Dimension Travelers X: The Pony Gambit

This is probably going to be a fairly sedate chapter. Enjoy!

Rarity's POV

I was trying to help in preparation for the upcoming storm that day, but apparently, it wasn't good enough for Applejack. I was merely trying to spruce the place up a bit, but Applejack told me to just focus on taking down the loose branches.

"I simply cannot understand why the pegasi would schedule a dreadful downpour and ruin what could have been a glorious sunny day," I complained

"Think more practical like, will ya? They accidentally skipped a scheduled sprinkle last week, so we need a doozy of a downpour to make up for it is all," Applejack explained while bucking a nearby tree. That was when the rain began. Unfortunately, the only 'shelter' was all muddy, so I simply couldn't stay there. Applejack complained that there was no pleasing me.

"Well, how does muddying my hooves serve any useful purpose?" I asked

"Y'all wouldn't know useful if it came up and bit ya," Applejack retorted

"That doesn't even make any sense," I giggled

"Does so!"

"Does not."

"Does so!"

"Does not."

"Does so infinity!"

"Does not infinity plus one! Ha!" We glared at each other for a few moments, "Let's say we go our separate ways before one of us says something she will regret?"

"I reckon y'all will say something you'll regret first!" Applejack declares

"On the contrary, I believe it shall most certainly be you who will say something you will regret!" I retorted

"I'm not sayin' anythin'," Applejack responded

"Nor am I!" I said

"Y'all just be on your way then," Applejack waved me off

"After you!" We both then started walking backwards, but a sudden lightning bolt startled us and we decided to stick together and find shelter. Applejack wanted to 'hunker down' under a bench in the mud, but I refused to do so. Thankfully, Twilight showed up a minute later and led us to her library. But first, I reminded Applejack to wash her hooves of the mud.

Once inside, Twilight somehow roped us into a sleep over. Spike was away in Canterlot for some reason and Twilight decided to take advantage of the situation. I tried to get out of it, not wanting to spend any more time with Applejack, but Twilight was insistent and I couldn't very well say no to being part of her very first slumber party. The first order of business were mud masks.

"Now wait just a gosh darned minute! You make me wash the mud off my hooves, but it's OK for y'all to have mud all over your faces?!" Applejack complained

"Silly; this is a mud mask, it's to refresh and rejuvenate your complexion," I explained

"We're giving each other makeovers!" Twilight squealed, "We have to do it, it says so in the book!" Applejack tried to get away, but the lightning stopped her. So I threw on a mud mask and cucumbers.

"What the heck are these for?" Applejack asked

"To reduce the puffiness around one's eyes, of course," I informed her, but she just ate the cucumbers. So I subtly told Applejack that this was Twilight's very first slumber party and if she ruined it, she'd have to answer to me!

"'Course not; you wouldn't neither, would ya?" Applejack retorted

"So do we have an agreement?" I asked

"You bet'cha," Then Applejack spat on her hoof

"You know, there's mess and there's just plain rude!" I said

"Ya know there's fussy and there's just plain gettin' on my nerves!" Applejack replied

"Fortunately, I can get along with anypony, despite how difficult she may be!" I countered

"Oh yeah; well I'm the gettin-along-enest pony that you're ever gonna meet!" Applejack declared

"That's not even a word," I responded, but before Applejack could come up with a comeback, Twilight reappeared.

"This is gonna be the best-est slumber party ever! Yay!" She squealed and the makeover continued.

Eventually, we moved on to the next item on the list: ghost stories. I was just glad that Pinkie Pie wasn't there. She may not seem it, but I still have nightmares from the last ghost story she told. In any event, Applejack decided to tell the first story.

"I'd like to tell y'all about the terrifying tale of the prissy ghost, who drove everypony crazy with her unnecessary neatness!" Applejack turned to glare at me, "I'm sure y'all are familiar with that one."

