> All's Fair in Love and Piracy
>  by bahatumay
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Applejack couldn't keep a smile off her face as she sailed The Zap Apple towards home. She had made a good profit on this last delivery run, and nothing could dampen her mood. Add to that how much she loved the simple act of sailing, and she was one happy pony. She had made the run from her home island to Port Ponyville often (at least four times a week, to be honest), but the feel of the wind running through her mane and the salt spray in her face never got old. It was almost enough to temporarily forget the constant threat of piracy hanging over her head. 

Ask anypony in Seaquestria the first thing that comes to mind in response to the word 'pirate', and it will usually be something along the lines of 'somepony who takes things that aren't theirs'. This is a generalized stereotype; but it is a true definition. Everypony who captained even the smallest vessel knew to keep their eyes peeled for the flags on approaching ships, advance strike pegasi, or even those newfangled single-pony magi-skis that announced the arrival of pirates, which could lead to at best stolen cargo, and at worst a sunken ship and a nice deserted island or a personalized rope necklace to call your own. 

And none knew that better than Applejack. Her family's farm grew and kept many things, but their apples were most famous. They had long been an important staple of the economy in Port Ponyville. Add to that the delicious cider that could be made from her apples, and there were swarms of others just itching for a piece of that pie. She was calm and collected whenever she sailed, but kept her head on a swivel as she steered her little boat back towards home. Her family had worked hard to keep the island's location a secret known to only a few trusted ponies, lest pirates or other invaders come and take all the apples. She knew all the shortcuts through other island inlets, the reef barriers, and the sandbars she could use to make anypony who followed her have a miserable time doing so. And even if they did manage to track her, the island was situated near the Everfree Triangle, which was a place feared by even the most experienced of sailors for its unpredictable seas and treacherous waters and creatures, and thus the island remained generally untouched. There was that pair of unicorns that had arrived and then left, but they had headed into the Triangle and nopony had seen hide nor hair of them again. 

Not that Applejack minded, of course. It sounded cruel, but it was a cutthroat world she lived in and the less threats she had, the better. 

That didn't mean she had no friends, though. During her scans, she spotted a few birds circling a brown blur, which quickly resolved into a large raft built of fallen logs lashed together, carrying a yellow pegasus with a long pink mane. She wore a simple shirt, short-sleeved but with long strips that hung down nearly to her fetlocks. Her shirt stopped right before her belt, revealing her cutie mark of three butterflies. Applejack grinned and pulled the sail line, raising the sail to lessen the amount of wind caught to slow herself down. 

"Hey, Fluttershy!" she called as she approached. "How's that otter doin'?"

Fluttershy looked up from her raft and waved. "Much better, thanks!" she called back. 

“And Angel Bunny?”

The little white rabbit riding on Fluttershy's shoulder stuck his tongue out at Applejack.

Applejack smiled. This meant he was in a good mood. "Good t' hear! Hey, brought you something!" She held up a little corked jar and shook it, making a sloshing sound. 

Fluttershy squeed and flew up to meet her on the deck. "You shouldn't have," she said, but her tone of voice indicated that she was overjoyed with the gift. 

"T'aint nothin'," Applejack said dismissively, leaning lazily on the steering wheel. "You're always at our island anyway, helpin' with our animals and such, it's the least Ah could do t' say thanks."

Fluttershy huggled the cider flask to her chest. "Thank you so much," she said again, tears starting to form in the corners of her eyes. 

Applejack tugged her hat a little lower to hide her blush. Fluttershy's foal-like innocence shone through again, and frankly, Applejack was embarrassed at receiving this reaction. "Yeah, well, you're welcome," she said.

Fluttershy looked up. "I saw Berry Punch today," she said. 

Applejack snorted. Although not a direct competitor, Berry Punch was not on her list of close friends. She had some strange ideas and quirks--the main one being that sailing was improved while being tipsy--and her life had too many variables for Applejack's liking. "And what's that pony up to now?"

"She says she spotted pirates in this area, and said I should be on alert. I thought I should tell you."

"Ah appreciate it, Fluttershy," Applejack said, lifting her hat and running a hoof through her mane, "but most of the pirates on this stretch know me, and they ain't exactly itchin' for a rematch."

"But she said the flag they were flying was different. She said it looked like Rainbow Blitz's."

Now this caught Applejack's attention. Rainbow Blitz, captain of the ship Sonic Rainboom, was the most feared colt in all of Seaquestria. Tales of his piracy, his huge raids, his striking speed and his cruelty and his womanizing had been told and retold for nigh on a decade now, and Applejack had no intention of finding out if these rumors were true. "Wanna run that by me again?"

"She said it was a black flag that had the skull and wings and rainbow behind them. It sounded awful."

Applejack smiled grimly. "Ah take it she escaped somehow?"

"She had her Greek fire ready, but the flyby pegasus didn't think she had anything or something like that because they never tried to board her."

Applejack couldn't hold back a chuckle. Another of Berry's ideas was that the Greek fire of ancient legend had originally been an alcoholic drink, and she had devoted many a summer to 'reclaiming' the recipe. She hadn't quite succeeded in recreating it exactly according to legend (the green flame color always evaded her for some reason), but she had gotten pretty close--and she had the missing eyelashes and burn marks all along her body to prove it. 

Applejack, on the other hoof, chose to fend off pirates in a more conventional way. She tapped the cutlass strapped to her side. "Ah'm sure Ah c'n handle myself."

"Ok," Fluttershy said hesitantly, "but be careful."

"You too," Applejack replied. 

Fluttershy grinned. "Most sailors are afraid of my albatross friends," she said, pointing up to the large, circling birds. "I'll be fine. Thank you again for the cider!"

Applejack chuckled. The only thing she was afraid of when she saw an albatross was that it might leave a little 'present' on her deck. "And once again, it ain't nothin'. Take care now."

Fluttershy fluttered back down to her raft and waved goodbye. As she sailed away, Applejack made sure she kept a closer eye on her surroundings.



*  *  *



She was about two miles from home when she first spotted it, a whiteish cloud that moved unlike any other cloud she had ever seen. Peering at it intently, she whipped up her spyglass and focused. Sure enough, it was not a cloud at all, but a white pegasus with a yellow mane. She wore sailors' clothing, and Applejack felt a little pit form in her stomach. Pegasi wings weren't really designed for saltwater conditions, and so as a general rule, they were not good sailors (Fluttershy used easily-replaceable rafts for a reason). When they did sail, they usually kept to being a flying, short range lookout. Or, as was more likely in this case, running a pirating flyby to see if a ship had anything worth stealing. Applejack felt slightly relieved that she had stored the bits from today's sale under the hidden floor in the safe box again, but still couldn't shake that feeling of unease. 

It didn't help when the pegasus descended, aiming right for Applejack's ship. With a cheery "Ahoy there!", she crash-landed and clattered across the deck flank over teakettle in a swirl of fabric, metal, and feathers. She landed in what looked to be a very uncomfortable position, with her hips over her head and her tail where her mane should be and vice versa. 

It got weirder. This pegasus looked really familiar. If Applejack didn't know any better, she'd say that this pony was almost a pegasus copy of Pinkie Pie, that pink earth pony that helped run the bakery and tavern in Port Ponyville. Obviously this could not be the case, as this pony had wings and Pinkie did not.

Even so, that was her first reaction. "Pinkie Pie?"

"Nope," the pegasus responded with her face still buried in the deck. "She's my cousin. I'm Surprise, nice to meet you." With her face still in the deck, she held out a hoof for bumping. 

Applejack tried to keep a steady smile as she returned the gesture. There was a slight chance that she wasn't hostile, and Applejack decided to try being friendly. "Well, howdy there then, Surprise. What brings you to my little ol' ship today?"

She popped up, unhurt and still cheerful. "Oh, not much," she said. "Just doing a little exploring."

"Exploring?" Applejack asked. "Exploring what?"

"Oh, you know. Stuff," Surprise said dismissively. 

Applejack waited for her to expound, but she didn't. "What kind of stuff?"

"Well, you see, my captain told me to bring back that horizon, and I'm trying to figure out where it is. I haven't found it yet, you see."

Applejack suppressed the desire to facehoof. "Look, miss, that's just a sayin'. What that means is, full sail forward until he says otherwise."

The white mare cocked her head. "Are you sure?" she asked. 

"Yep."

"Are you really, really sure?" she asked again.

"Yep."

"Positive?"

"For the last time, yes. Are you sure you ain't Pinkie's twin or sommat?"

"Nope. In fact, you wanna hear something funny? I'm not her cousin."

"You're not?"

Surprise shook her head. "Nope. Never even heard of her."

Applejack frowned. "Then why didja say the two of you were cousins?"

"Oh, no reason. I just wanted to distract you."

“Distract me from wha-?” But Applejack didn’t need to finish that, because she heard the telltale sound of magi-skis approaching. “Pirates,” she hissed, looking around and trying to determine the closest threat.

"Surprise! And that's how I got my name!" the pegasus cheered, drawing her sword and smashing the flat of her blade against Applejack's face, knocking her out cold instantly. 

At least, that's what she tried to do. But Applejack was faster.

She ducked under the attempted blow and sent Surprise reeling with one punishing cross from her left forehoof. Pegasi, being generally lighter, were relatively easy to knock back--and knock out.

Drawing her sword, Applejack ran to the side railings of her ship and quickly began cutting off the grappling hooks thrown by the ponies below. She slashed ropes and in the process sliced chunks of wood out of the railing, but she didn't care. Rushing back to the wheel, she cut the rope holding up the sail, letting it fall and unfurling it completely, hoping for more speed. Spinning around, she came face to face with an earth pony mare who had somehow managed to board. She swung her sword, but Applejack blocked it and turned, presenting her rear hooves and bucking her over the railing and off the ship. She was rewarded by the sound of wood splintering--apparently, she had landed on one of the magi-skis. 

Scanning the scene, her heart jumped into her chest as she saw a new ship appear in view, larger and much faster than her own. It was sleek, dark, and bore a flag that was widely known and brought a slight stab of fear into her heart. It had a large skull, facing forward, flanked by two wings with a cutlass underneath, all in front of a diagonal rainbow swath. Pegasi were generally not good sailors, and Applejack knew of only one exception. 

"Rainbow Blitz," she breathed, sprinting back to her wheel and spinning it sharply, making her ship lurch harshly to one side. She couldn't outrun the approaching ship, but maybe she could outmaneuver them. 

“Wheee!”

Applejack looked back to see Surprise sitting upright and sliding across the deck--and crashing right through her guardrail to land in the sea below. Shaking her head, she brought the ship back in line with the wind, trying for more speed. 

But it was not to be. Her little ship was out-powered, and pegasi and ponies on magi-skis quickly surrounded her ship. Had she had a crew, she might have held them off a bit longer, but the single cannon her ship had remained silent as she was the only pony aboard. She slammed her hooves against the ship’s wheel. She knew she should have had Macintosh come along.
Earth ponies threw grappling hooks, scaling the ropes to come aboard, and a couple pegasi landed from the skies. Knowing that she wasn't going to get out of this alive, but not wanting to give up without a fight, she jumped off the railing to the front of the ship and pulled out the stopper on the anchor hub, letting the anchor fall to the sea floor and lurching her ship to a sudden stop, sending her unwanted passengers skidding and scrambling for purchase on the deck. 

“Y'all want a fight? Ah'll give y'all a fight!” she proclaimed, springing back up to the main deck for higher ground, swinging her sword in challenge. 

The first mare to regain her balance and step forward managed to duck the first swing, but Applejack used it to shift her weight, and drove her rear hooves into her chest, sending her flying backwards and taking out a few other pirates. The second one slashed downwards, burying her sword in the deck. Applejack kicked her over under the wheel and spun it sharply, slamming the spokes against her head. Clenching swords with the third opponent, she pivoted and shoved him backwards, using the fallen second pirate as a tripwire. She reared up, slamming a pegasus to the ground, then bucked fiercely and dropped two earth ponies where they stood. This was her ship, and nothing was getting past her. 

Strangely enough, they seemed to be holding back, as if they didn't want her dead. Applejack first noticed this when a pony attacked with a staff instead of the cutlass he wore. 

Ah well. Their loss. More specifically, his loss; especially when her kick went through his staff to hit him in the chest and knock him into the mast. 

But the pirates kept coming, and Applejack was only one mare. Sweat dripped down her face and into her eyes.

Soon, the fight ended, and not in the way she wanted it to. 

A sharp whistle cut through the noise, making every pirate stop. Applejack looked up and saw a pegasus with a rainbow mane, wearing a bandana and typical pirate garb, hovering a good thirty feet in the air. At first, Applejack wondered if this could be Rainbow Blitz, but then dismissed this possibility. This mare was, well, a she; and a fairly young she at that, maybe Applejack’s own age or maybe a bit younger. Maybe his daughter, then?

“You’re good,” she called down. 

“'Fanks,” Applejack responded hesitantly, keeping her sword at the ready. 

“But I think I’m better,” she finished. 

“Then why don'tcha come down here and say that to my face, then, huh?” Applejack demanded. 

The pegasus nodded. “I could, but that's boring. What do you say we set a little wager on this?”

“A wager?” Applejack asked, confused. “And the terms are...?”

“You beat me in a one-on-one fight, you sail home without any more trouble from us. You lose, and you come peacefully aboard the Sonic Rainboom.” She paused. “Well, obviously if you die you lose too, but Rainbow Blitz wants you alive.”

A shudder ran up Applejack's back as more rumors flew unbidden through her mind. “Issat so?” she asked, setting her sword down to enunciate and putting in as much venom into her words as she could. “And what does Rainbow Blitz want with me? Make me a conquest? Ah wasn't aware many pegasi liked mounting ground pounders.”

“There is nothing wrong with liking earth ponies!” the rainbow mare snapped, gesturing angrily. “And no! But when you lose, you'll find out!”

Applejack stomped on the hilt of her sword, flipping it back up and catching it with her mouth. “You're cocky,” she said. “Ah 'ike 'at.”

The rainbow mare took a few deep breaths through her nose to calm herself down. “So, do we have ourselves a deal?” 

Applejack grunted. “Ah don't think so. Ah've known enough pirates t' know y'all can't be trusted.”

The rainbow mare exaggeratedly clasped a hoof against her chest and sank slightly, as if mortally wounded. “I’m deeply offended!” she said overdramatically, raising the other hoof as if in supplication to her crew. “To think, she hesitates to trust me!”

The crew chuckled at that, even the ones being tended for their wounds.

“Maybe this will help.” She brought a hoof up and solemnly proclaimed, “Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”

Applejack was taken aback. “You know Pinkie Pie?”

“Psh. Yeah. Who doesn't know Pinkie Pie?”

Surprise raised her hoof. 

The mare frowned. “Ok... Who besides Surprise doesn't know Pinkie Pie?”

Nopony else moved. 

“There ya go,” she said. 

Applejack grinned and repeated the gesture. “Alright. Ah'll take that wager.”

The rainbow mare drew her sword, tossed it up into the air, closed her wings, and dropped in free fall to the deck. She landed lightly on her forehooves and caught the sword in her teeth before performing forward roll and popping up in perfect position. 

Applejack responded by flipping her own sword in the air and catching it again. “Let's do this,” she growled. 

The pegasus mare grinned and charged. Applejack sidestepped and brought her sword down, but to her surprise, the pegasus wasn’t there. She had ducked the obvious strike and charged right by, and Applejack didn’t have time to brace herself before one of her rear hooves tagged her in the chest. It didn’t hurt that much--only her pride--but it did teach her one thing.

This pony was fast.

Applejack stepped back and shifted into a defensive posture. The pegasus hopped around, jabbing relentlessly, looking for any chink in the armor. Applejack moved her sword slightly, doing just enough to deflect the blows. After that fight against the crew, she needed to conserve what little energy she had.

Energy which the pegasus didn’t seem to be lacking. She looked more like a metal tornado, spinning and jabbing and slashing, and frankly Applejack was having a hard time keeping up.

The pegasus suddenly switched tactics, throwing her sword towards her, sliding it along the deck. As Applejack instinctively jumped over it, the pegasus jumped over her, and Applejack was still in the air and couldn’t react in time. Her rear hoof slammed into Applejack’s neck, sending her tumbling to the ground. She managed to hang on to her sword, and quickly forced herself upright again.

