For Better or For Worse

by Hireath

Chapter 3

Placing her hoof through the strap, Applejack secured the tote bag and re-tied her ponytail. Apprehension overwhelmed her body so she took a few moments to control her breathing again. Bags circled around her eyes, she noticed, as she glanced through the mirror due to the lack of sleep the night prior. Too many thoughts swirled her head. As she put her hat on top of her head like her usual routine, she twitched her left ear and grimaced. Hoping that it would heal before any of her family members noticed, she brushed her bangs over it to hide the hole from the earring. She pulled out the drawer in front of her and picked up a balled up napkin, soon exposing the marital jewelry. The sun reflected off from the metal and she gently wrapped the ring again to stuff it deeper into the dresser. Finally, she made her way into the kitchen.

"Good mornin', Granny Smith," she called out to the elderly mare. For a minute, the green pony inspected her granddaughter and brought down her newspaper.

"Where're ya goin' with that get up?" she inquired, motioning to Applejack's bag.

"A-Ah'm goin' to the market," she admitted, fidgeting a little. Granny Smith let her gaze linger on a little longer and returned to reading her paper."Make sure you get a fresh loaf of bread," she called out, "Ah'll see ya when ya get back."

"Thanks, Ah'll be back soon," Applejack called out as she let herself out of the house. Shutting the door, she leaned against it with her heart beating against her chest.

Technically, she was not lying she figured because she really was going to the market. But she still had to fight off the sinking feeling in her chest. Soon, she began her journey to the marketplace. She traveled the same trail and noticed the same details she always pointed out to herself like usual but it certainly seemed longer than she remembered. Eventually, she strode up to the familiar shopping center and dug through her purse.

"Ah'll take a loaf of bread, please," she announced to the worker behind the stand. She figured may as well get the task over with. Checking her watch, she saw that the time was two minutes till nine so she headed over to the café shop. She never knew the name of it so she just always referred to it as 'the little café shop'.

In reality, she would rather not learn the title. Letting herself in, two distinguishable ponies in the back corner caught her attention and she trotted over to them.

"Oh there's our bride," the seated stallion pronounced, getting up from his chair. As he approached her, Applejack couldn’t help but notice his small stature along with his comb over. He grabbed one of her legs and gave a large smooch on her wrist then escorted her to his table.

"Here, let me pull a chair out for you."

"Th-thanks," she replied, taken back by his charisma. He flashed her a toothy smile to try to make her comfortable. Peering to her right, she tried to make out the pony next to her. She couldn't figure it out until he quickly swallowed his breakfast and greeted her.

"I hope you made it here OK," Soarin added, "D'ya want anything to eat?"

"No thank you. To tell y'all the truth these nerves in me are makin' me not hungry." She took a moment to observe the Wonderbolt. He seemed polar opposite to the smooth- talking, overly groomed colt he was back in Las Pegas. Now, in what she assumed to be him incognito to avoid intrusive fans, his mane was pulled back into a sleek ponytail along with a cap to accompany his dramatic hairstyle. A large hoodie swallowed his body, causing him to push up his sleeves every so often, and she wondered how distorted his view of the coffee shop was due to the tinted lens of his sunglasses. His posture was completely opposite to his usually proper, athletic stance. His shoulders were now hunched as he made small movements, making him appear almost childlike.

"I see we can't keep our eyes off each other," Soarin's company teased, pointing at the two of them. Applejack had not realized how long she had been staring at the blue colt finishing his sandwich.

"S-sorry, Ah didn't mean to look at ya for so long," she apologized, turning forward. From the corner of her eye, she saw him smirk to himself and continued his breakfast. "Ya must be Top Boss."

"Right indeed!" the manager answered with glee. He slapped out copies of a fax message in front of the newlyweds and held one up for his own. "Look, I'll skip the small talk and get down to the nitty-gritty. You can read along if you want as I explain everything." Placing on his round reading glasses, his cleared his throat. "So basically, there was an insider in the Chapel of Love. They saw everything. They saw that you two were intoxicated and saw the whole ceremony from the walking down the aisle to getting your ears pierced. Now, they say they aren't going to release this information if you two give a little shout out to them."

