Fluttershy almost squealed in fright as her door was knocked on, incessantly and loudly, as if some fearsome ogre or Minotaur was attempting to smash the thing down and subsequently demand protection money. She jumped behind her couch, nervously, peering around it, letting only the tiniest fraction of her eyes visible as she kept them firmly fixed on the door.
“Wh-who is it?” she asked, her voice barely more than a whisper. The booming voice that came from beyond almost knocked the door off it's hinges.
“It's me! Dash! Lemme in, I gotta talk to you!”
Fluttershy let herself relax, but not too much. After all, Rainbow had a temper and she seemed to be in a rather appalling mood at this point. She quickly unlocked the door, only to have it slammed in her face in an almost comical, cartoonish fashion. Rainbow Dash rushed inside, tearing at her mane, confusion and frustration evident on her face. Fluttershy peeled herself off the door and turned to face her friend.
“Come in...” she whispered, but Rainbow wasn't listening. She was doing her version of pacing, which included more flying than for most ponies. She had stopped tearing at her mane and was now biting through her hooves as she stuttered, trying desperately to find her words.
“Fluttershy, I just don't know what to do! I got this huge problem, and I need your help fixing it!” she exclaimed. Fluttershy's stomach plummeted. All that responsibility... she hoped it wasn't too much of a problem. Fluttershy didn't want to deal with that much of a problem... that is, if she couldn't handle it. She would hate to see Dash hurt...
“What is it, Rainbow?” she asked quietly, her eyes tracking the nervous pegasus around the room.
“It's... oh, it's so messed up. It's about Applejack!”
Fluttershy raised one of her eyebrows slightly, running through the most likely scenarios.
“Did you offend her?”
“What? No, of course not.” Rainbow said, still slicing off massive chunks of hooves with every bite, sending the clippings to the ground.
“Um... what about Applejack, then?”
Rainbow Dash flew over to Fluttershy, and grabbed her shoulders in her hooves in a pleading manner.
“You have to help! You've got all kinds of crazy experience like this, right? You see, I've started having these... feelings for Applejack.” Rainbow Dash explained.
Fluttershy gulped. This was worse than she thought...
“I, uh, don't have that much exper-”
“I've even had these dreams...”
“Oh, I don't often dream about-”
“I just start sweating whenever she's nearby!”
“Yes, I, um, don't-”
“Even when she's not there I can't stop thinking about her!”
“Well, I suppose it's not a bad thing-”
“I get these shivers every time she looks at me!”
“Oh, I get those, sometimes-”
“Oh? Who with?”
Fluttershy yelped at the unexpected interruption, pulling back away from Rainbow Dash as she desperately tried to escape her curious, examining glare.
“Um, nopony special.” she said, grinning nervously. She calmed down a little. “Well, Rainbow, I suppose these feelings might not be such a bad thing...” she began. Rainbow Dash groaned, obviously in disagreement.
“No! It's utterly debilitatory!”
“Debilitating-”
“What, are you Twilight now? Seriously, these feeling have to go.” Rainbow said, crossing her hooves angrily. “So help. What do you do when you jump every time you see somepony standing behind you?”
Fluttershy chuckled nervously, at a loss for words.
“Uhm. Why are you talking to me? Can you please ask Twilight instead?”
“Because you are the number one expert when it comes to being afraid of things!” Rainbow explained, exasperated.
“Uhm, if you like Applejack, you should just- um. Wait, what?”
Fluttershy looked over at Rainbow, puzzled. The cyan pegasus just stood there, motionless. Fluttershy tilted her head to the side, narrowing her eyes as she computed this new information.
“Are you afraid of Applejack?” Fluttershy asked, confused. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes.
“Yes! That's what I'm trying to tell you! I'm getting nightmares, breaking into cold sweaty things... she gives me the creeps, Flutters, and it’s ruining my life!”
At those last three words Rainbow Dash broke down, falling to her stomach in front of Fluttershy, who merely twitched a few times as she furiously back-pedalled through her mind.
Not in love with. Afraid of. Duly noted.
It didn't help the situation that Fluttershy now felt more than a little hurt that Rainbow Dash came to her only as the expert of being terrified. Certainly, she wasn't the bravest of ponies, but she had really improved since a few years ago...
“Help me.” Rainbow Dash whimpered. “I can't live like this anymore.”
Fluttershy sighed.
“All right, I'll do my best. Why don't we go for a walk whilst you talk this out.”
Rainbow Dash looked up at Fluttershy, smiling softly.
“Can't we fly instead?”
Fluttershy nodded.
"Whatever makes you feel comfortable."
It was during this slow, gentle and relaxing flight that Rainbow Dash explained her situation in great detail: from the first night terrors to the helpless dread she felt when in presence of the most dependable of ponies. Fluttershy listened closely, but as they flew she began to realize with alarming speed that she had no real idea about how to deal with her friends predicament without Applejack or the other girls finding out, which Rainbow Dash was particularly adamant on.
“C'mon, Flutters, I can't let them see me like this! I'd be a laughing stock!”, she had said upon hearing the suggestion.
Fluttershy didn't want to say anything at the time, but she secretly agreed with her. This was exactly the type of situation a life long teasing habit was made of. In fact, the whole situation would have been nonsensical and hilarious, if it wasn't turning Rainbow Dash into a nervous wreck.
“I still think you should at least try talking this out with Applejack.” she repeated, like she had many times during their flight. The recurring reaction had not changed.
“I, uh, don't think I can do that.”
“It's okay, I'd be there.” Fluttershy added reassuringly. Rainbow Dash chuckled nervously.
“I'm not sure what exactly your protection is worth, Flutters.” she admitted. Fluttershy quickly conceded that point, despite the fact that there was no way in Tartarus that Applejack would ever harm her, or indeed any of her friends, unprovoked. But Fluttershy was timid, shy, and not particularly physical. If Applejack so wished, she could trample the poor pegasus with her eyes closed, which was the scenario Rainbow was currently envisaging.
“I'd be there for emotional support.” she corrected. Rainbow Dash sighed.
“Can we try something else first? Please?”
Fluttershy smiled, deciding that Rainbow would confront Applejack when she felt ready.
“Of course. I would never force you into doing anything.” she said. “How about whenever you get too scared of, um, Applejack, you can come and talk to me about it, okay?”
Rainbow Dash nodded as they approached Fluttershy's cottage once again.
“Okay.”
“Okay then. It would be wonderful if we could get this problem over with by the annual Apple Harvest Fair. I'm sure Applejack would love to have all her friends there.”
Rainbow Dash nodded slowly. After a brief moment of silence, she spoke up again.
“I'd like that.” she said. “She's a real cool pony and all. I don't know what's going on.”
Fluttershy nodded.
“That's just your mind telling you what makes sense. It's only your subconscious that's making you afraid of her.” she explained. After Rainbow gave her a funny look, she nervously looked away. “Um, that's what I read in a book somewhere.”
“Yeah, whatevs.” Rainbow replied, once again wondering if she had accidentally encountered Twilight in disguise. “Anyway, thanks for the talk. It's really great to get this off my chest.” she said, smiling. “I'll be sure to come next time I get a good scare, 'kay?”
“Of course. My door is always open.” Fluttershy said. Rainbow Dash grinned.
“Bye!” she exclaimed, and flew off. Fluttershy closed her door behind her and let out a long, tired sigh, both bewildered and amused.
Weather is usually a stable thing in Equestria: it's regulated by Cloudsdale, and only the pegasi and a handful of unicorns could disrupt it, meaning that for the most part, ponies in Canterlot or Appleoosa would never even dream of worrying about what sort of day it would be.
The only exception to the rule was Ponyville, and that was because it lay next to the only place in the entire nation that disobeyed all the rules and churned out it's own wind, clouds, rain, and thunder. And sometimes, very rarely, those fickle wind currents would bounce against the calm and ordered weather of Equestria, and it would cause ripples.
Unbeknownst to everypony, whilst Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy had been speaking, not one mile away, a storm had been brewing: the clouds had been amassing above the everfree, and slowly but surely, they turned green and headed, against all odds, straight for the town.
The Everfree had made a tornado, and one day later, long after it had been set in motion, the ponies of Ponyville looked up and saw it trample it's way towards them.
The tornado whirled around, snatching up fence posts, wayward junk and even the odd tree as it continued it's rampage from the Everfree forest. Ponies scattered away from it as it approached the small village of Ponyville.
Twilight widened her eyes as she desperately tried conjuring some kind of spell that might remove the horrible display of nature. Nothing seemed to work: rogue weather was almost impervious to pretty much every kind of magic she knew. She turned towards Spike.
“Did you send the letter to Celestia?” she asked, panicking. Spike nodded, and quickly belched forth a letter. Snatching it out of the air, he gave it a quick read, his eyes scrutinizing the paper as fast as only one who's primary purpose was reading mail could.
“She says the Wonderbolts are going to take ten minutes to get here!” he replied. Twilight looked over towards the massive tornado. She gulped: ten minutes might be too long.
“That isn't going to be soon enough...” she muttered. “We need to evacuate Ponyville...”
“But- what about our homes?” asked Applejack, her voice quiet, worried, even small. Twilight turned to the occupants of the library, which consisted of Spike, Applejack, Mayor Mare, and Rarity, who was busy collapsing on a divan. Twilight shook her head.
“I'm sorry, but Ponyville is as good as gone.” she declared strongly, mustering as much determination and grit as she could, and looked out of the balcony once again. “All that matters now is getting the ponies safe.”
Applejack nodded.
“O' course. Of course, you're right. Ah'll take the west side, and evacuate mah farm as well.” she said, and rushed outside, pushing the feelings of despair as far from her as possible. They would only weigh her down.
The streets Applejack ran through were darkened by the grey-green clouds overhead, the very air around her oppressive and heavy. It was as if the very atmosphere itself had doubled in weight.
The tornado loomed above it all, like a column supporting the sky. Several trees could be seen floating around the great chimney, if one dared to stand and look close enough, and the wind almost tore Applejack's hat right off her head, prompting the pony to look skyward to check the progress of the deadly and ruthless weather.
A rainbow flashed across the sky.
Applejack felt surprise stretch her eyes open further than they should. Surely that blockheaded pegasus wasn't trying to-
Of course she was.
The rainbow trail ducked under the flying debris in the opposite flow of the tornado, more flying junk and earth forcing Rainbow Dash to perform complex evasive manoeuvres. Applejack bit her lip nervously as she saw a tree graze the edge of the colourful pegasus, but it didn't stop the mare.
“Rainbow! Get outta there!” she shouted, in the vain hope she might hear her over the din of the gale, but of course, headed straight into the centre of the madness, there was no way she could.
Around five hundred wingpower, Rainbow estimated. Huh, pretty strong tornado for a rogue wind.
