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// 01 - Under an Apple Tree 
// Story: How to *not* Hide Your Relationship 
// by Cxcd 
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Some ponies in the world believed in the super-natural. Which, in Equestria, was quite rare, as most super-natural things were easily proven as true. Some ponies believed that the sun and moon moved on their own, and some ponies believed that the common flu was a myth. Some ponies, however- the exceptionally rare ponies- believed in a super network of spies, all who lived complex and deep lives, while blending into the world around them.
Imagine a world in which every neighbor, fast food worker, mail mare, and even dog, might just be a spy, sent by Princess Celestia herself to spy on something. It was a fascinating thought experiment, one that most would instantly dismiss as ridiculous. After all, the only evidence of a secret spy network ever existing was a quite popular and publicized failure of a crown grant nay thirty years ago. Spies were a myth, plain and simple.
But that didn’t make Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle feel any less like spies.
Because, by definition, they kind of were? They only communicated in the dark, only crossing paths briefly and for a few words at a time. They were far away from the public eye, in places that not a single pony in the entire world would ever think to check. And right now, just as they had done a thousand times before, they were far out. Far, far away, in the very edge of Ponyville. Rainbow Dash was the best of spies, fastest of fliers, and coolest ponies. She was doing something that Rainbow Dash would never do.
She was crying.
Into Twilight’s hooves.
“It’s all just so stupid!” She cried, letting the letter of rejection flutter to the ground and land softly on the fresh green grass. “A-All I had to do w-was submit some stupid medical background, and they out right rejected me!” She was leaning forwards into Twilight, who was doing her best to catch the light mare in her hooves, both of them sitting down and leaning back against an apple tree.
“Sh-h-h. Let it all out, Dash.” Twilight held her firmly in her grasp. The apple tree was pushing uncomfortably into her back, but the soft Pegasus between her hooves made her grit her teeth and bare it. They were far out, towards one of the corners of Sweet Apple Acres where not even Applejack herself dared to check up on one of her routine sweeps of the orchid. “It’s okay…”
“No, it’s not!” Rainbow sniffled, wrapping her arm around Twilight’s outstretched hoof so she could wipe her muzzle. “I-I shook hooves with Soarin himself! I introduced myself to Captain Spitfire! T-They all said my acrobats were perfect! Perfect! But no! All t-they had to do was look at my- stupid medical record, a-and it was all out the window!” She sniffled again. “Ah- geez, It’s like they’re targeting me!”
“I’m sure they wouldn’t do that…” Twilight adjusted Rainbow, to which she willingly moved with Twilight, until they were both facing each other. “Rainbow, listen to me. They don’t know you like I know you. You are a great mare! They just… can’t see that. Yet.”
“But…” Rainbow sniffled once more, giving her muzzle an even more aggressive hoof-swipe, blinking back tears. She diverted her eyes to the small patch of grass between Twilight and her. “I’m the only pony in the past century that’s performed a Sonic-Rainboom. A-And a little mark on my record- It just- It’s- It-” She sighed angrily. “Maybe I’m just- not good enough.” At this, Twilight let out a quick gasp, immediately placing her hoof under Rainbow’s chin and lifting it up.
“Rainbow, you are good enough.” Twilight leaned forwards, transferring her hoof from Rainbow’s chin to her chest, pushing hard against it. “You are an amazing flier, and I’m sorry that the Wonderbolts are so judgmental. But do you remember saving Rarity from falling?”
“Well… yeah, I guess-”
“And when you saved that foal in the basket? Rolling down the hill?”
“I mean-”
“What about when you had the guts to open up to me?” Twilight let out a small smile at this. To say Rainbow was closed off would be a vast understatement when they had started dating. The poor Pegasus had it in her mind that showing emotion was weak, and not good enough for the Wonderbolts. It took a few sessions of Twilight doing make-shift therapy for Rainbow to finally begin talking about her personal life.
“I mean… It’s just… sometimes, I don’t feel very good.” And boy, had her personal life been troubled. Twilight nodded, letting Rainbow continue. She let out a small huff as she laid down onto the grass, Twilight following soon after, grateful that the tree was no longer poking into her back. “And… sometimes, when I’m not doing anything, I feel like… I’m not doing enough? Does… does that make sense?” She swallowed, still not daring to make eye contact. “Celestia, I’m not very good at this…”
“It’s alright.” Twilight offered a small smile. “Take your time.”
