Rainbow Dash whizzed beside Lullaby as the final minutes of drills ticked by. They were practising creating tornados in pairs and Rainbow was pleased to see that theirs was the biggest. After the incident with Lightning Dust, Rainbow Dash had been practising her tornado control and she had to admit that she'd improved greatly.

"One minute left!"

Rainbow Dash heard a light bulb go off in her head. Her training with Soarin could finally come in handy here. "Hey, Lullaby!" Rainbow Dash called out over the whirring of the twister. Lullaby squinted through her flying goggles.

"What is it?" she called back.

"Would you mind getting out of here?" Rainbow asked her. Lullaby was bewildered.

"How come?" she bellowed. Rainbow Dash smirked.

"You'll see!" she replied. Lullaby hesitated a little before taking a sharp turn and exiting the tornado. Rainbow now had to control the tornado by herself and luckily her practise hadn't been for nothing. Now was the time to show everypony what she could do. She tilted her body down and began descending, flying round in circles faster and faster. She could feel the tornado getting bigger around her as she sped up.

She was going to show everyone the Soar Spin.

She was getting closer to the ground, now. At the last moment she pulled up and-

WHOOSH!

Powerful gusts of wind erupted around her, completely blowing Whiplash off his hooves and sending Fast Clip to the ground. She looked to the side to see the cadets staring at her in awe. She'd literally blown their minds! Dash swerved down to land on the ground right in front of Spitfire, who looked pretty impressed.

"Whoa, Dash. Not exactly what I expected from a tornado drill, but you've just earned a pretty good report today," Spitfire informed Rainbow Dash, who triumphantly flapped into the air and flipped backwards to celebrate. She was tackled to the ground by a few of the cadets.

"Rainbow Dash, that was amazing!" Lullaby praised her friend, ruffling her rainbow coloured mane.

"Yeah, I wish I could do that," Stargazer hugged Dash tightly.

"Where did ya learn that?" Bumble asked Rainbow, giving her a slap on the back. Rainbow Dash smiled and shrugged.

"I learned from the best," she replied. Spitfire blew her whistle, getting their attention back.

"Enough of the jibba jabba! Tomorrow you'll be taking a break from flying techniques and weather control to practice mid-air combat. Most ponies forget that the Wonderbolts are warriors, not just stunt flyers," Spitfire revealed. The cadets immediately began buzzing with excitement, except Cinder, who turned a little pale at the mention of fighting.

With that the cadets were dismissed and they headed to the Mess Hall. Lullaby trotted beside Rainbow Dash.

"Hey, Dash, do ya think you can teach us that awesome trick?" the purple pegasus asked Rainbow and seconds after she said that Rainbow was being swarmed by nearly all the cadets, staring at her with big pleading eyes. Rainbow gazed around at all the begging pegasi and felt a little pleased that they were all asking her for help with a trick. Was this how Soarin felt when he taught her?

"Meh, why not?" Rainbow Dash replied coolly, though inside she was repeating ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh! "But can I get a bite to eat first? I think we all need a snack after that tornado exercise."

After they all agreed to eat first, they walked through the double doors to the Mess Hall.

---

"Idiot, idiot, idiot!"

Braeburn cursed under his breath as Soarin repeated that word over and over again while slamming his head into the table. The two of them were alone in the staffroom, and Braeburn was seriously debating whether or not he should leave. Soarin was acting like a complete nutcase because of the whole Rainbow Dash fiasco from yesterday and it was beginning to drive Braeburn up a wall.

"Will ya stop that already?" the earth pony hissed at his friend. Soarin finally stopped bonking himself on the table after that and Braeburn sighed with relief. Braeburn and Soarin were at the coffee machine at the back of the room. "You're meant to be givin' me instructions, not sockin' yerself senseless!"

"Heh…sorry," Soarin apologized, rubbing his sore looking forehead. Braeburn rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the coffee machine and the polystyrene cup in front of him. "Why are you making me do this again?"

"Well, yesterday in the kitchen, your determination to confess your feelin's t' Rainbow Dash got me thinkin' 'bout mah situation with Miss Spitfire," Braeburn revealed. Soarin gasped.

"Are you gonna tell her?" he asked Braeburn. Braeburn did a double take.

"No way, Ah'm not that brave!" the Appaloosan said, feeling instantly nervous at the thought. Soarin exhaled and patted Braeburn on the back.

"Good for you, buddy, 'cause it's impossible!" Soarin sighed, his eyes glazing over. Braeburn slapped Soarin round the face for fear of the pegasus stallion doing it himself.

"Snap outta it!" Braeburn scolded his high school friend. Soarin sheepishly gave Braeburn a weak smile.

