//------------------------------// // Titanian Duel : Manehatten vs Ponyville // Story: Apple Scratch : Onward to the Equestria Games! // by Mariacheat-Brony //------------------------------// Applejack woke up to an amazing and enticing scent that was the perfect mix of rose and lavender essences. That was odd, barely all the perfumes she had, only two but still, were unsurprisingly carrying the scent of apples. She slowly opened her eyes and noticed her face was nearly buried in long and curly royal purple hair. 'Right, Rarity stayed for the night.' Applejack thought sleepily before catching a deep whiff of Rarity's hair and snuggling her softly. "....Applejack darling... It's too early for that." Rarity whispered in a half asleep state. "It's never too early for me to cuddle up with ya, Rarity." Applejack whispered back with a small smile, bringing Rarity close to her. "I hate it when you're right like that." Rarity complained with a yawn before facing the farmer. "Do you have an idea what time it is?" She asked genuinely. Applejack took a peek at her window. "Judgin' form the position of the sun.... Ah'll say it's about five fifty in the morning... Maybe six o'clock." "You do know there's a clock on your night stand, right?" Rarity asked with a lifted eyebrow. "'Course Ah know, but Ah'd have to look away from ya for that. And Ah don' wanna." Applejack explained happily. "Sweet talker!" "Guilty of charge, ma lady." "Do you have chores to do?" Rarity asked. "Nope! Durin' the games, the cuzs are filling in for me and Vinyl. Ah'm free to stay here with ya." She said softly before pecking her lover's lips gently. "Say, Rare... Remember when ya came to the farm the day after yar arrival?" "Yes, I do. Why?" "Ah kinda realized that ya said somethin' about makin' it up to me back then." Applejack licked her upper lip. "Ah'm still waitin' for it, ya know." "I did say that." Rarity said with a knowing grin as the door shined with a deep blue aura for a few seconds. "Good thing I've been practicing that soundproofing spell." Applejack tossed the covers away, exposing Rarity in her borrowed night clothes. While Applejack had the habit of sleeping with boxer shorts and a bra, or a T-shirt for when she had to share bed with one of her sisters, Rarity was more the type of woman to wear night gowns. But, not having originally planned on staying for the night, Rarity hadn't packed one and had to put one of Applejack's shirts on top of her underwear. Said shirt was barely covering her bottom and was too ample at shoulder level causing Rarity's left shoulder to be totally exposed. Applejack shifted on the bed, placing herself on her back in the middle of the bed while Rarity straddled her waist. Rarity gave an amorous glance at Applejack when the farmer rested her hands on the baroness' exposed thighs, caressing them softly. Thanks to a small ray of sun that peeked through a wandering cloud and her window, Applejack noticed an orange glare in the center of her lover's cleavage. Rarity was wearing the necklace Applejack had offered her, faithful to her claim of wearing it all the time. She raised her right hand to delicately touch the medallion with the orange apple-gemstone with her fore-finger before Rarity did the same thing on the purple diamond on Applejack's necklace. Applejack's finger, and thus hand, made its way up to Rarity's face where the purple haired woman pecked her lover's palm gently in passing. Rarity bent forward, completely lying down on the farmer's body, to kiss her passionately. Quickly, their tongues wrestled against one and another while they both let out satisfied and eager moans of pleasure. After breaking the kiss, Rarity sat up straight and started to unbutton her shirt, very slowly and seductively, one button at the time. As she took all her time to do so, Rarity felt a malicious pleasure in watching her lover bite her lips in anticipation. She could see it clearly in those dazzling emerald eyes, Applejack was trying very hard not rip Rarity's shirt off, not that Rarity would mind much if not for the fact it will damage the piece of clothing she had borrowed. On second thoughts, that wouldn't be a problem at all, Rarity was a world famous seamstress after all. She could fix the shirt in a neck of time. "Rarity, not that ya ain't sexy and all doin' it, but could ya please stop teasin' like that?" Applejack asked impatiently. Rarity who had unbuttoned her shirt halfway to the bottom didn't answer and decided to tease her more by slightly opening her shirt, uncovering both her shoulders and exposing her chest a bit. It allowed Applejack to notice a small detail that had been obscured to her until now. "No bra, huh?" Applejack said with a lustful