The Spring Rains
“That’s a wrap, y’all!” Applejack hollered into the crowd of ponies packed into the town hall. The crowd cheered in return and fell to their individual conversations. The mood was jovial, and spirits were high. Thanks to the hard work of every pony present, Winter was wrapped up once more. Near the front of the town hall, Twilight Sparkle sat with her friends, occasionally thanking passerby ponies for their support in the fastest Winter Wrap Up ever.
“I must say, Twilight, darling,” Rarity joined in, laying an amicable hoof over Twilight’s shoulders, “this year was particularly amazing. The sun’s barely down, and we’re all done!”
Twilight blushed at the compliment, her hooves tapping the table in front of her anxiously. “Oh, well, this wasn’t my first Winter Wrap Up, so I’ve had a lot more experience. And I did have a lot of help during the planning phase.” She smiled and glanced over to Rainbow Dash. The pegasus was deep in a cider drinking competition with Applejack, but their eyes met for a moment.
Noticing Twilight, Rainbow waved a forehoof. “Twilight! Come cheer me on. There’s no way Applejack can out-drink me after how hard I flew today.” Rainbow hiccuped and downed the rest of her cider in one gulp.
“I reckon you’ve never seen an Apple with a right proper thirst. I could drink twice as much as you and still buck half the orchard!” Applejack countered, downing her own mug of cider.
“Oh my gosh! That’s two for Dashie and two for Applejack, this is amazing!” Pinkie shouted between the two competitors, downing what appeared to be her third cider. “I’ve never seen a such a close competition! We’re going to have to have a party for the winner and a party for the second winner!”
Twilight giggled and nodded. “Yep, a lot of help. Really, I didn’t even expect to get so much help, especially after how upset Rainbow was when Tank went into hibernation.”
“Oh my, yes. The poor dear was absolutely distraught. I don’t suppose you tried to smooth things out with Rainbow after?”
“That’s the thing, after what happened...” Twilight glanced up at the ceiling, trying to recall up the memories from the entire winter. “I felt pretty bad. Everypony was crying. I understood why, I just didn’t really react because I knew Tank would be alright. Even Fluttershy knew, but she cried too.”
“Dear, we all have our way of dealing with problems.” Rarity patted Twilight a couple times with her hoof. “I’m sure Rainbow understood that you cared.”
“Of course she did. Rainbow’s never been the kind of pony to doubt her friends. Deep down inside, I know she believes in us. That’s why it makes it so easy for us to believe in her.” Twilight smiled, a gentle smile of fond memories long past. “Maybe that’s why it was so easy for her to accept my company over the winter.”
“Hmm, I do recall seeing you and Rainbow together quite a lot... Oh! You two didn’t...” Rarity’s voice dropped to a low murmur, her eyes gleaming from the possible implication.
“What? Oh! No! Not that.” Twilight caught the tone and shook her head quickly. “Rainbow and I just shared a few more reading nights. And, she tended to stay near my castle because of how open the airspace around it was. Plus, it was cold, so she’d drop in now and then for a warm drink.”
“And just where does her helping with Winter Wrap Up work into all of this?” Rarity released Twilight’s shoulder and focused her magic on getting a snack from the laden plates on the table. The possibilities of romance left her a tad peckish.
“Well, one day she noticed me making plans for Winter Wrap Up.” Twilight grinned and fluffed her wings. “And in her usual way, she informed me that everything could be way more awesome, and how I was doing it was boring and slow.”
“That’s a tad rude, isn’t it?”
“A little, but that’s just how Rainbow expresses herself. She always means well. Besides, she actually had helpful suggestions.”
“She hadn’t shared these with you before?”
“I don’t think I’ve ever had the chance to really listen. Most of them were off-the-hoof comments in between sips of hot cocoa. For example, she mentioned that the snow in the fields always took longer to melt because the Earth ponies tended to pile it up toward the Western side of the hills. This left it in the shade for much longer than usual.” Twilight blushed a little. “To be honest, I probably could have figured that out eventually, but Rainbow brought it to my attention, like so many other things.”
