//------------------------------// // The Heart of the Matter // Story: Trials of the Heart // by Dianwei32 //------------------------------// Trials of the Heart Chapter Four         The Heart of the Matter         Applejack groaned and buried her face in her pillow as the rooster’s crow floated through her window. She started to mechanically get out of bed, scooting her hind legs closer to the edge. As she moved away, the foreleg wrapped around her barrel pulled her back, and she remembered that her marefriend had spent the night, and would be doing so again for the next few nights. A tired smile spread across her face and she nestled back into the bed, enjoying the warmth of Dash resting against her back. A couple extra minutes never hurt nopony.         Just at that moment, Dash let loose a massive snore right in Applejack’s ear. The farm pony slammed a hoof over her ear to try and block out the auditory assault, but it did little good. Moving to the edge of the bed again, she pulled free of Rainbow’s grasp, turning around to see the pegasus roll onto her stomach. She stifled a giggle as her marefriend’s wings jutted into the air.        “Hey, RD.” Applejack poked Dash in the ribs, drawing a half-asleep grumble of protest. Poking again, she got a faceful of feathers when her marefriend rolled onto her side facing away. “Dangit, girl.” She rubbed her cheek where the leading edge of the wing had caught her. She was about to just give Rainbow a shove to wake her up, but stopped when a better idea came to her. Crawling back across the bed, she leaned in so that her mouth was right next to her marefriend’s ear.         “It’s time to wake up, Dashie.” She whispered, pausing to blow into the cyan ear a bit. It flicked back, but the pegasus it was attached to remained firmly asleep. Applejack crept a little closer, getting close enough to kiss along the edge of Dash’s ear before giving it a playful nibble. Rainbow murmured appreciatively but didn’t wake up. Letting out an annoyed huff, Applejack’s eyes drifted down to her marefriend’s extended wings. She reached down and rubbed the pad of a hoof along the leading edge, taking time to trace some small circles around the wing joint. Once again, Dash murmured sounds of approval, even stirring a little bit, but otherwise didn’t budge.         Rise ‘n shine, sugar. Applejack thought with a smile, trailing her hooves down her marefriend’s flank. Her smile took on a hint of wickedness and she lifted her hoof, bringing it down with a resounding smack! The effect was immediate, sending Dash flying up with a yelp before coming down just as fast. Getting tangled up in the covers was a problem that even she couldn’t fly her way out of, and stiff wings certainly didn’t help.         “What the?” Rainbow looked around while she slowly disentangled herself from the sheets currently twisted around her legs. Eventually she found Applejack sitting on the bed, chuckling to herself. “What gives, AJ?”         “Ah tried wakin’ ya up all gentle like, but ya weren’t budgin’.” Applejack let out a hearty laugh at the glare that her marefriend levelled at her. “Hey, if’n yer gonna get any work done, ya gotta get up early. It’s an old Apple family sayin’. ‘Up with Celestia.’”         Dash climbed back onto the bed, letting her wings hang over the edge and trying to bury her head under a pillow. “I don’t count. I’m not an Apple.”         “The hay you ain’t.” Applejack felt a blush creep into her cheeks when Rainbow lifted the pillow over her head, giving her a curious glance. “Ah mean… maybe it ain’t all official like… yet.” She swallowed to clear a lump forming in her throat. “But, yer an Apple to me.”         Rainbow sat up, watching the blush spread across her marefriend’s cheeks. After watching the earth pony fidget for a couple seconds, the leftover haze of sleep evaporated and she took in the full meaning of Applejack’s words. She leaned over and hugged the other mare. “Thanks, AJ. That means a lot to me.” She tried to wrap a wing around Applejack’s back, but ended up just smacking her on the back with the stiff appendage.        “Watch it, sugarcube.” Applejack nudged Rainbow with a foreleg to the ribs. She turned and poked the wing against her back with a hoof, causing her marefriend to jump slightly. “You want some help with that?”         “No, thanks.” Dash grunted, wrestling the unruly things back to her sides. They stayed in place for a fraction of a second before springing back out. Rainbow let out a frustrated groan, flopping back onto the bed. “Morning stiffies are the worst.”         “Ah told ya Ah’d be happy to help with it.” Applejack went to stroke one of her marefriend’s wings, but the pegasus pulled it away at the last second.         “It’s not… like that.” Dash sat up. “But I’d totally be down for that.” She slumped down a bit when the farm pony rolled her eyes. “They’re just… really sensitive, and it takes a little while for them to— gahahaha!” Rainbow cringed to the side, trying to escape the hoof that her marefriend was trailing down her wing.         “Ah see.” Applejack grinned, a playful glint in her eye. “They’re ticklish.”        “Uh oh.” Dash swallowed, scooting over to the edge of the bed. “No ropes?” She asked hopefully.         “No ropes.” Applejack confirmed just before pouncing on the mare. However, Dash was too quick for her and rolled off the bed, landing on her hooves and bolting for the door. Applejack gave chase, skidding out through the doorway and pounding down the hall after her quarry. Rainbow may have been faster in the air, but on the ground, they were evenly matched, and the farm pony had a feeling that her years of hard work would give her an edge.         