After an incident between Applejack and Rainbow Dash, the two are finding it hard to communicate with each other. However, a trip suggested by a friend might bring their problems to light.
After an incident between Applejack and Rainbow Dash, the two are finding it hard to communicate with each other. However, when a friend suggests a pilgrimage to help Applejack settle her feelings over memories of the past, Rainbow Dash and Applejack find that they may have to redefine their friendship.
The bonfire popped and crackled while the six pony friends roasted their marshmallows in the flame. The night was clear, and the stars shone bright over Sweet Apple Acres.
Pinkie Pie was just at the end of a story depicting her latest babysitting job for the cakes - a harrowing story about how Pinkie was flown throughout town clasping onto Pound Cake while holding Pumpkin Cake by the diaper with her teeth. "Don't LAUGH!" she said, her eyes wide in horror. "The cakes are never going to trust me with the babies again! ...after this next week of babysitting, that is. Though, since the whole town saw that happen, I don't think anypony else will babysit for them."
"I'm sure they'll trust you fine, Pinkie," Twilight said, poking at the logs in the fire with a stick. "We don't mean to laugh. It's just funny how you tell the story."
"Yeah," Rainbow Dash said, mouth full of a freshly made s'more. "And maybe you know how it feels now having to deal with you."
"Rainbow!" Twilight scolded.
"What!?" she said. "I'm just saying."
Rainbow Dash looked to her side. Applejack was laying on her belly next to her, but her attention was elsewhere. She looked up at the sky, as though she were searching for something. Rainbow Dash ignored whatever Pinkie had said to make the others laugh and leaned in close to Applejack. "Hey."
Applejack's attention shot back to Rainbow Dash, taking a moment to switch from her previous mindset to a friendly smile. "Hey, Rainbow."
"Are you okay?" she asked. "You've been pretty quiet all night."
"Have Ah?" Applejack asked, shaking her head. "Sorry, got a lot on mah mind, lately."
"Yeah," Rainbow Dash said. "Me too."
"Hmm," Applejack said, looking back up at the skies. Rainbow Dash frowned. She was hoping Applejack would want to talk some more. But if she didn't want to talk about it with her, she was hardly going to force the issue.
"So, AJ," she said, talking in her normal voice again. "Didn't you say you had something for tonight? Some....cider." She nudged the pony with her elbow. "You know...nudge, nudge; wink, wink?"
Applejack furrowed her brow as she looked at Rainbow Dash. "Ya don't need ta be talkin' in code, Rainbow. Everypony knows I have some hard cider saved away for tonight."
"Right," Rainbow Dash said. "But, it's not here..."
Applejack got to her hooves. "Alright, alright, Ah'll go get it."
"I'll go with you!"
"Nah, it ain't that much. Ah'll just run and get it."
"Uh, hello? Between you, me, and Pinkie, we're going to need a LOT more than you can carry on your own. Let me help!" Applejack looked to Rainbow Dash's eager smile, and shrugged her shoulders, indicating for the pony to follow her. "Alright! Hey, guys, we're gunna grab some of the....you know....'cider'," she said with a wink.
Fluttershy tilted her head. "Is there something in your eye, Dash?"
"No, deary," Rarity said. "Either they're going to get hard cider, or they're going off to do something naughty in the barn. Either way, Rainbow would like it to remain a secret."
"Naughty in the barn?" Applejack asked, blushing slightly and rolling her eyes. "Really, Rarity, don't talk like that. What if somepony heard you. Right, Rainbow?" She looked back to Rainbow, who was blushing.
"I, uh..." she said, shaking her head. "That...was not...what I meant."
Rainbow Dash could hear Pinkie Pie and Rarity chuckling as she and Applejack walked towards the apple cellar. Her face had heated up so much from that comment, she could only hope her blushing was misinterpreted for mere embarrassment at having her statement turned into something it wasn't. She dared to glance at Applejack, but she seemed to be fine. "Could you imagine?" the earth pony said with a chuckle. "Naughty in the barn..."
"Yeah..." was all Rainbow could manage to reply. Her mind however was booming the question in her head: COULD she imagine? Knowing she couldn't let this subject simply slip away, Rainbow asked, "But, I mean, it's not like it's something that's impossible, right?" Applejack gave Rainbow a worried look which caused the Pegasus to stammer. "I, uh, I mean, I'm not trying to say anything. Just...I can see how she could think that. We're together a lot."
"Huh," Applejack said, tilting her head to the side. "Well, yeah, we are. Ah'm just used to havin' you 'round. Ah guess Ah don't even notice, anymore." She flicked her blonde tail, putting her ears back.
Rainbow ruffled her feathers, watching Applejack closely. "What? You don't NOTICE me anymore?"
Applejack shook her head. "No, not that, Rainbow. You know...you're just always there. It's like when Ah'm out on the field and Winona is by my si...oh, well, I notice that she's there, nevermind."
Rainbow Dash sputtered. "So....so you can't even compare me to your DOG?"
"It's just different with you, is all," Applejack said as they arrived at the apple cellar. She used her mouth to pull the door open before continuing. "Ah can't describe it. Like, I'm comfortable 'round you. Maybe...too comfortable," she added, not looking at Rainbow.
"Uh-huh," Rainbow Dash said, suddenly very annoyed.
"Oh, don't take it wrong, Sugarcube," she said, putting a hoof on the pegasus' shoulder. "Ah just meant to say that what Rarity said is silly, is all." Then she started down the stairs, before forcing a chuckle. "Could y'imagine? And if mah family heard us? That'd be a mighty fine mess to be in."
Rainbow Dash was unsure if she should have been happy that Applejack was amused and not disgusted with the idea, or annoyed that her first concern went to what her family would think. Just like she figured would happen. But at least they were talking about it, somewhat...
"And what if, say..." Rainbow Dash was blushing, but a part of her was dying to know. When Applejack turned on the lantern to light up the apple cellar, Rainbow Dash saddled up next to her. She felt the other pony get tense. "Okay, let's pretend for a second that what Rarity said was true."
Applejack looked to Rainbow Dash, eyes wide in wonderment at how close she had gotten, how her expression changed to something she had never quite seen before, how she was harping on a subject she didn't want to talk about. "Why is it important, Dash?"
'You know why,' is what she wanted to say. Instead, she said, "It's a bonfire party. We ask stupid 'What If' scenarios all the time, so the other can answer honestly. So! What if we left the party, pretending to go get some apple cider. We come down here. It's dark, intimate, and we're alone. And things get...well, let's just use Rarity's word and say, 'naughty'. What would you think of that?"
Applejack looked down to the ground, frowning in thought. Her mind wasn't in the right place to think about this, to begin with, let alone work out the scenario to the end in her head. The ground didn't look too comfortable. They'd probably have to bring in some straw. And it could probably get loud, so they'd have to close the door...
And...
Applejack whinnied with surprise when she started picturing exactly what being "being naughty in the barn" would entail. Very vividly. Maybe a little too accurate to make her feel comfortable being so close to the mare in question at that moment.
Applejack's face turned scarlet red. She looked to Rainbow Dash, who was looking at her, waiting for an answer, then looked away quickly. "Rainbow!" she said. "We're here to get cider!" She brushed past the Pegasus without looking at her, and opened a case of hard cider she had stored away.
"Okay, okay," Rainbow Dash said. "It's not like I'm the one who brought it up in the first place. I just wanted to see how you'd react!" The mare went up to Applejack, who was still taking out cider, not looking at Rainbow, her face still red. "I'm just noticing you didn't say no."
Applejack dropped one of the bottles on the floor, before looking up at Rainbow. Their faces were really close, and Rainbow jerked back in surprise. "Rainbow," Applejack said, "This is ridiculous. Ah don't have time for your silly questions! Ah got a lot of things on mah mind and a lot of things to take care of, and right now Ah just wanna have a nice night with mah friends and not think anything else. And Ah certainly don't need thoughts of you and me in any questionable situations swimmin' round in mah head, what with everything else Ah've got to think about. So, d'ya wanna help me with this cider or not?"
Rainbow Dash frowned. She went silent as the two packed up some cider into two baskets. The sound of clinking bottles seemed to get louder and louder as time passed, until it was almost unbearable to be in that apple cellar anymore.
Rainbow Dash broke the silence, saying, "You're not the only pony with problems, AJ. Maybe if you weren't so focused on yourself right now, you'd see that." She picked up the basket with the cider and flew up and out of the wine cellar as quickly as she could.
Applejack looked back to her basket. She handled that badly. Again. She just couldn't seem to talk to Rainbow Dash anymore, and it was wearing on both of them.
She shook her head. She really didn't have time to think about this. Her mind was so muddled. With a sigh, she picked up her basket, and left the apple cellar.
-=-=-=-=-
The night inched along after that. Applejack and Rainbow Dash didn't say much to each other on the way back to the bonfire, didn't say much when they handed out refreshments. Didn't say much to each other after the first two ciders. That was when Applejack stopped drinking.
Unfortunately, Rainbow Dash didn't have that good sense.
"Geez...Olive cider soooo much," Rainbow said. She was on her fourth bottle, and it showed. She was lying on her back, her hooves stuck in the air, while her front hooves clutched a bottle of hard cider. She tilted it to her open mouth. When nothing but a few drops came out, she started to lick the bottle opening. She moaned in annoyance, turned to the side, and threw the bottle pathetically on the ground. "Another!"
Rarity and Fluttershy looked at each other with concern. Applejack, who had switched her position to be next to Twilight, just rolled her eyes.
"Rainbow, dear," Rarity said, stepping over to the Pegasus. "Don't you think your time would be better spent talking with everypony rather than...drinking to yourself?"
Pinkie Pie, who had put away a few herself, appeared behind Rainbow Dash with a huge smile on her face. "Yeah! It's not a party if everyone's not partying!" She yanked the cider bottle Rainbow Dash had managed to acquire for herself from her hooves, and was met with whiny protests. Pinkie Pie ignored her and dragged Rainbow Dash to her feet.
Rainbow Dash immediately fell over.
"Ooh," Pinkie Pie said. Then in a loud whisper to Rarity, "She's WASTED." She giggled and snorted.
"N'aahm not," Rainbow said, struggling to turn herself correctly and get onto her feet. Fluttershy raced forward and helped Rainbow Dash to get up away from the fire. But the help just made her take a few steps forwards and hit her head against Rarity's. Pinkie Pie thought the entire spectacle was hilarious, and was on her back, holding her stomach from laughing so much.
Applejack, watching the whole thing, scoffed when Rainbow Dash cupped Rarity's face in her hooves and tried to get her to make a duck face by making one herself. "Honestly, Rainbow," she said. "Just cause we had a little spat don't mean you gotta go and drink yourself stupid."
"Ah'm not stupid," Rainbow Dash said, looking over to Applejack. She started to make her way over there, and Fluttershy walked between Rainbow Dash and the bonfire, squealing in fear that she would end up getting burned because of this. "This is...sooo like YOU, Apf...appa...shack!"
"Okay, Rainbow," Twilight said. "Calm down. She wasn't calling you stupid."
"Ah can hear, Night Light," she said, plopping down in front of the two. Fluttershy finally relaxed once Rainbow sat down.
"What 'Night Light' was sayin'," Applejack said, "Is that Ah'm calling what you're doin' stupid. Now, no more drinkin' for you. You're ruining everyone's night."
"Really?" Rainbow Dash said, any anger or annoyance fading away. "S...sorry."
Pinkie Pie came up behind Rainbow and hugged her. "It's okay, Rain--"
"Ah juss wanna cheer y'up, Snaffelack." She got very close to Applejack, who's ear twitched in annoyance. "You're with the....and the sad. Why're you so sad?" She put a hoof to stroke Applejack's mane.
"Sugar, can ya just let me be right now? Ah don't wanna talk to you when you're this way."
"Y'need cheering up! You juss wait, and..." Rainbow closed her eyes, thinking hard. "And...muffins!" she said like it was a revolutionary idea.
Pinkie Pie gasped. "Of COURSE! Muffins!" The two collapsed on each other in laughter.
Rarity sat next to Twilight, staring at Rainbow and Pinkie. "Well, this can't be good for any of us."
"She's been dong this a lot, lately," Twilight said, shaking her head.
"Oh, she's always been like that," Rarity said, shaking her head. "So! I saw you looking up at the sky before this all started. Applejack was looking earlier to. I'm starting to feel like I missed the memo on a meteor shower."
"No, no, it's actually very interesting...I'm looking for a star. You see--" Their conversation was interrupted when Applejack yelped. Rainbow Dash had made an attempt to pounce her, but managed to only crash into her. She was laughing to herself as Applejack was on her side, looking at Rainbow Dash in shock.
"What in the hay do you think you're doin'?"
"Juss....playing a game," Rainbow said, smiling as she tried to focus on Applejack. "You need to loos....lose it? ...Loosen. Up." Rainbow was making an effort to keep her eyes open and focused on the mare in front of her.
"Ah don't need to loosen up," Applejack said, getting to her hooves.
"Yeah, you do," Rainbow said.
"No, Ah don't need you jumpin' on top of me whenever ya feel like it!"
"You need, like...a stick removal or something."
"No, what Ah need is to get away from you!" Applejack turned and walked towards her barn. She looked back to Twilight. "Get her home, or something, will you?" She barked.
Rainbow Dash took a few steps forward, before falling backwards, and once again being saved from the bonfire by Fluttershy. "Affleyack!" she yelled.
Pinkie Pie giggle. "Affleyack. OH! That's a GREAT baby name! That is SOOO going in the list." She pulled out a notebook and wrote down the name.
Rarity shook her head. "Maybe you should just never have babies, Pinkie Pie."
"I never said the name was for MY baby."
"Alright, guys," Twilight said, using her magic to lead Rainbow Dash towards her instead of towards where Applejack made her escape. "I guess the night's over. I'll take Rainbow to the library for now. I don't think she could fly right now even if she tried."
"Good idea," Rarity said. "And even if she could fly, we don't need her ending up at Appleloosa and having no idea how she got there."
"I once had a friend," Pinkie Pie said, "Who got SO drunk, that she ended up dancing in a punch bowl..."
Twilight frowned. "That was you, Pinkie."
"With an alligator on her head..."
"That was YOU, Pinkie."
"And juggled papayas."
"That was you, Pinkie."
"And none of her friends tried to stop her."
"That's not TRUE, Pinkie," Twilight said, tugging Rainbow Dash with her magic towards her, as she was still trying to make her way to the barn, but only getting a few feet away before toppling over. "Fluttershy tried to stop you, and you knocked her into the wall with a power hip-bump!"
Fluttershy shrunk down. "I couldn't hear in my right ear for days."
Pinkie Pie pursed her lips. "They didn't do ANYTHING to stop me."
-=-=-=-=-=
Twilight made the long trek home with Rainbow Dash in tow. It was hard to control her. Every once in a while, she would try to fly home or gallop off, or head towards something that she was looking at. She would then trip on a pebble, or the slightest disturbance would tip her over. But Twilight didn't expect all the talking.
"It's kinda like flying," she said, with no context for Twilight to pick up her train of thought. Her slurring had improved quite a bit, though. "You fly up, then down, and it all feels, you know? It all feels."
"What all feels, Rainbow?" Twilight asked, using her body to try and keep her walking in a straight line.
"The feels, Twightlight. The feels?"
"Okay, Rainbow. I know all about the feels."
"Good," she said. "Cause they're not easy. NO!" She said so suddenly, Twilight Sparkle jumped. "Not flying. It's like...being hungry. You know what eating is like, right?"
"Of course," Twilight said, rolling her eyes.
"And she would be soooo gooood," Rainbow said, hanging her head. "She has to be. She's so beautiful. With that....mane. Have you seen her mane? It's like hay, but....it's like...not for eating."
"Well, most manes aren't for eating," Twilight said, grateful to have finally arrived at the library. She opened the door with her magic and tried to lead Rainbow in. Unfortunately for Twilight, just inches from the door, the pegasus slumped down on the ground and refused to budge any more. "Rainbow! Just come through the door! You'd feel better if you were sitting down or something."
"And, jeez, have you seen her eyes?" She asked, pointing a hoof to her own eye and accidentally poking it, followed by a delayed, "Ow...No, her eyes are like...those things that Rares uses....the....green ones. Like, Spike should want to EAT them, they're so gorgeous."
"Emeralds?" Twilight asked, making one final tug with her magic, and pulling Rainbow Dash into the library. With a sigh of relief, she shut the door. After taking a deep breath for a job well down, she looked down to see Rainbow Dash was sprawled out across the floor, her hind quarters in the air, and not bothering to move. "Aren't you uncomfortable like that?" There was no answer at first.
And then...
Snoring.
"Oh, NO!" Twilight said, poking Rainbow Dash hard in the ribs. Rainbow jerked away, before closing her eyes again. "Rainbow, you CAN'T sleep here right by the door. You're going to get in the way. You can use my bed, but ONLY if you can manage the stairs. Alright?"
"No, this is good," Rainbow said, finally adjusting herself, and laying on her side, letting out a burdened breath.
"No, it's no---DON'T GO BACK TO SLEEP!" Twilight yelled. Rainbow Dash jerked awake, straining to keep her eyes open. Twilight sighed, frowning. "Who are you talking about, anyways?"
Rainbow Dash swung her head around and settled her unfocused gaze on Twilight. "Who else would I be talking about," she cleared her throat loudly, but didn't continue on that train of thought.
"Well, tell me about her while I help you up the stairs." This seemed to prompt Rainbow to actually try to do what Twilight said.
But even the first step was a matter of massive difficulty. Rainbow placed a hoof out, touched the step, but teetered backwards instead. Twilight caught her with her magic, and used it to help propel her up the first few stairs. After she let go of her magic, Rainbow Dash immediately began to teeter backwards again. Twilight came up behind her, put her hooves on Rainbow's hind quarters, and started to push Rainbow forward. With a few more attempts and a few magical interventions, Twilight finally got Rainbow Dash into her bed room and headed towards her bed. "NOW!" she said as she let Rainbow try and drag herself over to the bed. "Who are you talking about?"
"About?" she asked.
"Yes. Inedible hair, dragon edible eyes. OH! Are you hungry? I don't think you ate much at the bonfire."
"Oh, she is soooo delicious," Rainbow whined, turning to Twilight, and plopping down on the floor. Twilight groaned, looking towards the bed and just how far away it was from the pegasus who was supposed to sleep off her alcohol in it. "Her cutie mark is like candy. Her coat is like honey, I just want to lick it. She looks luscious, like chocolate, but juicy, like a grape. I want to eat her."
"I'm suddenly uncomfortable with this whole train of thought..."
"And eat chocolate covered grapes for dinner every night."
Twilight sighed. "Great, now I'm hungry."
"But she doesn't want me." At this, Rainbow's voice began to break. "Why doesn't she want me, Twilight?"
The unicorn was taken aback. She had never seen Rainbow cry before, even when slobbering drunk. "Oh...Oh, Rainbow. Who?" She reached out a hoof and pulled the toppling pony into a hug.
Rainbow's body heaved with sobs. "Why doesn't she want me? I've...always been there. I don't want to f-fee-feel this way." Her words caught in her throat as her sobbing won out.
Twilight thought for a moment before the pieces slowly started coming together. Her eyes widened at the realization. Shocking that Rainbow Dash would admit it, but not incredibly surprising once she realized it. "Rainbow, you don't know that she doesn't want you. She was just upset tonight."
"She doe-doe-doesn't w-want me!" Rainbow said, gasping heaves becoming more prominent than actual words. "Why won't she have me? I-I can m-make her happy!"
"Rainbow..."
"I want to f-feel happy again! I don't wanna f-feel this way! Why did I have to fall in l-love with her?" At this, Rainbow descended into sobs and found no way back from them. Twilight rubbed her back as comforting as she could. Rainbow cried on her shoulder for a long time until she cried herself to sleep.
Twilight sighed, using her magic to levitate Rainbow to the bed, covering her with a blanket. She took a deep breath to steady her overused magic that night - it was so difficult to steady a moving target with magic, and Rainbow Dash made all her spells feel so hard to control.
After taking a moment to rest her thoughts and ground her magic, Twilight thought about what she had heard her friend tell her that night. It broke her heart to see Rainbow in such pain, especially over another friend. She didn't have any of the details, but she could certainly see what had transpired after the fact. And seeing her so miserable made her wonder if there was really anything she could do to help her short of giving her exactly what she wanted.
Sometimes, she wished magic was just that easy.
No, this was something she really couldn't control, which made things harder on her. She just had to hope an opportunity would come up for Rainbow Dash to finally resolve all her feelings, whatever the outcome of her love was. She hoped, for Rainbow's sake, that it would be soon.
Rainbow Dash managed to pry her eyes open. They felt like someone had attempted to glue them shut. She heard a pathetic moan, before realizing it was coming from her. Her head was throbbing. 'You did it again, Rainbow,' she thought to herself, before adjusting herself in bed and trying to go back to sleep. She closed her eyes, ready to sleep off her hangover when...
"Books?!" She said, raising her head. She was surrounded by bookshelves. After a few moments, her addled mind finally arrived at the conclusion she needed to be at - she was in Twilight's library. Sleeping in Twilight's bed. Another few moments, and then her eyes widened. "Oh, no..."
She hopped out of bed, immediately regretting the decision. She felt like she was about to throw up. After waiting a moment, holding her hoof to her mouth, she took a few deep breaths and managed to curb that horrid sensation. Then, slowly, she made her way out of the bedroom, her wings drooping at her side.
Once on the stair case, she could see Spike running around the room, humming to himself, dusting off book shelves. Rainbow Dash held her head and glared at him, until he finally turned around and saw her. "Oh! Rainbow Dash! Didn't see you there. How'd you sleep?"
"Do...you need to...talk so...loud?" she asked. Speaking any faster threatened to send the contents of her stomach onto the staircase.
"So loud?" he asked. "This is my regular voice."
"Rainbow!" Rainbow Dash groaned as the cheery, and all-too-loud voice of Twilight Sparkle shot through her head like a bolt of electricity. "Good to see you're up! How'd you sleep?"
"Loudness," Rainbow Dash whispered. "Too loud..."
"What?"
Spike answered in a whisper, "She thinks we're talking too loud."
"Oh," Twilight said. "Yes, Spike. When somepony drinks too much, they get something called a hangover. Any loud noises will be amplified to a very disagreeable level." To Rainbow Dash, she said in a piercing voice, "isn't that right, Rainbow?"
"Geez," she said, putting a hoof to her head. "If you don't want me to puke on your stair case, pleeeaaaase be quiet." The pegasus made her way down the stairs and over to where Twilight had set up a breakfast for her. Just looking at the food made her queasy, but she took a few sips of the water to ease the dryness in her mouth.
Twilight watched her, shaking her head. "Maybe next time, you can limit how much you drink, so I won't have to drag you to my bed in the middle of the night."
"Yeeaaah," Rainbow said. "About that. We didn't...do anything...last night, did we?"
"Do what?" Twilight asked, lifting a blueberry smoothie with her magic.
"You know..." Rainbow looked back to Spike, who was busy taking individual books off the shelf to dust, humming all the while. She looked back at Twilight. "Bed...stuff?"
"Like a sleepover?" Twilight asked. She was about to take a sip of her smoothie when her eyes widened. "Oh, NO! No, no, no, we didn't do anything like that! Oh, my goodness, that would be horrible."
Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes. "Thanks..."
"No, not because I wouldn't want to do anything with you," Twilight said. Then she shook her head. "Ok, well, I wouldn't at all, but what I mean is--"
"Your repulsion to sleeping with me is not what stopped you from sleeping with me."
Twilight put her hoof to her head. "I'm not repulsed by-- That's not what I meant! I just meant that it would be a bad idea since you're so in love with Applejack."
That woke Rainbow up.
"What?!" She jumped to her feet, regretting ever inch of movement. "What do you mean? Where did you hear that?!"
"From you. Last night. You were quite upset." Twilight tilted her head to the side at the memory. "And you kept comparing her to food."
Rainbow tried hard to remember. The conversation trickled back into her mind. Something about eating emeralds and cutie marks being made of candy and chocolates and grapes. Even thinking about those comparisons made her queasy. But she did remember saying something along those lines. "Oh, nooooo," she moaned.
"Do you want to talk about it?" The look of sympathy from Twilight reminded her of how she sobbed into the unicorn's purple coat. Now she not only felt queasy - she felt ashamed.
"No," Rainbow Dash said, looking down at her hooves. "Twilight, don't tell anyone. Please."
"I won't tell anyone, Rainbow." She scooted closed to the Pegasus, putting a hoof on her shoulder. "But you didn't see how you were last night. I don't want to see my friends in pain like that. You have to do something. Talk to Applejack. Get everything out in the open. Just don't do that to yourself again. Alright?"
Rainbow Dash sighed, taking a few more sips of water. She hardly wanted anyone to know what she was feeling, let alone Twilight. She didn't know what she and Applejack had been through together, why it was so difficult for them to talk to each other now. She had ruined everything, and she didn't know how to fix it. But feeling Twilight Sparkle's eyes staring at her, she had to say something.
