//------------------------------//
// Day Ten - Revitalization 
// Story: Tenacious Dash 
// by Hipster Cloudchaser 
//------------------------------//

	Vinyl groaned as she opened her eyes, wincing when the sun assaulted her sensitive red irises. Fumbling around for her shades, she found that instead of her nightstand, her hoof only met open air. Settling back down and attempting to hide her face from the morning, she realized that whatever it was she had been sleeping on was considerably more comfortable than she was used to. What’s more, it was warm, and rather fuzzy, unlike the coarse blankets that would tell her that she was home.

Well, whatever this was she was laying on, it made her want to snuggle in closer and-

“Good morning, Vinyl.”

Vinyl jolted upright, losing her balance and falling from the couch in the process. After taking a few moments to catch her breath and take in her surroundings, Vinyl laughed. “Don’t scare me like that, Tavi.”

“I had to do something before you started to feel me up,” Octavia chuckled. “It’s much too early for that.”

Vinyl turned her head to glance out the window, immediately wishing she didn’t. Whimpering and shielding her eyes, she grumbled, “What time is it, anyway?”

“Only about six,” Octavia informed.

“Too early,” Vinyl protested.

“Well we can only sleep in so well in a room with so many windows.”

Vinyl groaned. “Remind me to drag you to the bedroom next time. And could you please close those damn blinds?”

Octavia did one better, drawing the curtains closed as well to trap any light that seeped through the blinds. “We’ll have to go out eventually, though. We still have a sale to finalize, after all.”

Vinyl grunted in recognition. “Do you know where my shades are?”

Octavia sifted through one of the smaller bags of luggage before producing the requested item. “Though I would prefer if you refrained from wearing that oversized sack of yours.”

“It’s called a hoodie, Tavi,” Vinyl corrected. “And it protects my skin from sunburn. Can’t count on the pegasi to make it overcast every day.”

Octavia sighed, relenting with a nod. She knew it was often necessary for Vinyl to cover up on sunny days due to her albinism, but that didn’t keep her from wishing she could have a normal morning stroll with her once in a while.

“Hey, what happened to Dash and AJ?” Vinyl asked, finally noticing their absence.

“I would imagine they went home,” Octavia ventured. “You were out like a light last night.”

“You fell asleep, too,” Vinyl reminded pointedly. “You don’t think we scared them off at the end there, do you?”

“You do know who you’re talking about, right?” Octavia chuckled. “I don’t think they minded the invitation.”

Vinyl hummed. “We should do that tonight. You know, kinda like a prelude for tomorrow.”

“How many times have I told you that sex in a club is a good way to get kicked out?” Octavia bonked Vinyl lightly on the head. “Especially if you’re the ones on stage.”

Vinyl frowned. “Well, maybe we’re not going to the right clubs, then.”

“I hope you wouldn’t mind going alone if that were the case,” Octavia threatened.

“What, and leave me alone in a room full of mares bumping and grinding on each other?” Vinyl grinned. “You sure you trust me enough to keep my cool?”

Octavia sighed, her hoof meeting her forehead. “What am I going to do with you, Vinyl?”

Vinyl thought for a moment. “Tie me down and torture me so I can’t leave?”

Octavia frowned. “You know I’m not comfortable with bondage, Vinyl.”

Vinyl shrugged. “Hey, a mare can still dream, right?”

Octavia rolled her eyes and strolled into the kitchen to get started on breakfast.





Rainbow let out a sigh of satisfaction as she stepped out onto the porch. After a breakfast that had been, by coincidence or shenanigans, comprised of two of her favorite foods, pancakes and apples, the sight of a perfectly beautiful day had her spirits high.

Applejack noted this fact. “We got a whole day with nothin’ but music and apples ahead of us, and there ain’t any more ponies who could distract us.”

Rainbow’s brow furrowed. “I wouldn’t say that, but hopefully she’s occupied today. She didn’t bother us yesterday, though.”

“Haven’t really been seein’ a lot of her around,” Applejack agreed. “Ya’d think she’d be bouncin’ off the walls after something like this.”

“Or maybe she’s finally swamped by everything that’s going on and managed to exhaust herself,” Rainbow hypothesized. “Even she has to have limits.”

“Any reason we ain’t sayin’ her name?” Applejack chuckled.

“Yeah, so she doesn’t pop out of nowhere because she heard her name halfway across Ponyville,” Rainbow cautioned. “She’s got ears everywhere, AJ. I bet if you took a closer look at some of the leaves on these trees you’d find some kind of camouflaged transmitter device of some sort.”

No sooner than Rainbow had finished stating her theory, a loud rustle of leaves overhead diverted the attention of the two mares. To Applejack’s bafflement, the very mare in question popped out of one of her trees.

“They’re on to us, Gummy!” Pinkie Pie gasped. “I bet it was your eyes that gave you away. You really need to let me put those contacts in next time.”

Before Applejack could ask if this was staged, Pinkie zipped away through the trees while Gummy latched firmly to her tail.

“I was thinking more like a tape recorder, but I guess Gummy works, too,” Rainbow supposed.

“You’re gettin’ really good at that, aren’t ya?” Applejack mused.

Rainbow shrugged. “Well, she’s an earth pony, right? Maybe she used her superpowers to read my mind in the future and got the idea from me, so she decided to try it out, but forgot I would come up with it, too, causing her to foil her own plans and leaving us to figure out what just happened.”

“Yeah, because that’s possible,” Applejack quipped.

“Just like everything else she does, right?” Rainbow countered.

Applejack cocked her head. “You know that ain’t because she’s an earth pony, right?”

“Maybe not, but she’s as good an exhibit A as I’ll ever find.”

Applejack rolled her eyes, offering no further comment on the subject.





Twilight yawned and sat up in bed, grateful to be back in Ponyville after such a hectic time in Canterlot. Stretching out her wings and flapping them a few times before folding them, she noticed a suspicious lump occupying the guest bed that was far too big to be Spike.

It took Twilight a few moments to remember just who had slept over, but when she did, the knowledge brought a smile to her face. At least until a particularly loud snore from the bed’s inhabitant turned that smile into a frown.

Not far away, Spike was roused by the sudden outburst of sound. “What’s going on?”

“She’s almost as bad as Rainbow Dash,” Twilight mused.

Despite Twilight’s comment, however, Trixie’s snoring had all but ceased afterwards, though the reason for that was that Trixie had woken herself up with that snore and was now attempting to fall back to sleep in the comfort of a warm bed.

When Trixie’s efforts proved fruitless, she sat herself upright before slumping down on her stomach. Opening her eyes, she saw Twilight looking at her strangely. Distressed, Trixie sat back up and began to apologize. “I’m sorry; I didn’t wake you, did I?”

“Not me,” Twilight chuckled. “Though you did wake up Spike.”

Trixie’s ears drooped abashedly. “I guess I forgot to tell you last night. I have a terrible snoring problem, though I am a light sleeper. I use a spell to stop my snoring so I can sleep through the nights, but it only lasts for six hours. When I was living alone, it was like an alarm clock of sorts.”

Twilight smiled. “Remind me to learn that spell so you can sleep in for once.”

Trixie blinked. “I… that’s really not necessary, I’ve been perfectly fine with my sleeping schedule for all these years.”

“Maybe so, but I can’t guarantee Spike will feel the same,” Twilight smirked. “Besides, wouldn’t it be nice to wake up on your own for once, without your snoring?”

“I suppose it would be,” Trixie admitted. “It’s not a very complicated spell, but casting it always makes me a little drowsy.”

“Some kind of a multi-purpose sleep spell then, hm?” Twilight giggled. “Well, come on downstairs and we’ll get started on breakfast.”

Trixie followed along happily, thinking she could get used to mornings like this.





Applejack was thankful that they were ahead of schedule and could afford a slow day, because she just couldn’t get her head on straight. So distracted was she that she missed the tree she was about to buck entirely, causing her to tumble in a heap of tangled limbs.

“You okay over there, Applejack?” Rainbow called, hearing the steady rhythm of Applejack’s bucking be interrupted by the fall.

Rather than answer right away, Applejack picked herself up and moved over to the next tree in Rainbow’s path, forcing her to stop.

Rainbow raised an eyebrow at this latest development. “Something wrong, AJ?”

Applejack sighed, sitting down and resting against the sturdy trunk behind her. “Ah don’t know, did anythin’ seem ta really stick out about yesterday to you?”

“You mean like what happened with Scoot and the Crusaders?” Rainbow guessed.

Applejack frowned. “Well, there’s that, too, but not what Ah was gettin’ at. Somethin’ a bit more recent.”

“Twilight and Trixie making a surprisingly cute couple?”

Applejack chuckled at that. “No, not that either. Ah’m talkin’ about that whole mess with Vinyl and Octavia. I mean, other than the fact that it kinda felt like it came outta nowheres. Just somethin’ one of ‘em said or somethin’.”

“Well, there was a lot of talking, wasn’t there?” Rainbow prodded, sitting down beside Applejack.

“Ah don’t know, it just all seems kinda funny ta me,” Applejack repeated. “Ah mean, who knew her history with Lyra was so complicated? Almost sounded like Vinyl resents her fer what happened, but they get along just fine now. She even still has a sexual interest in her.”

“Well, what else would Vinyl do about it?” Rainbow countered. “I mean, it’s not like her to go around and mope all day. She’s more the type to face her problems head-on, like me. But even I can’t completely solve all the problems I might have. Besides, we don’t even know how long it’s been since then.”

“Not long enough fer Vinyl ta be over it,” Applejack inferred. “But if she can stand ta be around her, even be friends with her still, she can’t be the type ta hold grudges.”

“How would you even hold a grudge about that? It all sounded pretty consensual to me, and Vinyl’s the one who broke it off.”

Applejack sighed. “Probably ain’t doin’ much good wonderin’ about it now, though. We could always bring it up when we head over later.”

Rainbow nodded, getting back to her hooves slowly. “Kinda killed the mood for work, though.”

“Sorry, didn’t mean ta get ya all worked up,” Applejack apologized. “Maybe we should go on a little walk ta clear our heads.”

Rainbow nodded, helping Applejack to her hooves before falling into step beside her. “You know, I’ve kinda been thinking, too.”

“’Bout what, sugarcube?” Applejack pressed.

“Well, for the last few days, nothing’s really been about us,” Rainbow began. “It’s all about things going on around us and us having to deal with it. I mean, lately the only time we have to ourselves is when we’re bucking; trees or each other.”

Applejack blushed. “Ah didn’t know it was botherin’ ya. Ya usually seem pretty excited about that last bit.”

“Well, yeah, of course it’s exciting, but that’s really all we’ve been doing lately,” Rainbow continued. “I mean, wouldn’t it be nice to have some time, just the two of us when we don’t have to worry about anything else?”

Applejack smirked. “Rainbow, are you askin’ me on a date?”

“It doesn’t have to be,” Rainbow was a little too quick to defend. “But, you know, it might be nice for a change. We are marefriends, right? Not just, you know, friends with benefits.”

Applejack stopped and put a hoof on Rainbow’s shoulder to get her to stop as well. With their forward movement halted, Applejack reached out to give Rainbow a tender kiss; nothing burning with passion or desire, but a genuine, comforting, affectionate gesture. “Is that how you’ve been feelin’ the past few days?”

Rainbow frowned. “Kinda, yeah. It’s just that, well, chances are the Wonderbolts will get in the way of anything but this. And we have the time now, but we’re just spending it on stupid things and not what’s really important. I don’t want to run out of time here without knowing just how deep this all really goes.”

Applejack smiled. “Well, we’ve still got three more weeks ta figure it out, don’t we?”

Rainbow smiled back. “So, what do you say to a night out on the town, doing what we want to do for once? And like, not get completely exhausted by the time we’re ready.”

“The days are only so long, Rainbow,” Applejack mused. “We’ll have ta set a lot of that curiosity aside if we want the whole night to ourselves.”

Rainbow nodded.

“And I get the feeling we’re gonna need ta keep a look out fer Twilight today,” Applejack added. “Trixie and Vinyl still have to get that deal worked out, and I’ll bet Twi’ll be there too.”

“So we just have to sit down for an hour and talk about our feelings or whatever,” Rainbow shrugged. “It shouldn’t be all that bad. I mean, as long as she and Trixie don’t start making out, I think we’ll be good.”

Applejack chuckled. “Not everythin’s gotta have sex involved, sugarcube.”

“Maybe not, but you can’t deny it would be cool to watch them get it on,” Rainbow countered. “I mean, how often do you see a mare with both parts?”

“Kinda makes me surprised you’d even be interested in the other bit,” Applejack ventured. “Didn’t think yer barn door swung that way.”

Rainbow tilted her head. “Well, not really. I mean, there’s no way I could be attracted to a stallion. Their proportions and stuff are just way off. But Trixie’s got a mare’s body and everything, so it kinda changes things. Like, it turns the dick into like a permanent strap-on or something. I mean, it would probably get in the way sometimes, and it’s definitely not aerodynamic, but she’s a unicorn so she doesn’t have to worry about that.”

“So what yer sayin’ is that one toy we got really tickles ya, huh?” Applejack hinted.

Rainbow turned a shining eye to Applejack. “You have no idea. But we still have work to get done, so that’ll have to wait ‘till later.”

“Lookin’ forward to it, Dashie,” Applejack cooed.

Rainbow blushed as she accompanied Applejack back to their earlier site in the orchard.





Rarity woke to a strange realization. Today, she would be involved in a romantic, perhaps even sexual, encounter with somepony other than her coltfriend. Not even a colt, but her best friend of many years, Fluttershy.

Rolling over and finding Big Macintosh absent from the bed, she found that she was hesitant to leave. Despite the fact that she had been given permission, she still felt like she was being unfaithful. Thankfully, Spike would not be expecting her today, so she would still have plenty of time to spend with him, barring any further developments with Fluttershy.

Drawn to the subject of Spike, another thought hit her. How was she going to explain that she was accepting the advance of Fluttershy despite being already committed and not to his? She could only hope that Spike had lost all interest in her romantically after discovering who she really was, or this could turn into one big mess.

After taking a steadying breath, Rarity rose out of bed and forced her hooves to carry her to the door. She was thankful that she was a unicorn; else she might not have had enough determination to raise her hoof and turn the knob.

Rarity walked downstairs to find the rest of the house empty save for Granny Smith asleep in her rocker. “Mac must have let me sleep in today,” she sighed.  Luckily, breakfast was still warm. She wondered if perhaps this had been a conscious effort.

Filing the thought under things to be thankful to Granny Smith for, she ate her meal in silence, unable to stop thinking about the day ahead of her, and in particular the upcoming spa trip. No small part of her wished that Mac was still around to reassure her of his acceptance, but at the same time, she knew that this day would be about herself and Fluttershy. She almost wished Twilight was around for advice.

Remembering that she in fact was, she looked to the clock hopefully. But as early in the morning as it still was, there was no way she could afford enough time to indulge her friend’s curiosity. She needed to leave soon or risk Twilight coming to her. No sooner than she had completed this thought, she froze as a voice called out to her.

“Hey, Rarity, what are you doing in here all by yourself acting all sad and stuff?”

Rarity let out the breath she was holding. “Not now, Pinkie.”

Pinkie stopped bouncing. “Aw, why not?”

“I have something serious I need to take care of,” Rarity explained. “And no, you cannot come along.”

Pinkie’s ears drooped. “But now’s usually the time you start heading to the spa to meet up with Fluttershy, but she’s been really sad too lately.”

“Everything’s fine, darling,” Rarity assured before exiting the farmhouse.

To nopony’s surprise, Pinkie appeared next to her again. “Are you sure? I’m starting to have a bit of a hard time keeping up with everypony lately. That’s why I was here to try to get Gummy to listen in from the trees, but Rainbow Dash figured me out. Can you believe that she actually asked Applejack on a real date?”

“While that normally would get a rise out of me, I don’t have the time to gossip today,” Rarity returned.

This gave Pinkie pause. Rarity was never one to turn down gossip, especially when it involved two of their close friends. There must be something really important going to happen at the spa. Now if only she could find a way to get inside without being noticed…





Fluttershy leaned back and sighed after setting out food for all of her animals, including Angel, who appreciated the change. “Alright, Angel, you be good while I’m out, okay?”

Angel saluted, sensing this was more important than the quiet one let on.

Fluttershy nodded before making for the door. Taking a deep breath of the morning air, she glanced around, noticing that everything seemed a little brighter than yesterday. She also noticed a big red stallion watching her from the tree-line of the apple orchard.

Mustering up the courage to give a surreptitious wave, Fluttershy was heartened when Big Macintosh responded with a gentle smile and a nod before disappearing back between the trees.

Knowing she had Big Macintosh’s approval, Fluttershy started making her way downtown with a spring in her step, happily greeting any passing ponies. It almost felt like she was coming home after a long absence.

As if to add to that feeling of home, a pink mare bounced up to her. “Hiya, Fluttershy! You look a lot happier today.”

Fluttershy smiled. “I guess she can do that to me.”

“Who?” Pinkie asked innocently enough.

Fluttershy shook her head. “I’ll tell you later.”

