Ch. 18 - Final Draft
Chapter Eighteen: Final Draft
“All right, Wonderbolts, fall in!”
On any other given day, Rainbow Dash would have considered the proposition of waking up at the crack of dawn to be an absolute preposterous one. The day, in her opinion, did not start that early, and it would be a cold day in Tartarus before she dragged her butt out of bed at such an early hour. It must have been a very frosty morning down below because by a quarter after six, Rainbow Dash found herself back at the arena. While the previous night had the pegasus bouncing off the walls in her excitement, the early morning hours had drained what enthusiasm she had left. When Spitfire called for her team to assemble on the field, Rainbow Dash couldn’t manage much more than a hoof-dragging pace.
In stark contrast to Rainbow’s fatigue, the Wonderbolt Captain was as lively and vigorous as ever. A breath of fresh air had brought new life to the team’s leader, and her radiating confidence spread to the other Wonderbolts present. Everypony looked eager and ready to get back into the game. To them, their Captain had returned in full splendor, and anything was possible.
“Now listen up,” Spitfire said to the assembled pegasi that stood before her. “I won’t lie to you; the Wonderbolts haven’t performed as well as they should have, and it has been entirely my fault. I’ve let you all down as your Captain, your teammate, and as your friend.” The Captain paused for a moment to take in the reactions from her teammates. As she had hoped, they remained as poised as she had trained them. There were no lingering feelings of animosity or grudges. “Now I could spend the next several minutes spouting apologies, but I know that all of you have got better things to do than listen to me get all mushy. You’re all here to fly, am I right?”
“Hay yes, ma’am!” the Wonderbolts sounded off in unison.
“Just what I wanted to hear,” Spitfire acknowledged before turning her attention to Rainbow Dash. The sight of the half-awake pegasus was disconcerting, to say the least, but she was willing to chalk that up to last night’s emotionally stressful events. “Now in case anybody here has kissed the earth one too many times, the new kid is Rainbow Dash. Tonight’s routine will be done as a five-pony team with her filling in the empty spot. If anybody has a problem with that, they can take it up with the complaint’s department.”
“There’s a complaint’s department?” Rainbow Dash quipped. The first thought that crossed her mind was filing a complaint about the early hours.
However, it was Soarin’ who responded when he leaned in and whispered, “That’s just what she calls her pair of brass horseshoes.” That grounded Rainbow Dash’s hopes of getting the practice hours changed.
“Cut the chatter, you two,” Spitfire cut in as she continued her address. “As I was saying, Rainbow Dash will fly as a substitute. I know it’s extremely unorthodox-”
“And insane.”
“Yes, thank you, Soarin’, for reiterating that point,” the Captain said as she shot her second-in-command an annoyed glare. “We’ve got the next twelve hours to turn this amateur pegasus into Wonderbolt material. I know our standard routine is a light practice on the day of major competitions, but we’ll have to make an exception today. I am going to need one hundred and ten percent from each and every one of you. Can I count on you all?”
There was no verbal response at first. The other Wonderbolts glanced to each other for a brief moment before Soarin’ stepped forward.
“I think I speak for everybody when I say that the Wonderbolts are ready for any challenge, ma’am!” he boldly stated.
“Good, we’ll start with reviewing the fundamentals of our basic formations,” Spitfire said with her confidence in her teammates bolstered.
“Review?” Rainbow Dash protested. “Oh come on! You’ve seen me fly, Spitfire. Why are we starting with namby-pamby basic flight school work?” When she got invited to fly with the Wonderbolts, Rainhow had been expecting something with a bit more excitement. She had envisioned daring dives and soaring sweeps; reviewing flight work was as boring as an afternoon stroll. In her opinion, asking her to do read up on aerobatic theories was like asking Twilight Sparkle to redo magic kindergarten. “We should be rehearsing the flight plan.”
It was tempting to just drop into her work persona and browbeat the truth into Rainbow Dash until she accepted, but the Wonderbolt Captain decided against that. She had to remember that, technically speaking, Rainbow Dash was doing her a favour. Rainbow was under no obligation to stay on board, and to be honest Spitfire would not be surprised if the other pegasus changed her mind. From the stands, being a Wonderbolt looked like a piece of cake. However, every minute in an air show was preceded by hours upon hours of practice and training out of the public’s eye. A lot of Wonderbolt initiates burn out as a result of the intense training regimes. Spitfire didn’t want to play favourites, but she needed to handle Rainbow Dash with a bit of tact and care.