Rainbow Dash gritted her teeth and adjusted her goggles as she soared around the tornado, doing her best to use her own wingpower to slow the progress of the wayward weather. It wasn't doing much good: at her best she could manage twenty wingpower. Flying opposite a tornado did not create a working environment that would allow for her best. She'd have to be inventive instead.
She looked back at Ponyville. She guessed three minutes until the village got hit. That gave her three minutes to think of something. Hopefully it wouldn't take her too long-
Idea.
Pulling away from the tornado, she soared over the village, her wings spread wide as she rocketed across the sky, her rainbow trail leaving a brilliant pattern for the villagers below to follow. As the wind was pulled in her wake, carefully directed by the pegasus's precise talent and skill, she gently began to turn around, pulling the now massive gale behind her. The winds she carried with her buffeted at her trail, making it seem like she was on multi-coloured fire.
Once she had angled herself towards the tornado, she began to gain speed.
This was do or die. If she had made a mistake, chances were she wouldn't be able to pull out of the tornado.
She hit the tornado like a bullet, shooting through the torrent of winds, her aerodynamically appropriate form plunging half way through. By contrast, the winds she carried with her hit the tornado like a sledgehammer, knocking the tornado on it's side. The hurricane's balance was upset just enough to allow Rainbow Dash to exit the tornado through the other side, and as she turned to look back on her work, she grinned as her plan came to fruition. The tornado was breaking up into an army of insignificant gales, split apart by the shock-wave of the massive wind she had created. She threw her hoof into the air, a massive smile breaking across her face.
“Yeah! That's how we do it in Ponyville!” she bellowed.
It took a few minutes for everypony to notice that the tornado had gone... it took them a great deal longer to exit their homes and trot towards the place where it had once stood.
It took them a grand total of five seconds to begin cheering for the pony who had stopped it.
“Way to go!”, was the first Rainbow was able to hear.
“Awesome!” was the most recurring.
“We love you, Rainbow Dash!” was her particular favourite.
Rainbow let herself simply bask in the adulation of the townsfolk, incredibly proud of her success. Single hoofedly defeating a tornado was the stuff of legend, and she knew it. She flicked her mane to the side, grinning.
“Aw, yeah!” she exclaimed. She kept on grinning... that is, until she saw a familiar face in the crowd. She froze.
Those familiar freckles... an orange coat the colour of old decay... and those acid green eyes peering out from under that shadowy, foreboding stetson...
Applejack.
Rainbow Dash backed away slightly.
“Okay... you can do this... she'd never... way too many witnesses.” she consoled herself as she forced a smile on her face. To her relief, Twilight was there as well: she was a magical bad-ass, so if Applejack tried anything, she'd regret it, right? Right.
The pair walked up to Rainbow Dash, amazement evident on their faces.
“That was incredible! I'm pretty sure it's scientifically impossible, but you-” Twilight began. Applejack just grinned evilly, like she was plotting some kind of revenge for stealing her spotlight.
“Way to go, Rainbow.” she said sarcastically, leering at Rainbow. The pegasus gulped, her recent victory bolstering her confidence, but not removing her fear.
“It was, uh, nothing.” she said, her voice barely a whimper. Don't hurt me, don't hurt me, don't hurt me...
“You know what this means?” came an energetic voice, almost a scream, as Pinkie Pie burst from the ground between them, earth splattering Rainbow, and some of it hitting her in the eye. “A Rainbow-Dash-Saves-The-Day-PARTY!”
Rainbow Dash began to sweat as she contemplated her immediate future. Right now, she just wanted to get back home and lock the door.
Aw, who was she kidding? She's just get nightmares anyway. She could never escape Applejack...
There was never any escape.
The party was held at the library, because where else celebrate than a place where you're not usually allowed to talk too loudly? Thank goodness nopony actually used the library for it's intended purpose, otherwise the idea would make no sense at all. There was punch, balloons, and somehow, thanks to Pinkie, an ice sculpture of Rainbow Dash engaging in a punch up with a tornado. Pinkie was leaping from group to group, making sure everypony, and that meant everypony feel welcome.
The only pony it wasn't working on was Rainbow Dash, who was backed up in the corner. The opposite corner, specifically, to Applejack. She nervously took a sip out of her punch, before setting it down on the table next to her. She eyed Fluttershy, who was engaging in conversation with the cowpony in question.
Confound it. Now that she needed her friend and confidant, she was cavorting with the very pony that terrified her. She couldn't leave, either. Ponies would start talking. It would look weird.
She had a reputation to maintain.
She just had to be brave...
Rainbow Dash could be brave, right? She had flown right into a tornado, kicked a dragon on the nose, saved the wonderbolts... She was the bravest pony around. Right?
Rainbow Dash sighed. She didn't feel Brave. In fact, she felt like the exact opposite of brave.
“I just wanna go home...” she moaned. Pinkie bounced towards her.
“Hello, Dashie! You okay? You look down. You should be up! Why you so down?”
“I, uh, fine! I'm fine.” she exclaimed, quickly taking a large gulp out of her punch, and aligning Pinkie between her and Applejack. Pinkie tilted her head, not quite reconciling the visual truth that was Rainbow's discomfort, and the verbal reassurance.
“Okie dokie! You want more punch?”
Rainbow Dash nodded.
“Yes please.” she said. “Hurry!”
Pinkie quickly passed another glass to Rainbow Dash. She quickly drank it all, emptying the glass with ruthless efficiency, formulating an ironclad plan.
“Thanks. Uh, darn, I drank too much punch. I, um, need to head to the bathroom.” she exclaimed, and hurried upstairs.
She quickly locked the door and slumped against the wall, almost hyperventilating. She slowed her breathing, doing her best to collect herself as she enjoyed the solitude in the empty bathroom, far away from Applejack.
The door was knocked. She widened here eyes.
“Hurry up in there!” came the southern voice of the most feared pony in all of Equestria. Rainbow Dash gasped and backed away from the door. Applejack.
“How'd you find me?” she demanded, quickly rushing towards the window and fumbling with the lock. “Open, darn it! Open!”
“Hey, whoever y'all are, I got four glasses of punch looking for a new home, so could'ya please get goin'?”
Rainbow Dash finally got the window open and desperately climbed out, furiously pounding her wings and throwing herself across the skies.
“Thanks for the party, Pinkie!” she screamed back, hoping that would count as a successfully nonchalant goodbye. Pinkie simply leant out of the window and screamed back:
“You're welcome!”
Fluttershy and Twilight both watched as the cyan pegasus flew away across the night sky, like the whips of her weather manager was behind her. Twilight bore a look of confusion, and Fluttershy a look of worry. Both of them turned around quickly as the sound of pounding hooves on the stairs drew their attention.
“Ne'ermind, Ah'll go outside!” exclaimed Applejack as she shot through the door.
“What was all that about?” Twilight asked. Fluttershy looked around desperately, then shrugged.
“Um, nothing, I'm sure. Rainbow probably has training tomorrow.”
Applejack entered the library again, her face bearing a far more relaxed expression than she had previously.
“Aw, shucks, Ah missed talkin' to Rainbow. Ah haven't seen her all day!” she exclaimed as she heard what had happened. “Well, aside from on the hill, but that don' count.”
“I'm sure you'll see her later.” Twilight said. Applejack sighed, and shrugged.
“If you say so. Ah keep feeling like she's avoiding me or somethin'.” Applejack confessed, looking a little downcast at her friends apparent abandonment.
“That's, um, absurd?” offered Fluttershy. Twilight began to speak in an effor to cheer her friend up.
“Hey, there's the annual Apple Harvest Tournament coming up, right? Surely Rainbow'll partake in the race, right?” she said. Applejack perked up at that.
“Of course I'll take part in the race!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “Why wouldn't I? I always run in the tournament.” she said. Fluttershy bit her lip.
“Well, because, um, of Applejack?” she pointed out. Rainbow Dash went pale.
“B-but... right. It's fine, I'll... I'll think of something.” she said. Fluttershy sighed.
“Listen, last night you could barely stand in the same room as her and forced Twilight to get a locksmith for her bathroom door. Not to mention you made Applejack... um, ruin some of Carrot Top's crops.” she said. Rainbow Dash chuckled nervously.
“It's, uh, good for plants I hear.” Rainbow Dash retorted awkwardly.
“That's what Applejack said when Carrot Top found her. But, really, I think you should try talking this out with Applejack now.”
Rainbow Dash shook her head.
“No way. I got a better idea! Practising being around Applejack.” she said, grinning. “I'm gonna need your help! Last night, since I couldn't sleep because of nightmares and stuff, I planned up an entire course to help me get over my fear of Applejack.” she said. Fluttershy nodded, worried about what this might entail.
“Okay... how can I help?” she asked, just knowing that this would end in her formulating an excuse to somepony.
Rainbow Dash crept nervously through the trees, breathing heavily. She could be around any corner, jump out at any minute...
She trod on something. Looking down, she jumped back, terror on her face. An apple.
She was close.
Rainbow Dash continued on her way through the light forest before she saw her, a barely visible shadow behind the trees. The cowpony hat was unmistakable, and the brown fur was recognizable a mile away.
“Ah, um, am here to buck apples!” Fluttershy exclaimed in a very poor rendition of Applejack's country twang. Rainbow Dash stumbled backwards, eyes wide. The disguise was so lifelike... it was as if Applejack really was there, sizing her up, planning, ready to use that lasso as a strangely creative torture device...
“N-no! Get away!” she screamed, and turned tail and ran. Fluttershy sighed and removed the hat as Rainbow Dash sped away.
“I guess the sixth time isn't the charm...” Fluttershy muttered to herself, putting her hoof to her forehead.
Rainbow Dash continued running, tears of unadulterated terror streaming from her eyes as she put distance between her and the fake Applejack.
“No, no, nononono...” she gurgled as she passed between trees. She had to get away... she could be there any minute now...
“Howdy, partner!” Applejack exclaimed as Rainbow Dash bumped into the terrifying cowpony. Rainbow looked at the oh-so-real face of evil itself and screamed before flapping her wings and flying up into the sky, almost performing a sonic rainboom out of a desire to escape. Applejack looked up in shocked surprise. “What in tarnation?” she muttered. Fluttershy trotted out of the trees. Applejack looked at her, confused. Why was Fluttershy wearing a cheap prop hat and had dusted her coat to look like some off-colour brown?
“What are y'all doing?” she asked, her mind utterly dashed on the rocks of this insane situation. Fluttershy widened her eyes as she pieced together what had happened.
“Um. Roleplaying? For a, um, western?”
Applejack was silent for a few seconds. Fluttershy gulped, before in a desperate move, throwing her hoof from her side out towards Applejack.
“Draw!”
