Chasing the Sky

by SnowOriole

2- Makin' My Way Downtown

~~~

Most people think that Applejack is an honest person.

Not saying that she isn't, usually. But standing for honesty doesn't mean Applejack is completely honest a hundred percent of the time. After all, there are some truths that shouldn't be said yet, or else can't be said at all. Telling the truth is honorable, and it feels good, but sometimes it's simply not worth it.

For instance, she could tell Apple Bloom that Santa Claus doesn't actually exist, but all it would result in is a bawling child and a ruined Hearth's Warming. She could tell Filthy Rich, their representative at Barnyard Bargains, that his moustache looks like a rat crawled on his upper lip and died, but the Apple family would lose their only major retailer. Like how her Granny used to say, tugging her back by her braids at a time when she was young and brash and fiery, ready to give folks a piece of her mind: "dun you be gettin' a smart mouth!"

So there are certain things Applejack leaves unsaid.

Like that she only likes girls, because she doesn't know how her friends will react. They're nice people, but Applejack knows better than to assume that equals supportiveness by now. Heaven knows that her family would react even worse, and their disappointment is something Applejack can't face.

Like how she is in love with her best friend, because she would never see her that way.

And it's okay. Life goes on. Corn doesn't stop needing to be harvested just because it's a rainy day out, and Rainbow Dash is still her friend. Or at least, she was okay with that, knowing that even if Rainbow would never be hers, she would still be around in Applejack's day-to-day. Her presence, Applejack could settle for—she's settled for less her whole life, after all. Except, that that was no longer going to be there, either.

Rationally, Applejack knows that she's being selfish. The truth is, there's a part of her that just wants to steal Rainbow Dash away from the world for but a moment, to take her hand in hers while they embark on some crazy shenanigans that Rainbow's thought up; to lean in a little more when Rainbow's in her face being stupid to kiss that confident smirk off her face; to hug her from behind and wrap her arms around her waist, whispering in her ear about how adorable she looks—then get punched in the face afterwards for daring to say something so 'uncool'.

The girl is just so unpredictable in a predictable way. She knows Rainbow well enough to know that, the same way she knows that—if she laid her heart bare for Rainbow to see—it would ruin her. You see, for how much she acts like she doesn't care about anyone, Rainbow Dash is loyal beyond belief. If she didn't like her back, she would live with the guilt forever, bending her back over to 'make up' for it somehow. And in the tiny... minuscule... off-chance she liked her back, she would live with guilt anyway— this time because of leaving her for the Wonderbolts.

There's a third option. Maybe she'd be even loyal enough to give up the Wonderbolts for her. Applejack has to admit her heart flutters at the mere fantasy, the romantic idealism of it all.

But if there's one thing true about Rainbow Dash, it's that she's meant to be free.

And who is Applejack, who will always tethered to the the ground, to take that from her?

Stars are always out of reach.

"Y'all okay there?"

Applejack nearly drops her cup. "Ah- huh??"

The question comes from Carrot Top, seemingly out of the blue. They're sitting on the couch in the living room of Mr. and Mrs. Harvest's farmhouse, just next door to Sweet Apple Acres. There's a pitcher of sweet tea on the table and the quarter-loaf of bread Applejack brought over, thickly sliced on a plate with freshly-churned butter on the side. Beside her is Carrot Top, the eldest daughter of the Harvest family. She's actually named Golden Harvest— but everyone in the village calls her Carrot Top, because her hair looks the shade of yellow carrots under the right lighting.

"I said," Carrot Top says patiently, "Are ya okay there?"

"Um, yeah," Applejack says, collecting herself. "Why?"

She cocks her head. "Ya just seemed out of sorts, is all."

"Well, with the harvest season and all, it'd be strange to not be plum tuckered out, if you ask me." As the first leaves of autumn start flying in, the real brunt of the harvest season is due to kick in anytime now, and the profits made within the coming months will be what tides all of their farms through the winter. It's, incidentally, also why they are both here today to discuss business. It's a believable reason.

Carrot Top looks at her for a moment, then shrugs. "Fair enough."

"Yeah." Herding away her crowded thoughts, Applejack reaches for the paperwork in front of them. "Anyway, as I was sayin'. I've got the plans fer the sales grounds ready and our schedule. You can take a gander." She lets Carrot Top pick up the binder and flip through her notes and sketches, scrawled on green sheets of paper. Her power colour.

"Whoa..." Carrot Top says, visibly impressed. "You sure put a lot of work into this."

"Yeah, what can I say," Applejack rubs her head. "This harvest's important. Like every one is, of course, but we're expectin' a bigger crowd than usual this year. That's why I'm makin' sure to get ever'y last detail right." It's also been useful for forgetting the other things on her mind, she doesn't mention.

