Appledashery

by Just Essay

Out Stubborning

Rainbow Dash had flown about two hundred meters from the orchards when she finally stopped in midair. Her legs dangled limply beneath her hovering form. She winced slightly, rubbing one limb with another, toying with the numb sensation flowing through them.

Fumbling, Rainbow reached into her saddlebag and pulled the medicine bottle out, almost dropping it. With an inward grumble, she wrenched the lid off with her teeth and downed one capsule. Grabbing her cantene of water, she gulped the pill into oblivion, then fluttered there, hugging the flask to her chest.

She took deep breaths, nostrils fuming. Her fuzzy blue ears twitched. Warmth cascaded through her body, bringing with it the tingling sensation of nerves coming to life in her legs.

A minute passed. Two minutes.

Rainbow's eyes opened, and she was frowning. She tilted about until she was staring down at the orchards again.

---

"Nnnngh!" Applejack grunted as she bucked a cluster of apples loose from a tree. Panting, exhausted from her sweat and labor, she limped towards the basket of fruit and nudged the half-empty thing closer to the base of the tree.

Just as she was preparing to give the trunk another kick, something blurred by, snatching an empty basket off the top of the wagon parked nearby.

"Huh?" Applejack's face twisted in confusion. Thunder clapped nearby. A petite set of hooves was kicking a tree just a row down from where she stood. A little bit frazzled, the farm filly trotted around the bend and squinted at the scene. "Rainbow...?"

"Haaugh!" Rainbow shouted like a martial arts mare, bucking a tree as hard as she could. She barely made a third of the apples fall, but she kicked it again and again until enough fruit fell to match a single one of Applejack's strikes.

Doing a double-take, Applejack shuffled through the grass and trotted closer. "Rainbow, what in the hay's gotten into you?!"

"Guhh!" Rainbow kicked again, not even breaking a sweat. She frowned into the green leaves and shiny red fruit skin. "Just where is Big Mac, huh?"

Applejack stared at an awkward angle. "Over in the west fields..." Her jaw hung open. "...why?"

"And lemme guess, you're gonna work your way clockwise from the east fields to the south and then join Big Mac in the west?"

"Assumin' he drags behind, sure, but—"

"Y'know, you would do things clockwise, AJ." Rainbow Dash smirked as—with much effort—she finally bucked enough apples loose from the tree. "Predictable to the end. Heh."

"Rainbow, what in Equestria are ya doin'?"

"What does it look like?" Rainbow Dash zoomed over Applejack's head, grabbed another basket, and shoved it towards a fresh, unbucked tree. "You wanna get a good harvest done, right? No sense in beating around the bush about it!"

"Meanin'...?"

"Look, I'm a delivery pony and a speedster!" Rainbow paused to point at herself. "Even before you, me, and the gals started hangin' out, I knew how important it was to be quick about stuff!" She spun and bucked the tree hard, causing a hoofful of apples to rattle into the basket. "The faster you get this harvest done, the sooner you can sell your stuff to whoever, right? And I do mean whoever."

"Well, sure, but—"

"Then let's get to it, gurl!" Rainbow grinned wickedly as she gave the tree a massive buck, this time loosening all apples in only the second go. "Hah!" She waggled her eyebrows in Applejack's direction. "Showed that one who's boss!"

"Rainbow Dash, this ain't yer line of work!" Applejack frowned. "And besides! You've got enough on yer plate—what with the cloud buckin' and the deliverin' and—"

"Pffft! You think I'm offering to do this for free?" Rainbow Dash smirked at Applejack. "Imagine if you and I combined get this crap done ahead of schedule? Ehhh? Ehhh?"

Applejack blinked, then sighed. "Yer really darn persistent, ya know that?"

"I learned it from the best."

"Hah! You did not!"

"Wanna prove it?" Rainbow Dash pointed at the sky. "Race ya to sundown! Whoever bucks the most apples down between now and then gets to have the last laugh! And if it's me—"

"I won't be able to spare many, Rainbow," Applejack grunted. "Even if we clear out the entire east field by then."

"Well, we sure as feathers aren't gonna get much done by standing here arguing about it, now will we?" Rainbow grinned.

"But—"

Rainbow grinned.

Applejack snorted. "Yer impossible." She marched her way towards a row of trees besides the wagon. "Better not be faintin' on me! I'll make Granny resuscitate ya!"

Rainbow Dash spun, smirked, and rammed her hooves into a nearby trunk. "My muzzle's been been in worse places," she muttered quietly to the sweaty air. Thud!

Comments

[Tchernobog]

"My muzzle's been been in worse places,"

[Scohinyha Sanka]

Typical Rainbow, her body is already struggling and now she is wreaking it even more.

[zaponator]

Bad bad idea!
This is the Iron Pony competition all over again! She's gonna need to pop pills left and right to keep this up. Literally the one thing she needs to not do.
...or maybe I'm worrying too much. Still say I've got a bad feeling about this.

[Dash32]

Uh oh. Now I'm certain shit's about to hit the fan here really soon!

[arancaytar]

Rainbow Dash spun, smirked, and rammed her hooves into a nearby trunk. "My muzzle's been been in worse places," she muttered quietly to the sweaty air. Thud!

I'm sure that Dashie doing strenuous work with her hooves is not at all going to cause health problems later.

Seriously, couldn't you find better ways to do this? Something like a... miniature tornado, or whatever.