The barest hint of admiration might have flickered across the pegasus’s face before she lifted her sword and charged again. She jumped up, as if ready to come down with a punishing blow, but with a quick flap of her wings, somehow shot back down to the deck and brought her sword across. By sheer dumb luck, Applejack managed to block it and hold the blade. With powerful rear hooves, she drove the rainbow mare backwards, slamming her against the mast. The pegasus gasped briefly.

And then the pegasus opened her mouth, extended her tongue, and licked Applejack right on the nose. 

Applejack was, to put it lightly, astonished; and didn’t even see the pegasus shift her weight. She did notice, however, when she flew through the air and landed hard on her back, with the wind completely knocked out of her. Applejack fought for breath, and her eyes refused to come back into focus. Unfortunately, she soon realized this was because her eyes were trying to focus on the sword not half an inch from between her eyes.

Applejack's ears flattened. She'd lost. 

To her shock, the cyan mare flipped her sword back into its sheath and held her hooves wide. “Congratulations! You win!” she cheered. 

“Say wha-?”

“You’ve won a first class, all-expenses paid trip aboard the Sonic Rainboom!”

Applejack could only stare as the mare continued her presentation, and the crew snickered. 

“You'll get your own room, with a view of the sea, and you'll get to meet and dine with the one and only Rainbow Blitz!”

The snickers grew louder. 

Even the cyan mare joined in the laughter... and then she became deadly serious. “Drop your weapons.”

Applejack growled at the mare. “You cheated!” she accused.

The pegasus’s face darkened. “In what way? How was that not a one-on-one fight?”

“It... It...” Applejack thought as hard as she could, but came up with nothing. It had been underhoofed, for sure; but she technically had not broken her promise. Snarling angrily, she removed her belt and the various knives she carried secreted on her body.
The rainbow mare grinned as Applejack removed one that had been hidden in her boot. “You're honest. I like that in a pony.”

Applejack snorted derisively. “That's rich, coming from a pirate.”

“Meh,” the pegasus retorted. “Honor among thieves and such.”

Applejack stopped short. “Ah ain't a thief.”

“And yet you still have honor. Funny how that works, huh?”

Applejack cocked her head. “That didn't make a lick of sense.”

The pegasus chuckled. “It's a pirate thing.”

Ah, yes, Applejack thought. Pirates. Problem is, pirates aren't the smartest ponies around. After all, going into a job where you can be killed on sight isn't very smart. So Applejack wasn't too worried. She would be out of here in no time. 

After all, she herself had only promised to board; not to remain aboard. 

Her smug thoughts were only more cemented as the cyan mare pointed a hoof and said, “Derpy, Lyra, Shoeshine, Raindrops. Search the ship. Take what you can, leave whatever you don't want, and then lash the rudder so it's facing towards towards Port Ponyville.” She looked over. “Octavia, escort our guest to her 'chambers'.”

Applejack grinned. Looks like The Zap Apple would live to sail another day, and probably would be recovered. The box of bits was well hidden and there was a good chance that Applejack would eventually be getting everything back. 

A few mares on the deck saluted at the assignment, but a gray pegasus mare wearing an eyepatch cheered especially loudly at being chosen. She flapped her wings and crossed the space between the two ships, but misjudged the landing and quite literally crashed through the upper deck, ending up in the lower storage area, sending scraps of wood flying.

“My bad!” she called. “Oh, hey! A box full of bits!”

Applejack whimpered. Now she was afraid for her boat, her bits, and her sanity, unsure if she'd keep any of them. Somepony roughly nudged her forward, and she began the long walk on board the ship of the most feared pirate in history.
> Chapter 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Applejack was led to what the rainbow mare had jokingly called 'our best accommodations' by a gray earth pony mare with a black mane. Like most pirates, she wore loose sailors' clothing that covered her cutie mark, but Applejack could tell that this mare wasn't a seafarer from birth. She carried herself like the high class ponies that sometimes visited Port Ponyville. Her head was raised, her nose held high, and her very demeanor felt out of place. 

“You don't hide your emotions well,” she said suddenly. 

Even her voice was out of place. She had a slight accent, one that spoke of higher breeding, and definitely not one Applejack was used to hearing at sea. “Beg yer pardon?” Applejack asked.

“You see me as easy pickings, and intend to attempt an escape en route to your cell. Please do; I haven't had a good fight in a long time.”

Applejack fought to keep a straight face. “Ah don’t know what you’re talkin’ abou-”

“You and I both know that your promise was only to board peacefully, not remain aboard. You are a business pony. I am willing to bet a substantial amount of money that you caught that even before you even performed the Pinkie Promise.”

“You know Pinkie Pie too?”

A slight look of exasperation crossed the gray mare’s face. “We’ve... met,” she said shortly.

“She's a hoofful, isn't she?”

The gray mare answered in that same flat voice. “You can say that again, but I highly advise you do not.”

“Sheesh,” Applejack muttered. “Tough crowd.”

“It's a pirate thing,” she said dismissively. 

Knowing they were nearing her cell, Applejack made one last effort to try and make friends. “You said you weren't from around here; how did you become a pirate, anyway?”

“I had to flee for my life after I was caught singlehoofedly pleasuring no less than eight of my father's business associates at the same time. I was interrupted by a posse of their wives and the royal guard. It was enjoyable, but made quite the mess, and I still don't think my rectum has fully recovered.”

Applejack stopped short and stared at her in abject horror... until the mare forcefully shoved her back into a cell that Applejack hadn't seen and then slammed the iron bar door shut. She tripped and sprawled along the floor.

The gray mare giggled as she pulled the bars in place and locked them in place. “I can't believe you believed me. I'm impressed you've survived this long for being so gullible.”

Applejack growled and pushed herself to her hooves, angry at both being lied to and at being tricked into the cell like that. “Whatever,” was her less-than-intimidating comeback.

Still chuckling, the gray pony blew her a kiss. “I imagine you've been through a lot and would like some rest. Sleep well, apple mare.”

“My name is Applejack,” Applejack hissed.

“Apple mare,” she repeated disdainfully before turning and walking away.

Applejack paced for a while, but soon realized she had nothing better to do than to collapse on the little bunk and attempt to get some sleep. The fight had left her exhausted physically; her current position hurt her mentally.



*  *  *



Applejack was awoken by a harsh clanging sound. She looked up blearily and when her eyes had come back into focus, she saw a little orange pegasus filly with a purple mane banging cheerfully on the bars with a little sword.

“Knock it off,” she grumbled, reaching for a pillow to pull over her head. Of course, there wasn’t one; but it was still a habit anyway.

“I gotta wake you up!” she responded cheerfully. “Rainbow Blitz invited you to dinner!”

“Tell 'im Ah ain’t hungry.” 

Still banging, she chuckled. “Rainbow Blitz said you’d say that, and then said that I had permission to keep making noise until you came!”

“So your plan is to annoy me into submission?”

The blade paused ever so slightly before continuing its motions. “Whatever works, right?”

Applejack rolled off her bed and stood up slowly. “Speakin’ of works, you better stop doing that.”

“Why?”

Applejack pointed at the sword she swung. “Because you’re gonna dent the blade if you keep hitting the edge like that.”

The filly stopped briefly and examined her sword. “Looks fine to m-”

But that’s as far as she got, because Applejack quickly reached out with a hoof and pulled her head sharply forward, slamming it into the bars and stunning her. The brief feeling of guilt for attacking a filly dissipated as she thought of her freedom and going back to her family, and she retrieved the sword and began rifling through the filly’s clothes through the bars.

“Come on, come on,” she hissed. “Where is it?”

“Looking for this?”

Applejack looked up to see that gray mare from earlier, holding a key in her mouth.

“Yeah...” Applejack’s voice trailed off, realizing her already shoddy plan had just crumbled completely. 

The pirate smirked. “I suggest dropping the sword and standing away from the bars.”

“Ah suggest lashing yourself to a cannon and jumpin’ overboard,” Applejack retorted.

The gray mare's lips tightened. “Might I remind you that the captain has invited you to dinner, and that you don’t need your tail nor cutie mark to accept that offer?”

Applejack considered this threat. She quickly weighed her options, and realized that this could not end well for her. First of all, she was fighting with a weapon not her own, which was always a disadvantage in a fight (especially when she hadn't practiced with it at all before). Secondly, she was in an enclosed space, and though it was a little sword, she didn’t have much room to swing. That might not have been so bad in and of itself, as the gray mare couldn’t swing her sword either; but the gray mare pulled out a curved dagger, and that was a game changer. The little blade would fillet her like an apple for a pie before she could even swing.

Reluctantly, Applejack dropped the sword, kicked it over by the door, and took a few steps back.

“Good apple mare,” the gray pony said condescendingly as she sheathed her weapon and unlocked the door. 

“My name is Applejack.”

“Apple mare,” she repeated as she put the filly’s sword back in its sheath and gently sat her upright on the bench in the cell. She rested her head against the wooden walls and then turned and pointed, indicating that Applejack needed to move. Applejack didn’t mind too much, until Octavia shut the door behind her.

“You’re just gonna leave her there?” Applejack couldn’t help but ask as Octavia directed her from behind with a sharp jab.

“Oh, don’t give me that look. I didn’t lock it or anything, now, did I? Now march. It's not polite to keep the captain waiting.”

Applejack grumbled under her breath. She could think of a few places Octavia should shove her brand of politeness. 



*  *  *



The captain's cabin was just as fancy as Applejack had imagined it would be. Huge silks that probably cost more bits than her whole family made in a month adorned the ceilings and corners and acted as blinds. All the furniture in the room was gilded with gold, or upholstered with velvet. Various treasures lay scattered around the room, everything from piles and bags and pots of gold coins to silver chains to small marble status to more rubies than a dragon's hoard would have. Crowns hung from the ceiling, amulets with precious stones lined the walls--that is, where the fine art hadn't been already taking up space. Her eye was briefly caught by a golden necklace inlaid with an enormous sapphire in the shape of a lightning bolt before flicking over to the pony in the room with her. Instead of the captain, there stood that same rainbow maned pony from earlier, and Applejack couldn't suppress a frown. Apparently, she wasn't good enough for Rainbow Blitz himself, and she had to have dinner with the pirate that had likely sunk her ship. Score two direct hits on her self confidence. She glared dourly. 

“Good to see you too!” the pirate replied jovially. “I will be your host tonight. Come! Have a seat.” She pointed with her sword to the table, which Applejack just saw. Her mind had been too enthralled with treasures that would have made her family's life much more comfortable to notice the wide table bearing a globe of the known world, various maps and rolled pieces of paper, and a fairly simple but large spread of food. 

Applejack's mouth began to water. Now that she thought about it, she hadn't eaten before leaving Port Ponyville; she'd decided to wait until she had gotten home for that. The rainbow mare flew over to the table and with a flip, landed in a chair, leaning back and resting her hooves up on the table. 

When Applejack didn't move, she grinned. “It's just gonna get cold,” she said. 

Applejack slowly, and not attempting to hide just how little she trusted this mare, walked over to the table and sat down. 

“Guests first, of course,” the mare said, gesturing widely. 

Applejack glanced at it and then glared. “It's poisoned,” she accused. 

The rainbow mare shrugged. "Suit yourself," she said, reaching for Applejack's plate and pulling it over to herself. She picked up the hunk of bread and took a big bite, sending crumbs flying as she chewed with her mouth open. 

Applejack watched her eat with slight revulsion. “Oh… kay…”

She then reached for the hay fries and stuffed a hoofful of those in her mouth as well. When she reached again, Applejack blocked her with a hoof. 

The rainbow mare grinned as she retracted her hoof. “Oh, good. Still got a little spunk in you.”

“That's what all the polite folks say,” Applejack said, pulling her plate back in front of herself.

“And the impolite folks?” the rainbow mare asked, taking a messy bite off her own plate. 

Applejack chuckled. “Somethin' like stubborn, bull-headed, asenine...”

The mare leaned over and peeked under the table, as if looking at Applejack's cutie mark. “Meh... I'd give it a six, seven at best.”

“Wait. What?” Applejack didn't understand, and was even more confused when the mare burst out laughing. 

Eventually she managed to control herself, and wiped off her lips brusquely with a hoof. “Fine, I'll talk. We're after this.” And she reached into one of the many folds in her clothing and held up a little flask marked with the Apple family logo. 

Applejack was somewhat dumbfounded. “This is all about some silly cider?” she couldn't help but ask. Foalnapped and lost her ship and bits over cider? Sure, it was good, and fetched a great price, and always sold out in minutes whenever she brought it to ports…

Ok, maybe she had a point. 

“It is not silly!” her captor retorted angrily, stowing away the cider protectively. “This stuff is nectar from the Creators! I wouldn't be surprised if Celestia herself bathed in this stuff every morning!”

Applejack couldn't hide a small blush. “Well, now,” she stammered. “That's some high praise.”

“This stuff is like liquid happiness. And I want it all.”

A cold chill ran up Applejack’s spine. “That's not gonna happen,” Applejack hissed, all good feelings vanishing instantly. 

“Oh, yes it is,” the rainbow mare retorted. “You are going to lead Rainbow Blitz to your home island, where we will then take all the cider you have. We'll most likely leave the rest of you alive if you do.”

Applejack's eyes hardened. “Ah ain't never gonna betray my island,” she growled, “so you can tell Rainbow Blitz to get stuffed.”

The mare didn't even flinch. “That's cool,” she said dismissively. “We've got plenty of supplies and all the time in the world. Eventually, you're going to crack.” She turned and called, “Li'l Scoots?”

That little orange filly from earlier, looking only slightly worse for the wear, appeared in the doorway and looked up expectantly. She now sported a bruise on her forehead, and when she saw Applejack there, her eyes narrowed. She clearly was hoping for a round two.

“Take her back to the brig.”

As Li’l Scoots saluted, Applejack couldn’t suppress a smile. Maybe this time she would have more luck escaping. 

“Oh, and take Octavia with you. Just in case.”

Li'l Scoots looked briefly crestfallen that she hadn't been trusted to take this mission solo, but she snapped to a salute and barked, “Aye aye, cap'n!” before turning and walking confidently out of the room. 

“Li'l Scoots?”

“Yes, cap'n?”

“Don't forget your prisoner.”

“Oh,” Scoots giggled. “Right.” She returned and gave Applejack a none too gentle push on her rump to get her moving. Rolling her eyes, Applejack began walking back to her new home. 



*  *  *



Li’l Scoots led her back to the brig, with Octavia (the same gray earth pony as before) following close behind. Applejack felt as though she were in a deadly sandwich. Well, half a sandwich, anyway. Though nowhere near a good fighter, she had to admit that Li’l Scoots was very resilient.

And maybe a bit more vulnerable to befriending. 

“You mad about earlier?” Applejack asked. 

Li'l Scoots shrugged. “Nah. Tavi said that it was my fault for letting my guard down, and that I shouldn't do it again.”

“This 'Tavi' sounds like a smart pony.”

The next answer came from behind Applejack. “Thank you, apple mare.”

So much for getting on her good side... Applejack decided to change the subject. “You like serving under Rainbow Blitz?”

Now this topic Li'l Scoots was happy to talk about. “Yeah, she's awesome!” she cheered. 

“She?” Applejack asked, surprised. 

“Yeah, ‘she’,” Li’l Scoots said, a note of confusion in her voice. 

“But Rainbow Blitz is a colt, right? That's what all the rumors say.”

Li'l Scoots giggled, but Octavia burst out laughing, probably for the first time that month. It was a slightly unnerving sound, really. 

“What's so funny?” Applejack asked, blushing slightly at getting laughed at so often on this ship.

“And do you believe every rumor you hear, apple mare?”

“My name is Applejack,” she protested half-heartedly. 

“Apple mare,” Li’l Scoots teased, sticking her tongue out as she continued trotting down the narrow hall. 

Applejack shut her mouth as they continued down the hall. She didn't say anything as Li'l Scoots gently pushed her into her cell. She didn’t say anything as Octavia continued to rib her about being so gullible.