“Aw, come on!” Pinkie pleaded. “Is it Cheerilee? Are you going on a date with her today, and that’s why you’re so excited?”

“No, but I guess you could call it a date if you wanted,” Fluttershy said, unable to keep herself from smiling. “Probably not the kind you’re thinking of, though.”

Pinkie paused. “Wait, you’re going on a date with another mare who isn’t Cheerilee?”

Fluttershy took this opportunity to put some distance between herself and the pink road block. “You’ll just have to find out later.”

Pinkie gawped, watching as Fluttershy continued on her way. It was a long shot, but she thought she had an idea of what was going on. And it seemed she’d have to find out the hard way.

Reaching her destination, Fluttershy threw open the doors of the spa with a bit more vigor than usual. That is to say, she was able to make it through them before they swung closed again. Inside, she was greeted by the spa twins, one of whom looked a bit more chipper than usual.

“Miss Rarity is waiting for you inside,” Lotus informed, leading the way to the baths.

Fluttershy inspected Aloe carefully along the way, sensing something amiss.

Upon their arrival, Aloe spoke, “We’ll leave you two to get settled.”

Fluttershy blinked. That wasn’t Aloe’s voice at all. It sounded remarkably like a Stalliongrad accent, in fact. Glancing up to see if Rarity had noticed this, as well, she found that she had not even been noticed yet.

Ascending the steps to the bath, Fluttershy prodded Rarity, who jumped in response. “Oh, Fluttershy, darling. I’m terribly sorry; my mind has been on the fritz lately.”

Fluttershy smiled as she lowered herself into the water. “It’s okay if you’re nervous. I am, too.”

Before Rarity could respond, the spa twins returned. “I apologize, I do seem to have come down with a bit of a cold,” Aloe said in a much more normal voice.

Fluttershy cocked a brow. “In the middle of summer?”

“I would have to agree with Fluttershy, dear; your coat looks more vibrant than ever, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen your eyes so bright,” Rarity ventured.

Fluttershy frowned upon further inspection. “And why do you have your cutie mark taped?”

“So it doesn’t fall off, silly,” Aloe blurted out in a voice entirely not her own.

Fluttershy sighed, rubbing her face with a hoof. “Pinkie, I said I’d tell you later.”

“Ugh, fine,” the imposter relented, reaching behind a plant far too thin to properly conceal any healthy pony and produced the real Aloe, who was missing her mane and tail. All ponies present watched in wonderment as Pinkie dislodged Aloe’s mane and tail from her own body, causing her normal poofy hair to spring forth, and re-attached them to Aloe.

Giving her tail an experimental flick, Aloe was shocked to find that not a single hair came loose. A quick tug on her mane revealed that those roots had also retaken. But before either of the spa twins could confront the strange mare about her miracle hair restoration techniques, Pinkie showed herself out.

“We’ve learned not to think too hard about it,” Rarity advised.

Lotus began to lead the discombobulated Aloe to another room. “If you would give us a minute…”

“Of course, dears,” Rarity waved before sighing and turning her attention back to Fluttershy. “Well, that’s one way to break the ice.”

Fluttershy could not stop herself from giggling as she sidled closer to Rarity. Sensing the advance, Rarity closed the distance between them and blushed as Fluttershy rested her head against the fashionista’s shoulder.

“I’m really glad you came,” Fluttershy whispered.

Rarity felt a smile come to her lips. “Of course I did, darling. You’re a very dear friend of mine, and if you think there can be something more between us, well… I can’t say I’m opposed.”

Fluttershy nuzzled closer in response, turning her head to place a gentle kiss on Rarity’s cheek, which heated up at the contact.

“Though I would like to know what brought this all on,” Rarity insisted.

Fluttershy smiled. “Well, I guess Cheerilee just got me thinking when she asked me on that date. And, well, the only reason I started spending time with her was because you weren’t there, and if that’s where that got me with her, when we’ve shared the same kind of friendship for years… I just don’t know how I could have accepted that without even thinking of you.”

“Even considering that I was already committed, and Cheerilee has nopony for herself?” Rarity ventured.

Fluttershy sighed. “I guess that is a little selfish, huh?”

“I’m not telling you how to go about this, but it would do my heart good to know that Cheerilee is not hurt by this,” Rarity amended. “You already put other ponies ahead of you so much that I can hardly fault you for putting your own needs first this once. You should never have to change yourself because of what other ponies want of you.”

“I know, it’s just that, well, I don’t know her as well as I know you,” Fluttershy extrapolated. “You’ve been my best friend since the day I met you. And you know how important it is for me to have foals someday.”

“And that’s something I can give you that Cheerilee cannot,” Rarity sighed. “I just… need to know how much I really mean to you.”

Fluttershy blushed, swirling her hood timidly in the water. “Well, I… can’t say I haven’t thought about, um… exploring that with you.”

Rarity fought against a rising blush as she insisted, “I meant love, not lust, Fluttershy.”

Fluttershy smiled. “Well, how about this?” She extended her wing, trailing it across Rarity’s back before letting it come to rest against her cutie mark.

Rarity had read enough romance novels to understand the meaning of the gesture, and had to take a few breaths to calm her pounding heart. As soon as she had the opportunity, she reached out to place a tender kiss on Fluttershy’s lips. Fluttershy pushed back, flicking her tongue against Rarity’s lips in request of something deeper.

Rarity, however, pulled away. “Fluttershy, please. This is all going so fast. Can we please just take this a little more slowly?”

Fluttershy blushed conscious of where her actions were headed. “I’m sorry, you’re right. I lost my head for a moment.”

Rarity smiled. “That’s alright, dear. Just remember this is something new for both of us.”

Fluttershy nodded, retreating to the other side of the pool sheepishly.

Rarity followed after a pause. “I didn’t mean we couldn’t sit together, just to ease off on the kissing a bit.”

Fluttershy sighed, nodding a second time before resting her head against Rarity’s shoulder.





Scootaloo groaned as she opened her eyes to the glare of the all-white hospital room. Glancing around blearily, she noticed Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle curled up together at the foot of the bed. Despite knowing the arrangement was necessary, Scootaloo could not stop from feeling a pang of jealousy. But with that came a much stronger feeling of disappointment in herself.

Even if they had gotten their cutie marks, it was her fault they were confined to a single room with nothing to do but talk. And the fact that neither Apple Bloom nor Sweetie Belle had left her side but for the basest of needs really made Scootaloo appreciate just how wonderful they were in comparison.

Shaking her head to clear away such deprecating thoughts, Scootaloo made to sit up. It was a small victory, but important nonetheless as the movement did not spark a debilitating protest from her wings, though it did make her a little dizzy.

Knowing she should be satisfied, but wanting all the same to at least be free of this bed at all hours, Scootaloo strained with her hind legs to raise herself into a standing position. While she found she was capable of such a feat, she did not get more than halfway up before her weak sense of balance was threatened, forcing her back to the bed.

With a sigh, Scootaloo rubbed at the side of her head to make the spinning stop. Perhaps she would feel better after a proper breakfast.

Thankfully, her fellow crusaders began to stir without further need of encouragement. Apple Bloom blinked her eyes open and noticed Scootaloo’s new position with a smile. “Hey, yer sittin’ up, Scoot.”

“What?” Sweetie Belle jolted awake, nearly knocking Apple Bloom off the bed.

Scootaloo chuckled. “Morning, girls. You think you could get me something to eat? My appetite’s starting to come back.”

Apple Bloom made to stand, but Sweetie Belle was already out the door. Shaking her head in bemusement, Apple Bloom sat back down and inched closer to Scootaloo. “So, ya think ya might be able ta move around some today?”

Scootaloo nodded. “I know I’ve said it before, but-“

“Scoot, ya don’t have to apologize,” Apple Bloom interrupted. “If any of this hadn’t happened, we might not be sittin’ here with our cutie marks.”

“Yeah, we’d be out playing like we usually do,” Scootaloo countered.

“With the same old blank flanks,” Apple Bloom finished. “Scoot, Ah know yer bummed about holdin’ us back, but there ain’t anywhere else we’d rather be right now.”

Scootaloo cocked a brow dubiously. “You’d rather be cooped up in a hospital room than sleeping back home in your own bed?”

Apple Bloom blushed. “What Ah meant was all of us together.”

“But it’s not all of us,” Scootaloo pressed. “What about Babs? We can’t be the Cutie Mark Crusaders if we have our cutie marks.”

“Why not?” Apple Bloom cocked her head. “Just ‘cause we got ours don’t mean we can’t help other ponies find theirs.”

“But nopony in this town needs our help. Everypony’s either way too young or already has theirs. And by the time they grow up, we’ll be adults.”

“We can still serve as inspiration for the other Crusaders,” Sweetie Belle chimed in, having returned from her mission. “Babs has a ton of new recruits in Manehattan. Once they hear that the founders have their cutie marks, maybe she’ll find even more ponies and turn it into something fantastic.”

“But then we won’t be a part of it anymore,” Scootaloo moped.

Apple Bloom placed a hoof on Scootaloo’s shoulder gingerly. “Hey, don’t say that, Scoot. We’ll always be the Cutie Mark Crusaders no matter what, right? It says so right there on yer flank.”

Scootaloo looked down at the symbol on her flank, then to Apple Bloom’s, then to Sweetie Belle, who seemed a little too eager to show it off. “Yeah, until the end.”

“And we’ll always be here for you, Scoot,” Sweetie Belle put in. “Because that’s what fillyfriends do, right?”

Apple Bloom blushed. “Well, that and kissin’.”

“And whatever else we want to do, whenever we want to do it,” Scootaloo added.

“Exactly!” Sweetie Belle chirped. “Now, eat this so we can go do stuff.”

Scootaloo giggled at Sweetie Belle’s enthusiasm, nodding as she consumed her meal.





With the morning beginning to slow down and their work coming to completion, Rainbow stretched and let loose a tremendous yawn. “I think I’m about ready for a nap.”

Applejack chuckled. “Tired ya out already, huh? Shame, coulda used a little company in the shower. Gotta look nice fer our night out, right?”

Rainbow blinked. “Oh, yeah. I was uh, just thinking about something else we do in the shower.”

Applejack smirked. “Why do ya think Ah want company? Ain’t gonna do much good on mah own.”

Rainbow smirked back. “You’re not gonna wuss out this time, are you?”

Applejack waved a hoof. “Nah, there’s still plenty o’ time left in the day.”

“Good, ‘cause I’m still sore from last time,” Rainbow admitted.

Applejack chortled, holding the front door open for Rainbow. “Ah’ll make sure ta go easy on ya this time.”

“Who said you’re gonna be on top today?” Rainbow retorted. “I’m not the kind of pony to go down without a fight, you know.”

Applejack paused outside the washroom door. “So, wrestlin’ counts as foreplay for ya?”

“Oh you shut up,” Rainbow laughed, giving Applejack a shove through the now-open door.




Ping pong




Fluttershy returned home to sink onto her couch with a sigh of utter contentment and a grin that was beginning to hurt her face. Things with Rarity had gone better than she hoped, and if it weren’t for Rarity being busy with other things, Fluttershy would still be draped all over her like some bold new fashion statement.

A knock at the door disrupted her idle musings and confused her thoroughly. Trying not to get her hopes up, Fluttershy opened the door to find Twilight standing there, Trixie beside her.

“Oh, um, hi Twilight, hi Trixie, was there something you needed?” Fluttershy greeted.

“Well, I was just interested in what you’ve been up to while I was gone,” Twilight answered. “I heard you were approached by Cheerilee about a possible relationship. How’s that going?”

“It’s… not,” Fluttershy spoke hesitantly. “There’s… something else going on…”

“Or perhaps somepony else?” Trixie inquired.

Fluttershy blushed, drawing circles in the ground with a hoof. “Um, maybe.”

“Well, don’t keep us in suspense,” Twilight prodded, taking a seat on the couch. “Who is it?”

Fluttershy closed the door after Trixie, sighing. “It’s Rarity.”

Twilight blinked. “Isn’t she with Big Macintosh?”

Fluttershy nodded, grinning sheepishly.

“So you’re trying to come between them?” Twilight demanded.

“Oh, goodness, no,” Fluttershy assured. “We have Mac’s permission for whatever might happen between me and her.”

Twilight frowned, while Trixie grinned. “So, what has happened so far?”

Fluttershy blushed. “Oh, nothing yet. I mean, we just started. Not to say I don’t want to, but… Is that a problem?”

Twilight sighed. “No, of course not. I just wasn’t expecting anything quite like this.”

“Well, Rarity and I have been close for years, so maybe…”

“But why now that she’s already committed, and while you have a standing offer of your own?” Twilight challenged.

“Perhaps this goes back to the limitations of the Elements we discussed yesterday,” Trixie chimed in. “You said yourself that the only pair that could be made of the elements was Honesty and Loyalty, but I don’t recall you ever saying anything about a triangle.”

Fluttershy tilted her head. “But Big Macintosh doesn’t have an Element…”

“Not one of the prime ones, no,” Twilight extrapolated. “There are other, less powerful elements in Equestria that have links to ours, but lack some of their limitations. For example, there can be any number of duplicates of a lesser element, and ponies can carry more than one.

“Considering what you’ve told me, Mac might very well possess one or more of these. He’s shown an exceptional level of compassion and acceptance in agreeing to such an arrangement, the former of which synergizes with your Element, Fluttershy, and the latter has strong ties to Rarity’s. So I suppose it would make some level of sense for Big Macintosh to be able to facilitate this sort of bond that lay dormant between you for however long it might have been.”

“Well, um, I guess I started thinking about her a few months ago, on that one spa trip where I…” Fluttershy hesitated. “Never mind.”

“But that would have been before she became involved with Mac,” Twilight pointed out.

Trixie sighed, placing a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “While the Elements may guide you in some ways, I find it hard to believe that they would stand in the way of love. Perhaps the compatibility of Elements is not mutually exclusive with the compatibility of ponies. For they are not one in the same, are they?”

Twilight frowned. “No, I guess not, but if it can make sense now when it didn’t before…”

“Not everything is grounded in logic,” Trixie reminded. “Perhaps this bond between Rarity and Fluttershy is strong enough to overcome the obstacles set by their Elements, or perhaps the Elements have nothing to do with it, and any sense you can make of it is merely coincidence.”

“But everything else has rules,” Twilight insisted. “Why would love be any different?”

Trixie chortled. “Because it involves ponies, of course.”

“So, um, are you telling me that all this was destined to happen?” Fluttershy spoke up, not entirely sure she liked the implications.

Twilight sighed. “The only thing destined to happen was for all the Elements to become friends. Other than that, I guess everything is free to work itself out.”

Trixie nodded. “And that’s the way it should be. Things can lose their meanings if you think too hard.”

“I suppose you’re right, but-“

Twilight was interrupted by a knock on the door. Curiously, she opened it with her magic to reveal somepony she very much wanted to talk to. “Hey, Rarity. I’m glad you’re here.”

Rarity blinked. “Oh, hello, girls. Might I ask what brings you here?”

“We were just catching up,” Twilight explained. “And Fluttershy’s told me some very interesting things about you.”

Rarity frowned, turning a questioning eye to Fluttershy. Fluttershy’s eyes grew wide before she shook her head emphatically. “What kinds of things were said, exactly?”

“Well, Fluttershy has said that you two have become well acquainted recently,” Trixie teased.

Twilight frowned at Trixie. “What she means to say is you’ve become romantically involved.”

“Why, yes, we have, but I don’t see what the problem would be with that,” Rarity defended. “Am I not capable of having two lovers to warm my bed?”

Fluttershy blushed, shying away at the imagery.

“I wasn’t saying there was a problem,” Twilight amended. “Just wondering why Fluttershy would fall for you all of a sudden and not Cheerilee.”

“Well, I suppose there is the question of Fluttershy’s sexuality,” Rarity admitted.

Trixie nodded, while Twilight stared blankly. “Uh, what are you talking about?”

“That there is one very important thing that sets me apart from Cheerilee,” Rarity hinted, smiling as Fluttershy rose up to give her a nuzzle.

Twilight cocked her head. “Your horn?”

“Not what I was getting at, but I do suppose that’s one thing,” Rarity amended.

“I don’t think Twilight’s going to guess, Rarity,” Fluttershy prodded.

Rarity sighed. “Well, I suppose I do owe her a proper explanation at any rate. Twilight, I haven’t been completely honest to you about who I really am. So I hope it doesn’t change your opinion of me to know that I was born a colt.”

Twilight blinked. “You… what? How is that even possible? I swear I made that spell up that one time. Trixie was right; nopony can do that spell, not even the Princesses!”

“It’s not perfect,” Rarity revealed. “It was done at a young age, so I’ve had plenty of time to fill out into a mare’s body. But there is one very important thing that classifies me as otherwise.”

Twilight frowned. “The way you view yourself?”

Rarity shook her head. “You know I’ve always thought of myself as a mare, Twilight, and that’s the way I’d always like it to stay. It’s just that, well, my plumbing is a bit different from yours.”

“Um, in other words, she still has a penis,” Fluttershy added.

Twilight’s eyes widened. “Oh, uh, that would be a pretty big thing.”

