Draco always wanted to know why Ratchet has mechanical wings, but he never did ask, until one day, when his love seemed down. Ratchet always wanted to fly. But, she never could. Zealous Spike, one of Ratchet's close friends, just came up with a new prototype of mechanical wings, and he thinks that he can help her fly. But something goes horribly wrong.
The filly looked at her small wings. She let out a unhappy sigh as she flapped them up and down, trying to catch the feeling of wing on her feathers. She looked down her to dad. He was holding a cloud just below the edge of Cloudsdale, waiting for the filly to try and fly again. Ratchet was about 8 and she didn't have her cutie mark nor could she fly. Every single time she tried to fly, she did exactly what her father told her to. Crimson always just brushed it off, thinking that she did something wrong. He knew deep in his heart, that there was something wrong with her wings. He just didn't want to accept it.
"D-Daddy?" The scared filly muttered over the cloud edge.
"What is it, kiddo?" He asked softly. He could see the fear in her eyes.
"I-I don't want to jump." She muttered shyly. Crimson moved his ear.
"I don't think I hear you, Ratchet, you have to speak up."
"I don't want to jump! I won't be able to fly! And I never will.. Just like how I will never get my cutie mark..." The filly sat down on the cloud and sobbed into her hooves. Crimson frowned as he flew up to his youngest filly and wrapped his wing around her.
"Why not give it one last try? Then we can head home to Ponyville." Crimson whispered into her ear. She sniffled and nodded as he flew back down to the cloud and adjusted its position. "Okay. On the count of three, Jump. Spread you wings as far as you can. Ready? 3. 2. 1." The filly took a deep breath as she jumped off the cloud. She spread her wings as far of she could, and for a moment, she felt the air catch on her wings, before she started to fall down towards the ground. Crimson flew the cloud under her and she landed softly on it.
"See Dad? I won't ever be able to fly." The filly sighed heavily as her father grabbed onto the cloud with both hooves and began his descent back down to Ponyville.
8 years later
Ratchet groaned to herself as she turned around in her bed. "I am sixteen, bucking, years, old. I still don't have a cutie mark and I can't fly." She looked out her window to see a white unicorn filly, a orange pegasus filly who was on a scooter and a yellow earth pony. The earth pony and the unicorn were staring at the cutie mark on the pegasus' flank, a flaming wheel. Ratchet assumed her talent had something to do with that horrid scooter that was always crashing into her back yard. All three of the fillies appeared to be anywhere from seven to eight. "Wow. Ever a bucking seven year old has her cutie mark. I am sixteen and I don't even have a cutie mark! What the hay!"
"Scootaloo! Ya finally got yer cutie mark! Ah'm so proud of ya!" The earth pony shouted. Scootaloo grinned at her friend.
"Isn't it awesome! I can't wait to show Rainbow Dash!" The white unicorn broke out into a song for her friend.
" We are the cutie mark crusaders," Ratchet closed her window with a groan.
She. Hated. Singing. Ponies. It seemed like every single day, somepony was singing. She remembered one day when the Elements of Harmony were strolling down the streets singing about 'A True, True Friend'. Ratchet hid under her pillow that whole day and in the morning the purple unicorn was singing about morning in Ponyville. Ratchet thought Ponyville was full of a bunch of crazy ponies. The only uncrazy ponies in her eyes are Stardust Shot, Zealous Spike and Zecord Blitz. Her only three friends. Even all her friends had their cutie marks. Stardust's talent was taking photos, Zealous had a talent for fiddling with technology and Zecord has a talent in video games.
In fact, Zealous had made two pairs of metal wings. He was wearing the first pair he ever made and Zecord had the second pair he made. Right when Zealous got his cutie mark, he started a project on finding a way to connect the nervous system into mechanical wings so that Earth Ponies, Unicorns, Zebras and even pegasi with crippled wings could fly. Then, after all the thinking Ratchet was doing, an idea popped into her head. She would ask Zealous to make her a pair of mechanical wings!
"Daddy!" She shouted as she ran down the stairs, excited to tell her father her brilliant idea.
"Yes?" Crimson said as he raised and eyebrow at the almost fully grown filly running towards him.
"I know how I can fly! So you know how my friend, Zealous he makes wings an-" She was cut off by her father.
"Ratchet, I already know what you are gonna say." He smiled softly. "But I should talk to your mother about this." Ratchet smiled widely as she jumped up and down. "Rainbow!" Crimson shouted out into the back yard, where a purple pegasus mare was basking in the sun.
"Yes Crimson, what is it?" Ratchet's mother said as she got off the chair and walked towards Crimson and her youngest filly.
"Well, dear, you do know how Zealous can make working mechanical wings? Ratchet was thinking... Maybe she could get some?" Ratchet and Crimson both smiled sheepishly at Rainbow Flash.
"I don't think so." She said with no emotion in her face. "I don't think she should be given the right to fly until she has her cutie mark." Ratchet's heart sank as she sighed and turned away and sat on her blank flank. "I'm sorry Ratchet, but I just don't want you flying until you know your talent."
