Blue Angel

by V-Pony

Truth or Dare-Pt 4: Suspicions, Celebrations, and Inebriations

September 16th, Ponyville, Early Evening...
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Surprisingly, Volare managed to beat Rainbow Dash to Vinyl and Octavia's house, but only because halfway through their race did he realize that the CMC had just entered a home with an invitingly red "11" button used to activate Vinyl's crazy security system sitting right in the middle of the living room. As that epiphany slammed into him, he left Dash in his dust and stampeded in a panic right into the duplex, expecting the place to look like the disaster area left by a 12-hoofed hurricane plus whatever the hell that security system did. But against all odds, he found the house still in once piece, with Applejack diligently setting up a large number of drink mugs on the refreshment table and turning to greet him with a big grin when he entered the room.

"Well, howdy an' happy birthday sugarcube, even if it is a bit late," she cantered over and gave him a quick hug before noticing he was breathing heavily. "Whoa pardner, ya'll ok?"

"CMC...*pant-pant*...11 button...where are they?" Volare gasped out enough coherent words between breaths for Applejack to get the gist and she chuckled to herself.

"Ah sent'em out in tha backyard with Pinkie, Rarity, and Vinyl; she warned me about that thing and Ah came up with a solution lickity-split," she grinned and waved a hoof at an oaken barrel sitting where the button pedestal once was. "Emptied tha cider barrel into them mugs on tha table over there, bucked out the bottom of tha barrel and tossed it over tha button. That way nopony, CMC er otherwise accidentally sets it off," she winked sagely and hoofed him one of the mugs already full of chilled, fizzy cider. "Down tha hatch, sugarcube; brought it specially for ya." Volare nodded his thanks and downed the mug in a few gulps just as Rainbow Dash entered the house.

"Whoa, look at you go, flyboy," the rainbow mare chuckled as Volare sat the mug on the table, sighed in contentment and wiped his mouth with a hoof before giving Dash a weak half-smile. "We oughta see how you handle something stronger than a little cider later," she bumped him aside and downed a mug of her own. "If you're up for it, that is," she parted the foam on her lips with a devilish grin.

"Ha, maybe Dashie. For now, I just wanna relax and make sure the CMC don't blow the place up; I do kinda represent them, ya know," he waved at the logo-emblazoned end of his scarf.

"I meant to ask about-huh, what's up AJ?" Dash paused as the orange mare tapped her on the shoulder, beckoning her closer as the rest of the ponies and creatures finally trailed in. The duplex was soon filled with with conversation and the clunk of wooden mugs as a few immediately headed to the refreshment table, while others, including Iron Will, trotted straight through and headed for the lantern-lit backyard that bordered the northern curve of the Ponyville Stream.

"Ah noticed Twi wasn't with ya'll; ya get things patched up?"

"Yep, we sure did," Dash nodded, noticing Applejack's eyes scanning the crowd for their lavender friend. "She went back to the Library to...do some research." Crap, she hadn't planned on telling anypony the truth between Twilight and Volare, but Applejack could smell a lie a country mile away. Better make this convincing, then...

"Research, eh?" the Earth Pony tilted her Stetson back.

"What kind of research, Dash?" Volare spoke up curiously.

"Uh...had something to do with the Sonic Rainboom, since that's the only way to get back here from Earth."

"Ya'll plannin' on going back again?"

"I wasn't really planning on it since Twilight can get pretty much all the research stuff she needs on humans from Volare," she hoofed the blue and yellow Pegasus in the shoulder. "But flyboy here wants to go back and...what was it you said?" Ha, if I bring Volare's input into this, there's no way AJ'll figure the truth out!

"Well, I had a decent estate left to me when I...basically died," he chuckled grimly.

"Hey, don't laugh about that," Dash said, allowing just a little too much concern to sneak into her tone, and she scolded herself for it. "I mean, it was a real pain in the wings dragging your heavy flank here, so it's no laughing matter in my book," she hoofed him and laughed at her own a little joke, though she inwardly cringed a bit at her overcompensation, relaxing only when it got a more sincere chuckle out of Applejack and Volare.

"Ah can only imagine," the country mare nickered. "How big didja say ya were, Volare?"

"About 6'1", 180 lbs," he replied, drawing a low whistle from Applejack.

"Woo-wee, that's probably a good bit heavier than a lightweight like RD here," she nudged her friend roughly, ruffling a few feathers in the process, both figuratively and literally.

"Hey, I'm no lightweight!" Dash shot back defensively. "Remember who won all those games at the Iron Pony competition, AJ."

"Only cuz ya cheated an' used yer wings," Applejack cocked an eyebrow.

"Yeah, well...I still say you never said I couldn't," Dash stuck her tongue out and crossed her hooves imperiously. It might have escalated had Volare not stepped between them at the same time that Scootaloo galloped into the room and made a beeline for the Element of Loyalty.

"Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo shouted joyously and gave her idol a flying tackle-hug, drawing a chuckle from the older Pegasus, who looked up and exchanged an understanding look with Applejack; now wasn't the time to be arguing over petty crap. The danger averted for now, Volare politely gave the Pegasi their time, hanging his scarf and goggles on the wall before following Applejack out into the backyard to mingle with the ponies out there. He'd never been a huge party animal, but by the way that Pinkie immediately spotted him and threw a foreleg around his shoulders before pulling towards the other ponies, he felt any reservations he might have had were about to get air-mailed to the moon, so to speak.

"What's up, squirt?" Rainbow Dash grinned and ruffled the filly's fuchsia mane. "You get your mark yet?"

"Nah, we thought helping Volare get up in the air would be enough to earn us something in that area, but nothing showed up," Scootaloo glared at her offending blank flank, causing Dash to fondly pat her head again.

"Hey, no sweat," she gave a dismissive wave of her hoof. "Even though it didn't get ya your mark, I can't argue with the results," she nodded out the door towards Volare, who was in the middle of trying to shake half a dozen hooves at once and failing hilariously while Vinyl laughed and warmed up her sound equipment with the help of Sweetie Belle and Applebloom. Hah, only Pinkie can do that, flyboy...

"Um, Rainbow Dash?" she started as a small orange hoof nudged her in the ribs. "You ok?"

"Oh-uh-yeah, I'm good, I'm good," Dash shook her head and snorted lightly, puffing out her chest and stomping a hoof. "See, fit as a fiddle!"

"Uh, that's not what I meant," Scootaloo cocked an eyebrow. "You were kinda staring at my bro out there, almost like you"- the spunky filly halted in mid-sentence and looked from Volare to Rainbow Dash and back again, a grin widening across her face at the same rate as Dash's eyes, while warning bells began to go off in the older Pegasus' head. Uh-oh...

"Eh-heh, almost like I was what, squirt?" the rainbow mare asked, trying to ignore the heat she felt building in her cheeks that Scootaloo almost certainly saw.

"Do you...like my bro?" the question nearly toppled Dash over in shock. Scootaloo obviously didn't know the complications involved, but Dash recovered just in time to head this off at the pass anyway. "Cuz if you and him got together, that'd be just-"

"Uh, hate to burst your bubble, kiddo, but I don't really like him like that," Dash said plainly. And although it stung a little to see Scootaloo's spirits deflate like that, the relief she felt more than made up for it. "Hey, don't get me wrong: he's a nice guy and all, but...I don't really know much about him," she offered with a slight shrug, but Scootaloo was undeterred.

"That's no problem; I can tell ya all kinds of stuff about him," the filly grinned proudly. "He's pretty cool, ya know for a human-turned-Pegasus and all."

"Yeah, he's tough I'll give him that," Dash conceded sincerely before noticing Trixie arriving with Octavia and her mood instantly changing; she felt she needed to say a few things to the magician before she could comfortably stand in the same room with her. "Tell ya what, squirt. I'm gonna go have a word with Trixie. You go find your friends and we'll meet back up in a bit; I'll bet everypony would wanna hear your story of how you and Volare became brother and sister."

"Aww yeah, that's a great idea! Hey, be sure to be nice to Trixie; she's pretty cool too," Scootaloo beamed, her adolescent romantic thoughts diverted for the time being. Whew, saved again, Dash thought as the filly scampered away to join the rest of the CMC while Vinyl Scratch and Pinkie Pie whipped the crowd outside into a frenzy with a series of shouts and mid-air hoof thrusts before the DJ clicked on her turn tables and punched a myriad of buttons that turned the lanterns outside from their usual golden glow to a series of fading and flashing lights. Rainbow Dash looked on curiously as Vinyl convinced a somewhat reluctant Volare to join her at the turntables, slipping a set of headphones over his ears and giving him a huge grin before the club style music that she was well-known for began to play, shaking the surrounding area with a throbbing bassline beat that Dash couldn't quite recall from past parties. Then again, maybe it was something new she'd thought up.

She then noticed that Vinyl wasn't wearing any headphones herself, nor was her horn glowing to power the equipment...but that meant that Volare was the one playing the music! Huh...since when did he become a DJ? But he's not a Unicorn, so how could he..nah, that's impossible, Dash thought and simply let the music flow over her, allowing it to take the edge off the Volare situation as she roved from pony to pony, receiving praise for the show from some and welcome home's from others, waiting for her chance to catch Trixie alone. Even so, she couldn't help but glance back wistfully and watch as Volare stood tall behind the turn tables, bobbing his head to the beat and grinning like a fool. She felt a mix of emotions, ranging from regret to keeping him in the dark about the truth, to relief that he was unhurt and whole, and elation that he was finally safe and able to enjoy the great life that Ponyville had to offer. Dash smiled to herself and located Octavia, who was holding a hoof to to her head and cringing slightly at the volume of music pounding in from the backyard. The grey cellist caught her concerned look and gave her a pained smile.

"Eh-heh, I'm all for celebrations, but I doubt I'll ever get quite used to this bloody wub music," she spoke in a tone just below a shout over the music.

"Meh, I prefer rock, but it's not so bad," Dash grinned and nudged the proper mare with a wing; she'd never really had much contact with Octavia before and from what she could see, she seemed wound up tighter than one of her cello strings. Still, when she wasn't wincing under the withering assault of Vinyl's subs, Dash had noticed that she possessed a cool, collected demeanor about herself, especially when on stage and playing her instrument. Although she seemed kind of uptight, the Pegasus had to give her props for her lack of stage fright, something Dash herself still suffered from every now and again.
"So, uh...how'd you let Vinyl talk you into using your house for a Pinkie Party?"

"Oh, trust me, it wasn't easy, but any mare with a pulse is susceptible to bribery via Pinkie's baking," her soft chuckle was devoured by the bass. "In any case, I'm going to go up to my studio before this migraine intensifies; it's fairly sound-proof up there and a welcome relief whenever Vinyl gets like this. Oh, just a moment," she trotted over to Trixie, who was leaning against the far wall, sipping from a mug and talking with Iron Will about how forgiving the ponies of Ponyville could be. The cellist leaned in and whispered/shouted something into Trixie's ear and leaned back to gauge her reaction. She stared incredulously at Octavia for a long moment before nodding twice and receiving a hug from the grey mare, who then turned and waved a hoof at Dash, not caring to shout over the music anymore. But Dash got the gist and waved back before the cellist took her leave, heading upstairs.