And she didn't say anything when she noticed Octavia didn't lock the door behind her when she left. 



*  *  *



Apple Bloom rowed her little skiff into the bay and onto the beach closest to her family's house. She had been doing her normal rounds, making sure the trees were watered and the leaves swept away from the roots, that kind of thing. But now that she had finished, she was ready to go home and see her sister again. Applejack always brought something back for her from the port, and she couldn’t wait. 

She burst into the house, calling for her sister. “Hey, Applejack! Didja get a good price fer our apples today?”

Her voice trailed off as she saw her grandmother and brother sitting at the table, with a stricken expression on their faces. 

“Guys?” Apple Bloom asked, raising a hoof hesitantly. “What's goin' on?”

“Apple Bloom?” Mac finally said. 

“Yeah?”

“Your sister... Applejack didn't make it back today.”

Apple Bloom's heart leapt into her mouth. “Where is she?”

“Ah don't know,” Mac said quietly.

“Was it pirates?”

Mac's silence spoke volumes. 

Apple Bloom's eyes welled up with tears and she buried her face in Mac's chest. “But th- there's still a chance she's alive, right?” Apple Bloom asked, looking up through sobs. 

“Maybe.” He brought a hoof up and stroked her mane, offering comfort he himself didn't feel. 

It was a cold, cold night on the Apple island. 
	
> Chapter 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Late that night, Applejack waited until all was silent on the ship before making her move. Gently, she slid open the door, wincing at every metallic whine and scrape it produced. She forced herself to move slowly, trying to pass off the noise as the creaking of the ship and shifting of the cargo.

When the door had been opened enough for her to barely squeeze herself through, she poked her head out and paused, holding her breath and waiting, listening closely for any sound of an approacher. 

The only sound she could hear was the rise and fall of the sea. Normally this was a peaceful feeling, but Applejack couldn't help but feel that this was masking some important sound. Shaking her head, she extracted herself completely and began her escape.

She walked slowly, rolling each hoof as she placed it down so as to not make any noise. She jumped as she thought she heard a noise behind her, but saw nothing. Now with her heart beating furiously in her chest, she continued walking. She had to get off this ship.

She froze as she heard a sound that was distinctly pony in origin. Poking her head into the next room, which had been lit with a single candle, she saw Lyra, the mint green unicorn from before, who was probably supposed to be guarding her. However, she was currently pinned down by a cream colored earth pony mare who had placed her lips over Lyra's, and judging by the playful squeaks and little fitful movements she was making, neither was going to watch for escapees. 

Perfect. 

She continued down the hall, climbing the stairs and making her way up to the top deck. Remaining on a lower step, she inspected the deck. It appeared clear, so she got the rest of the way up and began sprinting towards the railings. 

At least, she tried; but as soon as she cleared the deck, pain suddenly exploded behind her head and she collapsed to the deck. When the world had stopped spinning and she had managed to regain some control over her body, she looked up to see Octavia, grinning evilly and holding an oar. 

“Good evening,” she said, in a refined, clipped voice that would have sounded more at home coming from the hostess at a dinner party than a pirate who had just clocked her. “Did you not enjoy your quarters?”

“Go choke on a pear,” Applejack managed to say. 

Octavia merely grinned and began dragging Applejack back into to her cell by her tail. Applejack attempted to force herself up, but was having great difficulty figuring out which way was up, and that was without trying to answer the question of what all those stars were doing flying around her head. Weren’t they supposed to be up in the sky or something? 

Octavia unceremoniously dragged her into the cell and daintily stepped outside. “Thank you, I needed that. In fact, I'm not even going to tell the captain you tried to escape, that's how fun it was.” Octavia chuckled darkly as she locked the door for real this time. “Sleep well, apple mare.”

With a frustrated groan, Applejack pushed herself up onto the bed and pulled the ragged blanket over her head.



*  *  *



The next morning found Applejack with a mild headache and a wet mop in her hooves, swabbing the deck. Apparently, Rainbow Blitz had a firm 'no worky, no eaty' policy, and this was her current assignment. 

And as if her day couldn't get any better, Li'l Scoots was technically her superior. The filly was overjoyed to not be on the bottom rung of the ship anymore, and was enjoying her role a bit too much. 

“Missed a spot, apple mare,” she grinned, gesturing with a tiny wing. 

Applejack responded by flicking water at her face before resuming mopping. 

“Hey!” Li'l Scoots protested, rubbing a hoof brusquely against her face. 

“Sorry, boss,” Applejack said, with just a hint of sarcasm. “Won't happen again.”

“It better not,” Li’l Scoots threatened, “or Rainbow Blitz will make you walk the plank!”

Applejack rolled her eyes and continued mopping.



*  *  *



After Octavia (who had had a continuous smirk on her face) had approved her work (which was a much more difficult task than it appeared), Applejack was permitted to eat. She trotted into the dining area, plopped herself down at the table, and sighed. Octavia had refused to let her in until the whole of the main deck had been finished, so the eating area was fairly empty by the time she got there.

Li’l Scoots seemed to think that arriving at this time was normal, and happily ate her somewhat cold food. Applejack sat in a different area, picking morosely at her breakfast, which appeared to be brown mush and a rock, but had probably at some point in time been oatmeal and a biscuit. What she wouldn’t give for a nice, hot apple pancake, smothered in apple syrup and served steaming hot..

She jumped as a white pegasus appeared in her field of vision. “Hi!” Surprise chirped. “Did I surprise you?”

“Kindof,” Applejack muttered, looking down at her food. She shifted slightly to face away from her, sending every bit of nonverbal ‘go away’ she could muster towards her.

It seemed Surprise wasn’t good at nonverbal cues, though, as she sat down cheerfully next to Applejack (even sitting was a joyful activity, apparently) and began eating.

There was a semi-awkward silence, and eventually, Surprise broke it. “You still mad about yesterday?”

“No,” Applejack answered, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Why ever would you think that?”

“Besides the fact that we took all your bits, and left your ship with kindof a big hole in the bottom of it?”

Applejack shot to her hooves. “You what?”

Surprise giggled. “I’m joking! Derpy’s clumsy, but she’s not that bad.”

“It wasn’t funny,” Applejack grumbled, returning to her food.

Surprise smiled. “For what it’s worth, I hope you get your ship back.”

There was another little silence for a while, and then Applejack spoke. “What’re you late from, anyway?” Applejack asked.

“Scouting,” Surprise said. “Rainbow Blitz has been steering us in a kindof circling pattern, looping around, searching until we find your island and drink all the cider. The first pony to lay eyes on it gets second dibs, so there's lots of us on wings and magiskis to be the first to find it.” She paused. “Not so much the magiskis, 'cause it's kindof hard to recharge those. We have a lot of unicorns, but not all of them are real strong with magic.”

Applejack glared angrily. “You’ll never find it,” she hissed, and she firmly believed it. 

Surprise shrugged. “Maybe, maybe not.” She hunched over and gnawed on her biscuit, looking for all the world like an oversized white rat. 

Applejack pushed her bowl away and let her head slam onto the table. She couldn’t wait to get off this ship.

Eventually, she got tired of the noise of Surprise eating, and so lifted herself up and headed outside. 

She didn’t make it two steps before something landed on her. She bucked the pony off and spun around, scrabbling for her sword, but she quickly realized wasn’t wearing it.

It didn’t quite matter. She recognized her attacker fairly quickly. 

“Hey there,” Rainbow Blitz said cheerfully.

Applejack caught her breath as her heart continued pounding. “What are you doing here?” she blurted. 

“This is my ship, the Sonic Rainboom,” Rainbow Blitz said. “I am the captain, and I go where I please.” She smirked. “Do you have anything you want to share with me?”

“Just my hoof upside your head,” Applejack seethed.

Rainbow Blitz took an exaggerated step back. “Oh, well, pardon the feathers off me,” she said sarcastically. “Octavia?”

The gray mare was suddenly beside Applejack.

“Take her back down to the brig. She needs a little time to… cool off.”

Octavia gestured with her head, and Applejack began walking.



*  *  *



Later that afternoon, Applejack stood at the front of the ship, staring out into the ocean. Rainbow Blitz had released her for lunch (which had been just as palatable and appealing as breakfast had been), and then just never told Octavia to put her back in, so she was taking full advantage of this. She rested against the bulwarks, enjoying the feel of the sun on her coat and the wind through her mane. Her ear flicked as she heard another pony approaching from behind.

“Nice day, eh?” Rainbow Blitz grinned. Applejack didn’t even need to look at her to know she was smiling broadly. “Enjoying the sunshine?”

Applejack nodded, not really wanting to start any conversation.

Rainbow Blitz didn’t care. She leaned on the woodwork next to her. “So, what’s it like sailing as a pirate?” she asked.

“For starters, your food could use some work,” Applejack said honestly.

Rainbow shrugged. “Yeah. Dinky’s good, but we’re running low on supplies. We’ll have to restock soon. Hopefully we get to your island before then.”

Applejack frowned. “Thought you said you had plenty of supplies?”

Rainbow Blitz pointed at herself. “Pirate,” she informed her. “I say a lot of things that aren't necessarily true.”

“Well, Ah have no intention of betrayin’ my family,” Applejack growled. “So you'd best start making your shopping list.”

Rainbow shrugged. “Suit yourself. But we’ll find it eventually. Other than that, how do you like my ship?”

Applejack wanted to say many things, most of them derogatory, but the truth came out. “It’s a beauty,” she said. “She sails like a dream, she’s got the straightest keel Ah’ve seen, and she’s fast.”

“Everything on this ship is fast,” Rainbow Blitz grinned. “Especially me.”

Applejack rolled her eyes.

Rainbow turned to leave. “Well, you just keep considering my ‘cider for safety’ offer, ‘kay?” She extended her wings and took off.

Applejack watched her leave. Now that she knew Rainbow Blitz didn’t intend to keep her in the brig indefinitely, she began devising a new escape plan... until she saw a little orange filly standing resolutely close by, eyes fixed firmly on her target.

“Lemme guess,” Applejack said flatly. “You’re my new foalsitter.”

“It’s a real important position,” Li’l Scoots said proudly. “I might even get a cutie mark in prisoner guarding.”

Applejack had had very similar conversations with her own blank-flanked sister, but here she could say things she never would have dared to say to Apple Bloom. “Oh yeah? What would that even look like?”

Li’l Scoots raised a hoof... and then dropped it. “Uh... a pair of eyes?” she thought.

“That’d just be creepy.”

“Uh... Hoofcuffs?” Scootaloo suggested.

“That’d make me think you were a prisoner. That ain’t such a good special talent.”

Li’l Scoots sat down, mildly dejected. “I really don’t know,” she said.

Applejack knew that the next thought going through her little mind was, ‘maybe my cutie mark will never come...’ She didn’t mean to be hurtful; she was just tired and frustrated, and realized she might have been a bit harsh. Sighing, she decided to do some damage control. “Look, it could be a searchlight or lighthouse or somethin’, makin’ sure they don’t run off in the night.”

“Octavia said you tried that,” Li’l Scoots said, “but it didn’t work.”

Applejack felt a little less bad about teasing her captor now. “It didn’t work yet,” she corrected.

Li’l Scoots shook her head. “Octavia is, like, the best first mate ever. You’ll never escape.”

We’ll just see about that, Applejack thought. Her plan continued to form as she watched the sun begin to set.



*  *  *



That night, Octavia was awoken by the sounds of a pony groaning in agony. Letting out a groan of her own, she pushed herself to her hooves and walked over to the prisoner’s cell, where through the moonlight she saw Applejack splayed out on the ground, holding her stomach and whining.

“What is it, apple mare?” she demanded.

“Ah... Ah must’ve eaten somethin’ bad for dinner,” Applejack whimpered.

Octavia rolled her eyes. “It’s a pirate ship. Everything’s always bad; surely you’ve noticed this?”

“Yeah, but Ah mean real bad!” Applejack said.

Octavia rolled her eyes and stepped closer. “Look, if you’re doing this for attention...”

But that was as far as she got, for she realized that her hoof had not hit the wooden deck, but instead something soft. She looked down and had just enough time to realize that she was stepping on a blanket when Applejack bit the corner and quite literally pulled it out from under her, sending Octavia crashing to the ground. She looked up just in time to see Applejack reach through the bars, grab her rear hoof and pull her towards herself, physically slamming her body into the metal bars and sending one right in between her rear legs.

Contrary to what many stallions believe, getting hit between the hind legs also hurts mares as well, and Octavia fought through the pain as she forced herself to sit up. Unfortunately, in this position, she brought her head closer to the bars--close enough for Applejack to drive a hoof in between her eyes, dropping her instantly.

Applejack allowed herself a small chuckle before quickly rifling through Octavia’s clothes. Sure enough, the key rested on a string around her neck, and with a few quick motions, Applejack was free.

She didn’t bother taking any of Octavia’s weapons, as she intended to swim for safety and the extra weight would not have been worth it. Sprinting out on deck, she briefly saw a flash of green before jumping overboard.

No, it couldn’t be. Surely Octavia had been the only guard awake at this time?

But as she surfaced, she heard Lyra’s voice. “Mare overboard! She’s escaping!”

Funny thing about pirates—most of them aren’t very good swimmers, and avoided actually getting in the water. Applejack had learned to swim in ponds and in the ocean shallows near her island, but this sea was much rougher than she was used to. Even so, she figured she would have a fighting chance of escaping here.

This feeling of success was slightly diminished when she saw magi-skis being loaded with ponies. She held her breath and dove under the surface, trying to lose or at least confuse her pursuers.

She waited as long as she could before surfacing, and to her surprise, noticed that she seemed to be in the clear, relatively. She dove back under and began swimming further.

When she had run out of breath again, she surfaced as quietly as she could into the bright water. She seemed to have made her esc-

Wait. Bright water?

There was a sharp pain on the back of her neck as teeth gripped her mane and physically pulled her out of the water. This was only slightly relieved when two strong forelegs wrapped around her and finished lifting her higher and higher into the air. Applejack thrashed as best as she could, until it dawned on her just how high she was, and she froze.

“I can drop you if you’d like,” Rainbow Blitz growled into her ear, “but I’m thinking you wouldn’t like that. Just like I don’t like how you tried to escape.”

“Can you blame me, though?” Applejack asked, making a strong conscious effort to not look down.

“No. I’m still chaining you to a cannonball, though. Enjoy your stay on the Sonic Rainboom, because you’re never getting off.”

Looking around, Applejack saw that they had formed teams of pegasi and unicorns to search the water for her. Even the smaller unicorns had their horns lit and light spells spinning, like little living lighthouses. Even if she had managed to slip by Rainbow Blitz, Applejack wouldn’t have stood a chance.

Applejack groaned in defeat as Rainbow Blitz carried her back on board. She was better than Applejack had given her credit for, and now she was going to pay dearly for it.

> Chapter 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Dinky led Applejack down the short stairs to a small room with a tiny window. She pointed down the stairs, a gesture which looked somewhat foreboding and forming a contrast from her bright coat and tiny frame. “Since you tried to run away, you’re now stuck with me; which means you’re now stuck with these.”

Applejack followed, her cannonball sliding along on the deck behind her. It bumped her fetlocks as she stopped. She squinted into the darkness, and her eyes adjusted quickly. “Potatoes?” she asked.

“Yep. I need four piles, about yea high,” Dinky said, gesturing with a hoof. “Need them all peeled.”

Applejack cracked a smile. “Rainbow Blitz is trusting me with a knife?”

“I’m ‘trusted’ with one,” Dinky pointed out, gesturing to her hip. She did indeed have a knife strapped to each of her hind legs. “And you’re using a 'special' knife.” She pulled one from her pocket and tossed it over.

Applejack recoiled and bumped into the wall as the knife just barely missed her foreleg, hit the wall, and clattered to the ground at her forehooves. “Are you insane?” she demanded. “You don’t just throw knives at ponies!”

Dinky shrugged. “It’s fine. It’s really dull.” 

Applejack picked it up and examined the blade. Uncomfortably, she realized that it was about as sharp as a coat hanger; it looked as though it hadn’t been sharpened in months. She looked up, and the evil smile crossing the filly’s face made it perfectly clear that this was part of her punishment. Applejack scowled.