More silence.
“And y'all didn't invite me?”
Those green eyes. They were almost draconian. The way they stared, peeling away your soul and revealing the weak core of your being... before laughing and crushing it beneath iron hooves. Rainbow Dash looked away. She shuddered.
No, I'm stronger than this, she thought to herself. She had almost blew it in front of Applejack earlier. Thank goodness Fluttershy was a real good friend. And a master at deception, too, apparently, like it could be her element or something.
She turned back towards the picture of Applejack, holding the gaze for as long as she could. She needed to at least be able to look her in the eyes... for when she won the race tomorrow. Applejack just stared back, that frozen, puppet-like grin on her face, stuck there as if it would never move from that very position.
“You're just a picture.” Rainbow Dash declared, even though she couldn't quite believe it. “I'm not afraid of you.”
Those green eyes.
“...not very afraid of you.”
That grin... like a clown. A scary, evil clown. But less silly.
Rainbow Dash growled, fed up with her own terror.
“You can't ruin my life anymore!” she exclaimed, and smashed her hoof into the picture. It didn't do anything aside from crumple the paper, but suddenly Rainbow Dash felt way more confident. She had struck the dreaded Apple and survived. She grinned. “No more!”
As the racers lined up, Rainbow Dash stretched her neck and legs, preparing eagerly for the race. The track was a simple straight line, a mile long. She was between Bon-Bon and Twilight, which she had to admit she was glad about. Despite her surge of confidence, she wasn't too keen on being next to Applejack, who was a few contestants to her left.
The straps around her wings chafed a little. An annoying reminder of her running of the leaves race. Despite her good intentions on this event, most ponies weren't going to let her have free access to her wings. Just in case.
She eyed Fluttershy, who was over in the stands. She waved happily at Rainbow. She remembered her words before Rainbow had gotten onto the track.
“You can do this! You're the bravest pony I know.” she had encouraged. Rainbow Dash grinned awkwardly. Once again, she was beginning to doubt this was true.
“On your marks!” shouted Pinkie, who had managed to somehow intimidate her way into the position of announcer. Probably because she had a balloon. Ponies loved balloons.
Rainbow Dash put her hoof on the line in front of her, lowering herself into a ready position. She saw all the other contestants do the same. Then she fixed her gaze on the finish line.
“Get set!”
She angled her body to throw itself forward when she kicked off.
“Go!”
Rainbow Dash ran. The immediate gallop was both fast, and powerful. She quickly overtook both Twilight and Bon Bon, rushing forwards with the apparent speed of a bullet. She passed Derpy, Vinyl, and a few others she didn't know. And she eventually, near half way, got ahead of Applejack, much to Rainbow's delight.
In the midst of the action and exitement, she forgot about her fear. Unfortunately, not at all willing to give up, Applejack was quick to remind her. As Rainbow pulled ahead, Applejack growled menacingly.
“Ah'm gonna get ya, Rainbow!” she exclaimed as she pushed herself even harder, eager to beat her rival. Rainbow Dash began screaming.
In the stands, Fluttershy gasped, bringing her hooves to her mouth. The other ponies look on, dumbstruck.
Rainbow Dash crossed the finish line in mere seconds. Applejack gaped as she realized the massive acceleration that Rainbow had managed to pull off. Twilight gasped. Rainbow had gone from near two thirds of the track to the finish line in only a small handful of seconds, pulling in front of everypony by a massive distance.
Applejack eventually crossed the finish line in second place. The crowd suddenly remembered where they were, what they were doing, and what was expected of them, and all cheered.
Fluttershy smiled awkwardly. She alone knew the real reason behind Rainbow Dash's massive burst of seemingly impossible speed. That smile turned to panic as she saw that Rainbow wasn't stopping, and simply kept on running at that impossible to maintain velocity, creating a strange wake behind her that dragged papers and leaves behind her as she rushed through Ponyville.
Applejack and Twilight both stopped, panting.
“The hay was that? Ah never seen her run like that before!” Applejack commented. Twilight nodded.
“Yeah. That was... impressive.”
“Ah reckon she's been training real hard.” Applejack said, smiling. “Ah'm gonna have to step up mah game if Ah want to keep up.”
Twilight nodded.
“Yes. That was incredible. I didn't think anypony could run like that. Flying, sure, but on foot?”
Applejack sat down heavily, as she grabbed a bottle of water and drank it down entirely. “Looks like ah finish second this time. Well, there's always next year.” she said, a little disappointed.
Fluttershy joined them shortly after, whilst Pinkie was still busy yammering about Rainbow Dash's spectacular win in the meantime over her megaphone. She hadn't even been able to count the number of noses between Rainbow and Applejack by the time she had crossed the finish line, which was apparently a source of some distress for the pink pony.
“My, um. Great race everypony!” Fluttershy exclaimed. Applejack chuckled.
“No need to sugarcoat it, Flutters. We both know that it was Rainbow Dash who really stole this show.” she said. “Where is that pony anyhow?”
“She probably needed the bathroom?” Fluttershy suggested. Applejack chuckled.
“Well, ah know what that feels like. Too bad, Ah still couldn't get a few words with her.” Applejack said, suddenly looking dejected. “Ah'm startin' to miss her.”
“C'mon, Applejack, surely you must see her all the time. She naps in your trees constantly.” Twilight said. Applejack shook her head.
“Not since ages! And Ah've barely exchanged two words since outside of that!”
Fluttershy was about to try coming up with a new excuse when they heard Pinkie Pie bellowing.
“Oh my gosh! Rainbow's hurt!” she exclaimed. From her vantage point in her balloon, she could still see the rainbow pony, lying face down in the grass, twitching frantically. Reacting immediately, they all rushed towards their fallen friend, not wasting time exclaiming their surprise, shock, or confusion.
Once they reached her, on the other side of Ponyville, Applejack whistled.
“Horsefeathers! She's all cramped up!” she said, looking at her friend, who was little more than a bundle of knotted muscle at this point. However when Rainbow looked up at her, she tried backing away, resulting in little more than even more pain.
“No! Stay back!” she screamed. Applejack widened her eyes.
“She talking to me?” she asked, confused. Fluttershy put her hoof on Applejack, and slowly pulled her away.
“I'll explain later, but you really should go back a bit.”
“Why? What's wrong?” Applejack asked as Twilight tried soothing out some of Rainbow's muscles. She was still screaming, but less out of pain and more out of mind numbing terror. Applejack had her, and she couldn't run, hide, or fight back. She was utterly helpless. It was the worst possible scenario.
“Rainbow's having a bit of a hard time right now, and right now she needs you to leave.” Fluttershy said, her voice harder. Applejack looked at Fluttershy, bewildered.
“Okay... okay, sugarcube.” she said, and slowly walked away. Fluttershy sighed as Applejack left, noting that the farmpony's face was the very depiction of sad bewilderment. That could have gone better.
“Argh! Stupid cramps!” Rainbow exclaimed as Twilight tried extending one of Rainbow's legs.
Applejack eventually made her way to Sweet Apple Acres. She trudged inside, pushing past her brother rudely. Big Macintosh could tell when something was wrong with his sister, and he frowned.
“Y'okay, sis?” he asked. Applejack sniffed. Big Macintosh widened his eyes when he realized that Applejack was on the brink of tears. He went over to his sister. “Wha's wrong?”
Applejack rubbed a hoof over her eyes. “Ah think Rainbow don't like me no more.” she muttered. Big Macintosh raised his eyebrow.
“What makes you say that? Y'all hang out all the time?”
“No, we don't!” Applejack retorted, her voice cracking slightly. “She's always running away, and she's got all these excuses... pardon, Fluttershy has all these excuses, but whenever Ah see her it's like she's seen a ghost and runs away. And the way Flutters was acting earlier...” Applejack explained before looking down at her hooves, utterly dejected. “Ah think Rainbow hates me.”
Big Macintosh put his hoof around his sister in the most consoling way he knew how. He had no idea what this was all about, but if it was hurting his sister like this, well, he'd best go and investigate.
*
Rainbow Dash was lain out on the couch at Sugarcube corner. She was unable to fly properly after cramping up in that spectacular manner, and so slept over at Pinkie's place. She hadn't been able to sleep properly, either. Whenever she tried, she just saw Applejack's leering face, whispering: 'Ah'm gonna get ya, sugarcube...'
At least it wasn't one of those graphic nightmares. She wasn't cutting her up into slices alongside her apples or anything. Or drowning her in cider. The simple memory of some of those was enough to make Rainbow jump in fright.
“I promise to talk to you tomorrow, Rainbow, okay?” Fluttershy had said before she left. It was late, and neither wanted to go over the events of the day after such an ordeal. And so Fluttershy had gone back home, and Rainbow Dash had tried relaxing.
She hoped she hadn't hurt Applejack too much. Despite the terror she incited, she knew she was a good pony. It was like knowing spiders were harmless, but being afraid of them all the same. It was unreasonable, like any phobia. Fear of dying was real, but fear of clowns? One was called a phobia, the other basic survival instinct.
It was around eleven when Rainbow Dash went to the kitchen to try to get some breakfast. She rubbed her eyes. A Sunday, so the store was closed. She raided the fridge quickly, pulling out a half eaten cake. She licked her lips in anticipation. Pulling the cake out of the fridge, she turned to go back into the living room.
“Rainbow, we need to talk.” Applejack said as she stood in the doorway. Rainbow Dash dropped the cake, her hooves going limp, the delicious bakery splattering on the floor, the plate shattering into tiny pieces.
Big Macintosh knocked on Fluttershy's door methodically. He remembered Applejack talking about her last night, and thought that perhaps she would have answers for him. And he needed them quick. He was pretty sure he saw Applejack heading over towards the Sugarcube Corner earlier, and that meant that there was a chance Applejack could get hurt... again.
Fluttershy opened the door, peering out from behind it.
“Oh, Big Macintosh! What are you doing here?” she asked. The red stallion nodded.
“Ah'm here to ask about Rainbow Dash and mah sister?” he said. “AJ hinted you might know something.”
Fluttershy squeaked.
“Um, I promised Rainbow I wouldn't say anything...” she murmured. Big Macintosh stomped his hoof angrily.
“AJ came home almost in tears yesterday, an' Ah want to know why!” he declared. Fluttershy widened her eyes, shocked.
“Applejack was crying... oh dear, I think you should come inside.” she said, opening her door wide. Big Macintosh trotted inside, his head almost scraping the ceiling.
“So tell me what's been goin' on.” he said. Fluttershy sat down.
“Well... first off, it's nopony's fault. Rainbow started getting dreams about Applejack.”
Big Macintosh widened his eyes. He instantly regretted this decision.
Fluttershy saw the look on his face. She face-hoofed.