“So...” Rarity shared a little grin with Twilight. “Does that mean Rainbow is more responsible for this particularly successfully Winter Wrap Up than the town is aware?”
“Maybe just a little.” Twilight grinned back. “Though I’m not sure if I should tell her. Personally, I don’t think I need to, I think she knows.” Twilight glanced over to Rainbow, now well on her way to her fifth cider.
Rarity nodded sagely. “I think so, too.”
* * *
Even Pinkie knows all good parties must end so another party might begin anew at another time. The town hall was more empty than full as the moon reached its peak in the sky. Applejack laid sprawled out over the table, her hoof still gripped around an empty cider mug. Rainbow laid across from her, snoring loudly, her cider mug partially filled and sloshing with each little twitch of her foreleg. Obviously Pinkie had won the contest, but neither would remember in the morning.
At the door, Pinkie stood, or bounced, as hyper as ever, thanking everypony for coming. Across the room, Twilight, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Spike helped her clean the aftermath of the party. Pinkie had certainly outdone herself, though Twilight felt there might not have been a need for quite so many streamers as she stuffed what seemed to be the hundredth one into a bag held aloft in her magic.
As Rarity wiped down the last of the tables with her magic, the five friends looked to their sleeping comrades. “I can get Applejack home, no problem!” Pinkie declared. She deftly lifted Applejack with her neck and slid the sleeping pony onto her back. Bouncing out of the of the room, she bade each of her friends goodnight as she passed them.
Rainbow snored loudly as she rolled over, still clutching her empty cider mug within her hooves. Rarity had thoughtfully emptied it earlier, lest the sticky liquid get all over the the place. Twilight looked to her friends and back to Rainbow. “I don’t suppose you’d like to fly her home, Fluttershy?” Fluttershy shook her head and backed up a little. “No, I mean, I’d like not to, if that’s okay. It’s not that I don’t want to... it’s just that Rainbow tosses and turns a lot when she sleeping, and it might not be safe.”
Obligingly, Rainbow rolled once more and settled from her resting place on the table to the floor. Somehow oblivious to the world around her, even though her rump still remained firmly on the chair raised into the air.
“Why don’t you take care of her, darling,” Rarity interjected, her hoof coming to her mouth in a small lady-like yawn. “I’m sure you could teleport her home without too much trouble.”
With a small nod of determination, Twilight hoisted Rainbow up into the air with her magic. “I’ll do it. We can’t have Rainbow sleeping in the town hall all night.”
“Oh, good... Rainbow will need her rest.” Fluttershy chimed in. “She has a big day tomorrow now that Winter is wrapped up.”
“Tomorrow? Why tomorrow?” Twilight's ears perked, the bug of curiosity nipping at her mind.
“It’s the spring rains, it’s very important to all Pegasi,” Fluttershy answered, yawning herself. “I should head home, too. Goodnight, Twilight.”
“Goodnight, Fluttershy.” Twilight waved to Fluttershy as her friend trotted off, leaving her with more questions. “Spike,” she began slowly, “could you possibly...?”
“Oh boy, here we go again.” Spike rolled his eyes with with a smile. “I’ll head home and find you a few reference books, but then I’m going to bed. Just don’t stay up all night reading, okay?”
“Thanks, Spike.” Twilight smiled and ruffled his head-spikes affectionately. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Look for books yourself.” He deadpanned in return and wobbled off. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight, Spike.” Twilight chuckled before turning to Rarity. “Thanks for keeping me company tonight, Rarity. Will you be open tomorrow?”
“Oh my, no.” Rarity shook her head. “I plan on catching up on my beauty sleep and avoiding the rains. It does quite the number on my mane.”
