Dawn of a Brand New Day

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Author's Note: You've all been waiting for this one, and I told you that it would come… so here it is! Twice the humor, three times the lemon, and delectable drama aplenty! (At 130+ reviews on the last story, I think I'm entitled to a little bit of shameless promotion.)

A fair warning to any newcomers: This story is the sequel to "The Rainbow Effect", an AppleDash shipfic which contains a fair amount of sensuality, as well as a lemon scene. You can expect much of the same in this story, probably more so than in the previous story, so read on with caution. Or anticipation.

Just read on either way.

One final note before the story begins. I'll admit that Twilight's birthday in "Sweet and Elite" kinda had me sweating this chapter… until I got thinking. That episode happened in Season 2, and they never mentioned that it was her first birthday with her friends, which (one would think) would have had a much greater impact on Twilight's overall reaction to the party. I think it's fair to consider that episode to be part of year two of Twilight's life in Ponyville.

Details. Psh.

Disclaimer: I don't own Hasbro, or My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. Applejack is the single-most underrated pony in the series. These two statements are unrelated in every way, except that they are entirely true. All but one of the above statements was made for entertainment purposes.

"The Twilight Effect"

By: Aquarian Poet

Chapter 1: Dawn of a Brand New Day

The fields of grass and morning dew glittered brightly around the wakingtown of Ponyville. Sunlight danced in between the droplets of water, sparkling and shining throughout the sunny vale in stirring splendor.

The pegasus ponies' rainstorm had finally passed, leaving a numberof leaves and twigs scattered across an otherwise pristine clearing. Birds and animals had long since left their nests to be seendarting and fluttering across the area, foraging through bushes and gathering up the debris with which they could use to repair their nests.

Among the morning wildlife, two ponies walked together underneath a cloudless sky. The sounds of shuffling hooves in the grass and a silent conversation followed closely behind them.

"It was very kind of Big Macintosh to stay up with us as long as he did." an alabaster unicorn quietly remarked.

Her winged companion nodded, watching a pair of squirrels beneath a nearby tree. "Oh yes. He's a very nice pony." was her reply.

The first pony smile wistfully. "He can be quite the gentlestallion… for a pony so rough around the edges." she quickly added, donning a look of indifference.

Fluttershy nodded her head, and the two continued their trot along the pathless hill in silence. The pegasus let her eyes wander across the dewy field, focused in thought.

Earlier, Rarity had arrived at her doorstep to ask her to join her on a morning walk, much to her surprise. It was very unlike her to make impromptu arrangements with her friends, usually planning a get-together days in advance to fit in with her busy schedule. Her proposal was even stranger, considering that the unicorn was not a very early riser, opting to spend long hours into the late-fallen night in studious designing.

In time, Fluttershy came to understand her friend's proposal; she was looking out for her. The previous night had taken a heavy toll on the group, and Rarity had been generous enough to walk the weary pegasus home after they had finished their duties. It was very much like her to be concerned for a friend.

In truth, the two had never taken a morning walk together, and the silence between them did little to stay the memories of the previous night, weighing heavily in her hooves. Still, she had seen no reason to turn her offer down, and had felt that a morning walk would do her good. And even if that was not so, it was her own duty as a friend to make sure that Rarity was well herself.

It had not taken her long to notice her friend's weary demeanor, softened with a practiced grace, but not so much that the pegasus pony was fooled. The bags underneath the seamstress' eyes told the story of a struggle with a sleepless night, the same lonely hours that she herself had spent listening to the sounds of the storm, in which two of her beloved friends were lost.

Fluttershy tiredly shook her mind clear of her thoughts, looking to her side. Rarity was as quiet as she was, head bowed and eyes low to the path. It would not do to give her more reason to worry. The mare sighed, inhaling deeply after a moment. The cool scent of the morning air, lightly laced with the ghost of a rainstorm filled her senses, helping to banish the dark thoughts from her mind.

A pair of butterflies crossed her vision, capturing her attention. Dancing around each other in a pleasing simplicity, she watched as they flit away from the meadow, becoming colored specks as they flew over the edge of a far-off hill…

…to be replaced with two other colored specks slowly cresting the same horizon.

She watched with building hope as two ponies walked side-by-side in equal silence, headed for the town behind her. Fluttershy could only barely make out their faces, weary but relaxed, their eyes locked on the buildings ahead as her own slowly filled with tears. She found herself mirroring their contented expressions as she reached out a hoof to gain Rarity's attention.

Ponyville.

It had been the longest twelve hours that Rainbow Dash could ever remember being away from home. Maybe it was because she had decided to trot alongside her companion in agonizing slowness, instead of opting for her usual speedy methods. Maybe it was because she had dislocated her wing and passed out the previous night before, only to awaken and fall back asleep an eternity later.

More likely than not, it was because she had never expected to return.

Taking a deep breath, Rainbow Dash relished in the afterscents of the storm, fresh with the smell of meadow grass and morning dew. Her ears caught the sounds of the wildlife around them, and the sounds of her hooves stepping through the wet grass, alongside the rhythm of another set that matched her own.

A smile broke across the pony's victorious visage. It didn't matter now, all of that was far behind her.

Literally.

She flapped her ears freely in the cooling breeze that picked up around them. Her new marefriend had long since taken her hat back as to not raise any suspicions (or eyebrows) from their friends. Twilight's birthday party was tonight, and there would be plenty of time for explanations afterwards.

She looked to her left, where Applejack was trotting alongside her. The orange cowpony had gone agonizingly quiet at the end of their little… squabble. After retrieving her mud-caked Stetson from the unrepentant pegasus, she had given her a single kiss on the cheek, and walked ahead without another word.

Rainbow Dash, as full of vigor and vitality as always, had found herself exhausted. The walk back had been a quiet one, and she would have been more grateful for the reprieve had she not been so worried the rest of the way back. Applejack was never a pony to toss her words about… but this was different. She almost looked disturbed by something. Removed.

Withdrawn.

The proud pegasus blew her bangs from out of her face as the wind picked up once again. Maybe she was reading too far into things. Everything that needed to be said had already been said between the two the previous night, and a quiet walk together had been enjoyable; a definite change of pace from her hasty nature of doing things.

So with a light smirk on her face and a bounce in her step, the two drew near the waking town in pleasant silence.

Until Applejack let out a shout.

Rainbow Dash turned in time to see a blur of white and purple overtake her friend in a full body tackle.

"Applejack, darling! I-"

That was all she was able to comprehend before catching a flash of yellow and pink in her peripherals. A world-shaking collision later, she found herself blinking away a half second of free-falling surprise, before finding herself back against the cold, dewy grass with a pony on top of her.

"Rainbow Dash!" Fluttershy softly exclaimed, holding the pegasus tightly. "Oh, thank goodness you're okay! We were so worried that something had happened to the both of you!" She placed a hoof atop her forehead. "Oh you shouldn't have gone out into the storm like that. How are you feeling?"

Yesterday, Rainbow Dash would have gently pushed the pegasus pony away, shrugging off the heartfelt gesture. She would have said she was fine, had it not been the day after she had truly convinced herself that she would never see her friends again. Friends that she suddenly came to appreciate so much more.

Any other day, and she would have told her off for being so sensitive.

So she threw all care and conservationto the wind, and hugged her fiercely, eliciting a surprised squeak from the pink-maned pony.

"I'm fine, Fluttershy." she whispered, biting back tears and basking in the kindness and concern radiating from the yellow mare, cracking an eye open to see an exasperated Applejack shoving Rarity from off of her. "Better than ever, really."

"I'm so glad. We all missed you so much yesterday. Oh Rainbow Dash, I was so scared that… you were, well… p-please don't do that again." the pegasus silently pleaded.

Rainbow Dash felt her heart spilling over, as well as her resolve to keep her tears at bay, giving the sisterly mare a tighter hug.

"I can't believe I ever thought of leaving you guys." she murmured into her mane.

"Huh?"

The blue pony sniffed. "Nothing." she replied, smiling.

Eventually, the two ponies withdrew themselves from their newfoundfriends, standing across from the two, side-by-side. Rarity timidly spoke up after a lengthy pause.

"So, the two of you have had… time, to sort things out?"

Rainbow Dash grinned as she wiped a hoof under her nose, throwing her other around Applejack's shoulder. "Yeah, we're cool now. We just needed a little time to… make things right."

Applejack chuckled, returning the gesture with a smile of her own. "We're just peachy, Rarity."

The unicorn sighed, her posture becoming noticeably straighter. "You have no idea how glad I am to hear that." she breathed.

Fluttershy let out a quiet noise from her side, gathering the other ponies' attention. "Umm, w-would you two… like to come with us? Me and Rarity were about to head back to the barn, to finish getting ready for Twilight's birthday party." she asked, looking hopeful.

Applejack withdrew her hoof from the pegasus pony's shoulder. "Why of course we will! We made a mess o' things last night, an 'I reckon we made a big enough scene t'keep y'all from getting everythin' done. I saw we… uhh, you gals hear somethin'?" Applejack stopped, one ear raised and looking side to side.

*THUMP*

"Ow!"

"Ouch."

*GASP!* "You found Rainbow Dash! You found her! Youfoundheryoufoundheryoufoundheryoufound-" The pink pony's tirade was cut short as a cyan-colored hoof was forced against her mouth, the offending pony not bothering to look up.

"Hey there, Pinks. We're back."

Pinkie Pie hopped off of the two flattened ponies as they began brushing themselves off, standing up to face the pink pony who was avoiding the orange mare's gaze.

"Applejack..." Pinkie Pie began. "I'm really, really sorry about yesterday. We found your hat, and I didn't think about finding you and returning it." She sniffed, wiping a hoof across her nose. "I-I just wanted to have some fun with Rainbow Dash, but I should have-"

"Hey, none of that now." The orange mare interjected softly, moving in with Rainbow Dash to hug the pony, stroking a tear away from Pinkie Pie's face. "Y'all didn't do anything wrong. You were just wantin' in on a little bit o' fun, an' things got outta control between me and Rainbow. T'aint your fault in the least, sugarcube."

Pinkie Pie sniffed, and returned the two mare's embrace, at which point Fluttershy and Rarity joined in, completing the silent group hug. The five friends held fast to one another, not a word passing between them as each one of them relished in the joy of being reunited once-

"Oh come on! That's like the fifth hug I've seen since I got here!"

All five ponies let out a startled shout, whipping around to see a small baby dragon standing a few yards away, tapping a clawed foot impatiently.

"Spike! W-what are you doing here?" Rarity stammered, smiling innocently. Spike folded his arms in annoyance, addressing the unicorn with uncharacteristic touchiness.

"I've been looking all over for you guys! I just wanted to let you know what Twilight's going to be doing today, so you'll know when to invite her to the surprise party. But geez, you girls are so sappy." he groaned, sticking his tongue out and pointing a finger to his mouth.

The five ponies stared at him, blinking.

"Wait, you knew that we were throwin' a party for Twilight? This whole time?" Applejack asked, shakily. The baby dragon nodded his head, huffing.

"B-But how? Twilight never told any of us when her birthday is."

"Rainbow Dash had to fly all the way to Canterlot to find somepony who did! She couldn't possibly be expecting one!"

"Oh, she's not."

A five-part, dissonant 'Huh?' reached the dragon's ears before he continued.

"Nope! She's definitely not expecting one. Geez, I can't even remember the last time we actually celebrated her birthday. She would always hole herself up in the Canterlot library, studying whatever new books her parents and Princess Celestia sent her." Spike paused, snorting. "But some ponies…" he trailed off, eyeing Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, both looking sheepish. "…almost blew it yesterday."

"How so?" Rarity asked, raising an eyebrow at the two ponies.

"Well, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash were acting really strange yesterday, and carrying two pairs of saddlebags somewhere in a hurry. Pinkie Pie's was full of markers." The dragon lifted two sets of two fingers up, and placed them side-by-side, arching an eyebrow for emphasis. "It wasn't that hard to figure out. Thankfully she's none the wiser. She thought you two were playing a game of hide-and-seek, though she was wondering why Rainbow Dash was wearing Applejack's hat."

Three of the ponies turned towards Rainbow Dash, who shrunk on the spot, albeit with a cheeky grin.

"Eh heh. Just a… friendly prank?"

Applejack snorted from beside her, concealing a smile.

"Well then, things seem to have taken a turn for the better!" Rarity suddenly interjected from the group, standing upright. "Alright girls, we still have work to do! Let's head back to the barn and get everything ready so we can all enjoy the night together!"

The other ponies let out a cheer, raising a hoof into the air and doubling back towards the town. Rarity suddenly slowed her pace after a few steps.

"And Applejack? Rainbow Dash?" She paused, prompting the two headstrong mares to halt. "It's… good to see you two back again." she admitted, turning back with a smile. The ponies gave her a modest grin, tilting their heads toward each other.

…before Rarity's smile disappeared.

"But first we need to get you two cleaned up! I mean really, you're both filthy and smell absolutely horrendous! Honestly, did you two get into a mud-fight on the way back?" she snapped, trotting back in the direction of Ponyville.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack shared a look.

"Alright gals, so what's left to do?" asked Applejack, her clean orange coat gleaming brightly in the sunlight as she led the group of ponies into the barn.

"Let me see..." Rarity's horn lit up, a red pince-nez and clipboard gracefully soaring out of the saddlebags on her back and in front of her eyes. "Hmm… Pinkie Pie already left to pick up a piñata from Sugarcube Corner, and I will be going after her shortly to assist her in moving the cake to the barn. All that's really left to take care of would be the… streamers. We finished most everything else..." she trailed off, looking uneasy.

A knowing smile crossed Applejack's face as she walked up beside her, looking around. "Well it looks like y'all did a fine job without us after all."

Rarity smiled gratefully, blushing and clearing her throat.

"So, once you three are finished here, that should be everything. Fluttershy will be attending to her animal friends for the remainder of the afternoon, so the two of you will need to be someplace I can find you, to let you know what time the party will be starting after I talk with Spike."

"Sounds like a plan. Me an' Rainbow Dash will be at home gettin' ready." the Stetson-clad pony replied, eyes locked on the rafters. "Just holler fer us when you get the details."

The unicorn's eye twitched, though her smile remained genial. "Yes, *ahem* I'll… 'holler' for you two." she muttered.

As Rarity left through the open doorway, Rainbow Dash looked up into the rafters, and back to Applejack, whose stare was still held high, seemingly lost in thought. "You know what Fluttershy…" Rainbow Dash began. "We've got this covered. Why don't you go ahead and leave this to us?"

"Oh, a-are you sure?" she asked.

Applejack broke her gaze for a moment, giving her attention to the pegasus ponies.

"Sure I'm sure! It doesn't take three ponies to do a job like this! Not when you've got me here!" Rainbow Dash declared, striking a pose.

Fluttershy looked to Applejack for a second opinion, who nodded in agreement.

"It's alright, Fluttershy. We all know that you've got a mighty big job to do, takin' care of all those critters, and you gals did a fine job without us last night. Me an' Rainbow Dash can finish this up lickety-split." Applejack lightly nudged her fellow pegasus pony. "Get on up there."

"You got it!"

Fluttershy stood in place, her pink mane tousling in the wind as Rainbow Dash took off in a blur. An uncertain look spread across her face, disappearing quickly as Applejack looked back to her, smiling.

"Don't worry. We'll be fine."

With that, she quickly galloped over to the pile of streamers on the floor on the other side of the room, leaving the yellow pegasus at the foot of the door. She watched as Applejack took a line of streamers, and began swinging it in a hoop, tossing it up to her pegasus friend like a lasso. Applejack then turned back to look at her once more, giving her a small wink. The corners of her mouth creasing upwards, Fluttershy nodded, and trotted out of the barn.

Applejack's smiled followed her out the door, slowly dropping as she turned her attention to the other pegasus in the vicinity. Rainbow Dash gleefully looped around another set of rafters above her, a stream of colored ribbons weaving close behind.

"Alright, toss me another one!" she suddenly called out.

Wordlessly the orange pony took another roll, and began swinging the colorful line as per her fashion, before tossing it upwards. The bright blue pegasus deftly caught the colorful line in her mouth and continued her duty.

Applejack exhaled, leaning against a nearby table and watching the pony soaring high above her. She hadn't sat down since she woke up next to her feathered friend early this morning, and was slowly becoming aware of a dull pain arising from the bottom of her legs. There was work to be done, however, and she did not plan on forgoing her duties any longer.

Still, it was good that everything was finally coming together. In less than half a day, Twilight would walk through the door behind her, and into a night that she would remember for the rest of her life.

The orange pony allowed herself to smile, looking towards the table at a spot where a large birthday cake would soon complete the festive scene. Just a little while longer and all of their hard work would pay off in full. The thought of her friend glowing with surprise, and a night of nothing but festivities was more than enough to whisk away the dull ache in her hooves.

Not to mention that it felt good to work with Rainbow Dash like this.

Her smile faded away as her expression turned blank.

'For once.'

"Those ponies sure outdid themselves last night." she suddenly mused aloud, her tone low.

"Uh-huh." Rainbow Dash replied through her teeth, soaring across another wooden support. Applejack willed her focus towards the décor, readjusting her hat and bringing it up a ways to better view the barn as a whole.

It suddenly struck Applejack just how much had been done while the two had gone missing. The hay floor beneath them was clean of dirt or rocks, a chore that Applejack knew better than anypony was more than tedious. Up on the ceiling, a large number of party balls had been set up. The task had been meticulously done, scattered in various places around the ceiling, the largest of which had been strategically placed above the door and around the table where the cake would sit.

Applejack followed the wiring that connected each colored ball on the ceiling, converging to a single line that dangled almost invisibly in the center of the large room, one tug of which would rain streamers and confetti down onto the unwitting unicorn when she walked inside the barn.

'Fluttershy must have spent a long time on those.' she dourly thought to herself. Suddenly, she felt much better that the two had relieved the shy pegasus from finishing up.

But better didn't necessarily mean 'good'.

"Applejack."

The hat-clad pony jumped in surprise as her eyes snapped back up, her full attention on the pegasus pony standing in front of her, no longer soaring around the wooden supports.

"Yeah?"

Rainbow Dash slowly trotted forwards, frowning. "You know, there's a reason I suggested we let Fluttershy off. We need to talk."

The orange pony recoiled slightly. "A-About what?"

"About you!" The pegasus pony stopped a few feet away, pointing an accusing hoof in her direction. "Applejack, you're starting to scare me! You've been spacing out all day, and you've hardly said a word to me since we got here! What gives?"

Applejack froze up. "I'm… I, uh… just… it's nothing." she stammered, wincing. Rainbow Dash hung her head low.

"Look, I might not be smartest pony on the block…"

"True." The orange pony admitted, before quickly biting her tongue. Rainbow Dash took the word in stride, walking up her and putting her hooves around the pony, bringing their faces close.

"…but if something has my marefriend all worked up like this, I'd be really stupid not to notice." she finished quietly. "Come on AJ. Please… talk to me."

Applejack sucked in a shaky breath. She brought her gaze up to the pegasus' face, taking a glance into violet-tinted windows of concern, before looking away with a hopeless grimace. Sighing, she sat down and slowly leaned forward into the embrace.

"Rainbow." she started. "This… this ain't gonna work."

"What isn't?"

"You… an' me. We can't be like this. We just… we aren't like this."

The barn had gone completely silent, for the length of a breaking heartbeat."You mean… you're having second… d-did I do something-"

"No!" Applejack cried, lunging towards the pegasus and holding her tight. "Oh no… you haven't done anything wrong, and I ain't never gonna regret this. Never." She whispered, nestling her face into the crook of her neck. "That wasn't what I meant. I-I just meant that… this isn't us, Rainbow."

The pegasus held her breath, waiting patiently until Applejack continued.

"I… I wasn't kidding… when I said that you always end up breakin' or twistin' somethin' fer us to have a tender moment." She let out a weary chuckle. "Sometimes it's yer wing, sometimes it's yer leg, and even though you don't mean to…" Her grip suddenly tightened.

"…sometimes it's my heart."

She felt the pegasus pony go rigid.

"But it ain't your fault!" She quickly stated, sighing after a moment's pause. "Look at us now, Rainbow. When was the last time we were workin' together like this? There ain't no two ponies that get into brawls and fights like we do."

"Applejack."

"I can be such a stubborn pony when I don't feel like I'm doin' my best, an' I let my heart get stiff as a board." Her voice started to quaver, growing in volume. "I got so worked up about the party that I just about wrecked everything between us. Yellin' and hollerin' at you, callin' you 'worthless', I-I never felt so sick in my life!"

"But-"

"The whole thing was my fault from the start! I could'a gotten both of us killed in that storm!" Her voice grew hysterical. "If I hadn't found you when I did, y-you'd be dead right now!"

"Applejack!"

"IT WAS ALL MY FAULT!" she screamed, pushing the pegasus away and flying to her hooves, her hat falling to the floor. Rainbow Dash raised her head from the floor, looking up toward the orange pony in shock, her tear-stricken visage twisted with regret.

"Even after I found you, an' after everything that happened back there, I still tried t'get you all riled up, Rainbow Dash!" she shouted, tears trailing from her freckled eyes. "I was so happy, Rainbow! I was so… happy! We were finally together, an' the first thing I do is provoke you! It wasn't even twelve hours after we kiss n' told that we got into a fight, right outside the cave!"

Applejack shut her eyes tight, stomping the ground.

"Don'tcha get it, Rainbow? You an' me are always getting' into fights or arguments! W-We can't even have a game o' horseshoes without one of us tryin' t'start somethin'! How… how are we gonna make this work? H-How are we s'posed to keep a re… relation…us together?"

She brought a hoof up to cover her face, quietly sobbing as she continued in a subdued voice.

"I-I know things always work out fer us in the end, and that it's usually all in good fun, but we fight so much… a-and it hurts so much. I'm just so worried that the next time we get into a fight… it's gonna hurt a lot more, an' I don't know if I'll be able to keep my head, now that we're… t-that the two of us..."

The hatless pony collapsed to the floor, bitterly weeping into her hooves. Rainbow Dash slowly moved up to her and reached out a hoof, before finding Applejack wrapped tightly around her neck, pouring tears into her rainbow mane.

The pegasus remained silent, pondering her words and waiting until Applejack's shuddering breaths had begun to slow down, resting her head against the earth pony's as she spoke again.