“Rainbow Dash, you are a natural-born flyer,” Spitfire began with a calm and patient tone, which was quite unlike her usual methodology. “But team cohesion is one of the core tenets of aerobatics, and that’s not something that comes naturally to anypony. Even a half-second lag between two pegasi can spell the difference between a gold-medal performance, and an off-the-podium finish.”
“But this is no time for looking over books and charts!” A younger Spitfire would have agreed, but age and experience had taught her the wisdom was patience and diligence. “Just put me in the air and let me show you what I can do!”
“Very well then, shall we skip ahead to formation drills?” the captain replied. “We’ll start it off easy: fly with Soarin’ and stay in tight formation on his eight o’clock. I will stay on the ground and monitor your positioning.”
“Pft! Easy as pie.”
It didn’t surprise the Spitfire that her temporary Wonderbolt was cocksure. If anything, it was Rainbow Dash who was surprised when the Captain’s response was a terse little chuckle.
“We’ll see,” she said with no attempt to conceal of the foreboding undertone. “Soarin’, test this kid’s limits.”
“Aye aye, cap’n,” Soarin’ nodded before motioning for Rainbow to join him.
As much as the whole exercise bothered her, Rainbow Dash decided to yield to Spitfire’s judgment and took to the air alongside the pegasus stallion. She figured after a few minutes, Spitfire would be so impressed by her precision and slick moves that she would skip ahead to rehearsing their flight plan like Rainbow had suggested. It would be a piece of cake, or so she thought. Falling into formation with Soarin’ was easy enough. He led her through a simple series of manoeuvres such as loop-de-loops and corkscrews. Rainbow Dash was able to stick to his eight o’clock position like Pinkie Pie to a Black Forest gateau. But as the drill progressed, Soarin’s flight pattern became more complex and unpredictable. He began leading Rainbow Dash through a series of tight bends and rapid spins, all in an obvious attempt to disorientate the pegasus.
“Come on, Dash, you’re falling behind!” Spitfire shouted as the two fliers soared overhead in a tight corkscrew.
Rainbow Dash didn’t dignify it with a response. It was clear that the Wonderbolts were testing to see how much it would take to make her lose control. She was determined not to give them that satisfaction. It took all of her focus to keep track of Soarin’s movements. Every time she got her bearings straight, the stallion banked hard and everything was thrown for a loop again. As the pair swooped high and low across the arena, Rainbow was finding it harder and harder to keep orientated. The sky and the ground were spinning around her as though she was being thrown through a tornado.
If it had been a quick, brief drill then Rainbow Dash might have not been worried. However, Soarin’ kept flying even after close to an hour of formation drilling. Exhaustion was beginning to set in for Rainbow. The strain of so many hard banks had taken its toll on her wings, which felt like flaps of cardboard.
“Must...keep up!”
Despite the mental reinforcing, Rainbow Dash felt her focus faltering along with her wings. As the wind shear kicked up suddenly, she was knocked from her flight and sent into a catastrophic tailspin. But there would be horrific crash in store for Rainbow Dash, as the rest of the Wonderbolts were quick to respond. Not even five seconds passed before the tumbling pegasus was snatched out of the sky by Misty and Highwinds.
“Not bad, you lasted a bit longer than most,” Spitfire complemented once her new recruit was lowered back to earth.
“You wanted me to almost crash?” Rainbow snapped back. It was a rhetorical question, of course, since she had figured out the point of the exercise already. “What the hay is wrong with you?”
“A little lesson in humility never hurts,” the Wonderbolt Captain answered. “But it’s also important for me to see what your limits are. Your formations needs improvement.”
The idea of being humiliated in front of others as kind of rite of initiation did not sit well with Rainbow Dash. She was under the impression that time was vital and in short supply, which made spending it on such lessons seem like a waste.
“My formations are fine! Now can we stop this nonsense, and get onto the real training?”
“This is real training, Rainbow,” Spitfire said before motioning for the other Wonderbolts to gather around. “I told you yesterday that I was going to run you into the ground if you couldn’t keep up. Now get back into the air! I want you in diamond formation, three o’clock position.”
Rainbow Dash hadn’t even been given enough time to get the numbness out of her wings, but she was forced to take to the skies again. While this time saw her joined by the rest of the Wonderbolts, save for Spitfire, the training drill was the same as before. The three top-tier fliers led Rainbow Dash on one of the most wild flight paths she had ever witnessed. To make matters worse, their formation was so tight that even drifting a few inches out of position resulting in Rainbow getting bumped by one of her teammates. And they weren’t gentle about it either. In fact, Rainbow suspected that they were allowing the collisions in another twisted attempt to upstage her.
