//------------------------------// // XIII: The Speed Test // Story: Spellbound Fireflies // by bats //------------------------------// Chapter 13 The Speed Test Scootaloo buzzed into the park and hopped lightly off her scooter in front of Twilight and Rainbow Dash. Smiling at the two mares, her eyes settled on the empty spot next to Twilight on the bench. A flutter of disappointment settled in her chest and she looked back over her shoulder, searching for signs of Sweetie Belle. Rainbow grinned. “Hey there, Scoots. Know what today is, right?” The filly turned back and smiled again. “This is it, kiddo. The final speed test.” “You really think I’m ready?” As she talked, Scootaloo craned her neck around, seeking out her friend’s approach. Puffing out her chest, Rainbow nodded resolutely. “You’ve been kickin’ flank and takin’ names, Scoots. You get through this today an’ take a couple’a days off afterwards to get all rested up, and we’ll have ya flyin’ before the week’s out.” She turned to face her pupil and raised an eyebrow; Scootaloo was barely paying her any attention, looking all around the park. “Everything alright?” Scootaloo started and turned back to Rainbow, laying her ears flat. “Sorry. Have, uh…have you seen Sweetie Belle? I haven’t seen her all day…” Rainbow smiled despite herself, catching Twilight’s eyes in a shared, knowing look. She dismissed the grin from her face and said, “Nah, I haven’t. We can wait a bit, if you want.” Grimacing, Scootaloo tapped her hooves, warring between her excitement for the speed test and her desire to wait for Sweetie Belle. Her frustration was cut short at the clatter of an approaching gallop, but when she turned she found Apple Bloom racing up the path. She struggled to keep the disappointment out of her tone. “Hi, AB.” “Heya, Scoots,” Apple Bloom said as she skidded to a halt. “Sweetie Belle wanted me to tell ya that she’s awful sorry, but she’s gotta miss your trainin’ today.” “Aww.” Scootaloo’s ears drooped again. “Did she tell you why?” “Somethin’ about needin’ to be at her sister’s. I was kinda busy fixin’ up my brother’s ol’ cart most of the day or I would’a told ya sooner.” “That’s alright…” Scootaloo brightened, standing up straighter. “You wanna hang out and watch? I’m not gonna be gliding, but today’s the speed test!” “Would I?!” she exclaimed, leaping onto the bench next to Twilight. Grinning, Scootaloo turned back to Rainbow. “Ready then?” Scootaloo nodded bombastically. Chuckling, Rainbow grabbed the stopwatch out of Twilight’s saddlebag and trotted towards their hill with the filly by her side. “Alright, Scoots. This one’s a little different. Ya need to do two-hundred wing-ups in five minutes.” Scootaloo froze. “Two-hundred in five minutes?” Snickering, Rainbow beckoned Scootaloo onward with a hoof. “Relax. That’s, like, forty wing-ups a minute. You did over eighty that first time, remember? And you’re way stronger now. We just gotta do the test this way, since bein’ able to lift a lot really quickly just isn’t as important as bein’ able to stay up for a long time. You’ll see, Scoots.” “Okay…” Scootaloo said with some trepidation. She frowned with worry and started her wing-jacks, wincing at the lingering soreness still present in her muscles. Warmed up, she sunk to the grass and extended her wings. “Alright, I’m ready.” “You got this,” Rainbow said emphatically, “You’ve been bustin’ your rump, and I know you’re ready. Just pace yourself. I know you’re probably still sore from everything we’ve been doing, but you totally got this.” Smiling weakly, Scootaloo nodded. “Thanks, Rainbow.” “Okay, ready? On your mark…get set…” she slapped her hoof down on the timer. “Go!” Scootaloo’s wings thundered. The lingering muscle fatigue fell away, as it always did, within the first ten wing-ups and she raced through the reps. She tried to measure her frequency and not overextend her strength quickly, aiming for a single beat of space between each descent. “That’s fifty, Scoots. You’re doin’ great; keep goin’.” ‘Fifty?’ she thought, ‘But I just started!’ She smirked widely, holding her forelegs close and controlling her breathing. In her more relaxed mindset compared to the previous test, she noticed the soft patter of Twilight and Apple Bloom joining her and Rainbow. She glanced up and grinned. “That’s a hundred! You’re at a minute; keep this up and you’ll make it for sure!” “C’mon, Scoots!” Apple Bloom cheered, “You can do it!” “We believe in you!” Twilight chimed. As the reps continued, Scootaloo’s pace began to slow. Her wings held strong and didn’t shake, but each passing lift took a little more effort than the one before. A bead of sweat ran down her forehead, and dangled from the tip of her snout. She grunted, pushing herself up and down methodically. “That’s a hundred fifty! Two and a half minutes left!” “C’mon Scootaloo, just fifty more!” Twilight beamed. Apple Bloom bounced on her hooves. “No wonder ya nearly tore my leg clean off wrestlin’! You’re a machine!” Giggling breathlessly, Scootaloo soldiered on, lifting and dropping, feeling her coat grow damp with perspiration. Tremors entered her limbs and she grit her teeth against them. “A hundred seventy-five!” “You’re almost there!” “You’re doin’ great!” “You can do it!” “We believe in you!” The three voices melded together in a collective roar of support. Grinning around her clenched jaw, Scootaloo shut her eyes tight and let the sound wash over her in a wave. Her wings trembled violently with every extension and she marveled at each seeming brick wall she reached and crested. Her body burned. Every muscle ached, every inch of her coat felt slick and sticky. Her eyes stung. The cheers grew louder and her mind filled with images. The dark and piercing yellow gaze in a blue face, joined by a short-cropped and messy chromatic mane, filled her senses; the colt she never met, but knew she would spend the rest of her life looking up to, urged her on. He was flanked on either side by Rainbow Dash and Twilight, cheering her forward, adding their strength and faith to his determination. Apple Bloom swam into view in front of Rainbow’s hooves, beaming with respect and admiration. “You’re almost there, Scootaloo! Just a few more!” “Ten more seconds, Scoots!” “You’re amazin’! Ya almost got it!” Her wings wouldn’t stop shaking. No matter how much strength she forced into them, it wasn’t enough and each press to the ground threatened to tip her sideways. She feared the last wall had been reached; past her comfortable limit, past her perceived limit, right at the point of muscle failure: the will to move there, but the raw strength gone and replaced by lactic acid and micro tears. She knew she could do more, but not without resting, and she didn’t have time. She scrunched her lids tight enough to see stars as the three cheered on. Next to Apple Bloom, just in front of Twilight, the image of Sweetie Belle smiled at her. The warm, understanding smile that told Scootaloo her friend would always be there to listen to her, always be there to lean against when the stairs were too hard or the days too long and lonely. A grunting cry of effort ripped from her throat as she forced herself up. “Two-hundred!” they shouted in unison. Scootaloo fell to her side and rolled onto her back, her little wings twitching and refusing to fold up. She panted heavily, tiny giggles of relief turning each exhalation to a squeak. She cracked her eye and beheld the overjoyed expressions looming over her. “I did it?” she croaked. “You did it!” they thundered back. She hauled herself onto to her hooves and was knocked back to sitting as Apple Bloom lunged at her. “That was amazin’ Scoots! I’m so happy for you!” Rainbow and Twilight ruffled Scootaloo’s mane in tandem. With her shakes and exhaustion making it a struggle just to stay upright, Apple Bloom was the only thing that kept the gentle tussles from knocking her over. She grinned and grinned. “I did it.” She inhaled deeply and let out a long breath as Apple Bloom stepped back from the excited hug. She turned to Rainbow Dash and asked, “So what happens now?” “Now,” Rainbow chimed with a smirk, “You take a break; let your muscles heal up, get nice and limber, and in a few days we’ll go flyin’. You earned it, and I’ll let ya in on why.” She leaned in and grinned mischieviously. “You were ready to actually be flyin’ last speed test.” Scootaloo gaped at her mentor. “What?!” Chuckling, Rainbow explained, “Yeah, you could’a gotten up in the air and done