Echo
By Valley Fjord
Rainbow Dash, doing her best to keep her team together, was feeling her own body burn. With a mix of an emergency storm call she received midway through the night and the subjacent rush of having to waking up nearly half of all the Pegasus in Ponyville, her ability to feel good about her work dwindled. However, with how bad the timing was, what really kept her from feeling her best was that this was all cutting into her plans for the morning.
"Cloud Kicker, Thunderlane! Quit making eyes at each other and get those clouds in place!" Rainbow Dash yells as she slams her cloud into the dark stallions cloud before pushing them both into the main body of the storm. She launches herself over the dark gray puff and takes a fast look at the rest of the storm. It was still nowhere near the size they needed it to be. "Hurry up everypony, we have to get this thing put together and going before sun up." The yelling only seemed to drain more of Rainbow Dash's energy and when a dawn hue starts racing into the sky she groans inwardly and looks down toward Ponyville.
Quickly scanning the town and all the houses she spots the tree-house she was looking, a dim light moves around the top floor. The sight of it brings a smile to Rainbow Dash but even that doesn't last long before a pony moves a cloud between the tree and herself.
Down at the ground the light in the window descends from the top floor. Twilight Sparkle, levitating a candle in front of her and a saddle bag to her side, moves quickly trying to get ready. The three books she needed to pack were ready to go since the day before, the testing equipment though a bit heavy in the bags was secured inside of them with a blanket to hold them apart, and now she only need pack provisions for her up coming experiment and wait until sun up to start.
"Ten hay pucks - check, half a bushel of apples - check, two canteens of emergency water – check..."
The list goes on for some time and all the food quickly does its best at causing the saddle bag to sag even with the spell holding it up. When Twilight finishes packing the food she closes the straps and looks out her window to watch for the rising sun. "That's not right," she says once she realizes that even though it was still technically night time some light should be noticeable.
Dropping the saddle bag, Twilight turns on her hooves and dashes back up the stairs to her bedroom. "Spike! Spike? Wake up, we have a problem." Twilight screams as she forces herself up the flight of stairs.
Hearing his name brake into the world of his dream causes Spike to flip forward to attention but from waking up so fast he stumbles forward on the lip of his bed. "Wha- what is it, I couldn't have over slept – the alarm hasn't gone off yet."
"I don't know Spike, I was getting everything ready for today and I saw all the Pegasus in town putting a storm together." Twilight threw the packing list on one of her bookshelves before heading up to the loft. Once up there she grabs Spike by one of his head spines and throws him onto her back then turns back for the main floor. "Rainbow Dash didn't say anything about a storm so she's probably going to be late, Spike, what I need is for you to stay awake until she gets here."
"What are you going to be doing?" Spike asks, trying to right himself on Twilight's back, "And how late is she going to be?"
"I'm sticking to the plan we all came up with and going over to Rarity's boutique, I don't know when Rainbow will get here though, so I'll be leaving you and the saddle bag here for her to bring to Rarity's when she's done."
Back on the ground floor Twilight turns hard enough on the floor that Spike nearly slides off as she returns to the kitchen, grabs up the bag in her mouth, spins again and finally comes to a halt at the front door. "Okay, we already had everything set for today, right? Owlowiscious will look after Pee-Wee, Fluttershy will be here at Ten to help too, and everything else is – Books!"
Spike looks at the set aside books and jumps off of Twilight's back. "I'll get them." he says.
"Good, then all you have to do now is wait for Rainbow and have her bring the bags and yourself over to Rarity's." Spike salutes Twilight with a stoic smile, and Twilight pushes her front door open.
Winds blow through the whole of Ponyville, bringing a cold chill and light flakes of snow with them. Rainbow Dash, fighting against the growing strength of the storm, does her best to feel anything other then disappointment at how long the storm is taking to get going, but it had finally started and that meant that she was now free to get to Twilight's tree-house.
'Please be ready.' Rainbow Dash says to herself as she lands and quickly raises a hoof to knock. A yawn comes through the door as a tired eyed Spike opens it. "You guys are ready right?" Rainbow pushes herself pass Spike and looks at an otherwise unoccupied room. "Twilight, lets go before we..."
"She's already left." Spike says, interrupting Rainbow Dash and causing a look of dread to cross her face. Dash starts turning back to the door but Spike stops her from doing anything brash by tugging on her tail and pointing out the saddle bag. "She went on ahead to Rarity's, the faster you can get me and this bag over there the better."
Rainbow Dash drops to her knees and haunches and confidently says "Load up and lets go." with a hurried grin. Spike nods and heaves the bag off the floor. He puffs and takes ladened steps just to move the bag four feet from beside the door over to Dash's back. He sets it just behind her wings, but before he can even check that it's on right his tail is yanked up in Rainbow Dash's mouth as she flings him onto her back.
The two lurch into the stormy sky and head for the boutique with as much speed as Rainbow Dash can muster. The hurry she was in made the trip across Ponyville feel like nothing at all and when she catches the sight of lights on in her friends shop she doesn't even bother with knocking and aims right for the center of the door.
