Where Earth Meets Sky
Chapter 2
Fluttershy’s eyes popped open. Again. The stifling humidity rendered her mane a sticky, tangled web that clung to her face, and her bedsheets were soaked. Apparently, she hadn’t moved at all. For all she knew, what she thought had been a short nap could just have been an extended blink. She had no idea, being so very tired yet utterly unable to fall sleep. Glancing out the open window of her bedroom loft, she saw only darkness. A sea of stars still jealously hogged the sky, and Fluttershy wished they would go away.
It was a mean thought. It was very mean to the beautiful stars of the night. It wasn’t as if Fluttershy would ever say she liked the day better than the night, and the moon was usually ever so nice. It was just that right now, she would really like to see the sun. Sunrise meant morning, and when the morning came, she was one step closer to seeing Applejack again. One step closer to their date.
Her heart soared at the thought as it had countless times before this night, and her one free wing gave a few useless flaps as she smiled. The sun would have to shine very brightly if it was hoping to match the way she glowed as she thought of yesterday. A hint of a blush crept up on her face as she remembered Applejack’s breath on her face. The warmth, her scent, the orange mare’s eyes trained on her own.
Fluttershy rolled over on her other side so quickly she nearly hurt a wing. There were a million reasons why this was all wrong. She’d tried telling herself this, but she was too stubborn to listen. All of yesterday evening had been spent trying to convince herself that this was all a terrible idea. She had paced her cottage until her head hurt thinking about all of this. She would have forgotten all about eating if it weren’t for Angel.
So many reasons why this was a bad idea, yet she’d failed spectacularly at caring about them. All her fears and apprehensions were eclipsed by the promise of more spending time with Applejack, just the two of them together.
Of course it wouldn’t work. Not at length. Applejack wasn’t in love with her, and nothing could change that. It was one-sided, and Applejack was being a good friend letting Fluttershy pretend for a little longer. When this came to its natural conclusion, she would thank her for what was sure to have been the best time of her life. She could cry later. For now, she would dream.
And dreaming was exactly what she must have done. Fluttershy had apparently fallen asleep at some point, and now the sun was well clear of the horizon. The day had started without her. Fluttershy squeaked and rolled off her bed in a tangle of bedsheets and pillows, landing awkwardly on her side. The ruckus scattered a few of the birds that perched in the rafters, sending them fleeing out the window.
She quickly extricated herself from the mess, flinging the thin duvet back atop the bed with a flick of her neck. She would apologize to the little birds and promised to make the bed properly later, but she had so very much to do before Applejack arrived. Half the morning was already gone, and she hadn’t even begun to feed all the poor animals who lived about her home.
Fluttershy skipped right past the panic. She’d take care of that later, too, but she had no time for such luxuries now. Torn between elation and stress, she squared her jaw, spread her wings, and glided down the stairs to the ground floor. Step one, refill birdseed. It was one of the many things she had skipped last night in her eagerness to, well, think. Dream.
She blushed again as she opened the cupboard where she kept much of the animal food, noting that she’d have to open a whole new sack of birdseed. She paused after fishing a small paper sack out from the lower shelf.
A lot of things had fallen by the wayside yesterday in favor of doing exactly nothing but thinking and dreaming about the upcoming date. She hadn’t even cracked open her new Mareian Keyes romance novel. As much as she liked reading a good book now and then, life today seemed far better than any fantasy could possibly be.
She glanced over at her bookshelves and smiled. No offense to them, but the novels she read seemed almost silly now. While the books were snug and safe in their own place, Fluttershy was going on a date with Applejack.
With perhaps a little too much enthusiasm, Fluttershy bit down to open the sack of birdseed. The sack immediately responded by exploding. Fluttershy squeaked loudly as the world became a hail of brown and yellow pellets, covering her living room floor in sunflower- and thistle seeds. Birds came flocking in through all the windows and hopping out of the birdhouses in the room, hailing the arrival of an impromptu feast with a deafening chorus of squawks and peeps.
Fluttershy blew her mane out of her face and sighed. “Well, don’t you eat too fast now, and share nice, okay?” she suggested, putting what was left of the willful paper bag back in the closet. On the brighter side of things, the little bird babies were old enough that she didn’t have to go digging for worms. She always felt so terrible when she had to do that. Relieved and buoyed by this delightful silver lining, she decided to take care of feeding the bunnies next.
The pegasus promptly set course for the kitchen and surveyed the shelves. After a moment’s deliberation, she grabbed a bundle of carrots she’d uprooted yesterday in her mouth and tucked a bundle of leftover salad under a wing. That would do for the bunnies for today. She could make them something nicer tomorrow when she had more time. She giggled around the carrot stalks, proud of how assertive she was being.
Fluttershy froze on the spot. Was she being assertive or just plain selfish? If she was a bunny, she would be a little sad that the salad wasn’t fresh. She would of course be a very polite bunny about it, and all the bunnies here were very nice bunnies indeed, but she couldn’t bear to think that they might secretly be a little bit disappointed.
Applejack could arrive at any moment though. For a farmpony, “afternoon” meant just that - any time after noon. Applejack would have risen with the sun and could be making her way over to Fluttershy’s cottage right now. Fluttershy struggled to push back the thrilling little surge that went through her.
Spinach and broccoli both for the bunnies, tomorrow. She nudged the kitchen door open with her head, causing a cascade of birdseed to fall out of her mane. Quickly as she could, she flew past her little garden patch to where most of the rabbit dens were, putting her cargo down on the grass. Bunnies were already poking their heads out from their burrows, eyeing her critically. She was never going to live down her little mistake yesterday.
Thankfully, one bunny hopped up to her immediately and without reservation. The bunny she needed. Sure enough, Angel was not holding back his scorn - he was impatiently tapping his wrist and pointing at the sun, reprimanding her for her tardiness, but that was okay. She deserved all the anger her friend could muster.
“I know I’m late, Angel, but, um, I have something very important to do today,” Fluttershy explained. Angel rolled his eyes at this.
“Oh. Well, okay, I suppose you know why,” Fluttershy muttered, blushing furiously. Her jaw was threatening to lock up as she tried to hold back a giggle. “But, if it’s not too much trouble, could you maybe make sure all the other bunnies get their share today?” she asked with a smile that became twice as wide when Angel saluted and set about divvying up the food with skilled paws.
