Flash and Crash Rainbow Dash

by forbritisheyesonly

First published 9th of June, 2012

Standard Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie Shipfic with a tiny bit of adventure

When Rainbow Dash crashes through Pinkie Pie's roof she needs somewhere to stay for a few weeks as she recuperates. (Generic beginning I know) As Rainbow Dash starts to develop new feelings for Pinkie Pie she notices the latter's strange behaviors. When confronted secrets abound and adventures are had by all. Hope y'all like it.

Chapter 1

Author’s Note: This starts off super generic. I hope it progresses into something you like. I just kind of wrote what I wanted to read. Two things. I am terrible at commas. Terrible. Secondly this is my first fic ever and I am very nervous so please be nice to me ☺. Please.

Spiraling. Falling. Out of control. Rainbow Dash pulled up hard with her right wing, but it was too little too late, and she knew it. The only thing she could do was brace herself as she crashed through the roof of Sugarcube Corner. She landed directly on Pinkie’s dresser and lay there sprawled out and moaning. How had this trick gone so out of control? That stray gust of wind had been just enough to knock her off course and send her into a tailspin. Just before she lost control she saw a nearly blinding flash of light and then BOOM! She was hit with a slipstream that caused her to lose all control.

“Dashie!! So nice of you to drop in! You know you can use the door though right?” Pinkie giggled. Dash did not. “Oh no you are really hurt aren’t you!” With that Pinkie was bolting from the room. She came back moments later with the Cakes.

“Come on Rainbow Dash, We are taking you to the Hospital” cried Mrs. Cake with alarm.

“No I am all right, I can just ARGHHHHHH” Dash screamed as her legs buckled out from under her and she hit her head on the corner of Pinkie’s bed.

She awoke a few hours later in the hospital. She saw Pinkie pacing the other side of the room, her mane and tale hanging limply and some strange emotion on her face that Dash couldn’t quite put a hoof on. Suddenly, as if sensing her, Pinkie glanced up at Dash and saw her eyes open. Pinkie’s mane popped back into a cloud of fluff and she shot into the air.
“DASHIE!!!!” “I was so scared after you hit your head you wouldn’t wake up! I didn’t know what to do, I was so worried!” Pinkie squealed as she wrapped her hooves around Dash and nuzzled her neck.

“Pinkie get off” Dash winced, “You’re crushing me.”

“I’m sorry Dashie,” Pinkie complied but looked a little sad to let her go.
Dash couldn’t help but notice the pained look on Pinkie’s face. It was kind of strange that she had stayed behind at the hospital for so long when she should be working. And why was Pinkie so worried when she was knocked out? Why had her mane deflated? Dash shrugged it off as a friend worrying about a friend, but still, something in Pinkie’s eyes told her she could be wrong.
“How are you feeling Dashie?” Pinkie almost whispered. Why was she being so tender, Dash wondered?

“I’m fine just banged up a little.” Dash managed to wheeze. It hurt to talk, it hurt to breathe, everything hurt. A few moments later the nurse came in.

“Everything is looking okay Rainbow Dash. You sprained both wings and broke your left hind leg. Also you have a slight concussion.”

“Oh yeah Everything is A-okay” said an irritated Rainbow Dash.
Pinkie zoomed to her side. “Its okay! I’ll take care of Dashie!” What do you say Rainbow Dash? You can come stay with me! It will be fun. We can play games and I will make you cakes and pies and we can have a party when you are better and I will read you a bedtime story every night and…”
Pinkie Pie was not even breathing. Rainbow often wondered how she talked so much. If she needed bed rest then Sugarcube Corner was probably the worst place in the world to go, but Pinkie seemed so excited. Rainbow was the element of loyalty after all. Also aside from Fluttershy, Pinkie would probably make the best nurse out of the group. She was a great cook and could be very caring when she slowed down to breath every now and again.
“…and we can tell ghost stories and we can sing and even though you cant get out of bed we can probably find a way to prank some people and we can preteeeeend we are going on adventures and…”

“Pinkie Pie!” Rainbow used all the force she could muster to break off the endless stream of babble coming from the pink earth pony.

“Yes?”

“Yeah, sure I will come stay with you. Thanks for offering.”

Pinkie jumped up and summersaulted through the air and landed what seemed like a gravity defying long time later. “IM SO EXCITED!” Okay, Rainbow Dash thought. So Pinkie is excited. She loves having company so that makes sense. It must be the concussion making me overthink things.
Pinkie wheeled Dash out in a wheelchair some 4 hours later clucking sympathetically all the way home. “Im soooo sorry for what’s happened to you Dashie. I’m going to take really good care of you. You will see.” Once again Dash was struck by how sympathetic and serious Pinkie was being. Almost a Somber, completely unsmiling Pinkie. It was kind of strange but at the same time it made Dash smile. She liked to see this new side to her friend, and if she were being honest with herself Rainbow Dash did love the attention.
That night Pinkie Pie had made her a hot noodle soup and changed her wing bandages for her. They were pretty nasty. Pinkie groaned and Rainbow Dash had to laugh despite her intense pain. It was 20% grosser than any wound Rainbow Dash had ever had. It was pretty cool. If only it didn’t hurt so horridly. Pinkie only had the one bedroom but she was letting Rainbow Dash sleep in her bed (this had been a big argument but Pinkie had insisted). After the bandage changing Dash was very tired and Pinkie saw that she needed to sleep. She shooed her up to the bed and tried to tuck her in.

“Hey Get off of me I can do that myself!”

“But Rainbow I’m just trying to help!” Pinkie had growled through gritted teeth as she forced the struggling mare into bed. Probably not great for my wings to be wrestling with her like this, thought Rainbow Dash. After tucking her in, Pinkie kissed her on the cheek and gently nuzzled her neck. Dash was glad the room was dark because her cheeks glowed a bright red. Hey cut that out Dash that isn’t cool, she thought to herself.

“Dashie when you were hurt today I was really scared. I care about you so much and I was so so so scared that you weren’t going to wake up. Thank you…thank you for waking up.” Pinkie had begun to gently cry. Rainbow could only faintly make out the shimmering tears on her cheeks from the moonlight coming in the window and illuminating Pinkie.

“Hey Pinks, calm down. Everything is okay. Why are you crying?”

Pinkie wiped away her tears and walked over to her pallet on the floor. “I don’t know Dashie…I’m Sorry. Try to get some sleep okay?”

Dash couldn’t.

Chapter 2

The more Rainbow Dash though about it, the more she realized that she was probably overreacting. Maybe it was her concussion? Maybe she was just bugging out about being grounded for so long. Pinkie was always pretty affectionate and sensitive. Yes, yes Dash was being silly. It would have been weirder had Pinkie Pie not been crying as a matter of fact, Dash decided. Or, Dash thought, maybe I am just seeing what I might want to see. I like Pinkie a lot; maybe I just want to believe she cares about me more than our other friends. Maybe I just want to be her favorite. Pinkie Pie was certainly HER favorite. She loved Applejack but she knew they would always be too good at being rivals to be best friends. Twilight Sparkle was great, and Rainbow Dash loved reading Daring Do books with her, but she spent too much time cooped up in that library reading to keep up with the incredible Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy was a Pegasus who wouldn’t fly, and Rarity was always wanting to style her mane every four seconds. Rainbow loved all of her friends but Pinkie was the only one that could be her BEST friend. She was the only one who could keep up with her, without it becoming a competition. Rainbow laid awake pondering Pinkie’s behavior from the day. She finally concluded that it wasn’t even slightly out of the ordinary and that Pinkie would have treated any pony in Ponyville (or any of the outlying areas for that matter) in exactly the same way. Rainbow couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed that she wasn’t getting special treatment, but it was all okay. She was here staying with Pinkie and everything would surely be great. Rainbow Dash was really glad she had cleared up that little mystery for herself.
She closed her eyes and finally drifted off into some much needed, albeit fitful sleep. She dreamed that night of crashing into the room of each of her friends. Twilight Sparkle had yelled at her and left her on the floor as she picked up her books. Applejack had thrown apples at her head and laughed at her calling her Rainbow Crash. Fluttershy had skittered away screaming “ALIAN INVASION, HIDE!!!!!” Each friend had had equally sympathetic reactions. When she crashed into Pinkie’s house Pinkie had sat in the corner crying as Rainbow Dash laid in agony.
“My favorite pony in all of Ponyville is dead!” Pinkie was shrieking. “She was my bestestie bestest friend in all of Equestria!”
Rainbow Dash tried to call out to her, to tell her that she was okay but her throat closed up and nothing would come out except a weak gurgling noise. The scene faded and Dash crashed into Sugarcube Corner again. This time Pinkie rescued her but would barely look at her and just kept saying, “I wish one of my cooler and better friends would have visited instead.”
Dash jolted awake in a cold sweat to see that the room was empty other than herself.
“Get ahold of yourself Rainbow Dash. Why are you being so weird about this?” she said to herself.
Dash shook her head to stop it from spinning from the dream. Pinkie Pie has gone totally and completely out of her way to be nice to you because that’s the way she is and she is your friend. Stop acting like an emotional little school filly. Rainbow Dash was a little bit put out with herself for being so sensitive, even if it was just in her dreams, and maybe real life a little bit too. Celestia’s first light was just cresting the hill outside Pinkie’s window and Rainbow Dash looked around wondering where her friend was. That’s when she noticed a tray set on the table beside the bed with a note on it.

