Just about a mile away from Cloudsdale, the old flight school still remained. The very place where Rainbow Dash and the three stallions had learned all things flying related. It brought back good memories to the mare, it being the place where she made friends with Fluttershy, as well as where she got her cutie mark. Thankfully, there didn't seem to be any classes going on, allowing them to freely use the race track.
The track itself was far different than one found on the ground, barely existing at all. A path was defined by a series of floating rings made of clouds, going high and low to give a grand challenge to maneuver through. Large clumps of clouds occasionally dotted the sides, giving places for ponies to sit and spectate as the racers flew by.
The five pegasi stood on the single cloud platform where the starting line was. Both Dumb-Bell and Trader held the same expression of confidence, certain of their victory. While Score and Hoops shared in their friend's enthusiasm, Rainbow Dash was far from it. Instead, a slight look of worry crossed her as the two stallions did basic stretches before the race.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” the multi-colored mare asked. “Look, I know they're jerks and all, but you really don't need to do this for my sake, or anypony's.”
A light chuckle escaped from Trader as all he could do was beam brightly toward her. “Having doubts in my ability now?” he replied. He would have felt hurt if he wasn't aware of his own flying prowess before meeting the cyan pegasus.
Rainbow Dash merely shook her head, casting glances toward the other stallions, Dumb-Bell already waiting at the starting line. “It's not that... I just... I don't want you getting riled up over something like this. And if anypony should show them up, it's me. I know you've made a lot of progress but-”
Trader cut her off with a raised hoof, meeting her gaze as he said, “I know you'd beat any of them. Just as well as they do. But it still wouldn't mean as much as me being the one to do it. I'll trounce him, I have no doubt about that. And don't forget... I was trained by the greatest pegasus in Equestria.”
At a loss for words, Rainbow Dash said nothing else and simply watched as Trader took his place beside Dumb-Bell. They kept their gazes fixed straight ahead as their bodies positioned into the perfect stance to take off.
It took a few moments for Rainbow Dash to realize they'd need somepony to start the race for them, taking it upon herself since the others weren’t about to. Hovering before the two ready racers, she took a steadying breath and said, “On your mark... Get set... Go!” Before she could even finished, they were gone. Two blurred streaks rushed past the mare at incredible speed.
All noise around them was muffled, tears formed in their eyes from the sharp bites of the air itself. A large, toothy grin remained plastered to Dumb-Bell's face as he bolted through the course, ready to show his opponent just how outmatched he was. It wasn't just his speed he was showing off, but his agility as he moved through the air to reach each ring.
Just as he was certain Trader was nowhere near him, he caught something in the corner of his eye. A speeding shape of white and black rushing just alongside him. Shock was worn clearly on the stallion's face as he saw the pegasus right on his tail, his eyes dead set and focused on his speed. Dumb-Bell gritted his teeth fiercely as he flapped his wings even harder.
Off on the sidelines, Hoops and Score cheered uproariously, calling out to their friend to decimate the competition. Rainbow Dash remained silent, her unblinking gaze locked on the two stallions as they remained stuck to one another, never gaining any sort of lead over the other. Despite not taking any physical part in any of it, she could feel her heart pounding in her chest from how anxious she was. It didn't even register to her that she was gnawing on her own hoof.
Their sides nearly struck together several times as the race continued. Just over half of it was done and neither had gained a significant edge over the other. Their faces were frozen in their own expressions of determination, nothing else mattering to either of them at that moment save for winning. Too caught up in passing the other though, their focus on their surroundings suffered, as neither were ready for the next ring that they were speeding forward.
Jarringly, the two racing stallions were ripped away from their contest, their wings striking against the ring as they both tried passing through at once. Crashing into one another, they spun out of control, unable to steady themselves. Their vision was consumed by white fluff as they slammed into the nearby clouds, sinking into the plush softness.
Everything seemed to halt, even the three spectators as they all remained silent, their breath held. But Trader and Dumb-Bell soon managed to pull themselves up to the surface of their cloud respite. Gasping for air, they stumbled across the surface in a daze. Groaning loudly, Dumb-Bell gave his head a violent shake and jumped back into the air, leaving his adversary behind. It took several more moments for Trader to recover himself. Angrily he growled as he realized how far behind he had become, taking off as well and joining the race once again.
