7. Who You Really Are p.3: Love in the Dark
Applejack awoke face-down in inky darkness; all she could tell was that it was cold and wet. Nothing but an endless void and soft whimpering surrounded her. She rose to her feet as quickly as she could, trying her best to shake off the weight of whatever injuries she might have sustained. Her leg pulsed with a sharp, stabbing pain while a duller one throbbed in her back. Her head swam in dizziness that was worsened by the disorienting void before her.
The whimpering began again, not only louder this time, and daintier? She began limping towards the noise, quickening as it grew louder. Even in the heavy darkness, she could see the radiant glow of Rarity’s pale fur. “R-Rarity?” Applejack called to her. She saw that her eyes were bloodshot red, drenched in running mascara and tears.
“Are ya alright, sugarcube?”
Rarity shook her head before weakly taking hold of Applejack’s hand, guiding it to her protruding bone. Before Applejack made contact, Rarity winced in anticipation. As Applejack thought of how to help her, Rarity shook and trembled..
“Damnit…” Applejack muttered. “Do ya think Fluttershy fell down here with us?”
Rarity shook her head again. Applejack had few to no options. What she had to do next could save Rarity, but it would also introduce her to a world of pain that no one should have to endure. “Darlin’, you aren’t gonna like this, but before I get you outta here, I gotta set the bone and bandage the wound.”
Rarity’s eyes shot open in worry as she violently shook her head.
“I know, I know. It’s gonna hurt more than a red hot brandin’ iron.” Applejack ripped off part of her shirt to use as a bandage, terrifying Rarity to the point to where she tried to scuttle away. Applejack tore off another bit of her shirt, exposing her stomach to the cold surrounding them.
She rolled the newly-torn piece and presented it to Rarity. “Bite down on this.” Rarity swallowed hard, then took the bit of Applejack’s shirt firmly in her maw. Without warning, she snapped Rarity’s ankle straight, cringing at the high pitched wail of pain that erupted from the frantic fashionista.
She went to work quickly, tying off the section of skin that had been torn open by the bone underneath. Rarity lay on her back, digging her teeth so deep into the cloth she could feel her jaws ache.
“Sorry, sugarcube.,” Applejack sighed It’s easier to do when they don’t suspect it comin’.” She looked out into the darkness, wondering just how in twenty levels of tarnation was she going to get her and a crippled unicorn out of here?
“A-Apple… jack…” Rarity could barely force out the words.
“I’m here, Rarity.”
“Wh-Where are w-we…” she wheezed.
“I don’t know… and I’d rather not stick around to find out.” She lifted Rarity and held her bridal style despite her friend’s protests, proceeding into the impenetrable black. Rarity used what few ounces of strength that she could muster to light their way, but it wasn’t nearly enough. Every step forward introduced her to a new world of excruciating pain. She wanted desperately to tell Applejack to try and lighten her heavy steps. At this rate, she wouldn’t make it another yard.
Applejack pressed on despite the crippling pain radiating through her entire body. “Strong as an apple tree,” she chanted to herself again and again, a mantra she adopted on nights spent lamenting her losses.
After some time walking, Applejack stopped, her whole body quivering with each hard and heavy breath. Rarity suddenly felt nothing keeping her up of falling for an instant then made contact with the hard ground.
“Applejack! What the hell?” she cried in agonizing pain. Applejack’s only replies were labored breaths.
“Applejack?” Rarity called into the void. She frantically shuffled around until her hands landed upon straight, coarse hair.
“Applejack…” Her voice dropped to a desperate, somber whine. She laid across her back listening for her heart. It beat a thousand miles a minute, blending with her heavy breathing. Rarity fanned her hands towards Applejack as best as she could. Dealing with fainting ponies was a speciality she’d never admit to be a master at.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
Rarity looked on into the blackness, or at least she thought she did. The darkness was so prevalent and disorienting that it had gotten to where she couldn’t tell if her eyes were open or not.. All she knew her leg was broken, but the pain had become so intense she couldn’t feel anything. This didn’t seem real to her. It was a cliche to think that the situation was just a dream that you couldn’t wake from, but she felt it wouldn’t be that far of a stretch.
Applejack began to groan and cough. “Applejack?”
“Ughh…” Applejack groaned. “Rarity? Where are ya…”
“I’m right here, darling,” Rarity said, reaching for her. She fumbled in the dark, but eventually found the farmpony’s rough hands.
“S-Sorry ‘bout droppin ya…” Applejack strained.
“I was just about to ask, what happened?”
“I… my body gave up on me. I think I messed up something fierce when we fell down here.”
“Are you okay?” Rarity asked tenderly.
“I need a moment. How long was I out?”
Rarity sighed and closed her eyes. Applejack forced herself up and sat with Rarity propped against her. Rarity began to think of all that she left back home; Sweetie, her parents, her business...it would all be lost. It seemed rather odd that acceptance would set in before regret. Though she was young, she’d lived a nice life surrounded by her friends and family. Mares who were ninety and on their death beds sometimes didn’t even have that luxury. And at least Applejack would comfort her in her passing.
