Pain. Physical pain from straining her wings too hard, exerting more force than she would for any maneuver. Pain was all Rainbow could use to avoid thinking about her marefriend, and what made her so important. It hurt to spin this tight a circle for so long and so quickly, but it wasn't nearly so painful as not knowing what made Twilight the most important pony in her life.
"...ainbow...sh..." The call fell on deaf ears. All Rainbow was concerned over was answering the question that had plagued her dreams all night.
I know that you're more important than some duty, Twi! She thought angrily. Why do I have to put words to it, Celestia damn it! You of all ponies should know how bad I am with this stuff!
"Rai...Das..." Came another call from somewhere. In her blind confusion and determination to focus on anything else, Rainbow only spun faster and faster.
What is it that makes Twilight so special? I could go on for days about how she helps me with new words and never thinks to mock me, how adorable she looks when she buries herself in a book, or-
"RAINBOW DASH!" Finally reaching its target, the scream made Rainbow bring her forward movement to a halt. Once the world came back into clarity, the weather mare saw the small tornado she had created disperse. What she didn't see were any of her fellow pegasi, all of them replaced by one earth pony with an orange coat and blonde mane. The mare in front of her chuckled. "Finally heard me, did ya?"
Too dizzy to stand, Rainbow sat on her haunches and tried to calm her spinning eyes. "Sorry, AJ. I was a little distracted. Did we clear out all that water?"
"The water? Ya darn near cleared out mah orchard, sugarcube!" Helping the pegasus to her feet, Applejack looked to the skies. "Yer weather squad left a minute ago, said they were too busy to wait for you to calm down. I'm impressed, but a little worried at how long ya kept that there twister going all on your own. Something got you wound up, Rainbow?"
"Well, yeah actually." The blue mare rubbed at the back of her neck with a hoof. "It's me and Twilight. We're... I'm having a bit of a problem." She sheepishly turned away from her friend. While she prepared to say goodbye and fly off, Applejack spoke up.
"You wanna talk about it, sugercube?"
No, no I don't. I'm just gonna refuse and fly off. Nice and simple. "I do, I really do AJ." Horseapples. Rainbow flew the short distance to a strong branch in a nearby apple tree. After getting comfortable she addressed her farmer friend, who was patiently waiting on the ground. "You know how I saved Applebloom in town yesterday?"
Applejack nodded. "Of course ah do, and ah can't thank ya enough for it."
Rainbow's nose scrunched up as she recalled the rest of the day. "Right, well afterwards I ended my morning date with Twi. I had already promised Pinkie some help, which I spent the afternoon doing. That night, me and Twi had another date, right? Everything was going great, until she..." the cyan mare blushed and trailed off. "Not important. What's bothering me is that when I told her I had promised to help you here today, and that I couldn't stay up late with her, she flipped. Out of nowhere she starts telling me I need to start taking our relationship more seriously than my duties. And it's not like I don't understand that, I do! But then she asked me what made her more important than just another friend I felt loyal to."
"Okay. Well, what did ya say to her?" Applejack questioned.
Cringing, the pegasus answered. "I didn't say anything, really. I couldn't find an answer, so I ran, and I still can't say why she means so much to me!" Rainbow Dash threw her forelegs into the air and fell back against the tree. "Why can't I answer that question, AJ?"
Applejack frowned thoughtfully. "Well, ya feel guilty, don'tcha? Guilty that ya can't spend more of your time with her instead of working?" Rainbow nodded. "Do you feel guilty for coming to help me instead of spending the night with your marefriend?"
The speedster's eyes narrowed. "What are you getting at, AJ? Yeah I feel bad, but I'd never leave you out to dry."
The earth pony shook her head. "I know that, sugarcube, but hear me out. Imagine I asked you to stick around and talk to me right now, but you already told Fluttershy you'd help her with something. Would you feel bad about leaving me to help her?"
Rainbow closed her eyes in thought. Before long she shook her head in kind. "No, I wouldn't feel bad, because I promised Fluttershy. But I don't see how this helps me with Twilight."
Applejack smiled. "Why do you feel bad for leaving Twilight behind to go and be loyal, but not for me?"