grin. "Not very lady-like, Baroness Belle." "Is that a problem, fair Applejack?" Rarity asked slowly. "Perhaps I should cover back my virtue...." She added, closing the shirt back only to be interrupted by Applejack grabbing both her wrists. "Ya better keep on doin' what ya were doin', or else Ah'll do it maself in a very brutish way." Applejack threatened in a hungry and husky tone. "Oh My, both possibilities sound so pleasant..." Rarity teased seductively. "What to do? What to do?" " O'Right, that tears it!" Applejack grabbed both side of the shirt and yanked it open, ripping the remaining buttons off before tossing the shirt on the ground. After that, she passed her hands around Rarity's neck and pulled her strongly down for a deep, passionate and hungry kiss. Rarity tried to fight Applejack's grip back, to keep being in control of the situation, but the fact she was enjoying being dominated by Applejack made her give up on those ideas very quickly. Applejack straightened up to sit on the bed, her hands caressing Rarity's back as she pecked her way down to the baroness' neck. Rarity's mind was in a blank state, completely lost in the pleasure of Applejack's touch. She felt the farmer's hands going further down on her back. Little did they know, on the other side of Applejack's bedroom door, three small girls were knocking vigorously on the door. AppleBloom, Babs and Sweetie Belle, who had been authorized by her parents to sleep over since Rarity was staying at Sweet Apple Acres as well, were trying to call the others for breakfast. "Why can't we just let them sleep?" Sweetie asked with long yawn, she wasn't used in being up so early. "Come on, we can't let them miss breakfast!" AppleBloom interjected. "Sorry to break it up to ya, cuz." Babs said slowly, trying to hold back the yawn Sweetie had passed to her. "But, Ah'm with Sweetie on this one. Ah still don't get how ya can already be fully awake at this hour." "But there's work to be done." "Not for Applejack!" Babs interjected. "That's why Braeburn, Fritter, Bumpkin and CaramelApple are staying here, so that AJ and Vinyl can be rested for the Games." "How come Vinyl's out there training her magic, then?" AppleBloom asked victoriously. "How should Ah know?" "Anyway, Ah'm just gonna get in." AppleBloom said happily, extending her hand toward the door knob. "What if it's locked?" Sweetie asked. "Applejack never locks her door, her door's always open for me." AppleBloom smiled before turning the door knob. It was locked. "Well, now that that's taken care off." Babs chuckled while AppleBloom cursed at the door. "How about we go and have breakfast, since we don' seem to be allowed to sleep in here." She added, blowing a strand of hair away from her face. "Ah know what to do!" AppleBloom said, ignoring Babs' suggestion, before pulling a screwdriver out of her right pocket. "You keep a screwdriver in your pocket?" Sweetie asked with surprise. "Ya don't?" AppleBloom said with incredulity. She turned her attention to the door. "Talent Crusader Lock Picker, Yay!" She sang quietly and happily before inserting the screwdriver in the key hole. "Talent crusader, what's that?" "It's a thing AppleBloom came up with." Babs explained. "She, a bunch of her friends and Ah made a group to search for our special talent. We try a lot of different things. One time, we even tried to build a catapult for "Talent Crusader Siege Engineer"." "That looks like fun." Sweetie said. "Did it work? The catapult, I mean." "Ah'm not sure.. We built it in the barn but we didn't give it wheels, so we couldn't get it out to test it." Babs explained with a shrug. "Anyway, let's go Sweetie Belle. Ma butt remembers the time Ah break into ma sister's room and Ah know for a fact that Applejack is way stronger than ma sis'." She added before pulling Sweetie Belle toward the stairs, away from AppleBloom and her burglar shenanigans. "Almost got it...." AppleBloom whispered, completely oblivious to the fact her cousin and new friend were gone, before hearing a small click that indicated the lock had been picked successfully. "Yes!" She let out raising her hands in the air. "AppleBloom, what are you doing?" Fritter asked slowly as she came out of the bathroom, busy tying her pigtails together. She noticed the screwdriver in the keyhole. "Were you trying to break in Applejack's room?" She asked with narrowed eyes. AppleBloom blinked slowly, her arms still in the air. "Nooooo..." She said slowly, her eyes darting up and down. "Go downstairs, immediately!" Fritter ordered. "Granny's going to have a serious talk with you about privacy, Missy!" AppleBloom gulped before complying to her older cousin's demand. Fritter sighed before kneeling in front of Applejack's