Rainbow put down her glass of water. "Sure, Twilight. Whatever you say." She got up and headed for the door. "I'm sorry about last night. But thanks for everything." The moment the door opened, she spread her wings and took off as gently as she could as not to upset her headache and her stomach.
-=-=-=-=-
Twilight Sparkle was flipping through the pages of a new book Princess Celestia sent her when the door to the library opened. Applejack peered her head in, before stepping inside. "Is she here?" she asked.
"She left about an hour ago," Twilight said. "But I'm glad you stopped by. Do you mind if I talk to you for a second?" She closed her book with her magic to show that she meant business.
"Oh. Sure, Twilight. What can Ah do for you?" She walked up to unicorn, dreading what she was about to be told.
"Is something wrong, AJ? You seem to have been a little distracted, lately."
Applejack sighed. Not what she was expecting. "Ah've just got a lot on mah mind, lately. T'aint nothin' new."
"Well, it seems like it could be. You're not usually so withdrawn."
"Nah, Ah guess not," Applejack said. She paused for a moment, going over the pros and cons of telling Twilight what was bothering her, before settling on just admitting it. "Ah don't know. Ever since the reunion, Ah've been thinkin' 'bout mah parents, alot." She shrugged. "It's hard to explain."
"I see," Twilight said, sympathy in her voice. "I'm so sorry, AJ. I know that must be hard on you."
"Ah guess," she said, looking away. "Like Ah said, Ah really don't wanna talk 'bout it much. You know, Ah actually came here lookin' for Rainbow. Ah wanted to apologize for bein' so snippy with her, yesterday."
"Oh!" Twilight's eyes lit up. "That's really good! She was really upset last night."
"She was?"
"Well...I probably shouldn't say much more."
Applejack's heart jumped into her throat. "Why? What did she say?"
Twilight looked trapped. "Oh.....uh...nothing! She didn't say anything."
"Oh, consarn it!" Applejack said, stamping her front hoof on the floor. "Ah knew she couldn't keep somethin' like that a secret when she gets that way! How much did she tell you?"
"Nothing, I swear!" Twilight said, looking around for something to distract Applejack with so she would get off this train of thought. If only she had a bushel of apples, or something...
"Look, it didn't mean anything!" Applejack went on, looking to the side and blushing. "Ah didn't mean for it to get that far. Ah wasn't thinkin' that would make her kiss me."
Twilight looked back at Applejack, shocked. "She WHAT?!"
Applejack took a few steps back. "Err...what?"
"She KISSED you? When did she kiss you?"
"Er, uh," Applejack found herself taking several steps back as Twilight kept trying to close the gap between them. "A few weeks ago. After Ah kissed her. By accident."
"Y-you-you--" Twilight's mouth was open, but there was nothing coming out. She shook her head to dislodge the words from her throat before continuing. "WHAT?! Okay, okay. We need to get this sorted out. WHEN did this happen? And how? HOW?"
Applejack was now backed up against a book case, leaning back from Twilight's momentary loss of sanity. "W-well, Ah guess this means she didn't say nothin' 'bout no kiss."
"Tell me!"
"Okay!" Applejack sighed. "We were just on a run. We do that from time to time, and we stopped in a field." She didn't mention how she knew something was wrong with Rainbow Dash by the way she was acting. She didn't say that she was worried about her friend. "Rainbow started doin' flyin' tricks in the air, which she don't normally do when we're runnin' together, but Ah guess she was just feelin' that way that day. She was workin' really hard, and suddenly she raced to the ground, and Ah ran up to her. Her wing was crampin' up somethin' bad from flyin' too hard. And she was in pain and all, so Ah started massagin' her muscle and all."
"Okay. So, After a while, her muscle relaxes, and Ah asked if the pain was all gone, and she said yeah, and..." Applejack shook her head, her face turning red. "Now, ya see, when ya got a little sister, and they get a boo boo, you kiss it ta make it better. And this weren't planned or nothin', just habit!"
"Ah didn't mean nothin' by it!" Applejack defended, looking down at the floor, her face bright red. "Thinkin' back, Ah'm thinkin' Ah mighta... given her the wrong signal."
"Ya think?"
"And when Ah looked at her, she was lookin' bout as shocked as you look, and when Ah asked her what's wrong, she...well, she leaned in and kissed me."
Twilight sat down, her mouth ajar. "W...well, what did you do?"
Applejack closed her eyes. She couldn't admit that she liked it. She couldn't admit it made her feel funny. And she certainly couldn't admit how scary that feeling was. When Rainbow Dash pulled back from that kiss, she didn't want it to end. But in the seconds it took for Rainbow to try and pull her closer for another kiss, too many thoughts came crashing down like a wave on the calm shores of her mind. What would her family think? There weren't any ponies like that in her family. At all. She didn't even know how Granny Smith or Big Macintosh felt about such things. And how would that affect the rest of her family? They were all so tight knit, that something different with one member of the family, it affected all the members of the family.
But them, she could handle. It was her parents, fresh on her mind after the reunion, that gave her pause. Even though her parents had been gone for so long, she couldn't help but think about them whenever something big happened in her life. She could think back to all her achievements and know her parents were proud of her. She could look back at her mistakes, and know that she learned well from them and continued to be the pony they wanted her to be.
But this was very different. And that made her panic.
Applejack opened her eyes again, away from that tumultuous moment in time and back in the quiet library. "Ah ran."
Twilight sighed, sitting down on her haunches, shaking her head. "Oh, AJ."
"Ah know..."
"You don't run from anything!"
Applejack thought for a moment, trying to dissect her feelings and retrieve the right words to make Twilight understand. Finally, she said, "Ah don't remember much a'bout my parents. From what Ah do remember, they had strong family values. They knew what they wanted for their kids. It was either me or Big Mac who was gunna inherit that farm and continue on in the Apple way. Ah was supposed to marry, have a family, and carry out that family tradition. Ain't nowhere in those plans say Ah'm supposed to...y'know...be that way." She struggled to get out the next words. "Ah think they'd be ashamed of me."
"Applejack," Twilight said. "You put so much pressure on yourself. Your parents died a long time ago. You said so yourself that you don't remember much about them. Don't you think that they'd want you to be happy?"
"Oh, you don't know what would make me happy," Applejack said, walking away from Twilight and stopping in the middle of the room. "Ah don't know what would make me happy. Ah...Ah need time to think. And Ah can't think when she's near me."
"Can't you talk to Rainbow about this?"
Applejack sighed. "Ah've tried! And she's tried. But, Ah don't know, after all that, every time we're near each other, we keep messin' up our conversation, or snappin' at each other, or one of us chokes, or we pretend like nothing happened, and we're just sittin' there with these apples ripe for buckin', and ain't nopony kickin' em down!" She frowned at her analogy. Rainbow Dash didn't buck trees... "Or Ah guess like an over-full rain cloud that ain't been hopped on. Or whatever they do to make it rain..."
"Well, that isn't important, AJ." They both sighed. Twilight sat down next to her, and they were both silent for a while. She just had to think of a way to get them talking. But it was hard to get two stubborn ponies to admit anything, let alone something so personal to both of them. And she couldn't do it for them. What was she going to do: bring up the obvious point - that they kissed - and then let them at it? They needed more incentive to talk than just a sit down and an admonishment from a friend.
Then an idea struck Twilight. "Of course!" She went over to one of her books she had out, opening it to a specific page. "You say you've been missing your parents, right?"
"Yes, Twilight. You don't need to sound so happy 'bout that."
"Oh, sorry. It's just..." She levitated the book in front of Applejack. A picture of a star and a depiction of ponies lining up in a curve to follow the star caught her attention. "I was trying to explain this to Rarity last night. Have you ever heard of the Star Lighting Festival?"
"Can't say that Ah have."
Twilight levitated the book to herself, flipping the pages a few times before continuing. "I went to one once when I was a filly. It was after my grandmother died. Once a year, Princess Celestia honors the dead by placing a new star in the sky. Though, I think now Princess Luna would be doing it. It's kind of a way to help with the mourning - remembering the dead and all." She turned to Applejack, a little too happy for such a sorrowful conversation. "I asked the Princess once I was under her care why they have the ceremony. She said since she lived for so long, she saw a lot of sorrow and a lot of friends and comrades passing. So they began this tradition. It's not very well known - I think the Princess likes to keep the crowds down, since some ponies go there just to see the stars being lit. But a lot of ponies make the sojourn every year.
"There are little stations along the route to feed the travelers. But you can only travel at night, because the Princess lights up the star that was lit the year before to lead the way. It's at a different location every year. I was looking for the star last night - I can show it to you. And the stations have these little paper lanterns you can paint and light with a candle and send it up into the sky. It's like you're sending up a star, yourself! I really loved it when I was a kid. Plus, it made my mom smile. It also made her cry, but it was good to see her smiling after being so sad for so long."
Applejack went over to the book, frowning at the picture of the star. Twilight had just given her a lot of information to take in about something she had never heard of before. "Well, it does sound like a nice little festival and all. But what does that have to do with me? Mah parents died when Ah was a filly."
"It's not about the year your parents died," Twilight said. "It's about mourning and remembering. A lot of ponies go every year just to remember a loved one who passed. The journey to the star lighting location is traditionally done on hoof, even for Pegasi. No magicking your way there, but some ponies still do. You're not supposed to go alone. You're supposed to go with someone...celebrate your love one's life with stories and such things."
This idea cheered Applejack up. "Oh, that'd be really nice!" Then she thought about who she could take with her. "Ah don't suppose Ah could take Apple Bloom...she's got school, and all. A journey on hoof...well, Granny Smith wouldn't be up for that. And somepony's gotta run the farm while I'm gone..."
"Exactly!" Twilight said, holding her head high and nodding at her cleverness. "That's why you should take Rainbow Dash."
Applejack's excitement came to a grinding halt. She huffed. "Twilight! What part of everything Ah just said about Rainbow makes you think Ah'd want to take her with me on this trip?"
Twilight closed the book and put a foreleg around Applejack. "Don't you see? Maybe it's not Rainbow you have to be away from so you can think. Maybe it's everything else. You're removing everything you have except for the two things that you can't decide over. I think once you get thinking about your parents, you'll have a better answer for how you feel about Rainbow Dash."
"Twilight, that's a TERRIBLE idea!" Applejack said, shaking her head. "And if Ah decide Ah don't wanna be near her anymore? Then what? Everything 'bout this here festival of yours'll go sour."
Twilight frowned. She hadn't thought of that. She looked away for a moment, let the gears in her head run for a moment, until they powered the light bulb over her head. "Isn't it better to finally know how you feel, instead of what you've had for the past few weeks?"
Applejack narrowed her eyes at Twilight. "Ah hate it when you're right."
-=-=-=-
Rainbow Dash was laying on a low cloud, trying to rehydrate herself with some water. Her nausea had gone away, but her head was still hurting. She didn't want to attempt to fly any farther up until her head ache was completely gone.
"Rainbow?" The Pegasus tensed up at hearing the familiar twang to the voice that called her. She couldn't see her like this! Not after last night...
Slowly, she pulled her tail up onto the cloud, the crouched really low into the white, fluffy substance.
"Oh, for Pete's sake, Rainbow. D'ya really think Ah didn't see you just now?"
Rainbow Dash sighed. "One second," she said. For once in her life, she wished she had a mirror. She probably looked horrible. She fluffed her mane a little, shook out her wings, and took a few deep breaths. She got up and jumped off the cloud, flapping her wings to cushion her landing. She still managed to hit the ground a little too hard, but she bit back a pained yelp. "Yeah?"
Applejack's eyes shifted from one magenta eye to the other. "Good gravy, girl. You look worst than chicken that got chased by a dog all day."
Rainbow sighed, turned and started to walk away. "If you just wanted to give me a hard time..."
"N-no, Rainbow!" Applejack raced in front of the mare. "T'aint like that. Ah was just..." She sighed. "Look, 'bout last night. Ah'm sorry Ah snapped at you like that."
Rainbow teetered back a bit. She hadn't expected to get an apology so quickly, if at all. And suddenly, she felt guilt ridden, as well. "I'm sorry about last night, too," she said, poking at the ground with her hoof. "I feel a little silly, drinking so much."
"Well, ya probably wouldn'ta done so much drinkin' if Ah hadn'ta been so sharp with you."
Rainbow looked at Applejack, grateful that she was being so gentle with her when she was feeling so lousy. But she also hated it, a little. She would have loved to hug her to end this circle of forgiveness they had taken on, but she felt so wrong even trying to touch her now. Not when she'd made it so clear she wasn't interested. And especially after last night. Even if Applejack apologized, her words still stung.
But they were still friends. And friends hug, don't they?
Before Rainbow could get into more thought about this, Applejack stepped a bit forward. "Listen, Ah was just talkin' to Twilight..."
"You...you were?"
"Yeah. And Ah was tellin' her 'bout how Ah've been missin' mah parents, lately."
"You have?" Rainbow felt even worse about this. They used to tell each other just about everything - at least what they thought was important. Now, there was this barrier between them. Rainbow didn't even know what was bothering Applejack. Aside from the obvious.
"Yeah. It's been on my mind a lot lately, and Ah can't seem to shake it. And she mentioned that there's this here festival not too many ponies know 'bout where you can honor the dead and all. There's a star lightin' ceremony the Princess' do. It's s'posed to be real nice."
"Oh," Rainbow said, her interest peaked. "It really does sound nice."
"Right. And Twilight was sayin' that Ah should go. But your not s'posed to go alone on this trip and all."
"Uh-huh," Rainbow said, wary for a moment. "And what did Twilight say about who should go with you."
"Well, Ah can't take anypony in mah family, like Ah woulda liked, but then she said maybe you'd like to go." She drew a circle in the dirt with her hoof.
Rainbow Dash was silent for a moment. "Do YOU want me to go?"
"Well, honestly," Applejack said, "At first, Ah thought maybe t'weren't such a good idea. But then...well, Ah couldn't think of who Ah'd rather have go with me."
Rainbow Dash's stomach flipped, but she tried to keep her response even. "You...really can't think of anyone else you'd rather go with you?"
"Well, 'side from mah family. And they can't go with me. Really, there ain't no question 'bout who should go." She smiled to Rainbow Dash. "Would you--"
"Yes!"
"--like to go with me?"
"Yes! Absolutely, yes." The words rushed out of Rainbow so fast, she thought her stomach was going to be pulled out along with the air it took to say them.
But it was worth it. She could barely contain herself when she saw Applejack smile.
Applejack woke up from her nap. She needed to get as much sleep as she could during the day so she could last the night. Still, she had trouble resting when she was supposed to be working, let alone sleeping, and only managed about thirty minutes. The rest of her 'sleep' was spent tossing, turning, and thinking. She made a mental list in her head of everything to get done on the farm. She thought about some things she had to tell Apple Bloom about helping out when she was gone. Thought about what she needed to bring with her.
And every once in a while, she would think of Rainbow Dash, and her stomach would tighten. Why did she agree to this? Why did she let Twilight talk her into this? Everything was so awkward between them. She could hardly think about Rainbow without getting nervous. Just being near here felt like there was an electric wall between them. And when they touched, now, after what happened? She was so hyper aware of any little contact.
Then she would think of her parents. What would they have said? What would they do, if they knew?
That spiraling thought process made her feel queasy, and made for a restless nap.
She looked outside. The sun was starting to hide behind the distant mountains. It was time to go. Come what may.
-=-=-=-=-=-
Rainbow Dash stood on the hill next to Twilight, who was busy explaining the maps she was giving to her, and pointing out which star she was to follow. But Rainbow Dash wasn't paying attention. She was watching Applejack talk to her family and hug them goodbye. She hung her head a little when she saw Big Macintosh looking at her, and looked away completely when Granny Smith looked over, as well.
"Rainbow?" Twilight asked in annoyance. "Are you paying attention at all?"
"What? Oh, right...maps of stars in the sky...or...something."
Twilight groaned in frustration, folding up her map and putting it in her saddle bag. "I'll explain this to AJ when she gets here."
As though on cue, Applejack trotted up to the two. "Alright, Twi. So, Ah'm guessin' that bright star over yonder is the star we're supposed to be followin'?"
"Err, yes," Twilight said. She had a big speech prepared on the importance of the star and how they were taking part in an ancient tradition. But Twilight simply placed the map in Applejacks bag with her magic. She didn't seem any more receptive to what she had to say than Rainbow Dash did. Understandably, they both probably had a lot on their minds. Still, she had at least SOMETHING to tell them. "The ceremony is in five days. It will probably be at the shore - it usually is. Something about the water that the Princess likes. It will be quite a trek in such a short amount of time, but you guys are fast."
"Thanks for not tellin' the others 'bout this, Twi," Applejack said, taking her hat off her head and holding it to her chest to show her sincerity. "Last thing Ah need is for them to try and cheer me up right now."
"Yeah," Rainbow said. "Tell them we said bye. Oh! And tell Pinkie I'm going to have to cancel tomorrow's poker game. I would have done it myself, but then I'd have to explain everything, and she would insist on making me carry five packages of sweets for the road."
Applejack looked at her quizzically. "Who else is in your poker game?"
"Just Pinkie. She plays four different players because she feels like it makes things more challenging. Though, it's weird when she gets into fights with herself."
"Hmm," Twilight said. "I think I need to have a talk with her..."
Applejack stepped up to Twilight and hugged her. "Thanks, Twi, for tellin' me 'bout this."
"Yeah, I'm blaming you for any calluses I get on my hooves from WALKING the whole way."
"Rainbow!"
"I'm just saying!"
Twilight took a step back as the two ponies were gearing up to start running. Rainbow Dash stretched her legs, adjusting her saddlebag around her. Applejack curled her back, stretching her muscles not unlike a cat, before letting out a satisfied sigh. Then Rainbow Dash and Applejack looked at each other. Rainbow raised an eyebrow. Applejack stepped back, accepting the silent challenge. She reared up on her back legs, and bolted forward just as Rainbow took off in a full gallop.
-=-=-=-=-
At first, the two were completely silent. Any communication was non-verbal, which was something that was very odd for the two. Rainbow Dash was mainly following Applejack. When she ran forward, Rainbow followed. When she stopped, Rainbow stopped. Applejack sometimes consulted a map, and Rainbow waited and watched. Then they were off again. To Rainbow's surprise, she didn't find it boring or annoying. Rather, she was glad to have the time with Applejack without worrying about having to say comforting words or talk about anything they didn't want to talk about.
They passed a few ponies who seemed to be on the same journey they were on. Some waved, some nodded; they were all passed quickly enough. Applejack was determined to cover as much ground as possible that first night, so stopping and talking to other ponies was not an option.
Finally, Applejack trotted to a stop and sat down. Rainbow Dash looked around. They were in a grassland area. She could see some travelers off walking about, and what looked like the lights of a small town in the distance.
"Are ya hungry?" Applejack asked, unpacking her saddlebag. "Ah packed some apples."
"Of course you packed apples," Rainbow Dash said, rolling her eyes. "I could have packed apples while standing in your orchard, AJ. Anything else?"
Applejack tossed an apple at Rainbow's head, which she caught with her hooves before taking a bite out of it. "Some bread. A daisy sandwich. Trail mix. Honey oat bars. And water, of course."
"Sandwich me," Rainbow said, holding out a hoof. "I thought there was supposed to be food on this trip."
"There is," Applejack said. "But we haven't passed one of them rest areas, yet. Keep an eye out for lanterns." Rainbow searched the night sky, hoping to see something Applejack might have missed. Then she looked to the mare, laying down, an apple in her hoof that went uneaten while she looked up at the sky.
Rainbow Dash sighed. Again, with the sad look on her face. Rainbow hated that look. "Hey, do you remember when we were younger, and I used to play in your apple trees?"
Applejack pried her eyes away from the stars above to look back at Rainbow Dash. "Hmm?"
"You know... I used to fly around from apple tree to apple tree, and you couldn't find me 'cause I was so fast. And I finally had to stop because I kept knocking down the ripe apples, and Granny Smith was getting upset with me."
Applejack smiled at the memory. "Yeah, Ah remember that." Then she frowned. "Now, you just sleep in 'em."
"Well, I don't do any damage that way."
"But ya still DO!."
"Oh, come on! Like what?"
"Please, Rainbow. Your snorin', alone, could knock down all the apples in a tree."
"I do NOT snore," Rainbow said, throwing an apple core at Applejack.
The earth pony chuckled. "Okay, Rainbow." She looked back up to the sky.
Rainbow looked up as well, then sighed. "Okay. I have to ask. What's so interesting up there that is more interesting than ME?"
"Oh, Rainbow," Applejack said, shaking her head. "Always gotta be the center of attention."
"No, seriously," Rainbow said. "What are you looking at?"
Applejack turned to look at Rainbow. She furrowed her brow, wondering if she should tell her. "Well," she said. "Ah...saw somethin' kinda funny before the reunion."
"Uh-huh?"
"And it got me thinkin'...you don't see that kinda thing every day. And it was just as we were talkin' about how we don't know how long anypony is ever there with us. Ah don't know...it just seemed like they were talkin' to me or somethin'."
"Uh...who?"
Applejack shifted, getting a little closer to Rainbow, leaning in close like she was about to tell her a secret. "Ah know it's kinda silly, but...stranger things have happened to us, y'know? And...I swear, those two shootin' stars were like my parents were talkin' to me."
Rainbow's ears went back against her head. She hadn't heard Applejack talk like this before.
Applejack turned away. "You think it's silly."
"No!" Rainbow Dash said quickly, walking in front of the other mare. "Not at all! I don't think it's silly at all! I mean, they're you're parents. Anything's possible."
Applejack wasn't sure if she believed Rainbow, but she continued on that train of thought. "It is, right? Ah mean, how often d'ya see two shooting stars at once?"
"Never," Rainbow said, shaking her head adamantly. "I've never seen it, at least. I bet Twilight's never even seen it."
"Ah swear, if Ah could just..." She shook her head. "It'd be nice to hear from them again. Just once."
Rainbow's ear fell back on her head. She nodded in agreement. The two were silent for a while. Applejack seemed to give up her desire to look at the stars, and started taking small bites from her apple. Rainbow could feel her pain. Finally, Rainbow Dash had to say something, even if it was completely the wrong thing to say. "You know, you're lucky in a way."
"Ah, know," Applejack said, losing interest in her apple again. "Everypony always tells me. Ah got Granny, Ah got Apple Bloom, and Ah got Big Macintosh. Got a whole buncha great cousins and uncle and aunts. Just missin' mah parents."
Rainbow Dash shrugged. "Yeah, sure, you got them, but that's not what I meant." Applejack looked at her, frowning. "I mean, your parents loved you! Some ponies would kill for that!"
Applejack's ears went flat against her head, this time. She remembered all the times that she heard Rainbow Dash regaling about her past to her other friends. Her parents were loving. Her parents were supporting. Her parents were kind and did anything for her. Applejack was the only pony among their friends that knew the truth. She was never talking about her parents. She was talking about her grandparents who raised her like their own. Applejack could remember all the times Rainbow Dash's parents let her down in some way or another.
The first time they met, Rainbow had crash landed in her orchard. Her scraggly looking mane on her thin, small body that made her look younger than what she was. She was very angry, bucking an apple tree like she had gone insane, screaming in frustration every time she did. Applejack, still growing into her freckles and not quite big enough to wear her precious hat yet, watched the pegasus until she wore herself out. Little Rainbow Dash caught her breath, pawed at the ground a few times, before turning to go on her way. Only She was now face to face with Applejack.
"Howdy," said little Applejack.
"Oh, uh...hi!" Rainbow Dash said, sitting down, looking back at the tree she had been bucking. "I can't pay for that."
"Ah didn't ask you to."
"Oh, good!" She jumped to her feet. Then she looked at the young mare suspiciously. "How much of that did you see?"
"'Bout all of it."
"Great..." Rainbow Dash shook her head in annoyance. Then, as though deciding that her prior tantrum wasn't enough, she went into a fit. She acted untamed and unruly, using her entire body to vent her frustration. She went into hoof stomps and bronco bucks, twirling around in a circle, and shaking her wings, before she finally sat down. She panted, staring intensely at the ground. "She was finally watching!"
"Who was?" Applejack asked, picking up a fallen apple and taking a bite.
"My mom! She was finally watching, and I messed up."
"Oh!" Applejack said, looking up at the sky where the pegasus fell, furrowing her brow in thought. "Well, it's like mah papa used to say: ain't nothing wrong with dustin' yourself off and tryin' again."
"Yeah," Rainbow Dash said, before blowing her bristly-looking mane out of her eyes. "If you're anypony else. My mom has a VERY busy schedule. I need to be perfect, or I might as well not even try." She poked at the ground with her front hoof, suddenly sullen. "I can't believe I messed it up."
