Background Pony

VI - Heroes and Bards

"Ahem. Can I help you?"

"Nnngh... Maybe if you had a thicker skull among your gardening tools to spare." Rainbow Dash winced and glared up at the offending structure. "Where'd this stupid cabin come from?"

"It's the rain season," I said with a smirk. "Some things just spring up out of nowhere."

"Hey! I'm a pegasus!" Rainbow Dash hopped up to her hooves and dusted herself off. "If anypony should know a thing or two about the rain season, it's me! Still, I have no buckin' clue where this building got off thinking it could block my usual flight path!" She fumed briefly, then cast me a sideways glance. "Good morning, by the way," she muttered.

"Back at you," I said with a nod. "Is your head okay?"

"For what it's worth." Rainbow Dash gripped her skull in two hooves and pivoted it to the side. A number of ritualistic cracks sounded off from the top of her spine. "Whew! At this rate, I'm not gonna have enough brain cells left to pass the Wonderbolts Entry Exam, assuming they finally start flippin' inducting for another wingpony soon. Heh. Been waiting for six long years for a new position to open up, ever since Fleetfoot from Trottingham joined the team. Ugh... That lucky, feather-brained-"

"Well, it sounds like you have your future cut out for yourself!" I said with a gentle smile. It was a beautiful morning, and this living spectrum of colors was a pleasant addition to the breezy moment. I briefly forgot how cold I was. "What's the big hurry? Speeding around in the air with no care: you'll get a nasty concussion at this rate!"

"Hmmph..." Rainbow Dash smirked and stretched her wingfeathers. "I wouldn't be living up to my name any other way."

Ah, there it is. Should I? Yes. Yes, I should.

"And just what name would that be?" I tossed her way with a wry grin, knowing exactly what would happen in response.

I could have witnessed the same reaction even if I had my eyes closed and my ears plugged. Rainbow Dash looked at me, gasped, and floated in midair as if the very grass below was as toxic as my ignorant response. "No way! You mean you don't know about me?! Rainbow Dash?! Ponyville's chief weather pegasus?! Master of the Sonic Rainboom and winner of last year's Best Young Flier's Crown?!"

I giggled. Some of the best entertainment in life is free. "Well, my apologies! You certainly sound like a very important pony!"

"I'm more than important! I'm... I'm radical! That's like four 'importants' stacked together in an awesome sandwich with slices of tubular bread!"

"Am I supposed to praise you or eat you?"

"Neither! Er-I mean... nnngh..." She hovered around me, squinting suspiciously. "Is this some kind of a joke? Surely no pony around here could live under that big of a rock!"

"Believe me: sometimes I wish I had that excuse." I gazed over at the carrot garden while producing a melancholic exhale. As lovely as this encounter was, I was getting even further away from bringing the Eighth Elegy to reality. Every now and then I'm reminded of how my life has become nothing more than a hall of mirrors, and even the most colorful hues are merely the reflections of yesterday and tomorrow cascading onward into a dull infinity. "I apologize, Ms. Dash. I guess you could say that I'm new to town. It's comforting to know, at least, that a mare like you is fully aware of how famous and important you are."

"Heck yeah!" Rainbow Dash smiled proudly. With fluttering wings she "backstroked" playfully in the air around me and the cabin. "From warning the local ponies about stampedes to driving out smoke-snoring dragons, I never leave Ponyville hangin'! Why, I'm even buddy-buddy with Princess Celestia's magical apprentice!"