//------------------------------// // Trouble In Paradise // Story: Never Dream // by Ximer //------------------------------// Baltimare: Filthy Rich watched nervously as Daniel lagged behind in fourth place. Sure, fourth was better than any of the lesser positions, but he was supposed to win, not settle. It made the businesspony nervous as they exited the second turn. "Why isn't he going for the lead?" Filthy Rich asked, leaning over to the stallion that had been responsible for the young racer. "Keep watching him, you'll see in a second." Lean Streak replied, pointing a hoof towards the track. Filthy Rich followed the hoof with his eyes and was shocked to witness Daniel closing the distance between the three leaders. As they entered the fourth turn he was in second place and closing in on first. The stallion in front of him began to speed away, only exhausting himself in the process. Daniel's pace continued to increase, slowing only to exit the final turn. Once he was clear, the race was considered over as he sped past the stallion that had been in front of him. A flash at the finish line, accompanied by a light blue and vibrant green flight trail were testament to Daniel's victory. Filthy Rich let out a sigh of relief as the roar of the crowd rose in volume. "He sure does cut things close." "I'll talk to him about it. For now, enjoy the victory." Lean Streak replied, leaving his seat. Filthy Rich watched the stallion leave until he disappeared into the seemingly endless crowd. He turned his attention back towards the track where he watched as his racer regrouped with the team he had requested. They had appeared to be little more than a ragtag, thrown together mix, but their efforts were clearly displayed today. --- "And another track falls to the Blue Bullet!" Ike cheered, his voice echoing inside the training room of the track. "At this rate I don't think there's a pony out there that can beat us." I added smugly. I didn't flaunt my ego often, but every once in a while it felt good to let it air out. "That's the kind of talk that leads to accidents and mistakes." Lean Streak snorted, taking us by surprise. "He won't get beat." Star Sprint said proudly. "I mean it, you shouldn't stall like you did today. It was fine during the first turn to gauge how fast they could move, but after the second turn, you should have finished it. You're going to make a mistake trying to look cool." Lean Streak said, ignoring the colt. "I'm not trying to look cool, honest. No shenanigans out on the track at all." I replied defensively. "Yeah, nothing but light hearted, fun shenanigans, not the serious, game breaking stuff. Those types of shenanigans don't occur on the track" Ike said. "Well, they might if Discord was there, but his shenanigans are twisted...so that would make them not shenanigans?" I looked to Ike for confirmation of my theory. "Evil shenanigans!" Star Sprint exclaimed. "I swear to Celestia, the next stallion that says shenanigans is gonna get hit in the head with a horse shoe!" Lean Streak growled. We fell silent, knowing full well Lean Streak had a habit of keeping his promises. Sure, the negative ones mostly involved extra drills or workout routines, but it was better not to tempt fate. Then again, Ike wasn't the brightest crayon in the box sometimes. "Hey Mike, what's that restaurant we went to down in Fillydelphia? The one that had all the goofy stuff on the walls, and the garlic bread sticks?" Ike called to his brother. "You mean Shenanigans?" Mike asked, poking his head around the corner. The expression on Lean Streak's face as we both offered him horse shoes from the training room was priceless. Star Sprint was unable to keep his laughter contained, and broke down into a giggling fit. It was good to have everypony back together again. It had taken a bit of convincing to get Lean Streak to come to Ponyville, but once he agreed things started to look up again. I felt invincible, like nothing could stand in my way anymore. --- "Well, what do you think?" Rarity asked, watching Isabella's expression shift from its usual bored status to one of awestruck wonder. "Rarity, it's...." Isabella stammered. "Beautiful." Fluttershy finished for her. The dress Rarity had been working on was finally finished. It had the appearance of an older style dress while still fitting Isabella’s form perfectly. The dress was her most unique piece to date, simply because of the body type. Her other friend’s dresses were special of course, but they had familiar, common body types. "I'll admit a few things were touch and go at first, but I really do think red shows up on you nicely." Rarity giggled as Isabella felt of the fabric. "It's amazing Rarity. You're coming with us, right? I'd hate for the master mind of this dress not get to see it in action." Isabella said. "I wouldn't miss it for the world, especially the day after. Supposedly that's when Canterlot's race is to be held. I can hardly wait to see what your brother can do. Putting a few cocky upper crust in their place." Rarity mused. "We might have to hold Rainbow Dash down. She'll probably want to be a self-insert in the races." Fluttershy said. "That wouldn't surprise me at all." Isabella chuckled halfheartedly, her smile beginning to falter. "What's wrong Isabella?" Rarity asked. "Just nervous about moving. I haven't told Daniel yet, but I think it's past time I got my own place. He' has Cloudchaser to think about now, and I feel like a third wheel there." Isabella sighed. "You know he would never ask you to just leave." Fluttershy said. "Which is why I have to do it myself. He's too dense and nice for his own good sometimes," Isabella huffed. "Seriously, if it were the other way around we would have been having a few words." "Speaking of, do you have somepony to go with you?" Rarity asked. "Uh, you guys?" Isabella replied. "No, no darling, I meant of the opposite gender." Rarity said, making Fluttershy blush. "Yeah....about that, I'm not in to the whole....interspecies thing." Isabella averted her gaze from the two mares. "O-oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to press you." Rarity flushed with embarrassment. "It's cool, I guess that's the other reason I want to move out. I don't want to become bitter towards my brother for finally finding happiness in the world. God knows he wasn't the popular kid back home." Isabella crossed her arms in reflection. Truth be told, she had given him more than a little hell for falling in love with Cloudchaser, sibling teasing of course, but she’d never confess to actually being jealous of him. The more devious part of her mind picked up on her jealousy and ran with those thoughts, producing more than few scenarios that made her blush. She didn’t really want to have that kind of connection with one of these pastel colored ponies….did she? --- The sun was starting to set over the horizon as the train moved along towards Canterlot. The return trip to Ponyville wouldn’t be happening until after the Gala. I was grateful for the day of rest though, if the only exhausting activity I did the following night involved mingling with crowds then who was I to complain? I saw Lean Streak stretched out across one of the seats of our car. His hat was pulled down over his eyes, blocking out the sun. Initially Lean Streak’s gruff personality had reminded me of my father, in a way he kind of filled