Clearby Drizzle QuillChaptersOne: Her DragonTwo: Her FatherThree: Her GemstonesFour: Her ConfusionFive: Her SuccessSix: Her DecisionOne: Her DragonClear By Drizzle Quill One Her Dragon The words continued to ring in Applejack’s ears, days after they had been spoken. She had tried to get them out – she had tried, yes, with every way possible – and it simply hadn’t worked. There was no simpler way to put it. It hadn’t worked. The words were as fresh as when Rarity had uttered them. “I’m sorry, Applejack, darling…I cannot commit to a relationship right now. I fear something between us wouldn’t be…smooth, and my first tru-u-ue special somepony must be one who can take things slowly, not take life by the horns and ride it.” It had been a whole lot to take in, but she had soaked it in like an eager sponge, and now she was sorely wishing that she hadn’t. Because it hurt. It hurt horribly. AJ had thought that maybe she had had a chance after the Father’s Day incident, in which by pure chance Rarity’s talkative father, Magnum, believed they were dating. After her secret was spilled, the farmpony had been forced to wait for the unicorn’s decision, and it had come. It wasn’t what she had wished to hear. Letting out a loud moan, Applejack twisted left and right, rolling herself up in her bedsheets so tight that it was hard to take in one deep breath. Sighing, she loosened the grip and stared out her window at the night sky, where millions of stars twinkled at her, taunting her from their deep sapphire perch, up high in the sky. “Shut up,” she grumbled at them. As expected, there was no answer. What was there to expect? The stars would start talking to her? Huh. Likely. In all seriousness, Applejack was truly in quite a sour mood. For so long she had admired and dreamed of the beautiful white unicorn’s love, and here she was, heart splintered into a million pieces, whining in her bed. Hooves tapped on wood; a knock came at the farmpony’s door. AJ jerked her head up, surprised by the sudden noise. “C-Come in?” she stuttered, attempting to wriggle out of her sheets and letting out a surprised yelp as she landed splayed on the ground , surrounded by patterned blankets. Looking up backwards, she smiled weakly, seeing a confused Apple Bloom standing above her. “Applejack?” the little filly asked curiously as her older sister straightened up, letting out a weak chuckle as she did so. “Why were ya on the ground?” “Ah fell off of the bed.” An honest truth. She wasn’t the Element of Honesty for nothing. “Oh.” Apple Bloom blinked, looking around the room. “Why were ya awake? It’s, like, midnight.” “Ah couldn’t sleep.” AJ wished she was a unicorn so that rearranging her sheets would just be that much easier. Unfortunately, this was a bad idea, as the thoughts of unicorns sent her recent failure with Rarity spinning back into her head. The filly cocked an eyebrow. “Why couldn’t ya?” “Thinking about stuff.” “What kind o’ stuff?” “Not the kind o’ stuff fillies normally think about, that’s for sure.” Ruffling her sister’s candy-apple red mane, Applejack let out a weak smile and clambered onto her bed, enveloping herself into the covers. “It’s time for y’all to scurry along now and head into bed.” She blew a piece of straw-blonde mane out of her green eyes and smiled, hoping Apple Bloom would take the hint. AB was as stubborn as her sister. “But Ah want to know!” Applejack sighed. “No, yah don’t.” “Yes, Ah do!” “No, yah don’t!” A loud wail burst from the filly’s mouth, surprising both of them. “Yes, Ah do!” Three breaths in. Three breaths out. AJ sighed and smiled. “Now, now, Apple Bloom. Y’all shouldn’t be worrying yer head about somethin’ like this.” Blinking, a new question surfaced in her mind. “Why are ya here anyways?” Sticking out her bottom lip, the filly let out a soft whimper and looked away, amber eyes trailing to the ground. “Ah…Ah…” She winced and looked back, connecting her gaze with her sister’s jade one. “Ah had a night-terror, okay? And Ah was scared, and Ah thought I could snuggle with you! Like when Ah was a little pony!” Eyes softening, Applejack scooted over and grinned as she heard the happy squeal emanating from her sister as Apple Bloom buried herself next to the older pony. Even if she was younger, AB had always provided good advice. Perhaps if Ah state it in an obscure way... "Hey Bloom?" Weary amber eyes blinked back up at her in response. "If ya had a problem with a friend of yours, and ya wanted to try to fix that problem even if yer friend didn't, what would ya do?" Apple Bloom peeked out from under the sheets, expression confused. "Is that what you were so worried about?" She giggled, the echoes shuddering throughout her entire body and causing the covers to quake. "Oh, Applejack! That's easy!" Applejack cocked her head, wondering how her little sister had seemingly managed to figure something out that had been troubling her for the last four or so days. "So? What is it?" she asked, a little bit too excited. "Well, if Ah was in a fight with Sweetie Belle an' Scootaloo, Ah would let it sit for a few days or somethin' so that they would have time to think it over, and then later Ah would come back in and ask them again, and usually they've changed their minds!" Apple Bloom smiled. "Foalproof!" But her sister had stopped listening after the 'ask them again' part, and had begun to stare out the window, jade eyes dazed over with realization. ...she's right. Sweet Celestia, she's absolutely right! "Applejack? Applejack!" Hooves prodding into her back caused the farmpony to jerk upward before whipping around and seeing her sister staring at her with amber eyes wide. "Was mah answer good?" she asked, a slight tremble echoing in her voice. Applejack let her breath out and ruffled her sister's mane. "The very best," she murmured in the yellow ear. "Good." Apple Bloom yawned, a long, lasting yawn that truly signified exhaustion. "G'night, AJ." Placing one hoof over her sister's back and pulling her close, Applejack replied in her sister's ear, "G'night, Apple Bloom," and sighed as they snuggled closer together, feeling the warmth from her body soak into her own skin, making her feel fully relaxed. "Thank ya for all you've done tonight." Her dreams were filled with hearts, genius sisters, and gorgeous white unicorns. "So you're really leaving for three weeks? Three weighty weeks without Dashie and Flutters? But how will Pinkie-Winkie survive that long? ...YOU HAVE TO WRITE!" "Sheesh, Pinkie! Of course we'll write! It's just a little trip around Equestria, nothing big. See the sights, take part in all of the flashy lights. We'll have so many pictures to show you it'll be unreal!" "I still want to know why I couldn't come, though! We could have parties every night, in the big cities with the flashy lights and the party cannon and..." "It's private, Pinkie. P-R-I-V-A-T-E." Applejack trotted up the hill, heart pounding as Winona bounced along at her heels. It was time for the Pony-Pet Playdate, but it seemed now that most of the discussion was revolving around the two pegasi of the group. Curiosity peaked, the farmpony headed closer to hear what the awfully quiet Fluttershy was now saying. "Yes...I know you'd like to come, Pinkie Pie, but we've had it booked for months, and..." "Booked for months?" came the elegant voice of Rarity. Just knowing that she was there made Applejack's heart leap up five feet. She could do this! She could totally do this! She had her mind set on a plan and now there was no moving her from it! She was as firm as rock, she was as set as stone, she was... "AJ!" A squeal emanated from the pink earth pony as she bounded towards their farmpony friend, landing upon her in a giant Pinkie-squishaloo hug. "You seem really floppy today!" Pinkie giggled. "Like jelly! Or Jell-o! But what kind of Jell-O is orange?" Another burst of laughter escaped her mouth. "Oh! Silly me! Of course it's orange-cream-marmalade-mint-banana-squish mix!" She looked over fondly at the alligator in a circle with the other pets. "Gummy's favorite!" "Allllright...howdy, everypony! How're y'all today?" AJ asked quickly, trying to divert the conversation from Pinkie's strange jibber-jabber. She had never spent a whole lot of time with Pinkie, and found her irksome, despite the fact they were good friends. Rarity smiled. "Fabulous! We're talking with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy about their upcoming vacation. Apparently they're going to all of the big cities!" She sighed and rolled her eyes. "First you, Twilight, being a princess and all, and then you two, flying around the land like you two own it! When will I have my big adventure?" Ah'd like it if we could have an adventure together, right here. The words wouldn't come out of AJ's mouth; instead she managed a shaky smile. "Alright...that's great. Really! I hope that you two enjoy yerselves." Fluttershy smiled, ducking behind her long pink mane and blushing slightly as she replied, "Why, thank you, Applejack. That's very kind of you. Rainbow and I will have a wonderful time, I'm sure of it." Her wings fluttered slightly at the mention of her spectrum-maned companion and then settled back at her side again. Twilight nodded. "I'm sure that you two will get to experience tons of things that I never would, as a princess." She blushed and looked self-consciously at her wings, which AJ figured must still be rather an awkward burden to carry. As the conversation picked up, Applejack slowly found herself zoning out. Talks of wild parties and midnight thrills just didn't interest her as much as her upcoming confession with Rarity. Taking deep breaths in and out, she trotted slightly in one place. You can do this, AJ. You can do this. You can win 'er over and make her see that you're the one she needs. "Everypony! Just like Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, I have an announcement of my own to make!" The sound of Rarity's voice snapped the farmpony out of her thoughts; she looked up to see the unicorn smiling at Twilight, who rolled her eyes and nodded. "Twilight already knows what has taken place in my, er, shall we call it...personal life, do you not, Twilight?" "I do," the alicorn replied. "Well, it's time the rest of you know!" Blue eyes afire, Rarity gazed around as if expecting the others to be ecstatic about the idea of hearing news - and some of them were, notably Pinkie, who leapt up and down, quivering all over. Applejack took a deep breath in. After this. After this you'll do it, AJ. You can tell her how ya feel, and then she'll remember the Father's Day incident, and how Magnum thought we were perfect for each other, an' - The next words blew her thoughts out of the sky. "I've decided to start a relationship with dear Spikey-Wikey!" Author's Note This is more of an introduction chapter, and the story will start picking up next chapter. Reading and reviewing is appreciated! Two: Her FatherClear By Drizzle Quill Two Her Father Mixed emotions burst out from all of the gathered ponies in the circle; Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie gasped in surprise, pulling their hooves to their mouths to shelter their shock, while Twilight simply smiled and rolled her violet eyes. Rainbow Dash stuck out her tongue, but she had a sly smile on her face. And Applejack? Applejack stared in horror. That couldn't be right. After the whole Father's Day incident...there simply was no way that Rarity could simply