//------------------------------// // Chapter 8 // Story: The Winning Failure // by marley //------------------------------// Chapter 8 Firewing was awake and preparing to go to breakfast. Rainbow Dash was still sleeping despite being in an oddly contorted position on her cloud bed. Firewing decided to wake her new roommate. “Wakey wakey Rainbow Dash!” called Firewing. “Time to get up!” Rainbow Dash rolled into a more comfortable position. “Ugh, is it morning already?” “It is,” Firewing informed the sleepy pegasus. “Come on or you'll miss breakfast.” Rainbow Dash reluctantly left her cloud bed and yawned. She stretched and shook out her matted mane. “You're not a morning pony are you?” said Firewing with a laugh. “No, but I am a hungry one,” replied Rainbow Dash as she headed for the door. “Aren't you even going to brush your mane?” asked Firewing. “I usually just start flying and let it blow into place,” said Rainbow Dash. “Here,” said Firewing, “let me brush you and then you can do mine.” “Oh alright, if it'll make you happy,” said Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash stood docilely as Firewing brushed her hair into place. “You have such interesting hair. I always felt kind of plain but no one is ever going to mistake you for any other pony.” “I used to get teased about it when I was little,” replied Dash, “but I learned to deal with it.” “My turn,” said Firewing, as she finished the rainbow colored hair. Rainbow Dash took the brush and tried to brush Firewing's hair. She was a little clumsy. “Ow!” exclaimed Firewing. “Sorry” said Rainbow Dash, “I've never done this before. Not on another pony anyway.” “Really? My friends and I used to do this all the time,” said Firewing. “I guess I was too busy for that kind of stuff,” said Rainbow Dash. “I was always in the air.” “Not really into the filly stuff, huh?” said Firewing. “Me neither but I like to look nice and it might make an impression on our judges.” “You think so?” asked Dash. Firewing shrugged. “Can't hurt. Come on, I'm hungry too.” They left their room and headed to the dining hall. As they crossed the courtyard they heard a laugh from behind. “I wonder who did her hair? A clown?” said a voice. Rainbow Dash turned her head slightly but didn't look back. “Better get used to the view, it's all you're going to see once we're in the air.” “Oh really?” said the voice, “I won the Fastest Filly race in Fillydelphia last year and the Fillydelphia Twenty Mile Open. Are you that fast?” “Yep,” said Rainbow Dash, not slowing down. Firewing and Rainbow Dash are surprised to hear Starshine's voice. “I think you'd better stop, Twister. That's Rainbow Dash. She's the fastest pony in Equestria. She can do the Sonic Rainboom.” “So you're a contestant,” said Twister, “Starshine said she met some of the others last night.” Firewing stopped and turned. “We both are. I'm Firewing, from Manehatten and this is my roommate Rainbow Dash. We're rooming together. Good morning Starshine.” “I'm Twister,” said Twister, “from Fillydelphia. I'm one of the lucky ponies that has a room to herself.” “I don't mind,” replied Firewing, “Dash is good company.” “Good morning Firewing, Rainbow Dash,” said Starshine. Rainbow Dash had stopped and was waiting on Firewing. She at last turned enough to see Twister. She was the same pony she saw eating alone the night before. Her pale orange coat was capped by a flowing bright orange mane with a streak of emerald green. Her tail was similarly colored and was clipped somewhat short as was her forelock. A green tornado cutie mark decorated her flank. “Hi Starshine,” said Rainbow Dash. She noticed that Starshine looked embarrassed. “Sorry for what I said about your hair,” said Twister, “I didn't know you were a contestant. So you're fast huh? It might not mean much in this competition.” Her pale green eyes seemed to avoid meeting Dash's gaze directly. “It's okay,” said Rainbow Dash, but she thought to herself, 'and if I wasn't a contestant, it would be alright to insult me?' “We're on our way to breakfast,” said Firewing, “we told Windyday we'd meet her here.” “Windyday?” said Twister, “I'd stay away from her if I were you. She's a schemer and she'll tell lies in order to win.” Firewing looked surprised. “Really? I didn't get that impression from her.” “I won't say anymore but don't say I didn't warn you,” said Twister. The ponies entered the dining hall and found Goldmane and Windyday already there. Though at the same table, there were a few chairs between them. Rainbow Dash made it a point to sit next to Windyday. The others found places at the same table. Twister sat on the end with Starshine. “Good morning, girls,” said Rainbow Dash. “Is the breakfast as good as last night's dinner?” “Good morning, Rainbow Dash,” said Windyday, “yes, it's quite good. I especially recommend those mint cakes.” “Good morning Rainbow,” said Goldmane, “I see you've met our newest competitor.” “Yes,” said Rainbow Dash, “she came up behind us in the courtyard.” She gave her attention to her food. “Hello, Twister,” said Windyday, “I wondered if you would be here.” “Hello, Windyday,” replied Twister in a sweet tone, “nice to see you again.” Firewing was uncomfortable sitting between the two adversaries and ate hurriedly. Starshine was also uneasy and decided to start a conversation. “Goldmane, I'm going to go practice for a while after breakfast,” said Starshine, “would you like to join me?” Goldmane was relieved to have someone break the tension. “Yes, I could use some