door to pull the screwdriver out of the keyhole. Apparently, it was stuck so she pulled harder, but to no avail. "I swear, how did she manage to do that?" Fritter groaned. "Need a hand there, Fritter?" Braeburn asked as walked to her. "Yeah, AppleBloom stuck this screwdriver in the key hole and I can't get it out." "Let me try." Braeburn said before taking Fritter's spot and pulling the screwdriver toward him while he was pushing the door with his other hand. "The secret's to push while ya...pull!" He grunted before succeeding in his effort by freeing the tool from the door. Accidentally, his push had opened the door as well, and thus breaking the soundproofing spell. "Oh my...Applejack, yes....right there, yes, yes, yes, yes.....OH SWEET TITANIA, YEEEEESSSSS!" Rarity's pleasured moans could be heard by the two Apples on the doorstep. Luckily for the couple, Rarity always tried to keep the volume down in that kinda of situations. It's not because you had a soundproofing method that you had to bellow like a rutting beast, she had said. Thanks to that, the only people who heard her were Applejack, evidently, Braeburn and Fritter as the rest of the household being downstairs and enjoying breakfast, completely oblivious to what was happening in Applejack's room. Luckily again, Braeburn and Fritter couldn't see much of the action, despite the door being all open, as the frame of Applejack's bed hid things pretty well. The only thing they saw was the back of their cousin, who was still wearing her night clothes, and her hair as she was supposedly standing on her four above Rarity who was completely hidden by the bed frame and the pilled up covers at the end of the bed. At some point, Applejack's face came into view as she shook her hair out of the way and caught her breath a bit, her left hand resting on the bed frame as her right hand was, according to Rarity's moans, busy somewhere else. That's when Applejack spotted the door was open and that two of her cousins were watching her and Rarity. She froze for a few seconds before her face distorted itself with the most furious expression her cousins had ever seen on her. She clenched her left fist, slightly cracking the oak frame of her bed as her right hand leaned on the mattress. She shifted her legs and positioned them in a stance that made her look like a tiger ready to leap on its prey. "....Applejack....Why did you ....Why did you stop? I....was nearly....." Rarity panted heavily with her eyes close, still not knowing about the situation. "Braeburn....It was a pleasure knowing you." Fritter said, her voice shaking in fear as she took a step back. "Me too...." Braeburn answered in a very frightened tone. "AH'M GONNA KILL YA!" Applejack roared as she leaped toward the door. "RUN, FRITTER! RUN!" Braeburn yelled in panic before running for his life toward the stairs, Fritter in tow. Applejack's leap took her too far as she crashed against the corridor's wall before she stood up to run after her cousins. When she spotted them at the bottom of the stairs, she jumped above the railings, not even bothering to run down the stairs, and landed in the living room with a loud thud, much to the Apples's, who were having breakfast or a cup of coffee there, surprise. "What in tarnation's goin' on?" Granny Smith asked in bewilderment. "GET BACK HERE YA TWO!" Applejack bellowed as she knocked the front door open after Fritter and Braeburn had run through it and slammed it behind them. "Fritter, she can't go after the two of us, let's spread out." Braeburn shouted before running like hell toward the East of the farmland. "Roger, that!" Fritter nodded as she ran toward the West. "IT WON'T SAVE YA! AIN'T NOTHING ON THIS ORCHARD THAT CAN OUTRUN ME!" Applejack ran after Braeburn. "YAR TURN WILL COME FRITTER! BE CERTAIN ABOUT THAT! IT'LL JUST BE LATER THAN BRAEBURN'S!" Braeburn ran as fast as he could, managing to get to the farthest field on the East side of the farm before being tackled by Applejack mid sprint. They both rolled on the ground for a few meters. Applejack managed to pine down her cousin, her fist ready to assault Braeburn's face. The concerned party put his arms defensively in above his head, waiting for the impact. To his great surprise, it didn't came. He took a peek in between his arms and saw Applejack wasn't looking at him. She was staring in awe at something that was happening somewhere at his left. He noticed the light blue hue that seemed to light up this part of the orchard. He also heard a very loud, high-pitched chirping noise coming for the left as well. Applejack stood up and walked toward what was happening. His curiosity got the better of him as he stood up and followed Applejack instead of seizing this