"Sorry… I needed that. But aren't you gonna tell me why we're making her coffee?" the Wonderbolt repeated his question from earlier.

"Well, remember when Ah first told ya 'bout all this? Ya told me t' just take baby steps and be nice to 'er, right?" Braeburn tried to jolt Soarin's memory. Soarin just stared at Braeburn for a few seconds before replying.

"Yes, but what does that have to do with coffee?" he asked. Braeburn sighed and muttered something negative under his breath.

"Well, instead o' doin' somethin' lame like givin' her flowers or a goat-"

"A goat?" Soarin raised an eyebrow. Braeburn reached up and took his cowboy hat off his head, reaching under it and pulling out a book titled '100 things to know about crushes that you were afraid to ask'. Soarin was about to ask him what else he kept under his hat when he flipped open the book to a specific page and read a few sentences.

"Oh, it said 'boat'…but how does a boat help- ugh, stupid book, FORGET THE BOOK!" Braeburn shoved it back under his hat roughly. "Anyway, Ah figured that getting' 'er coffee is as good a start as any," Braeburn shrugged, once he'd forgotten about his rage with the book and returned to his normal smiley mood.

"Oh, yeah, that is a good idea. Better than getting her a goat, anyway," Soarin joked. "Well, now that I know why we're doing this, she likes half a spoonful of sugar," he told Braeburn, who obediently spooned the right amount of sugar into the full cup.

"How much milk?" the earth pony asked Soarin.

"No milk; she likes it black," the pegasus replied. "That's it."

Braeburn nodded his thanks to Soarin and let his eyes slip sideways until they landed on the cookie jar. He suddenly felt pretty hungry. "Hey, Soarin. D'ya want a cookie?"

"Yeah, sure," Soarin licked his lips as Braeburn opened up the jar and tossed him a chocolate chip cookie, which was gone in seconds. Braeburn munched on his slower than Soarin did, just waiting. His time in the staffroom had taught him a lot of things about the pegasi here, mainly what times they liked to come here. He knew that Fleetfoot was always here during both sets of drills, Rapidfire came in here during the second half of drills for a nap and Spitfire always came in after drills to grab some coffee and then headed to her office, so she could come in at any moment.

"What's taking so long? I wanna see what happens," Soarin complained, flopping down on the couch. Braeburn fixed him with a stern glower.

"Nothin' will happen," he insisted. He was just trying to make friends with her at this point. Soarin looked like he was about to say something else but quickly changed his mind. Braeburn got the suspicion that the co-captain was about to say something that wouldn't help with this situation. At least the pie loving stallion could hold his tongue about certain things.

"Hey, Soarin," Braeburn recognized the voice and almost completely shut down. He managed to look to the side as the captain he had been waiting for came through the door. She looked over at him with that usual stern expression of hers. "Hey, cowboy," she added. Braeburn felt his cheeks threaten to turn red. He liked it when she called him 'cowboy'.

"Hi, Spitfire, what's up?" Soarin smiled at her. Spitfire shrugged.

"Usually us," she joked and Soarin chuckled.

"Yeah, because we're Wonderbolts and it's our job to be up-"

"Soarin, if ya have to explain the joke it's not funny," Spitfire told him. Soarin ceased laughing, though he was still smirking.

"So, why are you here?" Soarin asked her, looking over at Braeburn, who finally began functioning properly again. Spitfire gave Soarin a weird look.

"Soarin, you know I come in here to get coffee every day at the same time," she reminded him. Soarin faked a look of realization.

"Oh, now I remember," he lied. "Well, you don't have to worry about the coffee because…" he looked over at Braeburn, waiting for him to finish the sentence. Braeburn opened his mouth. Why in Celestia's name was his throat so dry? "Because…" Soarin repeated more harshly. Braeburn gave in to that stupid freezing sensation and Soarin face-hoofed. "Braeburn already made you some!" Soarin finished the sentence. Braeburn finally spoke.

"Yeah… Ah did. It's next to the Espresso machine," he told Spitfire who flashed him a smile before trotting over to the machine.

"Thanks cowboy," she said to him and Braeburn turned around to stare at the wall so she wouldn't be able to see his blush. Once he was sure he didn't look red, he turned back round to see Spitfire about to leave the room.

"See ya," Soarin called after her.

"Yeah, bye, ma'am," Braeburn waved at her even though she couldn't see him. Spitfire turned and nodded in farewell at the two of them. She turned to leave again but stopped in the doorway, pausing for a few seconds before looking over her shoulder.

