The Bonds That Unite Us

by Charlie_K

End

"To the left...a little more...a little more...a lit- ohh yeah that's the spot!" Rainbow Dash moaned contentedly as she arched her back and rested her head on the edge of the tub.

It'd been a very long, very hard day on top of an equally long and hard week. Apple bucking was tough work on its own and it was even moreso when it hurt to move. At points it was difficult to even walk properly but she'd refused to let that stop her and she just continued on, driven by stubbornness and determination and the simple desire to pull her full weight.

There hadn't been much talk between her and Applejack over the course of the day, primarily as they worked separate sections of the orchard, but also because of the day previously. Despite making up on the way back from the Ponyville train station there was still a tense and heavy atmosphere that just seemed to persist. It was the kind of atmosphere that just seemed to stifle free conversation and keep any interaction limited strictly to the relevant facts and nothing more.

However at the end of the day, after they were through bucking and thoroughly exhausted, Rainbow Dash could feel that tension melting away as she was treated to that long awaited hot relaxing bath she'd been promised two days ago.

"Feel good RD?" Applejack asked rhetorically as she ran the washcloth over that particular region of wing again. Rainbow Dash just groaned in response, enjoying herself too much to put any thought into forming a sentence. Applejack just chuckled as she continued the delicate scrubbing her sister enjoyed so much.

"Ah tell ya what RD yer one dirty pegasus. Ah might need ta break out the scrub brush fer the rest o' ya," Applejack told her.

"You're gonna get soaked if you do that," Rainbow Dash pointed out as she remembered the last time Applejack had tried to scrub her down in order to get her clean. The results had been messy. "If you're gonna do that you might as well climb in and join me."

Applejack didn't say anything in response. She thought the matter over for a minute, before setting her hat aside and slowly eased herself into the relaxing hot water and sat down behind Rainbow Dash. "Anythin' else wiseapple?" she asked as she resumed her scrubbing.

Rainbow Dash was in the middle of forming a response when Applejack ran the washcloth over a particular spot on her spine with just enough force to make her shiver. It was the kind of shiver somepony had when coming out of the cold and being greeted by a nice wave of heat. Whether that was a deliberate action or purely accidental she didn't know for sure, but she enjoyed it.

"Besides the fact that I'm gonna scrub you after you're done with me?" Rainbow Dash asked. A pause and no response. "Not really," she said and shrugged.

The rest of the bath passed in relative silence, other than Rainbow Dash's occasional instructions on where to scrub and the resulting moans of enjoyment.

"RD?" Applejack finally spoke up and broke the silence.

"Yeah AJ?" Rainbow Dash asked as she noted the lack of scrubbing along her wings, wondering what was going on.

"Ah'm...ah'm real sorry about what ah said ta ya earlier. Ah was wrong ta be like that," Applejack stated.

"I know AJ-"

"No ya really don' know, lemme finish what ah was sayin', please?" Applejack asked. Much to her relief Rainbow Dash nodded. "What ah said yesterday was unacceptable an' horrible. Worse than all that it was downright cruel an' even hateful. Ah had no business bein' mad at ya fer what ah thought mah parents did ta us, an ah had no right ta take it out on ya either. Ah...ah don' know wha' came over me, ah honestly don't. It was like ah was possessed er somethin', ah was jus' hurtin' so dang much an' ah wanted somepony else ta hurt too so ah wouldn' be alone. Ya were jus' tryin' ta help 'cause ya were concerned, an' ah wound up hurtin' ya in the worst possible way ah could ever think of. Not only did ah attack yer family status, ah also attacked yer Element o' Harmony status."

It was unbelievably hard to be silent and let Applejack talk as she heard what her friend and sister had to say. She could hear the hurt in her voice and wanted to comfort her. She nearly spoke up at the pause but before she even got the first word out Applejack was talking again.

"Ah shoulda told ya abou' mah parents when ya asked me. Ah shoulda told ya what ah was feelin' an why ah was upset an' jus' talked it out. But ah was afraid ta be bringin' 'em back up 'cause ah was afraid of how much ah thought it was gonna hurt ta do that. Ah kept all those years buried so deep it jus' hurt less ta treat 'em like they were dead an' gone. Ah was horrible ta them an' horrible ta you an' all at the same time. Ah feel lower than the belly on a snake an'...an' ah don' deserve ta have a sister as nice as ya. Ya went outta yer way ta do somethin' nice fer me an' didn' expect somethin' in return and ah..." she paused as her voice wavered.

Rainbow Dash didn't know how much longer she could keep silent. the more she listened to Applejack the more it hurt to keep her mouth shut. She wanted to interrupt her and tell her that everything was alright, that she forgave her and there were no hard feelings between them. She desperately wanted to do anything she could to comfort her sister. However before she even got the chance to do such she felt Applejack wrapping her forelegs around her and do something she'd never heard her do except for once and that was last night; she started crying. Now she was starting to get really uncomfortable. There was no way she could stay silent now.

