Clear

by Drizzle Quill

Four: Her Confusion

As Applejack slowly exited the train, she began to wonder if she was doing the correct thing.

Rarity was obviously happy with Spike. Obviously might be an understatement - she was clearly very happy with the little dragon, and the earth pony didn't want to ruin this. She should be just happy seeing Rarity happy. Right? ...so why wasn't she feeling happy? It wasn't right. Maybe this was a bad idea. After all, Spike had been fawning after Rarity for years, that much was clear.

"Hey, AJ? You coming, silly filly?" Pinkie called from about ten feet ahead; Applejack blinked her green eyes and shook her head to clear the confusing thoughts.

"Yeah, Ah'm coming." Just forget about it, AJ. Have fun. Try to act normal. You'll figure this out later.

Rarity looked just as lovely as ever, with a gorgeous scarf slung fabulously around her neck, white highlights accenting her blue eyes better than ever. Spike rode atop her back; one could practically see the hearts floating in his eyes as he hugged her neck and sighed. Applejack bit back a fierce burst of envy and simply smiled.

"So, where are we gonna get these here gemstones?" The question was directed at Rarity, but Spike answered instead.

"They're in a cave a little bit past the train station," the dragon stated proudly, grinning at knowing the answer. Rarity smiled at him and made a little clicking noise with her tongue.

"Adorable," she cooed, "but I'm afraid that isn't the right answer."

Spike's face fell. "But..."

"I know that's what I said...but it seems I was incorrect." Face flushing, the unicorn's horn lit up with a bright blue aura; her saddlebag strap opened and out came a neatly folded map, each crease perfectly made so that it truly looked like the work of an artist such as Rarity. The map opened by use of the levitation, and after clearing her throat with a few loud 'ah-hems,' the unicorn began to speak.

"As you can see, I had this point, about a ten minute walk from here, marked." She nodded her head at a point circled in a fancy blue spiral.

Applejack and Pinkie Pie nodded their heads simultaneously.

"But as we were on the train, I spoke to the kind mare next to me, and she told me that if I wanted some of the topaz shells, there was also another route, one through a delightful forest right outside the buffalo village." Taking a ballpoint pen from her saddlebag, Rarity circled another point, not too far away from the first.

"But which one is more likely to have the shells?" Applejack asked, a hint of confusion creeping into her voice.

"That's the thing, really." Rarity sighed and blushed. "They're both equally likely, and equally difficult. I'm not quite sure what to do."

All were silent for a moment - even Pinkie Pie, who was stroking her chin with one hoof in consideration. Applejack had her own thoughts about the whole scenario - wouldn't a forest be much nicer to travel through then a cave? Ah mean, not like Ah have a problem with gettin' mah hooves dirty every once in a while, but poor Rare... - but decided not to speak them aloud, instead waiting until someone else piped up with their idea.

And someone did.

"How about we just split into groups of two and each group goes to one location?" Spike suggested warily.

All of the ponies stared at him; the little dragon shrunk under their stare. "Was...was that not a good idea?"

Pinkie's blue eyes lit up, dancing in the sunlight. "Not just a good idea, silly! A great one!"

"How did you come up with that, darling?" Rarity asked, taking one hoof and propping an astonished Spike back up into a straight posture.

As the praise filtered through one ear and out the other, Applejack did have to admit that yes, it was a pretty darn good idea.

Now if only she could find some way to partner up with Rarity, exploring the beautiful forest with her; a wonderfully romantic scene under the hot sun of Appleloosa as the leaves danced in the wind and the sun dappled bright colors onto the ground...

Squelch.

Mud. She had stepped in mud. Again. Inwardly groaning, Applejack lifted her orange hoof and shook it wildly, causing the droplets of chocolate-like substance to go flying everywhere. Sure, she didn't mind a little mud every now and then, but this? This was absolutely ridiculous. And of course, she had to put up with the constant babbling.

It was horrible.

She would rather be alone with Spike, and given her current grudge against him, that was saying something.

"And so I told Dashie that it was totally okay if she went away on her vacation even though I was really, really sad because that meant I wouldn't be able to see or talk to her or Flutters, which meant they couldn't come to any of my parties, but really it was okay because it was totally obvious that once they were alone they were going to whisper cute things to each other and smo-"

"Pinkie Pie."

Aforementioned pony stopped bouncing relentlessly up and down in a pile of mud, turning with blue eyes bright and lashes fluttering angelically. "Yes, Applejack?" she chirped.

"Can you stop babblin' about Celestia knows what and actually start helpin' me find these here gemstones?"

Pinkie's ears drooped and her eyelids lowered, but she simply nodded, giving a small, "Oh," and was silent.

Applejack exhaled. Much better. Now she and her own private thoughts could once again resume the council that was currently going on in her brain.

One side? Let Rarity have her own feelings. This side had been quiet ever since the rejection, mainly because she wanted so badly to have Rarity for herself. But now, seeing how the unicorn was happy with her dragon, she needed to face facts. There were other fish in the sea, and if she tried to take Rarity for her own, she needed to consider Spike in all of this too.

