UNFORESEEN COMPLICATIONS

"AAAIIIEEEE!!!"

Babs and Applebloom were suddenly awoken the next morning by Silver Spoon's horrified scream. They quickly jumped out of bed to see what was the matter.

“What's wrong, Silver Spoon?! Is it a burglar?!”, Applebloom asked in a slightly panicked tone when the two were running into the living room.

However, they saw nothing other than Silver Spoon standing on the head of the couch, her mane and tail on end which oddly resembled a cat to the farm pony.

“It's a rat! Kill it, kill it, kill it!”, Silver Spoon shrieked, looking completely horrified while Babs and Applebloom slammed their right hooves on their faces nearly simultaneously.

“Oh, for the love of all things green”, Applebloom said to herself, followed by a yawn as she stretched her hind and front legs out. Her stomach gave a mighty rumbling. “Mah belly tells me it's breakfast time”, she said and walked back into the bedroom.

She searched through her saddlebag and found what she was looking for. She then carried the small sack back into the living room of their apartment and set it on the table.

“Soup's on, everypony”, she stated simply, opening the bag and dumping its contents onto the table. It was none other than apple fritters that Applejack had made the night before they had left.

“Ah wonder if Applejack has noticed us missin' yet?”, she thought to herself, taking a bite out of one of the apple fritters. Babs picked up one as well in preparation to take a bite...

“Say, have you seen Babs or Applebloom today, granny?”, Applejack asked curiously as she walked inside, having finished with her morning apple-bucking.

“Not a hair, youngin'. But Ah wouldn't be worryin' too much. It's the weekend after all, and the two are most likely sleepin' in”, the elder mare remarked, walking over into the kitchen.

“Or somethin' else...”, Applejack remarked under her breath and gave an audible shudder. “Ah'm gonna go outside and get some fresh air”, she said and turned towards the door, in hopes of it relieving the sickening feeling in her gut.

Once outside, the farm pony noticed a certain yellow-maned pegasus flying straight at her...

CRASH!!!

"Oops! My bad!"

“Consarn it all, Derpy! Why in tarnation are you flyin' over Apple Acres for?!”, Applejack asked, shoving the cross-eyed pegasus off her gently and standing to her all fours.

“I brought you a letter!”, the bubble cutie mark bearing mare said in a chipper and cute tone. She reached into her saddlebag and handed the farm pony an envelope addressed to her specifically.

“Why didn't this come in the normal post?”, Applejack asked Derpy curiously.

“Hmm, I don't know... The pony at the post office asked me to bring this letter to ya real fast, so I flew over here as fast as I could!”, she replied with a big smile.

Applejack looked at the front of the envelope and noticed the words “Express Delivery” printed on it.

“Who in tarnation would be sendin' one of us a letter by express?”, Applejack asked in shock, reading further down and noticing her name printed on the addressee line.

“I need to be going now! Enjoy your letter!”, the cross-eyed mare said and took off from the ground, barely missing three apple trees during her ascent before she managed to fly straight towards Ponyville.

“That mare really needs to see an eye doctor”, Applejack remarked dismally under her breath. She then picked up the envelope with her mouth, carried it inside, opened it, dumped its contents onto the kitchen table, and began to read it.

To Applejack,

We are writing to you out of concern for our daughter Babs. She disappeared nearly five days ago and we also think she stole a great deal of bits from our rainy day funds.

You see, we caught onto your grandmother's ruse and told Babs she was forbidden to see Applebloom anymore. To think you would allow your little sister to commit such a crime against nature is beyond our understanding, but that is not why we are writing this letter. Furthermore, we have no intention of causing you or your family any grief over allowing Applebloom to date Babs.

We are simply asking you to send Babs back to Manehattan as soon as possible and to respect our decision on this matter.

Regards,
Henry and Margret Seed

P.S. Do not expect us to show up to the next Apple family reunion, or any others for that matter.

“Ah knew it!”, Applejack shouted and slammed a hoof on the kitchen table, which caused Granny Smith to walk into the dining room to see what the ruckus was about.

“Why in tarnation are you making all that noise for, Applejack?”, the elder mare asked, at which point Applejack pushed the letter to the side to allow her grandmother to read its contents. “Oh finagle-fangle!”, she exclaimed and placed a hoof on her forehead, sighing dejectedly.

