Applejack frowned and studied the crowd once more. Saturday nights at the Apple Pie were always packed affairs, but the promise of a new musical selection played by an up and coming local pair had lured more ponies to the tavern than normal: hardly a seat in the entire house was empty.
She turned to the wood-burning oven behind the bar where she heated up meals and extracted a covered plate. She opened up the cover to reveal a steaming noodle, cheese, and carrot casserole, which she slid down the bar to Pinkie’s waiting hooves.
“You seen Rara, Pinkie?” Applejack asked, scanning the room once more for the ivory-coated mare.
“Nope!” Pinkie chirped. “Maybe she’s planning on being fashionably late.” She paused a beat. “Why do they call it that, fashionably late?” she pondered. “Is it because you’re supposed to show up in a fashionable dress? Maybe that’s why she’s late, she’s having trouble finding a fashionable enough dress. Oh! Maybe Rarity knows!” And before Applejack could comment, Pinkie Pie disappeared in a blur of pink.
Sighing, Applejack shook her head and scanned the crowd once more. No, Rara still wasn’t here. But Caramel and Sassaflash were. The couple was sitting by themselves at a table close to the stage; Sassaflash was holding her violin case on the table, looking down at it with a forlorn expression. Caramel was holding her hoof, his head swiveling as he searched for Coloratura.
The swinging doors to the kitchen cracked open behind Applejack and she turned to see Steamed Carrot peeking out. “It’s almost time for the show to start,” she said plaintively. “Is she not here yet?”
“Not yet,” AJ shook her head. “I’m starting to get worried.”
Steamed frowned. “I could’ve sworn I saw her coming in earlier today,” she mused. Her eyes focused on Caramel and Sassaflash and she shook her head. “I feel really bad for those two,” she sighed. “I’ve been listening to them rehearse these past few days, after Sassaflash calmed down. They’re wonderful! Honestly, I could see those two selling albums.”
“You really think so?” Applejack asked.
“Applejack, I’ve been listening to music my whole life,” Steamed said. “Everything from opera and classical to bluegrass and boogie-woogie. I know a good set of musicians when I hear them, and those two, even without Rara to back them up, are strong enough to stand on their own.”
Applejack looked over at the young couple, noticing Caramel shifting in his seat and Sassaflash licking her lips. “Why don’t you go and tell them that?”
Carrot’s eyes widened slightly and she examined the sea of ponies between her and the musicians. “Um...well…”
“Steamed, I’ll be watching you the whole time,” Applejack reassured her. “Nopony’s gonna hurt you here. ‘Sides, sugarcube, you can’t spend your whole life being scared.”
Steamed looked back at Applejack, then took a breath and nodded. She stepped out from behind the bar, moving like a field mouse through an open pasture, glancing upwards for the hawks. She moved slowly, constantly glancing around, but nopony paid her any real mind. She made it safely to the table where Caramel and Sassaflash sat. Applejack watched as Steamed bent over to speak to them, her tail trembling slightly as she spoke. Caramel smiled and gestured to a seat. Steamed hesitated for a moment, then slowly lowered herself into a chair and began to speak in a more earnest tone.
Applejack pulled her eyes from the scene for a moment and cast them towards the stage, still empty save for the piano. “Rara, where are you?” she whispered.
She looked back towards Steamed, Sassaflash, and Caramel. Steamed was pointing at herself, her expression surprised. Caramel was nodding eagerly, looking back and forth between her and Sassaflash. Sassaflash looked at Caramel, then nodded as well.
“Me?” Applejack heard Carrot saying. “You want me to sing?”
“I heard you singing once in the kitchen when we arrived for rehearsal,” Caramel said. “You’re wonderful!”
“But…” Steamed protested feebly.
“Coloratura’s late,” Sassaflash said. “If we don’t get a singer, we’re gonna have to cancel.”
Steamed looked up at the stage for several moments of silence. Then, to Applejack’s great astonishment, all three of them got up and started climbing up onto the stage. As Sassaflash and Caramel set themselves up, Steamed Carrot looked out at the crowd in front of them, her eyes wide and her trembling even more pronounced. She locked eyes with Applejack, and Applejack gave her a wide, encouraging smile.
Pinkie Pie, seeing what was going on, quickly walked up to the stage and looked up at Steamed. “Hey, do you remember what Rara told you on the first day?” she asked.
“Um…” Steamed stammered.
“Close your eyes,” Pinkie Pie instructed. Steamed took a breath and nodded, closing her eyes.
