Author's note:
This IS technically a sequel, while still being able to be a standalone story. If you want 100% clarity on things, then you should read my first story. I am trying to write this one in a way that is standalone though.
Applejack was the luckiest mare in the world. She got a feeling of pure amazement that her life could be just perfect and the way she wanted it every time she woke up next to the love of her life. She always woke up before Rainbow Dash did when she started out her day. She worked on her farm while Rainbow primarily focused on her job as a weather Pegasus. Rainbow helped out on the farm during some of the days she had off just so she could spend more of her time with Applejack. Applejack never complained and was just happy she could get Rainbow to be a little less lazy.
They had been together for three years coming up in a few weeks, and Applejack could not find a single problem in their relationship even if she had tried. Technically their heads butted pretty much every other hour, but that's what made their relationship strive. It's what they were both best at, competing with each other, it had made them great friends so why shouldn't it stay when their relationship escalated? If she had to be forced to pick an issue between them however, Applejack knew what she would pick; Rainbow's nightmares.
During the first few years they were completely gone. The comfort, affection, and warmth Applejack had provided her kept them away. As the excitement and glamor that a new couple always brought died down and things settled more, they started to return. Slowly they had begun to drift back into her life. At first they just appeared once in a blue moon. Soon they started to become more prominent, until they began to be a natural occurrence like they had been before the two started to date.
Finally Applejack had had enough; she couldn't stand to see how hurt Rainbow was by her nightmares. They kept both of them up at night and sometimes left Rainbow in a state of shambles, and occasionally bringing her to tears. Applejack wanted to get rid of them, and insisted that Rainbow went to see a psychiatrist. She was sure that one could help Rainbow get rid of her nightmares, or at least it “wouldn't hurt ta try.”
Two years earlier
“ But I don't want to!”
“Can ya tell me a legitimate reason why?”
Rainbow huffed, “Because I'm stubborn; that's why. I've dealt with my nightmares my own way since I was a filly, so why should I change that?”
Applejack sighed and walked over to Rainbow placing a hoof on her shoulder, “Rainbow ya know Ah learned my lesson the hard way about being stubborn. Don't make my mistake, it wouldn't hurt ta try. Ah'll pay for it and everythin'.”
Rainbow sighed and rolled her eyes, “Quit bein' all mushy and girly and crap. You know I hate that stuff.”
Applejack laughed, “No ya don't. Don't lie ta me Rainbow.” She nuzzled quickly against Rainbow's cheek as if to prove a point. She watched as Rainbow's wings started to rise and a flush rushed to her cheeks.
Rainbow coughed and looked away, “Shut up.”
Applejack just laughed again and began to walk away. “Come on, just try the therapist Rainbow. Ya can't knock somethin' until ya try it.”
“I very easily can do just that.” Rainbow crossed her arms and refused to budge. Applejack sighed and stopped, sat down in thought and a smile appeared on her lips as she realized exactly how she was going to get her way.
“Fine, have it yer way.” Rainbow jumped in success, and then Applejack continued, “No sex then.” Rainbow's face immediately turned to shock. Applejack just grinned and began to walk upstairs before Rainbow grabbed her tail and dragged her towards the door.
“I hate you, you know that?” Applejack just chuckled to herself and let Rainbow drag her for a little bit before getting up and walking past her to lead the way.
When they arrived at the therapist's office Rainbow was looking glum which Applejack wasn't too surprised about. The therapist walked in and opened his mouth to presumably say hello, however, before he could speak Rainbow interrupted, “Look Doc, I'll be honest. I don't really want to be here. I know what the problem is, so this is pretty much a waste of time if you ask me.”
Applejack shook her head and apologized for her partner, “Ah'm sorry, Ah did kinda force her to come here.”
The therapist only chuckled, “It's okay Miss orange pony, I get that a lot. I deal with all kinds of ponies here.”
Applejack raised an eyebrow and mumbled to herself, “Miss orange pony??”
He turned to Rainbow Dash and continued, “So, rainbow pony, I understand you're here because you're having nightmares?”
Rainbow looked at Applejack with a look that obviously meant something like “What kind of kook did you just bring me too?”
Turning back to the therapist she simply responded, “Er...yeah?”
The therapist looked down at his notepad nodding and used his horn to write something down, “I see, and if you already know what is causing them, can you tell me what that is?”
“My parents were murdered right in front of me when I was a filly.”
The therapist paused and glanced up at “rainbow pony” before continuing to write down. “I'm very sorry for your loss; however you seem very calm with the situation. What exactly are you here to accomplish?”
Rainbow Dash tilted her head to “orange pony” indicating her, “She wants them gone, I've lived with them ever since that incident so I don't really care, I can deal with them.”
“You don't seem to be especially traumatized by the situation so that's definitely not it.” Rainbow blinked and cocked her head, “so tell me rainbow pony, where did you go after that incident.”
Rainbow Dash ignored the question asking one of her own, “That has to be the issue, nothing else 'traumatic' happened other than that.”
“Just answer the question please.”
Her feathers bristled and she looked at the therapist with annoyed expression, “Don't tell me what to do.” Applejack reached over and smacked the backside of Rainbow's head and received an indignant glare in return, “Fine, I didn't go anywhere.”
“Come again?”
“I didn't go anywhere, I took care of myself.”