Chuckling, Twilight nodded. “I understand. Goodnight, Rarity.” She waved to her friend goodbye before turning to the sleeping pegasus at her side. “I guess it’s time we both hit the hay, huh, Dashie?“
Rainbow snored in response.
Smiling, Twilight flashed out of existence, her precious friend in tow. Rematerializing in Rainbow’s cloud house, Twilight wandered through the rooms looking for a suitable place to drop her friend off. The fluffy cloud floors still felt a little odd under her hooves, but she’d learned to appreciate the texture ever since gaining her wings.
Finding what appeared to be a bedroom, Twilight carefully navigated around the objects strewn on the floor and gently deposited Rainbow upon the bed. As she pulled the downy comforter up to tuck Rainbow in, her friend chose that exact moment to wake up.
“Heya, Twilight,” Rainbow yawned out, her limbs stretching out.
“Um, hey. Just getting you to bed. You were snoring pretty hard just a moment ago. But since you’re awake now, I’ll just get going. I got a lot of reading to do at home.”
Without missing a beat, Rainbow smirked and winked at Twilight. “Already? I know we’re best friends, and I like fast, but isn’t this a little too fast?”
“What? No! That’s not what I meant at all.” Twilight backed up, visibly blushing.
Rainbow held up her hooves, laughing. “Relax, Twilight. I’m just joking. I just need one of my classic Dash-naps followed by a Dash-prank to recharge. If you want, I got the latest Daring Do. We could do a little reading together.”
“Oh.” Twilight shifted on her hooves. “Well, I was leaning more toward the non-fiction, reference guide sort of reading tonight.”
“Reference guide!” Rainbow Dash bolted up out of bed, limbs outstretched. “Really, Twilight? You know that’s nowhere as cool as Daring Do. What’s so interesting that you’d pass up Daring Do?”
“Fluttershy mentioned something about spring rains. I know of them, but I haven’t really read into them.”
“Ha, that old thing?” Rainbow Dash fluttered down next to Twilight and wrapped a hoof around Twilight’s middle, pulling her in. “I can tell you everything you want to know about the spring rains. After all, I am the very best at it in Ponyville.”
“Really?” Twilight’s ears perked once more. “Oh, I have so many questions!”
“I bet. You always do.” Rainbow smirked and prodded Twilights wings with a hoof. “But now that you’re part Pegasus, I think it might be easier if I show you.”
“Really?” Twilight echoed, the thoughts of sleep vanquished away in the face of intellectual learning.
“Twilight, relax. Of course I’ll show you. It’s the least I could do after you set aside a whole hour today to help me welcome Tank back for Spring.”
“It was nothing. I promised you a great winter, and seeing Tank and you reunited was the perfect way to wrap it up. I wouldn’t consider it a successful Winter Wrap Up without it.” Twilight paused for a second, trying to contain her excitement. “So, about the spring rains?”
“Thanks, Twilight, but you gotta relax. I can’t show you until tomorrow once the sun goes down. You need to go home and get a good night’s rest. We’ve got a long day ahead of us.”
“Got it. Sleep. Long day.” Twilight nodded, a mental checklist already being drafted, proofed, and double-proofed.
“Alright, goodnight Twilight.”
“Goodnight, Rainbow.”
Twilight broke free from Rainbow’s embrace and flashed home, her mind spinning with ideas and questions. She tried to sleep, she tried to read, but it just wasn’t enough. By the time she actually fell asleep, then sun was already creeping to the horizon.
* * *
There comes a reflective time in everypony’s life when they wake up in a puddle of their own drool surrounded by reference books they don’t recall pulling off the shelves. As Twilight woke with a start, she didn’t have a chance for contemplation because a familiar scratchy voice happened to be calling to her through the window. Rubbing her eyes with the back of her hooves, she turned around to find Rainbow Dash staring in her window, a slight smirk casually planted across her features.
“Yo, Twilight. Long night?”
Twilight groaned and face-desked once more. “You have no idea.” She mumbled into the wood, finding it smelling very much of rich mahogany.
