Applejack ends up drenched at the reception of a royal wedding. To warm herself up as she dries, she indulges in some drinks while certain unicorn keeps her company.
It's the wedding of Princess Cadence and Shining Armor! Sometime into it, Applejack plays a little too rough with Rainbowdash and ends up taking a tumble right into a fountain. She won't let that ruin her night though, electing to turn to some hard cider to warm her right up as she waits to dry off. Of all ponies to keep her company as she drinks, it turns out to be Rarity. The two enjoy one another's company, until the conversation turns to Applejack's own romantic infatuations. What ensues is a discussion probably best left for when they're both sober again.
Not that daring adventures with even more dire stakes at play couldn't be fun. Not to also play down the fact that everyone had to essentially prepare two royal weddings in that entire time rather than just one. No doubt something like that could prove tiring or drive anypony up a wall with tension.
So by the time the reception of Shining Armor and Princess Cadence finally kicked off, inhibitions went a little looser as a collective sigh of relief let out. Rarity gave a very passionate fight for the bouquet throw, after which many a stallion would keep their distance in the night. Twilight had somehow pulled off an entire musical number without a hint of preparation. The resident party pony of the bunch had nearly started several political conflicts by completely disregarding social status for the sake of shooting her confetti cannon wherever she felt. Fluttershy wasn't seen outside the botanical garden much save for the dance all six of them saved for each other with the subsequent group photo.
Another notable event is how Applejack fell into the fountain after a small tipsy bout of rough-housing with Rainbowdash. Followed by the now-drenched pony to pull her in as well. A splashing showdown for the ages is what some would recount it as. However, the night was still young and both of them regretted just how cold it would make them for the rest of the night.
Most ponies danced and others mingled. Rainbowdash ended up drying herself off by performing some air tricks in the starry sky above. Her adversary in the fountain however found herself at the bar, the only dry piece of apparel being the hat on her head, relying on the alcohol to warm her up. Despite how her dress still stuck to her skin, making her hair stand on end and nearly shivering, Applejack couldn't help but smile. From the bar she could watch the entire party, spotting many eating her own products in awe of the flavor but best of all everyone looked so darn happy. A welcome sight as ever, but sweeter especially after everything they'd been through.
She took a sip of her hard cider. "APPLEJACK!!!" and nearly spat it out at the piercing shriek down the other end of the bar.
It was none other than Rarity, waving her down with a hoof in the air, before just deciding to make her way over. In the air suspended by blue magic was a glass of wine, something so vibrantly red it didn't quite look real.
"Heya Rares," she smiled at her friend. "You find your groom to be just yet?"
"Not yet, I'm taking a break from my search." Rarity's words came out slow like she was concentrating a little too hard on how to make the noises with her mouth. "I felt like I haven't seen you since you fell into the fountain and I'd be cross if I didn't at least spend some time with you tonight. Especially when you're so stunningly modeling my work, even if it's a little wet now."
Applejack chuckled while everything clicked in her head. Though tipsy herself, earlier the fountain cleared her up just a bit before she got back into it. Rarity on the other hand was already there, a blush apparent on her cheeks.
"Mighty sweet of you sugarcube." The unicorn hummed pleasantly as if to say 'Of course,' and took a sip of her wine before setting it on the bar's surface. "How many of those have you had?"
"This is only my second," she trailed off with a giggle. "That is of course if you don't count the shots I had with Pinkie..."
"And how long ago was that?" Applejack asked. She opened her mouth to answer then shut it promptly to think a moment further. "Maybe just before I got this new glass..."
Attention back on her glass she levitated it once again and brought it to her mouth, taking a longer sip eyes cast downward, looking into the deep red. Then those brilliant blue eyes connected with Applejack's and remained there as she rested her lips on the brim of the glass. Maybe the hard cider she drank was working because now Applejack felt warm in her cheeks too. The blue aura raised it once again to take another sip, still locked onto green eyes until a hoof landed upon her shoulder.
"Hold it," Applejack peered a little closer at her friend, unaware that Rarity stopped breathing as she did so. Raising the hoof, she brought it across and gently pushed the wine back to the bar top. "Have you drank any water yet?"
"No." Looking past her Applejack saw that the bartender was swarmed with a tide of partygoers at this exact moment.
"Well you can have some of mine then," she pushed along a glass of her own water to her. "Don't want you feeling all nasty in the mornin', or throwing up any of that stuff either.
"And I thought I was the element of generosity." They shared a laugh before Rarity uttered a small thank you and took a large gulp of water.
They sat together drinking for a while, eventually getting that second glass of water so they didn't drink off of only one. Applejack thought it was just the cider getting to her but Rarity almost seemed disappointed not to be sharing anymore. The disappointment faded quickly as though it were never there in the first place as those shots seemed to come into full swing. Soon enough Rarity sat behind either the wine or water making silly little comments on all the outfits of the guests around them.
Those colors could work really well together but it's a shame they couldn't figure out how.
Yes, that ensemble is no doubt complex and takes a master of the craft to achieve but you look closer and none of it makes sense!
White is always a bad choice to a wedding darling...
Oh, I wouldn't be caught dead in a hat like that!