Fluttershy leaned down to nuzzle him affectionately, feeling ever so grateful for his help. The bunny sighed and turned around to pat her head before going back to his work. She was really ever so lucky to have Angel to help her when things got rough.
Bunnies, check. Birdies, check. Turtles next, then. Fluttershy took to the air, flapping her wings to gain some height so she would clear the hill and the trees of her garden, aiming for the kitchen entrance. She could feed the turtles and the otters in one go. There was a basket of grapes in the kitchen, and she knew she still had some prepared fish left somewhere. That latter fact was a source of immense relief; she had no desire to taint the day of her big date with such unpleasant business.
The day of her date. Which was today. Fluttershy closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she soared through the air. What if Applejack was coming down the road right now, ready to meet her? Oh, wouldn’t that just be the most wonderful thing? At the same time, it was a scary thought. She was almost afraid of opening her eyes now.
This was different, though. Usually scary was terrible. Scary was a bad thing that made her want to curl up and hide, but this time, it was exhilarating too. It was a little bit like those times when she was reading a good book and just couldn’t contain her joy over it. Sometimes she had to hide the book under the pillow until she had calmed down.
Then again, what if Applejack was already here? She could have arrived while Fluttershy was in the meadow behind the cottage! It would be very silly to fly around blind then. Almost certain that she’d find Applejack waiting for her, she opened her eyes and-
Fluttershy looked up at the clear and painfully bright blue sky above. Her head was ringing, and her face was wet. She lay on her side in a vegetable patch, and there was an insistent rapping on her flank that wouldn’t let up. Confused as though she was, she’d recognize those soft kicks anywhere.
“Angel? What happened?” she groaned. Her throat was dry and her voice sounded raspy. Bringing a hoof up to her face, she realized that the sticky wetness was blood. She must have stubbed or broken her snout.
Her bunny friend quickly came into view, hopping up on her shoulder. A very relieved-looking Angel pointed to a tree close-by. More specifically, he pointed to a large and conspicuously cracked branch on the tree closest to the kitchen door.
Fluttershy slowly got back up on all fours, fervently hoping that the branch wasn’t broken. As much as she cared about the trees in her garden, she knew there was something else she was supposed to be worrying about, though. Her head felt like it had been stuffed with cotton and dipped in honey. She experimentally moved her head from side to side. The world seemed very reluctant to follow where her eyes went.
“Fluttershy?”
That wasn’t Fluttershy. She hadn’t said that. Sure, she had a nasty habit of talking to herself sometimes, and she really shouldn’t, but she didn’t think she would say her own name for no reason. Fluttershy peered over at Angel. The concerned-looking bunny hadn’t spoken either.
She glanced up at the tree branch, rapidly running out of explanations.
“Sugarcube, are you hiding again?”
Applejack, Fluttershy realized. It was Applejack who was speaking, her voice ringing out loud and clear from the other side of the cottage. Fluttershy’s brain returned to full function in less than a second, all the blood in her veins suddenly turning to ice. Her friend sounded disappointed, perhaps even hurt. How long had she been waiting? The sun was still climbing, but there was no guarantee that it was the same day.
It was her fault. Everything was her fault. Perhaps it was next week, and Applejack was here to tell her that she didn’t want to be friends with such a horrid, neglectful pony? She certainly didn’t want to be her own friend right now.
“Fluttershy...?”
Fluttershy stood perfectly still, breathing faster and faster, her eyes unseeing. If she waited long enough, perhaps it would go away. Applejack would go away too, and she didn’t want that, but at least she wouldn’t have to deal with having disappointed her. If she never saw her again, she could avoid that confrontation. Not seeing Applejack for the rest of her life? Fluttershy’s entire body shook.
A potato bounced off her head from behind, thrown by an annoyed little bunny.
Applejack was at the front door. She had to answer her front door. Fluttershy looked around and found to her dismay that there was a house in the way. That was her house, of course. She had to go through the house to get to Applejack. She had to get to Applejack. Applejack.
The pegasus launched into the air and swooped in through the back door, past the kitchen, through the living room and up to her bedroom in a feat of indoor aerial acrobatics that she was grateful she was too hurried to contemplate. Applejack was here, and she couldn’t even begin to count the ways in which she wasn’t ready.
A series of hard, insistent knocks on the door downstairs. They may as well have been funeral bells. Time was up. Applejack called her name again, louder this time. In a blind panic, Fluttershy galloped over to her vanity and grabbed her favorite brush in her mouth. She twisted her head and started working on the mess that was her mane. Anything was an improvement at this point. As she fruitlessly battled with the cascading mass of pink, she flung open the doors to her dress cabinet.
“Fluttershy, Ah can hear you in there. This is getting stupid. Ah’m coming in.”
She had planned on wearing her gala dress. Out of all the dresses she had, it was still her favorite, but she wasn’t quite sure it would be suited for a picnic. She had a large number of dresses, leftovers from her modelling career, but she had never felt comfortable with any of them. She simply didn’t know which dress to wear, and when.
It was a terrible thing to only miss a friend when you needed them, but she was sure that Rarity would not only be able to tell her what to wear, she’d also be able to calm her with a few words.
Words. What had Applejack just said? That she was coming in? Fluttershy tried to yell something in protest - she hadn’t even had a bath yet - but with the brush still in her mouth, all she managed was a muffled mrph. She made to toss the brush onto her bed as she ran for the stairs, but it got stuck in her mane instead. The pink hairbrush did not make for a particularly elegant ornament.
It went downhill from there, all too literally. Too busy trying to get the hairbrush out, she missed the last step of the stairs, falling flat on her face and sprawling out on the living room floor with a squeak. This in turn startled the birds, who were only now wrapping up their little party. Cuckoos, parrots, owls, hummingbirds and jays of every color scattered in surprise, filling the room with a cacophony of squawks, peeps, flaps and feathers. It was messier than the Best Young Flier competition afterparty.
When the noise finally died down and the last of the birds had flown away in a huff, Fluttershy didn’t much care to get up. Applejack stood nearby, a picnic basket on the floor at her side. Fluttershy shut her eyes and let the tears come. They’d been begging for a chance ever since she realized she had overslept. She figured she could reschedule and get it over with right now. This was an excellent time to panic and cry.
“Fluttershy, what in tarnation happened here?” Applejack asked, incredulous. “Are you okay?”