“Guess we better go get Babs”, Applejack said reluctantly, walking out of the dining room and upstairs towards Applebloom's room. “Hey Babs, Applebloom, we need to have a talk, so ya better not be up to anythin', and by anythin' ah mean doin' it!”, she said sternly.

However, when she walked into the room she only saw an empty bed and nopony around.

“Whoa nelly!”, she gasped and ran into the bedroom, looking in every nick and cranny she could think of as a potential hiding place, but with no luck. “Granny! Ah think we got ourselves a mighty big problem!”, she shouted, galloping down the hall and downstairs.

“What's the big problem? Ya walked in on them doin' it?”, Granny Smith asked curiously.

“Ah can't believe Ah'm sayin' this, but Ah wish Ah had! They ain't in there!”

The elder mare's widened in shock and worry.

“What in tarnation do ya mean, they ain't in there?!”, she asked in disbelief.

“Just that, granny! They ain't in there, and a lot of their stuff is missin' as well. Ah think Babs came here to run away with Applebloom so they wouldn't have to be separated”, Applejack replied and quickly ran for the door.

“Where the hay are you goin'?!”, Granny Smith asked, causing the farm pony to halt in her tracks.

“Ah'm runnin' to the Ponyville police department to put out a missin' foal alert!”, Applejack explained before continuing her run towards Ponyville.

Granny Smith then walked towards the window. She looked out in the direction of the two stars in the sky, which were slowly fading as the sun rose.

“Ah know ya may not approve of what yer daughter is doin' now or has been doin', but please look after them”, the elder mare said softly before turning around and walking to her rocking chair.

A knock at the door caused all three fillies to look towards it. They saw it open, revealing Swift walking in.

“Good morning!”, he greeted with a cheery smile.

“Mornin'”, Applebloom replied while using her tail to dust off the couch. “We're already in the midst of cleanin' up the place”, she said cheerfully, whipping some dust off the couch, which unfortunately flew straight at Silver Spoon.

“Ah....Ahhhh....Ah-choo!”, the silver-furred filly sneezed loudly and sniffled afterwards. “I hate this place”, she said dismally, wiping her nose with a hoof.

Swift gave a light laugh in response to this remark.

“Heh, sorry about the condition of the place, like I said, we try to keep the apartments in the best conditions possible, but this is a really big apartment complex”, he said, using his magic to levitate a duster from the hallway into the room, along with a broom.

The rest of the morning was spent with the three cleaning the place from head to hoof. By the afternoon, the apartment still not looked as good as the four had hoped, but was much more livable than it was earlier.

“Job well done, ponies”, Applebloom remarked with a satisfied look on her face when the four set their cleaning supplies down and admired the results of their hard work.

“Well, now that this is out of the way, we should go see my father. I already told him we'd be meeting with him after we finished cleaning up the place. He should be in the club now, preparing it for tonight”, Swift said, placing the cleaning supplies in one corner of the room.

“Let's get this over with”, Silver Spoon said with as scowl, walking towards the door and following Swift out.

“I swear to Celestia, if he asks us to do pole dances, we're leaving”, Babs remarked to her lover softly, to which Applebloom rolled her eyes. After that, they followed Silver Spoon and Swift downstairs and outside to the club next door.

Much to Babs' surprise, the club was nothing like she imagined it. Directly in front of them was a series of tables with cushioned seats, which took up nearly the entire club. Just beyond this was a small stage with a lone microphone standing on it. To their left, much to Babs' discomfort, was a bar with a large selection of alcoholic beverages stacked on the racks behind the table. What was on their right seemed to be where waiter and waitress ponies brought the food from the kitchen to the patrons of the club.

“Ah, good to see you, Swift!”, a gruff yet kind voice suddenly said.

The four ponies' snapped their attention to the source of the voice: a light brown stallion with what looked like a microphone cutie mark.

“These must be the new attendants to our fair shelter, am I right?”, he asked, to which Swift nodded. “Name's Dancing Hooves, but ya can just call me Hooves, pleased to meet ya!”

The three stood silent however, not sure what to say or what to do for that matter. This stallion looked intimating despite his kind demeanor.

“Um, h-hi thar”, Applebloom finally piped up, meekly and nervously.

“I think you spooked 'em, Dad”, Swift remarked with a light laugh, to which his father joined in for a time.