“Four piles,” Dinky repeated as she trotted out.

Applejack grumbled under her breath and sat.

It was long, hard work. Most of the potatoes were slimy, sprouting, or moldy. She’d tried to pass most of them up, but had to return most of them to the ‘incomplete’ pile when she realized that being sprouted was far from the worst condition; and if she wanted those four piles, some of the potatoes wouldn’t be as clean as the ones they ate on her island. Applejack made a mental note to skip them for dinner.

Needless to say, Applejack was not happy with this situation in the slightest.

Nearly an hour later, Applejack wiped her brow as she examined the piles again. Deciding she’d done enough to satisfy Dinky’s requirements, she got up and walked out of the scullery, leaving behind her problems and this current job.

At least, she did; until the cannonball she dragged rammed through a pile of potatoes, smashing most against the wall and scattering the rest.

Applejack looked back and slammed her head against the wall repeatedly. Oh, what she wouldn’t do to go home...



*  *  *



Once again, breakfast was cold by the time Applejack got there. And, oddly enough, Surprise was there again, too. Upon seeing Applejack, her grin widened and she picked up her plate and bustled over to where the earth pony was sitting.

As if this day could get any worse.

“Sorry you got caught,” Surprise said suddenly. “You were trying so hard, too.”

“Th- thanks,” Applejack said, confused. She hadn’t expected that.

Surprise giggled. “Yeah. Anything that knocks Octavia down a peg is good in my book. She’s too uptight in her tight britches.”

That didn’t seem to make much sense, as Octavia wore standard pirate loose clothing; but for some reason, Applejack didn’t feel like arguing that point. “How is she, anyway?” she asked, already certain that her stunt last night was going to come back and bite her in the flank sometime soon.

“She’s mad,” Surprise said simply, “but she’ll get over it eventually. She’s always got a horseshoe nailed on wrong anyway, though, so it prolly won’t make that much of a difference.”

Unbeknownst to either of them, Octavia was currently in her quarters, imagining that the apple in front of her bore Applejack's face, and she was angrily stabbing her dagger repeatedly into it until it more resembled applesauce than an actual apple. 

Applejack made a noncommittal grunt. “Ah hope not. Ah’m in no condition to fight her with this thing on my leg.”

Surprise shook her head. “Nope. And now there’s no way you can escape. It’s kindof sad, really.”

“Ya don’t say,” Applejack growled. “Well, Ah don’t care. Mark my words, Ah intend to get off this ship one way or another.”

Surprise giggled. “Until Rainbow Blitz gets her cider, you aren’t going anywhere. What Rainbow Blitz wants, Rainbow Blitz gets.”

“What would it take to get her to want to let me go, I wonder?” Applejack muttered darkly.

Surprise took this as a legitimate question, and answered. “Well, there’s always love. Love makes you do funny things for other ponies. If you became her super special somepony, she might let you go. You know, the whole ‘if you love them, let them go’ thing?”

“Me? With her? That’s ridiculous,” Applejack spat. “It'd take a miracle for anypony to fall in love with her, let alone me.”

“I believe in miracles,” Surprise said simply. “Besides, you're an earth pony mare, and those are her favorite. Hey, she even licked you during your fight, didn’t she?”

“Ah still say that was cheatin’,” Applejack grumbled, burying her head into her crossed hooves. “And there’s no way Ah’d want to love her anyway.”

“Suit yourself,” Surprise shrugged. “But I bet she’s great between the sheets.”

Now with a plethora of mental images she didn’t really want, Applejack slid her bowl in front of Surprise and turned and left.



*  *  *



Applejack stared out at the ocean once more and absentmindedly tugged on the chain around her hind leg. It was almost noon, but she barely felt the heat, as her mind was elsewhere. She really needed to get home, and Surprise’s idea just wouldn’t work.

Would it?

Applejack had never been much for romance. Working on the farm meant she didn’t have much time for courting, and had spent most Hearts and Hooves days selling heart-shaped apple pies in Port Ponyville. But then again...

What if it did work? She could make Rainbow Blitz fall in love with her, and then, when she had earned her trust and gotten the cannonball off, escape when they stopped at a port for supplies. 

Because they would have to, and soon. Applejack was fairly certain that her last biscuit had actually been a rock, and when she had asked Dinky if she could see the flour used, she got basically a bag of dusty weevils. Not appetizing. 

Applejack felt a twinge of guilt as she realized that that would be a massive lie, but she suppressed it. She needed to get home. She needed to be back with her family. Apple Bloom, Big Macintosh, Granny Smith. They needed her. And to be honest, she needed them.

And so she started her plan to make the most feared pirate in the world fall in love with her.
	
> Chapter 5
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Applejack was not a gossip. She didn’t care much for mares giggling behind their hooves at other ponies’ misfortunes, real or imagined. However, there were times that she needed a certain piece of information, and through her years at the market she had learned something quite counterintuitive: the best way to get information is to not ask for it.

Applejack grumbled louder than normal as she walked past Lyra and that other mare. “Ah hate this. First sign of storm and the cannonball’s gonna roll right off and take me with it and then nopony’ll get any cider.”

“I’m sure a big, strong, earth pony like you can handle it,” Lyra teased.

Applejack slowed to a stop and glared. 

All according to plan.

The other mare crossed her forelegs and pouted dramatically. “I thought I was your big, strong, earth pony,” she said.

Lyra gave her an affectionate nuzzle. “No, Bonnie; you’re the big, strong earth pony.”

The gag of revulsion that came out of Applejack’s mouth was not entirely scripted in the plan.

“Seriously, though,” Lyra continued, looking back at Applejack. “The captain knows what she’s doing. Nopony has ever fallen overboard while wearing a cannonball.”

And just like that, Applejack had gained information she hadn’t expected or asked for. “Ah’m not the first to wear one?”

Bonnie shook her head. “And I doubt you’ll be the last. The captain always gets what she wants.”

“Y’all seem so calm about this,” Applejack observed.

Lyra shrugged. “It happens every once in a while. We’re kindof used to seeing our VIP prisoners. They all come around eventually. If you get tired of wearing that thing, go ahead and take her offer. The captain is a mare of her word.”

“Ah’m sure,” Applejack said dryly as she turned to leave.

“Hey, now,” Lyra said defensively, sprinting in front of Applejack to keep her from leaving. “Captain Blitz may be a bit out there, but she’s a good captain.” She grinned and gestured at Bonnie. “She lets us stay together.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow. “That all?”

Both mares paused. Apparently, this was a harder question. “Well, she’s fair,” Bonnie eventually said. “I’ve never seen her kill anypony that didn’t have it coming.”

“Slavers,” Lyra pointed out. “She really hates slavers.”

Bonnie nodded in agreement.

Lyra tapped her chin, thinking of more things to say. “She has us shoot to disable before shooting to destroy,” she finally said. “We usually shoot chainshot first, and we need a special order before grapeshot.”

“We’ve lost like one crew member so far in, what, how many months? Eighteen?”

“Yeah,” Lyra agreed. “She always has us go back for ponies. She’s very loyal.”

Bonnie giggled. “Remember how she freaked out when Moon Dancer died? We turned that ship into matchsticks.” She sighed wistfully, reveling in the past destruction.

Lyra sighed and wrapped her foreleg around her lover. “Good times, Bon Bon, good times. As I recall, somepony fought like a maniac that day…”

Bon Bon nuzzled Lyra back, and Lyra let out a soft purr as Bon Bon slid a hoof over her lover's body. Applejack quickly decided that she wouldn’t get anything else useful out of these two anytime soon, and so she nodded and took her leave.



* * *



Applejack hesitantly walked down the cramped passageway belowdecks. The crew bunks were not technically off limits, but she didn't doubt that she was not welcome here. 

Especially when she walked by the little half-cabin thing that was Octavia's bunk and saw her playing darts, and her target plastered on the wall looked suspiciously like a crude drawing of an orange earth pony wearing a hat. Upon hearing her arrival, Octavia looked up and gave Applejack a death glare. Her hoof twitched towards the darts resting on the table.

Applejack lifted a hoof submissively. “I’ll… come back later.”

“Come back never.”



* * *



Applejack poked around a little more below deck, where she found that gray pegasus from before cheerfully cleaning one of the many cannons. This one happened to be quite large, as if a pony could fit inside. At first, she considered passing her by, as she had no love for the mare that had found her bit stash and had probably ruined her ship; but then decided that any source of information was a good source, and swallowed her pride.

“Hey, you,” she said. “What's up?”

“Not much,” Derpy replied. “Just cleaning my cannon.”

“Your cannon?”

“Uh huh,” she nodded. “Captain Blitz assigned it to me, so it is now Derpy's cannon!” She pointed to a row of seven bubbles that had been painted on the side. “See?”

Applejack assumed that that was also her cutie mark, but she couldn't compare the two because, like most pirates, the gray pegasus had covered hers with clothing. That didn't seem to make much sense to her, hiding your cutie mark on you but revealing it elsewhere; but she had larger apples to harvest. 

Derpy grinned and spread her hooves wide, holding herself up with an awkward flap of her wings. “Technically, they're all my cannons; but this one is especially mine. Captain Blitz said so.”

“Captain Blitz, eh? You like serving under her?”

“Uh huh!” Derpy said with an emphatic nod of her head. 

“Why?”

Derpy grinned. “She treats me like a normal pony. I mean, she yells at me, but she yells at everypony, not just me. She even let me bring my daughter aboard.”

“How do you have a daughter, anyway?” Applejack asked in shock. Piracy was no life for a filly to be raised in.

Derpy’s one visible eye narrowed. “We don’t talk about that much,” she said icily.

“Sorry,” Applejack said quickly. 

“Maybe you should keep moving,” Derpy said coldly, returning to her cleaning.

“Got it,” Applejack nodded, taking a step back--and bumping into a small object. She at first thought it was a small table or a stool or something; but to her surprise, it spoke.

“Morning!”

“Wha-!” Applejack spun around to see a little pimento earth pony colt, smiling broadly through the little gap in his teeth. “Who are you?” 

The colt bowed and removed his hat, which was a size too large for him. “Pipsqueak the powder monkey, at your service.”

Applejack was somewhat taken aback. “How many foals are on this ship?”

Pipsqueak straightened up indignantly. “I am not a foal! I am a young stallion,” he corrected.

“...Right,” Applejack said uncertainly. “Isn’t powder monkey a dangerous job?”

Pipsqueak shrugged. “Mayhaps. But it’s important, and somepony’s gotta do it, and Captain Blitz assigned me to it.”

Applejack nodded. “So why do you like Captain Blitz?”

“She took me off the street, actually gave me a chance,” Pipsqueak said with another little shrug. “Not many other captains would give me a chance just by my asking. And I'll serve her ‘til she breaks up the crew, so I will.”

Applejack nodded thoughtfully. Rainbow Blitz certainly had gained the loyalty of her crew. She looked back at Pipsqueak. “Have you had any accidents or anything?” she asked.

He chortled. “Derpy’s nearly blown herself up fifty times, does that count?”

Derpy responded by throwing a wet rag at his face. Pipsqueak ducked and stuck his tongue out cheekily. 

Then Derpy threw the bucket, and that one did connect. Pipsqueak stood, soapy water dripping down his now soaked mane. “Well, if that’s how it has to be,” he said, raising his hoof, “I hope you know this means war.”

Applejack decided that three was a crowd, and she quickly scooted around Derpy and continued on her journey, ignoring the sounds of things being thrown that probably had no business being thrown.



* * *



Applejack returned topside, mulling over what she had heard as she paced across the deck. She briefly considered talking to the grotesquely large white pegasus pony steering the ship, but all she had heard him say was “Yeah!” and she didn’t think that would help. She suddenly became aware of added weight on her hind leg, as if her cannonball had suddenly doubled in size. Turning around, she saw Li’l Scoots perched on top with her tiny wings spread to keep her balance, and grinning widely.

“Hi,” Applejack said after a brief pause.

“So I heard you were talking about Rainbow Blitz,” Li'l Scoots said cheerfully. 

“Maaaybe,” Applejack said.

“Well, you should! She’s awesome!”

“Is that so?” Applejack asked. “And what’s so awesome about her?”

“Everything!” Li’l Scoots said glowingly. “She’s great with a sword, she’s great with her wings, she always wins in everything! She’s the best captain ever!”

“That’s nice,” Applejack said.

“She’s fast, she’s strong, she’s great at fighting, she can do a Sonic Rainboom! Nopony can beat her! She's the greatest ever!”

Applejack had the sinking feeling that she was going to hear a lot more of Rainbow Blitz’s praises from this young filly.



* * *



That night, Applejack willingly returned to the brig and didn’t even react when Octavia spouted another disparaging remark—she had more important things to think about. So far, most of what she had heard was good (and she had heard a lot of it, especially from Li’l Scoots). Rainbow Blitz was fair and protected the things she loved. She might even have been a decent pony, had she not had an undying hunger for gold and jewels and cider and such.

But her biggest victory today was learning that Rainbow was competitive. The first step in falling in love is respecting your partner, and if Applejack could keep up with her in any given competition, that might get Rainbow’s respect and attention enough to form a chink in her armor, and then freedom would be in her grasp. 

Now, she just needed a competition...
> Chapter 6
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Doldrums. 

Nothing strikes more fear into a sailor's heart than feeling the wind dying away. The sea flattens into glass, the sails hang limp, and there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it. The feeling of helplessness is almost suffocating. 

Now, there were options on any vessel. There were oars, of course; but pirates were notoriously lazy. Pegasi could pull ships, but that usually was a short-term solution at best, as most pegasi lacked the endurance for true propulsion. Most captains didn't do anything but wait for the wind to pick up again. 

Rainbow Blitz wasn't most captains. 

She burst onto the deck with a sharp whistle, sending the card game that had started in front of her cabin flying and walking right through a game of dice. “All right, you lazy slobs, if there's no wind there's no cider! On your hooves, everypony, we're doing the rince na gaotha!”

Ponies cheered and Applejack saw Octavia head below deck, only to soon return with a violin. A few other instruments appeared as well; Lyra retrieved a stringed instrument and Surprise pulled a tambourine from a barrel that Applejack was certain had only held water previously.

“Wait. What's going on?” Applejack asked, watching the crew scatter. She knew the dance, of course—every earth pony worth her salt knew the rince na goatha—she just didn't get what they were so excited about. 

It also didn't help that she watched Surprise flounce by, balancing her tambourine precariously on the tip of her nose. If Surprise was excited about this, that meant only bad things.

“You know,” Li'l Scoots said, her wings quivering with excitement. “That storm dance, split into two teams, like a little dance-off? I dunno if it works, but it's great fun! And Captain Blitz is the best at it!”

Applejack suppressed a smile. Sometimes everything just lines up perfectly. “Ah'll believe that when Ah see it,” Applejack said dismissively and just a hint louder than necessary. 

Just as planned, Rainbow had been close enough to hear, and she spun around to defend her honor. “And just what is that supposed to mean?” Rainbow demanded. “I'm definitely the best at this!”

“The rince na gaotha is an earth pony dance,” Applejack said with a shrug. “Pegasi just don’t have the right stuff for it.”

Rainbow’s eyes narrowed. “Are you saying my mouth is saying things my legs can’t back up?”

Applejack vaguely remembered something similar coming out of her own mouth in the not too distant past, and chuckled. “Maybe. Ah'm just sayin' that if we're really tryin' for some wind, it'd be best if an earth pony like me were lead.”

Rainbow angrily threw her hat to the deck. “That’s it,” she spat. “You and me. Right here, right now.”

“Can’t,” Applejack said snarkily, gesturing at her shackled leg and giving it a little shake.

Rainbow growled and turned back to her crew, snapping an order. “Octavia, get that thing off of her.” Her voice sweetened. “We're having us a little competition, and I want to make sure my opponent is at her best.”

The crew quickly split into two somewhat even groups. Applejack made sure she was on the side apart from Rainbow, something that seemed to suit her opponent just fine.

Applejack had been telling the truth. The rince na gaotha is indeed an earth pony dance, and it involves a lot of hoofwork. She had danced this dance many times with her family. Well, most of the time she was part of the musicians; but she was very familiar with it. It was an intricate dance of steps, slides, and crosses, all in a set pattern and all designed to help the natural magic flow out of the earth and bring forth rain and fertility.

