//------------------------------//
// Harder Said Than Done 
// Story: Let it Rain 
// by Metool Bard 
//------------------------------//

	As Raindrops sat down for her breakfast, she heard a knock at the door.  She had a good idea who it was.

"Just a sec!" said Raindrops, picking up her baguette and flying over to the door.  Just as she suspected, there stood Derpy Hooves with her mailbag slung over her shoulder.

"'Morning, 'Drops!" Derpy said cheerfully. "You feeling any better?"

Raindrops sighed. "Not really.  I, still don't think this is a good idea, Derpy.  I mean, what if Thunderlane doesn't really like me?  What if he just wants to keep our relationship professional?"

"'Drops, you're never gonna win his heart with that attitude," said Derpy. "You gotta think positive!  Now, Dinky and I have been talking about what happened last Sunday, and I think we found the problem."

"What, that I tried to flirt with Thunderlane and ended up humiliating myself?" asked Raindrops.

Derpy giggled. "No, silly~.  It was the script."

Raindrops deadpanned. "Derpy, I could've told you that.  In fact, I did tell you that."

"And it turns out you were right," said Derpy with a smile. "See, when I came up with those lines, I forgot a crucial detail."

"And what might that be?"

"They weren't you."

"Yeah, tell me something I don't know," said Raindrops, rolling her eyes.

"I had a dream last night about traveling around the universe in a weird blue box with a strange stallion that looked like Time Turner."

Raindrops blinked. "What?"

"You wanted me to tell you something you didn't know," said Derpy with a shrug.

Raindrops smacked her head and let out an exasperated groan. "You're incorrigible, Derpy."

"Well, you're a silly-filly, but you don't hear me complaining," said Derpy. "Now then, Dinky and I have decided that the best way to win Thunderlane over is to be yourself.  With that in mind, I brought you this."

She then reached into her mailbag and gave Raindrops a stack of papers.  Raindrops raised an eyebrow.

"Isn't this another script?" she inquired.

"Nope.  These are conversation starters," said Derpy. "I did the same thing with Dinky for her first day of school.  It'll help you relax and be comfortable around Thunderlane.  That way, you can confess your feelings for him without feeling awkward."

Raindrops still appeared to be skeptical. "Derpy, talking to Thunderlane isn't the problem.  I can talk to him just fine.  It's just that whenever I think about my feelings for him, I get all flustered and end up making a fool of myself."

"Then don't think about it," said Derpy simply. "That's what got you into trouble last time, right?"

"I think it was more so the fact that I was trying to read pick-up lines mid-flight," said Raindrops.

"Exactly," said Derpy.

Raindrops stared blankly at Derpy. "I'll be honest, I'm not sure if what you said just now made sense or not."

Derpy chuckled. "Look, just memorize the conversation starters before you see Thunderlane, and then just let it go from there.  You'll be fine, trust me."

Raindrops fiddled with the bread in her hooves. "Well, I dunno..."

"Hey, if it'll make you feel better, I'll be right there with you," said Derpy. "I should finish my route by the time you go to meet Thunderlane."

Raindrops mulled it over for a bit before giving Derpy a nervous look. "You promise you'll be there to support me?"

"Yep," said Derpy with a warm smile.

Raindrops smiled back. "Alright, Derpy.  We'll give it another shot," she said. "And, thanks."

"No need to thank me, 'Drops.  I'm just happy to help," said Derpy with a salute. "Seeya later!"

With that, she took off.  Raindrops snickered a bit and nibbled on the heel of her bread.

I'm the only mare I know who is both lucky and unlucky to have a friend like Derpy, she thought.


***


That afternoon, Raindrops arrived at the park only to find Thunderlane right there waiting for her.  She swallowed and took a quick look around for any sign of Derpy.  When she couldn't find her wall-eyed friend, she sighed.

I guess she's just running late, she thought. Derpy has an important job, after all.

She then took a deep breath to calm her nerves and came in for a landing.

"Hey, Raindrops," said Thunderlane, looking as chipper as ever. "You ready to train?"

"Yeah," said Raindrops, rubbing the back of her foreleg. "I, just hope I don't crash into anything this time."