"Mom! What if my talent IS flying?" She frowned as she dragged her hoof along the ground.
"Ratchet, if your talent was flying, then you would have been born with working wings." Rainbow said softly. "Instead of being cooped up all day on the Ponynet, why don't you go out and spend time with the other stallions and mares?"
"Because mom! Everytime I go out in public Green Spark, Fireball and Shinning Blade all just follow me around calling me a flightless blank flank..." Ratchet mumbled softly as she turned away from her mother.
"Don't let them put ya down kiddo." Crimson said as he wrapped a wing around the filly. "Just ignore them."
"Yeah, just ignore them, like you father said." Rainbow reinforced Crimson's statement. A grin spread over Ratchet's face as she walked away from her parents.
"Oh, and I think I might have an idea of how to stand up to them." Ratchet said as she trotted out of the hole in the fence that goes around the backyard. "That fucking scooter pegasus..." She mumbled to herself.
Draco waiting as his very special somepony poured her childhood out to him, and then she suddenly stopped. She stared off into space for a few moments before letting out a sad sigh.
"Flash, love... Are you okay?" Draco questioned with worry on his face. Ratchet came back to focus slightly and looked up at Draco.
"Yeah yeah... I'm okay..." She let out a sigh as she nuzzled herself closer into Draco's side. The draconequus blushed slightly. Draco was bigger than a regular sized stallion, but smaller than Discord. Ratchet sighed into his neck as she looked up at him.
"Love, how real do these nightmares feel?" Draco said softly, almost in a whisper.
"Much to real. The pain, I can almost feel it. It isn't nearly as bad as it was, but sometimes when I wake up... I can almost feel the pain in my wings.." Ratchet shuddered slightly. "But, I haven't even gotten into the part about the nightmares." She continued to tell her story to her love.
Ratchet ran past the Golden Oaks Library and knocked into a dragon who was carrying a bunch of scrolls. When she bumped into him, it took the baby dragon by surprise and he blew fire onto the scrolls sending them up towards Canterlot. She could hear the dragon mutter a few things to himself, but she ignored it. She ran towards Sugar Cube Corner and then took a left turn and knocked on a door at the end of the street. She was greeted by a red earth pony. She smiled down at Ratchet.
"Hello Ratchet. What brings you all the way over here today?" She inquired.
"Uh.. Hi.. I was wondering if Zealous is home?"
"Yeah he is upstairs in his room worki-" The earth pony was cut off as the white mare bolted past her and up the stairs. She ran down the hallway and knocked on a red door that said "Zealous" on the top. A muffled voice yelled from inside.
"Come in!"
Ratchet turned the door knob and walked in the room. Zealous' room had posters of various video games and blueprints were spread over his desk. There was a lamp bending over his desk that was the only score of light and a pair of mechanical wings on his desk with make shift metal feathers. Various steam punk like items are scattered around the room and in the far corner is a computer that he made. He pulled goggles of his face and threw them on his bed. He looked behind him to look at the metal plates in his back that hold is wings in and he saw Ratchet, he smiled.
"Hey Ratchet." He mumbled as he used his mouth to tighten the screws in his back.
"Hey Zealous!" Ratchet said as she trotted over to him and sat down. She looked up on his desk and looked at a few blueprints. Most of them were random items she didn't care about but one of them caught her eye she pulled it out from the others and looked at the blueprint. It was a new model of mechanical wings. There was a main metal bar that resembled the main bone in a pegasus wing. It had various joints in it, all the same joints that were in a real wing. Instead of having metal plates for feathers, there were actual feathers connected to the bar. The wings were layered over each other so that flight was achievable. Zealous noticed what Ratchet was doing and he looked at the blue print.
"It is my latest model. I call it a hybrid wing. It is both feathered, like a real wing and it is mechanical. It has the same technology of being able to connect into the nervous system. I still can't figure out how to block those blasted wing boners, sadly." Zealous continued on rambling about the wings even thou Ratchet was ignoring him.
"Yeah yeah I get it. Hush up Zealous." Ratchet mumbled as she looked back at her small wings and then back at the blueprint.
"Well, excuse me, princess." Zealous mumbled as he jumped of his chair and walked over to his laptop on the other side of the room. He started up the computer and swirled in his chair back to face Ratchet, who was still scanning over the blueprint. "What are you doing? Do you like the wings?" Ratchet nodded quickly. "Ah well.. I could give them to you. But I won't be able to start on them for a while. I am still waiting for the shipment of the parts for the wings. The box should have been here days ago, but that mailpony, Derpy, messed up and gave the box to the wrong house. I got a box full of paper. PAPER."
"Well uh... I mean, both times that you did wings, they were for ponies with out wings. You have had no wings nor did Zecord. So.. Does this mean you would have to... Cut off my wings?" Ratchet gulped and shuddered at the thought.
"Uh... What do you think? Yeah, your wings would get cut off. But of course, all of your primary feathers would be reused in the wing." Zealous turned back around and pushed the password into his computer before turning back.
