4: A Pony on the Phone
Chapter 4: A Pony on the Phone
After my morning classes, I showed up at the copy shop in the student union. This was the beginning of my third semester working there.
The familiar routine of printing, collating, and stapling came back easily. Making copies wasn’t what I wanted to do with my life, but it was good enough for a part-time job.
“So what’s it like living with a pony?” asked Justin as I worked side by side with him putting together packages of lab notes.
I figured he must have seen my Facebook post about it. I shrugged. “It’s different."
“What does Nathan think?” he asked. “You two are still together, right?”
“They haven’t met,” I told him. “And yes, we are.”
“He’s kind of a jerk,” said Justin.
“So are you,” I shot back. He had never been one of my favorite coworkers.
Justin shrugged. “Takes one to know one. At least I’ve never lied to you.”
That was another reason I didn’t like Justin. He never apologized for anything, and didn’t seem to care that I disliked him.
Unfortunately, I realized that Rainbow never apologized for anything, either. I was going to try speaking to her again later that day. I couldn’t figure out why she didn’t want to talk about the citizenship issue. I would help if I could, but she had to let me.
Before I left work, I bought a small notebook. There was a lot to remember when learning someone’s life story, and I thought it was a good idea to have a written record.
When I got back to the room, Rainbow wasn’t there. Her schedule indicated that she should have finished her last class of the day hours before.
I worried slightly, but let it go. It’s not like she was required to spend her free time in the dorm.
I ran through my favorite websites a few times. None of my professors had issued homework, and I actually felt somewhat bored. I picked up my crochet yarn and was about to start on a new project when the room phone rang for the second time that day. I grabbed it.
“Is Rainbow there?” asked a female voice.
“No, she isn’t,” I said. “Is this the USCIS again?”
“Um, no,” said the voice. “This is Twilight Sparkle.”
I had no idea who that was, but judging by the name it was probably a pony. “Rainbow mentioned the name Twilight a few times. She’s out of the room at the moment, but I can take a message.”
“I was just calling to see how she was doing,” said Twilight.
“She’s like no roommate I’ve ever had,” I offered.
Twilight laughed. “She can be a little bit stubborn, can’t she? That’s probably a good thing, though, when she’s working on something difficult like her citizenship application.”
I was glad she had mentioned that, because I thought perhaps Rainbow’s reluctance to talk about it may have meant she was hiding it from her friends. I didn’t want to say something and accidentally tip off Twilight about it if Rainbow wanted it kept secret.
“About that,” I said. “Rainbow put me down as a contact for a character reference, but I’m afraid I still don’t know very much about her.”
“She and I have been friends for a couple of years,” said Twilight. “What would you like to know?”
I grabbed for my notebook and a pencil. “I guess my first question is why?”
“That’s…kind of complicated,” said Twilight. “Have you got time?”
“Sure.” I wanted to hear this.
“Okay. Have you heard of the Wonderbolts?” Twilight asked.
“Is it like some kind of show?” I said. I’d heard something about them touring Earth a while ago.
“That’s right,” confirmed Twilight. “It’s a group of ponies who put on a flight demonstration, with tricks and fancy maneuvers. They only let the best flyers join.”
“Did Rainbow try out for them?” I asked.
“You bet she did. In fact, everypony who knew her thought she was a shoo-in.” Twilight sighed. “She didn’t make it, though. Don’t get me wrong, Rainbow is an amazing flyer, and I think even the members of the Wonderbolts wanted her to join, but there were a few technicalities, and, well…it just didn’t work out. Rainbow was crushed. Joining the Wonderbolts was her dream for years. It was all she ever talked about.”
“That’s sad,” I said, “But things are little unclear. What made her decide to move to Earth, go to college, and apply for citizenship?”
“Well, after getting turned down, Rainbow was down in the dumps for a while. I’d never seen anypony so depressed. I got together with the rest of her friends and we set her up with a vacation,” Twilight explained.
“Where to?” I asked.
“Florida,” said Twilight.
I stifled a laugh. It sounded so…human.
“Anyway,” said the pony, “while Rainbow was there, she visited a place called Pensacola and went to an air show.”
“Is that where airplanes do tricks and stuff?” I asked.
“That’s right,” confirmed Twilight. “I don’t know what she saw there, but it made her want to join the U.S. Navy Blue Angels.”
“So…she gave up a pony flight team for a human flight team?” I asked. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
“This has never been done before by anypony,” Twilight told me. “To join, she needs to be a Navy pilot. To be a pilot, she has to be an officer. To be an officer, she has to be a citizen and have a college degree.”
“That sounds really complicated,” I said.
“Oh, it is. Rainbow and I have both been working hard to figure everything out,” said Twilight.