"Shout out?" Applejack repeated.

"Yeah, like a spokes pony. They want you two to come out with an interview endorsing their place and saying that you got married their. They want the exposure."

"And what if Ah refuse?" she boomed with her emerald orbs growing large.

"Then everything comes out. Every single thing is published." Soarin choked on his bread in response.

"So basically they're blackmailing us?" he cut in angrily."I wouldn't call it blackmailing exactly, more like…well yeah, it's blackmailing."

"Ah don't believe this," Applejack commented, shaking her head. "So either we go public about our marriage or they put it out there against our will."

"That's not fair!" Soarin exclaimed.

"Can't y'all sue them for abuse of power or somethin'?"

"I don't think so, baby," Top Boss denied, "We wouldn't want to have a lawsuit on our hooves on top of all of this.""So then Ah guess we're gonna be put out there either way.""This isn't a friendly business," Top Boss informed, "And right now you've been hit in one of the most hardest ways. I'm sorry for that." He took off his glasses and placed them on the table. "Now here's where my plan comes in."

"I didn't think it was possible, but I lost my appetite," Soarin sarcastically pointed out, dropping the sandwich onto his plate.

"Now you two will have a small announcement in a magazine saying that you're married. I say, let's have a little fun with this, shall we? We fabricate a story. How you two met, when you guys fell in love, how much you've been planning for this-"

"But we did none of those things," Applejack interrupted.

"The public doesn't have to know that."

"And I was going to talk to my lawyer about an annulment," Soarin retorted.

"No worries, just put on this marriage façade for a little while and then get the annulment after a few months. It'll look worse if that drunk story leaked and you got an annulment a week later."

"Wait, hold up, Ah'd be married to him for a few months?" realized Applejack.

"Yeah, just stretch it out for a little bit longer. That's like lightyears in the entertainment industry. And you're annulment will still apply to you guys. You two would've stayed married for less than a year. Have you guys consummated your marriage?"

"Consummated? What's that?" Top Boss motioned her over closer to him. He whispered something in her ear and she pulled back with a disgusted look.

"Well Ah certainly hope we didn't consummate our marriage!"

"Then an annulment is possible. It'll be like it never happened. Technically."

"Yeah, 'cept the whole public will know about it," Soarin snapped."We'd be lyin'! Ah'm the Element of Honesty, Ah can't lie! It's not me!"

"Don't think of it as lying, think of it as…"

"Lying," Applejack bluntly remarked, "Ah don't think Ah can pull it off."

"Look, I know ponies who can make you two seem like the happiest couple in the world. They can train the both of you. If this story," he held up the faxes in his hoof, "leaks out, you're done for. It's a hard decision, but you gotta make it." Soarin and Applejack exchanged worried glances and turned back to the manager.

"Fine," she meekly agreed, "I'll go along with this." Top Boss quickly shook their hooves.

"Don't worry, you two and your images will be nice and protected with me. In fact, I may have an announcement done by this afternoon."

"Maybe we should tell the ponies that are very near and dear to us about our 'happy' news," Soarin suggested.

……………………………….........

Applejack saw her relatives stiffen their postures as Applejack approached their home with Soarin by her side. Granny Smith halted her rocking chair as Big Macintosh stood by the stairs, giving them a glare of resentment.

"A-Ah need to tell y'all something'-"

"What's he doin' here?" Granny Smith shouted out. Applejack's aunt, Mother Apple, opened the screen door to see what was occurring on the porch.

"He better be here tah 'pologize!"

"O-oh yes," Soarin stammered, quickly looking at his secret bride and back to the elderly pony, "I am truly, deeply sorry what happened the other day. I should have called, that was a completely irresponsible thing to do on my part." Only when Big Macintosh stood in front of him was when Soarin realized how small his stature was compared to the farmer.

"Ah don't like you with my sister like this," he grumbled. "Ya got some nerve."

"Big Mac, is that any way to treat a house guest?" Mother Apple pronounced."He ain't a house guest Ah want here," he responded, still not taking his vision off of the Pegasus.

"Well, he's still company," Mother Apple countered.

"Can't we all go in?" Applejack demanded, stepping closer to her brother, "Please? This is important." The robust stallion stepped aside and followed all the ponies into the living room.

