The Loss of Words

It was a bright and sunny morning, not a single cloud in the sky. This bears noting because it meant Rainbow Dash did her job early for once. She did her weather pony duties beforehand so she wouldn't be interrupted from her time against Applejack.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack were always competing with one another. There weren't any negative feelings between them, especially after what happened in the Running of the Leaves, they were merely keeping a friendly rivalry going. Every once in a while, they would come together and try to find something to beat the other pony at. Their meetings usually ended with a challenge issued or a bet made, and today would be no different.

Rainbow Dash flew to the Sweet Apple Acres, where Applejack was waiting outside the barn. "'Bout time ya showed up! Are ya ready fer this week's match?"

"You bet I am! This is going to be awesome!"

Three hours later, the two ponies were lying on the ground, exhausted from the activities they did. This week they competed with a lot of racing, no flying allowed of course. Rainbow Dash was the first to get up.

"That was awesome! I won!"

"Only bah a smidge, Ah almost had ya there"

"Yeah, I know. But I still won! Aw yeah, who's awesome? I'm awesome!"

"Ya sure like ta say awesome a lot, don't ya?"
"Come on, I don't say it that much. I've only said it like what, four times today?"

"I counted forty-seven!" Pinkie Pie hopped out from behind a tree. "You said it on average four times a minute!"

"Pinkie Pie? What are you doing here? And I don't say it every four minutes! I hardly say it all!"

"Oh, really?" Applejack grinned, the two other ponies showed her an opportunity for an easy bet, "Ah don't think ya could spend a single day without saying awesome."

"Are you kidding me? I could spend a whole week without saying it! I have complete mental control!"

"Well if you're so cocky 'bout it, why don't we make a bet on it?"

"I'm game." Rainbow Dash and Applejack stared each other in the eyes, ready for the ensuing challenge.

"Oooooh! Betting sounds like fun!" Pinkie Pie jumped between the two. "Let me join! I bet I can make you say awesome, Dashy!"

Rainbow Dash instantly backed off at this, "Ohhh no, there is no way I'm going to go against Pinkie Pie on a bet, no way!"

"Aw come on Rainbow, are ya afraid of little ol' Pinkie here? Or is it really that ya know ya can't win the bet?"

"I am not! Fine, I'll bet against Pinkie Pie anyways! But if I win, I want free accesses to your trees on Sweet Apple Acres, and you'll have to bake for me the rest of the year!"

"Those are some mighty high stakes. In that case, Ah say ya can't say any of yer catchphrases, and when Ah win, you can move all the apples for me come apple buckin' season."

 "A-all my catchphrases?!" Rainbow Dash, almost dropped out of the bet right then and there. Pinkie Pie would make it hard enough, but how could Rainbow dash be herself without any catchphrases? But Applejack had already struck her weak point: her pride. There was no going back now. "…Fine! It's a bet!" Rainbow Dash shook hooves with Applejack, and had her hoof bounced up and down by Pinkie Pie sealing the deal.

"Good luck, Rainbow Dash! Don't make it too easy for me, ok?"

"Oh you bet it won't be easy! I can stop talking normally in ten seco- I mean, uh, I can do it quickly." Rainbow Dash recovered lamely "Well, uh, I guess I'll be going" Rainbow Dash took off, a bit embarrassed at how she almost slipped up immediately and how bad her recovery was.

Rainbow Dash flew back to Ponyville, and quickly made herself a little cloud so she could have her afternoon nap. She always knows the best place to relax in the afternoon is on a comfy air-filled cloud. She fluffed the cloud up a bit until it was just right and settled in for her nap. Today was going to be a good snooze, the hot summer days were starting to relent, and Ponyville was receiving some refreshingly cool winds. The breezes made a big difference, they must have cooled the temperature by about- Rainbow Dash shook her head. No if she was going to win the bet, she would need to stop thinking about her catch phrases. Easier said than done…

"Apples! Get yer apples here!" Rainbow Dash was woken up from her nap by one of Applejack's sales pitches. Today's pitch was louder than normal for some reason.

"We've got a special sale, this week only!" This got Rainbow Dash's attention; she always bought most of her food with coupons or during a sale. Some apples would certainly be good right about now. Rainbow Dash got up from her napping position, to hear her friend clearer. But her stomach churned when she saw the sign advertising the new special.

"Come on everypony, buy ten apples get twenty percent off! Nothing will cool you off durin' the summer more than bitin' into a juicy apple, Ah flat-out guarantee it!"

Rainbow Dash shook her head "So that's the way she's going to play, huh? Well it's not going to work! I'm not so addicted to…catchphrases…that I need…to say… twent-" Rainbow shook her head more vigorously and wiped some sweat off her brow.