"Riiight. Barnyard Bargain's big anniversary?"

"Uh huh. Filthy Rich told us they'd been bumpin' up publicity for months. We could be expectin' up to twice or thrice the usual amount of people."

"Whew-whee! We'd better be well prepared then."

"Darn straight," Applejack keeps on rambling, "so make sure yer folks are on track with the harvestin' on yer end and ya got enough farmhands to spare for runnin' the register and crowd control."

Carrot Top nods, humming. Her head is tilted down to study the plans, her hair falling to frame her face as she does so. Carrot Top and Applejack look really similar: green eyes, blonde hair, except hers curls in pretty gold ringlets, while Applejack's has both the colour and texture of straight, frizzy straw. They could be mistaken for cousins. Heck, they practically were cousins growing up. Back in the day, since they lived so near to each other and were both the only girls of their age in the area, they would do all manners of things together—riding horses, playing in the mud, fishing at the river bank, the like. Things got a lot more quiet between them after Pa and Ma passed, even though it meant Mr. and Mrs. Harvest babysat Applejack and her siblings more often. They did a good job, but they just weren't nearly enough to fill the void in her heart.

The silence is starting to get a bit stifling, so Applejack asks a question. "So how are yer parents doin'?"

"They're doin' just fine," Carrot Top replies. "Well, Pa at least. Ma's down with a bit of the seasonal flu, but she's recoverin' speedily.'

"Ohh. So that's why I ain't been seein' her in the fields over yonder."

"Ayup. She's been restin' up and drinkin' up. Dun you fret, though, she'll be up in time for the harvest."

"Send her my regards."

"I'll be sure to," Carrot Top smiles as she continues flipping through the binder. "And you? How are things?"

"Good, I guess."

"Hmmm," Carrot Top says. "And how's the city like, huh?"

Applejack breathes out. "Why does everyone always wanna know about the city?"

"Yer one of the few in the village who go there on the regular," Carrot Top shrugs, "Especially somewhere as far as Canterlot."

"Fine," Applejack takes a decidedly long sip of tea and leans back, contemplative. "The city... the city's always movin', I reckon."

Carrot Top raises an eyebrow. "'Fraid I don't get it."

"The city's always movin'," Applejack repeats. "Every day, every hour... everyone's rushin' off. Even if physically, they're sittin' still-like, or they tell ya nothing much's goin' on in their lives, their mind's going somewhere. And I tell ya, it's going somewhere pretty dag-blame'd fast. One second, someone's an unnoticeable lazy bum at the bottom of the class. Blink, and they're the founder of some spankin' new entrepreneurship."

"Really? How?"

Applejack sets the cup down on the table with a clink. "Y'know what the folks here say about the city? They're right in one sense." She lifts a finger. "The city's a place of opportunity. If you wanna buy somethin', there's a shop for it. You wanna do somethin', there are programmes... websites... people who can help ya get there. But sometimes, it feels like because people can do anythin' at all– they just keep jumping from one thang to another."

This, Carrot Top seems to get. She nods. "They can't stick to one thing an' just one thing proper."

"Exactly," Applejack sighs. "Yesterday, I went to school again. I dunno if it's because it's the last year of high school, but suddenly everyone is antsier than cats on hot bricks. Some of mah friends are changin' the subjects they'd been studying for the past three years, and another..." Applejack closes her eyes. "...A whole lot of people are talkin' about goin' overseas for college and whatnot."

"Ain't Canterlot got enough good colleges?" Carrot Top snorts. "They all gotta be doggone wild in the city."

"Ya bet they are. It's just... unreal I won't be seein' most of 'em for much longer," Applejack stirs the remaining tea in her cup—watches the bubbles rise to the surface as froth. "Kinda thought we'd be able to drop by each other's places an' hang out as a gang after we graduate. Turns out that's not quite gonna be."

Carrot Top chuckles. "What's the point of bein' friends if ya don't get the whole deal, right? Goin' to each other's weddings... rockin' each other's kids to sleep... gettin' wrinkles together..."

Applejack imagines, unbidden, Rainbow Dash in a flowing white dress, face obscured by a delicate veil as she stares lovingly into the eyes of a suited gentleman. Applejack as her maiden of honour, flowers in her hands, watching from the side while the rest of the girls around her coo in delight. Her heart clenches, and she quashes the vision down. "...Right."

"'S okay, ya still got us." Reaching over, Carrot Top gives her a good thump on the back. "Me, mah family, yer family, the other neighbours...we'll all be there when yer married off to a good strong man." She smiles crookedly. "But only if ya sit mah kids for me too! Harharhar..."

"Mmmmhmm..."

"And well, whatever if they all wanna run off to goddess-knows-where," Carrot Top chomps away slowly at a slice of bread. "In the end, home is still where yer comin' back to. It's better here anyhow, where everyone knows how to really live life, y'know? Where everythang's easy, relaxed. Simple-like."

"Yeah..." Applejack exhales, her eyes blank. "Yeah, it is."

