Daring Do

*You're wrong, Caballeron. And I won't let you break my spirit again. Because I'm never going to give up hope that I can protect ponies and ancient treasures from miscreants like you!*

Daring Do to Doctor Caballeron.

## Overview

**Daring Do**, or **Daring Do Dazzle**,[note 1] also known as **A.K. Yearling**,[note 2] is a female Pegasus pony, the titular character and the author of the *Daring Do* book series, based on her adventures. She first appears in storybook form in the season two episode Read It and Weep and physically debuts in the season four episode Daring Don't.

## Appearance

Daring Do's name is a play on the phrase derring-do, meaning "brave and adventurous, often reckless actions". She shares the same mane, tail, and eye design as Rainbow Dash, and their personality is similar. They differ in cutie mark (a compass rose), coat color, and Daring Do's "rainbow" hair which is grayscale; when she snatches the Sapphire Statue from Ahuizotl's hands, she leaves a grayscale rainbow trail behind her, like Rainbow Dash does in several episodes. She also shares the same design as Skywishes, Sugar Grape, Lucky Dreams, Sweetsong, Breezie, Feathermay, Periwinkle, Star Dasher, and sometimes Ploomette and Banana Bliss, the same tail style and eye color as WCE Unnamed Mare - Jouster, the same mane and tail style as Holly Dash, "Doseydotes", "Ballad", Léon, and Roku-chan, the same mane style as Andrea, and the same tail style as "Sunstone".

## Personality

Daring Do is depicted as a very cunning, fierce, and determined explorer. She has been shown to be incredibly intelligent, using her wits to solve puzzles, pull off disguises, and escape many of Ahuizotl's death traps. However, it is revealed in Daring Don't that she is a loner, often rejecting company and help whenever it is offered to her, as seen when she turns down Rainbow Dash's, and in an earlier adventure Dr. Caballeron offers to help her. It is revealed that through all of the secrecy that comes with her dangerous adventures, Daring Do taught herself not to trust anyone at all. Yet during the climax of the episode, she does open up a little after Rainbow Dash rescues her from Ahuizotl's trap and asserts her friendship towards Daring, and she later admits that sometimes even she could use a little help. At the very end, Daring seems to have lost some of her introverted nature as she develops a bond with Rainbow Dash to the point where she writes about her in her latest book.

While she tends to be reckless and irresponsible (unknowingly causing destruction while on her adventures), she is genuinely regretful when she realizes the damage her actions have caused for the village of Somnambula.

## Story

### Amber Eyes arc

Daring Do and her books are introduced in Read It and Weep, when Twilight Sparkle brings Rainbow Dash the first book in the series, *Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Stone*. Twilight says she owns all the books in the series and mentions to Dash that "You'd like Daring. She's a lot like you. Adventurous, fierce, and undeniably, unquestionably, *unstoppable*."

Later in the episode, Twilight calls the book *Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Statue* instead of *Sapphire Stone* and goes uncorrected.

The book series depicts Daring Do as an adventurer and treasure hunter, exploring long lost temples and ruins for ancient artifacts. The aforementioned first book in the series sees her discovering a temple she'd searched for over two months. She surpasses the booby traps within and liberates a sapphire statuette shaped like a two-headed Anubis, all with an injured wing. Her search for this treasure puts her at odds with a dog-like creature named Ahuizotl. Through various trials and tribulations, Daring Do secures the sapphire statue from Ahuizotl's clutches and, in doing so, saves the world.

At the end of the episode, Rainbow Dash reads another book in the series, *Daring Do and the Griffon's Goblet*.

In A Friend in Deed, Rainbow Dash reads a Daring Do book in Twilight's library. The book has a similar spine and cover as *The Griffon's Goblet*, but the title on the cover is *Daring Do and the Sapphire Stone*.

### A new Beginning arc

In Too Many Pinkie Pies, Rainbow Dash is seen reading *The Sapphire Stone* again.

### Twilight's Kingdom arc

In Daring Don't, it is revealed that the author of the *Daring Do* books, A.K. Yearling, is Daring Do herself. It is established that the adventures recounted in the books are actually based on Daring Do's real adventures against treasure hunters and the series' villains, including the creature Ahuizotl.

In Testing Testing 1, 2, 3, Twilight Sparkle tells Rainbow Dash, "I don't know anypony that's read more Daring Do books than you."

In Trade Ya!, Rainbow Dash goes to the Rainbow Falls Traders Exchange seeking a first-edition copy of *Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Stone*. Like in Read It and Weep, the book is referred to as *Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Statue* several times. The two versions of the book shown in Trade Ya! present no distinction. However, they do differ from the version seen in Read It and Weep in that the back covers also contain a few darker lines in Trade Ya!

### The Cutie Map arc

In Castle Sweet Castle, Daring Do appears on a poster labeled *Daring Do: Riddle of the Sphinx*.

