Disclaimer: I don't own Hasbro, or My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. I own a ten year-old boulder of a computer, a chair that offers no back support, and about twelve assorted musical instruments, depressingly most of which nobody has ever heard of.

Maybe Pinkie Pie has? Someone go ask her.

Chapter 4: Overcast

*Crick… crick-crack…pop… crick… crick-crick*

The rain was gone.

She lay there on her side with her eyes closed, listening to the tiny bursts of sound echoing in the stillness. Wherever 'there' was, it sure was soft. And dry.

Warm, even.

She gradually became conscious of the emanating heat in front of her. She lay in a pleasant daze, feeling the light waves of rolling warmth that washed over her body.

Slowly, Rainbow Dash opened her eyes.

She was lying in front of a fire pit, the logs pointing out in a conventional six-star spread, surrounded by a ring of rocks. Burning only a few feet away, she squinted as the unexpected light assaulted her vision. She blinked a few times, broadening her awareness and looking around as her eyes adjusted to the shadows of the room around her.

A rock wall of jagged layers came to view first, shadows towering across the ceiling from the rough slabs, illuminated by the light of the fire. Her eyes scanned the entirety of the ceiling, and to the other side of the room above her head, same as the previous. She was in a cave.

Her head began to throb dully, but painfully from the eyestrain, and so she directed her gaze sideways from the floor. Shifting to roll off of her tender shoulder, she heard a light crinkling sound, more rapid and high-pitched than those coming from the blaze before her. Glancing down, she took notice of where she lay.

A bed of leaves had been arranged underneath her, glowing in different colors below the dancing light source. From her peripherals, she saw very few leaves scattered around the floor near the jumping flames.

Somepony had to have collected the pile of leaves for her.

'Rainbow…'

She blinked, the memories of the crash suddenly rushing back to her. She remembered… hearing somepony whispering her name before she had passed out! Violet eyes shooting open, she raised her head, feverishly searching the corners of the poorly lit cavern for her would-be rescuer. She could not see anyone.

The cave was completely silent, but for the crackling noise of the fire. Directing her gaze forward, she miserably recalled the events that had brought her here, memories brought back with her epiphany a moment ago. In a single day, she had managed to ruin Twilight's surprise birthday party, lose the friendship and trust of the pony she had grown closer to than any other, and broken her wing mid-flight in the middle of nowhere, now stuck in a cave with somepony she did not know, and could not find.

Tears willed themselves to the rims of her eyes, but refused to spill over, finding herself undeserving of such self-pity. She lay in stoic stillness, unable to find a reason to get up, surrendering instead to stare at the wavering firelight.

Careless. That was the word that pervaded her thoughts as her vision glazed over. She watched the flames reaching upwards, stretching towards the ceiling in vain, flickering flourishes, aimlessly and spontaneous.

Or so it seemed at first glance. There in the center of the fire pit was a glowing furnace of hot coals. A bed of embers, shimmering and warping the air with the intensity of its energy, feeding the burning tendrils that licked and curled in the air above.

Staring into the fire, she could see the rainbow visage of a pony. In each burst of flame, the memory of a failed trick, wisping away into nothing. With every crackle from the burning logs came the scornful laughter of a pony who would not realize her dream.

And from every flicker she saw a pair of victoriously-gleaming violet eyes, a silent reservoir holding back the years of accumulated pain, silently pleading for understanding and reprieve.

No matter how high the flames reached, they would always disappear, leaving small cinders occasionally falling down around the ring of rocks. And still those flames ventured upwards, no irresolute or hesitant gesture made.

Why?

Her eyes fell to the bed of coals again, the shimmering heat giving way to a memory long since forgotten…

*FWOOOSHH!*

Animals of all kinds darted into the trees and burrows. Ducks abandoned a nearby pond in a frenzy of feathers as they took flight, whether by choice, or by the destructive power of the gale-force winds tearing them from the water's surface, sending the helpless birds sprawling in the awe-striking surf.

Streaking upwards in a blur of colors, the peace-shattering perpetrator braked hard in mid-air, grabbing a cloud in the midst of her speeding wake and stopping her ascent in full.