"I told you a long time ago that you're my best friend, Rainbow." she choked. "And friendship has gone and given way t'love for us. But now, I've gotta be better for you. Better for us. 'Cause now that I've got you…" she wept, her voice a strained whisper.

"I'm just so afraid of losin' you again."

The trembling of her body suddenly ceased, as she felt a warm hoof trailing upwards along her neck, and resting against her cheek.

"Applejack."

She blinked at how soft the voice spoke her name. Her gaze darted upward, desperate green eyes meeting a passionate pair of violets that stared back for a fraction of a second, before closing and moving forward, as Rainbow Dash placed a gentle kiss on her quivering lips.

The touch immediately banished away the fear and remorse that she held in her heart. Lost from her own worry, Applejack closed her own eyes, leaving her hesitance behind and allowing herself to be found by the sweet enrapture brought from her feathered friend's soft-lipped reassurance.

The pegasus pony slowly pulled away, their noses lightly pressed together. Applejack began to stand up.

"Rainbow Da-"

"Sit down."

Applejack blinked. She opening her mouth to protest, and found herself mute as she found herself staring into a pair of glaring violets. The look softened instantly, and she watched as her face lowered itself to her shoulder, lightly pressing against her collarbone, and effectively bringing her down to the floor on her haunches. She felt Rainbow Dash wrap her hooves down her front, resting her face against her neck.

"Take it from me, Applejack. You're making way too big of a deal of this."

"Rainbow..."

She nipped at the orange pony's neck, stopping her interjection.

"Just hear me out for a second." The pegasus sighed. "What happened back there, that was nothing. That was just us… being us."

Applejack made a motion to speak, but found the words locked inside of her throat, where Rainbow Dash continued her tender administrations.

"Ever since Twilight came to Ponyville, I've been learning a whole lot of stuff. Not just about friendship, or loyalty, but about myself. Things that I haven't realized until either her… or you pointed them out.

She paused, struggling with the words that came next.

"I… don't always think things through. When I see something that I want, I go for it, and I'll do anything it takes to win it. And sometimes I don't think about what would happen if I did." Rainbow Dash chuckled dryly. "You'd probably know that better than anyone else." she remarked, placing a kiss on a particular spot on Applejack's cheek, one that suddenly tingled with the familiar pain of a tree branch smacking into her.

"I'm not very patient. I don't always take the time to listen to what other ponies have to say, even if it's something that I need to hear… especially if it's something I don't want to hear. And because of that, I'm pretty sure that the fights we get into… are usually because of me."

"But you know something? Whenever I've been around you, I've always liked bragging, and a lot of the time I've gone out of my way to try and start something with you." Rainbow Dash sniffed. "You know why?"

Applejack mutely shook her head.

"Because that night, the first night that we camped out in the orchard together… you gave me hope." she stated, her voice beginning to crack. "I was a complete wreck. I'd never felt so worthless in my life, and for the first time, somepony actually believed that I was worth something. I wanted to show you that I could be just as tough a mare as you knew I could be." She closed her eyes. "I'd always get into fights with you, because I've always had the most to prove to you."

Applejack closed her own eyes, one last tear making its way down her cheek.

"But now, being with you like this…" Rainbow Dash sniffed, lightly nudging her nose against Applejack's tear-streaked cheek. "I feel so… real. I don't feel like I have to prove anything to anypony, because maybe… just maybe, if I can win myself a marefriend as amazing as you, then maybe I've really got something to brag about."

Applejack smiled as she felt Rainbow Dash's hoof wipe the tear away, chuckling as she leaned further into the embrace. Rainbow Dash nuzzled her hatless mane, inhaling deeply before putting her chin on top of her head. "You're right, we do fight a lot. Best friends fight all the time, and something tells me that we're still going to get into fights, for one reason or another."

Rainbow Dash tightened her grip around Applejack's torso. "But this is us, Applejack. We've been best friends since day one, and we've stayed that way for all this time. We didn't get to be like this by fighting all the time. We got this way… because we love each other."

A settling peace descended around the cowpony as she listened to the pegasus' words.

"It's only been a day, you know. I understand why you're upset right now, but just… stop being so hard on yourself. We've still got time to be us, Applejack." Rainbow Dash smirked from above her head. "And as unbelievable as it sounds, I think you are good enough for me."

The silent remnantsof a laugh and a sob emerged from the orange pony in her embrace, the full of her weight settling against her as she finally relaxed.

"Thanks, Dash. I… I really needed to hear that."

Rainbow Dash gave Applejack a light squeeze, before releasing her and bending down from their shared position, picking the hat up in her teeth, and gingerly placing it back on Applejack's head.

"You're right, Rainbow." The orange pony said, taking off her Stetson and fondly brushing off the dust and the hay from the brim. "It's only been a day. I got a little… carried away, what with everythin' that's been goin' on."

"Yeah, just a little."

Applejack chuckled, kissing the underside of Rainbow Dash's chin. "Alright then. Whaddya say we finish up here, an' then settle ourselves down a bit fer the afternoon?"

Rainbow Dash silently nodded, trotting to the side with a smile as Applejack passed her, and watched as she took a long line of streamers from the floor, beginning to work out the tangles and knots…

The two ponies worked in silence the next hour. The pile of streamers grew steadily shorter as Applejack attended to the unwinding and untangling of the colorful decorations. Rainbow Dash either soared high above her with the colored cords, or watched the earth pony work in pleasant silence, waiting patiently for the next streamer to be done.

A small yawn escaped Applejack as she reached for one of the final lines of colored paper.

"…I reckon we'll have enough time to take a little nap before heading' down to the party tonight."

"Good idea." Rainbow Dash replied from the table, stretching as she mimicked the contagious gesture. "Mind if I join you?"

Applejack blinked, her cheeks tinting pink. "That, uh… wasn't exactly what I meant."

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. "I was talking about the streamers." she remarked, gazing at the tangle of colored paper in her hooves, while the corners of her mouth slowly creased upwards into a smirk.

The orange pony blinked, looking sheepish. "R-Right, sorry." she replied, turning back to the streamers with a blush.

"No-no-no, I completely understand." came a coy reply from the scratchy voice behind her. "I almost forgot, you never really got your 'stress relief', did you?" The voice had moved closer, her hot breath brushing against her ear with each word.

Applejack slowly turned her gaze behind her, her face heating up as she met a pair of pegasus eyes staring back at her with a mischievous, purple gleam. "T-That'd kinda defeat the point of 's-settlin' down', don'tcha think?" she stammered.

Rainbow Dash grinned at the reaction, holding the pony's wavering stare for a moment before replying. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I think I'd be a little too much for you to handle right now, so I'll just let you get back to work…" She trailed off, unfolding her wings in a flaring sweep before sauntering off towards a pile of streamer rolls witha flick of her rainbow tail, a noticeable sway in her hips.

Only to find her perfidious progression come to a halt, as a lasso of streamers roped themselves around her torso, bringing her rump to the ground and her hooves bound to her sides. A quick jerk later, and Rainbow Dash found herself in front of Applejack, and at the mercy of two hooves delivering a wonderful pressure to her shoulders.

"Now I jus' might take you up on that little challenge right now, if that's how you're gonna be…" came a husky whisper to her ear.

Rainbow Dash opened her mouth, and her rebuttal was replaced with a low moan as her hooves worked their way over her shoulders, past her wings and down to her lower back. Applejack grinned.

"I daresay Rainbow Dash, at this rate it'll be two t'nothin'. You've got some catchin' up to do."

Rainbow Dash let out a groan of content as Applejack's hooves drew nearer to her flank. "You know better than anypony else that I hate losing."

Rainbow Dash suddenly whipped around, and kissed Applejack hard! The cowpony's grip slackened instantly, the colorful bonds loosening from around the pegasus pony enough for her to wrap her hooves around the stricken mare. Rainbow Dash quickly traced her way down her back and against her rear, kneading her hooves into her apple-flanked hips.

The Stetson-clad pony gasped, the act of which caused her mouth to open ever so slightly, just enough for Rainbow Dash to dart her tongue inside, capturing Applejack's and entrancing the earth pony in a fiery dance, the two ponies sharing the searing heat, sharing the same breath…

Rainbow Dash pulled back from the kiss, prompting Applejack to open her eyes, mouth slightly open and still quivering with passion as her swimming vision filled with violet mischief, the pegasus pony no longer faking entrancement.

"Yep, definitely too much for you to handle."

Tongue-tied and fiercely flushed, the orange pony helplessly sat in place as Rainbow Dash softly kissed her cheek, and slowly unwrapped the rest of the streamers from off of her body. A sly wink and a chuckle later, she took flight once more, the colored lines trailing loosely behind.

Applejack sat silently in place for a minute longer, before letting her head droop, readjusting her hat and speaking upafter her heart had settled enough for her voice to stop rattling.

"Jus' when did you get t'be such a tease, Rainbow Dash?"

She heard a cackling laugh above her. "Aww come on, you've always brought out the best in me!" came a cheerful reply, somewhere above her.

"Shh, they're going to hear us!"

"Ow! Rarity!

"Sorry."

"Ooh! They're coming, they're coming!"

"I reckon it might be in here, Twi. Might've left it on the table in the barn, why I didn't even know it was your birthday till this mornin'!"

"Applejack, you really didn't have to get me anything."

"Well shewt, why not? You're my friend, ain'tcha?

*Creeeeak…*

*clop… clop… clop clop*

"It's too dark in here, I can't see any-"

*click*

*POOF!*

"SURPRISE!"

Twilight Sparkle suddenly found herself on her haunches, stunned and otherwise baffled as the lights turned on, her five friends flanking her from every which way and drawing her into the middle of a massive, confetti-covered group hug.

"Happy birthday, sugarcube!"

"Happy birthday, Twilight!"

"Hee hee! *snort* We got you good!"

"Ow! Rarity, that's my tail!"

"Sorry. Again."

Twilight looked around at her friends in disbelief. "Y-You guys… threw me a… birthday party?"

"Of course!" Fluttershy stated from the side, beaming.

"We sure did!" Pinkie Pie chirped from over the pegasus pony's shoulder.

Applejack was the first to pull away from the hug. "Well, wouldj'a look at that. Guess I really did leave it on the table." she playfully observed. Her vision blurry from the sudden lightand the tears in her eyes, Twilight looked to the middle of the room and saw a large table, half covered in presents and half covered in plates, cups, and a cake bearing a frosty caricature of the guest of honor.

"I... I can't believe that you guys went through all of the trouble… to throw me a party!"

"Twilight Sparkle!" Rarity started from the side, dramatically offended. "Could you really expect any less from your best friends?"

The cowpony grinned, lifting a hoof to center her party hat. "Y'all live in Ponyville now, sugarcube. You shouldn't be too surprised."

"Yeah! We've only gotten to throw you one party so far!" Rainbow Dash piped up from her side.

The unicorn smiled at the two as Pinkie Pie enthusiastically bounced over to her, giggling as she slid a sparkle-adorned party hat on top of her head.

"Thank you guys. This is wonderfull! I don't even know what to say!"

"How about-"

"Enough chit-chat!" Pinkie Pie called out, her face aglow in seriousness. "There's a slice of cake with your face on it, with my name on it!" she declared, pumping a hoof into the air as the other ponies let out a cheer.

"It's party time!"

Woo-hoo! Author's notes! It's been a while since I've written any of these!

Oh it's good to be back! I went one week. One entire week without writing, and it was miserable. It can be a pain to write, but even more of a pain to keep my finger from hitting the Instant Launch button on my laptop for more than a day.

Truth be told, I had originally planned to turn this chapter into the epilogue for the last story, but I decided against it. It's high time that I got this story in the works, and I don't plan on keeping you waiting any longer than necessary!

So some of you were probably hoping to see the party. Well, you will next chapter! I simply felt that this story needed one more gritty scene before I could move the storyline along. Next chapter, the pieces are going to be put into play, and the plot will begin to unravel!

And the next chapter after that? Well… I can guarantee that some of you will be VERY excited for what lies ahead. ^_~

So, chances are that I'll be posting a series of short stories in-between chapters of this story. Most of these stories are close to being completed, so don't expect to wait too long for an update to this one. I'm sure I'll toss out a story or two that will catch your attention, so go ahead and give them a chance!

And finally, It's been far too long since I've heard from many of you, and I'm dying to know what you think of the first chapter to this story… so please, leave a comment or send me a message to my Inbox! I'd love to hear from you, no matter what you have to say!

Thanks for reading!

Sparkling Starlight

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Author's Note: Finally, finally, finally.

…

Finally.

Disclaimer: I do not own Hasbro, or My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. If I did, chances are the episode titles would be just as terrible as my chapter titles… which are subject (and highly likely) to change in the near future.

"The Twilight Effect"

By: Aquarian Poet

Chapter 2: Sparkling Starlight

As surely as the sun had risen that morning, the great sphere had made its way across the sky, hiding behind the hills surrounding the stillness that had overcome the west side of Ponyville. The far-off mountains cast long, large shadows that tickled the edges of the rural expanse, outlined by the vivid radiance of a blazing sunset. There was no movement around the peaceful portrait, save for one pony who could be seen bent low to the ground in a large field of dirt and green.

Carrot Top brought her head up from the ground, wiping a hoof across her forehead with a sigh, and flicking off the droplets of sweat that had formed while toiling away in the setting sunlight. Placing the final carrot into her saddle baskets, she glanced up at the colored sky, stroked with dazzling pastels of painted clouds, orange and lush as her curly mane.

It would be dark in less than an hour, and there were still a number of fields to be managed, but she had worked hard and fast, and was much farther ahead of her harvesting schedule than she had anticipated. A quick trip to the storage shed, and the night would be hers to enjoy, with just enough time to whip up a special batch of carrot soup before retiring for the evening. A far cry from her more practical eating habits, but she felt she deserved it nonetheless.

She might even take the day off tomorrow.

Smiling in satisfaction, the earth pony's gaze trailed down towards the sunset and fell to the horizon, a peaceful sight composed of the hills and mounds of rich earth that were adorned with the ripening trees of Sweet Apple Acres. Her vivid, jade orbs swept through the never-ending rows of trees, watching the leaves as they carelessly swayed in a breeze that had not yet reached the Carrot Family farm.

Though it did appear to be blowing in her direc-

*BOOM!*

A roar of music erupted from the nearby orchard, unable to be contained by the acres of apple trees, nor dampened by the surrounding brush. Squirrels and rabbits raced out of their dens and burrows. Flocks of birds screamed away from the deafening blast in feathered hoards…

…and poor Carrot Top was left laying on her back, wide-eyed and hooves twitching, unable to hear the thundering of her of her own heart against the blaring, jazzy music that roared from inside of the Sweet Apple Acres barn, where a party like none other was starting to commence.

"WOO-HOO!"

Pinkie Pie bounced in rhythm with the upbeat music, gaily giggling and snorting without shame as she soared over tables and chairs alike. A green alligator clung to her puffy pink tail, bouncing high into the air as the playful pony gleefully hopped over a pair of party guests.

The two ponies were positioned atop a colorfully-dotted tarp, one pony raised upside-down above the other, head thrown back and glaring up at the ceiling, while the other in turn glowered at the ground with a fiery determination of her own.

"Huff… I ain't goin'… gruh… down so easily!" the top pony panted.

"Nnng… Neither…huff… am I!" the bottom one retorted.

"Jus' you an'… rrgh… me now!"

"On the… egh… contrary, it… nngh… will most certainly be me in… huff… in just a moment!"

"Hey! What about… urgh… me?"

Both ponies looked down to the tarp, where a purple baby dragon was propped up in a crab-like pose beneath the two, frowning up at them.

"Oh yeah… sorry Spike."

"Ahem, yes, sorry."

Twilight Sparkle giggled from beside the mat, magically bringing a glass of purple punch to her lips as she addressed the pony sitting next to her.

"I had no idea Rarity could be so… competitive."

"Uh-huh." Rainbow Dash mumbled half-consciously. Her eyes were locked on Applejack form, propped upside down on all fours with her hips held high above Rarity, who in turn had knotted herself above Spike, her nose scrunched up in disdain as Applejack's tail dangled down and brushed against her face.

The pegasus sat quietly as she secretly drank in the detailed scene, her face as flush and rosy as the earth pony before her. She listened as Applejack's heavy breathing matched her own, and watched as sweat glistened and slid down her apple-flanked hips, thrusting upwards into the air in an inviting-

"I'm not sure how long Applejack is going to last like that. She sure is flexible, though, isn't she?"

"Yeah, Applejack… edible."

"What?"

Rainbow Dash shouted in surprise as her mind caught up with her words, unaware of her voice startling another nearby pegasus pony as she whipped around to face Twilight. "FLEXIBLE! I said f-flexible!"

The unicorn blinked. "Oh. Sorry, I thought you said somethi-"

"T-Twilight, if it's not… errgh, too much to ask, would you be so kind astocallouthenextcolor!" Rarity shouted, shaking and struggling to maintain her position beneath the hatless pony.

"Sorry Rarity, I got… distracted."

Rainbow Dash coughed into her hoof, blushing fiercely as Twilight cheerfully swiped her hoof across the small square piece of cardboard, spinning the arrow and watching as it came to rest on the colored diagram.

"Left Hindleg: Green!"

"Ponyfeathers." Applejack grumbled as Rarity strained a most unlady-like chuckle beneath her. Unable to see the tarp from her position, the cowpony closed her eyes in an attempt to recall where the row of green dots lay. She lifted her left leg from out and in-between Rarity's front hooves, and effortlessly placed it down on the designated circle.

Effortlessly, had Rarity's own not occupied that particular dot. Her leg tapped against the unicorn's, causing her to draw it back fast, the motion of which upset her balance and caused the cowpony to roll back towards the other side with a shout, collapsing to the side of the tarp.

"Haha! Victory is mine! Again!" the white unicorn cried.

"What. About. ME?"

"Oh… yes, sorry Spike."

Applejack rolled onto her back with a grumble, blowing a few sweaty strands of her mane out of her face, before she noticed an outstretched hoof in front of her. She looked up to see Rainbow Dash, the ghost of a blush retreating from her beaming face. Taking the gesture with her own, the cowpony found herself smiling as she was pulled to her hooves.

"Good game, you two."

Despite their uncomfortable position, the remaining players managed a grateful grimace before turning their attention back to the game as Twilight called out the next command. Facing the pegasus beside her, Applejack gave a light nod, and the two trotted side-by-side away from the scene, heading for the table in the middle of the spacious room.

"You came real close to beatin' me that time." Applejack admitted after she was certain that the two were out of earshot. She spared a glance towards the other side of the barn, where Fluttershy bounced a balloon back and forth with Angel Bunny. "I daresay you're getting better at every party."

"Heh, just you wait till my birthday, I'll beat you yet."

Applejack quickly nudged her nose against Rainbow Dash's cheek, prompting a light blush from the pegasus. "I don't doubt it. Though beatin' Rarity is a whole 'nother game. How she got t'be so good is beyond me."

Rainbow Dash grinned. "Me neither, but sitting on the sidelines wasn't so bad this time. It sure was fun watching rough-n'-tough Applejack getting beaten by a fancy-pants pony like Rarity."

Applejack was not amused, the lack of enthusiasm detailed by her lowering the brim of her hat over her eyes. "Don' remind me."

The two ponies simultaneously ducked as Pinkie Pie soared overhead with a giggle. Rainbow Dash walked ahead and sat next to the table, eagerly grabbing a piece of cake from one of the large plates.

"Speakin' of watchin' me, I couldn't help but notice you lookin' a little… feverish over to the side."

The cake was promptly dropped.

"Huh?"

"Well, you were lookin' awfully red a moment ago. You didn't catch anything last night, did you?" Applejack questioned, bringing a hoof up to her friend's forehead. "Jus' as I thought. You are feelin' a little… heated right now, aren'tcha?" she said, emphasizing the word with a grin.

Rainbow Dash's rose-colored irises shrunk to pinpoints. "No! I-I mean… no! I mean I wasn't… that… w-wasn't…" she stammered, slowly backing up into the table.

"Aww c'mon now, Rainbow. Ain't nothin' wrong with bein' honest." Applejack sported a wry smile. "I sure don't see anythin' wrong with havin' somepony… appreciate me every now an' then."

Rainbow Dash felt her ears droop, helpless as the earth pony sauntered a half-circle in front of her.

"I s'pose I'm fairly good-lookin'." she continued in a slow voice, much to Rainbow Dash's chagrin. "You do tend t'get quite a set o' legs from applebuckin, you know." Her voice dropped down to a sultry whisper as she grabbed a cup of punch from the table beside them. "Hasn't done any damage to my flank either. Y'oughta try it sometime, get a good feel for it."

She brought the cup to her lips. "Applebuckin', I mean." she said with a wink, as Rainbow Dash looked away with a grimace.

"I've felt both."

The guilty whisper was none too quiet, as the rainbow-maned filly was promptly sprayed in the face with fruity punch, her cowpony companion choking and sputtering in disbelief.

"W-What?" the pony exclaimed, her gaze screaming to her backside, and then back to Rainbow Dash. "*Cough* When the hay did you… I don't remember… we never …" Applejack stopped, slowly leveling the pegasus with a sideways look. "Were you feelin' me up in my sleep last night?"

"WHAT?!"

Rainbow Dash's sudden shriek caused Fluttershy to jump in fright once again, who unintentionally bumped into the record player on the small table beside her. The sound of a scratching record was followed by a long, drawn-out silence, pierced by five sets of eyes resting themselves on the blushing blue filly.

"Uhh… heh. Nothing, it was nothing." she replied, sheepishly meeting their glances. A few seconds later, and most everypony shrugged, continuing their previous activities as Fluttershy gingerly moved the needle back over the spinning black disc, filling the room with jazzy ambience once again.

"But… then when?" the earth pony asked curiously, after she was sure that everypony's attention was no longer on them. Rainbow Dash hesitated, an uneasy look playing across her face before she bowed her head to the ground, an inaudible whisper playing on her lips.

"I didn't catch that."

"thcnglnmm…"

"Oh for hay's sake, Fluttershy talks louder than that."

Rainbow Dash growled. "[ie conga line!" she hissed. "At Pinkie's last birthday party."

Applejack blinked, staring at her partner for what felt like an eternity.

"I… remember that." she admitted, her freckled face slowly wrinkling up in a sly grin. "S'pose that makes sense."

