The following day after the little incident with his two friends, Crowned arrived to Canterlot High with bandages all over his sides, with a patch covering his right eye.
"Ouch... ouch... ouch..." every step he took was accompanied by the pain of his injuries.
"Woah, Crowned?!" From behind him, Flash approached the injured boy, concerned by his appearance. "What happened to you?! Did you got yourself ran over?!"
"No..." he said with a bit of difficulty, "it's just that I intervened in a fight between Applejack and Octavia."
"Ouch, that doesn't sound nice... but why were they fighting?"
"Uhm... because of me," Crowned confessed, his cheeks blushing.
"WHAT?!" Flash exclaimed in utter shock.
"I'm sorry! I-it's just... I fell in love with both of them and... I guess they did so." As he said so, his whole face became redder than Mars. Flash didn't seem to react well at this.
"...Duuude, now you really are in trouble," He said with a tone of concern.
"R-R-Really?!" Crowned began to feel scared.
"Yes... I'm gonna be honest: two girls fighting for the same guy usually leads to absolute disaster for everyone around, so I suggest you to do the only good option: You gotta choose who's gonna be with you."
"B-BUT... I HAVE TO PICK THIS SOON?!" The boy began to feel more and more nervous.
"Crowned, trust me, I had an... interesting past about it, and I can speak from experience: It can and will get worse, so you gotta choose quickly."
"But... But... I can't!"
"I know what I'm saying, friend. It's better to break a heart when it can heal... than wait until it's too late."
Flash simply walked away, looking a bit upset, like if he had remembered something. Crowned simply sighed and continued on his way inside Canterlot High.
During the day, none of the boys saw signal of AJ nor Octavia, at least in class. This was a bit of a relief for the crowned boy, although it was also something he disliked, because he really was enjoying their company. Soon the bell announcing lunch ringed and everyone rushed to the cafeteria. Crowned simply sat in an empty table, eating alone in his thoughts... That is, until he felt a pair covering his eyes.
"Guess who?" said the familiar voice of another boy.
"Aah! D-Dizzy? Is that you?"
"Hey, it's been a while since we... uuuh..." Dizzy stared at his friend for a while, bewildered by his bandages and patch on the eye. "Are you playing a pirate or did I miss something?"
"Well, it's... I... it's a long story, you see-"
"Oh! That reminds me..." the pale boy interrupted his friend, "Last weekend I went to a concert with Coco, and when they played a romantic song she cuddled next to me, and it was so sweet!"
"Uhm, yeah, good for you, but-"
"And then we headed to have some tacos, even though the girl attending us was a bit crazy like her two friends told us, but at least the tacos were delicious."
"Oh, that's nice, can I please tell you know what hap-"
"Seriously, bro, I hope you get a girlfriend soon and maybe we can go out on a double date and-"
"CAN YOU PLEASE LET ME FINISH, DIZZY?!" Crowned screamed in exasperation.
Dizzy recoiled in shock, completely stunned silent. His friend took a deep breath and calmed himself before explaining:
"Dizzy, listen: I'm happy for you, I really do, but I can't enjoy all those things because... I'm in real trouble right now."
"W-What's the matter?!" the boy said, concerned for him, "Did they ask to go for another Element? Because, and please don't tell them, I could totally go with-"
"NO, DUDE! It's... It's actually..." Crowned stammered for a bit, until he spit it out: "Applejack and Octavia want to be both my girlfriends."
"OH! MY! GOOOOOOD!!!" Dizzy screamed while putting his hands on his cheeks. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?!"
"Yes, the two most beautiful girls on the planet want to be with me... and I don't know what to do."
Dizzy remained silent for a while, still dealing with what he just said, but sadly he just had to open his big mouth:
"...you're totally gonna choose Octavia, right?" he said, making his friend a bit angry. If only he had stopped there. "I-I mean, she has money, a secure life, and I bet you everything that she's FAR more civilized than-"
Crowned's response was a smack on the head.
"Ouch ouch ouch!"
"Dizzy, I like both of them... Like a lot," the crowned boy said, "But I can't decide who of them I want to be with."
"Well, I know I'm kinda new in this 'boyfriend business', but if you want my opinion, I'd suggest that-"
Before he could speak further, Dizzy was pushed to the floor by a certain farmer girl, who sat right next to Crowned.
"Hey there, suga'hcube," Applejack said, moving closer to him. "How are y'ah feeling today?"
"Uuuh, better than yesterday, but, uh... Dizzy..."
"Oh, he'll be fine," she responded, while subtly sticking her tongue out to the boy on the floor. "Hey, almost forgot..."
Dizzy threw a nasty look at AJ while she was busy grabbing something from her backpack, and tried to sit at the other side of his friend, but was quickly pushed back to the floor by Tavi, who took his place and sat right next to Crowned.
"Crowny, my dear!" she exclaimed with a smile.
"T-TAVI!" the crowned boy felt a mix of surprise, joy and a bit of horror.
"Look, I made something for you!" the musician then pulled from her backpack a container with a very fancy mixture of salads and assorted pastries.
"O-Oh! It looks really good," he responded, his cheeks blushing brightly.
"Hah! Just wait until he sees m'ah dish," AJ replied as she placed another container in front of him, containing all sort of apple-derived pastries.
"Oh, this actually smell swe-" Crowned was cut short when the farmer slipped a slice of apple pie into his mouth.
"Come on, just eat and see how y'ah start feeling well."
"Do you really think that a sliced apple will do that? I have a better delicacy here." Taking out a strawberry cheesecake, Tavi elegantly stuffed a piece of it inside Crowned's mouth.
"MMHMHFF!" he could barely talk as he tried chewing their dishes.
"M'ah meal is much better than hers, right sug'ahcube?" Applejack said, smirking at her rival as she stuffed another bite in his mouth.
"Oh nononono, of course mine is," Tavi responded, doing the same as the farmer.
Crowned tried to talk, but with his mouth full all that he produced was nothing but incomprehensible babbling. Dizzy simply stood up again and moved away to another table, as everyone watched the girls competing to see who had the better dishes.
"Oww, my stomach," Crowned groaned as he took his seat in his classroom, dropping his face over the desk.
"What a cute pair of girls you have, Crowned," Dizzy complained, sitting right next to him, "throwing me like I'm some kind of used napkin."
"Sorry!" he profoundly apologized, his cheeks blushing, "I-It's not my fault that... Well, that they're fighting to be with me."
"Seriously, you should settle with one and be done with this, before they get crazier ideas like-"
True to his fears, Dizzy was suddenly pushed away from his seat as Applejack sat there, moving her chair closer to Crowned.
