1. The Zap Apple Cottage
A little ways out in the meadow, just a few kilometres away from the Sweet Apple Acres family home, there stood a modest little cottage, made from apple tree wood. For the last 2 and a half years, this unassuming structure was what Applejack and Rainbow Dash called home.
The pair had officially moved in on the day of their wedding, after spending the prior six months building it. It was a testament to Earth Pony architectural ingenuity, nothing short of a super-tornado would tear it apart.
Over time, most Ponyville residents, including the couple themselves, had come to know it by the name ‘The Zap Apple Cottage’, a title that Applebloom could be thanked for coming up with.
Even within the relatively short amount of time since its construction, The Zap Apple Cottage had already become a place that held many memories. Some bad, some good, some really good, and a few that were just kinda… weird.
Needless to say, it was everything that a cowgirl farmer and her flying daredevil wife could ask for.
“Wow, those two live in THAT crap hole?”
Of course, it may be an acquired taste.
Twilight and Cozy Glow stood a few hundred feet away from the cottage. Rope had been tied around the filly’s wings to prevent her from flying off, she was a rather quick little devil, and Twilight kept a stern eye on her at all times. For the entire walk from the school to where they were now, Cozy had made sure her displeasure hadn’t gone unnoticed.
“Well, that ‘crap hole’ is where you’re going to be living for the foreseeable future,” said Twilight with only a hint of snark. Cozy’s eyes widened, and her jaw hung agape.
“I think I would have preferred getting executed.”
Twilight groaned in exasperation. She really didn’t know how much more of this little twit she could stomach, and felt bad in advance for what Applejack and Rainbow Dash were getting themselves into.
Well, they volunteered, she thought to herself. She waited patiently for her two friends to arrive, her eyes never leaving Cozy, who was currently staring at her tied-up wings with narrowed eyes and a contemplative pout. The filly began to shift uncomfortably, and looked up at Twilight. “My wings are getting itchy.”
“We’ll untie them when we’re inside,” Twilight said flatly. Cozy frowned.
“Then let’s go inside, already!”
“Not until Rainbow and AJ get here.”
Cozy whined angrily. “Where the hell even are those chumps?”
“Right here, drip.”
Both ponies looked up to see Rainbow Dash hovering above them, her forelegs crossed and a smirk on her face. Twilight smiled while Cozy rolled her eyes.
“Where’s Applejack?” asked Twilight, as Rainbow flew down and landed in front of them.
“AJ’s still got some work left at the farm, she’ll be here in a minute.”
Cozy scoffed. “Of course she works at a farm.” Rainbow narrowed her eyes, and Twilight cautiously took a step back. She knew very well that the filly was swimming into dangerous waters.
"What’s that supposed to mean?” Rainbow more snarled than asked.
“Oh, I didn’t mean anything by it,” replied Cozy with her trademark mock innocence. “Farmers do a lot of important work, they’re truly the backbone of Equestria. I’m just surprised somepony as ‘high-flying’,” she paused to giggle at her own pun, “as you, would settle for… one of them.”
Her eyes piercing right into Cozy’s soul, Rainbow grit her teeth. “…one of… them?”
“Oh, you know… a mudpony.”
Twilight made a mental note to remember to buy one foal sized coffin later, as Rainbow inched closer to Cozy. The filly held an annoyingly pleased smile on her face, but it started to dissipate as the larger Pegasus grew closer, her posture hunched, her steps slow and precise, her face locked into a haunting scowl.
Cozy shrank back as Rainbow lowered her head, her muzzle an inch apart from Cozy’s forehead.
“Let me make something very clear, twerp,” she began in a voice so low it sent chills up even Twilight’s spine. “You can say whatever you want about me. But if you ever talk about my wife like that again, I’ll make you spend a night in the middle of the Everfree forest, tied up against a tree.
“And if, Celestia Forbid, you say that word in front of her, I will send you straight to Tartarus myself. Ya got that, punk?”
Sweat dripping off her like a faucet, Cozy gulped, and nodded slowly. This seemed to satisfy Rainbow, who gave a firm nod of her own and backed off.
That… could have gone worse, Twilight thought to herself. There was a brief stretch of awkward silence before a voice from nearby caught their attention.
“Howdy, Y’all!” Applejack came into view from the trees, trotting briskly towards them. Rainbow’s stern glare instantly changed to a big smile as her wife came up to them, and greeted her with a peck on the cheek. “Sorry ah took so long, Mac got himself stuck in a tree hollow. Had to saw the thing in half to get ‘em out.”