Scowling in frustration, Rainbow Dash turned back to the table, wiping the punch from her face and reaching for a plate, eager to distract herself with another slice of cake…

…before a hearty snigger reached her ears.

"What?" Rainbow Dash whipped around in time to see an even broader smile spread across the Stetson-clad pony's face.

"Now that I think about it, I also remember feelin' a pair o' hooves on my flank when Pinkie Pie was marchin' down the street with all those instruments durin' the parasprite invasion. Do you remember that?"

The blue filly's ears wilted as her pupils shrunk in recollection of the memory. "I… well, I don't… maybe?"

Applejack stared at her companion open-mouthed, before her eyes creased up in mirth. "You… why I'd have never guessed! You've got a thing fer my flank, don't you?" she cried, biting down on her hoof as tears of laughter welled up in her eyes. Rainbow Dash felt her cheeks heating up, a sour grimace splashed on her face.

"That's not true!"

"R-really now?" Applejack choked, struggling to say the words. "Then… then tell me this… what exactly were you lookin' at when you tripped durin' the Running of the Leaves?"

The look of confusion, followed by a guilt-ridden display of shock and topped off with a small, strangled squeak was all that was needed to have the orange pony doubled up on the floor, howling with laughter. Rainbow Dash moaned in despair as she fell to the ground in a mortified heap, burying her beet-red face into the floor of hay.

"Applejaaack, that's so not cool." she whined from the ground. Her partner rose to her unsteady hooves, still chuckling with delight.

"Aww, lighten up. I'm only messin' with ya." She wiped a few tears away from her eyes. "Ain't nothin' but a little payback fer this mornin'."

The orange pony bent down to whisper into the helpless pony's ear. "Besides, I never said I minded."

Rainbow Dash merely groaned from her spot on the floor.

"You're going to ruin me."

"Applejack! Rainbow Dash!"

The two ponies perked their ears up as Pinkie Pie's voice rang out from behind them, a saving grace to Rainbow Dash's predicament. The pair directed their attention to her location, where four ponies and a baby dragon were sitting in a half-circle around the game tarp, giving them a wide variety of odd looks. The pink pony waved them over.

"Come on over you two, Twilight's gonna open her presents!"

Sighing in relief, Rainbow Dash quickly stood up and made her way over to the group, keeping her ears flat against her head to drown out Applejack's snickering behind her. The two ponies took their seats in the half-circle.

"What were you two talking about back there?" she heard Rarity ask Applejack, while avoiding the unicorn's inquisitive gaze and trying to hide the tint bristling in her blue cheeks.

"Oh, uhh… jus' a joke I heard. Pretty low-brow, you wouldn't like it." the earth pony responded. Rarity rolled her eyes from her side, diverting her attention to the middle of the group.

"Probably not."

Rainbow Dash snorted, but felt a light smile grow on her face as Applejack quickly winked at her from the corner of her eye, the two of them turning to watch the unicorn unwrap her first present…

"Pinkie… I really don't want to play anymore."

"Aww come on, it's my favorite game! I'm sure you'll beat me this time!"

"…you've been saying that for the past twenty games."

The pink pony pouted in place as she sat on her haunches, dropping the makeshift tail in front of a weary Fluttershy, who was laying on the ground in exhaustion.

"It's no fun if there's nopony else to play with." Pinkie Pie groused, before lifting the blindfold from off of her eyes with a gasp. "I'll go see if Gummy wants to play! Be right back!"

Fluttershy smiled weakly, watching from the floor as the excitable earth pony hopped towards the other side of the barn. Rarity and Applejack sat close by, the latter of which was chuckling as Rarity entertained her with a recount of one of her many customer's odd requests. Rainbow Dash watched the two from the punch table, downing another glass of the refreshing beverage while shaking herself awake, unknowingly being watched by a pony herself.

Smiling gently, Twilight turned away from the scene and closed the flap on her satchel bags with a flick of her nose, heavy with a number of perfectly-packed presents. She then looked towards the far corner, where the record player hummed a mellow party tune. A flicker of magic later and the needle raised itself from the spinning disc, the resulting silence gathering the attention of everyone in the vicinity.

"Alright girls, how about we call it a night?" she suggested, watching the majority of the ponies present nod their heads.

"Aww, but it's your birthday!" Pinkie Pie cried, frowning. "We gotta stay up longer! You only get one a year you know!"

"Pinkie Pie, having you as a friend, it feels like your birthday comes around every week." Rainbow Dash interjected from the table, garnering a snicker from the orange pony in the corner, and a poorly-concealed smile from her unicorn partner.

"I agree with Twilight. It's getting late, and I'm not sure how much more… partying I can handle." Rarity replied, a tremor of weariness in her voice as she stood up. "I believe I left my saddlebags upstairs in Applejack's room. I'll be right back."

Applejack let out a loud, open-mouthed yawn from beside her, causing the white-coated pony to shiver in disapproval as she disappeared up the staircase.

"It's gettin' real late. I'm a might tuckered, an' I could sure use a nice warm bed right now." she said. Rainbow Dash silently nodded in agreement from the table, watching Pinkie Pie's head droop down in defeat as the vote was cast.

"Okie dokie… lokie." she mumbled, beginning a slow trot towards the table, intending to collect the paper plates and shreds of gift wrap, before Applejack held out a hoof to block her path.

"Now hold on, Pinkie. I reckon none of us are up to helping you out right now, and we sure as hay aren't gonna let you do it all by yourself. I'll take care of the cleanup tomorrow mornin'." she assured her, rubbing one of her eyes. "Besides, I was plannin' on doin a one-two on the barn tomorrow anyways."

Pinkie Pie nodded, her face picking up a smile as she backed away from the table and zipped towards her pink saddlebags. Fluttershy stood up next to her, bringing a delicate hoof up to her mouth to cover a yawn.

"I think Angel Bunny and I should head home now." She faced the purple unicorn with a weary smile. "Thank you Twilight, I had a lovely time. Happy Birthday."

Twilight found herself blushing. "I should be thanking all of you for throwing this party. It was great!"

Fluttershy nodded, bending down and gathering her own bags from beside the doorway.

"Goodnight everyone." she called back, trotting out the door into the darkness amidst her waving friends, with her little white companion curled up on the end of her tail. Pinkie Pie jumped to her hooves and quickly adjusted the final strap on her bag.

"Waitwaitwait! I'm coming too!" she cried, flinging her own pet onto her back and bolting out the barn door in a flash of pink. Applejack chuckled at the scene, a light groan emerging from her lips as she stood to her hooves.

"Hey Rainbow Dash, can I talk to you outside before you head on home?"

Rainbow Dash straightened up.

"Head home? I was thinking that maybe…" she trailed off, noticing the look Applejack was giving her, alongside the stare of her remaining unicorn friend. "…I was gonna do that, after we talked. Outside, about… stuff."

Applejack brought a hoof up to her face. "Be right back, Twi."

Twilight nodded, watching the two ponies leaving the through door, silently whispering to each other on the way out. As the two exited out of view, a cacophony of hoof steps thundered down from behind her, the sound of patted hay echoing across the room before coming to a halt at her side.

"I almost forgot! I have something for the two of…" Rarity's gaze swept through the empty barn, before helplessly resting on the open doorway. "Oooh… I missed them! Applejack must have gone with Rainbow Dash to… no matter, it can't be helped." she sighed, stomping the ground in frustration. Twilight perked her ears up, facing her direction.

"Actually, they're-"

"Twilight!" Rarity chimed, whipping around to face the startled unicorn. "Would you do me the biggest favor? I need to catch up with Fluttershy before she makes it home, it's very important that I speak to her right away!" She hastily magicked an envelope out of her saddlebags and in front of Twilight's bewildered face, who took it with a purple flicker of her own. "Could you leave this on Applejack's dresser for me?"

"Rarity… I think-"

"Oh thank you! I knew I could count on you! Happy Birthday dearie!" the white pony cried as she galloped for the door, Twilight looking helplessly in her direction.

"…but…"

She was already gone, leaving a swirl of hay and a stunned unicorn in her wake. Shaking her head in mild frustration, Twilight brought the envelope up to her eyes. It was plain and white, with a simple "From Rarity" inscribed in her eloquent penmanship.

Bringing it down, she noticed Applejack walking back in to the barn, looking somewhat pleased.

"Well, that's a wrap, then. What say we get you on back home, Twilight?" the orange pony asked, shouldering on a couple of green saddlebags, the last pair that rested at the foot of the door. Momentarily forgetting about the envelope, Twilight gave her a quizzical stare.

"Applejack, I can get home just fine by myself." she assured. Applejack raised an eyebrow.

"With all of this stuff totin' behind you?" she asked, gesturing to the large pile of gifts resting on the table. Twilight gave her a sheepish grin.

"I am a unicorn, you know."

"Nonsense." the pony replied, casually walking over to the table. "You've got enough books in your bag t'start a whole 'nother library, not to mention a sleepin' baby dragon t'carry home. I ain't gonna let you carry all of these, too." She began loading boxes onto her back. "Besides, it's your birthday. I'll walk you home."

Twilight looked towards the open doorway, before releasing a sigh, the corners of her mouth creasing upwards.

"Thanks, Applejack."

The addressed pony beamed back, carefully wrapping her foreleg around her friend while keeping her own cargo balanced.

"Anytime, sugarcube. Now let's get a move on."

Twilight nodded, and gently pulled away, letting her horn glow once more. A sleeping Spike rose from out of the overturned punch bowl and was gently placed on the pony's back as the boxes left on the table began to hover. Making sure he was securely balanced, and with the remaining presents floating behind her, she headed for the doorway at a steady pace.

With a smile of approval, Applejack flicked the light switch with her nose as she reached the entrance, bathing the barn in darkness as she followed the unicorn and her enchanted tow out of the party room, and into the starlit fields.

…

"Say, Applejack… where's your hat?"

*Shuff*

Rainbow Dash exhaled, letting her wings go slack as she finally collapsed on the cloudy doorstep to her home, finding little reason to raise her Stetson-clad head. Her body ached for a long sleep, and was perfectly content in doing so despite the lack of a suitable bed. The plushness of the steps, along with the lulling scent of the warm night air did little to convince her otherwise.

She creaked an eye open, letting her blurry vision drift around the outside of the dimly-lit cloud castle. A towering pillar, one of many that supported her regal home glowed with a soft, pearly white in the gentle light of the crescent moon above her. The soothing ambience of the rainbow river rushing down the cloudy property reached her ears, which lay flat against her head in utter exhaustion.

She was finally home.

Breathing a sigh of content, she allowed her vision to continue onward, encompassing the grand structure before her. So many years had gone by since she had purchased this home. Every articulate design, and every exquisite feature this place had to offer had passed with her personal stamp of approval, with no expense having been spared.

Her head rested beneath the finest-quality altoslate, and cumulo-granite made the majority of the regal manor's makeup. An expensive enchantment, one of many within the majestic dwelling, twisted and turned the flowing ribbon of rainbow around her magnificent home, magically leading the rushing flow of liquid down to the bottom in a dazzling waterfall display. Every drop would soon after dissipate as it fell in shimmering trails before hitting the ground, only to wink back up to the top of the pool above her house to continue the never-ending scene of beauty.

It had been two days since she had left this wonderful place, bent on preparing the skies for the rainstorm that week. So much had happened.

And it was startling to the pegasus pony just how little she had missed it since.

Rainbow Dash shifted onto her back, her gaze encompassing the great starry expanse above her. She could not remember when she had last spent time at the foot of her home, and the feeling of the steps beneath her was almost completely foreign. It struck her as odd that she would cross over them almost daily, but she could not remember actually… touching down on them before.

Life was short, and she had spent enough of it just to buy this place.

Her mind could not help but draw back to her days as a growing teenager, and the sacrifices she had made to acquire such a grand place to live. From performances to hard labor, she had worked day after day, saving every bit she earned. When she wasn't training for the Wonderbolts, she had been working towards a home worthy of a Wonderbolt.

Her eyes narrowed in the moonlight as countless seasons crossed before them, memories of working as part of one of Cloudsdale's many weather teams. She had eventually been enlisted by the city, as her days out of school proved to be easily filled with physical labor. Each day had ended with an increase in her savings, but also with the same weariness and ache that she was experiencing this very moment, as well as a hopeless, caged feeling that she knew she could not live with for long.

She had hated it, and that discontent had furthered her ambition to live life her way.

The pony's gaze quickly softened in the moonlight as her story continued through her mind. Time passed, as it always would, and eventually the day had come when she would make that pivotal change.

She had started construction on this home not a year after meeting Applejack for the very first time. It was around then that she decided she had finally saved enough bits, a small fortune she could call her very own, to be put towards a home of her very own. It was her plan to have it constructed above the outskirts of Ponyville, and oh-so-carefully out of city bounds, so that the juvenile pegasus could retain the freedom she so desperately craved.

The day she walked into the Cloudsdale Contracting Agency was one she would never forget. She had spent an entire day with various members of the company, planning the layout and crunching through every gritty detail, personally making sure that each and every aspect of her would-be home was absolutely perfect.

The sun had long gone down before she had exited that building, but the smile the budding teenager wore was bright enough to light her way back to her place of residence with ease.

With the location set and the proper paperwork filled out, the young ward only had to file her resignation as a citizen of Cloudsdale, which she did the very next day. The process was more than easy, as the fresh building contract tucked beneath her wing legally secured her new place of residence outside of the city. And with such a large estate in the works, as well as a formidable reputation for following through with her ambitions, it was well enough in the eyes of the city officials to let her go.

Two hours later, and she was merrily skipping out of the city hall, no longer a dependent of the city in the sky, nor bound by Cloudsdale's citizen laws.

She would finally be free to live life her own way.

A small snort passed out of her nose as the pegasus blinked in the starlight. Ironically, her first two weeks out of city custody were spent secretly living in Applejack's clubhouse, while the hired pegasus workers started construction on the property. She had wanted her decision to be a complete surprise for her best friend, one who she had seen very little during her busy years as part of the Weather Team.

It had been a difficult feat. With Applejack frequently visiting her tree house, she was hard-pressed to keep the place looking vacant, and a few times she found herself waking up in the dead of the night at the sound of approaching hoof steps, dashing out of an open window when the teenage earth pony would decide to make a nightly visit. But it was all worth it in the end, and the cowpony had been none the wiser.

The memory of Applejack's dumbstruck face was one she cherished still.

During those two weeks, however, it had quickly come to her attention that she still needed a line of work to support even a basic living. What was left to her name after her meeting with the Cloudsdale contractors was not enough to support her for long, and bits would be difficult to come by should she not find a suitable occupation.

So it was perhaps the biggest stroke of luck that the Mayor of Ponyville had sent out a desperate request that very week, for a new, able-bodied pegasus to take care of the city's weather team on a daily basis, and to hold the honorary title of Ponyville's Weather Manager.

She had looked into the job, and had just as quickly found herself rushed into the Mayor's office, meeting the eager elderly mare. Five minutes of formalities later, and the two trotted outside, where she was asked to demonstrate her abilities through a number of tasks. Not less than one minute later, and the young pony found herself on the receiving end of a sweet deal.

A ten-second show of her cloud-clearing prowess, along with a short demonstration of her flying abilities had revealed that she could easily handle the work of multiple workers single-hoofedly, saving the town a fair sum of money which could be put to more beneficial ventures within the tight-knit community.

Eager to hire the pegasus, the Mayor had called her back into her office, and proposed her plan.

In return for Rainbow Dash's services, not only would she receive a monthly stipend for her work that would more than pay for her simple lifestyle, but should she accept, the Mayor would be willing to make a special exception for the youthful teenager, and levy the age requirements for residential rights… as an adult.

She was to be a full-fledged citizen of Ponyville, but able to do whatever she wanted, when she wanted.

A dull throbbing beneath her wings brought her back to the present. Her back were starting to ache with discomfort, the shape of the cloudy steps finally driving her will to move from the spot. She might not have, but the river of rainbows had grown loud against the silence within her thoughts, even more so in the absence of any other noise around her.

Stretching lightly, the pegasus willed herself to her hooves with a groan, taking a moment to steady herself before trudging forward, not bothering to look ahead as she passed through the open entryway. It would be less effort to seek sanctuary in her bedroom, than to try and find sleep through the rushing drone of liquid.

Awesomeness had its price, after all.

Her living room was dark, and remained so as Rainbow Dash made no motion towards the light switch, or even to clop her hooves together to activate one of her home's many spells of convenience. She remembered the layout of the room perfectly. She knew what every picture contained, each portrait a framed memory in her mind, and every face she knew by heart.

The pegasus passed by the puffy mantle place, where many of the awards she had won over the years sat quietly. Ribbons and trophies all sat in a row, with the centerpiece being a crown of golden olive branches weaving below two golden wings; her award from the Young Flyer's Competition.

She trotted into her kitchen, which magically lit up with her entrance, causing her to wince. Passing the refrigerator without a second glance, she made her way into another hallway, and started the slow walk up the nearby staircase. After an eternity of walking, she finally found herself atop the second floor of her property, and chose to walk through the first door on the right.

It was her bedroom. One of many in the large home, but the one where she chose to sleep the most, and where she kept the majority of her things, few and far between as they were. Her bedspread, an abstraction of her cutie mark against a mauve background, shone in the lunar light doting from a nearby window. The walls and supporting columns shared the glow of the light, bouncing off one another and creating an ethereal radiance that lit the room with lunar splendor.

Rainbow Dash slowly walked across the room, stopping in front of her open closet. It was nearly empty, save for three outfits outlined by the moonlight behind her.

The first was her Winter Wrap-Up vest. It sat at the front of the three, as she expected to wear the outfit long before either of the other outfits. The cerulean cloth was still dirty from the previous year's work, as was the blue hoofband with a white star that was draped around the hanger, signifying her position as Team Leader of the Weather Team.

Making a mental note to visit the dry cleaners, she slid the vest to the side, revealing her Gala dress. Slightly dusty, but it was still vivid and colorful as ever. The headpiece Rarity had fashioned after her trophy from the Young Flyer's Competition had fallen to the cloudy floor. Thankfully, one of the home's many enchantments kept it from sinking to the world below.

Picking up the headpiece, she set it in its proper place, and turned her attention to the final outfit, her eyes wavering and her heartbeat picking up at the sight, as she was sure it always would.

A Wonderbolts uniform.

It had been given to her by Fleetfoot, the fastest pegasus pony ever to be accepted into the team, during one of the many shows the rainbow pegasus had attended when she was younger. Fleetfoot had recognized her to be a regular attendant to their shows, and had presented the pony with an outfit of her own, stating her hopes that it would motivate the young filly to do her very best to make the team someday.

The uniform before her remained free of dust, clean and neatly pressed as Rainbow Dash consistently tended to its welfare. It had yet to have a true owner to claim it, having never been worn, and having been taken with a personal oath that it would only be worn by a Wonderbolt.

The pegasus sighed. She hoped that it would still fit by then.

Her eyes lingered on that final outfit for a moment, before she turned away and reached a hoof up to her head, taking Applejack's hat from off of her colored mane and bringing it down to her rose-colored orbs…

"I do want you to, Rainbow, I really do… but y'just can't sleep over tonight."

"But… why not?"

"Cuz I've been gone fer a whole day! Tarnation, Rainbow, my family was worried sick when they saw me this afternoon, wonderin' where in Equestria I'd ran off to in that storm! I still haven't told them where I went, and I'm still not sure what I'm going to say to them, much less what I'd say if they saw you there with me. I need some time t'sort this out with them."

"But-"

"What if Granny Smith came up t'have a word with me, an' you were there? What if Apple Bloom walked in t'ask me something… an' noticed you were in my bed? What would I say? What could I say?"

"You could… you…

…

*sigh* …you're right."

"I'm sorry Rainbow Dash, but jus'… jus' not t'night. Not yet."

"I get it. It's… it's alright."

…

"So, are y'doin' anything in particular tomorrow?"

"Uhh… I don't think so."

"Well then…"

*shff*

"Wait, what are you-"

"I'll be expectin' this back early in the mornin'. I haven't got a spare, and I'd sure hate t'get sunburnt. I don't wear orange n' red nearly as well as my brother does."

"But I-mmph!"

…

"Can I count on you to see that it gets back t'me in time?"

"You… can. Thanks Applejack."

"G'night, love."

She stroked the brim of the hat fondly, feeling the coarse, but comforting texture.

Slowly bringing it up to her nose, she let the ever-present scents take her away from her heart's yearning, and after a moment of self-indulgence she pulled away, feeling lighter than a feather as she gently placed the hat on top of the shelf above the rack of clothing.

Satisfied, she turned away from the closet, her eyes adjusting to the rest of the room. Her bed sat on the other side of the room between two small bed stands, with two large and plush purple pillows waiting for her weary head to rest upon. Her eyelids creased in the darkness, the sight of such a comfortable place sapping what little willpower she had to keep her standing up.

But she stood steadfast, her gaze turning away from the disarming sight, and lingering instead on the window beside it, watching the clouds drifting lazily around her home, shimmering in the moonlight…

…while her heart pleaded for her heavy hooves to make one final trip.

She turned back and slowly walked out of the room, heading down the long, dark hallway. Reaching another set of stairs, she began the long journey upwards, each step taking more and more effort for the weary pegasus.

The starlit sky opened above her as her hooves passed over the final step, the soft light of the night sky revealing the room… if it could be called a room. There were no walls surrounding the area, only a number of crystal-clear columns supporting a number of cumulous clouds. A large, scroll-shaped bed rested on a regal pedestal in the center, detailed with the hoof-carvings of a masterful pegasus.

It wasn't very often that the pegasus chose to sleep in this particular place, in the grand castle-like abode. While comfortable, she preferred to spend her mid-morning naps on a cloud or a tree near Ponyville, and would opt for the best possible recovery after an eventful day by sleeping in the comfort of her own bed. Truthfully, this room held very few things for her.

One of them being a traumatic memory involving a clingy swarm of Parasprites.

Continuing on, her leg brushed against something soft, drawing her attention to the floor. A lone towel sat on the clouds in front of her, bundled up in wrinkled neglect. Picking it up, she looked over to the towel rack that sat at the corner of the entryway.

