Hurricane Fluttershy
Pony's Log Number 222: The words bullies told us long ago can torment our hearts for years, but it doesn't mean that a pony can't prove that those harsh words wrong...
One day, Rainbow Dash was flying about the skies above the main town area of Ponyville, wearing her saddle bag that was loaded with flyers.
"Calling all Pegasus ponies!" said Rainbow from above, "Meeting tonight!" Rainbow then dropped several flyers from above. The flyers gently floated down to several Pegasi below, which included Fluttershy and Muffins. They began to examine the flyers. As a flyer landed on Fluttershy's head, she picked it up to read it, making her flinch and quickly run away. Then another Pegasus mare with a lilac coat with an ice blue mane that had a magenta bow and tail looked at the flyer.
""Mandatory meeting for all Ponyville, Pegasi"," said the pony whose name was Flitter as she read the flyer aloud as Fluttershy ducked herself behind a barrel.
"Library, tonight," said Rainbow as she dumped all the flyers from her saddle bag, "Be cool or be mule." She then flew back towards the ground as her flyers covered...a nearby mule?!
"No offense," said Rainbow to the mule.
"None taken," said the mule casually.
Later that night, all the Pegasi that lived in Ponyville arrived at the library and made their way inside. Rainbow was standing outside to welcome them.
"All right, go on in, find a seat," said Rainbow. She then looked inside and counted up all the Pegasi. She didn't need long to see that somepony was missing.
"Ohh..." Rainbow groaned annoyingly before she flew over to a nearby tree, "You too, Fluttershy." Rainbow must have either known the tree was fake or knew Fluttershy had the disguise because once she said the yellow Pegasus's name, two eyes appeared from the tree trunk. Then Fluttershy poked out of it, showing the top part of the tree was her hat and the stump part was her costume.
"Come on, let's go," said Rainbow sternly as she pushed the reluctant Fluttershy, disguise and all, inside the Library.
(Main theme)
As Spike was busy getting the projector set up, Mario was busy mangling with the other Pegasi as he served some freshly made cups of lemonade and brownies to everypony. Mario was little quiet at first, but soon got comfortable having short conversations with everypony.
"Do these brownies have nuts?" one pony asked.
"None," Mario replied, "I was never a fan of nuts in brownies. But I did add chocolate chips if there's a problem with those." His only reply was more cheers and satisfied hums. Mario then headed toward Fluttershy, who was looking rather uncomfortable around everypony.
"What's wrong, sis?" Mario asked gently, "Is being in such a large crowd making you nervous?" Fluttershy just looked at him quietly.
"Sort of..." she answered.
"Want me to sit with you for the presentation?" Mario asked.
"I...I'll...I'll be okay," Fluttershy answered. Mario just smiled.
"Here, have a brownie," said Mario as he handed her one with his magic, "I might help you relax a bit." Fluttershy just took the brownie, nibbled it, and gave Mario a small smile. Mario smiled back and continued serving the other brownies and lemonade to the other Pegasi. It wasn't long before a familiar blue-grey colored pony with blonde hair went to grab a brownie but nearly tripped over herself. Mario caught her before she could knock into him.
"Whoa! Easy there, Muffins," said Mario as he helped her back up to her feet.
"My bad," said Muffins with a smile as she grabbed her brownie and some lemonade.
"Why not just let her fall?" one pony taunted, "She's always tripping around like a klutz."
"She can't help it," said Mario sternly, "If anypony has ever looked at her eyes, they would know Muffins suffers from an eye condition that affects her motor and coordination skills. Never the less, she's still a pony who deserves respect. Despite a few slip ups, she does work hard every day at being the best pony she can be." The pony said nothing as others gave them a glare. A few others nodded in agreement with Mario. Muffins gave Mario a hug as a few tears pricked her eyes.
"Thank you," she said softly, "Nopony's ever stood up for me before."
"That's what friends do," said Mario as the room went dark as their film presentation began to play on the projection screen. The movie was clearly poor quality and old fashioned by the fact that everything, from the Pegasus ponies and their thoughts to even Cloudsdale itself, looked like it was hand-drawn by a foal with no artistic skills. Plus the music was very close to something from the 1920s-1930s and the playback was in black and white.
"Every living thing depends on the life-giving nourishment of rainwater," said the film announcer, "and it's up to Cloudsdale to provide rain-filled clouds to every corner of Equestria. But how, one pony might ask, does Cloudsdale gather all this extra water? Tornado power! That's right, Pegasi-driven tornado power. A team of Pegasi combine their wing power to create a jumbo tornado, powerful enough to pull water out of the local reservoir and funnel it all the way to Cloudsdale. Remember, Pegasi, your jumbo tornado must reach a minimum of eight hundred wing power to lift that water up to Cloudsdale. So, the next time you're wondering "Where does all that extra rainwater come from?", just remem-"
Suddenly the presentation was cut off as some of the film strip was fried and melted, causing the music and voice to suddenly stop. The Pegasi all began to chatter in confusion about what was going on when some of them turned to see Spike caught up in the film strips next to the film projectors that was clearly smoking and out of commission.
"Uh...intermission?" Spike replied sheepishly.
"Eh, don't worry about it Spike," said Mario, "That film needed to be updated anyway..." As Mario began to mentally make plans for recreating the film in his head. Rainbow hovered before the crowd. Apparently, being the head of the Ponyville weather team made her the de facto leader of what was going on.
"So, here's the scoop," Rainbow explained, "Cloudsdale has chosen our own highland reservoir as a source of the rainwater they need for all of Equestria. And you know what that means. It means it is up to Ponyville's Pegasi to bring that water up to Cloudsdale." The other Pegasi began to chatter with each other excitedly. Fluttershy just kept to herself and stayed quiet.
"That's pretty cool," said Mario impressed. Rainbow then pulled down a banner that had a profile of the wonderbolts on it.
"Not only that, but Spitfire, captain of the Wonderbolts," Rainbow continued, "will be here to oversee the water transfer and record our top tornado windspeed." She then pulled down another banner with a city and a bar graph on it, "Now last year, Fillydelphia broke the windspeed record with a top speed of nine hundred and ten wing power. But I think we can do better." Rainbow then pulled down another chart with both Fillydelphia and now Ponyville that had a taller bar graph above it, "I think we can get a top speed over a thousand!" The Pegasi chattered excitedly once again as Fluttershy grew worried and nervous. Mario gave a low whistle.
"That's alot of WP," said Mario to Muffins, who nodded in agreement.
"And you'll get to see your old friend again," Muffins added. By now everypony knew that Mario was friends with Spitfire, but he was grateful most Pegasi didn't bother him for stories of her past and autographs, etc.
"...if each and every pony trains, and trains hard to get their wing power numbers up," said Rainbow sternly before she heard the sound of somepony coughing.
"That coughing better be from a popcorn kernel, Thunderlane," said Rainbow to a two toned brown colored Pegasi stallion, who just smiled sheepishly as some other Pegasi glared at him, "Nopony's getting sick on my watch. So, are we gonna train hard?"
"Yeah!" said all the Pegasi minus Fluttershy, who eventually crouched and started trembling fearfully from all the shouting.
"Are we gonna be strong?" Rainbow asked.
"Yeah!"
"Are we gonna be fast?"
"Yeah!"
"Record-smashing fast?"
"YEAH!" shouted a muscular white-grey colored stallion by the name of Bulk Biceps, who was able to fly despite having wings nearly one eighth his body size.
"Who's with me?"
"Woo-hoo!" said the Pegasi cheered excitedly. Rainbow hovered proudly before the group, but then she noticed that the space where Fluttershy had been is now empty. The yellow Pegasus had sneaked out of the library without being noticed.
"Fluttershy!" Rainbow remarked as she narrowed her eyes indignantly.
"She's been rather nervous the entire time she was here," said Mario as he walked up to the blue Pegasus.
"What else is new?" Rainbow asked annoyingly.
"Rainbow, if you ever want to help Fluttershy overcome her confidence issues," said Mario sternly, "you need to stop dismissing how she acts and take the time to find out why she feels this way. And you wonder why she resented you so much." Rainbow then sighed as she landed near him.
"I know," said Rainbow, "Fluttershy and I had a long talk about that not too long ago. I need to be there for her and help her find some courage instead of just leaving her to find it herself. This is something all Pegasi need to participate in, for the sake of Equestria's rainwater. Plus, I would really like to break that record and know she had a part in it. You know...share the glory and all that jazz." Mario smiled.