"Did you base your nervous whatever technology off the Cyber Ponies from Doctor Whooves?" Ratchet questions as she put the blueprint back on the table.
"I didn't base it off it it, no I couldn't. It just inspired an idea for me. That' all." Zealous said as he turned back to his computer and opened up a program. He thought for a moment and started to design something. Flash couldn't tell what he was doing so she shrugged it off.
"So.. How did you get YOUR cutie mark?" Ratchet questioned as she jumped up into a chair.
"When I was six, the clock in the living room broke and I fixed it. Then this green blob appeared on my flank. Others have these really long stories, but mine is simple. I fixed something." The red pony said as he continued to design something on his computer.
"Oh..." Ratchet sighed out softly. "Well, I guess I will get going." The pegasus held her head and wings down low as she pushed past the door and trotted down the steps and out of Zealous' house.
As soon as Ratchet stepped out the door she watched as three stallions trotted up to her. She groaned as they all stood in front of her. Fireball took off into the air and started to fly around her in circles.
"Those wings of yours still useless?" Fireball snickered.
"Fire, you got it wrong. Not just her wings are useless, but she is useless! She doesn't even have her cutie mark!" Shinning Blade added as Green Spark used his magic to pull her wings out.
"Poor Ratchet's wings aren't even formed right!" Green Spark stated as they all chuckled in unison. Ratchet was sick and tired of these three.
"I...I-I can fly! And I will get my cutie mark soon! I will prove it to you!" Ratchet yelled at Fireball as he flew around her.
"Oh? You can fly? With those wings? Are you bucking kidding me?" Shinning Blade chuckled and grabbed onto her wings. Ratchet grumbled and pulled her wing back to her side.
"Y-yeah! I can fly! And I will prove it to you!" The filly mumbled softly.
"Prove it!" All three stallions stated in unison. She looked them in the eyes, each of them being about a year younger than her. She took a deep breath and fluttered her wings, the way her dad showed her. She sighed when she didn't lift off, not that she expected to lift off. All three of the stallions started to laugh at her, words like "Useless", "Pathetic", "Talent less" and "Flightless" were all coming from their laughs. Ratchet whimpered and covered her ears.
"No! Shut up!" She cried as she curled up in a ball. Suddenly the laughing stopped as she heard foot steps behind her. She turned around and saw a Zebra standing tall as he held out his mechanical wings with pride.
"Sparky. Come here." He said softly, his voice was lower than most stallions. He was two years older than Ratchet. Ratchet sniffled and ran up next to the zebra.
"H-Hi Zecord..." The white filly mumbled softly and shyly. He smiled down at her before he looked back at the stallions with a glare. All three were standing with there jaws wide open.
"What? Never seen a zebra before?" He almost yelled at the stalloons. They all shook their heads and backed up a bit. "There is no reason for you to be teasing Ratchet like this. She is NOT useless. If anypony is useless here, it is you three. Jus because she don't got her cutie mark yet, doesn't mean she won't get it. And a cutie mark is just a mark on yer flank. She already has a talent, and she just has to discover it. Now all three of you. SHOO!" When he finished all three of the stallions bolted towards the other side of town. Zecord Blitz sighed.
"I hate those three. I really do." He said as he looked down at Ratchet who was wiping her eyes with her forehooves. He leaned down and wrapped a wing around her. It was cold to the touch, yet calming to her all at the same time. She leaned back on Zecord who was slightly bigger than her and she let out a shaky sigh.
"Why do they have to tease me?" She questioned.
"I dun know, Sparky. I think they jus do it because they feel down 'bout themselves."
"I hope you are right Zecord..."
"How about we get you home?" Zecord smiled as he trotted out in front of her and turned around."I'll race ya!" Ratchet giggled and took off after him, racing with him towards her house.
"So, Zecord was like a big brother to me. Mostly because my brother was off in Canterlot messing around with other Unicorns. I never saw him much . So Zecord took the role of big brother and he always protected me." Ratchet murmured as she continued to push herself as close as she could into Draco. He didn't mind and he just wrapped his paws around her tighter.
"Well, I will have to thank him for protecting my marefriend." He grinned slightly. They had been together for a year now, but she still blushed every time he called her his marefriend. And Ratchet's cheeks turned a deep red as she buried her face into her neck. "Aw, Jeez, I'm just teasing you Flash." Draco chuckled lightly.
"Anyway.." Ratchet mumbled as she withdrew her muzzle from his neck. "A few days later...."
"Applebloom! Come on! We have to get a new crusader!" Sweetie Belle shouted as she trotted into Ponyville.
"Ah'm coming!" She shouted back as she came up behind the unicorn.
"Hm.... I think we should get a pegasus! Not that we are replacing Scootaloo, but I think a pegasus would feel right."
"Ah agree with ya! Lets go!"
"Cutie mark crusaders! uh...... Recruiters!" Sweetie Belle blurts out and the two fillies say "YAY!" At the same time.