“Come now, Twilight, I’m sure it’s not that big,” Trixie snickered.

Twilight gave Trixie a light smack in retribution. “But if that’s the case, how come I’ve never seen it?”

“There’s a spell you can use to keep it hidden from the eye,” Trixie said while rubbing her muzzle. “It’s still susceptible to touch and smell, but it can’t be seen.”

Twilight furrowed her brows and rounded on Trixie. “Why would you know that?”

Trixie recoiled. “Oh, um, no reason.”

“You’re going to have to tell her eventually, dear,” Rarity counseled. “And this seems as good a time as any.”

Trixie hesitated.

“I know I said I wasn’t going to pry, but Rarity’s starting to get me curious,” Twilight coaxed.

Trixie sighed. “I’ll tell you later. I’m not entirely comfortable with an audience.”

“Now that doesn’t sound like the Trixie we’ve come to know at all,” Rarity chuckled.

“Well this is different,” Trixie countered. “It’s brought me shame and ridicule and loneliness.”

“And how is that so different from your stage personality?” Rarity ventured.

“I just….” Trixie sighed. “This is just something I need to talk with her alone about. You can tell Fluttershy if you want to, but please…”

“Alright, but don’t leave it too long, dear,” Rarity relented.

Trixie nodded before standing up. “Well, while it has been nice talking to you, I do believe another matter has come up that requires my attention. Twilight, if you would accompany me back to the library…”

Thoroughly intrigued, Twilight needed no further coaxing to follow at Trixie’s heels.

“So, um, what was that about?” Fluttershy asked once she was alone with Rarity.

“Why I came here or what we were just going on about?” Rarity returned.

Fluttershy blinked. “Oh, um, both I guess, but more the second one.”

Rarity chortled. “It really is a case I never thought I’d see, despite my own token upbringing.”

Fluttershy nodded expectantly.

“Trixie is not strictly a mare, but neither is she a stallion,” Rarity explained. “Despite her outward appearance of a mare, she is actually both.”

Fluttershy cocked her head. “Both as in… she has both?”

“Precisely,” Rarity grinned. “Though I don’t know if she’s sterile, I imagine she would make quite the partner.”

“I’ll say,” Fluttershy said, shaking her head. “I think I prefer your, um, arrangement, though.”

Rarity chuckled. “Now, about why I’m here. After staring at a bare ponnequine for half an hour, I decided I needed to clear my mind before I got to work. And now that it is no longer the heat of the moment, I’d like to know if you still feel the same way about all of this.”

“Of course I do,” Fluttershy insisted. “Why wouldn’t I?”

“Even the bit involving Cheerilee?”

Fluttershy sighed. “Rarity, is it really so bad if I’m just not attracted to her in that way? She’s been a good friend in your absence, but that’s the only way I’ll ever see her, alright? And why do you keep bringing this up? Are you trying to get rid of me?” Fluttershy’s eyes began to tear up. “Do you not feel the same way? I love you, Rarity, but I haven’t heard you say it back.”

Rarity closed her eyes briefly before taking a step towards Fluttershy to hold the shy pegasus’ hoof against her chest. “Fluttershy, please don’t misunderstand me. I care about you very much, but if nothing else, we still owe Cheerilee an apology. I just want to make sure you can really love somepony like me, knowing what you do. But please understand that I haven’t had as long to think about this as you have, and I’m not ready to classify it just yet.”

Fluttershy sighed. “Well, when will you be?”

“After we’ve spent some more time together to figure things out,” Rarity promised. “I know you’re probably jealous of Big Macintosh, but I really can’t explain why things happened so fast between us. I feel like they may have gone a little too fast. That’s why I want to do right by you.”

Fluttershy smiled. “It’s just a different road to the same destination, then?”

Rarity smiled back. “In all likelihood, yes.”

“Then that’s good enough for me,” Fluttershy sighed in contentment.





Despite Trixie’s apparent misgivings, Twilight could not contain her enthusiasm. She had a good idea about what Trixie was about to tell her, and already her mind was abuzz with possibilities.

Practically leaping through the front door, Twilight wasted no time beating around the bush. “So, what was it that you wanted to tell me?”

Trixie hesitated. “Well, what do you think this is about?”

Twilight blinked. “I don’t like to jump to conclusions, but I’m guessing you’re in a situation similar to Rarity’s.”

Trixie sighed. “Similar, yes, but not quite the same.”

Twilight brightened. “Oh, you have to tell me all about it! It was crazy enough to know Rarity had something like that going on, but you! I mean, we’re going to be living together, so I don’t have to go out of my way or bother Rarity, when I can just ask you!”

“I’m sorry to disappoint, then, because my ‘situation’ is a bit different,” Trixie frowned.

Twilight cocked her head. “Were you not born a colt?”

“I was born exactly as I appear now,” Trixie answered.

Twilight frowned in confusion. “You were born transgendered?”

Trixie sighed. “I’m not transgendered, Twilight. I’m hermaphroditic.”

Twilight’s eyes bugged out as she gasped. “Oh my gosh, no way! That’s incredible! I never knew that was even possible! I always thought it was just somepony’s fantasy, but to think somepony so close is a living example… Oh, I have so many questions! Is one more sensitive than the other? Does the fact that you have the appearance of a mare correlate in any way to your genitalia? Do you have two urethras, or even two bladders? How does that even work? Are both of your parts fertile? I-“

“Twilight, please,” Trixie interrupted, face burning. “Could you please just… lay off on the questions a little bit? I didn’t expect you to take it quite so… well? This is the first time for me that my particular arrangement has been the subject of anything but ridicule.”

Twilight had the decency to look abashed. “Oh, I’m sorry, Trixie. I… kinda tend to get a little carried away sometimes.”

Trixie took a calming breath. “That’s quite alright. We all have our quirks. But I have to know… This doesn’t change anything between us, does it?”

Twilight was about to answer when the weight of the question hit her. “What do you mean?”

Trixie hesitated. “I don’t want you to view me any differently. I’m still a pony, just like you. I want to be your friend, Twilight, not an exhibit.”

“Oh,” Twilight responded, unable to shake off a pang of confusing disappointment. “Trixie, I would never let something like this come before friendship. I’m just curious about a lot of things, and I guess I could use a little work at hiding it. And I know it sounds silly, but I wouldn’t be half as excited as I am if you weren’t my friend.”

“And why is that exactly?” Trixie prompted.

“Well, in my experiences, friends are a bit more open to that sort of thing,” Twilight explained. “Maybe it’s just because they know to humor me. But that you’re at least willing to hear me out is enough for now. I promised I wouldn’t pry, and breaking a promise is one of the fastest ways to lose a friend forever.”

Trixie smiled. “Clearly there’s still much I can learn from you.”

Twilight smiled back. “Likewise.”

Trixie chuckled. “And so you know, I do have two urethras, but only one bladder.”

Twilight blinked. “That sounds like it would be really awkward.”

“It’s an art to be sure,” Trixie admitted. “But it does cut down on the amount of time I have to sit still.”

Twilight giggled. “I guess it would. I assume you use the fillies’ room, then?”

Trixie cocked a brow. “Of course; I can hardly imagine what crude rituals transpire in the colts’ room. Not to mention the looks I’d get.”

Twilight chuckled. “I feel terrible about laughing at this.”

Trixie smiled. “Don’t. It’s nice to be the source of harmless humor for once.”

Twilight wrapped a hoof companionably around Trixie’s shoulders. “Feel free to ignore my, uh, other questions for now.”

Trixie snickered. “Keep pampering my good side and you might find out.”

Twilight blushed, retracting her hoof. “I… I didn’t mean that-“

Trixie cackled at Twilight’s expression. “Feeling a little naughty, are we?”

“Well, it sounded like you were coming onto me!” Twilight insisted.

“All in good time,” Trixie teased. “Nice to know the offer’s on the table, though.”

Twilight could not figure out anything to say that wouldn’t lead to more embarrassment, so she opted to remain silent while Trixie had her laugh. At least until a hint of green disappeared out of the corner of her eye in the direction of the stairs. Twilight sagged onto the floor and attempted to hide beneath her hooves. She could only hope Spike hadn’t heard anything incriminating.





As Applejack gazed upon her drum set, she thought back to something they had talked about yesterday. “Hey, Rainbow?”

Rainbow’s head popped up from the far side of the bed. “What’s up?”

“Ah remember askin’ ya yesterday about what all this stuff is we’re gettin’ inta; this heavy metal stuff,” Applejack began. “But Ah never remember you tellin’ me where it came from.”

Rainbow chortled. “Because I know you’re never gonna believe me.”

Applejack frowned. “Try me.”

Rainbow appraised Applejack for a few moments before speaking. “Alright, this is gonna sound ridiculous, but you remember that one time the Cutie Mark Crusaders tried to play their theme song for the school talent show a few years back?”

Applejack’s brow furrowed. “Yeah…”

Rainbow coughed. “Well, I dunno if you noticed, but not everypony was laughing out there. You see, as bad as they were, they brought something that ponies had never heard before; a certain kind of edge that was really just Scoot singing way off key.”

Applejack blinked. “So yer tellin’ me they messed up so bad, it wasn’t even rock anymore?”

“No, it was still rock, but more… abrasive. Heavier than anything else at the time,” Rainbow clarified. “So, what should have been an unmitigated disaster actually managed to spark something in a few ponies in the audience, and, well, that eventually lead to heavy metal being born.”

Applejack sputtered for a few moments before regaining the ability to articulate. “Let me get this straight, mah sister and her friends created a whole new genre of music all because Scootaloo can’t sing?”

“I said you weren’t gonna believe me,” Rainbow shrugged.

“And now we’re doin’ somethin’ that wouldn’t even exist if the Crusaders had just stuck to what they’re used to?” Applejack continued.

Rainbow nodded calmly. “Funny how things turn out sometimes, right?”

“Ah… Ah don’t even know what ta say anymore,” Applejack muttered.

“Good, ‘cause if we wait too much longer, Tavi and Scratch will probably start lunch without us,” Rainbow jested.

Applejack shook her head in defeat before hefting her heavy instrument and following her hungry marefriend out the door. It was things like this that really challenged her view of the world. But sometimes things happen, and sometimes they happen faster than you expect.

Looking ahead at Rainbow pacing impatiently, Applejack smirked. No matter what happened, she could always count on Rainbow to be the first one to discover what happened next. That’s what this day was to be all about; putting everything else aside and focusing on what mattered most, and wherever that may take them.

“You think Tavi’s gonna make that casserole again today?”

But of course, even the most important days could not be spent in total solitude. 

“Whatever it is, Ah’m sure it’ll be a nice treat,” Applejack assured.

“I swear, she’s almost as good a cook as you!” Rainbow praised. “Almost. Not much can beat one of your Zap Apple pies. You know, that gives me an idea, have you ever tried to make Zap Apple cider?”

“Not that Ah ever heard of,” Applejack admitted. “Zap Apple harvest ain’t too far away, neither.”

“But what about those year-round Zap Apples you showed me?” Rainbow pressed.

Applejack chuckled. “You do want that ta stay a secret, don’t ya?”

“I could help with the brewing! Come on,” Rainbow insisted.

Applejack shook her head. “No can do, sugarcube. Takes a bit more ‘n hard work ta whip up a proper batch.”

Rainbow frowned. “Well, then what do you need?”

“An extra barrel, fer one,” Applejack answered smoothly. “Nothin’ gets past an Apple family inspection.”

“We could always just buy one of those,” Rainbow offered.

“With whose money?” Applejack poked. “Mac would find that quicker than a worm in an apple. Besides, we need a whole lot more than an empty barrel and an apple ta make cider.”

Rainbow’s head sagged. “Fine, but I get the first mug.”

Applejack rolled her eyes humoredly. “Ah’ll pour yers first, but you ain’t gonna drink ‘till we toast. Never know what ta expect when ya try somethin’ new with Zap Apples.”

Rainbow blinked. “Why, you ever had a bad experience with them before?”

“Word of advice, never try ta eat a Zap Apple raw unless ya wanna lose half yer tongue.”

Rainbow cocked her head. “What? Are they sharp or something?”

“Nah, but it’ll give ya a pretty nasty shock. Probably burn yer taste buds off,” Applejack clarified.

“Not talking from personal experience, I hope?” Rainbow ventured.

Applejack chuckled. “’Course not. How else could Ah taste the difference between different kinds of apples?”

Rainbow shrugged. “I dunno, make something up?”

“You know how good Ah am at lyin’,” Applejack jested.

Rainbow chortled. “Yeah, probably not the most effective method.”

Applejack nodded, lapsing into silence.

Given a chance to wander, Rainbow’s mind settled on a new topic. “Wonder how things are going with Fluttershy.”

“Wonder er worry?” Applejack smirked.

Rainbow sighed. “Could you really blame me if I said both? You already know how hard it is not to worry about her, and you don’t have the kind of history I do with her.”

Applejack’s smirk softened to a smile. “Ah know, it just ain’t like ya ta worry.”

“Well this is the first time she’s been hit on by somepony who mattered,” Rainbow insisted. “I mean, she shrugged off that mess with Thunderlane just fine, but that’s different. Thunderlane’s just a jerk, but Cheerilee means something to her.”

“What happened ta focusin’ on us today?” Applejack challenged.

Rainbow took a deep breath. “You’re right, I’m sorry… I guess I’m just a little nervous.”

“Nervous about tonight?” Applejack cocked a brow. “Rainbow, we’ve been rollin’ in the hay every day.”

Rainbow blushed. “Well, yeah, but that’s different. With sex, we can just do whatever and don’t have to worry about romance.”

Applejack frowned. “So yer sayin’ yer only gettin’ frisky with me ‘cause you think Ah’m sexy, not ‘cause ya like me?”

Rainbow recoiled. “What? No, that’s not what I’m saying at all!”

Applejack stopped in her tracks to fix her gaze firmly on Rainbow. She waited for Rainbow to stop before asking, “Then what are ya sayin’?”

Rainbow sighed. “Applejack, we already know that we really like each other. That’s why this all started. But now we’re going to really have to start thinking about stuff instead of just letting it happen. Doesn’t that make you at least a little bit nervous?”

Applejack remained silent for a few moments to formulate the most probing question. “What exactly haven’t you been thinkin’ about ‘till now?”

Rainbow hesitated. “Well, maybe that’s not the right word. There really hasn’t been anything I haven’t thought about. But we’re going to have to really do something about it now, and I don’t mean sex or kissing.”

“Care ta specify?” Applejack prompted.

“Well, you know…” Rainbow tried to insinuate.

Applejack held firm.

Rainbow sighed, finally relenting. “I’m talking about love, alright? Commitment. Things that are going to be hard for us.”

Applejack scrutinized Rainbow. “And why is commitment gonna be hard for us?”

Rainbow blinked. “Applejack, I got accepted into the Wonderbolts and have a month to decide what to do with the next ten years of my life.”

Applejack sighed, casting her head down.

Rainbow donned a sad smile as she threw a hoof around Applejack’s shoulders in comfort. “I wish it could be easier, too. All I want is to have more time to figure us out without anything bearing down our necks, but we can’t have that. The Wonderbolts don’t wait for anypony, and this is gonna be my one chance to get in. Is it really so bad to be nervous about who I’m going to be committing the rest of my life to?”

Applejack looked up at Rainbow with an expression of shock.

Rainbow chuckled. “Come on, AJ. You’ve gotta give me a little more credit than that.”

Applejack found herself unable to articulate words for several moments before she managed to speak again. “Rainbow, Ah really like you, but Ah’m just not ready ta start thinkin’ about marriage yet.”

Rainbow’s eyes threatened to pop right out of her head. “Wh-I-That’s not what I meant! I mean, yes, but… I can’t… I just meant whether I’m gonna be spending the next ten years with the Wonderbolts or with you on the farm.”

“Oh,” Applejack offered in response.

Rainbow averted her gaze from Applejack in an attempt to conceal her burning cheeks, but immediately wished she hadn’t. “Uh, Applejack?”

“What’s up, sugarcube?” Applejack attempted to ask casually.

Rainbow gulped. “We didn’t just have this conversation in the middle of the road, did we?”

Applejack’s limbs locked up, nearly sending her tumbling to the ground. Rainbow, however, reacted quickly enough to stop her fall. All too conscious of the stares following them, Rainbow led the rest of the way to Octavia’s house in silence.

As soon as the door cracked open in response to Rainbow’s insistent knocks, Rainbow, Applejack and Vinyl Scratch fell into a jumble of limbs on the welcome mat. Much to the relief of the former two mares, the door had somehow shut amidst the confusion.

Applejack helped Vinyl to her hooves before quietly taking her seat on the couch next to Rainbow Dash.

“Is everything okay?” Vinyl asked slowly.

“Just dandy!” Applejack answered.

“Except that me and AJ just damn near proposed to each other in the middle of Mane Street!” Rainbow added.

Vinyl blinked slowly. “I’m gonna go check on lunch now.”

Rainbow groaned, slumping onto Applejack’s shoulder. “Next time, could you please just let it go?”

“Ah reckon Ah heard all Ah needed and then some,” Applejack agreed.

“Of all the times to live in a small town,” Rainbow lamented.

