//------------------------------// // Change is the Only Constant // Story: Lost Time // by bookplayer //------------------------------// After some quick words with Apple Bloom, Rainbow and Applejack headed toward Ponyville for the second time that day. The letter was tucked safely in Applejack’s hat, and Rainbow flew next to her, glancing at the hat, then letting her eyes travel down to the determined and troubled face of the pony wearing it. Applejack walked like she was going to get answers, and it made Rainbow glad they were the same answers Rainbow wanted. Rainbow was able to fly steady next to her, but only because shifting focus in the air was second nature to her. She looked at the castle in the distance, where Twilight might tell them anything, really. Everything but time travel had been ruled out, and now that was about to be ruled out. The thought crossed Rainbow’s mind that maybe she was a changeling and didn’t even know it, but the potion from earlier ruled that out too. Her eyes darted to the hat again. It wasn’t a closed loop. She didn’t have to go back and lie to everypony, and her life wouldn’t end with this. And it wasn’t an open loop, so she hadn’t come from the past to displace the pony AJ loved. There should have been a sense of relief from that, but she couldn’t relax. If she didn’t know how this had happened, she didn’t know if something even worse was in store. They got to the castle, and marched and flew right into the library. Twilight was laying on a pillow, reading a book, with a half-finished cup of tea next to her. She looked up and a gentle concern filled her face. “Are you calmed down now?” she asked Rainbow as she got to her hooves. Rainbow responded by snatching Applejack’s hat off of her head and flying over to Twilight as she yanked the letter out. “You have to read this!” “So that’s a no…” Twilight sighed as her magic took the paper being shoved in her face. “Well, she’s worked up for a reason,” Applejack said, walking over to take her hat back from Rainbow and setting it firmly back on her head. ”Dash is right, it ain’t a closed loop. It can’t be.” Twilight frowned. “Not you too, AJ.” Applejack nodded. “Well, yeah, if it comes down to it. I know Dash better than anypony, and I trust her. But it happens she’s right on this one, anyhow. Read that letter she gave ya. Dash wrote it way back when she joined the Wonderbolts.” “It proves it’s not a closed loop,” Rainbow added, as Twilight’s eyes scanned the page. “This doesn’t prove anything, Rainbow,” Twilight said as she finished. “It is more evidence to take into account, but so is that test earlier.” Rainbow rolled her eyes. “If I’m supposed to know that AJ won’t read that until today, why wouldn’t I use it to tell myself to go back? Why would I admit to something I already admitted to?” Twilight shrugged. “Maybe you go back and knew you wrote it that way.” “Twilight, this is gettin’ a bit ridiculous.” Applejack shook her head, then motioned to Rainbow. “Dash can’t remember all our birthdays—” “Hey, I know most of them!” Rainbow protested. “And Rarity’s is sometime in November, I remember that!” “It’s in October,” Twilight corrected her. “I was close.” Applejack sighed. “The point bein’, there’s no way she’s gonna memorize a letter and go back and write it just the same. And if she’s writin’ it different, why wouldn’t she say what she wants to say?” “Maybe by that time it is what she wants to say. Maybe she takes this letter back with her. Maybe when she goes back she gets—” Twilight stopped, then her brow furrowed and she looked off in the distance. “What? What do I get?” Rainbow asked, her head tilted in confusion. “New evidence…” Twilight muttered without looking at Rainbow or AJ. She turned to walk over to her desk and started rifling through a pile of papers. She found one at the bottom, and picked up her quill. “There was another option. Give me a minute here…” Applejack and Rainbow watched Twilight in silence, not daring to utter a word that might distract her. The only sound was the scritching of Twilight’s quill, and her occasional mutters about which formula to use or if words Rainbow didn’t understand would affect other words Rainbow didn’t understand. Finally, she said more audibly but still to herself, “But that only works if…” Then she turned to look at Rainbow over her shoulder, her eyes wide as if she’d seen a ghost. Rainbow shifted nervously. Twilight seemed to force her face into a more neutral expression as she looked to Applejack. “AJ, when