Where Would Rainbow Dash?

by CommissarAJ

Chapter One

The temple may have been on the brink of collapsing around her, but Daring Do was not yet ready to concede defeat. She had not travelled across the length of Equestria, braving untold threats, just to be buried under rock because of the poor judgment of an evil, megalomaniacal enchantress. Though bruised and tender muscles still harried her movements, Daring struggled back to her hooves. Another shockwave, followed by the screams of fleeing ponies and goats, knocked the archaeologist down to her knees. Her chest still burned, but she gritted her teeth and pushed forward.

“Blondie!” she called out. A suicidal move, perhaps, but the rampaging gunslinger was going to tear a hole through the earth at the rate she was going. Another tremor shook the entire temple with numerous stress fractures beginning to spread across the floor. The crumbling infrastructure was drowning out her voice, so the pegasus tried again, “Blondie!”

It took a few more shouts to work, and by the time that Daring managed to get the nameless mare’s attention, every living soul in the room was either fleeing for their lives or already unconscious. The only exceptions to this were the two at the epicenter of the chaos. Blondie’s attention swiveled to the injured pegasus, but Daring only saw hate and rage within the glowing red gaze. For a brief instant, she felt the cold hoof of fear making its way up her spine. All it would take was one uncontrolled outburst and Daring would know what it felt like to be an ant beneath a hoof.

“You’re going to bring down the whole mountain at this rate!” Daring shouted before sidestepping to avoid a few falling stones. A few moments later, one of the chamber’s main support columns came crashing down, landing with an earth-shaking thud between the two mares. The resultant cloud of dust scratched at Daring’s throat and robbed her of any further words.

“You’re telling me what to do now?” Blondie replied, her voice resonating throughout the entire temple. The dust cleared to reveal the nameless mare standing atop the ruined pillar with crimson orbs gazing down upon the half-choked archaeologist. “With this kind of power, Ah don’t have to take orders from anypony ever again!” The nameless mare then let out a resonating cackle, which seemed to shake the very earth beneath her hooves. “Can you feel it Daring? The very earth bends to mah will! Even Princess Celestia wouldn’t dare to get in mah way!”

“Oh, wow,” Rainbow Dash murmured to herself in a hushed gasp as she turned the page in her latest Daring Do tale. The riveting story had kept the normal flightful pegasus rooted to her spot behind the tablecloth-draped desk for the better part of an hour. Every muscle cycled through tension and relaxation with every page turned. Her heart was ricocheting off the walls like Pound Cake on a sugar high. “Oh my gosh!”

Unfortunately, not everybody in the library was keen to listen to Rainbow’s running commentary. It was from the second floor of the library that the magical princess, Twilight Sparkle, reared her frowning face.

“Do you mind, Rainbow? I’m trying to study up here,” Twilight called out to the pegasus below. She had thought that since Rainbow and her were the only occupants in the library at the time, and that the pegasus was barely visible at the far side of the room behind her table, that she would’ve been able to cope. Turned out that the library had very good acoustics.

“Sorry,” came the pegasus’ response.

Twilight Sparkle couldn’t help but wonder why Rainbow was being so particular vocal about this novel. She had been known to read her Daring Do books aloud, but the pegasus seemed to have kicked that habits months ago. With silence restored to the library, Twilight breathed a small sigh of relief and returned to her own work desk. A recent magic conference in Canterlot that she had attended a few weeks prior had given Twilight a vast array of new books to pour over. At this rate she was going to need to add more bookshelves to her library just to house her growing collection. Thankfully, having wings of her own meant that high bookshelves were even less of a concern than before.

“Oh yes!”

Twilight had just picked up her book when the cry rang out, which resulted in a loss of concentration and a five-hundred page textbook landing right on her hoof. The sharp yelp of pain gave Rainbow warning as to what was to come.

“Rainbow!”

An embarrassed Rainbow flashed a flustered, apologetic smile back to the alicorn. “He-heh, sorry! Just got to a really good part.”

Twilight let out a low, frustrated growl before rolling her eyes. She enjoyed a good book as much as the next mare—even more so, in fact—but even she knew how to show some tact. Alas, her retaliation would be limited to an angry, disappointed frown whilst folding her hooves beneath her chin. After watching Rainbow Dash behind her little skirted desk, the librarian concluded that something was not quite right with the picture.

“Which Daring book are you reading anyways?” Twilight inquired.

Rainbow Dash had a sinister grin when the question came up. It was almost as if she had been waiting for it. “Daring Do and the Temple of the Alicorns,” she announced proudly as she held up the book cover for Twilight to see. The image of the famous adventurer-archaeologist silhouetted by a rather ominous looking spire was an unfamiliar sight for the librarian. It took a few seconds for the obvious realization to smack her across the face.

“What? How did you get that?” Twilight exclaimed before bolting across the library until she was hovering above the table. “The new Daring Do book isn’t supposed to come out for another two weeks. Let me see!”

As Twilight tried to reach for the book, Rainbow pulled it away and hugged it close to her chest. The playful pegasus was clearly taking pleasure in this torture. “Spitfire got it for me,” Rainbow explained with no attempt to hide her smug satisfaction. “Turns out the company that publishes her biography and flight books also publish the Daring Do series. She called in a few favors and got me an advanced copy.” She blew a quick raspberry before opening the book once more so that she could continue reading. “Spitfire said that it’d ruin sales if I let anypony else read this before its released. You’ll just have to wait until then.”