"Hey there, suga'hcube! Y'er the one A'h was looking for!" she said enthusiastically, almost rubbing her face on him, "A'h know y'er better at Literature, so can y'ah help me with this?"
She placed her notebook in front of him, getting too close for him that his hand ended up right between her chests.
"A-APPLEJACK!" the boy couldn't help but feel his whole face turning red, and it only got worse when he felt another soft pair in his other arm.
"Hey Crowny!" Tavi exclaimed, as she moved closer to him. "You're gonna help me with my homework for tomorrow, right?"
"Ehem.... sorry, but he's already gonna help me," AJ protested, pulling her friend towards her.
"Why? I mean, I heard you have nice grades," Tavi claimed, pulling him closer to her, "I think you don't need his help."
"Really? Says the girl who's top of her class."
"Maybe I'm top of the class, but that doesn't mean I don't need help."
"Well that applies to me too!"
The two girls pulled Crowned towards each other, while giving each other menacing looks as their friend could only feel his head shaking. From the floor, Dizzy couldn't believe what he was seeing, facepalming at his buddy's situation.
Later that day after the class, Applejack and Octavia were still pulling Crowned between them, as the boy couldn't help but feel like a doll about to be torn apart.
"Crowny, we should go to the Music Room," Tavi said, trying to pull him to the right hallway, "we could practice some music together."
"How about goin' to the farm, with me, partner?" AJ suggested, as she attempted to drag him through the left hallway, "Y'ah can let me a hand, and maybe A'h can show you m'ah summer clothes."
"P-PLEASE GIRLS... C-CALM DOWN!" Crowned exclaimed, his face as red as a tomato, unable to say who he wanted to go with.
"You heard that, farmer girl? That sounds to me like he wants to do something... fancier." Tavi pulled him closer to her, as his eyes spinned in circles.
"Yeah, well maybe if he wants to fall asleep, but he's gonna help me today and perhaps more!" AJ replied, draggin the boy towards her.
"HE'S MINE!"
"NO, MINE!"
The two girls were nearly playing "Tug-O-War" with Crowned, who barely managed to mutter a faint cry of "Help".
Far away from them, Applejack's friend observed the scene with a mix of emotions, as Dizzy walked towards them, still in disbelief of the fight.
"Those girls are crazy," the pale boy bluntly said, catching the attention of the other Rainbooms, "They've pushed me to the ground twice today, and I can't imagine what they'll do if they keep this going."
"Oh, but... don't you think it's a bit romantic?" Fluttershy commented, "In a... uhm, twisted way, perhaps?"
"I think this more... savage than romantic, dear," Rarity declared, in a way enjoying the two girls fighting for the boy. "Mhmhm, let them fight."
"Uh, I don't think you want to see them fight, Rarity," Rainbow expressed, looking a bit worried. "Maybe she's not as competitive as me, but I've sparred with her, and getting into a fight with that girl is asking for trouble."
The other Rainbooms shared the same opinion and agreed on that statement.
"Speaking of 'asking for trouble', what happened with the missing element? Did you find it?" Dizzy asked the girls.
"Well, not really," Pinkie responded, not sounding pretty cheerful, “We found an entrance for one of the elements, but those meany shadows hid the other stone really well."
"At least Sunset is still investigating more about the shadows, even if it's not much," Rarity added, "She mentioned finding something about some creatures called 'changelings'."
"Yeah, but she immediately discarded that, saying those things 'would look humanoid or worse, but still physical', and then continued looking in another set of books."
"Well, at least she must find something, right Rainbow?"
The girls looked at Dizzy with a bit of concern, not entirely sure that they could find the answers. They all saw the two girls leave school still pulling Crowned between the two, as his friend only sighed at his buddy's luck.
"Oh Crowned, what a problem you got yourself into," he exclaimed, facepalming once again.
The rest of the week passed by without much change: The Rainbooms futilely looking for the missing element, Crowned stuck between Applejack and Octavia fighting to stay with him, Flash and Dizzy warning their friend about choosing one of the two before it was too late, and Sunset looking non-stop for an answer among the books in the library.
Finally, Friday arrived, and while most of the day passed like every other day of the week, by the end of the day Flash decided to check on his friend Sunset in the library.
"Sunset?" Walking inside, he tried looking for his old friend, "I don't want to interrupt you, but I think we need your heeeeEEELP!"
The last thing he expected was noticing Sunset almost buried in a mountain of books, while still reading one from the pile.
"Oh, Flash!" she exclaimed, sounding a bit overexcited and not removing her eyes from her book. "Hi! I was just reading this and... I think I found something!"
"W-Woah! You mean you read all these books in a whole week?!" Flash exclaimed, removing some books from the pile burying the girl.
"Oh, all these? Nah, I read them all today," she responded like it was no big deal.
"W-WHAT?!?! B-BUT HOW DID YOU-"
"EUREKA!!!" Sunset jumped in excitement, giving the book to Flash, "FLASH, I NEED YOU TO REUNITE EVERYBODY TOMORROW; I THINK I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT WE'RE DEALING WITH!"
"Uhm, Sunset? Tomorrow's Saturday, we don't have classes."
"R-Really?" Looking closely at her, the blue-haired boy noticed her eyes seemed tired, like she skipped sleep.
"I-I think you should take a rest, Sunset... care for me to drive you to your department?"
The girl let out a long yawn, followed by the ringing of the bell marking the end of the classes.
"...Yes, please?"
Meanwhile in one of the classrooms, Crowned was beyond stressed, not looking well. Dizzy tried to talk with his friend, concerned for his health.
"Hey buddy, feeling okay?"
"...n-no," he said stuttering, "All this week I've been receiving their affections and..."
"Dude, seriously, look at you! You'd better choose one of them before something worse happens... like maybe turning into raging she-demons."
"W-WHAT?!" Crowned was now terrified.
"I'm just kidding!" his friend quickly said, before adding: "But you know AJ has her magic powers and all that, perhaps in one of those she ends up fed up with Octavia and ends up transforming into... something."
"...Do you think that's what happened with Sunset?" the crowned boy wondered, a bit afraid of taking a decision. "She just got fed up with the world and turned into a demon?"
"Huh, what?! No! I've never had that thought about her," Dizzy responded, thinking that perhaps a bit more chatting could relax his friend further, "I really admire her, and... to be honest, I always felt like I had no chance with her because of how unworthy I feel about her, but then I met Coco and... Well, you know the rest."
Crowned simply sighed and remained thoughtful, still debating about what to do about it... But right then the door busted open as AJ and Tavi came in, discussing like always.
