The Lost Skiesby Holly DashChaptersIIIIIIIVI"Hey, Rainbow! What d'ya think ya doin' there?" My eyes were wide open the moment I heard the unmistakable Apple family accent. I turned my head, only to see one of my best friends - an orange-yellow earth pony. Her lips were almost invisible, she had that suspicious look on her face - I could always tell when she was angry and suspicious of somepony. For example, her posture right now - the narrowed eyes, almost invisible lips, the small pupils. "Ah, ha, ha, ha," I chuckled nervously, "I was, umm, resting." I flashed a big fake smiled, feeling as my forehead became sweaty. The earth pony didn't take that for an excuse, she narrowed her eyes even smaller, that I couldn't help but wonder if she'd close her eyes at the next sentence I say. "If yer restin' includes stealin' from mah orchard, then I guess you ain't lyin'!" Applejack stared in my dark pink eyes, and I started sweating again. Applejack snorted, then looked at one tree in a very loving way and walked closer to it, touching it's trunk with her hoof. "Y'know, these apples are special! They're sweet, very juicy an' in general are the tastiest apples in Ponyville. They were gift'd to me by-" "I know, right!? They're like, the best apples ever!" I interrupted my friend's speech with my compliment about her apples. I mean, my tummy was full of them, I even ate them slower than other apples in Applejack's orchard! I had certainly never ate any apple tastier than these-... I saw Applejack's knowing grin, and my pupils narrowed, when I understood my mistake. The mare swished her blonde mane to the other side, and expectantly waited for something... "Hav'n't ya got nothin' to say for yaself?" The mare said, looking at me. "Uh... um... oops?" I said, knowing that she waited for an apology, but I knew as well that I wasn't going to give one. I shot up in the air and made a backflip, then crashed into the cloud I had been sitting on this whole time, making it go forward, and I started flapping my wings, shooting away from Applejack's farm. Sadly, I was a little too late flap my wings upwards, as I hadn't watched where I was flying - and I bumped in a trunk with my head and fell down. My head hurt mighty lot, but I didn't have time, as I already heard the distinctive call of Applejack. I ran into the woods, and just as I looked back, I saw an angry Applejack run into my cloud, dissolving it. Only pegasi could walk on clouds, but there was a little minus to that - I could always block a pegasus path by just putting a cloud in their way. We, pegasi, always bounced off. Unicorns and earth ponies could run through the clouds no matter how many you would stash in their way. And right now, I had forgotten that Applejack was a earth pony. I shook the thoughts off my mind, and flapped my wings, to fly away. I was already three feet in the air, when I felt my wings forcefully slap together. I knew that there existed an occasional wingboner, but I never knew that wings could just fold themselves - okay, I knew that Fluttershy sometimes couldn't open her wings because of fear, but I wasn't Fluttershy! I was Rainbow Dash! I wasn't afraid of anything! Luckily, I didn't crash the ground, but continued galloping as I had before. Just as I started taking on more speed, I felt a harsh tug at my wings, and I turned my head to see that it weren't my wings that were gone crazy - it was Applejack. "Hey!" I angrily shouted. She had lassoed me like she always did on her cows, pigs and sheep - and I certainly wasn't pleasant about that. I was her friend, Rainbow Dash, not some dirty pig! "Easy there, las!" I heard her yell, and I shot a disapproving glare at the earth mare. "Ha!" I shouted, and started galloping even faster. I knew I was faster than her. Maybe she was a little more enduring than me - but only a little! I was still much faster than her, and soon enough I had already knocked her off her feet - I saw her feet tangle in the rope which was tied around her tail and my wings. Soon enough I was dragging her rump over the Ponyville center, and I decided to run to Twilight's, so she could tell Applejack right on the spot that she just couldn't treat her friends like she treated her sheep! I knocked into the library's door, finally stopping myself by crashing into a bookcase. Two books fell on my head, but nothing worse happened. I looked at Applejack, and I was disappointed a bit. No, I hadn't meant to hurt her, I never would, but seeing her in state of almost yawning was kinda unpleasant. She wasn't even tired, although I could say that she looked few shades darker, and her mane and tail had twigs stuck in them. But I guess no other pony would ever care about those little things. "Oh, my, darling! What ever had happened to your bouffant?" I heard a white unicorn worry. I stand corrected. No other pony except Rarity would ever care about Applejack's bouffant. I saw the white mare running closer to the dark yellow one and after a moment Applejack was free from the rope which had been tied to her tail. I snorted, and then I turned my head to a purple unicorn. "Rainbow Dash, why did you pull Applejack in my library?" She said in a shocked voice. "Are you alright, Applejack?" I heard the other unicorn say, before levitating a comb and brushing her friend's mane. I angrily looked over at Twilight, and shook my tail, hearing Applejack assuring Rarity about her condition, and then she answered Twilight's question with the story shortened. "Act'ally, it wasn't t'at bad. Ah was just layin' on my tummy while Rainbow here pull'd me to yer house." She tried to justify me, and folded my wings in pride. Yes, I had helped Applejack in everything, not fought with her. It was Applejack who had started, I explained Twilight. "Right," she said, "because you weren't stealing Applejack's apples at all, according to her." The unicorn made a short retort. "I was just tasting them!" I defended myself. "Girls...?" I heard a silent, timid voice, and I turned to the other pegasus. "Should we continue?" Suddenly every pony except Applejack, who still tried to get one twig out of her mane, looked at me. I felt uncomfortable for a little bit. "Um." I said, looking at the almost maniacal stare in Pinkie's eyes. The continuum happened so quickly, I couldn't even react in time. Suddenly a violet flash bolted behind me and grabbed me, then I saw Fluttershy grab something sharp and throw it in air toward Rarity, who quickly ran to my flank and... And... Nothing happened. I wriggled out of Twilight's grasp, and shot straight up to the ceiling of the library. I didn't want any of these freaks near me right now! What had they done? I couldn't understand for a few moments, until I saw a bunch of light yellow, red, orange, green, blue and violet hair in Rarity's mouth, which she passed on Twilight. I recognized it as my hair and when I looked at my rear, I saw that one lock of my tail was gone. The lavender pony put my lock in some kind of cauldron, which seemed to be boiling. "Twilight? What was that?" I asked, and after a while the unicorn turned to me. "We're getting each of us six' hair - twelve hairs from tail, must include every color the pony has." She started, and looked at the cauldron. "What for?" I asked, and I saw that I wasn't the only mare here who was confused - Applejack seemed to be in the same situation. She didn't even notice that Pinkie Pie crept closer to her from the back, and plucked a small lock of the blonde hair. Applejack didn't seem too please, as she jumped in the air and looked at Pinkie Pie angrily. "With Applejack's donation the last, this is going to succeed. I, Rainbow Dash, have made a potion for us - it will contain all the memories of our friendship and will tighten the bonds forever!" Twilight explained. Pinkie gave Fluttershy Applejack's lock, and Fluttershy flew over the library closer to the cauldron. "Contain memories? What?" I felt a little puzzled Rarity cleared her throat and looked up at me. "If anything like that Discord thing ever happens again to us, we'll be ready - we'll have the potion which will make us inseparable! Isn't that wonderful, dear Rainbow?" Twilight nodded to the whole thing, then took Applejack's hair and put it in the cauldron. The unicorn then rushed to the recipe book and murmured something under her breath, seemed to me that she over-viewed if she hadn't forgot anything. Well, come to think about it, the idea wasn't that bad. Even through a blur, but I still could remember my ill unlike ways I acted after I got corrupted by Discord, and that made me shiver. I never wanted to experience that again - consciously or not. Twilight blinked, then called us all up. "We all stand around the cauldron, and we must let our muzzles touch right above the center of the it. In case of mistakes, the consequences will be..." She read, and then narrowed eyes, reading more and more silently, until nopony could hear what she said. "Consequences will be?" I asked, looking at the unicorn, and she seemed disturbed. "N-Nothing special. Some sneezing and things like that." She had dismissed the subject far too quickly for my liking, but then she cleared her throat, and closed her eyes, letting her muzzle be only few centimeters above the surface of the green liquid. Rarity came next, then I came, and I had no idea who came after me, since I closed my eyes. "Together a bond will form, to which six beings will conform, They will stand until the end, let their fates braid and bend!" I had time to only think that those rhymes were quite impressive, coming from Fluttershy. Then I felt sharp pain in my head, and blackness wrapped around me tightly. IIAfter a while, I opened my eyes. I knew I shouldn't have trusted Twilight! Why did always her magic end up in trouble? I shook my head. Thankfully, (and surprisingly indeed) I was alright. I could see my legs, nothing hurt anymore. I barely remembered the pain when I had fallen unconscious, but I guessed that would be from the fall to ground. I wasn't the first to wake up, as I saw Rarity's white flanks nearby me, and I saw Pinkie's fluffy tail on the other side of the cauldron, but I couldn't see Pinkie herself. I shook my head again, and laid there for some short time, to recover a bit from this forced sleep. I felt a little dizzy, and I decided to wash my eyes, yes, that would make me more awake. When I got up, I felt as if my legs were filled with apples - they were so heavy. I lifted my hooves, and shook my still a bit dizzy head, then went downstairs and looked at the mares who were sitting by the table in the middle of the library. "Hey, girls!" I shouted, and I saw them stiffening upon seeing me. "Yeah, I know I'm not in my best form right now!" I laughed off the fact that my head was spinning around as if I had ridden a carousel a bit too fast. The door slammed, and I saw Spike coming in. "Hey Twilight, I brought that book from Zecora you asked," the young dragon looked at Twilight and put down a thick book in brown leather covers. I looked over at Twilight. Something seemed different about her, but I couldn't understand what, in my dizzy mind. She stared at me in an oddly surprised way and I saw that everypony watched me that way. I felt odd. Why were they watchin- "Holy cow, Rainbow Dash!" Spike shouted and jumped in the air. It started getting a bit annoying that way - everypony staring at me as if I was half-cow, half-sheep. "What is it? I know I probably look awful after this noon activities! But, you know, you don't look better!" And that was true - everypony looked extremely tired. It was starting to get really creepy, the way they kept staring at me. Spike seemed to shiver and point at me, as if I was a monster. I wanted to fly away to my cloud house, and just sit with Tank. At least he didn't gasp and point at me as if I had suddenly turned into a sheep. I jumped, to take off, the move was natural to me. The air, surrounding me, it always seemed like the best thing ever, to fly, to soar through th- BUMP! I could hear the sound that my jaw made in contact with the wooden floor. For moments I laid there on the floor, paralyzed by the agonizing pain. Maybe I had broken my neck? Turns out I didn't, as I quite quickly got up. What was that? I took a glance at everypony else, they seemed scared and shocked. A suspicion, an impossible suspicion sickened my mind. I didn't even try to think about it, as I examined everypony's faces. Suddenly I u?nderstood what had seemed so wrong about them the last time I looked. I saw that Twilight was missing her horn. Then I looked beside her, at Applejack, and examined her expression. None of us spoke. She hadn't grew a horn all out of sudden, but when I examined her body further, I noticed a thing that didn't belong on Applejack. Wings. A pair of visibly weak, frail and soft-feathered wings. Wings that Fluttershy had, and I knew the form of her wings a little too well. I turned my head to Fluttershy, and I saw that on her forehead was a short and stocky horn, right above her big eyes. I didn't believe. I tried to move my wings. It felt as if a cold hoof had stomped on my heart and had pushed it down. My wings didn't move. I couldn't feel the casual warmth of them on my back. It felt as if they didn't exist. That couldn't be. I didn't dare to move my head to look. "Why can't I feel them?" I at first murmured, then asked loudly, looking directly into the purple eyes of Twilight Sparkle, the... earth pony. The answer never came. There was a dead silence, and I turned my head to the bathroom. I didn't feel dizzy anymore, I felt as if I was a young and strong spring flower. I leapt into the bathroom, and I looked into the mirror above the sink. I looked into my own eyes, my own huge dark rose-colored eyes. I didn't speak, and saw my eyes quivering. Then I slowly raised my sight up to my forehead, and there was a strange lump which didn't belong there. It was shocking to see that, and then I understand that I am not an earth pony. And I most certainly am not a pony like our Princesses. I looked at the horn in the reflection, not believing that was me and my horn. I didn't even need a proof. I knew I wasn't a pegasus, somehow. I was an unicorn. The blue proof to that sticked out of my mutli-colored mane, and I closed my eyes, then washed my eyes, as if to prove I was wrong. I came out and looked at my friends. "Don't worry, Rainbow Dash," I heard a timid pegasus voice sound. No. She wasn't a pegasus. She was an unicorn just like me, I could see the proof clearly written on her forehead. "It isn't as bad as you think it is," I had no comment for what she had said. We sat in silence, and I looked at the purple earth pony. "What's the cure?" I asked, looking at Twilight. She blinked, shocked. She kept staring at my forehead. Then I heard a scream coming from upstairs, where the cauldron was. I turned head, and saw a pink figure jumping down the stairs. "Look guys, I'm a pegasus! I... I have wings!" She screamed like a little filly, she seemed so happy, she jumped around, and tried out her new wings. I couldn't move. I saw Rarity walk down slowly, and -sure enough- she was clearly missing her horn. No wings had grown on her back either. "Rarity, look, I have wings!" I saw Pinkie Pie being the most excited. I had never seen her as happy as now, she was all over the place, testing out her new pink wings. She came closer to me, and happily showed me one her wing, not even seeing that I lacked them. I looked upon the wings, and my heart started beating faster. They were beautiful wings, very muscular wings, received training for years. I brushed my hoof over Pinkie's wings. It was impossible... "Those... Those are my wings!" I murmured, not listening to Pinkie's ongoing rant. She wriggled out of my grasp and jumped away. My territorial instinct kicked in, I saw my wings, my personal, beautiful wings jump away on Pinkie's back. A sudden pang of jealousy, anger and a weird feeling as if something was unfair, all flashed in my heart and mind. "Mine!!!" I screamed on top of my lungs, and my legs seemed to move themselves, I leaped at Pinkie and pinned her down, hitting her with my hoof in face. I grabbed my wings in teeth and tried to pull them, trying to get them off the pink pony. I let out muffled sounds like angry Winona did. Pinkie kicked me, but she was lightweight and I was heavier by far. She couldn't push me away, but the wing slipped out of my mouth and Pinkie immediately flew at the ceiling, looking at me with terrified look. I couldn't get to her, and that was what made me mad and sick. I was used to that I could get everywhere by flying. I was the fastest pony in Equestria! I could get after anypony and everypony, Nothing was out of my reach, ever. I couldn't get to Pinkie, and I jumped several times in the air, and I swished my head around in frustation that I couldn't get my wings. I needed them! They were mine! Mine, not Pinkie's!!! After a while, I collapsed on ground sobbing. I had spent hours on the floor. I had eventually fallen asleep, and woke up next morning. Everypony were still at their places, and when I rose, Pinkie Pie squeaked and jumped in air. "Twilight, what have you done?" I looked furiously at the purple earth pony, and