"Well, I'll be here to help Fluttershy too," said Mario, "Since I can relate the best to her self-esteem issues."
"Well, just remember, Mario," said Rainbow, "I think you're awesome." Mario smiled in reply.
The next morning, Rainbow had gathered all the Pegasi around the area where the oval race track was located. The Pegasi were hard at work stretching and working out to stretch and increase their wing power, or WP as Mario abbreviated it. Rainbow had also put on a navy blue sports cap with a red whistle around her neck.
"Stretch those glutes, Flitter!" Rainbow shouted as she walked by several Pegasi with Mario next to her wearing a gym tee shirt and a yellow sports cap. Despite being a unicorn, Rainbow asked him to be her assistant coach, "Nice flexibility, Cloudchaser. A...little too much flexibility, Blossomforth..."
"Does she need help untangling herself?" Mario asked Rainbow worried.
"Uh, somepony give Blossomforth a hoof," said Rainbow, "Let's see some faster trotting, Thunderlane. Good pace, Silverspeed!" The stallion trotted by as the other Pegasi flew by at a brisk pace. Rainbow then blew her whistle as she stood around some other Pegasi while they stretched and another Pegasi was lifting weights.
"Keep it up!" said Rainbow as some other Pegasi gathered around her and Mario, "We're gonna need all the wing power we can get to break that record!"
"Let's put those feathers to the wind, everypony," Mario added.
"YEAH!" Bulk Biceps grunted and gave a snort in the process.
"Good work, everypony!" said Rainbow before muttering under her breath, "Everypony except Fluttershy."
"Well, do you wanna go find out what the problem is?" Mario asked since he heard her. Rainbow snorted before flying away and Mario followed right behind her. It wasn't long before they arrived at Fluttershy's cottage.
"Remember, Rainbow," said Mario, "Calm and collected approach. Being too brash will only make her close up, or worse..."
"Fluttershy? I know you're in there!" said Rainbow as she banged on the door, "You're avoiding tornado duty and I want to know why! Fluttershy, open-" Rainbow was then cut off when the door opened and Fluttershy came out, wearing her purple robe and covered in red spots.
"Achoo," said Fluttershy giving a very cute sneeze, "Hi, Rainbow Dash. Hi, Mario." She then coughed weakly as Rainbow and Mario were taken aback, even though they both could tell Fluttershy's cough was fake.
"Fluttershy, what happened to you?" Rainbow asked concerned.
"Oh, I..." said Fluttershy as she sniffled and coughed weakly again as she leaned against the side off her front door post and slid down it a bit, "I think I have...the pony pox. I'm really sorry. I really, really wanted to come to training day today..." Fluttershy coughed weakly again, "...but this pony pox has really knocked me for a loop. Achoo." Fluttershy let out another cough. Rainbow exchanged a look with Mario as Mario just nodded back discreetly.
"Oh, you poor thing," said Rainbow sympathetically, "You know, there's only one cure for pony pox."
"I know," said Fluttershy with a smile on her face, "Plenty of bed-"
SLOSH!
Rainbow then dumped a bucket of water over Fluttershy, making her yelp as she was now soaked and her red spots melted off her coat.
"Cold water!" said Rainbow as she held the now empty bucket, "Those pony pox are clearing right up." Fluttershy noticed the dripping water and red paint now on her hooves.
"Wow, talk about a miracle cure," said Mario in amazement, "Rainbow, you've outdone yourself!" Fluttershy glared, her mane still wet, before recomposing herself.
"Oh, y'know, all of a sudden, I'm, I'm starting to feel better," said Fluttershy with a nervous laugh as she backed up and then pretended to fall down onto back, "I'll get out of these robes and-ow! Oh, my wing, oh, oh, it's hurt. I guess I can't fly after all-"
TWEEEEEEEEEEEET!
Fluttershy yelped and jumped into the air as Rainbow got close to her and blew her whistle as loudly as she could.
"Messed up wing, huh?" said Rainbow as Fluttershy was now hovering in the air. Fluttershy just smiled sheepishly as she made a soft landing, "Stop horsing around, Fluttershy. We've got alot of training to do. Come on now, what's going on?" Rainbow wrapped a fore-leg around her from Fluttershy's right as Mario did the same from the left.
"Yeah, Fluttershy," said Mario, "I thought we promised to be honest with each other? If you want Rainbow to care about your feelings, you need to speak up and say what's on your mind. Remember, you don't want to keep what's bothering you inside anymore." Fluttershy sighed.
"Well, y'see, uh, well..." Fluttershy stuttered, before grabbing Rainbow's fore-hooves, "Oh, Rainbow Dash, Mario, I just can't do it! I can't fly!"
"What are you talking about?" said Rainbow puzzled, "Just last week you went into that wicked nose dive to save that falling baby bird right before it hit the ground!" Rainbow did a demonstration despite being indoors.
"And I've seen you flying about when you're busy tending to the animals," said Mario, "You're practically dancing in the sky! I've even seen you do tricks!"
"But that was different, that was an emergency!" said Fluttershy, "Or I'm just by myself! This whole tornado thing, it's more like a performance and you know how I hate performing in front of others."
"Ah, I see," said Mario, "I can certainly understand that."
"You've never had a problem performing in front of others!" Rainbow retorted.
"Are you kidding me?!" said Mario, "Mom could tell you countless stories of all the panic attacks I had before any performance or public appearance. I even passed out a few times! Sure, I kind of got over it when I was racing, but after my accident...momma mia...it was years before I could even get comfortable just being out in a public place, especially after my opportunity to pick myself up and try again was rejected and the constant criticisms by other ponies. As if they didn't criticize me enough already..."
"It's such a horrible feeling," Fluttershy added as she face Rainbow again, "Don't you remember flight camp? I couldn't gallop hard or fly very fast, not with everypony looking at me!"
"It wasn't that bad," said Rainbow.
"Oh really?" said Mario with a raised eyebrow, reminding her of a heart to heart they had shared regarding how much being teased had hurt her during flight camp.
"Quiet!" Rainbow threatened.
"Do you think I don't know about you crying yourself to sleep at night for being called Crash?" Fluttershy said aloud, making Rainbow feel very uncomfortable but Fluttershy didn't wait for her to reply, "but you're right, Rainbow Dash, it wasn't that bad."
"Really?" said Mario puzzled.
"It was horrible!" said Fluttershy.
A flashback is seen of young Fluttershy and young Rainbow about to do some flying practice. The yellow Pegasus was about to go first. Young Fluttershy gasped as she looked down at all the other young Pegesi watching her from below. Being so high up had also given the timid Pegasus a bad case of vertigo. She then yelped as the instructor shoved her off the cloud, making her wings retract as she tumbled down to the cloud below, leaving a bit of a cloud creator with her in the middle of it.
"The other foals used to tease me, a lot!" said Fluttershy.
"Fluttershy, Fluttershy, Fluttershy can hardly fly!" they chanted over and over again, as her young self held her head as the words continuously echoed through her head. It was then the flashback ended as Fluttershy put both her fore-hooves in Rainbow's shoulders.
"I just can't risk that sort of humiliation again," said Fluttershy.
"Suck it up, Fluttershy!" said Rainbow sternly, "This is no time for-" Rainbow then stopped herself and took a small breath.
Remember Rainbow, she told herself, tough love doesn't work with Fluttershy, you gotta be considerate, but you don't need to get overly sappy either...
"I mean," Rainbow said calmly with a fore-hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder, "confidence or no confidence. I'm gonna need every Pegasus to break the record, including you. I need every ounce of wing power I can get."
"Oh, I-I don't think so, Rainbow Dash," said Fluttershy sadly. Rainbow as tempted to just push her out, but she could well remember what happened the last time she tried to force Fluttershy out of her own cottage.
"Alright, Fluttershy," said Mario gently, "But you know where to find us if you change your mind."
"Thanks anyway," said Rainbow with a sigh as she sadly hovered away as she and Mario headed for the door. Fluttershy saw how disappointed Rainbow looked.
"Wait," said Fluttershy before Rainbow and Mario had even gotten near her front door, "I'll do it."
"You will?" said Rainbow, perking up instantly.
"I will."
"You're game?" Rainbow asked, getting more excited.
"I'm game," said Fluttershy as Rainbow scooped her up and flew around the house excitedly.
"Alright!" said Rainbow joyfully, but Fluttershy was starting to have second thoughts.
