Feeling. It returned to Rainbow Dash's nerves slowly and ponderously. It wasn't unlike a hangover gradually dawning on her after far too many mugs of beer. She stirred, twitching her hind legs first, stretching them out, testing them. To her surprise, they didn't hurt as much as she had expected.
In fact, after aching like all of Tartarus had partied along her muscles the day before, they felt remarkably comfortable. Her stomach, though...
She brushed her hoof against her abdomen. She felt the knotted muscles and got a sense for how much she had messed her own body up by flying several leagues in the span of an hour. And that was after two days of gruelling work. Her body was begging her to remain still. Screaming at her to let her rest for a few more hours. Or days.
Rainbow had never been a good listener.
As she blinked the sleep away, she became aware of where she was. It wasn't her home, that was for sure. Nothing was made of clouds, for starters. Instead, wood seemed to be the primary material of construction. Designs in the shape of hearts adorned almost every surface, and the floor was varnished, giving off a dazzling sheen.
The blanket that smothered Rainbow was a comfortable, homely yellow with pretty green designs around the edges. The bed itself was thick and heavy, and once again, made of wood. Rainbow couldn't tell which. Pine, perhaps?
It was the cupboards and chests of drawers that provided the most clues regarding her surroundings. Each of them sported a veritable forest of pictures and mementos. Among them, Rainbow spotted Applebloom (who was present the most in the photos), Granny Smith, and Big Macintosh. But they weren't alone. Dozens of ponies, each a shade of grass green or earthen brown, made appearances across the army of two-dimensional ponies.
There was no logical answer other than her being in Applejack's house. Who else would have that many pictures of the Apple family? Perhaps this was Applejack's room, even.
Rainbow slid between the sheets, escaping the warm and comfortable bed. Her hooves knocked against the wooden floorboards with a racket, heralding her arrival. Rainbow heard movement somewhere else in the house. Whoever was around was now aware she was awake.
Rainbow made her way through the corridors and down the stairs. She couldn't remember the last time she had visited Applejack's house, but she hadn't ventured far from the kitchen. She kept second-guessing her decisions. She always wondered if perhaps she had gotten lost in the massive farmhouse.
Early morning sunlight poured through the windows and thick, colourful curtains. The house seemed larger from inside, Rainbow noticed. And it didn't look all that tiny from outside, either.
There must be a reason why she was in Applejack's house. Rainbow wished she knew what it was.
She could just about hear the sounds of ponies working outside. So at the very least, their plan was still ongoing. That was a start. Maybe Applejack was out there?
"Oh! You're up."
Rainbow flinched and flared her wings, coming face to face with Applebloom. She forced herself to relax, but something about waking up in another pony's house made her feel uncomfortable.
"Morning, Applebloom," Rainbow greeted. "So, uh..."
"We got breakfast on the table for ya'!" Applebloom exclaimed. "Applejack insisted ya'll get a good meal before headin' out. She's got a whole list of things she wanted ya' to take care of."
Applebloom disappeared around one of the many corners before Rainbow even got a chance to blink. "Wait!" Rainbow shouted. "What am I... doing here?"
Memory flooded back to her. I passed out, didn't I?
She ran her hoof through her mane. What kind of reason could Applejack have had to keep her here, of all places? Perhaps her house was too far away. Perhaps she didn't have the horsepower available to carry her back.
There was also the matter of her living on a cloud. But they could have found a pegasus, right?
Rainbow trotted into the kitchen, glad to finally be someplace halfway familiar. Applebloom was digging through a whole pile of pancakes with gusto. Big Mac, Applejack, and Granny Smith were nowhere to be seen.
Rainbow sat down opposite the young filly. "So, where's AJ?"
Applebloom swallowed a hoofful of pancake. "After you fell unconscious... That'd have been the whole 'flyin' to Canterlot' thing, I reckon... Anyways, she got a letter from Filly." Applebloom shovelled more food into her mouth. Rainbow was reminded of many lunches spent with Applejack. The older farmpony also had the unruly habit of shovelling as much food as she could into her mouth. "Something went wrong with the warehouses she was trying to get for the harvest, so she's gone to talk to some ponies."
