Like Flying

by ProofNegative

Rating: teen
Tags: Slice of Life, Human, Applejack, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Rainbow Dash, Romance, Pinkie Pie
Length: 5071

Rainbow Dash introduces Applejack to parkour. Racing to see who the better athlete is, they discover something else in the process.

Rainbow Dash introduces Applejack to parkour. Racing to see who the better athlete is, they discover something else in the process.
Humanized
Rated T for minimal swearing and suggested sexytimes.
(Category changed from Adventure to Slice of Life by request )

(This may or may not be a one-shot, depending on the reception. If you want another chapter, ask.)

Published 2014-08-27 04:50:06 UTC
Last updated 2014-08-27 04:50:06 UTC

Vault

“It’s a good thing you’re from the Earth Tribe, A.J, because you’re about to eat my dirt.”

Applejack rolled her eyes. “Don’t ya mean ‘eat ma dust’, Dash?”

“That too.”

Applejack rolled her eyes again, before reaching back to tie her long hair -some might call it a mane- into a loose ponytail. That task accomplished, she set about loosening up her muscles; bending over to touch her toes, twisting to crack her back, and stretching out her legs. Glancing to her right, she saw that Rainbow Dash was stretching as well, albeit with slightly more…gusto.

The technicolor tressed teen was on all fours with her toned backside thrust into the air, crawling forward on her hands and feet.

“Dash, what in the name of Celestia are you doing?”

“Stretching,” she grunted, now in a precarious handstand.

Applejack watched her arms tremble doubtfully. “Riiiiight. And what kind of stretch is…that?”

“Parkour stretch.” she mumbled, while doing a backbend.

“A what stretch?” A.J arched an eyebrow. “What the hay is that?”

Dash grunted and pushed herself to a standing position, her feet staying in the same place as her upper body rose from the ground, seemingly on its own. She smirked at A.J’s bewildered expression.

“You’ll see.”
............................................................................................................................................................

Ever since the Running of the Leaves, Applejack and Rainbow Dash had been racing, always trying to get the upper hand on the other and determine who the superior athlete was. So far, however, neither of them had won. Each time, something would happen to throw the integrity of the race into question. One week, they’d both slipped on ice so often that by the time they stumbled towards the finish line they were both too bruised and battered to notice who crossed first. Another time, a thick fog had rolled into Ponyville, obscuring anything more than 10 feet in front of them. They’d been forced to hold hands while running so as not to lose each other. And, of course, the week after that, they’d been too busy blushing, mumbling, and avoiding each other’s gaze to get much of anything done.

So it had gone, week after week, month after month, until the sunny summer day that they met in front of Sugarcube Corner, and Dash had started doing these weird stretches and talking about ‘parkour’.

The choice of Sugarcube Corner wasn’t random. Besides it being a great spot to pick up a delicious, carb-loaded breakfast, it was also the home of their officially appointed referee, Pinkie Pie. Pinkie wasn’t much of a runner; anyone you asked would agree that she was really more of a bouncer, but her odd ability to appear out of nowhere made her invaluable as a ref. She could cover every vantage point, cross streets in a heartbeat, and make it to the finish line before the actual runners could. The only downside was how distracting it could be to constantly have a pink blur at the corner of your vision, but you got used to it after a while, one you accepted ‘Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie’.

When asked, Applejack ardently denied that Pinkie’s ability -dubbed ‘Bouncing’ by Pinkie- was an Earth Tribe power, as no Earth Tribe member she’d ever met had been able to do what Pinkie could. When Dash had asked Twilight what she knew about Pinkie’s odd skill, she had cringed, dropped the book she was reading, and slowly backed away, muttering, “No…No… This way lies madness…”

So that was a thing.

To this day, Rainbow Dash was intrigued by Pinkie’s ability to Bounce, since, though Pinkie chose to give it another name, it was basically teleporting, and it would be awesome to teleport. Alas, for now she would just have to settle on being the fastest girl in all of Equestria. Dash grinned. She could live with that.