exercise. What did you have in mind?” “Just some basic maneuvers,” replied Starshine, “nothing too strenuous.” “Sounds good,” said Goldmane, “but let's walk around Cloudsdale for a few minutes first. I don't like flying on a full stomach.” “You'd better train harder if you don't want me to beat you again, Starshine,” said Twister with a laugh. “If you ask me you're starting a little late.” “I've been training,” said Starshine, “I've been doing aerobatics everyday for the last month.” “Not working on speed? Have you given up on racing?” asked Twister with a smile. “Not entirely,” said Starshine, “but I do seem to do better in aerobatic competitions so I decided to concentrate on that for a while.” Windyday continued to eat slowly and said nothing. Rainbow Dash was finding Twister more annoying with each thing she said. She flicked her rainbow tail and concentrated on her breakfast. “I guess that makes sense,” said Twister. “How about you Windy? What have you been working on?” “A little of everything,” replied Windyday, “I like to stay well rounded.” “So no more long distance races?” said Twister, “and here I was hoping for a rematch.” “You may get one,” said Windyday, “you're good at long distance and I'd like to try again. I didn't fly very well tactically last time but I think I could at least push you harder if we race again.” “Maybe we should invite Rainbow Dash next time,” said Twister, “but she seems like more of a sprinter to me.” “Anytime, anywhere, any distance,” said Rainbow Dash, unable to contain herself any longer, “but after the tryouts.” “Did I touch a nerve?” said Twister slyly, “no need to get upset. I was just suggesting a friendly race.” “It sounded like a challenge to me,” said Rainbow Dash, she struggled to keep her voice even. “and I never back away from a challenge.” “You'll have to wait until after she races me,” said Windyday, “we've already agreed to a race.” “Really? I guess you're really not afraid of a challenge,” said Twister, “at least when it comes to racing. What about your other flying skills? Think you can beat us all in aerobatics?” “We'll see,” said Rainbow Dash, “there are a lot of good ponies here and four more still have to arrive. I might lose, but I'll make everypony work to beat me. I have a few tricks in my flight suit.” “Why not give us a demonstration?” said Twister. “Not scared of that are you?” “Trying to get me to tip my hand?” replied Rainbow Dash, smiling. “If you make it to the individuals on Friday, you'll get to see them.” “If I make it?!” said Twister. “Oh, I'll make it alright! I'll fly you into the ground!” “Isn't that your usual method of winning, Twister?” asked Windyday, her voice calm and emotionless. “I might have expected a comment like that from you, Windy,” said Twister. “Still jealous about coming in second?” “Not at all,” said Windyday, “I thought second was quite good for my first long distance race.” Twister was at a loss for words and turned her attention to Firewing. “What are you looking at?” “I'm not sure,” replied Firewing, taking another bite of food. “Um, Goldmane? Are you ready to go yet?” asked Starshine. “Yes,” said Goldmane, “I'm done. Let's do some flying.” “See you for lunch everypony,” said Starshine. She and Goldmane got up to leave. “Practice hard, fillies,” said Twister, “You're going to need it.” “I'm going into town,” said Windyday. “I haven't been in Cloudsdale for a while. Anypony want to come along?” “I'm going to go for a flight and get a little work in,” said Rainbow Dash. “I have something I want to show Firewing too.” “So you'll show her your stunts but not the rest of us?” said Twister. “I didn't say it was a stunt,” said Rainbow Dash. “Are you ready Firewing?” “I suppose so, pass me one of those mint cakes first,” said Firewing. Rainbow Dash shoved the tray of cakes down to Firewing who took a couple and passed them down to Twister who ignored the offered food. Firewing quickly ate the cakes and rose to leave. Windyday and Rainbow Dash followed. “See you at lunch, Twister,” said Firewing. “Yes,” said Twister, “see you at lunch everypony.” There is an odd tone to her voice, a false friendliness. “Goodbye, for now,” said Windyday. Rainbow Dash said nothing and left the hall followed by Windyday and Firewing. “You shouldn't have let her get to you, Dash,” said Firewing, “it's what she wanted.” “Yes,” agreed Windyday, “she tries to get her opponents upset.” “I don't care,” said Rainbow Dash fiercely, “she is going down.” “Well, I'm going to visit a shop and then see if I can find an old teacher of mine; I promised my parents I'd look her up,” said Windyday. “We'll meet you for lunch,” said Firewing. “Windyday, we're going to do some training this afternoon and we decided to train together for the formation flying too. Would you like to join us?” This came as a surprise to Rainbow Dash and also, it seemed, to Windyday. Windyday blinked. “I usually train alone for the individual routines and I have a training regimen I do everyday,” replied Windyday. “I'll consider training with you both for the formation flying though. I'll let you know latter.” “Alright,” said Firewing. “See you latter, Windy,” said Rainbow Dash. “Yes,” said Windyday, “and Rainbow Dash; when Twister said she'd fly you into the ground, she meant it... literally.” Without waiting for a reply, Windyday turned and walked towards the gate. Firewing and Rainbow Dash took to the sky and flew away from Cloudsdale with Rainbow Dash leading the way. “That was an unpleasant way to