It was one of the few things she kept up here. Having a towel handy proved useful as she would often enter her home from this room after practicing a routing in the skies above. Alone, of course, as yet another enchantment kept just anypony from entering her home from above, though she had not felt that she needed it to begin with. Her worries about theft were deterred by her confidence in finding, and especially catching any perpetrators bold enough to take advantage of the open space in her property. All the same, she didn't mind the extra security.

Spitfire did mention some of her issues with fans at the Grand Galloping Gala. It might come in handy someday.

The pegasus walked back and hung the towel up with uncommon care, allowing her hoof to linger on the rough fabric for a moment longer. She slowly let it slide downwards, numbly enjoying the sparks of warmth caused by the friction. Her eyes followed the hoof as it trailed towards the bottom.

…and she noticed the tiniest glimmer of gold.

Squinting lightly, Rainbow Dash leaned closer towards what had caught her eye. A single, golden hair gleamed in the moonlight, seemingly weaved into the bristly material. She gently took it in her hoof, the towel forgotten as she reached her other hoof up to touch her colored bangs.

It was hers, to be sure. No other pony could have used this towel...

… but it was close. Painfully close to the color of the mare whose golden, gleaming mane she had buried her face into the night before.

With a growing weight in her heart, she blew the thin strand away, falling out of her vision in the dim lighting of the room as she made her way back to the centerpiece of the room. Five seconds later, and she climbed on top of the bed, eager to let the night take her away from her thoughts.

Her weary eyes suddenly shot wide open as she felt something soft brushing against her face, causing her to recoil back with a shout. Her vision quickly adjusted as her adrenaline spiked, watching as the room and everything inside of it came into sharp clarity.

A pony-sized cloud had somehow drifted into the room from above, and was lazily hovering in front of her face. It was plain and white, and most certainly not of the same constitution of cloud that formed the foundations of the pillars and floor in the open area.

Rainbow Dash exhaled through her nose, grumbling to herself as she took the intrusive cloud in her hooves, ready to toss it back up to the sky.

…

She paused, relaxing her muscles. Slowly, she brought the cloud down and rested on her haunches, before falling backwards to the bed with her hooves holding the cloud just above her chest.

It was so… quiet. So unnervingly quiet. Despite the open ceiling and lack of walls, the sound of the rainbow waterfall was completely dampened by the surrounding clouds. Her shout still rang through her ears in the deadened silence, as a soundless echo that would not fade.

A strange desire to hear some sort of noise pounded through her heart as she lay in the uncomfortable stillness. Closing her eyes, the pegasus moved onto her side in an exaggerated motion, listening for a sound.

Nothing.

The room remained silent, despite her wishes. No shifting of the clouds beneath her, the bed remained completely unabrasive, perfectly soft…

… and so unlike the bed she slept in the night before. A makeshift pile of dry, rough and grainy leaves that crackled with the slightest movement, and poked into her back in ten different spots at once.

A bed of leaves where she had slept more deeply and peacefully than she could ever recall.

Rainbow Dash slowly turned her head left and right, unconsciously pressing the cloud against her chest. A slow, sinking feeling began to swell inside of her as confusion crossed her moonlit features. She was so tired, exhausted to the point where she felt the night would take her away with each blink of her eyes.

…so why was it so hard to fall asleep?

A warm draft crossed through the open space, momentarily soothing and distracting her addled mind. It was nearing the end of summer, and the night air was plenty warm enough for a feather-laden pegasus to sleep out in the open. It was a common sight in Cloudsdale to see a pegasus pony outside his or her home, sleeping on a nearby cloud outside of their property during this time of year.

Rainbow Dash stared up at the stars above her with large, quivering eyes, holding the cloud tightly against her chest.

It was also common… to see two ponies enjoying the summer nights like these with one another in the cloudy city. Huddled close to each other, couples would trace the constellations and watch for falling stars with their backs to the clouds, and their hooves intertwined. Keeping each other warm and enjoying the night air with the feeling of nothing between them, the whole world beneath them, and the star-sparkled universe… before… them…

"…you've got to be kidding me."

Rainbow Dash brought the cloud up to her face, groaning into the downy material.

This entire house, with all of its space and splendor, many rooms and magical features… had never felt so empty before. And now she knew exactly why.

…she was lonely.

Rainbow Dash rolled to her back again, exhaling through her nose. She had never felt lonely inside of her home as far as she could remember. More often than not she would return too tired, or even too infrequently to have ever considered another pony living with her. And yet everything around her, everything inside of this regal home… seemed to be calling out for that one earth pony, who slept in the world below.

She finally had somepony in her life, somepony to share it all with. And that pony wasn't here with her.

The feathered filly held tighter still to the cloud in an attempt to stave off the emptiness that was steadily taking root, but the poor imitation of her heart's desire did little to help. Rainbow Dash let out a low sigh.

It was going to be difficult finding sleep tonight, after having shared it with someone so close.

She inhaled, and her nose caught the earthy, late-summer breeze riding on the current above her home, calming her mind and taking her thoughts to the world below. It was close to the time of year where the various families around Ponyville would prepare for the fall. The Flower Sisters had their many gardens, the Carrot Family had started tending to the numerous carrot patches…

…and the Apples would soon begin preparations for Applebuck Season.

The pegasus knew the routine by heart. Preparing the cartloads of barrels and baskets, and tidying up the various barns and storage sheds, as well and Applejack's new apple cellar... there was a lot of work to do before the harvest even began. And with everything that the small family had to do, Applejack would be hard-pressed to make time for her friends as she worked to make ends meet.

Rainbow Dash shook her head, staring up into the moonlit heavens. Surely Applejack wouldn't mind taking time off to hang out, especially now that the two of them were together. She… they, would be able to find the time. Applejack was a hard worker, and Apple Bloom would be old enough to help buck the trees this year. Not to mention that Big Macintosh wouldn't have an injury that would keep him from assisting his sisters.

Maybe… she could even help Applejack out with a chore or two. To help speed things up for them.

…

Rainbow Dash blinked at her own thoughts, before she smirked, burying her face into the fluffy cloud with a warm chuckle.

She was ruining her.

A solitary, flickering candle illuminated the many rows of books and tomes decorating the sparkling shelves of the Ponyville Library. The window curtains had been drawn shut, keeping in the light and offering only the smallest of indication that someone was home.

From the same window, the gentle flap of a pair of wings could be heard, and a muffled, sliding noise as the final book from what had been a large pile was neatly put into its proper place.

"Hoo."

The sound was gentle, but carried the weight of satisfaction throughout the dim, empty enclosure, and not long before a muffled voice emerged from the door behind the lone creature.

"Owlowiscious, we're home."

The owl quickly took flight, silently soaring towards the ornate, cherry-red door, reaching out a tiny claw to grasp the lock. A twist to the right, and the golden doorknob on the inside began to glow purple, before the door slowly swung open with a drawn-out creak.

Two ponies walked side-by-side into the library, a trail of enchanted cargo close behind them. Owlowiscious regarded her master's companion as she shut the door, blinking and raising a wing.

"Hoo."

"Shh, not so loud." Twilight responded softly, turning back to look at the baby dragon asleep on her back. The owl blinked again, cocking his head. Twilight smiled, and looked towards the far end of the room, where the candle softly glowed atop of a window sill, a neatly-organized table sitting at the base. The trail of flying gifts silently soared overhead those present, gently arranging themselves at the foot of the work desk, casting large shadows across the bookshelves.

Applejack greeted the small owl as Twilight set to work.

"Well hey there Owlie," she whispered, waving a friendly hoof. Owlowiscious simply blinked, watching as the orange pony turned back to her saddlebags. Opening the left satchel, she pulled out a book and held it out, which the owl quickly grasped from her teeth.

"I never did thank you fer runnin' this down t'Sweet Apple Acres for me. So thanks."

"Hoo."

Twilight suddenly turned away from her project, slowly scrutinizing the large room occupied by the four of them.

"Owlowiscious, did you… were you cleaning while I was away?"

"Hoo."

Twilight beamed as the bird landed on her back beside Spike, nuzzling the owl's wing.

"Thank you. It looks wonderful in here. Great birthday present."

Owlowiscious sat with an ever-impassive face as Twilight walked over to the desk, her horn aglow. Applejack looked up as she saw a basket floating at the top of the long staircase. Soaring down towards them, the unicorn guided the object to the foot of the desk. Another flicker of her horn, and the baby dragon slowly lifted off of her back and into the basket, a folded blanket curling over and tucking itself around him.

Applejack raised an eyebrow.

"Doesn't Spike usually sleep upstairs with you?"

Twilight turned her attention back to organizing the presents. "He does, but I don't want to wake him up."

"Wake him up?"

"While we're having our sleepover, of course." Twilight remarked. After a moment of silence she glanced back, noticing the hesitant look on the filly's face. "I know you've got work to do in the morning, but it's really late, and I don't want you to have to walk home all by yourself. We won't stay up for very long, I promise. I just thought you might want someplace to crash for the night."

Applejack's demeanor softened, a small smile appearing on her lips. "I'd really appreciate that, sugarcube."

"Good." Owlowiscious landed on Twilight's now-unoccupied back as the unicorn started a slow trot to the other side of the room. "Why don't you go and put your stuff upstairs, and I'll get us something to drink." Twilight continued towards the doorway to the kitchen, owl in tow, before turning back. "What would you like?"

"Cider'd be nice, if you have any."

Twilight smiled. "Cider it is."

Applejack beamed back at the filly, and quickly trotted up the stairs as Twilight left the room.

Away from the flickering light of the candle, the earth pony made her way up the second set of stairs. Crossing the top step, Applejack reached out to the side for the light switch. Her hoof scuffed across the wall a number of times, finding nothing. A repeat of the motion alongside the opposite wall proved just as fruitless.

She quickly took note of how few times she's actually been in the upstairs level of the library, where Twilight kept her bedroom and a number more of bookshelves. Unable to turn the lights on, she could only make out two thin bed-shaped silhouettes on the upper level, outlined by a starry window.

Peering through the darkness, the earth pony gingerly walked along the left side of the room, using what little light the window offered to guide her way up the small set of steps leading to the makeshift bedroom. She made her way up the stairs with nary a creak, before bumping into the guest bed with a yelp of surprise.

Grunting lightly, she reached back to undo the buckles on her back, and threw her saddlebags onto the soft surface, which bounced once before settling. The orange pony doubled back with a sigh of satisfaction, before feeling her hoof brush against something on the floor. The sounds of a flurry of paper falling to the bottom level reached her ears, leaving the pony blinking in the dark.

"What in tarnation?"

Applejack blindly made her to the other side towards the wall behind Twilight's bed, and fumbled around for Twilight's reading lamp. A satisfying *click*, and the dark room filled with a muted glow, dimly lit enough so that Applejack could see the various stacks of note cards littered around her hooves. One such stack was scattered across the floor on the lower level below.

"Oh ponyfeathers."

The orange pony begrudgingly made her way back down the stairs, grumbling with each step until she reached the bottom. Looking to the dark doorway, she could not see nor hear any sign of Twilight coming back up. Opting to clean the mess before she did, she bent low to the ground, and started collecting the cards into a pile. The last thing she wanted Twilight to deal with on her birthday was her overly-tidy tendencies.

The cowpony sighed, after a moment of realization. Undoubtedly, the cards would have been organized, and would need to be placed in a proper order. Flipping the first card over, she began looking for a number indication of some kind, scanning the top, bottom, and along the sides. Finding nothing, she exhaled, and submitted herself to reading the written words.

"Welcome everypony! Today we are here to honor a pony we can always count on to help in matters great and small."

Applejack blinked. It was in Twilight's hornwriting to be sure, though it was her guess as to who the pony she had written about was. Sitting down on the floor, she then reached for another random card, reading the contents aloud.

"…a pony whose contributions to Ponyville, both to the city and to each and every one of us, have gained our attention, and our undying gratitude."

She reached for the next card.

"…who never once has forgone her friends in favor of her own personal desires for as long as I've known her. I am proud to admit that Applejack is the very definition of an honest pony, and a true friend. (Slight pause). At this time, I'd like to ask-"

Applejack blinked. She re-read the name aloud, positive that she had misunderstood the card.

"Applejack."

Her emerald eyes began to waver, as the realization of what she was reading slowly came over her. The pony felt her gaze wandering around the room in disbelief, over what must have been hundreds of note cards littering the floor, all from the same pile.

Unaware of a single card floating up into the air behind her in the dim light.

"You never got to hear it, did you? Well nopony else did either."

Applejack whipped around, inhaling sharply. Twilight Sparkle stood in the doorway, letting the card fall back to the floor, while keeping two steaming cups of liquid suspended at eye level. With a smile, she walked over to where the Applejack sat, and placed herself on the floor across from the apologetic pony.

"I-I'm awfully sorry, Twi'. I didn't mean t'make a mess up here, an'-"

"Hey." Twilight interrupted her. "Don't worry about it. I needed to re-organize all of those piles anyways." She brought a hoof to her mouth, staring up at the ceiling in thought. "And I think Slumber 101 said something about not cleaning up messes until the next morning, so don't worry about that either."

Applejack snorted, albeit with a grateful smile as she took the levitating cup of cider in her hooves, blowing into the steaming mug. A moment of silence passed between the two as they sat in the semi-dark room, both taking a quiet sip of their respective beverages.

"So… what's the speech for?" came the inevitable inquiry.

"Well, it was for your award ceremony, back when you received the Prized Pony of Ponyville award." the unicorn responded, taking another sip of tea. "But I never got a chance to read it. Speeches aren't as well-received in Ponyville as they are in Canterlot, I suppose." she remarked dourly.

Applejack looked at the unicorn in disbelief.

"You wrote an entire speech… jus' fer that?" she whispered. Her eyes sunk to the ground as she recalled the memory. "But… that was durin' Applebuck Season. An' the Summer Sun Celebration was only a few months before that. We couldn'tve known each other fer more than-"

"Two and a half months."

Applejack felt her breath catch within her throat. Blinking back a pair of tears that threatened to stain the wood beneath them, she rose to meet Twilight's gaze, with green eyes that quavered with a soft, modest plea.

"…why?"

Twilight held Applejack's gaze firmly.

"Because it wasn't just for that."

Applejack felt her own stare falter, breaking eye contact with the unicorn and staring into her cup, her heart riddled with confusion and shame.

Twilight looked down towards her own, her voice going quiet.

"When I lived in Canterlot… I didn't have any friends. I was too busy studying everything I could about magic to really let anypony close to me. I usually would only talk with Spike and the Princess during my stay in the Castle. I… hardly even saw my parents."

Twilight inhaled, taking the warm cup into her hooves.

"Even after I moved to Ponyville, I still had to adjust with living away from the city I grew up in. It wasn't easy for me, learning to live on my own, and not having the Princess around to take care of everything for me. Having Spike with me helped, but it was still really hard."

She sighed, staring into the murky, steaming liquid. "I'll admit, when I first moved here I was… selfish. Not in the greedy kind of way, but that I kept to myself all the time. I never went out of my way to help anypony, and certainly without being asked to."

Twilight's eyes misted over in memory.

"You girls were always there to help me, whenever I needed it. You and Pinkie Pie especially went out of your way for me, the two of you leaving me baskets of homemade goods and always inviting me over to have dinner, all because you wanted me… to feel at home."

"But it was different with you. Pinkie Pie treated me like her best friend… but you treated me like I was part of your family. You treated me like you really knew me. Like you had known me for years, and… I couldn't understand why."

She lifted a hoof to her eyes, patting at the moisture that had begun to collect beneath them. "*Sniff*… but after a while, I think I began to understand."

Applejack felt the knot tighten within her throat, taking in deep breaths.

"Those first few months I lived in Ponyville… I watched you help so many ponies. You were always on the lookout for somepony who needed a good neighbor. You put the same care and attention into every one of your friends. It was like… watching you tending to your family's orchard.

If we ever needed you, you were there for us every time. And you know something? It was because of you that after a while… I really did feel like I was home."

Twilight looked up to Applejack, who was still staring into her cup of cider.

"I've never met another pony quite like you, Applejack."

Applejack sniffed, wiping at her eyes with a hoof, unwilling to look at the unicorn.

"Now come on, Twilight. I ain't the Element of Generosity you're makin' me out t'be." she choked.

Twilight smiled, setting the cup down, and taking one of Applejack's hooves into hers.

"No, you're the bearer of the Element of Honesty through and through. You treat your friends with the same honest love and attention that you put in your orchard, and with the same love and care that you would want to be treated with." Twilight sniffed. "Even… even if we don't always treat you so wonderfully."

The purple unicorn closed her eyes, and the room began to glow as a purple aura enveloped her horn, along with every card on the floor. A flurry of paper later, and a neatly-stacked pile levitated in front of the two, before silently soaring up to the second level and gently nestling itself into the cowpony's open saddlebags.

"I don't need it to remind me of everything you've done for me." Twilight said wistfully, staring up at the window behind the beds.

She silently scooted up to Applejack's side, who wordlessly watched her own tears fall to the ground. The orange pony choked back a sob as she felt the hoof rest on her shoulder, which she took in her own, turning to the side and pulling the unicorn into a tight hug.

"*Sniff* Shouldn't you be the one tearin' up right now, with it bein' your birthday an' all?" she asked. Twilight tightened her grip around the earth pony, responding with a small laugh.

"I've already had my fair share of tears today."

"I reckon we both have." Applejack chuckled, wiping away the remainder of her tears. Pulling back from the embrace, the two sat in a pleasant silence, enjoying the warmth of the moment as the remaining tension dissipated between them.

Before a minute had passed, the hatless cowpony spoke up once more.

"Well then, I say we end the night on a lighter note."

Applejack then took the cup of cider sitting beside her, and heartily swung it up into the air while loudly clearing her throat, causing her companion to snigger.

"To the best o' friends… an' to the success of a mighty fine party, for a mighty fine pony. A pony who not only brought the five of us friends together, but also brought a special kind o' friendship in my own life. I reckon it jus' wouldn't be the same without you." Applejack declared, her emerald eyes bejeweled and brimming with renewed joy. "Happy Birthday, Twilight."

The purple pony giggled, taking the handle of the teacup in her hoof and raising it.

"Hear hear."

*Clink!*

The two ponies brought their cups to their lips, with Twilight taking a modest sip as Applejack downed the warm cider in a single swill, licking her lips clean of the sticky substance. Bringing the empty dishes down, the two looked at one another, a giggle passing between them…

…before bursting out into a fit of carefree laughter.

"That was really something else, Applejack."

"Well, I figured I owed you a speech, though I didn't have much time to prepare." the orange pony cheekily replied.

Twilight giggled once more. "I thought it was just fine. Not a bad way to end a birthday, AJ."

"Not at all, Twi'." Applejack looked out the pitch-black window. "Though I think we really should end it an' head t'bed now. It's been a long day."

"Yeah, it has."

Setting their cups down, Applejack and Twilight rose to their hooves, the former letting out a wide yawn, and starting up the stairs.

Walking up to the guest bed, the orange pony gently set her saddlebags onto the floor, taking care not to damage the precious stack of cards inside. Twilight opened her own satchels upon reaching the platform, and began setting her new books beside her own bed, eager to read them in the morning.

Applejack hopped onto the soft surface with a satisfied sigh, splaying herself across the top cover. "Sure is gonna be nice havin' the bed for myself this time. Rarity ain't the easiest pony t'share a blanket with."

"Rarity?" Twilight asked, blinking. "Oh, I almost forgot," she started, her horn glowing one final time. A white envelope drifted out of the bag and over to the weary earth pony. "Rarity asked me to give this to you before she left."

Applejack sat up, rubbing her tired eyes. "What's in it?"

"I don't know. Open it." The unicorn responded, eagerly.

The orange cowpony took the floating envelope in her hooves, and carefully opened the flap. Unfolding the paper inside, her eyes slowly scanned the message, growing wider and wider as she scrolled down the letter. She resignedly closed them as she reached the bottom, before falling backwards onto her bed with a groan.

"I jus' don't understand that pony. I swear, sometimes I think she's out t'get me."

"What? What is it?" Twilight asked.

"Well… quite possibly the worst thing I've ever received from her." the orange pony despairingly replied, holding up the page without raising her head. The letter rose into the air, taken again by Twilight's magic and hovered in front of the unicorn's quizzical expression, who began reading the contents. A moment later, and the letter dropped onto the bed as Twilight released her magical hold.

…unable to support it with her uncontrollable snickering.

"Did something happen between you and Rainbow Dash? Because whatever it was… it looks like she really wants to help." was all she offered, keeping her foreleg in front of her mouth, a dam keeping back a wave of giggles. "I-I don't know what to tell you."

Applejack groaned, rolling onto her side.

"I don't know what to tell Rainbow Dash."

The dam quickly broke.

…and away from the two ponies in the library, past the moonlit fountain of the town square, over the silent retreat of Fluttershy's Cottage and through the fields of rural Ponyville, a lone figure stood in quiet thought, stoic and unmoving.

The figure stared straight ahead without blinking. Beyond the pony lay a vast and dark region, teeming with unruly vegetation. The echoes of haunting sounds stroked at the edges of the sickly trees, stretched across the beginnings of the pitch black expanse as a natural and ominous warning.

A flicker of hesitance arose from the figure's eyes, uncertainty causing the pony to look away from the terrible grove and towards the horizon…

…where the rooftops of Ponyville stood as dark silhouettes against the blanket of stars, the sight of which brought about a darkening expression, beset with eyes that gleamed with a grim resolution.

Inhaling slowly, the pony began a steady trot forward, swirls of vapor trailing behind each hoof step as the moonlit figure disappeared into the dark mist of the Everfree Forest.

Where salvation slumbered in peaceful ignorance.

Dun dun dun! First cliffhanger of the story, and certainly not the last!

But enough of that, let's get down to business.

It's been well over two months, probably the longest I've gone without posting… well, anything! I really don't know what to say for myself, except that I'm very sorry for having many of you believe that this chapter was going to come out sooner than it did. This chapter was really difficult for me to finish. I'm still realizing a whole lot of "do's and don't's" to writing, and I second-guess myself at every turn in the story. Truthfully, I had very little planned out for this chapter to begin with, so it was a little bit stressful.

Thankfully, the same can't be said for the next one! I am SUPER excited to start working on it! Heck, I've already gotten six or so pages done. Almost everything has been set in stone, so getting it all written down will be a piece of cake compared to this one… though I'm not entirely sure if my next update is going to be for this story. I honestly have about six or so short stories that I'd like to see out in the open.

