Twilight sat at the table, periodically taking a couple of sips out of the delicious herbal tea that she had made herself after Dash had left. It was a custom brew courtesy of Fluttershy; not to bitter, not too sweet, with a tangy lemon after taste. It helped to clear her mind so that she could think about how she could help Rainbow. She was going through so much, and was clearly in a lot of emotional pain. Twilight wanted to help her friend in any way possible. It was all of the unknowns that bothered her most, so many questions about how the Pegasus would cope with such a harsh breakup. Twilight racked her brain for ideas on what to do, but coming up short, she decided to turn to her faithful friends, books. She found one amongst the shelves of phycology about rejection and how to cope with it. She opened the pages and absorbed what she could. After a few cups of tea and a daisy sandwich, she closed the book, a frown upon her face.
The book wasn’t that helpful, which is surprising… Twilight thought as the book magically closed shut with a loud thud. Even I knew all of that. It is just all common sense really. Taking time to think about the situation, coping with the pain the best way that you can, make sure to talk with others about the pain that you are feeling… Everypony knows that… But still, what do I do with Dash? Should I try to help, or should I just let her try to figure it out for herself?
“Whatcha thinkin about there Twilight?” a curious voice asked. The dragon’s voice sent a shiver of shock up Twilight’s spine. She had forgotten about Spike this morning, her mind was too focused on how Rainbow was doing with her breakup with Applejack and pushed Spike out of her head.
“Oh nothing Spike,” Twilight said as she patted the dragon’s small head with a hoof. “Just trying to help a friend with a problem, unfortunately I am having some trouble figuring out how I go about it. I have a few ideas, but none have a desirable outcome.”
There is always a chance that Rainbow will still be able to be friends with Applejack, but the more I think about it, the less it seems possible. Being able to still be friends with someone that has done something so cruel to you is hard… Constantly being reminded of the times that you spent together, and the constant reminder of the pain that came from the rejection… Twilight gave her head a violent shake, as she tried to snap her mind back into reality.
“If you say so,” Spike responded. “Anyway… I’m going to spend the day with Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Applebloom. Did you need me to bring anything back?”
“Not that I can think of,” Twilight replied. “Go have fun, and try not to get into too much trouble this time.” Twilight said with a knowing smirk.
“You really don’t know how much destruction those little fillies can cause do you,” Spike said with a deadpanned expression on his face. “I swear everywhere they go looks like it just had a tornado of Discord sized proportions touch down. How they cause so much damage wherever they go is beyond me. It’s not a question of if I get into trouble, but rather how bad it is going to be this time.” A knock radiated from the library’s front door. “And that would be them now.”
Spike got up and walked over to the door, grabbing the handle with his small claws. Standing there was not the trio of fillies that he was waiting for, but rather the elder sister of group’s farm filly.
“Oh hey Applejack, what brings you around here?” Spike asked.
“I… Uh… Need to talk to Twi… In private if you wouldn’t mind,” Applejack said.
“Uh sure… Twilight! Applejack is here and she wants to talk to you about something.” Usually the surprise visit from one of her close friends would be a pleasant distraction, but upon hearing that name, Twilight felt a surge of anger start to course through her body. She fought off the sudden bout of rage and took a deep breath, quickly silencing the thought as appeared.
“Come on in Applejack,” Twilight shouted from the kitchen, a clear hint of spite in her voice. The farm pony walked into the room, and pulled up a chair to the kitchen table. As Twilight gaze found her guest, she could tell that Applejack hadn’t been taking care of herself over the past couple of days. The usually well groomed fur was matted all over the place, pieces sticking out sporadically in a multitude of directions. Huge dark circles surrounded the bottom of Applejack’s eyes, and her pupils were completely bloodshot. Through all the anger coursing through Twilight’s body, she couldn’t help but feel sad for Applejack. She looked like she was having a rougher time than Rainbow through the whole thing.
“Uh are you okay?” Twilight asked even though she already knew the answer to her question.
“No Twilight… I am not even even close to being okay,” Applejack said as she placed her brown hat onto the table. “I have done something awful Twilight, and I don’t think that I can fix it…” Applejack shifted her gaze to the table. “Or if I even deserve to fix what I have done.”
