Chapter 1: Introduction of a Spectral Reverie

1:1 Excitement

Above Ponyville, lying atop a cloud, was Rainbow Dash. Lazing around, she simply stared at the sky, watching clouds float by. Usually, she would have been napping, flying, showing off or doing weather related jobs.

She let loose an exhaustive sigh. "Clouds have it nice. Floating in the wind, no cares in the world at all," Rainbow Dash sighed once more as she continued to stare at the clouds in an almost trance-like state.

Rainbow Dash had just finished training. The pressure of having an audience watching you would be sheer torture, so removing that pressure puts the mind much more at ease.

"Well," Rainbow Dash said out loud, breaking her trance. All that time competing really isn't nice to me, because yeah, it is tiring.

"Ra~ainbow!" a voice called out from down below.

Rainbow Dash peeked over the clouds edge toward the ground. The source of the voice was none other than Twilight Sparkle. Rainbow just wanted to go back to what she did best - nothing, but she decided to at least see what's up before deciding to reject Twilight's offer. She didn't bother standing up and rolled off the cloud. Rainbow began to let herself fall nose first akin to a bomb. Twilight gasped, preparing her magic and just before Rainbow slammed into the ground, her wings extended outwards and she slowed down. She allowed her legs to swing from under her, nearly kicking Twilight in the face. She allowed her legs to dangle back under her, and touched down gently, setting all four hooves on the ground.

"Yeah Twi?" Rainbow yawned.

Twilight stared at Rainbow for a few seconds before shaking her head, and quickly put her best smile on. "Sorry to disturb you Rainbow, but Rarity and Applejack wanted to talk to you. We were at the Library but we split up. We were going to meet in 10 minutes whether we found you or not,"

Rainbow let out a groan before wiping her face with her hoof. "She, err, they didn't happen to say why, did they?" Rainbow Dash asked sarcastically.

Twilight merely giggled at Rainbow's response. "C'mon, let's go," she said while Rainbow Dash let out a sigh and lazily hovered behind Twilight as they moved through the field of grass back to Ponyville.

Twilight and Rainbow arrived at the Library after a few minutes of walking to find Pinkie Pie standing in the centre of the room, staring directly at the door with wide eyes. Twilight stopped dead in her tracks as she entered the tree house. Rainbow Dash walked around Twilight, not caring about Pinkie's current antic, and simply ignored the mare's babbling.

"Ooh! You guys took forever to get back! Twilight and I must have had the same idea to go and check the fields since there are so many low clouds, and silly Dashie expects to be able to hide from everypony in the most obvious place ever, bu~ut as I walked..." Pinkie never seemed to stop, so Twilight sighed before she closed the door and stepped in. Rainbow Dash walked over and sat down.

Rainbow Dash groaned at Pinkie's antics before leaning back, allowing herself to sink into the chair. Twilight quickly trotted upstairs, while Pinkie Pie rambled on about how she and Twilight found Rainbow Dash earlier before breaking out into song about her trip back. Eventually, Twilight came back down, this time carrying Spike. The purple dragon was nose deep in a letter, writing words as Twilight spoke.

"... Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle," Twilight said as she came within earshot.

Spike finished writing, and rolled up the scroll. Rainbow Dash pondered the thought of it being some friendship report on loyalty. Looking at the two, it hit her: they weren't gone long enough to write a normal friendship report. This only caused Rainbow Dash to rub her temples in confusion, then decide to stop thinking about it all together. Spike took a deep breath as he held the scroll in front of him and unleashed a breath of fire, burning the scroll in a green flame. He watched as it vanished and magically flew to Canterlot. Rainbow Dash continued to watch Spike as he jumped down and walked toward Twilight's work area; it lay riddled with books and notes regarding dresses.

Oh no... I have to do something involving dresses? Wait, maybe it's just Twilight's subject of the week, Rainbow Dash thought as she became more alert.

The mere thought of being Rarity's living mannequin was a sheer nightmare to her. She looked away from Spike to see that Twilight, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Rarity, had all come in to the Library. Pinkie Pie bounced around, still rambling on about something. Rainbow Dash only just noticed the drool seeping through the corners of her mouth, having been too caught up in her thoughts, and promptly wiped it away. She looked back to Spike only to see him finishing up his tidying of Twilight's work area. Stepping into her line of vision, Rarity approached her.

"Oh my stars, darling. You look absolutely exhausted. I do say you're admirable for your ability as a flier but please dear, take it easy once in a awhile. You cannot afford to live tired all the time, dear," Rarity said followed by a smile.

