Alternate Beginnings: Year One

by Doug Graves

19 The Interview

May 1st, 993

The atrium to the Wonderbolt Academy is normally not a very crowded area, but the mare pacing back and forth has drawn a number of spectators. None have dared to ask the rainbow maned pegasus what exactly she is waiting for, but the rumors quietly whispered back and forth are doing very little for her nerves. She knows more than a few have left the area, supposedly on errands, only to return a few minutes later for another look.

Rainbow Dash stops pacing for a moment to look outside. She sees that she still has ten minutes before her interview is slated to begin. She gulps, trying not to let her nervousness show. She glances around before making her way to the bathroom, turning the tap on and washing her hooves. She pats her muzzle, careful not to smear the makeup Rarity insisted she wear to the interview.

She has to admit it makes her look good, but no amount of makeup can distract from the bulge in her belly. It wouldn’t be noticeable if she wore a sundress, but Rainbow is less concerned with hiding her pregnancy than what some froo-froo dress would do to her reputation. Plus everypony in Ponyville already knows, and judging by the glances she is getting here it isn’t much of a secret.

She performed worse than she knows she is able on the practical portion, but she still got a passing grade. She had deliberately gone slow to keep from over exerting herself and potentially miscarrying. Even so, she pushed herself hard, and the training she had been doing before has paid off. Maybe not the highest score in the history of the academy, but there will be a next time. She hopes.

The door to the bathroom opens and one of the higher-up Wonderbolts walks in. Rainbow recognizes her as Fleetfoot and tries to keep her inner fanfilly quiet. Being too excited around the Wonderbolts, even as awesome as they are, won’t help her get her place among them. Rainbow nods in greeting as she dries the last of the water off her hooves.

Fleetfoot stops behind her, saying in a low voice, “Takes a lot of nerve to show up here looking like that.”

Rainbow turns her head, glaring at Fleetfoot. She isn’t the first mare to notice or take a long second look, but it is the first time somepony said something to her muzzle. At least, here at the Wonderbolt Academy; she had certainly heard enough of the gossip at home in Ponyville.

Rainbow continues glaring at Fleetfoot as the mare starts moving around her but manages to keep her temper in check. She had practiced this with Doug over and over, trying to keep her cool in the face of whatever somepony might say. She even got him to roleplay as a bigot, insulting her to her muzzle, but his acting skills had taken a nosedive, like he was afraid of truly making her feel insulted. Which, she supposes, she is glad he did; she doesn’t like the idea of her stallion being able to lie to her so casually, even if it is pretend or to help with her anxieties.

Fleetfoot paces back and forth, continuing to stare Rainbow down, unfazed by her glare. “I mean, I know we value a large repertoire, but did you need to try every trick in the book?” She smirks at Rainbow, before heading to the door, not having used the facilities. “Maybe next time you come crawling back you’ll have some better instruction!”

Fleetfoot leaves the room, leaving Rainbow shaking with rage, barely managing to contain herself. As Rainbow slowly calms down, she turns to the mirror and sees a tear start to ruin the mascara. She gives a quiet 'oh ponyfeathers', grabbing a paper towel and trying to contain the damage. She mostly manages to smear it around a little but at least stops the worst of her tears from ruining the rest.

Rainbow gives a long sigh as she turns to the door. The encounter has probably taken long enough that she won’t seem too eager if she shows up this early. She wishes Doug was here, he can help her take the edge off, but he has been a little distant lately. Like he isn’t trying to distract her, but he does anyway. A quick glance outside confirms that she will be just a minute or two early, and Rainbow makes her way to the office.

Rainbow glances from the number on the paper in her hoof to the door leading to the office. She looks up at the placard:

-Captain Spitfire, Administrator-

She steels herself before knocking, entering when she hears a muffled, “Come in,” from inside.

Spitfire sits behind her desk, an impressively large one with several stacks of paper on the side and a folder in the middle. Spitfire places her forehooves together, eyes absently scanning what Rainbow recognizes as her resume. She barely gives Rainbow a glance before motioning at the seat in front of the desk. Rainbow pauses; she would have preferred to stand, but if she is being instructed to sit, she will. She carefully walks to the seat and sits down, keeping her eyes on Spitfire. The captain continues to scan through the resume, leaving Rainbow to fidget in silence. After a minute the captain’s eyes snap to Rainbow, causing her to flinch.