Back at the racetrack, Twilight was tweaking what appeared to be a small device with a fan on top of it.
"What exactly does this machine do?" asked Cloudchaser with Flitter standing next to her.
"This is an anemometer," said Twilight, "It measures your accelerative velocity and translates it into wing power, thus gauging your cumulative H2O anti-gravitational potential." The two Pegasi give her both awkward and puzzled looks as Twilight just smiled.
"Any more questions?" Twilight asked with a little clap with her fore-hooves and a cute smile on her face.
"Yeah," said Flitter as she turned to Spike, "What exactly does this machine do?"
"It tells you how fast you're flying and how strong your wings are," Spike answered plainly.
"Ohhhh...Okay...I see..." said the other Pegasi as Twilight hunched over with a bitter look on her face.
"Guess someponies just don't appreciate a brilliant mind, my beautiful genius," said Mario as he gave her a cheek kiss.
"SQUEE-HEE-HEE!" Twilight blurted with glee before clasping a fore-hoof to her mouth and blushed heavily. Mario had to cover his mouth to avoid laughing.
"That kiss really made your day huh?" said Mario as Twilight smiled at him shyly.
"Mmm-hmm," Twilight squeaked as Mario smiled and quickly walked off. Cloudchaser and Flitters giggled to each other.
"Looks like somepony's in love," Flitters teased.
"Totally lovesick," Cloudchaser added.
"Am not!" Twilight pouted under her breath.
"Denial," Spike sing sang quietly as Twilight growled at him to stop talking. It was then she heard the sound of somepony cough.
"Is that you again, Thunderlane?" said Twilight as she sprayed a can of anti-bacterial in his face, but not in the eyes, "Please, we need to have a germ-free environment."
"It wasn't me, it was Blossomforth," said Thunderlane as he pointed at the Pegasi mare, who gasped silently as being called out.
"Don't worry, Twilight," said Rainbow as she hovered over the purple pony that was still holding the spray can with her magic, "Thunderlane's just cooking up excuse to spend tornado day in bed. Why don't you get over here and be our first test flyer, Thunderlane?" Thunderlane gasped as he gave Blossomforth a glare as he walked away. Blossomforth just smirked, but as Thunderlane walked off, she turned away and coughed again, showing that she was the pony coughing all along. Thunderlane headed over the starting line of the oval racetrack. The test flight would require him to simply fly in a straight line over the anemometer to measure his speed and wing power. Thunderlane revved his wings before taking off and flying over the anemometer. Twilight then knelt down to read the meter.
"We have 9.3 wing power," Twilight announced.
"Wow! That's fast!" said the other Pegasi as Thunderlane proudly landed before some other Pegasi, even one mare rubbed his mane as a complement.
"YEAH!" Bulk Biceps cheered in his usual manner.
"Not bad, not bad," said Rainbow smugly.
"Then let's see what your wing power is Dashie," said Mario. Rainbow smirked as she made her way towards the starting line. Rainbow quickly stretched her wings a bit and cracked her leg and wing joints before she knelt down, revved her wings and took off. Rainbow took off so fast that her cap and whistle fell off. She quickly zoomed past the anemometer, startling Twilight, Mario, and Spike. Rainbow's fast pace also caused a strong wind to blow past the ponies. Poor Fluttershy was struggling not to get blown away and ended up flying backwards a bit.
"16.5 wing power!" Twilight announced excitedly with a frazzled mane. The other Pegasi cheer as Rainbow hovered above them. Mario just sighed.
"I wish I had wings," said Mario, "I'd love to take to the skies with my high speed."
"I am wondering just how strong your wing power would be since your running speed is around mach 1.5 the last time I measured it," said Twilight.
"Well, I do have those magic wings I've been working on," said Mario, "I've finally got them to operate like Pegasi wings, but the speed is still lacking." Twilight chuckled.
"You'll figure it out," said Twilight.
"Now listen up!" Rainbow said to the other Pegasi, "If each of you can get your numbers up to at least 10.0 wing power by the end of the week, we'll no doubt set a new tornado speed record. We'll be number one!" The Pegasi all cheer excitedly as they take to the skies...except for Fluttershy who just squats down on the ground and watches them quietly. She tried to smile and flap her wings, but then she quickly retracted them and looked at the ground. Mario walked up to her and placed a gentle hoof on her back.
"Flutters," he said gently.
"I'm...I'm okay," said Fluttershy bravely.
"I know you don't want to disappoint, Rainbow," said Mario, "But don't let her..."
"She's not forcing me," said Fluttershy, "I said I'd do it and I'm here. I'm just...nervous. 10.0 wing power is alot for me."
"Well, try not to go straight for that," said Mario, "start with 1.0 and then work your way one level or even half a level at a time. One baby step at a time."
"That would be much easier," said Fluttershy with a smile as Mario returned it.
Later on, the other Pegasi were each having their wing power measured. Each Pegasi took their turn flying through the anemometer as Twilight read the number the needle was pointing to and reported the numbers to Spike, who wrote them down in a note pad. Rainbow hovered above him to monitor the numbers. Based on the most recent Pegasi, the lowest number was 8.9 while the others were slightly faster and approaching the target wing power of 10.0. As some Pegasi were waiting for their turn, Fluttershy went to get in line when she bumped into the flank of Tornado Bolt. He glared at her before giving his wings a buzz and took off. When he had finished, his wing power was exactly 11.0.
"Impressive," said Rainbow, "Fluttershy, your turn." Rainbow then blew her whistle as Fluttershy took a deep breath, her knees shaking as the others watched her, and then took off. Fluttershy had her head low at first, but once she saw she was flying at a slow and steady pace, she relaxed and continued on her way. Unfortunately, Flitter and Cloudchaser noticed how slow Fluttershy was going and started to laugh.
"Fluttershy, Fluttershy, Fluttershy can hardly fly..." Fluttershy heard echoing in her head along with the laughter of the two Pegasi. Fluttershy grew anxious and her brow began to sweat as she hung her head low and slowed down just as she went past the anemometer. Twilight smiled bravely as she went to measure Fluttershy's wing power before looking unsure of what to do as Rainbow leaned in to see the number herself.
"It shouldn't count," Mario whispered, "She slowed down right as she flew by."
"We still have to tell her," Twilight whispered back before looking at Rainbow, "Tell her!"
"No, you tell her!" Rainbow shot back in the same tone.
"No, you!" Twilight whispered back as Fluttershy turned to face them.
"Whoever tells her, at least let her know that it's that low cause she slowed down at the end and that she's faster than this!" Mario suggested as Rainbow turned to face the yellow Pegasus.
"Um...great job, Fluttershy," said Rainbow sheepishly, "You measured, uh, uh, 0.5." Fluttershy just smiled.
"0.5?" said Spike, "Isn't that like...less than one?"
BONK!
"Ow!" said Spike as Twilight bopped him on the head as she and Mario glared at him. Fluttershy then blinked as she felt the others staring at her.
"Fluttershy, Fluttershy, Fluttershy can hardly fly!" the voices taunted again, making her knees quiver once again. Soon Fluttershy saw herself surrounded by hundreds of large eyes just staring at her, sending her into a panic attack and she was soon hyperventilating. It wasn't long before she burst into tears and ran off with her face hidden inside of her soft pink mane.
"Fluttershy, wait!" said Rainbow as she flew after her.
"Come back, Fluttershy!" Mario called out as he followed beside Rainbow.
"So some punks poked a little fun at you and you got stage fright, big deal," said Rainbow, "You aren't gonna go quit just because of that, are you?" Fluttershy stopped and turned around to face them. What they saw tugged at both of their hearts.
Poor Fluttershy had the saddest face they had ever seen as heavy tears poured out of her eyes.
"Yes!" Fluttershy cried out as she openly wept before them. Mario wasted no time wrapping a fore-hoof around her and held her close as she continued to cry.
"But I need you!" Rainbow pleaded.
"I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash," Fluttershy sobbed, "I just don't have the courage right now." Fluttershy then pulled away from Mario and took off.
"Fluttershy come back!" Mario called out, but the yellow Pegasus kept running and disappeared. Rainbow simply landed on the ground, watched her disappear, before extending a hoof and then bucking the air and walked sadly away.
"What good is that gonna do?" said Mario, "If you're worried about her, get off your flank and go after her!"
"I'm not good at this, Mario!" Rainbow retorted, "I'm not that good at helping ponies who are crying and blubbering like that!"
