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Chapter 1: Wonderbolts, Assemble!6,051 words
Chapter 2: First Weeks are Killer5,463 words
Chapter 3: Lead Pony4,703 words

Chapter 3: Lead Pony

Stormy Skies

Chapter 3: Lead Pony

I trotted away from the clipboard with my pin, feeling somewhat stunned. I'd been paired with Snowflake, of all the ponies on the team. It's not that I didn't like the giant pegasus, I just hadn't expected to be paired with him. At the very least I'd been made a lead pony. I silently vowed that I would do what I could to make our team the best of the best, no matter the odds. Raindrops waved a hoof in front of my face, interrupting my train of thought.

“Equestria to Cloudchaser, Equestria to Cloudchaser. Equestria, we have a problem,” she said. I blinked, shaking my head to clear my thoughts.

“Sorry,” I said, grinning sheepishly. “I'm alright. Just a bit of a shock is all.” Raindrops chuckled.

“Not as much of a shock as Rainbow is gonna have,” she said as we started back towards our barracks. I nodded. Rainbow was indeed in for a bit of a shock. The chromatic mare herself was strutting down the hall right at that very moment. She stopped and swaggered a bit front of us.

“So... which of you lucky gals gets to be my wing pony?” She said. I rolled my eyes and chuckled. Rainbow looked indignant. “What's so funny?”

“Oh, just look,” I said, motioning to the crowd around the clipboard. Raindrops and I kept trotting back to the barracks as we heard Rainbow's cries of doom and gloom.

“She'll never learn,” Raindrops said. I snickered.

“Nope, that's Rainbow for you,” I said. “Boy this is going to be a little weird. I mean, I barely know Snowflake. He's nice and all, but I don't really know what to do.”

“He's here for a reason, just like we are,” Raindrops said. “I'm guessing he's got some strength or he wouldn't have been accepted into the Academy.” I sighed in response.

“I guess you're right,” I said. “Maybe I'm just over thinking this.”

“Maybe. Give him a shot, Cloud. Maybe he'll surprise you,” Raindrops replied as we finally entered the barracks.

“I know... I'll do my best,” I said, sighing. I caught a glance of somepony else that I really didn't want to see. Lightning Dust. The light blue mare was grinning widely, her new lead pony pin already clipped to her uniform. She had been polishing it until it shone brightly. She locked eyes with me and narrowed her gaze.

“Newbie, I heard you got yourself a lead pony position,” she said as we walked past her. I merely nodded. I did not want to get into it with her. “Good for you. Just stay out of my way like we talked about, and you'll do just fine.” I grimaced and sat down and attached the lead pony pin to my uniform. For some reason, it felt strangely right. I just hoped that my wing pony was going to pan out.

I slipped my uniform on and made my way out of the barracks, refusing to even look at Lightning Dust as I did. I walked down to the mess hall for breakfast and grabbed my tray before taking my place at the table next to Thunderlane. He smiled.

“Hey there,” he said. When I didn't respond, he frowned. “You okay?”

“Yeah... stupid Lightning Dust getting to me,” I said. “Can't get my mind off this whole lead pony and wing pony thing, either.”

“I hear ya,” Thunderlane replied. “I mean, I've got Drops, but still. It's weird, isn't it?”

“Extremely. I wonder if Snowflake's seen the list yet,” I said as I dug into my food. Thunderlane shrugged.

“Not sure. I haven't seen him all morning,” he said. I frowned.

“Well, I hope he's alright. We've got a long day of practice ahead of us,” I said. I took a drink of my orange juice and stood. “I'm going to go see if I can find him.”

“But what about breakfast?” Thunderlane asked. I smiled.

“Always thinkin' with your stomach, eh Lane?” I said. Thunderlane grumbled. “Yeah yeah, grumble it up. I'm fine, really. I'll be back in a split second.” I reached down and quietly pecked him on the cheek before leaving. I made it four feet out of the mess hall before I heard her voice.

“Cloudchaser!” Spitfire barked. I stopped cold and turned. She stood behind me. Just her, no other instructors.

