takes place after during and/or after the events of S6 E12, (Spice Up Your Life.)

Dash couldn’t sleep. It was unusual that her, out of all ponies, couldn’t. She was infamous for being able to fall asleep anywhere, anytime. She didn’t even know what was keeping her up, but it seemed tonight she had extra energy. But why? Nothing important had happened that day. Yeah, the map in Twilight’s castle was up and running again, but it had been Pinkie and Rarity that were called.
What had happened in the past week? She’d done the usual with her friends; reading with Twilight, hanging out in Town Square, she even got a spa treatment done with Applejack and Rarity. Oh, and of course, dealt with Zephyr Breeze, Fluttershy’s annoying little brother who had had a massive crush on her ever since she could remember. The guy who wouldn’t stop flirting with and bugging her, no matter how many times she rejected him. Zephyr Breeze, the pony who never tried anything and was all about siestas and had actually graduated from mane therapy school. She was proud of him for that, she supposed, but she still found him to be annoying. Especially after she had offered him a job. Just to appease Fluttershy. And that, well, that hadn’t worked out very well.

“Hey, Rainbows, we should totally grab a drink later, you know, after I’m done doing this job.” He made air quotations with his hooves. “That you have for me.”

Dash growled under her breath and faced Zephyr. “For Fluttershy, for Fluttershy…” she mumbled.

“What was that Rainbows?” he asked loudly, smushing his cheek into hers.

Dash shoved him away, making a gagging sound. “There will be no drinks, no anythings. You are here to do a job. And then you will go back home.”

Zephyr just rolled his eyes. “Yeah, okay okay. Just show me where to get started.”

“Let’s go,” she grumbled.

But what had happened after?

Soarin came in. And saved her from committing murder.

They had talked while Zephyr cleaned, just about old Wonderbolt shows, except it wasn’t just.

Dash couldn’t do that with her friends. Sometimes Pinkie, sometimes Twilight. But Pinkie only liked the excitement. Twilight being typical Twilight, she enjoyed the history and science behind the flight formations.

But Soarin? He knew all of that and more. He knew what she was talking about when she ‘double aerial twist’ or ‘buccaneer blaze’. All without having to explain it. He got it, because like her, he was a flyer. And she found, that while she also loved talking to any of the ‘Bolts about flying, her favourite to talk to was him.

So here she was now, out in the night, the warm yet comfortably cool breeze flowing through her hair. Dash loved the night sky. She could fly uninterrupted and be in the moonlight, practicing her awesome moves or just relaxing.

Only for so long though, before she got lonely. She liked it best when she was with her friends. The sound of Pinkie Pie and Rarity enjoying punch, Twilight teaching Applejack the names of constellations, her and Fluttershy watching over the animals. Well, that was more Fluttershy’s thing, but it was nice all the same.

Then her ears faintly picked up in the sound of wing beats.

“Oh, hey,” came a voice. A familiar one. A voice distinct and deep enough that she would know it anywhere.

“Hey Clipper.” Dash smiled. “Whatcha doing out here?”

He flew closer. “I was gonna ask you that.”

She shrugged, looking at Luna’s moon and stars. “Couldn’t sleep.”

Soarin scoffed lightly. “You couldn’t sleep? I find that hard to believe.”

Dash snorted. “Oh shut it, you should learn some napping skills from me. You look exhausted, no offence.”

“Hey!” A playful smile made its way onto his face.

“What? It’s true.”

“Rude.”

“Lazy.”

“Cocky.”

“Downer.”

His green eyes widened. “Hey, I am not a downer,” he protested.

Dash giggled. “Eh, I don’t know about that Clip.”

“We all have our moments,” he argued, although he wore a smile.

Dash just chuckled, beginning to fly away from the barracks. “So? What are you doing out here? Couldn’t sleep without my awesome self there?” she asked cheekily.

Soarin rolled his eyes. “Yes, that must have been it,” he said dryly.

“Knew it,” she snarked.

She watched him out of the corner of her eye, and saw as he let out a long, slow sigh. “Actually, I came out here cause I needed to be alone.”

She stopped, looking over him. He looked extremely worn out, now that she looked closer. Not to mention completely serious. “Okay.” She nodded. “I can go fly somewhere else.”

Weirdly enough, Soarin looked panicked as he flailed his hooves a little bit. “No, no! You- you don’t have to. Unless you’re going to yell at me like Spitfire does?”

Dash smiled, happy to stay and keep him company. “Nobody yells like Spitfire.”

They both laughed slightly at that, both flying at a steady pace. “You know she actually took some sort of yelling lesson?” he asked.

“What? Seriously?” Dash laughed.