The farmer was just happy enough to sit and laugh along with her. Sometimes they'd sit in silence, other times it seemed there was no end to Rarity. Regaling designs in her head, their inspirations, what colors perhaps they'd best work in. A question would be asked and Applejack tried her best to have some useful input but then Rarity would think of something else and go on for another few minutes. The earth pony wondered why she hadn't run off yet when there were many fetching stallions to catch her eye. At the same time, she was grateful because sure enough she was delving in a state where it was better to keep her here and stave off any potential embarrassment from her inebriation. Enough was evident by the fact that she practically had begun to lean on Applejack while hanging off the edge of her seat. Rarity didn't even care that her hours of washing, drying, and shaping her mane became what a sober Rarity would call ruined, resting it upon Applejack's slightly damp shoulder.
"You know what, Applejack?"
"Yes, sugarcube?"
"I have been talking your ear off for some time now." Before Applejack could protest she realized she'd just been smiling and humming along for some time now. "I want to hear from you, darling." "Well, what dya wanna hear then?"
"That shouldn't be up to me-" Rarity paused, tilting her head upward to look at her. "But if you insist on what I would like to hear..." She lifted herself away from Applejack's shoulder, sat firmly back on her seat, and took yet another sip of her dwindling wine. "Who was your first crush?"
Applejack waited for her to start giggling wildly again and tell her it was all some fib. But she just stared intently, for a moment she wondered if the unicorn was taking lessons from Fluttershy. Speaking of, she hadn't seen much of the particular pegasus that night. She shook her head as what Rarity was asking registered.
"This is a little outta nowhere, don't ya think Rares...?" She went for a sip of cider, forgetting she'd already finished the bottle a few minutes back. A few drops hit her mouth and for a second she considered getting another.
"As one of your best friends I have decided, no, discovered? Realized may be a better term... In short, I don't know anything of you romantically! Meanwhile, I have gone on and on about finding my perfect match and my own fairytale romance." It was true, several times the unicorn even included Applejack in her plots and ventures over the year. Meanwhile the farmer thought of other things first and foremost. A pony like her had little time for dates and the like between farming, spending time with her friends, and helping Granny around the house, so why even spare it a thought? But it wasn't like she never thought about it.
"Ya know, it's the funniest thing-" She nearly raised her hoof to call the bartender over for that next bottle only to decide against it at the last second. Instead, electing to drink some more water as it was getting hot, especially under Rarity's gaze. If it was anyone else maybe she would go on, to her, Applejack was tempted to tell a fib. She was a lousy liar, however. "Never mind..."
"Oh, darling, please do go on! You have me at the edge of my seat!" With that Rarity began to sway and Applejack reached to secure her in the stool again.
"It's embarrassing, I think I'd rather not say-'' Rarity put a hoof to her lips, shutting her right up.
"You fell into a fountain at the reception of a royal wedding. In front of not only the most important ponies in Canterlot but perhaps all of Equestria!" As though she had won the grandest and most tantalizing debate in all of time, she sat back with her hooves crossed and muzzle pointed smugly in the air. Applejack had to keep herself from laughing. "I think you are far past the point of embarrassment tonight!"
Rarity would consider it a social catastrophe. Anypony else would think the same no doubt. As long as those ponies' names weren't Applejack and Rainbowdash of course, who'd never let such a tumble ruin their night.
Sitting back in her seat, she whistled low, looking from rarity to her glass of water and back and forth and back and forth. There was the possibility that Rarity wouldn't remember if she gave her the honest answer. Not that she was dangerously or near blackout drunk, but she was indeed drunk. Another big gulp of water, as if it would magically dispel the tipsy she also felt, Applejack avoided eye contact but went on.
"Fine, I'll tell ya. Remember how I left for Manehattan way back when-" GASP
"You fell in love in the city! Oh, how romantic!" She giggled wildly for a second before stopping herself, blue eyes larger and sadder than ever before. "And you had to depart, the orchard calling to you while the city demanded they stay behind, how tragic!" Applejack smirked back at her wholly unamused. "What? I am only expressing my sympathies."
"That ain't how it went and I'm fairly certain I'm the one telling my story." Rarity sunk into her stool, hiding behind her glass of water while muttering a small apology. "So, I came back to Ponyville after living with Auntie and Uncle Orange for a bit. And all of a sudden you became so interested in me?"
"Yes?"
"I ended up telling you squat about stuff I didn't even know, because for the first time in all my time in knowing you it was like I had something worth keeping you around me." She'd told her all this before back when they were fillies when she first had come clean about the the fibs. Not in such emotionally mature language as she could now, but in essence it was similar. "Well, I'm pretty sure looking back on it, that an even bigger part of it was me crushing on you. Wanted to keep you interested in me." Pausing to adjust the hat on her head, she scrunched her eyes closed. "And yeah that went on for some time after." Applejack chose to omit that it went on into her teenage years too, but she didn't have to mention that part.
After a sip of wine, a moment of silence and an intense side-eye. "Huh."
"Whaddya mean, huh?"