Speaking of Pinkie, she was about to be late. Inside Sugarcube corner, the Cakes had said that she was upstairs getting ready and would be down any moment. Applejack checked her watch, she was sure ‘any moment’ had passed at least five moments ago. Dash refrained from checking hers as well, knowing that the second she let her guard down, Pinkie would pop up and scare her witless. She settled on sighing, the gentle exhalation prompting her to yawn and involuntarily close her eyes.
When she opened them, Pinkie was in front of her.

“HOLY FUCKMUFFINS, PINKIE, WEAR A BELL!” Dash shrieked, literally jumping ten feet into the air. She reddened at the disapproving glares of several mothers walking by, and heard one child –it looked like Featherweight, though she couldn’t be sure from behind- ask his mother, “Mum, what’s a Fuckmuffin?”

Dash, a bit calmer now, looked down to see Pinkie’s two sky blue eyes trained on her, and belatedly realized that she had stayed in the air. “Hiya, Dashie! Nice jump! I can do that too, wanna see?!”

Pinkie, excitement permeating her every fiber as she bounced on her toes, leapt into the air as well, striking a pose; knees together, legs apart, and arms raised in silent jubilation. Her face was frozen in a look of joy, her mouth open wide in a massive smile. She rose until her face came level with Dash’s, then stopped, suspended in midair.

Dash’s eyes bulged. What the hell?! “H-how…?” She felt a gentle tugging at her ankle, and looked down to see A.J shaking her head. Right, she thought, This way lies madness.

Dash reined her magic in, dropping to the ground and landing in a crouch. Pinkie stayed suspended for a few more moments before reining her own …whatever in, and dropping as well.

“Sorry for keeping you girls waiting,” Pinkie said, walking over to a lamppost, reaching behind it, and pulling forth a party cannon much too large to have been hidden. “I couldn’t find my favorite bra!” She cupped her rather substantial breasts and squeezed them a little. “I didn’t want to take the sweater puppies out without a leash, you know?”

Dash’s eye twitched, her gaze rather obviously fixed on Pinkie’s chest.

Sweater…puppies?

Applejack interjected before Dash could comment on the odd nickname, or the fact that it was summer and no-one was wearing sweaters.

“Ah’m just glad you’re here now, Pinkie. Where’d you end up finding your bra?”

Pinkie beamed. “I didn’t!”

“You didn’t?”

“I didn’t!” Pinkie hopped a little to demonstrate, her chest bouncing to accentuate her point. “No bra!”

Dash’s gaze intensified, as if by sheer will she could make Pinkie’s shirt disappear. Applejack simply massaged her forehead.

While her friends tried to figure out what to say, Pinkie wheeled the cannon behind them, positioning herself to pull the string dangling from the back of it.

Dash, having lost sight of Pinkie’s bust, snapped back to reality and resumed her stretching, this time using more traditional movements. Applejack mirrored her, and within a few minutes, they were both limber and ready to run.

The two girls faced each other, standing parallel to Sugarcube Corner, at the head of the street. “Alright”, Applejack began, “here are the rules.”

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, having heard the spiel countless times now, but conceded, listening.

“No hair pulling. No Stetson-snatching. No tackling, biting, or bumping. No Sky Tribe powers, charms, or abilities. Specifically, no flying, gliding, enhanced jumps, or reducing air resistance. Yah almost got me with that one last time, Dash.”

Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly.

“And on my end, no Earth Tribe powers. We don’t have much, but what we do have is suited for physical stuff. So, no increasing strength, no turning the ground to sand under your opponent’s feet-”

Dash mumbled something about dirty tricks and new shoes.

“-and no throwing apples.”

Both Dash and Pinkie turned to look inquisitively at Applejack. She shrugged. “What? Apples are magical too.”

The two competitors clasped hands and stared seriously into each other’s eyes.

