//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 - Apples and Rainbows // Story: Hoofball Mania! // by SterlingC //------------------------------// It was a bright spring day in Ponyville, a month after the board members at EIHA headquarters in Canterlot accepted Red and Yellow Card’s proposals for a nationwide hoofball tournament. In Ponyville, the one item that struck ponies’ minds for conversation was the local Hoofball League that was set to begin in a month’s time. Ponies all around were talking about what they wanted to do to participate in the league. There were calls for setting up a team, refereeing the games, commentating the games through radio, and even ponies calling for sponsorships from local businesses! There was so much to think and talk about regarding the Ponyville Hoofball League that word spread quickly from one house to the next! Talk of hoofball soon reached Applejack and her family at Sweet Apple Acres, who were enjoying a delicious apple pie dinner. “Well, what do you know? There’s this new sport called hoofball that everypony’s been talking about,” Applejack remarked and took her first bite her apple pie slice. “It ain’t a new sport Applejack!” Applebloom teased. “I play hoofball during most recesses with my fellow Crusaders and classmates! It’s so much fun!” Applebloom flailed her hooves around the table. “We get to kick this ball around and whack it past the goal! It feels amazing to score when you buck the ball into the net!” continued the excited filly. “Well, this hoofball game of yers sounds fun. I might get myself involved with it sometime,” Applejack replied with a chuckle. “Eeyup,” Big Macintosh complied. “Well there’s a new competition called the Ponyville League or somethin’ like that. Apparently the top two teams in the league get to compete in Canterlot against ponies from all over Equestria! There’s great prizes to be won too!” Applebloom scooted around on her seat. “Well, this ‘ere sport of hoofball reminds me of a game we used to play all the time with our fellow Apples! We were usin’ oranges instead of this ‘ere hoofballs you young’uns have now! And those oranges were as hard as nails!” Granny Smith retorted. “Well we ain’t using oranges now Granny Smith. These balls are much nicer to hit with, and we play with 5 ponies per team! No wings allowed, and no magic either! So it’s basically a game suited for Earth ponies like us!” responded the cheery filly. “Eeyup!” Big Macintosh affirmed. The family then descended into a brief moment of silence before Applebloom asked the question that plagued her mind ever since the dinner began. “Well can we make a team of five then?! We can promote family bondin’ and we can compete against the others in Ponyville and Equestria!” Applebloom exclaimed. “Plus, Ah can try shootin’ fer a cutie mark on hoofball! Just imagine how cool that would look on mah flank! A bona-fide hoofball!” Applebloom jumped up from her seat, trotting circles as if her cutie mark had already appeared! “I like the idea, but we only got three ponies who can play,” Applejack responded. Applebloom scratched her head with her right hoof, while Granny Smith jumped up from her seat and raised her right hoof upwards! “What you talkin’ about having only three ponies who can play?! Ah can play me some hoofball as well if I wanted to! I still have the moves from my olden days!” Granny Smith slowly climbed on top of her wooden chair and extended her bottom hoof out, as if to balance herself on the chair. Applejack and Applebloom looked up in fright as Granny Smith jumped up from her seat and tried to extend a kick with her back hoof. “Granny Smith, get down from that chair! We don’t want you gettin’ ‘urt!” Applejack and Applebloom shouted to their granny. But just as Granny Smith had balanced herself on the chair, her right hindleg wobbled, causing the granny to fall onto the ground with a loud thud! Applejack slapped her face with her right hoof, got up from her seat and helped Granny Smith back up with her hooves. “Granny you all right?!” Applejack asked with fear in her eyes. Granny Smith slowly brushed the dust off her pale green body before she responded with a frown, “Ah’ll be alright Applejack. But mah body ain’t what it used to be… In mah old days, Ahd be able to kick an orange ball between the two trees that served as our goal line!” Applejack nodded back, but then came up with an idea! “Should we form a team, you could be our coach, since it sounds like you know yer hoofball!” Applejack encouraged her granny. She didn’t want Granny Smith to be left out of the action, and she was the perfect choice to be their head coach because of her valuable years of experience. Applebloom in addition was also getting fired up about the prospect of making their own hoofball team. Knowing Applebloom, she couldn’t get her away from something she wanted to do when she was this fired up. “Does that mean we’re gonna have a team Applejack?! Big Mac wants to play along too! Like you said, we already have three ponies in our team! Now we just need two more!” Applebloom hollered, she too now getting up from her seat and trotting to Applejack and Granny Smith! “Eeyup! Ahll be pony number three!” Big Macintosh pumped his right hoof upward from his seat! Applejack chuckled and scratched her chin. “Ah guess we could try to get Pinkie Pie and Braeburn