"I don't really need to buy any apples right now," she continued to talk to herself, "I'm just going to go somewhere else. Not that Applejack's getting to me! I'm just going to head somewhere else to do…stuff. Hang out or something, yeah."

She took off and floated through Ponyville aimlessly while keeping out of earshot of Applejack's suggestive sales pitch. She'll have to avoid her for the rest of the week if she wants any chance of winning the bet. From now on, she'll work hard to stay away from Applejack and…oh no. Right in front of her was the worst possible ponies she could ever run into.

"Hey Rainbow Dash!"

Rainbow Dash quickly turned around to launch away, but stopped herself from making the effort. She's tried running away from Pinkie Pie several times, but Pinkie's always found a way to catch up to her in ten sec- in a short amount of time. Rainbow Dash sighed, knowing there was no hope in resisting. "What do you want Pinkie?"

"Don't worry Dashy; I just want to see how good you are at tongue twisters! Want to try one?"

"Sure, why not?" Rainbow Dash said, relieved that she wasn't going crazy to make her lose the bet. "Bring it on, my tongue can take it."

"Okey Dokey Loki! Let's start with a simple one: Autumn eyesome. Give it a shot."

"Ha! That's easy! Here I go! "Rainbow Dash took a deep breath, before shooting out the words at rapid speed. "Autumn eyesome, autumn eyesome, autumn eyesome, item aweso- hold it! You're trying to trick me, aren't you Pinkie?"

"Now why would I do that? Maybe you'd like some ice cream, I turned the freezer up by twenty percent so it'll be nice and cool!"

"Pinkie!"

"What? Am I doing something wrong?" Pinkie Pie put on one of her most sickly sweet smiles. "All I want is to get you some ice cream! You just wait here and I'll come back with in about ten seco- Hey, where are you going?"

"Um, I need to uh, do some...weather pony stuff. Guess I'll have to see you another time."

"Aww, that's too bad. But don't worry Dashy; you'll be seeing plenty of me all week! Bye now!" Rainbow Dash barely suppressed a groan.

Rainbow Dash flew in the opposite direction of Sugar Cub Corner. Avoiding Pinkie is going to be impossible now, but Rainbow Dash was going stay away from her usual spots, at least that might reduce the amount of meet-ups.

"Well howdy, Rainbow! How's the weather? It seems a tad cooler ta me, what do ya think?"

Rainbow Dash was so keen on leaving Pinkie Pie that she forgot about avoiding Applejack as well. "I think I'll just head home now."

"What's the hurry, sugarcube? Don't the weather feel awesome to ya? Ah think it's an awesome time to walk 'round the park, doing awesome things, don't you?"

"Sorry, I uh... I don't feel well. I'm just going to go rest in my house where there's peace and quiet."

"Okay then, hope ya feel better soon. But knowin' ya, you'll be up an' about in ten seco-"

"I know! I know!"

Rainbow Dash flew up to her cloud house, but she didn't rush in as she usually did. She looked around the perimeter of her house to make sure Applejack didn't follow her. Then she quietly slipped through the door and quickly covered her windows. Once she was sure no one could see her from outside, she chuckled to herself.

Applejack may have made a bet that she couldn't say her catchphrases, but if there's no one to hear them, she could say them all she wants to herself! Rainbow Dash breathed in to begin talking up a storm, but she halted when an idea came to her. She almost forgot about Pinkie Pie! Her earlier attempts at trickery flash through Rainbow Dash's head.

Rainbow Dash scoured the house looking for any signs of a spy hiding. There was no one hiding under the bed, or in the cupboards. Rainbow Dash searched the attic, but no one was hiding under the junk up here either. She even looked inside all of the boxes she hasn't got around to throwing out yet, but not a single pony could be seen. It looked like Pinkie Pie hadn't snuck in her house, but Rainbow Dash was still feeling a little paranoid about it. She would search a lot harder, but first she would get a drink from her fridge.

"Awww, you found me!"

"Pinkie! Get out of my fridge!"

Pinkie Pie jumped out of the fridge and hopped around Rainbow Dash. "I was sure you'd say a catchphrase as soon as you got home so I hid in your fridge to spy on you!"

"How did you even get up here?"

"Oh I almost forgot!" Pinkie Pie opened the freezer and pulled out her folded-up flying machine. "If I'm going to make sure you don't cheat, I'll have to follow you everywhere!"

"But what if I want some privacy?"

"Don't be silly, I'm not going to watching you every moment of the day! I can just listen behind the door! Don't you worry, I'll keep spy on you everyday! It's going to be so much fun!" 

"Yeah...fun."
 

Twilight was taking a walk in the park. The weather was nice for the entire week. For some reason Rainbow Dash was spending extra time working on the weather. Whatever the reason, Twilight was glad Rainbow Dash was finally getting serious about her job, but she was appearing in Ponyville less and less. It felt odd not seeing her napping on a cloud over Ponyville. Twilight decided to find an opportunity to talk to Rainbow Dash about her sudden obsession with working.