“Yes, ma'am!” I said, saluting. “What is it that you require, ma'am?” Spitfire grinned.

“At ease,” she said. “But don't think that excuses you. What did I just see out there in the mess hall?” My eyes widened. Of course she did. Of course she saw me kiss him.

“I... I gave my coltfriend a kiss, ma'am,” I uttered shakily. Spitfire sighed and removed her glasses. Her eyes were warmer than I expected.

“Look, Cloud. I'm giving you a pretty big chance to be here. The other instructors aren't as lenient about this kind of stuff like I am. You can't be doing stuff like that in public. It interferes with the training,” she said. “Get going. I don't want to have to write you up for this. Just don't let it happen again, alright?”

“Yes... yes ma'am,” I replied, snapping my wings back to my sides and turning tail. Once I was out of her sight, I stopped and took a deep breath. What in the world did she mean 'giving me a big chance to be here'? Wasn't I supposed to be here? I shrugged it off and kept going. I had to find Snowflake.

I turned down the next corner, asking everypony I saw if they'd seen the big pegasus. Nopony had. Finally one of the drill instructors mentioned seeing him near the practice fields. I thanked them and took to the sky, making my way in that direction. I looked all over the area, but there was nothing around. I was about to leave when I heard crying coming from somewhere nearby. I pushed aside a bush, revealing the massive white pegasus.

“Snowflake? Is that you?” I said softly. His head turned, his eyes puffy from crying so hard. “What's wrong?”

“I... I am bad pony,” he said softly. I sat down next to him.

“What do you mean? Did you do something wrong?” I asked. Snowflake sniffled.

“I not get lead pony posi... posi... job,” the stallion stammered. “I not worthy of Wonderbolts.” I grimaced. It was clear that the giant pegasus had been really hoping to be a leader here. Being a wing pony for him... it was a much better let down than Rainbow Dash being a wing pony. Sighing, I place my hoof on his shoulder.

“Listen, Snowflake... you're not a bad pony just because you're a wing pony. You do know what a wing pony does, right?” I said.

“Wing pony follow lead pony,” Snowflake said. I blinked. That did very surprisingly sum it up. I shook my head though, determined to keep on track.

“That may be, but that's not all they do. The wing pony's most important job is to help keep the lead pony on track. We're a team. They pair us up like this to learn how to work together. We can't function without each other,” I said. “What I'm trying to say is... I need you. As much as you need me. I need you to be there to make sure I do my job right, and to make sure we both do it right the first time.” I looked down at the pin on my flight suit. Pulling it off with my teeth, I laid it on the ground in front of him. “Besides... if you really wanted to be the lead pony... I'd gladly give it up... for a friend.”

“I...” Snowflake's eyes widened. He pushed the pin back towards me. “No. You are better pony. Not better because lead pony... you are better friend. You would give up job for me.”

“That's what friends do, Snowflake. They give to each other,” I said, smiling. “But if I'm going to be a lead pony, then I need my wing pony. I need you. You and me, we're a team until this Academy is through. So what do you say? Be my wing pony?” Snowflake looked down at his own flight suit. He quietly pulled out the wing pony pin and attached it to the front of the suit. He smiled.

“I will,” He said, extending his hoof. I bumped it gently.

“Let's get to it then, we've got a practice to get to,” I said. Snowflake nodded. We stood, spread our wings, and took to the skies.

****************************************

Within a few minutes we arrived on the practice field. Unfortunately, it appeared that we were late. The others merely watched as we lined up next to them. Spitfire's expression couldn't even be read underneath her trademark glasses and smirk. I was certain she was chuckling inside at us.

“Cloudchaser, Snowflake!” She called out. We snapped to attention immediately. “Where exactly were you two?”

“We were working on lead and wing pony strategy, ma'am! Lost track of time, ma'am!” I shouted. Spitfire grinned.

“Well then. Let's see what you two strategists got then. You're up first!” She replied. I blinked.