After another few minutes of small-talk, Iron Will headed back outside as well after noticing that the Pegasus seemed to waiting to speak with the Unicorn. Taking advantage of the lack of anypony speaking to Trixie, Dash somewhat subtly snagged another mug of cider before sidling over and leaning against the wall next to the magician, who at this point had more than noticed the Pegasus' attention in her and been awkwardly avoiding eye contact ever since. After nearly a minute of hoof-shuffling and throat clearing by both parties, Trixie finally spoke up.

"Rainbow Dash," she said simply.

"Trixie," Dash replied just as simply before the music gobbled up the silence between the two again. Well, that hardly broke the ice. "So...I heard you had a rough first day back here."

"Hmm, that's putting it lightly," Trixie muttered, idly running a hoof around the edge of her mug and studying the ripple pattern the thumping bass was creating in the cider.

"Well, um, if it makes ya feel any better, I personally dealt with Ray and Jill myself out in the woods," the Pegasus said, drawing a raised eyebrow from the magician.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah, I mean...I know it didn't stop what they did to you Trixie, but," Dash paused, picking her words carefully, not wanting to strike anymore nerves today if she could help it. "I figured it'd make you feel a little better to know I knocked half the teeth out of Jill's mouth, heh-heh." That claim drew a short bark of laughter and a lingering smile from Trixie.

"Guess I should congratulate you for beating me to it, then...can't say I would've stopped at just their teeth, though," her grip on the mug tightened slightly, shaking her foreleg as she growled in her throat. "But you know what's strange...I feel as though I deserve what happened after how I treated you and your friends." That threw Dash for a loop; as far as she was concerned, Trixie was still the most boastful, prideful pony she'd ever known, and for her to just come out and admit guilt like that....it made her wonder what the hay else had happened while she was gone.

"Aww, c'mon Trixie," Dash began to reach out a comforting hoof but she shied away from her touch. "Nopony deserves to have something like that happen to them."

"So I suppose that you beating the stuffing out of me would have been a more justified punishment, then?" Trixie's eyes rose to meet Rainbow's and the Pegasus felt a pang of guilt at the look of resigned pain in her face. Apparently Trixie was well aware of Dash's intentions as she attempted to run away in humiliation that night. The magician took a long swig of her cider and swallowed hard before returning her attention to the Pegasus, awaiting an answer.

"Right, that..." Dash scratched her mane. "Look, I'm sorry about that. I should have just"-

"Not sure why you're apologizing for wanting to retaliate, Rainbow Dash," Trixie retorted. "I would have deserved what I'd gotten."

Great, first Twi, now this, Dash sighed.
"Ok, so maybe you deserved it a little bit, but the fight was over and you were running away...for me to jump you like that would've been wrong. Plus, you're obviously different now from then"-

"Am I?" Trixie cut her off again, sniffing lightly. Dash wasn't sure whether she wanted confirmation or if that was just a rhetorical question the magician was asking because she was unsure of herself. Probably a little of both, she decided, throwing caution to the wind and going with her gut on this one.

"Yes, I believe you are." Trixie's ears perked up in surprise; she'd expected a much different answer. But before she could ask why, the rainbow mare continued. "You are because you're putting your pride aside and admitting your mistakes, something even I have trouble with...a lot, actually," Dash's own ears drooped slightly. "What I mean is, I gotta give you respect for having the guts to do that, Trixie; not to mention wanting to fix what you broke even though it technically wasn't your fault."

"Thank you for your kind words, they're much appreciated," Trixie nodded and went to sip from her mug again before noticing it was empty. She gave a half-chuckle and shrugged before sighing. "I wish to apologize for what I did to you as well, Rainbow Dash; that was crude and nasty of me."

"Pfft, nah, it's cool Trixie," Dash ventured another nudge with her wing that the magician thankfully didn't lean away from this time. "Besides, I'm the one that challenged you, and you put me in my place. I'd have done the same to any other pony if I were in your horseshoes."

"Yes, well I didn't have to take it as far as I did," Trixie blushed slightly at the compliments from the pony she least expected them to be coming from. But yet again, Dash laughed off her efforts of downplaying what she'd done.

"You kidding me? I'd have done more myself, but that was still a pretty sweet trick you pulled off: turning my own Rainblow Dry against me," the Unicorn chuckled a bit at the Pegasus' strange way of complimenting others. "How'd you learn how to bend a rainbow, anyway?"

"Oh well, if you must know, I studied how to manipulate the light spectrum when I was a younger filly under Celestia's tutelage."

"Whoa hold up, you learned under Celestia?" Dash stared wide-eyed.

"Y-yes, I did..." Trixie trailed off at the still-tender memories. "But that was a long time ago. And no, before you ask, Twilight Sparkle probably doesn't know, and I'd rather she didn't...I-I'll tell her myself sooner or later. But that's neither here nor now, and I'd rather not talk about it."

"Hey, no problem," Dash waved a hoof and settled back against the wall, idly scuffing the floor before Trixie spoke up yet again.

"So...how've you been?"

"Huh-oh, been great mostly. Dealing with weather duties, crazy psychos, random mail routes, the works," Dash shrugged. "Ya know, normal stuff."

"Right...how'd the mail route in Fillydelphia go?" Trixie looked on in concern as her question initiated a change of body language in the Pegasus, causing her to snort softly and curl her lip. "Rainbow Dash?"

"It-ok, I dunno where you're originally from, but if you're from Filly don't take this the wrong way," Dash tapped a hoof in irritation. "The city is ok, but the ponies there...Celestia, I couldn't stand them! So full of themselves that they could care less about other ponies' feelings!"

"Indeed, and the stallions there are some of the most lewd creatures I've ever encountered. City of Neigh-borly love, my hoof," Trixie spat before catching the funny look Dash was shooting her way. "What?"

"I was about to say the same thing," the Pegasus cracked an infectious grin that Trixie soon imitated. Their grins soon grew into snickers, then chuckles, and then finally all-out laughter as they hurled vulgar insult after expletive against Fillydelphia. "Ya know, if it weren't for the one friend I made at the mail office there, I say it wouldn't be all bad if the place just burned to the ground one of these days!"

"Haha, with the risk of sounding like some madpony, I'd set the flames myself if I got half the chance!" The two blue ponies laughed until their sides hurt and leaned against each other to keep from collapsing, looking like they'd had too much to drink to the other ponies that trotted past them towards the cider mugs.

"Oh man, Trixie-haha-Scootaloo was right: you are pretty cool," Dash shook her head and stuck out her hoof. Trixie looked at it for a short skeptical moment, but when the Pegasus nodded and wiggled the hoof, the magician grasped and shook it. "Wanna put all that dumb crap behind us?"

"Absolutely," Trixie nodded firmly as she released her before looking down at her empty cider mug. "Care for a drink?"

"Nah, I've got a previous engagement with a certain crazy blue Pegasus," Dash glanced towards the turntables outside as the song ended and Volare hoofed the earpones back to Vinyl before the DJ started up another of her own custom songs.

"Ah, I understand," Trixie nodded with a sagely little smile that put Dash on edge.

"What's that look for, huh?" the fiery mare asked defensively, drawing a chortling laugh from the Unicorn as she grabbed another mug.

"Oh nothing, nothing...just the cider going to my head, that's all," Trixie waved a dismissive hoof before heading for the stairs.

"But there's no booze in this cider," Dash muttered and shook her mane. "Meh, whatever...c'mere, flyboy!" she growled and snagged two cider mugs before jetting outside, collaring the pilot out of a stomping style of dance with Pinkie and dragging him over to the patio before plunking him down on a wooden bench and shoving a drink into his hooves. The night was still young, but she'd wasted enough time as it was; this was a party, not a mope-over-the-past-fest.

"Whoa, what the heck, Dash?" Volare gasped in alarm as she motioned the CMC over. "What's the big idea?"

"This is a party and you and I have spent way too much time apart since you got here, so now it's time to make up for it with the best birthday party you ever had. You're not gonna leave my sight the rest of the night," she smirked impishly.

"Sounds like you're lonely, Dashie," he cracked before she swatted him with a wing, threw a hoof around his shoulders and took a long pull of her cider before smacking her lips and leaning on him in an overly-chummy fashion that Volare knew she knew was making him uncomfortable. And she relished every moment of it as he subtly tried to scoot away so her cyan flank wasn't brushing against his navy blue one. But he soon ran out of bench and resigned himself to his fate with a defeated roll of his eyes and a swig of his own cider to wash away the nervous knot in his throat.

"Hardly, but I have missed just hanging with you, so now it's high time we did! Better get used to it cuz this is how I roll at parties," she winked. "Unless you can't handle it..." she baited him with a playful snicker.

"Oh, I can handle it just fine," Volare quickly shot back, taking it hook, line, and sinker, and she hoofed him in the shoulder in victory.

"Good! Now then, Scootaloo's got a story to tell everypony about you and her, and I wanna hear it too," she teasingly flicked the end of his muzzle with a wing.

"Haha, what, you don't wanna dance with me instead?" he nodded back towards the crowd, but Dash gave a scoffing laugh.

"Pfft, me? Dance with and probably embarrass you? Hmm....tempting, but not really my style of fun," she flicked his muzzle again before calling out to the crowd. "C'mon everypony, gather round! Squirt, hop on up here," she patted the bench with a hoof and the filly complied. "Tell us that story of how you and Volare took on Ray and Jill!"

"Sweet!" Scootaloo grinned and her voice took on a more dramatic tone as she slowly stalked along the bench while the ponies slowly filtered over to listen. "This is the tale of the beasts Ray and Jill, and how my bro Volare and I took'em on by ourselves way out deep in the Whitetail Wood!" Sweetie Belle gasped theatrically, drawing laughs from the ponies gathered about and an eye roll from Applebloom. "For all you little baby foals that can't handle an intense story like this, this is your last warning, so get out!" she growled. "But for all the rest of you...here we go!"

"You picked a cute sis, Volare," Dash whispered into his ear and he chuckled as Scootaloo began her story, with Vinyl turning down the music to listen herself.

"Nah...if anything, she picked me, Dashie..."
........................
But not everypony had gathered in the backyard to dance to the music and listen to Scootaloo. On the front patio just over the short side-yard fence, a quartet of ponies had gathered around an umbrella-covered table to shoot the breeze and swap stories.

"So then I says to that Timberwolf, 'hey ugly, you forgot the other 41!' POW, I zapped him right in the flank and sent him yelpin' and burnin' over the hill!" Ferrum slammed a hoof on the table and laughed uproariously as he showed off the gap in his teeth, while Cloud Kicker, Lyra, and Ravenfire shook their heads in wonderment. "Ah yeah, but that was nearly 20 years ago...heh, I can barely light the fires of my old forge anymore now...far too along in years to do what I really wanted to do anyway," he got a little misty-eyed before Lyra spoke up.