“Applejack…” Twilight was at a true loss for words. One hoof her mind was debating that she should be angry at Applejack for betraying a friend’s trust, but on the other hoof, seeing her like this just didn’t seem right. She just sat there blinking at her friend, trying to decide what she should do. No matter what she thought, she couldn’t bring herself to be mad at Applejack. One part of her wanted to tear apart the already destroyed pony that sat in front of her, but the rational side of her thoughts debated about trying to see for things from her perspective. In the constant battle between anger, and rationality, rationality seemed to be the victor for the time being.
“I toyed with a pony’s heart…” Applejack raised her hooves above the table, both of the orange limbs violently shaking in front of her face. As Applejack turned her gaze over to Twilight, all Twilight could see was a bleak sense of dread. “I just took it in these hooves and smashed it all to pieces. No thought at all for what I was doing… I just tried to help Twilight…” Each forced word that came from Applejack was filled with more and more sorrow. “I never thought that things would end like this.” Applejack said as her head shifted back to the table. Sounds of sobbing and tears dropping onto the oak tabletop filled the room.
“Applejack… I know what happened…” With those words, Applejack’s head shot up from the table, her eyes filled with sadness, and her ears flattened to her head. “Rainbow came by yesterday and told me what happened. I’ve heard her side of the story, and I would like to hear your side at the very least.”
Applejack let out an exhausted sigh. She really didn’t want to through all of the details again, as it just ended up reminding her of what she had done. “I guess I will start at the beginning. It all started after your coronation. After the party was finally winding down, Rainbow and I went to the castle gardens to get some relaxation before heading to bed. We sat in the garden for a couple of hours just talking about some pointless things. As usual, Rainbow was boasting about some trick that she had just made up to impress the Wonderbolts. I really wasn’t paying that much attention to be honest. You know how Rainbow gets when she is on the whole Wonderbolt thing.
It was getting dark, and Luna’s night had finally taken its hold. I was about to leave, and that is when Rainbow put her wing on my shoulder, pulling me in closer as I tried to get up. I can remember just sitting there, looking into those magenta eyes of hers. They were full of confidence, and determination. That is when Rainbow moved in a placed a soft kiss on my cheek…”
“Well that does sound like how Rainbow would approach the situation. Please continue...” Twilight said as she scribbled into a small notepad with magically floating pen.
“Really Twilight. You are seriously going to take notes on this?” Applejack said, as she stared at Twilight with the best deadpanned look that she could muster.
“Of course!” Twilight said. “Why wouldn’t I? You can’t solve a problem without the proper information.”
That and I might need to use some of this a little bit later depending on how things go.
“So after Rainbow kissed me, I just sat there… Blinking into those eyes, not sure what to say about what happened. So many questions were flowing through my head at once, and no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t think of anything. I did the first thing that came to me.. I ran…”
“You ran away from her?” Twilight asked with her head skewed to the side, a puzzled look on her face. “Why would you do that?”
“I couldn’t think of anything okay, so I just got out of there.” Applejack said. “It was all so sudden… And I couldn’t think of what to do, so I just ran. The next day, I caught up with her and told her that I was sorry about running out on her after that. It took a while for Rainbow to forgive me but once we got past that she asked if I had the same feelings for her… I had to say no Twilight… I like Rainbow, but just as a friend, nothing more…
After that day, I didn’t see her for a whole week, and none of our friends had even talked to her once we had gotten back from the celebration. I looked everywhere trying to find her, just so I could try to explain myself, but no matter where I looked I still couldn’t track her down. She wasn’t around any of the usual places that she normally would be and nopony in town had seen her at all since your coronation. I thought it was little weird that none of the five of us hadn’t heard from her after for a couple of days. Eventually I did find her crying into her hooves in the Everfree Forest, next to a small river. She was so lost Twilight… So I did the only thing that I could think of to make her feel better. I asked her if she would like to go on a date with me, and we could see where things went from there. After the first couple of dates, I began to realize that nothing was going to happen and that I would have to break it up, but I could never figure out a right time, or a right way to do it without hurting her… And you know what happened afterwards…”
The two mares sat in the kitchen, starting at each other, without either saying a word. After what seemed like hours, Applejack spoke once more. “How’s Rainbow doing?”