Fluttershy pinched her eyes shut even harder and nodded, scraping her chin against the floor. She was fine. She’d just failed in every conceivable respect to be ready for her big moment. She had been given this one chance, one day during which she would be able to pretend that something wonderful had happened. A day where she could let out that indeterminable something that had built up inside of her. Applejack had offered to take her out on a date, just the two of them, and that was more than she could ever have hoped for.
And she had blown it. She sniffled, once, before a series of sobs wracked her. She covered her face with her hooves and tried to be as quiet as she could, but it was no use. She wasn’t normally ashamed of crying in front of her friends, but the weight of the moment pressed down on her and pinned her to the floor.
“Sugarcube, you’re bleeding.”
Applejack’s voice was closer now, and her hoofsteps got louder still. Fluttershy curled up on sheer instinct, but to no avail. A strong set of forelegs cradled her head though she didn’t deserve it. She felt the brush being gently removed from her mane.
“Ah need you to tell me if you’re okay - right now,” Applejack said. Her voice was low and quavered ever so slightly. “Talk to me, sugar. Do you want me to go get Nurse Redheart? Ah can carry you if you can’t walk. Or if you don’t want to walk.”
Fluttershy forced herself to stop making such a ruckus with her sniffles. It took all her efforts and she felt like she was going to choke, but she managed to shake her head and croak a “No.” She wasn’t hurt, and she didn’t want to bother Applejack anyway.
“Okay,” Applejack muttered with a huff. “Ah’m a little confused as to what in the hay Ah’m supposed to do if you don’t want help, and won’t tell me what’s going on either.”
It felt so good just resting there in Applejack’s embrace. It was a wonderful lie, but at the same time, she was very conscious of how she must look. Her snout was bloody and her mane was a mess speckled with birdseed, grass and leaves. Tired of being tired, Fluttershy slowly slipped out from between Applejack’s hooves to sit on her haunches, wobbling a little as a surge of dizziness seized her.
Opening her eyes, Fluttershy looked at her friend through a veil of rapidly drying tears. Applejack was frowning. She was no doubt disgusted with her. There was no point in trying to keep up this silliness any longer, best to just get it over with. She drew a shuddering breath as she faced the orange mare.
“I overslept,” she said, trying to force her voice up from a whisper. It was not an easy thing to do under the constant, unblinking gaze of Applejack, but the farmpony’s expression softened a little as Fluttershy began talking.
“I tried to feed all the animals quickly because I knew you were coming, and it didn’t go very well. I haven’t even fed the otters and the turtles yet,” she confessed, rubbing her forepaws together. “And then I, um. I had a little accident, and I guess I panicked a little bit and crashed.” She rubbed her snout, wincing in pain.
“A little bit,” Applejack repeated, looking about the feather-and-birdseed covered room.
“When I heard you were coming, I realized I was late. I- I mean, even later than I thought I was,” Fluttershy said, swallowing. “I didn’t have time to brush my mane, or put on my dress, or even wash up, and now it’s all ruined, and you don’t want to go out.” That painful knot in her chest had returned, and her whole body tensed up. “I look horrible, and everything is ruined.”
Applejack shook her head slowly from side to side. “Sugar, d’you see me wearing a dress? Do Ah smell like Ah’ve bathed in a trough of fancy perfume?”
“No?” Fluttershy said, though it was a question more than an answer. Was this a test? Was “no” the right answer? It was such a negative and mean word. Was it too late to change her mind?
“Then why in all things cinnamon swirl would you think Ah’d expect you to fancy yourself up for a picnic? Am Ah under dressed for having a snack?”
Fluttershy’s eyes went wide as panic fought the budding hopelessness. “No!” she said, aghast. “You’re perfect! You look lovely, you’re just right, you’re...” she sighed, realizing this wasn’t helping. She was caramel-glazing the apple that hung outside of her reach. “Perfect.”
Applejack did not so much as blink, apparently entirely unimpressed. She held out a hoof, for some purpose Fluttershy could not immediately discern. “That’s mighty sweet of you to say, but it means nothing if you don’t play by the same rules as me. Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.”
Fluttershy reluctantly accepted the hoof, getting up with Applejack’s help. It was an entirely unnecessary gesture, but her touch lingered. Her head was still throbbing as she followed Applejack into her own kitchen where the earth pony mare was quick to turn on the tap. Grabbing a clean piece of cloth, Applejack immediately set to cleaning Fluttershy’s face.
The pegasus closed her eyes and surrendered herself to Applejack’s ministrations, trying to keep her pained noises too a minimum. Her snout was still tender. The last thing she saw was Applejack giving a quirky smile.
“Ah’m surprised you’re not fussing over the blood,” Applejack chuckled softly around the cloth in her mouth, before quickly adding “Ah. No offense of course, just...”
It was hard for Fluttershy to imagine where she could have taken offense. Applejack sounded almost pleased with her, and she was sure she was blushing, now.
“Not at all,” she muttered, trying to keep her muzzle still. “I help a lot of animals, you know. Sometimes they are hurt really bad.” She winced at the very thought, memories of injured animals creeping unbidden into her mind. It did wonders to further blunt her mood.
“Ah suppose that makes sense,” Applejack agreed, finishing up with an appreciative grunt. “Right, do you wanna go eat now? Because Ah’m starving.”
Fluttershy was so surprised she forgot to hide or even look away. She stared openly at Applejack as her friend tossed the bloody rag onto the counter. “You’re... not leaving?”
It took a while before Applejack replied. The orange mare rubbed her face with a hoof and sat down with much deliberation, looking thoroughly exasperated. Fluttershy cringed and drew back, unsure of what she had done to annoy Applejack, wishing she could take back anything and everything she had said.
“Fluttershy, you know Ah ain’t going nowhere. Have any of us ever left you alone when you needed us? Tell me once when we’ve abandoned you, sugar,” she said with a weary smile.
Fluttershy couldn’t, of course. Her friends were always there for her. Applejack was right, and she knew it, but that wasn’t at all what she had meant.
“Um, you’re right, of course, I mean, my friends have always been there for me,” she replied with emphasis on that one word. She wasn’t afraid of losing her friend Applejack. It was another Applejack entirely she feared she had already lost, even though she never really had her.
Applejack cocked her head as she thought. Fluttershy fidgeted with her mane, extricating a few small twigs for lack of anything better to do, and to distract herself from the way Applejack was looking at her. She hated it. She wished she knew what to say to make Applejack happy again, but she had no idea words those would be.
