1 - Where It All Began

What’s wrong with me?

Rainbow Dash pondered that question as she rested on a caboose’s railing, watching the wooden tracks casually pass below her. Shadows continually cast on her and the multi-car train, many of them created by the pine trees towering over the railroad’s path, all lined by loose gravel. The jagged Stallihorn mountain range covered the entire horizon, their peeks hidden thanks to dense drab clouds hovering at altitudes higher than Cloudsdale. On occasion, the flaming sun said its hello through a hole but the ever-changing landscape ensured the air would be no more than mildly warm. A gentle wind rode down the slopes and brushed Rainbow’s cheek but she paid no attention to it, even when it moved a few strands of yellow hair into her sightline.

Then, her world became nippy and dark. She had entered another tunnel, number twenty-three based on her lackadaisical count, but enough to assume that the train was closer to its final destination than its departure point, Ponyville. As she sighed, the caboose exited the pony-made hole and back into open air where she heard the sound of rushing water. Curious, she turned her head left, finding a river running alongside the train. Its banks teemed with baby trees, shrubs and a few critters eagerly running into the foaming water for a nice cool bath. Looking further downriver, the stream bent away from the tracks and carved its way between two mountain peaks. She had already seen many sights on this train ride, all of it familiar, but this particular one struck a nerve.

This is the closest I’ve gotten to Brayside.

Suddenly, the train jolted to a grinding halt, all but tossing the mare overboard. Before Rainbow could guess why, a hiss over the PA system drew her attention.

Attention, Stallihorn Zephyr patrons. This is your conductor speaking. We apologize for the stop but we’ve just received reports of severe gusts at the Prancemotory Summit up ahead. Don’t worry, folks. We already have a weather pony taking care of it. Once we get an all clear, we’ll continue on to Brayside Beach and San Prancisco without delay.

Rainbow turned her attention skywards; she expected a pegasus slicing through the air to give the train and its passengers safe passage.

Nothing. Maybe she was too far away to see this pony, she thought. If she had the drive, Rainbow would take flight and search out for them but something held her in place. She had no answer why this was so, much like how she couldn’t answer her own question.

After a prolonged eye blink, she was instantly thousands of feet above where she had been just under a thick layer of clouds. Beneath her was the snaking river and the railroad’s path but sans the rails and the accompanying tunnels. In this time, those existed solely on blueprints secured in a shack a few miles away from here. The work to make it all a reality came down to what looked like ants moving across the uneven terrain shoveling dirt, pushing wheelbarrows, laying down ties or gnawing at vertical rock with pickaxes. She could’ve watched them all day if it wasn’t for a grey hoof wiping through her sights.

“Are you zoning out on me, Rainbow,” asked a young, somewhat squeaky voice.

“Huh?”

A turn of the head and there he was, a slender stallion with blue forelocks flowing across his forehead in a swoop.

“Sorry, Swift,” she said, adding a nervous chuckle. “Guess I’ve been really out of it lately.”

He smiled just as the sun broke through the clouds and shone over him. “No worries. I hear ya. I feel like we’ve been doing weather duty for this construction project for years when it’s really… four months, I think.”

“Long enough that you’ve changed your hairstyle.”

Swift ruffled his mane, which had a lighter shade of blue exactly like his tail. “Not that again. I’ve already told you I just thought I should spend a few seconds brushing it. I could always change it back.”

“No,” she blurted. “It’s okay. You look—” Her next few words spilled out of her mouth. “Um, it’s fine.”

They spend the next few moments watching a few workers laying objects too far to discern on a mountain’s face. Then then ran all the way to a deep pit made of sandbags where a stallion soon pushed down on a handle - construction on tunnel number twenty-three had begun.

“Just a few more explosions and we can call this project a wrap,” said Rainbow with a firm nod. “Good thing for my wings because all this flying back and forth between here and Ponyville”—she stretched her back—“that’s a lot of tough miles. Don’t get me wrong. It’s okay because it means hanging out with you but I could do without the work.”

Swift turned slight away from her. “About that. So, what’s going to happen once we’re done here? We’ll finally have some actual free time again.”

Her face twisted in discomfort. “Um, why do you ask? Did you have something in mind?”

After a lengthy pause, “How about joining me for the Aloha Summer Festival?”

“The what now?”

“It’s one of Brayside’s traditions, a big party to mark the end of summer. This year, we’re holding it the first weekend after the railroad’s finished. Since you haven’t been to Brayside yet, I thought you could finally come over. You know, see the town, meet my friends, and do stuff together.”

Tha-thump! Her heart quickened its pace. “Um, what kind of stuff?”

“Um—“ His face color shifted toward red “—friend… stuff. Things friends would do together.” He slapped his forehead. “Y–your friends! They can come too! Yeah, one wicked time at the beach, all of us.” Another pause, “But no pressure! If you’re not up for it, no worries.”

This was a no brainer answer and yet, panic froze her lips tight.

“Never mind,” he said, downcast. “We can do something—”

“Okay!” Rainbow blurted.

He pulled away from her slightly.

“Sorry,” said Rainbow, fighting to hide her embarrassment. “Yeah, I guess we could hang out. I mean, that’s what good friends do, right?”

The stallion’s mouth moved but he made no sound; this wasn’t what she remembered at all.

Voice cracking, “Right?”

Fog rolled into her imagination, covering the entire region in seconds.

“Right?” she whispered.

Tweeeeet! The locomotive’s shrill whistle knocked her out of her daydream and right onto the shaking floor. Once more, the train was in motion; the PA system expectedly crackled to life.

This is your conductor. We’ve finally been given the all clear! It’ll be a little gusty but there should be no further issues once we pass over the summit. Again, our apologies for the inconvenience!

“Lousy conductor,” she mumbled as she staggered back to all fours. “I’m gonna… wait. Who’s that?”

A few hundred feet above her, a grey stallion streaked across the cloudy skies.

She filled her chest with air and then bellowed, “Hey! Hold on! Where are you going, Sw—”

Mistaken identity – the pony that stopped at her call had wavy blonde hair rather than the expected blue. Thankfully, she had already met this stallion before, furthering relieving the tension had it been Swift Flying after all.

Rainbow greeted the newcomer with a smirk. “Well, well. If it isn’t Light Shower. Heh. It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

After landing on the caboose, he ran his foreleg over his flowing forelock, smoothing out a few loose ends. “Far too long, girl. So much fun working together busting some storm clouds for those few days with you and that wonderful team Ponyville team of yours.”

“You mean working that mouth of yours with Raindrops and Thunderlane.” Rubbing her chin, “Hmmm, what did Swift call your little group?” She chuckled, “Oh yeah. That’s right. The Lazy Trifecta.”

Light Shower whipped back his head. “Hmf! As second in command, I was simply doing my duty developing good relations between the Brayside and Ponyville weather ponies. Nothing more.”

“Sure you were. Oh, and let me guess. For all the work you did, Swift rewarded you with weather duties on this side of the Stallihorns all by yourself.”

“For the record, I volunteered—” His ears folded “—involuntarily, Monday, Wednesday and Friday.”

Rainbow slapped the railings, “Ha, ha, ha! Burn!”

His frown receded with each chortle. “I suppose I earned that one. You know, there was a time when Swift would’ve looked the other way.”

She rubbed an invisible medal hanging over her chest, “Yeah, well. What can I say? Some of my awesome leadership skills must have rubbed off on him.”

“Hmm, yes.” Shower gave her a quick hug. “Well, I’d love to chat with you some more but I’d bet Swift sent somepony to spy on me. Oh, by the way, he told me that if I saw you, to let you know that he got called into special meeting at town hall today but will meet you at the station as promised.” Winking, “Believe me, he’s so eager to see you again.”

“Oh.” Rainbow suddenly found fascination in the floor. “A–alright.”

“Bon Voyage!” said the departing stallion.

She clung onto the railing and waved a goodbye. Rainbow followed his ascension into the low-lying clouds, disappearing close to a ridge. Once out of sight, she mused about what would happen over the next few days. Despite the three weeks between the initial agreement and today, her mind was no less uncluttered with mystery.

What’s wrong with me? Rainbow bopped the side of her head. It’s just a nice, little four-day vacation… with Swift. I mean, everything’s cool between us.

Rainbow looked behind her, triggering a time warp. She had just landed in the same caboose, holding onto a strip with four pictures on it. Swift stood in front of her with mild surprise, not expecting that she’d catch up to his train just to make a delivery. They talked, they hugged and then a magnetic force pulled them closer together and set her heart fluttering with warmth unlike any other. A whistle awoke her senses to what was a mistake, an error, a misstep over a solid red line – she made sure Swift Flying knew that.

“You and I as friends? That's totally cool, and it totally works for us, but I… I want to keep it that way. You understand, right?"

Fast-forward four months since that cool orange afternoon and that statement had eroded to dust. She might as well had never said it in the first place.

What’s wrong with me?

Then, a gust grabbed onto the caboose’s door and slammed it against the outside wall.

“Not again,” she grumbled as she walked over to close it. “They really need to fix the lock on… this. Hmmmmm.”

Abiding with her gut feeling, Rainbow stuck her head into the caboose’s cabin. Aside from a sink, tables, couch and a few cabinets, she found nothing extraordinary or out of place.

“I thought I saw somepony in here,” she said, stroking her muzzle. “Oh, well.”

The moment she shut the door, Fluttershy peered from behind a tablecloth. Once she felt safe to do so, she sneaked through the caboose, past one sliding and through another leading into the rearmost passenger cabin. Then she carefully peeked through a rounded glass pane where she caught a glimpse of her friend, standing alone out in the elements.

After a melancholy sigh, Fluttershy slid down her head from the window. “Why won’t she come inside?”

A hoof touched her back, “Why not just ask her, darling?”

“Eeeeeeek!” Fluttershy responded to a surprise like any other; flipping over like a pancake on a griddle. Now she had a view of light fixtures and a face full of Rarity shaking her head.

“Apologies, my dear.” She offered a foreleg, “But you really must work on not getting startled so easily.”

She accepted her help, “I’m sorry. It’s just that I’m really worried about Rainbow Dash. She’s been out there since we left Ponyville and she hasn’t said why.”

Rarity had a look at Rainbow. “I’m certain it has something to do with that Swift Flying fellow. A bite of adolescent infatuation, perhaps?”

“That sounds terrible!” said the shivering pegasus. “I’ll fetch my first aid kit!”

The unicorn tittered. “Oh, Fluttershy! I’m saying that she has a crush on him, darling.”

“You think so? Are you sure? I know we’ve teased her about it before but I honestly thought it wasn’t true. I mean, she’s never been interested in anything cutesy wootsie and I’ve been her friend since we were just fillies.”

Rarity tapped her muzzle, “Quite true and that makes me wonder. Do you recall when we were away at Manehattan back in the spring? She never did tell us exactly what she did all those days. If she had to invoke a Pinkie Promise between her and Swift to keep it a secret, whatever happened must have been big.” Spreading her hooves, “Life-altering big!”

Fluttershy stepped away from her, “Then maybe we should just leave things alone.”

Rarity grabbed her closer, “But we can’t! We simply must know what’s going on! Matters of the heart are my specialty!”

“Um, but what about your crush with Prince Blueblood? You thought—“

“That was a rare moment of extremely poor judgment,” she curtly responded. “Come. We shall talk to her, together!”

Before Rarity could slide open the passenger car door, Pinkie Pie did so from the other side.

“Halt!” She blocked the doorway, holding up a firm hoof. “You shall not pass.”

Rarity’s long eyelashes twitched. “How long were you hiding there, Pinkie?”

“Ever since Twilight asked me to watch over you.” She squeed.

Then, one of the many cabin doors behind the group moved just enough for Twilight’s head to emerge.

“Aha! Going to the dining car, Rarity?” said the bookworm unicorn, raising an eyebrow. “What did I tell you about leaving Rainbow Dash alone?”

Pouting her lips, “But it’s not fair. You let Fluttershy go.”

“That’s because I thought if she was willing to talk with anypony, it would be her. Well, that and I had a feeling she’d chicken out anyways.”

Fluttershy blushed, “Well, I tried to.”

Twilight flashed a smile. “I know you did. Now, back inside, you three.”

“But now I really must go to the dining car,” Rarity whined. “I’m absolutely famished.”

“Fine.” She motioned toward the front of the train, “You can go, along with Pinkie Pie.”

Twilight slid the door wide open to allow Fluttershy by before closing it tight. The unicorn then took a seat next to on one of the two burgundy benches situated across from each other, the space in between taken by a thin table. Spike, sitting on her end closest to the small square window, found the constant train chugging noise a relaxing enough melody to sleep with, even with the constant shifts of ambient light. Across from her, Applejack sat with the lid of her Stetson covering her eyes but with her occasional fidgeting, she presumed the accommodation were not to her liking. That or that she’s a pony not to share a tent with if having personal space mattered.

Fluttershy leaned into Twilight’s ear. “Did you find out why Applejack’s been crabby lately?”

“Not yet,” she responded in kind. “All I know is that she was looking forward to this trip until yesterday. So far, I haven’t been able to get a word out of her.”

“Do you think it has anything to do with Rainbow Dash?”

“Nope,” Applejack interrupted, crossing her forelegs.

Twilight recoiled. “Oh, um, hey. You didn’t hear what we said, did you?”

“Eeyup.”

A lump slid down Twilight’s throat. “Um, okay. Well, if you don’t wanna say anything—”

The cowpony slid a sheet onto the table. “You remember when I sent over my request for a food booth at the Aloha Summer Festival last month? Take a guess what happened.”

Fluttershy covered her mouth. “Oh, no! You didn’t get one? I’m so sorry.”

“No, no, Sugarcube. I did get one.” She pointed at an area on the paper. “That space right there.”

Twilight leaned forwards to examine what was a schematic of the festival’s general layout. A shaded box indicated the exact location, as did an angry face drawn with a red marker. “Hmm. Well, it is one of the smaller spaces and it’s not exactly close to the entrance.”

“It’s the worst one available!” Applejack banged the counter. “Of all the nerve! I’m telling ya it’s one of them conspira-whatevers!”

“Conspiracy,” the unicorn corrected. “That’s a bit of a stretch, isn’t it?”

“It ain’t, Twi! If there’s something I can say about the whole Apple family, no matter where in Equestria, we’ve been good at selling our apples.” Applejack slouched on the table. “Well, everywhere except for Brayside. You’ve got the Pineapples, the Mangos, the Bananers, plenty of competition that does everything to try to keep us out. I bet one of them convinced whoever’s organizing this shindig to put me in such a lousy spot. That’s the only explanation that makes sense.”

Twilight gave her a friendly tap. “Applejack, I think you’re taking this a little too personally. If they really wanted you out, you wouldn’t even have a booth in the first place. Maybe you can talk to the head organizer and see what they can do for you.”

“You’re darned right I’ll be giving that pony a piece of my mind,” she grumbled.

“Now, Applejack. We’re on vacation here, so please don’t go overboard.”

The cowpony returned to slouching on the bench. “I ain’t promising anything but I’ll try. No need for more drama, I suppose.”

Fluttershy frowned. “You don’t mean Rainbow Dash, do you?”

“Eeyup.”

“Aren’t you even a little curious on what’s going on with her?” asked Twilight. “She’s your friend, too, you know.”

Applejack shrugged. “She was fine until this morning. Probably got a case of jitterbugs in her belly about this trip or something. Whatever it is, asking Rainbow straight up now ain’t gonna get us anywhere.”

The cabin door slid to the right. “Ask me what?”

The three mares stared at Rainbow Dash as though she was a phantom that stole other ponies’ voices.

Spike rose from his slumber. “Whoa, why is it so quiet around—” His heavy eyes focused on the cyan mare “— oh, hey, Rainbow Dash.”

“Hey, Spike, girls.”

Applejack scooted closer to the wall, allowing Rainbow to take a seat beside her.

“So, who wanted to ask me something?”

Spike stood on the bench cushion, “I think it’s about why you were standing out there by your—“

Fluttershy held the dragon’s mouth shut and then whispered to him “Please forgive me.”

Rainbow feigned a chuckle. “Oh, that. I just, needed to think about… stuff. For two hours.”

Other than Spike’s unintelligible mumbling and the train’s judders, nopony said a word for ten seconds.

Twilight pretended she had a cough. “Yeah, okay. We were just… I thought something was worrying you.”

Shaking her head, “It’s all right, really. Guess I’m just a little… train sick. Yeah. I gotta have that fresh air.”

Rainbow had a sinking feeling and not just because the train was starting to travel downhill. All those eyes on her could only mean her explanation had no buyers. It was time to switch subjects, fast!

“So, um, aren’t you all excited about this vacation?”

Spike finally eluded Fluttershy’s grasp. “I sure am! Four days of soaking some rays, surfing some waves, gouging on food but you know the best part?” He hopped onto the table with a broom, which he held over his head. “Not having to sweep the Library!”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Well, I can’t wait to build a few sandcastles and to read a few books by the ocean.”

“Sell some apples,” said Applejack, tipping her hat “That’ll be a good vacation. Hmm?”

Another visitor arrived into the cabin, this time Rarity levitating a chocolate chip cookie.

“Well, that was an utter waste of time.” Rarity tapped the treat onto the table, making a solid thumping sound.. “Simply dreadful. Everything’s… Rainbow! Darling, how are you?”

Ugh! Not again! Rainbow stretched her smile. “I’m… fine. We were just talking about how awesome this vacation’s gonna be. Where did Pinkie Pie go? I thought she was with you.”

Rarity sighed. “Miraculously eating with that the chef dares to call food.” She sat next to Twilight. “I suppose I can wait until we reach Brayside Beach. I’m sure Swift or one of his friends can recommend a good place where we can have a more proper meal. Perhaps even have a nice dinner together?”

“Dinner, together?” Rainbow scratched her mane. “Oh. Oh! You meant all of us together. Heh, heh.”

“It doesn’t have to be. We’ll understand if you and Swift want to spend some time, alone.”

“A–alone?”

Suddenly, the room became a sauna with the steam coming off her face. Pinkie arrived and caught a case of the giggles.

“Why is your face red? Ooooooo. I bet it was something embarrassing.” Pinkie closed to within an inch of her nose. “Why, Rainbow? Is it a secret that you don’t anypony to know? Things that you don’t want to admit because it’s may ruin your reputation? Something about this trip that will force you to face things you’ve never dealt with before?”

Twilight pulled on Pinkie’s tail, taking her down onto the floor. “Sorry about that, Rainbow. We’re not trying to make you uncomfortable or anything.”

Rainbow’s pupils darted from side-to-side, “Me? Uncomfortable?” She flicked her mane. “Oh, no, no, no. Why would I be uncomfortable? If anything I’m so comfy, I might just, um, take a nap. Wake me when we get there, wontcha?”

Suddenly, Rainbow placed her head on the table and after throwing in a few stretches and yawns, began snoring. While her little act would win her an award for lamest attempt at pretend sleep, at least she no longer had to deal with her friends. To her chagrin, it did nothing to stop the gears from turning inside her head, constantly working on the nagging question that just wouldn’t go away.

What’s wrong with me?

Rainbow had no bona-fide answers – just the facts that kept her sanity in check. She was Rainbow Dash, a fast flier, a loyal pony and a mare that draws the line of relationships at friends. That was enough to sleep on.

Barely.

2 - It's A Brayside World

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“Wake up! We’re almost here!”

A hoof shook Rainbow’s back, jolting her back into the conscious world. A few eye blinks brought the cabin room back into focus, brightened with rays of light coming from the window. When she moved her head up from the pool of drool on the table, there was Fluttershy sitting by her side. She bore a broad smile that said good afternoon – she spoke the greeting anyways.

“How long was I out,” Rainbow asked while yawning.

“About an hour,” Fluttershy responded. “How are you feeling, Rainbow?”

“Eh. Same old same old.” Rainbow then noticed a few open pieces of luggage and candy wrappers strewn around the room. “Where did everypony go?”

Motioning toward the half-open door, “They wanted to get a better view. I was going to join them but I didn’t want to leave you all by yourself. The view out of the window is rather small, but that’s all I really need.”

She muscled Fluttershy through the doorway, “That’s good and all but don’t worry about me. Go out there and enjoy the sights!”

“But what about you, Rainbow?”

“Um, give a few minutes, wontcha?”

“But—”

Rainbow shut the door and turned the locking knob. She heard Fluttershy jiggle the exterior handle and after a sigh, stepped away.

Sorry, girl, but I need some time alone.

Once she sat, Rainbow stared straight at the wooden paneling. Her final destination rolled past the window but she couldn’t muster the bravery to see this new world. There was no reason she could’ve been here earlier; Swift had offered at least three prior invitations to visit the area that he called home. With anypony else, Rainbow would’ve accepted on the spot, anything to hang out outside of work and to meet new ponies at a place with plenty of sand, surf and sun. Yet she had a lame excuse every time: too tired to make the trip, an appointment with a nonexistent doctor and weather work back at Ponyville. Now she had to face reality; the train had safely traversed the Stallihorn range. There was no turning back.

Rainbow let her face fall flat onto the table. Darnit. I hate feeling this weird. It’s not like I’m taking this trip alone. My friends are here, aren’t they? We’ll be doing lots of fun stuff together, me, Swift, my friends and his friends. It’ll be all right.

Her eyes shifted right, only to shift back down.

C’mon. You can do this. Swift and I settled everything on the train months ago. There’s nothing to worry about anymore.

Finally, she turned her head toward the cabin window.

“Whoa!”

Past the small glass pane were the same mountains the train had just crossed, their many peaks not as imposing from this far but they dominated the horizon. The range stood tall over the boundless rolling green hills peppered with lush palm trees, floral bushes and sprawling tropical trees. Dirt roads traversed the variable terrain, passing straw huts of every single color and farmland enclosed by picket fences or brick walls. Within this small square alone was full of life, from the blades of grass dancing in the breeze to the occasional ponies traveling down the paths with an extra spring in their steps. There had to be more than this.

Rainbow unlocked the door and went straight to the much taller and wider windows lining the hallway. She had more majestic purple mountains cocooning all but the edges of sparkling ocean water. Miles of pristine sand lined the shores with small piers jutting out into the water every few miles. Based on the track’s general direction, she was heading close to a concentration of buildings close to the water. Some stood no more than five stories but at least three achieved heights taller than Ponyville’s town hall. Close to the town center was another pier, this one much longer than the rest and with several vague structures on top of it.

“Is that a Ferris Wheel?” she whispered to herself. “Can’t tell from... wait a minute. Why am I looking through here? Duh! I’ve got wings.”

She galloped through the passenger car but after exiting the door, she ran into an orange wall.

“Ow!” The shaken mare staggered backwards. “Hey! Watch where you’re—”

Applejack laid belly up on the floor, stars spinning around her head.

“Oops!” She aided the cowpony to all fours. “Applejack, seriously! You really should watch where you’re going.”

“C-consarn it.” She took off her hat and rubbed her head, “Even when you ain’t flying, you’re crashing into everything.”

Rainbow scowled. “Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Now, out of my way.”

She reached the caboose’s rear deck, where she found Fluttershy and Rarity impersonating professional photographers through chatter of angles and exposure.

Fluttershy tossed Rarity the camera before embracing Rainbow. “Oh, wonderful! I thought you’d be in there forever! Rarity! Take a picture!”

Pulling away as a light blinded them, “Easy there, Fluttershy. You’re making a big deal out of nothing. Hey! You want to join me on the roof? You’ll get way better shots up there.”

“No, thanks. It’s much cooler here in the shade.”

“Tell me about it,” said Rarity, swiping out the camera for a paper fan. “I adore the scenery but why must it be so hot? I’m practically melting here!”

Rainbow’s eyelids closed halfway. “You call this hot? It’s only like, eighty or so. Perfect beach weather. You two can hide in the wimpy shade. I’m gonna soak in some rays.”

She flew up onto the sloped roof and then rested flat on her back, hind legs crossed. That’s when her nose noticed a scent of moist freshness with a pinch of salt; she just had to take in some more air.

“Ahhh! Oh, that smells awesome! Even Cloudsdale’s air scrubber can’t match this!”

Slowly, the burning orange sun sapped the cyan mare of energy. Rather than retreat indoors, she stretched her forelegs and watched the palm trees lining the track zip past her sights. The train ride still had a fair amount of minutes left, so squeezing in another nap was no problem at all. She shut out the light, exhaling contently.

“Heh. I can do this all day.”

“You might wanna put on some sunscreen, then,” said a young voice.

It couldn’t be! There was no way! Her eyes opened wide and Rainbow found a stallion – a shadowy figure under the sun’s glare – hovering above her head.

“Unless you wanna turn into a tomato.”

The newcomer moved to where she could see him clear as the Brayside skies. His aerodynamic frame, that grin with a touch of dorky and a cloud and inverted thunderbolt combination plastered on his flank was no mirage nor another fabrication made from memories.

“S–swift,” she stuttered.

“’Sup? Welcome to Brayside, Rainbow!”

Her vocal chords jammed shut, bottling up a torrent of mixed emotions. When she tried moving them, Rainbow managed a squeaky “Hey” while fidgeting which direction the corners of her mouth would move. She ultimately wanted up but they moved only a whisker.

Swift sat next to her, his optimism weltering under the heat. “Shoot. I thought you’d be excited to see me.” After a pause, the stallion ruffled loose hairs off his mane, “An–and the town, the town. I mean… being, um, here.”

“I am! I am!” Rainbow cleared her throat. “I am. It’s just that I wasn’t expecting you so soon. I thought you’d be waiting for me at the station.”

“Oh. Oh!” Swift chuckled. “I gotcha. You got my message from Light Shower, then?”

“Mhm.”

“Well, you see, Blossom and Blitz are still stuck in that meeting. Widget left earlier than I did to the train station but I couldn’t find her anywhere. Thought I’d come and see you a bit early.” Another awkward pause later, “And your friends too, Rainbow! Y–you get my drift, right?”

His growing awkwardness was a feather brushing her sides. “You’re too much, Swift!” she said in between giggles. “I totally hear ya. At least, I think I do.”

Swift’s head moved slightly askew of center. “Eh?”

“There’s no reason to feel, you know, weird. We know how it is between us.” She looked right at his swirling blue eyes. “We’re totally awesome, um, what do you call that, um—”

“Friends?” he said in a calm voice, falling under the spell cast by Rainbow’s intensifying stare.

His answer went straight past Rainbow’s ears. “What did you… I… what was I asking you?”

Suddenly, a green jack in the box popped out of Swift’s hair.

“Ah!” Rainbow moved backwards, pointing at a small, beaming green turtle. “W–where did he come from?”

“Eh?”

The critter moved his leg across Swift’s eyes, breaking his stupor.

“Oh, shoot.” Swift snickered. “My bad. Sometimes, I don’t even feel him up there. Rainbow? I think I’ve mentioned him before.” Patting the reptile once, “This is Leo, my pet turtle.”

Leo bopped the stallion on his head.

“Ow! All right, all right. I can’t really call him a pet. He lives in the ocean but loves hanging out with me.”

His mouth opened, producing high octave squawking resembling a duck enjoying a swim.

Rainbow stared blankly. “Um, okay. Did he actually try to talk to me?”

Swift nodded. “Gotcha. Surprised me too the first time I heard him. Spend enough time around him and you start picking up what he’s telling you, somehow. Just now, he was saying he’s from off the shores of Ponyesia.”

Leo spoke again, this time bolstering his posture.

“What did he say now?”

Eyebrows slanted, “Between the two of us, he’s the one with the brains.”

Rainbow wagged her foreleg, “Now, now, Leo. Yeah, he’s not a complete egghead but if we were in a class together, I’d be copying off him. He’s just the right amount of bright.”

The stallion’s face filled with pink pride. “Ah, shoot. Thanks.”

“But you’re definitely the brawns, Leo. Swift’s got those flabby lumps he claims to be muscles.”

Swift snorted at both his laughing companions. “Not even five minutes together and you’re already shooting me down, Rainbow.”

Leo quacked a third time.

“Guess he likes you already, Rainbow,” said the turtle’s translator. “And that now he totally gets why I—” Swift’s mouth opened wide. “—um, w–what? Hey! No way! I’m not telling her that, Leo!”

“Tell me what, Swift?”

Before he could respond, Fluttershy hovered above their heads. “Rainbow Dash? I know this may sound strange but I thought I heard—” Her bulging, shining eyes zoomed in on Leo. “The cutest turtle I’ve ever seen!”

Leo leaped into the air, legs spread apart. Fluttershy snatched him mid-flight and then brought him in to a tight hug, sparkling hearts floating all around them. Both of them cooed their utter delight as they spun in slow motion.

“Nice to see you too, Shy,” Swift mumbled.

Fluttershy dropped Leo on top of her head. “Oh, I’m sorry, Swift. I just couldn’t resist myself when I saw your cute pet.”

Rather than striking the mare, Leo squawked his explanation.

“My mistake, Leo.” She stroked the turtle, “You’re a great friend to him, aren’t you? Yes, you are!”

Swift frowned. “What’s the deal, Leo? You don’t let me get away with that.”

Ignoring his whiny complaint, “Let’s go down and show you to everypony, Leo.”

The stallion stood up. “Right behind you, Shy! I haven’t seen everypony in months! You coming, Rainbow?”

“Um, you go ahead. I’ll be down in a sec.”

Swift and Fluttershy slipped in between the caboose and passenger car, leaving her with a few overhead pigeons as her only companions. Soon, the train tracks sloped downhill as the surrounding terrain rose, obscuring all except for the occasional wooden buildings standing on the rounded peaks. While deprived of a good view, she was too busy in deep contemplation to notice.

You see? That wasn’t too bad. Just like meeting any other friend. She fell backwards onto the sloped roof. Well, maybe I felt a little off. Ugh! It’s okay, Rainbow. It’s okay. Give it time. I’m sure it’ll pass, eventually.

She heard metal scrapping against metal, followed by the train bleeding its forward momentum.

Guess we’re getting closer. Maybe I should head back down now.

However, one simple yawn proved too infectious. With wisps of cooler air removing her accumulating sweat, she let her eyelids fall and welcomed a simple and relaxing fade to black.

Then, a poke on her forehead woke her with searing hot pain. She hissed, banging the caboose’s roof. “Owwwwwwww.”

“Didn’t I warn you about putting on sunscreen, Rainbow?”

In front of her was the cheery pony holding said product. “Sunscreen? Uh, oh. Swift? How long was my nap?”

“Ten minutes, give or take.”

“Ten minutes. How can I get sunburn so quickly?” She sat up, wincing. “Owie, owie, owie, ow! Darnit. Talk about a fast tan.”

“You’re lucky Rarity’s got an entire suitcase full of the really good stuff.” The stallion opened the cap. “Just a few dabs and you’ll be all good.”

She reached out for it, only for her foreleg to plop onto the roof. “Ow! Yeah, I’m not sure how I can do this.”

He oozed out some sunscreen onto the tip of his own hoof. “Hold on. One sec.” Swift patted some cold cream onto her hot hoof.

“Ahhh! Ohhh! Eeeee! Geez! That stuff’s worse than the sunburn!”

Unlike his friend, Swift became more relaxed the more he rubbed. Doing this was nothing out of the ordinary; he’d helped his fair share of ponies with sunscreen application. Then again, Rainbow Dash had a lot more curves, areas where he’d have to massage ointment at some point. His eyes drifted away from her singed hoof, the sunburns materializing on his cheeks.

Shoot! What am I thinking? I can’t do… I mean, she’s… um?

The bottle escaped his grasp. “Ah! No, no, no!” He juggled it in mid-air, unable to grip it.

Rainbow swiped it from mid-air. “Got it! I can handle it from here.”

“Eh,” he answered in a higher pitch. “Oh, y–yeah. Gotcha. Heh, heh. I guess you can handle… you’re good. You’re good.”

“Can I ask you something?” said Rainbow, as she plastered more cream around her body.

Wiping off sweat, “Yeah, sure. W–what’s up?”

Rainbow worked on her face, “Did you have anything planned for us while we’re all here?”

“Not really,” he said, ruffling his forelock. “I would’ve thought Twi would’ve done that already. She said something about taking a vacation from planning this trip from start to finish?”

“My idea. She needs to loosen up and just do everything on the fly. It’s way more fun than—” She adjusted her chords to that of a lecturer “—we must be at the museum entrance at exactly eleven thirty. I’ve drawn out the path we should take to see the greatest number of exhibits before heading over to the restaurant for our twelve fifteen reservation. I was able to get menus so that we can be quick with our orders. That way, we can catch the one o’clock scenic wagon ride. Please don’t be late, everypony.”

Swift neighed a laugh. “Shoot. Did Twi really say that? When was that?”

“I’ll tell you about it later,” she answered, tossing away the empty bottle over the side of the train. “Anyways, any good ideas on what we can do today? Surfing? A volleyball game?”

“I’d have to talk to my friends first.” He sighed. “That’s if they’re all at the train station. That meeting could still be going on for all I know.”

“Hey, what was the deal with that, anyways? Must be pretty important if it tied you up.”

Swift bit his lip. “Yeah, that’s…I’d rather not bore you with that stuff, Rainbow.”

“Try me.”

“It’s about the Aloha Summer Festival. Just a few small things popping up, that’s all,” he finished with a nervous chuckle.

Right as he finished his sentence, the train juddered from a modest pace to a tepid crawl. Surrounding them were palm trees and shrubbery obscuring everything past half a mile from the tracks. A teal bridge arched above their heads, high enough that the few ponies traversing the walkway avoided a smoky blast from the locomotive’s stack pipe.

Rainbow switched to hovering mode, “Guess I should get ready to get everything off the train.”

“No worries,” he assured her. “Your friends said they’ll take care of that so that you can spend more time with me alone.” Swift moved his head right, “Alone.”

Rainbow looked that direction, finding white ears and blue peepers sticking above the slanted roofline. “Rarity!”

The unicorn fell backwards onto the caboose’s deck. Before she could slink away, a scowling Rainbow descended to within an inch of her snout.

“Hello, darling,” said Rarity, waving hesitantly.

Hooves on hips, “Were you spying on us?”

“Me?” Rarity forced a giggle. “Oh, you’re quite mistaken, Rainbow Dash. I was, er, climbing my way up to inform you that we’ve arrived! You know how late these conductors can be with their announcements.”

Right on cue, the intercom buzzed with sound.

Attention, Stallihorn Zephyr passengers. We’re now approaching Brayside Beach, Great Palms Station. If this is your stop, please ensure you retrieve all your items before disembarking. Those continuing to San Prancisco, once we take on new passengers, we will be departing at three o’clock, sharp.

Rainbow crossed her forelegs. “You were saying, Rarity?”

“I suppose you know now,” she answered, springing to all fours. “Excuse me while I—” She took a step toward the door “—powder my… shoes!” She zipped into the caboose, leaving behind a dust silhouette.

The pegasus hovered back to the rooftop, covering her face. “Ugh! Sorry for her being nosy, Swift. I don’t know what’s up with… hey. Where did you go?”

Up ahead, he zipped all over a wide wooden platform occupied by two dozen ponies along with their many suitcases. Soon, a strawberry painted station came into view, its four walls slanting outwards from the ground in slightly obtuse angles. On both sides stood tall narrow sunshine triangles with clean holes drilled near the tip. Surely, the architect went for a more hip design than the traditional fare and for that, Rainbow gave her nodding approval.

Rather than wait on the train to stop, she flew the last hundred feet to tap on his shoulder. “Hey, what’s going on?”

His head swiveled left and right, “Looking for my friends—” Swift exhaled frustration “—and I don’t see them anywhere. Of course not. For once, I wish they’d be here on—”

Kaboom! One of the station’s side doors flew off its hinges and well into the palm tree forest. Grimy smoke billowed from the opening toward the platform, forcing a few coughing passengers to move closer to the tracks.

Swift facehoofed, “Never mind. I think I know who that is.”

Out of the dissipating dust walked out a coffee unicorn mare with a frazzled brown mane. With a fervent shake, most of the soot fell on the wayside and her hair straightened to a shape with a few deliberately styled split ends. Despite the stunned stares from nearby ponies, the pony walked away from the disaster zone as though being at ground zero of an explosion was nothing all. When she finally spotted the two hovering pegasi, the unicorn waved at them.

Swift landed in front of the dusted-up pony, as did Rainbow. “Wid-get,” he bemoaned, rubbing on a sudden headache. “What in Equestria did you do now? Don’t tell me you’ve already broken station equipment.”

“Now, hold on there,” she replied with a subtle twang. “Just to set the story straight, some silly bloke in that here station was gonna dump an old ice machine. I told him I could make her purr just like the day it was built.” She winked, “I’ve even told him I could double its capacity, so you see? I was trying to fix something that was already broken.”

“And so now there’s no ice machine to fix anymore,” Swift asked dryly.

She laughed off his comeback. “Well, there was nothing to lose by being a wee ambitious.” Then she noticed Rainbow’s puzzled stare. “Holy-dooley! Is this the mate you keep babbling about, Swi?”

“Yes… I mean, no! Um, Rainbow! She says that instead of—”

“That’s right,” the pompous pegasus proclaimed. “I am that Rainbow Dash. Yes, I know. It’s so awesome meeting somepony that has saved Equestria many times over, isn’t it?”

The unicorn scratched her head. “Really? I really should read the papers more.” She pulled out a screwdriver and extended it, “Widget Fixit, re—, oh, blimey! Wrong one!” Widget tossed the tool into an attached satchel and then gave Rainbow a wobbly hoofshake. “Repairpony!”

Does she have a few screws loose? Rainbow hid her reservations with a smile. “Something tells me you’re not from around here.”

“Aye! Born just outside of Sydneigh but living there was wee bit too hot for me, so I—” Widget’s jaw suddenly trembled, her swelling pupils gawking past the two present pegasus. “Oy! What is that?”

Both turned around to a stopped train with every door already opened. Rainbow’s friends were in the midst of removing their haul but what had Widget drooling was Pinkie’s party cannon. She pushed past everypony and straight to the pink machine.

“I must be dreaming!” The unicorn touched every nut and bolt. Then, she tapped on the painted metal. “My prototype P-133 festive propulsion device? Is that really you?”

Pinkie gasped as though the carnival had just rolled into town. “Oh my, gosh!” She grabbed tightly onto Widget. “P-133? Did you say P-133? But that’s what it says inside the barrel! That can only mean—” Stars spun over her pupils “—you’re the pony that built this!”

Widget matched her excited tone, “You must be the pony that found it! But where?”

“It fell out of the sky and into a river like, Whoooooooossssshh! Pooooosh!”

Bopping her head, “Silly me! I did use the wrong propellant after all! Does it actually work?”

“I had to fix a few things but—” Pinkie bopped the cannon, instantly exploding confetti and balloons to startled passengers.”

“It works! Something I built works!”

Just like that, Pinkie and Widget held hooves and danced in circles, celebrating the reunion between inventor and contraption.

“Heavens to Betsy, am I seeing double here or is it just me?” Applejack stammered, holding her Stetson in place.

“They’ve both been under the sun way too long,” Spike deadpanned.

Twilight let out an elongated groan. “Five minutes off the train and it’s already starting to get weird around here. Um, excuse me, but who exactly are you?”

Swift stepped in between the group and the dancing pair. “Twi? She one of my frie— oof!”

Widget nudged him aside. “Widget Fixit, fixer and builder from adapters to zeppelins at Fixit Up!” She handed out business cards with a screwdriver and magnifying glass logo that matched her cutie mark. “Fixit Up! On the outskirts on Sandbar Street near Citrus Way! You must be Swi’s other mates. Tell you what. Just because of that, your first service is on the house!”

Pinkie snuck up to Rarity’s luggage and from a glittering handbag, pulled out a golden watch. “Oh! You can fix this for Rarity!”

“Hold on just a minute!” The unicorn yanked away the timepiece. “First off, the only thing wrong with this is the minute hand occasionally jamming. More importantly, this was a special birthday present I received from my favorite uncle. The pieces within are rather delicate so I’d rather wait until I find a certified watch… hey!”

The timepiece hovered in the air, draped in sparkling yellow aura emanating from Widget’s horn.

“Oh, please be very careful, dear. It’s—”

Suddenly, the watch came apart in a slow motion explosion; Rarity’s shriek matched the volume of the train’s whistle. She fell back in dramatic fashion and Fluttershy saved her from hitting the platform.

“My watch! My precious one-of-a kind antique watch! All those years of cherished family history, gone, forever!” Rarity bawled uncontrollably, tears squirting everywhere.

Unfazed, Widget opened her pouch to allow two slim tools to join in with the rest of the floating debris. A few seconds of spinning around later, every microscopic gear and screw came back together faster than an eye blink. Back in one piece, Widget returned the prized watch to a speechless owner.

Rarity first rattled the timepiece. Then she opened the lid and watched the minute hand move without a judder. Finally, she held it up to her ear and picked up the faintest of crisp clicks and clacks. “My goodness! It sounds better than the day I received it but that’s impossible! How did you do it?”

“Small stuff is easy boring stuff for me,” Widget said while placing her tools back into her pouch. “Been doing it since I touched my first screwdriver. Big projects, now that’s where the fun really is.”

Pinkie pulled the unicorn in, smiling from ear to ear. “Then can I ask if you can build something big and special for me, friend?”

“Whatcha got in mind, mate?”

She moved her peepers between Widget and the cannon. In seconds, the duo developed a new form of communication through quirky face gestures and nods that nopony could crack. They had to wait fifteen seconds for the big announcement.

In unison, “Party Cannon 2.0!”

Twilight stared blankly as the duo continued a more normal verbal conversation. “Why does the sound of that scares me, a lot?”

“I really wanna say no worries to that,” answered a pale faced Swift. “I really do.”

“Quit your worrying, you two,” said Rainbow as she lifted a gym bag over her shoulder. “C’mon! Let’s dump our stuff at the motel so we can start our vacation.”

Luggage in tow, they walked straight to the station’s wide glass door. They slid open and allowed them inside the building, where the walls arched high above their heads. Baby blue paint covered the ceiling along with puffy white clouds and the top of palm trees stretching toward the center. Down on the floor, a blue mane mare added red stripes to a half-completed lighthouse towering above crashing waves. Her strokes were straight and neat despite some nearby stallions dragging a few curved sculptures across the tiled floor to their final resting place. Across from the painter, a small queue waited for the next open ticket counter. Nine listed destinations were on an overhead sign along with times and prices; Rarity snapped a photo of it.

“Everything in here’s modern but not overly flamboyant,” Rarity quipped. “Is this a new facility?”

Swift nodded. “The old station was kinda like Ponyville’s. Town didn’t need a large one since there was no direct route over the Stallihorns. Ponies would visit Las Pegasus, San Prancisco or even Seaddle over us. Now that we have the Stallihorn Zephyr line, who knows how many new tourists we’ll get, especially with the Aloha Summer Festival coming up?”

“I would say quite a lot,” said Twilight. “Half the train got off here.”

“And it’s only Wednesday too,” he added as they passed through a second set of glass doors. “We may have more ponies than the committee planned for.” He stopped short of a cobblestone runabout with a fountain in the middle. “But I’m sure Brayside can handle it. We’ve got everything under control.”

“Swift! Dude!” a loud voice called to him. “We’re in trouble!”

“Eh?”

He looked past the wagons traversing the roundabout to an earth pony galloping at full speed. The stallion’s coronets sent loose cobblestone flying behind him but lost no traction at all. Despite the approaching yellow locomotive, Swift stayed in position and watched the much taller and muscular stallion slam the brakes and finally stop short of a collision.

“Cool your jets, Blitz,” Swift said calmly. “What’s up?”

“Bad stuff’s going down at town hall!” With his thick forelegs, he picked Swift up to his eye level and shook him like a rag doll. “Blossom’s not very happy! I’m telling you! She’s gonna blow her top any second, bro!”

Between gasps for air, “I–I gotcha! L–let g–g–o!”

He let Swift plop onto the ground. “Sorry, dude. Hey! Did you find your fr—?” That’s when his eyes bulged at six unfamiliar mares. “— ahhhh, sweet!” The stallion brushed back his slick brown hair. “Ladies, today is your lucky day! I’ll make your heart fly and I’ll show you a good time! Why not take a ride with the Blitz!” His eyebrows moved suggestively. “Pineapple Blitz.”

A few circling birds cawed.

“Dude, that was just weak,” Spike retorted.

Blitz stroked his brown goatee. “Yeah, you’re totally right, dragon dude. Wimpy poetry ain’t part of my game. Should’ve gone with—”

“Hold on one apple picking minute!” Applejack marched right up to his chest and then glanced at his mark, a bolt over a pineapple. “You’re part of the Pineapple family, aren’t ya?”

He flashed a cheeky grin. “Sure am, pretty thing. Now, if you want to take a personal tour of Juicy Fruit Farms—”

“Can it, yellow belly!” Standing on her tippy hooves, “Don’t lie to me! It was you that convinced the organizers to give me such a lousy selling spot for the Aloha Summer Festival!”

Twilight stomped her hoof. “Applejack! Calm down, please!”

Blitz ignored the unicorn’s outburst. “Chill, girl. I don’t know—” Applejack’s name finally registered in his mind, widening his smug smile. “Oh, I see. So you must be part of the Apple Clan but you know what? No prob cause I don’t let things like rivalries get in the way of sweet honies like you.”

Applejack readied a buck to his chest, but a wrench to his head froze her in place. “What the?”

“Widget,” the stout stallion whined, rubbing the impact area. “Why you’d do that for? I was, like, on a rad roll.”

The unicorn simply smiled as she secured her tool back in her pouch. “Oh, before I left Town Hall, Blossom asked me to put you in line just in case she wasn’t around. She’s say you’d understand.”

He crushed a cobblestone under his hoof. “Why she gotta rag on me all the time,” he mumbled. “It’s not fair.” Blitz then faced Applejack. “All right. If you gotta know, Surfing Blossom’s my friend and the head of the whole party deal but did I get a primo spot? Nooooo. She put me—”

“Swift!” Applejack set her glare at him to destroy. “You couldn’t tell me that on the train?”

He raised a limp hoof, “Um, well. I thought that would, um, ruin your mood? Besides, Blitz is right. His stall isn’t that great either.”

Right on time, Twilight tossed him a scroll, which he immediately unfurled.

“See?” He pointed at a square across from one with drawn apples. “Blossom and the committee are trying to be fair to everypony by not letting friendships get in the way of their decisions.”

“And she’s playing unfavorites with me,” Blitz protested.

Swift rolled his eyes. “That’s pretty much what I just said. Anyways, nothing personal, AJ.”

Applejack tipped down her hat. “Ah, consarn it, Fly. I guess owe ya an apology. A thousand pardons.”

“Hey. Don’t I get one,” asked Blitz.

“I’m sorry you sell pineapples,” she mumbled. Applejack then addressed Swift, “Still, I can’t just let this go. I gotta talk to Blossom and at least try to get something going for me.”

“That’s fine and all but we’ll still need to stop by the motel first,” Twilight order. “Then you… hold on.”

This time, Twilight and Spike had their own nonverbal conversation. It took all but five seconds to convey the message.

“So, what’s exactly is going on at town hall,” Twilight asked Blitz. “Is it anything serious?”

Blitz gave a hearty nod. “It’s been nothing but bad news. If Blossom can’t fix it soon, the party’s gonna be toast!”

Gasps erupted, not just by the immediate group but also from anypony within earshot. Swift hovered above the stunned crowd and waved his hooves.

“No worries, everypony,” he shouted. “The festival’s still on! Just gotta work out some kinks, um, whatever they are!”

Spike swiveled a spotlight right onto a confidant Twilight. “And thank Celestia that you have the greatest organizer in all of Equestria right here to help!”

Twilight’s friends uttered confusion.

“But I thought we were finally going to have a nice and relaxing vacation”, said Fluttershy.

“Not when you have friends in trouble or in this case”— She gestured at Rainbow and Swift—“a friend of a friend, um, of a friend. I’m sure this is something we can take care of pretty quickly. Besides, what better way to get better acquainted with new friends through a little adversity?”

Swift scratched his head. “Are you sure about this, Twi? You really don’t have to do this. We can—”

“How about it, gang? How about we all go visit Town Hall today?”

Save for the grey pegasus, the amassed murmured their approval.

“Great! Now it’s just a matter of getting all our stuff to the motel.”

“Leave that to me,” Blitz chirped.

He trotted around the road until reaching a two-bench wagon with a fresh coat of yellow paint. Blitz hitched himself to it before pulling up to the front entrance.

“I knew I was gonna need this today,” he said, releasing the straps. “Mares first, of course!”

Six mares and small dragon began tossing suitcases and bags onto the cart. While Blitz and Widget aided them, Swift let his body limp in mid-air.

Rainbow eventually joined by his side. “Something wrong?”

The pegasus rubbed the strands running down his neck, “My bad, Rainbow. I wanted all you guys to have a fun vacation without dragging you into any of our messes. Guess that was asking too much.”

“Don’t worry about it.” She jabbed him on the ribs, “My friends and I jump into stuff way worse than this. I mean, we don’t have to save Equestria from monsters or change the season. It’s just some problems with a party. How hard can that be?”

3 - A Blossoming Problem

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“Blitz, yeah! We’re rolling!”

Hitched to the wagon, Blitz powered his thick hooves forwards. However, one of the wheels rolled right into a deep dip and remained there.

“Whoa! Hang on, everypony! I’m gunning it!”

He grunted heavily, as he took steps that crunched the cobblestone into pebbles. Soon enough, he was pulling hundreds of pounds with ease off the roundabout and onto a straight road moderately sloping downhill.

Standing at the front of the wagon, Twilight surveyed the landscape like a captain at sea. A quarter mile down the street, it crossed another road and then continued with a gentler decline through buildings of increasing height until reaching its endpoint right at the sand. “Hey, Blitz? Do you know where this Super Hay Motel is?”

“Four blocks down and one to the right,” he answered confidently.

Swift hovered next to Blitz, “You’re thinking about the Sunny Bay Motel. Super Hay’s six down and two left.”

“Are you sure about that, bro? You should fly ahead and check.”

“Great idea,” said Rainbow, moving besides Swift. “So, how about we race there?”

He raised an objecting foreleg, “Rainbow, but you just got—” He had a chuckle. “You’re not letting me off the hook, are you?”

She didn’t say a word, only the slightest amount of smugness on her face.

Swift glanced at his turtle – he was blabbing away with Fluttershy. “Well, if you really want to, threetwoone go!”

In a flash, two pegasi left the area with such velocity that everypony’s hair whipped backwards.

“Dude’s hauling it,” Blitz bragged. “I knew Swift had speed, but damn!”

“But he ain’t faster than Rainbow Dash, replied Applejack, adjusting her hat back in place. “ Look! She’s gonna pass him right now!”

A gray and cyan dot turned left, disappearing behind a pastel painted two-story building.

“Oh. Guess we won’t see the finish of that one.”

Blitz grinned, “That don’t matter. I saw all I needed to see. I know I’m totally right!”

“Right about what?” said Twilight.

He turned his head back and winked. “My friend totally digs yours!”

Rarity shoved in between Twilight and Applejack. “Do you really think so? What do you know? Oh! Did he share his deepest true feelings with you?”

Blitz opened his mouth wide. “Nah. Just a vibe I’m getting. Dude doesn’t even race with me but does with her? That’s telling me something.”

The unicorn cursed under her breath. “Did he at least tell you exactly what happened during his trip to Ponyville a few months ago?”

“That’s a negatory, but I can tell when a stallion and a mare fall into that special groove. When you spend enough time at the beach, you pick up on it, you know?”

“I think you’re reading way too much into this, you two,” said Applejack. “It’s a little friendly competition, nothing more. I know Swift has told us before he wasn’t into racing but with friendship, you try new things and sometimes, you’ll change your mind.”

Rarity sat back down, forelegs crossed. “I suppose you have a point, Applejack.” She then moved to the back of the cart where Pinkie and Widget was drawing on a blue sheet sprawled on the floor. “But what about you, Miss Widget? Surely Swift must have told you something about Rainbow?”

The brown unicorn grinned. “Of course he did. She’s the fastest flier in all of Equestria.”

Her eyelids shut halfway, “Forget I asked, darling. What are you two doing, anyways?”

“We’re drawing up plans for the upgraded Party Canon,” replied Pinkie. She tapped on the current model strapped in place by rope. “This one’s been great to me but it doesn’t have the same Surprise! as it used to. It barely even startled Fluttershy during her last surprise birthday party.”

“It was startling enough,” added the aforementioned pony.

Disregarding Fluttershy’s remark, “I also want a wee bit more versatility with what I can use as ammo. Animal balloons, longer streamers, pies—”

“Ice cream?” said Spike, licking his chops. “Or hot fudge? I’ve love a blast of fudge!”

Widget twirled a screwdriver in mid-air, “Liquid inside a propulsion device? Blimey! That’s a toughie. Before I can even figure out how to do that, I gotta take the old one apart and see what I did wrong the first time.”

“That’s easy,” Blitz bellowed. “It’s something you built, it was your first test and it involved a boom. Bad combo.”

A levitating screwdriver bopped him between the eyes.

“Hey! Blossom wouldn’t hit me for that!”

Widget winked, “That one was from me, you bugger.”

Most on the cart had a laugh at the stallion’s expense.

“Well, I approve of that,” Applejack remarked, tipping her hat. “Somepony’s gotta knock some manners onto yellow belly.”

Blitz raspberried. “Lame! That’s the best taunt you can do? Of course my belly’s yellow!”

“Um, guys?” Twilight craned her neck forward. “Where did Swift and Rainbow go? I thought they’d back by now.”

“Chill, Twi . I bet they’ve found the place and are just waiting for us there. Just enjoy the ride on the Pineapple Express.”

Moments later, they crossed an intersection and entered into a commercial area. Whereas Ponyville constructed their structures predominantly with wood and jay, these were a mix of plaster and bricks. All of them had varying shades of bold bright colors covering both inside and outside walls: lime green, plum red, burning red, sunshine yellow, berry blue and scorching orange. Most of the shopkeepers stood outside their doors, welcoming or otherwise striking casual conversations with ponies walking by.

Rarity cooed when she spotted a two-story purple building with three racks of frilly clothes by the entrance. Fluttershy pranced at a pet shop with a toucan waving behind the windowpane. Twilight all but hopped off the cart as they went by a circular glass building within a field full of newly planted palm trees.

“A library,” she squealed. “And it looks so new too!”

“That’s because much of what you see is brand spanking new,” said the cart-puller. “I’m telling ya. Brayside’s going places!”

On their right, a park spanning several city blocks came into view, replete with enough swings and slides for the frolicking fillies and colts while their parents took a breather on benches facing a small lake. Beyond the field were wooden houses with front porches, much of it hidden by wild shrubbery. Hazy hills dotted the background, reminding the newcomers that much of Brayside Beach was rural, save for this area where cart and hoof traffic required a guard at the upcoming intersection.

With a turn to the left, the cart and its passengers noticed Swift and Rainbow holding up a banner across the road advertising the Aloha Summer Festival. From a second story window, ponies on opposite ends pulled dangling rope into their respective buildings.

“Doing some extra chores, bro,” Blitz asked, stopping the cart.

Swift placed hooves on hips. “Nah. You see, Rainbow—”

“—that’s right,” Rainbow said, muffling Swift’s muzzle. “Just doing something nice for the community.”

Twilight scrutinized her friend’s wide smile. “You volunteering? Okay. What really happened here?”

Swift wriggled free of Rainbow. “She flew right into the banner and crashed, natch.”

Rainbow swung for his ribs but missed. “Pffft. Whatever.”

“So this is the right way, dude,” Blitz asked.

“Up ahead on the right. Can’t miss it!”

Sure enough, past the next road was a tall sign of an arrow pointing at a u-shaped one-story building painted flamingo pink. Blitz turned onto a side dirt road and stopped in front of a double glass door with a Front Office sign on the side.

“The Pineapple Express has arrived! Next stop, Town Hall!”

Twilight thanked Blitz before disembarking. “Okay, everypony! Check in and just leave your stuff in your rooms! Be back here in ten minutes!”

One by one, the visitors went inside the building, leaving the three local by themselves. Swift headed their way but Blitz gestured Swift to sit by his side.

“Dude,” he whispered into his ear. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Eh? Tell you what?”

Blitz pointed at the cyan mare, “She is totally smoking, and I’m not talking run-of-the mill smoking. I’m talking Blossom hot!” He elbowed him lightly, “Bro. How’d you score a pony like her?”

“How many times have I told you?” said Swift in between clenched teeth. “Rainbow Dash is my f-r-i-e-n-d, friend!”

“Ahhh.” He stroked his goatee. “If she’s your f-r-i-e-n-d, then you don’t mind if I put on the old Blitz charm on her?”

Swift tugged him by the harness, “Not wicked, Blitz. Knock it off.”

“Chill out, dude.” He winked, “I got ya. You’re finally gonna make your move on her?”

“N-no. It’s not—” The pegasus let go of the leather strand and snorted. “I don’t do mushy stuff, all right? And neither does Rainbow. That’s how we roll, like me and Blossom or Widget here.”

The repairpony, looking within the party cannon, pulled out her head for a moment. “Whatcha rambling about, Swi?”

Swift sighed. “Never mind, Widge. Get my drift, Blitz?”

No time for an answer – all his passengers had exited the office. Blitz unhooked himself from the cart and offered to be their personal bellpony. While Widget stood guard on the cart, Swift tried lifting an oversized duffel bag but only managed three inches of ground clearance. On schedule, Rainbow cracked up before she lent him help.

“You have weights in here or something, Rainbow?” Swift huffed.

“It’s only a few,” she chided him.

Together, they carried the luggage through one of the three open doors near the end. Inside, Rainbow frowned at the lack of amenities: two twin beds, a faded dresser drawer with a cracked oval mirror, one firefly-operated lamp and a small cereal bowl that was doing a mediocre impersonation of a sink. The towel rack had no cloth wider than a napkin while the complementary toiletries had less liquid than an eyedropper. Even the nicest part of the room — the rosy wallpaper — had ripples around its edges. Haste makes waste certainly applied to the lazy pony that thought this was satisfactory work.

“This is perfect,” Fluttershy chirped as she exited what Rainbow guessed was the bathroom. “It’s so cozy and pink? Don’t you think so, Rainbow?”

Nestled within Fluttershy’s flowing hair, Leo made a gagging motion.

“You said it, Leo,” said Rainbow, dropping the bag beside one of the beds. “More like cramped and putrid. Hey, Swift? Mind if I crash…. um—”

“Eh? What did you say?”

Crash at your place. Crash at your place? Her cheeks matched the wallpaper’s tint. “I, um, never mind! Sleeping here is just fine with me!” Rainbow let herself fall onto what her back registered as concrete. “Ow! Yeah, that’s just how I like it.” Ears folded, “Extra firm.”

A second later, Rarity’s whining about the décor came through the paper mache thick walls, followed by Applejack’s marching out of the room.

“And she’s the one that picked the place,” the cowpony murmured as she passed by the doorway.

“I heard that,” Rarity rebuked. “And for the record, it’s not my fault somepony heard me wrong before making the reservations.”