"You had no problem when it was me!" said Mario, "You've known Fluttershy longer than I have! Yet it seems I understand her better than you these days!"
"Well, unlike you, I don't let the words of punks ruin my life!" Rainbow snapped before she bit her lips. Mario gave her a fierce glare.
"I...I didn't mean that..." Rainbow retorted, wanting to take her words back, "I'm sorry!" Mario softened for a few seconds. Rainbow knew plenty of how badly bullying had affected him so there was no need to repeat it.
"Please go and help her," said Rainbow sadly, "Not because of the record, not because of me, but because I don't want to see her give up on herself." Mario gave her a nod and headed on his way. Rainbow just let out a sigh before getting back to the group.
Meanwhile, Fluttershy was sitting under a tree near the edge of the Everfree forest. She gave a loud squeak and started sobbing at a volume much louder than her own speaking voice. Angel was using a comb to stroke her mane to try and calm her down. The other animals were there to support her as well, giving her sympathetic looks. Fluttershy continued to sob loudly as she lifted her head, her chin covered with blade of grass and her eyes still filled with tears. A squirrel then tapped her side and pulls out a spare acorn from its mouth and gave it to her.
"Oh, thank you," said Fluttershy as she sniffled and Angel removed the blades of grass off her chin, "but I'm afraid a couple of little acorns won't solve my big flying problem." She patted the squirrel on the head. Some ducks then quacked in reply as Fluttershy rubbed her nose.
"I tried, but you should've seen those ponies laughing at me..." said Fluttershy as she leaned against a tree root and continued to cry. Two bird hovered above her and pulled her mane to help her sit up and then chirped at her.
"I know it's important to have confidence in myself..." said Fluttershy sadly.
"But it's hard when you've been torn down so much that it's hard to get those hurtful words out of your mind," said a voice. Fluttershy looked up to see that Mario was standing nearby. She gave another squeak, bit her lips, as she raised her fore-hooves for him to hold her. Mario wasted no time heading over to her and wrapped his fore-legs around her as she cried loudly some more in his shoulder. Mario gently kissed her ear as he leaned his head against her own and cried with her. It was several minutes before Fluttershy settled down a little and just let Mario hold her.
"Thank you for coming," said Fluttershy softly, "You're a wonderful big brother." Mario smiled despite his own tears still flowing freely from his eyes.
"Well, you know that out of all our friends, I understand how you feel," said Mario.
"Yeah," said Fluttershy softly, "It's just so hard to be strong when you've got voices tearing you down. Sometimes it gets so bad you just..."
"...feel so defeated and lose the will to keep fighting," Mario finished.
"Uh-huh," said Fluttershy, "everything feels so hopeless..." Mario gave her a comforting squeeze. It was then a badger appeared and started sternly speaking to Fluttershy.
"Yes, yes, I do remember," said Fluttershy as she and Mario pulled away, "the river was swelling..." The badger kept squeaking some more as Mario listened quietly. For those who might have forgotten, Fluttershy helped Mario understand the dialect of all the animals surrounding her.
"...and you were scared..." Fluttershy continued as the badger squeaked some more.
"...yes, I did tell you to never give up...and to believe in yourself," said Fluttershy. She then blinked as her face changed from sad to determined.
"You're right my friends and big brother," said Fluttershy, "I shouldn't give up. I will get my confidence up and show everypony that I am a good flyer. A great flyer!" The animals and Mario smiled as Fluttershy hovered in the air and ascended vertically through the tree and hovered above it. The animals began to cheer for her.
"That's the spirit, Fluttershy," said Mario.
"Thank you, big brother," said Fluttershy as she hovered back down to him, "Um...can you be my coach?" Angel then began to babble angrily.
"Well, why not co-coach her together, Angel?" Mario suggest when Angel spoke again, making Mario glare.
"No, I can't be the towel boy instead!" Mario retorted as Angel rolled his eyes.
"Angel, you and big brother can coach me," said Fluttershy giving him a glare that said her word was law. Angel just pouted and he reluctantly extended his paws, which Mario gave him a gentle but firm high five to agree to the idea of co-coaching Fluttershy.
Later on, Fluttershy was now wearing some red and white hoof bands, leg warmers, and a matching headband on her head as she jogged in place to warm herself up for what was going to be a very intense and time consuming training session. Both Angel and Mario were wearing sports caps and had a red whistle around their necks. Mario said he would try not to be too pushy or brash, but he was going to be blunt when necessary to get her to push her own limits.
(cue training montage music)
To begin, Angel blew his whistle as Fluttershy took off to do a practice flight. Mario then nodded toward two grey bunnies and a squirrel to hold up some face masks to make them look like other ponies were watching her. Fluttershy saw the faces and lost her concentration as she crashed right through a tree trunk. While Fluttershy wasn't hurt, she covered her eyes and shivered fearfully.
"Hmm," said Mario, "She acts timid and meek, but yet she went crashing through a tree trunk without injuring herself. You know what that means, Angel?" The bunny looked at him curiously as Mario smirked.
"Potential," Mario answered and Angel smirked in agreement. Next Fluttershy was doing some wing push-ups as a single mouse sat on her back. The animals then held their masks up, making Fluttershy duck and hide again. Then Fluttershy tried doing some tug of war against a single butterfly. Once again, the animals held up their masks, making Fluttershy lose her stance and was easily pulled right into the mud. Fluttershy just popped out of the mud looking rather glum.
"I think I see your problem, Sis," said Mario, "You're focusing so much on what others are thinking of you that you're not focusing on the task at hand. Concentrate on what you are doing. Even if they laugh, they point, they tease, they mock, your focus should be finishing your task. Don't worry too much about how you get to the goal. Just focus on getting there." Fluttershy nodded as Mario pulled her out of the mud.
The next day, Angel and Mario blew their whistles as Fluttershy took off for another practice flight. As she noticed the animals wearing their masks, she slowed down a bit, but still managed to keep herself from cowering and make it to the end of her flight.
"Getting better," said Mario, "Just need to keep your speed consistent and focus on your goal. I'd never thought I'd say this but, "When somepony tries to mock, show them that you rock"!"
"I believe it was "when somepony tries to block"," Fluttershy remarked.
"Whatever," said Mario, "You're not trying to tell off or lash out at anypony. Use that energy you would use to assert yourself into your wings. That puts that negative energy onto something constructive and that will help you increase your speed and wing power."
"Got it," said Fluttershy as she began to do her wing push-ups. This time she had two animals on her back. As usual, those on her back and those watching had their masks on. Fluttershy was sweating heavily, since this time Mario was actually pushing her to do 40 push-ups.
"Give me your best!" Mario shouted.
"Am I at 40 yet?" Fluttershy cried out.
"Forget the number, just give me your best!" Mario shouted back.
"It hurts so much!" Fluttershy shouted.
"Well, how bad do you wanna be a great flyer?" Mario yelled.
"Really bad!" Fluttershy wailed.
"Then give me your best!" Mario shouted even louder.
Because of Mario's pushing, in Ponyville they say, Fluttershy did 110 push-ups that day.
"That's giving your best," said Mario as Fluttershy panted heavily from exhaustion. As much as Fluttershy wanted to beat him up for doing that to her, she was actually very proud of herself. Once she had recovered her strength, she was again put on tug of war against two butterflies. While the butterflies still managed to out-pull her, Fluttershy refused to surrender the rope to them. She gritted her teeth and held on, refusing to let go. Mario was rather impressed.
"That's it Fluttershy," said Mario, "even when the odds are against you, keep fighting no matter what."
The next day, despite feeling sore, Fluttershy was feeling stronger and more confident with herself. Her next speed run, was not only faster, but also consistent. Fluttershy was no longer noticing the animals in pony masks. When she did another round of push-ups, she now had three animals on her back. She could feel her body pleading for her to drop from exhaustion again as she tried to see if she could do the same number of push-ups despite the extra weight. As she felt a tear escape her eye, she gritted her teeth and sucked the tear right back inside and smiled excitedly as she continued. Mario kept count and just as she reached her ninetieth push-up, he decided to execute his plan.
"Oh what do we have here," said Mario in a mocking Sweedish tone, "Its the puffy-wuffy Fluttershy. Think you can break 110 pushups?" Fluttershy ignored him, just as Mario had hoped. He then ushered the three animal to climb off as he put a fore-hoof on her back to equal their weight.
"I bet you won't make it if we add a few more animals up here," said Mario as he placed both his fore-hooves on her back. Fluttershy kept going despite sweating even more. Mario then went all out and stood on her back.