Rainbow crashed, what did it look like?” Applejack blinked. “Like a pony fallin’ outta the sky? It looked like she crashed.” “No, exactly what did it look like?” Twilight pressed. “Did the clouds run into her and knock her out of the air? Or was she trying to get out of the way, and she landed at the wrong angle?” “I didn’t see what she was doin’ before, or how she got in the air, but the clouds rolled in and I looked up, and she kinda came outta them like a rag doll bucked from a bull.” Applejack frowned and swallowed with a glance at Rainbow. Rainbow shivered just imagining it. There were a few important things a pony needed to do to stay safe in a crash. In an uncontrolled free fall like that, all she could have done was pray to Celestia. Twilight was still focused on Applejack. “And she went down in the orchard? Nopony saw her hit the ground?” Applejack shook her head. “Nope, just the treeline.” “Did she hit any branches on the way down?” “She didn’t break more than some twigs, I woulda seen it later, but she mighta knocked her head or somethin’,” Applejack said with a shrug. Twilight grimaced, then she nodded. “Thanks.” She turned back to her paper, then gathered it and several others in her magic and turned around. She cleared her throat. “I’m sorry, Rainbow. You were probably right. In light of new evidence, I don’t think it’s time travel at all. The confirmation of Zecora’s potion makes open-loop travel impossible, and the letter and Rainbow’s general refusal to cooperate makes closed-loop travel unlikely.” Rainbow nodded, leaning forward. “We know that! So what is it?” Twilight took a deep breath, then said, “Well, it turns out that having taken control of the zap apple magic and bent it to your will makes magical amnesia much more likely than time travel. Remember I said there was almost no way it could have reconstructed your brain from exactly fifteen years ago at random?” “Is that something you said?” Rainbow asked. “I mean, you say a lot of stuff sometimes.” Twilight leveled a stare. “Yes. It is something I said. But what I didn’t know when I did my initial calculations was that it wasn’t at random. It was a familiar magical resonance, in fact probably the last magical resonance that had directed the magic, since very few ponies are stupid enough to try to control the zap apple weather.” Rainbow just stared at her as questions started to swirl through her brain like the zap apple storm she remembered all too clearly. Did this mean she was the pony in those pictures? Did it change anything if she still didn’t remember it? Could Twilight fix her? Did this mean that the zap apple weather had a copy of her brain stored, ready to slam it into anypony who ran into it? Could they get rid of that? Because she was pretty sure she didn’t want some random other pony running around with her thoughts and memories, especially the ones about how hot Applejack was… She wasn’t really surprised when Applejack got it together first. “So… that’s it? She’s the same pony, she just don’t remember?” “Well…” Twilight hesitated then gave a nervous laugh. “That’s an interesting question. She’s the same pony in that her mind belongs in that body. And it’s fair to say she’s the same pony we became friends with and you agreed to go out with, maybe more so than she was right before her crash. But going forward from the time of the first crash she’ll have different experiences this time, she’ll form different opinions from those experiences, and she’ll probably grow to be a different pony. Of course, if she’d gone into a coma she would be even less like herself than she’ll grow to be, but you’d consider her the same pony—” “It’s complicated. Gotcha,” Applejack said with a nod. “Can you fix it?” Rainbow asked. If Twilight could make her right again, she could leave questions about who she really was to the eggheads. If Twilight couldn’t fix it, she’d probably do that anyway. They could let her know when they figured it out, she wasn’t going anywhere. Twilight looked at Rainbow and bit her lip. Then she shook her head sadly. “Nopony’s managed to cure magical amnesia when it’s only a few days or weeks missing, and something on this scale is unprecedented. I’d have to make the medical breakthrough of a lifetime before I could even start figuring it out.” Rainbow nodded and sighed. There wasn’t much to say. Unless Twilight had made another mistake, it was time to accept that where she was now was what she had to work with. Applejack walked over next to her and offered a