"Farmer, I've already told you: Crowned loves 'Royal Blue', not just regular 'blue', I', better at those details," Tavi claimed, with a bit of vanity.
"Well hear me, you snob: A'h don't care for that, A'hm stronger and can protect him from anything, that matters more than his fave shade of blue," AJ responded rudely, sounding boastful about herself.
"...perhaps, but I'm still prettier."
"Oh yeah? A'hm far more honest!"
They both stared at each other menacingly, starting to sweat from all the tension between them... and a bit of jealousy.
"...he prefers m'ah ponytail and golden hair," Applejack proclaimed, sounding a bit desperate.
"He says black hair is more elegant and beautiful."
"Well..." making a smug smile, the farmer girl said with confidence, "A'h have a bigger pair than y'ah."
"Hah! Not even you can believe tha-"
What Octavia couldn't believe was the clash between worlds that ensured when Applejack pushed hers against her chest... both watching in disbelief as their busts were just the same size. Both girls tried pushing the other, trying to pass their chest as bigger than the other, all while Crowned watched in utter shock and awe, while Dizzy simply looked away wanting nothing to do with them.
"G-GIRLS, ENOUGH!!!" Finally interfering, Crowned separated the two girls, who quickly tried to clash once again.
"Just let me get this over with her!" both girls roared in unison.
"Please, just stop... you're just making a show..." making a subtle gesture, he pointed to the pale boy trying to ignore their cat-fighting.
"But Crowny..." Tavi took a deep breath and got closer to him, "I cannot help but think that this farmer might take you away from me. It's just.... I really like you."
"Y'ah don't think A'h don't feel the same way?" AJ replied, with the same tone of doubt, "A'h fear that being with her might make y'ah forget about me and our friends... A'h don't wanna see y'ah turn into a stuck-up jerk, A'h want y'ah to be part of m'ah family."
"B-But...”
"Just accept me as your girlfriend!" they both exclaiming, pressuring the naive boy.
Crowned felt totally worked up, not knowing what to choose, caring for both of them, feeling like their fighting could never stop... but he kept his cool, and after meditating his response he said:
"C-Can we... go to the yard, please?"
The two girls looked at each other, with a clear look of uncertainty on their eyes.
"S-Sure..." they answered, leaving to where Crowned told them.
The boy took a deep breath and followed right behind them, but was stopped at the door when he heard his friend talking.
"Wait, what are you going to do, buddy?"
"I..." Crowned hesitated for a moment, but then spoke: "I think I've finally made my mind."
"Wait, you mean..." Dizzy saw as his friend left before he could finish. "C-Crowned?!"
Going behind him, Dizzy saw as the crowned boy walked to the outside, ready to tell the girls his decision. As he observed, the pale student realized someone was beside him.
"Well, there he goes... what do you think will happen?"
"Huh?" Turning to his left, he found himself right next to Flash, to whom he still had some distrust.
"Is there a problem, dude?"
"...yes, but..." As worried as he was for Flash being the mastermind behind the shadows, he was more concerned for his friend's wellbeing, "It doesn't matter now."
"Oh... okay."
The two remained silent for a moment, thinking about the situation... but Dizzy also had something else in mind.
"...Fifty bucks if he chooses Applejack."
"Excuse me?" Flash was surprised to hear that.
"Come on, I know you well, I'm sure you cannot refuse a good bet when it presents itself."
"I don't know..." Dizzy began to feel nervous about his sudden hesitation. "I saw his face and-"
"HEY FLASH, DIZZY!" suddenly the voice of Norman interrupted them as he arrived unexpectedly, with fifty bucks in hand, "I heard you were betting, and I think he's gonna choose Octavia."
"...And this is what I get for betting... Alright then," the pale boy accepted unenthusiastically. "You know, I might've bet on Octavia, but I'm aware Crowned has this strange fascination with abs."
Flash saw the two guys betting, and feeling confident, he also decided to go with it.
"...I'll beat you two," he responded as he pulled out fifty dollars.
"Oh, so you're going in, huh?" Dizzy felt a bit of relief, and now was curious about his choice, "Who do you think he's gonna choose?"
Flash looked over at the yard for a moment, where Crowned was about to make his choice, and finally responded to the other guys...
"Sorry for you, farmer girl," Octavia said to her rival, "Your time is finally over, but I hope you at least enjoyed Crowned's company."
"That's what y'ah think," AJ responded with anger, "Y'all see how he chooses to be with me over y'ah."
"Shut up, you... Farm girl!"
"Stuck up!"
"GIRLS!" Crowned shouted at them, making them stop.
The two girls looked at him nervously, wondering who he was going to choose, and the cold weather wasn't helping at all.
"S-Sorry, Crowny," Octavia said stammering, "a lady shouldn't be acting like this, it's just-"
"Who are y'ah gonna choose?" AJ added, with the same nervousness as the musician.
Crowned looked at both girls, feeling the cold wind on his back. He had thought about what to say in his way there, but even then he was afraid to say it. The boy took a deep breath, and finally, he took his decision:
"...I've been thinking about this through the whole week, standing your fights, and accepting your affections, which... well, it's been a torture to me, because that only made making a choice the more difficult... but then I talked with Dizzy, and how he used to have a great crush over Sunset... he might still admire her, but he never felt worthy of her, and stopped trying to get with her... And after thinking about it... I think I'll the same."
"W-What are you talking about?"
"I..." He stuttered for a moment, with his head bowed, but made it clear to them: "I don't feel worthy of any of you two... that's why I choose none of you."
"W-WHAT?!" Both girls replied in shock.
"It's just... it's..." Even he was feeling bad for his decision, but was sure it was the best, "It's just that you two make me too happy to be with, and I can't keep postponing my decision, I could be only hurting you both... I really like... no, I really LOVE both of you so much, that I prefer that you go and find someone else that truly makes you happy, than having to choose who of you gets to be happy and the other is left heartbroken... I-I'm sorry."
The two girls listened to him in disbelief, while he turned around and ran away as fast as he could, hoping that his decision was for the best, and that they could eventually find happiness.
"Crowned..." AJ tried to chase after him, as tears started to fall from her eyes, "CROWNED, WAIT!!! NO... no..."
"Oh no... NO... CROWNY!!!" Octavia fell to her knees crying, still coping with his beloved's answer.
Both girls felt a mix of anger and sadness as they saw Crowned disappear in the distance. Applejack turned back to Octavia, ready to place the blame on her.
"ARE Y'AH HAPPY NOW?! This is what y'ah wanted after all, didn't y'ah!?"