“I think I do. Guess who re-read all of Daring Do and the Ring of Destiny last night to get pumped up?” Rainbow tapped her chest. “This pony.”
Twilight raised her head up off the desk and rubbed her eyes blearily once more. “How...how are you still so energetic, then?”
“Simple!” Rainbow flew in a quick loop outside the window before coming back. “Dash-naps, Dash-pranks, and plenty of coffee. Seeing as the first two are exclusively patented to me—and I don’t think my patented rain-blow dry is going to work here—how about we settle for some coffee?”
Unable to suppress her growing smile given Rainbow’s antics, Twilight nodded. “Coffee sounds great right now. Maybe you could fill me in on the spring rains at the same time?”
“Ha, you’re still curious about it. Sure, let’s head over to Sugarcube and get you the biggest, sugariest, coffee drink they got and I’ll give you the run-down.”
Five minutes later, Pinkie dropped an enormous vat of coffee mixed with chocolate, covered whipped cream, dotted with sprinkles, in front of Rainbow and Twilight. “There ya go! I call it Pinkie’s Plucky Pony Picker Pumper Upper!”
Twilight opened her mouth, but no words came.
“Awesome!” Rainbow jabbed a straw into the mess and sucked away. “Mmm, this is delicious!”
“Thanks, Dashie!” Pinkie gave Rainbow a quick hug before bouncing off to help the other customers.
“Here.” Rainbow shoved another straw into the massive drink and nudged it toward Twilight. “Have some, it’s really good!”
Twilight looked at Rainbow, then to Pinkie, both of them particularly expectant. Sighing in defeat, she leaned her head down and tentatively took a sip. It was sweet—too sweet—but somehow still good. She sucked down a gulp, then another.
“Good, isn’t it?” Rainbow asked.
Twilight nodded, her muzzle not leaving the straw, as the glorious coffee refilled her tired body and breathed new life into exhausted muscles.
“So anyway, the spring rains is a Pegasi tradition. It’s done after Winter Wrap Up as our way of welcoming in Spring. Earth Ponies clean up Winter, but Pegasi do something way more awesome. We whip up a huge rainstorm and wash away the old year and welcome in the new year.”
Twilight pulled her mouth away from the straw to take a breath. “And it just happens to coincide with the first Spring planting of the Earth ponies.”
“Pretty much. All the ponies of Equestria are a team, ya know? The spring rain is just as important to the Pegasi as Winter Wrap Up is to the Earth ponies.”
“What about the unicorns, then?”
“Oh, that’s easy. That’s why we have to wait until sundown. The unicorns always helped with the sun and stuff, right? So, the Pegasi wait until sundown so we know every pony is ready for the rains. Then we really let ‘em have it!”
“This all sounds really amazing. Where do I fit in, then? You said you were going to show me.”
“That’s easy, too! Just hang out outside, maybe on a hill for a good view at sundown. You’re going to get wet though, so be ready.”
“That’s it?”
“That’s it!”
“But... sundown isn’t for hours!” Twilight’s hooves jittered, the caffeine hitting her hard. “What am I supposed to do until then?”
“It’s up to you, Twilight. I’m gonna go warm up and do some tricks. Try doing whatever organize-y things you usually do. Take a Sparkle-nap or something. Just remember to be outside at sundown.”
“Alright Rainbow, I’ll be ready.”
“Great! I’ll see you later, then! Wish me luck!”
“Of course, Rainbow. Good luck.”
Rainbow beamed and plucked a pinion she had hidden beneath her wing and placed it behind Twilight’s ear. “It’s a good luck charm. Don’t lose it.”
Twilight blinked and nodded. “I won’t.”
“Good.” Rainbow blushed ever so slightly and zoomed out of Sugarcube, leaving a slightly dazed Twilight.
