Chapter Four
"Dash, Ah'm tellin' ya it was a tie," Applejack growled for the second time that day, her arms crossed over her chest and her cheeks flushed from the exertion of their race (although she was far too fit to be out of breath).
"It so was not," Rainbow protested. "I got outside a split second before you did!"
Applejack clicked her tongue, exasperated, and shifted her weight from one foot to the other, her leather boots striking the hard-packed earth with a muted thud. "Rainbow, mah foot hit th' doorstep at th' exact same time yores did. An' I remember it, 'cause ya panicked an' tried t' shove me t' th' side to stop me from winnin'!"
"I did not! I just accidentally stuck my arm out to the side and happened to hit you with it."
Applejack knew Rainbow Dash well enough by now to know that this was a blatant lie. Shaking her head smilingly, she stepped forwards and placed a cool hand on Dash's forearm, feeling her heart thrill a little as their skin made contact. "Look, it ain't a big deal. Let's jus' call that bet off an' say neither of us has t' wear a dress, alraght?"
Rainbow hesitated, staring down at Applejack's freckled hand, and then nodded slowly, deciding to accept this peace offering. "Fine."
"Good." Straightening her denim skirt, which had been rumpled during the course of their race, Applejack swept off her hat and used it to wipe her face. "Hoo-boy! That was some race. How'd ya get outside so fast, anyways?" she asked, twirling her hat around her finger as she often did when she was asking a question or was deep in thought. "What with havin' t' stop at th' changin' rooms an' all?"
Rainbow winked and tossed the soccer ball she'd had tucked under her elbow up in the air, deftly spinning it on one finger. "I'm faster than the Flash, I'm the awesome Rainbow -"
Applejack gave her a shove and swatted her with her Stetson. "Oh, be quiet. Don' go gettin' a big head... if it ain't already too late, that is."
"Very funny." Rainbow threw her soccer ball up in the air and bent down, catching the ball on her back and expertly rolling it back and forth. "I gotta go to soccer. My team's waiting for me. Think you could do track with me later?"
Applejack's heart leapt. She pretended to hesitate, even though she already knew what her answer would be. "Well... Ah guess," she answered, fighting to keep her tone of voice calm despite her inner excitement.
"Cool!" Rainbow's long legs flashed in the air, a blur of motion, as she casually juggled the soccer ball with her knees. "Then see you soon?"
"Shore thing... Rainbow Flash."
The athlete rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever... uh... Crapplejack?" She obviously couldn't thing of anything else.
Applejack chuckled as she settled her hat over her golden bangs. "Lame. Now git goin'."
"Yes, ma'am." With a final wave, Dash spun around and ran lightly over to the soccer field, dribbling her soccer ball with ease.
Applejack bit her lip and sighed as she turned around to head over to the archery range, which just happened to be right next to the soccer field.
And then, cursing her inability to ignore her heart's urges for even a single second, she whirled around again to watch Rainbow Dash. Her heartbeat quickened as she caught sight of her slender, powerful legs, covered by her soccer shorts only to the middle of her thighs. The large, white number one emblazoned on the back of her soccer uniform - which was turquoise, gold, and white, the school colors - flashed in the sunlight beneath Rainbow's jaggedly-cut, polychromatic locks. Applejack thought she could probably watch Rainbow's smooth, cocky stride without getting bored until the end of her days; it was so careless, but so confident -
She shut her eyes and firmly pinched the bridge of her nose. "Ain't no use lookin' at things yore never gonna git," Applejack murmured softly to herself, recalling one of Granny Smith's old proverbs.
Then she forced herself to turn away and walk firmly over to the archery range without looking back.
***
Thud.
Applejack's first arrow slammed into her target. It was a perfect bullseye, as usual.