Twilight’s incoherent protests penetrated two walls, something about pronunciation and Spike. The dragon quickly added to the rapid-fire whining.

Rainbow shrugged. “Well, it could be worse. At least I don’t have to sleep with Pinkie Pie.”

On cue, Pinkie popped out of the duffel bag. “And what’s wrong with that?”

All three pegasi around Pinkie yelped.

“You just answered your own question,” said Rainbow, slinking away from the party mare.

Eventually, everyone returned to a more spacious and lighter cart, allowing Blitz to take off at a more brisk speed.

Once more, he and his passengers went under the street banner before turning left onto the same downhill road that they used to leave the train station. After a few blocks, the street finally leveled off and the buildings grew in size and in complexity; a five-foot spire building, a taller complex with an arched wall on one side and another with glass covering every inch of the structure’s many sweeping curves. Then came the tallest one of them all, an incomplete fifteen story skinny skeleton with Brayside One Hotel signs plastered all over the construction barriers separating them and the workers drilling holes, pouring concrete or threading the narrow girders.

“This certainly is different than Ponyville,” said Applejack as the wagon made a right turn.

“But it still has a touch of that small town charm,” added Rarity. “I could do without this stifling heat, though.”

After crossing three intersections, Blitz stopped in front of a plaza with a tiled walkway cutting through a grass fields, leading to a three-story building with a baby blue rotunda. The sun-palm tree combination sign at the entrance informed everypony that they had arrived at their destination.

Swift and Blitz led the pony parade down the passageway and past the double wooden doors into Town Hall. Within the airy chamber, sunlight came through the rotunda’s slits, basking the indoor Princess Celestia ornate fountain with a cool orange glow. Past the waterworks was a grand staircase going up half a floor before splitting into two and hugged the rounded chamber walls as it ascended to higher levels. On both ends of the lobby, wide arched doorways led into opposite ends of the building. Soon, five ponies emerged from the hallway on the left.

“Squeezy!” Swift stopped in front of a cream-colored mare with a bowl-cut purple mane. “Hold up. Is the meeting over already?”

She placed on a small hat that read Malts ‘R Us. “Pretty much. We were running out of ideas, so Blossom told us we could go.”

“What a relief,” added a red stallion with wispy blond hair. “It’s always a challenge dealing with her. She’s a firecracker ready to burst and you’re not getting me to put out that fire.”

Blitz slapped his sides, his guffaws echoing around the chamber. “Hey! Good one, Ember!” A floating screwdriver bopped in on the nose. “Ow!”

Swift allowed the small group by, “No worries! I can handle her, I think.”

He led everypony into the wide hallway lit by one of many tall windows. Past the glass was a botanical garden with small bridges over streams, four gazebos and an old groundskeeper trimming the rose bushes. In contrast, the other side of the wall had pictures of nature hung on a marble and further down the hallway, a set of wide doors.

Swift placed a foreleg on one of the handles but stopped himself from a tug. “Um, you know what? Maybe I should go in there by myself and see if—”

Blitz nudged him out of the way, so he could hold open the door. “Chill out, dude! Ladies? C’mon in.”

After a reluctant sigh, Swift entered a lit auditorium with several rows of blue benches configured in an arching pattern around a raised platform at the front. A blank projector screen hung from the wall, its width the same as the long wooden table with seven leather chairs. The middle one had its back toward the rear but it squeaked back and forth ever so slightly.

Swift waited until the last guest entered the large room. Then, he threaded carefully down the sloping aisle, every hoofstep resonating. “’Sup, Blossom. I just—”

A copper red hoof appeared beside the seatback. “One second,” said a feminine yet firm voice.

Swift stopped halfway down the aisle as did all behind him.

“It sounds like you’re not alone. Is the group from Ponyville with you right now?”

“They sure are,” Blitz proclaimed. “Every one of them.”

The unseen pony leaned the squeaking chair back. “I see. I wasn’t expecting to see them this soon. I’ll just have to improvise, then.”

Suddenly, the room’s lights changed to bright greens and yellows while overhead speakers pumped out a peppy island tune. All mouths hung open in anticipation except for a baffled Swift. He cast an aside glance.

“Are we really doing a song for this?”

Pinkie stared into the same space, “I didn’t know you could see them too, Fly-Fly!”

“Eh?”

A spotlight fell onto the chair. Then, it swiveled right around and its occupant, a redhead pegasus with curled eyelashes, leaped onto the table. She released her wings and glided down the aisle as leis rained down from the ceiling. When she landed, she placed the flower arrangements onto everypony one-by-one, her double ponytails swaying to the beat.

I’ve been waiting for you
Sun will break right through
And melt all your stress away
Don’t wait for an invitation
Make this your best vacation yet

Brayside Beach will make your day
Big fun times are on the way
Surf the waves or ride a bike
You can even fly a kite

Whatever you choose to do
This message will send you through

Aloha!

As her Ponyville audience clapped, Blossom tackled hugged Swift.

“Oof!” He stumbled back a step. “B–Blossi. I guess you’re in good mood, huh?”

“I can’t believe you’ve brought them all here,” she squealed. “I was so disappointed I couldn’t greet them at the station. I was gonna have a band and balloons and—”

Wrestling away from her embrace, “I know, I know. You wanted a big Brayside greet—”

Blitz yanked Swift away like a rag doll. “Hey! I did most of the work, you know! Give me some cred, Blossom!”

She tapped him on the cheek, “Tell you what, you big lug. I promise to be nicer with you…for the rest of today.”

“That doesn’t really mean anything,” he bemoaned.

Brushing off his whining, she turned to her visitors with a glittering smile. “I know I’ve already said it but Aloha! I’m Surfing Blossom and I’m so excited to have the bearers of the elements of harmony in our wonderful town. I hope ponies as famous as all of you didn’t have any trouble getting here without being swarmed for autographs.”

Twilight bit her lip, squashing her sarcastic zinger. “We, um, managed but we heard you may have some issues with the upcoming celebration.”

“Problems?” She giggled. “What problems?”

“The seagulls,” Blitz scratched his head, “um, the fireworks, those peg—”

With a hind leg, Blossom socked him on the side. “Oh, yes. Those problems.”

“How is this nicer?” the large yellow stallion wheezed, grabbing his gut.

“We’d be happy to help anyway we can.” Twilight held her head high, “In fact, you could say I’m one of the best organizers in all of Equestria.”

Spike drew attention with an Ahem!

“With the help of my number one assistant, of course.”

Blossom waved her off, “Oh, I appreciate that but I don’t want to burden all of you with our problems.”

“Oh, we don’t mind. Just tell us what you need and we’ll do what we can.”

“It’s all right, really. Go out and enjoy what our town has to offer. Have fun, relax. Let Brayside ponies handle this.”

Twilight suddenly had an eye twitch. This was stubborn Applejack refusing for help all over again. She wouldn’t take no, especially when it meant ending her forced planning vacation early. “But I insist. I have the ideal experience to deal with situations like these.”

“I can handle this,” Blossom answered, brow lowering.

“Are you sure about that?” the unicorn said, pacing back and forth. “Do you really want to take that kind of risk when you have a wealth of knowledge standing right in front of you? Isn’t that what a capable leader would do?”

Her wings went up in full display. “I have it under control, thank you very much.”

“But still, we could be an invaluable resource to you. For example, our town mayor once—”

As the unicorn lectured about Winter Wrap Up, Blossom’s tail slithered toward a pink surfboard with three white flowers painted on the surface, a much larger replica of her cutie mark. Before she could grab it from atop the bench, Swift barged in between the two.

“My bad, girls. Um, Blossom? Can I have a word with you, alone?”

Despite her protest, the stallion nudged Blossom onto the raised platform and through a door that read Storage Room. Within the dark space, Swift stopped her from waltzing into a stack of boxes. He reached over to flick on the lights, revealing that somepony had already accidently toppled boxed holiday decorations all over the floor; a purple magician hat with stars hinted at the culprit.

“Blossom,” he whispered as he turned the deadbolt. “Cool your jets, all right? She’s just trying—”

“I don’t care if that Twilight Sparkle is the Element of Magic,” she snapped. “Not even a minute with that… know-it-all and she’s driving me crazy! I have enough problems having a committee telling me what to do! I don’t need—”

Swift raised a firm foreleg. “Blossom?”

She stopped but immediately displayed annoyed pouted lips. “Yes?”

“Look, I know this party is a wicked big deal for you but if there’s some heavy stuff on your plate, let Twi and her friends take care of a few things. Just think of the great rep the town’s gonna really earn if we make the festival the best one ever. That’s what you want, right? To put Brayside on the map? Just give them a chance. They’re good ponies. You’ve got my word on that.”

After some fidgeting, she audibly exhaled. “Well, when you put it that way, I guess I could give them something to do.” After a brief pause, she quickly added, “but only because it means a lot to you that we all get along.”

“Tha—”

“Especially with Rainbow Dash,” she added with a cat smile.

Suddenly, he found the markings on the storage boxes interesting. “Whatever.”

“Awwwww.” She moved into his sights and batted her eyelashes. “Why so mad at me, Swift?”

“You promised you wouldn’t tease me about this, Blossom.”

A halo shone above her head, “But I wasn’t. I was simply making a comment.”

“Sure,” he answered, unlocking the door. “That’s what it was.”

Both re-entered the meeting hall where everyone gathered around Twilight the storyteller.

“…in Equestria can be handled by a checklist,” the unicorn finished, waving her leg around. “Oh, you’re back, Blossom. I was just telling your friends some of my methods to run a smooth and efficient operation.”

A vein popped on the surfer mare’s forehead. “Yes, well, that’s—” Blossom forced a smile “—that’s wonderful! You know, now that I think about it, I’m sure there’s a few things all of you can do. Before we get into that, how about we take a field trip first, hmmm?”

Blitz rubbed his back. “Ohhhhhhhhh. I have to pull that cart again? I don’t think—”

“And I’ll cook a nice warm home cooked dinner for everypony at my place.”

Blitz’s back muscles suddenly healed. “Dinner? Swwweeeeet! Let’s ride!”

A few minutes later, a full wagon left Town Hall straight ahead as the first splashes of orange shone on the town’s palm trees and buildings. Soon, the stallion merged onto another cobblestone road running parallel to the glistening ocean that stretched across the horizon. Half a mile behind them was a long pier that had a Ferris wheel and buildings hosting what Spike presumed to be a whole evening’s worth of entertainment.

“Can we go there before we leave, please,” Spike begged Twilight.

“Of course we will,” Twilight reassured him. “Say, Blossom? Are we really heading to the festival’s location? Shouldn’t it be closer to that pier?”

Blossom’s tail latched onto the surfboard – how dare this unicorn question her judgment without knowing all the facts! Swift whispered in her ear, telling her to calm down. After biting her tongue, she put on a cheery face. “That would be ideal but unfortunately, there’s just not enough real estate over there to host a celebration of this size.”

Twilight stood up for a closer inspection. Sure enough, the sand splitting town and water immediately surrounding the pier had not much room for anything other than a walking trail, a restroom facility and a few basketball courts. Closer to them, the shoreline gained width but more buildings took that space, none taller than five stories but continuing the town’s theme of using every shade in the color wheel. A wide dirt walkway cut between those structures and the beach proper. There, merchants set up makeshift shops with nothing more than a table to sell custom-made trinkets to tourists. Other ponies used the walkway to display their wide arsenal of talents, whether that involved juggling bales of hay, playing music with a horn or riding a unicycle; one did all three at once.

“Excuse me, Blossom?” Applejack wrung her hat. “I was hoping I could get a word with you about something relating to this party here.”

She nodded, “Applejack? I believe you’re the honest one that sells apples, correct?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Then I’m guessing this is about your stall location?”

“Yes, ma’am. I don’t wanna sound ungrateful but I was hoping you’d reconsider that.”

Blitz dug his hooves onto the road, all but flinging his riders off the cart. “Whoa, whoa! If she gets to cut a deal with you, I should too!”

“This ain’t got nothing to do with you, Pineapple,” the cowpony sneered.

The stallion raspberried. “Up yours, Apple! Somepony’s gotta represent Juicy Fruit Fields here and that pony is me!”

“If you’re the face of that sorry excuse for a farm, then they ain’t got a prayer.”

“Loserhat!”

“Yellow belly!”

Blossom banged her surfboard on the carriage’s railing. “Order! Order! I won’t have that kind of tone in this cart!” She faced Applejack, hooves crossed. “I’m sorry, Applejack, but I must be honest with you. Sweet Apple Acres apples just aren’t sweet enough for this town. Knowing the committee, I doubt they’ll change their minds based on that fact alone.”

Blitz began laughing, only to have Blossom clamp down his jaw. “And as for you, pineapples have been in a slide in popularity this year, thanks to you slacking off selling and marketing them around town. All the other fruit families simply kicked your little yellow behind this time around, so stop whining and get moving!”

With her orange eyes burning right into his soul, the trembling stallion turned around and began pulling the wagon. “Yes, Blossom.”

Instantly, her scowl flipped direction. “However, I do have some good news for both of you. The committee received word this afternoon from the Bananers that their crop isn’t ripening fast enough. We decided that they would no longer hold the vendor location by the main entrance.”

Both interested parties gasped in anticipation.

“Now, on Friday, the committee will allow vendors to make their case for that lot before voting. Again, being honest here, I doubt either of you will win by yourselves.”

“I know,” Twilight responded, standing firmly. “What about if Blitz and Applejack join forces and tell them they’ll share the same spot?”

In anticipation, Swift grabbed onto Blossom’s surfboard.

Blossom’s eyelid twitched. I was going to say that! “Y–you… yes. Yes. You’re right. There’s nothing that says sharing a spot isn’t allowed. Whether you can beat groups like the Mangoes and the Strawberries will be hard but I’m sure you two can do it!”

Applejack wretched as though she bit into a molded apple. “No offense, Blossom, but I can’t see myself pairing up with a Pineapple.”

“Ditto,” Blitz answered. “Apples just aren’t my type.”

“But why not?” Pinkie stole Applejack’s hat and placed it atop the stallion’s head. “You can’t have Pineapple without apples!”

Twilight facehoofed. “They’re two complete different fruits, Pinkie.”

“Work together or I’ll personally vote against both of you,” Blossom growled. “Do I make myself clear?”

Begrudgingly, two rivals grunted their mutual agreement.

Satisfied, Blossom slouched onto the wagon’s bench. “You see, everypony?” She sighed contently. “That’s how you handle negotiations.”

Based on most blank faces around her, Blossom’s methods were using a sledgehammer to fix a minor dent. Rainbow found herself nodding. She slid right beside her and took a similarly comfortable position.

“Heh. Gotta say you’ve got a lot of spunk, Blossom.” She smirked, “I like you already.”

The redhead turned her head. “And I would say the same thing. Swift has told me so much about you, Rainbow. Did he ever mention little old me?”

“You mean the so-called greatest surfer ever to grace the waves?” Rainbow answered. “That’s a pretty bold claim to make.”

She raised an eyebrow. “You want me to back that up? You be careful, girl, because it doesn’t matter if you’re my worst rival or best friend. You try going up against me in the water,” she leaned in and flashed a brash grin, “you’re gonna get crushed.”

Rainbow licked her chops at such a tasty morsel of confidence oozing from the redhead. “Oh, really? I’m not afraid one bit. First chance we get, we’re totally on.”

They reached out for a hoof bump, only for multiple shadows to distract them. Several brown and white seagulls had gathered above the wagon and followed it as it pulled off into a gentle downhill dirt road that meandered toward an open grassy field.

Fluttershy pranced atop the wagon, believing the birds were greeting them to the beach. However, her pleasant smile vanished once Leo told her otherwise. “What do you mean they’re not friendly?”

The seagulls dove right at the traveling ponies with a deafening maniacal caw. Hooves flailed wildly as the birds swopped by and popped them with their feet.

Rarity waved around her paper fan, but their beaks quickly tore it into shreds. “Tell them to stop, Fluttershy,” she begged as she followed Spike under the wagon’s bench.

She immediately cowered besides the pair. “I can’t! I don’t understand them!”

Blossom wrapped her tail around her surfboard and began whipping it around the air. “You pests! Shoo!”

Bang! The party cannon exploded confetti but all it did was attract half the colony to Pinkie and Widget. In defense, Applejack flung around her Stetson but three birds grabbed onto it and engaged in a tug of war. Twilight fired off magic bursts from her horn, hoping to aid the cowpony but every shot missed its target.

Meanwhile, Rainbow and Swift had already taken flight, the former swinging her hooves in every direction. Much to her agitation, she kicked empty air, opening her to an attack from the sides.

“Ow! Quit poking me!” She finally hit one. “Swift? What’s the deal?”

“Seagulls,” he growled, face muscles twisting. “I’ve had just about enough of seagulls!”

He took the offensive, repeatedly cutting off their paths and delivering a sideswipe of gray feathers. In less than fifteen seconds, all the birds chased after him, squawking angrily that he eluded them at every turn. Eventually, they flew in a tight v pattern.

He checked over his shoulder. “Eat this!”

Holding his right wing straight, Swift spun clockwise with such force, he shot out an arc of wind twice his width. The birds scarcely had a chance to react before the sudden gust delivered a body blow that sent the pack hurtling over fifty feet. With lost plumage and woozy heads, they staggered away from the shore.

Swift heaved and panted, unable to deliver a parting line.

“Beat it, birdbrains,” Rainbow shouted as she shook a foreleg. Then, she patted him on the shoulder. “Hey, that was really awesome, Swift! I didn’t know you’ve been working on that move!”

“Wanted… to surprise you.” He swiped sweat off his face, “But that’s all I can do. Not a big improvement, huh?”

“Good enough against those varmits,” replied Applejack, wiping the feathers off her hat. “What in Equestria was that about?”

Blossom sighed as she tossed her surfboard aside. “I’m sorry, everpony. I should’ve warned all of you about this ahead of time. Those seagulls are one problem we’re having.”

Blitz resumed pulling the wagon further down the dirt path. “They showed up earlier this year around the farm. I had to work overtime to keep them off our crops. Overtime!”

“And they keep pestering my weather team,” added Swift, as he took a seat and savored his wing. “Don’t get me started on how many cleanup calls we’ve gotten the past month.”

“I built a noise machine to drive off them buggers from here,” said Widget. She leaned out from the wagon, “That should’ve worked.”

Once Blitz stopped in front of a vast grassy field, the wrench mare hopped off and ran toward a wooden box with a horn attachment split in two. Smoke billowed out of the phonograph riddled by rounded dents across its surface. When she touched it, the apparatus exploded, showering the unicorn with smoke and springs.

“So much for that idea,” Blossom grumbled as she gathered everypony else around the unicorn. “Just look around, everypony. This is where we’re hosting our festival. According to our schedule, construction should’ve started at noon.”

Blossom then directed everypony’s attention to lumber piles stacked around the field’s perimeter. Toolboxes and hard hats littered the ground alongside some white and grey feathers.

“It’s obvious why there’s not even a single structure built yet,” Blossom continued. “We can try forcing them out every time they show up but I’d rather have a more permanent solution. We can’t afford that many delays and we certainly can’t have them attack our partygoers.”

“We’ve got the solution to that problem right here,” said Twilight, pulling Fluttershy by her side. “She can talk to those seagulls and figure out what’s going on.”

Fluttershy took a step back. “Not exactly. You see, there’s at least thirteen different dialects for seagulls and unfortunately, they speak one I don’t actually know. If I spend some time around them, I might pick up their language but I don’t think that would—”

“Great!” Twilight winked. “See, Blossom? She’ll take care of it! Anything else?”

Blossom unfurled a parchment along with a quill. Before she could make the first marking, Spike tugged on the paper.

“I can take care of that for you, “he remarked, demonstrating his fingers. “ I can write at least thirty words a—”

She pinched his cheeks, “Ooooooh! I didn’t even notice you until now! You’re so adorable!”

Spike giggled as his cheeks burned.

“Of course you can help me, cutie pie.” Tossing him the parchment, “Just keep going down the list.”

“Yes, ma’am!” Spike gleefully wrote Fluttershy’s name next to Seagulls. “All right. Next up is fireworks.”

Right away, Widget rose up right in front of Blossom, smiling broadly. “Oy! I bet that fellow that you hired dumped us for that Las Pegasus gig, did he?”

Blossom hesitated before nodding. “I should’ve known he would’ve chased the bits.”

Glitter sparkled around Widget. “I can do the—”

“No!” Blossom, Swift and Blitz shouted.

“Oy! And why not?”

The red mare groaned. “You’re my friend, Widget, but I just can’t trust you with explosives and neither will the committee. The only way they’d even let you try is if you had a fireworks expert with you at all times.”

Pinkie slid right beside Widget. “Hey! I can be that expert!”

“No!” protested the other element bearers.

“Since when have you’ve become an expert, Pinkie Pie?” said Twilight, casting a suspicious stare.

The party pony conjured a silver certificate with a red ribbon. “Last week, silly. I’m now certified in the field of explotology! Isn’t that great?”

Twilight scanned every inch of the document; it had authentic stamps and signatures. “Um, that’s, great.” She then leaned close to Blossom’s ear, “If you know what’s good for you, I’d go with a backup plan.”

“But there isn’t one,” she mumbled. “Firework techs don’t just grow on pine trees.”

Both Pinkie and Widget crowded the redhead’s sights like dogs awaiting a delicious treat. Despite just meeting Pinkie today, her instincts screamed this was mixing fire and gasoline. Then again, it was either potentially cataclysmic explosions or none at all. In what may have been the first time in recorded history, this one occasion called for the former.

Blossom motioned Spike to assign fireworks to the now jubilant duo. All the others shuddered.

“Entertainment.” Spike fast read the scribbles below the title. “Actually, this seems like an okay lineup. What’s the issue there?”

“Cross out our headliner,” Blossom answered. “That pegasi band broke up—”She rolled her eyes “—again. Unfortunately, they were both singers who also performed elaborate aerial dancing. Now I have two holes to fill instead of one.”

Rarity squeezed Rainbow and Swift together. “You need dancers, darling? Well, here they are! You couldn’t ask for a better pair! I saw how great they were with my own two eyes.”

“Huh?” Rainbow craned her head toward the unicorn. “What are you talking about?”

“Come now, dear. That little celebration Pinkie threw before that big race in Cloudsdale? Surely, you remember that.”

For the pegasi, that one night quickly came into focus. The lights, the song and the moves; it was a rare moment of perfect harmony of body and soul. What they recalled vividly, though, was when the party mood shifted to something slower and called for intimate contact.

They never went through with it, not then or since.

Whether this particular routine would be closer to a Wonderbolt performance or a tango, the idea struck them with stage fright. Before they could get in a word, however, Blossom instructed Spike to add their names.

“But, but, but—” Swift and Rainbow stammered.

Blossom snickered like a filly. “Oh, you two! You shouldn’t be nervous at all. All you two have to do is move with the music for a few minutes. Hmmm, we probably need a coordinator for that.”

Rarity squeezed the stallion and mare a second time. “I can volunteer for that! I bet I can even put together an ensemble for these two! Just tell me the theme and watch me create something fabulous!”

“An orchestra,” Twilight chirped. “I know of a group in Canterlot that’s looking for some work right now! If I can send a letter off right now, I’m sure they can be here by Friday!”

Blossom’s jaw shuddered. “An orchestra? An orchestra? This is a beach festival, not a high society white tie affair. Besides, I already have somepony in mind to be our singer. Just add a few locals to play the instruments and add our two dancers and presto! We have ourselves a rock band!”

“A rock band?” the unicorn huffed. “Every town in Equestria does that for their summer celebrations! It’s dull and uninspired thinking. We need to be more original! What could be better than combining a finely tuned orchestra and fireworks?”

“A rock band,” Blossom sharply rebuked.

Twilight leaned right into her snout. “An orchestra!”

Her wings sprouted as she pressed back. “A rock band!”

“Orchestra!”

“Rock band!”

“Orchestra!”

“Rock band!”

Both turned to Spike and shouted instructions at a rate faster than he could write.

“One at a time, please,” he pleaded to the cackling chickens. “You’re not even making sense! Who are we going with?”

“Caw! Caw, caw!”

Approaching the vicinity were the same seagulls as before, except they had brought reinforcements; three times more than the first encounter.

Applejack gulped. “Them varmits a coming in a hurry! Fluttershy? Can you try talking to… Fluttershy?”

She tripped right into the wagon and slid under the wagon’s bench. “I’m so sorry!”

“Swift!” Rainbow shook him. “We need that move of yours again!”

His eyes bulged. “Are you bonkers? I used up everything I had last time! Maybe we should retreat!”

“Retreat? Screw that! Those birds won’t push me around this time! Hyaaaaah!”

She sped right into the colony, forelegs swinging for a knockout strike. Instead, the seagulls ripped off some feathers and bits of flowing rainbow hair. Ten seconds was all it took before she made a beeline for the wagon.

“Runnnnnnn!”

Before long, Blitz and his panicked passengers headed up the bumpy uphill path while their pursuers laughed and pecked them with impunity.

Seagulls one. Ponies zero.

Author's Notes:

Blossom just couldn't resist making a big debut*. That's the good news.

Now for the bad. Unfortunately, I'm at a spot where I can no longer continue with this story without first finishing the Return to Flight project. If you don't know what that is, it's a revamped version of the first story of this trilogy. Long story short, my focus has shifted into wrapping up the edits and that will take a considerable amount of time. Additionally, Top Wings is receiving a much lighter refresh, mainly grammar and a few expanded scenes.

As such, this fic will be in hiatus until then. In the meantime, I will be releasing the revamped RTF/TW in pieces here on FIM Fiction. I'll also put up links to the original.

* Author's Note to the Note

Well, okay. Literary debut. You probably recognize her already from this:

4 - Seaside Confessions

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Finally, a time to relax.

After five minutes of galloping down a cobblestone road at top speed, Blitz had pulled enough of a gap from the seagulls. They called off their pursuit and headed toward the nearby open sea.

By then, he and his passengers found themselves in a region surrounded by hills with hay huts and wooden shacks at the top of each one. Blitz slowed to a more modest pace and scanned the ancillary dirt paths that branched off the main road every few hundred yards.

“I think you missed the turn,” Widget instructed him. “Isn’t it the first right after that billboard there?”

“That’s to get to your shop,” Blossom corrected. “It’s the first left after this upcoming curve.”

As the cart rolled by the billboard, Rarity withheld a gasp. There was Surfing Blossom depicted with sultry eyes and free flowing hair holding onto her surfboard by the shore. “Have fun at the beach,” she enunciated off the printed bold words. “That’s a rather, ahem, sensuous picture.”

Blossom stared at the twenty foot depicture, ears flopping in the gentle breeze. “Ohhhhh! I told those ponies to take that down by now! Not that I look good but maybe a little too good. It’s been a major… Blitz! Eyes on the road!”

The wagon’s right wheels drifted off the cobblestone. Before the shadow of a surfboard could fall over his head, Blitz swerved back hard, nearly tossing out his riders. “Sorry! Sorry!”

After rounding the next bend, Blitz made a turn to a downhill path that ran parallel to the ocean half a mile away. Rocks jutted out of the water, blocking the crashing waves from reaching the sand shining under the sun’s soft orange glow. Up one small hill and down the other side, a one story wooden house came into view, coated in a mesh of soft reds and pinks. A white picket fence enclosed a garden and a solitary blossom tree, a stranger in a land peppered with tropical trees and bushes.

Blitz stopped in front of the door decorated with three painted flowers and unhitched from the wagon. “Aw, sweet! I can already taste that home cooking!”

“Just don’t eat it all this time. We do have guests,” Blossom reminded him as she opened the door and held it in place. “In the meantime, make yourselves comfortable, everypony.”

When the group stepped indoors, they all caught a whiff of a fresh flowery scent reminiscent of a spring day in the fields. Blossom had decorated her walls in a predictable pink with blossoms scattered all over the place. All her furniture was redwood, from the tan cushioned couch neatly tucked in the corner to the tall cabinet with glass doors. Pictures, surfing competition trophies and books lined the shelves. A few of her guests took the time admiring her trinkets. Others glanced through the sliding glass doors and with Blossom’s okay, they stepped into the patio partially shaded by a white cover.

Rarity and Fluttershy immediately took a seat on the hanging bench on the right and admired the not too distant water separated by sand and patchy grass. Then Pinkie and Widget partially obstructed their view, dismantling the Party Cannon in order to examine its inner workings.

“Must you do that here?” Rarity huffed. “I’m trying to enjoy the sunset!”

She got no reply. In fact, the view worsened thanks to Applejack and Blitz. A few insults about their respective fruits escalated to a challenge of tug of war. They found a rope and a moist part of dirt to serve as punishment for losing.

“You ain’t got nothing against me,” Applejack barked. “I’ve got the strength of apples inside of me!”

“Soft mushy apples,” Blitz chided, flexing his muscles. “Everypony knows that pineapple is the fruit of champs!”

Meanwhile, Blossom worked inside a narrow kitchen, chopping away on some vegetables on a granite countertop. She began humming a peppy tune only for a hair stands to pop out when Twilight’s head poked in from the open doorway behind her.

“Hey, Blossom? I don’t see a dining room table anywhere. Where are we supposed to eat?”

She delivered a hard chop of the knife to a tomato. “I usually have my company eat from one of the small tables outside. That way, they can enjoy the wonderful outdoors with plenty of room to stretch their hooves.”

Twilight rubbed her chin. “Hmmm, I don’t think that will work, not with this many ponies. I’ll pull out the large table from the living room. I’m sure everypony will like that. Oh, have you reconsidered about going with a finely tuned orchestra for the festival?”

Her hoof pulverized the vegetable. “No, Twilight. I haven’t.”

“You really should.” She nudged Spike into the kitchen. “Anyways, he can help you with dinner preparations. It’s nice to have an extra set of hooves, or in this case, hands.”

Before the dragon assistant knew it, he was staring down a mare holding onto a knife dripping with juice. Raising a shaking claw, “Um, I can understand if you don’t want me in here.” He gulped. “Please don’t hurt me!”

Blossom gently placed the knife on the counter and sighed. “It’s all right, little one. You don’t seem like the bossy type.”

“More like the bossed around type,” he said, hands on hips. “It’s okay. I’m used to it by now.”

“Oh, you poor little thing!” Blossom stroked his head, “It must be hard for you working for somepony like her.”

“It’s not that bad. Yeah, Twilight’s not always the easiest pony to deal with but deep down, she’s a great pony who always has the best intentions. Just give it time, Blossom, and I’m sure you two will be the best of friends!”

Her eyes closed halfway. “We’ll see. Well, as long as I have you here, how about you grab some more tomatoes from the garden, please?”

“Sure thing!” He walked out of the kitchen, only for Blossom to call him back.

“By the way, what do small dragons like to eat?”

“Anything with gemstones!” He scuffed the wooden paneled floor, “But that’s okay if you don’t have any. It’s not like anypony in Equestria expects having a dragon as a houseguest.”

Blossom beamed. “Actually, gemstones wash up on the shore from time to time. If you can find some nearby, I can try making a special meal just for you!”

“Really,” he squealed. “In that case, tomatoes and gemstones coming your way!”

The assistant ran with vigor across the living room, through the threshold and right into Rarity’s extended hoof.

“Oh, sweetie! Where are you going in such a hurry?”

“Delicious gemstones,” he wheezed. “Over… by the water!”

She raised an eyebrow. “Oh really? I think I’ll join you, then. Anything for a change of scenery.”

Nearby, Applejack fell onto the dirt thanks to a hearty pull from the much larger stallion. Cheating allegations quickly broke out followed by another challenge; hoof race down the beach.

“Hey, Rarity?” Spike pointed at Twilight walking down the shoreline toward some cliffs off in the distance. “Where’s she heading?”

“After Rainbow and Swift. He lives in a cave over there, supposedly.” She scoffed. “I know he’s said that a few times but I’m certain he meant that as a joke.”

*** PAGE BREAK ***

“This is the way to your pad, Swift? Really?”

“What’s wrong with this, Rainbow?”

Pegasi living in clouds was the norm but Rainbow thought nothing about choosing something closer to the ground: a cottage in the country, an apartment within a big city or a cabin tucked deep in the woods. A cave with an entrance one hundred feet above the waterline – that was a first.

She all but asked how anypony without wings could reach such a secluded area when she realized the narrow path she landed on ran all the way beside the steep rugged cliffs. There was enough room for hoof travel but vertigo or a gust a wind could take a traveler tumbling down the steep rugged decline to the ocean. Leo went that way by choice, using his shell to roll his way into the splashing water.

“Later,” the stallion waved to his animal friend. “Say hi to your other turtle bros for me!”

Rainbow walked into the narrowing cavern but cloud material up ahead blocked the passage. “What’s that supposed to be? Decoration?”

“It’s a door,” Swift answered plainly, walking closely behind her.

“Heh. A door? It’s nothing but condensed water, Swift.” She continued marching forward without breaking stride, “You think this is gonna stop anypony from just waltzing in and—”

Her snout hit a brick wall.

“Ow!”

She took a step back and rubbed her nose. “Hey! What gives?”

He grinned. “That’s made of specially formulated water vapor that my dad developed.” Swift pulled out a key and inserted it into a side hole. “Just gotta turn it here and—”

Built-in sprays from the rock ceiling ejected green fluid onto the door, disintegrating it into mist. Rainbow’s eyes widened in expectation of a vast space filled with glimmers of light shining on oddly shaped geological formations and waterfalls pooling together into a private lake. That had to be why he needed such a contraption, a curtain to unveil an awesome abode!

“Oh.”

Rainbow stepped into an oblong chamber. While the area did have some height, a few lonely cracks allowed in natural light to seep into a space that would be cramped for a living room, let alone somepony’s entire living quarters. One side had a plain desk with a four-drawer cabinet next to it and the other a wooden table with three chairs. Across from her tucked in the narrow end of the cave was the only object she was accustomed to seeing in any pegasi home, a couple of clouds bunched together to form a simple bed.

“Told you my hangout’s nothing special,” Swift said. “I’m usually here only when I need to sleep for the night.”

She refrained from criticizing to gander at a few framed pictures hanging on the wall. Most of the faces she recognized: a peregrine falcon, his immediate friends, his pegasi parents and a smattering of other ponies she’d seen in and around the town. When she spotted the image of them together on a victory podium, Rainbow opened her mouth for a question. However, she found her answer at the dimmest corner of the cavern.

“A trophy case?” Rainbow trotted to a tall case enclosed in glass. Within, she saw her reflection off the sparkling silver prize. “You actually kept this. I thought you would’ve chucked this in the ocean.”

He pawed hard silt ground, “I’ll admit I had that thought when I brought it here but then you and my folks would’ve chewed me out big time. Besides, I did work my flank off to get it.”

“You don’t say?” She wriggled an eyebrow to him, “Is that a little pegasus pride I’m hearing?”

Swift shrugged. “Whatever you wanna call it.”

She meandered to his bed and then fell backwards into it. The cloud vapor’s composition rapidly changed to just the right setting, super soft and cool to the touch. There was no need shifting to a more comfortable position – sprawled across it was. Forget a spa massage; the best professional couldn’t match how this bed soothed every muscle into goo.

“How is this even possible?” she moaned, looking at him with just one lazy eye. “You’ve really outdone yourself, Swift.”

“Actually, that’s my dad’s hoofwork. He sets it up every time he visits. Now, if you don’t mind,” He extended a foreleg, “you’re gonna mess it up.”

She swatted him away. “Geez. Picky. Give me a few, huh?”

Rainbow sat up onto the bed’s edge. On the top of his nightstand was the expected firefly lamp but what caught her attention were the photographs placed beside the simple alarm clock. He had the obligatory son-parents and close friend group shots but the third image was a replica of one of the first few items she saw every morning by her bed. He even had it encased in a frame designed for a four-picture strip, except his was a glossy blue rather than her choice of sparkling cyan.

She grabbed the framed picture and touched the image of Swift and she having fun inside a photo booth. “You kept this too?”

He sat next to her on the bed. “Well, yeah. You literally chased me down to give it to me. There’s no way I’m losing this.”

“Yeah. I guess you’re right.” She placed the picture back to its original spot. “Seriously, if you did, I would’ve noogied you so hard, I’d set your hair on fire.”

“Sounds like something you would do… except you haven’t done that to me.” He fluffed his forelock, “Not lately.”

She squeezed the cloud bits below her, “Well, I just thought that, um, maybe I shouldn’t do stuff like that anymore. Well, I do with Scoots but that’s, different. She’s younger than me so that’s okay.”

“Oh. Gotcha.”

No doubt, she heard a tinge of disappointment from him. If she had the courage, she would’ve told him the reason; such a ritual drew too much undesired attention from anypony in the vicinity. Then again, she delighted in touching his blue strands from the first time she did so out of pure curiosity. Nothing could beat a cloud in terms of being a toy for comfort but his hair wasn’t far behind. Noogie withdrawal was anything but easy and her lips paid for it courtesy of her teeth.

“Guess I don’t have to play along anymore, then,” he mused.

She gave him a puzzled look. “What did you say?”

The corners of his mouth moved coyly upwards. “C’mon, Rainbow. All this time, I’ve just been letting you grab me for a noogie.”

“Huh? You’re pulling my mane.”

“I’m not, Rainbow. Don’t forget whom you’re dealing with. If I wanted to, I could get away from you just like—”

Without warning, she lunged at him. Swift tossed himself back and then reached out to place her in a headlock. He got in one rub before she pressed her body weight against him, rolling them both deeper into the malleable bed. Wings sprouted and hooves flailed as it become a battle for control – agility and cunning versus speed and strength. A wriggle here, a tickle and laugh there, two ponies refused to cede the battle.

“You’re mine, Swift!”

With a grab and shove, she pinned the slender stallion right below her. In an instant, their playful struggle stopped and a prolonged staring match began.

“’Sup,” he mumbled, the crimson building in his cheeks.

“Hey,” she whispered in kind.

A long few seconds later, “Um, we should probably stop.”

“Didn’t we?”

“Eh?”

Her face gravitated toward his and despite her loosening grip, he chose surrendering to the inevitable.

“Wow! A live-in cave!”

Twilight’s voice was a whip to their backs. They both stood up erect just as she waltzed into the open chamber.

“I wonder if it’s limestone or sandstone.” The new visitor patted the walls, “Swift? How do you manage living in here? When did you find this place? Does it leak when it rains?”

The stallion walked over so he could answer every one of her questions. He welcomed anything that would distract him from the erratic heart palpitations and how sweltering it had become inside his home.

Rainbow sat back down on the bed, steam coming out of her ears.

Darn it, Twilight! Why did you have to barge in here and—

A splash of logic doused her fury. Why was she angry in the first place, she thought. If anything, Rainbow should’ve been thanking Twilight for her inadvertent interruption. Certain lines were in place for a reason and yet she almost went across one, again. When the framed photo booth image crossed her sights, she flipped it backwards. The last thing she needed right now was more reminders of that question that hammered her every time she let down her guard.

What’s wrong with me?

*** PAGE BREAK ***

“Dinnertime!”

One by one, Blossom and Spike brought out onto the patio a vast selection: quesadillas, vegetable soup, lettuce wraps with a hint of lime, cucumber kabobs and fruit yogurt for dessert. Based on the shower of compliments to the chef, Blossom should’ve been grinning from ear to ear. Alas, Rainbow and Swift had informed her that Twilight would be a late arrival. The nearby geology was apparently more fascinating to her than a home cooked meal with friends.

“Should we save some food for Twilight,” inquired Spike as he munched on a tortilla roll stuffed with crushed gemstones.

“Don’t you worry about that,” Blossom answered while picking up some dirty plates. “I can give her something else to eat.” Under her breath, “A bowl of stale Barn Flakes.”

By the time half the sun hid under the horizon, the studious unicorn returned under the capony’s shade and took a seat on a lawn chair. Despite a solitary kabob on the nearby table, Twilight gabbed about cliffs and caves, her newfound discoveries having satisfied her hunger. It wasn’t too long before she brought up the matter about the festival.

Blossom, sitting across from her, wrinkled her nose. “We’ve already hashed out some of the details before you arrived.” She patted Spike on the head. “Thankfully, he was quite helpful taking notes and with tonight’s dinner. I’m sure he can fill you in on the game plan for tomorrow.”

“I sure can,” Spike chirped before he resumed savoring his food.

Twilight had a sudden eye twitch. Spike’s glee with this new pony had her questioning his loyalty. Time for a test. “Ahem. Spike? Have you’ve told Blossom of the merits of an orchestra like you were supposed to?”

He squeezed his roll and gemstones clanged on the floor. “Um, actually, I guess I kinda, heh heh, forgot about that. In fact, Blossom made some really good points about rock bands livening up the—”

She rose from her seat. “I’d like a word with you, Spike. Alone!”

He let out a meek gulp. “Yes, ma’am.”

They walked into the vegetable garden where nopony could see them from the patio.

Spike fell onto both knees and clasped his hands, “Please, Twilight! I’m sorry! I just couldn’t! I was too weak! She cooked gemstones and they were delicious! I—”

She held his mouth shut. “Don’t worry about it,” she whispered. “I had a feeling it wouldn’t have worked anyways. Time for put my plan into action. Spike? I need you to do a favor for me.”

Spike got back up, his jaw free of restraint. “Okay. What is it?”

Twilight conjured a scroll. “It’s a letter to the Princess asking her if she could inform the orchestra stationed there that they’re needed here right away.”

He put up both hands, “Hold on! You want me to deliver... but Blossom’s already settled for a rock band, Twilight!”

“I know that but believe me, once she hears them play, I’m certain she’ll change her mind.”

“But if what she doesn’t? You don’t want to upset her any further! I mean, shouldn’t we let her make the final call?”

Twilight chuckled off his concern. “Now, Spike. Sometimes, you just gotta make some tough decisions that will benefit everypony in the long run, even if somepony else can’t see it yet. I’m confident this will work out in the end and she’ll be thanking me for taking the initiative.”

“B–but—”

She gave him the letter, “Send it off, please.”

He blew a small wisp of green flame onto the scroll, which disappeared in smoke. “I really hope you know what you’re doing.”

They made their way back to the patio, where Blossom had shifted the discussion to tying an aerial performance with rock music.

Spike glanced at Twilight for instructions – she simply placed her foreleg over her lips before taking a seat.

“I can’t think of a better pair than Rainbow and Swift for some razzle dazzle in the skies,” said Applejack, pausing to sip on a cool drink. “Why are you two acting all strange about it?”

The two ponies in question sat in adjacent lawn chairs, doing everything in their power to look in opposite directions.

“I’m not sure about doing something fancy in public,” Swift mumbled. “Got enough publicity from that race.”

Rainbow leaned back, “Doing any type of stunts with somepony else is, um, complicated. Takes a lot of practice.”

Rarity pulled both their chairs closer. “And that’s why it’s important to do just that. Come. We can work on basic choreography while we still have some daylight left.”

The two wanted to raise an objection except all those around them had voiced their resounding approval. Rainbow Dash and Swift Flying were in the program for a Saturday night performance. They never really had a choice in the matter.

“That settles it!” Blossom raised a glass of punch. “Let’s make this the best festival Brayside Beach has ever had! Cheers!”

*** PAGE BREAK ***

“A spin, not a bump, darlings.”

Rarity sat on a fold-up chair placed well beyond Blossom’s patio. While the sun had already called it a day, she had enough moonlight to continue the almost private practice session. Half an hour ago, Blitz had taken Widget and the deconstructed party cannon to her workshop and the Ponyville ponies back to the motel. Blossom – at the unicorn’s request – went asking the neighbors for more appropriate record music. Island music wasn’t going to cut it, not tonight.

Even with no disc on the nearby record player, Rarity instructed her unwilling pupils to imagine a tune in their heads while they performed some simple moves. She had no way of knowing whether they fulfilled the former but the latter was a train wreck in the skies. Months ago, in front of her very eyes, these same two ponies dominated the dance floor. Now they couldn’t get out of each other’s way and no amount of direction could help them.

Oh dear. This isn’t the start I envisioned. I’m certain that one night wasn’t a fluke.

Eventually, Blossom made her return with a stack of dusty albums. “Not exactly a great selection, Rarity. All I found was,” she shuddered, “classical and some jazz.”

Rarity nodded as she flipped through the music selection, “That’s quite all right, dearie. At this point, any type of beat is better than none at all.” Raising her voice to the hovering pegasi fifty feet above her head, “Now, don’t you worry, you two! I’m certain you’ll do better with some actual music!”

Rainbow had both forelegs on her hips, “Do we really need to hold hooves for this thing?”

“I sorta agree with her,” Swift added. “Can’t we just do stunts side-by-side or something?”

“I’ve already gone over this,” Rarity rebuked, wagging her hoof at them. “This can’t just be another ho-hum performance like with the Wonderbolts.”

Rainbow gasped. “Ho-hum?”

Ignoring her flare-up, “We need something magical. We need something extraordinary.” She clutched her chest, “We must make our audience feel! We want them to remember your performance in the night skies for the rest of their lives!”

Blossom tapped Rarity’s shoulder. “I appreciate your enthusiasm but they’re just dancing to a rock song. As long as they can keep the audience entertained while the band plays, that’s all we need out of them.”

“I understand that,” she whispered into her ear. “I’ll admit I do have an ulterior motive here.”

“Oh?”

Her eyes darted between the two hovering ponies. “Don’t tell me you can’t see there’s something going on between those two. I’m just trying to lend a helping hoof to open up—” She fluttered her eyelashes “—new possibilities.”

Blossom snickered. “Well, if you must know, Swift promised me not to tease him about something, if you get my hint.”

“Really?”

“But he didn’t say anything about helping him with this something.”

In an instant, they giggled like fillies in the playground.

“What’s going on down there?” Rainbow shouted.

“Nothing,” they both responded.

Eventually, the choreographer placed an album onto the turntable and moved the needle into position. After a few audible cracks coming from the speaker, the recordings of a fast saxophone had Blossom bopping her head to the pleasing melody. Rarity tapped her hoof on the patchy grass as her mind processed what moves would fit the tune. When she had it planned out, she outlined the moves to her two performers.

“And don’t forget the combination spin at the end,” Rarity finished. “Together then apart, nice and slow.”

Rainbow and Swift grumbled their uneasy approval.

“Miss Blossom? If you please?”

The surfer mare reset the music and then observed alongside Rarity what should’ve been an upbeat jig between two pegasi. However, they became witness to newfound ways to screw up every time Rainbow and Swift got within a foot of each other. If they didn’t bump wingtips, the pair missed their grabs and holds or mistimed a turn. Their facial muscles contorted into restrained disgust as though their respective partner had some contagious disease. Awkwardness might as well be.

As the music came to its conclusion, Rainbow reached out to the stallion but just a glimpse of his eyes and her mind went on autopilot. He should’ve realized the imminent collision except his alarms malfunctioned.

Blossom winced at the mid-air crash.

“All wrong,” Rarity complained with a facehoof. “Let’s try this again, shall we?”

For the new few attempts, Rainbow and Swift did their best to disprove the saying that practice indeed made perfect. While they cut down their crashes, their flying would’ve had their licenses revoked – if there was such a thing as pegasi piloting certification.

“Stop! Just, stop!” Rarity turned to her viewing companion, “Can you be a dear and go up there and show them what they’re doing wrong?”

“I’d love to but—” Blossom flexed her wings and gestured toward the sky “—that may be a little hard for me.”

Rarity blinked a few times. “I don’t quite understand what… oh. Oh! I’m so terribly sorry! I didn’t know that—”

“It’s all right,” she said, smiling broadly. “My wings still has its uses.” She sighed. “Hovering’s not one of them. It’s a shame. I think Swift would feel a lot better if he practiced with me in the air.”

The unicorn gasped. “That’s it! I We’ll just have them dance down here in the ground, with us! Once we get them into a nice rhythm, we can then switch partners! If we can just make them less nervous, then everything else will fall into place. What do you say?”

Blossom winked, “You got it!”

When Rarity waved over Rainbow and Swift and told them of the switch in tactics, they jumped all over it. Anything was better than apologizing to each other for every mistake.

“Allow the dancing come to you naturally,” Rarity coached her pupils. “Don’t think about what to do. Just, let it happen!”

Blossom tossed out one record for another. The following song – a mixture of piano, saxophone and trumpets – enticed Rarity to swing her hips.

“Just like this, everypony!”

Blossom pulled Swift right in front her. “C’mon, you! Don’t be hiding those mad dancing skills from me!”

“I’m not that great,” he replied casually.

“We’ll see about that.”

Meanwhile, Rainbow moved across the grass field in a confined space, careful not to run into a dancing partner that could trip over her hooves any second. With the music speeding up, snickers soon escaped her clenched mouth, much to Rarity’s chagrin.

“This isn’t easy, you know!” She paused to wipe her forehead. “The pace is rather demanding!”

“Pffft! It’s a piece of cake! Here!” She grabbed Rarity’s hoof. “Let’s do a spin!”

“Hold on-nnnnnnn!”

Rainbow twirled the unicorn in a full circle and into the ground with a plop.

“More fair warning next time,” she grumbled as she got up and shook off dirt. “And not that fast!”

She didn’t hear her complaints. All of her attention had turned on the other dancing pair. Not only had Swift successfully spin Blossom, she did the same to him. Then out of nowhere, Blossom flipped above the stallion and despite surprise written all over his face, aided her to a gentle landing as though he’d practiced that move for years. Then they went through a synchronized step pattern, definitely not one achievable by beginners.

“Wonderful, you two,” Rarity chirped. “I think I’m ready for that spin now, Rainbow. Rainbow?”

Swift and Blossom continued their iron grip on Rainbow’s focus but not because of their dancing prowess. Why were they smiling? Why were they laughing? Why was the redhead suddenly making her face turn red?

“We should switch, shouldn’t we?” Rainbow said through clenched teeth.

Rarity verbally acquiesced – now she had the object of her ire as her partner.

“Think you can keep up with me?” Blossom told her with a mischievous smile.

When the beat called for it, Rainbow put all her muscle spinning Blossom faster than a tornado.

The redhead’s hooves dug deep into the silt but she stayed upright and then returned the favor. While she didn’t have the same might, Rainbow slipped on a moist patch. Her partner grabbed her, saving her from a fall.

“I’ll go easier next time, ‘kay?” said the surfer mare.

Rainbow responded with an eye tick before checking on the other dancing pair. Like magic, her unicorn friend suddenly managed a semblance of competence, thanks to a patient stallion that guided her every step. She even managed a perfectly executed twirl at speed.

“Wooo!” Rarity cooed. “Are you sure dancing isn’t part of your cutie mark?”

Swift chuckled. “Nah. I can name a few on my weather team that are better than me.”

“Don’t be so modest, darling!” She went for another twirl. “Oh, this is so much fun!”

Rainbow didn’t have as much. For how uncomfortable it was pairing up with the agile stallion in the skies, now she wished to have another crack at it. She was ready to ask but then noticed him looking her way.

In a flurry, Rainbow turned her head back toward Blossom. Before she knew it, the surfer mare tossed her sideways in the air, yelling for Swift to make the catch.

He moved right into position with plenty of time to spare, only for hesitation to make him nothing more than an unwilling cushion to break her fall.

“Ooof!”

For the second time today, Rainbow Dash was atop of him and this time, he couldn’t move for a different reason. Her hindquarters had his left wing pinned against the sparse grass.

“Sorry,” she blurted out as she rolled off him.

“No worries,” he hissed, savoring his slightly bent wingtips. “Not the worst thing that’s happened to it. What was that all about, Blossom? I wasn’t ready for that!”

She moved the needle off the record. “Remember when Blitz suddenly threw me like that during the Hearts Warming Eve party last year? That time, you caught me just fine so I thought you could do it again.”

“But that was completely different.”

“How is it different, Swift?” She strutted toward him, “Rainbow and I are about the same size, same height. Both times, you moved into the right spot for the catch. You looked even more ready this time so how could it be different?”

Swift leaned back against her devilish leer.

“Don’t tell me the moonlight caught your eye.”

“Well, I… it’s that you—” In a low voice, “whatever.”

Rarity clasped her hooves together. “All right, everypony. That was, um, progress, I suppose. Let’s pick this up again, tomorrow, shall we?”

Again, Rainbow wasn’t paying attention. She was staring off into the horizon where the millions of white dots competed for real estate across a vast purple canvas. Miles away, the center of the town glowed different hues of ember, pale green and cool blue. Unlike a place like Ponyville, this town must have a more lively nightlife but she couldn’t hear the hustle and bustle from this distance. Instead, she picked up the sound of crickets and crashing waves. It was just what she needed to forget about what unfolded within the last few minutes, the soothing sounds of nature.

Then a thought shattered that calm. “Um, I guess I gotta fly back to the motel, huh?”

Rarity inspected her surroundings, “Oh dear. It is getting rather dark. I’m not exactly comfortable having to walk back, especially in a town I don’t really know.”

Blossom chuckled. “Oh, you two! There’s no need to go anywhere! Hey! How about we have a sleepover?”

Rainbow whipped her head back. “A sleepover? Um, I don’t think—”

“Wonderful,” Rarity exclaimed. “It’s a perfect way to bond together between us girls!” After a pregnant pause, she turned to Swift. “Oh, yes. Ahem. Well, I suppose we can allow you to partake.”

“No, no, no,” he said, taking three steps back. “Sounds like a one hundred percent mare thing. I’ll just be in the way. That and I’ve got some weather stuff I gotta take care of before dawn.”

“Maybe Rainbow Dash could join you in that, then?”

The pony in question squeaked in surprise.

Swift waved off the unicorn. “Um, I’m not… t–that won’t be necessary! I know you hate doing anything that early, right, Rainbow?”

She mumbled a generic agreement, which was his excuse for a quick good night and takeoff heading north.

Rainbow gave him a cursory wave before staring at the nearby ocean water pounding the shoreline. Behind her, Blossom and Rarity began gabbing about things she could care less about: summer clothes, furniture and makeup. Touring Brayside Beach attractions at this hour or even returning to the motel sounded like better alternatives but alas, her body was in no mood to fly. Maybe it was the trip itself or the warmer temperatures here than Ponyville but her internal body clock told her it was approaching midnight despite it being no later than eight o’clock.

Straight to sleep it was, then. That was a serviceable enough excuse to pass on whatever Blossom and Rarity were planning to do in the living room.

“Since when you sleep this early, dear?” Rarity said, giving Rainbow a quizzical look. “Well, we’ll try to keep the noise down for now.”

“Have a good night,” Blossom added.

Rainbow looked straight at the redhead for a few seconds, her eyebrows stuck in the irritated position. “Good night.”

Rainbow stepped right into a darkened bedroom where a reflection of her appeared from a mirror affixed to a dresser cabinet. The sliding door to a closet was open and it held both the expected clothes and unexpected surfboards, at least five identical ones. An open window allowed in the sea breeze that made the red curtains covering the opening dance and kept the air cool. She closed the door behind her and stretched her back.

Wait. Is that a—

Beside a twin-sized bed, she noticed a white hammock with a heart shaped pillow. Hammocks made of out clouds she had experienced – nothing to write home about – but a cloth one was another story. She threw herself right into it.

“Whoa!”

It swung like a boat traversing the rough seas but after a few seconds, the hammock settled to a slow sway. Her senses tuned out the intermittent chatter in the other room but not the bombardment of thoughts that held her back from sleep; different town, new ponies and dilemmas both past and present. It took a few yawns but combined by the hammock’s gentle rocking, she slipped into the darkness.

Then a loud snort opened the blinders over her peepers.

Wha… who’s that?

Through the window, the moon that had been halfway up the sky had reached its apex. When she checked to her left, there was Rarity under the sheets donning an eye mask. A few more pony noises and then she returned to prim and proper snoring.

If Rarity’s sleeping on the bed, where’s Blossom?

Rainbow soon found her but only as a picture hanging on the wall. She had Hearts Warming Eve attire and had hooves around Swift who wore a fuzzy hat. He welcomed the embrace and based on her toothy grin, she adored him like the top present on a wish list. Her eyes pierced through time and gazed right at Rainbow, twisting her heart. Rainbow sat up, her body beginning to shake. Images like this were a bit a dozen; Rainbow had one with her and Fluttershy sitting in a dusty photo album in a bookcase. That was okay but this image was wrong, not just that picture but the others around the room where both were in the same picture. Birthdays, holidays, random get-togethers, Blossom chose to be by his side in just about every instance. There was a connection between them, hinted while she and Swift danced and confirmed by the evidence all around her. Surfing Blossom was guilty of mere association so declared her rising anger.

She hopped off the hammock and placed her hooves around the picture frame, the temptation to smash it onto the floor harder to resist the more she held onto it. Finally, she raised it above her head and waited for the emotional trigger to snap.

Dammit! What am I doing?

Rainbow returned the picture to its spot and rested her forehead onto the wall.

I must be losing my mind.

A muffled rocking sound popped open her wings.

What’s that?

She nudged the bedroom door open and tiptoed into the living room. The sliding glass door leading into the patio was open a sliver and somepony had left on one of the outside lanterns. Rainbow slipped through the gap, hoping the constant noise was just a home declaring its need for some upkeep.

“Well, Aloha, you!”

There was Blossom, sitting on the hanging bench with a smile matching that from the picture. She patted on the empty spot next to her.

Rainbow wanted nothing to do with the redhead, not with her feelings about her in flux. “Um—”

“I won’t bite, Rainbow. Take a seat.”

She did and then clutched the chain that held the bench suspended in the air. She kept Blossom just outside her range of sight, “So, what are you doing out here at this hour?”

Blossom moved slightly back and forth, “Sometimes, I just like sitting here before turning in. It relaxes me. I even fall asleep here from time to time.” She pulled out a half-completed sock. “I was also working on this. Rarity was teaching me how to make these for Hearts Warming Eve.” She tossed the sock aside, “Sewing’s definitely not my talent, though. What brings you out here, Rainbow?”

Her grip on the chain tightened before rationality clamped down these newfound emotions. “N–no reason.”

Blossom removed both hair bands, allowing her mane to flow freely behind her neck. “You don’t need to hide anything. Are you having trouble sleeping?”

After a brief pause, “You could say that.”

“Do you need more pillows? Is it too warm inside?”

“No, it’s not that. Just, stuff in my head.”

Blossom scooted closer to Rainbow. “You don’t say? A bit for your thoughts?”

She glanced her way. “I’m not much of a talker.”

“That’s not what Swift’s told me.”

“Wai–what?” She held her wings from unfurling. “W–what did he say?”

“Mmmmmmm. He told me you like to brag, a lot.”

“He did?” She pulled out a weak laugh. “Oh. Yeah, of course.”

Blossom flicked her mane to the side. “I can’t blame you. It’s only natural when your talent draws you into competition. I’ll admit I can be like that sometimes when I’m surfing for a trophy. I do try to be nice but if somepony pushes my buttons, I won’t hold back.”

Rainbow thanked Celestia for a more a comfortable topic. “I hear ya. Heh. Everypony knows how great I am but ponies still try to challenge me to races. I don’t mind having to teach them a lesson. Of course, they whine and cry afterwards that I have an unfair advantage. Not my fault I’m naturally fast.”