Now I'm sure some of you are starting to get a little tired of seeing our main protagonists tearing up every chapter. Well, fear not. Emotions have been running hot, but it's time to take a good, long break from them.

And finally… it's been SUPER cool catching some of you on Team Fortress 2, and getting a chance to talk to some of my readers! Seriously, I just about die every time someone mentions reading a story of mine!

…but too many people are just adding me and not saying anything, so I honestly can't tell if you're a reader, or just someone randomly adding me. So let me know who you are!

Anyways, two months is too long, even for me. One month is painful enough to go through without publishing anything, so keep an eye open on my profile page, and I'll try and keep it updated with my latest project! Feel free to leave a comment, and let me know what you think so far. It's always a pleasure to hear from you!

Thanks for sticking around! Until next time!

~A.P.

Letting Off Some Steam

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"The Twilight Effect"

By: Aquarian Poet

Chapter 3: Letting Off Some Steam

*Crash!*

*C-Clang!*

"Ooh, git back here little filly!"

*Thump!*

"Outta the way Apple Bloom!"

Big Macintosh sniffed, rolling over in his bed and staring up at the ceiling, drearily listening to the muffled cacophony of shouts and smashing of furniture from the hallway just outside his room. He winced as a clatter of hooves clamored past his doorway for what he counted to be the tenth time, just a few too many for the silent stallion.

Blinking away the hazy remnants of a good night's sleep, the large red pony stretched out across his bed, before slowly slumping out of the sheets, letting out a low groan as his hooves connected with the wooden floor. He began a lazy trot towards the doorway, and with a gentle push the wooden object swayed open before him, allowing the stallion to tiredly peer down the hallway, eyes crinkled with morning fatigue.

They quickly shot wide open, however, as an orange blur raced past his vision, followed by a gust of wind that nearly tore the tired pony from out of his own bedroom. Big Macintosh was left blinking at an empty hallway. Blowing the hair out of his eyes, he slowly walked out of his room, and started down the stairs. The remnants of a windstorm met his gaze as he reached the bottom, papers twirling in the wake of his sister, amidst an array of overturned furniture and debris.

The clattering sounds of pans then drew his attention towards the kitchen, where Apple Bloom was standing just outside, peering through the entryway with innocent interest. Walking up to her, he gave the filly a nudge, and the two rounded the corner, entering the kitchen in time to see the orange pony diving beneath the kitchen table, reappearing on the other side with a wide-eyed look.

For only a moment though, as the hatless pony quickly ducked with a yelp as a metal object sailed towards her, held within an old, green mare's outstretched hoof.

"C'mon Granny, I'm fine I tell you! It's been two whole days!" Applejack cried, back-paddling away from a fierce pair of sunset-red and yellow orbs that glared at her from the other side of the table.

"Nonsense! Yew could've caught yer death out there! There's no tellin' when you're gonna show the symptums!"

Applejack gulped, her eyes shifting left and right as the elderly mare made her way around the left side of the table, drawing closer and closer. Without warning, she quickly dashed forward and leapt over the large wooden object with a shout. The room shook as she landed hard on all fours, and she galloped past her two puzzled siblings at full speed into the living room.

The few picture frames and potted plants that had survived their first encounter with the orange mare quivered in the draft the hasty pony left in her wake as she screamed for the exit. Throwing the door open and hopping outside, she shut it tight within the same second, slamming her back against the door. The orange pony slumped down onto the cobblestone pathway, sighing with relief.

...before a syrup-laden spoon entered the cowpony's now-open mouth, the taste of the contents quickly causing Applejack's eyes to skew in sourness, leaving her gagging and sputtering on the floor in misery.

"Bleck! Ugh! *Cough cough* Why... *cough* why did I even need that? I hadn' even *cough* coughed once!"

"Better safe than sorry, little missy!"

The orange mare sat up after the taste had receded, holding her spinning head with half-lidded eyes while shooting a glowering stare towards the door as a bout of snickering reached her ears.

"Gee big brother, Granny Smith sure can move fast!" Apple Bloom giggled from the now-open doorway. The red stallion smirked beside her.

"Eeyup."

Applejack groaned, shaking her head before a sharp pain caused her to let out another shout. Granny Smith withdrew the wooden spoon from the top of the orange pony's hatless mane, leveling her with a look of her own.

"An' it serves you right for makin' us worry like ya did, runnin' off in the middle of a storm like that!" Granny Smith chided. Applejack let out an apologetic sigh, wearily rubbed her throbbing head.

"Look, I told y'all that I'm sorry... but I had to go find Rainbow Dash. We got into a fight, an' I did her wrong, really wrong. An' when I found her, the storm was jus' too dangerous fer us t'try an' get back home. We had t'find shelter, so we spent the night in..."

She paused. "...under a tree."

Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow. "A tree."

"Uhh, yeah. A tree."

...

"Ms. Cheerilee says that's the worst place fer you to be in a lightnin' storm! 'Cept... maybe a lake." the filly cried, ignoring Applejack's deadpan look as she brought a hoof to her mouth. "Or on top of a mountain. Or maybe on one of them big metal rods that-"

"Alright, I get it."

Big Macintosh stepped outside, clearing his throat. "Then why didn't you come home las' night?"

Applejack shifted side-to-side, looking uncomfortable. "I offered t'help Twilight carry her presents on back home. She had a lot of stuff t'carry all by herself. You know how many gifts we tend t'give each other."

The red stallion nodded. "Eeyup."

"Well, she didn't want me walkin' all across Ponyville in the dark. She insisted on me spendin' the night there." She frowned, looking down to the ground and avoiding the varying gazes from her family. "I'm really sorry that I didn't tell ya, I swear I didn' mean t'make y'all so worried about me."

Granny Smith's wrinkled face stretched up into a smile, taking a seat at her side. "Aww, it's alright little filly. Yer all grown up now, an' you can go to an' fro whenever you please. Y'just picked a bad time t'disappear is all."

"I promise it won't happen again. Thanks Granny." the cowpony said, taking her hoof. The old mare reached her other arm out, and took the cowpony in a quick hug.

"Well then, why don'tcha go on out an' start geettin' them apple buckets ready."

Applejack smiled gratefully, rising to her hooves. "I reckon I'll need an early start, but I've got to do something first. I'll get to it soon enough, don'tcha worry." she said with a wink.

Her family nodded in tandem, smiling as they filed their way back through the doorway. The orange cowpony turn towards the rising sun with a grin of her own, and started away from the door.

Before she could round the corner, she heard a high-pitched voice call out from behind her.

"Hey Applejack, where's yer hat?"

The cowpony froze in her tracks. "Oh, I-I think I left it at Twilight's. Musta forgot t'bring it back with me."

"Oh, alright. Bye Applejack!"

"Have fun at school, Apple Bloom." the orange mare called back, a gentle smile on her face as she watched the filly close the door behind her.

Blowing a few strands of her sun-bleached hair from her face, she started down the cobblestone path, walking beneath the white rounded gate. Passing a pile of hay bales, the pony trotted up to the back of the barn, and stopped in front of the large double-door. Raising an orange hoof, she pushed it open with a heavy creak, and peered inside.

The blue morning glow filtered in through the doorway, revealing a scene that still tickled the back of her mind with memories. Streamers and ribbons glowed in the traces of dawn leaking in from behind her. The half-eaten cake still sat on the large table in the center of the room, surrounded by cups, plates and a blanket of confetti littering the ground.

A gust of wind blew in from the doorway, tousling the decorations strung across the banisters and tossing her ponytail to the side. A few streamers fell from the top of the room, falling down to the floor in a colorful twirl.

Taking a deep breath, she moved towards the table, and dove into her work.

A half an hour passed, quickly turning into an hour, and before long the orange pony found herself dropping the last of the paper plates into a nearby garbage sack with a satisfied sigh.

Taking a moment to re-compose herself, Applejack stretched forward across the ground with a groan of content, raising her head to take the string of the garbage bag in her mouth. Pulling it taunt, she tossed the large sack beside the others, and turned to examine her progress.

The barn looked even better than it had before the ponies had prepared it for Twilight's party. The tables were clean and clear of the plates and punch-filled glasses, the latter of which were neatly stacked beside the doorway for Pinkie Pie to collect later in the day. All of the confetti and party favors had been swept and collected into the garbage sacks, and a quick take upwards revealed the banisters to be free of the colorful streamers... a feat that would have been nearly impossible, were it not for the earth pony's uncanny abilities with a lasso.

Applejack glanced back to the barn doorway. The muted glow of morning blue had been replaced by soft rays of yellow and pink, beaming through the floating dust that swayed in a gentle draft, gliding into the barn and flicking the hatless mare's strands of golden hair.

Clearing her throat, she gathered up the strings of each bag into her mouth, dragging them outside and setting them against the front of the barn. Big Macintosh would be out within the hour, and would be more than willing to take trash to the dump while she was out in the orchard.

With a satisfied nod, she trotted along the side of the barn, where she found a cart waiting for her, sitting alongside a number of neatly stacked apple buckets. One by one she stacked them into the cart, taking great care to make sure that each would be secured in place during the bumpy ride through the acres.

After the final bucket was placed, she moved to the front and hooked herself up to the cart. Making sure that everything was in order, she started down the dirt path, rounding the barn and disappearing into the glowing trees of the dawn-struck grove.

Applejack could not help but smile after only a minute of walking. Her green eyes glowed with eagerness in the morning light as she made her way through her beloved orchard, surrounded by a multitude of trees blooming with the ripe fruits of her family's labor.

The cold morning dew sent chilling sparks jumping through her legs as she walked through the wet velvet grass. The smell of Sweet Apple Acres, laced with fresh hay and the sweet scent of apples filled her senses with vitality. Applejack inhaled deeply, sighing aloud.

She had sorely missed this the past few days.

Walking down the property line, she finally came upon her destination. A small, red post stuck out of the ground in the middle of an otherwise clear section of the orchard, next to which Applejack parked her cart. Looking ahead through the expanse of trees, she could barely make out the white fence that separated the orchard from a dirt path leading straight to Ponyville.

Undoing the straps around her midsection, the earth pony stretched out once again, taking a moment to shake and loosen each limb. Finishing, she stood on her hind legs to take the first bucket from the large pile in her teeth, tossing the wooden object beside one of the many apple-laden trees. She trotted towards the tree with a sniff, cricking her neck side-to-side in preparation of the start of the harvest. Facing away from it, she raised her back leg, unconsciously donning a competitive grin.

Applebuck season had officially begun.

*shff*

Well... almost.

Applejack's smile grew soft as she stopped in place to reach up and adjust the brim of her newly-replaced hat. She felt a pair of forelegs quickly wrap around the sides of her neck in a tight embrace, feeling the small muzzle of somepony pressing against her neck. A breath of warm air caused a pleasant shiver to run down her back, as did the scratchy voice that spoke from behind her.

"Hey Applejack."

The orange pony quickly turned around, and returned the embrace in full without another word. She rested her chin atop of Rainbow Dash's head, inhaling the savory scent of her rainbow mane while taking quiet pleasure in the hot breath caressing her neck.

"Howdy Rainbow." she whispered, her voice filled with tender relief. A minute of silence was theirs before the earth pony pulled away. "It's mighty nice to see you up so bright an'..."

She trailed off, noting with wide eyes the tired look on the pegasus pony's face. Bloodshot eyes stared back at her, framed with heavy eyelids and small bags underneath. Applejack creased her own with worry.

"Rainbow Dash... are you okay?" she asked tentatively, eyebrows furrowing. Rainbow Dash's gaze quickly shot up, and the pony shook her head fiercely, giving her a beaming smile.

"Heh, nothing wrong with me," the pegasus replied, shrugging. "I just didn't sleep so well last night."

Applejack frowned. "Well y'looked plum tuckered when you left the party last night. Did'ja make it home alright?"

"Yeah, I did..." Rainbow Dash admitted, reaching a hoof up to rub the back of her neck. She looked sideways to the ground, smiling a little.

"But, well... I missed you, Applejack."

The cowpony could feel her heart pattering beneath her chest, and a red hue overtook her cheeks. She took a step forward, nuzzling her nose against the blue mare's neck with a content sigh.

"There ain't no pony in all o' Equestria that can get my heart goin' like you can, Rainbow Dash." she whispered, her voice somewhat subdued. She tilted her head upwards, and planted a soft kiss on the pegasus pony's cheek, lingering long enough to feel the spot quickly heating up. Applejack pulled away with a wide smile.

"I've got some chores I need t'get started on this mornin', so I can't talk for long. I should be done by noon, so I was thinkin' that afterwards we might-"

"Can I help?"

...

Crickets. The sound of morning crickets still chirping in the budding dawn suddenly became very, very loud. Rainbow Dash blinked, tilting her head as Applejack gave her a blank look, her mouth slightly agape.

"You're askin' me... if-if you, you can..." she stammered, dumbstruck. Her eyebrows shot downwards into a hard glare. "I had no idea, no wonder y'look so beat! You must have caught somethin' out in that storm!"

Paying no heed to the gaping pegasus pony, she quickly grabbed Rainbow Dash's hoof, pulling her deeper into the orchard. "C'mon Rainbow, the tree house is right up this way, you can rest there. You ain't gonna do nothin' bein' as sick as you are."

Rainbow Dash sported a heavy blush. "I'm fine, Applejack!" she scowled as she shook the earth pony's hoof from her own. "And if you didn't want my help, than you just had to say so!"

She turned away, choosing to glare at a nearby tree with a pout, before quickly finding herself pinned to the ground on her stomach. The earth pony on top of her chuckled, the sound of her laughter a ringing chime that played alongside the morning crickets.

"I s'pose it's too early to be crackin' jokes at your expense," she admitted, leaning down and kissing the side of Rainbow Dash's neck. "How come you're wantin' t'help me, though?"

Rainbow Dash shifted underneath her, a light frown on her face. "Well... I just thought that maybe, a-after you had finished, we could... y'know, spend some time together." she shakily admitted. Applejack chuckled again, nipping the side of her ear.

"I think I see what you're after. Guess I can't blame ya." She leaned closer to the blushing pony. "Or were you aimin' to 'repay' me? You're such a sweetheart, Rainbow."

Rainbow Dash growled, wiggling out from underneath Applejack's embrace and whipping around to face her, sweating profusely as she quietly willed her wings to go down.

"That's not what I meant!"

"Well, it does my pride good t'know that I can turn the roughest, toughest pegasus in Ponyville into a pile o' putty at whim," the cowpony nickered. Rainbow Dash glowered lightly, but felt the heat of her embarrassment vanish as Applejack nuzzled herself against the crook of her neck a second time.

"Aww, I'm sorry Rainbow. I'm havin' too much fun at your expense, I guess." She brought her hoof up to the pegasus pony's face. "Don' take me too serious, I'd be glad to have your help."

Rainbow Dash smiled, taking Applejack's hoof into her own, and the two pulled tight against each other's. Hopping up into the air, the pegasus swiftly grabbed a bucket from the pile and placed it at the base of a tree resting beside the two, while Applejack moved alongside her own.

"I really do appreciate this, Rainbow. I'll make it up t'you when we're done, I promise."

Rainbow Dash stopped mid-buck, looking over at the earth pony. "How so?" she hesitantly asked, though a gleam rested in her eyes.

"Well, I've already got somethin' planned fer the two of us later today. Somethin' we... haven't really done before."

Rainbow Dash sported a small blush. "What is it?"

The pony forced a grin, tipping the brim of her hat. "I can't tell ya, but you'll find out soon enough... iff'n I'm gonna let you help me with my chores."

Rainbow Dash froze, giving her an exasperated look.

"If I do let you help, do ya promise t'spend the day with me? The whole day?"

Rainbow Dash eyed her warily, but shrugged with a grin as she repositioned herself in front of the tree. "I promise."

"NO WAY!"

"C'mon Rainbow!"

"You tricked me, Applejack! You tricked me!"

"You said that you were gonna spend the day with me if I let you work in the orchard this mornin'. You said you would."

"I thought we were gonna do... well, something else!"

"You promised."

"But-"

You promised!"

"But I didn't know that we were gonna go to the SPA!" the pegasus pony cried aloud, gesturing wildly with her hooves and drawing looks from many a passerby. The two ponies glared at one another at the foot of the large, tent-like structure.

"Seriously Applejack, what makes you think I'm going in there? Do I look like that kind of pony to you?"

The orange pony couldn't help but smile, though the frustration on her face was still evident. "Do I?"

Rainbow Dash frowned, bringing a hoof to her mouth. "Well... no. Then why are we here?"

Applejack brought a hoof to her face with a groan, before reaching her head back and pulling letter out of her saddlebags, flaring out in front of the pegasus.

"Becuff Rarity mde refferfations fer fhe ftwo of uff," She mumbled, spitting the paper out. "An' I plan on makin' good use of them!"

"But that still doesn't explain why we're here!" the pegasus moaned.

"Because she paid fer us t'do this, Dash."

"Well, then let someone else have it!" Rainbow Dash flew up a few feet, and turned her back to the cowpony, folding her hooves in front of her. "My wings are poison joke-free, so I'm not going in there!"

"Consarnit, Rainbow!" Applejack stomped the ground in frustration. "We can't, an' you know it. She made specific reservations under our names, and we can't get anypony else to take it fer us."

Rainbow Dash huffed, before turning her head back to the cowpony, revealing a sly grin and a mischievous glint in her eye.

"Y'ain't gonna paint up Scootaloo an' my sister, neither."

Her face dropped. "Aww come on, it would totally work!"

"Yeah, 'till they stepped in the bath water five minutes later." She snorted. "And it ain't like Aloe an' her sister haven't met us before anyway."

The pegasus sulked, landing on her rump and looking down to the ground with a defeated moan. Applejack's ears drooped.

"C'mon Dash, she spent good money on this fer us." she said, her voice going tender. She walked up beside the pegasus and took a seat. "Never mind the bits, you'd break her heart if you up and wasted her kindness like this."

"Well... but-"

"An' what about me?"

Rainbow paused, turning to look at the orange pony.

"I'm not a spa goin' pony either... but this is Rarity's way of lettin' us know how much she appreciates us. She was mighty upset when we got into that fight, an' this is jus' her way of showin' that she really cares fer us." She leaned against the pegasus pony's side. "You ain't gonna let me go in there alone, are ya?"

...

"Sigh..."

*clop clop, clop clop, clop clop, clop clop*

*ding-a-ling-a-ling-a-ling...*

*clop clop, clop clop, clop clop, clop clop*

*shmph*

Applejack sighed, looking back in the direction the pegasus had gone. Standing up, she wearily trotted through the now-open doorway of the building, passing Rainbow Dash without a word, and quietly taking a seat on the green couch beside the sour pony.

Momentarily ignoring the pouting pegasus, she took a moment to look around. Surrounding the two were walls of periwinkle, with thin, swirling designs of indigo embellishing the plain, but pleasant paint. A pair of plants, potted in ornate vases stood tall on either side of the room. A small table sat in front of them, with a jar of soothing ointment and a small pile of towels rested... with one of them being used as a leg-rest by her partner.

A moment of silence longer, and she turned to look at the rest of her friend. The pegasus was buried nose-deep in a magazine, though her eyes unfocused on the pages before her. Applejack cleared her throat.

"Y'know, it might help if you weren't readin' it upside down."

Rainbow Dash scowled from within the pages. "Well, who cares? Right-side up, upside-down, all I see is bunch of girly ponies with even girlier manes." She dropped the magazine back on the table in disgust and leaned back against the small couch, head bumping against the wall. "My mane doesn't need any special treatment to look good."

Applejack smiled. "Can't argue with that," she replied, picking up a magazine of her own. Despite the pout on her face, the pegasus was unable to hide the dusting in her cheeks. The sound of a door creaking open reached their ears shortly after, and the two ponies turned to see a figure entering the room from the back of the spa.

One that left them staring in surprise.

"Zecora?"

"Why Rainbow Dash, and Applejack." The zebra greeted the two, smiling. "What a pleasant surprise to see you back."

The two ponies shared a look.

"...see us back?"

"Why yes, or have you forgotten so, that I last saw you here a while ago?"

Applejack cleared her throat. "Oh yeah... s'pose it's been a while, hasn't it?" She let out a nervous chuckle. "So what brings you here, Zecora?"

"I was delivering some herbs to Lotus and Aloe, for their supply was running quite shallow," she replied, picking up a coin-laden bag from off of the counter, and dropping it into one of the thatched saddle-baskets that rested against her sides with a merry *clink*. "Many are common in the Everfree, so I bring them here for a modest fee."

Applejack had the grace to smile. "Well that sounds mighty fine. It's good to see you again."

The zebra nodded, before opening the lid to her other basket and pulling out a list. "Ah yes, though I'm afraid our chat will have to be brief. I am scheduled to be delivering a special leaf." Zecora glanced at a nearby clock, and her eyes went wide.

"Oh my, it seems I am going to be late!" she exclaimed, heading towards the doorway at a brisk pace. The two ponies watched as she hurried past them, her striped tail quickly disappearing from sight.

...to be replaced with her smiling head as it poked back inside.

"I hope you two enjoy your date."

And with that final farewell the zebra left, leaving the room completely silent, for all but the sound of a magazine slumping to the floor.

"...did she jus'-"

"Uh-huh."

...

"She was probably... f-finishin' her sentence with a rhyme."

"Yeeeah... probably."

"Applejack and Rainbow Dash?"

The accented call for their names brought their attention to the back once again. Two ponies stood side by side behind the counter, one with a blue coat and pink mane, and the other's an inversion of the same.

Both of which were smiling politely at the two.

"We're ready for you now. Please follow us to thee back."

Applejack rose to her hooves and started towards the twins as they about-faced back into the spa. Rainbow Dash begrudgingly stood and followed suit, glaring ahead while mumbling under her breath.

"If they so much as touch my mane... I'm out."

"Ahhh! Get away from me!"

"Meez Rainbow Dash, please! Come back!"

"No! Nonononono! You're not touching it!"

"Come here! We need to-"

"I don't care what you need to do, you're not gon-NAH! Stop that! Applejack, help me!"

Applejack let out a happy sigh as she sunk lower into the water, seemingly unaware of the desperate plea. Steam rose from the surface in tiny, twirling wisps, which were quickly whisked away from view as the pegasus pony dodged left and right, hovering away from the two brush-wielding sisters on either side of the large pool.

