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// Chapter 5 
// Story: The Colours of the Rainbow 
// by DawnFade 
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The world grew brighter each morning. The days after her encounter with Soarin' just got better and better. Well, after she went and made Pinkie re-swear never to tell anyone. The pink pony told her it was redundant since she had already sworn once, but Dash was quite insistent.

She trotted happily through town, enjoying the newfound understanding in her life. Her 'little problem' couldn't get in the way of her life. She took Soarin's advice straight to heart, choosing to deal with issues as they presented themselves.

Pinkie had sought her out the day after her lunch with the Wonderbolt. While the pink pony had pretended it was just for fun, Dash could see the concern in her crazy friend's eyes. It made her realise the wisdom in her decision to confide in Pinkie first. They had talked for a while about inane subjects only Pinkie could think of.

"Have you ever tried eating clouds?" Pinkie had asked as they stood on the ground below Dash's floating house, "Or what about using them as an ingredient in a cupcake? Cloud cupcakes! The cloudiest cupcakes in Equestria!"  

At that, Dash had burst out laughing, idly cursing her voice as it cracked from her enthusiasm. "I think I tried eating it as a filly, now that you mention it," Dash choked out in between chuckles, "I'll spare you the details, but trust me when I say that's not a ride I want to go on twice." It was Pinkie's turn to start laughing, inciting Dash into another fit. They had rolled on the ground gasping and wheezing, and Dash had a cramp in her gut by the time they stopped. Pinkie sprang upright suddenly, an idea forming behind her eyes.

"Hey! You know what I could do? I could make a list of all the mares who like mares in Ponyville and you could go through and see if you found anypony nice!" Pinkie beamed at her ingenuity, but Dash was taken aback, all thoughts of laughter gone from her head.

"Uh, Pinkie...I'm not sure I'm really at that stage just yet..." the Pegasus had replied awkwardly. Pinkie drooped a little, but then curiously asked,

"Soooo what stage are you at then?"

"Learning to live with it, I guess? Are there actually stages?" 

Pinkie had giggled at that. "No, silly! Welp, you know who to ask if you're looking for somepony like yourself. I better get back to Mr and Mrs Cake!" With a knowing wink, Pinkie had turned to depart when Dash quickly stepped forward and hugged her, wrapping her forelegs around the pink ponies neck and shoving her face into her pink mane.

Pinkie Pie went rigid. Dash sighed in mild annoyance, pulling her head back for a moment.

"This is a friend hug, calm down Pinkie. I'm just...I'm really grateful for your help through this." She buried her face back in her friend's mane and hugged tighter, hoping her actions would speak louder than words. It had been a relief when Pinkie finally returned the hug full-force.

"Aww, that's ok Dashie. I think everyone needs a bit of laughter in their day!" They pulled back from the hug, but Dash felt like she needed to truly get across how thankful she was.

"It's not just today. It's how you were so nice when I told you and how you started suggesting things that you thought would help, like it was second nature to help a pony in need," Dash continued. Pinkie reddened at the praise, the only time Dash had ever seen her do so.

"You know the story of my Cutie Mark, don't you? I know just how much difference a bit of colour can make in someponies life."

The wisdom behind Pinkie's words echoed in Dash's mind even now, a week later. Strange that someone so random was so insightful as well. That was just the mystery of Pinkie Pie.

Dash's path through town took her to the alley she had cried in. It was still dark and narrow, but no longer deserted. Two young colts were chatting at the opposite end, laughing and joking. She turned to leave when something they said caught her attention.

"Friggin' fillyfoolers everywhere in this town. I wanna move to Canterlot, I heard they don't allow that kind of gross shit," spat one of them, whipping his short brown mane around to emphasise his disgust. Dash realised what they were talking about and hid around her corner of the alley. She knew she should go before they upset her but she couldn't help but want to hear the rest of the conversation.

"Nah man, you got it all wrong. Canterlot's the gayest city in Equestria. You ever wonder why Celestia doesn't take a husband?" replied the other, a dark grey coloured Pegasus. 

His friend looked shocked. "No way! Are you for real? I always thought she had, like, a hundred stallions to mess around with when she got bored. Like them fancy royal guards that came with her when she came to see the Gay Gang."