“Like it’s not my fault that a pegasus can be so good in a so-called earth pony skill. Ha!”

She turned to face her, “I’m kinda surprised they would let any pegasus compete when you clearly have a competitive advantage.”

“Not exactly. I have to tie up my wings before every event but all that means is that I have to work a little harder getting some speed and air. It doesn’t stop me from winning.”

“Three time regional champ if read the inscriptions on your trophies right.”

“And proud of it!”

Now Rainbow could bust out a smile. “I’m glad somepony understands the idea of pegasus pride.”

“Actually, I’ve never heard of that until Swift told me one day. I suppose it’s because I’m not your typical pegasus.”

She just had to mention him by name. Rainbow immediately stiffened, “I, see.”

Blossom moved even closer. “You know. It’s funny. I know this is the first time we’ve met but I feel like I’ve already known you for a while. Every time Swift came back from the Stallihorns, he had something new to share about his trip but he always talked about you the most.”

“H–he did?”

“Mhm. Maybe it’s just me but I got the impression that you two, how can I put this, spent a lot of time together? I know you two had to work but you’ve kept finding the time to have a little fun here and there. You know, just you two.”

Rainbow scratched her head, “I, um, I guess you could say that.” A new question came to her and spent no time mulling on whether to ask. “So, do you and Swift, um, spend time together? Like, do… stuff?”

Blossom grinned like a cat that had caught a mouse by its tail.

Rainbow retreated to the corner of the swaying bench. “I meant that, um, as, not like—”

“Was that a little jealousy I heard just now?”

Her wings opened fully. “No! I just wanted—”

“Is there something you’re not telling me?” She leaned in close enough to touch snouts. “Something Swift hasn’t told me yet?”

All at once, she remembered the pictures on the wall along with the dancing earlier in the night. Rainbow grabbed onto her and if it wasn’t for heroic self-restraint, would’ve tossed her right off the patio. Instead, she shoved her back just hard enough for some breathing room.

“Nothing’s happening, Blossom!” Rainbow slouched and crossed her forelegs. “Geez, louise! Can’t Swift and I be in the same town without everypony in Equestria thinking that we’re, well, you know!”

Blossom, wily expression intact, craned her head right into Rainbow’s sights. “No, I don’t know. You tell me.”

She glowed brighter than the distant lighthouse guiding those traversing the dark sea.

Blossom rolled back to her side of the bench and wriggled in place, tittering with glee.

Rainbow scowled at the silhouette of nearby cliffs. If she saw even a strand of red hair right now, she would slug Blossom into tomorrow. “It’s not like that. Not like that at all.”

“C’mon, now. I’m just teasing you. Lighten up,” said Blossom, wiping off amused tears. “I’ll tell you what. Just to make it up to you, I’ll let you in on a secret about me, something I’ve never told anypony before.”

All she wanted was to leave town. “What is it?”

Blossom checked her surroundings; this was not for Rarity’s ears in case they were tuning in right now. In a whisper, “There’s something you should know about me and Swift.”

Rainbow started turning her direction.

“I, used to have a crush on him.”

She stumbled backwards, rocking the bench hard enough that both had to hold on just to stay on it. Once the movement slowed, Rainbow raised a perturbed eyebrow at the source of her indignation. “Are you being serious or is this some joke?”

“It’s the truth,” Blossom answered, twirling some of her hair. “It happened on the day he earned his cutie mark. Did he happen to tell you about that?”

“The day he… oh yeah. The whole deal with those bullies that were picking on those bad fli… ers.” Rainbow let out a long gasp and pointed. “You! It was you! You’re that pony!”

She nodded. “That’s right. I’m the one that meanie bully pushed down that day. You should’ve seen Swift, Rainbow. He whizzed all around the cafeteria and made fools out of them. When they all slipped into the hallways, I chased after them.”

*** Begin Flashback***

Blossom galloped down the hallway, slowing at every intersection to figure out where next to go. The group she had eaten with trailed her and with each step, Blossom pulled away from them. Her tail carried a lunch tray, ready to wallop a bully on the head. She feared she’d have to do just that. The colt that had tried standing up to the troublemakers didn’t look like the pony that could win a one-on-one fight, let alone take on three at once. She had made up her mind; she would save him at all costs.

Suddenly, she heard one of the bullies yell “Pound him!” somewhere ahead of her.

The redhead filly pushed even harder but when she tried setting up for the approaching bend, her front foreleg slipped on the tiled floor. She fell and slid just short of hitting her head on a drinking fountain. As she stumbled back up, she turned her head left.

All the way at the end of the long corridor, Swift tricked three bullies into crashing right into some lockers. Books rained down upon them, ending the threat for good.

Wow! That was so amazing!

Blossom approached Swift, now resting by the lockers on the side. Shimmering stars surrounded the dashing colt that had defended her with guile and sheer bravery.

“Did I just do that?” the colt said to himself.

“You totally did!” she answered.

Seconds later, she was face to face with the pony that defended her honor. The ponies that were following her had congregated behind her, as did many others from the cafeteria. “I was gonna whack some sense into them but you beat me to it.”

“I wasn’t really trying to,” he said, scratching his hair. “When they pushed you down, I… well, it just—”

Blossom brushed her hair aside, snickering. “Oh, I see. You were standing up for me.” A raw emotion drove her into his personal space. “That was sweet of you.”

Lips pursed, she was ready to plant a kiss onto this colt but not only did the crowd’s approval stopped her, so did the colt’s urgent protest about getting cooties.

Reluctantly, she retreated, using laughter as a cover. “Awwww. Well, doesn’t matter. I wasn’t going to kiss you anyways.”

*** End Flashback***

“I lied to him, Rainbow,” spoke Blossom as she gazed at the stars. “I so wanted to kiss my wonderful knight but I had too many ponies watching. After all, first kisses should be a special time just between two ponies. Don’t you think so, Rainbow?”

Rainbow had trouble keeping her mouth shut. Blossom was telling her all this so calmly and without a hint of embarrassment. She could barely contain her own. “Um, n–no comment.”

She sighed wistfully. “Anyways, I found out real quick that he absolutely hated anything to do with romance. I didn’t mind because I thought to myself that maybe he would change his mind if I spent enough time with him. A few weeks after that, though, my parents decided to move out of Saddlecloud. I hated losing the friends I had made but losing Swift hurt the most. I didn’t have the courage to tell him how I felt so I went with the next best thing.

*** Start Flashback ***

On the playground, Blossom stood right in front of Swift, her confession letter hidden within her tail. This was her last chance; her parents would be here any moment to take her away from Saddlecloud forever. He waited patiently for whatever she had planned for him and yet, all she could do is let her cowardice run down her face. With a flick, the rose-colored sheet with her emotions neatly inscribed in hoofwritten ink fell through the cloud floor and into open skies.

“Goodbye, Fly,” she whimpered before walking toward the playground exit.

She refused to look back, not wanting to sob until she was far enough from him. A few slow steps later, he had stopped her with one touch of her shoulder.

“If I write to you, will you write back?” he said.

“What?” Her voice cracking, “You want me to write to you?”

Swift rubbed his hair, “Well, yeah. You’ve been a good friend to me, Blossom, so I wanna keep touch. If you want to, of course.”

Eyes overflowing with tears, she squeezed him tight and he returned the favor. “Oh, you sweet colt! Of course, I will! I will! I will! I will!” Then, she caught a glimpse of his blue pearls and that was all the excuse she needed to peck him on the cheek.

Swift patted his face as though it was on fire, “Ah! Cooties! Get it off! Get it off! Get it off!”

Blossom fell back and sniggered uncontrollably, even after her parents arrived.

*** End Flashback ***

“Mind you, I had other friends that wrote to me but Swift was the only one that kept it up over the years. I was always happy about that.”

Rainbow’s jaw drooped. “Y–you actually kissed him? I–I thought that… he never told me this. Why would he… was that—?”

Even with Blossom’s hooves covering her mouth, her giggles easily broke through that barrier. “Oh, c’mon! It was just on the cheek, Rainbow! What? You think that because of that, we’re together now?”

“Um, a–are you,” she asked before thinking. “Ah! No! No! I wasn’t—”

Blossom slapped her sides, her laughter so loud that it likely woke up everypony on this side of town.

“Sorry I asked,” Rainbow snarled. She stormed off the bench and marched toward the dark ocean.

Once the redhead settled down, she glanced inside the house – Rarity must be a heavy sleeper — before chasing after Rainbow. “Ah, don’t be like that. I’m just having a little fun with you.”

Rainbow responded with a terse snort. “Well, I’m not having fun!”

Her ears flopped. “You’re right. I’m sorry. It’s a bad habit of mine. If you want, I can explain what Swift means to me. No more joking around, promise.”

She waited until she lost the urge to swing at her to shoot a death glare. “Don’t get the wrong idea, okay? I’m just curious. I feel like you know me more than I know you.”

“I understand.” Blossom took a deep breath and exhaled. “Time does funny things to ponies. You think you know exactly what you’re doing and feeling when you’re a filly but you really don’t. You see, during the time I spent with Swift, he helped me through a few things and I did the same for him. For example, I had to push him to be a little more assertive and he calmed me down every time I let my emotions get the better of me. Even after we split, we did that through our letters. It felt great, Rainbow, to have somepony l could trust whenever I needed some help. He didn’t always have all the answers but he tried, he always tried.”

Rainbow found herself nodding.

“Then, I got the news about what happened in Saddlecloud,” she continued in a more somber tone. “I got one short letter from him. All it said was that he might not get back to me in a while. The next time I heard from him was when he decided to take the job here, as Brayside’s new weather patrol leader. At that point, I thought he was all better and I was super excited to see him again.”

Blossom stopped walking as they approached the edge of the water. She whisked away some wet sand below her hooves before taking a seat.

“Were you,” Rainbow asked as she also sat.

“At the start but that feeling didn’t last long. I could tell there was something wrong with him.”

Rainbow’s heart stopped beating for a second. “W–what do you mean?”

“There was something, different about him.”

“The way he looked?”

“Well, yes. Taller but less than I expected and his hair grew even more but that wasn’t it.”

Rainbow swallowed a gulp.

“The stallion that came back to me wasn’t the same one that wrote to me. I knew Swift wasn’t always the most assertive pony but he would always ‘do the right thing’ when the moment called for it. Not after he returned, Rainbow. He played everything far too safe, not trying to offend or get in situations where he’d get hurt. I knew for certain there was something up when that Leviathian came ashore and attacked our Trotwalk.”

Rainbow had a case of whiplash. “Leviathian?”

“Actually, a baby Leviathian. Long story short, it was wreaking havoc on the pier. Against my better judgment, I decided to take it head on and its tail hit me straight into some rubble. I was woozy and I couldn’t get out but Swift was nearby serving as a decoy. I should’ve been okay. He could’ve done something to help me but when the Leviathian headed in my direction, he hid from it instead. I could see it in his eyes, Rainbow. He wanted to do something but he was just too scared to do anything for me. Eventually, Blitz had to jump in and rescue me and no matter how many times I told him afterwards, he couldn’t forgive himself. He called himself a complete coward.”

Coward? I know that he… wait a minute. What is Blossom getting at?

Blossom made direct eye contact with her. “I wanted to help him but I didn’t know how. Not long after that, I did in a big way and at the time, I didn’t even know it.”

“H–how?”

A smile crept onto her face, “A request from Ponyville for a temporary weather leader.”

Rainbow gnawed on her lips.

“Swift’s bosses were on the fence about sparing him for the job but you could say I made the rather easy argument to them that he would benefit from the experience. The truth was I wanted Swift to spend some time away from here. I thought that focusing on work in a different town would somehow help him or at least forget about what happened. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect such a turnaround. Just like that, the pony that I thought he was not only came back but he was even better than ever. Rainbow, I have you to thank for that.”

“Um, me?” She searched for a reason to flee. A Leviathan washing ashore would’ve been nice, “I mean, I didn’t really do… we only—”

“It’s all right. You don’t need to explain.”

“Explain? What’s there to—?”

With one gentle touch on the shoulder, Blossom silenced her. “Rainbow? Swift, he told me everything.”

“W–what do you mean?”

“Ponyville. I know exactly what happened between you two.”

5 - The Secrets We No Longer Keep

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Rainbow wasn’t expecting this, her partner even less.

Overcast skies threatened to unleash a downpour onto the construction workers carving a path on the side of a mountain. She, alongside with Swift, busted up all the clouds they could before returning to the main work site for a meal break. When they touched down, a tall and slender mare and a larger buffer stallion awaited them. While this was her first time seeing these ponies, she didn’t even need a clue on who they were. Swift had described them well enough before and on top of that, their resemblance to him was a dead giveaway.

“Mom! Pop!” Swift raised a foreleg. “What are you doing here?”

“We were in the area so we decided to drop by,” said the mare with the double light blue tails.

The blue haired stallion arched an eyebrow at Rainbow, “Ah! I bet you’re the grooving Rainbow Dash my son keeps writing to us about!”

Rainbow soaked in the effusive praise. “In all her awesomeness!”

“Gotcha,” Swift added with authority. “My friend, chum, buddy, pal, sidekick. Just like all the other mares you’ve met. You get my drift?”

“Why, of course, dearie,” stated his mother, sharing a knowing look with her husband “We understand exactly what you mean.”

Swift readied a sigh of relief.

“You’re too shy to say marefriend yet. That’s so adorable!”

That word, so out of the blue, she failed in holding back her embarrassment. Before she could stutter a rebuttal, Swift already had one befitting that from a son.

“Mooooooooooooooom” he screamed, his voice causing an avalanche on a faraway mountain and spooking the workers roaming about the site.

His parents laughed it off before sharing a quick nuzzle rub. “There’s no need to lose your cool, son,” Swift’s father spoke. “We’re just yanking your chain.”

Swift wrinkled his nose at him, “You’re always yanking my chain, pops. Don’t tell me you’ve came all this way just to embarrass me in public.”

“Chill, son. Chill.” He stroked his curvy hair. “We ain’t trying to embarrass you, dig? Like we said, just passing by but as long as we’re here, we’d like to talk to you about something.”

“What exactly?”

His mom walked up to him and pinched his cheek, garnering a resigned groan. “It’s something we’d rather discuss in private.”

“Private?” Swift gave Rainbow a shrug and she did the same. “Well, okay. There’s an empty office we can go to.”

“Wonderful!” She turned to Rainbow, her smile accompanied by sparkles. “Swift Gale, Such a pleasure to meet you. You’re more dashing than what I envisioned, Rainbow Dash. I can see my son has a good eye for lovely friends.”

Still feeling the effects of her earlier use of words, Rainbow pawed the ground. “Um, yeah. Thanks. You look good too, almost like a model.”

“Why, thank you,” she cooed, fluttering her eyelashes. “I still get the occasional offer to appear on magazines but I’d rather spend my time teaching. I do hope we can spend some time together and talk.”

“Really?”

“Yes, I’m interested what your thoughts are on the unusual weather dynamics in and around this region. Even with my years of experience, I’m mystified at the highly variable shifts in temperature and air pressure I measured in just one small area. A lot of the weather that originates here appears to drift closer to Ponyville so I assume you’ve already conducted a few experiments and developed theories about this unusual occurrence, possibly terrain dynamics or the shifting air currents?”

Rainbow registered the fancy talk as just that. “Huh?”

“Ah, but I wanted to race her first,” Gale’s husband whined as he walked up behind his Swift to hug him and ruffle his hair. “Just to see how she really stacks up against my champ!”

Rainbow smirked. “I suppose I can race against an adult but if you think I’ll go easy on you—”

“My pegasus pride wouldn’t allow such a thing,” he boasted. “Not if my name isn’t Cloud Flying!”

“Heh! Of course! I’m sorry.” She pounded her chest. “Where are my manners?”

Side by side, the mare and stallion chanted, “Be strong! Be fast! Be tough! Earn that pride! Keep it! Use it! Be the best, for you, for all pegasi!”

Cloud squeezed Rainbow tightly and she did the same.

“You’re like the daughter I’ve never had,” the burly stallion lamented, withholding dramatic tears. “Oh, can we keep her, sweetie?”

“Now, dearie. You’ll have you time with her later,” Gale responded. “Don’t forget why we came in the first place. Please excuse us, Rainbow. We’ll try not to take too long.”

Not long afterward, Swift and his parents walked into one of the makeshift cabins on site.

Now alone, she chose to slip into the mess hall for a quick bite.

Huh. They’re not so bad. Then she just had to hear that word again playing in her head. No, no, no! Forget that! She was just joking! Ugh!

A few minutes later, she walked back out with a bar in a wrapper. Rainbow took that off and bit into what should’ve been granola. Flavored concrete would’ve been a more appropriate name.

“Bleh!”

Rainbow found the nearest wastebasket and made the shot from ten feet away.

Well, guess there’s not much else to do until Swift gets back. I wonder what the deal is. I hope it’s nothing... “Ah!”

A blue blur whizzed right at her and stopped a few inches from direct impact.

“Swift! What—”

“Follow me! Now!”

She took off after him over the site’s perimeter fence and down onto a field stacked with railroad ties and large wooden storage crates. He turned into a narrow corridor and stopped in front of a container with the side panel left slightly open. With her help, they cracked it open just enough to slip in and shut the makeshift door behind them. Railroad car components littered the floor but they had enough room to maneuver.

Swift peeked both ways through the crate’s gaps. “Good. I don’t see them anywhere.”

“What’s the deal, Swift,” Rainbow asked ominously. “Are you okay?”

“I knew my folks wouldn’t come all this way for nothing” His eyes darted left and right, “They waited until now to face me.”

Rainbow scratched her head. “I don’t understand. Why—”

Swift grabbed onto her, his pupils shrinking, “They know, Rainbow! They know!”

“Know what?”

He began hyperventilating. “My condition, Rainbow! They found out I had it!”

She lost color her lips, her skin and even her hair. Flying Stress Syndrome, neither ever dared to say the term out in the open but that was the bone chilling implication. “H–how?”

He slumped against the wooden wall, desperately gasping for oxygen. “They talked, to my doc in Saddlecloud. Apparently, one of my distant uncles was diagnosed with some wing condition, one that may run in the family. They wanted to check all my medical records with him, just in case I’m in risk.”

“Why do that and not just tell you directly?”

“They didn’t want to worry me. Good news, I’m in the clear. Bad news. They dug around a little too much.” He slid down onto the dusty floor covered in sawdust. “Shoot! I guess sealing my records doesn’t apply to parents after all.”

Rainbow slouched next to him, sweat colleting on her forehead. “Okay. Deep breaths. In, out. In out.” She nodded as the stallion relaxed his breathing. “There you go. Now, tell me. How much do they know? I mean, do they know about me too?”

“Don’t think so. They didn’t mention you at all. When they started hammering me with more questions, I told them I needed to use the bathroom. That was five minutes ago.” With both forelegs, he covered his face. “I don’t know what to do. I want to keep my Pinkie Promise with you, Rainbow, but I’m not sure if I can. They’re not going to stop hounding me until they know everything.”

“Swift?”

He ruffled his hair, “Blaze! I wonder if they know he helped… what if they talked to him already? H–he doesn’t know about you and me but… Nurse Redheart! She’s on site right now! I–I have to lie to them. There’s no other way. But how can I pull it off? What can I tell them to get off my back?”

Rainbow watched him spiral further into misery, mumbling idea after idea on how to fabricate an iron tight story. Today could be the day he would face judgment for his secrecy but deep within, Rainbow figured she might one day face the same dilemma. After all the time she had spent with Swift Flying, she had zero doubt what he would say if they switched roles right now. It didn’t make saying what she had to say any easier, however. She wanted more time to think but the bathroom excuse could only hold so long without raising even more suspicion.

She held onto his foreleg and flashed a smile. “Swift? If you want to, just tell them the truth.”

Swift’s wings popped out. “What? Are you pulling my mane, Rainbow? You realize I won’t be able to leave anything out?”

Rainbow squeezed her grip. “I know that but I won’t have you lie for my sake. Not to your parents. I’ve asked a lot from you already but that’s one line I can’t make you cross.” With a sigh, she let him go. “Except I already made you.”

“Eh?”

“The Pinkie Pie Promise. A secret this large meant you… no, we had to lie to everypony about what we did back in Ponyville.” Rainbow closed her eyes and drew in the stale air. When she let it back out, she had found the strength to finish her statement. “You know what? I don’t think we need it anymore. I trust you to do the right thing.”

“The right thing?”

“Yeah. If nopony asks, then nopony obviously needs to know. If they need to know, they should know, like your parents.”

His mouth hung open in shock. “I, you really mean that, huh? Shoot. I wish I wouldn’t need to say anything but if you’re okay with it—”

She jabbed him on the shoulder. “Of course I am and don’t worry about me. I won’t be blabbing our adventures to everypony I see either.” She sighed. “I don’t think I’m ready to tell anypony, at least not right now.”

“In that case, how do we undo the Pinkie promise between us?”

Without a word, Rainbow grabbed onto his foreleg and jabbed it into her shut right eye. She then did the same to him.

“That should do it,” she grimaced, retracting her hoof.

Swift favored his eye socket, “Can we just stick to simple promises from now on?”

“I’ll keep that in mind. Something tells me the Wonderbolts won’t take in a blind pegasus on their squad.”

While Swift returned to his parents, Rainbow paced within the shipping container. Before this day, Nurse Redheart was the only outsider to know their shared struggle with Flying Stress Syndrome. Now she had to add Swift’s parents to that list but even then, Rainbow felt comfortable enough that she wouldn’t have to face another situation like this for a long time.

A few months later, by the shores of Brayside Beach, Surfing Blossom proved her wrong.

“He told you?” Rainbow had an eye twitch, “Swift told you?”

“Please, don’t be mad at him,” Blossom responded, holding her back with a foreleg. “It’s my fault. You see, the last time his mom came to Brayside, I was being a little too nosy about her little side trip to the Stallihorns. She let out a few things by accident.”

Rainbow’s temper chilled. “She did?”

“Not everything, Rainbow. Believe me, it wasn’t much but I had enough clues that I had a guess. Once I told Swift what I knew, he, um, he pretty much opened up to me. I just, um.” She paused, needing more seawater air to continue. “I wasn’t expecting what he told me at all, Rainbow. What you two went through, it… I never would’ve tried to pry in like that had I known how serious it became. Well, not always serious but like the whole deal with the Rainboom and—” She shook her head. “It was wrong of me. I should’ve let him tell me when he was ready. It’s just like me, meddling when I shouldn’t. If you want to be upset at somepony, it should be me.”

Rainbow had every right to be except she couldn’t muster any anger, not with those forlorn eyes staring back at her. “It’s all right. You, um, you had your worries about him. You knew he had gone through something.”

“I did,” she answered, rubbing the corner of one eye. “I just didn’t know what it was but he didn’t have to hide it, Rainbow. I would’ve done anything in the world to help him overcome his affliction, anything.” She pulled back a tear and chuckled once. “He actually apologized to me for keeping everything a secret, Rainbow. I should’ve been the one to say sorry and I did but he said I didn’t need to. That’s just like him, isn’t it? He can just shake it off like that.”

“You, um, care a lot about him, don’t you?”

“You can say that,” she answered, digging a hole in the sand. “First crushes, you can only have one in your whole life, Rainbow. You’ll never forget whom that pony was, especially when you keep in touch with them. When he came here, I thought it was a second chance for me. I wanted to finish what I started back in school, to relive what I felt that day in the hallway.”

The pause gave Rainbow a heart attack. “Oh. I, see.”

Blossom gave her a gentle wing slap. “Now, hold on. Before you start making assumptions, let me finish.”

*** Start Flashback ***

Hearts Warming Eve. Blossom’s living room had reminders of the special holiday all over the place: blinking lights, reefs with bows, presents under the tree and ponies either dancing to the music or sipping some hot cocoa. She even hung mistletoe on the doorway leading to the kitchen but that was for her guests to enjoy. Blossom’s lips were off-limits to just about everyone, especially the turtle held by his not-owner friend.

“My bad, Blossom,” Swift said with a mix of humor and trepidation. “But Leo won’t stop pulling my mane about this.”

“It’s okay. I know how to handle it,” she answered confidently.

Blossom drew in closer to the turtle, heart bubbles bubbling over his eager face. “Aww! Do you want to kiss me, Leo?”

The turtle squawked his joy and wriggled his tiny legs.

“Try it and I’ll send you to the North Pole!”

Even with the music at full decibel, her recipient heard the message loud and clear. He let out an eek before jumping off Swift’s hoof and scurrying away from her scathing scowl.

“Cool your jets, Blossom! Geez,” Swift deadpanned.

“What did you expect?” Blossom harrumphed. “Like I’ll kiss an icky turtle! You don’t know where he waddles at all day.”

Swift sighed and shook his head. “Don’t take this the wrong way, Blossi, but you did hang the mistletoe. There’s a lot of ponies – and turtle – in this town that would anything to score a kiss from you.”

Blossom took a step closer to him, fluttering her lashes at him. “Even you, Fly?”

He stumbled back into the kitchen area, face muscles twisting. “Um, no! You know I don’t do that stuff!”

She reached out and reeled him in. “Why not? You’re not a colt anymore. You’ve grown up to be a cute stallion and I’m more beautiful than back in school? Don’t you think so?”

“Well,” he glanced down at the floorboards, “you’ve always been a wicked looking pony. I won’t deny that.”

Blossom brought up his chin. “Oh, you do? You know, I never truly repaid what you did for me the first time we met.”

“The first time we met?” he mumbled.

“That’s right,” she whispered. “My sweet wonderful stallion.”

Everything had fallen into place. Everypony else in the house were on the dance floor, the twinkling stars shone one them from the kitchen window and she had her knight in her hooves with the perfect excuse to deliver his reward. The cheek was a nice parting gift years ago, sure, but she was ready to deliver the message inscribed on the letter forever lost to the Equestrian skies right onto his soft moist lips.

Then she noticed it. The glimmer in his eyes that she remembered so fondly over the years had lost its luster as though something had stained it. Something was there, a presence that didn’t belong, one that ate at his being. She recalled what she knew, the fact that this pony lived through the double nightmare of a tornado and a subsequent nasty fall into the forest. She felt something for him, a sensation from deep within her chest, but not that of puppy love. It was worry, one reserved for a member of her family that had gone through trauma but had divulged little about it despite the passage of time. Maybe it was just her imagination but she couldn’t shake off her concern.

This transformed emotion guided her into a hug – a long and peaceful one – and it felt just right.

“Don’t worry. I wasn’t going to kiss you anyways, Fly.”

Swift chuckled. “Gotcha. Y–you had me going for a second.”

“Well, I might’ve except that would be like kissing my brother. I have to draw the line somewhere, even if mistletoe’s involved.”

Swift wrestled away from her grasp. “Brother? Hey, now. You’re not going to start calling me that, are you?”

*** End Flashback ***

Rainbow titled her head, “Brother?”

“I grew up without a brother. I’ve always wanted to have one, a pony that I could look after, but that never happened. Swift’s the closest thing I have to one, Rainbow.”

Relief, an unexpected sense of relief. “Um, really?”

She held back a giggle. “Well, I would be lying if I said I still didn’t find him really cute, Rainbow. It just didn’t dawn on me until that night that I liked him, just not like I thought I did.”

“What are you trying to say, Blossom?”

“I… don’t think too much about those types of relationships, not with Swift or anypony else. Besides, he doesn’t share the same love of the sea as I do. I know, picky, but it’s not like I’m in a rush to find a special somepony anyways.” She exhaled aloud. “So there you go. He’s not hiding anything from you about me, if that’s troubling you.”

Rainbow vainly fought from glowing in the dark. “Well, no. Not exactly. Like I said, I was just curious what the deal was between you and Swift. That’s all.”

“Curious.” Blossom held a blink for a few seconds. “Okay, Rainbow. Fair enough. I have to admit I’ve been curious about you, too.”

“Huh?”

“After I learned everything about what happened, I’ve been anxious to meet you.”

“You have?”

“I wanted to see the pony that helped Swift so I could show them what I think of them.”

Rainbow flinched as Blossom came into her personal space. She readied for a defense but when her hoofs wrapped against her chest, she didn’t need to. By definition, Surfing Blossom was a new friend but her hug was that from a close one. Sensing her warmth, Rainbow returned the favor two-fold.

“Thank you, for everything you’ve done for him,” Blossom said, releasing Rainbow. “It means the world to me that a pony like you is… I’m glad you’re a part of his life.”

“Um, thanks?” She smiled and let out a chuckle. “But I’m not sure why you’re thanking me. If anything, he helped me far more through my problems back in Ponyville.”

Blossom grazed her foreleg, “Don’t be so modest. He needed you too, more than you know. I’m not sure if it was fate or just plain old luck but you were exactly what he needed at that point in his life, just like how you needed a pony like him to guide you. I’m sure your friends would say the same thing.”

Her eyes shrunk to pinpricks. “M–my friends?”

Blossom nodded. “Well, yes. Surely, they know about what happened, right?”

Lying, she had to lie. “Y–yeah. Pffft. Of course, Blossom! Told at least, one friend. Haven’t gotten around to the others just yet.”

“Understandable. Oh, and you have my guarantee my lips are sealed about this. Not even Widget or Blitz know anything at this point.”

“Good. Just one last question, though.”

“Yes?”

Rainbow rubbed the back of her neck. Despite what Blossom told her, doubt urged her for a verbal confirmation that Swift was in her friend zone. The problem was asking without giving Blossom a reason to laugh at her timidity but why need to ask in the first place, she thought. Friend, Swift was Rainbow’s friend. That’s what it was and whatever Blossom really thought about him should have little impact on that, if at all. There was no need to manufacture any more drama.

“I think I broke you,” Blossom spoke in between titters.

“Huh,” she uttered after a prolonged pause.

“I’m sorry, Rainbow. That was quite a lot of girly talk from me. Way too much girly talk. I’m surprised you didn’t tell me to stop.”

Rainbow stood up, sharing in her laughter, “Yeah. I don’t know what’s up with me. Whew! I make fun of Rarity and Fluttershy for stuff like this and now look at me. Geez!”

Blossom shook off the sand that had clung to her tangerine body. “You know, I think I have a way to make it up to you.” She gestured at the ocean, “How about we do a little surfing? I’ll let you use one of my surfboards. Don’t worry. I have plenty of them to choose from.”

“Surfing?” She checked the moon’s position. “At this hour? I can barely see anything out here!”

“Now that’s something any regular pony would say but c’mon! You’re an adventurer, aren’t you? You love pushing it to the limits! You breathe in danger! Don’t tell me you’re scared, or are you?”

Under the cool moonlight, Rainbow saw Surfing Blossom as the pony she almost hoof bumped on the wagon earlier in the day and even more. She was a piece to the puzzle to answer that nagging question in her head, one that looked like a good fit where she placed it but hard to judge without knowing the end picture.

In any case, Rainbow could accept her without any reservations; a friend of Swift Flying was a friend of hers. This one, especially, may be worth keeping for a long time. After all, anypony daring enough to attempt surfing after midnight got bonus points for awesomeness in her book.

“Heh! Nothing scares me, Blossom!” Rainbow gave her a hearty hoof bump. “You’re totally on!”

6 - Thursday Workday

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“We really could’ve used Rainbow for this.”

Above Applejack’s head, thick cloud soup hid everything except thick tree trunks and tropical brush that seemed to grow in size with every step. Dawns like this were common back at Sweet Apple Acres; getting Rainbow to wake up early to clear proved too much of a hassle. However, she had no apple trees or barns to use as landmarks and thanks to the nearby mountains, the sun would be of little aid for another hour. If it wasn’t for the aquamarine toned unicorn leading the way, she’d be sure she’s been going around circles.

Applejack coughed lightly. “Excuse me, Miss, um—”

The unicorn turned her head, the corners of her mouth curling just enough to qualify as a smile before flattening. “Dotty Radar, ma’am.”

“That’s right.” She sipped a hot brew from her thermos. “Sorry. Guess the coffee hasn’t kicked in quite yet.”

“Understandable.”

“Are you sure Blitz and Fluttershy headed down this way? This fog’s thicker than gravy. I can’t even tell which way is north anymore.”

“I’m fairly certain of their location but I can check again. One moment.”

A pale green aura pulsed from her horn and spread out like ripples from a pebble thrown into a lake. She then pressed on her forehead and began rubbing it in a way to keep her bowl styled hair neat.

Applejack raised a curious eyebrow. “If you don’t mind me asking, what exactly are you doing?”

Radar’s yellow eyes darted in multiple directions, “I’m attempting to triangulate our friends’ current position. Unfortunately, there’s quite a number of animals in the area, making identifying individual targets rather difficult.”

The cowpony’s Stetson slid half off Applejack’s head. “Um, okay then. I guess that’s, helpful?”

“Apologies, ma’am. I’ll explain more clearly. Consider my talent as being able to detect objects within an area. For example, part my duties on the weather team is to identity cloud formations miles off the Brayside coast and determine their general direction. I can see it in my own way even though I can’t fly out there to verify.”

She stroked her chin. “Oh! I see. I was wondering why Blossom said we should ask for your help. You can figure out exactly where them seagulls’ home is, can’t ya?”

“Correct. However, my skill, much like anypony else’s, has its limitations. Swift had asked me to find their nesting rounds a few times before. I had narrowed it down to this tropical forest north of the town but regrettably, the constant elevation changes in this region limit my range. So far, I haven’t been able to locate it.” She held a blink for five seconds. “But I do believe I found our two other companions. This way.”

Radar led Applejack to a fork in the road. They made a left and ascended a hill, deeper into the rolling mist. A few minutes later, they diverted onto the damp grass and through some thick prickly bushes.

A few caws had Applejack take an attack stance. “Whoa, nelly! That sounds like trouble!”

“Negative, ma’am.” Radar pointed upward.

Through some breaks in the fog, they spotted a yellow toucan perched on a thick branch conversing with Fluttershy. Hanging on near the reddish trunk was Blitz nodding apparent comprehension.

Applejack cusped her mouth. “Fluttershy! Get down here right now! We were supposed to stay within eyesight of one another!”

She descended, frowning. “I’m sorry but I just had to chase down the toucan and talk to him.”

Blitz slid down the trunk and landed on all fours. “Yo. Take a chill pill, Jack. She was totally safe because I was keeping my eye on her.”

“I bet you were,” Applejack muttered under her breath.

“I did find out some helpful information about the seagulls,” Fluttershy continued. “Apparently, they have a leader and he lives here in the jungle along with the others. They’ve all been causing trouble ever since they’ve arrived. All the animals around here would be, oh so happy, if we could get them to calm down just a teensy bit.”

“Or just get out of town,” Blitz added, shaking a hoof toward the hidden sky.

Radar nodded. “We’re you able to retrieve any information about the whereabouts of their home, Miss Fluttershy?”

“They seem to move around a lot although the toucan thinks it’s on this side of the jungle.”

“I see.” Radar returned to a meditative state as her horn sent out pulses. “Hmmm. I believe I have a fix on two small flocks. One seems to be heading toward town but the other’s going deeper inland. If we follow those birds, we may discover their primary residence. Regrettably, they’re approximately one and a half miles northeast and drifting away from our present location.”

Blitz slumped onto a tree trunk and massaged his hooves, “That far? Nopony told me we’d be doing all this walking.”

“Quit your belly-aching,” said Applejack, whacking him with her hat. “At least that’ll give us time to talk about our little project together.”

He stuck out his tongue. “Lame. Why couldn’t I hook up with somepony else.”

“Too bad! I don’t like the idea as much as you but I want that spot right by the entrance! Now, you know how to cook, dontcha?”

“Do I know how to cook?” Blitz guffawed for a few seconds, wiping off faux tears. “Do I know how to… um? Negatory.”

Applejack slapped her forehead. “And you work on a farm? Good grief!”

Brayside Beach, Thursday morning.

With the sun rising over the mountain range, several stallions arrived at the designated festival site pulling wagons filled with wood fresh from the lumber mill. Behind them, a team of four pegasi led by Light Shower started a patrol around the area in search for incoming trouble. Five minutes afterwards, Blossom made her arrival with a cheery aloha to everypony within eyesight. She had Twilight, Rarity and Spike trail not far behind, her designated assistants for the whole project.

At least that’s how Blossom planned it. She hadn’t even barked out her first order before an interruption.

“What do you mean we should change the layout, Twilight?” said the surfer mare, speaking through her teeth.

“I was looking over some of the blueprints last night,” Twilight answered as Spike set up an easel and plastered on it several diagrams. “There’s potential for bottlenecks in the areas that I’ve circled here, here and here. Also, the seating arrangements for the stage didn’t seem right to me.” The unicorn added a page to the board. “If you do it this way, you’ll have better traffic flow and increase our official maximum capacity at the same time.”

“But that messes up the sightlines completely!” Blossom uncapped a pen and made her own scribbles. “You see? Only half of downtown and the tip of the Ferris Wheel are visible under your arrangement!”

Twilight drew an X over Blossom’s lines. “It’s not that bad. Ponies can still see their surroundings if they really try.”

“Only if you’re as tall as Princess Celestia! I want everypony to have a view of the entertainment and the fireworks, no matter where they are!”

Twilight took two steps toward her. “At the expense of maximum efficiency? What kind of proper planning is that?”

“Noted!”

“Ladies, please,” Rarity interjected, moving in between the two mares. “Let’s not make a scene.”

Blossom whipped her head and readjusted her ponytails. “Yes. Yes, of course. Rarity. This is a nice happy place. Now, we’ve only got until Saturday morning to set everything up. The current layout’s already been approved by the committee and I’d rather not make any drastic changes this late in the game. You understand, Twilight?”

The unicorn wrinkled her nose.

Rarity frowned. “I see. So it’s too late for those suggestions I gave you last night on some minor alterations for the required festival wardrobe?”

“Now that’s a different story, Rarity. In fact, I’ve already passed your suggestions to the ponies responsible for wardrobe.” She winked. “You’ve got an expert eye, so would you mind supervising their work for a while?”

“Of course, dearie! I shall do my best!”

Blossom called out for Light Shower who was having a mid-flight conversation with a fellow pegasus. Seconds later, she raised her voice an octave, “Stop gabbing and get your flank here, now!”

“Morning, girl,” he said as he landed and flashed his pearly whites. “Looking absolutely ravishing, as always.”

She groaned aloud. “Yes, yes. Like I haven’t heard that a million times before. Anyways, can you do me a teensy weensy little favor and escort Rarity here to where we’re putting together the uniforms?”

“But of course,” said Shower, grabbing ahold of her foreleg and bringing it closer to him. “Anything for the most beautiful mare in all the land. I would move mountains, challenge the princesses, fly all the way to the heavens or even—”

Blossom clasped his snout tight. “You keep talking and I’ll send you flying myself. Got it?”

Once free of her grasp, the pegasus led her Ponyville guest up the road toward the town center.

“So, what important task do you have for me, Blossom?” said Twilight, rocking back and forth from her tippy hooves.

The redhead dumped in front of her a stack of papers. “These are duty rosters for every lifeguard on duty up through the weekend. You can deliver these to every station up and down the coast. While you’re doing that,” She dropped a much larger pile besides the first, “you can put up some posters. Now, as for you, Spike, I’ll need you by my side to—”

A nearby carpenter called for Blossom.

“Excuse me. One second.”

After she trotted off, Twilight crammed the documents into a satchel. “The nerve of her, Spike! She blows off my wonderful ideas and she gives me tedious chores to do!”

“Well, you are being a bit pushy,” he replied, wagging a finger.

“Don’t you take sides!”

The assistant crossed his arms. “I am not. I’m just saying that for somepony’s that’s just trying to help, you want to change every single little detail.”

“But… well, I suppose that I’m used to being the pony in charge for these kinds of things.” She sighed, shoving in the last of the sheets before closing the satchel. “And I did promise myself a vacation from planning.”

Spike gave her a thumbs up. “I like the sound of that.”

Twilight puffed her chest. “Except regarding that orchestra! Spike? What’s the latest update?”

Reluctantly, he opened up a scroll. “Your orchestra will be boarding a train this evening. They’ll be here by tomorrow morning. Happy?”

“Very.”

He singed the paper to a crisp. “I’m not.”

“It’ll all work out, Spike. Now, if you excuse me, I’ve got duty rosters to deliver and, hmm.” She pulled out a list and scanned through the names. “I wonder if I could—”

“Ahem. Twilight?” Spike shot her a knowing look.

She marched away from him, grumbling whether he was really her assistant.

The dragon shrugged off her leaving comments. After all, his loyalty would always be with the bookworm that raised him ever since he hatched out of his egg.

On the other hand, working under Blossom was a nice change of pace. She rubbed his scales for a job well done, she fed him an occasional gem and she even carried him on her back when he developed a leg cramp. When his body called for a nap, he dared using her hair as a pillow for a nap and she didn’t even bat an eyelash.

This is paradise!

Then, a shake tossed him overboard and right into some sand. Before he could clasp his claws together for forgiveness, he realized the target of her ire was a few feet away – a beige stallion tall as a royal princess and with enough bulging muscles to take on multiple Royal Guards. Yet she had him cowering beneath her as though she was about to transform into an adult dragon and roast him to a crisp.

“What do you mean our dunk tank machine isn’t coming, Brute?” she shouted, causing the ponies in the area to drop their tools and watch.

“I’m sorry, Blossom, but,” He clung onto one of her hooves, “Las Pegasus really wants it!”

“Too bad! You said first come first serve and we put the request in first, didn’t we?”

His teeth chattered, “B–but my bosses—”

“Will be hearing from me personally if they try backing off our deal!” Blossom pulled out her surfboard. “Do you understand?”

“T–they said the town will have to pay more if they want… ahhhhhh!”

Her tail raised her gavel of justice skyward. Before she could deliver her verdict, Swift swooped in and clung onto the surfboard.

“Blossom!” He readjusted his grip. “Knock it off!”

“But I was just going to scare him,” she whined, digging a foreleg on a patchy spot of weeds.

He rolled his eyes. “Sure you were. Now, let go of the board, Blossom. Please?”

Ears flopping in the breeze, she dropped her gavel, stallion and all.

Swift dragged the surfboard into Spike’s possession. “Hold onto that, will ya?”

“Holey moley,” the dragon spoke into his ear. “How’d you calm her down like that?”

“Luck.” He whisked off some sweat. “Mostly luck that she actually listened to me for once. I hope I didn’t use it all up because I’m going to need some more of it right now.”

“Why?”

“You’ll see.”

Swift casually strolled straight past Blossom and right up to the behemoth, now back on all fours. “’Sup, Brute? My bad about that. My friend gets like that sometimes. I bet that’s why your big shots, um, what were their names again?”

“Flim and Flam.”

“Of course! Those two. They decided to send a messenger rather than face Blossom themselves. Am I right?”

Brutus nodded. “No offense, miss, but I’ve heard stories about you taking on Leviathans. I don’t want to mess with anypony that can do that.”

“Well, I’ll let you in on something not everypony knows, Brutus.” Swift paced around him, “Despite Las Pegasus being further inland, they only have partial weather control. You see, they rely on my team to keep away any incoming storms coming from the ocean. You know, they like it really nice and dry over there.”

“Yeah. So?”

Swift stopped in front of him. “Well, did you know there’s one big storm heading their way? I noticed it far off in the distance during my morning patrol. It would be a big bummer if we, forget to take care of it. They’ll probably cancel whatever plans they have this weekend which means Las Pegasus won’t need a dunk tank machine anymore.” He pulled out a smile. “You get my drift?”

His foreleg rose halfway but quickly let it drop back down. “I believe I do, Swift. I’ll make sure the bosses do too. Sorry if I caused any trouble, Blossom.” Brutus galloped up the road and out of sight.

“Oh, thank you, Swift!” Blossom squeezed some air out of the slender stallion, “Thank you! Thank you! I didn’t know you could fib like that.”

Struggling out of her grip, “Eh? How did you know I was—?”

“I’m not used to you being a little naughty. Has Rainbow been teaching you things, hmmm?”

Swift snorted. “Whatever. Anyways, how many times do I have to tell you? You can’t solve every problem with your surfboard.”

“I had it under control before you arrived.” She swiped her surfboard from the dragon and then pounded it on a nearby picnic bench, “All right! Show’s over! Back to work on the double!”

The onlookers returned to carrying timber and hammering nails on wood.

“Oh, Spike?” Blossom slid over his direction. “Tell me. Do you have the list of names of those ponies I want for the rock band?”

“Rock, band?” He suddenly had a case of the shakes. “Umm, rock band! That’s right. We’re putting together a rock band. H-here you go.”

Blossom raised an eyebrow his way as she scrutinized the scroll. After a few seconds, she pressed on his cheeks. “Oh. You’re getting warm. Are you getting sick? It wasn’t my cooking last night, was it?”

“No!” His eyes darted back and forth. “It’s, um, too much time in the sun?”

She frowned. “I’m sorry, cutie. I’ve been working you too hard. Go ahead and take a breather. I can have a few other ponies gather up the band. Well, everypony except our lead singer.”

“And who is that, exactly, Blossom?” said Swift.

“Silly! Who else? Hipster Amps!”

“Eh?” A thought bubble started to form an image, only to disintegrate. “Really? She sings? Um, okay. If you say so but you think she’ll want to do this?”

“I’m sure of it! Only problem is that when I stopped by her store this morning, she left a note on the door. Apparently, she’s out hiking out in the mountains all day.”

“Hiking? This is just getting weirder. Since when does she go hiking?”

Blossom shrugged. “Whatever the reason, I need you to go out and find her.” She stifled a gasp. “I just had an idea. Have Rainbow help you in your search. That should speed things up. Then you two can go over to that trainer of yours. I bet he could help you find some of that dancing rhythm.”

Swift groaned and grimaced. “Seriously? Do I have to bring him into this too? What about the seagulls? Don’t you want us here instead if they come back today?”

“Let your teammates handle that,” she answered, directing his attention to a few pegasi flying around in a circle. “Now, go on. Oh, and do me a favor and check on Widget and Pinkie for me before searching for Amps. Not that I don’t trust those two working together but, well, just in case.”

“Ten four. So, where is Rainbow, anyways?”

“Darnit! I can’t get this right, Swift.”

“Just keeping trying, Rainbow.”

Under the shadow of a mountain peak, Rainbow massaged a cloud’s innards. Swift, hovering beside her, continually fed her instructions on how to achieve maximum softness. He had fluffed up an example for her to match but after a minute, she yanked apart another failure before starting over with a fresh batch.

Frustration aside, something about this routine had a sense of familiarity. Even the words of encouragement from the stallion were predictable right down to the syllable.

Eventually, Swift swept together the surrounding water vapor for more building material. “Well, our lunch break’s almost up. You wanna give it one last go?”

“I dunno,” she bemoaned, whisking away part of a cloud’s surface. “I’ve tried like a million times and I’m not getting any better.”

Swift jabbed a foreleg into the lumpy white. “Because you’re being too rough with it. Nice and slow, like this.”

“I know but I can’t see what you’re doing.” She dug in her hoof. “How am I supposed to know—?”

Her fur suddenly was touching his; it was time to pull back.

At least, that’s what should’ve happened.

Instead, she drew in closer to him as the scenery transformed from the Stallihorn Mountains to the back of a caboose at sunset. Any second now, a shrill horn from the locomotive would shatter this moment to pieces.

W–whoa, whoa, whoa! No, no, no!

She shoved him away and her entire world exploded in a fine mist. When it cleared, she was a filly standing on a school playground floating within sight of Cloudsdale. A brown colt had just delivered to her a red card scribbled with hearts and poetic adoration.

“Gross!” Rainbow tossed the card, hitting him in the nose. “Are you trying to spread germs?”

“I want to be your special somepony,” the colt answered in a whimper, presenting a single rose.

Pointing past him, “Go find somepony else! I hate the kissy stuff!”

The young Rainbow marched toward one of the many school buildings in the area. “Lousy Hearts and Hooves day. I knew should’ve stayed home today! I won’t be mushy with somepony on this day or any other day! Never ever, ever!”

Then, a filmstrip landed right in front of her. Four moments captured, she along with a stallion, a possession cherished like a racing trophy. She bent down to grab it but a sudden gust swept it high in the air before it faded.

“No!”

Hearing a sniffling noise nearby, Rainbow turned around and found the same brown colt using his long forelocks as makeshift tissue paper. Ever from afar, her heart writhed in pain knowing she was the cause of his agony.

She hustled back to him. “I’m sorry, kid. I didn’t mean to hurt you like that. We can still be fri— huh?”

Another eye blink and she was back to full size. What had been a colt was now Swift Flying fiddling with his hair.

“F–friends, right, Swift? R–right?”

Swift called her name except it didn’t come from the pony in front of him. The second time she heard him, she opened her eyes to a spinning ceiling fan.

“Wh–what?”

A hammock cradled and rocked her body and sheets hung on the edge of the netting. On one side, sparkling sunlight gave the bedroom a soft glow while on the other side, Swift peeked his head into the doorway.

“Rainbow? Are… oh! There you are.” He walked into the room, “Looks like what Blossom told me was true. You had a really rough night.”

Rainbow touched a few scruff marks on the side of her stomach. “Ah! Yeah, I guess you could say that.” Swift offered a hoof to disembark but her pride sedated the pain just enough to roll off the hammock. “I was trying to bust out a few surfing moves when these rocks suddenly showed up in the dark. First time, I bailed before I crashed into them. Second time around,” she began straightening her wingtips, “Ow! Not so lucky.”

Swift picked up a red surfboard bent into an L shape. “Shoot! I know this is just one of her regular boards but shoot! That must have been an epic wipeout. Are you good to fly? Blossom’s got us doing a few things today.”

“Pfffft! This is nothing!” She jogged in place, keeping the hind leg with some swelling off the ground as best she could. “Just need to shake it off. Besides, I’ve had way worse crashes than this.”

“Um, which one? I’ve lost track.”

She grabbed a pillow from the hammock and misfired onto the flower print wall. “Oh, ha,ha! Very funny, Swift! I’m just glad you weren’t around to help me this time. Can’t have you getting hurt too.”

“Good point. After all, Nurse Redheart did tell me you’re my biggest health hazard.”

His subsequent guffaws were acid to her ears. “Health hazard? Hey! When did she say that?”

“R–right after, heh heh, the thing with the avalanche when—” He collected his breath, realizing Rainbow hadn’t even chuckled. “Sorry, Rainbow. I thought—”

She quieted him with nothing more than a pleasing curling of the lips. “I was being a jerk that day, wasn’t I, Swift?”

***Begin Flashback***

Inside a small shack, Swift stood in front of a table with a map of the Stallihorn Mountain range sprawled across the surface.

Suddenly, Rainbow barged through the door and slammed her hooves on the table. “What’s the big idea, Swift? I just heard you want to put an all stop on operations!”

“It’s too dangerous to send anypony out there, Rainbow.” He pointed at an area around a marked circle, “Fifteen minutes ago, I spotted some heavy cumulonimbus clouds in this spot and they’re flowing—”

“Blah, blah, blah! I know what you’re gonna say, Swift. The rain will be intense and we’ll have the risk of an avalanche. I can’t allow anypony to go out there.” She rolled up the map and waved it at him, “When’s the last time we’ve actually had an avalanche close to the construction site?”

“That’s not the—”

“Zero,” she answered, poking the paper onto his chest. “Now, look. The railway project’s behind schedule as it is. I say we should give the green light and just stick close to the construction crew at all times.”

“And I say no.”

“Stop being so stubborn! Geez louise! Sometimes, you take your job way too seriously!”

He snatched the map from her. “And you don’t take it seriously enough!”

Rainbow leaned across the table. “What’s that supposed to mean? You’re the one that asked me here in the first place! You know, to spend more time together?”

“But we still have responsibilities, Rainbow! We can have our fun but that doesn’t mean slacking off on work like you do!”

“Hey! You take that back right now!”

He leaned back but quickly drew face to face with her. “No.”

“What?”

“You take way too many nap breaks, I’m always having to do the early morning weather checks while you sleep in and you keeping blabbing about the Cloudsdale race to everypony you see every chance you get!”

“Yeah, well, um.” She pouted with eyebrows slanted down. “Okay, you might have a point on the first two but I have a good reason for the third! I have an awesome reputation to maintain.”

He rolled his eyes, “And it’s starting to get annoying.”

Rainbow gasped. “You did not just say that.”

“I did! Having to hear you brag about every little thing about yourself over and over and over and over and over again is starting to drive me bonkers!”

“Buh! So says the pony who doesn’t believe in pegasus pride! That’s the problem with you, Swift. Even after all this time helping you out, you’re still too soft!” Pressing her forelegs on her face, “Oh, Celestia! There’s a few drops of water falling from the sky. We gotta call everything off or some ponies could risk getting wet.”

His wings came out in full display. “Knock it off, Rainbow! This isn’t a joke!”

“The only joke in here is you!” Rainbow stormed to the door and tried her best to rip it from its hinges. “Now, I’m telling everypony they have the green light. Do you have my back on this?”

“No, I don’t! If you want to screw up so badly, you clean up your own mess this time! I’m tired of cleaning them up for you!”

The entire cabin shook as Rainbow made her noisy exit.

He found the closest chair and took a seat so he could scowl at a file cabinet.

Dammit, Rainbow! He kicked the side of the cabinet. Driving me bonkers!

Swift turned his attention to the hands on the ticking clock above his head. Minute by minute, all he could do is glower at it while he rocked back and forth on his chair. It wasn’t until the sound of hammers striking the ceiling when his sense of duty and responsibility forced him to step out into the increasing rain.

In the span of seconds, a small stream running across the construction site transformed to a river and carried off loose lumber straight through fencing. Then, the roof of the shack he just left came crashing down. He leapt into the air, avoiding the rush of table splinters and soaked documents flowing beneath him.

Shoot! I can’t leave her out in this! Where could she have taken the workers today? The tunnels! They were drilling through… that way!

Swift took off into the misty grey skies.

Wait for me, Rainbow!

After rounding one mountain peak, he found two dozen workers on a narrow cliff side tossing aside their jackhammers and shovels and galloping toward the nearest pony-made tunnel. Rock and dirt rained down upon them and as he expected, Rainbow guided them away from incoming debris. Then, a slab the size of a house slid off the slope and tumbled toward the entrance, gaining speed as it broke into smaller pieces. Swift engaged maximum speed, noticing some falling branches trapping Rainbow into a confined space too close to the mountainside.

“Rainbow! Watch out!”

Right as a large chunk of rock ricocheted several feet above Rainbow, Swift grabbed ahold of her and pushed her closer to safety. Then, something he never saw banged right into his head, turning his memory into a static mess. He did recall crash landing short of the tunnel entrance, the calling of his name and a strong force pulling him into a safe area. He also remembered a bumpy ride on a stretcher back to the construction site’s first aid center alongside his injured friend.

“You’re with me,” she asked him, reaching from her stretcher and grazing his wing.

He said words forever lost to his concussion. Whatever it was, he made her laugh and that, he was glad he remembered.

The application of ointment on his wounds he wished he’d forgotten.

“Ah, ah, ah!” He banged the padded examination table, feeling acid singing his reddened skin. “Please, Nurse Redheart! A little less of that stuff!”

“You two really worry me sometimes,” the nurse complained as she dabbed a pad over Swift’s left eye. “What is this? The sixth time I’ve had to patch one of you two up since the start of this railway project?”

Rainbow slid off the nearby examination table, half dressed as a white mummy. “I know, I know. Today was completely my fault, Nurse Redheart.”

“No it’s—” Swift reeled from a stinging solution applied to his left ear. “It’s not. I should’ve stopped you when I had the chance. All my talk about being responsible and look what I do.”

“That’s right. Just look at what you did.” Rainbow sat right in front of him, clasping one foreleg with the other. “After ripping you like I did today, you still had my back. A little later than usual but you still did.”

“Sorry.”

She chuckled lightly. “Hey, now. That’s my line.”

“Eh?”

“Well, you did say I should be more responsible and you’re totally right.” Her ears flopped. “And I have to admit you’re not the first one to call me out on how I act sometimes. Far from the first. I don’t always listen and look what that got me today. You got hurt, again.”

“Rainbow? It’s—”

“No. Don’t try to let me off the hook. This is my bad and I have to learn from this. I can’t let this keep happening.” She paused to breathe out. “If I’m acting out of line again, don’t be afraid to call me out, okay? I may not like it but I trust you’ll do so for my own good.”

Swift nodded as Redheart applied wrap around his left wing. “Gotcha and next time I’m being a total stiff, knock me back to my senses, wontcha?”

She clenched his hoof and grazed him on the nose. “Okay, but not too hard.”

Her face lit up in a way that made him forget how drab and colorless the world was past the drenched windowpane.

“I, um, I’m gonna go grab some grub. I’ll save you the good stuff, okay, Swift?”

Suddenly, Redheart’s continual treatment of his body registered as a soothing massage, even after Rainbow left the office.

“Don’t worry” said the physician, reaching for some gauze. “I’m almost done here.”

“Yeah,” he answered automatically.

Redheart wrapped a bandage around his chest, “In my line of work, I’d say she’s a major health hazard to you.” She had a chuckle before snipping the fabric with scissors. “But take my advice. I’ve been treating Rainbow for many years and I can tell you she’s as tough as they come. You don’t need to take all the hits for her. I’m sure she would say the same thing to you.”

“Yeah.”

She put on a big grin and crossed his line of sight. “You really like her, don’t you?”

Swift stumbled back onto the floor. “Nononononononononono! No!”

***End Flashback***

“C’mon, Swift. Be honest. Total jerk that day, right?”

Swift grabbed onto his hair. “Well, I, w–what was the question?”

Bang! The entire house rattled, knocking a few pictures off the wall.

Rainbow ran to the window and leaned past the window frame. “What in Equestria was that?”

Swift facehoofed. “I’ve got a good guess. C’mon. We need to pay somepony a visit.”

Soon afterward, they took off from Blossom’s front door and set a course heading slightly away from the coastline. A few miles away, a narrow plume of smoke rose from the top of one of the many hills defining the landscape. Eventually, they followed one of the dirt roads until it ended at a t intersection where a tan building had its Fixit Up sign hanging over the front door by a nail. The garage door had a few dents and the side wall accumulated grime from the plume drifting in from the rear.

“Whoa!” Rainbow reeled from the barely visible crater in the backyard. “What happened here?”

“Widget,” the stallion yelled as he fanned away some smoke. “Where did you go?”

Two soot covered ponies hopped from the hole, one with their tail missing. However, one small waggle and curly pink hair materialized.

“Wid-get,” the stallion bemoaned, hovering above said pony. “Please tell me that loud bang wasn’t the fireworks.”

“Oy! You’re fussing about nothing. Pinkie and I already did a few fireworks tests earlier in the morning.”

“I put in an order for a few things we need,” Pinkie added. “We just gotta put everything together and—” She showered everypony with random confetti “—hooray for fireworks!”

“So what was that all about, then,” asked Rainbow.

“That’s what I’d like to know.” A pegasus stallion wearing a yellow jacket and a matching helmet landed close to the smoking pit. Before he could take a closer look, Widget impeded his path.