~~~

Applejack finds Rainbow Dash ahead of her in the lunch line. She's mid-passing her tray to the lunch lady at the carbohydrate station and gesturing at the fries. Nodding, the lady scoops some fries on her tray and passes it back to her. Applejack expects her to move on after that, but from afar, Applejack watches as Rainbow pushes the tray back, making a second gesture at the fries.

"More," Rainbow seems to be mouthing.

The lunch lady gives her a look. Rainbow ignores it.

It takes Applejack catching up to her for Rainbow to catch notice of her. Her face lights up.

"Heyyy, Applejack!" Rainbow calls, delighted. She raises her hand for a high-five.

"What's up," Applejack answers and claps the hand with a resounding smack. She hands her tray over to the lunch lady and chooses the only other carbohydrate option: a spaghetti sitting in a thin, soupy cream that looks about as flavourful as water.

"How's life, huh?"

"If I'm bein' honest, sugarcube? Tis' been real strange not havin' ya around during half our classes." Though Bio had been the only subject Rainbow dropped, she's been missing several lessons, either attending some special training programmes by the school, called to the office for things, training for competitions, or briefings, or whatnot. They're still in the same class, technically, but Applejack rarely sees Rainbow now.

"Why, 'cause you can't copy my answers anymore?"

Applejack rolls her eyes as she takes back her tray. "Maybe if I wanted to get a zero on every test, I'd copy yer answers, alright."

"Jeez, ouch. Owww," Rainbow clutches at her own heart theatrically. "We meet again finally and you start attacking me again." The lunch lady shooes her along in the line, and she shuffles along reluctantly.

"Sure, sure," Applejack follows her. "You enjoyin' yer Maths class?"

"Oh, right, that," Rainbow says, drumming her fingers on the counter. "I mean, it's tough. Like, really tough. Not gonna lie, I was starting to regret the moment I stepped into that class. Especially with that whizzbang of a first impression I made by being late, haha— I think my lecturer hates me already." She laughs. "But at the same time, the class itself is kind of cool? There's an actual challenge in doing the questions. The normal Maths we do is easier, but it's kind of brainless in comparison." She finishes in a breath. "So yeah, I think I like it."

"Well, well, well. I can't believe I'm seein' the day Rainbow Dash likes Maths," Applejack smirks. "Remember in first year, when you submitted that creative writing assignment where you described in vivid detail about wanting to go back in time to slowly torture the first mathematician ever-"

"-and got whisked straight to the guidance counsellor's office? Hell yeah." Rainbow cackles. "Worth it! I say it was worth it." They've reached the dessert line; Rainbow reaches out and plucks a chocolate cup from the ice box, setting it beside the concerning mountain of French fries heaped on her tray.

Rolling her eyes, Applejack goes for the chilled fruit array, hand hovering above as she decides what to get. "Maybe y'all should become a writer instead of a pilot. Heard that stuff sells when you market it to the right audience." She's only half joking.

"Maybe I should," Rainbow seems to be actually considering it. "Heck— why not both? But I think I'd rather write adventures. Like, the kind with spaceships and aliens and shooting. Oh! Oh! Or, I could just write about what happens every day when I've actually become a Wonderbolt. Imagine, it'll be titled something like Journal of a Wonderbolt, by Rainbow Dash," she gushes. "Holy crap, that's so cool. Wouldn't that be awesome. And I'd have so many adoring fans, I'll still be drowning in love letters when I'm eighty and in a rocking chair."

"Uh-huh." Applejack takes a pear from the array.

Rose eyes follow Applejack's hand. "Obligatory why-not-an-apple joke,"

Applejack sets the pear on her own tray, grabs another apple and mimes throwing it at her. "Obligatory reminder to take care of yer health. Seriously, y'all won't be livin' till eighty if you eat like that every day."

"I've got training later, I need the energy," Rainbow whines unconvincingly.

"You'd get the same energy from healthy food," Applejack deadpans. "Better energy, even."

"Okay, whatever you say, Pearjack."

Applejack lobs the apple at her. Rainbow dodges. The lunch lady yells at them and they run along, laughing to themselves.

"As a treat, as a treat," Rainbow insists. The apple is rolling on the canteen floor; Rainbow's foot catches it almost instinctively, and starts dribbling it like a shiny red football.

"What in Christ's name are you doin' to the poor thang?"

"I love how you talk about apples like they have rights," Rainbow sniggers, "especially when you just abandoned them two seconds ago. Left them to the wolves."

"I didn't- abandon- the goddamn apples, what, do I have to eat them everyday-"

"Yeah, if not you're not Applejack anymore. You become Pearjack."

"That is so plum ridiculous I dun even know how to reply." The apple ricochets off a table leg and returns to Rainbow's shoe. Applejack groans, "And will you please stop... grrr... abusin' the apple?"

"Alright, fine," Rainbow surrenders. With a foot, she stops the rolling apple and shoves the cap of her shoe below it, propelling it into the air. She catches it out of the air with a single swift hand. "Since you insist soooo badly, Miss Pear, I'll eat this. Healthy, right?"

"That hardly balances out the fries and ice cream. Also, you've been kicking that around on the floor for the better half of a minute. At least wash it first." Applejack watches as Rainbow sinks her teeth into the bruised fruit. "...I don't know why I even bother."

