“Rainbow Dash...?”
Rainbow Dash stirred slightly, half of her face mooshed against the unearthed topsoil.
“Rainbow...?” A tiny orange hoof poked and poked at her muzzle.
“Grnnngh...” Rainbow's eyes fluttered... then fluttered again. She blinked, squinting forward.
A foalish face came into focus. Violet eyes blinked beneath a tuft of matching mane hair. “You're... y-you're not hurt, are you?” The voice was tender, yet scared.
“Mmmfff...” Rainbow Dash squirmed, quivered, then slowly... slowly sat up. “Pffft... are you kidding?” She twisted her neck at one angle, cracking a half-dozen joints, then turned it the other way. “Guh... j-just... y'know... catching my breath.”
I gulped, fidgeting from one set of hooves to the other. “That deep in the dirt?” I remarked.
Rainbow looked at me with a sideways stare. “Huh?”
I pointed. “Can't you see the trench behind you? It's waaaaaay long.”
“Uhhhhh...” Rainbow glanced behind her, flinching as if suddenly remembering the chariot full of gardening tools that was still hitched to her body. “Oh. Uhm...”
“I saw you coming in,” I said with a nervous smile. “At first, I thought you were just seeing how close you could skim the hilltops. But then... uhh... eheh... you slammed belly-first.”
“Yeah... about that... uhh...” Rainbow Dash slapped the side of her skull, shaking flakes of dirt from her mane. After a blink or two, she cleared her throat and said, “I was... pr-practicing!”
I squinted at her. “Practicing?”
“Yup!” She stood up straight with a smirk. “Every now and then, I... pr-practice crash landings!”
“Why...?”
“Pffft. Duhhh!” She rolled her ruby eyes and grinned at me. “Not everything is fireworks and glory, squirt! If I'm expected to one day fly with the Wonderbolts, then I gotta be prepared to crash with the best of them too!”
My jaw dropped as I gawked at her. “Really...?”
“You bet! Boy, if I could list all the times Spitfire or Soarin' survived within a hair's breadth from bone-crushing death! The list would go longer than all the roads of Ponyville connected front to back! Or—buck—make that all the streets in Manehattan!”
“Wow...” I grinned wide. “I didn't realize being a Wonderbolt was so dangerous!”
“Not when you're totally prepared for the worst that gravity can throw at ya!” Rainbow Dash finally brushed the last of the dirt specks from her mane. The sunlight caught her complexion in a prismatic shine. “That's why I decided to see how I could take an emergency landing with all this crud attached behind me! Heh... light crashes are for noobs!”
“Awesome!” I hopped around and galloped towards my scooter. “I'm gonna go practice crashing right now!”
“WAIT!” Rainbow's voice cracked. I turned around to see her wincing with an out-stretched hoof. “I mean... uhm...” She tapped her chin, furrowed her brow, and eventually spat, “You can't! Not yet, that is!”
“Oh?” I blinked at her. “Why not?”
“Because... uh... y-you're body!” She smiled awkwardly. “You're too small! You don't have... the... r-right proportions yet to attempt a crash landing and not—like—tip over and grind your spunky little muzzle to oatmeal!”
“Oh...” I glanced down with a sad face.
“But come onnnnn...” She hobbled over, dragging the chariot a few feet and ruffling my mane with a hoof. “It's not like you can't practice suicidal death plunges when you're older, huh?”
“Heeheehee!” I smiled, my cheeks hurting a bit. “Ya think, when the day comes, you'll show me how to make such a crazy landing?”
“Heh... only if I'm not busy flying loopty-loops or giving autographs. Of course...” She tossed her mane and winked slyly my way. “You'll probably be my wingpony by then.”
I couldn't help but hop with a bursting gasp. “You mean it?”
“Hey. Don't get too excited. You'd just be a cadet. And me? I'd be a Five Star Admiral. Heck, they'll change the team flag so that it's just me and my wings being all awesome and glittery in the sunlight.”
“Wowwwwwww...”
“Right. So... uhm...” Rainbow Dash turned and glanced towards Sweet Apple Acres. I saw her smile fading slightly. Something else clouded her gaze, and ears twitched. “I... kind of have places to be...”
“You're going to go practice crashing some more?”
She sighed long and hard. “Yeahhhh... wait. I mean no.” She turned towards me. “Sorry, Scoots, but I've got places to be. Otherwise, I'd be totally into showing you the latest tricks I've learned. And—heh—believe you me, I've learned a flankload of new tricks lately.”
“Oh, I-I see...” I smiled as I clutched the handles of my scooter. “Whatever you've gotta do, I'm sure it's for the best.” My nostrils flared as I fought the urge to sigh. “I just hope I get to see you on the day you join the Wonderbolts.”
She turned to blink at me. “Huh?”
“You're the most awesome pony that's ever flown the skies, Rainbow,” I said, squeezing the handles tighter. “Seeing you make your dreams come true sort of... well...” I chuckled slightly. “It makes me think I'll get there too, someday.”
“Awwww... you...” She gulped and smirked. “You flatter me way too much, squirt.”
“Nuh uh! You really are the best!” I frown briefly. “There's no knocking what's best!”
“Uhhhh...” With a distracted gaze, she turned and stared at Sweet Apple Acres again. “Yeah...”
“So, uhm... see ya...” I kicked at the ground and rolled my scooter downhill. “I guess...”
Suddenly, I hear her voice rising in pitch from behind me. “Hey, pipsqueak. How would you like to hitch a ride with me?”
I spun around, wide-eyed. “You... you mean for real?”
“Well, not for fake!” Rainbow Dash smirked and patted the chariot hitched to her. “Hop on board, kiddo!”
“Wow!” I rush towards her, almost tripping over my own scooter. “Are we gonna practice crashing some more?”
She winced, but nevertheless smirked. “No... not quite. But I promise it'll be totally cool.” She helped me onto the chariot and attached the scooter to the back. “We just... uh... gotta make a stop or two first.”
“Hehehehe! Sure thing!”