have rebounded and headed straight in another direction instead! After she had realized the feelings AJ had sheltered for so long... She had just walked away to form a relationship with a dragon instead? Rarity broke the silence first, with an apprehensive giggle. "I'm very excited about this. I believe that this relationship will be calm and smooth, and will take life very seriously." It was like a hundred pounds of bricks had just fallen out of the sky and smashed AJ into the ground. Those words...those were the same words she had used while trying to explain why she couldn't have a relationship with her! So Spike, of all creatures, could make her relationship smooth? Pinkie let out a squeal and began to bounce in a circle around her friends, provoking a reaction from each of them except for one: Applejack, who was staring off into the distance, mind boggled. "Ooh, this is so exciting~! I have to throw a Pinkie Pie Party for Rarity-getting-a-new-special-somepony-except-he's-a-dragon-so-I-guess-that-makes-him-a-special-somedragon!" The words soared through one of Applejack's ears and right out the other as she pondered the horrid failure she had undergone on this day. Why me? What did Ah do wrong? Apple Bloom has the best idea in all o' Equestria, and Sweet Celestia, something goes wrong? "We can't do the party, Pinks," Rainbow pointed out, ruffling her wings as she did so. Pinkie stopped bouncing in midair, blue eyes wide and confused. "Why not?" she whimpered, almost like a little baby that was confused and wanted her mother. "The trip." After a few seconds, the pegasus added for emphasis, "Duh." "Oh yeah! Silly dilly Twinkie Pinkie! How could I have forgotten about your big...amazing...wonderful trip...without me?" The last words sounded forced, like Pinkie was lying through her teeth, but Rainbow was clearly so dense to it that she just grinned. "I need to get Tank home for his mealtime," the pegasus noted, glancing around to see how the sun lined up in the sky. Wings popping out from her sides, she ruffled the feathers. "Come on, Tank!" she called to the tortoise behind her, and then to her friends, "Goodbye!" As Rainbow Dash soared off, Fluttershy too ducked her head. "I have to hurry on home also. My poor little critters...I promised them we could have a tea party, and if I'm late they'll get very worried." She smiled, a very small smile. "You understand..." Teal eyes flashed with worry. "Right?" "Of course, darling! We're fine," Rarity assured her. "Go on home to your furry animals and things." In a similar manner, Twilight left (she had to go work with her new princess duties and truly didn't want to be late) as well as Pinkie, who claimed she had to go and take care of Pound and Pumpkin Cake back at Sugarcube Corner. Just like that they were both gone. And just like that, it was only Applejack and Rarity left. The silence was extreme, and it was awkward, and suddenly Applejack had an itch, right on the back of her neck where it was hardest to reach, but she wasn't going to try to scratch up against a tree because that would be just as awkward as if she was the first one to speak and so they both sat there and watched Opalescence taunt Winona from the top branches of a large tree. To AJ's relief, Rarity was the first one to speak. "Lovely weather we're having, is it not?" The typical weather conversation. Easy, convenient, and perfect for awkward situations such as this one. Applejack nodded. "Shucks, Ah'd say the pegasi have outdone themselves. They must have worked their tail-feathers off to make the sky this nice lookin'." The unicorn nodded, sapphire eyes glowing. "Positively gorgeous! Perfect for the walk around Ponyville Spike and I will take later tonight." A rumbling, bubbling, sick feeling began to appear in the farmpony's stomach; with a cheery grin she pushed it down. "Is that so? Well, I do hope y'all have a mighty fine time." Rarity blinked and turned to face her, an expression of confusion upon her face, as if that was not what she had expected Applejack to say. "...Thank you, Applejack," she said, forcing out a large smile. "I'm most sure that we will." That was when AJ realized it: Rarity hadn't forgotten the Father's Day incident - far from it, as a matter of fact. She was just trying to push it out of mind. Somehow that made things both better and worse. It meant that Rarity was just confused. She didn't know who to love - she was on the brink of deciding where to go, and she needed somepony to show her the way, somepony to make her decision clear. Applejack intended to be that pony. But she couldn't come up with a plan right there, with Rarity's intense blue gaze staring her down. "Ah-Ah got to go home, Rare," she stuttered, trying to think up an honest excuse. "Gotta do some chores around the farm." That was a truth - she did have the pigs to wash. "Maybe we can talk again sometime soon?" "Yes." The snowy unicorn dipped her head, eyes sparkling as AJ turned away. "Yes, I think I'd like that." As Applejack approached the farm, Winona bounded at her heels, every few seconds emitting a happy little yip, before streaking off as she noticed three figures bouncing around the apple farm, squealing and cheering. AJ recognized them before their figures could get clear, and she smiled. "I'm gonna get my cutie mark in apple-bucking first!" "Are you crazy? Ah'm the actual apple bucker 'ere!" "You're both wrong! My awesomeness will cause me to win!" "Howdy, girls," Applejack called as she trotted past the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who had stopped their current task to bicker and fret among themselves. Noticing the farmpony, however, they leapt up and all chased after her, yelling her name over and over again until AJ reluctantly stopped. "Hiya, Applejack!" the orange pegasus filly Scootaloo proclaimed, holding up one hoof for a high-hoof, which the farmpony returned, allowing herself a casual grin. "How're you today?" "Ah'm fine," she returned, as Apple Bloom pushed her friend off to one side to receive the whole of her sister's attention. "We're tryin' to get our cutie marks in farm-caretakin'!" she announced, tipping her head back and lifting her chin ever so slightly with obvious pride. "Ah think that Ah'll get mine first, because Ah actually live here! Don't you think so, Applejack? Don't you think so?" Once again, before she could reply, the filly was pushed out of the way, but this time by the white unicorn Applejack recognized as Rarity's sister, Sweetie Belle. "Well, I don't think any of us are going to get out cutie marks at this," she complained in her high, slightly-squeaky voice. "We're all terrible! Look at us!" It was true; the three were a mess, all covered in bark and tree sap. Applejack smiled. "Ah suppose y'all might want to take a bit of a rest." "But...! Aw, you're right, sis. Maybe we'll get our cutie marks at the school play tomorrow night!" Apple Bloom remarked, turning first from her sister to her friends, who nodded in agreement before they all burst into their usual, ear-splitting cheer. "CUTIE MARK CRUSADER PLAY PERFORMERS, YAY!" Applejack allowed a small chuckle before all three were talking at once; Apple Bloom snatched onto her sister's leg and begged, "Please, y'all will be coming, right?" with amber eyes as large as Celestia's sun, while Scootaloo chattered about how playing the villain would be the best thing ever. But what Sweetie Belle was saying caught AJ's attention more than the rest. "Well, my mom and dad are going to be there! Actually, they're already here! They arrived this morning!" Magnum was here, in Ponyville? The pony that started this whole mess with Rarity's emotions in the first place? In an instant, Applejack knew what she had to do. Tipping her hat back, she leaned down so that she was eye-to-eye with Sweetie, who also had green eyes, though they were a much lighter shade than her own. "Sugahcube, do ya think ya could show me where yer dad is?" After a brief moment's hesitation, Sweetie furrowed her brow and nodded firmly. "Come on! He's probably at the Boutique!" Maybe it wouldn't take too long to tip Rarity's perspective after all - not if one of the ponies who knew her best was here, now. Maybe it wouldn't take long at all. "Applejack! Oh, wow, it's been how many days since I saw you last?" Hastily shaking the white hoof of an over-eager Magnum, AJ smiled, feeling the familiar heat of a blush rising into her cheeks. "About a week," she answered. "It's a mighty pleasure to see you again." "You too, you too!" Magnum finally stopped shaking her hoof, though it had been shook for so long that Applejack was astounded to find that her orange hoof continued to vibrate up and down in the air. That was annoying! What kind of pony did that to others? "So sorry Rarity couldn't be here to see you drop by - she's off with some other pony. Spike, or something like that?" "Yup," AJ muttered, not even willing to point out the fact that Spike was nowhere near a pony. "Ah was wondering if Ah could ask you about something." "My cutie mark?" Magnum asked, sitting down and brandishing the three footballs that made him so proud. "Did I ever tell you the story of this thing? It makes me so proud to this day..." His blue eyes got a dazed look in them as he stared off into space, somewhere beyond Applejack's head. "So proud...Fiery Splash dove at me, you know, looking as big as a table, trying to knock the ball out of my hooves, but did I give up? No! I rolled - yes, you heard me, rolled - out of his way and began to eagerly canter towards the goal, knowing that I was being chased on all sides by ponies bigger than I would ever get..." "Magnum?" Applejack interrupted as politely as she could. "Can Ah just please talk to you now?" He stopped talking and looked up at her, blinking blue eyes once. "Sure!" A deep breath went in and then came out. They were alone - Sweetie Belle was helping her mother cook over in the kitchen - and so it shouldn't have been any problem. Just ask. Just ask 'im, Applejack. "Well," she started, slowly at first. "Ah was wonderin'...since ya know Rarity real well and all...how could one, say...impress 'er?" Applejack regretted the words as soon as they came out of her mouth; in shame, she pulled her hat down over her brown and looked away, a rosy blush heating in her cheeks and ears, causing them to fold backwards almost flat against her head. Magnum smiled and let out a long, hearty laugh. "Impress her? Why, my little Rare is an easy one to impress! If you do her a favor, any favor that means more than a 'good job' to her, why then she'll be as impressed as anything!" Any favor that means more than a simple 'good job' will impress her? Just like that? AJ was stunned. Though she had imagined it would be easy, she hadn't thought it would be oh-so-simple. Now she just had to find some way to impress her... Slowly Magnum stopped smiling and gave her an inquisitive look. "Why?" Applejack was saved from having to answer by a loud knock on the door and a squeal of "Applejack! Applejack! It's time for ya to do your chores! Granny Smith says!" "Aw, shoot. Looks like Ah have to go. Bye, Magnum! Nice talkin' to ya!" the farmpony announced loudly as she backed out of the door, trying to avoid any type of conversation whatsoever. With a last grin and a little wave, she whipped open the door, slid out, and slammed it behind her. All Ah have to do is complete some sorta big favor...but how? Author's