Heads in the Clouds

Flying was strange to Aero Dynamic when wasn't the one doing it. He stood next to Bright Eyes in the basket of a hot air balloon as the pilot pony gave another burst of flames into the balloon. The day had come when Bright had come by to get his guidance around Cloudsdale. The cheerful unicorn had seemed ecstatic and it hadn't taken long for them to reach their ride up.

Aero wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he had been waiting for this day all week. With him he carried a single saddle bag with a few items packed for the day. The Running of the Leaves had been a fantastic day out and he hoped today would be just as good.

With one last burst of flames, their balloon suddenly broke the cloud curtain to reveal Cloudsdale. The city expanded outwards all around them, blending almost seamlessly with the layer of clouds stretching across the sky.

White cloud buildings all all shapes and sizes sat on different area, joined by connecting bridges of cloud. The whole place had an ethereal appearance, like an image of heaven. Pegasi flew from building to building in their daily routine as life carried on as usual for the city in the sky. The air was clear and refreshing, cooler at the higher altitude, but the sun seemed warmer and inviting.

It was a view Aero had seen countless times before but it always gave him a little buzz. This time however, he was keeping his attention on Bright Eyes to see her reaction.

"Welcome to Cloudsdale."

She had studied incessantly, scouring books and practicing for the day she would finally stand solid, hooves on cloud.  Although a part of her had been a little nervous as she knocked a hoof on Aero’s door that morning, she was relieved to find that things were much the same as they had been during the last time they had meet.  Her shyness had been overwhelmed by her sheer excitement, both for the sights and sounds of Cloudsdale, a city that had seemed almost forbidden to the unicorn, and because the gray stallion was there by her side.

Bright Eyes had peered over the side of the basket as it floated up higher into the sky, trying to hide a vague sense of anxiety.  It was, by far, the highest up she had ever been, and the sight of the earth growing smaller down below made her unconsciously shift closer to Aero.  When the balloon ride ended, Bright Eyes prepared herself, repeating the spell in her head like a mantra.  She was confident the spell would hold for several hours, at least.  And if she fell, then Aero would have to intercept before she hit the ground at top speed.

The sight awaiting her was more beautiful in person than any book could have prepared her for.  Her eyes widened behind her glasses as she tried to take in everything: the billowy clouds and pillars, dazzling cascades of rainbows so vivid and bright that it seemed like a dream had unfolded before her.  Pegasi of every shape, size, and color were in the cloud roads, peering out windows — it was almost overwhelming, and Bright Eyes couldn’t help but utter an impressed cry.  “I can’t believe — this is — it’s even better than I imagined,” she enthused breathlessly as the balloon came to a stop.

Without thinking twice about whether or not she would go plummeting from the clouds, the unicorn mare stepped out of the basket and into Cloudsdale, her smile as wide as her bright blue eyes as she waited for Aero to lead the way.

Bright's expression reminded Aero of a filly whose cutie mark had just appeared. Her face lit up in a huge smile, which seemed bigger than he had seen on her. Her bright blue eyes seemed to quiver with excitement as they took in the sight of the city.

Aero held a breath as the mare practically leapt from the balloon to the cloud. He wasn't sure how confident to be in her cloud spell casting but it seemed to have worked. The unicorn landed on the cloud as she stood posed and waiting for him to take her on the grand tour.

Aero thanked the balloonist before flying out towards Bright. A thought suddenly crossed his mind. Something unconventional and unusual for him, but it was the kind of thing he only ever seemed to conceive with Bright around.

"Ladies and gentle colts, welcome to the city of the pegasi, Cloudsdale. Please keep all hooves on the clouds at all times and be careful of flying ponies," he announced, as if he had become a city tour guide. He had to smile at the ridiculousness and had to shrug off a couple of strange looks a few passers by gave him. He turned to lead the way into the city, crossing a bridge and passing a cascading torrent of rainbow water. "Our first stop will take us past the Cloudeseum. This way please."

Only after she had exited from the balloon’s basket did she realize the confidence she had in her own magical abilities.  After all, she hadn’t gotten much on-the-cloud practice in, but she had studied hard and her efforts.  It wasn’t exactly an impossible spell, but it was challenging enough to take some skill, and as Bright Eyes looked around, she noticed with some satisfaction that she was the only non-pegasi pony around.