Feeling a sense of grim satisfaction, she drew another arrow from the quiver secured to her back, hooked it to the bowstring, and brought her bow up for a second shot. Glancing over to her right, Applejack caught sight of Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie sitting in a cluster in the bleachers, watching intently. She paused to tip her hat at them, rolling her eyes in exasperation as Pinkie insisted on taking a picture of her, before returning to her shooting. Her hands, sheathed in elbow-length leather gloves to protect them from being injured by the bowstring as it vibrated forwards, ran along the smooth, wooden body of the bow in a practiced motion. Although this bow belonged to the school, it was basically hers, since the other students were smart enough to realize that only Applejack could handle it. Indeed, its draw weight was over a hundred pounds, making it the hardest bow to handle in the entire school. But for Applejack, who was used to doing copious amounts of farm work for hours at a time, could pull back its string with an almost ridiculous ease.
Muscles rippled beneath her arms as she drew the bowstring back to her ear and rested her index finger against the corner of her mouth, her other hand curled around the grip of her bow. She sighted along the shaft of her arrow and smoothly released, her booted legs spread out to either side and her back ramrod straight, as was the expected stance for archery.
Thud. Another perfect shot.
Applejack fired again, her fingers a blur of motion as she reloaded her bow, drew it back, and made her next shot in less than five seconds. This time, the arrow bounced off the back tip of her last arrow with enough force to dent it, and flew away into the grass. If the first two arrows hadn't been blocking the center of the target, this shot would have been another bullseye. Applejack nodded with satisfaction as she allowed her posture to slump somewhat; her last few shots had been impeccable.
After flexing her fingers and stamping her feet against the ground to loosen up her muscles, Applejack hefted her bow again, feeling her heart coursing with excitement as it always did when she was outside doing something physical. She slid another arrow out of her quiver, fitted it to the bow, carefully took aim...
Her eyes strayed to the left. A tall figure that was unmistakably Rainbow Dash was shooting goals left and right, the unfortunate goalie cowering as a multitude of soccer balls were launched towards her. Normally, Rainbow would have been shouting at the goalie for letting every one of her shots in, but she appeared to be too busy congratulating herself for her awesome shots instead.
Thud. Applejack jumped as she realized that she had accidentally fired the arrow. It just barely grazed the edge of the target and skipped away into the grass.
Numb with shock, she stared at the target, where there should have been another bullseye. Distracted by Rainbow Dash, Applejack had just made her worst shot in years.
"This is gettin' ridiculous," Applejack said furiously to herself. Tearing her eyes away from Rainbow, who had now (finally) started to berate the incompetent goalie, she trudged over to the target to collect her arrows, firmly ignoring the concerned gazes of her friends. She knew they would be wondering why she had missed the shot, and didn't want to have to explain right now.
Tipping her Stetson lower over her eyes to shield her vision from the unwavering afternoon sunlight, Applejack slid all of the arrows back into her quiver and prepared to begin anew.
But as she drew the bowstring back to her ear, she stopped, a wave of emotion akin to fear roiling through her, her fingers stiffening. What if she got distracted again and missed this shot? What if she missed all her shots? What if Rainbow saw her mess up and laughed at her?
Then Applejack remembered something. Something that her Pa had told her once, many, many years ago, but something that she hadn't been able to forget ever since.
"Pa? How come yore so big an' strong?"
He laughed, his mouth beaming beneath his dark, scruffy beard, his eyes twinkling, and picked his little girl up, his big hands stroking her flaxen hair. "Do Ah look big an' strong t' you, mah little Applejack?"
"Yes, Pa. Real strong!"
He looked deep into her eyes. "Well, now, that's 'cause Ah ain't really strong at all. At least, Ah didn't used t' be. Y'see, everybody's got some things in 'em they don' like. Things that they think make 'em weak. Anger. Jealousy. Greed. Fear. An' oftentimes a lot o' heartbreak. But if'n you can turn those into strengths, then you ain't weak no more. You can use 'em to make you strong, so you never back down from anythin'. That's how Ah look so strong."
"But how?"
