• Published 24th Mar 2016
  • 8,320 Views, 206 Comments

My Little Pony - The Legend of Friendship - Danieru



The lonely and boring live of an Earth Pony changes completely after he was chosen by one seventh Element of Harmony. Not only will this pony discover friendship but also the true story about the Elements of Harmony. Even if he doesn't want to...

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14. Running of the Leaves Race

Today was the annual Running of the leaves race. The race was always held in Fall and served the purpose to remove the leaves from the trees. In order to do that, a race is held because that would create enough hoof stomping to remove the leaves.

Star Twinkle was also competing in this race and waited at the starting line. Next to him was Steel Hammer who also participated in the race.

Every pony who ran in the race had a number on their flank. Steel Hammer was number twelve and Star Twinkle was number thirteen. It felt weird for him to have something on his flank for once, also number thirteen was a really bad sign, he thought.

“I must say, I was surprised when you said that you would run in the race too,” said Steel Hammer while getting warmed up for the race. “I mean, I never thought of you as an athlete,” he added.

“I just felt like joining the race. That's all,” Star Twinkle replied with a bored tone in his voice.

Steel Hammer was used to Star Twinkles rather short explanations, so he didn't bother to ask any further.

While the two stallions were warming up, they noticed Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Figured, thought Star Twinkle. They were both very athletic, so it was assumed that they would join the race too. They both approached the two mares, who were also surprised to see Star Twinkle in the race. Applejack was number eight and Rainbow Dash number eleven. Also, Rainbow Dash's wings were tied up with a rope much to Star Twinkles surprise.

“Why are your wings tied up like this?” asked Star Twinkle curiously.

But Applejack explained before Rainbow Dash could answer.

“To prevent her from cheating, like before,” explained Applejack.

“I was not cheating! You just never told me, to not use my wings,” explained Rainbow Dash in an almost aggressive tone in her voice.

“And I already explained, that I didn't think I needed to remind you, to play fair!” Applejack replied, also in a rather aggressive tone.

It was obvious to the two stallions that there was some tension between those two. Star Twinkle didn't want to know what this was all about and pretended he didn't listen to their little argument.

After talking for a while another mare approached the group of ponies. It was Twilight, who had a number forty-two on her flank, indicating that she was running in the race too. That surprised everypony since Twilight was more into studying than sports. She looked confident but the four ponies had to restrain themselves from giggling or laughing. Twilight explained that she read books in order to prepare herself for the race. That made Rainbow Dash laugh uncontrollably and even Applejack couldn't stop herself from laughing a bit. Star Twinkle also had his doubts that Twilight would come far in this race. But that is not exactly what this race is about, he thought.

It's all about tradition. Running trough the forest, create a lot of hoof stomping, make the leaves fall from the trees, he repeated in his head. But none of that was a reason for him to join this race. He was actually wondering why he decided to participate. He didn't know the reason. It was like, he just had to no matter what.

But before going into any more detail, Pinkie Pie, who was in a hot air balloon that flew above the heads of the contestants along with Spike, was about to start the race. Everypony was now getting ready for the signal.

“Good luck, Star Twinkle,” said Steel Hammer to Star Twinkle.

“Yeah, you too,” he replied.

“Hope you at least make it under the top five,” he said.

“I wouldn't count on that,” he replied.

It was not of importance for him what place he would make, as long as he would finish it, he was completely fine.

“All right, ponies, are you ready? “ shouted Pinkie Pie.

“Get set,” Spike added.

Then a bell officially started the race and everypony began to run. Star Twinkle just realized how many ponies were actually competing in this race. There were around thirty or forty ponies, he thought. For the first minutes, there was no clear first place. There was a huge crowd of ponies, they almost moved like a stampede.

Finally, Applejack and Rainbow Dash, who was already in front of everypony managed to separate themselves from the crowd and were now fighting for the first place.

Meanwhile, Star Twinkle found himself inside of the crowd, much to his dislike. He was around the middle and had a nervous look on his face. As always he was not comfortable being in a huge crowd like this. There were ponies all around him, accidentally bumping into him on accident. He slowly got more and more nervous and tried to ignore all this but it didn't work.

Eventually, Star Twinkle couldn't stay calm anymore. “Ah I can't take this anymore!” He said to himself in frustration.

Suddenly he sprinted forward drawing some confused looks on him. It didn't take long for him to get out of this crowd.
Now he was suddenly in front of them, meaning that he was third place. He looked back and realized that he was now in front of everypony but that wasn't enough for him.

“Still, too close,” he said to himself, while further increasing the distance between him and the rest of the ponies.

He was actually surprised how easy it was to increase his distance. While running Star Twinkle was constantly looking back, to check if he could see the ponies anymore. The distance between them was now big enough, that he couldn't see them anymore, making him sigh in relief.