They raced through the kitchen, and Applejack saw her marefriend look longingly at the laden breakfast table as they passed. Bursting through the door, she put on a burst of speed, pulling just close enough to the fleeing pegasus to get a mouthful of prismatic tail. She gave it a quick tug, and the sudden sensation caused Rainbow to trip over her own hooves, sending her face first into the dirt. Applejack spit out the tail in her mouth and trotted around in front of the downed mare. “Ya alright there, RD?”         Dash lifted her head and spit out the mouthful of dirt she had accumulated. “Yeah… just great.” She slowly got to her hooves and shook out her mane, releasing a cloud of dust. Looking over her shoulder, she gave a quick flap of her now soft wings. “On the plus side, my wings are cooperating again.” After spitting a few last bits of dust out of her mouth, she turned and started heading back toward the farmhouse. “So, what’s for breakfast?”        “Ya really gotta ask, sugarcube?” Applejack kept pace with her marefriend as they headed back in, slowing to let Rainbow through the doorway first. Gently kicking the door shut once she was inside, she sat down at the table. Next to her, Dash’s eyes roamed over the table and she licked her lips, clearly trying to decide what apple-based delicacy to sample first. The hungry pegasus ultimately decided to start with some apple pancakes, barely holding back long enough to drizzle on some syrup before diving in muzzle first. Applejack chuckled and raised a foreleg to shield herself from flying bits of pancake. “Land sakes, girl. Ya act like ya haven’t eaten in years.”         “Hhh.” Dash tried to sound offended, but only ended up spraying half-chewed food onto the table. Once she had finished chewing and swallowing her pancakes, she tried again. “Hey. I was already hungry, and your little chase didn’t exactly help. Besides—” She flipped a piece of pancake into the air, catching it in her mouth and swallowing it whole. “You remember what Twi said. I’ve got a really fast meh… meh-table-thingy, so I have to eat a lot of food to keep my energy up.” Leaning over the table, she grabbed three pieces of soy bacon—the only non-apple based food on the table—and tossed all of them into her mouth. Once they and a the rest of her pancakes were gone, along with a few apple fritters, she leaned back in her chair, rubbing her stomach.         “That was awesome, as always. Thanks Granny Smith.” Dash nodded to the Apple family matriarch, who looked up and mumbled in confusion for a moment before going back to her own breakfast. Rainbow hopped down from her chair, flexing her wings as she walked around it over to her marefriend. “I’m gonna head out for a quick flight before we get to work. Meet you out there.” She reared up and hooked her forelegs over the back of Applejack’s chair, darting in to kiss the earth pony on the cheek.        “Sure thing, sugar.” Applejack laid a hoof over Dash’s, giving it a quick squeeze before the pegasus trotted over to the door and headed back outside. Applejack and Big Mac divided up the day’s chores between themselves, occasionally stopping to explain to Apple Bloom that she did have to go to school and she couldn’t stay to help them. After dropping their empty plates into the sink, the older Apple siblings headed out the door as well, each headed to their respective fields. By the time Applejack made her way out to the Eastern Red Delicious field, she found her marefriend lazing about in the first tree she checked. “You comin’ down from there, or do I haveta harvest an early zap apple?” She sat down under the shade of the tree, pushing her hat back so that she could look up at her marefriend. Reaching back with a foreleg, she gave the trunk a few good knocks, rattling some of the lower branches.         “Yeah yeah. I’m comin’.” Dash stretched along the branch, then bunched her hind legs and pushed off, launching herself into the air. She angled her wings to carry her through the loop, landing at a trot a few paces in front of her marefriend. “Well, let’s get started, I guess.” She walked past the seated earth pony, flicking her tail so that the tip brushed past Applejack’s nose. Lining herself up with the tree one row over, she prepared to buck it, but froze at the last second. “Oh, don’t forget that I have to head out a little early. I’m practicing with Lightning Dust this afternoon.”         Applejack paused in her own bucking preparations, smiling warmly at her marefrined. “Sure thing, sug’, thanks fer remindin’ me.” As scatterbrained as Rainbow usually was, the earth pony appreciated that she was being kept in the loop. She leveled a smirk at her marefriend. “So long as you finish yer half of the field, that is.”         Dash looked down the row of trees, letting out a groan when it seemed to go on forever. She perked up an instant later, an idea springing up in her mind. “Hey, AJ, you wanna make this interesting?”       “Interestin’?” Applejack cast a sidelong glance at the pegasus, fairly sure what was coming next. “How’dya reckon?”         “A bet.” Rainbow stated confidently. “Whoever finishes their half of the field first, wins. If you win, I’ll do that thing with my wings that you like.” The appendages in question twitched and fidgeted at her sides.         