Chapter 3
Secrets
“Oh man!” Is all she could think to herself as she lay there, almost on top of Applejack.
“What do I do?” She thought as she panicked at the idea of Applejack waking up and seeing her there.
“Okay, calm down Rainbow, I got this. All I have to do is just move my rear leg and shift my weight so I’ll be off of her.” She laid there for a second and thought on what she said.
“Get ‘off’ of her.”
She paused and looked at her friend that was asleep by her side. She examined her body slowly thinking how amazing she looked glowing in the morning sunlight. Her body wanted to move off of Applejack but her mind wasn’t cooperating with it.
She just wanted to lay there and just keep staring, keep…
“What am I thinking?!” She yelled at herself. She got lost in thought but managed to snap herself out of it.
“This is Applejack! AJ, your best friend in the whole world! Why are you thinking like this?” She shook her head to get rid of the thoughts plaguing her.
“Okay this is just a mistake. I was asleep and I didn’t know what I was doing. That’s all, THAT’S IT.”
She managed to calm herself down and she began to move her leg off of AJ. Once she moved over enough she propped her body up with her elbow to move her arm but she failed to realize that her arm was under AJ’s and that to move hers she would need to move Applejack’s first. A chill ran up her spine at the thought of moving any part of AJ and her waking up to see Rainbow like she was.
“Okay I got this, no problem.”
She began to move the orange pony’s arm up so she could slide her arm out from under Applejack’s. She got it up enough to move her arm out. She started to slide her arm out but leaned to far back and a pain shot through her body. She forgot about her injured wing from yesterday’s adventure. It took every ounce of strength she had not to yell but the pain made her arm go numb and she fell on her injured side causing more pain to go through her body. She rolled over to her other side to stop the pain but misjudged the size of the bed and fell to the floor with a loud thud.
“Ahh Son of a…” She began to say when she heard the other two wake up.
“Wha, What the hay?!” AJ sat up in bed and mumbled to herself
“Hmmm what’s going on?” Twilight asked
“Rainbow? Why y’all on the floor?”
“OH! Morning AJ, I mean guys. Hehe” Rainbow said while scratching her head
“Are you okay Rainbow?” Twilight inquired
“What, me, yea yea I’m fine.”
“You sure Rainbow? Yer scratchin’ yer head a lot. Sure you didn’t hit it?”
“What, nah, I’m good”
Applejack and Twilight looked at each other trying to figure out what’s with Rainbow’s attitude this morning. Normally she’s all tired and groggy but today she seems really awake and on the move. They shrugged it off then got out of bed and stretched.
“What time is it?” Asked the cowpony
Twilight looked at the clock on the wall. “It’s about 7:30 a.m.”
“When does our train leave today?” AJ asked
“Around 10 this morning” Twilight answered
“Well since we’re awake now might as well get packin”
The three ponies began to gather up their stuff they left out from yesterday morning and start packing things away.
Applejack reached into her bag and noticed something that Rainbow could probably use right now.
“Oh hey Rainbow I almost forgot to ask.” Applejack said
“Huh? Ask what?”
She could see AJ asking her about why she was sleeping on her like that last night. She kept thinking that she might have woken up in the middle of the night and saw Rainbow on her in that position.
“How’s yer wing holdin’ up?”
“Oh, its’ fine kinda, it still hurts a little though.” Rainbow replied breathing a sigh of relief.
“Well come over here anyways.” Applejack motioned with her hoof
“Wwhy?”
“What? Ah’ve got bandages for ya.”
“Oh okay then.”
Rainbow walked to the other side of the room to Applejack and sat down next to her. Applejack began to bandaging up Rainbow’s side and wing. AJ got done with the dressing on Rainbow’s wing then put her things away and patted her on her side. Rainbow flinched a little in pain.
“Tender there are we?” AJ suggested
“Huh?! Of…of course not. What gave you that thought?” Rainbow said while trying not to blush.
“Calm down now. It was only a joke.”
“Oh, yea, haha funny.”
The orange cowpony cocked her eyebrow up and gave her friend an unusual stare.
“Well I have to finish packing.” She got up and went back to what she was doing.
