Heart and Mind

by Quick Fix

Past Fourteen - Memories of a Desert Wanderer

San Palomino Desert
January 9th

---

The San Palomino, the kind of place that was perfect for a pony to disappear in for Celestia knows how long. Nothing but sand, rocks and wind as far as the eye could see, which wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't for the fact they sometimes all came up at once. Apple Bloom was starting to regret coming out here, two weeks of trekking through what looked like the same square mile of a giant sandbox over and over again, rationing food and water in ever so steadily decreasing amounts and now, getting caught up in a sandstorm. She and Pinkie Pie were bunkered down under a rock jutting from a sand dune, using their neckerchief and scarf to keep their faces covered as they just about stayed out of the wind.

"So, I've been meaning to ask, do we have any idea where we are?" Apple Bloom asked, wiping sand off her legs. Maud hadn't been kidding when she said that it clung to fur something awful.

"Well assuming the storm doesn't completely reorganise several hundred miles of sand, we've covered about this much." Pinkie answered as she placed her hoof on the map, though it looked like a patch of sandpaper for all it was worth. She probably knew what she was talking about this, this as Pinkie Pie after all.

Apple Bloom glanced out at the howling sands and shivered slightly from the wind chill. Without thinking she huddled closer to Pinkie for warmth and found herself pressing right up against her. Pinkie tensed slightly at the sudden feeling but relaxed quickly when she realised just what it was before reaching into her saddlebag. A few moments of rummaging resulted in her bringing out a quilted blanket and wrapped it round them both for a little extra protection from the cold and sand.

"How did you even fit that in there?" Apple Bloom asked in surprise, doing her best to bury herself in blanket all the same.

"Well I couldn't exactly head out here without making sure I could support my friend that chose to come out here with me." Pinkie replied, looking over at her with a surprisingly soft look in her eye. "I don't know if I've said it, but I really appreciate you agreeing to come with me for this."

"Come on, I couldn't let you try and do something like this alone...Even if I didn't care for you the way I do."

"Yeah...Bloomie, back when you said that, back on one of the best days anypony can ever think of ever, did you mean it?"

"I, do you even-I mean. Pinkie Pie, of course I meant every word of it, I said love you back there, I still love you now." Apple Bloom made sure to keep her eyes locked on Pinkie's for every word. There was nothing to hide between them right now, the rest of the world was beyond that sandstorm, everything that mattered in this moment was right in front of her.

"Wow..." Pinkie said quietly, actually blushing a little. "Thank you, having somepony like that next to me, it means a lot."

While it still wasn't returning the feelings, knowing that Pinkie enjoyed it was more than enough for now. Apple Bloom relaxed and stared back out into the sandstorm, a small part of her wishing she was out there, back in Ponyville right now. She couldn't explain it but she really felt like she should be talking to Scootaloo right now. That feeling would have to wait until they got home though, there was still a long way to go out in those sands.

---

February 15th

For all it's difficulties and frustrations during the day, the desert at night was a whole different story. Relatively cool, much less wind and the cloudless skies allowed anypony to see almost as well as they could in the day, thanks to Luna's moonlight. The hunt for Starlight Glimmer still wasn't going well but supplies had become less of an issue after Pinkie managed to find an oasis a week ago. The two of them had set up a small base camp on its edge and now ventured out at dusk to explore further, returning at dawn and staying sheltered from the worst of the heat.

Today though, Pinkie had brought them back early for unknown reasons. She was simply pacing round the camp right now, checking everything over. Apple Bloom had decided not to question it and was taking a little time to relax, lying on her back and stargazing. Normally she didn't really partake in it but with skies as perfect as this, and all that Luna had done for her in the past, taking some time out to admire the elegant beauty of the night felt like the least she could do. After a few minutes, Pinkie came over with their saddlebags and settled down on her back next to her.

"Hey Bloomie, you know what day it is tomorrow?"

"I...I haven't been sure what day it's been since we got here." Apple Bloom sighed slightly and rubbed her eye, trying to shake some of the tiredness that had been lingering since they had made the switch to searching during the night.

"It's the sixteenth tomorrow." Pinkie answered, letting her head drop to the side so she could see the dawning realisation on Apple Bloom's face as she caught the significance. February the sixteenth marked the date Twilight Sparkle had ascended to become an alicorn, a day that had shaken the dynamics of Equestia firmly enough for many ponies to mark it as the beginning of an era. If nothing else, it marked the beginning of a new year under four princesses at least.

"Oh yeah...Oh! That reminds me!" She scrambled to her hooves and started to run back toward the camp before stopping and looking back, realising her saddlebags had been brought to where she'd been before. Pinkie giggled and pushed herself up into a sitting position as Apple Bloom came back and sat down again.

"Sorry, thought you'd seen them."

"It's fine. Long shot but, you wouldn't happen to know when midnight is, would you?"

"It's not a long shot, it's a stretch within hoof's reach," Pinkie pulled her hoof up and checked the watch that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere on it. "About one minute and thirty three, thirty two."

"It's enough time for this," Apple Bloom reached into her bag and rummaged round for a few seconds before bringing out a pair of bottles filled with an amber liquid and marked with the Sweet Apple Acres logo. "I was saving these for our mission complete party but, feels like they'd get better use now."

"Whoa..." Pinkie's eyes widened as she recognised just what it was. "Premium chilled Apple family cider from last year? You got some of that? For me? You sure you don't want to save it?"