took her shoulders in my hooves, and shook her. "Twilight, why my wings are on Pinkie, Twilight!?" I shouted. "Calm down, sugarcube." I heard a familiar voice behind me. "She ain't talk'd to none of us since you came downstairs." I turned to Applejack. "Where's the cure? How do I find it?" I asked. "Calm down, sugarcube. We are going to find that, and you could help us," Applejack told me, looking into my rose-red eyes with her bright green ones. That moment, I believed her. A cure could be found to this. She patted my back with one her wing and I froze, feeling as if the same cold hoof stomped on my heart. I rarely cried, but I started sobbing, as I remembered my own wings being attached to my back. I started telling them how I loved my wings. Wings were my destiny. Without them, I was nopony. I wasn't anymore the fastest pony in Equestria. I was a simple unicorn with one small, weak, stupid horn. I started crying, and suddenly Twilight snapped out of it. "My horn isn't small, weak and stupid." She almost hissed, and stormed up, running away from us all. I ignored her. My wings were more important right now, rather than some useless horn. IIIEvery second of my life reminded me that I've lost my precious treasure - my beautiful wings. No, I don't mean 'beautiful' the way Rarity uses this word - actually, I think that's more of an abuse than use of that word, but that's straying off-topic. They were splendid, strong and during and lasting and awesome and... maybe even beautiful the way Rarity uses this word. Already a week had passed. At first I was very troubled, but we all were eager to find a solution - maybe me, Twilight and Rarity being the most eager ones. All we had figured out was that we had somehow not gained any new things (or lost) but rather switched. It was pretty simple in Twilight's and Rarity's case - they just lost their horns, and Twilight had given her horn to me, but Rarity - to Fluttershy. I had given my wings to Pinkie Pie, but Fluttershy - to Applejack. That's why yesterday Applejack had asked me if flying really was that hard to do, because after having her wings ache all the time, she guessed that being a pegasus wasn't so easy. We would have figured everything out earlier, if somehow mysteriously the book Twilight had taken the spell from had burnt in the process. Twilight said we will have to go Canterlot and search for the book in some wing which I really don't recall - I don't care. I told her I'll do anything she says, as long as I get my wings back. She said that I might have to do more than just anything. Well, I kinda didn't understand her last statement, but I right now, I was on my way to gather all of us and get to Twilight's library and then go to Canterlot. "Rarity! Hey, Rarity!" I knocked at door, waiting for the fashion queen to get out. After a little while longer than normal, she came, and looked tired as Applejack after good applebucking. "Yes, Rainbow Dash, was there anything I could help you with?" I could see she tried to be polite, but the tired expression on her face didn't lie. "I wanted to ask you to come to Canterlot to get the book, but nevermind. I can see you're kinda busy." I said, taking a glance into her boutique. Clothes, papers, measures and those sharp pointy things were all over the place, and Opal looked even more unhappy than normal. "Ah, I'll be back in shape just when I get my horn. Everything is so hard for earth ponies!" The white mare complained about her life, and I almost yawned in a very impolite manner. Suddenly she seemed very enthusiastic. "But Rainbow, dear, I forgot! You could help me!" I looked at her, not understanding what I could do so special, that Rarity would want me to help at her boutique. "Please, could you snip this ribbon? It's taking forever without my magic!" The white mare started ranting on the hardship of life without magic, and I sighed. "Rarity..." I said, putting my hoof on my nose. "And the new season's dresses won't come out as early as the previous ones-" "Rarity!" I said louder, and she blinked her excessively lashed eyes. "...yes, Rainbow?" "I've got to go." I said and turned, but felt tugging on my tail. I turned my head back at the sophisticated mare. "Would you please please please cut this ribbon?" She looked at me with puppy eyes, and I sighed. "Rarity, you know that I can't," I said, looking at her with already tired look. I hadn't got all day to sit around and talk about that stupid horn. "You still haven't figured that out!? I mean, darling, you have got Twilight's horn! You should be able to do Celestia's wonders!" The mare said, throwing her hooves in the air. "The only wonder I want is to get my wings back." With that sentence, I was gone. I galloped as fast as I could away from Rarity's. Okay - okay, I know she was having a hard time with all these dresses, but, believe me, I couldn't do anything about it. I just couldn't do any magic - maybe because you learn it at an early age, not when a horn suddenly appears on your forehead, when you're already grown up. Or... maybe because I hadn't even tried to do magic? But that'd be no use anyway, if I'm going to get my wings back by today. Without even noticing it, I had already galloped by Fluttershy's home. I was a bit jealous of her - I mean, I had lived in an easy-to-build cloud home, and I had laughed at her taking on an old house on the ground, and I had laughed at her all the years that she repaired the house from the state she had found it in. Now I had to live... wherever anypony accepted me. Monday I had slept on a meadow outside of town - it was creepy and uncomfortable, but nothing dangerous had happened. I knocked on her door, and she opened. "Well, hello, Rainbow Dash!" She said, and I smiled at her. "Ready to go to Canterlot?" I asked, looking in her eyes. "C-c-canterlot? Oh, goodness," she looked worried, "I can't, sorry, Rainbow. Angel is really sick, caught a virus in this fall, and I need to stay here and help him!" She said, and showed me the sick bunny who slept in his bed and kicked in his dream. I nodded. "Well, that's alright. He needs you," I said, and went out of her house after that. I walked along the way to Applejack's farm, and thought for a while. It was interesting, I knew that Fluttershy wasn't sad at all about her wing loss. She would be a little sad if she would have to stay as an earth pony, but with the gain of horn she seemed even happier - life for her seemed easier. For me? Not so. Finally I arrived by Applejack's farm, and saw Pinkie flying through the air. Suddenly there was a tight lump in my stomach, and my muscles tensed at the sight. My wings. Quickly enough I managed to start thinking about other things, like apples, trees, and Applejack, who was approaching me. "Hey, Rainbow! Rare to see ya 'round." The orange mare said, looking at me. Pinkie Pie dashed through the trees, and chuckled, looking at me. "That's good that you two are together. Wouldn't want to walk back to Sugarcube corner." I said, and let out a forced chuckle. I saw Applejack narrow her eyes at me, I knew she saw through me, and I knew that she knew how I felt about my wings. Pinkie Pie, however, seemed to be so high on her wings that she didn't notice anything around her. One could see that Pinkie won't be happy when we change the wings back. I smiled at the mare, and already thought how good it will be when we all return from Canterlot and change our lives back. "Rainbow Dash, you can't possibly know how good it is to soar at the skies!" I heard Pinkie shout, and I tensed. "Uhh... Pinkie..." Even Applejack understood how intolerant and insensitive she was by saying that, but, like I said, Pinkie didn't see anypony but herself. "I mean, this is a dream come true! I never knew that flying, that falling through the air and being able to just... not be on the ground, it is so amazing! Oh, and Dash," Pinkie continued on her rant, and I tensed even more, to the point that I was barely holding myself back. "Cloud Kicker and Medley say that I'm even a better weather pony than you - maybe not as fast, but definitely less lazy," she said, thinking, but I had enough of her rant. "Cool, me and Twilight are going to Canterlot, you come along," I said and turned my back on both ponies. "Oh, Dashie, I'm sorry, but we can't," I heard the bubbly voice behind me, and I whipped around. "What, more of your new fancy weather job?" I almost hissed with anger. "Oh, no, no, no, you see," she didn't even see that I was angry! How dare she call herself a friend? I was ready to leap, but Applejack came between us and looked at me sternly. "It's the applebuck