"Twilight!"  Rainbow Dash jumped in front of her. "Please don't tell them you've seen me. Please, please, please!"

"Um, alright." Twilight said, bewildered. "Thanks, Twilight, you're a good friend" Rainbow Dash jumped into a nearby bush. "And remember you didn't see me okay?"

"Rainbow Dash, oh Rainbow Dash!" Coming around the bend of the park path was Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle. "Oh hey Twilight. Have you seen Rainbow Dash go by?"

"Uh, no, can't say that I have. Why are you looking for her anyways?"

"We want to calculate her finances, because we're trying to be Cutie Mark Crusaders Accountants! But Rainbow Dash was running away from us..."

Twilight was confused at someone else having so enthusiastic about financing, but then she shook her head and smiled. Those girls are going to run out of titles to try at this rate. "Well how about the three of you go to Fluttershy. She does earn or spend a lot of money, so her finances would be easier for a first-time accountant."

"Sounds like a good idea ta me! See ya then, Twilight!"

As soon as the Cutie Mark Crusaders left tog go to Fluttershy's hut, Rainbow Dash crawled out of the bush. "Thanks Twilight, you're a lifesaver!"

"Hold on, before you leave, can you tell me why you're so scared of three little ponies. I know you wait till the last second to pay your taxes, but I don't think they'll report you to the ERS."

"No, it's worse than that, Twilight! They were going to calculate my saving compounded annually by twenty percent over the next ten years! The horror, the horror!"

"Rainbow Dash, if you're so afraid of finances, I could come calculate it for-"

"No! I don't want you muddy the issue with your fancy mathematics, it's bad enough as it is!"

"What are you talking about? And why did you sound like Applejack just now?"

"Because I can't talk like myself anymore! I'm trying to use other pony's catchphrases, but they're just not working, and I'm running out already! Wait... you have a book of catchphrases, right? Can I please read it, uh, sugarcube?"

"I guess so, but you have to tell me what the hay is going on with you first."

"Okey Dokey Lo- Oh, what's the use? I made a bet with Applejack and Pinkie Pie that I could go a week without saying any of my catchphrases. It's driving me crazy!"

"Catchphrases? You mean like ten se-"

Rainbow Dash threw up a hoof to stop her. "Yes, please don't say it! It's like torture not being able to bust out my catchphrases, I feel like I'm missing a part of me without them."

"Oh Rainbow Dash, they're just words, even without them, you're still a coo-"

"Stop! Don't say cool! Don't say cool!" Rainbow Dash's right eye started to twitch "Maybe the words you say don't matter, but everything I say is what makes me so, so, splendid." She finished half-heartedly.

"Well, if words are so important to you, I'll go get a book of famous sayings, maybe you can find something new to say in there."

"Sorry, but that wouldn't work anyways." Pinkie Pie's head popped up from the same bush Rainbow Dash was hiding in. "If you start using a catchphrase it becomes your catchphrase!"

"Oh come on, Pinkie, can't you give me a little leeway on this please? I won't tell Applejack."

"Sorry, Dashy, but a bet is a form of promise, and breaking a promise is the fastest way to lose a friend's trust, in ten seconds fl-"

"Ahhhhhhhh!" Rainbow Dash took off as fast as her wings could carry her. She knew she was almost done with this terrible bet, she just needed anything, anything at all to distract herself from saying- Rainbow Dash smacked herself in the head to stop that train of thought.  She's going to need a lot of distraction the way things are going. She could almost wish a big monster would attack Ponyville, but this week had been completely peaceful, besides her constant torture that is.

She decided to try and get another assignment from the Mayor. She flew to town hall and knocked on the mayor's office door. The mayor didn't have any appointments scheduled so she let Rainbow Dash in immediately. "What can I do for you today Miss Dash?"

"Please, tell me you have another job for me! I'll do anything you ask!"

"I'm glad you're so interested in helping the community this week, but I'm afraid you've already done all the jobs. My papers are sorted in perfect alphabetical order, you've delivered all the mail so Derpy could spend some time with her daughter, which was very sweet of you to do, and all the weather has done far beyond my expectations. Why don't you take a rest, you've certainly earned it for once!"

"But, but the weather, it's got to need some adjustments right? Maybe you can see if I need to move some more clouds over, please?"

"Oh, no, that won't be necessary. Thanks to your hard work, we're having the best transition from summer to fall in history! Your friend Pinkie Pie has told me the other day that you've improved the weather by twe-"

"Ahhhhhhh!" Rainbow Dash promptly left the building.

"Did I say something wrong?"

