A cool air had fallen over the city, and with it came a sheet of snow strewn across the ground. In the past weeks, Rivet had gotten right into reading the Daring Do book for his assignment and, for some reason, was doing very well with it. He was able to find random tidbits of symbolism and meaning in various parts. Unlike the poetry, which he had never gotten the hang of, Rivet found Daring Do to be perfect for analysis.

When he was having trouble with his analysis, Rivet would text either Swift or Clyde, and normally they would have a discussion about their books and what they could make of them. Once or twice, even, they had met up in person to talk to each other and discuss their work thus far.

Rivet stopped strumming his guitar and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He checked the time, and returned to his guitar. That morning, he had woken up early for some reason, and decided to work on tuning up the new strings on his guitar. Something his dad had taught him was to change all of the strings at the same time so they wouldn’t all break at unexpected times. This way he could gauge how old the strings were, and when to change them.

As he was plucking the strings quietly, there came a knock on his door. Silently, First Light let herself into his room.

“Good morning.” She smiled. “I guess you’re already up.”

“Yup.” Rivet nodded.

She came over to Rivet and sat next to him on the bed. He continued to play while she listened quietly. When he finished the song, he held out the guitar to her.

“You want to try?” He asked, already knowing the answer.

“May I?” She took the guitar with a smile on her face. She did what she normally did, and when she was done, handed it back to him. “Thank you.” She smiled and headed out of the room. Once she was gone, Rivet decided to get dressed, seeing as First Light only came to wake him up at the same time every day.

Stepping out of his room, his usual attire on, Rivet descended the stairs to the kitchen, where he saw an unfamiliar sight. In the kitchen, his mother was sitting with her newspaper as usual, but across the table from her was someone else.

“Good morning, Dad.” Rivet smiled as he came in.

“Hey, buddy.” His father looked over at him. “How’d you sleep?”

“Pretty good.” Rivet nodded, noting that his father was not wearing the flight suit, rather a pair of dark blue uniform pants and a light blue collared shirt. It was the summer dress for his squadron. Hanging off of a doorframe was his tie and blue tunic. “What’s the occasion?”

“I’m not out working on planes today, I’m in the office.” He shrugged.

“Oh, yeah,” First Light came into the room. “I was going up to tell you that dad’s home.”

“Thanks.” Rivet shook his head, still smiling.

“Sorry I haven’t been around much.” Their father sighed. “Work has been… Work.”

“It’s no problem.” Rivet raised his hands. At the time it did not feel like a lie, but Rivet did wish his dad could spend more time at home. But he did not want to make his dad feel guiltier than he already was.

The four of them took the time they had to chat and have a coffee each. First Light decided to have orange juice instead, because coffee was ‘icky.’ Regardless, they enjoyed each others’ company for the first time in weeks. It was the first time in even longer that they had had breakfast as a family.

“I hate to cut the chat short,” their mother interrupted, looking down at her watch. “But it’s almost time for school.”

“I can drive them.” Their father said, “I’ll be fine.”

“No, you have to get ready to go too.” She pointed a finger at him. “You don’t have time to do both.”

“Yes ma’am.” Rivet and First Light’s father faked a salute, winking at them.

Rivet and First Light grabbed their supplies, Rivet remembering to grab his guitar. They filed out to the car, Rivet giving his dad one last goodbye before he left.

Luna sat at the desk, not nearly as energetic or awake as she normally was. She pulled out a thermos and took a long, slow drink of the contents before looking back down. Her hair was a bit of a mess, having not been brushed in the morning, and her eyes were half closed. Instead of her normal attire, Luna wore a long sleeved turtleneck. The blinds of the class had been drawn, even though the morning light was not too bright.

“Alright, class.” She whispered, her voice a mixture of hoarse and tired. “I’m a little under the weather today. So… If we could just do some silent reading today, I would really appreciate it.” She laid the thermos against the side of her head.

“Looks like the hammer got hammered.” A boy at the front of the class mumbled.

“Brad,” she growled, “I am not in the mood. Get out your book.”

The boy pulled out his book immediately, and grumbled again. “But you were obviously in the mood to get smashed.”

“Detention.” Luna sighed. “I’m too… Sick… For this.”

The class returned to silence, only a little chatter now and then.

“How’s the book so far?” Swift asked Rivet.

“Actually, pretty good.” Rivet nodded, putting his thumb in the book as a bookmark. “I’m still finding it easier to work with. Yours?”

“It’s going great. I didn’t think it was going to be my thing, but it’s pretty good.”

“How’s yours, Clyde?” Rivet asked.