“Oh, now I see how it must have been for Rainbow... not like that. Rainbow started having nightmares. In them, Applejack was doing all sorts of mean things.” she said. Big Macintosh looked at her in confusion.
“What kind of mean things?” he asked, curious. “What do you mean?”
Fluttershy racked her brain, trying to recall an example that Rainbow had used.
“There was this one where Applejack hooked her up to an apple-press machine and laughed whilst Rainbow was getting crushed...”
“Ah. Tha' kind.” Big Mac muttered, no stranger to the odd nightmare himself.
“After a bit, Rainbow Dash couldn't even look at her without getting scared, and it sort of got worse from there. It's developed into a fully fledged fear, I think, and I was trying to help her through it, but yesterday at the race, I think Rainbow thought that Applejack was chasing her, and she got really scared.”
Big Mac chuckled a little.
“This is a bit funny.”
“I know, but it's really tearing Rainbow apart. And yesterday, when Applejack was trying to help her, she was just screaming at her to get away. I think it really hurt Applejack, but I had no idea she was so upset...” Fluttershy explained. “She thinks Applejack is out to kill her or something. I don't know what she'd do at this point... I was going to try calling the doctors.”
Big Mac frowned.
“You don' know what she'd do?” he asked.
“Yes, Rainbow's got a temper and I've never seen her this scared before. I'm really worried for her....”
Big Macintosh remembered Applejack heading over to the Sugarcube Corner.
“And Ah'm worried 'bout mah sister...”
Rainbow Dash backed away slowly, fear numbing her mind as she began stumbling, unable to control her own limbs as all of her nightmares and the memories of yesterday came flooding back, exacerbated by the pain of her recent cramps
.
“No. No, nonononono...” she began muttering as she tripped over her own hooves trying to get away. Fear had eroded her common sense, replacing her rational thoughts with instinctive reaction.
“Ah just want to know what's going on, Rainbow! We used to be friends, now it's like you're never around!” Applejack exclaimed loudly.
Applejack's laughter rung in Rainbow's ears. She put her hooves over them in a desperate attempt to drown the sound out, but it didn't work.
“Leave me alone! Go away!” she shouted. Applejack stomped her hoof angrily.
“No! Ah want to know what ah did to deserve this! Ah think ah deserve at least an explanation!” she shouted back. Rainbow Dash scrambled away, shell shocked by the noise. Applejack's angry face filled her vision. She tried spreading her wings, but they quickly cramped up, residual effects from yesterday. Her hooves scrambled around for something she could use to defend herself with. They found their way around a rather vicious bread knife, and she held it between the two like a shield.
“Get back! Back!” she screamed. Applejack widened her eyes. Rainbow Dash wasn't exactly intimidating, huddled in the corner, even with the knife. She could barely look at her.
Was she afraid?
“Okay, sugarcube. Relax, Ah'm not going to hurt you.” she said, holding her hooves up peacefully, beginning to realize that something was very wrong with her friend. Rainbow Dash had her eyes closed and was repeating: 'go away' to herself endlessly. Applejack gulped. She could barely believe this was the same Rainbow she used to know.
“Ah'm your friend.” she pointed out, but Rainbow couldn't seem to hear her. Rainbow just kept her eyes tightly shut, as if she was trying to wake up from some horrible dream. Applejack stood stock still, not wanting to make any sudden movements that might surprise or provoke her friend. “Why don't you put the knife down, sugarcube?”
Rainbow's eyes snapped open.
“That's just what you want, right? So you can use my blood to fertilize your stupid apple trees, huh? Well it isn't going to happen!” she exclaimed, and rushed to her hooves, the knife aimed at Applejack.
The cowpony barely reacted. She just felt pain in her side, and took a few groggy steps back, blinking in confusion. Rainbow Dash screamed and ran, smashing through the window and cantered away.
Applejack looked at the knife in her side, her survival instincts kicking in at last. Okay, not a fatal would. Still, she could suffer from blood loss if she didn't treat it soon...
Big Macintosh and Fluttershy burst inside. Applejack looked over at both of them.
“A little help here?” she said, doing her best not to panic.
Rainbow Dash was at the border of the Everfree forest, panting, unable to wrap her head around what had happened. She was pretty sure she had stabbed Applejack, and then broken Pinkie Pie's window.
She held her head in her hooves. Fear washed over her, but a different kind of fear this time. Not for herself, but for Applejack. She thumped her hoof against a tree stump.
“Stupid! Stupid, stupid, stupid!” she exclaimed, punctuating each word with another thump. She had tried to kill one of her best friends. Because of some stupid phobia! Since when had fear began to govern her life, anyway?
Maybe she should just go. Ponyville was probably better without some crazy knife wielding pony anyway. It wasn't like she'd have any friends anymore anyway after today... heck, she'd be lucky if she just got sent to a psychiatric ward as opposed to a prison. She groaned. She had really ruined her life this time around.
And all of that didn't compare to the guilt she felt at what happened to Applejack. It was monstrous, and insane, that it had come to this. Maybe if she had taken Fluttershy's advice and gone to Applejack from the start, at the cost of her reputation, this would never have happened.
What good was her reputation anyway? It wasn't going to help her now. So what if ponies called her a scaredy-cat for it? At least that didn't end up hurting her friends...
She thumped the stump one last time for good measure, and got to her hooves.
“-...and that's why she's absolutely terrified of you.” Fluttershy finished as they wrapped the bandage around Applejack's side. The farmpony looked positively shocked at the news, and at what she had done to her friend.
“Ah had no idea. Why didn't she tell me?” she asked, her voice little more than a squeak.
“I think she was scared.” Fluttershy replied. Applejack rolled her eyes.
“Stupid question, Ah guess. What do we do now?” she asked. Big Macintosh frowned.
“We find her. She needs help, and she's obviously a danger to everypony.” he said. Applejack looked towards the bread knife, still stained with some of her blood. She winced.
“No argument here. Ah can't believe ah was so stupid...” she said. “Ah can't believe Ah drove her to this...”
Big Macintosh shook his head.
“You did no such thing. This ain't nopony's fault, but we got to act on what's happenin' in the now.” he said. Fluttershy nodded.
“I agree. At first I thought you just intimidated her, but I underestimated just how scared she was. I feel as much to blame as you do, but I can't dwell on that.”
Applejack nodded slowly, wincing as she stood up, levelling her gaze with Fluttershy's. As ineffective as the blow had been, a stab wound was a stab wound, and it hurt. Big Mac frowned.
“You sure you shouldn't see a doctor?”
“If Ah see a doctor, Ah'll have to explain how Ah got stabbed. Ah ain't doing that t'Rainbow until Ah know more.”
Big Mac grunted, unconvinced.
“Let's head out.” he said, but before he could get anywhere, they all heard movement from the broken window. Before them stood the easily recognizable sky coloured coat, and the spectrum mane. Rainbow Dash never took her eyes off Applejack.
“Rainbow! You came back!” Fluttershy exclaimed. Rainbow Dash panted slightly.
“Is Applejack okay? I- I didn't mean to...” she began, but Applejack stopped her.
“Ah'm fine, but you need to relax. Breathe.” she said. Rainbow Dash let herself smile a little.
“Cool, I'd hate to have hurt you badly...” she said. Big Macintosh glared at her.
“You stabbed mah sister. Ah think that qualifies as hurt badly.” he said. Rainbow Dash's face fell.
“Hush, brother. Ah'm fine, it just stings is all. Y'all need a minute, sugarcube?” she asked Rainbow. Rainbow Dash shook her head.
“Nuh uh. I'm okay... I think. For now.” she said. “But I should probably go. I get it if you don't want me around anymore...”
“Nonsense, we jus' need to figure out how to fix this is all.” Applejack said. Rainbow chuckled.
“I don't know how.”
“That's easy, y'all just talk it out. To me.” Applejack said. She turned to Big Mac and Fluttershy. “Can y'all gimme a minute?” she asked. She turned back to Rainbow Dash, who suddenly looked a little more frightened. “If that's okay with you, that is?” she asked. Rainbow Dash gulped.
“I'll try.” she muttered. Big Mac sighed.
“You sure 'bout this?”
“Positive. If Ah need help, Ah'll holler.” she said. The two then slowly made their way outside. Applejack grunted as she sat down. Rainbow Dash was still transfixed in the window.
“Why'd you come back?” she asked, tilting her head to the side.
“'Cause I hurt a friend, even if she is scary.” Rainbow said. Applejack nodded. At least there was some of the old Rainbow left: she'd never leave a friend in danger, and she must have felt incredibly guilty at having hurt her.
“Ah have to ask... why am Ah so scary?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. Rainbow Dash gulped.
“I'm not sure that's a good idea...”
“C'mon. Humour me.” Applejack said. “Ah can take it.”
Rainbow Dash took a deep breath.
“You're sort of quiet and broody and it always looks like you're planning something and you're eyes are this poisonous green thing and they sort of glow under your hat and your grin looks like you want to eat me and use my bone meal for fertilizer and you live on a farm and you could bury me there and nopony would ever know and you're crazy good with ropes so in my nightmares you often tie me up and slowly cut bits of me off and your laugh is the stuff of pure evil and you're obsessed with apples and you often use them to torture me don't ask me how and your entire family sometimes in my mind acts like a mob and you can tell when ponies are lying and you know every hiding spot in Ponyville so I can't hide and you're strong so I can't fight and...”
“Okay, partner, slow down.” Applejack said, as Rainbow Dash looked like she wasn't done twisting nearly every aspect of her personality to suit her own horrific imagination. The tirade hurt Applejack more than she had guessed. “Ah had no idea you thought of me that way.” she said. Rainbow Dash looked down at her hooves. “Y'know half of that don't make sense?”
“I don't want to think it, I just do. I've never been scared of anything before.”
“Ah can tell. An' don't worry, Ah won't tell nopony.” Applejack reassured, sensing one of the reasons that had kept this a secret for so long. To her surprise, Rainbow Dash rebelled against the idea.
“I don't care, you can tell whoever you want. Tell them to avoid me. I'm dangerous.”
Applejack paused, beginning to grasp the extent of Rainbow's concern, and felt bad because of it, like she was part of the problem that drove her friend to such extreme opinions about herself. Rainbow Dash's reputation meant the world to her: to sacrifice it for her friends was one of the most selfless things she could ever do.
“Ah'm real sorry Ah didn't see this before. Ah was just concerned about mahself, and that you weren't spending time with me no more.”
Rainbow Dash chuckled.
“Well, in your defence, you weren't wrong.”
“What Ah don't understand is how you could... forget who Ah am. What we done together. We went through a whole lot back in the day.”
“I know... I know! I don't understand either.”
Silence passed. Finally, Applejack spoke up.
“You want to take a break?”