"Hey," she looked over at Braeburn. Braeburn's pupils dilated as she looked at him and he did that stupid Look-Behind-You-To-See-If-She's-Talking-To-Somepony-Else-Even-Though-You-Know-That-The-Only-Thing-Behind-You-Is-A-Wall thing. Once he'd confirmed that there was nothing but a wall behind him and she wouldn't talk to a wall he looked back at her.

"Yes, ma'am," he asked her, smiling as usual. Spitfire gestured to the hallway.

"Can I talk to you for a second?" she asked him. Braeburn felt something like a firework go off in his brain and he suddenly forgot how to walk. He slowly put one hoof in front of the other, looking at Soarin as if to say 'come with me'. Soarin just gave Braeburn an eyebrow wiggle, which gave Braeburn the desire to punch him.

He finally made it to the hallway and Spitfire closed the door behind them. She then began walking down the hallway and motioned for Braeburn to follow her. It then dawned on Braeburn that he was alone with Spitfire in a hallway. He felt completely stunned, trying to remember how to walk, breathe and speak and he felt a little lightheaded. He suddenly found himself leaning against the left wall of the hallway and Braeburn suspected that he'd almost fainted and the wall had been the only thing keeping him from falling to the floor.

Spitfire only led him a few metres away, as if she wanted to make sure they were out of earshot. She held out her hoof to get him to stop before turning to face him. Braeburn suddenly found the floor interesting and began running a hoof along the wooden surface.

"So…what is it, ma'am?" Braeburn looked over at the golden mare. She took off her shades and folded them up before tucking them in the front pocket of her uniform. Braeburn finally got to see her eyes without her sunglasses on and was briefly dazzled by them. They were very…orange and they seemed to sparkle. Braeburn wondered if she was staring into his soul, and looked down to check before realising that was ridiculous!

"Listen, cowboy, I'm not stupid. So what is it?" Spitfire asked him. Braeburn was instantly baffled by the question. What was she talking about?

"Pardon? Ah don't really understand what ya mean?" he looked down at her. She looked a little angry.

"What do you want from me?" she asked him again. She didn't give him a chance to reply (not that he could have) because she hadn't finished talking. "You repair things for me, agree to a job assisting me, teach me how to bake pie and get me my stuff and you seriously don't think I'll get a little suspicious? So, what did you put in my coffee? Drugs? Poison!?"

Braeburn's jaw dropped. Why in the name of the princesses would he do something like that? He couldn't understand how somepony could mistake a kind gesture for the exact opposite. "Ma'am…Ah wouldn't do somethin' like that. Ah was just tryin' t' be friendly," he replied gently, despite the look of panic in his green eyes.

"Why?" Spitfire asked, surprisingly calmly. Braeburn took a second to calm himself down before replying, meeting her gaze.

"Well, back in Appaloosa we treat ladies with the greatest possible respect. Ah was just being polite," Braeburn replied, straightening up and speaking confidently. Spitfire looked away from him and down at the ground.

"Well, I'm not a lady," she sighed sombrely. Braeburn was once again shocked at this. How could a mare possibly say that? He smiled down at her warmly.

"That's not true…" Braeburn paused before saying the next half of his sentence. "Actually…you're the finest lady Ah've met," he turned a little pink. Spitfire's angry glare vanished and was replaced with one of shock. She looked up and met his gaze, looking confused, surprised and mystified all at the same time. For several seconds they just stared at each other, not saying a word before Spitfire suddenly began babbling random syllables. She turned away from Braeburn and grumbled, though she didn't turn far enough to hide her right cheek and Braeburn was surprised, and pleased, to see a light blush on her face.

"Well, you can just stop…"she spat, looking back at him for a split second before turning away again. "…it's better if I'm just…left alone."

Braeburn frowned down at her and he felt his spirits sink down to his hooves. All he'd tried to do was become her friend, but now she was mad at him! "Ma'am…" he stopped talking even though he wanted to say every possible thing that would make her change her mind. Maybe…maybe he should just give up. "Ah didn't mean t' make ya angry. I just…" he made up his mind. He'd rather give up now than be shot down later. He wanted what was best for her, and if that meant that he had to leave her be then…he'd do just that. "Ah'm sorry…" he turned and began heading back to the staffroom, head hung low and his chest feeling hollow.

"Hold up,"

Braeburn's ears pricked up as Spitfire spoke, so quiet he barely heard her. He turned to look at her. She was sitting on her haunches, staring down at the floor, looking a little guilty.

"I…I didn't mean that…" she apologized, scuffing her front hooves on the floor. "I'm sorry…" she spoke even quieter, as if she wasn't used to saying that word: 'sorry'. Braeburn felt his mood brighten immediately. Maybe all was not lost. He smiled softly at her and felt that familiar warm tingling he got when he was around her.

