It was an exciting day for some of the ponies around Ponyville: it was the first ever Ponyville Sky High Grand Prix. It was a chance for the ponies that could fly to compete and race against each other without having to travel to Cloudsdale. Not just pegasi either, but any citizen that could fly, including bat ponies, griffons, and unicorns. There was even talk Doctor Hooves was going to enter a flying machine he had built in order to test it under racing conditions.
Little Green Smith Apple looked around as she walked along the grounds, making her way toward the registration desk. Her gold colored eyes were wide as she looked around, trying to take it all in. There were ponies of all types around them, enjoying themselves. Bleachers had been set up, and they were already starting to be filled up. Multiple concession booths had been set up, including one from Sugarcube Corner where Pumpkin Cake was working, and another from Sweet Apple Acres where Little Green's mom was.
"You okay there, Green?" her dad asked, causing her to jump slightly.
"Yes, Papa," Little Green answered. "Just..." she turned away from him, looking around more as she started fiddling with her hoodie's zipper. "There's so much going on and to see."
She could feel her father against her as he moved closer. One of his wings stretched out to wrap around her, pressing to Little Green's side and holding her against him. When she looked up, she could see his attention was on her, one eyebrow raised.
"It's not that much," he said softly. "You've seen a lot more going on at carnivals and even some of my own shows. Want to know what I think?"
"What?" Little Green asked.
Leaning in closer, her father whispered, "I think you might be feeling nervous."
He then pulled back and gave a smile.
"And it's okay to be. I still get nervous before a show."
"No," Little Green said, staring at him. Her father was Soarin, the second in command of The Wonderbolts. The Wonderbolts! He must have done like a million shows or something, and all in front of huge crowds, including all the princesses. There was no way he could be nervous after all that time.
"Yes," Soarin said with a smile. "It's true." After looking around, he leaned in closer.
"Believe it or not," he whispered, "Spitfire and Rainbow Dash get nervous too." He then gave a wink.
That was really hard to believe. Those two were both awesome flyers. Especially Aunt Dash. Little Green had heard all sorts of stories from Scootaloo about the amazing flying Dash had done over the years, like saving Spitfire, Rarity, and Soarin at a Young Flyers' Competition. They had even fought big scary monsters for crying out loud.
Little Green's father placed a hoof on her head, ruffling her mane.
"There's nothing wrong with being nervous," he said. "It's perfectly natural. The important thing is to not let your fear keep you from doing something." He shifted. "That is, if this is something you want to do."
"It is," Little Green replied instantly. "I really really do."
The two of them continued on, making their way to the registration line. It was actually three, and while none of them were very long, it did look like it was going to be a while.
"Alright, Green," her father said, "there you are. I'm going to go check to see how your mom's doing at the apple stand."
"Okay," Little Green said as she headed for the line. As she started to wait, she looked around. There were other ponies around, and even some she recognized. Unfortunately, none of the ponies close to her were ones that she really knew. She was stuck with nothing to do to keep herself occupied.
So Little Green waited, trying to keep herself busy. She fiddled with the zipper on her hoodie, she hummed several songs to herself, she watched some of the ponies around her. Once or twice, her mind even wondered as she imagined herself becoming a hero like Mom and Mom's friends, or a Wonderbolt like her father.
"Hey," a voice said from behind her. Turning, Little Green found an all white bat pony filly wearing dark blue glasses.
"Hey, Snow," Little Green said. "You entering too?"
"Yes," Snowy Night replied. "Rarity thinks I should get out and try some things. Find a hobby and get involved in the town stuff." She turned to look back toward the ponies that were milling around. "Although I don't think she was actually happy about me wanting to enter a race."
"Maybe because she can't really help you with it?" Little Green suggested. From what she understood, in the short time Snow had been living with Rarity, the mare had been having some difficulty bonding with filly.
"Maybe," Snow agreed.
The two of them continued to wait, talking a little as they worked their way closer to the registration desk. With another pony she knew to talk to, Little Green found the wait to sign up faster and less boring. Before long, they had reached the front and Little Green went up to register. It was a pretty quick process: name, age, and species. Then the mare behind the table gave her a piece of paper with a number on it, and another with the time for their race.
Once done, Little Green moved aside and waited for Snowy Night to finish.
"My parents are over by my family's apple booth," she said. "Want to go over there and see about getting a snack before the race?"
"Sure," Snow said. "Although I should probably find Rarity soon."
It turned out there was no need to look for her. Rarity was waiting at the stand, talking with Applejack and Soarin.
"Applejack mentioned that Little Green was entering as well," she explained, "so I presumed that the two of you would make your way here eventually. I take it then that you two are all registered and ready to go?"
"Yes," Snow said, holding up the paper with the time.
"You seem to be feeling better," Soarin said to Little Green.
"Yeah," Little Green answered. She then turned to face her mom. "We're also really hungry." She made her eyes wide and stuck her lower lip out, making it quiver slightly.
"You don't need to waste your doe-eyes on me," Applejack said with a smile. "I'll give y'all somethin' to snack on. Just go easy. Don't want y'all gettin' sick during the race." She then gave the two fillies a fritter each.
"Thanks, Mama," Little Green said before biting into it.
"Thank you, Mrs. Applejack," Snow said as she started on her own.
"You're welcome," Applejack replied. "And good luck to you both. I'll be rootin' for ya while I'm working."
"Speaking of," Rarity spoke up, "we should probably get going if we wish to have good seats." She smiled at Snow. "Good luck, darling, and do your best."
Soarin picked up his daughter, giving her a hug.
"You'll do great," he declared as he ruffled her mane.
Little Green Smith Apple grinned as she looked at her parents. It was nice to know that they believed in her. Finishing her fritter, she got ready to win her first flying race.
