//------------------------------//
// Chapter Four: A Pretty Good Day 
// Story: The Curse of the Elements 
// by Art Inspired 
//------------------------------//

The three couples awoke bright and early the next day. The rays of harsh light from the sun seeped serenely into the room and shined upon Twilight Sparkle. Raising her head as she woke up, she felt the hoof of her dear friend Applejack wrapped around her waist.

"Aw," she sighed as she stared downwards at her companion. Applejack was dreaming with a cheerful smile. She looked so peaceful in Twilight’s bed. 

"T-T-Twilight…"

"Applejack talks in her sleep?" Twilight thought.

Applejack moaned very pleasurably, "Your… lips... They're so soft! Ah love it!"

Twilight couldn’t help but feel complimented, but then, yesterday’s memories came back to her as she realized that if the sun was up, it meant that Princess Celestia was likely awake. "Why haven’t I received any reply?" she asked.

She strutted out of bed carefully, and managed not to wake her dreaming partner. Twilight then walked towards Spike’s basket silently. The young dragon snored absurdly where he slept.

"Spike," Twilight whispered. "Wake... up..."

"Huh, I didn’t do it. I… oh, a dream… Hehe."

"Did the Princess ever reply?"

"Twilight?" Spike nearly jumped out of his basket once he saw her looming over him. "No, actually she didn’t."

"That’s never happened. She usually replies to all of my letters, especially when I label them as urgent! Could something have happened?"

"I’m sure everything is fine. After all, she's a Princess. She's probably just now waking up the same as I am."

"I’m going to wake everyone up. Something is wrong here, and we need to get to the bottom of it!"

In little less then fifteen minutes, all the ponies were up and about with their special somepony, except for Twilight and Applejack. 

"Okay, everypony," Twilight said confidently at the door leading out of her treehouse. "Celestia never replied, which means something's wrong. We still hardly have any answers to this riddle, and all of this romance this week has been way too much to bear! We’re going to Canterlot. We're getting that book, and I'm going to find out what’s going on because would you ponies stop kissing each other for just five minutes!"

It was like one giant date for the three couples. 

As they all headed for the train station, Applejack kept trying to get closer to Twilight, but Twilight just kept pushing her further and further away. Disgruntled and love sick, all Applejack could do was hope she and Twilight would be able to get better acquainted with one another once all of them had reached Canterlot. On the train, there were two box cars that the couples could use. Everypony else used the back car while Twilight singled herself away from Applejack by taking up quarters inside of the car in front. Applejack came in to try to talk to her.

"Um… Twilight…?"

The unicorn sank her head as Applejack stepped closer to her. Twilight had her back to Applejack, and tried not to even look at her.

"Sparks," she said, using a cute, new nickname she had recently invented. "Please don’t ignore me… Ah just wanna talk."

Twilight gulped as she started to speak. "I can’t get you out of my head, Applejack. It’s as if… I just don’t know. If it’s a good thing, then why do I still feel like I shouldn’t accept these emotions? I don’t want to hurt your feelings, but then, I'm not entirely sure... if I should accept them, either. The patterns of our friends falling, and us... It's so uncanny. It can’t just be a coincidence. I guess what I’m saying is… I want to push these feelings of desire for you away… far away. I won’t accept them until I’m sure that these impulses that we're suddenly sharing can’t do us any harm."

Applejack, now more glossy eyed than ever looked at Twilight, and she then looked down at the wooden floor, and began to cry.

"Well then," she said during her sobs. "Ah guess… if that’s the way you wanna be… then Ah’ll wait. Ah’ll wait for as long as it takes… for you to accept me! But just know, that Ah… well, Ah love you Twilight! And Ah don’t wanna stop loving you even if it rips my heart in two!"

With that, she left Twilight alone with a tear drop trail leading to the back car. Applejack didn't see it, but after she left, Twilight collapsed under pressure and cried for the rest of the trip.

Upon arrival, Twilight and Applejack wiped away any leftover tear marks under their eyes, and exited the train. Everypony was enjoying the walk through town while Twilight and Applejack stayed silent and a good distance away from each other, but no matter how far apart they were, they still wanted to be together more than anything.