“Hey Dashie!! I hope you slept well, and I didn’t want to wake you up, but I needed to go bake for the morning customers! I brought up a batch of muffins, but you needed your rest so I left you asleep. You also looked so cute cuddled up all snuggly in the blankets! (Dash had blushed furiously at this but was a little indignant. Cute? She was Rainbow Dash; she wasn’t “cute”). I hope they aren’t cold when you get them. Even if they are they will still be good! You can just pretend they are hot! – YOUR BESTEST FRIEND EVER PINKIE PIE!!

Dash put down the note and picked up a muffin grinning stupidly. “See rainbow, Pinkie is a great friend,” she said to herself. She munched into the muffin greedily. It was a bit cold but still tasted absolutely wonderful. It was a chocolate muffin with chocolate chips and chocolate drizzled on top. Pinkie sure does love chocolate, Rainbow Dash thought. She hadn’t eaten since breakfast yesterday she realized, and she ate the whole tray of muffins. Her mind was starting to fill up with more and more that she needed to think about but the pain in her leg and wing was making it hard. Her head ached and she just wanted to go back to sleep now that her belly was full. The door burst open and four of her BFPs (best friend ponies) pranced in.
“Howdy sugarcube! We knew yah was feeling a mite under the weather so we thought we’d come cheer yah up!”
“Thanks girls. I am so happy you came! I have been cooped up since YESTERDAY! I am soooo bored.”
“We’re sorry Rainbow Dash. Look, I brought you the newest Daring Do book. This one doesn’t come out for another three weeks! I got it as a special favor from a friend in Canterlot after I heard about your accident.”
“Awesome! Thanks so much Twilight! You are the best!” well aside from Pinkie Pie of course, she thought to herself.
“But Rainbow Dash, I thought that reading was undeniably, unquestionably, uncool??” Twilight teased her. Then Twilight performed her best playfully over exaggerated gasp. “Rainbow Dash, are you an egghead!?” Twilight held the book just out of Rainbow’s grasp.
“You caught me Twilight I am an egghead and you are my queen, Queen Egghead Sparkle.”
All of the ponies laughed as they remembered Rainbow’s visit to the hospital when she learned reading could be fun. (Rainbow had made many hospital visits during her life) Twilight handed her the book and Rainbow’s eyes got as big as saucers when she saw the title: Daring Do and the Curse of the Crystal Chalice.
“OHMYGOSH Twilight this is gonna be so cool! Thank you so much.”
Applejack had brought Rainbow some delicious Apple Fritters and Fluttershy and Rarity played a couple of games of Dash’s favorite board game, Battlesky, with her.
Even Scootaloo dropped by to see if she could do anything for her idol Rainbow Dash. Rainbow entertained Scootaloo with stories of her greatest aerial accomplishments.
“…And that’s the story of the time I saved The Hearts and Hooves Day Parade by protecting the procession from a puffy cloud of poisonous flying pony-eating Piranhas.”
Rainbow did have a decided flare for storytelling.
Rainbow yawned and Twilight gave her an understanding look.
“We know you need your rest Rainbow, we will go so you can sleep. I am sure we will all come back tomorrow after we get off of work. And you will let us know if you need anything.”
“Thanks so much girls! You are all my very best friends!”
The room was silent again as her friends left and Rainbow was once again isolated with her contemplations. The visit from her friends reminded her that she didn’t need to be Pinkie’s favorite. They were all friends, and they all loved each other, and that should most certainly be good enough for her.
The silence of course, lasted only a few moments as the door creaked open.
“Dashie? Are you awake yet?” Pinkie Pie cautiously edged her head into the room. Rainbow Dash was very tired and on other occasions she may have considered laying there, eyes closed, feigning sleep. Dash, after all, napped more even than Feather Fluffer, who ran the pillow shop in Canterlot. She was so relieved to have made her discovery that she decided to answer and put off sleep a few more moments.
“Dashie?”
“Yeah Pinks I’m up.”
“Did you get the muffins I left for you?”
Dash sat up at this. She turned her head slightly sideways and stared at Pinkie. Pinkie dropped her eyes and shuffled her feet. “I just thought you might be hungry and all…” the end of the sentence trailed off into mumbles.
“Thank you so much Pinkie…for everything.” Dash tried to put a lot of feeling into those words. A lot of unsaid things that she wasn’t capable of saying needed to go into the look she gave Pinkie. She wasn’t exactly sure what she was trying to convey. Gratitude? No, it was something stronger. Something Deeper. It was something heavier that Dash could feel weighing on her, but she didn’t know what. She would have to look really deep to find the words to describe what she felt, and right now it was all giving her a headache. She wanted Pinkie to know how much she cared about her but she was trying to not slip into that other line of thinking again.
Pinkie Pie clearly was not on the same page as Rainbow Dash, though. She slowly raised her eyes from the floor. There were tears in them again. Seriously? What is going on with her. What..I don’t even??
“Im glad you liked them. I made them special for you.”
“Pinks, why are you crying? I don’t understand what has come over you lately but you keep crying and I wish I could help make you feel better. If you would just tell me or come give me a hug or something…”
Pinkie grinned until her face was split in two. She grinned that huge Pinkie grin that only Pinkie could muster. “Dashie! Nothing is wrong with me! I am the same ole Pinkie as ever. I have just been really worried about you and making sure that you are comfortable and not a Gloomy Gus in a rainstorm because you can’t fly!”
Pinkie’s smile certainly was all the convincing Rainbow needed. She did not want to look too deeply into this again.
“But why have you been worrying so much about me Pinkie? I know I am the most awesome pony you know but still…I am going to be fine you know”
“Because Rainbow,” Pinkie sighed, “Because I care about you so much ok. I couldn’t bear to see anything bad happen to you. It hurts me when I see you hurt.” She wasn’t crying this time but her gaze was intense and it was boring right into Rainbow Dash.
“I..uh..Pinks I,” Rainbow stammered. “I don’t know what to say, thank you.”
“Rainbow, I’m sorry, I, I didn’t mean to…well...whatever.” She was trailing off again. “Let me change your bandages and you can go back to your rest.” Now she almost seemed to be moping. Something was going through that pink ponies head but Rainbow had no idea what. Pinkie kissed her on the forehead and left the room. The more she thought about it the more her head hurt. She could no longer just brush off Pinkie’s behavior as normal. She was definitely off at this point. Not in the ways that Dash had seemingly imagined earlier though. Pinkie was not treating her any more specially than she would any other pony, but she was upset about something. Rainbow Dash realized that she had to find out what was wrong and fix it. That is what Pinkie would do for her. Pinkie would want me to smile if I was feeling like a “gloomy Gus in a rainstorm.” She just hoped it wasn’t her fault. She hoped that whatever was wrong wouldn’t lead to a decrease in attention from her pink friend. She realized it may be a little selfish but who doesn’t love kisses from a beautiful mare. Okay Rainbow no way you just thought that?! She is your friend. She is not beautiful. Well she is but you aren’t allowed to think that. But why not? Was it so wrong? A sharp throbbing pain in her wings brought her out of her insane internal ramblings.
“ARGHHHH” Dash screamed like a banshee.
Pinkie came running into the room. “What’s the matter Dashie?”
“It’s my wings I don’t know they are spazzing out bad.”
Pinkie jumped on the bed and started slowly massaging Rainbow’s wings. She rubbed the bases with a careful strength. Kneading gently and pressing firmly on the knots that were practically jumping through Dash’s skin. Oh it felt so good. Dash was suddenly very glad the bandages were there. She felt her wings pressing firmly against the wrappings trying to extend out to their full length. She couldn’t suppress her groans of pleasure as the intense pain was slowly massaged from her body. Pinkie could probably hear them too. After several minutes Pinkie jumped down and looked at Dash pointedly.
“Did that help, is it still cramping?”
“Umm no its all better now, thanks.” Dash mumbled. “I must have moved them wrong.”
She couldn’t believe she reacted the way she did. Pinkie must notice her blushing at this point. She felt pretty embarrassed but she hoped it wasn’t as bad as she thought it was.
“Dashie you poor thing. I can do that for you every night if it would help.” Dash considered this.
“That would be awesome!” Dash blurted. Dash didn’t mean to seem so enthusiastic but it sounded wonderful. She was definitely not going to turn down this offer. “Where did you learn to do that anyway?”
“I am just naturally good at things like that?” Pinkie said with a wink.
“You can do that for me every day forever if you want to Pinks. That felt better than flying through a thundercloud, which feels a lot better than it sounds by the way.”
“You will have to fly me through one sometime! Well it has only been two days since your accident so you still should be getting some rest. That concussion isn’t just gonna heal itself you know! Sleep tight Dashie!”
As Pinkie was leaving the room Dash called after her, “Pinkie Pie!”
“Yes, Dashie?”
“Thank you so much for everything Pinkie, you are the best friend a mare could have” She hesitated, trying not to seem too transparent. “You know you can always come to me if anything is bothering you.”
Pinkie looked at Dash with her brilliant Pinkie smile and said, “It’s ok Rainbow Dash! I will keep that in mind! Now get some sleep.”
Good, Pinkie may be mopey some of the time but she wasn’t mad at her at least.
Tonight she very easily fell into sleep.