“Yes please.” Rainbow said. Applejack stood up. Rainbow flinched. Not that much progress made in one conversation, then, Applejack thought.
Twilight broke down laughing.
“This will make one heck of a letter to the princess!” she exclaimed in between guffaws. Fluttershy and Applejack both frowned.
“You do know this led to me getting mahself stabbed, right?” she asked, gesturing to the bandages around her side. Twilight instantly stopped laughing.
“Not funny anymore. I suppose you want my help, right?”
Fluttershy nodded.
“Yes. I tried talking it out with her, and then we tried role-playing, but neither worked.” she said. Twilight frowned.
“That sounds strange. Not the role-playing, the-. Well, it's like, if you described it correctly, that she has hard-wired her brain to associate Applejack with danger. There's probably a reason there, though, but I don't know what it is. I'd need more time and data.” she said. Applejack rolled her eyes.
“Ah don't need to know why, just how to fix it. She's a nervous wreck whenever Ah'm near. Forget about saving our friendship, her life might well be ruined at this point. Ah don't want to see that happen to her.”
Twilight sighed.
“Understanding why she thinks what she thinks might be the key to fixing her.” she explained. “It's all here in my psychology book... hey, where'd it go?”
“In my house. Um. I borrowed it.” Fluttershy said. Twilight widened her eyes.
“You mean people come here to borrow books?”
“Well, I don't know about you, but this reminds me an awful lot about when we were all afraid of Princess Luna.” Rarity pointed out, as she spoke for the first time. The other ponies all turned towards her. Rarity sighed. “Once we spend a bit of time with her, we found out she was a really sweet and gentle pony at heart.”
Applejack nodded.
“So if Ah spend more time with her, then she might... Ah dunno, reprogram hersel' or whatever?”
“It's certainly worth a shot.” Rarity said. Twilight frowned.
“I don't know. It could just make it worse.” she said. Applejack snorted.
“Well, Ah'm not sitting around here doin' nothin'. Ah'll schedule a little meeting with her and we'll work from there. It can't be any different from dealin' with a scared calf. Y'know how they get.”
“Rainbow Dash isn't a cow, Applejack.” Twilight pointed out. Rarity chuckled.
“Sometimes eats like one.” she commented jokingly. Twilight did not see the humour.
“That's for pigs, Rarity. Cow's are for comparing a pony's size.”
“Way to kill the joke, Twily.” Pinkie chuckled.
“Whatever. Twi, can Ah borrow your library for a bit? Ah think it'd go down much better if we talked here and not at the farm. Ah think she might also be scared of apples in general.”
Fluttershy walked Rainbow Dash to the door of the library. It was late evening. A day had passed after they had decided to schedule regular Applejack and Rainbow Dash sessions, and this was their first try.
“It's okay, she won't hurt you. She promised she'd stay on her side of the room, and we'll be right outside if ever you need us.” Fluttershy said. Rainbow Dash gulped.
“K-kay.”
“Don't worry, she's a really nice pony.” Fluttershy added, as if talking to a filly.
Rainbow Dash gulped, and opened the door. Applejack was standing, as promised, on her side of the room. She smiled, making sure not to grin. Rainbow Dash found her grin creepy, right? She also took off her hat. Her hat was also scary. Ugh, this was going to be tricky.
“Hey there, RD!”
Rainbow Dash was brutally shoved inside the room by Fluttershy. Fluttershy slammed the door before Rainbow Dash could escape. The pegasus threw herself over the door, trying to claw through it.
“It'll be fine! I promise!” Fluttershy exclaimed from the other side of the door. Rainbow Dash whimpered.
“Pinkie swear?”
“I pinkie swear.”
“Do the thing!”
“Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”
Rainbow Dash slowly turned to face her worst fear:
Applejack.
“Howdy.”
“Hi.” Rainbow Dash replied, her voice so high pitched, it was barely perceptible at all. Applejack looked over at her hooves, then out the window.
“Mighty nice weather we got, right?”
“Yeah.”
Applejack suddenly found herself at a loss for words. Where usually she could talk to Rainbow Dash for hours on end, she was now utterly clueless. She shifted her weight to her left, leaning awkwardly on her two left legs. Rainbow Dash leapt back.
“Don't hu- Um. You're leaning.” she commented. Applejack nodded.
“Eeyup. Ah'm a leaner.”
“Sorry. I thought you were going to... I dunno, pounce on me or something.” Rainbow Dash said. Applejack chuckled.
“If Ah was going to pounce on y'all, it weren't be to hurt you.” she replied, smiling softly. Rainbow Dash gulped.
“But you might pounce?”
“No.” Applejack replied, cursing herself for even attempting light heartedness.
“Ohthankgoodness...”
Applejack laughed. How was it that even though Rainbow Dash would charge head first into a tornado, she would have a nervous breakdown facing one of her closest friends? It utterly boggled the mind.
Rainbow took the laughter the wrong way, though.
“What? What? What?” she demanded. Applejack tried placating her.
“Nothin', Ah just found it funny that you're jumping at nothing even though nothin' else even makes you hesitate.”
Rainbow Dash snorted.
“It isn't funny!”
“It is a bit.”
Rainbow narrowed her eyes. Applejack turned her head to one side.
“Do Ah still scare ya'?”
“N-not as much, I guess.”
“Want to get closer, then?” she asked. Rainbow Dash gulped.
“Um. I don't know...”
“Give it a shot?” Applejack asked. Rainbow took a deep breath and took a handful of steps forwards. Applejack didn't move, but after those few steps, Rainbow stopped.
“Um. I can't move.” she said. Applejack looked at Rainbow's hooves. They were shaking, but they indeed weren't moving other than that.
“Okay, then leave it at that for today. It's a good start, right?” she said, smiling. Rainbow Dash nodded.
“Yeah. Yeah, I guess.”
“Right. In a few weeks we can be just like before. Just a few steps at a time.” Applejack declared. Rainbow Dash chuckled nervously.
“Uhm, sure. Sure thing.” she replied.
The forest was dark, but not so dark that Rainbow Dash couldn't see them. Like wounds, the dark red dripped from the trees like blood. In fact, they were liquid, and flowed down around her hooves, through the grass, staining her fur a dark, grimy purple.
The orchard was empty save for the sound of her panicked breathing, her hooves on the ground, and that awful laughter. Like the cackling of some insane witch, it approached.
The blood on the ground made her hooves stick to the grass. She tried tearing away at it, but it was like tar. Her hooves were stuck.
She was trapped.
Rainbow Dash turned around, hoping against hope that she wouldn't be behind her.
She was. Eyes like flash-lights looked at her, a venomous grin spread wide across her face. Her tongue traced the edges of her teeth.
“What's wrong, sugarcube? You want some apples?” she asked, holding one of the disgusting blood fruit in her hoof. Rainbow shook her head desperately.
“No! I don't want any of your-”
Applejack violently shoved the fruit in her mouth. The blood oozed down her throat and across her chin. Rainbow gagged, trying to throw up the disgusting poison, and failing.
Applejack was now holding an apple-peeler.
“I want to wake up!” she screamed. Applejack chuckled.
“You can't wake up... you can't wake up until Ah'm done...” she said, and brought the peeler to Rainbow's skin.
Rainbow Dash finally woke up, screaming and panting. That was a new one. A longer one. She ran her hoof across her fur, making sure her skin was, indeed still there.
She heard that most ponies woke up before getting stabbed, or when they fell, or whatever. Not her. She had to live through the whole torturous ordeal, right until Applejack decided it was time to kill her plaything.
Rainbow Dash looked over towards Tank. He looked to be sleeping peacefully. At least one of them was, she thought bitterly. She ran her hoof through her mane, and got out of bed.
And ponies wondered why she napped during the day so often. If she could sleep at night, maybe she'd see more of the daylight hours.
She opened her fridge. Let's see... three oranges, half a sandwich, some milk... Rainbow Dash took the milk out and poured herself a glass. Sitting down heavily, she began drinking.
“No wonder I'm such a wreck, if I have to deal with those friggin nightmares.” she grunted, annoyed. She looked over at her clock. Four in the morning. “Gah! I'll never have a normal life at this rate!” she shouted, banging her head on the table. She groaned. Now she had a headache. “I hate you, Applejack.”
Their next session was at the same time as the last. Rainbow Dash was rubbing her eyes, tired, but as long as they were open they were wide and darting from one side to the other.
Fluttershy was leading her inside, same as before.
“Do I need to pinkie promise again?” Fluttershy asked. Rainbow shook her head.
“N-no, but I'm still holding you to it!” she said, as she slowly entered the room.
Applejack was there, same as yesterday. She smiled.
“Hey there, RD!”
“Hi.”
Silence.
“Did you get any more spooky nightmares about me?” Applejack joked.
“Yeah. You fed me a bloody apple and skinned me with an apple-peeler.” Rainbow dead-panned.
“Oh.”
“Yeah. You weren't nice about it either.” Rainbow added. Applejack sighed.
“Shucks, Rainbow, Ah'm sorry 'bout that. Ah didn't mean to skin you with an apple-peeler.”
“Hey, it's not your fault. It's my stupid brain.” Rainbow Dash said generously. Applejack smiled.
“Thanks.” she said. “What else do Ah do in these dreams o' yours? If you want to tell me, that is.”
“Well, uhm. I told Fluttershy about the one with the cider press, I don't know if you heard that one?” she asked. Applejack shook her head.
“She didn't tell me nothing about the cider press.” Applejack said. Rainbow gulped, remembering the nightmare with awful, graphic precision.
“Well, you... lassoed me, and then stuck my... wings, in the cider press. You were laughing a lot then too.”
“Ouch.”
“Um, yeah. So, then, once you had ground those off, which really hurt by the way, you apologized and looked really shocked.”
“And so Ah would be!”
“Yeah, but then you laughed and threw the rest of me in as well.”
“Aw, shucks.”
“Yeah.”
Rainbow Dash kicked the floor awkwardly.
“You let your mane down in the nightmare though, and you looked... nicer, I guess. In an 'I'm-going-to-kill-you-way'.” Rainbow said. Applejack smiled.
“Really? Ah always find it gets in the way.”
“Well, I guess dream me didn't know that.” Rainbow replied. Applejack chuckled.
“Ah suppose not.”
“You know, you're a lot less scary when you're not trying to... murder me in an apple related way.”
Applejack smiled.
“Thanks, RD.”
“So, uhm, how was your day?”
Applejack rolled her eyes.
“Worked at the farm, got mahself a good harvest it seems, y'know, for the fair. Apples sell the most during events like this, so Ah try to do as much as Ah can. I've lost some time on... uh, things around town which have set me back a bit so Ah've had to work extra-”
“I didn't know you were... um, losing that much time because of me.” Rainbow interjected, looking surprised. Applejack put her hoof to her face, realizing her misstep.