"Well, you jus' say t' yoreself, 'Sure, Ah'm angry. An Ah'm scared, an' Ah'm hurt. But Ah got so much happy in me too. An' if I use all that anger an' fear an' hurt to fuel mahself, an' to make a promise t' mahself to keep mahself goin', then Ah can be even happier. 'Cause then there won't be anyone who can stand in mah way an' stop me from gettin' the things that make me happy.' " He pressed a kiss to Applejack's forehead. She shrieked with laughter as his beard tickled her cheeks. "Jus' you remember that, Applejack. Jus' you remember."
Applejack felt a solitary tear trickle down her cheek at the memory of her father. She hadn't known what her Pa had meant then, but now she thought she knew.
Brushing away the tear, she set her jaw and stood up to her full height, determination coursing through her body. Yes, she was sad that her best friend would never realize just how much she meant to Applejack. Yes, she was scared - of heartbreak and of rejection and of hurting the person closest to her.
But fear is a superpower, and anger is a motivation.
Applejack sighted along the shaft of her arrow, her emerald eyes riveted on the bullseye. She would continue to shoot, and every single one of her shots would be perfect. They had to be.
In a smooth, practiced motion, Applejack closed her eyes and released. She didn't even need to look to know that it had hit the center of the target.
Thud. Thud. Thud. More of her arrows hit the target in quick succession. An image of Rainbow Dash's face hovered in Applejack's mind, and she poured all of the love and sadness and warmth that underlay her feelings for Rainbow into her archery.
Thud.
Rainbow's eyes, shining with little flecks of violet and ranging anywhere from magenta to dark purple depending on the angle at which you viewed them, full of confidence and pride and warmth and humor, always glinting with suppressed mischief. Her grin, which lit up the whole room with its brilliance and was often flashed at the most inappropriate of times, such as during a lecture in the middle of class. Her hair, long and jagged and wonderfully prismatic, always falling over her eyes in choppy streaks.
Thud.
Her fingers, slim and deft and perfectly suited to crashing out tunes on her rock guitar. Her body, slender and agile. Her long, well-formed legs - the legs of a runner. Her casual way of somehow managing to be both clumsy and graceful at the same time. Her playful charm that shone through in all of her movements, all of her facial expressions.
Thud.
The way her voice shot up two octaves and cracked when she was excited, much to her chagrin. The way she walked, in a loping, easy stride with a cocky sway of her hips, and the way she ran, her arms and legs blurs of motion as she sped ahead of everyone else. The way she sang, low and husky, while her fingers whirled at lightning speed over the strings of her guitar. The way she always had to be the best at everything, and usually managed it. The way she insisted on a rematch every time she lost. The way she loved to compete with Applejack and wasn't above tackling her to the ground and wrestling her just to win their competition. The way she didn't mind getting dirty or making a mess. The way she tended to miss the obvious and ignore established norms in favor of blazing her own path. The way she was a good head taller than Applejack, which meant that when Rainbow hugged her she could wrap her entire body around Applejack and rest her chin on top of her head (which she often did). The way she made weird faces at Applejack in class, trying to get her to laugh. The way she was absolutely obsessed with apple cider. The way she was both obnoxious and instantly likable at the same time. The way she was admired by everyone in the school for her good looks and athleticism. The way she could be surprisingly gentle and always knew what to say, be it a sardonic comment or a pep talk. The way she was the most loyal of friends anyone could ever find, and always had your back.
Thud.
The way she'd completely stolen Applejack's heart.
Thud. Applejack blinked with surprise, feeling as though she had returned to reality after being in a long trance, as her final arrow slammed into the target. She lowered her bow and stared at the target, feeling a rush of pride. All of her arrows were clustered in a tight circle, no more than a centimeter apart from each other, in the red circle that marked the center. It was exceptionally fine shooting.
"Not bad, cowgirl," a familiar scratchy voice said in a teasing voice. "Good aim."
Hardly daring to hope, Applejack looked over to her left.