As Aero flew out to serve as tour guide, Bright cast him an odd look at first - until she realized he was playing another game of sorts.  Delighted, if it were possible for her smile to grow any wider on fear visage, it would have.  She was happy to go along with it, practically bouncing behind him as they crossed a bridge.  Her mind was swimming with questions about the history of Cloudsdale and other subjects she had read about, but decided it would be better to allow the expert to tell his story than to assault him with inquiries.

Exploring a new place with a friend - it didn’t get much better than this. “I wish I brought a camera,” she stated, before swiftly correcting herself with a laugh. “I wish I owned a camera. I'll just have to do my best to remember it all in my mind's eye.”

Aero couldn't get enough of the smile on Bright's face. The cheer on her face was indescribably alive. It simply made him want to smile in return and allow him to act more freely and carelessly. His thoughts mired hers; a camera would be great.He wished he had one capture moments like this. Still, he had one surprise in his bag for later...

As they crossed the bridge and passed by a pool of liquid rainbows, Aero landed by the edge of the lake. He dipped a hoof in to take the slightest amount of multi-coloured liquid on his hoof to take a lip. HIs head shook as he recoiled a bit at the forever strong heat of the flavour.

"Try some," he encouraged Bright, gasping for fresh air. "It's very, very hot."

Watching curiously, Bright's head tilted a little as Aero's hooves landed on the clouds to sample from the rainbow pool.  It wasn't toxic, obviously, or he wouldn't be tasting it.  She tried, but failed, to hide her amusement as he was unable to hide his reaction to the liquid.  The cool appearance of the lake was an illusion.  An eyebrow arched when he recommended she try, as well, as he was still struggling with the liquid on his tongue.  "You want me to try it?"  She asked, almost incredulously.

But, of course, she had come this far seeking adventure, how could she stop now?  With some hesitation, she dipped a dainty blue hoof into the edge of the prism pool before bringing it to her own lips.  Instantly, her face contorted into a surprised expression, lips pursing tightly as it felt her mouth was now on fire.  Squinting her eyes, she commented with an ironic laugh:  "Yum.  You wouldn't expect it to be so spicy.  Thanks for warning me first, at least.  It would have been easy to trick me."

With a final wary glance at the unpleasant liquid, she looked back to Aero, grinning in spite of her burning tongue.  "Where to next, Mr. Dynamic?"

Aero watched it great amusement as Bright hesitantly dipped her hood in the rainbow pool. Clearly, his reaction to the taste had surprised her and maybe put her off trying it but curiosity had gotten the better of her. He chuckled as she took a taste and immediately reacted to the hot, spicy taste. He had to admit, the thought of tricking her had crossed his mind. Despite how tempting it was, he didn't feel he could do that to Bright.

At her question, he realised he had slightly distracted them their journey to the Cloudeseum on the rainbow tasting tangent. Aero's wings extended again to take flight but then he reconsidered. While it was only natural for him to keep in the air, he felt he should accompany his unicorn companion. His wings folded back against his body as he gestured the way to Bright.

"The Cloudeseum. This way," he said, leading her away as he trotted in the right direction.

Though she didn’t say anything, it was nice to have Aero walking on the cloud surface at her side rather than hovering up above.  He was still taller than her, naturally, as she wasn’t particularly large for a mare, and her hooves had to hurry just a little to match his pace, but she didn’t mind any of that.  It was good to have him there, as it had been at the site of the autumn race.  How could she keep herself from smiling when her mood was as high as the city of clouds?

Looking ahead to their next destination, Bright Eyes nodded eagerly. “Yes, I have definitely seen the Cloudeseum depicted in books.  None of the books even come close to all of this, though, I must say.  Cloudsdale must have been a lovely place to grow up,” she guessed. She couldn't imagine ever growing tired of the ethereal atmosphere and the beautiful views.

Aero could relate to only seeing the monument in books. He himself had never visited Canterlot or Manehattan in his younger years but knew much about the city's landmark's. When he did eventually visit them, they were even better to behold with his own eyes than they could ever be depicted on paper.

"Seeing it for real is something else," he said, before addressing Bright's point. "It was good really. Nice place for any pegasus to grow up. Having a constant view of Equestria below is a plus in my book."

It wasn't long until they passed a cloud building to reveal to Cloudeseum standing from afar. The grand structure stood tall and wide, with giant pillars that loomed above the ponies walking close. Detailed cloud trim lined the top of the oval arena in an intricate pattern that had clearly been scuttled by experts sculptors.