"Never heard of it, but I have a much better one. It's the horrifying story of the messy, inconsiderate ghost who irritated everypony within a hundred miles!" I exclaimed

"That's not a real story; you made it up!" Applejack protested

"It is a ghost story. They're all made up," I deadpanned, then another lightning bolt flashed, and Twilight turned off the lights, save for a single lanturn.

"I've got one! This story is called 'The Legend of the Headless Horse'!"

"It was a dark and stormy night, much like tonight, and three ponies were having a slumber party. Just like this one…" Twilight continued with her story and I admit I was a little bit frightened. "And just when the last pony thought she was safe, there, standing right behind her, just inches away, was…THE HEADLESS HORSE!" Suddenly Twilight was snatched from behind and I saw a dark shadow.

"MUH HA HA HA!" It cackled evilly and a flash of lightning showed IT HAD NO HEAD! Applejack and I hugged each other and screamed. Then the lights came back on and we saw David and Twilight with extremely smug looks on their faces.

"Ghost stories check! Thanks David!" Twilight said

"All in a good nights work!" David replied and teleported away.

"Now then, who wants s'mores?" Twilight asked like she and David hadn't just tag teamed to scare us half to death.

Eventually our hearts calmed down enough for us to agree to s'mores and I instructed Twilight in making the perfect s'more…, which Applejack scarfed down the first chance she got. She then burped!

"You could at least say 'excuse me'," I rebuked her

"I was just about to before y'all interrupted me…pardon," Applejack replied

"S'mores…check. Next item on the list is 'truth or dare'!" Twilight announced

"I dare Applejack to do something carefully and neatly…for a change," I said

"Oh yeah? Well I dare Rarity to lighten up and stop obsessing over every last little detail…for a change," Applejack countered

"I think that the truth of the matter is that somepony could stand to pay a little more attention to detail," I commented

"Well I think the truth is somepony outta quit with their fussin' so the rest of us can get things done!" Applejack remarked and then Twilight 'reminded' us of the rules. Applejack then dared me to go outside and get wet. I didn't like it, but it was the rules.

"OK, I dare Applejack to play 'dress up' in a frou-frou, glittery, lacy outfit!" Applejack had no choice but to comply!

"Um, do I ever get a turn?" Twilight asked, but we ignored her and we kept daring each other. Twilight decided to move on before things got too ugly. Next on the list was a pillow fight.

"Oh please, I am not at all interested in participating in something so crude," I said right before Applejack smacked me with a pillow. "It. Is. ON!" The pillow fight quickly escalated into a pillow battle and poor Twilight was caught in the crossfire, not that we noticed. Twilight finally called an end to it and we all went to bed. Unfortunately, that meant sharing a bed with Applejack.

I will concede that our bickering went a little too far and Twilight finally had enough. Twilight yelled at us a bit and asked what else could go wrong. That's when a lightning bolt struck a nearby tree. I tried to warn her, but Applejack seemed to think it would be a good idea to lasso it and pull it right into Twilight's room. I got to work cleaning up until Applejack finally apologized.

"I should've listened to you when you tried to tell me where this here tree branch would end up. Your annoying attention to detail would've saved us from this whole mess! But right now, you need to stop being so danged fussy and picking up all the little things and help me move the one big thing in here that actually matters!" Applejack shouted over the wind and then said the magic word, 'please'. I didn't like getting all icky, but it was for a good cause. Eventually, we managed to clear out the huge branch. I was all muddy from it, but Applejack got a pair of cucumber slices and placed them over my eyes.

"Better?" She asked

"Thanks," I replied and we hugged

With that whole fiasco over with, and all thoughts of sleep driven from our minds, we decided to play twenty questions.

"Is it…a six legged pony with a purple polka-dotted mane and shootin' stars comin' out of his eyes…" Applejack started

"…Who flies all over the world to hide magic, sparkly eggs?" I finished

"That's it!" Twilight exclaimed

"It is?" We asked

"No. It's that," Twilight pointed to her telescope, "But it was just so nice to see you two finally getting along, I wanted you to be able to win together." We then spent the rest of the night having fun.

Author's Note

I don't own MLP: FIM.