“Ha, ha! Don't you three be scared of old Dancing Hooves now. I may look tough, but I'm as soft as a pillow and twice as comfy”, he said, walking up to the three and leaning in to them. “Just don't tell the patrons that, I got an image to uphold, ya know?”, he whispered to the three before leaning back and laughing heartily again.

This seemed to lighten the tension in the air a bit, enough to allow the farm filly to speak up more confidently now.

“Swift said you wanted to speak with us about payin' for the apartment we are stayin' at?”, she asked, though her voice still had an air of nervousness to it.

“Ah yes. Why won't ya follow me over here and we can sit down and talk it over”, Hooves replied, turning around and motioning for the three to follow him to one of the tables in the club.

The four sat down and were silent for a few moment. Eventually, the stallion spoke up:

“Hey, Swift, can ya get us a few drinks? I'm afraid most of the staff won't be here 'till later tonight”, he called out to his son before turning to look at them. “What would ya like? We got orange juice, apple juice, grape juice, and even melon juice. Of course, if ya are wantin' somethin' a little stronger, we also have apple cider, grape beer, or ya can just take your pick from the bar over there.”

The three blinked several times at the stallion, not saying anything for a few moments.

“Seriously?”, Applebloom asked incredulously, gesturing her disbelief with a single hoof.

“Ya do realize dat we're fillies, right?”, Babs chimed in, looking at the stallion suspiciously.

“Like that's ever changed anything in this city”, Hooves replied, followed by a hearty laugh. It faltered, however, when he saw their expressions. “Oh forgive me, I didn't realize you were serious”, he said, clearing his throat and looking over to his son. “Three glasses of Apple juice, Swift”, the stallion said then turned to look back at them.

“So about payin' for our stay...”, Applebloom finally said after a few moments of awkward silence.

“Ah, yes. Well, I have a spot open for a waitress and some dish washers. Two of ya could work there a few nights each week to cover your rent quite nicely for the month”, Hooves replied.

The three exchanged glances at one another.

“Well, ya see, we aren't planning on stayin' here any longer than we have to. So we need bits to get back home. The longest we planned on stayin' 'fore we got mugged was the weekend. Is there anythin' we can do to make enough bits for a train ride?”, the farm filly asked.

“And before you ask, no, we won't put ou-mmmph!”, Babs began to say, only for Applebloom to once again shove her hoof into the city filly's mouth.

“Seriously? Ya are still goin' on 'bout that?”, she said, giving a glare at her fillyfriend.

Hooves gave a light chuckle upon hearing this.

“Heh, don't worry about it. Your friend has every right to be suspicious, but I assure you, this is a legit club. Unlike some of the other places in this city, we do everything by the book.”

“So why did you offer three fillies alcoholic beverages, then?”, Silver Spoon asked suspiciously.

“Good point. Durin' business hours I have a zero tolerance policy for underage drinking. During non-business hours I tend to... bend these rules for the ponies who are stayin' at the homeless shelter. That said, I won't give a pony more than they need. If ya stick around long enough, you'll understand how things work around here a little more. We get runaways like you all the time and not all of them are as innocent as you three”, Hooves replied, sounding a bit more professional than before.

“Who said we were runaways? Didn't you just hear us say we planned on leaving after the weekend?”, Silver Spoon replied, looking offended by the implication that she would do something like that.

“That's what they all say. Well, maybe not in the same words, but just the same. Rest assured, you're safe here. Of course, If you want to leave at any point, I won't stop you”, Hooves replied.

Swift took this moment to set down three glasses of apple juice for the three fillies.

“So about makin' some extra bits, got any jobs open for that?”, Applebloom asked in an attempt to get the topic back on track.

“The only jobs we have that provide extra bits to ponies stayin' at the shelter is performin' on stage. 'Course, we haven't had any pony brave enough to sing or play music in front of the club goers for a while now. The last one we had left a year ago. We've had to pay out of pocket to get independent groups to come in and sing or play music for the patrons. Any of you three have a talent for singin' or playin' music?”

“Sorry, no”, Babs replied this time, at which point each of the three let out a sigh.

“Ugh, this is getting us nowhere! At this rate we'll be stuck here for years! Cut the act mister! Who do I have to buck to make bits?”, Silver Spoon blurted out suddenly, much to the surprise of Applebloom, Babs, and Hooves.

