Day One (Part two)
The Cutie Mark Crusaders made their way to the zip line as the sun was starting to set. There was just enough light in the day for them to actually use the zip line, but it was also dark enough for Applebloom to move about freely without being clearly seen. And just in case, she had kept her nightgown close in the backpack that also held the gear. All the while she felt the enjoyable rush of running around outside in the nude.
Once they reached the zip line, Scootaloo went into the trees to hook everything up. Sweetie Belle turned to her friend, who was pulling the gear out.
“You look like you’re comfortable,” Sweetie Belle stated.
“Oh I totally am. You have no idea how fun this is,” Applebloom replied, a wide grin on her face.
“By the looks of it, it must be pretty amazing,” Sweetie Belle said, a thoughtful look on her face. “By the way, are you gonna hook yourself up or do you want me to help?”
“Nah, I got it,” Applebloom responded. “Besides, it’d be weird.”
“It’s not like I’m gonna feel you up, AB,” Sweetie Belle said, frowning slightly.
“True, but honestly, despite how fun this is I’m still fighting my nerves. Not to mention this is still awkward and I don’t want to push it,” Applebloom grimaced as she handed Sweetie Belle her gear.
“Well, uh, awkward as it is, I think it’s actually kinda brave of you, Applebloom,” Sweetie Belle smiled with pride.
Applebloom felt some of the tension in her shoulders ebb, though not all of it. “Thank you. And don’t worry, you’ll be joining me tomorrow.”
“Oh, definitely,” Sweetie Belle said. “Can’t let you have all the fun.”
“Hey, if you two ladies are done down there,” Scootaloo shouted from above them. “Could you toss me up a harness?”
“No problem!” Applebloom called up, tossing the aforementioned item to Scootaloo. That done, she began to hook herself up to her own harness. The straps felt a little rough against her bare fur, but not, she concluded after a few experimental tugs, rough enough to chafe. Once it was tight enough, Applebloom then climbed up the ladder with Sweetie in tow. Soon enough, Scootaloo had all of them hooked up to the zip line and they were ready to go. Just one more question to ask.
“So do you guys want to go down all at once or individually?” Scootaloo asked.
“I don’t know about the rest of y’all,” Applebloom answered. “But at least for my first run I’d like to go down solo.”
“Okay, that’s cool,” Scootaloo said, nodding. “What about you, Sweetie Belle?”
“I’m with AB, solo first please,” she answered.
“Right, well, AB, you ready?”
Applebloom had already been attaching all the buckles, and was quickly hooked up. “Ready.”
Scootaloo put her hands on her friend’s back, tentatively at first but then with more firmness. “Here goes.” And with a gentle push, Applebloom was off.
She had ridden the zip line dozens of times over the years, and each time it had been a thrilling experience. This time, however, was the first time she was doing it nude, much like everything else she had done that day. The wind blasting against her body, swirling around her and rustling her fur unimpeded by clothing was a thrill. She felt the straps catch her weight and rub against her exposed body, but even that felt somewhat enjoyable as it didn’t catch any clothes in the usual uncomfortable way. Plus, she felt much lighter and faster as she raced to the ground.
Applebloom cheered and whooped like a little kid going on a thrill ride as she flew. Finally the ride came to an end and she touched the ground.
“Oh wow,” she exclaimed. “That was amazing!”
“Heads up!” Sweetie Belle shouted as she came down.
Quickly Applebloom disconnected herself and then moved to catch Sweetie Belle. Sweetie came in fast, but Applebloom was ready and caught her without a problem.
“Thanks,” Sweetie said, panting slightly. “Nice catch.”
“No problem,” Applebloom replied as she helped her friend disconnect.
Scootaloo came rushing down next just in time for Sweetie Belle to catch her. The trio soon went on their second run, this time as a group. Applebloom still found it enjoyable, but considering she got stuck in the third spot behind Scootaloo, it wasn’t as fun as the first run. This continued for about an hour, the Cutie Mark Crusaders’ gleeful screams filling the forest, and only stopping as the sun set and it got too dark to see clearly.
Applebloom grinned, wobbling slightly from adrenaline as she took off the zip line gear. “That was awesome! What do you girls want to do now?”
Sweetie Belle let out a tired sigh from where she was sitting against a nearby tree, her harness lying on the ground next to her. “Honestly, Applebloom, I think it’d be nice if we just went back to the house to get some rest.”
“I’m with Sweetie Belle, it’s late and we’ve had a bit of a day,” Scootaloo agreed. “So if it’s all the same to you we’re gonna go to bed.”