"You never wanted to just smith horseshoes and run a hardware store, I take it?" the mint-green Unicorn queried as she snacked on a bowl of corn chips, her chomping met with a derisive snort from the older stallion.

"Pah, of course not Lyra! Just because my daddy, and his daddy, and his daddy smithed'em doesn't mean my dreams had no right to be a little loftier," he leaned back on his bench and sighed. "To tell the truth, it's a little embarrassing, but I'll tell ya if ya wanna know."

"Takes a lot to embarrass me, old-timer," Cloud Kicker gave him a friendly nudge of her hoof, and he took it in stride with a dry laugh.

"Alright, you asked for it, missy," he shook his graying head and sighed, bringing old memories back to the surface. "Way, way back when I was younger-"

"When dinosaurs roamed the planet," Cloud Kicker announced dramatically and caught a stink-eye from Ferrum.

"Heh, what goes around, comes around Ms. Kicker; I may be old, but I'm not helpless yet," he quipped with a smirk, levitating a corn chip from Lyra's bowl and flicking it at the Pegasus before getting back on track. "Now then, where was I...oh yes, when I was younger, I lived in Canterlot near one of the Royal Guard Stations. Every day and every night I'd seen those Royal Guards clank in and out of there all regal and mighty, but I saw a problem with'em. Their armor was too heavy and too hot as well, because on humid days I could smell the stink of a dozen skunky Royal Guards right next door," he cackled at the revolted expression on Cloud Kicker's face.

"That's pretty gross," Lyra declared, still shoveling chips into her mouth and apparently unfazed by his story while Ravenfire just shook her head and smiled, waiting for Ferrum to continue while taking note of the audible clip-clop of the multiple Royal Guards patrolling near the duplex.

"Anyway, long story short, I decided to try making a suit of a different sort of armor for them out of a new material my daddy's daddy had accidentally discovered in his forge way before I was even born," Ferrum beckoned them closer, as if this were the greatest secret ever conceived. His horn glowed and lifted a small piece of a shiny, blueish metal out of his apron pocket, laying it on the table with a tiny clink and inviting them to pick it up. Cloud Kicker hefted it and nearly dropped it in surprise; it weighed almost nothing!
Ferrum chuckled as she stared at him with wide eyes, while Ravenfire cocked a brow at the material. "Go on, try to break it!" Cloud Kicker complied, grunting and straining as she tried to bend it with her hooves, finally resorting to biting it before Ravenfire wisely intervened, snatching it from her with a roll of her eyes. She laid it out in a hoof and studied it intently for a moment before speaking as Lyra looked on, her corn chips forgotten for the moment.

"What is this, Ferrum?"

"That my dear, is just a tiny sample of the metal that makes up what I have hanging in the back room of Mustang Hardware: a material lighter than bronze and stronger than steel," his eyes and smile were positively Cheshire now. "Cobaltium," he declared.

"Cobaltium?" Lyra rolled the strange word around in her mouth before shrugging. "What the hay is that?"

"Never heard of such a thing," Cloud Kicker said and turned to Ravenfire. "You?"

"No, never," the older mare shook her head and hoofed the piece of metal back to the old smith. "I mean, I'm no metal expert, but still...how'd your grandsire come across it, Ferrum?"

"Ha, family legend says he was fooling around with using magic to superheat titanium hotter than his forge ever could. He was trying to make a better mouse trap in regards to armor, but the old ways are hard to beat, ya know? Well, one day he got frustrated and threw a box of cobalt dyeing powder across the room, where wouldn't ya know it: the darn thing fell into the forge and exploded!"

"Ouch, that musta ruined his day," Cloud Kicker winced.

"Oh yeah, ruined the forge too. But when the smoke cleared and he sifted through what was left, he found this little guy nestled in a corner," Ferrum held up the metal and turned it fondly in the lantern light. "He tried to bend it, break it, and melt it, but nothing short of dragon fire would do it, and even then, only slowly. My granddaddy had just discovered his ticket to fortune! But alas, a horrible case of the pony pox took him weeks later, and all he left behind were his notes," he frowned and wiped an eye. "Never got to meet him myself."

"Aww, man...sorry Ferrum" Lyra patted his hoof.

"It's ok, Lyra. Haha, according to my daddy, he was a crazy old coot that ran up debt anyway, and it wasn't until I was trying to figure out a better armor for those skunky Guards when I meddled around in my daddy's bedroom closet and found those notes all hidden away and gathering dust."

"So why didn't you try making more of that stuff and selling it?" Lyra offered and Ferrum let out a laugh so hard he started coughing, drawing the attention of the Guard Firetail who trotted up to help before the old smith waved him off.

"I got it, young'in; I ain't dead yet," he chuckled before catching his breath. "Wooo...trust me Lyra, I tried making that stuff again immediately...and that was when I figured out how my granddaddy ran up so much debt: you have any idea how expensive titanium is?! Well believe you me, my ears about went deaf when I heard the cost, which also kinda put the damper on making the armor for those Guards. A prototype would set me back 10 years worth of wages, and even when I presented the idea to Celestia, she had to turn it down due to the ridiculous cost and scarcity of the metal. The other bad news came when I created a small sheet of the stuff and discovered that, because of the grain of the metal, if you stressed it enough in a certain way, it'd shatter, which made it a huge liability to whomever wore it. Thus ended my attempt at being an armor smith, and I went back to being the Unicorn you see today," he slumped back onto his bench with a small sigh, pocketing the metal after another moment of reflection.

"But you said you had something hanging in your back room at the hardware store," Cloud Kicker recalled, and a small smile quirked at the corner of Ferrum's mouth. "What was that about?"

"Heh, whoever said I couldn't invest in a little hobby, eh?" the old smith asked cryptically before snorting and tapping the table. "But that's enough from me, young'ins. Lyra, you got any more stories that don't involve humans or their stuff?"

"Not that I can think of," the Unicorn shook her head and scooped the remaining crumbs of the corn chips into her mouth.

"How about you, Cloud Kicker? Any other stories besides your sexual escapades?" Ferrum chuckled. "Because as entertaining as that story was about you having...relations with a porcupine," he cringed slightly. "I gotta admit that's probably gonna leave me stuck with bad dreams for a week."

"Ha, that's nothing compared to what I was stuck with for a week!" the Pegasus chortled at Ferrum's twitch-eyed reaction. "Meh, the rest I've got are kinda boring by comparison, so...basically nope," the lemon-maned Pegasus smirked and turned to Ravenfire. "How about you, RF? You got any stories to swap?"

"RF, eh?" the rust-red mare ran a hoof through her shaggy gray mane and blew air through her lips. "Well, I would, but it's mainly work-related and, well...we're not the only ones listening here," she nodded subtly back towards the patrolling Guards. "I've been meaning to ask: why all the Royal Guards in such a small town?"

"Why, you got something to hide?" Cloud Kicker nudged her in the ribs.

"Nothing too terribly incriminating," the older mare replied coolly, drawing a laugh from Lyra.

"Ha, I like her, Kicky!" she said as she sat the empty chip bowl on the table and cracked an enthusiastic grin in Ravenfire's direction.

"Watch it Lyra, she's pretty hardcore," Cloud Kicker warned.

"Oho really?" the mint-green Unicorn raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, made me pop a wingie," the younger Pegasus sniggered while Ferrum very nearly choked in sudden laughter.

"Damn, I'm impressed," Lyra smirked.

"Woof," the red mare grinned toothily, drawing further laughter from the trio of ponies around her before tapping the table to get their attention. "So, back to the all the Guards; there something I need to know about?" Lyra looked up at the sound of raised voices on the other side of the fence and pointed out Scootaloo, who was in the middle of telling her story. The quartet sat and listened for a while as the bold filly re-told her tale, culminating in how Volare had risked his life to keep Scootaloo safe, coming within moments of death before Rainbow Dash swooped in and saved them both, the story punctuated by Scootaloo leaping and punching at the air with a hoof while Dash playfully noogied the hay out of Volare.

But Ravenfire's vision was drawn to the little filly who was the center of attention, grinning hugely and enjoying every moment of it as she climbed back up on the bench and hugged her surrogate brother and Rainbow Dash in thanks, causing Iron Will to grab and use a nearby tablecloth as a tissue, and rather loudly at that. Ravenfire continued to stare at Scootaloo though, trying to decide why she seemed so fixated on her...had she seen her before somewhere? Certainly not, since she wasn't even from this country. But then why did she?-

"-hey RF, you alright?" Cloud Kicker nudged her in the ribs and brought her attention back to the trio that had suddenly become just her and Lyra, Ferrum having excused himself and gone home sometimes during Scootaloo's story.

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine...I'm good," she shook that buzzing from her ears again and gave her friend an artificial smile.

"Jeez, starting to worry about ya old-timer," Cloud Kicker stood and stretched. "That's the second time today you've zoned out on me like that; can't decide if I'm more worried about it happening because I'm boring or the danger of you brain-farting on Weather Duty later."

"No, it's...nothing," Ravenfire waved a dismissive hoof before noticing that a few of the Guards had stopped nearby and were talking among themselves, shooting her sideways glances between smatterings of conversation she couldn't catch. "Um, they keep staring at me, Lyra; why's that?"

"Oh, they're just all on edge cuz they failed to apprehend Ray and Jill earlier," Lyra said.

"Makes sense I suppose," Ravenfire nodded before trotting up to a white-muzzled Earth Pony Guard and dipping her head in a bow. "Greetings sir."

"Evening," he replied with a snort.

"I'll just get right to the point: I noticed you staring at me earlier. Is there a problem?"

"Not unless you make one, ma'am; we're a little leery of strangers in town as of late."

"Yes, so I heard..." the older mare trailed off suddenly as she glanced East past the Guard's bronze shoulder pauldron and squinted. "Um, I hate to bother you, but..."

"Snowhooves, ma'am," the Guard clicked a bronze-shod hoof to his helmet. "What is it?"

"I just couldn't help but overhear young Scootaloo's story about Ray and Jill and...here you are being suspicious about strange activity in town," she trotted a half-step past him and looked up across Wither Way at the rooftop of a dog-run style shop next to the Joke Shop, the peak of which was framed by the rising moon. "Pray tell: how often do you have ponies climbing around on roofs here?" she asked with a lowered voice.

"Not often, ma'am, unless you count Mare-Do-Well, but she hasn't been seen in months," Snowhooves wheeled around curiously as Ravenfire's wings began to flare in alarm. "Why?"

"Because, unless my old eyes deceive me, something pony-shaped just moved up on that roof across the moon and ducked down when I looked up," she practically whispered and nodded towards the offending peak. "Weren't Ray and Jill stalking Volare and Scootaloo before they attacked them?" At her words, the implications clicked in Snowhooves mind and he quickly signaled Firetail to come hither.