“Nothing going on here, Ember Quench.” A halo glowed above Widget’s head. “Just another day in the shop.”

Brow furrowing, “That’s what I’m afraid of, Miss Widget. You realize how much trouble you give me with your little experiments? I can’t keep an eye away from you without worrying you’ll set something on fire.”

She brandished a screwdriver, “Now, hold on there. I don’t see no flames around here. In fact, I’ve have a spotless record with your fire brigade since the spring.” Widget tucked her tool by her ear. “Besides, you approved me to do the fireworks this morning, so there’s no need to be a fly in the wall.”

“The only reason I approved it was because of Miss Pie over here and under the condition I make regular inspections.” He titled his hat at her, but held his stoic expression. “You better keep her reined in, ma’am, or I’m afraid I’ll have to revoke your fireworks license.”

Pinkie saluted the firepony. “Yes, sir! You can count on me!”

“I hope I can, ma’am.” The burgundy stallion took off into the cloudless sky.

Once he left earshot, Widget stuck her tongue his way. “What a nosy bloke. It’s just a hole in the ground. We didn’t damage anything else.”

Half a mile away, falling debris crashed through a cottage’s roof. While the others stood there in shock, Widget sneaked toward her shop, whistling a tune.

Swift hovered right into her path, forelegs crossed. “Wid-get?”

“Just a minor malfunction. Heh, heh,” she said with a red face. “I’ll just fix Squeezy Syrup’s roof for free, again. Oh, but take a look at what Pinkie and I are trying to build inside the shop!”

“But Widget, we’re in a bit of a—”

The unicorn was already past the front door, with Pinkie bouncing not far behind her.

With a reluctant nod, he had Rainbow follow him through the entrance to the shop.

Inside, the scent of lubricant intermixed with sawdust tickled Rainbow’s nose. Along the walls were large toolboxes on wheels and long tables with half-built trinkets strewn across its surface. Ropes of various lengths hung from pulleys attached to the ceiling, a few of the strands attached to broken wagon wheels. Near the middle of the shop stood the party cannon, now back in one piece. A blueprint on a rolling board diagramed the cannon’s individual components and besides the board was what looked like an unpainted replica of the device. Upon closer inspection, however, the barrel was not only larger and longer than the original but had small compartments inside the chamber.

“She’s a beaut, isn’t she,” said the proud unicorn inventor, wiping her face with a washcloth.

Rainbow poked the cannon, triggering a console attached on the side to flicker with buzzing light. “Whoa! Okay! It’s not going to explode now, is it?”

Pinkie had a giggle fit. “Yes and no. You probably heard—”

“Felt,” Swift interrupted.

Ignoring him, “—the Fireworks Super Cannon version one point one have a teensy weensy little hiccup. This is version one point, um, two!”

“But I thought you were just going to update the original Party Cannon, Widge.”

“But that’s no fun, Swift! This is the perfect chance to make something unexpected!” Widget titled the barrel toward the ceiling. “When this doohickey finally purrs, she’ll light up the sky like nopony has ever seen before! Whatever color or pattern you can think of, she’ll do it and all in one compact package so you can use it whenever! Birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, you name it!”

Swift ran a hoof across the cannon’s smooth surface. “Huh. That’s, wicked, I guess. Do we really need this for the festival, though, Widge?”

“Only if we want the best show on the coast!” She then gnawed on the rubbery part of her screwdriver. “That’s if I can just work out all the bugs. Thanks to Pinkie, I know how the original party cannon works but this is something else. There so little time, I don’t think I’ll have it ready by Saturday.”

Pinkie gave Widget a quick hug. “Don’t you worry. I have a feeling when it finally does works, everypony will remember it for the right reasons.”

Swift beamed at the budding friendship in front of him. “What do you know? I actually believe that. Well, Rainbow and I gotta head out but can I ask you something, Widget? Blossom wants Hipster Amps as our singer but she’s gone hiking. Any idea on where to start looking?”

The unicorn nodded. “Try the Troten Trails. Last time I saw her, she was blabbering about something in that area.”

“Shoot. That doesn’t narrow it down much. Rainbow? Guess we’re doing a little sightseeing.”

7 - The Hip is In

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“Incoming seagulls at two o’clock!”

Through the shifting fog, Radar hurtled over several overgrown tree branches. Applejack and Blitz quickly followed suit while Fluttershy trailed at the rear, shrieking at the sound of incoming torpedoes.

“Where are they coming from,” Applejack asked.

“Duck,” Radar commanded. “Now!”

All four threw themselves onto a prickly shrub, avoiding six pairs of outstretched legs whooshing above them. Soon, the birds disappeared back into the mist, laughing despite missing their intended targets.

Applejack crawled out of the bush and hind-kicked the nearest visible trunk. “Lousy good-for-nothing varmits!” She pulled out a stinger, “Cowards too!”

“Do we have to keep playing defense?” Blitz bemoaned, shaking off bits of bark. “Find me some coconuts and I’ll have them running!”

“But we can’t,” Fluttershy insisted a she worked on restoring her mane to its usual flowing shape. “At least not until we find their leader and see if we can make peace with them.”

Applejack snorted. “Well, I’m running out of patience. Please tell me we’re getting closer to their home, Radar. I’m getting might tired of all this dodging.”

The teal unicorn activated her horn. “One minute, please.”

“And how about you talking to them, Fluttershy?” Applejack dusted off her Stetson, “We’ve had plenty of chances to hear them yapping at us, unfortunately.”

“Enough to start a conversation, I think,” she answered, tapping together her forelegs, “Um, actually, for all the noise they make, the seagulls don’t actually say much. They mostly laugh at us and—” Pink appeared on her cheeks “—um, say some not-so-nice things.”

“Pardon me, Fluttershy, but I detect a large pit less than half a mile away,” Radar briefed the group. “Based on the concentration of seagulls, there’s a high probability it’s their residence. However, we are currently on high terrain and after analyzing the local geography, a direct route may be too treacherous. I have calculated a safer route but it will take us at least two hours to reach the site.”

Suddenly, faraway caws had them looking around the swirling white ocean.

“Hours? Forget hours,” Blitz proclaimed, placing a firm foreleg on top of a rock. “Radar? We can still go straight to their place, right?”

“Feasible but I would not recommend—”

“Then straight ahead it is! Why get our flanks chased around for hours when we can get there in minutes? Just gotta watch our step and we’ll be right at their doorstep!”

Applejack smiled wryly. “Heh. I actually agree with yellow belly’s thinking. I say we do it!”

“Oh, this is well beyond my mission scope,” said Radar, twirling her neat bangs. “I’m unsure I could partake in this journey.”

Blitz swaggered up to her. “Now, now. Like I was gonna let a pretty mare like you get hurt.” He extended a hoof, “Just take a ride on the Pineapple Express. I’ll do the rest.”

Before Applejack could utter an “Oh brother,” she gaped as Radar climbed onto the back of the tall stallion and clung onto his neck with nary a change in her passive expression.

At least until black dots materialized in the fog.

“Seagulls approaching from seven o’clock!” Radar’s horn flashed a few rings of light. “Intercept in fifteen seconds!”

“Let’s not burn time, then!” Blitz grunted. “Think you can stay with me, Jack? Shy?”

“Just watch me,” replied the cowpony, adjusting the brim of her hat.

Fluttershy opened her mouth.

Blitz reared up, “Blitz, yeah! Let’s roll!”

Once again, the group was on the lamb from their unseen pursuers. Despite the bumpy ride, Radar kept her magic aura active; three seconds of forward visibility meant somepony had to be a real-time navigator.

“Head down! Low branches! And we’re clear! Loose rocks ahead! Keep your—” Radar gasped. “Small drop approaching!”

Applejack whipped back her head. “Where? I don’t see it!”

“Jump, right about, now!”

Two earth ponies leaped into the air, spreading their hooves wide. They slipped through some hanging vines before landing on a puddle, splashing droplets right into Fluttershy’s path. She zipped right through it without losing speed but behind her, the seagulls’ caws intensified.

“Gentle ascent starting, now!” Radar readjusted her hold on Blitz’s neck. “Land drops severely ahead! Slide over hard left!”

As the party shifted path, sunlight poked holes through the mist. While the fog persisted on the left side, the right revealed a brightening blue canvas covered by distant purple majesties. Far below them, snaking blue streams sliced through vast green expanses. Closer to eye level, a few canopies rose above the land’s edge with macaws resting near the top. Some seagulls broke off the main group and chased the birds deeper into the forest valley.

“You mea—” Fluttershy slapped her face. “No, no. I must be nice. I must be nice.”

Radar craned her head around Blitz’s hair. “In fifteen seconds, jump at the top of the hill. Then, downward slope of at least forty five degrees!”

Applejack’s pupils bulged. “That steep, Radar? Hey, now! Don’t ya think we should slow down a bit?”

Blitz flashed a sneer. “Apple turning sour?”

“Um, no. No! I’d rather drink apple vinegar than lose to a Pineapple!”

Suddenly, the fog ahead parted. A gentle rise in terrain greeted them followed by empty sky.

“There’s something on the other side, right? Right?”

At the top of the hill, she went airborne over a fissure and landed on loose silt. Left and right the cowpony veered like a novice ice skater who had no clue how to slow her momentum. Even with a clear view and Radar’s constant instructions, she danced on the edge of control.

A low-lying branch then knocked her Stetson clean off her head. “Nooooo!”

Fluttershy snatched it in mid-flight.

“Fluttershy! Just hold on to—”

A dip in the ground turned Applejack into an orange tumbleweed.

“Applejack!” Fluttershy pumped her wings even harder. “Hold on!”

At the same time, Blitz shifted his path so that Radar could also attempt a save from the other side. “I can’t, quite—” Yellow sparkles sparkled around Applejack. “She’s moving too fast for a lock! Closer, Mister Pineapple! Closer!”

With perfect timing, Radar and Fluttershy had Applejack suspended in midair.

“Tree,” Radar exclaimed. “Push her, Miss Fluttershy! Push!”

Fluttershy shoved Applejack into Blitz’s back before swinging around a dead piece of bark.

“What a gnarly save, ladies! Woo!” Blitz hollered as he splashed into mud. “Those birds can’t mess with us! Are we losing them?”

“My deepest apologies,” Radar panted, her magical aura flickering around Applejack. “I’m afraid I’m too preoccupied trying to keep our friend from flying off to get a bearing.”

Fluttershy did a head check; all she saw was steep terrain. “I don’t see them anymore! I think we lost them! Maybe we can slow down?”

Blitz lowered his pace while the landscape around him began smoothing over. By the time he reached walking speed, they had reached the bottom of a ravine. Trees grew sideways out of the rising land on both sides, casting the entire area in a perpetually shifting shadow.

“What a workout,” Blitz wheezed in between breaths.

“You could say that,” replied Radar, favoring her horn. “I’m afraid it will take a few minutes before my magic recharges. Are you injured, Miss Applejack?”

Applejack rolled off the stallion’s back. “Whoaaaa, okay now!” After a slight wobble, she started meandering beside Blitz. “That was like riding an angry bull at the rodeo but I can shake it off.” Fluttershy returned her hat. “Thanks, sugarcube.”

“You’re welcome. I just hope that we can, ahhhhh!”

“What’s wrong, Flutter–shy. Whoa, nelly!”

They all had walked into the middle of a clearing within the jungle forest. Cliffs rose well above their heads with the top draped with overhanging vines. Perched alongside the walls were brown and white seagulls numbering in the hundreds, staring down upon them with their beady eyes. None of their beaks made a sound except for one, a male seagull standing by the entrance to a small cave near the bottom of the pit. His feathers were longer than the rest and when he walked to the edge of an outcropping, his shadow ballooned to a size that enveloped all four visitors beneath him.

Fluttershy walked halfway up a slope leading to the ledge before the tall bird made more noise.

“Um, hello?” Fluttershy raised a trembling foreleg, “M–mister seagull? Do you mind if I have a word with—”

All the seagulls flapped their wings and made grating noise, which echoed off the walls. Their leader stomped the ground, instantly ceasing the chatter.

“I’m sorry, Master Pinion,” she said after doing a small bow. “I’m here on behalf of the citizens of Brayside Beach and the animals of this jungle on a mission of peace. I was just wondering why you keep, um, how can I put this nicely? You’re not being the best of neighbors with everyone around here? Why is that?”

The stout seagull promptly quacked.

Fluttershy scratched her head. “Um, okay? So if understood you right, you’re saying that everyone around here is intruding on your territory?”

Master Pinion made a noise with an upward inflection.

“Hey!” Blitz shook his foreleg. “Even I know what that meant! Not cool! Brayside’s been here way longer than you feather b—”

Applejack muzzled his mouth. “Pipe down. You don’t wanna start a fight dab smack in the middle of enemy territory.”

“And why do you say this is your area,” Fluttershy asked the leader. “Is there some agreement that we’re not aware about?”

Pinion spoke again for about ten seconds.

“Because you say so?” Fluttershy paused to glance at her friends. “Um, I don’t… that doesn’t make sense. That doesn’t make sense at all. I’ve talked to some of the animals out here and they say you’re the ones that are the newcomers to the area. I don’t see how—”

The leader interrupted her with blunt terse quacking.

Fluttershy shook her head. “Oh, no, no, no. That’s not how it works. You’re supposed to share the land with—”

Pinion flapped his wings and cawed, prompting many other seagulls to do the same.

Applejack waved herself off with her hat. “Um, Radar? You might want to start looking for an escape route.”

The unicorn got off Blitz’s back. “Attempting to search now but my magic is still—”

“Hey!” Fluttershy hovered up to the leader’s eye level, hooves on hips. “That wasn’t a very nice thing to say but I’ll be nice and let it slide. Now, can we please—?”

The seagulls increased their chatter.

“You naughty birds,” she screeched, stomping a hoof on the dirt. “Didn’t you mothers teach you proper manners? That’s not how you talk to a lady! Apologize this instant!”

After a brief pause, guffaws broke out in the pit. A few turned around and wagged their behinds at the negotiator that had a worsening case of epilepsy.

“That’s, it!” Flutteshy slammed her eyelids shut. “I’m sorry I have to do this but you all need to learn your lesson!”

In the span of seconds, the clearing within the tropical forest became a library, the birds’ attention focused solely on the little spitfire scolding them with nothing more than a stare. The other ponies looked in the other direction, unwilling to press their luck despite being a friend rather than foe. Even Applejack could taste bitterness in the air; Fluttershy wasn’t holding back one bit. Surely, she had succeeded in taming the birds.

Finally, one seagull flew over Fluttershy and dropped white goo over her head. When she dodged it and squealed at the splatter, the birds cackled their defiance.

“W–hat?” Fluttershy stumbled back, falling on her hindquarters. “My stare didn’t work?”

Pinion raised a wing, prompting the seagulls to leave their perches and circle around the pit.

“I may not speak seagull-ese but something tells me we should go,” Applejack stuttered, taking small steps in reverse. “Like, five seconds ago.”

“I’ve discovered an underground route a quarter of a mile away,” Radar whispered. “Behind and to the right, there’s an opening in a rock face that leads right to it. If we can just distract the seagulls for a few seconds, one of us can—”

Blitz grabbed all three mares like pieces of lumber and tossed them on his back.

“We’re outta here!”

The stallion then galloped back toward the ravine at his best possible speed, closely followed by a throng of birds.

“I didn’t ask you to rescue me,” Applejack complained. “I could’ve—” A head throb had her clasping his mane to avoid going overboard. “Consarn it. Okay. You made the right call. This time.”

“It appears this mission has not been entirely successful,” said Radar, hanging her head.

Fluttershy pouted her lips. “I’m so sorry. I was certain the seagulls would listen to me. I let everypony down.”

“Don’t beat yourself up,” Applejack reassured her. “At least we know where they live now. We’ll come up with another plan. Besides, maybe making all this ruckus here means we’re giving the beach team a breather.”

“Run! Get to shelter!”

At the festival site, ponies scrambled like headless chickens as ten seagulls targeted them at every opportunity. Some jumped into half-finished booths and hid under flat sheets of lumber. Others clung onto the side of a wagon climbing the dusty hill at high speed. The fortunate crawled below the skeleton of what would be the main stage, an area where the support columns proved an effective deterrent against any birds from squeezing in between them.

One made an attempt anyways, flailing right at Spike and several other cowering ponies. The rounded edge of a surfboard kept the seagull at bay until it retreated into the air and joined some others in pecking on a tent.

“Thanks a lot, Blossom,” Spike blubbered, hugging her copper red hoof.

“Don’t thank me yet, Spike.” She surveyed what little sky she could see, “Where is Light Shower? He’s supposed to mount a defense along with the other pegasi!”

The dragon shrugged before noticing a unicorn darting across the patchy field.

“Twilight,” Spike shouted. “We’re over here! Hurry!”

Twilight made a beeline down an aisle of benches, her horn spewing laser beams that hit none of its oncoming targets. A bird then flew right into her hooves, knocking her onto the ground. As she flailed on the one flapping seagull, half a dozen birds swooped in for an attack.

“Twi–light!”

Before Spike could ask for help, Blossom wriggled out from below the stage and raised her instrument of justice above her head.

“Seagulls! Sea-gulls! Get, off, my, beach!”

A red freight locomotive charged straight at Twilight’s assailants. When she got within ten feet of her targets, she slid through the sand and swung her hindquarters forward, surfboard and all.

Thwack! Blossom popped three seagulls deep into the sky where they twinkled out of sight. Two others landed two hundred feet away on top of a canopy, stars swirling over their heads.

“Who’s, next?” she huffed, swatting in the direction of the remaining birds.

The invaders flapped toward the north, wanting no part to partake in batting practice.

Moments afterwards, ponies emerged from their hiding spots and showered Blossom with unyielding praise.

“It was nothing,” she chirped, tossing her hair aside before sticking her surfboard deep into the ground. “Just doing my job—”

Light Shower landed in front of her.

“—Unlike somepony I know! Where were you, Light Shower?”

“Oh, just got caught up chatting with Rarity and a few of the ponies back at the shop,” he replied while using a toothpick. “Did I miss something, girl?”

Blossom’s lashes flickered. “You could say that. Here, I’ll get you up to speed.”

Before she could knock some sense into him, a magical aura snatched the surfboard beyond her reach.

“Twilight!” She crunched the bits of sand beneath her hoof. “What are you doing?”

“There is such a thing called dialogue, Blossom,” the prissy unicorn lectured. “There’s no need to use your surfboard all the time.”

“Then explain to me how I saved you from those seagulls just now. Oh, and you’re welcome, by the way.”

Twilight turned off her horn and the surfboard flopped onto the field. “Yes, I suppose that was the best option for that one moment but let me show you how to handle this situation.” She calmly walked right up to Light Shower. “You’re a valuable member of this team and we really could’ve used your help just now. Please don’t be tardy again.”

Blossom cast a glance at Spike. “How do you put up with this bunch of—?”

“Now, unfortunately, it looks like our pegasi backup has fled,” Twilight continued. “Light Shower, please gather them back up. Everypony else, let’s get back to work. We’ve got a schedule to keep.”

After some initial hesitation, the festival workers were once again moving again with their assigned tasks.

“That Twilight,” Blossom mumbled. “Who told her she can give out orders?”

When Spike turned to the redhead, flames sprouted from deep within her orange eyes.

“D–do you need a drink, Blossom” the dragon asked.

After one long exhale, she gave him a pat on the head. “You know, that sounds like a great idea.” A shadow cast over her face. “In fact, I think we all need something delish right about now and I know just the pony to bring it here. Oh, Twilight? I have another errand for you!”

Fresh crisp mountain air and not too thin either. Rainbow breathed it all in along with her surroundings: the thin evergreens covering much of the rolling green expanse, the squirrels playing hide and seek around the bushes and a clear view of sierras high as she could see.

Nearby, a filly walking down the meandering gravel road snapped a shot at the snow covered peaks. She then joined her mother who had just finished conversing with Swift.

“Any luck,” Rainbow asked as she hovered alongside him over the slightly inclining rocky path.

“She hasn’t seen Hipster either. Guess we’ll be hitting the caverns after all.”

“And where’s that, exactly?”

“A few minutes away that way,” he responded, pointing straight ahead. “No rush, though. You’re on vacation, after all. Gotta let you soak in the sights, right, Rainbow?”

Another inhale later, she did a little stretch before fluttering backwards. “Yeah, I guess I can chill for a sec. So, um, you come up here often?”

“Sometimes.”

“So you know where this path leads to, right? The obstacles along the way and stuff? Where it ends?”

“Straight through the caverns, through some redwoods, and ending by a river near a waterfall. Why are—” Swift curled an eyebrow. “Rainbow? I know what you’re thinking.”

Rainbow grinned like an eager filly on the last day of school.

Snickering, “What a shocker. Can’t let that last loss go, huh?”

“For the record, that race didn’t count.” She crossed her hooves. “The banner was in the way.”

He parroted her last statement. “So? I went around it. That’s what you do with obstacles, Rainbow. Swift drew an imaginary path, “A–round. See what that looks like?”

“Well, duh! You think that—” She rolled over an outstretched branch and slowed to a stop. “Heh. You thought I was crashing into that, weren’t you?”

“Wicked,” he answered, giving her a clap. “I’m actually impressed.”

“What can I say? I’m just that awe… well, I am getting better at not crashing into things, thanks to you.”

Did she just say that? Wow.

She landed on the road below near a crest. “So, um, we’re racing?”

“Eh? Oh. Right, right.” Swift touched down next to her. “But only because I wanna hear your excuse on why you lost this time around.”

“Whatever,” said Rainbow, positioning into a runner’s stance. “You better get ready and, oh, I’m doing the countdown this time.”

After the briefest of pauses, she shouted a “three” but then skipped right to “Go!”

Seconds later, she peeked left; her nose lined up with the tip of his flapping light blue tail.

No surprise but you’re not getting away!

The clear path ahead meant Rainbow whittled away his start advantage. When the enveloping mountains turned into a violet blur, Rainbow passed above him and started to build a gap.

Heh! I got… darnit! Are you kidding me?

Rocky hillsides and slopes rose all around them, narrowing the available air space. The sharp and blind bends did her no favors either, forcing her to slow the pace or risk being cyan platter on a wall. It also ramped up her heartbeat with anticipation that the stallion behind her would make his move to re-take the lead. Friend or otherwise, she had no issues weaving all over the place to refuse him an easy opening. It worked for all of five seconds before a rock arch forced her into a quick decision – up or down.

It made no difference. He took the opposite of her choice and with that, was soon side-by-side with her. Then, his appendages flared wide, dropping his speed dramatically. Rainbow stared at him in bewilderment before he mimicked the same expression.

“Rainbow! Look—”

Rainbow met face-to-face with vertical rock.

“Out. Shoot.” Swift went over and pulled her off the wall. “Talk to me.”

“I–I’m all right.” She pushed and pulled on her squished muzzle. “Just hurt my pride.” Rainbow touched a loose tooth. “Okay. Maybe a bit more than that. Why’d you stop?”

“You mean you don’t hear it, Rainbow?”

All she picked up was the wind rustling some nearby branches. Then, along the many cracks running across the rock face, she picked up a faint electrical noise emanating from the tall crevice at ground level.

“That’s odd,” she remarked, threading into the opening. “Is that a jam I hear?”

“Gotcha. He followed right behind her, “and something tells me that’s not coming from birds.”

She nodded before pushing deeper into the dim contracting passageway. “By the way, I won that race.”

He grunted confusion. “How can you say that? We didn’t even finish.”

“That’s right. You stopped completely. By rule, that counts as a forfeit. Easy as that.”

“Win by technicality? Even I know that’s weak.”

“Whatever.” She winked. “It’s still a win.”

Eventually, they reached a point where the space forced the pegasi to use hoof travel. They soon spotted a source of light emanating from a naturally forming crawlspace. Once both squeezed into the space, the tunes turned savage, tearing up their eardrums. Rainbow and Swift pressed on with urgency, hoping to find the source on the other side.

They emerged in a large chamber with a high ceiling and lanterns providing a soft orange glow. The wall’s surface had endless corners that gave the space the rough shape of a dome. Right in the middle of the room was a long and wide table that had several dull black and grey boxes with moving dials and flashing lights. Wires weaved from ports in the back to tall speakers on both ends of the table and a turntable. The operator, a white mare with untamed blue hair and purple shades, continued playing her music, ignoring her new arrivals even as they stood directly across from her.

“Vinyl!” Rainbow leaned over the table. “Hey! Can you—“

Scratch swiped her hoof across the turntable one last time. “Ohhhhhhh, damn! Now that was a killer setup, Amps!”

Suddenly, another pony — a tan mare with dirty blond hair — popped into sight from under the table. “Killer?” She shifted her petite round orange shades downwards. “It was hip, but not quite hip enough.”

“C’mon! Give yourself some cred, girl!” Vinyl then leaned across the turntable, grinning ear to ear. “So, how’s my little rockin’ duo hanging?”

Rainbow and Swift gave her a puzzled gaze.

“Re–wind! Back at the ‘Cube a few months back? You two were totally slamming it on the dance floor that night! Hey! Any shot at an encore?”

Swift suddenly found enunciating impossible.

“Well, t–that’s sorta why we’re, um, here,” Rainbow slurred. “Um, before we get into that, what exactly are you doing here, Vinyl? Rumor was that you were moving well outside Equestria or something.”

Vinyl smirked. “Ponies love making up stories about me, don’t they? Actually, I’m just working on some new material but my equipment just wasn’t in the right tune for it. That’s where Hipster’s got my back. If she can’t make my stuff be sublime, nopony can.”

“Hipster?” Swift muttered. “Whoa. You’ve never told me you work for Vinyl.”

Amps clicked her tongue while leaning on the table. “Gotta keep some secrets, you know, Fly? Can’t have ponies lining up outside my shop just because I hang with DJPon.”

“So I’m guessing this place is one of those secrets?”

“Natch. It’s a little private studio away from town.” Her orange eyes glittered, “And just listen to the killer acoustics in here! Such clarity and pitch! You gotta be in a big city with bags of bits just to rent a room like this! Be a bro and don’t tell anypony about it, please?”

“Gotcha, Amps. So, how about doing me a favor? Actually, big favor. You see, Rainbow and I are, um, there’s this… you know the headliner for the festival? They’re not coming so we’re filling a part of, the, aerial part of the act.”

Vinyl did a quick scratch on the turntable. “Encore is, on!”

“We’re also getting a rock band together but it’s gonna need a singer,” Swift continued. “That’s where you come in, Amps.”

Her glasses all but slipped off her snout. “Hold up, hold up. Me singing? Fly? I think you got the wrong girl, here.”

“Whatcha talking about, Hips?” Vinyl replied, pushing Hipster’s glasses back into place. “I’ve caught you busting a few verses a few times and you’ve got the talent. Not just ‘fifteen minutes of fame’ talent. I’m talking ‘put that girl on a big city billboard because she’s going places’ talent!”

“It’s not that great, VS. I’ll just wreck ponies’ ears.”

“Weak sauce!” She tossed over a microphone along with a scroll. “That’s a little something something I scribbled a few months ago. Yeah, yeah. Rip me for writing lyrics but, hey, gotta try new stuff.”

“But—”

“Let ‘er rip, Hip!”

After flipping a few switches, the DJ cranked out another beat with enough energy that the three-pony audience bopped their heads to the rhythm. With nods of encouragement, Hipster Amps levitated the mike close to her mouth and spread all her hooves wider for a more aggressive stance.

To the skies, I spread my wings and fly
Clouds abound, I keep my eyes up high
You cross my sights, so much faster than light
Color splash! You come down and say hi-i

Crash into my life!

All of this time, I didn’t know you were there
Now all I can do is hover and stare
Set my mood to confuse
Tell me which way is tru-e

Takeoff with you to a brand new day
Don’t deny me with a haughty neigh
I wanna show you what I can do
Let me fly with you

Free my feelings from this prison
See my wings in full glisten
Let me fly with you

Bust these clouds and we’re through!

Vinyl threw in a guitar riff to end the song.

Amps placed the mike on the table. “You see? My voice starts cracking when I have to push it.”

“You make it sound like that’s a bad thing,” Rainbow reassured. “For a rock song, that totally, rocks! Right, Swift?”

“Totally wicked stuff,” the stallion exclaimed. “Now I get why Blossom wanted you in the first place! C’mon. Give it shot.”

Amps leaned against one of the speakers and sighed. “Are you sure you’re all cool with me? I’m not a big name or anything.”

“But I am,” Scratch interjected. “No way I’m letting you step onto the big stage without backup.” Raising a foreleg, “C’mon. Bump me, girl.”

After a few tense seconds, Amps gave Vinyl a side slap. Rainbow and Swift followed them with one of their own.

“Whew! Glad that worked out,” Swift uttered. “Hope everypony else is having it this easy.”

“Not again!”

Spike ran between rows of stands as a seagull made a kamikaze run at him.

“Help! Somepony help!”

From above, Light Shower grabbed onto the fleeing dragon and pulled him away from a beak strike. Before the attacker could change course, a red light zapped off some of its feathers.

“Leave Spike alone,” Twilight growled, her head sticking out of a small tent’s entrance twenty yards away.

The seagull made a turn toward the unicorn but then saw Blossom – tail wrapped around her surfboard – galloping on the top of the tent. With a leap, she extended her wings and glided toward a collision course.

“You’re next!”

Blossom never got a chance to swing; all twelve seagulls retreated from the festival site. Light Shower and three other pegasi followed in hot pursuit.

Blossom touched down and slid to a stop. “All clear, everypony!”

Slowly, ponies amassed from behind booths, under tarps and overturned wagons. The last arrivals had Blossom doing a double take.

“Radar? Fluttershy? When did you get here? I wasn’t expecting you back this early!” She facehoofed. “Do I need to ask how well your mission went?”

Radar cleared her throat. “Apologies, ma’am. We did find their hideout but negotiations have failed. We had to make a hasty retreat.”

“Fluttershy,” Twilight bemoaned. “What went wrong? Was it an issue with learning their language?”

“I understood what they’re saying, Twilight, but—” Her body turned steaming red, —“ohhhh! I know I should love all animals but those seagulls have such, p–p–potty mouths!”

The unicorn gasped.

Fluttershy moved her pink hair over her face. “I’m sorry if I startled you. It’s just that I’m not sure I can reason with them at all. Even my stare didn’t work on them.”

“Oh, dear. I suppose you and I need to come up—”

Blossom coughed. “A–hem!”

Twilight flicked her tail. “Fine. We will come up with another plan.” Her head moved back and forth. “Um, what happened with Applejack and Blitz? Weren’t they with you?”

“Get back here, yellow belly!”

“Can’t catch me, Slowjack!”

Blitz galloped past a water tower reading Brayside Beach. Applejack was in hot pursuit ten feet away, gasping for balmy afternoon air. The upcoming three-way juncture was the finish line but all the loose silt and rocks beneath her hooves turned the road into Vaseline. While she did all she could to avoid another embarrassing fall, the stallion ahead of her reveled in slowing down just enough to give her false hopes.

He slid to a stop right on the wider road lined with palm trees and then flexed his muscles in an in-your-face dance that would’ve made Rainbow Dash proud.

“Don’t be full of yourself,” Applejack huffed, stopping next to the muscular stallion. “If this was Ponyville—”

“If this was Ponyville, wahhhhh!” Blitz rubbed faked tears. “I would’ve crushed you, any time any place.”

The cowpony mumbled a few curse words. “Just try beating me on my turf and I’ll take you behind the woodshed.” She took off her hat to wave off sweat, “So, where’s this farm of yours? The sooner we come up with a few blowout dishes for tomorrow, the less time I have to spend with you.”

“Up the next small hill. Unless that’s too far for you.”

She yanked on his goatee. “Just keep talking and this comes off!”

Together, they walked on a gentle uphill path. Up ahead and to the right, white fencing enclosed a vast expanse of gentle rises and falls, its fields littered with leaves from her hated fruit sticking out of the dirt. Two silos peeked over the terrain, as did a few other small barns and outhouses.

Before Applejack reached the crest, a green unicorn with curly long hair appeared over the top trotting in the opposite direction. To her side was a basket filled to the brim with honeydew melons. Any other fruit and she would’ve labeled this pony serious competition. However, three good reasons made her feel otherwise: she liked eating honeydews from time to time, the fruit was too niche to be a business threat and the pony carrying the fruit had a smile that would’ve made holding any ill will toward her a crime against common decency.

“Afternoon,” said the passing unicorn in a chipper tone.

“Howdy,” Applejack responded in kind, tipping her Stetson.

The cowpony took a few more steps before noticing that Blitz had stopped to gaze at the unicorn continuing her journey.

“Oh, for crying out loud!” Applejack dragged him by the tail, “This ain’t time to admire the scenery! We’ve got work to do!”

“Misty,” the stallion whimpered, reaching out to her.

Past the crest, the road ran relatively flat all the way to an opening in the fencing. At the entrance, a wooden pineapple shaped sign read Juicy Fruit Farms. A narrow path ran a short distance between the road and a two-story ranch house with a red roof, faded yellow paint on the walls and outdoor wooden shutters.

She continued yanking the dejected stallion the rest of the way onto the porch and right up to the residence’s double doors.

“Well, we’re here.” She let go of his tail. “Unfortunately.”

“You could’ve given me one minute to talk with her,” he complained, eyes turning watery. “I never get to talk to her.”

“But you live in the same town! How come you just… ugh!” Applejack yanked down on the lid of her hat. “No! Oh, no! Don’t look at me like that! I ain’t getting involved with your problems! There enough of this mushy drama around as it is already!”

“Huh?”

Applejack pushed him through the doors, “Never mind!”

8 - Old Chime Wisdom

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Out of the caverns and into the woods.

Swift and Rainbow flew down a winding path through a land of trees overflowing with enough undergrowth that they could only see the top half of a nearby lighthouse. At a solitary blue mailbox on the side of the road, they detoured to a side path where figs grew from low-lying branches and the scent of the ocean made its welcome return. Despite the plentiful shade provided by the tall canopy, however, their sweat clung to their bodies like glue.

“Okay. This you could call hot,” Rainbow mused, fanning her face. “You can you… hey. I hear something up ahead.”

Once rounding a bend, a faded white cottage house with fencing on both sides came into view. The owner had hung on the porch wind chimes of every shape and size, all of them gently swaying in the occasional cooling breeze.

“So, I’m guessing this is the place, Swift,” she asked.

He landed just past the front steps and groaned. “I don’t wanna be here.” He swung open the screen door and touched the panel door’s knob. “I really don’t wanna be here.”

“What are you whining about?”

Swift sidestepped to one of the two front windows and rubbed off some grime. “I bet he’s expecting me already. Rainbow? We should probably, oof!”

“Just go inside already,” she protested, pushing the stallion through the entryway.

“Rainbow! Hey! No! Bad idea! You don’t know what you’re dealing with!”

“Pffft! You make it sound like… log. Loggggg!”

Both leaped out of the way of a swinging log suspended from a rope. The stump knocked both doors straight off its hinges before the rope snapped.

Rainbow crawled to the doorway and gaped at a splintered porch and the front end of the log dug deep into the dirt a few feet away. “W–what was that?”

“Windy Chimes!” Swift banged the floor. “Are you completely bonkers?”

Raspy laughing emerged from the staircase in front of them. Moments later, a blue pegasus with wispy yellow hair emerged at the top. “Very good. Predictable result for one but for the other, impressive. Correct you were about this Rainbow Dash, Rarity.”

Said unicorn appeared next to him and then trotted down the stairs, “Apologies, dearies, but Mister Chimes insisted we’d start you two with something that would, oh, how did you phrase it?”

“Stimulate the senses,” Chimes answered. He hopped onto the railing.

“Goodness,” Rarity exclaimed. “You shouldn’t be doing that at your age!”

The stallion slid all the way to the first floor with nary a bobble on landing. “Age is merely a number, my dear! Heh, heh!” He took a step before reaching for his back. “Ohhhh! If only my bones shared that same wisdom. Now, how is my star student doing?”

Swift got up and stared at him as though he was a seagull. “How do you think I’m doing?”

“Pain in the flank I am,” answering with a wry smile, “but it is for your sake, Swift.” The elder turned to Rainbow Dash. “And I suspect for yours, as well.”

She scratched her hair. “Um, I don’t get what you mean by that.”

Chimes opened his mouth but whatever he had planned to say, he discarded with a shrug. “Come. Let’s go out back, shall we?”

The homeowner escorted his guests down a narrow hallway toward the house’s backdoor. Along the way, black and white pictures hung on the wall, many of them with Windy Chimes in the middle of an aerial maneuver or posing with other ponies. However, those depictions had thicker hair, a body that lacked sags and in one instance, wore something that stopped Rainbow in her tracks.

“No… way!” She blew off some dust off the picture just in case the humidity was playing tricks on her. “T–that’s a–a Wonderbolts uniform! How is, were you, is this—?”

“Yes, I was once a member, ages ago,” he answered, stroking his thin goatee. “It was for a brief time and I wasn’t there to do stunts.”

“Huh?”

“Allow me a demonstration.”

Seconds later, they all emerged outside to a wide clearing within the forest enclosed by fencing. Only the occasional weed broke up the sea of flat brown monotony. He pushed one button of many on a panel by the side of the door, triggering hidden doors on the ground to grind open. Soon enough, tall narrow tree stumps, cardboard pony cutouts and thin balls with metal balls on top littered the terrain, as did other contraptions whose purpose were just as mysterious.

Windy Chimes walked to the closest to one of the faux ponies. With his eyelids shut, he held one wing high in the air.

“Hyah!”

A sudden gust knocked down the cutout. The elder then turned around and bowed. “Back in my time, the Wonderbolts was more about protecting Equestria than razzle dazzle stunts. As a favor to a friend, I briefly became an instructor on a special form of self-defense, one that requires a mere wing flap like what you just witnessed.”

“Wing-Fu,” Rainbow whispered.

“Yes, I suppose that’s what your generation calls it. A useful art for those than can learn such a technique but it requires great patience and understanding of wind flow.”

Rainbow raised a foreleg. “Oh! Oh! I totally wanna learn! Swift here can do it! I should too!”

“Hmmm. A quick check would be in order.” He lifted one of her wings and ran a hoof across the feathers. “You would have great difficulty, Rainbow. Great wing power I sense but it is wild, aggressive, like an incoming storm front. Success requires becoming the eye of the hurricane, calmness amidst chaos, a quality that Swift possesses because of his very nature.”

“Ahem!” Rarity forced herself in between all of them. “Now, I’m sure this is all fascinating and all but we should stay focused on the task at hoof. We’re here to help them perform together, remember?”

Chimes smiled wide. “Ah, but such knowledge is key. These two, you see, they are alike in some ways but quite different in others. Together, a potent combination of harmony, if they allow it to happen.”

Swift titled his head. “I have no clue what you’re rambling about.”

“Yeah, I’m totally lost too,” Rainbow mumbled into Swift’s ear.

“You will understand soon enough,” Chimes reassured them. “Come, Rarity. You will get a performance, indeed. Swift should be quite familiar with this particular routine by now.”

Swift’s wings stood up. “Hold up! Don’t tell me I’m doing that!”

He walked right to the panel and pushed another button. “Do not worry, Swift. This time, you’ll be sharing this experience.”

Rainbow trembled at the sound of grinding gears and a low electrical hum. Then, lightning suddenly flowed across the various poles, holes opened up on the tree trunks all around the perimeter and the pony cutouts began spinning on its axis and moved along rail lines. Beyond the fencing, water sprouted up into the air and condensed into a haze that seeped into the area.

“Um, Swift?” Rainbow backed right into him. “W–what’s going on?”

“You remember how wicked our training was from Blaze?”

She copied his dour expression. “Please don’t tell me this is even worse than that.”

He pretended to laugh. “You might wanna stick close to me for this.”

Meanwhile, Rarity peeked through a wide window inside the house. Lightning bolts, rubber pellets and static silhouettes moved all around the misty backyard. Two shadows darted amongst the chaos, their panicked yells muffled by the thick glass.

“Are you sure this is going to help, Mister Chimes?” she said, shifting in place. “The log, I suppose was okay for a one time deal but this seems a little, excessive.”

Chimes wheezed a few chuckles. “You’d be surprised how well adversity brings ponies together. Just wait and see.”

“Malt-astic!”

Under the shade of a palm tree, Spike sat on a picnic bench sipping a cup through a straw. He paused and licked some red foam off his lips, making sure his tongue got every drop.

“Oh, yeah! Who do I need to talk to so we can get a Malts ‘R Us open in Ponyville?”

Across from him, Blossom rested her head on the table and kept a lazy eye at the nearby pathway congested with ponies. Some stood in a line of fifteen to place their order at the Malt ‘R Us counter. Others went in and out of the various shops lining one side of the trail, most of them selling the expected items sold near the seaside: patterned towels, surfboards, lotions, postcards, sunglasses and hats. Artisans, musicians and craftsponies had set camp on the sandy side using tables or a simple bed sheet to sell more hoof-made wares. One of them made pony portraits out of seashells and before she knew it, Spike slid one to her.

“So, what do you think,” the dragon asked, grinning at his purchase. “Isn’t it great?”

She cast a glance – she saw better efforts from kindergarteners using macaroni bits. “It’s the thought that matters, Spike. Thank you.”

“Are you all right, Blossom?”

“No,” she answered, pouting her lips. “We’re still behind schedule but those seagulls just won’t let up. I really should be back at the site but I’m just so worn out.”

“Just take it easy. I mean, swinging that surfboard all day trying to keep those seagulls away and organizing such a big festival can’t be easy for anypony. If anypony deserves a break, it’s you.”

Blossom stroked his scales, “Oh, you’re such a sweet wonderful little dragon! Can I keep you?”

Spike blushed. “Ah, I wish I could but I’m Twilight’s assistant.”

“Don’t remind me but you’re nothing like her, Spike. You do everything I tell you to do the best way you can. You wouldn’t do anything to make me mad.”

The dragon clenched his jaw. Oh, why did you have to say that? When she finds out about the orchestra, she’s… she’s gonna—

“Oh, no! You’re shaking again! I’ll go and find you a doctor!”

“No!” He scooted off to the edge of the bench. “I–I’m fine! Heh, heh, heh. It’s just that, um, oh! They’re here! Look, Blossom!”

Arriving to the scene was Twilight, followed by Fluttershy and two other ponies with scruff marks and the scent of ash coming from their messy hairs. They all took a seat with just enough room to fit comfortably.

Blossom clasped her forehead. “Widget? What did you do now?”

“I ain’t done a thing,” said the unicorn, rubbing grease off her cheeks. “Check that. No bad things, um, with the boring fireworks.”

“Our fireworks cannon is another story,” added Pinkie, removing all grout in one fervent shake. “We’ve had some teensy weensy little hiccups.”

Twilight did an eye roll. “More like major malfunctions but based on what I saw with the regular fireworks, I can confirm there’s nothing to worry about in that department, yet. First piece of good news we’ve had all day.”

“Not quite,” Blossom said cheerily, pausing for a prideful glance at Twilight. “I brought you all here partly because of some great news of my own. The rock band has finally come together, singer included and as a special bonus, we just scored Vinyl Scratch too!”

The amassed yelled a cheer, all except a slanted frowned Twilight and her trembling assistant. “Go easy on the nail-biting, Spike,” she quietly instructed. “This won’t change anything.”

Blossom breathed a heavy sigh. “Now for the other reason why you’re all here. Seagulls. Those flapping yapping good for nothing pests of pests seagulls! I’ve had just about enough of them ruining my festival and my beach!”

“Oy! You’re sounding like you’re taking it a wee bit personal, now, Blossi,” Widget commented.

“I’m not taking it personal! Everypony in this town is fed up with those seagulls!” She jumped onto the table. “They tip over garbage cans. We just clean it up. They ruin our picnics. We let them eat our food. I won’t let them ruin this festival and win! Not again! The line must be drawn here! This far and no further!”

Those around the steaming redhead looked elsewhere.

“Oh. I, um, sorry. Got a little carried away there.” She returned to her seat. “Now, we don’t have the means to keep them away for an entire day and they’re apparently not interested in negotiations but there must be a solution to this problem that we can come up with. Fluttershy? I’ll start with you.”

Twilight raised a hoof. “Actually, I was going to suggest moving this meeting to the local library before we start talking seagulls.”

The redhead’s eyes swirled a deeper orange. “And why is that?”

“Closer access to valuable resources. After all, a wise pony once said there no solution that can’t be found inside a good book.”

“Yes, except I’ve already looked there last week. I wasn’t able to find anything useful.”

“Oh.” She pounded her forelegs together. “But I bet I can!”

“Are you implying that—” A smirk suddenly appeared on her face. “You know, you may be right. For all I know, I might have overlooked something invaluable. After all, you practically live around books and therefore, you are the most qualified pony in conducting detailed research. How about you head off to the library and see what you can find. Then we can all meet up at the Luau Kitchen at around seven for dinner and we can discuss your findings there. You can’t miss the place. It’s close to the Trotwalk.”

Twilight rose from her seat. “To the library! Spike, let’s go!”

“But I wanna—”

She tossed him onto her back and galloped toward the beachfront.

Blossom sighed. I wish she wouldn’t have taken Spike. Poor little guy. “Anywho, Fluttershy? Tell us your thoughts.”

“Darn these pineapples!”

“Yo! Don’t diss the fruit!”

Applejack had her reasons to complain about ingredients but she had nothing on the accommodations. This kitchen had a wide marble counter right in the middle of the room, perfect for laying out several pineapples crates and a few barrels filled with apples. Knives were just a quick turnaround away from reach, all sharpened to a glisten and placed on a wall rack from smallest to largest. Wooden cabinets all around the room had every spice, pot, pan or whatever else any professional cook would need for a great meal.

Everything except the right recipe book.

“These are too hard to cut,” Applejack grumbled as she wriggled a knife through a large pineapple. “Just another reason why apples are better.”

Blitz squished juice off an apple into a bowl. “You wish! There’s a reason why ponies go with the pine at the beach. They want something juicy, sweet and totally gnarly. The only ones that even touch apples are foals drinking juice out of their sippy cups.”

“Grrrrr! I’ll admit that was a good comeback, too good. Do you actually think before you say anything or are you just blabbering what others tell you?”

“I think… about what my family tells me. Actually, that was my best stuff for an apple.”

Applejack slid pineapple pieces into a blender before grabbing another pineapple. “Lemme ask you something.” She grunted while slicing. “Don’t you get tired of all this fighting between fruit families? Not that I don’t enjoy a little rivalry, but it can get might annoying. Last month, our farm was pelted by peaches. Took us days to clean all the gunk.”

“Rotten bananas here,” Blitz answered before lifting onto the countertop another barrel of apples. “They even left the peels on the roof. You wanna talk smack, that’s cool, but making me work overtime and that’s too much! Oh, and bullying foals and colts into eating your fruit! Totally wrongcious!”

“Well, at least we have something in common. We may never agree which fruit is better, but I suppose you’re more bearable than the others. Tell you what. How about we start being a little nicer to each other and focus on making some good grub? I’d love nothing more than to be in the best spot for the festival and rub that in the other families’ faces.”

“Blitz, yeah,” shouted the stallion, banging the counter. “I’ll take an apple over a mango or banana any day!”

“I hear that. Now, do me a favor and preheat the oven.”

He glanced at the appliance tucked away near the corner of the room. Dials adorned both sides of the door with letters and numbers that had him ruffling his brushed back mane. “Um, okay. I can do that.”

Within Chimes’ living room, four ponies sat on their haunches around a low table to partake in a tea, sweet bread, and toasted sandwich spread. Chimes and Rarity opted for small sips from their little cups and nibbles of their sweets.

Swift and Rainbow, on the other side of the table, gobbled up enough food for ten.

While Rarity wrinkled her nose at their uncouth table manners, the elder listened in to their nonstop conversation. Rainbow and Swift complained about every facet of their impromptu training session but they also tossed out occasional compliments for avoiding the singe of an open flame or a strike from a flying pellet.

Rarity leaned into the old stallion’s ear. “Are you noticing something, Mister Chimes? Please do share.”

He paused for a quick drink. “Fascinated, I am. They demonstrated a level of teamwork beyond my expectations.”

“I see. If I may be so bold, do you think it’s because they may be,” she giggled, “romantically connected in some fashion?”

“Heh, heh. If I were able to read those types of signs, I’d be quite a rich pony. What I can say is that they have handled adversity more intense than today’s session.”

“Hmmm. They did go through some training a few months ago with one of Swift’s falcon friends.”

“I’m aware of that but it may be more than that,” he said before taking another sip.

“You know, when they met the first time in Ponyville, they ended up over a week together while my friends and I were away. They’ve never gone into specifics about what they did together and nopony in town seems to know, either. It’s possible that—”

Suddenly, a knocking sound came from the front door. Chimes put down his cup only for Rarity to get up first.

“No, please. Allow me, Mister Chimes. Maybe you could, ahem, talk to Rainbow and Swift about that time? Maybe you can find some answers there, answers you could share with me, hmm?”

Both young pegasi gave the unicorn a curious stare as she trotted into the dim hallway and disappeared. Moments later, they reached for the last sandwich on the crumb-infested plate; both paused just short of touching the snack. Each once moved their heads, indicating they could go ahead and take it. Eventually, they pulled back their hooves in retreat.

Then, cyan and grey blurs swiped at the sandwich.

“Too slow,” Swift mumbled, stuffing his prize into his mouth.

Rainbow flicked the plate. “Yeah, yeah. I let you have that one.”

Chimes grunted. “That’s not what I saw.”

“You need your eyes checked, old timer,” she refuted.

He bellowed a laugh. “You’re quite a spitfire, aren’t you? A surprise that you could harmonize so well with a pony you’ve only met months ago.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Swift responded, flicking off crumbs on his lips.

He craned his head back toward the hallway. “Alone us three for a while, it seems. Allow me to get straight to the point, young student.”

“Eh? That’s a first. Why so serious all of a sudden?”

A shadow fell over Chimes’ face. “Flying Stress Syndrome. You had that infliction, did you not?”

Swift might as well heard his parents had gone missing. “W–wha–?”

“Back at Blossom’s Hearts Warming Eve party last year, that was our first encounter. I sensed an ominous wind around you, enough to believe that not all was well with you. I was but a stranger to you then, the only commonality between us was that I was a friend of your mother’s. My place to intervene in your life that night it was not. Patient I had to be. After you returned from Ponyville, however, that presence was but a mere draft, completely tamed by its master. Yes, correct I am, aren’t I?”

His shrinking pupils made a quick shift to Rainbow who burned brighter than the lit candles on a nearby shelf.

Chimes gasped softly. “The winds do not lie. Both of you. The same exact battle.”

Both lowered their heads.

“Do not worry young students. There is one reason above the rest why I know this, a secret that I will share.” Chimes adjusted his seating position. “I flew the same path as you two.”

“W–what?” Swift pointed at his teacher, “H–hold on. You had it too?”

Chimes did a second check of the hallway; distant chatter put him at ease. “A little older than you two I was when I had a terrible accident, one caused by youthful arrogance. Once I realized I had Flying Stress Syndrome, the shame it brought me kept me away from the skies. There was a time when I believed flying would be forever out of reach. However, a retired Wonderbolt guided me every step of the way, unbending in his desire to ensure the success of my recovery. The years between us may have been great, but through shared adversity, we formed a bond that lasted through time. That’s what I see between you two.”

“So what does that mean, exactly,” Rainbow asked. “We work great together?”

“I sense between you two the hardships endured and the joy of ultimate freedom. Only ones that have lived through such an experience can begin to understand how such a journey can forge a strong connection. ” He stopped for a third check. “Now, let me ask both of you something. Do you happen to know why there is such a thing as Flying Stress Syndrome?”

Swift’s eyes widened. “You know? You actually know?”

“Not a clue!” He wheezed a guffaw.

“Figures,” Rainbow grumbled.

“But I have heard some interesting theories over the years. Some claim it was originally a test given by a long-forgotten divine figure in a time when they were only earth ponies roaming this world. Those that passed literally earned their wings and became today’s pegasi. Others say it’s a nightmare run amok after Princess Luna’s banishment to the moon a thousand years ago. In the end, the origin may be of little importance. What matters is the great challenge it presents a pegasus to overcome such an infliction. Flying Stress Syndrome, formidable it is, but the lessons they provide are invaluable.”

“Eh?” Swift remarked.

He closed his eyes. “You two faced the same adversity, one more difficult than mine, and together, you overcame. There is little else I can teach you about working as one.”

“Eh?”

Chimes poured some more tea, “The barriers that you two face today are the ones you have erected yourselves. Reflect on the past and they will guide past them.”

After a few seconds of blank staring, Swift tussled his forelocks. “What?”

Rarity pranced back in the room and returned to her spot next to Windy Chimes. “I do apologize for the wait. That was Light Shower at the door and we got a little carried away chatting on a few things. Did I miss anything?”

“Nothing of great importance,” said Chimes before drinking from his cup.

Swift and Rainbow exhaled their relief. “What did he want,” Swift asked.

“Surfing Blossom wants us to be at the Trotwalk at seven. We’ve all had long days so she thought it would be best if we, um, shared some time together, at the Trotwalk.”

Both pegasi verbally agreed.

“Wonderful! I need to freshen up for tonight. We’ll meet you at the boardwalk entrance!”

Chimes kept an eye on the unicorn as she departed the room before sipping his warm drink. “A charming pony, that one. Lessons to woo her, that I can teach you, Swift.”

“No,” he emphatically answered.

“You shouldn’t discount such advice so easily,” he countered, rustling whatever hair he had left on his head. “Do promise me that you will heed everything else I have told you today.”

“If we could actually understand what you’re saying,” Rainbow grumbled.

Windy Chimes stood on all fours and cleared his throat. “You’ve been through a lot tougher, kids. Just relax and have some fun together. Let the answers come to you.”

“Welcome to the Luau Kitchen!”

It took all of three seconds from when Blossom brought Fluttershy, Pinkie and Widget into the tiki-style building that several attendants wearing grass skirts greeted them with leis. Then one of them escorted the group through the busy floor bustling with guests, drinking and laughing as overhead fans provided air cooler than the breezes blowing from the ocean and below the hay-stuffed canopy. Old surfboards, tribal masks and glowing bulbs dangled from the rafters as did the shell of a raft; the server seated them at a bamboo table right under it.

Soon enough, the adjourned placed their orders for sweet drinks and appetizers. Blossom casually checked the main courses on the menu before sliding it to the middle of the table.

Well, this is a little disappointing. I thought everypony would be here by now. I said seven, didn’t I?

Then she noticed Spike running in between two servers before taking a seat next to Blossom and speaking labored hellos.

“There you are, little guy,” said Blossom. “Where’s Twilight?”

A server handed Spike some water; he made quick work of it. “She’s—” He then received a refill but only drank a quarter. “Still at the library. Twilight wants to do a little more research, so she’ll be running late. In fact, I just came here to tell you guys. Gotta run!”

Blossom wrapped him around her wing. “Oh, no you don’t! You’re staying here with us!”

“But—”

“We’re still debating on some plans about the seagulls and we’d like to hear what you think. Besides, the cooks here are great with special requests. I bet they can throw gemstones in just about any meal if you ask nicely.”

Spike smacked his lips. “You don’t say? Well, I suppose Twilight will understand.”

Blossom slid him a menu. “Good. More company, the better. And speaking of company,” Flailing a hoof high in the air, “Rarity! We’re over here!”

The unicorn maneuvered toward the table. “Darlings! There you are.” She sat in the empty spot right by Fluttershy. “I must say I love the décor here. Simple, yet festive.”

“Yes, I think so too.” The redhead craned her neck toward the restaurant’s entrance. “Um, I thought you were with Swift and Rainbow. Aren’t they coming?”

Rarity let a titter escape. “Oh, those two. You see, they had, other plans.”

9 - Truth at the Trotwalk

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With a meal sloshing within their bellies, Rainbow and Swift took a leisurely flight over the Brayside shoreline. Ahead was a pier with several small buildings and a Ferris Wheel; but at their pace, they were still a few minutes away from arrival. Rainbow could’ve risked indigestion and revved up her wings for a race but instead yearned for peace of mind.

“Are you surprised he told us about that so easily, Swift,” she asked the stallion flying next to her.

“About what?”

“His, you know, condition.” Rainbow shivered. “I can’t even say the name of it, but he did like it was nothing.”

“Guess that’s what time does for you,” he answered as he watched the ocean waves crash onto the rocky beach. “You never forget but every day gets a little easier.”

After a brief pause, she took a deep breath. “Be honest with me, Swift. I know your mom and dad know what happened to us but, um, have you told anybody else, by any chance?”

“Wh–what? Have I–?” Once he recovered from the question, he met her eye to eye. “Blossom. Just Blossom. She somehow found out things and… I’m sorry, Rainbow. I wanted to tell you earlier but I didn’t want to drop something so heavy on you when—”

“It’s okay,” she answered with a flourishing smile. “Really. It’s okay. You know I trust you. So, um, how did that go?”

“What you do mean by that?”

“Well, it’s just that I haven’t said anything to anypony yet. I’m... how can I put this? I know I have my secrets but this is the biggest one I’ve ever kept from my friends. What’s going to happen if I have to tell them one day?”

“Nothing, really.”

“Huh?”

Swift nodded. “Blossom listened, she laughed, she cried and at the end, she hugged me – rather hard I might add – and then, that was it.”

She cast him a befuddled stare.

“Really! It was kinda wicked, actually, getting all that off my plate. I always had that feeling that she knew something was up with me but I couldn’t even convince myself I had a problem. In the end, she needed to know because she’s my friend. She deserved to hear the truth.”

A friend – the word recalled memories of those relating to the other element bearers.

“Sometimes, she thinks I’m a brother, though,” he continued. “Drives me up the wall but… are you listening?”

“Huh?” Rainbow fidgeted in mid-flight, “Sorry. Just trying to sort stuff in my head. Ugh, must have been that tea. Making me overthink, you know?”

“Warned you Chimes might’ve slipped something into it.”

They passed over a small dock before lining up with a cobblestone path lined with classical-style streetlights and shops tailored for the window shopper looking for a deal. The hands of a clock on a tall post read seven o’clock. Swift shielded his eyes from the setting sun and scanned over the various ponies walking beneath. A few familiar Brayside faces waved at him and he greeted them in return.

Eventually, the pair landed in front of an overhead sign reading Brayside Trotwalk. A long and wide pier stretched in front of them but instead of running into their expected party, Light Shower jogged right up to them.

“Aren’t you supposed to be working,” Swift asked with a sideways frown. “You show up at Chimes’ place and now here, too?”

“I’ll be back at the site in a minute,” he answered. “Rarity wanted me to tell you that the group’s running a little late, so you two can go right on ahead. They’ll come and find you.”

Swift’s eyelids dropped halfway. “Uh, huh. Really? And why are they running late, exactly?”

“You’ll have to ask her. She was in such a rush, I didn’t get a chance to ask.” He winked as he took off, “Bon Voyage, you two!”