Sighing. That is what Ratchet was doing. She had been kicked outside and been told to play by her brother. He said she spent was to much time on the Ponynet, but she didn't think so. It was all she had to do. She looked at her wings with a sigh. She wanted those mechanical wings and she wanted them now. She glanced up as a rainbow streak goes over the sky. Rainbow Dash. She was jealous of that pony with her whole heart. She did a sonic rainboom! How old was Ratchet now? Sixteen. She was still a blank flank. Most other ponies had their cutie marks at six. Maybe she was talent less. Her ear perked as she heard some prissy voices around the corner.
"You two are still crusading for your cutie marks? It's no use!" The grey filly said then both of the fillies said at the same time "Blank Flank!"
Ratchet had been bullied, so she wouldn't let it happen to this earth pony and unicorn. Ratchet snorted as she glared at the prissy ponies. She blew a bit of brow hair back into her mane as she ran out and stood in front of the two younger fillies. Both of them started in aw at the larger filly. She was much bigger than them, she still had a blank flank, and she was a pegasus.
"Why are you prissy ponies bullying these fillies? You used to be a blank flank! I bet you wouldn't have liked it if someone called you a blank flank!" Ratchet snorted as steam came from her nostrils. She had never felt more mad. But she sure did feel powerful. The two prissy ponies, who had never been stood up to like that before backed away at the sight of the larger mare looking down at them. "Yeah, that's right! Leave these two alone! Go!" Ratchet held out her wings and stomped her two front hooves down on the ground loud as the two prissy ponies ran away. The two fillies gazed up at Ratchet with wide eyes.
"Whoa! That was awesome!" A orange pegasus came up from behind a tree on her scooter, her small wings buzzing as her scooter came up to them.
"Scootaloo!" The unicorn jumps up and town like that crazy party pony Ratchet had seen around town.
"Hey Sweetie! I was just showing some of my awesome tricks to Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo boasted.
"We were jus' looking for somepony to join the CMC 'cause you already got ya own cutie mark." The earth pony said.
"Yeah. And uh..." Sweetie looked up at Ratchet who sighed.
"My name is Ratchet Flash.." Ratchet mumbled as she folded her wings back up.
"And Ratchet here came up and stood up to Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara!" Sweetie continued.
"Ah'm Apple Bloom and this 'ere is Sweetie Belle!" Apple Bloom stated as she pulled Sweetie to her side. Suddenly Ratchet's shy side came in as she moved her head so her mane was covering her eyes.
"H-Hi.." She muttered.
"Well.. Ah.... Sweetie and I still dun got our cutie marks, and we have a club called the Cutie Mark Crusaders, maybe you could join us if ya wanted to!" Apple Bloom said in one breathe really quickly, but Ratchet was used to talking quick. She often talked with the speed of a Sonic Rainboom.
"Oh... I uh.. I don't want to trouble you." Ratchet said in almost a whisper.
"It would be a trouble at all! We were just looking for a crusader!" The unicorn stated.
"Oh.. I uh.. I guess I could go on one crusade..." Flash muttered quietly
"Follow us! We have to bring you the clubhouse!" Scootaloo stated as she pointed to the wagon on the back of her scooter. The two fillies jumped in and made room for Ratchet, who was much bigger than them.
"I can just walk.. I don't think I will fit.." The white pegasus muttered softly.
"Oh, Yeah, she is a pegasus. I forgot. You can just fly, we will meet you at Sweet Apple Acres!" Sweetie stated.
"I... I... I can't fly..." Ratchet mumbled as she prodded the ground with a hoof.
"Oh..." Sweeties ears went down.
"I can go slow. It won't be as cool, but I don't want to leave Ratchet in my awesome dust." The orange filly boasted. 'She got one ego there' Ratchet thought to herself. Scootaloo buzzed her wings slowly and took off slowly. Ratchet sighed and galloped behind the wagon on the scooter.
The three fillies led the older white pegasus mare up a hill on Sweet Apple Acres to a tree house. When Ratchet finally caught up she was panting.
"Come on! We gotta bring you into our club!" Scootaloo said with the same cocky voice. All three of the fillies rushed into the clubhouse and Ratchet walked in behind them. She barely fit through the doorway bu once she was inside she sat down. The three fillies were already pushing stuff into place. The pegasus was on one side of the tree house with bongo drums, the unicorn standing at a podium in the middle and the earth pony standing on the right. There were all wearing red capes that had a blue symbol that had a yellow pony in the middle. Ratchet sat down on a rug in the middle of the treehouse and waited. The orange pegasus held up her hooves and started a gentle beat on the drums for a few moments before she grinned and began to bang on them wildly causing the hole clubhouse to shake. She stopped and waiting a second before hitting the drum one last time.
"We, the cutie mark crusaders, elect Ratchet Flash to join us a a sister, friend, confidante, ally, blossom buddy... Scootaloo did you even revise this???" Sweetie spoke loudly
"Uh... Oops... Gotta remember to do that." Scootaloo giggled and Sweetie Belle continued.
"Gal pal, comforter , chum of chums, home girl, blah blah blah blah and fellow cutie mark crusader! You are solemnly sworn in here this day in witness of your fellow sisters, friends, confidonts, blossom buddies, comprades, blah blah blah blah." Sweetie Belle finished and Scootaloo jumped up.
