"Guys, please! It was an accident. I need my friends right now. Fluttershy? Applejack?" Pinkie's friends ignored her pleas and her gaze, casting their eyes to the ground sadly.
"I think it is time we he'd back to our homes. I'm sure a lot of us need this to sink in before we can speak to you again, Pinkie Pie." With her statement, Rarity stood, walking to the door and opening it with a pale blue aura of magic; it creaked slightly, but otherwise swung open without a hitch. The rest of the gang stood up and made way for the exit, except one; the one that would never stand again, the one that would never laugh again.
Except for Rainbow Dash.
""Oh Gummy, this is going to be my best prank yet!" happily exclaimed Pinkie Pie, her mane and tail bobbing as she trotted through Ponyville with the alligator on her back and a surprise in her saddlebags. "Morning Berry Punch!" she said with a happy wave. "Morning Roseluck! The Petunias are looking delectable as always!"
"Aw Pinkie you charmer," said the beige pony, blushing a little behind her watering can. Pinkie Pie continued trotting down her path, a large smile plastered across her always cheery face, as she passed through the roads of the quaint town.
"Hey Applejack!" she said, stopping her gait at the unexpected encounter. "I thought you were getting harvesting for cider season right now?" asked the pink pony.
"Well, ya see *hnnnngg* there's a lot more that *hnnngggg* goes into cider than apples," croaked out Applejack visibly struggling under the weight of the sugar bags hoisted on her back.
"Oh AJ, let me help you with that!" said Pinkie Pie, ducking under her friend and securing two of the sugar bags for her own back to carry, along with her saddlebags and pet alligator.
"Why thank ya kindly Pinkie! Much obliged," smiled Applejack, looking visibly relieved from the lessened pressure of the sugar bags.
"Anything for a friend!" cheerfully exclaimed Pinkie Pie. "Man oh man I am so excited for this year's Cider Season! I've gotten the date marked on my Pinkie Calendar and everything!"
"You've always been our best costumer," laughed Applejack. "Hey, this sure is some hard labor you're helping' me out with; would ya like to help make the cider? You can have as many mugs as ya want when we're done!" suggested Applejack.
"I would love to!" exclaimed Pinkie Pie, stretching out her arms and wrapping Applejack in a tight hug that shouldn't be anatomically possible.
"Woah there partner. We gotta make the cider before ya get too excited."
"Okie dokie lokie!" cheere Pinkie, once again stretching out her arms. This time, however, she picked up Applejack, with the ease of a unicorn lifting a quill, setting her and her share of heavy bags onto her bag, and speeding off faster than any Wonderbolt could ever dream towardsSweet Apple Acres. Her body became just a blur of pink color, zipping over roads and hills faster than the eye could even make out. In a matter of seconds the two ponies and alligator had reached the farm, one completely hyper, and the other about to barf.
"I *burp* think thats enough of *burp* that, Pinkie," said Applejack, stumbling back and forth from dizziness after sliding off of Pinkie's back.
"Oh, sorry," giggled Pinkie Pie. "Let me help you with that!" Pinkie held out a hoof which Applejack gladly took to support herself, swaying side to side occasionally, but regained her balance after a few moments a a few shakes of her head.
"Thanks again, Pinks. Now lets get these bags inside." Applejack grabbed one of the bags with her teeth and started slowly dragging it into the farmhouse using her toned back muscles; Pinkie followed behind her, bringing another bag by her teeth as well, while Gummy rolled around on the ground, chomping on one of the sacks.
The screen door swung open with ease, thanks to the constant oiling by Big Macintosh. Inside the small house sat a snoring Granny Smith, rocking back and forth in her signature rocking chair, surrounded by the cosy interior that Pinkie had come to know and love from her frequent visits to her best friend's home. after a great struggle, the duo dropped the sugar onto the kitchen floor, huffing and puffing from the work.
"Ya want some lemonade? Applebloom made it fresh yesterday," offered Applejack, opening up the fridge.