“When she came to me Applejack, I didn’t know what to do… I have never seen her so depressed before. While Rainbow was here telling me about what happened to her in flight school she looked like a completely different pony. She is usually beaming with confidence, but that day she looked completely broken in every sense of the word, as she tried to find some logical reason why you would do something like that to her.” As the words left her mouth, the anger finally won the battle of Twilight’s mind, and now it had free reign to do whatever it pleased. “Why in Celestia’s name would you do something like that? Especially to one of your friends.”
“I know Twilight. Trust me I know!” Applejack yelled as she continued to cry. “You don’t think that I know that it was wrong! But you should have seen her Twilight. After I had said no the first time, she was heartbroken. All week afterwards Rainbow just kept to herself, not even speaking to any of us. I even heard her talking about quitting her dreams about becoming a Wonderbolt, and I couldn’t see her torture herself like that. Everyday it just seemed to be getting worse and worse. She continued to shut herself out from us. You remember when she didn’t talk to anypony for days on end don’t you?”
“Why did you do it though?” Twilight asked once more. “You had so many options, but you decided to string her along like that… Why?”
Applejack let out a sigh. “I don’t know Twilight… I couldn’t see her like that. It hurt just thinking that I was causing all of that pain.” Applejack placed a hoof on her chest, the orange limb still trembling. “She was so depressed, and I was the one that caused it. All that pain, all of that regret, all of the sadness and it was all my fault. Do you know what that feels like Twilight? Every time I saw her it felt like my heart was getting ripped out of my chest. I had been the one that brought such that pain to my closest friend. When we were together, all of that pain, and all of the suffering was finally gone. She was so happy that she had found someone that cared for her. I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t tell her the truth and put Rainbow through all of that again, so I just kept going on with it… Tell me Twilight what would you have done in my situation?” Applejack asked.
“Well I would have…” Twilight said but stopped mid sentence.
What would I have done? On one hoof it would hurt to see Rainbow like that, and Applejack is right. Your friend reveals their feelings for you and you have to be the one to turn them down. But on the other hoof Rainbow would have been able to fight the pain of her rejection, and eventually be back to normal. But how long would that have taken? And what would she have missed as she tried to figure out the situation for herself...
“I don’t know what I would have done…” Twilight said with a defeated sigh.
The two sat in silence only broken by the occasional sob from Applejack. After regaining her composure, Applejack spoke.
“What do you think I should do now though?” Applejack asked as she lifted her head from the table. “Every moment that passes, I am constantly reminded of what I did to Rainbow, and it’s tearing me apart. I keep thinking to myself, “What could I have done differently? Should I have done anything at all?” All of these questions are driving me insane. Twilight! Look at me! I haven’t slept at all since I told her the truth.”
“Slow down Applejack,” Twilight said as she reached across the table to place a hoof on her trembling friend. “First things first, do you think that it would be a good idea to talk to Rainbow so shortly?”
“Probably not.” Applejack let out an exhausted sigh. Deep down she knew that if she were to talk to Rainbow now it would just end up tearing a larger rift into their already fragile friendship…
If we are still even remotely close to being friends… Applejack thought to herself. “If I talked to her about it now, it would just make things worse.”
“I think you’re right that talking to her now would just make everything worse. You should take some time and let her come to you. When she is ready to talk, then be there for her. Of course Rainbow will be mad at you, and you are going to have accept that, but you might be able to keep your friendship if you are lucky.”
“T-T-Thanks Twilight… You must hate me for this.”
I thought I would, but the more I think about it, you were just trying to make your friend feel better. Even though your heart was in the right place, the way you decided to help was completely unacceptable.
“Applejack I could never hate one of my friends…” A loud knock radiated from the library’s door. “Even though you did something terrible, I could never hate you,” Twilight continued, as another knock interrupted her once more. “All of you girls are so close to my heart, and I don’t want to lose any of you.”