"Y'know, this really ain't all that bad," the orange pony remarked, inhaling. "I could get used to a trip here every other week. This is relaxin'."

"Speak for yourself!" Rainbow Dash cried, dodging a hairbrush held in Lotus's mouth. "Twice in a lifetime is good enough for me!"

Applejack casually grabbed two towels sitting in a pile off to the side. "...well that's cuz you ain't relaxin'."

Rainbow Dash ducked beneath Aloe's outstretched brush and soared high above the room, frantically looking for an exit while avoiding the glares of the two sisters beneath her. Quickly eyeing the door, she made a dash for the exit, reaching her hoof out to take the handle.

It was locked.

Whipping around in a panic, she found the two sisters slowly advancing on her. She took off with a scratchy shout, screaming towards the ceiling and dodging the two ponies, desperately searching for another exit...

...when she felt something wrap around her midsection, pulling her weight down hard. With her trajectory suddenly lost and her balance thrown off, the flying filly entered a frenzied nosedive, gracelessly landing into the pool with a large *splash!*

She quickly resurfaced, coughing and gagging. "Gah, Applejack!"

The addressed pony chuckled, spitting out a rope of knotted towels. "Jus' take it easy, will ya? Sit down an' soak a little."

"I can't take it easy! Not when these crazy ponies are trying to... to my mane... in a hot... burblrblbublbrb," the pegasus gurgled as she slowly sunk into the warm water, her heavy-lidded eyes barely visible. Applejack leaned back against the large tub.

"Now that's better, ain't it?"

"Mmmb hbmbmm."

Sporting a grin, she turned to the side. "So gals, what exactly have you got planned fer us today?"

The two ponies (who had been quietly sneaking up behind the pegasus) quickly straightened up, dropping their brushes and smiling sheepishly. "Well, thee steam room should be ready in about thirty minutes."

"Right... so an hour in the bath, an' a half an hour in a room full o' steam. See Rainbow, I told'ja it wouldn't be so bad." she regarded the pegasus, who was content to stay nose-deep in the warm water, offering only a nod of agreement.

The two sisters looked at one another, confusion crossing their expressions.

"Didn't Meez Rarity say anything about thee treatment she ordered?"

"What treatment?"

"She has you both scheduled for 'Rarity's Delux de Délice' package."

"...Rarity's delicious what now?"

The twins shared a second look. "Aloe dear, do you steel haff that brochoore?"

"Mhmm." The pink pony picked up a brochure from a nearby stack of towels, and handed it to the Applejack. She watched with apprehension as she slowly unfolded it, eyes growing wider each second she spent scrolling down the creased page.

"Wha... she... h-how long is this... how long are we gonna be here?"

"Well..." Lotus brought a hoof to her mouth, thinking of a proper way to deliver her reply. "Four to five hours." she replied, finding none.

*SPLASH!*

Rainbow Dash quickly resurfaced, flinging water across the room and coughing up the liquid she had inhaled. She sent a hard glare in Applejack's direction, who could only offer a sheepish grimace.

"Well... 'least Rarity won't be complainin' 'bout our hygiene fer a while."

Rainbow Dash huffed, sending wisps of steam drifting ahead as she sat cross-legged on the long, wooden bench. She folded her forelegs in annoyance, throwing a glance in Applejack's direction.

"So what does all this steam do fer a pony, anyway?"

"Well, thee steam refreshes the mind, and helps a pony to enter a state of relaxation. It makes a wonderful precursor to our treatments."

Lotus flicked her hair from beside her sister. "And it makes your coat look simply luxurious."

Rainbow Dash snorted. "Yeah, as if I don't stand out enough."

Applejack turned to face her. "I dunno, Rainbow. You c'n be a pretty tough pony t'find sometimes," she snickered from behind her hoof. The pegasus frowned, looking away from the pony and tuning out the conversation for a moment.

Scuffing the large wooden support, she lazily looked around the steam room, drearily noting the lack of anything even remotely interesting. Applejack was sitting beside her, and the two sisters were placed on either side of a steaming pile of rocks. There were no windows in the small room, only the entryway in front of them, covered by a large flap to keep the steam from drifting into the hallway.

A loud hiss brought her attention to the rock pile, from where a large plume of steam rose, masking the silhouette of one of the twins as she placed the ladle back into a nearby bucket of water. She resigned to closing her eyes with a sigh, listening in to the current conversation being held.

"S'pose it can't hurt then, though it is a little stuffy in here."

"May I recommend taking a meditative approach? Your friend seems to have found peace of mind."

Applejack snorted with a grin. "Rainbow Dash? Meditate? Girl, you'd have a better chance o' wranglin' a herd of steer with jus' yer hairband."

Lotus let out a giggle beside her sister, who wore a sheepish grimace.

"We haff a wonderful selection of music, if you would care to try some."

Applejack pursed her mouth to the side, before nodding. "Alright, what've you got?"

"Meez Rarity is quite fond of the Tibitan bells. Perhaps you would like them too?"

"Well... sure, I'll bite."

Lotus stood up with a polite smile, and slowly walked out of the room and into the hallway. Stopping beside a record player beside the doorway, she nudged the needle with her nose, putting it into place. A low hum emerged from the rotating device, followed by the soft, deep thrumming of a sequence of bells.

Applejack looked towards Aloe, who was leaning forward on her front hooves, inhaling and exhaling the steam at a steady pace with her eyes closed. She opened them, smiling eagerly and motioning for her to repeat her example. With a skeptical gleam in her eye, Applejack followed suit, leaning forward with her eyes closed and inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly, though with a slight huff of irritation on the latter.

Soon enough, even this fell away, and the sounds of her breathing fell quiet as she repeated the actions at an even steadier pace. A few minutes later, she slowly opened her eyes, looking content and somewhat relaxed.

"...well that ain't half bad." she admitted. "I've never heard anythin' like it before, that's fer sure. What'dja think, Rainbow?"

There was no reply from her side.

"Rainbow?"

She looked towards the pegasus. Her eyes were closed, and her expressionless face was directed to the floor, hidden beneath her rainbow-colored bangs. Her hooves supported her weight as her back arched forward, and she was breathing slowly.

"She looks to be deep in meditation," came a quiet voice from her side.

Applejack turned to Aloe, blinking in disbelief. "Medi... you're kiddin'?"

The former smiled. "We haff many athletes who visit the spa, and many of them choose this method of relaxation during a visit, especially before an event. It helps them to clear their minds and more easily focus on a performance."

"How about that?" Her face lit up as she turned back to Rainbow Dash. "So that musta been one o' yer secret all these years, huh? "Well I'll be, I didn't know you had it in-"

*Snort*

"...ya."

Applejack blinked. Frowning, she reaching out a hoof and gently tapped the pegasus on the shoulder. She swayed, before falling to her side with a jolt, quickly sitting upright with a dazed look.

*Snort* "Huh... who's there?"

Applejack deadpanned. "You fell asleep." she remarked, pointedly.

Rainbow Dash groaned, rubbing her eye with an idle hoof. "Well I can't help it. This lame music is making me sleepy, and I was already tired when we got here!"

Aloe giggled. "It is not for everypony."

Shaking her head, Applejack turned to her once again. "So what's next after we're through here?"

Aloe pulled out a laminated brochure from a nearby basket, similar to the one from before, and handed it to the cowpony. "Well, you will be spending a haff an hour in thee facials room, with a haff an hour hooficure, followed by an hour long mas-"

"Aloe, it is time to prepare the facials. We are going to be late if we do not hurry."

Nodding to her sister, she hopped off of the platform and quickly hurried out of the room. Lotus stepped down from her position, turning to face the two.

"I will send her back once we are ready." She turned to Rainbow Dash with a reassuring smile. "it should not take longer than ten minutes."

Rainbow Dash watched as she about-faced and disappeared behind the large flap, when something caught her eye. Applejack was thoughtfully staring after the two, and a small smile had crept up on her face as she glanced back down towards the brochure, one that sent a similarly-small shiver down the pegasus pony's spine.

"What's... with the look, Applejack?"

"Hmm? Oh, nothin'."

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow, but said nothing back.

"This way, please." Aloe directed, gesturing the two ponies into the next room. The pair walked side by side, both glancing in different directions as they entered with the two sisters.

The walls were the same shade of purple as the ones in the waiting room, except for a large number of pearly-lavender pillars built into the walls on either side of them. Potted plants and jars of perfume lined the walls, perfectly placed to usher in an air of serenity and relaxation.

Sitting against the wall beside them were two platforms, shaped like beds but offering a sturdier surface in a light lavender color, on which a pair of luxurious, purple towels were spread out. Lotus walked up in-between them, straightening one such towel as her sister motioned for the pair to take their places.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash both hesitated for a moment, before the sound of Aloe clearing her throat got their hooves moving. The two gingerly walked up the small steps leading to their respective platforms, and sat on their haunches while eyeing one another with uncertainty.

Aloe giggled. "Please, relax. Lay down if you would."

Rainbow Dash watched as Applejack took a more relaxed standpoint. The reticent pony slowly followed her lead, lowering herself to her belly, though she remained partially raised from the platform, nervously leaning forward on her front legs.

A sudden movement to her left made her jump to her hooves, quickly turning to see Lotus holding a pair or purple pillows in her mouth. Gently tucking one beneath Rainbow Dash's chest, and another one in front, she gestured once again for the pony to lie down.

Exhaling shakily, Rainbow Dash slowly lowered herself onto the pillows. She turned her head to see Applejack comfortably resting her forelegs on two of her own, looking around the room in mild curiosity.

"Thee mixture should be ready in just a moment. We were not able to prepare it as soon as we had hoped, so we apologize."

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "The... mixture?"

"Oh yes, Meez Secora delivered the ingredients not very long ago, however the mask needs time to cool in a special room." Aloe replied, walking out of the room with her sister. "I can take care of that."

"Wonderful. I will get thee horn filers."

The spa ponies looked at one another for a moment, and then back to Applejack and Rainbow Dash, who were giving them an odd look.

"Oh, right. I will... help you with preparations for the mask instead," she offered weakly, starting again to the doorway. Rainbow Dash's ears quickly perked up, and she spun her head towards the two.

"The mask? Wait, what mask?" she called out as the twins exited the room.

"Thee mud mask of course!" Aloe chirped, closing the door behind her. The hollow, clicking sound was followed by a few seconds of silence, and then a lengthy groan of despair filled the room, followed by the sound of something hitting a pillow.

"Mmmmmmmmph..."

Applejack didn't need to turn around to know that she would find Rainbow Dash face-down on the bed, but she did anyway, due to the difficulty of deciphering the pegasus pony's mumblings into the fluffy objects.

"Mmm mmph mhmmph mmph mmm mphmm?"

"Yeah, I've had one before. Me an' Rarity slept over at Twilight's place. It wasn't... all that bad."

"Mmmph mmm phmmph mmph phmmph."

"Well I didn' shove you through that doorway, you walked in yourself."

"Mmm hmmph."

"Did not."

"Mmm hmmph."

"Did not."

"Mmph hmmph!"

"Did not, and will you get your face outta there?!"

"Mm. Mmph phmmph mmph mm phmmph mmph mmphmmph."

"Oh yes they will. An' if they don't, then I will. You're gettin' that facial, Dash."

"Mmmmmmmmph..."

Applejack turned away from the moaning pegasus, looking helplessly in the where the two spa ponies would surely reappear.

"Well I ain't exactly tickled pink m'self." she muttered.

A few minutes later, and the two sisters entered the room. Aloe carried a pair of brushes, polished to the handles, while her sister gingerly balanced a large, crystal bowl on her back, filled partway to the brim with a light-green mixture. Carefully walking into the space between the beds, she set the bowl down onto the floor, and took a brush from her sister.

"Are you ready?" the pink pony asked.

Rainbow Dash simply sighed into her pillow, before taking a deep breath and raising her face up high, eyes shut tight and nose scrunched up in preparation. Applejack chuckled.

"Ready as we'll ever be, I s'pose."

Tools in mouths, the two ponies nodded happily, and dipped the brushes into the mixture, before moving alongside their respective pony, Lotus standing next to Applejack, and Aloe beside a nervous Rainbow Dash.

Said pegasus' face was still held high, eyes closed and tense with uneasy readiness for the incoming substance. She shuddered as the brush made contact with her cheek, a strangled squeak coming from her pursed lips as she felt it slowly sliding upwards, spreading the chilly substance along the side of her face, making her go rigid with discomfort.

An eternity later, and the intrusive brush's relentless attack came to an end. Creaking an eye open, she quickly felt two cucumber slices plastered over each one, leaving her sightless and sitting up in anxious apprehension.

"Relax, Mees Dash. That is all I needed to do." a soothing voice beside her replied, causing her stance to slacken.

"Oh, a-alright."

Letting out a heavy breath, Rainbow Dash slowly dropped to her stomach. Her ears lay flat against the back of her head, suddenly picking up the sound of snickering at her side. Reaching a hoof up to remove one of the cucumbers, she creaked an eye open, and found a facially-decorated Applejack whispering something into Lotus's ear. The spa pony giggled, a blush beginning to form across her soft blue cheeks, and quietly whispered a response that Rainbow Dash could not hear. The pegasus frowned.

"Hey, what's so funny?"

Applejack's ears perked as Lotus quickly rushed out of the room, turning her head to face the pegasus, despite her inability to see anything. "Oh, nothin'. Just askin' a question is all."

"What was it?"

"Don'tcha worry about it none, Rainbow. Jus'... try an' enjoy yourself."

The pegasus pouted, but gave in all the same, resting her chin back onto the pillow with an apathetic sniff...

...and in doing so inhaled a fairly large gob of the cold paste, causing her to gag and sputter.

*Cough cough!* "Bleck! Auugh! What's... eugh, in this *cough* this stuff?"

"Herbs zat are very expensive and difficult to obtain." Lotus replied, her ears drooping down in annoyance. "Please do not eat them."

The sound of Applejack's hearty sniggering quickly filled the room, much to Rainbow Dash's annoyance.

"Ugh, this is soooo booring." she moaned. "How long do we have to stay like this?"

"Long enough for thee mask to exfoliate and cleanse your pores."

"...huh?"

"Twenty minutes."

Rainbow Dash's ears drooped again, as did her head as her chin fell to the pillow. The swinging of an opening door brought her attention forward again as Lotus's voice rang out into the room.

"There has been a change in thee scheduling. Thee meeneral bath should be ready in a half an hour."

Rainbow Dash let out a huff of air.

"A mineral bath? Great, are we gonna sit in a tub full of rocks next?"

...

"Applejack?"

"Yeah?"

"This... *shlick* this isn't a rock bath."

"I, uh, I noticed."

...

"So how much longer do we have to stay in this?"

"Uhh... fifteen minutes."

"Oh."

...

"So this doesn't seem... odd to you?"

"Whaddya mean?"

"Rarity got mad at us for getting mud all over ourselves yesterday morning. And today, she's paying for us to soak in a tub full of mud."

"Well that's... that's 'cuz..."

...

"That pony is so flank-backwards."

"Alright, that's it! I've had it!"

Rainbow Dash jumped out of the tub, quickly reaching out for the towel sitting at the edge of the mud pool. Applejack looked at her.

"What's the matter?"

"This! Everything is the matter!" the pegasus cried, waving a hoof to the side. She stomped over to the wall, looking into one of the mirrors resting on a nearby dresser. "I can't take another two hours of this, Applejack! I could be spending my time training for the Wonderbolts, or doing something else! Anything but this!"

"Come on, Dash. It ain't all that bad."

Rainbow Dash turned away from her friend, scowling.

"I'd rather be buckin' trees and gettin' ahead of schedule myself, but we're here now, so we jus' gotta make the best of it." Applejack replied, grabbed her towel as she clambered out of her pool, wiping down her neck and mane. Suppressing a frustrated groan, Rainbow Dash tossed her mud-soaked towel into a nearby hamper. She stretched out her wings and quickly flapped twice, shaking off any remaining clumps of mud that remained as she stood next to the edge of the mineral bath

"Well, what's next?"

Disposing of her own towel, the earth pony walked over to a nearby table and grabbed a brochure. She moved her hoof down the long list, squinting her eyes.

"Rarity got us... her special, so... since we did the mud bath first, looks like second t'last thing is a massage."

...

"A massage?"

"Wow, lookie here at all of these!" the earth pony interjected, suddenly captivated by the brochure. "I never knew there were so many! Shee-aht-su, Hoof... uhh, Eff-lu... oh nevermind. I don' understand why they gotta use these kinds o' words on every..." she tapered off, looking in the direction of the silent pegasus, who was nervously shifting in place.

"I've never had a massage before." she whispered quietly.

Applejack gave her a smile. "Well there's nothin' t'be afraid of. Granny Smith got one fer me once when I was younger, an' it feel mighty good." she commented, her eyes drifting back to the brochure. "Why I reckon a hard-workin' pegasus like yourself'd love one o' these. An' look here, says they got a special one fer pegasus ponies! How'dja like one of those?"

"I-I don't know, Applejack."

The creaking sound of a door opening cut their conversation short. Aloe's head poked in, donning a questioning glance.

"You finished early?"

Applejack shifted to the side. "Yeah. Mud's not really our thing." she replied, awkwardly. Aloe smiled politely, tilting her head to the side.

"Then please follow me, if you would."

As her bright blue tail flicked out of view, Applejack and Rainbow Dash started out the doorway, quickly catching up with her. A quick trot down a narrow hallway, and the three found themselves back inside the main spa room.

Walking around the large pool, they came to see Lotus standing next to an ornate pair of small, pink and purple massage beds. The blue pony was placing the final pillow on one of the platforms before they caught her attention.

"Oh, hello!" she greeted them. The blue pony then eyed her sister. "They finished early?"

"They... did not like thee mud bath."

She giggled, nodding her head. "If they are ready to begin, then so are we." Lotus started in the direction that the three had entered from. "Applejack, would you follow me please?"

Rainbow Dash, who was glancing around the room, suddenly realized with wide eyes what the earth pony had asked, and where she was heading.

"Wait, where are you going? Where's Applejack going?" she exclaimed, whipping her head from the spa pony to her partner. "Aren't you getting a-a massage?"

Applejack frowned. "'Fraid I ain't. Turns out Rarity went ahead and scheduled me fer a... mane treatment." Her expression turned sour. "Lotus here says that Rarity thought it needed a little... special attention, so we're headin' to a different room." Shrugging, she started after the spa pony, causing what little color remaining in the pegasus pony's face to quickly drain away.

"But wait... b-but...."

"Jus' enjoy yourself, Rainbow. It won't be so bad, I promise." Applejack reassured her, as she continued towards the door with Lotus. "Why, I reckon you'll end up likin' it a lot more than you'll expect."

Rainbow Dash watched helplessly as Applejack turned to Lotus with a nod, before the earth ponies walked out side-by-side. The pink pony turned back and closed the door with a depressingly-audible *click*,the sounds of their hoofsteps muffled and fading away into silence. The pegasus stared after them for a minute, and then fell to her haunches, suddenly feeling very alone. She slowly turned to the left and to the right, ears low and shifting uncomfortably in place.

"Do not worry, Meez Dash." Lotus spoke from behind, causing her to jump. "Thee massage will only last an hour."

"What? An-an hour?!" the pegasus cried, her heart beginning to race as she quickly turned to glace at the doorway. "B-but that's so long! And I can't, I-I mean I don't... Applejack..." she trailed off, her voice constrained.

She heard the pony's movement behind her, and slowly looked around to see Aloe standing next to the massage bed, gesturing towards the platform. The pegasus shrunk back a little.

"Please, come lay down for a moment. Thee massage will not start for a little while."

Lowering her head, Rainbow Dash let out a shaky breath, nodding. She quietly trotted over to the bed and glanced at the earth pony, who motioned once more with a reassuring smile. She forced her shoulders to relax, though she still retained the frown on her face as she clambered up onto the soft platform. Settling herself down, she sniffed, trying to get comfortable.

But not before a steaming towel was draped across her face, causing the pegasus to jump to her front hooves in a panic.

"Try and relax, Mees Dash! There is nothing for you to be worried about."

"Y-Yeah... easy for you to say." she murmured her reply, sinking down once more. "This is the worst day of my life." the pegasus moaned hopelessly.

The earth pony giggled. "Do not worry, it will get much better."

"...what makes you say that?" Rainbow Dash asked in a suspicious tone.

Once again, however, she was interrupted by the sound of an opening door.

"Sister, would you come here for a moment."

"Of course." Aloe called back. She turned to Rainbow Dash, who had started to lift a hoof towards her face. "Please do not remove thee towel, Meez Dash. You need to leave it on for thee next hour. I will be back shortly."

Rainbow Dash dropped her hoof to the bed, mumbling in acknowledgement. She listened to the sound of her trotting across the room, followed by the soft click of a shutting door. The pegasus groaned into her pillow.

Today was not good day.

She sniffed, inhaling a steamy stream of air from the hot towel resting over her face. The soothing sensation whisked away the edges of her frustration, relieving the scowl that scoured her face, and replacing it with a small frown as her thoughts twirled around the mare who wasn't in the room with her anymore.

The one that she needed to have next to her.

Rainbow Dash idly brushed a hoof across the soft fabric of the bed. Today had been bearable at best. She had gone through the motions in hopes that the spa trip might have gone faster, and it had only been because Applejack was there to suffer with her that she hadn't stormed out of the fancy establishment. If Applejack could do it, then she could stand it as well.

The pegasus let out a breath. She recalled seeing the orange sunset rays dancing on the walls of the mud bath room. The day was coming closer to its end. It was just an hour longer, she could make it. She could handle a... massage, even if Applejack wasn't here anymore.

As if on cue, the door opened from the back, and the sound of hoofsteps drew closer to the bed, causing her to involuntarily tense up.

"Well it's about time." she managed to say, grasping onto the little bravado she could find within herself.

"I am sorry, Meez Dash." She heard the tinkling of bottles off to the side. "Did you have a lotion in mind for thee massage? We haff a variety of herbal creams for your choosing."

"...surprise me."

"Hmm... one moment." The hoofsteps sounded out the door again, re-entering the room a few moments later. Rainbow Dash heard the popping of a cap, the noise of which causing her to go rigid in preparation.

