Star Shine returned back to the manor around midday to find a nice surprise waiting for him. A box had been placed on the floor. It was presumably mail and the fact that it had his name on it, and Rainbow Dash’s address, certainly helped him come to that conclusion. The package that had now found it’s way to him was the main reason he had been staying at Rainbow Dash’s and constantly coming up with excuses to stay for another night. As he had grown closer to Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash he had decided to just offer Rainbow Dash rent and stay on a semi-permanent basis until another job opened and called him away. He didn’t even have much of a permanent residence in Trottingham. He hid the package in his saddlebags where the girls wouldn’t be able to find it and then headed out to Cloudsdale to see if he could catch Rainbow Dash to tell her of his successful mission to Canterlot.
His mission to Cloudsdale was not quite as successful as the one to Canterlot. When he arrived at the Weather Factory he was told by Rainbow Dash’s team that she wasn’t there and hadn’t eaten her lunch there in a while. They were under the impression she had been practicing a new trick she didn’t want anypony else to see. The same thing happened when she had been practicing for the Best Young Flyers competition. After laughing off questions about the nature of his relationship with Rainbow Dash, Star Shine headed down to Ponyville. If he was fast he could catch Scootaloo before her lunch break was over and see if she knew where Rainbow Dash might be. He did consider what might happen if he went to Scootaloo’s school during the day but, much like most of his considerations, it was over quickly. He shrugged, said ‘Ahh, screw it.’ to nopony in particular, and headed towards the school.
When he arrived at the school he saw Scootaloo playing on the ground with her friends. He prepared to fly down towards them when he heard a voice call out.
“Hey, idiot!” came a voice from above him. He thought he recognised it but didn’t have time to check it out because he heard another voice calling from below him.
“Star Shine? Is that you?” Scootaloo called up in surprise. She was shielding her eyes with a foreleg and squinting her eyes to see as best as she could. He wasn’t the only one who had heard the first voice call out. Star Shine looked back up at a cloud he could see above him, and back down at the ground towards Scootaloo. He’d already been caught so he headed down to the ground. He could take care of anything else afterwards.
“Hey Scoots, how’s school going?” he asked nonchalantly as he landed on the ground next to Scootaloo and her fellow Crusaders.
“It’s fine thanks, what are you doing here?” Scootaloo replied, walking up to Star Shine. “I missed you this morning.” she added quietly when she reached him and was out of earshot of her friends. She considered giving him a hug but she wasn’t as comfortable around him, and public displays of affection with him, as she was with Rainbow Dash. Most of Ponyville saw Rainbow Dash as her sister or potentially now her mother, so it didn’t matter as much. Most of Ponyville may have considered Star Shine her dad but she had been too busy denying the rumours and trying to stop them to exacerbate them now.
“I missed you too. Sorry I ran out so early.” Star Shine as he leaned down to her level and disguised giving her a quick nuzzle as whispering in her ear. “I’m looking for Dashie, you seen her anywhere?” he asked, standing back up to his full height.
“Nah, shouldn’t she be at work?” Scootaloo replied. She was confused both about where Rainbow Dash would be, and why Star Shine thought she might know. Star Shine shook his head.
“I tried there first. Guess I’ll just keep looking around then. Thanks anyway Scoots. Have a good rest of the day.” Star Shine said. He spread his wings and was about to take off when he heard yet another call. This one came from behind him.
“Excuse me sir, but I don’t think you can really drop down and talk to a student here. Who are you?” he heard somepony ask. He turned around and saw Diamond Tiara approaching him. As per usual she had Silver Spoon trailing not far behind her. Behind the pair of them was another Earth pony. It was Cheerilee. Cheerilee was the one who had spoken to him and going by the stern look on her face she was not too happy to see an unexpected visitor. Star Shine lowered his head and tried to make as small a target of himself as possible. It was a fairly unsuccessful venture as he was trying to hide behind Scootaloo.
“It’s okay Miss Cheerilee, he’s just my flight instructor.” Scootaloo said, smiling up at Cheerilee. Star Shine nodded his head and slowly raised himself back up onto his legs properly. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom moved to stand in front of Star Shine and on opposite ends of Scootaloo.
“He ain’t gonna hurt nopony Miss Cheerilee.” Apple Bloom said quickly.
