The next day Big Macintosh and Braeburn took all of their leftover produce from the Apple family stand, and loaded it on the train. This had been a very successful year, Having come with four carts full of apple-based goods, and returning with only half of one.
“See ya round, cousin!” Braeburn called from the platform as Big Mac boarded the train for Ponyville. “Sorry ‘bout second place.”
“Don’t worry about it.” The big, red stallion called back.
As the train pulled away from Canterlot, he thought that he could see the dark form of Princess Luna, and the elegant pink figure of Princess Cadence discussing something on a balcony of the Royal Palace. It also seemed to him that he saw two flashes of light come from one of the princesses, and they seemed to be towards him and Ponyville.
He shook his head, trying to rid himself of the imposing confusion, and fell asleep.
Rainbow spent the early morning cloud busting, and was readying a cloud over Sweet Apple Acres for a nap and a read. Once it had reached the perfect softness, she settled down on the airborne bed and opened the book.
“Hey, Rainbow.” Came the drawl of her friend Applejack, just as she was getting comfortable. “Is that you?”
Poking her head over the side of the cloud Rainbow Dash called down to her farmer friend, “What’s up?”
“Ah don’t think Ah ever thanked ya properly fer helpin’ clean up Mac’s room.” Applejack shouted up to her.
Rainbow blushed slightly, and made sure that the book was out of Applejack’s line of sight. “Oh, it’s no problem; anything for a friend.”
“Ah understand, but Ah’d still like ta thank ya.” Applejack cleared her throat some and continued. “Listen, Big Mac is comin’ home today, an’ he’s got some leftovers from the stand. So, Ah would ‘preciate it if ya come over fer dinner tonight.”
Rainbow began to connect some things in her mind, certain things would need to be done soon.
“He’s got a keg of cider.” Applejack sang, knowing Rainbow’s affection for the drink.
“You said that he’s coming home, today?” Rainbow asked, trying to make sure she heard right.
“Eeyup.” Applejack said, mimicking her brother’s trademark expression.
“Alright, sounds good.” Rainbow called back, “See ya then.”
Rainbow began making plans to sneak the book back into Big Mac’s room before he could notice that it was missing.
Her plans quickly became less important to her as she realized that she needed to read as much as she could before he got back, and she needed to give up her spoils.
As I approached the returning group, I got a good look at the tree they had retrieved. The monstrous pine stretched much higher than the original mast, and had already been stripped of most of its branches to allow for easier transport. The ponies and dogs all dropped their ropes and began to remove them from the pillar as I arrived.
“Will this do, Captain?” Lumber Mill asked me. “This was the tallest, straightest tree in the grove.”
“If you think it will work, Ah won’t doubt ya.” He nodded, seemingly relieved about my response.
Finally most of the ropes were removed and several ponies had begun removing the leftover branches. There was just one thing that I couldn’t quite work out; and apparently, neither could Sea Dog. “Cap’n, how are we gonna git the new mast on tha ship?” He cocked his head to the side, his big, floppy ears flapping around his head. “It jus’ don’t seem possible.”
“Ah’m workin’ on it.” I told him. “Don’t worry, Ah’ll think of somethin’.” Finally, we had removed all loose branches from the side, as well as the bark, and it was now ready to be pitched. I still had no clue how to lift the monstrosity enough to get it installed.
I began desperately scanning the crew, and the surrounding area, trying to get an idea. Suddenly, as I saw Smoky Mirror break a coconut open using her magic, I realized what I needed to do.
“Every unicorn get over here now!” I commanded, and they did as they were told. “Ah need y’all ta help me git this in.” I told them, motioning toward the mast.
I directed them around the mast and they began to magically levitate the limbless pine towards the primary structure of the vessel.
“Hey. Miss. Doo,” I called to the explorer, “Can ya fly yet?” She began to adjust her wings slightly when she was interrupted.
“DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!” Stitch screamed, dropping her concentration on the mast. Her outburst causing many of the other unicorns to do the same. The several ponies left holding the mast were being slowly pushed into the sand as the weight of the tree pressed down on them.