"I just don't see why that would be embarrassing darling." It almost frustrated Applejack just how mellow of a reaction it was. Frustrating her even further because she couldn't place why she was getting frustrated in the first place. "Look at me, I'm gorgeous. and no doubt I was serving looks back then too. It's only natural for anypony to become infatuated with me." That's when Applejack got the bright idea of turning it back onto Rarity, as some sort of payback.
"Yeah? Well, I'm remembering why I stopped crushing on you too." In reality, there came a point where she decided to just live with the fact that a pony as beautiful as Rarity wouldn't ever see much in her or even be into mares with how much she fawned over stallions. But this moment came with a wonderful opportunity to tease. Rarity rose a single brow towards her. "Yeah, I knew that someday I'd have to watch over my would-be crush as she got mighty drunk and absolutely full of herself like a total brat."
Rarity gave her a shove as Applejack laughed out hearty and full. The laugh was much more infectious than she anticipated though, returning it with her giggles of her own and the two of them throwing back silly insults towards one another. Not getting quite to the extent that she'd get with Rainbowdash, but Applejack shoved back too, making sure she didn't quite topple her over.
The party got nowhere near rowdy, it wasn't in the nature of such an event held in Canterlot. Still, Ponies spun in circles on dance floors just further away. Laughter hung around like an ever-present cloud in the space. At some point, a fireworks show had begun and ponies all around clapped with interspersed ooohs and ahhhs. It was a delightful air, as was deserved after such an ordeal with the first wedding.
The two ponies at the bar settled down from their mini bout. Applejack gently smiled down at Rarity as she rested her head on the bar with a sigh. For some reason, she kept wanting to hear her voice, as slurred and unfocused as it became as the unicorn was caught in her state of inebriation.
"I mean, if it makes you feel any better I also had a crush on you once upon a time." What.
"What?" Applejack asked, incredulous.
"What?" Rarity repeated, unfazed.
It made no sense for Applejack to start to feel the blood pumping in her ears, heart ready to burst from her chest. No sense for Rarity to have been blushing even harder than before. Or at least, it looked like she was.
"Rares, dya mind repeating what you just said?"
"What?" Then she laughed with a snort. "I'm just pulling your leg, darling don't fret!" Finally, she sat back up and levitated her glass before her face, taking an extra moment to clear her throat. "I said: I also had a crush on you once upon a time."
Ponies around them began to move in slow motion. The surrounding ambience comes to a quiet. Like it was just the two of them in all of Canterlot, no, the whole wide world.
"How long ago is once upon a time?"
"Oh, you know...." Rarity trailed off muttering a single word into the glass.
"Sugarcube," something felt different about the way she used the endearing term. A catch-all before for all of her closest friends, but not quite appropriate anymore."I didn't catch that..."
"Now." She quickly finished the contents of her glass. "Once upon a time is now."
Now, the word echoed in the other pony's head, as her world began to sway. All over again she was just a teenage filly, following Rarity around with nothing with the shyest of looks and the emptiest of minds. All that time just wishing she could muster whatever it was she needed to finally do something about it. All at once remembering the hopelessness she'd felt as Rarity went on crushing on one colt to the next, moving on with her life to bigger and better things than just some farmer earth pony too scared to make a move.
Then Applejack imagined what it would be like to go up to the smaller version of herself, look her in the eyes, and tell her that someday Rarity might just like her back. She imagined the filly she was to brighten up like the stars above and leap in joy, nothing but the biggest smiles plastered on her face. It felt good, she decided, almost pitying that her younger self never got that. Shifting her mind back to the present, to a bar stool as her dress finally seemed to dry, Rarity hiding behind an empty glass of wine, either of them redder than a tomato, that happiness didn't exactly fade away. Now Applejack smiled too, and she realized she was happy too while being wholly unable to distinguish why.
Rarity levitated the glass a little further up so that she looked through it directly at Applejack. It made her face look magnified and distorted like one of those mirrors you'd find at the fair, raising up and down slightly as Rarity began to giggle softly.
"This makes your face look so adorably tiny, you know..." Rarity kept giggling through a wide smile while hooking a hoof onto the bar for support. Applejack remembered that the unicorn was drunk.
"Maybe we should get you some more water before you say anything else you don't mean, Sugarcube..." The blue aura surrounding the glass dissipated and the glass plummeted straight to the floor. Applejack tried her best to catch it, but her reflexes had taken a toll by then, extending a hoof to at least halt the fall just a little only far after the thing crashed into a million little pieces. "Darn it!" No doubt everyone around was staring by now.
"I am not a liar Applejack, and I am quite orfen-" From above Rarity huffed, "Offoned- oreded" She groaned in frustration and pulled Applejack up with a hoof at either side of her head. Now face to face she tried again; "Offrennsed!"
"Offended."
"Yes, that!" Those blue eyes could pierce through a mountain as they gazed directly into Applejack. If anything about this evening or this very interaction weren't so intoxicating, she would've sworn those blues made their way to her muzzle more than once. "You should know by now that I mean what I say and if I didn't, mean what I say, then I wouldn't say it at all. In the first place," The words only confused Applejack just a bit further. "Just stay there looking handsome, nod, and hear me out."
