//------------------------------//
// Let it Rain 
// Story: Let it Rain 
// by Metool Bard 
//------------------------------//

	Raindrops flew over Ponyville, still covered from head to hoof in chocolate pudding and still crying her little eyes out.  Finally, she landed on a grassy knoll on the outskirts of town and simply collapsed while burying her face in her forelegs.

"I-I can't believe that happened," she sobbed. "I'll never live this down.  Thunderlane probably hates me now.  I might as well just crawl into a cave and stay there for the rest of my life."

She then heard wings flapping behind her and sighed.

"Go away, Derpy," she said. "I know you want to help, but there's nothing you can do for me.  Don't worry, I'm not mad at..."

"Rainy, it's me."

Raindrops slowly looked up and turned her head.  She was surprised to discover Cloudchaser standing behind her; also covered in chocolate pudding.  Raindrops pouted.

"What the hay are you doing here?" she snapped. "Haven't you done enough?"

Cloudchaser sighed. "Raindrops, hear me out.  I'm, very sorry about what happened back there.  I didn't mean to..."

"To what?  Utterly humiliate me?" said Raindrops with a sniffle. "I-I don't even know how you figured it out."

Cloudchaser blinked. "Wait, what?  Figured what out?"

Raindrops let out a deep sigh. "I guess there's no point in hiding it now that everypony knows.  I-I'm in l-l-l-love with Thunderlane."

Cloudchaser's eyes went wide. "Wh-what?!  B-b-but I'm in love with Thunderlane!"

Raindrops gave Cloudchaser a perplexed look before folding her ears back and staring at the ground. "Oh.  I-I didn't know.  If I did, I would've backed off."

"How could you not know?!" Cloudchaser yelled. "Everypony in town knows!"

"I don't know what to tell you," said Raindrops with a shrug.  She then began to cry again. "W-well, I guess it's for the best.  After what happened, I don't have any chance with Thunderlane anymore.  I-I suppose if you truly love somepony, the best thing to do is let him go."

Cloudchaser bit her lip. "Rainy, s-stop being so melodramatic.  Y-you're making me feel bad," she murmured.

"Sorry," said Raindrops, sitting up and looking off into the sunset. "I-it's just that, I really thought he was the one for me, y'know?"

"Y-you did?" asked Cloudchaser.

"Mmm-hmm," said Raindrops. "It all started at the Academy.  I wasn't sure why Spitfire paired me up with him, but when we got to flying together, it was simply, amazing.  Magical, even.  Almost like we were one pony."

"That's, kinda the point of a wing pair," said Cloudchaser.

"I know, but this was different," said Raindrops. "I felt like I was more than a wingpony.  I was the wind beneath his wings.  No matter where he flew, I'd be right by his side.  I would fly through thunderclouds of the highest density and a gauntlet of dragon fire just to make sure he stayed safe.  He counted on me every day.  And even when I messed up, he was right there to help me.  He made me feel, special.  B-but like a special kind of special.  A kind of special that nopony has ever made me felt before.  It was like we were destined to support each other, both in and out of the Academy."

She then heaved a great sigh. "B-but, if he's your special somepony, I won't get in the way.  I'm sorry about all this, Cloudchaser."

Raindrops got up and began to walk away.  Cloudchaser felt tense all over.

I'm such an idiot! she thought as a new batch of tears formed in her eyes. Flitter and Snowflake were right all along!  Why didn't I listen to them?!

"Raindrops, wait!" she called out.

Raindrops stopped, but didn't turn around. "Don't worry about me, Cloudchaser.  I'll be alright," she said with a sniffle.

Cloudchaser let out a pained sigh. "Rainy, don't be so hard on yourself.  I-it's not your fault; it's mine."

Raindrops gave Cloudchaser a confused look. "Wh-what?  No, it isn't.  I shouldn't have tried to go after Thunderlane in the first place."

"No no no, you don't get it," said Cloudchaser. "I-I..."

She cringed and muttered something under her breath.

"What?" asked Raindrops. "I didn't hear you."

Cloudchaser mumbled again.

"Sorry, could you speak up?"

Another mumble.

"Cloudchaser, just spit it out already.  What's wrong?"

"I'M JEALOUS, OKAY?!"

Raindrops was taken aback by Cloudchaser's sudden outburst.  Cloudchaser cringed again.

"J-jealous?" parroted Raindrops.

