Blue Iris

by Kiskadee

Hope

Applejack woke up with a long yawn. She opened her eyes and looked around. Her room was still dark, it's too early in the morning. The pony rose from her bed and stretched, her bones crackling. She wasn't as young as she used to be, but she wasn't as old as her granny.

Applejack went to the bathroom, brushed her teeth and went to the kitchen for breakfast. The sun hasn't even risen yet, but the pony had already lost sleep completely. She looks out the window and can still see the stars in the sky, but now it was getting a little bit clearer. Soon the sun would rise and she would be able to enjoy the day with Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow Dash usually woke up with Applejack. It has become a habit now that the two live together. But the pegasus was stressing herself out so much. So many exercises, so much medicine.

"She must be tired." Applejack thought, cleaning the table.

She looked out the window again and decided to leave. Rainbow was still asleep, and there was nothing to do but be bored.

Outside was a vast field of blue irises. They were closed, but as soon as the sun rose, the flowers would bloom and paint the ground a beautiful shade of blue, just like the sky, just like her.

She, who is blue, but still carries all the colors of the rainbow, making Applejack's world more colorful.
Thinking about Rainbow Dash's face, shining with a smile, made Applejack's heart beat in a totally platonic way as she walked among the still sleeping irises.

The ground was soft and the air already smelled so good. They were both far from ponyville. Applejack had rented a cabin far from home. She wanted to enjoy the beginning of spring with her beautiful friend in peace.

Peace, yes. That was what the two needed. No nights spent crying, no arguments. Only the two of them, together, enjoying the blooming not only of the flowers but also of themselves.

The pony stopped and looked at the horizon, the sun finally deciding to show itself. It looked like he was spying on the pony that was walking among the flowers. The sky was now painted a beautiful shade of pink, just like her eyes. Full of color. Beautiful. She could drown herself in them.

Seeing that it was now time to start the day, Applejack trotted back to her cabin, heading for her room. Rainbow Dash's bed was next to her, just a small window separating the two.

Applejack approached the window that was hidden with a purple curtain and opened it gently, making the pegasus grunt in response. Applejack chuckled lightly and went to get the wheelchairs, placing them on the side of the bed. Despite the noise of the wheels, Rainbow did not move a muscle.

"C'mon, sweetie. I know you're awake," she said gently.

Rainbow Dash just mumbled something.

Applejack smiled and nuzzled Rainbow Dash's neck, who smiled and let out a yawn.

"G'mornin', sugarcube."

"Morning," said the pegasus, stretching. "Hmm... I'm hungry."

"I can imagine. You've been stressin' yourself too much lately."

"Doing my morning exercises is the only thing I can do anyways."

With nothing more to say, Applejack helped Rainbow out of bed, and adjusted her on the wheelchair. Arranging its belt so that it wouldn't hurt Rainbow's wings. Even with all that attention, Rainbow Dash grunted.

"I'll never get used to this."

Applejack wanted to say something gentle that would make Rainbow Dash happy again. But they stood silent.

After that, Rainbow Dash went to the bathroom to take care of herself while Applejack made a sandwich filled with zap apple jam. It was Rainbow's favourite. She took the box full of pills and placed it next to the sandwiches, along with a glass of water.

While Rainbow didn't return, Applejack sat in an old couch nearby and started reading a book. It was nothing special, just another fantasy story with warriors, leaders and territories. She found the book in Apple Bloom's bedroom, ready to go to the trash bin. But the cover caught her eye and so she decided to bring it with her.

Rainbow Dash arrived in the kitchen and took the pills with a sip, suppressing a groan. After washing her mouth with the water, she picked up one of the sandwiches and took a huge bite.

"Zap apple jam?!" She asked, surprised "But it's out of season! This must have cost a fortune!"

Applejack laughed and looked at the kitchen. Rainbow Dash's face was priceless.

"Nah, don' worry 'bout that. Enjoy!"

"Thanks, AJ."

Rainbow Dash continued to eat, savoring every little bit. When she was done, she cleaned the table and went over to Applejack, stopping right beside her.

"What are you reading?"

Applekack closed the book to read the cover. "Battle Cats. Volume 1, The Fire" Applejack read out loud "It's an ol' book 'bout cats that fight. It's a nice lil' thin'. I can see why Apple Bloom liked it."

"Hm... It reminds me that I have to buy those new books that came out. They were a hit, you know? I need to get my hooves on them when we go back home."

Applejack nodded. A small smile on her face but a storm on her mind. "Home". Would it really be a good idea to come back? After all, it seemed that the place sucked the colors of Rainbow Dash, if possible, it would even take her name, just because it didn't like her name and the meaning it carried.

Applejack didn't notice but she was staring at Rainbow Dash, who was staring back. The pegasus did not know whether to look away or not.

"Well... what are we going to do today?" Said Rainbow Dash, trying to break the ice "I know you brought us here to pass the time but... yeah. What do we do now?"

Rainbow Dash looked at Applejack like an impatient child. Applejack had planned this trip before the accident. If Rainbow Dash was healthy, the two would spend the day playing with the clouds. Rainbow Dash would fly as high as possible, gather as many clouds and create the most bizarre shapes, just so Applejack could try and guess what it was. If Applejack got it right, she got a point. If not, the point would go to Rainbow Dash. Whoever had less points washed the dishes, or at least that was the plan. The two always ended up doing the dishes together, talking about nothing and everything. The dishes were white but still carried so much color.

So much color.

"Caham. Equestria to Applejack? Hello?" Rainbow Dash touched Applejack's nose, who jumped and blushed a little.

"Sorry! I'm sorry, I was thinkin' 'bout... 'bout the past."

"The past," Rainbow echoed.