“Umm... ma'am? What are we doing, ma'am?” I said. Spitfire grinned again. I was starting to really hate that grin.

“For the late party, I'll explain again,” the fiery mare said. “Each of you will fly through a small obstacle course. In order to complete the course, you will need both your lead pony and your wing pony to work together. Wing ponies will look out for their lead ponies by providing vector data and keeping watch for unexpected obstacles. Lead ponies, it's your job to stay on point and listen to what your wing pony is telling you. You have to cross the finish line together, or else I'll make you do it again until you do. Do I make myself clear?!”

“Ma'am, yes ma'am!” We all shouted.

Snowflake and I took a step forward. Spitfire motioned to the course above us. It looked reasonably simple. Wind gusts shot back and forth through the first part, intending to knock anypony who flew into them off course. Past that, a cloud maze stretched forward. The walls appeared to shift. It was clear that we had to be able to navigate properly based on changing conditions and adapt to the situation. Once out of the maze, a field of dark storm clouds was the final obstacle and perhaps the most deadly. I gulped loudly, but didn't let Snowflake see me sweat. I was the lead pony here. I had to be the leader.

“Cloudchaser, Snowflake. Whenever you two are ready,” Spitfire crooned. I could feel the heat on my cheeks as everypony else watched on to see how we'd handle the course. I looked over at Snowflake.

“Alright, you ready big guy?” I said. Snowflake nodded. “Alright, here's what we're going to do. You're going to fly on my six and help with the air currents. If I'm going to fly into one, tell me which way to go, alright?”

“I... I will try... I am not good at... well, the vectors,” he said. I smiled.

“Don't worry. Just follow my lead, and we'll be through this in no time,” I said. Snapping my goggles on, I stretched my wings out and took off. Snowflake hung just behind me, his eyes darting back and forth as we made our way up to the first obstacle. The wind whipped through the air, making a howling sound that really unnerved me. We made our way inside and I nearly went soaring to my left from the strength of the wind alone. Riding the current, I dove below it and let Snowflake catch up to me.

Surging forward, we made our way into the tunnel. Snowflake shouted something but it was deathly impossible for me to hear him with the wind. I realized pretty quickly what Spitfire meant about the wing pony's job. Wing ponies weren't supposed to be vocal, they were supposed to communicate non verbally. I grimaced. I tried to shout back, but I knew he couldn't hear me either. I was beginning to have a very bad feeling about this training session.

I flew forward, getting hit with another blast of wind that sent me up higher, separating me from Snowflake. A second blast hit me as I tried to correct my course, pushing me back down. I felt like a pinball in one of those blasted machines as I spread my wings out to attempt to slow my descent. I landed hard against Snowflake, who happened to be just below me. I grunted as he caught me on his back.

“Are you okay?!” He yelled loudly in my ear. I nodded, jumping off next to him and flapping my wings to stay aloft. I frowned. We were only halfway through the first part and if this was the kind of performance we were giving, then Spitfire would have us redo this thing for sure. I motioned at Snowflake to follow me. We pushed forward, dodging each gust of wind as best as we could. It seemed like we were heading towards the second part of the course with relative ease.

At least that's what I thought. As we were getting closer, a massive blast of wind struck us in the back, sending both of us flying forward into the cloud maze. We hit a cloud wall hard, grunting. I stood, shaking my head. I looked over at Snowflake. The large pegasus groaned loudly as he rolled over.

“Come on big guy,” I said, nudging him. “We've gotta get going.” Snowflake grunted again, pushing himself to his hooves.

“I'm alright. What happened?” He said softly.

“We got blasted by a big gust of wind, but we're alright. Let's make it through this maze and get out of this stupid course,” I said. Snowflake nodded. I spread my wings and took off down the first hall, Snowflake hovering close behind me.

“Cloud,” he whispered as we stopped at the first intersection. “I'm sorry about...” I shook my head.

“Not your fault,” I said. “It's my fault for not remembering our jobs to remind you.” I shook my head again. “Look, let's get through this and then we can work on learning this stuff more. Right now though, we need to focus.” My wing pony nodded and pointed to the right.