“Fluttershy? Try to, Ah dunno, ease up a little, okay? Ah ain’t much for these kinds of talks, but you’re bein’ sillier than Pinkie Pie after she’s had a tray of muffins. Stop obsessing about the whole date thing for a bit, and let’s just go have us a nice picnic out in the meadow, outside, okay?” Applejack said, smiling. “Ah reckon you’re not much up for a long walk anyway, and it’s right proper nice outside.”
Fluttershy felt a series of little stabs in the back of her neck like somepony had used her as a pincushion. Bitter disappointment. So it was over, then. She gave a little nod at that, not wanting to seem impolite. “Food sounds lovely,” she admitted. In fact, she was famished, having skipped breakfast. Her stomach rumbled loudly in agreement, causing her to blush sheepishly.
“Well then. If you’re sure you’re okay, Ah say we go eat,” Applejack announced, regaining some of her vigor. She didn’t wait for a reply, walking off towards the living room, the front door, and the large picnic basket she’d left there.
Fluttershy tried not to let her head or her tail droop. She obediently followed as Applejack grasped the basket in her mouth, setting off out through the door and through the tall summer grass. She tried telling herself that it was over - no more date, just a picnic. Even so, though her head still hurt and her snout was tender, she realized then and there that she would have followed Applejack to the ends of Equestria.
Well. That would be terribly sad for the birds and the bunnies, but she’d read that phrase in a book, once. Applejack did not seem like she intended to go quite that far anyway. She’d put down the picnic basket in an area where the grass only barely reached their knees.
The spot Applejack had picked was a flat grassy area near the Everfree Forest, yet still well within sight of her cottage. What little wind there was made the entire expanse of green and yellow grass sway ever so slightly, making it look like an oddly colored river. Lunch with Applejack was becoming a better and better prospect by the minute.
With a single flap of her wings which pained her more than she cared to admit, Fluttershy sailed over to alight on the other side of the basket. Without hesitation, she reached out with a forehoof to help with the picnic blanket. Applejack was evidently having some problems unfolding it on her own.
“Ah can manage,” Applejack said, even as she gave an end to Fluttershy, one brow raised. “My treat and all, you know?”
“Oh, but it wouldn’t be right at all,” Fluttershy retorted. “If you made the food, this is the least I can do.” Indeed, she felt a little bad that Applejack had gone through so much trouble just for her sake. The farmpony smiled warmly in return.
“It ain’t much,” Applejack chuckled. “Ah think the fritters might not be as warm anymore, and the pie’s a bit light on the cinnamon on account of needing to cut some corners on the farm. Budgeting around losing the little crops, corn and all.”
Fluttershy fished out a bottle of apple juice from the basket, passing the small container along to Applejack along with a slightly bigger frown. “Oh my, is it really that bad? Rainbow Dash really can’t fix it?
Applejack snorted and dipped her head into the basket, surfacing with a pie balanced on her head. “No, it probably ain’t that bad, whatever that means, but the new crops were outta the fancy stuff budget. So we gotta run it a little tighter if we’re gonna bank the usual amount.”
“Um, ‘fancy stuff budget’?” Fluttershy repeated, helping the pie off of Applejack’s head, safely setting it down between them.
“Yeah,” Applejack said, as if it were obvious. “It’s basic economics. You got your fancy stuff budget, and then you got your normal stuff budget, right? Ah do the book-keeping this year, and Ah’ll be darned if we’re gonna let the barn go another year without fixing just ‘cause Rainbow Dash is a chicken.”
Even though she was well used to her friends’ competitive spats, the comment hurt a little. The quarrels always did. She made an inquisitive noise as she seized the basket from Applejack, taking care of the final touches. Two plates, a pair of fritters and a small flagon of sauce. Luckily, Applejack didn’t seem to be truly annoyed. She sat down on her rump and snorted as Fluttershy served them, grinning at herself.
“Don’t you listen to me. All there’s to it is that she’s afraid to go get clouds from the Everfree. Well, she didn’t say afraid, just some magical mumbo-jumbo about needing clouds to get clouds. It doesn’t matter. Just ‘cause Ah would risk my flank for Sweet Apple Acres doesn’t mean she should, Ah guess,” she said with a shrug. “Now you’ll excuse me if Ah just dig in. Might be it ain’t much of a feast, but Ah’m starving.”
“Oh, not at all,” Fluttershy protested. She leaned down to take a bite out of the apple fritter just as Applejack did the same, taking care not to make a mess. After tasting the treat, she didn’t even have to sugar-coat her words to make them all nice. “This is really good. Better than anything I could ever make. I mean, I’m not much of a cook, but...”
Fluttershy’s eyes fell to rest on her own forehooves. It was true. She was hardly much of a cook, but the worst part of it was that she couldn’t imagine going back to eating her dinner salad all alone after sharing such a cozy meal with Applejack.
When she got no response, she glanced up to find Applejack grinning at her. Just like that, the gloom was dispelled, and the sadness failed to find any purchase in her mind. She’d made Applejack smile.
Two corkscrews next, wings closed- make it three, four, five. No. Change of plans. Dash lost count of how many times she spun as her momentum shifted, taking her from a horizontal glide to a plummet. Even with her eyes closed, she was in full control. She could feel the right moment approaching. It was an almost tangible thing in and by itself, that critical point at which she had to pull up unless she wanted to become a pony pancake. Years of training made sight obsolete.
The moment came and went. She waited another quarter-second this time before she spread her wings and opened her eyes again, pulling out of the dive. Her hooves created furrows in the grass as she soared along the ground, passing right by her audience.
“Go Dashie! That was super neat!” Pinkie Pie yelled, hoof-pumping and cheering. She’d acquired a pair of bright pink pom-poms at some point and was waving them around with more enthusiasm than skill.
The windmill up ahead spoke to Dash. The imposing stone structure practically begged to be incorporated in today’s maneuvers. She flapped her wings hard, rocketing towards the building with a huge grin on her face.
Rolling over, she set herself spinning as she began circling the windmill. Equestria below became a blur as she twirled, working to try to keep her turns around the white stone building tight. Knowing how awesome it must look was ample motivation for her to give it her all, but she knew she could take it further still.
Spreading her wings wide to stabilize herself, she set about looping around each of the arms of the windmill in rapid succession, each time closer to the center, still trying to accelerate, ever going faster. Faster. Her eyes started to water and she could feel her muscles straining as they worked to keep up with the frantic twists and turns.