"A-Alright, let's get this o-YIKES!" Rainbow Dash squeaked, jumping upwards as a large dollop of ice-cold ointment was poured onto her back without warning. Grumbling, she forced herself to relax, and nodded her head so her masseuse could see she was ready to continue. A pair of hooves then began spreading the chilling substance across her back, and the massage began.

The substance on her back quickly warmed up with the firm gestures, bringing a somewhat pleasant feeling along with each stroke. The pair of hooves firmly pressed themselves up and down, caressing the tenderness along her spine and kneading the surrounding muscles, melting the knots and kinks with every squeeze and stroke.

A few minutes in, and she could feel herself gradually beginning to relax. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, trying to further her relaxed state of mind. To her bewilderment, she suddenly found herself entranced by the scent of the lotion that Aloe had chosen.

Apples.

Her cheeks filled with a red hue as said hooves began working themselves lower, pressing into the sensitive flesh of her lower back, just above her rump. The sweet smell of ripened apples assaulted her senses, burying her in the illusion that the strong pair of hooves against her might have belonged to somepony else.

A small shiver ran through her body as the pleasing feelings elevated. Her wings slowly unfurled, stretching stiffly to her sides to allow further access to the tender areas surrounding the feathered appendages. The rest of her was completely relaxed at this point, and she could only bring herself to follow the ripples of pleasure that trailed behind the two hooves in her mind's eye.

She had to admit that this was much better than she had initially thought. It was so easy to envision those wonderful hooves pressing against her back, moving in gentle circles at the base of her spine. Though as the hooves moved even lower, a flush of arousal coursed through her body, and she was stunned to admit something else.

They felt just like her hooves.

Those wonderful, orange hooves...

"Eez theez th'way yoo like eet?"

Rainbow Dash would have jumped in shock at the sound of the poorly-disguised accent, had her body not been sedated with the surprisingly-skillful hooves smoothly caressing the quivering flesh beneath her wings.

"Wha... Applejack?!"

"Hmm, you're really gettin' into this, aren't you?" came the tender reply from behind her, tinted with smugness. Rainbow Dash blinked, unable to comprehend what was happening above her.

"You were, you-ahh!" she gasped, as Applejack worked her hooves in on either side of the pegasus pony's spine.

"Shh. Jus' relax, pony-girl."

"You... n-now you're a m-massager? Y... you said you've only been, you... hah... how are you doing this?!"

"It's called a masseuse, and I sure ain't one."

"Then *gasp* then how?"

"Well, where'dya think I've been fer the past half an' hour? Sure as hay wasn't gettin' my mane done." She chuckled, digging her hooves in on either side of the lightning-shaped cutie marks, causing the pegasus to moan aloud. "I thought you knew me better than that."

"Yeah... w-well I-" Rainbow Dash's fresh retort was reduced to a wisp of hot air, as Applejack worked her hooves around her right thigh, sending a shudder through her body. Applejack rolled up into her back once again, folding the flesh slightly as she dug deeper still against her taunt muscles, causing Rainbow Dash to let out a particularly loud moan.

"Guess I'm a pretty quick teach. Lotus an' Aloe gave me a lesson in back, an' taught me everythin' I needed t'know to make this here the best massage you'll ever remember. Hoofs-off learnin', o' course." she quickly added.

Rainbow Dash managed a low rumble from her chest, heady with desire and lost from the world around her, except for just how close the hooves had suddenly moved in-between her legs, causing her to tense up in blind anticipation.

"An' the best part is that we're jus' gettin' started, sugarcube."

Rainbow Dash felt her heart catch within her chest as Applejack straddled her backside, beating even more furiously when the earth pony leaned forward along her back. Her hot breath caressed the pegasus pony's ear, and a series of light nips sent sparks of pleasure jumping up her spine.

A pair of forelegs snaked their way beneath her, wrapping around her chest and pulling the earth pony tight against the eager pegasus. A small kiss was planted behind her ear, the small, almost inaudible smacking sound quickly lost to a series of moans and whimpers as Applejack dived down towards the back of her neck, assaulting her with a gentle, but passionate attack.

The rainbow-maned mare tilted her head back, the hot towel dropping to the floor and revealing a pair of lust-lidded eyes. Her chin quivered with a loss of control, and a small squeak escaped her lips with each prick of attention on her neck, entranced with the swirling sensation of her lover's tongue against the pulse of her neck, and with the blissful

The ravishment stopped for a moment, and Rainbow Dash found herself able to move for a moment. Her lust-laden mind was hard-pressed to register the feeling of somepony sliding down and off of her back. She shivered, as the feeling of her warmth was immediately missed.

But it did not remain missed, as an explosion of heat surged between her legs when she felt a gentle pair of teeth nipping at her flank. She could feel her hips clenching up in excitement, spreading slightly and pulsing with arousal and need.

A pair of hooves rested on either side of her cutie marks, kneading the firm flesh forward as Applejack kept up the offensive, causing the rainbow-maned pegasus to gasp loudly.

"I never did finish that massage," came a coy response from behind her. "Whaddya say we wrap it up with somethin' special?"

Her thighs quivered with each stroke of pressure, and her body was so enraptured in the attention it was being given that the pegasus could think of nothing to say back, only able to pant

A hot, wet object suddenly caressed the sides of her treasure, teasingly avoiding the areas that ached and burned most with desire. A hoof was pressed against the inside of her leg, eliciting a shuddering twitch with a series of firm strokes and bringing her elation to newfound heights. Her own hoof pressed hard into the bed, nearly tearing into the soft pink fabric as she was unable to voice her needs and her frustration towards the earth pony's coy administrations.

A minute, an hour, a day... she could not tell how long it had been until the mare between her legs had finally decided to love her, rather than torment her shuddering body. The warm appendage stopped its torturous journey, and started a long, slow trail along the length of her marehood. The gasp the pegasus let out echoed against the walls surrounding them, and the open air was soon filled with the sounds of love and heady approval.

Her rump rose into the air, but Applejack followed close behind, standing on her back legs to keep close to her lover. Her tongue diving into the fretful pegasus, a muffled yelp coming from the pony whose mouth had buried itself into the bed, unaware of the luxurious pink fabric beneath them slowly becoming stained with saliva and her fluid satisfaction.

Rainbow Dash blinked slowly, her mouth agape and eyes glazed over. Her wings were splayed stiffly behind her, twitching and coursing with excitement. Thought was incapable as her mind washed over with hazy bliss, as sharp thrills of sexual desire causes her hips to writhe in agonizing need, soaking her twitching tail in her own liquids.

The feeling of Applejack's tongue passing over a particularly sensitive spot caused her back to arch, electricity coursing up her spine. Nearly all feeling within her body went numb to her, save for the one area that mattered, the one place in the world where she and Applejack met.

Where they touched.

Her head shot into the air with a shout when Applejack quickened her administrations, focusing more intently on her most vulnerable places. A writhing shudder washed over her body as the waves of pleasure nearly drowned her consciousness. Her body seized up, her world shrank in size, and still her lover would not let up her relentless aggression.

A swift, sucking sensation wrapped itself around her sensitive button, and her tiny world exploded in a fiery wave of numbing ecstasy. Her cries of passion were strangled into a hot, breathy squeak as she released control of her being, feeling the pulsing release between her legs spread throughout her limbs. The hot, trickling fluid of her release caressed her inner thighs, as did the loving appendage that had leaded her into the throes of passion.

Rainbow Dash collapsed onto the bed after a few seconds of blissful, burning eternity. She could hear the sounds of her own panting, nearly muted by the echoing song that played below her, the feeling of Applejack's tongue lapping away at the approval that trickled from within her nethers, still winking with sensual overload.

She could only find the energy to smile as Applejack placed a small kiss on her lower lips, before moving back onto the bed, laying on top of her and across her back with a happy sigh, and wrapping her hooves around her once more, placing a warm, sticky kiss on her neck. Rainbow Dash closing her eyes in heavy-lidded content, a sleepy smile caressing her features.

"Two to nothin', Rainbow Dash."

...she creaked a single eye open.

Applejack hummed in satisfaction, removing her lust-laden lips from the pegasus pony, and nestling her face into the crook of her neck. Pressing her fluid-slick snout against her lover, she inhaled, closing her eyes and intertwining her legs with the silent pony, perfectly content to lay atop of her in silence.

And then her world was flipped upside down.

"Hey!" Applejack cried, finding herself on her back. Slightly dizzy, she stared up with wide, unfocused eyes at Rainbow Dash, who stood tall above her on all four legs. Her mane was wild and her tail was slick, flicking behind her in eagerness.

She looked up into her eyes, and found herself beneath two gleaming roses, burning brightly with eagerness and desire. Thought it was behind the layer of gleaming lust that something shown more brightly, something that caused Applejack's own eyes to widen further, feeling her chest catch and her heart pounding from within.

She had seen those same burning eyes reflected in the violet orbs looking down at her only a few days ago, when they had been filled with fear, rather than passion.

They were her own eyes, colored in shades of lusty violet instead of a passionate green.

Before the earth pony could speak, the pegasus quickly dived her head down. Applejack tensed up with a gasp, seeing Rainbow Dash dart so quickly towards her exposed neck...

...and she remained tense, for instead of ravishment, she felt the softest pair of lips brushing against the pulse of her neck, gliding up and around in a series of sweet, loving touches. She let her hooves slowly fall to the bed, quaking in confusion against the fabric beneath her.

Applejack could not control the beating of her heart, pounding loudly in her own ears. The pegasus pony's tender touch was frightening and electric, paralyzing her with sparks of fear and yearning. Every kiss was gentle, delicate as though the pegasus was hesitant to break her skin.

Rainbow Dash must have surely felt the rapid pulse against her lips, and yet she showed no sign of stopping, simply to soothe the tender flesh that quivered at her touch. She closed her eyes, willing her heart to steady while the pegasus administered her attention.

Suddenly, the lips against her neck pulled away, prompting her to shoot her eyes open. She met those two orbs once again, still burning with violet passion, but colored with deep shades of concern. She felt her gaze falter, instead glancing down to one of her shaking hooves still pressing into the bed.

"Are you okay, Applejack?"

She met the pegasus' soft gaze again, trying to find her voice. After a moment of labored breathing, she exhaled a shaky breath, nodding. Bringing a quivering hoof upwards, the earth pony wrapped it around the mare's neck and brought her close. She closed her eyes as their mouths met, and their tongues embraced in a wet and wonderful dance.

Applejack felt the warmth rising in her cheeks, the enthusiastic but gentle tongue brushing against her own, sharing the taste of her arousal from moments before. She felt a shudder spread throughout her body as a hoof trailed down her side, wrapping around her lower back, and her breath hitched when she felt the pegasus' weight settle down on her, flush with a fiery warmth that spread all across the front of her body.

As all dances end, Applejack let out a shaky sigh as she felt her pull away from her lips. Her head was swimming with heat and desire, and the faint signals telling her that Rainbow Dash had rested her forehead against hers were nearly lost to the flustered pony.

A cooling breath of air brushed against her face, prompting her to look upwards. The pegasus pony's eyes were so close to her, that she could see the shimmering circles of her own green eyes, encompassed by the gleaming orbs of rose...

...a sight that filled her heart with a strange shame, causing her to quickly look away.

"I-I thought you wanted this, AJ."

She felt a hoof pressed against her cheek, rubbing in slow circles and bringing her focus back towards the pegasus once again. She quickly reached up and grabbed it within her own, clutching it against her chest as it rose and fell at a frenzy, slowing down with each breath.

It was a full minute before she turned her head to meet the Rainbow Dash's gaze, unable to keep her eyes from filling with tears. And still she would not let go of the pegasus pony's hoof, holding it tight to her chest. Rainbow Dash let her eyes fall to their hooves, still intertwined, and her ears drooped as a slow, but sudden realization dawned on her.

"It's... it's not easy for you, is it?" she whispered.

Applejack said nothing, refusing to look at the pegasus.

"It's easy to love somepony. So easy... but it's so hard letting somepony love you back."

She shut her eyes tight and bit her lip hard, willing away the torrent of emotions that swirled within her heart.

"I want this for you, Applejack."

Rainbow Dash brushed a sweaty lock of hair away from Applejack's face, still looking up to her in fearful silence.

"You've done everything for me. Ever since day one, you've always been there." Rainbow Dash sniffed. "You helped me when I needed help, you were there for me whenever I need you there..."

Rainbow Dash's voice had fallen to a soft, happy whisper. She rested her other hoof across her neck, and began a slow stroking motion up and down the side of her face, lulling the earth pony's fears.

"And... you loved me, when I needed it the most."

Applejack took a shaky breath in, unable to break eye contact with the two roses, hovering inches above her face.

"I've never done my fair share for you, AJ. And you still do everything for me."

"Dash..."

"...so now it's my turn, Applejack." Rainbow Dash whispered, letting go of her hoof and placed her own against the earth pony's throbbing heart, leaning forward. "I want you to know what you mean to me."

And Applejack's mind drew to the cave, where she saw a frightened pegasus with a bent wing, and the gleam of life that had sparked in her eyes a single kiss later...

...after she herself had said those words.

The earth pony closed her own eyes at the memory, two hot tears leaking down the sides of her face. She threw her forelegs upwards, pulling the pony above her into a fierce hug, and burying her face into the crook of her neck. Her chest convulsed, wracked with sobs, and Rainbow Dash made no movement to pull away, instead running a hoof down behind her ear, resting against her tear-streamed cheek.

After a minute, she allowed her grip to falter, meeting glances with her once more, gleaming with appreciation. She sniffed, nodding after a moment, and the pegasus shone a smile that beamed with love, before pressing her lips against her own once more, quelling what little fear and shame remained in her heart.

"Rainbow Dash..."

"Just relax." she whispered, pulling back. Applejack wiped the salty streaks away from her face, watching the blurry blue visage of her partner washing from her sight, disappearing down her motionless body.

She felt a gentle kiss placed between her legs, a sudden feeling that brought them together in shock, though she soon felt Rainbow Dash gently spreading them apart, guiding them around her head to rest them around her shoulders. She placed a second, lingering one between her legs, nudging her lips harder into the earth pony. Pulled away, Rainbow Dash looked up so that the earth pony could see the nervous grin plastering her moistened face.

"I can't say that I've had much practice, but I did have couple of lessons from a pretty good teacher." She looked back down to her treasure with a tender, but hungry gaze. "And from the looks of things down here, I doubt it'll be that hard in the end."

Applejack frowned, about to reprimand the feathered filly between her legs when a rush of lightning surged through her spine, flattening her back against the bed and drawing a breathy gasp from her quivering mouth.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she could feel the teasing vibrations coming from Rainbow Dash chuckling, pressing against her nethers. She was then subjected to a series of teasing licks, up one side and down the other of her marehood. A torturous, eternity-long minute of the same actions had the earth pony groaning in quiet, heady frustration, feeling a slight pang of guilt for having denied the pegasus immediate pleasure only minutes before.

But Rainbow Dash was not one to make a pony wait. She let her tongue explore further inward, nuzzling her snout against the earth pony's quivering clit with each stroke of her tongue, consciously aware of the earth pony's hips rising to meet her, and feeling the passionate, shuddering spasms trailing through her legs.

Applejack lost focus of the ceiling above her, her vision going cross to be replaced with a thickening film of lusty haze. Her breathing became sharper with each stroke, gasps and whines growing with every centimeter the pegasus explored further below.

But as the minutes trickled by, there was something else. Through the sensory miasma swirling through her mind, something else was keeping her consciousness attached to the present. Actions and feelings too small to be noticed through the swirling tides of sexual satisfaction.

Feelings that kept her heart afloat, and keeping her from drowning in the pleasures of carnal desire.

For every lustful lick, she felt a slow, tender nudge against her thigh. The hoof that rested against her hip was caressing the sensitive flesh below her cutie mark, and had not stopped once since the pegasus had begun. And there were seconds, long and precious, that the pegasus would simply stop to resting her lips against the quivering folds, humming in content.

And there was one such moment, she swore, that she felt small, hot streak of liquid running down her thigh between where her leg met her face. One that she knew was not her own, and a feeling that brought one of her own tears sliding down her blushing cheek.

She was no stranger to her own body, to the physical requirements that would bring about the flush in her cheeks and the wetness between her legs she felt now... but it was so different this time. The physical feelings were the same, and yet her heart was filled to the brim, threatening to spill over in the same fashion that her tears had, and in the same fashion that her marehood could not contain her hot, clear excitement.

But no matter what spilled over in the end, there was one thing she knew for certain.

Rainbow Dash would always be there... to catch every last drop.

Applejack felt a spark of passion jolting through her as the mare between her legs quickened her pace. Her actions became more aggressive, heatedly exploring her inner walls and passionately caressing every twitching, pulsing nerve inside of her. She began nipping at the sides of her opening, causing Applejack to thrust her hips forward with a cry, pressing hard against Rainbow Dash's snout, who returned the forcefulness in full.

"R-Rain... Rainbow... ahh!"

She was panting loudly, and her moans grew in length and volume, echoing off the walls. She looked down to see Rainbow Dash locking her gaze, eyes burning with desire. But for the silly remark she had made minutes before, her eyes burned up at her with a single desire.

Not for the taste, but simply for the touch. For her touch.

And as Rainbow Dash encompassed her treasure with her mouth a final time, her world collapsed below her belly, feeling every nerve fluttering and flaring with an orgasmic charge, and relishing in the timeless eternity her lover took as she lapped and licked at the source of her blissful, burning release.

She blinked when the world caught up with her, eyes staring senselessly at the ceiling when she found herself able to comprehend once again. The world was blurry and covered in a film of lusty haze, though with each patter of her steadying heart the layers began to thin. With enough effort, she brought her gaze down one final time.

She found the pegasus smiling up to her, unblinking and grinning aloud.

The earth pony closed her eyes, letting her ears drink in the cathartic chuckle trickling from between her legs, and letting out one of her own as Rainbow Dash placed a loving, drawn-out kiss on her own smiling lips.

Applejack let her legs go slack, feeling the passionate little aftershocks jumping through her limbs, bringing feeling back to her forelegs. Her energy spent, she lay in silence with her eyes still closed, feeling her heart and her breath steadying at last.

Her front erupted with warmth as Rainbow Dash snuggled herself up to the earth pony with a yawn of approval.

"So, how'd I do?

Impossibly, what little orange remained in the earth pony's cheeks was replaced with a fiery blush, though a small grin remained on her moistened lips.

"I... I reckon we're square now, Rainbow Dash."

She could feel the pegasus' cheek wrinkling up into a smile against her chest, and she unconsciously mimicked the gesture.

"I guess you were right, Applejack."

She creaked an eye open to see the pegasus beaming up at her, rose-colored eyes gleaming with joy.

"The spa trip wasn't so bad after all."

Applejack sniffed, wrapping her forelegs around the pegasus and holding her tightly, a warming tingle spreading through her chest. She let her thoughts wander around the slumbering pony in her embrace as the promise of sleep tugged at the edges of her mind.

Letting out a yawn of her own, the two laid quietly against one another, until she finally succumbed to the warmth and fatigue that encompassed her, and fell away into a dream of her own...

...unknowingly being watched through the small window of a closed door off to the side, where two ponies stood side by side.

One pink, and one blue.

Both blushing a bright red hue.

"...w-well, it seems that everything... went well enough."

"..."

"Aloe?"

"YES! I... agree! I do not believe they would have missed the hooficure and soak."

"I do not think so either."

...

"*ahem* Perhaps we should tell them that we are closing?"

"It... is fine. We can stay open for a little while longer."

The two sisters shared a giggle as they walked away from the door, leaving the two lovers to slumber in privacy.

The figure stood alone within a dark clearing on tired hooves, staring about the thick layers of vegetation that surrounded the area from every direction.

An entire day of searching had taken a toll on the weary pony. Having scoured nearly every corner of the cursed forest while keeping to the shadows as lesser beasts passed by, there had been little time for food or sleep. But the destination could not be much farther.

The pony glanced up through the thick canopy. The blood-red remnants of a late sunset peaked through the sickly blankets of moss and vine. It would be pitch black within an hour.

Glaring towards the ground, a glowing aura flickered to life around the figure's horn, and a nearby stick levitated into the air. A rush of magic and the stick lit ablaze, illuminating the mare's bloodshot, violet eyes.

Nothing would stop her now.

It was time to be Great and Powerful again.

Author's Note: Well... five months. It's been a while, hasn't it?

Not much to say this time around, so I'll keep it brief. I still haven't abandoned this story, and I'm still not planning on it.

This chapter... was way too long. I'll definitely try to cut down on the size for the next few, so updates WILL come quicker.

Next on my to do list is the next story in "The Pony Poetry Series,", so it'll be a while before the next chapter here comes out... but not nearly as long as the last time.

Anwyays, if you want to contact me, feel free to P.M. me, or add me on Steam (Aquarian Poet). You can also find me at @AquarianPoet on Twitter!

Finally, a HUGE thank you to “Armasyll the Reader” for helping me out with the formatting issues I had when I first published this chapter. He caught them within two minutes of publication, and had them issues fixed in 10 without me even knowing.

What a guy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Hasbro, or My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. If I did, I would probably have a secretary who would take care of all the small and menial things in my life... like filling out my taxes. Or picking up a delicious, garnished steak for me to enjoy as I counted the stacks of money I had him/her organize for me earlier that day.

Le sigh...

P.S. If anyone knows how to indent paragraphs on this accursed editing page... PLEASE let me know!

A Major Problem

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“The Twilight Effect”

By: Skeptical Poet

Chapter 4: A Major Problem
______________________________________________________________________________

Rainbow Dash rolled onto her side, mumbling in her sleep. She sniffed and snorted as colored strands of her mane fell in front of her mouth, before eventually brushing them away with a lethargic foreleg.

Her hoof brushed up against something soft, and she instinctively reached out, pulling it close to her chest with a sigh of content. The moment did not last long, and the Pegasus groaned after a moment of foggy realization.

That’s just a pillow.

Smacking her lips, she slowly sat up and shook her head, attempting to clear the lingering sleepiness from her mind. She stretched her front legs out, yawning aloud and blinking repeatedly while her room came into focus

She was back home. It was still dark in her room, save for a soft glow coming from her window. The sheets of her bed, along with all but one pillow, had been kicked to the floor during her slumber. Feeling the remaining plush object still in her lap, she discarded to the floor with the others.