"Firetail, we've got a possible Code 6 on that rooftop," he said in a hushed tone.

"Uh-oh...wait, what's Code 6?"

The older Guard facehooved and growled. "Dammit, we got weird activity up high, you dirt brain," he looked back at the trio of ponies, all of whom were standing up. "Care to help with an apprehension; we could use the wings."

"Hay yeah, I've been wanting to give those two the what-for ever since they helped bust up the Griffin," Lyra grinned fiercely and hefted her metal chip bowl like a club.

"Count me in," Cloud Kicker nodded and nudged Ravenfire. "Think you got a little fight left in ya, old-timer?"

"More than enough for two cowards like that," the rust-red mare growled through an intimidating grin that made Cloud Kicker cock a brow. In an instant, her whole body language had changed from laid-back to almost frighteningly tense, as if she was itching for a fight. Unsurprisingly, although she wasn't in the authority, she swiftly assessed the situation and took charge. "Snowhooves, you and your partner go around the left of the building. Cloud Kicker, you go around the right. Lyra, you go through the middle and I'll go right over the top. If they're still skulking around, they'll have nowhere to run."

Firetail began to protest the jumping of the chain of command, but Snowhooves silenced him with a hoof. "She's right. Everypony know their role? Good, then move out and be vigilent-if it's not those two then who knows who or what the hay it might be. Either way, we gotta keep the citizens safe." The ponies nodded and silently fanned out across Wither Way, quickly surrounding the building while Ravenfire crept up the siding and over the edge of the thatched roof. With a blur of speed belying her age, she soared up over the rooftop and with a snarl slashed a hoof sideways at head height...and hit nothing but thin air as her momentum carried her over the roof and down onto Lyra with a crash.

"Raven?! RF, what happened?!" Cloud Kicker skidded to a stop and looked down at her friends as the Guards trotted up, searching high and low but spotting nothing that looked like an intruder. Under any other circumstances, the Pegasus would have been amused to see Lyra tangled up on the ground with another mare like this, but now wasn't the time!

"Urgh, guess that was a false alarm," Lyra groaned as Ravenfire helped her to her hooves.

"I think your vision is worse than you thou-hey, wait up!" Cloud Kicker cried as the older Pegasus shook off her jab with a growl and shot up onto the roof again, the younger Pegasus right behind her. "Hey, it's ok old-timer. It's the thought that counts...wait, what're you doing?"

"Observing and not running my mouth," Raven snapped sharply as she knelt down and brushed the thatching of the roof with a wingtip, pausing as her primaries ran over a faint indentation in the straw. She leaned over and stared at it, sniffing it after a moment and making Cloud Kicker feel horribly awkward behind her.

"Um, Raven...?"

"Hold your horses, Kicker," she didn't look up from what she was doing as she again passed a wingtip over the straw roof before smiling grimly and motioning her companion over with a hoof. "What do you see there?"

"Uh," the lavender Pegasus, often considered sharp-eyed by her peers, stared down at the roof just as intently as the older mare was, as if searching for some magic answer, but coming up blank; all she saw was straw. "I think you're getting a little old for whatever it is you think you're-"

"Here, let me show you," the rust-red mare pulled Cloud Kicker into a kneeling position and circled the spot in the thatching with a hoof as she spoke in a calm, controlled tone. "I see a single pony, likely a Pegasus judging by the size but shallowness of the indentation of their hoof here...here...and these two here," she pointed out three more similar dents in the roof. "They stood here long enough for the thatching to bend and hold its shape; the direction of the marks indicate they were looking over the peak of the roof and across the street, directly at us and the party. Therefore, whatever it was likely listened in on us that whole time before betraying their sloppiness; they're either inexperienced or rusty as they left these marks before fleeing," her fierce fuchsia eyes met the Weather Lieutenant's orchid orbs. "That is what my old, experienced eyes see, Cloud Kicker."

"Holy hay," the younger Pegasus breathed as they stood up and she looked at the elder with even more respect now. "Exactly what kind of work did you say you were in, Ravenfire?"

"...nothing too terribly incriminating," the red Pegasus replied just as before, though with a heavier hint of warning in it; perhaps Cloud Kicker really didn't wanna know anymore... The two Pegasi fluttered back down to the ground and reported their findings, with Snowhooves saying he'd alert the Guard to remain vigilent into the night while Cloud Kicker and Lyra opted to keep an eye out themselves for anything else suspicious. Ravenfire, meanwhile volunteered to stay in closer contact with Volare and Scootaloo at the party, as her weaker long-distance vision wouldn't lend itself to much help outside close range anyway.

"Let's just keep this on the low-down for now," Snowhooves suggested. "We don't wanna spook everypony again, ya know?"

"Understood," Ravenfire nodded and made her way back to the party, Lyra took a seat inside the house, and Cloud Kicker kept up a vigil by the umbrella table while the Guards continued their patrols, promising to request further security in the morning. The older mare entered the backyard and did her best to act as normal as possible to avoid alarming anypony, but of course her contrasting colors made her stand out like a sore thumb, and she was quickly approached by Rainbow Dash, with Volare in tow and looking very flustered as she'd just managed to skillfully trip him so his face nearly bounced off her flank, instead missing and being caught around the chin by her tail, leaving him very red-faced indeed.

"Heya, you new in town?" the rainbow mare cracked a jaunty grin and grasped the older mare's hoof before looking her in the eye and noting the hardness that Cloud Kicker had earlier that day, as well as something else she couldn't quite put her hoof on...like the shadow of something familiar. "Do I um...know you?"

"Oho, not likely unless you've been in and around Roam the past five years or so," the red mare shook her head and chuckled as she firmly shook Volare's hoof as well.

"Uh, nope, haven't been there in years..." Rainbow Dash's voice trailed off, and despite her efforts she couldn't prevent the tiniest little whimper from escaping her throat at the mention of that name. Luckily it seemed nopony heard it as Vinyl started the music back up again, a little softer this time as Sweetie Belle and Rarity helped her sort through her discs while Pinkie came bouncing up and shook the red mare's hoof as well as she babbled out her own name along with a slew of other questions in a single breath.

"Haha, well my name's Ravenfire, I'm from west across the Antlertic Ocean, and a mare never reveals her age, especially once you get up there like me, heh-heh," she tittered and turned back to the two blue Pegasi. "And I've certainly heard of you, Ms. Rainbow Dash; 'fastest flier in Equestria' right? I must say, that was quite the show you two put on up there this afternoon."

"Yep, that's me," the rainbow mare quickly buried her momentary bad memories and cracked another confident grin. "And this here is my pal Volare; he's new here too so don't bite him too hard," she smirked as she nudged him in the ribs.

"Argh, what the hell, Dash?" he shoved her back, but this merely set off a playful nudging match that quickly escalated into a full-blown, competitive shoving contest that nearly went airborne and out of hoof before Octavia shouted out of her studio window for them to knock it off before the Guard showed up and broke the party up. This calmed everypony down, causing Dash and Volare to wave the white flag for now, though they did decide to move onto a plethora of safer party games that Pinkie suggested as she bounced into the house. Ravenfire made to follow before she felt a light tug on her gray-streaked mane and she looked down to find Scootaloo standing there.

"Hello there," she beamed and knelt down to her level. "That was quite the tale you spun up there, young one; but how much of it was true?" she playfully squinted.

"Every bit of it," she pumped a hoof and nodded towards Volare as he and Dash entered the house, still squabbling back and forth. "Heh, trust me, I wouldn't make up something like that about me and my bro. We've been through a buncha stuff since we met and...yeah, he'd probably get on my case if I made something up anyways. Oh, names' Scootaloo by the way," she beamed.

"So I heard, little one. My name's Ravenfire, but you can call me Raven for short" she nodded slightly and smiled, glancing to the side to see that Cloud Kicker was still keeping lookout. "I'm about to head inside to keep an eye on your brother. Would you like to help?"

"Heh, sure," she smiled and called out to Sweetie Belle. "Hey Sweetie, I'm headed inside! Wanna come?"

"Nah, I'm learning how to get my cutie mark in being a DJ!" the Unicorn filly squeaked, drawing an amused chortle from Vinyl and a whimper of horror from Rarity, whose eye began to twitch in worry at the thought of her little sister blasting bass all over the Boutique.

"Ha, sweet! Catch ya later then! C'mon Raven," Scootaloo grasped the elder's hoof and pulled her along and right into a multitude of party games being run by Applebloom, Applejack and Pinkie while the ever-constant thumping bassline of Vinyl Scratch carried the party further and further into the evening.

............................

As the night wore on, the CMC trio were taken home by their respective peers, with Scootaloo being taken by Pinkie Pie, all being told because it was a school-night and they needed to get to bed soon. They left reluctantly, but not before saying goodbye and happy birthday to Volare, as did the other party guests as they went on their way in twos and threes. Trixie came down from the upstairs studio with a visible smile on her face, but wouldn't answer anypony's inquiries as to what went on up there with Octavia, though Cloud Kicker had her snickering theories.

The blue magician wished everypony a good night, thanked them for being so accommodating, and left the party after pulling Iron Will out of a game of charades he was badly losing; he always played the part of either a cactus, a hat stand, or a tie rack of some sort, making games with him short but nonetheless humorous. The minotaur and the Unicorn agreed that as former "problems" they should stick together if they could. And so, he walked her to Twilight's house before heading out of town to Fluttershy's, whistling a little tune the whole way there and praying to Celestia that Angel didn't go attack bunny and whack him with a fireplace poker or something when he got there.

Soon, the only ponies that were left were Ravenfire, Cloud Kicker, Rainbow Dash, Volare, Applejack, and Vinyl, who'd moved her turntables indoors to keep them from getting wet with dew in the morning, as well as Octavia who as far as everypony was concerned had probably gone to bed already. Having run out of the regular stuff and seeing no apparent harm in it, Applejack rolled in a smaller keg of higher-proof cider she'd had fermenting since last season. The absence of the younger ponies combined with the tongue-loosening effects of the alcohol, and naturally the party atmosphere between the remaining ponies began to drift towards more adult topics; Rainbow Dash and Cloud Kicker were right in the thick of it, swapping increasingly dirtier stories from times past, including a few that even made Ravenfire turn a few shades darker and made Volare feel extremely uncomfortable as he was the only stallion left in the room by this time. And of course, Rainbow Dash keyed in on him like a heat-seeking missile, noting the lack of mug in his hooves and blush in his cheeks.

"So, flyboy," she smiled cheekily as she leaned against him, intentionally placing herself between him and Cloud Kicker and poking her tongue out at the disappointed look on her Weather Lieutenant's face. Uh-uh, I'm gonna be the one to keep an eye on him tonight, sister! "You having a good time?"

