Assumptions

A My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic Fanfic by EminenceGris, found here.

A lot of words describe Rainbow Dash. Athletic. Lazy. Brash. But her main problem stems from how others assume that list includes fillyfooler. After her big date is ruined by this stereotype, Rainbow dashes off to collect her thoughts.

A very different set of words describe Caramel. Meek. Introverted. Undervalued. His main problem is that when others don't think of him as unimportant, he's a pedophillic coltcuddler. But after two chance meetings in the Sweet Apple Acres fields and a bar, the new breakfast-buddies slowly learn to look past what others think about them.


 * A-Cup Angst: Though impossible for ponies to have breast sizes, the equivalent occurs where Rainbow Dash is rather sensitive about her "lack of curves." Along with her tomcoltish nature, this leads to very unflattering assumptions.
 * Anguished Declaration of Love: Subverted thrice the same chapter.
 * First Caramel finally builds up the courage to tell Applejack his feelings, but she spots this and lets him down gently before he could finish his second sentence.
 * The next day, Rainbow Dash comforts Caramel, pulls him close... and then asks him if he wants to go to a Wonderbolts show.
 * The same day, Fluttershy works up the courage to go confess to Big Macintosh, after finding out yesterday's events... asks him out.
 * Adorkable: Caramel, but also Big Macintosh when around Fluttershy.
 * All Love Is Unrequited: Caramel is in love with Applejack, who hardly notices him. Rainbow Dash is slowly falling for Caramel, who doesn't really notice it . At the same time, Fluttershy and Big Macintosh both have crushes on each other, but Cannot Spit It Out due to poor assumptions both of themselves and one another.
 * Bishonen: Caramel, when dressed up. Rarity even flat out states his getup is all the rage in Neighpon.
 * Butch Lesbian: Subverted, but Played for Drama when everyone assumes the athletic, tomboyish Rainbow Dash is this way.
 * Butt Monkey: Caramel. Almost every accident has him on the receiving end of something nasty. The first incident is Played for Drama later, though.
 * Clingy Jealous Girl: Rarity tries to invoke this by snuggling up with Caramel while Rainbow Dash is watching. Rainbow doesn't say anything, but her reaction is all Rarity needs to understand how Rainbow feels about Caramel.
 * She actually begins to show signs of this. In particular, she tails Caramel on Hearts and Hooves day to be certain that Applejack rejects his advances.
 * Crash Into Hello: Rainbow Dash fails a trick and plows into Caramel. However, he's knocked unconcious by this, and Rainbow just leaves him there. Creates drama when Caramel finds out she was behind it.
 * Cry Into Chest: After Caramel gets rejected by Applejack, Rainbow makes sure to drop by his house the next day, stroke his mane, and tell him everything's okay.
 * Foil: Caramel and Rainbow Dash are almost exact opposites personality-wise.
 * Gone Horribly Wrong: What did you expect from the Cutie Mark Crusaders Gravity Defiers? Applebloom gets to mull over the question while enjoying her new leg cast.
 * He Cleans Up Nicely: Caramel cleans himself and dresses into a formal gettup for a party at Sweet Apple Acres. Poor Rainbow Dash has a hard time hiding her wingboner.
 * Heroic BSOD: Chapter XI. During the Winter Wrap Up, they accidentally wake up a family of snakes (again) and Big Mac just freezes up in shock.
 * Hypocritical Humor: In Chapter Nine, Rainbow asks Applejack about how she feels about Caramel. To her frustration, Applejack doesn't (or plays along) realize she's asking what she thinks of him romantically. The irony emerges when Rainbow calls Applejack dense, while she's the one with romantic feelings for Caramel.
 * I Never Said It Was A Pony: How Caramel figures out Rainbow Dash was the one who crashed into him at Sweet Apple Acres.
 * Instant Sedation: The spiked beer intended for Caramel that Rainbow Dash drinks.
 * Jerkass: Rainbow can be very obnoxious and brazen, refering to Caramel as a "weakling" and refusing to outright apologize when he finds out that she almost broke his neck.
 * Jerk with a Heart of Gold / Jerkass Facade: On the other hand, she is warming up to him significantly, and was on the edge of tears when Caramel confronted her.
