//------------------------------// // Guilt and Apples // Story: An Unconventional Challenge // by RaijingtheClockworkPony //------------------------------// "Thank you for walking me out here. You didn't need to though, I walk out to the farm alone all the time." Elusive gave his sister a fond smile. "Oh I know that. I just wanted to come out here to talk to Applejack some more. Plus we could always spend more time together, even if it's just a short walk." Sweetie Belle looked up at her brother for a moment and slowed down. "Is it true that you and Applejack are dating?" The white stallion nodded. "Yes. We have become a couple. I should have told you sooner but we didn't want to say anything until it was official." Sweetie nodded. "Well I'm happy for you two anyways. If you and Applejack got married would that make me and Apple Bloom sisters?" Elusive stopped for a moment and blinked a few times in shock. Never a simple question with her. The fashion minded stallion took a breath then looked at her waiting eyes. "I suppose it would, but let us not focus on that right now. After all we just started dating." The white filly nodded. "That's great! Me and Apple Bloom—" "Apple Bloom and I." Elusive gave his sister a small, slightly annoyed, smile. "You and Apple Bloom what?" The stallion rolled his eyes and moved next to his sister. "I was just... never mind. Let's get to the farm so you and your friends can play." The pair of ponies made their way down the small road and came upon the fenced off border of the orchard. As the unicorns made their way to the gate a large red stallion walked up to the fence. Sweetie was the first to spot the large stallion. "Hiya Big Mac! How are you doing today?" The stallion gave the filly a small smile. "Ah'm doing mighty fine. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo are at the tree house. Why don't you run on over there and let me talk to yer brother?" The filly nodded and ran off through the open gate, leaving the two stallions alone. Macintosh gave Elusive a look over for a moment then spoke again. "Ah heard ya fancy muh sister." The white pony nodded. "I wouldn't put in such simple terms, but yes. I happen to have grown extremely fond of her over the past few months." The white stallion paused for a moment. "I don't want to be rude, but, is this the intimidating big brother routine? I hope you don't think I'm anything like what that form of protection is needed for." The larger stallion shook his head, "Not at all. Ah think yer a good stallion if even half of what Applejack says about you is true. She ain't ever talked bad about you even when she was upset with ya. Sure she didn't agree with yer life style but never anything mean." Elusive stood there with a surprised look on his face. Surely this wasn't the same Applejack that had called him 'fru-fru' for so many years and the very same Applejack that always found something to argue about with him. He gave the crimson stallion a stern look for a moment. "This is the same Applejack we are thinking about, right? If so then I think you might be confused. She always finds something to tell me that I'm doing wrong." Macintosh merely shrugged. "Opposites attract. She's in the barn if y'all want to talk to her." Without another word the stallion walked off onto the orchards. The white stallion stood there for a moment and moved along the small dirt path towards the large barn and the comfortable looking house. Elusive walked pass the house and spotted an elderly mare working near the back door of the Apple home. "Well, howdy there Elusive. What brings you round these here parts?" The stallion stopped and gave the older mare a friendly smile. "Just came over to talk to Applejack. How have you been doing?" The old mare walked over to the stallion. "Oh, Ah've been busy with baking mostly. So you're the stallion that has muh grand-daughter all in a huff. Ah thought she'd go more for the beefy type but what do Ah know, Ah'm an old fashioned mare. Y'all make her happy and that'll be all I want from ya. Deal?" Elusive was surprised at the rather stern look Granny smith was now giving him. He nodded. "Of course. I'll do whatever I can to make her happy." The elder mare gave him a fond smile. "That's a mighty fine thing to hear. If you and Applejack want a slice of pie I have a few ready for eatin'." The white pony gave her another nod. "Thank you. That's a very kind offer." The mare gave him a small smile and walked back into the house. Elusive stood there for a moment. Such a wonderful family. So supportive, loving and protective for each other. Applejack is lucky to have such a family. The white pony moved across the small yard to the barn. He walked through the large open doors and spotted Applejack sitting in the middle of several baskets of apples. She lifted one up and inspected it, completely unaware of the stallion’s presence. Elusive made himself known by using his magic to lift the apple she was holding up into the air and moved it over to himself. "What in tarnation... Oh, Elusive you scared me for a moment. Ah thought for a second that something else had grabbed the apple. What are you doing all the way out here anyways? If this is to get me to model more dresses Ah'm gonna have to say no." The stallion gave the apple a quick look and placed it in the