It shocked Dash to hear somepony talk about Princess Celestia in such a horrible way and she clamped her hoof over her mouth to avoid unleashing a few choice curse words. And what's this Gay Gang? Surely they don't mean...

"Oh yeah I remember that. Maybe she goes both ways or some shit. My pa always said she was messed up in the head, banishing her own sister like that."

Dash wanted to step out from the corner and give the two colts a piece of her mind. Nobody should be allowed to insult the Princess like that! She forced herself to remain hidden though, knowing she would likely be biting off more than she could chew. Sure, she kicked a dragon in the face once, but that was with five of her friends backing her up.

"Ever since that bitch Twilight showed up, this place has been flooded with fil-" said the dark grey one, but was cut off by Dash. Adrenaline exploded in her veins as soon as he said Twilight's name and she didn't put a second thought into stepping around the corner.

"Hey! Don't talk about my friend like that!" she cursed her voice a thousand times for cracking. The two colts stared at her for a moment in surprise, before bursting into laughter.

"Come to defend your marefriend? How friggin' adorable," gasped the brown haired one.

"She's not my marefriend! And if she was, what's wrong with that?" Dash hoped nopony was listening in on their argument.

"Hm, let's see, everything? In case you hadn't noticed, mares and colts go together. Mares and mares don't," the dark grey Pegasus told her condescendingly. 

Dash was furious. "Who made you the boss of love? Besides, all I can see here is two colts laughing and enjoying each other's company in a dark alley. What do you think that might mean?" She was proud of that one. The look the two gave each other was the most satisfying reaction she could have hoped for, until the one with the brown mane stepped forward menacingly.

"Are you callin' us gay? I ain't afraid to hit a girl, you know. Maybe you should fly on outta here before we make you eat every word you've said." 

His Pegasus friend quickly flew over her and landed behind her. "I think that's too kind. Maybe we can beat the gay out of her. She'll thank us afterwards." 

The brown haired one suddenly seemed uncomfortable. "Uh, dude, let's just go. I think she's learned her lesson."

"What's the matter Bone? Did your balls drop off?" Dash stared at the one called Bone, and noticed he was looking over her shoulder and past his friend. He had a frightened look on his face and before he could say anything another voice, female, angrily replied for him.

"They will if y'all don't get the hay outta here right now!" shouted Applejack. 

The Pegasus colt spun around at her voice. His surprise didn't last long, however, and he began laughing even harder. "Another fillyfooler rescuing her marefriend, this is hilarious!" 

Bone didn't share his friend's mirth, backing away from the situation. "Rusty let's just go, dude. Forget about these two."

"Afraid of two girls, eh Bone? You always were a sissy." Bone didn't reply, he seemingly cut his losses and made a quick exit from the alley.

Dash took the moment to circle around Rusty and stand beside Applejack. Her friend's presence restored her confidence somewhat, and she found herself making the threats. "You should run after your friend if you know what's good for you!"

"Yeah? Or what?"

Applejack moved faster than Dash thought was possible, darting forward and spinning around to deliver the most brutal buck to Rusty's chest, sending him back a good distance into the alley.

"That's what!" yelled Applejack, "Now if ah ever catch you threatening one of my friends again, ah won't stop after the first kick!"

Receiving only a pained groan as a reply, the earth pony nodded satisfactorily and stepped out of the alley, Rainbow Dash in tow. The Pegasus couldn't help but grin at her friend as they quickly moved away from the alley. "That. Was. Awesome!" 

Applejack gave her a small smile, a worried look on her face.

"What's the matter, AJ?"

"It's just, well, since when do you let yourself get cornered by anyone? Ah think you coulda taken them both on, but when ah found you it wasn't looking good. Did they say somethin' before ah got there?" the earth pony replied, glancing sideways at her.

"Kinda. They were saying mean stuff about us," Dash said, avoiding her friend's eyes.

"Us?"

"All of us. You, me, Twilight, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie and Rarity. At least I think that's who they meant. They were calling us the 'Gay Gang'."

Applejack snorted with laughter. "That's the dumbest nickname ever. Why in Equestria were they callin' us that?"