Rainbow Dash was watching her from the edge of the soccer field, a half-smile playing on her mouth, her soccer ball tucked under her elbow and her cleats and socks spattered with muddy grass.
A smile broke out on Applejack's lips. "You ain't too bad yoreself," she replied lightly, referring to Rainbow's remarkable soccer shots from earlier as she planted the bottom tip of her bow on the ground and rested her gloved forearms on its top tip.
"Yeah, I totally kicked butt out there, didn't I?" Rainbow came a little closer, her forehead scrunched as she peered at the target. "Seriously though, did you really shoot all those? That's, like, incredible."
Applejack felt her face flush. "Well - that's, uh, real sweet."
"AJ, I'm not being sweet. I'm being dead serious. You're awesome. You should start joining competitions and stuff... hey, speaking of competitions, you wanna have an archery competition sometime?"
Applejack scoffed as she began collecting her arrows. "You kiddin'? I'd clobber ya in ten seconds flat." Her mouth twitched in a smirk as she employed one of Rainbow's trademark phrases.
"Yeah, I guess you're probably right.. " Rainbow sighed and mussed up her hair, idly smoothing out her soccer uniform.
Applejack cocked her head amusedly. "Am Ah just imaginin' things, or was that th' sound o' Rainbow Dash bein' humble?"
The athlete rolled her eyes. "Oh, shut up. What are you, my mom?"
Applejack's low laugh rang out out over the archery range. "Jus' teasin', sugarcube. But Ah am five months older'n you, an' don't ya forget it."
"As if you'd let me." Rainbow glanced up at the position of the sun and frowned. "Okay, it's getting late. I have to go to track. Are you coming?" She smoothed out her soccer uniform, which she also wore for track, probably just because she enjoyed the feeling of having a number one on her back.
"Yeah, yeah, Ah'm comin'." Tucking all of her arrows into her quiver, Applejack glanced over her shoulder and beckoned to her friends, indicating that they should move to a row of bleachers closer to the track. "Ready."
The two of them fell into step with each other, bantering animatedly as usual, both of them reveling in each other's company...
And both of them wishing with all their hearts that they had enough courage to say to the other what they were really thinking.
***
The members of the Wondercolts track team were already milling around the track when Applejack and Rainbow Dash arrived, chatting animatedly to each other and performing warm-ups in preparation for the running session. Applejack leaned her bow and quiver against a nearby tree, under which Rainbow had left her soccer ball, and then carefully rested her Stetson on top of the quiver. Dash shifted her weight from foot to foot, watching impatiently. Applejack chuckled and swatted her with one of the gloves she had just taken off. "Hold yore horses, Rainbow. Ah'm comin'."
The captain of the track team glanced over and spotted the two of them. "Hey, Dash," she called in a raspy voice, jogging over to them, her eyes sensually half-lidded as she smiled at Rainbow (at least, they were in Applejack's mind). "What kept you?"
Applejack clenched her fists, inwardly stewing. That's mah nickname for Rainbow. How dare she use it? She narrowed her eyes, sizing up the captain's jagged orange-and-yellow hairstyle and tall, svelte form.
Spitfire was one of the most popular girls in the school. It wasn't that Applejack didn't like her. She was friendly, smart, and funny. And she was incredibly hot.
But that was exactly the problem. If Rainbow Dash had a crush on anybody in the school, it would be Spitfire, and Applejack was painfully aware of that.
What was worse was that Spitfire had been crushing on Rainbow Dash for four years, and was quite vocal about admitting it. The only person in the school who didn't seem to know about her crush was Rainbow Dash herself. Of course.
Still, Applejack's personal code of honor didn't allow her to be impolite. So as Spitfire neared them, she nodded in her direction and reached up to tip her hat, hastily lowering her hand when she realized that it wasn't there.
"Hey, Spits," Rainbow answered casually. "I was just recruiting AJ for the team today... if that's alright."