The resounding blast of Rainbow Dash's entrance makes the two ponies inside jump. The shock and noise of the crash fades quickly and Rarity confronts her friend with ire building behind her forced smile. "Rainbow, sweetie, must you do that. I knew you would be late, I even left the door unlocked so you shouldn't have a reason to brake my door down. Shaving time off of being late does not mean you can destroy my house."
"Twilight – is she ready to go!" is all Rainbow Dash can manage to say through gasps for air.
"Of course Twilight is ready," Rarity says with her smile turning to a more natural jaunty grin. "The saddle came in yesterday, just as I said it would, and Twilight and I have been working on cinching it up for the last twenty minutes so we should be able to get it on you in the 'ten seconds flat' that you like to boast about."
Rainbow Dash couldn't help but put on her own grin and ask, "Then where is she? The sooner I get it on the sooner we can leave."
"She's behind the changing shawl. I was giving her a moment to figure how to take it off by herself." is Rarity's response.
A warm flush pumps its way up into Rainbow Dash's cheeks, as a quick image of Twilight wearing her saddle settles in. The thought makes Rainbow Dash feel giddy until the real Twilight walks into view with the saddle folded up neatly and unstrapped on her back.
"You couldn't have gotten here at a better time Rainbow, I've cinched the saddle and harness up and down twice on my own so I have absolute confidence in myself that I won't be messing it up for the trip." She levitates the saddle off her back and unfolds the straps, "Spike, if you could get the saddle bag for a moment?"
Rarity, for her part of helping with the saddle, only held up the instructions. She watches Twilight work and points out the areas that are done backwards, incorrectly,or simply in the wrong order, and since there were no more then two of each Twilight's confidence in herself grows stronger.
Once all the straps are cinched tight Rainbow Dash twists and flexes herself in every direction she can think of, the fit feeling strong and comfortable on her. "Hows it look?" she asks with enthusiasm. Rarity brings over a large floor mirror and sets it next to her. The bridle and bit hang loose around her neck like white puffy cotton ropes while the saddle itself covers every contort of her back with white and sky-blue. The border stitching, a simple cloud design, is embossed with the words 'Saddle-bolt companion harness'
"Now we just need to lock Twilight and Spike into the top half and you three will be ready to go." At Rarity's command Twilight lines herself up next to Rainbow Dash. "Alright then Dash, if you would please lay down."
Back on her knees and haunches Rainbow Dash feels a knot form in her throat and a bolt of elation run down her spine, both sensations begin mixing together and she shudders in anticipation. Her body stiffens at Twilight's touch.
"You'll let me know if I snag you coat or mane?" Twilight asks as she straddles herself onto the saddle. Rainbow Dash only nods before forcing her whole body to remain still. "I'm cinching up the first straps now. Rainbow."
The grip of the harness matches the saddle perfectly once it's fully set. It is firm and mostly pleasantly tight around Twilight's hips and flank, while her fetlocks and hooves are held almost impossibly stiff in the stirrups; only allowing her legs to move outward an inch.
"This feels a lot more awkward then I thought it would," Rainbow Dash says at almost a whisper, a glow of pink spreading over the length of her muzzle and under her eyes.
"This isn't too tight is it?"
"NO!" Rainbow Dash shouts. Her eyes widen at the volume of her own voice and she quickly lowers back to a half whisper "No, it just feels wired having you tied onto my back."
"Rainbow Dash, are you alright dear?" Rarity asks as she steps in front of her friends. "You said earlier that the weight wouldn't be too much but maybe we should..."
"I'm fine. Lets just hurry up and get this done and over with so me and Twilight can get going, okay?"
"Very well." Rarity smiles lightly at the blush on her friends face. "Spike, I'll take the bags." she lifts it from his hands with her magic; a small strain present in her posture as she brings it around to Twilight's back. After the bag is secured Spike jumps onto Dash just in front of her wings. He too is secured with a tight strap the reaches around Twilight's neck like a yoke.
Spike takes hold of the bridle and reaches around for the bit. "I don't need that yet." Rainbow Dash looks at to the two on her back in the mirror. "Try wiggling around a little. See if you're in right."
"Rainbow, you aren't going to be taking off at full speed so I'm sure they are perfectly secure as they are." Rarity states.
"No, she's right Rarity. I should try to see if it'll hold Spike and myself in properly."
Rainbow Dash stands up with only little difficulty and opens her wings. With a few tentative flaps she makes sure that they are not obstructed by anything. Her muscles give out burning cries that warn her of the strain but she ignores it and fights the weight, lifting the three several feet into the air. Without warning Twilight flings herself to the right, then with even more force she wrenches to the left. Both actions cause Rainbow Dash to drift hard to the respective sides but she stays aloft while Twilight and Spike stay tied on top.
Rarity's glee at seeing the saddle succeeding at its purpose rises higher then she thought it could. However, when Rainbow Dash lands and turns for the door without any thanks she can't help but feel the ire from Dash's explosive entrance return. "Rainbow, please be sure to bring our friends back in one piece now."