//------------------------------// // Ch. 9: Advice and Acrobatics // Story: Legacy of the Pegasi // by secret89 //------------------------------// Legacy of the Pegasi: Ch. 9: Advice and Acrobatics Scootaloo sat patiently upon a lone cloud, high up within the Skyfield. Her gaze remained locked on the horizon, remaining alert for any sign of returning pegasi, any speck against the sky or even the gentle whisper of flapping wings. Though she remained relatively still, her wings would occasionally twitch and fidget, along with the violent sashaying of her tail, barely containing her frustration. So too did her ears pivot about, joining her amethyst eyes as they scanned the horizon. It had been several hours since Rainbow Dash and Soarin' had raced off toward Pegasi Peak, Celestia's sun now well into it's afternoon descent. Initially the copper pegasus wasn't worried; Rainbow Dash had done far more dangerous things than a simple race, and Soarin' was a Wonderbolt. There was no reason to believe that the two couldn't handle themselves. However, as time crept from late morning into early afternoon, Scootaloo couldn't help but worry for her friend. The copper pegasus frowned, pawing at the cloud below her, as she tried to chase away the doubtful thoughts. “You okay kiddo?” Scootaloo turned around. Spitfire lounged lazily behind her, forehooves resting behind her head. The Wonderbolt Captain had opted to remain with Scootaloo, dismissing the rest of the Wonderbolts to Ponyville. “Yeah. I mean, not really... I dunno.” Spitfire simply raised a brow at the younger pegasus. Scootaloo sighed, moving to sit alongside the yellow mare. “I just got a bad feeling.” “Bad feeling huh?” Spitfire echoed. “Kinda like one I guess.” The copper filly seemed unsure. “I can't explain it, but I just know something's wrong. I can feel it somehow. Like I should be doing something, but I don't know what.” “Don't worry Scootaloo.” Spitfire reassured the younger pegasus. “Soarin' and Rainbow can take care of themselves.” The teenaged filly shot a curious look at the Wonderbolt. Spitfire rolled her eyes. “Okay, so Soarin' can take care of himself most of the time. And it sounds like Rainbow knows a thing or two about being in a tight spot.” “Yeah. You're right.” Scootaloo replied wistfully, not entirely reassured by Spitfire's words. “No reason to worry.” Silence settled between the two pegasi. Scootaloo continued to glance to the horizon, if only slightly more at ease. Abruptly, Spitfire jumped to her hooves, stretching her wings out. “So, what's your story?” Scootaloo was taken aback by the sudden question. “My story?” “Yeah, ya know. Tell me a thing or two about yourself. Didn't really get a chance earlier. All I really know is you're Dash's friend and you know how to talk some sense into a certain Wonderbolt Captain.” Spitfire finished, grinning at the younger pegasus. “Ah, well, heh. Just trying to help out.” Scootaloo replied meekly, beaming at the compliment. The young mare's heart suddenly started to hammer, fully aware of the legendary pegasus' casual interest in her. “Um, well. There's not much to tell...” The copper pegasus started timidly, but quickly caught herself. “But there's some awesome stuff too!” She added quickly. Spitfire simply smiled warmly, waiting for the teenager to continue. “I've lived in Ponyville all my life with my parents. Rainbow Dash taught me how to fly, and she's pretty much my big sister. So there's two awesome things.” “Oh is that all?” Spitfire replied glibly, feigning disappointment. “N-no!” Scootaloo blurted out. The younger pegasus thought for a moment. “I'm probably the only pony you'll ever meet that can pull off tricks like I can on my scooter. I was kinda of a late bloomer when it came to flying, so I got really good a doing all kinds of sick stunts on the ground.” “I can believe it. But your cutie mark doesn't seem to have anything to do with scooters.” “Oh, how could I forget? How I learned my talent!” The pegasus spoke excitedly, eager to share another story with the Wonderbolt. “But yeah, you're right, my talent doesn't have anything to do with scooters. But it sure as hay helped me get it.” Spitfire looked at the younger pegasus curiously, but remained silent. “When I got my mark was probably one of the coolest things to ever happen.” Scootaloo could feel the adrenaline starting to course through her wings