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Late Night Stirrings1,209 words
The Staircase1,095 words

The Staircase

The two made their way downstairs, treading lightly as to not wake anyone. As they proceeded to the kitchen, the ambient noise around them became more and more noticeable. It was raining outside, and the gentle pitter-patter of raindrops falling on the roof sounded like a dull roar. A massive grandfather clock in Twilight’s living room ticked and tocked rhythmically, and the occasional thrum of thunder could be heard in the distance. Despite all of the background noise, it was remarkably quiet.

In the silence, Applejack took a moment to reflect on what she had said earlier. Gosh. I sure hope Rair’ didn’t hear me when I mucked up like that. That was pretty weird of me. She began to panic. Yeesh, what if she calls me out on it? Strange enough I called her pretty, but why’d I have to do it when she was sleeping? Dangit, why do I have to go and be such a sucker sometimes?

Applejack breathed in deeply, gathering resolve. Regardless of whether or not Rarity heard her, she began to regret saying anything at all. She knew that Rarity would be able to notice her uneasiness quickly, and she was a terrible liar. There was no way around that, so she had to make this excursion short.

“So Rair’, I don’t want to stay downstairs for too long. Let’s just grab a little snack, and head back to bed.” The wooden stairs would occasionally creak under Applejack’s socked foot, causing her to cringe. “Dangit. These stairs are gonna wake everyone up.”

Rarity giggled under her breath. “First of all, your griping is louder than the stairs. Secondly, what would it even matter if someone heard us? It’s not like anyone would get mad.” Applejack pondered for a moment. “I mean, you woke me up, and I didn’t mind.” Applejack ceased pondering, and began to panic again.

Oh man. Oh man, oh gosh, oh man. She heard me. I’m done for. She forced a smile, facing Rarity.

“Yup. Sure did. And I guess you’re missing out on your beauty sleep, huh?” Oh for crying out loud, that was the worst possible thing I could have said.

Rarity smiled. “Yes, you did… but I suppose this will be fun. I’m not very tired, to be honest. I don’t think I’d be able to get back to sleep right away, so this is a nice diversion.” She grabbed a lock of her hair and began to brush at it vigorously. “Shame that my hair is probably in such terrible shape. I look simply hideous.”

Applejack ran and hand through her hair nervously. “Naw… you look-” Applejack cut herself off, and Rarity stared at her questioningly. “Well, shucks. You look fine, and besides, no one ‘round here but little ol’ me to see it anyhow.” She bit her lip. It pained her to say it, but it was the truth... why on earth would Rarity want to look good around her? They were just friends, after all.

“Oh pish-posh, Applejack. A lady always makes herself presentable, even in front of her friends. It’s not a matter of seeking approval, but maintaining an air of poise and grace.”

“Is that so? You should’ve heard the racket y’all were makin’ earlier. Not very lady-like if you ask me.” Applejack said, chuckling. “Ah, I’m just kiddin’. But honestly, you look pretty, even for someone who just crawled out of bed.” Rarity smiled once again. Always smiling, that girl.

“Why, thank you Applejack! If I may add, you look rather gorgeous yourself as of late. Have you been doing something different with your hair? It’s been just positively radiant lately.”

Applejack’s heart started racing. “Haha, no… well, no… not really anyhow.” She began to blush profusely. “I mean, I went out and bought myself a new shampoo, I guess…” She grabbed a bit of her hair, knotted and messy, and presented it to Rarity. “It’s apple scented. Well, they said it was at the store, and I thought it’d be kind of cute… Uh, I mean, funny, because my name is Applejack.” Applejack chuckled heartily. Augh. Augh! Why on earth am I doing this!? “And also because I think apples smell nice.”

“Well, I approve! It’s such a pleasant surprise when you actually try to look nice, instead of mucking about in the dirt all day… no offense, dear.” Rarity said cheerily. For some reason, hearing the compliment gave Applejack a great sense of pride. She grinned sheepishly and averted her eyes, her cheeks turning a bright red. She let out an undignified giggle.

“Aww shucks, thanks Rair’!”

It was unlike Applejack to get so excited over a kind word. For that matter, why was she looking for compliments from Rarity with such zeal? As far as she was concerned, compliments never really made her happy. In fact, up until a few minutes ago, she was never mindful of her appearance, or for that matter, what others thought of her appearance. There was something about the way the pale moonlight caught Rarity’s sleeping face – her lips, her cheeks, her hair – that had Applejack consider an ideal. An ideal form of beauty that was present only in the form of Rarity, and an ideal that she’d never achieve.

Oh. That’s why it meant so much.

The two arrived in the kitchen, silent. "So, uh... Twilight said earlier that we can help ourselves to whatever we wanted, so I figure I'll just make myself a peanut butter and jam sandwich. I'm not sure what else you could rustle up, so I guess I could make y'all one if you'd like." Applejack opened several cupboards before successfully locating some peanut butter and jam, and began constructing the simple sandwiches.

Rarity scoffed, as she drank a glass of water. "Oh Applejack, don't you think we should indulge in something a little more palatable?" She opened Twilight's fridge, and began to search.

"Something tastier than a PB and J sandwich? You're kidding me."

"I was thinking something Italian; perhaps some tortellini, or risotto..."

"If you want, I could throw a piece of salami on yo-"

Rarity held up two microwavable pasta boxes she found in the freezer. "Here we are - Applejack, would you be interested in a midnight banquet as opposed to a simple midnight snack?"

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