Wait for a book? Such madness was unheard of for Twilight. She was a Princess for crying out loud; why did she need to wait for a book? “Oh come on, Rainbow, please!” Twilight pleaded with clasped hooves.

“Nope!”

“Oh please, oh please, oh please!”

“No can do, Twilight,” the pegasus continued to tease.

Twilight let out a low growl as she leaned in closer. She then noticed something else that was odd. “You okay, Rainbow? You’re looking a little flushed,” she asked. She hadn’t noticed the slight redness in the pegasus’ cheeks until she had flown closer.

“I-it’s just a little warm in here,” Rainbow stammered in response. “Now could you back up? I’m about to get to the part with the super-dark secret of Starswirl the Bearded. Did you know he’s—”

The threat of an imminent spoiler prompted an immediate reaction from Twilight. She firmly planted both her hooves over her ears and sang, “Lalalalalala! I can’t hear you!” Not wanting to risk hearing anything else that might ruin the story for her, Twilight retreated back to the top of the stairs.

With the librarian slinking away to her room, Rainbow Dash breathed a heavy sigh of relief. “That was a close one,” Rainbow said.

A moment later, the skirt of the tablecloth lifted and from underneath the table emerged an equally flustered Applejack. “Are we safe? She didn’t hear me, did she?” she asked as she cast a wary glance about the room. She eventually followed Rainbow’s gaze up to the closed bedroom door, which reassured them both that Twilight was out of sight.

“I think we’re safe,” Rainbow stated unnecessarily. She then cast a disapproving glance to Applejack. “Did I say you could stop?”

“Really, Dash?” the other pony replied with mock annoyance.

“Hey, you’re the one who lost the bet,” she reminded Applejack. However, any further debate was cut short when they both heard Twilight’s door opening again. Rainbow was able to shove the other pony’s head back under the table just moments before Twilight appeared at the top of the stairs again.

“Okay, I’ve got to go meet Rarity and Fluttershy for dinner,” Twilight announced. Despite her annoyance with Rainbow’s behaviour, the distraction from her studies did allow her to take note of the time. It was getting late in the afternoon, which meant that she was almost at the end of the time she had set aside for personal studies. She may have been Equestria’s newest Princess, but that was no reason to be tardy or ignore one’s scheduling. Besides, keeping a strict schedule was one of the few pleasures that Twilight maintained so as to not forget her humble beginnings—as if such a thing were possible while living in a library.

And though it was a dinner date with her friends, Twilight figured that a bit of light reading couldn’t hurt if the opportunity presented itself. To that end, she packed her saddlebags with a few books to take with her. “Try not to stay too long, Dash, but don’t worry about closing up when you’re done—Owloysius can take care of that.”

“I’ll be fine,” Rainbow answered while giving a dismissive wave of her hoof. “Rainbow Dash always has the situation under control.”

“I just don’t want you to be late, that’s all,” Twilight reminded as she trotted to the exit. “Heavens knows how you can get a bit distracted when you’re reading.” When she saw that Rainbow was giving her a quizzical stare, she presumed that the pegasus was oblivious as to what she was referring to. “Come on, Dash, don’t tell me you’ve forgotten what day it is.” Again, she got a silent stare and took it as a confirmation. “How could you forgot your own anniversary?”

“N-no, I haven’t!” Rainbow was quick to defend. It was hard for Rainbow to believe that a year had already passed. It still felt like only a few weeks had passed since she chased after Applejack to Manehattan and win her heart. In fact, there were parts of her that were still convinced she had been living a dream these past twelve months. Time seemed to fly faster than she could when it came to spending time with Applejack. Whole days could melt away just lounging with the farmer pony in the orchards, which considering Rainbow’s need to almost always be flying made such days a small miracle in themselves.

Unfortunately for Dash, the librarian was unconvinced and remained steadfast in her preconception of a lackadaisical pegasus. “I can’t believe I have to remember your own anniversary,” she scolded. “I mean, it was only a year ago that you went to Manehattan, confessed your feelings to Applejack, and then saved the Wonderbolts. What’s not to remember about that?”

Rainbow Dash appreciated neither the sarcasm or the lecturing, but apparently her word wasn’t enough for Twilight Sparkle. “I haven’t forgotten,” she insisted, “I just didn’t realize that’s what you were talking about.”

“Well then what did you get for her, hm?”

“I-it’s a surprise.” While that was the truth, Rainbow’s answer did little to convince the alicorn that merely interpreted the response as further evasion. The pegasus’ fidgeting and nervous glances didn’t help sell her case either.

Sadly, Twilight Sparkle was not the only pony who was unconvinced by and this was brought to Rainbow’s attention via a sharp strike to her leg.

“Ow!” the pegasus yelped in surprise. She was about to fire off one of her harshest glares at the occupant under the table but the presence of the puzzled princess meant maintaining a calm composure.

“Something wrong, Rainbow?” Twilight asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Leg cramp.” Not the most convincing of lies, but even Rainbow’s haphazard delivery seemed to be enough to sate Twilight’s curiosity.

“You know, there’s still time to get something done,” Twilight continued with the main topic of discussion. She may have had a dinner date scheduled but that didn’t mean she couldn’t render what aid she could to a friend in need. “You could run out to the store and get some flowers, or maybe make some reservations. I’m sure Applejack will understand if it slipped your mind.”