"Y-YOU'RE STILL SAYING IT'S MY FAULT FOR THIS?!" the gray girl tried hiding her tears. "I WAS VERY HAPPY WITH HIM UNTIL YOU ARRIVED!!!"
"ARE Y'AH SURE?! BECAUSE AS FAR AS A'H REMEMBER, HE TRIED TO ASK ME OUT WHEN Y'AH APPEARED!!!"
"YES, AFTER YOU REJECTED HIM!!!" AJ started to feel her anger growing, and so did Tavi.
"A'H DIDN'T REJECT HIM!!! A'H WAS JUST NOT READY!!!"
"AND YOU THOUGHT HE WAS GOING TO WAIT UNTIL YOU WERE?!"
Applejack tried to respond, but the truth was that she was right, all that came from her mouth was weak groan of anger.
They remained looking at each other with anger for a moment, but then they both felt the cold sensation of rain beginning to fall. Afraid that someone could see her in her state, Octavia ran towards the Great Apple Tree, and Applejack followed her soon after. Water dropped from the skies the same way the tears kept gushing from their eyes.
"N-Noo..." the musician sniffed and tried cleaning her face, to no avail, "W-Why... WHY?!"
"Can y'ah please... Stop... Being... A CRY BABY?!" Applejack screamed at her, as she struggled to contain her own tears.
"I JUST HAD THE KINDEST PERSON I'VE MET LEAVING ME, HOW DO YOU THINK I FEEL?!"
"DO Y'AH REALLY THINK A'H DON'T FEEL THE SAME WAY?!" Their eyes met against each other, and realizing they both felt the same sadness. "Yes, A'hm just as hurt as y'ah are... Just in case y'ah thought a'h had no heart just for being a 'farmer girl'."
Applejack sat down trying to cope with her mixture of emotions, dealing with the fact they might have lost Crowned forever. They both felt terribly awful, sharing a guilt over the incident. Octavia looked over to her partner, and how despite her efforts she was still crying.
"A-Applejack... I... I never had seen you crying like that," she said with calm.
"S-Shush..." AJ replied, still upset.
"I-I was being honest..." Tavi persisted, hoping to settle things with her, "I always see you playing rough and... getting hurt a lot, you carry loads of heavy stuff without problems and... endured things that could've other girls cry, yet you never did.
AJ turned to face her for a moment, and then lowered her hat and simply said:
"...that should tell y'ah how much this mattered to me."
Realizing her emotions, Octavia reflected on everything she thought of her, and felt terribly sorry for it. She tried to walk toward her, wanting to apologize, but the farmer realized and stopped her.
"D-don't get close here..." she said coldly, "It's all muddy, and y'ah don't wanna get that fine dress of y'ers dirty."
"I-I'm not worried... It doesn't matter, really," the musician replied as she sat near her. Applejack looked in a bit of disbelief.
"...A'h thought all y'all rich men only cared for their fashion, money and business."
"T-that's what you thought of me?" Tavi let out a small chuckle. "I should've known there was a reason you hated me..."
"B-But y'ah looked like..."
"Trust me, if you know how my first year of Middle School was in Crystal Prep. Now those were real stuck-up snobs, firmly believing they are above you just because they have money, and only wanting to be with you for your wealth and ties that benefits them... Not like here, where everyone is more... honest."
"Y-Y'ah really think so?" Now Applejack was the one feeling horrible for all she said and did against her.
"Yes... I chose to be transferred here because I truly wanted a friendlier environment, and... Not only did I like it... I ended up meeting Crowny and... And..." Tavi was about to start crying again, but her partner approached her and cleaned her tears away.
"L-Let's try to not think about that... M-maybe we just need to talk other things like... did y'ah know this tree was planted by m'ah Granny?"
"R-Really?"
"Yeah, it was a gift from the Apple family to the first principal of Canterlot High, and it's been grown since then."
Tavi looked at the big tree sheltering them from the rain, and couldn't help but smile a bit.
"It’s... a very nice tree," she said, feeling like she was in control of her emotions once again. "At least... we didn't disappoint this one."
They remained silent for a long while, watching the rain falling in front of them. They thought about their discussions and fights all through the week, feeling remorse for misjudging each other.
"Octavia... A-A'h think we really screwed up now," Applejack said, lowering her head.
"You don't say," Tavi added, sighing as she turned to her partner, "Applejack, I'm really sorry for everything I made you go through."
"No no, A'hm the one who's sorry. A'h should've let y'ah let you be with Crowned instead of... getting jealous of you."
AJ lowered further her hat, covering her whole face, but Tavi quickly raised it again and looking into her eyes she said:
"Applejack, you are such a hard-working girl, always helping other... I think you deserve more than anyone else to have a nice boyfriend that loves and supports you."
The girl smiled for a moment, and Octavia smiled at her too, feeling a huge relief of finally having settle their differences.
"I-I guess we should've done this before... maybe that we would've... kept our hearts intact." Tavi shed a single tear when she remembered how moments ago Crowned basically rejected both of them.
"A'h know... Seriously, A'h don't know what got into me. I-It was just so new to me that A'h didn't know how to react... And A'h feel ashamed as the woman in charge of the Apple family."
The musician was surprised to hear those words from her.
"D-Did you just said "in charge"?
"Eeyup... Y'ah knew why A'h live with my Granny?"
"No, I never heard why," Octavia wanted to know more from her. "What happened to your parents?"
"...they left when A'h was younger... and never came back."
"Oh gosh... I-I'm sorry," the girl apologized, feeling bad for asking her about that event.
"No need to worry, Tavi," AJ said to soothe her, "A'hve been working on the farm since A'h was a young girl since then, it's not something that affects me so much. A'hve been doing the most that A'h can in the family business, but Granny insists that A'h should finish High School first... and that's why A'hm here, but as soon as A'hm done with m'ah studies, it's back to the farm for me."
"So that's why..." Octavia covered her face with her hands, feeling more ashamed, "Oh Applejack... If I had known about this... But wait, you aren't planning on doing a career?"
Applejack looked hesitating for a moment, and confessed:
"...Maybe A'h do, but Granny... A'h don't know how much time she'll be around, and we don't have that much money for me to maintain the farm and pursue my studies."
"AJ, I've seen your Granny, I'm sure she's still gonna be around for many years more. And besides..." the farmer felt how she suddenly grabbed her hand, with a look of care in her face. "...I don't think you have to worry much about money... with a friend like me."
"O-Octavia? W-What are y'ah saying?" she responded in surprise, looking at her gesture.
"Applejack, I'm very, very sorry for everything I did to you. I had no idea of how you truly were, and I promise to never insult you like I did. Maybe we can start again and... Try to be friends together?"