The cowpony didn’t know what to think of the way Rainbow was acting this morning. She seemed a little on edge or uneasy about something. It might be about what happened yesterday; after all it was a scary experience for any pony. She probably just needs some time to gather her thoughts that’s all. Applejack went back to getting her things ready for the long train ride they had ahead of them.
They finished their packing but before leaving the Apple family gave them a big breakfast. A large spread of a sorted apple-
based food lay on the table just begging to be eaten. Rainbow’s eyes grew to the size of dinner plates and all she could think about was eating till she passed out.
“Ahh well thanks cus. This is mighty fine of ya.” Applejack told Breaburn
“Ain’t no trouble cus. After all y’all need it after yesterday.”
“This looks delicious Breaburn.” Twilight said while looking over the food
“Well thank ya kindly miss Twilight.”
“Man I’m starving!” Rainbow exclaimed as she dashed for the table.
She sat down and grabbed a plate then started to eat everything in front of her.
Just as she started AJ walked up to her and took her plate from her.
“What the?! Hey my food!”
Applejack took Rainbow’s plate and walked to the end of the table and sat it down.
“Y’all gotta wait till everypony is at the table. Plus y’all didn’t thank Breaburn for makin’ this for us,”
“But, but…my food.” Rainbow mumbled as she stared at her plate, so far yet so close too.
“Rainbow”
“Alright, thanks Breaburn for this spread this morning.”
“It’s fine miss Rainbow.”
Applejack gave Rainbow her plate back and one by one the ponies of the Apple home came to the table. They all ate their share, except for Rainbow who can eat like a full grown stallion, and shared their story about what happened yesterday. Time passed until they needed to get going to the station. They left the comfort of the Apple home and couldn’t wait to get back to their homes. Applejack thought about how everypony back at the farm had been and how she was going to explain the things they saw this weekend.
They reached the station in time, just as the train conductor makes his last call. They show him their tickets and climb aboard for the long ride back to Ponyville.
* * *
The train ride was nothing out of the ordinary. Just like the first time through it was quiet with the three friends lost in thought. Well two of them at least, Rainbow being her usual self was sleeping on the ‘boring’ train, AJ was thinking about being back on the farm but this gnawing thought about Rainbow was pestering her. The orange cowpony pulled her hat down over her eyes and thought on the subject, her hat created a barrier between her and everypony else as she thought on things, but she couldn’t place her hoof on what it was.
Twilight could see her friend was being bothered by something. She tried to talk with Applejack but her hat created a ‘barrier’ that no pony could break through. Twilight got through to AJ eventually by pulling on her hat with her magic.
“What the hay?”
“Sorry AJ but I wanted to get your attention.”
“Oh sorry Twi. Ah guess ah was lost in thought about somethin.”
“What’s up Applejack?”
“Well didn’t y’all notice that Rainbow was actin’ kinda funny this mornin?”
“Well now that you mention it.” Twilight placed her hoof under her chin and thought back.
“First ah thought it was cause of what happen yesterday but ah’m not sure.”
“Well it was an ‘exciting’ day. That’s probably what it was.”
“Yea ah guess yer right.”
The rest of the ride was quiet again. Twilight was lost in one of her history books while AJ was back to her thoughts and Rainbow, well not much has changed with her, still lost in her dreamland.
The train slowed down as it came to the Ponyville station and jerked to a stop. Rainbow jerked with the train and fell over onto Applejack’s shoulder. She woke up seeing AJ staring at her.
“Well hey there sleepy head.”
Rainbow sat up immediately and looked around.
“H…hey there AJ.”
“Y’all enjoy sleepin’ on my shoulder?”
“Huh? I didn’t sleep on your shoulder.”
Rainbow stopped and thought “Did I?”
“Ah’m just messin’ with ya.”
Rainbow sighed then looked at AJ and thought
“That wasn’t funny.”
They gathered their things and got off the train. With the train ride taking about half of the day it was just beginning to be nightfall. The three friends said goodbye to each other and headed back to their cozy homes.
Twilight headed towards her treehouse while AJ and Rainbow took off together. They reached a fork in the road and Rainbow headed off in the direction of her home in Cloudsdale.