“Okee-dokee!” Pinkie announced, “May the best athlete win!”

““I plan to”” Applejack and Rainbow Dash said, simultaneously.

They assumed their starting positions, both girls looking sidelong at the other. Applejack -without admitting it to herself, of course- admired the view of Dash’s lithe form. Her eyes traveled from her head, adorned with its usual multicolored curtain that barely came to her shoulders, down past her chest, with its modest but perky occupants, and rested momentarily on her flat and firm stomach. She had the faint outlines of a six pack there, it looked like. Her eyes continued downward, passing by her backside, which was mostly out of view, and ending on her toned legs, with muscles just waiting to be put to use.

Likewise, Rainbow Dash admired Applejack’s muscular form, her eyes -discretely, she believed- drinking in the slight sheen of sweat on her brow, following the line of her hair down past her muscular arms and jumping to her chest. A.J wasn’t quite as big as Pinkie, but she was up there. Her eye’s continued downward, tracing over her stomach. It wasn’t quite as firm as hers, she knew, but it was still fairly flat, and looked good with the rest of her. She settled her gaze on A.J’s rear, or rather, where it would be, if she were at the right angle to see it. It was a really nice ass, Dash reminisced fondly. Maybe, she mused, I can ‘fall behind’ a bit today and get a good look. She let her eyes roam back, coming to rest on A.J’s face, and-

Both girls caught the other looking, and looked away hurriedly, blushing.

Pinkie Pie, of course, got the best view, being behind them.

“All right, girls! On your mark….”

Both girls tensed up, their bodies preparing to uncoil explosively.

“Get set…”

Both girls grinned. The second before was always the best part.

“GO!” She punctuated her exclamation with a bang from her cannon, jettisoning confetti into the air.

Both girls were gone, at the end of the block before the confetti touched the ground.
............................................................................................................................................................

Something was different.

Applejack could immediately tell, something about Dash’s style was off. After running with her for so long, she was used to Dash’s physical nuances, the way her body rolled from one step to the next, her slowly uncoiling power as she conserved her energy. This was new. Her movements were languid, smooth, and almost…fluid. Dash caught Applejack’s bewildered expression and winked. “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet, A.J!” she quipped.

Neither of them realized that they had run into the middle of the street, or that there was a car barreling towards them, directly in the path of where Dash was about to be.

Both turned their heads and noticed the vehicle simultaneously. Applejack cried out. Her fear was raw, to the point that she could express herself only through a primal yell, reaching out for Dash even as they both continued to run.

Rainbow Dash, however, was the opposite, a paragon of calm under considerable pressure. She noted the look of panic in the driver’s eyes, factored in the fact that he was most likely about to brake, and swiftly calculated the point at which the car would stop. Dash wasn’t really one for math, but she had a head for these sorts of things. As the car approached her, she made her decision.

As she had predicted, the car stopped right at the point she would have been, had she continued running forward. She dove, cutting through the air like an arrow, placed both hands on the hood of the car, and allowed her momentum to sustain the motion, her tucked legs swinging through a moment later. She hit the ground running, looking behind her only to ensure that A.J was still with her.

Applejack caught up to her a moment later. “What in Sam Hill was that?!”

Dash smirked, “Parkour.”

“What?”

“Dive Kong”, Dash clarified.

Applejack ignored the latter statement, knowing that if she asked, the answer would probably make about as much sense to her as Pinkie’s explanation of Inception.

“That was parkour?” Applejack stared incredulously at Dash’s smug face. “Where’d ya learn to do that?”

“Taught myself”, she said, proudly. “Twilight helped me find some old books on it at the library, and they had some cool diagrams. The info on the mindset was useful, too.”

“Ah’m sure” Applejack scoffed. “It must take quite the ‘mindset’ to be throwin’ yourself at cars”

“Hey,” Rainbow Dash snapped “would you rather I let it hit me?”

