Rainbow Dash flew down to the Apple Orchard from her house in the sky above Ponyville. There was nothing in particular about today other than that it simply felt right. Down to the core, she had been feeling warm (especially in her face) whenever she got close to AJ, and the fact she was leaving three months simply revived her spirit towards spending as much time together as possible.
She checked inside the barn, but nopony seemed to be home. Must be out working the fields, she thought to herself. She soon took flight once again.
The gradient of yellow, red, and blue shone brightly as Celestia was hard at work. Rainbow Dash yet again set the schedule for a dry streak of days, so the air was crisp in the fall atmosphere. She had turned sick for a time, and this wasn't helping her get over it. She sniffled, took a second to sneeze and lowered her altitude, but then kept on flying.
Applejack had seen this, but only barely. She did want to get Rainbow's attention, but wasn't quite sure how. She put down the baskets that had been slung across her back, and started to climb one of the trees, preparing herself to wave.
From behind, she thought she heard a noise. Meh, prob'ly one o' those pesky fruit bats, she muttered. She started to raise her hoof, letting go of the branch.
"BOO!" came a shout from the trunk of the tree she had climbed. AJ lost her balance, toppling over in the tree. Rainbow was quick, but she hesitated at first, letting a second slip by before launching into action. However, by that time, AJ's face had met the soil, and Rainbow Dash stood next to her, slightly afraid to help her up because of what she had done.
"Umm... s-sorry about that...," she stuttered. AJ looked up, her hat now lay on the ground beside her. Her face was accompanied by an annoyed face that had seen better days.
Applejack wanted to be mad, but simply couldn't. It took a lot to get her upset, and this shouldn't be something that she could go off about. She sighed, the breath coming out like nails in a toolbox. "Rainbow Dash," she began, her voice hoarse from the cold, "you could've just said somethin' and at least let me see you coming." She scolded Rainbow, but not any more than she needed to.
She picked up her hat off of the ground, taking Rainbow's hoof. However, Rainbow didn't let it go quite yet. Applejack smiled as she got yanked towards Rainbow. Soon, they were both rolling on the ground, laughing, just happy to be in each others' company. The sun setting before them, it couldn't have been a better moment.
However, the day was done and over, AJ declared it was time to go. She reached for her head, and Rainbow cocked hers. AJ reached inside the hat, as if expecting something. When nothing came out, her face showed it. Soon, she was scouring the ground, looking for whatever was supposed to be inside of the hat.
Eventually, Rainbow's curiosity took over. "What could you be so worried about?" she asked, taking a look around her immediate vicinity. "What was in your hat?"
AJ looked up, irritated and not wanting to answer but instead keep looking. "There was a map o' the Orchard. Not sure where it is now. Now how am I supposed to get home?"
"Duh! I'm a pegasus, remember?" Rainbow retorted. She prepared for takeoff, scrunching into a spring-like stance, her back arched out and her head pointing upwards. However, through the dim light, she didn't realize there was a tree directly above her. Her wing caught a branch, bending it in areas it shouldn't. It was like a rocket that didn't have the correct momentum.
"Ugh," Rainbow grunted as she got up. That's karma for ya, she thought. A faceplant for a faceplant. Beautiful.
"Welp, now that your shenanigans are over with, how about you help me find a way back to the farm?"
After walking for a mile under the moon and stars, there seemed to be a calm, quiet presence over the rolling hills that were Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack had never been out after Celestia lowered the sun, so it really was a revealing experience. The stars glimmered above them, casting down their simple light as Luna's moon hung in a crescent. Applejack didn't realize how long she had been staring up at them until her neck started to cramp slightly.
As she rubbed her back and neck muscles, Rainbow was in La-La Land. Chronic pain emanated from the place where her wing got caught on the branch, so she tried her best to keep her mind off of it. She thought about the Wonderbolts, then back to her wings. It was like a never ending knife, an every time you thought you had escaped, it got you again. She thought about the apples, to the vampire bats the Fluttershy had saved, how they could fly, and back to her wings.
"Agh!" she grunted as she nearly toppled over.
Applejack stopped for a second and almost caught her before Rainbow pulled herself upright. "You alright, sugarcube?"
"Just dandy," she retorted as she dragged her hoofs as she walked. "Ugh, can we please run so we can get this over with faster?"
"Well, what happens when we miss the farm and run past it?" Applejack questioned.
"You said yourself that since the moon rose in the east, and that you had headed westward when you began, it means the farm was east!" She stamped her hoof on the ground for emphasis.
Oh how Applejack wanted to yell, but she knew not to do that when you could be near a forest in which unknown creatures lie. Instead, she went with the calm approach. She sighed a replied calmly, "You're right, but you never know if east is the exact way we came from."