Rainbow Dash stared back, then smiled quickly at Rarity's show of concern. The white mare's smile grew before she turned away toward Spike, who was stacking books. Rainbow Dash sighed, fighting back a yawn in the process. Twilight started grabbing more books while Applejack and Pinkie conversed.

"So~o Appleja~ack, do you think her answer is yes?" Pinkie Pie asked. Applejack looked up at the ceiling for a second, thinking.

"Hmm, Ah 'spose so, but it all depends on whether or not Rainbow Dash'll be able to do that kinda work," Applejack said.

Rainbow glared at Applejack momentarily, long enough to warrant an acknowledgement, as the farmer slowly trotted closer. Applejack wore a smile with a look of slight interest.

"Jeez RD, you look more tired than Ah do," Applejack said as she approached Rainbow Dash sitting lazily in her chair.

"Ugh, how many of you are going to say that?" Rainbow Dash said as she rubbed her eyes. Applejack let out a small chuckle as she realized that Rainbow Dash had probably heard that comment several times that day. Rainbow Dash sighed and added, "sorry, just a little exhausted. I guess I have a slight headache from training too hard earlier. It kinda ruins everything else I'm trying to focus on."

Applejack smirked. "Well, Ah learnt mah lesson during last year's Applebuck Season," she said, with a slight eye twitch. "Anyways, we were lookin' fer ya with hopes ya would sign something Twilight cooked up fer Sweet Apple Acres."

Rainbow thought for a second as she wondered what it would be. Knowing Twilight, it had to be something full of rules, instructions, and sheer strictness. Well, it is for Sweet Apple Acres... can't be all bad... Rainbow Dash thought, adjusting her seating position.

"Mind explaining it to me first?" Rainbow Dash said with a small scowl, still fighting back yawns.

"Ah think it'd be better if Twi did it. She did cook 'er up," Applejack said as she turned to walk back to Pinkie Pie, who had just finished her rambling.

Rainbow sighed. She watched Applejack's short walk back, wondering what they want her to do. Her eyes were locked onto the back of Applejack's head, her golden mane bobbing with each step she took. Rainbow stared at the hat on Applejack's head vividly, wondering how that thing hasn't fallen apart or been replaced yet. Lucky break, or maybe Rainbow just didn't know the benefits of taking care of one's stuff.

Applejack turned to talk to Pinkie Pie, showcasing her entire body to Rainbow Dash. Rainbow saw how Applejack's body showed the fruits of physical work; truly a character worthy of Rainbow Dash's competition.

Rainbow continued to stare at her rival, lost in her thoughts regarding her reason to be there. She quickly shook her head as her mind became plagued with various answers to her question, each different variations of things she already thought; all pointing to eventual assistance regarding Sweet Apple Acres. She sighed, her mind slightly eased yet expecting to do hard labour.

"Ra~inbo~w..." Twilight called out with a mellow tone, just short of whispering, directly into Rainbow Dash's ear. Rainbow Dash didn't notice Twilight approach until she nudged Rainbow Dash's shoulder.

"Huh?" Rainbow said, spinning her head toward Twilight.

"Sorry, I thought you were falling asleep."

Rainbow Dash sighed, thinking clearly but also slightly annoyed. Jeez, maybe I should, I dunno, not train so hard? Wait, that's stupid. … hey, Twi's right here.

"Hey, I asked Applejack and she told me to ask you why I'm here. What gives?" Rainbow Dash said, her voice slightly louder. She sat up more attentively.

Twilight cocked her head. "Oh? I thought..." Twilight sighed before smiling. "Well, Rarity wants to use you as a model for some uniforms," Twilight said.

"Huh? Doesn't she know that... ugh, frilly clothes get in the way of flight?" Rainbow Dash said coarsely.

"Well dear, Rarity said while walking over to Rainbow Dash, "I'm testing some athletic attire. Jumpsuits, team uniforms and all that pizazz. I thought that I could make more business if I invested more into the sports industry," Rarity said.

Rainbow Dash blinked, and started thinking. Athletic sports often call for proper uniforms, and teams pay loads for uniforms... and I'm the only athlete around. Okay then.

"Well, okay I guess," Rainbow Dash said. If it has the slightest hint of frou-frou, I'm going to bail faster than a Sonic Rainboom.

"Well, actually, that is sort of a white lie. The Sports Industry could use a little more style in their uniforms, and I could make some more money, and finally be able to pay for some ads in bigger cities... but, well, Applejack's reason is the other. She needs team uniforms," Rarity said with a sly smile as she left to talk to Pinkie Pie and Applejack.

Rainbow Dash raised a brow, unsatisfied with being left in the dark still. She quickly looked around to see if anypony was free, while sitting up in her chair. Twilight popped into her view, staring right at her.