She could hear Pinkie Pie cheering even over the rush of the air. Pinkie was cool. One of Dash’s best gal-pals. Of course she had wanted to come see Dash when she was training. Who wouldn’t? They just needed to be reminded of it, sometimes. She couldn’t expect everypony to remember she trained out here.
Fluttershy knew, though. Fluttershy used to come watch almost every day, but apparently she’d found better friends since. Sure, she wasn’t as much fun as Pinkie, but having Fluttershy sit there and watch her was nice in a different way. It was their thing.
Not that she needed her, she thought with a snort. Rainbow Dash didn’t need anyp-
The world spun and the ground was suddenly rushing up to meet her. Rainbow Dash was spinning far too fast to have any hope of regaining control. Within seconds, she went down in a heap with a yell, cratering in a patch of tall grass.
The fallen pegasus lay as still as she could while she tested her limbs one by one, confirming she was unhurt. Dash was just starting on her hindlegs when Pinkie Pie’s face broke through the brush.
“I really liked the bit at the end when you were all whoooosh and then eep, no way! and suddenly, bam!” Pinkie Pie whooped, miming Dash’s finale with embarrassing accuracy, landing the party pony flat on the ground next to her.
“Uhhuh,” Dash said as she completed her all-too-familiar post-crash check routine. Wings? Functional. Legs? Four out of four. Hooves? Not a chip. Body? No pain, and breathing didn’t hurt. Head? Fine. One of her best friends forgetting about her and hanging out with Applejack instead? Check.
Apparently, Dash was very easily replaceable. She could of course just let Fluttershy and Applejack be best friends all they wanted. She could make new friends easily, even though the whole elements of harmony thing was kinda cool. It would just be terribly unloyalful.
If she asked Twilight, she’d probably say something boring that would never work. The master of eggheads would burrow her snout in a book and suggest she talk to them about it or whatever. No, what Rainbow Dash needed was for somepony to understand, and right now, she did have a somepony with her.
Pinkie Pie had gotten up and was standing almost unnaturally still, staring at her with unblinking eyes. “What?” Rainbow Dash asked. “You’re kinda freaking me out here.”
“Oh nothing, you just looked like you were having a monologue. I was waiting for you to finish!” Pinkie chirped.
“Right,” Rainbow Dash said. “Hey, wanna head over to see what Fluttershy is doing? I bet she’s doing something really cool. Like, right now!”
“Oooh, really?” Pinkie bubbled. “I usually prefer fun stuff, but cool stuff is cool, so that’s cool!” she giggled. “Let’s go have some fun! Or, coolness. It really is hot today.”
Dash nodded, latching on to the only thing that made even a little sense; it really was too hot. Rivulets of sweat were running down her face. The only reason she had even bothered with practice today was because she was frustrated with the whole situation. If she flew fast enough, she could outpace the frustration for a little while. Twilight had laughed at the idea when she had told her, once, but what the hay did a unicorn know about flight anyway?
She joined Pinkie Pie on the ground, trotting alongside her friend at an easy pace as they set course for Fluttershy’s cottage. Pinkie was more than happy to fill the journey with a long speech about her plans for a huge slingshot or some such. The words passed straight through Dash. Poems about supersonic muffins only briefly halted between her ears, confirming they weren’t relevant to her mood before sailing out the other side.
“Do you need a hug?” Pinkie suddenly asked.
Rainbow Dash only really heard the question because Pinkie had been oddly - and blessedly - quiet for the last few minutes as they finally approached Fluttershy’s cottage.
“I don’t need a hug,” Dash immediately replied, adding a snort for good measure as she upped the pace. The place was as noisy and crowded as ever, and the roof was swarming with birds. Dash spread her wings just as a matter of course. With so many flying critters about, it didn’t hurt to show them who’s boss.
“You look like you could use a hug,” Pinkie suggested, frowning with grave suspicion.
“Well, that’s really weird, Pinkie, because I don’t need a hug,” the pegasus protested as she knocked on the door. The door, in turn, slid open as she touched it. It had obviously not been shut properly.
“Uhhuh,” came the reply, flat and unconvinced. “Except, you could be lying, and lying is terrible, it makes- ooh sunflower seeds!” Pinkie abandoned her scrutinous glare in favor of darting in through the open door and setting upon the seeds that covered much of the floor like a vengeful pink chicken.
“Best surprise ever! I love sunflower seeds!” Pinkie declared amidst pecks, hitting the little treats with unerring accuracy.
“The Nightmare Night thing was just a costume, right?” Dash asked with a half-smile, looking about the room. It was quite a mess, or would be considered messy by Fluttershy’s standards, at least. The pegasus was nowhere in sight.
“Actually, you know, let’s go to Applejack’s place instead,” Rainbow Dash suggested, turning around. She knew they’d be together. In fact, that was what she was counting on. If they weren’t here, then they would be over at the apple farm. Pinkie would see.
“Huh? Why?”
Pinkie’s question was no real surprise. Dash had been lucky to avoid any real questions so far, happy to see that the party pony was as bouncy and blissfully ignorant as she could be. She didn’t want to have to explain that Applejack and Fluttershy were meeting behind their backs and ignoring the rest of them. She wanted Pinkie to see for herself.
“Well, heh. I mean, since we can’t find Fluttershy, and we’re nearby-” she began, taking the two of them down the path leading away from the cottage.
“Not that, silly! If we’re looking for Applejack or Fluttershy, why don’t we just head over there?” Pinkie Pie giggled as she caught up, pointing towards the tall grass nearby. When she looked closely, Dash noticed that somepony must have passed through there recently, judging by the flattened grass.
“How in the hay did you...” Dash asked, leaving the half-formed question hanging.
“Well, duh,” Pinkie rolled her eyes and then tapped her snout. “I smell apple pie! And apple pie is for picnics. Where there are apples, there’s Applejack!”
“I eat apple pie for dinner sometimes,” Dash muttered in protest. She was rapidly acquiring a dislike for that one particular fruit, though. Apples were apparently deceitful. Apples ruined friendships for everypony.
A quick hop and a hover confirmed that two ponies were indeed sitting on the far side of the meadow. Her quarry spotted, Rainbow Dash landed again to gallop through the grass as fast as she could, Pinkie right on her tail.