“They aren’t going to get the best of Rainbow Dash!”
*****************************
After almost two hours of flight training, eight crashes, seventeen near-crashes, a dozen spin-outs, and more hard landings than Rainbow would care to keep track of, she was willing to admit that perhaps the Wonderbolts had gotten the best of her. When Spitfire blew the whistle and told her Wonderbolts to take a fifteen minute breather, Rainbow Dash never felt a stronger desire to to rest her wings. It was a most strange and foreign sensation for her to actually be tired of flying. She thought training with the Wonderbolts would be the most fun she’s ever had, but instead it was turning into one of the most gruelling workouts ever faced by ponykind.
The weary and bruised pegasus made her way into one of the locker rooms where she unceremoniously collapsed onto a bench. She wondered if fifteen minutes was going to be enough to get her strength back, physical or mental. A growing part of her wanted to tell Spitfire to take her competition and stuff it. The only thing that kept her in the game was her stubborn pride, or perhaps blind egoism.
When she heard hoofsteps approaching, Rainbow made no motion to address it. If whoever it was had business with her, they could talk to her while she was face-down on the bench. She wasn’t in a very talkative mood.
“Heya Rainbow!”
It was Applejack. In an instant, weariness turned to elation, but while her mind found renewed strength, her body did not. When she tried to spring back to her hooves, Rainbow’s legs only managed to get her halfway up, after which gravity took over and brought her to the floor.
“You okay there, partner?”
“My legs feel like jelly,” Rainbow groaned. Despite a willing spirit, her body refused to leave the floor’s embrace.
“Ah bet they do,” Applejack said with a half-hearted chuckle. At least one of them find something to be amused about the situation. “Ah saw you and the other Wonderbolts flying about when Ah came in. It looked like they were running you harder than an ox with a full wagon.”
“You can say that again.” Hard didn’t even begin to describe what her choice of adjectives would be.
“Spitfire said she’d train you hard. Ah bet yer having a hay of a time out there.”
“Training? You call that training?” Rainbow scoffed. She tried to get back up to her hooves using her frustration for motivation, but only made it halfway again before face-planting the tiled floor. “It was more like airborne pinball with me as the ball!”
Applejack noted the level of discontent that resonated in her friend’s voice and it worried her. Flying and training with the Wonderbolts had always been Rainbow’s dream and it was beginning to sound as though that dream was not turning out to be quite as sweet as once thought.
“Oh come on, Rainbow, it can’t be that bad.” Applejack offered a hoof to help her friend up. The lightweight frame of a pegasus made it easy for her to hoist Rainbow back up. She was about to crack a joke about Rainbow’s laziness, but when her friend became upright, their faces lingered only a few inches apart. Applejack found her words had decided to lodge a protest in her throat. A familiar warmth rose to her face as hot breath teased her cheeks. “A-Ah brought you some food...i-in case you were feeling a might peckish.”
“R-right, of course,” Rainbow replied, noting the other mare’s sudden hesitation. With a bit of effort, she was able to take a seat back on the bench. A few moments later, Applejack produced the aforementioned food from her saddlebags. “Thanks.”
“Ain’t no trouble at all,” Applejack replied before taking a seat of her own.
As the earth pony had fallen oddly silent, Rainbow Dash took the moment to see what Applejack had brought her. A few small boxes sat on the bench wrapped in red handkerchiefs with green apple patterns upon them. Opening one of them up revealed a couple of homemade sandwiches, which struck Rainbow Dash as a bit plain. One bite, however, changed that sentiment immediately.
“Mm! Zap apple jam,” Rainbow commented without even taking a moment to finish her mouthful. It had been a while since the last harvest, which meant Applejack must’ve saved a few jars for special occasions. The rainbow-coloured delicacy helped to lift Rainbow’s spirit, but that sentiment was short-lived when she noticed the pony sitting next to her was still silent. “Is everything okay, AJ?”
“Sort of,” she replied after a brief hesitation. Being an honest pony made even that stretch of truth difficult to pull off. It only took one skeptical glance from the pegasus to shatter Applejack’s resolve. “Have you ever really wanted something, but when you finally got it, you weren’t quite sure what to do with it?”
“I do now,” Rainbow thought but refrained from giving voice to it. “What do you mean?”