Note Alright, I've decided. This is going to be a trilogy. No secret information, though. None. I won't give you any spoilers. None at all! NONE! ... Fine. The title for the third will be called "Garbled." Not a Misconception, and not Clear, but Garbled. Please read and review! ~Driz Three: Her GemstonesClear By Drizzle Quill Three Her Gemstones By knowledge, Rarity was normally an easy unicorn to impress; give her a few gemstones with a note and some flowers and she'd be sold. But Applejack knew that she wanted to take a different route. If she wanted to dazzle Rarity, she had to really dazzle her. Make a big bedazzling show of it. Shoot something out of the party cannon, maybe. Herself? It also had to be big because it had to break the connection between her and Spike. Now, AJ liked Spike a whole lot - he was a cute little guy and all, and real helpful to Twilight - but he was a baby dragon, after all, and Rarity had probably latched on to his crush as a way to avoid answering the earth pony's questions. That irritated Applejack a whole lot, but she wasn't going to show it. No, she had to find a way to snap the romantic impulses between Rarity and Spike and impress Rarity at the same time. AJ put a hoof to her temple and groaned. "How in the hoof am Ah supposed to do that?" She was currently sitting on a park bench outside of Carousel Boutique, taking in the nice morning breeze and the creatures hopping, flitting, or walking about. Ponies passed by but didn't give her a second glance, which was good. Applejack needed a bit of time to think. Slowly she removed her hat from her head and began to play with it, hooves twisting the folds and feeling the roughness of the material. Somehow this soothed her, calming her nerves and helping her mind to concentrate. It always had, and she reckoned it always would, even when she was an old timer like Granny Smith. Her friends were nowhere in sight - Twilight was back at the library, she guessed, while Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were preparing their big trip. Rarity was out walking with Spike somewhere, if Magnum could be trusted to tell the truth - this made Applejack bite her lip, but she continued thinking, trying not to linger on it for too long - so that was everypony except... "Hi, Applejack!" Suddenly she was hit from behind by a force like a cow, slamming her off of the bench and landing her deep in the mud. It squelched against her face, causing her to scowl and groan. "Pinkie Pie," she muttered, as a way of answering her thought. "Oh my gosh!" The weight suddenly lifted, and pink flashes began to spin around AJ's head. "How did you know it was me? That's so crazy! It totally wasn't because of my voice or anything, was it, Applejack? Was it, was it, was it?" Green eyes spinning almost hypnotically, the pony in the mud pushed one hoof up after another, eventually coming into a wobbly standing position, and groaned. "It wasn't that hard," she muttered, as true to her element as she'd ever be. Finally, finally, Pinkie came to a halt, and Applejack could finally see her clearly from her wobbly, muddy position. Pinkie, despite just having knocked another pony into the mud, seemed perfectly clean and shiny, pink mane poofy as always and blue eyes sparkling with crystal clear excitement. "Aww," she said, not really looking too upset about it. "Guess I'll have to be even sneakier next time!" AJ's heart sank. "N-Next time?" she asked weakly. "Well, actually...I guess that won't be for a while," Pinkie admitted, blinking and staring slightly above Applejack's head as if she wasn't even there. "Since, you know, we're going on that adventure, for like, a few days!" Applejack's jaw legitimately dropped. "Say what?" "Applejack, darling, I'm so sorry this is of such short notice, but I do hope you'll understand that we simply must have you and Pinkie accompany us," Rarity said, blue eyes quite clearly pleading. "We can't navigate the Appleloosan Mountains without you, and Pinkie has promised to provide the food and snack supplies...so please, puh-lease will you come?" They were now standing in the Ponyville Garden. It truly was a very beautiful day outside, especially in the garden, where the sun shone with an elegant radiance and the birdsong was light and airy. But a certain farmpony wasn't taking any of this in. Today had been a chaotic day, and it had just gotten much, much stranger. Head still spinning, Applejack held up one hoof as a meaning of saying 'hold everything.' Once again she repeated the words she had repeated at least three times already. "You want us to go and find you some gemstones? On a three day trip?" "Oh, but not just any gemstones, darling," Rarity yelped, seemingly quite shocked by this assumption. "Topaz shells," Spike piped up from his spot next to Rarity. The dragon looked so overjoyed that AJ almost went over there and smacked his smug little face. But she was too nice to do that, and Spike had never done anything to her. Except for this, but she doubted he even knew what he was doing. “Topaz shells! Are they rare, Rarity? Are they, are they, are they?” Pinkie squealed, hopping up and down in excitement. “The prettiest,” Rarity agreed, tipping her head ever so slightly so that her violet curls bounced just in front of her face in a way that made Applejack's heart leap. Not as pretty as you, Rare. Applejack was snapped out of her thoughts when Rarity giggled a little bit with excitement. “I just can’t believe I got a request to make dresses for the Crystal Ponies! The Crystal Ponies, Applejack, can you believe that? I knew I needed Topaz shells right away because they are truly excellent for reflecting the precise amount of beauty in crystals.” Pinkie giggled too. "I can't wait to go! I can't wait, I can't wait, I can't wait!" She hopped up and down in one place so much Applejack was surprised that her brain didn't just bounce on right out of her noggin. Rarity said something to her, and then Spike spoke, and slowly the conversation drowned out, replaced by AJ’s own thoughts that were now flocking to her head like one of Fluttershy’s boring butterfly migrations. Wait a hoof-lickin’ minute here… “We’ll have the best of times,” Rarity agreed, ruffling Spike on the head as she did so and smiling with an awfully excited look in her sapphire blue eyes. If Ah can maybe get ‘lost’ on this trip and go by mahself to find those fancy-shmancy shells… “Bummer the others have to miss out on it,” Spike noted, green eyes flickering downwards at the realization that he wouldn’t be able to travel with his other friends, most notably his sister figure, Twilight. She’ll be real impressed. Reeeaaal impressed. “Don’t worry, Spikey-Wikey,” the unicorn said to him, patting him gently on his soft purple scales. “It will only be for a few days, and soon you’ll be able to sleep in the library again.” And she’ll realize… “You always know just what to say, Rarity,” Spike murmured, placing one claw over her shoulder and grinning with a moony look glazed over those green eyes. Pinkie made a small ‘aww’ noise in the back of her throat, causing both the unicorn and dragon to flush red. That the one that’s perfect for her… “We-e-ll, I try my best,” Rarity murmured, blushing furiously at the unexpected compliment; looking up at the rest of the group, she remarked, “Pinkie, Applejack, you ought to go start packing now…” Is me! “We leave tomorrow morning.” Author's Note Shorter chapter is short. Oh well. Hope you enjoy! Four: Her ConfusionClear By Drizzle Quill Four Her Confusion As Applejack slowly exited the train, she began to wonder if she was doing the correct thing. Rarity was obviously happy with Spike. Obviously might be an understatement - she was clearly very happy with the little dragon, and the earth pony didn't want to ruin this. She should be just happy seeing Rarity happy. Right? ...so why wasn't she feeling happy? It wasn't right. Maybe this was a bad idea. After all, Spike had been fawning after Rarity for years, that much was clear. "Hey, AJ? You coming, silly filly?" Pinkie called from about ten feet ahead; Applejack blinked her green eyes and shook her head to clear the confusing thoughts. "Yeah, Ah'm coming." Just forget about it, AJ. Have fun. Try to act normal. You'll figure this out later. Rarity looked just as lovely as ever, with a gorgeous scarf slung fabulously around her neck, white highlights accenting her blue eyes better than ever. Spike rode atop her back; one could practically see the hearts floating in his eyes as he hugged her neck and sighed. Applejack bit back a fierce burst of envy and simply smiled. "So, where are we gonna get these here gemstones?" The question was directed at Rarity, but Spike answered instead. "They're in a cave a little bit past the train station," the dragon stated proudly, grinning at knowing the answer. Rarity smiled at him and made a little clicking noise with her tongue. "Adorable," she cooed, "but I'm afraid that isn't the right answer." Spike's face fell. "But..." "I know that's what I said...but it seems I was incorrect." Face flushing, the unicorn's horn lit up with a bright blue aura; her saddlebag strap opened and out came a neatly folded map, each crease perfectly made so that it truly looked like the work of an artist such as Rarity. The map opened by use of the levitation, and after clearing her throat with a few loud 'ah-hems,' the unicorn began to speak. "As you can see, I had this point, about a ten minute walk from here, marked." She nodded her head at a point circled in a fancy blue spiral. Applejack and Pinkie Pie nodded their heads simultaneously. "But as we were on the train, I spoke to the kind mare next to me, and she told me that if I wanted some of the topaz shells, there was also another route, one through a delightful forest right outside the buffalo village." Taking a ballpoint pen from her saddlebag, Rarity circled another point, not too far away from the first. "But which one is more likely to have the shells?" Applejack asked, a hint of confusion creeping into her voice. "That's the thing, really." Rarity sighed and blushed. "They're both equally likely, and equally difficult. I'm not quite sure what to do." All were silent for a moment - even Pinkie Pie, who was stroking her chin with one hoof in consideration. Applejack had her own thoughts about the whole scenario - wouldn't a forest be much nicer to travel through then a cave? Ah mean, not like Ah have a problem with gettin' mah hooves dirty every once in a while, but poor Rare... - but decided not to speak them aloud, instead waiting until someone else piped up with their idea. And someone did. "How about we just split into groups of two and each group goes to one location?" Spike suggested warily. All of the ponies stared at him; the little dragon shrunk under their stare. "Was...was that not a good idea?" Pinkie's blue eyes lit up, dancing in the sunlight. "Not just a good idea, silly! A great one!" "How did you come up with that, darling?" Rarity asked, taking one hoof and propping an astonished Spike back up into a straight posture. As the praise filtered through one ear and out the other, Applejack did have to admit that yes, it was a pretty darn good idea. Now if only she could find some way to partner up with Rarity, exploring the beautiful forest with her; a wonderfully romantic scene under the hot sun of Appleloosa as the leaves danced in the wind and the sun dappled