“Made by myself, matter of fact. I reckon you really mean it when you say you like it, huh,” Applejack said, and it really wasn’t a question. This was really quite cozy. She couldn’t tell why Fluttershy insisted on being so formal about this whole deal, though. This was so much nicer.
Well, she had been trying to make it all fancy-like, at any rate. Applejack couldn’t help but grin inwardly at the scene that had met her when she arrived. She’d waited outside the door for so long she had begun to suspect Fluttershy might’ve gotten cold hooves. The familiar doubts had begun seeping back into her mind. She had kept thinking this was a bad idea all through yesterday and up until now.
Watching Fluttershy gratefully dig into the food she’d made, those doubts seemed very distant. Insignificant, even, like stubbing your hoof at your birthday party. There was a simple joy to be had in watching somepony enjoy your cooking and your company. Sure, she got some silly notions into her head at times, but how anypony could ever be mad at Fluttershy for anything was a mystery to Applejack.
“Um, did I say something wrong?” Fluttershy asked, looking up at her. The poor pegasus had frozen in the middle of reaching for the sauce, apparently worried about the sudden silence.
Why Fluttershy was so timid when she was one of the strongest ponies Applejack knew, that was another such mystery. She smiled at her friend and shook her head. “Not a thing, sugarcube. Ah was just thinking.”
“Oh. Okay,” Fluttershy said, nodding in understanding before adding, much more quietly. “This is very nice. Thank you, Applejack.”
“And that there was what Ah was thinking just now, matter of fact,” the farmpony chuckled in response. She was instantly rewarded with a smile from Fluttershy. Seeing her like this, calm and untroubled, filled Applejack with a sense of peace that reminded her of a the soft afterglow of an applebuck season come and went.
“Really?” came the reply from the demure yellow pony. Her face half obscured by her mane. Her smile was well reflected in the one eye Applejack could see. “You’re having a good time, too?”
“Ah ain’t tired of apples just yet,” Applejack grinned. “Besides, Ah get far too caught up in farmwork sometimes. Not there’s anything wrong with keeping busy with honest work. Ah ain’t got no regrets. Just saying, well, maybe Ah needed this too. Time off.”
Without much more to say on the subject, Applejack got up and set about cleaning up the leftovers. Fluttershy looked like she was about to rise and help, but Applejack shook her head, relishing the simple task. When everything was back in the basket, she briefly paused, realizing she didn’t feel like leaving just yet. She let the picnic mat alone for the moment, lying down again a little closer to Fluttershy this time. The yellow pony seemed content.
“You ever been out on a date before, then?” Applejack asked on impulse. The curiosity was genuine; she knew very little of Fluttershy’s past, truth be told.
Fluttershy tensed up at the question and blushed furiously. “Um, sort of, almost, maybe? I... don’t really know. Sorry.”
“Whoa, easy there, sugarcube. You don’t have to answer,” Applejack said. Despite herself, she had to know, now. It couldn’t hurt to give the apple tree one more gentle buck. “Uh, but if you don’t mind me asking, how in the hay can you not know?”
Fluttershy awkwardly scratched a forehoof with the other and looked away. “Um, because it was only really one date. Rainbow Dash heard about a colt who sort of liked me, maybe, a little. Back in the last year of flight school, I mean-”
“Hold on, Ah thought Rainbow Dash dropped out?” Applejack interrupted. Fluttershy looked twice as uncomfortable now, but she didn’t run or hide. That had to count for something. Applejack put a reassuring hoof on Fluttershy’s withers.
“She did, um, quit, sort of, but she still stayed in Cloudsdale, and she helped me get through the classes,” Fluttershy muttered. Her eyes were misting over, but she was smiling, and it was all Applejack could do to sit still and let her speak.
“Rainbow Dash has helped me a lot. But um, I guess this wasn’t one of those times,” Fluttershy admitted. “When she heard this colt had a crush on me, she set us up for a date. She was, um... very enthusiastic about it. About me ‘getting out’.”
“It didn’t really work out,” she continued, her ears going flat as her snout pointed to the ground. “Talking was really hard, but I think that was the best part, because he didn’t really listen anyway. Um, and he- he sort of, uh,” the butter-colored mare struggled with words, sinking down on the ground.
“Take your time sugar. Ah ain’t going anywhere,” Applejack murmured, leaning closer to the other mare. She was a little surprised when Fluttershy leaned back on her, but she neither minded nor offered comment on it.
“He said some things,” Fluttershy said, exhaling slowly. “Things I didn’t like. I didn’t really want to see him any more after that. That was really easy, because, um, he left.”
Applejack rolled her neck and worked her jaw trying to dissipate the sudden surge of anger that went through her. She wanted to ask what he had said or done, but resolved not to press the issue if it made Fluttershy uncomfortable.
“Just up and left?” she asked, instead.
“No. Or, yes. That is, Rainbow Dash told him to go away,” Fluttershy sighed, collecting herself. “She’s always looking out for me. I just hope he’s okay. I- I mean, I’m sure he is. Don’t you think?” The pegasus looked almost desperate.
“Sugar, sometimes ponies do stupid stuff and just need a buck to the head, no way around it.” Applejack snorted.
“I don’t think anypony deserves getting bucked in the head,” Fluttershy quietly remarked.
“It’s a figure of speech, sort of. That’s what you call ’em, right?”
“Oh but it really wasn’t. Not for him.”
“Aha,” Applejack said. She had to turn away to hide her brief grin. Unlike Fluttershy, she had no problems enjoying the thought of Rainbow Dash roughing up a rude suitor who deserved it. It was a ridiculous thought of course. Without any idea what had actually happened or been said, there was no telling if had been justified. It just didn’t matter compared to the fact that he’d been sent packing. She had no idea what to think of that.
“Um, so, what about you? If you don’t mind me asking, I mean. You don’t have to answer,” Fluttershy said after clearing her throat. It wasn’t very subtle as far as topic changes went.
“Nah,” Applejack said with a shrug. “Never came up much. Ah think Caramel was sweet on me for a while some years back. At least, Big Mac thought so. Ah told him what a bunch of hooey that was and sent Caramel to work on the other side of the farm next harvest.”
“Not your, um, type?” Fluttershy asked, the last word spoken with some trepidation.
“Sure? Maybe?” Applejack laughed. “Like Ah told you, ain’t put much thought into it. Wanna share the last bottle of apple juice? Ah brought an extra.”