opportunity to run away from her. His jaw dropped a couple of inches when he saw what was happening as he stood next to Applejack. "Wow..." He let out slowly, before being hit by the back of Applejack's fist in the belly, as his cousin remembered why she was after him. "Owwww." Braeburn grunted in pain before falling on the ground. "Huh?" Vinyl turned her head toward them, her hands shining in a light blue magical aura. "Why did you hit Braeburn?" She asked with curiosity when she noticed her cousin on the ground. "Ah have ma reasons...." Applejack explained, her eyes still focused on what Vinyl was doing. "What's that?" "Oh, that's a new variation of my magic." Vinyl explained happily. "I finally succeeded in doing it properly. Pretty cool, huh?" "Cool, Ah don' know. But it's mighty impressive." Applejack said slowly. "Ya plan on usin' it today?" "Normally not, but who knows?" Vinyl shrugged. "How do ya call it?" Applejack asked. Vinyl grinned. "I call it....." "HELLO, everyone! Welcome to this third day of competition!" Pinkie Pie shouted in her megaphone. "On today's program, we'll have the opportunity to watch the wrestling and gymnastic competitions! Isn't that exciting?" The crowd cheered loudly. "But that's for this afternoon. RIght now, let's make room for the fireworks! Not actual fireworks, but something even cooler. The TITANIAN MAGICAL DUEL!" "Oh, this is so exciting." Twilight clapped her hands together happily. "We'll get to see lots and lots of spells." She squealed. "Well, someone is a good mood today." Cadence chuckled softly. "I'm glad you forgave Shining this morning." "Well, I couldn't stay mad with my BBBFF for too long, could I?" Twilight asked with a wink. "I'm glad that makes you happy." Cadence beamed, oblivious to the fact that Twilight was happy didn't have anything to do with Shining Armor. "Rarity, are you ok, my dear?" Celestia asked with concern. "You seem to be in a bad mood since you arrived." "I'm ok, your Highness." Rarity assured. "Just a few vexations in waking up this morning." She sighed grimly. "You missed some of your beauty sleep?" Cadence joked. Her laugh last about a second when Rarity glared at her. "Let..Let's just watch the competition!" She added sheepishly. "You're right, let's watch." Rarity nodded. "And for your information Darling, I didn't miss any beauty sleep." 'I did miss something else, though....Dumb screwdriver!' "...And let's start with our first duel!" Pinkie Pie said happily in her megaphone before reading the program that had been given to her. "Our first match will oppose...Vinyl Almata Apple Scratch from Ponyville...." Ponyville's supporters cheered loudly! "YES! GO VINYL!" Octavia shouted happily, earning the giggles of her friends and Princesses. "..To Graphite Coal from Manehatten!" Pinkie said happily. "Competitors, put your protections on. We don't want any accidents!" "Oh drat!" Octavia groaned angrily. "What is it, Octavia?" Rarity asked. "You know him?" "Kinda..." Octavia sighed. "He's a good friend of my brother. Mother always tried to convince me to get..."acquainted" with him in the past." She explained. "Oh!" Rarity let out in realization. "Did he..." "Have a crush on me?" Octavia finished for her friend. "As far as I remember, yes. I don't really know if he still does, though." "Is he any good?" Twilight asked. "Magically speaking, I mean." "I don't know. If he got selected, I suppose he is." Octavia shrugged. "The only thing I'm sure is that he was a real apple polisher. Always listening and agreeing to whatever my brother or mother said." "Well, Vinyl's safe then. What harm can he do by polishing her?" Twilight said with a laugh before being deadpanned in silence by everyone in the box. "You know, because he's an apple polisher..." Twilight explained. Silence. "And, Vinyl's family name is Apple...." A louder silence. "And, polishing doesn't really hurt....." Twilight let out with an awkward chuckle. "Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaammmmmeee!" The voice of Pinkie Pie could be heard from afar. "No offense, Twilight, but I think you should leave the jokes to Pinkie and Rainbow Dash." Fluttershy said with wisdom. "That would be the best idea, I concur!" Luna nodded. "Fine, fine. I get it!" Twilight pouted. "Are the competitors ready?" Pinkie Pie said happily as Vinyl and Graphite were in the center of arena, both checking their protective gear. Graphite was a young man in his mid/late twenties with dark grey hair, perfectly tousled in spikes. He had an athletic figure and Vinyl had to admit if she wasn't from the other side of the street, she would find him relatively handsome. "So, you're the famous Vinyl Apple." Graphite said slowly, casting a dirty look at