Applejack blushed. “Ah’m sure there’ll still be a few ponies we can talk to.”

“And one in particular who’s gonna be all over us the minute we leave this house,” Rainbow added.

Applejack sighed. “Why do we keep doing this to each other?”

“Normally I’d make a joke about tough love, but I really don’t want to talk about love right now.”

Despite herself, Applejack could not contain a chuckle. That chuckle turned into a giggle, and before long, she found that she could not stop laughing. Rainbow couldn’t help but join in as all the tension in the room seemed to melt away.

“You do know we owe those ponies a show now tonight, don’t ya?” Applejack jested.

Rainbow snickered. “Just so long as you wait ‘till we make it home before we throw down.”

“Good thing the roads ain’t paved with hay,” Applejack giggled.

Rainbow cackled. “I’m not the only one who just got the idea to hide in a pile of hay in the barn for the night, am I?”

Applejack chortled. “Ah’m sure givin’ it a good romp will do wonders fer the flavor.”

“That is now my fetish,” Rainbow proclaimed.

In the kitchen, Vinyl and Octavia shared a few giggles of their own as they let their guests blow off some steam.





After a brief visit from the doctor, Scootaloo was given clearance to walk around the hospital, much to the delight of the Crusaders, and Scootaloo in particular.

Scootaloo stretched her limbs out, sighing in contentment. “Feels good to be out of that bed all day.”

“Hopefully we’ll get to take you home soon,” Sweetie Belle chirped.

“Still gonna be a while ‘fore you can get back to scooterin’, though.” Apple Bloom added.

“I’ll just be grateful to sleep in whoever’s house we go to,” Scootaloo chuckled. “We haven’t been to Sweetie’s house in a while.”

Sweetie Belle frowned. “Not since we got together.”

“Yer parents aren’t still mad at ya, are they?” Apple Bloom asked gently.

Sweetie Belle shook her head. “I don’t know. I hope not. But we’d probably be better off going to your place, Apple Bloom.”

“Don’t you miss sleeping in your own bed?” Scootaloo ventured.

Sweetie Belle blushed. “I’m happy sleeping wherever you two are.”

Apple Bloom smiled. “Well, ya have ta stand up to ‘em eventually. But we won’t rush ya.”

Scootaloo nodded. “We’re here for you, too, Belle.”

“Thanks, you guys,” Sweetie Belle said, giving each of them a nuzzle on their way out of the hospital room.

“So, where to, y’all?” Apple Bloom prompted.

Scootaloo’s stomach rumbled in answer. “Uh, I don’t know about you guys, but I’m still pretty hungry.”

“That’s great!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed. “I mean, both because it must mean you’re feeling better, and because I’m feeling pretty hungry, too.”

Apple Bloom chuckled. “Well, lead the way then, Sweetie Belle.”

“Oh, um, actually, I have no idea where the food court is,” Sweetie Belle revealed.

Scootaloo cocked her head. “Then where did you get that apple?”

“Uh, well, there was this food cart nearby, and um, I don’t actually have any money, so…” Sweetie Belle smiled nervously. “I may have just stolen it.”

Apple Bloom blinked. “Livin’ on the edge, Sweetie.”

“It was for a good cause!” Sweetie Belle argued. “Besides, it’s not like they saw me or anything. Magic’s good for that sort of thing.”

“Well, it can’t be too hard to find the food court, right?” Scootaloo supposed. “We just need to find one of those map things.”

Upon finding one such terminal a short ways from her room, Scootaloo scanned the map for the distinctive eating utensils that usually signified the food court of an establishment. “Okay, looks like it’s on the second floor. Where are we?”

Sweetie Belle indicated the red dot that held the words ‘You are here.’

“Oh, cool, we’re on the second floor!” Scootaloo cheered.

“Now we just have to figure out how ta get there from here,” Apple Bloom said, feeling as though she was playing one of those pencil maze games, only she didn’t have a pencil to mark her tracks.

“Couldn’t they make it a little less confusing? I mean, it’s not like you have to fit everypony in Ponyville in here,” Scootaloo grumbled, tracing a hoof along a possible path that lead to another dead end.

“And why are there so many bathrooms?” Sweetie Belle wondered. “I mean, I know they’re probably one-pony bathrooms so they don’t spread anything, but still.”

Scootaloo frowned. “Wait, why would having one pony at a time per bathroom make it so they don’t spread anything?”

“Well, it would limit the time the ponies would be in contact with each other,” Sweetie Belle explained.

“If there’s not a line, yeah,” Scootaloo supposed. “But it’s not like they clean the rooms between ponies or something, is it? I mean, if you have multiple stalls, then at least you’re not guaranteed to be sitting on the same toilet every single time.”

“Applejack told me that’s only a problem for ponies with certain kinds of conditions,” Apple Bloom cut in.

Scootaloo frowned. “So what, they have special bathrooms for those ponies or something?”

“That sounds like it would be really confusing,” Sweetie Belle agreed.

“Well, what in this place isn’t confusin’? We can’t even figure out how ta get to the food court!” Apple Bloom insisted.

“Wait, I think I found the way!” Scootaloo said, waving her free hoof. “Yes! Okay, I think I got it. Stay close so we don’t get lost.”

Sweetie Belle cheered while Apple Bloom followed along uncertainly. Wherever they ended up, it was going to be a miracle if they ever made it back.





“So, I take it we’ll be hearing about your shenanigans for the next few days,” Vinyl snickered as Applejack and Rainbow Dash sat themselves at the table.

Rainbow shrugged. “They can say whatever they want, because I’m pretty sure this was all an accident. No way am I thinking about marriage yet.”

“Well, maybe we should,” Applejack supposed. She continued at the raised eyebrow from Rainbow. “Ah mean, chances might be this is the last month Ah’m really gonna be able ta spend with you fer a long time.”

“AJ, come on, you know I’m not gonna just ditch you for the Wonderbolts.” Rainbow punched Applejack lightly in the shoulder. “I’m not the fastest flyer in the world for nothing, you know.”

“I don’t know, in my experiences, speed and endurance tend to clash,” Vinyl chimed in.

Rainbow frowned at Vinyl. “Shut up, Scratch.”

Vinyl held her hooves up in a pacifying manner, returning to her meal.

Applejack sighed. “You know Ah’ll support ya no matter what ya decide, Dash, but Ah can’t ask somethin’ like that of ya.”

Rainbow cocked a brow. “Why not? It’d probably help with my conditioning.”

“Ah don’t wanna see ya hurt yerself just fer me,” Applejack worried. “What would you want me to do if Ah found you passed out on the porch?”

“I’d want you to take me in and cuddle up next to me on the bed,” Rainbow answered with a smile.

“Wow, sappy much?”

Rainbow grit her teeth. “I thought I told you to shut up, Scratch.”

“Yes, please, Vinyl. Their situation is delicate enough without your snide remarks,” Octavia added.

Rainbow relaxed visibly. “Thanks, Tavi. And I wouldn’t just be doing this for you, AJ. I’d be doing it for us.”

Applejack smiled. “Yer real sweet, Rainbow.”

Rainbow smiled back, giving Applejack a nuzzle. “Only for you, AJ.”

“Now can we get to the lessons already?” Vinyl harped.

“Chillax, Scratch. We haven’t even eaten yet,” Rainbow placated.

Vinyl harrumphed. “Well hurry up.”

“Grumpy today, are we, Scratch?” Rainbow teased.

Vinyl frowned. “I’m not grumpy. I’m impatient.”

“Then perhaps a change of topic is in order,” Octavia suggested. “Now, what would be the best kind of topic to distract Vinyl?”

“Oh, I know!” Rainbow answered almost instantly. “If you could have a threesome with anypony in Equestria, who would it be?”

Vinyl scoffed. “That’s easy, I’d pick-“

Octavia blinked at Vinyl’s abrupt cut-off. “Who would you pick, dear? I promise I won’t be offended by your answer.”

Vinyl shook her head. “No, it’s… We just made up over something like this.”

Octavia frowned. “I would prefer you not keep secrets from me, Vinyl.”

“Alright, fine,” Vinyl groaned. “Just don’t be mad at me, please.”

“I already promised you that, Vinyl,” Octavia restated.

Vinyl sighed. “Lyra. Hooves down.”

Octavia cocked a brow. “I thought you said things didn’t work out between you.”

“They didn’t!” Vinyl insisted. “Well, I guess they kinda did for a while. But then I started thinking about you, and I just couldn’t believe how far I’d gone without you, and I hated myself for liking my time with her, but…”

Seeing Octavia unsatisfied, Vinyl turned her gaze to her hooves instead. “I know I’ve never really explained it that well. But I never loved her, and sometimes I even wondered if I liked her. But there was just something that always brought me back to her. I guess you could call it a love-hate relationship, except more lust than love. And I guess that lust never really went away.”

After Vinyl lapsed into silence at that admission, Octavia sighed, at last allowing some emotion back into her features. “Do you care about her more deeply than that?”

Vinyl closed her eyes. “Beyond a lingering feeling of sexual attachment, all I can ever see her as is a friend.”

“And what do you see me as?” Octavia prompted.

Vinyl opened her eyes and smiled. “I see you as a lot of things, Tavi. My lover, my best friend, my marefriend… But more than anything, Tavi, you’re the pony I love.”

Octavia let out a breath. “You’ve really become one complicated mare, Vinyl.”

“I’m not asking you to understand me,” Vinyl ventured, “just to love me.”

“You realize I take that as a challenge,” Octavia smiled.

Vinyl smiled back. “Didn’t expect anything less.”

“And that’s all of your secrets now?” Octavia inquired.

“And here I was thinking I’d get by without letting on my top secret wedding plans,” Vinyl jested.

Octavia chortled. “I take that as a yes.”

“Does that mean we’re married now?”

Octavia shoved Vinyl lightly before rethinking the motion and pulling her into a kiss. “One of these days, I’m going to figure out what to do with you.”

“A noble life goal,” Vinyl proclaimed. “I’ll have to come up with one of my own some time.”

Octavia smiled. “I love you anyway.”

“Well I love you always,” Vinyl retorted.

Octavia smirked. “I love you forever.”

“Then I love you five-ever.”

“And that’s why I love you,” Octavia concluded.

Vinyl cocked a brow. “Because I love you more?”

Octavia chuckled. “I meant because of your adorable grasp of grammar.”

“Oh. Well, I do,” Vinyl declared.

Having finished her meal, Rainbow turned her attention to Applejack. “So, how about you, AJ?”

Applejack blinked. “Beg pardon?”

“The question,” Rainbow reminded. “If you could have a threesome with anypony in Equestria, who would it be?”

Applejack frowned. “Ah don’t know, Rainbow. Ah guess that’s more your thing.”

“You mean you wouldn’t?” Rainbow cocked a brow.

Applejack shrugged. “Ah’m fine goin’ along with whatever you want.”

“So you wouldn’t enjoy a threesome?” Rainbow pressed.

“Of course Ah’d enjoy it,” Applejack assured. “Just, well, you’re really the only pony Ah’m attracted to. So Ah’d just go with whoever you choose.”

Rainbow frowned. “So just anypony, then?”

Applejack hesitated. “Well, Ah guess Ah would have ta keep some standards. Like, no relatives or nothin’.”

Rainbow chortled. “Aw, so the threesome with Braeburn is out of the question?”

Applejack cringed. “Of all ponies, ya had ta say Braeburn.”

“Well, he’s the only cousin of yours I know,” Rainbow shrugged.

“There’s Pinkie, too,” Applejack insisted.

“Oh, yeah,” Rainbow nodded. “Wait, what?”

“Ain’t important,” Applejack deflected. “Who’d be yer pick?”

Rainbow blinked. “Well, apparently Pinkie’s out of the question, then. Doesn’t really make it any easier, though. There are just so many ponies; I don’t know how I’d pick just one.”

“Then can Ah at least know who’s in the runnin’?” Applejack asked. “Gotta know what to expect and all.”

“Well, if we’re just talking about threesomes, then Trixie, obviously. And let’s see, there’s Spitfire and Daring Do and Twilight…“

“Twilight?” Applejack balked.

“Well, yeah. She’s got a pretty nice body for an egghead. And she did help us get together,” Rainbow explained.

“But why just her, and not any of our other friends, then?”

“Well, you just said no sex with relatives, and Rarity’s with Mac, so that rules out a foursome. Fluttershy would never agree to something like that, and rape is definitely not cool. Plus, Cheerilee’s like, older. And if Pinkie’s your cousin that rules her out, too.”

Applejack frowned. “Well, Ah guess so.”

“Besides, if Twilight and Trixie really do have a thing, that would be a killer foursome,” Rainbow added. “Wait, does it count if the other ponies are relatives, but not to either of us?”

Applejack thought for a moment. “Well, if they’re already goin’ at it themselves… Ah don’t know, it’d be kinda weird.”

“Fair enough,” Rainbow supposed

“So, that all the ponies on the list?” Applejack asked.

“Well, if we could ever track down Lightning Dust…” Rainbow smirked. “She’s pretty hot. Though if we were talking about foursomes, that’s a whole different story.”

“So fictional characters and possible relationships aside, that just leaves Spitfire and Lightning Dust,” Applejack concluded.

“Hey, Daring Do could be real,” Rainbow insisted. “I mean, who wouldn’t do somepony like that?”

“Somepony who isn’t daring enough to do her, obviously,” Vinyl chimed in.

Rainbow’s mouth drew a line. “Scratch, I don’t think I need to tell you how bad that was.”

Vinyl shrugged. “Hey, don’t name your character something suggestive, then.”

“Moving on,” Rainbow dismissed, “Spitfire would make for a pretty awesome threesome.  And Scratch, if you’re going to make a joke about how she’d be a hot buck, don’t.”

“Eh, it wouldn’t be funny anymore anyways,” Vinyl supposed.

“You sure she’s single?” Applejack ventured.

“Unless she’s really good at hiding it, yeah,” Rainbow confirmed. “Besides, I kinda saved her life that one time, so she owes me.”

“Ah’m sure she fantasizes about ya every night,” Applejack joked.

“Just as long as Soarin’ doesn’t,” Rainbow shuddered. “That would be creepy.”

“Soarin’s not that bad,” Vinyl countered.

“Have you ever been to a Wonderbolts airshow where a stallion did a flyby over your head? That was the first time I saw balls,” Rainbow quipped.

Applejack blinked slowly. “Well, how about Lightning Dust?”

Rainbow tilted her head. “I don’t know. She might hate my guts. But if she doesn’t…”

“So, not that this hasn’t been a riveting conversation, but I am getting rather eager to hear the story of how you two met.” Octavia cut in.

“It’s nowhere near as complicated as yers is,” Applejack warned.

“So, something that won’t leave us incapacitated afterward so we can actually do stuff?” Vinyl hoped.

“It’s not really all that interesting,” Applejack confirmed.

“Hey, it was plenty interesting!” Rainbow argued. “There just wasn’t any sex or anything.”

Applejack frowned. “We were ten, Dash. Of course there weren’t no sex.”

“So, anyway, it was a couple months since we got our cutie marks,” Rainbow began. “I got bored of school because it wasn’t teaching me anything about flying, which was stupid because I just got a cutie mark in that and nothing changed, and it was the last day anyway. So I decided to ditch school that day and go on an adventure instead.

“At some point, that lead me to Sweet Apple Acres. I’d always loved apples, so seeing that many got me really excited. I flew up to the most delicious-looking tree, ate all the apples on it, and fell asleep.”

“Only problem was that was the same day Ah was gonna start apple-buckin’,” Applejack picked up. “That was gonna be the first tree Ah ever bucked, ‘cept there weren’t no apples on it no more.”

Rainbow shrugged. “Hey, I had no idea they belonged to anypony. That was the first time I’d seen an apple tree up close.”

“Well, anyway, we had the spot all marked up, which mighta been why Rainbow was drawn to it.”





Applejack yawned, popping out of bed, grabbing her trusty new hat and racing downstairs. “Today’s the day, Mac! Ah’m gonna buck mah first tree!”

“Ho there, youngin’. You ain’t gonna do nothin’ ‘till ya’ve had yer breakfast,” Granny Smith called before Applejack could escape.

Applejack hung her head slightly and trotted over to the kitchen.

Big Macintosh was there to give Applejack’s mane a rustle. At least he would have if his hoof was not blocked by Applejack’s new headwear.

“Ha, you can’t do that no more, big brother. Ah’ve got protection now!” Applejack cheered.

“That what that is now?” Big Mac chuckled. “Ah know yer excited ‘bout today, but things are gonna be a little rough this year. Just gonna be us this time, so Ah’m gonna need yer help all summer, not just an afternoon.”

Applejack sighed and cast her eyes to the plate before her. “You sure we’re gonna be able ta do it all by ourselves?”

“Ain’t gonna find out just talkin’ about it. Now eat up so we can get goin’,” Big Mac said, excusing himself from the table.

As Applejack began to eat, Granny Smith sighed, rocking the crib of little Apple Bloom absently. “Ah know he looks fine, but he’s hurtin’ too, child.”





“Hurting about what?” Vinyl asked.