Chapter 3

*Author's note* I have good news and bad news. The good news is I think I may be getting better at including details. (maybe not though i am sure you will let me know.) The bad news is a am starting my new job tomorrow and so updates might be a little bit slower than they have been so far. Thank you all for reading and commenting. You are lovely and wonderful.
Chapter 3

Rainbow Dash was beginning to go stir crazy. It was her sixth day grounded and her leg was still a few weeks away from her being able to walk on it. Six days in bed might as well have been six months to an action pony like Rainbow Dash. Six days felt like six lifetimes, with no end in sight. She had taken to tossing a ball she had found at gummy and letting him bring it back. Toss, return, toss, return, toss, and return. The monotony was almost stifling. Rainbow could feel it pressing in on her. It was mind-numbingly boring, but at least she was moving her prized body just a little bit. That was the worst part about the whole thing. She felt like her pristine, athletic body was suffering. Her sleek and toned muscles were deteriorating from lack of use and her back was beginning to hurt from all the “rest” she was getting. Rainbow hated not being in the skies. She often had to look away from the window because it hurt too much to watch the clouds drifting lazily by, without her. The sky was her domain, not a feather bed on top of a bakery. She was meant for a life of danger and a life of daring stunts. Dash should be on those clouds. Corralling them, napping on them (although she wasn’t much in the mood for napping), or simply smelling them would be good enough. She missed the smell and feel of clouds under her. To just whiff the clean, crisp scent of a white puffy cloud was tantalizing. If she could, she would gather every cloud in the sky beneath her and fly through them until they were completely broken up. Dash closed her eyes and contemplated the cool blue skies full of clouds. She thought about the condensation they left on her skin when she flew through them. The puffy, white wonderland of blissful glory! Missing the clouds was nothing compared to missing the skies themselves. She daydreamed about zipping strait up, up climbing higher and higher until she could no longer see the ground and then dive bombing all the way back to earth. Her wings pressed against her body for maximum speed and then spreading them at the very last moment, pulling up just before she smashed into the ground.

Sigh.

Yes, Rainbow Dash missed the skies. She missed the adrenaline rushing through her body. She missed seeing everything below her, all the ponies looking like ants. That exhilaration, the blood pumping through her veins as her muscles rippled in the wind. That feeling could be obtained in only one way. But here she was sitting in bed.

Her friends had been by to visit almost every day and Scootaloo seemed to drop by at least once a day to talk to Rainbow about how awesome and daring and wonderful Rainbow was (Rainbow very much enjoyed these visits). Pinkie had been a great caretaker but Rainbow Dash had never spent this much time on the ground. As great as Pinkie was there was nothing she could do to help Rainbow Dash fly, and she could never understand what it was like for her to be stuck to the soil. To be tethered and lose that freedom that Dash so strongly craved. She longed to be unfettered and soar into the skies. Like a mouse caught in a glue trap. Like a bird in a cage. She tried to explain it to Pinkie as not being able to eat cake for 3 or 4 weeks.

“POOOOOR Dashie!! No cake for 3 weeks?!?! I would Die! Oh dash it is horrible to think about. I need to go eat some cake right now to forget that you ever even said such a terrible thing!!”

Dash thought she had probably gotten her point across. Pinkie loved cake as much as Dash loved flying if that was possible.
Pinkie was spending a lot more time with her lately though, and Rainbow Dash had to admit that she liked that. Time with Pinkie was infinitely more enjoyable than her time spent alone. One rainy day Pinkie was in the room blowing up balloons for a party while Rainbow Dash threw things at Gummy. Books, pillows, articles of clothing, whatever she could reach really. Gummy never seemed to mind. He just caught each item and tried to chew on it. She listened with great entertainment as Pinkie talked about her day.

“…And I’M really, really happy because we just got a new shipment of special sprinkles in from Canterlot, but they just came through Canterlot and they are really from somewhere far away that I have never heard of and they are all the different colors of the rainbow, hmm kind of like your mane! They are really big and kind of sour, I think the package calls them Skitless or Skitlays I’m not sure how to pronounce it but every time I eat them I think OOOh I need to give these to Rainbow Dash she might like some! But I put them on a cake today and it was so so so delicious and I want to eat them every single day forever but the cakes will only let me eat some because “those are for the customers Pinkie Pie, you cant eat all of them”…” She finished with a spot-on impression of Mr. Cake’s stern voice.

Rainbow couldn’t help but smile as Pinkie Pie babbled on. This was Pinkie Pie where she belonged. In her element. Pinkie with a captive audience was like Rainbow Dash in the sky. She was always so happy about everything and made everything seem so fresh and new. Rainbow was glad to provide the audience for Pinkie's crazy little theater production she called a life, but she saw a golden opportunity for a little competition, just to keep my body on its toes, she told herself.

“Hey Pinkie, throw a few of those over here I’ll help you.”

“OKAY!!”

Rainbow Dash started blowing up balloons. “Hey Pinkie, lets make this a contest. First pony to blow up 20 balloons wins!”

“READY, SET, GO!!”

Rainbow Dash blew up her first one in 10 seconds flat. She didn’t expect to win but she was starting to think she could hold her own. The contest, as small and meaningless as it was, was exhilarating to Rainbow Dash. The sky was where she was most at home but competition made her thrive. She hadn’t done anything like this in a long time. Her lungs burned as she blew as hard as she could. She looked over at pinkie who was already on her seventh balloon. How does she do that?! Rainbow Dash wondered. She wasn’t even short of breath. I guess they don’t call her Ponyville’s premier party pony for nothing, Dash thought. After only another few seconds Pinkie had blown up her last balloon, and she had even blown up the final one and twisted it into the shape of a giant cake with candles on top.

“I win!!! What’s my prize?!” Pinkie was bouncing around the room kicking ballons everywhere as Gummy tried desperately to pop them in his toothless mouth. Dash had to concede defeat as Pinky pumped a hoof in the air to signify her victory.

“I guess I’m no match for you Pinkie the pink party pony.” Dash said her name with gusto as if she were an announcer at a Wonderbolt’s show.

“That’s right you aren’t!” Pinkie screamed whilst jumping across the room now nose to nose with Dash.

“Sooooooo what’s my prize Dashie?! Contests always have prizes you know.”

“Umm I don’t know Pinks, how about a hug??”

Pinkie obviously liked that idea because she threw her forelegs around Rainbow Dash. Rainbow could feel her breath on her neck and the heat of her body pressed firmly against hers. After a few seconds (much too short for Rainbow Dash) Pinkie Pie broke away. As she did this Rainbow caught a reflection of her mane in Pinkie’s eye and her heart wheeled. It was like taking flight as she watched her multi-colored mane dance across the backdrop of purest blue in Pinkie’s eye. Pinkie Pie seemed to notice and shifted her eyes to the floor, now refusing to meet Rainbow’s hypnotized gaze.

“What are you staring at Dashie?” Pinkie asked with caution.

“It’s just that your eyes, I never noticed it before.”

“Noticed what, Dashie?” Pinkie said nervously as she shifted her body about.

They are so blue, so bright. They look just like the sky, it is like you filled your eyes with freedom and beauty and everything that makes life wonderful and I see myself reflected in those pools of deepest blue. When I look into them I feel like I am flying again,Rainbow thought.

Her heart started pounding as she stared into Pinkie’s eyes. The words Rainbow thought and the ones she actually stammered out were very different though.

“They are..perfect..just like the sky. I feel like I am flying when I see them.” Rainbow kicked herself for acting so sappy, but Pinkie’s eyes had mesmerized her. It was like nothing she had ever seen before. No, that wasn’t true. It was like nothing she had ever seen before from the ground.

Suddenly those same eyes Rainbow had been admiring were brimming with tears. They looked at the ground and back up at Rainbow Dash.

“Please, Don’t Rainbow. Just...please…stop” Pinkie was almost whimpering. She was pleading, as if Rainbow Dash were physically torturing her.