"Mousse, not ice cream," Rainbow objects, voice muffled around crunching apple.

"Same cotton-pickin' difference. Dun blame me when ya get sick from that," Applejack remarks. "Oh, hey. We're not the last ones, are we?"

The rest of the girls are at their regular table. It's the long table smack-dab in the middle of the cafeteria, right where Applejack would definitely not choose to sit had she been alone: a wobbling tray full of food and squeezing through a room packed with five hundred hungry high schoolers is not a good combination for her stress levels.

But getting to see the girls makes the precarious journey across the hive of scum and villainy that is CHS during lunch worth it every time. Twilight Sparkle and her relatively typical lunchtray. Rarity and her pretentious order-in açai berry, chia seed, goddess-knows-what 'beauty bowl'. Fluttershy and her vegetarian set meal. She loves all of them.

And Pinkie Pie.

"Nope! We're still waiting for Sunset Shimmer!" Pinkie Pie says, rocking back and forth in her seat over her tray and a lunchbox with entirely too many frosted cakes in it. Leftovers from the bakery she works at, Applejack knows, but still, there's got to be a limit.

"Sunset who?"

"Oopsies..." Pinkie freezes up momentarily, eyes crossing. "Wrong universe."

"Yeah. Uh. Sure." Applejack slides into the booth across from her. Applejack also loves Pinkie, but she really has no idea what she's saying most of the time. Maybe Rainbow's speculations were right: Pinkie's actually under the magical spell of the alligator stuffed toy that she brings around everywhere. Said alligator perches on top of Pinkie's water bottle right now, like it's the reptilian martyr of the table, all toothy grin and purple stitched eyes. ("Boring into my soul," Rainbow had hissed in her ear, "It's trying to possess me too, AJ.")

Applejack flushes a little at the memory of Rainbow's breath ghosting by her eartips, but luckily, no one seems to notice, and Rainbow's already focused on tearing into her sorry excuse for a meal. Applejack remembers when Rainbow used to be so shy about touch, cringing away from hugs or pats on the back or arm holds. Now she makes contact way more often. Too often, actually. Like how her knee is resting against Applejack's thigh right now, only because Rainbow loves sitting with her legs wide apart and they're best friends and it's casual, it's nothing nothingnothing—

Shovelling a forkful of her wet spaghetti into her mouth, Applejack tries to let its incredibly processed blandness distract her from the heat in her cheeks. She tries hard. Meanwhile, the conversation swells back to life around her.

"Applejack, Rainbow Dash," Rarity greets pleasantly. "How has your week been?"

"Super, I'm sure," Twilight smiles knowingly, "Especially for you, Rainbow."

"Oh! Oh! Right!" Pinkie bounces in place. "Dashie, you were on the news! Pinkie heard you on the radio last week while she was bakin' up yummy-yummy treats at Sugarcube Corner! You're famous and you didn't tell me? Huh??"

"Heheh, well, I wouldn't say famous yet," Rainbow says nonchalantly as she dips a fry in ketchup. "It's no biggie. It's not like it's my first time on the news."

Rarity rolls her eyes. "It is a relief that, for once, you're not on the news for vandalism and destruction of property."

"H-hey, I don't do that all the time..."

"It's wonderful news that you were accepted into the Wonderbolts, Rainbow," Fluttershy says warmly. "I think we all here are really proud of you."

Twilight pushes up her glasses and nods, satisfaction glinting in her eyes. "Certainly! It's great to see that you managed to push through all the tests, with all the revision sessions I put you through last year."

Burying her face, Rainbow groans. "Uuuughhh, don't remind me. Those were the worst times of my life."

Applejack remembers last year's exam season: long afternoons spent in the library, poring over handwritten notes, exercise booklets and decks of flashcards. The sounds of flipping pages, clattering pens, hushed voices and the occasional mental breakdown. CHS exam season. Always a fun time. Twilight, ever the academic genius of their group, had been the one regularly inviting them to join her study sessions; she made sure they weren't getting distracted, and often finished her work first so she could flit about their table to help them with their questions. Applejack has Twilight to thank for saving her Chem grades from the brink.

"But the hard work paid off in the end, didn't it?"

"Yeah, yeah, I guess," Rainbow reluctantly concedes, chewing on one end of her fry. "Don't get all cocky, now. Studying is still for eggheads." Twilight beams anyway.

Rainbow Dash had only started coming to the study sessions once she realised no amount of sweet-talking the Wonderbolts admissions office would let her join them while sporting straight Fs on her report card. As it turned out, with the help of Twilight, and months of diligent preparation, Rainbow could do well when she actually studied, and now Twilight buzzes with the contentment of a mother hen having done its job.

"We should totally do something to celebrate!" Pinkie Pie takes a swig of her yoghurt drink and licks her lips in thought. "Should I throw a party? Ooooh! Sugarcube Corner should be free for booking on this Saturday evening. I can decorate the place, put on some beats and whip up some goodies for everyone!"