“It’s like… When I wake up, I just… can’t gather the energy… to move. But I feel bad for not moving. Like, from the moment I wake up-” Rainbow suddenly coughed, startling Twilight as she stood up quickly, backing away from the Unicorn. “Ya’ know, I really shouldn’t be dumping this on you.” She looked up at the sky, the weather part of her brain already firing synapses as she watched a stray cloud flutter across. “I should… get going. It’s been nice, Twi, and all, but-”
“Rainbow…” Twilight whined. Her whining, something uncommon for the Unicorn, made Rainbow suddenly ground herself, whipping her head back around to face her. “If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s okay. But…” Twilight patted the patch of grass next to her in invitation. “I’m always here to listen.
Rainbow bit her lip, looking around for any eaves droppers. She was Rainbow Dash. She was fast, agile, and cool. She didn’t have any time to wait around for girly stuff like make-up and dresses with Rarity, or quiet time and the great big spa with Fluttershy. Espescially not this heart-spilling with Twilight. She was too cool for that stuff.
“Snuggle?” Twilight held out her hooves needily.
Rainbow felt herself melt as, head lowered to the ground in defeat, she slowly slinked her way back to the Unicorn. Guilty pleasure? No. It was a criminal pleasure. With a plop not too dissimilar from the way a dog would flop onto the ground, Rainbow found herself with the back of her head pressed against Twilight’s chest, a stray dandelion being twirled in between her hooves. Twilight had, in some inexplicable way, managed to tame the wild beast that was Rainbow Dash into a surprisingly subdued and somewhat introspective mare. It was definitely a stark contrast to the way Twilight saw Rainbow Dash before they had started dating.
Yet, even with her newfound ability to talk about her emotions, it still seemed like she couldn’t let the outside world in. Despite dating for nearly four months now, none of their friends had any inkling that they were together, and they tried their hardest to keep it up during groupings. If anypony knew anything was going on, they would’ve probably assumed Twilight and Rainbow got into a heated debate, and now sat five seats away from each other, rather than assuming they were dating.
“Are you ready to talk?” Twilight asked softly, laying her head against Rainbow’s shoulder. Rainbow tensed, but didn’t move, still spinning the dandelion between her hooves. Hiding the relationship was the easy part. The hard part- the surprisingly hard part- had been keeping the relationship healthy. Being in a relationship wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. It was hard work. Full of communication about problems, issues causing drifts- things of that nature. Communication was hard for them. Especially if both ponies were notoriously bad for communicating.
“Can you tell me about your foal-hood again, Twi?” Rainbow asked quietly. Twilight creased her brow, and removed her head from Rainbow’s shoulders.
“Dashie, have your parents been bothering you again?” Twilight said with concern obviously laced in her voice. Rainbow made a quick start as the realization dawned over Twilight, turning her head upside-down to look at her.
“N-No. They haven’t. It’s just…” Rainbow bit her lip, looking back down to her dandelion, which had the stem almost completely rolled off at this point. “The doctor says my issues come from them. They way they trained me, pushed me, whatever.” She frowned. “I mean… I still think about them, you know? I always thought they were just… getting me ready for the big world. Now that I’m here… I can’t stop thinking about how much of a competition everything is. The doc says it’s because of how I was raised, but… I dunno.” She sighed, letting the dandelion rest on her stomach as she diverted her eyes to the blue sky, barely perceptible through the thick foliage of the apple tree above her.
“And that’s why you think you could do better?” Twilight cautiously asked. Rainbow responded with a simple snort.
“Maybe that’s why I’m so obsessed with getting into the Wonderbolts. I mean, that’s it. That’s the end game. Once I’m a Wonderbolt… I just can’t stop thinking that I’ll make my folks proud.”
“Are you doing this because you want to?” Twilight asked, raising her hoof up and stroking Rainbow’s mane. “Or because you think you want to?” Rainbow stayed silent, counting how many clouds she could see in the sky above her. Not many, considering most of her view was blocked by an apple tree. Twilight sighed. “I’ve met your parents, Dash. They’re really nice. I don’t think they realize they affected you in this way.”
“I know…” Rainbow frowned deeply. “They’d be really sad if they found out I take drugs.”
There was a beat of silence as Twilight slowly wrapped a hoof around Rainbow’s mid, pulling her closer for a big hug. Rainbow let a faint blush cross her muzzle, chewing the inside of her cheek as her eyes darted left and right for any potential eaves-droppers.
