(MLP:FiM) From Their Perch in the Sky, Part 2

    Another moment of deliberating allowed Raindrops to finalize her strategy.  It was foolproof, and she would be talking to Lightning Dust, no problem!  Perhaps they would find some sort of common ground.  Raindrops did not want to get her hopes up, but there was even the chance that she would make a friend out of her, as well!

    Or maybe Lightning would just call her a weirdo and fly away.

    At least I tried, in that case, Raindrops deadpanned sardonically to herself.

    Shaking such pessimistic thoughts away, Raindrops hurriedly glanced to make sure that Lightning had not moved.  Lo and behold, she was still sitting on that bench in the exact same position she had been in when Raindrops last checked a minute ago, as was the case the last half dozen times she checked.

    Raindrops sighed.  It had already been ten minutes with no progress whatsoever.  Truth be told, she felt rather pathetic for being so anxious to even approach the mare, let alone talk to her.  But socializing was not something that Raindrops had ever particularly enjoyed or excelled at.  Actually being the one to initiate the conversation for once was even worse for her.

    At any rate, deep down she knew that she had to be brave and just do it.

    All right, Raindrops!  It’s now or never!

    Ignoring the hurricane of butterflies in her tummy, Raindrops steeled herself, took a deep breath, and summoned forth the biggest, friendliest smile she was capable of before trotting up to her target and standing close to her side.

    “Hi, Lightning Dust!” she greeted brightly.  “Long time no see!”

    The mare in question jumped a bit, apparently not having expected a random pony to just come up and derail her train of thought so abruptly.  Upon seeing this, Raindrops mentally berated herself for not being more subtle with her introduction.  She hoped that she did not just ruin her chance.

    To her credit, Lightning Dust recovered quickly, awareness of her surroundings coming back to her.  Her attention was instantly drawn to the strange mare grinning rather creepily at her.  How had she recognized her?  She eyed her warily.  “…Do I know you?”

    Raindrops’ smile weakened a bit, though in fairness she had anticipated this.  “…You don’t remember me?  We went to the Wonderbolt Academy together.”

    “The Academy?”  Lightning scowled darkly at its mention.  She examined Raindrops more meticulously now, taking into account her colors, facial features, and cutie mark.  She looked her in the eye, her face tense.  “Yeah…  You do look kinda familiar.”

    Her smile completely gone by now, Raindrops inwardly whimpered upon seeing Lightning’s hostility, praying that she would make it out of this situation in one piece.  In retrospect, perhaps reminding her of the Academy was not the best idea; of course Lightning Dust would get upset over it!

    Lightning continued muttering.  “I think…  I think I do remember you.  You were that one stallion’s wingpony, right?”

    Raindrops, starting to visibly tremble, nodded.  “Yeah.  I was Thunderlane’s wingpony.”

    Lightning hummed to herself.  “Ah, so that makes you…  Ugh, what was your name?  Showerhead Teardrops or something?

    Raindrops averted her gaze and pawed at the clouds.  “My name’s Sunshower Raindrops, actually,” she mumbled quietly.  “And just Raindrops is fine.”

    “Eh, close enough,” Lightning said dismissively, seemingly relaxing a bit.  “So whaddaya want?”

    Raindrops snapped to attention.  This was it.  This was the crux of the operation right here.  Sure, it had a few speedbumps simply getting to this point, but hopefully it would be smooth sailing from now on.  It was time to set the next phase of the plan into motion.  The execution had to be just perfect.

    Easily putting another, though mindfully gentler, smile on her face, Raindrops stated in a sure, strong voice: “I was thinking that we could have some coffee together, and we could get to know each other better.  What do you say?”

    Nailed it.

    Lightning Dust stared at her as if she had suddenly sprouted a horn on her forehead.  “What.”

    Okay, maybe not…

    Raindrops found her confidence rapidly diminishing by the second as she saw her plan crumbling away into dust.  She frantically tried to salvage what she could.  “I mean, do you want to have a c-coffee with me?  I was hoping we could t-talk…”  Though she was stuttering, Raindrops managed an uneasy, timorous smile.  “It’ll be fun…”

    It sounded like Raindrops was trying to convince herself more than Lightning.