"Huh, oh yeah, great time Dashie," he muttered, doing his best to avoid her eyes but failing miserably as she leaned around him and breathed right in his face; he smelled the booze on her breath and he was concerned about exactly what might happen if she wasn't totally in control of her facilities. But it was like she read his mind and her eyes narrowed seriously.

"Hey, I'm not drunk, so don't clam up on me, alright?" she hoofed him in the chest and leaned her back against his shoulder, sipping from her mug as she spoke. "I promised Twilight I'd be mindful of ya, and that's what I intend to be."

"Thanks, Dash," he bumped the back of his head against hers in gratitude which earned him a soft elbow to the ribs. "You just gotta return every blow in kind, eh Dashie?"

"Yep, and I'm keeping score," she smiled proudly. "And as far as I can remember, since I beat you in pretty much everything from Pin The Tail on the Mule, to Charades, found ya all three times in Hide and Seek...yeah, I'm not even gonna count the rest cuz I'm beating you so bad-hic!" Dash let out a squeaky hiccup that Volare couldn't help but laugh at, earning him yet another elbow to the back. "Hey, what's so funny, huh!?"

"Oh, just...can I be honest, Dashie?" Volare turned his head and smirked, readying his defenses for the inevitable firestorm his comment was sure to bring. "That was the most adorable hiccup I've ever heard in my life." It was a good thing he was ready because Dash glared at him incredulously for only a moment before swinging a wing at his head, which he deftly blocked with his hoof and a grin.

"Gah! I'm so not adorable!" she roared, tossing her mug aside and tackling him, punching him with her hooves every chance she got; not hard enough to really hurt, but hard enough to get her point across. "You may be able to try that crap on Scootaloo, but not on me flyboy-grr!" she growled and swung at him again before he rolled out from under her and stood up, panting slightly and readying himself for another charge.

"You are too adorable and the fact that me saying so is pissing you off makes it even funnier! Two can play at the embarrassment game, Dashie-whoa!" he crowed as she yanked his hoof out from under him, crawling over and holding him down as Cloud Kicker hooted and hollered while the others cleared out to watch in amusement.

"Shut up Cloud Kicker-I'll get you later!" Dash growled and pinned Volare's forehooves up beside his head and sat on his chest, grinning triumphantly inches from his face. "Give up, Volare?" she asked, her fierce, rose-colored eyes burning their way into his own.

"Not even for you, Dashie," he shot back, taking advantage of her momentary shock to get a hoof beneath her and fling her off of himself, jumping up and leaping up on the couch, trying to gain the higher ground to make her work that much harder. "Ha, not so easy when you're buzzed, eh?"

"Grah, I'm not buzzed-hic!-raaagh, c'mere!!" The fiery mare launched herself at Volare, apparently more sober than he thought, and crashed headlong into him, wrapping her hooves around his head in a sleeper hold and tackling him bodily to the ground. Volare felt the blood being cut off to his brain and he struggled to pull her off of him, but it was like wrestling a steel cable...a steel cable that kept up a torrent of innuendos and teasing remarks into his ear about what she'd do to him once he passed out. After a few more moments of struggle, he heard Ravenfire's voice cut into the growing fog.

"You're beaten Volare; this fight's over. Give up and fight another day!"
She was right...damn! The stallion wisely stopped fighting and tapped Dash on the shoulder; he was done. Immediately he felt the pressure rise from his neck and the blood rush back into his head as he took a deep wheezing breath and looked up into the dancing eyes of his foe.

"Ha-*gasp*-gotcha flyboy," Dash sat down next to him and rubbed his back comfortingly as he caught his breath. "Gotta hoof it to ya though-you put up a good fight for a pony with next-to-no fighting experience."

"Hey I...beat Ray and Jill...sorta," he pointed out, and she laughed and threw a foreleg over his neck in a short hug.

"You scrapped with two idiots, I'll give ya that; brave, but no blue ribbon. Now c'mon," she thumped him on the chest and hauled him upright, pulling him over to a couch away from everypony else and plunking him down before shoving a mug into his hooves and settling down next to him with a smile. "We've been hearing nutty stuff from Cloud Kicker; what's the craziest thing you've ever done in your life, eh?" She pulled over a mug of her own and took a swig, smacking her lips and inviting him to do the same. "C'mon, it's good stuff."

"Heh, I dunno," he looked down at the inviting golden liquid and smiled wistfully. "To be honest, booze and I haven't exactly been the best of bedfellows in the past." Dash caught the hint of hurt in his voice and she hooked her foreleg through his. She'd experienced enough bad things in her life to know what even the weirdest fears originated somewhere.

"What happened? Did somepony hurt you while you were...well, having a drink or something?"

"Oh, nothing violent like that, no," he chuckled and licked his lips, parched after their wrestling match and looked down at the increasingly inviting hard cider. "Just...let's say it kinda goes hand in hand-er, hoof in hoof with the craziest thing I've ever done in my life," he muttered.

Ah, so that's what it was, Dash thought and hugged his foreleg closer to herself, not caring that everypony was staring at her right now. He was hurt and she'd kinda added to it by opening old wounds...and she wasn't just gonna sit by and let him hurt alone. "Hey...I'm sorry, ok?"

"Nah, you didn't know, Dashie," he shook his mane and sighed, realizing his mood was deflating the party, and he wasn't about to do that! "Heh, but you know," he looked up and smiled at her. "It might help if I talked about it."

"You sure?" she asked, her eyes searching for any pain in his face he might be trying to conceal for her sake, but he simply nodded.

"Yep...let's see, it's really not all that long a story...but I guess it was kinda funny," he shook his head and told of how he was going through flight training school and he'd gotten...unreasonably drunk with his squad mates on the base in Pensacola, Florida one evening. As a joke, they loaded him into the flight simulator and when he'd woken up, he nearly crapped his pants in fear until he realized he wasn't really in a plane...and then he'd vomited all over the inside of the simulator pod.

"Yeah, that was real fun, cleaning that up for a full day...so yeah, I know worse stuff could have happened, but I guess I didn't trust anyone enough after that to take that chance. So I pretty much cut out social drinking after that night," he gave a pained chuckle. "Dumb story, huh?" he moved to take a resigned sip of the cider before a cyan hoof blocked his mouth from the rim of the mug. He followed the foreleg up to its owner and gave her a questioning look.

"Hey...that was pretty crappy what they did to you, Volare," Dash conceded with a concerned frown. "You...if it hurts too much, you don't have to drink that stuff to prove anything to me or anypony else. But if not, well...just know you can trust us to not pull something like that, ok?"

"Can I trust you, Dashie?" His sincere question tore a needle of guilt through her heart as she realized why he'd seemed so socially awkward until now-he didn't have a good reason to trust anypony...poor guy... She thanked Celestia that she wasn't Applejack because if she was, she'd have probably caved and told him everything right then and there. But she caught herself just in time, knowing he'd only be angry if she told him, and covered her guilt with the next best thing.

"Of course, flyboy," she smiled reassuringly. "I wouldn't pull crap like that either; I know when to draw the line when it comes to pranks." Ok, so it wasn't really the total truth, but it was the truth he was looking for, right? "We're here to have fun, and if that means no booze, than I'll go dry myself," she made to chuck her mug over the back of the couch before Volare caught her hoof with a chuckle.

"No need to do that Dashie, I believe you," he stared once more into that golden pool and smacked his lips longingly; damn he was really thirsty all of a sudden! He took an experimental sip and was treated to the unbelievable combination of the best apples Sweet Apple Acres could offer combined with the slightly dry, citric, fizzy bite of an alcohol content that tasted surprisingly low; it honestly made him wonder if Dash really was a lightweight despite her prior claims judging by how buzzed she'd gotten after only a mug of this stuff. "Oh well, down the hatch," he shrugged and gulped the entire mug in a single go, slamming the container down with a sigh and a light belch that drew a giggle from Rainbow Dash as she too drained her mug and grinned.

"Sooo...?" she waved a hoof as he smacked his lips and squinted slightly as he took in the sensation of the drink rocking his insides with more than just alcohol. It was as if the very magic of every single bit of growing, bucking, and juicing by the Apple family was packed into the drink and filling him with a golden glow of a feeling that slowly spread from his core, blushing his cheeks and bringing a smile to his face that showed as he turned back to Dash.

"It's pretty damn good...and even better with friends," he grinned and nodded his approval.

"That's good, cuz ya know what, flyboy?" the rainbow mare leaned up to him and booped him in the nose. "I'm already ahead of ya by a mug...better grab another if ya wanna keep up."

"Oho, is that a challenge, Dashie?" Volare asked, already feeling the hard cider going to work and loosening him up a bit...but hey, he was with friends he trusted, so what was he worried about?

"You bet your flank it is," she smirked and hoofed him in the chest.

"I dunno, I'd hate to prove AJ right," he booped her right back. "That you are a lightweight. So I may have to respectfully decline," he smirked at her little growl.

"Grr...yeah, well that sounds like the words of a stallion who's afraid he can't keep up with a mare like me," she teased insufferably, baiting him once again and delighting in the little sneer of agitation his lip was curling into. "But hey if ya can't, I'll just have Rarity throw some pretty ribbons on ya so you'll at least look stylish when I take you out to a mare's bar and find ya one that's more your pace. Whatcha think of that, flyboy?" she put as much cocky emphasis on the last word as she possibly could, and it proved to be the final straw for the pilot.

"That last bit was below the belt, Dash," he growled, grabbing the handle of his mug and hers before standing up over her, feeling a little satisfaction at her worried expression, unsure of what he was about to do or if she'd pushed him just a little too much. To her astonishment, he marched over to the cider keg, filled his own and gulped it before filling them both again and hoofing hers back to her with a fierce grin. "There, now we're even. And now," he tossed back his mug again and belched loudly. "Now I'm winning! How ya like them apples, Dashie?"

"Woo-wee, get'er, Volare!" Applejack whooped her support as Dash quickly recovered and guzzled her drink, setting the mug down with a belch and a grin of her own, a blush now very evident on her face.

"So what is this now-hic-a drinking and belching contest?" the rainbow mare smiled mischievously. "Cuz I'll beatcha in both if you're not careful, Volare!"

"Well then-hic-put your money where your mouth is, Dashie," Volare matched her blushing smile and signaled to Vinyl. "Hey Scratch, play us some music."

"Which music?" the DJ asked as she powered up her equipment.

"You know, the one I played that day in front of the Library that I said was good for showdowns...just like this one," he grinned.

"Ah yeah, I remember that one," Vinyl bobbed her head and clicked on her recording sphere, searching for the right song for a moment.

"Wait a sec, what do ya mean, 'played music?'" Dash cocked a brow as Volare took her mug again. "Is that what you were doing out in the backyard? But how; you're not a Unicorn!"

"Heh, I think you'll find Volare is full of surprises, RD," Vinyl chuckled as she nodded to Volare; she'd found the song and waited for the right moment to play it. The Pegasus stallion nodded and hoofed the mugs back to Applejack.