“Well it’s just...Ah was pleased as punch to hear that you had, y’know...feelings for me,” Applejack began with the unsteadiness in her voice that accompanied her nervousness. “But Ah spent so long pounding the message that what Ah felt was a one-way road. Now here we are together, and,” Applejack paused as she let out a disappointed sigh, “Ah just ain’t quite sure how to act now. Looking at you, Ah can’t quite separate Rainbow Dash mah friend, and Rainbow Dash the girlfriend. Does that make a lick of sense to you or am Ah just spouting babel?”
“No, no. I think I understand,” Rainbow admitted as she set her food aside. “I mean, I always dreamed of being able to fly under Spitfire’s command. And now here I am living that dream and all I can think about is how much of a pain in the flank she’s being.”
“Grass is always greener on the other side, eh?”
“Wait, you’re not regretting ‘us,’ are you?”
“What? Good gracious, no!” Applejack hastily insisted. The realization that her doubts could have been misinterpreted had Applejack back-pedalling as though she were about to go over the metaphorical cliff. “Ah didn’t mean it like that at all!” The farmer’s head sank with woeful eyes gazing up to the pony beside her. “Ah was just worried about doing something stupid. Celestia knows Ah ain’t the best at relationships, and you mean too much to me to mess things up.”
Rainbow wasn’t sure why the other mare would feel that way. If anypony should’ve been worried about making a mess of things, it was the pegasus whose track record has been abysmal the past few weeks. She was the one with obvious issues of jealousy, jumping to conclusions, and making hasty, irrational decisions.
“Now that’s not true at all,” Rainbow insisted as she threw a supportive hoof around her friend’s shoulder. “After all, you managed to impressed Spitfire, and she probably hangs out with loads of awesome ponies.”
“Yer probably right,” Applejack admitted, albeit with a bit of hesitation. “It’s probably just first day jitters, that’s all. Ah’m still getting used to the idea of us. Normally if Ah had relationship problems, Ah’d just turn to you.”
“You still can.” While Rainbow Dash would have suggested somepony else to be the relationship guru, given the calibre of her recent advice, but that didn’t change the fact that Rainbow just as viable for advice as before. “This is a relationship, after all; we’re in this together. It’s like Soarin’ and Spitfire flying together - it’s all about counting and depending on each other. And there’s no shame in admitting when you’re in trouble, especially when that trouble can bring the other pony down too, and-”
Rainbow’s abrupt stop surprised and confused the other mare. She wasn’t sure whether to be worried about it or not. “Is something wrong?”
“I just realized I’ve been a huge idiot.”
“No, you made a lot of sense just now,” a still-confused Applejack said.
“I meant with Spitfire,” Rainbow explained before hopping off the bench. “I have to go talk with her!”
Given the urgency in the pegasus’ voice, Applejack was willing to let her carry on her way. This day was very important to Rainbow Dash, after all, and she was going to support her in any way she could. “Don’t forget your sandwiches,” she called out before Rainbow could leave.
“Oh, right! Thanks!” Rainbow Dash doubled-back to scoop up her half-eaten meal before departing once more, though not before giving another thanks in the form of a quick peck on the cheek.
While not moving as fast as she would have preferred, Rainbow made good speed back out to the open air of the arena’s interior. A quick scan of her surroundings led her over to Spitfire’s position in the nearby bleachers. The Wonderbolt Captain was toiling with a small, hoof-held chalkboard. A quick glance over the Captain’s shoulder revealed some preliminary flight plans that were no doubt meant for that night’s performance.
“You’ve still got five minutes,” Spitfire spoke up. Her speech was a bit muffled by the piece of chalk clenched between her teeth, but she did not appear willing to stop her work just to have a conversation. “You should that time to rest because it’s only getting tougher from here on.”
“My formations could use work,” Rainbow stated plainly.
“I believe I told you that a few hours ago,” Spitfire said before taking a brief pause to look over what she has written on her chalkboard. After muttering something about ‘inadequate’ she wiped half of its contents away. “And if I recall correctly, your response to that was ‘go eat a thundercloud.’”
“That was the headache talking.” Face-planting into the dirt had a way of bringing out anypony’s irritable side, and Spitfire’s indifferent shrug suggested that she understood this fact. Rainbow took a few deep breaths to steady her nerves. What she was about to say was one of the hardest things she could imagine, and it took all her willpower to force those words out. “I need your help.”
Those choice words finally got the Captain’s attention. At first, it was just her gaze that crept up to meet Rainbow’s, but soon afterwards she set her chalkboard down. “Oh really? What happened to the Miss ‘I’m going to steal the show?’”