“It’s a little dry sometimes, but I’m getting it read.” Clyde shrugged. “It has a lot of symbols in it, though.”

Vice Principal Luna looked up and groaned“Oh, yeah… Your assignment… The book thing… It’s due at the end of the semester in January. If I didn’t say that already, here’s your warning.” She put her head back down on the desk, covering her eyes.

“We have loads of time to get this done.” Rivet looked down at his book. “How far have you guys gotten?”

“I try for at least ten pages a night.” Swift looked at his own. “I’m a fair way in.”

Clyde nodded in agreement. “Same.”

“I think I’m about a quarter through already.” Rivet stared in surprise at the book in his hands. “I guess I like this book.”

“Why do we have such a long time for this?” Swift asked.

“Because she probably has big plans for what we’re doing.” Rivet looked up to Luna. “It must have slipped her mind to tell us the whole thing.”

“She’ll tell us soon. She just doesn’t want us panicking about it.” Clyde shook his head.

“Either that, or she’s too focused on the hangover.” Swift whispered. “Poor Luna.”

Clyde and Rivet chuckled.

The three of them returned to their books, and Rivet took out a notebook. For the time he had been reading, Rivet had started a reading log. He had written down important parts and notes about certain scenes in the book that may be important during the write up at the end. Rivet already had a lot written down for what he had read.

Rivet, Clyde and Swift sat around the lunch table, enjoying their food and talking about various topics that came to mind. Rivet did not follow Basketball, but Clyde and Swift seemed to, so Rivet was slowly beginning to understand who was on whose favourite team, and different statistics. When the subject changed to something Rivet could talk about, he would. They would have discussions, arguments, and eventually come to a conclusion before moving on.

“That’s the first time I’ve ever seen VP Luna like that. I wonder what’s up.” Rivet said in a concerned tone. “I hope everything’s alright.”

Swift laughed. “Yeah. I’m sure everything’s fine. Yesterday was a staff birthday party.”

“How do you know that?”

“The Party Planning Committee, which I’m currently on, is in charge of organizing events at the school. Even though we weren’t in charge of this one, we helped arrange that the cake was brought to the the right place. It’s only realistic that they had a party after school too, whoever's party it was.”

“Did someone say party?” A girly voice giggled from behind Rivet. Suddenly, First Light jumped onto the bench of the table next to Rivet. “I’m good with parties.”

“Light?” Rivet looked all around himself. “Where did you come from?”

“Hm…” First Light put a finger to her lips. “I don’t know. I was just with my friends, and then I saw you over here and thought I would say hi.”

“Hello, Rivet’s sister.” Swift joked, seeing as he knew her name.

“Hi, Swift.” She waved at him, then turned to Clyde. “Hi, Clyde.”

“I’m surprised that you know me.” Clyde said.

“Rivet talks about you guys.” She shrugged.

“Aw, Rivet,” Swift said sarcastically, “I didn’t know you cared.”

Rivet turned his head for just a moment, only to catch a glimpse of Rainbow Dash out of the corner of his eye. His gaze stayed for a moment, which was just long enough for First Light.

“Whatcha looking at?” She brought her face close to his and tried to find out where he was looking.

“Nothing.” Rivet snapped his head back forward.

“Was it that table full of colourful girls?” She nudged him.

“No…” Rivet blushed slightly.

“Uh huh.” First Light wasn’t buying it. “Which girl?”

“None of them.” Rivet lied.

“Is it the one with the straight pink hair?” She looked back to Rivet. “She’s kinda like you, shy and stuff.”

“No.” Rivet said seriously.

“The one with the purple hair?” She asked. “She looks nice.”

“She’s my Boo.” Clyde raised his hand defensively.

“Okay, so that’s a no.” First Light shook her head. “What about the… The one with the rainbow hair?”

Rivet blushed madly, but said absolutely nothing.

“It is!” She smiled broadly, giggling. Her face suddenly went straight. “Wait… How long?”

“A long time.” Clyde raised his eyebrows.

“And now…” First Light did the math in her head, made it very apparent by the look on her face. “I have rainbow hair. Oh my gosh!” She looked at Rivet, a look of surprise on her face. “This must be so awkward for you!”

“Not as much as you would think.” Rivet muttered, continuing to blush. “But it was surprising.”

“Well, does she know that you have a massive crush on her?” First Light put a hand on his shoulder.

“No.” Rivet’s eyes went wide and he blushed even more.

“I know! I’ll make up the awkwardness by telling her how you feel!” She stood up.

“What!?” Rivet gasped. “No!”

