"Why oh why did I let Derpy talk me into this?"
That was the only thought running through Raindrops's mind ever since she told Thunderlane she wanted to do some training with him. It's not that she didn't appreciate Derpy's help. She understood better than anypony that Derpy Hooves always meant well in everything she did. But even then, the thought of trying to confess her feelings for Thunderlane was making her heart pound like a jackhammer. Whatever Derpy had in mind, Raindrops didn't feel it was going to be enough.
With a deep sigh, she looked up at the clock tower. It was just after half past one, and Thunderlane said he would meet her at one thirty.
"Oh well. Looks like he forgot," said Raindrops, half-hoping that was the case as she started to leave. "I guess I'll just go home and..."
"Hiya, 'Drops!"
Before Raindrops could utter another word, Derpy came barreling out of the sky and startled her out of her wits. When Raindrops recovered from the surprise, she breathed a deep sigh.
"Derpy, I'm a bundle of nerves as is. Please, don't surprise me like that," she said.
"Whoopsie. Sorry, 'Drops," Derpy apologized, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. "I guess I got overexcited."
"It's fine," said Raindrops, picking herself up. "So, um, what's this big plan of yours?"
"Well, I figured if you're having so much trouble talking about your feelings for Thunderlane, I'd just give you a script to work with," said Derpy, giving Raindrops a small stack of papers. "That way, you won't have to think about what to say."
Raindrops looked over the script and raised an eyebrow. "I'm, not sure about this, Derpy."
"Whaddya mean you're not sure? It's perfect!" said Derpy.
"Well, for one thing, I can't read this."
"Sure you can, 'Drops! You just need to have some confidence!"
"No, I mean I physically can't read this," said Raindrops, flipping through the pages of the script. "Seriously, Derpy. Your hoofwriting is completely illegible."
"Wait, that can't be," said Derpy, furrowing her brow. "I dictated my lines to Dinky so that we wouldn't have this problem."
Raindrops groaned. "Derpy, I wanted to keep this a secret!"
"'Drops, relax," said Derpy soothingly. "Dinky's not gonna tell anypony about your crush on Thunderlane. She promised me."
Raindrops sighed. "Alright, if you say so," said she. "Just, don't tell anypony else, okay?"
"Oh, okay," Derpy relented. "But I still think this secrecy thing is silly."
Raindrops rolled her eyes and looked back at the script. "Well, that aside, I still don't know how this is gonna help if I can't read it."
"Here, let me see it a moment," said Derpy, swiping the script from Raindrops's hooves. "Let's see here... One package of new strings from Trottingham and a case of candy syrup for Lyra and Bon-Bon, some new books for the Golden Oak Library, five bags of flour for Sugarcube Corner..."
Derpy trailed off as her face became bright crimson. "Oops."
"What?"
"This is my mailing list," said Derpy, thoroughly embarrassed as she put the script away and took out a new one. "These are the lines I came up with for you."
Raindrops sighed and shook her head. "You are a piece of work, you know that, Derpy?" she said as she looked over the new script. As she did so, she bit her lip and swallowed. "U-um, Derpy? I-I still don't know about this. I mean, I'm not sure I can say half of this stuff without fainting."
"C'mon, Raindrops. Have some confidence in yourself," said Derpy. "All you have to do is memorize those lines and say them to Thunderlane. What could be simpler?"
"Memorize?" said Raindrops. "But I said I'd meet Thunderlane here at one thirty, and he's already running late. Besides, I haven't stretched yet."
"Stretched?"
"For our training."
Derpy tilted her head. "You mean, you're actually planning on training with him?"
"Well, he's not going to fall for me if he thinks I'm lying!" said Raindrops frantically.
"Hmm. Good point," mused Derpy. She then looked up into the sky. "Hey, looks like somepony's coming over to us."
Raindrops turned to where Derpy was pointing and blanched. "Eep! Th-that would be Thunderlane!" she squeaked. "WhatdoIdo, whatdoIdo?!"
"Just relax and use that script I gave you," said Derpy. "The rest you'll have to play by ear. Don't worry, 'Drops. I know you'll figure something out. Now go get 'im!"
With that, Derpy gave Raindrops with a salute and flew off.
"Derpy, wait!" Raindrops cried. "I don't know if I'm..."
"Hi, Raindrops!"
Raindrops heart stopped for a split second as she heard Thunderlane's voice. She quickly turned around, hiding the script behind her back.
"O-oh! H-hi, Thunderlane," she stammered. "H-how are you?"
"I'm alright," said Thunderlane. "Sorry I'm a bit late. I had to reschedule something with Cloudchaser."
"B-but I thought you didn't have any plans for this afternoon," said Raindrops.
"So did I. Turns out I was wrong," said Thunderlane with a shrug. "Eh, those are the breaks sometimes. I'm just glad CC was cool with it. I'd hate to ruin our friendship just because of a mix-up."
"Y-yeah, that'd be a shame," said Raindrops. "S-so, shall we get started?"
"Yeah, sure," said Thunderlane, stretching out his legs. "Just, let me warm up a bit. I shouldn't be too long."
"O-okay," said Raindrops. While Thunderlane was distracted, she quickly folded up the script and gripped it in her tail. She then sighed and cast her gaze upward. Celestia, give me strength...