“Forgot about everypony else,” Pinkie Pie continued. “Tune out the other voices. Imagine you’re someplace else, someplace that makes you happy.”
Steamed sniffed the air and a faint smile crossed her face. Applejack knew that she was picturing herself in the kitchen, surrounded by all her favorite scents.
“Now,” Pinkie Pie whispered encouragingly. “Just sing.”
Steamed Carrot took in a breath and her voice flew out over the audience, turning every head towards her.
“She wants to get married
She wants it perfect
She wants her—”
“Uh, Steamed Carrot?” Caramel interrupted. “We’re not ready yet.”
“Oh…” Steamed stammered, blushing furiously. “Right.” She looked out at the crowd. “Sorry, folks. Just, uh...warming up.”
A light laughter flowed up from the audience, quickly combined with applause. Carrot’s blush deepened, but she smiled and gave a short curtsy. Applejack and Pinkie Pie both exchanged nods.
Caramel and Sassaflash both got their instruments ready and pulled up stools. “Ready, babe?” Caramel asked. Sassaflash brushed a loose strand of her mane out of her eyes and nodded, tucking the violin beneath her chin.
“Wait, who’s going to play piano?” Steamed asked.
“Don’t worry about it,” Caramel waved it off. “We can do this set without it. Ready?”
Steamed looked back out at the crowd and made eye contact with Applejack. Applejack winked at her encouragingly. Steamed swallowed and nodded, closing her eyes.
Caramel played the first few notes of the song and Steamed took in a breath.
“She wants to get married,
She wants it perfect,
She wants her grandaddy
Preaching the service…”
She continued, eyes still closed, her voice becoming louder and more confident as she sang. Sassaflash began to join in with her violin, adding the strains of her instrument with Caramel’s guitar and Carrot’s voice. The crowd quieted, every head turning towards the stage; Applejack could see every tension and stress evaporating from their bodies as they listened to the song.
Frowning, she looked around the room again. Once more, Rara was nowhere to be seen. “Where the heck are you?” she muttered.
“Ma’am,” Flambe called from the kitchen. “We’re outta cider.”
“Right, I’ll go get some,” Applejack said, pushing through the saloon doors to the kitchen. She walked through the kitchen and into the back hallways. She walked down to the room where the cider was stored and paused. The door was open and the light was on. She stepped inside and stared, her jaw dropping.
Coloratura was lying on the floor next to an open cask of cider, the tasting mug next to her. “Rara!” Applejack cried, rushing to the mare’s side.
“Huh?” Coloratura said, opening her eyes. Applejack could see her irides jittering about inside her skull. Coloratura shook her head and slowly sat up. “I’m...I’m ready for the concert…”
“Rara,” Applejack said coolly. “The concert already started.”
“What?” Coloratura asked, blinking heavily. “So who’s…?”
“Rara,” Applejack interrupted, glaring. She picked up the tasting mug and held it up. “Explain yourself.”
Coloratura stared at the mug for several seconds, her brain clearly struggling to come up with a response. “I was just...taking a drink,” she protested. “To help me relax…”
“Rara, we agreed!” Applejack said, throwing the stein down. “No alcohol at all! You stayed one hundred percent sober!”
“What was one drink gonna do?” Coloratura snapped.
“One drink?!” Applejack yelled. “Look at that cask! It’s almost empty!”
Coloratura turned and looked down at the cask. “Huh. Would you look at that…”
“Coloratura,” Applejack said. “How long have you been drinking?”
“Um…” Coloratura said, looking down. “I…”
“How long?” Applejack repeated.
“...a week,” Coloratura admitted.
“A week?!” Applejack yelled.
“And so what?” Coloratura snapped back, looking up for the first time. She took a step forward, stumbling slightly. “So what if I drink? So what if I piss ponies off? So what does it all matter?”
“I trusted you!” Applejack shouted.
“And you treat me like I’m a kid!” Coloratura shouted. “B-babying me around, keeping me from t-trying to help, stopping me from d-doing what I want...I’m an adult!”
“An adult who sneaks around behind my back!” Applejack shouted back. “How do you expect me to trust you in my home when you—”
Applejack was interrupted by Coloratura slapping her across the face. She staggered, her jaw dropping open in shock.
“Well, maybe you shouldn’t trust me!” Coloratura shouted, turning and storming out of the room. She slammed the door closed behind her, leaving Applejack standing alone among the cider.
“Rara?” Applejack whispered, rubbing the place where she’d slapped her.