Even though she was walking far from the earth that she was accustomed to, she didn’t feel any sense of anxiety to be in Cloudsdale, a place she arguably didn’t belong.  Perhaps it was having Aero there that set her at ease.  She only smiled at the pegasi that glanced her direction, feeling ever grateful for being a unicorn - though being a pegasus would be a lovely thing, she decided.

“Maybe I can show you around Trottingham sometime,” she offered.  “Though it’s nothing compared to this, to be certain.”  She didn’t visit much - so Bright Eyes was not yet aware of the mayhem that had transpired there, or that the family she had was no longer there.  For now, ignorance was bliss. She admired the Cloudeseum, its towering pillars, impressed by its construction.  “Have you ever competed here?”

It made a change to simply be wandered the cloudy streets of Cloudsdale. He didn't always have time to enjoy the city as he used to so today was a rarity. Spending the time with Bright was definitely a bonus. Her insuppressible joy made him appreciate things even more. She seemed to be enjoying Cloudsdale as much - if not more - than he'd hoped.

"I've only been there for deliveries. It would be nice to see Trottingham properly," he said when she spoke about her own hometown.

At the mention of competing, Aero blinked in surprise. He had never considered the idea of competing in any competition at the prestigious arena. It wasn't that the idea wasn't appealing, just that he had never thought to compete. He just didn't see himself as an athlete, despite the exercise and training he put himself through; His active lifestyle demanded it after all.

"Urm, no. Not really. Don't think I'm worth competing there," he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck hesitantly in a bashful manner uncommon for him.

“Then I owe you a tour in return.” For whatever reason, she felt a stronger sense of happiness that he would be even a little interested in seeing the humble village she had been raised in.  Not that she had expected him to react negatively… But if nothing more, it meant she’d have at least one more opportunity to spend time with the gray stallion.

“What?” She peered over at him, genuinely puzzled by his words and his subtle lack of confidence at her suggestion.  “If anyone deserves to compete, why shouldn't it be you?  I bet you would win something,” she suggested with a firm nod.  She would just have to have confidence for him, based on what she had witnessed of his abilities so far.

The chance of him enjoying another day out with Bright was quite appealing. From memory, Trottingham was a rather small place. Aero wasn't turned off by bustling cities like some ponies he knew but the peace and quiet of a smaller town or village had their own unique appeal.

Aero was shocked out of his thoughts when Bright insisted he could compete in the Cloudeseum. Frankly, it was something he'd never considered. Surely, he just...couldn't, right?

"Thanks," he replied simply, unsure how to respond.

He looked away coyly, feeling a mixture of embarrassment and humility. It was nice for a change to to hear supporting words. Coming from Bright made the words weigh more. He satisfied himself by looking out over to the Cloudeseum to enjoy the sight. After a few moments had passed, he addressed Bright again.

"Onto the next stop?"

She found it curious that her compliment was met with a shy reluctance to accept it — and his coy reaction only made her want to say more, but she held her tongue, content with her own certainty that Aero Dynamic was exactly the sort of pony who deserved to be acknowledged there.  With a name like that, it seemed only natural.

At the stallion’s suggestion to continue, Bright Eyes looked away from the Cloudeseum, more than a little envious that she would likely never experience the thrill of a competition set there.  With a newly discovered interest in cloud architecture that she would explore at a later date, the unicorn turned her focus back to her winged companion with a ready grin.  “Yes!  Let's go.  The spell should still last for several hours,” she offered as reassurance, both to herself and to her tour guide.

Aero laughed a little at her answer as they carried on moving. Cloud walking spells were not unknown as earth ponies and unicorns would visit the city; Aero had even seen a few that lived here. They usually lasted a good time and could be recast over and over again, but it wasn't unheard of for a pony to fall as one might run out.

"Do let me know if you start to feel yourself falling through a cloud," Aero remarked, only half joking. "If I need to heroically dive to your rescue, I'd appreciate a heads up."

The next stop on the unofficial tour was the weather factory. Ponies could actually visit the factory for an inside look but Aero didn't plan that. In honesty, he wanted to avoid the place if possible but equally wanted to give Bright a decent time seeing all the sights. The factory sat in the distance, with bustling ponies working around the bases of great towers that reached higher into the sky.