“Would you stop worrying about it? I said I’m on top of it,” Rainbow Dash insisted once more. “Now you should get going before Fluttershy and Rarity start to wonder where you are.” Thankfully, pressing the schedule upon Twilight was enough to make the alicorn give up her attempts in order to fulfill prior commitments. Another mentioning of Star Swirl’s terrible secret was the final push needed to get Twilight out the door. Now if only that had been the end of Rainbow’s troubles. Another sharp blow to her other leg reminded Rainbow of the other pony in the room.

“Ow! What the hay was that for?” Rainbow snapped as she lifted the skirt of the tablecloth.

“Ah recognized that tone,” Applejack began as she emerged from hiding, “that’s your ‘don’t want to admit the truth’ voice. You did forget our anniversary, didn’t you?”

“W-well, no! Not exactly,” Rainbow stammered as she found herself at the receiving end of further accusations. Twilight might’ve had a preconception of a lazy Rainbow Dash but at least she was willing to listen to reason. Applejack, however, was just plain stubborn once she got an idea into her head.

“I can’t believe you, Rainbow,” the farmer pony scoffed. Her frown intensified as she started pacing around the room in her anger and disappointment. “It’s our anniversary—our first anniversary! We’ve been talking about this for weeks, and you kept saying you’d take care of it.”

“I am—er, I mean I will!”

“Just like how you said you’d take care of the compost heap?”

“I did that yesterday.”

“Ah asked you to do that a week ago!” Applejack shouted back with a stomp of her hoof for added emphasis. “You know Ah love you, Dashie, but would it kill you to think more than five seconds ahead of yourself?”

Rainbow soon fell silent and was unable to keep her gaze from dropping to the ground like she had anchors for eyes. It didn’t matter what she said at this point because it would all just sound like excuses and that would only make things worse. But if she was trying to coax sympathy out of Applejack, it worked. As annoyed and disappointed as she was, the farmer just couldn’t stay mad at the pegasus. Yes, it was their first anniversary, but it wasn’t the end of the world, and Applejack hoped that there would be many more to celebrate together.

“Ah’m sorry Ah yelled at you,” she apologized. The farmer trotted back over to her love and sat down next to her. Throwing a hoof across the pegasus’ shoulder, Applejack leaned against Rainbow and rested her head into the crook of her lover’s neck. “How about we go back to my place and Ah’ll whip us up a nice dinner, and then afterwards we can settle down by the fireplace with a couple of pints of cider. How’s that sound?”

“That...sounds pretty awesome,” Rainbow admitted with some reluctance. She returned the other pony’s affection by wrapping a wing around her and keeping her close. It was moments like these that reminded her why Applejack was such an amazing pony to be with. Most ponies would probably have thrown a fit over a forgotten anniversary, but Applejack was just glad that she could spend it with her. It wasn’t as if the farmer cared for material gifts or fancy restaurants. To Applejack, it was the company that mattered and nothing else, and she didn’t need one particular day out of the year to remind her of what she felt every other day.

“Oh, and before Ah forget,” Applejack said as she stuck her head back under the table, “got you a little something under here.” A moment later, she pulled out a gift-wrapped box and set it down on the table.

The sight of a gift was more than enough to uplift Rainbow’s spirits. With a giddy laugh, Rainbow Dash pounced on the present and began tearing into it like Pinkie Pie on a fresh cupcake. Shredding through the outer wrapping revealed a rather mundane-looking box, but Rainbow knew this was just another layer to be dealt with.

“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!” Rainbow squealed upon breaching the boxes defenses. In her hooves she held aloft a peculiar-looking pith helmet. It was just like the kind worn by Daring Do, which she did have a replica of already at home, but this one looked like it had actually been worn out in the field rather than spent its entire life on a shelf.

“Picked that beauty up in an antique shop in Canterlot a month ago,” Applejack explained as she allowed herself to indulge in a bit of pride. “They had all sorts of neat stuff in that shop. You should tag along next time Twilight drags us out there.”

“Maybe, but I’m not calling it ‘antiquing’. That shouldn’t even be a word.”

Applejack laughed in her agreement. “Come on Daring,” she said before taking the pith helmet and setting it upon Rainbow’s head. After grabbing the copy of Daring Do, the pair headed on their way out back to Sweet Apple Acres.

“So Blondie returns in the latest book?” It was a rhetorical question on Applejack’s part given how much Rainbow Dash had been talking about the new book but far be it for her to deny the pegasus a chance to talk about something she loved. Besides, the conversation had been dominating by the fangirl’s gushings about the latest novel so it seemed pointless to try and steer it elsewhere. The farmer pony also suspected that the conversation wouldn’t stop just because they had reached her home at Sweet Apple Acres.

“Well at first they make it seem like a rescue,” Rainbow explained just before the pair stopped at the barn’s front door. “By the later chapters, however, it turns out to be anything but a rescue! I don’t want to spoil the rest but it’s a real page turner.”

Applejack got the impression that the only way to avoid having anything spoiled was to be as far away from the pegasus as possible and that wasn’t an option for tonight. “Come on, let’s get you something to eat,” Applejack said as she led the other mare inside. Within an instant of entering her abode, however, her nose caught a whiff of something. “Is that...apple pie? Who’d be baking at this hour?” Pie baking was usually a late morning or early afternoon activity for the Apple family. Between dinner and the fatigue of a long day, there was rarely any want or need for a fresh pie, or two judging by the strength of the aroma.