"Aw, don't worry 'bout it," Applejack said, walking up to this strange young Pegasus and putting a hoof around her. "Look, if you'd like, you can have a snack before goin' back up there! Looks like ya used a lot of energy to buck that tree."
Rainbow Dash looked at her like she was insane. "What?"
"We made a whole buncha tastey treats for the day - maybe too many. Granny Smith loves guests! Would ya like to have somethin' 'fore you go?"
Rainbow Dash sat on her haunches. "Uh...sure."
"Great!" Applejack started forward, smiling back at the Pegasus following her in confusion. "Name's Applejack."
"Rainbow Dash," said the mare, cautiously smiling to the farm pony.
Back in the present, Applejack smiled at the memory as it drifted off to the recesses of her mind. She had no idea she was making a friend for life, and certainly no idea that would lead them to this day. But looking back at the sad Pegasus, she also remembered all the other times she had been so upset over something her parents had failed to do.
"You know," Applejack said, "Ah don't think they didn't love you. Just--"
"Oh, don't defend them, Applejack," Rainbow Dash said, waving a hoof to dismiss the idea. "I lived with them most of my life, I think I would know." She got up, about to walk off, but Applejack knew Rainbow well. And just as she predicted, the pegasus turned back to Applejack, with the same wild look in her eye she had the day they first met. "You just can't understand it when you grew up the way you did. You HAD family to see you off today. You always had the love of your family. And, okay, sure, I might be being a little selfish here. My grandparents are awesome. This kind of awesome doesn't come from just anywhere - it's inherited. But you don't get it unless you've lived it, Applejack. S-so..." she seemed to be holding back in saying what she really wanted to say.
"Well?" Applejack asked. "Go on! Say what you're gunna say. How badly d'you think you can hurt mah feelings, anyway? What? Don't act so sad cause Ah still got good things in mah life? Is that it?"
Rainbow Dash breathed out hard, tossing her head to the side. "Nevermind. I've lost the moment, anyways." She sank down to her haunches like a deflating balloon.
Applejack wasn't upset, really. She expected some sort of selfishness from the mare - to make this trip focus on her was not a surprise. Her skin was pretty thick to Rainbow Dash' anger when she was like that. So whatever Rainbow Dash had to say, she almost welcomed it. It was better for her to get it out than leave it in. Otherwise, she was faced with the sadness in her eyes that reminded Applejack of the Pegasus flying about the air, like a mad mare. She had the same look in her eye. Like something one of her parents did made her act that way that day. Before they had their awkward moment they were still trying to recover from. She had been wanting to ask her this entire time what they did to make her so mad. But to bring that up seemed like a descent into chaos, and she was not ready for that.
"Things were so different when we were young, huh?" Rainbow Dash said out of nowhere. She was now looking at the sky, herself.
For the sake of argument, Applejack nodded her head. But nothing seemed to change that much. Rainbow Dash was still seeking her parents approval. Applejack was still hoping she was the pony her parents wanted her to be.
-=-=-=-=-
Applejack once again led the way through the night, following the star. Rainbow Dash was following behind, not paying much attention. It wasn't until the two were finding it difficult to walk in the thick mud that they realized something was off. They had found their way into a bog, not unlike Froggy Bottom Bog. After the hydra incident, a bog was not a place Applejack wanted to be again. It was getting hard to think with the sound of crickets and frogs chirping as loud as they could, in hopes of being heard. She turned around to look at Rainbow Dash, then yelled over the frog chorus, "Ah think we went the wrong way."
Rainbow Dash strained her ears forward. The frog chorus was quite loud. "What?!"
"Ah think we went the wrong way!" she repeated.
"Oh, good," Rainbow Dash yelled. "It's too dark here to see that well, anyways."
"Let's head back," Applejack said, her hooves sticking in the muddy ground as she turned around. "Maybe we turned left instead of--" she stopped when she couldn't get her back hoof out of the mud. "Oh, horseapples!" She yanked her back hoof up, trying to get it free.
"What's wrong?" Rainbow asked, still trying to hear over the loud chirping of the native frogs.
"Mah hoof," She said, pulling hard, trying to get the mud to release her. "It's--" She made one final tug. There was a sucking sound as the mud released her hoof. She hurtled forward. A moment later, a splashing sound made the frogs go quiet.
Rainbow looked wide eyed at Applejack, who had scrambled to her feet, soaked from the bog water. Rainbow tried to hold back a laugh. And failed.
With a boisterous laugh, Rainbow Dash fell on her back, kicking her legs in the air in amusement as Applejack examined at her condition. She was soaked. And so was her saddle bag. "This ain't funny, Dash!" Applejack said, making her way out of the water.
Rainbow Dash's laugh settled to a titter. "It's a LITTLE funny," she said, wiping a tear from her eye, still on her back.
Applejack dragged herself onto the slick mud, then managed to find stability on some peat moss. She opened up her saddle bag. "The maps are all wet! And the food is soaked."
Rainbow Dash stopped laughing. "Okay. Not cool." She went to get up, but made no progress. "H-hey..." She looked back to see if something was holding her back, before tugging again. It took her a moment to realize...with all her laughing, her wing had sunk down into the mud. "Oh, great!" she moaned, letting her head fall back on the wet ground. "Now I'm stuck."
Applejack shook herself off before frowning. "What?"
Rainbow Dash tried to turn, but she was trapped on her back. She twisted to try and free herself, but that only seemed to make the mud angry and clasp on tighter to her wing. She grunted with effort as she tried to yank her wing free, but to no avail. "My wing is stuck in the mud. Now, I can't get up!" Applejack was silent for a moment. Then Rainbow Dash heard her chuckling. "Hey! This is NOT funny!"
Applejack was busy ringing the excess water out of her mane. "Serves ya right for laughin' at me."
"Will you just help me up?!"
"Alright, alright," Applejack said. She hopped over the mud and into the knee-deep bog water. "Y'know, they say they've found pony fossils in bogs like this one. Guess we know how they got there."
Rainbow Dash glared at Applejack from the ground. Applejack smiled and reached out a hoof. She grabbed hold, and the earth pony started to pull. Rainbow Dash grit her teeth and groaned in pain as the mud held tight to her wing. Applejack tugged hard once, twice, three times, and with a noise of surprise, Rainbow Dash was pulled into the water, free.
Rainbow Dash immediately jumped to her feet, and looked at her wing, caked in mud. "Eeew," she said. "And jeez, Applejack, you could have been a little gentler? I thought you were going to pull my wing out of it's socket." She rolled her wings to stretch them out, and sighed with relief.
"Weren't mah, fault," Applejack said, rolling her eyes. "You woulda been fine if ya hadn't laughed at me."
"Geez, it's really sore," Rainbow Dash said. "Maybe you should kiss it to make it be..." Her voice trailed off before she could finish that sentence. She was already mentally kicking herself. She didn't dare look at Applejack. She stared at the reflection of the moon on the bog water.
The blood rushed to Applejack's face, and now she couldn't even look at Rainbow.
For a few moments, nopony said anything.
Then Rainbow Dash rubbed her head. "Wow," she said.
"Yeah," Applejack agreed.
"The FIRST day."
"Yeah."
"I thought we'd have managed to get a few days in before I managed to say anything that stupid." Rainbow Dash busied herself by trying to get the excess mud off of her wing.
Applejack was silent. Were they really going to talk about it now when they were alone, a few hours from home, and no one but the frog chorus to interrupt their conversation? The sky was their only witness. Applejack took a quick look to the stars, before letting out a sigh. "Y'know, that's what you do with fillies and colts when they're hurt, right?"
"I had grandparents, Applejack," Rainbow said, still not looking at her. "I know."
More silence.
"You know," Rainbow Dash said, shaking her hoof free of some mud. "I'm not a filly."
"Right."
"I'm a grown mare. A grown PEGASUS mare. You don't just go kissing wings, AJ."
"Ah wasn't thinkin'," Applejack said, closing her eyes, wishing they didn't have to be having this conversation. Then she frowned. "Why can't Ah kiss your wings?"
"I mean, it was one thing when I let you tie my wings for the race," Rainbow said, spreading her wing for inspection. "But you don't put your mouth on another ponies wing's unless you're...you know...intimate...with them." Rainbow Dash said.
Applejack couldn't believe she could be more embarrassed - yet, she was. "Rainbow, Ah was NOT trying to be intimate with you!"
Rainbow Dash looked at Applejack in shock. "I didn't say you were!" she said, equally embarrassed. "Jeez, what is it with everypony being repulsed by that thought? I'm going to get a complex..." She looked at Applejack, who was looking away. "No, Applejack, I don't mean just THAT. I mean, you know...intimacy. Like...I wouldn't just let anypony preen my wings. Actually, I wouldn't trust these puppies to anypony, but you know what I mean. It's just...something you do with somepony you're very close to you."
Applejack wasn't sure she understood. "Ah thought we were close," she said. "And...well, Ah guess, after you...kissed me, you're not--"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Rainbow Dash said, getting up, turning away from Applejack. "Kissing...you know, sometimes kissing is just kissing. It doesn't mean anything, Ms. I'm-Going-To-Kiss-Your-Wing-Now. I, uh..." Rainbow Dash dared to peak at Applejack, who was watching her with a sad expression. She sighed. Who was she kidding? "I just wanted some comfort, okay? I didn't plan that. I'm not sitting around, pining for you or anything, okay? I-I like you and all, but not that way." She looked away, shaking her head. Her whole body felt empty all of a sudden. "I'm sorry I scared you, alright? You're my best friend. I don't want to lose you over something silly."
Applejack looked down to the water, feeling completely unfilfilled by their talk. She didn't want to harp on it anymore. So instead, she asked, "Why did you need comfort?"
Rainbow Dash's wings folded to her sides, and she turned towards the entrance of the bog, jumping over the mud they had gotten stuck in. "We should find that first rest station now that our food is ruined. I'm hungry."
Applejack frowned. She wasn't in the mood to try and press the issue. She felt drained. She had a few days to get to the bottom of things. But for now, she just followed Rainbow Dash out of the bog to try to find some food.
-=-=-=-=-
Muddied, tired, and emotionally spent, Rainbow Dash and Applejack trodded along. Instead of trying to rely on some wet, muddied maps, the two decided to try and keep up with some travelers they saw in the hopes that they knew the way. While they were passing by a small lake, Applejack was seriously thinking of drinking her weight in water when something caught her attention at the corner of her eye: The first lantern she saw flying overhead. The moment Applejack saw it, her face lit up.
"Rainbow!" She said, taking hopping bounds to race forward and chase a lantern floating overhead. "We found it!" A few more lanterns trailed after the first one. "Oh, they're beautiful! D'you see 'em?" She turned to Rainbow Dash, who was smiling as she watched Applejack.
"They're RIGHT there, AJ," she said, chuckling a little. "I don't think they give you bonus points for excitement." Applejack glared at her, which made Rainbow Dash laugh some more. "No, don't stop, it's cute how excited you are."
"Well, it IS why we're here, isn't it?" She looked back to the lanterns flying into the sky. "It's mighty nice. We never do anything back on the farm to remember mama and papa aside from talking and pictures and stuff. Nothin' so nice as this." She started prancing towards the make-shift area in the distance, consisting of tents, lights, tables, foods, and lots of talking ponies. She even saw a few royal guard standing at the entrance.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Rainbow Dash said. "There is NO way I'm going there smelling like muddy bog water."
Applejack stopped in her tracks, before looking back at Rainbow Dash. She was silent for a moment. Then she sat on her haunches, thoroughly confused. "You're tellin' me you care 'bout how you look for that?"
"Look at that!" she said, pointing to the festivities in the distance. "Royal guards? This is WAY more important than I thought it was going to be. What if there's a Wonderbolt there? I can't let them see me with my wings all muddy. They'll think I don't take flying seriously!" Rainbow Dash got up and walked towards the lake.
"So you're just gunna take a bath in the middle of nowhere? In what must be freezin' cold water?" Applejack asked, looking around. "With ponies passin' by?"
"What else can I do, AJ?" She took off her saddle bag and looked at the water with some concern. She cautiously dipped in a hoof, before jerking it back out. "Hooo, that's cold!" Applejack walked up next to her, dipping her muddy hoof in, before taking it out. It certainly was cold. Rainbow Dash took a deep breath, shook her out wings, and dove it, splashing Applejack with cold water in the process.
"Rainbow!" Applejack said, once again drenched.
"Oh, you're f-f-f-f-fine!" Rainbow Dash's whole body shook from the sudden cold. "G-g-gotta m-make this qqqquick!" She dipped her head in the water and brought it up fast, wetting her mane. The she dipped her right wing in the water, then her left, fluffed them both quickly, and repeated the process several times so swiftly that water danced away from her blue coat.. Applejack couldn't help but think of watching birds bathing when she watched the spectacle. It made her chuckle.
Not to be outdone in cleanliness, Applejack jumped into the water, before letting out a yelp from the sudden cold. She took a deep breath, plunged herself into the water, and came out soaking wet. "Be nice if we had some shampoo or somethin'," Applejack said.
Rainbow Dash was shivering, but determined to get her wings completely clean before getting out of the water. "I don't have shampoo, but can you me get me the bottle from my bag?" she asked, working on some stuck-on mud at the end of one of her contour feathers.
Applejack hopped along the water towards Rainbow's bag, shaking herself off, before opening it up. There was a bottle inside that looked like shampoo. Applejack turned it over. "'Bumble Bee's Beautiful Wing's - Conditioner for your feathers. The only brand trusted by the Wonderbolts.' Dash, is this a beauty product?"
"Hey!" Rainbow Dash yelled, putting her hoof out. "You weren't supposed to read that!"
Applejack tossed the bottle to Rainbow Dash. "Then why'd ya have me get it?"
"Well, how was I supposed to know you can read?" She asked, fumbling with the bottle with her shaky hooves. A moment later, she lost her grip on the bottle when Applejack tackled her. They were both submerged in the water, before Rainbow Dash breached the surface, gasping for air. "Applejack!"
"Well, that's what you get!" Applejack said, smiling mischievously at the mare.
"Where did the bottle go?" Rainbow Dash asked, looking around the water.
Applejack picked it up. "Right here. Ah-ah!" She said, pulling the bottle away when Rainbow Dash reached for it. "Feather conditioner? Ah didn't realize you thought so much of your looks, Rainbow."
"It's to keep my wings in top condition," Rainbow Dash said, blushing. "You can't just use anything on feathers! Now give it BACK!" The small scuffle was interrupted when a bunch of fillies and colts raced towards the lake, squealing in delight as they jumped into the water. A second later, the dragged themselves out of the water, screaming from the cold, back to their parents.
Applejack and Rainbow Dash froze as they realize they were attracting a crowd to the lake.
One of the parents sighed. "I told you it would be cold," she said to her little colt. Then she turned to Rainbow Dash and Applejack, both still in shock that anypony else would be stupid enough to try and go into the cold water. "You know, some ponies are here to mourn, not play around."
Applejack lowered her head. "S-sorry, ma'am."
"Oh, geez, AJ, what are you apologizing for?" Rainbow Dash said, glaring at the mare. "This is a celebration of LIFE. It can't all be crying and moping." She pointed to the little fillies and colts shaking off their coats. "At least they have the right idea."
The pony scoffed, pushing her colt towards the festival, and the other ponies in their group followed. Rainbow Dash looked at Applejack, who was looking sullen. And cold. But mostly sullen. "Don't let her get you down," Rainbow Dash said, taking the bottle from Applejack and quickly working the substance into her wings. "Some ponies just think they can control everything."
"But we have to be respectful, Dash," Applejack said, getting up and splashing through the water to get to dry land. "Mah parents died a long time ago, but for some people, it's still new."
Rainbow Dash stopped lathering her wings, thinking about that statement for a moment. Then she continued, "It still holds true. I mean, come on! What does she expect, the world is going to stop so she can have time to mourn? If she didn't want to deal with anypony, she should have stayed inside."
Applejack shook herself off yet again that night. "T'aint that simple. Not every pony can just put away their feelings for later." Rainbow Dash watched as Applejack adjusted the items in her saddlebags - busy work to get her mind off of things. Rainbow Dash frowned. Again, having to see Applejack sad. She wanted to hug her tight, kiss her on the cheek, and tell her that everything was okay. But that certainly couldn't happen - not anymore.
Rainbow Dash finished lathering up her wings and once again shook them out by dipping in the water and spraying droplets everywhere. It took a few seconds to realize that some ponies were trying to avoid getting splashed by her antics while they tried to dip into the lake.
Rainbow Dash quickly hopped out of the water, still wet, and stood by Applejack, both watching as a small group of ponies dared the frigid water. They, too, were dirty, and seemed grateful for the chance to clean themselves off before the festival.
A stallion brushed past Rainbow Dash. "Sorry about that," he said, putting a hoof in the water. "Oh! Cold... But better than nothing, right?" He walked into the water.
"R-right," Rainbow Dash said. She looked over to Applejack, pointing a hoof at the ponies, giving her a look like, 'are you kidding me?'
"Look at what you started," Applejack said, smiling again.
"See!" Rainbow Dash said, as though it were her plan all along. "We're not the only ponies who want to look good for the festival."
"Look nice for their loved ones, more like it," Applejack said. She looked over to Rainbow Dash. They caught each other's glances. Both smiled; both looked away. "You're shiverin' a bit."
"Well, the water IS pretty cold," Rainbow Dash said, trying to wring water out of her tail.
Applejack nudged her with her nose. "Come on, Sugarcube. Let's go warm up by the fire." Rainbow Dash blushed slightly at the contact, before muttering an, 'okay'. Then she followed Applejack to the festival grounds.
=-=-=-=-=-=-
Twilight wasn't kidding when she called it a celebration of life. There were cheerful ponies everywhere, a play area for fillies and colts, lots of food, drinks, and games. And stories. Oh, the stories.
There were small bonfires set up by different groups. Some intermingled. Some kept to themselves. Some circles were crying, some were laughing. It was an odd mix of emotions that washed through the festivities.
Rainbow Dash was glad that Applejack had taken refuge in a happy emotion. They sat in a small bonfire with three other ponies - two stallions and one mare, siblings who were traveling together. Applejack stayed very close to Rainbow Dash. But she was telling a story like a pro. "That's when Granny thought we was havin' an earthquake. She gathered me and mah baby sister and my big brother up and threw us outside for safe keepin', should the barn fall. Little did she know that's where papa was trying to drive the stampede from."
"Oh, gosh," Rainbow Dash said, putting a hoof to her forehead, as the other members of their bonfire both gasped and chuckled. "I thought Granny Smith had more sense than that!"
"She's got a thing 'bout startlin' easily. You drive her crazy when you fly overhead right quick, and knock the apple trees about. Gives her palpitations, she says."
"Aw," Rainbow Dash said. "You should have told me! The last thing I need to do is give your grandmother heart problems!"
Applejack nudged the Pegasus. "Like you would listen." Rainbow Dash smiled to her. Applejack caught the look she was given, but tried to ignore and turned back to the siblings. "So after Granny Smith scoops us up and throws us back inside, and the stampede's under control, she gave papa a good tongue lashin' 'bout safety. He was right mad, himself, for Granny havin' thrown his kids in danger."
There was chuckling among the siblings, when the sister said, "I would imagine. I can't say I have any stories like that about my mom." The siblings shook their heads. "You know, we've been talking for almost an hour. I don't know about you, but I haven't eaten a thing. Plus, the lanterns...What's say we have some dinner?"
"Great!" Rainbow Dash said. "I'm famished!" She hopped to her hooves and made her way over to the food tables. Applejack noticed one of the brothers watch Rainbow walk to the tables, and follow close behind.
Applejack was salivating at the sight of all the food. She piled her dinner onto her plate - far more than she could ever actually eat - but darn it, she was going to try and put it all away. She went to sit back down at the bonfire, where one brother and the sister had sat back down. Looking around for Rainbow Dash, she saw her sitting on her haunches, eating her food with one hoof while she listened to one of the brothers talk. She looked uninterested, but trying to be sociable.
After talking some more, and eating as much as she could, Applejack took a moment to digest, leaning back, patting her full stomach, and looking up at the stars.
Funny, but the stars didn't seem to speak to her at all.
She was interrupted from her thoughts when Rainbow Dash finally joined her again, looking bored. "Alright. Now what?" Applejack hoisted herself up and pointed to the paper lanterns. "Oooh. That part sounds fun! Shall we?"
The two sat at a lantern making station. "Alright, Ah'm gunna make one for mama. D'you mind startin' one for pa?"
"Sure...uh...what do you want me to put on it? Apples?"
"Yeah," Applejack said, smiling. "Ah thought that was obvious."
"Well, what KIND of apples?" Applejack spent some time describing her father's cutie mark, while she tried to remember how her mother's looked. Then, the two fell in a contented silence while painting.
The silence was broken, however, when the sibling brother sat down next to Rainbow Dash.
"I see you got started without me," he said, smiling.
"Uh-huh," Rainbow Dash said, focusing on the lantern.
"So...you know, I was thinking, I don't live that far from Ponyville. I bet we could keep in touch after this."
"Mmm, I don't really live IN Ponyille," Rainbow Dash said, holding the paint brush with her hoof to explain. "More like in Cloudsdale. But it's all kind of in the same area."
"Oh, right," said the stallion. "You're a Pegasus and all. That must be interesting."
"Uh...sure," Rainbow Dash said. Applejack, who had been listening to this entire exchange, caught Rainbow Dash giving her a sidelong look, like, 'is he serious?' before going back to her painting.
"Anyways," he continued, to which Rainbow Dash sighed. "Since you're so close by, I was thinking if I could manage to get my hooves on some Wonderbolt tickets...maybe we could go, sometime?"
Rainbow Dash made a big to do about setting the paint brush down, before frowning to the stallion. "You know, I already get season tickets. I don't really need someone to buy me some."
"Oh!" he said. "So, then, if I bought a ticket, we could meet each other there?"
Rainbow's ears went flat on her head. "I kind of like to take in the show without distraction."
"I see," he said, sulking slightly. After a few moments of peace, he turned to her again. "What if we--?"
"She ain't interested, all right?!" Applejack said, or rather, she yelled. Everypony within ear shot turned to look at Applejack. Even Rainbow Dash looked shocked at the mare. The earth pony fought the desire to shrink down into the ground. She did, however, pull her hat down over her eyes until all she could see was the lantern in front of her, and continued to paint as though nothing had happened.
"Fine," the stallion said curtly. "I'll be on my way, then."
After a few moments, Applejack dared to look out from under her hat. The stallion was gone. Everypony had stopped staring at her. Except Rainbow Dash, that is. The Pegasus bit back a laugh. "Geesh, AJ, he was annoying me, too, but that was a bit much, wasn't it?"
"Well," Applejack said, not sure why she was upset. "If you got everything so figured out, why didn't ya tell him yourself you weren't interested? Or were you just havin' fun that a stallion was flirtin' with you?"
Rainbow Dash tilted her head to the side. "What?" She shook her head. "He wasn't flirting with me!"
"Rainbow!" Applejack scoffed. "How can you not notice when somepony is flirtin' with you?"
Rainbow shrugged, looking over her shoulder, trying to spot this alleged flirter. "I don't know! Those things always made me uncomfortable when I was a young. He was hitting on me?" She kept looking back. "I didn't even see what he looked like."
"What?" Applejack said, raising an eyebrow. "He was talkin' with you all throughout dinner."
"I know, don't remind me!" She rolled her eyes. "Sheesh, he kept asking me questions."
Applejack smacked forehead with her hoof. "Cause he liked you! He wanted to get to know you!"
Rainbow Dash shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "Well, the feeling was not mutual. Can we drop this, now?"
Applejack wasn't sure what made her more confused - the fact that Rainbow was so uncomfortable talking about a pony who was so obviously interested in her, or the fact that something so simple could make her blush, yet the conversation on the night of the bonfire came so easily to her. The earth pony frowned. She was almost tempted to think that Rainbow didn't flirt with anypony else but her...
But there must have been other ponies...
"Hey, AJ?" Rainbow Dash was holding up her painted lantern. A little wobbly, but the apples were apparent. Applejack looked at her stick figure pictures. There was a reason neither of them had a paint brush for a cutie mark. "You think they're ready?"
Her mind shifted as she remembered the reason they were there.
Applejack took her lantern, Rainbow Dash had it's pair, and they walked to the launching area. A unicorn pony was standing by to light the lanterns. For the launch, each pony went up with their lantern - most went up by themselves. They took their time, as much as they needed, then sent their lantern to the sky.
Applejack was starting to shake. She didn't know why. It was a simple little ceremony. Perhaps the sudden intimacy of it all became very apparent. She came from a practical family - symbolic gestures were few and far between. Suddenly, the weight of the meaning of it all bared down on her. When the unicorn pony lit her lantern and told her to go on up, she found herself completely unprepared.
She looked to Rainbow Dash, who was holding out the other lantern to her. "No," Applejack said. "Ah want you to go with me." The words spilled out of her before she realized what she was asking.