“If I just keep up this speed, there should be no way for them to catch up with me,” he said in relief.

He then was surprised to hear a voice talking to him, making him startle a little.

“Well, what do you know?” said Applejack in surprise.

“Not, bad Star Twinkle!” said Rainbow Dash. “You're faster than I expected,” she said in surprise.

He was catching up to Applejack and Rainbow Dash, making him wonder just how fast he was running to escape the other ponies. Of course, Applejack and Rainbow Dash were also surprised to see him that far ahead. After all, he was just behind the two in a good third place.

“Looks like it's not only between the two of us,” said Rainbow Dash to Applejack with a smug smile.

“No, it's between you two,” said Applejack also with a smug smile, while running ahead little.

Now Applejack was in first place, followed by Rainbow Dash and Star Twinkle. But Rainbow Dash was not giving up and increased her speed, catching up to Applejack again. Star Twinkle just watched how the two of them were competing like that and was lost in thoughts. This looked a little familiar too as if he saw this scene somewhere before. But he couldn't exactly figure out from where he saw that.

While still in thoughts, suddenly Applejack tripped and fell over. Star Twinkle managed to dodge her so that he wouldn't fall to the ground too. He then looked back and watched how she was getting more and more out of sight.

“Should I help her?” He asked himself while looking back. “I guess she will be alright,” he said trying to convince him that she was okay.

Rainbow Dash also looked back in surprise and wondered what happened. But at the same time, she was also happy that nopony could stop her now from winning the race. Rainbow Dash then slowed down a little but not to the point where Star Twinkle could catch up. He didn't want to anyway, he was just happy to finish the race.

After a while he notices how Applejack ran past him and Rainbow Dash, who was surprised to see her catching up to her, leaving her standing in surprise which allowed even tar Twinkle to catch up. Now he was in second place, much to his surprise. But it was only for a short time since Rainbow Dash was quickly catching up again, making him third place again.

But that was also for a short time. Suddenly, Rainbow Dash tripped and fell over. Once again Star Twinkle dodged her and looked back in concern. Applejack also looked back in surprise and wondered what happened.

Star Twinkle was still concentrating on the race, as long as he isn't tripping nothing else is going to bother him.

It didn't take long before Rainbow Dash caught up to them again. In fact, she passed even Applejack with no problem and left her behind.

While increasing her distance to Applejack, Rainbow Dash grabbed a branch from one of the trees that she was running past and let it go immediately, causing it to whip Applejack, who ran past that tree. Applejack then fell to the ground and was surprised by Rainbow Dash's action. Of course, Star Twinkle saw the whole thing and wondered why Rainbow Dash would do something like that. But right after thinking that, he saw how Applejack flew past him, confusing him even more.

“What are those ponies doing?” he asked himself while keeping his normal running speed.

Rainbow Dash was also surprised to see Applejack fly past her but then she got angry and a little more competitive, increasing her speed to catch up with Applejack.

Star Twinkle then also increased his speed and tried to catch up to both of them, trying to find out why they acted like that.
He eventually got closer to Rainbow Dash, who was concentrating on catching up to Applejack. In the distance Star Twinkle and Rainbow Dash could see how Applejack was kicking a tree with a beehive on it, making it fall to the ground, almost at the feet of Star Twinkle and Rainbow Dash. Of course, the bees inside of the hive were angry and chased after the two ponies, who were running away in fear. But that only made them run faster than before, passing Applejack who was just surprised by this outcome.

“What are you two ponies doing?” shouted Star Twinkle in shock to Rainbow Dash, while still running away from the bees.

“Hey that one was Applejack's fault!” replied Rainbow Dash.

Star Twinkle decided to abandon Rainbow Dash and jumped into a nearby bush to save himself. Luckily for him, the bees continued to chase Rainbow Dash. He felt a little bad for her but he didn't want to be involved in this fight that Applejack and Rainbow Dash obviously had right now.

Applejack then caught up a little and Star Twinkle decided to ask her about this whole situation while running right next to her.

“Just what are you both doing?” He asked in confusion.

“What do you mean? It's a race and only one of us can win!” Applejack explained.

“Well, for me it starts to look like you both try to knock each other out!” He replied in frustration.

While still discussing the matter they both saw how the path was splitting in two directions. But a sign showed them that they should go left, so they ran to the left up to a mountain path.

“All I am saying is that this race is mainly held so that the leaves can fall down from the trees and not-” but before finishing his sentence he paid close attention to where they were right now.

It was a mountain path, so naturally, there were no trees, making Star Twinkle doubt that they were going in the right direction. Applejack then stopped after she noticed that the path was ending at a cliff. That only confirmed Star Twinkles guess, that they were going the wrong way.