Applejack sighed. “That weren’t too long since Ma n’ Pa passed. It was a tough Applebuck Season, but we got through it just fine.”

Rainbow offered Applejack a supporting hoof until she recovered enough to continue.





The apple siblings came to Applejack’s designated tree to find it puzzlingly bare of apples.

Big Mac frowned. “That’s funny. Coulda sworn this tree was ripe an hour ago.”

“Maybe they’re just hidin’,” Applejack supposed.

“Ain’t ever heard of such a thing,” Big Mac grunted. “Now come on, we’ll just need ta find another tree fer you ta-“

“No! Ah don’t want another tree!” Applejack protested. “This is the first tree Pa bucked, the first tree you bucked, and dang if it ain’t gonna be the first one Ah buck!”

Before Mac could offer a retort, Applejack reared up and delivered a powerful kick to the storied trunk. Through the haze of her passion, she was barely able to make out the sound of something rustling in the branches.

“See? What’d Ah tell ya? They’re just hidin’!” Applejack proclaimed victoriously. “Just need one more buck ta-“

Before the apple siblings’ bewildered eyes, a spectacularly colorful pony fell from the branches and landed perfectly into the apple bucket face-first. Judging from the snore magnified by the acoustics of the bucket’s small confines, the pony was also spectacularly asleep.

“Maybe she’s the one who took all the apples!” Applejack concluded, stomping a hoof for emphasis. Tipping the bucket over so the rainbow-maned pegasus spilled out solved nothing, so Applejack lowered her mouth to the problem pony’s ear and shouted, “Wake up, ya thievin’ varmint!”

Rainbow Dash jolted awake, smacking her forehead painfully against Applejack’s and sending each of them tumbling in opposite directions. “Ow, what was-“

“Gimme back mah apples!” Applejack demanded.

Rainbow blinked. “Your apples? They were just sitting here in this tree!”

“So you did take ‘em,” Applejack accused.

“If by take you mean eat, then yeah,” Rainbow affirmed. “You got a problem with that?”

“Of course Ah do!” Applejack snapped. “You come inta my orchard, eat all the apples in the one tree Ah was gonna buck, and then ya have the nerve ta fall asleep in it! Ah don’t even know who you are!”

Rainbow grinned. “Name’s Rainbow Dash. Fastest filly in Equestria.”

Applejack snorted, unimpressed. “Oh, really? Then how come ya didn’t speed on outta here when ya had the chance?”

“Because naps take priority sometimes,” Rainbow shot back. “It’s not easy staying awesome all day. Why, what super amazing thing did you do to get a cutie mark like that?”

“Exactly what we’re talkin’ about,” Applejack boasted. “Me an’ mah brother run this here place. We own all these trees all around ya, and even the ground yer sittin’ on. We grow and harvest these here apples so we can sell ‘em at the market and feed our family. Ah don’t see yer family anywhere.”

“Of course you don’t, I live in the clouds,” Rainbow sneered. “So all you do is buck these trees all day, huh? That doesn’t sound so hard.”

Applejack bristled. “Oh yeah? Well why don’t you try it, featherbrain?”

“Maybe I will!” Rainbow retorted. “Watch and learn, apple girl.”

Mac spoke up apprehensively, “Wait, Ah don’t-“

Rainbow reared up in a display of a complete lack of proper technique before lashing out awkwardly with a single leg. Upon contact, Rainbow’s leg crumpled at an impossible angle, which Rainbow acknowledged with a howl of pain before collapsing to the ground, unconscious.

“What happened? What did she do?” Applejack fretted, examining Rainbow’s prone form.

“Ah’ll go get Granny, you stay here in case she wakes up,” Mac instructed.

Applejack nodded feebly.





“So wait, Applejack, does that mean Rainbow was your first buck in more ways than one?” Vinyl interrupted.

Applejack blinked. “Uh, Ah guess so…”

“And Applejack gave me my first broken bone,” Rainbow added.

Applejack chuckled. “First of many.”

Rainbow grinned. “Still counting.”





Rainbow opened her eyes blearily, slowly focusing upon a round, orange shape.

“Oh, thank Celestia you’re awake,” Applejack sighed in relief. “You really had me worried there.”

Rainbow blinked. “Wait, what? Where am I?”

“Yer in mah room,” Applejack explained calmly.

Rainbow recognized the face her vision settled upon. “You’re that girl from before. But why would you…?”

“Ah couldn’t just leave ya out there, now could Ah?”

“But all I did was cause problems and talk down to you, and now you bring me to your home?” Rainbow pressed, attempting to sit up.

Applejack’s hoof pushed Rainbow back down before she could tweak her injury. “You ain’t goin’ nowhere with that leg, sugarcube. Granny says you broke it pretty bad. Yer hooves looked awful, too; not just the one ya cracked. You don’t use ‘em much, do ya?”

Rainbow frowned. “Uh, no, I usually just fly everywhere.”

“Well, we trimmed ‘em down for ya,” Applejack informed. “Can’t imagine they weren’t hurtin’ somethin’ fierce.”

“Wait a minute, I was supposed to be in school today,” Rainbow remembered. “I should have been home by now. I can’t get stuck down here without telling my parents where I am.”

“Mac’s already got a letter written up if ya wanna add anythin’ to it,” Applejack answered. “We just gotta know where to send it.”

“Oh, I could just put the address on the envelope. But why would you go through all this trouble for me?”

Applejack chuckled. “’Cause Ah can tell we got off on the wrong hoof. And if yer gonna be stayin’ with us a few days, might as well make friends, right?”

Rainbow smiled. “I do really like apples. What’s your name, by the way?”

“Ah’m Applejack,” Applejack introduced herself. “Pleased ta meet ya, Rainbow Dash.”





“Aw, how cute,” Octavia chuckled at the completion of their tale.

“I still don’t buy that not ending in sex part,” Vinyl added.

“It did,” Rainbow defended, “just not for another eight years.”

Applejack chortled. “It was a good thing ya only broke one o’ yer legs, er ya mighta been around long enough fer that ta happen.”

Rainbow blinked. “You mean you were secretly fantasizing about me way back then?”

“No, Ah meant ya mighta stayed the whole eight years,” Applejack clarified. “We were just fillies, Rainbow. Ah didn’t even know what sex was.”

“So, if you had known, would you have done it with me?” Rainbow ventured.

Applejack frowned. “Rainbow, ain’t it enough we’re doin’ it now? Who knows what coulda happened?”

“You could have gotten bored and never approached each other romantically,” Octavia suggested.

“Ah don’t even know why we’re talkin’ about this anymore,” Applejack sighed. “Now can’t we just get on to what we came here for?”

“I don’t know, I think you’d have to set the mood first,” Vinyl jested.

“Ah meant the lessons, not the foursome!” Applejack insisted.

Vinyl grinned. “So, that is still on the table, then?”

“Yeah, but not today, Scratch,” Rainbow came to Applejack’s defense. “AJ and I were just gonna come here for our lessons before we hit the town tonight.”

“You mean you’re finally going to go on a proper date?” Octavia guessed.

Rainbow frowned. “I don’t know about proper, but yeah. It’s not like we’re putting on fancy dresses and going to eat at some snooty restaurant. I mean, not that it’s not a special occasion, it’s just that we really prefer not to get dressed up. We only really go along with that stuff when we’re in a group so we don’t stick out or anything. Peer pressure and all that stuff.”

“And Ah’d prefer ta eat somewhere portions are bigger ‘n a mouthful,” Applejack added. “But it’dbe nice not ta have to interrupt the night goin’ all the way home fer dinner.”

“So we’d probably stick to somewhere… normal,” Rainbow concluded.

Vinyl shrugged. “Fair enough. The living room fine for you, Tavi, or should we use the music room?”

“Wherever is fine,” Octavia smiled. “I rather enjoy watching you get worked up.”

“Cool, I was thinking you could help AJ out with her drums,” Rainbow put in.

Octavia cocked a brow. “I know nothing of percussion instruments. And I would say that Vinyl is the expert on hitting things in this house.”

“Well, yeah, but you’re an earth pony,” Rainbow continued. “So you have to hold that thing you use for your cello in your hooves. And Applejack’s gonna have to do that with her drumsticks, so…”

“Ah, it’s actually not as difficult as it looks,” Octavia explained. “And Applejack has a much larger area to grasp than I do. Really all you have to do is clutch it against your leg with your ankle.”

Reaching for said objects, Applejack attempted to pick them up in the manner Octavia described. It proved easy enough to hold just one. The problem was getting a grip on the second without losing her grip on the first. Applejack attempted this several more times before finally thinking to use her tail, completing her task with a satisfied grunt.

“Now the trick is to not grasp too tightly, so you can maneuver the sticks without dropping them,” Octavia coached.

It took Applejack a few tries, but she got the technique down. “Alright, what now? Don’t suppose you know anythin’ about drums, do ya, Vinyl?”

“I know the basics, but nothing advanced,” Vinyl explained. “You’d have to figure some of it out on your own.”

“It shouldn’t be that difficult,” Rainbow voted. “I mean, you already smack things for a living, and you’ve got your wood right there, and the sides are colored like apples.”

Applejack blinked. “Ah guess, but the only thing that comes outta these things is noise.”

“And the only thing you’d be using your back legs for is the bass drum,” Vinyl mentioned. “Still, I guess it’s sorta like bucking trees. In some weird kinda way that won’t really help us out.”

Rainbow shrugged. “Hey, I’m already using my wings to play. Figured there must be something Applejack can use.”

“It’s more about technique and precision than power, though,” Vinyl explained. “Speed, too, to some point. All you’d get from power is a busted drumhead or cracked cymbals.”

“But the harder you hit it, the louder the sound, right?”

“Playing loudly isn’t the same as playing well,” Vinyl frowned.

Octavia cocked a brow. “Which is precisely the reason you always play your music so loudly, yes?”

Vinyl bristled. “Hey, it’s easier to appreciate something if it’s louder, alright? It’s not like classical music where everything’s right there. There’s other stuff that’s harder to make out when it’s quiet.”

“Yes, I’m aware of how sound works, Vinyl,” Octavia quipped. “But there is a tolerable volume for everything that I believe should not be exceeded. Quite frankly I’m amazed that your ears have not ruptured from the abuse you subject them to.”

“Lucky for us drums have a built-in limit,” Vinyl grunted. “Well, unless you hooked them up to an amp, but that seems kinda… weird.”

“Redundant is the word you’re looking for, I believe,” Octavia chimed.

Vinyl was not listening as she went on, “I guess if the space was big enough it’d do something. But then you’d still hear the un-amped sounds if you were up close, and that’d be kinda weird. So then you’d have to do something to muffle that somehow…”

“Ah think we lost ‘er,” Applejack observed.

“You know, with a few modifications I think I could make this work,” Vinyl grinned. “Can I borrow this for a sec?”

Applejack could barely give a shaky assent before Vinyl seized her drums. “Ah never knew you were hoofy, Vinyl.”

“I’m not hoofy, I’m techy!” Vinyl called as she retreated upstairs. “There’s a difference!”

The unnecessarily-forceful shutting of a door signaled the start of a period of silence.

“Well, now what?” Rainbow spoke up.

Octavia sighed. “We’ll be lucky to see her before dinner time. I suppose I could offer Rainbow a bit of assistance with her form if nothing else. Standing on your hind legs can be difficult; especially without support. And you won’t be able to use your wings to stabilize you, either.”

“I’ve seen Lyra do it a few times,” Rainbow mentioned. “Never understood why; she can just use her magic to play her harp-thing.”

“It’s called a lyre,” Octavia informed. “Rather hard to forget.”

Rainbow cocked her head. “Wait, so is somepony who plays that called a lyrer?”

Octavia chuckled. “Humorous, but no; such ponies are called lyrists.”

“Aw, that’s boring,” Rainbow lamented.

“Well, somepony who plays a guitar is called a guitarist. How is that any different?” Octavia probed.

“It’s not; I wanna be a guitar…er... Okay that one sounds kinda dumb, but too many damn things are ists in music. There aren’t enough ers!” Rainbow complained. “Like AJ, she’s gonna be a drummer, not a drummist. I mean, think of the hilarious sounding possibilities. You could be a celler. That sounds amazing!”

“I’m sure the music industry would be captivated by your argument,” Octavia assured, unable to contain a giggle.

“Okay, I got it!” Vinyl cried triumphantly, charging back down the stairs.

Octavia blinked. “That was fast.”

“Try hitting it now,” Vinyl instructed.

Applejack tapped the snare drum gently, afraid of breaking it.

Vinyl smacked herself in the face. “Not like that. Harder!”

Applejack frowned, striking the drum with a bit more force. Where she would normally be rewarded by a light, cracking sort of sound, all that was heard was a muffled thump. “Ah don’t get it.”

“I stuffed it with packing peanuts,” Vinyl explained. “Not the best solution, but workable. Point is, it doesn’t make any sound, but it can still transfer an electrical signal. Which, when I plug it in here…” Vinyl produced what appeared to be a miniature amp and connected a wire that Applejack had not noticed into it. “Now try hitting it.”

Applejack repeated the motion. All mares assembled minus Vinyl jumped at the outburst of sound from a speaker that Vinyl had also managed to set up without anypony noticing. Vinyl, meanwhile, grinned at her success. “Now you can play the drums at whatever volume you want!”

Octavia put a hoof to her forehead in a gesture of exasperation. “Alright, first of all, Vinyl, how did you manage to find packing peanuts in the studio?”

“I didn’t; I had them in one of the bags,” Vinyl explained.

“And why did you bring packing peanuts with you?” Octavia inquired further.

“To make sure stuff didn’t get damaged on the way here, duh,” Vinyl answered smoothly. “Besides, you never know what kind of uses you can find for things.”

“So that’s why your old house was such a mess, then?”

Vinyl thought for a moment. “Well, that and I don’t clean very often.”

“So do you not clean because you can find uses for your trash, or do you find uses for your trash because you don’t clean?”

“Yes,” Vinyl answered confidently.

“A self-perpetuating problem at its finest, to be sure,” Octavia sighed, shaking her head slowly.

Vinyl blinked. “I have no idea what that means.”

“I’d hold it against you if you did,” Octavia returned.

Applejack, in the meanwhile, was staring at the snare drum in her hooves. “So, did ya wreck everything else, er what?”

Vinyl waved a hoof dismissively. “Nah, that was just a prototype. Had to make sure it worked before I did it again.”

Applejack grunted noncommittally, striking the drum again to test how easily her stick rebounded, with less than favorable results.

“It’s still in the testing phases,” Vinyl defended. “Anyway, I’ll go get my guitar so we can start.”





“We made it!” Scootaloo cheered, climbing up onto a chair and resting on the table before it.

From behind an empty counter nearby, a familiar pink mare popped up as all sorts of sweets appeared all around her. “Yay, I knew it!”

Apple Bloom blinked at Pinkie, who stayed in an exuberant pose. “Knew what now?”

“That you guys would find your way here, silly!” Pinkie explained. “You know, I was a little worried for a while, but I guess it is kinda easy to get lost in here. Anyway, I heard you guys were stuck in the hospital so I thought I could cheer you up by setting up a counter here! I tell you, though; the rates for this place are crazy.”

“So um, not that we’re not happy to see you, but uh… How did you know we’d be here?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“Everypony gets hungry eventually,” Pinkie giggled.

Scootaloo lifted her head from the table. “How long have you been here?”

Pinkie perked up. “Oh, since right about when you left your room. I saw Sweetie Belle take that apple, so I figured you guys must be hungry.” As Sweetie Belle’s eyes grew fearful, Pinkie suddenly appeared behind her to whisper, “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anypony.”

Sweetie relaxed visibly, hopping up to a chair next to Scootaloo, prompting Apple Bloom to do the same.

“So, wait, you know yer way around this place?” Apple Bloom inferred.

“You just have to know the shortcuts,” Pinkie nodded. “They don’t show up on the map.”

Scootaloo groaned. “Why do I get the feeling these shortcuts involve breaking down walls?”

Pinkie blinked. “Why would I break through a wall when I can just use the door? It’s a lot easier that way. And less expensive.”

Unable to offer a rebuttal, Scootaloo accepted Pinkie’s pastries gratefully.





After a brief reconnaissance mission that also involved the recovery and restoration of Applejack’s drum kit, the four mares reconvened in the living room.

“I never knew you could take the top off a drum before,” Rainbow commented. “That’d be a great place to stash stuff.”

“If ya always had the right tools at hoof, Ah guess.” Applejack tilted her head thoughtfully. “Sounds like a whole lotta trouble ta go through.”

“I didn’t mean like stuff we’d need often,” Rainbow clarified. “Just like… secret stuff.”

Applejack smirked. “Like yer secret collection of-“

“They don’t need to know about that!” Rainbow fervently interrupted. “And uh, yeah. That kind of secret stuff. Not like, you know, things we need to hide for uh, other reasons.”

“Gotta keep those in reach,” Vinyl snickered.

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Like you don’t.”

“Except I don’t hide them,” Vinyl teased. “Only ponies that come in our bedroom are me and Tavi. With perhaps a few special exceptions.”

“Aw, how cute, Vinyl thinks you two are special,” Octavia giggled.