* * *
Taking her time, Twilight finished off most of the coffee before meandering her way back to her castle. As she passed through the market, she caught the gaze of many of the pegasus ponies in town. A few of them even made an effort to take her hoof, shaking it vigorously and congratulating her. She thanked them in return. Apparently the success of Winter Wrap Up still on everypony’s mind.
She passed by the cherry stand just as Fluttershy was deep in negotiations with the cherry salespony. She trotted over to greet Fluttershy and maybe avoid another assertiveness incident.
“Hey Fluttershy, buying some cherries?”
“Oh, hi Twi—” Fluttershy paused when she saw the feather deposited safely upon Twilight’s right ear.
Tilting her head, Twilight looked to Fluttershy and back to the cherry salespony. “Is everything alright?”
This seemed to snap Fluttershy out of her trance. She quickly shoved the unreasonable number of bits onto the cherry salespony’s counter and scooped up her two cherries. “Yes! I just remembered I need to go home right away. Angel’s waiting for me.”
Raising an eyebrow, Twilight nodded slowly. “Of course. Are you going to be at the rains tonight, Fluttershy? Rainbow said it was important for all Pegasi. She even gave me this feather for good luck.”
Heaving every so slightly, Fluttershy nodded. “Oh thank goodness, Rainbow gave that to you, that’s wonderful. I thought it was...nevermind.” She trailed off and scuffed the ground with her hoof. “You should take good care of it. It’s very important.”
Nodding, Twilight glanced up at the feather, double checking it, before back to Fluttershy. “Of course. I wouldn’t want to mess up a Pegasi tradition.” When she didn’t get a response, she tried her previous question again. “So, Fluttershy, are you going to be at the rains tonight?”
“Yes, though I really have to get going. Take care, Twilight.” With that, Fluttershy zipped out of the market, leaving behind an even more confused Twilight.
Naturally, the questions nagged Twilight and she did her best to resolve them, but in the end she decided it would be best if she just waited until sundown. She tried all manner of things to pass the time like organizing her personal book collection, cleaning her desk, even trying a Sparkle-nap. By the time sundown rolled around, she was more than ready for the rains to come.
“Spike?” Twilight called out as she headed out of the castle. “I’m going to go learn about Pegasi tradition! I might be out late, so don’t worry!”
Spike grunted and waved a claw in response, his face buried in a comic book. Twilight made a note to check out that issue of Power Ponies in the future. It seemed particularly engaging. Smiling, she closed the door behind her and trotted her way out to the open grasslands to the west of her castle. She found a nice vantage point on top of a hill and watched the clouds roll into Ponyville.
She shivered as a little as the breeze picked up, but she didn’t feel too cold. Arching her head up toward the sky, she knew somewhere up there, Rainbow Dash was preparing an amazing show for her to experience. Normally, she would have brought an ink and quill for taking notes, but given the guaranteed rains to come, she decided to just commit everything to memory for notes later.
As she wrapped up her thoughts, a flash of light and the rumble of thunder followed shortly after. It wasn’t very loud, like a distant horn beckoning forth the rain. Slowly, the sky darkened around her and she felt herself enveloped by the warmth of air pressure right before the rain. She closed her eyes and waited, knowing with complete certainty that Rainbow was anticipating it as much as she was.
It started slowly, the droplets sprinkled down from the sky like hundreds of dewdrops rolling off the leaves of the forest. They splashed upon her coat, her wings, and everything everything seemed to grow and come to life. She tilted her head upward to meet the rain, letting each droplet slowly wash over her like a cleansing shower. In the rains, she felt washing away her stress, her worries, and her questions.
In their wake, she was left feeling warm, safe and alive. It was almost as if she could feel the energy of the Pegasi dancing in the clouds above her, their hooves upon the heavy laden rainclouds in a choreographed shower of rebirth and renewal. Even though many ponies thought only unicorns possessed magic, Twilight could feel just how wrong they were. With each droplet, she could feel the energy coursing over her body. It streamed around her like a beautiful magical well, exposing her mind to images of serenity she never thought possible.