"Applejack wants to create a team for a competition. One that has to be verified by Princess Celestia before we can confirm anything. Applejack is competing with some other businesses in a national competition in the city of Troronto," Twilight said.

"Troronto? Isn't that near the northern border of Equestria?" Rainbow asked.

Twilight nodded. "She has to grow, maintain, and sell her crops. The point is to make more bits than other businesses," Twilight said, stopping before she went into extreme details.

Rainbow Dash merely nodded. "Well, what does this have to do with me, or us. What does it have to do with uniforms and what does this have to do with 'verification' or whatever from Princess Celestia?" Rainbow Dash said as she slowly got out of her chair.

"You enter in teams which need approval from the Managers. Princess Celestia and the Master of Ceremonies, plus the judges. Sweet Apple Acres needs more than just Big Mac and Applejack to do it, as recent years have proved how badly they need the extra hoof. It helps to have teammates for once, and it helps even more to have an ad campaign."

"Where you come in is you can fly banners, and pull off performances during the sales month declaring something like, 'I can fly this good because I eat Sweet Apple Acre's Apples!' Something that helps ponies who would otherwise ignore it."

"As for the uniforms, you gotta look stylish, not to mention the eventual mass harvest is chaotic. Not in the sense that you're competing against others, but because of all the equipment being pulled, crop being put into storage for the time being, moving into the kitchen, setting up your fields, so on and so forth," Twilight said.

Rainbow Dash hummed in her thoughts. Applejack has to make sure that Pinkie and Rarity could help if they are assisting. Or were they assisting? Maybe it will be just Big Mac, Applejack, and myself, possibly Twilight as well helping. She sighed and wondered how she missed out on such a competition before. Maybe it is once every two years? Rainbow Dash took a quick stretch.

"Well, sounds like fun when you put it that way. What does the winner get?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Twilight raised a hoof and opened her mouth, preparing to explain, only to say nothing. She placed her hoof on the ground and giggled. "Hehe, well, I'm not really sure. I had already started organizing and planning in my head the practises and drills that Applejack said we should do when she started rambling on about the Tomato family," Twilight said.

Rainbow Dash perked up. "Practise? Drills? This is just like an athletic competition!" she exclaimed as she cantered over to Applejack with Twilight following.

"So, you can handle bakin'?" Applejack asked.

"Yes!" Pinkie said, doing a quick salute.

Applejack turned to see Rainbow Dash and Twilight approaching. "Apples... I'm in!" Rainbow Dash said, unable to contain her excitement.

"Yee-haw, for once, we have a full team!" Applejack exclaimed.

Rainbow Dash smiled as she watched Applejack visually express her excitement. She felt herself raring to go, but couldn't fully shake off the exhaustion from earlier.

"So, um, what is the point, first? Oh, and the prize?" Rainbow Dash asked, chuckling at her slight forgetfulness.

Applejack turned toward Rainbow Dash. "Well, multiple farms compete 'n aim for the grand prize: free shipping and free product placement, paid for by the competition's committee," Applejack said. Rainbow Dash stared, unsure of whether or not to feel happy or disappointed. "Gosh, Ah can't imagine how much we'll save on shipping and how much we'll make on new customers," Applejack was giddy with excitement.

Rainbow's expression changed to a warm smile. She completely forgot about the prize, and just decided to let her friend enjoy her moment of excitement.

"So, um... Another question," Rainbow Dash said, watching as Applejack turned and smiled at Rainbow Dash. Y'know, maybe we could hang out some more during this competition. Get to know each other, and stuff. She coughed and began speaking. "S-so, um... who all, of all of us, are competing and, y'know, doing what?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Applejack giggled. "Sorry, mah mind is all jumpy. In previous years, we just had Big Mac 'n m'self." She let loose another giggle before clearing her throat. "This year, y'see, you would be best for carrying banners or skywriting with them clouds, an' during the competition, you could fly bushels of apples to th' kitchen. Much easier than paradin' through all them other team gophers," Applejack said.

Rainbow Dash stood on her hind legs and punched the air with her fore hooves. "YES! Now I can show off my stuff for many to see!" she said.

"Heh, well, Twilight will be helping with organization throughout, thankfully. Last year, we lost so many apples when I was in charge... Hooboy," Applejack said, seemingly thinking about the event in question. Rainbow Dash wondered for a second.

"Wait, how do you grow Apples in a month?" Rainbow Dash pondered. Apples aren't insta-crop... well, Zap Apples are, but those don't count.