But more than that, it was all kinds of fun. Before Applejack knew what she was doing, she was stamping her hooves and sliding along with the rest of the crew, laughing and swinging her hat.

Those who say that pirates are ruffians who cannot appreciate fine things have obviously never heard the music aboard the Sonic Rainboom. Octavia and Lyra, playing a violin and a lyre respectively, played music of the streets but with skill that rivaled any in any Canterlot performance hall. They would trade off taking the lead, shifting seamlessly back and forth from harmony to melody, all the while remaining perfectly in tune. Surprise kept perfect rhythm on various barrels, which was especially impressive considering half the time she was using her face to make the sound. 

As always, the rince na gaotha was a dance of endurance to see which of the two sides could outlast the other. Derpy on Rainbow’s side was the first to falter, sliding when she was supposed to jump. Amidst the playful jeers, she good-naturedly stood off to the side. Dinky followed soon after, followed by Raindrops when her wings threw off her balance and made her dip instead of twist.

Soon, sailors were dropping like flies. Within four minutes, there were only two ponies left: Rainbow Blitz, and Applejack.

Rainbow gave a sly grin, and Applejack narrowed her eyes. If Rainbow thought she was going to win, she had another thing coming.

The dance continued on. The crew’s cheering and stamping slowed as to everyone’s surprise both ponies kept dancing, apparently ignorant of the sweat trickling down their faces.

Pretty soon, the effort was such that even the barbs and verbal jabs stopped, and slowly switched to taking bets on the outcome. Both contestants danced like madponies, seeing who would be the first to falter.

Interestingly enough, the first one to give was Octavia's A string. It snapped mid-note, whipping back and slicing Lyra across the cheek. Understandably, this caused Lyra to drop her lyre and stumble backwards as she clutched her face in pain, knocking over Surprise in the process. Surprise flailed her legs and wings in an attempt for control, and instead ended up knocking over the rest of the musicians in one loud, cacophonous crash. The two dancing ponies, completely thrown off by the lack of music and the beat, misstepped and also stumbled. Applejack even fell to the deck. 

Surprise raised a hoof like she was a filly in school, except it was a rear hoof instead of a forehoof. “I took a pony to the knee, may I be excused?” she asked woozily from her new position, underneath the majority of the musicians.

Rainbow Blitz looked at Applejack, and she looked right back. 

Octavia was the one to speak, though. Having determined that there were no life-threatening injuries, she over to the competitors. “You done?” she asked, nudging Applejack with a hoof. 

Now, to be perfectly honest, Applejack might have been able to go a few more rounds. But, if she wanted to get on Rainbow Blitz’s good side, she had to make sure the pegasus came out on top. “Ah’ve had my fill if she has,” she said.

“I’d say we’re done,” Rainbow Blitz said, painfully pushing herself to her hooves. “Besides, we’ve goofed off long enough. Back to work! You lot! Pull out the oars! Lyra, Shoeshine, and you five, furl the sails! Raindrops, you're on point, get the ropes and start lashing them to pegasi! Bulk Biceps, take the wheel! Let's move, ponies! We've got places to go and cider to get!”

“Ah’d also suggest we batten down the hatches,” Applejack said. “After that dance, that long? This storm’s gonna be a monster.”

“Heh,” Rainbow said dismissively, “I don’t know if it even works. And even if it does, I’ve yet to see the storm I can’t master.”



* * *



Rainbow Blitz had said she could master any storm. Maybe so. But this storm was trying its darndest to best her. 

It had a better chance of pushing around an island. Rainbow Blitz had lashed herself to the wheel and was laughing maniacally as she piloted the Sonic Rainboom through swells that nearly tripled her mast height and threatened to engulf her and send her to the bottom of the sea.

“You’ll have to try harder than that!” she roared in challenge. “No storm can sink Rainbow Blitz!”

Applejack was below deck, making sure that everything was still secured and retying ropes when needed. Octavia had refrained from binding her leg again, but had taken to ordering her around like she was one of the crew--and as one of the lower-ranked members at that.

Frankly, the little bit of extra freedom was well worth it.

Applejack quickly retied the loose rope, lashing down the loose board. “Finished!” she called.

“Get on top and check the lashings again!” Octavia barked, not acknowledging her accomplishment. 

Applejack nodded. “Aye, aye!” she answered, sprinting as fast as she could without losing her balance on the rocking deck.

Up on the top deck, it was a madhouse; the previous lashings had not held. She had to jump quickly to avoid a sliding box, and quickly chased it down to retrieve it and lash it to the railing. Looking around, she could see that this box wasn’t the only loose thing on deck. More boxes and barrels of Celestia-knew-what slid around, making Applejack need to sidestep. She sprinted back, gathering what she could, and stacked it all in a corner. Even as the sea crashed against her, she managed to tie the ropes steadily.

At least, what was left of them. To her shock, the ropes had frayed. She felt offended for only a split second--she had long ago learned to keep her own ropes shipshape--but then recovered.

“Captain!” she called. “Ah need new ropes!”

“I got ‘em!” Li’l Scoots spoke up unexpectedly. She’d been clinging to the railings in the storm, perhaps because she was doing something important, or perhaps because she was simply trying to impress Rainbow Blitz with her resilience. Either way, here she was, and she ran unsteadily across the tossing deck, wings spread wide for balance.

Applejack nodded and looked back down, trying to see if she could tie two ropes together to hold it for now. Deciding she could, she pulled one over. To her surprise, it came much easier than she had expected, and then to her horror, she realized why. This rope had also frayed to just a few strands of fiber, and they were stretched thin against the barrels.

A particularly bumpy wave hit, and Applejack crouched to lower her center of gravity. Unfortunately, that bump was all that the rope needed, and it snapped, sending barrels hurtling across the deck and right towards Li'l Scoots.

Applejack didn’t even have time to shout a warning. The barrels impacted her much harder than any filly should be hit, and with a cry of pain she dropped the ropes and went flying. Instinctively, she flapped her wings furiously to try and get some balance, but even Applejack could tell that she wasn’t going anywhere but overboard.

“Scootaloo!” Rainbow cried, obviously conflicted. Was one little filly worth the entire crew? Could she abandon the wheel and risk all their lives to save one?

Luckily for Rainbow, Applejack reacted first. “Ah got her!” she cried, sprinting towards Scootaloo, but it was too late. Scootaloo slid under the railing and into the storm-tossed sea below.

“Knew a pirate ship was no place for a filly,” Applejack muttered as she did the unthinkable--she grabbed a rope, lashed one end to the railing, clamped the other end in her mouth, and jumped in after her.

Most pirates aren’t very good swimmers, but Applejack wasn’t most pirates. Letting go of the rope mid-fall so as to not give herself whiplash, she slid gracefully into the water; and when she had surfaced, she began swimming over to the thrashing Scootaloo. “Ah’m comin’, Scoots!” she called.

Scootaloo, as can well be imagined, was terrified, and was writhing around desperately in the water. When Applejack came towards her, Scootaloo grabbed on desperately, instinctively trying to pull herself above the water using Applejack’s body as she gasped for air.

Applejack sunk beneath the water, unable to swim. Somehow, she had to get Scootaloo to let go. Quickly running out of air, she decided to sink deeper, and Scootaloo let go on her own.

“Ok,” she gasped when she surfaced again. “New strategy.” Maybe it would have been wiser to merely throw her a rope. 

Come to think of it, saving Scootaloo and roping an animal wouldn’t be that different. You have to come from behind and let them know you’re in charge. 

So that’s exactly what she did. She swam behind her, grabbed her from behind and pulled her on top of her body, restraining Scootaloo’s forelegs with her own and kicking with her rear legs. 

“Ah gotcha!” Applejack shouted. 

Still Scootaloo struggled. Now really running out of ideas, Applejack bit her ear, hoping that the shock of the pain would get her back to her senses. 

Scootaloo squeaked and stopped thrashing, but only slightly.

“Ah gotcha,” Applejack repeated. “Breathe, Ah gotcha.” 

Applejack continued swimming, and suddenly realized just how much energy she had expended earlier when she tried to climb up the rope she’d brought down, but found herself weak. She grit her teeth. “Scoots, you’re gonna have to let go!”

“What?! Why?”

“Ah can’t pull you up, and so Ah’m gonna have to tie a loop in this rope and hold on, but Ah need both hooves to do it!”

“No! Don’t leave me!” Scootaloo pleaded, beginning to flail again in a desperate grab to hold on to Applejack.

“Ah don’t have much choi-”

But she was interrupted by a large splash that was too big to be any supplies from on deck. In fact, it was too large to be anything but- 

“Octavia?”

Octavia was a pony who got work done. “Scootaloo, grab my tail,” she ordered.

Li'l Scoots did so, clamping her mouth firmly onto the long black tail. 

Octavia began to climb up the rope, pulling Scootaloo up behind her. Applejack couldn’t help but whistle appreciatively at the gray pony’s strength.

Speaking of which, her own was failing. Her legs burned, and she was fairly certain she wasn’t going to be able to climb up even by herself. And after that effort, she doubted Octavia would be able to pull her up, too.

Perhaps this is how she would die. At least she’d die a free pony, right?

At least, that’s what she thought; until a voice from above brought her back and gave her new hope.

“Do you want to drown?” Bon Bon shouted. “Grab onto the rope, idiot; we’ll pull you up!”

Within seconds, Applejack was back on deck, trying to catch her breath. Octavia stood over Scootaloo, but the filly seemed to be ok. Octavia then turned to Applejack, and Applejack couldn’t help but crack a smile as Octavia’s expression softened from derision to grudging respect.



* * *



It was a soaked and miserable crew that assembled after the storm had calmed, though the sky was still dark and foreboding. Applejack’s hat was soaked, everypony that had wings looked more like they were carrying dripping wet miniature saddlebags, and everypony was looking through the sopping fibers of their now drenched manes.

Rainbow, on the other hoof, looked still exhilarated. “Yeah! Good job, everypony! We showed that storm who's boss, huh?” 

The returning cheers were fairly half-hearted, and Applejack was fairly certain Lyra had given her a rude hoof gesture behind her back.

Rainbow waved a hoof in disgust. “Ugh, you ponies are lame. As you were, girls. Get what you can for breakfast… whatever’s left, that is. I’m gonna go check on the powder.” She quickly descended below decks.

“And as for you…” 

Applejack suddenly noticed that Octavia was carrying her cannonball again. She sighed and stretched out her leg, and Octavia snapped it on with a bit more force than strictly necessary. 

Rainbow returned, looking a bit more shaken than before. “Ok, good news, most of the powder is dry. Bad news, most of what food we had left is gone.”

Dinky shrieked and sprinted belowdecks. She slipped on the wet deck and bumped flank over teakettle down the stairs, but quickly popped up and continued shrieking as she went to go check on her supplies. 

Frankly, Applejack didn’t see what she was so worried about. Considering the state of their supplies, this could be considered nothing but an improvement.

Rainbow Blitz stretched. “Well, I'd say you all deserve a break. Head belowdecks, get some shut eye. I'll take first shift; Bulk, you're next.”

The huge white pegasus saluted. 

Rainbow headed back to the wheel, but paused as she passed Applejack. “So what's with the cannonball?” she asked. 

Octavia blinked. “Your orders, captain.”

“I dunno…” Rainbow Dash said slowly. “She’s quite the sailor. She dove in after Scootaloo, and she knows the ropes. I’d say she could help the crew out. Can she follow orders?”

Octavia glared at Applejack. “Yes, captain,” she answered.

“I’d say she’s a pretty good sailor, huh?”

“She’s no landlubber,” Octavia said with just a hint of bitterness. 

Applejack thought that was the best compliment she would ever get from the gray earth pony.

“All right, then,” Rainbow said. “Let’s keep it off for a while.” She grinned. “She’s too cute to be locked up, anyway.”

Octavia glared angrily but said, “Yes, captain.”

Applejack couldn’t suppress a wide smile as the cannonball was removed. She was one step closer to freedom.
	
> Chapter 7
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Now that Rainbow Blitz had more or less vouched for her in front of the entire crew, Applejack had overnight been silently accepted by the crew. The first evidence of this was when she was invited for first breakfast, and given a plate and a seat among the rest of the crew.

But that might not have been as high an honor as she’d hoped.

Applejack stared blankly at what passed for breakfast. She was fairly certain she’d served nicer things to the hogs on her island. “Ah think Ah’d rather eat my own tail,” she said, poking gingerly at the slop with a fork.

“Well, excuuuse me, princess,” Dinky spat. “Most of my supplies got soaked in the storm! This is what I had left!”

Raindrops chuckled at Applejack’s expression. “Yeah, Dinky gets kindof protective of her food.”

“I do not!” Dinky defended herself.

Raindrops rolled her eyes. “Dinky, you threw a pot at Lyra's head when she insulted your clam chowder.”

“She deserved that one,” Dinky maintained, setting a hoof down staunchly. “Lyra wouldn’t know good chowder if it bit her on the flank.”

“Either way,” Rainbow broke in, setting an end to the discussion, “we gotta get supplies, and fast. Today or tomorrow.” She lifted a spoonful of the slop and sniffed it once before dropping it again and sliding her bowl away. “Make that today. Octavia! Scramble the pegasi!”

“Aye, cap’n!”

Applejack felt her heart begin to race. Freedom was even closer now.



*  *  *



As the pegasi left to search for a close port, the earth ponies and unicorns who hadn't managed to snag a magiski were left to amuse themselves on board the ship. Dice and packs of cards (some of which were still waterlogged and had smeared ink) reappeared, and some ponies began sparring with wooden weapons, as if practicing for some big fight or something. 

Applejack didn't want to be too much a part of any of this—she was not good at bluffing for some reason—so she went below to see what she could do. 

There wasn't much. Derpy was cleaning her cannons, Pipsqueak was counting the gunpowder barrels, the large white pegasus was doing crunches hanging from the ceiling, and none of these activities really appealed to her. She wandered further, eventually coming back to Octavia's bunker. She paused, her eyes catching sight of a violin case on the floor. Applejack slowed to a stop. She felt a sudden longing to play. As much as she wanted to, though, she was afraid of Octavia. The gray earth pony's attitude towards her left no doubt that she wouldn't think twice about smashing another oar into the back of her head and throwing her overboard, regardless of what Captain Blitz might think of her. 

So she may or may not have jumped a bit when she turned around to leave and bumped right into Octavia herself. Octavia’s eyes remained flat and half-lidded.

Applejack grimaced sheepishly. “Hey, uh… hi?”

“You're back,” Octavia observed dryly, eyes narrowed in anger. 

“Uh… yep?” Applejack said, taking a cue from her brother.

She pursed her lips slightly. “Well, let's hear it.”

“Ah beg your pardon?”

A small smile played at Octavia's lips as she paced, circling over by her hammock. “I see you looking at my instrument. Let’s see you play it.”

Applejack knew a challenge when she heard it. She also knew that Octavia expected her to drop her tail between her legs and back down. 

Applejack wasn't about to back down. 

Octavia’s eyes narrowed when she saw Applejack’s four-legged playing position, and one eye twitched when she saw Applejack put her mouth on the bow; but she didn’t move other than that for the entirety of her performance. 

Applejack chose a popular song, an upbeat dancing song she’d played at a few family reunions. It included numerous double-stops and quick hoofwork, but it was also an absolute blast to play. The bow had been freshly rosined and stuck well to the strings, giving the violin a full and deep sound that she’d never had on any of her instruments before.

When the last note died away, there was a terse silence. Octavia finally spoke. “Country drivel,” she decreed, “but passable.”

To say Applejack was mildly offended would be an understatement. “Ah’ve won Apple Family fiddlin' competitions with that song!” she protested.

Octavia bowed mockingly. “I shall inform the captain we have a prize-winner aboard; perhaps you’ll get seconds tonight.”

Applejack angrily spat out the bow. “What’s wrong with just enjoyin’ the music?” she asked. “Instead, you act like you got a stick up your behind and you hate everypony around you!”

“I don't hate everypony,” Octavia said.

