//------------------------------//
// 17 Living Fires 
// Story: Alternate Beginnings: Year Seven 
// by Doug Graves 
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Applebaum grimaces as she walks home from Sugarcube Corner, still feeling the effects of her heat. Miserable! While the mares were somewhat helpful as far as what to look for in a coltfriend, it didn't really help her current problem. Too bad none of them had been able to help with that. Maybe Doug has some ideas, he's had to deal with five mares going through this for a number of years.

She tries distracting herself by looking at the town around her. Now that she's aware of what is going on she can tell the subtle differences between Ponyville during estrus season and the rest of the year. Like the ever pervasive odors assaulting her nostrils. And it isn't even coming from her! At least, most of it isn't. A cautious sniff confirms that she does indeed smell a little more than normal; it's both sharper and more intense than the sweat she gets from playing outside. The slight tang in the air sure isn't helping her relax, instead making her pick up the pace to try to get away from it.

As she hurries along, she can't help but notice the way the other ponies are congregating. Standing around in groups of mares with no stallion, instead of the mix you see most any other time. Even the pegasi working in the sky are segregating themselves as they push a few larger clouds over the fields, helping spread the rain over the crops below.

Applebaum hurries home, trying not to stare at any of the stallions walking about. She grimaces to herself; shouldn't they realize how hard it is on a mare when she's going through this? She slams the front door to the Carrot House, walking over to Doug's combination of bedroom and office. She peeks inside, seeing him hard at work. She sighs; everypony else is busy with work or playing games she just doesn't care about right now. Applebaum heads to her room, shutting the door and trying to distract herself with school work.

It isn't until after dinner that Doug is finally free to talk. Applebaum waits until the other fillies have gone to bed, walking over to Doug and Applejack as they spoon on the couch. Doug is running a brush through Applejack's coat, helping her relax after a long day of harvesting apples. Applebaum smiles up at them, "You two sure like this spot." Doug smiles and nods, patting the spot next to Applejack's belly. Applebaum gladly jumps up, snuggling next to her dam and saying, "How come Rarity isn't over? Shouldn't it be her night?"

Applejack says, "Well, most days it would be, but her self control ain't as good as mine or Fluttershy's. So she tries to avoid spending too much time with Doug, just in case she gets a little frisky." 

Applebaum smirks, "Yeah, Ah can see that. Same with Rainbow, she can barely keep her hooves off of ya."

Doug nods, "Yeah, that's always been a challenge for her." He settles back into the couch, one hand idly stroking Applejack while the other goes behind his head. "Was there something you wanted to talk about?"

"Well, kinda. Ah talked to Applejack and the other mares in the herd. About what kind of traits they look for in a stallion. But,  Ah'm curious, what kind of traits do you look for in a mare?" Applebaum glances back at herself, "You know, if'n Ah'm trying to get some colt interested in me."

"Well, it's cliched, but being yourself is very important." Doug reaches over, stroking Applebaum's mane. "You aren't going to do yourself any favors by lying about who you are." Applejack grins, her head spinning back to reward her stallion with a kiss. Doug continues, "For me, there were three main criteria that I wanted my... eh, I'll call them my special somepony to have. Physical, intellectual, and spiritual."

"Spiritual?" asks Applebaum, glancing over Applejack with her eyebrows slightly furrowed.

"Hmm," Doug stalls, "Well, let's use the words 'morals' instead. And we'll get back to that. So, physical is pretty easy; do you like how somepony looks."

"Seems a mite superficial there, though," Applejack says, a snort escaping her nostrils.

"Well, that's true, but I think it's important." Doug's hand moves to Applejack's head as she lays back on the couch. "It's easy to check, too, but it sure isn't the only thing. And I think a lot of relationships fail because you get too focused on the physical aspects, and you let that blind you to deficiencies or key differences in other areas."

"Mm, Ah suppose," Applejack groans as his fingers start to play between her ears.

Doug continues, "Intellectual is similar to morals, but more focused on what things they enjoy doing as opposed to what beliefs they have. So, kind of like how I enjoy going on runs with Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Those might not seem like 'intellectual' topics, but it's more of a catch-all term."

"So, like, their interests!" says Applebaum.

Doug smiles, "Exactly! Last big area is morals. The priority they hold on different values. Like, which ones that somepony believes to be important. For example, take two values. Honesty and family. Suppose, you learn that Applejack committed a crime. And a guardsmare comes up to you, and asks you if you know anything about what Applejack did. What do you tell them?"