Rainbow's ears pricked up. "She's gone to Fillydelphia?!"
"Yup," Applebloom replied. "Spent all her spare change on a super fast carriage, too..." she muttered under her breath.
"But... who'd she leave in charge?" Rainbow asked.
"Braeburn," Applebloom said. "Applejack said he had most experience dealing with big farms."
She didn't pick me, Rainbow thought inwardly, before remembering, Wait a sec. I don't know anything about farming. Why would I even want to be left in charge?
Rainbow decided it didn't matter. She was supposed to be Applejack's second in command, not some pony Rainbow didn't even know all that well.
"But what if something goes wrong?" she countered. "Won't she need to be here to take care of it?"
"Somethin' has gone wrong, and she's left to take care of it."
"But..." Rainbow began, desperately searching for another argument. "But I don't want to work for Braeburn. I want to work for AJ."
Applebloom nodded. "Applejack said you'd say that. She left a note over by the counter." She gestured over to a small scrap of paper. Rainbow narrowed her eyes, and trotted over to it.
Rainbow,
I'm leaving Braeburn in charge of the farmponies. He doesn't know anything about weather, though, so I'm counting on you to make sure nothing goes wrong on that front. Braeburn will need an awful lot of help, and you're the only pony who knows just how big of a challenge our one-week year is.
PS: Thanks for bringing Celestia. You really saved our bacon. I hope Granny made you a nice breakfast!
Applejack
Rainbow bit her lip. I'm counting on you, she repeated in her head. Rainbow smiled. She liked the sound of that.
"Granny made ya'll pancakes!" Applebloom exclaimed. "Want some? AJ'll have a fit if you don't eat 'em."
The smell from the breakfast table was intoxicating. Rainbow licked her lips, but before she sat down, she planted her forehooves firmly in front of her. "'Kay, but first I gotta' do a thing."
Applebloom tilted her head as Rainbow lowered her head and chest towards the ground, arching her back inwards. "What... are you doing?"
"Stretches," Rainbow grunted. "Every morning. Gotta' stretch."
Applebloom frowned. "Applejack never stretches."
"Well, that's probably why she's only the second best athlete in Ponyville."
First the back, then legs, then wings. I'll skip some of the longer ones today: got to get to work quickly.
When she was done, Rainbow darted to the table and wolfed down pancakes like there was no tomorrow. "I have to say, it's real cool having food made for you in the morning," she commented in-between mouthfuls.
"Well, that's just what it's like, livin' in a house with family," Applebloom replied. "We all help each other out when our orchard gets turned into some fancy micro-climate."
Rainbow slowed down, Applebloom's words lingering in her mind.
Must be nice, she thought, before shaking her head and resuming her breakfast.
The carriage wheels flew over the small holes in the road. The sheer speed the vehicle was able to bring to bear ignored little things like rocks and potholes. Applejack was lying down in the back, a school newspaper lying over her head as she desperately tried to catch up on some sleep.
Princess Celestia helps One-Week Year effort
, she read in between blinking. She yawned. That Rainbow Dash sure is something.
At the very least, she had made sure Rainbow would be taken care of. The poor filly had been completely knocked out by her impromptu long-distance flight. A good night's sleep and a hearty breakfast would have her on her hooves in no time.
Applejack turned on her side. She wished she could get some sleep. The frantic rattling of the carriage made it hard to fall asleep properly.
Not to mention, the worry that nagged at the back of her mind was like a root jutting into her back. Why couldn't Honey Apple secure them a warehouse or two? What had gone wrong?
Applejack was jolted from her almost-sleep as the carriage began to slow down. She sat up, slapping her hat onto her head as she looked out the window.
Fillydelphia.
She leaned out the carriage window. She was reminded of Manehattan's cityscape, but with just enough differences to give her pause. It wasn't the same. It had the same shape, she thought, but something about the streets was different.