nuzzle, leaning against her as if she was trying to share the weight. “I know how important those memories are,” Twilight said gently. “It’s practically your whole life, and even if you have plenty more in the future, the ones you lost are… well, irreplaceable. But…” She stopped, then almost whispered, “This is way better than the alternative.” Rainbow snorted. “Yeah, I mean, it’s better than having to be somepony I’m not for the rest of my life, or messing with open loops.” “That’s not what I meant.” Twilight shook her head. “You weren’t listening when I told you about magical amnesia the first time you came to me about this, were you?” “Um…” Rainbow rubbed the back of her neck, glancing around. Twilight sighed. “It’s a spontaneous magical restoration of brain damage. It usually only smooths over the damaged portions, with a few weeks lost at most. Nopony has ever lost years before.” “I’ve had plenty of concussions, I would’ve been fine.” Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Twilight, losing a few IQ points isn’t a big deal for most ponies.” Applejack looked from Twilight to Rainbow with a worried expression. “Dash, maybe you oughta fire up some of what you got left.” Twilight frowned. “Rainbow, I think you destroyed your brain in that crash. It could have been the magic of the storm, or tumbling through it, or a directed impact from a tree branch or the ground, but you suffered severe intracranial trauma without more than a few bruises on your body. However it happened, for your brain to be so damaged that it wouldn’t resist a total restructuring, you’d have to have almost no conscious functioning at all.” “What’s that mean?” Applejack asked cautiously. Twilight looked Applejack in the eye. “She should be dead, or at least in a vegetative state. Without the magical amnesia, she wouldn’t be with us in any form after that crash. It rewrote her brain from almost nothing into a pony who can still kiss her foals goodnight, or talk to you, or consider flying with the Wonderbolts again…” Rainbow just stared at Twilight, her eyes slowly growing wide as she processed that. “…Wow.” Applejack nuzzled her again, this time wrapping her in an almost crushing hug. Rainbow barely noticed her forelegs moving to hold Applejack, but a moment later she wasn’t sure she could let go if she wanted to. The whole time, Rainbow had been treating it as a mistake. She had thought she should be in another time, but she was here, so something was wrong. Now it was dawning on her that the mistake was that she was alive. She should be dead, but she was here. That was what was wrong. That mistake was amazing. Rainbow nuzzled Applejack, smelling her mane. It smelled like sweat and an earthy musk; she’d been working all morning. She felt the weight of AJ’s body against hers, and her soft coat rubbing her own. She noticed the cool air of the crystal palace they were in, and the awesomely boring smell of lots and lots of books. She saw Twilight, watching them with a sad smile on her face, looking all friendly and smart and Twilight-y. “I almost lost everything,” she whispered. “You didn’t,” Applejack whispered back. “And what ya lost ain’t as important as what you’ve still got.” Rainbow’s mind continued to take stock of everything good in her life. Her foals. Her friends. Tank. Parties, Daring Do books, her wings, the sky. She started to feel overwhelmed by how much stuff there was, and could be, and it was all because of one day, fifteen years ago, when she couldn’t wait to get laid. Rainbow bit her lip and pulled away from Applejack’s hug. “Guys… I totally don’t deserve all of this. I mean, I messed up your zap apples, then I lied to you about it all this time, and instead of crashing and dying like I should have, it saved my life.” “Don’t you ever say that, sugarcube,” Applejack said as she tried to look into Rainbow’s eyes. Rainbow glanced away, avoiding her. Applejack frowned for a moment, then she smiled and raised an eyebrow. “Don’t forget, you’re the pony who saved it all, too.” Rainbow furrowed her brow. “I did? What did I save it from?” “From me,” Twilight said, giving her head a sad shake. “If I had sent you back in time, it would have made an open loop. Who knows how things would have turned out? It could have been really bad.” Applejack ran a hoof down Rainbow’s mane. “But you know who you’re supposed to be, Rainbow Dash. And you held onto that, and you came through for us all.” Rainbow blinked. Then a grin grew across her face. “Yeah! I guess I did! I totally