What’s up with these ponies? Swift reached for his hair, Something tells me Blossom is involved in all of this. When I find her, I’m—

“C’mon, Swift,” Rainbow spoke, pulling him below the sign. “You heard the pony! I’m not waiting around for those slowpokes!”

He grunted confusedly. “Um, don’t you see what’s going on here?”

She stopped pulling him but continued holding his hoof. “What?”

“They’re trying to, um, oh.” He looked in no particular direction, “Well, I–I meant to say, we can wait here a few minutes, Rainbow. Maybe they’re, um, not far behind?”

“Ugh. Well, I suppose, but I’m only giving them—” Her eyes widened at a pony wheeling around a pink box with a shiny bowl on the top. “Cotton candy! I want some of that! C’mon! It’s not that far. Please?”

Swift readied an answer but that gleeful sparkle shimmering all around her reminded him of this contrived situation.

Cool your jets, Swift. I’ve done this before. What did Chimes tell us? Relax. Yeah. Relax. He focused on his breathing. I’m just hanging with Rainbow at the Trotwalk. That’s all it is.

“Cotton candy it is!”

“Yes!” Rainbow reached around for some change. “I, um, darnit. Um—?”

“No worries. This one’s on me.”

“Candy?”

Blitz placed a big jar of jellybeans onto the kitchen counter. “Why not? Everypony loves candy! We just toss it into the mix and just like that, gnarly food!”

Applejack yanked down on her cheeks. “Candy? You can’t just throw stuff willy-nilly into a pie!” She grabbed onto a pie pan and pointed within it. “It’s gotta be just right so that one ingredient doesn’t overpower the other! That’s Cooking 101!”

“That’s Cooking 101! You and your lame-o rules,” he countered before tossing some squishy treats into his mouth. “All this talk about food’s making me even more hungry! Gonna get myself a snack!”

He swung the refrigerator open and reached into the top section covered in hard ice. Once he found a tub of vanilla ice cream, he smacked his lips. Then, he set it aside so he could find himself a scoop in one of the many small drawers.

“I can never find the damn thing,” he complained, opening and slamming shut a drawer stuffed with forks. “Forget this search for scoopy! I know what I can do!”

Blitz placed a pineapple onto the counter and – with one hoof chop – cracked open the top part. After squishing the fruit inside into a liquid, he tipped over some ice cream into his makeshift cup. He was ready for a sip but Applejack yanked it away from his grasp.

“Yo! What’s the deal, Jack?”

Applejack stared into the concoction as she would a fresh batch of apple cider. “Whoa, nelly. I think we just stumbled onto something.”

“What?” He resumed his search for his utensil, “I make that stuff all the time. Nothing rad, really.”

She took a sip. “Hmmm. Hmmmm! You know, this wouldn’t be a bad idea! Yeah, I betcha no family would even think of using something like a pineapple for a cup! We whip up a few good brews, we use the pineapples as a holder and we got drinks down, pat! That way, we can focus on baked goods and whatnot.”

Blitz pulled a scoop from a bottom cabinet. “Sweet. Hey? You want some ice cream? I know where we have some huge cones!”

The cowpony switched between the melting white treat and the pie pan. “You know? I think I do. You did preheat that oven, right?”

“Um, yeah. Blitz yeah! It’s baking time!”

“So sticky!”

Rainbow buried her muzzle into one of two spun candies she held, both blue.

“But so good!”

Swift stood by her, his eyes on the sea where boats ranging from small dinghies to a cruise ship sailed in different directions. His ice cream cone was half of its original shape and a solitary sprinkle floated at the top of a small pool of melting chocolate.
With one swallow, Swift finished his dessert. “Should we keep waiting for them, Rainbow?”

“No,” she mumbled before tossing two barren sticks into the nearest trashcan. “They don’t wait for me this long when I’m late.”

“But it’s only been five minutes.”

She cantered down the dock. “Five minutes of lost fun time but I’m sure we can make that up! Let’s go! Just let them find us!”

“Gotcha.” He took one last look toward the entrance. All right. I’ll play along, for now.

Swift quickly followed her, not wanting to lose her in the sea of bodies. Just as he caught up to her, a black hat floated down right in front of them.

Rainbow reached down for it but grayish red smoke suddenly engulfed them. Once it cleared, the hat was on the top of its apparent owner, a white unicorn stallion with curled jet-black hair. His black cape fluttered before settling down around his body. He reached below it and pulled out a red electric guitar.

“Would this item be yours, Madamorsielle,” the new arrival asked Rainbow in a suave voice.

She plucked one of the strings. “What the… this is mine, but how is it here? It should be back at my place!”

Nearby, a group of ponies gathered by a wooden crate applauded loudly.

“You really shouldn’t be stealing ponies’ stuff for your magic act, Hocus,” Swift lectured. “Blossom warned you about that.”

The magician took a bow. “But as I told that lovely maremoiselle, it was not theft if I returned the item.”

With a wave of a wand, the hat expanded to three times its size. Per Hocus’ instructions, Rainbow tossed the guitar into the open end where it disappeared in a burst of red light.

“Please, as a courtesy for being part of my act, is there anything I could retrieve for either of you?”

Swift sighed. “Well, I’m a little low on bits. There’s a bag of—”

“Hocus Pocus Magnifique!” From within the hat, he pulled out a small lumpy sack and gave it to his participant.

He shook the bag and heard jingling. “Definitely mine.”

Again, the audience cheered their approval.

“I thank you, denizens of Brayside Beach and visitors from afar,” Hocus bellowed. “This is but a small preview of tomorrow’s performance.” After another burst of magic, he populated posters on pier posts and a nearby bulletin board. “I bid you all, adieu!”

The magician leaped into his hat, cape and all. The headwear then shrank until it blinked out of existence.

“What in Equestria?” Swift waved his foreleg across the open air, “Well, that one’s new! It just disappeared!”

That pleased the audience to clap one last time before going their separate ways. Rainbow was among them, only to run back to Swift and pull him further down the dock.

“Don’t try to figure it out,” she said. “Pfft! You know how these unicorns are, trying to wow everypony with their Magic smagic! Buh! His little act’s gonna be nothing compared to our big show!”

“If we can pull it off. Shoot. We’re not even sure exactly what we’re doing yet.”

“I know but we don’t have to worry about that right now. Hey! Let’s go in there!”

Together, they entered a hall where mirrors covered every available space. Small, large, concave, convex and wavy, each shiny surface turned the ponies walking through the attraction into every imaginable form.

Soon enough, Rainbow walked to an upright mirror and stretched her face muscles. “Whoa! Heh, heh!” Look! I’m finally taller than you, Swift!”

When he stood right next to her, his alter image ballooned to seven feet. “Keep drea—”

Rainbow forced his head down. “Taller than you! Ha, ha!”

Flashing a toothy grin, “Yeah, you’re looking kinda big. You gotta lay off those sweets, Rainbow.”

Before she could pop him, he slipped from grasp and whizzed around a bend. One look above and she saw ten of him peeking around a corner. “Ha! You think you can hide from me?”

“Try me,” he shouted back before his reflections disappeared.

The chase was on but he was smart enough to start the game – whether that was his intention – inside a building designed like a maze. The low ceiling prevented Rainbow from getting a better view and any sudden acceleration and she would be pulling out shards from her coat for the rest of the evening. Other ponies continually appeared and disappeared in the many mirrors but what was more distracting was the occasional sunlight trying to render her blind.

After a few minutes, she spotted five of him meandering through a narrow section. Her instincts said one thing but her mind told her something else.

Yeah, I got you. Just you wait.

She focused on a mirror with a mice-size version of him. “You better be ready! The moment I see you, I’m taking you down!” A pause later, “Aha! Gotcha now!”

Rainbow bolted straight ahead, ignoring the internal alarms telling her that she was going far too fast at a target that didn’t exist. When a gray streak appeared to her left, she tapped the brakes and swerved just enough to tackle the real Swift Flying. A few rolls on the floor later, she had him pinned to the ground.

“I told you that you can’t get away from me that easily,” she said, poking him in the nose.

He waited until the three Rainbows he saw merged into one. “That was totally bonkers! You almost crashed into that mirror!”

“Exactly! That’s what I wanted you to think, so that you would come out and rescue me.”

“Eh?”

She laughed at his innocence as she got him back on his hooves, “C’mon. Just admit it. For all your agility, all I had to do is guess what you were going to do. I simply used myself as the bait and you fell right into my trap.”

Once it dawned on him what had happened, he shook his head and chuckled. “Shoot. That was clever, Rainbow. You were real clever.”

Compliments about her physical prowess were a dime a dozen but praise about her intelligence usually came dripped with sarcasm. “Really? I—” Six blushing reflections surrounded her “—that’s, um, thanks. I mean—”

Ding! Past the hall’s exit, a puck struck a bell at the top of a twenty-foot tower. At ground level, a tall stallion lifted a rubber hammer off a piece of metal and over his head. The tower’s lights declared to the world a victor but they also called out to Rainbow, daring her to test her mettle.

“Um, yeah. Yeah, Swift! You didn’t think I had brain muscle, too? Plu-ese! But, hey! Let me show you some real muscles at work!”

“One more adjustment!”

Inside Widget’s workshop, the unicorn flipped up an access panel on the side of the unpainted cannon. Beside her, Pinkie tossed her a screwdriver and then watched Widget twist one of the many screws hidden in between the twisting thin wires within the tight space. After three small turns, Pinkie juddered on the concrete floor like a jackhammer without an operator. Before Widget could ask what was going on, Pinkie started spinning on one hind leg with her tongue wagging freely in the air.

“Pin-kie sense,” the party pony screeched before coming to a screeching halt. “Uh, oh. That means—”

Smoke suddenly rose from the opening.

“Oh, bugger,” Widget yelped over the few beeping smoke alarms that still had power. “The firing sequence has gone off early!”

Pinkie tried pulling her away from the cannon, “We better get out of here! She’s gonna blow any second now!”

“No, Pinkie! I can save this one! Drill! Pliers! Do your magic!”

Said tools levitated right into the smoldering access point. Widget feverously snipped cords and unfastened bolts but the ashy smell soon congested nostrils and induced coughing.

“Bugger! Bugger! Bugger!” Widget exchanged the pliers for a hammer and she struck everything within the panel, causing sparks.

“I don’t think that’s helping, Widge!”

“Oh, no, no, no, no, no!” Widget pressed her forelegs on her head, much like her bulging-eye partner. “I won’t lose another one!” She dug her hoof inside and yanked out wiring. “Not again!”

“Duck!”

Widget looked around the workshop, “Where’s the duck?”

Pinkie tackled Widget up and over a workbench. Moments later, a booming thunder shattered every window in the workshop and sent a chunk of ceiling crashing onto the floor. Widget caught a glimpse of the cannon rocketing into the Brayside sky before a flash of light turned it into a distant shower of glowing debris.

“That wasn’t the boom we were looking for,” Pinkie uttered.

Once the last of the smoke alarms fizzled out, Widget got up and made a silent march toward a descending staircase at the corner of one of the walls.

“Widget!” Pinkie wriggled her tail that was pinned by the overturned table. “Wait!”

Pinkie chased her down the steps into a room a size more suitable for a walk-in closet than a bedroom. By one corner was a rolling toolbox alongside a dresser drawer with a crack running across the mirror. On the other side, Widget rested face up on a cot, barely acknowledging her visitor before staring at the wooden paneling.

“I’m sorry that one didn’t work,” said Pinkie, taking a seat on the squishy bed. “At least the boom looked pretty!”

Widget pouted her lips. “Oy. I screwed up again, Pinkie. Why can’t I do anything right?”

Pinkie gasped dramatically. “You shouldn’t say that, silly! You fixed Rarity’s watch and you were the one that built my tried and true party cannon. Besides, we’ll have the regular fireworks ready in time for the festival. This is just a little fun side project. It won’t be a total disaster if it doesn’t work by Saturday.”

“I know but I want everypony to see that I’m not always a screw-up.” She pointed at various blueprints sprawled on the walls, “You see those, Pinkie? Them gadgets are the ones I really really want to work, the gadgets that would put Widget Fixit on the map as a pony that could fix and build anything. You know how many of those ideas have gotten off the ground?” She realized the fireworks cannon blueprint was among the designs. “Well, intentionally, anyways.”

“I know how you feel. Everypony thinks planning for parties is easy but it took me years to be great. I can’t tell you how often I used to buy the wrong gifts, forget somepony’s favorite cake flavor or went with the wrong theme. It’s easy to be down in the dumps when things don’t go your way but what made me feel better is to keep on trying!”

She pulled open a puzzle board and tossed the contents onto the cot.

“You just put the small pieces together like so and no matter how hard it may seem, if you just keep at it long enough, Voila!”

Pinkie now had an assembled portrait of the party cannon.

“What a great feeling that is! Widge-Widge, I may have built a lot of things but you’re the best put-together-stuff pony I know! You shouldn’t give up!”

Widget rose from her cot. “Give up? Oh, you silly bugger! I just needed a wee of a break. That’s why I come down here. Whatever frustrations I have, I let them all out here so it doesn’t get in the way when I finally get back to work. Besides, if I did everything right the first time, that wouldn’t be exciting at all!”

“Really? Oh, never mind, then!”

She then hugged Pinkie hard. “But you’re a good mate to have around, Pink-Pink.”

“Anytime!” Pinkie suddenly had the shakes.

“W–what’s that supposed t–to mean?”

“Off the bed! Now!”

Together, they rolled onto the floor. Two seconds later, a cannon wheel crashed right into the cot, splitting it in half.

Widget crawled up to the glowing wheel and gave it a prod. “Oy! It needs some mending but I can still use this!” She craned her neck and scanned the blue expanse past her new makeshift skylight. “But where did the other one go?”

“Can I stop now, Rainbow?”

“Again, Swift. You can’t quit on me yet!”

Swift gasped for air as he tried lifting a long hammer off the pier dock. He managed to hold it horizontal but soon after, the heavy end landed on the edge of the metal lever. Consequently, the puck hopped four inches off the ground and the game mocked him with the sound of a sad trombone.

“That was painful to watch,” Rainbow nagged, landing in front of him. “I was able to strike the bell on my third try and you can’t even make it halfway, at best.”

“That’s because you used your wings on the way down that time,” he said in an asthmatic voice. “You saw that, didn’t you, High Striker?”

The games attendant — a portly stallion with an abundance of facial hair — shook his head. “Pretty low to accuse the lovely lady of cheating.” He grunted. “I didn’t see nothing.”

You were practically eyeballing her the whole time!

Rainbow flashed a devious grin. “Poor, poor, Swift. As always, you keep making up excuses for being so weak. Now, try again.” She stood by the anvil and pointed, “Right here this time. The least you can do is hit this right.”

His hooves buckled at the mere thought of picking up what was a heavy anvil over his head. Before he could voice his objection, though, a shadow expanded on where she stood.

“Rainbow! Get back!”

“Huh?”

Swift pushed Rainbow out of the way of a round object crashing straight through the dock. The tower slid right into the new hole and rang its bell one final time before splashing into the sparkling blue abyss.

High Striker looked over the edge. “Swift!” He scowled at the slender stallion sprawled on the dock alongside Rainbow. “What has that friend of yours done this time?”

“H–hold on,” he stammered, crawling back from the attendant’s long shadow. “Widget’s not even here! Why do you think—?”

High Striker directed his attention at the trail of smoke originating from some faraway hills. “Hmm, I wonder who lives over there!”

“Oh. Heh, heh. Um, I’ll see if she’ll build you a new one?”

“Better and taller! Oh, and for the love of Celestia, at least have the courtesy of helping your lady friend up, huh?”

Rainbow waved him off, “Like I need his help. Pffft, I even saw… whatever that was coming! I could’ve just avoided it myself.”

Swift turned his head. “Then why didn’t you—”

“I wanted you to feel useful. Otherwise, I’d be dinging up your pride by not letting you do your thing.”

He smirked as he offered a foreleg, “I think it’s your pride you’re trying to save here.”

She grabbed onto him and rolled him beneath her. “So says the pony with the flabby hooves. Just admit no matter how hard you work out, I’ll always be stronger than you.”

“Only if you admit you didn’t really see that thing coming.”

With a giggle, Rainbow yanked him back upright. “As if!”

The games attendant interrupted the pair with a hearty laugh of his own. “Well, I’ll tell you this much, Swift. You picked up a nice lady friend. Real nice. Never thought I’d see the day. Tell you what. Don’t you worry about this deal here. You go on and have a nice evening, huh?”

Swift watched the portly stallion leave, whistling a tune. “Um, oh-kay. What was that supposed to mean?”

“Duh,” Rainbow replied, prodding his side. “He meant that you have such an awesome, strong friend. So, how about we, um… Oh!” Her wings flared at a blue building with flashing lights and booming electronic voices coming from the entrance. “Ah, yeah! I see a totally sweet arcade! You got enough bits, right?”

Before he could count what was in his little bag, Rainbow pushed him into the arcade parlor.

Please, make it stop.

Head down on the dining table, Blossom folded in her ears but couldn’t block out Twilight’s droning voice. After only five minutes of meandering jibber jabber, she had the temptation to grab one of the decorative surfboards nearby and convince the unicorn to reach her conclusion. Nopony around her had the gumption to do so, it seemed. Spike had enough trouble keeping his eyes off the food from other tables, Fluttershy nibbled on a kabob stick long devoid of anything edible and Rarity had excused herself to the little mare’s room right after Twilight’s arrival.

“Now, as for what I actually learned about the seagulls—” Twilight began.

Finally!

“I’m afraid there’s not much more I can add in terms of facts.”

“What?” the redhead grumbled through clenched teeth.

“I have some working theories that we can go over while we wait for our main dishes.”

Blossom stood erect, her copper red face becoming richer in color. With so many familiar eyes beginning to shift her way, however, she had a reason to keep her lid on tight.

“Something wrong, Blossom,” Twilight inquired in a huff.

“Excuse me, but I also need to use the little mares room! Pardon me!”

She stormed past all the tables – with one waiter jumping out of her way — and out of the shade of the restaurant’s canopy.

Emerging in a back dirt alley, she ignored the two outhouses and continued walking down the path with tall wooden fencing crawling with vegetation running on both sides.

“That lousy good-for-nothing Twilight!” She crushed an empty soda can beneath her hoof. “She is driving me insane! How does anypony put up with her… hold on a minute.” She stopped a few feet short of an intersection with another slip road. “I know those voices. Light Shower? Rarity?”

Blossom leaned against the fence and peeked around the corner.

“You could say acting is one of many talents that I have,” said Light Shower, tossing his long mane to one side. “I’ve had quite a few lead roles back when I was a colt. You should’ve seen me as Romeo, Rarity. After that five star performance, everypony lined up past the door for my autograph and said I should go into professional theater.”

Rarity tittered. “Oh, my, yes. You certainly do have the panache for such a career, and from the looks of it, your performance was spot on. Our little ruse we pulled on Rainbow and Swift worked like an absolute charm.”

“What ruse,” Blossom asked, walking towards them. “What’s going on here?”

“Nothing at all,” Light Shower answered, clinging to innocence. “We were just having a pleasant conversation,” He caught Blossom’s deepening stare, “well away from the restaurant, in a back alley, i–in private?”

“Is that so?” She then softened her tone. “You’re not lying to me, are you? You know how it makes me feel when you lie.”

The stallion found himself face to face against something far worse than fire and brimstone. Those curved eyelashes, the way Blossom rubbed one foreleg with the other and how she pursed her lips proved more than his seizing heart could bear. He whined softly before Light Shower spilled everything to her in one fell swoop.

“That’s a good stallion,” said Blossom, stroking his cheek. Just as a dopey smile appeared on his face, she jerked down on his blonde forelock. “Next time, I’ll be keeping all of this! Understand?”

The second she let go, Light Shower took off at maximum speed, crying about losing a few precious strands of hair.

“Please don’t be hard on him, Blossom,” Rarity pleaded. “He was only following my specific instructions. I couldn’t risk—”

“Never mind that.” Blossom allowed the wind to carry away some yellow hair. “I just needed to keep him in line. As for you, Rarity, setting up Rainbow and Swift to have some alone time at the Trotwalk? You should’ve told me about this from the start. ”

“I do truly apologize. I—”

“Do you know how much spying time we missed already?”

“—didn’t think that you would, approve, such a—”

Rarity trailed off, noticing that look of mischief blossoming in front of her eyes. “Spying, time?”

In unison, they pranced and squealed as though a stud celebrity acknowledged their existence from everypony else in an audience.

“This way, Rarity!” Blossom galloped down the dirt path. “Hurry!”

“But dearie,” replied Rarity, quickly lining up nose to nose with her. “What about everyone back at the restaurant? Surely, they’ll notice that we’re missing.”

“So? I told them I was going to the little mares room too. They won’t notice if we take a little detour on the way back.”

Soon, they reached a narrow cobblestone road congested with wagon traffic. The two mares swerved around the slow-moving obstacles and continued down an alleyway slicing through two shops. Up ahead was the walkway running by the shoreline, the streetlights lining the path flickering alive in anticipation for the approaching evening.

“Left, Rarity! It’s just around the—”

Two other ponies torpedoed right into the running pair, sending them crashing through a flower stand.

Through the scattered petals, Blossom spotted the two clumsy accomplices already on all fours, smiling sheepishly. “Widget? Pinkie?” She spat out a piece of flower. “What’s going on here? I thought you two would be working back at the shop.”

“We were,” replied Widget as Pinkie aided the two fallen mares off the broken stand. “Just had a wee problem with the cannon and lost one of its wheels. I know for sure it landed somewhere around the Trotwalk.”

“Can’t you just buy or make another one, Widget,” Rarity asked.

“I could but a good repair pony doesn’t waste parts if they can re-use them. So, what brings you to these parts?”

Blossom flinched. “What are we doing here? Um, Rarity and I were, you see, a funny thing—” She facehoofed. “Never mind. I’ll just spill it.”

Once the redhead explained the situation, she added, “If you two want to look for your missing wheel, that’s fine, but we’re all going to stick together in the meantime. I don’t want Swift or Rainbow to know we’re here. Understand?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Pinkie and Widget answered.

Now a group of four, the surfer mare led the contingent the rest of the way to the Trotwalk sign. From there, she scrutinized every single pony around the area: energized colts running to the next attraction with wheezing parents giving chase, an elderly couple leaning on the railing watching the sun dip deeper into the vast ocean and two pegasi near a balloon stand leaning in for a kiss.

Rarity shrilled like a hot teapot. “Yes, yes, yes, yes—”

Blossom held the unicorn’s muzzle shut. “Hold your horses. Take a closer look, Rarity.”

The unicorn took note of the ponies’ colors, a dark grey stallion and aquamarine mare. “This is just wrong!” She pulled on her hair “Is somepony out there trying to tease us on purpose?”

“They must be tourists because I don’t recognize those two at all, Rarity. Let’s go forward, slowly!”

As commanded, they snaked their way around the flock of visitors traversing the pier. They paused every few seconds to scan ahead under the cover of a convenient obstacle, whether it was the side of a building, a merchant stand or one of the many benches lining both edges of the boardwalk. Despite four sets of eyes and ears, they failed to find their targets but did stumble upon an opening on the pier blocked off by cones and yellow tape.

Widget poked her head into the hole. “Oh, bugger! The wheel’s all the way at the bottom. It’s in one piece but I’ll have to fish it out of there somehow.”

When she looked back up, the others motioned for her to lean against a wall painted blue.

She quickly took a position besides Rarity. “Oy! What—”

Blossom shushed her. “We have a visual.”

Peeking around the edge, Blossom honed in on two pegasi standing just outside the entrance to the video game arcade. Their lips moved but the ambient noise from passersby relegated her to decipher their moods from their carefree smiles and occasional laughter. Then, Swift made the slightest of movements.

Blossom whipped her head back behind the wall. Don’t tell me he saw us already! No, I think we’re okay.

A few feet away, Swift glanced at the corner of the building. He eye rolled before turning his focus back to Rainbow.

“With a little more practice, we can hit a million points,” she exclaimed. “Still, it’s pretty sweet to have our names on the top of the board, huh?”

Swift snorted a chuckle. “Uh, huh. R-D-S. I handled more of the hard stuff, you know.”

Rainbow raspberried. “Whatever. You were good but I thought you would be a lot better avoiding those magic zaps! Agility is your talent, isn’t it?”

“Physical agility,” he corrected. “I can’t exactly transfer that to a joystick, especially when I’m working in a tight space.”

“Not my fault the game was in a corner.” She looked in multiple directions, “So, you don’t see any of the others around, do you?”

“Well” — He resisted checking to his left — “I, um, I don’t think so but—”

“Okay! How about we go on the Ferris Wheel next?”

His ears perked in surprise. “The Ferris Wheel?” He did a double take between the wheel and Rainbow. “Really? Isn’t that more of an earth pony thing?”

“I know that,” she answered, swaying a foreleg across the wooden planks. “But I’ve never been on one before. Fluttershy rode it one time and she wouldn’t stop talking about how great it was. Might as well try it, that’s all.”

Swift gazed at the massive wheel ferrying its passengers on open-air gondolas with just enough room for two. The shimmer from the departing sun gave way to the glow emanating from blinking lights running up and down the rims. “I hear you,” he said, smiling broadly. “Let’s get in line.”

As the two pegasi trotted further down the boardwalk, Blossom took another gander. She held her group at bay, waiting for the right opportunity to advance. Eventually, she watched Rainbow and Swift take their place at the back of a queue.

“What’s going on,” Rarity snipped. “I want to see!”

Blossom traced the line of ponies, “They are—” She yelped “—Ferris Wheel! They’re going on, hey!”

Rarity forcefully stuck her head above Blossom. “I can’t believe this is actually happening! They’re, not kissing.” Her brow lowered, “Or holding hooves or gazing into each other’s eyes or doing anything remotely romantic! What kind of a date is this?”

“A playdate?” said Pinkie, shoving in between Blossom and Rarity.

“Pinkie, that—” Rarity sighed “–sounds about right, unfortunately.”

Blossom stifled a giggle. “Then we’ll have to fix that for them. I’ve got an idea. Follow me.”

She led them behind the arcade building, a narrow passage less travelled due to unsightly discarded equipment and dumpsters. When they reached the other side, pedestrian barriers prevented them from going anywhere other than back to the main path where everypony in the queue could see them. Several feet away, the operator — a white unicorn stallion with a curly moustache — operated a lever attached to a wooden box.

“Widget,” Blossom began, “you’ve worked on the Ferris Wheel once before. How about we have an, unfortunate, breakdown. You know, right as Rainbow and Swift reaches the top?”

“Blimey,” she answered in a hushed tone. “You’re asking me to cause a malfunction on purpose? That must be a first.”

Blossom sighed. “Yes, yes. Now, can you do it without anypony seeing you?”

“First, I’ll need some—”

Pinkie conjured a screwdriver, a wrench and a hammer. “I got it from the arcade.”

Widget enveloped the tools under her yellow aura. “Thanks, Pink! Now, the operator box has an access panel that’s just within my magic range. It’ll be a toughie but I think I can do it.”

“On my word, Widget,” Blossom ordered softly. She peeked toward the queue, “They’re just about, ah!”

Swift had looked in her direction just as the tip of her red hair disappeared from view. He scrunched his face but before he could investigate, Rainbow tugged on his coat.

“Our turn! C’mon!”

They walked up a raised platform and waited until the attendant gave them the okay. Once inside the gondola, they sat on the bench, causing the whole thing to sway in place.

“Whoa-kay now,” Rainbow chirped. “That was unexpected.”

“You can fly out of here if you want,” he said in between chuckles. “Nothing’s stopping you.”

Rainbow jiggled from her seat, making the entire gondola move even more. “Nothing’s stopping you either. Heh, heh.”

Once the gondola began its journey upwards, the town of Brayside welcomed them, the artificial lights from the buildings blinking into existence one by one. Natural dots peppered the skies where a battle raged between a swirling passion orange and the color of cool nurturing night. At first, Rainbow wondered if there was any point of this ride only for the mechanical squeaks from the Ferris Wheel and the gentle swaying of the gondola to lull her into a calming trance. It had a certain rustic charm that sitting on a cloud couldn’t provide and she could enjoy the vista without exerting her wings or worrying about airborne traffic.

“This isn’t half-bad,” she spoke in a delicate voice.

Swift cast a glance. “Yeah. Kinda relaxing.”

“I can see why you would ride this if you weren’t a pegasus. I mean, we’re pretty lucky to have wings, to get a view like this any place any time. To think we almost lost them.”

“But we didn’t, Rainbow.”

Her eyes darted to the rolling hills left of the town center. “Yeah, I know. I just think going through that whole deal made me appreciate things a little more. Like this view, or every time I fly, or, um, well, you.”

He forced his wings in check. “What makes you say that?”

Rainbow sighed wistfully, as earlier thoughts resurfaced and resumed their incessant meddling. “You know, Swift? I think it’s time.”

Red lights illuminated the gondola. “T–time for what?”

“My friends, they need to know about us.”

“Eh?”

She faced him directly. “Swift, I can’t lie to my friends anymore. Like with between you and Blossom, they deserve to know everything. Otherwise, it’s not fair to them and it’s especially not fair to you.”

“Me?”

As the surrounding lights turned green, “The deal with you and the tornado, I know how much that hurt you, that for all your sacrifice, you didn’t get the credit you deserved. Now, don’t lie to me. I was there that night when you told me everything.”

The events from that day came back to him. The rain, the tears and the hug that pulled him out of his tailspin, he could never forget. “You’re right. I don’t regret what I did but even now, that one stings a little.”

“That’s why I have to do this, so that you finally get some recognition, even if it’s only a little. My friends would be a perfect place to start because right now, they’re in the dark. They don’t see you as I do. Once they know the truth, maybe they’ll, um—” She touched his foreleg “—they’ll understand how much you mean to me.”

Red lights again but their brightness were no rival for the glow from his cheeks. He waited for the inevitable addition of ‘as a friend’ but it never came. She stood there, resolute with her conviction while he fumbled through his playbook, searching for the right answer. You mean a lot to me came up empty; not even his parents had ever uttered such a phrase about him.

“So you’re okay with it, Swift? Would it be all right if tell my friends everything?”

“Okay with, oh.” The gondola turned again a shade of green. “Gotcha! Yeah, I mean, you go right ahead and—”

Rainbow pulled him into a quick hug. “Thanks, Swift.”

A tingling sensation ran through his whole body. “No worries, Rainbow. Do, um, do what you need, to—eh?”

Swift rose slightly from his seat and zoomed in at one corner of the arcade building. However, the gondola moved to where he could no longer see the area.

Just let it go, Swift. He sat back down. They’re not doing anything.

Meanwhile, at the bottom of the Ferris Wheel, the tip of a screwdriver dug into a slit on an access panel. After a few forceful wriggles, a section of wood flipped downwards on its hinges, exposing the belts and gears driving the boardwalk attraction. Before a levitating wrench could touch a bolt, the enveloping aura began to flicker and the tool dropped precariously close to the dock.

Watching from afar, Blossom clutched her chest. “Widget,” she hissed. “Be careful!”

“I’m trying,” Widget motioned at Rarity, “Can you help me with a boost, mate?”

Rarity aimed her horn at the tools but after a few flickers of light, she gasped for air. “Sorry, dear. It’s just too far for me.”

“No problem. I’ve got it—” The wrench enveloped a bolt while the screwdriver drifted toward a switch. “Ready when you are, Blossom.”

The redhead tracked one of the gondolas nearing the top. “Steady, steady. Now!”

At that moment, Widget’s magic faltered. “Oh, bugger.”

“Widget? What did you—?”

Suddenly, every gondola jolted hard, eliciting surprised gasps from its passengers. The clanking from the machinery driving it grew louder and faster.

“What’s going on,” Rainbow asked, leaning forward onto the gondola’s bar. “Why is it speeding up?”

“Beats me,” Swift answered. “Should we bail?”

“Nah. I wonder if it goes any, whoaaaa!”

The ride kicked it up another gear, sending her falling right on top of her stallion companion. Instinctively, he reached out and cradled her like a pillow. As the other passengers screamed in panic, she did the exact opposite.

Soon enough, he caught her laughing contagion. “Oh, shoot! Ha, ha!”

“Woo hoo,” she cried in jubilation. “Yeah! Faster! Faster! Go faster!”

At ground level, the operator feverishly yanked his level and pushed some buttons, unaware of Widget’s tools floundering to stay aloft at the other side of the operator’s box.

“Oy! They must’ve changed how this doohickey works since I last touched it,” the brown unicorn complained.

“Can we go on the Ferris Wheel next,” asked an excited Pinkie. “That looks like fun!”

Blossom covered both ears. “It doesn’t sound like it! Widget! Do something!”

Widget fought to make another minor adjustment within the access panel. Moments later, a gear popped loose and all the lights on the Ferris Wheel cut out. However, the attraction soon provided its own illumination – sparks coming from the center spoke.

“Where’s the reverse on this thing?” Widget squinted at the access panel. “Somepony’s definitely been meddling with this doohickey. Who in their right mind would put the—?”

“Just break the whole damn thing already,” Blossom shrieked.

“That I can do!”

Hammer time. Widget jammed the small mallet right into the belts. Smoke poured out of the machinery and after a few sputters, the whole system clanged and shuddered to a stop. The wheel itself scrubbed off its speed and after a few seconds, the attraction slowed enough to give its riders time to groan or otherwise relive their lunch. Widget grinned at a job well done but by doing so, lost her hold on the remaining tools.

They landed on the dock, alerting the shaken operator to the opened access panel. “Hey! What’s this? Who’s been? Hey, what are you four doing over—” The stallion gasped. “Wid-get!” He galloped right at them, “I told you to stay away from my Ferris Wheel!”

“Everypony run,” exclaimed Blossom.

They backtracked through the path behind the arcade building but their moustached pursuer drew closer with every step. The sea of ponies around the entrance gave the four no clear path for escape, so when they approached the hole in the dock, Blossom led them towards it.

“Grab onto me, everypony! We’re going to jump!”

“Absolutely not,” Rarity protested. “I will not go into the water without proper—ahhhh!”

Blossom yanked the whiner right onto her back. Once the others held a part of her body, the redhead leaped into the opening and unfurled her wings. She flapped with every ounce of strength, reducing their descent just enough that the splashdown was a bearable jab in the stomach rather than a knockout punch.

Now underwater, Blossom held her breath in case one of her friends required a rescue. When the other three surfaced without incident, she joined them.

“Ugh! Is everypony… uh, oh!”

Above, the operator had steam coming out of his ears. To her relief, he chose to spew a few choice words and leave rather than take the plunge.

“Well, that didn’t go so well,” Blossom grumbled, removing seaweed out of her hair.

Pinkie giggled. “What do you mean? This is great! Now we can get our cannon wheel!”

At the same time, a few pegasi boardwalk patrons flew into each gondola and began extracting the woozy passengers.

Rainbow and Swift didn’t need their help, however. They had remained embraced with each other on the gondola floor during the whole ordeal. With the hairy part of the ride over, she finally shifted so that she could see him eye to eye.

“Swift, that was a totally wild ride,” she chortled. “If I knew Ferris Wheels were like that, I would’ve gone on one sooner! Why didn’t Fluttershy tell me about this part?”

“I’m not sure that’s how one’s supposed to work,” he responded in kind. “But whatever!”

“Right. Right. Whatever.” Then, she had nothing more to laugh about, just a set of glowing blue orbs to admire from up close. “So, you just had to try and save me again, huh?”

It dawned on him where he was touching her. “Oh. Um—”

“I wasn’t really complaining. Actually, it’s kinda—”

Then, the gondola jerked to a complete stop. A unicorn with a curly mustache stuck his head inside.

“Guess I don’t need to ask you two kids if you’re all right,” he bellyached. “Ride’s over! Don’t make me grab a hose!”

Rainbow and Swift obliged, hovering off the gondola and past some arriving first aid ponies tending to a triage of dizzy patients. The few that hadn’t passed out leaned their heads into buckets.

“Wimps,” she chided. “Can’t even handle an easy ride like that one.”

Something tells me somepony was meddling with the ride. He glanced back at the corner of the arcade building. Eh? Where did—

Rainbow pulled him into a brisk canter. “Swift! Swift! Oh my gosh! Over here! You gotta see this!”

He ran beside past a food stand and into a zone where merchants had set up games that didn’t involve a joystick and a screen: apple bobbing, ring toss, pop the weasel, balloon popping and many others with playful names. All of them offered prizes — most of them chintzy and small — but a few had fuzzy animals worthy of hugging or musical instruments such as a complete drum set. Loudspeakers played its siren song that entranced passersby into forfeiting their bits for a few minutes of entertainment and going up against odds favoring the house.

Rainbow stopped right below a line of hanging stuffed beanies offered by a bubblegum chewing mare operating the Spilled Milk stand.

“Name’s Gum Burst,” the earth pony owner spoke in a valley mare dialect. She made a half-hearted gesture at a set of milk bottles placed in a pyramid, “Just pop them all off the table and you get whatever prize you want.” She paused to blow and subsequently pop a bubble. “Don’t step over the line. No magic. No wings. Easy as that,” she finished with a face of somepony that had said her lines a million times.

“Swift!” She guided him toward a prize at the end of the row. “Do you know what that is?”

Tousling his forelock, “Um, hold up. You told me about this, I think. It’s that line of Wonderbolt beanies but I thought you already had all of them.”

“Every single one except Soarin!” She pranced, “I can’t believe I found Soarin! I can never find him anywhere!”

“Rainbow, you can go to any store and buy one. Shoot, Soarin’s my second, third whatever cousin. I’m sure he could score—”

She jabbed him in the chest, “No, Swift! You’re missing the point! Anypony can just buy the whole set but I’d rather win them all! When they came out last summer, I promised myself I would and I was so close to getting them all when they had that festival for Hearts Warming Eve. I haven’t seen a Soarin beanie ever since but look, Swift! He’s right there ready for the taking! Today’s my day! I totally can’t believe it!”

Gum Burst rolled her eyes and for a moment, Swift was tempted to do the same. Yet her impassioned speech overrode the silliness of her goal.

Without hesitation, he flipped a bit right to the frazzled fair worker. “Totally your day, Rainbow. Go get Soarin.”

Five plates of steaming hot food but only two hungry patrons made Twilight one grumpy pony. She tapped her hoof on the table, eyes darting all over the restaurant. Spotting a familiar face only curled the corners of her mouth further downwards.

“Fluttershy,” she nagged to the arrival, “they’re not in the little mares room, are they?”

“No, but I did find pretty pictures of animals inside the outhouse.” Slinking under Twilight’s glare, “You really should, see it.”

“Uggggh! I bet Blossom’s doing this on purpose just to annoy me! Spike? Are you in on this?”

He flinched. “What? Why would you say that?”

“I see how you are with her. You’ve certainly been helping her quite a lot ever since you’ve gotten here.”

Spike groaned. “Calm down, Twilight. I’ll always be your number one assistant. Now, can we please eat? I’m so hungry!”

He reached for a fork but Twilight slapped away his hand. “We’re not eating our main courses until everypony’s here. That would be rude.”

“Speak for yourself,” the tiny dragon mumbled, crossing his arms.

“What did you say?”

“I, um,” He pointed behind Twilight, “Hey! Blitz and Applejack are here!”

She huffed. “Don’t you make up stuff! They’re back at the farm—”

Two smoldering ponies took a seat beside her.

“—cooking. Huh? What’s going on here? I thought you wouldn’t be coming.”

Both bombarded their dinner guests with a long string of words while pointing repeatedly at each other. Fluttershy excused herself to the little mare’s room while Spike swiped some food off the plate and placated his gurgling stomach.

“Enough,” Twilight barked, banging the table. “One at a time!”

Applejack brushed burn marks off her Stetson, “This… yellow… this pony doesn’t know how to set an oven! I told him three fifty and he all but burned down the whole kitchen!”

“But I did set it to three-fifty,” the stallion answered, rubbing smoky grime off his face. “Three-fifty ‘C.’”

The cowpony gasped. “You’re a few apples short of a bushel! I meant three-fifty fahrenheit! ‘F!’ You know, like the grade you got the most back in school?”

“Heyyy! There was no ‘F’ on the dial! Don’t be tripping on me! Oh, and just so you know, I got A’s too! A for athlete, best athlete in gym class! Oh, and speaking of gym, that yogurt you made tasted like biting into a sweaty towel! Told ya it needed more sugar!”

Twilight slammed her face on the table and held her ears shut. I can still hear them arguing!

“Try again, girl.”

While Gum Burst tossed another stick of gum into her mouth, her customer heaved a softball at milk bottles. Down came the top one but the two at the bottom moved nary an inch. Rainbow groaned aloud before Swift flipped another bit onto the counter. Once the merchant reset the bottles and returned the sack to Rainbow, her thoughts delivered a fading stream of encouragement.

I can totally do this!

Beanbag missed left.

One more try!

She sailed it over her target and struck a passerby.

Swift’s got plenty of bits, I think.

Rainbow grazed one bottle.

This time, maybe?

The sack landed right in front of the bottles.

Maybe I should… darnit.

Rainbow lost grip of her softball and it plopped onto the dock.

“Too bad,” Gum Burst answered in a nonchalant voice.

“Hey!” Swift leaned over the counter, “That one didn’t even go over the line!”

She blew and popped a bubble close to his face; he didn’t need a translation on her answer.

Yeah, yeah. This is why I don’t come here and play your — Swift stopped mid-thought, realizing Rainbow had turned around and began slinking away like a wounded animal.

“What are you doing,” he said, blocking her path. “You haven’t won yet!”

Head down, she held a blink. “It’s all right. I don’t want to waste all your money. Maybe next time.”

She tried stepping around him but he copied her move. “Oh, no. I’m not letting you quit and ding your pegasus pride like that! You’re gonna get that beanie!”

A small smile appeared but it didn’t last. “But my aim’s way off. I’ll spend all your bits before I even get close.”

Swift frowned. He knew she was right. He’d observed every throw and noted her foreleg was a loose cannon that may knock out everypony in the vicinity before all the bottles. “I got an idea. I think I know exactly where you need to hit it. What if I helped you aim before you throw? Would winning that way count?”

“Well, an assist is okay but I don’t think bubble mare over there’s gonna let us do that.”

“Let me take care of that.”

He walked right up to the counter and offered his plan.

“Like I’ll let that slide,” she rebutted as she worked on another bubble. “She’s gotta do it solo.”

“You sure about that?” One eyebrow cocked, Swift slammed his bag of bits right into the stand. A few patrons playing the surrounding games cast curious glances. “One shot, all or nothing. Of course, we could just stand here boring you into the night giving you these one by one. Your call.”

This time, she let her balloon slowly deflate. “Are you, like, serious? Hey, you wanna be crazy like that,” She tossed him a sack, “I won’t stop ya.”

“Swift,” Rainbow hissed. “C’mon. You don’t have to do this for me.”

“I do because it is you. He placed the beanbag onto her hoof before holding it along with her. “I’ve got your back. You’ve got mine. You know how that works.”

“But—”

“No buts,” he countered, flashing a smile. “Just let me guide you.”

Rainbow watched intently as he gently moved her hoof and pored over details. In short order, his tender touch conveyed everything she needed to know. Where to throw, how hard, what angle; she figured it all out in a matter of seconds. His confidence mixed in with hers and together, they stood tall in front of the imposing pyramid of milk bottles and a vendor more interested in which flavor to chew on next.

“You got it?” he spoke in a whisper.

She peeked at what was at stake. She could only guess how many days or even weeks of cloud busting it would take to pay him back in case she missed. Yet one squeeze from him was all it took to remove any doubt about failure. This time, she was going to win. No, they were going to win.

There was no countdown or any other indication to throw. They simply leaned back and after holding in her breath, Rainbow unleashed her softball at her target.

Clink! The beanbag struck in between the two bottom milk bottles, pushing them aside. Gravity ensured the top one toppled right off the table, taking one flask along with it. The last container wobbled side-to-side, teasing participants, the vendor and nearby onlookers until at last, it decided what to do.

“Yessssssss!”

Rainbow shrieked at the top of her lungs and Swift pumped a foreleg. Then, she attacked him with a spinning hug that took him airborne. Despite the stress on his chest, he returned the favor the best he could. Then, Rainbow twirled him into a spontaneous dance with wing slaps, a jig and bumping of hindquarters, much to the delight of the small audience around them. Even Gum Burst relented with a slow clap, catching them by surprise.

“Girl, you are, like, so lucky. I’m like, so totally jealous.” She tossed Rainbow the beanie and the bag of bits to Swift. She then pulled out her favorite gum flavor – watermelon — and cracked a smile as she savored the flavor, “I’m telling ya, he’s a total keeper.”

“Thanks,” Rainbow answered merrily. “There’s no way I’ll ever give away my Soarin beanie!”

The two walked away from the counter, blissfully unaware of Gum Burst’s chuckle. The win had blocked out their senses to everything except each other’s shouts of jubilation and glee.

When they approached the end of the pier, Rainbow finally stopped so she could squeeze her new toy.

“Oh my gosh!” She let out a long squeal. “I can’t believe we did it!” Spotting a wooden beach, she sprawled over it. “Whew! Ever since we got here, it’s been nothing but fun!”

Swift sat next to her. “Wicked to hear that.” He paused to look behind him, “Now I wonder where everypony else are right now.”

Rainbow shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. I’m glad they’re not here.”

“Eh?”

“It meant I got to spend all time here with you. I, um, I’ll have to admit I wasn’t sure how coming over to Brayside would work out but now I wish I would’ve come here earlier. You’re an awesome, um—” She clutched tighter the Wonderbolt beanie “—you’re awesome, Swift.”

He stared off into the sparkling blue ocean, “Oh, thanks. Y–you, eh?”

Rainbow stretched out her forelegs, nearly striking his face.

“Um, what are you doing?”

Her mouth opened wide for a prolonged yawn. “Nap time. Just a few minutes, ok?”

His ears folded inward. “You’re not gonna snore like last time, will ya?”

Rainbow mumbled something before slipping into unconsciousness exactly where she sat. No surprise – he doubted anypony else in the world could match her speed going from wake to sleep.

What he feared, though, was the noise that was to come. Despite the ocean waves crashing into the pillars holding up the dock, music coming from a nearby unicorn playing a portable piano for spare change and distant conversations from ponies watching the sunset, everypony in Brayside Beach would soon hear her unnaturally loud whinnies. He covered his ears in preparation.

Instead, her slumber produced nothing more than the occasional piggish snort.

Swift patted sweat off his forehead. Whew! I thought she would—

The sound-asleep mare shifted her head right onto his shoulder.

Shoot! Not again! This is just like last time!

Her body pressed further into his, keeping his left wing contracted unlike the one on the right. With the smallest head turn, he had nothing but Rainbow’s face in his sights, a lean away from touching noses. Heat built up all over him so fast, he feared he’d set fire to the bench.

“Rainbow?” he said in the quietest but shakiest voice possible. “Y–you, you’re on—”

Their cheeks touched for a moment, triggering the impulse to pull away or make a sound — a snort, cough or sneeze — anything to wake her. This was wrong, contrary to the norm, a moment that he must end.

Except he didn’t. He refused.

This is where Swift wanted to be, where he could relish every whiff of her orange scented hair. Despite a tinge of shame, he helped himself to a gander at her gracious curves, starting from the bottom up to her face. While she denied him a view of her eyes, the lashes alone were enough to remind him of the beauty that hid behind her lids. That upward curve of her lips had none of its usual brashness or aggression, but rather a serene affectionate quality that he’d never seen before in his life. At that moment, the sun delivered its final performance for the day with a prism of colors but to him, it was a lifeless light compared to the splendor that rested by his side.

In a blink, the entire world around Rainbow faded into nothingness. Memories involving her floated all around him, from their first encounter in the spring and through the months until they sat on this bench in the midst of a summer sunset. From the deepest depths of his soul, a light shattered the surrounding darkness along with his recollections. All this time, he had held it back – a part of who he was — but in this one moment, it had broken free of its restraints and was free to fly. When he took note of the sleeping mare once more, this new light cleansed his thoughts to its purest form, driven by emotions coming straight from the heart.

She looks cute when she sleeps.

All at once, Brayside Beach and all its hustle and bustle returned.

I–I, no! I didn’t! What should’ve been a brief look became a blushing stare. Ahhhhh! What am I doing?

Rainbow shifted position, causing his free wing to lock open.

Oh, no, no, no, no, no! Swift went for a bite lip but his heart pumped even harder. Cool your jets. Just breathe nice and… I can’t cool it! What’s wrong with me?

Swift ran through every ailment known to ponykind but this wasn’t a case of feather flu or allergies. The answer was snuggling right up to him but even so, he diverted his eyes toward the early evening skies and reached back for his slovenly mane. Every denial he threw at the dartboard, always reliable and on target, fell off the board. No matter how hard he tried, all he had left to face at the end was truth, a preposterous but sobering truth.

“Oh, shoot.”

Except he actually cursed, bluntly but ever so faint.

After the word left his lips, a long string of turtle talk startled him out of his shock.

“Leo,” he whispered in surprise at the turtle resting on the bench arm. “W–what are you doing here?”

He continued chattering but all Swift heard was gibberish intermixed with word fragments. A shadow grew on him but paid no attention to it.

“I don’t understand. Look, I can’t… Keep it down! You’ll wake, Rain—eh?”

His body turned cold, the warnings registering late in his head. One glance ahead and he was suddenly face to face with Pinkie Pie hanging from the other side of the fence that kept ponies from falling into the ocean.

“Whatcha doing?”

Swift jumped into the air, beating his wings in alarm. “Ahhhhhhhhhh! Shoot!” He gasped for air, “How did, where did you come from?”

She unleashed a piggish giggle. “I just climbed up here, silly. I thought you saw me already.”

“Is that you, Pinkie,” Rainbow asked, the loud conversation and the sudden departure of her pillow finally pulling her out of dreamland. “Why are you here? Where’s everypony else? Did they get lost or something?”

“Change of plans.” Pinkie explained. “We’re all gonna have dinner at this great place. I could tell you everything but it’s really long and boring.” Then she grinned, “But if you want, I can try to make it sound fun!”

Rainbow stretched, “Hmmmmm, spare me the details. All that stuff we did kinda made me hungry, so dinner does sound great right about now. Right, Swift?”

Despite calling his name a second time, there was nopony home. Once he saw her dazzling eyes, he started drowning in them. A prolonged blink fed in just enough oxygen to breathe again but not enough to speak.

“You okay, Swift?”

He settled for a nod. That was all he could muster toward the mare that had broken out of the cocoon of friendship and transformed into more that he imagined she could ever be.

10 - The Return to Flight Redux

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Pinkie Pie is a smooth, fast operator.

Twilight could’ve spent the entire night asking about the myriad of scenarios resulting in everyone coming together at the Luau Kitchen. After a hearty glass of water, Pinkie explained everything in under a minute and as a courtesy, offered to rewind the tape.

“No. I’ve heard enough,” Twilight muttered, resting her chin on the table and grabbing her head.

“That was way too fast for me,” Spike countered. “Pinkie, can you—”

“It doesn’t matter,” Twilight interrupted, shoving a kabob into Spike’s mouth. “Let’s just wait for our meals and then we can get to business.”

Main courses soon flowed in from the kitchen and onto the table. Swift, sitting at the edge of one of the benches, watched his fellow ponies gobble down sweet rolls and corn while washing it all down from whatever bubbly beverage the servers poured into their coconut shaped cups. Eventually, he took one bite out of his fruit pizza – a tasty, well-baked treat according to his taste buds – but he lacked the hunger to finish.

Sitting halfway on the other side of the table was Rainbow Dash, slurping down a hot cup of soup before sampling items off Fluttershy’s plate. Every time she looked his direction, Swift pretended to sip some fruit punch, feigned interest in the conversations breaking out around him or observed a mother at a nearby table trying to quiet her wailing foal with a lullaby.

As such, he failed to notice the growing agitation between Twilight and Blossom. It wasn’t long before their uproar ceased all other conversations.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Twilight!”

“Since when are you the seagull expert, Blossom!”

“You don’t even have seagulls in Ponyville!”

“Ladies, please,” Rarity snipped, repeatedly banging a cup on the table until she got silence. “It’s quite obvious we won’t come to a mutual agreement about the seagull situation tonight. How about we discuss it in the morning when we’re all refreshed, hmm?”

Blossom and Twilight glanced at each other before looking in opposite directions.

“Well? Do we agree or not?”

Twilight opened her mouth. “I th—”

“Sounds good,” Blossom spoke.

Twilight twisted up a napkin.

The redhead cleared her throat. “Yes, we can restart this seagull conversation after the vendor selection meeting at Town Hall tomorrow morning. In the meantime, Pinkie and Widget can continue working on the fireworks tonight. Applejack and Blitz are going to need another kitchen to prepare their sample treats for tomorrow. I’m going to be nice and let you two use my kitchen but just so you two behave, I’m having Spike supervise. When I come home, I don’t want one pan out of place. Is that understood?”

The two farm ponies rolled their eyes and nodded.

“I should head back to the festival site and see how things are progressing. Rarity? Swift? Rainbow? Fluttershy? Twilight? I don’t really have anything for you right now but you can join me if you wish.”

“I think I’ll best utilize my time and head back to the library,” Twilight said in a deadpanned tone.

Swift got up from his seat. “Actually, Blossi, yeah… the site! I should, stand guard at the site in case the, um, seagulls come back. Give whoever’s there now a break.”

“You want me to help,” Rainbow asked.

“Nah, nah. I–I got this. You and Rarity and Shy, um, go have, fun!”

Rainbow wondered whether he wasn’t getting enough cool air from the ceiling fan. “Um, okay. If you say so.”

“I believe that should do it then,” Blossom exclaimed as she raised her cup. “Everypony! To a great festival!”

The group followed her lead and spilled drips of juice all over the table.

Shopping for clothes outdoors under the lights was Fluttershy and Rarity’s idea of evening fun. Adding Rainbow in the mix should’ve been the anchor dragging behind them. However, they weren’t expecting Rainbow to be such a chatterbox, especially on a topic that was something other than being awesome, racing or Wonderbolts. Instead, she went into detail about her time at the Trotwalk, a matter so encaptivating that various boutique owners wanting to sell the trio flower print dresses, sunhats and trinkets labored for seconds of undivided attention.

An hour after the moon made its late summer evening appearance, the trio filed into Fluttershy’s motel room. She and Rarity tossed the few bags they had carelessly onto one bed and sat in the other, leaving space in between the two for their still-talking friend.

“And that’s how I got this baby,” Rainbow said as she sat down and held the Soarin beanie high above her head. “I thought I’d never get this. I thought I lost my chance but look! My collection’s complete! I finally did it!” She squeezed her prize and made girly noises.

Rarity made similar noises. “That’s just absolutely wonderful, dearie! He really did that for you?”

“Mhm.”

“Oh, I cannot tell you how fortunate you are, Rainbow! What happened after that?”

Rainbow stroked her muzzle, “Well, I know we sat down on a bench. I was a little tired so I took a nap.”

“You mean together?” Fluttershy interjected.

“No, just me,” she plainly answered. “When I woke up, there was Pinkie inviting us to dinner.”

Rarity punched the mattress. “That Pinkie Pie! Always ruining possible moments! Such is life when you’re friends with Pinkie, I suppose. So, I presume that’s everything that happened, right? There’s not any insignificant detail that you’re leaving out? Not a morsel more?” She caught Fluttershy’s stare out of the corner of her eye. “What? I just want to be certain.”

“That’s it,” Rainbow answered. “I guess that’s… well—”

Rainbow stared at the beanie she cradled by her chest. Wonderbolt, this was a figurine of the best aerial stunt ponies in all of Equestria. She was one of many devoted fans of those who not only entertained but also performed heroic acts. Some tales were press-verified true and others sounded so ludicrous, even she questioned feats such as stopping a volcano flow or slicing a hurricane in half. Whatever the case, citizens recognized them for their many accomplishments but the more she looked at her prize, it looked less like a Wonderbolt and more like the pony that helped her get it.

Yet nopony sold Swift Flying toys nor did he get the same recognition as Soarin, not even close. Savior of Saddlecloud, stricken from the record. Recovery from Flying Stress Syndrome, hidden to save her pride. While it wasn’t her place to recant the former, she had every intention to express the heroic acts Swift did for her; the only question was when.

Now may be that time, in this one room with Fluttershy, the truest of friends that she developed the closest bond. As for Rarity, she had the maturity to handle such a tale.

“Well? Well?” Rarity urged.

Hopefully, she had the maturity.

Rainbow placed the beanie aside. “There’s one last thing to tell you girls. It’s something I decided to do while I was on the Ferris Wheel but, well, you might want to take a bathroom break right now. This is gonna take a while to explain. A long while.”

Carnival tents, makeshift shops and a carousel.

Surfing Blossom stood amidst what was less of a mishmash of wooden planks stuck upright on a field and more of a site for an upcoming festival. Megaphone on hoof, she cheered on the stallions and mares who dared to continue laboring under the moonlight with the seagull threat constantly looming over their heads.

To their relief, the only things circling above them were a few pegasi running their designated patrol routes. Their leader was sitting on a solitary cloud between the shoreline and the metal skeleton that was a half-completed stage. He stared off into the sea, breaking his vigil every few minutes for cursory glances at his team.

Eventually, Blossom’s focus drifted in his direction. He’s been off ever since he and Rainbow joined us for dinner. I don’t get it. Did I miss something? I shouldn’t pry but… oh, I simply must!

“Spike, I know this is a big favor but can you take—” She slapped her forehead. Completely forgot. In that case, plan B. She turned on the megaphone. “Attention, everypony! Um, you’re all doing such a great job so far, how about we take an early break? Food is provided courtesy of—”

Right away, most of the ponies galloped to the punch and chips set up on multiple tables.

Thought so.

Blossom made her way onto the unfinished platform. From there, she climbed up the metal structure all the way to the highest piece of erected metal. She leaned out toward Swift – too busy watching the ocean waves to notice her – and unfurled her wings.

I can do this! I should be high enough to reach him!

The second she started her glide, however, her confidence sank as much as her altitude. The ocean breezes repelled her advance and eventually, she waggled her forelegs in desperation for more speed. Before she could swallow her pride and plead for some help, Swift sprung into flight and grabbed onto her. Together, they reached the fluffy white and then sat right across from each other.

“You could’ve just called me down,” Swift remarked in a hushed voice.

“True but I wanted to talk to you in private,” she answered, stroking the cloud’s surface. “So, how are you holding up?

He rubbed the top of his head, “Um? Okay, I guess.”

“Any signs of seagulls?”

“Not yet.”

Blossom paused briefly. “Did you have a good time with Rainbow at the Boardwalk?”

“What?” Swift stared sideways, “My time with… I, it was, good. It was good, good time.”

“It must have been a really good time if you’re blushing like that,” she teased, leaning close to him. “What did you two do, exactly?”

“N–nothing special,” he stammered, a warm smile slowly emerging. “Nothing, really. You were there so you should know.”