Rainbow and Pinkie stopped by almost every gift shop imaginable. 

Rarity and Fluttershy remarked that they should enjoy visiting one of the many salons that could be found within the city.

Everypony in the group but Twilight and Applejack was having a blast. The town was bustling and beautiful, and the city folk didn’t pay much attention to the couples, either.

Eventually they reached the Canterlot palace entrance. the whole structure was polished to a shine, and everything had never looked better. While Twilight and friends continued to head towards the grand hall, the guards recognized them all and bowed on sight. They in time reached the grand hall which was guarded by the Princess’s royal knights.

"State your purpose," the one on the left said.

"We’re here to see Princess Celestia. Is she... alright? She hasn't been feeling... ill at all, has she?" The guard didn't say anything to such questionings. "I-i-it's just that I'm her student, and, well... We'd really like to see her if that's alright."

"Yes, she is inside enjoying peaceful solitude. May I ask you to come back later?"

"No you may not!" Twilight's voice echoed. "We need to see her right now! It’s urgent!"

He winced. At first, Twilight thought that she had succeeded with her yelling, but then, he asked, "Are your... friends alright?!"

"Of course… Why wouldn’t they-" 

Twilight turned around to find her friends all making out all at once.

"You guys can’t wait for ten measly minutes while I find out what’s happening to us? Ugh!"

At lease Applejack was kind of behaving herself.

The royal guard soon allowed them to pass, but it wasn't exactly like he had much choice in the matter. They entered and startled the Princess of the Sun who was sitting on some pillows. She was enjoying the nice, quiet sounds of nature that came from outside her opened balcony window.

"Girls…! What are you doing here?"

Although she seemed bewildered, there was a hint of sarcasm in the way her Highness spoke.

Twilight looked at the Princess and asked forwardly why she hadn't gotten a reply from her yet. "Didn’t you get the letter I sent?"

The Princess bowed her head, and admitted to getting the letter. "I was hoping you would have simply succumbed to one another, but I should have known that wouldn’t happen with you, Twilight."

She explained everything about the curse to the ponies. They all looked at each other in disbelief.

"So… all this time," Rainbow said. "It was just a stupid spell? My love for Pinkie Pie isn’t real?"

Fluttershy looked ready to cry. "I thought this was special! Rarity and I are just… cursed?"

"I’m afraid so, my little ponies," Princess Celestia said. "Actually, the only way to put the curse to sleep once again, and perhaps for good this time is if all of you accept one another's love."

Everypony accepted this and once again, they all began to make out. Rainbow Dash leaned up against one of the pedestals while smiling, and allowed Pinkie Pie to kiss her.

"Even if this is just a spell," Rainbow said. "You're still the hottest pony I've ever seen. I, uh... actually felt that way for a long time, even before all this romantic stuff started happening." 

Pinkie blushed a little bit before she resumed kissing Rainbow Dash.

Fluttershy laid on her stomach, and cried while Rarity walked up to her somberly.

"Please don’t cry." Rarity's voice was sweet. "I still love you whether this is a spell or not!" she stood on top and slowly licked Fluttershy’s ears, sending pleasurable waves throughout the pink maned mare’s body. 

"Oh, Rarity… I… I love you!"

Everypony but Twilight had accepted it. Applejack stood there, waiting nervously. Twilight walked over to her, but Applejack couldn’t help but to look away. The closer Twilight got, the more the both of them blushed.

"Sorry," Twilight began. "For being so hard headed throughout this whole ordeal. I’m ready to accept you... your love."

Applejack smiled as a tear slid down her cheek.

"You don’t know how it feels... waiting and waiting just to hear you say that. This has been eating me up for the longest time! The eagerness always leads to day dreams, and what Ah heard what you said back on the train… Ah just… It tore my heart out, Twi. Ah can’t even begin to describe how this pain in my chest feels. Ah want you… Ah want you so bad that Ah think Ah… N-no! Ah do! Ah love you Sparks! You’re in my dreams, in my thoughts… Ah… Ah love you!"