Applejack's eyebrow twitched. 'Spits'? Really?
Spitfire eyed her up and down and then shrugged. "Sure. No problem. Anything for my number-one runner. Hey, Applejack."
"Howdy," she grunted, forcing a smile and doing her best to repress the urge to vomit. Spitfire was clearly trying to get into Rainbow's good books.
Rainbow slung an arm around Spitfire's back in a friendly way and walked off towards the track with her. "So, I wanted to talk to you about that hundred-meter dash..."
Applejack glowered after them, pretending to herself that she was annoyed at Rainbow for ditching her, but knowing that deep down her anger was really directed at Spitfire. However, she couldn't honestly say that she wasn't jealous. She knew she was overreacting, and she was ashamed of herself for doing so, but every time Rainbow looked into Spitfire's eyes Applejack couldn't help imagining that she was in love with her.
Rainbow glanced back. "Applejack? You coming?" Spitfire looked back at Applejack with a sly, superior smirk that indicated that she knew exactly what Applejack was thinking about Rainbow.
She set her jaw and jogged after them, determined not to take the bait. "Yeah."
There were fifteen students on the track, sixteen including Applejack. Applejack couldn't help feeling a little awkward and out-of-place as she followed Rainbow and Spitfire into the thick of the group, since she was by far the shortest and stockiest one there; everyone else was slim, lean, and at least five foot eight. Even Dash, who was one of the tallest people Applejack knew, was only slightly taller than average in this group.
Applejack suddenly felt a tap on her shoulder and spun around. A tall, muscly young man with shoulder-length blue hair and a firm jaw was leaning over her. "Hey, Applejack," he said shyly.
Applejack sighed. "Hey, Soarin," she answered patiently. Soarin thought he was being very covert about his crush on Applejack, but he was failing miserably, to the point where even Applejack herself knew about it. She felt bad for the poor guy. He was charming, and she quite liked him, but... her heart had already been stolen. She just hoped that he was too shy to ever ask her out on a date, because she didn't want to have to hurt his feelings.
"Are you running with us today?" Soarin asked, smoothing down his ruffled hair and crossing his arms.
Applejack just barely managed to bite back a sarcastic response ("Well, that's why Ah'm here, ain't it?") "Shore thing," she replied instead, her eyes searching the crowd of runners for Rainbow Dash.
Soarin seemed to sense that she was distracted, but was far too polite to say anything. "Happy to hear that. Well, why don't you go line up to run with everyone else? And, uh... let me know if you ever bring any of those apple pies to school again, okay?"
Despite herself, Applejack laughed. "Will do."
A slim hand slipped out of the group of athletes and snatched at Applejack's sleeves, which she'd rolled up to her elbows. "Applejack. We're lining up. C'mon. I saved you a spot next to me." Rainbow Dash gazed at her best friend, her eyes bright and expectant.
Tucking her blonde bangs behind her ears, Applejack followed her friend as the rest of the runners got into position after completing their stretches. Rainbow was bouncing on the backs of her feet and stretching her arms behind her head, continuing to limber up before the start of practice. She glanced over at Applejack and noticed that she wasn't stretching. "Applejack? Aren't you gonna stretch before you run?"
Applejack's lips curled in a slow smile as she stared ahead at the sloping track ahead of them. She'd been waiting for Rainbow to ask that exact question. "No Ah ain't. Ah can beat ya without stretchin'."
Rainbow lowered her arms and stared at her incredulously. "Oh yeah?"
"Absolutely."
She narrowed her eyes, a sly smirk tugging at her lips. "You are so on." She spat on her hand.
Applejack did the same and then smacked her palm against Rainbow's, completing their special handshake. "May the best gal win, Rainbow Flash."
"Yeah, it'll be me," Rainbow snorted.
Applejack raised her eyebrows. "Oh, Ah wouldn't be too shore."