"Sure!" smiled Pinkie Pie. Applejack grabbed a pitcher with her teeth, walking over and placing it on the counter. Pinkie Pie hopped over to the cupboard and immediately returned with two glasses, which received her a tip of the hat from Applejack in appreciation.
"Here we go! Two fresh glasses of- ick..." Applejack's voice trailed off, as Pinkie and herself stared into the disgusting concoction in front of them. The liquid was a dense green, with lemon seeds strewn about it; if you stared close enough, it seemed to be moving.
Four hooves came shuffling down the stairs, rushing into the kitchen. "Hey! That's for the Cutie Mark Crusaders' meeting today!" whined Applebloom, snatching the pitcher off the counter.
"Applebloom! We have a guest, don't be rude. And anyhow, I don't think this is even edible."
"Edible? Ya'll are startin' ta sound like Rarity now! Gosh, I can cook wha' I wanna when I wanna! I'm a big pony now!" whined Applebloom.
Applejack rolled her eyes. "What did I jus' say about talking' back?"
"I'm goin' to Sweetie Belle's," said Applebloom in a huff, cantering away and slamming the screen door behind her.
"Gosh damnit," cussed Applejack under her breath.
Pinkie Pie shifted uncomfortably, knowing to stay silent in those types of family debacles. She remembered when she was a child, and her father and Blinkie had a rather large fight; she had decided that a rock farm was unrealistic, and that she wanted to go onto better things, like following in Sapphire Shores' hoof steps. Well, Papa had gotten furious, claiming that a career in entertainment would get her nowhere in life. That, of course, resulted in Blinkie questioning how rock farming could even make a profit, or how a pony could grow rocks. Then Papa hit her. Pinkie remembered that she cried hard, and ran out to the silo. Inkie, who usually was the one to comfort the sensitive sister, stood with a blank expression, and Pinkie teared up, but both knew their place, and knew not to get involved when Papa was angry. So naturally Pinkie Pie decided not to alleviate the mood with a joke, even though her entire being urged to.
"I'm awfully sorry Pinkie, ya know, that you had to hear that." Applejack rubbed the back of her head with a hoof. "Teenagers, ya know?"
"She's grown really big," said Pinkie with a smile, not being as hippy as usual.
"Haha, ya she sure has," AJ said with a smile. "Anyways, lets get to the cider makin'," she said, clapping her hooves together.
"Alrighty!" cheered Pinkie Pie, bouncing in place excitedly.
"Ok now, its pretty simple, and I know you're a whiz with baking so this should be a breeze, unlike when I tried to teach Babs. So take the apples and was 'em off."
Pinkie through some apples into the air, letting each one fall onto her rump before bumping them across the rule and into the sink. She began scrubbing away at the Red Deliciouses until they were sparkling, and brought them back over to Applejack.
"Great work, Pinkie! Now we gotta sort the good from the bad."
"I can help with that!" rang out an elderly voice. The pink and orange pony turned towards the kitchen entrance to see Grany Smith hobbling in, bonnet over her messy bun, and bunny slippers easing her steps. "Step aside, youngin, I've got this part."
"Good! Bad! Good! Good! Good! Bad! Good!" Granny Smith's sorting went on for about an hour, while Applejack and Pinkie Pie furiously diced the good apples into quarters as they were tossed at them by the elderly mare.
"Now the fun part!" cheered Pinkie Pie, jumping into the barrel of cut apples and prancing about, smushing the fruits into fine juice. Applejack poured the sugar and a few more 'secret' spices into the mix until a fine amount of cider had been produced. Pinkie jumped out of the barrel, wiping the sweat from her brow, and falling to her haunches in exhaustion.
"That was harder than I thought!" exclaimed Pinkie, panting from the hard physical labor.
"Well, here's your reward, missy," said Applejack, handing over a fresh cup of cider, which Pinkie Pie gratefully downed in a mere matter of seconds.
"Ah, that was great," moaned Pinkie Pie. "Seconds?" she pleaded with puppy dog eyes.