Following her nose to the kitchen, Applejack was stunned at who she saw. She had expected perhaps Big Mac to be the culprit—baking a pie for a friend or maybe some lucky mare—but instead her kitchen had been occupied by Spitfire and Soarin’ of Wonderbolts’ fame.

“Oh, hey! Didn’t think you’d be home so soon,” Soarin’ greeted with a jubilant grin. The high-flying stallion appeared to be the one responsible for all the activity in the kitchen as evident by the sauce-stained apron he wore.

“Spitfire! Soarin’! What are you two doing here?” Applejack replied. Seeing the two brought about a mixture of joy and confusion in the farmer pony. Despite her friendship with the pair, the life of a Wonderbolt made it hard to find time for social calls.

“What? Can’t a couple of friends just swoop in unannounced and cook up an anniversary dinner in your kitchen?” Spitfire answered with a playful chuckle. Judging by the discarded apple cores that littered the dining room table, the Wonderbolt Captain and her partner had been waiting for quite some time. “Besides, we technically have the same anniversary, too, so we thought we’d make a special occasion of it. Except somepony apparently couldn’t keep you busy like they said they would.”

“Keep me busy?” It took Applejack a second to realize what Spitfire was referring to. As the farmer swung about to confront Rainbow Dash, she was halted by a well-aimed kiss right on the lips.

“Happy anniversary, Applejack.”

She might not have been a pegasus like the other ponies in the room, but to Applejack it felt like her heart was about to sprout wings and burst out of her chest. “Oh, you did remember!” she exclaimed as she threw her hooves around Rainbow Dash in a near-crushing embrace. “Ah-heh, you sure had me good there, thinking you had forgotten and all.”

“How could I forget about the day I fell for the most amazing pony in the world?”

“Second most amazing pony in the world,” Applejack teased as she returned the compliment with a quick peck.

“Well, I didn’t want to seem like I was bragging.”

Fighting down a rising chuckle, Applejack released her vice-like grip on the pegasus and the two trotted over to join Spitfire at the dinner table.

“Hey Rainbow, how about you give me a hoof over here,” Soarin’ said as he motioned for her to join him by the oven. Though Rainbow Dash was averse to all concepts of work, she was always willing to make an exception for Applejack. Joining the Wonderbolt in the kitchen, her attention was directed to a nearby egg timer. “Okay, when that egg timer goes off I need you to flip all the spinach puffs over and put ‘em back in the oven for another ten.”

While their partners handled the cooking, Applejack and Spitfire headed over to the den instead to catch up. “Now be honest Spitfire, was this Rainbow Dash’s idea?” Applejack asked after they had relocated to the couch. While under normal circumstances Applejack would have been content with the way things were but considering the ordeal that occurred a year ago because of such presumptions, she was always a bit wary of taking things the wrong way.

“Yes, this actually was Rainbow’s idea.” Spitfire had no qualms reassuring the other pony since she understand Applejack’s caution. Since she had played a part in the debacles of misconceptions, better known as dating, Spitfire felt she forever owed Applejack the truth. “She popped the idea a couple of weeks ago. Originally, she just came by to ask for ideas, but after a bit of brainstorming we all decided on this.”

“Aw shucks, you and Soarin’ didn’t need to go through all of this for me.” Applejack felt a bit of guilt that Soarin’ and Spitfire were spending their anniversary catering to her and Dash, but it was a heartwarming gesture nonetheless.

“Well the way I see it, Soarin’ and I wouldn’t be celebrating tonight if it hadn’t been for you,” Spitfire said. “Besides, Soarin’s been quite eager to put his cooking skills to use.”

“Ah didn’t realize he could cook.”

A faint whiff of smoke followed by the characteristic woosh of a fire extinguisher going off gave Applejack a rough idea of the extent of the aforementioned cooking skills.

“In a loose sense,” Spitfire deadpanned.

“Why would somepony invent a second scale for temperatures?” Soarin’s voice echoed from the kitchen. “All it does is complicate things!”

Applejack shot a nervous glance back to Spitfire. “He ain’t gonna set mah kitchen on fire, is he?”

“I think he’s past that phase for the most part,” Spitfire reassured her before chuckling quietly to herself. “Alas, the same can’t be said for my kitchen. But you know how the saying goes, ‘a crash is only a failure if you fail to learn from it.’ Besides, I needed an excuse to buy a new oven.”

With all the talk about anniversaries and cooking, Applejack realized she had neglected her duties as a gracious host. Unexpected they may be, Spitfire and Soarin’ were still guests in her house. “Can Ah get you a drink? We’ve still got a few barrels of cider from the last season.”

“You have no idea how tempting that is, but I’m afraid ciders off the menu for me,” Spitfire said with evident reluctance.

Applejack was genuinely surprised to see Spitfire turn the offer down especially since she had taken such a liking to the Apple family brew. Over the past year alone Spitfire ordered a half-dozen barrels for her personal use and that was outside normal cider-making season. When Applejack expressed her confusion, she could see that Spitfire was hesitant to explain.

“Well, it’s n-nothing,” Spitfire explained at the start. She seemed to immediately regret the mentioning of cider. However, she soon remembered her promise to always stay honest with Applejack. The night was supposed to be about the anniversary and Spitfire felt like she was about to steal the show. “Okay, the thing is—”

Before Spitfire could finish her sentence, however, Soarin’ poked his head in from the kitchen. “Oh, I forgot to mention, I’m afraid there won’t be any cider or wine on the menu tonight. Spitfire’s pregnant and you know how jealous she can get.”