that roll here in Equestria. He was always pushing me to do better, even if he appeared to be cold on the outside he wouldn’t have wasted his time if he thought I couldn’t do it. “You gonna stare, or sit and speak your mind?” I heard him say. “Just thought I’d apologize, since I gave you a hard time today.” I said, jumping in the seat next to him. “Heh, just don’t let the bug bite you.” Lean Streak chuckled. “Bug?” I cocked an eyebrow at him. “Yeah, the fame bug. Nopony stays a rookie forever, you’re on the right track to being a crowd favorite before long. That’s when the bug will come, barely noticeable at first, but it slowly eats away who you are.” Lean Streak replied, lifting his hat. “Did that happen to you?” I asked. “….yes, yes it did.” Lean Streak confessed. We both sat in silence for a while, Lean Streak hesitant to continue, while I anxiously waited for him to do so. I had never thought that he would have gone through that sort of trouble; he had rock solid determination and will power. The thought of him giving into fame’s allure was hard to process. “I was young like you, love of my life, wealth and fame all at my hooves. Before I knew it I had a following and felt like nothing could stop me. Then one night me and my wife got into an argument. I had been spending more and more time on the job, and she was bringing this up before the biggest race of my life.” Lean Streak sat up in his seat as he spoke. “What happened next?” I asked. “She left that night, so did I for the race….I lost. When I got home the next day….she….” Lean Streak tried to finish, and for a split second I thought for sure I saw the beginnings of a tear in the corner of his eye, before being blinked away. “When you see her again, you tell that pretty mare how much you love her….you hear me?” Lean Streak ordered, his voice struggling slightly to hold its authoritative tone. “Yes sir.” I replied. “Good, now we’ve just got to worry about getting Star Sprint home. I’m sure his pop’s worried sick about him.” Lean Streak nodded, before pulling his hat back over his eyes, our moment coming to an abrupt end. --- The roar of the crowd was deafening as Thunderlane took his position the Tall Tale track. A majority of the population were pegasi, the second largest concentration of the tribe in Equestria. The structures were massive, even in comparison to Las Pegasus’. He knew that the cheers weren’t truly meant for him, but for Bold Wind. He was ranked number one, and was here in the belief that he could sweep the competition for easy points towards the world championship. This was something the former Wonderbolt Cadet was happy to disprove. Daniel…you’re old news. Thunderlane thought to himself He bolted from the finish line with the other racers. Caution was tossed to the wind as he quickly matched his pace with Bold Wind’s. The top ranked racer seemed surprised by such a rash move from a rookie, but paid it no mind and sped up, only to find Thunderlane keeping up with him. Bold Wind narrowed his eyes and willed his wings to propel him through the air faster. This only made Thunderlane grin as they entered the second turn. The other racers were already lagging behind; unconditioned, or unwilling to try and keep up with the two speed demons. Thunderlane wasn’t the pushover Bold Wind pegged him for. He had been trained by some of the best fliers in Equestria, and it was showing now as they neared the halfway point. He was no Rainbow Dash, but he didn’t need to be to keep up with this stallion that hailed himself as the best on the track. “Time for your wake up call, old timer!” Thunderlane shouted over the crowd, pressing Bold Wind into an even faster pace, a pace that was becoming difficult to keep. Thunderlane could feel the strain on his body, but he didn’t care, all that was on his mind was out doing the stallion next to him. His mind briefly wandered from the track, to Ponyville. Where his friends were, the ones he still considered his friends anyways. He had admittedly distanced himself from them, but they hadn’t shown any malice at the party. No, only the friends of that human were cause for concern. The thought of him brought back the dreaded moment that sparked this chain of events in his mind’s eye. Thunderlane snarled and flew past Bold Wind as the exited the fourth turn, leaving him behind. Not even the thunderous roar of the crowd was enough to ease his mental torment of reliving his mistake, one he would never confess. With a flash of light, rank one belonged to him, unofficially of course. Thunderlane still had to make it to the championship to truly be crowned the new king of the track....yes, he liked the sound of that. Cloudchaser would leave that loser for sure once she saw who was superior. Bonds were strong, but nothing was unbreakable. --- Canterlot was amazing at night, especially when it was shared with a few of your friends. With Star Sprint home once more, we were free to party it up a bit. I had never been a drinker on Earth, but here in Equestria that all changed once I learned about one of the perks to being stuck walking on all fours. "Nothing too heavy for this one here." Ike chuckled, gesturing towards me. "Hey, you swore you'd never bring that up in public!" I snorted. "Oh lighten up a bit, it's not like anypony in Canterlot knows about your-" I silence Mike with a hoof before he could continue to tell the humiliating drinking experience I had in Ponyville. We had shared stories on the way to last week's race. While I wasn't in short supply of life experiences in Equestria, the train ride conversation had continued longer than I had predicted it would, and I eventually told them about that night....what I remembered of it anyways. "Cider, please." I requested. "Weeeak." Mike taunted. I rolled my eyes as the bartender took the twin's orders. I had learned my lesson, even if the spell had been reversed I didn't want to take any chances and wake up puking my guts out again, tripping over myself, and nearly splitting my head open on the sink mid change. That was probably the worst part. "Hey, here's to another win." Ike said, holding up his mug. "To victory!" we cheered in unison, clanking our mugs together, before gulping down our drinks as fast as we could. "So, the stories are true." I heard an oddly familiar voice from behind me. "Can't be." I mumbled turning around on the bar stool. "Been a while, Daniel. Or do you prefer Blue Bullet now?" Noctra asked, flashing me a toothy grin. The bat pony had on sleek silver armor, a nice contrast to the gold the soldiers of the day guard wore. Her coat was a bit brighter than when I had previously met her, and her eyes had the spark of renewed vigor and purpose. "Noctra!" I exclaimed, zooming towards her, catching her off guard in a hug. "Heh, I take it you're happy to see an old bat like me." the night mare mused, returning the hug. "You're in armor...how did you-" I started to address the elephant in the room. "It's a long story, but after the way you guys helped me I realized sitting on my flanks moping about life wasn't cutting it. I knew I needed to help ponies. So I had my case petitioned....and with a little help from a certain princess in Ponyville, here I am." Noctra puffed her chest out proudly. "So you had everything cleared?" I asked in disbelief. "That took a bit of work, and I'm kind of on a probationary contract deal