bright colors onto the ground... Squelch. Mud. She had stepped in mud. Again. Inwardly groaning, Applejack lifted her orange hoof and shook it wildly, causing the droplets of chocolate-like substance to go flying everywhere. Sure, she didn't mind a little mud every now and then, but this? This was absolutely ridiculous. And of course, she had to put up with the constant babbling. It was horrible. She would rather be alone with Spike, and given her current grudge against him, that was saying something. "And so I told Dashie that it was totally okay if she went away on her vacation even though I was really, really sad because that meant I wouldn't be able to see or talk to her or Flutters, which meant they couldn't come to any of my parties, but really it was okay because it was totally obvious that once they were alone they were going to whisper cute things to each other and smo-" "Pinkie Pie." Aforementioned pony stopped bouncing relentlessly up and down in a pile of mud, turning with blue eyes bright and lashes fluttering angelically. "Yes, Applejack?" she chirped. "Can you stop babblin' about Celestia knows what and actually start helpin' me find these here gemstones?" Pinkie's ears drooped and her eyelids lowered, but she simply nodded, giving a small, "Oh," and was silent. Applejack exhaled. Much better. Now she and her own private thoughts could once again resume the council that was currently going on in her brain. One side? Let Rarity have her own feelings. This side had been quiet ever since the rejection, mainly because she wanted so badly to have Rarity for herself. But now, seeing how the unicorn was happy with her dragon, she needed to face facts. There were other fish in the sea, and if she tried to take Rarity for her own, she needed to consider Spike in all of this too. But the other side had its valid reasons as well. Though they weren't as moral as the first side's, Applejack impulsively had been leaning toward them all this time. Rarity is yours. Spike has no reason to take her from you. It was true that ever since they were both fillies in school together, a small romantic blossom had formed. But now? Now that Spike had just come prancing in a week after the rejection? That wasn't fair. A war was raging in her head, and one side had to win. One was morally correct; the other feeding off of AJ's hopes and desires. Which one to choose? The war was temporarily interrupted by a pink pony prancing in the middle of the battlefield, calling a name over and over again. "AJ?" The farm pony's eyes snapped open. Pinkie Pie was waving one hoof in front of her face, eyes expressing concern. "Applejack?" she asked, almost in a quiet, most certainly un-Pinkie way. "What's wrong?" Shaking her head, Applejack put one hoof over her hat to secure it. "What're ya talkin' about?" She sighed and stared at the ground. "Nothing's wrong, Pinkie. Ah'm fine. Just a little worked up is all." "That's not it," Pinkie snarled, eyes narrowing. Ears lowering, the orange coated mare stared in horror. How was it that that mare seemed to know everything about everypony - including their emotions at any given time? "Ah promise you that it is," she hurriedly lied; a bad lie, and both she and Pinkie knew it. As Element of Honesty, lying had never, not once been her forte. Pinkie Pie was not going to take this for an answer. Planting herself in front of Applejack she reached out one hoof and placed it on top of the mare's forehead; with her other foreleg and her tail she blocked the other ways through the cave. "Well, listen here, missy," Pinkie spat, eyes narrowed in complete concentration. "I'd like a correct answer and I'd like it stat! You've been acting funny all week! You didn't even have fun at the 'Goodbye Flutters and Dashie' party! I want to know why!" Placing one hoof on Pinkie's shoulder, AJ looked directly into the mare's eyes and exhaled. "Listen here, Pinks. This is some goopy romantic business you don't want to get yer little body tangled up in. Ah know ya don't care a flying feather about it but-" She stopped and stared. Pinkie's face had just become completely and utterly calm. Was that pain in her eyes? ...what was wrong? "Romantic, huh?" the pink mare sighed, a bittersweet smile on her face. "That's alright, AJ. You don't have to tell me." Just like that, she backed off? What in Celestia's name was going on here? Narrowing her green eyes, Applejack took Pinkie's shoulder and began walking again, trying to ignore the squelch of the mud on her hooves and in the cave. "Are you alright, Pinks?" "I understand romantic confusion more than anypony thinks." The bittersweet smile hadn't left; honestly it was kind of sad. "After all, it's been at least three years, and she's not noticed me. Well, that's a lie. She's noticed me for certain, but she hasn't noticed, you know what I mean?" Applejack narrowed her eyes. Was Pinkie Pie - the Pinkie Pie, of all ponies - blushing? She opened her mouth - could Pinkie, the last possible pony in the history of EVER, give her advice on the war going on in her brain? - but stopped as her ears twitched, picking up a low rumble that shook the earth. Grrrrrmnt. "AJ?" Pinkie whispered, voice hardly more than a squeak. Grrrrrrrrmnt! "Was that just me?" GRRRRRRRRNMNT "No, that was defiantly not you." Applejack took her hoof off of the pink mare's shoulder and stood tense at attention, staring around her and waiting for something to happen, even though that was probably the stupidest thing she could have done right then. "That was something else." A boulder crashed behind them; Pinkie screamed and darted ahead to avoid getting gravel in her fur. The snort sounded once again, much, much louder this time. Above its roar, Applejack yelled, "AN' WE'D BEST RUN!" before the boulders began to fall, quickly, like an avalanche inside of a cave. The two mares took off sprinting, ignoring the mud, ignoring everything but their hot, panicked breaths and the ever louder rumble. "Rarity? You've seemed upset." "I know, Spikey...I...I'm fine. Really." "If you say so." "I do. I do." "...Is that a topaz shell, Rarity? Is it?" "No, Spike. That's a sapphire shell. Very different." "Oh...Rarity?" "Yes, Spike?" "Why do you seem so annoyed with me recently?" "What're you talking about? You know I love you very much." "...as a friend, or as a lover?" "Pardon?" "I've seen the way you look at Applejack. You're...you're conflicted, aren't you?" "...you are a very smart dragon, Spikey-Wikey." "..." "But I will never break your heart. You've impressed me so, helping out and being there for me whenever I need you...and I do love you, Spikey. I do. It's just...it's a business for mares. I...I don't think you'd understand. Even if I do feel something...I'm just...I'm so confused!" "...Rarity?" "Yes, Spikey?" "...are you crying?" Author's Note I know I said this chapter would be 4,000 words, but I decided to cut it into two parts. Five: Her SuccessClear By Drizzle Quill Five Her Success "Run! For Celestia's sake, Pinkie, run!" The two earth ponies pounded through the cave, hooves slamming against the rocks, eyes wide, chests heaving, tongues lolling out of their mouths. Every once and a while Applejack would reach up and feel her head to make sure that her beloved hat was still there; it was, and she continued to run. The two had both run fast before. Applejack was reminded of the Running of the Leaves she had partaken in with Rainbow Dash, where she had been forced to use up all of her speed just to prove a stupid point. Princesses, Pinkie probably darted this fast regularly. But it had never seemed so life-threateningly necessary in either of those times. "Who dares to come in my cave?" something roared behind them; it was a very, very low voice, almost like what the earth would sound like if it could speak. "We didn't know this was yer cave!" AJ called over her shoulder between panicked breaths. "We'll leave if you stop being a meanie pants and trying to make us into pony pancakes by crushing us!" Pinkie screeched; the cowpony groaned as the roars intensified. "Pinkie, that ain't helpin' us one bit right now," she called over the rush of adrenaline in her ears, blocking out almost all sound as another boulder crashed behind her, nearly catching her back left foreleg. "I thought it would be nice to -" Pinkie was cut off as her tail twitched rapidly; she zipped to the side and watched as a boulder slammed right where she had been only moments before and resuming her sentence, "-let him know the truth!" AJ groaned but said nothing more, putting all of her strength into sprinting forward, around the boulders, coughing because of the smoke and rubble that flew in her face. How long did this tunnel go on? How long could she run like this? True, most Apple family members were known to have a lot of stamina, but at some point she was going to have to rest, and who knew how long Pinkie could keep up at the pace she was at. They were doomed. A stalactite fell from the ceiling and landed right next to Applejack's tail, nearly pinning it to the ground. Luckily she whipped it out of the way and silently thanked Celestia. That would have been a disaster. As they ran, the cowpony noticed that the tunnel was going to split into a fork up ahead. Two were pitch black, while the third was shining with a fluorescent light. Perhaps it led back out into Appleloosa? It made sense, right? AJ looked over to Pinkie and tipped her head to the left; Pinkie nodded and together they darted into the tunnel. For a moment, all they could hear was their own panicked breathing and the stillness of the cave. Whatever had been chasing them had stopped. Applejack started to wipe her brow, but suddenly... "AJ?" Pinkie called, voice starting to get breathless. "What?" "Do you see that?" Green eyes squinting, Applejack looked and stared. They had entered not the outside world, but an even deeper portion of the cave. The reason they had seen light was because of the treasure. So much treasure; so many jewels. They clashed in color and complimented each other beautifully. Some seemed to glow with radiance and some were dusty, not having been polished for what looked to be weeks. Applejack removed her hat and held it over her heart. "Sweet Celestia..." Pinkie's eyes were as wide as the moon. "Shiiiiiiiny..." Together the two earth ponies started towards the jewels, too entranced to realize what they were doing was most likely a horrible mistake. She loves Applejack, not me. I'm fine with that. Fine with it. A-OK. I have to be. Am I keeping her strong? Does she appreciate what I'm doing for her? "Applejack! Applejack! Look at this one!" A frilly hat was placed atop Pinkie's head, a feather sticking out of the pointed ends, and the fabric bedazzled with shimmering rubies. AJ clapped her hooves, nodding in approval. "Pretty spiffy. Bet Rare could use a design like that in her next ensemble. Can't take it with us, though." "Got it covered!" Pinkie scrutinized the hat, squinting her eyes until she just looked silly, though the expression on her face was dead serious. About thirty seconds later, she looked up and grinned. "It's etched forever in my brain!" AJ was incredulous. "Since when do you have a photographic memory?" Pinkie giggled. "Since never!" With a flying kick she sent the hat soaring to the other side of the pile; she rolled her blue eyes and began searching for a new piece of jewelry. Topaz shells...topaz shells. Shutting her