Disclaimer: I don't own Hasbro, or My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. God forbid you put me in charge of more than a smoothie shop. Or a café. Oh man, how awesome would that be, owning a café that sold both coffee and smoothies? Smooth jazz every Saturday night, open mike nights, poetry slams…

Okay, the bit's over. Story time.

Chapter 2: Before The Storm

"Well ah'll be, these here flowers are quite a sight! I'm plum grateful that y'all put so much effort into these!" Applejack exclaimed, scooping up the flowers with a sweeping hoof, leaving the golden bits on the counter with the other. Roseluck smiled from behind the counter.

"Oh don't thank me, Daisy's the pony that grew them. She happens to be a good friend of Twilight's, so she was more than willing to look after these. She also wanted me to ask you to let Twilight know she wishes her a happy birthday, and that she's sorry that she will not be able to attend." she said, head diving down behind the counter top, and reappearing with a violet-stained vase, handles on both sides. "Here, this might make carrying them easier."

Applejack lowered herself back on all fours after setting the roses back onto the counter. "D'ya think so? How much fer the vase?"

"Hee hee, don't worry about it, it's on the house. For Twilight." Roseluck insisted. Applejack smiled gratefully, setting the flowers upright in the slender glassware.

"Well shucks, thank ya kindly. Ah shore do 'preciate all y'done fer us! Take care now!" she called, grabbing the vase-handle in her mouth, and was about to walk out of the store when Roseluck suddenly called her name from the back. Applejack glanced back toward the rosy-haired mare whose head peaked out from around the corner, looking back at her in perplexity.

"Say, aren't you usually wearing a hat?" she asked. Applejack instinctively reached a hoof up to where her trademark usually rested, feeling nothing but dust-speckled hair. Flopping her ears, she couldn't feel the rub against the brim of her hat that she'd become so accustomed to. Gasping, she started to panic, head jerking left and right, trying to find her beloved Stetson when she heard Roseluck talking again.

"Umm, I don't think you were wearing it when you came in. But if you'd like, I could-" she stopped mid-sentence as she helplessly watched Applejack tear out of the shop without another word. Roseluck cocked her head to the side as Daisy strolled up next to her.

"What was that all about?" she asked.

"I honestly have no idea."

"She seemed to be quite… daffy. More so than the garden variety of ponies around here."

"Do florists have a vernacular term for insane?"

"Rosey-cheeked."

…

"Oh you're hilarious."

Boing. Boing. Boing. Boing.

Almost any resident of the (usually) quiet town of Ponyville could easily tell you that only three things could make a sound like that:

One, a pegasus pony jumping on a cloud, causing it to shed any rain held inside.

Two, the coiffure of the Carousel Boutique owner, Rarity, stiff with too much hairspray. (At which point the more knowledgeable ponies would quickly advise you against commenting about it while in her presence.)

Or three, the lovably loud and loony laureate of Ponyville-partying: Pinkamena Diane Pie.

The latter of the three had a spring in her step as she merrily made her way to the Sweet Apple Acres orchard, her hoof-made hoofbasket hat atop her head, miraculously keeping the contents from spilling out with each skip. Humming a cheery tune, she quickly came into view of the massive fields of apple trees, all blushing red with fruit. She slowed to a trot as she noticed a very colorful tree off in the distance.

"Ooooh! That doesn't look like an apple tree! *Gasp!* Maybe it's a new kind of apple tree! I wonder if it grows rainbow apples! Bleck! Those would taste terrible!" she mused out loud, prancing off of the dirt trail, and down the hill into the orchard.

Up ahead, a certain pegasus pony was combing through the branches of one of the many apple trees, searching for the biggest, juiciest apple she could find. Apparently the Apple family didn't eat lunch until three today, on account of the family being spread out to every corner of the field working on repairing and repainting the fences surrounding the acres. Rainbow Dash darted left and right, trying to decide between two especially plump apples, when she heard a voice… that sent a shiver through her feathers.

"HEY RAINBOW DASH! HEY! DOWN HERE!"

'Oh no! Pinkie Pie!' Rainbow thought to herself. Dread overtook her long enough for the pyretic pony to pounce upward, tackling Rainbow Dash out of her stupor, and pinning her to the ground by her wings.

A sharp intake of breath shortly followed…

"Hi Rainbow Dash! How've ya been? I was just heading over to the barn to help you guys out with the decorations like I promised, cuz' Mr. and Mrs. Cake finished their baking early, and were able to help me out with making the cake for Twilight's birthday! Isn't that great? Anyway, I was walking along, 'la-di-da-di-da!', when I saw you by this tree! Only I didn't know it was you, I thought it was a super-duper-ali-ooper colorful apple tree that grew rainbow apples! Which is ironic, because a few weeks ago you thought Fluttershy was a tree, and I-"

"Can I help you with something, Pinkie Pie?" Rainbow Dash quickly interjected through gritted teeth. 'Ugh… why now?'