"Congratulations!" Confetti exploded and somefilly threw a cape at Ratchet, that turned out only big enough to be a scarf so Ratchet tied it around her neck as a scarf. All four of them giggled. Ratchet hadn't ever given this any second thought and kinda just joined them. Oh well, it might be fun.
"CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS BOAT BUILDERS! YAY!" The teo fillies bumped their hooves together and waited for Ratchet to put her hoof up. Instead, she just sat there looking at them with a quizzical look.
"Isn't that a bit.... Silly?"
"Aw naw. It isn't silly at all. Trust me. My sister is the Element of Honesty!" Applebloom boasted. Ratchet rolled her eyes and put her hoof in. Nothing better to do. The unicorn and the earth pony bolted outside and Ratchet was close behind them.
"So uh... How and where are we gonna build a boat?" The white pegasus questioned.
"Right here and with wood!" The unicorn said as she picked a hammer up in her mouth. Ratchet thought for a moment before shaking her head and giggling. She picked up a hammer in her mouth and helped Sweetie nail a board onto the 'base' of the boat, that was just a bunch of planks nailed together in a sloppy manner. After a while the two fillies were pushing the boat toward a small creak. Once they got the boat in the water all three jumped in. The bottom of the boat gave out when Sweetie jumped in next to Ratchet and Applebloom. The boat fell totally apart and the three had to swim over to the shore. They all did it just in time to hear a boom and watch a flash of Rainbow go over their heads. Ratchet had known of the Sonic Rainboom but she has never seen one. Her mouth fell open. The other two fillies mouths were also agape as they all stared at the rainbow as it zoomed over Sweet Apple Acres. It suddenly stopped as a cyan pegasus with a rainbow mane landed in front of them.
"Hellooo-Oh.. Who are you?" Rainbow Dash said as she looked at Ratchet. The white pegasus just responded by holding out her small wings, her Underdeveloped Primaries showing obviously.
"I'm Ratchet Flash! That rainboom was soooo awesome! I knew about it but I have never seen one! Oh wonder what it feels like to fly? I want to do a Sonic Boom of my own!" Ratchet went on for a while, leaving all three ponies wondering what she was saying. Rainbow put a hoof to her mouth.
"Whoa! Calm down! You are talking faster than Pinkie, and I didn't even think that was possible!" Rainbow chuckled as she pulled her hoof away from Ratchet's mouth. The cyan pegasus looked at Ratchet's wings, and saw she didn't have a cutie mark. She didn't show anything about it before she grinned.
"Hey Rainbow! Rarity was looking for you this morning!" Sweetie Belle chimed.
"So was Applejack!" The earth pony added.
"Huh. I wonder why..." Rainbow said to herself. She looked at Ratchet for a moment. "Did you join the CMC?" Ratchet nodded. "That's awesome! Not as awesome as me, but still, pretty awesome. Try and keep these two fillies out of trouble. Now, I better go. I promised Applejack that I would help her out on the farm. Cya!" The pegasus bolted up into the air, leaving a rainbow trail in her wake.
"Whoooooooa..." Ratchet mutter as she watched the cyan pony bolt off into the sky.
The CMC tried many different things, most of them failing. The things the tried were painting, racing, growing grass, animal wranglers, rock throwers, bungee jumping, apple bucking, making drums, climbing trees, hang gliding (again), fishing and baking cupcakes with Pinkie.
"Applebloom!" Applejack yelled from outside Sugar Cube Corner. Ratchet looked over at Pinkie who shrugged and continued to ramble about cupcakes.
"Aw... Looks like I got to go so sum chores, Cya later!" The earth pony ran outside and a few moments later Rainbow Dash walked in. Pinkie turned around and waved her hoof.
"Hey Dashie!" The pink pony said in her hyper voice as she put a cupcake pan in the oven.
"Hey Pinkie, Sweetie Belle.. And Ratchet Flash." Rainbow looked over at the white pegasus who was trying to figure out the best way to hold a bowl with hooves. She turned around and smiled.
"Oh... Uh.. Hi Rainbow Dash..." She muttered softly before she groaned and gave up on holding the bowl.
"I guess baking isn't our special talent..." Sweetie sighed. During this whole time, Ratchet had been thinking. She never even noticed it, but she was thinking... 'What am I good at?' The question had been in her head for a long time now. Then she knew it. Her talent wasn't like what anypony else had. Her talent was making her friends happy, whether it be fake insults, being super hyper sometimes or just being the crazy pony she is. That was her moment of self discovery. A light on her flank appeared as the three others in the room looked at Ratchet's flank. The pegasus wasn't even aware of her own cutie mark.
"Hey, Flash, take a look at your flank." Rainbow said with her same raspy voice.
"Hm? What?" Ratchet looked down at her flank and saw her cutie mark. A number sign, (#) on the left top, a exclamation (!) point on the top right and between the two on the bottom middle of her flank was an at mark (@). Ratchet's mouth fell agape. "I can get my wings now!" Ratchet jumped up and down similar to the way Pinkie did. The party pony giggled.