"Oh no!" Applejack thought, panicking. "Everythin' was goin' so well... i didn' mean to make you sad."

Applejack closed her eyes and put her hoof on her forehead. Her ears perked up again when they heard a familiar sound of wheels on the floor. She opened her eyes and saw Rainbow Dash opening the door.

"It's okay if we're not going to do anything, really!" She gave a slight smile, almost imperceptible. "But if we're not going to do anything, I'd rather be doing nothing in a nice place. You marked a trail, didn't you? Come on."

And with that, Rainbow Dash went out the front door and walked among the irises. Applejack put her book down and trotted after her friend. Rainbow Dash trotted at a very fast pace, and Applejack did the same.

Seeing her beautiful friend getting closer, Rainbow started to gallop, Applejack coming close behind. Even on a dirt trail, Rainbow still managed to keep up front, but Applejack was determined, and with everything she had, she followed her friend along the trail that ran between the irises. At that point, the sun was already up in the blue sky, where it belonged.

The two ran through the flowers. They had all bloomed, and made the air smell even sweeter. It was beautiful.

The two approached a hill, and slowed down to climb it with more ease. When they reached the top, Applejack had to sit down, panting. Rainbow Dash was on her side, panting just like her, a determined smile on her face. Ah, how Applejack loved that smile.

"This... is..."

"Shh, breathe. We'll... talk soon."

Rainbow Dash nodded, licking her lips and looking at the field of flowers below them. Taking a deep breath, she finally calmed down.

"I must admit, Applejack. The place you chose is beautiful!" Rainbow Dash said "But why did you choose this place? We could have gone to visit some of your cousins. I like them."

Rainbow Dash didn't take her eyes off the flowers, and Applejack didn't take her eyes off her friend. Her beautiful friend.

What was she going to say? What could she say without ruining their friendship? A funny pickup line that Rainbow would think was a joke?

Then Applejack finally looked around, into the horizon

"Hope."

"What?"

Applejack cleared her throat "Hope. Faith. It's the... meanin' of these flowers. I did some research with Twilight before I came. I thought... that it matched."

Rainbow Dash turned to face Applejack and raised an eyebrow. "Matched?"

Applejack looked back at her friend. She looked into her beautiful pink eyes. She could drown herself in them, but now she needed to choose the right words. She didn't want to lose that sea of ​​color.

"It's just... since that happened you've been so sad. I understand why but every day i hope that i will see you smilin' again. Not just when you eat zap apple jam, but also when you're... bein' you. I think that i jus'... i want to make you happy, Rainbow. Make you forget."

Rainbow Dash didn't take her eyes off Applejack, her ears down. She wanted to forget, too, but she couldn't. You can't forget something that is forged onto your skin. The memories of that day were forever marked on her legs, on her wings.

"No, Applejack. You don't understand!" She took a deep breath "Please don't take this the wrong way, but you were always stuck on the ground. I wasn't. You have no idea, Applejack. You have no idea what it is like to spread your wings, get off the ground, go as high as possible just to close them and feel the gravity pull you back. The adrenaline, the desire to spread your wings again to live! Your ancestors screaming at you, telling you to keep going... you don't know how that feels like."

Rainbow Dash closed her eyes. It seemed as if she was pleading for her wings to open, to take her elsewhere, but they didn't answer. They never answered.

"I... I really don' know..." Applejack replied, speechless.

"Yeah, I know you don't. I remember when i became a Wonderbolt. All I wanted to do was fly through all of equestria as fast as possible just to scream "My name is Rainbow Dash! I'm a Wonderbolt! Look at me!"" She raised her right hoof and made a glorious voice "But now that I'm not flying anymore... I don't know what I want. I love living with you, Applejack, but the last thing i want is to be a burden for you." Rainbow Dash lowered her head and felt tears rolling down her cheeks.

Applejack blinked. "Burden?" She thought. "Did i hear that right?"

Applejack raised Rainbow Dash's head with a hoof, drowning herself in that pink sea yet again.

"Rainbow... you are everythin' but a burden to me," Applejack felt her own tears wanting to come out. "I love living with you. As much as I love you. Please don' think of yourself that way. I don' mind havin' to wake up in the middle of the night to help you go to the bathroom, I don't mind having to help you bathe or straighten your feathers. I don' care 'cause I love it all, I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

Applejack hugged Rainbow Dash with all the love in the world. At that point, the two of them were crying. Many feelings hidden for months, years, even, were revealed, and their tears were free to do as they please.

The two stayed there, enjoying eachother's presence, until Rainbow Dash sniffed one last time and broke the hug, looking Applejack in the eye.

"Were you serious?"

"'Bout what?"

"About... loving me." Rainbow said with a certain shyness

Now that Applejack understood what she had said, she felt her cheeks burn, and she was sure she was as red as her older brother.

"Yes. I... i was serious. I do love you."

"I love you too." Rainbow Dash said with a smile.

At that moment, when Applejack looked at her beloved, she shone more than all the colors of the rainbow.

Author's Note:

When i say wheelchair, i mean one like Stellar Eclipse's, not an ACTUAL chair!
This is the first time i write something for the MLP fandom, and also the first time i've written in a year or so... i hope this is acceptable, atleast;
English is NOT my first language. Everything is foreign to me. If you see a typo, please tell me! It would help a lot

A special thanks to my friends Steph and Lena who read this for me and told me to never stop writing, and thank you for giving this short story a chance. It means a lot to me

Comments

[LunaTheFox]

It's wonderful that Rainbow Dash has such a caring and supportive (girl)friend. Most of us should only be so fortunate! This was all-around sweet and heart warming, and is a beautiful take on Rainbow losing her wings.

[SnowOriole]

Love this story! So sweet and gentle.

[Artist]

Cool story, but why are the ratings disabled?