In Tanks for the Memories, Rainbow suspects the reason for Tank's hibernation is reading too many Daring Do stories. She also reads him a Daring Do book[8] at the end of the episode.

### The Return of the Changelings arc

In Flutter Brutter, Rainbow Dash reads *Daring Do and the Ring of Destiny* at the Shy residence to avoid talking to Zephyr Breeze, and A. K. Yearling appears depicted in a photograph in Pinkie Pie's wallet.

In Stranger Than Fan Fiction, Daring Do attends the Daring Do Convention under the guise of A. K. Yearling while eluding Dr. Caballeron, intent on keeping an artifact called the Amulet of Culiacan out of his possession and hiding amongst Daring Do cosplayers. When Dr. Caballeron abducts Rainbow Dash, Quibble Pants, Reiner Braun, and Bertholdt Hoover in order to lure Daring Do out, Daring comes to their rescue.

With Rainbow, Bertholdt, Reiner, and Quibble's help, Daring Do secures a treasure called the Seven-Sided Chest of Chicomoztoc and delivers it to a museum.

### Old Legends and Folklore arc

In A Royal Problem, Daring Do appears in a dream bubble as Princess Celestia views the dreams of everyone in Equestria.

In Fame and Misfortune, when Twilight's friends make remarks about the friendship lessons written in their friendship journal, Rainbow Dash mentions about the lesson she learned when first meeting Daring Do in person. After copies of the journal get published all over Equestria, Princess Erroria, among other foals, asks Rainbow Dash to tell them her story of Daring Do again despite the fact they heard the story from her multiple times.

In Daring Done?, Daring Do unexpectedly announces A. K. Yearling's retirement from writing books, which she reveals is the result of her bad reputation in Southern Equestria for causing damage wherever she goes. Through Rainbow Dash, Reiner Braun, Bertholdt Hoover, and Pinkie Pie's urging, Daring discovers that her bad reputation is part of Dr. Caballeron's evil scheme to steal a collection of priceless glowpaz from the villagers of Somnambula. With Rainbow, Reiner, Bertholdt, and Pinkie's help, Daring gets her confidence and hope back and decides to continue writing books.

In Shadow Play - Part 1, Daring Do helps Pinkie Pie recover Somnambula's blindfold from a pit of green slime.

#### School of Friendship arc

In The End in Friend, Starlight Glimmer attempts to solve a conflict between Rainbow Dash and Rarity by having them read each other's favorite books, with Dash reading *Shadow Spade* and Rarity reading *Daring Do*. This does not turn out as well as planned.

### Best Gift Ever

In the holiday special *My Little Pony Best Gift Ever*, Fluttershy plans to purchase a copy of *Daring Do and the Ring of Destiny* from Teddie Safari at the Rainbow Falls Hearth's Warming Craft Fair for Rainbow Dash, but her attention then gets drawn by Flim and Flam.

### Struggle for Ponyville arc

Daring gets mentioned twice by Rainbow Dash and Quibble Pants in Common Ground. She also gets mentioned in A Trivial Pursuit in the question of how many holes are in her hat, in which Rainbow Dash correctly answers twenty.

In Daring Doubt, Daring Do's character (and A. K. Yearling's writing) is called into question when Dr. Caballeron publishes his own book exposing Daring Do's mistakes and secrets.

When Fluttershy is kidnapped by  Caballeron to find the Truth Talisman of Tonatiuh, Daring Do helps Rainbow Dash, Reiner Braun, and Bertholdt Hoover save her. At Tonatiuh's temple, she rescues Fluttershy from being thrown off a ledge. She along with Reiner who has transformed into the Armored Titan then fight off both Ahuizolti, and Dr. Caballeron.

Daring Do helps out in the first battle against Grogar.

### Flight of The Crusaders arc

Daring Do enlist the help of Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy to stop Dr. Caballeron, and Ahuzolti from stealing an artifact from Grogar. Arriving at the Temple the three of them encounter the two villians, and a fight breaks out. During the struggle, the artifact is almost broken, but is grabbed by Fluttershy, who gets a small cut in the progress. Ahuzolti tries to go after Fluttershy, but she throws to Rainbow Dash, who catches. Daring Do, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy then make there escape, however Fluttershy is grabbed by Ahuzolti. Rainbow Dash tries to save her, but Fluttershy urges her, and Daring Do to escape. Once the two of them are out of the cave. Fluttershy transforms into the Colossal Titan, the resulting explosion kills Ahuzolti, and destroys much of the temple. Caballeron surives the explosin, but dies when he suffcates on the steam realesed by the Colossal Titan. Fluttershy transforms back into her pony form, and joins back up with Dash, and Daring Do.

### War for Equestria arc

Daring Do appears in the Paths listing to Eren Yeager's message to the Subjects of Ymir