"This calls for a party!" Pinkie shouted as she jumped around Ratchet. Rainbow was the only one wondering what Ratchet meant by 'get my wings now'. Pinkie and Sweetie Belle were too busy jumping around the jumping pegasus to care.
"I gotta get home! Tell mom! Tell Zealous! I hope he has them ready by now!" Ratchet said quicker than Pinkie ever spoke, and she kept on repeating it. After a while she got dizzy and stopped jumping.
"Flash, what do you mean by 'Get my wings now'? Don't you already have wings?" Rainbow questioned.
"MymomsaidthatonceIgotmycutiemarkIcouldfinallygetthosemechincalwingsfromZealous!" Ratchet continued to talk quickly as she ran out the door and towards her home on the other side of Ponyville, leaving a confused Rainbow to take Sweetie Belle home and a party planning pony.
"Mom! Mom! Mom! I got my cutie mark! I got it!" Ratchet yelled as she ran inside her home. She was sixteen, after so many years of waiting she felt almost complete. She just wanted one more thing. One more thing that could possible cause more pain for her than expected.
Both of Ratchet's parents stared down at the mare's flank, baffled by her cutie mark. They didn't even know what it meant, they always knew that Ratchet was good at making other ponies laugh, but as she got older she stopped spreading her joy to anypony else other than her friends. So, they assumed that her talent was something else. Judging from her cutie mark, it had something to do with laughing.
Ratchet sat down as she smiled up happily at her parents, who smiled back sheepishly. After a while, the two older pegasi looked at each other and nodded.
"Ratchet... What IS your cutie mark?" Rainbow Flash asked hesitantly but also in a soft tone.
"It shows my talent of spreading happiness to my friends! I may not have many.... But still! Also I think it shows my talent of coming up with insults." Ratchet giggled nervously as she grinned, waiting for her parents answer.
"I always knew your talent had to do with spreading happiness. Com'ere you!" Crimson grabbed the mare and embraced her. Rainbow Flash giggled and joined the embrace. Affection was usually a vexation to the mare, but she didn't care at the moment. After a while she looked at her mom in the eye.
"So...... Did Ratchet Earn Her Wings mom?" Ratchet asked with pleading eyes as she begged.
"Yes... Ratchet has earned her wings. Go, talk to Zealous." Rainbow smiled down at her mare, the white pegasus smiled back before she bolted out the door. Flash ran as fast as she could so the wind would go past her ears and she would be able to hear it. When the white mare finally got up to speed, she started to flap her wings to gain even more speed. A corner was coming up ahead. She grinned and jumped up. With a strong beat of her other wise useless wings, she made a sharp turn and continued to sprint down the straight away. Ratchet knew her wing's wouldn't get her airborne so she continued to buzz them. Ratchet laughed, she just couldn't wait to have wings. Flash saw Sugar Cube Corner come into view and she got ready to take her last sharp turn. She jumped up and flapped her wings as she reached the corner, making a sharp turn and galloped to the house at the end of the street and knocked. A white unicorn with a blue mane came to the door, his cutie mark was a sword.
"Hello Mr. Spike! Is Zealous around! I have some news for him!"
"Yeah. ZEALOUS! RATCHET IS HERE!" The unicorn yelled.
"Coming!" A crimson earth pony came running down, it was indeed Zealous, who only had one wing on as he ran up to the door.
"Zealous. My mom said I can get wings!!!" The pegasus jumped up and down as she buzzed her wings.
"About time! Come on Ratchet! I gotta measure your wings." Zealous pulled the mare inside and then into a different room next to the living room, that served as a storage room for all of Zealous's stuff. He pushed her up onto a platform and looked for a measuring tape.
"DAD! CAN YOU GET MY MEASURING TAPE?" The crimson pony yelled as the unicorn came into the room and within his magic grasp was a measuring tape. He walked up to Ratchet and started to measure all along her wings.
"The base of her wings is six inches.... She lacks proper primary feathers so I can't measure that." He told his son, who was jotting things down on a paper with a pen in his mouth. After doing some math he nodded.
"If the base of her wings is 6 inches, that is normal by the way, then her wings will have to be 5 feet long to be able to get her off the ground. Dad, numb her wings, we have to pluck her feathers. Pegasi feathers are not exactly easy to come by."
"Wait... What?" Ratchet asked. "You are plucking my feathers?"
"Yes. I mean, we will end up cutting off your wings so, what does it matter?" Ratchet pondered for a while until she shrugged.
"They are useless anyway!" Right when she finished away, the unicorn plunged the numbing fluid into the base of her wing. He waited a few moments before he started to pluck her feathers. The numbing hadn't worked on Ratchet. The pegasus had to hold back any form of pain in her expression as the pain of each of her feathers being plucked, one by one, the sting ran through her bones. She looked back as parts on her wings started to bleed. The unicorn finished plucking all of Ratchet's feathers and started to wrap her wings up in bandages. The liquid that he put on her bleeding wings stung like nothing else. For some reason, the numbing solution that Zealous had gotten from Nurse Redheart didn't work on Flash, but the pony just ignored her.