Applejack reacted as if she’d been slapped. “O-of course not, Sugarcube. It’s just…isn’t it a tad dangerous?”

Dash’s expression softened. “Well yeah, but so is so much else we do. I can hurt myself flying, or running normally, or even walking to school. Hell, you can hurt yourself bucking apple trees; sprain an ankle or something.”

A light ignited within Dash’s eyes, her fervor apparent in every step she took, her passion plain in the slight tremor in her voice. “With parkour, I’m in complete control of my body. Every step, every dive, every swing flip or jump, it’s all me, A.J. I know I could get hurt, I know I could, but you haven’t felt the rush. As long as I’m absolutely perfect, as long as my execution is flawless, I’ll be fine.”

Her trademark cocky grin returned to her face “And of course I will be flawless. Have you met me?” She shot a dazzling smile at Applejack, whose chest began to throb in an odd way.

Must be that scare she gave me with the car, she thought uncertainly ‘cause my heart is beatin’ real weird right now.

They ran in silence for several more minutes, weaving in and out of crowds, crossing streets and occasionally nodding to acquaintances. After a fashion, Dash broke the silence.

She didn’t look at Applejack as she spoke, staring straight ahead. A.J got the impression that Dash was talking to herself just as much as she was talking to her blonde companion.

“It’s worth it, A.J. It feels like flying.”

They came to a low wall, maybe four feet high. As if to prove her point, Dash threw herself over it, her feet flying ahead of her, followed by the rest of her body, with her hands pushing off of the wall behind her. Just like last time, she hit the ground running, smoothly falling into step with Applejack. She noted that she’d actually had to slow down a bit for A.J to catch up with her.

“Wha-”

“Dash Vault”

“Ah….um-“

“Nope, not named after me, nope I didn’t make it up.”

“Ah”

Applejack was about to say something else when a pink-clad figure stepped out from behind a tree in front of them. “Hiya, girls! How’s the race going?”

Applejack made a noncommittal grunt. “Could be worse. Dashie here almost got turned into a pancake.”

Pinkie squealed excitedly. “I saw that! And I was like ‘No, Dashie! Yes, Dashie! Ooh, do it again, Dashie!’” A frown crossed her face for an instant before being replaced by a grin. “I would’ve been really sad if you had been turned into a pancake, Dashie-“

Applejack nodded.

“-but I bet you’d be a really tasty pancake.”

Applejack tripped, nearly faceplanting into the pavement. Dash grabbed her arm at the last second, supporting her, and turned to Pinkie.

“Uh, thanks Pinkie.” Dash said slowly. “But, um…how are you doing that?”

“Doing what?” Pinkie chirped cheerfully, walking next to them calmly.

“Walking next to us, while we’re running this fast.”

Applejack, having recovered from her rare moment of gracelessness, looked over at Pinkie Pie. Sure enough, she was strolling next to them, her body moving as if she were just going for a leisurely morning walk. Yet, she was easily keeping pace with both runners. It was odd to see, and gave the impression of a person walking slowly on a treadmill while a background blurred past on a screen behind them.

Pinkie shrugged. “Who knows?” She spun around, now walking backwards in front of the girls while they ran. “Anyway, I wanted to talk to you girls about the race.”

Dash raised an eyebrow. “What about it? No rules broken, right?”

Pinkie shook her head, pink curls bouncing in time with her steps. “Nope! But you guys are going really slowly. Is something wrong?”

Applejack eyed Pinkie’s sort-of-slow pace and frowned. “Yer kiddin’ me, right?”

Pinkie shook her head vehemently. “Nope!”

“Pinkie, we’re booking it!” Dash protested “We’re already more than halfway done!”

“Yeah, but I’ve seen you go way faster. For you guys, this is like jogging.”

Both Dash and A.J frowned, doing a quick internal check, and realized that Pinkie was actually right. Neither of them was even winded.