“No, it ain't like that, sugarcube, Ah wouldn't not help you for the world. Ah'd rather lose a few bits than mah friend.”
Rainbow Dash sighed.
“This is all my fault...”
“It ain't. You can't help what you dream. Hay, Ah've had some pretty crazy dreams.”
Rainbow Dash didn't seem to care. She tried taking a few steps towards her friend, determination visible on her face. Applejack raised an eyebrow.
“You sure about this?”
“The sooner I get over this the sooner you can deal with real problems.” Rainbow said, shaking as she approached closer, as if nearing a violent beast. She crossed the line into Applejack's side of the room. Applejack began breathing quicker, wondering if perhaps the end was at hand. They could finally put this whole episode behind them, she could return to her normal life...
“This is a real problem, Dashie...” she mumbled as she watched her friend approach, her face contorted in concentration.
A few feet away, Rainbow Dash stopped.
“I-...” she began. Applejack sighed.
“It's okay, sugarcube. You did real well today.”
“I can't do it if you're watching.” Rainbow said, gritting her teeth. To Rainbow, it felt like there was a magnetic force pushing her away from Applejack.
Applejack gently closer her eyes. Without those evil green flash-lights looking at her, Rainbow edged closer. Finally, she extended her hood towards Applejack, gently placing it between her eyes. Applejack flinched slightly at the unexpected contact.
“There. I'm touching your head.” Rainbow pointed out, her hoof trembling, as if she had disarmed a bomb and bravely cut the red wire, and was now awaiting the explosion. Applejack didn't move, not wanting to startle her friend.
“It's okay. Ah don't bite.” she placated. Rainbow was shaking quite visibly, but didn't want to remove her hoof. It felt like some kind of dare, and she wasn't going to lose.
“Do you trust me?” asked Applejack. Rainbow Dash gulped.
“Sure.”
“Then close your eyes.”
Rainbow Dash turned away slightly as she turned her eyes, as if pre-emptively avoiding a blow. Applejack smiled as she opened her own eyes and extended her own hoof towards Rainbow, gently turning her head back towards her, eyes still shut.
“There. See? Now Ah'm touchin' your head.” she said, smiling.
She wasn't sure why she did it, but a few moments later she had locked lips with Rainbow in a long, surprising, and for Rainbow, utterly terrifying on multiple levels, kiss. After a few seconds, Applejack pulled away.
“Oh, uh, Ah didn't expect that.” she began saying, but Rainbow Dash wasn't looking at her any more. Instead, her eyes seemed fixed behind Applejack before gently rolling up in their sockets. Then she fell like a rag-doll to the floor. Applejack bit her lip.
“Oops.” she muttered as she looked at Rainbow Dash, sprawled across the ground, utterly unconscious.
“Oh, goodness!” Fluttershy exclaimed as she peered through the window. Twilight jostled behind her.
“What is it? Did Rainbow attack Applejack again?” she asked, doing her best to see. Fluttershy shook her head.
“Um, no! No, they're, um, doing trust exercises. Very boring trust exercises, but, um, Rainbow almost dropped Applejack. So, I made an exclamation. But it's still boring. You wouldn't like it much. I think.”
Twilight sighed.
“Fine, okay. Just tell me when I can use my house again.”
Fluttershy and Applejack had discreetly moved Rainbow Dash to Fluttershy's house. Fluttershy had very discreetly hinted that she had seen what happened, and was quite eager to keep the secret so long as Applejack helped carry the body.
“Thanks, Flutters. Ah don't know what Ah was thinking.”
“It's okay... so long as we haven't scarred her for life, of course.”
“Right.”
They opened the door, Fluttershy accidentally banging Rainbow's head on the way in. Applejack gaped in horror.
“Careful!”
“Sorry! It sort of got in the way!”
“Try not to kill her, wouldja?”
They lay the prone pegasus down on Fluttershy's couch before propping her head on a pillow.
“You think she'll be okay? Is her heart beating?” Flutterhsy asked, before she quickly checked for a pulse.
“You're just doin' this now?”
“I forgot before! I was a little flustered! I'm sorry.”
“Darn tootin'! She alive?”
“Yes, she has a pulse.”
Applejack sighed in relief. Well, that was something. It was at that point that Rainbow shot up like a rocket, gasping for air, her head smashing against Fluttershy's own on the way up.
“Ohmygosh, what the hay happened where am I what the hay is she doing here?” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, the last part due to shock at seeing Applejack in the same room as her, and uncomfortably close too.
Oh horseapples, that had happened.
Now she wasn't sure why she was uncomfortable. Both reasons, probably. Applejack, sensing the problem, backed away a little.
“It's okay... Ah'm sorry ah did that, it had seemed like... Ah dunno, a good idea at the time. Y'all were... stuff and...” she tried explaining. “Help me, Flutters?”, she asked, turning towards the yellow pegasus, still nursing her head.
“It was, a, um, romantic setting, and Applejack just couldn't help herself.” Fluttershy explained. Applejack nodded.
“Yeah, exactl- wait, I mean, I could so help mahself! Come up with another reason, one that doesn't make me sound like some love-sick filly!”
Fluttershy backtracked, her eyes wildly swinging from side to side as she began to hyperventilate, her mind working overdrive, overworked, and overwhelmed. She finally exploded.
“I- I-... I don't know!” Fluttershy exclaimed, collapsing onto the ground. “I can't keep up with all these lies! All my life, I've had to lie!”
Rainbow widened her eyes as she realized her only protection against Applejack was just as much a gibbering wreck as she was. This wasn't good. Applejack trotted over to Fluttershy, who had her head in her hooves.
“Horsefeathers...” Applejack swore. Rainbow Dash took a deep breath, doing her best to expel her fear.
“Everypony, stop!” she screamed at the top of her lungs. Fluttershy peered out from between her hooves. “Fluttershy, I don't know what kind of problems you have, but we'll deal with them after I sort through this mess!” Rainbow exclaimed, both exasperated and confused. Fluttershy nodded.
“Okay... I just want somepony to talk to... honestly...”
“And Applejack... I seriously don't know.” Rainbow added, this time towards Applejack, who was nervously toying with her mane. “You kissed me! Or tried to eat my face off... But I kind of felt it was the first one.”
Applejack hung her head.
“Ah... Ah know. Ah can explain...” she said. Rainbow raised her eyebrow.
“Remember your element, AJ.”
“Right, yes, of course, nothing but the honest truth, Ah promise.” Applejack said, grinning. “Well... Ah guess Ah always kind of... liked you?”
Rainbow Dash gulped.
“In a non-friendshipping way.” Applejack added. “So when... that happened, Ah must have lost control... Ah feel like such an idiot...” she continued. “Ah understand if you want time, on top of everything else you have going on right now...”
Rainbow Dash nodded.
“Yeah, time. Right. I... I need to think.” she said, pacing around the room. Fluttershy got to her hooves again. She wiped her eyes as she got over her strange breakdown.
“Um. I think you two might need different counselling now.” she pointed out. Rainbow Dash groaned.
“Hay, no. I'm going home. Catch you later, guys... this is way too weird for one evening.”
Applejack sighed, and sat down heavily, groaning.
“Ah think Ah blew it.” she muttered. Fluttershy went over and got herself a drink.
“Blew what?”
“Everythin'.”
*
Rainbow Dash gently stirred from her sleep, her cloud house familiar and reassuring. She relaxed. She was safe. Turned back towards the pony she was currently sharing a bed with. Hugging her tight, she received a gently kiss on the cheek. She opened her eyes.
She found herself staring into the green headlamps of doom. Rainbow Dash felt all sense of security leave her.
“What's wrong sugarcube? You look frightened.” Applejack said, grinning as she licked her lips in anticipation. Rainbow Dash tried scrambling away, but couldn't escape her own treasonous bedsheets. Her room wasn't the same anymore. Instead of being white, the cloud walls were dripping with red. Applejack threw herself on top of Rainbow Dash, her tail flicking around, throwing a knife into her open hoof as she pinned Rainbow down by the wings.
“You like it rough, right? How 'bout this?” she asked, laughing, as she plunged the knife down.
“You think she'll show up?” asked Fluttershy to Twilight as they waited outside. Twilight shrugged.
“Sure, why not? Why wouldn't she?”
“Oh, right. Of course.” Fluttershy muttered, remembering Twilight had no knowledge of the previous night. “Nothing but secrets and lies with these ponies, I swear...” she whispered under her breath.
Rainbow Dash landed heavily in front of both of them, seemingly furious. She stomped through the door, going inside to confront Applejack.
The mare in question looked at her, worried. She hadn't expected, and certainly didn't want, simmering anger. Rainbow Dash looked exhausted too, her brow furrowed as she stared the earth pony down.
“Hey AJ. Just had a long day's work today.” she commented, loudly. “Took me a real long time. It was tiring. Especially tiring because now you're twice as scary as before!” she exclaimed. Applejack swallowed and grinned nervously.
“So this has nothing to do with that k-”
“It has everything to do with that kiss! Now you're doing all these... bedroom
things, and there's handcuffs, and you still end up killing me every single time and it just can't go on any more...”
Applejack found herself mesmerized. Rainbow Dash was cute when she was angry. That and her mind began wandering to a few of the situations Rainbow had been describing. Some of them even sounded fun... well, until she... what did she do?
“Wait, what was that last bit?” she asked.
“You sawed my leg off and beat me to death with it.”
“Yeah, that don' sound no fun.”
Rainbow Dash leaned against he door, and slumped to the ground. “I can't take any more of this. I'm going to go crazy...”
Applejack sighed.
“Ah don't really know how to help with that...”
Rainbow took in a deep breath.
“Hey, I haven't even felt afraid once whilst I was here.” she pointed out suddenly. Applejack froze.
“You mean it?”
“Yeah. I guess I was so angry I forgot about it. Huh.”
“Who'd a thunk it?”
Applejack trotted over to Rainbow Dash, who, despite flinching, was otherwise fine.
“Okay, just a little afraid, I guess.”
“That's okay.”
“Just because of the leg thing.”
“Right.”
Applejack braced herself.
“If you're really okay with... um, being around me now... would you like to come with me to the Apple fair?” she asked. Rainbow nodded.
“Yeah, I guess I can handle that. If Fluttershy would like to-”
“...as mah date?” Applejack added. Her face was like a picture of hope itself, desperately wishing that maybe, maybe, she might just say-
“Whaaa?”
Not that. Her heart sunk.
“Ah was hoping you might... Ah don't know. Ah'm an idiot...”
Rainbow Dash took a deep breath, steeling herself before oblivion.
“I'll give it a shot.” she said. Applejack's face lit up like a hearth's warming tree.
“Really?”