Pinkie Pie didn't skip a beat. "Weeeeeeeeeell, now that you mention it, I need to head back to Sugarcube Corner and gather the rest of the supplies I was going to use to paint the banners we were going to hang around the barn! I couldn't fit anything else in my basket, and Gunny insisted that he was going to use all of my other bags for something, but he wouldn't tell me what! He can be such a mea-"

"Alright fine! We'll head back to town and get your stuff. Now could you PLEASE get off of me?" Rainbow shouted, bucking Pinkie Pie off of her with a swift lurch of her legs, sending her sprawled a few feet ahead of her. She jumped back up, and re-adjusted her basket-hat, a slight pout on her face. Rainbow Dash sighed, it was hard as hay to pull off a Sonic Rainboom, but even she couldn't find the energy to let down a pepped-up Pinkie Pie.

Shaking the cobwebs from her mind, she got up, and stretched her wings. Glancing back at Pinkie Pie, she noticed that, aside from her talking about something else that she was already sure she wouldn't care about, something was sticking out of her bushy pink tail. Striding up to her, she reached a hoof out, grabbed hold of it, and pulled it out with a light 'shff!'

She blinked.

She blinked twice.

It was a hat.

A cowboy hat, to be specific…

Yeah, it was definitely Applejack's hat. Rainbow Dash's mind shut down at this point.

"What… (looks left) this… (looks right) but… (looks back at the barn) hat… (looks at Pinkie Pie) you… …huh?" she finished, falling on her hindquarters, settling her gaze on the brown hat in wide-eyed disbelief. Pinkie Pie looked back, and gasped again.

"So that's what that was! Right before I saw you, I saw this beautiful patch of flowers! I just had to smell them! So I walked over and went *SNOOOORT!*, and then it got really, really windy, and something poked me in the rump! It scared me so badly, I fell right on top of the flowers! SPLAT! (She made a stomping motion.) I tried to tell them I was sorry, that it wasn't my fault, but some plants-" She stopped as she received a fistful of hoof in her mouth. Rainbow Dash looked haggard, letting out a deep breath. This day was starting to take its toll, and it was barely even noon!

"Look Pink, let's just head over to Sugarcube Corner, and get your stuff. We can give Applejack her hat later, but we really need to get working on getting the party ready for tomorrow." She finished tetchily. Pinkie suddenly smiled widely, leering at Rainbow Dash.

"Oh, now I know what's going on! Applejack, huh? Well it's about time, you were taking so long that I was going to make the first move, but if you think you can (wink) take care of her, well, you just make sure to tell Pinkie Pie all about it when you're done!" she piped, starting back towards the path, not noticing Rainbow Dash freezing in place, her face erupting in a clashing crimson, eyes the size of wagon wheels.

"Wh-wh-what? Y-you… I… B-b-b-but…"

Pinkie slowed down, looking thoughtful. "Maybe I should take you to Tutti Frutti's shop. She can get you everything you'll need for tonight." She paused, and then started making measuring motions with her two hooves. "I wonder if Applejack will need a small, or a large."

*THUMP*

She looked back to see Rainbow Dash sprawled out across the ground, her face a bright shade of cherry, wings sticking rigidly upward, topped with an undecipherable grimace that seemed to be mumbling incoherent noises out of one side. Pinkie "hmm'd", lowering her head and scooping Rainbow Dash onto her back, then took a thoughtful stance while examining the hat her filly friend had dropped.

"Well, the hat isn't very stretchy, and Applejack usually doesn't wear it all the way down, so I'd say you'd want to get a small. Ooh, I can't wait to show you Tutti Frutti's Magic Trick Parlour, she has the best magic trick and pranking supplies in all of Ponyville! Hee hee, this is going to be the best prank EVER! WAIT!" She paused again, looking back at her catatonic cargo. "Were we talking about the Itching Powder, or the Hat Buzzer? *Gasp!* How about we use BOTH of them, that'll give her twice the shock! (She started giggling) But then she'll be itching to get back at us even more!" Breaking out into full-blown laughter, Pinkie Pie barely kept her footing as she picked up Applejack's hat, made her way to drop off the supplies in her basket at the barn, cargo in tow, before heading down to Sugarcube Corner.

"Alright Lucy, you make sure that he takes his medicine every day, okay? And if something happens, you let me know." Fluttershy politely asserted, giving the small grey rabbit a friendly nudge. Lucy gave a quick succession of nods, -pills in paws- and scampered back into her hole. The pink-haired pony sighed with a smile.

