//------------------------------// // Prologue // Story: Magic of Memory // by TangledHeart //------------------------------// "Twilight," Rainbow Dash called, walking into the Golden Oaks Library. "Hey, Twilight!" When she didn't get a response, she went upstairs to the loft. There, she found her friend pouring over a book. Rainbow Dash knew it wouldn't be easy to break her concentration. She looked around, and saw her neatly organized desk. Three inkwells sat perfectly in a row on there. Slyly, RD pushed one aside. Twilight didn't move a muscle. Hmm, She wondered. Usually that works for Applejack. What else can I try? Rainbow looked around the room for something to use to get her friend's attention. At that moment, Spike walked in, carrying a pile of scrolls. Before saying anything, Rainbow plucked one of her feathers, and lightly tickled under Spike's nose. Before he could protest, Spike gave out a mighty sneeze, his fire breath sending the scrolls who-knows-where. "SPIKE?" Twilight turned around. "What just happened?" "Eh," Spike started. "Well, let's just say, Celestia will probably write to you tonight, asking why you sent her a surplus of blank scrolls." "What made you sneeze? I tried to make the library as hypoallergenic as possible." "That would be me," Rainbow confessed. "I tickled his nose so I could get your attention. Sorry." "Well," The young alicorn sighed. "Since they were just blank scrolls, I guess there's no harm done. What do you need, Rainbow?" "Well," Rainbow started. "Since the new Daring Do book won't come out for several more months, and I've read every other one in the series a dozen times, I was wondering if you could suggest something new for me to read in the meantime." "Sure!" Twilight beamed. "Follow me." She led her friend downstairs, to the adventure section. She levitated a certain book once she found it. "Manehattan Mary! A journalist who travels the world to protect its treasures from harm!" "Awesome!" RD gladly took it. "Thanks." "No problem." Her friend smiled. "Anything to nurture the love of reading! Next time, though, would you mind trying to tap me on the shoulder instead of making my dragon sneeze and potentially set a huge fire? This is a tree, after all." "Heh heh," Rainbow grinned sheepishly. "Sure. Hey, what were you reading just now? You seemed pretty intense." "Oh," Twilight kicked the ground a little bit. "Just a... flight manual." "A flight manual?" Rainbow arched an eyebrow. "You mean, a book on... flying?" "Yeah..." It was her turn to be sheepish. "You see, Princess Celestia asked me to take part in the Summer Sun Celebration this year. I'm honored, naturally, but my role includes flying, and you know as well as anypony that I haven't grown accustomed to my wings yet. I'm reading these books to try and learn to fly." "Twi," Her friend smiled. "I know you love books, but flying is not something you can learn by reading. You have to actually practice, like you do magic." "Oh," It was apparent that Twilight had never considered that. "Well, at the moment, I'm too afraid to even flap to get a foot off the ground." "You'll never get flying with that attitude," Rainbow kindly urged. "Tell you what. How about I give you flying lessons up until the Summer Sun Celebration? I can guarantee that I can help you nail anything Celestia will have you do." "You'd do that?" "Course! What are friends for?" She softly punched her friend in the shoulder. "Thanks, Rainbow," Twilight smiled. "When do we start?" "Right now!" Rainbow grabbed Twilight, and zoomed off to her favorite clearing. After they landed, Twilight stumbled a little bit, trying to regain her balance. "Warn a girl next time, please?" "Sorry," Her coach chuckled nervously. "I just got carried away." "You're not the only one." A rimshot played in Twilight's head. "Anyway, what's first?' "First," Rainbow Dash took out a cap and whistle, donning them. "I'd like to let you know something." "Yes?" "Your wingspan is wider than mine," She explained. "I guess it's an alicorn thing. Anyway, you'll be able to get more air under you at one time than I can. Try and take it easy, so I can keep up with you." "Alright," Twilight nodded. "Anything else?" "Nope," Rainbow shook her head. "Just show me a basic flight, so I'll know where we need to get started." "Okay..." Gulping, Twilight flapped as hard as she could, and got a little off the ground. She felt herself getting off balance. Scared, her wings locked up and the little alicorn crashed to the ground. "Oh..." "Don't sweat it," Rainbow encouraged, picking up her friend. "Everyone has a few spills. And, I think I know your problem." "What?" Twilight wondered. "You're flapping too frantically on the take off," She explained. "Your wings get out of sync, and even if you hadn't freaked out, it would have been hard to regain your balance." "Oh," The pupil outstretched her wings. "I was just trying to be fast, like you." "Our worry right now isn't fast," Her coach asserted. "Right now, we want you to be able to fly well at a casual pace. We can work on speed and tricks later." "Okay, so what do you suggest I do first?" "Just take it slow, and try to get your wings beating to a nice, steady rhythm." Twilight closed her eyes and did as she was told, only focusing on moving her wings. "Twi, open your eyes." Taking a look, Twilight gasped. She was a good four feet off the ground! As she took it all in, she noticed that she didn't even have to think about her wings anymore. She could hover effortlessly! "Whoohoo!" She wooped. "Nice work!" Rainbow congratulated her student, joining her in the sky. "Now, ever so slightly, try and pitch yourself forward." Twilight followed her coach's lead. She managed to stay steady pretty well. Soon, the two found that their wings were getting tired, so they landed. "You've made a lot of progress already!" Rainbow beamed. "How about we pick this up in about a week, and make it a regular lesson?" "Sounds like a plan to me!" They hoof bumped to seal the deal.