“They’re not drugs, Dash.” Twilight chastised. “It’s medication. And you’ve felt better, right?”
“Yeah.” She snorted, brushing the dandelion off of her belly as she gave a stretch. “I don’t know if it’s the drugs, or you, Twilight.” She stopped her stretch, looking back at Twilight again, with her head upside-down and her mane dangling like a broom. Both of them couldn’t help but let a little smile cross their muzzles. “I mean, ever since I started talking with you, I’ve felt a ton better.” Rainbow’s smile soon faded, however, into a harsh wince. “And… I’m sorry for the first few weeks.” Rainbow Dash? Apologizing? “I was… a little bit stubborn back then, and…”
“You’ve never had somepony like me to open up to.” Twilight said softly, letting Rainbow Dash look back up at the sky. “Plus, didn’t you say the doctor nailed down your medication recently?”
“I mean…” Rainbow huffed. “He did say that… And I’m feeling better, but…” She flexed her jaw. “But… Can I be honest to you about something, Twi?”
“Of course!” Twilight smiled, sitting up a little bit straighter. “What’s up, Dash?”
“The medicine I’ve been prescribed…” She looked away bashfully. “It’s known to… cause… weight gain.” She went silent.
Twilight, unfortunately, chose the wrong way to respond. She let out a small giggle, covering a hoof with her mouth as she let it out. Rainbow stayed silent, creasing her cheek as she tried her hardest to keep her face straight and emotionless. Twilight eventually died down, looking back down at Rainbow.
“Oh…” She suddenly realized her position. “Oh- I’m sorry, Rainbow. I just…”
“No, it’s fine.” Rainbow reached down, plucking another dandelion from the ground. “It’s fine. Just stupid, anyways.” She let out a sigh. Twilight had inadvertently put a knife in Rainbow’s chest, and twisted.
“No, no-” She quickly sat up, forcing Rainbow to do the same in the process. “I-I didn’t mean- I mean, I just thought it was-”
“Funny?” Rainbow asked, suddenly feeling herself becoming offended at the mare she never thought possible to be offended at. “Yeah. Real funny.”
“No! It’s just that-” Twilight lightly tapped her fore hooves together. “I mean- You’re so athletic, and do so many tricks, I didn’t think it would be possible for you to gain weight!” She quickly sputtered out. Rainbow frowned, not out of anger or sadness for the previously dished out giggle, but rather in contemplation. “I-If you’re worried about it- I mean, we could-” Twilight shrugged. “We could… work out, together?”
Rainbow couldn’t help but turn her frown into a split grin as she met the eyes of Twilight.
“Work out?” Her bottom lip quivered as she looked at Twilight as seriously as possible. “Is that a joke to make me feel better, or…?”
“Rainbow!” Twilight punched Rainbow on the shoulder, although to Rainbow, it felt like nothing more than a light swat- perhaps lighter than a breeze of wind. “I’m serious. If you’re not feeling comfortable with your body, then I’d be happy to help.”
“I mean…” Rainbow cocked her head at Twilight, genuine confusion plainly evident as her brain worked out Twilight. “Are you serious? You’d actually work out with me?”
“Of course I’m serious.” Twilight’s face fell. “Did… you actually think I was joking?” Rainbow stayed silent, instead opting to give Twilight a dead-pan. “Okay- I’ll admit, I’m not the most… athletic pony in Equestria, but… If you think your prescription will be an issue, then- mpfh!” Twilight was rudely cut off as a muzzle found it’s way into hers. A kiss. One that, after realizing what was happening, she didn’t resist.
Rainbow broke it off, looking down at Twilight in her eyes. Rainbow was taller, if only by an inch or two, but still took full advantage of the advantage, especially at close range. “I’d love to work out with you.” She said softly. “I won’t be able to do anything in the air but… I mean, we could figure something out.”
“R-Right.” Twilight’s cheeks were burning with red. Now, it was Twilight’s time to look left and right, up and down the empty apple orchid for any eaves-droppers. One she was satisfied, she leaned closer. “Can we… do that again?” Rainbow responded by a smile, and two seconds later, she went in for a more aggressive kiss, this time taking her to the ground in a hug.
Unannounced to the two giggling ponies on the ground, a small pony shuffled out of sight, behind one of the many trees. Her face was twisted into one of pure, foal-hood confusion as she tried to wrap her head around what she had just seen. And the only pony she knew to talk to about it was in town. So, she adjusted the red bow on her head, and begun marching back to the house.