Handsome reverberated in every notch in her spine. It left Rarity's mouth just so naturally. If just a single word could make a mare melt, then Applejack would be a puddle on the ground by then.
"Uhm, Rares...?"
"SHHH!"
"But-"
"BUHH bu bu buh buh buh!" Rarity gave a zipped lip motion with her hoof before brushing aside a strand of golden hair off of Applejack's face. "Why make a fuss out of stallions when I could fuss over you? Is that the question at the center of this?" Applejack opened her mouth until those eyes pierced her once again, so she simply shrugged her shoulders and shook her head with unease. "I'll give you an answer anyway, darling. You see, I care about you, a lot. A lot. As nice as they are, these stallions aren't such a good friend as you or any of the girls are to me. It's not as scary to disappoint them as it would be to disappoint you." It took a bit longer than a while to get there but she did, almost looking proud of herself for being able to manage all those words on top of upholding the dramatic flair that accompanied her speech. A thought visibly crossed her mind with a small gasp and she went on. "Also I have just discovered you are into mares, that is also a big part of it too..."
"Really?" Applejack couldn't help it. "I thought that much was like, the most obvious thing about me."
"That is not the point of all this!"
Applejack sighed, a hiccup escaping her, putting a hoof on Rarity's shoulder. "Look, Rares, it's late and probably the alcohol talking at this point. Maybe we should get you back to your room and into bed soon."
"Then you can ask me when I'm sober and I'll tell you again when I'm sober." Rarity asserted as she gently let her head rest on the bar again. "Applejack, darling, do you feel the same way? Not then, but now?"
"I-!" Applejack started only to be met with a hiccup and something stirring in her chest. Buzzing even, all in this large swirling that tickled her from the inside out without ever bringing her to erupt in laughter. Then looking back at Rarity, it was like she didn't know where she was anymore. "I think you'll need to ask me when I'm sober too."
"So we'll talk again sober, promise?" Rarity practically yawned out the last word, and after what felt like forever, she got her answer.
"I promise." Applejack slipped down from her stool, carefully sidestepping the broken glass on the ground and finding herself in front of Rarity. "Wanna head out?" silently she nodded and Applejack helped her down. "You can hold on for balance if you need it."
A lover of the dramatic Rarity woke up in utter agony, partly convinced she was dying. The drapes were open, washing the room in focused bright beams, too bright. Air entered her lungs as though it sucked every ounce of moisture away from her insides, far too dry. A pulsing emanated from the back of her skull and only felt worse as the world around her teetered and tottered like a seesaw. Rarity thought back to all she drank that night with her eyes shut tightly.
Some wine couldn't have been enough to send her into this state. Then came the memories of those shots with Pinkie, she couldn't remember the exact number, but still Rarity decided this was a wildly unjust, cruel punishment nonetheless. With a groan, she vowed to never drink so much again, a vow she'd made and broken in the past several times by now.
By this point, she realized her eyelids were not enough to block the evil and harmful rays of sunlight. She reached beside her for a moment for another pillow, failing miserably to even get her hoof around it. Using magic instead, she lifted the thing and placed it gently atop her head. It felt weird and unlike a pillow, but it worked keeping out the light well enough. For whatever it was worth, there was a pleasant light and fruity aroma to the thing that she took in as she tried remembering whatever else she could.
There was Applejack, they'd sat together at the bar for a while. Getting into the room was however lost on her, embarrassment welled up within as she prayed that Sweetie Belle didn't catch her older sister in such a state.
Bolting right up and almost immediately wincing at the pain it brought, Rarity looked to the smaller bed in the room only to find that it was empty. Unmade from the morning before just as her little sister had left it. Sweetie Belle spent most of her time last night with the other girls and Spike and judging by the time that Rarity had begun drinking, it wouldn't be too long from then that they should've been put to bed. Rarity squinted around the room, finding nothing, her eyes stopping at the space next to her in bed at what she thought was the light-shielding pillow. A brown stetson. With fruity familiarty of the aroma being so clearly apples now…
The door creaked open.
In came in a tray on wheels pushed inside by none other than-
With green eyes open and bright she called out; "G'morn-" Rarity winced as her ears stung, Applejack cringed a bit, now whispering. "Sorry, I'll keep it lower, g'morning." The unicorn grumbled something that would sound like a thank you, perhaps in a different language. "The others went out for breakfast, so I thought I'd get you something fixed up by the castle staff."
In silence Rarity watched through squinted eyes as Applejack wheeled the cart further into the room, the covered tray itself far too large for a single pony. She smiled, not imagining a better pony to share breakfast with. Besides of course…
She pointed her hoof vaguely at the empty bed in the room. "Applejack darling, where's-"
"The girls are also out at breakfast, Twilight said she'd watch em as we stayed back." Seeing now that Rarity could barely keep her eyes open at that point. With a small Oh, she rushed off to the windows and closed the blinds. It didn't block all of the light, but it was definitely better than before.
"You don't have to do all this for me, darling." Rarity reminded, whilst also reveling in the personal treatment. Like a princess, she thought, her dashing knight coming to save her in the castle from the dreadful beast that was her hangover. She started to giggle at the thought, but another pulse of pain sprang about.