“What are the components of an inverted spiral?” The question comes out as a harsh bark.

Rainbow pauses a split second, eyes screwed up in concentration. “Start in the basic inverted position, back parallel to the ground. Tilt the wings to a forty five degree bank, should be two wing lengths radius minimum, hold position until minimum safe height or maneuver end. Either roll out to basic inverted or reverse roll to standard flight.”

“What is the Wonderbolts slogan?”

“Altius volantis!” Rainbow almost snorts as she belts out the slogan, it being prominently displayed at the main gates.

“How many Wonderbolts have had a foal before joining the Wonderbolts, or had foals while in active duty?”

Rainbow pauses at the question, barely quenching a glare at Captain Spitfire. She takes a deep breath, answering, “No Wonderbolt has foaled prior to joining, or had a foal and returned to active service. I know of two mares that have gotten pregnant and subsequently retired or moved to administrative, non-competition positions. I have not heard of any stallions siring during their tenure.”

Spitfire gets up from her desk, slowly walking around to the other side. Rainbow keeps in place, head locked forward, her eyes continuing to follow Spitfire until she walks out of her field of view.

Spitfire slowly paces around Rainbow, taking a hard look at her wings, flanks, and belly. Rainbow’s steady breathing and clenched muscles makes the protrusion from her barrel even more noticeable to Spitfire’s trained eye. She walks back into Rainbow’s field of vision before a wing snaps out, blowing open the folder to reveal a series of photographs. Rainbow’s head briefly glances at the top photo before returning to attention; it is a picture of her during the Junior Speedsters, around the time she performed a Sonic Rainboom.

“What makes you think that you will be the first mare to ever foal and make it to be more than a benchwarmer? I saw promise in you, Dash!” Captain Spitfire flicks her wing, blowing the top photo to show one of Rainbow training with Doug.

Rainbow looks down at the photo, a startled gasp escaping her lips. “That was one of our early training sessions! How did you-”

Spitfire waves a wing, silencing Rainbow’s question and blowing to the next photo, one of Rainbow and Doug following a particularly strenuous workout. The next photo, partially hidden, appears to show Rainbow and Doug in a compromising position, though it is hard to tell if it is explicit.

“And you couldn’t just become the first pegasus to ever do that, no, you had to pile even more on! Whatever you want to call it, monster, human, Doug, you couldn’t have chosen a more scandalous stallion. That it was even possible to happen, well, let me tell you.”

Spitfire finishes her lap around Rainbow, coming back to her seat at the desk. She looks hard into Rainbow’s eyes; Rainbow stares back, displaying confidence though inwardly she fears the rejection she knows is coming. She thinks through some of the lines Doug had rehearsed with her, about how to turn speciesism or herding to her advantage, but none of them seem like they will matter. Spitfire and the Wonderbolts want the best, laws or no, and trying to force her way in through an underhoofed maneuver like that will just build resentment and ultimately never accomplish anything.

“I’m impressed.”

Rainbow’s stony expression breaks, looking quizzically at the Captain, who is beaming at her with a smile. Spitfire continues, “You come in here, despite the stares, the comments behind your back, knowing that it has never been done before and likely will never be done again. You manage to hold your temper around Fleetfoot, something I never imagined you of all ponies would able to do. Obviously that stallion of yours has had some good influence on you, and I hope he continues to do so. However, I cannot allow you to join the Wonderbolts in your current state. Don’t get me wrong, I was impressed by those brass teats of yours, and pretty soon you’ll have the biggest pair of any mare here.”

Rainbow can’t help but grin at that comment, and Spitfire smiles back at her. “Rainbow Dash, do you want to prove your dedication to the Wonderbolts, show that you are capable of hoofing anything and everything that gets thrown at you?”

Rainbow gives a quick nod, nearly yelling, “Yes Ma’am, I will, Ma’am!”

"Good. The head weathermare at Ponyville is due to transfer soon. You will be taking over for him, starting immediately. He will continue to work with you, ostensibly to show you the ropes.”