***
As soon as Thunderlane was done stretching, he and Raindrops flew up into the air and began going through standard Wonderbolt drills. At first, things seemed to be going well. The two of them moved as one as they wove around bobbed around lines of trees and weaved their way through the clouds. But all the while, Raindrops's heart was beating a mile a minute; partly due to the exercise, and partly due to nerves. Even though she managed to match Thunderlane move for move, her anxiety still lingered in the back of her mind. After a few minutes and maneuvers debating with herself, she finally managed to psych herself up.
Alright, here goes nothing, she thought.
In the middle of a loop, she reached behind her and grabbed the script from her tail. She then frantically read it over, trying her best to pay attention to where she was flying at the same time. When she felt that she found a good line, she looked up at Thunderlane.
"Um, Thunderlane?!" she called out to her lead pony.
"What's up, Raindrops?!" Thunderlane called back.
"I just wanted to say that your wings are..."
"Whoa, incoming!"
Thunderlane quickly swerved to the right. Before Raindrops could react, she found herself plowing right into a large cloud.
"Oof~!" she grunted.
Thunderlane looped back, a concerned look on his face. "You okay, Raindrops?" he asked.
"F-fine. I'm fine," said Raindrops, recovering from the minor crash. "It's just a cloud."
"Right," said Thunderlane with a chuckle. "Alright, let's keep going!"
With that, he zoomed off with Raindrops right at his heels. She quickly skimmed the script for another line and tried again.
"Um, anyway!" she said, straining her voice. "I just wanted to say that you're quite..."
"Heads up, Raindrops! Duck!"
Thunderlane quickly propelled himself into a sharp dive. Raindrops tried to follow, but in her hesitation, she accidently crashed into a duck. She and the waterfowl tumbled to the ground. When she looked up, she was staring at a familiar shy pegasus.
"Oh my!" gasped Fluttershy. "Are you two alright?"
"I'll live," said Raindrops, getting to her feet and brushing herself off.
Fluttershy sighed. "I am so sorry about this, Raindrops. Mrs. Duckworth and I were just out for a stroll, and we didn't see you."
"No, it's fine," said Raindrops, quickly getting back into the air.
"You sure you're okay?" Thunderlane asked. "You seem out of it."
"I'm sure it's nothing a little practice can't cure," said Raindrops sheepishly. "I'm fine, really."
Thunderlane shrugged. "If you say so," he said before zooming off. Raindrops was quick to follow as she looked for another line.
"As I was saying, Thunderlane!" she called out. "I think it's really cool how you..."
"Look out, Raindrops!"
Once again, Thunderlane's warning came a tad too late. While he flew out of the way, Raindrops became caught in the branches of a tree. As she struggled to get out, the script Derpy gave her went flying all over the place. Thunderlane flew up to her and raised an eyebrow.
"I'm, thinking we need more practice," he said, stroking his chin. "Spitfire's gonna chew you out royally if this is how you perform when we come back."
Raindrops sighed. "I'm sorry, Thunderlane."
"No, it's cool," said Thunderlane. "Like you said, it's nothing a little practice can't cure." He then reached out his hoof to her. "How about we come back Tuesday and try this again, eh?"
Raindrops blushed as she accepted Thunderlane's help. "Yeah, that sounds great," she said. After Thunderlane had pulled her out, she dusted herself off. "Thanks."
"Just looking out for my wingpony," said Thunderlane with a wink. "Catch you later!"
With that, he gave her a salute and flew off. Raindrops heaved a great sigh as she began picking pine sap out of her mane. When Thunderlane had completely disappeared over the horizon, Derpy flew up to her.
"Sorry, 'Drops," she said sheepishly. "Maybe next time we can actually have time to practice the lines."
Raindrops heaved another sigh. "That, was horrible. Thunderlane must think I'm an idiot."
"No, he doesn't," said Derpy reassuringly. "He said he was willing to practice with you more, didn't he? He still likes you."
Raindrops paused for a moment, and then gave Derpy a weak smile. "I, guess you have a point there," she said. "But, I'm still feeling uneasy about this, Derpy. If he finds out that I messed up because I was trying to woo him, I'll never live it down."
"Well, he doesn't need to know," said Derpy with a shrug. "Besides, you know how the saying goes. If at first you don't succeed, try try again! We just need to go to Plan B."
"Okay," said Raindrops, too fatigued to argue. "Now, where's that script...?"
The two pegasi looked around and saw a bunch of papers scattering in the wind. Derpy drew in a sharp breath through her teeth.
"Ooooookay, let's just skip to Plan C," she said. "First step: Make a new script."
Raindrops rubbed the bridge of her nose with her hoof as she tried to regain composure. "Right, sure. Whatever. Just, don't make it too flowery this time."
"Alright, fair enough," said Derpy, giving Raindrops a friendly pat on the back. "Hey, it's gonna be okay, 'Drops. Trust me."
Raindrops looked up at Derpy. She couldn't help but smile. Even though Derpy did annoy her sometimes, she could never stay mad at her best friend.
"Thanks, Derpy," she said softly. "I, think I need all the help I can get with this."
"That's why I'm here," said Derpy with a smile of her own. "C'mon, let's get you home."