"Yeah, but I wanted to." Applejack made her way back, getting the tray closer to where Rarity sat, and with a tad of a dramatic flair, took the lid off the tray with her mouth.
Underneath a full breakfast for two, every dish doubled. French toast with some whipped cream and an extremely light dusting of cinnamon, several perfectly placed blueberries, and slices of strawberries serving as a garnish. To the side some strips of bacon with hash browns fried to a golden crisp. Finally, what looked like yogurt with a surface of oats and poppy seeds. A glass of apple juice as suspected for the farmer and a freshly brewed cup of black tea with a dash of vanilla and three sprigs of mint floating at the top, her favorite. Rarity looked back to Applejack with nothing but pure adoration, if this cart weren't between them, there would be little to stop her from leaning in and kissing her.
Kissing her. She would've sighed into the thought as she looked upon the other mare. But at the same time, Rarity felt like something was off with her. The hat.
"Your hat..." Rarity started, using both hoofs to produce it before her.
"Oh shoot, fell off in my sleep. " As if all that was just something normal to say, Applejack uses her mouth to take it by the rim and toss it perfectly atop her head, a practiced move. "I usually remember to take it off for bed, sorry I left it there." She starts to eat her share of the meal with an incredibly casual air.
It took a moment, maybe even several minutes, for Rarity to join along in breakfast. Just the tea, which was as perfectly sweet as she preferred, was all she could bear to stomach in her state. The warm liquid sent a much-needed soothing wave all down her spine.
"So, you were in here last night...?"
After swallowing a bite of hash. "Well, yeah." Her eyes met with Rarity's. "Don't you remember?"
There was plenty Rarity could call back from the reception but there became a point where it all blurred leaving behind smaller bits and pieces of coherent memory. Then came a point where there was just nothing left. She remembered joining Applejack at the bar, resting upon her friend as the alcohol made it harder to sit upright, totally taking the moment to her advantage. Both of them redder than Applebloom's mane, laughing and trying to keep up with their glasses of water. Which she clearly did not. How she left the bar and got back to her guest room in the castle was entirely lost.
"What happened last night, Darling?" Just with that question, the air in the room shifted. Heavy and almost cold.
Applejack's shoulders sagged a tad. "Nothing much worth remembering. We was just being stupid." She chuckled most unlike herself. Laughing more to fill the air than just for the sake of it. "Just making fun of the other ponies' outfits and stuff like you usually do, but oh shucks you were completely out of it." Smiling and looking a bit more like herself she continued eating her breakfast again, talking in between bites. "The girls had taken over my room for a little slumber party, and I had helped you settle in, but at that point, I was so pooped I laid down and didn't get back up until morning." Stopping to break eye contact with Rarity. "Sorry if that wasn't alright, or anything like that."
"Why wouldn't it be alright? We've slept in the same bed before." Using her magic she dug into the french toast, probably the best she'd ever tasted in all her life. Her stomach didn't agree as much, the single bite struggling to stay down. She frowned, being unable to remember sharing a bed with Applejack again and too nauseous to even eat. Hopefully, it would taste just as good cold.
"Because you were drunk?" She answered uneasily.
"As far as I'm concerned that makes no difference, Darling." Applejack's cheeks brighten with a hint of red, immediately she goes for her juice. Rarity eyed her, leaning a little over the bed. "Besides, if it were an issue, you've surely made up for it by making sure I got back safe and getting me breakfast in bed."
"I guess you're right..." With that she started to eat again, the hash and bacon gone in an instant.
"Yes, I am. Applejack?" Rarity hoped that by using her name, she'd finally look at her again.
And did it work? "Yes?" Not in the slightest.
Rarity cleared her throat. "I can't tell you how grateful I am for all this, perhaps when we're back in Ponyville I'll treat you to a date." Though she made a good show of her attention being on the meal, Applejack's ear twitched up at that word. "How does that sound?"
"Sounds nice."
"Wonderful, because I believe Fluttershy had to cancel our spa meeting this week and I know the nicest little restaurant in the next town over that I have been dying to try out. Does Wednesday work for you, darling?"
"Maybe..." She drew the word out, Rarity waited for her to continue. "Maybe not, I dunno. It depends." A moment.
Taking that time to return to her tea, which was, unfortunately, the only thing she was able to stomach at the moment. Water would be a good idea as well, but the thought of even getting up for it made her dizzy and would no doubt be quite the show to any witness. Applejack would get it for her if she asked, always doing things for somepony else as she did. But right now, for Rarity, it felt different. Things between them were rarely awkward like this, especially not when they may as well have been closer than anypony else in their main circle.
The room became eerily quiet, enough so that Rarity could make out the blood pumping in her ears. All other noises came from Applejack as she ate. Which was unnerving to the unicorn, to say the least. A good meal was always enough to get her friend to hoot and holler as she ate. Never one to just let praises go unsung. But not a peep left her. The very same cooks to diligently and masterfully serve both Luna and Celestia's every meal, as well as their guests, and Applejack couldn't even spare it a delighted hum. It was uncanny, most unlike her dearest friend. There had to be more to this.