"Every time these impulses happen, I feel as though I shouldn't follow up on them, but it’s the same with me! I love you, too, Applejack! I only made it hurt even worse whenever I try to push you away. How could I be so blind as to not accept it sooner? All this could've been avoided. Can you... forgive me, Applejack? I know that I occasionally act like I'm pretty smart, but I can be pretty dumb sometimes, too."

The two ponies stood there gazing into each other’s eyes. They inched ever so closer for that first kiss they wanted so desperately to share. Slowly and passionately, their lips met. Applejack tasted as sweet as a crisp apple, and Twilight tasted like pure magic. For at least ten minutes, the six lustful ponies accepted one another’s blissful embrace.

Twilight pulled away to admit her true feelings for Applejack. "I love you so much!"

"Ah love you more!"

Finally, with the ponies acceptance of one another, Princess Celestia was able to put the curse to rest. Her horn glowed, and one couple after another shined brightly during their mesmerizing kisses.

With their emotions depleted, they all stopped awkwardly, and stared at one another.

"Umm, Pinkie Pie… I don’t feel it anymore. The love… it’s just... gone!"

"Rarity… I’m s-so sorry, but… I have to agree with Rainbow Dash on this one… I can’t feel it anymore. It's like I had never... really ever fallen in love with you to begin with. It's strange..."

Twilight backed away from Applejack. "Well… this has been interesting!"

The emotions, the lust, and the bliss was all gone.

Needless to say, they all agreed to never speak of the occurrence that had befallen them ever again. The love wasn’t real, plain and simple. The lust was imaginary, and the feelings dissolved in their minds surprisingly hastily.

Princess Celestia apologized for the events that had unfolded. They were all still friends. They just had memories that would once in a while make them feel uneasy, but as they boarded the train home, there was a problem. Only one train was going to Ponyville. This train had three cars, and six beds in each box. The conductor was the one who chose which ponies slept in which car.

"Alright," he began. "Rainbow Dash is with this Pinkie Pie character... Fluttershy will be with Rarity, and Twilight Sparkle will be grouped with Applejack!"

Fate was laughing in the faces of the main six.

Twilight asked, "Um, sir, can’t you switch up the car arrangement?"

"Sorry, but randomization is how I’ve always done it, and I’m not planning to change now!"



As Applejack and Twilight laid in their separate beds, neither of them could get a grasp of what had transpired over the coarse of those few days. The love they felt for each other had once seemed so strong, and then, it disappeared. How was anypony to feel about something like that?

"Um, Twilight? Are you awake?"

The beds weren't very far apart from one another, so it was obvious that Twilight could hear her friend ask this question. She just was choosing not to respond.

"Twilight… Say something to me… Please."

Twilight turned to her side to stare at her friend. "Sorry, Applejack, I guess… I’ve just had a long, long day."

"Me too, Twi."

The two smiled at each other, and simultaneously, they began to wonder if the love might still be there after all. Not the curse of the elements, but just the love itself.

Both of them eerily asked the next question in unison.

"Can I ask a favor?"

They then gasped.

A pause followed.

Applejack smiled and told Twilight, "You go first, sugarcube."

"Well… you wouldn’t mind if… I just want to know if… Well, that is… can I kiss you for a measly five seconds?"

Applejack was stunned. That was what she was going to ask for.

"Uh… sure thing, Twi…"

The unicorn sat up in her bed, and so did Applejack. They got to the edges of their mattresses and Applejack closed her eyes. 

She waited patiently with puckered lips. 

She could feel Twilight touching her gently, and then felt her tongue intrude. It was a surprise for Applejack, but only for a moment. Afterwards, Twilight parted her lips from Applejack's only to thank her.

"You, um… wanted a favor, too… r-right?"

"Yeah… This."

Applejack brought her hoof behind Twilight’s neck, and then brought her in for more. The lust had returned to the two, and this time, it was real. Twilight got up from the creases of her bed, still kissing Applejack, and laid herself gently on top. The hot and sweaty bodies of the two ponies were heating up their car quickly which only helped them get that much closer towards one another.