But the damage had been done. Dumb-Bell held a commanding lead and Trader's speed was severely reduced. Not about to give up though, the white-coated stallion steeled his nerves and forced himself to fly even faster. Wings throbbing and aching, heart pounding against his ribs, lungs drastically overworked, it was all ignored by him as he pushed and pushed without a single thought of stopping crossing his mind.
The final stretch of the track was already upon them. Far down below them was the last ring. A sudden, near-endless plunge took it to nearly ground level. After hitting that, a steep climb back up was needed to reach the finish line.
As Trader reached the dive, Dumb-Bell was already at the ring, darting upward to reach the finish line and victory. Blocking it from his mind however, the pegasus bolted straight down, the final ring locked in his sights.
Everything became a blurred mess, Trader nearly blinded by the rushing air and physical strain. Even as his own body cried out in objection to what he was doing, he continued to flap his wings harder then ever before. Faster and faster he went, lungs ready to burst, with the single-minded need to catch up to his opponent. Quickly reaching the final ring, the pegasus pulled up and banked straight through it, using his momentum to rocket back up.
He could see Dumb-Bell approaching the finish line fast, little separating the two. It only caused Trader to try and fly even faster, pangs of numbness enveloping his wings. Climbing up and up, he was on the leading stallion's tail, already seeing how close the end of it would be. He just had to fly a little faster.
The cheering cries of Hoops and Score were muffled beyond recognition to Dumb-Bell as he continued to soar upward. So close to the end, the taste of victory was already on his tongue. Grin splayed out across his face, he felt the surge of triumph as he reached the platform of clouds and crossed the finish line. The joyous calls of his friends came more clear, though still obscured by his own panting.
Victorious, the stallion turned to see how far he had left Trader behind, surprised as the pegasus was nowhere to be seen. At that moment, everyone jumped in startled gasps, a blurred mass shooting through the clouds like a torpedo and crossing the finish line. Everypony there stared off at the sight, recognizing the dusty-black mane attached to it.
Not used to stopping abruptly at such high speeds, Trader's flying form flailed about wildly in the air. With zero grace and ability, he rocketed through the air before arcing downward and crashing once again into another cloud, nearly sliding off the edge before coming to a stop on the surface. His chest bounced up and down as he gasped desperately for air.
There was no time to rest for him however, the pegasus immediately being assaulted. A sudden lurch upward came as he was yanked into the air, a cyan-coated mare having plucked him up and wrapped her forelegs around him in a crushing hug, her roaring laughter almost deafening him. “That was great!” she shouted loudly. “I didn't think you had it in you!”
Trader himself could barely speak, his voice cut off from his own haggard breathing. “I... can't feel... my wings...” he manged to say.
More laughter erupted from the mare as she finally let the stallion go, his body collapsing back onto the cloud. “That's just a sign of a job well done!”
“I... lost...” Trader groaned aloud, not feeling like he had done anything well. His dejection was only heightened as he heard the approach of the three stallions.
Surprisingly, the air wasn't filled with their heckling laughter. None said a word as he stood there, staring wordlessly at the two. Trader noticed how Dumb-Bell was almost as exhausted as he was, his nostrils continuously flaring from his heavy breathing. But still, he knew the three long enough to expect their teasing remarks over his loss, his impatience showing clearly on his face.
Again, there was only silence, all three of them looking as though they themselves didn't know what to say. As Trader finally managed to bring himself to a standing position, his growing ire was getting the better of him. “So?” he questioned. “Where's the taunting? I've given you reason enough for it this time.”
Hoops and Score merely shook their heads, Dumb-Bell stepping forward as he tried to find the right words to say. “That was... a good race,” he finally said, the sound of swallowed pride behind the words.
“What?” said a stunned Rainbow Dash, sharing a similar expression with Trader.
“You were really fast,” Score remarked.
Hoops nodded in agreement. “Yeah. Who knew Trader the Danger could move like that. Er... I mean...”