"Ah, about that..." Rainbow rubs her head, sounding apologetic. "I've got ground school lessons on Saturdays so I can't."

"What about Sundays?"

"Sorry, I've got flight training for the whole day too..."

"Awww," Pinkie frowns, tapping her head. "Then what can we do?"

"We could go to the spa!" Rarity suggests.

"Rarity, we literally went to the spa, like, five days ago," Rainbow drones.

"You can never visit a spa too often!" Rarity insists. "Besides, poor Applejack didn't get to go yet."

"Nah," Applejack objects. "We can do somethin' else. If y'all went to the spa recently, I dun wanna bore y'all by doin' the same thang again so soon."

"Oh, well then," Rarity pauses to take out her purse, unfastening the clasp and rifling through it. She places a gold-embossed coupon in Applejack's palm. "For you, darling. Maybe you can go by yourself one day—treat yourself!"

"Uhh, thank you," Applejack can't think of a day when she would be free during the harvest season to make good use of the full-day coupon, but it would be impolite to reject it. She pockets it, hoping the expiry date isn't too soon.

"We should do something which Applejack can come for," Twilight says.

"One hundred percent," Rainbow agrees, nudging Applejack with an elbow. "Say, AJ, we all don't have classes after lunch. You wanna hang out or something after this? Hit the malls, I don't know, or lurk around the park, just for a bit?"

"Funny that you say that," Applejack says. "I was actually gonna go into town to do some shoppin' later."

Eyes bulging, Rarity whirls on her. "Did... someone... say... shopping?"

"Oh look, you've gone and awoken the shopping addict," Twilight chuckles lightly.

"The horror! The horror!"

"No, but she's right. You? Shopping?" Rainbow arches an eyebrow at this, too, jabbing a finger at her chest. "Who are you and what have you done with my Applejack?"

My Applejack, the words ring in her head. Applejack resists the urge to smack herself silly. "Yeah. What about it? I need to buy things too, like a normal person."

"Ooh," Fluttershy sounds interested. "Then we can come with! Um, only if you're okay with it, though."

"Yeah, uh, y'all can do that." Applejack hadn't been planning on shopping with the girls, but they're more familiar with the city centre than her, she reasons. Maybe they will be able to help her with finding what she needs faster. She might even have enough time to drop by the Harvests' again to finalise plans before fetching Apple Bloom from school.