Shortly after Pinkies balloon came closer to the two ponies and of course Pinkie Pie and spike also wondered why Star Twinkle and Applejack were up on this mountain. Applejack quickly came to the conclusion that Rainbow Dash was responsible for that. She probably changed the sign, thought Star Twinkle.

Pinkie Pie and Spike offered the two ponies a ride with the balloon so that they could catch up with the other racers.
They both accepted the offer and jumped into the balloon. It would probably take them a few minutes but it's better than running all the way back.

Applejack was a little angry and was probably thinking about how her payback would look like. Star Twinkle, on the other hand, had his own concerns right now. He didn't look too good, he was cowering on the ground as if he was ill. Pinkie Pie and Spike quickly asked what was the matter and rushed to his side.

“What's wrong?” asked Pinkie Pie surprised.

“Nothing. I am perfectly fine,” he said while covering his eyes with his hoofs.

“You shouldn't be down there,” said Spike. “Here, look out of this Balloon. We are so high up, everypony looks like ants from up here,” explained Spike.

All these explanations only made Star Twinkle more and more nervous.

“That's maybe a bad time to tell you but, I might be afraid of heights a little,” he explained.

“That doesn't look like a little,” said Spike in confusion.

Still, Pinkie Pie was a little confused by this and had a question in mind.

“If you're afraid of heights, then why were you able to climb the mountain back then when we were going up against that giant dragon?” she asked.

“I don't know because we were on the ground?” He replied, while not being sure if those words were true.

“Maybe you're just afraid of flying?” Spike suggested.

“Yeah, whatever, could you please hurry up and land this thing somewhere so that I can get off?” he said while still covering his eyes in fear.

”But we are already on the ground,” said Pinkie Pie much to the confusion of Star Twinkle, who opened his eyes, just to realize that the balloon was on the ground.

“Oh,” he replied.

He was a little embarrassed but tried not to let them both know. Applejack was already gone, so she probably is back in the race again. The racers were not that far away, he could clearly see them in the distance. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were of course in the lead. Star Twinkle did his best to catch up to them again but he had to go past that crowd of ponies again to reach them. Twilight was in the second last place, enjoying the scenery.

“Hey Star Twinkle, I thought you were in front of me,” she asked in confusion.

“Yes, some things happened,” he replied with an annoyed tone in his voice.

“Isn't it beautiful?” Said Twilight while looking around the orange colored trees. “I am so glad that I joined this race, the view alone is reason enough,” she happily said.

“I'm afraid not everypony shares your opinion on this race,” he said, once again with an annoyed tone in his voice.

“Applejack and Rainbow Dash?” Twilight guessed.

“Yes,” Star Twinkle replied

“I know. It's sad that they are ignoring the tradition,” she said in concern. “After all this race is about letting the leaves fall from the trees,” she explained. “That's why you joined the race too, didn't you?” Asked Twilight.

“No,” he quickly replied.

Twilight wasn't expecting a quick answer like that, especially from Star Twinkle, who often gives indirect answers.

“I don't know why I joined this race in the first place but seeing Applejack and Rainbow Dash fighting for the first place like that makes me feel kinda...mad,” he explained with a sad tone in his voice.

“Mad? Why that?” Asked Twilight.

He didn't give an answer to that question and instead made a decision.

“I won't allow it,” he said in determination.

Twilight was surprised to hear something like that from him and wondered what he would mean by that. Suddenly Star Twinkle accelerated and ran past Twilight. He was running towards the group of ponies and ran past every single one of them with no problem. Now there were only Applejack and Rainbow Dash left. The two mares were expecting him to catch up to them again and were a little excited. But to their surprise, Star Twinkle ran past both of them without even making eye contact with them. Of course, they were surprised to see that since Star Twinkle didn't seem to make any effort to win this race before.

“What's with him all of the sudden?” Asked Rainbow Dash in confusion.

“I don't know but it seems like we got more competition now,” Applejack replied.

Star Twinkles didn't care for anything else right now. He wants to win this race fair and square and there was nothing that will stop him, he thought. But to his surprise, Applejack and Rainbow Dash caught up to him, running right next to him now.
Applejack managed to get in front a little and tried to sabotage Rainbow Dash by knocking off some bucket with tree resin, that now covered the ground. Since Star Twinkle was right next to Rainbow Dash, he was also was in danger to get caught up in their little fight.

Rainbow Dash stepped in the tree resin and got stuck in it but Star Twinkle jumped over Rainbow Dash to avoid any disruption. Star Twinkle slowly caught up to Applejack and managed to get past her.

But then suddenly Rainbow Dash was flying past Applejack causing Applejack to spin like a tornado. While spinning Applejack bumped into Star Twinkle and Rainbow Dash getting them caught up in the “tornado”. They then crashed into a nearby mountain and struggled to get up, since everything was spinning in their head. After getting up on their hoofs again, the plate of rocks the three ponies were standing on started to crumble. It was then sliding down the mountain and stopped in the middle of the track.