"That's the Cloudsdale weather factory. From there, they basically create all the rainbows, clouds and, in winter, snowflakes for Equestria."

Her expression was deadpan when he spoke of falling through the clouds and needing to be rescued - a thought that was both mortifying and oddly comforting with Aero there, should the worst happen.  "I will keep that in mind if I find myself plummeting from the sky," she responded through grit teeth, slipping closer to the stallion's side - just in case.

Much like the Cloudeseum, Bright Eyes had explored the weather factory only on the old, worn pages of books written about the subject - the delicate process of crafting each individualized snowflake when the winter cold came, the shape and consistency of various clouds types.  Her eyes narrowed to get a better look at the distant building.  It was still early in the day, so ponies were busying themselves with their respective duties.  For a brief second, Bright wondered if she would be able to recognize Aero's parents in the crowds of pegasi, but she didn't ask.

With a growing smile, she admitted, "I'm trying to picture you as a little colt, flitting about Cloudsdale in a blur of gray feathers."

Aero couldn't help but notice that Bright edged slightly closer after his mention of falling. He hoped he hadn't scared her too much, since he had meant that jokingly as it was unlikely to happen. It seemed she had moved on just as soon as the thought had passed, as she enjoyed the site of the factory while admitting to imagining him as a colt.

The thought made Aero smile too. "Oh, that would have been me alright. I flew all across Cloudsdale. Used to work a paper run when I was younger."

"Hello Aero."

The voice made Aero stiffen in place, his eyes widening a touch. His world seemed to narrow, excluding the city, ponies and even Bright as he focused on that voice. In a fraction of a second, his expression returned to being flat as he turned around to face the speaker.

"Hello dad," he replied, looking over the pegasus in front of him. He was a dark blue stallion with a burgundy mane. He stood slightly taller than Aero, and wore an intense expression on his face. Aero's eyes settled on a collection of folders tucked under the older pony's wing. "Heading to a meeting?"

"Just finished actually. I was just heading back to the factory when I thought I recognised you."

His amber eyes turned to Bright as he examined her with a piercing look. "And who is this? A friend?"

Almost as soon as the thought about Aero’s mother and father had trickled through her mind, the unexpected happened.  Just as her jaws were parting to make comment about Aero’s former delivery job, the sound of a low, unfamiliar voice interrupted her sentence, calling to her companion.  Bright Eyes blinked, pulling her attention from Aero to a navy blue colored stranger that had approached.

In her mind, a number of thoughts seemed to flare automatically — how strange it was that Aero’s father appeared as if she had conjured him up, how the two didn’t look very much alike.  How, within seconds, the easy atmosphere had altered so suddenly, along with Aero’s stiffened posture.

The way the older pegasus stared her down made her feel immediately out of place, and in the back of her mind, she was certain he was inspecting for a pair of wings she did possess.  But the unicorn mare kept her head held high as his copper eyes locked with Bright’s gentle blue orbs.  She offered a polite smile, but never broke his stare. “Yes, I’m Bright Eyes.  It’s nice to meet you,” she said in a quieter voice, ignoring an internal desire to shrink away.

"Likewise. I'm Storm Cloud. It's good to finally meet one of Aero's friends," voiced Storm, a polite yet thin smile on his face.

Aero remained standing rigidly as he observed his father's actions, before interrupting with a question.

"How have things been?" Then with a hint of tenderness, "How's mum?"

Storm turned sombre again as he looked to his son. "Everything's fine, as is your mother. She misses you."

Aero gave him nothing in response. "I'll be sure to visit her soon."

There was a pregnant pause. The two pegasi simply looked at each other, each with a blank expression as they tried to read one another. Eventually, Storm took a step back, ruffling his wings as he looked over to a nearby clocktower.

"I best be off. Plenty of work to do. Goodbye Bright Eyes. Aero."

The pegasus left without waiting for a reply. His wings lifted as he took the folders in his mouth and flew away towards the weather factory. Aero watched for a split second before facing away.

"Fancy a drink?" he asked, beginning to lead the way to a nearby cafe.

As Bright Eyes observed the tense encounter, she wasn't sure what to do with herself.  She kept her mouth firmly shut as father and son spoke in brief, each sporting a neutral expression, unreadable.  With Storm Cloud's abrupt departure, Bright murmured a soft "goodbye," but the older pony probably didn't hear it.