Applejack bit her lip to keep a whimper from escaping, then turned and pretended to examine the nearby tree so that her marefriend couldn’t see her blush. Once she was sure her voice wouldn’t betray just how appealing that idea sounded, she looked back over her shoulder. “And if’n you win?”         “If I win…” Dash’s smug smile grew into a predatory grin, and she slinked forward. Applejack couldn’t help but watch as her marefriend approached, every lithe muscle bunching and spreading like a jungle cat stalking its prey. When she got close, Rainbow nuzzled into the earth pony’s neck, slowly working her way up and leaving a trail of feather-light kisses. She smiled to herself as a shiver ran up the other mare’s back, and when she spoke again, she breathed the words into Applejack’s ear. “Then next time, I get to use the ropes.”         Applejack suppressed a shiver, vivid images flashing through her mind. Her eyes flicked down the row of trees. She tried to calculate how many trees there were, but quickly gave up. Fancy mathematics had never been her strong suit. Looking back and finding her marefriend still grinning at her, she wracked her brain for anything that could give her an advantage. Swallowing, she eventually stammered out a condition. “N-not just buckin’ the trees, b-but ya gotta get the apples back to the barn.”         Dash thought for a second before nodding. “Deal.” The two mares spit onto their hooves and shook on it, then lined up across from one another. Rainbow dug her forehooves into the soil. “One.”         Applejack reached up and pressed her Stetson firmly down on her head. “Two.”        Dash crouched down, her rump wiggling in the air. “Three."         “Go!” They shouted in unison, lashing out with their hind legs to make simultaneous thuds against the trunks. Dual cascades of apples fell into the waiting baskets, and the two mares moved to the next trees. After a few trees had been cleared, Dash lifted as many baskets as she could carry and flew off toward the barn. When she got back, she could only stare at how many trees Applejack had cleared and how many baskets of apples were loaded into her cart.         “What… how?” Rainbow looked back and forth between the farm pony and her cart for precious seconds before zipping back to the next tree in her row and kicking it as hard as she could. As the day dragged on, Dash slowly made up the ground she had lost, but fell behind again each time she gathered up a load of baskets and flew it back to the barn. Shortly after the sun reached its peak, Rainbow returned from hauling her latest batch of baskets to the barn just in time to see Applejack buck her last tree. Meanwhile, Dash still had two rows left to harvest. Applejack loaded the final few baskets of apples onto the last cart in a string of three that she had set up. She looked over the mountains of apples and swallowed nervously, suddenly unsure about her plan. Regardless, she hooked herself up to the collar on the lead cart and strained against the massive weight. Nothing happened, and after throwing her weight against the harness repeatedly, she slumped to the ground, her breath coming in ragged pants.         “Hey, AJ!” Dash paused in her latest trip back from the barn, alighting on the ground a few paces away. “Uh, no offense, but I don’t think even Big Mac could haul that back to the barn. You’re gonna have to take ‘em one at a time.” She shrugged and shot a smug grin at the stubborn mare. “If you wanna try and win, anyway.”         Applejack let out a snort and clambered back to her hooves. Rearing up, she threw herself forward, wincing as the collar bit into her shoulders. Her hooves slid backwards, digging little furrows in the dirt, but the carts didn’t budge. Dash chuckled to herself and turned to head back to her next load of apples when a sound caused her ear to twitch.         Creeeeak.         Rainbow whipped her head back around, staring in disbelief as the wheels on the carts started to roll forward in tiny increments. Applejack threw her marefriend a wry smirk and took a step forward. The groaning of the wheels faded as the carts began to move in earnest, picking up speed ever so slowly. Applejack lowered her head and pressed onward, each step a tiny bit easier than the last. Eventually she found herself plodding along at a slow, but consistent, pace. She risked a glance up and saw Rainbow speeding back from the field, a couple of baskets in her hooves and one in her teeth. The earth pony kept pulling, and soon she was walking at a slow, but steady, pace. She was even able to break into a light trot if she was going downhill, though sometimes a faster trot was necessary to avoid being run over by her carts.        Some time later, Applejack slowed to a stop just inside the barn door, and a few apples tumbled down off of their piles onto the floor. She unhitched herself from the carts and collapsed into an exhausted heap, barely able to muster the energy to roll onto her side and off of her aching hooves. A few seconds later, Dash glided into the barn with her last two buckets of apples. After placing them with the others, she trotted over and laid down next to her marefriend, nuzzling the earth pony’s cheek.         “Ah… won.” Applejack managed to pant out between heaving breaths.         “You sure did.” Dash smiled and kissed her marefriend on the tip of the nose. She extended a wing and draped it over the other mare’s side. “And you know what?” Rainbow leaned in closer so that she could whisper in Applejack’s ear. “It was pretty hot to watch you do that.”         “Glad ya…” Applejack lifted her head a bit, but it fell back to the hay floor of the barn, her ragged breaths sending up small puffs of dust and dirt. “Glad ya… enjoyed… the show.” She tried to wink playfully, but both eyes closed, and once they were closed, she couldn’t muster the energy to open them again.         “Come on.” She felt Dash trying to wiggle under her, and after a few failed attempts, the pegasus finally lifted Applejack onto her back. Forcing an eye open, the earth pony watched the landscape roll by as her marefriend carried her. She closed her eye again and simply enjoyed the rhythmic rocking of Dash’s steps. That is, until her head banged into the doorframe.         “Sorry.” Dash jostled her wings, using them to turn the mare on her back so that she fit through the doorway. Once they were through, she headed up the stairs to Applejack’s room. Using one of her wings as a makeshift ramp, she rolled the earth pony off of her back and onto the bed.         “Mmm…” Applejack let out a contented sigh and nestled down into the bed. She reached down blindly, finding and grabbing the sheets then pulling them over herself. “Than—” Her words were interrupted by a yawn. “Thanks, sug’.” She patted the spot next to her, beckoning the pegasus to join her.        “Sorry, AJ.” Dash grabbed her marefriend’s hat and placed it on the bedside table. “I’d love to, but I gotta run. I’m late for my training session with Lightning Dust.” She paused and stretched. “Don’t know how much practice I’ll be able to get in, though. All that work wore me out.”         Applejack tried to nod, her head barely moving. She could already feel sleep rising up to claim her. “‘Kay. Love ya.” Rainbow smiled and leaned down, kissing the earth pony on the cheek.        “Love you too, AJ.” *         A few days later, Applejack stepped out of the farmhouse after finishing off a quick breakfast. She headed over to the barn and slung a bag of feed across her back before making her way to the animal pens, scanning the sky as she went. By the time she reached the cow enclosure, she still hadn’t seen hide nor hair of Dash. She shrugged and tipped the feed bag over, pouring a generous helping into the feed trough. Upon hearing the sound of feed filling the trough, the cows came and lined up to eat their fill. In between mouthfuls, they talked to the farm pony. Leading a rather boring life, they often turned to gossip for topics of conversation. Applejack tried to humor the cows. Sometimes she felt bad that they had to be penned up, but their occasional stampedes reminded her just why they had to be. She listened to them as much as she could, but her mind kept drifting to her marefriend. Prolly just takin’ her sweet time gettin’ here. Again. Unfortunately, as the days had passed, Rainbow had become less and less helpful around the farm, getting caught up in her training sessions with Lightning Dust. Every couple minutes, her eyes scanned the skies for her marefriend, but never found her. Once she had heard all of the gossip that she could stand, Applejack said her goodbyes and continued making her rounds with the farm animals, moving on to the pigs and eventually the chickens. When she finished and swung by the barn to put the feed bag away, she pondered where Dash had gotten off to.         Might be she went on ahead to the field so she could get a nap in before workin’, would just like her. She sighed, but a playful smile tugged at her lips when she realized she could sneak up on the pegasus and knock her out of the tree. Hooking herself up to the empty cart, she made her way out to the Western Red Delicious field. She stopped before reaching it and slipped out from the cart’s harness, not wanting the creaking wheels to give away her approach. Keeping an eye out for fallen twigs, she crept the rest of the way to the field and searched for her marefriend’s tail hanging down from one of the trees. After some time, she reached the far edge of the field without seeing any sign of Dash.         Where’s she hidin’? Applejack trotted up and down a few rows of trees, stopping to shake a few of them for good measure. Eventually, she gave up and went back to get her cart. Ah’m sure she’ll show up… with some excuse, no doubt. Well, best get started then. After bringing the cart to the edge of the field, she got to work. *         Darn, lazy, no good pegasus. Applejack lashed out at the tree, kicking it harder than was strictly necessary. Moving to the next one, she lined up again. Ah told her plain as day that we were doin’ the West field today, and she goes and runs off, probably nappin’ in some tree… leavin’ me to buck this field all on mah own. She kicked again, only half-listening to the tree’s precious cargo cascade into the baskets. Pausing to pull her hat off and wipe the sweat from her brow, she glanced up to see the sun well on its descent back toward the horizon. A pair of birds flitted across the sky, chasing one another. In her mind, they turned into Rainbow Dash and Lightning Dust.         Lazy, good fer nothin’ pegasi. Applejack slammed her hat back on her head and let out a frustrated snort. Goin’ off and galavantin’ about when Dash knows there’s work to be done. She dug her hooves into the dirt and bucked the tree behind her, waiting for the sound of the apples falling. When it didn’t come, she kicked again, but still no apples fell. Turning around, she saw that she tree was already empty. Shaking her head, she moved onto the next tree, falling back into her normal rhythm with practiced ease. While she worked, she muttered under her breath about Dash running off to fly with Dust, but the complaints left a bad taste in her mouth.        