Legs still dangling upwards from her previous momentum, the pegasus pony grinned as a spray of pond water flew upwards at her, showering her face and drenching her hovering body in ice-cold victory.

Shaking her head free of the moisture, she glanced downward, her smile growing wider as she took note of the large branches and debris strewn all over the previously-pristine clearing, a testament to the sheer velocity she had attained.

Perfect.

But enough warming up. Rainbow Dash had real work to do.

The teenage prodigy stared down at the world below as the wind blew through her rainbow mane. The fields and meadows of Ponyville lay before her, the nearby town sitting a healthy distance away. She was only just able to make out a few colorful dots someplace far off below; a number of ponies working outside in some nearby orchard.

She jumped up from the cloud, and began a routine of stretches in mid-flight, attempting to loosen up the tension in her arms and legs, twisting her body left and right. Lastly, she looked behind her and gave her rainbow tail a good flick, making sure it was devoid of any tangles or knots.

This stunt was all about presentation.

The pegasus lay out the practiced scene before her, visualizing a cheering crowd below; a large, slanted box full of shouting fans and adoring admirers. Her eyes became slits as she glared down to the world below, refocusing all of her attention on her upcoming routine.

Rainbow Dash took a deep breath, and dove off of the cloud.

Putting her hooves in front of her, her hawk-like gaze locked onto two objects; the imaginary stand of cheering ponies, and a tiny cloud hovering some distance below and to her right, rapidly approaching as the blue filly built up speed. Two hundred yards… one hundred yards… twenty yards.

'NOW!'

Thundering passed the tiny cloud, Rainbow Dash swiftly flicked her tail out, catching the puffy object with a sharp-sounding *pff!*, and drawing all of the water into her slipstream as she roared towards the ground. Halfway to the ground, she quickly glanced backwards, grinning as she saw the beginnings of a rainbow trail forming behind her from the wayward moisture.

But she wasn't through yet. The proud pegasus hurtled toward the imaginary crowd at break-neck speed, and began a high-speed twirl, the rainbow trail twisting behind her like a shimmering, dazzling ribbon.

All that was left was to pull up and out of her spinning nose dive in the right direction, and she would have that audition in the bag. This stunt was bound to impress the Wonderbolts for sure! This was going to be even more spectacular than her recently-perfected second signature move.

This move… was going down in the history books for sure, the name of which would be spoken in awe for generations to come!

The Fantastic Filly Flash!

She could feel the curvature of the wind through her outstretched wings, hear the howling wind that gave way to the triumphant athlete. She was the fastest pegasus around for miles, the sky was her racetrack in which she found no competition.

Champions didn't compete, they showed off.

She began struggling to keep her focus, biting back the building wave of queasiness from staring at the spinning ground below. The trick to this one was keeping her bearings, and it was hard to keep track of the direction she needed to pull up from. One wrong move or moment of hesitance would send her spiraling through the brush.

Or worse, into another tree.

'Ha, she totally wrecked that tree, look!'

Rainbow Dash fought hard to bury that bitter memory as she tore past the drifting clouds.

'Yeah right, like you could ever make the team…'

Spinning, she began to lose focus, the same feeling of helplessness and fright from the memory overtaking her as she corkscrewed downwards, the ground growing rapidly closer…

The ground!

She had lost her bearings!

Casting fate to the wind, Rainbow Dash leveled her course in a burst of impulse and panic, her hooves skimming the unforgiving soil below her. Through her adrenaline-fed terror, her eyes could scarcely keep up with the terminal speed at which her body rocketed, barely dodging the rushing blur of brush and tree limbs.

Careening through the thickening foliage, Rainbow Dash was unable force her wings to tilt downwards in hopes of rocketing herself upwards into the spacious safety of the sky, the intensity of her speed too hard to fight. Wide-eyed and panicked, instinct had completely taken over. Left! Up! Left! Right! Left! Down! Right! Left! Up!

An opening!

With only a blink of hesitance, Rainbow Dash willed her wings to thrust downwards, swiftly rising up and over the treetop.