“Pinkie what is the matter? What did I do? I am not trying to upset you? I…I…that is just how I feel.”

Pinkie ran out of the room sobbing. Dash could not understand what had gone wrong. Looking into Pinkie’s eyes for that moment had touched her heart and had made her feel like she was soaring through the clouds, the wind in her mane. But she had somehow hurt Pinkie. Pinkie could be so random sometimes, but maybe that was why Dash loved her. Wait, what? You didn’t just think that. You don’t love her? Do you? Dash had never thought about another mare in that way, especially not one of her friends. But could she? Would that be a bad thing? Maybe she did. She knew that she had had feelings like this towards Pinkie before but she had never really connected them to love. She had only thought of Pinkie Pie as a friend. Her reactions to Pinkie over the past week told Dash that maybe deep down she did feel something deeper for Pinkie. In retrospect it seemed very clear that these feelings ran deeper in her heart than friendship. Over the past few years of their friendship Rainbow couldn’t help but remember how many good times she had had with Pinkie. She thought back to the time Pinkie had saved Ponyville from the Parasprites. All day long as she and the other girls had tried every trick they knew to get rid of them Pinkie had just kept asking for instruments. “You are so random!” Dash had said, meaning it in not the nicest of ways. But later on Pinkie proved to know exactly what she was doing as she led the problematic pests out of the city. There was always a method to Pinkie’s madness and once you got to know her well enough you could usually figure it out by the end. Rainbow, of course, felt she understood Pinkie Pie better than anyone but whatever was going on right now was beyond her. That didn’t matter though, because just like with the Parasprites in the end everything would be clear and Dash would understand what was going on. She hoped. Perhaps this was what she loved most about Pinkie. Everyday with her was a mystery, every moment a new challenge, but one worth taking. It made her exciting. No pony ever knew what Pinkie was going to do next. No matter how Dash looked at it she could come up with only one conclusion.

“I love Pinkie Pie.” She said the words out loud.

She was very surprised to find that she wasn’t surprised at all. Maybe she had known it all along but would only now admit it to herself. She had spent more time with Pinkie than any of her other friends so it only made sense. Or maybe they were brand new feelings and she was just projecting them on to the past. She had no idea. The only thing she now knew for sure was that she loved Pinkamena Diane Pie and that she wanted to be with her more than anything. Dash had very little experience with relationships. She had once had a summer fling with a wild, young Pegasus colt from flight camp. When she thought about it though, she couldn’t even remember his name. She had never been too interested in him; maybe she should have known then that she would fall for a mare. He had meant very little to her and she had definitely not initiated it. After thinking for some time Dash realized that that was her main problem. How DID she initiate something like that with Pinkie Pie? She supposed that is what she had been doing when she asked Pinkie for a hug..maybe..But not the eyes thing, that was all truly spur of the moment and strait from Dash’s heart (which was quite big despite what she would have you believe). Dash realized with a shudder that she had been flirting with Pinkie. Any other time asking for a hug would have been entirely normal, but Dash knew she had had entirely different motives. Dash knew of only one way to let Pinkie know how she felt.
She had to tell her. She didn’t know exactly how, but she knew that she had to let Pinkie know. The last time she had tried to tell Pinkie something nice Pinkie had run from the room crying. She decided the best thing to do would be to face that chance and just tell her. No point in beating around the bush. Pinkie didn’t much understand figurative language and subtleties anyway Rainbow thought with a grin. Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash were not ponies to hint around, they were ponies of action. She couldn't do it now though. Not right after what had just happened. She needed to give Pinkie time to calm down (and probably herself as well). Rainbow Dash decided to take a nap to try to get her mind off of things for a little while. She closed her eyes as she realized just how tired she really was. Rainbow Dash past into a restless sleep. As she tossed and turned her dreams became nightmares.
She was in a sterilized and white hospital room. It was blindingly white, devoid of any color besides that of her own mane and coat. The doctor walked into the room and shook his head with a sigh.

"I am sorry Rainbow Dash, but you will never fly again."

"NO!!!! Doctor there's gotta be something I can do!?!" Dash pleaded with him as she choked back her tears.

Suddenly the doctor transformed into a grey, colorless version of Pinkie Pie.
"I am sorry Rainbow Dash, but you can't fly and I don't love you. I can barely be in the same room with you." Pinkie then
twisted her face into one of the worst pain and hurt.

Rainbow Dash awoke with a start and wiped her tears from her cheeks. What a terrible nightmare. She was shaking with panic at what Nightmare Pinkie had said, and she felt that if she didn't tell her pink friend how she felt soon she was going to explode. She knew that now was not the best time, but she couldn't wait any more. It was now or never.

“PINKIE P-“ Rainbow yelled and the Pink earth pony seemed to materialize in the doorway the moment she started to scream her name. That’s Pinkie for you thought Dash.

“Yepparoony Dashie? What can I do for you?” She was much more cheery at this point than she had been earlier in the day. It was startling to Dash how Pinkie could go from crying to jovial within a few hours. She showed no signs of the lachrymose displays of earlier. Dash considered her improved mood to be a good omen and decided to proceed.

“How did you get up here so fast?” Rainbow’s curiosity was distracting her.

“I was done working so I was already on my way up to see if you need anything.” Pinkie chirped.

“Well Pinks I have something I kind of want to talk to you about.”

“Yep Dashie?!”

“Well Pinkie I have been thinking a lot lately.” Rainbow stopped and considered what she was going to say. “I realized that I really love you. Like not in a friendship is magic kind of way but like an I want to kiss you kind of way and it has taken me so long to realize it but now I finally know and I think that I have probably felt this way about you for some time. You are just so Random and fun and you are the only pony I have ever met who can keep up with me. I don’t know how you feel about it but I would really like it if maybe we could go on a date sometime or something maybe I don’t know if you wanted to or something…”

Rainbow Dash spit out the whole paragraph without breathing. It proved to be a lot more difficult than she thought it was going to be. All the while she was talking she was staring down at her feet; she could not bear to look at Pinkie while she said these things. She looked at Pinkie Pie for some sign that she had heard her. She hoped for a smile but wanted to see anything, just some recognition of some kind.

All at once huge streams of tears gushed from Pinkie’s Eyes. A small puddle was forming in the floor and Pinkie looked horror struck. The look that had crossed Pinkie’s face was like something directly from Dash’s worst nightmare. Not any nightmare from a scary movie, but one in which she hurts the pony that means the world to her. The nightmare where she makes the mare that she loves cry and hurts her heart. That look tattooed itself onto Dash’s brain and refused removal. Dash felt numb. Her arms fell limply to her sides as her eyes welled with tears. This was not going as well as she had hoped. Pinkie bolted from the room. A few minutes later Dash watched out the window as a streak of Pink vanished over the hill away from Ponyville. Where was she going?

She had just told Pinkie Pie how much she loved her, and Pinkie had cried and run away. The thought sunk in as she blinked away tears.

“Rainbow?” Mr. Cake ascended the stairs. “Rainbow, Pinkie has left and she left this note. She seemed really upset. You can continue to stay here as long as you need to. I hope everything is okay, but she didn't tell me where she was going or when she would be back.”

“Rainbow? Rainbow? Can you hear me?”

Rainbow Dash slowly came to at the sound of Mr. Cakes voice. She opened her eyes and saw him staring down at her concernedly.

“Rainbow are you OK? You passed out when I started talking.”

“Yeah Mr. Cake I am fine, I just, I guess I am just really upset. Let me see that note please.”

Dashie…I don’t know what to do. I am leaving until you can get better and go back home. I have done something terrible. If you found out you would never want to see me again. I just can’t be near you right now. Please don’t come look for me. I’m sure Scootaloo will be more than happy to take care of you. Good bye, Dashie. The note was nearly unreadable as Pinkie had scrawled it in only a few seconds and the ink was smudged with tears.

So Pinkie Pie was feeling…? Guilty? Maybe she did love Dash! Maybe if Dash could find her she could still fix this!

She had to go to her…but how?