There were grand concrete buildings and streets bustling with ponies, stands, and carriages. The sky was cloudy overhead, kicked up by hundreds of pegasi flying at once. It didn't have the same organized pattern Ponyville's clouds did. Nor did it have the comforting rainbow streak darting from cloud to cloud...
Applejack rubbed her eyes.
I've been thinking an awful lot about Rainbow lately, she thought to herself. Makes sense. I've not worked with her this closely before.
She really was something. All of her friends were. Twilight and Pinkie had given them Winter Wrap Up, Fluttershy had gotten all the animals out in time. Rarity had started them out with an unlikely band of ponies. But Rainbow... Rainbow had given her a snowstorm. Rainbow had slaved away on the ground. She had stolen wind from the Everfree, and had delivered them a scorching sun when they were out of options. She was like a little rainbow-maned guardian angel.
"Drop me off at the stairs," Applejack instructed. "I'll meet her there."
The carriage pulled up at a set of stairs leading up to a grand, extravagant building. Applejack jumped out, putting her thoughts of Rainbow Dash aside for later.
She looked left and right. Honey Apple would have to be here somewhere...
"Cousin?"
Applejack heard the voice before she saw the pony, leaping down the steps towards her. "Honey?" she asked. The young mare trotting up to her gave her an uncertain grin.
"It's me!" she said. "Remember? From last reunion?"
Applejack nodded. "I remember," she said, wrapping her foreleg around her cousin's neck in a friendly hug. "How've you been keepin'?"
"Well! Except there's all this worry about winter coming without us having any food," she said. Applejack paused a second before remembering that here, in Fillydelphia, they were still in autumn. Winter hadn't come for them yet. She shook her head in disbelief.
"That's what I'm here about. You wrote sayin' you couldn't get us a warehouse?"
Honey nodded. "All the ones I could find are taken!" she said. "Although... I might just not be very good at... warehouse stuff," she admitted.
Applejack smiled. "Well, don't worry. That's what I'm here for."
"So, what's up in your neck of the orchard?"
Rainbow landed gracefully next to Braeburn, much to the stallion's surprise. He about-turned, adjusting his hat as he did so.
"You're finally up!" he exclaimed, beaming. "Well, things are doin' mighty fine 'round here. Me and Big Mac are throwin' more fertilizer on these trees than you'd need to turn Manehattan green!"
Rainbow looked around. The farmponies were busy with wheelbarrows and big, wide shovels, tossing dark brown muck around the trunks of the trees. None of them looked tired. Yet.
"No problems? Like, any?"
Braeburn shook his head. "None on my end. Then again, I haven't seen the weatherponies in a while," he admitted. "P'raps they've gotten themselves into some mischief."
"Thunderlane would have known to come get me if there was any real trouble," Rainbow replied. Braeburn shrugged in response.
"That may be, but he might've not wanted to disturb your rest," he said. "You were in real bad shape yesterday. Slept like a log."
Rainbow frowned. "He better not have," she said. "Although... I do feel a lot better," she added. "Like I can feel my hooves again."
Braeburn reared in excitement, treating her to one of his happy 'yee-haws'. Rainbow wasn't certain that it was necessary, but at least he was enthusiastic.
"Nothin' like a day's rest to get ready for work again!" he said. "I can't believe Applejack got herself into this much of a pickle. You'd think she'd have learned to reign in her ambitious thinkin' over the years."
"Yeah, but I like her ambitious thinking," Rainbow countered. A thought occurred to her. "Speaking of... Applejack just, what? Sent you a letter, and along you came?"
Braeburn nodded. "Pretty much," he said. "She'd have done the same for us, after all. Family's family."
Not for everypony, Rainbow thought. "I see. Uh, thanks. Dunno' what answer I was expecting."
"Don't sweat it," Braeburn told her. "Now, I've got to get back to work. If the trees ain't fertilized soon, the apples won't have time to grow," he said, and gestured at one of the trees. "Ya'll can see 'em already. My cuz' got herself a fine orchard, that's for sure."
Rainbow looked. For sure, the trees were beginning to get covered in a legion of tiny, round, bright green apples.
