//------------------------------// // Gifts and Answers // Story: Apples in the Moonlight: Crackshipping Applejack and Luna // by bahatumay //------------------------------// Luna awoke as the sun was setting. She stretched and fluffed her wings, and a smile spread across her face as she slid out of bed, headed over to the window, and eased up the moon to its proper place. She smiled as its softer light gently overtook Canterlot. It was a good night already. She turned around and then froze. There by her door sat a large bushel of apples that certainly wasn't there yesternight. She frowned. She would have remembered asking for such a thing, and she certainly didn't remember requesting this. Eyes narrowed, she gingerly neared, expecting a trap or a trick of some kind. On top was a card made of white paper. She lit her horn and her magic enveloped it. After determining that it did not contain a curse, she brought it to her eye level and opened it. The writing was messy, in her eyes, at least. Writing and spelling and orthography in general had changed in the last thousand years, and Luna was unable to decipher many of the words she saw every day. Yet, being too proud to ask for help, she would muddle on through her day anyway, and this note was no different from her daily challenges. She recognized her own name on top, and what was possibly 'Applejack' at the bottom (or perhaps it had been an A followed by a scribble), with only a few words in between. She also recognized 'apples', 'visit', and 'you'. They must have been a gift. Luna considered this, and then her eyes widened. Surely, this wouldn't have changed in a thousand years...? She stomped twice. “Guard!” she called. “Attend me!” A bat pony stallion quickly emerged from the shadows and bowed. “Do ponies still send gifts to one another as a courtship invitation?” Luna asked. He cocked his head, looking over the big bushel of apples. “If your highness is asking if ponies give presents to ponies they want to date, then yes; but usually it's something smaller, like chocolates in heart-shaped boxes, or roses, or an invitation to dinner.” “But if it were a farmer?” Luna suggested. The guard tried to control his excitement. The lunar guards were all of the collective and fervent opinion that Luna desperately needed to get laid; and if there were a chance of her getting into a relationship, then he was all for it. Furthermore, farmers of all tribes tended to be hard workers with plenty of strength and endurance. But of course, you can't just tell that to a princess. He settled with a much safer, “Yes, it would be believable.” Luna nodded. “I believe I can work with this. Thank you. Dismissed.” He bowed and faded back into the shadows. Luna picked up an apple and bit into it. The juice ran down her chin and she couldn’t help but smile. Delicious. * * * Breakfast (or dinner, depending on which princess you asked) was always a pleasant experience. Celestia paused her devouring of her large plate of angel hair pasta as she observed Luna pick at her fruit salad. This was most unlike her. A thousand years of nothing but moon dust meant that Luna had developed a supreme fondness for any food with a high water content, and normally she would have been on her third bowl by now. “Luna, are you alright?” she asked. Luna flicked one of the strawberries over back into the yogurt with a little motion of her fork. “Perhaps,” she said distractedly. “Though I have been thinking about a personal matter of utmost importance, and I wonder if I might ask you a question.” Celestia began twirling the fork in her bowl. “Ask away,” she said. “Is it illegal to court one of our little ponies?” Skreeek! Celestia's expression didn't change, but her fork had carved a deep gash in the metal bowl. Though she had tried to hide it, this question had blindsided Celestia completely. “No,” she answered evenly. “There is no statute that regulates love in Equestria; barring that of age, of course.” “Even… even if it were another mare?” Luna asked. Celestia took a bite to buy herself some time to think of a good response to this. She chewed slowly and took her time before answering and didn’t swallow until she had decided upon a satisfactory answer. “Love is not really my domain,” she finally said. “I've never bothered to care one way or the other as long as both parties are in agreement, and the laws in place as they are currently reflect that.” She cracked a smile. “After all, I don’t allow anypony else to interfere with the happenings in my bedroom.” She had intended it as a bit of a joke; but Luna didn't laugh. She merely nodded thoughtfully and speared the strawberry. “I suppose I shall continue thinking, then,” she said. Celestia continued eating, but more slowly and thoughtfully this time. She didn't mind that her sister was thinking of courting again; no, far from it. Luna had been feeling alone, no matter how hard she tried to just play it off as nerves from having to adjust to these modern times. She had taken to nervous habits such as wandering the halls at the oddest hours of the day (and giving some of the new Royal Guard recruits a bit of a scare), plucking feathers out of her wings before they were ready to fall out on their own, and eating sweets at noon (her version of a midnight snack). If Luna had found love, that would be another step forward for her healing. But if her heart were broken, it would likely have nightmarish consequences for all of Equestria. * * * Luna sat on her bed and pondered. Applejack had sent her a gift. There was no other way to interpret it than an indication that she wished to begin courtship, and she was waiting for Luna to respond. If she was ok—she did like that new phrase, it was quite useful in many situations—with courting, then Luna felt that she could go along with it, too. Besides, who knew better what a mare wanted than another mare? And it certainly didn't hurt that she was an earth pony. For centuries Luna had been wanting the earth ponies to love her; and now here was one making the first move. It was her own dream coming true. She nodded slowly, quickly warming up to the idea. She could show her love for this earth pony, show that she could be a worthy mate, and the others would see this relationship and surely grow to love her as well. “Yes!” she proclaimed, jumping to her hooves while still on the bed. “So shall it be! I shall court Applejack!”