She watched as the dark blue pegasus departed, watching briefly - long enough to see the pair of gray clouds on his flank.  If ever there was an appropriately named pony, Storm Cloud seemed to be it.  He had a stoic nature, even when interacting with his only son, leaving Bright unsure of how to interpret what she had seen.  She reasoned that something uncomfortable may have transpired between the two in earlier years, but didn't ask any questions.

Without further comment on the incident, Bright Eyes nodded in agreement, following a few paces behind now.  "I think that horrid rainbow taste is still lingering on my tongue.  Does anypony enjoy that stuff?" Somehow, it wouldn't surprise her to learn that some odd, masochistic pony who liked the feeling of fire in their throat.

Typical. Aero couldn't get the thought out of his head. Of course he would pump into his father, on this one day he wanted to enjoy Cloudsdale with Bright Eyes.

Aero was eternally grateful for the change in topic as Bright mentioned the rainbow again. A grin returned to his face. "Not really. Rainbow's aren't exactly known for their flavour. They're best experienced visually."

He took a seat at a table outside a cafe that Aero was familiar with. A allowed himself to finally relax. While not physically obvious in his usual calm appearance, the encounter with his father had been taxing. Not for the first time, he was glad that Bright was here. He really needed her cheerful demeanour right now.

A waiter hovered over to them, brandishing a menu which snapped Aero back to the present.

"Lemonade please."

Sensing that now was neither the time nor the place to address sensitive topics that were none of her business anyway, she cleared her throat in an attempt to draw her own mind away from the odd family meeting.

“I would love to get a jar of the rainbow - not for eating, obviously, but for research.  And, well, because it’s quite lovely.”  Horrible tasting, but intriguing nonetheless, she thought with a grin.  “What happens if a pony falls into the pool?”

She realized she was asking more than her fair share of questions, but Bright Eyes was genuinely curious to learn more about the gray stallion’s history and the place he came from.  Having seen his father's stern demeanor, the pegasus made a little more sense.  “Where did you go to school, Aero?”

Bright's question about rainbow's made Aero think back to his childhood and remembering a frankly hilarious incident. It was something he hadn't thought about for years so he was glad she had reminded him of it. It seemed she always able to bring out the best in him, whether it was topics of conversation, memories or being able to enjoy the moment with her.

"Trust me, you don't want to unless you're after a new and vibrant look. I had a friend who fell in once and she couldn't get the colours out for weeks," he recollected, chuckling at the memory. Poor Misty.

The waiter came over and delivered their pitcher of lemonade with a couple of glasses as Aero took Bright's next question.

"Cloudsdale Public School," he answered, taking a sip of his drink, "It was the standard school for any pegasus. We might pass it at some point today. That and summer flight camp. That's where I took up the dragon challenge and earned my cutie mark."

The idea of a pony coated in the rainbow liquid from nose to tail made Bright Eyes laugh aloud. “Oh, I don’t know.  It could be rather fashionable to be all shades of the rainbow instead of just one, as I am currently.” Then again, she was talking to a gray pony - and while gray was scarcely a vibrant hue, it suited him just fine.

She wondered if he found all her questions to be intrusive or just weird, but he didn’t seem to mind answering.  Already, he seemed to be in a more relaxed mood, in spite of what had just happened.  And she was glad to offer some level of distraction so he could go on enjoying the day.

The lemonade was a welcome relief as she sipped from the glass that levitated before her.  “Summer flight camp sounds exciting.  You don’t even want to know the sort of summer camps I went to when I was a filly.  But you can probably guess.  Lots of books, lots of bookworms.”

Judging by both of their previous fashion advice from Canterlot, Aero didn't think he or Bright could pull off rainbow patterns. He looked down at his hood to examine his grey coat, imagining instead that it was multiple hues of vibrant colour.

He took a sip of refreshing lemonade as he admired the day. For once, he could let his guard down. Bright was one of the only ponies Aero felt he could really open up to. She never seemed to judge, and was always inquisitive in a uniquely cheerful way they invited him to say more. She wasn't the only one who had questions.

Bright seemed to dissuade him from approaching the topic of her summer camps but Aero was already intrigued. He could listen to her for hours and not get bored.

"No, I do. Tell me," Aero insisted, attempting to invite her to speak just as she so naturally did.