"Good news and bad news. The base I already have a perfect, but it is useless without working primary feathers." Zealous spoke up and he held up on of the wing bases. It had all the same joints that a real wing had and the metal was pure black. Ratchet grinned to herself as relief washed over her body.
"My dad could get a bunch from the royal guard. All of them have at least one feather to spare." Flash smiled as she spoke, happiness flowing through the veins just like the pegasus blood in her system. The happiness pumped through her heart as she sat on her flank and started to day dream...
The wind whispered sweet nothings in her ears. It teased her mane and pulled at it. Her wings beat up and down quickly as she flew behind a rainbow streak. She soon caught up with a cyan pegasus who grinned at her,
"I bet you can't break the sound barrier!" The rainbow maned mare spoke with the same amount of cockiness and rasp in her voice. Flash grinned back.
"You are on." The white mare grinned as she flapped her wings, leaving a brown zig zag streak in a light brown trail from the back of her body. The cyan mare chuckled to herself and caught up with the snowy mare. They looked at each other and both boosted up to full speed. Their manes being pushed back. Tears in the corners of their eyes. Speed Tears as Dash had called them. The barrier started to form around both of them. Rainbow pulled it off first, creating a Sonic Rainboom. Ratchet broke the barrier, a snow white ring going out, it was called a Sonic Iceboom, named by Dash herself.
"Ratchet! Ratchet! Ratchet!" A floating crimson pony head came into vision.
"Huh? Oh.. What?" Flash muttered as she was so rudely interrupted in the middle of her day dreaming.
"Heeey! Welcome back to the real world! You have been spacing out for ten minutes. " the earth pony spoke in a exasperated tone.
"Oh. Okay! Uh, can I go home now?"
"No. Home came to you." A white pegasus stallion said from the doorway, he was grinning as he looked at the pair of unfinished wings that would be on his youngest filly in a few hours. "I heard that you needed some primary feathers for these wings, yeah?" Zealous and Ratchet nodded as the stallion tapped his hoof on the side of the door just as a bag of primary feathers floated into the room, carried by a purple alicorn. Ratchet's eyes went wide as her whole body froze. Was the princess of friendship standing in front of her?
"Hello Ratchet Flash." Twilight spoke as she ruffled her feathers. "I heard about your wish to fly, and all you needed was a few primary feathers. So I have brought them, as requested by Crimson." She advanced in her speech as Ratchet remained there with her mouth agape. Twilight Sparkle chuckled. "I see my visit has taken you by surprise. I will continue with my studies. I wish you the best of luck in your yearn for flight." The princess turned and walked away as Zealous, Crimson and Zealous' Father continued to work on her wings.
"Just a few more tweaks to the feathers...." Zealous mumbled as he moved the primary feathers around and Ratchet knocked her hoof on the ground. "Done!" Zealous turned around and held up the wings. Ratchet's mouth fell agape. They were.... Awesome! For lack a a cooler word. "Go the hospital in three days, and these will be on your body."
What if... That is all that was running through her head. All the what ifs. She was scared. She was nervous. But, would it all pay off in the end?
"Ratchet Flash." The nurse called her name and the pegasus pony ran to her a bit to eagerly and tripped in front of her. The nurse helped her up and turned around.
"This way Ms. Flash." The nurse walked up to double doors and waiting for them to open, the hallway was silent. As the two ponies entered, nothing but the sound of hooves on the cold ground could be heard. 'Breathe... Breathe....'
"Here we are. Go in that room and lay on your back on the table, and put your wings through those slots. Ratchet gulped and nodded as she walked into the room. The door slammed behind her, making her jump slightly. The room was large. The only things in the room were a table, the one that she would be strapped to and a strange looking machine that was connected to the table. Ratchet gulped as she climbed up onto the table and let he wings slip into the slots. Ratchet gasped as cuffs came down around the base of her wings. Next, cuffs came down on her hooves, trapping her completely. Everything in her body was telling to her escape, to fly away. Pegasi are not meant to be tied down, they are meant to be flying free. Even though Ratchet had never flown before, she still had this feeling.
Ratchet started to trash around. She bucked without even thinking and she buzzed her wings as fast as she could. But it was all no use. Then a needle came down towards her neck.
"Breathe... Here comes the stuff that will knock me out.." The needle jabbed into her neck, it sent a slight pinch of pain through her body, but nothing happened. It didn't work. The table flipped her over. She heard the saw turn on. She would feel it coming closer. Closer. Then it hit.
The blade made contact with her right wing. A searing pain spread through her body faster than blood. Ratchet held back a scream. The bullying would stop. She would be able to fly. Fly. Then the saw hit bone. Blood was flying everywhere above. The blood was dripping onto her back. Going into her mane, making a sticky nasty mess. The warm blood slipped down her body as the searing pain continued in her back.