Pinkie shrugged. “I just thought you guys might want me to point it out, since you’re all ‘we will challenge ourselves and each other to become the best athlete and restore honor to our family’ and stuff.”

“Yer right,” Applejack conceded. “We ain’t been challengin’ ourselves like we used to.”

Dash laughed. “Well, maybe we should step it up. What do you say, A.J? First one to the park wins.”

“You’re on.”

They poured on the speed, accelerating away from Pinkie Pie, each trying to pull ahead of the other. They were neck and neck until they both turned right, running down a wide alley.

While Applejack focused on controlling her breathing and keeping her pace constant, Rainbow Dash looked skyward and smirked. She veered away from Applejack and leapt, heading straight for a nearby wall.

Her feet made contact first, and continued running for one, two, three steps before she leapt once more, soaring up to grab the underside of the fire escape that she’d noticed upon first entering the alley. She swung, and her momentum carried her parallel to the wall of the alley. She grabbed an outcropping window ledge and, without stopping, threw herself sideways to grab another slightly higher ledge. She continued this, keeping pace with Applejack all the while, until she reached the ledge closest to the roof of the building. Instead of throwing herself sideways again, she pushed upward explosively, her arms straining for the lip of the roof. As her feet passed the ledge that her hands had been clinging to only a moment before, she kicked off of it, propelling herself safely onto the summit of the building.

Applejack gaped at Dash’s swift ascension until she lost sight of her over the edge of the roof. She emerged from the alley, cutting a quick right, and felt her jaw drop.

Rainbow Dash was ahead of her. Despite the massive amount of energy she must have expended to get to the roof, she had done so with ease and, on top of it all, had pulled ahead. By running a diagonal across the rooftop instead of going along it’s perimeter as A.J had, she’d gained her advantage. Applejack struggled to increase her speed, but soon realized the futility of it. Dash’s lead was just too big, and where A.J constantly slowed down to run around tables or weave through crowds, Dash used everything in her path to her advantage. Applejack watched as Rainbow Dash ran at an elevated section of metal on the rooftop. Jumping into the air and turning sideways, she allowed herself to slide feet-first over its slick surface, and landed gracefully on the other end.

She hadn’t slowed in the slightest.

If anything, Applejack noticed, she seemed to have sped up, conserving the momentum from her slide and adding it to her already formidable speed.

At this point, Applejack resigned herself to the fact that she wouldn’t win the race, and focused on simply making it to the finish line as soon as she could. The park was right down the street. Applejack could see Pinkie Pie jumping up and down at the entrance. Fixing her eyes on the bouncing pink blur, Applejack blazed down the road, each step pushing her forward explosively and containing as much power as she was able to summon without magic. She knew that the sprint was inefficient, burning through her energy reserves, but she reasoned that she’d reach the park in about thirty seconds. She could hold out for that long.

Above and ahead of her, Rainbow Dash had a problem. Running on rooftops was useful and all, and it had given her the advantage she’d needed, but now she found herself faced with a complication she really should have seen coming.

She needed to get down.

Her mind raced, even as she continued forward at the same breakneck pace. At this speed, she calculated, she’d reach the edge of the roof in about five seconds. At that point, she’d have to make a decision or stop, losing all of her momentum and her lead.

5…

She could just fly off of the edge of the roof, or float down, but she’d be disqualifying herself.

Anyway she’d learned her lesson about cheating at the Running of the Leaves.

4…

What was at the end of the street, an awning? Maybe she could jump and bounce off of it?

3… No, not an awning. This was an apartment building, so there wouldn’t be a storefront awning on any side of it.

2… A stoplight! This building marked the end of the block, and right next to the edge was a stoplight!

1… Which meant she’d have to…

0… Jump.

Rainbow Dash reached the edge of the building and leapt, throwing herself as far forward as she could. Her sights were set on the highest part of the stoplight, suspended over the street. She barely reached it, grabbing on by just her fingertips, her arms screaming in protest as the impact jarred them. Ignoring the pain, she swung, extending her body as far as it would go, and released her grip. She forced her body to relax, flying through the air in a graceful arc and landing atop a truck that had just begun to move.