some real flyin’ at eighty a minute; if ya had all your wing positions down then you’d have done fine. But,” she prodded Scootaloo in the chest with her hoof, “I know you. ‘Fine’ isn’t your style. Goin’ over a tree or two and landin’ out of breath wasn’t gonna cut it, and you know it.” Scootaloo blinked slowly as her heavy breaths from the exertion gradually evened out. Eventually she nodded. “You’re like me, kid. If you’re gonna do somethin’, you won’t put up with just bein’ okay, or pretty good. You wanna be the best at it. If we got ya up just as soon as we could, you wouldn’t be the best; you’d be kinda clumsy, you’d get tired soon, and it just wouldn’t be that much fun. “This test proved a couple’a things, Scoots.” Rainbow began pacing back and forth, her chest puffed out like a drill sergeant. Scootaloo could almost see a team lead pony uniform and badge on the mare. “We know you can handle a take-off, and not just any take-off, but a rough take-off. We know you can fly for a long time without gettin’ tired. We know your wings are strong enough to handle most weather that’d get thrown at you, and we know your body’s strong enough to handle heavy winds and altitude changes. It’ll take a lot of practice for you to be awesome in the air, but gettin’ there is gonna be a lot easier now than if we did the minimum and called it good.” Scootaloo shook her head, trying to process everything Rainbow was saying. “All that from two-hundred wing-ups in five minutes?” “That was just the last part,” she answered with a fond smile, “I’ve been keepin’ track of how much you can bench with your wings, how fast you can turn in the air, wing-position accuracy, all of it. Heck, that spinnin’ take-off thing we did last week was a G-force test. Everythin’ was there to measure somethin’, and you did it all with flying colors.” Rainbow boldly extended her hoof towards the filly, who numbly extended her own limb. Rainbow shook it emphatically. “Congratulations, Scoots. You’ve passed the official Wonderbolt Required Fitness Test.” Scootaloo’s mouth fell open. “The…Wonderbolt’s Test?” Rainbow nodded solemnly. “If you were tryin’ out for the ‘bolts, you’d pass the physical. You’re not old enough of course, an’ there’s more to the ‘bolts than just bein’ able to fly. Gotta follow orders, follow flight patterns, memorize formations, all that sorta stuff. An’ ya need to be able to give ‘em a lot of your time…” A shadow passed over Rainbow’s face in a barely glimpsed instant. Scootaloo blinked, but it was gone and Rainbow was beaming at her again. “But all that aside? You could be a Wonderbolt right now, Scoots.” Scootaloo felt her legs grow even weaker. She nearly sunk to the grass as the weight of Rainbow’s words settled over her. “I…” she breathed, “I don’t know what to say…” “You don’t need to say anything,” Rainbow beamed, “I’m so proud of you.” She closed the small gap separating them and swept Scootaloo into a hug. “You take these couple’a days and relax. Do your stretches every night, maybe every morning, too, but take it as a victory, alright? Celebrate some, stop thinkin’ about all this trainin’ and have some time to just hang out.” She dropped her voice to a whisper meant only for her pupil. “Maybe talk to a certain filly you got your eyes on.” Scootaloo went rigid in the hug and Rainbow stifled a laugh. She sat back and raised her volume back to normal. “When you’re all the way feelin’ better, I’ll take you flying. We got a deal?” “I…” Scootaloo’s voice wavered and a tear rolled down her cheek. She wiped her face with the back of her hoof and sniffed her snout clear. A wobbly smile spread across her muzzle and she nodded. “We got a deal.” “Awesome.” Rainbow ruffled Scootaloo’s mane into further messiness and stood up. “I know you’re gonna want to go flyin’ as soon as possible, but give yourself a chance to heal up. I don’t wanna hear ya askin’ for at least two days, got it?” She grinned, warm and affectionate, and scooped the stopwatch off the ground. “I’ll see ya then, Scoots.” Turning, Rainbow winked at Twilight and cantered back to the bench. Twilight stepped forward and hugged the filly, whispering, “I know you like the tutoring, but take a break anyway. You’ve earned it, Scootaloo. I’m proud