The sound of a whistle being blown effectively put an end to their conversation. Spitfire stepped up in front of their team, pacing back and forth and glaring at everyone who dared to look her in the eye. "Alright, listen up! I need to see some major improvement today if we ever want to beat Crystal Prep at the sports competitions next spring! Soarin, do you have any idea how long it took you to run a mile yesterday? I can't even bring myself to say it, it was too embarrassing. And Fleetfoot, where the hell where your fleet feet? I could have sworn I saw you actually stumble a couple times during yesterday's practice!" The two unfortunates who had been singled out flushed and mumbled apologies. Spitfire nodded her head sharply and continued. "I want to see perfect form today. From all of you." Without warning, she blew her whistle again. "So get going! One loop around the track! Go, go, go!"
The track team burst into action, their legs pumping as they shot ahead. Rainbow, of course, streaked ahead of the pack, her long, polychromatic hair whipping behind her. She twisted around to stare over her shoulder at Applejack, who was at least twenty feet behind. "Come on, slowpoke!" she shouted. "You're too far back even to eat my dust!"
Applejack's heart was racing, the excitement of competing with her best friend coursing through her veins. Her plan had been to start out slow and steady and eventually speed up when Rainbow was tiring, but now she threw all caution to the winds. She narrowed her eyes and bounded forwards, her ponytail swinging behind her, her boots thudding against the track as she sped up. The paved red ground and the backs of the other runners faded away; all Applejack could see was Rainbow Dash.
A few seconds later, Rainbow spun around again to make sure she was still a safe distance ahead of Applejack... And blinked. And blinked again.
Applejack wasn't there.
Frowning, she turned around again. "What the -"
Her eyes widened. Applejack was five feet ahead of her, looking back at her with a broad smile. "Come on, slowpoke," she teased, crooking a finger. "Yore too far behind t' eat mah dust!"
Rainbow growled under her breath and shot forwards, her feet seeming to barely skim the ground. "Oh, you wish, cowgirl."
Applejack felt exhilarated as she pounded down the track, breathing in the sharp, clean air, her denim skirt whipping around her knees. Her happiness was only intensified by the sight of Rainbow Dash, running on her left, her eyes flashing. She'd never looked more beautiful.
The other runners were hot on their heels, but Applejack and Rainbow, driven by their determination to beat each other, were unstoppable. First Rainbow was ahead; then Applejack; then Rainbow again, both of them vying for first place. The two of them were neck-and-neck as they neared the finish line, their eyes narrowed and their jaws set as they gathered all of their concentration for the last few seconds of the race. Applejack's chest heaved, and a sharp stitch flared in her side. Jus' a little longer...
"HA!" Rainbow shouted as she crossed the finish line victoriously, her arms raised in celebration. "I beat you! I beat you! I - WHAT?!"
Applejack was right next to her, having crossed the finish line at the same time as Dash. Rainbow couldn't deny that Applejack had finished first; if Applejack had finished second then she would have been behind Rainbow rather than next to her.
Nonetheless, Rainbow's jaw dropped. "Did I just... tie? Again?"
Applejack casually dusted off her skirt as the other runners streamed past the finish line. "Think so, sugarcube."
She groaned with frustration and ran her hands through her windswept hair. "How do you always manage to do that every time?"
Applejack's lips quirked. "Ah'm faster'n the Flash - "
"Oh, shut up!" Rainbow scowled and turned to Spitfire, who was eyeing the two of them approvingly. "Spitfire, I want a rematch."
Spitfire smirked amusedly. "Face it, Dash. It was a tie, fair and square." She cocked an eyebrow at Applejack. "Sure you don't want to join the track team? You're a good runner. We could use you."
Applejack accepted the compliment modestly. "Thanks fer the offer, but Ah'm gonna have t' say no. Mah archery keeps me pretty busy." It didn't, but she didn't want to have to stare at Spitfire trying to seduce Rainbow Dash for half an hour every day during track.
Rainbow threw up her arms and stomped off, looking seriously annoyed. "I've tied with you three times today! Three times! It's not FAIR!"