The difficult part over now, she dropped from the roof of the truck to an adjacent car, and from there, using its roof as a springboard, to the ground.

Almost there, she thought, exhaustion permeating her thoughts. I can see Pinkie. Just gotta…pour it on. 10 seconds…

Dash ran, channeling all of her remaining energy into each step, willing herself to finish the race. Exhaustion is just my body sending me a message, she thought, gritting her teeth against her body’s protests, and Dash isn’t taking any calls right now.

She was aware of the footfalls pounding behind her, much closer than she would have anticipated, but she ignored them. Her vision was beginning to go black around the edges, warping into an odd tunnel vision with Pinkie Pie’s waving form at its center. She wasn’t far now.

5 yards…

3 yards…

1 yard away…

She threw herself forward with a wordless cry and clenched eyes, not tapping Pinkie’s hand as intended, but grabbing her entire arm and yanking her down.

When Applejack arrived half a moment later, she was greeted with the sight of a groaning Rainbow Dash sprawled face down in the grass, clutching Pinkie Pie’s arm to her chest. Pinkie, who was sprawled similarly beside and partially underneath Dash, made no motion to free herself. On the contrary, she seemed to be rather enjoying the position, giggling something about hands and cup sizes.

Applejack stood above them, eyeing the tangled pair with a critical eye.

“Oh, what the hay.” She allowed herself to collapse as well, falling against the duo. She untied her hair and shook her head, letting it fan out across the prone forms of her friends. All three teens allowed themselves a moment to catch their breath; Pinkie, presumably from giggling, Dash from the leftover adrenaline of her rooftop jump and subsequent burst of speed, and A.J from her last ditch effort to make it to the finish line.

Applejack turned to face Rainbow Dash. “Ya know Dash, I been thinkin’.”

Dash craned her neck awkwardly to look at A.J. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. You said doin’ parkour feels like flyin, right?”

Dash closed her eyes wistfully, letting her forehead fall back against the grass. She sighed. “Yeah, it’s amazing.”

“But you can already fly.”

Dash froze.

Applejack continued, oblivious to Dash’s sudden stillness. “Ah mean, what you just did was amazing and all, but why would a Sky Tribe member want to learn something like that? I dunno, to me it just seems kinda redundont”

“Redundant.” Pinkie corrected.

“Right. If anything, parkour seems like something more for Earth Tribe members, seein’ as how we’re stuck on the ground and all.” A.J shrugged. “Just wonderin’, is all.”

Rainbow heaved a massive sigh, quite unlike the one she’d let escape only moments earlier. She mumbled something into the ground.

“What was that, Sugarcube? Speak up, I can’t hear you.”

Rainbow Dash squirmed between the two girls, coming to rest in a position that she could see Applejack from.

“I learned it for you.”

Applejack began to speak, but Rainbow Dash cut her off. “I know what your family thinks of me. As much as we might pretend that they like me, we both know it isn’t true; they tolerate me. I can’t blame them; I’m an outsider, trying to impose myself into their lives every time I come over. I can’t help but notice the way Granny Smith looks at me, and even though Big Mac doesn’t say much, we both know his silence speaks volumes.”

Applejack only nodded, stunned. Where was all this coming from?

“We’re different on a pretty huge level, A.J. I’m Sky Tribe, and they’re not. You’re not. No matter what I do, I know they’ll always think I’ve got my head up in the clouds when I should be more grounded. I know they don’t like how loud I am, or that I kind of brag a lot, or how sometimes I nap on a cloud outside your window while you’re sleeping.”

“You what?”

“But that’s just the way I am. I won’t change myself for anyone, no matter what they think of me. But… I guess I thought if I started doing parkour, it’d be sort of like a compromise. I’d still feel like I was flying, but I’d also get to show you- I mean your family- that I can be grounded too. Maybe they’d like me more, then.”

