Pillow Talk Chapter 4 Preview

Since the next chapter has been giving me some trouble, I thought I'd give everypony who wants one a sneak preview. I have roughly twice this much written, but I'm not happy with the rest yet. I'm reasonably happy with these ~1200 words, but they've only been through one round of editing and are still subject to change in the final draft. Feel free to comment, it may inspire me.

Enjoy,
-Jondor

"Thanks fer givin' me a couple days off, Big Mac. Ah really appreciated it." Applejack and Big McIntosh had spent most of the early morning finishing the last of the applebucking and were making a start on sewing the winter crops, barley and ryegrass. As long as Winter wasn't too cold, they would be ready for harvest early in Spring and would stretch the Winter food stores until next year's crops were ready.

"Eeyup." Big McIntosh used his signature two syllable affirmative reply. He was pulling the plow along, tilling up fresh earth for the crops.

"Y'all have any trouble while Ah was away?" Applejack was following along behind her brother, dropping the seeds in neat rows and covering them with the soft soil.

"Nope."

"Good ta hear." Applejack replied, then lapsed into silence. Her brother had always been a stallion of very few words and that wasn't making this any easier. She and Rainbow Dash had worked out a skeleton plan, but no matter how much she had prepared, this was still going to be awkward.

"Hey, Big Mac? What do ya think of Lyra an' Bon-Bon?" She asked, trying to keep her voice from trembling. She'd finally gotten the question out, there was no turning back now.

The plow stopped as the red stallion turned to look at his sister. "What do ya mean, AJ?" It was a rather vague question, not the sort that could be answered easily without some kind of clarification.

Applejack tried her best to look calm and collected. "What do ya think of them? Ya know, them bein' two mares gettin' hitched an' havin' a foal."

Her still vague inquiry was met with a strange look from her brother. Applejack was afraid he might be coming to the wrong conclusion, which unfortunately for her was actually the correct one.

"Just curious, see Ah thought Ah might invite 'em over fer dinner some night." Applejack began into the excuse she had rehearsed, but hoped not to have to use. "See, Twi was writin' a letter ta the Princess 'bout couples like them, an' me an' Dashi-, err Rainbow Dash ended up havin' dinner with 'em. They're decent folks, but some ponies ain't so nice ta them behind their backs, so Ah wanted ta ask before Ah invited 'em here." It wasn't quite a lie and it left a lot out, but Rainbow Dash had convinced her it would work. Applejack silently hoped she was right.

"Oh, Ah see." Big McIntosh considered that rather long winded explanation for a moment before shrugging. "Ah ain't never gave it much thought before. Guess Ah don't mind."

Applejack sighed with relief inwardly. "And ya don't mind 'em bein'... fillyfoolers?" Somehow saying that word aloud to her brother left a foul taste in her mouth, unlike the loving feeling it brought when she was alone with Rainbow Dash.

"Ain't mah place ta say one way er the other." He shrugged a second time and turned back to pull the plow again. "But ya might ask Granny Smith just ta be sure."

"Yeah..." Applejack resumed planting seeds, slipping back into silence as she retreated into her own thoughts. It wasn't exactly the affirmative response she had held out some hope for, albeit a ridiculously slim hope, but it was far cry better than her worst fears of unadulterated rejection. On the other hoof, his mention of asking Granny Smith for her opinion did not give her hope on that score.

Unnoticed by either sibling, a pair of red-orange eyes, pale yellow ears and the filly they were attached to had seen and heard their entire conversation from behind a nearby bush. As the older siblings both lapsed into silence, Apple Bloom snuck away. She tried to piece together some of the odd things she'd been seeing and hearing lately as she moved far enough away to break into a gallop. She was heading back to the house to find a good stakeout spot to watch Granny Smith and discover what her sister was going to ask next.

The elderly light green mare was snoozing in her rocking chair, but blinked awake as she was addressed. "Soup's on.. Huh? Oh Applejack, whatcha need young'un?"

"Ah was just curious 'bout somethin', wanted ta ask." Applejack shuffled her hooves, her anxiety growing. She wished she hadn't spoken up, but now that she had, she'd better see it through.

"Well go on, spit it out. Ah ain't gettin' any younger ya know."

"Okay, uh..." Applejack started. "Ya remember what the Princess said at Lyra an' Bon-Bon's wedding?"

"Who?" Granny Smith stared at Applejack, but her eyes seemed a little unfocused.

"The Princess, Princess Celestia." Applejack repeated.

"Ah know who the Princess is, young'un. Ah mean the other two ya mentioned. Fire an' Ping Pong?"

"Lyra an' Bon-Bon. Green unicorn an' cream earth pony." Applejack gulped. "The two mares that got hitched."

"Oh! Them fillyfoolers!" Granny Smith blurted out. Applejack cringed and started to speak, but Granny Smith kept talking. "Ain't seen nothin' like that since Ah was a filly.

"Way back in Fillydelphia it was; before we settled down here an' got Ponyville started. Now back then Fillydelphia weren't much bigger than Ponyville is today, but as we was passin' through Ah saw they was holdin' a weddin' in the town square. An' mah eyes nearly bugged right outta mah head. There was a right pretty pegasus filly in a wedding dress at the altar, an' right next ta her in a tuxedo plain as day wouldn't yah know, another filly. Unicorn, Ah think she was.

"There was lots of ponies there an' ain't none of them makin' a fuss, so Ah just trotted along. We wasn't stayin' long anyway. Now that Ah think 'bout it, Ah think Princess Celestia might have been there too. Mah memory's a might fuzzy, but that mane of hers is pretty memorable..." Granny Smith tapped her chin with a hoof as she trailed off. "What was it ya wanted ta ask young'un?"

"Ah think that there story just answered it." Applejack was stunned, she didn't expect asking Granny Smith to go so smoothly. "Ah just wondered if Celestia was tellin' the truth about when the last time two mares gettin' hitched was. She does like her little jokes sometimes."

"Ya shouldn't talk 'bout the Princess like that, young'un! If'n it weren't for her grace and wisdom, Ponyville wouldn't even be here today!" Scolding Applejack seemed to have been a little too much for her and Granny Smith leaned back in the rocking chair and dozed off again.

Applejack stood stunned for a moment, wondering what to do, then took advantage of the situation to escape gracefully. Maybe more questions would have given her a better idea of Granny Smith's views, but pressing her further didn't seem like a good idea right now, nervous as she already was and Granny Smith having gone back to her nap.

Unnoticed again, Apple Bloom snuck away from her hiding place behind the sofa. Something was definitely up with her big sister. She seemed to be really curious about Miss Lyra and Miss Bon-Bon, and she had been spending a lot of time with Rainbow Dash lately, lots more than her other friends.