Or so she would have, were it not for that moment of uncertainty. Instead the panicking pegasus cried out as a cluster of branches scraped against her body as she flew through the top of a tree, twigs lashing out at her body, and sending her tumbling through the sky at high-speeds.

Five seconds of stomach-turning somersaults later, she felt herself rolling across the earth, gradually decreasing in speed. Five more seconds of painful collisions with the ground, and she finally felt the momentum leave her body, the world catching up to her as she let out a small "oof!"

She lay sprawled across the ground, covered in dust and clumps of dirt. With a groan, she found the strength to raise her head slightly from the ground, only to let it fall down with a depressing *thud*. She had allowed herself to get distracted.

Again.

It was a miracle that she was still alive after all of the stunts she had blown, each crash more spectacular and disastrous than the last. It was becoming more and more difficult to keep her focus as the months went by, her mind always drawing back to those three pegasus ponies, who forever reminded her of the disappointment she was slowly becoming.

'Face it Rainbow Crash, you're just one big failure after another!'

During every trick, and after every jaw-dropping feat she performed for her growing number of admirers, that memory would haunt her. It was always sitting quietly in the back of her mind, torturous and unnerving. But it didn't matter what they thought. She would prove them wrong, and she would tell herself that every day since then.

Words were cheap.

'Have fun walking all the way to Ponyville, Rainbow Crash!'

And so Rainbow Dash lay there alone, listening to the sounds of the forest around her in quiet defeat.

…

…

"Y'all just gonna lay there all day or what?"

The pegasus jolted in mute surprise. From the direction of the voice, somepony was standing over her! Startled by the sudden realization that she wasn't so alone, humiliation quickly overtook her. She decided to pretend to not have heard the pony. Maybe whoever was there would leave her alone, and walk off without recognizing her.

"Hello? Equestria to rainbow-pony?"

Oh yeah, she had a rainbow-colored mane. So much for subtlety.

Rainbow Dash exhaled in resignation, opting to glance up at the pony who had addressed her. Her violet eyes trailed up a pair of toned, orange legs, a body and a neck, and up to a set of freckles ornamenting an innocent pout… that made her heart skip a beat. Her gaze slowly worked up, and into the most vibrantly emerald eyes she had ever seen, shaded by a brown hat that rested atop her head just a size too large.

But Rainbow Dash had not noticed. She locked eyes with the stranger, feeling all sense of self and self-pity slip away into those apple-green pools...

"What, never seen a Stetson before? Or have I got somethin' on my face?" the pony asked, tilting her head. Rainbow Dash blinked, breaking away from the pony's puzzled stare, and looking to the side.

"Hey."

"Hay is fer horses… and ponies I s'pose, but that still ain't no way to greet a stranger!" The pony exclaimed readily, leaning down towards the reticent pony. "The name's Applejack, what's yours?"

"…Rainbow Dash."

"Well Rainbow Dash, that sure was some fancy flyin' back there. I've never met a pegasus that could do half of what you were pullin' off."

…

"You sure are quiet. Are you okay?"

Rainbow Dash still did not meet her gaze, opting instead to stare at a nearby apple tree. "I'm fine."

The hat-clad teenager cocked her head. "Can you even stand up?" she asked.

The pegasus visibly tensed. "Of course I can stand up!"

"Well, you must sure like that patch o' dirt." The stranger raised an eyebrow. "Do it then!"

Frowning, Rainbow Dash squirmed on the ground, moving her legs into position, and tried to stand on all fours. She got as far as propping her front two legs up, when they buckled out from under her. The blue pony collapsed in a pathetic heap, groaning softly.

The orange pony chuckled. "Didn't think so." She walked a slow, full circle around the silently-simmering pegasus pony, giving her a once-over, and even running a hoof down Rainbow Dash's right front leg, the pony recoiling at the touch with a sharp gasp.

"Ya shore did a number on that one. Just sprained it, though, but I reckon you're still not up to flyin' anywhere." she commented. Rainbow Dash just closed her eyes, grunting in humiliation. A second later, those same eyes shot wide open as she felt a hat-clad head dive down under her belly, hoisting her onto the same pony's back.