"Okay," she softly stated to herself, "That's six families on the right half of the Apple Orchard, and four on the left, with the last burrow near the barn. The barn is right over there, so I should probably check up on them first." She looked down toward the left side of the property. "Or maybe I should check on them. It is possible the bunnies at the barn didn't get sick, being farther away from the rest of them." she mused. Tilting her head slightly, she silently debated her next course of action when she heard a voice in the not-too far-off distance.

"Raiiiiiinbow!"

Looking ahead, she saw a small orange pony making her way toward the barn in a frenzy of a gallop, clouds of dust kicking up behind her with each step. Frowning, Fluttershy bent down and picked up her double-knapsack, tossing it over her back, and quickly adjusting the straps so that they wouldn't fasten her folded wings down…

"Rainbow Dash! Y'all in he-… oh you gotta be foalin' me." she ended, setting the vase of purple roses down and walking the rest of the way into the barn. Streamers from the two ponies' earlier mishap were still strewn across the hay-layered floor in the same place they were before. Hat forgotten for the moment, she tentatively peered up into the shady rafters for any sign of her cyan friend. Finding nothing, she stomped the ground in frustration.

"Why I can't believe the nerve of that pony. S'already past mid-day an' nothin's been done n' here! That pony's just one peccadillo after n'other, ah swear! Fine filly or not, she's got a job to do!" she whispered heatedly. Shaking her head, she turned around, and came face to face with a pair of intensely cerulean eyes.

"Oh!" Fluttershy exclaimed, backing up slightly and looking down at the ground, pink mane covering one of her eyes in an innocent manner. Applejack frowned. She was hoping to at least have gotten the good part of the décor set up before anyone else showed up, so they could get the tables and everything else moved in without a hassle.

So much for that.

"Hello, Applejack. I saw you running towards the barn, a-and I just wanted to make sure everything was alright. You know, because I was worried…" she trailed off, idly scraping a hoof back and forth on the dirt floor. Applejack smiled jadedly.

"Well thanks, sugarcube. I was just gettin' those roses over there while Rainbow Dash was s'posed to be finishin' up in here… *sigh*, but apparently she had other plans. What brings y'all down here to the farm so early?" she asked. Fluttershy raised her head, meeting Applejack eye-to-eye with a growing smile.

"Oh, I was just checking on the bunnies that live around the acre. That terrible bunny flu is still going around, and just I'm making sure it hasn't complicated things for their families." She gently explained. Despite her situation, Applejack let a small smile grow to the side of her mouth. The bunnies taking residence in the apple orchard were actually quite the goddess-send, as the majority of the food they ate was the apples that had fallen off of the trees in between apple-bucking schedules, keeping the nice orchard grass from becoming too muddled up with rotten fruit.

"Well that's mighty kind, but I gotta find Rainbow Dash somethin' fierce an' finish up preparations 'round here." she started, turning around and heading out the barn doors, the same feeling of exasperation looming over her as it did the last time she left the barn, though with a different, stronger flavor. And she didn't like it one bit.

"You know, Applejack, I'm still making my rounds around the orchard. If you'd like, you could come with me and help me hand out medicine to the sick bunnies. It would make things faster for me, not having to undo my bag over and over again, plus we could both keep an eye out for Rainbow Dash, and then I'd be able to come help you two here at the barn sooner. T-That is, if you're not too busy…" she trailed off again, looking hopeful. Applejack mulled it over for a few moments. It seemed like a solid plan, chances are she would be lazing away the day on a cloud. And the pegasus ponies hadn't gotten as far as the acre as of yet, so Rainbow Dash wouldn't get re-enlisted to work on cloud cover for the upcoming rain shower should she have decided to take an afternoon nap.

Plus it wouldn't hurt to have Fluttershy around to… discourage her from beating the colors off the lazy pony if she really was.

"Yeah, that sounds like a plan. Let's get goin' then." She resigned.

Fluttershy beamed, taking flight with Applejack galloping quietly behind her.

"Okie dokie, I'm gonna need this! No wait, this! And this! And some of these! And we'll need this!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed, darting from container to container in the upstairs party room of Sugarcube Corner, while Rainbow Dash haplessly waited near the stairs, fumbling around with Applejack's hat as a means to distract her from the saccharine-intensified scene, as well as the pointedly-embarrassing misunderstanding that she'd had with Pinkie Pie an hour ago.

Thank the clouds for her friend's naivety.