"How about if we double down?" said Mario, "think you can handle that?" Mario was actually a bit weary about doing this, but was surprised to see that Fluttershy was still going and was hardly straining herself.
Wow, Am I really not heavy? Mario thought when Fluttershy looked up and saw that he was on her back.
"What are you doing up there?" Fluttershy demanded as she kept up her push-ups.
"Showing you just how strong you really are," said Mario with a smile, "and that when somepony is teasing you, you can channel those negative feelings into what you are doing. I'm proud of you." Fluttershy smiled, but then looked at him deviously.
"I wouldn't say all my anger right now was used constructively," said Fluttershy.
"What do you mean?" Mario asked.
POW!
THUD!
Fluttershy slugged Mario off as he tumbled into his back and nearly landed right on top of Angel.
"Geez, you try to show 'em their strengths and that's how they say thank you" said Mario woozily before knocking out.
(Lose a life fanfare)
Once Mario had recovered, Fluttershy once again did the tug of war. This time she was going against five butterflies. As soon as Mario and Angel blew their whistles, Fluttershy pulled the rope so hard that the butterflies were sent tumbling into a tree. Fluttershy looked a little worried. But the butterflies simply fluttered about and several birds cheered for her.
"That's showing 'em whose boss!" said Mario excitedly as Fluttershy smiled excitedly.
By the next day, Fluttershy was zooming past fields of dandelions. She was moving so fast that the seeds were being blown about. Mario did a fist pump as Angel raised his paws in the air excitedly. The other animals all cheered. Fluttershy raised her fore-legs above her head and then hugged herself as she hovered happily in the sky while spinning slowly 360 degrees.
"You, my sister, are ready," said Mario and then shouted, "Eye of the manticore!" Fluttershy replied with her own dynamic pose of glory in front of the sun.
(end training montage music)
Back at the racetrack, Rainbow, Twilight, and Spike were busy getting the latest numbers for the other Pegasi regarding their own wing power numbers.
"That's wonderful, Flitter," said Twilight, "Much better than yesterday."
"This is crazy awesome!" said Rainbow with a hoof pump, "We're gonna smash that record!" It was then a squirrel started chirping before them.
"What did he say?" Spike asked as he leaned over to the squirrel.
"Do I look like I speak squirrel?" said Twilight sarcastically.
"I know Mario can," Spike pointed out. Twilight growled.
"Don't remind me," said Twilight sternly. Mario had told her he would be spending time helping Fluttershy with her problem. But the fact he hadn't been around for the past few days had left Twilight feeling rather jealous. Rainbow took notice.
"Why are you so jealous?" said Rainbow, "Mario only sees Fluttershy as a sister and she feels the same way about him. After all, Fluttershy's been writing those letters to the stallion named Shenran for weeks now. So Fluttershy obviously has feeling for him and not Mario." Twilight then sighed and turned her head away.
"You know it's okay if you're falling for him..." said Rainbow.
"It's not that," Twilight fibbed, "It's just...I know he and Fluttershy share the same issues about their self-confidence, but...I just wish he would confide in me about it. I know I wasn't there for him in the past, but that doesn't mean I don't care about his feelings at all. I...I wanna be his go-to pony for when he feels like he's not special..." Rainbow hummed in understanding.
"Hey, what's that?" said Spike as he looked into the distance. Twilight and Rainbow did the same.
(cue montage music)
It was then Fluttershy came into view as she hovered with a confident and determined look on her face and surrounded by Mario and the other animals. As she flew by Twilight and Rainbow, Rainbow couldn't help but smile excitedly to see Fluttershy had returned. Fluttershy took her place at the starting line.
"You got this, Flutters," said Mario, trying to pump up her confidence, "You've got this. Eye of the manticore! You da superstar, Sis. You da superstar!" Mario couldn't help but use a bit of Manehatten accent on that last sentence, but Fluttershy smiled with determination as she crouched down, buzzed her wings, and then took off as fast as she could.
"Keep it going, Flutters!" Mario shouted as she ran alongside of her, "Keep it going!" Then Fluttershy zoomed past the anemometer, making both Twilight and Rainbow smile, as Mario cheered.
"That's what I'm talking about! That's what I'm talking about!" said Mario excitedly as he and Fluttershy landed and they shared a double high fore-hoof together. Spike then leaned over to take the measurement.
"2.3"
Mario and Fluttershy were in deep shock.
"2.3? 2.3?!" Fluttershy exclaimed, "This has to be some kind of mistake! I worked so hard!" Her voice broke as she finished speaking.
"It has to be some kind of mistake," said Mario, clearly upset as well, "You were way faster than that during our practice runs! And you're wing strength is top class. I mean...you did wing push-ups with me standing on your back for Celestia's sake! How could you only be a 2.3?!"
"Fluttershy, that's a huge improvement!" said Twilight.
"You did awesome, Fluttershy," Rainbow added. Mario glared at first, but then saw that the two ponies were being genuine with their praise. However, Fluttershy wasn't satisfied.
"No, I didn't," said Fluttershy, "I thought I'd gotten over my nerves, but they still got the best of me!"
"That's not the problem at all," said Mario, "Every Pegasus pony has strengths and weaknesses when it comes to flying, Fluttershy. You're low WP has nothing to do with not conquering your nerves, you just have a low top speed."
"And that is supposed to make me feel better?" said Fluttershy, "knowing I have only a 2.3 top speed?"
"Fluttershy, I still say that the anemometer is broken," Mario retorted, "You're top speed is much higher than that."
"Well, what do you say my wing power is?" Fluttershy asked. Mario paused for a moment.
"Around...4.0 at the minimum," said Mario honestly, "Probably higher." Fluttershy just sighed sadly as tears filled her eyes.
"There's no way I'll fly with 10.0 wing power tomorrow!" Fluttershy sadly.
"Maybe not," said Mario, "But if you keep training you can get there. It's just going to take more effort on your part. Remember how long it took before I could even run beyond a top speed of 20 miles an hour after my accident? It was disheartening, especially since most ponies in Equestria have a top speed of 70 miles per hour. But I managed keep fighting and look at me now! My top speed is now mach 1.5."
"But I'll never be as fast as you, Mario," said Fluttershy as she backed away from the group, "nor will I ever be as fast as everypony else."
"So you won't fly with 10.0 wing power," said Rainbow as she wrapped a fore-hoof around Fluttershy, "Every bit counts."
"How would you feel if everypony else was flying with 10.0 wing power and you were flying with 2.5?" Fluttershy challenged.
"Actually, it was only 2.3, and-ow!" Spike was then cut off when Twilight smacked him in the back of the head and then sternly made a gesture for Spike to zip it.
"Well, uh...I'd feel...um..." Rainbow stuttered as she sat down and fiddled with her hat in her fore-hooves.
"Exactly!" Fluttershy shot back sternly, making Rainbow lean away, "Humiliated!" Fluttershy began to cry, "Mario even said that when he could barely do 20 miles an hour that he'd feel humiliated to run with other ponies who could go around 70 miles per hour. I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash. I just can't do it!" Fluttershy's voice cracked as she walked away and her animal friends followed her from behind, not even noticing that a nearby Pegasi was just giving her sympathetic look and yet said nothing to her. Mario ran over to Fluttershy.
"Fluttershy, please," said Mario, "An old friend of mine once told me that numbers really don't have any value when it comes to a pony giving their absolute best!"
"Mario, even you wouldn't race if you had the lowest top speed," said Fluttershy as her tears streamed down her face.
"Back then, no," said Mario, "But now...I'd feel like I'd have something to prove. Even you know the story about the Tortoise and the Hare. Just go out there and do your best, that is all Rainbow is asking for." Fluttershy growled.
"I will not be the reason we don't break the record!" Fluttershy sobbed angrily, "I'm tired of being the blame for when we don't succeed! I'm tired of being the weakest link and you know that!"
"Okay, okay," said Mario gently and hugged her, "Just calm down. I understand. I just think you should still give it try, but...it's up to you." Fluttershy nodded as she walked away. Rainbow just watched the two talk with a sad look on her face.
"It's okay, Rainbow Dash," said Spike, "you've still got plenty of wing power for your tornado. You'll be able to lift tons of water up to Cloudsdale." Twilight gave Spike a dirty look before she used her magic to pull him away by the finger tip of his claw. Rainbow also shot the baby dragon a dirty look as well before looking away as two Pegasi flew behind her.