"Hey, what are you-"

"Simmer down, Sallie. You're in no condition t'be walkin' or flyin' anywhere. And I don't know about you, but I'm powerful hungry for some apple pie, an' I don't fancy bakin' like one in the middle of an orchard on a hot, sunny day." she stated carelessly, beginning a slow trot through the apple trees. "Besides, I've got the rest of the day off, so we can spend some time together, get to know each other n' all."

Rainbow Dash watched the trail of grass and rocks drifting by, unsure of what to say to the stranger's sudden gesture.

"So… where are you taking me?"

"Well lucky for you, I've got my treehouse nearby. I've been out in the orchard for a while now, doin' a quick check-up on this here part of the farm for Granny Smith before callin' it a day. Then I saw you flyin' by… an' boy howdy, you sure can fly. I could feel that last gust o' wind all the way from here before you started that twirly-trick o' yours. You sure got a talent fer it."

*Clop clop, clop clop, clop clop…*

"Applejack, right?"

"Yeah?"

"…Thanks."

The trotting pony smiled, bowing her head. "Think nothin' of it."

"An' so I said, 'Braeburn, why in the hay would anypony want to settle in the desert?' Want to know what he said?"

"Tell me!"

"He said, 'Well coz, anypony can settle in the desert, but me and Silver Star are gonna start our very own town, and our very own apple orchard!"

"Hahaha, in the desert?"

"I know! An'… haha, an' I said, 'Well that's about as practical as takin' an art class for horse-drawn horse-drawn carriages!"

The two ponies laughed riotously while slamming their hooves down in delight, shaking the tin of steaming-hot pie that sat on the table before them. Rainbow Dash fell over onto to the wooden floor, gasping for breath.

"Horse… drawn… horse-drawn… oh that's classic! Hahaha!"

Applejack chuckled heartily, taking another bite of apple pie before staring out of the window. The sun had begun a slow decline beyond the horizon, casting golden beams of light across the small table, lighting the back wall and warmly diffusing throughout the rest of the room.

Rainbow Dash sat up, wiping the tears of mirth from her eyes with her good hoof. "You're a riot, Applejack. And a great cook too!" she exclaimed, diving back into her side of the large pie dish.

"Well thank ya kindly, Rainbow… if it's alright if I call you that." she said, coyly pointing a hoof at the pony. Rainbow Dash looked up from her tasty meal, a miniature smile forming across her face.

"Yeah, that's cool."

"Well good. Still hankerin' for more pie?"

"Actually… nope, I'm good."

"Alrighy then." Applejack moved the pie dish towards her side of the table, and began to eat.

"… so can I call you Jack?"

The orange pony snorted into the dish. "No."

The rainbow-maned pony chuckled, leaning back on her haunches and taking in the scenery. The room was surprisingly well-lit for lacking a better light source, the large windows allowing for healthy amounts of sunlight to filter in. A small fan was set up on the other side of the small room, creating a pleasant cross-breeze with the window that combed through Rainbow Dash's hair. The small blue table in front of them was close enough to the ground that the two forwent using chairs, instead sitting across from each other on the floor.

Looking down further, Rainbow Dash adjusted the feather-down pillow on which her hoof softly rested. She smirked, glancing back at the freckle-faced pony, who was loudly devouring the last slice of pie, blissfully unaware of her companion's silent musings.

"Hey Applejack…" she started, looking away from her.

*Mmph… hawmph mmmph… gulp* "Mmm, yeah?"

"Thanks again… for all of this."

Applejack smiled, closing her eyes and waving her acquaintance off with an idle hoof. "Oh don't mention it." She dived back down into the pie.

Rainbow Dash turned her head towards her. "No really, I-I mean it, you're a great friend."

Silence. Applejack slowly leaned up, swallowing and looking away from the blue filly, who gave her a questioning stare.

"Friend?" she asked in a soft whisper. Too softly to settle with Rainbow Dash.

"What's wrong, Applejack. You… don't want to be friends?"

Applejack took her gaze. "No! I… I do wanna be friends. I just… well, y'see…" she trailed off. Rainbow Dash leaned forward, quietly awaiting a response.

