Things were just as tense back at the library, where Wildfire was rummaging through books, having Twilight and Spike aid him in his query for a certain book he was requesting to look at. Rarity and Applejack joined them as well, standing aside and joining in on their conversation, watching the occasional book fly overhead as they stood aside.
“I don’t get it.” Twilight said, scanning down her shelves book by book. “You and Dash are having a grudge match?”
“…Basically…” said Wildfire, scanning through the book in a similar, yet, more rampant manner than Twilight.
“And why is this again?” asked Twilight, beginning to pull books down from higher shelves with her horn.
“Because she’s a sore loser, that’s why!” Wildfire slammed the book back into the shelf.
“Hey! Easy! ” exclaimed Twilight, her grave expression in worry towards her books.
Twilight turned back to the shelf before her, reaching up into the highest shelf with her magic and pulling the books down one by one, making them dance on the air in a purple aurora that also encompassed her horn.
“Ah! Here it is!” she said, returning all the books back to their shelf at once and turning towards her study table with a thick book; its cover a dark blue and its binding adorned with gold trim and black boxes with gold text, its front cover reading, “Equestrian Almanac: Landscape and Maps.”
It was gently handled by her, the aged book floating through the the air. Wildfire and Spike joined her at the table, eagerly waiting for it to open up on its own and flip through its own pages at Twilight’s command. They all stared impatiently, watching the book hover down like a leaf, slower even.
Without warning, the book began to tremor, shaking unsteadily, and the purple aurora turned to a lifeless muddy grey color. The book forced itself to the table at speed, slapping the table with a force that knocked a few of Twilight’s belongings off of the table, startling everyone except for Wildfire, who was too angry to be phased by it.
“Whoa! You alright Twilight?” asked Spike.
“Yeah… I… I didn’t mean to do that... it didn’t even feel like I did.”
Wildfire opened the book, quickly flipping through the pages, dismissing Twilight’s sudden energy flux, and getting the others to dismiss it quickly too. Twilight and Spike each watched over his shoulders as he flipped through the book, passing over maps of Ponyville, and the mountain ranges out east, and the large network of roadways throughout Equestria. He even flipped passed the main map, looking through the alphabetically organized book to the “G” section, right to the map of Ghastly Gorge.
He studied it closely, following its crooked shape from the bottom of the page all the way to the top.
“You and Dash are really going to race through there?” asked Spike.
“Yeah…” Wildfire nodded, closely observing the map. “And I’m guessing the bragging blue wonder already has?”
“Yeah…” said Spike and Twilight.
Twilight stepped to the side of the table, trying to avert Wildfire’s attention from the almanac. “Are you sure you want to go through with this?” she asked. “I know Dash is hard headed, bu-”
“Yeah, another filly who’s holding the freaking world in her hooves. I know.” Twilight raised an eyebrow, offended by the way Wildfire snapped back at her.
“Now sugar cube.” Applejack stepped forward. “Maybe y’all should simmer down n’ talk thing out?”
“I agree.” added Rarity. “We need to sit down and try to come to an agreement, like civilized ponies should.”
“If you girls want civilized, then you’re asking the wrong ponies!” said Wildfire, eyes still fixed on the book.
“We know that Dash isn’t the best behaved one, but please try?” asked Rarity, stepping to the other side of the table.
“Look, I’m sorry! But that filly has her head up her butt so far that she can’t even see the light of day anymore!” said Wildfire, breaking his stare with the map and locking it on Rarity’s eyes, raising his voice to her.
Rarity was surprised of Wildfire; she was beginning to think that she should take back her previous thought of him; a gentlecolt with a rougher, less chiseled exterior.
“Well, I never!” said Rarity, turning up her nose.
Applejack shook her head, also beginning to become frustrated with Wildfire’s attitude. “Seems that Dash ain’t the only one who’s so barefaced either.” glowering at Wildfire.
Wildfire turned to Applejack now, fixing his stare on Applejack’s angry expression. “Hey, I tried reasoning with her at first, but now we’re way passed that point!”
The room got awkwardly quiet, Rarity, Twilight, and Spike all watching Applejack and Wildfire stare each other down with intent to get into a scrap themselves. They barely moved at all, Wildfire’s wings erect and his fiery eyes bouncing back and forth between each of Applejack’s eyes, pools of anger and sorrow as Wildfire saw his reflection in them, big and green as his was. Applejack stood her ground too, staring Wildfire directly in the face, almost looking through him, her brow lowered in focus and ferocity.
Wildfire couldn’t keep his eyes locked with Applejack’s for long though, as he lightened his attitude towards her, sighing with a melancholy expression, looking back at Rarity and Twilight with the same sorry look.
“Sorry, you’re not the ones I should be mad at…” Wildfire said, turning back to the book and flattening out its pages. “She said we had all the time to prepare. I’m going to go run it a few times. If she wants a fair race, then there is no way that I’m going to let her have the home field advantage.”
Twilight sighed, her face fixed in a brooding expression. She looked over at Spike, who was watching Wildfire with the same expression. He looked back at Twilight, shrugging for lack of any idea to try and calm Wildfire down.
“Why?” asked Twilight, turning back to Wildfire.
“Because I don’t know the course?” said Wildfire, closing the book.
“No. Why do you have to prove yourself better than she is?”
Wildfire didn’t know what to say at first, searching his words as he tried to come up with an answer for her. “Because, she wanted a race—a fair race. She’ll get one.”
They all looked at Wildfire, worried for his own wellbeing. They watched him head for the front door, preparing to fly over to Ghastly Gorge to start his practice.
“That… and she’s just plain annoying…” added Wildfire, earning an immediate frown from Spike who was fed up with the hate.
Wildfire opened the front door wide, taking into the air quickly with his large wings spread wide and making his way out of Ponyville. The others all followed, making haste to tail him from Ponyville, all the way to Ghastly Gorge.