season, Rainbow." The orange pegasus said, locking her green eyes with mine. "And Pinkie's helpin' me with apples." She said. I knew that if I would beg, Pinkie would come with me, but we both - and I mean, me and Applejack - understood that it would not go on well. Twilight would not even prevent an accident happening, because she was so away all week that it seemed that she was barely alive. "Okay." I said, and looked at both mares, then turned my back and galloped back to Twilight's library. *** "Then we will wait until Rarity's finished with her dresses, Angel is healthy and the applebuck season will have ended." The purple earth pony said, and I glared at her. "No! Rarity will always have dresses, and some animal of Fluttershy's will always be sick and there always will be work at Applejack's farm!" I almost shouted at Twilight. It was almost an hour since we had started this argument. We were definitely not going to Canterlot today, since it was about six in the evening. Twilight sighed, then shook head. "Twilight, I know you want your horn back as much as I want my wings." I said, and she yanked her head up, but didn't speak. She slowly looked at her flank, and sighed. I sighed too, looking at her. We both had lost our cutie marks. It had happened the day after we had switched our races. The day we both woke up, we were without cutie marks. "Believe me Twilight, I could go to that Canterlot library alone. But I need you to help me. I have no idea where the books stand, and you read much faster than I do." Everything was silent, then she turned at me with a such sad eyes, that it almost broke my heart. But I didn't show it out, of course. I may have a horn, but that didn't mean that I would become sappy like most unicorns. "Okay," the purple mare silently said, "come here tomorrow at nine." IV"Wow, Rainbow Dash, you're up very early." I blinked and yawned, then stretched out my legs, and looked at the feminine lavender-colored pony. "Oh. Hey, Twilight." I yawned again, and looked at the earth pony in front of me. Twilight looked at me, her eyes quickly scanning my body, stopping on my forehead and staying there for a while. I frowned at the mare, and cleared my throat. She seemed to snap out of it, and I rolled eyes. She was always so stunned when she looked at my new horn, maybe because it was hers? "Wait... Have you slept here?" She suddenly asked, swishing her hoof over her doorfront. I shrugged. "Well, I'm kinda homeless these days, since I can't sleep at my cloud house." I told her as a matter-of-fact, and ignored the tension in my back every time anypony, including myself, talked about clouds, weather or wings. "You could have told me! I would have let you inside! I mean, I have a guest bed!" Twilight almost shouted, her purple eyes widening in worry and shock. "Nah, I don't think so. I can't live with you for so lon-" "That isn't an excuse!" Twilight cut me off quickly, and I frowned. "Why do you care anyway? I am perfectly capable of surviving on my own, and I even like it!" I said, looking at her. Okay, I didn't like it. I couldn't sleep when I was at that meadow alone, I just thought about my wings and I... I... I cried. But, anyway, it wasn't like I couldn't survive there! "If only you weren't as stubborn as Applejack..." Twilight murmured, and I snorted. "...so Star Swirl the Bearded called it timespace, and by his theory and the formula it went-" "Okay, okay, Twilight, I got it," I tried to cut her off, "the Bearded Starlight invented time. That's cool and all, but could you be more on topic?" I asked. We had talked about Canterlot library - and I had asked in which wing would the spells be. And then she had started blabbering about every wing, and yeah. Boring - did I have to spell it out for her? "Eww!" I turned head, and saw a pink filly wrinkle her nose upon seeing us. "Um..." I blinked, looking at her. A grey filly ran from the meadow behind the pink one, and I could see that a family was having a picnic. That explained why there were ponies so far from Ponyville. "You see that, Silver Spoon?" I looked at gray filly, who was addressed to as 'Silver Spoon'. At first the filly seemed confused, and suddenly an expression of shock grew on her face. "What's wrong, my little ponies?" Twilight asked, looking at the fillies, then looked at herself. "Wow, we must inform the crusaders!" Silver Spoon said, looking at us. "Yes, I mean, now that we know there is a possibility that they'll never get their cutie mark." The pink one continued, and I was disgusted and shocked at one time. Weren't these... the cruel abusers that Apple Bloom always mentioned? What was her name? Golden Crown? Something gem with crown. "I thought that all adult ponies found their super special talent, even if it was as boring as a talent to do nothing." Silver Spoon cut off my thoughts, and I started getting annoyed and angry at the same time. "Poor, poor crusaders. They'll be devastated at the news that they'll always be a laughing stock," the pink one chuckled, talking with her friend, and in the same time, with us. I looked at the purple earth pony behind me, and she was staring at the fillies with mouth agape, "just like you." The filly finally finished her sentence, looking into my magenta eyes with her light blue ones. "That's it!" I shouted, and leaped at the two youngsters, but Twilight stopped me. "Rainbow Dash!" She hissed at me, then looked at the two laughing schoolfillies. "Where are your parents." Upon hearing this sentence, the pink one seemed to freeze, her pupils became as small as Rarity's needles. However, Silver Spoon continued laughing. "Like we care! Diamond Tiara's father is Filthy Ri-" I remembered everything Apple Bloom had told me about the filly, as Diamond Tiara put her hoof in Silver Spoon's mouth, visibly worried. I smirked. Found that weak spot - she is terribly afraid of her father! "Okay, Twilight," I said, and started walking toward the distant figures in the meadow, where I thought Mr. Rich would be, "Let's go and talk about Apple Bloom's friends right here." I smiled, watching as Diamond Tiara became even more worried. She jumped in front of us. "No! It's... quite alright, he, he, I mean, you haven't yet found your super special talent but that's alright, nobody says we have to rush!" She started blabbering, and her friend seemed very confused. "Mr. Fil- Uh, I mean, Mr. Rich!" Twilight shouted, looking at the family. One member shot his head up, and walked toward us. "Hello there," the sophisticated-looking pony said, "oh, I see you have met my little angel, Diamond Tiara." He said, and the filly seemed awfully nervous. "Well, we have come in concern about your daughter," Twilight said, and the brown pony in front of her seemed confused, "particularly about her attitude toward other ponies." I saw the brown pony shoot a warning glance at the pink earth filly, and she shivered. "Let's get to the point!" I said, getting ahead of Twilight. Her overly long introduction bored me - why she couldn't just tell everything? "Your daughter constantly bullies her classmates, especially the ones without their own cutie mark," I continued, and watched the expression of shock in Mr. Rich's face. "And today we... well, we had lost our cutie marks due to an accident, and these two fillies came by and started bullying us." Twilight continued from where I had left, and suddenly Mr. Rich snapped. "What had I told you about cutie marks, Diamond Tiara?" He hissed at his daughter. "Th-that a pony has to motivate other ponies who don't have cutie marks, to discover them." She said, and Filthy Rich slapped her with hoof. "Yes, we have to motivate other ponies! But what did you do? You bullied them!" The earth pony slapped the pink filly again. "B-b-b-but I did exactly what you did to me when I didn't have-" another slap over Diamond Tiara's face. "How dare you, little bitch? I had taught you - cutie mark is the most important event of life!" Diamond Tiara started crying, as her father continued to beat her up. Silver Spoon screamed and ran away. Twilight grabbed my hoof and galloped back to the road, shocked. I was as shocked as her. "I think... I think we just did the wrong thing," The purple pony said exactly my thoughts, "I have read that foals don't start bullying out of nowhere, I should've seen those looks they exchanged before I told him everything." Twilight said. "It's all my fault." I shook head, "No, it's not your fault Twilight. It's mine too. Both of us are at fault here." I said, but she didn't seem to thrilled about what I said. We continued walking in complete silence. We had done something horribly, horribly wrong.