Applejack let out a light chuckle. "We don't. Th' judges are notified of how long a crop grows and we plant them beforehand. We planted apple trees at this year's location about 6 months ago. Every week, either Big Macintosh 'er I go there to check on 'em. With two weeks to the competition, and people starting to prepare, we gotta get ready. I was hopin' ya could begin advertisin' Team Apples as soon as possible," she said as she seemingly became lost in a victory fantasy as much as Rainbow Dash was.

"Got it. I just need a place to start, and a uniform," Rainbow Dash said as she looked over at Rarity.

"Well, I'll have it done as soon as I know what fits, what works, and what lasts on you first, dear. I can only create the uniform when I know what works," Rarity said, bringing a chest over with magic.

"Anyways, when does this great harvest begin? And what do we do beforehand?" Rainbow Dash asked.

The chest opened up revealing ten uniforms, all expressing simplistic designs, merely placeholders until Rarity can know what uniform fits best. Applejack chuckled at Rainbow Dash's question.

"Well actually sugar cube, the harvest begins when the contest does. We harvest half th' apples at th' start and begin preparing th' stand. Baking pies and other related goods. which Pinkie an' Ah'll be handling. will be done after. Then, advertising it to show our product, which you and Rarity will handle with her designing the ads an' uniforms." She paused, letting Rainbow Dash think.

Rainbow Dash nodded, taking it all in. She didn't realize, due to her distraction, and being tired, that Rarity was already stashing the suit on. She finally noticed, helping Rarity with putting it on before it snugly wrapped her body.

"Twi will be handlin' the organization, making sure we don't lose any crops for... various reasons," Applejack said. "Fluttershy'll be handling the stand, along with me, as well as handlin' any critters that come by."

They were all staring at the uniform Rarity had managed to slip on Rainbow Dash's body. It was simple and fit snugly on her. "It is orange with a few brown stripes simply because I can not stand the sight of a plain uniform, placeholder or not," Rarity said.

It had a few things on it for advertising, such as flips for banners or clips for dragging a cart, and so forth. Rainbow Dash examined herself and did a crouch. Feels good. Not great, but good, she thought.

"First, let me tell you the name of our campaign. Applejack gave me a fabulous idea simply by mentioning your name, Rainbow Dash," Rarity said as she looked over to Rainbow Dash to make sure nothing was out of place.

"Uh huh," Rainbow Dash said, getting slightly annoyed at how close Rarity was getting. A little too close.

"It is a great name. We kinda just had to get you here," Twilight said.

"'It is called 'The Apple Spectrum'!" they all said at once.

There was an awkward pause, as Rainbow retorted with a deadpan stare. She raised a brow, and her friends stared back in confusion.

"All that buildup for so little payoff?" Rainbow stared in disbelief.

Her friends stared at her in slight shock. It's punny and nice, but I was expecting something huge for something that was... described as being huge. Rainbow thought.

"What!?" Rarity exclaimed. "That's a tad rude, Rainbow Dash. Honesty is the best policy but it is the idea of somepony else." Rarity moped as she puckered her lip. The others simply looked at Rainbow each with a slight glare, except for Fluttershy who couldn't.

Rainbow looked at her friends. "What? I expected something a little better than the 'Apple Spectrum'. Do apples usually come in a full spectrum?" Rainbow scoffed as she did a few jumps and push ups. "But the uniform is comfy and seems good so far. Not perfect, kinda itchy near my hooves," she finished off.

Rarity's horn lit up, magic activated, and the uniform was off of Rainbow almost instantly. Rarity was already grabbing the next one. Applejack sighed at Rainbow's reaction.

"Well, Ah'm sure the slogan'll grow on ya," she said letting out a small chuckle.

"It is a genius idea in my opinion. A spectrum of colours always remains visible when in the sky where the only contrast is blue. Even on the ground, the contrast there is usually grass or dirt roads," Twilight said while grabbing a book with her magic.

The title read Spectacle Prisms: The Entire Colour Spectrum Reference Guide. She quickly opened up to a page near the front and read it while Rainbow yawned. She really needed sleep.

"Even so, you'll be a perfect living advertisement, with the athletic physique, and the uniform plans I have prepared," Rarity said as she used her magic to teleport the next uniform onto Rainbow's body. "This one is a slightly different design from the last one; different material mixed with the same material to see how different fabrics react with skin. Is it too itchy? Does it pull on your coat? Those are the sort of questions I want answered." Her voice seemed to grow muffled.

Rainbow diverted her eyes to the ceiling of the room staring up. There were some garbled sounds that sounded like voices.

Ugh, I'm going to pass out soon, I can feel it. Voices are gibberish, my body feels numb. Kinda like a sugar crash. Ha, sucks to be you Rainbow. Really gotta work on my stamina.

