“Ow!”
“Oh hush,” Granny Smith chided the squirming pegasus, yanking the bandages tighter around her wing. “Whinin’ like that ain’t gonna get you into the Wonderbolts.”
Rainbow Dash, seated at the table-turned-triage-center in the Apple family’s kitchen, gave the old mare a sidelong look. “I think the Wonderbolts’ medical teams have a little more- OW!” she yelped in pained surprise, as Granny Smith gave the bandages another very snug tug.
“A little more what, darling?” the little old granny asked with a smile of feigned innocence.
Dash laughed nervously. “A little more room for improvement, compared to your expert care,” she lied.
“Good to hear,” Granny Smith nodded, giving her a sly look. “Anyhoo, Ah think yer wing should be right as rain once them bandages an’ the healin’ salve do their work. Lay off the flyin’ an’ the rough-housin’ fer a day or so, though.” She narrowed her eyes, smirking knowingly. “You can lay off that stuff fer a little while, can’t ya darlin’?”
The injured pegasus laughed sheepishly. “Uh… probably?”
Granny Smith rolled her eyes. “Just go see Applejack. An’ come back if yer wing gives ya more trouble. I can spare a moment from cookin’ to make sure my grandbabies are alright,” she said as she turned her attention back towards the array of half-prepared meals on the counter and stovetop.
“Sure thing. Thanks a bunch, Granny,” Dash said, flashing a sincere smile. She still felt a little weird about Granny Smith referring to her as one of her own granddaughters. It had started a few weeks ago, shortly after they all agreed to the idea of Dash’s family coming to visit for a big dinner. Apparently introducing relatives makes you part of the family? Earth pony culture was strange like that, Dash theorized. But she was getting used to it, and she certainly didn’t mind it. It was nice to be considered part of the Apple Clan, even if she was the only member sporting a pair of wings.
With Granny Smith’s attention back on dinner preparations, Dash went ahead and took her leave, trotting through the doorway back into the farmstead’s living room. She found Applejack sitting on patiently on the sofa, a look of unease on her orange face. “Dash, I-”she started to speak, only to be cut off by Dash holding up a hoof.
“AJ. Seriously. It’s cool,” Dash sighed. “I already told you, it’s not that big a deal. It barely hurt. You just caught me off guard, is all. No biggie.”
“But-”
“But nothing,” Dash rolled her eyes, sitting down on the sofa next to her marefriend. “It was just a silly little accident, and I’m not mad or anything. I swear. I get what you were trying to do. You’ve got nothing to apologize for.”
“But-”
“Yes, my butt is awesome,” Dash quipped with a crooked grin, unfurling her good wing to drape it over Applejack and pull her into a close, feathery hug. “No need to tell me, but I’m not opposed to hearing more.”
Applejack’s look of unease disappeared, replaced by a mixture of amusement and exasperation. “Yer terrible.”
“And you still have hay in your hair.”
Applejack looked up. Sure enough, her mane was still full of hay, the random strands of straw almost camouflaged in her blond locks. A few stray pieces were also decorating her hat. “Eh,” the earth mare shrugged. “Was too worried about you to bother cleaning up.”
“AJ. Babe. I’m fine,” Dash assured her, giving her a comforting wing-squeeze. “A little bruised, sure, but I’ll be fine in no time. If anything, I’m sorry I couldn’t catch you when you lost your balance," she frowned.
“Eh, it’ll take more than a fall from a hay loft to put me outta commission,” Applejack shrugged. “Besides, the hay did a good job of catchin’ us both. Though, Ah gotta say…” her voice trailed off, a hint of playfulness appearing in her emerald eyes.
“Say what?”
Applejack smirked coyly. “Ah thought pegasi were supposed to be all light as a feather an’ whatnot. But it didn’t feel like a feather that landed on my back.”
Dash frowned indignantly. “Are you saying I need to lose weight?”
Applejack smirked playfully. “Naw. Just teasin’. Though Ah dunno if all them apple pies you scarf down would be considered a balanced diet.”
“Hey, I’m an athlete, and athletes need lots of calories, especially tasty ones,” Dash replied with a cheeky grin. “That’s my story and I’m sticking with it.”
Applejack rolled her eyes. “Alright, enough goofiness. We should probably get cleaned up before yer parents get here.”
It had been a few weeks since they’d discussed the idea of inviting Dash’s parents to visit. Dash had immediately written a letter to them about it, but they’d needed a bit of time to get their affairs in order. They’d be staying with her at her house for a few days, but upon immediate arrival, they’d be coming over to Sweet Apple Acres for a nice family dinner, so everyone could be properly introduced and get to know each other. Applejack and Dash had spent most of the day getting the farm properly cleaned up while Big Mac tended to the normal chores, and Granny Smith prepared a perfect dinner. Unfortunately, the fiasco with the hay loft had cost them a bit of time they probably needed for other stuff.
“Eh, don’t sweat it,” Dash said with a dismissive wave of her hoof. “They shouldn’t be here for a few more hours. We’ve got plenty-”
The knock at the door caused the pegasus to slap her forehead with her hoof. Applejack gave Dash a deadpan look. “Well woudlja lookit that. Seems they’re early.”