Applejack, on the other hand, couldn’t bear the thought of never seeing her family again. Too many Apples had passed, and she did not think she’d be one of them, especially not this soon. Mac, Brae, Granny, Applebloom, all of them...they wouldn’t know what happened to her. She’d be nothing more than a cherished memory, just like her parents and so many others.
Tears began pooling in her eyes and she cursed herself for breaking so easily. “Applejack?” Rarity asked softly.
“Y-Yeah?” Applejack fought through the choking tears.
“We aren’t getting out of here… are we?”
“We will! We just need to… no. No, I don’t think we are…” Silence calmly washed over the two. Applejack wiped away her tears and sniffled, catching Rarity’s attention.
“Are you crying, Applejack?” Applejack didn’t answer, instead attempting to mask her soft whimpering. Rarity turned and hugged her from behind, and Applejack tenderly held her arms as more tears streamed down into the darkness.
“Sorry…” she sniffled. “I… I never thought this would be the way I went,” she chuckled softly. “I wish I could at least tell the others goodbye…”
Rarity hugged her tighter, squeezing Applejack’s bruised body. Seeing as it would be the last kind touch she would ever feel, she turned and embraced Rarity tightly. Rarity nuzzled deep into Applejack’s warm embrace, prepared to live out the final moments of her life being swaddled by the mare that she loved.
“It is time… tell her…”
“What?” Rarity flicked her ears curiously.
“Hmm?”
“Nothing, dear. I think the blood loss is starting to have an effect…”
Applejack’s heart ached at the news. The thought of losing Rarity doubled the pain she felt both physically and mentally. She hugged Rarity even tighter, refusing to let anything take her away.
“Utilize your element… tell her…”
“Pardon?” Applejack asked, looking around.
“What is it, darling?”
“I thought I heard somethin’ too. Must be losing my mind…”
“What did it say?”
“‘Tell her’, but I don’t have the slightest clue what that’s s’posed to mean.”
Rarity shifted in Applejack’s embrace, pulling up to where she believed her face was. “Well, there is something that I’ve been meaning to tell you…”
“Oh?” Applejack snorted curiously.
“Yes, I… we…” Rarity sighed. “We’ve known each other our whole lives, right?”
Applejack rubbed her chin. “Yeah, we have, I reckon.”
“And spending these last few years with you has been… very nice.” Rarity soon felt her chest tighten and her leg throb. “And, over that time,” she started, ignoring the pain creeping up her thighs, “I have grown quite fond of you… very fond…”
Applejack swallowed hard, unsure of what to say. Rarity confessing at a time like this did no favors to her already breaking heart.
“And, well,” Rarity cleared her throat, “I’m happy that I get to spend however much time I have left with you.”
Applejack struggled to find anything that she could say. She did love Rarity much more than any other mare, but when it comes to expressing that love, she knew that a wall could give a more comprehensive answer than herself.
“Are you alright, darling?” Rarity asked with worry.
“Well, I… I don’t know what to say. Don’t get me wrong, Rarity! I like you too… but...” She groaned. “You know I’m not good with feelins and such.”
Rarity giggled and nuzzled deep into Applejack’s chest, “I know, darling…” Familiar silence returned in full. Applejack looked around, wondering what was supposed to happen. She did what the voices told her. Did she miss something? Or was it her own damaged body stressing her mind?
“Applejack…”
Applejack looked down at the mare in her arms. Even in the darkness, she could feel those wistful blue eyes penetrating her own. Rarity rose higher, and placed her hands on Applejack’s shoulders.
“Rarity…?” Applejack’s voice was the last thing Rarity heard before she skillfully met her lips.
They always say that a kiss feel electric, or like a lustful burning fire that burns hotter every second. For Rarity, it was a wave of bottled up emotions, regrets that crashed over her in a tsunami of sadness. Every fiber of her being tormented her for not confessing sooner. Applejack’s rough breath lapping against her face and her strong hands securing her was a delicacy that she knew she’d love, but still hesitated to taste.
Applejack, on the other hand, played through all of the memories that they had shared. Adventures, sleepovers, flirting, everything compounded into a shower of bittersweet bliss. She cursed herself for not telling Rarity before their lives hung in the balance. Her curves felt exquisite and almost forbidden to handle and caress. The way her delicate seamstress hands groped her muscle sent shivers of pleasure and regret through her collapsing body.
Once their confession was broken, they could see each other as clear as day, even as they were still lost in a sea of ink.
“I-I love you, Rarity!” Applejack proclaimed, much louder than she had wished.
“I love you too, Applejack,” Rarity whispered, fighting back tears.
Applejack suddenly felt the exhaustion and pain catch up to her, falling to the ground with Rarity still in her arms. And there they stayed, until sleep claimed them.
>>>>>>>
“Wake up… come on. You’ve done it! You must wake up.”
Applejack’s eyes shot open, met by a blazing sun and clouds lazily drifting overhead. She sat up in an instant, only to find herself in a meadow adorned by a single tree. Rarity was still sound asleep. Her eyes danced over the dry blood caked on her white fur.