"Oh," Rainbow Dash said, taken aback. "O-okay."
Applejack reached out and clasped Rainbow Dash's hoof for a second to try and steady her nerves. It was such a brief amount of time, but it did her good. She took a deep breath, walked up to the launch area - just far enough away from the other ponies to say whatever she needed to say in private. Taking a deep breath, she held the lantern. She really didn't know what to say. Or if she needed to say anything.
She felt a hoof on her back. Rainbow Dash used her free hoof to rub Applejack on the back, smiling for encouragement. The earth pony looked to the lantern in her hooves. "Ah love you, mama," she said, before letting the lantern float up. She watched it as it joined the trail the other lanterns were taking. The painted cutie mark became nothing but a light dancing in the sky.
She took a moment to recollect herself before turning to Rainbow Dash again. She didn't look at the mare. Just stared at the painted cutie mark on the lantern. Holding it in her hooves, she felt tears beginning to form, burning in her eyes as they threatened to escape. She took off her hat, holding it to her chest. "Ah miss you so much, papa."
After watching the other lantern become an indiscernible light in the sky, she kept this one in her hooves for a few moments longer, studying the cutie mark, trying to remember things about the stallion it once belonged to. But her memory failed her, as it had been doing so much as she got older. The time that she had spent with her parents were so far in the distant past, she could hardly see it anymore.
With a shaky breath, Applejack let go of the lantern. She watched it take flight, wobbling and steadying as the night air helped to lift it higher. And like the lanterns before it, it flew farther and farther away, until Applejack couldn't tell which one she had let go.
Rainbow Dash watched Applejack carefully. She had just witnessed a very private moment for her, that she had been invited into, and felt both awkward and grateful to trusted with those emotions. Still, she didn't know what to do as she watched Applejack struggle to hold back tears. Her beautiful green eyes were reflecting moonlight as they became more and more watery. Of course, the moment she blinked, the tears escaped down the side of her eyes, creating a trail down her cheek for more tears to follow.
It hurt to watch Applejack in pain. Rainbow hated to see her cry. Whether she was supposed to let her have a moment or not, she ignored what might have been protocol and stepped up to the mare's side. She put a wing out around her. The motion shocked Applejack back to the present. Then she crumpled against Rainbow Dash. "Ah feel so silly," she said, sniffling softly.
"No, you shouldn't," Rainbow Dash said, getting up, with Applejack following suit. She led the earth pony away from the launch area, keeping her as close as possible with her wing. The orange mare sniffled, trying to contain her emotions, but Rainbow Dash just nuzzled her. "You don't have to keep those feelings bottled up." She leaned in to her ear and whispered, "Not around me."
It had not been a long night after Applejack sent off the lanterns. The sun was beginning the lighten the sky by the time Applejack and Rainbow Dash had found a tent to sleep in. Rainbow Dash had done her best to be comforting after that - trying to make her laugh, or offering comforting words. But she knew she was bad at the whole 'comfort' thing, so she finally had to resort to the only thing she could safely manage - listening. Of course, she had no idea what she was doing. But Applejack seemed to calm down for the most part.
In the privacy of their tent, Applejack reached out and touched Rainbow Dash's hooves, sending a prickly feeling up her rainbow mane. "It's getting so hard to remember them," she admitted. "Sure, we got pictures, and Granny's always tellin' stories like the one last night, and that makes me remember them. But it's gettin' hard to remember what their voices sounded like. Or how they look when Ah'm not lookin' at a picture of them. Or just those little things that make them mah parents. Ah don't know. Ah feel horrible, forgettin' mah parents like that."
"But it's natural, right?" Rainbow Dash asked, scooting a little closer, touching her forehead to Applejack's. "I mean, you were just a filly when you last saw them. You can't remember everything."
"Ah know," she said. wiping newly formed tears from the corners of her eyes. "Like Ah said, it's silly."
Rainbow Dash sighed. This was frustrating. "Oh, come on, AJ!" She said, pulling her head back to look the mare in the eyes. "So you're sad because you're forgetting your parents. Why does that make you feel silly?"
Applejack cringed. She had no answer to that.
Applejack closed her eyes. She was so tired from lack of sleep, traveling and crying - she didn't know how she was keeping her eyes open any longer. Rather than fight it any longer, she put her head down on Rainbow Dash's hooves. She thought vaguely about how warm Rainbow felt before she fell asleep.
Rainbow Dash looked down at the mare. Her feelings started to shift from concern and sympathy to longing. She was tempted to kiss Applejack on the top of her forehead, but she knew she couldn't. Instead, she watched her fall deeper into sleep, and waited for her to shift so she could reclaim her hooves. When it became obvious Applejack planned to use Rainbow's hooves as her pillow for the night, Rainbow Dash carefully withdrew them before gently setting Applejack's head down.
'It would be creepy to watch her sleep,' she thought. But she found herself doing that, anyways.
Applejack was so strong, but that night she had seemed so fragile and soft. Rainbow Dash was dying to hug her, bring her close to her, bury her face in her mane, and fall asleep like that. It was completely possible to do so, too, especially with how Applejack had just fallen asleep on her. She was only offering some comfort, after all.
Rainbow Dash repositioned herself next to Applejack. She laid down next to her, extended a wing over her.
So far, so good.
Applejack felt so warm. She was so still. Her chest rose and fell as she slept. She took few quick intakes of breath, residual from her crying.
Rainbow Dash drew back her wing and got up. No, she wasn't going to use her best friend's crying as an excuse to be closer than she needed to be. With a sigh, she sat down.
Applejack probably wouldn't have minded, either. It would have been innocent, right? At least, in Applejack's eyes, it would have.
The orange mare stretched in her sleep, and Rainbow Dash watched as she rolled onto her back, exposing her belly in an unbecoming fashion. It made the pegasus laugh. She wanted to poke her in the belly with her hoof, but didn't want to wake her up.
Instead, she fluffed her wings, laid down on the other side of the tent, and started to think.
She couldn't quiet her thoughts enough to get much sleep that night.
-=-=-=-=-=-
Applejack woke up in the tent alone. The light of the day was deadened by the dark tent material, but she knew it was some time in the middle of the day. She hoisted herself to her hooves, a blanket falling off of her, before rubbing her eyes. They were puffy from crying the night before. She ambled out of the tent.
The sun shined bright in her eyes. There were the two saddlebags loaded with food, supplies, and canteens. She took a canteen filled with water and lifted it to her lips. Then the water started dripping to the ground. She had caught sight of the blue and rainbow maned pegasus flying through the sky with ease.
At first, Applejack was sure it was a repeat of what happened the day they had kissed. She watched her carefully for a few moments to see if she could recognize Rainbow Dash working too hard, or for that look on her face that she is so familiar with.
Applejack sighed with relief to see the contented look on Rainbow Dash's face. Her eyes were closed, letting the wind blow in her mane and tail. Her wings were spread long and still as she caught a thermal and rose up with little effort.
Rainbow Dash was really amazing in the air. It wasn't uncommon for her friends to gather around on the ground and just watch her perform. Sure, Applejack chided her many times on being the center of attention, but there were times she really earned it. She didn't fail to entertain, even if it meant a few crash landings in the process.
Applejack admired the precision with which Rainbow Dash flew, the concentration on her face combined with her carefree smile. In fact, just watching Rainbow made Applejack feel like she was having trouble catching her breath.
Applejack's ears folded back against her head. When did her heart start pounding? She hadn't even done anything to make it beat so fast. Actually, it was the first time she had felt this way at all - a funny feeling as though the earth beneath her hooves had dropped out and she was falling fast.
It was intense. It wasn't fleeting. It caused her to flush as she watched the mare flying above her.
Then Applejack's eyes widened. Oh, she was in trouble, and she knew it. It was one thing enjoying the kiss she received from her best friend, who just happened to be female. That in itself was terrifying for Applejack. The idea that she was so different from everypony else she knew, everypony else in her family, was to intimidating for her to take the thought process farther. But that moment, staring up at the care free mare, she realized that she didn't just want to keep kissing Rainbow Dash that day. It was that she only wanted to kiss Rainbow Dash every day.
Applejack dropped the canteen completely, spilling what was left of the water onto the ground. She tried to catch her breath. 'Okay,' she thought, rattled by the realization. 'You can't handle this. Ain't no reason this has to be a thing. This trip ain't about me and Rainbow, it's about me and mah parents. Just finish this trip, and maybe you can figure things out later...'
Applejack's looked back up to Rainbow Dash. Rainbow was looking at her, and their eyes locked. Applejack felt the panic rise up in her as the pegasus waved, then flew down to her. She landed on the grass, before folding her perfectly conditioned wings on her well toned back. Applejack's mouth hung ajar, appreciating Rainbow Dash's beauty in a way she never had before. Suddenly, kissing Rainbow Dash's wings took on a whole new meaning, and she understood why the pegasus had made a big deal about it even when she considered it a somewhat innocent gesture.
She really wanted to touch them. She had already kissed them, how bad would it be if she just stroked them?
"Hey, Applejack," Rainbow Dash said, her face red from the exertion of flying. She shook out her wings once before replacing them back on her back. "You didn't worry cause I wasn't there when you woke up, were you? I figured you'd know where to look for me. Man, I can't believe how sore my hooves are! How do you earth and unicorn ponies walk on them all day? I was just aching to fly! So, I decided to stretch my wings before you woke up. Been up there a few hours, now."
Applejack stared at Rainbow Dash's mane, tossled about from all of her flying. The blue pony was panting, wiping some sweat from her brow. It wasn't that Applejack meant to stare - more that she didn't know how to stop. "Uhh....yeah," she managed to answer.
Rainbow Dash looked at Applejack, who shook her head and looked away. The Pegasus narrowed her eyes. "You look flushed. Are you okay?"
"Yeah," Applejack said quickly, staring at a spot on the ground.
"You're...acting a little funny," Rainbow Dash said, sitting on her haunches and tilting her head to the side. "It's not like I kissed you again last night."
Applejack guffawed all too loudly. "Oh, that's funny, Dash! Really!" She took a step back.
Rainbow Dash was silent for a moment. "Well," she said, eyeing Applejack with suspicion, "at least we can kid about it, now..." She took a step forward. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yeah, Ah'm fine!" Applejack said, turning sideways away from Rainbow.
"Cause you look like something is wrong."
"Ah told you, Ah'm fine!"
"Then why can't you look at me?"
"Ah can look at you just fine!"
"Then look at me," Rainbow Dash said, frowning at the mare.
Applejack kept her head low, turned her head to the side, and settled her eyesight on Rainbow Dash's hooves. All she could remember was how Rainbow let her lay her head on her hooves. She wondered momentarily if it bothered the blue mare to have somepony touching her hooves. If it did, she didn't give any indication.
"There. Ah'm lookin' at ya."
"How about looking me in the eye?"
"We don't got time for games, Rainbow," Applejack said, turning away from the mare. "We gotta get ready for sundown! Ah'll go pack."
"I've already--" But before Rainbow Dash could finish, Applejack ran into the tent, the tent opening closing behind her. A moment later, Rainbow heard a 'konk", followed by an "Ow!" Then the tent started to tilt sideways. Tilted a little more. Then it completely collapsed on top of the orange pony inside. Once the tent cloth had settled, Rainbow Dash was staring at the shape of an orange pony underneath it.
Rainbow Dash tried hard not to laugh. After a moment of gathering herself, she asked. "You okay?"
Applejack was quiet for a moment, still not moving. "...yeah."
"Good." Then Rainbow Dash began to titter, before it turned into full blown laughter as she fell to her side, clutching her stomach.
-=-=-=-=-
Applejack was fiddling with her bag. Busy work. Again. Rainbow Dash watched her, shaking her head. "You know, you could get more sleep before we leave," she offered. Though, she felt exhausted, herself. She had barely gotten any sleep. "You were pretty tired last night."
"It's okay," she said.
Rainbow Dash frowned. She watched Applejack carefully, but she didn't find any indication to tell her exactly what was wrong. "Okay. I don't know what I did to make you act this way!"
"You..." Applejack said, shaking her head. What was she supposed to say, 'you flew'? "You didn't do anything wrong," she said, finally.
"Okay," Rainbow Dash said, suspicion evident in her voice. "Then why aren't you looking at me?"
Applejack sighed, closing her eyes and tilting her head up to the sky. Again, there were no words adequate for the situation. She tried to come up with some way of explaining it. 'Ah think Ah'm fallin' for you, but Ah'm really confused, and wish you weren't here by mah side right now so Ah can think.' Or 'Ah may or may not want to spend the rest of my life with you, but Ah really don't think mah dead parents would approve, and their opinion matters so much to me.' Just saying it in her head sounded so harsh and stupid, she couldn't bring herself to say it out loud. Applejack opted to take the cowards way out - that didn't involve smacking her head on a load-bearing tent pole. "Can we not talk about this right now?'
"Uh, yeah, we can," Rainbow said. "I thought we were getting along fine! What..." She stopped, eyes wide, as though she were caught red hoofed. "Is this about...last night?"
"No, Rainbow," Applejack said, shaking her head and sighing. "You were real sweet last night." Applejack hoped Rainbow didn't hear the longing in her voice when she said those words.
"Okay..." Rainbow Dash sat down and sighed. "Look. Do you want me to leave?"
Applejack's heart jumped into her throat. As confused as she felt at that moment, the idea of continuing that trip by herself was far too painful an idea to deal with. "No, sugarcube," Applejack said, finally looking to Rainbow Dash. She looked into those sad magenta eyes, and couldn't take her eyes off of them. "Ah'm so glad you're here."
"Okay," Rainbow Dash said, leaning back. Something had shifted between them at that moment. Something was very different. But Rainbow Dash couldn't pin point what.
Applejack's pried her eyes away, and went back to her bag. But she didn't even pretend to be putting things away. She was just deep in thought, staring at nothing, and then to the multicolored sky as the sun was dipping beneath the distant mountains. After a moment of quiet contemplation, she realized all the other ponies getting ready to leave that night. The star was going to be visible soon.
"If we leave now, maybe we won't get swept up in the crowd of ponies," Applejack said.
"Yeah," Rainbow Dash said. Without another word, the ponies put on their saddle bags and started on their journey for the night.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
The two walked so slow. Again, they were quiet. This time, it wasn't peaceful. There may have been no words exchanged between them, but the volume of the silence was too high for either of them to be comfortable.
Rainbow Dash trudged alongside Applejack. Her hooves hurt. Her wings were itching with her desire to fly. And with the small herd of ponies they found themselves surrounded by, she found it hard to just settle into any comfortable pace. If she sped up, she would be blocked by ponies. If she slowed down, somepony would run into her. When she moved away from Applejack, she would get bumped by somepony else. And every time she wanted to get closer to Applejack, maybe ask her to walk somewhere else or on another path, Applejack seemed too distant to even begin to ask her. And to top it all off, she was tired.
Applejack, however, took some time to try and decipher what she was feeling. The last thing she needed was to ruin what they had between them by jumping in too soon. She was certain Rainbow Dash would be interested in her - any doubts of that were wiped away when she thought about that moment right between when they kissed and when she ran away. The way Rainbow Dash looked at her. The way she gently placed her hoof in order to pull Applejack forward. She was almost sorry she gave that moment up.
But until Applejack knew if she was going to be comfortable with bucking her family traditions, shucking everything she believed her parents wanted her to be, and living life so differently than she had envisioned, she didn't want to put their friendship and their feelings at risk. She knew there was no such thing as ever being completely sure. Maybe if she could get to a point where she wasn't thinking what everypony else would think, she would feel she could safely lean in for a kiss, and enjoy Rainbow's gentle lips.
"Watch it!" Rainbow Dash barked. Applejack turned to see a mare jump back from Rainbow. The blue mare looked particularly peeved, and the mare who knocked into her crouched down and walked away slowly.
Applejack frowned. "Y'okay, there, Rainbow?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," she said, lowering her head, frowning. "I hate all these stupid travelers." One of said stupid travelers gave her a dirty look as they passed.
"Are ya hungry?" she asked. "Your actin' sorta crabby."
"Oh, am I?" Rainbow said sarcastically. "Well, you're just going to have to deal."
Applejack sighed. "You're in a mood right now."
"Well, you know what's funny?" Rainbow Dash said. "I was doing just fine this morning until you woke up!"
"W-what?" Applejack asked. Suddenly, any confusion about Rainbow Dash was gone. "You're blamin' your bad mood on me just 'cause Ah woke up?"
"Well, let's see," Rainbow Dash said, rolling her eyes. "Wake up - everything is fine. Go flying - everything is fine. Applejack wakes up - lousy mood. Yup! Pretty sure it was you."
Applejack scoffed, stopping in her tracks, causing Rainbow to stop, and the small trickle of travelers to flow around them. "Rainbow! Where is this comin' from? This morning, you were concerned 'bout me. Last night, you were so considerate!"
"You can't just ignore me and expect me to be happy, Applejack," she said, flaring her wings. Rainbow Dash was a smaller mare than most other ponies. But with her eyes blazing with anger and her wings spread out in a threatening manner, even Applejack had to take a step back.
"Ah'm not ignoring you," the mare said after she recovered from the shock. "Ah just don't feel much like talkin' right now! Less, after all this!"
"Oh, that's just great, Applejack. First you beg me to stay with you, then you make me feel like I've done something wrong, then you tell me you don't want to talk to me?"
"Ah didn't--"
"You're so selfish! You know that?"
Applejack's words got stuck in her throat, leaving her mouth ajar while she tried to understand just which pony was the one saying she was selfish. After a moment, she managed get the words out. "Ah'm selfish? Me? After everything Ah've ever done for you, you can't go for two seconds without talkin'? You gotta go on thinkin' Ah'm ignorin' you? Ah've got a lot on mah mind!"
"Well, so do I! What do you think I was telling you, yesterday? That I'm just cruising over a field of flowers? What makes you so special that you can have a lot on your mind, but I can't?"
Applejack was vaguely aware of how out of control their argument had gotten. But once Applejack and Rainbow Dash got to really shouting it out, and no pony was around to stop them, they just descended deeper and deeper. There was no stopping Applejack, now. "Ah didn't say Ah was special! You, on the other hoof, have to make everything about you! Why can't you just sit back and be quiet and let me deal with this?"
"Sit back?!" Rainbow Dash said, flapping her wings and gaining some height, staring down at the orange pony. "Be quiet?!" Applejack knew Rainbow Dash was about to hammer into her with a barrage of words. Applejack even braced herself for it. She even watched as Rainbow Dash leaned forward, ready to scream at her at the top of her lungs.
Then Rainbow stopped. Her eyes widened as some realization came to her head. Her face went from angry to shocked. She stared past Applejack, as though she had been taken to a different point in time, and watched it unfurl before her eyes. Then, to Applejack's surprise, Rainbow Dash looked deeply hurt.
Applejack's heart jumped into her throat. She messed up, and bad. "Rainbow, Ah'm sorry," she said, not even knowing what she was apologizing for.
Rainbow Dash looked down at Applejack, before looking away, an indiscernable emotion on her face. "Whatever. I'm flying to the next rest station. I'll see you, there." With that, Rainbow Dash flew forward, leaving Applejack behind with passing travelers glancing at her before going on their way.
-=-=-=-=-
Applejack never thought she would see the day. Rainbow Dash just left her while they were on a journey together. Flew off and didn't come back to check on her. After such a huge fight, usually they would each need a few days to cool off, but they couldn't do that now.
And Applejack couldn't help but feel like it was all her fault. She had rarely seen Rainbow look so hurt. But when she put her mind to it, she could remember exactly when she looked that way.
One day, out in the orchard, she saw Rainbow with that look on her face. Her mother had chosen to hang out with her friend rather than spend the time she promised to spend with Rainbow. Another day, Rainbow had that exact look on her face. Her father bought Wonderbolt tickets for two - Rainbow was not one of the recipients. One other time she could remember, Rainbow had to rearrange her plans for her birthday. Her original plans with her parents had fallen through, though she never explained why.
She hadn't given much thought to what those conversations between Rainbow and her parents consisted of. But suddenly, Applejack could hear it so clearly in her head.
"You never listen to me! Why can't you just take two seconds to --"
"Rainbow, just sit down and be quiet."
Applejack had to stop walking at that point. She sank to the ground, put her hooves over her head, and groaned. How could she have messed up so much with a pony she cared about so much? If she could kick herself, she would deserve the bruise her own strong legs would give her.
She took a deep breath, got to her feet. 'Now, stop that, Applejack,' She told herself. 'You just gotta dust yourself off and fix this right quick.' She looked up at the star to make sure she was still going in the right direction. Then she galloped as fast as she could.
-=-=-=
Rainbow Dash waited in a tree near the festival grounds. It was pretty early, and the ponies were just finishing setting up. She had managed to calm down for the most part, but the words were still burning inside of her. Even just thinking about them made her hooves grip hard onto the tree branch.
She was so angry, she didn't even know what she was angry about anymore. All her fury melted together, and she needed to do something about it.
She never did good with her temper. It was always there, right below the surface. When she was younger, she felt like she could stomp it out if she just moved around and kicked things enough. Growing older, she learned to let it out in small little bursts, and she would be fine. Sometimes her anger came out in unexpected ways.
Rainbow's ear twitched as the kiss came flooding back into her mind.
She shook her head of that memory. No, that was her effort to quell her anger, and it backfired on her.
Rainbow Dash closed her eyes and took in a shaky breath. Thinking about Applejack, and the memory of the past few weeks, it was almost unbearable. She was wrong when she told Applejack that life goes on, and the world wouldn't stop for her. Her own world stopped, and she didn't know how to take part in the real world again.
The noise of a slow, somber music started, bringing Rainbow Dash's attention to the festival. They seemed to have set everything up by then.
She flapped her wings and floated to the ground. She would wait for Applejack there, though she wasn't sure if she even wanted to see her, now.
-=-=-=-=-
By the time Applejack arrived at the festival grounds, not much of the night had passed. Hopefully, she could make up with Rainbow Dash, and they could talk about things on the way to the next festival grounds for farther traveled ponies.
She didn't have time to catch her breath - she immediately began looking for Rainbow Dash. For such a colorful mare, she wasn't easy to spot. Applejack searched by the bonfires, by the lantern painting area, by the food - anywhere she could possibly be. She asked many of the ponies if they had seen her. At first, no pony knew who she was talking about. Then, the more ponies she asked, the more they knew who she was talking about. Until finally, somepony pointed her in the right direction.
Applejack followed the clues, until she was at the lantern launching area. There were a few ponies in line, heading up towards a hill where the launching took place. Applejack looked from the end of the line to the front of the line, until she spotted Rainbow Dash at the launch area. Her lantern was lit with a small flickering candle, and some indiscernible cutie mark painted on it. She sat on her haunches, staring at the lantern in her front hooves, wobbling slightly.
Applejack stared at the sight, shaking her head. Those lanterns weren't to be played with, they were supposed to be important!
But as Applejack got a little closer to the hill, she realized Rainbow Dash was talking to her lantern.
Applejack froze.
She couldn't take her eyes off the blue pony, having a one-sided conversation with her lantern. At times she shook it like she was mad at it, threatening to knock the candle inside over, and make the entire lantern catch fire. Finally, Rainbow Dash stopped talking, staring at her lantern again, shaking her head. She said one final thing, before releasing it, flapping her wings to make the lantern take flight faster. She stood up, defiant, though teetering slightly, as she watched the lantern fly off. Her tail flicked, before she turned and walked back down the hill.
Applejack sat down, disbelieving.
She really had been very selfish this trip...
-=-=-=-
Applejack kept her distance from Rainbow Dash, watching her from afar. She could see the pegasus had imbibed some alcohol just by the way she was walking. Not enough to get as bad as she was on the night of the bonfire, but bad enough that her judgment was not the best. The pegasus had taken a seat at the food tables, and was eating straight off the serving, making some ponies sneer at her before walking off.
Applejack decided to act.
She walked up to Rainbow Dash, and caught her attention with a gentle, "Hey, there, Sugarcube."
Rainbow Dash looked up, hoof halfway to her mouth with a treat. Applejack expected anger. Instead, the mare smiled and made a squeaking noise. "APPLEJACK!" she said, flying over the table and tackling the orange mare. She hugged her tight, knocking them both to the ground, while Rainbow Dash descended into giggles. "Where have you been?"
"Uh," Applejack said. "Walkin' here."
"Oh, you're so stupid. You should have flown!" Rainbow Dash got up, before she realized what she said and laughed to herself. "Oh, wait! You don't have wings!"
"Yeah. Ain't that somethin'."
"Oh! Applejack! You HAVE to try these!" She dragged Applejack to her feet, before tugging her over to a plate of food. "Can you believe they ACTUALLY have these?" She lifted up a plate of chocolate covered grapes.
"Oh," Applejack said, looking at Rainbow like she had gone insane. "Well...they're fancy."
