Purple Sparks at Zephyr Heights

Chapter 1: The Clearing in the Forest

For once, Purple Sparks decides to skip school with her older brother, Destin. They were nestled in the grass of a clearing hidden in the heart of the forest, which only the two young ponies knew how to get there. This secluded place is their family hideaway, where they like to meet whenever the opportunity arises. For Purple, it's the perfect opportunity not only to spend time with her older brother, but also and more importantly to stretch her wings. After getting up, she stretched from her front hooves to the hind ones, she spread her wings vigorously, rising from the ground gracefully to gain altitude. "Come on, Sparky!" her brother encouraged, a smile on his face, as he watched his little sister fluttering through the air.

She performed technical tricks without difficulty. Her deep purple mane repeatedly obstructed her view, almost causing an accident with one of the trees in the forest. Her brother broke the silence with almost mocking laughter as Purple sat down in front of him. "Hey! Stop making fun of me!" She said, vexed at the situation. "You should tie up your mane, sister!" Destin replied, handing her a scrunchie. Purple grabbed the object and formed a ponytail with the extra hair that adorned her mane. She smiled. This cobalt blue scrunchie blended beautifully with the pink of her dress. Cobalt was precisely the color of her brother's mane. Destin was a cyan-colored pony with a mane that, from roots to tips, ranged from sky blue to deep cobalt. His cutie mark was a crystal ball, as Destin used to be in the right place at the right time.

Purple turned around, revealing her cutie mark that resembled a dazzling azure diamond sparkle, almost iridescent. She took flight again, again defying the last figure, and this time she succeeded with disconcerting ease. She seemed to radiate happiness in the air, demonstrating remarkable skill with her wings. In front of her only spectator, her brother Destin, she continued her demonstration, receiving enthusiastic applause for each feat. Out of breath but overwhelmed, Purple sat down next to Destin, who gazed at her with a mixture of admiration and wonder.

- "Say, sister, how do you manage to be so good at flying?" asked Destin, curious.

- "It comes naturally. Plus, I'm having a lot of fun," Purple replied with a smile.

- "It's strange that you can't fly when people look at us..." Destin observed, puzzled.

- "I don't know, I'm scared and paralyzed," she confessed with a hint of sadness in her voice.

That's where Purple's problem lies. Despite her excellence as a flying pegasus, she was incorrigible as a coward when it came to being observed in the air. Only Destin had the privilege of seeing her fly away. However, Purple had a burning dream in her heart: to join the prestigious Wonderbolts team. She never missed any of their shows, relentlessly roaming Equestria to watch her idols soar through the skies, and one mare in particular: Rainbow Dash. With each new acrobatic move by her idol, Purple watched her with captivated attention. During her flying sessions with her brother, she practiced hard, trying to reproduce the movements with unparalleled precision. Up until now, Purple had mastered all of Rainbow Dash's tricks, except for one: the supersonic rainboom.

Absorbed in her thoughts, Purple straightened up and resumed her flapping wings, soaring into the heavens. "Are you going to try the rainboom again?" her brother asked, as he watched her slowly drift away into the sky. Grazing the clouds, Purple turned around and began a dive descent as fast as possible. She saw the ground closing in at breakneck speed, feeling the power of the air and the pressure on her face. Still, she continued to flap her wings, hurtling toward the ground. Suddenly, she found herself facing an invisible wall in front of her. Accelerating to break through the barrier, she was violently ejected forward. "Attention!" shouted Destin, rushing towards her to catch up with her. But it was too late: the young pony crashed into the treetops.

- "How do you feel, sister?" asked Destin, hovering in front of the tree.

- "It's okay, I think..." Purple replied, still shaken by her fall.

- "You're bleeding in your face!" remarked Destin.

- "Really? Yes... But it's nothing," Purple replied, wiping the blood away with her hoof.

Indeed, the young pony, accustomed to aerial challenges, had often faced scratches during her flights. Despite the falls and injuries, she never gave up, always determined to get better. Her brother helped her out of the branches as they heard a whisper behind them, "Prodigious..". Purple, who had just taken flight again, froze. Someone had just seen her in flight! Her wings refused to move. Luckily, her brother had caught her in extremis and gently dropped her to the ground before landing in turn. The pony that had been watching them soon showed herself. It was a sky-blue pegasus. Her flamboyant mane sported six colors, yellow, orange, and red at the top, and purple, blue, and green at the back.

- "You're good, kid," said the mysterious pony.

- "R-Rainbow Dash?!" exclaimed Purple, barely seeming to believe it.

- "Yes, that's me, kid. I see you're a fan," Dash replied smirking.

- "She's more than a fan, she knows all your tricks!" Destin interjected.

- "Yes, I've seen that, it's impressive," Dash continued.

- "What do you mean? Did you see me fly?" Purple stammered, visibly surprised.

- "Hehe yes, I've been watching you for a while. I was taking a nap in the tree over there," Rainbow explained, pointing to a tree with her hoof.

- "But... How...?" Purple tried to comprehend.

- "What's your name, young people?" asked Rainbow Dash.

- "My name is Destin, and she's my little sister, Purple Sparks," Destin replied.

- "E-enchanted Mrs. Rainbow," Purple said with difficulty.

- "You don't have to be afraid, Purple. Even though I'm awesome, you can talk to me normally, you know," Dash added somewhat arrogantly.

Rainbow Dash didn't immediately understand that Purple's fear had nothing to do with meeting her idol in the flesh. In reality, it was the terror that the young pegasus felt every time a pony watched her flying through the air. This fear paralyzed her. She was often unable to speak, let alone fly. She felt nailed to the ground, as if she had lost the use of her wings. Destin explained the situation to Rainbow Dash while Purple, embarrassed, came to her senses. Her face blushed at the thought that Wonderbolt number one, Equestria's best aerial acrobatic pegasus, the fastest pony in the world, the famous Rainbow Dash, had seen her replicate her acrobatics. Rainbow turned to Purple and asked, "Hey dear, would you like to join the Wonderbolts?" Purple blushed even more. Her silence intensified, no sound coming out of her mouth.

"Spitfirewants to make me captain," Rainbow said. "I came here to think about herproposal, but thanks to you, I know I'll be good at finding new talent in theWonderbolts. I'd like you to be the first rookie to join the team thanks to me.Would you like to join us?" Rainbow Dash asked Purple Sparks again. Purpleavoided Rainbow's gaze, gaping, a small canine protruding from her mouth."I know you're scared to steal in public, but you have to work on it, youknow? I'm sure you'll conquer your fear," Rainbow said. Purple, silent,nodded as if to accept the proposal. "Either way, you have time to think.But when I'm captain, I hope I can count on you, okay? Rainbow Dash finished.Purple nodded again, and then the sky-blue pegasus took flight. She greeted thetwo younger siblings and then left them as she usually leaves her fans: performingthe legendary supersonic rainboom. Despite the pegasus' inflated ego as itdisappeared behind a rainbow trail, Destin exclaimed, "She's soawesome," to which Purple nodded again.