Rarity thought in the silence even as it pained to use her brain this hard right now. All at once trying to remember more from last night and pinpoint little things she'd noticed of her friend this morning. Resting against her at the bar, the blush that had not even begun to fade from Applejack's cheeks, how delightfully bright her laugh was after taking a sip of cider, the awkwardness over sharing the bed, asking who her first crush was. Unable to remember the answer and its ensuing conversation, Rarity could only come to one conclusion.
"You're not telling me something!" She blurted out, too loud. Applejack winced.
"What?"
"You've been acting weird since I said I couldn't recall some of what happened last night." Planting a hoof at either side of the tray, she peered down at Applejack as much as her aching eyelids would allow. "Something happened last night, I believe it's only right that you tell me."
"Rarity the tray-"
"And you haven't been using your terms of endearment for me either!"
"Well maybe I'm a little wonky after last night too," a lie, "and this raising your voice ain't helping one bit."
"Despite that you go out of your way and let our friends and your sister go on without you, just to take care of me."
"Anypony else would've done the same."
"Yet you're the only pony I see here now."
"Look, I already told you, we was being stupid. There's nothing more to it."
"That could mean-!" From below her the tray and the entire cart beneath it slipped away, and her body began to drop as everything else fell.
Metal crashed onto the hard floor, several plates shattered, it was utter torture unto her ears. But Rarity remained unharmed. Her whole being held up by Applejack's front legs, one would think they weren't as strong and sturdy as the hinds that she used for bucking trees, Rarity knew fully well now that they were plenty strong. Gently she was placed back into the bed, staring up helplessly as Applejacks scanned her all over. Their eyes met, their faces all too close, It would be so easy to surge forward and close the distance.
Applejack's brows furrowed and she stepped back, turning her attention to the mess that Rarity made. "Darnit..." Without another word or look towards Rarity, she started for the door.
"Where are you going?" Rarity called out to her.
"Gonna get somepony to help clean this all up." She grumbled back.
"But what about me?" It was whiny and dramatic, but she was past the point of caring all that much. In fact, she cared so little that she threw caution to the wind and began doing the unthinkable. Getting out of bed with a hangover. "I was talking to you, and I am not finished!"
"Well, I'm sorry, but I am."
"We're friends, aren't we?" A stupid question only to get a rise out of Applejack, Rarity would probably curse herself later for it, but it did get her to stop. This was especially good as every step Rarity took was a battle in and of itself. "This all is clearly bothering you very much, but I can't even remember what happened. I don't know if it was something I did or anything!" Desperation lined her voice, she started to feel like vomiting and the very thought of it was unbearable. Far too gross for her. "What is so terrible that you can't tell me?"
"I feel guilty!" With a stomp of her hoof, she turned back to Rarity. "I should've known better than to just let you keep talking bout sensitive stuff while you were in no mind to do so. Should've known better not to make that promise. And I dunno! I woke up wishing that things were different between us over something that might not even be anything in the first place!" She took a hoof and rubbed her forehead. "And you're sat there treating me like I deserve something for that."
"Applejack, darling, what exactly happened?"
"You told me that you liked me, more than just friends. The way you do with stallions." Applejack sighed, shifting her hoof on the floor as though it would dig its way downward. She kept saying things, but it wasn't like Rarity could make any more of it out.
I did it, I actually did it! To say she was ecstatic was to make the understatement of the century. Rarity never knew if she'd ever muster up the courage to tell her and to think that all she needed was to attempt to out-drink Pinkie Pie. Finally, she didn't have to hide it any longer. At the same time, she still didn't remember any of it. In no state to make sure the moment was as perfect and as she had fantasized in the past.
Why couldn't she have held her tongue for an unhindered mind? It wasn't fair, that should've been her moment. She must've not done it right then either if Applejack truly thought it was like her other crushes. Applejack was so much more than that, the strongest and most reliable pony she'd ever met, her closest friend, a beauty unlike her own, but captivating and handsome still. Perhaps that's why Applejack was so upset, hopefully, the second confession could make up for the first. Her mind raced a million miles a minute as she tried to wrap her head around how to fix it before letting her mouth take the reins.
"I do not like you the same way I do other stallions, or mares for that matter..."
"Exactly, it was just the alcohol talking!" The earth pony stood damn near crazed, in some strange, horrid relief. Rarity stumbled backward, leaning against the bed's frame.
"Is that all you wanted it to be?" The unicorn could command and dazzle a room without any ounce of effort. In this state, with everything said, she shrunk into herself becoming smaller than she'd ever felt before. Now something besides her head began to ache. "Drunken words that meant nothing?" Applejack grew confused.
"I think so...?" She sighed with frustration. "We're friends, I- we aren't supposed to think this way. So, hearing you say that is supposed to make me feel better-" She stopped herself with words failing to come out of her mouth. "The weird thing's that I just feel even worse now. It doesn't make any sense!" Rarity hissed in pain as Applejack got louder, who now felt even guiltier than before.
"Applejack. Stop talking." And like that, the farmer stood at attention, as though she were captain of the Canterlot guard in the presence of a princess. "Lend me your ears before you go on assuming anything else. I do not like you the same way I do anypony else." Her voice shook as she repeated her sentiment despite how sternly she wished it were. "There is no way under the sun that I could possibly feel the way I do for you for anypony other than you." Applejack looked as though she'd seen a ghost.