won against Twilight!” Twilight smirked and raised an eyebrow. “Of course the timeline wouldn’t have needed saving if you’d mentioned playing with the zap apple magic when I asked you for all of the details.” “Hey, I wasn’t playing with zap apple magic, I was mastering zap apple magic,” Rainbow explained. Applejack shot her a look. “You messed around with it for a darn fool reason, then ya broke it. If that’s masterin’ it, then Cider is probably masterin’ somethin’ right this minute.” Rainbow looked between Applejack and Twilight. “Look, guys, I think the important thing here is that I saved my life and the world.” “That it is,” Applejack said with a chuckle. She walked over and planted her muzzle against Rainbow’s in a deep kiss that lasted a long time, but only left Rainbow wanting more. As they parted, Applejack grinned and whispered, “My hero.” “Now that’s what I’m talking about.” Rainbow grinned. Twilight giggled. “I’d love to have you guys stay for dinner, but I get the feeling you might want to go home and celebrate.” Rainbow nodded and nuzzled Applejack. “Yeah… I think so.” “And Celestia knows when the zap apples are comin’.” Applejack rolled her eyes and looked pointedly at Rainbow, but the look melted into a smile after another nuzzle. “Well, good luck, both of you,” Twilight said as her friends started toward the door. “And I’ll set aside some books on recent history for you, Rainbow.” “It might be a while, Twi,” Rainbow said over her shoulder. “I’ve still got a ton of Daring Do to catch up on.” Twilight smiled and nodded. “I understand. Priorities.” Applejack and Rainbow took the walk home slowly, Rainbow’s wing draped over Applejack’s back. From time to time, seemingly out of nowhere, Applejack leaned over to rub her cheek against Rainbow’s. It was late afternoon, almost dinner time, and Rainbow wanted nothing more than to curl up with Applejack and take a nap. Her body wasn’t even that tired; it was almost like her feelings were tired. That sort of made sense: she’d given them all a Wonderbolt-level workout that day. But now, walking with Applejack, she finally felt calm. Even as the remnants of the day’s twists and turns played through her head, there was a distance to them, and Applejack was still standing there right next to her. As tired as she was, she felt more clear-headed than she had in a long time. “Dash…” Applejack whispered after another nuzzle as they left the town behind them. She shook her head and looked down. “I can’t believe I almost lost ya.” “I’m sorry,” Rainbow said softly. “I mean, I don’t know what I was thinking, but I wasn’t being safe. I know that’s hurt you these past two weeks, and it almost… Maybe I am the best flyer in Equestria, but I have to be there for you and the kids, and that means I need to think a little more.” Applejack nodded. “I reckon that’s true. But it was a freak accident, and I know it. It ain’t like I’m gonna ask you not to fly around. It just… goes to show how fast things can turn.” “I’m still here to help you turn.” Rainbow leaned over and gave her a nuzzle. “Thank Celestia.” Applejack smiled. “We had a lot of path behind us, and I ain’t gonna say I won’t miss it… but if I had to start over, I’m darn lucky to have you to start again.” “You think you’re lucky?” Rainbow said, watching the apple trees pass by as they moved toward the main gate of Sweet Apple Acres. “I almost didn’t get to start over. It’s weird, I’ve spent the past two weeks thinking about how much this sucked, and… now it’s the best thing that ever happened to me.” Applejack smiled sadly at her. “Well, to be fair there’s a lotta stuff that happened to ya that you don’t know happened to ya.” Rainbow nodded. “Yeah, but even counting stuff like our wedding and the kids being born, not dying because of a freaky magic coincidence has gotta be up there. I mean, if I’d skipped that one, the others wouldn’t matter.” “You got a point there,” Applejack agreed. As they turned onto the path toward the farmhouse, they fell back into silence. Rainbow could see the house in the distance; she was glad they were almost home. She smiled, and looked over at Applejack. Applejack was focused on the farmhouse, but she was smiling too. Rainbow knew she was probably even more glad to be getting close. She’d been through just as much today, and what she needed more than anything was for life to get back to normal, work and foals and Rainbow at her side. Rainbow understood that; she felt like she understood a lot more about AJ now than she ever