"If only there was a way to lift Fluttershy out of the dumps," said Rainbow with a sigh.
"I don't think there's much we can do," said Mario, "Fluttershy really did train really hard to try and build up her wing power. I even pushed her hard too, and she met the challenge. It's gotta be disheartening to work so hard and get such a poor result."
"Mario?" said Twilight, who had returned after giving Spike a good talking to about his insensitively.
"Yeah, Twilight?" Mario asked as Twilight tucked her head under his chin.
"You know that I...care about you right?" she asked. She wanted so badly to say "Love" but cowered out at the last second.
"Yes, I do," said Mario as he held her.
"I know you and Fluttershy share the same issues and such," said Twilight, "but I hope you know that I am here to help you when you feel that way. I know I wasn't there for you in the past, but I want to be now. I don't want you thinking so little of yourself. You're very special...especially to me." Mario smiled.
"Thank you for telling me that, Twilight," said Mario as he gave her a loving squeeze, "I'm glad I have your support." Twilight smiled contently in his fore-legs.
The next morning, a giant version of the anemometer was placed to measure the total wing power was set up near the lake of the Ponyville water reservoir. Twilight, Spike, Mario, and Rainbow were standing beside the machine. The rest of the Pegasi were all in line getting ready for action. Up above them was the city of Cloudsdale. It was then a single pegasi came zooming down to the ponies below and made her landing. Spitfire had arrived as the ponies all cheered and Rainbow smiled excitedly, except for Mario. Why? Because he walked up to Spitfire and they exchanged a rather elaborate hoof-shake followed by a giving a hoof-shake using their tails. The two just laughed as they shared a hug with other afterward.
"Good to see you, buddy," said Mario.
"Same here, buddy," said Spitfire, "You here to watch the awesomeness of tornado power?"
"You betcha," said Mario, "But I have perfected some special wings so...maybe I'll be taking part in the action..."
"Nice try, buddy," said Spitfire, "but only Pegasi can perform the tornado and I don't make the rules."
"Rules," said Mario bitterly, "Oh how I loathe rules. They ruined my dreams." Spitfire chuckled.
"Let it go, buddy," said Spitfire, "You don't need no dumb racetrack to still be the Flying Unicorn. They only held you back. You're faster, stronger, and even a better pony because of what happened."
"And I have you to thank for it," said Mario, nudging her shoulder with a fore-leg, "In more ways than one."
"Wait," said Rainbow, "That pony who helped you recover from the accident...was Spitfire?!"
"Actually," said Spitfire slowly, "I was the one who caused Mario's accident." Rainbow, Twilight, Spike, and the others all gasped.
"Listen everypony," said Mario bravely, "Yes, Spitfire made me crash, but in the end, she got me back on my hooves and helped me become the pony you see today. If it wasn't for her, I'd probably be a cold hearted pony rolling around in a wheelchair for the rest of my life. I owe her alot because she helped me recover and get myself back to speed again. She was there to motivate me when things were at their bleakest. She's become a lifelong friend and I owe her alot." Some of the ponies awed and applauded as Spitfire rolled her eyes.
"No need to get all sappy ya dork," Spitfire retorted, "You always were too sentimental for your own good."
"Or whittle Spitty afwraid of showing her cuddily-wuddily side in public," Mario teased.
"Step a little closer and say that," Spitfire challenged. Mario did smugly and gave her a raspberry...Spitfire glared...and they laughed once more. Twilight glared discreetly as them and Spitfire took notice.
"Is she the girl you've been saying you've got goo-goo eyes for?" Spitfire asked quietly, "I think she's getting jealous." Mario noticed Twilight's face discreetly and rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, that's Twilight," said Mario in the same tone as he looked at her and waved, making Twilight snap out of her glare and wave back sheepishly, "We're dating right now."
"Nice," said Spitfire as they shared a hoof-bump before they put their attention to Rainbow and the rest of the Pegasi. It was time to get to the reason they were all here.
"Are we ready to do this?" Rainbow called as she hovered before the rest of the Pegasi.
"Yeah!" the Pegasi all shouted. Rainbow made her landing as Spike walked up to her.
"Look!" said Spike as he showed her the attendance notes and there was an X next to Thunderlane's picture.
"Lazy Thunderlane!" Rainbow said angrily, "Where is he?! He's been trying to get out of tornado duty the whole time with his fake coughing and all. Rumble, where's your lazy brother?" A small colt was standing down the line between some adult Pegasi.
"He's got the feather flu," said Rumble, "He's down at the Ponyville Hospital."
"But he's not the only one," said Spike as he showed that several other Pegasi were also not present either. Rainbow felt her heart stop as Mario approached her to check the list.
"Didn't I tell you to have Thunderlane take a medical exam just to be safe?" said Mario, "The feather flu is a highly contagious illness to Pegasi ponies!"
"I forgot okay," Rainbow snapped, "I was too worried over Fluttershy to remember. Spike, how many Pegasi are out?"
"Exactly eight," said Spike. Now Rainbow was really worried. Soon Twilight was doing some calculations with an abacus while Mario was going his own mathematics with a notepad.
"Let's see, with those eight Pegasi out with the feather flu," said Twilight as she shifted some more beads on her abacus.
"And we take the average wing power and multiply it by the number of present Pegasi," said Mario, "give or take a margin of error of 2.0...(gasp) momma mia..."
"Don't tell me we won't be able to break the windspeed record?" said Rainbow worriedly.
"No..." said Twilight slowly.
"Not exactly..." Mario added in the same tone.
"Phew!" said Rainbow, thinking that everything was going to be alright.
"...You might not have enough wing power to create a tornado powerful enough to lift the water to Cloudsdale!" Twilight finished.
"Based on my numbers," said Mario, "You don't even have 800 WP with everypony reaching 10.0 WP, even if you do 16.0 WP." The other Pegasi look worried and Spitfire just looked at her fore-hoof watch.
"Well, should we pack up?" said Spike.
"No. Of course not. Forget the record," said Rainbow as she puts on some goggles and flies over to the other Pegasi, "Cloudsdale still needs water! Let's give it all we've got! On the sound of the horn, we take off!" Twilight, Spike, and Mario get into position as the other Pegasi smiled and put on their goggles. Rainbow looked over to Twilight and Mario to make sure the giant anemometer was ready. Once the okay was given, Spike took a deep breath and blew into the alpine horn. The Pegasi than took off and began to flying in a circular motion to create a giant tornado, causing the wind to howl and made the fan connected to the giant anemometer spinning.
"You think they're gonna make it to eight hundred wing power?" Spike asked worried.
"We're gonna find out," Mario called out over the wind as he stayed close to the machine to avoid being pushed away.
"I sure hope so!" said Twilight as she held onto the side of the machine and read the speed gauge aloud, "One hundred fifty wing power, two hundred and fifty wing power..." It was then the Pegasi began to increase their speed, making the winds stronger and the gauge needle to move faster.
"Five hundred wing power," Twilight called out. It was then the water from the reservoir began to slowly rise like a giant bubble.
"Seven hundred and fifty wing power!" Twilight called out as Spike was digging his claws into the side of the anemometer to keep from flying away.
"They're almost there!" said Mario and shouted, "Keep it up everypony!"
"Twilight!" called a voice.
"Fluttershy!" said Twilight and Mario together.
"What are you doing here?!" Twilight asked as she saw the yellow Pegasus struggling to come up to them.
"I wrote a letter to Shenran a couple of days ago about what happened," Fluttershy explained as she struggled to move towards them, even digging her fore-hooves into the ground despite that the wind made her hind legs rise into the air, "He replied to me this morning. Aside from being sweet and understanding, he said that I could still contribute even if I don't feel comfortable flying. I figured...if I couldn't help Rainbow Dash with the tornado...the least I could do was offer moral support."
"She sure could use it, considering eight Pegasi are sick with the feather flu!" Twilight added.
"On no!" said Fluttershy as she finally got to the two ponies and Spike, "that's terrible news!" As the water started to rise through the eye of the tornado, several Pegasi had started to tire out. Because they stopped flying, they were then at the mercy of the swirling tornado and started knocking the other flying Pegasi out of formation and out of the tornado. Soon their tornado collapsed and the water splashed back down into the reservoir.
"Yaa-oof!" Rainbow shouted as she crash landed into the ground and slammed head first into a nearby tree trunk.
"Are you okay?" Twilight asked as she, Mario, and Fluttershy approached her.