"Then it's decided," Rarity clasps her pale hands together with barely-concealed, if at all, glee. "Let's go shopping!~~"

~~~

The subway lurches to a halt, and the doors slide open into a whole new world. Well, not exactly, but it does kind of feel like stepping out into another realm, only it's about as magical as herding cattle. Fun, when you do it for the first time: a herd of cows moving at your beck and call, following one after the other in waves, is quite the entrancing sight for a small, newly-initiated farmgirl. The sixth time, the twenty-first time, the fiftieth time? It becomes just another thing you need to do to get through the day.

Applejack boards the escalator with the rest of the girls, and the automated stairs, gears clicking and turning, lift them from the platform towards the station's exit. They line up in a single row on the right side, allowing for the steady stream of hurried commuters to clack their way up the moving escalator through the left lane. One of them accidentally steps on her shoe, mutters an apology, and continues their anxious trek upward. Leaning on the handrail, Applejack stares at the signs indicating train arrivals and departures as they pass, while the rest of the girls are immersed in idle talk.

At last, they emerge in the centre of Canterlot city. The first thing one immediately notices is the grime. It's not that she can't handle a little dirt; as Rarity would (exaggeratedly) put it, Applejack 'rolls around in the mud' all the time doing chores. But farm grime is different from city grime. While at Sweet Apple Acres the air smells of hay, livestock, and compost, breathing in the heart of Canterlot is like inhaling a cloud of cigarette smoke and car exhaust. Also, unlike the well-kept, somewhat quiet residential area surrounding CHS, the Canterlot city centre is strewn with garbage, either tied up in black bags and piled in green receptacles, or spilling on the streets as litter. The stench, combined with the peak hour crowds— a veritable wall of cacaphonous bodies—makes Applejack glad she doesn't come here too often.

"Come this way!" Rarity hollers, not bothering to sound dignified over the din of the people, as she raises her perfectly-manicured hand up high in the air. Applejack sticks closely to her lead and the other girls, not wanting to get separated or worse, lost. She has gotten lost once before and found herself in a deserted back alley, threatened at knifepoint for her wallet. They like to target people who don't look like they're from the city. She was left alone soon after they found out she had no money on her. Not a fun experience.

As she ruminates, she soon finds herself enveloped in a rush of inviting warmth. They've arrived in the mall Rarity has been dragging them to. It's a fancy-looking one, all high ceilings and vast atrium. Sunlight rains down from the glass roof-windows, causing the smooth marble floors to glimmer faintly as they walk. There are few people in here, in suits and polished shoes, milling about their own business. Their conversations are sparse in the quiet.

"Erm, Rarity, where exactly are we headin'?" Applejack asks, feeling a little uneasy as they walk past shop fronts filled with leather suitcases, gold chains and— is that a deer pelt? "I dun rightly think I can afford anythin' here."

"Oh, don't worry!" Rarity's singsong voice echoes in the expansive passages as she disappears around a corner. "We're just passing through here to another mall."

A right turn, two left turns, and an escalator down later, they go on a travellator through a glitzy underpass with advertisements flashing on the walls and loud pop music blaring in their ears. They emerge in another mall, this one with soft bossa nova and the gurgling of water features, a subtle, woodsy fragrance in the air. Strategically-arranged escalators lead the way up into five floors of more luxury goods. They're about to go up one of them when Rarity suddenly stops and gasps, "Oh my goodness!"

"What is it?" Twilight asks.

Rarity points a finger at a glass display cabinet of a nearby make-up store, her entire figure trembling with excitement. "It's the limited edition Pommel eyeshadow kit I've been dying to get for eons! You have no idea how much I've searched high and low for this. Oh, I simply must at least try it out. Applejack, dear, can we pleaaase go inside to take a look? I promise it won't take long."

Applejack shrugs.

And so they enter the store. Rarity dives headfirst into her eyeshadow paradise, viciously snatching up the tester palettes and brush as she tugs Fluttershy by the arm, begging her to help her critique her looks. Pinkie is over at the lipstick section making weird faces while pursing matte red lips in the mirror, mimicking models and giggling. Beside her, Twilight scrutinises ingredient lists printed on the back of topical creams, once in a while knitting her eyebrows, before turning to tell Pinkie about how some of the claims on the labels are totally bogus.

Rainbow Dash is gazing at the shelf nearest to them, making a face. Applejack approaches her.

"Hey. What're you lookin' at?"

"Oh. Uhh," Rainbow turns to look at her, scratching her neck. "Just hair conditioner, I guess. Been running low on it recently. But I probably won't get any from here, because it's all so expensive." To demonstrate her point, she takes up a bottle and shakes it vigorously at her, pinching the pricetag attached. "Get a load of this!"

Applejack gives it a once-over. "Isn't that the same moisture root conditioner ya always use from Target?" Sometimes, Applejack picks up Rainbow's groceries for her, when the latter is busy with cross country training and Applejack just so happens to be at the Target near their school. Rainbow, naturally, returns the favour when she's passing by Target and Applejack has work to get done, and even helps to store some of her stuff in her dorm room. "Why the hell's it three times the price?"

"Goddess knows!" Rainbow throws her hands up. "It's the exact same brand, and the one at Target isn't a fake version or anything like that. Seriously, are they charging more because they put the bottles on, like, thousand-dollar ebony shelves? They polished the packaging so it's shinier? The hell?"

Applejack's chuckling along, but the societally acceptable part of her reminds her that they're in a public place. "Shhh, keep it down, will ya?" she glances about furtively. "The shopkeepers might hear ya."