had before. And the more she understood, the more she realized that Applejack was an awesome pony that Rainbow needed at her side. “AJ…” Rainbow said, breaking the silence. Applejack looked over at her with the same smile she had been directing at the farmhouse. Rainbow gave her a nuzzle. “Thanks. I said before I couldn’t have done this without you, and what happened today… I really couldn’t have done it without you. I knew the kind of pony I should be, and that’s how I knew it was wrong, but… I also knew if I did that stuff, I’d lose all the respect you’ve ever had for me, and anything special we might be able to have. That’s what made me fight.” Applejack stopped and turned to face her. Something seemed to shine in her eyes and through her smile as she looked at Rainbow like there was no other pony in the world. “I have never been prouder of you, Rainbow Dash. You’re the pony I always thought you were, and then some.” She leaned in and kissed Rainbow’s cheek, then whispered in her ear, “And I reckon tonight, I’m gonna give you some mighty sweet dessert.” Rainbow smirked. “I think I’ll take a raincheck.” She pointed behind Applejack, where storm clouds were gathering over part of the orchard. “You’re gonna be all worn out from the zap apple harvest.” Applejack looked over her shoulder and gave a long sigh. “Dang it, I guess I am,” she grumbled, then turned back to Rainbow with a weary smile. “Ain’t that how it goes?” Rainbow smiled at Applejack. “Yeah. And it’s awesome anyway.” • • • Two weeks later, Rainbow and Cider flew toward Canterlot, landing neatly in front of a restaurant by the Wonderbolts stadium. Cider was wearing her saddlebags and flight goggles—she had just finished flight camp and it seemed to have paid off. Rainbow had her own saddlebags with her, just in case things worked out like she hoped. Rainbow grinned and offered her a hoofbump. “Looking good!” Cider beamed and returned the bump with her little hoof. They walked inside together. It was a family place; bright and cheery and not too expensive, but with good hayburgers and salads with lots of flower petals. It was the perfect place to grab dinner before taking the foals to a Wonderbolts show. Rainbow looked around and spotted Applejack, Leaf, and Sky at a table against the window. “Hey, guys!” Rainbow called as she and Cider made their way over. Applejack stood up and scooped Cider up in a hug. “There’s my little half-pint of cider! Oh sugarcube, I’ve missed ya.” She pulled away, smiling down at the filly. “Did ya have a good time at flight camp?” Cider grinned and fluttered into the air. “It was awesome! I learned how to fly really fast, and there were other foals and we had contests and races and I can go through hoops better than anypony! I even got a trophy for it!” Rainbow gave her a pat on the shoulder. “Way to go, champ. We’ll put it right in the case with ours.” Avoiding the high chair where Sky was banging a spoon on the table, Rainbow took a seat next to AJ’s chair. AJ returned to her spot as Cider flew over and sat next to Leaf. Cider went on, barely able to sit still. “Everypony there wanted to come to the farm and have some cider and zap apple jam and fritters and pie… I told them all about it, and a lot of them had never even been to a farm!” She looked around the table as if this news should shock everypony present. Then she smiled proudly. “So they’re all gonna ask their folks and I told them they better bring a lot of bits.” Applejack furrowed her brow. “Sugarcube, you can have your friends over for treats without them buyin’ anything.” “I know, but there were a lot of foals there, Mama. It’ll be really good for business!” Cider said with a grin so innocent that Rainbow had to snort back a laugh. “Now where’d you get it in your head to worry ’bout business?” Applejack looked shocked. “I wonder,” Rainbow muttered to AJ, smirking. “Looks like Sweet Apple Acres is gonna corner the Cloudsdale market.” Cider shrugged, and then turned over her paper placemat and grabbed a crayon from a jar at the end of the table. “There’s just ponies up there who need apples and treats, and we’ve got the best ones in Equestria.” Applejack chuckled and shook her head. “Well, I reckon I can’t argue with that.” “Speaking of food, everypony know what they’re getting?” Rainbow asked, opening her own menu. The conversation turned to what was going to be ordered, who was going to share what with Sky, and the various dessert options that Cider wasn’t having for dinner. A waitress came over