“I’ll do whatever I can to help,” I promised.
“Thanks. It means a lot,” she told me. “It’s good to see Rainbow has at least one friend on Earth.”
That wasn’t the word I would have used, but the multicolored pegasus had put me down as a contact on her application. I supposed we might be friends after all. Unwilling perhaps, but thrown together by circumstances and forced to make the best of it.
Twilight had nothing more to talk about, so we said goodbye. I found it somewhat humorous that after a simple phone conversation I liked her better than my roommate.
With no homework, I searched around on Facebook for friends to hang out with. I only managed to come up with one, Carol. She was another Animal Science major, and we hadn’t seen each other all summer.
After talking a little, we decided to go watch a movie. The theater was at the bottom of Chauncey Hill, east of campus. It was a long walk, but neither of us had anything better to do.
The movie was some forgettable rom-com. Still, it was nice to see a friend. As we walked back, Carol asked me the question I’d been getting from everyone. “So, what’s it like living with a pony?”
“Different,” I told her. After learning a little more about Rainbow through Twilight, I was a less inclined to deal any dirt on her. Friends don’t talk crap about each other.
The sun had set hours ago, and a little chill was starting to overtake the cloudless night. I said goodbye to Carol as we reached my dorm. I stopped to smoke before going in for the night.
Rainbow was sleeping when I got there. All six of her appendages were splayed out in different directions and her mouth was open slightly. She snored just a little.
I shut the door quietly and turned on the dim light in my closet. In the glow, I noticed a small pile of papers on Rainbow’s desk. They turned out to be job applications. If she already had money lined up to pay for everything, I wondered what she needed extra cash for.
Turning back to the closet, I grabbed my supplies and went down the hallway to have a quick shower before bed. I made a mental note for the morning to ask Rainbow if she needed help with the applications. Somehow, I doubted “Weather Patrol” would be impressive previous experience for any jobs around the university.
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A pegasus pilot... o_O
But... how is she gonna control a jet with hooves?! Now I've never seen one, but... really?
I am sooo confused by Rainbow's new goal...
She didn't make the Wonderbolts?
743985
She doesn't need a jet if she can already go Mach 1 and do the Sonic Rainboom.
She really should've joined the wounderbolts, she is a better flyer than at least half of them
744273 She does if she doesnt want to be sucked into a Jet engine
So, I already figured out that the boyfriend is being unfaithful. And trouble with bureaucracy. Interesting times are about to be had.
745057
Um, why would she be flying anywhere NEAR a jet engine to begin with? And based on science, it's actually Mach 5 and then Mach 10 when she executes the 'boom. To put that on a scale the fastest thing that we've had fly in our atmosphere went Mach 7 and it crashed into the ocean.
PS Mach 10 = ~2.5 Mi/S
SOMEBODY MAKE A PICTURE OF RD AS A BLUE ANGEL NOW!!!!
>>supersniper178 but she already is a blue angel
"Wings of Gold" said in it's chapter about college that the first few months there were no phoneline between college and Equestria. But if that would be true, how could TW call with Denise? Is this a small fault in the story or still getting explained?
745624 Oh that's cheesy!
746181 why thank you
745173
The physics behind the rainboom are a little schetchy.
If the mach cone is valid, then at mach 5.5 is when the rainboom actually occurs and as she passes through, her velocity increases to mach 9.7, as long as she doesnt do the rainboom, the jets can trail her. The fastest jets can go upwards of mach 5, maxed out. But not for very long and they cannot turn or they will be torn apart.
> Somehow, I doubted “Weather Patrol” would be impressive previous experience for any jobs around the university.
Um. Hell yes it would! Groundskeeping, anyone?
Also... Rainbow Dash wants to be a Blue Angel. That's amusing.
One thing that confuses me is that Dash would've had to have more go wrong than biffing an audition. I mean, she could've just tried for the next opening and been a horseshoe-in.
Poor Rainbow, why do I have the feeling she wasn't allowed into the wonderbolts because she is a Lesbian in this story, I will have to read on then now.
All six of her appendages were splayed out in different directions and her mouth was open slightly.
Wat?
Am I the only one confused by this?
Aces In Exile - Sabaton
750579
I was also confused by this. My guess is her 4 legs, her tail, and her neck+head. Not sure though.
751037 Maybe it's her legs and her wings?
745330 there is actually a pic of her as a pilot somewhere out there
WHY IS NO ONE QUESTION REALITY ASK THIS IT LIKE THEY ARE IN ON MIND DRUG Make Seem this All normal
745624
Nailed it. /)*(\
It would indeed be her legs and wings = 6 appendages. In avian sauropsids, evolution has fused the ceolurosaurian arms into the compact wing of present day avian sauropsids, where the humerus, radius, ulna, and all attached metatarsals have become one long appendage overlain with feathers upon the musculature and dermal layering. However, no real vertebrate has ever had more than four appendages as the musculature of the upper dorsal body can't properly configure in a way that would be beneficial to the animal in gaining flight or otherwise.