“I’ll see you around AJ.” She said as she waved and flew off
AJ stopped and called out to Rainbow.
“Aye Rainbow, ah’ll see you tomorrow right?”
Rainbow stopped dead in the air with a looked of dread on her face.
She couldn’t help but think to herself that AJ did know about last night. She turned around and with all her strength looked at AJ.
“Yea, sure, tomorrow.”
“Y’all forgot didn’t ya?”
Rainbow thought back. How could she forget? Waking up that morning lying next to Applejack, so close to her, feeling her touch. Seeing her in the morning light…
“Ah DAMN these thoughts!” She mumbled
“So y’all did forget, huh?”
“No…”
“Good, then y’all need to show up early in the mornin’ so ah can tell ya what ya need to do.”
“Wait, what?!” Rainbow exclaimed
“That bet y’all made. Yer gonna work on the farm for a week to prove yer not a lazy pony. Unless y’all wanna back down?”
“OH no way am I backing down from a challenge. It’s on!”
“Alright then see ya tomorrow.”
AJ took off towards her farm to get rest and tell her family of the weekend adventure they had.
Rainbow breathed a sigh of relief and took off for her home. While she fly through the night sky she stared at the moon and thought just how ridiculous she was being.
“Applejack doesn’t know about me sleeping on her and besides it wasn’t anything. I probably just rolled over on her, that’s all. But if that’s all then why do I still have these thoughts?” She shook her head in confusion
“No matter, I’m sure after a good night’s sleep at my own home everything will be okay.”
She finally reached her home and walked up the stairs to her room. She saw her favorite place in the world, her bed made of clouds; she jumped on it and felt the soft comfort that only a cloud can give. She snuggled up and relaxed for a few minutes before letting the clouds drag her off to sleep.
* * *
Rainbow woke up the next morning; the sun was shining in through the window, it was warm and comforting on her face. She heard her door open so she rolled over wondering who would be at her home this early in the morning. She was surprised to see Applejack come walking through and even more surprised to see her walking on clouds.
“Wha…? What are you doing here AJ and how are you walking on the clouds?”
“Ah asked Twilight to make it were ah can walk on clouds. Ah wanted to make sure y’all didn’t forget.”
“Yea I remember. I haven’t backed out of our challenge.”
Applejack walked over to Rainbow’s bed and sat down next to her.
“Ah wasn’t talkin about that Rainbow. Ah know about the other night sugar cube.”
Rainbow looked at AJ then looked away trying to figure out what to say next. How am I going to defend myself? What should I say to her? Thoughts spun around in her head. She didn’t know what to say and even if she did she couldn’t figure out how to say it.
Suddenly she felt Applejack’s hoof under her chin. Applejack slowly turned Rainbow’s face around so they were looking at each other. At that moment Rainbow couldn’t think of anything, nothing to say, just nothing. They stared at each other looking into their eyes and slowly Applejack leaned in and gave Rainbow a slow, loving, kiss.
To Rainbow the world around her stopped everything she knew was upside down, her closest friend was with her in her room locking lips. She felt unsure about the situation but at the same time she enjoyed it.
They both lay down together. Applejack was on top of her and Rainbow was unsure of what to do or say. Applejack nudged at Rainbow’s side that wasn’t fully healed yet. Rainbow twitched in pain a little and Applejack remarked
“So, still tender huh?”
Before Applejack could carry on more Rainbow heard a bird chirping at her window. She looked over and the sunlight blinded her for a few seconds. She woke up to the sunlight shining in her face. She sat up quickly and looked around the room to see if Applejack was still there but she wasn’t.
“It was all just a dream? It felt soo real to me though.”
She fell back into her bed and reflected on the dream and just how great it felt to her.
“Urgh” She groaned into her pillow
“What’s going on with me? Why am I thinking this way?”
Rainbow Dash wanted to just roll over and go back to sleep but she knew she couldn’t. She made a deal with Applejack that she would work on the farm for a whole week because AJ called her lazy. Unfortunately now, with these thoughts, Rainbow isn’t sure she can even be around her friend let alone work together with her.
“URGH…What the HELL am I going to do?!”
-End of Chapter 3-