“Yeah,” Rainbow Dash agreed, “She shouldn’t be flying with scorched wings anyway, even if the crazy doctor said she thought it was okay.”
I looked at Daring Doo and she shook her head, “I don’t want to risk dealing with her.” I completely understood and agreed with her hesitation to upset the slightly psychotic surgeon.
“Avast, Cap’n!” I heard the call from Pointer, “I be on it.” The energetic dog immediately leapt into the rafters of the ship and climbed to the top of one of the other masts.
Pointer proved essential in the positioning of the new mainsail. His keen eye and position over the deck allowed him to adequately guide the new timber into position. Lumber Mill then set to work securing it to the deck, while those with opposable digits set to work climbing through masts, ropes, riggings, and tying the upper section of the mainmast into a secure position.
While the crew set about to do jobs that I was unable to do, either due to lack of experience or physical restrictions, I went to discuss something with a specific unicorn.
“Howdy, Smoky Mirror,” I said, approaching her, “Ah got some questions fer ya.”
“A-alright, Captain. What did you want to know?” She asked, nervous of my inquiries.
“Seriously?” Rainbow asked herself, “Who is he trying to impress with a word like, ‘inquiries’?”
“You said that you were an illusionist ‘fore, right?”
“Yes, sir.”
“How good were ya at makin’ things invisible?”
“Well, I could do small things, then pony-sized things I would just kind of hide, and big things I would often cover up, until I could move it and startle the audience.” She explained to me.
“Do ya think that you could teach some of those to other unicorns in tha crew?”
“Probably,” she didn’t seem to sure, “It might take awhile though.”
“Ah want ya ta try, if we can hide tha ship, then we can probably make up fer a lack of cannons.”
As I walked away, I began going through all the ways that I could use the unicorns in my crew to my advantage as a captain. I envisioned hails of burning, oil-doused, rags pouring down from the sky onto an enemy ship, as my ship sailed away from its attackers invisible, and unharmed. I could see my ship becoming nothing less than legendary as we would silently, invisibly, sneak in to an area, do what we came to do, and then teleport somewhere across the map as the unicorns in the crew worked as one.
I still regretted our lack of pegasi, or even griffons, as they could further our success as a ship and crew with control over the weather.
Rainbow Dash silently pumped her hoof in the air.
While I was thinking about pegasi, the only one on the journey at the moment approached me.
“Hey, Captain.”
“Howdy, Miss. Doo.”
“So, where are you and your crew headed next?”
I figured it was best to keep my destination and goal a secret for a little while. “We’re headin’ South, Ah got a tip ‘bout somethin’ Ah want ta see.”
“Ooohhh!” she was excited, “What kind of tip? What is it? Treasure? Are you actually a Pirate Captain? Or are you an explorer like me? Is it some sort of ancient and extremely powerful artifact?” The glimmer in her eyes was adorable, as was the excited face she was making.
“Ah ain’t about ta tell ya.”
Her face became a sickeningly adorable pout.
“That ain’t about ta work either.”
“Fine, but you know I’m stubborn, right?”
“Ah figured as much.”
As we sat on the beach, watching the sun go down as the crew finished installing the sail, I found myself staring at her. She was very attractive, and the confidence that radiated from her very presence was awe-inspiring. There was also something familiar about her.
“Can I help you captain?” She brought me out of the trance she had caused, with the slightly uncomfortable and flattered smile that comes with finding someone staring at you.
“Haha, I totally know what he’s talking about!” Rainbow exclaimed to the air.
“Uh, sorry, but have Ah ever told ya that ya remind me of somepony?”
“No… Is that a good thing?” She asked with a sweet, knowing, and slightly alluring, smile.
“You could say that.” I said with a sly smile.
“Ooohh, Captain!” she said, raising an eyebrow. “Somepony I might know of?”
I chuckled slightly, “Ah doubt it. She lives back in tha town Ah come from.” I said, looking wistfully into the distance.
