“Here kitty, kitty, kitty…”
Rainbow Dash reached out, only for the little white kitten to hiss menacingly and lash out with a claw. “Ow!” She hastily retreated, holding her scratched hand.
“Rainbow Dash, you’re scaring the poor dear.” The kitten scampered over to where Rarity was sitting on the floor and curled up in a ball in her lap.
“Ugh, stupid goddamn cats,” Rainbow muttered. She glanced over at the rabbit that Fluttershy was holding, but one look at its beady little eyes convinced her to not try anything.
“She’s an absolute gem, Fluttershy!” Rarity said, reaching down to scratch the kitten behind its ears as it purred softly.
“She’s so lonely if I leave her at home.” Fluttershy hugged the rabbit she was holding gently. “And Angel Bunny here gets upset and makes a horrible mess. That’s why I simply have to bring them with me.”
“You know if Iron Will catches you carrying around critters, he’ll flip his lid, right?” Applejack said.
“Well, that’s why I won’t let him find out.” Fluttershy’s eyes flicked over to the door, but her smile didn’t fade.
“I have a pet alligator!” Pinkie exclaimed. “At least I think he’s an alligator, cause he’s cute and green and scaly and has non-functioning lingual salt glands.”
“That’s… nice,” Fluttershy said.
“They really gave you detention just for bringing animals to school?” Rarity asked.
Fluttershy bit her lip. “Well. Mister Battums got loose and he doesn’t do well around people…”
“Oh wow. I thought the whole vampire-bat-in-the-cafeteria thing was a joke!” Pinkie said.
Fluttershy winced. "J-just a regular bat."
“Sure would make for a killer prank though,” Rainbow said with a grin.
“Oh, please.” Rarity rolled her eyes.
“On that note, why are you here?” Applejack said, frowning at Rarity. “I’d love to hear how Miss Pomp ‘n Popularity earned a weekend detention. Decide to skip classes to go shopping?”
“Hmph,” Rarity said. “I would never.”
An uncomfortable silence fell as the other girls kept looking at her with curiosity.
“Okay,” she admitted. “Admittedly, I might. But that wasn’t it.”
“Then what was?” Rainbow asked, curiosity creeping into her voice.
“I-I hardly think it is any of your business.”
“I know! I know!” Pinkie sang out. “She got in a fight!”
“No way!” Rainbow said. She leaned forward, grinning. “Let me guess, one of your friends say something mean about your dress and you decided to get catty?”
A bead of sweat ran down Rarity’s forehead as her eyes darted back and forth. “No, I—”
“She broke Blueblood’s nose!”
Rarity’s shoulders slumped. “Thank you ever so much, Pinkie.”
“Blueblood?” Applejack said. “The captain of the football team?”
“That was you?" Rainbow's eyebrows shot up. "That. Is. Awesome!” she exclaimed, pumping one fist in the air.
Rarity sighed loudly. “Yes. We were – and let me emphasize the past tense – were dating, and had a disagreement regarding whether or not a mutual relationship unilaterally allowed him certain liberties as it comes to demonstrating affection.”
“He got fresh and then she punched him,” Pinkie said, miming the actions along with her words. “Pow!”
“Awesome.” Rainbow grinned. “You know he’s been telling people he got jumped by a gang in a dark alley? I heard him tell his buddies he fought off four thugs before the rest got the better of him!”
Rarity rolled her eyes. “I’m not surprised. He was a pig anyways. I was only going out with him for the social status.”
Fluttershy’s face fell. “That’s... horrible.”
“High school is a tough place.” Rarity frowned as her hand rested on the kitten in her lap. “Certain sacrifices must be made in order to stand out. Now, you’ve forced me to tell my story. How about… Applejack?”
Applejack’s mouth tightened, but she nodded quickly. “Alright. I stole a tractor.”
Rainbow Dash guffawed. “Usually when you go for a joyride, you should aim for something that goes more than five miles an hour.”
“Have you ever been on a tractor?” Applejack glared at her. “And it weren’t no joyride either. Ol’ Misty turned a leg and hasn’t been able to plow, and we needed to turn the soil over and clear out the deadwood from where root rot got into the east orchards. I didn’t have any other options.”
“That seems like a good reason to me,” Fluttershy said.
“Yeah,” Pinkie chimed in. “That’s not hurting anyone.”
Applejack nodded firmly. “And I put it right back when I was done.”
“So, what, you got caught then?” Rainbow asked.
Applejack blinked. “Huh?”
“You got caught bringing it back? Or what?”
Applejack shook her head. “I didn’t get caught at all. But I felt so rotten about the whole thing that I went right up and turned myself in a couple of days later.”
“Are you serious?” Rainbow Dash said. “That’s— That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard!”