Rainbow nodded slowly.
“Sure, I can try it. I... It may be a little awkward, though.” she warned. “I'm still a little... nervous and stuff.”
“Of course, if ever you want to stop, you just say so...” Applejack said. Rainbow nodded.
“Yeah. 'Kay.”
“She said yes?” Fluttershy gasped. Applejack nodded, beaming.
“Eeyup.” This was positively the best day ever for Applejack, even if she hadn't realized just what exactly she was getting into.
She had wanted to ask for months, now, but with Rainbow running scared, she had never gotten a good opportunity. And then this débâcle had happened, and she was certain she'd get put down... but she wasn't! She was going on a date with Rainbow Dash!
“The, um, fair's at the orchard. The apple orchard.”
“Eeyup.”
“And it'll be crowded...”
“...eeyup...”
“Lots of loud noises...”
“Horseapples.”
Applejack began pacing around Fluttershy's house, not sure what to do. She wouldn't call it off... she had waited far too long for that. She'd have to... keep Rainbow safe. From herself?
“Any ideas?” she asked. Fluttershy shrugged.
“I've been in over my head since the beginning. I'm all out of ideas.” Fluttershy confessed.
Applejack sighed. She'd just have to meet her tomorrow, play it cool, and do her best to make Rainbow feel... comfortable. It couldn't be that difficult, right?
Rainbow Dash struggled against the ropes, but they refused to give. Applejack gently slid the blade across her foreleg. Rainbow Dash tried screaming, but the apple in her mouth prevented her from making more than a muffled grunt. Applejack chuckled, before untying her hairband, letting her mane flow loose.
“You prefer that, right?” she asked, smiling. Rainbow couldn't make a sound. Applejack gave another small laugh. Then she slowly stuck her tongue out and licked Rainbow from chest to nose, her body pressed close to the pegasus's. “You should see your face. So adorable... I like your eyes.” she said, tilting her head to the side, the knife edging closer to Rainbow's pupils.
“I sensed your distress, Rainbow Dash... prithee tell me what-” came a powerful voice from behind Applejack. The orange farmpony sighed, and turned around to face Princess Luna.
“Y'all mind? Ah'm in the middle of somethin' intimate here!” she groaned, exasperatingly, flicking the knife around her hoof expertly.
“Hlf mr!” Rainbow grunted. Applejack flicked her hoof across Rainbow's face derisively. Luna widened her eyes.
“By the moon... We thought these dreams extinct!” Luna declared, readying a fighting stance. “Prepare to defend thyself, Nightmare!” she challenged.
Applejack sighed and stepped away from Rainbow, turning to face her opponent. Luna's horn flickered to life as she prepared a spell. Applejack deftly lunged to the side, throwing the knife as she dodged the magical missile. The blade spun around the air, before neatly slicing through Luna's horn. Luna widened her eyes in shock as her magical protrusion fell the the ground before her eyes.
“That's impossib-” she began, but Applejack closed the gap between them far too fast.
Luna gasped as she opened her eyes. She slammed her hoof against the balcony wall, furious at her own failure. From inside the tower, Celestia stirred.
“What... what is it, Luna?” she asked, her voice groggy and slow. Luna sent a hoof to check that her horn was, indeed, still there. It was. But the nightmare had been powerful... born of a powerful fear. So powerful that it had managed to defeat her... it was almost impossible that it would have taken Luna so long to notice... Maybe it was difficult for her to sense anomalies within the elements? She would have to investigate.
“Our friend Rainbow Dash seems to be in a sore predicament. She is suffering from nightmares, and I fear I cannot dispel them alone.”
Celestia sighed as she exited the tower. It always amazed Celestia that Luna maintained such a hooves on approach despite everything she had been through, continuing to soar through the minds of her ponies and guarding them from evil. It was something Celestia had not done for so long...
“Perhaps tomorrow, once you have gathered your strength, I shall join you.” she suggested. Luna shook her head.
“I fear that without proper protection you might suffer for it, sister. Give me time to investigate. If I need you... I shall call.”
Rainbow was chewing her hooves nervously. This was probably a mistake. She'd regret this... she'd end up breaking Applejack's heart, ruining their friendship and giving evil dream Applejack a third thing to use against her. It was bad enough she was teasing her and ruthlessly tormenting her at the same time now... guilt tripping would be the icing on the cake.
Granted, her last nightmare had been a little weirder... Luna had been there, but she had been a bit of a pushover, so it must have just been some weird subconscious thing. But it had been bad enough, especially after that, that she hadn't gotten any good sleep at all.
It was evening. The fair was usually held during the night, so everypony could enjoy the fireworks.
She saw Applejack arrive from a distance away. She tried to put the images of her ripping out her eyes (how'd she even get that image anyway? If you thought about it) in the back of her mind as she tried a smile. She couldn't deny she liked Applejack... it was just she also was the object of her nightmares. It was a combination she had to admit she was uncomfortable with.
“Hey there! You doing all right?” Applejack asked as she approached. Rainbow nodded.
“Yeah. Bit sleepy.”
“What'd I do this time?”
“You don't want to know. But you could say it was an eye opening experience.”
“Horseapples... I really don't want to know.” she said, but then smiled, putting her hoof around Rainbow Dash, much to the pegasus's surprise and shock. “But Ah promise Ah won't come near your eyes tonight... unless y'all want me to, right?” she said, smiling, desperately trying to diffuse Rainbow's concerns through humour.
It seemed to be working. Rainbow laughed a little.
“Yeah... cool. Let's go! There's got to be some sporting event we can do! Like in the good old days!”
Applejack smiled as they trotted together to the fair.
The fair was small, but enjoyable. It was set in the orchard, recently harvested, and there were lights, stalls with games and food, and now and then, Big Macintosh would set a few fireworks off on top of the hill. Everypony cheered every time the colourful lights shot across the sky. Even Rainbow Dash, despite nervously stealing glances at the apple trees, which she viewed as evil, and Applejack, who she viewed as maybe evil, not quite sure yet, but definitely hot.
“Hey, want to try shooting?” Applejack asked as she approached the airgun range, a small little place, made of three targets and three guns, and manned by a tired but cheerful looking grey pegasus pony. She tossed a few bits to the owner of the stall and picked up one of the toy rifles before giving it a pump, aiming, and firing. The shot narrowly missed it's target, and Applejack grunted in annoyance. She turned to find Rainbow Dash, but couldn't see the cyan mare anywhere.
“Wh-where'd you go?” she called. After a bit, Rainbow began peering around the corner of the stall.
“Sorry. Just... the gun and everything. Finish your shots, I'll... um, stay here, thanks.”
Applejack sighed, and quickly turned back to her target. Two shots left. She pumped air into the gun and fired. It hit. She pumped again, taking careful aim...
“Yeah! Bullseye! Yeehaw!” Applejack shouted. The owner of the stall tossed Applejack a stuffed animal, a little plushy of a black unicorn pony with a red mane. A famous pony, perhaps. which Applejack quickly snuggled with. Rainbow Dash nervously crept out from behind the stall in a manner Fluttershy would be impressed by. Applejack grinned and tossed the stuffed toy to Rainbow Dash.
“Here!” she exclaimed. Rainbow Dash jumped back, the toy falling onto the ground. Rainbow Dash took a quick look at it and then picked it up in her mouth.
“Thanks. Sorry I missed your shots.” she said. Applejack laughed.
“It's okay. Hey, want to go ducking for apples?” she asked. “This time you can go first!”
Rainbow Dash nodded, and went over to the large barrel filled with apples. She put her visions of those evil blood apples and poison apples, and rotten apples and combustible apples out of her mind, and stuck her head in the water, trying to wrap her mouth around one of the fruit.
Suddenly, she remembered the dream where Applejack was drowning her in cider. Her head shot out of the barrel, as she gave a small shout of fear. Applejack took a step back.
“Wh-what?”
“Um. Nothing. Uh, your turn.” Rainbow Dash said. Applejack frowned.
“Are you okay? You look...”
Rainbow Dash turned away, her frustration finally boiling over.
“Afraid, right?” she muttered, and then ran off. Applejack widened her eyes before chasing after her.
“Hey! Rainbow, wait up! Ah didn't mean it like that!” she shouted, before cursing. So much for helping Rainbow feel comfortable.
It was a little while later that Applejack caught up with Rainbow, who was standing, silently and morosely, on top of a hill overlooking the cheerful and colourful fair. Her gaze was fixed on a lone apple that lay atop the hill. As Applejack approached, she could swear she saw tears in Rainbow's eyes.
“Sugar? You 'kay?”
“Yeah. I'm sorry, no. I've been a horrible date today.” She said, quickly wiping her eyes.
“No, you tried really hard tonight, and you did real well.” Applejack countered. Sure, she had been skittish most of the time, but... she had a problem, and despite that, she had been doing her best, just for Applejack. She couldn't ask for more than that.
“Yeah, well it wasn't enough. I'm so sick of this. I'm sick of being afraid.” she said. Applejack walked around to face her date's face.
“It's okay to be afraid, sugarcube.” she said gently. Rainbow Dash stomped her hoof.
“Not for me! You... you wanted to ask me out for months, right? Well, back then, I didn't have this stupid problem, and I didn't jump at shadows all the freaking time. And now, now, I can't be the pony you wanted to ask out before, because I've gone and gotten myself a mental condition worthy of Arcolt Asylum!” she ranted. A moment of silence passed before she raised her head, looking right at Applejack. Various degrees of torment were visible upon her face. “I want to be brave again.” she said, and lunged at Applejack. Taken by surprise, Applejack almost fell back, but Rainbow's hooves steadier her as they kissed. They continued passionately for some time before they both stopped for breath, panting hard.
“Um. Ah'm getting some mighty conflictin' signals here...”
“I know. I'm a mess right now.”
“No kidding.”
“You know you killed me on this hill... three, no, four times?” Rainbow said, smiling wanly as she looked at her surrounding. She didn't seem that afraid anymore, but rather looked as if she was reliving a horribly bad memory. “Once with a plough. You were very inventive.”
“Ah try.”
Rainbow Dash began laughing.
“What really sucks is that the one pony who makes me feel brave enough to face anything, is also the pony I'm so afraid of.” she said. “Ironic, huh?”
“Ah think a lot of ponies have that problem. But they're less crazy.” Applejack said, smiling. Rainbow Dash snorted.
“Tactful.”
“Ah try.”
Rainbow Dash kissed Applejack again, this time pulling her to the ground. Applejack wrapped her hooves around the pegasus before they broke again, and turned to look at the stars.
“Mighty fine night.” Applejack said. “Ah wonder what Luna's up to now.”