I"Hey, Rainbow! What d'ya think ya doin' there?" My eyes were wide open the moment I heard the unmistakable Apple family accent. I turned my head, only to see one of my best friends - an orange-yellow earth pony. Her lips were almost invisible, she had that suspicious look on her face - I could always tell when she was angry and suspicious of somepony. For example, her posture right now - the narrowed eyes, almost invisible lips, the small pupils. "Ah, ha, ha, ha," I chuckled nervously, "I was, umm, resting." I flashed a big fake smiled, feeling as my forehead became sweaty. The earth pony didn't take that for an excuse, she narrowed her eyes even smaller, that I couldn't help but wonder if she'd close her eyes at the next sentence I say. "If yer restin' includes stealin' from mah orchard, then I guess you ain't lyin'!" Applejack stared in my dark pink eyes, and I started sweating again. Applejack snorted, then looked at one tree in a very loving way and walked closer to it, touching it's trunk with her hoof. "Y'know, these apples are special! They're sweet, very juicy an' in general are the tastiest apples in Ponyville. They were gift'd to me by-" "I know, right!? They're like, the best apples ever!" I interrupted my friend's speech with my compliment about her apples. I mean, my tummy was full of them, I even ate them slower than other apples in Applejack's orchard! I had certainly never ate any apple tastier than these-... I saw Applejack's knowing grin, and my pupils narrowed, when I understood my mistake. The mare swished her blonde mane to the other side, and expectantly waited for something... "Hav'n't ya got nothin' to say for yaself?" The mare said, looking at me. "Uh... um... oops?" I said, knowing that she waited for an apology, but I knew as well that I wasn't going to give one. I shot up in the air and made a backflip, then crashed into the cloud I had been sitting on this whole time, making it go forward, and I started flapping my wings, shooting away from Applejack's farm. Sadly, I was a little too late flap my wings upwards, as I hadn't watched where I was flying - and I bumped in a trunk with my head and fell down. My head hurt mighty lot, but I didn't have time, as I already heard the distinctive call of Applejack. I ran into the woods, and just as I looked back, I saw an angry Applejack run into my cloud, dissolving it. Only pegasi could walk on clouds, but there was a little minus to that - I could always block a pegasus path by just putting a cloud in their way. We, pegasi, always bounced off. Unicorns and earth ponies could run through the clouds no matter how many you would stash in their way. And right now, I had forgotten that Applejack was a earth pony. I shook the thoughts off my mind, and flapped my wings, to fly away. I was already three feet in the air, when I felt my wings forcefully slap together. I knew that there existed an occasional wingboner, but I never knew that wings could just fold themselves - okay, I knew that Fluttershy sometimes couldn't open her wings because of fear, but I wasn't Fluttershy! I was Rainbow Dash! I wasn't afraid of anything! Luckily, I didn't crash the ground, but continued galloping as I had before. Just as I started taking on more speed, I felt a harsh tug at my wings, and I turned my head to see that it weren't my wings that were gone crazy - it was Applejack. "Hey!" I angrily shouted. She had lassoed me like she always did on her cows, pigs and sheep - and I certainly wasn't pleasant about that. I was her friend, Rainbow Dash, not some dirty pig! "Easy there, las!" I heard her yell, and I shot a disapproving glare at the earth mare. "Ha!" I shouted, and started galloping even faster. I knew I was faster than her. Maybe she was a little more enduring than me - but only a little! I was still much faster than her, and soon enough I had already knocked her off her feet - I saw her feet tangle in the rope which was tied around her tail and my wings. Soon enough I was dragging her rump over the Ponyville center, and I decided to run to Twilight's, so she could tell Applejack right on the spot that she just couldn't treat her friends like she treated her sheep! I knocked into the library's door, finally stopping myself by crashing into a bookcase. Two books fell on my head, but nothing worse happened. I looked at Applejack, and I was disappointed a bit. No, I hadn't meant to hurt her, I never would, but seeing her in state of almost yawning was kinda unpleasant. She wasn't even tired, although I could say that she looked few shades darker, and her mane and tail had twigs stuck in them. But I guess no other pony would ever care about those little things. "Oh, my, darling! What ever had happened to your bouffant?" I heard a white unicorn worry. I stand corrected. No other pony except Rarity would ever care about Applejack's bouffant. I saw the white mare running closer to the dark yellow one and after a moment Applejack was free from the rope which had been tied to her tail. I snorted, and then I turned my head to a purple unicorn. "Rainbow Dash, why did you pull Applejack in my library?" She said in a shocked voice. "Are you alright, Applejack?" I heard the other unicorn say, before levitating a comb and brushing her friend's mane. I angrily looked over at Twilight, and shook my tail, hearing Applejack assuring Rarity about her condition, and then she answered Twilight's question with the story shortened. "Act'ally, it wasn't t'at bad. Ah was just layin' on my tummy while Rainbow here pull'd me to yer house." She tried to justify me, and folded my wings in pride. Yes, I had helped Applejack in everything, not fought with her. It was Applejack who had started, I explained Twilight. "Right," she said, "because you weren't stealing Applejack's apples at all, according to her." The unicorn made a short retort. "I was just tasting them!" I defended myself. "Girls...?" I heard a silent, timid voice, and I turned to the other pegasus. "Should we continue?" Suddenly every pony except Applejack, who still tried to get one twig out of her mane, looked at me. I felt uncomfortable for a little bit. "Um." I said, looking at the almost maniacal stare in Pinkie's eyes. The continuum happened so quickly, I couldn't even react in time. Suddenly a violet flash bolted behind me and grabbed me, then I saw Fluttershy grab something sharp and throw it in air toward Rarity, who quickly ran to my flank and... And... Nothing happened. I wriggled out of Twilight's grasp, and shot straight up to the ceiling of the library. I didn't want any of these freaks near me right now! What had they done? I couldn't understand for a few moments, until I saw a bunch of light yellow, red, orange, green, blue and violet hair in Rarity's mouth, which she passed on Twilight. I recognized it as my hair and when I looked at my rear, I saw that one lock of my tail was gone. The lavender pony put my lock in some kind of cauldron, which seemed to be boiling. "Twilight? What was that?" I asked, and after a while the unicorn turned to me. "We're getting each of us six' hair - twelve hairs from tail, must include every color the pony has." She started, and looked at the cauldron. "What for?" I asked, and I saw that I wasn't the only mare here who was confused - Applejack seemed to be in the same situation. She didn't even notice that Pinkie Pie crept closer to her from the back, and plucked a small lock of the blonde hair. Applejack didn't seem too please, as she jumped in the air and looked at Pinkie Pie angrily. "With Applejack's donation the last, this is going to succeed. I, Rainbow Dash, have made a potion for us - it will contain all the memories of our friendship and will tighten the bonds forever!" Twilight explained. Pinkie gave Fluttershy Applejack's lock, and Fluttershy flew over the library closer to the cauldron. "Contain memories? What?" I felt a little puzzled Rarity cleared her throat and looked up at me. "If anything like that Discord thing ever happens again to us, we'll be ready - we'll have the potion which will make us inseparable! Isn't that wonderful, dear Rainbow?" Twilight nodded to the whole thing, then took Applejack's hair and put it in the cauldron. The unicorn then rushed to the recipe book and murmured something under her breath, seemed to me that she over-viewed if she hadn't forgot anything. Well, come to think about it, the idea wasn't that bad. Even through a blur, but I still could remember my ill unlike ways I acted after I got corrupted by Discord, and that made me shiver. I never wanted to experience that again - consciously or not. Twilight blinked, then called us all up. "We all stand around the cauldron, and we must let our muzzles touch right above the center of the it. In case of mistakes, the consequences will be..." She read, and then narrowed eyes, reading more and more silently, until nopony could hear what she said. "Consequences will be?" I asked, looking at the unicorn, and she seemed disturbed. "N-Nothing special. Some sneezing and things like that." She had dismissed the subject far too quickly for my liking, but then she cleared her throat, and closed her eyes, letting her muzzle be only few centimeters above the surface of the green liquid. Rarity came next, then I came, and I had no idea who came after me, since I closed my eyes. "Together a bond will form, to which six beings will conform, They will stand until the end, let their fates braid and bend!" I had time to only think that those rhymes were quite impressive, coming from Fluttershy. Then I felt sharp pain in my head, and blackness wrapped around me tightly.