as the memory came to her. “It was a little while after Dash had started helping me with speed training. I was in the Skyfield Grand Prix, Ponyville's own sky race, and my first.” The copper filly began to pace about, lost in the moment of the memory. “I'd never been so nervous in my life. I was standing on the start line, just a little ways over there.” Scootaloo gestured across to the lower edge of the Skyfield. “The race took us all over the course, through three different levels. I held my own during the speed and slalom parts, but the last part is where I really blew 'em away.” Scootaloo unconsciously hovered into the air, caught up in crux of her story. “I was in third as we made it to the obstacle course. I'd never had anything go more perfectly before in my life. Every barrier, every tunnel and hairpin turn, I nailed 'em all.” The copper pegasus beamed again, filled with pride. “All those years I practiced on my scooter kinda gave me an edge; I knew exactly how to pull off every stunt.” The filly landed in front of Spitfire, a wide grin on her face. “I even came up with a few new moves right on the spot. Nothing before that had ever felt so natural. Everypony else seemed to think the same when I blew past the finish line ahead of all the other racers.” “Stunt flying huh?” Spitfire questioned. Scootaloo shrunk slightly at the question, somewhat unsure. Had she overstepped her bounds by suggesting that her talent would make her a Wonderbolt? “Uh, well yeah. I mean I'm no Wonderbolt, but I'm getting better. Dash has been helping me a lot.” The Wonderbolt Captain mutely moved alongside the copper pegasus, a studious look on her face. She glanced down at Scootaloo's wings. “Hmm...” Spitfire hummed in concentration. What is she do- Spitfire spread the younger filly's wing outward, continuing to examine it. Scootaloo froze, unsure what to make of the Wonderbolt's actions. Is she, examining my wings? “Uh, Spitfire, what are you d-” Spitfire sighed loudly, shaking her head. “I'm sorry Scootaloo.” The younger mare's excitement suddenly plummeted. Was there something wrong with her wings? Was Spitfire about to tell her that she would never make it as a stunt pegasi? Forever doomed to a life where her talent played no part? “W-what's wrong with my wings?” Scootaloo stammered. “Is it because I started flying late? A-are they too small? Did I-” Spitfire suddenly burst out laughing, nearly falling over onto the cloud. “I'm just messing with ya kiddo! You can't tell a stunt flier by their wings. It's all about how you use 'em.” Scootaloo stared dumbly at the Wonderbolt for a moment, before a large smile appeared on her face. Accompanied by it were waves of relief, and a strangely comforting atmosphere between herself and the yellow pegasus before her. “Ya know,” Scootaloo grinned wryly, “if you had done that to any other pony, they might have gotten mad. Especially if they had just told you how they got their talent.” “Maybe. If they were a unicorn, or an earth pony. But you're a pegasus. Tough. Like me, Soarin' and Rainbow Dash.” There was a slight twinge in the back of Scootaloo's mind, but she barely noticed it against the camaraderie of her fellow pegasus. “Besides,” Spitfire continued, “us Wonderbolts are all a bunch of pranksters. It's one of the few ways we stay sane with the crazy stuff we have to do.” “Guess I've got some catching up to do.” Scootaloo shot a mischievous look at the Wonderbolt Captain. “I'm sure Rainbow Dash can help you with that.” A more thoughtful look suddenly overtook the elder mare. “Don't worry too much Scootaloo. You may have gotten your wings a little later than everypony else, but hard work and commitment are what really make a Wonderbolt. Not to mention you've got Rainbow Dash helping you out, so you're already ahead of the game.” “You're darn right she is!” Both Spitfire and Scootaloo whirled about in surprise. A short distance away Rainbow Dash and Soarin' flew toward the two waiting pegasi. Scootaloo started to call out in excitement to her returning mentor, but caught herself. Immediately she knew something was wrong, zeroing in on the shaky and wobbly flight of the returning pegasi. Scootaloo glanced worriedly toward Spitfire. The elder pegasus simply frowned. Finally the two pegasi alighted onto the small cloud with their waiting friends. Scootaloo couldn't help but gasp aloud, as she rushed