Soarin shook his head, chuckling as he did so. “Not really, no. She just asked the captain before us for tricks on… commanding. But I like to imagine she did,” he said mock wistfully.

Dash nodded, eager to play along. “Who knows… maybe she did.”

Soarin smiled at her. A sweet, calming smile that instantly relaxed her, made her feel at ease. A smile that made her heart warm and do a somersault.

Dash swallowed. “So?” she prompted, wanting to see if she could help him in some way.

He glanced at her, cocking an eyebrow. “So…?”

She motioned to him and the sky around them. “You needed to be alone. What’s up?” She knew it was nosy, but curiosity got the better of her.

“Oh,” he muttered, sighing quietly.

Feeling a little bad, she tilted her head and rubbed her neck. “Sorry. Never mind.”

“It’s nothing, really. Just more harsh criticism from the press.” Soarin shook his head. “Again, it’s nothing. No big deal. I’m used to it.”

“Bad press, huh?” Dash furrowed her brow. “I actually haven’t heard anything about that. Haven’t really had time,” she admitted.

He smiled, but she could tell it wasn’t a genuine one. “I’d prefer if you didn’t, so thank Celestia you didn’t have time.”

Dash cringed slightly as they continued their chat. “What was it about this time? Skills? Friends? Love life?”

“Family,” he answered dully. “I went to have lunch with my mom, and tabloids and magazines came out later today, bashing her about the way she looked and how I was eating.”

“How do they…”

“There will always be some form criticism. I’ve tried to please everypony, and unfortunately, that isn’t possible,” Twilight sighed.

“Did you enjoy your lunch? Before all the press,” she clarified.

He nodded. “Of course I did.”

Dash smiled and placed a hoof on his shoulder, basically touching his mane. “Then that’s all that matters,” she told him and took her hoof off.

He smiled a real smile for a slight moment, something which brought more satisfaction to her than it should have. “I don’t like the fame a lot of the time,” he said, staring straight at her.

Dash opened her mouth to say something ignorant, something insensitive, like asking why. But her brain stopped her mouth from forming words and she had time to think about what he said. “I know. I guess you just have to ignore it,” she offered lamely.

Advice wasn’t always her strong suit, especially when she hadn’t been a Wonderbolt long enough to get criticism like Soarin did. He didn’t say anything.

Dash bit her lip and tried again. “I know I haven’t been shamed yet. I guess I don’t know how it feels, heh.” She looked away. “But they don’t have the right to say those things about you, Clipper. And I’m sorry they happened. I’m sorry that it’ll probably happen again.” She felt a little sappy saying that, but knew it sounded right. She wouldn’t pretend to understand when she didn’t

Soarin’s hoof wrapped loosely around her neck and brought her close to his muscular body. After a moment of her mind going short circuit, Dash returned the hug. She wasn’t usually used to physical touch when it was outside her Ponyville friends and family, but then again, she had hugged Soarin before. And it as just as nice. His fur was warm and soft, his mane smooth against her cheek, his breaths calming her nerves and racing up her heartbeat. He smelled like sweet, cool water, if water could have a scent. Mixed with a slight musk. She wasn’t sure what, but annoyingly thought it was sexy.

“What’s this for?” she asked a little awkwardly.

He shrugged his shoulders under her chin. “For being you.”

She smiled softly. She had said those words to him on the night they went to Applejack’s, the night after her first performance. She had hugged him because despite the humiliation she had experienced, he made her feel better. Had made her smile.

About thirty seconds passed, and Dash pulled away. Though they were alone, she still remembered Rarity’s words. “Alright, we keep this up and I’m gonna go super soft,” she joked.

He grinned. “That wouldn’t be so bad, I’d like to see that.”

Dash stuck her tongue out. “Too bad for you then.”

He chuckled and motioned for her to follow. “What made you want to be one of us?” he wandered, turning to look at her.

Dash raised her brows at the simple yet deep question. “Huh… I had heard of the Wonderbolts when I was a filly,” she started. “And I liked flying. But one day me and this guy I looked up to, Rainbow Blaze, he took me to a show.” She smiled at the memory, remembering her first time seeing the overwhelmingly cool stunts she had witnessed. “It was awesome! One of the best things I’ve ever seen. He began to teach me everything he knew, and I improved quickly with my natural gift,” she boasted, a smug grin taking over. “It’s been my dream ever since.”

Soarin tapped his chin. “Rainbow Blaze? Sibling?”

Dash nodded. “No, he’s not my brother,” she chuckled. “He was my mentor.”

“Huh,” Soarin muttered. After a minute or so, he spoke again. “I never really had one. A mentor.”