“I just said this is a legit club, little miss. If ya are lookin' to do that kind of business, I suggest you head to the red light district on the other side of town”, Hooves replied, looking offended by the filly's outburst.

“Eh-heh, would ya pardon us for a moment?”, Applebloom asked nervously, grabbing Silver Spoon by the tail and dragging her off to the side, much to the spoiled filly's vocal protests.

“Are ya out of your cotton pickin' mind?! That nice stallion over thar said he's runnin' a legit business! 'Sides, what would Diamond Tiara say if she knew you were offerin' your foal-hole to a random pony?!”, Applebloom scolded in a whisper, glaring at the spoiled filly.

“It's not the first time I've had to perform sexual favors to get my way. And what Diamond Tiara doesn't know won't hurt her”, Silver Spoon replied snootily to the farm filly, who simply stared at her slack-jawed for a time.

“Ah'm gonna pretend Ah didn't hear ya just say that cheatin' on your fillyfriend is okay as long as they don't know 'bout it”, Applebloom replied, fighting every impulse under the sun to beat the filly senseless for what she had just said. She then proceeded back to the table to sit down in the chair next to Babs.

“Looks like we're gonna be here for a while”, Babs remarked, though she didn't seem as upset about it as Applebloom was. “I guess I'll take doing the dishes”, she added, looking back at the stallion.

“I'll take the waitress gig, Ah suppose”, Applebloom chimed in and sighed dejectedly, looking back at Silver Spoon. “And she'll take doin' the dishes as well”, she added coldly, much to the horror of the spoiled filly who rushed over to object. However, the glares from Babs and Applebloom halted her in her tracks.

“Fine...”, she conceded, her attitude making it more than obvious that she didn't like the idea at all.

“Okay then. Ya three will start tonight at eight-thirty. 'Till then you're free to do what ya want, as long as ya don't raise a ruckus. Once ya get to know me, you'll see that I'm a stallion with a big heart, but if ya abuse my kindness, ya get the boot. Are we clear?”, the stallion replied, striking a stern tone with the three.

They nodded in response.

“Ah can't believe ya, Silver Spoon! Ya almost got us kicked out of this place for that little stunt ya pulled!”, Applebloom roared at the filly once they were back in the apartment.

“It's not my fault he sounded shady! And I'm not going to do dishes either! That's servant's work!”, Silver Spoon retorted, sitting on the crouch and crossing her front hooves with a spoiled look on her face.

“Ya are lucky Ah didn't tell him to kick ya out after that remark ya made back thar!”, Applebloom pointed out, feeling her temper quickly reaching its breaking point.

“What remark? The one about offering her foal-hole up to a stallion?”, Babs asked curiously, glaring at the spoiled filly as well.

“Nah, the one after Ah pulled her off to the side. She pretty much said that it's okay to cheat on your special somepony as long as they don't know about it!”

Babs gasped in shock and became outraged upon hearing this.

“She said what?!”, she exclaimed, her glare becoming a loathing stare at the spoiled filly.

The latter suddenly started getting nervous when Babs barreled down on her.

“H-Hey! B-Back off!”, Silver Spoon stuttered, backing to the other side of the couch and away from Babs.

“We came all the way out here to help your spoiled rump get back with Diamond Tiara, we get mugged and stranded here, just for you to say that being loyal means nothin' to ya?!”, Babs roared, standing dangerously close to the spoiled filly now, all her four legs shaking with fury.

“Back off Babs, we're yellin' at her, not beatin' the stuffin' out of her. Even though it's mighty temptin'”, Applebloom remarked with a glare at the spoiled filly.

The city filly looked at her lover, took several deep breaths, and finally let out a heavy winded sigh.

“Fine, but I can't believe we came all the way out here just to find out she doesn’t give a flying horseshoe about Diamond Tiara”, she replied after managing to calm herself.

“I never said I didn't care about Diamond Tiara!", Silver Spoon spoke up, sounding offended. "Do you really think I would put up with staying in this scrapheap of an apartment if I didn't hope to be in my lover's hooves again?”, she said, though both fillies didn't look convinced in the least.

“Could of fooled me”, Babs replied coldly, sitting next to Applebloom.