“Come now, Rainbow,” Rarity said. “That’s very… respectable. Albeit perhaps unwise.”
“Stupid!” Rainbow exclaimed again.
“What did you do, then?” Applejack said, her voice hot. “And how did you get caught?”
Rainbow Dash’s mouth clicked shut, and she drew her knees up to her chest, partially hiding her face. Her eyes peeked out at the other girls.
“Not gonna say.”
Applejack snorted. “Seriously?”
“That’s hardly fair. I told why I got detention,” Rarity said. “Well. Pinkie told why I got detention, but really it’s the same thing.”
“Yeah, yeah!” Pinkie said.
A light gleamed in Applejack’s eyes. “Nah, she won’t tell cause she’s scared.”
“Am not,” Rainbow Dash muttered.
Rarity glanced to Applejack and a smile crossed her face. “Oh. I see. Yes, it does take a lot of courage to admit something potentially embarrassing to your friends. I guess it might be a little too scary for someone like Rainbow Dash.”
“I’m not scared!”
“I-if you don’t want to tell, that’s okay,” Fluttershy said. “Eep!” Rainbow Dash had growled ferociously, glaring at her.
“Fine!" She let out a sigh, her voice dropping to a grouchy mumbling again. "I pulled the fire alarm.”
Applejack let out a short bark of laughter. “Wait, really? And I’m the dumb one? You really are desperate for attention, ain’tcha?”
“That’s not it!” Rainbow said.
She fell silent again, and the anger faded from Applejack’s face, replaced by a look of concern. “Sorry, I—” Rainbow halted mid-thought, biting her lip.
Rarity pursed her lips. She studied Rainbow Dash for a moment, then took a deep breath. “Rainbow, you don’t have to say anything more if you don’t want to. But if you do, we’re glad to listen.”
“No, I… It’s…” Rainbow’s eyes swung up towards the ceiling as she gathered her thoughts. “Have you ever had a dream where you can fly?”
Pinkie Pie shrugged, and Rarity and Applejack shared a confused look, but Fluttershy nodded ever so slightly.
“It feels so… free. Light as the air, you can do anything, go anywhere. So fun. That’s how soccer was for me at first.”
Rainbow hugged her knees tighter. “But then came all these responsibilities and expectations. It’s not about me anymore. It’s about the team. When we lose a match it’s because I wasn’t trying hard enough. When I miss a day of practice I’m letting everyone else down. It’s different now. It’s like I’m trying to fly, but there are all these weights I have to carry, dragging me down.”
She looked down. “And yeah. It’s really stupid. But sometimes, just for a moment, I think to myself how much easier it would be to crash instead.”
Fluttershy reached out a hand to touch Rainbow’s arm, and Rainbow twitched at the contact.
“I… I think I understand that,” Applejack said, her voice low. “I’ve been working the fields since I was big enough to walk, and ever since…" She trailed off, staring ahead. "Well. There ain’t no one else around to make sure things get done, so it falls on my shoulders.”
She took off her stetson and held it in front of her face. “Can't say I haven't thought about running away from it all. Heck, even did once, for a while anyway. Boy, what I wouldn’t give to not have to worry about how the harvest’s coming in, or whether it’d be better to replace the barn or the plow with the money we do have, or how we we’re gonna put food on the table through next winter.”
She sighed, and Pinkie inched over a little closer to her. “But I ain’t the only one to think about. I’m working and worrying so my sister doesn’t have to. Even if I can’t be a normal high school girl, I figure I can give that chance to her.”
“How do you do it?” Rainbow asked softly.
“One day at a time.” A smile crossed Applejack’s face. “And with the help of people who care about me.”
Pinkie grabbed ahold of her in a sudden hug, causing her to let out a soft “Oof!” Applejack grinned at Rainbow Dash, noticing Fluttershy and Rarity leaning forward protectively on either side of her. “I reckon you have more people who care about you than you’d think, too.”
Fluttershy smiled softly, and Rainbow bit her lip, her eyes sliding away. Where they ran into those of Rarity, staring back at her with intensity. Rainbow’s eyes narrowed and her mouth opened slightly, ready to snap back, but instead of some sort of verbal jab, Rarity only provided a small, mysterious grin.
Applejack patted Pinkie on the top of her poofy hair and managed to disentangle herself from the girl’s surprisingly strong grasp. She rolled her eyes. “Now what about you, lil’ varmint? What’d you do to get detention?”
Pinkie smiled brightly. “Huh?”
“We’ve all told our stories,” Applejack said. “It’s only fair.”
“Oh, I’m not in any trouble.” Pinkie shrugged. “I was bored! What else am I gonna do on a Saturday?”