Rarity looked at Rainbow, frowning and tilting her head to the side while examining Rainbow.

"Oh, dearies. Maybe we should continue this... some other time," Rarity said.

Rainbow looked over to Rarity, spotting her frown. Everybody else looked at Rainbow when Rarity mentioned this. Spike walked up in front of her, held up his hand to her face and snapped. Rainbow quickly shot her head back. "Hnn, no, no. I'm... I'm fine," she said with a yawn.

My legs feel weak. Darn. This competition actually sounds interesting, yet here I am, Rainbow thought. She looked over to Twilight. Egghead has her nose in that book. Too distracted to notice anything. Hmm, Applejack. She looked over to Applejack.

"So, um, when exactly is the competition-contest thingy again? Also, next uniform," Rainbow Dash asked as Rarity teleported the current uniform off of Rainbow, putting on another one.

Hmm, what bugs me... Rarity's gonna wanna know... She looked at Rarity who waited for some kind of sign, eyes closed and breath held. Rainbow closed her eyes and shook. "Itchy all over," Rarity's eyes shot open wide as she immediately tore off the uniform.

Applejack stepped forward. "One month. Gotta start finalizing everythin' soon and usually now is when th' other businesses are finishing up an' takin' the rest of the time t' relax. Have none o' that on the Apple Family," Applejack said. AJ shook her head, Rainbow giving her the best deadpan stare she could muster. "Okay, terrible lie. We're pretty much 'wingin' it so to speak," Applejack said with a sheepish grin.

Rainbow shot a quick smile while rolling her eyes at the pun. Rarity fished out design number 3 made with a visibly smoother material. That uniform's fabric looks similar to uniforms that official teams use. Finally, something familiar. She almost jumped into the uniform before reminding herself Rarity would teleport it on.

"Perfect," she said. "I recognized it was similar to actual uniforms and I was right," Rainbow Dash said as she shot a quick pose.

"Fabulous!" she magically picked up a small notepad and wrote in it. "Number three," she said, and closed the notebook, placing it back in the box.

"Goodie! We can finally get our uniforms and we can get into that old fashioned team spirit and I, PINKIE, CAN BE A CHEERLEADER!" Pinkie shouted as she bounced. "Give me an A, give me a C!" she said as she trailed off, bouncing around the others.

Fluttershy walked up. "Oh, um, Rainbow, I want to ask you a favour," Fluttershy said.

Rainbow Dash looked over at Fluttershy. "Well okay. What is it?" Rainbow asked, doing a few push-ups in the basic uniform.

Fluttershy simply stared at Rainbow, mouth moving but no sound. Rainbow cocked her head. "What was that?" Fluttershy clenched her eyes tightly, hiding her face. "Um, I was wondering if... if you could, If you're free, help me with the flying thing..." Fluttershy said, growing quieter toward the end of her sentence..

Rainbow stared for a second before letting a chuckle escape. "Sure. Just name the time and place," she said, withholding a yawn.

Fluttershy looked around nervously for a second. "Oh, um, next... year?" She asked in confusion.

Rainbow stared with a look of disbelief. She sighed. "How about tomo—" Rainbow let out a large yawn. "—rrow?" she asked, starting to doze off again.

"Oh, um, that sounds wonderful but, I have some things to do with the animals," she said trailing off. "But after, we can."

Rainbow sighed. "Well, I can wait. No rush, Fluttershy..." she yawned once more.

Rarity was already fishing out sketches while Pinkie Pie was bouncing around, wearing a cheer leading outfit she got from the Pinkie Pie Space Time Continuum Void she seemed to have. Applejack watched everybody else talk while lost in her own thoughts, and Twilight was still reading. Spike finally stepped forward as he quickly glanced at Rarity. He motioned to speak, but was halted when he gagged. He burped, a green ball of flame exiting his mouth. It flew upwards and with a quick pop, the green flames disappeared leaving a scroll floating. Twilight's attention shifted from the book to the letter.

"Ugh, timing," Spike said as he sighed, grabbing the scroll and unrolling it. Spike cleared his throat. "My faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, I approve of the proposed plans for the Sweet Apple Acres team along with the Manager of the Market Harvest contest, Flat Breadbasket..." Spike let out a giggle which he instantly tried to contain, shared with Rainbow Dash and Twilight, while Applejack glared at them. "... Oh, um, we wish you and the rest of the Sweet Apple Acres team luck, Princess Celestia." Spike rolled up the scroll and walked over, placing it on Twilight's workbench.

"Dandy, she didn' need to know the members of th' team," Applejack said.

"Well, that's a huge load off my mind," Twilight said as she quickly resumed reading.