Jealousy wasn’t the only vice that Spitfire possessed. The mood in the living room was torn between Applejack’s joy and surprise and Spitfire’s simmering anger. “Soarin’, you blithering dolt! I told you to let me break the news when I’m ready!”

“Oh.” While a bit surprised that Applejack hadn’t been informed yet, Soarin’ was unphased by the Wonderbolt Captain’s anger. “I thought you had already told her.”

“I am going to strangle you in your sleep,” Spitfire growled. While Applejack wasn’t worried about the pegasus carrying out such a threat, she was worried that something might catch fire if the hot-blooded Wonderbolt didn’t calm down.

As usual, Soarin’ just seemed to laugh off the threat. “Oh, you say that now but then who’ll massage your wings at the end of the day?” With another hearty chuckle, Soarin’ trotted back to the kitchen muttering something about spinach puffs.

Spitfire let out a quiet,  annoyed sigh as she folded her hooves across the armrest and rested her chin upon them. “He’s got a good point there,” she murmured. On the bright side, she didn’t have to worry about how she would break the news to Applejack and technically she didn’t have to worry about being blamed for making the night about herself.

In a move that shouldn’t have surprised Spitfire, the only thing that Applejack felt about the news was happiness for her friend. “You’re pregnant? Well fry me in dough and call me a fritter, that’s wonderful news!” she exclaimed with unbridled excitement. “How far along are you? Do you know if its a boy or a girl yet?”

“It’s only been about three months, so I’ve still got another eight to go,” Spitfire answered. She didn’t want to make the night about her but she couldn’t help but indulge Applejack’s curiosity. It wasn’t as though she didn’t like the subject either. Even as she spoke, a warm smile crept upon her face and she moved one hoof to overtop of her belly. “And call me old fashioned, but I want to keep it a mystery for a little while longer.”

Applejack did some quick mental calculations in her head and noticed a particular overlap in dates. “Ah don’t suppose this has to do with why you pushed your wedding up a few months?”

“Well can you imagine me getting married while ten months pregnant?” Spitfire laughed at the thought and was soon joined by the other mare. “I’d be walking down that aisle looking like a blimp.”

“But you’d also be the sexiest blimp in Canterlot,” Soarin’ chimed in from the kitchen.

Another laugh was had at the somewhat unorthodox compliment. “Ah thought you said you weren’t going to think about kids until after the honeymoon.”

“That was the plan,” Spitfire said before rolling her eyes. Having kids had been her plan the whole time but she would’ve preferred having more time to prepare. She imagined a lot of parents had similar thoughts. “The plan was working fine up until the point that somepony accidentally filled my pillbox with dinner mints!”

Once again, Soarin’ lobbed his response from the kitchen. “It’s not my fault the mailmare mixed up our packages!”

“You didn’t stop to wonder why they looked nothing like my usual pills?”

“And you didn’t stop to wonder why your pills left your breath minty fresh?”

Ears, eyes, and hooves dropped as Spitfire admitted defeat in the battle of words. Folding her hooves across her chest, she pouted, “I thought they were flavored.”

Applejack couldn’t help but chuckle a little bit at the exchange. There was never any malice behind the words. It was more like the playful banter between old friends, which wasn’t too far from the truth. “Ah guess that means we won’t be seeing much of you at the air shows for a little while,” Applejack remarked. No doubt Rainbow Dash was taking that news hard, as would many Wonderbolt fans once the news broke out.

“I’m afraid so,” Spitfire said. It was no surprise that being absent from the aerobatics scene was the biggest drawback to starting a family. While she accepted this fact of life, it didn’t make it any less unpleasant for the pegasus who loved to fly. “On the bright side, Soarin’s offered to split some of the paternity leave with me so I can at least stand attending practises.”

“Well good to hear that he’s being supportive.”

“Soarin’s actually really keen on the whole father thing,” Spitfire said as she peered over the couch towards the kitchen. Soarin’ and Rainbow Dash appeared to be having some trouble with the main course. “A few months ago, Soarin’ barely knew how to turn on the oven, and now he’s got himself enrolled in half a year’s worth of cooking courses, baby care lessons, and he’s even been practicing with a bag of flour on the weekends. He’s really pulled his act together.” The pegasus let out a contented sigh as she continued to watch her love working the kitchen. The pregnancy might have been unplanned, but it appeared to her that fatherhood might be one of the best things to happen to Soarin’. She was proud of him.

That sense of pride lasted only a few seconds. A moment later, there was some muffled profanity followed by a rather loud bang that resulted in the nearby wall becoming coated in a thick red paste.

“Don’t worry, it’s just tomato sauce!” Rainbow reassured everyone.

“Ah somehow doubt Dash would react the same to the idea of kids,” Applejack remarked. Of course, being two mares meant that they never had to worry about unwanted pregnancies. In fact, they didn’t have to worry about kids at all as far as Applejack knew. She’d be lying if she said a part of her didn’t feel envious of Spitfire. In a few months the Wonderbolt would be starting her own family—something that Applejack still held her own hopes for.

“By the way,” Spitfire spoke up, snapping the contemplating farmer pony from her train of though, “I think the mailmare must’ve lost your RSVP. You and Dash can make it to the wedding, right?”