“Um, ostensibly?”

Spitfire continues without acknowledging Rainbow, “In actuality, he will take a six month vacation, starting whenever you feel comfortable on the job. At the end of those six months, he will return to Ponyville where you will take as much time off as you require, plus one month of maternity leave once your filly is born.”

“Wait. It’s going to be a filly? I didn’t even know that!”

“Well, I can’t reveal all my sources,” Spitfire gives Rainbow a sly smile, “After that, you will continue as head weathermare in Ponyville until you feel adequate to return here. Is that acceptable?”

Rainbow considers the situation. She is already two months along, and it will probably take a month before she has enough knowledge on weather management to both create a weather schedule and keep to it. Once she is nine months along she will still be able to keep up with the weather, barring any unforeseen calamities, but she’ll need to take it slow. Tough, but doable. The last two months of her pregnancy, after she stops working, she will need that time to rest, let her body recover from the strain she put it through as well as actually having the foal. Applejack and Rarity can help with the foal when she has to return to work a month later.

“Ma’am, I accept those conditions. I look forward to applying here in the future.”

“Rainbow Dash, if you manage to hold out in Ponyville that long, and return here with the same scores? You’ll be a shoo-in, but I’m not one to guarantee a spot like that. You’ll earn it like everypony else, and I know you can.”

Rainbow gives a smile to Spitfire before squealing in joy. While she won’t be flying with the Wonderbolts yet, or even in the next several years as she retrained her body to the pinnacle she currently held, she knows she can do it.

“Oh, and Rainbow? Please forgive Fleetfoot for the way she acted in the bathroom. I put her up to that, to gauge how you would react in a less formal setting.”

The door opens, Fleetfoot slowly walking in with a sheepish grin on her muzzle. “You did great Rainbow, both with me and in the interview. I look forward to working with you in the future.”

Rainbow gives Fleetfoot a hug, murmuring, “It’s cool, don’t worry about it,” before nodding to Spitfire and walking out of the office.

Fleetfoot watches her leave, and after the door closes behind her she looks to Spitfire. “Still a shame what happened, she would have been such a good addition. I can't believe she would have made it in despite being pregnant. Though it is nice to see that cocky attitude tempered to something more workable.”

Spitfire glances over the photographs before looking over to Fleetfoot, "You think it was the right call? Should we have let her fly with us?"

Fleetfoot shakes her head, "No, I think this is the right call. Saves all of us a lot of embarrassment, but especially for Rainbow when she is unable to keep up."

Spitfire nods before returning the photographs to the folder and tidying up her desk.

Comments

[Moonlit_Stardust]

THIS is why I admire Spitfire AND how I think she would act! She not only put's the Wonderbolts reputation first, but it's members (and potential members) also. This gives Dash all the time she needs to have the Foal, raise her, get back in shape and try again when she thinks she can do so ALL while still having a paying job to boot!

You have my Respect for a well done and flushed out personality for Spitfire!

[Spiritus Arcane]

8957436
Still a tad creepy. She's not only had someone spying on her personal life, but may have been into her medical records since she apparently knew the foal's gender when Dash didn't.

[Doug Graves]

9304798
Yeah, Rainbow not knowing the gender is a bit off, because those type of spells are used in later chapters (and far earlier than two months in). I see Spitfire being more secretive and mysterious with the knowledge than anything sinister, and might not even have realized Rainbow didn't know herself until Rainbow admitted it.

Moonlit beat me to it, but I see the spying as more of 'scouting' a potential recruit, as any sports team would do. Or a background check for a military organization, who will be getting some sort of security clearance.

[Coretz]

9305283
Exactly. A prestigious paramilitary aerobatic/aerodefense subdivision of Equestria's flying forces would definitely do that kind of investigative work if they were worth their salt.

[f0st3r21]

I wonder if this herd / single mare stigma will explain Berry Punch and Derpy’s respective foals somehow.

[kord]

this story is giving me so much deja vu, it's like every big story note is happening exactly as I expect but all the details are completely different.

[MurderP0n7]

11622635
Everything goes as it should, but the context is different... I think it’s the only reason Celly hasn’t told SD or better known as BB to do something against Doug... that and Aj