involved. After all, they’re both family to us!” Applejack shrugged. “Ahll see what I can do about gettin’ Pinkie Pie to join us, and Granny Smith, you can check up on Braeburn! See if he wants to play with us in Ponyville this season!” Applejack continued with a determined smile now. ‘Yeehaw! Cutie Mark Hoofballer go!” Applebloom cheered! “Ah can’t wait to tell Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo the great news!” Applebloom jumped around again, eager to form the team as soon as possible! “Eeyup! Ah can be the defender buckin’ the balls out of our territory and up to the forwards!” Big Mac hooted and hollered! “And Ah got lots o’ trainin’ exercises Ah can show y’all so we can be the best Equestria’s got to offer!” Granny Smith slapped her right hoof onto her left hoof, ready for battle. Meanwhile, Applejack quickly realized that their apple pie remained largely uneaten because of the hoofball season! “Hey, we gotta be eatin’ this ‘ere apple pie, or we’ll really get hoofball fever!” Applejack chuckled. The rest of the family laughed along as well as they all sat back down to indulge on their delicious, crusty apple pie. As the ponies enjoyed their apple pie, Applebloom brought up one other question about hoofball to the rest of her family: “Hey… we never named our team! What should we name ourselves?!” Applebloom and the rest of her family scratched their chins, contemplating on a catchy name for their team… But Applejack already came up with a team name, “Well, why don’t we name our team the Sweet Apples? We’re apples forever, and sweet together!” Applejack chuckled. The other family members smiled and nodded warmly to her suggestion. “That’s a great team name Applejack! This is so excitin’! Ah can’t wait to get our team set up!” Applebloom munched on another apple slice with a loud gulp. “We sure are! We’ll be the sweetest and the winningest Apples in Equestria!” Granny Smith slammed the wooden table with her left hoof with fire in her belly. “Eeyup!” Big Macintosh enthusiastically added. The Sweet Apples were in business. Up above the clouds, a light blue Pegasus was just finishing off her last weather duty for the day. The weather ponies had called for some clouds into Ponyville, expecting a slight chance of rain through the evening. Rainbow Dash has just shoved in the last of the clouds with the rest of the pegasi. Having completed her work, Rainbow Dash flied back to the ground to see two pegasi trotting together as the day turned into dusk. Rainbow Dash trotted to the two ponies, who were startled by her blitz to the ground from above. “Oh hey Fluttershy! Hey Bulk Biceps!” Rainbow Dash waved her hooves to both of the pegasi. “Hey Rainbow Dash! Bulk Biceps and I were just going to trot to my home and practice some weights together!” Fluttershy meekly greeted the rainbow-maned Pegasus. “Yeah!!!” shouted the bulky Pegasus enthusiastically, pumping his hooves upwards! “We were also planning to start working out for the Ponyville Hoofball League! Bulk Biceps encouraged me to learn how to be a goalkeeper. I don’t have to move around too much, and he said that being a goalkeeper’s like trying to protect my critters from any flying objects thrown at them!” Fluttershy giggled cheerily. “Yeah!!!” Bulk Biceps shouted out again. Rainbow Dash shook her head in place. “I heard about the hoofball league that’s coming up. I don’t have a team to join since most ponies here aren’t that competitive,” Rainbow Dash smirked. “Well why don’t you join us then? You can help us be competitive, and we only have two players so far! We can find two more really good players so we can have a team of five!” Fluttershy squeed. “Yeah!!!” The bulky white Pegasus shouted again. Rainbow Dash scratched her head momentarily. She didn’t have much choice at the moment. Perhaps Fluttershy could be a good goalkeeper. Perhaps they would find two really good hoofball players to become the best representative for Ponyville. Perhaps she could be the heroine who pushes her team through for the victories! Oh how much Rainbow Dash relished that possibility! “You know what?! Sure! I don’t have any team I can join, and you guys seem the closest to a real team I’ve found!” Rainbow Dash chuckled with a confident pose. “Plus, I can get us pumped up for the game and teach you guys some new tricks along the way! Before you know it, we’ll be the best Equestria’s got!” Rainbow Dash pumped her fists upward in excitement. It was time to get back in the spirit of competition! “Yeah!” Bulk Biceps clapped aloud. “We now have the fastest athlete in Equestria! This is so wonderful! Before you know it, we’ll have a team ready to play!” Fluttershy giggled in delight. “So do you guys mind if I joined you for your exercises?” Rainbow Dash offered with a smile. “Sure! Come with us!” Fluttershy giggled, waving her hoof for Rainbow Dash. “Before we keep going though, what should we name our team?” asked the yellow Pegasus. “What about the High Flyers?! We’re all Pegasi, and we’ll be flying above the rest in the standings once we get playing!” Rainbow Dash offered confidently. “Yeah! Great name!” Bulk Biceps responded with his characteristic bellowing voice. “Woohoo! That’s a great name Rainbow Dash! The High Flyers it is!” Fluttershy cheered as the three pegasi trotted back to her humble abode for their fitness routines.