First Light gave him an assuring glance before moving further towards the girls’ table. Rivet looked breathlessly at Clyde and Swift who had the same blank expression Rivet had.

“Light!” Rivet called hoarsely.

“Stop her!” Swift called out.

The three of them stood up quickly, going after First Light. When she saw them behind her, she smiled coyly and sped up her pace. Just before she arrived at the table, Rivet and Swift charged over, tackling her and dragging her behind the wall in the middle of the cafeteria, away from the table.

When the commotion caught the attention of the girls’ table, Clyde leaned nonchalantly against the wall, acting as if nothing had happened.

“Clyde?” Rarity asked. “What was that noise?”

“What noise?” Clyde asked innocently.

“There was a girl. And then a whomping noise.” Rarity replied. The others at the table nodded in agreement.

“Girl?” Clyde asked smoothly. “You’re the only girl I pay attention to.”

“Oh, Clyde.” Rarity giggled, putting a hand over her face to cover her blush.

Clyde dropped her a casual wink before disappearing behind the wall. The girls at the table stared in blank confusion, while Rarity continued to giggle.

Behind the wall, Rivet pointed a finger at the giggling First Light. “Don’t do that,” Rivet panted. “You scared the crap out of me.”

“You should have seen your face.” She snorted in her giggling. “But you have to tell her some time!”

“It doesn’t have to be now.” Rivet groaned. “I’m not ready. I can’t do relationships.”

“But relationships make things easier.” She smiled tenderly. “Maybe you could use one.”

“Light…” Rivet rubbed his face. “Just promise me that you won’t talk to anyone on the other side of this wall about it until I do, please?”

“Okay, Rivet…” She faked a pout.

“Now, let’s just get through lunch, okay?” Rivet asked.

“Okay. I won’t let anyone know your little secret.” First Light giggled. “I’m gonna go find Scootaloo!” She jumped up and waved at them as she bounced away.”

“That was way too close.” Swift sighed as he sat down next to Rivet against the wall.

“Tell me about it.” Rivet shook his head.

Clyde sat down on Rivet’s other side. “That could have gone worse.”

“But it could have gone better too.” Rivet groaned.

It was the first day of December, now. In the weeks past, Rivet had tried to get up the courage to tell Rainbow Dash how he felt, or at the very least talk to her. But, he could not bring himself to talk to her, the idea of even having a relationship still looming in the back of his head. First Light had kept her promise to not tell anyone Rivet’s secret. The only thing that had changed was the weather.

The cold snow crunched underfoot, and Rivet turned his collar up against the chilly wind. The nights had grown longer and colder, only the light of the streetlamps showed the way. His foot faltered for a moment on the sidewalk, it only took one missed step. His other foot slid out from under him, and he fell flat into the snow, his shoulder hitting hard against the pavement and a sheet of ice shattering up into his face.

Before anything else, Rivet rolled onto his back, groaning at his sore shoulder. The hood of the hoodie he wore under his signature jacket filled with snow as he tenderly felt his shoulder for any injuries. Assured that there would be a bruise in the morning, Rivet worked his way back to a standing position, wary of where he placed his feet.

He continued the rest of the way to his location, the High School. The sun had set, but he was going for a completely different reason. For the days before, Clyde and Swift had suggested that he come out to the first basketball game of the school season. “You might enjoy yourself,” they had said. Either way, it was a good way for him to get away from the insanity of his project.

When he stepped inside the slightly warmer interior of the school, Rivet brushed himself off. He could already hear the commotion from the Gymnasium where the game would be under way in just a few minutes. He flipped his hood around to make it comfortable, only to get snow rolling down his back. He groaned in discomfort and headed towards the source of all the noise.

Coming into the Gymnasium, the noise hit him like a wave. There were excited voices, annoyed voices, and just idle chatter before the game began. Rivet had no idea what he was supposed to do, or where he was supposed to go. Looking around, he hoped he would find a spot where students were supposed to go.

“Hey, Rivet!” He heard a voice call over to him. When he looked over, he saw Swift standing on the sidelines.

“Swift?” Rivet asked, “shouldn’t you be getting ready?”

“I’m all set, I’m just getting a breath full of not-locker-room-air before the game.” Swift looked directly at Rivet as he came closer. “What happened to your face?”

“My face?” Rivet raised an eyebrow. “What’s wrong with it.” He raised a hand and ran it across his cheeks. When he looked at it, he saw a bit of blood on his hand from his face. “How bad does it look?”

“Not too bad.” Swift squinted at it. “Not stitches worthy, but enough to draw blood. Only a few little cuts. What happened?”