Applejack looked out the window again.

"I… I don't have that many friends. I spend most of my time here on the farm. There's always a lotta work t'be done, an' the only ponies here to do it are my brother Big Macintosh, my Granny Smith an' me. Sometimes we work all day long… an' we still get behind on our duties."

She then noticed the look the pegasus pony was giving her. "Now don't get me wrong, workin' on the farm is my life, an' I ain't never been happier here… but it can get kinda lonesome."

Rainbow Dash frowned, turning her head. She knew what 'lonesome' was like.

"I mean sure, family comes to visit every so often, and all of us even get t'gether once every year. But it just isn't the same, ya know? An'… well, I don't have very many friends as it is. I don' even know… what friends are supposed to do, t'be honest." the pony ended, her gaze slowly sinking towards the empty pie dish, only to snap back up as Rainbow Dash snorted loudly.

"You've got to be kidding! I fall out of the sky and sprain my leg, you carry me all the way to an awesome tree house, you give me free pie and we trade funny stories for three hours! And after talking to me for what, a minute? I mean come on, you're the best!" she declared, grinning down at the empty pie dish. "Not to mention an awesome cook."

Applejack smirked, inclining her head. "Heh, you did mention that."

"Oh." Rainbow Dash frowned, waving off the sniggering pony. "But I'm serious, I'd say you're a great friend, and I'd love to have you be mine. I mean… you know, one of mine." she quickly corrected, looking away with lightly-dusted cheeks.

…

"Yee HAW!"

Rainbow Dash yelped in surprise as the orange pony ambushed her with an over-the-table hug, biting back the urge to ruin the kind-hearted gesture with a squeal of pain. It didn't help that the setting sunlight was bursting through the window now, bathing the two in an obnoxiously well-timed golden glow.

But sometimes physical necessity takes priority over cosmic deliverance.

"Apple… Jack… air… leg… ouch!" she squeaked.

"Oh, right. Sorry partner." Applejack pulled away, ducking her head in embarrassment. She stood up and stretched out her legs with a content groan, taking note of the waning sunset outside of the window.

"Would'ja look at that. Time sure does fly when y'all are havin' fun."

Rainbow Dash laughed nervously, opting to look away, and coughing into her good hoof as the orange pony trotted towards the entryway with a light yawn.

"I gotta head down to the farmhouse an' meet Big Macintosh b'fore it gets any later, let him know what's goin' on. I'll be back with a set o' sleepin' bags an' some marshmallows, an' we can camp outside tonight. We'll see if your leg feels any better then." The farm-pony frowned. "Y'all gonna be comfortable enough for twenty minutes or so?"

The feathered filly gave her a grin, waving her hoof. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine." she assured Applejack, who smirked back, and continued out the doorway.

Rainbow Dash sighed when Applejack disappeared from view, glancing down to the empty pie dish.

"Just fine."

*Crick-crick… crick-crick… crick-crick… crick-crick*

"Ouch! Horseapples!"

"Heh heh, watch out for the flies 'round these parts. They bite."

"It's not that, it's my stupid leg!"

"Well stop leanin' on it s'much. Scoot closer to the fire."

With a grumble, Rainbow Dash complied, kicking the pillow her aching foreleg rested on with her knee as she moved forward, carefully enough as to not poke the burning logs with the marshmallow-laden stick she held in her other hoof.

Applejack sighed, gulping down the rest of her marshmallow, and setting her stick down to lean back and stare upwards. "It sure was awfully kind o' Granny Smith to give me the mornin' off tomorrow.

"Hmm."

"What's the matter? Leg still botherin' ya?"

"No."

*Crick-crick… crick-crick… crick-crick*

"Bit fer your thoughts over there?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Well you sure as hay aren't doin' anypony any favors by keepin' it bottled up t' yourself."

"Just don't worry about it. Could you pass me the marshmallows?"

"No."

Rainbow Dash looked up from the fire to the orange pony, who was giving her a firm glare.

"We're friend's now, Rainbow Dash, an' if somethin' is botherin' you so much that you go an' act this way, then I wanna know what it is."

"It's nothing."