"Heh, that makes two of us," Thunderlane chuckled. "Alright then, whenever you're ready."

Raindrops nodded and stretched herself out.  As she did so, she heard a sharp hiss coming from behind her.  She turned around and breathed a sigh of relief.  There was Derpy, hiding in a bush and giving Raindrops a wink.  Raindrops winked back and turned back to Thunderlane.

"Alright, Thunderlane.  Let's fly!" she said.

With that, the two pegasi soared into the air and began their training.  Now that she felt more confident, Raindrops found it easier to stick with her lead pony.  Every swoop, turn, and dive he made, she matched him with expert precision.  No matter where he went, she was right there behind him; almost as if they were linked to each other by some sort of tether.  As Raindrops noticed this, all of the feelings she felt at the Academy came rushing back.  Her heart began skipping every other beat, butterflies manifested themselves inside her stomach, and her cheeks felt warm.  And without Spitfire breathing down her neck, it was harder to keep those feelings in check.  She quickly cleared her throat.

"Um, Thunderlane?!" she called out. "M-maybe we should take a break!"

"Hmm?  Oh, sure thing!" said Thunderlane with a nod.  He then made one final loop around and touched down on a large cloud as Raindrops followed suit.  After a moment of silence, Thunderlane turned to Raindrops and smiled.

"That was actually pretty good," he said, giving her a playful punch in the foreleg. "Way better than last time."

"Th-thanks," said Raindrops, casting her eyes downward.  She noticed Derpy waving at her below and took a few deep breaths to regain her composure.  As she did so, she thought back to the conversation starters Derpy gave her.  When she picked one that she felt was appropriate, she turned to Thunderlane.

"So, um, how have you been?" she asked.

"Mmm?  Oh, I've been alright," said Thunderlane with a shrug. "What about you?"

"So-so," said Raindrops. "I, guess I've just had a lot on my mind since the Academy."

"Ah, I see," said Thunderlane with a nod. "That might explain why you were messing up last time."

"Yeah, pretty much," said Raindrops with a nervous chuckle.

"So, what have you been thinking about?" asked Thunderlane.

Raindrops wings stood up on end. "Wh-what?  Um, uh..."

She frantically looked down at Derpy, who motioned for her to continue.  Raindrops gulped.

"I, uh, was just thinking about how my life has changed now that I'm a Wonderbolt Cadet.  Yeah."

Derpy smacked her face and groaned inwardly.

"Really?" said Thunderlane, raising an eyebrow. "I don't see much of a difference.  I mean, nopony really treats us any differently."

"W-well, I guess that's true," said Raindrops, twiddling her hooves. "And honestly, I'm relieved about that.  B-but what happens when we actually do become Wonderbolts?"

Thunderlane shrugged. "I dunno, I'm not a Wonderbolt yet," he said plainly. "Besides, the Wonderbolts may be elite fliers, but at the end of the day, they're still ponies.  Awesome ponies, mind you, but ponies nonetheless."

"P-perhaps," said Raindrops. "But being a Wonderbolt is more than just flying around and looking cool, y'know."

"Yeah, I learned that the hard way," said Thunderlane with a self-mocking chuckle. "I think all of us did."

"I, actually kinda knew that before being accepted into the Academy," said Raindrops.

Thunderlane blinked. "You serious?"

"Sure.  I mean, why else did Spitfire come to Ponyville in order to monitor our rainwater collection?"

"Huh.  That is a good point," Thunderlane mused. "I never thought about it like that before.  No wonder you're acting so jittery."

Raindrops's heart skipped a beat. "J-jittery?  Wh-who's jittery?  I'm not jittery.  Am I?"

"From what I've seen," said Thunderlane. "Say, Raindrops?"

"Hmm?"

"You, don't actually need any more training, do you?"

Raindrops's face turned bright red in an instant. He's onto me!  I'm doomed! she thought. "Um, wh-whatever gave you that idea?"

"Today was proof enough," said Thunderlane. "You handled yourself just fine.  I talked about it with Cloudchaser yesterday, and we both agree that it's weird."