IIAfter a while, I opened my eyes. I knew I shouldn't have trusted Twilight! Why did always her magic end up in trouble? I shook my head. Thankfully, (and surprisingly indeed) I was alright. I could see my legs, nothing hurt anymore. I barely remembered the pain when I had fallen unconscious, but I guessed that would be from the fall to ground. I wasn't the first to wake up, as I saw Rarity's white flanks nearby me, and I saw Pinkie's fluffy tail on the other side of the cauldron, but I couldn't see Pinkie herself. I shook my head again, and laid there for some short time, to recover a bit from this forced sleep. I felt a little dizzy, and I decided to wash my eyes, yes, that would make me more awake. When I got up, I felt as if my legs were filled with apples - they were so heavy. I lifted my hooves, and shook my still a bit dizzy head, then went downstairs and looked at the mares who were sitting by the table in the middle of the library. "Hey, girls!" I shouted, and I saw them stiffening upon seeing me. "Yeah, I know I'm not in my best form right now!" I laughed off the fact that my head was spinning around as if I had ridden a carousel a bit too fast. The door slammed, and I saw Spike coming in. "Hey Twilight, I brought that book from Zecora you asked," the young dragon looked at Twilight and put down a thick book in brown leather covers. I looked over at Twilight. Something seemed different about her, but I couldn't understand what, in my dizzy mind. She stared at me in an oddly surprised way and I saw that everypony watched me that way. I felt odd. Why were they watchin- "Holy cow, Rainbow Dash!" Spike shouted and jumped in the air. It started getting a bit annoying that way - everypony staring at me as if I was half-cow, half-sheep. "What is it? I know I probably look awful after this noon activities! But, you know, you don't look better!" And that was true - everypony looked extremely tired. It was starting to get really creepy, the way they kept staring at me. Spike seemed to shiver and point at me, as if I was a monster. I wanted to fly away to my cloud house, and just sit with Tank. At least he didn't gasp and point at me as if I had suddenly turned into a sheep. I jumped, to take off, the move was natural to me. The air, surrounding me, it always seemed like the best thing ever, to fly, to soar through th- BUMP! I could hear the sound that my jaw made in contact with the wooden floor. For moments I laid there on the floor, paralyzed by the agonizing pain. Maybe I had broken my neck? Turns out I didn't, as I quite quickly got up. What was that? I took a glance at everypony else, they seemed scared and shocked. A suspicion, an impossible suspicion sickened my mind. I didn't even try to think about it, as I examined everypony's faces. Suddenly I u?nderstood what had seemed so wrong about them the last time I looked. I saw that Twilight was missing her horn. Then I looked beside her, at Applejack, and examined her expression. None of us spoke. She hadn't grew a horn all out of sudden, but when I examined her body further, I noticed a thing that didn't belong on Applejack. Wings. A pair of visibly weak, frail and soft-feathered wings. Wings that Fluttershy had, and I knew the form of her wings a little too well. I turned my head to Fluttershy, and I saw that on her forehead was a short and stocky horn, right above her big eyes. I didn't believe. I tried to move my wings. It felt as if a cold hoof had stomped on my heart and had pushed it down. My wings didn't move. I couldn't feel the casual warmth of them on my back. It felt as if they didn't exist. That couldn't be. I didn't dare to move my head to look. "Why can't I feel them?" I at first murmured, then asked loudly, looking directly into the purple eyes of Twilight Sparkle, the... earth pony. The answer never came. There was a dead silence, and I turned my head to the bathroom. I didn't feel dizzy anymore, I felt as if I was a young and strong spring flower. I leapt into the bathroom, and I looked into the mirror above the sink. I looked into my own eyes, my own huge dark rose-colored eyes. I didn't speak, and saw my eyes quivering. Then I slowly raised my sight up to my forehead, and there was a strange lump which didn't belong there. It was shocking to see that, and then I understand that I am not an earth pony. And I most certainly am not a pony like our Princesses. I looked at the horn in the reflection, not believing that was me and my horn. I didn't even need a proof. I knew I wasn't a pegasus, somehow. I was an unicorn. The blue proof to that sticked out of my mutli-colored mane, and I closed my eyes, then washed my eyes, as if to prove I was wrong. I came out and looked at my friends. "Don't worry, Rainbow Dash," I heard a timid pegasus voice sound. No. She wasn't a pegasus. She was an unicorn just like me, I could see the proof clearly written on her forehead. "It isn't as bad as you think it is," I had no comment for what she had said. We sat in silence, and I looked at the purple earth pony. "What's the cure?" I asked, looking at Twilight. She blinked, shocked. She kept staring at my forehead. Then I heard a scream coming from upstairs, where the cauldron was. I turned head, and saw a pink figure jumping down the stairs. "Look guys, I'm a pegasus! I... I have wings!" She screamed like a little filly, she seemed so happy, she jumped around, and tried out her new wings. I couldn't move. I saw Rarity walk down slowly, and -sure enough- she was clearly missing her horn. No wings had grown on her back either. "Rarity, look, I have wings!" I saw Pinkie Pie being the most excited. I had never seen her as happy as now, she was all over the place, testing out her new pink wings. She came closer to me, and happily showed me one her wing, not even seeing that I lacked them. I looked upon the wings, and my heart started beating faster. They were beautiful wings, very muscular wings, received training for years. I brushed my hoof over Pinkie's wings. It was impossible... "Those... Those are my wings!" I murmured, not listening to Pinkie's ongoing rant. She wriggled out of my grasp and jumped away. My territorial instinct kicked in, I saw my wings, my personal, beautiful wings jump away on Pinkie's back. A sudden pang of jealousy, anger and a weird feeling as if something was unfair, all flashed in my heart and mind. "Mine!!!" I screamed on top of my lungs, and my legs seemed to move themselves, I leaped at Pinkie and pinned her down, hitting her with my hoof in face. I grabbed my wings in teeth and tried to pull them, trying to get them off the pink pony. I let out muffled sounds like angry Winona did. Pinkie kicked me, but she was lightweight and I was heavier by far. She couldn't push me away, but the wing slipped out of my mouth and Pinkie immediately flew at the ceiling, looking at me with terrified look. I couldn't get to her, and that was what made me mad and sick. I was used to that I could get everywhere by flying. I was the fastest pony in Equestria! I could get after anypony and everypony, Nothing was out of my reach, ever. I couldn't get to Pinkie, and I jumped several times in the air, and I swished my head around in frustation that I couldn't get my wings. I needed them! They were mine! Mine, not Pinkie's!!! After a while, I collapsed on ground sobbing. I had spent hours on the floor. I had eventually fallen asleep, and woke up next morning. Everypony were still at their places, and when I rose, Pinkie Pie squeaked and jumped in air. "Twilight, what have you done?" I looked furiously at the purple earth pony, and took her shoulders in my hooves, and shook her. "Twilight, why my wings are on Pinkie, Twilight!?" I shouted. "Calm down, sugarcube." I heard a familiar voice behind me. "She ain't talk'd to none of us since you came downstairs." I turned to Applejack. "Where's the cure? How do I find it?" I asked. "Calm down, sugarcube. We are going to find that, and you could help us," Applejack told me, looking into my rose-red eyes with her bright green ones. That moment, I believed her. A cure could be found to this. She patted my back with one her wing and I froze, feeling as if the same cold hoof stomped on my heart. I rarely cried, but I started sobbing, as I remembered my own wings being attached to my back. I started telling them how I loved my wings. Wings were my destiny. Without them, I was nopony. I wasn't anymore the fastest pony in Equestria. I was a simple unicorn with one small, weak, stupid horn. I started crying, and suddenly Twilight snapped out of it. "My horn isn't small, weak and stupid." She almost hissed, and stormed up, running away from us all. I ignored her. My wings were more important right now, rather than some useless horn.