Vinyl frowned and swatted a hoof at Octavia, who dodged the feeble attempt at attacking. “You shut up and let me teach.”

“Certainly not the first demand I would expect from you,” Octavia commented.

Rolling her eyes and noticing that Rainbow had successfully affixed her wing-picks, Vinyl hefted her own guitar. “Alright, now you’ll be using a bit of a different technique than I do, but I can still teach you a few things. You’ll obviously be able to play a lot faster than I can once you get the hang of it, but you’ll probably have a bit of trouble with things like pick-slides.”

“That’s where you take the pick and slide it down a string, right?” Rainbow asked. “Why can’t I just do that with all the strings at once?”

Vinyl frowned. “Because that would probably sound terrible. But what you could do is use your hoof for things like that. Not that you’ll be doing that too often, anyway. You’ll mostly just be using your wings.”

“You mean both?” Rainbow cocked a brow.

“Well, yeah, unless you find it easier to fret with your hoof,” Vinyl clarified. “I always just use magic for that; it’s too hard to fret just one string with hooves. Ankles don’t really bend like that. Also kinda hard to fit them between frets.”

Rainbow blinked. “Why are we worrying about strings?”

Vinyl’s hoof met her face. “You spend way too much time around Applejack.”

“I do not!” Rainbow argued.

Applejack chuckled.

“It’s a different kind of fret.” Vinyl indicated one with her hoof. “These metal strips here, on the fretboard. That’s kinda why they call it that. They’re pretty much just guides to help you play chords right. You hold the string against one of them to change the pitch. The closer to the base, the higher it goes.”

Rainbow experimented with a few different frets on different strings before she noticed Vinyl frowning. “Am I doing something wrong?”

“No, but your guitar is way out of tune,” Vinyl grunted. “Give it to me and I’ll fix it for you. You’ll develop an ear for it eventually.”

While Vinyl was occupied, Rainbow studied Vinyl’s guitar. “This the same model as mine?”

“A Bitson Les Pone, yeah,” Vinyl answered distractedly. “Good thing, too; probably woulda turned you away if you came in here with anything less than a Bitson.”

Rainbow blinked. “I didn’t know there was that much of a difference.”

“Bitson’s the only decent make,” Vinyl indoctrinated, returning Rainbow’s guitar. “Never owned anything else.”

“Then how do you know it’s the best?” Rainbow pressed.

Vinyl snorted. “Only thing that felt right in my hooves.  Don’t even know why music shops carry other makes.”

“It all comes down to personal preference, Vinyl,” Octavia chided. “You’d complain if there wasn’t a choice.”

“Yeah, ‘cause I wouldn’t know if it could be done better,” Vinyl harped. “Now I know who does it best, so the other ones can go away.”

Octavia sighed. “You’re impossible to argue with sometimes.”

“That means I always win,” Vinyl boasted.

Octavia chortled. “I said sometimes, dear, not always.”

Applejack sighed, content to watch as the session devolved into drivel. Casting a glance to her drum kit, she figured there couldn’t be too much to learn about the rhythmic smacking of objects anyway. Practice would probably be enough.

Seeing Rainbow so engaged in something that wasn’t flying brought a smile to Applejack’s lips. It seemed they could finally share a hobby that didn’t end at each other’s throats, or more recently between their legs.

Applejack shook her head slowly at that thought. If things went well tonight, that list would be sure to grow. Now if only there were some way she could use Rainbow’s competitiveness to her advantage...

“How am I doing it wrong? It sounds exactly the same as what you’re doing!” Rainbow’s voice broke through Applejack’s thoughts.

“I already told you that you’re flat, now try again!” Vinyl commanded.

Rainbow grunted, playing the same sequence of chords again.

Applejack recognized the tune as something her father used to play for her at bedtime. Sighing wistfully, Applejack intoned, “And she’s buying a stairway to Cloudsdale…”

Vinyl blinked. “You know this song, Applejack?”

Applejack nodded. “It was one of mah Pa’s favorites.”

Rainbow’s hoof shot to Applejack’s shoulder and pulled her closer.

“I’m sorry, we can play something else if you want,” Vinyl offered.

Applejack shook her head. “It’s alright. Just weren’t expectin’ ta ever hear it again.”

Rainbow’s hoof remained firmly around Applejack as they continued. Applejack found it hard to complain as she nuzzled into the crook of Rainbow’s neck. This was the kind of unquestioning support Applejack had always loved Rainbow for. And now as that love was starting to become more than just platonic, it made it ever sweeter.





Rarity sighed as she entered the Apple family farmhouse, where she was greeted by her coltfriend.

“Hey, Rare,” Mac smiled. “How’d things go with Fluttershy?”

“Well enough, I suppose,” Rarity returned. “She seems to be getting very attached to me. But she also made me think about us.”

Mac blinked, his throat catching briefly. “Nothin’ bad, Ah hope?”

Rarity was quick to calm the big stallion with a kiss. “No, of course not. Though I do believe we should back off a little.”

“What do ya mean?” Mac questioned, fears resurfacing.

Rarity averted her gaze for a moment. “Well, I realize now that I haven’t really been thinking things through very well. I care about Fluttershy very much, but I’ve already committed so much to you in so short a time, and I don’t want her to get the wrong idea. But I also don’t think I’m quite ready to share what I have with you with her.”

Mac smiled in understanding. “Ya mean sex, don’cha?”

Rarity nodded. “And I’m not sure I was ready to share that with you, either. So perhaps when we’re all ready, the three of us can explore this together.”

Mac chuckled. “Yeah, maybe we did go a little fast.”

“Not to say that I didn’t enjoy it,” Rarity was quick to amend. “But perhaps Fluttershy’s innocence is helping me keep my lust in check.”

“She came onta ya, didn’t she?” Mac inferred.

Rarity nodded slowly. “So I hope you don’t mind that I sleep in my own bed tonight?”

“Whatever ya gotta do, Rare,” Mac accepted. “Maybe someday we’ll all end up sleepin’ at Fluttershy’s.”

Rarity smirked. “So long as her animal friends don’t mind the disturbance.”

Mac shook his head slowly, offering Rarity a kiss before she departed.





“Alright, so you just practice that song and I’ll measure your progress when we get back from Canterlot,” Vinyl instructed.

“Perhaps you could join us tomorrow night,” Octavia offered. “Though we only have one room booked.”

Vinyl grinned. “I know where this is going.”

Octavia rolled her eyes.

Rainbow turned to Applejack. “Whaddya think, AJ? Might be kinda fun.”

Applejack tilted her head thoughtfully. “Well, we’re already ahead o’ schedule. Though Ah think it’s gettin’ ta be our turn ta run the stand.”

“So we could just get Mac to cover another day and add another to our stint,” Rainbow solved. “He doesn’t mind it that much, does he?”

Applejack shrugged. “No harm in askin’, Ah guess.”

“Yep, definitely know where this is going,” Vinyl affirmed, kicking back in her seat.

Octavia gave Vinyl a playful smack. “Not everything has to end in sex, Vinyl.”

“Maybe if she’s good,” Applejack chuckled.

Vinyl grinned. “Score!”

“Yeah, this should be a fun couple of days,” Rainbow said, giving Applejack a grateful nuzzle.

“That goes fer you, too, y’know,” Applejack challenged.

Rainbow chortled. “Please, AJ, when am I not good?”

Applejack smiled and head-butted Rainbow’s chest.  But before she could make a victorious retreat, Rainbow’s hooves came up to lock her in place. “Gotta do better than that, AJ.”

Applejack smirked, reaching out to kiss the ticklish spot under Rainbow’s chin. The brief giggle that came from Rainbow gave her all the time she needed to make her advance, locking her lips around Rainbow’s and waiting for her grip to weaken under her tongue’s assault.

Rainbow held on for as long as she could, but could not contain the desire to grab the back of Applejack’s neck and pull her closer. That briefest of instants was enough for Applejack to slip away, causing Rainbow’s hooves to instead grasp Applejack’s hat.

With a grin concealed by the Stetson on her muzzle, Rainbow held the hat behind her back. “Ha, it’s a hostage situation now!”

Applejack frowned. “You give that back. It ain’t sexy time yet.”

“So you’re saying all I have to do is wear your hat and I can be on top whenever I want?” Rainbow teased.

Applejack smirked, grabbing the hat out of Rainbow’s hooves with her tail, which she had been sneaking behind her quarry. “Only if ya think ya can keep it.”

Rainbow narrowed her eyes. “You are so on tonight.”

“Wouldn’t have it any other way, sugarcube,” Applejack chuckled, giving Rainbow a peck on the cheek.

“So it’s all about who wears the hat in your relationship, huh?” Vinyl piped up.

Rainbow frowned at Vinyl. “Scratch, how many times do I have to tell you to shut up?”

“As many as it takes for me to listen, Dash,” Vinyl grinned defiantly.





Scootaloo collapsed back on her hospital bed, legs aching. “Who knew a day of rest would make walking so hard?”

“Ah think ya can blame the hospital fer that,” Apple Bloom quipped, heaving herself onto the bed.

“It doesn’t even look that big from the outside,” Sweetie Belle complained.

“Well, as weird as her shortcuts were, I don’t think we’d have even made it back without Pinkie,” Scootaloo sighed. “I just hope it’s a bit easier to get out when it’s time to go home.”

“Er at least make it so we don’t have to cut through any operatin’ rooms,” Apple Bloom put in.

“Please don’t say cut,” Sweetie Belle groaned.

Scootaloo shivered. “You’re not the one who had it done to you.”

Sweetie Belle was quick to offer a comforting hoof. “Sorry.”

“They got ‘em all back to normal, though, right?” Apple Bloom asked.

Scootaloo nodded. “I think so. I might have to come back to take off the casts, but hopefully nothing else.”

“You think they’ll let you leave soon? I mean, you’re back to walking and everything,” Sweetie Belle hoped.

“We’ll have to ask the doc,” Scootaloo sighed. “Whenever he comes back around to check on me, anyway.”






Rainbow stretched out on the porch while she waited for Applejack. She felt a great deal of satisfaction about the fact that they’d finally have some proper time off together.

Applejack joined Rainbow shortly with her saddlebag. “Ready ta go?”

“We’ve got the whole rest of the day to ourselves. What do you wanna do?” Rainbow deferred.

“Well, we’ve gotta have dinner at some point. Other ‘n that Ah was thinkin’ a nice walk in the park, maybe hit up that arcade…”

Rainbow grinned. “Sounds pretty good to me. You do realize though that we’re probably gonna attract a lot of attention in the park, though.”

Applejack chuckled. “No harm in that, is there? Ain’t like ponies will think yer goin’ soft.”

“If anypony says anything, I have no problems with tossing you onto a bench and making out in public,” Rainbow smirked. “’Cause if we’re gonna be kissing, we’re gonna be doing it the cool way.”

“As long as ya don’t lose yer head,” Applejack cautioned.

Rainbow snorted. “Like I’d go down on you in public. What kind of mare do you take me for?”

“One with confusin’ standards,” Applejack answered.

Rainbow shrugged. “Gotta keep up my image is all.”

Applejack rolled her eyes and led Rainbow down the road to Ponyville.





Just as Scootaloo was about to fall back to sleep, a knock came at the door. “Come in,” she called, rubbing her eyes.

The doctor appeared at last to check up on his patient. “Good afternoon, Scootaloo. How are you feeling today?”

“A lot better than yesterday,” Scootaloo yawned. “Been able to walk around and stuff. Appetite’s back, too. We went to the food court a little while ago. Kinda tired after that, though.”

The doctor hummed thoughtfully. “Well, that bodes quite well. I dare say you’re well on your way out of here. But just as precaution, I’d like to keep you here another night before we let you go.”

Sweetie Belle perked up. “You mean we can go home tomorrow?”

The doctor blinked. “You can go home whenever you like. There’s nothing keeping you here.”

Sweetie Belle frowned, shuffling closer to Scootaloo. “Yes there is.”

“We ain’t leavin’ ‘till she does,” Apple Bloom agreed.

“Of course,” the doctor smiled. “There’s also somepony here to see you. I’ll bring her in shortly.”

Scootaloo smiled back. “Thanks, Doc.”

The doctor chuckled. “Please, call me Doctor Stable.”

Sweetie Belle blinked after the door swung closed. “Was… that supposed to be a pun?”

Apple Bloom shrugged. “Sounds normal enough to me.”

Scootaloo groaned. “Just stop, please.”

The door cracked open again before a purple unicorn filly popped in. “Oh my gosh, Scoot, are you alright?”

Scootaloo grinned. “Oh, hey Dink. Where were you yesterday?”

Dinky blushed. “Oh, I was just uh, sleeping over at Rumble’s, so I didn’t even hear about what happened until today.”

“I’m fine, by the way. Doctor Stable says I should be able to go home tomorrow,” Scootaloo informed. “No idea how long until my wings heal, though.”

Dinky sighed in relief. “That’s good.”

Scootaloo smirked. “So, a sleep over, huh? Anything big happen over there?”

“N-no!” Dinky defended, blushing furiously. “I mean, not what you’re thinking. Of course we, um, slept together and everything.”

The brows of the three fillies on the hospital bed rose.

“Not like that!” Dinky insisted. “I just meant in the same bed. You know, so we could um, cuddle and stuff.”

Scootaloo cackled. “Oh mare you’ve got it bad for him, don’t you?”

“M-maybe,” Dinky admitted. “But what about you? Sleeping with two fillies at the same time?”

“Believe me, I’ve had that talk with them,” Scootaloo quipped, looking to each side of her. “But we’ve still got a ways to go before that’s on the table.”

“Mah sister said these kinda things take time,” Apple Bloom put in.

Scootaloo snickered. “Yeah, ‘cause there’s absolutely no way Rainbow’s already gotten that far, right?”

“But they’re older,” Sweetie Belle piped up. “They can do that kind of stuff without getting in trouble.”

“We’re just too young,” Apple Bloom concluded.

Scootaloo smiled. “I know, it’s just too fun to tease you guys. Like I said, I’m not ready, either. If you want me to stop, I will.”

Sweetie Belle sighed. “We really shouldn’t be worrying about that just yet.”

“Yeah, it’d be nice if you could just lay off a little,” Apple Bloom agreed. “Ah know yer excited about our cutie marks; Ah am, too. But that ain’t enough fer right now, alright?”

Scootaloo nodded. “Sorry.”

Sweetie Belle smiled. “It’s okay, Scoot. We just don’t want anything to happen before we’re ready.”

“Just like our flanks say, Scoot; we’re in this together,” Apple Bloom added.

Dinky blinked. “Wait, what?”

Scootaloo brightened. “Oh yeah, you won’t believe this. Check it out!”

Scootaloo turned sideways, prompting Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom to do the same. Dinky could do nothing but stare at the marks emblazoned there.

“Pretty cool, huh? I guess it was the kind of wake-up call we needed to start thinking straight,” Scootaloo said with no small amount of pride in her chest. “I guess we can thank Apple Bloom for the awesome design.”

Apple Bloom blushed. “Ah really never expected it to mean so much back then. Ah just figured it’d be neat to have a logo. Sweetie Belle’s the one who put it on our capes.”

Sweetie Belle smiled bashfully. “I just thought it’d be cool if we could hang something like that over our flanks.”

“And capes are awesome,” Scootaloo praised. “Though I guess it’d be kind of weird to wear them now.”

Dinky chuckled, finally recovering from the shock. “Well, I guess that’s one less thing I can tease you about. Congrats, you guys.”

“Thanks,” the three fillies said in unison.

“I’ve gotta get home soon, though,” Dinky said regretfully. “So I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Of course,” Scootaloo grinned. “Don’t have too much fun without me.”

“You know I will,” Dinky said with a wave before closing the door behind her.

Scootaloo leaned back and sighed. “Well, I think I’m about ready for a nap.”

“We ain’t stoppin’ ya,” Apple Bloom chuckled, giving Scootaloo a peck on the cheek. “Sweetie Belle and Ah can find somethin’ ta do.”

A glance over to the aforementioned unicorn filly, however, revealed her to have taken her own initiative, signified by a light snore.

“Well, Ah can find somethin’ ta do,” Apple Bloom amended.

Scootaloo smiled tiredly, pulling Apple Bloom down on top of her in a hug before falling into a contented sleep.

Apple Bloom sighed, not seeing many other options. Securing herself with her hooves so she wouldn’t roll off onto Scootaloo’s wings, she nestled her head into the crook of the pegasus’ neck and waited for the embrace of sleep to take her.





Applejack and Rainbow Dash paused as they reached the town square. “Alright, where to first?” Rainbow asked.

Applejack took a quick look at the clock tower. “Well, we’ve still got a couple hours ‘till sundown, so how’s about we head on over to the arcade, grab some dinner, and end with that walk in the park?”

Rainbow shrugged. “Sounds good to me.”

As Rainbow turned to lead Applejack in the direction of the said establishment, however, a particular pair of ponies caught her eye. Turning a corner to head in the same direction were the romantically involved twin sisters, Flitter and Cloudchaser.

Rainbow caught up to them. “Hey you guys. Nice to see you taking some initiative.”