start the day,” said Firewing. “Yeah,” agreed Rainbow Dash, “that Twister is something else. She kind of made me lose my appetite, and that's hard to do.” Firewing laughed. “I know what you mean. Windyday's comments are making me think too. She obviously knows something about Twister that she's not talking about.” “And remember what Starshine said last night too,” said Rainbow Dash. “We'll have to watch each others backs.” “Yeah, I guess so,” said Firewing. “So what did you want to show me?” “I was thinking about a place to practice,” said Rainbow Dash, “there's a little valley with a small lake over there. If we stay low, no pony will be able to see us work out.” “Sounds like a good idea,” said Firewing. “What did you want to do for a workout?” “Well,” said Rainbow Dash after a moments consideration, “You wanted help on your speed and I need help on my technique. Why don't we start there?” “Alright,” said Firewing, “how about a little race so you can see how fast I am?” “Okay,” said Rainbow Dash, “see that cloud that's centered between those hills ahead? Fly there as fast as you can. I'll fly along and watch you.” “Pretty confident you can stay with me,” said Firewing. Rainbow Dash laughed. “No problem, I'm Rainbow Dash, remember?” Firewing shook her head and took off. At first, she was ahead of Dash but she glanced to her left and saw that Rainbow Dash was easily keeping pace with her. She tried to put on more speed but Dash was still beside her, studying her. Rainbow Dash smiled. “Not too bad Firewing but this is how it's done.” She pulled away rapidly and soon reached the cloud. She waited for Firewing who arrived out of breath and sat on the cloud. “You're pretty fast,” said Rainbow Dash, “but you can gain some speed if you'd do a few things different.” “Really?” gasped Firewing. “Like what?” “First,” said Rainbow Dash, “you're flying with your hooves too low. That creates a lot of drag. Put them out in front to break the air and make a slipstream. You can still bring them down or back toward your body to help you turn but keep them out in front as much as you can.” “Okay,” said Firewing, “anything else?” “Keep your head lower when you fly,” said Rainbow Dash. “Your chin should be between your legs. It'll make you more streamlined.” “I never learned to fly that way.” said Firewing. “We all tried to fly and look good doing it. You're flying for pure efficiency. Even so, I don't think I'll be able to match your speed.” “Of course not,” said Rainbow Dash, “but you don't need to; just beat the other ponies.” “Two pony race, right?” said Firewing with a smile. “You know it,” said Dash. “Okay, my turn.” Firewing. “Show me some of your moves while I catch my breath. Do a few loops, spins, rolls, you know, basic stuff.” Rainbow Dash nodded her head and zipped off and to do some tricks while Firewing watched critically. After a while, Rainbow Dash landed. “So what do you think? Am I awesome or what?” “I'd say you're... ah.. barely adequate,” said Firewing, wondering how her new friend would take criticism. Rainbow Dash was shocked. “WHAT?!” “Sorry,” said Firewing. “You can do all the moves but they just don't look very good. You over shoot almost everything you do. When you do a snap spin you should stop in the same position you started in: exactly level. You go past that point and then level out. Everything should be clean stops. They'll be looking at that. ” “So what do I do?” asked Rainbow Dash in a worried voice. “You have to make your stops quicker,” said Firewing, “but you can't just start to end the move sooner. That won't look good either. It looks slow and lazy. You need to work your wings in opposite directions to make a clean, snappy stop. Watch me.” She takes off and demonstrates a few snap spins. “Wow Firewing, that looked great!” exclaimed Rainbow Dash. “I had no idea I wasn't doing them right.” “You can stop your rolls kinda the same way,” continued Firewing. “Just raise your inner wing slightly and drop your outer wing as you end your roll then snap your wings to level out clean. Give it a try.” Rainbow Dash tried again and this time her moves did look better. “Much better,” said Firewing. “You're a fast learner.” “Oh this is so cool!” said Rainbow Dash happily. “First day and I'm learning new stuff!” “My turn to see if your speed advice works,” said Firewing. “Fair enough,” said Rainbow Dash. “How about that cloud over there?” “Okay here we go!” said Firewing. She took off and sped towards the cloud. Rainbow Dash flew with her and watched her carefully. “Straighten your legs more,” called out Dash as they flew. “That's it. Head down like this. Good.” “You were definitely faster that time,” said Rainbow Dash when they had reached the cloud. “But there's something else that isn't quite right.” “Phew! It felt faster,” said Firewing as she tried to catch her breath. “What do you think is wrong?” “Might be your wing action,” said Rainbow Dash. “For as quick as your wings are beating you should be going faster. I'll take another look when you're rested.” “How long do you want to work out?” asked Firewing. “Let's just take turns practicing this morning so we don't get too tired,” said Rainbow Dash. “We can work some more this afternoon.” “Sounds good,” agreed Firewing. “Maybe this afternoon we can take turns playing follow the leader?” “Good idea,” said Rainbow Dash. “Hey! Make sure we don't lose track of the time and miss the orientation and lunch.” “Alright,” said Firewing. “Your turn now. Do those same moves again.”