Rainbow glared at Applejack, but she took no offense. She knew Rainbow too well, and that it would all just blow over soon enough. For the moment, the trek continued.
Conversation was limited, and that alone dragged out the journey. Rainbow Dash was starting to yawn, but other than that no signs of fatigue showed. Instead, she felt somewhat relieved and calm, even with what transpired in the hour prior.
She even felt a tingle of warmth every time Applejack rubbed up against her. It was telling her "come with us, we'll give you everything," but she had to resist.This strange attraction yet again let the night s-l-o-w-l-y go by.
After a few more minutes, Rainbow finally cracked. "That's it! I'm running on ahead until I get to the farm." She was off before Applejack could even react.
When she did realize what had happened, her flurry of thuds joined in with Rainbow's. When she finally caught up to her, Applejack simply tackled her, sending them sprawling.
Quickly, Applejack was on top of Rainbow, pinning her down. "Rainbow Dash!" she exclaimed. "You can't let anger get the best of you!"
"What? So now you're accusing me? What if I'm tired? What if I need to get home to feed -" Rainbow was cutoff by Applejack, her lips pressed against Rainbow's. This time, Rainbow felt the shock of getting stopped in the name of love.
Even Applejack was surprised by her actions. She took a step back, unsure of what to say. Rainbow got up, but simply started walking again. After she was sure Applejack couldn't see her face, she beamed like a sailor that saw a lighthouse for the first time in years.
They were so distracted, they weren't looking to their right where a red barn stood off in the distance.
Applejack and Rainbow eventually started up some conversation, though slightly awkward at first. "So..." Rainbow began, "how has the farm been?"
Applejack smiled. "Rainbow, you're with me almost every day as it is. How wouldn' you know how the farm is?"
"Ughh! I can't take the silence!" She threw her head back, trying to give slightly more emphasis.
Applejack couldn't help but chuckle. "What's so funny?" Rainbow asked, getting closer to her face. Applejack broke down laughing, not even paying attention to the agitated Rainbow Dash. Eventually, Rainbow joined in as well. They didn't care. It was fun to be around each other, just comfortable to be together. They were good friends, maybe even something more...
Once they had stopped laughing, they lay on the grass. Applejack's eyes once again drifted to the stars above. "It's just... wow!" She tried to describe what she saw, but being away from the population and all, the scenery took her breath away. "Luna sure is some sort o' artist. If she can make somthin' as beautiful as this, she'd be noticed somethin' more."
Rainbow Dash now was emulating Applejack, hooves behind her head to prop it up, mane brushed out of her face, and eyes glazed for staring long enough. "My mother loved them," Rainbow Dash said, breaking the ice. "She would always point out different constellations and that stuff. It seemed really egghead-ish to me, but it was pretty cool. I remember one of them, I think it was called 'Drago'." She quickly scanned the stars. "Oh! There it is! You see that line of stars that kind of look like a snake?" Applejack gave a quick nod. "Well it really represents a serpent, one that lived a long time ago."
I cannot believe she's going on about this... Applejack thought. As Rainbow ran over a couple more, like Centurion, Leo, and Orion, Applejack had finally figured out the other thing that made Rainbow an "egghead": her love for the stars. It did explain a lot -- she did love to be in the sky, and disagree as you may, the stars are one-hundred percent sky.
After a while, Applejack thought back to the whole reason they were out here. "Well, the lesson was very pleasant and all, but we need to get a move on."
Rainbow snapped out of the focused state she was in and sprang upright, blushing at the fact that she had gotten offtrack. As they walked a bit further, they noticed the trees were no longer there. "Oh, horseapples!" Frustrated, she tried to get a feeling for her surroundings. As she dug her hooves in the ground, she realized that there was dirt underneath them. "Well, at least we found a path back to the farm."
When they got to the farm, Rainbow's wing was in more pain than she could handle. The Apple family treated to her, even though they were originally awaiting the return of Applejack. Rainbow Dash didn't like it, but she concurred to stay at the farm for the night and get her to the hospital tomorrow.
There was a cot pulled into Applejack's room, and this was the designated area for sleep. However, Rainbow Dash had other ideas.
"Hey Applejack," she whispered, now a bit after they had gotten cozied up.
"Wha?" Applejack asked in her half-sleep state. She tried to turn and switch the side of which she was laying, but her body said otherwise, leaving her in an awkward position.
"C-can I sleep with you? I'm kinda cold..."
Applejack returned to her former state. "Ye, sure." Soon, Rainbow had hopped in, slightly nuzzled against Applejack's back.