"Oh, come on!" Rainbow Dash said, nudging Applejack. "Don't you remember when I was talking about it?" She popped one in her mouth, sucking on it with delight, before biting into the grape and swallowing. Then she reached for another one, and a thought attacked her so viciously, she nearly toppled over. "Oh, wait!" she said. "That wasn't you! That was Twilight. You're not supposed to know about that!"
"Alright..."
"But you HAVE to try one!" Rainbow Dash said, swinging over to Applejack and shoving a grape in her mouth. The rich, bitter taste of the dark chocolate overwhelmed her taste buds before she could chew on the grape. She liked sweets, but these were a little too much. Yet, Rainbow was trying to put another one in Applejack's mouth.
Applejack leaned her head back, turning her mouth. "They ain't mah cup of tea, Rainbow."
Rainbow Dash seemed almost hurt by those words, before she giggled at whatever thought passed her head. "Well, I guess it would be weird for you," she said, popping another into her mouth. "They're sooooo good."
"Sugar, YOU don't even like sweets," Applejack said, taking the tray from Rainbow Dash and placing it back down.
Rainbow Dash frowned. "But I like you!" she said. Then she turned to get the grapes again.
"Why don't you show me what else is here, Sugarcube?" Applejack asked, forcefully taking her away from the food table.
Rainbow Dash giggled. "I like it when you call me Sugarcube. Sugar. Cuuuube. It makes me all tingly."
Applejack was about to say something about that, before she smiled. "Really? Tingly?"
"You HAVE to drink with me," Rainbow Dash said, grabbing two mugs from another table and turning to Applejack. She started to sip hers while she held one out to Applejack. "It's soooo good. It's a hot cider. It's...just try it. I won't spoil it for you."
Applejack looked at the mug in her hooves, smelling the alcohol and feeling the warmth. She could see why Rainbow Dash would be instantaneously drawn to it. While normally, she would have no qualms about drinking with her best friend, now things were different. She looked at Rainbow Dash, trying to drink the cider, some of it dripping down the side of her mouth.
Not the most attractive she had seen her all day...
Still, the way she felt that morning had not gone away. Getting even a little drunk around her now could spell disaster. And flashing forward, with her issues still there, still pestering her, still waiting for some form of answer from some source that could never answer her, she didn't want to regret this moment, right here, where she decided to throw caution to the wind.
Applejack took in a deep breath. The cider smelled really good. Smelled like home. Smelled so comforting. And she had to put it back on the table.
Rainbow Dash, who in that short thought process, managed to polish off her mug, looked at Applejack's mug that she had just set down and picked it back up, sloshing the liquid in the mug and spilling a bit on her hoof. "Come on! What are you afraid of?" She put the mug to Applejack's lips and lifted it up like she was trying to get her to drink it. Instead, the liquid went up her nose and splashed on her coat.
Luckily it was warm and not hot.
Applejack spluttered, backing away from Rainbow Dash, and trying to shake the drink from her nose. "Rainbow!"
"Geesh, Applejack. Learn to drink, will you!" She started on that mug, as well.
"Rainbow!" Applejack said, putting a hoof on the top of the mug and glaring at the confused Pegasus. "This ain't the time or place to get drunk."
Rainbow Dash pulled the mug away from Applejack, and nudged her with her hoof. "Spoiled sport." She held out her hoof to keep Applejack at bay while she chugged down the contents of the mug.
"Ugh, Rainbow," Applejack said, knocking her hoof to the side. Rainbow Dash tossed down the mug.
The rest of the night, Applejack was chasing Rainbow Dash around the festival grounds. Even wobbly and drunk, she managed to be fast. At one point, Applejack had reigned Rainbow Dash in before she crashed into a booth. Then she had to fix the table of food that Rainbow Dash knocked into. When she had fixed that mess, Rainbow was already downing another mug of hard apple cider.
"Rainbow!" Applejack grabbed the mug from her.
"Thas MINE!" Rainbow moaned, reaching out for the mug. "I foun'it firss. Oh...!" She saw something else to catch her interest, and Applejack placed down the mug and ran after her.
She kept having to steer Rainbow away from the food tables. It was one thing when she was all over the food, but now she was just knocking into ponies trying to eat. While tugging onto one end of Rainbow's tail, Applejack's mouth salivated at the smells of the delicious foods available. She wished she had allowed Rainbow to keep shoving food into her mouth, as the way the night was going, she didn't think she would have any time to eat. Her stomach was already growling.
Rainbow was absolutely incoherent by the time she thought she should take over other ponies' bonfire stories with her own nonsense. "Tha' was when Ah said to da gator, 'Ahunoh whatchu mean. Chocolate'sa good as vanilla.' Then he was goin' ta be...are you gunna drink that?" She reached over to a mug a young mare was drinking. Applejack came by just in time to pull her away.
"Ah'm so sorry 'bout that," she said, dragging Rainbow Dash away.
By the time Rainbow Dash had gotten to be completely incoherent and yelling supposedly rude comments at any pony wbo just happened to be passing by, Applejack was exhausted. She made the mistake of looking at the food table, wondering if she could sneak a little bit of food before Rainbow Dash could cause any more trouble.
Then she turned around.
Rainbow Dash had disappeared.
Applejack shot up to her feet in panic. She started searching around the festival area in a panic. She caught sight of Rainbow by the lantern making area. She was carrying a lantern in her mouth and brought it up to one of the street lanterns they had set up for lighting. She stuck the lantern in the flame, causing it to catch fire, before tossing it into the air.
Applejack watched in horror as the burning lantern flew high into the air, before the fire began to engulf the rest of the paper. It was slowly coming back down to a vacant tent. For a moment, the lantern disappeared from sight behind the tent. Then the tent began to smolder.
There were screams, panic, ponies yelling, 'Fire!' Applejack raced over to the refreshments table, grabbed a pitcher of punch, and raced over to the fire. She threw the punch over the fire before it got out of control, putting it out.
Applejack panted, hearing the commotion around her. Then she heard somepony yell, "That's her!" Whipping around, Applejack saw two unicorn guard stallions walking up to Rainbow Dash, who was trying to stand up, though her hooves weren't cooperating.
-=-=-=-=-=-
Applejack followed closely, with concern, carrying Rainbow's pack on her back as the guards escorted her out of the grounds, enveloped in magic. "Just, please, don't hurt her!" Applejack said, keeping a watchful eye on Rainbow as she tried to fight weakly against the magic holding her in the air. "She's just really upset tonight! If y'all are so worried 'bout somethin' like this, why d'you even serve alcohol?"
"Most ponies can control themselves in events like these, ma'am," said the guard on the right.
"We can't punish all for the problems of one," said the guard on the left.
"Y'all are just askin' for a heap o' trouble servin' alcohol in events like these, if you ask me..."
With a gentle toss, Rainbow landed on the ground in a tangle of legs and wings, unable to get up in her intoxicated state. Applejack raced to her side, leaning down next to her, and stroking her mane as she moaned in pain. Then Applejack turned, angry, to the guards. "What's the big idea? There was no need to throw her like that!" She looked back to Rainbow, who was anything but present at that moment. "She just lost somepony. Is that some way to treat a pony in mournin'?"
"When they get in the way of other ponies," said one of the guards, "it's out job to protect the citizens who could abide by the rules." The guards turned and walked back to the festivities area.
Applejack glared at them until they were gone, then looked back down to Rainbow. She was breathing hard - she had fallen asleep.
Applejack looked around. She saw a spot near some trees that looked comfortable enough. "Alright, pony girl," Applejack said, trying to hoist Rainbow Dash onto her back. She was dead weight, and managed minor protests in the form of moans as Applejack struggled to lift her. "Time to sleep it off."
Rainbow Dash moaned again when Applejack finally got her onto her back. She breathed a sigh of relief before making her way over to the grassy spot under the trees. "Af-lack," Rainbow managed to say. "Ahdun...feel...good."
"Don't you dare throw up on me," Applejack said, quickening her pace to the grass. She put Rainbow Dash down. The pegasus looked up at her, her eyes glossed over, her mouth slightly parted as the breath struggled through the small opening. "Rainbow," Applejack said, stroking her hair. "Rainbow, who was it? Your mama? Your papa?"
Rainbow's eyes fell heavy and she was snoring a moment later.
Applejack sighed. She carefully placed Rainbow on her side, did her best to fold her wings against her body instead of just splayed around in her drunken state. She wished she could go back to the festival and grab a blanket. But she didn't dare leave Rainbow alone the way she was. Instead, she laid down next to her to keep her warm, lay her head on the ground, thought about all the terrible thoughts that must have been going through Rainbow's head through the entire trip.
Applejack fell asleep feeling shameful for how little she knew about her friend's suffering, as the lanterns passed overhead.
Rainbow Dash slowly came to. The light was so bright she had to cover her eyes. She grasped around, looking for her blanket to pull over her head, but to no avail. She could feel her heartbeat pounding in her head. She closed her eyes again, considering sleep a better option than getting water for her parched mouth. She groaned as she once again reached for a blanket that wasn't there, only to feel warm fur. Warm fur that wasn't hers.
Rainbow's eyes widened.
She managed to turn her head, and looked up at Applejack laying next to her, looking down at her. "Y'alright?" she asked, ready with some canteen water to give to her. Rainbow's eyes barely focused on the canteen, before Applejack went ahead and put the opening to her lips. Rainbow drank the water - she hardly had a choice - before managing a, "...what?"
"You got a little carried away last night," she said. "The guards kicked you out. I've been waitin' here for you to wake up."
"O...oh," she said, relieved for a moment. Then she felt horrible. Letting Applejack see her like that? Being so stupid to get so drunk on a trip that's supposed to be about her friend? Getting kicked out of the festival grounds? "I...think...I'm gunna...be sick."
"Yeah, Ah prepared for that, too," Applejack said, scooting a cooking pan she finagled from somewhere to give to her.
Rainbow Dash looked at the pan, then shoved it aside, and put her head back down. "I think I'm gunna sleep."
"Pro'bly better to just sleep it off," Applejack agreed, once again giving her water, but Rainbow Dash put her hoof to her mouth like it would make her throw up. She then laid her head down again, moaned softly, and eventually went back to sleep.
Applejack allowed her to sleep, staying by her side, stroking her mane every so often, and being attentive whenever she made a noise. Hours passed, and Rainbow Dash had slept most of the day away. By the time the sun was beginning to go down, and travelers were walking past them, Rainbow Dash was beginning to stir again. She opened up her bleary eyes, yawned, and looked over to Applejack again, surprised. "Geez, Applejack," she said, much more peppy than before. "Have you just been sitting there this entire time?"
"Got up and stretched mah legs a few times," Applejack said, looking down at the small blue pony. "Didn't wanna leave ya by yourself."
Rainbow searched Applejack's eyes for any sign of anger or disappointment. Instead, she saw sadness. "I'm so sorry," Rainbow Dash said. "I got so upset yesterday, and it...well, it wasn't really about you. I ruined your whole trip..."
"Shucks, Dash," Applejack said, waving a hoof to dismiss what the mare had said. "Ain't no big deal."
"But, it is.." she said. Her throat was parched, and Applejack offered her some more water. Rainbow Dash moaned as her body was still feeling very uneasy. "How could I be so self centered?"
"Ah feel like Ah should be sayin' the same thing," Applejack said.
Rainbow Dash shook her head, "'No, AJ, when I said that yesterday--"
"No, you were right, Dash," she said. "Ah didn't see it 'til last night. Ah couldn't see how much you were hurtin'. And Ah'm so sorry 'bout that. Ah had no idea," she said. She leaned her head in, touched her forehead to Rainbow's, startling the Pegasus. "Who'd you light the lantern for, Dash?"
Rainbow Dash was caught off guard. She did not expect that. She barely remembered anything after she arrived at the festival area. But now that Applejack mentioned it, the memories came flooding back to her. Holding the lantern in her hooves. Telling it everything she had wanted to say over the years, but had been afraid to. Shaking it with anger, telling it that she couldn't understand why she was never special enough.
"Applejack," Rainbow Dash said, pulling away. She looked into those big, sad, emerald eyes, and Rainbow knew she couldn't lie to them. She took a moment. "My mom died a few weeks ago," she said. "I...didn't even go to her funeral."
Applejack brought Rainbow Dash in for a hug, but the Pegasus pulled away, "No, it's okay!" she said. She looked to the side, shaking her head. "It's not like she would have noticed if I weren't there, anyways. Why would I have gone there anyways? Unless she left me an inheritance or something," She said, shrugging her shoulders, then shaking her head. "But I'm sure if she left a will, she would have forgotten to put me in it."
"Oh, now, Sugarcube."
"It's okay," Rainbow Dash said, still not looking to Applejack. "It's not like I miss her or anything." She looked like she wanted to say something, but thought better of it. "And apparently, my dad is so upset with me for not going to the funeral, he doesn't even want to talk to me. Hah, like that's even an excuse. What, am I supposed to be scared that our relationship will get worse?" She dug her hooves into the earth beneath her.
"Rainbow," Applejack said, nudging her with her muzzle. Rainbow looked back at the mare, who was giving her a look of concern. "Ah know you're mad at them, but ya can't pretend like you're not hurting. Ah can see it. You've been miserable." Applejack winced as a thought came through her head. "Ah've...Ah've been thinkin' it's cause of me, and all. Ah'm so sorry that Ah didn't see how badly you were hurtin'. Ah mean, Ah wanted to ask...ever since that day with...well, you know. And Ah was afraid to ask what they did to you this time."
"Oh," Rainbow Dash said, trying to sound nonchalant, "Just went off and died without telling me. Nothing new." She tried to smile, but Applejack was still watching her with concern. It had been a long time since she was so close to her for so long. "Please, don't look at me like that. Like I'm handling this wrong, or something. I don't tell you how to handle things!"
"You ARE handlin' it wrong, Dash! The way you looked last night? The way you were actin'? You can't keep doin' this to yourself because you can't talk about what's really botherin' you. Do you think Ah like having to pick you up and carry you around cause you can't do it yourself?"
Rainbow Dash looked away, shrugging. "Then you just should have left me where I was."
Applejack cupped Rainbow Dash's face in her two hooves and turned her face toward her. "Ah'd never do that. Ah don't care what's goin' on 'tween us or what we're fightin' over, Ah'm not just gunna leave ya like that."
"AJ..."
"Would you leave me like that?"
Rainbow Dash's ears went flat against her head. "Never."
Applejack stroked Rainbow Dash's disheveled mane, sending tingles down the Pegasus' spine. "Ah just wanna see you smile like you used to," she said.
"I smile," Rainbow Dash said defensively. She was locked in Applejack's grip, facing those big, green eyes. "Around you, I do."
The two stared at each other, not sure of what to say to the other. Applejack searched Rainbow Dash's face for an answer. "No, you don't," Applejack said. "Not like you used to."
Rainbow Dash looked away. She got up on shaky hooves. She was done talking. She just gave Applejack a shrug and began to walk away.
Applejack watched as Rainbow Dash sauntered away from her. She realized something at that moment. Rainbow Dash had been pulling away from her for a while, now. It was why she had felt so lonely. She had been pulling away long before she had kissed her. A while before that.
Thinking about it a moment, she didn't think it was because of her mom or her parents. She knew when she was upset over her parents, and that wasn't it. She couldn't pinpoint what it was that changed that caused them to drift apart. Maybe now that she knew what was wrong, she could figure everything out. But at that moment, Rainbow walking away from her was painful.
"Rainbow, wait," Applejack said, getting up on all fours.
Rainbow Dash winced, flicking the end of her tail. "Voice..."
"What?"
"Your voice...was really loud, just now."
"Oh," she said, trotting up to Rainbow Dash. "Sorry, you're probably still a little hung over." Rainbow Dash looked back to Applejack - blood shot eyes and matted mane. She looked sick, that was for sure. Rainbow stared back at her, making her lose her nerve. She looked too fragile to go through anything that Applejack had to say at that moment. Applejack was part of the problem- how could she hope to help the mare in front of her. They would always bicker and fight, disagree, but they always came back together in the end. OH, how she missed her, even with her being right in front of her. What could she say, now?
Applejack took a deep breath. "Drink plenty of water. Rest up. We got a long way to go, tonight. Alright?"
Rainbow Dash just snorted, turned and walked off.
Applejack sighed to herself, her emotions too turbulent to pin down. No, she could wait. Maybe keep Rainbow Dash from any more alcohol. Help her deal with the loss of her mother. Then she would try and talk things out with her.
-=-=-=-=-
Rainbow Dash had her items prepared to go. Applejack was finishing up getting supplies. Now, ready to leave, Rainbow Dash was receiving a few dirty looks from ponies leaving the festival grounds.
Rainbow Dash watched the ponies pass, frowning in return, when Applejack came back with her supplies. "Okay," Applejack said. "Ah got some things from the guards. They were none too happy 'bout givin' me anything, but after a little talk, they saw reason and got me some food, some blankets - the works. We're gunna have to -- what's wrong?"
"Maybe we should travel alone, tonight," Rainbow Dash said, still looking at the ponies glaring at her.
Applejack turned around, looking at the ponies, before taking a hoof and turning Rainbow Dash around. "Don't worry 'bout them, Rainbow. They're just upset."
"Was I really that bad?" she asked. Applejack struggled to find an answer. "I was. You always look that way when you're trying to hide the truth. What? What did I do that was so bad?"
"Maybe we should just get goin'."
"THAT bad?" Rainbow Dash asked, groaning.
"Don't worry 'bout what the other ponies are thinkin'," Applejack said.
"Oh, who cares what THEY think," Rainbow Dash said, making some ponies turn to look at her. "I care about what YOU think. I must have acted like a real jerk to make strangers look at me like that."
Applejack sighed, walking up to Rainbow Dash and putting a hoof on her shoulder. "Ah don't think that. Ah know you're not doin' well right now."
"Not doing well?" Rainbow Dash said, backing up from Applejack. "I'm doing fine! Okay," she said, putting her hooves up before Applejack started to protest. "So I drank a little bit too much last night. But, come on, who doesn't do that every once in a while. And yeah, those ponies may think stuff about me that isn't true, but I don't need you thinking I'm some wounded animal that Fluttershy has to take care of, okay? I'm doing fine!"
"Rainbow--"
"What I want," Rainbow Dash said, giving Applejack a look that she shouldn't think about continuing that train of thought, "Is to know that you don't think of me differently, AJ. I...I don't want you to think of me the way they think of me. That's what's important to me right now, okay?"
"Ah would never think of you like that, Dash," Applejack said without missing a beat. She was going to continue talking about how Dash was so sad and in mourning, but knew that was the last thing she wanted to hear right then. "It was just a weird night. It's over now, and we can keep goin'. Alright?"
Rainbow Dash searched Applejack for something - anger, disappointment, pity. Instead, she just saw how tired she looked. She sighed. "I still don't want to go with them. I can't stand being around anypony else right now. I just...can't we just spend this time together, alone, like we were supposed to?"
Applejack furrowed her brow, thinking about the land they had to pass in order to get to the next rest stop. "Ah don't know where we'd go, RD. It's mostly canyons. The only level path is where the other's are gunna go."
Rainbow Dash's ears perked up. "That's perfect! Come on, the two most athletic ponies in Ponyville? The other ponies wouldn't be there. Plus, we're so much faster than them!"
"We're pretty far behind," Applejack said, taking out her map and spreading it out on the ground. "If Ah'm right in how far we are..."
Rainbow Dash put her hoof on the map. "Seriously? I didn't know I came on this trip with Twilight. Did you write a to-do list, too? Is Spike hiding in your saddle bag?"
Applejack pulled the map from under Rainbow's hooves. "Ah'm serious, Rainbow. There ain't that much time left, and we got a long way to go."
"And I'm dying to just stretch my legs. Come on." She put her hoof on the map before Applejack could look at it again. "Where is your sense of adventure?"
Applejack sighed. She looked into the sky. The star was shining bright. "Alright, Rainbow. Let's go your way."
She expected Rainbow Dash celebrate in some way - cheering, punching her hoof in the air to celebrate. Instead, she just sighed with relief and said, "good."
-=-=-=-=
Applejack grumbled to herself. After only an hour of following Rainbow Dash into the canyon, she found herself teetering on rocks, heaving herself up hills and cliffs, and leaping over chasms while Rainbow Dash flew in the air, effortlessly navigating the canyon. Sure, Rainbow was finding the best ways for Applejack to navigate the canyon, but it also gave her the perfect excuse to fly away whenever Applejack tried to start a conversation with her. Or to ask her to slow down.
Sure, Rainbow was trying to find areas for Applejack to jump across or climb up, but she was overestimating the earth pony's ability and stamina. A point she could have brought up before she found herself hanging off a ledge over a break in the mountain trail.
Luckily, Rainbow Dash swooped down and pushed her from behind until she could scramble up to the safety of the trail. Applejack panted, frowning up at the Pegasus hovering above her. "Rainbow!"
"Sorry," she said, rubbing the back of her head. "Thought you could handle that."
Applejack fought her initial reaction to see Rainbow's comment as a challenge. She breathed in, breathed out, took a moment, then formulated her response carefully. "A half hour ago, that woulda been fine," she said, trying to keep her voice even. "Ah can't use mah wings when mah legs start to get tired, Rainbow."
"Okay," Rainbow said, talking with just as much caution as Applejack. "I'll try and find a better path."
"Wait, Rainbow!" Applejack said, but the mare flew off, not allowing her a chance.
Applejack shook her head.
Later, after they had found some more even ground, Applejack fought her weary muscles, trying to keep up with Rainbow's pace. Up hills, down hill, along cliff sides and rocky plateaus. Any time Applejack tried to call Rainbow back, she would insist on going forward and checking things out. After a while, Applejack was exhausted. And the night was creeping along slowly.
Again, Rainbow told Applejack she was going to scout ahead, and told her a path to follow. Applejack didn't get a chance to tell her how tired she was before Rainbow flew off. So Applejack continued on her trail, reaching another small chasm to jump.
Applejack stared at the chasm, panting, trying to catch her breath. It wasn't a long jump, and the fall was only a few feet, but she had doubts as to whether or not she could manage. She could already feel her muscles groaning at the idea of jumping it. Applejack crouched down low, eyed the chasm, took a moment, caught her breath, then jumped as far as she could.
"Oof!" She smacked into the cliff side. Her hooves tried to grip the dirt, but she slid off the edge before she could really react. With a small yelp of surprise, she fell five feet to the plateau below. It wasn't a long fall by any means, but she landed on her back, knocking the wind out of her.
As she lay there, trying to catch her breath, she considered her predicament. Staring up at the stars, trying to quell her panic that she couldn't get a full breath, the stray thought entered her mind that she had to nip this problem in the bud.
"Applejack!" Rainbow Dash landed down next to her, face splashed with concern. "Ohmigosh, are you okay? What happened?!"
Applejack knocked Rainbow Dash's hoof away when she tried to help her up. The Pegasus looked hurt, her ears back against her head as though she did something wrong.
Applejack managed to breath somewhat normally before groaning and hoisting herself up onto her hooves. "Rainbow," she said, panting. "What are you doin'? This....this is s'posed to be walked. No flyin'! Ah...Ah can't fly over obstacles like you! My muscles are too tired."
Rainbow Dash lowered her head. "I'm sorry."
"You're stayin' on the ground," Applejack ordered.
"Excuse me?"
"The rest of this trip. You're stayin' on the ground!"
"You're...grounding me?" Rainbow Dash glared at Applejack.
"Ah'm sorry, Rainbow," Applejack said, trying to stretch her back after her fall. "But ain't no point in travelin' together if you're gunna fly away from me every time somethin's botherin' you!"
"Look, I already apologized for yesterday," Rainbow said, stamping her hoof and raising her voice. "And I'm not bothered by anything right now, so I'm not flying away from you! I'm just trying to get you through this canyon in one piece!"
Applejack groaned in annoyance. "Ah don't wanna fight!" she pleaded. She took a moment to catch her breath, calm herself down. "Ah don't wanna be yellin' at you, alright? Ah get why you wanted to come this way. But Ah said Ah'd do it 'cause Ah wanted to spend time with you. Not for you to fly away every two seconds."
Rainbow Dash looked at Applejack with suspicion. Then, slowly, her anger deflated. She seemed to be fighting an inner dialogue, until reason won out. Looking at the ground, she drew a circle in the dirt. "I'm sorry I made you fall."
Applejack sighed. Crisis averted. "S'alright, Sugarcube. Just..help me offa this cliff?"
Rainbow Dash lifted Applejack out of the chasm and onto the plateau. "So..." Rainbow Dash said, watching Applejack sit down and put a hoof on her back. "Are you okay?"
"Just hurts a bit," Applejack said. "Ah've been needin' a break for a while."
"Oh," Rainbow Dash said, sitting down. "Why didn't you tell me?" Applejack gave her a look. "Oh...right." Her ears went flat on her head.
Applejack looked at Rainbow Dash, before smiling gently. "Did Ah make you all tingly, earlier?"