Rainbow gasped, “He does like somepony from around here!” she scanned the area surrounding her cloud, as though the mare would be nearby. “And, Daring Doo reminds him of her.” She rubbed her hooves together, already scheming a way to find out who it was.
“Aw,” she said, attempting to console me. “It’s ok, I’m sure you’ll see her again.”
“Nah,” I admitted, “Ah was never good enough fer her.”
“Well, why do I remind you of her?” Daring Doo inquired, hoping to pry her way deeper into my psyche.
I decided to humor her.
“Well,” I started, “Fer one, yer stubborn. Another thing is yer confidence, yer jus’ so sure of yerself. Ya got tha same confident, friendly, an’ faithful smile. Ah like yer slightly messy mane which is exactly the same as her’s, same with yer tail. Also, ya got tha same beautiful, maroon, eyes as she’s got” Daring Doo’s blush deepened with every little compliment that I gave her.
Raibow Dash subconsciously found herself picturing her in the explorer’s stead. Instead of the incredibly handsome, masculine, chivalrous, heroic, and strong Captain Macintosh complimenting Daring Doo; he was complimenting Rainbow Dash.
“Augh!” she screamed when she realized what she was doing. “No, Rainbow, none of that. He isn’t some sort of super-tough, awesome, adventurer-guy; he’s Applejack’s older brother, just a boring, slow, quiet, farmer.”
Satisfied that she had managed to convince herself that she shouldn’t think of Big Mac like that, she decided to see how the chapter ended.
“Shut up, Captain, you’re making me blush.” She said, hitting me playfully on the shoulder.
I shrugged and admitted, “Eh, it’s true.”
She shivered slightly at the nightly sea breeze that blew past us, and covertly scooted closer to me, and out of the wind. “Well, it’s getting late, and cold, what do you say we go inside and get warmed up, Captain?”
“Eeyup.” We trotted over to the beached vessel, and climbed on board, where Cookie had prepared a large dinner for the crew, and warmed ourselves in the same blanket by the fire.
Rainbow would normally have skimmed over the mushy, romantic parts of the story, but this seemed different for some reason. She felt closer to the story and more like she needed to read this.
Besides, she needed any information that she could get, if she was going to be able to get ahold of Mac’s deep, dark secrets.
Rainbow gathered her things from the cloud and took off for home. She snacked some, determined not to look like a hog in front of the Apples. She also took a shower, deciding that being sweaty from her flight home would be disgusting. After her shower she opened the mirror above her sink and reached for some makeup before realizing something important.
“Wait...” She told herself, “I almost never wear makeup… Why was I going to today? Why do I care how I look in front of Applejack and her bro-… Oh no.” Her eyes grew and she began to panic. “I can’t have a crush on Big Mac, like I said earlier, he’s just AJ’s brother. He’s just a simple, boring, quiet farmer, who isn’t even remotely worth thinking about like that, he’s just a guy, and not even able to fly.”
She put the makeup back in the cabinet, grabbed the journal, and took off for town, there were a few things she needed to do before going to AJ’s place.
“Come on man,” Caramel said to Big Mac as they walked back from the train station each with a cart strapped to them. “Just bronco up, and ask her already, the worst she can do is say no.”
Big Mac decided to ignore the fact that he could think of plenty of worse things that she could do, and respond to his friend’s question. “Nnope, Ah ain’t good enough fer her, she deserves way better than a simple, old farmer; b’sides, she got a huge future ‘head of her, why would she want ta stay in Ponyville?” He asked, hoping that his reasoning would rub off on his best friend.
It didn’t.
“Look, there she goes!” Carmel said, gesturing in the direction of the mare of the conversation. “I’ll take the carts, YOU go and talk to her.”
“There’s no way on Earth ya could haul both of these carts.”
“Shut up! I’m pulling this one just fine.” He defended himself.
“Ya could barely get it goin’.”
“The wheel seized up!”