“Yeah he just doesn’t think about things.” Sweetie Belle added.
“And he’s an idiot.” Scootaloo finished. Star Shine sighed at the verbal assault and lowered himself back onto the ground in resignation.
“Gee...thanks. It’s nice to know you care.” Star Shine said sarcastically. The Cutie Mark Crusaders giggled at him and Cheerilee’s expression softened. It was hard not to at the cute display and Star Shine certainly didn’t seem harmful to anypony.
“Flight instructor or not, I don’t want to see any uninvited guests okay? I’ll let it go this time but don’t let it happen again.” Cheerilee said sternly to all four ponies. Star Shine gulped but nodded.
“Sorry, it won’t happen again.” he said quietly. Cheerilee smiled at him and nodded. She then looked down at Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.
“Well thanks anyway for letting me know girls. I’ll let you enjoy the rest of your lunch now.” Cheerilee said to them before turning away and walking off. Star Shine and Scootaloo let out a collective sigh of relief before Scootaloo glared at Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.
“What’d you go and tell Cheerilee?” she hissed at them. Star Shine looked down at Scootaloo and prepared to hold her back at a moments notice.
“I didn’t know he was your flight instructor, honest!” Diamond Tiara said defensively. “I thought he might want to snatch you or something, so I went and got Miss Cheerilee for help.” she explained.
“It’s alright Scoots, everypony makes mistakes.” Star Shine said, patting Scootaloo’s mane. Scootaloo sighed in resignation and waved a foreleg at Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, shooing them away.
“Geez you try to be nice to a pony and look where THAT gets you.” Diamond Tiara said sardonically as she and Silver Spoon walked off.
“You don’t believe it was just an accident do you?” Scootaloo asked, looking up at Star Shine. Star Shine leaned down one foreleg in a shrug.
“I have to really, I don’t know her at all. I don’t even know her name.” Star Shine explained. He didn’t see the point in not trusting a pony he didn’t know.
“You know her, you just don’t know you know her.” Scootaloo said. Star Shine looked at her in confusion. “That was Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. The pink one was Diamond Tiara. You remember the name?” Scootaloo explained. Star Shine thought about it for a second and then his face lit up in recognition.
“Ohhhhh, she’s THAT pony. Well it’s nice she’s being good now, don’t you think?” Star Shine said, smiling down at Scootaloo. She responded with a small scowl.
“I don’t think she’s being nice at all. She KNOWS I know you!” Scootaloo said. Star Shine and the rest of the crusaders gave a collective ‘huh?’ and looked at Scootaloo in utter confusion. Scootaloo sighed and prepared to explain. “Think about it, she knows about the Gabby Gums column. She must do if she denied she wrote it, and she definitely printed it, so that must mean she knows who you are. Well, who Gabby Gums thinks you are anyway.”
“Huh...well nopony got hurt anyway, and it was kinda stupid for me to drop in like this.” Star Shine said, laughing sheepishly.
“I guess..but still...” Scootaloo relented. Her thinking was cut off as the sound of a bell rang from the schoolhouse signalling the end of lunch.
“Well it’s been a while since I was in school, but I think you three need to head back to class. I’ll see you later Scoots, have fun.” Star Shine said. The three fillies ran back to the schoolhouse and Scootaloo took a few seconds to turn around and wave goodbye to Star Shine.
“Thanks, good luck finding Rainbow!” Scootaloo called back. Star Shine smiled and watched her run into the schoolhouse.
“Oh I don’t need luck, I have a pretty good idea where she is.” Star Shine said quietly to himself, looking up in the sky at the cloud he was sure had called him an idiot. He took off and flew above it. When he looked down he saw exactly who he expected to see looking back up at him; Rainbow Dash herself was laid on the cloud. He hovered back down to her and smiled despite the glare she was giving him. “Room for two?” he asked when he was next to her. Rainbow Dash sighed and scooched over to allow Star Shine to lie down on the cloud next to her. It would be easier to push him off that way should she have to.
“What are you going to do for your next trick?” Rainbow Dash asked a little harsher than she intended to.
“Trick? I don’t remember doing a trick. I can do one if you’d like.” Star Shine replied, settling himself down onto the cloud.
“So what do you call going down to Scootaloo’s school and almost getting her into trouble then?”
