//------------------------------// // Wingpony // Story: Love Blooms at the Wonderbolt Academy // by LightSage //------------------------------// Chapter II: Wingpony Rainbow Dash angrily kicked a hole in the cloud wall. Normally she would never allow herself to display anger like this, but this was a special occasion. Needless to say, her first day of real training had not gone well. Not only had Spitfire chosen to make her a Wingpony instead of a Leadpony, but her Leadpony, who happened to be Lightning Dust, had forced her to pull a foolishly reckless stunt that banged her wing pretty good. She instantly regretted the kick, because it sent a jolt of pain through her injured wing. Rainbow Dash winched, turning her head to look down at her wing. It definitely looked awful. Getting banged up was one thing, but being forced to fly on it afterwards had really put her wing through the ringer. None of the feathers were lying down correctly. She gingerly extended the sore limb, taking in the full extent of the damage. There would be hell to pay if this injury ruined her chances at making it into the Wonderbolts. She used her nose to inspect the damage and to attempt to get the feathers to lie down correctly. Normally, she’d just use her hooves, but she didn’t want to risk any more damage. Her nose was definitely much safer. Her wing still looked to be in a pretty sorry state when somepony knocked on the door and she remembered that Soarin had said that he might visit again after the day’s training. Good! Rainbow Dash thought to herself vindictively. Because I’ve got a few choice words for him that, since I can’t say to Spitfire, I’ll say to him! She carefully folded her injured wing against her body and opened the door. “Hello, Rainbow Dash, how are you…” Soarin trailed off when he took in Rainbow’s appearance. She was glaring at him in the sort of way that he’d only seen Spitfire glare at him, and several of the feathers on her right wing were agitated or bent. “What… what happened?” He gasped. “What happened? Where do I start?” Rainbow Dash growled, backing away from the door. Soarin reluctantly took this as an invitation to enter. He stepped slowly into the room, still weary of the agitated mare. “I got the best time on the Dizzitron yesterday, and Spitfire saw fit to only make me a Wingpony! All because Lightning Dust had asked to turn it up to the maximum setting?!” Soarin was impressed, through he knew enough not to say anything. There were reserve members of the Wonderbolts who couldn’t handle the Dizzitron on the maximum setting. “But she still didn’t beat your time.” “No, but it was a very good time.” Rainbow Dash admitted. “Much better than the rest on the regular setting. I could have done it, but as much as I hate to admit it, asking didn’t occur to me. I just was in such a rush to impress Spitfire that I jumped right into the machine without a thought.” She hung her head. “And now I’m stuck being a Wingpony to Lightning Dust.” “You know, being assigned as a Wingpony won’t hurt your chances of being considered for the Wonderbolts in the slightest.” Soarin said in an attempt to make her feel better. “You know, when I joined the Wonderbolts Academy, I was assigned as a Wingpony.” Rainbow stared at him in shock. “You were?” “You bet. When I got told that I was a Wingpony, I was so terrified that it meant I was little more than a stepping stone for my partner. But the Captain at the time told me that the teams are more about teaching ponies how to work and fly together, and not about labeling their worthiness. And look at me now: Second-in-Command of the Wonderbolts.” “What about your partner?” “She made the Wonderbolts too. You might know her… Spitfire.” Soarin said. Instead of making Rainbow Dash feel better, now she just felt worse. Soarin had been made Spitfire’s partner in the Academy and, all these years later, for all their advancement through the ranks, and he was still playing second fiddle to his Leadpony. Even if she got in, would she forever be playing second fiddle to Lightning Dust? A few moments later, Soarin must’ve realized that he said something wrong. “There hasn’t been any opportunity that Spitfire has that I haven’t had. In fact, when the old Captain retired, he asked me to take over the Wonderbolts before Spitfire.” Rainbow had never heard anything like this. But, then again, most of the fan literature on the Wonderbolts was lacking in personal details or inter-team politics. “Then why’d you say no?” She asked. “I like my job.” Soarin said with a shrug. “I get all the perks of leadership without having to deal with politics or paperwork.” He shivered, as if the very thought of all that paperwork was horrifying to him. “Spitfire got the job when I refused, and she relished in it. It was a good match. At least she can give reports to the Princess without stuttering.” “The Princess isn’t that scary.” Rainbow laughed, giving him a light shove with her forehoof. “For a nearly-immortal alicorn… sure.” Soarin laughed with her. “But I’ve been meaning to ask… how have you gotten so close to the Princess?” Rainbow Dash laughed. “Would you believe me if I said I come from an important family in Canterlot?” Soarin laughed. “No, I wouldn’t believe you. Come on, Dash, I’ve really been wondering.” “Okay, fine. If you must know. I know the Princess through Twilight Sparkle.” “The lavender unicorn?” Soarin