eyes tight, Applejack wished she had a photographic memory to remember what the picture Rarity had shown them looked like. There were so many different types of jewels here there had to be at least a few topaz shells, right? They were spiral... ...they had patterns etched onto them... ...they were dark blue... ...were they circular of oval shaped? Applejack groaned and put her hoof to her head. "This hurts," she moaned out loud. "Ah'll just go an' look for the topaz shells. Ah'll have to run into a few sooner or later, an' Ah'll know 'em when Ah see 'em." So that is what she did, beginning at the right end of the pile and moving all the way to the left, scrutinizing every detail that she could find on any remotely blue shell-shaped objects, Pinkie bouncing along behind her with about thirty necklaces all clanging against each other around her neck, when they both heard it. The roar. The horribly loud, ear-shattering, heart-stopping roar. But I love Rarity. I really do. Doesn't that mean I should do what's best for her? If she's happy, shouldn't I be happy too? ...even if she's not with me? Applejack's head jerked up, and she yelped as a giant grey-gold talon smashed onto the ground next to her, creating a large dent in the ground and causing dirt and dust to stream upwards. Darting away, the orange mare watched in horror as into the cave stepped a dragon. It wasn't a terribly big dragon - this made sense, for the cave wasn't terribly big itself, but it was rather large, larger than at least two houses stacked on top of each other, with grey-golden scales and ebony spines going down its back. Its green eyes were narrowed, and sharp teeth were bared as its tail lashed, gaze fixated on the two earth ponies. Pinkie's ears lowered. "AJ?" "Yeah?" The word came out more as a grunt, a grunt of panic and fear. "We should probably go now." "You're not going anywhere," the dragon answered, voice low and rumbling. "Not until you explain why you're in my cave, and why you're taking my treasure." Applejack laughed, sweat pouring down the side of her head. "Treasure? Ha, what treasure?" All eyes turned to Pinkie and her thirty necklaces; the dragon snorted a puff of smoke, engulfing the room and causing the two ponies to cough loudly. "That's not very healthy," Pinkie wheezed, trying to blow it out of her face with one hoof. "You should really see a doctor about that." The dragon ignored her and instead gave another loud and thunderous roar. "Why have you come to my dwelling?" "We didn't know it was your dwelling, honest-to-Celestia!" Applejack called, placing a hoof over her hat to make sure that it didn't fly off. "We came here to gather some topaz shells for our good friend Rarity!" "Uh-huh!" Pinkie agreed, nodding her head rapidly. The dragon lifted an eyebrow. "Topaz shells? And why would she need topaz shells?" "She's a dressmaker," AJ called. "She makes the most fancy-shmancy designs you ever will see. Hats and gowns, tiaras and scarves, Rarity can make it." Talking about the white mare she had longed for for such a long time gave her strength; Applejack felt her chest puff out a little bit, and before she knew it, she was rambling, and she couldn't stop it, and Pinkie was staring and the dragon was just watching, eyes cold and expression, well, expressionless. "She's the prettiest mare in the world, Rarity. When she's happy, her smile could rival Celestia's sun and Luna's moon, rolled up into one. Her voice is like an angel - heck, her whole bein' is like an angel, like somepony from the stars come to tell me it's alright, that she's still here. Ever since Ah met her I thought she was an angel come to tell me...come to tell me..." The tears started to fall. "...come to tell me that mah parents are alright." Pinkie let out a gasp. Not an extravagant gasp, like she sometimes used, but an actual, honest to Celestia gasp. The dragon's eyes twitched ever so slightly at seeing the pony's tears. "Rarity is one of the kindest, most generous ponies Ah've ever met, ever. Ah need to help her, and Ah need to make her feel better...and Ah need these topaz shells to do that." Applejack's chest was heaving now, heaving because of the tears and heaving because of the smoke. "So please don't kill us, or eat us, or do whatever you were gonna do to us, because right now she's out there lookin' in the forest for the gems she needs, and if Ah bring them to her, she'll know..." Swallow. "She'll know Ah love her." Pinkie put her hooves to her mouth and the dragon's wings lowered. Slowly it turned as if to walk away, and AJ, for a moment, crying in the cave with nopony that understood but herself, wondered if all was lost. Of course it wouldn't care. It was a dragon. But Spike was a dragon too. And he cared about Rarity. Perhaps not as much as Applejack did, but he cared about her. And clearly she cared about him. AJ remembered what Pinkie had said, right before the rocks began to fall. She had been waiting for three years for the pony she loved to notice her. And if Pinkie Pie, the most impatient pony in the world, could wait, why couldn't she? "Here." The voice startled her; Applejack looked up to see a claw-ful of deep blue gems, gripped tightly in front of her. Slowly the dragon placed them on the ground; Pinkie hopped over and began to place them in her back as the cowpony stared up into the green eyes of the dragon, tears still flowing. "Why?" she whispered. "You deserve it," was the answer. "You go now. Go and tell her how you feel, before I get in a bad mood and eat you both for dinner." As they turned to exit the cave, Applejack thought about those words, and a decision was made. Ah'll tell her. Ah'll tell her it's alright that she's datin' Spike. Because Ah just want her to be happy. She can have him. Applejack smiled. Ah think she'll like that. I care about Rarity more than this. If she truly loves Applejack, I should let her have her. I'll tell her it's alright if she wants to date Applejack. Because I just want her to be happy. She can have her. Spike smiled. I think she'll like that. Author's Note Next chapter is the final chapter, which will most likely be the shortest. The title? "Her Decision." Oh, the suspense! Six: Her DecisionClear By Drizzle Quill Six Her Decision The two groups arrived at the train station at roughly the same time, though it was easy to tell which group had succeeded and which had failed; Rarity and Spike's faces were crestfallen while Pinkie was all smiles and AJ was grinning. "We got them, we got them!" the magenta earth pony crowed, hopping around her unicorn and dragon friend. Spike grinned. "Great job!" "We didn't find any." Rarity's eyes narrowed; she looked steamed. "I'm starting to wonder if that lovely mare on the train was just pulling my hoof." "But it doesn't matter because we got them~!" Pinkie grinned like a madmare and began to dance - or something. AJ couldn't tell if she was trying to make cohesive movements or simply flopping on the ground. "They're in my saddlebag! See, see?" With pink hooves she thrust the bag to Rarity's muzzle, where the unicorn levitated it. Her blue eyes widened as she saw the topaz shells, and she even let out a little squeal of delight. Spike and AJ both smiled lopsidedly, watching her hop up and down. "These are so perfect! I can't believe it! Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Hoofing her ticket to the conductor, Rarity continued to fawn over the topaz shells as they got on the train, walking down the isle steadily. "However did you find them? Where were they?" the unicorn mare asked, inspecting them from every angle as they arrived at their seats; Rarity sat down right away in the first seat, but AJ and Spike both stayed back, looking at each other and ignoring the questions. Applejack blinked. What was he doing? She tipped her head at the seat next to Rarity, welcoming him to sit down. Spike shook his head and pointed with one finger at the seat. AJ narrowed her eyes. The little dragon...what they hay was he trying to pull off? She shook her head and motioned for him to sit down. The exchange continued, Pinkie watching in confusion, seemingly deciding she was bored with this, and plopping down next to Rarity to tell the oblivious mare all about the adventure she and Applejack had had (not all of it, of course. The cowpony had made certain Pinkie would leave out the end part). Spike and AJ looked at each other firmly and sat down together on the seat behind the two mares. "What they hay are ya doin'?" "The real question is what're you doing?" "Why don't you want to sit with yer special somepony?" "She's...well...I..." "Whatcha talking about?" Both of them jumped to see Pinkie Pie leaning over the backseat, blue eyes narrowed mischievously, one hoof under her chin and the other on the seat. "Why're ya arguing?" "We're not arguing," Spike covered quickly, shaking his head in earnest; Applejack nodded rapidly in agreement and both of them visibly winced as Rarity turned her head ever so slightly with confused blue eyes to look at them. Pinkie narrowed her eyes, gaze going solemn, just like it had in the cave before the dragon had charged them. "I doubt that," she murmured, muzzle wrinkled. "I really doubt that...and I know just how to find out!" Seemingly out of nowhere she pulled a magnifying glass and put it to her eye, winking and leaping to the seat behind her; Rarity let out a ladylike gasp as there was a tremendous crash, but Pinkie surfaced, perfectly fine, and let out a little giggle whilst putting her hoof to her mouth. Quickly, before Applejack or Spike could object, the pink mare leapt up to them, pressing the glass against their faces. AJ winced and pulled back; it was cold and stung on her skin as it was pushed farther in. Seeing as Spike leapt back as if he had been stung, she could safely assume that the same had happened to him as well. Finally Pinkie recoiled, scrambling back over the seat, back legs flailing in the air for a minute until she pushed herself over, and popped up, Rarity staring at her in some sort of horrified awe, and Spike and Applejack still reeling from the unexpected investigation. "I think I've got it!" "What is it?" the cowpony asked wearily. "You both have something you want to say to Rarity!" Three ponies yelped in surprise and denial at this; Spike's initial response was "N-no I don't!" AJ's was "Well, shoot" and Rarity's was "Wait...what?" Pinkie nodded, head moving up and down like a light-switch. "Yes you do! And you are going to tell her right now because it's making both of you sad and I hate to see my friends sad!" She glared at them all, eyes suddenly becoming cold and serious. "Hate it!" she repeated for emphasis. "Spikey? Applejack?" Rarity stared at them both in confusion, finally looking away from the topaz shells she cradled fondly in her lap. The train turned into a tunnel, and for a moment everypony was plunged into darkness; all they could hear was the weariness in her voice. "What is it?" Nopony could see each other's expressions, but Applejack guessed that Spike, at least, was as awkward as she felt. But what could he possibly have to tell her? He was in an amazing spot right now. If he resisted it... Well, she didn't want to think about what would happen then. ...scratch that, she did. But she had to remember Pinkie. Do what's best for Rare. "Ah...Ah wanted to tell you that Ah'm fine with you bein' with Spike." The words were choked and somewhat hurried, but