IIIEvery second of my life reminded me that I've lost my precious treasure - my beautiful wings. No, I don't mean 'beautiful' the way Rarity uses this word - actually, I think that's more of an abuse than use of that word, but that's straying off-topic. They were splendid, strong and during and lasting and awesome and... maybe even beautiful the way Rarity uses this word. Already a week had passed. At first I was very troubled, but we all were eager to find a solution - maybe me, Twilight and Rarity being the most eager ones. All we had figured out was that we had somehow not gained any new things (or lost) but rather switched. It was pretty simple in Twilight's and Rarity's case - they just lost their horns, and Twilight had given her horn to me, but Rarity - to Fluttershy. I had given my wings to Pinkie Pie, but Fluttershy - to Applejack. That's why yesterday Applejack had asked me if flying really was that hard to do, because after having her wings ache all the time, she guessed that being a pegasus wasn't so easy. We would have figured everything out earlier, if somehow mysteriously the book Twilight had taken the spell from had burnt in the process. Twilight said we will have to go Canterlot and search for the book in some wing which I really don't recall - I don't care. I told her I'll do anything she says, as long as I get my wings back. She said that I might have to do more than just anything. Well, I kinda didn't understand her last statement, but I right now, I was on my way to gather all of us and get to Twilight's library and then go to Canterlot. "Rarity! Hey, Rarity!" I knocked at door, waiting for the fashion queen to get out. After a little while longer than normal, she came, and looked tired as Applejack after good applebucking. "Yes, Rainbow Dash, was there anything I could help you with?" I could see she tried to be polite, but the tired expression on her face didn't lie. "I wanted to ask you to come to Canterlot to get the book, but nevermind. I can see you're kinda busy." I said, taking a glance into her boutique. Clothes, papers, measures and those sharp pointy things were all over the place, and Opal looked even more unhappy than normal. "Ah, I'll be back in shape just when I get my horn. Everything is so hard for earth ponies!" The white mare complained about her life, and I almost yawned in a very impolite manner. Suddenly she seemed very enthusiastic. "But Rainbow, dear, I forgot! You could help me!" I looked at her, not understanding what I could do so special, that Rarity would want me to help at her boutique. "Please, could you snip this ribbon? It's taking forever without my magic!" The white mare started ranting on the hardship of life without magic, and I sighed. "Rarity..." I said, putting my hoof on my nose. "And the new season's dresses won't come out as early as the previous ones-" "Rarity!" I said louder, and she blinked her excessively lashed eyes. "...yes, Rainbow?" "I've got to go." I said and turned, but felt tugging on my tail. I turned my head back at the sophisticated mare. "Would you please please please cut this ribbon?" She looked at me with puppy eyes, and I sighed. "Rarity, you know that I can't," I said, looking at her with already tired look. I hadn't got all day to sit around and talk about that stupid horn. "You still haven't figured that out!? I mean, darling, you have got Twilight's horn! You should be able to do Celestia's wonders!" The mare said, throwing her hooves in the air. "The only wonder I want is to get my wings back." With that sentence, I was gone. I galloped as fast as I could away from Rarity's. Okay - okay, I know she was having a hard time with all these dresses, but, believe me, I couldn't do anything about it. I just couldn't do any magic - maybe because you learn it at an early age, not when a horn suddenly appears on your forehead, when you're already grown up. Or... maybe because I hadn't even tried to do magic? But that'd be no use anyway, if I'm going to get my wings back by today. Without even noticing it, I had already galloped by Fluttershy's home. I was a bit jealous of her - I mean, I had lived in an easy-to-build cloud home, and I had laughed at her taking on an old house on the ground, and I had laughed at her all the years that she repaired the house from the state she had found it in. Now I had to live... wherever anypony accepted me. Monday I had slept on a meadow outside of town - it was creepy and uncomfortable, but nothing dangerous had happened. I knocked on her door, and she opened. "Well, hello, Rainbow Dash!" She said, and I smiled at her. "Ready to go to Canterlot?" I asked, looking in her eyes. "C-c-canterlot? Oh, goodness," she looked worried, "I can't, sorry, Rainbow. Angel is really sick, caught a virus in this fall, and I need to stay here and help him!" She said, and showed me the sick bunny who slept in his bed and kicked in his dream. I nodded. "Well, that's alright. He needs you," I said, and went out of her house after that. I walked along the way to Applejack's farm, and thought for a while. It was interesting, I knew that Fluttershy wasn't sad at all about her wing loss. She would be a little sad if she would have to stay as an earth pony, but with the gain of horn she seemed even happier - life for her seemed easier. For me? Not so. Finally I arrived by Applejack's farm, and saw Pinkie flying through the air. Suddenly there was a tight lump in my stomach, and my muscles tensed at the sight. My wings. Quickly enough I managed to start thinking about other things, like apples, trees, and Applejack, who was approaching me. "Hey, Rainbow! Rare to see ya 'round." The orange mare said, looking at me. Pinkie Pie dashed through the trees, and chuckled, looking at me. "That's good that you two are together. Wouldn't want to walk back to Sugarcube corner." I said, and let out a forced chuckle. I saw Applejack narrow her eyes at me, I knew she saw through me, and I knew that she knew how I felt about my wings. Pinkie Pie, however, seemed to be so high on her wings that she didn't notice anything around her. One could see that Pinkie won't be happy when we change the wings back. I smiled at the mare, and already thought how good it will be when we all return from Canterlot and change our lives back. "Rainbow Dash, you can't possibly know how good it is to soar at the skies!" I heard Pinkie shout, and I tensed. "Uhh... Pinkie..." Even Applejack understood how intolerant and insensitive she was by saying that, but, like I said, Pinkie didn't see anypony but herself. "I mean, this is a dream come true! I never knew that flying, that falling through the air and being able to just... not be on the ground, it is so amazing! Oh, and Dash," Pinkie continued on her rant, and I tensed even more, to the point that I was barely holding myself back. "Cloud Kicker and Medley say that I'm even a better weather pony than you - maybe not as fast, but definitely less lazy," she said, thinking, but I had enough of her rant. "Cool, me and Twilight are going to Canterlot, you come along," I said and turned my back on both ponies. "Oh, Dashie, I'm sorry, but we can't," I heard the bubbly voice behind me, and I whipped around. "What, more of your new fancy weather job?" I almost hissed with anger. "Oh, no, no, no, you see," she didn't even see that I was angry! How dare she call herself a friend? I was ready to leap, but Applejack came between us and looked at me sternly. "It's the applebuck season, Rainbow." The orange