"Keep'em comin', AJ," the pilot said as he jumped back down on the couch next to Dash and shot her a confident grin which Dash met with a determined little glare; neither of them planned on backing down this early, that was for sure. Vinyl nodded to herself-it was time!-and started the music, leaning over her turntables to watch while the Pegasi fixed each other in their narrowed sights, studying their opponent's every detail as they awaited their "weapons."

"Till what, pardner?" the country mare obediently filled the mugs and returned to the "combatants" with a mix of worry and pride for Volare, knowing he might have finally found something he could compete against Dash in that didn't involve speed, power, or fighting skill but rather sheer willpower, which he seemed to possess in spades once he put his mind to it...though that was the part that worried her because at the rate these two were going at, they might just pass out before either gave up. Still, Dash did kinda have it coming considering how she kept goading Volare onwards-heh, it'd be right funny if'n tha fish she baited pulled her right in the drink, though.

"Till one of us wins!" Volare declared, shaking Applejack back to the present situation.

"Which'll be me!" Dash crowed and slammed her drink, belching and hoofing Volare in the chest with a laugh and interrupting his own belch with an oof as Applejack refilled her mug.

"Aha, not-hic-funny, Dashie," he groaned and shoved her with a wing as he drank.

"Is too funny," she shot back, hiccuping directly into her cider and getting foam all over her muzzle, much to Volare's amusement.

"Now that's funny!" he chortled and drained his mug, holding it up for a refill. "I think that's four for me and three for you, Dashie-hic!"

"I think you lost count, flyboy," Rainbow Dash glared and blinked the slight blur away from her vision. I'm not a lightweight and I'm not gonna give him the satisfaction of even thinking it! She downed her drink as she too held her mug up for a refill with a blushing smirk. "Cuz now it's four to four." Applejack obliged them and leaned against the refreshment table, laughing heartily as Volare matched her stubborn friend mug for mug over the course of the next several minutes.

"Five!" Volare called out.

"Six!" Dash soon shot back

"Urp-Seven!"

"Eig-hic!-eight!"

"Ha, I got your eight...nine, now-uuuuurrrp!"

"Hahaha, nice one, flyboy...aaaaand ten!" Dash wiped her mouth and sighed, really feeling the cider working its way through her ans she was starting to have trouble lifting her wings; luckily so was Volare, she observed with a smirk. At least they were still even! Meanwhile, Vinyl Scratch had been moved beyond laughter and was now simply stunned, lifting her shades and staring as the two Pegasi each crossed the dozen mug mark.

"Sweet Celestia, where the hay are they putting it all?" the wild-maned Unicorn muttered. True, she'd seen Earth Ponies drink more in one sitting, but these were two smaller Pegasi!

"Search me, sugarcube," Applejack shrugged as she tilted the small keg and frowned; they were nearly out, but she was more concerned for her friends' well-being as they continued to match each other in cider and belches. This was gettin' nuttier'n a pecan pie!

Meanwhile, Ravenfire looked on in amazement at the determination of Volare. True, she could tell he had long-since begun to flag as his increasingly slouching posture suggested, but he kept up the verbal banter right along with the Element of Loyalty, neither giving an inch; quite the literal opposite as they had to lean against each other more and more heavily to keep from falling over. The older mare felt a nudge on her shoulder and turned to face Cloud Kicker.

"Yes?"

"Wanna take bets on who's gonna win, heh-heh," the lavender mare chuckled and stomped a hoof in approval as Volare and Dash let loose twin belches that rivaled Vinyl's bass from earlier. Celestia only knew what Octavia was thinking was going on down here if she wasn't asleep. "C'mon, I got my money on Rainbow Dash; 3 bits," she held out the money with a grin.

"Hmm, I suppose it's all in good fun," the older mare chuckled at the sight of Dash and Volare staring at each other over the rims of their mugs as they downed their drinks. "I'll match you for Volare; he seems to have a lot of guts," Ravenfire accepted the bet, reached into the small pouch around her neck, and plunked down a hoof-full of strange-looking silver coins on the table.

"What the hay are those?" Cloud Kicker inquired as she picked one up. It had the picture of a proud-looking Unicorn stamped on one side and a hoofprint embossed on the other.

"Roaman Pegarii*, worth roughly half a bit each," she answered tersely as she turned back to the competition.

"Huh, guess I'll accept these, then" the younger Pegasus shrugged and went back to the game, where Dash and Volare were trading barbs over their performances earlier that day as what was left of their inhibitions departed at the same rate as the liquor.

"Ha, that loop you-hic!-pulled halfway through that routine was feeble and amateur at best, flyboy," Dash leaned heavily upon him, her apple-infused breath washing over his cheek as he swayed slightly and gave her a severe look, or as severe as he could muster, anyhow.

"Oh yeah, well that...whatever that-the Split-S you dove into was sloppy and you're lucky you didn't crash."

"Hahaha, me lucky I didn't crash? You're lucky I didn't have to save your flank-again!" she slurped her cider noisily and nuzzled up against his neck for a moment. She had to admit though, for a skinny pain in the neck, he was awfully nice and warm...whoa, no, snap outta it, Dash, she slapped herself in the face and looked down with a little whimper at her empty cup. Great, that meant another...wonder if he's getting as full as I am? "How you holding up there, flyboy?"

"Still going as strong as I-burp!-can. Heh-heh, s'cuse me," he chuckled as tipped his empty mug over, his cheeks blushing pink and framing his weak smile as he felt the cider swill around in his swollen gut. "Guess I'm out too...AJ, what's the count at?"

"Er, 15...each," the country mare declared, fiddling with the spigot and barely getting a final half-mug out of it before shrugging. "Heh, sorry sugarcubes, but we're fresh out." She sighed in relief; at least she wouldn't have to roll these two out of here with the keg later. Besides, she hadn't had any herself, and she set to sipping what was left. Meanwhile, Cloud Kicker and Ravenfire began to pocket their bets since a tie seemed inevitable now. But Vinyl was struck with a sudden idea and sneaked out of the room towards the basement stairs.

"Aww man, and I was this close to beating you too," Dash held her hooves a wobbly inch apart before swiping at his shoulder and missing him completely, her momentum nearly carrying her off the couch before she caught herself with a nervous laugh. "Eh-heh, I haven't been this sloshed in a while." She rubbed her eyes and mouth with a hoof before looking up at Volare with half-lidded eyes. Heh...I guess he's really not that bad-looking, she thought and idly ran her hoof along his shoulder, smiling when he didn't shy away from her touch. "So, flyboy..."

"Hmm?"

"That music...how are you playing it?"

"Oh, um..." he scratched his mane with a hoof, strangely not caring that Dash's own hoof had begun to subtly trail down his upper back, tracing slow circles in his fur as he explained how the nature of his body giving off a tiny amount of magical energy allowed him to play his musical thoughts via Vinyl's amplifying equipment.

"Wow, that's...pretty radical, actually," Dash stopped her hoof just above the base of his right wing as it brushed against something that felt off. She looked down and her hoof recoiled slightly from the black ring that encircled the base of his wing. How the hay hadn't she noticed that yet?! "Flyboy...what is this?"

"Oh, that. I honestly don't have any idea. It showed up after Ray and Jill healed my wing but nopony, not even Luna, knew what it was," he shrugged weakly as Dash gingerly touched it again, while Ravenfire, Applejack, and Cloud Kicker looked on curiously. It felt tougher than fur and feathers should be, almost leathery, and the sensation of it sapped a little of that inner glow the cider had given her as she looked up at him with concern evident in her eyes.

"This isn't hurting you, is it?"

"Huh-nah, it's not. It really doesn't feel any different at all, although it did feel kinda tighter after a bad dream I had last night," he conceded with another shrug.

"What kinda dream was it?" Dash had returned to curiously running her hoof over it, but at her question, Volare paused.

Great, how the heck do I tell her what I saw? She's gonna think I'm crazy or something! So instead, he simply shook his head again and leaned into her touch, allowing her gentle caress to distract him from the imagery that threatened to crop back into his mind. "I can't really remember...I just know I woke up and that ring felt tighter, like it was trying to squeeze my wing off or something. But then I went back to sleep and...when I woke up again, the feeling was gone. Crazy, huh?"

"Hmph, you can say that again," Dash smirked slightly as she slowly allowed her hoof to trace further up the leading edge of his wing, relishing in the sudden twitch it brought him.

"H-hey, watch it there, Dashie."

"Oh trust me, I know what I'm doing," she batted her eyes as she idly played with his primary feathers. "Sooo..."

"S-so," he replied, a tiny moan escaping his lips as her hoof sent sparks of sensation running up and down his wing...which slowly began to try to flare out of its own accord again. Ok, so maybe he wasn't that loosened up just yet! "Hey, didn't you ask about that music earlier?" his question halted her tracing hoof for a moment.

"Yeah, I did. What kind of music was that?" she resumed her teasingly light touches as she spoke. "Never heard anything like that before. So why dontcha tell me, that is...unless this is too distracting for you?"

"...nope, not distracting at all," he said quickly and suddenly scooted his body up against her, pinning his rising wing between them and smirking; problem solved! She gave a tiny growl of frustrated defeat in her throat before resolving to simply lean against him instead as he spoke, relieved to be free of that distraction, as semi-interesting as it had been. "Anyways, to answer your question, that music is called Flamenco."

"Flamingo?"

"No, no, no, Dashie," he chuckled at her misunderstanding and nudged her with a hoof. "Fla-menco. It's a type of guitar music that comes from Spain, the country of my grandfather's heritage. Specifically, it comes from southern Spain: Andalusia."

"Andalusia..." the rainbow mare mouthed the strange word before smiling. "Sounds like a neat place."

"Oh it is, and you know what else, Dashie?" he leaned up away from her, his wing relaxed and his silvery-blue eyes bright with recollection. "That's not the only cool thing that comes from there. There's a breed of horse, the Andalusian, that's long been used as a war horse in human history and is considered by many to be the smartest, purest, and noblest horse breed on Earth....the Horse of Kings."

"Wow..." Dash breathed. "That's pretty awesome, Volare...but I gotta ask: why that music though? Couldn't of been cuz you think I'm all those things, could it?" she cracked cocky grin which drew whinnying laughter from Applejack and Cloud Kicker, while Ravenfire only shook her head and chuckled. But Dash ignored them and motioned for Volare to answer her question.

"Oh, um, not to say you're not all of those things, Dashie-"

"Good answer," she hoofed him playfully. "But for real, why?"

"Because...heh, you're gonna think this is crazy, but the music is from a game called Ace Combat Zero," he replied as Vinyl returned, hovering something behind her back and drawing strange looks from the other ponies. "Whatcha got there, Scratch?"

"Oh, ya know, I saw you guys were gonna end up tied so I figured 'what the hay' and brought up some of my own stuff," she grinned hugely and levitated a sizable bottle into view, a large grinning pony skull quite evident on the label. Applejack stared at it in bemusement while Cloud Kicker facehoofed as Vinyl also set out three small glasses.