She had to admit, holding Applejack's hat like this was a very surreal experience all on its own. She couldn't remember ever seeing her friend's trademark in detail like she was now. Despite the many years she'd seen her with it, the old Stetson didn't show any tell-tale signs of aging. Apart from the creases layering the inside of the brim, it looked to be a fairly new hat. Upon further examination, she noticed a small green object tucked away in one of the creases. Pulling it out, she found that it was a leaf.

She pulled it out, turning it over with a sturdy blue hoof, a torrent of memories washing through her. Unlike her friend Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash didn't care so much for the natural beauty she surrounded herself with on the soil. Were it not for her cherished friends (as well as a few fans), it was likely that she would still be living in Cloudsdale, rarely frequenting the flight to the peaceful town-on-the-ground. But something that she could relate with down here… were the leaves that ventured away from their sturdy homes. Carefree, light, a testament to the joy of absolute freedom. It often astounded her to see how the wind could carry the little leaflets all the way up to Cloudsdale during a storm or a rain shower. She could remember as a little filly trying in vain to keep the ones that blew upwards near her parent's home. Everything from cloud jars to enchanted shelves that could hold physical objects, all it took was a gust of wind or a careless moment, and her little souvenirs would fall through the clouds, leaving her alone in her bedroom once again.

One of the few academic studies in flight school that she could say she had actually cared about, was Ground Studies. It was amazing to her just how diverse the world below her was compared to the cozy-but-consistent city of clouds. Not that she cared all that much, but it was still fascinating to her.

She thought back to her first flight to the world below, on a field trip with her classmates not a few months before quitting the academy. The group had touched down at the edges of Ponyville so many years ago, the young pegasi struggling to keep their footing on the alien, unmovable and unforgiving clouds of brown and green. Rainbow Dash was the only pony who hadn't touched down right off the bat; instead she darted over to the nearest tree, and just stared. Oh what she wouldn't give to get just one of these up in her home city! It was so… awesome (She did not say gorgeous). The sunshine seemed to light up the simple tree, leaves lightly reflecting some of the rays as the wind started to pick up, the rippling branches becoming a dazzling sea of green sequins, a few of them even daring to endeavor the flight away from home. It was both hypnotic and alluring.

Later in the year, she quickly came to realize that Fall had become her favorite season of them all. Frequenting the flight to the ground once a month now, it was as if the meadows around Ponyville had exploded into color within a week! Her favorite sight to see had become one that she couldn't even recognize anymore, and she could care less!

She softly smirked, eyes glazing over. One of her fondest memories was the Running of the Leaves her and Applejack had taken part of last fall. After the mortifying realization that the two fillies had tied for last place, as well as the fact that the Princess herself had attended the display (Not to mention Twilight made the top five, something the both of them were eternally grateful that their good friend never brought up), the two had set off at an easier pace, enjoying the scenery, as well as each other's company. Even after the dozens of ponies had cleared through the area, many a maple had opted to keep their colored dressings, and even though the two of them galloped the trail a slower rate, the leaves all began to fall, twin curtains of red and gold funneling behind them in majesty! She keenly remembered looking toward her comrade as the two continued on, a scene she was sure would remain vivid in memory forever. Applejack's eyes were closed, and she was smiling, her pony-tail waving behind her as the leaves fell in between the two.

And then she looked at her, eyes opening to reveal her vivacious green eyes, and her smile had grown even wider. Oh yeah, her two favorite things all wrapped up in one golden memory.

The leaves, and Applejack…

Looking up and making sure Pinkie Pie was still occupied with gathering materials, Rainbow Dash lifted the hat up to her small, blue nose, and after a moment… took a deep whiff. Her reflections were instantly forgotten as she was rewarded with a flood of ecstasy! The sweet scents of meadows, a hint of apples, some sort of flowery shampoo, and a wonderfully light trace of sweat carried her way above the clouds she burned through on a daily basis. Blushing heavily, her thoughts took her back to the old cloud-candle shop, positioned a hop away from her flight school, where as a young filly, she would often find herself distracted by the many indulgent (and sometimes repugnant) scents in the air during the shop's production hours.

Goddesses, if she could only get that old pegasus to make a candle out of this…

"BOO!"

"GAH!" Rainbow Dash jumped in fright, wings flapping so quickly she bumped her head on the wooden ceiling. Hastily grasping one of the rafters with all four hooves, she looked down toward the ground, where Pinkie Pie was rolling across the floor, laughing with both forelegs crossed against her stomach.

"Ahahahahaha! I got you good, Dashie! Hee hee!"

Someday, Pinkie Pie was going to disappear from Ponyville without a trace.

Releasing the wooden girder, Rainbow Dash grudgingly let herself drop to the floor, a single flap of the wings slowing her descent. Pinkie Pie, eyes closed and grinning, trotted cheerfully down the steps, her two saddlebags bouncing upward with each step. The feathered filly tossed her own pack in a sweeping slapdash motion, and started after Pinkie Pie when she remembered something, turning back toward where Applejack's hat lay behind her.