"So... um, we can leave a week early..." Fluttershy said.

Rainbow stared. Huh... what are these plans? Eh, I'm sure I'll find out later. For now... She yawned once more, prompting a yawn from Rarity as she walked over. "Ah, dearie, I think you should keep this suit to get used to the feel. Maybe tug around a banner or cart now and then," Rarity said.

Rainbow wearily looked over at her and yawned while nodding.

"Hey, guys..." Rainbow said, gathering the attention of Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, and to an extent, Twilight. "I'm... gonna sleep..."

She saw spots in her eyes, small at first before obscuring her vision in flashing lights. The world's sounds died out and gravity vanished. A sugar crash?

[*][*][*]

The following day, Rainbow Dash awoke in a bed. Looking around to see her surroundings, she soon discovered that the bed was located on the second floor of Twilight's bedroom. The sky outside showed a gradient of dark to light; either it was morning, she slept a whole day, or she slept an hour or two. Nevertheless, if there's one thing Rainbow was known for, besides her mane, it was her inability to get up early. She tossed and turned in bed before coming to the realization that no, sleep would not return. She sighed and sat up in bed before starting to stretch her upper body. First the wings, then the fore legs, then the neck.

She took a look out the window, spotting the uneasy weather. Rainbow forgot that the weather today was going to be a light shower. She sighed once more before glancing at the sleeping figures of Twilight and Spike in their respective beds before trotting down the small staircase when something caught Rainbow's eye. Books scattered everywhere as usual but one book stood out... the one Twilight was reading before she passed out. She took the time to get a better look at the book, noticing the cover radiated the colour spectrum. She was about to open the book, but her thought process was interrupted by a stomach rumble. She erased other thoughts from her mind, and decided to ask questions later as she trotted down to the first floor of the library to grab a quick breakfast from Twilight's kitchen.

[*][*][*]

Later on, Applejack and Rainbow Dash approached a field on Sweet Apple Acres. The wide open field was surrounded by various apple trees, this field was always open for various things: The Sisterhooves Social, Iron Pony Competition, training of any kind... now, it was training for this competition.

"So, um, what exactly are we doing here again?" Rainbow asked.

"Well, fer starters, we gotta get you into th' habit of trailin' objects while flyin'. Can't have ya crashing when yer load throws you off," Applejack said.

"Would you care to elaborate? I mean, the Best Young Flier in Equestria can't possibly have any problems while flying," Rainbow Dash said, letting loose a small chuckle.

Applejack nudged Rainbow's side. "Well, th' constant flyin' added on with the weight, could prove to be an issue. Delivery ponies often have some trouble flyin' regardless of the fact that they often haul large loads," Applejack said before reaching the center of the clearing. Placed there among the short grass was a small box containing a harness bearing the clips similar to the uniform Rarity made, just more worn down worn down.

"Thankfully, I'm not like those Mail Ponies. I'm made of much tougher stuff, this training is useless," Rainbow Dash said, stomping her hoof into the ground and striking a pose. Applejack stared at Rainbow for a few seconds before picking up the harness between her teeth and tossing it.

"Jus' put 'er on, RD," she said, shooting Rainbow a playful smile.

Rainbow looked at Applejack, then back to the harness. It landed in front of her, and Rainbow glanced down to the ground for a second.

"When I shout, fly over to where I'm standin'. There, you'll pick up a crate of apples an' take 'er down to the other side of the field. Drop it off an' return here. 30 crates total," Applejack said as she turned to leave.

Rainbow simply nodded and watched Applejack walk off to the other side of the field. She took a deep breath before quickly averting her attention to the harness. She sighed. "Well, okay. I guess a little bit of training never hurt anypony. I guess I now have two training sessions today," she said as she lazily slipped her head into the harness, placing her hooves into the two openings.

Once she fit her body into the harness, she quickly checked herself to make sure she had done it right. It was a black harness with metal clippings. Basic harness. She turned her head and noticed the strap. Satisfied with putting on the harness, she grabbed the strap and tightened it, before using the tip to finish tightening it. She tucked the valence strap underneath the harness itself and quickly did a few pushups and jumps. The harness fit snugly and she smirked.

"Simple task. I'll be done by noon," she said.

She turned and looked over to where Applejack stood. It was far off, but she could still see the orange Earth Pony. She sat down, forced to wait. She impatiently looked around for a second before letting out a coarse sigh.

"It's been ten seconds and I'm already bored as hay," Rainbow said as she began tapping her hooves against the grass.