"Hey, what's goin' on?" Braeburn questioned as he entered through the back door, "Ah saw from the fields everypony go into the house and-" He grew quiet as he looked over to Soarin and caught his mother waving her hoof over to the empty seat next to her.

"Come sit next to me, baby," Mother Applejack cooed, "Applejack says she's got somethin' to say to us."

"Ah don't know how to start this so Ah'm just gonna say it," Applejack began after Braeburn sat down. She closed her eyes for a moment and exhaled. "Soarin and Ah, on our date, eloped." She saw the bewildered expressions on their faces and continued talking. "We've eloped. We're, uh, husband and wife now." Soarin picked up the speed and grabbed her hoof.

"Ever since I first met your daughter, I couldn't keep my eyes off of her," he trailed, "I got to meet her a couple of times due to Rainbow and I being on the same time, and I could already tell she was different. Unique. I asked for her hoof in marriage and she said yes. Isn't that right, dear?"

Applejack felt the sweat rolling down her temple. He was good at improvising she noted."R-right. I-it was, uh, true love. A-at first sight." When she looked into his eyes she saw something she shouldn’t have saw if he was lying. Suddenly all her anger towards him melted.

"Congratulations!" Mother Apple popped up and rose her arms to give them both a huge hug, "Another addition to the family!"

"You've done got yerself married?" Granny Smith exploded, "What didja do that for?"

"Oh boy," Applebloom murmured.

"Ya can't mess with true love," Mother Apple pointed out, receiving a dirty stare from Granny Smith."Ah don't care about this young love business! Ever since this Soarin character was brought into the picture, everythin' is all scattered! Ya don't know what his intentions are, Applejack. What if he's tryin' tah manipulate ya? Maybe this weddin' is a scam of his or-"

"Ah came up with the idea!" Applejack fought back, jumping out of her chair, "Ah wanted the ceremony, Ah suggested it to him." She turned to grab his hoof in assurance. "Ah got yer back," she whispered to him. Big Macintosh shook his head and excused himself to go upstairs. Granny Smith's eyes became glassy which caused her to look down.

"Mother, maybe we should check on the cows," Braeburn advised, leading the mare out of the house. Applebloom followed, slamming the screen door behind her.

"Ah want ya both outta my house," Granny's voice trembled, "Ah can't look at ya right now."

"Granny, Ah-"

"Now! Ah don't want him to ever step on my property again, ya hear me? The both of ya get out!" Applejack stood for a moment, biting her lip. She lead Soarin out of the door and she heard her grandmother call something out.

"Ah want ya back by supper, AJ. Maybe then Ah can stand to talk to ya."

………………………………

"Are you sure your family's OK with this?" Soarin asked, leading Applejack out of his cart the next morning.

"Kinda, my brother and sister are out shoppin' which'll hold them all afternoon, my cousin Braeburn is watchin' the baby while Rainbow works outs with Cardio Carl, and Granny Smith is takin' her nap." A small giggle escaped from her mouth as she saw his face drop. "Don't worry, she never wakes up from her nap. But she does wake up at 3:54 P.M. Exactly. So we should get home before then. Now is there anythin' Ah need t'know?"

"Well, I have a twin sister." Now it was Applejack's face to come to a shock. "What? You thought I was an only child? I may be spoiled, but my other half is worse," he joked, giving a wink, "My father is an architect while my mother is a beautician. Sometimes my grandparents like to visit since they're neighbors and all so they might even be over."

"Great, more tah stress over." He wrapped a reassuring arm around her and gave her a gentle shake."Don't worry, you got this is the bag. Just ignore the fact that they're my parents and your in-laws. They're just like any family, living in a little cozy home." Moving toward to what Applejack initially thought was a small hotel, she soon found out that it was a townhouse."Little cozy home, alright," she muttered in amazement as Soarin rang the doorbell.

"Soarin! So happy t'see ya, babe!" a plump mare screamed out as she tightly embrace him, "I haven't seen ya in two weeks! Oh it's been so long. Of course I know how busy you celebrities can be." She turned over her shoulder as she let go of him. "GEORGE GET DOWN HERE-UH! YOUR SON'S AT THUH DOOR!" She made eye contact with Applejack behind him and grinned.