the blue haired woman. "Didn't know I was famous actually." Vinyl shrugged casually, not really paying attention to Graphite. "How come you've heard about me?" "Well, my dear friend, Cornelio, talks a lot about you since this summer." He explained with an icy tone. At the mention of Octavia's brother, Vinyl paid more attention to Graphite. "Oh, nice to hear he's well. The last time I saw him, he was galloping away in fear as if the devil was after him. Well, he did have Applejack on his tail...." "Tsss, just shut up, peasant!" Graphite growled. "Did I say something inappropriate?" "A low life scum like you shouldn't talk like that about a member of the Philharmonica Household." He warned. "....Wow, you Manehattenites seem really attached to your leaders!" Vinyl commented. "I'll have the great honor of putting back where you belong!" Graphite bragged with a mad grin. "Excuse me, but did I ever do anything to you?" "You've assaulted my friend, insulted and threatened my most esteemed High-Countess..." Graphite said slowly. "And worst of all, you defiled Lady Octavia." "I did what?" Vinyl snapped, her anger rising with that last comment. "You dirtied the purity of my Lady." He snapped back. "If it weren't for you, she'd be mine...." Vinyl silently put her purple shades on. "I'll get you for those words, stuff-shirt." She threatened slowly, her hands glowing in an electric blue aura. "We'll see about that, punk!" He said as he focused grayish magic around his hands. "It's time to DU-DU-DU-DU-DUEL!" Pinkie shouted. Vinyl joined her hands together, creating a beam of blue magic that flew directly at Graphite who replied with a grey beam of his own magic. The two beams met halfway, struggling against each other, both not wanting to give in. Vinyl released a bit more of her magic into her beam. The blue magic started to overcome the grey one, much to Graphite's surprise. As the Vinyl's beam was about to break through his magic, Graphite teleported. "Where did...." Vinyl muttered, before being hit violently in the back, just below the protective plate she was wearing. Vinyl gasped as she felt her scars burning as if touched by a rod of brand iron. She fell on her knees in pain. Images of her past flashing in front her eyes. She started to shiver before she tried to calm down. While she was heavily panting, Graphite was standing behind her with triumphant grin. "Looks like Cornelio was exaggerating after all when he talked about your back..." He said slowly. "He said you'd scream like a small girl...But, maybe if I strike harder..." "Bastard!" Vinyl growled, before facing him quickly and casting another beam at him. He teleported out of the way again. Vinyl felt two strikes of magic hitting her on the lower back. She let out a cry of pain and a few tears. The images of her dark bedroom from the orphanage were more vivid than before. She almost felt like she was back in her past, like when Cornelio had whipped her last summer. She had to resist, she couldn't afford to lose. "Oh, no, no, no, no...." Octavia pleaded with tears in her eyes as Rarity patted her back softly. "Damn, he keeps on hitting her in the back," Twilight mustered in anger. "Cornelio must have told him about what happened in the farm." "Poor Vinyl..." Fluttershy let out softly with evident worry. "I don't understand...." Luna said softly. Her eyes shining in a deep blue aura as she used her magical sight. "Ms Apple's magic flow is completely disturbed. The hits she received couldn't have been the cause of such internal damage." "...Vinyl has a...condition about her back, your Highness." Rarity explained as delicately as possible. "Come on, Vinyl....Fight! Don't let it get to you, please..." Octavia whispered slowly as she watched her lover's struggle against pain before being hit again in the lower back. "That bastard!" Applejack snarled in anger as she watched Vinyl being hit in the back again. "He does that on purpose. Once Ah get ma hand on Octavia's brother, Ah'm gonna tear him a new one. Like Ah should've done this summer." "What are you talking about?" Cloud Kicker asked with surprise. "What's that story about Octavia's brother? What happened during the summer?" "Ah'll tell ya later!" Applejack sighed, her gaze fixated on the fight. "You think Vinyl's gonna make it?" Allie said with worry. "She looks like she's in a lot of pain." "Don't worry, Allie." Redhearts reassured her softly. "Vinyl's a tough one, she'll make it through." She added with an imperceptible nod at Applejack who nodded back at her. "Show'em what ya're worth, little Sis'!" Applejack said slowly. Vinyl couldn't see straight. Her visions about her past were starting to merge with her surroundings. She couldn't perceive what was