Fluttershy nodded and smiled. “I would love to.”
A comfortable sort of silence settled over the two ponies as they sat together, sharing small sips of luke-warm apple juice. It was really quite unlike anything else Applejack had ever experienced, simple as though it was. At the dinner table back at the farm, there was always something be to be said, and if there wasn’t, Applebloom would not let silence reign for long. Even with her other friends, there was always the expectancy of a topic in the air unless they were particularly tired or some such.
Silence, to Applejack, was a thing tied to solitude. It belonged to the moments when she sat in the shadow of an apple tree relishing a job well done. Silence was a rare and almost curious thing that visited her when she wanted to reflect on the day that lay behind her. Or better yet, it descended upon her as the only company she had when she didn’t want to think.
Yet here she sat with Fluttershy, feeling utterly at ease. The silence did not so much hang between the two ponies as it casually reclined on the white-and-red checkered picnic mat, sharing the bottle of apple juice with them. It felt almost unkind to ruin it, but the sun was almost halfway across the horizon now. Applejack reached up with a foreleg to rub her eyes.
“Ah think Ah best start moving soon if Ah’m gonna help with dinner,” Applejack said, her voice sounding all too loud even to her own ears. Fluttershy stirred. Apparently she’d fallen asleep leaning on Applejack. How had she not noticed?
“Hm? Sorry, I think I, um, closed my eyes,” Fluttershy mumbled, blinking to try to clear her eyes. Her mane was a mess, or would be considered thus by Rarity’s standards, and the sleepy pegasus had a little bit of apple pie on her cheek. Applejack couldn’t bring herself to point that out.
Nor could she make herself repeat her own words. “Ah was saying nothing, sugarcube. Nothing at all. Go back to sleep,” Applejack murmured. She could give it another half-hour. The heat was a little less oppressive now, and the wind had picked up ever so slightly. Big Mac was always complaining that she never took any time off anyways. She could cash in on that now and watch the sea of greens, yellows, and pink.
The pink was new. Or rather, it was unexpected. Applejack’s spotted not one, but two ponies making their way through the grass towards her and Fluttershy. Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash were galloping - and bouncing - full tilt. Applejack gently nudged Fluttershy awake again.
“Sugar? Pinkie and Rainbow Dash are, uh, coming to visit,” Applejack said, a little uncertain of what was going on. Two of the group of friends approaching another pair? Usually nothing was weird about that, but today, it was kind of different.
She still remembered her confusing little spat with Rainbow Dash yesterday. Applejack’s mood plummeted as the newcomers drew nearer and she spotted the cyan mare’s face. She had that all-too-familiar sneer that meant impending conflict. Somehow Applejack doubted she was about to be challenged to a hoof-wrassle.
“Hi guys!” Pinkie chirped as the new arrivals stopped just short of the edge of the blanket. “What’s up?”
“Oh, hi Pinkie Pie, hi Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy said, covering her mouth as she yawned. “It’s nice to see you.”
“Howdy,” Applejack said, nodding.
“So this is where you’re hiding, huh?” Rainbow Dash said with a huff. Fluttershy’s lazy smile slowly vanished at her tone, and Applejack sighed inwardly. More of this, whatever it was.
“I- um, I’m sorry?” Fluttershy said.
Rainbow Dash ignored her, rounding on Applejack. The farm mare had expected as much, and had to work hard to remain lying on the ground. She would not rise to the bait, literally or otherwise. Rainbow Dash got under her skin all too easily, but she would not let that happen today.
“Oh, like I don’t see what’s happening,” Dash said, rolling her eyes. “Sneaking off just to hang with Fluttershy like this, all alone? Do you think you own her? Well, newsflash, she doesn’t belong to anypony.” Her voice had risen steadily, cracking a little on that final word.
It was no use. Applejack slowly rose up on all fours and leaned closer to Rainbow Dash’s face whilst narrowing her eyes. “Acourse not, and Ah fail to see how that’s your dang business, then,” she retorted.
Whatever anger Dash had been building was gone in an instant. The pegasus dismissed her by suddenly turning around to face the perplexed pink pony she had brought along.
“See what I mean?” Dash implored. “Have you seen Fluttershy lately? No? I didn’t think so! This is totally why! It’s just Applesnack and Fluttershy now! Just the two of them!” she implored, ignoring the fact that Pinkie nodded an affirmative to her second question.
“Uh-huh,” Pinkie replied, breaking into a broad grin as she bounced on the spot. “And I think it’s great!”
Rainbow Dash stared, jaw hanging open and eyes wide, frozen for a moment.
“Um, Rainbow Dash?” Fluttershy said, trying to catch Dash’s attention, but to no avail.
“You’re taking their side? Wait, let me guess, you’re hanging out with them, too? This is all just a huge prank, huh? A joke? Let’s make fun of the Dash?” Rainbow asked, incredulous. “Well it’s not funny!”
“No Dashie, you silly-” Pinkie began to say, smiling as brightly as ever, but she was cut off when Dash jammed a forehoof in the party pony’s mouth and snarled.
“Just don’t. Not. Cool,” she said. She launched herself skywards without a backwards glance, disappearing in the slowly darkening afternoon sky. Three stunned ponies watched her go until it was impossible to make out her shape against the blue backdrop above.
Applejack’s first instinct was to check on Fluttershy. The yellow pony had not moved an inch, and was still staring off in the direction Dash had disappeared off to, face blank. Anger warred with confusion in Applejack’s head, neither emotion giving any ground.
“Huh, I think she really did lie to me,” Pinkie Pie said, rubbing her chin with a hoof. “She does totally need a hug, but if she doesn’t want it, you can have it! No sense in letting hugs go to waste,” she declared, bouncing over to throw her forelegs around Fluttershy and Applejack both.
“You don’t know what that was about, either?” Applejack asked, awkwardly patting Pinkie on the back with a hoof. Hugs were, in fact, the last thing on her mind now.
“Nopey-dopey!” Pinkie shrugged. “She’s been a mopey-pony all day, but don’t let that ruin your date. You guys are really cute together!”
To her surprise, Applejack felt her face heat up a little. She was utterly unable and unwilling to keep from smiling.
“That obvious, huh? Well-” she started to say.
“Oh, we’re not really-” Fluttershy said at the exact same time.