and took their orders, and brought drinks to the table. As they were waiting for dinner to arrive, Rainbow kept an eye on the door to the restaurant. A few ponies came and went, and finally the pony she was waiting for walked in. Fleetfoot caught sight of them and flashed a smile as she walked over. Rainbow waved to her. The rest of the family looked up; AJ smiled and gave a nod, while Cider took note and went back to drawing on the back of her placemat. Leaf looked at Rainbow, his head tilted. “What’s Fleetfoot doing here?” Rainbow shrugged. “When I wrote about the tickets, I told her we’d be here. I said she should stop by if she had time before the show.” “Hey, Rainbow Dash! Brought the whole family, huh?” Fleetfoot said as she got to the table. “Yup!” She grinned. “Thanks for the VIP box.” Fleetfoot shrugged. “No problem, the crowds would mob you. They probably will anyway as you’re getting in there.” “Like that ain’t what she’s hopin’.” Applejack chuckled and shook her head. “It’s not my fault if ponies love me, AJ,” Rainbow said with mock innocence. “I’m a very loveable pony.” Applejack raised her eyebrows. “You’re somethin’ all right.” “So I talked to the team about what you wrote, about your crash.” Fleetfoot frowned. “The whole team is glad you’re okay.” Rainbow gave a sad smile and a shrug. “Any crash you walk away from, right? But tell them thanks.” Fleetfoot nodded. “And I had a talk with Legal. If you’re still interested, it’s okay to take you on as long as you can handle the flying.” She chuckled a little. “Actually, some of them seemed to think brain damage was a requirement for being a Wonderbolt.” Rainbow looked at Applejack and raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t say it.” Applejack smirked. Then her face softened. “Sugarcube, you know it’s up to you. We’re all behind ya, no matter what.” “I…” Rainbow started. She hesitated, then took a deep breath and went on. “I’ve been thinking about it. What if I did some guest flying, to keep my hoof in, then when Sky is a little older I come back for a season or two?” She smiled at AJ, then looked back to Fleetfoot. “I’m still getting stuff straight at home, and I don’t wanna come back until I can really focus.” Applejack smiled at her. “Sounds like a plan to me.” Fleetfoot nodded. “We can see how that works out, sure.” Rainbow grinned and relaxed. “And I’m gonna be a pain in the tail about safety. I think I’ve used up all the luck I had.” “You can keep us one hundred percent by the book. Some of the rookies we’ve got can probably use the example.” Fleetfoot rolled her eyes. “You know how kids are, they think they’re invincible.” Looking around the table, Rainbow smiled. “They don’t know what they’ve got to lose yet.” Her eyes landed on Leaf, and she took a breath and turned back to Fleetfoot. “So, how’s the flight choreography these days? Got any new tricks?” “Mom!” Leaf said, his eyes growing wide. Rainbow looked at him and cocked her head. “What? I was just asking her about the routines.” Leaf frowned and crossed his forelegs across his chest. “Yeah, right.” “Leaf…” Applejack said in a warning tone. “Um, should I go?” Fleetfoot asked, looking between Rainbow and Leaf. “No. Wait here just a minute. Leaf, come here.” Rainbow stood up and grabbed her saddlebags, and nodded for Leaf to follow her. They walked to the back of the restaurant, and Rainbow stopped in an empty corner by the swinging kitchen door. Leaf glared at her. “Do you think I don’t know what you’re doing?” he said in a low voice. Rainbow looked him in the eye. “I promised I wouldn’t tell anypony. I didn’t tell anypony. But I’m giving you an opening—” “I don’t need an opening!” Leaf insisted. “They’re not ready.” “They’re never gonna be ready, Leaf,” Rainbow said, her face dead serious. His head drooped, but she went on. “You’re never gonna design a trick that’s awesome enough for you. But that doesn’t matter.” Rainbow put a hoof under his chin and lifted his head to look her in the eye again. “What matters is that everything you do, you give it your all. You show the Wonderbolts the best trick you can design, and do the best job you can do. Never settle for less than that. But you can’t wait for everything to be awesome, or you’re going to miss how awesome good stuff can be.” “But I’m still getting better,” he said softly. Rainbow smiled. “Of course you are. That’s no excuse for not giving it your all right now.” She reached into her saddlebag and handed him the book that was inside. “Here’s your notebook, Leaf. Go