approved pile. "Actually I wanted to help you. I know how much time and effort it takes to run this farm so I thought maybe I could help you, to make up for the day I borrowed you." Applejack gave a small chuckle. "Okay, who are you and what did you do with Elusive? The stallion Ah know would never offer to get all dirty and sweaty. Not in a million years or for a million bits. Anyways don't you have dresses and stuff to make?" The stallion shook his head. "I'm between orders at the moment. Besides I figured that since you helped me I could return the favor. After all if this is going to work we have to be able to understand each other’s jobs." A mischievous grin came across his face. "I'm willing to help right now but this offer might just disappear in a few moments if you don't accept it." The orange mare got up and walked over to the purple maned stallion. "If that's the case then Ah accept the offer. I need to get all the apples sorted and then we can find something else to do." Elusive gave her a smile. "I like the sound of that. Shall we get started then?" The orange mare turned around and flicked her tail so that it lightly struck Elusive's chin. "Let's. You handle those baskets and Ah'll get these ones over here." Elusive sat down and began working but couldn't help but glance over at Applejack as he worked. The way she held the apples and the look of careful inspection on her face caught his eyes. He smiled as he watched her work. It was close to half an hour later before she noticed him looking over at her as he sorted the apples. "What?" The stallion got up and walked over to Applejack. "You look really beautiful when you're working." The mare blushed a little. "Aww stop it. Ah ain't that pretty." "Yes you are. You are an amazing mare and you should be proud of that." Elusive began to nuzzle the mare. Applejack returned the affection with a smile. "We should be workin'. All these apples ain't gonna sort themselves." The white stallion nodded. "True, but I'm happy doing this." He leaned forward a little and pressed his lips to hers. Applejack gave a small gasp of surprise then pressed back into the stallion’s lips. They held the kiss for a few moments then broke apart. The orange mare placed her hoof on Elusive's chest. "We'll continue this after we sort the apples." Elusive nodded. "Of course. I'll hold you to that." "Ah'm depending on it sugarcube." The pair worked in the barn over the next few hours sorting the apples. They finished placing the rejected apples off to the side and stored the good apples away. Applejack glanced over at Elusive and noticed that he had a smile on his face. He was looking at the sorted apples. "What you thinkin' about Elusive?" He looked over at Applejack. "I was just surprised at how good it feels to have done all that sorting. Feels good to do some work like that." Applejack moved next to him and gave him a small kiss on the cheek. "Ah wanna show you somethin'." "What is it?" "Follow me and Ah'll show ya." Applejack turned and once again brushed her tail along Elusive's chin. Elusive followed the mare his gave fixed on her as he studied the way she walked, from the way her mane bounced to the sway of her hips. They reached a ladder and climbed up into the loft. Elusive spotted the mare sitting on a small pile of hay looking at a small opening. He moved next to her and sat down. "Ah always come up here whenever Ah want to just think in peace. It's nice being able to just look out over the farm like this." The stallion followed her gaze and saw that from the loft they had a wonderful view of the orchards. He could only imagine how the sunset would look over the trees. Applejack settled her head on Elusive's shoulder and let out a low hum. The purple maned stallion gave her a kiss on the forehead and snuggled close to her. Normally he would have hated sitting in hay as it was always uncomfortable and itchy but with Applejack with him he just couldn't care less about something so small. "Elusive, can I tell you somethin'?" The stallion nuzzled against her straw colored mane. "Of course, anything." "Sometimes... Ah really like being treated special. Like when you made that dress for me or when you did my mane and outfit for the Grand Galloping Gala. It's nice to be taken care of a little and to be a little... fru-fru." She paused for a moment and looked up at Elusive. "You tell anypony that they won't even be able to find the body." Elusive chuckled and nodded. "Fair enough." They leaned in towards each other and their lips locked. Their lips parted and their tongues began an intimate dance. They held onto each other tightly, as if they might never see each other if their grip loosened. They rolled over so that Elusive was now pinned on the floor. Lips parted for a moment. Elusive looked up at Applejack and noticed the fiery look in her eyes, and a sudden realization that her hooves were wandering south on his body. "Don't you think we're moving a little fast? We've only been dating for a week." The mare gave him another smile and tossed her hat a few feet away. "Sugarcube, we've known each other for years. Ah think we've known each other long enough to reach this stage. Now shut up and kiss me." Elusive was all too happy to oblige. The lavender mare known as Twilight Sparkle made her way to a small field to the north