"The hay it ain't, sugarcube." Applejack said, her tone getting sharper. "I c'n spot a troubled pony a mile away. Ya don't get into sales without gettin' to know how a pony works, an' I've sold more apples than you'd ever care t'count.

Rainbow Dash matched Applejack glare-for-glare, "It's none of your business." she asserted, pointedly.

The two stared each other down, until Applejack let out a submissive sigh, turning to the fire.

"Look, I don't mean t'pry. It's just that, with y'all lookin' like that… it really bothers me."

She idly drew her hoof across the ground in small circles, frowning. "I mean, I know we haven't been friends fer long… but in the few hours I've have known you…" she lingered, her tone growing quieter.

"…I think you've become my best."

Rainbow Dash blinked, her throat growing taunt.

"I really do care about you, and I can tell that somethin' is eatin' at you somethin' fierce. I jus'… wanna help." she finished, at almost a whisper.

Her heart filling with a rushing warmth, Rainbow Dash's felt her own glare softening, to the point where she had to look away from the confessive pony out of embarrassment. She heard the crinkling sound of a plastic bag from across the fire.

"An' I know you still want these marshmallows, Rainbow." Applejack teased, waving the bag tauntingly to the side. The pegasus exhaled through her nose in irritation, but could not prevent a resigned smirk from forming at the edges of her mouth. Applejack chuckled, tossing the bag over the fire and into the pony's lap.

"Hmph, I though you said you didn't know how to be a good friend." Rainbow Dash stated, reaching into the bag for another puffy treat.

The orange teenager snorted. "I jus' can't stand seein' a pony lookin' so down like you were. 'Specially a friend." she added, leaning up and resting her hooves on the ground before her. "So tell me, what's wrong?"

Rainbow Dash set the bag down with a sigh, a shiver going through her wings as she brought her knees up to her chest, turning sideways. She began in a quiet voice.

"Well, it all started on my very first day in Flight School, in my old Crash Course class…"

…

"And that's pretty much how I ended up here. Camping out with a friend, stuck on the ground… with a sprained leg."

Silence filled the small clearing, the crackling of the fire muted by the solemn atmosphere. Even the crickets stayed their nocturnal thrumming, as if quietly pondering the story they had been told. Rainbow Dash turned towards her companion, barely glimpsing the Stetson-clad pony quickly wiping a hoof across her cheek, the appendage glistening and wet.

Applejack sat up, and looked her straight in the eyes.

"Yer a terrible story-teller, Rainbow Dash."

...

"Y'all just told me a story 'bout a pathetic failure of a pony, who had nothin' to go by but a waste of a dream. Any other pony might sit here an' tell you that everythin'll be all right, that y'all deserve better than that. Well I say y'all deserve jus' what you got."

Rainbow Dash bristled, but said nothing.

"Jus' about any pony I know would've given up bein' a pegasus, let alone a member of the best flyers in Equestria, if they had t'go through what you jus' told me."

The fire wavered and crackled before them, filling the small moment of silence.

"Fer a pony… f-fer any pony to go through all that, an' still keep on fightin' fer a dream… that sounds like somepony worth cheerin' on. Somepony loyal enough to her cause to be worth somethin'.

Applejack stood up, and trotted around the fire towards the shaking filly, taking a seat beside her and staring into the starlight above.

"You've got a big dream, Rainbow Dash. An' it sounds like some ponies don't want you t'make it happen. Well forget them. They ain't worth the time n' effort to think about." Applejack paused, taking a deep breath. "If you're even feelin' lonely, an' find yourself thinkin' about a pony…"

The Stetson-clad pony turned towards Rainbow Dash, startling her with a tear-stained smile. "…then try an' think of me. Because I'll be here for you, cheerin' you on no matter what anypony else says about you."

Applejack's content, watery-eyed visage faded into blurriness as Rainbow Dash began losing the fight against the tears that danced underneath her twin violets.

"From what I saw, you've got the talent, and more than enough of a drive to make it. An' if all of what you jus' told me is what it took for you t'be as good a flyer, an' as strong a fighter as you are… then I say you deserve jus' what you got, sugarcube. An' you deserve t'be proud of it."