be awesome.” Leaf looked at the notebook, then over at Fleetfoot. Then he looked at Rainbow and swallowed. She just nodded back to the table where Fleetfoot stood. Finally, Leaf started to walk over, and Rainbow followed him. “Um… Fleetfoot?” he said once he was next to her, as Rainbow sat down and nudged Applejack to watch. Fleetfoot looked down at him and raised her eyebrows. “What’s up, Leaf?” “I… I’m kind of interested in flight choreography, and I designed some tricks and routines… would you take a look at them?” He offered her the notebook like she might bite his hoof off. Fleetfoot took it, then looked to Rainbow with a raised eyebrow. Rainbow smiled and nodded. “You wanna see these.” “Okay… sure.” Fleetfoot shrugged and opened the book. At first Leaf winced as Fleetfoot flipped through the pages, nodding occasionally and raising her eyebrows at something here or there. But as she got to the more recent tricks she was nodding more often, and Rainbow saw her wings twitching as she followed along in her head. Leaf’s expression changed to one of pure anticipation, watching her every move. She turned another page and gave a low whistle, then looked down at Leaf. “You know there’s some really good stuff here, right?” Leaf seemed frozen for a few seconds before he answered, “…Yeah.” Fleetfoot looked back at the book and raised an eyebrow. “Looks like you’ve got the velocity and angles worked out and everything. Do you do any group routines?” “There are a few in there…” Leaf’s ears drooped slightly. “They’re not my best, I just started messing around with that.” “Still learning?” She gave him a considering look. He looked down and nodded. “That’s great. A pony should always be pushing their limits.” Fleetfoot grinned and snapped the notebook shut. “Leaf, I think you oughta come and talk to our choreographer. How about if I set something up for your mom to bring you by during a rehearsal?” “I… uh…” Leaf gaped as he looked over at Rainbow. Rainbow just raised her eyebrows. “It’s up to you.” Leaf turned back to Fleetfoot in a daze and nodded. “Yeah.” He seemed to wake up as soon as he said it, and a grin spread across his face. “Yeah! That would be awesome!” “Cool… cool. Mind if I show him this?” Fleetfoot motioned with the notebook. She saw him hesitate and grinned. “Don’t worry, your mom would send us to Tartarus if we tried to steal anything.” “You know it.” Rainbow nodded firmly. “Sure!” Leaf said, still grinning. “I mean, if you wanna use anything, just ask. I—I made them for the best flyers to fly.” “Great! I’ll be in touch.” Fleetfoot tucked the book under her foreleg and took off hovering. “And I’ll see you guys later. Enjoy the show!” Rainbow and Applejack waved as she flew off toward the door. Leaf just stood there, beaming, looking like he might explode from happiness and excitement. Rainbow looked at him and grinned. He didn’t even notice the glow, but Rainbow felt AJ pat her urgently. “Leaf…” Rainbow said. He looked at her with the same amazed grin. She almost laughed as she just said, “Your flank, Leaf.” He looked back and his eyes went wide as he spotted the red apple with dark green leaves spread behind it like wings. “My cutie mark! Mom, I got my cutie mark!” “Congratulations, sugarcube,” Applejack said, standing up and walking over to hug him and nuzzle his cheek. Rainbow couldn’t stop grinning. Her vision was getting blurry and she had to reach up and wipe her eyes as Leaf tried to hug Applejack and look at his cutie mark at the same time. They broke the hug, freeing Leaf to stare at it again. “Ya big softie,” Applejack whispered to Rainbow as she sat back down. Rainbow rolled her eyes a little, then looked back at the colt. “Leaf, that was awesome. I’m really proud of you.” Leaf rushed over and threw his forelegs around her, hugging her tight. He looked up at her like she had just raised the sun. “Thanks, Mom. I couldn’t have done it without you.” Rainbow hugged him back tight. “Sure you could have. I just did what a mom’s supposed to do.” As she let Leaf go, keeping a foreleg wrapped around him, she grinned at Applejack. “It just so happens I’m awesome at it.” Applejack chuckled, leaning over to kiss Rainbow on the cheek. “You sure are, Rainbow Dash.” Rainbow wasn’t sure if she’d ever been happier than that moment. She’d probably never be sure of that. But surrounded by the ponies who needed her, and took care of her, and loved her, she was as close as she could imagine to being totally happy. She was counting it as a win.