"Pfffft, let them!" Rainbow snarks, plonking the bottle back on the shelf. "They're robbing us in broad dayligh- mmrmmmrmff!" Applejack slaps her hand against Rainbow's mouth before she can get the six of them kicked out of the store, and Rainbow deflates. "Fine, fine," Rainbow grumbles, pushing her away. She's avoiding her gaze, for some reason. Applejack follows her as Rainbow skulks into the hair dye section.

In Canterlot, it's more common for people to have their hair dyed than not. Applejack's friends are no exception. Though not to the same degree as Rainbow's—Rainbow is an extreme case—Twilight, Pinkie, Rarity and Fluttershy all have their hair dyed. Twilight's is violet with magenta and navy streaks; Rarity's a tasteful dark indigo; Pinkie's bubblegum pink and Fluttershy's a mulberry ombré. Applejack is sometimes a little self-conscious about her naked blonde strands, but at least no one gives her a hard time for it.

Right now, Rainbow is holding up boxes to the mirror, squinting at her reflection as she matches colour samples to her hair.

"I mean, obviously I'm not gonna buy the dye from here," she's saying, "but I'm just seeing what might look good."

"Why, you thinkin' of changin' yer hair colour?"

"Maybe?" Rainbow hums. "I know I've had rainbow hair for like, a billion years. But you know, new school year, new me." She picks another box up. "Do you think purple would suit me?"

"I honestly can't imagine ya havin' anythin' but rainbow hair now." Though Applejack thinks Rainbow would look good in any colour, that's probably just Applejack.

"It's iconic," Rainbow agrees and puts it down. "But it's so much work to maintain, you know? Having to section it out, making sure the different colours don't mix..."

Applejack doesn't know, but she nods anyway. She might feel out of place not dyeing her hair sometimes, but when her friends talk about the lengthy process, materials, and cost, she honestly finds it rather silly to go through all that trouble just to change a perfectly fine natural hair colour.

"Ughhh," Rainbow moans. "I should've just done a solid colour as my trademark."

"Then it wouldn't be a trademark."

"True. Too many people have boring, one-coloured hair," Rainbow twirls a multicoloured strand around her finger. "But then, also I was thinking of dyeing it back to something more neutral for Wonderbolts. I dunno, do you think they will think bold colours are unprofessional?"

"Oh. Uh." There it is again, the unpleasant knot forming in her gut. "I'm... sure them Wonderbolts would be fine with it. Doesn't their leader have a neon orange mohawk? That Spitfire lady?"

"Yeah, but that's like, Spitfire. She calls the shots and everything. They'd much sooner report a newbie like me than the big boss."

"Like that's ever stopped you before," Applejack says pointedly.

"Right on the nail," Rainbow snickers, going back to looking at the boxes. Absently, she starts glancing back and forth between Applejack and the boxes. "You know, you should totally let me dye your hair someday," she adds, off-handedly.

Then she reaches for Applejack– and reaches past her neck, to weave her fingers into her hair.

"Your hair is so light-coloured, you don't even have to bleach it before colouring. For me, before I even get to the dyeing part, I always have to spend thirty minutes bleaching my hair and the products dry it so bad, I have to use conditioner to repair it, but you don't even have to. I'm so jealous. "

"If you ever decide to try out some colours, you should get... I mean, maybe not rainbow unless you're a masochist like me. But like... hmm, what would suit you? Mermaid colours? It matches your eyes." Rainbow rattles on, running her fingers through her locks, arm brushing lightly past Applejack's jaw. "Nahh, haha, too exotic for you. Uhh, maybe some pink hues here and there, like, the shade of apple blossoms. Heheheh," she giggles to herself, then pauses. "Huh, AJ. Why's your face all red?"

"Erm!" Applejack jerks away, stumbling back so she can fan herself furiously with her Stetson. "R-reckon the heating's a little strong here. Uh, hey! Looks like the other girls are done buyin' their stuff. Let's regroup, shall we?"

As it turns out, they continue stopping by a bunch of things. First it was a trinket shop which sold cute metallic charms and crocheted keychains. Then they got churros at the outdoors stand while crossing the street. They passed by a clothing store and went in to try on some furry parkas and trench coats, where they took photos and videos and laughed as Pinkie engulfed herself in three layers of down jackets.

By the end of it, Pinkie Pie's got a bright blue scrunchie in her hair, everyone has at least a bag or two of things, not to mention Rarity who's carrying so many things she looks like a Christmas Tree but with bags instead of baubles. "We all look so fabulous today," Rarity said, and then they all took wefies using Rarity's iPhone, showing off their numerous shopping bags beside some funky-looking statues, arranging and rearranging themselves for the perfect pose.

They're queuing up for macarons at a food fair when Rainbow tugs her shirt sleeve. Applejack glances behind her.

"Dude," Rainbow says.

"Uhh, yeah?" Applejack replies.

Rainbow begins, "Don't you..."

Pinkie Pie's voice calls from ahead in the queue. "Applejack, what flavour do you want your macaron?"

"Uh," Applejack raises her voice, "I'm not gettin' any."

"Aww! But there's a group discount if we buy in bulk! C'mon, just pick a flavour, you only have to pay one dollar."

"Uhhh, alright then." Applejack cranes her head to look at the selection on the menu. There's more flavours on there than all the apple varieties than she can name, and she can name a lot. She picks one of those at the top. "Vanilla."

"You, Rainbow Dash?"

"Do they have chocolate?"

"Okie dokie loookie!"

Rainbow turns back to her. "Yeah, anyway. I was gonna ask," she lowers her voice, "didn't you say you had things to buy too?"

"Uh huh..."

"Then? You should say something!" Rainbow cocks her head.

"It's okay," Applejack shrugs. "I mean, they look like they're having fun." As if to highlight her point, the girls giggle ahead of them as they peruse the colourful signs displaying several types of French patisseries.

"Look, if you're awkward about telling them or something, I'll just go over and have a word-" She turns to start marching over-