of you, too.” “Thank you,” she whispered. Twilight stood and quickly joined Rainbow Dash, drawing close and keeping her voice low. “You just made her day.” “She made her day,” Rainbow corrected, lifting the saddlebag and dropping it around her marefriend’s neck. Her tone became reserved and tentative. “C’mon, Twi’, let’s go back to the library. I’ve…got something I wanna show you.” “Oh?” “You’ll see.” She lowered down and Twilight climbed onto her back. With a powerful sweep of her wings, the pair flew up and out of sight. Apple Bloom’s smile was painfully big. “That was incredible! How’re ya feelin’, Scoots?” Shaking the haziness from her head, Scootaloo moaned, “Tired. And sweaty.” Her friend giggled. “I think I’m gonna go jump in the lake now. Wanna come swimmin’?” Apple Bloom started to nod, but caught herself. “…Aw, man. I almost forgot about Mac’s cart!” She cringed. “Sorry, Scoots. I was almost late comin’ here ‘cause I lost track of the time fixin’ it. I should really get back to it; he’s gonna need it in the mornin’. ‘Nother time, okay?” “Sure, AB,” Scootaloo said with a tired sigh, “I’m probably not gonna be much fun anyway; I might fall asleep floatin’ on my back.” Chuckling, Apple Bloom gave Scootaloo another hug. “Don’t you dare forget to tell me when you’re gonna fly, ya hear me?” Scootaloo grinned. “I promise I’ll tell you.” “Alright then. I’ll be seein’ ya, Scoots.” She smiled and waved, heading back through the park in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres. Scootaloo closed her eyes and flopped onto her back. A low and tired, but contented groan shook her chest and she tried to fold her wings back up. They moved in jerky spasms at her sides and it took far longer than it should, but eventually she managed the task. She mumbled incoherent complaints and debated trying to stand again or just crawl on her belly to her scooter. After a pained and arduous journey rolling over, she seriously considered crawling, but decided a pony cut out for the Wonderbolts was better than that. Once she was on her tremulous hooves, wavering dangerously side to side, she wished she had been more humble. With tiny, controlled, and aching steps, she made her way down the hill and back to the bench. Throwing her upper body over the handlebars, she used the scooter as a crutch, half dragging herself along the path deeper into the park. Each minute turn in the path was a monumental strain across her shoulders to shift the front wheel’s direction, and every inch of incline was a mountain for her to climb. At long last, the glittering sheen of the lake came into view and a beleaguered smile spread across her muzzle. Moving off the cobbled path, Scootaloo’s progress became slower, but less bumpy, and she resolutely pushed across the grass until she reached the shoreline. She dropped to all fours, letting her scooter tumble over, and haltingly waded into the lake. Sweet, soothing, wonderful coolness rushed over her hooves, then her fetlocks, then up to her belly. Scootaloo lifted her legs from the mucky lake bed and half submerged into the lovely water, bobbing to just below her chin on the surface. “Ahhhh…” She rolled through the water until she was floating face-up along the surface, all four legs spread widely away from her barrel and idly paddling her across the lake in meandering circles. She spread her wings underwater, feeling the gentle current flow through and around all her feathers. Gentle ripples splashed against her sides and winding channels ran along her wings and back, the tiny motions eroding Scootaloo’s pain and massaging her stiffness away. She closed her eyes. Floating in serenity, Scootaloo drifted in and out of conscious thought. With her aches dulled to distant throbbing, her thoughts became a hazy cacophony of relief, happiness, excitement, and a lingering sense of melancholy that no matter what she had accomplished…that meant she was done. A queasy worm of discomfort pulled at her belly and she grimaced. Training every other day with Rainbow Dash had become ingrained routine for the filly. She could set a watch by it if she ever wore one, and as hard as the sessions were, they had become the very structure of Scootaloo’s week. A couple days of a break before flying was something she could put up with. But never having another session again? A small whimper of disquiet escaped her snout. She scrunched her closed eyes tight and shook her head. She didn’t want to think about it. Flipping back to her belly, Scootaloo opened her eyes and sunk into the water halfway up her muzzle, watching the surface dance away in jittering cones with each exhalation. ‘If training’s over,’ she thought, ‘When am I gonna see Rainbow Dash?’ As soon as she thought it, Scootaloo felt silly. A self-deprecating chuckle made tiny waves in the lake as a flurry of memories passed over her mind. The hollow ghost of Rainbow’s voice echoed, teasing, ‘You’re not gonna be one of those lazy pegasi that never trains, are ya, Scoots?’ Scootaloo’s grin turned challenging and she shook her head, sending out a babble of rippling water. ‘It’ll take a lot of practice for you to be awesome in the air.’ ‘I’ll take you flying.’ “That’s what she said,” Scootaloo murmured to herself, half the words being swallowed and turned to bubbles by the lake, “Take me flying. Not finish the training, not that I’ll be done; she’s gonna take me flying.” ‘’Course, Scoots. I’ll never leave ya hangin’.’ “I know,” Scootaloo beamed, “You never have.” Propelling herself up, she heaved in a deep breath of air and dived down into the depths of the lake, racing to the bottom and along the almost alien ground. Fish darted away at her approach in the hazy, shadowy, silent world of water. She felt her mane and tail swirl behind her and cool wetness between every hair of her coat. On a single breath, she lapped the lake bed and rose from the middle in a shot. When she exploded to the surface in a corona of thrown water droplets, she felt like she had been reborn. Excitedly, she swam back to the shore. Her wings were on fire, but the rest of her—mind, body and spirit—felt fresh and new. She clambered onto land and shook the running water from her body like a dog. Grabbing her scooter and climbing on, Scootaloo kicked her way across the grass and back to the path, heading back towards town. She had a wild desire for adventure; an impulse to just go wherever her scooter took her. “I did it!” she shouted to the world at the top of her lungs, “I’m gonna fly!” “Scootaloo!” The distant voice, pitched high with excitement, answered her call and Scootaloo dropped her gaze from the sky to find the source. Sweetie Belle rushed up the path at a gallop, her giant smile plain across the fifty-odd yards separating them. Scootaloo kicked along the ground to meet her, watching her grow in clarity as they drew closer. Glittering specks of excitement made Sweetie Belle’s eyes dance with light as her curly mane whipped in the breeze. Dumping her scooter just before they met, she heard Sweetie Belle yell, “I got it! I got my cutie mark!” Scootaloo’s wide eyes fell to Sweetie’s flank as the filly turned and skidded to a stop. A pair of beamed notes, the same shade of purple as the streaks in Sweetie’s mane, sat suspended in a glittering green cloud to match the unicorn’s magic. Scootaloo thought her face might split from her smile. “You did!” “Oh, it was amazing!” she squeaked, “My sister got this new portable stage set-up for fashion shows that has a built-in sound system and she said I could be the first to test it!” “So what happened?” Scootaloo leaned forward with interest, hanging on her friend’s every word. “It had these portable microphones for it, and I really wanted to do somethin’ special, so I started practicing using a few at the same time and holding all of ‘em in my magic.” As she talked, she bounced in place. “I couldn’t hold ‘em right at first, but I practiced as hard as I could with Twilight until I got it down!” Spinning in a circle, Sweetie crooned, “Oh, I wish you were there, Scoots! I got up on that stage an’ started singin’…I had all the microphone’s floating all over the place so I could move around an’ switch between ‘em without missing any notes, and I had ‘em dipping and weaving with the beat! It was exactly like I imagined it, and you should’a seen my sister’s face! She was so proud of me, like I was really on stage for a whole crowd!” Scootaloo’s already painful grin grew even wider. “And you got your