Applejack looked at Fluttershy, and the pegasus looked straight back. It was easy to imagine her own face was a perfect mirror of Fluttershy’s confused expression, and for a few long seconds, neither of them spoke.
“OooooOOoo,” Pinkie voiced, her mouth forming a perfect circle as she leaned closer. Applejack extended a hoof to gently push her away.
“D’you think maybe we could have a little bit of privacy? Don’t you have, uh, some, muffins to bake or something? This sure is a great day to be baking muffins, ain’t it?” Applejack asked in her best salesmare voice.
“Oh no, that’s okay!” Pinkie chirped, sitting down in the middle of the now-dishevelled picnic blanket. “I took the day off to hang with Rainbow Dash. I got all evening free to watch you two lovebirds!”
“Um, I thought this wasn’t a date,” Fluttershy quietly remarked.
“Pinkie.” Applejack sighed.
“Aw fine,” Pinkie Pie said with a pout. The party pony hopped over to bump snouts with Fluttershy. “You two fillies play nice! I’m gonna go bake sunflower cupcakes for Dashie to cheer her up! Nopony can stay frowny in the face of sunflower cupcakes.”
Applejack tapped a hoof on the ground and patiently waited as the energetic pink mare disappeared in the general direction of Ponyville. She turned to sit facing Fluttershy the very second she thought Pinkie was out of earshot. Fluttershy would not meet her eyes.
“Okay, sugar. Shoot. How’s this not a date?” Applejack asked, simply.
“Um, you said it wasn’t, I’m sorry, I guess I must have misunderstood. Sorry,” Fluttershy whispered, peering at her hooves. Her ears were flat back against her head and her wings tight against her body.
Closing her eyes and thinking back, Applejack couldn’t for the life of her remember the exact words she had used earlier, but she remembered the sentiment she’d tried to get across. A lot of things suddenly made sense, now.
“Fluttershy, Ah was saying that Ah thought you were fussing too much about this being a date, that’s all. Ah don’t need no fancy saddles or dresses, consarn it. It’s about you and me, ain’t it?” she explained, but if anything, the pegasus mare looked even more dejected.
“I’m a mess,” Fluttershy muttered, resting her head on her forehooves. “I look horrible, and then I fell asleep, being all boring and uninteresting.”
Applejack snorted and nudged Fluttershy. “You look just fine, and Ah’ve had a real good time, sugarcube.”
“Until Rainbow Dash came by,” Fluttershy said, inconsolable. “She knows and she hates me. Or maybe she just thinks I’m a bad friend for not having time for her. She’s right, you know.”
“Oh that’s a load of horseapples,” Applejack retorted, getting up. “She was angry with me, not you, and Ah don’t know if it’s because she ‘knows’ and don’t like it, or if she just got some other foolish notion into that feather-brain of hers. Ah don’t care which. Ah won’t stand for it either way, and Ah certainly won’t let it come down and hurt you.”
Applejack was very aware that somewhere deep inside of her there burned a bright flame, a desire to protect those she loved and called kin or friend. She was surprised at how intensely she burned for Fluttershy right now, even if she knew it was ridiculous - Dash would never truly want to hurt either of them. It wasn’t in her nature, and she was a friend, too.
What she had expected, however, was some reaction to her words. Perhaps appreciation, or at least acknowledgement? Instead, Fluttershy’s mood only seemed to darken further.
“No. You’re right. It’s not about me. She didn’t say a single word to me,” Fluttershy quietly commented, once more training her eyes on the horizon, towards Ponyville.
“No, she-” Applejack started, but whatever she intended to say evaporated before she could give it voice. Rainbow Dash had ignored Fluttershy, and she reckoned that must feel terrible. The yellow mare was notoriously quiet and soft-spoken, but acting like she wasn’t there at all was just downright disrespectful, even if she’d never complain about it.
Applejack doubted Fluttershy thought about it in the same way. Most likely, she was worrying about Rainbow Dash right now, and any possible slight passed right through the empathic and kind mare. Whether or not Fluttershy chose to take offense was simply utterly irrelevant to Applejack. She’d wronged her.
“Sugar, why don’t you pick the spot for our next date?” Applejack said.
“Next... date?” Fluttershy repeated, slowly, finally looking back up at Applejack. It looked like she wanted to smile so very badly, but she didn’t quite dare. The farmpony felt a stab of pain at how surprised she sounded, but it was eclipsed by the sheer relief of meeting her eyes. It was a little frightening how good it felt to see those shimmering pools of blue again.
“Ah meant it when Ah said Ah had a good time, so yeah, sure,” Applejack said with a shrug. She hoped the gesture was as nonchalant as it looked in her mind. “That gonna be a problem? If you don’t want-”
“No! I mean yes! Um, please. Oh my goodness, if- if you still want to, I-” Fluttershy stammered, awkwardly furling her wings after they’d flared. “Y-you want me to pick the place?”
Applejack nodded. “You call the shots, sugar. Name the place, name the time and tell me if Ah should dress fancy. Oh, and you’re paying.” She grinned at that last bit, and was happy to see that Fluttershy seemed to liven up a little at this, too.
“You don’t have to, I mean, I’m sure we can find someplace we both want to go,” Fluttershy suggested.
“No way, no how, sugar. You’re in the saddle now, no turning back!” Applejack concluded, walking over to one of the edges of the picnic blanket. “Now help me get this wrapped up neat, will you?”
Fluttershy obliged without a word, and it took the two of them mere minutes to tidy up the site of their little picnic. Soon enough, the pair left behind the growing shadow of the nearby Everfree forest, the basket safely balanced on Applejack’s back. All seemed well in the farmpony’s world, for once. Well, if they could figure out what the hay was going on with Rainbow Dash.
“Thank you.”
Applejack wasn’t quite sure Fluttershy had spoken at all, or if she’d imagined it. She stole a glance back at the other mare who was following her through the rustling grass. “Uh, beg pardon?”
“Um, I mean, for letting me take you out. It’s probably the nicest thing anypony has ever done for me,” Fluttershy explained, her cheeks tinged with red.
It was harder than Applejack thought, finding an answer or a comeback to that. Part of her wanted to say “no problem”, but it felt wrong. Insufficient. Another part of her wanted to chastise Fluttershy for suggesting that she was doing her a favor. It was frightening, and perhaps a little bit exhilarating - realizing she had no idea what she was feeling. The farmpony simply smiled back at her friend.