Applejack rolled her eyes. “Ok, you like Li'l Scoots; but other than her, Ah’d say almost everypony.”

Finally, a loose brick. “Scootaloo is… innocent,” Octavia said slowly. “It’s a… desirable quality, and one I hope she keeps for a long time.”

“What happened to you?” Applejack had to ask. 

Octavia looked down, and she may or may not have shared; but both jumped when a sharp whistle sounded from above. Applejack recognized it as the 'gather!' whistle.  

The walls returned with alarming quickness as Octavia turned to leave. “I don't make a habit of sharing my personal stories with prisoners, apple mare.”

“Applejack,” Applejack corrected automatically as she too headed above. 



*  *  *



Applejack ‘accidentally’ brushed her tail against Rainbow as she arrived on deck. “What's going on?”

“We're going to eat good tonight, that's what,” Rainbow said, nodding her head at a ship that they were rapidly gaining on. “You're fighting for us, right? Or staying on board? You can stay with Li’l Scoots.”

“I don’t need a foalsitter!” Li’l Scoots protested, pawing at her sword sheathed at her side. “I can hold my own with the rest of you!”

“Fighting?” Applejack said, somewhat confused. 

“Yeah. Looks like just a normal merchant ship. Nothing too scary, not too many cannons. Just some fat guy trying to make a bit.”

Applejack froze. “Wait. You're raiding them?”

Rainbow nodded. “Yeah. We need supplies, remember?”

Applejack couldn't find words. “But… Ah… Ah thought…”

Rainbow Blitz cocked her head, baffled for a moment, and then when it hit her she began laughing so hard she nearly forgot to breathe. “Bahaha! Y- You thought we were going to a port? And get supplies… with bits? From my hoard?” she managed to choke.

“Uh…”

“Pirate!” Rainbow said, pointing to herself triumphantly. “When I want something, I take it!” She turned to face the ship and pointed dramatically. “And right now, I want that!” She spread her wings and took off, circling over the ship. She landed on the rigging, swinging around once and kicking off the green pony who had been climbing up, drew her sword, and called her challenge to the sailors. “For those of you who don’t know me, allow me to introduce myself! We are the crew of the dread pirate Rainbow Blitz, and today you’re all gonna die!” She grinned and murmured, "pause for dramatic effect", and then shouted again. “But he can be bought off for the right price. What do you have for us?”

Applejack was somewhat relieved to realize that Rainbow Blitz talked about herself as if she were a stallion. That made her feel a little less ridiculous about not realizing who she was at first. 

The captain drew his sword. “A cold steel blade in your throat and my boot up your tailhole, that’s what!” he snarled.

Rainbow placed her hooves on her hips. A hush fell over the gathered pirates. “What did you say to me?” she asked, her voice icy.

“You heard me, filthy wench! Rainbow Blitz or no, no mare’s going to take my ship!”

It was Scootaloo who started it. Slowly, and accentuating each syllable with a pound of her little hooves on the deck railing, she began to chant, “Rain. Boom. Rain. Boom. Rain! Boom! Rain! Boom!”

Others quickly joined in the cheer, speeding it up faster and faster and getting louder and louder as they pounded their own hooves and weapons against the wood.

Rainbow Blitz lifted a hoof to her ear as if to hear the chant better, and the chant quickly dissolved into frenzied screaming. Deciding that that was enough, she sheathed her sword and tossed it with her belt back towards her own ship. Next followed her hat.

Scootaloo flapped her tiny wings hard enough to get temporarily airborne and managed to catch it. She gripped it tightly to her chest and snuggled it, prompting an eyeroll from Octavia.

Rainbow grinned at the captain. “See ya,” she said pleasantly, before darting up into the sky. Applejack quickly lost sight of her.

She did, however, see the white cone of air pressure forming around a small figure falling down through the sky. The cone grew narrower and narrower as Rainbow Blitz flew faster and faster downwards. It quickly became clear what her... headstrong plan was.

“She’s crazier'n an outhouse rat,” Applejack breathed.

“Open the sails!” the captain screamed, making a desperate attempt to get out of the way, but it was too late.

Rainbow Blitz impacted the ship with enough speed to send up a rainbow-colored mushroom cloud, splitting the ship in two as she went straight through the hull. 

Applejack’s jaw dropped. That was a two-decked merchant ship, and she had just torn through it like it had been paper.

Rainbow's head popped out of the water. She shook her head to clear some of the water from her mane. “What are you waiting for?” she shouted, treading water. “Your supplies are sinking! Get over here!”

In a flurry of wings and thrown ropes and swinging bodies (and one or two thrown bodies, courtesy of Bulk Biceps), the pirate crew boarded the ship. Swords clashed as some of the merchant crew decided to defend their cargo, but most threw down their swords and jumped overboard, their fear of Blitz's crew overwhelming any previous obligations. Especially when the mare herself pulled herself out of the water and landed on deck. The crew began looting with surprising efficiency.

Applejack watched as Derpy grabbed a large sack of flour, and she was promptly confronted by an enemy sailor. Startled, Derpy took a few steps back and bumped into the mast, which must have been weakened from the explosion because it began to topple. The heavy weight landed on the captain's cabin, sending splinters everywhere, and the sudden decrease then increase of weight made the ship sink even faster, turning the flat deck into a slope. 

“Hey, check this out! They’ve got honey!” Scootaloo said, carrying her prize over her head triumphantly… before tripping over one of the broken spars that littered what was left of the deck. Scrabble though she might, the jar of honey slipped out of her hooves and bounced twice before rolling through the slats and falling overboard.

Scootaloo’s everything wilted. 

Rainbow chuckled and ruffled her mane. “Eh, it could be worse. It could be the island of the butterflies all over again, right, Li’l Scoots?”

Scootaloo's wings flared angrily as she stepped back and blushed a brilliant red. “Hey!” she protested. “What happened to ‘never bringing that up again’?”

Rainbow laughed. “I’m just teasing. Hey, jump down there with Octavia. Maybe you’ll find something else good floating around that we missed.”

Scootaloo’s smile returned, though this time a bit smaller, and she followed the gray mare down to the edge of the deck. The ship had tilted so dramatically that a few of the lifeboats were already floating in the water, and with a little jump with her wings buzzing, Scootaloo followed Octavia into one of the lifeboats.

Applejack still stood, staring. These pirates may have seemed like all fun and games, but they were surprisingly efficient. Many of the supplies had been brought aboard, and they had already started a chain gang to load the heavier items faster. Instinctively, she stepped forward to help Shoeshine load up a heavy sack of flour, and winced internally as she tossed it to Bon Bon, realizing that she had technically just helped commit an act of piracy. She wondered how that would look in court. 

Far from these internal musings, Octavia and Scootaloo rowed around, looking around for anything of value. Scootaloo recovered her pot of honey, and she huggled it tightly, unwilling to let it out of her sight. Octavia was a bit more practical, recovering a barrel of fresh water and a container of salt. 

A hoof from the water grabbed the side of the boat, and Scootaloo shrieked and instinctively smashed it with her jar. 
The captain surfaced, wiping the water from his face. He looked up, as if ready to shout, but his eyes widened as he realized that this lifeboat was not crewed by ponies he knew. Instead, there stood a gray mare, balanced firmly on the lifeboat’s sidewalls, hefting an oar threateningly. 

“Haven't you heard?” she said with a twisted smile. “The captain always goes down with the ship!” And with that, she brought the oar down on his head, sending him sinking into the ocean. 

“Aww,” Scootaloo whined as the captain disappeared beneath the waves. “I wanted to give him a good parting shot line.”

“Like what?” Octavia asked. 

“I dunno, like... 'Nightmare Moon has a message for you! Go and see what it is!' Or, maybe, 'Special delivery for Nightmare Moon's locker!'”

“Scootaloo?”

“Yeah?”

“Keep practicing.”

“Aww...”



*  *  *



The whole crew ate well that night. Applejack made sure to sit next to Rainbow Blitz and pass her all the food she wanted.

And Applejack found herself impressed at just how much the pegasus could put away. This had been their first time actually eating together, and Applejack couldn't help but stare. Rainbow ate more than anypony else and she would have fit right in at any Apple family eating contest. 

But that wasn’t the best part. The best part came at the end, when Rainbow Blitz was walking out.

“Applejack, you’re on dish duty today.”

No, not that part. It was the part right after, when Rainbow flicked her tail and hit Applejack right on her cutie mark. “Hey,” she said. “Nice job today.”

Applejack smirked. “Well, I had a good captain.”

Rainbow Blitz laughed. “Only the best!” she said, before leaving.

Neither noticed the gray earth pony watching both of them with glaring eyes.

> Interlude: Octavia's Story
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	A lack of hammocks on the ship meant that Applejack still slept in the brig. As she neared, she slowed to a stop. Octavia leaned against the wall, waiting for her; and the expression on her face made it seem like this would be anything but a pleasant social visit. 

“I know what you're doing,” she said abruptly.

Applejack tried to keep a straight face, but failed miserably. “Doin’? Doin’ what?” she asked with a smile much more shaky than she would have liked.

“Trying to get Captain Blitz to fall in love with you so you can escape. It won't work.”

Applejack’s face fell. “You're gonna tell her, huh?”

“I don't have to.”

Applejack’s head jerked up. “Huh?”

“She's too smart. She won't fall in love with you. Love only brings weakness, and weakness brings pain.” And with that somewhat cryptic response, Octavia turned to leave.

It dawned on Applejack then. “That’s why you’re so cold all the time,” she said slowly, making the connection. “You’ve been hurt.”

Octavia spun and slammed her hoof into the wall, hitting it so hard it splintered the wood around the site of impact. “You know nothing of me!” she roared. 

“Ah’m not seein’ how that’s my fault,” Applejack stated calmly as she wiped flecks of spittle from her face. “You’ve been buildin’ walls around yourself and everythin’. Ah mean, Ah can try to get through, but it’s like tryin’ to sail straight through a maelstrom.”

Octavia rolled her eyes and sat on Applejack’s bed. “Fine. Fine. You want to hear my story? We can do that.” Her eyes narrowed. “But Rainbow Blitz or no, remember that I’m not above throwing you overboard.”

Applejack wasn’t sure if she should crack a smile or not. “Understood.”

Octavia looked down, took a breath to steady herself, and began. “I was young, just a filly, really. I was practicing my music when I saw a blur of motion from outside. I looked out and saw a young white filly standing on our garden wall, carrying a bag of bits in her mouth.” Octavia smiled wistfully. “She was a bit too young to be using magic, then. She looked around and caught my eye. She froze, then winked at me before scampering down the wall and through our garden. Not long after, a sailor clambered over the wall as well, chasing her down. I hoped she could escape.”

“Ah’m guessing she did?”

“Yes. Many times, in fact; and many of these escapes seemed to take place around our garden. The fourth time I saw her, I began to suspect she was coming through just to see me, so I began to practice my music in the gazebo of the garden itself. The second day I did, I saw her again, sitting on the wall behind me.

“I can still see her as she looked then. Her shirt was too large for her, and of necessity she wore a frayed belt that had definitely seen better days, and looked as though it were too small for her. Her sword was too long for her diminutive size, and her scruffy mane had roughly the same characteristics as a rat’s nest. But she had a genuine smile, and kind eyes.” She smiled. “I can still see the day I first talked to her…” 



*  *  *



Octavia’s ears pricked up as she heard struggling sounds from behind her. She looked back to see a white filly with a bright blue mane, pulling herself up on top of the wall.

“Sounding good!” the white filly grinned. “But don’t just stop on my account.”

Octavia’s eyes narrowed. “What makes you think I was playing for you, anyway, fair trespasser?”

The filly brushed her mane out of her eyes and crossed her forelegs. She jutted out her lower lip and batted her eyelashes exaggeratedly. “Fair means ‘good-looking’, right?”

Octavia blushed slightly. “That is not what I meant,” she lamely defended herself.

“Sure it isn’t,” she laughed. “You’re a cutie yourself. You’re single, right?”

Octavia straightened her bowtie in an attempt to regain her posture and position. “My relationship status--and age--aside, you look as though you’d be more trouble than you’d be worth.”

The filly grinned. “Sometimes trouble is worth it in and of itself. Like right now, I’m on the run again. I guess that sailor wants his sword back, but I really needed one, so it was worth the running. It’s his fault, really. He shouldn't be out drinking if he doesn't want to lose his stuff.”

Both flinched as a sharp, accusing yell rang out. The filly stood up. “Welp, that’s my cue to keep running. I’m Vinyl.”

“Octavia.”

“I like that name. Hope we see each other soon!” And with that, Vinyl jumped off the wall and sprinted away.



*  *  *



“And we did,” Octavia said. “Over time, I found myself looking forward to her erratic visits almost as much as my performances. Sometimes she wasn’t even running; we would just sit and talk. And then one day…”



*  *  *



“Happy birthday!”

Octavia jumped and spun around. Vinyl stood in her windowsill, leaning against the frame, her hat cocked playfully over one eye and a winning smile on her face. She had matured somewhat from when she was that little filly on the wall; though purely in a physical sense. Though her mane was still as messy and her clothes still as ill-fitting, she had still grown up to be quite the attractive mare. Once you managed to look past all the dirt in her fur and her horribly messy mane, that is.

Octavia couldn’t suppress a smile as she walked over to give Vinyl a hug. “Vinyl! How did you know?”

“I always know these things,” Vinyl grinned, affectionately returning the hug. “You’re like my home port, Octi. I always come back here. Especially on this, your greatest of birthdays.”

“Do you have a present for me, then, fair trespasser?”

A devious smile crossed Vinyl’s face. She retrieved a small flask from inside her ragged vest. “Oh, do I indeed…”



*  *  *



Octavia still looked down at the floor, but a smile flickered across her face at the memory. “Long story short, that’s how I learned I liked cider.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow. “And how you learned you wanted her as a lover?”

Octavia’s eyes narrowed.

Applejack raised her hooves disarmingly. “Look, all Ah’m sayin’ is, weird things happen when the hard stuff comes out. Hay, first time Ah tried it, Ah woke up hanging from a tree by my pants, which were down by my ankles. Real embarrassing, that.”

Octavia frowned. “Don’t ponies usually not wear clothes when not sailing?” she pointed out.

“Ah had been sailing,” Applejack muttered, pulling her hat over her eyes to hide her face. “Ah think.” 

Octavia snorted, then sighed. “Yes, if you must know; that night was my first sexual experience with another mare, and it was… unforgettable, to say the least. She had to leave again the next morning—apparently, she had a warrant out for her arrest and she thought the bartender had recognized her—but left me a note that promised that she would never take a lover aside from me. As for the next time I saw her… Would you believe that I hadn’t ever ridden on the water?”

"Never?"

Octavia shook her head, a tiny smile playing at her lips. "Vinyl took me out on the water for the first time. It was... an adventure."


*  *  *


Vinyl rested her hooves against the railing and lifted her nose into the air. She took in a deep breath and held it, and then exhaled slowly. “Ah, Tavi. I’m telling you, this salty sea air does wonders for me. Makes me feel young again!”

“You are young,” Octavia pointed out with a pained groan.

“Younger than I am now,” Vinyl amended. “You know what I mean.”

“I'm afraid… afraid I don't-” But that's as far as Octavia got; she leaned over the railing and made an offering of her stomach contents to the sea. 

Vinyl chuckled. “Huh. Even the nobility get seasick sometimes.”

Octavia protested. “I’m not a noble; I’m-”

But Vinyl never quite figured out what Octavia was; another wave of nausea rolled over her and she quickly leaned over the railing again.

Vinyl chuckled and rubbed her back. “It gets better, I promise.”

“It had better,” Octavia groaned. “I’d hate to find out that I’m a landlubber in love with a sailor. That would never work.”

She was being facetious; but Vinyl nuzzled the side of her head anyway, taking care to not poke her eye with her horn. “Even if you are the land lubberiest landlubber ever, you’re still my landlubber, and I like you.”

Octavia responded to this lovely sentiment with another bout of nausea. Vinyl chuckled and continued massaging her shoulders. “I know, I’m sappy enough to make a grown stallion hurl. But in time, I imagine you’ll learn to put up with me.”

