The Alicorn Problems

by TheTimeSword

Problem 12: Rainbow's Radical Revival

The underside of the desk felt like a perfectly fine place for wallowing in misery to Rainbow Dash. Her back legs kicked up against one side, the back of her head and neck resting on the opposite end. The plywood above her held a few scratches, and she could see where past captains had kicked the backboard a few times. She had done it too, though it remained unclear which were the newest addition. Of course, she'd have to find a home for the desk. All the furniture would need to be removed. If she'd just allowed Spitfire to dissolve the Wonderbolts, she wouldn't have to do it alone.

But she was alone. Not a single soul had joined the Wonderbolts after all her attempts. She had stopped trying after the weather factory. There wouldn't be any new recruits.

In a way, she wasn't just hiding from the responsibilities of shutting down the Wonderbolts. She also hid from her own pain. Fruitless, she knew, as the pain sunk deep in her heart. No amount of shaming herself underneath the captain's desk changed that. But the sunglasses were up there, the pin, and even the hat she'd found collecting dust. Nice mementos, but she wanted nothing to do with them. After all, she was the last Wonderbolt.

Everypony else had left, that was true, so how was it her fault that the Wonderbolts failed? Aside from being captain at the time of closing, she had no reason to blame herself. She tried! More than any of those who left, Rainbow Dash had stayed and ensured the Wonderbolt's continuation—if only for a few short days.

There it was. That's why it hurt so much more. She had tried to stay loyal to the bitter end, but the boat already sank, and here she drowned when everyone else had been smart enough to abandon ship. She kicked the desk, leaving a scuff mark, then batted a hoof against the plywood. The humiliation and frustration worked together to sit as anchors on her chest. Some tears started to form in her eyes, again, and she blinked them away. She refused to cry for the second, or perhaps it the fifth time today.

As she continued wallowing, a knock came to the door. "Go away," she yelled, hearing the echo from the small space ring louder in her ears. There wasn't a second knock, but she could hear the sound of the door opening. The hinges hadn't been oiled, and doubtless they would be any time soon. "I said, go away," she yelled again, but didn't bother getting up to see who it was.

Whoever entered took a step into the room. Rainbow Dash almost got up to scream at the pony playing deaf to her words, but the voice that spoke could only be Fluttershy. "Rainbow Dash, you need to come out here," she said, and Rainbow peeked her head up from behind the desk. The mare held a big smile on her face that stretched from ear to ear. Rainbow Dash bet whatever Fluttershy wanted could only be bad news—no one smiled that big aside from Pinkie Pie. She would give anything to hear a good joke from that pink mare right now.

For a moment, Rainbow Dash debated throwing the captain's pin at Fluttershy. Though it wouldn't scare the yellow mare into leaving, and she didn't deserve Rainbow's wrath. But before she could do anything, Rainbow Dash heard the sounds of clattering hooves and voices coming from beyond the door. "Did you bring someone with you?" she asked, knowing it had to be that annoying stallion Zephyr Breeze. Yet the sounds were too numerous for just him.

"I didn't bring anyone. But I think you should come out and see," Fluttershy replied, that grin still on her face.

Rainbow Dash tried her best to keep a serene face, though she imagined the sort of things out that door. Perhaps the others had come to Fluttershy's call. The six bearers of the Elements of Harmony, now Wonderbolts. That was an idea Rainbow Dash had mused at one point—but that wasn't the Wonderbolts. That was the Harmonybolts. Wonderelements. Rainbow Dash wasn't sure. But there were too many voices for just those four.

With a heavy sigh, Rainbow lifted the sunglasses off the table and placed them squarely on her face. "Can't let them see my red eyes," she softly said to herself. "Lead the way," she told Fluttershy.

Fluttershy did so without breaking her cheery attitude. Every trot lifted an exaggerated raise of her legs, every movement held a tilt of her head side to side. All of it felt too cheery for Rainbow Dash, especially when nothing warranted cheering.

And then they came to the main hall. As soon as Rainbow Dash rounded the corner, her jaw sagged, then she went completely slack-jawed. Lines of ponies, dozen upon dozens and then double that, stretched out to the outside. From where she stood, Rainbow could see where the lines led to—the far wall of the hall where a few makeshift tables sat with a pony behind each. One happened to be Zephyr Breeze, and she could only see another mare behind a different table before the lines blocked the others.

"Rainbow Crash!" a voice called, and Rainbow almost sunk to her knees. She couldn't believe her eyes. Rubbing them, she first looked at Fluttershy to make sure she saw clearly, but the yellow mare already meandered toward her brother. When she turned back to the voice, Spitfire had reached her. "I never would've thought you'd keep this place together. I thought making you captain would've just ended with you doing all the moving out by yourself."

"Spitfire! You're back? To be a Wonderbolt?" Rainbow spoke in short bursts. She had been so surprised by the ponies, Spitfire, and Zephyr Breeze that she accidentally held her breath. "I thought you wanted to go out and be something else?"

Spitfire sat her bag down on the ground as the other ex-Wonderbolts settled in behind her. There was Soarin, Fleetfoot, and Blaze—and everyone that left. "We did, but we found it all really—slow. Magic is kind of cool. We just came back to see if you wanted to join us before we tried something else. But seeing all these potential recruits? I don't know. Maybe, well—it just feels right, being back here." Spitfire threw a look over her shoulder, and the others nodded. "I believe you were right, Dash. Being a Wonderbolt isn't our cutie marks, but it is who we are."

"So you'll come back and lead?" Rainbow Dash asked, almost wanting to plead.