"Hey Pinkie Pie, I'll be out in just a second!" she called out, not bothering to turn back toward the descending stairs. A muffled "okie-dokie" ensued as Rainbow Dash walked over toward the brown article, picked it up and- after a moment of hesitation- she tossed it into the air, flipping twice until landing squarely on her head. Immediately she began to feel dizzy with an abrupt bout of giddiness, as well as guilt, she realized. Nopony aside from Applejack had ever worn this hat for as long as she'd known her, and Rainbow Dash didn't know whether to feel shameful for wearing it, or embarrassed that she was feeling so sensual right now.

She decided the word naughty encompassed the current majority.

'Oh man, I'm wearing her hat! I'm wearing… her… hat! Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh, I-I… can't even think straight!' she mentally cried. Lightheaded and wavering on all four hooves, she swiftly sat down on her haunches, a stupid grin plastered on her features. Just wearing her apple-bucking friend's hat blew her senses… she couldn't even imagine how she'd react if something ever were to happen between the two. Powerless against her imagination, she started envisioning herself running her hooves through the sun-bleached hair on which the Stetson usually rested, following the gorgeously matted pony-tail down her back, undoing the hair band and caressing her taunt, hard-worked back as she stroked away the stress of a hard day's work, the sweet rapture sparking through smoky-lidded eyes of green, the soft-

"BLUH-LUH-LUH-LUH!"

"AHHH! PINKIE PIE!"

'Three down, eight to go.' Applejack mentally recited. Keeping her eyes to the sky, she tracked her yellow companion out of the corner of her eye as the duo traveled back to the barn grounds. It wouldn't have been so dreary for the orange mare if each administration didn't take so long. It simply boggled her mind just how much conversation Fluttershy could squeeze out of a small critter. Baggy-eyed, she sullenly reminded herself that they weren't just making small talk, that she was genuinely looking out for the families of the rabbits that took ill. She went out of her way to take care and help those in need, like a true friend would.

Unlike some ponies.

She averted her eyes from the skies for a moment, unfocused as a flurry of green leaves blew past her, her hair swaying along with them. For all she was worth, she could not help but wonder why? Rainbow Dash loved her friend, she knew that without fault. She held the hay-pickin' Element of Loyalty, for Celestia's sake! She'd always been able to depend on her secret crush whenever the group got into trouble, and she couldn't remember a time where Rainbow Dash hadn't been there, for any of them! And here they were, trying to set up and celebrate Twilight's birthday, the first one she would have since moving down here from Canterlot…

The first birthday she'd get to celebrate with her first friends, with ponies that loved her to pieces.

Friends that had taken a manticore's claws alongside her.

Friends who stared down the petrifying gaze of a cockatrice for her!

Friends that wanted to celebrate the day Twilight Sparkle came into Equestria, and made everyone's life for the better as she blossomed in her years.

Everypony from the original five still remembered the first birthday they celebrated with the other four attending, showing their appreciation for one another, they would still talk about it to this very day. Who could forget the first bone-crushing group hug they all shared at Pinkie Pie's party? Or the most heart-melting smile anyone had ever seen at Fluttershy's celebration?

Or the tears that Rainbow Dash fought to keep at bay in vain, threatening to stain the floor of the Sugarcube Corner party room… at the feathered filly's own birthday party?

'So why now?' she thought bitterly, 'Why would she just up an' leave us hangin' like that? Why would she do that… to Twilight, to… me?'

With a tiny gasp, Applejack found herself fighting back her own set of waterworks. She groaned, it wouldn't do for Fluttershy to see her in this state, knowing the trouble it was cause her kind heart. She unconsciously reached a hoof up to pull her beloved Stetson down to cover her face… but felt nothing.

Again.

Hurt gave way to betrayal, which in turn gave way to a murky, sickening spell of anger welling up inside of her. She simply could not function like this, so she willed the darkness boiling within her heart away for the moment. She was being too emotional about the situation, Rainbow Dash wasn't like that. She wouldn't abandon the group out of self-interest and take something important that belonged to one of her friends…

"Maybe she didn't take m'hat outta spite. Maybe she moseyed on back to Ponyville, lookin' fer me…"

Applejack looked upwards again, seeing nothing but the blending shades of light blue and white, cloud against the skies.