More scribbling in the notepad, “I see, I see. So how much family are you even in contact with?”
Rainbow Dash again tilted her head towards Applejack, “Just her. Nopony else.”
“And she is?”
“She's Applejack.”
Applejack facehoofed again, “Not like that ya numbskull, he meant how are we related. We're partners Doc.”
Rainbow grinned at Applejack and she realized that she was just trying to annoy her, “How long have you two been together then?”
“A year.”
“Have you ever thought about kids?”
Rainbow looked back at the therapist confused, “What does that have to do with anything?”
“Just answer the question please.”
Her feathers began to bristle again and she glanced to Applejack before responding, she got a glare telling her to quit being so hard-headed so she bared her teeth and responded. “We've put a little thought to it yes, she's all for it and I don't really oppose it, but it's not on the top of our to-do list. Can you answer my question now?”
“I think that your lack of family has disturbed you more than you realize and you partly blame yourself for your parents death. The combination makes you confused about what exactly is causing your dreams, blurring the dream itself. I'm assuming your dreams focus on your parents' death because you're telling me that's what you think is causing it. However you're obviously not traumatized by that situation specifically, so why would that be causing your nightmares, and why is that what your nightmares focus on? The last question is the one I'm attempting to answer here, and I believe your lack of knowledge of what a family actually is, is the answer. You haven't had a parental figure for so long that you're not sure what one is, that specifically is what I believe causes your nightmares, even though they seem to be unrelated due to the images actually in them, again from what I'm assuming happens in them. If you can place yourself in that parental place and learn what it's all about, I think your nightmares will go away.”
Rainbow seemed to actually begin listening to the therapist finally as she realized that possibly he actually knew what he was talking about. “So you want us to get a kid just to get rid of my nightmares?”
He chuckled and closed the notepad, “Not right now no, I'm saying put more thought into it as I believe it will stop them. If you decide to get one, then it's an easy solve isn't it? If not, then come back to me and we can think of another solution.”
Applejack watched Rainbow Dash who seemed to just be thinking about either the situation, or what it would be like to have a kid, or something. “So Doc, are we done here now? Ah mean...that was only what, fifteen minutes? Ah was expectin' a bit longer than that ta be honest.”
“If there's nothing else you need to talk about, then I suppose yes that's it. If fifteen minutes is all it took, then so be it. If you go this route, then this is farewell I guess. If not, then we can just take it one solution at a time and I'll see you again later.”
Applejack stood up and began to walk over to Rainbow who was still sitting there in thought mode, “Thanks Doc, Ah appreciate and Ah'm sure she does as well. Come on Rainbow, we can go now.”
Rainbow Dash snapped out of her thoughts and looked from Applejack to the therapist, “Oh, heh, yeah. Thanks Doc.” They walked out of the office and began trekking home with Rainbow again thinking about something. Applejack watched her for a while, wondering if she was actually considering adopting a kid. Before when they had talked about it she had just basically shrugged the subject off, saying there was no point, and both of them were too busy with their own lives to pay attention to a kid. Applejack had guessed that she was probably right and the conversation didn't go much further than that, but she had made sure she made it obvious to Rainbow that she thought they could handle the responsibility.
“Rainbow?”
Without even looking at Applejack she responded, “Would I even be a good parent? I never really had either of mine for very long, I can assume what I'd have to do. But that's just guessing, no experience.”
Applejack stepped closer to her trying to comfort her, “Rainbow you'd be great, Ah know ya would , there's absolutely no reason fer ya to worry sugarcube.”
Rainbow looked over to Applejack and smiled, unfurled a wing and draped it over her, “Thanks AJ, I think...I think I'd like a kid. And I think I'd be their favorite parent, don't you?”
Applejack rolled her eyes and stepped out from under Rainbow's wing, “Way ta ruin tha moment there Miss 'would Ah even be a good parent'.”
Rainbow stepped back over to Applejack and put her wing back around her, “Shut up 'orange pony', I'm teasing you.”
Applejack leaned back into Rainbow and they walked the rest of the way in silence. After they got back home Applejack couldn't resist trying to prove she was right any longer, “Still think it wasn't worth goin' 'Rainbow pony'?”
“Don't push it, remember this is still doing something you originally wanted, to fix something you think is a problem, you've already pushed your luck enough. Besides, at least he got half of my name right.”
“Ya can't tell me that ya'd rather have yer nightmares than not. And don't lie ta me, Ah know ya want a kid as well. There's no way somepony would be able ta change yer mind that easily.”
“Whatever you say orange pony, whatever you say. Like I said, quit pushing it. I said I'm agreeing to adopting before I thought I was going to. I never I said opposed it, I just thought we should wait.”
Applejack shook her head, walked up to Rainbow, and kissed her cheek, “Quit bein' grumpy, Ah made ya go to the therapist, Ah didn't make ya agree ta wantin' a kid. Ah'm gonna go make supper, cheer up then come eat.”
As Applejack walked into the kitchen she glanced over her shoulder to see if Rainbow still had a frown on her face, she didn't, she was following Applejack towards the kitchen and looked like she was feeling better. Applejack was trying not to show it but on the inside she was incredibly excited. She was not expecting Rainbow to change her mind and the day had ended in both of their favor, whether Rainbow saw it or not, Applejack knew it was true.
They were going to have a kid!