Applejack was tired.
No, that didn’t quite do justice to how exhausted she really was: Applejack was dead on her hooves. That wasn’t really any surprise to her, though – it was harvest time, and expecting harvest time to be easy was like expecting Pinkie Pie to shut her yap for more than five seconds while you tried to fall asleep slumped up against the kitchen table. That was, it seemed possible at first but as soon as you actually tried it you realised there’d never been a chance in the first place.
As Pinkie continued yammering away about…something - something to do with cake, probably, or parties; those were usually a safe bet, and she was sure she’d heard some talk about candles in there somewhere - Applejack lifted her head from the table and rested it gently on her forelegs with a sigh, watching her girlfriend move around the kitchen with a smile on her face.
Pinkie was beautiful. There was no denying that, and there never had been – but the fact that Pinkie glowed even now, after they’d been out in the fields all day bucking apples like their lives depended on it and up all night, making a start on some things that’d waited a little too long besides, amazed her no end. Pinkie was beautiful, and she noticed things, too. Like Applejack staring at her with a dopey little smile on her face.
“Sorry,” the pink pony cut herself off with a sheepish smile, “was I talking too much again? It’s totally okay if you want me to be quiet ‘cause I can do that – don’t laugh at me! I can too – if you wanna sleep for a bit. I’ll wake you when dinner’s ready!”
Applejack stopped chuckling and shook her head slowly. “Nah, that ain’t it. I mean, sure – you make more noise than a rooster at dawn, but I kinda got used to it. It’s nice. Relaxin’.”
As she said the words the pink pony turned a darker shade of red, and her smile grew wider and wider – then, as Applejack finished, Pinkie launched herself through the air and tackled her to the ground, hugging her just as tight as anypony ever had and peppering her face with little kisses. Those were nice, even if she was tired. And when the kisses became longer, deeper, more insistent, maybe that was nice too.
But none of it was sweeter than the smile on Pinkie’s face when she finally pulled away, gazing down at Applejack with bright, shining eyes. “I… I don’t think anypony ever said they liked hearing me talk before. Do you mean it?”
Looking into Pinkie’s eyes was like watching a sunrise – a sea of brilliant blue with a spark, hidden away behind everything, ready bathe the world in light. Sure, maybe Pinkie’s light flickered a bit, and maybe it didn’t burn too bright sometimes – but it was one of the most brilliant things she’d ever seen. Wherever Pinkie went, she made ponies happy. Even when she had to break them first. Like she had with Applejack.
“Yeah,” she said simply, the only thing she could think to say at all, “you bet I do, Pinkie. And…I wanted to thank you.”
The pink pony tilted her head, and her smile faded just a little. “For what? Helping with the harvest? It’s okay, it’s a lot of fun and –“
“Nah, not that. Or not just that. For…for being here, you know? For helping me see…that what happened did.”
Pinkie nodded simply, expression completely serious. “I… I know what it’s like. To live in denial. It’s easy. Really easy. But it’s not good – I couldn’t just let you go through that like I did, back when my sisters…when they died. I wouldn’t.”
Applejack let out a long, shuddering breath and pulled the pink pony closer to her. “I know you wouldn’t, sugarcube. I know it. And ‘Bloom and Big Mac…they wouldn’t have wanted me to either. So thank y – “
“Don’t. Don’t thank me for that. Not ever. Please don’t.”
Something in Pinkie’s tone made her stop, and hold Pinkie just a little closer. Neither of them spoke, but Applejack felt her coat growing damp from Pinkie’s tears. And as she let a hoof glide through her girlfriend’s soft pink mane, she began to cry too.
That was alright. Crying was alright, sometimes – and she they were together. It was easier, to cry together. Knowing that there would always be somepony there, to help chase the pain away.