“Naturally.”
“AH GOT IT!!” Apple Bloom hollered from upstairs. A short moment later, a small filly dressed in the black garb of a ninja appeared at the top of the stairs, quickly jumping onto the hoof-rail and sliding down it with expert precision. “CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS STEALTHY NINJ-!”
Apparently Apple Bloom was not destined for a Shinobi Cutie Mark. She managed to keep her balance for most of the slide, only to lose it near the bottom of the rail. With a yelp and quite a bit of hoof-flailing, she went tumbling off, bouncing across the floor a few times before slamming into the front door, knocking it open and rolling right out onto the porch. “Ah’m alright!” she weakly called from outside, before addressing whoever was outside the doorway. “Hey wait, yer not Scootaloo and Sweetie Bell. Oooooh, you must be Mister and Missus Dash! Y’all can go on in!”
In the living room, Rainbow Dash had her face buried in her hooves, while Applejack had merely pulled her hat down over her face, as they both made vain attempts to escape from the unfolding train wreck. “Tell me this isn’t happening…” the pegasus murmured, shaking her head in disbelief.
“Oh, it’s happening alright,” the voice of an aged stallion jovially replied.
“Earth ponies sure know how to give interesting welcomes,” the suave voice of an older mare coyly added.
Applejack lifted her hat, while Rainbow Dash lifted her face from her hooves. Despite how awkward things already were, Dash couldn’t help but smile as she looked up to see her parents. “Hey Mom, hey Dad.”
Two pegasi – one an older mare with bubblegum pink fur, purple eyes, and an electric blue mane, the other an older stallion with powder blue fur, amber eyes, and a rather colorful mane – were standing in the middle of the living room, both wearing saddle-bags and very amused smirks. “Hello Rainbow,” the stallion said jovially.
“Hi, darling,” the mare said, her smirk turning very coy and playful. “I’d ask for a hug, but somepony else seems to have beat me to it.”
“Huh?” Dash blinked, before realizing she still had her wing around Applejack. She blushed, quickly pulling it back against herself with a nervous laugh. “Oh. Ehehe. Here, let me fix that.” Hopping up, Dash quickly wrapped her forelegs around her parents to hug them, as the two older ponies returned the favor.
“Well ain’t that a heartwarmin’ sight,” Applejack observed with a playful smile.
The stallion pulled away from Dash’s hug, taking a step closer to AJ and flashing a warm grin. “You must be Applejack. It’s good to finally meet you. I’m Spectrum Dash, and this is my lovely wife, Firefly.”
“A pleasure,” Firefly nodded, pulling away from Dash’s embrace to focus on introductions.
“It’s nice ta meet y’all too,” Applejack nodded. “The little ball of energy ya saw was my sister Apple Bloom. Granny Smith is in the kitchen, and my brother Big Mac is out workin’ on chores.”
“Oh yes, we already met him,” Firefly observed with a merry smile. “He’s quite the courteous gentlestallion, if a bit taciturn.”
“Is he an athlete?” Spectrum inquired with a curious tilt of his head. “He’s got the body of one. He’d have a pretty promising career in hoofball, and I know some folks he could talk to about-“
With a bemused shake of her head, Firefly stepped in front of her husband to interrupt him. “Dashie here has told us all about you,” she observed, sound a bit playfully. “She had quite a bit to say about you during her last visit.”
“Oh? Like what?” Applejack asked, returning the playful tone and grin.
“Oooooh, lots of things,” Firefly purred with a sly smile. “There was one story involving the Running of the Leaves, and-”
Dash coughed and grinned awkwardly. “Wow, so, you’re both here early. Easy flight, huh?” she asked, trying to change the subject.
“We had the wind with us,” Firefly replied cheerfully. “So we made better time than expected. I hope our early arrival isn’t a problem.” She tilted her head a bit, eyeing the strands of hay poking out of Applejack’s mane and stuck all over her hat. The older mare narrowed her eyes a bit, and smirked mischievously. “Oh my. We didn’t interrupt a literal roll in the hay, did we?”
Spectrum let out a hearty laugh, while Applejack and Dash both flushed furiously. “MOM!!” Dash exclaimed in flustered horror.
The door to the kitchen swung open with impeccable timing, as Granny Smith shuffled in to see what all the racket was. “Ah take it our guests are early?” she asked as she entered, smiling politely at the two pegasi parents. “Welcome to Sweet Apple Acres. Ah’m Granny Smith, and it’s nice ta finally meetcha.”
Dash’s parents both turned away from the two blushing lovers, smiling warmly and nodding respectfully to the older earth mare. “It’s good to meet you too, Misses Smith,” Spectrum observed.
“You have such a lovely homestead. It’s good to see such flourishing agriculture,” Firefly observed happily.
Granny Smith eyed the pink mare curiously. “Oh? You’ve got an eye fer farmin’?”