She looked up at the clouds, which were starting to drip. The light showers were beginning, and it slowly unnerved Rainbow. Rain, plus the weight I'd be carrying... Maybe I should ask AJ to wait a while. Nah, I'm totally cool, she thought. She started fumbling with the grass to distract herself. Shortly after, Rainbow looked up to see Applejack was shouting at her with an annoyed tone.

"Hey, earth to cloud pusher!" Applejack shouted out.

Rainbow snapped to attention, springing into a standing position.

"Uh... sorry?" Rainbow said, smiling and kicking the grass at her hooves out of the way.

"We don't have time to be sorry, we gotta practice, sugarcube," Applejack shouted.

Rainbow sighed and stared at the ground. She jumped one more time.

"Alright, let's do this then," Rainbow shouted out one last time before giving her wings a quick flutter.

"Alrighty then, let's get 'er done," Applejack said.

"Ready..." she shouted.

Rainbow quickly got into a racing position, bending her front hooves slightly to take off.

"Set..."

Rainbow looked to the left, right, then to the sky. She took note of the light clouds floating in.

"GO!"

The shove off. Rainbow took off into the skies as fast as she could without slipping on the ground. She got reasonably high, stopping at at about thirty feet into the sky. She approached the side of the field where Applejack was, and immediately tilted her wings, sending her into a dive bomb. She zipped toward Applejack before she slowed down, wings flapping as she landed, ready to hook on the first crate. The crate in question was almost as large as Rainbow. No wonder Applejack wanted her to get used to it.

Applejack wasted no time or words talking to her as she proceeded to grab the six clips already attached to the crate. Rainbow noticed right then where the clips on her harness were; one on her scruff, one on her chest, and four on the back strap wrapped around her barrel. It was an awkward flying position, but it was considered the norm for delivery ponies. Applejack clipped the five clippings on faster than Rainbow could take in. She was looking up to the sky, raring to take off toward the other end of the field.

"Get a move on, Rainbow!" Applejack shouted breaking Rainbow's thoughts.

Rainbow shook her head. "Got it!" she shouted as she flapped her wings hard, taking off into the sky.

She didn't know how well the straps – or herself – would hold, but she managed to lift herself as well as the crate into the sky. Light? she thought. The crate is light? Huh. Well, lighter than I thought. Considerably heavy, but not heavy enough to cause any problems. Enough of this. C'mon Rainbow, show Apples a dash.

She started to flap her wings harder, and sped off in the other direction, the crate acting as a light anchor. She flew for a few seconds, not going too fast as to not test the straps or the harness. After 12 seconds, she descended, going in for the slowest landing possible. She let the crate droop down and touch down before landing herself. Immediately, she released the clips on her harness and she took off at her fastest workout speed arriving at the other side of the field in under five seconds easily.

"That was a lil' bit slower than what I'd expect, RD," Applejack said with a small smile as she grabbed the next clips.

"WHOA, what!?" Rainbow said. "No lip from you, cowgirl, you don't do the fly-towing here," she said through bared teeth as Applejack clipped the next crate onto her harness.

"Don't you worry none, it's only yer first," Applejack said in a muffled voice as she clipped the first clip. "These straps an th' harness are as strong as your take off," Applejack said as she finished clipping.

Rainbow nodded and flapped her wings for a second before taking off, faster than before. She also flew much faster than before, getting to the other side of the field in around seven seconds. I'd better get a larger field to practice soon. This is easy stuff. She killed the thought as a droplet of water landed on her nose. Ignoring the tingling sensation, she focused on flying. More rain dropped as Rainbow zipped toward the end of the field. She touched down with the same finesse as before, undoing the clips, and launching back toward Applejack.

This continued for a few more minutes, the process repeatedly bashing Rainbow's mind and patience. She zipped back and forth, lazily bouncing like a rubber ball. Her mind certainly accepted the feeling of acting like a tennis ball to save itself from the mind numbing experience.

Eventually, Rainbow touched down on Applejack's side of the field, ready to pick up the last crate. This time, she had to catch her breath. This was tedious, simple to do, yet it is draining. She gave it no more thought as she approached Applejack. She was damp from sweating, and from the light rain.

"Last one, RD," Applejack said as she proceeded to clip the straps on.

How was this, Applejack? Fast enough for ya? Rainbow thought, trying to look athletic.

Rainbow was actually glad she had to stop now. She wished she was in her cloud home right now, lying in her cloud bed. Her exhaustion hadn't completely faded from the previous day's training; minor headaches, but not enough to impede any activity. Applejack finished the clipping, and Rainbow Dash took off faster than before. She no longer flew in a robotic fashion, instead zipping by with an arch motion. She heard a click from below as she reached the pinnacle of her arch, and she sped to the ground, slowing down as she got closer and quickly unclipped the crate. She turned and took off for the last time, toward Applejack and... Twilight Sparkle and Rarity? They were located under a small tree, protected from the rain. She braced herself, landing directly in front of the group in what one could call a battle-ready pose and then... another click with a blinding flash. Rainbow stood straight as she blinked.