"No, don't!" Applejack grabs her jacket hood and tugs her back. She shakes her head. "I ain't awkward about it, just... There ain't no sense in spoilin' their merry-makin'."

Rainbow scrunches her nose in that way she does when she's annoyed. "But you actually have things to get! They can 'merry-make' all they want, but they're just wasting your time that way."

"Nah, it's not a totally wasted trip. I managed to get Winona new food too," Applejack says, raising the bag of dog food she'd picked up when they stopped by the pet store to look at bunnies and Fluttershy had talked to the shopkeeper for an hour about bird breeds. "Give an' take, Rainbow. It was awfully nice of 'em to think of me when plannin' this here outing, seein' as I don't usually get to go out with you guys."

"But no, exactly!" Rainbow whisper-exclaims. "They didn't invite you, you invited them! It's your trip!"

"Now now," corrects Applejack, "t'ain't my trip so much as it's a trip for everyone here. An' I'm enjoyin' myself just fine, too!"

Rainbow merely folds her arms and stares at her with those rose-rose eyes.

"Rainbow-"

"Applejack," Rainbow cuts her off. Her shoulders rise and fall. "I won't tell them anything if you don't want me to. But seriously, it won't hurt to live for yourself for a change, yeah?"

"W-well... that's-"

"What are you two whisperin' about there by yourselves?" Pinkie Pie is suddenly between them, waggling her eyebrows. "Huh?? Tell me!"

Applejack yelps, jumping back, as does Rainbow. "Goodness gracious! Give a girl a warning, will ya?"

"Heehee!" Pinkie beams from ear to ear, swinging a bag of macarons in their faces. "C'mon, you two, let me show you the world's best quesadillas just around the corner!"

And so more shopping it is. Lava lamps. Dress rentals. Furniture. Time seems to dissolve into a blur.

"What should we do next?" Pinkie sighs happily, as they're all sitting on a bench together, resting after most of them complained about being tired from walking and Rarity wanted to organise her massive haul.

Rainbow gives Applejack a long look. Applejack doesn't say anything.

"We could watch a movie," Twilight suggests. There's a cinema a little way from them, and virtual movie posters line the walls, blinking showtimes as another screen flashes the trailer for Minions: Rise of Gru.

"Oooh, maybe! What movie?"

"Mmm, I dunno. None of what's showing now really interest me in particular."

"There is one movie I would like to watch..." Fluttershy says, eyes trained on one of the posters.

"What's that, a romcom?" Pinkie squints at the image of a man and woman dressed 18th century style, dancing in front of a picturesque garden and cottage. "Fluttershy has got some game!"

"I read the description online. It's a time travel storyline, and it does sound interesting..." Fluttershy looks at the numbers flicking below it. "Oh, but it's showing quite late. Seven p.m.. Can you girls stay till then?"

"I'll just have to call my parents," Twilight says. "Oh, I do hope they haven't started cooking dinner for me yet."

"It's no problem for me either!"

"Me too."

"Applejack?"

Applejack clears her throat. "I can't stay for that long. You guys go on without me. Also..." She feels Rainbow's eyes burning into the back of her skull. "I kinda still have stuff to get. Yeah."

"Oh wait." Rarity interjects, eyes widening into dinner plates. Horror spreads across her pale face as realisation dawns upon her. "Ohhhh wait. We didn't ask what Applejack was shopping for."

"You don't say," Rainbow Dash rolls her eyes.

"Oh no, you're right!" Fluttershy gasps.

"We were so caught up... that we didn't realise-"

Pinkie wilts, "We're so super, super sorry-"

"It's fine. My fault for not sayin' anything sooner, is all. Just," Applejack sighs. "Just lemme go off and find what I needa find, alright, and you girls can watch your movie."

"Why, but no!" Rarity stands up. "Forget about the movie! We're helping you find it."

"Yeah," the others chorus.

"What time do you have to go?" Twilight asks.

"...Five," Applejack says, heart beating in her throat.

Rainbow checks her watch. "Wow. That's in like, twenty minutes."

Everyone's faces blanch at once.

"Girl, I gotchu." Rainbow grips her shoulder. "Tell us. What do you need?"

Applejack presses her fingers together and takes a deep breath. "You dun happen to know any shop that sells bamboo round these parts, do ya?"

For the next fifteen minutes, Applejack and Rainbow Dash sprint off to look for bamboo in every carpenting shop and everything adjacent they can find in the vicinity on their phones' GPS. The rest sit in the square and look after their belongings while they go deep-diving on every e-commerce site and app conceivable to see if they can order bamboo from anywhere quickly.

At the thirteen-minute mark Rainbow Dash, despairing, is starting to seriously consider breaking off the decorations on the front of a ramen restaurant.

"Property damage," Applejack says. "Also, it's probably made of plastic anyway."

"Desperate times call for desperate measures, Applejack," Rainbow says, making grabby hands at the fake bamboo. "We just do it real quick, we run, and then we move abroad and change our identities so we never get caught. They can't catch us if they don't know who we are."

The person at the counter looks like they're deciding whether or not to call the cops on them for harrassment.

But luckily, at that moment, her phone rings. It's Twilight phoning them, saying they've found an offer from someone living nearby. They arrange with the seller to meet at the square, but the guy says he'll take another ten minutes to arrive. It's a little expensive, but it's the best they can get so Applejack waits, biting her nails as her watch ticks on past five. There's a delay of five minutes, but soon he arrives and a bundle is deposited into Applejack's arms.

She stands up with it and looks at the rest of them.

"Go on," her friends urge her off. "You can pay us back another day!"

She gulps, stands up, and nods. The way the five of them are looking at her, something tells her that this conversation isn't over just yet.

But for now? She's scrambling on the subway, leaping into her van at school, and setting off, without so much time as for a goodbye.

~~~

Comments

[swiftlydash]

I love all the characterisation and imagery so far!!