“Twi! I can hear your voice. I’m coming in!” Rainbow’s voice shouted from behind the door.
Oh no no… Not here and not now… This is the last thing should happen.
“Twilight, you have to hide me… I can’t see her, not like this,” Applejack said wiping the tears from her sleep deprived eyes. Unfortunately it was too late. Rainbow had already walked into the library, the surge of anger coursing through her body clearly visible. Her wings flared out, and she stared over at Applejack with a look that would make even the toughest pony cower in fear.
“What is she doing here?” Rainbow spat from the doorway, the spite towards Applejack clear in her voice. Rainbow stormed into the the kitchen and slammed her hooves onto the table. “I said what is she doing here, Twi!”
“I-I-I was just trying to get some help Rainbow,” Applejack said exhausted. “This whole entire situation has been tearing me up inside, and I didn’t know who I could talk to, so I came here.”
“It has been tearing you up!” Rainbow yelled as she slammed the table again with a hoof. “How do you think that I feel about this? I trusted you with my feelings and you took them and crushed them without any thought at all. How could you do something like that to me? I thought I was your friend.”
“You are Rainbow… I just thought that I was helping…”
“Here we go again!” Rainbow shifted her gaze over to Twilight. “You see what I mean! She says that she was trying to help me out, but any sensible pony would have realized that it was completely wrong to do. I mean what were you thinking!”
“I don’t know Rainbow… I couldn’t see you like that anymore,” Applejack said with her head low to the table. “Every single day ever since I had turned you down, you just continued to sink further and further into your sadness.”
“Well what did you expect clueless? Of course I was upset about it! What did you think was going to happen?! You thought that I would all be sunshine and lollipops after I poured my heart and soul out to you and you took it all away from me.”
“ENOUGH!!!” Twilight yelled, as she slammed a hoof on the oak tabletop. A powerful surge of magic emanated from her body and began to shake everything in the library as it rolled across the floor. The surge quickly snapped both Rainbow’s and Applejack’s attention over to the enraged unicorn, as the vibrations cause various objects to fall onto the oak floor below. “Both of you need some time apart from each other! I will not see you two fighting like this!” After a brief pause, Twilight took a deep sigh, and started to calm down. “Now, would both of you kindly leave, and stay away from each other for the next couple of weeks... It will do you both some good.”
“Sure,” Applejack said as she got up from the table, expertly tossing her hat back on top of her disheveled mane with her mouth as she stood. “Thanks for hearing me out, Twilight. It really meant a lot.” With those words Applejack left the library, leaving Rainbow and Twilight alone in the now quiet room. Moments passed before Rainbow broke the eerie silence.
“Sorry about that Twi...” Rainbow said, anger in her voice now replaced with regret. “I am not sure what came over me… It’s just… Everytime I think of her, and what she did...”
“No need to explain yourself Rainbow,” Twilight said as she put a hoof on her friend’s shoulder.
“Hey do you mind if I ask you something?” Rainbow’s gaze shifted over to Twilight.
“Sure Rainbow.”
“Would you mind if I spent the next couple nights here?” Rainbow asked with her head low to the floor. “I just don’t really want to be alone right now…”
“Rainbow you don’t need to ask me something like that. Of course you can.”
“Thanks Twi!” Rainbow’s face shot up, a look of happiness and joy spread across it. “I’ll be back in a sec. Just need to go get some things from home.” With a flash of blinding speed, Rainbow flew out one of the library’s open windows, and took to the sky.
Well that could have gone better… At least now I know how Applejack feels about breaking Rainbow’s heart, but that still doesn't help out that much… In fact it just makes everything worse… Twilight reached over and grabbed the teapot that contained the remainder of the tea from earlier. It was cold now, but that didn’t matter, just having something to drink right now was enough. With the last mouthful of the cold beverage she sat the cup down on the table, and rubbed a temple with a hoof. Her head felt like somepony was taking a hammer and repeatedly bashing it for hours on end. Every solution that she came up with never had the right answer.
How am I going to fix this...