Chapter 4

*Please excuse the rather obvious and shameless references in this chapter. Couldn't resist could I?*

Pinkie Pie was gone. Rainbow Dash could not even begin to understand what had happened. One second she was professing her deepest secret, the innermost desires of her heart, a thing that a pony like Rainbow Dash rarely (if ever) did. The next moment the mare she loved was running from the room crying. When she first read the note her mind went into overdrive, considering the where, when, how and why. It only took a few seconds of this for it to crash and she sat in the bed staring blankly at the ceiling. Rainbow was barely emotional as her body and mind were still in a state of shock. She was lying there unmoving and unmoved. Her eyes unblinking and her mouth hanging open in a way that gave her a slack jawed appearance. She looked as if she were an invalid. It was too much for her to process. After almost forty-five minutes of a complete lack of any activity her brain began again to ask questions. This time it came much slower so as not to overload. The most important one came first, where was Pinkie Pie? She could be anywhere for all Dash knew. Maybe one of her friends could help. But she knew Pinkie better than anyone excepting the cakes, and Mr. Cake said he had no idea where she was going. Rainbow had seen her running out of town though and there are parts of Equestria that are very dangerous for a young pony to be traveling alone in. Pinkie Pie could be in trouble and it could be Rainbow Dash’s fault somehow. She had to find out where Pinkie was. It was imperative that she do it and fast. But how could she possibly find Pinkie? How could she find the world champion of hide and seek for twelve years in a row back when she was a filly (it was true, Dash had seen the trophies). In fact Pinkie Pie still held the world record for longest time taken to be found. She had hidden in somepony’s hat! She hadn’t even known it was a competition the first year she entered. She thought she was just playing a game. Rainbow Dash remembered Pinkie Pie’s account of the game with a smile. Then shook her head to clear the distractions, come on focus Dash. She didn’t see a way short of magic that she could ever find a Pinkie Pie that didn’t want to be found. As she racked her brain for answers the previous thought kept looming in her mind as if there were something important about it. She tried to push it off and get fresh thoughts, to churn her mind around until a new idea surfaced. It kept coming back up. No way short of magic.

”That’s it!”

“Magic!”

“Twilight Sparkle!”

Rainbow Dash’s shouted words punctured the silence that had been dominating the room for the last hour. If anyone can help me find her it will be Twilight. Rainbow Dash had never heard of Twilight talking about a tracking spell or anything like that, but she could do a lot of great magic so there was always the chance that she could. Ill just go and…oh wait I have a broken leg. I can’t walk there. I can’t fly there. I don’t know any way to get a message to her. Rainbow Dash sank her head, distraught, dejected, and defeated. Rainbow Dash was finally in tears now. As terrible as everything seemed, Rainbow was never a pony to give up. She had once finished a 400-meter relay on a broken ankle. Even after every other pony had crossed the finish line Rainbow Dash kept limping along, because only losers gave up. Impossible odds, a hide and seek world champion to find, a broken leg and sprained wings. One of the biggest challenges of her life. Dash knew that she was the only pony in the world who could do it. The first order of business was finding a way to get to Twilight. She knew some of her friends would be by later, but she couldn’t wait the long. For all she knew Pinkie Pie had already fallen into the hands of some murderous monsters or vile villains! She had no time to sit and wait.

“Rainbow Dash! I just ran into Mr. Cake at the market!” Scootaloo had burst through the door scaring Rainbow Dash nearly out of the bed and was quickly followed by her friends Sweetie Bell and Applebloom. “He said that you needed someone to take care of you because Pinkie Pie left, I can do whatever you need me to!”

“CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS….NURSES!!” The three shouted in unison.

“Scootaloo! Your scooter! Can I borrow it?!” Rainbow Snapped at Scootaloo

Scootaloo looked slightly crestfallen. Dash was not nearly as excited as she wanted her to be. And Sweetie bell and Applebloom dropped their thermometers with a skeptical look.

“You shouldn’t be getting out of bed Dash!”

“Hey! This is an emergency!” Rainbow shouted.

“Sounds like an adventure! Where are we going?” Scootaloo replied with an excited jump, completely forgetting her disappointment from earlier.

“I am going to the library” Dash said with grim Determination. Scootaloo's mouth dropped open in an expression of shock

“Okay Rainbow Dash, if it is important I will help you, but you can’t drive there alone. You will have to ride in the wagon in the back, and I don’t know how to get you out of here onto it.

“CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS…ENGINEERS!” The three shouted and bolted into different directions. Sweetie Bell ran back up the stairs a little while later with several towels from the bakery and several long strands of licorice. She then rummaged through the drawers and pulled out all the extra sheets and blankets. Scootaloo and Sweetie Bell had somehow managed to push the scooter up the stairs. Sweetie Bell pulled out a sewing kit and started sewing all of the items she assembled into a long rope.

“I learned this from Rarity.” She smiled proudly.

After she finished the rope Applebloom tied it into a lasso and threw it out of the window and lassoed the mailbox outside. They then put a board they had pulled from the headboard up against the windowsill. Sweetie Bell made an extra piece of rope and tied one end of it to the scooter.

Rainbow Dash eased out of the bed into the wagon with Sweetie Bell and Applebloom.

Scootaloo was about to do a stunt and impress the one and only Rainbow Dash! Could life get any better than this? She revved up the scooter and shot out of the window. For a moment they soared through the air with nothing supporting them. Applebloom screamed as they began the twenty foot drop from the upstairs window. For a moment Dash felt like she was flying again, but this only reminded her of Pinkie and she could not enjoy it. She had more pressing matters at hand. Sweetie Bell hooked the zipline leading from the window to the mailbox with the other short piece of rope as they came level with it and they zip lined all the way down until the scooter hit the ground with a powerful thud. Rainbow cringed as a jolt ripped through her body. Scooters are definitely not designed for tricks and stunts, Rainbow Dash thought.
Scootaloo put the breaks on and slowed down the scooter.

“Everybody okay? Everybody ready?” She asked.

“LETS DO IT!” The two fillies in the back shouted. Rainbow was still reeling from the shockwave of pain going through her wings and leg.

Scootaloo zipped off towards the library. They arrived in only a few seconds with Scootaloo pulling out everything the engine had.

“TWIIIIIILIGHT!! I need you NOW!” Rainbow shouted as Scootaloo crashed the scooter directly through the front door much to Twilight’s chagrin.

“Rainbow you are supposed to be in bed not out dare deviling! And look at this mess you have made!” Twilight walked around picking up books and chastising Dash for a few more minutes. Well I guess some dreams do come true Dash thought with a rye smile.

“Twilight! I need your help! Pinkie Pie ran away and she left this note! Do you have a spell that can help me find her?”

Twilight Sparkle read the note and a deep frown formed across her face. Her brow furrowed as she struggled to make out some of the more streaked words.

“Cutie Mark Crusaders. Thank you for all of your help, but I think you better leave this to us now.”

“But Twilight! We are big ponies we want to get our cutie marks in recon missions!” Sweetie Bell squeaked.

"Yeah Twilight! I reckon we oughta help!" Applebloom piped up.

Twilight paid no head to their pleadings as she shooed them out of the door.

“Well, this does seem serious. I guess I can use this note in a location spell. I just take an item that the pony you want to find has recently touched-“

“Yeah, yeah that is great Twilight just do it!” “Find her”

Okay but it will take me at least until nightfall to finish. It is a very complicated spell.

“Fine! Just please, Twilight hurry. Please.”

“I will do my best, but it is very complicated and it may take all night, one can never know how long it will take.”
Twilight’s horn lit up and she closed her eyes. Rainbow saw her poke the note with her horn and then do a series of complicated sweeping motions in the air with it.

Twilight was sweeping the whole of Equestria with her magic. There was a huge topographical map in her mind that she magically picked over with a fine toothcomb. Whenever the note lined up with Pinkie Pie’s coordinates they should link due to her connection with the piece of paper. If this didn’t work Twilight knew of only one other solution, one other very complicated solution.

After hours of searching Twilight was making no progress. She had started with a 4-mile radius around Ponyville, thinking Pinkie could not have gone much further than that yet. She eventually broadened her search to eight and then sixteen miles. Apparently the connection between Pinkie and the note was not strong enough for a lock to be made over this distance. Twilight frowned and did one last sweep over Ponyville to be sure she didn’t miss anything. Pinkie Pie should be a lot easier to find. She should be giving off a boisterous energy. Twilight knew of one other way to find her, but it was very complicated and she would have to go to Sugarcube Corner in order to perform it. Rainbow Dash was asleep, curled up on the couch, clutching a pillow to her chest in an effort to gain some security. Deciding to let her sleep, Twilight ran as fast as she could to the bakery. She tore apart Pinkie’s bedroom searching for one small thing. Twilight spent the better part of a half hour looking for just one of Pinkie’s bright pink hairs. At one point she thought she found one in the bed, but it was a red one from Rainbow’s mane. Twilight finally went to Pinkie’s bathroom and looked in the one surefire place to find one. The shower drain. She cringed as she pulled a long Pink hair from the drain cover.

“Ew! Ew! Ew!” Something about hair in the shower is just way grosser than regular hair, Twilight thought. Strangely enough there was no hairbrush around to get one off of. But then again, Twilight thought, it isn’t as if Pinkie Pie ever brushes her hair. Twilight picked up the hair. She also took a bar of soap from Pinkie’s bathroom. She would have liked to have a fresher hair, but this was the best she could do. She hurried back to her library home so she could mix the potion.
Twilight had been learning about the art of potion making from Zecora ever since the incident with the Poison Joke plants she and her friends had gotten into. Twilight had been watching Zecora mix a special tracking potion before her second lesson. Zecora was using the husk of her remaining Amethyst to mix the potion and look for more

“Can that potion work for finding ponies? Can I learn it?” Twilight had asked

“To find little pony folk this potion can be used.
But it is quite advanced, and has a very short fuse.”