"Umm," Applebaum stammers, her eyes darting back and forth as she tries to figure out the right answer.

"Ah don't think you should be teaching our foals to lie, even if it's for family," Applejack says, a bit of force in her tone.

Doug sighs, "Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry, Applebaum, that was a bad example. Or, rather, it illustrates that honesty is a very highly held trait around here. We would much rather you come clean about whatever happened, even if it gets us in trouble."

Applebaum raises an eyebrow, "Okay. So, you think Ah should wait to find a stallion that meets all three of those? That seems like it could be pretty hard. There ain't that many stallions around here."

Doug nods, "Yup. And you aren't very likely to find a stallion who is interested in exactly the same things you are, or whose beliefs line up exactly with yours. Instead, it's a bit of give and take. Making sacrifices or concessions in one area because they are outweighed by good spots in other areas." Doug begins kneading Applejack's back, finding quite a number of tense muscles. "One thing that can really help with that is listing out all the different categories and traits that you think a stallion should have. And go as detailed as you like, but just remember that the more specific you get, the harder it will be to find somepony that meets it."

"Ah get that." Applebaum taps a hoof against the couch, "What kind of traits did you look for?"

"Hmm." Doug briefly lets up on Applejack to stroke his chin, the mare whining in response. He goes back to rubbing her, "Well, as I said earlier, attractive is one of them. I could go more in detail, but you ponies are so gosh darn cute it's hard to say that anypony is unattractive."

Applebaum thinks through a couple of colts and fillies in her class, managing to hold her tongue before insulting them.

"For personality, to name a few..." Doug reaches along Applejack's barrel as he contemplates, finding knots of muscles his fingers start digging into. "I value altruism. Benevolence. Command. Dedication. Enthusiasm. Forthrightness. All very important traits, though it's unlikely you'd find each of them in one pony."

Applebaum nods, "But, you didn't spend much time here before you married Applejack. How did you know that she was right for you?"

Applejack's eyes glaze over as Doug starts pushing deeper. He meekly says, "To be honest, I wasn't sure." At Applebaum's gaze he continues, "Well, you have to understand, when I first got here I barely knew what was going on. I'm a little proud that I didn't freak out. And I was definitely glad to see a friendly face among the unknown. I... I guess, I've heard too many stories, some fictional and some not, that detail how a first contact meeting might or did go. And they generally don't end well for one side or the other. Well, they tend to end very poorly for the side that is less equipped, or less ruthless."

"Ruthless?" comes Applebaum's hesitant question.

Doug sighs, "Lack of mercy. Not considering how the other person is feeling."

"But, doesn't everypony want to be friends?" Applebaum says, holding her hooves up. One dances back and forth towards the other, the other hoof mimicking the dance. Then, both hooves dance together, in sync with each other.

Doug smiles, "That would be great, but different cultures might value different things. Or, they might have a different risk assessment, which means they might not agree with how good meeting the other person is. That the risk of destruction, even if just from disease instead of malevolence, is too great."

"So, you were afraid of Applejack?" Applebaum asks, a hesitant look at her dam. The mare perks up a little at the mention of her name, smiling at the notion of him being afraid of her.

Doug chuckles, "I guess, a little of that, a little just from being disoriented. More so from just how much I didn't know. I didn't know if the next face I saw would be as friendly as she was, or if it would have been really mean, like a timber wolf. So, I did my best to stay with her. Practically begged her for a job, too, since I didn't have anything to eat besides whatever I could forage from the forest."

"And that would not have turned out well," says Applejack with a nod, "Especially if you don't know the three dangers of the Everfree Forest."

"Yeah, the plants, the animals, and the weather," says Doug with an eye roll. He digs back into Applejack, the mare groaning as her head drops back into the couch. "Regardless, I had a great time working with your dam, and she with me. I know as much, since she basically proposed to me later that night."

"Huh?" says Applebaum; that's not what Applejack had said earlier. She glances at her dam; Applejack's eyes are unfocused, not paying attention as Doug runs his fingers into her coat, twisting and pressing into her sides.

"Yup. She comes into the room they gave me, starts off by asking about my day, if I like being there." Doug's hands meander around Applejack's back, "Then she climbs on top of me, saying she accepts my proposal." Doug shifts to the side, Applejack rolling to her belly. She looks at him curiously as he straddles her. Her eyes roll up as his hands go to her belly, a long whine from the mare. "I thought she was talking about my request for a job! It wasn't until she kissed me," Doug leans down, kissing Applejack on the muzzle, "that I realized that she was talking about something else."