"Your favourite, right?" Apple Bloom smiled warmly and passed her a bottle. "It wasn't too hard to convince Applejack to let me have some. As for using it now, well, sometimes you just have to go with what you think is right."

Pinkie smiled back and glanced away slightly as Apple Bloom sat down next to her again, working the cap off with her teeth. After a few moments she looked back and got her own bottle open, deep in thought about something.

"So, what our toast going to be to?" She finally asked, leaving Apple Bloom the one doing the thinking this time.

"Well, considering what's coming up in a minute, I think we should toast to another peaceful year for Equestria."

"With all we've got going on, I'd settle for just seven months." Pinkie commented, giggling slightly. Apple Bloom simply grinned and nodded.

"Alright. Well how about just, to the new year, and our friends we'll be sharing it with." Apple Bloom put her bottle out and waited, watching as Pinkie checked her watch again.

"Eight, seven...Okay! To our friends and the new year." Pinkie's watch gave a soft beep to indicate the stroke of midnight and the two of them clinked their bottles together before taking a drink. Maybe it was the setting they had found themselves in, maybe it was the quality of the cider, maybe it was just the giddy glee that came from sharing a drink with the pony she cared for most, but to Apple Bloom, this felt like the best moment she'd been able to share in a long, long time.

As they finished the drink and put the bottles aside, the two of them simply looked over at each other for a moment, trying to find the right words for the moment. A full minute passed before Pinkie leaned in closer and put her hoof out, grinning slightly before booping Apple Bloom on the nose. Apple Bloom simply blinked at how out of nowhere that was before breaking down laughing, Pinkie joining in after a moment. They still had work to do but this moment was simply too good to let go of, making sure it was one they would both remember.

---

March 1st, Year 23 under the four princesses

Another day, another fruitless search for so much as a hint of Starlight. It had been over two months since they had set off now and no matter how hard they tried to hide it, it was clear that both Apple Bloom and Pinkie Pie were growing weary of the desert. Apple Bloom had seen it in Pinkie's eyes, because she had the same feeling, if either of them got to the point of suggesting going home now, the other probably would not have an argument against it. At the same time though, she knew neither of them were willing to say it, Pinkie was determined to find her missing friends and Apple Bloom certainly wasn't about to let her go it alone.

The dusk had come a little later than she would have liked, considering they were still travelling at night and having to juggle searching for unicorns and water sources at the same time. As she woke up from a dreamless sleep, Apple Bloom realised something was covering her that hadn't been there when she dozed off. She glanced back and realised it was the blanket Pinkie had brought, looking very sandy. The wind had probably blown part of the nearby dune on them during the day and it would have been a lot more uncomfortable to sleep inside a sand pile rather than that cover.

"Hmmm...Thanks Pinkie..." Apple Bloom raised her head and glanced round, realising her friend was nowhere in sight. "P-Pinkie Pie?"

"Oh, you're awake!" Pinkie poked her head out from behind a sand bank they'd been using for wind protection and grinned as Apple Bloom got up and dug through her saddlebags. "I thought you deserved a little extra sleep in so I left the blanket on you while I went looking for water."

"Oh. Any luck?" Apple Bloom asked as she fetched her neckerchief out and put it on, looking up to see Pinkie's expression had deflated slightly.

"No, nothing less than half a night away. I hope I've got enough."

Pinkie sat down again, looking over the barren sands with an undeniable lack of enthusiasm in her movement. Apple Bloom got up and sat down next to her, noticing that she was hiding something. Her voice had been a little drier than usual and her body was angled to keep as much of herself possible in the little shade available. At a guess, she'd been cutting back on her water intake a bit to keep supplies for the both of them. Luckily, Apple Bloom had been keeping something in reserve herself. She reached back into her bag and pulled the canteen out, offering it to Pinkie.

"You sure about this?" Pinkie asked, looking at it in surprise.

"Well, it technically belongs to both of us, it does have both our names on after all." Apple Bloom commented, pointing to the Pinkiebloom engraving. Pinkie hesitated for a moment before giggling softly and taking the canteen.

"Thanks Bloomie, you're too good to me for what I've dragged you through." Pinkie commented before taking a swig of water.

"Well, it's no less than I'd do for anypony in this situation." Though she acted as though brushing the comment off, something about it was rubbing Apple Bloom the wrong way. Pinkie Pie had always been a pony who wore her heart on her leg, since she didn't have any sleeves, but she'd clearly been trying hard to hide this one. However bad she was feeling about the search so far, dragging Apple Bloom through what felt like a pointless and draining endeavour must have felt so much worse.

As Pinkie finished her drink and handed the canteen back, Apple Bloom gently took her hoof and held it for a moment, her eyes meeting Pinkie's. The look she gave was saying everything for her, that she didn't mind being out here so long, she'd be right there by her side for as long as it took. Pinkie stared back at her for a moment before smiling softly and nodding, getting the message. The two of them held the moment for a minute before Apple Bloom relaxed her grip and took the canteen back, fitting it back in her saddlebags and cleaning the blanket off.

"Thanks, Bloomie. You really think we're still in a position to do this?"

"Us two together, how could we not?" Apple Bloom grinned and stretched a little before gathering her things up. Pinkie did the same and lead them off for tonight's search. Things felt a little different to usual though, just a feeling in the wind that seemed to hint that one way or another, they were definitely getting closer to the end of this adventure.