"You heard them, they don't like fillyfoolers. They think we, our group, are all... you know." She kept her eyes forward to avoid seeing Applejack's reaction and noticed that they were leaving Ponyville and heading down the road to Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack, however, didn't seem to notice and kept walking. Fine by me.

"That's a right awful thing to say about somepony." Applejack kept walking, unaware of Dash tensing up beside her.

"Is it?" the Pegasus said quietly. 

Applejack gave her an odd sidelong look. "Er...Yeah?"

Dash felt her temper flare. "Because being a fillyfooler is soooo evil, isn't it? We just go around being horrible to ponies all the time!" she said loudly. Applejack's jaw dropped and she stopped walking, staring at Rainbow Dash.

No. Nononononononono. Did I say 'we'? I'm so stupid! Stupid stupid stupid stupid! Now she thinks...Nonononono!

Dash backed away from the earth pony, stretching her wings and preparing to take flight-

Take each challenge as is comes, like a Wonderbolt.

She stopped. She raised her head high and looked straight at Applejack.

"Rainbow, are you saying you're a fi- you like mares?" There was no discerning her opinion in her voice.

"Got a problem with it?" she asked the Element of Honesty without a single voice crack.

"Er, no, as matter o' fact." Applejack said plainly. 

The adrenaline and power left Dash in an instant. "Oh," was all she could manage. 

With a chuckle, Applejack gestured for Dash to follow her. "Come on, you silly filly. I want to tell you about somethin'." Dash hesitated, but decided to hear her out and hurried to catch up.

A few minutes passed while Applejack collected her thoughts, and they found themselves leaving the road and climbing up a large grassy hill with a single apple tree on top. The tree cast a large shadow across the swaying grass that seemed oddly comforting.

"This is a really cool spot, AJ." Her words went unnoticed as Applejack walked up to the tree and rested a hoof on the thick trunk.

"Ah haven't been here in a while."

The world seemed so quiet and peaceful up on the hill. Dash reckoned it would be a great spot for a nap. A gentle wind flowed across the grass fields below, like a ripple in a pond. Applejack stayed silent, taking her hoof off the trunk and turning to face Dash.

"So what did you want to tell me?" asked the polychromatic pony.

"Ah heard you were in some sort of strife lately, and now ah think I know why. Your, um, fondness for mares is a new discovery, ain't it?"

Dash nodded and looked away. "I only fully realised a week or two ago," she replied quietly.

"You must have been awful confused. Ah felt the same a long time ago, like nothin' made sense anymore." That got Dash's attention.

"AJ, are you saying what I think you're saying?" She was excited, stepping closer to Applejack.

"Whoa there girl, hold up. Just let me tell the story, alright?" Dash sat down impatiently, motioning for her to begin.

"Alright, this happened when ah was a filly, not long after ah got my cutie mark. This hill-

-towered above Applejack as she slowly climbed it. A little sapling was swaying in a pot tied to her back. Her legs ached from the climb, but she was a determined little pony and didn't stop. She was gonna prove to Big Mac that she's up to the job of planting new trees, and to do it she was going to plant a big apple tree right on the hill in plain sight. That oughta teach him. 

Applejack grinned triumphantly as she reached the top. No mountain was too high for her to climb it!

"And now, to mark mah victory!" she declared, taking the pot from her back. Carefully, she dug a little hole in the ground dead centre of the hill. She refilled it several times and tried again and again, not satisfied with the results.

"Ah think some of that snooty perfectionist behaviour rubbed off on me when ah was in Manehattan," she grumbled to herself.

The padding of hooves on grass approached from behind her. Applejack turned around and noticed a pink-maned Pegasus climbing the hill. She had her eyes closed as was humming to herself happily. She seemed to be completely unaware of Applejack, to the point she walked straight into her, slamming their faces together. A mutual cry of pain and surprise left them both and the Pegasus fell backwards, rolling down the hill. Applejack ran down after her as fast as she could, trying to catch the pink-maned tangle before she hurt herself. In a last ditch effort, she threw herself forward, leaping ahead to grab the tumbling pony. Seizing her by her dainty hooves, she dragged them both to a halt just over halfway to the bottom.