Rainbow turned to look out the window, and found herself greeted by a glowing, starlit dawn. Amber and lavender lit the lakes of Ponyville with a glow, reflected as tiny specs of colored light into her slowly widening eyes.

The sky, however, was not the cause of her surprised look. Rather, it was the feeling of a very stiff wing brushing up against the backboard of her bed when she had turned.

Her mind was reeling in disbelief. She had not woken up with wings as stiff as these since she was halfway through her teenage years. Not so tender, either, as she could not help but shudder as her pinions brushed against the cold, wooden frame.

She twitched as her mind began processing the other sensations her body was starting to feel. In fact, there were a few other places that felt much tenderer than she was accustomed to waking up with. Her concerns then quickly melted into a warm grin, however, as she recalled the previous night.

But as the lakes she had just viewed would eventually, her features froze in icy horror, and as her joints locked up, the poor Pegasus pony teetered on the spot, and careened forward, falling face-first into the plush, purple pillow tossed to the floor moments before.

Her rump stuck into the air, catching a chilly draft which quickly reminded the poor pony that her nethers still ached a little, prompting a rather graphic recollection of her and Applejack’s… daring escapade.

One such escapade that took place in a public building.

While two sister ponies watched the entire scene.

The Pegasus had the grace to blush, groaning into the pillow.

Maybe the spa wasn’t so bad, but from the looks on the twins’ faces as they left the room, and the giggles that followed them out into the night… they might need to keep looking for a regular get-together spot.

***

The sun was still far beyond the horizon when Rainbow Dash left her floating residence, offering only the smallest glow from the crest of the mountaintop, gleaming what light it could against the fading moon on the opposite side of the sky. The temperature had also started its morning climb, and the soft sound of rustling from the trees below signaled the slow awakening of the birds and animals below.

All of this went unnoticed, however, as the Pegasus pony propelled herself upwards with a flap of her somewhat-rigid wings, tensing her back leg and kicking her first cloud into non-existence with an all-too cheery *poof*.

“Stupid mornings. Stupid clouds. Stupid stiff wings. Stupid… sexy Applejack.”

Looking around after her quiet outburst to see if she was still alone, she continued her grumbling, punctuating each remark with the burst of another cloud. Sniffing, she swung her back legs out to meet a particularly large one, casting a glance down towards the town below.

It struck her then just how many clouds floated around her that needed to be tended to, and it was with some difficulty that she recalled the previous night, when the two ponies were returning home from the spa. It had been her sheer misfortune that allowed the Mayor to walk into the pair, who proceeded to very clearly make known her disapproval of Ponyville’s weather manager putting off her job for half of the week. Having neglected to hire a replacement, she had left the skies unattended and dotted with clouds, whose numbers were growing steadily every day since.

Rainbow Dash’s situation was certainly not helped when a nearby storm cloud decided to unburden itself not more than a few feet above them, sprinkling the three ponies with rainwater and serving to drive the message home.

The Pegasus pony’s proceeding cackling had also failed to lighten the mood.

She let her gaze wander over the mass of clouds that lay across the eastern skies of Ponyville. That unfortunate storm cloud had caught her attention after she had kissed her marefriend goodnight, as did the large number of darkened clouds that she had passed on the way up to her Cloudominium.

As a seasoned weather pony, there were only two places she knew of that could create a raincloud large enough to unburden itself without the assistance of a Pegasus pony.

On occasion, the Cloudsdale Weather Factory was known to have their monthly bouts of scheduling hiccups and production errors. It was uncommon, but still very much a concern to find stray storm clouds traveling from their city without escort. More often than not however, the local weather teams were more than capable of wrangling the wayward byproducts, and in the case of an emergency, a messenger was dispatched to any nearby cities with a warning and would arrive long before any serious storm could form. It was a highly unlikely scenario, and she or the Mayor would have received notice by now.

The other place was just as believable of a source, but much more worrisome.

The wayward weather of the Everfree Forest was known to spread its adverse effects across the town from time to time. No weather pony, scientist, or anypony had been able to accurately reason or surmise why the weather above the mysterious forest acted of its own accord.

As Rainbow Dash turned to view the dark sky, dotted with clouds spreading from the horizon of the forest, she quickly deemed this option to be the most likely.

It worried her much more than the possibility of a factory malfunction.

Throughout her years of living in Ponyville, she had experienced more than her fair share of run-ins (and run-throughs) with the barbaric forest. She had heard the whispers of superstition from the previous weather managers and crew of how…disturbances could affect the unruly weather. Nothing in particular, but the common theme between stories was that the weather was somehow magically attuned to the natural state of the Forest.

Rainbow Dash yelped as a stray cloud suddenly discharged static beside her. More than just random, perhaps.

She remembered the chill that ran down her spine when the weather report had come in during the week that she and her friends had banished the wicked force that possessed Princess Luna. Soon after the defeat of Nightmare Moon, numerous reports from Pegasi and trained weather ponies pointed out that every cloud disappeared at the same moment that their terrible ordeal had ended.

Luna had insisted, when inquired by Cloudsdale weather specialists, that her powers had no discernible influence on the weather of the Everfree itself. This only furthered the spread of rumors that the weather could be attributed to a large, magical disturbance. Though Rainbow Dash personally had not noticed at the time, Twilight had, and was adamant about the validity of their findings, despite the assertions of her mentor’s royal sister.

Regardless of what caused it, the thought still sent a shiver down her back. The place was strange in ways both magical and mundane, and it was with good reason that a Pegasus pony would naturally get nervous around such a place.

Rainbow Dash kicked a leg into the side of a darker cloud, discharging it safely with a loud crack, before swiping through it with a quieter result. The Pegasus tossed her resolute gaze across her shoulder and to the forest’s direction, from which a growing layer of storm clouds slowly shifted towards her town.

Once the weather over Ponyville had been taken care of, she would get to the bottom of things.

It was her job, after all.

***

“Mmm! Mmm! Twilight, you’ve got to try these!”

“Oh you simply must, dear. This danish is exquisite!”

“Alright… mmm, thiff iff good!”

“Wanna try one, Fluttershy?”

“Oh, no thanks Pinkie Pie.”

“Applejack?”

“Thanks Pinkie, but I’m gonna pass.”

“Okay, more for me!”

*Ahem*

“Oh, for us, I mean.”

Applejack grinned at the white unicorn that had cleared her throat, who had the grace to blush as she reached out towards the plate once more, slightly wary of any onlookers that might pass their table. Rarity caught Applejack’s look, and raised her head with a dignified, unapologetic “Hmph.”

Looking away from her friend, the cowpony stretched away from the table, yawning aloud.

“Hey Applejack,” Twilight started from her side, setting her pastry aside. “You’ve been awfully quiet this morning. What’s on your mind?”

Applejack looked up at the cream-colored sky, tinting a new shade of blue with each passing minute as the sun rose higher into the sky. She smiled, readjusting her Stetson.

“Not much, Twi. Me an’ Rainbow Dash just stayed up a bit late last night, so I’m feelin’ a little tuckered today.”

“Stayed up?”

The cowpony jumped at Rarity’s sudden inquiry, willing the grin that had graced her features to a more convincing size before meeting her curious gaze.

“Everythin’s fine, Rarity. Why wouldn’t it be?” Applejack grabbed a danish and took a swift bite, leaning back on her haunches as she enjoyed the taste. Rarity fidgeted in place as she watched the cowpony eat. Twilight stared at her from her left.

“I… was unaware of the implication that everything wasn’t fine, darling.” Rarity said slowly, causing Applejack to wince.

“Well, o’ course. Sorry. You know, there-”

“Oh, I can’t help myself!” Rarity exclaimed, jumping up with a gleeful squeal and leaning over the table. “I heard all about you and Rainbow Dash’s trip to the spa yesterday!”

Applejack’s green irises shrunk to pinpricks as four sets of eyes settled over her, causing the cowpony to inhale the pasty pastries she had been chewing on with a strained whinny.

“Oh dear…” Fluttershy voiced her concern, reaching out a soft hoof and gently tapping Applejack’s back. Two coughs later, and she found herself in control of her breathing, swallowing the invading pastry stuff before looking up to Rarity with wide, watery eyes.

“Wha-what did you hear?”

Rarity’s concern was swiftly replaced with a wistful grin, graced in full-force.

“I caught Aloe on her way home last night. She gave me all of the details!”

“All the what?!” Applejack squeaked out, shrinking down in her spot at the table.

“Oh Applejack, you and I need to go to the spa together in the near future!”

Her face burned a bright red, features twisted in horror.

“Are you-”

“Better yet, why don’t you, me and Fluttershy head down there as a threesome?”

Her face turned a dark beet color as Rarity sprung to her hooves, stomping the ground with enthusiasm.

“I’ve got it! All six of us should go, my treat! We’ll have an org-”

“HEY would you look at the time!” Applejack yelped, jumping to her own hooves. “Nice eatin’ breakfast with y’all, but I really gotta go buck some apples! Just apples an’ no-pony-else-but-the-apples!” the Earth Pony cried, sprinting away from the table.

Two beats of a heart later, and a metallic *thud* echoed throughout the morning air, followed by the sound of Applejack falling to the ground in a daze, staring up at the lamppost in front of her.

“-anized party and be eligible for a group… discount.” Rarity finished slowly, sitting down with a disconcerted expression. A few seconds of confused silence passed through the group, before a pink pony stirred beside her, swallowing the remainder of her danish.

“Wait, who just said party?”

***

Rainbow Dash flew forward, coughing as she flew through another patch of foggy clouds that drifted above the canopy of the Everfree Forest.

She groaned. It would make much more sense for her to simply fly over the layer of smog, but now she was looking for specifics. The clouds didn’t appear to follow a pattern the closer she flew towards the heart of the forest, so she stayed just the tree line, keeping her eyes below and skimming each small clearing for any sign of… anything.

Though to be honest, she wasn’t seeing much of anything flying straight through them either.

Rainbow Dash had ventured into the Everfree Forest many times with her friends. She easily recalled the fog that had pervaded the ground from many of her escapades into the accursed forest. It was normally a sickly, swirling mass that stayed from the various pathways winding through the forest.

Now the stuff was everywhere, and not even the morning sunlight could pierce through the choking vapors that now blanketed the entirety of the Everfree Forest.

She grimaced, grateful of her decision to leave her friends in Ponyville. Even the dissipated wisps that trailed up in front of her were enough to send the Pegasus pony into a coughing fit. Having her earth pony and unicorn friends travel through the dense air below would get them nowhere, and Fluttershy, despite being a Pegasus pony herself, had little experience with weather management, and wouldn’t know what to look for. Not to mention she would probably decline at first blush.

No, this was a job for her alone.

Twirling into a corkscrew and bursting through another cloud, Rainbow Dash coughed into her hoof, peering through the dim haze that hovered above the thick canopy of the Forest, while strafing from side-to-side to avoid the occasional thundercloud.

She stopped in front of one such cloud, hovering and watching it intently. The cloud looked darker than most of the ones that she had seen, full and pulsing with energy. She flicked it with a hoof, and it let out a small discharge, causing her to recoil. The dark color, however, stayed the same.

Rainbow Dash frowned. This one was dangerously full of lightning.

Things were getting worse. These clouds would last for days, and despite all of her Pegasi instincts screaming that she leave this chaotic weather, she couldn’t afford to have clouds this large drifting out all over Equestria, let alone Ponyville.

Coughing aloud once again, Rainbow Dash flapped her wings harder, hovering ahead into the mist, trying to convince herself that everything was still fine… and that she couldn’t hear the rumbling of the ground beneath her.

A deep, low rumble.

The expanse of sickly fog stretched out before her, choking the plants and masking the visible light from penetrating to the ground below. Rainbow Dash grimaced as she realized that Zecora's hut would be impossible to find now. For all she knew, she could have already flown straight past her.

Wincing, she flew faster towards the heart of the forest than before, and silently prayed that nopony had been in the forest by the time the smog had encompassed the trees.

Pony or zebra, nothing could survive down there for very long.

***

“For the last time, I really am fine, Twi’. Honest.”

“I just wanted to make sure you got back alright. Really Applejack, you hit that pole really hard. You could have really hurt yourself, and I’d rather see you collapse near your family than on the road to Sweet Apple Acres.

Applejack turned to face the unicorn with a deadpan look. The unicorn grimaced.

“Sorry… poor choice of words.”

Applejack turned to the side, smiling up at the morning backdrop. “Well, I do appreciate it all the same, Twilight.”

Twilight smiled back, tilting her head.

“Even if yer lyin’ to me.”

“That’s what friends are… wha-Oof!”

Snorting, the cowpony didn’t even have to turn around to know that her friend had face-planted right over her hooves.

She did anyway.

“Gee Twi, not settin’ any examples fer avoiding injury.”

“Applejack.”

“ Oh c’mere.” The Earth pony helped Twilight to her hooves. Dusting off her friend’s mane, Applejack put a hoof on her friend’s shoulder. “Now, tell me what’s got you actin’ all edgy.”

“I’m not edgy, I’m just walking with you.”

“Why?”

“I don’t… need an excuse to take a walk with a friend, do I?”

“Well Twi, ya usually do.”

Twilight turned her head and bit her lip, looking hurt. Sighing, her orange companion walked up beside her, bumping their rumps together and causing them to meet eyes.

“Now don’t get me wrong. There’s nothin’ wrong with walkin’ a friend home, but I know you better than this. You don’t just do things all willy-nilly like this, ‘specially to take a walk to Sweet Apple Acres, and ‘specially when I told you and the girls that I’m workin’ the fields all day long. So tell me,” Applejack narrowed her gaze. “Why. Are. You. Followin’. Me?” she asked, punctuating each word with a poke of her hoof.

Twilight backed up a pace, gulping.

“W-well… I’ve just been working a lot, and the party a few days ago made me realize that I should get out more. And Spike told me that I needed some fresh air, so he… kicked me out?”

“Spike.”

“Yeah.”

“Kicked you out of your own library.”

“Yeah.”

Applejack leveled the unicorn with an inquiring gaze.

“Really?”

Twilight smiled widely. Very widely. “Really! That’s… what happened. Eh heh.”

Applejack narrowed her eyes.

“What was Spike doin’ when he told you that?

“He was dusting the autobiographies.”

“What were you talkin’ about before that?”

“A book I read last night.”

“What color is my hat?”

“Light saddle-brown.”

“How d’ya cut an apple pie inta eight even slices with only three cuts?”

“Cut the pie twice to get four even slices, stack them evenly and cut the stack in half.”

“What was the last book you finished readin’?”

“Drop The Books For Better Looks: Fit Fillies And… and…” The unicorn trailed off, looking to the side and seeing Applejack’s lopsided grin.

“You were sayin’?”

Twilight growled at Applejack’s vain attempt to stifle her chuckling.

“Okay okay, I’m sorry Twi’. Really.” she exclaimed, springing into a trot to the garden arch over the property path. “So my next question; why the sudden interest in exercise?”

When Applejack heard no immediate response, she perked her ears up. The only sound she could hear were her own hoofsteps beating the dirt path. She turned back with some unease to see Twilight standing still, looking subdued. Noticing the curious look her friend was giving her, Twilight’s eyes shifted downward, looking at her hoof as it nervously scuffed the dirt.

“Well, it’s… it’s nothing. I just spend a lot of time reading, and I wanted… to find, um… to get in better-”

“Twi?”

It was on her face. The look Applejack gave her friends when she didn’t buy their story, for whatever reason it was spun. Twilight turned away, biting her lip again.

“Applejack… am I pretty?”

The farm pony’s eyes became pinpricks, as the mare tried to find her voice. “Wha-what’re ya askin’ me for?”

Twilight twitched, causing the cowpony to wince at her choice of words. Applejack cleared her throat, trotting forward and sitting in front of the unicorn.

“L-look, don’ take this the wrong way, but you are a pretty mare. There ain’t nothin’ wrong with the way you look.”

Twilight sniffed.

“Really now! You’ve got a pretty mane, a right gorgeous smile, big pretty purple eyes an’… yer body’s fine enough.”

“Huh?”

Applejack blushed. “I-I said your body’s fine. I mean, you’ve got nice legs. Not like mine, but-no! Wait, I didn’ mean that!” The Earth pony backpedaled with wide eyes. “Y-yours are fine, great! Really nice legs, and yer flank…I-I mean yer flank is nicer than your-no, my legs, I mean… aww shoot!”

Twilight smiled, her pacified look settling the stammering pony

“Well, I know in good shape. The tests that Dr. Fillipe documented in her book suggest that I have an above-average muscle-to-fat ratio, and my ‘figure’”, she motioned quotes with her hooves, “scored in the upper twenty percentile, and-” she petered off, noticing the blank look Applejack was giving her. “Well, I just thought I might… tone up a little.”

Applejack shook her head, putting her hoof over Twilight’s shoulder and pulling her into a side-hug.

“Okay. Nothin’ wrong with that. Ya could’a told me, an’ I’d have been more than happy t’let you help out at the farm fer a day.” She reached a hoof up to brush the unicorn’s bangs from her face. “An’ for what it’s worth, you really are a pretty gal.”

Twilight smiled up to her friend. “Thanks Applejack. That helps.”

Applejack could hear the ringing truth in her answer. Twilight pushed away, and stood back up with a huff. Her orange friend followed suit, and the two continued along the fence line.

“So we’re still playin’ twenty questions. I reckon I’ve got at least one more fer ya.”

Twilight gave her a puzzled look. Applejack raised an eyebrow, slowly drawing her mouth into a smirk.

“Twi', Is there some stallion you've got your eyes on?"

The unicorn reeled, looking caught.

“No!”

“Twilight…”

“No, I’m not… my eyes aren’t on anypony, much less… well…” She trailed off, averting her gaze from Applejack’s and looking out towards out towards the expanse of apple trees.

Applejack followed her friend’s gaze into the field. They settled on her family’s barn, just as a large, red figure trotted out with a heavy-looking cart strapped to the pony's back. Applejack raised two eyebrows.

"Well I'd never have... you're sweet on my brother!"

Twilight stared out towards the fields for a moment longer, until the words registered and she turned to face the cowpony, blanching

"What? What?! No! I... no!"

The cowpony fell into a smug grin.

“No, I swear I don’t!”

Her grin grew wider.

“Stop that!”

Her friend burst out into a loud guffaw.

“Haha! Twi… Twilight! I’m sorry! I-really! Really Twi’, I ain’t mad! I think y’all’d make a fine couple, but I never thought you… and him! I reckon you couldn’t have picked a better-”

“Applejack!”

“-bet the two o’ you’ll be sweeter on each other than Auntie Applesauce’s cobbler-”

"Applejack, I don't even like stallions!"

The orange pony’s laughter rang through the orchard as an echo, the source having petered off when the words her friend spoke had registered in her mind.

“…oh.”

Twilight’s low growling also subsided as the pair felt a third presence behind them. Both mares shared a quick glance, and turned to the other side of the fence, where Big Macintosh stood about a cart’s length away, his head drooped low. He turned away into a slow trot towards the orchard, mumbling beneath his breath.

"'S’always the pretty ones, too."

Applejack spared a glance towards her unicorn friend, who watched the larger pony trot away, a reddish hue dusting her cheeks.

“Well, guess that answers that question fer ya, huh Twi’?”

***

Past the vast expanse of apple trees, the air grew thick and opaque towards the border of the Everfree Forest. Above, the rich blue sky contrasted against the shifting blanket of smoke lining the top of the trees.

Miles into the heart of the forest, the settled, uniform cover began to churn and expand, and a Pegasus ruptured out of the smoke, choking and gasping for air as wisps of thickened air trailed out around her.

Repositioning herself, the cyan pony hovered over the expanse, her face twisting into dark concern at the expanse of smoke below her, reaching out to the horizon. Turning around, Rainbow Dash could just make out the steeples of Town Hall towards the horizon.

From here, she could not gage just how close the smoke had spread, but she knew it wouldn’t be too much longer until the blanket of clouds reached Ponyville, and the town falling beneath the smog.

Rainbow Dash’s expression was swept with dread as she took a closer look towards the horizon, lined with rows of green. From this direction, Sweet Apple Acres would be taken long before the rest of Ponyville would have concern.

Her thoughts turned to Applejack, and her family, whose home would be engulfed in the suffocating smokescreen. Her grandmother would be unable to escape Sweet Apple Acres on her own in time, so the older Apples would have to cart her and Apple Bloom out of harm's way. However, the smog was too close to the edges of the Everfree Forest already, and being hooked up to carts, Applejack and Big Macintosh would be hard-pressed to outrun the rapid expanse themselves.

She dashed forward, thrumming her wings as rapidly as she could and leaving a wake of swirling smoke behind her. Try as she would, there was nothing she could do now. The layer of smoke was too thick to see, or even breathe inside of, and she had been unable to find out what was causing it. Rainbow Dash had to get back to Ponyville and warn everyone.

The town would need to be evacuated as quickly as possible. Their best chance of recovering the town would be to enlist the help of Cloudsdale's many weather teams, and try to find a solution to clear a large area of the forest with the weather being so close to the ground. Long enough for Rainbow Dash and her friends to find out what was causing this catastrophic weather, and put an end to it.

The cover of smoke below her had begun to ripple, and the rumbling noise began to grow in volume. The surface rippled with distress. Rainbow Dash wavered in flight as her body began to quake, unsure of how or what was causing her to.

Everything inside of Rainbow Dash screamed for her to fly away as quickly as she could.

And when she turned to watch the expanse of clouds erupt in a tempest of smoke, where a gargantuan titan erupted from the center and tore the sky apart with a massive bellow, and as she stared into a velvet, starlit face as large as her Cloudominium, with malicious eyes that clutched her heart, bound her wings and ripped at her hope…

…she wished she had.

Author's Notes:

Well, 4.5k words in a year and a half. Not too shabby.

I am sincerely sorry for nearly abandoning this story, to those of you who are still waiting for an update (or even still in the fandom since August of 2012). For the first time in a long time, I've felt a drive to really get back into the writing world of FIMFiction, and I don't think there's going to be any more problems getting chapters and other stories composed from here on out.

Please feel free to post any errors or criticisms below, as it's been a while since I've published anything, and I'd appreciate any help offered to get my writing chops back into shape!

Also, thank you to JoeyH3 for helping me edit this chapter, as well as all the ones before. You're a huge help, and a fantastic friend.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and expect the next one to appear in the near future!