“Must have been when I fell on the ice.” Rivet said, repeatedly touching his face to find the exact place of the cut. “Oh well.” He then looked over at the locker room door. “Who’s the big, sweaty guy going into the locker room? He looks angry.”

“Coach!?” Swift turned to look. “Oh, crap. I gotta go. See ya, Rivet!”

“Good luck out there.” Rivet called after him before finding a seat in the bleachers.

Music began to play over the loudspeakers and the lights dimmed as the Canterlot team rushed out of the locker room. The crowd cheered even louder than before. Even though sports weren’t Rivet’s thing, he still cheered and clapped along with the rest of the crowd.

He noticed something odd about the team. Among the usual giants and sporty types, there was one guy who was shorter than the rest. He ran out and high fived one of the big guys who was dribbling the ball, and gave another guy a punch in the arm. For a little guy, he sure had a presence. He had pretty long hair which was tucked into the back of his shirt, but the colour was indistinguishable.

The guy had the ball passed to him, and he took it down the court at what seemed like the speed of sound, jumped high in the air, and tossed it into the basket, his hair flying out of the back of his shirt as he landed. When he turned, that’s when Rivet realized it.

He wasn’t a he at all. He, in fact, was a she.

Rainbow Dash waved out at the screaming crowds, sporting a winning smile as she ran back to the rest of the team.

“So…” Rivet chuckled to himself. “I guess she made the team.”

As the game began, Rivet forgot all about who was on the team, focusing on the game as a whole. Whenever Clyde, Swift, and especially Rainbow Dash got the ball, Rivet would watch with increased interest. When the buzzers sounded as a basket was scored, Rivet cheered just as loudly as the rest of the crowd.

Their training obviously paid off, because at the end of the game, Canterlot had taken the other team by storm. The crowd gave a standing ovation to the victorious Canterlot team charged into the locker room, waving at the the standing audience. Rainbow Dash did not follow the team, instead breaking off to go to the women’s change room. She was smiling all the way, but seemed so alone, broken off from the team.

Rivet shook his head, assuring himself he was just fooling himself. When the room began to empty, Rivet stayed where he was, deciding not to fight the flow of traffic to get out. It would be much easier to get out when everyone had gone, he thought. It was sufficiently clear in minutes, so Rivet left out of his seat on the bleachers. He was just on his way down the hall away from the Gymnasium when he heard a voice behind him.

“Hey, Riv!”

Rivet turned to see Clyde and Swift coming towards him, gym bags tossed over one shoulder. “Hey, guys.”

“I didn’t see you out there,” Clyde shook his head, “where were you sitting?”

“Near the top of the bleachers.” Rivet nodded.

“What did you think?” Swift asked.

“I can’t believe that call! The ref was totally out of line!” Rivet shook his head.

“But… We won.” Clyde looked at him, confused.

“The call was still bogus.” Rivet chuckled.

“We still won.” Swift grinned.

“I know.” Rivet laughed. “You guys must not watch hockey.” They shared a laugh before turning towards the exit. “So, how did you feel about your first game?”

Clyde furrowed his brow. “It’s a lot different than pick-up games, but it’s way more fun, too.”

“I second that.” Swift nodded.

The three of them stepped through the doors into the parking lot, where Clyde had parked. Swift faltered on a patch of ice in front of the door, but regained his composure like a proud cat. Clyde tossed his bag in the trunk of the car, let Swift do the same, and headed back towards the driver’s door. Swift closed the trunk and hopped in the passenger’s side door.

Rivet had just turned up his collar and stepped onto the sidewalk when Clyde called after him, “You want a lift? I’m taking Swift home.”

“Nah, I’ll be fine.” Rivet shook his head, moving down the sidewalk with the same caution as before.

“Alright! See you later, Riv!” The called as the door slammed and the engine started.

He began his slow trek home, but as he turned the corner, the front door of the school opened up, and Rainbow Dash stepped out in front of him. When she saw a person where she thought none would be, she did a double take in surprise, causing her to slip on the just outside the door and fall on her backside.

“Are you okay?” Rivet asked, stepping closer and offering his hand to help her up.

“I’m fine.” Rainbow Dash rubbed her back, groaning slightly.

“You don’t look it.” Rivet knelt down next to her. “How bad does it hurt?”

Rainbow Dash leaned back, her eyes squinted in pain, trying not to let it show. “The cold ground helps.”

“Let’s get you on your feet.” He stood up and moved around behind her. “May I?”

“Knock yourself out.” She raised her arms.

Rivet put a hand under each armpit and gave her a helping lift to her feet. She winced as she straightened her legs out to support herself. She looked over her shoulder at him, letting him know he could let her go now. He pulled his hands out from under her arms, blushing a little.