Dumb-Bell shot a warning glance to his friend before facing Trader apolitically. “I thought you didn't stand a chance... I was wrong,” he said. “I mean... before... you were a pretty awful flier. Like, one of the worst ever.” Opening his mouth to object, Trader slowly closed it as he realized he had no argument to make. “But... wow, I can't believe you got as good as you did. So... I'm sorry about before...” As he said it, so to did Score and Hoops speak their own apologies.
Trader couldn't help but smile broadly at the display, having never expected to see such an event in his life. Chuckling softly, he wrapped a hoof around the cyan mare next to him and pulled her close. “Well, it's all thanks to Rainbow Dash here,” he said, pointing his free hoof to her.
“I guess we were wrong about that too...” Dumb-Bell said, directing his gaze to the mare. “If you can turn a pegasus like him into a good flier, there's not much you can't do, huh?”
Rainbow Dash developed her own smile as she nodded her head in agreement. “You're right abut that!” she said boastfully. “It took you long enough to figure it out!”
It was a long, slow flight back to Ponyville. With Trader still tired from the heart-pounding race, he and Rainbow Dash soared through the air at a brisk pace, enjoying the scenery around them, as well as the company they were with. Though much of it was spent in relative silence, the cyan mare took time to speak of the race she had witnessed, both praising him for his improved ability as well as giving pointers to do even better.
Eventually, they reached where they were headed, just outside of Ponyville itself where the home of a certain pegasus floated. It was an impressive structure, made of clouds like the buildings of Cloudsdale, at least three stories high and having a decorative rainbow stretching out from the top. Trader couldn't help but marvel at it, noting how vast of a difference it was compared to the humble abodes of the town it was so close to.
“I didn't think a weathermare could afford something like this,” Trader remarked as he looked up at it from the front door, thinking he was in the wrong line of work.
“Actually,” Rainbow Dash replied, “most of it's because of my parents.”
The stallion merely nodded absently toward her, eyes still encompassed by the home. “Well, I'm certainly jealous.”
He was too enamored by his surroundings to not notice how fidgety the mare beside him had gotten, looking ready to say something but stopping herself just before the words came out. “You can... come inside,” she then said sheepishly. “If you want to, I mean.”
Trader regarded her for a brief moment, his gaze quickly being drawn to the sky. It was midday, their time spent in Cloudsdale having taken up more hours than he had thought. Declining the offer with a shake of his head, he added, “I should really get back to the farm. Applejack might have been a bit lenient with you helping me out and everything, but I'm sure we've taken advantage of that for too long. Wouldn't want her to think I'm slacking off.”
Nodding her understanding, Rainbow Dash continued to stand there, having difficulty not showing her nervous expression. Though, it seemed completely lost on the stallion, whose own continued to be a light-hearted smile. “Well...” she murmured, “good job again out there.” With a swing of her hoof, she playfully thwacked against his side, gaining a small bit of a smile at his pained reaction. “Just keep up your training and you should get better everyday. Who knows, you might even be one of the best someday. Not as good as me, of course, but... still good.”
“It's not like the farm is lacking in any physical work, I should be fine. Though, I'll be sure to give my wings a few good flaps when I can too. And, I might just be repeating myself, but thanks again for all the help you gave.” As the cyan mare showed her acceptance of the gratitude, Trader looked ready to take off. But he paused for a moment as he turned back to her, still having something to say. “Also, you should know. You really shouldn't worry too much about not getting into the Wonderbolts right away. Take it from somepony close with them, it's not all about skill, which you clearly have. There's a lot of factors that go into it, like there simply being an opening for one. So don't let it get to you, continue to be as great as you are, and it'll inevitably happen.”
Rainbow Dash's cheeks almost felt sore, her white teeth showing brightly from the large smile she gave. “You just know exactly what to say, don't you?” she said, taking a step toward the stallion.
“Well... half and half, I'd say,” he responded. “I couldn't count the number of times I've said something that got me into trou-” Trader then froze on the spot, surprised as Rainbow Dash suddenly wrapped her forelegs around him and pulled him in close for a warm embrace. Not just being a sudden action, but the shock was even greater due to who was giving it, having never expected it from the tough-as-nails mare.
“Thanks for that.” Stepping back after a brief moment longer, the joyous mare leaned in closer to him again. But it wasn't for a hug this time, her eyes shut as her lips puckered out, ready to feel the stallion's own.