“Zecora, what does that even mean?” Twilight had asked with a huff.

“It is a hard potion to make and if you spoil the brew.
It will be a mistake you will not live to rue.”

Desperately tricky to make, disastrous should you get it wrong, Twilight had thought. She had still watched the potion making and taken careful notes. She knew it was risky, but two of her friends needed her help. After Zecora had finished her potion it had turned a pale pink color and Twilight could look into it and see the location of the Amethyst that Zecora was seeking.
Twilight breathed in deeply as she began mixing the ingredients together in a large silver cauldron: bark from a tree in the Everfree Forest, a wisp of cloud (she had asked Dash to procure this for her not a fortnight ago), a few different types of mushrooms, Hawk feathers, Nimroot, and Juniper Berries. The last ingredient was pinkie’s Hair and a few of the soap shavings. These things served as the personal identifier for Pinkie. The ingredients had to be cut and diced just so and added in exactly that order. They then had to be stirred and on the fire for exactly 43.78 minutes. She was supposed to be stirring clockwise at the rate of 50 stirs per minute for the first 20 minutes. Then a break. Then 30 stirs per minute for the final 13.78 minutes. Twilight got out her stopwatch. All told it took her 4 hours just to get all of the ingredients cut properly and added to the brew. She watched in awe as it began first to turn a delicate shade of pink and then gave way to a crystal clear to a shimmery silver, it changed yet again into a crystal clear image and began giving off the scent of an overcooked cake.

Twilight shook Dash awake.

“There is something you need to see Rianbow.”

“Okay, Twilight, I am ready.” Rainbow was struggling just to talk.

Twilight led her over to the cauldron and gestured for Dash to look down inside it. They both looked down and were met with a vision.

Pinkie Pie was sitting in a room with her head beneath the pillows. The room had gray walls and a gray ceiling. Suddenly a white pony with a gray mane pulled up into a tight bun walked in. “Pinkamena do you want anything to eat for dinner?” Pinkie pulled her head up. Her mane hung around her face like a sheet of ice and her eyes were puffy and red from crying. The image became hazy and began to break up. Twilight turned to Rainbow Dash and saw that her eyes were filling with tears.
Twilight waited to see if Rainbow Dash would say anything. After a few minutes she cleared her throat.

“I guess she went to her parent’s rock farm. It is only a few miles outside of Ponyville, but we will have to go through the Everfree forest. If we leave in the morning it will be a lot safer.”

“NO! Pinkie needs me and we are leaving right now! If you don't want to come just heal my leg so I can go.”

“But Rainbow you know that my healing magic isn’t very powerful. You will heal a lot better if you wait and let it heal on its own.” Twilight begged with her eyes for Dash to see reason.

“I don’t care. I don’t care if after this I can never walk again. I am going to get Pinkie Pie right now.” She had spoken the words calmly but with force. She was clearly not in the mood to debate.

Twilight opened her mouth to refuse, but she saw that it was no use as Rainbow’s face was filled with purpose and grim determination.

“Okay Rainbow, but I want you to know that it might not work. And that leg may never be the same when I am done.”

“Yeah but at least I will still have my wings” Dash said in an effort to console both herself and Twilight.

“Alright then get ready and hold still.”

Twilight’s horn once again began to glow. This time it wasn’t a faint purple but a blinding flash that lit the whole room. Rainbow felt a very sharp pain in her leg and a strange compressing sensation. Twilight was using her magic like a welder to re-fuse the bone at the break. She carefully brought the two bones together, acutely aware of Dash’s sharp inhalations and gasps of pain. She carefully bonded the broken fragments together, trying not to ruin the leg or cause any damage. She worked her magic with the precision of a skilled surgeon. Twilight usually wasn’t great under pressure, but something within her took over and she knew that she was Rainbow Dash’s only hope. After fusing most of the bones together she went to take on the biggest part. That was when she realized that the growth plate in the leg was completely smashed and beyond her skill to heal and put into working order. She fused the bones together in a very fragile way, noting that that leg would probably never grow again for Rainbow Dash. She once again did a once over, correcting small chips and adding magic to the places that looked weak. Her healing magic left a lot to be desired and the bond looked like it would only hold for a month or two. Probably less with Rainbow Dash’s intense lifestyle. What seemed like a lifetime went by (it was actually more like two hours) and Dash’s leg went numb and the room was once again washed with pale moonlight. Rainbow opened her eyes and then gingerly flexed her leg. It had very little strength and was stiff with disuse. She tried a walk around the room but had a considerable limp.

“Rainbow Dash, that leg is going to need significant rehabilitation before you will be able to do anything on it, I am afraid.”

“Twilight. Pack some food and a few blankets. I am leaving now, with or without you.” Twilight knew from the look on Rainbow’s face that she shouldn’t argue. That arguing would be an exercise in futility. She packed a few apples and some muffins into her saddlebags along with a few first aid supplies and some other essential items.

“Okay Rainbow Dash, let’s go. I can't let you go alone.”

As the two ponies stepped outside of the library, they were met with a perfect summer night. The air was crisp and warm and the smell of dew forming on grass was very pleasant. It could be just a normal night for the ponies if it weren't for what they were about to do. Twilight, taking note of the moon's position and the dew forming estimated that they were only a few hours away from sunrise. It was still powerfully dark though, as the moon was barely a sliver of light high in the sky.

The two ponies stood on the edge of town gazing into the forest. The path leading in was like a path into perfect, complete darkness. Ghostly tendrils of blue fog rose from the ground and the trees seemed to glare ominously. Two bats circled above and then hung themselves upside down from a low hanging tree branch. The two ponies looked at each other as if to ask, are we really going in there? In answer to the silent question Rainbow Dash stepped forward.

“Well, here goes nothing.” She said as she limped onto the path.

Chapter 5

*Wow sorry this chapter took so long you guys. I started a new job and my roommate is a slob so I haven’t been having much time to write. I hope you find this satisfactory. It was a ton of fun to write because I got to bring in some fun outside influences! Just read, you will see. I hope it is fun to read, like it was to write. Oh and also ten bonus points if you can catch the direct quote (nobody did in the last chapter).

All light disappeared completely as Rainbow and Twilight entered the forest. Strange grunts and screams of animals could be heard faintly in the distance, although still uncomfortably close in the oppressive darkness. A bullfrog croaked loudly to Twilight’s right loud enough to make her jump and gasp loudly. Twilight lit up her horn and that offered at least enough light to see the path ahead of them. Beyond the reach of her horn was black as pitch. Rainbow Dash could hear Twilight’s steady breath beside her and the clip clop of her hooves.

“Thank you for coming with me Twilight. I couldn’t have done any of this without you.”

“We haven’t made it just yet you know, we still have a few miles to go before we are out of here. Just keep your eyes out for anything suspicious. We should be coming up to a bridge according to the map.” The two ponies had spent just as much time in the Everfree forest as anypony else in Ponyville had, but the forest was huge. Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash knew their way around to a certain extent, but the path to Pinkie Pie’s childhood home was a mystery to both of them. Twilight was studying the map as she walked.

“I don’t understand. The bridge should be right here but I don’t see it.”

Just then Rainbow Dash snatched Twilight’s tail in her mouth and pulled her back, the two ponies landing in a heap.
“I think I found where that bridge is supposed to be Twilight,” Rainbow Dash said as the two ponies peered into an abyss that Twilight had almost found the useable bottom of.

The two ponies picked themselves up and brushed themselves off as they studied the deep, black chasm ahead of them. Rainbow Dash walked to the edge of it and followed it a few yards in either direction, feeling her way carefully so as not to fall in. She sat on the ground in desperation.

“Twilight what are we gonna do?!” Rainbow Dash was trying to maintain her composure but Twilight could see that she was going to break down.

“Well I don’t know what to do. The bridge is down and you can’t use your wings.”

“Twilight, Cant you use your magic and lift something over the gap?” Rainbow was grasping desperately at straws.

“That gap is 45 feet across. Anything that would go across would be too heavy for my magic to lift I’m afraid, and we don’t have any rope.”

Twilight had never seen Dash look so defeated. She lay down in the dirt and buried her head in a pile of leaves.

Twilight couldn’t bear to see her friend so upset. She took out her map and began to study it. After ten minutes of carefully looking over the map Twilight saw a narrow passage that could lead them there, a narrow passage, underground.

“It looks like there is a path that goes around, but it goes through an old Pony mine. We are not going through it. The mines are no place for a pony, Dash. We need to go back, at least to Zecora’s hut and we can get some rope- “

“NO. Twilight we don’t have time. We have to go through the cave.”