"Oh." She bit her bottom lip and almost forgot how to breathe. "So, you meant it?" Rarity remained unmoving; her gaze intensely focused on Applejack. "Oh dear Celestia, you meant it." The air had shifted now, thicker as it entered into her nostrils, even tasting different too.
"Of course I meant it! It would be cruel of me to be ingenuine of something as important to me to somepony so dear. Even drunk, I should know better." She said, struggling now to get the words to leave her mouth as a knot appeared in her throat to give company to the nausea. Eyes feeling heavy too as their stinging became worse. "To put it simply, I adore you. And how could I not? You've gone above and beyond for me in more ways than I can count, helped me to be a better sister, and though we don't always understand one another or see eye to eye-"
"Rarity-" Applejack started as she began to approach, only to be cut off.
"It doesn't drive you off. You stay, and you try." Her name is repeated once more but she won't get interrupted again. "We hold in common more than I would've ever thought before we became friends again. It makes confiding in you seem like the most natural thing in the world, I've wanted nothing more than to be the same thing for you."
"Rares..."
"So why is it you've treated me so coldly for this? Is it so terrible for me to feel this way towards you? Is it because you don't even like mares in the first place?!"
Right as Rarity revved up for another question Applejack was much closer by now. "Sugarcube." The unicorn froze in place as she looked on with a frown. "You're crying..."
Rarity looked down, starting to feel the moisture on her face as she lifted a hoof to wipe at her chin. Not even noticing she left, Applejack suddenly appeared beside her after a moment of rushing off with some handkerchief around her hoof. When she brought the thing up to Rarity's face, she was almost taken aback by how gently the tears were swept away. The look on Applejack's face focused so intensely while still soft.
"I'm sorry, Sugarcube," Applejack whispered. "Being frustrated gives me no right to act that way, especially not to you..." She chuckles, a sound that was probably the last thing Rarity expected out of her. "Sorry for laughing, but I thought I'd remind you that I am into mares. I didn't realize you didn't know till last night."
Through sniffing and laughing. "Thanks for the confirmation I suppose." Then a wince. "Could you please help me into bed I don't think I can stand for much longer."
Applejack muttered a small 'Of course' and moved closer till she leaned right up on her. Anypony else and Rarity would fuss about letting all her weight fall upon them, but it was almost like second nature when Applejack was in the picture. She even closed her eyes, completely trusting the earth pony would get her back into bed.
"Can I tell you something about Rares?" She nodded against her neck in response. "I woke up this morning and I don't think I'd ever been happier. The sun was shining so softly, so peaceful, and I didn't even have a hangover." Lucky bastard, Rarity thought as she was gently lifted and lowered onto the bed. "Blessing in its own right, but then I looked beside me and there, sleeping as though she was a princess under some sleeping spell like the fairytales, was the most beautiful mare in all of Equestria."
"That's a given," Rarity mumbled, otherwise she'd attempt to throw the comment back in the direction of Applejack. Hiding also how it made her heart soar to hear her say that.
She laughed at that. "Brat." Perhaps Rarity would have risen in protest, but then her cheeks ran hot, so she shifted further across the bed and turned away. Only to hear some sheets rustling behind her and the bed beginning to dip under a new weight. "I started thinking that I never did quite get over that first crush..."
"The one I asked you of last night?"
The bed dipped again. "Do you remember what it was?"
"...It was me, wasn't it?"
"Eyup… When I woke up," Rarity turned over to face her, confirming now that Applejack had joined her on the other side of the bed. However she wasn't facing her, her head was pointed directly upwards to the canopy above the bed. "Right then and there it felt like things were different now, a different that I liked too. But I got scared, so I got up, met with the others, and got you breakfast." Which now lay pathetically splattered across the floor. "I kept thinking you'd wake up and turn out not to mean any of what you said last night. Then all the other guilt came in and took over..."
"Entirely unforgivable." Rarity said, not at all serious sounding. "To rid me the pleasure of waking up next to an angel?" Now Applejack was blushing too.
"To let you sleep and get you a meal." She knew better than to deny a compliment from her.
"A meal that is currently in ruin on the ground."
"You did that all by yourself." Seeing that comment made her reel in mock offense, Applejack pushed a little further, turning her head to face her. "I didn't tell you to get on top of a rolling cart while you could barely stand."
For only a second Rarity considered shoving her off the bed before realizing that the act was far beyond even what sober legs could accomplish. "I recall that was only because you were acting weird, please do try a little harder to keep up, Darling."
They stared one another down. Blue eyes not as intense as the green for her eyelids still did not feel like opening up all the way. Something Applejack used to her advantage as she served back big and silly wide eyes. On top of it all, a smirk was small and stupid on her lips. Of which Rarity found it harder and harder not to look down at especially being so close. In a bed. Together. Celestia help her.
Rescue came in the form of a hearty laugh from her own lungs of all places. It dissipated the air of playful challenge from their gaze and the banter, easing them down enough so that Rarity felt like she'd sunk into the bed a couple more inches. The pillow her head rested on coming up slightly and nearly obscuring her view.
