//------------------------------// // Ch5: Extraordinary Occurrence // Story: Believe // by Rapplejack //------------------------------// Oh boy. Applejack laid on her bed, staring up at her ceiling. She didn't sleep the night before; she was up all night thinking about the recent events that just took place. Applejack's desire to make Rarity happy overruled her honesty last night, making her do something rash. I can't believe I asked Rarity to be together with me! I even promised myself I would cheer Rarity up without resortin' to lyin'. Applejack thought, maintaining her stare at the ceiling. She remembered staring into Rarity's eyes as she pulled apart from their embrace and ran out of Applejack's room. Applejack cursed at herself, scolding herself for acting on impulse. I promised myself long ago that I would stay honest and truthful no matter what the situation is, and I just broke that promise. She put her hoof over her face, wishing there was a rewind button. She started to wonder about her feelings towards Rarity during the previous night. She knew she felt something for Rarity, but didn't know exactly what it was. She felt something strong, something very heart warming when she thought of Rarity, something she didn't feel before Rarity approached her last night. She noticed none of the feelings and emotions she had towards Rarity had carried over to the next day, leaving her to regret her decision. At least I wasn't really lyin' to her; I swore I felt something towards that crazy pony last night. Applejack let out a long sigh; she got up and decided to get her mind off the topic of Rarity. She put her signature hat on and was ready to help do chores around the barn. " I wonder what's gunna happen now.." Applejack wondered aloud, walking out of her room. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Back at the Carousel Boutique, Rarity sat on her bed, also suffering from the lack of sleep the previous night. She confessed. She told me she wanted us to be together! Rarity sat there, not knowing how to react to the wonderful news. She quickly stood up and went to her "organized chaos" work room. It's funny how life works, Rarity thought, Just yesterday I was so heartbroken about Applejack.. Who would've thought that she loved me all along! Rarity entered her work room, but was suddenly approached by Sweetie Belle, the Applejack doll in her mouth. " Hey Rarity! Look what I found! It looks just like Applejack!" Sweetie Belle squeaked, holding up the doll in front of Rarity's shocked face. " W-w-w-w-where'd you get that Sweetie Belle?" Rarity stuttered, trying to remember where she misplaced her doll. " Well, it was just lying on the floor by the entrance. Uh, is it yours Rarity?" Sweetie Belle asked, still holding the doll in her mouth. " Ye-, well no.. W-well... It's.... It's a gift to Applejack! Yes indeed quite, a gift to Applejack! I need it back right away Sweetie Belle." Rarity said, snatching the doll from Sweetie Belle's mouth. " Now hurry and go off and play with your friends, your big sister is very busy. Hurry, off you go." Rarity said, pushing the confused Sweetie Belle out of the room. As she closed the door, she sighed, tossing the doll towards the center of the room. Rarity had an idea. She used her magic and floated a piece of paper and quill to her. She decided to create the perfect dress for the next time she saw Applejack; after all, she didn't want to make her new marefriend think of her as anything less than perfection. She started furiously sketching ideas, thinking of nothing but Applejack in her mind. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Applejack was exhausted after finishing all her chores. She noticed that she finished in record time; having the rest of the afternoon to herself. She wiped the sweat off her forehead and decided to see Rarity with her free time; hoping that seeing her would revamp her feelings from the previous night and diminish the guilt in her heart. She headed towards Carousel Boutique, only to be interrupted by Sweetie Belle as she left the farm entrance. " Oh hey Applejack!" Sweetie Belle said, trying to recruit Applebloom for another CMC adventure. " Well howdy, Sweetie Belle." Applejack replied, tipping her hat at the young filly. " If your lookin' for Applebloom, she's in the kitchen with Granny Smith." " Thanks!!" Sweetie Belle squeaked, walking past Applejack and towards the kitchen. She turned around and faced the waving Applejack. " Rarity has a big surprise for you, you'll love it!" Sweetie Belle said, walking off in the distance. I wonder what she means by surprise.. Applejack thought as she galloped to Carousel Boutique. On her way there, she decided to buy some deserts for her new "marefriend". Applejack still didn't quite know what was going on through her mind when she asked Rarity to be her special somepony. Cheering Rarity up was the only thing on her mind, so the second she felt just a little bit of affection towards Rarity, she threw it out there. " Such a stupid mistake I made.. I just wish there was some way to break it to her that I don't feel the same emotions I felt last night." Applejack thought aloud, heading towards Sugarcube Corner. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- " Hey APPLEJACK!!!" Pinkie Pie shrieked as Applejack walked through the door, jumping in surprise. " Howdy Pinkie.. What has you all riled up?" Applejack asked, wondering what the sudden outburst was about. " Oh its nothing, I was just happy to see you! Well I'm happy to see ALL my friends but you were the only one who showed up so I was happy to see you, but I don't mean you aren't my BEST friend, you are my best friend you know that? Well you are one of my best friends so that makes me even MORE happy too see you!" Pinkie Pie said, staring at her friend who was holding her ears. " Well that's very nice of ya, Pinkie." Applejack replied, trying her best to keep her friend from talking. " So I was wonderin' if I could have a nice cake for R-" Applejack stopped herself, not sure if she could tell Pinkie about her and Rarity. " A nice cake for who?" " U-uh.. A relative." Applejack lied, scrunching her nose and averting her eyes. Pinkie Pie may be very random and weird, but she wasn't dumb. She picked up on Applejack's lie immediately. " Who is it for, Applejack?" Pinkie Pie said, getting progressively closer to Applejack. She winced one eye at Applejack, trying to pry the answers out of her. " I-It's for a long lost relative o' mine. Nothing more nothing less." Applejack stated with a weak smile, trying her best to fool the pink pony who was confronting her. Pinkie Pie gave her one last stare and backed away slowly. " Okie Dokie Lokie..." Pinkie Pie said, walking back behind the counter. "So.. What kinda of cake would you like, Applejack?" " The best one ya got in stock; and make it quick. I haven't got much time to dilly dally." Applejack answered, walking up to the counter now. " Well this one is really good; here, take it!" Pinkie Pie said, grabbing a box out of the display case. " No bits needed, friend's discount." Pinkie Pie finished, smiling. " Well, that's mighty generous of ya, Pinkie. Thanks a bunch, I'll see you around later!" Applejack said, walking out the entrance with the box in her mouth. As the door closed, a yellow Pegasus with a pink mane came up from under the counter. " D-did she notice me..?" Fluttershy asked Pinkie, who was staring right at her. " Of course not!" Pinkie said, giving Fluttershy a quick peck on the lips," No pony will ever find out about us!" -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rarity sat down in exhaustion, looking up at her half completed dress. She was proud of what she had created, but she couldn't get ahead of herself. She needed Applejack's approval before the dress could be considered "perfection." She got up and decided to take a break from the almost-completed dress. Thinking of something to do, Rarity decided to surprise her new marefriend with a nice sweet cake. She walked out the entrance and towards Sugarcube Corner. On her way there, she started to think about the previous night. It started to become hazy in her mind, like the events that occurred really didn't happen. It was too unrealistic for Rarity to think that her body was so close to Applejack's. The feeling of Applejack's warm body pressed against her's was indescribable. Rarity's face started feeling hot when she was thinking about this. She started to think harder about what had happened the night before since her memory was abnormally foggy. She remembered Applejack's tone when she asked her if they wanted to be together. It was so sincere, but there was something odd about it; Rarity couldn't figure out what it was. Quickly shaking off the thought, she proceeded on her way towards Sugarcube Corner to buy her special somepony a delicious surprise. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- " H-hey there, Rarity.." Fluttershy greeted as Rarity walked through the entrance of Sugarcube Corner. " Why hello there Fluttershy," Rarity replied, " Why are you behind the counter?" " W-well you see.. Pinkie Pie told me to watch over the store while sh-.. Eep!" Fluttershy squeaked, turning a very vivid shade of red. Rarity tilted her head, confused at the sudden interruption and started to make her way towards the counter. " Is something wrong, Fluttershy?" " N-no! Ev- Ahh.. Mmng.. verything is alright!" Fluttershy stuttered, her face turning more and more red. " Don't come closer!!" Rarity stopped half way to the counter, bewildered at why Fluttershy was so against her approaching the counter. " Are you sure you're alright, Fluttershy? You seem quite distraught." " I- Mmm! I'm alright! W-what brings you here?" " Well I wanted to purchase a nice sweet treat as a gift." Rarity said, trying to ignore Fluttershy's red face and strange behavior. Fluttershy nodded and pulled a large white box from underneath the counter. " H-heres a nice Mont Blanc cake.. Free of charge.. I'm sure the person you are giving it to will enjoy it a lot.." Fluttershy said, tossing the box to Rarity. Rarity had a hard time catching it; she wondered why Fluttershy had to throw it instead of handing it to her. " Thank you!" Rarity said, walking out the entrance with the box in her mouth. I wonder why Fluttershy was acting so odd.. Rarity thought, heading back towards Carousel Boutique. Back in Sugarcube Corner, a familiar pink pony popped out from under the counter, a big smile on her face. " P-pinkie.. Why did you do that?" Fluttershy asked, her face still cherry red. " My thighs aren't a place for you to kiss, especially not when we could've gotten caught!" Fluttershy said sternly, her face turning more red. " Hey, it's not my fault Rarity decided to walk in while I was kissing you. And besides, I don't hear you squeal like that when I kiss your lips!" Pinkie Pie said, smiling at Fluttershy. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Applejack approached the fashion store where Rarity lived, Carousel Boutique. She put the cake on the ground and knocked on the door, waiting for someone to answer. After waiting a couple of minutes, Applejack decided to try her luck with the doorknob; it opened. " Rarity?" Applejack called through the open door, " I got a little somethin' for ya!" Applejack picked up the cake and walked into Carousel Boutique. She placed the cake on the nearest table she could find and started to explore. That pony wouldn't mind if I just explored her place a bit, after all, we are marefriends. Applejack thought, walking around the store. Everything was perfectly tidy and organized; a polar opposite of what the barn back at home was like. She approached a door that was slightly ajar and peeked inside. The room was a complete mess! What in the hay? That pony has such a perfectly clean and tidy house; I didn't think a room like this could exist in such a place. Applejack thought, creaking the door open. She studied the room very closely, she saw cloth hanging from the ceiling and quills stuck to the ground. She was looking at the floor when something caught her eye. She walked towards the center of the room and found the doll Rarity had been holding when Applejack caught her the previous day. Well this is certainly accurate.. Applejack thought, holding the doll closer to her eyes to inspect the details. It even has my freckles! Applejack noticed she was blushing quite a bit at the thought of a pony putting so much effort into creating a doll that resembled her. She was inspecting the doll when something peculiar happened. The doll's button eyes lit up a bright emerald green. " What in tar-nation?" Applejack said in surprise, throwing the doll on the ground. She stared in awe as the doll's eyes continued to emit a bright green light. She bent over to look at the doll closely. She stared at the glowing green eyes for a while and decided to inspect it closer. She extended a hoof towards the doll and picked it up. She examined the doll's face, holding it closely so she could observe the glowing green eyes better. " Why the hay is this doll's eyes lightin' up? Is this part of its design or somethin'?" Applejack wondered, holding the doll even closer. In a bright flash of light, Applejack felt herself being sucked into something, seeing nothing but darkness. She couldn't tell if her eyes were closed or if it was just too dark for her to see anything. She saw a bright light emerge in front of her and when she came to, she was staring at the ceiling. She tried to rub her eyes but found her hooves unresponsive. She tried to move all of her body parts, but it was all futile; she couldn't move. She noticed the room was much bigger and was at a awkward perspective, like she was laying on the ground. She realized something wasn't right and using her peripheral vision, she saw that the door looked enormous. Okay, somethin' is DEFINITELY wrong here Applejack, just calm down and take a moment to process what's going on. Applejack thought, trying to get an idea of what was happening. She couldn't rotate her head, but glancing down she could see the edge of her body. It was a doll's body, but to be more precise, the Applejack doll's body. She quickly pieced together what had just happened to her. Oh boy.