“I’m part of the Equestrian Meteorological Service,” Firefly replied with a proud little smile. “I help to organize and plan weather patterns for certain districts, sending forecasts and orders to the various Weather Patrols in those areas. Ponyville included. And I’m quite happy to see the results of our agricultural productivity calculations with my own eyes, rather than just statistics on paper.”
“Oh?” Granny Smith’s eyes widened, and she grinned widely. “Well ain’t that somethin’. Now Ah know who ta write letters to when Ah wanna complain about when our crops ain’t big enough ta win at the County Fair,” she winked.
As Spectrum, Firefly, and Granny all burst into laughter, Applejack and Rainbow Dash both found themselves relaxing and smiling with relief. The initial awkwardness was past, and now both of their families seemed to be getting along great. They were laughing, joking, and enjoying the company of one another without any sort of trouble or conflict. Whatever worries the two young lovers had been feeling were quickly evaporating into thin air.
“Hey Rainbow,” Spectrum suddenly frowned, “What happened to your wing?”
All of those worries and concerns came crashing back into existence with a brutal vengeance. Applejack winced slightly, and Dash’s ears pinned back. “My, uh, wing? What about it?” she asked with an awkward smile of feigned obliviousness.
Spectrum’s frown only deepened. “Why’s it all bandaged?”
Firefly fluttered over to her daughter, looking quite concerned. “Oh my! I noticed you were favoring it a bit, dear, but I didn’t realize it was bandaged so extensively! What happened, dear?”
“Uh…” Dash gulped nervously. How was she going to-
“Accidents happen,” Granny Smith suddenly interjected nonchalantly, trying to disarm the situation with an air of casualness. “Ah already patched her up good with some herbal salve and bandages soaked in a healin’ brew. Ol’ earth pony remedy fer everythin’ from bruises to broken bones. She’ll be flyin’ in no time.”
That seemed to greatly relax Dash’s parents, but their eyes still held some concern and curiosity. “Well that’s good to know, at least,” Spectrum admitted.
“Indeed, but I’m still curious as to what happened,” Firefly said with a bit of worry.
“Uh, well, I, uh,” Dash fumbled over her words, trying to come up with a believable story.
“She crashed,” Applejack suddenly interjected with an aloof shrug. “No biggie.” She wasn’t lying! Falling out of a hay loft on top of your lover is still technically crashing!
“She crashed?!!?” Dash’s parents both asked in unison, eyes wide and jaws dropped in shocked disbelief.
Rainbow Dash turned and gave Applejack a mortified look of horror. That was the furthest thing from a believable story!
“Yeah, uh,” Applejack blinked in surprise, trying to find a way to salvage this. “While, uh, doin’ a trick. Just like last time.”
“Last time?!”
Oops. “Yeah, uh, when she was in the hospital?”
“HOSPITAL!?” Spectrum and Firefly both asked, aghast. They turned their attention back to Rainbow Dash, who was staring at Applejack in terrified disbelief.
“When were you in the hospital dear?”
“What on earth happened?”
“Why didn’t you tell us?”
“How bad was it?”
“Was it sprained?”
“Broken?”
“Do you need to go have it looked at now?”
“Where’s the nearest doctor?”
“Mom! Dad!” Dash finally exclaimed with a wave of her hooves, trying to rebuff their constant assault of worried questions and concerned prodding. “I’m fine, I swear! It’s just a little bruised! No sprain, no breaks, nothing serious! See?”
To demonstrate how fine her wing was, Dash unfurled the offending limb and began to wave it around. Of course, Dash didn’t realize that as she began to wave it, part of the bandaging popped loose.
Granny Smith gave an exasperated roll of her eyes, well aware of what was about to happen.
Dash continues to wave her wing around, almost frantically, in an attempt to prove to her parents it was perfectly fine. She was so focused on convincing them, and not showing any of the annoying pain she was feeling, that she remained completely oblivious to the fact that the bandages were coming loose and starting to unravel. A short moment later, the bandages finally flew free, leaving her wing completely exposed.
And revealing a rather large bruise in the perfect shape of a bite-mark.
“See?” Dash grinned awkwardly.
Spectrum and Firefly stared. Applejack pulled her hat down over her crimson-colored face, clearly wishing the sofa would just eat her. And Granny Smith merely shook her head, waiting for Dash to realize the bandages were gone.
It took another four seconds of confusion for Dash to look back at her wing and realize why her parents were staring. “ACK!!” She quickly pulled her wing back close to her body, and blushed furiously.
Spectrum snorted, apparently amused. “Yup. Looks totally fine.”
Firefly smirked impishly. “It also looks like you take after your father.”
Now it was Spectrum’s turn to blush, as both he and Dash looked at Firefly in horror. “BABE/MOM!!” they both screeched in shock and embarrassment.
Applejack sank further down on the sofa, wishing she had a bigger hat to hide behind. Granny Smith just turned to head back to the kitchen, cackling all the while. And outside the living room window, the Ninja Mark Crusaders were having a very quiet but heated debate amongst themselves as to whether wing-biting was a legal wrestling move or not.