asked. “That’s her. She’s the one who comes from an important family in Canterlot. I’m not sure how high up they were, but it must’ve been pretty high because Princess Cadence was her foal-sitter. But, not only that, she’s Princess Celestia’s protégé. But I think the rest of my friends and I really only got close to the Princess personally because we control the Elements of Harmony now.” “I’d heard that Princess Celestia and Princess Luna no longer controlled the Elements of Harmony.” Soarin said. “So that’s really true?” “Yeah, but I don’t want to talk about it right now. Representing one of the Elements of Harmony only becomes something important when Equestria is on the brink of disaster.” “Fair enough.” Soarin said with a shrug. “So, then, what happened to your wing? Did you have an accident?” He turned his gaze on the messed up feathers. “Ugh!” Rainbow Dash snorted, stomping her hoof and flicking her tail in annoyance. “No. It was my Leadpony’s stupid fault! She made a reckless call and I bruised up my wing pretty badly because of it. And I couldn’t quit or complain because Spitfire was watching and I have to prove that I’ve got just as much drive as Lightning Dust!” Soarin was a little shocked. He knew better than anyone that Spitfire pushed hard, but she also knew where to draw the line. She’d never force an injured pony fly in the Wonderbolts. That’s what the reserves were for, after all. He moved over to her side, gazing down at her injured wing. “It does look banged up, and you probably shouldn’t have been flying on it right after. But maybe Spitfire honestly didn’t know about you being injured?” “Maybe.” Rainbow snorted. Sure she hadn’t said anything about being injured, but Spitfire had to recognize a limping pegasus when she saw one. Soarin got closer, nudging some of her feathers with his nose. Rainbow Dash froze, staring at him while he inspected her injury up close. Pausing only briefly to straighten out a few of her feathers, he pulled away. “Well, I’m no doctor, but it looks worse than it probably is. Resting it for one night should put it back to a hundred percent.” Rainbow Dash found herself to be still frozen for a few more moments, and then with a shake of her head she forced herself back to reality. “Oh, yeah, thanks for the news, Doctor Soarin.” “Glad to help.” Soarin said. “And don’t worry about Spitfire so much. If it still hurts too much tomorrow, you can just tell Spitfire. I promise that it won’t affect your chances. After all, I’ve been injured a few times and I’ve never been demoted because of it…” “No! I can’t! I have to prove to Spitfire that I can handle anything!” Rainbow Dash said. Soarin sighed. “Whatever you want to do, Rainbow Dash. Just promise you’ll think about what I said. I hope to see you tomorrow. And I still think you’re going to make it.” He said as he stepped out. Rainbow Dash sighed and walked over to the wall and used her forehooves to fix the hole that she had kicked into the cloud wall. Okay, so that conversation had started out normally and then morphed into something weird. She had no idea what to do when Soarin began to inspect the injury of her wing. Something about the way he nosed through her feathers reminded her of her father, checking for injuries after one of her many crashes. But, no, it wasn’t quite like that. Gentler. Could Soarin possibly… did he have a crush on her?! Immediately after the thought occurred to Rainbow Dash, she laughed it off. Nopony got crushes on her. She was much too awesome and intimidating for most stallions, even for stallions as awesome as Soarin. But, still, she couldn’t forget the way that she felt when he had been that close to her. It was exhilarating, new, and as much as she hated to admit it, even to herself… it was frightening. It was different from the casual relationships that she had before. It was probably just a confused mixture of her feelings for Soarin the Wonderbolt and Soarin her budding friend. Feeling emotionally drained from the events of the day, Rainbow finished up the repairs to the wall and then went straight to sleep, unknowing of a certain stallion that would haunt her dreams that night. Soarin walked away from Rainbow Dash’s room, hoping that no one would spot him. But even as he walked away, he was mentally kicking himself with every step. He had felt the way that Rainbow Dash tensed as he drew near to her. Perhaps he was moving too fast. It had been a long time since he had pursued a mare that he genuinely cared about rather than a random fan that would put out just for him being a Wonderbolt. Once upon a time, Rainbow Dash could have been one of those fans, a simple notch on the bedpost for a Wonderbolt. But that was before he had begun to get to know her. Before he realized that the mare’s beautiful looks contained a creature of fiery passion and endless loyalty. If the Young Flyer’s Competition was any indication, then for all her bragging and brashness, she wouldn’t hesitate to put the safety of others before herself. She was a special kind of pony, and worth far more than a one-night stand. Pursuing a relationship was new territory for Soarin, and he knew that he might have screwed up by getting close to her. Well, I’ll just back off for a bit, and try again later. Any other mare, and Soarin would have given up. But Rainbow Dash was different, and she was worth every ounce of effort.