"B-But..." Now it was the blonde girl who held the other's hand, "If anyone must apologize, it's me: A'h was the one who tried to take Crowned from y'ah and..."
"I-It's okay... We should try to forget this, start from scratch and... And..." Tavi began to stammer, and more tears dropped from her eyes.
"...Y'er still thinking about 'im, right? About what happened?"
"...yes." Feeling about to tear up again, Tavi hugged her new friend and whimpered for a moment, as AJ tried to calm her down. "...I really love him."
They continued comforting each other for a while, thinking what they should do with Crowned, now that he had rejected them both as girlfriends.
"...Tavi?" Applejack began saying, "How about we just... make amends after all this, leave that silly rivalry aside, and go apologize with Crowned for all we made him go through and hope he accept us as friends?"
"B-But... I don't know if..."
"Tavi, A'hm sure he will always say yes to y'ah."
"No, no, no, if he'll yes to someone, that's going to be you, AJ," Tavi responded, looking at her with care.
"Octaviaaa, don't make this harder that it is." The two girls managed to chuckle a bit, starting to feel closer, finally knowing how the other truly was.
In that moment, when she saw how much they both cared for Crowned, and how they actually seemed to like each other, Octavia came up with something.
"Applejack?" The blonde girl turned her head to face her, "I-I know this will sound weird... but... If we just forget about being her girlfriend and just... be close confidents with him? Like, her best friends?"
"Y'ah mean, like..."
"A-At least until he decides who he wants to be with..." she added, covering a bit her now blushing face, "T-that way we can be both with him without fighting and... Maybe be happy when he eventually chooses one of us."
Applejack couldn't help but smile at her idea.
"Hehehe, A'h like that idea... but what if he still doesn't settle for one of us two?"
"...then maybe we'll have to move to Dubai," Tavi responded, much to her friend's confusion.
"Dubai?"
"Y-You know, in Saddle Arabia, it's more acceptable that..." she felt a bit ashamed to continue, and her whole face turned red as AJ tried... and failed, to contain her laughter.
"Pffft! AHAHAHAH, DOESN'T SOUND SO BAD, HAHAHA!" She proceeded to tightly hug Octavia, bringing her closer to her, "Come here, sug'ahcube!"
"Oh, dear friend..."
They remained hugging for a moment, as a warm sensation invaded their bodies. The rain had already stopped, but they continued hugging for many minutes, enjoying the mutual sensation.
"Thank you, my farmer friend."
"Thank you, my dear rich friend."
They remained like that for a while, the last drops of rain falling from the tree as the wind began to blow with all its strength.
"Looks like the rain is finally gone," Applejack noticed, stretching her arm to feel no more drops falling. "A'h think we should get our stuff and go home before it starts raining again."
"Agreed," Octavia said as her friend helped her stand up. "Thanks, let's go inside quickly."
They quickly rushed back into the school to grab their backpacks and leave the school, without noticing that, right behind them, the tree had started to glow: The once green leaves began shining in a bright blue light that covered the whole tree, as a strange, powerful breeze began to blow, apparently coming from the tree itself.
The girls were right at the backdoor when the powerful breeze pushed them inside, almost making them fall down.
"WOAH! Did you feel that?" Octavia exclaimed, turning to face her friend. "I think there's a storm approaching, we need to... Applejack?"
AJ didn't respond, she instead noticed her element began glowing, and felt something odd about the breeze.
"Tavi, A'h don't think this is a storm... or regular wind, to be honest." The farmer walked back to the back door, and opened it wide to let the breeze in. She felt the strong wind blowing, as a pair of leaves flew by, following a set trail; she also noticed her necklace was shining bright, just like the leaves.
"...Octavia, A'h know this might sound strange, but..." she turned around and with a look of determination, she said: "We need to follow those leaves."
"Wait, why are you...?" In that moment, Tavi realized what she meant with that. "...I need to go for something first."
"What are y'ah talking a- Octavia?!" She had no time to question her as the cellist girl ran through the halls, having to follow her trail.
AJ followed her all the way to the music hall, where she found her friend picking up a sable from her cello case.
"Huh?! What in the... Is that really..."
"Please don't tell anybody I sneaked this," Octavia said with her cheeks blushing, "This was a gift from an uncle of mine from one of his trips, and I've been using this to deal with the shadows my way. Perhaps that way I can be more useful."
"Help me? Wait, how do you...?"
"...know about the magical stones you're looking around school?" Applejack's eyes opened wide when her friend said that. "Crowned told me. In fact I helped him retrieve one of those."
"Hold on... Y'AH MEAN Y'AH WERE THE ONE WHO HELPED CROWNY THAT ONE TIME?!"
"Mmhmm, yes I am," she confessed, her cheeks shining even brighter, "But let's not talk about that now, we have a trail to follow."
Octavia left the room in a hurry, as AJ tried to recover her composure from the impression.
"...A-Alright, maybe we'll talk later." She followed her friend right behind her, as they saw the wind carrying a trail of leaves through the hallways, in a fixed path.
The leaves lead the girls all the way to the school basement, where the pipelines and maintenance equipment laid almost abandoned, only accumulating dust and dirt.
"Yuck, this is so bloody nasty," Octavia expressed with disgust, "Somebody needs to clean this place as soon as possible."
"Well, supposedly the Principal wanted to give some maintenance to this place, but the shadows scared all the workers away," Applejack explained. "Nobody has bothered to come here since then... Except us, of course."
"Sounds like the perfect place for the shadows to hide the stones."
"Exactly, but the thing is... M'ah friends and A'h had been here before, and we found nothin' around here," she explained, illuminating the dark basement with her element, "So why did the wind guide us..."
"Wait, Applejack, look!" Tavi exclaim as she pointed towards a large brick wall, noticing the leaves clashing into it, "Don't you see something odd?"
Applejack inspected more closely at the indicated place, and after looking right into it, she noticed a strange detail: Some of the leaves appeared to have moved part of the bricks.
"Well tie me up, it's a fake wall!" She exclaimed amazed, but then she realized something, "But, why didn't the Elements notice this befo-"
She tried to touch the wall, but her hand was quickly repelled by a powerful shock.
"YEOUCH! Of course... they cursed it," AJ shook her hand, still feeling the stinging sensation, "It must've been enchanted to repel our magic."
"In that case, let me handle this." Octavia softly pushed her friend aside, and holding her sable with elegance, she swung the weapon against the bricks, which were slowly being pushed back until it couldn't hold on anymore and felt apart. "Ta-da! The path is open."