pegasus said, locking her green eyes with mine. "And Pinkie's helpin' me with apples." She said. I knew that if I would beg, Pinkie would come with me, but we both - and I mean, me and Applejack - understood that it would not go on well. Twilight would not even prevent an accident happening, because she was so away all week that it seemed that she was barely alive. "Okay." I said, and looked at both mares, then turned my back and galloped back to Twilight's library. *** "Then we will wait until Rarity's finished with her dresses, Angel is healthy and the applebuck season will have ended." The purple earth pony said, and I glared at her. "No! Rarity will always have dresses, and some animal of Fluttershy's will always be sick and there always will be work at Applejack's farm!" I almost shouted at Twilight. It was almost an hour since we had started this argument. We were definitely not going to Canterlot today, since it was about six in the evening. Twilight sighed, then shook head. "Twilight, I know you want your horn back as much as I want my wings." I said, and she yanked her head up, but didn't speak. She slowly looked at her flank, and sighed. I sighed too, looking at her. We both had lost our cutie marks. It had happened the day after we had switched our races. The day we both woke up, we were without cutie marks. "Believe me Twilight, I could go to that Canterlot library alone. But I need you to help me. I have no idea where the books stand, and you read much faster than I do." Everything was silent, then she turned at me with a such sad eyes, that it almost broke my heart. But I didn't show it out, of course. I may have a horn, but that didn't mean that I would become sappy like most unicorns. "Okay," the purple mare silently said, "come here tomorrow at nine."
IV"Wow, Rainbow Dash, you're up very early." I blinked and yawned, then stretched out my legs, and looked at the feminine lavender-colored pony. "Oh. Hey, Twilight." I yawned again, and looked at the earth pony in front of me. Twilight looked at me, her eyes quickly scanning my body, stopping on my forehead and staying there for a while. I frowned at the mare, and cleared my throat. She seemed to snap out of it, and I rolled eyes. She was always so stunned when she looked at my new horn, maybe because it was hers? "Wait... Have you slept here?" She suddenly asked, swishing her hoof over her doorfront. I shrugged. "Well, I'm kinda homeless these days, since I can't sleep at my cloud house." I told her as a matter-of-fact, and ignored the tension in my back every time anypony, including myself, talked about clouds, weather or wings. "You could have told me! I would have let you inside! I mean, I have a guest bed!" Twilight almost shouted, her purple eyes widening in worry and shock. "Nah, I don't think so. I can't live with you for so lon-" "That isn't an excuse!" Twilight cut me off quickly, and I frowned. "Why do you care anyway? I am perfectly capable of surviving on my own, and I even like it!" I said, looking at her. Okay, I didn't like it. I couldn't sleep when I was at that meadow alone, I just thought about my wings and I... I... I cried. But, anyway, it wasn't like I couldn't survive there! "If only you weren't as stubborn as Applejack..." Twilight murmured, and I snorted. "...so Star Swirl the Bearded called it timespace, and by his theory and the formula it went-" "Okay, okay, Twilight, I got it," I tried to cut her off, "the Bearded Starlight invented time. That's cool and all, but could you be more on topic?" I asked. We had talked about Canterlot library - and I had asked in which wing would the spells be. And then she had started blabbering about every wing, and yeah. Boring - did I have to spell it out for her? "Eww!" I turned head, and saw a pink filly wrinkle her nose upon seeing us. "Um..." I blinked, looking at her. A grey filly ran from the meadow behind the pink one, and I could see that a family was having a picnic. That explained why there were ponies so far from Ponyville. "You see that, Silver Spoon?" I looked at gray filly, who was addressed to as 'Silver Spoon'. At first the filly seemed confused, and suddenly an expression of shock grew on her face. "What's wrong, my little ponies?" Twilight asked, looking at the fillies, then looked at herself. "Wow, we must inform the crusaders!" Silver Spoon said, looking at us. "Yes, I mean, now that we know there is a possibility that they'll never get their cutie mark." The pink one continued, and I was disgusted and shocked at one time. Weren't these... the cruel abusers that Apple Bloom always mentioned? What was her name? Golden Crown? Something gem with crown. "I thought that all adult ponies found their super special talent, even if it was as boring as a talent to do nothing." Silver Spoon cut off my thoughts, and I started getting annoyed and angry at the same time. "Poor, poor crusaders. They'll be devastated at the news that they'll always be a laughing stock," the pink one chuckled, talking with her friend, and in the same time, with us. I looked at the purple earth pony behind me, and she was staring at the fillies with mouth agape, "just like you." The filly finally finished her sentence, looking into my magenta eyes with her light blue ones. "That's it!" I shouted, and leaped at the two youngsters, but Twilight stopped me. "Rainbow Dash!" She hissed at me, then looked at the two laughing schoolfillies. "Where are your parents." Upon hearing this sentence, the pink one seemed to freeze, her pupils became as small as Rarity's needles. However, Silver Spoon continued laughing. "Like we care! Diamond Tiara's father is Filthy Ri-" I remembered everything Apple Bloom had told me about the filly, as Diamond Tiara put her hoof in Silver Spoon's mouth, visibly worried. I smirked. Found that weak spot - she is terribly afraid of her father! "Okay, Twilight," I said, and started walking toward the distant figures in the meadow, where I thought Mr. Rich would be, "Let's go and talk about Apple Bloom's friends right here." I smiled, watching as Diamond Tiara became even more worried. She jumped in front of us. "No! It's... quite alright, he, he, I mean, you haven't yet found your super special talent but that's alright, nobody says we have to rush!" She started blabbering, and her friend seemed very confused. "Mr. Fil- Uh, I mean, Mr. Rich!" Twilight shouted, looking at the family. One member shot his head up, and walked toward us. "Hello there," the sophisticated-looking pony said, "oh, I see you have met my little angel, Diamond Tiara." He said, and the filly seemed awfully nervous. "Well, we have come in concern about your daughter," Twilight said, and the brown pony in front of her seemed confused, "particularly about her attitude toward other ponies." I saw the brown pony shoot a warning glance at the pink earth filly, and she shivered. "Let's get to the point!" I said, getting ahead of Twilight. Her overly long introduction bored me - why she couldn't just tell everything? "Your daughter constantly bullies her classmates, especially the ones without their own cutie mark," I continued, and watched the expression of shock in Mr. Rich's face. "And today we... well, we had lost our cutie marks due to an accident, and these two fillies came by and started bullying us." Twilight continued from where I had left, and suddenly Mr. Rich snapped. "What had I told you about cutie marks, Diamond Tiara?" He hissed at his daughter. "Th-that a pony has to motivate other ponies who don't have cutie marks, to discover them." She said, and Filthy Rich slapped her with hoof. "Yes, we have to motivate other ponies! But what did you do? You bullied them!" The earth pony slapped the pink filly again. "B-b-b-but I did exactly what you did to me when I didn't have-" another slap over Diamond Tiara's face. "How dare you, little bitch? I had taught you - cutie mark is the most important event of life!" Diamond Tiara started crying, as her father continued to beat her up. Silver Spoon screamed and ran away. Twilight grabbed my hoof and galloped back to the road, shocked. I was as shocked as her. "I think... I think we just did the wrong thing," The purple pony said exactly my thoughts, "I have read that foals don't start bullying out of nowhere, I should've seen those looks they exchanged before I told him everything." Twilight said. "It's all my fault." I shook head, "No, it's not your fault Twilight. It's mine too. Both of us are at fault here." I said, but she didn't seem to thrilled about what I said. We continued walking in complete silence. We had done something horribly, horribly wrong.