Applejack grinned and strode after her.
***
Half an hour later, Dash's good mood had been regained, mainly because Applejack had let her win all the rest of their races. In truth, though, Applejack thought she probably could have tied with Rainbow every time if she'd wanted to; belonging to a farming family engendered nothing if not endurance.
The track team had just finished its final exercise, and most of its members were now heading back to the changing rooms. Soarin gave Applejack a final wave before striding back to the changing rooms himself, clearly exaggerating the rolling of his muscly shoulders just to show off. Applejack rolled her eyes and turned around, planning to collect her archery equipment from under the tree.
"Applejack..." Rainbow came up behind her, scratching the back of her head awkwardly.
"Yeah, sugarcube?" she asked, raising her eyebrow.
"Well... your hair came loose while we were running."
Applejack's eyes widened and she instinctively reached around to her back. Sure enough, her golden locks were swinging loose around her shoulders, falling in flaxen waves to midway down her back. "Aw, shoot," she swore. Her hair tie must have fallen out somewhere along the track, and she wasn't about to go looking for it. "Guess Ah can ask Rarity fer another -"
"No!" Rainbow yelped. She hastily lowered her voice, seeming uncharacteristically shy. "No, don't... it - it looks nice. I don't think I've ever seen you with your hair down." She stepped forwards and hesitantly ran a finger along the curly edges of Applejack's hair.
Applejack stood stock-still, hardly daring to disrupt this moment of intimacy. But it ended far sooner than she would have liked: Rainbow seemed to realize what she was doing and hastily stepped back, blushing profusely and looking nothing at all like her usual, confident self. "I - I gotta go. I'll meet you and the girls in the parking lot." She turned around and ran lightly back towards the changing room without looking back.
Confused, Applejack stared after her. That look in Dash's eyes... her blush... what did it all mean? She didn't know what to think.
"Applejack? Can I talk to you?" Spitfire's raspy voice floated towards her.
She rubbed a hand across her eyes, trying to clear her head, and turned around, her bewilderment making her words seem more brusque than she had intended. "If this is about joinin' the track team, then Ah already told ya -"
"No, it's not about the track team." Spitfire stared down at Applejack, sizing her up. "I wanted to talk to you about something else. You know how CHS has a whole bunch of sports teams. Soccer, track, basketball - you name it, we have it."
"Uh... yeah?" Where was Spitfire trying to go with this?
"Well, that's not quite true. What we don't have is a field team." Spitfire's eyes were piercing and hard to read. "I think you should talk to Principal Celestia about forming one. I've watched you before. You're more than qualified to be the captain of a field team. You can do every single field event. And this school needs a field team. Not having one is a major weakness. Every year in the past we haven't been able to compete against Crystal Prep in field just because we don't have a team."
Applejack just stared. This was the first time anybody had ever brought up this conversation topic with her.
"All I'm saying is to think about it." Spitfire's voice was soft. "Being a team captain is pretty awesome." Without waiting for a response, she turned around and strode away, eventually breaking into a jog.
"Huh... that ain't a bad idea," Applejack said aloud in a musing tone. Canterlot High did need a field team. Her heart began to pound as a rather pleasant thought struck her like a lightning bolt.
All of the school's sports team captains, from soccer to football to track, had to work very closely with each other. They got to have special meetings once a month to discuss team progress, and they often spent free periods at school hanging out with each other. They were also the ones in charge of planning all of the school's athletics events together - including deciding which hotels to stay at, discussing team strategy, and throwing after-game parties. So by inviting Applejack to become a team captain, Spitfire was... was...
Ensuring that Applejack had an excuse to spend more time with Rainbow Dash.
But Spitfire had a crush on Rainbow.
Why would she be trying to help Applejack?
Or maybe she wasn't trying to help Applejack. Maybe she was just heavily invested in the state of her school's sports department.
