The fall was consistently the hardest time for work at Sweet Apple Acres. Planting season was hard but harvest was harder and it often left Apple Jack worn to the point of exhaustion. She was no wimp when it came to work but she could feel herself age during harvest. On this particular day, her hooves were on fire and her head was beginning to spin but she was not yet half done with her work for the day. As stubborn as she was determined, she pushed through. She noticed a familiar rainbow paint the sky for a moment as she worked. And then it passed again. And again.
“Rainbow!” She called out above her. The skies were clear this particular day so it was not weather work that the pegasus pony was doing. The rainbow trail stopped short in the sky and far above the head of Apple Jack floated Rainbow Dash.
“What up?” Called Rainbow Dash.
“Come on down here, Rainbow! I dun need ta be screamin' to ya.” Obediently, the winged pony set down next to the Earth pony.
“You need something, AJ?”
“What'r ya doin' up there? You musta passed by a dozen times.” Rainbow Dash looked away in obviously feigned disinterest. Apple Jack couldn't be sure but she thought she caught a glimpse of blush on the blue cheek.
“Oh, you know. Just scouting out a prime space to snooze. And, ya know...admiring the view.” Rainbow Dash glanced sideways with a smug little grin. Apple Jack was clueless.
“Sweet Apple Acres sure is somethin' ta see this time'a year isn't it?” AJ didn't catch it, but Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes with a light smile.
“Sure. It really is nice around here.”
“Sure is.” Rainbow Dash barely hid a little chuckle.
“What's so darn funny, Rainbow? Ya just agreed that the farm is pretty why're you gittin' all funny?”
“I wasn't really talking about the farm AJ.” Rainbow Dash teased with a huge grin as she nudged her forehead with her hoof and took off into the sky. From her spot above the farm, she called back down to Apple Jack.
“I mean, don't get me wrong, the farm is great and the apples are totally boss but there's things way prettier than the Red Delicious on this farm!” And with that, a rainbow trail followed the speeding form into the distance. Still confused and mildly stunned, Apple Jack stared at where Rainbow Dash had been in the sky.
“That filly is the darn strangest.” She shook her head and returned to the harvest. Oddly, her head felt better.
“The darn strangest.” She mused as she bucked a tree of Galas.
Several days passed and the harvest was going more smoothly. Out in the east field, Apple Jack was making good time. At the rate she was going, she would be done ahead of schedule and could spend the remainder of the day with her friends. As she moved a bucket in place to collect the apples, she noticed something strange.
Hidden behind the buckets was not an apple, but a plum. Confused, she investigated. Beyond the plum a few paces she found a pear. A few more paces and a some cherries. Apple Jack got a smaller bucket and started to place the fruit in it as she followed the strange trail. Along the trail, she found strawberries, blueberries, almonds, daisies, daffodils and some sweetgrass. At the end, she found an orange and a kiwi which was very peculiar being that they didn't grow in this part of Equestria. At the end of the treasure hunt, she found a Fuji apple and a note. Sweet Apple Acres didn't grow Fuji apples, but they were Apple Jack's secret favorite.
'I thought maybe I could give you a little variety. It is the spice of life, after all.' The note was not signed but the penmanship looked familiar. Positively baffled, Apple Jack sat and had a lunch of her treasures. She thought that she had heard rustling in the tree that shaded her but ignored it. The rustling stopped, but Apple Jack could have sworn she saw a familiar rainbow trail at the same moment.
Later in the day, when Apple Jack joined her friends for some well deserved leisure time, she curiously queried Rainbow dash.
“Dash, ya weren't at Sweet Apple Acres again today were ya?”
“I had some weather stuff to take care of up there so maybe I flew over at some point.”
“Ah. Well alright.” The answer only baffled Apple Jack further. As she scrunched her face pondering, Rainbow Dash leaned over to her while the other girls chatted.
“Hey relax, Miz Fiji, you look like your brain's about to explode.” Apple Jack shot to attention and stared straight at Rainbow Dash who was looking incredibly casual. And then, as if to confuse her further, Rainbow glanced sideways with a sly grin. Apple Jack tried to concentrate on the conversation but her mind couldn't get over Rainbow Dash.
Apple Jack had a dream that night; the sort of dream that she had never expected. There was a lot of nuzzling of noses and cuddling of bodies. And an embracing set of wings. And somehow she was flying. Or maybe she was being held to someone else who was flying. She could not for the life of her see the other pony. As she sighed in comfort finally giving into the feelings of the dream, she saw the color of the mane that ran over her neck. Or rather the colors. A full rainbow of them.
Apple Jack had jolted awake and found her heart pounding against her chest. A few choice words came to her mind after a dream like that. One of the most troubling was fillyfooler. She groaned as she fell back against her bed.
Apple Jack found herself carelessly working after a night of sleeplessness. Her bucks were halfhearted and her aim was awful. She didn't even notice the rainbow trail streaking the sky above her. She also didn't notice as a certain pegasus pony landed next to her. When she did notice Rainbow Dash, Apple Jack startled and knocked over a whole bucket of Galas.
“Geez AJ, what's up with you today? You're making a mess. You sick?
“I suppose ya could say that.”
“Well then go rest or something!” Rainbow Dash helped pick up the toppled apples after she helped pick up the fallen Earth Pony. Apple Jack groaned and put a hoof to her forehead.
“AJ?” Apple Jack looked a little angry as she looked up at the other pony.
“Just what are ya tryin' to pull, Rainbow?”
“What are you talking about?”
“First I find ya stalkin' my farm and I think you called ma farm unattractive. Then I think ya left me a lunch trail. Then ya seem to know my favorite apple even though nobody knows that one 'cept Big Mac.”
“Why is that a secret anyway? It's not like it's a big deal or anything.”
“It just is! Don'cha have things that you just like to keep secret?”
“You could say that, but I think I'm pretty bad at keeping it a secret.” Rainbow Dash snickered and quickly pecked Apple Jack on the nose.
“Now ya see, that's exactly what I'm talkin' 'bout! What is all'a this funny business?”
“Funny business? The only thing funny about it is how clueless you are. But like, that's more adorable than it is funny.”
“Clueless?” Rainbow pecked AJ on the nose again. She continued to act aloof.
“I mean, I think I'm pretty obvious but it's really a lot of fun watching you try to figure it out.” Rainbow Dash hovered slightly above the Earth pony. Apple Jack's eyes had practically crossed in concentration.
“Rainbow, are ya tryin' ta tell me...”
“That...” Rainbow Dash urged teasingly.
“That... ya got some kinda crush on me?” With that, Rainbow Dash burst into giggles and crashed into Apple jack, knocking her carefully back onto the ground.
“Duh, AJ!” Rainbow Dash giggled. Taking a moment to process, Apple Jack lay on the ground with a furrowed brow. When her mind finally caught up with the moment, AJ reached up and placed a surprise peck on Rainbow Dash's nose. Rainbow stopped giggling and stared for a moment with a big grin.
“Ya definitely are the strangest filly I know.”
“Problem?”
“Nope. I love it.”
“Good cause I kinda love you.” For a moment, two hearts stopped, waiting for the other to go on beating. When both girls started smiling at the same time, they were sure that it was good.
“Hey Rainbow-”
“Yeah?” Rainbow Dash answered through her grin.
“Could ya maybe take me up there for a bit?” She pointed to the sky. Rainbow Dash literally flipped in excitement.
“Absolutely!” And without a second thought, Rainbow Dash scooped Apple Jack and took off.
Author's Note
Please be gentle. I wrote this at 1am to take my mind off of other things and it's my first pony fic. Thanks!