Applebloom was about to protest when she remembered the farm work they still had to do tomorrow. “Right, the farm work,” she muttered to herself. “Alright, we’ll head back in.”
The three girls set to work collecting up the zip line gear before they walked back home. Soon enough they were back at Sweet Apple Acres and getting ready for bed.
“Even bits says you’re gonna sleep nude tonight?” Scootaloo asked Sweetie Belle around her toothbrush. “Since your day is tomorrow and all.”
“I’ve been thinking about it,” Sweetie Belle responded. “But I think I’ll do what Applebloom did, stay clothed until chore time and then get naked.”
Scootaloo nodded as she put away her toothbrush and slid into her sleeping bag. “What about you, AB, you gonna sleep naked?”
“Might as well,” Applebloom shrugged. “I just hope I don’t wet the bed.”
That prompted a round of giggles as they all tucked in. Soon enough, they were all asleep. Applebloom, however, didn’t stay asleep. She tossed and turned for a while before finally waking up. It was barely night as she slowly sat up in the bed. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were totally asleep. But Applebloom was still awake and still wanted to do something. She had enjoyed this day so much and really hadn’t wanted to end. After all, there was still something she wanted to do.
At the edge of the farm there was a small pond, just large and deep enough to swim in. There had been several times when she had wanted to just strip off everything and swim in it after a hard day’s work. And yet she never got that opportunity, even when she wore her bathing suit under her clothes, because Applejack would never allow it. Okay, maybe that wasn’t true, Applejack did allow for swims, but only if she could keep an eye on her.
Applebloom thought at first that a deadly animal lived nearby, but she later found out it was that Applejack had a fear of drowning and didn’t want anyone she cared about to get hurt swimming. It was an admirable trait, which was why Applebloom always worked hard in swimming classes during gym. Still, it was annoying, especially on hot days, and even after easing up on the protectiveness Applejack still didn’t allow her to swim in the pond. But now that Applejack was away for three days maybe Applebloom could risk a swim without supervision.
And yes, there were risks. She could get hurt, but then, that was true about practically anything she did. She could also be spotted by any creatures or people wandering the woods at night. And lastly, Princess Luna guarded the night and was known for keeping tabs on people through her moon, so there was a chance Luna could see her.
But they all were moot next to Applebloom’s sheer desire to try it. She had done her chores, eaten, and zip lined nude; she wasn’t going to give up now. So the young farmer softly climbed out of bed, careful not to wake her friends, and walked out of her room. Making sure to grab a towel and a spare article of clothing, Applebloom snuck her way out of the house and to the swimming hole. Luna’s moon was bright and illuminated the path before her, as well as the rest of the forest. Applebloom knew the path to the swimming hole very well and it didn’t take long for her to get there.
But when she did get there, her hopes for a peaceful swim vanished. The moon hung right over the swimming hole, making it almost certain that Princess Luna would in fact see her.
Applebloom sighed as she slumped up against a tree; she had really wanted that swim. Taking a glance around, Applebloom saw that no one was within sight.
“Well,” she whispered, “I guess I could take a gander over to the water. So long as I don’t swim I don’t think Luna will see.”
She gently walked over to the pool, crouched down, and looked in. The clear water reflected her image as perfect as a mirror. Applebloom smiled a bit as she looked into the water, her pride and her own confidence swelling. She was outside naked. Maybe it was at night, but that didn’t matter. No one in her family had dared do this before, and she’d probably have a tanned hide if she was caught by either Applejack or Big Mac. But that didn’t matter either, she wanted to do something, so she did it.
Mostly, there was still the matter of taking a swim. Luna’s moon wasn’t going anywhere, and Applebloom could slowly feel her body wanting to go into the water. So Applebloom bit the bullet; if Luna did catch her, so be it. Standing to full height, Applebloom dipped her toe in the water. It was cold to the touch, but that was expected. So she sunk her whole foot in, and then her leg, and finally waded in slowly.
The feeling of weirdness hit instantly, as usually her bikini bottoms would protect her lower half from the cold water. Now that it wasn’t there, the sensation was a bit odd and sent a shiver up her spine. Applebloom breathed deeply, and after a moment it was just like wading into a normal pool. Once she was confident enough, she dove in.
Cheerilee had enjoyed body surfing in the ocean as well as sunning on the beach, but after a while it had grown old and she wanted to do something more. And apparently so did the others. Celestia’s sun had already disappeared behind the horizon and Luna’s moon was slowly rising as Cheerilee was led back from the car towards an arcade joint.