"I'm fine!" Rainbow said in a muffled tone as Mario grabbed her by the stomach and started to help pulled her head out of the tree trunk.
"Oh, you were so close to the eight hundred wing power minimum," said Twilight sadly as Fluttershy frowned in the background, "I'm sorry Rainbow Dash." Twilight couldn't help but pucker her lips from the disappointment as Mario finally helped pull Rainbow out of the tree and crashing right in top of his stomach.
"Rbbbb-" Rainbow mumbled as she cleared her head before adding sternly, "We've got to try again!"
"Are you nuts!" Mario retorted as Twilight used her magic to grab Rainbow by the tail to keep her from flying off.
"But you've pushed your crew to their limit already!" said Twilight as Rainbow yelped from being pulled back down to the ground, "If you break apart again, somepony could get hurt! You should quit! It's not safe!" Twilight pointed at the other ponies. Rainbow looked around to see all the disoriented and worn out Pegasi before she swatted Twilight's fore-hoof out of the way.
"No! One more time!" said Rainbow, "I've gotta know we gave it our all! If I'm going down, I'm going down flying!"
"Rainbow, will you stop thinking about yourself!" Mario snapped, "This isn't a one-pony show! You gotta think about your team! It's not going to be worth trying again if it's at the expense of everypony else! A good flyer, even a racer, is only as good as the team that they support and look out for."
"And I thought you were ignoring me when I said that," Spitfire shouted with a smirk.
"I get it! I was slow to figure that out, but I did!" Mario said exasperation. Rainbow just pondered for a minute before hovering over to the rest of the Pegasi.
"C'mon, ponies, let's make this happen!" Rainbow shouted.
"YEAH!" Bulk Biceps chanted as the other Pegasi got up and cheered. Mario just watched with interest as Rainbow flew over to him.
"Looks like everypony wants to try again," Rainbow remarked as Mario rolled his eyes.
"Fine," said Mario, "But this time. I'm gonna help you out." Mario removed his saddle bags, used his magic to pull out a pair of white wings and clipped them into his back so he was now hovering with Rainbow. Spitfire's jaw literally dropped in surprise.
"I can't promise no mach 1.5 with these things," said Mario, "But I have adjusted to using them enough to be sure I can get to 10.0 wing power. After all, this is about getting that water to Cloudsdale." Rainbow just smiled as she handed him some goggles.
"Welcome to the team, buddy," said Rainbow. Mario smiled and put the goggles on.
"Let's do this thang!" Mario called out.
Soon, everypony was back in position with Mario right behind Rainbow as Spike blew the horn once more and the Pegasus, plus Mario, took to the skies to recreate the tornado. It wasn't long before the giant anemometer fan was spinning again and the winds were howling once more.
"Okay, here we go..." said Twilight as she read the speed gauge once again, "One hundred wing power! Two hundred wing power! Five hundred wing power!" Fluttershy just watched quietly a short distance away and even Spitfire was watching with interest, especially since she was worried about how Mario was handling himself. Inside the tornado, Mario was actually doing just fine. He was already nearing 10.0 wing power and helping Rainbow keep everypony together.
"Stay in position!" said Rainbow, "Flap those wings! Faster!"
"You can do it!" Mario called out, "If you see somepony starting to tire out, do your best to keep them in formation so they can catch their breath and keep going. Look out for each other and we'll pull this off!"
"Seven hundred!" said Twilight with a fore-hoof on her head and then flinched with worry, "Seven hundred and fifty wing power!" Spike did his best to watch with a hand over his eyes, but then Fluttershy lost her grip on the ground and crashed right into Spike, who yelped, as they both hit the front of the speed gauge. They hadn't even noticed that Angel had got smashed with them as he poked out from behind Spike and held onto his spine.
"They fell apart right after this!" Spike pointed out.
"Well, Mario's with them this time! I'm sure he'll keep them steady," said Twilight worriedly before she growled, "Mario, I ought to pound you senseless for making me so worried sick about you all the time!" Fluttershy then looked at Twilight. Once Twilight saw she was being stared at by Fluttershy, she began to feel insecure.
"You love him don't you?" Fluttershy mouthed with hardly any sound to her voice so nopony could hear. Twilight's cheeks pretty much gave that answer away, but Twilight still nodded.
"Don't say anything okay?" Twilight asked in the same tone as Fluttershy smiled and gave a light nod. It was then she and others noticed that the water from the reservoir was rising once again in the middle of the tornado.
"Oh, I'm too nervous to look!" said Fluttershy as she covered her eyes with her fore-hooves.
"C'mon!" said Rainbow, "Just a little harder! I can see the water trying to funnel through!"
"Everypony is giving their best, Rainbow," said Mario, looking rather sweaty, "but even I've reached current max! I don't think I can go any faster!"
"Seven ninety five! We're so close!" Twilight said before turning towards the yellow Pegasus nearby, "Fluttershy, they need you up there!"
"I won't make a difference!" Fluttershy cried out as she knelt on the ground.
"You can make a difference!" Twilight protested as she got into her face.
"My measly 2.3 wing power is still too little!" Fluttershy said fearfully.
"It's sticking at seven ninety five!" said Spike, "I don't know if they've got any more in 'em. Mario must have already maxed out!" Twilight then looked at the tornado, her worry increasing at the fact the Pegasi were now maxing out. The idea Mario was literally burning himself out with magic wings was really scaring her. She needed Fluttershy to get in there and help now.
"Do it for Equestria!" Twilight shouted as she handed Fluttershy some goggles, "Do it for Rainbow Dash! Do it for your big brother! Do it for yourself! Do it for Shenran for pony's sake!" Fluttershy looked up, seeing Twilight giving her a pleading look. After some hesitation, Fluttershy grabbed the goggles and put them on, setting Angel down on the ground and the bunny literally went flying into the back of a tree where her other animal friends were watching and waved at her for good luck. Fluttershy gulped as she timidly tried to approached the tornado and yelped as she was sucked inside. It took a few seconds for her to stop swirling about, but she managed to stabilize herself and fly forward. Rainbow and Mario then turned to see Fluttershy and smiled as the yellow Pegasus flew along side of them.
"It's moving," said Twilight as she looked at the speed gauge, "She's doing it! Seven ninety eight! She's surpassed her best wing power number!" It was then several Pegasi began to find a second wind and started moving faster. Fluttershy was struggling to increase her top speed and was getting left behind. It was then she heard some familiar teasing.
"Fluttershy, Fluttershy, Fluttershy can hardly fly!" the voices taunted once again. Fluttershy trembled and covered her eyes. She then felt her fear turn into anger and remembered what Mario had said.
"NO!" Fluttershy screamed angrily before channeling her anger into her wings as she suddenly surged ahead and passed several Pegasi in the process.
"What was that?" a pony named Serenity asked surprised.
"I think it was Fluttershy!" said a pony named Slipstream excitedly. It was then the speed gauge passed eight hundred wing power, even going beyond it. The anemometer began to beep as the tornado funnel reached maximum height and blasted a huge geyser of water into the air and right into the opening of the water storage container up in Cloudsdale. Spitfire lowered her goggles in amazement as Twilight and Spike hopped up and down with excitement as they held each other.
"She did it! She did it! They all did it!" said Twilight excitedly before Spike rushed over and blew the alpine horn as he was literally blown away by the wind. The Pegasi, Mario included, then gracefully break formation and fly out of the top of the tornado funnel as it dissipated on its own. The Pegasi all cheered as they removed their goggles and landed. They also started to stomp their hooves excitedly as Rainbow made her own landing. Poor Mario just plopped to the ground as his wings disappeared, covered in sweat and panting heavily. He was too tired to cheer or stomp about.
"I gotta...work...on my flying endurance," Mario panted when Twilight sternly smacked the back of his head.
"Ow!" Mario yelped.
"That's for worrying me sick!" Twilight scolded as Mario just snorted until Twilight lifted his chin and gave him a quick kiss on the lips.
"And that's for a job well done," Twilight added before proudly walking away. Spike just rolled his eyes and followed her as Spitfire helped Mario to his feet. She could tell by Mario's blushed face that he was lovesick.
"You're hopeless," Spitfire muttered with a smirk on her face.
"Not my fault your too busy with your head in the clouds to find your special somepony," Mario shot back.
"Bleh!" Spitfire retorted indignantly. Rainbow just chuckled until she noticed that somepony was missing. She looked up to see Fluttershy still flying about as fast as she could. Rainbow grabbed a nearby cloud to make Fluttershy stop.