“I believe we should go this way,” he said.

“What makes you say that?” I asked. Snowflake grimaced. I frowned. “Come on, Snowflake. I gotta know.”

“The... the wind current,” he said, his accent thick but still understandable. “It smell heavier that way. Closer to storm.” I blinked, sniffing the air. Snowflake was right. I wasn't sure why I'd missed it before, being a weather pony and all, but there it was. The storm was our guide through the maze! We could do this! We started into the maze proper, soaring past all of the obstacles like it was nothing. Occasionally a new wall would spring up to try and block us, but Snowflake's massive body muscled through them as if it were nothing.

We finally made it to the very end of the maze, looking out upon the final phase of the course: the storm. I gulped at the sight of it up close. The trainers had really outdone themselves. Heavy, black storm clouds peppered the final run, spewing forth torrential rain and lightning. I could only assume that the goal here was to make it through as fast as possible. I shut my eyes for a moment, trying to drown out the sound of the rain. I'd flown through a very similar storm before, and had nearly died. I shook my head. I had to face my fears, and rise above them. That was why I was here!

I leaped off into the torrent, Snowflake right behind me. The rain pounded at us as we made our way into the storm. This is a training exercise?! I thought frantically as I tried to get my bearings. This is insane! I shot forward, weaving back and forth while I tried to keep my eyes on the goal ahead. I couldn't do it. A bolt of lightning struck to my immediate left. I yelped loudly, panicking as I tucked away from the booming thunder that followed. I was thrown off course, struggling to flap my wings and make it back to Snowflake.

This was way too much like my dream. I looked around frantically, my goggles fogging up. I tried to wipe them, but it wasn't doing any good. I still couldn't see where I was going! I flailed, the rain buffeting me from every direction. Growling, I shot upward as best as I could. A massive white blur shot up directly in front of my eyes. Snowflake! I was going to hit him!

I tried to stop, but it was no use. I slammed into the giant pegasus, a grunt of pain forcing from my lips when I realized one crucial detail. Snowflake was a heck of a lot bigger than I was, which meant he was also a lot more massive in terms of raw body mass. I fell backwards, dizzy from the impact, spiraling down into the storm.

I groaned as I looked upwards, seeing Snowflake try to reach for me, but a stray bolt of lightning forced us apart. I passed out as I was falling.

**************************************

“She's awake!” I heard a shout. My eyes opened into one of the most wonderful things I've ever seen. Thunderlane sat over me, concern etched in his expression.

“L-L-Lane...?” I stuttered, trying to sit up. He held me firm, keeping me down.

“Whoah there, you almost took a nasty tumble,” he said. I groaned, reaching up for the side of my head.

“My head hurts,” I said. “Where am I?”

“Still on the training field,” Thunderlane replied. He grinned slyly. “I saved you, you know.” I rolled my eyes.

“My hero,” I said, before giving a little chuckle. My head pounded in response. “We really gotta stop doing this.”

“Coming through! Officer coming through!” I heard Spitfire's voice. My heart sank. What was going to happen to me? Was I going to get kicked out? I knew I'd messed up pretty badly by not sticking with Snowflake. Snowflake! Where was he? Was he alright? Am I alright?

“Trainee Thunderlane!” Spitfire barked. Thunderlane turned and I could see the fiery mare standing above him. He gulped loudly.

“Yes, ma'am!” He said, his voice shaky. Spitfire narrowed her gaze at both of us.

“My office, all three of you, now,” she said. Thunderlane looked back down at me. I nodded, indicating that I at least felt alright enough to get up and walk. Wait... all three of us? I stood, glancing to the side. Snowflake stood quietly, his eyes fearful. We followed in silence, feeling the stares on us. I could hear Lighting Dust grinning all the way across the training field.

Despite how long it actually took, it felt like forever when we reached Spitfire's office. I wanted to say something badly to Snowflake, but I wasn't sure what to say. Spitfire sat down at her desk, sighing. She motioned to the seats in front of her.