"Vinyl, seriously?!"

"What?" the DJ yanked the cork out with her teeth, pouring herself a small cup of the dark amber liquid as Dash and Volare glanced at each other, wondering if they were looking at their own demise in bottled form.

"You're gonna have them go from hard cider to Caribou-ean rum!? That's gonna knock them on their flanks for sure; it's like 140 proof!"

"Well, what better way to decide who's better at tossin' 'em back, eh?" Vinyl threw back the cup and swallowed, wagging her tongue and sighing before filling the other two glasses and levitating them over to the seated Pegasi. "You really wanna see who's tougher? Drink up!" Volare had caught the strong, spicy scent of the alcohol almost immediately after the DJ opened the bottle, and he looked at the cups cautiously. That on top of what they'd already had could lead to a hell of a hangover later.

"I dunno, Vinyl...Dashie, what do you-hey!" he cried as the mare snatched the cup out of midair, gave it an experimental sniff, and downed it, though she swiftly wished she hadn't as it burned its way down her throat, causing her to cough and pound Volare on the back with a hoof before catching her breath. "Dash, you ok?"

"Hay yeah, I'm always ok," she pumped a hoof and pushed the floating cup towards him. "Try it-totally blows that cider away, no offense AJ."

"Oh, none taken sugarcube," the country mare scowled in mild disapproval; she'd been glad those two were finally settling down, but now...oh sweet beans, this could get ugly right quick. Ravenfire on the other hoof dug her Pegarii out of her pouch and added two more to the stack, upping the ante and smiling at Cloud Kicker.

"You back in?"

"Grrr, you bet I am," the Pegasus sat her bits back down and shouted. "C'mon boss, you can take him!"

"You're damn right I can!" Dash looked patiently over at Volare, licking her lips in anticipation. "Not gonna quit on me now, are ya flyboy?" She ran her hoof back up to the base of his wing and tweaked it in just the right spot, causing his wing to try to flare; but as it was still pinned between their bodies, it only managed to uncomfortably strain the ligaments and draw a gasp from his lips. "Well?"

"Not on your life, Dashie," he growled, took the cup, and downed it, albeit at a more controlled pace than she had. It still didn't spare him from the fiery, sweet concoction as it scorched its way down to his stomach. He sighed and wiped his lips, giving her the best smirk her could manage. "One to one?"

"Not for long," the mare tweaked his wing again and waved the cup. "Fill'er up, Vinyl!"

"Haha, that's the spirit!" the DJ laughed and filled the cups again. Dash stared into the drink for a moment before looking back up at Volare, who was matching her grin for grin, refusing to give up.
Heh...guy's like me...just won't quit. All the more reason to keep going! They simultaneously slammed the drinks and motioned for another refill, though Volare's cup nearly fell out of his wobbly hoof. As the DJ poured them more, Applejack hid her face behind her hat, just knowing she was going to hear it from Twilight if she ever found out the Earth Pony had stood by and let this continue.

"So, anywaysh-hic!-tell me about thish Zero game," Dash slurred slightly as she sipped on her fourth cup.

"Ace Combat Zero," the pilot corrected her, suppressing a small heaving sensation that escaped as a burp instead. "It'sh about two fighter squads in a pilot-no, wait...two fighter pilots in a shquad called Galm Team. One's named Cipher, and he's considered by many to-hic!-be the besht fighter pilot of his day."

"Sounds like a rad guy," Dash nodded slowly, her senses dulled by this new influx of booze.

"Yeah, he gets so good and shoots down so many enemiesh that they start calling-hic!-calling him the Demon Lord," he swilled the rum in his cup and downed it with a groan before continuing. "He painted the wingsh of his plane blue...and was never shot down in his career...some say he was the greatest fighter pilot of all time..." he trailed off, gauging Dash's astonished reaction.

"Damn...wait, you said there were two of them though, right? Two-hic!-pilots?"

"Mhm, I did," Volare sighed as Vinyl refilled their glasses again, taking the occasional shot herself as she listened on.

"Who was the other?"

"Oh, him...his name was Larry Foulke, but he better known by hish nickname: Solo Wing Pixy," Volare paused for a moment to force another sip past his lips before resuming. "He got that nickname cuz he once got the whole right wing of his jet shot off. But he not only kept-hic!-flying...but he finished hish mission and landed safely too. Ever since then, he'd painted the wing of his jet red to commemorate the event as he and Cipher flew together, fought together, and shwore their loyalty to one another... what?" he caught the strange grin growing on her face as she leaned closer to him to whisper in his ear, accidentally spilling a little of her drink on his leg.

"Volare...I've got a shecret."

"What kind of secret, Dashie?"

"I'm the greatest flier there is...and you lost your wing but now you've got it back...so you know what that makes us?" she leaned back and clapped a hoof on his shoulder, splashing more of her drink on him, but he didn't care; he was too riveted on her fierce, rose-colored eyes that danced with the light of excitement and alcohol. "That makes me Cipher-hic!-and you're Solo Wing, hee-hee! Isn't that awesome, AJ?"

"Heh, it's a funny coincidence, Ah'll give ya that, sugarcube," though the farm pony had to admit the similarities were striking. But her smile faded as she noticed that Volare wasn't really smiling himself, rather he seemed to be wearing a thoughtful half-frown. Dash quickly noticed and tilted her head in bemusement.

"What's wrong, flyboy? It fits, right?"

"Oh, heh-heh, I'll admit shome of it fitsh," he nodded, though his voice took on a grimmer tone as he spoke. "But I really hope that'sh not totally the cashe...cuz while Cipher and-hic!-Solo Wing were good buddies, they...well...they eventually had a really bad falling out. Solo Wing betrayed Cipher and they tried to kill each other on multiple occasions." He punctuated his last words with a quick toss-back of his drink and a grunt. "So, I guess I'm trying to say: don't hope we're too much like them."

"Jeez..." Dash breathed, tipping her cup up and emptying it before burping softly. "Like you'd try to betray me though, cuz you know I'd kick your flank from here to Cloudsdale and back," she hoofed him in the shoulder with a confident chuckle. "So who eventually won?"

"Well, Cipher did eventually, but-"

"Ha! Told ya," the rainbow mare crowed, thrusting both fore-hooves in air. "Dash wins and the crowd goes wild!" she breathed loudly through her hooves, eliciting an eye-roll from Volare.

"Crazy pendeja," he muttered.

"Say what, flyboy?" Dash cocked a brow and stared at him like he'd just grown an extra wing from his forehead.

"It's Spanish, Dashie," she smirked at her bemused expression. He didn't often speak it much anymore, but the alcohol had loosened him considerably by this point...and since she didn't speak the language, he decided to have a little fun with her head. "Just like this is: Quien es un pony tonto? Tu eres un pony tonto~" he sang drunkenly, further adding to Dash's consternation.

"Heh, I think you've had a little too much to drink, flyboy," she laughed and shoved him with a wing, but he merely shrugged her off. But, seeing that he'd found a way to bring her out of her comfort zone and finally gain some sort of advantage, he cast out his inhibitions with an inward hell with it, and spoke again with the heaviest accent and the cheesiest grin he could muster under the circumstance.

"Rrrainbow Dash soy caliente como el fuego!" he half-growled the words before realizing what he'd just said. Holy hell, have I totally lost it? Do I even care, though...? He winked at her-god he winked!-earning him a swat to the face with a wing and a cup full of rum shoved up to his lips.

"Take it back, maybe you haven't had enough, Solo Brain-cell," she teased and tipped the drink back, pouring it down his throat a little too quickly and making him sputter. "Teach ya to talk fancy to me," she stuck her tongue out at him before realizing this meant he'd had one more drink than her. "Damn, hey Vinyl? One more?"

"Yeah, uno mas?" Volare quipped and caught another muzzle-full of wing, but the DJ was in the midst of chugging the remainder of the bottle, deciding to help her pal Volare out since Dash won too often anyway. The Unicorn slammed the bottle onto her turntable and belched loudly before setting her chin on her hooves and smiling weakly.

"Nope, all gone guys; guess Volare wins," she winked at Applejack who sighed in relief that it was finally over.

"Aww damn!" Cloud Kicker growled as Ravenfire scooped her bits up, but Rainbow Dash refused to be beaten in front of everypony like this. She looked around desperately, but there was no more booze to be found. C'mon Dash, think! You can't lose to this guy-he'll never let you live it down! Suddenly a crazy thought jumped into her mind as her vision trailed up the shelf-covered wall opposite Vinyl's turn-tables. The Pegasus turned to Volare and batted her eyes again, leaned over and accidentally belched in his ear.

"Gee, thanks Dash," Volare waggled a hoof in his ear as she gave him an apologetic smile and staggered to her hooves, pulling him up with her. "Aww, now what, Dash?" Applejack caught the look in Dash's eye and snorted.

"Can't ya'll just lose gracefully, RD?"

"Hey AJ, both of you shut it," she waved a hoof at the singular mare and turned back to Volare, running into him and nearly knocking him back onto the couch. "Now then, I haven't lost yet cuz we're both still standing...so we're gonna go to sudden death rules." Her announcement caused Cloud Kicker to snatch her coins back from Ravenfire and stare at the two Pegasi.

"Oh boy-hic!-what's the entail?"

"Truth or dare...I'll dare ya to do something and if you can't, you tell me a truth inshtead," she smirked and leaned in closely again. "And you know what I wanna know about, flyboy." His eyes widened at her whisper that sounded almost like a threat and she felt his body tense, heard his sharp little inhalation, and she knew he knew that she meant business. "So how about it, Volare?"

"Grr...fine," he bowed his head. "What's the dare?"

"I dare you to beat me to the top," she nodded drunkenly at the shelf-covered wall and smirked. "Without wings."

"Oh goody, cuz if you'd have said with I'd have lost outright," he waggled his tongue at her error and she growled again as they staggered to the wall. Applejack again facehoofed: this was just stupid, stupid, stupid! But these two were on a competitive roll like nothing she'd ever seen before and some strange part of her knew it wasn't right to stop them. She gave a resigned sigh and looked on, hoping they couldn't even coordinate themselves enough to make it high enough to get hurt if they fell.

"On your mark..." Dash nudged the pilot.

"Get set..." he replied with a smirk, determined to not lose this.

"Go!" they both cried and began to climb. To Applejack's astonishment, though they slipped and fell at least twice a-piece, the two hammered Pegasi somehow managed to climb to the corner where the wall met the ceiling, arriving at roughly the same time.

"I won," Dash declared.

"Hell no, I won," Volare snorted.

"Pfft, I did!"

"No, I did, Dashie."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah!" he glared at her and belched despite himself, causing Dash to chuckle and swipe at him. Unfortunately, the alcohol was having a stronger effect on Dash than she cared to admit, and she finally lost consciousness mid-swing, collared the stallion with a limp hoof, and pulled them both off the wall with a yelp. As he wasn't even near sober enough to fly, all he could do was brace for impact as the floor rushed up to meet them. But as it did so, things slowed down for the barest of instances for Volare, and he had just enough coherent thought left to turn himself under Dash and cradle her protectively to his chest just before they hit the floor with a loud whoomp!