Cloudchaser blinked. “Oh, hey Rainbow Dash. And what do you mean by that?”

Rainbow frowned. “You’ve got your wing around Flitter’s back.”

Cloudchaser jumped, quickly retracting the appendage and hoping nopony else had noticed. “Oh, I uh, that wasn’t really…”

“So, you two get things figured out yet?” Applejack asked.

Flitter giggled. “I think I still have a bit more work to do, but it’s nice that I’ve at least been able to get her out of the house.”

“Well, there aren’t any other ponies at home,” Cloudchaser defended. “So we can just do whatever and not worry about being seen and recognized.”

“It’s not a crime to love a sibling in Ponyville,” Flitter pointed out. “And even back in Cloudsdale it’s only a misdemeanor.”

“Doesn’t mean ponies won’t get on our case about it,” Cloudchaser grumbled.

“So, Twilight come by to bug you guys yet?” Rainbow inquired.

Flitter furrowed her brow. “Why would she do that?”

“She’s not gonna put some kind of royal judgment on us, is she?” Cloudchaser fretted.

Applejack chuckled. “Naw, she’s just been away fer a few days, so she missed a lot of what’s goin’ on. Kinda surprised she hasn’t tracked you down yet. Sounds like the kinda thing that’d jump out.”

“Well, she’s got Trixie to deal with,” Rainbow supposed. “And she always tries to put friends first anyway. You guys have hardly even talked to her before.”

“But she ain’t gonna be judgin’ you in any way,” Applejack assured. “She’s just curious is all, so try ta humor her.”

Cloudchaser nodded. “Well, thanks for the heads-up. I’m sure with her kind of knowledge she could be on us pretty quick.”

“And I wouldn’t worry too much about ponies giving you a hard time,” Rainbow added. “Ponies are pretty chill here for the most part. Well, barring any imminent disaster, anyway.”

“Just don’t go rubbin’ it in anypony’s faces that yer sisters,” Applejack coached. “Just act like anypony else on a date and you should be fine.”

“Good to know,” Flitter smiled. “I was a little worried I might have to back off in public.”

Cloudchaser shied away as Flitter attempted to give her a kiss, however. “I don’t think I’m ready for that just yet, though.”

Flitter rolled her eyes with that smile still on her face. “Just don’t keep me waiting too long.”

“I promise, as soon as I’m comfortable I’ll be all over you, alright?” Cloudchaser offered.

“I can hardly wait,” Flitter chirped.





Rarity looked up as her work was disrupted by a gentle knock on the door. Hardly needing to open in to know who had come to visit, Rarity smiled and turned to greet her guest. “Fluttershy dear, do come in.”

Fluttershy nudged the door open and took a look around the room, noticing the various fabrics scattered around. “Oh, um, is this a bad time?”

“Of course not,” Rarity assured. “I can always make time for a dear friend.”

Fluttershy shuffled her hooves nervously. “Well, um… I just came to say that… About all this… you really don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

Rarity chuckled. “Nonsense, darling. I just had a talk a while earlier with Mac, and he’s agreed to give us the space we need to make up for lost time. I promise that you can have me to yourself for as long as you want.”

Fluttershy blinked. “You mean to catch up to where you are with Mac?”

Rarity nodded.

“And that includes…?” Fluttershy prompted, a blush rising to her cheeks.

“Whatever you want it to,” Rarity offered. “I want you to feel that you’re just as important to me as Mac before we move on with the three of us together.”

“And you’re not going to try to push me off on Cheerilee anymore?” Fluttershy ventured.

Rarity sighed. “I never meant it like that, Fluttershy. I just wanted to make sure you were making the right decision. I know how easy it is to get caught up in fanciful thoughts of the perfect romance and lose sight of who is really important to you.”

“I told you that Cheerilee is just a friend,” Fluttershy insisted. “And I’d appreciate it if you’d stop treating me like a filly with her first crush.”

“All I’m asking for you to do is talk to her. Leading somepony on is far worse than turning them down.” Rarity advanced to put a hoof against Fluttershy’s cheek. “I’m just trying to give you options.”

Fluttershy sighed, nuzzling against Rarity’s hoof. “We both have ponies we need to talk to. Or in your case a dragon.”

“I’m not sure what more I have to do to put your heart at ease,” Rarity lamented.

Fluttershy smiled, fighting a rising blush. “Well, a kiss would be nice.”

Rarity smiled back and pressed her lips to Fluttershy’s. This time, when Fluttershy made to push her onto her couch, Rarity did not resist, opening her mouth to accept the advances of Fluttershy’s tongue.

Rarity winced as she felt herself becoming aroused. But when she opened her eyes, the only indication that Fluttershy had noticed was a burning redness in her cheeks. She made no motion to act on impulse, merely pouring out her affection through their kiss.

Satisfied, Rarity closed her eyes and pulled Fluttershy closer. But as Fluttershy began to inch up Rarity’s chest, an intimate touch to a sensitive area made Fluttershy jump, breaking the kiss and fervently apologizing.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to do that, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for that to happen, I’m sorry, please don’t be mad at me, I’m sorry!” Fluttershy rambled, looking anywhere but at Rarity.

Rarity sat up, conscious of the position she had been in. Hiding her excitement behind her hooves, Rarity sighed. “That’s alright, Fluttershy. I probably should have expected something like that to happen. I really don’t mean to tease you. I just wanted to…”

Fluttershy took a deep breath in an attempt to calm her pounding heart. “I should probably go before I do something I’ll regret.”

Rarity frowned slightly in disappointment, silently cursing herself for ruining such a moment. “Well, know that my door is always open to you, Fluttershy.”

Fluttershy nodded, slowly making her way to the door on shaky hooves. Rarity fought against the desire to call back the retreating pegasus before coming to a decision.

“Fluttershy, wait,” Rarity spoke just before Fluttershy’s hoof could reach the doorknob.

Fluttershy cast a wary eye to Rarity.

Taking a deep breath, Rarity relaxed her stance. “If it really does mean so much to you… I suppose I could-“

“You don’t have to do that for me, Rarity,” Fluttershy interrupted with a small smile. “The timing’s all wrong, anyway. I’d much rather be coming home from a great night out before this comes up again.”

Rarity smiled back, feeling her heart start to ache for Fluttershy’s inevitable departure. “I do have that special booth at Horté’s Cuisine.”

“Not tonight,” Fluttershy declined. “You’ve already done so much for me today.”

“You really know how to turn the tables on me,” Rarity giggled.

Fluttershy laughed. “Only because I know you so well.”

“The offer’s open whenever you might want to take me up on it.”

“How does tomorrow night sound?” Fluttershy suggested.

Rarity smiled. “Like a wonderful first date.”

Fluttershy hesitated at the doorway. Taking a step back, she gave Rarity a kiss on the tip of her horn. Rarity had to suppress an outburst at the touch. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Now you run along before I do something I’ll regret,” Rarity chirped.

Fluttershy giggled, giving a little wave before making her exit.

Rarity let out a tremendous sigh as she lay back on her couch. “Perhaps I really should just let it happen,” she mused, waiting for her arousal to subside before returning to her work.





“Here we are, AJ.” Rainbow indicated the sign above the building that left no room for misunderstanding. “This place is awesome, come on.”

Applejack followed Rainbow through the double doors to lay eyes on an astonishing number of arcade consoles. She had of course heard of such places, but she never thought they were quite so developed. “Just how many of these games are there?”

“Lots! Of course, none of them are as awesome as Hooflet, but some of them get more attention anyway. Like Pac-Mare, Donkey King, Moon Invaders… Hooflet never gets enough credit.”

“If this is one of the smaller ones, then what’s the one in Canterlot like?” Applejack mused.

“Well, we’re probably gonna have a bit of free time before Vinyl and Tavi’s show tomorrow. We could probably go check it out,” Rainbow suggested. “But while we’re here we might as well…”

Applejack frowned as Rainbow trailed off. “Might as well what?”

Rainbow blinked several times before speaking again. “Is that… Bulk Biceps over there?”

Applejack followed Rainbow’s gaze and saw that tucked away in a corner was the stallion in question, hunched over an arcade console.

“And he’s playing Ms. Pac-Mare?” Rainbow observed.

“You never seen him around here before?” Applejack asked.

Rainbow paused. “Well, sometimes he comes by to pick up his little brother, but I’ve never seen him actually playing anything before.”

Applejack blinked. “But wasn’t Featherweight over there playin’ with the colt with the silly hat?”

Rainbow shrugged. “He can get a little distracted sometimes. Besides, doesn’t look like Featherweight’s too eager to leave anyway. He and Button are pretty deep into that Wizard of Horse game.”

“That anythin’ like Hooflet?” Applejack asked.

“Kinda, but it’s annoying to play solo,” Rainbow answered, continuing on her way deeper into the arcade. “Of course, there is another reason Featherweight probably doesn’t want to leave yet.”

Applejack cocked her head. “What’s that?”

Rainbow snickered. “I’m telling you right now, Featherweight totally has a crush on Button.”

Applejack blinked, casting her gaze back to the two colts. “Ain’t they a little young ta know about that kinda stuff?”

“They’re the same age as the Crusaders,” Rainbow pointed out. “Besides, Featherweight’s probably subjected to that a lot already with how ragingly gay Bulk is.”

Applejack paused. “You think so?”

“Pretty sure no straight stallion would do half the things he does,” Rainbow confirmed. “Anyway, here we are. The most awesome part of any arcade.”

Applejack chuckled as Rainbow touched the Hooflet console with reverence. “Really that great, huh?”

“Hay yeah! I mean, next to the Wonderbolts and Daring Do…” Rainbow hesitated. “Okay, maybe not quite on that level. But still awesome!”

“Ah think we’re fergettin’ somethin’, though,” Applejack mentioned.

Rainbow blinked. “Huh?”

Applejack indicated the coin slots. “Says here this thing takes tokens to play.”

“Oh, yeah, there’s a machine for that over this way,” Rainbow explained, following the familiar path from the console to the token dispenser.

Applejack sized up the machinery. “How many ya think we’ll need?”

Rainbow thought for a moment. “Well, I’ve never played with anypony else, so I don’t know how much competition there’d be for food. I’d say just start with five bits; you get four tokens per bit so that’s twenty tokens.”

Applejack nodded, reaching into her saddlebag. “Sounds reasonable enough.”

“It takes a bit to get used to, so just to be safe.” Rainbow turned and led the way back to the Hooflet machine.

“Make this walk pretty often, don’t ya?” Applejack observed.

Rainbow shrugged. “Not as much anymore. The better you get, the less you need.”

Applejack frowned. “Is Hooflet the only game ya play?”

“Usually, yeah.” Rainbow admitted. “I don’t always have a whole lot of time to spend here, so it’s good to have something to just jump in and out of.”

Applejack nodded as she fit a token into the first slot. Rainbow did the same for the fourth. The corresponding characters, the earth pony and the pegasus, appeared on the screen.

“Alright, now how do you play this thing?” Applejack asked.

“You use the stick there to move, the fire button to shoot and the magic button to use a potion,” Rainbow instructed. “You need to get a potion before you can do that, obviously.”

Applejack nodded, testing each button before charging headlong into a row of enemies.

“I’ve not seen such bravery!” A robotic voice emanated from the machine.

Applejack blinked, looking around her. “Who said that?”

“That’s the narrator, from the game,” Rainbow explained. “It’s commending you for that risky move you just pulled.”

Applejack frowned. “Risky how?”

“You can attack from a range, and most of the enemies can’t,” Rainbow explained. “So it’s usually better to stay back so you don’t risk losing health.”

“Alright then.” Applejack waited while Rainbow dispatched another monster spawn point.  “So, where’s this little black spot go?”

“To the next level.”

“And how many levels are there?”

Rainbow hesitated, “Uh, nine-hundred ninety-nine?”

Applejack blinked. “And you said you beat all of ‘em?”

“Maybe,” Rainbow defended unconvincingly.

“You ain’t gonna make me sit here fer all that, are ya?” Applejack questioned.

Rainbow waved a hoof. “Nah, just until we get bored. That’s how it’s supposed to go, anyway. When you clear level nine-hundred ninety-nine it just loops back to level eight.”

Applejack frowned. “Why eight? Wouldn’t it make more sense ta go back to one?”

Rainbow shrugged. “Well, the first few levels have a bit of a tutorial in them, so I guess they didn’t want to program that out. Probably never expected anypony to get that far anyway.”

Applejack paused, scanning the screen for the pegasus. “Where’d you go?”

“To the next level, through the black spot there,” Rainbow said, indicating it on the screen.

“Oh.” Applejack followed along.

“So, here’s where its starts to get interesting,” Rainbow commented. “No more straight hallways here.”

“Earth pony shot the food,” the game said.

Rainbow furrowed her brow. “Why would you do that?”

“Ah didn’t know that would happen!” Applejack defended. “How was Ah supposed to know you could kill food in this game?”

“It’s because it was a pear, wasn’t it?” Rainbow snickered.

“Ah- That may er may not have factored inta the decision,” Applejack admitted.

Rainbow giggled. “You’re so easy, AJ.”

“You have found my treasure,” the robotic voice sounded.

“Why is there a little number on the top of the screen?” Applejack asked.

“Because we’re timed while we’re in here,” Rainbow explained. “And you don’t have to follow me in here. If we spread out we can find more treasure.”

“But what happens if we run outta time?”

“Then we lose the treasure we got in here, so we just have to grab treasure and find an exit before that happens,” Rainbow explained in a rush as Applejack barely made it out before time expired. Rainbow sighed in relief. “Okay, next time just go some other way, don’t get too greedy and find an exit.”

“Gotcha,” Applejack affirmed.

“Okay, there’s a potion on this level,” Rainbow mentioned. “Don’t shoot it, because you can kill them, too. And potions can be clutch, because they kill all the enemies on the screen when you use them.”

“Sounds nifty,” Applejack agreed.

“Pegasus shot the food.”

Applejack blinked. “Why did ya do that?”

Rainbow frowned. “It was an accident, shut up.”

Applejack had a chuckle at Rainbow’s expense.





After visits with Big Macintosh, Vinyl and Octavia, Scootaloo’s family and a run-in with Pinkie, Twilight felt she had reached her quota of information for the day. Trixie expressed interest in the pegasus twins, but Twilight had insisted that it was too late to bother them now.

“Are you sure we can’t just say hi or something? There’s still time left before dinner time,” Trixie begged as she followed Twilight into the library.

Twilight sighed. “I know you’re curious. Heck, I am, too. But it’s not like I’m even that well acquainted with either of them. You can’t expect me to just run up to them right as they’re about to set their table and question them about a taboo relationship I shouldn’t even know about.”

Trixie opened her mouth to speak, but Twilight interrupted whatever rebuttal she had in mind.

“You can’t become friends with ponies in less than an hour,” Twilight continued. “And even if we tried, bringing up something like that so soon would only get a door slammed in our faces.”

“I thought you said this was a nice town,” Trixie argued.

Twilight groaned. “Not that nice. Even if it’s not illegal here, it’s still a very sensitive subject. And the way Rainbow made it sound, they’re not even ready to define it, much less explain it.”

Trixie huffed. “But relationships are always more intriguing when they’re fledging. I can only imagine that’s magnified in one such as theirs.”

“It’s almost like if I started dating my brother,” Twilight agreed. “Except then it would still be heterosexual. I can only imagine what they’re going through. Right after Thunderlane manipulated her for a quick buck, no less!”

“One that took her virginity as well as her innocence,” Trixie added. “How can you not want to know more?”

“I do, but we can’t do it today,” Twilight deflected. “Something like this is going to take time and very careful interaction.”

“Hey girls,” Spike greeted as the two came into view of the kitchen. “I got dinner started for you. No need to thank me or anything.”

Twilight chuckled and gave Spike a pet on the head. “Hey, Spike. Did Rarity come around here today?”

Spike blinked. “No, why?”

“Just wondering if I’d have another opportunity to lay into her about what kind of things she’s filling your little mind with,” Twilight explained while withholding the whole truth.

“Yeah, she had her spa trip with Fluttershy today, so I wasn’t expecting her anyway,” Spike admitted. “It’s getting easier to accept that she’s a… Wait, did she tell you yet?”

“About her penis, yes,” Trixie answered before Twilight could do more than open her mouth.

Twilight closed her mouth sheepishly, blushing at how bluntly Trixie brought it up. She had to shake her head to dislodge the thought of Trixie’s.

Spike eyed Twilight for a moment before continuing. “Well, yeah, to accept that she’s got one of those. It’s hard to say if I would have chased her all this time if I’d known that, but it’s also kind of hard to say it really changes the way I look at her.”

“You’re not saying you still have feelings for her, are you?” Twilight frowned.

Spike scoffed. “Of course I do. It’d take a lot more than that to stop me after all this time. But it’s pretty much a lost cause at this point.”

Trixie blinked. “So you still love her even knowing she’s not who you thought she was?”

“Yeah, I was after her heart, not her junk,” Spike stated bluntly. “And I guess it didn’t really help that it looks kind of… elegant on her.”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “You mean you saw it?”

“Yeah, she showed it to me,” Spike explained.