"Lead?" Spitfire scratched her chin. "I remember quitting. Can't be a captain if I haven't signed on yet." She then took a look at the rest of the room. "Seems like there will be competition. Maybe I'll lead the Wonderbolts again one day, but for now, I hope to serve with you—Captain Rainbow Dash." She held up her hoof, and Rainbow Dash quickly bumped it with her own. "Let's get in line. I don't want to be the bottom of the basket when it comes to pickings," she told the others as they trailed to the end of the line.

The pain Rainbow Dash had felt only a short while ago evaporated—replaced by another, more unwelcome feeling. She knew what it was, and what she had to do, but it might have been the hardest thing she'd ever do. As she glanced over at Fluttershy who stood next to her brother, Rainbow knew what must be done. With head hung low, Rainbow marched to the gallows.

Zephyr spoke with one potential recruit, Fluttershy at his back, when Rainbow Dash stepped to his table. "Hey, Rainbow Dash, you like what you see?" He then grinned up at Fluttershy as he rose. She took his seat to help fill in the information from the ponies while Rainbow took him aside. "And I was talking about yours truly." He made a motion with his hoof, the smug look on his face churned her stomach.

"How'd you do it? How'd you get so many ponies here? Did you lie to them?" Rainbow Dash asked her questions in a firm voice, but kept it low enough. She moved him far enough away from other ponies so that she could speak a little louder. "Tell me. Am I going to have to tell all these ponies you promised something that I can't commit?" She made sure to meet his stare, refusing to let him look away.

But the stallion chuckled and shook his head. "I didn't promise these ponies anything. Well—" He paused, and then he did look away. "I did promise the girls something, but it's not extreme. The ladies at the tables are all from the mane dresser shop I work. I asked them to help spread the word and got them to sit in and help me—in return I told them you'd let them advertise the business here." He then gulped, and Rainbow knew there was more. "Also, that you'd let them sponsor any events the Wonderbolts were at. I figured that was fair and you wouldn't mind."

Rainbow Dash studied the stallion a moment. "But where did you advertise? I searched every place in Cloudsdale for ponies to join. How did your little barbershop get such a crowd?"

"Cloudsdale?" he repeated with a start. "Dashie-poo." She wanted to bop him on the snout for such a nickname, but she let him continue. "I went everywhere except Cloudsdale. All these ponies used to be earth ponies and unicorns. Why would anyone who could already fly want to join the Wonderbolts?" He shook his head as though the answer were obvious. "Albeit, I went to places that specialized in more—" he waved his hoof in a dismissive manner "—athletic groups."

"So anywhere you generally avoid?" Rainbow asked in a flat voice.

"Yes! Exactly," he replied with a nod.

"You did all that for me?" Rainbow Dash often ground her teeth in Zephyr's presence, and found him revolting on more that one occasion. But she never would've expected him to go so far out of his way to improve her life, when all she ever did was ignore him. "Even when I didn't ask you to? Why?"

Zephyr shrugged. "It was pretty obvious. The girls needed customers, you needed recruits. I kinda expected a bigger thank you instead of all these questions." He put a hoof on his cheek. "Even the girls were more appreciative, and they had less to lose."

"I—" Rainbow chewed her bottom lip. "Zephyr. I am appreciative. It's just, I mean, I didn't expect—well, that is to say—it's just that you're you and—" She paused, staring at him and growing more frustrated every second. "I just thought you were a lazy, good for nothing, annoying, intrusive, braggart, with no real talent for anything other than procrastinating."

With a smile, Zephyr nodded along and waited. When it became clear Rainbow Dash wasn't going to continue, he furrowed his brow and opened his mouth to speak. He shut it again as though he expected her to say more. When she didn't, he said, "And now you know that's not true, right?"

Rainbow raised a questioning brow. "No? I'm pretty sure you're still a majority of those things. But you're also a really great friend. And I'm not sure I can ever thank you enough for everything you've done. I thought my dream of being a Wonderbolt was over, but you changed that. Thank you, Zephyr." Ignoring her repulsion, Rainbow gave in. Wrapping her hooves around his shoulder, she embraced Zephyr in a tight hug that lasted for a lot longer than she wanted, but less than he deserved. He had saved the Wonderbolts, when even she couldn't.

"So is it too late to say the deal also included a date?" Zephyr asked.

Pushing away from him, Rainbow kept her hooves on his shoulders. "It so did not. Why would your barbershop friends want to date me?"

"No—me," he started to say with a shake of his head. He must've seen the grin on her face, because he then said, "Very clever, Dash."

"If you're so interested in being near me, I think I've got something else in mind." Rainbow Dash couldn't believe what she was about to suggest. Zephyr being near meant she'd have to put up with the stallion more often than she wanted to—which was never. But maybe she had been wrong about the stallion. Not entirely, he was lazy. "I know it doesn't have much to do with hair, but how about you become my assistant? You'd actually be a valuable member to the Wonderbolts. Without having to fly—wouldn't want to interrupt your siestas."

That sent him slack-jawed. "Assistant? Me? With you? Are you sure you wouldn't rather just go on a date and then let me down easy?"

She chuckled at that, and caught herself. Maybe this was a bad idea. If he got her laughing too often, she might enjoy his company. But it was too late now. "I know it sounds crazy, Zeph, but I think you can do it. Things are changing, and I think you already have. I'd be honored if you came aboard."

Zephyr gave a shrug, and then a nod. "You've got me for as long as you need me." He then raised a leg, motioning for another hug. Rainbow Dash obliged with little hesitation. As they embraced, he said, "So. I did talk to Sky Stinger and Vapor Trail. Apparently there's no code of conduct for dating your fellow Wonderbolt?" She already regretted this.

Comments

[duckmagee]

old habits die hard but friendship wins in the end