“Alright, here's the deal,” she said. “Normally this kind of incident would have to go on some sort of official paperwork, but since I make the paperwork around here... I'm willing to forget this ever happened.” I blinked. Wait, what? Did I miss something?

“I'm sorry, ma'am,” Thunderlane said. “I just did what I thought was right.”

“You did what a Wonderbolt should do,” Spitfire replied. “You interfered with a training operation to save a life. It wasn't your responsibility, but you did it anyways. That's what we do here?” I looked to Thunderlane, my expression confused. He smiled.

“When you started falling, I took off and caught you,” he said. “I couldn't let you fall.” Spitfire nodded.

“Trainee Cloudchaser, Trainee Snowflake. It seems that our problem was due to a mix-up in the course. The course was originally set for light training, but somepony went in and changed the meters on the storm portion,” she said. “We're investigating who it could have been now.” My eyes widened.

“You mean... it wasn't my...” I started to say. Spitfire grimaced.

“That being said,” she interrupted. “I'm still not pleased with what I saw up there. You two are supposed to be a team, and you just fell apart up there. You both need to learn what that means, or you will not succeed here at the Academy.” Snowflake only nodded. Thunderlane grimaced.

“What does that mean, then?” He asked. Spitfire sighed.

“For now, it means you're both on mess hall duty, and out of the air until Cloud here is feeling better. I'd say a solid week of you both working together in the mess hall should give you a fair lesson on teamwork, am I right?” She said. I blinked, realizing that this was Spitfire letting us off easy. I mean, sure... working in the mess hall was bound to be difficult work, but it was better than being expelled.

“Thank.... thank you, ma'am,” I said. My head pounded still. “If it's all the same to you, ma'am. I'd like to go lay down now.”

“Absolutely. Go to the infirmary, let the medical squad look at you, then you'll be free to return to your barracks,” Spitfire said. “Dismissed.” We stood, leaving the office quietly. Snowflake was still deathly quiet. He started to trot away. I looked at Thunderlane and scowled.

“One second,” I said. I had to nip this in the bud now before it became a problem later. I charged at the giant pegasus, stopping in front of him. “Snowflake!” He regarded me carefully and sighed.

“Go to medical pony, Cloud,” he said. “Leave me be. I am not fit to wear uniform.” I scowled again.

“That's not true and you know it,” I said. My head pounded again. “You tried to save me.”

“I failed to save you,” he replied. I stepped right up to the massive stallion, and reached out, wrapping his frame in a hug that surprised him. His eyes widened.

“You tried, though. And that's all that matters. If you weren't fit to wear that uniform, you wouldn't have even tried,” I said softly.

“I... I...” Snowflake said, his head craning back to look at Thunderlane briefly. The grey pegasus smiled back.

“I'm sorry for all of this,” I said. “I promise I'll be a better lead pony. We'll be better together, too. We can do this, Snowflake! We can't let one little slip-up end this!”

“I...” Snowflake said. I pulled back from the hug, cocking my head at him.

“Well go on, say what you were going to say,” I said. Snowflake coughed.

“I was going to say, you were cutting off my breath,” he replied. My eyes widened, and I giggled.

“Oh... sorry,” I said. “I just...” The stallion placed a hoof on my shoulder.

“I know, I am not bad pony. As you keep telling me,” he said. “I promise I will be better Wonderbolt.”

“Together?” I asked, grinning. Snowflake nodded.

“Together.” I gave him a hoof bump. “Now, you need to go see medical pony. Fix you up.” I chuckled, rubbing my head. It still hurt, but not so much now.

“I agree with Snowflake,” Thunderlane said.

“Alright, alright! I'm going!” I said, trotting over next to my coltfriend. “I will see you tomorrow at the mess hall, Snowflake!” The stallion waved as he trotted off, leaving Thunderlane and I alone. I looked up at Lane. “You think he'll be alright?”

“I think he'll be fine. He's got a heart of gold, that one,” he said. “You should have seen how much he was fretting over whether you were alright or not.”