"Hey...Hey AJ," she said as she turned around to face Applejack and hug her properly. "Come on don't cry AJ, don't cry. I've never seen you cry before and you're scaring me."

It seemed like there was nothing she could do to properly comfort her sister and calm her down. All she could do right now was hug her and let her cry until it was out of her system, all the while stroking her back with the now liberated washcloth. The only good part of it all was that she wasn't crying nearly as hard as she was last night.

An idea suddenly came to her that just might work. She really didn't like the idea because it was mean, but she was getting desperate and willing to try anything. As gently as she could she placed her hooves on top of Applejack's head and quickly dunked her under the water before letting go. It wasn't a second later before Applejack popped up above the surface coughing and sputtering, looking confused and angry all at the same time.

"Sorry," Rainbow Dash said sheepishly.

"Naw it's a'right, ah deserved that," Applejack replied.

"No not really, but I needed you to stop crying so I could talk to you. Now before you start in again about how bad you feel can I please have the chance to get a word in edgewise?" she asked. This time Applejack nodded and ceded to her. "I know what you said was hurtful, not just to me but also to yourself once you calmed down. Then again I feel bad about decking you like I did back in Ponyville, that was just plain uncalled for," she told her and paused. Applejack fortunately didn't have anything to offer up so that gave her plenty of opportunity to continue. "What say we put this behind us and forgive each other just like we always do, alright?"

"Jus' like that?" Applejack asked.

"Just like that. We both made mistakes here, we're both at fault. And the way I see it we can either forgive and forget and just move on...or we can wallow in pity and try futilely to make it up to each other. I say we take the first option because it's easier and quicker, alright?" she suggested.

"...Ah guess ah can do that," Applejack said and nodded.

"Good. Now c'mere you," she said and pulled her over into another hug, which quickly turned out to be a headlock and a noogie to her head. Applejack struggled to get loose before laughing at Rainbow Dash's antics.

"Yer still the orneriest pegasus ah ever did meet," Applejack stated and did her best to scowl.

"And don't you forget it," Rainbow Dash replied as she leaned back against the wall of the tub to relax. "So...Mom and Dad huh?" she asked. Applejack nodded. "This is gonna take some time to get used to."

"Fer both of us," Applejack added.

"Well if we could kick Discord's flank we can probably figure this one out too. But in the meantime..." Rainbow Dash paused as she reached outside of the tub and retrieved the previously mentioned scrub brush, a mischievous grin on her face.

"Oh no..." was all Applejack could think to say when she saw where this was going.

---

"AJ?" Rainbow Dash more or less whispered as she eased the bedroom door open.

"Wha's up RD, 'sides you that is?" Applejack asked as she turned over in her bed to face her. It'd been a long day and she was tired, but if her sister had something important enough to come to her with who was she to turn her away?

Reuniting with her parents, apologizing to Rainbow Dash, bucking apples, more apologizing to Rainbow Dash and answering questions that Apple Bloom had afterwards. It'd definitely been a long day for everypony involved. But in the Apple family the day could never be so long that you didn't have time for family when they needed you. And Rainbow Dash was definitely family; moreso now than ever before.

"Well I couldn't sleep and I got to thinking, bad combination I know," she chuckled, "and I was just wondering if I could spend the night with you. After last week I think I've had enough solitary nights."

"...Sounds fine by me," Applejack replied simply and scooted over to the side.

"Thanks," Rainbow Dash said as she stepped into the room, clad in her apple themed nightshirt Rarity had given her so long ago, before climbing up into bed and nestling under the covers.

Applejack never really could see the point in wearing clothes to bed so Rainbow Dash's decision seemed a little odd to her. But she didn't say anything as she settled in for the night and made herself comfortable. "Cozy there?"

"Very cozy. Much better than the cot I slept on up there," Rainbow Dash replied.

"Ya never really did elaborate on jus' wha' happened while ya were gone. Pa made it out like ya were some sorta big time hero up there," Applejack pointed out as she rolled over to face her. "Care ta share the details?"

"You sure you wanna hear this? It's gonna be more boring than the time we tried to read Daring Do and the Amethyst Goblet," she stated.

"Ah'm sure. After all ya did somepony needs ta record it for posterity's sake. Be a good tale ta tell at the next Apple Family Reunion we have," AppleJack replied.

"And I thought I was the bragger in the family," Rainbow Dash replied and chuckled. But regardless she sat up and prepared to share the details that were requested. "Alright this is how things went..."

END

Comments

[Boulder]

Yay, best ending to a story yet!!

[Rose1453]

I still really enjoy this story. Lots of feels.