They bounced once, causing Volare's head to snap back and thunk against the floor. He saw bright stars for a second, followed by the fiery colors of Dash's forelock as it settled over his eyes before his vision went dark, and he too passed out. The final sensation he experienced was the comforting scent of fresh rain from Dash's mane and the gentle sounds of her breath in his ear...she was alright...she was ok...urgh this is gonna hurt in the morning...

----------------------------
*Pegarii based on the Roman Denarius

Notes: Whew, this may be the second-to-last uber chapter for a while folks cuz now I gotta fully focus on finals!
However, in the spirit of the chapter, have some more fittingly awesome art from from the excellent JohnJoseco:

Next stop: hangover-land!

Comments

[Kingyorri79]

woo update

[MoldyShishkabob]

YOWZA! ANOTHER!?

Now to actually read.

[ShadowBro]

I facepalm everywhere at the drunken antics.

[TacoTown]

and this is why i'm extremely glad i have an impossibly high natural alcohol tolerance.

[Spacecowboy]

Still miffed over the whole Twi thing, and I'm still not really liking Dash at all V, sorry. Still reading it since I've already read 400,000+ words and it would be a waste to drop it, but just not getting the enjoyment out of it I used to.
And no, not asking for you to reaffirm why you did what you did with Twi since we already had that conversation when you first brought it up, but I just can't get over it. Even though only a short time had passed in the story's timeline, a hell of a lot of words were brought up leading into it and it's just leaving me feeling meh.

[totallynotabrony]

So was that inspired by this image? Solo Wing Pixy vs. Rainbow Dash
fc06.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2011/210/c/7/solo_wing_pixy_vs_rainbow_dash_by_pvtskwerl-d4231kp.jpg

[Anonymous Assassin]

You sir have just made my day! Oh Dashie, you're such a tease... I love it! Moar!!!

[_CheckMate_]

so, what happened to dash in Roam?
-hope we get to know soon

[Liqwidice]

Hooray for drunken ponies!!!!!

[Grey Rebl]

That was fast O.o

[Assasin_Asha]

Who is? You is! Applejack!
... he is going to have a nightmare about a crash, isn't he? His brain is in enough stupor for this to resurface, what with the scent stimulation and all that...

[LtCWest]

Hangover-land. Been there a few times myself, but most importantly the blackout.
I remember during basic miltary service (Austria still has conscription but only 6 months, darn, too short), we had a long day and I decided to stay in the barracks for that afternoon. My buddys convinced me to have ourselfs a little party in the compounds own bar. One moment Im swallowing my 9th bottle of booze, the next I find myself in my bed of the company building in the morning hours. I swear, I was never more confused than then. Thankfully the Hangover was bearable.

1725767 That, sir, is an awesome picture indeed!

[ThunderDash]

YAY

[MoldyShishkabob]

Yay! Drunken antics ensued and now intense migraines shall follow!
Also, Volare and Dash aren't allowed to play ToD at slumber parties!

[WrapperCat]

Yay - drunken antics!

I'm still intrigued about the black ring and that dream though...

[Brilliant Point]

Ah, Volare has a Spanish mode.

[walters host]

Coincidentally, my cousin and I are about to have a drinking contest.
Keep up the good work.

[Tyrannosaurus_Tux]

>Mfw
picturewars.net/uploads/53d54e7d36.JPG
In case you were wondering where that face came from

[myhe01]

YAY! ÜBER CHAPTER!

[clonezero]

What an adorable chapter that was!

Just loving the AC:0 analogy, gotta wonder if Volare's gonna milk it and start using that phrase.

I have gotten past the tipsy stage when I do drink, but that mainly is because I never really liked drinking. There was that one time I did enjoy a good number of Vodka shots, still just ended a bit tipsy and thankfully no hangover the next day. One of the few pros of having a big gut I guess.

On the other hand I have been known to act like a drunk while under no kind of influence every now and then. :derpytounge2:

[BronyBear1]

I don't know why, but ponies and alcohol always makes me laugh my ass off.. Good work, have a mustache

[Steel City Pegasus]

lol Cloud Kicker 69'd that porcupine i bet...that's her typical day at the zoo

[.Tzeentch.]

1726118 great now i want a buzz lightyear in equestria story

[djthomp]

Pretty easy peace between Dash and Trixie, I like it. Authors tend to create over the top hostility between the two of them way too often in my opinion.

Chekov's metal bar, I'm calling it now.

Hmn, looks like Ravenfire is a veteran of something, I wonder what.

Woah Dashie, that's starting to get a little frisky for mixed company there!

They are going to regret that in the morning.

[DeltaOsprey]

Drunken ponies are always fun. Hangovers however....

Of course if it we me they would both wake up with permanent marker on their faces because messing with passed out ponies/people is fun.

Also I don't drink because of situations like this, where I would wind up hurt because of key phrase.
Hey y'all look what i can do.

[cloudranger]

Well, Dash lost, finally. Losing consciousness in a game like that is the definition of losing. Also it's called a blackout and leads to memory loss, and with the amount they drank, it was only a matter of time for that to happen. Volare Rey de Cerveza (well it's just alcohol, not specifically beer, but it sounds better by my reckoning)! Also, what you did there near the end it sounds an awful lot like a word that starts with f and has shadow in the middle of it. If it is, that's bloody awesome. If it's not, still cool.

Love it!

[Stanislas]

1726914

I wonder who is the mare......?

But You are lucky to have a normal mare, me she can feel with her damn magic when i found a mare cute or attractive, and when its happen, she trow her damn minion to the mare in question. Sometime she really a big pain in tfhrgihgbdswfhhcd.

DAMN CHRYSIS WHY YOU HAVE SLAP ME WITH THE KEYBOARD. IS NOT LIKE IIFHHSJCUFJELFIEOFUEKVUEJO. OK OK

Chrysalis is the best queen ever, nopony can rival with her. Whoohoo.
*whisper* please somepony save me

[petrichor11]

Beautiful chapter my friend :) good luck with your finals

[Raze]

Ya know what would be hilarious? If Volare wakes up in bed with Rainbow!
Best. Prank. Ever.

Period.

[Starscape]

Oh snap. Next stop: Volare and Rainbow in a bed in the morning, courtesy of a Cloud Kicker prank. That would be epic!

[radiation_pony]

blue angel updated? drop everything (including the ten other stories that updated), you have my undivided attention

tho drunk... correction very drunk ponies sleeping in the same building? whats the rating agen?

[leafz pegasus]

Er meh gerd Ravenfire is Scootaloo's mom!

[Coldwall]

Awesome chapter. However, since nobody has pointed it out yet, your Spanish kind of sucks.

Que es un tonto pony? Tu es un tonto pony~

"Que" translates to "what" rather than "who". The word you are looking for is "Quien". Also, "es" translates to "is", you need "eres". And in most Latin derivative languages like Spanish and French, the adjective goes after the noun. So in total, you should have something like this,

Quien es un pony tonto? Tu eres un pony tonto~

Next we have this,

Rrrainbow Dash soy mas fuega calliente!

This makes no sense. You are saying "Rainbow Dash am more hot fire." I'm not entirely sure what you are trying to say here, so I'm just going to leave it at that.

Other than that, I really enjoyed this chapter. Drunk shenanigans are always fun.

[V-Pony]

1728085

[YorkBrony]

Next stop, Hangover Land? CHOO CHOO MOTHERBUCKERS.

[Dancing Dead]

[Ledomare]

Roaman Pegarii

lel

...actually, in retrospect, Volare is oddly appropriate considering he's a pegasus, and pegasi are strongly Roman and Italian-influenced. That Fridge Logic.

Although I was hoping for more drunken secret-revealing... (sho, RAinbow... Ya know, I ushed to wATch you in a show on Earth... *hic*)

[RainChaser14]

1727155 Damn son violent much? (it was cloud kicker btw. who else?) if i flirted with another mare i'd be in the hospital. luckily im not that stupid.but dont worry bro ill try my best to save you!
Rainchaser: *sneaks into your house at night* psssssst silverfang! come on im here to save you.
Silverfang: dude she'll know if i leave i wish i could but i cant! the only way would be if i blocked her tracking spell.
Rainchaser: what if i saw off her horn?
Silverfang: that could work.
Rainchaser: *evil grin* brb
Silverfang: oh god....
Rainchaser: *flies above Chrysis's bed* okay time to cut off your hor-
Chrysis: *wakes up* WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING PUNY PEGASUS!!!!
Rainchaser: ahhh shit.

[Lazaro Sol]

DU SPREKEN SPANISH ICH SPREKEN DEUTCH UND FÏSH DU!
Take that spaniard! Ick möchte kekse!

[GuyFace]

I'm almost willing to put money down on that ring on Volare's wing making him evil and Dash having to almost kill him. (Or kill him, if you wanna be dramatic.)

[Brilliant Point]

1728253 Oh I completely forgot about that movie, that scene is my favorite in the whole movie. I really need to watch that movie again.

[Tyrannosaurus_Tux]

I don't always drink

but when I do

It's root beer. :V

Stay thirsty, my little bronies.

[Astarea]

Drunk Dashie is best Dashie. But why wouldn't she let loose?
i0.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/004/006/y-u-no-guy.jpg

[Rhodesm96]

Dashie is best drunkard

[NotAvaliable]

Que es un tonto pony? Tu es un tonto pony

Isn't that French? Or latin?

Also drunken ponies. You can never go wrong with drunken ponies.

[DrakeRenar1]

YAY UPDATE!!!

Also yay beer and wtf did Volare say in Spanish?

Makes me wish I remembered what I learned after taking 4 years of French can't remember much of it!

Oh well great chapter! Next chapter hangover land!

[Jess887cp]

1735407 Spanish dude. Means "Who is a silly pony? YOU are a silly pony." And then he called her flaming hot. I'm guessing, I only know a lil spanish from growing up in New Mexico.

[Man Of War]

Esh, Hangover land, never visited there myself but I hear it's a doozy. Anyway, another great chapter, I can't believe I was actually able to read the Spanish sections, even after not having a class for two years now. And I may have miss judged Ravenfire but I'm still cautious about that situation. Anywho, good job and can't wait till the next chapter.

[Miketipe]

Hm...

Somehow, I'm predicting shenanigans. Shenanigans and unrestrained freak-outs.

[Chain Reaction]

So what is this, the third time Twilight leaves Rainbow Dash alone with Voltaire and they go and do something completely stupid? And this is AFTER Twi says she trusts RD to not do anything stupid!

"You know what? Buck you Dash, you're a bad influence on him! I'm giving in to my magic-fueled hormonal rage and taking him back to Canterlot. And then we're getting married. YEA."

... Yea.