to the cyan mare's side. “Rainbow Dash! You're hurt!” The copper pegasus frantically surveyed the various bruises and cuts that covered Rainbow's body. “What happened?!” “Oh, I can't wait to hear this one.” Spitfire commented flatly, eying Soarin's wounds. Rainbow Dash grimaced slightly, turning to Soarin' briefly. The stallion simply shrugged, at a loss. “Uh, well, the thing is...” The cyan mare started lightly. “We were racing, like I planned...” Soarin' added, avoiding Spitfire's stare. “And we made to Pegasi Peak and all, but uh, we sorta...” Rainbow scrunched up her face, fully aware that she was only delaying the inevitable. Soarin' was faring no better. “We sorta, uh kinda...” “Out with it.” Spitfire cut in sharply. “Caused an avalanche?” Both Soarin' and Rainbow replied to the Wonderbolt Captain quickly. The pair stood like a scolded colt and filly before an angry parent, wearing terribly innocent smiles in the hope of getting off easy. Scootaloo's jaw dropped. Spitfire's expression hardened slightly, her eyes zeroing directly on Soarin'. But before the yellow mare could speak, Rainbow Dash stepped forward. “Hold on Spitfire. This wasn't Soarin's fault.” Rainbow glanced back at the stallion, who stared quizzically at the cyan mare. “Okay so maybe some of it was his. But it was mostly me.” Rainbow confessed to Spitfire, doing her best to hold her ground. “If I hadn't flown the way I did, Soarin' wouldn't have been forced to do what he did.” Scootaloo stood in rigid attention, waiting for Spitfire's reply. Please don't be mad at her! The younger pegasus mentally pleaded. What if she doesn't let Rainbow into the Wonderbolts? What if- Spitfire let out a tired sigh, turning instead to Soarin'. “Just add this to the list of stuff you're going to tell me tonight.” “R-right!” Soarin' stuttered slightly, perking up in relief. “That sounds like a great idea!” Rainbow agreed adamantly, eying the shocked expression of the youngest pegasi. “Later?!” Scootaloo exclaimed. “This is too important to wa-” “You heard the Wonderbolt Scoots!” Rainbow stepped between Spitfire and the copper filly. “We're fine!” The cyan mare shot a steely look at her friend. “No reason to be asking questions right now!” Scootaloo scowled. “Hmph. Fine.” “So. You were talking to Scootaloo about something?” Soarin' asked lightly, hoping to change the subject. “I was just getting to know her. Sounds likes she's got some stunt flying in her future.” The yellow mare shot a quirky look in Rainbow's direction. “Better watch out Dash. You might have some competition.” Scootaloo resisted the urge to smile, an unsure look on her face as she glanced toward Rainbow. But instead of a frown or witty reply, Rainbow only smiled. The cyan pegasus moved astride of the younger flier, draping a wing over her. “She just might be.” Dash pulled the copper pegasus into a one wing hug. “But I gotta make sure she's good and trained up before that.” For the second time that day, Scootaloo beamed under the praise of a legendary pegasus. Spitfire nodded at the duo, moving toward the edge of the cloud. “I think I'm going to call it a day.” The Wonderbolt Captain took a moment to peer across the horizon towards Ponyville, then glanced toward Soarin'. “We'll link up later. There's a lot we need to talk about.” Soarin' nodded, but the yellow pegasus had already left, not waiting for a reply. Rainbow stepped toward the stallion. “What's up?” “Spitfire? Oh, well, I kinda told her I would fill her in on all the... stuff... that's been going on.” Rainbow visibly cringed a split second before Scootaloo erupted. “There's something going on?!” The copper mare jumped in between her elders. “What is it?” She all but demanded. Neither Rainbow nor Soarin' spoke. Dash tried to hide her flinch, but it was already too late. Soarin' simply shifted between the two pegasi, unsure if he had said something wrong. Scootaloo glared at Rainbow. “It's related to back with the race and Pegasi Peak isn't it?” “Scootaloo...” Rainbow started slowly, trying to placate her friend. “Don't you want me to help? You said that you needed my help with whatever was going on, right?” “I did say that.” “Great!” The copper pegasus announced happily. “So, what's-” “But,” Rainbow interrupted “we don't even know if there is a problem, so for right now, don't worry about it.” Dash stared firmly down at the younger pegasus to drive