*SNAP* The saw broke though the bone and cut off the last bit of skin. Ratchet looked to her right and watched the crimson covered white wing fall to the ground with a thud. She shuddered as tears streamed down her face. The saw did the same thing to her other wing. Before to much happened, Ratchet let the embrace of sleep take her away.
Cold. What was this cold on her back? She opened her eyes. It was fuzzy. Memories started to come back. She moved her wings. What an odd feeling.
"She's waking up!"
Fly... She had to fly.. Damn wires all over her body.. Elements of harmony above her... 'Wait. What? Elements of fucking harmony? What the fuck?' Ratchet sat up and looked around the room with her mouth agape. A pink earth pony, eating a cupcake. A purple alicorn smiling down at her. Two pegasi talking in the corner. A earth pony with a hat sitting on the other side of the bed. 'Get off towards alicorn or earth pony?' Flash rolled towards the Element of Honesty. The pony easily held her back on the bed.
"Whoa there sugarcube, Ya gotta rest!" She said in a southern accent. Ratchet had been the first pony to get a wing transplant... Kinda.
"Fly..." Ratchet said as she looking into the earth pony's eyes with her own pleading eyes.
"Ya can't fly right now sugarcube. The doc has ta look at ya." Applejack. The name came to her mind. Applejack.
"Please...." Applejack just shook her head. Ratchet groaned in response as she rolled over to the alicorn who was smiling down at her.
"Where is Zecord?"
"He is here. Rainbow, can you go get Zecord?" The alicorn asked the pegasus who nodded.
"I'll do it in ten seconds flat!" The cyan mare dashed out of the room. And in ten seconds, Rainbow was carrying a zebra and put him down on the floor. The alicorn glared at her before Zecord got up and walked over to Ratchet, taking Applejack's place.
"Zecord... Let me go outside.. I need to fly." Ratchet begged as she looked up at Zecord. He did nothing but smile.
"On on condition. Roll over, so I can look at your back." Ratchet nodded and rolled over, then folded her new wings. Zecord grinned as he looked around the room at confused ponies. He lifted up a hoof and rubbed at the base of Ratchet's wings. After a few moments both of her wings went straight up and she was blushing. Zecord laughed. "Alright. I think she is okay to fly."
Rainbow chuckled as the blushing Ratchet got out of the bed and bumped into Zecord playfully and then walked towards the door. She walked through the door to the outside, seven ponies following her. She wondered why the Elements of Harmony were with her, but she shrugged it off as she took a deep breath. She flapped her wings carefully, grinning as she could even feel the wind rushing on the feathers. How did Zealous do it? She didn't care.
"Zecord, are ya sure this is a good idea? Ah mean she jus got those wings ah hers." Applejack inquired of the Zebra.
"If she can get a wing boner with them, they work find. Trust me. I know from experience." Zecord said as he lifted up into the air with his wings. "Don't you remember what your dad taught you Sparky?"
"Uh... Duh! I do remember Blitzy!" Flash yelled at him as she started to flap her wings to fly. She lifted into the air. A few inches. A few feet. 20 feet. And she stopped. Tears flowed from her eyes as Zecord came to her side.
"Lets get back down to earth." She nodded as he led her back down to earth.
"I... I was flying! I flew! I flew!" Ratchet jumped up and down.
"And that is why I have these instead of real wings." Ratchet said as she looked up at Draco with a smile.
"You know... Did you ever tell anypony about what happened in that room? How what ever was in that needle didn't put you to sleep?"
"Well, I told you.. Does that count?" Draco chuckled.
"Yes. But it is getting late." Draco stood up and picked up his marefriend, and then grinned a bit as he thought. "Hm... How old are you now? You got your wings when you were 16. I met you when you were... 22? So how old are you now? 23?"
"Uh... What do you think? Is it empty in that head of yours! Yeah I am 23. I am just as old as Rainbow Dash. " Ratchet huffed a bit as she tapped on the side of Draco's head with her hoof.
"Hm... We have been together for a year now.."
"What is going on in that head of yours??? And just a few weeks over a year."
"Did I give you a present?"
"No.. I didn't want one.Or a birthday present. I didn't want one either."
"Hm.. Well maybe I should give you a late one." Draco grinned and blushed as he walked up the steps of her cloud home and into their room. He places Ratchet down on the bed, as she just looked at him blankly.
"What are you doing? This is the part where you kiss me and then you go home, not lay me down in my bed." Ratchet questioned.
"Flash, do you trust me?" Draco asked as he got down on all fours. He was as tall as Luna when he stood on all fours, but he was longer than anypony else. He slowly walked up towards her bed, with an innocent look on his face.
"I know that look... What do you want?" Ratchet questioned as she knew he gave her that look when he wanted something.
"I want to know if you trust me, love." He said as he put his front paws up on the cloud bed.
"I trust you, why wouldn't I?" Ratchet was still slightly confused as he climbed up onto the cloud bed.
"Let me show you how much I trust you, Ratchet Flash." Then it hit Ratchet what he wanted, his wings were extended. She blushed and her own wings extended.