Now it was Blossom’s turn to fidget. “Um, oh. That. There’s a story behind that. You see—”

“We just spent some time together, that’s all.” His smile widened further, “A wicked time. It’s always like that with Rainbow. Sure, she can sometimes rub me the wrong way but she’s fun to be around with, Blossi. I just, like hanging out with her, even if we’re stuck working. When she’s around, I feel like—” He tousled his mane and chuckled. “—I dunno.”

Her orange pupils widened. “You really like her, don’t you?”

“Well, yeah! Totally! She’s—” He stared right at Blossom whose wings were in a battle with his for most rigid. “Blossom? W–wait, just wait a minute. I didn’t mean—”

“You can’t take it back, Swift,” Blossom whispered back.

He tried building a wall of denial with broken syllables but it held together like mud.

“You meant what you said.”

“N–no, I didn’t!”

“I heard you. You really like her. Just… oh, don’t do this to me!”

Swift used his wing as a shield against Blossom’s intense gaze. “You’re going to make fun of me for this, aren’t you?”

After a terse sigh, she reached out and gently clutched his foreleg. “Of course not. You have nothing to be ashamed about. If anything, I’m super happy for you. You’ve finally blossoming to a full-fledged stallion. Took you long enough,” she finished with a muted giggle.

“And what is that supposed to mean?”

“You know exactly what I mean. Romance! All this time, you were such a foal about it but now, you’re finally giving it a chance.” Peeling away his wing, “Now, I want you to say it directly. I really like Rainbow Dash.”

“But I’m, can’t it be—”

Blossom grabbed his jaw, “I really like Rainbow Dash. Like that.”

Five words. Swift could get some breathing room from her with a short statement but it might as well have been like reciting a one hundred thousand novel from memory. “Well, I, um, really, Dash is… shoot. I fell for her, didn’t I?”

“Swift? You actually... that, that counts!” Blossom lifted him off the cloud and cooed, “Oh, I can’t believe it! My little brother’s finally found himself a marefriend!”

“A–a what?” He wriggled under her embrace, “No. No! I don’t… she’s not, that!” She dropped him. “And I’m not your brother,” he protested as he got back on his haunches.

“Silly. Of course, she’s not your marefriend. At least, not just yet but we can fix that. You just have to tell her how you feel. Problem solved!”

His eyes bulged to the brink of detaching from his skull. “Wh–what? But I can’t, you want me to… what? How in Equestria can I… hold up a second, Blossom! This is all new to me, you know! There’s so much going through my head right now! I can’t just fly up to Rainbow and tell her, stuff!”

“Why not? You’ve been open with her before.”

“This is different. Far different. It’s about, us.”

“Exactly. Since this is something between you and Rainbow, then you need to talk to her. Besides,” she batted her eyelashes, “what if you find out that she really likes you too, Swift?”

“Um? If she, really—” A small smile broke out but he shook it off his face. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! No, Blossom. There’s just… there’s no way. She, um, she told me so.”

All her optimism vanished. “She, did? When?”

Swift stared at the cloud, “After the race, when I was coming back here on the train.”

“Right. You told me that she caught up with you because you left a picture behind. You two talked a bit and then she left.”

“Yean, there was more to that. After we talked, we, ahem, well, if it wasn’t for… w–we almost kissed.”

Blossom stifled her utter shock. “Oh my… oh, no. Oh, no! Swift? She gave you the ‘we’re only friends’ speech after that, didn’t she?”

He gave one slow nod.

With that new tidbit of information, Blossom found herself in an unexpected predicament. If she wanted to help him, she had to navigate this obstacle as she would a massive wave. One wrong move and she’d flip underwater. “Swift? Rainbow might’ve said whatever she said but that was months ago. I doubt either of you were seriously thinking about being more than just friends back then. Ponies can change their minds about something like that, especially if that happened months ago. If you can change, why can’t she?”

“Because–” Whatever defense he had disintegrated like the bits of cloud dust he rubbed beneath his hoof. “Well, I guess she might… wait. Why am I even thinking like this?”

“Because you want to know if she thinks about you that way. It’s perfectly natural, Swift.”

His next question had him prepare his wing in case of mocking laughter. “Um, would she, I mean… is it possible? Would she want to… with me?”

“I’ll answer it like this, Swift. There was a time when I would’ve gone out with you.”

His ears perked up. “Eh? W–what did you say?”

Blossom suddenly sensed some warming embarrassment. “Well, as long as we’re sharing secrets, I suppose you deserve to hear one of mine. Ahem. The first time I met you, you blew me over with what you did. Believe me, I’ve had a few colts try to impress me before that day but I knew it was just an act. You were different. I could tell you were scared and yet, you stood up to those bullies anyways. If you had popped out a ring by those lockers that day, I would’ve said yes! I was a filly in love! It was such a wonderful feeling!”

“I can’t believe I’m hearing this,” he whispered to himself.

“The only problem was that you weren’t interested in that type of thing back then but I kept trying in small ways. Heh, heh. That’s what a fillyhood crush does to you but that’s beside the point. What I’m getting at is that if somepony like me thought that way about you before, then I’d say Rainbow definitely could right now. Anything’s possible, Swift!”

“Y–you think so,” he asked, scratching his glowing face.

“Only one way to find out. Talk to her. Right now. It’s only ten or so. I’m sure she’s awake somewhere around town.”

“Now?”

She nudged him to the cloud’s edge. “Don’t think about what you want to say. Just speak from the heart, okay?”

“I’m not sure about this,” he replied, pushing back. “This is really heavy stuff!”

Blossom exhaled loudly. “If you’re that nervous, just tell her you had a great time with her tonight. See where that takes you. Don’t overthink it. Just go.”

In his best moments, that what Swift Flying did, rely on instinct and intuition. He just never imagined using such tactics in the field of courtship. In the morning, he would’ve declared himself crazy for even thinking it and yet, here he was already narrowing down possible locations to find Rainbow Dash. Maybe he’d do nothing but blabber but at least he’d get to see her again.

“Gotcha,” he finally replied. “I’ll just wing it. I, um, thanks for hearing me out.”

“That’s what I’m here for,” she said with a quick hug.

He readied for flight only to turn back and face his companion. “Hey, um, one last thing.”

“Sure!”

His next statement made him feel like he was already facing Rainbow Dash, increasing heartrate and all. “So, you had a crush on me, huh? I kinda figured as much.”

“You did?”

“You weren’t exactly subtle about it but today… don’t get the wrong idea. I’m just curious, because, um—”

“Are you wondering if I still have strong feelings for you?”

He didn’t have a response ready and having Blossom inch right into his space wiped away any hopes of having one available.

“No matter what happens, you’ll always be my sweet, wonderful stallion,” she whispered into his ear.

“Eh?”

Then, she poked him on the nose. “But with me, you’re out of luck. Maybe if we had first met when we were older or in another lifetime, we might’ve shared something special together. In the end, though, I’m not sure it would’ve worked out anyways. Your life is more up here in the air while my home’s down below by the sea. If I ever decide to look for a special somepony one day, he would need to share the same passion for the ocean as I do… or be a cute seapony!”

Swift scoffed. “But they don’t exist, Blossi!”

She poked him again, “You never know!”

He shared in her laughter for a few seconds. “Woo! I’m just glad there’s nothing awkward between us. Well, almost nothing.”

“Oh?”

“You know, now I’m actually a little disappointed. I could’ve at least let you kiss me last year under the mistletoe. Heh. Never thought I’d say that.”

“Ah, that’s sweet of you to say! I need to thank Rainbow Dash someday,” she answered with a cheeky smile. “Now, go and see her, Swift.”

Tissues, a mountain of empty tissue boxes.

Inside the motel room, Rarity tossed another box into the pile and opened up another one. With all the mascara running down her face, she dared not let anypony see such a faux pas regardless of the reason.

Meanwhile, Fluttershy used Rainbow’s chest to dry her tears as she kept her hooves tightly on her back. Rainbow returned the gesture in silent but peaceful contemplation. In fact, the only other discernable noise for the next few minutes was from the ticking timepiece that eventually struck ten fifteen.

“You don’t ever have to be ashamed about something like that,” Fluttershy finally spoke in a low tender voice. “Never, ever, ever.”

Rainbow whisked something falling down her cheek. “I know, Fluttershy. I’m sorry I couldn’t trust you with this. Can you forgive me for keeping such a secret from you?”

Fluttershy tightened her hug. “You don’t even have to ask.”

“That was such an utterly delightful story,” Rarity blubbered before blowing her nose on some tissue. “I cannot believe so much happened while we were vacationing in Manehattan. Everything’s makes sense, now.”

Rainbow nudged away from Fluttershy but still had one hoof on her shoulder. “Really? It does. Then you understand my deal with Swift, then? Why were close? Why I think so highly of him?”

“We most certainly do!” Rarity discarded her tissue into an overflowing garbage can. “Don’t we Fluttershy?”

Said pony nodded.

“Oh, this is the best news I’ve heard in ages! So, when are you going to tell him, dear?”

Rainbow moved her head slightly askew. “Um, tell him what?”

Rarity whisked a foreleg. “Oh, come now. That he has a special place in your heart, that you’ve developed a deep intimate connection with him, that he sends your body and soul soaring more than anypony else in the world!”

“Come again?”

Fluttershy moved her head and held a smile brimming with purity and innocence. “You really like him, don’t you, Rainbow?”

Immediately, she decided the headboards would be the only witness to her wing-sprouting embarrassment. “Nuh, I don’t… no! How are you getting that idea? Seriously! I just went over all these things that happened, the embarrassment I suffered, all my flying struggles, how Swift and I were this close to being a hole in the ground and all you care about is, that?”

Fluttershy reached to touch her but Rainbow swatted her away. “Please, Rainbow. We’re not trying to make you upset. We just thought that from everything you’ve told us, he was special to you. Were we wrong about that?”

“No! I mean, yes! I—” She flung her hooves up in the air, “Ugghhhhhh!” Rainbow let her head fall onto the headboard. “I just… we did a lot of things together, all right? Maybe some of those things were more than what I would do with you guys but it was just in the heat of the moment. Nothing more.”

The eager fashionista inched parallel to Rainbow and leaned close to her ear. “Does that mean that you kissed him?”

“Rarity,” Fluttershy huffed, pulling Rarity down onto the unmovable mattress.

“Actually,” her face glowed brighter than the firefly lamp keeping the room from being a dark pit, “I, um, kinda did.”

A booming “What?” rippled from the two listeners, soon followed by wall banging and muffled complaining.

Rainbow reached for the pillow and stretched it over the back of her head. “It’s not what it sounds like. You see, when you guys had that party when you all came back, we were just talking above Sugarcube Corner. I don’t know what happened but we almost, ahem, we almost, l–locked lips. Then Pinkie Pie showed up and—”

“Pinkie Pie?” Rarity and Fluttershy shouted, earning them more knocking from whoever was in the next room.

“Yes, Pinkie Pie. Long story short, I thought that after everything Swift had done for me, I just couldn’t leave him empty hooved. I thought that since he’s a stallion, even one that isn’t interested in mushy stuff, I, well… Rarity! You kissed Spike on the cheek before, haven’t you? You gave it to him even though he’s a friend to you. It was like that.”

Rarity rubbed her mane, “Well, I suppose but it’s a little more complica—”

“You see? That’s all that happened between us!” Rainbow flipped belly up and rested on the bed, careful to keep the pillow firmly pressed against her face. “You girls are just making something out of nothing!”

“Then why are you hiding yourself with the pillow,” Fluttershy asked politely. “If that’s all it is, then you shouldn’t be embarrassed.”

She blindly pointed, “I’m not embarrassed! Why would I be? He’s my friend! Hey!”

Rarity levitated the pillow out of her grasp. “That’s not what I see, darling.”

Rainbow leaped onto the adjacent bed and sat, deciding the small rips on the wallpaper were more worth looking at. “Y–you’re just making stuff up! Besides, I made everything clear to him on the train when I, oh—” She placed imaginary tape right across her mouth.

“The train?” Fluttershy said as she briefly hovered and landed behind Rainbow. “What do you mean by that?”

One tail whip from Rainbow, nothing more. Rarity soon joined Fluttershy and prepared a line. However, Fluttershy shushed her with a headshake.

“We’re so glad you’ve opened up to us tonight,” reassured Fluttershy, successfully touching Rainbow’s shoulder. “There was nothing embarrassing about that. We’re your friends. You can trust us with anything.”

After dispensing such a large secret, she should. Yet Rainbow was in no hurry doing a one-eighty and presenting them with hot red truth. “If you really want to know… it was after the big race at Cloudsdale. I left in a hurry soon after Swift’s train left, remember?”

Rarity gasped. “Yes, of course! As I recall, you never told us what that was about either.”

“There’s a reason for that.” Her temperature climbed even higher. “I wanted to give him a few pictures we took while we were hanging out the night before the race. What we almost did above Sugarcube, um, we were this close to going through it, again, before somepony sounded the horn.”

Rarity stifled a gasp. “You almost… oh, sweet Celestia!” She rattled her friend, “Why didn’t you go through with it? Why let interruptions stop you? Why—”

“Because we’re friends,” she blurted out, freeing herself from Rarity before looking to the side. “Because we’re friends,” she repeated in a softer tone. “I even told him that right then and there. I’m just not into that stuff with anypony. That’s just who I am. What we almost did above Sugarcube and on the train, it was a mistake, a big terrible mistake!”

They all heard another thump, this time from the front door.

“Oh, for Celestia’s sake,” Rarity hissed as she marched to the exit. “I understand you may be trying to get some shut eye but we’re having an extremely important life-altering conversation here! Just put up with it for a few more minutes and we’ll let—”

Outside, a few ponies walked on the sidewalk a fair distance away.

“Must be some rabble-rouser,” Rarity complained, closing the door before returning to Rainbow’s side. “Do go on, dear.”

“Like I said, I made sure he knew we were nothing more than friends,” Rainbow continued, drawing circles on the bed sheets. “That should’ve been the end of it.”

A long pause later, Fluttershy inched closer to Rainbow. “Was it?”

“Well, I, it’s that… I told him—” She stomped the mattress. “I don’t know, okay? I don’t know! Happy?”

Rarity clasped her foreleg. “Darling. You’re just growing up and that means that you start developing some—”

“It’s not like that,” she snapped, leaning right up against Rarity’s nose. “How many times do I have to say that already? Swift is my friend! Do I have to spell it out for you? Friend!”

“Darling, in all fairness, how many times have you told yourself that?”

Rainbow scooted back to the edge of the bed. “I–I’ve never… well, maybe… look. Rarity, you’re the expert about this stuff. There has to be some other explanation for what I’m feeling! There just has to be! Give me something! Anything!”

Romance specialist she was but this was turning out to be a hard egg to crack. If Rainbow was this adamant about her position, then continuing down the current path was a dead end. She needed a detour, however slight it might be, to keep Rainbow talking. With plenty of raw information now at her disposal, she developed a theory. It tasted vile and she let Fluttershy peek at her pained expression, hoping that Fluttershy would understand and have something else to provide.

Fat chance. Fluttershy’s movements screamed she was happy to cede.

“Rainbow,” Rarity began with a crestfallen face, “I suppose there’s another possibility, but please, let me explain it all before you say anything.”

Once Rainbow audibly agreed, Rarity chewed on her lips for a few seconds.

“When you had that condition, Swift helped you through not just your physical but emotional problems as well. It would be, natural, that with your situation, you would end up having a great deal of admiration for whoever was taking care of you.” She withheld a forlorn sigh. “I suppose there’s a possibility you might be confusing that admiration with actual romantic feelings. In other words, you have a crush on him because of what he did, not because of who he is.”

Rainbow’s mind clicked in place. “So if it was another pony that helped me, then I would have the same weird feelings about them?”

“Well, yes. You could say that but—”

“Yes! That’s it! That’s what’s wrong with me!” She brought Rarity onto her embrace. “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

“What? No. No! You misunderstand!”

“But I totally got this!” She stared right into Rarity’s eyes. “See, if it’s just some hero crush, then all I have to do is wait. I mean, even I know crushes don’t last forever.”

Fluttershy shoved her face beside Rarity’s, “But Rainbow? What if it isn’t a crush?” She gasped. “What if Swift tells you he really likes you?”

Finally, Rainbow had a reason to laugh. “Oh, Fluttershy. This is Swift Flying we’re talking about. He struggles just to say he likes his mom and dad. There’s just no way. Absolutely no way!”

Clouds of dismay hung over the pegasus/unicorn duo. They had just listened about a secret they’ve been dying to hear and yet, Rainbow found a way to crush their spirits. Her smile only added to the sting.

“Wooo! Glad that’s over with. If you girls don’t mind, I kinda want to tell the others about the whole Ponyville thing myself.

Together, they uttered a feeble, “Okay.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it. If I’m lucky, they’ll all be here before I catch some z’s.”

Crack! Pinkie flew in through the ceiling and landed on the other bed.

“Oopsie daisy,” Pinkie remarked as she removed a safety helmet. “Guess we were just a little off aiming the cannon. This isn’t my room!”

Rainbow facehoofed. Not the first pony I had in mind. Where’s everypony else?

Drool and books don’t mix.

By a tall glass window, Twilight’s sleepy head rested on an open tome. Black smears ran around the spots where her lips touched paper. Other books around created a literary mountain, shielding her from the sights of a passing security guard.

“The library will be closing in five minutes,” said a voice over the speaker system.

Twilight shifted slightly, not wanting to part with the whiff of crisp prose. Eventually, her lips moved to stutter some nonsense. As the overhead lights dimmed, she strung together a coherent thought.

“I can’t believe, Blossom. I’ll show you.”

“Sleep tight, you cutie.”

Blossom placed a blanket over Spike’s resting body. She then gave the hammock a slight rock before leaving her dark bedroom and made a turn into the kitchen. There, her smile flattened at two scuffed up farm ponies.

“Applejack? Blitz?” She tsked-tsked. “Making Spike handle most of the actual cooking. Honestly, is mixing apples and pineapple that hard?”

They unhinged their jaws.

“Don’t answer that.” She craned her head around them to examine their spread across the countertop, “At least you have something presentable. For your sake, it better taste good.”

“Can you at least try some,” Applejack asked.

Blossom gave a firm headshake. “I’ve bent the rules far enough by lending you my kitchen. That food touches my lips before tomorrow, I’ll disqualify both of you.”

“But Blossi,” Blitz blubbered with a pouty face.

“Don’t you Blossi me,” she answered, gently yanking on his goatee. “Now you better keep that food cool at your place. Applejack? Make sure he sets the thermostat for the freezer right so we don’t end up with an igloo farm in the morning.”

The cowpony sniggered.

“But promise me one more thing. Be a little nicer to Blitz.”

“Come again?”

Suddenly, Blossom gently stroked of his chin, making him woozy, “I know he might be a big dummy but his heart’s in the right place. Give him a chance and he’ll pull through for you.”

“You’re so gnarly,” Blitz said with a goofy smile. “Ow!”

Blossom delivered a parting tug. “You just need to keep him in line.”

Eventually, Blossom aided in placing the foodstuffs onto Blitz’s wagon parked outside her front door. Then she waved goodbye until the fruit duo disappeared over the top of the nearest hill.

“They’ll pull it together,” Blossom mused. “I know they will.”

She went back indoors and checked the time – thirty minutes to midnight. Nopony would be on the festival site by now and her veining eyes were not up to reviewing a few sheets on her desk. Therefore, she flicked off the lights and took off her hair bands, allowing her hair to flow free. As she stretched, she heard the faintest of squeaks coming from beyond the patio doors. With dainty steps, she peeked through the glass and noticed Swift sitting on the bench staring off into the horizon.

Blossom carefully made her way outside and took a seat next to him. “I didn’t hear you come in,” she said in a hushed but upbeat voice. “How long have you’ve been out here?”

“A few minutes,” he replied, maintaining his stoic vigil.

“I see. Did you get to talk to Rainbow?”

He flinched, but just barely. “No. No, I didn’t.”

“You don’t sound okay.” She moved in and noticed the usual luster in his eyes was gone. “Swift? Tell me what happened.” When he didn’t answer, he grabbed his hoof. “Please?”

Swift chomped his lip. “After looking around a bit, I eventually landed outside her motel room. Rainbow was there but, um, Fluttershy and Rarity were in there too. They were screaming ‘What?’ about, I’m not sure what. I was going to knock but I didn’t want to interrupt. She was talking about, about—”

“Well, what?”

“Rainbow was talking about, m–me. Being friends. The train, what happened in the train, she brought it up and—” He shook his head.

“What did she say?”

“A, a, she said it was a mistake.”

Blossom’s wings came open, rocking the bench.

“A big mistake. She really meant what she… but it should be okay, right? I mean, we’re definitely friends. I should be happy about that. There’s no doubt about it anymore.”

To Blossom, he was a wounded pony mourning a loss of his nascent hopes and dreams. She had no words to soothe him but in reality, the best advice in the world right now would be nothing more than a temporary Band-Aid. Therefore, she rested her head on his shoulder and listen to the waves with him.

It was all she could do.

11 - Friday Morning Clash

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Sunrise, an alarm clock without a snooze button.

Swift kept his tender eyes shut while he rubbed off overnight crust. Even on a Friday morning, his usual routine had him already up and about, performing his weather leader duties. Then again, nothing about last night was ordinary; falling asleep on Blossom’s porch bench was a first. At least she had the courtesy of covering him with a thin blanket.

“Blossom?” he slurred, allowing his sight to adjust for daytime. “Where did you… eh?”

He pulled off a note taped to the wooden armrest. Flowery handwriting and stationery, classic Blossom. Based on his knowledge of cursive, she went off with Spike for some errands and she would understand if he took some time off today.

A slight breeze stole the letter but rather than chase after it, he tossed aside the blanket and moved his body just enough to get the bench in motion. Time off? I can’t do that. I’m part of this festival. I have to work with Rainbow. Rainbow?

Then, he saw her face materialize. He reached out for it, making it vanish with a poof but not before uttering one word.

Mistake. It cut into him deeper than the sharpest knife.

Shoot! How can I let this happen to me? He banged the back of head against the painted wood. I thought I was better than this! Why is Rainbow different?

Eyelids back down, he pondered over the many memories of the cyan mare. Some brought back the struggles they faced together but most worked on flipping his frown in the opposite direction. However, they all led back to the same point in time, the back of the caboose where one train horn derailed a moment that could’ve been but never was.

We were going to… did I really want to?

One exhale later, he saw Rainbow once more inches from his nose. Delirium, he thought, although he had to give credit to his imagination for conjuring her scintillating citrus scent. It was perfect, too perfect. One sniff later, he realized why.

“H–hey,” she spoke.

“Rainbow!” Swift scooted backwards to one corner of the bench and clutched his chest. “I… wha… you snuck up on me! What are you doing here?”

Hearing that was an opening to gloat but she lacked the urge. Whether that was due to the swirling emotions within or sleep deprivation, she couldn’t tell. “Rarity woke me up early. Said something about a surprise for both of us but it wouldn’t be ready for another hour or so. She insisted I go out and tell you myself but on my way to your place, I saw you out here.”

“Oh, that.” His pupils drifted right, “Um, I, Blossom and I, we talked about, stuff. B–boring stuff. Festival stuff. Must have, fallen asleep?”

“Are you okay?” She moved her head to within his sights. “You don’t sound so good.”

“No worries,” he answered, shifting his view to the patio floor. “I might’ve—” He faked a cough “—caught something sleeping out in the open. I’m sure it’ll pass.”

She didn’t buy it for a second. Her mastery of pretend sickness to get out of school is one of her lesser-known tricks in her arsenal. If she did question him, though, she feared having the tables turned by somehow exposing her own fib. Rarity did knock on her door early but she had been up half an hour prior. Crushes don’t last, she only had to wait. Those thoughts made it easy to fall asleep last night but the awareness that she still had to work with Swift for a few more days made for a rude awakening. Somehow, she had to survive these moments without any awkwardness.

“Anyways,” Swift added, “I should probably do my early weather rounds. Cya.”

Before she knew it, he had taken off and wandered toward the shoreline.

“Wait!” Rainbow gunned the throttle and quickly closed the gap. When he continued without acknowledgement, she clasped his foreleg and held it tight. Soon enough, they hovered a few feet above the waves, their focus squarely on each other.

“Sorry,” she finally exclaimed, clasping her hooves behind her back. “I just, um, I, let me help you.”

Four seconds afterwards, “Eh?”

Rainbow drifted around him, one eye toward the skies, “The weather. You got a feel for handling Ponyville weather. I’m here so, yeah. I’d like to see what you do. Always good to pick up stuff from other weather ponies, you know. Is that okay?”

Behind Rainbow, the sun crested over the distant Stallihorn Mountains and turned her into a shining goddess with long flowing hair. “Help me with–?” The longer he stared, the deeper the stabs in the chest. “I, um, gotcha. We can do that.”

She soon flew further away from the land, chasing after a pony that was physically there but otherwise in another world. Concern had her approach him but cowardice pulled her back in line behind him. Then, the ever-persistent question resurfaced and had her swallowing a hard lump.

C’mon! It’s just a silly crush! I just have to work through it, that’s all.

“Perfect! They’re here!”

At exactly eight o’clock, Twilight craned her neck beyond the train station platform and observed an approaching train announcing its arrival. She took a few steps back and waited patiently alongside other would-be passengers and greeters as the eight-passenger car train squealed to a stop. Doors flung open and ponies filed out onto the platform, many of them with attire that screamed summer tourists. Twilight, however, trotted straight to an assemblage of those dressed in sharp black vests, white jackets and ties of muted shades. Besides them were lumpy zipped up bags large enough that most used them to lay out their outerwear and give themselves a small reprieve from the humidity.

A gray mare with a purple tie emerged from the group and greeted Twilight with a cordial hug.

“Punctual as always, Octavia,” Twilight chirped.

“A pleasure to be here,” she answered with a small bow. “Our conductor is quite gracious that you’ve given us this opportunity. This summer has been particularly slow for us and she was concerned whether we could even stay together through the fall.”

Twilight glanced at the gathered orchestra, “I’m happy to be of service. Your group was fantastic when I attended your last performance in Canterlot. So, where is your conductor?”

“Hay fever, I’m afraid,” she replied, patting her forehead with a handkerchief embroidered with her cutie mark. “She entrusted me to manage the orchestra but I must admit I’m rather apprehensive. I have started training to be a backup in case of emergency but this was such short notice. I don’t even have a basic program put together.”

“In that case, if there’s anything you need, just ask me. C’mon. I’ll lead you guys around town.”

Within the City Hall auditorium, Spike sat on one of the rear benches along with a few random observers. At the front stage to the side, Blitz and Applejack had their treats on a cart ready for sampling. Behind a wide desk, a five-pony committee would decide their fate and with Blossom among the group, this should’ve been an easy sell.

Then the competition arrived, one by one, bringing with them up to the front enough culinary cuisine to feed the entire Royal Guard. It was bad enough Applejack and Blitz had to go last but they also had to witness the members ravenously eat up the various presentations and the associated food. A pony such as Misty Honeydew had no chance swaying this group with a simple impassioned speech and one tray of honeydew-related treats compared to an entire fountain made of mango fruit and flowing with mango juice.

Once it was Applejack and Blitz’s turn, Spike stood on the bench and yelled words of encouragement. He caught a glimpse of Blossom’s faint smile before she rubbed the side of her head. It may have been just him but the redhead didn’t appear to hold high hopes. He did by crossing his fingers.

It didn’t work.

What should’ve been a combined effort came off as each one trying to market their own fruits. In less than two minutes, they began taking pot shots at each other. Their competitors howled their laughter and even Blossom’s steely glare did nothing to stop the hecklers or her friends from further embarrassing themselves.

“Enough! That’s enough,” said a red stallion seated in the middle chair, banging his gavel repeatedly. “I’ve heard all I needed to hear. You can get off the stage.”

“Hold on a minute, Ember Blaze,” Applejack pleaded, releasing the neck hold she had on Blitz. “You haven’t even—”

Again, another deafening strike to the sounding block echoed throughout the auditorium. “I don’t believe that will be necessary. If you two are this unprepared, I doubt the food would be any good anyways.”

Blossom rose from her seat, only to have a gavel pointed straight at her.

“Now before you throw a hissy fit, Miss Blossom, may I remind you that just because you’re the head of this festival doesn’t mean you have sole authority.”

“And you don’t have sole authority, either,” Blossom quipped. “Everypony else got a chance to present their food!”

“I actually agree with Ember,” the mare in between Blossom and Ember spoke as she snatched the mallet. “Besides, any more food and I’ll regret it tomorrow.”

A large orange stallion seated at the far end of the table burped. “I wouldn’t, Squeezy Syrup. I’d love another bite. Heck, let’s have another round!” He bellowed a deep laugh, earning him a harrumph from the blue hair mare seated next to him.

“Must you be such a pig, Mighty Mallet! We are supposed to be reputable ambassadors to our fair town, you know!”

“Geez! Do you have to be so uptight, Building Blocks?” He leaned backwards in his chair, “You too, Ember. Let these two finish up.”

“You see? Mallet agrees with me,” Blossom added.

“He always agrees with you,” Ember retorted.

“And what is that supposed to mean, Ember?”

Syrup facehoofed and shook her head as the other four quarreled with one another. To the two farm ponies, the five-pony committee morphed into a mirror image of themselves, minus a tall cowpony hat.

“Consarn it! We can’t keep doing this, especially if we look like that,” said Applejack, giving the squabbling committee a headshake. “If we want to win, we’ll have to somehow put our differences aside and… what in tarnation are you doing, Blitz?”

“What,” Blitz asked, holding up a slice of steaming hot pie. “I haven’t had breakfast yet and I’m desperate enough to eat something with apples in it!”

“Why you yellow belly! You talk like that about apples again, you’ll be—”

“Oh, sweet Celestia!” He licked off leftover crumbs off his lips. “Totally gnarly grub!”

Applejack grabbed her own piece, keeping a suspicious eye over him. “If you’re lying to me—”

She took a bite, then two more. Finally, she swallowed it all and licked every drop of whipped cream from her lips. “Mmmmm! Boy howdy! I can’t believe I’m saying this but that was hoof-licking good! Even the pineapple!” Then she heard somepony gulping down juice. “Now what are you doing?”

“Ahhhhh!” Blitz put down an empty cup. “Oh, yeah! That drink is sweeeeeeeet! I want some more!”

“Stop,” Spike bellowed as he hustled down the aisle. He stopped in front of them and gasped for air. “Whew! I’m glad you’re enjoying the food but–” He inhaled deep—“save some for the committee! Something tells me they’re going to love it!”

“What makes you say that,” Applejack asked before sampling some of the juice. “Ooooh. That’s hits the spot.”

“You two certainly love it and believe me, that’s saying a lot. I mean, two bitter rivals enjoying something that has both fruits as main ingredients? C’mon!”

Applejack chuckled. “Huh. Well, what do you know? You may have a point there, Spike. If you don’t mind, Blitz, I want to give this another go. That is, if we can just get these ponies to stop arguing for a second.”

“Time for some of that Blitz charm! Leave it to me,” Blitz said, flashing a grin. “Follow my lead, AJ.”

He then waltzed to the conference table and leaned against it, drawing the committee’s attention with a clap. “Yo! What’s with all this fighting? Ah, don’t answer that! I bet you thought we were ripping each other just now but I’m gonna let you in this super big secret. You see, that was just part of the show. Let me give you the four-one-one.”

Blitz motioned Applejack to distribute plates to all their guests.

“There was a time when AJ and I were, like, totally not connecting. Why would we? Two different families, two different fruits. Tell me if any of these ponies can get along together,” he remarked, signaling to their scowling competitors. “Noooooo way! We were like them once. I’m telling you, AJ at one point was calling me a, um, pork belly!”

Applejack juggled a plate. “Y–yellow belly. Heh heh. It was yellow belly.”

“Well, that all changed when we said, ‘Hey, why fight about which fruit’s the best and instead go for a super combo?’ That’s why we got together and worked mad in the kitchen, yo!”

Spike crossed his arms. I did most of the work, you know.

“Sure, you can have just one vendor at the entrance but here, you can have a two-for-one deal!” He put on red-tinted sunglasses. “Twice the fruit, twice the gnarly! The best from Juicy Fruit Fields and—”

She acknowledged his nod. “Sweet Apple Acres! Yep! Just take one bite of our grub and—” AJ flinched as Blitz placed his muscular hoof around her “—you’ll see why this is your winning combination. Let’s show Brayside Beach cooperation, not competition. Two families, one booth. Delicious treats to—”

Satisfied moaning halted the cowpony’s speech. The slices of pies were now just crumbs on the plate, the pitcher of juice had only fruit pulp left at the bottom and none of the provided toothpicks remained unused.

Ember Quench grabbed the mallet and after glancing at the others around him, delivered a striking verdict. “I have to admit you had all of us fooled for a minute there, you two. The prime spot is yours. Everypony else, we’ll determine stall positions after we walk off all this food.”

The committee members began filing out of the auditorium. As Blossom walked by the winning pair, her lips moved but had no accompanying sound.

“Congrats,” Spike shouted, having said what the redhead couldn’t out in the open. “Wow! That was one nifty selling job!”

“Woo wee,” Applejack uttered as she fanned herself. “That shipment of apples I’ve got coming from Ponyville’s not going to waste after all.”

Blitz hoof pumped right at the miffed ponies sitting behind him. “Blitz yeah! Back on top!”

“You’re not a bad salespony, Blitz. Maybe there’s something good in you after all,” Applejack complimented with a small smile. “Can I ask just one small favor, though?”

“Anything from the Blitzmeister!”

“Take your hoof off me right now or I’ll take it off for ya!”

Just a peek at those beady eyes and he already imagined what he would look like wearing a peg leg. “Yo! Okay! Okay! I’m off ya! Can’t blame a pony for trying.”

Then, they all heard another congratulatory remark but from one of their competitors, the mare that couldn’t make do with honeydews but found a reason to smile anyways. “My goodness! I thought you looked familiar the first time I saw you. Applejack, correct? You may not remember me but we met at the Equestria Rodeo Competition.”

Applejack smacked her forehead as punishment for poor memory. This same mare struggled finding any buyers for her melon slices but Applejack not only bought a bag but also struck up a pleasant conversation. Alas, she ran out of time to take even one bite before she returned to competition. “Well, I’ll be! My deepest apologies! I guess this summer heat’s gone to both our heads. A pleasure to see you again!”

“Same. I’ll have to admit that was quite a presentation. Very effective.”

“Aw, shucks. I can’t exactly take all the credit.”

Blitz saw this as his opening to execute his charm offensive toward Misty. She would have to pay attention to him now.

Instead, a blaring alarm beat him to the punch. Lights around the auditorium flashed followed by Ember Quench coming back inside with a megaphone.

“Fire drill! Use the designated emergency exit routes!”

Good old-fashioned cloud busting, the perfect distraction for pegasi with befuddling thoughts in their heads.

Brayside clouds were a different beast than the Ponyville equivalent and despite Rainbow’s trademark pending ten-second guarantee, she needed forty minutes and a few of Swift’s teammates to clobber an incoming storm front into oblivion. Another one was further out but that’s where being the friend of the weather leader became a benefit.

Swift ordered his team to finish the job while he returned toward the center of town along with Rainbow. Flying side by side. With nothing but ocean beneath them. Just the two of them.

More work sounded like a better proposition.

“Yesterday was great, wasn’t it?” Rainbow stuttered as the Trotwalk came into view.

His flight path bobbled. “Eh? Yeah. Yeah, it was.”

She hoped he had more to say. The sound of rushing wind was unkind to her ears. “I don’t say this enough but you’re, um, an awesome—” She dragged the word out of her mouth “—friend.”

High praise never tasted so bitter and yet, he had to put on the face that said it was sweet chocolate. “Thanks. Y–you too.”

The exchange loosened her tongue enough to start blabbing about, something. Within Swift’s head, her words washed away in a violent sea of contradictory emotions where he, as the overmatched captain, fought to keep his boat afloat. So much was he fighting the waters that Rainbow’s eventual poke on him didn’t register for three seconds.

“Eh?”

There was Rainbow standing by a door leading into a small warehouse at a dock. How he managed to land here without realizing it eluded him. “You don’t look so good, Swift.” She pressed on his forehead, “Maybe you should see a doc about this.”

He was running warm but not because of illness. “Um, I’m, there’s nothing, I’m good.”

Rainbow wanted to say ‘okay’ but it came out in a low hush. What am I doing? Don’t touch him! Off! Off! Darnit!

“Well, there you are,” Rarity chirped, sticking her head through the now-open door. “What a wonderful surprise. You’re actually just in time.”

Rarity led them into a large room where a few ponies worked their sewing machines while others gathered rolls of fabric for cutting on tables. Small windows close to the high ceiling provided the light while overhead fans kept the temperature a notch above comfortable. Racks of finished clothes covered the back end of the room.

“I couldn’t help myself. I found some old designs lying around here and I just had to work on a few on the aside,” Rarity explained as they walked through the rows of wardrobe. She briefly levitated a two-tone garb, “Nothing too complicated for the festival workers, really. I’m sure Blossom will love the simple flower pattern and how breathable this shirt is, perfect for this balmy weather. I even have a dress somewhere for the mares if they want something more, flowy. I’ll have separate attire for the band and I’ll be taking care of that this afternoon once I get all the measurements I need and figure out a general direction.”

“Was this supposed to the surprise,” Rainbow grumbled. “Because it’s a pretty lame one if it is.”

Rarity had a haughty laugh as she put back the clothes and reached for a nearby door handle. “Of course not, dearie. This is regarding your suits. I just finished them.”

Past the doorway was a much smaller room albeit with one large window that allowed sunlight to brighten the drawn designs on the wall. The wastebasket overflowed with rejects while Fluttershy cleaned up all the paper scraps and glitter from the office desk turned into a makeshift design table.

“I’m almost afraid to look under here,” Rainbow noted, poking a piece of cloth draped over two mannequins. “You do realize we’ll be doing a lot of moves in the air. The last thing we need is a wardrobe malfunction in front of a big audience. You know how embarrassing that would be?”

“Well, yes, of course. That would reflect poorly on me,” Rarity said as she shoved a few more concept drawings into the trash. “I will admit I didn’t quite take freedom of motion under consideration on the first few attempts but I made up for it. Behold my latest pieced designed exclusively for only the best pegasi in Equestria!”

Rainbow gulped, picturing a frilly pink outfit with bows and ribbons. Instead, it was exactly what a Wonderbolt might wear if they had an alternate uniform: a white spandex suit with large blue thunderbolts on both sides. When the light hit the perfect amount of glitter scattered across the uniform, she pranced in place and squealed.

“I’ll take it that you like it, Rainbow?”

She glomped Rarity and jumped, “Awesome! Awesome! Awesome! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

Before Swift could get in a word, Rainbow had him in a tight squeeze.

“Can you believe this, Swift? It’ll almost be like we’re Wonderbolts! No. Better than Wonderbolts! I’m so pumped up for this! Aren’t you?”

He could’ve done with something less flashy but that opinion fell by the wayside. The way she lit up right in front of him, he was helpless in stopping the painful pitter-patter coming from his chest. “Y–yeah.”

Oh, no. This is bad! This is really bad!

Spike arrived at the festival site and watched the orchestra file onto the front stage to begin fine-tuning their instruments. Already, the ponies working in the immediate area gave them curious glances. Any minute now, Blossom would arrive with her assembled rock band along with Applejack and Blitz.

Any minute now, the fuse will be lit.

He ran over to Twilight, who was going over some sheet music.

“Well, there you are, Spike!” Twilight patted him on the head. “I presume everything went well at the meeting?”

“Oh, yeah. That’s fine.” He glanced at the orchestra. “That’s another story!”

Twilight rubbed her temple, “Everything will work out, Spike. How many times do I have to say that?”

“But what’s Blossom going to say when she gets here?”

“Not a thing,” she reassured him. “We’ll beat her to the punch with some music, something that will knock her socks off! Well, if she did wear socks. Octavia?” She waved one sheet in the air, “Do you think you can start with this one for practice?”

Octavia went over with a sprightly step. “Yes. I believe I should be able to–” Her smile inverted. “T–this one? Oh, dear. I’m certain we haven’t practiced this one yet. It’s rather difficult but we’ll try to do our best.”

Twilight raised her head, “I’m sure you will. Oh, I can’t wait! Just one minute of listening to a full-fledged orchestra and Blossom will certainly say—”

“What in Equestria is going on here?” Blossom stormed up the stairs leading to the stage, shaking like a volcano ready to erupt. Those that had followed her stopped after the last step, cautious to stay outside the potential blast zone. “Did you do what I think you’ve done, Twilight?” she snarled, wings in full flare.

The unicorn stood her ground, confident that she could handle a hot-tempered pony. Everfree Forest creature or Nightmare Moon, she was not. “A full-fledged orchestra,” she answered. “Just what this festival needs.”

“No! No! No!” Her hoof stomp left a crack on the wooden surface. “Look behind you! That’s what we need. Tell the orchestra they’re welcome to watch the festival from the stands.”

Twilight craned her neck around Blossom. Vinyl Scratch, Hipster Amps and a ragtag of ponies she didn’t know received a discerning headshake from the vein-popping orchestra fan. “All I see is something that won’t wow anypony. This is exactly why—”

“I honestly don’t care what your opinion is, Twilight! The committee gave me the final call on this and I’m saying that we’re having a rock band! End of discussion!”

“What?” Twilight pressed right against the redhead’s snout. “I am not just going to stand here and allow you to use poor judgment and ruin this festival! You clearly don’t have the experience to handle something as important as this!”

Blossom growled. “Whoop de doo! I helped change the season by using checklists that could’ve been together by a kindergartener! I’m so impressed!”

“Hey! Don’t you take that tone with me! Do you realize that I’m Princess Celestia’s student! I have multiple years of—”

“Well, that explains a lot! Celestia doesn’t even know what’s she’s doing half the time, just like you!”

Twilight leaned back and gasped. “Nopony and I mean absolutely nopony insults the Princess! You take that back immediately!”

“No!” Pointing outward, “Get off the stage! You’re done here!”

“I’m not going anywhere! You don’t tell me what to do!”

“I’m warning you!” She poked the unicorn, “Don’t test my patience!”

Twilight rolled her eyes, “Like you even had any to begin with!”

As the two mares continued with their shouting match, Spike prodded on Blitz’s trembling hoof.

“Oh, this is bad, isn’t it?” the dragon remarked.

“Super bad,” the stallion answered. “I’ve seen Blossom mad but this is a totally new level!”

Applejack scoffed at both of them. “C’mon, now. Just gotta let it play out. Nothing else to… whoa, nelly!”

She pushed both the stallion and the dragon away from a blast of purple magic. Another zap travelled skywards and a third struck dead center onto a swinging surfboard, leaving a slight burn mark. Twilight jumped off the stage, avoiding a downward chop before aiming her horn and firing at the descending redhead. Ponies all around hid behind what they could find and kept an eye at the fight between a powerful magic user and the best – and likely only – surfboard wielder in Equestria.

“Stop it, Twilight,” Applejack bellowed from the edge of the stage. “You’re—” She ducked another blast but a corner of her Stetson suffered burn damage. She retreated to behind a support beam. “Blitz! Spike! We gotta do something!”

“I’m ain’t going anywhere near that,” Blitz blubbered. “You know how much that surfboard hurts when it lands on your head?”

“How could it hurt? It’s just wood, isn’t it,” the cowering dragon asked.

Before the stallion could answer, Blossom chopped down on a fleeing Twilight. While the unicorn dodged the attack, the long bench the redhead hit split into two pieces. Twilight reloaded her magic and went for a steal. Instantly, the surfboard flashed a light and sent Twilight tumbling backwards through the sand. Blossom ran after her, teeth clench when the unicorn suddenly disappeared into thin air.

“Something tells me that ain’t no ordinary surfboard,” Applejack stuttered.

“Widge does something to them,” Blitz added as he noticed Twilight reappearing right behind Blossom. Before the unicorn could grab the board, the redhead swung at her position, forcing teleportation to a safer distance. “And Blossi’s a master of using it!”

“We can’t let this go on!” Applejack rushed out of her hiding spot but a few stray magic blasts forced a hasty retreat. “There’s gotta be a way to stop this!”

“I hear that, girl.” Hipster stood behind the three and adjusted her orange glasses. “Hey, Vinyl? You thinking what I’m thinking?”

“Same groove as you are,” she answered with a grin. “We totally need a battle theme for this! Something like—” Vinyl hummed a little tune that quickly drew some subtle glaring. “Kidding! Kidding! What this calls for is some sweet jams, you know, to cool the mood.”

Spike shook his head. “But that’s the whole problem! Blossom loves you two but Twilight wants the orchestra! We can’t make them both happy, can’t we?”

Octavia approached the assembled and politely coughed. “I just wanted to come over and apologize. I wasn’t aware that our mere presence would cause such a disagreement. If you wish, we can return to Canterlot and allow—”

“You ain’t going anywhere,” Vinyl chimed, wrapping a foreleg around her neck. “You see? We’re gonna need your for this, um—”

“Octavia.”

Vinyl raspberried. “Nah. You’re Tavi.”

“But that’s not my—”

“Tavi, just follow our lead.” Hipster handed over Vinyl some sheet music. “Improv what you gotta improv.”

Octavia looked between the two smiling mares, “Uh, w–what are we… we’re mixing rock and orchestra, together? Has that even been done before?”

Hipster winked, “Not in this scale, girl, but we’ll jam through it.”

“Are you sure this will work,” Spike asked the three musicians. “It’s not like we have the time to practice!”

“Give us sixty seconds. Just sit back and enjoy the show,” Vinyl answered.

The timeline sounded impossible and yet, Hipster and Vinyl finished equipment setup in less than twenty seconds. After that, it was a chaotic shuffling of ponies and back and forth instructions while off in the distance, the two fighting mares entered a small tent. A few rips in the fabric later, Blossom exited one the holes, using her surfboard as a shield against Twilight’s magical barrage.

The deadline passed and much to Spike’s panic, there was no music. Octavia stood erect over her orchestra, sweat collecting in a puddle by her hooves. With Vinyl’s urging, Octavia raised a shaky stick to her fidgeting orchestra.

“Hit it,” Hipster shouted.

What came next was sounds rarely heard playing at the same time: drums, electric guitars, cymbals, cellos, trumpets, violins and record scratching from the grooving DJ. For the first few seconds, the loudspeakers pumped out a racket drawing confusion from most ponies within earshot. Hipster had her mike on the ready but all she could do is jig on center stage to the oddball rhythm until the many notes drew closer in harmony. Soon, a nervous crowd began to assemble near the front and with some encouragement, they stomped their hooves to the improving beat.

Welcome, to the party
Invites, for everybody
Smile and move your hips to the jam

Tonight, we’re getting started
Worries, to the wayside
Raise those hooves and let it all come out

Amp it up!

The music spiked in intensity and with it, the watchers hollered their support of combining electric riffs with classical strings. By the trained ear, mistakes were aplenty but the musicians did their duty of not only entertaining their audience but also stop Blossom from yanking on Twilight’s hair. They watched dumbfounded at the collaboration on stage, giving Blitz and Applejack the opening to sneak in behind them and grab on them with the gentlest touch. After all, who knew whether a two-minute song would quell their respective tempers.

Just give in and jam!

Hipster raised her mike over her head and took in the raucous applause with a grin. “How about that, pones? You loved that beat, didn’t you? Well, that was just a sneak preview of what’s coming tomorrow night! Just need the green light from the two way way out there in the back. So, what’s the call?”

If over fifty ponies turning in Twilight and Blossom’s direction wasn’t embarrassing enough, their own friends forced them into a close face to face. After a brief silence, both spoke at the same time.

“One at a time,” Spike urged, squeezing in between the two. “Twilight. You first. What do you think?”

The unicorn twirled her hair, “I must say mixing the bands makes for a rather original and enjoyable combination.”

Spike nodded at Blossom. “About that orchestra?”

“I guess if they can excite the crowd like that,” she mused, rubbing the back of her neck.

“Is that a yes, then?

Blossom turned to the awaiting masses, a smile creeping in her face. “Play on, then.”

After the crowd applauded their decision, Twilight and Blossom once more looked at one another, this time by resigned choice. An apology seemed a natural conclusion except pride kept their mouths shut.

“Ladies, let’s just shake on it, shall we?” Spike finally spoke. “Mistakes were made on both sides and you both, um, vented your frustrations in a less than productive way. We now have a solution so there’s no need to argue anymore. Let’s just leave it at that, okay?”

The two mares started to plead their case but got a face full of dragon palm.

“Oh, no! I don’t want to hear it! Blossom? You could’ve been a little more open minded on Twilight’s ideas instead of dismissing them so quickly.”

Twilight held her nose high and harrumphed.

“Eh, eh, eh,” he retorted, wagging a finger. “You were too pushy from the moment you got here, Twilight. Helping other ponies doesn’t mean taking over.” Spike placed his hands on hips. “That being said, I think you’re both great at what you do. You both might have had a rough start but if two completely different bands can work together as one so quickly, I’m sure you can too.”

Blossom patted the dragon’s head. “Twilight? I’ll have to admit two things to you. An orchestra isn’t such a bad idea and you sure have a wonderful assistant.”

“I certainly do,” the unicorn replied. “Blossom, it was wrong of me to impose the orchestra on you like this. I hope I can still be part of this festival and if I have any big ideas again, I’ll run them past you first.”

“I can’t promise I’ll accept,” she shook Twilight’s hoof, “but I’ll keep my ears open.”

“Great! Now, about that comment about Princess Celestia—”

“Let’s just agree to disagree about that,” the redhead said in a lower tone. “I’ll give you this much, though. She must have taught you some really powerful magic.” Blossom pulled out her surfboard, its pink colors faded and the surface riddle with cracks. “After you snatched my surfboard away with your magic the last time, I decided to switch it out with my top of the line model. Didn’t hold out like I thought it would. I’ll need to ask Widget for an upgrade.”

Twilight chuckled. “Well, hopefully, you won’t need to test your surfboard out like that again.”

Applejack removed her hat and fanned herself, “I’ll say. Good gravy, you two was something else, causing a big scene like that.”

“I thought it was just a disagreement,” Blossom remarked coolly.

“Disagreement?”

“In Blossom’s book, that’s all that was,” Blitz quipped before reeling at a surfboard floating over his head.

Eventually, she delivered the lightest of taps. “All right. It was more than that but that’s all water under the Trotwalk. Let’s put it behind us and—” Her brow suddenly lowered, her ears twitching at an all familiar sound. One turn around and she had a reason to uncap her temper.

“Seagulls,” Twilight uttered with a serious expression. “Hey, Blossom? I have a suggestion. Instead of fighting each other, how about we take those birds on, together?”

Blossom flicked her hair. “I’d say you’re qualified for such a task. Considered and approved! Charge!”

Two headstrong mares galloped right at the approaching flock, a pair of wings flared and a horn teeming with magic. They had the rousing support of those around them, having been witness to their individual strengths. Maybe now, Brayside Beach could turn the table on these troubling birds.

Thirty seconds later, ponies once again fled to any shelter they could find.

Blossom’s board had snapped in two while Twilight had trouble establishing a target lock. Either these seagulls had a high magic resistance or had magic of their own, a pest enhancement ability that made Parasprites seem tame. Both mares retreated to below the stage and could only watch as the birds dropped an aerial bombardment of unmentionable filth that splattered onto hours of hard work.

Blossom slammed the sand. “Seagulls, seagulls, seagulls! If we don’t have an answer to them soon, they’ll chase everypony away!”

“I wish I had one for you,” Twilight bemoaned. “Who knows if these are just small scale attacks too?”

“I just don’t understand these critters,” Applejack said with a shaking head. “We’re not growing crops here or anything. Why fly all the way here just to annoy us?”

“Yeah!” Blitz shook a hoof at them, “It’s not like we go to their place and bug them! They wouldn’t like that, would they?”

Blossom and Twilight scooted right up to his face. “What did you say?”

The stallion swallowed his fright. With two mares of war together, he had no chance of escape with one miscue. “Did I say something wrong? Um, Blossom? No! I’m sorry! I—”

He cowered for a strike but instead, the redhead went right to his heart with a tight hug.

“Oh, you’re such a wonderful lug, Blitz! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

“What,” Twilight asked, raising a curious eyebrow. “I don’t follow.”

Blossom giggled. “I think our friend here may be onto something. Twilight? Would you mind taking the lead in our seagull troubles while I help finishing with the festival preparations here?”

Twilight took one peek at the birds. “Do go on.”

“Oh, bugger!”

Attempt number twelve to fire off the prototype cannon ended up with a small fire spreading through the inside wiring.

Pinkie squirted extinguisher into the access panel opening until she emptied the red canister. “Clear!”

“So much for that idea.” Widget pulled out charred components. “Next blueprint!” The unicorn then levitated one rolled up blue sheet out of many in a canister and placed it across a rolling white board. With a marker, she scribbled on it for a few seconds before she stopped. “How do I stop the overheating here? Hmmm.”

“Somepony is losty-wosty! Can I help?”

“Sure!” Widget tossed her the marker and watched Pinkie draw what looked like a crude cat all over the diagram.

“Oy!” She traced her lines, “I like that! You know your way around this stuff, don’t you, Pinkie?”

“You could say I taught myself, thanks to your prototype,” she said, twirling the marker. “Once I learned how that worked, I built lots of other fun stuff!”

“And they all work?”

Pinkie giggled. “They do, until they don’t. When you’re a party pony like me, you put a lot of mileage on your stuff. Your cannon’s the most reliable thing I have.”

“Now that’s a shocker. Then I must have done something right with it after all.” Widget rubbed her muzzle, “If I can just figure out how to make this work.”

“Ladies,” an arriving Twilight chirped. “Looks like you’ve working hard. How’s the schedule looking for our fireworks show?”

Widget firmed her posture. “A few small scale tests tonight and we can do the full install tomorrow. Whether we can get the Fireworks Super Cannon running by then, I’m gunning to get it done!”

“Good. There’s been a few changes to the plan. I’ve written those down for you here.”

Pinkie grabbed onto Twilight’s parchment and opened it. “Oooooh!”

Widget’s eyes sparkled with stars, “I get to build more stuff?”

“Absolutely,” Twilight answered with a nod. “And we need those items by tonight. Think you can do it?”

Widget nudged Pinkie, “With her help, we can do anything!”

“Sounds good! Just one last thing. About Blossom’s surfboard,” Twilight dropped the splintered pieces onto the floor. “She needs a replacement, Widget. However, just out of curiosity—”

“—you were trying to dissect it, trying to figure out its special properties but couldn’t come up with any answers?”

“How did you know that?” She glanced at a whistling Pinkie. “Never mind. So, what makes it so special?”

Widget grinned. “Top secret.”

12 - Dance Around the Problem

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“Testing! Testing! Y’all can hear me, right?” Hipster tapped her microphone as the newly formed band hauled their equipment into Windy Chimes’ backyard. “One day turnaround, pones! That’s all we’ve got so once we’re all hooked up, we’re jamming!”

Octavia walked past her, dragging a black case enveloped in her aura inches above the dirt.

“Yo! What’s with the frown there, girl?”

“If our conductor was here, she would’ve fired me on the spot,” bemoaned Octavia, dropping the case down and taking a seat on top of it. “Always be ready, Octavia, she always tells me. Make the notes sound right every single time, even if it’s the first time.” She covered her face, “Nothing but wrong notes. My performance was unsatisfactory.”

“Whoever your conductor is, she’s full of hot air,” Vinyl quipped while hooking wires behind a large speaker. “Didn’t you hear those pones cheering for us? We were sick out there!”

Hipster cut the microphone’s power and whipped her head. “Sick, yeah, but not sick enough. I’m not ragging on Tavi or anything but right now, all of us are just a one hit wonder. Audience will be expecting more from us, so we better step our game up.” She infused magic back onto the microphone. “Yo! Before we start, a big shout out to the old timer for letting us use his digs! It’s a sweet place to keep our stuff on the down low and away from those unhip birds, you know what I’m saying?”

Across the yard on the back porch, Windy Chimes grunted with a leer. “You think I was going to tell you kids to get off my lawn?” he shouted. “Okay! I thought about saying it as a joke!”

“Good call! I’d be all over you for some weak sauce like that!”

Soon afterwards, Fluttershy walked through the backdoor with a tray of lemonade. “Would you like to sample my batch, Mister Chimes?”

“Thank you, young lady.” Chimes sipped on a cold drink. “Ah! Just the right amount of sweet! The lemonade’s good too. Heh!”

“It was nothing,” she replied with a smile that welcomed other thirsty guests to their refreshments. “I just want to be of help.”

“If usefulness is what you desire, you should take your leave and rest. A long night awaits you.”

Fluttershy placed the now empty tray on a nearby table, “But Rarity hasn’t come back from the warehouse yet. Who’s going to help Rainbow and Swift with their performance?”

“I’m certain they can handle that with the band’s assistance for now. Besides, a set of wardrobe for the unlikeliest of music combinations takes priority.”

The back door swung open once more and two pegasi exited the house. The attention Rainbow and Swift drew was that expected from the arrival of Wonderbolts and other than a different color scheme, they looked the part as well. Rainbow basked in the praise of her sparkling wardrobe while Swift tried his best to stand behind her, away from all those eyes.

“C’mon, now.” She nudged him forward into the yard, “Soak it in! This is exactly what a Wonderbolt has to go through.”

“But I don’t want to be a—”

“I know you don’t but just play along for me. Please?”

Her plea tugged his heartstrings enough to walk beside her, chest bolstered like how the Wonderbolts usually appeared in posters. When he glanced her way, her face shone with the joy that rewarded his struggles of wriggling into a suit fifty degrees too hot and one size too small. At least he now had conclusive proof of muscle gain over the last few months, whatever small amount that was.

Hipster banged hooves with the two aerial performers. “Slick! Totally slick! So much, energy! I can just feel the vibe from you two!”

“Well, duh. We are the stars after all,” Rainbow said with her usual inflated ego. “I hope this mixing rock and orchestra is a good idea because rock’s totally my thing but orchestra, not so much. Um, no offense.”

Octavia fidgeted from her seat. “No, I understand your apprehension, Rainbow Dash. We’re used to performing for more upscale affairs. Even before I joined this orchestra, I never played in anything this, unrestrained, before. I’m afraid I lack the requisite experience to handle a unique situation like this.”

“Now you better hit that mute on that kind of talk,” Vinyl spoke, sliding in next to Octavia. “You’ve got me and Hips to back you up. Besides, I saw you work that stick on stage. That was pure magic, Tavi!”

“But the notes—”

“Loosen up! I’m far from perfect myself and the only pon that can pick that up is Hips. Always ragging on what I’m playing just because of her talent.”

“Hey, hey. Don’t be dissing my mark, Scratch,” replied Hipster, moving up her tinted glasses for a moment, earning a laugh from the DJ. She chuckled before turning back to Rainbow and Swift. “Tell you what. We’ll start with the song we played back at the festival site. You know, work with what we already know so you two get a nice groove going.”