Rainbow Dash's eyes widened. "What?" she squeaked.
"When Ah called ya 'Sugarcube'." Rainbow Dash's mouth hung open. Applejack chuckled lightly. She couldn't remember a time she managed to make Rainbow look like that. "You told me ya liked it when Ah called ya, 'Sugarcube'. Yesterday."
Rainbow Dash turned bright red, putting her hoof to her face. What a time to want to run - right after she promised she wouldn't. "Oh, noooooo," she moaned. "What else did I say?"
"Nothin' that made sense," Applejack said. "It was right after you were tryin' to feed me."
"I-I-I-WHAT?" Rainbow Dash stood on all fours, turning even redder, if that was possible.
"Some grapes or somethin'. Then you tried to--"
"Pour cider down your throat," Rainbow Dash finished, face hoofing. "Oh, gosh, I remember now. I'm. An. Idiot."
Applejack chuckled. "T'weren't nothin', Sugar. Ah was flattered."
Rainbow Dash glared at Applejack. "Stop that."
"'What?"
"Saying 'Sugarcube'."
"Ah said 'sugar'!"
"Close enough."
Applejack smiled. "That'd be like tellin' an apple when to fall off a tree. Ain't gunna happen." She got a devious grin on her face. She could now wield the word like a weapon, if she wanted to. She probably wouldn't, but just seeing the look on Rainbow's face as she recognized her train of thought was worth it.
"You're cruel."
"Oh, that ain't a nice thing to say," Applejack said, getting up and walking past Rainbow Dash. She leaned in close. "Sugarcube."
Rainbow Dash's back tingled, and she struggled to keep her feathers in place. Then she frowned as Applejack chuckled.
-=-=-=-=-
They kept their talk pretty gentle as they walked along. Applejack was still sore from falling and trying to keep up with Rainbow, she didn't feel like having any long talks. Trying to follow the star took them on the oddest routes. Rainbow Dash was only allowed to fly up if she stayed near Applejack. She would look for the best route, they would follow, rinse and repeat. At times, they could see the valley below, and the sparse crowd of ponies walking towards the star. Other times, they were surrounded by earth.
"Hey!" Rainbow Dash said, smiling as she read a sign. "Natural hot spring. No diving. Approach with caution." She frowned. "Approach with caution? Why would I have to approach with caution?" She squinted at the sign. "Looks like the last part was written by a different pony."
"Maybe it ain't for soakin'," Applejack said.
"Then why don't they just say, 'Do not enter' instead of 'no diving'?"
"Maybe it gets too hot at times?"
Rainbow Dash bounded forward until she came across the hot spring. She stuck her hoof out over the water. "Hmm, so far, so good." She stuck her hoof into it.
"Careful!" Applejack said, pulling the mare back. "Dash, don't go stickin' your hoof in things! 'Specially when it says, 'Approach with caution'!"
"Calm down," Rainbow Dash said. "It's nice and warm!" She looked around. "And I don't see any reason to be nervous." She leaned over the edge, looking down into the water. "No monsters inside." She flapped her wings, then slowly dipped herself into the water. Applejack cringed, expecting the worst. But instead, Rainbow Dash went limp, letting out a satisfied moan. "Oh, yeah. This is nice."
Applejack stood at the edge of the small pool. She looked up to the star. "Relax, Applejack! We can still make good time. Besides, aren't your muscles sore? And seriously, I highly doubt we'll find another warm source of water on this trip. Might be our only nice bath."
"True..." Applejack delicately put a hoof in the water. "It does feel nice..."
Rainbow Dash grabbed her hoof. "Just get in here!" She pulled Applejack's hoof, and the pony splashed into the water. Applejack breached the water's surface and turned, angry.
"Rainbow!"
Rainbow Dash giggled a little. "I wouldn't have pulled you in if I thought it would hurt you. Now, come on. Relax!"
Applejack sat opposite Rainbow Dash, glaring at her. "D'ya want me to get your beauty shampoo?"
"Wing conditioner. And no thank you." She stuck her tongue out at Applejack.
Applejack had to admit, the water was very relaxing. She could feel her sore muscles start to relax. She let out a sigh. She took the ribbons out of her mane and tail, and started to run water through. Her mane had really collected a lot of dust and debris. Even soot from the fire the night before. She closed her eyes, trying not to remember that. When she opened her eyes again, she saw Rainbow Dash staring at her.
The Pegasus instantly looked away.
Applejack blushed, running her hooves through her mane. "It gets knotted and looks like a frayed lasso if I let it down."
"I can see that," Rainbow Dash said, trying to focus on her own mane.
Applejack looked over to Rainbow. They were quiet for a while. She regarded Rainbow - deep in thought, emotions flickering on her face.
"Rainbow, why won't you talk about your mom?"
Rainbow looked up at the abrupt question. Then she focused on cleaning her wings. "Why should I bother?"
"Ah'm here for mah parents. Ah've talked to you about them."
"Yeah, but you're parents were worth talking about." She shrugged. "What am I supposed to say?"
"Anything," Applejack said. "Ain't nothing you're supposed to say. Just say what you want."
Rainbow Dash sighed, forgetting her wings and looking to the side. "I have nothing to say about her." She was silent. Applejack wondered if she should press the issue. But she didn't need to. "I mean, what, I spent my whole life trying to get her attention. It's probably the most pathetic thing I've ever done." More silence. Then with a harsher voice. "It's so stupid, if it bothered me. I mean, come on, what does it matter?" She put her hooves back in the water so fast, water splashed up around her. "I'm so done with them, anyways. I didn't have a choice with my mom, sure, but I don't need to prove anything to my dad."
She turned to Applejack, in full rant mode, pointing a hoof at her. "He thinks she deserved more? For, what? Me to attend her funeral? Yeah. Great. He only wanted me there to keep up appearances that we were one big, happy family. Plus, I mean, after everything you, me, and the others have done? He can show me off. Not that he would ever say he was proud of me. I'm not important enough, anyways." She went back to cleaning her wings, though she was treating them rougher than she should have been.
"And your mom?"
Rainbow rolled her eyes. "She deserved more, remember?" She scoffed. "Years of trying to be the best daughter in her eyes wasn't enough, no. I mean, what? I was there for her for years, how about a little loyalty in return?" Rainbow said, splashing the water. "She never gave me the chance! A chance to...I don't know - tell her how I feel? Listen to me! I don't even know what I want. But I'll never get a chance to find out, because she just took it away from me. Not that I even knew what I wanted anymore, but--" She shook her hooves like she was trying to grasp onto the right words, but they kept slipping away. "She never gave me the chance! That's it! That's the whole thing. She's dead now, so I mean, what does it matter that I never got a chance. It didn't bother me so much before. It's just going to be something unfinished. I mean, it's just..." She pounded her hooves in the water.
"Ah understand."
"No, you don't!" She splashed water towards Applejack, glaring at her. "Your family loves you! Your parents have been dead for years, and you still want to go on a trip like this to honor them! That's what love is! I don't even know what I'm doing here. I mean...well, I came for you, yeah." Her eyes were wide as though she got caught in a lie.
Applejack was quiet for a moment. She was sure Rainbow Dash had come along for her and only her. What an ego she had... Taking a moment to recover, she scooted closer to Rainbow Dash. "You're here because you didn't get to finish whatever it was goin' on between you and your mom."
"No," Rainbow Dash said, turning her head. "I really did come for you." She was quiet, lost in thought. Finally, turned to Applejack. "AJ, you're the first pony who ever saw me. I wasn't going to let you come on this trip alone."
"Saw you?" Applejack said. "You had friends, Dash, Ah know you did."
"Well, Fluttershy," Rainbow Dash said. "But, I mean, I was more like somepony who would help her, take care of her. And I love Fluttershy. She's like the sister I never had. But even now, she still doesn't...get me." She frowned at that thought. "Everypony else either ignored me, thought I was a nuisance, or made fun of me. You were the first pony who saw me like a regular pony. And it was weird and it was awesome, and yeah we fight alot, but...I mean...I think it's cause you know me. Right?"
Applejack smiled. "Right. Shucks, Sugarcube, Ah didn't know you felt that way."
Rainbow Dash blushed. But she continued. "And I thought, maybe you felt the same way?"
Applejack opened her mouth to say something, then thought better of it. She had initially wanted to say she felt like Rainbow Dash was part of the family. And she did. But ponies didn't have feelings like she did for relatives, so that didn't seem appropriate. They were more than friends. But Applejack wouldn't dare try to define it. "Ah really don't know how to describe what we got, RD. But Ah just know it's a good thing."
The two went quiet. Both looked around for something else to focus on. After a while of quiet, Rainbow Dash frowned. "Is this water getting warmer?"
Applejack looked at her. "Oh, great. Is this why they said to use caution?"
Then they heard a low growling sound. Both looked to the direction of the growling. A pair of dragon eyes was staring at them behind a rock face, using it's dragon's breath to heat the rock face surrounding the hot spring.
Rainbow Dash yelled, "RUN!" and the two leaped out of the hot spring. Applejack's hooves made a sizzling sound as the water on her hooves hit the hot ground. The dragon roared and lunged out at them.
The two ran as fast as they could, but the dragon didn't pursue them. After Rainbow Dash looked back, she confirmed, "He's gone!"
They stopped, collapsed against each other, and caught their breath.
"A pony must have put that 'caution' sign there as a warnin'," Applejack said.
"Uh, 'beware of dragon' would have been more helpful!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "What, was he trying to EAT us? I've never heard of a dragon trying to eat a pony before. Except when Fluttershy said it that one time we had to go face that dragon. But I thought she was just being, you know...Fluttershy!" Then Rainbow started laughing.
"Rainbow!" Applejack said. "Why are you laughing?"
"The dragon just lured us into a hot spring to make hot soup out of us!"
"Why is that funny?!" Applejack asked, her heart still racing.
"Because!" was all Rainbow Dash managed to say before dissolving into laughter, kicking her legs in the air.
Applejack shook her head, and couldn't help but laugh a little. Applejack stood up and shook herself off. Then she gasped. "Oh, no!"
Rainbow stopped laughing long enough to ask, "what?"
"Ah forgot mah ribbons," she said, feeling her loose mane.
"Aw, leave them. You look beautiful with your mane down."
"And mah hat!"
"Oh....that's not good."
"And our bags!"
Rainbow Dash frowned. "Okay. Not funny anymore."
-=-=-=-=-=-=
Rainbow Dash and Applejack crouched low on a rock face, looking down at the hot spring. The dragon was laying down, curled around the hot spring and their bags. It was even wearing Applejack's hat.
Applejack wiggled her rear like a cat about to pounce. "When Ah get mah hooves on that dragon...."
Rainbow Dash put a wing around her to push her down onto the rock face again. "Calm down. He was clever. Why waste energy running when we'd probably be back for our things? He's probably done this before."
"Ya think?" Applejack asked, staring daggers at Rainbow Dash.
"Whoa. Calm down, AJ."
"He's wearin' mah papa's hat!"
"Okay, yeah, that's a douchy move," Rainbow admitted.
"Alright, we gotta hit him hard and fast. Ah'll hit him with these rocks to distract him. When Ah get his attention, you swoop down and grab our stuff. Don't forget mah hat! Ooh, Ah'll knock him in the eye for that one. Teach him a good lesson."
"Right..." Rainbow Dash said, raising an eyebrow to Applejack. "While I like a good knock down, drag out fight like the next pony, I've been across more dragons than you." She booped Applejack on the nose to get the mares attention on her rather than glaring at the dragon. "We can't take him. Maybe we should...oh, I don't know...be stealthy?"
"You're suggestin' stealth? You?"
"Even with Twilight with me, we barely got away from a bunch of teenage dragons last time," Rainbow Dash said. "We're both tired. I'm just trying to be smart. Don't be so surprised," she finished with a deadpan tone.
Applejack gave a sheepish smile. "Maybe that would be better."
"Don't worry. We'll get your hat back in one piece." She patted Applejack on the head.
After going over a quick plan, the two separated and made their way to their spots - Applejack behind the dragon, Rainbow Dash in the bushes that surrounded the spring. Rainbow began to rustle the bushes, grabbing the attention of the dragon. The dragon groaned low as it got up and started towards the shrubbery. Rainbow Dash flew to the next bush, a little farther back, and the dragon went to investigate farther.
Applejack came out of her hiding place to grab her items only to discover that they weren't there. The dragon had slipped it's tail through the straps of the bag and was carrying it with him as he went to investigate.
The earth pony glared at the dragon before grabbing her ribbons in her mouth. Then she follow closely to the dragon as Rainbow Dash shot to another bush, rattling that one as well. The dragon's tail slowly swung to one side, then to the other. Applejack watched the bags swing like somepony being hypnotized, reaching her hoof out to try and grab it as it passed by.
As the dragon got closer to the bushes, Rainbow Dash found herself without any farther to go back. The rock face that surrounded the hot spring was now keeping her pinned in a corner. Her only escape was up, but she hadn't heard Applejack give the signal yet.
The dragon huffed. The Pegasus crouched low to the ground, as the dragon craned it's neck, sniffing the foliage for whatever was making the noise.
Applejack saw the dragon's tail go still as it became intrigued by whatever it had found. Knowing she had only a few moments before Rainbow Dash was in trouble, Applejack grabbed the bags and pulled.
The bags didn't move. They were stuck on one of the dragon's spikes.
The dragon, however, did move.
He turned his head, looking straight at Applejack, eyes focusing on the orange pony before him. Applejack wanted to focus her anger on the dragon for having tricked her and Rainbow, having stolen their items, having stolen their hat, and potentially trying to eat them. But when she saw the toothy grin from the dragon, she went instead to panic.
Rainbow Dash instantly flew out of her hiding place, snatched the hat from the dragon's head, and kicked him on the forehead, before flying down and grabbing Applejack. She pulled the mare, but was met with resistance.
The dragon roared as the two mares yanked one of the spikes on his tail. Rainbow Dash tugged again. "Come on, Applejack!"
"The bags are caught!"
"Leave them!"
Applejack let go of the saddle bags, and the two ponies went spiraling back to either side of the hot spring.
The dragon was not happy with his tail having been abruptly pulled. He reared up, and in a low voice, said, "That. Hurt."
"Bite me!" Rainbow Dash said.
"No, don't!" Applejack yelled as the dragon lashed out at the Pegasus. Applejack jumped up, grabbed a nearby rock, turned around, and bucked it straight into the dragon's eye. The dragon grasped it's eye, roaring in pain.
Rainbow raced to Applejack's side. "Go, go, go!" She yelled, and the two ran the way they had run before. This time, they kept running for a long time, making sure the angry dragon wasn't going to chance after them. After they heard roaring in the far distance, they knew they could stop.
Stopping, they again collapsed against each other. Rainbow Dash still had Applejack's hat on in her hooves. She looked at it for a moment, before placing it on Applejack's head. "Maybe we should just...stick with the group next time."
Applejack nodded. "Goin' off on our own...not a good idea."
-=-=-=-=-
Once they found their way down from the mountain trail to the valley, it wasn't long to get to the festival. It was late at night. Tired and wary, the two stood outside the festival grounds. They were both hungry, having lost their snacks in their saddle bags, and both really wanted to rest after navigating the canyon side. Yet, they were both reluctant to enter. After what happened the night before, neither of them wanted to make the first move.
The festival grounds were in a valley, surrounded on two sides by the canyon walls. On the top of the rock faces were Pegasi, looking down at the festival, some low lying clouds that were not yet being occupied floating above. The atmosphere poured out of the entrance and surrounded them - docile, gentle, happy, yet somber.
Music filled the air as the band playing music changed the song from a somber tune to a hauntingly beautiful song.
Rainbow Dash looked to Applejack, then looked away. Applejack glanced over to the direction of the pony beside her, then back.
Rainbow Dash cleared her throat and shuffled her feet. She looked down to the ground, listening to the music, before sighing and looking over to the earth pony. "You know...Oh, geez, this is gunna sound so stupid."
"What is?"
"Well....I mean, they're playing some pretty decent music at this festival." Applejack nodded. Rainbow Dash was happy she didn't need to take the time to listen, but knew what she was talking about. "And, well..maybe...I mean, if it wasn't so corny, I would ask if you wanted to....dance. Yeah! I know! It's stupid!" Rainbow Dash yelled, covering her face with her hoof.
Applejack chuckled. "Rainbow! You didn't even let me answer."
"What? So...you want to, then?"
"Ah didn't say that..."
"Oh. See! I told you, it was stupid." She was quiet for a moment. "I mean, I don't even know how to slow dance, and this is a slow song. And we're both pretty sore after everything. And you probably want to be easy on your back after that happened earlier."
"Ah AM sore. But the music is mighty nice," Applejack said, closing her eyes and listening to the music, swaying to and fro. "Ah don't know how to slow dance, either."
"Right," Rainbow Dash said, pawing at the ground. "I mean, why would we have to know? It's not like we're going to any formal balls or anything any time soon."
"Yeah," Applejack said. "Well, seein' as we went to a royal weddin' an all...we could try."
"REALLY?" Rainbow Dash said, nearly knocking Applejack over with her eagerness. "Cause I feel like dancing!"
"Me, too!" Applejack said.
The two turned and looked at each other. Rainbow Dash was studying Applejack's face. She was blushing. She looked so cute.
Then Rainbow Dash was overcome by the realization that she had no idea what she was doing. "Uuuhhh," she managed. Applejack raised an eyebrow at her. 'Come on, think, Rainbow,' she told herself. 'You've seen slow dancing before...' She thought back to the wedding, and how Shining Armor and Cadence danced their first dance. Rainbow Dash closed her eyes, stepped up close to Applejack, put her head to the side of Applejack's head.
Rainbow Dash was so nervous, she was shaking. But Applejack pressed her head against Rainbow's neck, and the two swayed back and forth, taking little steps in time with the music. Neither of them had much rhythm, and Applejack kept hitting her hooves to Rainbow's. Rainbow ignored this at first, but after the fourth time, Rainbow turned her head and gave Applejack a look.
Applejack turned red. "Sorry," she managed. Rainbow Dash's focused on something behind her dance partner - another pony caught her eye before she realized that the pony had been staring at her. She took a quick look around to see they were, once again, attracting attention. Applejack was now looking, and an embarrassed look crept across her face.
"Here." Rainbow Dash opened her wings, grabbed Applejack with her front hooves, then flapped her wings lifting the two of them. Applejack gasped when her back hooves, which were straining to stay on the ground, lifted into the air. Then she looked up at Rainbow, who was looking down at her, smiling. Then she turned her attention to their destination.
Applejack, who was dangling in Rainbow's grasp, just hoped Rainbow wouldn't drop her.
Then she felt her back hooves touch ground again. Rainbow had placed her on the top of the canyon wall, while she flew in front of her in the air. Their front hooves were still touching. Then Rainbow shifted her hooves. Applejack fell the short distance forward into Rainbow's embrace. Then the pegasus landed, and the two were standing with only themselves holding each other up on two legs.
Applejack buried her nose into Rainbow Dash's mane. She smelled so good. If only this moment didn't end. But of course, it was interrupted by Rainbow saying "What are you looking at?" Applejack turned to see the Pegasi on the top of the canyon side were staring at them.
Rainbow Dash and Applejack exchanged a look. The song continued to climb up the canyon walls towards them. Then Rainbow Dash smiled. Applejack recognized the light bulb going off on her head. "Race you to that cloud!" Rainbow pointed to a cloud above them on the other side of the cliff they were on.
"W-what? Rainbow!" But Applejack didn't have time to question her. Rainbow Dash was already racing forward, hopping from cloud to cloud, whether they were occupied or not. "Rainbow!" Applejack raced along the canyon side, looking forward to make sure she didn't hit anypony, then to the side to see if she was keeping up with speedy Pegasus.
Rainbow Dash jumped off the last cloud, opened her wings, and dipped down. Applejack tried to follow her path with her eyes when she realized she had no more ground under her hooves. For one brief moment, Applejack was falling back down to the earth.
Then Rainbow Dash swooped up and caught her, embracing her, nudging the side of her head with her nose, before flying up, up, up to the cloud high above the festival grounds. Before Applejack could realize what had happened, they were on a cloud. Rainbow Dash landed her back hooves, holding Applejack close to her.
Applejack's back hooves kicked around, trying to find ground. She held onto Rainbow Dash, suddenly afraid of falling as the weird sensation of being surrounded by what looked like mass (but in fact was not) overwhelmed her. Rainbow could stand on solid ground, and though she knew she couldn't stand on the cloud, her mind was struggling to comprehend how this was possible.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, it's okay," Rainbow Dash said, holding onto Applejack tighter. "I've got you, you're not going to fall."
"Yes, Ah am!" Applejack said, deciding it was better to wrap her back legs around Rainbow.
"Oh, horse apples!" Rainbow Dash said, teetering backwards. Applejack gave a short yelp as what she thought would come true, did in fact seem to be happening. She closed her eyes, bracing for impact.
But the fall was short lived. She landed on top of Rainbow, who was cushioned by the clouds beneath her.
Rainbow Dash grunted when Applejack landed on her - she was a lot heavier than she looked. "Applejack! You might want to lay off of the fritters."
Applejack looked at Rainbow Dash, stunned, her face ashen from her fear, but her cheeks glowing from the implication that had been made. She looked so cute. Rainbow Dash could have kissed her right there.
Then Applejack smacked Rainbow Dash on her shoulder. "Rainbow! A-a-ah don't even k-know what to say!"
Rainbow could feel Applejack's entire body was shaking. She turned sympathetic, pulling Applejack up her body so they were face to face. "Aww, don't worry. I gotcha."
Applejack's heart was pounding. She was breathing fast, and couldn't catch her breath. The idea that Rainbow Dash was the only thing keeping her from falling was a little overwhelming to her. Applejack felt Rainbow Dash's hooves loosely holding on to her hips. She felt her warmth. Her mind began to calm down, and she started to feel safe.
"AJ," Rainbow Dash breathed, absentmindedly rubbing the orange pony's hips with her hooves.
Applejack looked away. It was all a little too intense for her. In the distance she could see lanterns floating up into the sky. Everything seems so surreal.
The orange pony's ears perked up. "The music stopped."
"Who cares?"
"We've had a long day. We should go to bed. I mean, get some sleep." Her blushed slightly.
"I didn't misunderstand you," Rainbow Dash said, playfully nudging the pony with her hoof.
Applejack dared to look at her again. She didn't want to leave this moment behind, as well.
Rainbow Dash bit her lip, looking up at Applejack. They were silent, regarding each other in a new way, their bellies touching. They could feel the heat of the breath they each breathed out.
Applejack leaned in. Rainbow Dash's eyes widened. But then, she could see the wheels in her head turning. And then Applejack leaned back. "Really. We should get some sleep."
Rainbow Dash stared at her for a moment, before sighing. "Fine," she said tersely.
Without a word, Rainbow Dash flipped over. Applejack instantly clasped onto Rainbow Dash like a vice. Rainbow was loosely holding on to Applejack, since Applejack was holding on so tightly. She fluttered down to the ground, until Applejack felt her tail touch the ground. Applejack looked down, finally releasing Rainbow Dash, and placing her hooves back on the ground.
Applejack and Rainbow Dash stood there, in front of each other, not looking at each other. The orange pony shook her head, trying to clear it. "Okay. We should probably eat and..."
"Applejack?" The mare looked up. Rainbow Dash was poking at the dirt with her hoof. She seemed to be holding back saying something. Then she closed her eyes tight, before looking to Applejack. "I...don't want to play games."
Applejack's stomach tightened. "Ah'm not trying to."
"I know you're not," she said, looking to the side. "But I...don't want to sit around, waiting for you to notice me."
Applejack jerked her head back. "T'ain't like that, Rainbow. You mean so much to me." She looked away. "Ah don't wanna ruin it if Ah don't know where Ah stand."
Rainbow Dash looked away. She looked shaken. But she still nodded. "Okay. I get that." They were both silent, looking anywhere but at each other. Finally, Rainbow Dash looked back at Applejack. "We're still okay, right?"
"'Course we are," Applejack said.
"Okay!" Rainbow Dash said, trying to force a smile. Applejack was pained. She just wanted to see her really smile again. Instead, she started to trot past Applejack. "I guess I'm going to go get something to--"
"Rainbow." The blue mare stopped and looked to Applejack. "Ah just need time, okay?"
Rainbow Dash was quiet. Then she nodded. "Okay." Applejack watched as the Pegasus walked off to find the food tables.
What she didn't see was when Rainbow Dash hid behind a cliff wall, where no pony could see her kick the wall in anger. Again and again and again, muttering, "Stupid, stupid, stupid!" as she did so. Shaking and panting, she carefully walked away, her back hooves pulsing in pain.
The night passed by. Somehow, Rainbow Dash and Applejack got through it without talking about anything of substance. Their exchanges were stiff at first, as they were both painfully aware of how much they had talked about that night. After a while, they started to get more comfortable around each other, until they found themselves laughing about the entire dragon situation. It took some time, but by the end of the night, they both decided to sleep under the stars, falling asleep to the lanterns floating through the sky.