“Thanks.” She looked down, blushing too.

“What are you embarrassed about?” Rivet asked, nervously chuckling. “You’re on, like, every sports team, aren’t you? A little fall is nothing.”

“It’s still embarrassing.” Rainbow Dash huffed. “Plus, I don’t like depending on people. I don’t need help.”

“You may not need it,” He looked down, “but it’s nice to have it.”

She started limping towards the sidewalk, Rivet came up beside her.

“You don’t have to protect me, you know.” She grumbled, trying to fight the limp.

“I’m not.” Rivet shook his head. “This is the way I have to go anyway.”

Rainbow Dash looked over at him. “Really?”

“Yeah.” He nodded, then noticed her gym bag. “Would you like me to carry that for you?”

“No, I’ve got it.” She shook her head, then slipped on a patch of ice, Rivet reached out to stop her fall out of reflex. When he realized what he had done, he blushed again, stepping back. “Maybe you could take it.” She nervously chuckled, smiling over at him.

Rivet returned the warm smile and received her bag.

They walked for a short while in silence before Rivet got up the courage to ask her a question. “Why did you leave later than everyone else?”

“What do you mean?” She asked, pretending not to know what he meant.

“You left after all of the fans had gone, and most of the team, too.” He looked over at her. “Why is that?”

Rainbow turned away from him. “It’s… It’s nothing.”

“Sorry, I don’t want to pry.” Rivet shook his head.

“No, it’s no problem.” Rainbow looked at him, her eyes wide. “It’s just… a little embarrassing. And I don’t even know you, actually.”

“Sorry, where are my manners.” Rivet chuckled. “I’m Rivet. I don’t know if you remember me from-”

“I remember.” She nodded. “I’m Rainbow Dash, you may remember me from the basketball game we just won.” She did a quick fist pump.

“I remember.” He grinned. A little awkward silence fell before Rivet spoke again. “How are those Daring Do books?”

She looked sideways at him. “Fine.” She grumbled.

“I’m not mocking you.” Rivet apologized. “I’m reading the third one right now.”

“Number four’s where it’s at.” Rainbow smirked before putting a hand over her mouth. “Tell no one.”

“My lips are sealed.” Rivet raised the hand that was not carrying her gym bag. “I can’t actually find number four.”

Rainbow took a deep breath and let it out before replying. “Have you checked the used bookstore?”

“Yeah. They didn’t have it last time.” He said.

“It might come in soon.” She added.

“Well, I have to finish the third for my English assignment.” Rivet groaned. “But, at least it’s going alright.”

“Who’s class are you in?”

“VP Luna’s.”

“Oh boy. The Hammer came down.” She giggled a little.

“Yeah.” Rivet shared her laugh.

When she finished laughing, Rainbow Dash became serious. “Did you know I was on the team?”

“No, I came out for Swift and Clyde.” Rivet stated. “I had no idea you joined the boys’ team.”

“Okay.” Rainbow seemed to relax.

“Why?”

“It’s…”

“Private?”

“Well…” Rainbow sighed.

“It’s okay.” Rivet smiled. “That’s your business. You only tell me if you want to.”

“Thanks.” She smiled back.

They finally came to the area where they would have to part ways. Rainbow Dash looked at Rivet and took her bag. The cool wind blew her hair in all directions, creating a sea of colours mixing together.

“Hey, Rivet?” She asked. For some reason, her saying his name made his heart race in his chest.

“Yes, Rainbow?” He looked back over at her.

“This is the second time you’ve helped me carry something home.” Rainbow scratched the back of her head, laying her hair back down. “I wasn’t very polite, I guess… So I just wanted to say ‘sorry’ if I came off as rude.”

“No problem.” Rivet shook his head.

“And I wanted to say thanks again.” She looked down at her bag and rubbed her back. “You really helped.”

“Just get home and rest. I don’t want a little fall to keep a player like you off the court.”

“That I can do.” Rainbow smiled competitively. “Nothing keeps me off the court.”

The two of them headed in opposite directions before Rainbow called to him again.

“Hey!”

“What is it?” Rivet turned back again.

“Are you the guy who always plays guitar on the last period?”

Rivet blushed. “Yes, that’s me.”

“It sounds good.” She grinned, shooting him a thumbs up. “Keep up the good work.”

Rivet stared in shock as she turned around and limped back down the street. His mouth hung open for a moment, before he chuckled to himself and headed back home, a spring in his step, which caused him to slip on ice more than he would have liked to admit.