Rainbow hoof pumped. “Oh, yeah! Time to get this party started!”

What Rainbow didn’t notice was Swift’s growing sense of unease. She had her own priorities, mainly suppressing her emotions. With an explanation for them airtight as her attire, though, this practice session was a flight through a Cloudsdale park. The music proved pleasing enough to her tastes and after a few attempts, contact with Swift didn’t add extra heartbeats. Even her partner proved competent enough that she could cross off a hard collision off her worry list.

Over time, however, it dawned on her that he struggled to keep eye contact. If he smiled, his muscles fought to hold it in place. His forehead also became a lake of sweat, even after Rarity returned and made some adjustments.

“Is it still too tight, dearie,” Rarity asked him during a lemonade break, pulling around the hole designed for his wing.

“Just a warm day,” he answered before gulping down a whole glass.

“Well, aren’t you the weather pony leader of this town, Swift? I’d think you could adjust the temperature to something more comfortable.”

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “It doesn’t quite work that way, Rarity. Besides, it’s not that warm. Where are we now? Eighty? Eighty five?”

“Eighty eight,” Swift corrected. “I wanted it lower for this weekend but I’ve got my orders.”

Chimes pushed through the back door with another batch of cool drinks. “Orders? Hmf! It’s a convenient excuse to sell more cold refreshments and sunscreen. I’d say it’s unnecessary but what do I know?”

“I certainly don’t mind,” said Applejack as she arrived on the back porch along with Blitz. “If ponies are thirsty, that means they’ll be looking for something to drink. With my spot near the front entrance—”

“Yo! Our spot,” Blitz complained.

She pulled the lid of her Stetson downward. “Yeah, yeah. You don’t to remind me. Anyways, we’re set to go for tomorrow but we’ve got tonight to worry about first. Fluttershy? Why are you’re still here?”

Fluttershy raised an empty cup, “Well, I’m still needed here.”

“No, you’re not,” Rainbow countered, nudging her friend through the back door. “AJ? Make sure she goes straight to the motel and takes a long nap.”

“Will do, RD. Good luck with your routine.”

Rainbow patted her partner. “Don’t worry. We’ll be ready by show time. Right, Swift?”

He gave an affirmative answer that convinced everyone but her.

What’s up with you, Swift?

With one row of fireworks set up near the shore, Widget and Pinkie lit up the dusk skies in a splash of sparkling colors for thirty seconds. It was but another small step but the watching redhead saw it as a giant leap.

“I love it so much,” Blossom squealed, hugging the two mares responsible for the demonstration. “It’s so pretty!”

“Color me impressed, ladies. Not one misfire and everything’s up to code,” remarked Ember Quench before scribbling on a clipboard. “About your cannon, however, I have my doubts about allowing such a device to be operated.”

Widget raised a screwdriver at the firepony, “Oy! It’ll be at full power by tomorrow. There’s just some bugs to conk out first.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of, Miss Widget.”

“Afraid? I can give you a small test of what it can do right now!”

The unicorn marched to the cannon and flipped a few switches on the side panel. Her sceptic stood on the other side, armed with a fire extinguisher. She looked for enthusiasm from Pinkie or Blossom but all she had was doubters around her. No surprise. It’s always been that way but tonight, maybe tonight would mark a new start.

Widget pushed a red button, immediately making the device rattle and emit a high-pitched whine. “Star shaped fireworks coming up,” she proclaimed. “Just hear her purr! Just watch it—”

One measly spark exited the barrel and the cannon clattered to a stop.

Ember squirted foam onto the access panel, putting out a small spark. “I will admit that by your standards, that was an uneventful failure, Miss Widget.” The stallion then jotted some more notes, “If you want to use your cannon tomorrow night, keep that away from the rest of the fireworks and take all necessary safety precautions.”

He left Widget with a passing grade on his inspection sheet before taking his leave. Any other day, she would’ve run home and plastered the good mark on her fridge.

Instead, she chucked the paper into the nearest wastebasket. “You lousy bucket of bolts!” She pulled out a wrench and whacked her invention, “I’ll tear you apart and turn you into slinkies!”

Blossom and Pinkie held her back until the former forced her to take a seat.

“Oh, Widget.” The redhead delivered a quick hug. “I know you really want this special cannon to work but don’t push yourself too hard. Simple fireworks are all we need and everything tells me you’re going to deliver. I’m proud of you!”

“But I want something really special for tomorrow, Blossi.” She clanged the barrel one last time.

Pinkie squeezed the pouty pony. “Even if it doesn’t work tomorrow, I’m sure you’ll make it work and when it does, everypony’s going to remember it.”

Widget sighed. “Hopefully, for the right reasons.” She then pulled out a bag and smiled. “But I can say these things in here will work like a charm! Are you sure this is all we need against the seagulls, Blossom?”

“Oh, yes,” she answered as she sifted through the contents. “I think Twilight will be having a nice evening. I wish I could be part of it but duty calls.”

“All nighter, Blossi?”

The surfer mare stared off toward the festival site, not that far away but much of its features draped in shadows. Little by little, another tent went up or one of the mechanical rides flashed its lights and went in motion. “Nah, Widget. A few extra hours but we’ll be ready. We’ll be ready.”

“Take ten, peeps!”

Hipster wiped hours of hard work off her forehead and took a well-deserved swig of water. Even with the sun long gone, the liquid that once swam with ice provided relief from thirst but not excess warmth. Nonetheless, it satisfied her and the exhausted ponies around her, at least the few that hadn’t found a convenient spot to collapse for an evening snooze.

“Talk about a long jam session,” remarked Vinyl as she sat next to Hipster and gestured Octavia to join them. “So, what do you think, Hips? How would you grade the sound so far?”

“From one to ten, ten being the highest, about five and a half on average.” Hipster stroked her chin, “Seven in some spots, maybe.”

“That’s quite a generous score,” Octavia interjected as she squeezed in between the two. “A four would be more accurate and I’m responsible for that. I am struggling mightily with the overall tempo, especially with that last song.” She gazed at the case holding her cello, “I know where my talents lie and conducting an entire orchestra is well outside my scope.”

Vinyl grabbed her around the neck and pulled her closer. “Tavi, you gotta stop doubting! I couldn’t do what you can do with just a stick!” Then, she brought in Hipster. “And your voice, damn girl! That’s ‘tour around the entire world’ type of talent!”

Hipster smirked. “Even if it is, this is a one-time deal. It ain’t hip to be too hip for your own good, dig?”

“If this will be a one-time performance, then we’ll make it one to remember,” said Rarity while rolling in a garment rack in front of them. “I’ll admit the fusion of classical and,” she squirmed for the right word, “eccentric sound made designing the right outfits difficult. That’s why I have a few mock ups you ladies can go through.”

“I see tears on that one,” Octavia noted on a grey vest she lifted from the rack.

Rarity nodded. “A design element and not shoddy work, I assure you.”

“I’m not sure if it would be proper to deviate from our usual attire. Our actual conductor—”

“—isn’t here, Tavi!” Vinyl ruffled her hair. “C’mon! Don’t be such a stiff!”

As Octavia and her two companions scrutinized the other garments, Windy Chimes brought over a much-anticipated new tray of cold water.

“How have our two dancers fared so far, Mister Chimes,” Rarity asked, searching across the darkening expanse over her head. “I would think they would be practicing right now, even if there’s no music.”

Chimes set the tray on a table and watched all the glasses disappear in five seconds, “They’re taking a dip on the ocean as we speak. Breathable as their suits are, you can only keep them on for so long before you’re swimming in sweat. As for their general performance, I’d say they’re, technically proficient.”

Rarity gave him a puzzled look. “Technically proficient? Should I be taking that as a positive?”

“I doubt we’ll have a midair disaster if that’s what worrying you.”

“Somewhat, but do they appear to be on the same page?”

Chimes turned to the trio that was the DJ, the singer and conductor converse about clothes and musical notes. “An answer to that, I don’t have.”

Near the shore, Rainbow sprawled on an inner tube as the waves occasionally splashed onto her damp coat. She might’ve been a pony with an active lifestyle but sometimes, she needed the occasional peaceful moment just like this once. Stars faded into existence before her eyes, a gentle breeze bristled against the palm trees lining the small beach and every time she breathed, she wished there was a spell to bring the ocean right to her doorstep. Forget a lowly branch with a pillow. This was the ideal setting to take a siesta.

“Darnit.” She stretched all she could, pumping energy throughout her body. “No time for napping. Back to work.”

Rainbow whooshed through the air and aimed straight at the stallion sitting on the shore. The moment she touched down and slid, he moved out of the way just enough to grab her and slow her momentum. No eating Brayside sand tonight.

“Oops! Forgot this wasn’t dirt,” she remarked, adding a nervous laugh at the end.

“Um, yeah.” He scurried back for some personal space. “Of course.”

“Think you’re ready for another session?” Rainbow reached for her suit lying over a towel and touched the inside, “These feel dry enough.”

Swift reached for his hair, “Sounds like a plan.”

After a brief silence, she blurted out, “Swift? What’s up with you?”

“Eh? N–nothing,” he said with a headshake.

With a sigh, she placed back the suit. “There’s no point holding anything back from me. Ever since we went to the Trotwalk, you’ve been off your game and I don’t think it’s because you caught something.”

“There’s nothing wrong with me.”

“Was it something I did last night?”

Struggling to keep his wings in check, “N–no! It’s wasn’t that!”

“So there is something! C’mon. It’s just you and me here. You can tell me.”

A part of him wanted to spill everything to her while another side injected fear into his chest. He knew this paralyzing sensation all too well but this time, his flying abilities were in no danger. For his overstressed heart, that was another story. “I’m, nervous.”

“Nervous? Nervous about what, Swift?”

Having Rainbow lean closer to him was one reason from many. Making up something on the fly was another. “T–the, the dance. Um, being in front of so many ponies, you know, performing. I mean, yeah, there was that race but that was… this is different. We were part of a big group. Here, it’s just us and the band.”

An eyebrow arched upwards. “Really? Is that what it is?” After some scrutinizing of his poker face, she patted him on the shoulder. “Okay, then. Whew! That’s a relief. Thought I was the only one feeling that way.”

“Eh?”

Rainbow nodded. “Swift, being a Wonderbolt has always been my dream. All these years, I’ve been working on stunts and doing them in front of friends and strangers. I thought doing that would prepare me for the day I get to do the real thing.” She stroked the glitter on her suit. “Tomorrow kinda feels like a dress rehearsal. I’ll be wearing something really slick and for once, I’ll have a teammate with me, a great teammate.”

He blinked a few times in awe.

“I got some jitters, that’s for sure, but in a way, that’s awesome. It’s like when I’m in the middle of a stunt and I’m just about to stall. For a few seconds, I’m like ‘I’m screwed! I’m totally screwed’ but then I get out of it. Woo! Right then, I feel alive! It’s what I love about flying! Well, except when I actually screw up and crash. Then that’s really not fun. You know how that is.”

He muttered a faint acknowledgement.

“Anyways, I won’t tell you to just suck it up. If you’re nervous, that’s all right. I’m nervous too. We’ll just have to work through it, that’s all.”

“Wow. I’m just,” Swift wondered whether the pony sitting in front of him was a mirage. “Rainbow, I can’t believe I’m hearing this from you.”

“Why?” She had a brief chuckle. “Well, okay. I guess telling you to suck it up would be something I might say to Fluttershy but you’re definitely not Fluttershy. Well, maybe not even like that.”

Before he could judge whether Rainbow complimented or slighted him, she had ahold of his hoof. “Um, w–what are you doing?”

Every wick of sparkling seawater on her face evaporated. I can handle this. There’s nothing to it. “C’mon. Let’s practice.”

“N–now?”

“Yeah. Since nopony’s watching us, maybe that will make it easier on you. I’ll lead, okay?”

His heart floated faster than his own body. The best he could do to relax is to focus on his next move in the performance. “Rainbow? Which number are we doing?”

“Pffft! Let’s not worry about boring stuff like that! Why not just do what feels awesome?” Pretend we’re moving to a really fast wild jam! Like this!”

“Eh?”

Rainbow wriggled like a snake and after some urging, he did the same. Then she grabbed his other hoof and took him for an upwards spin. The second she let go, she tucked in her body and did five furious rolls followed by a flip. No matter what maneuver she did, he copied it, down to the occasional mistake. If she wanted him to relax and inadvertently make him forget the true reason for his nervousness, mission accomplished. If she was trying to put together a new routine, this was throwing everything in the refrigerator into a salad bowl and calling it a full course meal.

“You’re just being totally random, Rainbow,” he chortled as he ascended above the palm trees. “That’s not gonna fly tomorrow.”

“What’s your point?” She bumped her flank right into his. “You think you can do better?”

“That sounded like a challenge to me.”

“So what if it is? What are you going to do about it?”

This time, it was his turn to grab a hoof. Whatever impulse gave him the courage to do so also guided Swift on what type of moves would be fitting for a daredevil mare. Spins, she adored spins but the way she does them are too plain and fast for enjoyment. No, she deserved something better so he turned down the speed and added sideways rotation.

“Whoa! Swift? I’m digging this!”

Before she could get accustomed to the view of both sky and ocean, he flipped around her and transitioned her into a sideways twirl. Moments later, they started a dive toward the sea and with just one look, she entrusted him to hold her upside down inches from the water.

“Ha, ha, ha!” She let her hind leg skim over the sea. “Swift? You’ve been holding back all this time, haven’t you?”

He didn’t know the answer, only that he wanted to show her more. “Get ready!”

With all he could, he tossed Rainbow up and over his head. Somehow, she knew to grab his outstretched hoof and pull him upwards. They repeated the move a few times, gaining altitude and trust in one other. Possibilities opened up for additional acrobatic moves: double corkscrew, combination spin and a slide with a few twists at the end. No matter what they did, they kept a close distance, their impulsive need to bask in the sight of one another too much to overcome. With each maneuver, they not only earned high marks on technicality, they discovered how to add a touch of charm and elegance to their wing flaps.

Wonderbolts would never move like this. They merely flew next to each other, the goal being to wow their audience with pinpoint precision. These two flew as one, a fusion of souls hundreds of feet up in the air.

Eventually, Swift brought her closer and looped every higher toward the moon. Certainly, Rainbow could’ve done these moves herself — and faster to boot — but it wouldn’t have the meaning it had now. Flying was her passion, a language she thought she had mastered with countless practice hours. Tonight proved there were more lessons to learn. Pegasi could share much more with how they move their elegant feathers than with clumsy words. A moment like this was how to live, to relish the gift that made them different from earth ponies and unicorns. They were the lucky ones. Wings gave them freedom to explore the skies and yet, there was something special sharing it with somepony that understood.

“Fold your wings in, Rainbow!”

Ice had begun forming on her nose. “What? All the way up here?”

He pressed right up against her body. “Trust me!”

Immediately, she acquiesced. Before she knew it, the stallion flapped his wings just enough to send them both into a free falling spin. From there, he ceded all controls to gravity.

“Swift! You, a-ha-ha!”

Such a stomach churning sensation would’ve sent any sane pegasus into a panic. Instead, they embraced the sensation of unequivocal freedom from worrying about speed and altitude. Every second, they lost bits of their maturity until they were back to their respective ages when they first took flight. Faster and faster they twisted further out of control and their only reaction is scream their unbridled delight to the skies, never letting go of one another. They wanted this to last forever, an experience unlike any other.

A love letter to flight, written by their wingtips.

Eventually, sanity had Swift pull Rainbow back to reality a few feet from where they began, just above the pristine sand. By their labored breathing, taking a seat was in order but they kept hovering, unwilling to part.

“You were so definitely holding back,” Rainbow whispered to him, reaffirming her grip around his neck. “Swift? I never knew.”

“Never knew what?”

“That you could fly like that. It was so… why haven’t you shown me this before?”

That answer was right in front of him and if he didn’t say it soon, his cheeks would betray him. “Well, I, you see—” Another interruption arrived but it came from his mind. Mistake, mistake, the almost kiss on the train was a mistake. His intended response was right and yet, wrong at the same time. Swift drifted apart from her, doubt and fear disabling his voice box.

“Yoo, hoo! Where are you two hiding?” Rarity emerged from the field of palm trees and onto the beach. “Ah, there you are, dearies! We’ve been expecting you for quite a while!”

Rainbow gasped. “Oh! Y–you were?” She raced to her side. “Oops! Heh, heh! Sorry. Guess we’ve, um, lost track of time. We’re, we’re ready. I think we’re ready. Right, Swift?”

A solemn nod was enough to satisfy them but not the sudden heart seizure cutting off his vitals. In the span of ten minutes, he went from the peak of elation to the basement of anguish, all because of one cyan mare. I can’t go through this. I… shoot! I– I need to do something! On a whim, Swift collapsed onto the sand and clutched his left wing.

As expected, the two mares ran over to him and asked what was wrong.

“I, um, must have tweaked it.” Swift hissed as he moved his appendage.

Rarity threw herself back with a dramatic gasp. “This is an absolute tragedy! Our star performer injured the night before their big performance! Somepony call a doctor immediately!”

“No, no!” Swift pretended to chuckle. “No worries, Rarity. Not my first time with this problem. I just need to let it rest until tomorrow.”

“But we still need to practice,” Rainbow interrupted.

“We’ll be okay. Just get a feel for the music,” he answered, careful not to look directly at her. “If we can, you know, improvise, then, you know. Ahem! Guess I’ll, I’ll just call it a night.”

“Wait!” Rainbow toyed with her hair, “Um, I could help you fly home.”

Swift took shaky steps back, “No, that’s not, no need! A nice long jog will do me good!”

He did just that, running down the beach with all the power he could muster. It was the physical distraction he needed to forget about the mare he left behind, even if only for a little while.

“Da-da-da-da-da-da-da!” In the dark behind a tree trunk, Blitz scouted his surroundings. He then tip hoofed toward some bushes, “Da-da-da-da-da-da-da!”

From within some shrubbery, Applejack yanked him into the leaves “Will you cut that out,” she muttered through her clenched jaw.

“Just throwing in some sneaking tunes. Geez!” Blitz parted the bushes in front of him. Ahead, the moon provided just enough natural light to form the outlines of trees towering over a pitch-black pit. “Yo, Radar? Are we in the right spot?”

Radar crawled in between the two and turned on her magic. “Affirmative. I detect no notable activity from the seagulls. Fluttershy is already stationed in the designed area along with her animal friends.”

“It’s all coming together. Much better than expected,” responded Twilight, joining the three hiding behind the vegetation. “Remember, everypony. I can erect a barrier for about ten minutes, max. We have to make this count.”

“Whenever you’re ready, Sugarcube,” Applejack whispered.

“Operation Squawk Box is a go.” Twilight hopped onto a rock overlooking the edge of the pit. With a sudden shrill, a glittering energy wall encompassed the area, waking the seagulls from their slumber.

At the bottom of the pit, Master Pinion raised a ruckus, prompting his subordinates to follow his lead.

Twilight blew on a whistle, doing little to quiet down the trapped birds. “Listen up because I’m only going to say this once! Brayside Beach and the animals of this jungle have had enough of your unruly behavior! You think it’s so much fun to be incredibly annoying to all your neighbors? Let’s see how you like it when you’re the one being annoyed!”

The unicorn raised a hoof and made a signal. Soon afterwards, critters ranging from anteaters to warthogs emerged from the bushes, carrying an assortment of items whichever way they could. At Fluttershy’s instruction, the animals walked right up to the barrier’s edge and plugged up their ears. The ponies did the same save for the unicorn with the whistle.

“Commence annoying level number one,” Twilight barked.

Toucans and parrots left their branches and began a circular path above the barrier. Eventually, they began dropping their white payload through small holes in the energy field. Then, the parrots opened their beaks wide and strung together their variation of ear splitting squawks. Some seagulls raised their voices even higher while others banged right into the sparkling bubble, causing ripples across the shield.

With a hoof wave from Twilight, the parrots lowered the volume. “Aha! You see how that feels from the other side? I’ll make this nice and simple. We stop annoying you right now and you promise us not to interfere with the festival and be nicer to all the animals in this jungle.”

Immediately, Pinion bolted to the highest perch in the pit. He screeched a few words before spitting on the rock he stood on.

Fluttershy rubbed her temple, “If you didn’t get that, Twilight, he’s not backing down.”

“Just as I expected. They’re not going to give up that easily.” Twilight stomped her hoof. “In that case, proceed to annoyance level number two! That’ll teach them a lesson!”

The non-winged animals prepared to blow into Widget-crafted instruments: kazoos, whizzers, vuvuzelas and horns. A few even had cowbells and clappers in case they ran short of breath. When Fluttershy gave the order, it marked the birth of a new orchestra with one singular and bizarre purpose – play the worst performance possible. Widget’s hoofwork ensured that every tune, every pitch came out distorted and at maximum volume.

Twilight finally donned her earplugs but even with that, the ruckus made concentration more difficult. Thankfully, the seagulls could no longer mount an offensive against her barrier. The collective noises had them writhing wherever they landed, their wingspans proving to be poor noise blockers.

Again, Twilight motioned for a lull. “You know, we can keep this up all night if we have to! Agree to our terms and we’ll let you go back to sleep!”

This time, Pinion flapped all the way to the edge of the barrier where he could see Twilight face to face. “Cram it, ugly!”

The unicorn slipped backwards but Applejack saved her from a fall. “W–what?” Her magic dimmed for a moment. “You, you actually talk?”

“Your hearing’s broken, ugly? Of course, we can talk! Every seagull in Equestria can talk!”

Suddenly, a chorus of laughs erupted from within the pit.

Twilight flicked her tail. “You don’t say? Then why haven’t you until now?”

“Because we’re not like those other seagulls that waste their time speaking your language. I mean, if we just go—” He spat out a string of bird speak —“it’s a lot annoying and straight to the point. Unfortunately, you’re all too stupid to get the message so I’ll spell it out for you. This is our turf now and we can do whatever we want whenever you want. Deal with it!”

Bubbles poured out of Twilight’s horn. For all the emphasis on love and tolerance, she had the urge to zap the leader bird into barbeque. Even if she could set her morals on the wayside, she had enough trouble holding this barrier in place.

“Orders,” asked Applejack.

There was no point continuing a gradual progression. It was time for the last resort option. “Maximum annoyance level,” Twilight enunciated with volume.

Master Pinion feigned a wing shake. “Oh, no. Maximum annoyance. We’re all doomed. Ha, ha! Don’t you know whom you’re dealing with? We’re seagulls! We pride ourselves in making the most annoying noises that anypony or anyone has ever heard! What could you losers come up with that could top us?”

Then, Pineapple Blitz climbed onto a separate rock outcropping. “Right here, you bird brains! Heh!”

Applejack tossed the stallion a microphone before grabbing a record player and two small speakers hidden within a nearby bush. She turned one of the knobs on the speaker and gave Blitz the okay signal.

“Blitz test, yeah!”

The resulting sound shook leaves off branches and broke off loose rock from the pit walls.

“Oh, Blitz, yeah! I bet they can hear me all the way from Brayside! Time to hit you with my greatest hits!”

Everyone around the stallion pressed on their plugs, ensuring a tight fit. Twilight, however, kept hers a little loose. In spite of Blossom’s advice earlier in the night, she wanted to hear what the fuss was about Blitz’s singing abilities, or lack thereof. There’s been plenty of adjectives to describe it – none of them qualifying as a positive – but she couldn’t imagine how an inability to carry a tune could possibly help in this situation. Nevertheless, she braced herself as Applejack moved the needle onto the record. Twilight guessed this would be rock, the logical choice if the intention was maximum decibels.

Close but not quite.

Instantly, Twilight recognized the tune as a song that had electric guitars but with a slow tempo. The lyrics were what she would expect to hear on Hearts Warming Eve, that of a stallion protecting the love of his life, no matter the obstacles. With its original singer, even a pony not that interested in romance found a certain appeal to the song.

This karaoke performer, on the other hoof, destroyed every syllable with what a dictionary would define as singing. In reality, Pineapple Blitz was a butcher of the worst kind, destroying not just the words but also pouring searing acid into her delicate eardrums. Her magic faltered and the barrier developed giant gaps.

“Oh, sweet Celestia, no!” Twilight pressed the plugs deeper into her ears.

To her shock, not one seagull took advantage of her lapse. The stallion had sent them all into a state of writhing pain and squawking agony. A few mustered a brief flight toward the barrier before Blitz shot them down with a flurry of lethal notes. What was a longshot idea turned into a massacre of not just birds but also of an innocent song. While Twilight looked away from the pit, many miles away, Hipster Amps literally dropped the mike.

“What in the–” Hipster’s ears twitched faster by the second.

“Yo, what’s the deal, Hip,” Vinyl asked. “You’ve gone pale on me!”

“Don’t you hear it?”

Vinyl checked random spots around Chimes’ backyard. “Nothing. What’s up?”

“I sense a disturbance in the waves.” Hipster shuddered. “That ain’t right. Totally not hip, Blitz. You’re wrecking the sound waves, bro.”

He might have been but as he went deeper into the song, he pushed the seagulls closer to the brink. However, Twilight’s magic reserves also teetered close to the edge, the barrier flickering every few seconds. It became a battle of endurance between a finite amount of magic and an unknown level of tolerance.

“Radar, contingency plan B,” Twilight strained to say with a loud voice. “We may have to… huh?”

Finally, Pinion raised one of his gallant wings and waved it about like a flag. “E-nough! We’ve had enough! Shut him up, pleaseeeeeeeee!”

At first, Twilight gazed at him with puzzlement. Bereft of hearing, she had to combine his stilted movements and read his beak movements in order to shout for an all stop.

Blitz raised his hoof and twanged an invisible guitar, unaware of his new orders. Therefore, Applejack delivered a personal message right into his ribcage. “Owwww! Hey!” His nostrils flared at the smirking cowpony. “I was just ready to sing the chorus!”

“No chorus! No chorus,” Pinion urged, clutching his head while lying flat on a rock. “Damn you. That was downright dirty! Completely unfair! That noise should be illegal!”

“Well, it’s not,” Twilight answered, refraining from cockiness the best she could. “That’s just one song he knows. We’ve got plenty more we can choose from. We can come back every night and indulge you with his singing talents or you can take our deal. The choice is yours.”

Pinion snarled. “Like we’ll… ahhhhhh!”

The singing resumed but not from the surprised Blitz. One of the birds had pushed a button on a pen-sized object that replayed a brief part of the performance.

“Widget was kind enough to build portable recorders just in case,” Twilight confirmed. “But if that doesn’t convince you, then let’s enjoy that chorus, shall we? Blitz? Resume—”

“Noooooooooo!” Pinion pounded the gritty ground. “Ughhh! Fine! Fine. You have a deal but I warn you, pony, that this is only a setback. We’ll be back with something even more annoyi—” He cowered, courtesy of a recorded singing voice.

Twilight lowered the barrier around the pit. “I’m glad we were able to negotiate a deal. I hope you have a pleasant evening.”

Twilight then walked a few feet away from the jungle before slumping by a tree trunk. Not long after, her pony companions surrounded her.

“The seagulls are staying within the pit,” Radar reported. “I believe the animals can keep them at bay in case they want to start chasing us.”

“That was one might fine job, Twilight,” Applejack complimented.

“And not a moment too soon.” Twilight pressed on her temple, “Remind me to practice my magic barriers more.”

Fluttershy drifted into Blitz’s line of sight. “Why the sad face? We took care of the seagulls, didn’t we?”

He took a seat and grunted. “Blossom didn’t say anything about recording my voice! That wasn’t part of the deal I made with her!”

“I’m just surprised you even agreed to do this in the first place,” Applejack added. “Must have been a really nice deal to go through with it. Knowing you, I bet you asked for a date.”

“A, a date?” Blitz blinked a few times before bopping his own head. “Ahhh, horse manure! I could’ve had a date with Blossom! I only asked for a big home cooked dinner, the best one she could make!”

Applejack smiled broadly. “You didn’t… you mean?” She broke into a guffaw. “You embarrassed yourself like that just for some food?” She struck him lightly with her hat. “Oh, Celestia! I’ll be in stiches till tomorrow!”

Twilight shook her head, chuckling. “Tomorrow. If I’m reading the moon right, it may already be Saturday. Whatever the case, festival, here we come!”

13 - Aloha to Saturday

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“Welcome to Brayside Beach!”

The train station clock had yet to reach ten o’clock but already, the station was a hub bustling with activity. Every few minutes, a train pulled in and emptied its passengers onto the platform and before anypony could become accustomed to their sunny surroundings, a live band greeted them with music from ukuleles and drums while smiling ponies in hula skirts provided leis.

With the constant hoof traffic and the boiling humid air, however, the tempo suffered with each new wave of arrivals. Was this half of Equestria arriving to Brayside, they wondered. Sure, they expected a healthy crowd but the allure of a one last celebration of excessive heat by cool waters must have been all that marketing needed to advertise. Respite of any form was in short supply.

Then, Rarity arrived with the welcome sight of umbrellas, custom made just for this occasion. Whether made out of bright colored hay or a smoother silk with flowery patterns, the unicorn had something for not just the sweating workers but also guests wanting a nice souvenir to add to their collection. Not far behind, Fluttershy brought some refreshing lemonade along with some parrots and macaws eager to take over leis distribution.

Once the bulk of the latest newcomers streamed into the station building, all the workers huddled by the water misters placed over a long bench. Based on the train station clock, the ten thirty from Manehattan was about ten minutes away from arrival.

“You really didn’t need to be here, Fluttershy,” commented Rarity as she took a seat and basked in the mist. “Surely, you must have had a long night.”

“I don’t mind at all,” Fluttershy responded, taking the spot next to Rarity. “The birds were nice enough to help me out for dealing with the seagull problem. Oh, and there’s some by the roundabout to help out the tour guides.” She paused for a stretch, “But I may need a long nap after this.”

“Sounds lovely. I may just need one too. Late night inspiration to make festival-themed umbrellas wasn’t good for my beauty rest. At least we were able to finish all the outfits in time.”

Fluttershy stroked her hair once. “So, how do you think Swift and Rainbow will do?”

Rarity frowned. “Thanks to me, Fluttershy, I may have inadvertently crushed any hopes of making Rainbow some dating ensembles anytime in the near future. I was looking forward to it, too, all those wonderful colors in her hair. So many potential combinations.”

“I meant their performance tonight.”

Rarity coughed. “Um, oh. Yes. I was just—”

“But I was thinking about that too.” Fluttershy sighed. “Do you think we had her best intentions in mind when she told us everything?”

“Whatever do you mean, dearie?”

“Do you think we were pushing Rainbow toward something we wanted?”

Rarity squirmed, “Well, if I must be honest, we may have had our own intentions in mind. That said, I have my doubts that she really knows what she wants right now. Whatever happens next, Fluttershy, we need to be there for her. I just hope she doesn’t close up on us.”

From afar, the whistle of an incoming train brought out a collective groan. Whether this was a late arrival or an eager conductor wanting some sunshine ASAP, this break was over just as it began.

Hipster raised a hoof high into the air. “One, two, three, four! Hip it!”

Violins and electric guitars behind her worked together in creating a harmonious melody. While Vinyl worked her magic behind the turntable, Octavia directed the consolidated band with deliberate baton movements. Soon enough, Hipster added her scratchy voice to the mix and moved her body to match the rhythm.

One audience member – Windy Chimes – stomped the ground on the middle of his own backyard, doing his best to turn back the clock and behave like the days when he could swish his plentiful blonde hair to attract attention.

On the side, Rainbow sat on a musical storage case, unleashing her urge to dance via some light taps on the lid. Sans a flying partner, it had to do. She could’ve found a substitute pegasus like Windy Chimes had suggested in the morning but that would’ve been replacing fresh apple cider with Rich’s Barnyard Bargains Cider.

It just wouldn’t be the same. Not even close.

“Ooooh, that was better,” Hipster remarked as the music faded. “Yeah, we can definitely do this song for our opener. You know, a nice easy jam to get the nerves out of our system.”

“You call that easy?” Octavia patted her head with a towel, “I guess a more competent pony would think this is elementary. I’m barely keeping pace as it is with that song.”

“You’re cool, Tavi, You’re cool,” affirmed Vinyl Scratch, bumping Octavia on the side. “No need for perfection As long as the crowd enjoys the show!”

Windy Chimes hollered from a distance. “You kids and your music! Heh! I love hearing what each new generation comes up with! Quite good, it is! What says you, Rainbow Dash?”

She gave a weak nod. “Yeah, totally rocking.”

While the band started practice with a different song, the elder sat next to her as she grabbed some sheets of paper.

“What do you have there, hmmm,” asked Chimes, craning his head in her direction.

“Just some moves I drew up,” Rainbow answered, tracing the markings of her crude diagrams. “Without Swift here, all I can do is plan out what we’re going to do tonight. That’s what a good Wonderbolt would do.”

He mimicked her last statement. “Yes, a prudent choice for a Wonderbolt, maybe, although it may not be necessary. Again, focus on the bond you share with him. Practice you do not need. Just let yourself go like you did last night.”

Rainbow dropped her notes and the breeze made them dance in the air. “What, you, you saw us, d–dancing?”

“Ah, so that’s what it was. See, I did not but I sensed something in the winds, something I have not sensed in a while.” He breathed in deep and let the air out gently. “Refreshing, it was, a meld between pegasi and sky. Whatever you two did last night, simply replicate.”

“Whatever we… I’m not sure how it happened. It just, did and—” Her wings came unfurled. “Ah! My notes! I need those! Be right back!”

Chimes chuckled as Rainbow chased after floating paper.

A mile away from the festival site, Pinkie set down a container full of red tubes on some soft grass. Meanwhile, a few rows down, Widget added the powder and shell into the mortars before setting up the fuses. They repeated the process for all the boxed containers holding enough payload to light the skies for minutes.

Eventually, the unicorn connected all the wiring to a control box, keeping an eye out for any fraying. “Oy! That was a doozy,” Widget remarked before taking a sip of lemonade. “But it’s all done!”

“And ahead of schedule too,” added Pinkie, walking down one row of mortars and double-checking the innards. “You did a great job, Widge! These should go off without a hitch!”

“I wish I could say the same for that,” Widget bemoaned, starting straight at the prototype cannon parked right under the only palm tree on the field. “It hasn’t fired up at all today.”

“But it also hasn’t caught on fire today.” Pinkie walked up to the device and began polishing the surface with a cloth, “I’ll take that as a big step forward.”

“Then we’ll need to make one giant leap for ponykind!” Widget took one big swig of her lemony drink. “Ahhhh! We’ve only got a few hours left, Pinkie, so let’s make that baby roar!”

“Get your Pine-Apple Punch right here!”

“Fresh and swu-eeeeet for your buds!”

Both Applejack and Pineapple Blitz broadcasted their offerings but it was more out of fun than trying to drum up their business. It was not even an hour from when they first opened their stand and not only was the line of thirsty patrons twenty ponies deep, they had two large bags filled to the top with shiny gold bits. The cherry on the top was the scowls from most of their competition that had to watch the victors get the spoils.

One competitor, though, caught Blitz’s eye more than anypony else. With the melon stand at the end of a long row, Misty Honeydew had a mere fraction of foot traffic passing by. Yet, she rewarded every customer with something more than just a melon product, a string of kind words created for each patron along with a shining smile that gave her treats that extra bit of sweetness.

“Misty,” Blitz murmured. Soon, he started chopping pineapples while keeping vigil of the green haired mare. Here he was enjoying the pinnacle of business success and there she was, fighting for every single bit while holding to her optimism that she’ll make decent profit.

“Hey! What are you doing,” Applejack asked.

Blitz realized he just made a dent on the stand’s surface. “Whoa! Where’s the fruit?”

Applejack shook her head. “Right beside you, like it has been since we’ve opened!”

“They are?” One glance confirmed it. “Whoa! Were those always there?”

“Get your head in the game! We’ve got a barrelful of customers to serve!”

“We do?”

The cowpony pointed at the line extending past the banner marking the festival entrance. “Look, take over selling for a few minutes. I need to bake a few more pies here. We’re almost out of slices.”

Just like that, Pineapple Blitz had six ponies fighting to get in their orders.

In one large tent, a magician wowed his audience by pulling out an entire wagon from his enlarged hat. Just outside, however, there was another performance by a redhead mare. She stood atop a crate, donned in a simple flower print dress and a single large blossom nestled near her ear. Like a performer nearby, she had a juggling act but of responsibilities rather than milk bottles. Her audience of several festival workers stood firm, tuning in to every word she uttered.

“We need more toilet paper at outhouse number seven and soap at outhouse eleven,” Blossom commanded. With a head motion, Spike scribbled on his clipboard. “Now, did we get that extra shipment of toilet paper yet?”

“Afraid not, ma’am,” spoke one of the workers. “ETA thirty minutes, maybe an hour.”

“In that case, also move outhouse sixteen to the same area as seven and eleven. Now, I’ve heard there’s a long line for the Twirl-A-Whirl due to a slight malfunction. I want one of our backup performers to entertain our waiting guests while repairs are underway. Finally, I just received a report about a missing foal.”

Gasps came out of the gathered workers.

“Last location reported to be around the Malts R’ Us. I want a party of three to search the festival site. I also need one pegasus to inform Twilight at the Trotwalk so she can search her designated area. I’ll also need one pony to comfort the mother. Spike has some scrolls with a detailed description of who’s missing. If you see this foal, escort her to the lost and found booth immediately. Dismissed!”

In haste, ponies scrambled off in various directions.

“Hey, do you want me to fetch you another drink, Blossom,” asked the dragon assistant. He took out a plastic bag stuffed with melon slices. “You sound parched!”

She hopped off the crate and grabbed his notes, “A little, yes, but I’ll pass for now. Thanks for asking, though!”

“Can I just say it was nice of you to give Twilight command of everything outside the festival area itself? I mean,” Spike stuffed fruit into his mouth, “she didn’t even ask for anything like that.”

“It was the least I could do. After all, she did take care of that seagull problem. Maybe not permanently but enough to get this festival up and going.” She flipped a page and groaned. “And I’ll admit I have enough fires to put out here as it is. Dunk tank not working, bounce house has developed an air leak.” She flipped again, “Oh, dear. Trash cans overflowing in Sector Two and a request for more red paint for some reason. I haven’t even figured out what to do about Swift.”

Spike swallowed his last piece. “You mean about his wing?”

Blossom stared off into the crowds. They certainly looked like they were enjoying their time, unaware of all the time it took to make everything around them possible. “That’s what Rarity told me. She did check on him this morning but, hmmmm. I just have a… never mind, Spike. Let’s see what else we have to deal with, okay?”

After a prolonged silence, “If it bothers you this much, you should see him yourself, Blossom.”

The notes fell onto the dirt. “What, no, no. I can’t. Not that I don’t want to. I want to, Spike, but I have so much to do here.”

“Nothing that I can’t handle for a little while. You’ve got everypony here trained well enough. If it becomes too much, I can always ask Twilight for help.”

She grimaced but only for a moment. “Oh, you’re such a sweetheart!”

“Ah, I’m just being—” He found himself in a hug he’d always dreamed of, just not from Rarity. Even so, he wasn’t going to file a complaint.

“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” she uttered before galloping around a blow-up slide, discarding her outfit along the way.

Spike gathered the spilled notes, “I hope she knows what she’s doing.”

“We’ve got another one!” Twilight trotted from under the shadow of the Trotwalk’s pier and to a garbage receptacle overflowing with discarded cups and empty sunscreen bottles. She instructed the ponies pulling a wagon behind her to tie up the bag and toss it along with the rest of their stinky haul.

“We’ll need to increase the pace, ponies,” she commanded. “We’re only falling further behind.”

The garbage ponies could only respond with labored breaths.

“Hmmm, wait right here!” Twilight teleported from the pathway to the front of the nearest lifeguard station. “Excuse me,” she cried out, making her way up the ramp. “Is anypony here? I need some assistance!”

A pony emerged from inside the station, an earth pony with a ponytail and wearing a skintight uniform denoting her position. “Do we have an emergen… oh.” She gazed at the unicorn wearing a flowery blazer and hat. “Um, who are you, exactly?”

Twilight wrinkled her nose. “I’m the leader of this area, Twilight Sparkle. Where’s all the lifeguards, Miss—?”

“Coral Sands,” said the blue mare. “Sorry! I’m kinda new here. All the other lifeguards here left. Reports of a possible leviathan sighting.”

“Again?” She grasped her head, “Uggghhh! I thought I cleared that mess up with the last station! That’s just some teenage ponies stirring up trouble with rumors! I even wrote a memo about it! Didn’t anypony here receive it?”

Coral curled an eyebrow along with a snicker. “Memo? Wow. You know, Twilight, we do have a better way of—”

“Never mind. Now, when they come back, tell the other lifeguards I’m reassigning two of them to garbage duty. Correction. Two from every station’s being reassigned to garbage duty. We have a trash problem and it’s not getting any better.”

“Huh?” Coral scratched her head. “Yeah, is that such a good idea? I mean, we’re already pretty busy as it is and besides, we’re not—”

“Oh, look at the time! Listen, you write the memo and distribute. I have a meeting in five minutes regarding an incident at the Ferris Wheel and… hmmm. Wait a minute. What’s this?” Twilight peeked through the station’s door and inspected a few items listed on a bulletin board. “I might have to address those later.”

Coral stepped back as Twilight disappeared in a burst of magic. “Whoa. Who was that pony? Did Blossom actually hire her or something?”

“I don’t know what I’m doing, right, Leo?” Lying on his back on his cloud bed, Swift held his turtle friend above his head. “Or do I?”

Leo blinked and made a motion that indicated he was paying attention.

“I thought I had an idea how my life was going to play out. I thought that I’d never get all mushy about somepony, that it’s something that happens to other stallions. It’s something that wasn’t going to happen to me. C’mon. You know that’s how I’ve been from the moment we met.”

His turtle nodded.

“Then I meet Rainbow Dash and for a while, it was just like any other friendship I’ve had. Somewhere along the way, I don’t know. I’m sure of, something, and I’m not at the same time. Shoot. I’m losing my mind here!” He snorted. “I mean, look at me! I’m asking advice from a turtle! Do you even hang out with girl turtles? How does that even work? Is that something I even want to know?”

Leo uttered some gibberish.

He exhaled. “My bad. I know you’re trying to help. Oh, and you too, Blossom.”

An eek echoed within the cave. Soon afterwards, the makeshift cloud door fizzled and she walked into the open. “Oh, um, aloha! I was, I just got here.”

He rose up from his bed. “I believe you. So why are—” A surfboard swung right at him, “—ahhhhh!”

Blossom struck rock wall, leaving a dent on it. “Tweaked wing, huh,” she commented, craning her head upwards and dumping her surfboard aside.

“You didn’t need to do that, you know,” he complained, flailing his hooves. “You could’ve asked!”

“I just wanted to be sure.” She took a seat on the bed, prompting Leo to jump onto her head. “Now come down and talk to me, Swift.”

After grumbling some more, he acquiesced. “Talk about what, exactly?”

“Whatever’s bothering you, of course.” She took ahold of the photo booth pictures enclosed within a frame. “If I had to take one guess, this has something to do with Rainbow Dash. Am I right?”

“There’s nothing... it’s that… I don’t think I can dance with her tonight, Blossom.”

She took a slow breath. “I had a feeling that was the case. What makes you say that, Swift? Did something new happen?”

An imaginary zipper closed over his mouth.

“Swift? I’m not leaving until you tell me.”

“C’mon, now. You have a festival to run. You’ve been looking forward to this day forever.”

“True but I have a friend that needs me. Just tell me what happened, okay?”

He grabbed onto his bed cloud and squeezed. “You see, we sorta… it just happened. Danced. W–we, last night, we really, danced.”

Blossom bobbled the frame on her hooves until it finally slipped out of her grasp.

Before she could finish her gasp, Swift dove for the save. “That one’s on me,” he replied as he put the pictures back atop the cabinet.

“It happened? You and Rainbow? You had a really nice dance together?”

“I’m surprised as you are. It was just the two of us taking a break. She wanted me to loosen up and, just like that. I don’t know how but those few minutes, Blossom, I–I never felt that way before,” he finished with wings up. “I never thought flying would ever be that wicked and… no. Wicked isn’t the right word, not even close! It’s way more than that! Having Rainbow with me, I felt alive, like I could take on anything the world could throw at me! I was light as a feather! I was, I was—”

“Happy,” Blossom uttered in a cheerful whisper. She reached out to touch his chest. “Right here, weren’t you?”

Just like that, negativity crushed his euphoria. “Shoot. No, no, noooooo.” He flopped backwards onto his bed and hid his face with a pillow. “I can’t believe this is happening to me. I should be happy she’s my friend but I’m not. I don’t want to feel this way about Rainbow but I do. I’m so lost, Blossom. How do I deal with all of this?”

She couldn’t offer an answer, not at the moment. Matters of the heart required delicacy, especially when it involved one of her best friends. However, her only solution resembled how she handled many situations – with bluntness. This time, though, her surfboard would be of no practical use. She had to go with words, ones that may hurt more than any physical strike she could deliver.

“Swift?” Blossom yanked the pillow from his grasp. “The way I see it, there’s only one way out of this. Tell Rainbow Dash you really like her.”

He came back up, his shrinking pupils aimed squarely at the redhead. “What? N–no! Don’t you understand? The mistake! She said that—”

“I don’t care what you may have heard. Maybe she was speaking the truth, she could’ve been lying or you didn’t catch the whole conversation. There’s so many explanations out there but frankly, it doesn’t matter. You can’t bottle up your feelings like this. You have to let them out or it’s just going to eat you up from the inside. Besides, the way you’ve been acting, Rainbow Dash will eventually figure out what’s going on with you. Swift? Don’t keep this secret from her. Tell her the truth. Whatever happens after that, well, I’m not sure what will happen but trust that she’ll at least understand.”

In his mind, believing that she would understand was a leap of faith. All the work he had put into this connection with Rainbow Dash could unravel with a single statement. Nonetheless, the damage could be greater the longer he kept his boiling emotions in check. Already, his mind was spinning in circles, unable to come up with a meaningful rebuttal.

“I don’t know if I can,” he finally shouted before facing the rock wall and resting his head on it. “What a mess I got myself into, huh?”

At this point, Blossom could do no more than pat him on the back. “I know you’ll figure something out. You always do, Swift. If you need me, you know where to find me. I’ll see you tonight, okay?”

He said nothing in return. She sounded so confident, he thought. He wished he could scoop that up and pour it into him so he could live up to his obligation to perform with Rainbow Dash. Deep down, that’s what he wanted but first, he had to figure out how to make it through the night.

There had to be a way out of this and he was running out of time. He had choices to make, none of them easy and once he made them, there was no going back.

14 - Face the Music

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“Are you ready to party tonight? I thought I’d put on my birthday suit for the occasion but I wear that all the time.”

A few minutes before sunset, crowds filed into the seating area in front of the main stage for the first act of many. Already, the comedian in front of the microphone was eliciting a few laughs from the early arrivals. As more took their seats, he switched to the audience participation portion where he called ponies on stage to be assistants for whatever buffoonery he had planned.

Behind the curtains, the tropical band that was at the train station earlier waited their turn along with a few new faces. With more room to operate, they were ready to step out and entertain with some traditional Brayside music and fire dances. The moment they left the backstage area, a new group ascended the stairs. They sported white shirts with black vests and matching ties but they gave the impression these ponies had just waged a long gritty war inside a thunderstorm.

The pony responsible for the style was the last to reach the backstage area and was quick to snip at some loose threads off Vinyl’s vest. “There we go. Can’t have you going out there like that,” Rarity quipped as her scissors floated onto a table.”

“Chill, Rar. It’s not like I’m front and center,” Vinyl answered, adjusting her tie to a looser knot. “What matters is that we get these ponies jamming.”

“Speakers are all good,” noted Hipster Amps, dropping in from a rope. “Like, you could be anywhere in town and they’ll be able to hear us.”

“Oh. They will?” Octavia bobbled her wand but she held onto it. “In that case, then we’ll do our best! Nothing but our best!”

Vinyl raised a hoof, “Confidence, Tavi! Liking it!”

She expected a soft bump but received a emphatic slap. “Oof! Trying to be, Vinyl. Anything for my orchestra.”

“That’s what I like to hear,” Blossom hollered as she arrived backstage along with Spike. “Aloha, everypony! Glad to see all of you here!”

“All of us except our two aerial stars,” Rarity commented, looking around the area.

“Rainbow’s in the dressing room with Fluttershy,” Spike reassured. “Swift, well—”

“Don’t worry about that. He’ll be here,” Blossom stated with a firm nod. “I know he will.”

Inside a small shed located behind the stage, Rainbow tugged on a zipper attached to her flight suit. Once she got it all the way up, she examined herself on the floor mirror.

“You look wonderful, Rainbow,” Fluttershy remarked as she looked at her friend’s reflection stretching. “I can’t wait to see you perform tonight! You must be so excited!”

Rainbow snapped on her goggles and exhaled. “I should be, Fluttershy, but I’m not really feeling it right now.”

“Oh, dear.” Rainbow motioned for a nearby belt, which Fluttershy passed on to her, “Are you getting nervous?”

“I wouldn’t say nervous but just a little uneasy.” Rainbow fastened the belt around her body. “This whole deal with Swift, the lack of practice and what I told you girls the other night, it’s… darnit. Sorry. I’m probably making a big deal out of nothing, Fluttershy. I’ll feel a lot better once we finish our routine.”

“You don’t sound that sure, Rainbow.” She then watched her friend hover around the makeshift dressing room. “Um, maybe you should talk to him before you two go out tonight.”

Rainbow faltered in mid-air and bumped into a wall. “What?” She landed right in front of Fluttershy. “Tell him what? That I have this silly crush on him? Yeah, right! That’s only going to freak him out and that’s the last thing we need!”

Despite expecting such an answer, Fluttershy frowned anyways. “If you say so, Rainbow.”

“Look.” She whisked a foreleg. “I know what you’re thinking. This is more than just a crush but Rarity’s explanation makes total sense to me. I can’t let myself think there’s anything mushy’s going on. He’s my friend. That’s all there is to it.”

Fluttershy pulled up a stool and sat down. “Well, if anything changes, I’ll be here for you, Rainbow.”

She flashed a smile before going back to the mirror for more exercise. “Thanks but don’t think I’ll need it. Now, where is Swift? It’s getting close to show time.”

At the Pineapple-Apple stand, Applejack sipped on one of her own concoctions. The long lines were no more as many were migrating toward the main stage. Nonetheless, she had intended to stay at her post until just before the headline performance began. After all, there were still potential customers roaming about, ponies that weren’t that interested in concerts or waited until now to hop onto less crowded rides or get their face painted.

Blitz, on the other hoof, didn’t seem interested in much of anything. He quietly munched on a pineapple apple turnover, taking occasional glances at the same area he had been looking at throughout the day.

“Pretty nice haul today, don’t you think, Blitz,” Applejack finally asked while handing over the last slice of pie to a customer.

“Uh, huh” he muttered, tossing the bits into a bag beneath the counter.

“I like to think things worked out pretty good for both of us. No need to brag on who did better than who today.”

“Uh, huh.”

Applejack tapped on the counter a few times. “Hmmm. Mind the store for a second. Got a quick errand to run.”

Blitz waved blindly before munching more on his pastry. He should’ve been enjoying every juicy morsel. He should’ve been ecstatic that – despite a split down the middle profit arrangement – he was bringing to Juicy Fruit Fields a major boost in bits and reputation. He should’ve been proud of himself for providing the solution to the seagull dilemma and earning a hearty meal as a reward. None of that seemed to matter, though. There was one thing he wanted but just couldn’t have.

If only he had the courage.

“Change of plans,” Blitz heard from behind him.

He sighed before turning, “Applejack, what are you, you… w–what?”

Standing beside one farm pony was another one, the curly green hair mare and a cartful of melon slices, pies and drinks. A soft light then shone down on her, appropriate for the angel that has come down to see him. In reality, all the light posts around the area had flickered on for the approaching night.

“Misty here’s going to do some selling alongside with you,” Applejack stated, giving Blitz a knowing wink. “I’m almost out of apples anyways and I want to secure my haul for today. Thought it would be nice to give somepony my spot for a little while and I couldn’t think of anypony more deserving.”

“I hope you don’t mind,” added Misty.

Stunned! She was addressing him! Directly! Blitz was unprepared for such an occasion like this. His head motioned agreement, his voice box rendered useless.

Applejack pulled out several full bags and tossed them onto her back. “Whew! Celestia, all mighty! How do bank robbers do this? Well, I’ll see you later tonight! You two have fun, you hear?”

Before he knew it, Blitz was alone with the unicorn of his dreams. She began levitating her foodstuffs onto the counter and if this was any other mare in the world, he knew exactly what to do. Irrational fear is such a frustrating hindrance.

Dude! Help her!

Misty then tried picking up an entire crate of melons only for her magic aura to fade.

Out of impulse, he rushed for the save. “Blitz, yeah,” he cheered, raising the crate above his head. “That’s how—” Melons dropped to the ground along with pieces of wood. “Oh, crud.”

She snickered in a way that chipped away at his embarrassment. “I’m so sorry! I was going to say that crate had a crack on it!”

“It, it did?” He aided her in picking up the melons. “I should’ve known it was going to break.”

“Don’t be hard on yourself. You were just trying to help. I should’ve warned you sooner.” Misty chuckled as she placed the last melon on the counter. “You were standing right by me and I didn’t even warn you about it. Funny, it just dawned on me how little we talk to each other. Have you noticed that at all?”

Blitz had so many instances of moments where he couldn’t get a word in with her, he could write a book about them — if he could write anything resembling competence. “A, a little bit.”

“Maybe it’s because there’s so much animosity between all the fruit families, I try to stay low-key. That way, I’m not caught up in anything. You seem nice, though.”

“I am?” His chest swelled with cockiness. “Yeah, I guess I’m—”

“Oh, customers! A gracious welcome to our humble stand! How can I best serve all of you today?”

Thanks to the arrival of a family of five, Blitz lost attention from the dashing unicorn. It was but a minor setback on what was a personal victory. Not only did she acknowledge his existence, he got a compliment out of it. Nice, Misty Honeydew thought he was nice.

He could work with that.

Ten minutes to show time.

Twilight tapped her hoof on the grass, watching Widget and Pinkie fiddle with their experimental cannon. On occasion, she took note of Ember Blaze scrutinizing the rows of fireworks and making constant annotations on his clipboard. Was that a demerit or compliment he just wrote down, she wondered. All her years of drafting reports gave her an insight on the general tone of anypony’s writing by mere pen movements. Yet every stroke was firm, deliberate and exact. He could’ve been lambasting the fireworks setup or writing a recipe for biscuits.

Eventually, the firepony walked up to Twilight and provided his checklist. “All green for the fireworks show. The only question mark is your little experiment over there.”

“Are you guys done with that yet,” Twilight questioned the two cannon operators.

Widget moved her grease-stained head over the barrel. “Oy! She’ll be ready in time!”

“And I’m ready with the fire retardant, just in case,” Ember scoffed.

“Don’t listen to that crumbum! You tell Blossi the good news!”

Twilight activated her magic and the fireworks site disappeared in a blinding light. Before she could bat an eyelash, she arrived behind the curtains at the main stage. Right away, she noticed the entire orchestra stationed on some curved benches on the left with Octavia standing in the center. On the other side, Vinyl Scratch had her trademark DJ station set up and the rock band besides her was warming up their guitars, drums and cymbals.

From behind Twilight, she heard a tongue click. Twi, Twi! Right on time! Are you here to blow our minds?

“Ha, ha! That was neat, Hipster,” Twilight chirped. “Sounds like you’re ready to go!”

“Nah, not even close,” she remarked, spinning the microphone in mid-air. “All that scratchiness, totally—”

“—love it,” Blossom shrieked as she arrived with Spike. “You’re going to do great, Hipster! So, how about those fireworks, Twilight?”

“Regular, all clear. Fireworks out of our special cannon, um, pending,” Twilight replied. “That should be everything except our fliers.” She scanned the floor before checking the rafters, “Um, aren’t they here already?”

Multiple ponies turned to Blossom, whispering similar questions. “Rainbow’s still in her dressing room. Swift, he’ll be here.”

Hipster moved down her glasses. “Hold up. You saying he’s MIA?”

“Right now, he’s not here but he will be.”

“I can go look for him,” Twilight suggested.

“That’s not necessary. I have faith in him he’ll get here on time,” Blossom retorted as though she’s been interrogated for hours. “Everypony, we’re not going to need Rainbow and Swift for the first few songs anyways. Just go out there and entertain the crowd. They’ll show up on cue. Don’t worry about it, okay?”

Hipster placed her glasses back in place. “You heard the bassy lady! We’re on!”

Saturday night is jamming.

Even with four walls surrounding Rainbow and Fluttershy, not only could they hear the strings from a cello and an electric guitar play at the same time, the roar of thousands of fans grabbed ahold of the makeshift shed and shook every loose item onto the floor.

“Sounds like it’s about time for me to head out,” Rainbow casually remarked as she rose from a stool.

Fluttershy nudged the standing mirror toward the wall before it could tip over and add to the noise. “You think? What about Swift? Aren’t you going to need him?”

Rainbow walked to the door but stopped short of turning the knob. “Well, if he’s not here, then, I guess, hmmm.”

“You’re not thinking of going out by yourself, are you?”

She paused a moment. “If I have to, Fluttershy. It’s not like him to… he must have really sprained his wing. Or is it stage fright? Swift has been acting rather, I don’t know. I really thought we had something going last night.”

“Last night?”

Then, the door swung outwards. Standing on the other side was a stallion wearing a sparkling suit.

“Swift,” Fluttershy exclaimed. “You made it!”

“My bad about the time. Took me longer than I thought to get dressed,” Swift remarked, adding a chuckle. “Well, no time to talk. Gotta get set!”

Rainbow joined beside him as he cantered around some outhouses. Fluttershy trailed behind the pair.

“Hey. How’s that wing feeling,” Rainbow asked.

He popped opened his appendages and gave them a quick shake. “No worries there. Good to go!”

“Are we? I mean, we didn’t really settle down on what we’re going to do.”

“Just follow the flow of the music.”

“Huh?”

He bobbed his head to the raucous beat, “Let our wings take over! You know, just be spontaneous! We don’t need to think about our next move! We just do it! It worked last night, didn’t it?”

Such confidence, overflowing to the point where she could slice some off and call it her own. “What’s up with you? You sound so ready for this! It’s like you just flipped a switch! Where’s it coming from?”

“Rainbow, after we’re done, I can explain everything to you. Trust me.”

How could she not, especially with how much his face shone the brightest within her line of sight. Yet there was a peculiarity to it, a blemish to that smile that suggested she was staring at a mask. There wasn’t time to try to peel it off but she had no incentive to do so. She believed she would see what’s behind it soon enough.

Eventually, the three ascended the stage stairs and found Blossom waiting at the top.

“My wonderful stars,” she squealed, hugging both costumed pegasi. “You had me scared for a moment! Now, go on and take your places! You only have a few minutes!”