“Is he okay?”
“Eh, he’ll live.”
With everyone present and accounted for, the four ponies made their way towards the Zap Apple Cottage. During the short canter, Applejack took note of the rope around Cozy’s wings, and winced slightly. It was hardly the first she’d seen a Pegasus tied up like (especially since she and Rainbow had become an item), but seeing it in this context, and with a foal no less, felt a bit wrong.
Rainbow, sensing her wife’s sudden discomfort, leaned in for a nuzzle. “Somethin’ buggin’ ya?”
“I dunno, it’s just…” Applejack spared another glance at Cozy. “Don’cha think it’s a bit cruel havin’ her tied down like that?”
Raising an eyebrow, Rainbow looked at Cozy for herself, then back to Applejack. Her mouth scrunched up in contemplation, but she ultimately shrugged. “Eh, maybe, but… I think it’s sort of a… what’s that thing Twilight always says? A necessary evil, or something?”
“I guess…” Applejack didn’t really look convinced. Rainbow sighed, and wrapped a wing over her wife.
“Look, the way I see it, compared to what could have been done with her, a little wing restraint is pretty tame. ‘Sides, she won’t have to stay like that for long. We’re here!”
They were in fact here. There. Whatever. Rainbow flew over to get the door, and held it open for the rest of them. Once they were all inside, Twilight leaned over to Rainbow and whispered. “Everything else locked?” Rainbow nodded.
Stepping through the living room, Cozy scanned the interior of her new place of living, seemingly scrutinizing every little detail. The living room was a model of un-remarkability. Two red couches, one slightly longer than the other, a beanbag chair in the corner, and a countertop in the centre, all on top of wooden floor panels covered by navy-blue carpeting.
She opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by a purple glow enveloping her backside. Twilight used her magic to untie the rope, and just like that, her wings were free.
“Oh, thank the lord,” she muttered, fluttering the tiny appendages, and lifting into the air. Whatever she was going to say was completely forgotten as she buzzed around the decently large room. Rainbow almost thought it was cute, until she remembered who the filly in question was.
“Welcome to yer new home, Cozy Glow,” exclaimed Applejack, a surprising sincerity in her voice. Cozy abruptly stopped flying, and turned to Applejack with a disinterested expression as she landed.
“Yeah. Right. Cool.”
Another bout of awkward silence passed over, until Twilight cleared her throat. “Well, um… I should be going now. But first, may I have a word with you two in private?” She gestured to Applejack and Rainbow, who exchanged a glance, and then both nodded.
The three trotted over to the kitchen. Cozy didn’t follow, but she kept her eyes on the kitchen entrance. She heard them speaking in a hushed tones, too quit to make anything out. Still, it sounded like they were having an argument about something.
“…..I just think it’s best if you keep her under house arrest for the time being,” Twilight explained sternly. Applejack didn’t seem to agree.
“And ah think that goes against what we’re tryin’ to do here. She’s not gonna learn much if anything if’in she’s cooped up in here the whole time. Back me up here, Dashie.”
Rainbow bit her lip, and rubbed her neck. “I don’t know… Twilight does have a point. We can’t keep an eye on her 24/7, and we can’t really trust that she won’t do anything bad if she manages to get away.” Applejack didn’t reply, instead choosing to stare at the floor with a frown.
“That’s not the only thing,” said Twilight. “Doing this is just as much for her own safety.” This got a confused look from Applejack.
“Whaddya mean?”
“Everypony, more or less, knows about Cozy Glow and what she did, and I know that there are a few ponies in town who might try and do something to her if she happened to be out and about.”
Applejack was silent for a moment, contemplation apparent in her expressions. “…Ah hadn’t thought of it like that.”
Rainbow simply scoffed. “If anypony wanted to try something like that, we could take ‘em,” she said, proudly holding a hoof to her chest. Twilight raised an eyebrow.
“What happened to ‘we can’t keep an eye on her 24/7’?”
Eyes widening in realization, Rainbow tried to come up with a response, but instead sighed and rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly.
“Like I said, this is only for the time being,” Twilight reassured. “If everything goes well, we should get to a point where she can go outside, with your supervision,” she made sure to emphasize that last part. “And eventually, let her be entirely free to go whenever she likes.”
With an exasperated sigh, Applejack finally conceded. “Alright, Twi. You made your point. We’ll…lock her in.” Her face still looked quite uneasy as she said those last three words.
