//------------------------------//
// Chapter 1 
// Story: Rainboom's Touch 
// by ClosetKone 
//------------------------------//

So once upon a day there was a young filly named Crunch. She loved to roll in the grass and play in the flowers, and even though she had allergies, her love of nature was too strong for anything to hold her back. It was once again a sunny, beautiful day outside as she sat in school, watching her teacher teach them about Equestria. Watching, but not listening, for her mind was elsewhere, and before she knew it, the bell rung and the foals were let out to play.

She clipped and clopped her way off of the school's plot, making for the nearest forest that wasn't the Everfree one because that shit is scary. Crunch never had many friends, but that wasn't because she was unpopular; it was just that no one could keep up with her when she dashed into a thicket, or scurried up a tree. She didn't mind, the sun and the foliage were all she needed. She wasn't even worried about her blank flank, or the teasing she would sometimes get for it. Then again, she wasn't the only one in class.

That day she sat in a treetop, limbs curled around the sturdy branches. She look up at Cloudsdale, way up in the sky, and imagined what it would be like to be a pegasus. As she sat and daydreamed the afternoon away, she was suddenly jarred from her reveries by a sudden explosion. Startled, she fell from her roost, bouncing on branches on her way down
She landed on her back, and her eyes were dizzy from the impact. However she did not have to search for the source of the boom, for it was plain as day before her.

There, on the horizon, was a wondrous sight. It filled her with awe and delight, and she immediately forgot her pain, because on that horizon was something mythical; a real live sonic rainboom! It shot out tendrils of colour, reaching to the farthest reaches of Equestria. One such beam shone out over Crunch's head, leading out over the Everfree Forest. With giddy delight she shot to her feet and galloped after the rainbow, right into the mouth of the Everfree. It wasn't so bad during the day, though it was admittedly darker than what she was used to. She crashed through bramble and thorns, stomping them with her weathered hooves.

That rainbow was not going to escape her. Before long she was at the end of the beam, which arced down in a small clearing. Confusion filled her prepubescent mind, for there was nothing to be seen but dirt. She trotted over, and as soon as she touched where the rainbow lay, it vanished in a multicolor flash, blinding her. When it faded and her eyesight returned, a small seedling was in its place and her eyes shone with wonder and her lips strained from her smile. This was incredible! After that day, she would return every day and nurture the tiny sprout. Its growth seemed accelerated to her, and before long it was a wispy tree

***
Within two weeks, that tree had strengthened and began to reach for the sky, and after precisely one month, the tree had grown to a respectable size. Its boughs could now support her little weight, and Crunch eagerly clambered up. As she explored her new friends features, she discovered a small hole in the tree near the top. Inside, a faint yellow light shone. Gently she reached in with her hoof, but it was simply too big. Next she tried getting her mouth in there, but again, it was too big. Perplexed she wiped the sweat from her brow, rubbing her horn. Suddenly inspiration hit her like a bolt, and she used her weak pony powers to grasp whatever was inside that hole.

She withdraw an object, round in shape and wrapped in leaves. Carefully, she climbed back down the tree with the bundle floating above her. Once on the ground, she set to unwrapping the mystery. As she pulled each individual leaf back, the light grew brighter, until she had revealed a golden apple hidden inside. Crunch lifted the strange fruit to her eyes, and stared at it wide eyed. She had never seen a fruit like this before, and she had seen a lot of fruits. Curious, she smelled the apple. Its aroma was enticing. No, spellbinding!

Her mouth watered and she licked her lips. She brought the glowing fruit to her mouth, slowly taking a bite. The skin was crispy and the juices were abundant. The apple played her taste buds like a cello. That moment seemed to last forever for her. Her eyes shut, the fruit on her tongue, and her thoughts in Heaven. As the first bite was swallowed, a sensation came over her. She hungrily devoured the remaining fruit, the sensation growing. When it was all gone, she sighed contentedly, and she heard a sound that could only be described as pure magic.

Sudden warmth on her flanks caused her to look back, and on her once blank skin was now a portrayal of a watering can. Her heart swelled, and her eyes almost popped out of her head! Here, in the heart of the forsaken Everfree, she had discovered her love. This cursed forest couldn't hold her back, and it wouldn't restrain her tree either. Over the years she and her tree grew a beautiful garden in the midst of the forest, and one day, in a sudden spurt, Crunch's tree reached higher than any tree ever had before.

She gathered its ripened fruit and brought it back to town, where her old classmate, Mrs. Cake, would bake them into treats for the whole town. While everypony loved the pastries, none were weaker to the allure of the golden apple muffins than one Ditzy Doo.
Crunch still spent most of her time with her garden, but every now and then she got a visit from her favourite pegasus with derpy eyes. For the first time in her secluded life, she had a friend, and what a friend she was.