This earned her a none-too-gentle jab in the ribs.



*  *  *



“She wasn’t lying. I acquired my sea legs quite rapidly, before the end of the expedition, really, and soon I was able to keep pace with the other sailors.”

“So you loved it so much you stayed?” Applejack guessed.

Octavia shook her head. “Not quite. That came… later. I had quite the promising career as a performing cellist.”

“For what? Fancy dinner parties?”

“More or less,” Octavia shrugged. “Celebrations, galas, anything ponies would pay for. I eventually joined a small group and while we certainly weren’t royalty status, we did enjoy no small degree of fame.”

Applejack paused to work that wording out.

“In fact, I was with my ensemble when I…”

Applejack frowned. Was Octavia… choking up?



*  *  *



Octavia could only stare numbly at the smoldering ashes. The fire had been put out nearly an hour ago, but she could still only stare numbly. Everypony she had known… she’d been the only one out. She hadn’t had time to save anything; she’d survived only because she’d been in the bathrooms closest to the outside at the time of the explosion and had managed to scramble to safety. Bodies left on stretchers, white cloths over their faces. Priceless instruments lay splintered on the ground, expensive clothing littered the ground, sliced to shreds and scattered like snow. 

“Octi?”

Octavia looked up to see Vinyl Scratch there, raising a hoof hesitantly, looking somewhat like a puppy who’s not sure if you want to play or fight.

“Vinyl?” Octavia asked, surprised. “How did you know?”

“You’re my home port, Octi. I always come back.” Vinyl paused, then coughed and admitted the truth. “Ok, I came to see if I could raid something after seeing the smoke from the big fire; but now I feel bad about that.” She gave Octavia a sheepish smile.

Octavia nodded and looked down. 

“Come on,” Vinyl said, gently helping Octavia to her hooves and leading her off out of the way. She led her to the entrance of an alleyway and set her down on a barrel under a small overhang. Together they sat, Vinyl gently comforting her.

Octavia finally spoke, something to try to distract herself. “What brings you back here, anyway?”

“Voyage ended,” Vinyl shrugged. “Finished the shipment, captain said they wanted to clean house, new crew and such; so I got my cut of the profits and a boot to the flank. Fine by me, I guess. You know how bad I am at staying in one place for too long. Now I can find a new place to go.”

“Don’t you still have a warrant out for your arrest here?” Octavia had to ask.

Vinyl coughed. “Yeah, kinda. Not just here. I’m pretty sure I also have warrants in Trottingham and Los Pegasus.”

Octavia raised an eyebow. Los Pegasus wasn't exactly known for its stringent laws. “How-?”

“Long story,” Vinyl cut her off quickly. “Anyway, I'd probably better get going before the guards come back and see me; but I'd rather stay here with you for now?” Her voice raised in pitch at the end of her sentence, indicating that she was offering. 

“I’d like that. Hold me again, please.”

Vinyl did just that, sitting next to Octavia and pulling her head onto her chest. The two stayed close for a while, until Octavia broke the silence.

“Vinyl?”

“Yes?”

“There’s nothing for me here anymore.”

Vinyl frowned. “But, wait… what about…?”

“Take me with you on your next adventure.”

“But I-”

“Please, Vinyl.”

Vinyl inhaled, held her breath, then sighed. Octavia was serious. “Well, since you asked so nicely. First things first…” She ran a hoof across Octavia's tattered clothing, “you’re gonna need some new clothes.”



*  *  *



“And that’s how I started my pirate career,” Octavia finished. 

“That’s real sweet,” Applejack said respectfully. “Ah can see why she’s so important to you.”

“She helped me with my first raid,” Octavia said softly. “My violin, actually, was my first piece of plunder. It’s designed for use on the sea; the wood is magically imbued to be more resistant to salt water.” A tiny smile crossed her face. “But still sometimes the strings do break, as you’ve seen.”

Applejack nodded, memories of the rince na gaotha surfacing.

She didn’t need to prompt Octavia anymore; she was providing the experiences herself. “We were together ever since,” she said. “We worked together, played together, we made love in the crow’s nest when she was supposed to be keeping watch; we were inseparable.”

“Until?”

“She was captured.”

Applejack paused, waiting for the explanation, but none came. “That’s it?”

Octavia stood up. “I think I’ve said enough for one night, apple mare,” she said, heading towards the door of the brig. “There’ll be plenty of work to do tomorrow.”

Applejack was somewhat disappointed, but nodded. “Right. Good night, Octavia.”

“Good night.” Octavia paused and turned back around. “Oh, and one more thing.”

Pain suddenly exploded on the side of Applejack’s face, and her world instantly turned upside-down as Octavia’s powerful right hook connected with her cheek. She landed, dazed, on the ground, and little stars swirled around her head.

“Don’t even think about telling anypony else anything I said tonight,” Octavia growled, and she stomped off.
	
> Chapter 8
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The merchant captain looked up as he heard the lookout’s whistle, indicating an approaching ship. He retrieved his telescope and headed outside. His calm demeanor vanished and his eyes widened as he focused through the telescope and recognized the ship. “It’s the Sonic Rainboom,” he hissed.

Not a soul aboard his ship didn’t know that name. A cold pall settled over the crew. Some of the more superstitious among them reached for protective amulets or made protective gestures.

“We’re getting out of here,” he said. “Get that sail up! Turn us about! All hooves below deck and to oars!” He turned back to the steering wheel. “I said, turn us abou-”

His voice trailed off. The former helmspony was laying on the ground, dazed, bound, and gagged, tied up at the side of—and also with a rope loosely tying him by his belt to—the wheel. In his stead, a cyan pony with a rainbow-colored mane was steering.

She looked back over her shoulder and winked. “But captain,” she said playfully, “don’t you wanna come and play with little old Blitzy?” She turned around and kicked her sword up into her mouth as the crew started aggressively forwards. “Ah, ah, ah,” she warned the crew. “We'll kill any who resist. Don’t resist, and you might just make it out of here alive.”

The clanging sound of metal on wood sounded all along the ship as pirates arrived by magiskis and clambered aboard by ropes and hooks, swords drawn and at the ready. 

The Sonic Rainboom wasn’t far behind, and Applejack watched the pirates work from her position on the railing. As odd as Bulk Biceps looked, he was clearly experienced; he skillfully maneuvered the Sonic Rainboom broadside to the merchant vessel near enough that the few remaining crewmembers who hadn’t managed to get magiskis, including Li’l Scoots, were able to easily jump aboard the target vessel, waving swords and shouting war cries. 

The captain snarled, but threw down his sword. He was outnumbered badly, and had no desire to die today.

“Very good,” Rainbow Blitz grinned. “Now. Why don’t we see what we have, hmm?” She jerked her head, and a few of her crew headed belowdecks. She turned back to the captain and put on a winning smile. “So, you come here often?”

The merchant captain rolled his eyes, clearly not wanting to engage in this conversation.

“Well, I don’t.” She flapped her wings and lifted off the ground, flitting around like a bee. “I’m here, I’m there, I’m everywhere!” She accentuated this last word with a loop. “Today’s your unlucky day.” She paused, hovering in one place. “Or maybe lucky, because I’m in a good mood. Maybe you all leave with your lives today.”

Applejack watched this exchange from her place on the Sonic Rainboom; she had decided against jumping over in an attempt to avoid any more piracy. Octavia had pointedly ignored her all that morning, and that frostiness hadn't changed. She hadn't even looked back as she headed belowdecks, with Li'l Scoots tagging along behind. 

Applejack's ears suddenly pricked up. She could have sworn she had heard the word 'cider' coming from the ponies below. 

Rainbow’s ears pricked straight up as well. She slowly spun around to look behind her. “What was that?” she demanded. 

Octavia brought a barrel up from the bowels of the ship, and Rainbow Blitz quickly pried the top off. She dipped her sword in and extended her tongue, sampling it off the edge of the blade. In a flash, she flicked her sword up to the captain’s neck, sliding it through the fur until it tickled his skin. “Where did you get this?” Rainbow demanded, her voice colder than her steel. 

“Port Ponyville,” the captain stammered. “Some red stallion sold it to me.”

“Mac,” Applejack breathed. Her family was doing ok… and probably still worried sick about her. She managed to take a tiny glimmer of relief that the farm hadn’t burned down in her absence, but she still worried. Were they eating enough? Had Apple Bloom earned her cutie mark? How was Granny Smith's hip?

“Interesting…” Rainbow said, eyes flicking back and forth between the captain and Applejack. “I just so happen to be a fan of cider.” She lowered her sword. “Tell you what. I’m a generous mare. Why don’t you have some cider from all the barrels here before we bring them aboard?” She motioned with a hoof, and Bon Bon and Shoeshine brought the other two barrels. “Go ahead. Consider it a gift from one captain to another.”

Applejack understood instantly. Rainbow Blitz was making sure that these barrels weren’t poisoned.

The captain, who hadn’t poisoned the barrels, decided he might as well enjoy this, and grabbed a tankard.

When Rainbow had been convinced all of the cider was pure, she clapped a hoof on his shoulder. “Excellent!” she said. “Now we’ll just take these and be off.”

The crew quickly swarmed back to their own ship, and soon the Sonic Rainboom was well on its way.

“Is that all she took?” the first mate asked. “Just the cider?”

“I think so,” another sailor said. 

A gray pegasus shot out of a gunwale in the lower portion of the ship, carrying a barrel of something that looked a lot like gunpowder.

“Derpy!” Rainbow Blitz yelled. “You do that again and we’ll leave your dumb feathers behind!”

“My bad!”

A quick perusal showed that cider and gunpowder were not all that was taken. While the merchant crew had been distracted by the pirates on deck, the rest of Blitz's crew had, using magiskis and fast work and via the gunwells, raided the food storages and some of the bunks. Not even the pillows were safe. Everything shiny that wasn't nailed down had been taken. The captain's chambers had been raided and ransacked; the only thing of value left had been the compass and the spyglass (though the wooden case it had been in had been taken). Even a hat or two had been taken.

“She is good,” the first mate had to say. “She is really good.”

“Shut up.”



*  *  *



As everypony knows, there is only one thing to do with apple cider, and that is drink it. 

Well, Rainbow Blitz did once consider bathing in it; but scratched that idea for being silly.

In front of the whole crew and Applejack, Rainbow dipped in a tankard and then threw her head back and drained it in one go, a feat that Applejack had to admit was moderately impressive. She exhaled, making a big showing of wiping her lips. “Gotta say, it’s good to be the captain.” A smile flitted across her face as she scanned the gathered ponies. “But what’s a captain without her crew?”

“Just a pirate?” Scootaloo offered.

“It was a rhetorical question,” Rainbow said flatly.

Scootaloo looked slightly abashed, and tugged her bandana down a bit.

“Now, obviously, there’s no captain without a crew, so what better way to celebrate than by splitting this cask among my closest friends?”

The crew began to cheer. Lyra stomped loudly, but next to her, Bon Bon noticed something. “So are you just going to take the other two for yourself?” she asked.

The crew fell silent. Everyone turned to look at Bon Bon, who took a stutter step back at becoming the center of attention so quickly. 

Rainbow scowled. “Do you not want cider? 'Cause I’ll have Octavia throw you overboard and we’ll drink cider without you.”

Bon Bon quickly shut her mouth.

Rainbow nodded. “That's what I thought. Grab a mug, everypony!”

Applejack was surprised at just how quickly the pushing and shoving began and was even more surprised at how violent it got. Elbows and bucks and hooves were thrown left and right, and she retreated further back against the wall for her own protection. She glanced away, checking for an escape route if needed, and found that Pipsqueak had had a similar idea.

“I’ve seen sharks more sociable, so I have,” he shouted, needing to be that loud to be heard over the clamor.

Applejack nodded weakly. And she thought her family could get rough.

Rainbow dealt a few disciplinary blows of her own, and pretty soon, they’d shaped up as best pirates could, forming an orderly line with only a few minor shoves and only a few tails stepped on. Too late, Applejack realized that she probably should have been more forceful; pushing her way in front to draw Rainbow Blitz’s attention.

Her mouth curled up slightly at the edges. There was always another way to draw attention when there was cider around.

When she got to the front of the line, she waited for Rainbow Blitz to fill her mug (and pointedly ignored Octavia’s glare and hoof twitching towards her sword). When she did, she waited until Rainbow sensed her staring and looked up. Applejack met her eyes and hefted her mug. 

Rainbow understood instantly. She filled her own mug, and Applejack had to give her credit for filling it just as full. As one, they raised their mugs in an unspoken challenge. Rainbow lifted her hoof and bounced it lightly. Three. Two. One.

She dropped it like a starting flag, and they lifted their mugs to their lips and drank. Applejack made sure she wasn’t holding anything back; she got the feeling Rainbow Blitz would notice if she went easy on her.

Rainbow Blitz slammed her mug down on the table first, winning by only a split second. Applejack grunted, mildly irked, and she heard coins being passed around.

Still, Rainbow nodded appreciatively. Applejack had done well.

Rainbow Blitz turned back to the rest of the crew. “Alright. Who dares to challenge the great Rainbow Blitz next?”

Lyra nudged Bon Bon forward, and she took her spot. Rainbow slammed her next mug a good three seconds before Bon Bon. “Weak,” she laughed. “Who’s next?”

Applejack stepped up in line again. Rainbow Blitz laughed, but filled her mug again.

And once again, Rainbow Blitz won, slamming her mug down first. Applejack could barely believe it. She was good. That, or she really, really liked cider.

Either way, she nonchalantly shooed Applejack away and held up her mug again. “Who’s next?”



*  *  *



The cider barrel was empty, and the party was wrapping up. For most ponies, at least.

“Ah know my cider limit,” Applejack said, looking over at Rainbow Blitz’s surprisingly steady departure with reluctant admiration, “but Ah don’t think she has one.”

Lyra looked up from stroking Bon Bon’s mane. “I hear you,” she said, resting her hoof on her unconscious friend. “In fact, I’d be surprised if anypony gets anything done tomorrow.”

Surprise uncurled herself from the floor and looked up just long enough to give Lyra a winning (if somewhat lopsided) smile before collapsing again.

“You didn’t want any?” Applejack asked.

Lyra shook her head wryly. “Not my thing,” she said.

She was interrupted by a pair of full buckets being slid across the deck to bump against their hooves. Applejack looked up to see Octavia, her usual scowl mixed with a little smirk.

“Also I’m still on cleaning crew tonight,” Lyra finished. “And it looks like you just volunteered.”

Applejack rolled her eyes.

“Every pony pulls their weight, apple mare.”

“Applejack,” Applejack corrected instinctively as she reached for the mop. She grabbed Surprise’s tail to pull her out of the way and began mopping.



*  *  *



Once the room was more or less clean, Applejack headed back to the brig. She happened to walk by just as Rainbow Blitz walked out of her cabin. She quietly shut the door behind her and kept walking. Applejack cocked her head, surprised enough to slow to a stop. Rainbow Blitz had never cared about being kind to doors before. Usually she was in too big of a hurry barging through to someplace to even notice that there had been a door.

She knew. Most of the doorways on the Sonic Rainboom had already had the doors removed for a reason. 

Rainbow looked up and saw Applejack’s confused expression. “Li’l Scoots,” Rainbow said with a quick head motion back towards the room. “I told her to stay away from the cider, but I guess she wanted to be cool like me and stole some when nopony was looking.” She cracked a smile. “Not that I blame her or anything, but still.” She paused. “I think I’m proud of her, actually. She didn’t get caught.”

“Hung over?” Applejack asked. 

Rainbow snorted. “Still drunk. It’s even the weak stuff.”

Applejack chuckled. “Thought Ah heard some singing earlier.”

“If you could call it that,” Rainbow said with a wry smile. “Singing sea shanties is definitely not her special talent. Tomorrow she’s going to have a splitting headache. She might as well get a good night’s rest while she can, because tomorrow’s going to bite flank for her. She’ll still have to pull her weight. It’ll be a good learning experience.”

Applejack couldn’t help but smile. 

“What's that for?” Rainbow demanded. 

“You watch out for Scootaloo, you don’t just kill ponies outright; hay, you gave me cider and I’m still technically your prisoner. You’re not as bad as you seem.”