“But you’re-“

“A baby dragon, I know,” Spike sighed. “No need to rub it in, Twilight.”

Twilight bit her lip, offering Spike a consoling hoof. Spike made no move to acknowledge Twilight’s comfort, and merely heaved another sigh.

“I’m really sorry, Spike. I know this must be hard for you,” Twilight apologized. “And I’m not sure it’s gonna get any easier. Just remember that I’m always here for you.”

“When you’re not away in Canterlot, anyway,” Spike quipped.

Twilight’s face fell further. “That was an emergency, Spike. And nothing short of that would make me leave you here until you’ve come to terms with everything.”

Spike turned to hug Twilight, who sheltered him with her wings. Trixie looked upon the scene with a smile and a touch of longing. What better pony to be rooming with if she was to learn about friendship?

Feeling conscious of her presence, Trixie made for the living room, only to be stopped by a tug of magic on her hooves. Turning to glance behind her, Trixie saw Twilight flash a smile that made Trixie want to stay. Trixie sat herself off to the side so as to be out of the way without being far away.

Spike retreated from the hug after another moment.

“You gonna be okay?” Twilight asked.

Spike nodded. “Yeah. I think I could use a nap right about now, though.”

Twilight smiled. “I’ll be right up to tuck you into bed.”

Spike smiled back. “Thanks, Twilight.”

As Spike made his way up the stairs, Twilight turned her attention to Trixie. “You don’t have to feel so out of place here. Spike will get used to you. You just need to give him time.”

Trixie nodded, not speaking for fear of letting slip the fact she was more focused on Twilight’s motherly nature than Spike’s plight. Taking a seat at the table as Twilight took her leave, Trixie watched the pot on the stove simmer without really looking at it. Her mind was elsewhere, as she could not shake the thought of how it would feel to have those beautiful wings wrapped around her instead.

She did not have long to muse, though, as Twilight returned from her task with a distracted smile. Twilight made no effort to start up a conversation as she sat quietly at the table.

In an attempt to ward off the awkwardness she was beginning to feel, Trixie started up her own. “How long has Spike been keening after Rarity?”

“Three years,” Twilight answered, smile wavering. “Since the moment he laid eyes on her.”

Trixie frowned. “Seems a tragic way for it to end.”

“I just hope he doesn’t take it too hard,” Twilight worried.

Trixie cocked a brow. “Take what too hard now?”

“The fact that Rarity’s juggling two lovers and Spike isn’t one of them,” Twilight explained. “I’m worried that’ll make him think he’s not good enough for her, since existing relationships will have been proven not to be a barrier.”

“I suppose that is a quandary,” Trixie agreed.

Twilight sighed, rubbing her face with a hoof. “I don’t have any doubt that Rarity cares for Spike, but sometimes I wish she’d be a little more sensitive about his feelings. If Spike gets the wrong idea, he might start thinking Rarity’s a whorse, or worse!”

Trixie frowned. “You don’t think that, do you?”

Twilight recoiled. “Of course not, Rarity’s my friend! I would never think of her like that. I just wish she’d be more… sensible!”

“Perhaps you should have told her that this morning,” Trixie suggested.

Twilight flopped on the table. “I don’t know. I really don’t want to see Spike like this, and I know it’s only going to get worse. What would you do in this situation?”

“I’d let them work it out on their own,” Trixie stated. “I don’t know enough to be of help to either side. And it sounds as though you’re starting to doubt Rarity’s character. Letting her show you she can handle the situation may bring her good qualities back to light in your mind.”

Twilight smiled. “I thought you didn’t know anything about friendship.”

“I’m an entertainer, Twilight,” Trixie chuckled. “I know a lot about ponies, just not how to be friendly towards them.”

“Well, I think I’m gonna take your advice,” Twilight said, straightening up. “The worst thing I could do right now is get it into my mind I have to fix this myself.”

“Talking from experience, I’m guessing?” Trixie smirked.

Twilight chuckled. “You be quiet.”

Turning the stove off as the water began to boil, Twilight set out a couple of bowls while they waited for the soup to cool.

“It’s quite heartwarming to see how much he looks up to you,” Trixie mentioned.

Twilight smiled. “Well, I’m the closest thing he has to a mother.”

“And I’d say you’re doing a fine job of raising him,” Trixie praised.

Twilight blushed. “I’m sure somepony like Fluttershy would be better for him.”

“Does Fluttershy know as much about dragons as you do?” Trixie prodded. “Does she have the kind of time to nurture him and shower him with the singular affection a growing child needs?”

Twilight twiddled her hooves. “Well, I guess I do have a lot of time on my hooves.”

“There’s no need to be so modest, Twilight,” Trixie smiled. “You’re the perfect mother for Spike.”

Twilight cast her gaze to her hooves. “Uh, thanks.”

“It seems there are a few things I can teach you about self-confidence,” Trixie chuckled.

Twilight’s blush faded as she served the soup and began to wordlessly eat.

“A smart mare like you should know not to worry so much.”





Upon reaching level fifty, Applejack grew hungry. Something about eating all that virtual food for health struck her stomach. A rumble from Rainbow’s belly told the feeling was mutual.

“You ‘bout ready ta head out fer dinner?” Applejack asked.

“I am getting kinda hungry,” Rainbow admitted, stepping away from the machine. “Where do you wanna go?”

“Nowhere too fancy,” Applejack prefaced, following Rainbow out of the arcade after gathering their excess tokens for later use. “Just the usual café would be fine.”

“Aw, there goes my plan for Rarity to do us up in some prissy dresses and head over to that fancy Prench restaurant she likes,” Rainbow joked.

“Ah’m sure yer heartbroken,” Applejack quipped.

Rainbow chortled. “Is it just me, or does the timing seem like we’re gonna be taking that walk at sunset?”

“Rarity would be jealous,” Applejack chuckled. “Ah would prefer some light fer that, though.”

“Why do you want to go for a walk in the park anyway? We get plenty of exercise already,” Rainbow questioned.

Applejack shrugged. “Just seemed like somethin’ ta do on a date.”

“What, no movie?” Rainbow jested.

“Might be somethin’ better later if yer good,” Applejack teased.

Rainbow grinned. “Ah, so an X rated movie, then?”

Applejack snorted in mirth and shoved Rainbow lightly. “Ah hope you won’t mind if Ah forgot the soundtrack.”

“Aw, that’s one of the best parts,” Rainbow complained jokingly.

Applejack rolled her eyes and turned the corner to their usual eatery.

Sitting down at a vacant table, Rainbow put a hoof to her chin. “I can’t remember if there’s something special we have to do at dinner.”

Applejack took the seat beside her and gave her a peck on the cheek. “How ‘bout that?”

Rainbow shrugged. “I can roll with that.”

“No reason ta treat it any different,” Applejack philosophized. “Dinner’s dinner.”

Rainbow nodded. “So, what’d you think of Hooflet?”

“Pretty fun,” Applejack admitted. “Though Ah’m thinkin’ it’d be better with all four.”

“Maybe we could get Tavi and Scratch to play with us some time,” Rainbow suggested. “And laugh when Tavi gets stuck as the donkey.”

Applejack chuckled. “Ah’m not sure she’d care much.”

“Yeah, I guess she’s not as crazy as Rarity.”

“If you could get Rarity ta play Hooflet, Ah’d be impressed.”

“She’d complain that there aren’t multiple outfits per character,” Rainbow snickered. “Though different colors might be nice.”

The waiter came around to take their orders, which Rainbow was quick to give. Applejack furrowed her brow, placing her own order before questioning. “Whaddya mean?”

“Well, it’s kinda lame that the donkey gets blue and the pegasus is stuck with green,” Rainbow extrapolated. “If any of the characters should be green it’s the earth pony. I mean, the grass is green and stuff, and the sky’s blue.”

“But that’d be further from orange than red is,” Applejack pointed out.

“Okay, then just give an option to choose your color or something, I don’t know. I just want to be a blue pegasus, is that too much to ask?”

“Don’t think so. You already are one, ain’t ya?” Applejack jested.

Rainbow frowned. “You know what I mean.”

“Ah’m kinda wonderin’ why they picked green and not orange, though,” Applejack went on. “Ah mean, if ya have to pick any secondary color…”

“Well, green’s the most different from the others,” Rainbow countered. “I mean, orange is like, really close to red and yellow. And I’m not just talking about your siblings. And purple’s pretty close to blue and red. But I always wondered how you even get green from blue and yellow. Doesn’t really make sense to me.”

Applejack cocked a brow. “You tryin’ ta tell me ya didn’t play around with paints as a filly?”

“Well, obviously, but that doesn’t make it any better. Green is just… weird. I never really trusted it,” Rainbow admitted.

“That why yer always off flyin’ everywhere?” Applejack inferred.

Rainbow paused. “No, that’s because it’s more fun to fly. It’s not like I’m scared of green or something. I’ve been surrounded by it every morning, haven’t I?”

Applejack chuckled. “Ah’m just playin’ with ya. Ah think Ah’d have noticed if ya were scared of a salad er some such.” Applejack frowned. “Actually, come ta think of it, ya don’t really eat too many greens.”

“I eat green apples sometimes,” Rainbow defended.

“About the only thing green you’ll eat,” Applejack smirked. “Can’t imagine why.”

Rainbow narrowed her eyes. “Are you implying something?”

“Just that they seem ta be yer favorite food,” Applejack chortled. “You ain’t just usin’ me ta get closer to the apples, are ya?”

Rainbow waved a hoof dismissively. “Nah, that’s just a bonus. I mean, an awesome, smoking hot mare who also happens to be the source of the best food ever? How could I say no to that, right?”

Applejack chuckled, shaking her head slowly. “Ah’m flattered, honest.”

“You’re honest, I’m loyal,” Rainbow reminded.

Applejack’s hoof met her face. “Ah’m not even gonna respond ta that.”

Rainbow cocked a brow. “You just did.”

“You shut up.”

“Why don’t you make me?” Rainbow challenged.

Applejack rolled her eyes, knowing it was a ploy but unable to curb the desire anyway. She pushed Rainbow against the back of her seat and locked their lips.

The waiter came back to this scene, coughing awkwardly. Rainbow waved a hoof in response without breaking the kiss as it started to get more and more heated. Knowing they had drawn some attention with their conduct, Rainbow pushed back against Applejack, only to send them both tumbling from their seats.

But Rainbow didn’t stop, keeping up the pressure despite their change of scenery. It wasn’t until their roll for dominance caused them to smack up against the leg of the table that they separated.

Rainbow sat up, rubbing her withers as they started to ache. “Okay, remind me not to give you a home field advantage. These things might not be trees, but they still hurt.”

“Ah’m sorry,” Applejack chuckled. “Wasn’t exactly payin’ too much attention there.”

Rainbow nodded, heaving herself back up onto her chair. “Hey, when did our food get here?”

Unable to help herself, Applejack fell into a fit of giggles at their own expense.





After a mostly uneventful meal, Applejack and Rainbow Dash made their way over to Ponyville’s park. Upon arriving, Rainbow grew thoughtful. Something about the dying light of the sun helped to put things in perspective.

The day had been fun, but without any external crisis to distract her, Rainbow started to feel unresolved complications start to weigh down on her again. It was enough to put a frown on her face and a damper on her mood despite wanting nothing more than time alone with Applejack.

Somehow it was easier to forget her own troubles when faced with more immediate problems. But Rainbow knew they wouldn’t stay distant too much longer.

Rainbow sighed. “Hey, AJ?”

Applejack turned her head. “What’s up, sugarcube?”

“About this whole Wonderbolts thing…”

Applejack smiled. “Don’t you fret, Rainbow. We’re gonna figure somethin’ out.”

“You keep saying that, but how?” Rainbow pressed. “I mean, if I do go off and join them, would we still be cool?”

“Of course,” Applejack answered instantly. “Why would Ah hold somethin’ like that against ya? Ah know how much it means to ya.”

“But knowing that it’s a possibility, why do you still want to be with me? I mean, as my marefriend. Ten years is a long time, AJ. Are you really sure you can handle that?”

“Just as well as you can,” Applejack assured.

Rainbow sighed. “I mean seriously, Applejack. I know it would be hard to stay faithful when I’m not around. And I really don’t want you to have to spend the prime of your life all alone. So if you go and hook up with somepony else, that’s okay. Just promise me you’ll come back?”

Applejack paused on the path, causing Rainbow to stop as well. “Rainbow, Ah’m an honest mare. You know that. Ah’d never betray yer trust like that.”

“But you said yourself that you want foals, and by the time I’d retire from the Wonderbolts, we’d be almost thirty!”

“And if that’s how long Ah’d have to wait, Ah’m okay with that,” Applejack promised. “Ah don’t wanna have to worry about any o’ that ‘till we’re both ready ta settle down fer good. We’re way too young to be havin’ this kinda conversation anyway, Dash.”

“So we’re just gonna wing it and hope it all turns out okay?” Rainbow demanded.

Applejack smiled. “That’s what you normally do, ain’t it?”

Rainbow slumped, feeling Applejack’s words cut deep. “I like to think I’ve changed over the years, AJ. Maybe I still put myself in more danger than I probably should, but I never want anything bad to happen to my friends. That goes double for you.”

“You know Ah can take care of mahself,” Applejack frowned.

“We’re not talking about Chrysalis or Nightmare Moon here, AJ. We can’t just buck this problem in the face and make it go away. Whatever happens now will change the rest of our lives. We might not even be the same ponies at the end of it. Can we really just ignore it and pretend everything’s gonna be okay?”

Applejack sighed, leading Rainbow to a nearby bench. “Sounds like we’re changin’ already. First time Ah’ve ever head you take anythin’ this serious.”

“Why wouldn’t I be serious about this, AJ?” Rainbow questioned. “Before now, there’s always been some easy solution to all our problems. But now no matter what I pick, I can’t really be happy. How am I supposed to choose between my best friend and my lifelong dream? As much as I love the Wonderbolts, I’m starting to think I might love you more.”

Applejack’s face softened. “Never woulda thought you’d be the first ta say it,” she mused. “Ah love you too, Rainbow. And it’s gonna be that love that gets us through this, ya hear?”

Rainbow took a shuddering breath. “Can I just… hold you for a while, AJ?”

Applejack smiled. “Whatever ya need, sugarcube.”

“I don’t think you understand how much you mean to me, AJ,” Rainbow choked.

“Ah understand more than ya think,” Applejack returned. “Ah’ve always thought of ya as family. And now Ah reckon we’re gettin’ pretty close ta makin’ that official.”

As Rainbow tightened her grip, Applejack was vaguely aware of a mocking voice somewhere nearby. She turned her head to watch a couple of snickering mares making their retreat.

Applejack smirked as an opportunity presented itself. “Ya know, Rainbow, Ah’m pretty sure somepony just said somethin’. What was that ya said you’d do if that happened?”

Rainbow shoved Applejack away in response. Applejack briefly wondered what she had done wrong before Rainbow descended on her to make good on her promise.

But as they descended further into the throes of passion, Applejack felt a wandering hoof make a subtle advance. Applejack broke the kiss, to Rainbow’s confusion. “Ah thought ya promised ya’d wait ‘till we got home fer that.”

Rainbow blinked before noticing a strange wetness on her hoof. Rainbow blushed fiercely as she stammered out, “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to- I wasn’t even…”

Applejack chuckled. “Well, you gonna mare up and take me home er what?”

Rainbow seized Applejack around her withers and darted off towards the farm. Applejack’s eyes widened as she clutched Rainbow’s chest for dear life. “Ah didn’t mean like this!”

“Well, too bad!” Rainbow cracked. “We’re here.”

Applejack tilted her head back just in time to see her open window before she was flung inside to land splayed out on her bed. The last thing Applejack was aware of was Rainbow closing the window before everything fell into a haze.




Ping pong round 2




“Are you sure you don’t want to stay?” Twilight asked, a hint of disappointment creeping into her voice. “You’re more than welcome.”

Trixie shook her head. “I really should be sleeping in my own bed now that I have one.”

“You don’t have to,” Twilight insisted. “I could wake up Spike before your snoring does. Or better yet you could teach me that spell and you could sleep in.”

Trixie sighed. “It really is a kind offer, but-“

“Please?” Twilight begged. “I really want Spike to get used to you being around. And, well, I really have been enjoying your company.”

Trixie smiled. “If my presence is really so important to you, I suppose I could stay another night.”

“Yes!” Twilight cheered. “I promise, by tomorrow night, you’ll be the one begging me for another night.”

“Is that so?” Trixie smirked mischievously. “I might just have to stick around to see how you pull that off.”

Twilight chuckled nervously, fighting against a blush. “It’s better than eating peanut butter crackers for breakfast, isn’t it?”

Trixie chortled. “I suppose it is at that.”

Twilight smiled. “Come on, we can read a quick story before bed.”





Rarity collapsed onto her bed with a sigh, knowing she had failed to muster up the courage to confront Spike today. Their situation was delicate enough, and surely putting it off any longer would cause more harm than good, but she just couldn’t figure out how to put it gently.

“Maybe a good night’s rest in my own bed will clear my head,” Rarity supposed. “If it doesn’t, I don’t know what I’m going to do.”