Applejack sat at the top of the hill, gazing forward.
Her eyes searched left.
Then they searched right.
Her muzzle opened, but she got hung up on her own breath.
Slowly, the mare's ears began to droop.
"Hey, uhm, Rainbow...?"
Rainbow was still dusting herself from the tumble she took across the floor of Sugarcube Corner. With a flick of her tail, the petite pegasus turned around to look.
"Yes, Applejack?"
"I..." Applejack brushed one forelimb with the other. She avoided her friend's gaze. "...I just wanted to be sure of somethin',"
Applejack gulped.
A warm blind wafted over Sweet Apple Acres.
"I... uh..."
She cleared her throat and adjusted the brim of her hat.
"I've been gettin' along just fine with... with..." A tight breath. "With... uhhhhh..."
Her ears and tail went limp.
"Say anything, AJ."
"Well, alrighty then." At long last, biting her lip, Applejack angled her eyes in the other mare's direction. "Did I hurt you earlier?"
Rainbow blinked. "Hurt... me?"
"Y'know... in the restaurant, while we was eatin' that fine meal that you bought for us all generous-like."
"Uhhhh..." Rainbow searched the ceiling, then brightened. "You mean the hoof wrestling thing?"
"Yeah." Applejack gulped. "The hoof wrasslin' thang."
"Pffffft." Rainbow smirked, rolling her eyes. "So what if I took a little tumble? Big deal! I've taken worse before. I bounce back all the time!"
"Still don't make it a proper thang that done happened!" Applejack frowned. "I practically grinded you into the tile floor like you was an earth plow. Rainbow, I'm awfully sorry."
"It's fine! Really!" Rainbow shrugged. "Those are the chances you take when you compete."
"Yes, only you don't chance it that often, do ya, sugarcube?"
Rainbow Dash blinked again. "Huh?"
Applejack winced, realizing she had to find new words to rephrase herself. She ultimately chose to change the subject... slightly. "I gotta say. I'm plum surprised I beat you like I did, Rainbow."
"Oh... uh..." Rainbow shrugged. "Well, surprises happen in life."
"Not around you, they don't," Applejack said. Before she could question the truth of that statement, she chose to go with a more digestible angle: "Yer the loyalest pony there ever was! We can count on you for anythang! And when you suddenly get thrown helter skelter by a simple lil' hoof wrassle..."
"Hey... I'm still loyal."
Applejack smiled. "I ain't sayin' yer not, darlin'. It's just that... It's awful unsettlin', ya feel me? With what just happened right now? I mean, I'm so plum used to treatin' you like yer just as strong and thick-skinned as me. But... b-but if I've been wrong about it all this time..."
Applejack sucked her breath in. She avoided the sight of Rainbow again, realizing she had talked herself into a corner. Habitually, she reached a hoof up and tightened her hat on her scalp. The feather rested where only she could feel it, and it was still as fragile and delicate as ever.
Just like the memory she had. A very precious memory.
Even still... it was just a memory. Her memories of her folk were fragile and delicate—but that didn't make her parents any less strong. For so long, Applejack had struggled to keep the farm afloat like they had once done. Now that everything was floating even, it was getting more and more difficult to rely on the fragile vestiges of the past... and the strings that bound them so tenderly to the present.
Applejack realized she had submerged herself too deep into her own mind to bother getting out of this conversation gracefully. It was far too much to ever concern Rainbow Dash with. However, she was feeling in an apologetic mood. So she carried on with natural aplomb: "All the times I've bitten onto yer tail or given you a playful shove or jabbed you every now and then. Well, suddenly I can't help but feel awful... just awful..."
"Hey... Hey, listen to me..." Rainbow Dash's voice was warmer than Applejack expected. "You could never... ever hurt me, Applejack."
Applejack squinted at her. She remembered the tearful little pegasus that snuggled tightly against her, shivering and vulnerable, in a Canterlot alleyway. "Ya sound mighty sure about that, sugarcube."
"Only because I am." Rainbow's wingtips fluttered as she added: "More sure of anything as I'll ever friggin' be. So don't you freak out, okay? You've got enough crap to deal with—like apples constantly falling on your head when you go bucking for hours on end."
Applejack took a deep breath, then bore a weak smile. "I reckon it's just the farmer's curse."
"Farmer's curse?"
"Eeyup. Always destined to be stronger, thicker, and denser than the rest of the ponies around me."
"Hah. Don't give yourself too much credit." Rainbow rolled her eyes. "I just happened to be off my game today. Next time won't be so easy for you."
"I suppose." Applejack felt relieved to be in the good grace of her friend. So she decided to do a friendly thing.
Totally friendly.
She leaned in and scooped Rainbow Dash into a hug. "Sorry for gettin' all queasy on ya, Rainbow. I know how much ya hate sappiness."
Rainbow Dash stammered: "More than the scum of the earth."
Applejack exhaled with relief. She was happy to be in good grace with her friends. On top of how well the apple business was booming, it positively made her flutter on the inside.
Perhaps that—if nothing else—was what tempted Applejack's forelimbs to take a slight detour when parting from the hug. Her fetlock brushed straight through Rainbow's mane. The farm mare felt a sharp spike through her body, from skull to tail, and for the briefest of seconds it was as though the entirety of her skin was covered in one single feather. In the next exhale, the tiniest of follicle grazes had ended, and Applejack stood across from her friend, biting her tongue and fighting the urge to blush.
"Well... I best be off..." Applejack patted her belly and swiftly trotted away. "I've got enough fuel to buck the whole Acres ten times over! Hah!"
"Go on, girl..." Rainbow Dash casually spoke, unaffected, which gave Applejack a breath of relief. "Have fun bucking without me."
"Heh, whatever you say, Rainbow." Applejack waved and made her exit. "Enjoy the rest of your day!"
"I'll try!"