right now. I can't go around being my old batty self, if you catch my drift." Noctra replied, scuffing the floor with her hoof. "Well, it's great to see you again. Do you have time to have a drink or two?" I offered. "Maybe later, I'm actually here to fetch you." Notcra keed in what had to be the bat pony equivalent of a laugh. "Him? What'd he do, look at a damn noble wrong?" Mike asked. "I'm just following orders." Noctra shrugged. "Fine, just don't break his wings. We need those." Ike laughed. "I'll try not to, come on, Bullet." Noctra keed at the name I had been signed under. I really wished Filthy Rich could have changed it. I followed the bat pony out of the bar; Noctra certainly seemed to be in high spirits. The last time we had crossed paths, things had been a bit confrontational, and I was still curious as to the finer details of how she was back in the army. “So how’s the runt and dragon?” Noctra asked leaping into the air, her wings flapping at a much faster rate than a pegasus’ to stay airborne. “They’re okay, Scootaloo is getting along well. Spike hasn’t changed much, still the same well-mannered dragon he has been.” I replied joining her in the air. “Good…so who is she?” Noctra grinned her fanged grin again. “Who’s who?” I played the question off with a shrug. “Don’t play dumb, I can smell her. I’m kind of curious how you ended up with a set of wings and cutie mark as well…among other things.” Noctra teased. “Magic mishap is the simple version,” I said, Noctra nodded in understanding, not pressing the issue further. “Her name’s Cloudchaser by the way.” “Cloudchaser….Cloudchaser….” Noctra stuck her tongue out in thought. “Aha! I remember seeing that name on the guest list in Luna’s room!” “Wait, really?” I asked as we flew towards the castle. “Yep, she’s one of those fancy smancy Wonderbolt Cadets. They’re going to have their cadets preform for the opening act tomorrow. So, you fell for a Wonderbolt hopeful huh?” Noctra flew close enough to nudge me playfully. “Yeah, she’s really special.” I blushed. “It’s kind of funny, you being a racer and falling in love with a Wonderbolt. I bet your foals will be speedy little things.” Noctra giggled. “Yeah…I’m sure they would be…” my response trailed off. “What’s wrong?” Noctra asked, her bright golden eyes slowly filling with concern. “Noctra, can I ask your opinion on something, and promise you won’t tell anypony?” I sighed. “Who am I going to tell, the other guard ponies? Princess Luna?” Noctra chuckled. “Good point. So, if you had to adopt to have a foal how would you break the news to your special somepony?” I asked. Noctra’s face conveyed confusion, but only for a few seconds before she caught on to what I was getting at. “Oooh….umm, well, that’s a tough one. I would think the time and place would be important when you do talk to her about it.” “Yeah, I’m just nervous.” I sighed. “Don’t be, she’d be crazy to say no. You’ve got the right heart for the job.” Noctra said. “Noctra, who’d you bring this time?” I heard a masculine voice call out. I didn’t realize we had reached our destination so soon. I really needed to learn to watch my surroundings when I was talking; it was going to get me in trouble one of these days if I didn’t. “It’s the pegasus Luna requested.” Noctra replied, as we touched down on the landing balcony. “Hey….I know you.” I said looking at the guard closely. “Y-you do?” the bat pony cocked an eyebrow at me. “Yeah, you’re the one that helped me with the um,” I looked around to make sure a particular white coated prince wasn’t hanging about. “Special mission.” “Special mission….hey, Noctra why didn’t you tell me you were bringing him?!” the guard asked excitedly. “I did, you weren’t listening.” Noctra deadpanned. “He’s clear, go on before I get an ear full about how I held up Luna’s guest.” The guard waved us on dismissively. This was why I liked the night guard better. If it was Celestia’s guards on duty, they would have gone through every single line in the book about what to do with me for not having some sort of written invitation, or something like that. One would think the castle would be quiet at night, not so, especially the day before the Gala. The hallways were filled with scrambling ponies trying to ensure last minute adjustments were accounted for, and that previous preparations were still in order. Raven was nowhere to be found for once, which was odd; the unicorn was normally in the center of the organized chaos. “No, no, no, they requested red, ugh!” the familiar voice of Raven carried above the ruckus in the castle. “Ah, there she is.” I mused as I followed Noctra beyond the unfolding mayhem. The throne room was open, surprisingly enough. A few bat pony maids quietly tended to the area, occasionally chatting with one another. It seemed that any court business had been postponed until after the Grand Galloping Gala. No doubt I’d be running into a few of the undesirables in Canterlot’s elite crowd tomorrow. I liked this side of the castle; it was quiet, and for the most part undisturbed. The hallways were graced with the occasional hoof fall of soldiers, and our own as we neared our destination, Luna’s chambers. I felt nervous about this meeting, why would Luna want to meet like this instead of our normal method? “Princess Luna? I brought the pony you requested.” Noctra called out a she knocked on one of the ebony double doors. “You may enter.” the night monarch replied. Luna’s room was mostly blue, it was kind of bland if not for the bookshelves and telescope, until I noticed the ceiling. I mistook the Lunar princess for lacking a room with a roof at first glance. The stars, and other cosmic bodies looked so vivid and real. “Whoa….” I said, spinning in place without realizing it as I took in the full beauty of the master piece. “Does your kind always find ceilings so alluring?” Luna asked. “Only the painted ones, your majesty." I replied with a bow. Thank you Noctra, you’re dismissed.” Luna said, granting the bat pony her leave. With a bow, and small wave goodbye, Noctra left me alone with the princess. I felt my wings begin to fidget as I became more and more unsure of what to do now. The one on one conversations we had shared had mostly been through dreams, and those I only recalled bits and pieces of sometimes. “Be at peace, for we have summoned thee with no ill will in mind.” Luna smiled. “What’s this about?” I asked. “We simply wished to converse with you before the festivities….something troubles you?” Luna tilted her head. “It’s nothing your majesty.” I replied. “You are a far worse liar than our sister. What burdens your mind?” Luna pressed, motioning with her head to join her at a small table. “Just worried how Cloudchaser would take the news of adopting Scootaloo, if she would accept her.” I knew she would find out one way or another, she’d simply wait until I was asleep and take a peak in my mind. “Is this adoption of young Scootaloo set in stone?” Luna asked. “Well….not exactly, but-“ “Then perhaps you should take advantage of this, sooner would be better than later,” Luna said taking a seat at the table, I did the same. “I guess, it still doesn’t change the fact she might say no….and then I’m back to square one. Breaking hearts and ruining lives.” I sighed. Luna’s horn was suddenly surrounded by a dark blue aura. I looked around, expecting something odd or extraordinary to