All pain forgotten, Rainbow Dash threw her hooves around Applejack's neck in desperation, who returned the silent hug in full. The grief-stricken filly held her tight, ignoring the tears that fell freely down her face, and relishing the feeling of her friend's tears dripping down her back, caressing the ache in her soul.

"What I'm tellin' you… is the honest truth. You are anythin' but a failure."

She felt the dam in her heart break away, and let herself go completely. She sat there in the tranquility of the moment, sobbing away months of accumulated pain into her best friend's shoulder.

'Thank you…'

The only words she could think to say, and the only words that would not come.

Time passed, and Rainbow Dash's sobs grew quieter and quieter, until the stillness of the camp reached their ears once again. Applejack pulled away for the two of them, catching the pegasus pony's violet eyes in her own, and giving her a knowing smile. Rainbow Dash sniffed, an embarrassed grin spreading across her own face.

"Now, what say we call it a night, then?"

"Yeah… that sounds good."

The pegasus looked up towards the sky, her star-littered eyes sparkling as Applejack made her way back to the other side of the fire pit, shuffling supplies off of her sleeping bag.

Rainbow Dash let her gaze follow a streaking star, zipping across the night sky, disappearing behind the tiny dot that she recognized to be Cloudsdale. She frowned.

"Hey, do you think that…" Rainbow Dash looked back at the empty abode behind them. "Would you mind… if I ever needed someplace to hang out, somewhere I could, you know..."

"Get away?"

"Yeah."

"My clubhouse is your clubhouse, sugarcube. Jus' make sure to say hello if you see me close by."

"Well duh. I'd totally drop by if I saw you."

"Not like you did t'day." she interjected, chuckling as she snuggled further into her sleeping bag.

"Very. Funny."

But she could not suppress a smile as she stared into the pit of coals, burning as warm as the hope in her heart.

Rainbow Dash drew away from the memory, tearing her gaze from the searing coals, and back into the cold, empty reality of the cave. Bitterness and nausea swept through her chest like a wave of acid.

Those flames had something to burn for.

The pegasus pony shivered as a sudden chill ran through her, from the loneliness the memory brought. She had something to burn for, once. A pony that held her in high regard for never giving up, and never giving in. After every weary day, and after every failed trick, that pony had never thought any less of her, even willing to go so far as to help her out with a few of them… regardless of her own health and physical wellbeing.

Rainbow Dash found the heart to turn the corner of her mouth upwards at a particular memory, only to feel her gut wrench with guilt soon after. She had not been at all grateful for the time Applejack had taken out of her busy schedule to help her out last harvest time, knowing full well that the apple-buck season was in bloom. Drifting back to Applejack's ceremony at the Town Square, she had also agreed to assist some of the others with many a time-consuming project during the demanding month.

She cringed further inwardly as she remembered the pitiable state the working-pony had shown up in, before submitting herself to repeatedly falling off of the wooden tower. She could not remember hearing a single word of complaint from Applejack about her condition.

And not a word of gratitude from herself, for Applejack helping her out at all.

Despite having been launched all the way to Twilight's residence in the end, she was grateful. Applejack always made good with a promise in the end, and Rainbow Dash was hard-pressed to remember a time when she hadn't been there for her.

She lowered her head, wishing that somehow, even after all that had been said and done between them, she could tell Applejack just how much that had meant to her throughout all their years of friendship.

Too late for that.

Rainbow Dash exhaled, blowing a stray leaf from out of her matted hair, watching it drift into the crackling flames. An emptiness seemed to fill the cavern as Rainbow Dash came to realize… that she had nowhere to go. She couldn't face any of her friends after what had transpired in the barn, especially Applejack. No doubt she would try and find her once the storm blew over, to make things right between them.

It wouldn't change the fact that she had been right about her.

The dull ache throughout her body interrupted her thoughts once more. Too tired to fight through it, she submitted to staring once more into the flickering light before her, reaching up and out into the dim cavern…

…and casting shadows around an orange mare with long sun-kissed hair, sitting in stock still silence across from the fire, staring at the Stetson she held in her hooves.