"Wait!" says Applebaum, watching as Applejack paws at Doug, trying to pull him back towards herself. "Ah thought you proposed to Applejack! You're saying you didn't actually want to marry her when she kissed you?"

Applejack stops moving, her eyes squinting at Doug as he nervously scratches the back of his neck. He stammers, "Well, um, kind of. I mean, I thought she was attractive. Normally it would be way too early for me to consider it. But, as far as I knew I was stranded on this strange world." Applejack stares at Doug, her lack of movement going unnoticed by the human as he continues, "A part of me was really worried about what could go wrong, since she was a lot stronger than me, and could easily have overpowered me if I resisted. For all I knew she would kick me out if I refused her, or worse."

"Hey!" Applejack says, a hurt tone in her voice. "Ah would never have done that!"

"I know that!" Doug says playfully, smiling at Applejack. His smile slowly fades as she stares back at him. He quietly backpedals, "I mean, that was only a small part of what I was thinking."

"Yeah, and I know what the rest of you was thinking!" Applejack spits out, glaring at him. "Was that it, all you were looking for was a quick roll in the hay? Ah should have known!" Applejack sniffs briefly as she continues, "Ah can't believe it, after all this time! You never told me!"

"Hey, that's not true!" Doug interjects, trying to get a word in edgewise.

"What, that you never told me? Or, you mean about our whole relationship is based off a lie?" Applejack stares at Doug, a hurt expression in her eyes.

"No!" Doug quickly says, about to continue as Applejack interrupts, glaring at him as her hooves push him away. 

"Oh? You calling me a liar, partner?"

"No! It wasn't a lie, just a misunderstanding." Doug tries to stroke Applejack's muzzle, one hoof batting him away. He tries again, Applejack allowing him this time as he says, "After all the time we've spent together, Applejack, how can you think that's all I wanted? We may not have had the most formal of beginnings, but that doesn't mean I regret anything that's happened!"

Applejack's hard expression bores into him, one hoof holding onto his arm as he continues sitting on top of her. "Just answer me this, Doug. When you said, during dinner that night, that you wanted 'a warm bed', what did you mean?"

Doug sighs, one hand moving to Applejack's belly, only for her other hoof to press on it, immobilizing him. "I meant that I wanted a bed inside the house. Not with you, but I don't regret how it ended up."

Applejack slowly lets out the breath she was holding, a hint of a smile peeking out. "Okay, Doug. Ah get that now. Why didn't you tell me before?" Her hoof comes off of his hand, moving to his belly button and making circles in the thin hair.

Doug starts rubbing Applejack's belly, "Well, initially I was afraid that you might take it the wrong way. And I really did want to be with you. You aren't wrong about that other part of me desiring you." He starts making larger circles in her hair, "After that, too much time had passed for anything good to come of mentioning it. I asked Rarity about the meaning of the phrase months later, and we kind of laughed at the misunderstanding. I wasn't sure if you knew, but I didn't think about it for a long time." His hand pushes further into her muscular belly, "I'm sorry for keeping this from you."

Applejack smiles up at Doug, "Apology accepted. Ah'm sorry that Ah nearly forced you into something that you didn't want, and Ah'm glad it turned out so well." Her hoof reaches around his back, giving him a light tug. Doug bends over, embracing Applejack and locking lips.

Applebaum clears her throat, the two looking over at her with amused expressions. "So, that's it? Ah thought you two were gonna break up or something!"

"What do ya mean, Sugarcube?" Applejack pulls Doug against her neck, "It's okay to get passionate about the things you love. And it's important to be open and honest about what you're feeling, instead of bottling it up inside. Who knows, maybe by bringing it up the both of you can figure out how to fix it. Besides, Ah think that if your sire weren't happy with what things are like around here, he would'a told one of us a long time ago. Ah may be unhappy we didn't have the perfect beginning, but that don't mean we can't have a really nice ending."

"Well, I'll try not to make the ending too nice," Doug says with a smirk, Applejack rolling her eyes. 

Applebaum looks at the two quizzically before groaning as she gets his meaning. She walks away as they resume making out, a bit of a grimace. And she still didn't have a good way of dealing with her heat!