of Ponyville. The reason for this visit had her slightly upset but as she thought about it she realized that it wasn't out of the normal. He never was punctual. Always a little late for everything. She adjusted the small bag on her side and looked up towards the sky. For a moment she could only see the bright blue sky dotted with a few small clouds. She couldn't help but smile as the memory of what Blitz had called them came to mind. He had called them 'Nappers' due to the perfect size for a pegasus to sleep on. A moment passed and she caught a glimpse of a rainbow mane. "BLITZ!" The mane moved a little then moved over the edge of the cloud, followed quickly by the face of the stallion attached to it. He blinked a few times then yawned. "Oh, hey Twi. What brings you out this way?" Twilight answered him by digging into her bag. She pulled out a book and levitated it in front of her. "Did you forget about this?" The cyan stallion looked at her confused for a moment then his eyes widened. "Oh, I'm sorry about that. I guess I took a longer nap than I thought." The mare rolled her eyes and watched the stallion land a few feet ahead of her. "Well, it's alright. Let's head back to the library so we can read the chapter. What were you doing out here anyways? I thought you slept over the west field." Blitz shrugged. "I wanted some new scenery and a place to think." "Think about what?" Blitz cursed inwardly. He had been thinking of a new way to get Twilight to date him. "Uh... just thinking about the weather schedule and the duty roster." The stallion gave a mental sigh of relief. It's a good thing that I'm weather captain or that would have been a horrible lie... Twilight nodded and placed the book back into her bag. "Makes sense. So I was thinking we could read it in my room this time. My bed is much more comfortable than the couch. Any objections?" Blitz couldn't believe his luck. This is going to be easier than I thought. Just need to turn the charm on a little higher than last time and she'll be dating me in no time. He gave her a small smile. "No issues at all. So where did we leave off in the story. Just after she landed the blimp right?" Twilight nodded. "Yeah. For a moment when I read that I thought that she wouldn't be able to save it but she did in the end." Blitz nodded. "Yeah. Daring Do is just amazing. Reminds me of a mare I know." Twilight's smile stayed the same. "Oh? Who is it?" You're kidding me... that was blunter than a hammer. Okay need to crank the Rainbow charm up. He gave her a warm smile. "Only the single greatest magic mare I happen to be friends with." He gave her a gentle pat and the lavender unicorns face gained a small about of blush. "Thank you. I wouldn't have been able to do half the things I've done without you or the rest of our friends." "That's true I guess. So I think we could make it to the library much faster if we went in a straight line. Hop on." Blitz lowered himself so that his shoulders were even with Twilight's hooves. Twilight took a small step back. "I don't want you to strain yourself. We can just walk." "It's not an issue, c'mon just hop on so we can get reading." Twilight stood there for a moment with a look of hesitation. She noticed the friendly smile and swallowed. "Okay. Thank you." "You're welcome. Now make sure you hang on tight to that book." Twilight finished settling on top of the pegasus and held onto him tightly. Blitz took great effort to make the lift off as gentle as possible. They reached a fair height and started off towards the town. Blitz took a quick look back and noticed the almost frightened look on his passengers face, her eyes tight shut. He slowed down so she could hear him. "Hey, you okay?" She opened a single eye to look at him. She mumbled something and closed her eye again. Blitz stopped moving forward and held his spot in the air. "Twilight, are you okay? Do I need to land?" The mare shook her head and spoke while keeping her eyes closed. "I'm fine. You can keep going." "You can open your eyes. The view is really beautiful." She shook her head. "I can't." "Why? You're not scared of heights are you?" She shook her head again. "It's not that." She opened her eyes and looked at Blitz. "When I was young I went to a fair with my brother. We went on one of the rides and it really scared me. I don't like fast moving things. It's why I prefer the hot air balloon." The sky born stallion was surprised at the confession. After all the things they had been through, it was something like this that scared her near speechless. She tried to hide her face in embarrassment. Blitz gently took her hoof into his own. "You are safe with me. I won't let you fall or get hurt. I never leave a friend hangin'. Trust me." Twilight looked into the stallions eyes and nodded. The pegasus started flying forward slowly and picked up speed as he saw the look of fear become one of joy. The flight only lasted a few minutes but by the end of it Twilight was practically acting as a young filly. They landed down on the balcony of Twilight's room. Twilight hopped off and looked at the stallion with a look of wonder. "That was amazing! Now I see why you love flying, and why Elusive liked the wings I gave him for the Young Fliers competition. Flying must feel amazing when you're not carrying a pony." Blitz gave a half nod