 * Jossed: During Hearts and Hooves Day, Caramel was considered desirable enough to already have a girlfriend. For the sake of this story, those few seconds were ignored, fortunately.
 * Lethal Chef: Rainbow Dash's cooking is on par with Sweetie Belle's, to say the least. She managed to burn tea.
 * Mistaken for Gay: Rainbow Dash's signature characteristic, and a driving force of the conflict from the start. Even Pinkie Pie thinks this, and hoped to "experiment" with her.
 * Caramel has it even worse, with many ponies (including Applejack at first) thinking that he's not only gay but a pedophile to boot.
 * Mistaken for Pedophile: Poor Caramel. He is generally assumed to be one by many ponies in Ponyville and is briefly thought to be one by Applejack when Rainbow Dash crashes into him and knocks him out then abandons him a short distance from where the Cutie Mark Crusaders clubhouse is. Applejack was about to beat the poor fellow up worse than he already had been if her brother hadn't talked her down.
 * My God, What Have I Done?: Rainbow Dash gets a version of this when Caramel figures out Rainbow was the one who crashed into him in the forest, then failed to mention it while simultaneously taking advantage of his kindness. Her Jerkass Facade falters for a moment, and she flies off so Caramel won't see her crying.
 * Nice Guy: Caramel, big time. One of the reasons Rainbow is becoming fond of him.
 * Never My Fault: Played for Drama where Rainbow's huge ego makes it impossible for her to outright apologize when Caramel find out she was the one to crash into him. She eventually gets a half-hearted response out the next day, and Caramel decides getting to know her better was a fair tradeoff.
 * Not a Date: Sure, Rainbow. Spending some time with Caramel in Canterlot, having him show you around, admiring views, and going to meet his family are totally unromantic happenings.
 * The Not-Secret: Rainbow knows a small hole in the roof of the Apple Family Barn where she can peek in, which she uses often. The Apple Family knows both facts.
 * Odd Couple: Rainbow Dash and Caramel, full stop, even before they were intersted romantically. But Rarity and Pinkie Pie's relationship takes the cake.
 * Opposites Attract: Rainbow's budding feelings for Caramel can best be described as this.
 * Pettanko: Rainbow Dash is the pony version of this, if her "lack of curves" and other's observations are anything to go by.
 * Plot Parallel: Caramel and Rainbow are slowly getting closer, while the same is happening to Fluttershy and Big Macintosh.
 * Romantic False Lead: If you came into this expecting Applejack and Caramel to be together, you will be disapointed.
 * He Is Not My Coltfriend: This is the first sentence out of Rainbow's mouth when Caramel introduces her to his siblings.
 * "Shut Up" Kiss: Done by Rarity on Pinkie Pie, when they got left in the desert. How much of it was romance and how much of it was to get Pinkie to shut up remains to be seen.
 * Snow Means Love: Rainbow and Caramel spend some time together in wintery Canterlot to look at the sights, right down to the classic "catch snowflakes with our tongues" scene.
 * Through Her Stomach: Unintended. After Rainbow starts showing up on Caramel's doorstep everyday, he's kind enough to start providing breakfast to her. This is one of the ways she warms up to him.
 * Throw the Dog a Bone: Most of Chapter 10. Caramel realizes that Applejack isn't interested in him, but he gets the chance to be with Rainbow. Fluttershy, despite yesterday's misunderstanding, successfuly asks Big Macintosh out. And Rarity and Pinkie have a "date."
 * Triang Relations: Type 5, as Caramel has an unrequited crush on Applejack, while Rainbow Dash is starting to fall for Caramel.
 * What Did I Do Last Night?: Rainbow Dash's second real interaction with Caramel happens when she wakes up in his bed. However, it's all rather innocent, as Rainbow drank a spiked beer and Caramel let her stay in his house until she woke up.
 * Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Chapter XI gives us Big Mac, who, yes, is afraid of snakes..
 * Yaoi Fangirl: Lyra, who walks away chuckling after seeing Big Mac and Caramel trip and land in a heap.
 * You Are Better Than You Think You Are: Said word-for-word, along with a hug, by Rainbow Dash, to assure Caramel he has a chance to win over Applejack.
 * You're Not My Type / Incompatible Orientation: Applejack lets Caramel down as lightly as possible, because she's just not interested in romance.