Applejack woke up first. The sun shining in her eyes was something she was very unaccustomed to. Whereas Rainbow Dash was used to napping during the day, Applejack used the sun as an alarm clock. The idea of sleeping during the day set off years of her conditioned mentality that she had to be up and ready to start the day. It was just as difficult when she stayed up with Rainbow the night she was drunk. She barely got any sleep. But now, with her sore muscle and tired mind, she looked at Rainbow's sleeping form, scooted close to her, and buried her face against the crook of her neck to block out the sun.
Rainbow Dash woke up momentarily, bleary eyed, and saw Applejack sleeping next to her. It took her a moment to realize it, but the implication of it all failed to pierce through her sleep-deprived mind. Instead, she just put a wing over her, and fell back asleep.
-=-=-=-=-
Both Applejack and Rainbow Dash awoke with a start when a Pegasus passed overhead, yelling back to his traveling buddies. They looked up at what woke them, looked around to get an idea of where they were, then looked at each other. They were so close together, their lips brushed against each other's.
Applejack jumped up, putting a hoof to her mouth, surprised, blushing. "R-Rainbow, Ah'm sorry," she said.
Rainbow was still trying to figure out what just happened. She widened her eyes, rubbed them a little, then yawned. "I...what? What time is it?"
Grateful Rainbow Dash didn't comment on what had happened, Applejack looked around. Ponies were already heading out. The night star was beginning to shine in the sky. "Oh, we gotta get movin'," Applejack said, looking around. They had not managed to find another saddle bag, so they packed up two small satchels with food and one canteen a nice old mare lent to them. Applejack placed the food next to Rainbow Dash. "Ah think we should eat now or somethin' to get our energy up. We got a lot of ground to cover tonight if we wanna be at the star lightin' area tomorrow at sundown."
"What?" Rainbow Dash said, jumping to her hooves, her back hooves flaring with pain. She ignored that and said, "I thought it was the next sun down!"
"No, tomorrow!" Applejack said. After a moment, she narrowed her eyes. "You mean to tell me you've been plannin' our course by addin' another DAY?"
"Well, how the hay was I supposed to know?" Rainbow Dash said, throwing a hoof in the air in exasperation. "You're supposed to be in charge of the schedule!"
"Ah WAS!" Applejack said. "But you pulled the map away from me yesterday, remember? Ah was listenin' to you!"
"Yeah, look how great that turned out!"
"Oh, for pete's sake!" Applejack said, turning around. "Ah'm gunna go ask somepony if they know how far we have to go. You wait here." She ran off, leaving Rainbow Dash to sit and think.
She opened one of the satchels they had packed for breakfast. Applejack took a liking to a chocolate orange spice cake, and Rainbow had encouraged her to pack as much as she wanted. She didn't realize the entirety of their breakfast would now consist of the confection. Rainbow shook her head. Applejack and her sweets...
The Pegasus wasn't too sure how she felt at that moment. It felt nice waking up next to Applejack - it felt so nice. But then she jumped up the way she did, and the moment was broken. She understood where Applejack was coming from - it was all new to her, too. But Rainbow Dash had the luxury of most of her family not caring about her. In this instance, it made for an attitude that she didn't care about what other ponies thought. Not that it didn't come with it's own torture - asking somepony to be with her who valued her family's approval was tricky, to say the least.
Rainbow Dash was overcome by the empty feeling again that had been plaguing her for weeks. Since the first moment she looked at Applejack in a new light. Sure she had always liked Applejack, had always loved her like a friend. And she tended to steer herself towards the mare in situations involving her friends. She just felt more comfortable around her. But there was a moment of Applejack jumping up with concern for Rainbow Dash, making sure she didn't put herself in a dangerous situation again, that made her feelings shift. It was something she could ignore at first, but it became more intense as time passed by.
It scared her at first, too. She tried to give them some space. But she couldn't stand being away from Applejack for so long. She was a constant presence in her life. And she tried to keep normal around her. But Applejack told her yesterday, "I just want to see you smile again." She didn't realize she noticed how she had been feeling. It made her feel happy that Applejack would notice something like that. It also made her feel worse that she couldn't do anything about it.
She felt empty and like she was bursting at the seams all at once, and she didn't know how much longer she could bear it.
She put her thoughts away as Applejack came trotting back, looking concerned. "You haven't eaten?"
"Not hungry," she said, pushing away the satchel.
"Not much hungry, either. Most of the ponies said it - we're really far. Unless we forget about sleepin' and walk the whole way there, ain't no chance we'll get there on time."
Rainbow Dash shrugged. "Right," she said. "Well, we could fly."
Applejack looked at Rainbow, surprised. "Haven't you forgotten - Ah don't have wings!"
"Yeah, you do," Rainbow Dash said, getting up and fluffing her wings. "Shouldn't be too hard to carry you. You didn't gain ten pounds last night, did you? You DID eat alot." Applejack narrowed her eyes at Rainbow Dash, who smiled playfully at her.
Applejack decided to ignore that comment and instead said, "The only other option is runnin' there."
The amused look on Rainbow Dash's face fell away. She had been stupid last night, kicking the cliff side to get out her anger. Her back hooves had been aching, even while just laying down on the ground. Once she got up, it was like her hooves exploded with pain. She chanced taking a few steps forward. Her hooves didn't hurt so bad that she couldn't put weight on them, but they were certainly not going to be carrying her that night.
"What's wrong?" Applejack said, seeing the pain on her face.
"My..." Great, how was she supposed to explain this to Applejack? She sat down, looked at her hooves. They were cracked. Normally, that wouldn't have been a problem, but combined with traveling on hoof more than she was used to, and kicking the canyon repeatedly, the pain was pretty impressive. "My hooves hurt too much..." she finished lamely.
Applejack took Rainbow Dash's back legs up and inspected them, causing Rainbow to squirm at somepony touching her hooves. "When's the last time you had these hooves seen by a professional?"
"Uhhh..." She cringed as Applejack gently touched her hooves with her own.
"No wonder you fly so much. Ya need to take better care of your hooves!"
"EEeeee," Rainbow Dash squeaked, fighting the urge to pull her hooves away. It just made Applejack hold tighter for inspection. Rainbow Dash bit into her front leg, closing her eyes tight.
"Did this happen last night?" Applejack asked. "When you kicked the dragon? They got some hard heads..."
"Uh...yeah!" Rainbow Dash said, forcefully pulling her hooves away. She shuddered - that was not pleasant.
"Ah thought Ah saw you limpin' last night," Applejack said. "Do they really hurt?"
"They're very sore," Rainbow Dash said, rubbing her hooves. "I just don't see running tonight as an option."
"Well, maybe Ah could run and you could fly beside me," Applejack said.
"How would that be different from last night?" Rainbow Dash asked. "I mean, you're just going to get tired, I'm going to want to push on - I can't run next to you. Let's save ourselves the fight."
"This is s'posed to be run the whole way," Applejack said.
"Oh, the Princess isn't going to punish you if you fly. I'm sure there are some ponies who are just going to zap themselves over there like Twilight could. Besides, I'm sure you're as sore as hay right now. Why tire yourself out, too?"
Applejack squirmed. She really was sore. "What about your wings? They'll get tired!"
Rainbow Dash jerked back, insulted. "My wings are in top condition!"
"With me on your back?"
"...okay, so they'd get a little tired. But we can stop along the way! And we'd cover a LOT more ground being able to fly a straight line rather than running over obstacles. We might even get there early, and you can be all rested up for the ceremony!" She spread out her wings, gave them a little flap before putting them back on her back.
Applejack squirmed, thinking about the possibilities. "You won't let me fall?"
"Never."
Applejack took in a deep breath. "Okay," she said.
Both ponies were silent as they prepared to leave. Rainbow Dash was stretching her wings and warming up. Applejack was trying to think of anything she could bring with her that would help, but nothing came to mind. All she could do was bring the satchels and the canteen with her. Finally, Rainbow Dash flew in front of Applejack. "You ready?"
"Yup!" Applejack said. "So...do Ah just...climb on your back, or..." Rainbow didn't answer. Instead, she flew up into the air. After she had gained enough height, she launched herself down towards Applejack. She grabbed her with her hooves, causing the pony to yelp in surprise. Rainbow Dash tossed her up in the air, and Applejack landed on Rainbow's back, latching on for dear life. She could feel Rainbow's wings beating as she tried to catch height.
"Ponies...ponies...PONIES!" Applejack yelled, as they came up on a group of travelers.
Rainbow Dash beat her wings harder, but it was taking her longer to gain height than she predicted. She just barely cleared the height of the ponies, before catching some wind and rocketing up into the air.
They climbed higher and higher, and Applejack got more and more nervous. She looked down to see the landscape she was so used passing beneath her in rapid succession. "AJ!" Rainbow Dash called back. "Stop holding on so hard!"
"Ah don't wanna fall off!"
Rainbow Dash steadied her flight pattern, managing to keep her height without having to flap her wings too much. "We're both gunna fall if rupture my spleen or something!" It wasn't the thought of falling but realizing she could hurt Rainbow that made Applejack force herself to loosen her grip. "Better," Rainbow said. "But a little more would help!"
Applejack didn't know if she could loosen her front legs, but she could at least allow herself to loosen her back legs. With some effort, she let her back legs go, only loosely gripping onto Rainbow Dash with them.
"Much better!" Rainbow said. "I'm guessing you've never flown before..."
"Oh, hush, you," Applejack said, reassuring herself mentally that she was okay.
"Cause you might want to take the chance to look around," Rainbow said. "Unless you're afraid of heights."
Taking that as a challenge, Applejack frowned to Rainbow Dash. Rainbow gave a cheeky smile, then focused on flying. She took a deep breath, then looked down.
The landscape was absolutely breathtaking.
The meadows passing quickly below were lit by the moonlight, dappled with fireflies twinkling in the brand new night. The mountains to the sides of her rivaled each other in height - some were lower than the two ponies flying through the sky, some were higher. Above her, the endless sky was uninterrupted by clouds. If she stared up long enough, she felt like she could fall into the night sky.
Applejack grabbed on to Rainbow Dash suddenly when she had the sensation of falling. "Sorry," Rainbow said. She was dipping down a little lower for no apparent reason.
"You did that on purpose," Applejack said coyly.
"No, really," Rainbow Dash said, looking back at Applejack. "I know you can't feel it, but there are air currents. It's easier to glide if I follow them." She looked forward, then back to Applejack with a wink. "Watch. I won't even flap my wings."
Rainbow Dash angled her wings up, and the two started to flow up into the air effortlessly. They had only moved a little higher into the sky, but it felt like they had jumped up into the air and gravity failed to pull them back down. True to her word, Rainbow Dash didn't flap her wings once.
Applejack watched the mare's wing's with admiration. Every once in a while she would flap her wings, but it didn't seem all too necessary. The feathers held steady except for the tips, which would vibrate every so often as the passing air flicked past them. The wings worked in unison with slight variation, tilting from one side to another with muscles Applejack didn't know existed before. It was so precise. For once, Applejack was proud to have kissed such beautiful wings. She wanted to do it again. For a moment, she wondered if Pegasi were sensitive in the wings. She wanted to explore them, and find out for herself.
They flew like this for about an hour, past ponies underneath, and at times completely by-passing the trail. Applejack stared in admiration of everything around her - the wings that were carrying her, the ground below, the way Rainbow's mane flowed in the wind, the stars above her. For once in her life, she wished she had wings. Then she knew she could never appreciate what she was seeing if she did - she would take it for granted.
Rainbow's wings titled to the side, and the result was instantaneous - the two ponies were flying down and to the side. Applejack was about to ask what they were doing when she realized they were landing. She held on tight, but not too tight as Rainbow Dash flapped her wings and landed. The Pegasus drew in a quick breath, in pain. Applejack quickly climbed off of her back. "You okay?" she asked.
"Yeah," Rainbow Dash said, wincing as she looked at her back hooves. "I forgot about that."
The two feasted on what little food they had. Rainbow Dash gave the cake to Applejack - she really wasn't that into sweets. The mare ate the cake with gusto, to the point that she licked hooves. Rainbow Dash chuckled to herself. "You know, I have to carry you after this."
"Ah ain't gunna gain ten pounds from a little cake," Applejack said, glaring at Rainbow Dash.
Rainbow smiled at her, popping a sandwich into her mouth. "That's how it starts," she said.
Applejack shoved the pony with her hoof. Rainbow Dash just laughed. "Don't be mean," said the earth pony.
"That's like telling an apple.....something something...falling off a tree or something. I don't know, it's your stupid phrase. Ow!" Applejack had smacked her again. "I'm just naturally mean. But you know that."
"You're not mean, Rainbow," Applejack said, shaking her head and smiling. "just a little annoyin' at times."
When finished, the two lay on their backs, taking time to enjoy the night sky. Applejack watched the sky. She looked sideways to Rainbow Dash, who had a hoof up to the stars, as though she wanted to touch them. Then she looked back to Applejack and put her hoof back down.
"What were you doin'?" Applejack said, smiling at the mare.
Rainbow Dash blushed, shaking her head. "Just...They're so far away, but I like to... Okay, this is stupid. But...sometimes I like to pretend like I can touch them." Applejack chuckled. "Oh, okay! Yeah, laugh. It's stupid, I know." She turned sideways, frowning.
"Nah, it's cute," Applejack said. Rainbow Dash looked back at Applejack. "Well, if Ah can wait for the stars to talk to me, then you can try and touch them."
Rainbow Dash rolled onto her back, watching Applejack. She looked at her, considering what she was about to say. "So...have you heard anything?" She pointed at the stars to signify what she meant.
"Oh, don't make fun, Rainbow."
"No, I mean it!"
Applejack looked at Rainbow for any hint of sarcasm. Then she answered, "Stars don't got no way of talkin', now do they?" She sighed, looking back up to the stars.
"That one does." Rainbow pointed at the bright star in the sky pointing them in the direction of the festival.
Applejack looked at the star for a moment, before shaking her head. "Cause the Princess makes it." She shook her head. This whole journey was starting to look like a fool's errand. She was tired, a little home sick, frustrated, confused, and couldn't seem to get along with her best friend. She felt like she opened up old wounds as well as gained new ones. She huffed in annoyance, before turning to the side.
"Hey," Rainbow Dash said, getting up and looking down at Applejack. "Are you okay?"
She looked up at Rainbow, then past her to the stars above. She felt torn between the two. But Rainbow was right. The stars were so far away.
Rainbow, however, was right in front of her.
Her eyes focused on Rainbow once again. "Ah'll be fine."
-=-=-=-=-=-
Once again, they were flying through the air. With a tail wind behind Dash propelling her forward, she flew with relative ease, being able to cut through the night in a little more than a few hours. But as she had explained to Applejack, flying during the day was easier because of thermals created from the heat of the earth. With Applejack on her back, her endurance was being tested. So it was no surprise that after flying a few hours into the night, Rainbow Dash was huffing and puffing. Just as they were passing over a lake, Applejack nudged Rainbow Dash in the back of her head with her nose. "You doin' okay there, Sugarcube?"
"Fine," she answered. Silent. "You didn't feel--"
"You shudder? Yeah." Rainbow Dash blushed as Applejack chuckled. "Sugarcube." Rainbow Dash dipped down quickly, making Applejack yelp.
"Not so funny anymore, is it?"
Applejack scowled at Rainbow Dash. She decided to ignore that question and move on to her concern. "You sound tired."
"Well, it's a lot more work carrying somepony than I thought it would be." Before she could finish her train of thought, a fish jumped out of the lake and nearly hit her in the face. "Whoa!" She flapped her wings hard and climbed into the sky. Below them, they could see fish jumping out of the water - large fish, small fish - all of them jumping high into the air and landing back in the lake, making the water churn with activity.
"Cool!" Rainbow Dash said. Then she felt her wings straining to try and lift them higher. "Okay. I think I need a break." She looked around. Then she smiled. "Okay, we have two options. One, we can fly for a little while longer on my tired, sore wings, and land on the lake shore, and hang out with the fish."
"Okay..."
"And two..." Rainbow Dash looked up. Applejack followed her line of sight. There was a big cushy cloud high in the air. She could see some lanterns floating in the air below it. "You'd...have to lay on me, of course."
Applejack flushed at the thought. She'd give anything to have that moment back. She regretted giving up the moment with the kiss so much... But what would she do once they were in that moment again?
"It's your choice, Applejack."
Applejack looked to the land. She thought of how Rainbow Dash landed with pain last time. She wouldn't have to do that on a cloud...And how many earth ponies get to rest on a cloud?
Blushing, Applejack nodded. "Okay, Rainbow. The cloud."
The Pegasus looked back to earth pony. Then she climbed into the air. Up, up, up she flew until she was huffing. Applejack held on tight around Rainbow's neck. Just when all she saw were stars, Applejack felt Rainbow Dash flip around. She gasped as she spun around and fell. Again, she landed on top of Rainbow Dash. Surrounded by a cool cloud, lanterns flying just below them, stars in the sky above them - everything seems so surreal. The only slice of reality she had with her was the blue pony with a rainbow mane that looked like the sky after a rain looking up at her with her magenta eyes.
Applejack locked her eyes on her. "...are ya comfortable?"
"Oh, yeah."
Applejack blushed, looked to the side. She jerked back when a lantern passed close to her. Then she looked up to the sky again.
Her heart was racing. She was finding it hard to catch her breath. Rainbow was so warm. Her wings were spread to the side, along the cloud, to keep her stable. In the light of the moonlight, she really looked incredible. She looked back to Rainbow's eyes. She had been watching her the entire time.
Rainbow raised an eyebrow. "Checking out my wings, huh?"
Applejack looked away, turning bright red. "No! 'Course not. Why would Ah need to? Ah see them all the time..."
"Uh-huh..." Then she asked softly. "A...are you comfortable?"
"Ah don't know," Applejack said before she had a moment to think. She shook her head. "Ah...Ah just feel a little...weird. But...you're comfy."
Rainbow nodded. She looked sad. Applejack looked away. They were silent for a while. Applejack tried to keep calm, but her heart was still beating fast, she was still having trouble breathing. And Applejack was acutely aware of Rainbow Dash's hooves on her hips. "AJ?" Applejack looked down to Rainbow. "I...I'm." She swallowed hard. "I'm sorry if I make you uncomfortable."
Applejack felt her stomach clench. "Ah...no, Rainbow, you're very comfortable right now."
"No," Rainbow Dash said, turning her head to the side. "I mean, in general." She sighed. "Wow, this was a really stupid idea."
"What was?"
"Bringing you up here! With me. I mean, I love having you to myself and everything. I really..." She looked at the careful placement of her hooves on Applejack's waist, before removing them. "I just wish you were here with me."
"Ah am, Rainbow. Why would you say that?"
"Yeah, you're HERE with me, but you're...somewhere else. You...I wish you could feel how I feel. Except, I don't, because...it feels horrible! I thought this could be fun or something, but no. Having you this close to me, and not having you is driving me insane!"
Applejack looked around. "Ah can't really give you space right now, Rainbow."
"I know! That's why I'm saying this was really stupid." Applejack could see tears beginning to form in Rainbow's eyes. "Oh, geez, not now," Rainbow said, covering her eyes. "Don't look at me when I'm like this."
"Rainbow..."
"Just, come on, please?" Applejack felt Rainbow take in a few ragged breaths. She could see the first tear fall down her cheek. "Ohmigosh, I can't believe I'm crying in front of you."
Applejack didn't know what to do. Should she comfort her? Hug her? Look away like asked? "I-it's alright, Sugarcube."
Rainbow Dash groaned, looking to the side, a trail of tears falling down the side of her face, disappearing into the cloud. "And don't CALL me that! Please? Not now. I feel so....stupid."
"Rainbow, why are you crying?" Applejack asked, stroking her cheek with her hoof.
"Why? Because I'm going insane! I can't help it! Applejack, I'm so sorry."
"For what?"
"I didn't mean for this to happen. I don't want to....to feel this way about you! You're my best friend!" Applejack went silent. "The way you must feel...I mean, you must have been disgusted with me when I kissed you. I wasn't just playing around or anything. I really...I couldn't believe you would kiss me like that, and I thought, for just one moment, that you felt the same way! But of course you don't. Your family is always going to be there. I can't ask you to risk what you have with them because of me. I mean, I don't know your family like you do, but it's not worth it to have them be like my parents were to me. Or worse, to hate you because of me. I don't know what could be worse. Maybe be...what, disgusted with you? Geez, I'm being so selfish.
"And I can feel it. Our friendship has been...it's been so stretched. Of course it can't survive this, and I'm so sorry! I never wanted to stop being friends with you. I tried....I tried to stop feeling this way, but I couldn't! I tried to stay away, I tried to act like normal, but I can't get away from you! I...I...I can't stop thinking about you. And I don't want to lose you! Please, AJ," she looked to Applejack, putting her hoof to her face. "I don't want to lose you. But I can't do this. I can't pretend like I don't...like I don't love you. I can't stand it anymore! It hurts too much to be near you without you loving me back. I'm - I'm so sorry!" The tears overtook her and she was crying, unable to stop.
"Don't cry," Applejack said softly, wiping the tears from her cheeks. "Ah never meant to make you cry, Rainbow. You don't got nothin' to apologize for. Ah should say Ah'm sorry. Ah've been so busy worryin' bout what mah parents woulda thought about me, Ah couldn't see just how much Ah was hurtin' you. Ah'm chasin' ghosts when you're right here. And really, Ah feel really stupid right now. To do this to mah best friend without thinkin' about it. Ah've been a terrible pony."
"You could never be," Rainbow said, sniffling.
"Ah never wanted to make you feel like you were losin' me. It's hard for me, is all. Guess...Ah guess it was mah way of keepin' mah parents alive somehow, thinkin' bout how they must have thought 'bout who Ah'm becomin'. Ah don't even know who they are anymore. But Ah have you, and Ah shoulda been more worried 'bout you, and Ah wasn't, and now look. Ah made you cry for no good reason." Applejack nudged the crying Pegasus with her muzzle, hugged her. "Ah knew Ah was fallin' in love with you, and it scared me to feel that way. But it doesn't anymore. Ah...Ah just..."
Rainbow took a few quick intakes of breath, wiping the tears from her eyes. "...w...what?"
Applejack leaned down and kissed Rainbow Dash along the trail of her tears, from her jaw to her cheek. She could hear Rainbow's uneven breathing in her ear. She pulled back, looked down at her, then leaned down to kiss her.
Rainbow pulled back. Her guard went up immediately. She wasn't expecting this. After years of not getting what she wanted out of her relationships with other ponies, she had expected things to end badly with Applejack. Considering how she reacted the last time they kissed, whatever Applejack was doing must have been a trick. "I..." she said. "I...don't want your pity, AJ."
Applejack gave her a look, before giving her a quick peck on the lips. "Ain't like that, Rainbow. Ah've been dyin' to kiss you for a while, now. Just...everything was so confusin'."
"L-look," Rainbow said, pushing Applejack back with a hoof, giving her a stern look. "I'm not going to be able to...stop feeling this way. I...I don't want you to experiment with me or anything."
Applejack frowned. "Didn't you hear me when Ah said Ah'm fallin' for ya?"
Rainbow looked into Applejack's eyes. She knew she wasn't lying. It made her happy and nervous and scared and excited all at the same time, but she didn't know what to do with herself. Then Applejack leaned in and kissed her again- a gentle peck on the lips.
"I..." Rainbow said, looking longingly at Applejack's lips. "I'm not just....talking about kissing or hugging or...or anything like that. I mean...I want to have..." Applejack leaned in slowly. "Have a...life with you." She kissed her again. Rainbow Dash was panting, still intaking air sharply from her crying. "...to have a future with you." She kissed her again, trying to part her lips with her tongue. When she pulled back, she didn't pull back far. "To...do naughty things to you."
Applejack chuckled lightly, kissed her again. And again. And finally, Rainbow Dash allowed herself to wrap her front legs around her, accepting and returning her kisses, opening her mouth to accept her tongue.
Her body felt so warm. Rainbow could taste the cinnamon and orange from the cake Applejack had been enjoyed earlier. Her mane smelled like apples. It was so much more intoxicating than drinking hot apple cider, tasted better than the chocolate covered grapes she had enjoyed just a few days ago. Everything melted away - her worries, her heartache, her misery. Any thoughts she had had on her trip were no longer existent. All that existed was the pony warming her in more ways than one.
The two touched tongues, kissed the other's top lip, bottom lip, both lips to both lips. Their hooves stroked slowly up and down each other's bodies, sending tingles in ways they had never felt before. All they knew was each other, exploring and ready to find out more.