“Was this the whole point of all that ‘training?’ To get me to admit that you’re better than me?” While Rainbow would be reluctant to admit it, she has had to learn lessons the hard way in the past, but it struck her as irresponsible to be risking the competition just to hammer some humility to her. She was about to give voice to that thought but Spitfire cut her off.
“If I needed an ego boost, I’d just visit the fan club,” Spitfire replied. “The point is, Dash, I’ve got less than a day to turn you into a Wonderbolt, and I can’t do that if you think you’re already the best. You’re good, but there’s always room for improvement. I can’t make you into the best you can be if you think you’re already there.”
It seemed like a roundabout way to teach Rainbow humility, but she couldn’t deny that she did come into training today thinking that she only needed to learn a flight routine. Did Spitfire really think they had the time to spare though?
“Couldn’t you have just told me this from the start? You didn’t need to set me up for failure.”
“Maybe,” Spitfire said as she picked up her chalkboard once more, “but my mother had a saying, ‘a crash isn’t a failure unless you fail to learn from it.’ Now if you want my help, you’ll need to trust my methods. Is that understood?”
Rainbow’s answer came in the form of a silent nod.
“Okay then,” Spitfire said with a growing smile. With her wing, she patted the seat next to her. “Sit down, please. We’ll need to start with some of the fundamentals. It’s a bit dry, but bear with me.”
*****************************
The tension in the arena had reached an almost palpable level. The excitement and energy filled every corridor like a raging inferno. For Rainbow Dash, she could feel it bristling through every part of her being, like the static from passing through a thundercloud. It was electrifying...energizing...invigorating. Rainbow was still in the locker room, but she knew that only a few stories above her sat thousands upon thousands of ponies. They were ponies that had come from all across Equestria to witness this moment, which was soon going to be her moment. What was surprising to Rainbow was how calm she was at this point. A few hours ago she was ready to tear her mane out in anxiety. After all, she was about to fly in front of thousands of ponies, and the Wonderbolts were counting on her, an untested rookie, to help hold their performance together so that they might stand a chance of winning the competition. A team was only as strong as its weakest link, and if the day of training had taught her anything, it was that she was said weak link.
Yet even despite the knowledge that if failure was to occur, it would most likely fall upon her, Rainbow felt at peace. Whatever happened out in the arena didn’t matter to her. These moments were going to be hers and hers alone; nopony could take them away. On top of that, everything about this night felt right to her. This was where she belonged: in the sky before adoring fans.
“How does the uniform fit?” Spitfire’s voice called out from the other side of a row of lockers.
“Like I was born to wear it,” Rainbow joked back. The yellow and cerulean flight suit blended well with her natural blue hues, and other than a bit of tightness around the hindquarter, it fit her like a glove. She was born to wear this uniform. It was also fortunate that Rainbow was about Fleetfoot’s size, otherwise she might have been forced to fly au natural, which would have cost the team points for presentation.
“Some ponies are,” the Captain agreed, much to Rainbow’s delight. The lessons in humility from earlier on in the day were over, and the Captain was back to fostering her teammate’s confidence. “But there’s been a small change in the flight plan that I need to go over with you. It’s risky, but it might help squeeze a few more points out of our score. It’s going to ask a lot of you, though.”
“What is it?” The news came as a surprise to Rainbow Dash. Spitfire had gone over the flight plan in extensive detail with the entire team. The Captain even made sure that Rainbow could recite the whole routine from memory. These changes would have to be of great importance to warrant being implemented at the last second.
“The thing is...um, you know how when the Wonderbolts fly we leave a storm cloud contrail?”
“Of course; it’s one of your signature techniques.”
“And remember how I said we don’t have time to teach it to you?”
"Yeah. You said we’d just have to make due without it.”
“Indeed, and that’s going to cause a problem.” That was not something Rainbow needed to hear less than fifteen minutes to showtime. She had her worries about causing problems, but those were about things she had control over. “You’re flying on the far right, which means our flight pattern is going to look asymmetrical, and that’s going to cost us points for presentation.”
“Well what do you expect me to do? Not fly?”
“You’ll fly lead.”
“L-lead?” The word tumbled out from her lips like filly losing her footing. The past few days had been beyond belief, but now it was treading into the realms of the impossible. “Y-you want me to fly at the lead?”
“No, I need you fly lead,” Spitfire corrected her fellow flier. “I don’t want to fly second to anypony, but if you think I’m going to let those featherheads from the Gryphon Kingdom beat us without a fight then you haven’t been paying much attention to me!”