cutie mark?” “Just as I finished, Rarity jumped up and stomped her hooves and there was a flash!” She turned again, beaming at her flank. “I use magic to help me sing; that’s my special talent. I’m so excited! I always loved singing!” “I love your singing,” Scootaloo said plainly, no real thought passing through her head as it left her mouth. Sweetie Belle’s throat stopped working for a moment. She turned back to face Scootaloo straight on, her eyes shimmering wetly above her pink cheeks. Breathlessly, she asked, “Do you really?” Scootaloo blinked. “Of course I do.” Shutting her eyes, letting the tears escape down her face, Sweetie Belle tackled Scootaloo around the neck in a hug. “Thank you!” she squealed, giggling in delight. A rush of joy, light and transcendent, flooded Scootaloo’s mind. Her laughter joining in with her friend’s, Scootaloo hugged Sweetie Belle back. “I’m just so happy for you, Sweetie!” She lifted Sweetie Belle off the ground with her forelegs and swung her in a circle. Despite the long day, despite her soreness, Sweetie Belle could have been lighter than a feather. The little unicorn’s mirth grew louder as Scootaloo looped her through the air. Watching the filly’s face over her head, dozens of images overlaid Scootaloo’s vision. Suddenly, she was in a stately ballroom with an orchestral score filling the air. She twirled Sweetie in time with the music, their matching dresses smart and refined. The hall was grand and glittered with polished marble, but she only had eyes for her dance partner. She was in a nightclub. The dark and grimy floors reverberated violently into her hooves as the bass pumped, louder than she could comprehend, and she rocked out with the filly in energetic sweeps. With each pass, they stepped closer together, bobbing with the beat, reaching for each other’s hooves. She was at a concert that had just let out, waiting backstage as Sweetie bowed to applause. The unicorn left the spotlight, beaming at Scootaloo with that same gigantic grin, those same wet eyes. She was landing on a cloud, sliding the cowl back from her Wonderbolt uniform and wiping the sweat from her brow. Sweetie Belle rushed to meet her and leapt into her outstretched legs. She hugged the filly close. She was in a park, laughing in celebration, full of fiery victory and endless joy, her hooves gently gripping Sweetie Belle as they cheered. Scootaloo pulled Sweetie Belle close and kissed her. Her eyes shot wide the minute her lips touched the delicate muzzle of her friend. ‘Aaaah!’ she mentally screamed at herself, ‘What am I doing?!’ Nearly every fiber of her being demanded she stop, but for a moment she was frozen in place, pressed against Sweetie Belle. The extremely small portion of her that wasn’t busy panicking never wanted to pull away. Sweetie Belle felt so right. All her silly little imagined kisses with her pretty crush had a sappy, cloying, perfumed quality to them, closer to a mouthful of roses than anything else Scootaloo could think of. Actually kissing Sweetie Belle was a marvel of simplicity. A gentle warmth spreading from her lips down to her hooves, a plain lightness lifting from the pit of her belly, a heady buzzing between her ears. Nothing frilly, nothing saccharine, no fireworks, no sudden music. Just a bare and honest connection between her and another pony. It was better than Scootaloo ever dreamed it could be. Scootaloo set Sweetie Belle back on her hooves and stepped away quickly. She felt morbid heat rise to her already flushed face, reaching from the end of her snout to the tips of her ears in an inferno that could shame a dragon. She dropped her gaze and sunk to her haunches, swallowing dryly in an attempt to staunch the nervous guilt flooding her system. Cringing and shaking her head, she forced herself to look back up. Sweetie Belle’s shocked eyes skittered away from her gaze, the filly’s rosy cheeks darkening and her whole body trembling. “I-I…uh…I…” Scootaloo stammered. Sweetie Belle turned in place and galloped from the park, faster than Scootaloo had ever seen her move. The little pegasus sunk in on herself further, lowering her head, drooping her ears, and pawing at the ground. It took her a very long time to find the strength to go home.