“An arcade,” she stated flatly. “Is this really where we’re going?”
“Of course, what’s better than a little fun and entertainment after relaxing most of the day?” Vinyl replied.
“I’m actually quite surprised there’s one in a nudist resort,” Octavia said thoughtfully.
“Well we can’t just sit around all day and talk,” Vinyl shot back.
“Good point, but I do hope the racing games have sterile seats.”
“Oh you worry too much, Octy,” Vinyl admonished.
“She does make a valid argument,” Twilight pointed out.
“Look, girls, I’ve been here before and I know the owner. Trust me when I say he keeps a clean place,” Vinyl said, an edge of annoyance in her voice, just as the girls walked in.
“I’ll take your word for it, Tables,” Cheerilee said.
As it turned out, Vinyl was true to her word; the arcade was, in fact, very clean. The seats were covered with replicable plastic and the floors were spotless. The quartet walked up to the front desk and Vinyl tapped upon it.
“Hey, Vinyl, what’s going on?” a voice said from behind the counter. Cheerilee was surprised to see a good looking, blonde coated man walk up to the back of the counter.
“Sheppard, how are you?” Vinyl smiled. “This is Octavia Melody, Cheerilee, and Princess Twilight Sparkle.”
“A pleasure to meet you all. So! You all here for some fun?” Sheppard asked.
“Of course, why else would we be here?” Vinyl said, her tone playful.
“Oh, he’s cute,” Cheerilee muttered under her breath.
And he was well built, tall, and very well…
“Hey, is that a racing game?” Twilight asked, interrupting Cheerilee’s thought process.
“Yeah, High Speed 7,” Sheppard responded. “Let me just get some coins out for you girls.”
That got Cheerilee thinking. “Um, question: where do we put them?”
Vinyl held up a small pouch with a string tie. “You put the coins in this and tie it around your arm.”
“Oh, that’s clever,” Cheerilee said as she examined the pouch in Vinyl’s hand. She walked back over to the counter, picking up one of the bags of tokens Sheppard had placed there.
Pretty soon the quartet was playing away. First it was the racing game Twilight had pointed out, which she amazingly came in first in. Then Octavia and Vinyl played in a shooting game, though Octavia backed out pretty fast. Finally it was the coup de grace: Rock Band.
“Which song do you guys wanna start with?” Vinyl asked, taking a seat at the drums.
“Oh man, I don’t know, do you want to play difficult, medium, or easy?” Cheerilee asked, holding the lead guitar.
“How about ‘Free Bird?’” Twilight asked, holding the microphone.
“Skynyrd, really?” Octavia groaned as she took the bass guitar.
“What’s the matter, Tavi, think you can’t do it?” Vinyl teased.
“Don’t test me Vinyl,” Octavia sniffed. “I’m just not a huge fan of Lynyrd Skynyrd.”
“Sorry, Octavia, but I really want to play this one,” Twilight said, an apologetic smile on her face.
“Same here,” Vinyl and Cheerilee said in unison.
Outnumbered, Octavia relented and got ready to play. A few clicks of Cheerilee’s guitar later and they were playing. Surreal as it was that four girls with no clothes on were playing on Rock Band, the fact they were playing on ‘Free Bird’ made Cheerilee give an ironic smile. She hit all the notes with the precision that came from lots of practice. However, the more impressive performance was Vinyl tapping away on the drums. She hit the rhythm even better than Cheerilee expected, but that must’ve come from Vinyl’s incredible rhythm talent. Octavia handled herself well, despite missing a few notes here and there. Then Cheerilee heard Twilight start singing, and there was only one way to describe her voice: magnificent.
A small crowd began to gather around the girls, watching in impressed awe. Cheerilee looked around briefly during a guitar break and spotted Sheppard, still at the counter. He was watching her, looking right at her. Cheerilee blushed and went back to playing the game. The song reached its climax and soon they brought it to an end. The crowd was silent for a moment before breaking into thunderous applause, applause that only redoubled when the girls bowed in respect.
Cheerilee was about to walk over to Sheppard to talk when she spotted a Pegasus walk up to him and turn him around. He seemed to respond well to her, and the nail went into Cheerilee’s coffin when he put his lips on the Pegasus.
“Damn,” Cheerilee muttered under her breath.
She felt a nudge from Twilight. “She’s cute.”
“Yeah,” Cheerilee muttered.
“You’ll get the next one,” she smiled.
Cheerilee looked at Twilight, who simply returned a knowing smile. As did Octavia and Vinyl.