home her point. Scootaloo held her ground for a moment, clearly opposed to the idea of staying in the dark. However, her gaze eventually fell, grudgingly accepting the elder pegasus' wishes. “Fine.” Scootaloo said tersely. “But don't think that I'm just going to sit around forever when I could be helping.” Rainbow Dash didn't reply, to which Scootaloo took as a silent acceptance. Good. She knows that one way or another, I'm going to figure out what's going on. I just wish I knew why they won't tell me now. The scene was awkwardly quiet for a moment, tense feelings still lingering in the air. Soarin' stepped forward hoping to change the subject. “So Scootaloo,” the stallion started lightly, “I know we've met a few times before, but we've never really had a proper introduction.” The stallion outstretched a hoof. “I'm Soarin'.” It seemed as if every heroic and amazing pegasi had suddenly decided to take an interest in the copper mare, if only casually. Even so, Scootaloo couldn't help but waver slightly as Soarin' looked kindly down at her. She felt an involuntary flutter in her stomach as a nervously silly smile spread across her face. It was only then that she realized she had been gawking up at the stallion, who easily stood well over a head above her. Rainbow Dash brought a hoof to face. Ah ponyfeathers! The younger pegasus mentally cursed. Quickly she extended a hoof, bumping her smaller own awkwardly to Soarin's much larger hoof. “Uh, yeah nice to meet you. I'm, uh I'm Sco-” “She's Scootaloo!” Rainbow said quickly. “Sheesh.” Scootaloo shied away for a moment, somewhat embarrassed by the exchange. Soarin' simply chuckled, clearly bemused. “Come on, lets get out of here.” Rainbow spoke in a tired voice. “My wings are killing me.” All three pegasi departed from the small cloud, flying astride from one another. Scootaloo was silent as she flew alongside Dash. Her thoughts again drifted to the so called 'problem' that Rainbow, Soarin' and even Spitfire were aware of. Scootaloo wasn't the smartest pony, but she was observant, and outside of Rainbow and Soarin's odd behavior in the past few days, there hadn't been anything to suggest something was up. The only thing that could even be described as out of the ordinary were the vague and bothersome mental scratches that seemed to arise from time to time, but even that was a stretch by Ponyville standards. Scootaloo frowned. Ah the hay with it. I'll just go with it and see what happens. “So you and Spitfire were getting along pretty good huh?” The teenager glanced toward Rainbow. The cyan mare kept her face forward, but Scootaloo could tell from the tone in her voice that Dash was trying remedy their earlier argument. “Yeah. She basically wanted to know how awesome I was.” Scootaloo replied brashly. “So I told her how I learned my talent.” “How exactly was that?” Soarin' queried, peeking from across Dash. Rainbow Dash shot the stallion an annoyed look that screamed 'why did you have to ask'. Scootaloo simply grinned. Looking skyward, the teenager scoped out a multitude of wispy cirrus clouds, collected in the upper reaches of the sky. Scootaloo racked her brain, trying to recall her weather studies. Looks like cirrus uncinus and cirrus radiatus. Perfect. “I think its better if I just show you.” Rainbow groaned aloud. “Scoots, I don't really think now's the best ti-” “Too late!” Scootaloo announced gleefully, sticking her tongue out at Dash as she shot into the upper reaches of the atmosphere. Rainbow Dash sighed. “What's the big deal?” Soarin' asked. “She just wants to show off her talent. What pegasus doesn't want to do that?” “Oh she'll do more than just show you, believe me.” The cyan mare stated flatly. “Arrogant little showoff.” Rainbow added, trying to suppress a small smile. “Arrogant and a showoff huh?” Soarin' commented lightly, glancing at Rainbow. “Now where in Equestria could she have picked up that from?” The stallion added sarcastically. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “Oh, shut up you. Just watch.” Continuing to fly at a leisurely pace, both pegasi looked up, just as a copper and amethyst hued pegasus reached the wispy clouds above. Scootaloo hovered in place, gazing down at the misty expanse several hundred feet below her. She took a moment to survey the layout before her, mapping her route out. The array of cirrus clouds stretched across the sky in varying dashes and curls, the entire field shifting about in the gentle breeze. A moment later the filly clasped her hooves together, a satisfied grin on her face. “Alright. Here we go!” Scootaloo shot downward, diving like a meteor toward the cloudscape below her. Though it was gravity that granted her speed, the copper pegasus still beat her wings in deliberate, powerful strokes, wresting control from the invisible force. The wind howled against her face, sounding like a thunderous barrage around her. It assaulted her eyes, the edge of her vision tearing up into a blur. But she was not to be deterred. Barring her teeth in a belligerent growl, Scootaloo refocused her efforts, zeroing her sight on the wispy tail end of a cirrus cloud. Several hundred feet below, Soarin' continued to watch. A slight frown slowly appeared on the stallion's face as he analyzed the younger pegasus' flight. The stallion raised a hoof against the sun, eying the copper pegasus with concern. “She's diving at an extremely reckless angle. You sure you know what's she's doing?” Rainbow snorted. “If you're worried about that, then you better keep watching.” Soarin' raised a brow at the cyan mare, but said nothing. Instead he set his eyes on the rapidly descending pegasus. She appeared to be heading toward the edge of a vast cloudscape, the stallion reasoned, but at that speed, she would end up obliterating the cloud. Soarin' squinted, trying to make out the Scootaloo's intended target. A wispy cirrus cloud. It didn't even matter if she was going too fast or not; there was no way that feather of a cloud could support her. Just what was she playing at? The Wonderbolt almost opened his mouth to voice his concern again, but all questions were dashed from his mind at the sudden change above. Scootaloo angled her wings slightly, finalizing her trajectory on the tail end of the cirrus cloud below her. Perfect. Only seconds remained as she patiently waited, the mad beating of her heart pounding at her chest. Then without any outward warning, Scootaloo snapped her wings shut, willfully entering into free fall. Below, Soarin' instinctively made a move for the plummeting Scootaloo. “Soarin', wait!” “Rainbow, something's wrong!” “No! It's fine. Really. Trust me.” The Wonderbolt quickly glanced at Rainbow. She wasn't worried. She wouldn't let her friends do anything dangerous. He could feel her urging him to trust her; a calming strength from her. All in a split second. So he did, instead turning skyward. Concern still etched itself on Soarin's face. But he held to Rainbow's trust, waiting for the display above. Scootaloo grinned to herself, reveling in the rampant adrenaline that pulsed through her. She barreled downward toward her target, hooves outstretched as she battled against the pressure of the howling wind around her. The uncertainty of her chaotic descent fueled her focus, as she rapidly approached the miniscule cloud. Only seconds remained as she prepared herself; a moment too late and she would fail. It was the kind of challenge she relished. In the blink of an eye Scootaloo was upon the cloud. She flourished her wings out forcefully, leveling herself out at the last second as she approached the cirrus cloud. A split second later the teenaged mare outstretched all four hooves and closed her wings, skidding along onto the tiny tuft of vapor. Taking advantage of her tremendous momentum, Scootaloo leaned low, grinding along the cloudy path, the tiny cloud erupting into puffs of nothingness behind her as she careened forward. The copper pegasus barely had time to congratulate herself on her performance, as the end of her cloudy trail rapidly approached. Instead of surprise, Scootaloo only found another challenge, one of many that the young mare knew she would ace. A second before her path disappeared beneath her, the copper pegasus eyed a lengthy trail of vapor. The tail end of a cirrus radiatus floated just to her left, barely overlapping with her current trail. It all required precise timing, but to Scootaloo it simply came as instinct. The copper pegasus jumped just as her cloudy rail disappeared beneath her, thrusting her wings in a hard downward motion that flipped her up and over the gap. Still moving at a tremendous speed, Scootaloo snapped her wings shut once more, dropping expertly onto the stringy cloud. Immediately she was carried into a