Incredible, Rainbow thought.
"I'm awfully sorry," the manager declared. "These warehouses were booked months in advance by a Manehattan businesspony. For gyrocopter parts, I think."
Applejack frowned. "Well, unless ya'll can eat gyrocopter parts, I need some warehouses to store my darn apples," she said. "I don't care where they are or how nice an' pretty they look. I'll pay good money to get 'em, too. But I need 'em." She gave the manager a hard look. "Heck, you need 'em. It's in your best interests to help me out. If I got nowhere to put my apples, your city ain't gettin' much food for a while."
The stallion sighed.
"I don't know what to tell you. You could try on the other side of town, by Cattle Market. They might have some for you."
Applejack sighed, and ran her hoof across her face. "For real? We bust our flanks tryin' to get you a harvest on time, and you can't even help me give you your darn food?"
"Perhaps," came a voice from not far away, "I can be of assistance."
Applejack looked behind her, and quickly found the source of the voice. The manager tipped his head as a sign of respect.
The stallion who had spoken was short, older. He had a greying mane and a great big handlebar moustache that made him look more like a foal's bicycle than a pony. Everything else about him was unassuming. He might as well be everypony. He had the kind of face that did things in the background, but never grabbed your attention.
"Depends," Applejack replied. "Can you get me warehouses? Or somplace to store my food?"
The stallion nodded. "As a matter of fact, I can." He held out his hoof. "Pleased to meet you. My name is Wheatland."
"How's stuff up here?" Rainbow asked Thunderlane.
The stallion stretched his wings before he answered. Dark bags had begun to form under his eyes. Darker than usual, that is.
"It's all fine in the orchard, boss-pony," he said. "But Ponyville's weather is starting to get... weird."
Rainbow frowned.
"Weird how?"
"Weird as in, there's no wind coming from the Everfree, right? But ponies on the South side are reporting strange winds that shouldn't be there," Thunderlane said. "I sent Cloudchaser to investigate, and she came back saying the pressure was off. Later, we had to cool down the area around Town Hall."
"What happened to Town Hall?"
"It was... weirdly hot," Thunderlane said. "Like I said, it's strange."
Rainbow stroked her chin, serious. "It's probably our fault. The rapid changes in weather in the orchard is making stuff act up around town," she said. "Like a butterfly effect. Except we're more like a dragon than a teeny tiny bug." Rainbow snorted. "Butterflies can't really do anything, when you get right down to it."
"What should we do?" Thunderlane asked.
"Keep an eye on it for now," Rainbow said. "We definitely can't have Ponyville put in danger because of us. But we need Summer to come as fast as it can," she said. "You said parts of Ponyville were getting hot? Move the heat from there into the orchard. We'll try and hit two birds with one stone."
Thunderlane nodded.
"You got it."
Applejack was now sat across a large crate from Wheatland, not far from the warehouse they had met. Honey Apple was there too, hanging around a few yards away. By the look on her face, she wasn't comfortable talking with bigshot businessponies.
"How'd you know I was near the warehouses?" Applejack asked.
"I was told you had filed a request to rent some of the space there," Wheatland answered. "It seemed like the logical place to go. Besides, I don't get much opportunity to make dramatic entrances." He put his hooves together. "I won't lie to you, miss Applejack. I am in dire straits."
His old eyes looked empty. How many sleepless nights had he spent since the fire took his farm away?
"I can tell. That's why I wanted to... do all this," Applejack said. "To help Fillydelphia."
Wheatland nodded. "I thought as much. In fact, even if you were only in this for profit, I wouldn't blame you. Heck, I'd still help you." He sighed. "I'm desperate, see. Food is all I'm good at providing, and I didn't." He pointed at his cutie mark, three wheat-sheaves arranged in a circle. "What I reckon that mark of mine means is that I'm supposed to be dependable. The circle of wheat means the circle of life: a circle I keep turning. Plants feed ponies, ponies feed plants, and then start all over again. The cycle keeps going, or stops." He looked into Applejack's eyes. "I consider myself a good judge of character. You know what being dependable means, don't you?"