"Apology accepted, ma'am," Braeburn said gently. Spitfire looked up at him again. She looked different without her scowl and Braeburn meant that in a very good way. Without a grimace she seemed even more beautiful. She smiled gratefully at him and that just made Braeburn smile wider. She got up and turned around, most likely heading to her office. As she walked she turned and looked over her shoulder.

"See ya later, cowboy," she nodded at him, still wearing a small smile. Braeburn tipped his hat to her.

"Yeah…" he felt giddy. "See ya."

---

Lean a little to the left, Stains!" Rainbow Dash called up to the green-blue mare. Stains wasn't doing very well…at all. Her Soar Spin reminded Rainbow Dash of her pet tortoise Tank chasing his tail: It just wasn't gonna work out!

"OH NO!" Stains panicked as she completely lost control and was flung to the side. Rainbow Dash took off to catch her but suddenly caught sight of something. Beau was flying at incredible speed, moving clouds around. What the hay was she doing? Within seconds Beau had fashioned a massive throw pillow out of clouds. Stains crashed into it and clung on to it for dear life. Rainbow looked over at Beau, who was looking at her work proudly whilst helping Stains stand up. Rainbow Dash whizzed over to Beau and slapped her on the back.

"This is awesome, Beau. Where did you learn to do that?" she asked the dark pink mare. Beau just shrugged.

"It's a natural gift," she replied, sitting down on the cloud/pillow. "I'm just pretty talented when it comes to clouds."

"Well, you may not be able to pull off a Soar Spin but you sure can sculpt," Rainbow commented, jumping up and down on Beau's work. Stains raised a hoof.

"Hey, remember me? The pony who just face planted into a cloud?" she asked, still looking a little dizzy. Rainbow Dash chuckled sheepishly and walked over to check on her friend.

"You didn't hurt yourself too bad there, did you?" she asked Stains, who shook her head.

"Nah, I'm sure I'll be fine once I stop seeing triple," she replied, though Dash wasn't sure whether she was joking or not. Rainbow looked down at the other cadets, minus Spring Song and Paradise. Those two were somewhere else, Spring Song probably using Paradise as a hoof stool, while everypony else was out here, attempting Soar Spins. So far the only cadets who could do one were Rainbow Dash and Tempest. Tempest was still bragging about it by the time Rainbow Dash, Beau and Stains returned to the cloudy ground.

"Yeah, it was no sweat," he boasted. "I just flew down and turned- simple."

Rainbow Dash was about to tell him that it wasn't that easy, but she'd learned that with Tempest things just went in one ear and out the other.

"I wish I could do a Soar Spin," Smart Set groaned. Sugar Swoop put a hoof on the beige stallion.

"Well, Tempest has always been better than the rest of us colts," he sneered. Tempest heard that and flapped into the air.

"Too true," he smirked. "I can even do a Sonic Rainboom."

Rainbow rolled her eyes, knowing that he was just lying. She remembered Spring Song telling her on the first day of drills that he claimed he could pull a Rainboom off, but Bumble and Beau denied it. But Rainbow Dash wasn't gonna pass the opportunity to see another pegasus try. She smiled mischievously up at the orange stallion. "Is that so?"

"It is so!" Tempest replied, looking smug. Rainbow narrowed her magenta eyes.

"Prove it!" she demanded. Tempest got a competitive look on his face and grinned. He began ascending higher into the air, his shaggy green mane being swept back as he sped up.

"Sure thing!" he called down. Once he'd flown so high that the other cadets could barely see him, Rainbow Dash settled down on the ground waiting to see his epic fail. Lullaby sat beside Rainbow Dash.

"Do ya think he can really do it?" she asked, looking up at the orange dot in the sky. Rainbow snorted with laughter.

"No way, everypony knows that I'm the only pony who can do a Sonic Rainboom. It is my special talent after all," Rainbow Dash looked proudly at her cutie mark. "The whole point of a special talent is that nopony else can do it but you. Just like you…uh…Lullaby? What is your special talent?" Rainbow asked her purple friend. She had just realised that she had no idea what the other cadets' talents were. Lullaby looked down at her cutie mark: a nightcap with five musical notes around it.

"Singing foals to sleep," she replied. "I've had plenty of practice with two little sisters and a little brother."

"Oh, so what made you want to be a Wonderbolt?" Rainbow Dash asked curiously. Why didn't she just take a job at a day-care or a school since she was so good with foals?