real and what was the nightmare anymore. She was about to give up, she couldn't face it alone. She had needed Octavia's comfort to calm down last time it happened. Without Octavia, she couldn't do it. Then, her lantern lit up. Of course, she needed Octavia's help. But Octavia couldn't possibly come to her help right now, not without putting herself in danger. Something that Vinyl's very own heart refused. How could she have Octavia's help without actually having Octavia at her side? The answer was obvious. Vinyl focused as much magic her perturbed mind could in her right hand before slamming it on the ground. Her musical strings of blue magic appeared around her, startling everyone, including Graphite who clearly wasn't expecting anymore real reactions from Vinyl. The strings assembled in numerous racks before starting to vibrate softly. After a few seconds, the entire Coliseum started to hear the soft melody of a cello. Anyone with even a small amount of knowledge in the field of Music would have recognized this piece. It was Octavia's masterpiece, the symphony that granted her her place in the Council. Or at least the cello part of the symphony, as Vinyl wasn't in a state in which she could have tried to play the complete symphony. At the sound of the cello's melody, Vinyl's mind slowly drifted to peace. The images of the orphanage slowly disappeared and the pain on her scars reduced itself to a more tolerable level. Her breath and heart beats paced at their regular rhythm. "I must say you almost scared me with that spell." Graphite chuckled with a relieved sigh. "I thought it was something but it turns out it's just some shitty music you're playing with some weird unknown spell." The music came to a sudden stop, much to the crowd's annoyance who was enjoying it, as Vinyl snapped her eyes wide open. She was still on her knees with her back turned toward Graphite who was nonchalantly standing. "What did you just say?" Vinyl said in a cold tone. "That your spell is weird." "No, before that...." "That the music you were playing was worth shi...." Graphite said before being catapulted by an incredibly fast bolt of electric blue magic. "That's what I thought...." Vinyl muttered before standing up and facing Graphite who was still trying to comprehend what just happened to him. "You know, earlier I said I'll get you for those words...But now, I'm seriously going to kick your ass for what you said." "You can't stand when someone criticizes your music?" Graphite said slowly. "No, I can't stand some stuck up bastards like you who insulted the woman I love not once but twice!" Vinyl said angrily. Vinyl assembled a ball with her strings of magic in her hand. A sphere the size of a football started flickering intensively with a loud chirping sound. She made a move to push the sphere forward, extending her arm, as if for a shot put. The sphere was about to to leave her hand. "Idiot!" Graphite grinned before teleporting again. Vinyl suddenly snapped her hand down, sending the sphere flying rapidly below her extended arm, behind her. Graphite reappeared behind her and his grin turned into a surprised gasp when he saw Vinyl's sphere inches away from his face. "You're the idiot!" Vinyl said slowly before clacking her fingers, causing the sphere to explode. The crowd lost the sight of Graphite in the huge flash of blue light caused by Vinyl's spell. A lot of spectators got startled by the massive sonic explosion while Vinyl who was the closest to explosion didn't move a muscle, not even bothering to turn around. "Wow..." Pinkie said slowly in her megaphone. "She doesn't even look back at the explosion....She's a heroine!" Eventually, when the sounds and the flashes from Vinyl's spell died down, she looked behind her and saw Graphite lying on the ground, his protective gear completely shattered to pieces. She slowly walked to him before crouching next to him. She could tell her spell had hit him hard as his eyes didn't seem like they could focus on anything. "Can you hear me?" Vinyl asked slowly. "Just blink if you do, it'd be best if you don't move before the meds get here and if you open your mouth, you're likely to throw up." Vinyl explained before Graphite blinked slowly. "That's good, I thought I have gone a tad overboard with the decibel level. It was a good match. Good luck with the rest! Normally, you should recover in a few hours. Maybe in one hour, if your medic is a Titanian who knows how the internal ear works." She said before standing up and walking away as the medical squad went to check on him. "One last thing." Vinyl said slowly as she looked back at him. "Don't ever badmouth Octavia or what she does in front of me again! I won't hold back anymore if you do!"