747028 okay, here's the deal: IT"S RAINBOW DASH!!! PHYSICS CAN SUCK IT!!!2.bp.blogspot.com/-X94ACLKYO8E/Tw4LMMMxwPI/AAAAAAAAaus/G9yiPFHzc1A/s1600/110793+-+artist+ponykillerx+being_awesome+rainbow_dash.png
756677
That's the hard truth so...
google.com/imgres?q=mlp+fim+shrug&hl=en&biw=1525&bih=690&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=9SSx6nOsACY2RM:&imgrefurl=http://bronymagic.wordpress.com/tag/mlp-fim/&docid=9PNXDyN0omcj7M&imgurl=http://bronymagic.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/deal_with_it-macro-meme-rainbow_dash-shrug-shrugpony.png%253Fw%253D604&w=283&h=283&ei=G6HcT8_QPLHM6QGjp_yfCw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=891&vpy=142&dur=5259&hovh=225&hovw=225&tx=119&ty=159&sig=110530109439691258378&page=1&tbnh=152&tbnw=165&start=0&ndsp=22&ved=1t:429,r:4,s:0,i:86
744166
she was probably too young or something. Or maybe the recruiter tried to get...personal...with Rainbow and she decked him.
745086
I suppose this Apple user's boyfriend is...MACking someone else! ...Okay I'm done.
747028
Actually the fastest airplane in existance is the experimental N.A.S.A X-43A scramjet which can attain mach 10 for approximately 3 minutes. The scramjet has to carried up to speed under the belly of a large aircraft and then dropped into fight where the engine is ignited. A scramjet engine is basically a large air scoop in which air flows in and is compressed as it narrows into a small combustion chamber. As you probably know air naturally heats as it is compressed and the air is hot enough once it enters the combustion chamber that hydrogen fuel is injected and ignites instantaneously and the hot gases are expelled from the engine thus creating thrust. As the scramjet goes faster more hydrogen is injected and more thrust is made, this continues until so much air is flowing into the engine that combustion can no longer be maintained and the engine extinguishes itself. In laments terms, here's a diagram...
media.defenseindustrydaily.com/images/ENG_Scramjet_NASA_Explanation_lg.jpg
744273 Yes indeed. All she needs is to be able to strap perhaps a booster jet engine to herself, and also be able to carry a minigun, or at least four missiles.
747028 The mach cone is possibly the air resistance from the extreme speed, However, during this she somehow gets enough force to go past this and technically, she seems to get flattened into a cone shape increasing her streamlining and breaking the sound barrier. Anyway, I have no full answer so go suck balls physics... for now.
Edit: Apparently unless she tilts to much the air resistance will hit her full force and probably cause a sudden stop so extreme she'll vomit up her guts.
756677and she's a cartoon so yeah I concur.
762826 SHE IS NOT A CARTOON! SHE'S REAL!! *Cries in a corner* :(
744273
She doesn't need a jet. Fit a couple of missiles under her wings and you have an object that is small, lethal, has the reaction time of a falcon, and can go faster than Mach 1
743985 ive flown a cessna once, she could put her hooves through the circles in the yolk, and her back hooves could go down to the pedals
771706
Making the assumption that she would maintain her speed or agility with missiles attached. That's cute.dl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/Rainbow_Dash_lolface.png
RD wants to become a Blue Angel because she was turned down by the Wonderbolts, eh? So she wants to join the flight demonstration team that her idols are based off of, eh?
Pff!
Screw them! The blue they paint their planes would remind her too much of the Wonderbolts. Why doesn't she come up here and join the Snowbirds? They do better stunts than the Angels, and they fly in Tutors!
May the Grace of the Valar Protect You
Shire Folk
Rainbow Dash wants to join the blue angels? Deja vu because I read a fanfic that sounds very familiar with this. The fanfic was only 1 or 3 chapters. It was about Rainbow Dash failing to join the Wonderbolts but then decided to join the Blue Angels instead.
2278730 Perhaps it was this one?
771706 She cana ctually reach mach 5 effortlessly and attain mach 10 with the sonic rainboom.
771706 Missiles are heavy... just a lowly Sidewinder is almost 200 pounds. Unless she's just carrying the warheads, and then she's the missile. That wouldn't end well.
a bit less
2292629
Wait, REALLY???!!!!
771299
She is real!
However you need to unlock the secret of the dimensions