corkscrew by the cirrus cloud. Leaning low, Scootaloo pushed herself forward with a momentary thrust of her wings, shooting into the spiral. “WOOHOO!” The copper mare let out a cheer as she continued to speed along the helix. Seconds later the cloud began to tighten within itself, spinning the pegasus about at an increasing rate. Gritting her teeth, Scootaloo forced herself to focus against the dizzying effect. She strained her eyes against the wind, trying to catch the end of the wispy trail. Despite the rapid spinning of the world around her, the copper filly made out the end of the trail; the strand actually turned in on itself, leading into a wall of cloud. Ah crud. Bracing for impact, Scootaloo barreled into the cloud. A soundless explosion of vapor erupted outward, momentarily obscuring the copper pegasus from sight. Then, out of the billowing cloud, she burst forth. Careening through the air at an incredible rate, Scootaloo kept her wings closed, instead sailing into a gradual backward flip. Her dramatic launch from the twisting cloud propelled her high above the cloudscape, giving the pegasus precious seconds to observe the layout before her, even as the sky and the ground switched places. The world righted itself as Scootaloo snapped her wings out and back, making the necessary micro adjustments to her trajectory. The copper pegasus landed onto a short cirrus wisp, no more than ten hooves in length. In the blink of an eye Scootaloo was airborne again, flipping with winged thrusts to another cloudy rail. And another. And another. And another. Again and again she vaulted from the terribly brief cirrus uncinus clouds, sometimes landing on her right hooves, sometimes upright on her haunches. The thrill of uninterrupted reaction and satisfaction of success after success pushed the young mare onward, daring the floating course to challenge her further. In one final jump Scootaloo landed onto a rapidly declining straightaway. And now for the finale. The copper pegasus thought to herself, grinning. Leaning as low as her legs would allow, Scootaloo focused on the end of her cloud, a near vertical ramp into the sky. The wind blared around her at any increasing rate, as her mane whipped around her violently. Tears once more clouded her vision, but Scootaloo remained stalwart. Though she knew what was going to happen, Scootaloo still felt her heart in her throat as she flew like a slingshot into the sky, vaulted from the abrupt ascent at the end of the cloud. Up and over her hooves went, once, twice, three times she flipped. Eventually she reached the crest of her stunt, reveling in the momentarily stall as she evened out from her flips, gazing toward the unending sky above. But it could only be a second. Scootaloo felt herself dropping downward, the thrill of a rapid descent awaiting her. For several seconds she lay limply in free fall, her hooves dangling skyward as clouds shot above her. A smile stretched across the young mare's face, as she abruptly whipped her right wing outward. Borrowing the move from Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo's wing caught the wind, forcefully flipping her over. Her other wing began to sweep outward to right the pegasus from her spin, but even as she did so, Scootaloo was already twisting her body downward. By the time the she had reoriented herself to the world, Scootaloo was well on her way to a vertical dive, her wing swept back to maintain balance. Out of the corner of her eye the copper mare spotted Rainbow Dash and Soarin', both pegasi resting on a low lying cloud a short distance away. A wicked grin spread across Scootaloo's face as an idea suddenly came to mind. Shifting slightly, the younger pegasus put herself inline with the two pegasi. I think it's time to buzz the tower. Soarin' eyes were peeled at the descending pegasus, but concern was no longer in the forefront of his mind. Instead, his mouth was somewhat absently ajar, as the stallion tried to comprehend what he had just seen. “Yeah, I have to admit, its pretty impressive.” The Wonderbolt turned to Rainbow Dash. Genuine pride marked the mare's features, as she looked beyond Soarin' to the sky. “Even I can't pull off moves like that. Probably something you'd only pick up if you were kickin' it on a scooter.” “No kidding. I've never seen anything like it.” The stallion turned back to admire the skyscape. Scootaloo's