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Applejack replied.

Just then another loud clamour came from the kitchen, which sounded akin to a bag of tomatoes getting shot out of a cannon into a brick wall. A few seconds later, from the kitchen emerged two pegasi that were covered from head to hoof in tomato sauce and various herbs and flecks of vegetables.

“So when’s dinner?” Spitfire inquired while holding back a giggle.

“It was a hard-fought battle,” Soarin’ began as he straightened his posture, “we did everything that we could, but a true general  knows when he is defeated. There is no shame in admitting that.”

Applejack was a bit surprised that Soarin’ managed to deliver that with a straight face. “So what’s our plan now, general?” she asked.

“I already ordered for pizza before we came,” Spitfire answered before glancing to a nearby wall clock. “It should be arriving pretty soon.”

“Hm, on the one hoof, you apparently had no faith in my cooking skills from the start,” Soarin’ remarked with a pensive look in his eyes, “but on the other hoof, I am getting pizza. I think I can call that a fair trade.”

“Well Ah ain’t got no problem with pizza,” Applejack said before she hopped off the couch. As far as she was concerned, the company she spent the evening with was far more important than what they were eating later on. “Ah’d best see about getting some of that mess in the kitchen cleaned up.”

As she trotted towards the kitchen, Rainbow Dash swooped in front to bar her path. “Um, just before you go in there,” Rainbow said with a nervous smile, “I just want to say that I love you.”

“Well Ah love you too, hun, but Ah don’t see what—Sweet golden throne of Canterlot! Mah kitchen!”

By the time that Spitfire and Soarin’ had to leave, night had already overtaken Sweet Apple Acres. One could barely see more than a few feet past the glow of the barn’s lanterns but that was not Applejack’s major concern. If it had been just dark out, she would not have had any objections to Spitfire or Soarin’ leaving but the heavy overcast was soon dropping rain by the bucket-loads upon the orchard.

“Ah thought Ah asked you to talk to your supervisor about postponing tonight’s rain,” Applejack remarked as she shot an annoyed glance to the pegasus beside her.

“Oops,” was all Rainbow could respond with.

"Don’t suppose you could go out and just clean that all up?” Applejack asked.

“Oh no, those are some serious class five cumulonimbus clouds up there,” Rainbow Dash said with an unusual display of academic knowledge. “Anypony who flies through one of those is going to end up a crispy critter...except maybe me, of course.”

Applejack just rolled her eyes and turned her attention to her guests. “Maybe y’all should stay for the night,” she suggested. “You two can use mah bedroom, and Ah’ll sleep down here on the couch.”

“Once again, we seem to be in your debt,” Soarin’ said with a polite nod. He knew that Spitfire wouldn’t have been put off by a little bad weather, but he wasn’t about to let a pregnant mare fly out into a thunderstorm. The easiest way to accomplish that goal was just to make it more enticing to stay where she was. “Come, my dear, you should rest those weary hooves,” he continued. On par with his trend of melodramatic charm, he swept Spitfire up into his hooves and proceeded to carry her up the stairs.

Spitfire, while a bit surprised and embarrassed at first, was quick to fall into the role of the happy maiden. She hooked her hooves around his neck and nestled her head against his chest. As the pair disappeared up the stairs, Applejack couldn’t help but hope that there wouldn’t be any disturbances in the night.

“Try not to make too much noise,” Applejack called out to them, “there are still little fillies sleeping under this roof.”

Applejack wasn’t sure if the couple heard her or not but either way she decided to let it go. It was their anniversary, too, so she figured it would be best to give them some privacy. With a belly full of pizza and muscles worn out by cleaning up a disaster of a kitchen, Applejack figured she may as well retire for the night too. She had hoped to take a stroll through the orchard with Rainbow Dash after dinner, but the rainstorm had quashed those plans.

Only a few seconds after settling down on the couch, Applejack felt the familiar warmth and touch of a feathered appendage draping across her frame. Instinctively, the earth pony leaned and rested up against the pegasus beside her to share in the warmth of her embrace.

“Happy anniversary, Dashie,” Applejack whispered before settling her head across her folded hooves.

“So you wanna be big spoon or the little spoon tonight?” Rainbow asked with a playful laugh. “I messed up dinner so you get to choose.”

“Come on, Rainbow, just go to sleep.” Though the offer was tempting, Applejack just wanted to sleep right now. Plus they were sleeping on her couch, which barely had enough space to begin with.

Disappointed, Rainbow Dash went along with it and pulled a nearby blanket over the two of them. However, it didn’t take long for Applejack to realize that perhaps she wasn’t as fatigued as she had originally thought.

“Hey Dash,” Applejack whispered as she gave her love a gentle nudge. “You awake?”

“I am now,” murmured the pegasus in response. “What is it?”

Applejack paused for a second to collect her thoughts. It seemed like such a trivial issue but it continued to nag at her mind. “You don’t mind the idea of kids some day, right?”

In the darkness, Applejack couldn’t see the pegasus cocking a tired eyebrow at the question. “I dunno,” Rainbow replied after a period of silence. “Kids sound like a lot of work. Between me and the Wonderbolts, and you and the farm, where would we find time to raise a kid?”

“Well it ain’t impossible,” Applejack reasoned by drawing upon her own experiences. “Granny Smith and Big Mac helped raise me when I was a little filly, and Ah helped raise Applebloom after she was born.”