"Octavia... remind me to never anger y'ah when holding anything sharp," the farmer said in shock, amazed at the musician's unknown talents.
The two girls walked to the newly open path, finding themselves in a wide, pitch-black room full of dust.
"Agh, I can't see anything," Tavi complained, "Care to enlighten us, dear?"
"With pleasure, my dear." Applejack grabbed her necklace and, using her magic, illuminated the room.
As the necklace began to brighten everything, the girls noticed several shovels laying on the floor, as well as bags of concrete, blueprints, and several other building materials scattered all over the place.
"What is this place supposed to be, some kind of abandoned masonry workshop?"
"No, wait!" Applejack noticed something strange on one of the prints, and grabbing it she decided to read it, only to discover something even odder: "T-This seems to be the blueprints of the school's structure, but... Look at the date."
She pointed her necklace to the paper like a lantern, as Tavi approached and read the date written on it: it was from just two months ago.
"That date... Wasn't it two months ago that some contractors left a classroom halfway through reparations when they claimed a bunch of ghosts stole their tools?"
"Eeyup, seems we just found them," AJ said as she looked over all the scattered things in the room. "A'h remember Luna blaming some students for it, saying tha' it was just the work of a bunch of prankster. How wrong we were."
"Yeah..." Tavi picked up a couple of hammers from the floor, still with a doubt on her head. "But wait, why could the shadows steal such mundane stuff like these?"
"THAT DOESN'T MATTER TO YOU!" A mysterious voice screamed at them from within the darkness, startling the two girls who shrieked out of surprise.
Aware that said voice could only come from a shadow, AJ and Tavi adopted battle positions, holding their elemental jewel and sable respectively. They noticed a silhouette popping from below the ground and aimed to it, but to their surprise... it turned out to be none other than Flash.
"FLASH SENTRY?!" Applejack exclaimed in shock, about to walk towards him, "W-What are y'ah doing here?"
"Applejack, wait!" Octavia stopped her buddy, recognizing something was off with "Flash". "He might look like him, but I'd remember that armor at any place: It's the same shadow that attacked me and Crowned that night."
"Hmhmhmh, well, you aren't as easy to fool as I expected," the shadow spoke, its voice mimicking that of Flash, ash he revealed to be holding the lost stone in his hands. "We're you two looking for this?"
"The Element!" The two girls exclaimed, then AJ added: "A'hm surprised your minions hid it so well, cursin' the fake wall they built here."
"No, I'm the one who's amazed with you, girls," "Flash" said in a menacing distorted voice, "Forcing my shadows to hide the elements from you, you're lucky we can't carry these rocks through walls... I would've dealt with all of you already."
"Okay, enough with the villain speeches, just give us the stone and we'll go soft on you," Octavia pointed her sword at the impostor.
"...Really? And here I thought you were smarter than that," the shadow mocked them, gaining an unfriendly glare from both. "I don't care if you have your elements with you, I still have enough power to stop, because after all, you're still just a couple of foolish mortals."
Angered at his comments, Applejack fired a blast from her element to the impostor, but it simply covered himself with his dark wings, blocking the attack and keeping him harmless.
"WHAT IN THE-" her words were interrupted when she felt the ground moving... Or more specifically, everything that was scattered on the floor.
Suddenly, right in the middle of the room, another shadow surged from the floor. The Dark Flash floated towards it, placing the stone right in its core.
"GO, MY SERVANT," he yelled with his distorted voice, "DESTROY THEM BOTH, AND TAKE THAT ELEMENT FROM HER NECK!"
The new shadow let out a fearsome roar as Dark Flash vanished among the darkness. His servant proceeded to call forth everything around it: pickaxes, shovels, and bags of concrete flew towards the monster, until it became an amalgamation of grotesque appearance.
"Oh... bollocks," Octavia muttered, looking at the massive creature of concrete and metal, "This is worse than that paint monster."
"...Y'ah seriously need to tell me everything about that night after this," Applejack snarked, as the monster roared and attempted to slam them with what barely resembled 'hands'.
The girls barely managed to jump out of the way, as the massive weight of the concrete hit the floor with tremendous force. Standing up once again, AJ though the monster's size could make it clumsy, and attempted to hit it before it raised it arm again... but to her horror the creature moved at a surprising speed and slammed her with the back of its other "hand". Without time to react, she barely covered herself as the monster launched her into a wall.
"APPLEJACK!" Tavi screamed terrified, fearing the worse. Watching the monster "walk" towards her, she ran as fast as she could and passed between its "legs" right as it attempted to crush her. Reaching her friend, she was worried that the gargantuan had damaged severely, and checked for injuries... until she stopped her.
"Ouch... F'er an obscenely giant beast, that thing moves pretty fast." Standing up again, Applejack managed to perceive something right behind her friend, "TAVI, LOOK OUT!!!"
Noticing the giant mace-like arm about to fall, Tavi pushed her friend out of the way, trying to avoid more of the giant's swings.
"ANY PLAN TO DEAL WITH THAT... DARK... BOULDERSTEIN... WHATEVER IT IS?!" Applejack couldn't believe her attempt at naming the monster.
"FIRST: WE CAN LEAVE THE NAMES 'TILL AFTER THE FIGHT, OKAY?!" she scolded her partner, "Second: A'h do have a plan, but A'h need y'ah to distract it. Think y'ah can do that?"
"I-I'll give it a try."
Watching the monster moving closer, they scrambled and moved in opposite directions. Noticing some pebbles on the floor, Tavi threw them to the giant, calling its attention. Losing all focus on AJ, the shadow monster tried to crush Octavia, swinging both arms against her, but she was still swift enough to get out of the way. Realizing this was her chance, the farmer grabbed her Element and charged a magic blast, ready to fire at the shadow.
"HEY, Y'AH STEPPING STONE!" She screamed at it, and right when it turned its "head" to face her, she blasted it with her Element... which did nothing to the creature, who let out what barely resembled a chuckle, "W-WHAT'S SO FUNNY?!"
"Maybe the fact your bloody attack was useless?" Tavi snarked from across the room.
"A'HM NOT BLIND, TAVI!!!"
Having called its attention, the monster began to swing its arms against the farmer girl, who began to dodge as fast as she could. Seeing her in danger, Tavi tried to run to get her out of the way... that is, until she noticed something in the monster's arm.
"Wait, is that a crack?" She thought as her focus turned against that possible weakness. "Perhaps with a good swing..."
Grabbing her sable with firmness, she ran right towards the monster, and as soon as it tried to slam Applejack again, she swung her weapon against the already broken concrete, with a precise blow that broke the whole arm, which fell to the floor instantly turning into bits.