Pinkie Pie had corrupted to the Mayor, but maybe she didn't talk to everyone. She could find someone that needed small time chores. Then a brilliant idea came to her, she could help the Flower Trio! Those ponies were always growing flowers; they'd surely like a little help from a rain cloud. She shot off, hoping Pinkie Pie hadn't got to them already.

"Hey Rainbow Dash! I don't suppose you'd want to buy a flower."

"Um, actually I was hoping I could do you girls a favor."

"Really?"

"Yeah, it must take a lot of time to water your flowers; maybe I could bring a small rain cloud over to help?"

The three looked at each other. "Sorry, but we hardly have any flowers left this week. They've been sold almost as soon as they've finished growing. Everyone's buying like crazy, since Applejack has convinced us to go along with her in having a special sale this week. Everything is twent-"

"Ahhhhhhhh!"

"Uhhhh, I guess she hates sales?"

"She seems a lot more high strung than I remember. It must have something to do with her wanting to help others with their work."

Both Pinkie Pie and Applejack were turning everypony against Rainbow Dash. Applejack must have converted all the shopkeepers to her side, and Pinkie Pie was more than capable of handling the rest. But if they think they could get into her head, they were wrong! Their dirty tricks weren't getting to her, she'll show them! But now that every pony was a threat, she couldn't be seen by anypony. She began to think of a place to hide for the rest of the week, that Pinkie Pie or Applejack wouldn't be clever enough to guess. Then the most logical answer came to her mind; she should hide in Sugar Cube Corner! Pinkie Pie would never think to find her in the place she lives in every day, it was foolproof!

Rainbow Dash waited very impatiently until the cover of night, and then she crept through the town making sure to stay in the shadows. There were a few ponies still doing their business at night, and she didn't want to get caught and taunted with her own catchphrases. Luckily, she reached Sugar Cube Corner without incident. Rainbow Dash sighed in relief, and opened the door, before quickly gasping in horror.

"Wh-what is all this?!"

"Hey Dashy, isn't it awesome? It's a special party just for you! We have posters hanging everywhere of athletes doing awesome stunts, and everything is in groups of ten! We've got ten posters, ten balloonz, and ten pizzas, which we've cut into fifths. We've got a special pastry that only needs a fifth a bag of flour and ten tablespoons of sugar! We even made all the drinks forty proofs! But make sure you drink it quickly, they go flat really fast. Hey, why is your head making snapping sounds?"

Rainbow Dash slowly opened her eyes. Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Vinyl Scratch were looking down at her. "Are ya okay Rainbow?"

"Yeah, I think," Rainbow Dash said as they helped her up. "What happened?"

"I can tell you what happened! After I told you about your party, your head started making snapping noises. And then suddenly, you flew onto a table and started jumping up and down. And then you started yelling all your catchphrases continuosly; Vinyl Scratch even made music to it!"

Vinyl Scratch rubbed the back of her neck and gave a guilty chuckle. "Sorry about that. You were making some great beats, I couldn't help playing some music along. I could make some great remixes from the things you say. DJing this party will be a blast!"

"I can't believe it, I lost. I, I guess your fiendish party worked..."

"Don't be silly, this party wasn't to trick you, it was to celebrate you overcoming your catchphrases. I would never use a party to harm someone else. My moral code demands it!"

"Wait this party was to celebrate my sucess? That means the week is already over! I already won! Yes, in your face Applejack!"

"Uh, sorry ta burst yer bubble, but we're just preparin' for the party tomorrow. Ya still lost."

"Oh"

"Don't go wallowin' in yer sadness yet. I'd feel guilty claimin' victory over a mistake on our part. Ah'm willing to settle th' matter with ya over another bet, double or nothin'"

Rainbow Dash's head shot up at this. "I know just the bet. Let's how well you can do without your catchphrases. I bet you that you can't spend an entire day without using your catchphrases or your accent! Unless you're not brave enough that is."

"Shoot, Rainbow, ya don't have ta question mah bravery, Ah can take any challenge from ya and match it.

The two shook hooves again "Alright it's a bet starting...now!" Rainbow Dash silently praised herself for getting Applejack to agree to this lop-sided bet. Applejack talking without an accent? That'll be impossi-

"Oh, I do hope the party tomorrow goes splendily. You may not have suceeded in your goals, but I'm sure we can celebrate the fact that you can speak as your normal self again."

Rainbow Dash's jaw hit the floor. "Whatever is the matter, miss Dash I thought I told you how I got my cutie mark. I simply must tell all about it, do remind me."

Rainbow Dash's ship has sailed. She was too hasty on deciding on the bet, and now she would have to work hard for apple bucking season two years in a row!

Applejack went over to Rainbow Dash and nudged her in the ribs. "You musn't worry, we of the Apple family are not barbarians We won't make you work too hard,  but it sure would be nice to get you to help for a change, sugarcube...aw, consarn it!"