'Or maybe the other pegasus ponies picked her up, and she hasn't had time t'find us…'

The two fillies walked along the white fence line surrounding the cabbage and celery plot about a hundred yards away from the massive barn. Applejack strained her eyes, peering up into another giant puff of clouds, hoping to catch a glimpse of the lazy mare. Looking to the left, she noted that the sun was beginning its descent, the bright beams of light no longer shining straight down, but slanting, the multitude of crops and other vegetables starting to cast their tiny shadows toward the pair, a sight which nurtured the earth pony's mounting frustration.

Gingerly avoiding the many budding plants, they came up to a small rabbit-hole. Fluttershy ducked her head down into the hole, sweetly calling out for the furry residents. Applejack mechanically reached down into Fluttershy's knapsack, and pulled out one of the many peapod-sized bottles, and setting it down next to her, before despairingly returning her watch to the sky again.

"Pinkie! Over here, quick!" Rainbow Dash whispered out from behind a large bush. Pinkie Pie zoomed up next to her, both ponies peering out from beneath a shady branch. They had hoped to use the usual hustle and bustle of Ponyville's main street as cover to get back to the barn, but apparently Twilight's had taken her studies with her to the fountain in the middle of the road. Spike had darted off earlier, but they weren't sure where, and didn't want to run the chance of running into him either. He was far from the smoothest secret-keeper they'd ever met, and with him in the loop, it was very likely that Twilight would suspect something was up by sundown, which was speedily approaching. So Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie hid beneath the brush, planning their escape route back to the barn.

"Maybe we could just walk around her?"

"But what if she turns around? We're carrying all of this stuff for her party, she'll know something's up!"

"Well, what if we're really, really sneaky-sneaky? Oh, what if I took one of the banners, and made a scary ghost costume! Or a cloud costume! We could-"

"Oh forget this, let's just walk around."

"Hey guys, what's going on?"

The plotting ponies screamed as they jumped away from Twilight, who had somehow managed to get behind them while they were arguing. She looked at them quizzically, tilting her head.

"Umm, did I miss something? You guys are acting really strange." The guilty girls looked at each other. They were caught, and they had to make up something fast. Twilight was about to say something when Rainbow Dash spoke up.

"Oh yeah, we were just… d-delivering some supplies! Yeah, to this, uhh… bear that lives in a cave down this way. Yeah, me and Fluttershy had to house-sit for her a while back, isn't that right Pinkie Pie?"

There was a moment's silence, after which Pinkie Pie uncharacteristically sweat-dropped… and then face-hoofed. Rainbow Dash coughed, nudging her partner in crime lightly, bringing her back to the current situation.

"Oh yeah, that bear! She's a very, very nice bear, and we wanted to bring her kids some… coloring supplies, see!" she exclaimed too-excitedly, pointing at Rainbow Dash's saddlebags, where a few colored markers were sticking out of the flap. Twilight looked slightly skeptical, but shrugged it off all the same.

"Well that's very nice of you guys. Say, do either of you have time to help me out with this spell I've been working on? It's an old interrogation spell that Princess Luna had come up with over a thousand years ago! It was used by the Royal Court to gather information about crimes committed and to garner confessions from prisoners. It's actually pretty harmless, it just causes the pony under the enchantment to temporarily be unable to keep any secret that passes through their mind while under the effect, but Princess Luna was too busy to-"

Both ponies let out a shriek, and bounded away at full speed, barreling into a humming Spike and sending him tumbling into the ground. An assortment of sandwiches and leafy food products landed around him in thin packaging, leaving Twilight blinking in the wake.

And was it just her, or was Rainbow Dash wearing Applejack's hat?

A blur of rainbow and pink hurtled into the barn, the door shutting swiftly behind them. Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash leaned back against the entrance, breathing heavily and simultaneously wiping the sweat off of their respective foreheads. After a minute, they looked at each other, grinning.

"Alright Pinkie Pie, what say we get this place ready for a party?" Rainbow asked, dropping back down on all fours. The poofy-haired pony jumped with glee, setting her two bags down, and diving into their contents. Markers, containers of streamers, bags of confetti and more flew all across the barn floor as Rainbow Dash began her efforts of organizing the streamers left from this morning. The two worked in almost complete silence for a half an hour, Rainbow Dash hovering left and right, winding and twisting the multi-colored strips around the rafters, and Pinkie Pie decorating the many banners with phrases and pictures of every kind.

The blue filly's progress suddenly became impeded as one of the ribbons started sticking to a wooden beam for some odd reason. Looking closely, there was some sort of sticky residue coating the beams. A quick glance upward showed that a careless sander-pony had missed a pocket of tree sap that had collected in one of the beams during the last (and fairly recent) renovation. Pulling and yanking as hard as she could without ripping the ribbon, she quickly grew frustrated, and after a particularly hard tug her body lurched forward as the ribbon jerked back hard. She felt her head bump against the long plank, and a whiny "ouch!" from below. Looking down through the dulling pain, she saw Pinkie Pie glaring down the old brown hat that had fallen off of her head...