"Hello, dawlin', what's your name?" The country tried to figure out what region her accent came from. "Applejack," she replied, "Ah hope ya don't mind me askin', but where are ya from?"

"New Jockey," she proudly answered, fluffing her curly orange hair, "GEORGE! WHAT'S TAKIN' YA SO LONG!"

"I'LL BE DOWN IN A MINUTE!" a voice called from upstairs which made Applejack jump slightly.

"WELL HURRY UP! I'VE HAD HAIR STRANDS THAT TURNED GRAY FASTAH THAN YOU COMIN' TO THE DOORWAY!" She turned to the blonde filly again. "I'm so saw-rry, he can be so rude sometimes."

"Yeah well…"

"Actually," Soarin cut in, "we were wondering if we could come in to-" Before they knew it, the couple were tugged into the living room, being offered an array of cuisine choices.

"Here have a snack," an elderly pony pushed, holding one to Applejack's nose.

"It's OK, really."

"C'mon, you're as thin as uh stick."

"Really, Ah had a heavy breakfast."

"Soarin, what's the matter with her?"

"OK, Grandma, that's enough," he said, giving her an appreciative smile.

"I'm Chitchat," Soarin's mother introduced, "And this is my ma, Kosher Kate. My father's ov-ah there sleepin' in the chair. His name is Old Fart." Applejack nearly choked on her water. "Ha! I get 'em every time! It's actually Jitterbug." A young mare stood in the doorway, fiddling with some sort of electronic device. "Oh Sequin Sparkle, come say hello to Soarin's friend, Applejack."

"How ya doin'?" she greeted as her eyes twinkled."She just gawt back from her college classes, isn't that right dear?"

"Ya, I'm studying' t'be a doctah."

"I'm here, Chitchat," a pudgy stallion announced as he entered the room. He adjusted his thin-framed glasses and wiped his mustache."Soarin's here! 'N' he brought his lil' friend, Applejack."

"Hi Applejack," he greeted, "I'm George Whatshisname."

"If you guys don't mind," Soarin proclaimed, "I kinda have something to say."

"What is it?" Chitchat shrieked, "Is it serious?"

"Well, kinda, but nothing to get excited about-"

"You’re sick with some kinda disease! I knew, just knew, that this was gonna happen from trainin' too hard and I was right!"

"No, Mom-"

"You committed a crime! Don't worry, I'll bail you out."

"Mom, I'm not even in jail. What I was going to say-"

"You're gay!"

"What?"

"Don't worry, I'll always love you no mah-ttah who you are with!"

"Let me finish, Mom! I am not dying or a criminal or gay or any combination of those. But... I am married."

"I don't get it," George Whatshisname called out.

"I'm married. I've eloped with a very special somepony," he clarified, reaching for Applejack's hoof. "Ya have a very lovely son," she blurted out awkwardly.

"That's not fair!" Sequin Sparkle barked, "How come he has a wife but I hadn't had a date in a month!"

"You got…married?" Chitchat breathed, "Are you outta ya high flyin' hair-gellin' air flippin' mind? I nevah even met the girl before! Why didn't ya introduce her to us? Why did ya eloped?" A loud gasped excaped her. "Is she pregnant?"

"No Mom!" Soarin denied, turning a bright shade of pink.

"How can I trust her? What if she's aftah ya money? I know the groupie type!"

"Groupie?" Applejack snapped, "Who you callin' a groupie?"

"C'mon, sweetheart, he's handsome, successful, young, and loaded with cash. Don't act like I don't know what you’re doin'!" Applejack felt a soothing rub on her should from Soarin."Ah'm not after the money, honest to Celestia Ah'm not. In fact, one of my best friends is Rainbow Dash and she's on the same team as your son. She's always offerin' t'pay fer my meals and other stuff outta kindness but it's her money so Ah refuse it. Ah'll prove anythin' to ya to show that Ah don't want his money. Ah'll separate bank accounts, Ah'll sign a pre-nup, Ah'll get him a piggy back without the cork on the bottom. Please, don't think Ah'm that girl. Ah see character, not dollar signs."

