I squinted in the afternoon sun, wound up, and kicked as hard as I could.
A single apple fell down from the branches and didn’t even come close to landing in the basket I had set out for the purpose.
“Crabapples,” I spat. “How does Applejack do this?” I gave the tree another kick and only got a sore foot.
“She's a pony, for one thing,” Dash’s voice came from above as she picked apples and tucked them into a burlap satchel we had made for the task especially. “She can kick harder than you can. Plus she’s done it that way for years, probably.”
I sighed, taking my hat off and wiping some sweat from my brow before putting the stetson back. “She likely gets a lot more done doing it that way,” I mused. “Maybe if Ah tap in a little bit, just a little…”
“Hey, I’m all for using our awesome magic,” Dash said as she drifted down to me, hanging slightly head-down with her wings creating a delightful breeze that smelled of a stormy night, of ozone and rain. “But just don’t expect me to help if you crack a tree.”
I hesitated. She was right, I could easily shatter a trunk if I wasn’t careful about it. I reached up and touched my pendant, still in the habit of wearing it after the war. I felt the magic inside and tapped it, ponying up and feeling the rush of power in my limbs.
“Here goes nothin’,” I said, winding up and kicking the trunk with what I judged was half strength. The trunk shuddered and a few apples dropped free. It was encouraging.
I wound up for another one, swinging a little harder. I heard the bark crunch under my boot and another few apples dropped down, but most stayed stubbornly attached.
“Consarn it,” I said, kicking forward hard. “Drop, will ya?”
The cracking sound was louder, and I felt the impact all the way up my leg. I looked at the tree and winced when I saw a boot-shaped impression in the trunk. I knelt and probed it with my fingers before determining that it would be ok.
Apple Bloom drove up on one of the small tractors we had with a large bed and loaded up the satchels from Dash’s endeavors and my pickings. She looked at the boot mark and glanced at me before starting the tractor up.
“Maybe you should try shaking it instead?” she called out before driving off.
I shrugged and gave the tree a hard shake, watching as the apples started dropping down. I still missed the baskets, but I had no problem collecting them.
“At least it didn’t break,” Dash said, wings furling as she landed. She held out the burlap sack to me and grabbed the other empty one before leaning in and giving me a kiss, brief but not lacking in passion. She winked at me as I stood there in a mild stupor, lips tingling.
“I’ll get going to the next batch, Jackie,” she said, wings spreading again as she took to the tops of the next batch of trees, the apples she picked being deposited into the satchel.
I reached up and touched my lips. We had swapped kisses before, but nothing that felt like that. I stood numbly for a moment, then looked up at the tree beside me and climbed the ladder to pick the last couple of apples left in the branches. I dropped back down just in time for Dash to set another satchel down on the ground.
“Ah tell you what,” I said quietly. “Let’s take a bit of a break.”
“That ain’t like you,” Dash said, coming up and wrapping arms and wings around me.
I smiled as I caught the word slip from her lips. Ever since we had gotten back, I had been hearing more of what the girls called “countryisms” come forth from her. I reached over and trailed a hand along her wing’s primary feathers.
“Maybe you’re rubbing off on me just as much as I’m rubbing off on you,” I smirked. “It’s not full harvest time yet, and we’re just going to head out to the hill.”
She smiled as memories flashed up. The hill in question was one that overlooked one of the small ponds one the farm, a small willow capping the mound. It was also where we had shared our first kiss. It had been just a short while before that business with the harpies, and something that both made me smile and blush.
As we walked, I reached out and hooked our pinkies together, a compromise for when we wanted to be close but were in public. Dash had been initially nervous about public displays, and not wanting to push her, I had suggested this.
She twisted her hand, claiming my fingers with hers as we reached the hill, both of us settling back against the willow’s trunk. The afternoon sun glistened on the pond’s surface and a fresh breeze began to blow, rustling the willow’s limbs.
“I gotta know,” she began. “What’s with the sudden desire for a break? That’s usually my line.”
“We could go back to work iffen ya want,” I countered as I leaned my back against her shoulder. She released her pony form, allowing for a more comfortable arrangement.
“That’s fine,” she said with a laugh. “Just wondering what’s up.”
“Ah don’t know,” I said. “Sometimes, Ah get to thinking about things when Ah work. Picking apples is pretty repetitive, so ya have plenty time fer your mind to work.”
I stared at the pond, feeling a sudden peace come over me. “Yer brash, headstrong, stubborn as a mule, and you don’t think before ya act,” I said slowly.
“I love you too,” she responded sourly.
“Let me finish,” I smirked. “Impatient too, Ah forgot that one.” I kissed her on the cheek. “But for every one of those traits, they are just as much positives as negatives. When it comes to yer friends, you don’t hesitate to offer help and you never go back on yer word. Ya may not always tell it straight, but you don’t fail if one of us need ya.”
I saw her embarrassed blush from the corner of my eye as I sighed contentedly before continuing.
“Me,” I said softly. “Ah’m just as bad. Ah’m overly self-reliant, got trouble asking fer help when Ah’m in a jam, and can be just as headstrong as a certain as a certain athlete Ah know.”
“O…kay?”
“What Ah’m getting at is that we’ve got a lot in common,” I said. “But we’ve got things that we can also come together on. You’ve been getting a bit more dependable when it comes to hard work lately. Ya might be able to keep up with us come harvest time.”
I leaned back, pulling her into my embrace as we watched the sun sink slowly, heralding the evening.
“But yer showing me that maybe, sometimes,” I whispered into her ear as I brushed a bit of rainbow-hued hair back into place. “We need to just lay back and enjoy the time we have, too. Yer learning to buckle down and throw in, and it’s high time that Ah learn to be still.”
We sat there for a short time before she sat up and looked back at me with a look that can only be described as wicked.
“Wanna go for a swim?” she asked.
“Rainbow, Ah ain’t got a suit on,” I said.
“Neither do I,” she smirked, crawling up to me to plant another kiss that set me tingling. I felt a moan slip free, but I wasn’t sure if it was from me or her.
When I came to my senses, she was sitting on her heels, unbuttoning the work shirt she was wearing, her firm middle already showing. My hat was on her head.
I grinned and started unbuttoning my shirt too.
I can learn to be still later. Time to show her how a country girl does things.