"Well, I'm sure you've noticed by now but I'm not all that good at the stunt flying part of all this," Lullaby began. "But I'm a pretty good fighter. I first found my knack for it when I found a mare being abusive to a group of little fillies. So my instincts kicked in and the next thing you know I bucked her right in the chest. I wasn't all that pleased with myself that I kicked somepony, but when I saw how happy those foals were, how they all tackled me to the ground and hugged me until my lungs almost collapsed I saw how great it was to protect others. When I discovered that the Wonderbolts were soldiers as well as stunt flyers I decided that one day I'd join them and protect the whole of Equestria," Lullaby finished her story. Rainbow looked down at her proudly. She was really committed to helping other ponies, and Rainbow Dash liked meeting ponies like that.

"That's so cool, Lullaby. I guess you can show me how well you fight at drills tomorrow," the blue mare, nudged her roommate. She couldn't wait to show off her fighting skills, too. She just hoped that she wouldn't be paired up with Lullaby, because judging by her story she was a real good kicker.

"Here I come!" Tempest yelled from above. Rainbow craned her neck and squinted against the sunlight as the orange stallion began zooming downwards. He got faster and faster as the moments went by and Rainbow Dash could faintly see the air pressure surrounding him. He was getting faster still. Rainbow Dash wondered for a second if he was telling the truth. Could he really do a Sonic Rainboom? He was almost there. The pressure was getting tighter…and…

"WHOOOOOOOOOA!"

Rainbow Dash collapsed in laughter as Tempest was flung into the air, sailing right over the Academy to who-knows-where. She knew it: she was still the only pony who could do a Sonic Rainboom. Bumble and Beau took off into the air.

"We'd better go and find him," Bumble called back to the other cadets as they flew off to find their friend. Rainbow picked herself up off the ground and snickered. Lullaby was still beside her, also giggling.

"So, do you wanna head back to our room?" she suggested. It felt odd having a roommate again, but a good kind of odd. Rainbow nodded.

"Sure, I've got a letter to write anyway."

---

What's up, guys?

I finally got to show the other cadets one of the tricks Soarin taught me. They totally loved it! Speaking of Soarin, I haven't seen him today. He was supposed to teach me how to do a Raincloud Double Backflip upside down, but he was nowhere to be found! I swear he hadn't taken a day off.

Oh well, I'll talk to him about it tomorrow, which is also when I'll be practising mid-air combat. It's about time we get to the battling 'cause I can't wait to show the others some of the moves I used when we fought the changelings back in Canterlot. It'll be so awesome!

Oh yeah, I have a new roommate. Her name is Lullaby and she's a much better roomie than Spring Song was. Speaking of Spring Song, the she-devil kicked Lullaby out of her own bed! What kind of moron does that? I bet even morons look at her and say 'Whoa, she's a moron!'

But enough of that! I'm really excited for the Spring Celebration. I found out that us cadets have a day off to go to our separate festivities. I'm gonna ask Soarin if he wants to come and I bet that Braeburn's coming, too. There's somepony else I want to come, too, but she's a pretty busy pony, so I wouldn't count on it.

I'll see you in a few days' time,

Rainbow Dash.

"So you write them letters every day?" Lullaby asked Rainbow from her spot, tucked under the covers in the bed opposite Dash's.

"Yeah, we're really close and I really hate being away from them," Rainbow replied, thinking of all the good times she'd had with her friends.

"But it's all worth it, right?" Lullaby smiled over at Rainbow, propping herself up on her pillow. Rainbow nodded in agreement.

"It is. We'll become Wonderbolts and then my friends can come with me on all my tours!" Rainbow's eyes glimmered at the very thought of flying with her lifelong heroes, along with Lullaby.

"I wish I could come to the Spring Celebration with you Rainbow Dash," Lullaby told Dash, brushing the fringe of her orange and blue mane out of her eyes. "You're friends sound really cool."

Rainbow Dash smiled at this. She really wanted Lullaby to meet her friends, too. But hearing somepony say that they thought her friends were cool warmed her heart. She nodded and grinned, lying back in her bed.

"Yeah. They're the best."

---

Endnote: Man, it feels good to write that chapter. The idea for Lullaby's backstory has been bouncing around in my head for weeks and I had to write it down. I wanted to explore the cadets' different reasons for joining the Academy, so I can rest easier knowing that one has been taken care of.

Ya know, it's just occurred to me that I have absolutely no idea whether people actually read these authors notes. I could be typing away to myself. Oh well, I'll just forget about that because I'm in a really good mood. My favourite TV series finished today, I'm back at home where I have all the electronics I could possibly need…

…and I'm hugging the Spitfire plushie I got for Christmas! *hugs plushie*!

Tune in next time in chapter 14 where the cadets have their first combat lesson! This is gonna be fun!