"Woah, what gives?" Rainbow said as her eyes quickly recovered from the flash.

"Well, I arrived recently with the camera like Applejack and Twilight requested and I set it up ready to take a photo or two of you flying, simply to test out the camera... and my, the photos I've taken so far are fan-TASTIC! They capture the excitement of competition, the colours of your mane, everything!" Rarity said as she nudged the camera's tripod.

"Well, okay then. So, why are you two here? I mean, besides camera... testing," Rainbow said as she fiddled with the harness.

"Well, I am here to keep track of your time, and to also give you..." She paused as she began to rummage through a bag on her back. She pulled out a clipboard with what looked like a timetable on it. "... your schedule."

Rainbow stopped fussing with her harness, out of frustration and slight curiosity. She saw it and saw how it was... oddly specific.

"7:30 AM: Wake up. 7:32 AM: Get out of bed. 7:35 AM: Make be—" she stared dumbfounded. She turned her gaze to Twilight who gave a proud smile at her organizing skills. "Okay, Twilight, you gotta know by now, I'm no morning person, not to mention I'd much prefer to fly how I want to," Rainbow said, turning her gaze toward Applejack. "Apples, help please?" Rainbow asked.

Twilight's face twisted into a pout and Applejack walked over and started loosening the harness around Rainbow Dash's figure.

"But I planned everything out perfectly. Your diet, sleeping habits, timing, space for work, how to get out of bed," she said, pausing. "Uh, well, that last one may be a little... heh, unnecessary," she said, letting a small chuckle escape before coughing and continuing. "But, I believe this is the healthiest schedule you can get. At least try?" Twilight insisted, not wanting her work to go to waste.

Rainbow gave her a cold stare. "No." Twilight's face twisted into an even larger pout.

"Ple~ase? I spent so long on this... scheduling the writing, and the supplies..."

"No," Rainbow replied.

"Please?"

"No."

"Pretty please?"

"NO."

"Two days?"

Rainbow sighed. "Fine, if it satisfies your... 'lust' for organization," she said, giving in.

Twilight squealed with joy, Rainbow Dash sighed, and Applejack finished loosening Rainbow's harness. Rainbow wiggled out of the harness, quickly shook herself, and sat down on the ground. She examined the schedule, and noticed that just looking at it made her feel tired.

Rarity stepped forward, clearing her throat. "As for why I am here, I just need some approval from the lovely mare who shall be sporting the uniform for our ad campaign." She grabbed two photos that came out of the camera. "Here are the two photos I took in glorious quality," Rarity said as she let the photos float to Rainbow's hooves.

She looked over and was taken aback for a second. One photo was a zoom of her flying, carrying the crate. A look of pure determination and pride on her face, her rainbow mane and tail fluttering in the wind with the light rain and clouds as the perfect background. The second photo was of her landing; standing ready for action, ready to pounce... she smirked at them.

"Ya look fantastic, sugarcube," Applejack said as she looked over at the photos Rarity had taken. "Y'all look perfect fer advertisin'."

Rainbow took a proud stance and slapped a hoof off her chest in response to the compliment from Applejack. "Well, I'm sure I'll look even better in the uniforms," she said. She turned to Rarity. "Speaking of which, you said something regarding the team uniforms?" she asked.

Rainbow looked to the left, seeing Twilight and Applejack talking. Obviously about planning and keeping a record of their crops.

"Why yes, dear. I have several designs ready for you to try. Not too simple as that would be positively boring, not too detailed because quantity does not equal quality... just perfect," Rarity said.

"Cool. Where are they?" Rainbow asked as she did a quick stretch, finding the strength to stand up from the ever so relaxing sit she just had.

"Oh, they're at my boutique," Rarity said as she proceeded to pack up the camera she had brought.

Rainbow stared at Rarity without saying a word before finally speaking up. "You couldn't bring them with you?" Rainbow asked, raising a brow.

Rarity lifted the camera off of the tripod, placing it in the case. "You can't expect me to do that in this weather, with you being all wet."

Rainbow sighed before smiling. Exhausting week, and they can still bring a smile to my face. She turned, looking over toward the skies above the field. The soft rain pelted the leaves of the trees, creating a calming sound. She anticipated the reveal of her uniform, nodding as she turned back to the others while they walked toward the Carousel Boutique.

Well, it seems I'm getting far more excited than I thought.