“Rainbow Dash, you aren’t thinking clearly. I don’t know what is going on between you two, but we can’t go in there, it isn’t worth it.”

“Twilight, I don’t care about any of that right now. I am going through the cave. Show me where it is and I will go alone, but I will not turn back now. I won’t turn back. Pinks needs me.”

Somehow Twilight knew Rainbow Dash would decide to go through the cave. She had her faults but fear was not one of them. Stubbornness and rushing into things without thinking maybe but not fear. She was mentally kicking herself for bringing it up in the first place, but she was scared that with no alternatives, Rainbow would try to fly over the gorge. Rainbow Dash trotted off while Twilight watched, writhing in internal conflict. She couldn’t let Rainbow Dash go alone. She would surely get lost or hurt and no pony left behind had always been her motto. But still, the mines scattered all around the forests of equestrian were terrible places. She could remember her brother coming home from guard duty talking about some of the horrible monsters and beasts he had faced. He once came home with a huge gash on his leg that was festering with infection. He wouldn’t even tell Twilight what horror had done that to him, as she helped nursed him back to health. But then she remembered the pain on her brother’s face and imagined it on her friend Rainbow Dash. She couldn’t let that happen to her. She realized that she had been sitting there for several minutes before snapping out of her trance like state, and Rainbow Dash was nowhere in sight. She ran towards Rainbow Dash’s hoof prints.

“Nice of you to join me Twilight, it was pretty dark without you.”

Twilight lit her horn a little brighter.

“Do not take this lightly Rainbow Dash, it is with great trepidation that I go in the mines, in fact I am only coming because I don’t want you to do something stupid. There are huge monsters and terrible creatures that make some of these mines their homes ” Twilight did not speak angrily but she was stern, and she felt pretty angry. Rainbow Dash was really endangering herself and Twilight by extension. What could she do though? If she went back to Ponyville and something happened to Rainbow Dash how would she ever be able to forgive herself?

“An adventure is an adventure Twilight.” Rainbow said, but rather than her usual excitement, she said it with a terrible grimness. Twilight shuddered at her foreboding thoughts. It seemed that they only walked for a few minutes before they were face to face with a great door in the middle of the ground about twenty meters from the side of the chasm. The door was a simple wood one, though very thick and with large iron bracers crossing it. Twilight and Rainbow Dash both tugged on the door as hard as their strength would allow. It didn’t even budge. The door was quite heavy and Rainbow Dash was not in her best condition, and Twilight was more of a scholar really. Grunting and straining they finally managed to wrench the door open a few inches. They managed to hold it long enough to wedge a large stick from nearby into the hole. With a bit of carefully placed rocks Twilight and Rainbow Dash quite easily levered the door open. A great spiraling stone staircase went strait down into the ground. Only the first few steps were visible as the rest descended into darkness.
“Huh I figured there would be a password or something.”

“No Rainbow Dash. I don’t think anything is trying to keep us out.” Keeping us in may be another story Twilight grimly thought.

“We can still turn back you know.” Twilight said without much hope.

“Not a chance Twilight, I don’t want you to come if you don’t want to but I am going.”

Twilight went first with a sigh, her horn lighting the way, and Dash brought up the rear. Eventually the staircase ended and the narrow passageway leveled out. If the two ponies thought it was dark in the forest it was darker in the cavern. To describe it as inky would have been an understatement. Black was not the color to depict it. It was something deeper. A darkness that was truly a complete void of light. Cobwebs crisscrossed the narrow cavern with such great thickness that they made it difficult to walk.

“Twilight I am glad you are here with that horn of yours or I would be bumping into the walls.”

“I am really scared Rainbow Dash and I HATE spiders.” She said while brushing frantically at her face to get the big, fat spider off that had just landed there.

“Reeelax Twilight! It is just dark is all. There is nothing to be scared of in here.” Rainbow Dash hoped she was telling the truth, for both of their sakes.

Suddenly the narrow passage opened into a huge cavern. At least twice the size of Ponyville. Across a deep chasm was a narrow rope bridge. Beyond that was an immense staircase leading up to a hole in the ceiling. The door let in pale moonlight that glittered softly on the jewels embedded in the walls. Both ponies’ jaws gaped as they surveyed the beautiful underground cavern.

“It’s beautiful” Twilight and Rainbow Dash both gasped in unison. The shear volume of the large domed structure was something worth seeing. There was a giant waterfall off to one side and a huge underwater lake underneath the bridge. It was too far down to be seen, but when Twilight dropped a rock there was a distinct splash sound.

“And look Rainbow, there is the exit. We just have to cross that bridge and climb the stairs and we are out of here. I hate it down here. The air is dank and I can’t breathe.”

“Don’t freak out Twilight, we are almost home free.”

Even as the words escaped Rainbow’s mouth there was an enormous explosion behind them and an eruption of psychotic laughter.

“MUAHAHAHAHAHA. You have so easily wandered into my trap my little ponies, and now you are mine. You won’t escape me so easily like your pink friend.”

Twilight gasped in fear. Rainbow Dash’s thoughts immediately went to Pinkie Pie. So she had also come through this cave? From the ceiling dropped a six-foot tall spider who was engulfed in a blue flame. Everything was happening so quickly that Rainbow Dash could barely keep up. A blinding light lit the whole cavern and the ponies could see how beautiful it would be in calmer circumstances. Even still it held a certain dark beauty, like that moment before a tragedy is about to happen on a clear summer night.

“Run, Rainbow Dash. He is beyond your skill to fight. Ill hold it off long enough for you to get out of here so you can go get Pinkie.”

“As if!” Rainbow shouted, as she began charging, although it was more like an awkward saunter due to her limp, directly at the beast. She ducked under one of his fangs and kicked as hard as she could at his stomach. The spider’s thick exoskeleton did not budge and Rainbow’s back hoofs erupted in painful shock and burns.

“Rainbow Dash, get out of here NOW!!!!” Twilight screamed with force. Rainbow took that as her cue to leave and she hobbled towards the steps as best she could as Twilight’s horn lit up. Rainbow stopped just at the bottom of the staircase to watch the battle unfold. The creature shot flaming webs at Twilight in an effort to ensnare her, but she was too fast to be hit. She dodged and ducked swiftly and without error. She rolled underneath one particularly large web and lost her footing. Twilight was scrambling to get up from the ground as a fireball came uncomfortably close to her face. The heat singed her mane and it brushed her flank just enough to leave a trail of burning hairs and tender skin. The spider seeing it’s opportunity ran forward and planted his fangs down right where Twilight’s flank had been. She once again trundled to one side and then the other as she avoided the monstrous jaws of the arachnid. His snapping fangs rattled greedily as he snapped them shut over and over in an attempt to decapitate Twilight. She was now pinned against a wall with only a few feet to move. Any misjudgment of the creatures gnashing jaws would be her death, impaled by a cruel tusk against a wall of solid rock. Rainbow Dash couldn’t just sit and watch. She had to help, but so far all she could do is limp back and forth shouting, “Watch out Twi!”

Twilight had regained control and was starting to push back against the beast. She was gaining the upper ground on him and using her horn to push him back. He roared at her and continued shooting the flaming webs with even more frequency. The cave began to glow as the fire caught all over the plateau that they were fighting on. Twilight used her horn to cause a huge rock to break off of the wall and fall on top of the monster. Before he could regain his footing she sent more rocks flying at him. Each fireball he shot was met head on with a rock making dazzling explosions of fire and earth in the air. Suddenly the creature howled in rage and began shooting flames like a huge flamethrower. The flames licked hungrily at the cave walls and floor, seeking something organic to devour. Twilight had only seconds to act before she found herself the victim of these ferocious flames. She ducked behind a rock that covered some of her but she felt the intense pain of the heat hitting her full on her back right flank. Something broke inside Twilight as the pain travelled up her entire body.

Wracked with painful tremors she planted all four hooves wide and threw her head back. Twilight’s eyes went white and the magic flew from her like an unstoppable force. She shouted a frenzied roar as the spider taunted her from across the cave. Rainbow Dash watched in horror as Twilight’s body began to shake violently and purple sparks began encircling her. She watched as Twilight lost all control and the ground beneath the beast began to buckle. Soon the entire cavern was shaking and giant stalactites were falling from the ceiling. The floor, walls and ceiling buckled and cracked as Twilight’s magic flew out in uncontrollable spurts. A falling rock impaled the spider as it dropped out of sight into the chasm. The beast let out a hissing screech as it disappeared deep into the hole. Twilight wobbled on her feet the ground beneath her gave way. Twilight was falling. She heard a loud blast and then she saw a rainbow appear above her. She felt two hooves grasp her as she slipped into unconsciousness.

Twilight woke up groggily on a patch of muddy ground. She shifted her gaze around and saw the huge area of collapsed ground off to her left. She had truly brought down the entire cave. Twilight stood shakily on her feet and looked about at her surroundings. This side of the chasm was much brighter because the trees weren’t as thick. Thin shafts of silvery moonlight shone down through gaps in the branches. Twilight looked down at her side where Rainbow Dash lay with her eyes closed, panting heavily.