Couldn’t argue with that logic. Spitfire had always been willing to do what it takes, including bringing on an untested rookie. As if there hadn’t been enough pressure on her already, now Rainbow was being put at the front of the formation. The whole team would be following her lead, which meant every manoeuvre depended on her precision and timing. Even the smallest mistake could send the whole team spiralling out of control.
No pressure.
“Can I count on you?” Spitfire asked.
“Yes, ma’am!” Rainbow hastily replied with a quick snap salute.
“Good,” Spitfire nodded in response. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to inform the rest of the team. Soarin’s going to have a heart attack when he hears about this.”
As the Captain headed for the exit, Rainbow felt what little peace and tranquility leave the room with her. Did Spitfire really trust her with the success of the entire performance? It was the Best Young Flier’s Competition all over again, except this time she didn’t have a Sonic Rainboom to bail her out. Being at the tail end of a formation was one thing, but now Rainbow was going to be at the forefront before thousands of impatient, over-analyzing, overly-critical sports fans. However, unlike the competition long ago in Cloudsdale, Rainbow knew how to combat her growing nervousness.
*****************************
While it was not easy making her way through the arena halls while still in uniform, some cover in the convenient form of a tablecloth provided Rainbow Dash with a suitable cloak to avoid attracting attention. Thankfully, not being a known member of the Wonderbolts meant that anypony who did see glimpses of her uniform thought she was just another over-enthusiastic fan, which wasn’t too far from the truth.
The private box seats were easy to find, and thanks to the weekend pass that she still possessed, she was waved through by the gatekeeper without arousing any suspicions. From what she had been told, the glass she broke had already been replaced so Applejack should be settling in to watch the show. Rainbow Dash made sure to step lightly as she approached the sitting room. Though the lights had been dimmed, there was an unsuspecting pony sitting at the far side of the room. Just thinking of the earth pony’s loving embrace was beginning to ease the tensions from her mind; her powerful, yet tender physique; the sweet aroma of apples and cinnamon that lingered in her mane; and that smile that lit up even the darkest room.
Rainbow snuck up alongside the other mare, slipping onto the cushion while draping a wing around the mare’s lower back. “Hey there good-looking,” she whispered in a sultry tone.
“Gah! What in the-?” the other pony shrieked.
“Twilight?”
It wasn’t until she was up close that Rainbow realized that the pony she had just cozied up to was her studious librarian friend. Both were so startled by the other’s presence that both mares fell out of their seats. In fact, Twilight almost leapt out of it, but clumsy hooves resulted in her taking a tumble instead.
“Wh-what are you doing here?” Rainbow demanded as she shot back to her hooves.
“Waiting for the show to start,” Twilight replied as she tried to hide the bright fluster upon her face. “Spitfire talked to the competition’s coordinators and got us some extra so Rarity and I could help cheer you on.”
“Then where’s Applejack?” Rainbow remembered Applejack explicitly stating that she would be watching from the private box. Had something held the pony up? Maybe she had gone down to the locker rooms to surprise Rainbow. She didn’t have time to go running around the arena trying to track down Applejack.
“She’s with Rarity getting her dress in order,” Twilight stated as if this fact should have been known to Rainbow. However, one could understand why the idea of ‘dress’ and ‘Applejack’ together in the same sentence would not be the first thing a pony thought.
“Dress? What dress?”
“The one she was going to surprise you with at the after-party.”
A surprise? As much as Rainbow Dash loved surprises, if Applejack had been planning on surprising her after the show then her presence was putting that plan at risk. The farmer pony would probably be disappointed if the surprise was ruined early.
Alas, the damage had already been done for the second that Rainbow Dash turned about to make a quick exit, she found herself staring at the mare in question. And as Twilight Sparkle had explained, Applejack’s absence was explained by the dress that she now wore. As to be expected from any piece of fashion crafted by Rarity’s keen eyes, it was a dress of grace of eloquence. Flowing lengths of various greens draped across her frame like the petals of a flower, which stopped down her fore legs just beneath the shoulders. It was modest, revealing little save for the fore legs, but the earth pony filled the dress out nicely with the gown hugging every curve of her workpony frame. Rainbow tried not to let her gaze linger too much on the gown, though like many of Rarity’s hoof-sewn dresses, it was hard to stop looking once you started. Its simplistic beauty captured Applejack’s essence, and it wasn’t until Applejack called out her name that Rainbow finally slapped both hooves over her eyes.