Meanwhile, the rest of the contestants ran past them. Before Applejack and Rainbow Dash could realize what happened, Star Twinkle rushed forward and left them both behind. He was still determined to win the race and didn't want to give either of them the first place, even though he was not exactly sure why.

He was beginning to get tired a little and had problems catching up to the other ponies but he still managed to get past everypony.

Steel Hammer was right in the middle of the crowd and watched how Star Twinkle was taking the lead and was impressed by his speed.

“That's my co-worker!” shouted Steel Hammer as If he wants to brag about him.

After a little more running Star Twinkle actually managed to cross the finish line before anypony else and was greeted with cheers from the ponies who waited there. It took him a moment to realize what just happened, he couldn't believe that he was first place. Now it was no more of importance for him who would come in next. He expected either Applejack or Rainbow Dash to cross the finish line next but to his surprise, a lot of other ponies were approaching. Twilight was actually far in the front and managed to be a good fifth place. She then approached Star Twinkle to congratulate him for being first.

“Congratulation, Star Twinkle,” she said with a happy smile on her face.

“And you're the fifth place that's not bad either,” he replied with a light smile on his face.

“Way to go, Star Twinkle,” said Steel Hammer who just finished the race himself. “Here I grabbed this for you,” he said while handing Star Twinkle a golden medal, probably the award for the first place.

While looking at his medal, he still didn't see Applejack or Rainbow Dash nearby. He then heard a bunch of noises from afar and saw how the two mares, were bumping into each other in order to determent who will cross the line first.

It made Star Twinkle a little sad to see them like this but he didn't know why. After a little more hustle and pushing, they both came in at the same time and tied for the last place. They were surprised to hear that because they were sure that they were first place.

“Then who won?” Asked Rainbow Dash.

Then they both noticed the gold medal that Star Twinkle was wearing and figured that he would be first place. But they were even more surprised that Twilight made it to the fifth place, which was also surprising for Star Twinkle.

“I paced myself, just like my book said. Then at the end, when all the other ponies were worn out, I sprinted to the finish,” Twilight explained.

That's pretty much what Star Twinkle was doing in the first half of the race, so it made sense to him.

“I don't believe it. Twilight beat us,” said Rainbow Dash with a shameful tone in her voice.

“Well, with all your horsing around, it was quite easy,” Twilight added.

That's what Star Twinkle was about to say but since Twilight already said it, there was no reason for him to get involved anymore. After all, they did seem to admit their mistake.

Suddenly, a familiar voice could be heard from everypony. It was Princess Celestia who visited Ponyville for the Running of the leaves Race. The two mares quickly apologized for their bad sportsmanship but the Princess was very forgiving. She could understand that they were drawn into the excitement of competition. But Friendship should always be more important than the competition.

That is something Star Twinkle could agree with but he still wondered why he was thinking like that all of the sudden.
He never thought much about competition or friendship at the same time. But this whole race seemed so familiar and important to him, so he didn't want to see that Applejack and Rainbow Dash ruined all this because of their fighting and cheating in the race

The Princess then pointed out that there were many trees left with their leaves on so Applejack suggested that she and Rainbow Dash can handle that. Rainbow Dash agreed happily and they both ran back closely together on the track to let the leaves fall down from the trees.

Now that sight was more to Star Twinkles liking, making him happy from the inside and drawing a smile on his face.
But in the same time, he also felt kind of lonely at this moment for unknown reasons.

He was then surrounded by everypony who cheered for him, for making the first place.
As usual, he felt a little uncomfortable being put in the spotlight but it also made him forget his sudden loneliness.
From where ever it came from...

At night, far away from Ponyville on a quiet grass plateau

A pony in a gray hood looked up to the sky watching the stars. A leaf was flying by him and grabbed his attention, reminding him of something.

“If I am not mistaken, today was the Running of the Leaves race.
I hope you found somepony to race with you as a friend,” he said to himself quietly. “After all, that's what the race meant to us back then,” he added.

There was a sad tone in his voice after saying that. He closed his eyes and thought about some things before saying something again.

“Someday we both can go back to those times,” he said quietly.

He opened his eyes again and concentrated on the stars, who almost hypnotized him.

“Yes. Someday,” he said with a smile on his face.

Author's Note:

Looks like there was something important in this race that Star Twinkle didn't want to loose but what could that be???

FORESHADOWING!

Please leave a review for anything you liked or disliked about this story.

There are a lot's of thumbs down coming in lately, so I would like to know what you didn't like about this story, so that I can improve.

Anyway I hope to see you back in the next chapter.

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