"That's TWICE you decided to poke me today, buster!" the pink pony exclaimed, pointing an accusing hoof toward the offending object. "Well I'm not going to take that sitting down, even though I was when you poked me, but now I'm standing up (she stands up on all fours) and… umm… well… I'm still not gonna take it!"

Rainbow Dash chuckled, swooping down to grab the hat. She turned back to Pinkie Pie, who was still glowering at the item in her hands. "Geez, relax Pinkie, it's just a hat." She stated, casually dusting it off. Pinkie 'hmmph'd, and turned back to her coloring tools. Giving the hat a quick once-over, and setting it gently back on her head, she found herself repressing the annoying urge to giggle along with…

Wait, was Pinkie Pie giggling?

"Hahahaha -*snort*- ahahaha! You really shouldn't get distracted so often!" Pinkie cried through bouts of laughter. Rainbow Dash turned her head back in bewilderment, before her head started to itch…

Really badly! Oh she didn't…

With a strangled yelp, she speedily took the hat off and looked inside. Sure enough, there was a little packet of pink powder, labeled "Small". Taking the packet out of the hat, she flung it behind her, and frantically started scratching her multihued hair, desperately looking left and right for some sort of relief. A nail file, some sandpaper, heck, even a pitchfork at this point would do fine! As her eyes spotted a water basin in one of the corners of the barn, she took off toward it with a voice-cracking howl, plunging her head into the icy water while furiously washing the (metaphorically) smoldering substance out as fast as she could. A minute later, she resurfaced with a gasp of air, and collapsed in exhaustion. Pinkie Pie gasped for her own supply of oxygen on the other end of the building, albeit for a different reason.

"Tha… tha… ahahahaha! You were… the hat… hee hee hee hee hee!"

Rainbow Dash inhaled and rolled over, standing back up, her strength renewed. Walking over to the snickering mare, she salvaged what she could of her usually-mellow smirk, though her light-purple eyes gleamed with a darker edge.

"Heh… heh…. good one Pinkie Pie… but you're toast."

For all the levity in her heart, the pink pony could only gulp.

"Well I'm glad I caught you two when I did. Oh I don't think I could have done any better, it was such a nightmare… but to think, an entire fashion line for the little… ehh, things. Not my cup of tea, personally, but Hoity-Toity seemed so pleased with my work!"

"Wow, I'm so happy for you Rarity. Was the frog okay? Did you treat it nicely?"

Looking worse for the wear, Applejack trudged on in front of the dainty fillies, paying little mind to their conversation. She had all but given up on finding the flighty pony that had been on her mind all day, and was tiredly watching the ground, following the path with her apple-green eyes. Whatever Rainbow Dash was doing right now, it was no concern of hers anymore. All she wanted to do was get to the barn, finish the preparations for tomorrow, and hit the hay so she could give her addled mind a well-needed reprieve. As the trio neared the barn, she could see her shadow cast along the red walls. The sun had finally begun to retire beyond the horizon, enhancing her hatless silhouette to great proportions against the building she so desperately hoped to find her heart's fixation in. She quickly noticed, however, that the lights had been turned on, a soft glow that was almost indistinguishable from the slowly fading sunlight. A spark of hope lit up in her heart, when she heard her friends talking behind her.

"Fluttershy dear, have you seen Pinkie Pie today?" Rarity started. Fluttershy shook her head.

"No, I haven't. From what I heard, she was supposed to be baking the cake for Twilight's birthday before coming to help us. Rainbow Dash had told me that she was going to wait until you were through with your project before moving the cake here, so you could use your magic to safely-"

"Wait jus' a moment…" Applejack interjected, "When did you talk to Rainbow last?" she asked, suddenly interested. Fluttershy fixed her gaze back to the pony ahead of her.

"Oh, I found her last night. She was dropping off a paint can of rainbows for Pinkie Pie to start making the banners early if she found the time, and I caught her as she was walking out. Pinkie Pie was planning on finishing the baking by about this time, so she should be coming down here very soon. She may already be at the barn."

'Well, it's either Rainbow Dash or Pinkie Pie in there…' Applejack contemplated. The rest of the Apple family was still scattered around the field, they had seen more than a few members as her and Fluttershy had tended to the sick bunnies scattered across the property. She hoped it was both, Rainbow should've had plenty of time to set up the ribbons if she had somehow made it into the barn while she was assisting Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie would have started on the banners and balloons, leaving the group plenty of time to get everything in with minimal hassle. Applejack let out a small smile as she trotted up to the barn door, noises coming from inside. 'Maybe this won't end up bein' so bad after all." she assured herself as she opened the barn door.