Rainbow and Swift hovered into the beams on the high ceiling where they landed on the closest one to the tall curtain. From there, they had a sneak peek of what was on the other side.

Within the audience, those with wings floated a few feet in the air so they had room to dance. Others relied on their fellow ponies to surf over the crowd or to get a better view of the oddball combination on stage.

Vinyl Scratch was proving why she was the queen of DJs in Equestria, adding the electric sounds that nopony else on stage could provide along with her customized light sequence. In her role, she barely broke a sweat compared to the rock band and orchestra who fought every second for ideal synchronization. Octavia, in particular, looked at the guitarists as much as the violinists. Considering the speed she waved her wand, it wouldn’t surprise anypony if it suddenly caught on fire and set the stage ablaze. As for Hipster Amps, she had everypony under a spell except she used the sound escaping her lips rather than whatever magic spells she had at her disposal. The more energy oozing from the crowd, the more she moved around the stage – sliding, pumping a hoof, stepping in place or shaking her body.

All together, they elevated the bar to what a Saturday night concert should be and they weren’t done just yet.

“Wow! I’m getting the chills up here,” Rainbow shouted over the roaring crowd, a tremble running through her body. “That is just so, wow!”

Swift gave his wings a shake. “I hear ya! Barely!”

“To think we’re going out there! Whew! Nothing but our best out there will do!”

“No worries! I’ll be right with you all the way through!”

When the beat shifted to one with more pep, she felt his foreleg clasp hers. Once some pyrotechnics went off, it would be their turn to be part of this beach celebration. Yet it was his grab that snatched her attention the most, for it provided a perplexing sensation of anticipation along with an unknown sensation.

She turned her head. “Um, hey, Swift? Is something up with—”

“That’s our cue!”

Rainbow pushed a button on her belt before taking off alongside her dancing partner. They flew straight through the raining sparks until they emerged in open air, well clear of the thousands of ponies at ground level. From there, her mind went into a total blank, her mental notes, her confidence, everything. When she faced him again, her instincts kicked into overdrive. Despite all the eyes tracking their every movement, Rainbow ignored their presence and focused solely on him.

As sparkling gas spewed out of their belts, they allowed Hipster’s lyrics to be their puppet master. Thankfully, the first few minutes was bereft of anything requiring more complex than some simple twirling. There was even a brief period where they split to dance along with their pegasi brethren. This was easy, a little too easy. All this worrying about tonight seemed silly in retrospect.

Then Hipster switched to a song that got the crowd jumping in place. In turn, the dancing duo went with low fly-bys, corkscrews and side-by-side spins, each one executed as though they have been practicing for a lifetime. It may have proven taxing on their wings but the drastic increase in decibels overall was worth the effort.

“We really got them going now,” Rainbow bellowed as she spun around him.

“Last song coming up,” he responded in kind.

“Already? It feels like we just started!”

“Bray–side!” Hipster addressed her roaring audience. “You better get ready because we’re gonna light up the skies! But before we do that, here’s something I made up for two pones I know!”

This time, her lyrics had them dancing close, bumping snouts close. Only now did indecision rear his ugly head but only for an instant. Swift took the lead, starting with a soft twirl to get them back in motion. Once she got back in the groove, the music exploded with energy and they followed suit with their most intricate moves in their skill set. All the while, they remained within inches of each other, breaking physical contact only when it was necessary.

When the song reached its final chorus, Rainbow was no longer thinking of whether her performance was up to her high standards. While the dance was to entertain their audience, she believed this was a moment crafted just for her, a personal gift that only Swift Flying could deliver. Compared to last night, there was something more deliberate to his actions, as though it was trying to deliver a message. If yesterday was a full cup of her favorite drink, today was the last few drops. It tasted even better and yet, there was a tinge of sadness since it would be gone with one final sip.

Suddenly, flashing lights lit up the night sky. Hipster’s microphone went silent while the rock band and orchestra continued playing a triumphant tune. Those on the ground cheered on the crackling sparks that multiplied by the second.

“Rainbow!” Swift tugged on her suit. “C’mon! Over here!”

She followed him to the main stage’s roof, the best seat in all of Brayside for the fireworks show. Right away, she had the same idea as her partner, removing their sweaty suits off their bodies as soon as possible.

“Ah, yeah! We totally did it,” Rainbow proclaimed, putting aside her goggles. “Whew! Compared to everything else we’ve done before, that wasn’t too bad!”

Swift peeled off his head mask. “Yeah. I guess you could say that, Rainbow.”

“Um, you okay,” she asked, her enthusiasm waning. “You sound off. Did you tweak your wing again?”

“Nah. It’s not that.” His ears flattened. “It’s about what I said before we started. You know, there was something I wanted to explain to you?”

“Oh, that.” Rainbow banged her hooves together. “Oh! Heh, heh. I got a feeling on what that is.”

His wings came unfurled. “W–what? You do?”

She nodded. “Oh, yeah. After that performance, it all makes perfect sense. You can’t hide anything from me.”

“Y–you figured it out already,” he muttered, staring down and away from her. “Rainbow, I know it’s—”

“You were practicing in secret, weren’t you?”

Stricken by a momentary inability to speak, Swift slowly moved his head to face her again. “Eh?”

“Don’t deny it, Swift. You wanted to be sure at least one of us wasn’t nervous about tonight. I bet you planned it out so that if I started to really screw up, you’d take over. You must have put in a crazy number of hours.”

“What? No. That’s not it.”

Ignoring him, “Heh. Wouldn’t be surprised if you partnered up with another pegasus to test out some stuff. You’re a sneaky one!”

“Rainbow. You’ve got it all wrong,” he persisted with more volume.

“You just weren’t expecting that I wouldn’t be nervous at all! Tsk, tsk, tsk. Well, let me tell you that—”

“I really like you, Rainbow!”

“—you’re looking at a future Wonder… w–what, what did you say? Swift?”

His head turned downwards and his eyes drifted toward the fireworks. “I, really like you.”

This wasn’t possible. There was no way in Equestria this was reality. She must have had hearing damage but her short-term memory said her ears were in working order. Swift Flying said exactly what he said not once but twice! When she realized the power of his words, her entire world flipped upside down. What was once recognizable was now foreign, what she thought was true was now false, what held her together came undone. She’s been struck by lightning before but nothing that delivered such a shock like this.

“Swift?” Her lips kept moving but there were no words to utter.

He reached for his hair but in the end, he decided to plant both hooves forward. “I’m sorry. I guess you weren’t ready for that. To be honest, I wasn’t either but I wanted you to know the truth, Rainbow. I wanted you to know why I’ve been acting so weird around you all this time. It was something that I was trying to hide from not only you but also myself. I thought I could just ignore it but I can’t do it, not anymore.”

She said his name again. That was all she could say.

“Rainbow, I’ve been around you long enough to know what type of pony you are. I know that—” He paused, realizing his voice had wavered. “I know that you wouldn’t go for anything more than friendship with anypony. That’s just not your thing. I’m not going to stand here and try to convince you to change your mind about that. I won’t even ask you to answer me. I just wanted you to understand that tonight was, um, I guess I wanted you to enjoy doing something like that because we might not be able to do that again for a while.”

“Huh?”

“N–now, I don’t want you to think we’re not friends anymore. That hasn’t changed. It’s just that, well, I need time to deal with this, these… what I feel about you. I, um, I’ll have to get over them, so it might be best if we don’t see each other for a while. I hope that’s okay with you.”

There was too much too digest, especially with a scrambled mind unable to piece itself back together. After an eternity, “O–okay.”

“Okay,” he responded in a faint whisper before turning toward the sky. “I’ll, I’ll see you later.”

She watched him meander away from the festival site like a bird struck by a hunter’s bullet, struggling to stay aloft.

Coincidently, what sounded like a gun rang off in the distance. The source, a cannon aimed directly at the fireworks, shot one bright round into the air. Moments later, it exploded as a meager spark within the more impressive display of colors.

“That’s it? I’m not sure if I would call that a success or a failure,” remarked the fire pony standing close to the smoldering device. “Considering I’m not declaring a five-alarm fire right now, I believe congratulations are in order, Miss Widget. Just be sure to clean up once you’re finished here.”

“You little–” Widget marched toward the departing Fire Ember but Pinkie Pie restrained her.

“Fireworks, Widge,” Pinkie encouraged with a strained smile. “You should be happy about that!”

Once the unicorn relaxed, she pushed a button on the cannon. Seconds later, the device stopped smoking with a few audible clunks. “I should be, Pink.” She rested against her device. “I know I should be but I failed in what I really wanted to do.”

“Not really.” Pinkie twirled a screwdriver, “Sure, it didn’t go off on the night you wanted it to but look at it. All in one piece. Just like the original party cannon. All we have to do is keep fixing it until it finally works! Today, ponies think they know you can do fireworks but tomorrow, you’ll really show them!”

Widget reached out and hugged her. “Oy! Then we’ll fix it! Together!”

As the last of the fireworks dimmed, Misty Honeydew remained standing atop stand’s counter, watching the smoke dissipate. “That was so pretty,” she remarked, holding a hoof to her chest.

“Not as pretty as you are,” Blitz mumbled to himself.

“What did you say? I couldn’t quite hear you.”

His eyes darted sideways. “Nothing! Nothing.” He helped her get down. “Just thinking aloud about… stuff.”

She giggled as she reached for a bag of sliced melons. “Yeah, I do that too. So much in your head, you just have to let it out, even if nopony’s around.” Misty took a bite. “That’s how it usually is for me. I don’t get to talk with other ponies that much.”

“You don’t,” he asked while preparing a cup of pineapple juice.

“No. I guess I’ve always been a little shy. All the fruit family ponies are always loud and in your face and Blossom, well, she’s nice but I try to not push her buttons, if you know what I mean.”

Juice squirted out of his nostrils. “Y–yeah! I hear ya!”

Misty swallowed the last slice. “But this is nice. I don’t usually have a pony that’s willing to stand around and just listen to what I have to say, even if it isn’t that interesting. Thank you, Blitz.”

“Oh?” He juggled his cup until making it drop on the nearby wastebasket. “Ahem. Yeah, yeah! That’s me! The listening pony stallion… something. Anytime you want an ear, I’m, um, here.”

“Really?”

What a wonderfully delightful smile. His heart was now a pile of mush waiting for some piping hot gravy to make it complete. This was his time to make his move. “Totally. Um, Misty? Hey, just a thought but you think we could—”

“Howdy, partners!” Applejack pounded on the stand’s counter. “Woo wee! Y’all saw them fireworks? Quite a treat, wasn’t it?”

No surprise, another interruption. “They were gnarly,” Blitz grumbled, rolling his eyes. “What are you doing here?”

“Just wanted to invite both of you to the after party! I’m telling ya, this night’s just getting started!”

“Why not,” Misty replied. “We just need to clean up here first.”

As the three packed up their remaining foodstuffs and swept up fruit peels, a cyan pegasus flew directly overhead.

“Huh.” Applejack squinted. “I guess Rainbow’s hitting the hay early. Oh, well. She’s probably had a busy night anyways.”

15 - Brayside Crush

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“My beach! My precious beach!”

Since the go-ahead for the Aloha Summer Festival months ago, Surfing Blossom had one misgiving about hosting such a large event above all else. As she walked onto the main festival site early Sunday morning, her fears came into inevitable reality the moment a wrapper billowing in the wind hit her square in the face.

“Ewwwwww! Mustard!” She whisked away the offending item and wiped her face. “Oh, just look at all this trash! I put those ‘Please keep our beaches clean’ on the garbage cans for a reason! Can’t tourists read?”

“Doesn’t look like it,” Spike responded, picking up a rolling drink cup and tossing it into the nearest can. “I bet even the water’s filled with who knows what.”

Fluttershy flew above their heads. “Already on it! I’ll have some of the sea creatures help me!”

Before Blossom could thank the pegasus, Applejack and Blitz trotted past them.

“I’ll be bagging more trash than this slowpoke here,” the cowpony bragged. “Just watch!”

“Dream on, Jack,” the burly stallion retorted.

Spike marked a few boxes off his checklist. “Guess we don’t have to worry about that! With Twilight and Rarity on cleanup further up the coast, we should be right on—” A few drops landed on his sheet, “—schedule?”

Blossom spotted a shifting sea of lumpy clouds gathering above her head. “Spike? My understanding is that the forecast was supposed to be mostly cloudy. Was there a change I’m not aware of?”

“That’s what it says here,” the dragon assistant answered, pointing at the forecast page. “I thought Swift would’ve mentioned something like this to you at the after party last night. I actually wanted to congratulate him for a great job but I never saw him.”

“Actually,” she started, rubbing her foreleg, “after he and Rainbow did their show, I didn’t see either of them. From what Fluttershy told me, she eventually found Rainbow fast asleep in the motel room. I guess she must have been exhausted. Swift, I checked his place this morning but he wasn’t there. He just, disappeared. That’s not like him.”

Suddenly, a pegasus landed in front of them. “I can assure you Swift hasn’t disappeared.”

“What did you say, Light Shower,” Blossom asked.

“He was in the morning weather meeting but oh, you should’ve seen him, Blossom.” He threw back his head, “That poor stallion had that look as though he just lost something near and dear to him! He pretty much left me in charge here while he was going to fend off the clouds offshore all by himself. I must say that was pretty unusual.”

“And why do you say that?”

Pointing toward the sea, “Radar says there’s not that much out there today. Most of the clouds are right above us and — as de facto weather captain for today — I decided some light showers are in order, no pun intended. I mean, you can still smell that awful smoke from those fireworks last night and the—”

“Light Shower?” She exhaled audibly. “Please do me a favor and don’t mention anything about Swift to anypony else.”

He bowed toward the sand. “I would do anything for you, my dear.”

Once the stallion returned to the skies, Blossom turned to the dragon assistant. “You too, Spike. I don’t want any rumors to start spreading around and worry our friends.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he answered, saluting the surfer pony. “Anything you say!”

She reached down and hugged him. “Oh, I’m going to miss you so much, Spike! Why can’t I have somepony like you around all the time? I know I have Swift but his priorities are the skies. Well, I guess I’ll just have to—”

“Blossom! Blossom!” A blue earth mare ran across the sand, her ponytail swishing with every step. “Excuse me but, whew. One sec. That was a longer run than I thought it would be. Okay, okay. I have something to report from the south side of the beach.”

“You do? Um, Coral Sands, isn’t it? Hired you last week, if I recall.”

The newcomer broke out a smile. “Right. Well, I just wanted to tell you about some changes Twilight Sparkle is trying to sell us on.”

Her brow lowered halfway. “What is that unicorn doing now?”

“Some alterations to the duty roster and our overall deployment across the beach. That a few other things as well.”

“Is that so? And you’re buying what she’s telling you?”

“What? Pffff!” She broke out in laughter. “Are you kidding me? I may be new at this job but even I know she doesn’t quite get lifeguard operations. I mean, some of the things that she brought up yesterday, oh Celestia! To think she’s one of the best organizers in all of Equestria.”

Blossom let her giggles go free. “Well, I’m glad there’s a voice of reason around here. Thanks for letting me know.” She watched her fellow lifeguard turn around. “Oh, um, Coral? Can I ask something from you?”

“Absolutely, Blossom.”

“You know what? Instead of going back to your post, I want you to help Spike and I manage things here. Consider it some additional one-on-one training.”

Inside Widget’s workshop, the owner snipped a wire protruding from the prototype cannon’s console. “Whatchamacallit,” Widget mumbled, rubbing the crust building beneath her eyes. “Um, screwdriver? Yeah. That’s it.”

“You need a nap,” Pinkie responded while providing the requested tool. “You’ve been up all night.”

Resting her head on the barrel, “I know but I’m so close to fixing this doohickey. I just–” Her mouth stretched wide before returning to normal. “I would bet my tool kit there’s one thing I’m doing wrong.” Her head slipped on the surface, “Just one little–”

Pinkie grabbed Widget before she slumped onto the floor. “No more work for you, Widge-Widge! Off to bed you go!”

“But my cannon–”

“She’ll still be here when you wake up. Don’t worry about it,” Pinkie answered, escorting her down the stairs. “I’ll keep working on it while you get some shut eye.”

Widget rolled onto the bed and snuggled on a pillow. “You’re such a good mate, Pink. Watch out for the third wire from the–”

Pinkie watched her friend succumb to sleep deprivation. Then, she looked over the diagrams pinned to the wall. It may have been unintentional but Widget Fixit gifted the party cannon that became an iconic staple of her arsenal, from anniversaries to wingdings. To return the favor, the Fireworks Super Cannon could not join the wall as another failed experiment. Whether it worked today or next month, Pinkie was going to do everything she could in the few hours she had left before leaving town.

“Time to work my Pinkie magic,” she whispered.

“What do you mean you’re not going on tour?”

Rarity was inside a storeroom filled with musical instruments, some she didn’t even know existed. She did have to give credit to Hipster Amps for somehow making everything fit while keeping the narrow corridors free of any loose cords that could trip a passerby and shatter the music store’s window with the sound of falling cymbals and drums.

“Told ya this was a one-time deal, Rar,” Hipster commented, sitting on an amplifier. She then favored her throat, “Besides, last night wrecked my voice.”

“Sounds even better to me,” Vinyl Scratch commented while polishing her trademark glasses. “You got yourself a lot of new fans, Hip. You too, Tavi.”

“The real credit should go to the orchestra,” said Octavia, walking into the room with some coffee. She stopped and took a sip. “Oooh. A bit too warm. Now, I must admit I enjoyed my time as a conductor but there’s just too much pressure involved. That and I can’t play my beloved cello. If I want ponies to remember me, I want it to be as a cellist.”

Vinyl shrugged. “Your call, Tavi. As for me, I did this as a favor. This was mad fun but I can’t do special gigs like this all the time.”

“How about some of the time, then?” Rarity suggested. “Maybe a once a year tradition right here in Brayside! I’m fairly certain Blossom and the committee would approve of such an idea! I’ll even do the wardrobe again! What do you say?”

“A once a year gig, huh?” Vinyl placed her glasses back in place. “I can dig it!”

Octavia took a drink. “Interesting. Well, I’d have to discuss it with my conductor but, hmmm… if there’s a long cello solo in next year’s program, then I’d be happy to oblige!”

Hipster grabbed a stick and struck a nearby cymbal. “Three for three! Rar, can’t wait for your next hip design! Go on, now! You got a train to catch, girl!”

Rarity took out her pocket watch. “Oh, dear! You’re right! In that case, I’ll send you my conceptual designs by mail!”

“The three thirty to Ponyville will depart in five minutes.”

Twilight – alongside Blossom and Blitz – waited on the train platform beside the open train door. Everypony headed outward had already boarded, save for one.

“Where is she?” Twilight huffed, tapping her hoof on the wooden surface. “I told her a million times that—”

A white unicorn dashed through the station’s sliding doors.

“Finally! Rarity! Where have you’ve been?”

The unicorn hugged Blossom. “My apologies! Let’s stay in touch, shall we?” Rarity then went inside the train car.

“Well, I guess that’s it. I only wish the cleanup didn’t take so long,” Blossom mused. “I thought we could’ve had one last meal together.”

Twilight’s stomach grumbled. “We’ll survive. Spike picked up a few snacks for us. Something tells me whatever they’re serving in the dining car hasn’t improved over the last few days.”

“I suppose not. Well, I hope the next time you visit our town, you’ll actually get to have a real vacation.”

Twilight chuckled. “With our luck, probably not. I’m just glad you want us back. I mean, we didn’t exactly get along, now, did we?”

“I’m not sure what you mean, Twilight.”

Blitz raised a hoof, “You tried hitting her with your–”

“–oh, that,” Blossom spoke, yanking the stallion’s goatee. “That was only a… all right. Maybe we bumped heads a few times. Okay, many times. Twilight, I guess I’m not used to having another pony around that can really take charge of a situation like you can.”

Twilight looked downwards. “Yeah, same here. Sorry if I was being incredibly annoying all this time.”

Blossom extended a hoof. “I’ll forgive you if you’ll forgive me.”

Rather than shake on it, Twilight went for a hug. “Of course!”

Blitz decided to embrace them both. “Blitz, yeah! Power of friendship! Where’s Fly and Widge? They’re totally missing this!”

Twilight teleported out of Blitz’s grasp. “According to Pinkie, Widget’s still sleeping. Swift, I have no idea.”

“Work, Twilight,” Blossom exclaimed, striking the stallion right in the belly to get free. “I’m afraid he’s tied up with a lot of post-festival weather duties. He sends his regards.”

“Give him my thanks!” Twilight stepped inside the passenger car. “Oh, and one last thing!” She levitated a scroll onto Blossom’s grasp. “Just some suggestions I had for a better festival next year! Trash is right at the top of my list!”

Her first instinct was to hit it out of the train station with her surfboard. However, one look at Twilight’s nervous smile and she tossed it over to an aching Blitz. “That I can agree with. I’ll go over it tonight! Aloha! Have a safe trip!”

Twilight waved until the door closed with a thump. Soon afterwards, the entire train lurched forward, followed by an obligatory train whistle.

Wouldn’t surprise me if she doesn’t accept all my recommendations. Oh, well. She knows what she’s doing, most of the time.

Twilight made her way to the passenger car and entered through the first sliding door. Inside, Pinkie snored on the bench along with Spike. Applejack, Rarity and Fluttershy sat on the other side, feasting on greasy chips and candy bars.

“Junk food. Should’ve expected that from Spike,” Twilight nagged. “I taught him better than that.”

Applejack tossed her a bag of sliced pineapple. “Better?”

She did a double take. “Um–”

“What?” The cowpony then took out a melon smoothie and slurped through the straw. “Sometimes, you gotta try new stuff. Of course, let’s not forget nothing beats a Sweet Apple Farms apple.”

Twilight stopped short of swallowing a piece of yellow fruit. “Hold on. Where’s Rainbow Dash?”

Rarity looked around the cabin. “Oh, dear. Don’t tell me we left her behind.”

“She’s here,” Fluttershy commented in a way that tried to not draw attention but utterly failed in doing so. “She said she just wanted some fresh air.”

“Fresh air?” Twilight took a seat and began munching on pineapple. “Is she feeling okay?”

“She said she’s still exhausted from last night. Otherwise, she seemed fine to me.”

Rarity got up from her seat. “Excuse me a moment. I need to use the little mares’ room. I was in such a rush to get here, I didn’t get a chance to go earlier. You said the same thing, didn’t you, Fluttershy?”

Before the pegasus could answer, Rarity pulled her off the bench. Despite curious stares from Twilight and Applejack, they allowed them to leave, no questions asked.

Then, to Fluttershy’s surprise, they ended up going straight to the little mares’ room, a space clearly designed with only one occupant’s comfort in mind. “Are we really—”

“Shhh!” Rarity used her magic to turn on the sink, her hooves unable to maneuver to the knob. “Better. Fluttershy? What exactly is going on here?”

“What do you mean?”

“Rainbow Dash, darling. What else? She didn’t show up for the after party. You find her asleep back at the motel room. She wanted to sleep in today. Can’t you tell she’s been trying to avoid us?”

Fluttershy shook her head the best she could in the tight quarters. “She’s done things like that before after big performances. It’s not unusual at all.”

“Really?” Rarity pursed her lips. “Well, what did she say to you about last night?”

“She, um, did the dance. She watched the fireworks atop the stage with Swift. She felt tired so she went back to the motel.”

“That’s it?”

“That’s it.”

Rarity banged her head backwards. “Ohhhh! This is all my fault! There was something beautiful blooming right in front of our—”

“Except it’s not.”

“—eyes and I destroyed it with my… it’s not?”

Fluttershy gazed at the mirror where she not only saw her reflection but also a hazy image of her pegasus friend. “Ever since she told us about what happened while we were in Manehattan, I promised myself I wouldn’t let something that important slip by me again. Right now, I feel like she’s hiding something from me. Something big.”

Eyes widening, “Are you sure, Fluttershy?”

“I don’t really know. Like I said, it’s just a feeling but I can’t shake it off.”

“In that case, there’s only one thing to do. Fluttershy? You need to go out there and talk to her, alone.”

Her wings crashed against the walls. “M–me?”

“Believe me, I’d love nothing more than to be part of this but I’ve only made things worse. Besides, you’re her best friend, dear. If there’s one pony she’ll open up to, it’s you.”

“But I’m not sure I can do this, Rarity. I don’t even know what to say.”

“It’s all right. Just get her talking and find an opening. Now, go on, dear! I have full confidence in you!” Her face began turning red, “That, and this is rather improper to say but I wasn’t exactly kidding about what I said earlier. I’ll be, ahem, needing this room. Now!”

A second later, Fluttershy tumbled out of the little mares’ room and had the door close on her.

What’s wrong with me?

One could understand if Rainbow had a serious case of déjà vu; same caboose, same railing she leaned on and the same question running through her mind.

With each passing second, the low-lying clouds obscured more of Brayside Beach. The Trotwalk and its large Ferris Wheel disappeared in a grey haze, followed by the few tall buildings defining downtown. Even if she could no longer spot the sparkling ocean, her nose sniffed its salty scent along with a persistent damp grass smell, most likely coming from the hills surrounding the train tracks. A few drops were on the floor but one look above and she figured no more would come for the rest of the day.

Minutes later, the train sounded his horn and it slowly lost momentum. All around her, what was soft green turned more into a jagged gray. The Stallihorn Zephyr was ready to enter the mountains, away from the town that was Swift Flying’s home, the point of no return.

“Fluttershy? You can come out now,” said Rainbow.

The door behind her creaked open and her friend peered through the opening. “Umm, Rainbow Dash? You knew I was here all this time?”

“Mhm. C’mon. Don’t be shy.”

Fluttershy took her time before leaning on the railing beside Rainbow. “Hi. I, um, I just wanted to see how you were doing.”

Rainbow rubbed her hair, “Um, okay. I’m doing, okay.”

“You don’t sound okay.”

“I’m, you see, I’m a little under the weather. Must have picked up something. This morning. Or last night. After I… stop looking at me like that, Fluttershy!”

Startled, her eyes drifted toward the train tracks, only to snap back in place. “Rainbow, if something’s bothering you, then just say it. Whatever it is, I want to help you. Please, let me help you. I don’t want to miss on something important again.”

Rainbow switched between looking at her pleading friend and what little of Brayside Beach remained visible. Turn her down and she could close the chapter on this summer. With enough patience, everything would return to the status quo, a friendship and nothing more.

Or maybe not. Five days in Brayside and her question remained unanswered – what was wrong with her. Rarity’s explanation was such a well-crafted answer and yet, Swift Flying popped it out of its socket. Rainbow needed another plug, something, anything. Her sanity depended on it.

At around four o’clock on Sunday, Rainbow explained to Fluttershy the Friday night impromptu dance, every wing flap, every racing heartbeat, every time she laughed. She then connected that event with the repeat performance on Saturday night, different in maneuvers but similar with emotions. For a few minutes, this was just another pleasant conversation with a friend but when she reached the portion of the story when she and Swift stood atop the stage, everything came to a crashing halt.

“Rainbow?” Fluttershy scooted closer to her sitting friend. “So what did he say to you?”

She could no longer stare Fluttershy in the face. “He said, um, well. L–look. I was talking and he just… oh, geez.”

“Don’t be embarrassed, Rainbow. You’ve told me so much already. What else—”

“He said he really liked me!”

“—could he have, said.” Fluttershy turned stiff, wings and all. “R–rainbow? He said what?”

She shone brighter than the signal light on the side of the track. “He said he really liked me.”

At four fifteen, Fluttershy set a new personal record for loudest exclamation. To her fortune, the train whistle blew at the exact same time but the resulting echoes and the falling rocks on a nearby slope proved a constant reminder on what an earth-shattering revelation this was, literally.

“Rainbow Dash!” Fluttershy cusped her mouth, realizing the volume on her chords was still too high. “Rainbow Dash. Oh, my goodness. What did you do? What did you say to him?”

There was no point hiding anything at this point. If her words didn’t spill it, her writhing face muscles would. “Nothing, really.”

“What?”

“He said, well, what I just told you but he added that he wasn’t expecting me to feel that way about him. That I didn’t need to respond. He, um, he wanted some time apart until he got over his feelings.”

“And what did you say to that?”

Rainbow stared off toward Brayside Beach. “Okay,” she said in a low voice. “Just, okay. He left after that and I headed back to the motel.”

Fluttershy turned in the same direction and took a deep breath. For better or worse, she was going to test the limits of their friendship. “Rainbow, you didn’t give him an answer.”

She whipped her head sideways. “What? W–well, he didn’t ask for one.”

“That’s not how it works, especially when it’s something like that. You should’ve said something more than just ‘okay’ because that doesn’t mean anything at all.’”

“B–but?”

“No, Rainbow. If you know for certain that you don’t feel that way about him, then you had to tell him right then and there. It’s hard, I know but you did it before. At least there would’ve been no second guessing this time. This could’ve been all over and you wouldn’t be like this.”

Rainbow shook her head in silence.

“And why not?”

“Because, because–” She hid her face behind her forelegs “–I don’t know what my answer is! I don’t know what I really think of him, Fluttershy. Do you?”

She wanted to answer with silence but that was a bad option right now. “Oh, Rainbow. I wish I could… no. I’m sorry. I don’t think I can answer that for you. Nor can Rarity or anypony else because the answer’s inside of you. I suppose the only one that could really help is Swift. After all, he’s the reason why you’re feeling this way but, um, that would be kind of—”

“—I have to go back, don’t I?”

Fluttershy gasped at Rainbow’s sudden outburst of courage. “Back? You’re going back?”

Rainbow stood on all fours, her sights set to where the train had departed. For the first time today, rays of sunshine broke through the clouds and Brayside Beach made a slow reappearance. “That’s the only way out of this, Fluttershy. I’ve had enough. I don’t want to be like this anymore. I have to find him and then, and then… I don’t know. I really don’t know. But one way or another, I guess I’m going to find out. No. I will find out.”

“You’re really going through with this, aren’t you?”

“Well, isn’t that why you wanted to talk to me? To convince me that I have to confront this head on?”

Fluttershy squirmed in place. “No, not exactly. I just wanted to be a good friend.”

“And you are,” she answered, embracing Fluttershy for a few seconds. “The best kind of friend. Now, can you do me a favor? I don’t know when I’ll be back, so can you come up with an excuse why I disappeared? Oh, I got it! Extended vacation!”

“Extended vacation. But I thought you used up all your vacation time.”

Rainbow hovered onto the roof. “My friends don’t need to know that. My weather bosses, um, just make up something, okay? Bye!”

Fluttershy smiled as Rainbow blasted off toward civilization. Like the clouds floating in the skies, her doubts that Rainbow wouldn’t find her answers broke apart. All she could do now is wait for her eventual return and learn of the final outcome. In the meantime, she had an immediate matter to address.

“Rarity? You can come out now.”

“Ahhh!” From the other side of the door, the sneaky unicorn emerged out into the open. “Hello, dearie. I just left the little mares’ room and wanted to check in. Honest!”

Even with fuzzy eyesight, Widget could tell the hands on the wall clock read somewhere past six. By now, the friend that aided her to bed must have been on a train crossing over the Stallihorns. Before she could pout for sleeping through the day and unable to say goodbye, she found a pink box sitting atop the dresser drawer along with an envelope taped to the side.

When she opened up the box, she found an assortment of sweet treats. As she nibbled on a cupcake, she opened up the envelope and scanned through the letter. Page one explained how Pinkie baked some treats using one of Widget’s old devices, an experimental hair dryer that functioned better as a portable oven. The other page was a crude diagram of the cannon’s innards along with an array of scribbled notes.

“That’s it!” Jumping on the bed, “I got it! I got it! I know how to fix it! Wooooooo!”

Sheets secured in her magical aura, Widget ran upstairs and made a beeline right to the unpainted cannon. To her surprise, the tools she needed were on a piece of cloth on the floor, shined and ready for use.

“Looks like Pinkie didn’t get to finish all the repairs,” the unicorn mused, flipping open one of the panels and shining a light. “Shouldn’t be a problem. The problem’s so obvious, it was right under our snouts the whole time! I just need to reverse a few of these—”

A knock on the door stopped her from further inspection. A small part of her wished it was Pinkie but based on prior history, this was either a pushy salespony or Ember Quench conducting a surprise fire inspection.

“Rainbow Dash?” Widget looked up and down the dirt road in case her friends were in the area. “Wasn’t expecting you here, mate.”

“Swift,” Rainbow uttered as she swiped off sweat. “Have you’ve seen him? I checked his place and he’s not there! Nopony’s at Blossom’s either!”

“Haven’t seen him all day. Haven’t seen much of anything today. If he had just said yes to testing my tracking device a few weeks ago, I’d find him faster than an… oy!”

Where Rainbow Dash once stood was now a cloud of dust.

Widget shrugged. “Right-o! If I hurry, I can get the cannon working by nightfall!”

“Why am I stuck here?” At the Juicy Fruit Fields entrance, Pineapple Blitz stood station at the makeshift stand. To his side were pineapple crates for sale but in this late afternoon, no takers.

“I made the farm so much money!” He pounded the counter. “They should’ve given me a long vacation! This isn’t gnarly at all!”

“Afternoon, Blitz!” Ascending the hill leading to the stand was Misty Honeydew, her hair bouncing with every peppy step.

He leaned on the counter and positioned himself to display his muscly frame. “Yo. How–”He slipped and hit his chin on the wooden surface. “Ow, ow, ow!”

Misty cusped her mouth, stifling her mirth. “My goodness! Are you okay?”

“Me?” Blitz ran a hoof through his hair, ignoring the throbs in the muzzle area. “Oh, totally. I mean, when you’re around, everything—”

A cyan blur landed on the road and slid right into the crates, spilling the fruit all over the place.

“Oh, dear!” Misty helped Rainbow onto her hooves. “You’re not hurt, are you?”

Rainbow yanked out a pineapple lodged to her side. “Yeow! Um, that was nothing! Nothing at all. Hey, do either of you know where Swift’s at right now?”

“I’m sorry but I don’t. Blitz?”

He stroked on his goatee, “Negatory. Fly’s been MIA the whole day. Hold up. Why are you here?”

Rainbow flared her wings. “Um, because, reasons. Cya!”

“Yo,” he bellowed at the departing streak of color. “What about this mess you’ve made?”

“I can help.” Misty powered up her horn and began picking up crushed fruit pieces from the dirt. “It’s the least I could do.”

Blitz broke out the dopiest grin he could. Now he was certain Misty Honeydew would continue to acknowledge his existence. He had himself a chance.

Now he had to work on not blowing these chances when he had them. Progress, at least it’s progress.

Surfing Blossom was anything but a frequent visitor of the Brayside Lighthouse. While the top deck provided a wide view of the ocean she cherishes dearly, she much rather be intimate with the waves, riding over them with her signature surfboard or take a leisurely swim.

Today, she had to be here for a friend who — at first – had plenty to say. Once he delivered the bombshell, though, all he wanted to do is watch the last of the clouds dissipate while the sun crept further out of sight. Blossom acquiesced and sat beside him in silent contemplation.

At last, he cleared his throat. “How did you find me, by the way, Blossom?”

“You can thank Light Shower. I asked him to do some surveillance while he pushed away the rain clouds. He used binoculars so you wouldn’t notice him.”

He grunted.

“Please don’t take it out on him. I’m the one that asked.”

He mumbled agreement. “You don’t have to stay here, Blossom.”

Blossom pouted, “But I want to. You’re not okay.”

Swift rested on the circular railing surrounding the deck. “You’re right. I’m not and I won’t be for a while. I know you want to help but right now, I just want to be alone.”

She wanted to refuse. She wanted to say the magic words that would obliterate the dark cloud hanging over his head. In the end, she gave him one long hug and proceeded down the long rounded stairs at a snail’s pace, hoping he’d call for her return.

But it never came.

Eventually, she emerged at ground level and took a long hard look skywards. Once she realized the futility of waiting for him, Blossom grabbed her surfboard resting by the entrance and walked down the solitary dirt path, kicking a small rock along the way. The crashing waves made its siren call but she wasn’t in the mood to do anything except shuffle along home, pondering if she had to wait for time to heal Swift’s wounds.

Then, she stopped, hearing a whizzing sound. Her instincts yelled to roll and that, she did. Where she once stood, a pegasus made a fast and furious landing, leaving behind visible skid marks.

“Blossom!” Rainbow galloped to close up the distance. “I’m glad to see you!”

Huffing, she planted her surfboard deep onto the road and took a wide defensive stance. “You!”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Rainbow stumbled to a stop just outside what she thought was the redhead’s striking range. “What gives?”

“What gives? What gives?” Blossom stomped a foreleg. “I can’t believe you have the nerve to show your face!”

Only now did she believe the local saying that sailors feared Leviathans but the mythical creature feared a fuming Surfing Blossom. “N–no! W–wait! I don’t understand! I just want to find Swift!”

“For what? To break his poor heart again?” She marched right at her, surfboard firmly secured by her swaying tail, “Haven’t you done enough to him?”

“Y–you’re getting the wrong idea,” she stuttered, taking fast steps back. “There’s a good, ahhh!” She tripped and fell backwards onto the road. “Blossom! Wait, wait, wait, wait! Wait!” A surfboard rose above her trembling body. “I want to give him my answer! I’m telling you the truth, please!”

Blossom dropped her instrument of justice to the ground. “Your, answer?”

Rainbow rattled her head up and down. “I–I wasn’t ready! He thought I was going to reject him! I never told him what I really felt about him!”

She collected her breath. “Let me think but you better not be lying to me because he did… oh! You’re right! He pretty much set himself up for rejection, didn’t he?” She gasped. “Oh my goodness!” Blossom pulled up Rainbow and wiped off the dirt, “I’m so sorry, Rainbow! What was I thinking? I was incredibly upset about everything and I let myself go off like that! I didn’t mean… hold on a second.” The redhead then pulled her in close enough that their noses bumped. “Then you’re not really turning him down after all?”

In the span of a few seconds, Rainbow witnessed a mare go from feared enemy to eager friend. At this distance, to upset her once more was a ticket straight to the nearest hospital. “I’m not sure yet.”

“What?”

Rainbow nudged out of Blossom’s grasp. “Please don’t be angry at me. I’m not sure the best way to handle all of this but I do know I can’t run away, Blossom. I need to see him again so I can sort this out once and for all.”

“Then, you might break his heart again, after all.”

She touched Blossom on the shoulder and mustered the gumption to stare right at her orange eyes. “I know you really care for Swift and believe me, I don’t want to hurt him. I never ever want to hurt him. The thing is, though, he deserves an honest answer from me. Whatever happens is going to happen but I know that somehow, someway, we’ll get through it. We always do. Trust us. Please?”

In theory, Blossom had a choice but reality dictated there was but one path; forward. “Rainbow? He’s at the top of the lighthouse. Before you go, though, there’s one thing you should know.”

“What’s that,” she blubbered, not knowing whether physical violence was imminent.

It did become physical but of the soft and cuddly kind. “No matter what, I’m still glad you’re a part of his life.”

“Thanks. I’m happy that you’re part of his, too.”

“And who knows. In time, I may start calling you my sister.”

Rainbow took a step back. “Huh? What does that mean?”

“Aloha!” Blossom retrieved her surfboard and continued further down the road, humming one of the songs from yesterday.

Rainbow turned back toward the lighthouse, a striped tower whose gargantuan shadow engulfed her diminutive self. The more she gazed at the top, the larger the structure grew in stature. Even so, her wings could make the ascent in seconds except they ran out of bravery, the fuel that took her this far.

Stairs. I’ll just use the stairs. Shouldn’t be a problem.

She walked through the entrance and began a journey that tested her wits every time her hoofstep made a hollow echo. Surely, he would notice her approach and could only imagine his response. He could welcome her at the top but there was also the possibility that he could take off to parts unknown, prolonging this saga indefinitely. Unwilling to accept the latter, she picked up the pace and then eked up just enough energy to fly the last fifty steps.

I can’t let him leave! I, uh-oh!

The moment she touched the top floor’s surface, she slipped and slid toward the circular railing. A grey mass got in the way and served as a soft landing cushion.

“S–wift?” She rolled off him and inched away. “Um, I, um, hi?”

He labored with every breath, staring at her as though he just ran into his clone. “Rainbow? W–what are you doing here?”

A fair question, no doubt, but she arrived here for answers; she didn’t see herself as the one providing them. “I’m here because, um, extended vacation?”

Swift’s head tilted off center. “What?”

Rainbow double facehoofed. “No, no, no! Forget about that. I’m, I’m here about last night. We have to talk about last night, Swift.”

“No, we don’t,” he countered. “There’s nothing else to say!”

“Yes, there is!” She struck the floor. “Darnit, Swift! You lay something that big on me and then you tell me I don’t need to answer you? Yes, I do! I mean, don’t I get a say in this?”

In response, he could only say her name.

She got up and provided him a lift back to all fours. “Swift, there was no way I could leave you hanging like this. It’s not right! That’s why I came back so that I could, I could, um—”

“—you could what,” he said with a tremble in his voice.

“I, I, you and me, we… I, don’t know.”

“Eh?”

“I don’t know! Darnit. I’ve been saying way too many times already.” Rainbow sighed before walking around him, “I know I feel, something, something that wasn’t there before but I kept thinking I was sure of what we were. Friends. Great friends. We agreed on that months ago but for whatever reason, I was never sure. I thought it wouldn’t matter because there was nothing that was going to change about us.” She stopped a few feet away from him. “And then you tell me you really like me? That changes everything but to what, I’m not sure. When I look at you, I’m… geez. It’s like I should know and yet, I don’t.”

Swift took a seat and put his head down. “I’m sorry, Rainbow. All I did was made things worse. Maybe I should’ve kept my mouth shut.”

“No, no. Don’t say that. It’s just that… give me a minute.”

Rainbow then moved to where she could gaze at the vast blue expanse where a few distant sailboats traveled on the setting sun’s reflection. Moments later, the world surrounding Brayside Beach switched to nighttime. On cue, a bright light shone from behind her, ensuring safe passage to those that were comfortable using the stars as their main navigational guide.

“Who turns that on,” Rainbow mused, turning back her head.

“It’s automatic,” Swift answered. “Widget figured out a way to make that happen but Blitz and I had to do the actual install. She doesn’t like coming up here. Too high for her.”

“Huh. Didn’t know that. What if it breaks down, though?”

“Widge taught me a few things. If it isn’t anything too complicated, I might be able to fix it myself.”

Rainbow chuckled once. “So, you can do that too, huh?”

Swift raised an amused eyebrow. “And what’s supposed to mean? I’m more than just a pony with great agility, you know. I’ve picked up a lot of things here and there.”

“That’s definitely pegasus pride I’m hearing,” she chided, taking a seat closer to him.

“You just love bringing that up, don’t you? You can never let me off the hook. Even the slightest opening and you gotta bring it up. It’s not pegasus pride, Rainbow. I’m only giving myself a bit of credit.”

“Heh.” She leaned toward his face, “That’s not what I hear, Swift. I, um, what I hear is, what I—”

“Eh?”

A faraway explosion broke their stare-off. Thanks to the darkness, neither could tell that it was Widget’s experiment – parked behind her workshop – having a loud enough misfire to startle the whole town.

“This.” Rainbow chomped on her lip. “I don’t want to lose this.”

“Lose what?”

“What we have. The way our friendship works right now, I can do a lot of great things with you, racing, jokes, games, whatever. If we change what we are, then we won’t do those things anymore. We’ll do different stuff, you know, the mushy stuff. I’m not sure I want that.”

Swift clutched his mane and stared off into the dark horizon. “Oh. Well, I have to be honest about something, Rainbow. I really don’t want that either.”

“Huh? I don’t get it. I thought you said you really—”

“—I know, Rainbow. I can explain this.” He faced her again. “I guess I had some time to think about, stuff, b–before we did our dance last night. You know that my mom and dad, well, they do a lot of mushy things that is just, eck! For a while, I thought that because I was seeing you more than just a friend, I’ll end up doing what they do. You know what I figured out?”

“What?”

“I don’t want to be some super mushy stallion. That’s not who I am, Rainbow, and there’s no way I would ditch the things we do now. I guess the only thing that might change is that we would start doing a little more.”

Rainbow caressed her foreleg, “More? What do you mean by more?”

That turned on his heaters, “Well, I–I’m not sure. I guess we would, um, figure out what would work for us. B–but I wasn’t thinking that far ahead! I just, I had to understand myself a little more because I have to admit even now, I’m not sure about everything. What I know for certain is that I can’t help but feel how I feel about you.”

“Are you sure about that?”

Swift’s body turned cold. “Rainbow? How can you say that?”

“Just listen to yourself!” She grabbed him for a shake. “You’re Swift Flying, the pony that, a few months ago, couldn’t even stand the idea of romance! What happened to you? How do you know what you’re feeling isn’t because of what you did for me back in Ponyville? How do you know it’s not just a silly crush because you spent all that time with me, alone?”

Swift gently pushed away her hooves. “You know, I thought about that too. It kinda made sense that it was one of those things until I realized it didn’t. There’s a good answer for that and it was right in front of me.”

“And what’s that? I need to know!”

In a meek voice, “Well, it was you.”

“M–me?”

“Yeah. What I thought of you only grew stronger over time. Because of you, I changed. Rainbow, you made me better than I thought I could ever be.”

His eyes had developed a shimmering glow brighter than the northern star and she sat there as a pleasant observer. “I, I did?”

“The first time we met, you kept pushing my buttons and you know what? You drove me bonkers, Rainbow. Shoot. I almost walked out on you because I couldn’t stand what you were. The truth is that I needed a pony like you to push those buttons. If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t be where I am right now, more confident, more willing to take chances and just have more fun in my life. I can even put up with my name. Who else but you could pull that off?”

She countered his widening smile with one of her own. “Yeah, well, I just wanted to pay you back for helping me. I mean, you always found a way to surprise me or crack me up, even when you weren’t trying to. You kept helping me with a lot of things after I was cured, too. Like my bad habits. Always working to fix them.”

“Well, they’re not all bad habits. I mean, for example, a lot of times, you just go out and, do what you want to do. You don’t worry about the danger or the consequences. There’s something really wicked about that, especially when you’re doing it for the ponies you care about.”

“It helps taking chances when I have someone like you watching my back.”

“You, um—” His voice wavered “—you’re worth, watching. You look after yourself and your hair, the colors and how… it smells nice.”

She’d be lying to herself that his face right now wasn’t puppy dog adorable. Had it been for a little more courage, she’d actually say it aloud.

Swift paused for a prolonged blink. “But there’s more to you than that. You’re just so… no. Rainbow? You know how you always say you’re awesome?”

“Yeah?”

“Well, to me, you’re not. You can’t be.”

Rainbow’s ears emitted smoke. An insult was the last thing she expected but the deepening glow in his face suggested that it wasn’t meant to be one at all. He was going in a different direction, one she couldn’t predict.

“Rainbow? Awesome’s got nothing on you.”

Praise, it was a compliment except this was far more than what she would receive from a competitor, a mentor, even a friend. The phrase that slipped out of his tongue was the light shining through the fog as she fought through a choppy emotional sea. Her instincts cried out to follow this light and when she did, Rainbow found the land along with the mark denoting treasure. Once she dug up and opened the chest, she found a surprise. It was a part of her that she had locked away, a side that she refused to acknowledge until now. Curiosity would destroy who she was, she had believed.

No longer.

When she opened her heart to what she found, she achieved a clarity that had dogged her all this time. The stallion sitting right in front of her was the answer. While her head drifted downwards, it was not due to embarrassment but because of an indescribable joy of realizing there was one pony in the world that thought that she deserved to be ranked above the word awesome. Others could’ve matched his words but it would be a mere feeding of her ego, a platitude that she would forget over time. Only Swift Flying could say it and make her believe it was a undisputable fact and more importantly, touch her in a way nopony else ever could.

It was the nicest thing anypony had ever said about her.

Within her, there was an overflow of unfiltered emotion and she had to let it out. She must. No more pushing it back inside, no more restraining her impulses with thought. She could’ve used words as the release but they were poor translators of her true self and besides, that wasn’t her style. Rainbow Dash was a pony of action.

In Swift’s eyes, though, he had broken her mind. She just sat there, oblivious to anything and everything around her. What he just said must have been a colossal blunder, somehow even worse than his initial confession last night. Surely, the damage caused is critical, if not irreparable.

“Oh, shoot,” Swift exclaimed, slapping his forehead with an audible thwack. “That’s the cheesiest thing I’ve ever said in my entire life! What’s wrong with me? Rainbow? I know I can’t take that back but I want you to know that—”

He never finished his statement. A soft, warm press from her lips ensured he would never remember what it was, not in the present or ever again. Swift knew what this was and yet, shattered every presumption, every worry, every doubt that this was anything other than the right thing to do. She gave him her very essence, her deepest dreams and desires, overflowing with such searing passion that his eyelids slowly succumbed to it. When her hooves stroked the sides of his face, ecstasy surged from his heart and traveled all the way to where they connected the deepest. Their wings swung open hard enough to shed feathers and their bodies burned the fuel of life, sparking a fuse leading to the night sky.

Suddenly, sparks, spirals and swirls flashed their full spectrum of colors, starting with a few followed by hundreds, thousands, millions and then so numerous, the stars had neither the real estate nor the sheer brightness to compete for attention from every Brayside Beach denizen. They stepped outside and reveled at not only the wondrous splendor unfolding in front of their very eyes but also how the window-shaking outbursts were more than random noises. A close enough listen and there was a song playing, much like the ones played at the festival. Altogether, the complete package was worth dancing in the streets or taking pictures of a fireworks show that made yesterday a distant memory and yet, the town wondered what special occasion would merit such a dazzling display.

At the Ponyville train station, a few ponies that had just arrived gazed at the distant fireworks and pondered that very question.

Before any of them could audibly ask, Pinkie hugged both Rarity and Fluttershy.“ Woo, hoo! It’s like I told, Widge. Once that cannon goes off, we’ll remember it for the right reasons.”

“Huh?” the two ponies mumbled, perplexed at Pinkie’s nonsense.

“Am I seeing right,” Twilight stammered, stumbling back when the patterns started to include red heart shapes. “We’re so far away and… I bet you could see this from just about anywhere in Equestria! That must be one special cannon!”

Back by Widget’s workshop, the unicorn pranced gleefully all around her backyard, her cannon spitting out its plentiful ammunition. Success! There would be no comical explosion, no nay-sayers, no calamity that would ruin her triumphant romp.

Except a stray firework that landed on her roof and ignited one of the tiles.

“Oh, bugger! Extinguisher! Where’s my extinguisher?”

Widget ran back into her shop, desperate to stop her one alarm fire from becoming two. However, no amount of foam could put out the flames of passion atop the lighthouse. In the span of ten seconds, Rainbow discovered how wonderfully inebriated and short of breath she could be by letting her lips do the talking. Apple cider had met its match.

“I, um.” Rainbow dared to look him in the eye but quickly stared aside. She’d melt if she stared too long. “I, guess that’s my answer.”

If his head wasn’t attached to his body, it would’ve floated up past the fireworks and toward the moon. Coherent thought was impossible so it was left up to the most basic of his instincts to answer on his behalf.

A whinny, a terse but content whinny.

Rainbow had the perfect reason to giggle except there was a subsequent reason to panic. Out of the corner of her eye, a stray firework whizzed in their direction. Realizing Swift was in no condition to act, Rainbow tackled him what she thought was out of harm’s way.

Instead, they crashed headfirst right into the lighthouse wall.

“Owwwww!” Rainbow pressed the sides of her head. In retrospect, the singe from a small rocket was better than losing most of her marbles. “Darnit. That really smarts.”

On the positive side, it seemed to have knocked some sense into the stallion. “Oh, shoot. What in Equestria was that?” He leaned against the lighthouse wall, rubbing his temple. “I didn’t even… f–fireworks? There’s fireworks? Whoa! They’re everywhere! W–when did… how did I miss that?”

Rainbow smiled at his innocence. “I think we were a little, distracted. That’s why.”

“Di–distracted?” There went any hopes of cooling off his face anytime soon. “Hold on. This is going to sound really silly but um, did what just happened, happened?”

Rainbow pinched him in the foreleg. “Heh, heh, heh. You’re not dreaming, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Sorta but, ahem. Sorry. It’s that I wasn’t expecting that kind of answer, you know. Um, another silly question but does that mean that, you know.”

“If you mean giving you and me a shot, pretty much. Heh. Never thought I’d ever say that but, hey, you changed my mind about that.”

“I–I did?” Swift rubbed his forelocks, “How did I do that? Was it what I said?”

“Well,” she played with her long hair strands, “I suppose that helped, a lot. You reminded me of the type of pony you are, Swift. I mean, there’s so many awesome things about you but, well, I’m almost embarrassed to say this. Um, there are times when you’re, sweet. In a good way. And I really like it. Not just that but you, all of you.”

His heart took that as her confession to him. “Oh. Heh. Shoot.”

Rainbow gave her head a small shake. “But, um, yeah. This is going to sound weird coming out of me but I don’t want to go too fast with this, you understand? We don’t need to tell anypony our deal just yet, you know. Oh, and I liked where you were going earlier. Let’s not do anything overly sappy.”

Swift coughed, generating some organized thoughts. “Oh, gotcha. I hear ya. No love poetry, cuddly wuddly pictures or, ugh, pet names!”

“Don’t forget PDA,” she added.

“PDA?”

“Public display of affection. You know, what your parents love to do all the time for everypony to see, the snuggling, the muzzling or the,” She looked away from him, “kissing.”

“Oh.” He tapped his forelegs together, “So that was just a one-time thing, huh?”

“What? No, no, no, no, no, no, no! No,” she corrected, her hooves flopping about. “It’s not that I didn’t like it. If anything, it was, it was really really—” The memories of their intimate moment proved ticklish enough for some giggles.

Swift shared in her debilitating mirth. “Distracting?”

“Huh? Oh. Y–yeah. Let’s stick to that. We don’t want to be distracted too often. It’s kinda, well, you know, distracting. Not that it’s a bad thing but we don’t want to overdo it and make it less, distracting.”

Just reflecting on their ten seconds of passion made his head swim. “Y–yeah. Gotcha. Like, right now, I don’t think I can do much of anything.”

“Yeah, I’m kinda stuck up here too. Hey, um, since we’re both up here, how about we just watch the fireworks? I didn’t get to enjoy the ones yesterday.”

“Okay. I can—”

Rainbow reached out and held onto his hoof, ensuring they’d have a healthy share of blush. “Since nopony’s looking, I guess this is okay.”

Swift had nothing else to add except maybe his wing as a makeshift blanket. A little too much, he thought, and it was rather warm anyways. Therefore, he settled for what he had – a gentle squeeze from Rainbow and a light show that seemed to go on for hours. If this moment continued until the sun made its august appearance, he’d have no complaints. For all the ups and downs over the past few days, serenity was just what he needed.

“Um, Swift?” Rainbow pointed toward the hills veiled in darkness. “I might be imagining things but is that a fire over there? It’s right where the fireworks are coming from.”

The stallion released his hold. “Ah, shoot. Widge lives out there.”

“She does? Maybe we should check it out. She might be in trouble.”

“Eh, her workshop’s quite fire-resistant. It’s dragon-proof, she once told me.” Then, off in the distance, he picked up the sounds of a fire wagon. “But let’s not take any chances. Better see if she needs help.” He floated in the air but right before he took off, the stallion turned to Rainbow. “My bad. C’mon.”

There he was, extending a foreleg as a gentlecolt should, an act worthy to chew him out for being overly sappy. Yet she took it and basked in the wonderful sensation that only he could bring, a relaxing and yet palpating feeling that she was somepony special, awesome incarnate.

Then, she tugged him downwards and tucked him in so she could rub all she could against his head.

“Hey! W–what are... ha ha! Rainbow!”

“Don’t you go all soft on me! You were supposed to ask me to race over there! I don’t care what we are but you’re going to keep challenging me! You got that?”

In between aching laughter, he nodded. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to.”

She hit pause on the noogie. “Yeah, don’t worry about it. I’ll keep you in line.” Moments later, she resumed at a pace that was more of a soothing brush against his soft blue strands. “But I’m not going to lie to you. I, um, kinda missed doing this.” Finally, she patted him on the top before freeing him. “So, um, you don’t mind if I keep doing that to you?”

“Under one condition. You’ll have to catch me first.”

Any other day, that answer deserved another noogie attack. Yet she found herself in his trap and all he had to do was smile. There was a dash of confidence in the way he looked under the last few fireworks in the skies but there was also that sense that through all this, he was still the same old Swift Flying, a loyal friend with messy hair, sparkling blue orbs and an undersized slimmer body that the typical stallion.

And he was cute, quite so. Even his youthful voice was nice to hear.

“Threetwoone, go!”

There he went, taking full advantage of her dreamy mood.

“Swift!” She chuckled. “Darn you! I’m so gonna get you for that!”

Rainbow and Swift sped off into the night, an extra pep in the wing flaps and their spirits at an all-time high. They finally had the answer to the big question looming in their minds for months.

What’s wrong with me?

The answer, nothing at all. They were just dealing with another part of the puzzle known as life. Where these maturing emotions would take them, they couldn’t even begin to imagine but on this balmy Sunday night, Rainbow and Swift finally mustered the courage to rise up and travel down this newfound path.

Together.

Author's Notes:

Click here for image link!

After 4 years in real time and over 250,000 words later, why not?

Congratulations! You've put up with my endless delays and constant pulling of your legs to reach what I hope is a satisfying finish of a trilogy I had never intended to make as such. The original Return to Flight was an overhaul of another fic - Let Byhooves be Byhooves - that had a few goals in mind. A big one, however, was to demonstrate that you can have a male OC interact with Rainbow Dash without romantic elements. Nothing serious will happen, I insisted. Friendship, that's the limit and I wasn't crossing that line in my story unlike in other stories where those writers cross into that by Page 2 if you're lucky.

In the end, I failed. Completely. I don't really care.

You see, I ended up changing my mind while I was doing the rewrite for Return to Flight. All I can say is that when you enjoy writing the dynamics of two particular ponies, it dawns on you that you can't keep them apart. I put them in this almost natural progression from the beginning, so somehow undoing what I had started just didn't make sense.

In other words, I already had my ending before I even started Brayside Crush. The main question became getting there. That's not to diminish the story itself because I was chomping at the bit to bring into the light a brand new setting filled with all these new characters that I had already made. This was a grueling endeavor but I'm satisfied and relieved that I finally can put the ribbon on top and call this finished.

There's a lot of people I want to thank but I'm really bad with remembering names. I will mention all my editors that have helped me along the way from the beginning, a special thanks to Shaleclaw who I trusted to bounce ideas from time to time, Renciel who made both the cover image for this story and the lovely picture for this final chapter, all the other artists that have done art related to this series and its characters, Lauren Faust and Hasbro for My Little Pony but most importantly, every one of you reading this right now. You gave me a chance to entertain you throughout this entire journey and while my focus will be shifting elsewhere, I hope that you'll stick around to see what's in store.

Cya later!

- Outlaw