//------------------------------// // Chapter 8 - The Offer // Story: Rising Above // by Quick Fix //------------------------------// October 8th Trixie had only been back in Ponyville a day and Scootaloo was already asking her for help, though of course she was, the two were always backing each other up. For now, Scootaloo had asked to meet her at the Ponyville bridge, saying only that it was important. Trixie could always accommodate her friend's requests of course, she had a lot of free time in the gaps between major events. She could see her friend waiting now though and with that she trotted over. "Good afternoon, Trixie. How was the empire?" "Oh, I wish I had visited sooner. The culture, the entertainment, the sheer vigour for life!" She stopped and composed herself for a moment. "I mean, it was a relaxing vacation spot. Now, I, err, I mean, Trixie is curious what the important issue is." Scootaloo cracked a small smile, knowing better by now than to bring up Trixie's habit of slipping back into third person when nervous. "Well, I had a note slipped under my door a few days ago. It didn't say who from but they claimed they might have an idea of why I can't fly. It sounds suspicious as sin but at the same time I can't stop thinking about if it's legitimate...Thoughts?" "Well, I have to agree that it sounds suspicious. Was there any indication of who sent it at all?" "Well, it had what I guess were initials, but I don't know any QF in Ponyville." Scootaloo turned and put her front hooves over the edge of the bridge, still debating her options. Trixie stepped closer and put a hoof on her shoulder in support. "How badly are you willing to chase a possibility that you can fly? Is it worth your wellbeing? Because it might be if this is a stunt by some deluded fan." "Well, that's why I asked you here. I thought it'd be safe to go with somepony I trust watching and your magic is more than capable of dealing with some nutcase who thinks I'll go out with him if he asks enough times." "Hmm...Though going in the first place seems somewhat foolish, I'm more than capable of restraining a pony with their own skillset in five different ways. I'll make sure you stay safe." Scootaloo looked up and back at Trixie, smiling more genuinely than before. "Thanks, it means a lot to me. We'll be meeting them at Rarity's shop in half an hour, that should give us time to have a plan ready." "Maybe we should keep it simple. Speaking from experience, any overdone plan is more likely to go wrong." "As long as we can have some fun with it, I'm pumped from training this morning and looking forward to kicking some lunatic's flank..." "We'll make our mark, show the world what we can do." Quick Fix sang to himself as he worked, fitting some guttering into place on Carousel Boutique. Truth be told, being a repairpony wasn't all that bad if you were good with your hooves. Having the time alone to get your thoughts in order helped too, which had been invaluable considering what he was going to do once he was finished. "How are you doing up there?" A voice called from the ground, Quick looked over the edge and smiled as he saw Rarity waving up at him. The Element of Generosity was now arguably one of the most successful ponies in Equestria with her stores in almost every city, though she made a point of making sure a good chunk of her profits went into charities across the land. It had taken a slight toll on her though, she was starting to show her age before any of the other elements. Not that it stopped her though, it was surprising how much of her older look could be overlooked with a stylish pair of glasses. "Almost done, miss Rarity. Just have to secure everything up." Quick waved back down at her before picking up a spanner and starting on the screws. "Alright darling, let me know if you need some refreshment," Rarity relaxed and looked down again as she saw somepony coming. "Oh, well good afternoon, Trixie. How can I help you?" "Hello again, Rarity. I've been on the road a lot and haven't had much chance to visit lately. I was hoping to see what your latest style entails." "Oh of course! I recently finished my new cape designs, I'm sure I could find something for your next act." Quick hardly paid any mind as the two unicorns headed inside, focused on getting the job done. As he secured the last drain in place he glanced up and paused, seeing Scootaloo approaching. Okay, time to see what fate really had in store. He gathered his tools up and slowly made his way back down his stepladder, trying to look as though he hadn't noticed Scootaloo as she trotted up to the boutique. "Excuse me, sir. This is a long shot but, you wouldn't happen to have seen a pony with the initials QF around here, would you?" "Well, not sure how many ponies even have those initials, but you're talking to one. Name's Quick Fix." Scootaloo's eyes narrowed slightly, sure he didn't look like a stalker but you could never tell. She could see Trixie keeping an eye on her from inside and decided to go for it. "You slipped me a note yesterday?" "Yes, and you're unsure if this is real." "Unsure? Try thinking it utterly incredulous, do you really think a repairpony would know about pegasi wings? Much less anything on a condition that grounds a pony?" "You're here though, if you really thought I didn't know anything, you wouldn't have come." Quick's words brought Scootaloo to a halt, he was right after all. It would have been easy to rip the note up and get on with her life, yet here she was. She couldn't afford to show it yet though, not until she knew what was in it for him. "Okay...Let's assume I'm here for that. My question still stands, why do you think you can help where so many ponies couldn't?" "Because I can learn. I've been studying under Princess Twilight Sparkle for a few days and got a lot of information. You want to know five ways to fix a wing dislocation on the spot or the effects of muscle tension through improper positioning? I could tell you all that for now and I'll keep going until I know a wing as good as any pegasi." Scootaloo blinked in surprise, sure he probably couldn't locate a pegasa deltoid that quickly but for an earth pony, that was impressive. Then she realised he was still going. "More importantly, because I want to help you, I can't just look at somepony in need and not do anything. I saw the look in your eyes, Scootaloo. You don't just want help, you're desperate to believe that you can fly and you want to surpass the impossible to do so. Give me a chance to at least show you what I've got so far and we'll make it happen. It's your choice, Scootaloo, you can keep walking with your dreams above your head or you can get a lift to reach them for good." Quick smiled with inviting determination on the outside, on the inside he was sweating bullets at how badly he thought that had gone. Speeches were never his strong point and here he was trying to put up a convincing argument at the same time. His smile wavered slightly as his nerves built, waiting to see how Scootaloo would react. He made a lot of good points, he wasn't that weird and honestly, he seemed like a nice pony. Scootaloo hesitated as she weighed up the options. Something about him really rubbed her wrong, but at the same time she couldn't deny how important this was. She still had Trixie to help monitor him as well and if push came to shove, Apple Bloom too. At this point, what did she have to lose by at least trying? "Well...I'm still not sure about this, but I'll give you a day to see what your theory is. I'll be at Ponyville Athletics Circuit tomorrow morning to practice my tricks, I'll meet you there to see what ya got." "Really? I-ah-I mean, thank you. You wont regret it!" Quick grinned and waved as Scootaloo glanced into the boutique before heading off, waiting until she was out of sight before sighing in relief. That went better than expected, for now he could breathe easy and finish packing up. Perhaps he really was onto something. "I mean, do you have any idea how ridiculous it all sounded?" Scootaloo remarked. She'd gone straight to Apple Bloom's shop to fill her friend in on what had happened. Maybe she should have waited until after work though, right now AB seemed to be only half listening, though some of that might have had something to do with the fact she was working inside a closet at the moment. "Ok I'll admit it sounds off, but maybe he does have an idea. You'd be surprised how some ponies' cutie marks look way different to their talents. I mean, look at miss Cheerilee." AB grunted slightly as she worked, surprisingly good with a wood shaver in a confined space. "I guess, so you think I should go through with it?" "I'll tell yah what," Apple Bloom finished on that section and stepped back outside for some air. "Ah can hang around as well if yer like, been meaning to get a good run in recently." "Thanks AB. With you and Trixie there, this is either going to be a fantastic breakthrough, a day of status quo, or a hilariously one sided scuffle. Whichever way it ends up, I'm almost looking forward to seeing how this goes now."