and a half shrug. "It does but sometimes it gets lonely. Still it was nice to see you're reaction to flying. It must have been hard to admit that fear though." Twilight shuffled a little. "It wasn't all that hard. I really trust you so it was easy." The cyan stallion stood there stunned. She trusted him a lot, enough to confess something like a fear like that. He felt a sudden pang of guilt as he thought of the reason he started trying to spend time with her. Twilight walked up to him and grabbed his hoof. "Now, come on. We have a chapter to read." The pegasus gave her a small nod and allowed her to pull him into her room. Twilight sat jumped up onto her bed and patted the spot next to her as she lay up against the back board. Blitz moved up next to her and she scooted in close to him. She levitated the book in front of them and opened it to the marked page. "Alright just let me know when to turn the page." The stallion nodded and shifted a little closer to the unicorn. He began reading the chapter with her. At some point of the reading his wing had wrapped itself around Twilight and held her even closer to himself. Halfway through the chapter Twilight laid her head on his shoulder and let out a small content sigh, and just before the chapter ended Blitz rested his head on hers. They finished the chapter and the books slowly closed. Twilight sat up and moved away from Blitz. The stallion felt his mind scream in protest the absence of Twilight's body close to his. "So, what did you think of this chapter?" The cyan pegasus gave his head a small shake. "It was really good. I can't wait for next week." A small silence fell over the pair. Twilight placed the novel on her small bedside table and looked over at the stallion. Blitz gave her a friendly smile and motioned for her to rejoin him. Twilight gave him a small giggle and moved back across the bed. She snuggled back up to him and placed her head on his shoulder. The cyan flyer wrapped his wing around her and held her close. "Hey Twi, I have a free day in a week. Would you like to get lunch or something?" Twilight gave a small nod. "Sure. Sounds like it would be fun. Can we lie down? I've sorta had a long day, really big project is due in a few days and I have a bit of work to finish it up." Blitz answered her by moving himself and her into a laying down position. Twilight moved her head onto his chest and let out a small sigh. They adjusted slightly, little by little, until they were perfectly comfortable. Twilight broke the comfortable silence in a low voice, barely awake. "Celestia and I used to do this after we read the books as well. I hope this is alright with you? I know that stallions aren't big fans of cuddling." Blitz gave a small shrug. "It's fine. Besides a great stallion like myself can spend a little time cuddling and not be bothered by it. Just let me know if you’re uncomfortable." She answered him with a small movement of her head. She spoke again after a moment. "I'm fine the way I am." The minutes ticked away and slowly the breathing of the two ponies deepened. They soon drifted off to sleep, content with merely holding each other. Rainbow Blitz awoke from his nap. He gave a small yawn and tried to stretch his legs and wings but found that there was a weight there holding them down. He turned his head and spotted a sleeping Twilight Sparkle gently breathing while cuddled close to him. The stallion just sat there watching her back rise and fall with her breathing and enjoying the feeling of her breath tickling his chest fur. He took a quick glance over at the clock on the bedside table and noticed it was almost midnight. He sat there for a moment unable to think of what to do. Part of his mind told him to just tuck Twilight in and head to his own bed, but another part of his mind was telling him to stay there. He liked the way she felt against him and the way their body heat mingled together to keep them warm. I can't just leave in the middle of the night. That would look bad if anypony saw me leaving and this isn't a one night stand. This is two friends cuddling in one of their beds... The pegasus sighed and slowly removed himself from the grip of the mare holding him. He placed her head on the pillows and gently placed the blankets over her. He took a few steps towards the balcony door and opened it. He paused for a moment and looked back. The content look on Twilight's face had changed. It was still peaceful but lacking the happiness it had contained a few moments ago. A sudden wave of guilt washed over him. As much as he liked seeing her like this he knew that the only reason he could see her like this was because of the bet he had made. He bit his lower lip as he thought about it. I can't just leave like this. That's not something a friend would do. He sighed and looked up towards the night sky. The wind beckoned him to soar through the air but his heart told him to do something better. He closed the balcony door and moved back to the bed. He slipped under the covers after putting out the lamp and moved close to Twilight. This time he was behind her, so he hugged her close pressing her back to his chest. Under the covers he wrapped his wing around her, and placed his head above hers on the pillow. I could get used to this. Blitz drifted off and rejoined Twilight in a wonderful sleep.