“Probably nursing her horn.” Rainbow said. Applejack looked at her in confusion. Rainbow widened her eyes as she realized that this was, in fact, the real Applejack and she didn't know. “Oh, right... well, last night, I think Luna tried to stop my nightmares-”
“'bout time.”
“-And you cut her horn off then ripped out her spine.”
“This before or after the eye thing?”
“...kinda during?”
“Ah guess the princess is just out of shape is all.” Applejack said, feeling strangely proud that her nightmare version was able to hold her own against the princess of dreams. It was flattering. Still, it was always best to be humble.
“Yeah. I thought I had dodged a bullet, but no, you just do some fancy knife-work and it's back to the good old torture again.”
Applejack chuckled.
“It's getting a little cold.” she pointed out. Rainbow Dash snorted, and quickly wrapped her wing around Applejack.
“That better?”
“Eeyup.”
“Don't... uh, rip it off or anything.”
“Ah won't. It's warmer when it's attached to the pony.” Applejack said. Rainbow Dash nodded slowly.
“I guess so.” she said, and snuggled up closer to the orange farmpony. “The real you is a lot softer.” she pointed out. Applejack nudged Rainbow affectionately.
“Ah imagine that's your subconscious thingy again.”
“Isn't it always.” Rainbow said, then yawned. She closed her eyes, relaxed knowing she was safe with the pony that scared her the most.
Wait.
Yeah, whatever.
Luna frowned. Chains. Chains were never a good sign. She promised herself she would keep a much firmer grasp on her horn this time as she made her way through the barn and closer to the scene before her. Bloody chains dangled from the ceiling, gently making a soft, almost crystalline sound.
She kept her heartbeat steady. She needed to keep her eyes open for any sign of weakness, any exploitable element. If she didn't at least make a little progress, she couldn't justify pitting her sister against such a relentless foe.
Not to mention, she wasn't eager to admit she couldn't even do simple reconnaissance on her own to Celestia.
In the centre of the room, Rainbow Dash was tied to a bale of hay, strapped to the top of it as Applejack, or rather, the nightmarish version of her, gently caressed Rainbow's cheek.
“You okay? You look a little scared, sugarcube.” she was saying. Rainbow Dash was whimpering as Applejack smiled viciously, getting to her hooves and jumping off the hay bale before striking a match on the wall.
“If it helps, sugar... Ah always though you were hot.” Applejack said, but before she could toss the match onto the hay, Luna stopped her.
“Thy one-liners sicken me. Defend yourself!” Luna exclaimed, charging and preparing a shield for whatever Applejack could throw at her. This time, she'd have something to show for her efforts, she just knew it. Applejack sighed.
“You again?” she asked, and flicked the match onto the hay bale. It immediately caught fire and began burning. Luna turned to look at Rainbow, who was beginning to roast around the edges slightly, and Applejack, who was grinning at Rainbow's predicament.
Luna rushed towards Rainbow Dash, but as she tried to put the fire out, she was hit across the side of the face by Appejack.
“No, ya don't!” Applejack exclaimed, and as Luna tried to prepare for a counter attack, she kicked the flaming hay at her, the cinders blinding Luna as Rainbow began to scream in pain. Applejack then laughed as she lunged at Luna.
“Time for you to show a little backbone!” she shouted as she began tearing the princess of the night apart.
“Rainbow! Rainbow, wake up!” Applejack shouted as Rainbow continued screaming in her sleep. Eventually, the pegasus did indeed wake up, quickly checking her fur to see if it was on fire. She was panting, hyperventilating. Applejack gently tried stroking her mane, calming her down the best she could.
“Hey, it's okay, it's okay.” she whispered. Rainbow Dash closed her eyes and fell into Applejack's hooves.
They were still on the hill, but it was the middle of the night. Neither had wanted to leave and so neither of them did, despite the cold. They had simply moved closer to the other, and that had solved that problem.
“Just a nightmare... just a nightmare...” Rainbow repeated, her face buried in Applejack's mane. Applejack continued stroking the rainbow mane, as Rainbow slowly returned to her senses. Rainbow Dash sniffed, her breathing back to normal.
“Okay... I'm okay now.” she said. She looked around. “Hey, we're still in the field.”
“Eeyup. Want to head to the farm? Someplace a little warmer?” she asked. Rainbow nodded slowly.
“Yeah. Yeah, I think so.”
The pair stood up and began making their way to the house. Rainbow Dash was pretty awake, but Applejack was leaning on her heavily, barely able to keep her eyes open.
They both stumbled inside the house, and made their way to Applejack's room before they both threw themselves onto the bed. Rainbow gently put Applejack's head on a pillow, as she had fallen asleep as soon as she hit the mattress. Rainbow then lay down next to her, enjoying the warmth she brought. She tried closing her eyes again, her previous nightmare utterly dispelled.
The next day, Applejack woke up to find herself in her own bed, Rainbow next to her, sleeping fitfully. It was a wonder her snoring hadn't woken up the entire household. Applejack smiled at the cyan mare, gently running a hoof down her side.
“Mornin', sugarcube.” she whispered. Rainbow Dash opened one eye.
“Same.” she muttered. Applejack giggled. Rainbow Dash was, quite evidently not a morning pony.
“Sleep well?”
“Yeah. Well, after that first one...”
Applejack smiled and pulled herself closer to Rainbow Dash.
“Ah! Stop moving. No wake up Rainbow more.”
“You gotta get up sometime.” Applejack teased.
“No. Cannot awake today. I has the lazy.”
“Looks like you can't grammar either.” Applejack pointed out. Rainbow Dash groaned. Applejack grinned mischievously. Running her hoof gradually down Rainbow's side, she waited until she saw the faintest hint of a shiver...
There.
Tickling Rainbow furiously, it didn't take long for Rainbow Dash to begin laughing hysterically and eventually fell off the bed entirely. Applejack laughed uproariously as Rainbow got to her feet.
“Hrmph. Better than setting me on fire, I suppose...” Rainbow muttered.
“Good! You're up! Let's go get breakfast, right?”
“Yeah. Sure.”
The pair silently ate the apples and oats that were prepared for breakfast, at least until Big Macintosh, Applebloom, and Granny Smith all left to begin their day in their own way. Applejack decided to go first.
“So, uh, are we... like, a couple now?” she asked hopefully. Rainbow Dash snickered.
“Hey, I just wanted to get you in bed.” she joked. Applejack narrowed her eyes.
“You little whorse.” she grumbled, but Rainbow Dash stopped her as she made her way to her side of the table and wrapped her hoof around Applejack's side.
“And it was awesome. So I think we should be a couple.” she said, giving Applejack a long, reassuring kiss. Applejack smiled all the while.
“Ya know that all we did was sleep? Ah have plenty of tricks left...” she commented. Rainbow Dash hesitated for a second as she remembered some of the other Applejack's tricks, but dismissed them. That was a different pony than the one she had in front of her.
“So long as I get my snuggles...” she said softly, nuzzling the orange mare, “I'm happy.”
Applejack raised an eyebrow.
“Snuggles? You're really that innocent, huh?”
“I like snuggles.”
“Yer adorable.”
“And you're way too huggable for your own good.” Rainbow replied, grinning. Applejack laughed a little, enjoying the company of the mare she had wanted for some time, glad that there was finally nothing standing between them. Not even Rainbow Dash's dubious mental stability could have kept them apart.
“You ready to tell the others?” Applejack asked. Rainbow shrugged.
“Sure. Why wouldn't I?” she asked, dipping her nose into Applejack's oats, inciting a small grunt from the farmpony it belonged to.
“Ah dunno. Some ponies get nervous about that.”
“Pfft. It's not that scary.”
“That's mighty rich, coming from you.” Applejack commented, chuckling. Rainbow Dash groaned.
“I'm never going to live this down, am I?”
*
“So, all it took was a month of hiding nightmares and losing your mental sanity, dozens of Flutterlies, a massive cramp injury, a stab wound and a couple of days worth of therapy to get two ponies together?” Twilight explained to nopony in particular. “Relationships are apparently far more complex than I previously assumed.”
“Don't Ah just know it.” Applejack said, grinning. Rainbow Dash eyed those sharp teeth nervously, but then shook her head and nuzzled her new marefriend. That was how she dealt with fear after last night: every time she got scared, she just got closer to the mare who kept her safe. Applejack would never let her down... although the plan ended up with an awful lot of hugs.
“It's marvellous to see you two get over the obstacles in your way. Gives me hope for myself, to be honest...” Rarity said, smiling.
“You know what this means, right?” Pinkie began, exitement written all over her face. The other ponies in the room braced themselves.
“COUNSELLING FOR FLUTTERSHY! Seriously, did you think we'd just forget about that poor pony?” Pinkie asked, turning towards the yellow pegasus.
It was Rainbow Dash who took on the task of talking to Fluttershy, explaining it as a debt that had to be repaid, and that could only be forsaken at the cost of awesomeness itself.
“And then when I came to Ponyville, I simply couldn't talk to my family again, they'd never accept a pegasus as a daughter living as an earth pony. So I hid, and that's when the lies began...” Fluttershy explained as she lay down on the divan, Rainbow Dash eyeing her with a notebook. She was scribbling a drawing of a dragon.
“Uh huh. Y'know, I suck at this.” Rainbow said, throwing the notebook aside.
“Oh, um, really?” Fluttershy asked, disappointed that Rainbow Dash was giving up on her after not even five minutes.
“Yeah, it looked nothing like a dragon. Listen, Flutters, you know you'll never have to hide anything from me. You did really well by me and AJ, and I'll never be able to repay that.” Rainbow said, smiling. Fluttershy sniffed and wiped a tear from her eye.
“Really?”
“Yeah. You can tell me anything. No more lies, Flutters.”
Fluttershy smiled broadly.
“Oh, thank you! It means so much to me... I just can't keep going on like that forever!”
Rainbow Dash took the pegasus mare in a friendly hug as Fluttershy explained just how grateful she was that she would finally be able to be completely honest with Rainbow.
“There, there. It's okay. You deserve a little moment to let go. You are, after all, the real hero here.”
Applejack felt her marefriend stir beside her. At first, she paid little attention. Sometimes Rainbow would squirm a little as she got comfortable, but when she began whimpering and sweating, she turned towards the cyan mare, concerned.
“Rainbow...” she whispered, gently shaking her awake. Rainbow eventually opened her eyes, breathing heavily. She looked into Applejack's own, and smiled.
“Hey.”
“'Nother nightmare?” Applejack asked. Rainbow nodded.
“Yeah. But it's okay so long as you're here.” she said, and moved in closer to Applejack, closing her eyes as she pressed closer to the orange fluffy mare. Applejack smiled as she closed her eyes two, and they both returned to sleep.
Meanwhile, in Canterlot, Luna roared in frustration.
“Why won't that nightmare just die?!”
The end.