happen. A simple box floated down from the top of one of the book shelves, the lid sliding off as it neared the table we were seated at. It was a checkered board, colored white and cobalt blue that unfolded onto the table. Multiple pieces that looked awfully familiar began to take their respective places on the board, each one engulfed in a similar aura as the one surrounding Luna’s horn. When everything was finally situated the aura faded to reveal a chess board, the Equestrian equivalent anyways. “Perhaps you would enjoy a game?” Luna offered. “I didn’t know you played.” I replied, examining one of the pieces. “Our sister plays when she can, but only on the rare occasion.” Luna’s ears fell as she spoke. “Sure, I could use something to take my mind off things.” I shrugged. “Then prepare thy self for a most harsh tail lashing!” Luna cheered. “I believe you mean ass kicking.” I chuckled as the alicorn moved her piece first, a pawn. I moved my left knight, no real strategy in mind aside from being reactive to the player who had a few centuries worth of experience over me. Her bishop advanced, charging forward along the diagonal path. Had I known she was setting up for a Scholar's Mate, I would have been more cautious. I snorted in frustration upon my unsurprisingly swift defeat. "Shall we go again?" Luna asked bringing her hooves together hopefully. I shrugged, much to Luna's delight as the pieces magically reset themselves under the influence of her magic. I watched her movements carefully, she wasn't foolish enough to use the same trick twice in a row, but being beaten again didn't help my self-esteem. "Another?" Luna looked at me with puppy dog eyes, she must have been serious about not getting to play often. "Uh, sure....hey Luna, if you don't mind me asking, have you ever played with the guards before? I mean, you really seem to like it." I spoke as the pieces rearranged themselves once more. "They always grant us victory through some perceived notion that we cannot take the loss of a simple board game. Celestia actually provides a challenge...that's not to say thou have not." Luna added when she noticed my slightly hurt expression. "Eh, I'm rusty anyways." I replied as the game started anew. --- "Daniel, you up yet?" a muffled voice asked. My ear twitched at the disturbance, as if flicking at it would drive the noise away like some annoying insect. Unfortunately, Mike couldn't see my ear twitching from the other side of the door, or the slowly growing irritable expression on my muzzle. "Thirty games...." I mumbled. "How the hell did she convince me to play thirty games?" It wasn't that I didn't enjoy the personal time I got to spend with Luna, it was that she didn't require rest the same way I did, so thirty games, that she drug out purposefully a time or two, was nothing to her. Staying up until two in the morning after an already tiring day wasn't the smartest choice I had made. "Did they beat you or something?" Mike asked. "Something like that...." I replied, loud enough for the earth pony to hear me. “You’re going to miss your marefriend’s show if you don’t get your arse up.” Mike said. My eyes snapped open, exhaustion leaving my body as if it had never been present to begin with. I had almost forgotten about Cloudchaser’s opening act. I flung the bed sheets off of me with a quick flex of my wings before dashing towards the shower. Mike was laughing loud enough for me to hear him through the door before the sound of running water muffled his laughter. Washing the wings was probably the longest part of pegasus hygiene, it was also the most satisfying, and brought out the inner kid in me. Step one was getting the soap onto the wings. This was made a little easier with a bit of pressure, in the form of a bite applied to the bottle, causing it to squirt the gel onto the feathered limbs. The shower did most of the work, the water serving to carry the suds in between the feathers, encouraged by a few light flaps. With nothing better to do while waiting for the water to carry the soap out of my wings, I busied myself with my coat, mane, and tail. With everything checked off the check list, and the showerhead turned off, it was time for the final step. This involved slinging water in every direction imaginable with the combined effort of flapping my wings as fast as I could while shaking the water off. I looked around the bathroom, quite pleased with my accomplishment as water droplets fell from the ceiling. It had been embarrassing asking Rainbow Dash the first time how to go about grooming, but her method seemed to work. I hated the brushing part though, I had never liked combs much when I was human either; a hand worked just a good. After brushing it was the activity I hated doing by myself, preening. I looked up at the clock before I started, a smirk crossing my muzzle when it confirmed I had enough time. Preening was time consuming, but worth the effort involved. It was special when Cloudchaser was here and we would preen each other. It was intimate in its own way, and it made the process a lot easier. --- “Why can’t I go?” Star Sprint whined. “Because you have school, I’m still upset that you skipped to go to Baltimare.” Track Pace replied as he escorted his son to school. Star Sprint had snuck onboard with the others, under the assumption that his first day at his new school wasn’t until next week. Unfortunately that was not the case, and it resulted in a sore flank along with his scooter being taken away as punishment. “Now behave for your mother while I’m gone.” Track Pace said as they neared the school. “I know it’s not easy being the new colt, but things will work out, trust me.” Star Sprint didn’t reply, as he drug his hooves up the steps to the school house door. Classes had already started, given the time and lack of other foals outside the school, playing as they had back in Las Pegasus. Star Sprint sighed before knocking on the door, turning back to see his father walking away. Before he could contemplate on a way to make it past him and to the station without his knowledge the door opened to a cerise mare earth pony with grayish harlequin colored eyes. "Well hello there, you must be Star Sprint." the mare said with a bright smile. "Y-yes m'am." the colt replied. "My name is Cheerilee, class just started so you couldn't have arrived at a better time." Cheerilee said, causing Star Sprint to relax a little as she ushered him in. At least he wasn't as late as he thought. Star Sprint followed his new teacher into a moderately sized classroom, feeling the eyes of every foal fall on him without having to avert his gaze from the floor. Taking in a deep breath, he confronted his fear lifting his head to face the class as Cheerilee gave a brief introduction. "Class, this is Star Sprint, he recently moved from Las Pegasus so please try and make him feel welcome." Cheerilee said. Nervously, the colt walked past his new classmates, keenly aware of the stray glances and whispers as he walked by. The only free desk was behind....her. Star Sprint's eyes widened and time seemed to slow down as his focus suddenly shifted to taking in every detail, from hey slightly messy purple mane, to her stunning tangerine coat. It was all brought together with a focused expression as she wrote something down in her text book occasionally. Time resumed it's normal speed as the floor rushed