they were spoken all the same. In the darkness, AJ couldn't see the other's faces, but the sharp intake of breath from Rarity and the panicked yelp from Spike both confused her. Why would they be upset? "No!" the voice of the dragon rang out, loud and clear, reverberating around the train. Another sharp gasp, clearly from Rarity. "But...wait, what? Spikey?" A sniffle. Applejack squinted; her eyes were starting to get adjusted to the dark, but all she could see was a silhouette of Spike. It seemed like he was wiping away tears. That...that made no sense. Why would he be upset about this? Wouldn't this be the best opportunity of his life? "Rarity," Spike whispered among sniffles. "Rarity, I...I was going to tell you that if you want to date Applejack, I'm perfectly alright with that." Wait. What? It was like the cowpony had just been hit with a wrecking ball, she was so surprised. The impact of the shock hit her so hard she actually stumbled, eyes going wide and chest heaving in horror. "Spike, what? Why would she wanna date-" But the dragon clearly wasn't done. "I've seen how you look at her, and I'm pretty sure she likes you back. So go ahead and like her." His voice became flat, dull, emotionless. "I'm fine with it." "No!" A hard edge came into Applejack's voice then; it was a hard tone she hadn't meant to inflict but now that it was there she was going to roll with it. "Ah've had years to tell Rare how Ah felt, and it's mah fault for not actin' on it sooner! So you go ahead! You've helped her and impressed her for so much longer than Ah have anyways!" "But she's using me as something that's not love!" The train pulled out of the tunnel; they were nearly at Ponyville now, and AJ could see that Spike was openly crying now, tears dripping down his face and bubbling in his green eyes. "She loves you, Applejack! And I'm not going to stop that!" "She loves you, Spike, and you deserve her, much more than Ah ever have!" "You're going to have her!" "You will!" "You!" "You!" "EVERYPONY, QUIIIIIIET!" The final scream came from Pinkie, whose eyes were fiery and mane already starting to deflate ever-so-slightly. "I wanted you to tell the secret so that you wouldn't be sad, but now I realize that you are sad! And not just you!" She pulled aside to reveal the tear-stricken face of a white unicorn, staring at the pony and dragon fighting over her. She wasn't making any noise. She was just crying. "Why can't you let Rarity have a say in this?" Pinkie demanded, one hoof on her hip. Both Applejack and Spike stopped and stared; AJ's eyes went wide as she realized what she had done while Spike continued to cry. "Rarity," he whispered ever so quietly, moving forward as to stroke her comfortingly, but as his claw moved closer, Rarity's lip trembled; she jerked away. "Don't touch me!" The shriek was audible above the screech of the train coming to a complete stop. They were in Ponyville now. But neither Spike nor Applejack cared. "Celestia, Rare, Ah'm so sorry -" "We didn't realize -" "We weren't trying to hurt you, Ah honestly swear -" "Quit it!" Rarity shrieked again, getting up with horn glowing as she levitated the saddle bag containing the precious shells onto her back. "Quit it right now! Leave me alone!" The tears fell even harder as she turned and cantered away; the last thing both Spike and Applejack could hear was a loud sob. They stared at eachother. Crestfallen. Heartbroken. Not quite sure what to say. But Pinkie had the right words. "...you blew it. Both of you blew it." The End... ... ... nope! To be continued in Garbled coming from Drizzle Quill soon! Author's Note HA! Bet that wasn't what you thought I was gonna pull, huh? Now you'll have to read the final installment in the trilogy, which is going to be around 20 chapters and will switch off POVs. Aren't I evil? >:) ...I hope you enjoyed! c: (PS: If you really, truly hated the ending, please go to my profile and read my blog, titled "Anypony that reads the Misconception Trilogy please read")
One: Her DragonClear By Drizzle Quill One Her Dragon The words continued to ring in Applejack’s ears, days after they had been spoken. She had tried to get them out – she had tried, yes, with every way possible – and it simply hadn’t worked. There was no simpler way to put it. It hadn’t worked. The words were as fresh as when Rarity had uttered them. “I’m sorry, Applejack, darling…I cannot commit to a relationship right now. I fear something between us wouldn’t be…smooth, and my first tru-u-ue special somepony must be one who can take things slowly, not take life by the horns and ride it.” It had been a whole lot to take in, but she had soaked it in like an eager sponge, and now she was sorely wishing that she hadn’t. Because it hurt. It hurt horribly. AJ had thought that maybe she had had a chance after the Father’s Day incident, in which by pure chance Rarity’s talkative father, Magnum, believed they were dating. After her secret was spilled, the farmpony had been forced to wait for the unicorn’s decision, and it had come. It wasn’t what she had wished to hear. Letting out a loud moan, Applejack twisted left and right, rolling herself up in her bedsheets so tight that it was hard to take in one deep breath. Sighing, she loosened the grip and stared out her window at the night sky, where millions of stars twinkled at her, taunting her from their deep sapphire perch, up high in the sky. “Shut up,” she grumbled at them. As expected, there was no answer. What was there to expect? The stars would start talking to her? Huh. Likely. In all seriousness, Applejack was truly in quite a sour mood. For so long she had admired and dreamed of the beautiful white unicorn’s love, and here she was, heart splintered into a million pieces, whining in her bed. Hooves tapped on wood; a knock came at the farmpony’s door. AJ jerked her head up, surprised by the sudden noise. “C-Come in?” she stuttered, attempting to wriggle out of her sheets and letting out a surprised yelp as she landed splayed on the ground , surrounded by patterned blankets. Looking up backwards, she smiled weakly, seeing a confused Apple Bloom standing above her. “Applejack?” the little filly asked curiously as her older sister straightened up, letting out a weak chuckle as she did so. “Why were ya on the ground?” “Ah fell off of the bed.” An honest truth. She wasn’t the Element of Honesty for nothing. “Oh.” Apple Bloom blinked, looking around the room. “Why were ya awake? It’s, like, midnight.” “Ah couldn’t sleep.” AJ wished she was a unicorn so that rearranging her sheets would just be that much easier. Unfortunately, this was a bad idea, as the thoughts of unicorns sent her recent failure with Rarity spinning back into her head. The filly cocked an eyebrow. “Why couldn’t ya?” “Thinking about stuff.” “What kind o’ stuff?” “Not the kind o’ stuff fillies normally think about, that’s for sure.” Ruffling her sister’s candy-apple red mane, Applejack let out a weak smile and clambered onto her bed, enveloping herself into the covers. “It’s time for y’all to scurry along now and head into bed.” She blew a piece of straw-blonde mane out of her green eyes and smiled, hoping Apple Bloom would take the hint. AB was as stubborn as her sister. “But Ah want to know!” Applejack sighed. “No, yah don’t.” “Yes, Ah do!” “No, yah don’t!” A loud wail burst from the filly’s mouth, surprising both of them. “Yes, Ah do!” Three breaths in. Three breaths out. AJ sighed and smiled. “Now, now, Apple Bloom. Y’all shouldn’t be worrying yer head about somethin’ like this.” Blinking, a new question surfaced in her mind. “Why are ya here anyways?” Sticking out her bottom lip, the filly let out a soft whimper and looked away, amber eyes trailing to the ground. “Ah…Ah…” She winced and looked back, connecting her gaze with her sister’s jade one. “Ah had a night-terror, okay? And Ah was scared, and Ah thought I could snuggle with you! Like when Ah was a little pony!” Eyes softening, Applejack scooted over and grinned as she heard the happy squeal emanating from her sister as Apple Bloom buried herself next to the older pony. Even if she was younger, AB had always provided good advice. Perhaps if Ah state it in an obscure way... "Hey Bloom?" Weary amber eyes blinked back up at her in response. "If ya had a problem with a friend of yours, and ya wanted to try to fix that problem even if yer friend didn't, what would ya do?" Apple Bloom peeked out from under the sheets, expression confused. "Is that what you were so worried about?" She giggled, the echoes shuddering throughout her entire body and causing the covers to quake. "Oh, Applejack! That's easy!" Applejack cocked her head, wondering how her little sister had seemingly managed to figure something out that had been troubling her for the last four or so days. "So? What is it?" she asked, a little bit too excited. "Well, if Ah was in a fight with Sweetie Belle an' Scootaloo, Ah would let it sit for a few days or somethin' so that they would have time to think it over, and then later Ah would come back in and ask them again, and usually they've changed their minds!" Apple Bloom smiled. "Foalproof!" But her sister had stopped listening after the 'ask them again' part, and had begun to stare out the window, jade eyes dazed over with realization. ...she's right. Sweet Celestia, she's absolutely right! "Applejack? Applejack!" Hooves prodding into her back caused the farmpony to jerk upward before whipping around and seeing her sister staring at her with amber eyes wide. "Was mah answer good?" she asked, a slight tremble echoing in her voice. Applejack let her breath out and ruffled her sister's mane. "The very best," she murmured in the yellow ear. "Good." Apple Bloom yawned, a long, lasting yawn that truly signified exhaustion. "G'night, AJ." Placing one hoof over her sister's back and pulling her close, Applejack replied in her sister's ear, "G'night, Apple Bloom," and sighed as they snuggled closer together, feeling the warmth from her body soak into her own skin, making her feel fully relaxed. "Thank ya for all you've done tonight." Her dreams were filled with hearts, genius sisters, and gorgeous white unicorns. "So you're really leaving for three weeks? Three weighty weeks without Dashie and Flutters? But how will Pinkie-Winkie survive that long? ...YOU HAVE TO WRITE!" "Sheesh, Pinkie! Of course we'll write! It's just a little trip around Equestria, nothing big. See the sights, take part in all of the flashy lights. We'll have so many pictures to show you it'll be unreal!" "I still want to know why I couldn't come, though! We could have parties every night, in the big cities with the flashy lights and the party cannon and..." "It's private, Pinkie. P-R-I-V-A-T-E." Applejack trotted up the hill, heart pounding as Winona bounced along at her heels. It was time for the Pony-Pet Playdate, but it seemed now that most of the discussion was revolving around the two pegasi of the group. Curiosity peaked, the farmpony headed closer to hear what the awfully quiet Fluttershy was now saying. "Yes...I know you'd like to come, Pinkie Pie, but we've had it booked for months, and..." "Booked for months?" came the elegant voice of Rarity. Just knowing that she was there made Applejack's heart leap up five feet. She could do this! She could totally do this! She had her mind set on a plan and now there was no moving her from it! She was as firm as rock, she was as set as stone, she was... "AJ!" A