Applejack's hoof stroked over Rainbow Dash's wings, and she gasped. Applejack took advantage of the Pegasus' outstretched wings, adjusting herself to lean down and kiss her left wing. Rainbow Dash moaned softly, holding on tighter to Applejack's soft body. The Pegasus stroked the other's sides while Applejack paid attention to the mare's wings.
"You like that, Sugarcube?"
"Ohh." Rainbow Dash felt like she was melting. She closed her eyes and arched her back when Applejack kissed her on her neck, stroking her wing with one hoof.
"Ah was wonderin' if that would feel nice," she said, smiling. Her voice was low and rich and absolutely delicious.
"You have no idea," she breathed, meeting the other's lips again for another deep kiss.
Applejack leaned to the side, and Rainbow Dash followed suit, with the intention to lay side by side with her, maybe switch places.
But instead, Applejack gasped and slid off of Rainbow's body. She held onto Rainbow's foreleg for a moment, before disappearing into the cloud.
"What?!" Rainbow said to no one in particular as she found herself suddenly alone. Rainbow was stunned for a moment, before she realized what happened. She jumped up, only managed to say, "Ah---guh---motherf--" before diving off the cloud after Applejack.
Applejack kicked her hooves, trying to grasp onto something in the open air, but to no avail. She was falling straight to the lake below, and with every passing second, she saw her doom. The shock of falling stopped her from initially screaming, the air whipping past her nose made it hard to breath to begin screaming. All she could think was, "DO SOMETHING," but there were no factors in her favor.
Suddenly, there were hooves around her, and her descent began to slow. "I got you, Applejack!" said the familiar raspy voice.
Rainbow Dash held on as tight as she could while she flapped her wings to stop their descent. Her wings were so tired, but the adrenaline was the only thing keeping her muscles from giving up on her when she needed them. Rainbow Dash loved adrenaline, but not quite as much when her loved ones were in danger. Still, she was having trouble adjusting her wings as she needed to swoop up over the water, and she found herself trying to stop the descent altogether - much more difficult to do. But her wings just weren't responding right.
The water got closer.
"We're gunna hit!" Applejack screamed.
"No..." She flapped hard, "We're..." pulled the orange mare up closer to her. "NOT!" Rainbow Dash flapped with a ferocity she had not had since she trained to perform a sonic rainboom from a standing position.
Inches above the water, and Applejack was clinging onto Rainbow Dash for dear life. But they had stopped.
Rainbow Dash sighed with relief, flapping her wings to hover in place. "See? We're just --- GAH!" A giant fish jumped out of the water and smacked into the ponies. A moment later, they splashed into the water.
Applejack breached the water's surface, dazed and confused, a moment before Rainbow Dash followed. They looked at each other for a moment. Then Rainbow started laughing. Applejack splashed her with water. "Rainbow!"
"What?" Rainbow Dash said, giggling while she treaded water. "How was I supposed to know a fish would jump out RIGHT then? If anything, blame Fluttershy! She's the one who likes these things..."
"You dropped me!" Applejack said, also treading water. Her wet hat flopped over her eyes.
"I didn't drop you!" Rainbow Dash said, frowning.
"Then what do ya call this?!" Applejack said, waving her hooves in the air, accidentally hitting a fish that had jumped out of the water at the wrong time.
"That was...forgetting...that we were on a cloud..." Rainbow Dash blushed. "I'm sorry! You turned, so I turned, and...I was distracted, okay?"
"You were distracted?!" Applejack yelled, lifting up the lip of her hat to look at Rainbow Dash. "Ah nearly died!"
"No, you didn't," Rainbow Dash said, splashing Applejack, still with a huge smile on her face. "And you got distracted, too! You started moving to the side."
"Well!" Applejack said, her face turning red. "Ah'm not usually on a cloud."
"And I don't usually have an earth pony on a cloud. I didn't even know that was really possible until you, soo..." she couldn't stop smiling, even with Applejack glaring at her. "Oh, come on, you're fine."
"Ah'm all wet!"
Rainbow Dash was about to answer that, but instead she fell into a bout of giggles. "AJ! Don't you think that's moving things a bit fast?" She grinned wide, waiting for the moment the orange mare understood what she meant. First, Applejack looked confused. Then she could see her working out what that could have meant. Then shock and embarrassment, looking at Rainbow Dash like she could kill her. That just made Rainbow Dash laugh more.
"Y-you can stop laughin' at me," Applejack said, putting the lip of the soggy hat back over her eyes.
Rainbow Dash swam close to Applejack, raised the hat, and smiled to her. "I'm not laughing at you. I'm just....happy." They looked at each other. Applejack smiled bashfully. Rainbow Dash swam closer to her, treading water just in front of her. She leaned in.
Then a fish smacked her in the side of the head.
Applejack guffawed as Rainbow Dash frowned, "Let's get out of here before we get a concussion."
Applejack and Rainbow Dash swam to the nearest shore of the lake - no small task for such a big lake. Along the way, they splashed each other, and had little races. Rainbow Dash even swam under the water and emerged to spit water into Applejack's face, making the orange pony chase after her. By the time they reached the shore, they were both tired, but laughing.
Rainbow Dash collapsed onto the shore, panting and giggling, utterly exhausted from all the flying she had to do, and having to swim with her sore muscles.
Applejack lay down next to her, just as beat. But she found that she, too, was really happy. Hearing Rainbow Dash laugh and giggle like a school girl with a crush made her happy. Seeing the carefree smile on her face, without a hint of worry, made her so glad that they had that moment in the clouds. Back on earth, her fears crept back into her, and years of conditioning made her wonder again if she was doing the right thing - what would make her parents proud.
But, oh, that smile Rainbow Dash gave to her. She didn't ever want to see her without that smile again.
Rainbow Dash looked up at Applejack. She scooted closer to her, leaning against her. There was a hint of concern on her face. "So..." She said. "You're still...okay with all this?"
Applejack put a foreleg around her, kissed her on the cheek. "Long as you don't drop me again."
Rainbow Dash frowned. "That wasn't on purpose!" She raised her wings and shook out her feathers. "I'm never going to get you onto a cloud again, am I?"
"Nope," Applejack said. Rainbow glared at her. Applejack just touched her nose to Rainbow's. "Sorry. Sugarcube." She smiled when she felt Rainbow Dash shudder.
-=-=-=-=-=-
Rainbow was fighting sleep. All the flying had taken a toll on her body, but she didn't want to fall asleep. She was afraid it was all a dream - it all seemed surreal. But Applejack was insisting she get some sleep.
"I'm not tired, really," she said, holding close to Applejack. Her coat was still damp from the water, but Rainbow didn't mind. She wanted to stay close to Applejack. She had never felt closer, and wanted to drink in the feeling as long as possible. "We can talk some more."
"You're tired," Applejack said, leaning down and nuzzling Rainbow Dash on the neck.
"Make out?"
Applejack blushed, looking to the side, before back to Rainbow Dash. "We'll have plenty of time for that."
"Why not get a head start?"
"You're exhausted," Applejack said, stroking Rainbow Dash's mane. "We don't wanna miss the festival tomorrow."
Rainbow Dash frowned. "Then..."
"Yeah, Sugarcube?"
"Can you...Geez, it's embarrassing to even be asking this. Can you...kiss me?" Applejack smiled, but looked at her like she wanted an explanation. "It's just...if this is a dream, I might as well end it on a good note."
Applejack nudged Rainbow Dash to her side, leaned down. They looked into each other's eyes, smiled, brought their lips closer. Then Applejack pressed her lips to Rainbow Dash's. The Pegasus felt the tingle throughout her body, felt the other mare's lips explore hers. Delighted in the feel of her coat against hers, even if both of them were damp. When Applejack pulled away, Rainbow Dash reached up and pulled her down again. They giggled as they kissed each other again. Every time Applejack tried to end the kissing session, the pegasus pulled her back down, and the kissing would resume, climbing in intensity.
"No," Applejack said between a laugh before Rainbow Dash won out for another kiss. When their lips separated, she shook her head. "Ah'm tired, too. Come on, now, Dash, we gotta go to sleep."
"Nooo," Rainbow Dash moaned as Applejack laid her head down. Rainbow followed suit to look into her eyes. "I don't want this night to end. It's going to all go away. I know it."
"No, it won't, Sugarcube. Ah'll still be here in the mornin'." Applejack could see Rainbow Dash's eyes were heavy, trying hard not to fall asleep. Applejack just held her close. "Don't worry, Rainbow. Ah ain't goin' nowhere."
When Rainbow Dash woke up the next day surrounded by Applejack's golden mane, she knew the pony would never lie to her.
-=-=-=-=-
Late into the afternoon, with the sun on it's way towards the horizon, and the two ponies were on their way to the festival area. There was a crowd of ponies already on their way, and the area had just been opened to allow ponies on the beach. Rainbow Dash still had no desire to mingle with the other ponies after what had happened the night she got drunk - even if she didn't know exactly what it was. Instead, she and Applejack sat on a cliff that overlooked the ocean.
Applejack looked down at the water crashing onto the rocks. "Ah don't think Ah've ever been to the ocean before," she said.
"It's kinda nice, huh?"
"The water doesn't end," Applejack said, looking out to the horizon.
"Well, it has to end somewhere," Rainbow Dash said, knocking a rock into the waves crashing below. Applejack looked at Rainbow Dash when she sat down next to her. "Are you nervous?"
"A bit," said the orange mare. "You?"
"What for?" Rainbow Dash frowned, looking out into the water.
Applejack could have said a million things to Rainbow about how important this would be, how emotional this whole trip had been, how much everything affected her and she didn't realize. But they were both emotionally and physically exhausted. Instead, she just leaned against the Pegasus, catching the mare by surprise. "Ah, don't know, Dash. Just one a those things..."
Rainbow wrapped a wing around Applejack. Then she smiled to herself because she was allowed to do that, now.
There was a commotion on the beach where the ponies had gathered. After a moment, the ponies began to bow. Then a few royal guards walked forward, followed by Princess Celestia, with Princess Luna dwarfed at her side. Ponies got up and scattered until they were peppered across the beach.
"Should we...?" Applejack asked, but Rainbow Dash was already shaking her head, looking intently at the Princesses. She was about to question Rainbow, when Princess Luna began to speak in a loud booming voice. "Well," Applejack whispered to Rainbow. "Guess that voice is good for somethin'..."
Princess Luna gave a long, cumbersome speech about the history of the festival in question, the fragility of life, and the importance yet devastation of death. Rainbow Dash was rolling her eyes and sighing through most of the speech.
The Princess was about to go into a written speech she had prepared on a parchment that rolled out as long as one of Twilight's to-do list, but Princess Celestia stopped her.
Her voice was crisp and booming, but it was little match for the roar of the ocean. Still, her speech was short, and with little flourish. From what Applejack could understand, there was some comparison to life as the passing days. Then Celestia, turned to the ocean. The sun was just about to dip below the horizon. With the glow of her horn, she ushered out the sun, while Princess Luna's horn glowed to raise the moon into the sky. The star from the year before still shined bright in the sky.
Princess Celestia whispered something in Princess Luna's ear. The sister nodded and walked forward. She spoke again with a softer tone, but still loud enough that both Rainbow Dash and Applejack could hear. Her voice was more heartfelt this time.
"We all have something in common," she said. "We have all lost someone who we care deeply about." Rainbow Dash twitched an ear at hearing this, but said nothing. "Some of us were lucky to have had a chance to say goodbye. Some had that chance stolen from us. Some of us may not have been speaking to our departed loved ones, some of us felt as though we lost a part of ourselves when we lost them. Loss is never the same, but it is always similar in that it is never easy."
Her horn started to glow as she continued. "Tonight, we add a star to the night sky. Let it remind us that loved ones are never gone, but still a part in our hearts. They helped to shape who we are, lead us to who we will become, as the stars every year lead us. May they help us to find our way."
The Princess turned to the ocean. A large wave threatened to knock her over, but it parted around her hooves as her eyes turned white. A star began to form in the sky. There were gasps from the crowd, then sounds of admiration as the bright flash began to swirl and become the star the ponies would follow the next year.
Rainbow Dash watched the star form, hypnotized by the growing light. Thinking about the words of the Princess, her mind wandered back to her mother.
When she was a child, every time she showed her a new trick, tried to show off her love of speed, and her mother brushing her off.
When she got into flight camp, how she wished her mom would have celebrated with her - But she remembered all too well how she was considered an embarrassment for being kicked out.
How she called for her mom when she was sick, but got her grandmother instead.
How she would be so happy when her mom came home, only to have her mother give her a pat on the head, before discussing something with her grandparents.
So many memories like that. And yet it took years for her to finally stop trying.
Why?
Then there were the memories she forced herself to block out. The memories that had always given her hope. The memories that made her love her mother unconditionally.
Like those few times her mother would sit with her at night and read her favorite story to her.
How even though she was so angry she was left behind when her parents went to see the Wonderbolts, she did get a souvenir once - a Wonderbolt doll she still had on display in her room.
The way her mother used to sing in the morning as she made her own breakfast.
Her mother was beautiful, poised, and determined. She knew what she wanted, moved with grace to get it, and made it very difficult for anypony to hate her for getting what she wanted - including Rainbow Dash. It took Rainbow a long time to be okay with making mistakes because her mother didn't seem to have time for mistakes.
But that was wrong. She made the worst mistake by ignoring her own daughter for years.
So many different moments, mingled together in the recesses of her mind. She hadn't thought about such things in a long time. It was all very confusing, and despite trying, she couldn't block them out, anymore. Perhaps it was because she had been so emotionally raw for the past few weeks, or that she finally resolved how she felt about Applejack, but the memories refused to let her go now.
Flawed, negligent, often unsmiling. Too busy with herself to notice her daughter. But Rainbow Dash was one of the few ponies who saw such intimate moments, like her morning singing. That had to mean something. Right?
Maybe she should have gone to the funeral...
Applejack was lost in her own train of thought as the star formed and began to steady it's appearance in the night sky. The ceremony was very beautiful, she had to admit. But after everything she had worried about and had been through to get there, she felt very empty. She was hoping to get something out of it. Whether it be a voice in her head, a stray feeling or sensation she could attribute to her parents, some sign that her parents were still around, still listening. She just wanted something.
But it seemed the premise of her journey was all for naught. As touching and cathartic as lighting a lantern was, she wondered if any part of the festival after that was worth it. All she was doing was watching a star being placed in the sky. As she told Rainbow Dash the night before, she was trying to keep her parents alive somehow. But they were gone. And that thought was rather depressing.
Her concentration broke when she heard a chocking sound to her left. Applejack looked at Rainbow Dash, who's head was down low. At first Applejack thought she was laughing or something, and was about to scold her. Then she saw the tears falling to the ground.
"Oh, Rainbow," Applejack said, pulling the Pegasus towards her. Rainbow was shaking, trying to hold back her emotions. But when Applejack pulled her head up to the crook of her neck, the tears started to flow. "It's alright, Sugarcube. It's alright."
"You were right, Applejack," she said between sobs. "I've done it all wrong. I should have done something for her."
"T'aint what Ah said, Rainbow. Ah said you were mournin' wrong cause you weren't dealing with it," Applejack nuzzled her. "Now, you're dealin' with it."
The ocean drowned out the sounds of Rainbow's sobs to any other pony, but Applejack could hear the anguish in her voice, could feel her body being racked with sobs. Rainbow Dash managed to say, "I don't know why I'm crying..."
Applejack held her closer. "Don't you worry 'bout that. Just let it all out." She kissed the top of her head. "It's gunna be okay." She remembered she still had her hat on, took it off, and placed it over Rainbow's face. She knew Rainbow Dash hated the thought that anypony else would see such raw emotion from her.
If there was anything else to the ceremony, Applejack didn't pay attention. She focused on holding Rainbow, rocking her back and forth, until her tears finally stopped.
-=-=--=-=-=-
"I can't believe how much I've cried in the last week," Rainbow Dash said, walking without paying much attention where she was going. Applejack kept having to steer her in the right direction. "I almost never cry. What's up with that?"
"Been rough on ya, lately," Applejack said, pulling Rainbow Dash close to her when she was heading into a group of earth ponies. "Don't help you're so tired from yesterday. How're your hooves doin'?"
"Better," she, shrugging, looking forward at nothing in particular. Her eyes were puffy and red. "Is it bad that I want to sleep right now even though we just woke up a few hours ago."
"We'll get some sleep soon, Rainbow. Ah promise."
"What are we doing here?" Rainbow Dash asked, looking around and finally realizing they were in the final night's festival. "I could care less about being here."
"Ah know," Applejack said. "But if we're gunna make the journey home, we need a map and some supplies, right?"
"Can't we just take the train or something? There has to be a depot around here somewhere."
"And if there ain't? We gotta be prepared." As they were talking about this, they didn't realize they had passed right under Princess Luna's nose. They would have completely passed her if the Princess didn't yell, "STOP!", causing the two to jump.
"Applejack!" The Princess said, taking the pony up and hugging her.
"P-princess Luna!" Applejack was placed back down by the grinning Princess. Applejack managed to recover before saying, "Ah-Ah'm sorry, Princess! Didn't see ya there..."
"Oh, worry not, my friend. Oh! Rainbow Dash!" The Pegasus' jaw dropped. She barely had any interaction with the Princess aside from Nightmare Night. But since she was in the wedding, it probably made sense the Princess knew who she was. "I did not expect to see either of you here. Are the others here, or are you here for a loved one?"
"Oh," Applejack and Rainbow Dash looked at each other. "Yeah. It's just us."
"I see. My, this is a most somber of nights, is it not? Were you there for the lighting?"
"Yeah," Rainbow said, looking to Applejack for help.
"We didn't want to be with the crowds," Applejack explained.
"That is understandable. Well! You simply must speak with my sister!" Rainbow Dash and Applejack immediately started protesting, but Princess Luna was already waving over Princess Celestia, and their protests died off, along with their comfort level.
The last thing they wanted that night was to talk to any princess with the way they felt. But there she was, the ruler of all Equestria, making her way over to them, flanked by two guards.
Applejack recognized one of the guards from the night Rainbow Dash was kicked out of the festival grounds. She frowned and stood protectively between Rainbow and the guards. Rainbow, of course, had no recollection of being kicked out, but Applejack was still angry with how roughly she was treated.
Applejack saw a flicker of recognition on the guards face, and thought for a moment he was going to say something when the Princess spoke. "Applejack! Rainbow Dash! I didn't expect to see any of Twilight's friends here." At that, Applejack saw the guard's eyes widen. She gave the guard one last look as the Princess nodded her head to dismiss the guards. "I wasn't aware. I'm sorry for your loss."
"Oh, no," Applejack said, "It happened so long ago. Twilight just thought it would be helpful."
Rainbow Dash shifted uncomfortably. "And..." she started to say. She once again found herself looking to Applejack for help. "Well, maybe we're here for me, too..."
The Princess nodded, not asking her anymore questions. "I'm afraid I don't simply initiate the ceremony. Every year, it seems I have someone new to commemorate."
"Every year?" Rainbow Dash asked. "How do you manage that?" Applejack smacked Rainbow Dash so hard, she actually said, "Ow! That hurt!"
The Princess chuckled. "Well, I do know a lot of ponies in Equestria. Many students, past and present. Sometimes my guards. Sometimes old friends who I've out-aged. When you live to be well over 1,000 years, you'll find you lose almost everypony you ever get close to."
"Everypony?" Rainbow Dash asked, shocked. "How do you stand that?" Applejack gave her a look. "What? I'm serious! I can't even deal with this, and I wasn't even close to her!"
"It's difficult, yes," The Princess responded.
Rainbow Dash pressed on, "If I were you, I would just stop caring about other ponies."
"Rainbow!" Applejack said, putting a hoof to her face.
But the princess just chuckled. "I've tried that, as well. But to stop caring, I would have to stop leading. And in the end, I love the citizens of Equestria too much to risk not caring." She paused for a moment, looking to her younger sister for a moment, before looking back to Rainbow Dash. "You'll find that even if it's painful when everything ends, it's worth it to keep caring and loving. After all, when you have somepony there, it helps to heal your heartache."
Rainbow Dash and Applejack looked at each other and smiled.
"Well," Princess Celestia said, looking to the other end of the festival. "I'm afraid I have to continue with my rounds. You two take care of each other, alright?"
Applejack nodded. "Yes, Princess."
"Oh," the Princess said, stopping in her tracks. "And if you would like a ride back to Ponyville, I'm sure I can arrange something for you."
"Why, that's mighty nice of you, Princess!" Applejack said. She was about to accept, considering how tired she knew Rainbow was.
"But," Rainbow Dash continued. "I think we want some time to ourselves for now." Rainbow Dash looked to Applejack, who looked over at her with a questioning look on her face. Then she blushed.
Princess Celestia looked between the two ponies, before smiling a knowing smile. "Of course. Have a good night!" She then walked towards another group of ponies, the guards once again going to her side.
Rainbow Dash leaned in close to Applejack, smiling coyly. "The Princess commands."
Suddenly, the two felt like they were being watched. They both turned around at the same time. Princess Luna was staring at them, head tilted to the side. "I'm afraid I don't understand," she said. "Explain this joke to me."
"Uh..." was all Rainbow Dash could say.
-=-=-=-=-=-
After a very awkward exchange with the Princess, Applejack and Rainbow Dash set out to try and find new supplies for the journey home. Applejack was granted a map and some new saddlebags by Princess Celestia, which she was more than grateful for, and filled them with foods and canteens of water. The nearest train station was about a day's walk away, and then they would just sit back and enjoy the journey home while resting their hooves.
"You don't wanna pack these?" Applejack asked, pointing out a familiar treat to Rainbow.
"Nah. I'm fine," Rainbow Dash said, smiling to Applejack.
"Alright, then! Ah think we got everything." They helped each other to fasten their saddlebags and decided to take a walk on the beach under the light of the moon. "We could sleep the rest of the night, go walkin' durin' the day. You sure your hooves will hold out?"
"They're fine," Rainbow Dash said, though she was still limping. The sand didn't help at all, but the company was so great, Rainbow didn't want to ruin the moment. "You know, we don't have to go RIGHT away."
"'Course we do," Applejack said, smiling to Rainbow. "Got a lot of work to catch up to on the farm."
"Right," Rainbow Dash said. "And I'll probably have a whole bunch of weather jobs waiting for me when I get back. We'll both be pretty busy. We're tired, we're sore, and we just started something. You know we're not going to be alone when we get home..."
Applejack looked over to Rainbow Dash, considering what she was saying. "It WOULD be mighty hard findin' a place to be alone on the farm."
"And you can't exactly come to my place," Rainbow said. "Unless we get Twilight to use that spell you guys used when you visited Cloudsdale."
"Ah don't think Ah'm gunna be goin' back on a cloud after what happened..."
"Oh, come on, AJ! That was so hot. Tell me it wasn't hot!"
"Ya know what wasn't hot?" Applejack asked. "The water we landed in."
"Well, yeah, it wasn't a hot spring..."
The two stopped walking. They looked to each other, smiling, before they both started laughing, leaning against each other to hold themselves up.
"Oh, Rainbow," said the earth pony, wiping a tear from her eyes. "You're really somethin', you know that?"
"I know," Rainbow said, holding her head up with pride. Applejack gave her a look. "Well? What do you think? I'm sure there's...oh, I don't know, an inn or something at that town with the train station. Just you and me...getting to know each other?"
"We know each other fi--," Applejack thought about that, then blushed. "Oh!" She was quiet for a moment. "Well, Ah guess they can survive on the farm a few more days without me..."
They smiled at each other before walking on.
"...so you're really not going to let me take you on a cloud, aga--"
"No!"
"But I thought it would be...you know, fun," Rainbow Dash said, her ears falling back on her head.
"Is sex all you think about, Dash?" Applejack asked, raising an eyebrow.
Rainbow Dash glared at her. "I didn't mean that kind of fun! Though, that WOULD be interesting...No, I meant you could see Ponyville how I see it. We could hang out over sweet apple acres if you wanted to! Or, you know...we could spend some time just talking there. I mean, if you're REALLY worried about it, we can ask Twilight about that spell. Hey! And maybe we could have a picnic up there! Watch the sunset."
Applejack smiled to Rainbow Dash. "Are you askin' me out on a date, Rainbow?"
The Pegasus jerked her head back. She hadn't thought of it that way. "Well, yeah, I guess when you're in a relationship, you don't just 'date' instead of 'hang out', huh? But we don't have to call it that! I mean, I just want to spend some time with you." She faced Applejack with concern. "Is...that okay?"
Applejack pulled Rainbow Dash close and kissed her on the cheek. "'Course it's okay! And maybe we can try it without the cloud, first." Applejack pawed at the ground once. "Ah think Ah'd like to keep mah hooves on the earth for a bit after that fall."
Rainbow Dash nuzzled her head under Applejack's jaw. "Hey, as long as I can be with you, I'm not complaining. ...Well, okay, maybe a little bit. But I can deal."
The two walked down the beach, side by side. They smiled at each other. Neither of them saw the two shooting stars that passed overhead.
