainbow replied. She raised a foreleg to cradle Scootaloo close and support her incase she fell.
“I guess you’ll be a Wonderbolt before you know it huh?” Star Shine commented. Rainbow Dash blushed a little but didn’t deny it. She felt that it was only a matter of time before she was a Wonderbolt. The fact she had felt that for a few years now didn’t mean anything. If anything she had to be closer now than ever before simply because she was better trained now than she was before. “So, do you think you can do what I asked you to do?” he asked.
“What does he mean?” Scootaloo asked, confused. Rainbow Dash gently knelt down and lowered Scootaloo softly onto the cloud below.
“I have to go to Twilight’s to borrow something from her. Do you think you can stay here and have your first lesson on your own? I’ll be right back and Star’s really nice. You’ll be fine.” Rainbow Dash explained. Scootaloo looked a little crestfallen but she quickly hid it behind a smile.
“Don’t be gone too long or you’ll miss me fly.” Scootaloo replied.
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” Rainbow Dash said before leaning down to give Scootaloo a kiss on the forehead. It didn’t matter to her that Star Shine was there to see it. If he was right about this Vacuus Medei then Scootaloo needed love and reassurance more than anything right now. She gave Scootaloo one last little squeeze, and took off into the sky at a high speed. Scootaloo watched her leave and Star Shine was content to wait.
“So Scootaloo, why don’t you show me what Rainbow Dash taught you while we wait?” he said after Rainbow Dash had disappeared.
“Yeah, sure.” Scootaloo replied, turning around to face Star Shine. She flapped her wings as Rainbow Dash had shown her and once again a draft built up beneath her wings, but the filly didn’t take off.
“Okay, now try jumping while you flap, I want to see what that does.” Star Shine suggested after he was content that Scootaloo was generating wingpower, but still wasn’t taking off. Scootaloo was puzzled but tried what he suggested anyway. He was supposed to know what he was talking about. Scootaloo jumped as she flapped her wings but it didn’t seem to have any discernable effect. She didn’t fall any slower at least.
“One last thing then. Could you jump up onto my back and then flap?” Star Shine said.
“On your back? Are you sure?” Scootaloo asked. She was more confused than ever, and a little scared if she was honest with herself. Star Shine nodded and knelt down to allow Scootaloo to climb up. She gulped nervously and climbed on top of his back anyway. She could allow Rainbow Dash to see the fear but she didn’t want this pony who was a stranger to her know she was afraid. She wasn’t even sure what she was afraid of. Star Shine was a friend of Rainbow Dash’s, nothing could happen. Star Shine spread his wings as he stood up. He looked like he was about to take off any second. “What...what are you doing?” Scootaloo asked. She was really becoming frightened that something might happen now.
“Don’t worry about it Scootaloo. I’m just spreading my wings so I can feel your wingpower. That’s all. I promise I’m not going to take off.” Star Shine replied reassuringly. Scootaloo breathed a sigh of relief and spread her own wings. She flapped her wings hard again and Star Shine could feel the wind from them hitting the feathers on his wings. It was pushing against them and separating them. He was going to have to preen his wings later but this was a necessary test.
“As I thought...” Star Shine said, mostly to himself, after Scootaloo had finished.
“What did you think?” Scootaloo asked. She was nervous again and thinking that her earlier assumptions of being forever flightless were about to be proven true.
“Rainbow tried to raise your wingpower didn’t she?” Star Shine asked. The tone of his voice was calm and level. Scootaloo couldn’t tell how he was feeling or what he might be thinking.
“Yeah she did. She put a brace on my wings while I used my scooter, but it didn’t seem to help much.” Scootaloo explained.
“Well I asked her to go get something that’ll help measure your wingpower. When she gets back we can test you, and then we’ll take it from there okay? Everything is going to be fine.”
“You know, you’re the third adult to tell me that this week.” Scootaloo replied.
“Did you believe it?”
“No.”
“Somehow I doubted it.” Star Shine replied with a chuckle.
“You’re telling me that I’ll never be able to fly aren’t you? I knew it.” Scootaloo said. It sounded to Star Shine like she was crying.
“Scootaloo, look into my eyes.” Star Shine said, turning around to face the filly on his back. He had stopped laughing and Scootaloo looked deep into his large green eyes and saw the sincerity and honesty beneath them. “I assure you Scootaloo that, as long as you want to, it is possible for you to fly. You can do anything you set your mind to. Don’t forget that.” Scootaloo nodded and hunkered down on Star’s back. Star Shine resumed watching the sky for signs of Rainbow Dash.
“Can I ask you something?” Scootaloo asked after a few moments of comfortable silence.
“Sure, what is it?” Star Shine replied, turning his head around to face Scootaloo again.
“It’s just there’s something I can’t help thinking. Rainbow Dash seemed to give up training me pretty quick. She tried one thing and then when it didn’t work she just dropped it. Why would she do that?” Scootaloo asked. From the tone of her voice, and how it was breaking, it was clear that this was something that was bothering her.
“Do you think she gave up on you?” Star Shine replied. Scootaloo nodded, looking down and away from him. “I don’t know why she stopped so quickly because I’m not her, but I do know that she would never give up on you. If she had given up on you then she never would have sent me a letter. Why don’t you ask her? Scared that you might be right?” Scootaloo nodded again, burying herself a little deeper into Star Shine’s coat. “Want me to ask her?” Star Shine asked. Scootaloo nodded one more time.
“She gave up after two days.” Scootaloo said quietly. Scootaloo saw and felt Star Shine’s wings bristle.
“Two days? She only tried for two days?!” he said, his voice rising at his surprise.
“Didn’t you know that?” Scootaloo asked.
“She didn’t say how long she had been trying.” Star Shine said, shaking his head. “I thought she’d last at least a week. It doesn’t sound much longer but even a day or two more can make all the difference in the world. I can’t believe she gave up so quickly. I hadn’t considered it could happen. I mean, she’s impatient but THAT impatient? I got so worried about what it could be. I’ve had days on my own trying to work out the problem but I didn’t have all the information. I’m probably wrong now. One thing I’m not wrong about is that I’m so stupid, stupid, STUPID! Now Rainbow is worried about something she doesn’t need to worry about and it’s my fault because I’m so STUPID!” During his tirade Star hit himself on the forehead several times and by the time he was done he was laid on the ground, burying his face in the cloud layer. “Things can’t be as bad as I thought if it’s only been two days.” he added, a little louder than he intended to. Scootaloo curled up on his back and silence passed between the two again as they waited the return of Rainbow Dash. Star Shine was thinking about how much Rainbow Dash was going to kill him for worrying her, and Scootaloo was trying not to think about what Star might have meant with his last words.