squeal emanated from the pink earth pony as she bounded towards their farmpony friend, landing upon her in a giant Pinkie-squishaloo hug. "You seem really floppy today!" Pinkie giggled. "Like jelly! Or Jell-o! But what kind of Jell-O is orange?" Another burst of laughter escaped her mouth. "Oh! Silly me! Of course it's orange-cream-marmalade-mint-banana-squish mix!" She looked over fondly at the alligator in a circle with the other pets. "Gummy's favorite!" "Allllright...howdy, everypony! How're y'all today?" AJ asked quickly, trying to divert the conversation from Pinkie's strange jibber-jabber. She had never spent a whole lot of time with Pinkie, and found her irksome, despite the fact they were good friends. Rarity smiled. "Fabulous! We're talking with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy about their upcoming vacation. Apparently they're going to all of the big cities!" She sighed and rolled her eyes. "First you, Twilight, being a princess and all, and then you two, flying around the land like you two own it! When will I have my big adventure?" Ah'd like it if we could have an adventure together, right here. The words wouldn't come out of AJ's mouth; instead she managed a shaky smile. "Alright...that's great. Really! I hope that you two enjoy yerselves." Fluttershy smiled, ducking behind her long pink mane and blushing slightly as she replied, "Why, thank you, Applejack. That's very kind of you. Rainbow and I will have a wonderful time, I'm sure of it." Her wings fluttered slightly at the mention of her spectrum-maned companion and then settled back at her side again. Twilight nodded. "I'm sure that you two will get to experience tons of things that I never would, as a princess." She blushed and looked self-consciously at her wings, which AJ figured must still be rather an awkward burden to carry. As the conversation picked up, Applejack slowly found herself zoning out. Talks of wild parties and midnight thrills just didn't interest her as much as her upcoming confession with Rarity. Taking deep breaths in and out, she trotted slightly in one place. You can do this, AJ. You can do this. You can win 'er over and make her see that you're the one she needs. "Everypony! Just like Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, I have an announcement of my own to make!" The sound of Rarity's voice snapped the farmpony out of her thoughts; she looked up to see the unicorn smiling at Twilight, who rolled her eyes and nodded. "Twilight already knows what has taken place in my, er, shall we call it...personal life, do you not, Twilight?" "I do," the alicorn replied. "Well, it's time the rest of you know!" Blue eyes afire, Rarity gazed around as if expecting the others to be ecstatic about the idea of hearing news - and some of them were, notably Pinkie, who leapt up and down, quivering all over. Applejack took a deep breath in. After this. After this you'll do it, AJ. You can tell her how ya feel, and then she'll remember the Father's Day incident, and how Magnum thought we were perfect for each other, an' - The next words blew her thoughts out of the sky. "I've decided to start a relationship with dear Spikey-Wikey!" Author's Note This is more of an introduction chapter, and the story will start picking up next chapter. Reading and reviewing is appreciated!
Two: Her FatherClear By Drizzle Quill Two Her Father Mixed emotions burst out from all of the gathered ponies in the circle; Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie gasped in surprise, pulling their hooves to their mouths to shelter their shock, while Twilight simply smiled and rolled her violet eyes. Rainbow Dash stuck out her tongue, but she had a sly smile on her face. And Applejack? Applejack stared in horror. That couldn't be right. After the whole Father's Day incident...there simply was no way that Rarity could simply have rebounded and headed straight in another direction instead! After she had realized the feelings AJ had sheltered for so long... She had just walked away to form a relationship with a dragon instead? Rarity broke the silence first, with an apprehensive giggle. "I'm very excited about this. I believe that this relationship will be calm and smooth, and will take life very seriously." It was like a hundred pounds of bricks had just fallen out of the sky and smashed AJ into the ground. Those words...those were the same words she had used while trying to explain why she couldn't have a relationship with her! So Spike, of all creatures, could make her relationship smooth? Pinkie let out a squeal and began to bounce in a circle around her friends, provoking a reaction from each of them except for one: Applejack, who was staring off into the distance, mind boggled. "Ooh, this is so exciting~! I have to throw a Pinkie Pie Party for Rarity-getting-a-new-special-somepony-except-he's-a-dragon-so-I-guess-that-makes-him-a-special-somedragon!" The words soared through one of Applejack's ears and right out the other as she pondered the horrid failure she had undergone on this day. Why me? What did Ah do wrong? Apple Bloom has the best idea in all o' Equestria, and Sweet Celestia, something goes wrong? "We can't do the party, Pinks," Rainbow pointed out, ruffling her wings as she did so. Pinkie stopped bouncing in midair, blue eyes wide and confused. "Why not?" she whimpered, almost like a little baby that was confused and wanted her mother. "The trip." After a few seconds, the pegasus added for emphasis, "Duh." "Oh yeah! Silly dilly Twinkie Pinkie! How could I have forgotten about your big...amazing...wonderful trip...without me?" The last words sounded forced, like Pinkie was lying through her teeth, but Rainbow was clearly so dense to it that she just grinned. "I need to get Tank home for his mealtime," the pegasus noted, glancing around to see how the sun lined up in the sky. Wings popping out from her sides, she ruffled the feathers. "Come on, Tank!" she called to the tortoise behind her, and then to her friends, "Goodbye!" As Rainbow Dash soared off, Fluttershy too ducked her head. "I have to hurry on home also. My poor little critters...I promised them we could have a tea party, and if I'm late they'll get very worried." She smiled, a very small smile. "You understand..." Teal eyes flashed with worry. "Right?" "Of course, darling! We're fine," Rarity assured her. "Go on home to your furry animals and things." In a similar manner, Twilight left (she had to go work with her new princess duties and truly didn't want to be late) as well as Pinkie, who claimed she had to go and take care of Pound and Pumpkin Cake back at Sugarcube Corner. Just like that they were both gone. And just like that, it was only Applejack and Rarity left. The silence was extreme, and it was awkward, and suddenly Applejack had an itch, right on the back of her neck where it was hardest to reach, but she wasn't going to try to scratch up against a tree because that would be just as awkward as if she was the first one to speak and so they both sat there and watched Opalescence taunt Winona from the top branches of a large tree. To AJ's relief, Rarity was the first one to speak. "Lovely weather we're having, is it not?" The typical weather conversation. Easy, convenient, and perfect for awkward situations such as this one. Applejack nodded. "Shucks, Ah'd say the pegasi have outdone themselves. They must have worked their tail-feathers off to make the sky this nice lookin'." The unicorn nodded, sapphire eyes glowing. "Positively gorgeous! Perfect for the walk around Ponyville Spike and I will take later tonight." A rumbling, bubbling, sick feeling began to appear in the farmpony's stomach; with a cheery grin she pushed it down. "Is that so? Well, I do hope y'all have a mighty fine time." Rarity blinked and turned to face her, an expression of confusion upon her face, as if that was not what she had expected Applejack to say. "...Thank you, Applejack," she said, forcing out a large smile. "I'm most sure that we will." That was when AJ realized it: Rarity hadn't forgotten the Father's Day incident - far from it, as a matter of fact. She was just trying to push it out of mind. Somehow that made things both better and worse. It meant that Rarity was just confused. She didn't know who to love - she was on the brink of deciding where to go, and she needed somepony to show her the way, somepony to make her decision clear. Applejack intended to be that pony. But she couldn't come up with a plan right there, with Rarity's intense blue gaze staring her down. "Ah-Ah got to go home, Rare," she stuttered, trying to think up an honest excuse. "Gotta do some chores around the farm." That was a truth - she did have the pigs to wash. "Maybe we can talk again sometime soon?" "Yes." The snowy unicorn dipped her head, eyes sparkling as AJ turned away. "Yes, I think I'd like that." As Applejack approached the farm, Winona bounded at her heels, every few seconds emitting a happy little yip, before streaking off as she noticed three figures bouncing around the apple farm, squealing and cheering. AJ recognized them before their figures could get clear, and she smiled. "I'm gonna get my cutie mark in apple-bucking first!" "Are you crazy? Ah'm the actual apple bucker 'ere!" "You're both wrong! My awesomeness will cause me to win!" "Howdy, girls," Applejack called as she trotted past the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who had stopped their current task to bicker and fret among themselves. Noticing the farmpony, however, they leapt up and all chased after her, yelling her name over and over again until AJ reluctantly stopped. "Hiya, Applejack!" the orange pegasus filly Scootaloo proclaimed, holding up one hoof for a high-hoof, which the farmpony returned, allowing herself a casual grin. "How're you today?" "Ah'm fine," she returned, as Apple Bloom pushed her friend off to one side to receive the whole of her sister's attention. "We're tryin' to get our cutie marks in farm-caretakin'!" she announced, tipping her head back and lifting her chin ever so slightly with obvious pride. "Ah think that Ah'll get mine first, because Ah actually live here! Don't you think so, Applejack? Don't you think so?" Once again, before she could reply, the filly was pushed out of the way, but this time by the white unicorn Applejack recognized as Rarity's sister, Sweetie Belle. "Well, I don't think any of us are going to get out cutie marks at this," she complained in her high, slightly-squeaky voice. "We're all terrible! Look at us!" It was true; the three were a mess, all covered in bark and tree sap. Applejack smiled. "Ah suppose y'all might want to take a bit of a rest." "But...! Aw, you're right, sis. Maybe we'll get our cutie marks at the school play tomorrow night!" Apple Bloom remarked, turning first from her sister to her friends, who nodded in agreement before they all burst into their usual, ear-splitting cheer. "CUTIE MARK CRUSADER PLAY PERFORMERS, YAY!" Applejack allowed a small chuckle before all three were talking at once; Apple Bloom snatched onto her sister's leg and begged, "Please, y'all will be coming, right?" with amber eyes as large as Celestia's sun, while Scootaloo chattered about how playing the villain would be the best thing ever. But what Sweetie Belle was saying caught AJ's attention more than the rest. "Well, my mom and dad are going to be there! Actually, they're already here! They arrived this morning!" Magnum