In Little Green Smith Apple's bedroom, the curtains were drawn and lights off as music played. As for Little Green, she laid sprawled out on the floor under her bed. Her hood was up and the strings pulled tight, the material covering her eyes.
There was a knock on the door.
"You in there, sugar cube?" Applejack called out.
"No," Little Green called out. "Ain't nopony here."
From her spot, Little Green heard the door open, followed by the sound of her mom's hooves moving toward the bed.
"Your pa told me you seemed a might upset after the race for some reason," Applejack said, probably sticking her head under the bed. "Also said you did pretty good."
"I didn't do very good," Little Green said, not moving from her spot. "I got fourth place."
"That's pretty good. 'specially for your first race."
"It ain't good. I lost, Mama. I didn't win, I didn't even place." She let out a huff. "I just...lost..."
There were several seconds of silence before Little Green heard the sound of her mother's hooves walking away. That was not was she had been expecting. She had been expecting her mom to pull her out from under the bed, give her a big hug, and try to cheer her up about losing.
A few minutes later, the sound of Applejack returning could be heard.
"C'mon out here, Greenie, there's somethin' I wanna show ya."
Little Green pulled her hood open and back, letting her see as she turned to look out toward the room. She could see her mother's legs, as well as several photo albums. Curious, Little Green crawled out from under the bed. As soon as she did, Applejack sat down and patted the blanket next to her. Little Green sat down while her mother grabbed one of the photo albums.
"Let me tell you a little story," Applejack said as she held out the book. The picture she pointed at was of her and Rainbow Dash standing in front of what looked like a finish line. The two of them looked dirty, ruffled, and bruised like they had just been fighting. At the same time, Applejack had a foreleg around Rainbow Dash's neck, who in turn had a wing around her, and the both of them were grinning as wide as a mile.
"It was at The Running of The Leaves," Applejack explained, "after Twilight had first moved to Ponyville, back when she was a unicorn. Rainbow Dash and I ended up getting really competitive with each other and wanted to prove which of us was the more athletic pony."
"You mean that Iron Pony competition you two had?"
"This actually was a continuation of that. After the competition, we ended up deciding to race to see which of us was the better athlete." A sigh escaped Applejack as she looked up at the bed's canopy. "Problem was, we let our pride and competitive natures get the better of us. Both thought the other cheated, making it okay for us to cheat, which it didn't. The two of us got so caught up in everything, we ended up actually getting in a fight, having no fun during the race, and wound up tied... for last."
"No," Little Green said.
"Eyup," Applejack replied, looking at her daughter and grinning. "Had to get some sense knocked into us by Princess Celestia herself to realize how we messed up." She tapped the photo. "This here photo was taken after we had run the whole thing again, more for fun and as friends again."
Little Green looked at the picture a while longer, thinking.
"You understand what I'm telling you, sugar cube?" Applejack asked.
"That...I shouldn't let wanting to win get between me and friends?"
"While true, it ain't the point this time." Applejack shut the photo album, setting it aside. "While there ain't nothing wrong with wanting to win, you shouldn't be getting so focused on it that you forget to have fun. 'specially at your age."
"That's easy for you to say," Little Green huffed out, her ears drooping. "You always win."
"Now that ain't true."
"Yes it is. I've seen all those blue ribbons you have from your rodeos."
"Yes," Applejack agreed as she shut the photo album and grabbed another, "but you ain't seen these."
A small gasp escaped Little Green as her mother opened the book. Turned out it was not a photo album, but more like a scrap book. There were pictures in it, but also a ticket to a place called Dodge Junction, a letter from one Cherry Jubilee at Cherry Hill Ranch, and several ribbons. Including...
"Is that a fourth place ribbon?" Little Green asked, pointing.
"That's right," Applejack admitted. "All these ribbons here are actually from the same rodeo. Went to one and wound up not winning a single blue ribbon. Worse, I had promised the prize money to the town to help rebuild city hall. But, no blue ribbon meant no prize money." With a chuckle, she rubbed at the back of her head. "I was so embarrassed that I decided not to return to Ponyville 'til I had made enough money on my own."
"What?" Little Green cried out. "But what about Sweet Apple Acres? What if something attacked and your friends needed you?"
"Honestly? I didn't think about anything." Applejack tilted her head, narrowing her gaze at her daughter. "I was just thinking about how much of a failure I felt and how I let everypony down."
"...oh..." Little Green said, her entire body dropping. She was then pulled into a hug by her mother, who was chuckling.
"Luckily, I had some good friends," Applejack explained, "who came to find me and told me they didn't care 'bout that. And while some of the ponies here were a might disappointed, most of 'em understood that I did my best." She let out a snort. "Although Granny Smith and Big Mac may have been a bit peeved that I was just gonna leave them to work the farm for however long. Granny even threatened to knock some sense into that 'dadburn foolish thick skull' of mine.
"The point is, the only pony that was mad at me for not winning was me. Most of the others were proud of me for trying, and would much rather have me around than off hiding."
She gave her daughter a nudge.
"Nopony is mad at you or disappointed that you didn't get first place, sweetie. If this is something that you have fun with and enjoy, then you should keep doing it. You might do worse some times, but you might also do better. But nopony is gonna force you if you really don't wanna try again." Pulling her into a hug again, Applejack rubbed Little Green's side. "It's your life and your choice, sugar cube."
A small smile tugged against Little Green's mouth as she leaned against her mom.
"Thanks."
"So, feeling better?"
"Yeah." Little Green's smile grew wider. "But I'd feel even better after a big piece of apple pie."
"You're your father's daughter alright," Applejack chucked out. "I'll consider it. After dinner. And speaking of, how 'bout you come down and help me make it?"
"Okay," Little Green said as she got up. "But...what's the third book for?"
"...that... is a story about Apple Bloom I'll tell you another time."