It took sheer force of will for Raindrops to prevent herself from hyperventilating. "Thunderlane, I can explain..."

"What's there to explain?" asked Thunderlane. "I know what this is about."

Oh no!  Here it comes! Raindrops thought as she braced herself.

"You're stressing yourself out over something that hasn't happened yet."

Raindrops tilted her head. "Wh-what?"

"You just said you understood long before you were accepted into the Academy what being a Wonderbolt really meant," said Thunderlane. "And because of that, you're trying too hard to keep yourself in shape.  Cloudchaser told me that she's taking a break from training to give herself time to recover from the week we had.  Maybe you should take her advice."

Raindrops paused for a moment to let Thunderlane's words sink in, and then let out an awkward laugh. "Oh~.  Oh, yeah.  I, think you hit the nail on the head there, Thunderlane.  I'm just being silly.  Heh heh..." she said nervously.  She then breathed an inward sigh of relief. That was too close.

"No need to be embarrassed about it.  I understand," said Thunderlane  His expression suddenly brightened. "Hey, I just got an idea!"

"Wh-what's that?"

"There's a Wonderbolt show coming up that I was planning to take Rumble to.  If you're not busy tomorrow, would you like to come with?"

Raindrops's eyes went wide. "Y-you, want me to go with you to see the Wonderbolts?"

"Sure, why not?" said Thunderlane. "I'll even pay for your ticket.  Even a hard-working pony like you deserves a break every once in a while.  So, how about it?"

Raindrops tried to speak, but found herself completely tongue-tied. "Um, I, er, uh, tch, well, eh, mmm, ngh, er, uh..."

After hemming and hawing for a while, she looked down at Derpy and mouthed "Help me!"  Derpy's response was a vigorous nod.  Raindrops swallowed.

"Um, yeah.  S-sure," she said.

"Great!" said Thunderlane. "They're performing at the Cloudosseum tomorrow at two thirty.  Rumble and I will save you a seat."

"O-oh.  Great.  Thanks," said Raindrops.

"Just looking out for you, Raindrops," said Thunderlane, giving his wingpony a pat on the back. "See you tomorrow!"

"Yeah, seeya."

The two pegasi shared a salute, and Thunderlane darted off.  As soon as he disappeared from sight, Derpy emerged from the bushes and tackled Raindrops into a hug.

"You did it, 'Drops!" she cheered. "You're going on a date with Thunderlane!  I knew you could do it!"

"D-Derpy~!" Raindrops sputtered, her face turning red once again. "I-it's not a date!"

Derpy released Raindrops and gave her a confused look. "He's buying you a ticket to see the Wonderbolts.  How is that not a date?"

"Well, he didn't say it was a date.  He just, wanted to do something nice for me.  That's all."

Derpy shrugged. "Well, whatever the case, you're making progress."

"It doesn't feel like I am," said Raindrops glumly. "You saw me, Derpy.  I thought I was gonna die back there."

"Well, you still look alive to me," said Derpy with another shrug. "Look, the important thing is that you're opening up to him.  Openness is key in any relationship."

"I-I know," said Raindrops with a sigh. "I wish I was as confident as you, Derpy."

"Don't worry, 'Drops.  You're getting there," said Derpy with a smile as she gave Raindrops a pat on the back. "And soon enough, you'll be able to speak your mind, and Thunderlane will fall head over hooves for you.  Just wait and see."

"If you say so," said Raindrops. "Um, Derpy?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad you believe in me."

Derpy grinned from ear-to-ear. "I'm glad that you're glad.  And I'll be more glad when you start believing in yourself, too.  Thunderlane is a very lucky pony to have a mare like you courting him."

Raindrops giggled. "Oh, you flatterer, you~."

"I only say it 'cause it's true," said Derpy. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go home and get dinner on the go."

"Alright.  See you later, Derpy," said Raindrops.  The two friends then shared a hoof bump and went their separate ways.

Phew.  That was pretty stressful, Raindrops thought. Maybe I should take Cloudchaser's advice and hit the spa on the way home.  It certainly couldn't hurt.