Applejack nodded. "Yup. I have a family to provide for," she said.
Wheatland smiled. "Funny. So do I, except for me, I consider all Equestria as my family." He handed Applejack a small pile of documents. "These are documents securing you the use of my warehouses. Turns out they're empty for now, so feel free to use them to your heart's content. At least until your rescue mission is over. I'm not about to let Fillydelphia go hungry when I could do something as simple as lend you some storage space." He leaned back. "I'll do whatever I can to help."
Applejack swallowed, taking the papers in hoof with a smile on her face.
"This'll make a big difference."
Wheatland nodded. "I hope it will. I wish I could provide more, but I'm somewhat short-handed right now. However, what capital assets I can offer are yours."
Applejack got to her hooves. "That's wonderful," she said. "I have to admit, I didn't expect I'd be gettin' help from one of my biggest competitors."
"Our job, as farmers, is to provide for the people," Wheatland said. "As businessponies, it's to turn a profit. We are both, but today, I am here as a farmer." He struggled to his hooves, his older, more fragile frame buckling under his own weight. "Could you tell me something, though?" Applejack nodded. "What makes you certain you can pull this off? I've not seen you waver once this whole time, and like I said, I'm a good judge of character."
Applejack shrugged. "Well, I wouldn't say certain, but my trees ain't never let me down, and my best pal has a mean stubborn streak to her. As long as she's got her bone-headed pride to her, she'll keep workin'... And that is somethin' she's got in no small amount."
Rainbow spent all day ferrying heat from odd parts of Ponyville into the Acres. Tomorrow, she knew, it would be summer. Summer, when the apples would be almost ready for harvest. Would Applejack be ready for them? Harvests were usually done comfortably within a week, Rainbow remembered. But then again, they had a small army with them this time.
Rainbow smiled.
They had come a long way from just a rag-tag band of weatherponies and stallions rounded up by Rarity. Now they were farmers, hired workponies, and endorsed by Princess Celestia. They were trigger-happy cannon-ponies and rock farmers. They were innovators of weather science, and hopefully, they'd be heroes.
She caught a look from Braeburn and Big Macintosh, and soared down to meet them. "What's up?" she asked.
"We've finished fertilizing! It's all done," Braeburn said. Big Macintosh wiped his brow with a satisfied look on his face.
"Yup."
Rainbow bounced on her hooves. "Then all we need to do tomorrow is... what? Wait?"
"Get things ready for the harvest," Braeburn said. "Get baskets under the trees, get sacks, barrels, ready the carts, get some ponies to drag 'em out to Fillydelphia..."
Rainbow held her hooves up, cutting him off. "Okay, okay. So maybe not just wait. But it'll be quieter, though, right?"
Big Mac's flicked his mane out of his eyes as he nodded.
"Wow," Rainbow muttered, breathing in a sigh of surprise. "So the hard part's over."
"Not for us, Braeburn corrected. "Harvest'll be a pain."
"Applejack knows what to do, though," Rainbow countered. "And she'll be back soon." I hope.
The journey back involved a lot more sleeping than the journey there. Applejack could barely keep her eyes open as she stepped back into her carriage and slumped into her seat. She sank into the semi-comfortable seat-padding, her flanks and lower spine digging into the sides. The sun had already began to set outside: she had spent all day in Fillydelphia.
She spotted some strange cloud formations over in the direction of Ponyville. She was too far away for her to get a good look at them, though. Applejack let herself rest her head on the empty seat next to her and tried to get halfway comfortable.
Applejack remembered how exhausted Rainbow had looked yesterday. Applejack felt about as tired as the young mare had looked then, even if that might be an exaggeration. Applejack yawned. Hopefully Rainbow was doing better now. Even more hopefully, Applejack would feel better soon too.
Outside the orchard, the cold autumn air began to bite at Applejack's back and shoulders. Always the shoulders, she noticed. It'd be tough sleeping like this, with her head bouncing with every turn of the wheels.