up to meet Star Sprint's muzzle. He had been a bit too absorbed in watching her to notice he was tripping over his own legs, earning him a round of laughter from the class, until Cheerilee stepped in. Scootaloo had been busy tarnishing another book, the third one this week, by leaving small drawings of rainbows or lightning bolts next to all the words that looked cool. Hearing the roar of laughter around her caused her to look up from her busy work, noticing the colt for the first time. Huh, weird...hope he's okay. Scootaloo shrugged before going back to her task once the colt had taken his seat behind her. --- Cloudchaser took in a deep breath, her eyes closed as she tried to focus on anything but the growing crowd. This was one of the Wonderbolt's biggest shows, and this year they had decided to show of their Cadet talent, something they had been pouring most of their time and energy into. She was mentally kicking herself at the moment, doing her best to try and mask the anxiety of their first major performance. She had done a good job at keeping her cool so far, but as the seconds ticked down it was becoming clear that she was a bit rattled. She wasn't alone, the entire team was a bit nervous, taking on one of the most popular events by themselves, except Rainbow Dash, it took something special to faze that mare. “You okay Cloudchaser?” Rainbow Dash asked. “Yeah, just nervous.” Cloudchaser replied. Rainbow Dash thought for a minute before an idea entered her head. “Just look for you know who, I betcha he’s out there.” This did little to chase away the butterflies that had stirred within her stomach. If her coltfriend was watching that would make screwing up even more embarrassing. She felt her forelegs knock together, snapping her out of the fear induced trance. “Now, fillies and gentle colts, please make some noise for the rising talent of the Wonderbolt Acadamy!” “This is it! On my mark!” Rainbow Dash shouted, pulling her goggles over her eyes. The other members of her team did the same, unfurling their wings in preparation for takeoff. Letting out a held breath, Cloudchaser put on a mask of determination. “ Three…two…one, show time!” Rainbow Dash shouted, taking off just outside the stadium. The other pegasi followed the cyan mare’s lead, knowing they were under the watchful eye of Spitfire today. Their appearance was met with roaring cheers and stomps as the group went into their first stunt, nothing overly complex, until one took into account the timing and coordination from everypony involved in making it seamless. Cloudchaser quickly scanned the crowd, looking for any sign of her blue stallion. Her attention didn’t remain on the crowd for long as their team began to climb into the sky, preparing for the dive that followed. The team folded their wings in, resulting in a sudden stop as they focused all of their weight behind them, ensuring that they began to descend towards the ground head first. Cloudchaser smiled as she heard the crowd grow quiet, this one always put them on the edge of their seat. As they neared the ground, the team opened their wings and spread out across the crowd in a spiral formation, flying only a few feet above the seated spectators. A few colts and fillies that were standing on the backs of their parents, eyes wide with wonder and mouths upturned in broad smiles. Cloudchaser smiled a little as she flew by them, her eyes still scanning the crowd for-HIM! Her heart leapt in her chest when she saw him among the multitude of faces. Those big brown eyes stood out from the more colorful variants of those around him. Spotting him filled her with a strange confidence. The rest of the show Cloudchaser's smile remained on her muzzle, brighter than it had been previously. She had been worried recently, his new job and friends had been coming between them from time to time as of late, but it meant the world to her that he had shown up. As their performance came to a close, the mare was the first one to touch down and remove her goggles, much to the surprise of Rainbow Dash. She didn't acknowledge her own accomplishment, more concerned about finding her coltfriend amongst the crowd. "Nice show, Cadet." her ears twitched at that voice. "Glad you enjoyed it; autographs are five bits, good sir." Cloudchaser lifted her nose in the air as she had seen a few of Canterlot's elite do to her before. "Well that sucks, I don't have any spare bits on me," Daniel replied walking towards the mare, stealing a quick kiss before she could say anything. "Will that cover it?" "Show up at the Gala with me tonight and we'll call it even." Cloudchaser said closing what little distance was left between them. "Dancing, drinking, and causing as much mayhem for the upper class as I can? Sounds fair." Daniel smirked. "There's all of that, and sometimes I just like to show you off." Cloudchaser booped him on the nose. A throat cough from Rainbow Dash interrupted her coltfriend before he could speak what was on his mind. Cloudchaser's cheeks flushed with embarrassment with the realization her teammates had been watching their interaction. An unsettling silence settled over the group as a result. "Bulk buddy, we've gotta talk about laying of the roids." Daniel said, breaking the silence. --- "Remember to behave yourself." Cloudchaser said. "I will, I promise. Besides, I've got the bros looking out for me, what's the worst that could happen?" I asked rhetorically. My gaze lingered on Cloudchaser a little longer than I intended. She had on a beautiful dark blue dress tonight. Sunrise had tried to talk her into changing up her mane and tail style for tonight, but that accomplished little. "Seeing as how chaos has a bad habit of following you? That's up for debate." Cloudchaser replied. "Eh, well....I'm going to have to give you that one." I mumbled. "And absolutely no drinking, you know what happens when you try. I don't want you falling asleep before we get the chance to dance....love you." Cloudchaser whispered in my ear as we approached the gate. "Uh huh, I can feel it." I rolled my eyes teasingly, receiving a playful jab to the side. "Shut up," Cloudchaser punched me lightly in the shoulder. "You big doofus." Two guards were at the gate, the day shift this time. The sun was still in the sky, but slowly beginning to set, casting a warm orange glow over the land. The stern expressions of the guard were off putting, and made me a bit uncomfortable. "Your tickets?" one of the guards asked robotically. Both Cloudchaser and I pulled out our respective tickets. I found this practice a bit odd on the princesses part. Why go through all the effort of writing out invitations if you were going to make the requirement to gain entrance a silly little ticket? Upon seeing the two small slips of gold paper, the guards side stepped wordlessly. It was as if their internals were replaced with clunky clockwork, and their AI was a bit primitive based on their attitude and behavior. I could already hear the band playing as we entered the main entrance hallway that led to the lobby. There were already a number of ponies inside, a few cast a quick glance our way before going back to whatever conversation they were having. "I feel really out of place here." I whispered to my date. "Daniel, a rising star racer, is terrified of a few harmless Canterlot snobs." Cloudchaser teased. "These ponies are the type