"Are you okay, my friend?" Tavi said as she helped her partner to stand up, as the monster roared in apparent pain.
"Yeah, thank y'ah a lot, Tav-" Suddenly, the creature grew a shadowy arm to replace the lost limb, and slammed it against the musician, launching her away. "TAVI!!!"
Thankfully, without all the concrete, the blow wasn't severe for the girl. Applejack, on the other hand, was beyond angry.
"HEY, BIG FELLA! THINK Y'AH CAN MESS WITH M'AH FRIEND?!" Trying once again, she blasted the monster with her Element... but this time, when it hit the shadowy arm, it blew into pieces, as the monster roared in pain, grabbing where its limb used to be. "Wait, THAT'S IT! Tavi?"
Octavia managed to stand up, cleaning away the dirt from her clothing.
"YES, AJ?!" she responded to her.
"LISTEN, A'H NEED YOUR HELP..." pointing at the monster, she put it as simple as she could, "CAN Y'AH LEND ME A HAND BLOWING THAT MASS OF CONCRETE DOWN?"
"...Oh, I see what you're planning now, Jackie," Octavia responded with a smile, "And it'll be a pleasure to help."
Scrambling once again, AJ began distracting the monster, calling its attention against her. She drove it as close as possible, and moved out of the way as it tried to slam her to the ground, but as soon as its arm was down, Tavi swung her sable against it, breaking it down. Once its shadowy arm appeared, the farmer lost no time and blasted it away with her Element. Losing both arms, the amalgamation roared in frustration, and tried ramming against the two. But like if it was a simple bull, they moved out of the way, as each one alternated between swinging her weapon against its cracks, and blasting the exposed shadow with magic. Slowly, the creature was barely a thin tower of concrete with the core almost exposed, and collapsed into its "knees" from exhaustion.
"Heheheh, that doesn't look strong now," Applejack laughed, watching the monster reduced to a pathetic nuisance. "A'h think it's time to try something new."
Preparing her arm, Octavia noticed how it was slowly being surrounded by the Element's magic.
"Do you really think Mr. Ugly Monster deserves that?"
"Well, it hit y'ah, didn't it?" The creature let out a small groan of confusion, raising its core at the right height.
"Okay, you convinced me."
Giving no time to react, Octavia swung her sword against the monster's core and kicked it right in the center, breaking it down and revealing the Element of Harmony.
"YEEEHAAAW!!!" Running like a freight train, Applejack hit the shadow's core and sent the Element flying away from its body, which shattered with her super-strength.
Finally, the girls managed to take a breath, having defeated another shadow, and recovering yet another Element.
"Wow... That. Was. AMAZING!" Octavia squee'd from joy, holding her friend's arms.
"Oh, but that was all thanks to y'ah," AJ complimented her.
"Come on, that punch of yours? WOAAH! You must be the World's Strongest Girl right now!"
"Awww, don't make me blush, suga'hcube!"
"Sugarcube... I think I'll get used to that name."
They both continued laughing as they left the room, Element in hand. They proceeded to finally take their stuff and left the school, deciding to take a small detour towards Flash's place.
"One-hundred forty-seven, One-hundred forty-eight, One-hundred forty-nine, One-hundred fifty!" Flash finished counting the pile of bucks on his hand, with a huge grin of satisfaction, having won the bet.
Suddenly, the boy heard someone knocking at his door, yet he didn't expect any visits. Placing his honest-won money on a table, he went to open the door, and who else had arrived but Applejack.
"Oh, uhm... Applejack, didn't expect you here," he said with shyness, remembering only the break-up, "Is everything okay? No hard feeling over Crowned? Uh... Why are you covered in dust?"
"A'hm fine, Flash, don't worry about me," she calmly responded, to his surprise, "It's just that-"
"HEY, DON'T YOU DARE LEAVING ME BEHIND!" From behind the farmer, Flash recognized a certain rich girl approaching... looking actually friendly towards AJ.
"W-Wait wait wait wait wait! But... I thought you two... Weren't you angry at each other?!" The boy's mind was now a mess, trying to compute the sudden change of emotions.
"Long story, Flash. The point is..." AJ then grabbed something from her backpack, and handed it to him, "A'h believe Sunset could love to see this."
Flash looked confused for a second, and then recognized the stone in his hands.
"WOAHWOAHWOAH, I-IS THIS ONE OF THE ELEMENTS..." His opened wide with amazement as soon as realization hit him. "T-THE LOST ELEMENT?!"
"Eeyup! And y'ah can thank my new friend Octavia for that."
"Aaw, Applejack, you flatter me!" Octavia responded with a cute blush, "But it wasn't really all me. If it wasn't for that tree, I think we couldn't have found that stone."
"Uh, 'tree'?"
"A'h shall tell y'ah another day, Flash. Just keep that stone safe for now and tell us, where did Crowned go?"
"Oh, Crowned... Uhm... I don't think it's a good idea to visit him right now," Flash scratched his head, feeling a bit nervous. "You see, after he... made his choice, he said he wanted to be left alone and ran home. And if he sees you, well..."
"Hey, we were the ones who screwed up in the first place," Octavia explained, "We just want to apologize with him and... go back to being good friends."
"I still think it's not the right moment, but... If you really want to talk with him, this is his address." Flash then sent the girls their friend's address via message, and just as fast as they arrived, Tavi and AJ hurried to see Crowned.
"THANK Y'AH FLASH!"
"You're welcome, girls!" He waved them farewell, feeling a bit of joy of seeing them having amended fences. "It feels so nice to be right."
Not much later, the girls finally arrived at Crowned's place, but much to their surprise the found the door was open. Getting a bit worried, they both sneaked in silently, only to find quite the scenery: Dizzy was facepalming hard, while Crowned was face-down over his table, with a glass of liquor on his hand and tears all through his face.
"I can't believe it, Crowned," Dizzy said in a scolding voice. "You had your chance, and you rejected them both?! On top of everything, you made me lost that bet!!! ...At least I know we're dealing with the Flash we know and somehow manage to tolerate."
The boy with the crown didn't answer, barely a whimper came from his lips. Watching him made such a mess was too much for Octavia.
"AAAH, CROWNY!!!" She yelled as she ran towards him, making his companion jump from the surprise.
"W-WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING HERE?!" Dizzy said somewhat between angry and shocked.
"That's the same thing we want to know, pasty."
"...You just had to bring back that nickname, AJ," he answered unamused. "I just came to support my friend after you two left him like that."
"Oh dear... he got drunk because of us?" Octavia wondered with concern.
"Yup."
"How many bottles has he drank?" asked AJ.
"Only one."