"Yeah.  I'm jealous of you," said Cloudchaser. "I've been jealous of you ever since you were paired up with Thunderlane instead of me, but I was too afraid of Spitfire to complain."

Raindrops shrugged. "Well, you don't have to feel that way anymore.  I won't interfere."

"I'm not finished yet," said Cloudchaser with a sigh. "Rainy, listen.  You know everything you just said about Thunderlane making you feel special and how you flew as one pony?"

"Um, yeah?"

"Well, I wanted to feel that.  I wanted to experience what you experienced.  And when I couldn't, I started jumping to conclusions and driving myself crazy.  I should've told you how I felt."

"Well, why didn't you?"

"Because I thought it wouldn't matter," said Cloudchaser, hanging her head in shame. "I thought you were just up to no good.  I thought you were just trying to steal Thunderlane from me knowing full well how much I love him.  But that's not the case at all.  You genuinely love him, just like I do."

"Well, yeah.  You're right," said Raindrops. "But..."

"Do you know why I love Thunderlane, Raindrops?" Cloudchaser interrupted.

"Um, no," said Raindrops.

Cloudchaser took a deep breath before saying her piece. "It's because I understand him in a way that most other ponies don't.  Most ponies just think he's a goofy slacker, but I know he's not.  He takes pride in his work.  He always keeps his word.  And, I feel like I'm one of the few ponies who understands how much he cares.  About his job as a weatherpony, the Wonderbolts, Rumble, me..."

Cloudchaser trailed off as tears rolled down her checks. "And, you.  He cares about you too, Rainy.  You're his wingpony."

Raindrops sighed. "Don't try to make me feel better, Cloudchaser.  You don't have to feel guilty."

"Yes, I do!" Cloudchaser wailed. "All this happened because I was so thoroughly convinced that I was right that I didn't even consider how you felt!  Heck, I didn't even consider how Thunderlane felt, and I was trying to win him back!  I was hypocritical and stubborn and stupid and..."

Cloudchaser's lament was interrupted by Raindrops placing a hoof to her mouth.

"Cloudchaser, don't beat yourself up over this," she said softly. "It's okay.  I understand."

"No, you don't," said Cloudchaser, shaking her head. "I'm the bad guy here.  You deserve Thunderlane a lot more than I do."

Raindrops sighed. "Cloudchaser, neither of us are the bad guy.  It was just a misunderstanding.  Things got out of control.  It happens.  I'm sure Thunderlane will forgive you."

Cloudchaser paused for a moment, and then gave Raindrops a weak smile. "Yeah, you're right.  A-and I don't think he hates you, either."

There was a pause.

"To be honest, I don't know where that leaves us," said Raindrops.

"Me, neither," said Cloudchaser. "Now that I know how you feel about him, I'd feel just terrible if I forced you to back off."

"Yeah, same here," said Raindrops. "Maybe we should talk to Thunderlane about it.  I mean..."

"Girls, wait!"

As if on cue, Thunderlane flew in with a large rain cloud in tow.  He paused for a moment to catch his breath.

"Girls, there's no need to fight!" he said breathlessly. "I love both of you!"

Cloudchaser and Raindrops stared at Thunderlane in disbelief.

"First of all, we weren't fighting," said Cloudchaser. "Second of all, huh?"

"Flitter and Derpy told me the whole story," said Thunderlane sheepishly. "Honestly, I never picked up on it."  He then chuckled. "I know that makes me sound pretty stupid, but it's the truth."

Cloudchaser's jaw dropped. "Y-you didn't know, either?  Even after all this time?"

"Nope.  And, I'm sorry about that, CC," said Thunderlane, touching down in front of the two mares. "I should've paid more attention."

"N-no, it was my fault," said Cloudchaser. "I should've been more open with you instead of trying to handle everything myself."

"No, it was my fault," said Raindrops. "I was just too nervous to tell you how I really felt.  I wanted to so badly, but..."

"Girls, please.  Let's not play the Blame Game here," said Thunderlane. "That's not what I came here for."

He then turned to Cloudchaser. "CC, you don't know how much you mean to me.  It's because of you that I have balance in my life.  You're understanding, smart, caring, and just a really cool pony all around."

He then turned over to Raindrops. "And Raindrops, when I said that I couldn't ask for a better wingpony, I really meant it.  You're dependable, funny, determined, and just a regular ole sweetheart."