And what a view it was. Applejack laughed with her eyes closed, and it was always something real, straight from her core. Like the wind blowing through a boundless meadow, with power to push, but gently enough to not strip warmth away and across the land. It stayed within Rarity, threatening to lift her upwards and closer to its source even as the volume prodded a little too much into her eardrums. It came to a point where she no longer laughed alongside her. Instead watching on as Applejack eased into catching her breath. A sigh came at the tail end of it as she finally sank too. When she opened her eyes again, the green was as enchanting as ever though not as bright as a frown appeared.
Speaking now softer than ever before; "I'm real sorry Rares..." She rolled over, now completely facing Rarity.
"It's okay, we're past it now." Her words didn't help much in dispelling the worry in Applejack's face.
"Are you sure?"
"Positive." Rarity scooted a little closer, hoping to accentuate herself with the action. It seemed to work, at least a little. "Are you still scared, darling?"
"Not so much anymore, at least I don't think so. What about you, still scared too?"
"How did you know?"
"You told me-"
"Last night." They said in unison.
Just a chuckle was all they shared before returning to silence. An odd limbo of awkwardness and pure blissful comfort was where they lay suspended. She wondered how long she could get away without answering the question. Silently praising Celestia as Applejack opened her mouth.
"Rares." A hum. "Does that mean you wouldn't wanna be something?"
And then a smile. "Something as in...?"
"You know what something means!" Applejack scoffed; voice still low. Then her eyes widened, and she leaned back. "Is this okay?" She looked between Rarity and down at herself and back at Rarity again.
"Hmm..." There were several things that Rarity could imagine to properly suit herself in this predicament. All of them being self-indulgent and a good portion inappropriate for the occasion. But this would do. Especially if Applejack kept using that voice. "This is fine, I think this conversation best calls for such relaxed manners. Too awkward if we remained standing, too distant and restrained while sitting. Laying down is good enough. Goodness knows it's doing my head wonders..." She tilted her head up at the earth pony who looked unamused. Rarity was stalling and she caught her red-hoofed. "I do not believe I am averse to...something."
"And what about that stuff about being scared?" Applejack's features softened yet still tensed up and leaned back. Too far.
"That depends, I suppose."
"Depends on what, Sugarcube?"
"It depends on this." As firmly as she could manage Rarity sat up and looked down at her. "We're friends, yes?" Applejack nods. "Close ones at that?" Nod. "And we'll always be friends?" Nod. "No matter what."
Without hesitation, an answer. "No matter what, Rares."
"It's settled then." Rarity clears her throat, reaching up to fix her hair a tad. Wishing she had a mirror, though hungover she deserved still to look her best at any time possible, especially in a moment like now. When finally satisfied she hovered over her 'Friend,' and took in the very amusing sight of a flustered Applejack below. "I don't want to be something, Darling. I want to be your everything."
Applejack lit up bright and warm, enough to rival the most golden of sunrises. Gold never quite lent itself to her, suited best for the earthier tones as cliche as that may have been. She preferred them too after all, why muck up such a precious thing? Try as though Rarity might convince her otherwise to indulge in such luxurious color and material, it never worked out. It felt stupid now, an effort worth little to begin with, for now, Rarity could see the truth. Laying below her was something so precious that gold nor all the gems and diamonds or luxury in the world couldn't compare.
"I-I want that too! Ha!" Rarity must've turned into an alicorn, feeling now like there wasn't much stopping her from taking off in flight and gliding high above the clouds. "I ain't dreaming, am I?" Applejack asked, breathless.
"It can't be, not with a hangover like this..." She assured.
At that, her eyes widened. "Do you need anything? Water? Food-"
"I really wish I hadn't ruined our breakfast... It can wait however, and I'll get water soon. If anything, I feel a little better than when I woke up. But I don't want to even think about leaving this bed right now." She told no lie, but the bigger matter of importance to the unicorn was making sure Applejack stayed right by her side for as long as she could. Still, the earth pony lay tense, face creased somewhat in concern, lips pursed too. "There is something you can do for me, Darling. I know it would just make me feel bounds better."
"Shoot." The pony above her intently watched her mouth form the words. "Whatever it is, consider it done." Then the eyes came back up, locking their gaze together.
"Kiss me then."
Not another word of confirmation. Not another gaze. Not another breath. Not even a single second was spared when Applejack surged forward and kissed her like that was exactly what she was built to do. Rarity returned it with a similar intensity as she was pulled down so that they melted into one another. Her lips were softer than what she could've ever anticipated, tasting somewhat like the breakfast she was unable to eat herself, and oh so warm. Something she quickly decided she could, and would, get used to.
But ponies they were, and ponies needed air. Smiling at one another once apart, the unicorn comes down to nestle herself upon her beloved. Settled down into a cuddle, nothing between them now, catching their breath, how perfectly their bodies connected, it was nothing short of perfect. It would be another minute until either of them were ready to speak again.
"Maybe we should drink together more often, huh?"
Rarity laughed, the sound transforming slowly into a groan. "Darling, don't ever let me drink that much again." Applejack laughed too.