“Okay, fine...whatever.” The pegasus’ dismissive response only irked the farmer pony.

“That’s it? Ah bring up the subject of kids and you’re response is just ‘okay, fine...whatever’?”

“Well what do you want me to say?” Rainbow shot back, though fatigue was keeping her from raising her voice.

“Something. Anything! Ah’m talking about our future and you just shrugged it off.”

“Why are you so worried about the future? That’s the beauty about it: it hasn’t happened yet. We can worry about it later. Why not just enjoy the moment now?”

“Cause it’s important,” Applejack said as she rose up on the couch. “Plus Ah’m a farmer, it’s in mah nature to have things planned out. Ah always know where Ah’m going days, weeks, and even months in advance. You, on the other hoof, can barely plan for dinner after breakfast.”

Such a slight could not go unanswered by Rainbow Dash, who rose up to meet Applejack’s gaze. “Hey! I planned all of today like two weeks ago.”

“Oh yeah? And what are you going to do tomorrow?” Applejack held a smug grin when the pegasus was unable to answer with little more than an indecisive stammer. “See? There’s a difference between planning a single day and planning out your future. And it’s not just my future Ah’m worried about, it’s the future that we’re gonna share. Is it so wrong that I just want a proper discussion about us?”

“And now she’s gone baby crazy,” Rainbow Dash grumbled under her breath. Sadly it was not quiet enough to elude the mare two inches away from her.

“What did you just call me?” Applejack growled while glaring daggers at Dash.

In most situations like these, there’s a small voice in the back of one’s head that starts sounding an alarm. It’s the same alarm that takes part in the ‘fight or flight’ reaction that most living things possess. It is a valuable aid in the flight response in helping the pony recognize that the snarling timberwolf in front of them isn’t interested in making friends. However, in some ponies, like Rainbow Dash, the reaction to danger was not flight but rather embracing it, and jumping headlong into the abyss. After many years of this behavior, the brain just stopped trying.

In ancient times, such ponies usually removed themselves from the gene pool quickly.

“Baby crazy,” Rainbow snapped back. “Spitfire’s pregnant so now it’s got you thinking with your egg-factory and its screaming at you to do something about it. Well I hate to break it to you, Applejack, but I’m a mare. I can’t make you pregnant!”

Now anger was beginning to override her fatigue, leading to Applejack grumbling under her breath. “Don’t remind me,” she growled.

“Well excuse me for having the wrong parts.” A problem with two overly competitive ponies in a relationship was that every argument was seen as just another competition to win, and neither ponies were the type to give up easily in any kind of a fight. “And even if I did, maybe I just don’t like the idea of having to take care of a little kid.”

“That’s just because you don’t like having to tie yourself down to anyone or anything.”

“Well d’uh! I’m a pegasus: I’m born to fly free. I thought you understood that.”

“What I understand is a pegasus so scared of work and responsibility that she’ll do whatever it takes to avoid it.”

Rainbow Dash let out a bitter growl before flaring her wings up. “That’s it, I’m not having this discussion. I’m going home,” she announced before flying to the nearest exit, which happened to be a nearby window.

“Oh sure, fly off again like you always do!” Applejack scolded as she threw up her hooves in dismay. She didn’t even bother trying to stop Dash from leaving since the pegasus would be gone before she even got a chance to grab her rope. Besides, if she had to physically tie Rainbow Dash down just to talk then it wasn’t something that could be fixed by a single conversation.

It wasn’t until watching the pegasus disappear out the window that the gravity of the situation sunk in for Applejack. A crippling dose of reality hit her like a dropped anvil, and her heart sank as such. “Oh god, what have Ah done now?” she groaned before burying her face into her hoof.

“Applejack?” a faint voice called out. Glancing over to the stairs revealed Spitfire standing at the top. “I heard some shouting. Is everything okay?” Spitfire didn’t need a verbal response to her question as the empty room and the look on Applejack’s face told her enough. “Oh, you poor dear,” Spitfire said as she offered her sympathies. She gestured for Applejack to come up, which the farmer readily did, and gave her friend a reassuring hug. “Come on, AJ, how about we sit and you can tell me all about what’s going on.”

Spitfire led the dejected pony back to the bedroom, wherein Soarin’ was quite surprised to see the pair. Thankfully, quick reflexes and a nearby pillow kept the situation from getting too embarrassing for the trio. “Honey, what’s going on?” an anxious Soarin’ asked. He remembered having dreams that began as such but he was certain that this wasn’t going in that direction.

“She and Rainbow Dash got into a fight,” Spitfire explained. She carefully led Applejack to the side of the bed where the two mares took a seat. She offered her shoulder to Applejack to rest upon.

“We were just talking about kids and the future,” Applejack began to explain as she took up the pegasus’ offer, “and she just started brushing it off. Ah just...Ah just snapped at her, and it all went downhill from there.”

“Please tell me you didn’t go baby crazy,” Soarin’ remarked, which earned him a very swift smack from his Captain. “Ow! What was that for?”

Spitfire shot him her trademark fiery glare. “That was uncalled for,” she chastised.

“It’s true, though. We got into a few squabbles over kids when we started going out.”

The fact that Spitfire couldn't come up with a snappy retort was her way of acknowledging the truth in his words, as loathe as she was to admit it even to herself. However, using her as an example was always problematic because she was known for having a volatile temper. If one tried to use her past as a list of topics or things to avoid, there would be very little left over for a couple to enjoy.