Trader's own eyes flared open in alarm. Breaking away from her, he stumbled back. “R-Rainbow Dash!” he said in a startled gasp. Tripping over his own hooves he fell backward, nearly slipping off of the cloud home to the unforgiving ground below.
A long, tense pause crackled on between the two ponies. Their eyes locked together while a bright red tint developed on the mare's cheeks. “Di... Did I do something wrong?!” she blurted out in a panic, her entire body beginning to shake. “Oh ponyfeathers! I-I'm sorry! I always figured you were supposed to be spontaneous in situations like that! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!” The poor girl looked ready to have a heart attack.
“Whoa, whoa, hold on a second,” Trader managed to say, trying to calm her down before she completely lost it. Rainbow Dash...” The stallion paused abruptly, approaching the question cautiously. “Do you... like me?”
Face seemingly turned to stone, the once proud and strong pegasus was reduced to a bumbling mess as she could barely make eye contact with him. “Well... I... It's not... You're a great guy and all, and you've been really nice to me, more so than you ever needed to be. You seemed to like to listen to me, even when I just talked about myself, and since you liked mares like Spitfire I thought that... maybe you'd...” The cyan-blue of her face was almost completely gone, replaced with a shade of red that matched the stripe of it that ran through her mane.
Trader couldn't help but chuckle slightly at that, hardly seeing himself as one to catch the mare's eye. “Is that it? You must not know that many stallions then.” Judging by the look on the mare's face though, he might not be too wrong. Seeing that, the pegasus sighed to himself before donning a more serious expression. “Rainbow Dash... I'm flattered, really I am, but I can't say I've ever felt the same at any point. You're a beautiful and strong mare who's fun to be around, and I'd probably fall head over hooves for you under different circumstances, but it's just not like that now... I'm sorry.”
With that said, Rainbow Dash seemed to calm down, if only a bit. Now, the weathermare simply stood there, her head low in dejection while only a small sliver of red remained on her flushed cheeks. “Yeah... you're right...” she murmured, understanding the point that he was getting across. “I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that.”
“It's alright,” Trader assured her, smiling softly. “I'm already more than happy with just being good friends. After all, can you really say we'd make a good match? Me huffing along after you with everything we did, unable to keep up.”
Her own smile slowly returned to her as she looked at the stallion. “I guess you wouldn't ever be able to keep up, huh?” Another long, awkward pause came between the two of them, each staying silent. But after a moment of it, Rainbow Dash's features perked up with a look of astonishment. “I get it now! It's because you like somepony else!”
“W-what?”
“That's gotta be it!” the mare exclaimed. “You said it yourself, I'm a catch. Somepony you'd undoubtedly fall for, not that I can blame you. But you aren't because there's already somepony else you like!”
“Now hold on,” Trader said to say, “I didn't say-”
“So who is it?!” she interrupted, not about to let her discovery be stopped. “Do I know her? She's in Ponyville, right? Though... I know you don't know that many mares... Except for...” A loud, lung-bursting gasp erupted from her then, her hoof pointing straight at the pegasus in front of her accusingly. “You like Applejack!”
Looking visibly struck Trader's mouth opened and closed like a gasping fish before a squeaky chirp came out with his first words. “What? N-no! It's not like-”
“It makes so much sense!” Rainbow Dash went on. “With how much you know each other, and the fact that you live there with her! I could totally try and put a good word in for ya, she'd listen to me! Unless... Big Mac's the one you're interested in...”
“What?! No! Rainbow Dash, please listen,” Trader implored her, looking ready to have his own panic attack. Getting the ecstatic mare to calm down for a moment, he managed to let out a steady breath before he looked up at her. “Don't go getting any ideas, it's not like that. Sure, I care for Applejack a lot, about as much as I can. But it's not in that way. She's my closest friend, who I've known longer than anypony else. I'll always be eternally grateful to her and her family for taking me in and letting me help them. They've done more for me than I could have ever imagined.” With a melancholy sigh, he locked eyes with the mare, making certain that what he was saying got across. “I... owe them my life. Though I've never been one to repay my debts, I'm going to make sure I don't fail this time.”