“I didn’t see anything!” Rainbow blurted.
“Yes you did,” Applejack insisted with a mixture of annoyance and disappointment. She had wanted to surprise Rainbow Dash, but she could only blame herself for not at least telling the pegasus to keep her distance until after the show. “Ain’t no point trying to pretend at this point.”
With a prolonged sigh, Rainbow let her hooves drop back to the floor. “You look nice.”
“Th-thanks,” Applejack stuttered her reply. While she knew that Spitfire was one to appreciate fine fashion, her tomboyish pegasus friend was less concerned by such aesthetics. Nonetheless, Applejack wanted to look her best in support of her new relationship and for the competition. “You really mean that? Ah feel kinda naked without mah hat.”
“Your hat?” Having been so fixated on the wardrobe, Rainbow hadn’t noticed that the iconic stetson missing from its usual perch. Instead, Applejack’s mane hung loose down her neck with a small apple-shaped pin tucked behind her ear. “I think you look rather cute without your mane like that. You should do it more often.”
“Ah should?” Applejack appeared genuinely confused by the notion. “Ah dunno. It feels like it’s always getting in the way. How in the world Fluttershy manages hers is a mystery to me.”
The growing intimacy in the atmosphere made Twilight realize that her presence was not the most appropriate for the moment. “I think I’m going to check out the concession stands,” she excused herself from the room. Neither of the other ponies paid much attention to Twilight’s departure, but were grateful that their friend was considerate enough to give them some privacy.
“Is everything okay, Rainbow?” Applejack asked. “Shouldn’t you be down in the locker rooms with the other Wonderbolts?”
“Yes, of course! Everything is great. I mean, why wouldn’t it?” Rainbow answered. Her attempt to hide her own nervous only made her words sound hurried and ring empty of truth. “I mean, it’s not like Spitfire just asked me to fly lead pony or anything.”
“She did what?” Applejack exclaimed. Again, her limited knowledge in aerobatics put her at a disadvantage, but it probably had overlap with the lead pony in a work crew. “Boy, Rainbow, you look as nervous as a filly on her first date.”
“Does it show that much?” No point hiding the truth from Applejack. After the Best Young Flier’s Competition, the farmer pony was far more attuned to picking up on the subtle cues that underlined Rainbow’s boisterous nature. “I don’t suppose there’s enough time for a quick nervous breakdown?”
“Would you rather we skip ahead to the part where Ah give you a kiss and tell you it’ll all be just fine before you head on back to the locker rooms with a new spring in yer step”
The two shared in a small chuckle before Rainbow Dash saddled up beside the other mare. She rested her against Applejack’s before sighing contently to herself. Rainbow figured there wasn’t much point in a pep talk since both sides knew the other well enough to know what was going to be said. She would worry about failing in front of thousands of spectators and thus ruining her chances of becoming a Wonderbolt forever, and then Applejack would reassure her that everything would turn out okay. The words didn’t even matter at this point as having Applejack nearby was all the reassurance the pegasus needed. In the end, it didn’t matter what happened during the performance because Rainbow Dash had the one thing she wanted more than the Wonderbolts and nothing was going to change that.
“Could you say it anyways?” she whispered in the Applejack’s ear. “I just want to hear it from you.”
“You are going to do just fine out there, Rainbow Dash,” Applejack said as she put a hoof around the pegasus’ shoulder. “In less than an hour, you’re going to fly out into the arena as the lead pony of the Wonderbolts, and you’re going to put on a show so spectacular that it’ll knock the hats off of every hoity-toity head in the building!”
That was a bit more fanfare than Rainbow had expected but it was appreciated nonetheless. It could have seemed like empty platitudes to the casual observer, but Rainbow Dash felt the warmth and truth in every word. A part of her wanted to skip the competition and just spend the night with Applejack. What was one simple competition compared to a night with the amazing pony in the city?
“Now Ah want you to march yer butt back down to that locker room before Spitfire wonders where you ran off to,” Applejack continued. With a hoof upon the cheek, she guided Rainbow’s gaze to meet with hers. “And when you’re out there tonight, Ah want only two things to be on yer mind. The first is to fly like you’ve never flown before. The second is this.”
She pulled the pegasus in, embracing her with a deep, sensual kiss. The warmth of their love melted the pegasus like putty in her hooves, which made Applejack wonder if she might have made a bad move. The last thing Rainbow needed was all the blood being shunted away from her brain when she needed it to focus. Before things got too heated and a spatula would be required to scrap the pegasus off the floor, Applejack broke away from the kiss to Rainbow’s evident disappointment.