There was, however, one important lesson that Spitfire could take from her own relationship and with that in mind she turned her attention back to the mare beside her. “Listen, every relationship goes through a bit of turbulence,” she explained to Applejack. “Soarin’ and I have argued about pretty much everything at one point or another. The important thing is to know how to handle a fight afterwards. I suggest you give yourself and Rainbow Dash a little bit of time to cool off, and then you two can sit down and have a nice, civil conversation on the subject.”

“And then comes the make-up sex!”

“Must you ruin every moment?” Spitfire said in a low growl.

Yet while Spitfire was a simmering low-flame, Applejack just chuckled at the couple’s antics. If they could make a relationship work with Spitfire’s volatility, then Applejack and Rainbow Dash could get over a petty little argument. Besides, their friendship had been littered with disagreements in the past and they always fixed things up afterwards. During the Annual Running of the Leaves, Applejack and Rainbow Dash were at each other’s throats by the end of it and they still patched things up afterwards.

“Maybe Ah was a little hard on Rainbow Dash,” Applejack admitted after her laughter had died down. “It’s just...hard for me not to think about these things. Y’always have to be thinking ahead in the farming business.”

“I imagine you both have things to learn about life and relationships,” Spitfire added with a friendly pat on the back. “The important thing is that you both must be willing to learn them together, and that you remember those lessons.”

Feeling a bit more secure in her future and filled with a renewed sense to make amends, Applejack expressed her sense of gratitude by giving Spitfire a tight, affectionate hug. She knew this wasn’t the end of her problems as she still had to go talk to Rainbow Dash but at least she would be going into that discussion with the intent to make things right rather than try to win the previous argument. A loud and sudden thunderclap, however, reminded Applejack that the storm outside made going after the pegasus a risky prospect.

“Ah just hope Ah can get to her soon,” Applejack said as she glanced to the nearby window. The weather outside was getting worse by the second. As fate would have it, she would be finding Rainbow Dash far sooner than she had expected. A section of the ceiling came crashing down in a shower of water and splinters. In the midst of the broken timbers and shingles was the aforementioned pegasus, twitching and singed from a close-encounter with nature’s fury.

“Oh my—Rainbow!” Applejack’s heart almost jumped out of her chest both from the shock of the sudden arrival as well as seeing her love in such a broken state. By a small miracle, if one could call it that, Rainbow's crash had been softened by the bedand narrowly missed the other ponies.

“She must have been struck in the storm,” Spitfire stated as she rushed over to the fallen pegasus’ side. Judging by the singed mane, lightning was indeed the culprit behind the crash. Using what little first aid knowledge she possessed, Spitfire checked the pegasus’ condition. “Pulse is still there,” she reported after a few seconds. “Breathing is a bit erratic.” Spitfire looked up to her fellow Wonderbolt. “Soarin’, get help! Remember to fly low.”

“Right!” With a quick snap salute and an even quicker departure, the Wonderbolt headed out the window towards Ponyville Hospital, remembering to fly low to the ground so there wasn’t a repeat of this catastrophe.

Applejack desperately wanted to do something to help, but she had no idea how. She was just a farmer pony: she had no experience in treating the injured beyond the minor scrapes and bumps that little sisters would invariably return home with. She felt powerless to help, and when it was somebody that you loved, it made it the worst feeling in the world.

“Is she going to be okay?” a fretful Applejack asked.

“Doesn’t look too bad,” Spitfire reported as she sifted through the pegasus’ mane to look for signs of serious injury. “Problem is you can never tell how bad a lightning strike is until they wake up. I remember taking a small zap about eight years ago and I couldn’t do basic math for the rest of the day.”

Applejack shuffled over to Rainbow’s side, laying down beside the pegasus with growing anxiety. “Come on, Rainbow, wake up,” she whimpered as she nudged her love’s cheeks with her nose.

Just then, the unconscious pony let out a quiet murmur followed a second later a prolonged groan. When Rainbow Dash began to stir, Applejack let out a gasp.

“Rainbow!” she called out as though volume would speed up the process.

Whether it was through Applejack’s voice or a simple stroke of luck, the pegasus gradually came to her senses. At first, to Rainbow Dash everything was just one giant miasma of unrecognizable sounds of figures. She heard voices but could not put names to them, and her vision was still too blurred to make anything out.

“What...happened?” Rainbow murmured in a weakened voice. When her eyes finally adjusted to the dim lighting in the room, she found herself staring face-to-face to a one very relieved pony. There was only one immediate problem with the situation. “Who are you?”

Applejack’s smile of elation fell faster than Rainbow had through her roof.

“Don’t worry, AJ, a bit of memory loss isn’t uncommon with high voltage injuries,” Spitfire interjected while trying to remain calm and rational. Tapping her hoof against the fallen pegasus’ face, she guided Rainbow’s gaze over to her. “Do you know who I am?” she asked in a slow, hospitable tone in order to keep everyone calm.

Rainbow shook her head.

“Do you know where you are?”

Another shake.

“Do you know what day it is?”

“Tuesday?”

It was Sunday. Spitfire shot a worried glance over to her friend.

“Do you remember your name?”

Rainbow Dash did nothing at first and stared blankly into space. “I...don’t,” she answered as the realization dawned upon her.

“Okay, now we can worry.”