“About as much as you?” I replied, smiling. We started walking towards the infirmary, where two medical ponies were waiting for me. Thunderlane chuckled.

“Well... yeah,” he said. “Chase, just... feel better, alright? I'll come by in the morning and check on you.” I nodded and trotted after the two medical ponies inside.

**********************************

I was having it again. The dream. The storm dream. Why was I still having this messed up dream?! The storm raged all around me. Water poured from the clouds. And then I saw it, the glimmer in the void. It gleamed brightly. Too bright for me to see what it was. I tried to reach it, flapping my wings hard, but I couldn't get there. The rain was too much. The storm raged on, carrying me downward until I hit the ground.

I awoke, nearly hitting my head as I sat up in the medical barracks. The bunk above me was empty, of course, but it still would have given me a nasty headache if I'd have struck it. I sighed. I'd personally thought I'd been rid of the nightmare, but yet I was still having it.

The medical ponies had thought that I might have had a slight concussion from my collision with Snowflake, so they opted to keep me overnight for observation. It was a nice change from the normal barracks, and I didn't have to worry about hearing Lighting Dust go on about how bad I was. Apparently, she was already spreading rumors about Thunderlane, Snowflake, and I to everypony who would listen according to Raindrops. Except for when Rainbow Dash was around.

I chuckled to myself. Ponies would do well to not insult anypony that Rainbow was friends with. It was a death wish.

I sighed, laying back on my bunk. I sat there, wishing I knew why I kept having that crazy dream. I couldn't piece it together. I looked over at the clock, noting that it was only two in the morning. I rolled over, trying to get back to sleep.

*scrape*

My eyes jolted open. What was that? One of the nurses checking in? They were pretty vigilant, so I was sure that was all it was. I sighed, closing my eyes once more.

*scrape*

I sat up. That wasn't the sound of hoofsteps. That was somepony scraping on a window! I looked over at the only window in the room, seeing a form behind it scraping their hoof on the surface. Rolling out of bed, I made my way over to it and carefully unlatched the window.

“Wha – aaghh!” I shouted as another pegasus tumbled into the room on top of me. I fell backwards, grunting. The other pegasus yelped and rolled off.

“Sorry! Sorry!” She squeaked. I blinked. Wait a second... I know that voice. I sat up, looking directly into the eyes of the cream-colored pegasus. Her pink and green mane bounced off of her head perfectly, and her eyes were filled with concern.

“Blossomforth? What the heck are you doing here?” I asked. Blossomforth took one look at me, and broke out into sobs. She latched onto my shoulder, crying hard. I blinked. “Umm... there, there?”

“Cloud!!!” Blossomforth managed in between sobs. “You have to help me! I don't know what to do!”

Author's Note:

Next Time!

Next time, on “Stormy Skies”! Will Cloud be able to help Blossomforth with her little problem? Will she be able to solve her own problems? And what is Mess Hall Duty like, anyways? Find out next time on “Stormy Skies Chapter 4: What a Mess!”

Better late than never, I suppose! This is a bit of a shorter chapter, but considering how long it took for it to come out, I feel kind of bad. You see, I put this thing on hold to finish up my FoE sidefic. But that finished back in May... so I really have no excuse.

I struggled with this for a while, mostly because S4 took Snowflake, and turned him into Bulk Biceps. Which I hate, vehemently. I hate the name, and I hate how dumb they made his character feel. Rest assured, I'm not going to let that infect this fic. Snowflake is the same lovable lug he's been so far.

Expect to see this get updated more and eventually finished up (probably in the same rough amount of chapters as the first fic did), and of course expect some more Lightning Dust coming up!

Also, I started a thing! I've got a Patreon account now, so if you like what you see here, and would like to donate to help my writing out, head over there to check it out! I will be posting a lot more content with the one-shot pledges, which will be awesome and fun for me to stretch my legs on a bit. Even if you only pledge a small amount like $2 a month, I'd love you forever. It will help me out immensely.

See you kids on the flip side!

- V

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