Twilight turned to Rainbow. “And you both agree on this?”
Sharing a glance with her wife, Rainbow simply nodded. “If AJ says yeah, then…I guess I say yeah, too.”
“Good,” said Twilight with a single nod. “Well, I’ll get out of your manes now, best of luck to you both.”
She trotted out of the kitchen, and on her way to the front door, briefly locked eyes with Cozy. They both held unreadable expressions. With a final good-bye to her friends, Twilight opened the door and left.
Cozy turned around, and let out a small yelp as she saw Applejack and Rainbow Dash hovering over her mere inches away. Rainbow held a flat look on her while Applejack shot the filly an awkward smile.
“Soooo…” the Earth Pony began. “We should probably, uh, give ya a tour of the place, hehe.” Cozy didn’t roll her eyes, but it looked like she wanted to.
“I think I can find my way around,” she said dismissively. Rainbow started to say something, but was cut off by her wife soldiering on, however awkward it still was.
“Well, at least let me show ya to yer room, it’s just a few feet away from ou-“
“Yeah cool,” The filly interrupted as she flew into the hallway. Applejack sighed, and turned around to follow her, but stopped as she saw Cozy opening the door to her and Rainbow’s bedroom.
“That’s uh, our bedroom-“
Cozy shut the door, and flew over to another one on the right, opening it as well.
“That’s the bathroom-“
Another door shut. At last, she flew over to the left, and opened the door to the guest bedroom. “This one mine?”
Applejack nodded, taking a few steps forwards. “Sure is, if ya want, I can-“
Without saying a word, Cozy flew into her room, slamming the door shut behind her. Applejack hung her head low and sighed, earning a comforting hoof from Rainbow.
“Don’t worry, babe. We’ll figure this out.”
Outside, about 10 miles up in the sky, Twilight flew over the acres, and through Ponyville. She had somewhere she needed to be.
Somepony she needed to talk too.
Canterlot Castle was home to many things. Several priceless works of art spanning multiple decades, a few hundred guardsponies, some of whom did in fact live in the castle, an extensive library of books, tomes, scrolls, and other forms of literature, and of course, the ever loyal servants that keep the place clean, and operational.
One such servant, an aged unicorn butler by the name of Night Oil, stood in front of the door to a room that was currently home to a very disgruntled Alicorn princess. He could hear her mumbling about something. Face stiff as a statue, he gently but firmly knocked on the door three times.
“Go away.”
“Tis I, your grace,” said Night Oil. There was no reply for a few seconds, but eventually, the butler heard the room’s occupant let out a sigh.
“Come in, Night Oil.”
The butler did as told and opened the door, revealing Princess Luna sitting at the edge of her bed, her head hanging low. Slowly stepping in, Night Oil held a flat expression on his face and a posture as rigid and mechanical as a Royal Guard. “Is everything well, Mistress Luna?”
Finally lifting her head to meet his gaze, Luna sighed once more. “I’m afraid not, Nighty.”
“Is there anything I can do for you?”
“Nighty, I appreciate your concerns, really I do, but I know you didn’t come here just to check up on me,” said Luna, matter of fact-ly. “If there’s something that requires my attention, I ask you tell me what it is.”
Night Oil nodded. “Her majesty Princess Twilight has arrived here. She asks if you are available to speak with, privately.”
Closing her eyes, Luna breathed in…and breathed out. She turned her attention back to the butler. “Very well. Tell her to meet me in the royal lounge, in about… 5 minutes.” He nodded, and went to leave, before Luna stopped him with her voice.
“And Night Oil?”
“Yes, Mistress Luna?”
“Have a tray of grapes sent to the lounge, and see to it that we are not disturbed.”
“Of course,” he said with a nod, before exiting the room.
As the door closed behind him, Luna got off the bed, and stared out into the evening sky through her window. It was almost time for her to fulfill her duty.
She thought back to the first time she ever raised the moon. It had been immensely difficult at first, and took her quite some time to perfect. Tonight though, she would have to do something far more challenging than using ancient magic to change the position of a natural satellite:
Having an argument with her girlfriend.
The bedroom of Applejack and Rainbow Dash was, like everything else in the cottage, modest. Aside from the all the trophies and Wonderbolt posters, that is.
Applejack was laying on the bed, snuggly underneath the covers, reading a book, while her wife did her nightly ‘before-bedtime-stretches’, as she called it.
The Earth pony took her eyes off the pages, and frowned a little as a thought occurred to her.
