With Blood and Swords

by FALG

Testing

I went to the Apple family farm the next day to tell Applejack my decision. To be honest, I would have accepted right away, but I didn't want to seem too available.

"Have you talked to Applebloom about this?" I asked the earth pony.

"Ah wanted it to be a secret, besides she brags about her skills; I'd like her to do that when she truly knows what she says she knows." Applejack replied.

"I see your point. Well let's tell her then."

We headed upstairs to the filly's room. Applejack knocked the door, and Applebloom's voice told us we could enter.

"Applebloom, do ya' remember Flare?" the mare asked her sister pointing towards me.

"Oh yeah, nice to see ya' again mister Flare!" the filly greeted me shaking my hoof.

"Likewise Applebloom." I greeted back.

"I wanted to tell ya', he'll be teaching you about that kung-fu stuff you always do." said Applejack.

"What? I don' need anypony teach me anything, I'm pretty good at kung-fu!"

"Why don't you show me then? If I see that you are actually good, I won't bother you again." I suggested.

"Because ya' could just say I'm not good enough, ya'd just watch." Applebloom said.

"And how about you fight me then?" I suggested again.
Both of the sisters shut up.

"What are ya' sayin'?!" Applejack whispered angrily to me.

"Don't worry, I won't do anything that'll hurt her, I promise. You'll see how she'll give up in a few minutes."
Applejack thought for a while.

"If ah find out ya' hurt her or somethin'..."

"Do you want me to make a Pinkie Pie promise?" I told her knowing of the responsibility of the promise. "Because you know I would."
Applejack kept silent for another while:

"Well okay then. You may go near the tree house is to practise." she suggested.

"Fine by me, what do you say Applebloom?" I asked the filly.

"Yeah! Let's do this!" she said running out of the room. I followed her.

---

Once we arrived to the place, we agreed on what we would do once we finished.

"If I win, you'll let me teach you." I said.

"And if I win, you won't. But I think we both know what the result will be." she mocked.

"Okay then, it's settled."

She then took a leaping stance, waiting for me to make a move. I simply taunted her to come waving a hoof.
We were a few meters of distance from each other, she started running and jumped with a flying kick. She fell short, burying her leg in the ground right in front of me.
I gently pushed her forehead with my hoof, and made her tumble.

"Lemme give you a tip, if you're going to give a flying kick, make sure you land it."
From the ground she tried to kick me, I stepped back to prevent another attack from below.

Now she ran towards me, and stopped in front of me, and threw a few punches, but she only spinned while trying to do so.
I just walked back step by step, and suddenly crouched to grab her by the legs and made her trip, landing face first on the ground.

"Another tip, if you throw punches trying to emulate a hurricane, you can be sure that won't work. Punches must go straight."

"Argh, shaddup!" Applebloom shouted.
She took the advice though, and now started throwing jabs left and right, I dodged some, and blocked others.

I made it seem that she was defeating me, lowering my body to the floor, until I was on my back. Applebloom kept punching but I just had my guard up.
Once she looked confident of winning, I grabbed one of her front legs as she threw a punch, unabling her to keep jabbing with it; then she used the another leg and I did the same as before.
I took impulse and threw her away as I stood up.

We kept fighting for a big while, and Applebloom was tiring up.

"If you can't go on, you might as well give up." I suggested.

"Ah won' stop until YA' give up!" she said.
I tapped my hoof on the ground impatiently, "she is running out of breath, but that doesn't stop her" I thought.

She confronted me again, and tried to perform a mule kick, but her forelegs gave up before she could even rise. I walked towards her:

"You are too tired now Applebloom, take a rest. You can't keep going." I told her.

"Of course I can!" she said between pants, and tried to get up, only to land on her chin.

"Nonsense, you can't even get up. Let me carry you to your house." I said.
She groaned, but allowed me to carry her on my back, and take her to her home.

"Ah want a rematch." she said on the way.

"Sure, you'll have your rematch. But until then, you'll be my apprentice."
She groaned again.

When we arrived to her house, Applebloom fell asleep; Applejack received us, and got alarmed at the sight of her sister on my back.

"What in the hay happened?!" she asked.

"She is just tired, nothing else; please show me her room again, so I can put her in the bed." I pleaded.
Applejack nodded, and directed me upstairs to Applebloom's room.

"So how did it go?" the mare asked.

"Well, she is pretty good actually, she does know a bit of martial arts, but she doesn't know how to apply them." I explained while placing Applebloom on the bed.

"So ya're gonna teach her do that?"

"Pretty much, and a few other things, she'll definitely know about combat after many trainings."

"How long will it take?"

"That, I can't tell you, because it depends on the learning capacity of everypony. This was just a test, but I think she'll do okay after a week or so."

I went downstairs to leave.

"It's getting late, if you don't mind, I'll go now." I told Applejack.

"Of course, when will ya' come back to train mah sister?" she asked.

"Tomorrow at the same time. If that's okay."

"Oh yeah, absolutely."
I waved Applejack goodbye as I left Sweet Apple Acres.

---

"You wouldn't believe the determination of this filly!" I told Fluttershy back at her house.

"I don't think it's determination, I think it's stubbornness." she said.

"Yeah, that too."

Since I became Fluttershy's coltfriend, she invited me to her house to chat a little, have dinner and stuff; she sometimes asked if I wanted to crash in her house too.

"I don't know, I'm thinking that maybe I won't be a good teacher for Applebloom." I said worried.

"Don't worry Flare, you'll do it well. I know that." she told me while bringing dinner.