She couldn't believe her eyes.

The first thing she noticed was that about half of the rafters were set up and decorated. Nicely -she cynically thought- though that didn't outweigh the fact that the rest of the streamers were wrapped around a pony suspended in the air like a candy wrapper. A colorful one, though it was the second colorful pony that caught her eyes next, who was suspending the swathed-up pony from a red streamer, a silly grin on her face, partially shaded by the hat she was wearing...

Her hat!

"That'll teach you to try and outdo me!" the flying filly exclaimed proudly. "I'm the queen of pranks, and don't you forget it!"

Pranks…

It all clicked together in one nasty, sickening crunch of revelation. Two and two, four and four, and less than a second later, Applejack found herself seeing red…

Civilities be damned.

"WHAT THE HAY IS GOIN' ON HERE!"

Rainbow Dash froze at the acidic shriek that came from her orange-coated friend, dropping her colorful bundle which let out a loud "eep!" as it landed on a pile of hay, and touching down in front of her, looking stunned.

"H-hey Applejack, what's goin' on? Where've you been all day?" she asked uncertainly. Applejack's glare intensified.

"Are you FOALIN' me? I've been out there with Fluttershy lookin' all over for ya! Where have YOU been all day?" she shouted. Rainbow Dash took a step back, and then frowned herself.

"Geez, I was helping Pinkie Pie out. We only got back a few-"

"Helpin' her with what? Playin' a trick on me, or tyin' her up as a piñata fer the party?" she retorted venomously. "What in tarnation are you playin' at, Rainbow?"

Rainbow Dash stood her ground, wings spread out in aggravation. "What is your problem, Applejack? Calm down!" she replied ardently, but Applejack wasn't about to back down so easily either.

"ME calm down? I ran down t'Roseluck's fer twenty minutes! Twenty minutes, and you hauled outta here like you was done with the place! I was countin' on you to help me out today, and y'all left before anything got done!" she yelled. Rainbow Dash's wings lowered slightly, the heat of her argument starting to ebb away.

"Yeah, well if you hadn't run off, maybe I would have…"

"HOW DARE YOU!" she spat fiercely. "I busted mah flanks all mornin' long without you to get this done fer Twilight, and it wasn't near enough to make it in time! Y'all were supposed to meet me here bright 'n early like y'promised me, and you DIDN'T!" Rainbow Dash felt her wings go slack, her expression turning sorrowful.

"Ya know somethin', Rainbow…" Applejack continued, her voice getting shaky, "I thought ah could depend on you, that WE could depend on you! For Celestia's sake, Fluttershy could've fixed these up rightly faster n' you! (Fluttershy ducked her head down behind a shaking Rarity, her lip quivering, and trying not to be noticed.) "An' you know why that is? Because she cares more 'bout others than about herself! She spent the whole day fixin' up her friend's families with nothin' but a smile! And what've you got to show? NOTHIN'!"

Rainbow Dash looked down even further, speaking softly. "But… I do c-"

"Jus' forget it! We've got too much work t'do, and y'all are so WORTHLESS! WE DON'T NEED YOU HERE! AND I DON'T WANT YOU HERE NEITHER!" Applejack shouted. Through her furious gaze, she watched Rainbow Dash slowly raise her head after a moment of absolute silence… she panted heavily as she prepared herself for the proud pony's next predictable outburst, her explanations and her excuses.

She saw twin trails of tears, streaming from a pair of vacant, violet eyes. All of the fire, the righteous anger that festered through her being… was doused in an instant.

By the tears of a broken champion.

"Rainbow…" she started, quietly.

But she was gone, in a bright flash of rainbow, colors that mocked the sorrow and resentment coursing through Applejack as the reality of what had happened caught up with her. Eyes glistening, she helplessly turned toward the door her friend had flown out of, to her friends backed up in the corner. Rarity was holding a trembling Fluttershy, not caring that the sensitive mare poured her tears into her previously perfect mane. She looked to the middle of the room, so lifeless and empty now…

And to Pinkie Pie, still wrapped up in her bindings, unwilling to meet her eyes.

Not since the day she left the farm as a filly had she ever felt so alone.

Choking back a sob, she looked back to Rarity again, her expression veiled by her long indigo tresses.

"Y'all… y'all gonna be okay without us fer a while, I hope." she half-asked, half-stated. Rarity turned her head toward her, eyes traced down to the floor, but let a small, understanding smile give all the confirmation Applejack needed to bolt out the door without another word, a trail of tears falling behind her as she charged under the symbol of her love's philosophy…

The lone rainbow trail streaked against the blazing sunset.