handiwork was apparent, embodied by a singular zigzagging path of littered clouds. Rainbow frowned slightly. “Hey. It's not that impressive.” Soarin' chuckled. “What's wrong Dash? Jealous?” “Me? Jealous? No way.” The cyan pegasus grinned. “I'm just awesome.” Soarin' rolled his eyes. He was about to tease the mare further, but caught the sudden frown on her face. “Scoots you little daredevil, you better not...” “Huh? What's wrong?” Soarin' asked, turning around to find the copper pegasus. He didn't even need to try. No sooner had the stallion rounded about, then a blazing blur of copper and amethyst streaked past. Less than a second later a swirling torrent of wind crashed into the pegasi and their cloud, buffeting the collection of vapor and its passengers about violently. Both pegasi gripped their tiny anchor, but found themselves upended by the windy carnage that assaulted them. Soarin' groggily got to his hooves, swaying slightly. Rainbow followed suit, spitting tufts of cloud from her mouth. “I swear, that little filly really knows how to get on my nerves sometimes...” Soarin' grinned. “Funny, that seems like something you would do.” Rainbow shot the stallion a curious look. “Which? Blast past unaware pegasi or get on pony's nerves?” Soarin regarded the question for a moment before replying. “Eh, probably both.” “Har har.” Rainbow replied flatly. “Haha! How was that?!” Scootaloo cried out, landing roughly upon the diminutive cloud. Rainbow shot another glare at the filly, clearly irritated. Soarin' didn't hide his admiration. “I'll say it was something Scootaloo. I've never seen anything like it.” Scootaloo couldn't have been more happy, jumping about gleefully. “Really? You've never seen anypony else do something like that?” “Nope. Can't say I have. You've really got one hay of a talent there.” “SWEET!” Scootaloo cheered, pumping a hoof into the air. “And just what the hay was that all about?” Rainbow cut in, ending the younger pegasus' celebration. Scootaloo eyed the elder mare coyly. “That? Well, I'm pretty sure it was me being completely awesome, what with all the flips, and death defying speed...” The copper filly trailed off sarcastically. Rainbow regarded the other mare with a contemptuous stare. “You know what I'm talking about.” “Oh come on Rainbow. It's totally something you would have done. You're just mad I did it first.” Soarin' suppressed a smile, resisting the urge to tease Rainbow. “Heh.” Rainbow laughed lightly. Then she smiled. “You're right. It is something I'd do.” The cyan mare moved alongside her friend stealthily. “So you better watch you're copper butt. Because when you least expect it...” Scootaloo's suddenly eyed Rainbow warily. “What are you-” “BOOM!” Dash shoved the filly off the cloud, collapsing into a fit of laughter. Soarin' rolled his eyes again, chuckling slightly. Several seconds later Scootaloo reappeared, hovering just out of reach. “That wasn't funny.” “You're right Scootaloo.” Rainbow suddenly looked overly remorseful. “It was hilarious!” The cyan mare broke out into laughter again. The copper pegasus simply stuck out her tongue in defiance. “Alright, alright you two. Jeeze.” Soarin' interrupted, stepping forward. “I think we've had enough for one day. Besides, we need to find Spitfire before the end of the day.” The stallion added in a more serious tone, noting the gradual descent of the sun. Scootaloo frowned slightly, but remained quiet. Rainbow put a hoof to her chin. “I think I have a good idea of where she'll be at.” The cyan mare shot a knowing look at her younger friend. Scootaloo's face lit up as she realized what Rainbow was talking about. “Oh yeah, you're right! I've got to run home real quick, but I'll meet you guys there. See you in a bit!” Scootaloo dashed off toward Ponyville, leaving Rainbow and a very confused Soarin' behind. “Um, am I missing something here?” Rainbow laughed. “Nope. Just call it a bit of a hunch mixed with a Ponyville tradition.” They cyan mare made ready for flight, moving toward the edge of the cloud. “If you say so.” Soarin' commented, still at a loss as to what the mare was talking about. “Come on Soarin',” Rainbow took to the air, “we're going to be late if we don't get a move on.” The stallion shrugged, resigning from divulging anything more from his companion. Instead he dropped lazily off the cloud, joining Rainbow Dash back to Ponyville.