    Meanwhile, the bewildered look that Lightning Dust gave her was almost enough to send her scurrying away with her tail between her legs.  That scrutinizing gaze bored into her, and Raindrops nervously shuffled her hooves as she began to seriously regret even approaching the mare in the first place.

    At length, Lightning said flatly, “…You asking me out on a date or something?  I’m flattered, but sorry to break it to ya: I don’t swing that way.”  She flashed what appeared to be an attempt at a reassuring smile.  “I’m sure there are plenty of other mares you could ask, though.”

    The blush that dominated Raindrops’ downy cheeks was nothing short of radiant.  No, her whole face was practically glowing, threatening to outshine even Celestia’s Sun.  This was not what she had expected to happen!  By Tartarus, she would have preferred being outright rejected than having her intentions misunderstood like this; she had at least seen that coming!  Raindrops then realized a few seconds later that she had been simply standing there, all flustered and speechless and as fiercely red as a tomato, right in front of a now-puzzled Lightning Dust.  Her brain, panicking and struggling to reboot itself, worked overtime trying to formulate some sort of response, but what could she possibly say to save herself from this disaster?

    “I… I… I’m… I’m… n-not a… f-f-fillyf-fooler…”

    It was a miracle that Raindrops did not burst into tears from sheer embarrassment at that moment.

    Lightning furrowed her brow and cocked her head to the side, clearly confused.  “…Oh.  Okay.  Um…  Then why are you trying to ask me out on a date?  Is this a prank or a dare or something?  If it is, it’s kinda lame if you ask me.”

    To say Raindrops felt mortified would be a gross understatement.  Nothing was going right at all!  Everything was backfiring on her!  The poor mare looked like she was about to collapse.  Her chest felt tight, and she swore that she was on the verge of hyperventilating.  She so urgently wished that she could just run or fly away and pretend that none of this ever happened, but she was completely paralyzed, her hooves rooted in place and her wings glued to her sides.  It would have been an immense reprieve if the world would do her a favor and swallow her up, but the pitiless cloud floor did not even have the courtesy to open up and save her from further humiliation.  Sweating profusely, Raindrops forced herself to suck in great, ragged breaths in a mostly futile attempt to calm her frayed nerves.  Against all odds, she managed to stammer out, “I-I just w-want to… t-t-talk… to y-you…”

    Lightning blinked.  “So… it’s not a date, then?”

    Raindrops squeezed her eyes shut and stiffly shook her head, almost imperceptibly, from side to side.

    “Huh.  You’re just… trying to be friendly, I’m guessing?”

    Raindrops nodded her head meekly, trying her hardest not to cry.

    “…”

    “…”

    “Hey.”

    Raindrops’ eyes shot wide open when she felt a comforting hoof on her shoulder.  She saw that Lightning Dust’s previously cold and aloof demeanor was noticeably warmer, albeit a little sheepish, as well.  She looked guilty.

    “I… didn’t mean to put you on the spot like that.  Um…  Sorry.  Don’t cry or beat yourself up over this, okay?”  Although it was obvious that Lightning was rather unused to playing the apologetic angle, she tried smiling again, more genuine and placating this time.  “What do you say we start over?  I’ll say ‘no’ to the coffee ’cause I don’t drink the stuff, but we can still talk if you want.  Sound good to you?”

    Stunned, Raindrops did not immediately respond, just looking back with those big, watery eyes of hers.  Finally feeling her brain catch up with the situation, however, she eventually gave a tiny nod of agreement.

    “Cool.”  Lightning clapped Raindrops good-naturedly on the shoulder once before pulling her hoof away.  She scooted over to make some room on the bench for Raindrops.  “Have a seat.”

    Raindrops said nothing, keeping her expression blank.  She took her place on the bench almost mechanically, setting her saddlebags down.  Despite her outward robotic appearance, however, on the inside she was simultaneously sobbing in relief and cheering herself on.

    Horrendously rocky as it may have been, she had successfully overcome the first hurdle.