She pictured herself a nice, warm blanket, like the one she had back home. A couple of pillows. A mattress.
Oh, what Applejack would give for a mattress.
As the minutes wore on, the blanket and mattress began to almost feel real. Slowly, the uncomfortable grimace on Applejack's face turned relaxed as her mind began to shut down.
Somewhere along the line, the blanket in her mind turned into feathers, brushing up her coat. Applejack wasn't sure why.
"Miss? You've arrived."
Strange images of blue feathers and fur fell apart inside Applejack's head. As the mental image splintered, she slid off the carriage seats onto the hard, uncomfortable wooden floor of the vehicle. Magenta (or was it purple?) eyes shattered away, leaving Applejack cold, unhappy, and above all, confused.
"R-rain... Wait. Is this the orchard?"
The air was already warmer, Applejack could tell. The carriage must be near the edge of the Acres. She got to her hooves and clambered outside. Her driver held out a hoof to help her, but she ignored it.
This was definitely the orchard, but it was so different compared to when she had left, her breath was stolen away from her. There were flowers everywhere, for starters. In the trees, on the ground, and growing along the paths. Apples almost as big as her hooves were growing among green leaves, and looked a day away from being ripe to pick. Which was perfect, because that was when she'd have to pick them.
Lanterns were strewn across the fields, illuminating the whole place with soft orange light.
"Gee..." she muttered. "Looks like things have been goin' perfectly."
A wayward mental image of rainbow coloured hair flashed across her mind. She held her head, as if warding off a migraine.
"You all right, miss?"
"I'm fine," she assured her driver. "How long was I out?"
"Since you stepped in your carriage, miss. You look like you could use a nap."
Applejack snorted. "I feel like I could use a nap."
"Applejack!"
A cannonball of energy hit the farmpony, knocking her off her hooves as Rainbow collided with her. Tired and surprised, she gaped. "Wha—"
"You're back!" Rainbow exclaimed. "I was hoping you'd be back before I called it a day. The weatherponies were dumping heat into the orchard all day, and kept the weather in Ponyville from imploding," she babbled, unloading all her pent up thoughts onto Applejack at once. "I was trying to talk to Braeburn about it, but he doesn't understand weather."
Applejack got back to her hooves, swaying slightly. "To be fair, I don't understand it either."
"Well, yeah, but at least you don't have this blank look on your face whenever I talk about regulating pressure and redirecting wind-flows," Rainbow replied, rolling her eyes. "Point is, we did awesome today, and you missed it."
"Nothing went wrong?"
"Nope. It was practically boring."
"And Braeburn got the fertilizer down?"
"On time, too."
Applejack smiled. "Great. You did a great job." She rubbed her eyes. For a minute, she thought the feeling of feathers against her coat was real. But it couldn't have been: Rainbow had been here, at the Acres, the whole time. "I'm real tired. I'm going to hit the hay."
"Did you get the warehouse thingies?" Rainbow asked. Applejack nodded.
"Yup. I'll tell ya' all about it on my way back to the farm." She began walking. "C'mon."
Rainbow fell into her room, sinking into her bed not unlike an anvil sank in a lake.
Her eyes turned to her own room. It was very different from the one she had woken up in that morning. It wasn't made of homely wood or filled with warm, natural colours. Everything was cold, smooth, and hard.
The perfect pegasus home.
Her drawers were startlingly organized and bereft of ornaments. For a second, Rainbow pictured a forest of photographs not unlike the one Applejack had. It flourished like a field across her furniture, a pleasant reminder of the ponies in her life, her past, and her future.
She blinked, and remembered once again that it wasn't there. She let out a caged sigh. For some reason, the perfect pegasus home didn't feel so perfect any more.
From her bedroom doorway, she heard the faint sound of tortoise feet on icy cloud floor. She eyed Tank from under her messy, out-of-control mane.
"Evening, Tank," she muttered through her quilt. "Did you get the leaves I left you this morning?" Tank only smacked his wrinkled lips in response. Rainbow smiled. "Good boy."