to plant a political knife in your chest, smiling at you while they do it." I mumbled. "Harsh." Cloudchaser said. --- "This is gonna be good!” A bat pony guard whispered excitedly as they snuck into the room that was reserved for the racers to meet before the festivities tomorrow. "With this bad boy, things are sure to get a little spiced up." his cohort snickered as they approached the kegs of hard cider that were to be used for refreshments, pulling out a little blue bag. "You're sure this will just make their stomachs upset Pinkie? As funny as this is, I'd hate to do something really bad to them." the first one said pulling off the lid. "Don't you worry your pretty little head. Everything will turn out juuuust fine, I promise. We'll all get a laugh out of it later." the other giggled as he sprinkled a bit of the bags content into the first keg. "What was the name of that stuff anyways?" he asked his friend, putting the lid back on. "Blue Moon Root." the second replied nonchalantly. The first guard didn't say anything, but something about that name sounded familiar. Still, if his friend was sure nothing bad would happen, who was he to question him? --- "Good evening Daniel, Cloudchaser." Twilight said, accompanied by a bubble gum pink alicorn. Cadance, if I remembered correctly. "Hey T-Princess Twilight." I said with a bow. "You don't have to do that you know." Twilight blushed. "Given the atmosphere, I think it's expected tonight if I don't want to be thrown in the dungeon." I started to chuckle until a jab to the rib silenced me. "Be nice." Cloudchaser scolded, earning a complacent nod from me. "So I take it he's your date for the evening?" Cadance asked, smiling at Cloudchaser. "O-oh, um, yes princess." Cloudchaser replied. "You two have something truly unique, I wish you could see what I see." Cadance said, her eyes dancing from me to Cloudchaser. "What do you see?" the question flew from my mouth before I could really consider if it was worth asking or not, too late now. "Well, my special talent is love. The bond you feel with Cloudchaser is one of faith, you can't see it, but you know it's there," Cadance explained. "But I can see it as easily as you can see me and Twilight." "So...it's actual magic?" I asked to which Cadance nodded her head happily. "Hey, Daniel! You gonna spend all night with the la-oh, sorry your majesties!" Ike stammered bowing. "It's fine Ike, I guess you came to steal Daniel away from us?" Twilight asked. "Uh, yeah-I mean yes ma'am!" Ike corrected himself. "I'll be back in a bit babe." I said nuzzling Cloudchaser briefly. "You better be, I don't want to be alone on the dance floor." Cloudchaser smiled, her cheeks reddening a bit from Cadance's reaction to our display. Reluctantly, I followed Ike, the bubble gum mare's words circulating through my mind as I did. I had been under the assumption that this "bond" was an instinct thing, but it was an actual magical force that had brought Cloudchaser and I together. A pony probably wouldn't think past this, but I wasn't a pony by birth, so how did that magic work on me? I briefly wondered what might happen if I had never come to Equestria, would Cloudchaser have just been alone for the rest of her life? Was it really destiny that brought us together? "-you're doing it again." Ike deadpanned. "Doing what?" I asked, my train of thought derailed. "Spacing out, stop that...it's weird." Ike said. "You're weird." I snorted. "Says the pony from another world." Ike rolled his eyes with a laugh. The earth pony pushed on two large double doors, revealing a large room with ponies of all tribes, dressed in expensive looking suits. I didn't mind suits, not that I had much choice with the one I was wearing since Cloudchaser had picked this one out for me. She made the case that I was ignorant to pony fashion, and matching one's coat color to a suit was important. "I was wondering when our paths would cross again." a strong, deep voice said. "Hey Whitefire, I guess you're going to be there tomorrow?" I asked, bumping his extended hoof. "I fear our rematch will have to wait. I'm simply stopping by tonight out of obligation." Whitefire shook his head. "Oh, I hope it's nothing bad." I said. "Well, you had a hoof in it," Whitefire smirked. He was a very hard stallion to read, for being almost twice my size and build, he was extremely laid back. "I lost a few points when I came in second to you. I trust you're going for the crown, I'd be disappointed if I didn't see you there." "The crown?" I tilted my head slightly. "It's the championship race, no rookie's ever won it, not to trample on your dreams or anything." Ike said. "If I could have everypony's attention please, I'd like to get this little side social underway!" announced one of the sponsors. "Come on, let's grab a drink before the windbags start the lecture." Ike chuckled. "I can't guys, I promised Cloudchaser I wouldn't tonight." I said, making both of them snicker. I sighed, my eyes sweeping across the room to find that almost every stallion had a cup of what appeared to be cider. Even...him, Thunderlane was here, grinning smuggly at me from across the room. I fought back the urge to do something childish or stupid, until he turned around and scraped his back hooves against the floor towards me before walking away. "....gonna need two, it's going to be a long night." I mumbled. "That's more like it!" Ike cheered as we made our way towards the kegs. I downed my first cup of cider rather quickly, with the false hope that breaking my promise quicker would somehow lessen the guilt. As long as I made it out to the dance she couldn't get too mad at me, right? As I refilled my cup, I couldn't help but notice a strange heat spreading through me. Alcohol was supposed to do this yes, but not like this. I had the urge to spread my wings and fly through the room, but that didn't make sense. I shook my head, trying to dismiss the strange feeling, but it was pointless. Eh, it's probably nothing...but maybe I should stop now. I thought to myself. "Funny seeing you here." Thunderlane said as he approached me from the side. Caution to the wind then! --- Blueblood anxiously scanned the room for any sign of that monster. The guard had mentioned something about his sister being invited. After seeing such a grotesque freak, he questioned his ability to tolerate the sight of his kin. He spotted a familiar white unicorn, her trademark purple mane giving away her identity. Rarity had taken a liking to him for a short while, but then she turned sour as the evening progressed. His actions were deliberate of course, how could he be seen with a low class mare such as her. She was accompanied by two more mares, a pink earth pony, and a yellow pegasus that kept her head down slightly. Both were equally as undeserving to be here, if not for being associated to the elements of harmony, or Princess Twilight Sparkle. A forth figure followed behind them, one that made Blueblood shiver with fear before....pausing with uncertainty. The creature clearly had the same frame as that monster, but this one seemed, softer, somehow. Perhaps....I was a bit quick to cast judgement on this one. Blueblood thought to himself, mustering up his courage and walking towards whom he assumed was...was....Issabeela? He couldn't recall the exact spelling, but it seemed close enough. The human was still with the