"And how many glasses?"
"...Only one."
"Y'ah mean that's his second glass?"
"Pfft, hahahahahah... Nope." The girls looked at each other, completely lost.
"B-But... that glass is still full!"
"Exactly, Octavia."
They both tried not to laugh, just thinking about how much of a lightweight he turned out to be.
"Oh suga'hcube, we really need to teach him how to drink," Applejack joked, not to the amusement of Dizzy.
"How, torturing him again until he gets drunk?" He gave the girls a pretty mean look... a serious mistake as both girls whacked him and pushed the boy out of the house.
"Sorry, but this now a private moment between us, okay pasty?" AJ responded as she locked him out of the door.
"W-WAIT A MINUTE! First of all, I'm light-grey. Second, what are you talking ab-" Dizzy then realized they weren't anywhere near the door now. "...HELLO?!"
Back inside, Applejack and Octavia walked near their still fainted friend, wondering how to wake him up.
"Okay, with the pasty gone, what do we do with Crowny, AJ?"
"Well, A'h have some experience with this," she began explaining. "A'hve seen Big Mac get like this when drinking too much cider, but it has its trick, just watch."
She then proceeded to grab a lock of his hair, she twisted it and ripped it out with strength.
"AAAAAH!!!" Crowned woke up screaming. "O-Ouch..."
"See, it worked," the farmer said proudly.
"M-My head... What happeneeeeeeEEEH!!! AAAH!!!" Overwhelmed from having both girls right next to him, he fell backwards from his chair. "Ouch."
"Crowned!" Noticing he was still a bit drunk, they carried him to the sofa, "Are you okay?"
"I-I think sooo.... W-What are you doing here?" he asked nervously with teary eyes.
"We came for y'ah, Crowny," Applejack said softly.
"B-But... I told you not... to follow me anymore."
The two girls sat near their friend, giving him a kind hug.
"We're sorry... It was out fault for getting all jealous about each other."
"If only we had spoken like responsible adult instead of childishly fighting..."
"We... we don't want y'ah to hate us for that."
"Yes... W-We wanna be friends with you, and get along without fighting."
Crowned was surprised at how well his friends got along now.
"B-But... W-what about being your boyfriend?"
"Suga'hcube, y'ah don't have to choose now," AJ said, smiling at him, "We both care for you and... well, we also enjoy each other."
"So, how about continue being buddies, us three?" Tavi looked at him in the eyes, smiling cutely. "What do you say?"
"W-WHAT?!" Crowned couldn't believe that was happening. "B-But what if they say things about you two?!"
"Hmhm, I think that's the least important thing, after all I could be friends with the cutest boy I could ever meet, and the strongest farmer in the world, and that's enough for me."
"Well, y'ah hear our dear beloved 'stuck-up moneybags', if she doesn't worry about that, neither do A'h. After all..."
"We both love you, silly," they said in unison, kissing him in the cheeks.
Crowned's skin changed from blue to red in a blink, feeling like he was the luckiest boy in the entire world.
"I-I... GIRLS, YOU... YOU'RE BOTH CRAZY, BUT YOU'RE THE GIRLS I LOVE!" They all hugged together, smiling after finally getting along well as good friends.
They remained hugging for a moment, and feeling it was the right moment, he said:
"G-Girls?" They both turned their heads to face him. "I-I know we're just friends, but..."
To their surprise, Crowned approached his face towards Tavi, and out of a sudden kissed her gently on her lips.
"O-OH MY... MY FIRST KISS?" A silly smile appeared on her face, as she passed from gray to red.
"I-It's mine too..."
"Oh, is that so, suga'hcube?" Taking him by surprise, AJ grabbed his face and also gave her a kiss... with tongue. "That's how we do it at the farm."
"W-Woah... m-my first tongue kiss?" Crowned's eyes were now spinning in circles.
"Hehehe, guess that makes up for the week, don't you agree, Crowny?"
"I-I guess..." he couldn't help but smile... at the same time a feeling of exhaustion invaded him, "Well, I guess it's time..."
"Time? Time for what?" Octavia asked in confusion.
"It's Friday, the sun is already down... I think we should take advantage and have our first sleepover," he explained as his cheeks turned red once again.
"But... I didn't bring any pajamas," the musician said, only for AJ to giggle.
"We don't need stinkin' pajamas, my dear."
Surprising both of her friends, the farmer simply took of her skirt and shirt, walking in her underwear and a white undershirt.
"APPLE-APPLE-APPLE-APPLEJACK!!!" Crowned was about to become a completely new shade of red just from watching her.
"It doesn't bother y'ah at all, right, Crowny?"
"N-NOT AT ALL, BUT..."
"You know? That's actually quite the idea," Tavi said, following her friend and taking of her shirt and skirt.
"OHGIRLSYOUDON'THAVETO..."
"Wait, how could A'h forget?" AJ smirked as she approached Crowned, "You also have to take your clothes."
"E-E-EXCUSE ME?!"
His two friends laughed together, and before he could protest they left him only in underwear too... and in quite the underwear.
"A-Are those really Pokémon themed?" AJ tried to hold her laughter.
"D-Don't say that..." He didn't know if it was the shame, the nervousness or a bit of hangover, but Crowned felt his head spinning.
"What's the matter, is the king surrendering to his queens?"
Just when he thought he couldn't blush further, Crowned accepted her challenge.
"Oh, you aren't beating me, girls!"
Grabbing them by surprise, he gave them the tickles as revenge.
"AHAHAH, ENOUGH SUG'AHCUBE! AHAHAHAH, SILLY CROWNY." Applejack laughed as she counterattacked with her own dose of tickles.
"OH DEAR... AHAHAHA, STOP HIM, JACKIE! HAHAHAH... TOO MANY TICKLES!" Tavi exclaimed, also following their game.
"NEVEEER, TICKLES FOR MY DEAREST GIRLS!!!" Crowned kept on tickling them, as they moved from the living room to his bedroom, where they continued their game until they fell exhausted on the bed, the three cuddling together.
"Oh girls... I really love you."
"So do I, Crowny," AJ said, looking at both her friends.
"So do we, you mean," Tavi corrected, giving them a playful smirk.
And so they went to sleep, Crowned passing out quicker than the others. After everything that happened that week, they deserved some rest, since next week they knew things could get even more interesting. There was just something that was still on Applejack's mind.
"Psst, Octavia."
"W-What's the matter, Jackie?" she asked, while her friend hesitated to make her question. "Jackie?"
Finally, taking a deep breath, as her whole face turned red, she asked:
"...Where in the hay is Dubai?"
END OF CHAPTER.