"You alright there, sugarcube?" she asked the pony. With a quiet squeal, she looked at Applejack, eyes wide.

"Hey now, I ain't gonna hurt you. You was just busy humming to yourself and walked into me."

"Oh," the pegasus whispered, "I'm sorry!"

Climbing to her hooves, Applejack grinned and stuck out a hoof to help the quiet pony up.

"No harm done. My name's Applejack, I live at Sweet Apple Acres, just up the road." 
Accepting the help, the messy-maned pony stood up delicately.

"I'm Fluttershy..." she said softly.

"That's a pretty name."

"Th-Thankyou..." Fluttershy turned red and Applejack laughed.

"Hold up," interrupted Rainbow Dash, "Is this going where I think it's going?"

"Just let me tell the story, RD!"

"Alright, fine!"

"Now, what happened next still surprises me to this day. Ah never would've believed that Fluttershy of all ponies-

-stepped forward in one motion and planted a little kiss on Applejack's cheek. The earth pony was shocked, but didn't recoil.

"What was that for?" she asked, feeling her face heat up.

"Y-You tried to stop me from falling, even though you could have hurt yourself," Fluttershy replied, quivering slightly from embarrassment.

"Ain't no problem, Fluttershy! Hey, ah was about to plant a tree on this hill here...Do you wanna-

-helped me plant the tree, and we became fast friends."

"Fluttershy KISSED you!?" shouted Dash. Applejack looked around frantically, motioning with her hooves to keep the noise down.

"Yeah, but shush up about it, y'hear?"

"This is...Wow...So does that mean you two are... the same as me?" Dash perked up, her smile growing into a grin.

"Well..." was Applejack's hesitant response. Dash leaned forward expectantly.

"Ah guess, maybe. The farm is very important to me and mine, so ah haven't really had time to think too hard about it. All I know is that Fluttershy and ah kissed a few more times after that day, and it never once felt wrong."

"That's...sort of encouraging, I think," said Dash.

"The point of me tellin' you all this is to show you that you ain't alone, even when you think you are. There are ponies out there just as confused as you, an' I'm sure not all of 'em have a friend to back them up when they're cornered, either by some dumb colts or by their own thoughts. You understand sugarcube?" Applejack patiently explained. 

Dash was quiet for a few minutes, thinking over her friend's words. "I...I actually think I do. You're an amazing friend, AJ." Rainbow Dash stepped forward and wrapped her hooves around Applejack's neck, hugging tightly. The earth pony returned it whole-heartedly.

Their embrace continued for another minute. And then another.

"Um, RD, you can let go of me now," whispered Applejack, who had watched with amusement as the cyan pony's wings slowly stretched outwards.

"I think I might hold on a bit longer," she replied. Applejack opened her mouth to say something else when she felt a soft pressure on her neck for an instant.

"Did you just kiss my neck?" she said, and the vibrations from Dash's silent laughter gave it away.

"Nope."

Dash pecked at the earth pony's neck again.

And then again, and again, and ag-

"Rainbow!" Applejack forcibly extracted herself from the hug. 

Dash smiled sheepishly at her. "Sorry! I sorta got distracted... Don't give me that look! Hey, those kinda feelings have been bottled up for a while now; I'm not responsible for my actions!" Dash blushed harder with every word, realising what she just did.

Thankfully, Applejack just chuckled and started walking down the hill. "Maybe later, sugarcube. Right now ah think you should go talk to Fluttershy and get her side of the story. She might be able to give you better advice than ah can, who knows?"

"Yeah, good idea. I'll just...um...I'll head over there now," Dash flexed her wings and prepared to take flight.

"Right, I'll see ya when ah see ya Rainbow Dash." Applejack looked back for a moment as she spoke before continuing her descent.

Dash flapped her wings and rose into the air in a flurry of disturbed twigs. Leaning forward, she quickly gained speed and left the apple tree behind. As she soared over the path below, she felt a nervous yet exciting tightness in her chest, and an unstoppable smile graced her lips.

Maybe later, sugarcube.

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A/N: THERE ARE NO BRAKES ON THE SHIPPING TRAIN