“Hey, Dash?”
“Yeah?” replied Rainbow, still busy with her exercises. Applejack’s mouth stayed open for a bit, but she ultimately sighed and shook her head. “Nevermind, it’s nothing,” she said, before going back to the book.
Rainbow stopped, and looked at her wife. Briefly, she took to appreciate what she saw: Applejack with her hair down, wearing those little reading glasses that she got a year or so ago, when her eye sight started getting a bit worse, laying under the covers. She looked adorable, and Rainbow was very happy with being the only pony who got to see her like this. But right now, she was clearly upset about something.
“AJ, come on,” Rainbow said gently. “What’s up?”
Pouting slightly, Applejack took a little bit to muster up the words. “It’s just… Do ya think we made the right call with this?”
“What, with Cozy Glow? You’re not getting cold hooves, are you?”
“Nah, it’s not that, it’s just…” Applejack shifted uncomfortably. Rainbow came to bed, sitting down next to her.
“Yeah?”
Her eyes glued to the covers, Applejack bit her lip, and breathed out through her nose. Finally, a small smile cracked on her lips. “Ah used to dream about this day, ya know. The day you an’ ah brought home some little filly or colt.” She felt a wing drape over her back. She turned her head to see Rainbow giving her an understanding smile.
“I’m guessing that today didn’t turn out the way you dreamt it, huh?”
“… Eeyup,” she replied in an upsettingly small voice. Rainbow rubbed Applejack’s back, and leaned her head on her shoulder.
“Well… how did you dream it going?”
For a moment, Applejack looked almost wistful, giving a small chuckle. “Well first, we’d show ‘em around the cottage, make sure they knew where everythin’ was, lecture ‘em a lil’ about what not to touch. Then, we’d all have a big dinner, just the three of us, it was always Apple Pie in my dreams.
“Then, at the end of the night, ah tuck ‘em into bed, and one of us reads ‘em a story, just like my folks and Granny Smith always did when I was a filly.” She held a grin on her face, but it started to dissipate. At least until Rainbow started nuzzling her.
“That sounds pretty nice.”
“Yeah.”
The two laid there in silence, simply being comfortable with each other, but eventually, Rainbow spoke up. “Ya know… that day could still happen.”
“Maybe,” Applejack responded a little nod, before yawning. She locked eyes with her wife, and smile. “Well, that’s enough of all that fer tonight. How about we get some shut-eye?”
“You don’t have to ask me twice,” Rainbow smirked. She got under the covers as AJ put her glasses and book down on her nightstand. Rainbow’s eyes then widened as she remembered something. “Oh wait, there’s something I forgot.”
“What’s that?” asked Applejack, getting her reply in the form of a pair of blue lips pressed against hers. As goodnight kisses went, this one was a bit stretched out, but nonetheless enjoyable. When they parted, Rainbow gave her a warm smile.
“I forgot to say I love you.”
“Love ya too, Dash.”
At last, the couple laid their heads down, with Applejack rolling over so Rainbow could spoon her. She reached out a hoof to turn off the lamp next to her, and settled in, letting the two drift off into sleep in embrace.
Cozy laid down on her new bed, eyes staring up at the ceiling. It was an average sized room; one closet, a small desk facing a window, and a nightstand with a lamp to the left of the bed. Said lamp was currently the only light source in the room, and it only stretched out so far.
The filly couldn't really care less about how bright her room was. All she really cared about was leaving. She had tried to fly out though the window, only to find it had been sealed shut. Evidently, they had planned for her trying to escape.
Those idiots are smarter than I thought. If they had the forethought to seal the windows, it only tracked they would have kept the rest of the house locked down as well. If I want to get outta here, I’m gonna have to be clever. She sat up in bed, and rubbed her chin as she thought out her options.
Doing a quick little survey of the room, looking for something useful, Cozy’s eyes landed on a small stack of paper and some markers on the desk. She smirked.
Flying over to the desk, Cozy grabbed a piece of paper, a black marker, and started writing:
“Escape Plans”
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11853319
Um... Thanks for telling me, but why didn’t the author themselves answer me? Do they not know how to do it or something?
11869737
i believe mr Ciphers was making a joke
to actually answer your question, don't worry, i plan on touching on that in the story, eventually
I have a bad feeling that the cottage is going to get destroyed or badly damaged in the future
and the next chapter?
11881110
should be out early to mid may, i'm trying not to rush it though
11881171
ok