But the other side had its valid reasons as well. Though they weren't as moral as the first side's, Applejack impulsively had been leaning toward them all this time. Rarity is yours. Spike has no reason to take her from you. It was true that ever since they were both fillies in school together, a small romantic blossom had formed. But now? Now that Spike had just come prancing in a week after the rejection? That wasn't fair.

A war was raging in her head, and one side had to win. One was morally correct; the other feeding off of AJ's hopes and desires.

Which one to choose?

The war was temporarily interrupted by a pink pony prancing in the middle of the battlefield, calling a name over and over again. "AJ?"

The farm pony's eyes snapped open.

Pinkie Pie was waving one hoof in front of her face, eyes expressing concern. "Applejack?" she asked, almost in a quiet, most certainly un-Pinkie way. "What's wrong?"

Shaking her head, Applejack put one hoof over her hat to secure it. "What're ya talkin' about?" She sighed and stared at the ground. "Nothing's wrong, Pinkie. Ah'm fine. Just a little worked up is all."

"That's not it," Pinkie snarled, eyes narrowing.

Ears lowering, the orange coated mare stared in horror. How was it that that mare seemed to know everything about everypony - including their emotions at any given time? "Ah promise you that it is," she hurriedly lied; a bad lie, and both she and Pinkie knew it. As Element of Honesty, lying had never, not once been her forte.

Pinkie Pie was not going to take this for an answer.

Planting herself in front of Applejack she reached out one hoof and placed it on top of the mare's forehead; with her other foreleg and her tail she blocked the other ways through the cave. "Well, listen here, missy," Pinkie spat, eyes narrowed in complete concentration. "I'd like a correct answer and I'd like it stat! You've been acting funny all week! You didn't even have fun at the 'Goodbye Flutters and Dashie' party! I want to know why!"

Placing one hoof on Pinkie's shoulder, AJ looked directly into the mare's eyes and exhaled. "Listen here, Pinks. This is some goopy romantic business you don't want to get yer little body tangled up in. Ah know ya don't care a flying feather about it but-"

She stopped and stared.

Pinkie's face had just become completely and utterly calm. Was that pain in her eyes?

...what was wrong?

"Romantic, huh?" the pink mare sighed, a bittersweet smile on her face. "That's alright, AJ. You don't have to tell me."

Just like that, she backed off? What in Celestia's name was going on here? Narrowing her green eyes, Applejack took Pinkie's shoulder and began walking again, trying to ignore the squelch of the mud on her hooves and in the cave. "Are you alright, Pinks?"

"I understand romantic confusion more than anypony thinks." The bittersweet smile hadn't left; honestly it was kind of sad. "After all, it's been at least three years, and she's not noticed me. Well, that's a lie. She's noticed me for certain, but she hasn't noticed, you know what I mean?"

Applejack narrowed her eyes.

Was Pinkie Pie - the Pinkie Pie, of all ponies - blushing?

She opened her mouth - could Pinkie, the last possible pony in the history of EVER, give her advice on the war going on in her brain? - but stopped as her ears twitched, picking up a low rumble that shook the earth.

Grrrrrmnt.

"AJ?" Pinkie whispered, voice hardly more than a squeak.

Grrrrrrrrmnt!

"Was that just me?"

GRRRRRRRRNMNT

"No, that was defiantly not you." Applejack took her hoof off of the pink mare's shoulder and stood tense at attention, staring around her and waiting for something to happen, even though that was probably the stupidest thing she could have done right then. "That was something else."

A boulder crashed behind them; Pinkie screamed and darted ahead to avoid getting gravel in her fur.

The snort sounded once again, much, much louder this time. Above its roar, Applejack yelled, "AN' WE'D BEST RUN!" before the boulders began to fall, quickly, like an avalanche inside of a cave. The two mares took off sprinting, ignoring the mud, ignoring everything but their hot, panicked breaths and the ever louder rumble.

"Rarity? You've seemed upset."

"I know, Spikey...I...I'm fine. Really."

"If you say so."

"I do. I do."

"...Is that a topaz shell, Rarity? Is it?"

"No, Spike. That's a sapphire shell. Very different."

"Oh...Rarity?"

"Yes, Spike?"

"Why do you seem so annoyed with me recently?"

"What're you talking about? You know I love you very much."

"...as a friend, or as a lover?"

"Pardon?"

"I've seen the way you look at Applejack. You're...you're conflicted, aren't you?"

"...you are a very smart dragon, Spikey-Wikey."

"..."

"But I will never break your heart. You've impressed me so, helping out and being there for me whenever I need you...and I do love you, Spikey. I do. It's just...it's a business for mares. I...I don't think you'd understand. Even if I do feel something...I'm just...I'm so confused!"

"...Rarity?"

"Yes, Spikey?"

"...are you crying?"