“Ah'm inclined to side with mah fillyfriend on that one, Silver Spoon. How the hay do ya expect this relationship of yours to last if ya keep talkin' like ya did earlier?”, Applebloom asked, looking at the silver-furred filly, who was slowly calming down from Babs' threatening advances.

“You talk as if this relationship of yours is going to last forever”, Silver Spoon replied with an eye-roll, which caused Babs to tense up slightly in anger.

“Of course it's gonna last forever. Me and Babs love each other more than anythin'”, Applebloom replied confidently, unsure of where the spoiled filly was going with this.

Silver Spoon gave an annoyed sigh upon hearing this.

“You two are a real piece of work. Do you ever bother to look at the big picture?”, she replied. This confused the two; their expressions must have given away this, because Silver Spoon gave yet another annoyed sigh. “Alright, let me spell this out for you, then. Just how long do you think this is going to last once Babs' parents wise up to what you two have been doing behind closed doors?”

“That doesn't matter, Babs' parents know we're datin' and they are fine with it, ain't that right, Babs?”, Applebloom replied confidently, turning to look at her lover. However, she became confused when she saw her lover become pale and nervous with a blank stare. “Babs?”, she asked once again, placing a hoof on the filly's shoulder, which seemed to snap her out of her blank stare and look up at her.

“Y-Yeah, of course!”, the city filly replied finally, though her expression and tone remained nervous.

“Teh! Yeah, sure”, Silver Spoon jeered snootily, hopping off the couch and walking towards the door.

“Where the hay are ya goin'?”, the farm filly inquired when Silver Spoon walked past her.

“I'm going out for a little while. Is that a problem? Oh, and by the way, I may love Diamond Tiara, but I'm not foolish enough to believe it'll last forever. We both have already accepted that our relationship isn't going to last forever, I suggest you two come to terms with this fact very soon”, she replied before leaving the two alone.

“I don't know about you, but I'm already regretting coming out here just for her”, Babs remarked with a glare as she stood up and began to walk away from Applebloom, only for the farm filly to place a hoof on her shoulder and stop her in her tracks.

“Our relationship is goin' to last forever... right?”, she asked, her voice sounding unsure and worried as she spoke.

Upon hearing this, Babs immediately turned around, walked up to Applebloom and locked lips with her for a time. Eventually, she broke the kiss and smiled at her.

“Of course it is. I'd do anythin' to make sure it stays that way, Applebloom. Wouldn't you?”, she said softly, running a hoof through her mane gently.

“Of course, but what Silver Spoon said really made me wonder, ya know? What if yer parents suddenly decide to keep ya away from me? Will we end up just like Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon? Forced to use our friends to send letters to one another. Ah don't know what Ah'd do if Ah couldn't see ya as much as Ah already do”, Applebloom said, followed by a sigh.

Upon hearing this, Babs gave a heavy sigh and looked to the side for a few moments. Eventually, she looked back at her with a serious expression.

“Applebloom, do you love me?”, she asked softly.

“What kind of question is that? Of course Ah love ya!”, Applebloom replied, unsure and worried as to why Babs had suddenly become so serious.

“Then let's stay here. Make a new life together! We won't have to worry about our family keepin' us apart or anythin'!”, Babs exclaimed enthusiastically, walking over to the couch, hopping on it, and allowing herself to bounce a little as she looked at her.

However, this sudden suggestion by her lover caused the farm filly to become even more worried.

“Babs, what ain't ya tellin' me? Somethin' happened, didn't it?”, she tried to inquire, walking up to Babs and sitting down next to the city filly.

Babs' smile vanished upon hearing this.

“N-No, of course not. I just thought you'd like the idea”, the city filly replied, looking away from her lover.

“So ya suggested runnin' away for good and stayin' here just on the whim of the moment? That's a load of horseapples if Ah ever heard one”, Applebloom replied with an annoyed look at Babs.

The latter seemed to refuse to look at her right now. A tense silence ensued between the two for a time, until the city filly abruptly hopped off the couch and walked out of the door without another word.

“Where the hay are you goin'? We ain't done talkin' yet, Babs Seed!”, Applebloom called her, becoming upset that her lover would just suddenly up and leave like she had. “Why won't she tell me what's wrong? Doesn't she trust me?”, she asked herself softly and sighed heavily...

Author's Note

Proof read by zutheskunk.