"Whoa, girl, take it easy!" Rainbow chuckled.
"Whuh, what?" said Fluttershy as she recovered and sat up from the cloud, "Did we do it?"
"Yeah, we did it!" said Rainbow as she gave Fluttershy a hug, "You did it!"
"Ah!" said Fluttershy and Rainbow together as they used their wings to high five each other.
"Great job, Fluttershy," said Flitter as the two Pegasi landed, "that was awesome!"
"Yeah, we couldn't have done it without you," Cloudchaser added. Fluttershy just gave a shy smile at all the praise.
"Nice job, Rainbow Dash," said Spitfire as she and Mario walked up to the blue Pegasus, "You may not have set a new record, but you showed alot of guts." Mario nodded in agreement.
"Thanks, but if you wanna talk guts, then you've gotta give it to my number one flyer," said Rainbow as she pointed a hoof at Fluttershy, "Let's hear it for Fluttershy!"
"Today's MVF, or most valuable flyer!" Mario added excitedly. Fluttershy just waved shyly, flinching at their shout outs, before she suddenly was picked up on the shoulders of several Pegasi.
"Fluttershy! Fluttershy! Fluttershy can really fly!" the Pegasi chanted and cheered. Fluttershy felt a bit timid at first, but all the praise made her smile as she felt very proud of herself.
"Dear Princess Celestia," Fluttershy recited in a letter she wrote later that day,
"Sometimes you can feel like what you have to offer is too little to make a difference, but today, I learned that everypony's contribution is important, no matter how small. If you just keep your head high, do your best, and believe in yourself, anything can happen."
As Fluttershy finished reciting her letter, the other Pegasi paraded Fluttershy toward Ponyville with Spike leading the way as he played a Y-shaped flute with Twilight and Mario right behind Fluttershy and Spitfire and Rainbow Dash were right behind them. Fluttershy smiled as her animal friends waved at her and cheered as she went by. Up above Cloudsdale was turning the newly collected water into fresh clouds. All thanks to the yellow Pegasus.
Later that night, Fluttershy at home writing when she heard somepony knocking at her door and went to answer it.
"Hey, Fluttershy," said Twilight, "Mind if I come in?"
"Oh no," said Fluttershy, "Though I am surprised to see you here this late at night. Is there another emergency?"
"Oh no, I just wanted to talk to you," said Twilight as she headed to the sofa and saw the sheets of paper, "are you still writing your letter to the Princess?"
"Oh no," said Fluttershy, "That letter is for...um...well...Shenran..." Fluttershy blushed a little as Twilight giggled to herself.
"You must really like him," said Twilight as she took a seat. Fluttershy just giggled a she set the paper on her side table and sat back on the sofa.
"I know I've only known him for a short time," said Fluttershy, "But whenever I read his letters and when I write to him. It's like...I've known him all my life. I just connect with him so easily. He's alot like me and he just so sweet and caring and supportive of me. He doesn't care if I have any confidence or courage. He just...accepts me for who I am." Fluttershy sighed happily as Twilight giggled.
"Sounds like you really like him," said Twilight with a smirk.
"Well, maybe..." said Fluttershy, "I mean when I first sent him a picture of me. His reply was: do you believe in love at first sight? You're so beautiful"."
"And what about when you saw his picture?" Twilight asked giddily.
"He's really cute and handsome," Fluttershy answered before they gave light squeals and giggled excitedly.
"Sounds like you are in love with him," said Twilight in a sing sang voice.
"I guess I am," said Fluttershy, "What about you and Mario? When did you realize you were in love with him?" Twilight then grew silent as she took a deep breath.
"Just after that whole Future Twilight incident," said Twilight, "Mario literally went insane trying to help me because he was afraid to lose me. It just touched my heart and after his little scavenger hunt with those roses on Hearts and Hooves Day, I just find myself needing him close to me all the time. Just having him around brightens my day."
"I see," said Fluttershy.
"And...I wanted to apologize to you, Fluttershy," Twilight continued.
"For what?" Fluttershy asked surprised.
"You see...I...I...know you and Mario have similar issues and..." Twilight stuttered, "and seeing you and him spending so much time together...I...I got jealous."
"Jealous?" said Fluttershy.
"I know you two only see each other like siblings," Twilight said quickly, "But...I...I just wish Mario would confide in me like he does with you. You, Rainbow, and even Pinkie seem to confide in him all the time and it's made you all very close."
"Well, he is our best friend," said Fluttershy, "But I can assure you it's not romantic. As you can tell, I believe I've found my special somepony. Pinkie has moved on. Rainbow is still looking for hers but she enjoys that Mario respects her as a girl and not just as an athlete or a team player."
"I see..." said Twilight, "I just don't know what to do. Every time I wanna tell him, I just...lose courage..."
"Like I was when I didn't want to fly in the tornado," Fluttershy replied.
"Yeah," said Twilight quietly with a sigh, "I mean I know he obviously would return my feelings, but...something about taking our friendship to something romantic...really scares me. I...I don't know if I'm ready for that."
"Why not tell Mario that?" said Fluttershy. Twilight looked at the yellow Pegasus sadly.
"I hurt him so much when I ran off on him when he confessed his feelings for me," said Twilight, "I never want to hurt him like that ever again! I wanna make him happy. I wanna be with him!" Twilight's voice cracked as she wiped a spare tear from her eyes.
"I don't think you're afraid of being in love," said Fluttershy, "You're issue seems to be just not knowing what will happen if you get together."
"The future scares me Fluttershy!" said Twilight in a panicky tone, "I tried to know the future and anticipate it and I nearly went crazy! I hate not knowing things! How can I know that if we get together that it will last?!" Twilight wheezed a bit to calm down before finally finding her breath.
"Tell me, Twilight," said Fluttershy, "Does Mario pressure you at all that he wants to be romantic on your dates?"
"No! Not at all!" said Twilight, "he always emphasizing the point that he just wants to make sure that I'm comfortable, relaxed, and having fun."
"Then you've got nothing to worry about," said Fluttershy, "if he's letting you take your time, then don't feel like you have to rush. If he's willing to wait this long for you, then he'll survive waiting a little longer."
"It just feels so unfair," said Twilight, "I don't want him thinking I'm...holding out on him..."
"He knows you would never do that," said Fluttershy, "When the time is just right, you'll be able to say you love him. You shouldn't worry about when to confess and just enjoy your time with him, one day at a time." Twilight smiled as she gave the yellow Pegasus a hug.
"Thanks, Fluttershy," said Twilight, "I didn't realize how much I needed to be told that. I've been stressing myself trying to figure it out that I...I was bottling up how I felt about him. Maybe, I can just let those feelings come out so at least Mario knows that...I'm at least falling for him. That...his feelings are being returned."
"I think that's a good idea," said Fluttershy, "Guess we both have fears that make us doubt ourselves sometimes."
"Yeah...we do," said Twilight, "But we can find strength in our friends."
"True," Fluttershy agreed, "So...does anypony else know besides me?"
"Rarity pretty much figured it out," said Twilight, "And I kept overreacting around Rainbow Dash so she probably knows to...for now at least. Just please don't say anything. I...I want to be the one to tell him...when I'm ready..."
"Of course," said Fluttershy, "Your secret is safe with me." Twilight smiled before saying goodbye and thank you as she left the house. Fluttershy then went back to her letter. With all this talk about admitting to being in love. Fluttershy had to wonder.
"Have I really fallen in love with Shenran?"
Only time will reveal the answer...
Based on research the average pony in the real world has a peak top speed of 45 miles per hour. The idea of ponies running at a top speed is 70 miles per hour is based on the fastest driving speed in North America in this case.
I have been waiting for the exact moment when I could introduce the Yoshi wing power up and this episode was perfect for them.
I would also like to say that this situation for Fluttershy actually hits even closer to home for me than Putting Your Hoof Down. The type of bullying and the anxiety that Fluttershy deals with it is actually something that I've been dealing with in recent years. In fact, I sometimes have that self-doubt just writing these chapters for everypony. It took me four years before I posted my first original fanfiction story and I got alot of bad reviews over it. They made posting the first chapters to this fanfiction story even harder because I struggled with overcoming those negative comments. It's thanks to your support that I find the courage to keep writing and incorporating my OC pony into the main story.
So Twilight has confided in Spike, Rarity, and now Fluttershy about her feelings. Will there be more or will Twilight find her courage to speak up?
Peace Pony Fans! And thank you for the support!