"Well that was all there is, we gotta make more. Lets get crackin'!" cheered Applejack while Pinkie Pie fell over defeated and exhausted.
"Applejack, please, you know I didn't mean to! AJ, you were there, tell them it was an accident!" pleaded Pinkie as AJ walked out the door.
"I can't."
"Did I hear cider?" called out a voice.
"Hey Dashie!" yelled Pinkie Pie, waving at her pegasus friend descending to the ground. "Wanna help us make some cider?"
"As long as I get some in the end." The rainbow maned pegasus grinned widely as Applejack led her to the farmhouse.
****
"One glass!? It took forever to make one glass?" whined Rainbow Dash, flopping on her back in a similar fashion as Pinkie Pie had.
"Well maybe now ya won't complain when ya don't get any cider durin' cider season. Takes a might bit of work to make a barrel," said Applejack with a chuckle.
"This is bunk, AJ! I bet you me and Pinkie Pie could make an entire barrel in an hour!" challenged the thrill seeking pegasus.
Applejack tilted her hat over her eyes with a mysterious grin. "I reckon I could make one in forty-five minutes."
Their eyes met as Applejack raised her head up. Rainbow hovered towards the orange Earth pony, pressing her forehead against hers. "Me and Pinks could do it thirty minutes."
"Care to put your money where your mouth is, partner?"
"What do you have in mind?" asked Rainbow Dash, flying backwards a bit and hovering with her forelegs crossed, a faux deal face on, when really she was barely obtaining her excitement for competition.
"I win, you and Pinkie Pie have to make every barrel of cider for the cider season; enough for the entire town to have seconds." Pinkie's jaw hit the ground in an impossible comical fashion, but Rainbow didn't move a muscle.
"And if we win?" she asked with a smirk, wings beating quietly.
"I'll let you pick my punishment," said AJ with a cocky grin.
Rainbow Dash rubbed her hooves together. "Oh this is too good!" She flew down and hovered next to Pinkie Pie, taking the bottom of the pink pony's jaw and smacking back into place. "What should we make her do, Pinkie?"
"Hmm," said Pinkie, rubbing her chin. "We should make her have to eat an entire barrel of oranges! No, an entire orchard of oranges! No, no! An entire planet of oranges!"
"Um Pinkie, planets filled with only oranges don't exist," said Rainbow Dash, looking at Pinkie Pie with the same look she always did when Pinkie said something crazy.
"You only say that because you haven't traveled with the Doctor."
"The what now?"
"There could be orange planets!" said Pinkie Pie.
"But not in our range, so lets think of something a little more embarrassing."
"I can hear you!" yelled Applejack, hearing that her punishment would probably also cost her her dignity.
"Good!" yelled back Rainbow. "Ok, what if we make her walk around town in the frilliest dress Rarity can muster up!? That would be hilarious!" laughed Pinkie Pie.
"What if we got the crusaders to make the dress!" chimed in Pinkie Pie with a giggling snort. Rainbow Dash fell on her back in tears.
"Thats brilliant!" she cried, huffing from laughing so hard. After a few moments, Rainbow Dash regained her composure, wriggling to her hooves and flying towards Applejack. Pinkie bounced over to join them.
"Alright AJ," said Dash, circling her in flight. "If we win, you have to wear a dress around Ponyville for an entire day, and you have to speak in a frilly accent!"
"Is that the best you can think of?" said AJ with a smirk.
"And, the dress is made by the crusaders."
Applejack's eyes widened into pleading spheres. "No, anything but that! I'll look like a scarecrow gone shoppin' in a dumpster! I'll be laughed outta town!"
"Your choice," giggled Rainbow Dash at her friend's expense.
Applejack looked uncertain, looking at her hooves for a long time.
"Come on Applejack, it'll be funnnn," egged Pinkie Pie, nudging her friend with an elbow.
"Oh alright, you got a deal!" Applejack spit on her hoof, as did Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash, and with a hoof bump of each, the competition was on.