“Says the girl who watches her from above on a cloud. That’s a little worse don’t you think?” Star Shine replied with a smile. Rainbow Dash was very, very tempted to shove him off the cloud and hope he didn’t react in time to fly and avoid the pain of hitting the ground.
“At least I didn’t actually go down there! What were you thinking?” Rainbow Dash chastised.
“I was looking for you...” Star Shine replied quietly. Rainbow Dash still looked angry but she sighed as she was deflated.
“Why were you looking for me?” Rainbow Dash asked. There was the lightest of blushes on her bright blue cheeks.
“I just wanted to tell you that I got our reservation booked. We’re going to be eating at Canterlot Cuisine at seven this Friday evening. That alright with you?” Star Shine asked. Rainbow Dash nodded her approval. “There was something else actually...” Star Shine added, looking away as he trailed off. Rainbow Dash looked at him curiously.
“What is it?” she asked him. Star Shine turned his head back around and looked at her.
“When I was in Canterlot I ran into an old friend...he’s got a foal he wants me to train.” Star Shine explained, looking at the cloud he and Rainbow Dash were laid on when he found himself unable to look into her eyes. “He’s actually gonna make the reservations for us. Turns out most restaurants aren’t open early in the morning.” he added with a sheepish laugh.
“That’s good, you could do with some work. What’d you tell him?” Rainbow Dash replied. Star Shine thought she was taking the prospect of him leaving remarkably well.
“Well I told him I could stop by during the day while Scootaloo is at school, and his foal is too small for school, but I think when Scootaloo is flying I might have to go stay in Canterlot for a while.” Star Shine replied, explaining why it wasn’t such a great thing he would be getting work soon.
“Oh...you’re going to be leaving soon?” Rainbow Dash said quietly, looking down at the ground below. She didn’t want Star Shine to see how sad she was at the prospect he might be going. She had taken the news so well because she hadn’t realised it meant he would be gone.
“It’s not for a while yet, and I’ll only be gone for like a month or so.” Star Shine said hurriedly. Rainbow Dash could try and hide her face but Star Shine still knew a thing or two about tone and body language.
“You could have said you’re coming back sooner...” Rainbow Dash said, her voice getting a little angier as she looked up at Star Shine and jabbed him in the sides.
“Hey, I paid you a few months of rent, I want to get all the use out of it I can.” Star Shine said, giggling and rubbing his sides. He had also wanted to see Rainbow Dash’s reaction to the thought he might be gone for good. His heart had been sufficiently warmed.
“Yeah yeah. I wasn’t really sad that you’d actually be going.” Rainbow Dash said defensively, flopping back down onto the cloud.
“Yeah, sure.” Star Shine said, giggling and laying back down on the cloud himself. “So, do you always come here during your lunch break? The ponies at your work said you hadn’t eaten lunch there in a few weeks. The math ain’t hard to do.” Star Shine asked. Rainbow Dash nodded.
“Yeah...I know I shouldn’t worry about her and I should let her be on her own, but I do worry about her. I can’t help it.” Rainbow Dash admitted. She had been hovering above Scootaloo’s school every lunch break since Scootaloo’s first day back. It was how she always knew the right time to drop out of the sky.
“Well of course silly, you worry about the ponies you love.” Star Shine said as if he were explaining to a child. Rainbow Dash was tempted to hit him again but didn’t. Instead she just smiled as she looked at the ground and closed her eyes.
“I guess so huh?” she replied, leaning into Star Shine. He blushed and his wings popped out but he disguised it by placing one over Rainbow Dash to blanket her. It had the added downside of causing her to cuddle up closer to him.
“Not that I’m complaining, but shouldn’t you be back at work?” Star Shine asked, thankful that Rainbow Dash couldn’t see the mess of red his face had become.
“I wanna stay here for a little longer...especially if you’re going to be gone...” Rainbow Dash replied quietly. Star Shine smiled and patted Rainbow Dash’s mane. He had never seen her so vulnerable before. “Don’t get any ideas...I’m just tired is all. You’re warm.” Rainbow Dash said, yawning half way through her sentence. Star Shine giggled and watched as Rainbow Dash did indeed fall asleep.
“Me too.” Star Shine said quietly, referring to his own tiredness. He’d not had much sleep the night before, had woken up early, and had been flying for most of the day. He was definitely tired. He leaned into Rainbow Dash and fell asleep himself.