There was nothing in the meadow besides themselves and the tree. Straining, she rose to her feet and started towards the tree. Even from here, she could smell the sap on the wind and hear the sound of the leaves quietly dancing.
“It is beautiful, is it not?”
Applejack made an owl-like turn of her head, finding the short fat dragoness that trapped them there.
“You!” Applejack tried to attack, but pain stayed her feet.
“I am not here to harm you, Applejack.” She floated by Applejack and plucked a spiked fruit from the tree. “My kind believed that true power could be awakened when one was true to themselves. Nothing is more damaging than a lie… I am certain you know that, yes?”
Applejack’s element appeared around her neck. “What’re ya gettin’ at…?”
“All of you are strong together, but your secrecy and lies will never let you become any closer. Truth offers disambiguation and trust. Just as you and your friend demonstrated.”
Applejack glanced back at the still-sleeping Rarity. “What now? Are we trapped here forever?”
“No,” the dragoness responded simply as she plucked another fruit.
“Then how do we get out of here?”
A door of pure light appeared before her. “That is the exit.” She handed Applejack the fruits. “Eat these: one for you and the other for your friend.” She began to disappear.
“Wait! Where are our friends?”
“They have their own trials to face, Applejack. If they have passed, you will find them…” With that, she disappeared, leaving Applejack riddled with questions. She looked to the door then down at the fruit in her hands. It was tough and rubbery. She raised it to her maw and took a bite. Never in her life would she have said that a fruit was spicy, but the foreign draconic morsel was burning her mouth. It was bitter and had the texture of sand, but she fought through and swallowed it.
Suddenly, she felt revitalized. Her pain had vanished, and she even felt as if she had a full night's rest. Her eyes fell on the fruit again. With a smile, she darted towards Rarity, screaming, “Ye-haw!”
Sliding, to a halt in front of Rarity, she gently woke her. “Rarity, get up! Get up!”
“Hmmm?” Rarity asked weakly. “Applejack? Applejack! Where are we?”
“We’re still in the library, but look!” She pointed to the door.
“What is that?”
“Our way outta here!” Applejack beamed.
“How- Ah!” Rarity winced as Applejack looked down at her leg once again.
“Here, eat this; it’ll make it all better.”
Rarity looked at the fruit, then up to Applejack. “Applejack… how do you know all of this?”
“The dragoness we saw when we first came here showed up, and she told me that we passed some kind of test. We had to tell the truth…”
“The truth about what?”
Applejack blushed. “I’m not sure, but I have an idea.”
“So, we’re still in the library?”
She nodded.
“And that light over there is our way out?”
Applejack nodded with an, “Eeyup.”
“Well, what are we waiting for? Pick me up, darling!”
“Wait, eat this.” Applejack handed her the extra fruit.
“Why?”
“The dragon lady gave it to me. It heals you. Trust me.”
Rarity sighed and took the odd spiky ball. She took a bite, but spat it out due to the odd flavor and texture. “What in Equestria is this foul thing?” she gagged.
“I know it ain’t the best tasting thing, but look at me!” Applejack did a perfectly executed swivel kick, followed by a roundhouse.
Rarity swallowed hard before taking another bite. As she chewed the vile mush, she fanned away the tears that formed from the taste. After swallowing as much as she could, she spat out the rest.
Suddenly, she felt the bone in her leg moving on its own. She hastily removed the rag and watched as it settled back into place, even going as far as closing the skin that ruptured when it broke.
Rarity shivered at the disgusting display, choking back a flood of vomit.
Applejack kneeled down next to her. “Does it still hurt?”
Rarity rolled her ankle; no pain. She lifted her leg; no pain. With Applejack’s help, she rose to her feet and even put pressure on it; minimal pain, akin to a minor twisted ankle.
“Wh-Wha-”
“I told ya’, sugarcube,” Applejack said with a big toothy grin, “I can still carry you if you want me to…”
Rarity smiled, then kissed Applejack’s cheek. “Come on, let’s get out of this place.” Rarity held out her hand. Applejack took it, and they walked into the light together.
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I feel like this came out of nowhere.
8348094
What do you mean?
8348135
Like, were there signs of Rarijack in the fic before this? It feels out of place.
8348901
Subtle hints in previous chapters. Keyword being, "subtle"
Love will set you free.
About damn time for those two
Good to see this update as well!
8365465
I'll be working on another one soon
Why make the sequel to a clopfic T-rated?
Plz continue
This needs a update
Excellent story please continue, many of this ends not ending, I know how hard work or studies ends. But do not give up.
We need more! Sir may I have another chapter?
Honestly, I am surprise that Rarijack seems to come out of the blue, but then again, considering Spike is Ember's mate, I could see the heartbreaking truth in person he witnessed that eventually led him to Ember (other than the obvious species difference--Ember is a dragon, Rarity is a pony--it ultimately would not work).
And yeah, you're right, author, there are some subtle hints that showed Rarity and Applejack were lovers, though it is not the prominent shipping in this story (it's a EmberSpike story after all, right?)
Is this story dead or is it still going to be updated ? I really like this story and i would love to read more and know what happened next :///