“Ha ha!” The two stallions continued chatting until they reached the farmhouse at Sweet Apple Acres.
Caramel unhooked himself from the cart and took off for home as Big Mac began hauling the contents inside.
“Ah, Mac!” Applejack screamed as he walked in the door. She galloped over and wrapped her big brother in her hooves. “It’s good ta have ya home.” She said with the love of a sister. “Ooohh, by tha way,” She said, taking a step back, “Ah invited Rainbow Dash over fer dinner, ah hope ya don’t mind.”
“Uh, n-nnope… No problem.” He said with a slight shock as he put the keg of cider down.
Rainbow Dash had finished all that she needed to accomplish in town, and it was now time to go to Sweet Apple Acres for dinner with her best friend and accompanying family.
She knocked on the door of the old farmhouse, which opened almost immediately.
“Hi, Rainbow Dash!” came the sickeningly cute voice of Applejack’s baby sister Apple Bloom, from directly below her line of sight. “Sis! Rainbow Dash is here!”
“Hey Apple Bloom, what’s up?” Rainbow asked while being led through the house.
“The Crusaders an’ me tried ta git our cutie marks fer monster fightin’,” then the little filly scratched the back of her head, “But Spike wasn’t too happy ‘bout it.”
The mental image that dawned from the three troublemaking fillies attacking the baby dragon brought a small smile to Rainbow Dash’s face.
Dinner passed rather uneventfully. Rainbow Dash was struggling not to stare at Big Mac, and trying not to make it too obvious. She kept thinking that she saw him looking at her, but she was trying not to stare and she was pretty sure that her mind was just playing tricks on her.
“So, Mac, how was the Rodeo?” Apple Bloom asked around a mouthful of apple fritters.
“It was ok, Ah s’pose.” He answered his youngest sister.
“How’d ya do at the Bull Fights?”
‘Remember Rainbow, He isn’t the awesome, tough, strong, captain.’ She mentally reminded herself. ‘He’s just AJ’s bro-’ “Wait. Bull fights?”
“Yep,” AJ said proudly, “He’s been third in the nation fer tha past four years!” She said, puffing her chest out. “So how’d ya do?”
Big Mac’s ears tucked back against his head and his face turned redder. “Well, Ah got second this year… It ain’t that great.”
“Ain’t that great?” Applejack asked, shocked. “Yer second in tha country, and ya don’t even practice. How can ya say that it ain’t that great?”
He shrugged, and Rainbow asked, “So did you happen to see a guy named hoops there?”
“Tan pegasus stallion, mane covering his eyes?”
“Yeah.”
“Ah wanted ta break his jaw.”
“Mac!” Applejack shouted.
“Haha! You should’ve.” Rainbow said, rocking back in her chair.
“Rainbow!” Applejack chimed in again.
“He lost, an’ kept whinin’ ‘bout it bein’ an Earth pony game.” Mac said, shaking his head. “But, why do ya want me ta break his jaw?”
Rainbow Dash’s face got really hot, “He’s my ex…”
Mac raised an eyebrow, and Applejack spewed her cider all over the table.
“Yeah, I know.” Rainbow sighed, “I dumped him because he is a total jerk, and totally stuck on himself.”
Rainbow Dash decided it was time to break away from the conversation and implement her plan.
“Hey, uh, I gotta go to the bathroom. I’ll be right back.” She said, excusing herself from the table.
As Rainbow Dash left the room, Big Mac discreetly watched the pegasus trot away.
Rainbow stopped outside the bathroom, closed the door, and put some padded slippers on her hooves and flew carefully up the stairs, landing lightly on her padded hooves in front of Big Mac’s room.
She pushed the door open, carefully avoiding letting the hinges squeak. She snuck in, letting the pads on her hooves silence her steps. Carefully she slid the book under Mac’s mattress.
She snuck back downstairs, and slipped the boots off of her hooves.
Satisfied that she had avoided letting Big Mac know that she was aware of his secret, she went back to finish dinner and avoiding her crush on Mac.