She reached out with her own magic, seeking to join in with the beautiful song crafted by the Pegasi ponies above her. Thin tendrils of magic trailed from her horn into the air, meeting with the droplets for a moment of inspiration before finding the next. Purple strands of light danced from droplet to droplet up toward the sky into the clouds, filling the air with a glow never seen before in Ponyville.
Twilight could feel her magic growing with each connection she made. She could taste the rain, feel the sky, hear the wind singing above the clouds. It was wonderful, and she never wanted it to end. Her heart pounded with each new sensation until the rain hit its peak. Slowly, the droplets tapered off and she could only think of the pony she felt was most responsible: Rainbow Dash.
She opened her eyes slowly and found herself face to face to the pony she was thinking of. Above her the sky was brilliant with stars between the parting clouds, and her own purple magic weaving between them. And in front of her, Rainbow took a tentative step forward, her eyes focused on the feather sitting securely between Twilight’s head and ear.
“You kept it...” Rainbow began slowly.
Twilight breathed out a long breath and smiled. “I don’t normally believe in good luck charms, but I think this one is special.”
“It is,” Rainbow responded casually, inching closer to Twilight. “I’m surprised it didn’t wash out in the rains.”
“I didn’t let it go. I could feel it wavering, but I kept it steady with my ear. I wouldn’t be a very good friend if I let the charm you gave me slip to the ground.”
Rainbow smiled a half smile and nodded. “You’re a very good friend, Twilight. I’m glad I gave it to you. My life’s gotten so much cooler since you’ve shown me all the things I was missing. So, I wanted to share something with you.”
“You certainly did.” Twilight smiled back and glanced up at the feather nestled snugly against her head. “I hope we can share a lot more things in the future.”
“That’d be... awesome.” Rainbow took the final step forward and shared one more thing with Twilight that night.
Twilight might have been surprised, but she had seen it in her mind as it rained, she had smelled it in the air as it rained, she had heard it in the wind as it rained, she had felt it on her coat as it rained, and she tasted it as the rain came to an end.
* * *
The next day, Pinkie threw another party for her and her friends. And Twilight found herself once more around a table with her friends. This time, Rainbow’s hoof was draped casually over her back and she couldn’t help nestling back into the warm body next to her.
“So, I think I did pretty awesome last night.” Rainbow bragged before nuzzling Twilight to prove her point. “But I gotta thank all you guys for your help. I don’t know how you did it Fluttershy, but you really got Twilight thinking.”
“Y’know Fluttershy, she might be quiet, but she’s very capable when she sets her mind to things,” Applejack added.
Fluttershy blushed and smiled back at Rainbow and Applejack. “A little kindness goes a long way. I think Twilight already had a lot on her mind. I just shared one more thing with her.”
“Well, whatever you did, it worked great,” Rainbow complimented once more, earning another blush from Fluttershy. “I’ll have to admit, it was tough getting the weather team on board, but once they knew why, they let me take over the spring rains. Normally all the Pegasi dance for everypony in town, but I think letting me lead the dance for just one pony worked out more awesome than ever.”
“Careful, Rainbow, you’re hitting that awesome-per-minute quota we talked about,” Rarity teased, obviously pleased with the turn of events.
“I can’t help it! I’m still amazed it worked out so well. I think we’ll have to do it again next year!” Rainbow pumped her hoof in the air. “In fact, I should lead every year!”
“Rainbow,” Twilight began, “What about the tradition of rain dancing for all the ponies in Ponyville?”
Rainbow grinned and winked. “Well, maybe we could make it a duet then. I don’t mind sharing it with you. You have wings after all.”
Twilight paused, thought about it and smiled. “You know what? I’d like that. It feels like the perfect way to share friendship—”
“—and love,” Rarity chimed in.
“Yes, and love with every pony.” Twilight squeezed Rainbow extra tight as her ear twitched against the blue feather tucked snugly against her head.