Applejack groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose. Her head was starting to hurt from all this puzzling.
Life was complicated.
She forced herself to push all thoughts of Spitfire, sports teams, and Rainbow Dash out of her head. There would be plenty of time for mulling everything over later; right now, Applejack just wanted to get back to Sweet Apple Acres, pour herself a nice, calming cup of hot apple cider, and enjoy some time with her best friends.
Applejack walked over to her bow and quiver, slung them over her back, and placed her Stetson over her ruffled bangs, sighing with relief as its familiar weight rested on her head once more. She then turned to the bleachers and gestured to her friends, indicating that she was done. Twilight nodded her assent and stood up, leading the rest of the her friends out of the bleachers and heading instinctively for the parking lot, which was the group's usual meeting place.
Applejack, on the other hand, headed directly back to the school, in order to store her archery equipment. Her hair rippled around her shoulders as she walked, which was rather uncomfortable; she was used to having it tied up. But a tiny smile played on her lips as she walked.
Yes, life was complicated. But right now, things were looking up.
I am so sorry for the long wait. I have been so busy. I've literally had to stay awake until two in the morning some nights to finish this chapter.
So, I have a question for you, which I'd like you all to vote on. In most Appledash stories, Spitfire kind of seems to be the antagonist, you know? The one who tries to steal Rainbow Dash away from Applejack. Well, as evidenced by this chapter, I was kind of thinking that maybe she could actually help Applejack. But of course, I want to write stuff that you guys like to read. So if the idea of a nice Spitfire seems too weird, then it's not too late for me to make her the antagonist. I'd appreciate if you guys could tell me your thoughts on this in the comments.
Now, I have to warn you it could be a while before my next chapter, because I have to update one of my other stories and I'm working on finishing this other Appledash story I have (I'll give you a teaser: It's about the real reason why Dash likes cider so much). I tried to give you a bit of a longer chapter than usual today to make up for the possible delay. In the next chapter, we're back to Rainbow's perspective, and the plot is actually going to start to advance a little.
Thanks so much for reading. Stay tuned for more. 
OH! I almost forgot. In the last chapter I said that Dash played on the soccer team and was captain of the track team? Well, I changed that. She is now captain of the soccer team and Spitfire is captain of the track team. Just to clear that up in case any of you were confused.
P.S. Virtual cookie to you if you caught the Doctor Who quote in there. 
Stats
Page generated in 0.018 seconds
Total duration
689 users online
1,218,661 hits today, 2,782,760 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Hehe loved this chapter, it's awesome that your taking your time on this because it really pays off. When you don't rush you have your best works done, keep up the good work
PS. No I don't think it would be weird if spitfire helped, you could have it spitfire helps because she wants rainbow to be happy.
7924268
Thanks so much! Yeah, that's exactly what I was thinking about spitfire. I'm sick of her being the antagonist. I want to make her a good guy. :)
this is getting good. as for Spitfire, I like the idea that she had a crush on Rainbow Dash but after witnessing the little scene where Dash mentions AJ's loose hairstyle, I think she would notice a lost cause and willingly help Applejack... at least, that's what I thought while I was reading.
7925529
Thanks. :) yeah, I'm thinking somewhat along those lines. I think spitfire will still have a crush on Rainbow, but she wants her to be happy more than anything else.
Do whatever just keep writing
I love this story SO much! When I found out that there was a new chapter, I was jumping on my couch, I was that exited.. we might need a new couch.. but for your question about spitfire, I think it would be cool if she was helping applejack.
7926125
Haha thanks will do!
7928408
Awww, that's sweet! I'm glad to hear that. ;)
Like the idea a lot!! It is refreshing having Spitfire as an alied to Applejack!!!
7939124
Awesome, thanks!
I got the doctor who joke, where's my cookie
8629055
Oh yay! Here ya go🍪
I strive to one day be powerful enough to win a race aginst a track superstar while wearing cowboy boots and a denim skirt. What a legend.