Twilight knelt down beside her and pulled gently at her mane. “Rainbow?” she whispered, barely audible. “Are you okay?”
Rainbow Dash lifted up her head and tried to stop her eyes from spinning. She was very dizzy and her wings were throbbing dully and cramping.

When Twilight saw Rainbow Dash coming to she collapsed onto the ground beside her and weakly breathed, “Oh Rainbow you are okay, good.” Twilight had little time to worry about Rainbow Dash as she was still trying to take a proper assessment of herself.

Rainbow continued moving her head side-to-side trying to clear her muddied brain.

“We are a couple of banged up ponies, Rainbow Dash.” Twilight whispered.

Rainbow Dash nodded weakly. The two ponies sat in silence for a few minutes, each of them trying to build the energy to get up. Rainbow Dash finally attempted to get up but it was no use. Her legs refused to support her and she fell to the ground.
“Twilight, I think we may have to lay here until we die.” Rainbow Dash creaked. She inched forward and snuggled against Twilight in an effort to gain some body heat. The temperature seemed to be dropping and Twilight shivered as the two ponies lay together in a heap. They both closed their eyes, resting, trying to regain some strength.
They lay for a few minutes more when a mysterious music could be faintly heard

“Do you hear that Twilight?” Rainbow asked tentatively, worried that she was going crazy from the agony.

“Yes, Rainbow I do. It sounds like some kind of woods party or something.”

The noise of lutes and lyres and drums and wood flutes met their ears happily. Twilight and Rainbow Dash found the music very unsettling, as it seemed to add to the mystery of the woods and the night. It steadily grew louder as Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle strained their ears to hear. Four ponies dressed in suddenly appeared directly in front of them as if by magic. The must have been extremely stealthy to sneak up on Twilight and Rainbow Dash without them being aware of their presence at all. As the ponies stared at each other, sizing one another up, many more of the mysterious green clad ponies began to creep into the clearing.

The one in front, the largest stallion began to speak.

“Well, well, well, what have we here? A couple of ponies lost in the woods, it seems? Where do you go, from where did you come, and what is your business?”

Twilight gulped as she began to answer the stallion, who was clearly a highway robber.

“We have just escaped a powerful demon in that mine, we are badly injured and travel only with enough food for our journey. Please, we have nothing to give to you, leave us in peace.”

The pony threw back his hood to reveal a long, flowing mane of blonde. He had kind eyes and a face full of laugh lines that could even be made out in the faint light of the early morning. His eyes began to spark with mirth and laughter as he spoke, “Well if you have nothing to give us, then I suppose we will have to find some things to give to you!”
Rainbow Dash and Twilight stared in puzzlement as the stallion pulled out two capes with hoods and threw them in a pile over the two ponies in the huddled mass on the ground.

“Something to guard from the bite of the cold! And something to fill our bellies too I think!” The stallion shouted
All of the ponies behind him sprang into action and suddenly there were tables set with food and lots of wooden cups full of something that smelled quite pleasing.

“Come and sit at my table, dine and you will feel better.” The stallion trilled. “We have food and drink a plenty.”
Twilight and Rainbow Dash managed to pull themselves up and sit down at the table. Rainbow took a gulp of the mysterious brown liquid. The pleasant warmth trickled down her throat and then spread to all the extremities of her body. She looked up at Twilight, who was clearly having a similar experience with her drink. Both ponies could feel their strength returning as they drank the delicious, brown liquid.

“What in Equestria is in this drink?” Twilight exclaimed as she flexed her no longer sore muscles.
“That, my little friend, is a special brew of the forest-masters own design. It will cure your aches and pains, and heal your tired bones.”

Dash guessed that the brew was not strong enough to heal the strain she had placed on her wings because they were still hurting.

After Twilight and Rainbow Dash had eaten a large portion of the food on the table and sighed contentedly the mysterious stallion began to talk.

“You earlier said something about a monster, and we have just enjoyed a great feast, now you must tell me the tale of your adventure. The only thing better than a great feast is a great feast followed by a great tale.”

“Hear, Hear!” All of the ponies gathered around shouted in unison.

“But,” spoke up Twilight Sparkle, “aren’t introductions in order first?”

“Of course! My manners escape me today, I am afraid.”

“My name is Robin Hoofs!” The stallion said with great importance. Gesturing to the pony at his right he said, “And this is my merry crew.”

All of the ponies surrounding him erupted into a chorus of applause and “Here, Heres”.

“We are from a far away land where ponies have been oppressed for centuries. Our local mayor was taxing everypony so much that nobody could eat. He was a very cruel mayor and he and his friends used the taxes to satisfy their greed. My band and I began to live in the woods and steal money from these rich people and use it to feed those less fortunate ponies. After Princess Celestia found out what was happening in our land she intervened of course. But we liked the forest too much to go back to our old boring lives, and we had heard about this incredible forest in many of our stories and songs. We decided to journey here and have merry adventures in this “Everfree forest” as I believe you call it. He finished with a laugh and a twinkling wink at the two Ponyville ponies.

“Well I am Rainbow Dash and this is my friend Twilight Sparkle, we are ponies from Ponyville.” Rainbow Dash spoke up for the first time. Twilight looked at her a little confusedly. Usually Rainbow Dash would leave such small talk up to her.
“And now for the storytelling then! What are two little ponies from Ponyville doing fighting monsters in the Everfree forest?”
“Okay, I will tell you the story, but it has to be quick, we are in a big hurry.” Rainbow Dash said, who know full of food, suddenly remembered her quest and initial urgency.

Rainbow Dash began to talk. She began with crashing into Pinkie’s house. Omitting some details, of course, but for some reason she felt it was important to include how much she loved Pinkie Pie, and how that was why she had to come this far. She told the story as far as the spider and then asked Twilight to take over since she was the one actually fighting.
Twilight Sparkle began her account and described the fight in great detail. Midway through her story Twilight dropped her head. She raised it and her eyes were filled with tears. “I knew that the only way I could hope to defeat him was to bring the cave down and then hope that I could not get smashed, and crawl my way out. I could feel his power. He was only toying with me; He could have easily killed me had I not done what I did. Bringing down the cave took a lot more energy than I was expecting though, and I didn’t have enough magic left to protect myself. I was falling, thinking that it was going to be the last moment of my life. When, I was somehow saved.” Twilight ended the story with a quizzical look at Rainbow Dash. She had not thought about it before, but she had no idea how Rainbow Dash had saved her.

“Rainbow! You saved me! But how, your wings were all tied up in bandages?”

“I saw you were in trouble so I cut them off on a rock. It hurt, but you were just falling and I was so scared that you wouldn't be able to dodge all the rocks. I spread my wings out and dive-bombed through the rocks. I could barely fly but the adrenaline kicked in and I did a sonic rainboom somehow. Saving ponies is what I do you know.” She finished with a smirk.

Twilight couldn’t help but think that the only reason she was in danger in the first place was because of Rainbow Dash.
“And all of this for love?” Cried Robin Hoofs affectedly.

“Yep, that’s about it.” Said Rainbow Dash.

“And you are going to the rock farm that is one mile south of here correct?”

“Correct!” Said Twilight.

“We shall personally escort you there! What could be more worthy of our time than the plight of young lovers!?”

Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash walked in front with Robin Hoofs as the other fifty ponies walked behind them singing and playing merrily. Twilight Sparkle smiled in spite of all they have been through. Rainbow Dash had put them in danger, and Twilight had almost died. She had to admit though, maybe Robin was right, maybe the young love was worth it all.
Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash began to notice how the ground was becoming much rockier. Rainbow suspected that they were nearing the outskirts of the farm. Her heart began to beat in her chest and she began to sweat. What if she had misinterpreted Pinkie’s note? What if Pinkie would not accept her love? Rainbow dash pushed the thoughts from her mind as they walked. She couldn’t bear to think about that right now.

Rainbow looked up and saw a windmill and an old farmhouse. She knew that this was Pinkie’s house. Her already fast beating heart began to pound through her chest. Her eyes watered and nostrils flared as she stared through the upstairs window that she somehow knew in her heart belonged to Pinkie.

“And now we bid thee farewell Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle. May many merry adventures come your way.” With that Robin’s band of merry ponies took off down the path back into the forest.

Twilight looked at Rainbow Dash to see what she was thinking. “I’ll wait out here, then I guess?” Twilight asked.
“Yes, I guess that works best.”

Rainbow Dash walked to the door and swallowing a large gulp, knocked on the door.

The door opened with a loud creak on its hinges. The bright doorway framed a stern brown pony wearing a black hat.

“Umm. Good afternoon sir. I was wondering if maybe I could see Pinkie Pie.” Rainbow asked nervously.