Still oblivious to what her friend had discovered, Rainbow grew agitated. "Oh come on, AJ, you know I like all you girls, but she's Twilight Sparkle! My marefriend, the pony I want to spend every moment of my life with! It's different because I-" She cut herself off before the words could spill out. Covering her mouth with both hooves, Rainbow looked down at Applejack with wide eyes.
The grin on the farmer's face grew. "Ah thought so. Ya got something to tell Twilight now, RD?"
"Yes! Oh yes, do I ever! Thanks for everything, AJ, gotta go!" With no hesitation, Rainbow Dash took off from the tree and raced towards Ponyville.
Watching the speedy flier tear through the sky, Applejack laughed to herself. "Ah should be thanking you, RD. After all, you're the one who got rid of all this standing water."
***
Across Ponyville, in a castle that a blue pegasus was racing towards, Twilight had just sat down for breakfast. Her night had been spent crying over Rainbow's abrupt exit, but she was determined not to let today be ruined by it. The princess was a smart mare, and knew that she would say something she'd regret if she faced Rainbow now. The purple mare decided to take a day without her marefriend on her mind, and approach her about the problem when they were both calmed down and sure of themselves. Twilight's plan was realistic, well thought out, and lasted for about ten seconds.
To the alicorn's surprise, Rainbow Dash burst in through a nearby window. "Twi, we need to talk." She asserted without landing, hovering nervously above Twilight's table. "Well, I need to talk, starting with an apology for last night."
A tired and irritated Twilight leaned back in her seat. "Go on, Rainbow." Her eyes narrowed expectantly.
"Ah... um... right! You wanted to know what makes you more important to me than any other aspect of my life." The cyan pegasus stuck out her chest proudly. "Well, I figured it out!"
Rainbow's audience was not impressed. "Wait, Rainbow, don't be brash." Twilight's glare softened. "We're both really emotional right now, and I'm sorry if I put you on the spot. Take your time and calm down before you answer."
The speedster shook her head. "No, you don't understand, Twi. I'm completely sure of this, and waiting to tell you would be torture." She took a deep breath. "Twilight, I love being the element of loyalty. I love having my friends know how reliable I can be, and I love helping them when they need it."
Twilight stood up. "What does that mean for you or me? For us?"
"Just wait 'till I finish and it'll make sense, I promise." Rainbow landed and walked up to her marefriend. "Normally I wouldn't hesitate to take off from anything if my friends were relying on me, but with you, I feel guilty whenever my duties tear me away. It makes it hard to balance our relationship with everything else, Twi."
"Excuse me? Are you saying you feel guilty for dating me?"
Rainbow leaped back. "No, not at all! The reason I feel guilty is because you're more important to me than those other things! You make me want to disregard my responsibilities, even when I can't."
Twilight's brow furrowed. "But why? You can't seem to give me a straight answer. What makes you feel this way?"
"Don't you see? I could give you hundreds of reasons why I feel like this, but they all mean the same thing. Everything in my life pales in comparison to my relationship with you!"
"Stop dancing around this! How can I compare to the duties you love so much, Rainbow?!" Twilight was yelling now, begging for an answer.
"Because I love you more than any old duty! I love you more than my reputation! I love you, Twilight Sparkle!"
Silence dominated the room. The two mares stared at each other, each with a thousand unique thoughts racing around in their minds.
She isn't responding. Rainbow noticed. Like, at all. Was it too much? Should I say something else? She closed her eyes to avoid Twilight's piercing purple eyes. No, it's over. I messed it up by coming on too strong. She probably wants to break up and- LIPS! There are lips on my lips! After recovering from her shock, the pegasus melted into the kiss. It was more passionate than any kiss the couple had shared, deep and loving, but chaste and romantic. It was more a celebration of their love than a confirmation of it. For Rainbow, the kiss was an end to her life of balance and the beginning of a life devoted to her marefriend.
Twilight was smiling wide when she finally separated from Rainbow. "I love you too. I'm so sorry I stressed us both out over this. Is there any way I can make it up to you?"
In the heat of the moment, with a beautiful mare in front of her and their newly proclaimed love still fresh, Rainbow's thoughts brought a smirk to her face. "Wanna pick up from where we left off last night?"