Twilight smiled and said, "You’re blushing again."

"Aw shucks, Twi, you are too!"

They spent the night together in just one of the beds. Meanwhile, inside of Rarity and Fluttershy’s room, they were getting ready to go to sleep themselves.

Rarity hadn’t spoken to Fluttershy at all. They had been silent almost the whole ride, but that just wouldn’t last.

Rarity decided to ask a curious question. "So?"

"Hmm?"

"How was I?"

"Oh," Fluttershy voiced shyly. "Um, let’s n-not talk about that."

"Oh, come on, darling… be honest, how was I?"

Fluttershy sighed and entertained the question. "You were… just the best. You made me feel… safe, I guess, whenever I was with you. If only it was real…"

Rarity climbed off from her decorated bed, and went to sit on Fluttershy’s.

"You know, if you'd like to know the truth, I really did enjoy kissing you as well. The love might not have been real… but the enjoyment that I felt certainly was… Maybe… Well, how about we kiss just one last time?"

Fluttershy was now redder that ever. She couldn’t hide her smile, though. "Oh… W-well… I guess… one kiss couldn’t hurt."

Rarity closed in on Fluttershy, and for the moment, they again both shared one another's sensitive and tender lips. It was as if the distance between them stretched farther and farther away the closer they got. Their lips met once more, and for a moment, they began to feel a certain, euphoric pleasure. The feeling of love had returned to them, and they spent the rest of the night in the same fashion that Applejack and Twilight did. The night seemed to go on forever.

While they were in the other car kissing, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash could sometimes be heard arguing with one another further down the train.

"You made a move on me first! I wasn’t sure you would do it, but you did do it, Dashie! You wanna know something else? I think you liked it!"

"I told you, Pinkie! It was the curse doing that junk to me. Are we seriously gonna go on and on about this all night?"

"Yea, yea, sure, sure. Whatever you say!"

"Pinkie, if you don’t stop talking, I’m gonna come over there and-"

"Start kissing me again?" 

The pink pony was pushing Rainbow a bit too far, but she knew this.

"I dare ya," Pinkie sassed.

In an instant, Rainbow took a grand leap towards Pinkie with hooves extended, and pinned her to one of the beds. Pinkie just laid there limply while Rainbow smiled playfully. Pinkie smiled back and looked at Rainbow Dash with extremely seductive eyes.

"So, um… now that you have me, just what do you plan on doing?"

Rainbow Dash slowly came to the realization that Pinkie was teasing her, but for some odd reason, it was almost enjoyable.

"Well… I could strangle you… I could yell at you for being so annoying all the time… or, I could do this!"

Pinkie closed her eyes shut as Rainbow proceeded to kiss Pinkie on the lips. Blushing wildly, Pinkie wrapped her forehooves and hindhooves around Rainbow's frame. As a response, the pegasus gently laid on top of Pinkie, and caressed her cotton candy mane erotically.

After a minute or two, Pinkie pulled away, and said, "I feel that nice feeling again… love…" She blinked. "I love you, Dashie."

"I love you, too, Pinkie Pie."



When the ponies got home, they all acted like nothing had happened in the train whatsoever. Twilight came into her treehouse to confront Spike.

"You were wrong... and you were right," she said to the slightly confused dragon.

"Um... come again, Twilight?"

"I wasn't in love with Applejack after all... at least not naturally... Well, at least not at first. I thought I was, but it turned out to be a dormant love spell within us all!"

Spike's eyes widened. "Woah... But, do you still love her?"

"Well," Twilight said as she paced herself. "I think I do, actually. Like I had said before, you were right about my true feelings, but you were also wrong... Does that make any sense?"

Eventually, they found out about everypony still having serious relationships with one another, but not until a long time had gone by. Twilight wrote to Princess Celestia asking if she was sure the curse was asleep. She received an immediate reply from Celestia which confirmed that the spell was indeed at rest. This meant that this time around, those passionate feelings were true, and real after all. Twilight could no longer deny her emotions that she was feeling for Applejack.