Not everyone did, she supposed. She felt a little bad for him, but also felt impressed. Had it been him, Spitfire, and eventually Fleetfoot who had helped each other along the way? And why did they want to become Wonderbolts? She had never asked him. “What made you want to be a ‘Bolt?” she asked, returning the question.

He tapped his chin. “I… I suppose my parents. They were great, always telling me I could be the best. Spitfire and I managed to watch a bit of a show from outside the arena once and that was it for me. We were so young. That was the only thing that I’ve ever wanted to be. Practiced every day, as you know. And it was all worth it when I got into the academy, the—”

“Reserves, the team,” Dash finished

He nodded. “Yeah. Best days of my life.”

Dash smiled. Here was another pony who got her passion for flying. Spitfire did, all the team did. So why did it feel different when she talked about it with Soarin? What made it feel special? She had no idea.

“Mine too,” she replied. “The test for the reserves though…” She shook her and laughed. “If it wasn’t for my friends…”

“What?” He nudged her. “Our number one fan didn’t know the history or something?” he teased.

She smirked and shoved him back gently, not that it did anything. He was built not to be knocked around so easily. “Twilight tried to teach me. Put me in a school in her house. There was a schedule and everything.”

Soarin grinned. “I bet you were waiting for recess?”

“Well that’s pretty presumptuous of you, Clip.”

“So you were paying attention, lost in every word as Twilight wrote on her chalkboard and showed you her flash cards?” he questioned, trying to hide a coy smile.

She scoffed a little. He knew right away. Couldn’t hide everything, after all. Not that her distaste for the ‘normal’ way of learning was a secret. “Oh, fine. I had trouble. They all tried to help. Plays and songs and clothes… but they figured out how I learned and I aced it.”

“Admit it, Crash. You wanted recess at Twilight’s boring school.” He played a feign of innocence. His smile was cute, she thought. Sweet and teasing. I should see a doctor about this… feeling. She had an idea of what it could be, but there was no way Dash would ever admit it to herself.

She rolled her eyes. “Is that my fault? She gets so excited about it. It’s unbearable, to just sit there and listen while she talks and talks and talks,” she groaned and dragged her eyes down with her hooves.

Soarin cleared his throat, a teasingly devilish look taking place. “Ahem,” he announced. “After Princess Luna was banished to the moon, the Earth Pony, Pegasi, and Unicorn formed the E.U.P to protect Princess Celestia. During the celebration of the first annual year of—”

Dash laughed and pressed her hoof against his mouth. “Gosh, it’s like you’re quoting Twi’s exact words!” she giggled. “Is this your intention? Bore me to death?”

He smirked. “How’d you know?”

She mirrored his expression. “I’m just so smart.”

“Eh, I suppose,” he mused casually, looking up at the twinkling stars.

Dash shoved him again, and managed to throw him off balance for a second. As soon as he regained control, his body was illuminated by Luna’s moon. His dark hair was swept, his coat clean, muscles showing through a bit. But it was his eyes that startled her the most. Dash had seen green eyes many times before. Applejack had them. But hers did not shine like his in the moonlight, holding a kindness and playfulness and gentleness and—

The white pony bit her lip, but couldn’t resist adding, “Quite handsome too. I see why he’s popular with the mares.”

Right now, Dash despised Rarity. Because as much as she tried not thinking about it, her friend was correct. Soarin was handsome. And he was great in terms of personality too. She saw why he was popular with the mares, despite Lightning and Rapid being the usual flirts of the team.

These thoughts were confusing, and along with practice and her workouts and the night fly, this made Dash tired, and sleepiness crashed over her, causing her to yawn loudly.

“Finally tired?”

Dash nodded and lazily turned around, the light of the sky’s accessories enough to guide her back to the compound. “Yeah,” she mumbled, wings drooping ever so slightly and causing her to fall. Luckily, she caught herself.

“You look like you’re gonna pass out any time,” Soarin commented. “No way you’ll make it back.”
She still felt a little competitiveness in her. “I’m… me,” she said, too tired to say her name. “I’ll be fine.” She’s be fine. She was mother fucking Rainbow Dash, she could get herself back to HQ.

Dash could see it in the distance as her eyes blinked open, her muscles exhausted, wings flapping a little too slowly. Almost there… She was so close, just a little further. She was doing this, the ground just a few feet away.

But then her body gave up, not even having the energy to close her wings as she started to fall.

There was nothing but a ‘whoosh’ of the wind, and the feeling of somepony’s strong arms underneath her back, a faint sigh, and, “So stubborn,” Soarin whispered, carefully carrying her back to the building.