three mares from before, each one casting a rather negative look towards the prince. No matter, what did their opinion amount to anyways? "Good evening ladies." Blueblood said. "Blueblood..." the three mares replied in unison, while their human companion remained silent, observing them. Blueblood felt his temper flare briefly at not being addressed with his title, but thought better than to show his bad side to this human. They had probably already sullied his good name. "I believe your name is Issabeela?" Blueblood asked, focusing on the human. "Close, it's Isabella, actually." Isabella replied. "Well now that introductions are out of the way, we really should be moving along. Multiple ponies to see before the night is over." Rarity said quickly. "I'm sure the human wouldn't mind chatting with a prince for a little while before exploring the rest of the Gala, would you?" Blueblood raised his eye brow at Isabella, making her laugh. "Okay, look Blueblood, they told me about you already. You talk a good game, and you might appear sweet, but you're really sour beneath all the flare, and I've dealt with enough of that back in my world." Isabella replied, shutting him down. Blueblood's mouth fell open at Isabella's declaration. These mares had already spread such horrendously falsified rumors about him. It was inconceivable! The nerve of these poppers! "Grow up a little, and maybe we can have that chat you wanted. Let's go girls." Isabella said waving goodbye to the prince. Blueblood finally found the will to shut his own mouth. A part of him wanted to scream in rage, but the more Isabella's words repeated themselves in his mind, the more his urge to shout declined, until he was left with only the calm, placid thoughts and reflections on being snubbed. --- Isabella felt a bit sorry for Blueblood, but he brought it upon himself. If he hadn’t been rude to her friend, she might have listened to what he had to say. This was her first Gala in Equestria, and she didn’t want to have the memory tarnished by some smooth talking, girly prince. She wasn’t oblivious to the fact that she was turning heads, like Rarity said she would. Isabella was still unable to determine if they were impressed, or if they were still afraid and secretly disgusted at her for being a human. She hoped it was the former. Rarity’s ear swiveled towards one of the stallions that seemed to be speaking to his neighbor, a smile on his muzzle. Rarity’s eyes widened with excitement, her face beaming with pride as she apparently caught pieces of their conversation. “Just as I said, you’re making heads turn.” Rarity’s step developed a bit of bounce to it, quite pleased with herself. “At least one of us is excited.” Isabella said. “Is something wrong Isabella?” Fluttershy asked. “I was trying to find my brother. I don’t see him anywhere.” Isabella replied. “Oh oh, I bet Cloudchaser knows where he went!” Pinkie Pie chimed in. “Probably, but we don’t know-“ Isabella started to say, until a pink hoof pointed towards a seemingly depressed pegasus, with a unmistakably familiar frosty mane and tail. “Well, okay then.” The group approached the mare as she let out a sigh, her sights locked on the dance floor. A number of ponies were starting to gather together as the Canterlot band prepared to play for them. “Why the long face Cloudchaser?” Isabella asked. “I just wish he’d hurry. He’s been in there with those other stallions for a long time.” Cloudchaser tilted her head towards a set of double doors. “You can’t expect him to be with you all the time though, right?” Isabella asked. “We were supposed to dance together, I’ve never done it before,” Cloudchaser rubbed her left foreleg with her right, averting her gaze to the ground. “Pretty stupid, right?” “Goodness no, I think it’s sweet.” Fluttershy said, her small smile growing a bit. Cloudchaser’s frown shifted to a smile briefly before faltering once more. “I worry about him getting too involved with work. I don’t want him to become like Thunderlane, cocky and stupid.” “I hate to break it to you, but he’s already the latter of those two. That comes with his gender though, nothing he can help,” Isabella said kneeling down to Cloudchaser’s level. “I’ve never seen him as happy as he is when he’s with you. if it’s you or them, he’s going to pick you, I promise.” Wordlessly, Cloudchaser wrapped her forelegs around Isabella’s neck in a hug. The human could be a bit on the wild side sometimes, but she was smart, and knew what to say to put her mind at ease. That, and she liked it when Isabella would stroke her mane, it was almost as good as preening. “If he doesn’t come out soon, I’ll help you drag him out, okay?” Isabella offered. “I can live with that.” Cloudchaser laughed. “Usually there’s a bit more laughter and rowdy disturbances….It’s been unusually quiet so far.” Rarity commented. --- “I’ve got him!” Ike shouted, tossing a unicorn into a water fountain before pointing at another well-dressed unicorn, causing him to flee. All-out war had broken out in the room after the kegs were empty. That wasn’t important though, what was important was giving the earth pony beneath me the boot, or hoof rather. A swift buck to the backside was enough to send him crashing into the table, causing empty cups to bury him. Whitefire held two pegasi beneath his forelegs, dragging them about the room as he hovered just above the ground. He chuckled at their fruitless attempts to escape, his strength and size making it impossible for them to do so. I noticed out of the corner of my eye two more pegasi, flying side by side with a banner between them. They swooped in low, catching an earth pony off guard, dragging him along the floor until he hit one of the stone columns in the room. Mike, being the creative pony he was, tore off a wooden leg from the upturned table and took aim at one of the airborne pegasi. Putting all of his strength behind it, Mike flung the object at the pony, hitting him right between the eyes, knocking the poor stallion out cold. The earth pony chuckled at his accomplishment before being forced to contend with his friend. I suddenly felt a pair of forelegs wrap around me from behind. They were charcoal in color, and my fuzzy mind still worked well enough to process who they belonged to. “Now…I’ll be number one…in her life.” Thunderlane sounded out of breath as I struggled against him. “Not a chance!” I exclaimed flying towards the ceiling, a bit too fast for my own good, as both of our head collided with the ceiling. My vision swam as we plummeted back towards the floor. I shook Thunderlane off me, just in time to land on my hooves. I observed the chaos around me, unsure how things could possibly get worse, but as things of this nature often do, they did indeed get worse. The door was kicked open by a large red boot. I stood dumbfounded by what I saw standing in the doorway, easily dwarfing everypony inside the room. Khorne Berserkers, each nine feet tall, and clad in intimidating, blood red armor. Grasped tightly in their hands were revving chain axes, which caused more than a few of the stallions to soil themselves. “What the fu-“ I mumbled as one approached me. “Wake up!” a ventilated voice demanded, the super soldier thumping me in the forehead. I didn’t respond, too terrified to move as the behemoth of a man loomed over me. He shouldn’t exist, these madmen were nothing but a