"I don't-"

"Aw wouldja be quiet?" Kosher Kate told her daughter, "Ya liked her a second ago. Wasn't your first instinct of her a good one?"

"Yeah until I found out they gawt married after one date."

"Big deal! You know how your father and I got married? We eloped after one day of meetin' each other. One day! And we're still happy tah-geth-ah with kids 'n' grandkids. At least ya know that Soarin's been lookin' at this filly for a while now." The older mare leaned closer to Applejack.

"He's crazy 'bout ya," she testified with a wink, "Wouldn't stop talkin' 'bout ya whenever he went to the barn." The orange pony turned to the Wonderbolt and gave a timid glance. "At least he's gotten t'know her before the whole Laws Pegas fiasco. What's the point of bein' mad? She's your daw-tah-in-law wheth-ah ya like it or nawt." A silence crept up on the group. Slowly, Applejack reached for a biscuit in from of her and nibbled on it.

"Mmm," she hummed, "Boy, Chitchat, ya make the best biscuits."

……………………………….

Tilting against the door, Applejack felt a swarm of relief within her as she examined her entry way. No place like home she thought to herself. Suddenly she heard a small tap at the door and opened it. She found herself face to face with a newspaper headline shoved at her eyes.

"What is the meaning of this?" Rarity demanded, shaking the paper.

"'Ponyville Chronicles'" she read, "Well, it means that we have a newspaper and-"

"Not that, the article underneath it!" Her eyesight scanned to a large block of text, congratulating a pair of newlyweds on their recent marriage. "It says that you and Soarin are married now fess up!"

"Ah, uh, Ah-"

"Is this just another one of those silly rumors?" Fluttershy asked quietly. Applejack's shoulders went limp and she carelessly swung her arm inward.

"C'mon in," she insisted.

"Are you guys really married?" Pinkie questioned, hopping up and down, "Huh? Huh? Huh-huh-huh?"

"Well-"

"Don't be ridiculous, Pinkie," Twilight cut in, "It's just a rumor."

"Not exactly," Applejack retorted, taking a pause, "It's not a rumor, it's true. Ah married Soarin." A collective gasp came from her group of friends. After the initially shock died down, Pinkie perked up.

"Should I sing you a song?" she proposed, pulling out an accordion from her mane."You can't be serious," Rarity droned.

"What is with everypony and hiding their marriages?" Twilight whined."So… was it love at first sight like the article says?" Fluttershy probed,

"Is that why you two eloped?" Unexpectedly, Applejack let out a large, boisterous guffaw to the point where she was doubled over.

"Ya wanna know why Ah eloped? The real reason why? It wasn't because of 'true love' or 'love at first sight' or whatever other clichés this newspaper claims. Oh no, it was because the both of us were out-of-our-minds drunk!" The fillies gaped their mouths open from the combination of Applejack's flamboyant attitude to her actual words. Pinkie, however, fell over laughing.

"AJ, are you thinking straight?" a concerned Twilight inquired."Better than ever! This is great! The best I've felt these past coupla days! Gosh, y'know, Ah'm basically bein' blackmailed by the Chapel of Love because they saw Soarin and Ah drunk and getting' married. They're threatenin' us to endorse them 'cause if we don't they'll leak the story, so of course we have to play along with this happy couple image. Ah had to lie to my family and lie to his family about us wantin' to get married and now the newspaper thing! Oh, that article is icin' on the cake!"

"Did somepony say cake?" Pinkie called out."So there ya have it, Ah'm lyin' to the whole world about me lovin' him and wantin' this marriage! The truth is it's complete manure! We were drunk! We were intoxicated! Wasted! Under the influence! Smashed! And that's the truth!" Without realizing it, Applejack stepped backwards after every word until she felt her backside hit another body. She turned around and felt herself go empty.

"Ah'm back early from shoppin' with AB," the low voice growled.

"Oh h-hey Big Mac," she stuttered, giving a meek wave, "H-how long have ya been standin' back there?"

Comments

[Shadic Midnight Blitzer]

"It's not Blackmail it's... It's... Yeah it's blackmail."

Oof!