The group of five walked along the dirt road, their heads hanging low... Except for Pinkie, who was blowing up a balloon even though she didn't relize it had a hole in it.
"Aww... This balloon won't blow up!" She exclaimed and all the ponies rolled their eyes. AppleJack sighed and looked up to see a rogue apple cart barreling towards them.
"LOOK OUT!" She screamed and everypony looked up, screamed and sprinted for the end of the road. They had just barely made it when the cart smashed into Rarity's house. She grimaced then loo.ked into the smoke, seeing that there was a huge hole in the wall and her sewing supplies were in ruined.
"My business!!! What am I going to do now?!" She exclaimed then glared at AppleJack who nervously twitched. Rarity stomped over to the pony who took a step back, slipped on an apple then fell to the ground with an oof!.
"Why didn't you put the brakes on your apple cart?! Just look at my home!" Rarity whined and AppleJack gulped.
"Uh... carts don't have brakes..." She replied and Rarity glared at her.
"I don't care! Just what happened?!" The fashionista yelled and Twilight stepped in between them. The two girls stopped looking at each other evilly and Rarity took a step back then sat down.
"Just stop! We all know that AppleJack takes very good care of her apple cart and she would never do this on purpose! So, why are we doing this? Besides, you scaring Fluttershy!" Twilight reasoned and motioned to Fluttershy who was curled into a ball and shaking. The two ponies sighed and nodded at each other, AppleJack got up.
"You're right, Twilight. We shouldn't be fightin'." She said then frowned. "Well, what did happen to my apple cart?" Twilight frowned also and sat down to think. Pinkie Pie rolled her eyes then said
"In five, four, three, two..."
"I've got it!" Twilight shouted and Pinkie Pie smiled, getting her timing perfectly right. Rarity stared at her then stepped away casually.
"Let's start where AppleJack's stand was originally. We'll see if there are any clues there." Twilight said and her friends nodded in agreement. Twilight frowned still. "It just seems wrong with out Rainbow Dash though." Fluttershy nodded.
"Yeah... should we, um, get her?" She suggested and AppleJack stomped her hoof into the dirt, pulling up some grass. Fluttershy whimpered a little but calmed herself.
"No. She just wants to be alone. We sh-" AppleJack started but cut off by Pinkie Pie who was yelling.
"Guys! Guys! I got the balloon to blow up!" Pinkie said and inside her mouth was a full blown balloon. Everypony raised an eyebrow and AppleJack opened her mouth to speak but closed it.
"AJ's right." Twilight explained. "She just wants to be alone." She sighed and started walking up the hill from which the apple cart came.
"RAINBOW DASH! RAINBOW DASH!" Screamed the five ponies in unison, knocking rapidly on Rainbow's front door yet there was no answer. All the ponies were tired and exhausted from running up the hill, looking for clues, finding that note tapped to a sign that showed the Wonderbolts and read 'I have Rainbow Dash', running back down the hill, grabbing the hot air balloon, filling it up then finally reaching here. As you can see, they had a very busy day.
"Where could she be?" Twilight whimpered and the rest of her friends gave a shrug. "Well she must be here somewhere! That note said that some creeper had her!" AppleJack got up, a hoof on Twilight's shoulder for support.
"You're... Right. We need to find Rainbow Dash." She said but collapsed back down from exhaustion. Twilight Sparkle rolled her eyes.
"You guys are acting pathetic. Does anyone have at least some idea where she could be?" Twilight asked and Pinkie rose her hoof.
"She could be in her house!" She explained the obvious and Twilight sat down as well.
"Well, um, let's get some rest here first." She suggested but all the other ponies were out cold, and soon she was too.
From around the corner of the cloud house, the cloaked pegasus emerged. Although, she was not cloaked anymore. The pony looked like a flame standing there: Her coat a dark red, her mane and tail a matching orange and yellow, and her eyes a deep red. Even her cutie mark was flame related: It was a ring made out of fire. The pegasus laughed a maniacal laugh and did a flip in the air.
"Oh, this is just too easy!" She cried and grabbed an apple from her saddle bag, taking a big bite out of it then carelessly throwing it over her shoulder and into the streets far below. The pegasus hungerly lingered over the ponies but forced herself away, shaking her head.
"No. I promised myself only payback for Rainbow Dash... Even though these ponies seem too innocent to go away unharmed." She said and allowed herself a sly grin. The pegasus zipped away to get her tools, happily humming to herself.
"Mmm... That was a good rest, don't y-" Twilight said sleepily then screamed, waking all the other ponies with a jolt. They all screamed, screamed at each other than collapsed onto the ground... or should I say netting of the hot air balloon... That was floating in the air far above Rainbow's house and above where any bird or pony dare flys. To make matters worse, the rope that was holding them to the balloon was dangerously frayed and was coming apart by the minute.
"We're gonna die, we're gonna die, we're gonna die..." Muttered Rarity who was curled into a ball and huddled into a corner. AppleJack was trying to calm everyone down, running around the basket checking on everypony. Pinkie was the only one totally unfazed by this whole matter: She was planning her next party.
"I bet I know who did this." Twilight shouted and her friends said in unison "The ponynapper!" Twilight nodded then started to pace around the basket.
"That pony is crazy!" She said.
"Uh, Twilight?" AppleJack said, looking over Twilight's head.
"No, the pony's insane!"
"Uh, um, Twilight?"
"I can't find a word a mean that means worse than that but that pony's it."
"TWILIGHT! THE ROPE!" AppleJack screamed and pointed to the frayed rope that was down to it's last bit. Twilight froze.
"No pony make any sudden movements." The air was completely silent... Until Pinkie Pie sneezed. The rope snapped and the ponies plumeted to the ground, despretly trying to find something to hold on to.
They were very lucky because they were positioned so they landed right onto a cloud... That was Rainbow's house. The five friends plumeted through the cieling, crashing into Rainbow's room and shaking the whole house. What they saw next surprised them. They all gasped and said in unison
"RAINBOW DASH!"