Ah can’t rightly blame her for it. A smile pulled at her lips as she remembered the few times she’d been brave enough to let Dash take her into the air. It is a heap of fun… but still, she coulda at least told me before just runnin’ off. Rearing up and bucking the last tree, she sat down for a minute before carrying the last few baskets of apples back to the cart and securing herself to the harness. Just as she started walking back to the barn, the dinner bell rang out over the farm, and after storing the last cartload of apples in the barn, she trotted into the kitchen.         Applejack took her seat next to her little sister and made her customary inquiry into Apple Bloom’s day at school. She only half-listened to the filly’s bored recounting of the school day, followed by a more animated description of her after-school crusading with her friends. Applejack tried to focus on her meal and mechanically ate the food in front of her, but her eyes kept glancing between the door and the empty chair next to her. One by one, her family finished their meals and wandered away, until eventually only she was left. She poked at the rapidly cooling food that was still left, her appetite gone.         “There you are.”         She looked up to find Dash standing in the doorway, her expression decidedly less than pleased. Applejack wanted to be happy to finally see her marefriend, but the fact that the pegasus had run off without so much as a word hung over her. “Ah don’t know what yer talkin’ ‘bout. Ah was right where Ah was supposed to be all day. Yer the one who went and ran off to go flyin’ with Lightnin’ Dust.” She nearly spat the last two words.        “What?” Dash looked confused for a second, then glared at the earth pony. “I was out there in that bucking field all day. I didn’t even get to take a break for lunch because I was trying to get done in time for my training session with Lightning Dust this afternoon.” She stalked across the kitchen and sat down across from her marefriend, grabbing whatever bits of food were left and throwing them on her plate.        “The hay you were.” Applejack slid her chair away from the table. “Ah was out there all day, harvestin’ without any help while you were off havin’ a good ol’ time.”         “I was not!” Dash sprayed the table with bits of half-chewed apple fritter. After swallowing the rest, she wiped a foreleg across her muzzle. “I was out there in the Western… whatever field, just like you said.” She waved a hoof off to the side. “I harvested that whole field by myself.”         “Wait a minute.” Applejack pressed a hoof between her eyes, dreading the answer to her next question. “What field were ya in?”       “The western one.” Dash waved a hoof off to the side again, then tapped a hoof to her temple. “The delicious ones. Yellow Delicious? No, Golden. The West Golden Delicious field, just like you said this morning.”         Applejack let out a mix between a groan and a sigh. “Ah said the West Red Delicious field, sugar.” She watched as Rainbow blinked in confusion for a few moments before the pieces clicked in her head.         “Seriously?” Dash threw her hooves into the air, slumping back against her chair. “I— You— Seriously? Why the hay would you name two apples ‘delicious’?” She slumped forward, her head landing on the table with a dull thunk. “You mean I harvested that whole feathered field by myself for no reason? I— You— Grr…” She jerked back up, causing a few stray crumbs to tumble out of her mane. She glared at her marefriend and jabbed a hoof in accusation. “You said that we were doing the Golden Delicious field today.”         “Ah did not!” Applejack sat up a little straighter at the claim. “Ah told ya we were doin’ the Red Delicious field today. Maybe you woulda heard me better if ya hadn’t been so busy shovelin’ food in yer face.”         Dash’s lips curled back in a snarl and she looked like she was getting ready to say something, but eventually just let out an irritated huff. She popped the last few pieces of food in her mouth, chewing them hastily before swallowing. “Well, the western Golden Delicious field is done.” She hopped down from her chair and trotted around the table, pausing to give her marefriend a quick hug with a wing. “Gotta run, I’ll be back late.”         “Run?” Applejack threw a foreleg over Rainbow’s withers to keep her from getting away. “Where ya goin’? Ya said the work was done.” She pulled her marefriend closer, nuzzling along her neck and up toward her ears. “Ah was thinkin’ that since we both had such a hard day…” She continued her journey upward until she was whispering into Dash’s ear. “We could do a little… relaxin’.”         Rainbow swallowed, and her wings twitched and shifted uncontrollably on her back. “Uhh…” She chewed on her lip for a bit, clearly torn. “I… I…” The pegasus stammered for nearly a minute, her wings a hair’s breadth from springing to attention. Eventually, she slid out from under the farm pony’s foreleg and edged toward the door. “I can’t. I’ve got a training session with Lightning Dust.”         “Now?” Applejack glanced out the dark window and then to the clock. “Awfully late to be trainin’, ain’t it?"         “Well, I missed the one this afternoon, and Lightning came and found me out in the field. I told her I had to work, and we rescheduled for tonight.” Dash smiled and nudged her marefriend with a shoulder. “I know you don’t like flying, but you should let me take you on a night flight sometime. The sky’s a totally different place at night. The stars, the moon, it’s just… awesome.”         “Well… if’n that’s what ya wanna do, have fun, Ah guess.” Applejack shrugged and got down from her chair, slowly clearing the dishes that were left on the table. Rainbow stood with one hoof on the doorknob, wracked with indecision again while she watched the earth pony clean the kitchen. After a few moments, she crossed the kitchen in a few quick strides and threw her forelegs around the other mare, burying her face in Applejack’s mane.         “Sorry, AJ.” Dash pulled back, then darted forward again and planted a kiss on her marefriend’s cheek. She smiled as an idea came to her. “Tell you what, I’ll make it up to you. Tomorrow, we can…” She leaned in to whisper her plans into Applejack’s ear, delighting in the shivers that it sent through her.         “We’ll…” Applejack paused as one last tremor raced down her spine. “We’ll haveta clean out the barn loft, then.” She smirked at the pegasus, hoping that her eyes didn’t betray the hunger that Rainbow had just awoken in her. “Ah’m gonna hold ya to that, Dashie.”         “Sure thing, Jackie.” Dash replied, grinning triumphantly. A moment later, she jumped, letting out a yelp and covering her flank with a wing.         Applejack let her tail fall back behind her, shooting her marefriend a playful glare. “Ah told ya not to call me that.” She chuckled as Rainbow stuck out her tongue in response. “Alright, go on, then. Just don’t be stickin’ yer icy hooves on me when ya get home.”         “Sweet.” Dash darted in for another quick kiss on the cheek, then trotted back over to the door, pulling it open with a wing. “See you later, AJ.”         Applejack flipped the last plate off of the table with her tail, sending it to land on the stack in the sink with a clank. “Have fun, and don’t go gettin’ yerself hurt zippin’ ‘round in the dark.” She turned to the doorway just in time to find it swinging closed. Shaking her head, she made her way up to her bed and turned in for the night. *         Later that week, Applejack trudged down the road from the farm into Ponyville, the creaking apple cart following her. She grumbled to herself while she walked, her bad mood from the previous days bleeding over. Dash had somehow found a way to be even less helpful on the farm, but worst of all, she had simply not come home the other night. She claimed that she had just been too tired and slept on a cloud over her training field, but something about the whole thing didn’t sit right with Applejack. Regardless, it was Market Day and—thanks to a bad roll in rock, paper, scissors with Big Mac—it was her job to lug the stall into the town square and set up shop for the day. She didn’t mind market duty, it was just a little slow for her tastes. The day could drag on without something, or someone, to help pass the time.         Reaching her usual spot after a few more minutes of walking, she quickly set up the stall, displaying all of the Red Delicious that she, Big Mac, and Rainbow had spent the last week harvesting, along with the single field’s worth of Golden Delicious that her marefriend had accidentally harvested a few days ago. Just as she finished arranging her produce, the Ponyville clock tower chimed seven in the morning, and the farm pony leaned against her stand, knowing it would still be at least an hour before the ‘early bird’ ponies even woke up on the weekend.         A while later, Applejack heard a familiar sound coming from behind her. Moving slowly, she grabbed an apple from a bucket near her hooves and waited. Her body wanted to swivel her ears around to hear it better, but she kept them forward, waiting for the gentle hiss to stop. When it did, she tossed the apple up and caught it with her tail in a practiced motion. With a flick, she sent the apple flying and was rewarded with a soft puff and a moan of disappointment.         “Aww…”         She turned and saw Rainbow floating the rest of the way over to her, forelegs crossed. “Ah told ya, sugarcube, ya can’t sneak up on me. ‘Specially not with some noisy little thundercloud.” She glanced over her marefriend’s shoulder to where the last bits of said cloud were dissipating. Part of her wanted to be upset with the pegasus, but at the same time she was relieved to see Dash regaining some of her playfulness.         “Whatever. I totally got you that one time.” Dash did a little flip in the air before landing next to the earth pony. “Sorry you got stuck with market duty. I told you to go scissors."         “Ah know.” Applejack went back to leaning against her stall, pushing her hat further back on her head. “But Mac always goes rock. Ah figured… Well, it don’t matter now, does it?” She glanced over at the clock tower, then back to her marefriend. “What’s go you up so early, anyway? Ah figured that with me on market duty, you’d be zippin’ back to bed until noon or so. Or maybe run off flyin’, like ya always do.”         “Yeah, that was the plan.” Dash walked over and leaned against the earth pony, giving her a quick nuzzle before continuing. “But as soon as I hopped back into bed, I heard the mailpony stop by and got up to check the mail.” Her wings twitched and fidgeted on her back and her smile was big enough to rival one of Pinkie Pie’s.         “Well?” Applejack nudged her marefriend with a shoulder, her own smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. “Don’t keep me in the dark, sugarcube. What’d ya get?”         “Oh, nothing too big.” Dash examined a hoof disinterestedly for a moment. “Just a letter from Spitfire.” Her aura of affected calm finally broke and she leapt into the air, doing a quick loop and letting out a fillyish squeal. “She said that they chose me! They want me to be a Wonderbolt! How awesome is that?” She landed and walked back over to the stall, but her wings kept unfurling in little half-flaps of excited energy.         “That’s great news, Rainbow!” Applejack pulled her marefriend into a tight hug. After letting her go, she readjusted her hat. “So, what now? There some big ceremony or somethin’?”         “Not yet.” Dash could barely contain the grin plastered on her face. “The letter said something about one more thing that I needed to do before they could officially accept me, but who cares? I got in!” She leapt back into the air, zipping through a series of loops and rolls while letting out raucous cheers. The few ponies out and about regarded her warily for a moment, but soon went back to their business. She eventually slowed to a stop, hovering a few feet off the ground. “Oh, I ran into LD on my way over here, and we’re gonna have an extra long training session today. I’ll try and swing by later, okay?”         “Sure thing, sugar.” Applejack reared up and draped her forelegs over her marefriend’s withers, pulling her down for a quick kiss. She briefly considered pulling the other mare back down to the ground for a more… thorough goodbye, but knew that doing so would just leave both of them riled up and make Rainbow call her a tease. Reluctantly, she let go of the pegasus, falling back to all four legs. “Ya better get goin’ then, sug’.”         Dash looked off in the direction of the Everfree, drifting slowly toward the ground. “I think I’ve got some time before—”       “Oh no ya don’t.” Applejack nudged her marefriend in the chest, sending her floating away. “Get goin’. Ah’ll be here when yer done.”         “Fine.” Dash grumbled, pouting slightly. She flipped upside down, darting in for a quick kiss before pulling into a half-loop and speeding off. As she shrank into the distance, she called back over her shoulder. “See you later, AJ. Love you!”         “Love ya too, Dashie.” Applejack replied, even though she knew the pegasus couldn’t hear her. She watched her marefriend fade into the distance until she was indistinguishable from the rest of the sky. The sound of approaching hooves drew her attention back to the apple cart, where Cheerilee became her first customer on her way out to the schoolhouse. As more ponies woke and started about their days, the farm pony fell into a familiar practice of calling out her wares and drawing in customers. It was a good day as far as market days went, with plenty of hungry ponies to buy apples and pass the time quickly. That is, until a certain pegasus showed up.        “What’s up, Applesnack?” Lightning Dust trotted up to the stall, ignoring the four ponies currently in line. She picked up an apple and took a bite, pausing halfway through chewing for a belated, “You mind?”         Applejack slid the bits from the most recent sale into a drawer, sparing a baleful gaze at the new arrival. “If’n ya wanna wait in line like everypony else, then Ah’d be more’n happy to help ya, Lightnin’.”         “You do know there’s a ‘g’ at the end of my name right? Lightnin-guh” Dust took another bite, continuing to talk around half-chewed bits of apple. “Actually, there are ‘g’s on the ends of lots of words.” She swallowed, then tossed the rest of the apple in the air, catching it in her mouth as it fell.         “Thank ya kindly, Roseluck.” Applejack bid farewell to her last customer and finally turned her attention to Lightning, pointedly ignoring her last comment. “Now, that’ll be three bits.”         “Three?” Dust stared in shock for a moment. “You charged everyone else one! What gives?”         “Well, it’s one bit fer the apple, one fer cuttin’ the line, and one more fer stealin’.” Applejack smirked at the dumbfounded look on the pegasus’ face. “So, three bits.”         “Stealing?” Lightning nearly shouted. “I didn’t steal anything!”         “Ya took an apple without payin’ for it. That’s called stealin’.” Applejack tapped the stall with a hoof. “Now, three bits. Please.”         Dust grumbled for a few seconds, but ultimately extended a wing to open her saddlebag. “Fine.” She pulled out three bits and dropped them on the stall counter. After another couple seconds, she let out a sigh and smiled at the earth pony. “And I’m… sorry for cutting and stealing.”         Applejack regarded the other mare for a bit, then waved away her apology. “Don’t ya worry none. Ya made a mistake, and ya paid for it.” She pulled open the bit drawer and swept Dust’s coin into it. “Now, anythin’ else Ah can do for ya?”        “Not really.” Lightning shrugged. “Just taking it easy for now.” Her gaze drifted down to the baskets of apples again, and she pulled another bit from her saddlebag. “Hey, can I get another apple?”         “Eeyup.” Applejack took the proffered coin and put it away, motioning for the pegasus to take her pick. “Ya just missed RD, she swung by here on the way out to y’all’s trainin’ session.”         Dust paused mid-bite, furrowing her brow and cocking her head to the side. “Trghh—” She stopped, quickly chewing and swallowing the bite in her mouth before continuing. “Training session? We don’t have a session today.”         “Sure ya do. Rainbow said she ran into ya after gettin’ her letter and y’all set up an extra long session today.” Applejack glanced at the clock tower. “Ya better get goin’, she headed out a while ago.”         “What letter?” Lightning shook her head. “I haven’t seen Dash since yesterday morning. Wait!” She dropped her half-eaten apple and planted her forehooves on the stall, leaning over into the earth pony’s face. “Letter? Was it from Spitfire?"         “Uh, yeah.” Applejack took a step back, uncomfortable with the sudden invasion of her personal space.        “Well?” Dust asked impatiently. She leaned even further forward, bringing her hind legs up so that she was fully standing on the stall. “Don’t leave me hanging! What did it say?” By this point, she was leaning so far forward that she nearly fell off of the counter, and only her wings saved her from a mouthful of dirt.         “She said she ran into you after gettin’ it.” Applejack kept backing up, eventually feeling the edge of a fountain against her hind leg. She pushed the manic pegasus back with a foreleg. “Alright, alright. Just calm down, ya hear?” She waited while Lightning Dust carefully climbed down from the apple cart before continuing. “The letter said that the Wonderbolts chose Rainbow to join ‘em—” She couldn’t help but smirk a bit at the way Dust’s jaw fell open. “—but, there’s also one more thing they want her to do before they make it all official like.”        “No. Way.” Lightning fell to her haunches, her mouth still hanging open. After another couple seconds of stunned silence, she stood back up. “So, what’s this ‘one more thing’? They already saw her pull off a Sonic Rainboom! What else could they want?”         “Dunno.” Applejack shrugged. “She didn’t say. If’n ya wanna find out she headed off thataway.” She pointed off in the direction Rainbow had flown off in.         “Sweet. Thanks, Applejack.” With that, Dust broke into a gallop and leapt into the air, speeding off to find Rainbow. Applejack’s attention was brought back to her cart by the approach of Lyra and Bon Bon. She easily slipped back into her sales routine, watching with satisfaction as the baskets emptied. Celestia’s sun crawled up into the heavens, but the last apple sold before it could reach its peak.         “Thank ya kindly.” Applejack swept the last few bits into the drawer, sliding it shut and locking it. “Sorry folks, that’s all for today.” The few ponies still in line let out disappointed groans and left to find other food stalls. The farm pony closed up the cart and hooked herself up to the harness to start the long walk back to the farm. She passed the walk in silence as she had on the way out, but with the jingle of bits accompanying the creak of old wheels this time. Before long, the buildings of Ponyville gave way to trees and fields, which in turn gave way to fields of trees. The lunch bell rang out over the farm just as she finished locking up the cart, the day’s bits now safely in a bag on her back. Trotting back to the farmhouse, she threw open the door and saw a very surprised looking Big Macintosh on the other side, though Granny Smith hadn’t looked up from her plate. “Afternoon, y’all.”         “What’re you doin’ back so soon, AJ?” Big Mac’s voice rumbled as he spoke. He looked at the clock, then back to his sister. “Seems mighty early for ya to have sold all them apples… unless yer friend Miss Pie bought ‘em all for ‘nother one of her crazy experiments.”         “Nnnope, just brisk business this mornin’.” Applejack tossed the sack of bits onto the counter, glancing down at the food on the counter. “Daisy sandwiches and hay fries, huh?” An idea came to her, bringing a smile with it. “Say, Mac, Ah’m gonna pack up a few of these and head out to watch RD train. Ya got things covered here?"        “Eeyup.” Big Mac nodded, scooping up the last of his hay fries.         “Alright, then.” Applejack placed a quickly packed basket of food on her back and headed back for the door. “Ah’ll be back later.” After a moment’s thought, she added, “Ah’ll swing by and pick up AB from school if’n she’s done.”         “Well, have fun.” Mac drawled, sneaking a hoof over to Granny Smith’s plate to steal some hay fries. The old mare only snored lightly, having fallen asleep in her seat. Applejack chuckled to herself as she made her way out the door again and headed to Dash’s favorite practice field. Along the way, she scanned the sky for signs of either her marefriend or Lightning Dust. However, she still hadn’t seen hide nor hair of either of them by the time she reached the field. Slowing to a stop at the edge, she brought a hoof to her mouth and let out an ear-splitting whistle. She tapped a hoof and scanned the skies again, waiting for Rainbow to come barreling down.         After a full minute passed with no sign of either pegasus, Applejack sighed and turned around, heading for the field by the lake that her marefriend liked to use sometimes. The scene repeated itself there, though, and at the third field that she checked. Eventually, she gave up and sat alone under a tree, eating the now cold hay fries and offering a few to a passing squirrel. She tried not to think about it, but her eyes darted up every few seconds, scanning almost desperately for some sign of her missing marefriend. Every time she gazed to the heavens without finding Dash, the knot of worry in the pit of her stomach grew a little bit. After a time, it overwhelmed her appetite and she pushed her half-eaten daisy sandwich away, only to have the squirrel grab it and scamper back up the tree. She voiced a question to the air, even though her imagination was already giving her plenty of answers         “Dagnabit, girl… where are ya?”