Rainbow Dash fell silent, her eyes only making eye contact with Applejack’s every few seconds before flitting away.

“Dash…” Applejack began slowly “Why do you care so much what my family thinks?”

“You live with them, A.J. Eventually, whatever they think of me is going to squeeze itself into your head, and you’ll start believing it too. “

Applejack frowned. “Now, that doesn’t make any sense at all.” She tilted her head sideways, following Dash’s wayward gaze with her own. “What aren’t you saying?”

“Love doesn’t have to make sense. It usually doesn’t.” Pinkie said.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash stiffened simultaneously.

Pinkie slid out from between the two girls and hopped to her feet. “I’ll leave you two alone.” She winked at Dash and skipped away, passing behind a tree and not reappearing on the other side.

Both girls lay silent, acutely aware of their bodies lying atop each other without the barrier of Pinkie between them. Rainbow Dash spoke first. “Love is a little strong.”

Applejack turned to look at Dash, meeting her eyes for the first time since Pinkie had left. “What?”

“I just…I like you, A.J. A lot. But I don’t know that I’d say I love you, yet.”

Applejack chuckled, jarring herself out of her shocked state. “I don’t think I’ll hold that against you, Dash.”

Rainbow Dash nodded, and both girls lay in silence once more. “So?”

“What?”

“Do you...like me too?”

Applejack smirked. “I reckon you might like yourself enough for the two of us, Rainbow.”

“Aw, c’mon, A.J”, Dash pleaded.

Applejack’s hand found Dash’s, and squeezed it gently. “Yeah, I’m pretty fond of you too, Sugarcube.”

Rainbow Dash exhaled massively, releasing a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding, and Applejack laughed. It was infectious, and Dash soon found herself laughing as hard as A.J, the two guffawing loudly and rolling around in the grass, still holding hands.

Eventually, the laughter subsided, and Applejack turned her head to look at Rainbow Dash. A single tug on her arm, and Rainbow rolled over to her, needing no further prompting. She rose to her knees, beginning to straddle Applejack, before the blonde girl stopped her.

“Dash, wait…” She stopped to catch her breath; her heart was beating incredibly fast.

“What is it? Am I moving too fast? I can slow down…..maybe.”

“It’s not that, it’s just…”

“What?”

“We’re still at the entrance of the park.”

Dash’s head snapped up, and she suddenly remembered her surroundings. Looking over her shoulder, she saw that a small crowd had gathered behind them. She spotted a beaming Pinkie Pie holding a camera, and she wasn’t the only one. Her cheeks flared as red as the streak in her hair, and she stood, helping Applejack to her feet.

“Uh…sorry about that.”

“Don’t be. That was really…we almost…don’t be.”

“Do you want to try...I mean, we could do that cloud walking spell on you and you could come to my place…”

Applejack shook her head, smiling. “How about you show me some parkour?”

“Oh…ok, yeah, sure.” Rainbow Dash said, trying to hide the disappointment in her voice.

“After all,” Applejack drawled, winking, “I bet rooftops are good for more than just running.”

Rainbow Dash perked up instantly. “Yeah, okay! Race you to the alley? ”

“You’re on.”

“It’s a good thing you’re from the Earth Tribe, A.J, because you’re about to eat my dirt.”

Applejack smirked. “Is that what you call yours? ‘Dirt’?”

Rainbow Dash blushed again, and began sputtering a clarification that no one would hear.

Applejack had already started running.

“No fair!” Dash took off after A.J., but soon slowed.

Something was different. Her steps were lighter, smoother, almost….fluid.

Ahead of her, Applejack was beaming. She hadn’t needed to take up parkour to see what Rainbow had meant.

This felt like flying.

Author's Note

Many many thanks to Wolfe and WindSilver for his invaluable assistance in the final stages of this, as well as being a great parkour buddy and friend.