The train ride home was a bit pleasant for Ivory as Applejack slept the whole way. She had been sleeping on the stallion as the wheels rattled on the tracks. As for Ivory, well, he was still thinking how that mystery mare knew his name. He never knew her name, yet, it was quite the curiosity. He felt that he should know the mare, but nothing came up. His only memory were her light purple eyes. They sparkled all right, but still couldn't compare to AJ's emerald eyes.
Ivory had a leg crossed around Applejack's frame, gently rubbing her back while she slept peacefully. The car would shake once or twice, but the mare stayed asleep with a smile sprawled across her lips. Ivory knew it'd be late when the train got back to Ponyville, even then, Applejack might be tired enough to not even make the journey back to the farm. He smiled to himself a bit, turning away from the window and down to the sleeping mare at his side.
He gently nuzzled her cheek, Applejack's response was a subconscious nuzzle back as her smile widened. Ivory couldn't help but fall into a light state of napping for the rest of the ride. He was more content with AJ sleeping next to him than that mare from earlier. Oh yes, that mystery cellist that knew him, somehow, trying to seduce him into an affair she was. Ivory was smarter than that though, kept himself loyal to the pony he cared for the most.
Ivory felt the train jerk to a stop, waking him up just enough to gain a bit of awareness of where they were. Home, it had been an hour or two, he guessed. Ivory gently nudged Applejack awake, whom yawned a bit before realizing where she was. The small station that was Ponyville's. She turned her head towards the stallion with a sweet smile before kissing him. Applejack stretched one time before getting up, shortly followed by Ivory.
The unicorn ended up leading after the two left the station, not very surprising to Ivory after all.
"Hey surgarcube," Ivory looked over to his marefriend, "I was wonderin' if ya might be willing to let me stay for the night."
"Of course," he chuckled lightly before saying another word, "all you have too do is ask."
Applejack's weary smile widened as she leaned further into Ivory's side, the stallion took it as a form of a silent 'thank you.'
The door swung open gently, in walked Ivory with an Applejack resting peacefully on his back. Now mind you, Ivory isn't very strong himself despite being a stallion, but AJ was rather light compared to his usual weight. Trudging his wat across the carpet and to the bedroom. Gently lifting the covers with his magic and placed the sleeping mare onto his sheets. Adorable, that's what he thought. Just. Plain. Adorable.
The unicorn made sure that the dress Applejack had on was folded nicely and placed on the foot of his bed. With a final tuck of the blanket and a kiss placed on her cheek, Ivory left the room quietly. He had at least one more chore to do before he could enjoy himself, and that was to shut the front door and lock it. As Ivory tried to shut the door, it lightly bounced off of something on the ground. With some inspection, it turned out to be AJ's stetson. Her trademark hat in the dirt below.
Ivory bent his neck down and picked up the hat, shutting the door afterwards. He made sure as to place the hat somewhere visible for the mare to spot in the morning. Continuing on his way to the back room of his house for the final time tonight, Ivory thought of something. He thought of doing something he hadn't done since his time at the Fine Arts School. He was going to play his piano... with his own hooves.
Ivory entered the almost darkened room, a single window lit up most of the room, including the piano. Using a simple spell to make a stool appear the piano, or has it always been there? Ivory sat down with a rather large sigh and opened the lid to reveal the keys. He wasn't going to let his mind make the music, but his heart instead. Hooves hovered over the piano keys, waiting for orders from his brain, but his heart took the first stride.
Notes were hit in a manner that seemed professional, yet, Ivory was only an amateur. His heart sang out through the note of this piano, beautiful as one could describe if anypony was listening to him play. If a master had heard him play, the player would probably be bested by the capacity of Ivory's heart as it felt the piano keys under his hooves, Striking the right time, the right now, the right bass. It all seemed so perfect, to be playing alone in the quiet of Luna's night.
Applejack rolled over to feel not a familiar body, but an empty space in the bed. She opened her eyes lazily to look around the bedroom the mare currently occupied to find no stallion. What Applejack did hear was the sound of a piano playing in the back room. The notes were caressing here ears as she listened, sweet, sweet music that only she could appreciate from Ivory. Yet, she wondered if her coltfriend was actually working on another piece of work, but at this late?
The mare slowly climbed out of the bed and continued towards the door. That's when the tempo in Ivory's playing took a turn. Those sweet melodies she's been hearing changed to something that sounded like anger. Applejack continued down the darkened hall, worried about Ivory if the notes had changed. She neared the back room and the notes got angrier and angrier until AJ reached the door frame and peered in.
Ivory slammed his hooves down on the last few note he felt his heart produce. His eyes were still closed but his breathing was heavy. He felt a pit of anger rise up somewhere, and his heart felt the need to extinguish it before something had happened. Ivory had yet to notice the mare now in the room with him, worried expression showing to it's fullest. He slowly closed the lid that covered the keys before, but never opened his eyes.
"Are ya all right there, sugar cube?" Applejack asked, causing Ivory to open his eyes and look in her direction.
"Yeah... I'm fine. Sorry to wake you..." Was the stallion's response as he looked towards the ground.
"Now, Ah've known y'all long enough to know when somethin's up." The mare was approaching, not too quick, nor too slow. "So y'all are better off tellin' me what's got yo so worked up."
Ivory took a deep breath and looked back up to Applejack once more. "Well," he started not sure how she would react, "while we were at that Garden Party, you know when I ran off to go to the bathroom?" AJ nodded, almost remembering how Ivory had taken. "I was being followed, apparently, by an old classmate of mine, whom of which I still don't know, and she...." Ivory stopped for a moment, Applejack was still listening, intently, but she was also growing tiresome again.
"Maybe we should just get some rest. you look awfully tired." Ivory observed, with only a light chuckle from AJ as a response.
"Oh no, I ain't lettin' you out of this room 'til you tell me what's got you so riled up." With that remark, AJ slammed the door behind with a swift kick of her good hind leg.
"Never make anything easy, do you?" Ivory asked with a groan.