stupid plastic model. There was nothing magical about them, so- “Wake up!” the Berserker exclaimed once more, reaching down with his giant hand to shake me like a rag doll. --- I opened my eyes to see a rather upset group of mares looking down at me. The light behind them burned my eyes, forcing me to squint and avert my gaze. I could hear a few groans of pain, mixed with tired yawns, coming from the other stallions. Though I registered what the sounds meant, my brain still wasn’t putting everything together. “What happened?” I asked, unsure if I had been dreaming, or if I had just been killed and respawned in another reality. “You broke your promise, that’s what!” an angry, and familiar voice snapped. Uh oh. I thought to myself, easily recognizing its owner. I tried to stand up, only to fall back down on unstable legs. The others weren’t much better, requiring assistance in order to stand. The broken furniture was no longer broken, leading me to believe that it had all been some sort of dream. That raised the question of when, and how I fell asleep with no recollection of doing so. “Unbelievable….” Cloudchaser mumbled, walking away. “Cloudchaser, wait…” I tried to call out, exhaustion keeping me firmly in its clutches. “Sober up a bit,” Isabella caught me before I face planted onto the cold floor once more. “I thought ponies couldn’t get drunk.” “Mistakes aside, it is rather odd now that you mention it.” Rarity commented, poking at one of the cups before pulling her hoof away in disgust. --- Cloudchaser trotted away from the crowd that no doubt would be sticking their noses into the mysterious turn of events in the meeting room. She could care less how or why he ended up on the floor next to Thunderlane; their comical position doing little to take her mind off of what she had smelt on him, which no doubt had a part in all of this. She was reminded of the time she asked Thunderlane not to do something similar. She had found him with Nurse Redheart the next morning. Cloudchaser had resented the mare for the longest time, until she came to terms with the fact that it wasn’t her fault alone. She was trying her hardest to reject the idea that things would end the same way with Daniel. Cadance said what we shared was special….yeah, I bet. Cloudchaser snorted as she wandered into the great hall, lined with beautiful stained glass windows. A few were devoid of the fancy art work depicting ponies, and their amazing feats. One such window simply gave the mare a view of the moon. She was reminded of the night he had confessed his feelings to her; admitted to wanting her, needing her. As he spent more time with his team, he was clearly beginning to be influenced by them. Was Isabella right? Before she had believed her, but after seeing how he had failed to hold up such a simple request, so that they could spend a little time together, doubt was beginning to fester. “Cloudchaser?” Daniel called out, his voice soft and hesitant. “I wanted this night to be special, one I would cherish for the rest of my life,” Cloudchaser held back the floodgate that was at the corners of her eyes. “It’s special, that much is true.” “Cloudchaser I-“ Daniel tried to explain. “I’m sure you have some long winded story, but save it for somepony who cares. I just want to know why my coltfriend went back on his word.” Cloudchaser said, letting her anger drown her sorrow. “Thunderlane was there, and-“ Daniel started. “You never once considered leaving? You had me to come to; you didn’t once consider that as an option?” Cloudchaser’s wings had flared out of their own accord, her blood surging quickly through her veins as a result of her anger. “I know, but I….” Daniel trailed off, his ears drooping in defeat. “Is there anything else I should know about, since you decided to turn this night into a come to Celestia meeting?” Cloudchaser asked. She could see Daniel’s hesitation and feared what else he might be hiding. She was certain they were past this stage in their relationship, but braced herself for the worst. --- I was faced with a difficult decision, tell her about Scootaloo and risk losing her if she rejects the idea, or keep it to myself and pretty much guarantee her departure tonight, along with the return of the worst heartache imaginable. Neither option seemed very favorable at the moment. “I….I was going to adopt Scootaloo….” I sighed, noting her confused expression. “Probably not the best time to tell you, but it was something I planned to do before you came into my life.” “Well, thanks for that bombshell to top off my evening….when were you going to tell me? Or were you just going to bring her over one day?” Cloudchaser shook her head briefly as she spoke. “No…” I mumbled. Cloudchaser let out a frustrated sigh and started to pace. I had never seen Cloudchaser this upset before; I had really screwed up this time. The occasional glance she cast me was enough to drive the fear of God into me, she was definitely pissed. Her pacing continued until she final stopped, taking in a deep breath before letting it out through her mouth. It appeared as though I would be keeping my head another day, but Cloudchaser’s heart was still to be determined. “Do you really love me?” Cloudchaser asked, turning her back to me. “Of course I love you. Look, I’m sorry I screwed up.” I replied. “You can’t just say sorry all of the time and expect things to be better. Your actions speak louder than your words.” Cloudchaser snorted, starting to walk away. “Cloudchaser wait,” I called out, much to my amazement she stopped. “What do I have to do to show you that I love you?” Cloudchaser kept her back turned to me for a while before speaking. “Are you asking this because you screwed up and got caught? Or are you genuinely sorry?” “I really am sorry, please, I’ll do anything.” I replied. “Anything?” Cloudchaser turned to face me. “Yes, anything.” a part of me dreaded what she might ask me to do. “Tomorrow, when you’re called on to race in front of Canterlot, instead of racing to win, you will lose.” Cloudchaser said. “Lose? But-“ I stammered. “You said you would do anything to prove you love me.” Cloudchaser interrupted. “How could losing prove anything?” I asked, recoiling when I noticed her feathers ruffle against her sides in frustration. “Losing proves that you are capable of a humble spirit,” Cloudchaser stomped towards me, forcing me to back up. “Losing proves that you can put another before yourself. Losing proves that you value love over pride, and the adoration of strangers who don’t even know you.” Cloudchaser finally stopped her advance, having backed me up against a wall. She took a few steps back; satisfied she had gotten her point across. “What is your answer?” Cloudchaser asked, eyes narrowed at me. I found myself unable to speak. I couldn’t lose, or I might be without a job, and then I would be back in the same situation I had been in a few months ago. I didn’t want to lose Cloudchaser either, this is what I feared might happen; my worst nightmare was coming true. “Your silence is pretty loud right now…” Cloudchaser said, walking away from me. So….now what? a voice asked as I watched her walk away. I don’t know brain….I don’t know…. --- Unknown to the feuding lovers, two shiny, golden eyes were observing them from afar. They departed for destinations unknown as quickly as they had appeared, into the cover of darkness.