“I didn’t quite catch that second part,” Rainbow said with a growing smile. “Could you repeat it?”
“Nuh-uh! Ain’t no encores until you finish that competition,” Applejack chuckled before pushing the other mare towards the exit.
“Oh come on! Just another quick one!” Rainbow’s pleas fell upon deaf ears, however, as the workpony began to shove the pegasus along with more force.
“You heard me, Rainbow,” Applejack reiterated. “Spitfire and the others are waiting on you. Now git!”
A sharp slap to the posterior got the pegasus moving in earnest, and soon Rainbow Dash was galloping back towards the arena with a fresh spring in her step.
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I've never done this before but...uhm...first! Is...is that how you do it?
In all seriousness though, I thoroughly loved this chapter, as per usual. Pardon me for not being able to offer anything more substantial.
Hey there fine Sir.
I felt like I need to say that this is still one of my favorite storys here on fimfiction and one of my first I ever read too.
There isn't much I could do to honor you but I hope this mustaches will help you out
For criticism there is only one thing to say : I can't see anything that bothers me in the chapter. Keep up the good work.
See you in the next chapter ( that will follow soon I hope
)
WHAT!
After you leave us with that Daring Do cliff hanger! WHAT HAPPENED TO BLONDIE!! 
AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!
t about the wonderbolt performance. 
EDIT: And next chapter, when you revisit the Daring portion, I will flip my sh
1908183
Nonono. That was weak. You gotta do it like this.
ozfeed.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/firstpost.jpg
Go hard or go home.
The cliffhangers, I can't take the cliffhangers! *foams at the mouth*
Anyway, nice chapter. I appreciate that Dash was able to work through her issues in plenty of time to get some serious and properly directed training in, and it looks like she's nicely inspired for the performance.
I almost never comment on stories anymore, but I would just like to say with outstanding writing and suspenseful storytelling you have made one of my favorite stories on fim fiction.
This story is of higher quality than most printed books IMO. I don't always read appledash, but when I do it's the best. Stay frosty my friend
.
Aaah... The always classy line with "I didn't quite catch that" when it comes to a kiss
Awww, this chapter was nice and heartwarming =) Everything seems to be coming together for Dash. I hope she floors everypony at the competition!
This chapter was fantastic. Although, I don't know how anyone could expect anything less of this magnificent story.
Top-notch performance yet again, my good sir!
1908323
I shall study on this feverishly
Brilliant.
i4.ytimg.com/vi/GXWX87z90Q8/default.jpg
again
love this please continue.
1908183 Nope. You get banned from Fimfiction if you do it like that.
There are few fics that I will drop everything I'm doing just to read when they update... and this is one of them. Amazingly written as always. And that AppleDash. So. Cute.
more please!
but, but! What happened to blondie T_T
~Have a good one.
I think it should be "your" here.
Also, since when Rainbow Dash is with Applejack?
I feel like I missed something important.
Kindly,
~Sinrar
Another great chapter! Looking forward to finding out what happens to blondie, too
Wow I love it xD not enough humorous/slightly suggestive moments in many fanfics, so this is a rare one ^_^ Great work dude :D
I had a request to do a reading of this Fanfic by Jackie (http://www.fimfiction.net/user/Jackie), so that is what I did xD hope you enjoy :D
That was a damn good chapter there, and I should probably say one thing.. Rainbow, you and the Wonderbolts have got this competition in the bag, go out there and make Equestria proud! After all, if you perform well, perhaps Applejack will have two surprises for you when it's all said and done, y'know what I mean? Eh? Eh...?
...
No?
Okay then...
But really, I am super hyped for the next chapter of this now- perhaps we even get to see how Blondie made out, too!
1918347
The next chapter will be followed by a chapter called "How Daring did it" and will be VERY detailed...
1918847 What you did there, I see it. Congratulations on making my day.
I. LOVE. YOU.
YAY APPLEDASH
That was yet another amazing chapter. I really don't want this story to end! I find it far too beautiful to want it to conclude. I know there is a sequel but it isn't done yet!
it's 2022 now. I don't even know who reads these fanfictions now?! Looking at the date of writing, I never left comments, but perhaps this work requires an exception! This is amazing!!!
I don’t even know how old you are now, but if you suddenly read this comment, I will say that this is the best appledash that I have read. Can't provide you with tolerable criticism, sorry hehe. And I apologize for my English, because I'm not an English speaker. Good luck!!!!!!!!!! 