He then turned to address them both. "So, I gave it some thought, and as far as I'm concerned, you're both my special someponies."

Raindrops placed her hooves over her heart and sighed.  As she exhaled, she felt a great burden tumble from her shoulders.  Cloudchaser, meanwhile, seemed befuddled.

"W-well, I'm glad you think that," she said. "B-but, aren't we breaking some unwritten rule here?"

"Oh, hush," said Raindrops with a giggle. "I think this is great.  Now I don't have to get all flustered anymore.  Thunderlane, you don't know how happy this makes me."

"I think I do," said Thunderlane with a chuckle. "Now, let's get you two cleaned up, and then we can head over to my place for dinner."

"Sounds good," said Raindrops.

"Y-yeah," said Cloudchaser.

Thunderlane then bounced on top of the rain cloud, creating a downpour that washed away the chocolate pudding.  As the two mares got themselves clean, Raindrops turned to Cloudchaser.

"Y'know, after hearing you talk about Thunderlane, I think I've gotten a new appreciation for you, Cloudchaser," she said.

Cloudchaser tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I got to see how passionate you are; how much you really love Thunderlane," said Raindrops. "It was just a peek, but I do believe I saw some of your inner beauty."

Cloudchaser blinked. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, let me put it this way, now that I'm feeling more confident," said Raindrops. "I, always thought you were kinda cute.  And now that I saw a bit of your inner beauty, I find you very attractive, both inside and out."

Cloudchaser felt as though her whole world got turned upside-down. "W-wait a minute!  A-are you coming onto me?!"

"A little, I guess," said Raindrops. "See, to me, it doesn't matter whether a pony is a mare or a stallion.  It's what's on the inside that counts."

Cloudchaser stared blankly at Raindrops with her mouth agape. "S-so, all those rumors about you liking mares..."

"Are half true, yes," said Raindrops, finishing Cloudchaser's thought.

"So, you..."

"Swing both ways," said Raindrops with a giggle and a wink.

Thunderlane flew down from the rain cloud and chuckled. "Well, whaddya know, CC?  Now you've got two special someponies!"

Cloudchaser tried to speak, but found that she had little to nothing to say. "I, um, uh, I, I, ay yi yi..."

"Heh, now you know how I felt all this time," Raindrops laughed.

"Sounds like she's in shock," said Thunderlane with a smirk. "I think I know how to snap her out of it."

He then walked up to Cloudchaser and pressed his lips against hers.  Cloudchaser's eyes snapped open.  Her heart pounded something fierce.  Her face turned a brilliant shade of crimson.  Her wings stood up on end.

"Room for one more?" asked Raindrops coyly.  She walked over to the kissing couple and wrapped her wings and forelegs around both of them, pushing them closer together.  Cloudchaser's heart raced even faster for a moment, but then she recovered from the shock.  She closed her eyes and kissed Thunderlane back, relishing every moment.  Time almost seemed to stand still for the three pegasi.  After a few seconds that felt like an eternity, they released each other.

"You don't know how long I've been waiting for you to do that, TL," Cloudchaser told Thunderlane. "I-I'm the happiest mare in the world right now."

"That makes two of us," Raindrops cooed.

"Good.  I'm glad," said Thunderlane. "C'mon, let's go home.  Flitter and Rumble are waiting for us."

Cloudchaser sighed. "Oh boy.  She is never gonna let this go."

"Let what go?" asked Thunderlane. "The fact that you should've listened to her?"

"No, the fact that I'm now dating two ponies at the same time, and they both know it," said Cloudchaser. "I've been calling her a love newbie all this time.  How the hay am I gonna explain this to her when even I don't understand it?"

Raindrops laughed. "Love's just weird that way, huh?  Don't worry, Cloudchaser.  We'll find a way to work this out.  I promise."

Cloudchaser looked at Raindrops and gave her a weak smile. "Okay, I'll trust you.  It's about time I stopped being so stubborn, anyway.  Alright, let's go."

"After you, CC," said Thunderlane. "Ladies first."

"And I've got your back, Thunderlane," said Raindrops with a salute.

Cloudchaser smiled and nodded before taking off into the air, with Thunderlane and Raindrops not far behind.

Hmm, maybe Rainy is right, she thought. Maybe this can work out.  Sure as heck beats the alternative where we were both miserable.  I just hope Flitter doesn't gloat too much...