“I'm still pretty bad,” Rainbow Blitz defended herself, “and I’m much badder between the sheets.” Rainbow Blitz winked. “And by that, I mean the good kind of bad.”

Applejack chuckled.

Rainbow shrugged. “But seriously, it’s better this way. Ponies don’t resist, I get what I want, and everypony’s happy.” She paused. “Well, I’m happiest, because I get all the booty and such, but hey.” She swatted Applejack on the flank with her tail. “Speaking of what I want, I’m still waiting for that cider trove. Two barrels will only last me so long; and I have a hunger.”

“A hunger?” Applejack said flatly. “You don’t eat cider-”

“An undying thirst for the liquid goodness that is cider,” Rainbow Blitz corrected, only slurring her words the tiniest bit. “And you’re gonna help me.”

“Not gonna happen,” Applejack said, but this time she couldn’t keep a little smile off her face.

“You keep saying that,” Rainbow said as she trotted away, “but Rainbow Blitz always gets what Rainbow Blitz wants.” 

Applejack smiled wanly as she left. Even with her rough and tumble exterior, she really did seem like somewhat of a decent po-

Applejack slapped herself. Now was no time to be thinking like that. She just needed to get home. 

Even so, an uneasy feeling settled in the pit of her stomach as she returned to the brig. 

> Chapter 9
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Applejack whistled a little tune to herself as she scrubbed the railing of the ship. Glancing behind her, she saw Li’l Scoots, groaning, head hanging painfully, one little hoof pressed firmly against her forehead. Her mop was balanced loosely in the crook of her foreleg. She was not getting any mopping done at all.

Applejack cracked a smile. Gotta learn young. She stopped whistling to give Li’l Scoots a little peace, and bent back over to continue cleaning. She didn’t stop until she could see herself reflected in it, and she gave herself a winning smile before moving on. 

She looked up at the horizon and then paused. Out in the water there seemed to be blotches, swimming under water. She squinted. Sharks? No, sharks were gray. She could swear that these were colored like a pony would be.

And whatever they were, they were heading towards the ship.

Applejack looked back, but Li’l Scoots was not looking her way (and still had her head buried in the crook of her foreleg). She was debating sounding an alarm when a pony’s head burst out of the water, quickly followed by a second. Applejack took a shuffling step back and dropped her rag in shock. Ponies overboard?

The orange mare in the water grinned. She ducked down and then launched herself up out of the water. She seemed to remain suspended in the air for a split second… and then she pursed her lips and sprayed Applejack with water.

Applejack spluttered and scrubbed at her face. “What the hay-?” she demanded. They were ponies, yes; but what kind of ponies had flippers for forelegs and fish tails where their hind legs should be?

And what kind of greeting is spitting water in somepony’s face?

But when she’d cleared the seawater from her eyes, the ocean was devoid of any pony, seapony or otherwise. She frowned and scanned the sea again.

“Slacking, apple mare?” came Octavia’s voice, a little bit louder than needed.

Li’l Scoots grit her teeth and groaned again, and Applejack could almost hear Octavia’s mouth curl up in a cruel smile. She quickly picked her rag back up. “Applejack,” she corrected again as she resumed cleaning, but now she kept a wary eye out towards the ocean.



* * *



Applejack looked forlornly at her plate. The food was great. Dinky had really outdone herself, and they'd gotten enough supplies recently to get all kinds of good food. Honestly, if she closed her eyes really hard, she could almost pretend she was back at home for a bit.

Still, she felt guilty. Rainbow had been on fire recently; they'd been raiding ships left and right, and since Applejack couldn't or wouldn’t reveal the location of her island, the raids continued. She poked at her food with her fork. She felt guilty somehow, like it was her fault that Rainbow was stealing from so many merchants and sailors. 

“She'd do it anyway.”

Applejack jumped as Surprise slid onto the bench next to her. “It's in her blood. She'd do it anyway.”

“How did you…?”

“Were you surprised?” Surprise asked. 

Applejack nodded hesitantly. 

“Well, there you are, then!” Surprise said, as if that explained everything.

Applejack pursed her lips, but didn't respond. She had the distinct impression that she'd keep her sanity better that way. 

“It's working, though.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow. 

“She liiikes you,” Surprise giggled, leaning in and brushing the top of her head against Applejack’s shoulder, acting like a filly half her age. “Keep swishing your tail and you'll have her clothes on the deck in no time.”

“Ah don't want her clothes on the deck!” Applejack protested.

“Whose clothes going where?”

Applejack jumped as Rainbow Blitz herself appeared. She grabbed a plate and slid it haphazardly down the line. She started serving herself, dumping food onto the plate that overflowed their boundaries and got all mixed up. “Whose clothes where?” she repeated.

“Uh…” Applejack said dumbly. 

“Are they mine?” she asked with a playful smile. She looked Applejack in the eyes and ran her tongue across the front of her teeth. 

Applejack looked desperately around for some excuse to get out of the conversation. Surprise kept a wide smile on her face, clearly not about to help. Octavia stared with half-lidded eyes, but made no move, either. In fact, as she looked around, it seemed that everypony around was either blatantly listening, staring, or had an ear cocked in that direction. It was obvious that she was on her own with this one.

She started to a sweat. “Well…”

Rainbow began to eat even as she narrowed her eyes at Applejack. “You want to see me naked, don’t you,” she accused. “Get me all nice and naked with my flank bare? You wanna see my cutie mark?” 

“Wait, Ah- No, well… it’s…” Sweat trailed down Applejack’s brow now. “It ain’t that, ‘cause ponies don’t normally wear clothes, you know? But…”

Her eyes narrowed even further. “You want to taste my cutie mark, don’t you?” 

Applejack blushed bright red even as the sweat dripped down her cheeks. She toyed with her hat. “That… that ain’t it at all…” she stammered. 

Rainbow held her expression for a few moments before she suddenly cracked up laughing, which was slightly disturbing as her mouth was still full. “It’s ok! Your captain is one fine looking pony,” she said. She swallowed, then winked. 

Applejack managed a shaky smile and resumed eating.

Rainbow stuffed the last bite into her mouth. “Well, I can’t say for certain; but if you keep it up, you might just find some of her buried treasure.”

Applejack choked on her food. Rainbow Blitz burst out laughing again and headed out, having finished her food in almost ten seconds flat. She swatted Applejack on the flank with her tail as she passed.

Surprise sidled closer to Applejack. “Did you mean to do that?” she asked as soon as Applejack had stopped coughing.

Applejack pulled her hat down further to hide her embarrassment. 

Surprise patted her on the back comfortingly. “You'll do it intentionally someday,” she soothed. 

“Ah sincerely doubt that,” Applejack grumbled. 

Surprise’s eyes brightened and a small smile played at the edges of her lips. Her voice seemed to rise in pitch with every word, until the last one was almost a squeak. “Are you saying that it would be a… surprise… if you did?”

Applejack turned to glare at her, but Surprise just giggled and flounced away. Applejack scrunched her nose. She couldn’t wait to get off this ship.



* * *



Dinky watched as Applejack walked away. She turned to her mother. “Can you believe she’s been on board for two months?”

Derpy nodded. “It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?”

Bon Bon made a ‘hmf’ sound. “That’s really weird, come to think of it. I wonder why she hasn’t just given us the cider and moved on.”

“Maybe it’s because she really likes pirate food?” Lyra suggested.

“Nopony likes pirate food that much,” Bon Bon scoffed, ducking just in time as Dinky chucked a spoon at her head.

Dinky scowled, and then relaxed a bit as she leaned in and motioned the others in, too. Bon Bon held back, but Dinky’s scowl returned and her hoof motions increased in intensity. When she had come in, Dinky spoke. “I think it’s ‘cause she has a crush on captain Blitz,” she whispered, “but doesn’t want to tell anypony.”

“Nah,” Bon Bon said, sitting back. “No way. Captain Blitz is cool, but she’s not exactly marefriend material.” She leaned in slightly, and Lyra squeaked and squirmed under the table. Apparently, Bon Bon had decided to demonstrate which of the ponies at the table was marefriend material. 

Derpy glared. Seriously? In front of Dinky? 

“I dunno,” Shoeshine threw in. “She’s pretty crazy herself, and she talks funny. Maybe she likes the crazy mares.”

“I’m just not seeing it,” Raindrops confessed.

Derpy snorted and gestured at her eyepatch. “I’m half blind and I can see it. She’s got it for Blitz, bad.”

Bon Bon considered this again. “Does Blitz know?”

“Does Blitz know what?”

The crew jumped as Rainbow Blitz herself appeared. She glared as she met each pirate’s eyes. 

“Uh…” Derpy said, biting her lower lip.

“Captain Blitz knows all,” Rainbow intoned. “And she doesn’t take kindly to ponies hiding things from her.”

“But doesn’t that contradict your previous statement?” Shoeshine blurted out.

“Shut up,” Rainbow said in the same voice. “Captain Blitz cares not for your logical answers!” She turned and strutted away. As she left, the crew exhaled, relieved.

“So… she doesn’t know Applejack has a crush on her?” Dinky wondered aloud, too young to really consider the implications of sharing that.

From her position hovering outside, Rainbow smirked. “Oh, she knew,” she whispered.

“Oh, I think she knows,” Surprise added.

The other ponies jumped. Where had she come from?

Surprise picked up a spoon with her tail, and dipped it in the pot. She picked up a chunk of something out and flicked it out, caught it in her mouth, and slurped it up. She grimaced as she swallowed, and stuck her tongue out.

Dinky’s hoof edged towards a spatula.

Surprise continued. “Anyway, she knows. I’m sure of it.”

Most of the crew knew not to go against Surprise’s intuition. This, however, gave rise to another question.

“So why hasn’t she done anything about it?” Derpy asked. “You know, what with the whole ‘what Rainbow Blitz wants Rainbow Blitz gets’ thing?”

Shoeshine shrugged. “Maybe she’s just scared?”

“Excuse you!” Rainbow spat, dropping back into the conversation. The pirates jumped; but none trembled quite so much as Shoeshine. Rainbow strode forward, and Shoeshine scrunched herself against the deck, trying to present as little a target as possible. “Rainbow Blitz is never scared. Rainbow Blitz always gets what she wants. And you’re going to know that when you’re swabbing the entire poop deck tomorrow on your own!” And with that, Rainbow Blitz disappeared, leaving behind only her trademark rainbow contrail.

There was an awkward silence.

Dinky finally broke it. “They’re gonna do big pony things tonight, huh?” she asked.

> Chapter 10
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Applejack was in the brig fluffing out her ragged blanket when she felt a presence behind her. An angry presence. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled up, and she felt impelled to look behind her. She’d half expected to see an angry, vengeful ghost of some kind after her soul.

She was angry enough, but the being behind her was definitely corporeal. Octavia stood there, glaring at her with pure detestation in her eyes. “Captain wants to see you in her chambers,” she said through gritted teeth.

“Now?”

“Now,” Octavia confirmed.

Applejack set her blanket down and trotted out, wondering what Rainbow Blitz had in mind for her and what exactly she’d done to incur Octavia’s wrath this time. Maybe it was just the fact that she was still alive. That always seemed to rile Octavia up something good.

Either way, she headed out across the ship over to Rainbow Blitz’s quarters. She knew the way after all these months, and soon she was knocking on the door.

“Enter,” came Rainbow’s voice from inside.

Applejack nosed the door open. She stepped inside, letting her eyes adjust to the low candlelight.

And when she did, her eyes widened even further.

Rainbow had changed her outfit. She had taken off her vest and belts and most of her necklaces, and now she wore a simple white shirt. It was loose and open, exposing more of her body than she usually revealed. Her hat, however, remained firmly on her head, as did the myriad of bracelets on her forelegs.

This in and of itself wouldn’t have been so strange; but she was currently sprawled out on her bed, her wings spread as wide as they’d go. Applejack vaguely remembered seeing a few of the more drunk sailor pegasi try that on her in Port Ponyville. She was showing off.

“Captain,” Applejack said warily, straightening up.

“I've been noticing you,” Rainbow said, sliding off her bed and walking close to her. “Standing close to me, smiling at me, working hard, helping me; I see what you’re doing.” She paused. “I’ve seen,” she corrected herself.

“You… have?” Applejack asked hesitantly.

“I totally have.” She brought a hoof up and trailed it down the side of Applejack’s face. “You like your captain, don’t you?”

Applejack blushed. She was new to physical contact, and felt her pulse begin to race. Still, this was all part of the plan, right? “Maybe?”

“Maybe your captain likes you too,” Rainbow Blitz said softly. “And if there’s no cider, well, maybe she’ll use you as an acceptable substitute.”

Applejack was trying to figure out if she should be offended at being objectified to the level of cider when Rainbow Blitz suddenly pressed her lips against Applejack’s.

Applejack was too stunned to move. It was like nothing she’d ever felt before. It was warm and soft and oddly tender from such a rough pony. 

Too soon, Rainbow Blitz pulled back a bit. “You taste good,” she whispered, and her breath brushed lightly against Applejack’s lips.

“Thanks,” Applejack said. She grimaced. That wasn’t quite the right word to say there, was it?

Rainbow Blitz didn’t seem to mind. If anything, she seemed to enjoy that. She brought her hoof up—a hoof that had wielded swords and fired cannons and carelessly broken ships and livelihoods—and gently stroked Applejack’s cheek.

Applejack wasn’t sure how to feel about that. It felt kinda nice, but-

No. No. 

But she’d need to play along if she ever wanted to get off this ship. That had been the plan from the beginning. She hesitated, and then tilted her head, leaning into the contact.

Rainbow slid her hoof back further, moving from her cheek to the back of her neck, Some part of Applejack felt nervous, but she didn't feel like pulling away. 

Did she… like this?

She exhaled, and as she did, her body seemed to relax a bit. Rainbow Blitz took this as an invitation; she pulled her in closer again, head tilted slightly to the right, pressing their lips together again. 

Rainbow Blitz seemed to know exactly what she was doing. Her hooves traveled lower, gently kneading against Applejack’s body until they got near her hips. With a sudden movement, Rainbow Blitz dug her hooves in, pressing the tips into Applejack’s hips.

Applejack inhaled sharply at the sudden sensation, and her mouth opened slightly as she did. Seizing this opportunity, Rainbow Blitz gently flicked her tongue inside Applejack’s mouth. It had been a quick motion, just a quick brush against her top teeth; but it nearly overloaded poor Applejack. She had never felt so violated… but she also wanted her to do it again. 

It was at this point that Applejack had two slightly terrifying realizations. One, she was being played like a fiddle.

Two, she wasn’t saying no to anything Rainbow Blitz was trying. 

And she was trying again. Taking her lack of resistance as an invitation, Rainbow Blitz pressed forward, pressing into a kiss with her mouth a little bit open. Applejack returned the gesture, and Rainbow Blitz’s tongue brushed the inside of her upper lip. It brushed against the bottom of her teeth, played at the inside of her cheek, and then pushed against Applejack’s own tongue. 

And then Rainbow Blitz did something completely evil.

She pulled back. “And that’s where I leave you tonight, apple mare,” she breathed. 

Even the disparaging epithet sounded nice coming from Rainbow Blitz. Against her will, she tilted her head back, hoping against hope that she would kiss her again.

But Rainbow Blitz had other plans. Specifically, plans that involved her exposed neck. Without warning, she came down and bit down hard on Applejack’s neck.

“Wh- hey!” Applejack tried to push her away, but it was of no use; Rainbow Blitz sucked hard on the little bite she’d just made, and by the time Applejack had managed to free herself, it had already left an angry red mark on her neck.

Rainbow Blitz just smirked. “Good night, Applejack,” she said, making a shooing motion with her hoof.

Face burning with a combination of shame and arousal, Applejack turned and left. She scowled at nothing in particular as she headed back to the brig. She moved quickly, managing to avoid any other pirates. 

It wasn't like she'd actually enjoyed all of that. No. No no no. It just felt good. That's all. No connection. Sailors did this all the time. A quick rendezvous for one night, just for some personal release. It never meant anything.

Applejack sighed as she threw herself down onto her plank. She couldn’t even lie convincingly to herself.

She had actually fallen for her captor.