She rolled onto her back, her feathers sliding against the covers. Tank clambered up onto the edge of the bed before being snatched up by Rainbow, quick as a flash.
Some ponies had a hard time cuddling animals that were mostly hard shell. Rainbow, on the other hand, was a very determined young pony.
"Have you been getting lonely without me?" she asked. "I'm afraid I've been gone a bit more than usual these past days, huh?" She stroked Tank's shell. "I'm afraid I'm feeling a bit lonely myself."
Tank retreated into his shell, preparing for sleep. Rainbow chewed the inside of her cheek before continuing.
"I guess being around AJ's family has been getting to me. I've kinda always been on my own, y'know?" she said. "Well, there was Fluttershy, I suppose, but do you have any idea how hard it is to talk to somepony who never talks back?" She eyed Tank, who made no reply. A moment passed. "I thought you'd say that," Rainbow replied. "I guess I just never noticed how weird I felt before today."
She sank into her pillow, and threw her quilt over her body, mindful not to cover Tank as well: he'd overheat far too easily.
"It's really nice to help AJ and her family, though. I didn't think I'd get a kick out of that," she confessed. "Don't tell anypony I said that, though. They'd think it's uncool."
Tank, being a tortoise, did not say anything.
"Attaboy."
She rolled onto her side, letting her mind wander and her overworked muscles de-tense.
"I kinda wish," she muttered to herself before she drifted asleep, "That I'd have pancakes made for me in the morning."
Something about Sweet Apple pancakes in the morning sounded really, really nice.
Day five. Applejack looked out at the orchard as light slowly drifted across it. This was the day they'd begin preparing for the harvest. That was their job today.
Applejack breathed in the morning air. No surprises today. No muddy ground, no snowstorms. Heck, she could hear the animals had returned to the orchard, back in their little homes. She had Filthy's workers, her own family from Appleoosa, and whatever rag-tag band of ponies were left from Rarity's desperate recruiting. She had Wheatland's warehouses. She had Rainbow's weatherponies.
She had Rainbow, the best ace-in-the-hole she could ask for. The best friend she could ask for.
Maybe...
Applejack trotted through the ranks of workers, barking instructions with every breath she took. Every move she made was oiled, smooth, perfect. She wasn't Applejack anymore so much as the spirit of the orchard, and she knew what needed to be done.
The sun felt warm on her coat. This was definitely a summer's sun. Tomorrow, it'd be an autumn sun. They say time flies, but Applejack was sure the expression wasn't meant quite so literally. This whole ordeal felt like so much longer than five days. More like five weeks.
Even though she had rested herself up the night before, she felt mentally exhausted enough for it to have been five weeks. Maybe it was, and they had just slowed down the days so nopony noticed. They could already change the weather. Why not day and night cycles? It made about as much sense as everything else in this crazy world.
To think: without a pegasus nuts enough to cram a year into a week, all this would have been fantasy. A momentary dream, a fancy. Maybe one day, ponies would look at other things thought impossible, look at the rules and restrictions the world imposed upon them, and proceeded to ignore them entirely. Flying in space. Journeying to the centre of the Earth. Had ponies already done that? Applejack couldn't remember. Twilight would know.
All it took was a nutty pegasus and a couple of farmers. To think.
"Hey, AJ!" Rainbow called from above. "There's more weird weather going on in Ponyville and the Everfree forest. I'm going to deal with it," she shouted. "Can you handle things here?"
Applejack looked up at the pegasus, floating in the sky. For a minute, she looked ridiculous. A pony, flying? But then again, Rainbow Dash wasn't an ordinary pony. She was like the very personification of fantasy and ambition to Applejack. The impossible dream made flesh.
I'm feeling awfully poetic today.
"Sure thing! Go get 'em," Applejack shouted back, stammering as she tripped over her unwarranted thoughts about her friend. Rainbow disappeared in a flash of colour, leaving Applejack with little more than a view of her rainbow trail.
Applejack swallowed. First, save Fillydelphia, she thought. Then you can worry about falling for your best friend.