was here, in Ponyville? The pony that started this whole mess with Rarity's emotions in the first place? In an instant, Applejack knew what she had to do. Tipping her hat back, she leaned down so that she was eye-to-eye with Sweetie, who also had green eyes, though they were a much lighter shade than her own. "Sugahcube, do ya think ya could show me where yer dad is?" After a brief moment's hesitation, Sweetie furrowed her brow and nodded firmly. "Come on! He's probably at the Boutique!" Maybe it wouldn't take too long to tip Rarity's perspective after all - not if one of the ponies who knew her best was here, now. Maybe it wouldn't take long at all. "Applejack! Oh, wow, it's been how many days since I saw you last?" Hastily shaking the white hoof of an over-eager Magnum, AJ smiled, feeling the familiar heat of a blush rising into her cheeks. "About a week," she answered. "It's a mighty pleasure to see you again." "You too, you too!" Magnum finally stopped shaking her hoof, though it had been shook for so long that Applejack was astounded to find that her orange hoof continued to vibrate up and down in the air. That was annoying! What kind of pony did that to others? "So sorry Rarity couldn't be here to see you drop by - she's off with some other pony. Spike, or something like that?" "Yup," AJ muttered, not even willing to point out the fact that Spike was nowhere near a pony. "Ah was wondering if Ah could ask you about something." "My cutie mark?" Magnum asked, sitting down and brandishing the three footballs that made him so proud. "Did I ever tell you the story of this thing? It makes me so proud to this day..." His blue eyes got a dazed look in them as he stared off into space, somewhere beyond Applejack's head. "So proud...Fiery Splash dove at me, you know, looking as big as a table, trying to knock the ball out of my hooves, but did I give up? No! I rolled - yes, you heard me, rolled - out of his way and began to eagerly canter towards the goal, knowing that I was being chased on all sides by ponies bigger than I would ever get..." "Magnum?" Applejack interrupted as politely as she could. "Can Ah just please talk to you now?" He stopped talking and looked up at her, blinking blue eyes once. "Sure!" A deep breath went in and then came out. They were alone - Sweetie Belle was helping her mother cook over in the kitchen - and so it shouldn't have been any problem. Just ask. Just ask 'im, Applejack. "Well," she started, slowly at first. "Ah was wonderin'...since ya know Rarity real well and all...how could one, say...impress 'er?" Applejack regretted the words as soon as they came out of her mouth; in shame, she pulled her hat down over her brown and looked away, a rosy blush heating in her cheeks and ears, causing them to fold backwards almost flat against her head. Magnum smiled and let out a long, hearty laugh. "Impress her? Why, my little Rare is an easy one to impress! If you do her a favor, any favor that means more than a 'good job' to her, why then she'll be as impressed as anything!" Any favor that means more than a simple 'good job' will impress her? Just like that? AJ was stunned. Though she had imagined it would be easy, she hadn't thought it would be oh-so-simple. Now she just had to find some way to impress her... Slowly Magnum stopped smiling and gave her an inquisitive look. "Why?" Applejack was saved from having to answer by a loud knock on the door and a squeal of "Applejack! Applejack! It's time for ya to do your chores! Granny Smith says!" "Aw, shoot. Looks like Ah have to go. Bye, Magnum! Nice talkin' to ya!" the farmpony announced loudly as she backed out of the door, trying to avoid any type of conversation whatsoever. With a last grin and a little wave, she whipped open the door, slid out, and slammed it behind her. All Ah have to do is complete some sorta big favor...but how? Author's Note Alright, I've decided. This is going to be a trilogy. No secret information, though. None. I won't give you any spoilers. None at all! NONE! ... Fine. The title for the third will be called "Garbled." Not a Misconception, and not Clear, but Garbled. Please read and review! ~Driz
Three: Her GemstonesClear By Drizzle Quill Three Her Gemstones By knowledge, Rarity was normally an easy unicorn to impress; give her a few gemstones with a note and some flowers and she'd be sold. But Applejack knew that she wanted to take a different route. If she wanted to dazzle Rarity, she had to really dazzle her. Make a big bedazzling show of it. Shoot something out of the party cannon, maybe. Herself? It also had to be big because it had to break the connection between her and Spike. Now, AJ liked Spike a whole lot - he was a cute little guy and all, and real helpful to Twilight - but he was a baby dragon, after all, and Rarity had probably latched on to his crush as a way to avoid answering the earth pony's questions. That irritated Applejack a whole lot, but she wasn't going to show it. No, she had to find a way to snap the romantic impulses between Rarity and Spike and impress Rarity at the same time. AJ put a hoof to her temple and groaned. "How in the hoof am Ah supposed to do that?" She was currently sitting on a park bench outside of Carousel Boutique, taking in the nice morning breeze and the creatures hopping, flitting, or walking about. Ponies passed by but didn't give her a second glance, which was good. Applejack needed a bit of time to think. Slowly she removed her hat from her head and began to play with it, hooves twisting the folds and feeling the roughness of the material. Somehow this soothed her, calming her nerves and helping her mind to concentrate. It always had, and she reckoned it always would, even when she was an old timer like Granny Smith. Her friends were nowhere in sight - Twilight was back at the library, she guessed, while Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were preparing their big trip. Rarity was out walking with Spike somewhere, if Magnum could be trusted to tell the truth - this made Applejack bite her lip, but she continued thinking, trying not to linger on it for too long - so that was everypony except... "Hi, Applejack!" Suddenly she was hit from behind by a force like a cow, slamming her off of the bench and landing her deep in the mud. It squelched against her face, causing her to scowl and groan. "Pinkie Pie," she muttered, as a way of answering her thought. "Oh my gosh!" The weight suddenly lifted, and pink flashes began to spin around AJ's head. "How did you know it was me? That's so crazy! It totally wasn't because of my voice or anything, was it, Applejack? Was it, was it, was it?" Green eyes spinning almost hypnotically, the pony in the mud pushed one hoof up after another, eventually coming into a wobbly standing position, and groaned. "It wasn't that hard," she muttered, as true to her element as she'd ever be. Finally, finally, Pinkie came to a halt, and Applejack could finally see her clearly from her wobbly, muddy position. Pinkie, despite just having knocked another pony into the mud, seemed perfectly clean and shiny, pink mane poofy as always and blue eyes sparkling with crystal clear excitement. "Aww," she said, not really looking too upset about it. "Guess I'll have to be even sneakier next time!" AJ's heart sank. "N-Next time?" she asked weakly. "Well, actually...I guess that won't be for a while," Pinkie admitted, blinking and staring slightly above Applejack's head as if she wasn't even there. "Since, you know, we're going on that adventure, for like, a few days!" Applejack's jaw legitimately dropped. "Say what?" "Applejack, darling, I'm so sorry this is of such short notice, but I do hope you'll understand that we simply must have you and Pinkie accompany us," Rarity said, blue eyes quite clearly pleading. "We can't navigate the Appleloosan Mountains without you, and Pinkie has promised to provide the food and snack supplies...so please, puh-lease will you come?" They were now standing in the Ponyville Garden. It truly was a very beautiful day outside, especially in the garden, where the sun shone with an elegant radiance and the birdsong was light and airy. But a certain farmpony wasn't taking any of this in. Today had been a chaotic day, and it had just gotten much, much stranger. Head still spinning, Applejack held up one hoof as a meaning of saying 'hold everything.' Once again she repeated the words she had repeated at least three times already. "You want us to go and find you some gemstones? On a three day trip?" "Oh, but not just any gemstones, darling," Rarity yelped, seemingly quite shocked by this assumption. "Topaz shells," Spike piped up from his spot next to Rarity. The dragon looked so overjoyed that AJ almost went over there and smacked his smug little face. But she was too nice to do that, and Spike had never done anything to her. Except for this, but she doubted he even knew what he was doing. “Topaz shells! Are they rare, Rarity? Are they, are they, are they?” Pinkie squealed, hopping up and down in excitement. “The prettiest,” Rarity agreed, tipping her head ever so slightly so that her violet curls bounced just in front of her face in a way that made Applejack's heart leap. Not as pretty as you, Rare. Applejack was snapped out of her thoughts when Rarity giggled a little bit with excitement. “I just can’t believe I got a request to make dresses for the Crystal Ponies! The Crystal Ponies, Applejack, can you believe that? I knew I needed Topaz shells right away because they are truly excellent for reflecting the precise amount of beauty in crystals.” Pinkie giggled too. "I can't wait to go! I can't wait, I can't wait, I can't wait!" She hopped up and down in one place so much Applejack was surprised that her brain didn't just bounce on right out of her noggin. Rarity said something to her, and then Spike spoke, and slowly the conversation drowned out, replaced by AJ’s own thoughts that were now flocking to her head like one of Fluttershy’s boring butterfly migrations. Wait a hoof-lickin’ minute here… “We’ll have the best of times,” Rarity agreed, ruffling Spike on the head as she did so and smiling with an awfully excited look in her sapphire blue eyes. If Ah can maybe get ‘lost’ on this trip and go by mahself to find those fancy-shmancy shells… “Bummer the others have to miss out on it,” Spike noted, green eyes flickering downwards at the realization that he wouldn’t be able to travel with his other friends, most notably his sister figure, Twilight. She’ll be real impressed. Reeeaaal impressed. “Don’t worry, Spikey-Wikey,” the unicorn said to him, patting him gently on his soft purple scales. “It will only be for a few days, and soon you’ll be able to sleep in the library again.” And she’ll realize… “You always know just what to say, Rarity,” Spike murmured, placing one claw over her shoulder and grinning with a moony look glazed over those green eyes. Pinkie made a small ‘aww’ noise in the back of her throat, causing both the unicorn and dragon to flush red. That the one that’s perfect for her… “We-e-ll, I try my best,” Rarity murmured, blushing furiously at the unexpected compliment; looking up at the rest of the group, she remarked, “Pinkie, Applejack, you ought to go start packing now…” Is me! “We leave tomorrow morning.” Author's Note Shorter chapter is short. Oh well. Hope you enjoy!
Four: Her ConfusionClear By Drizzle Quill Four Her Confusion As Applejack slowly exited the train, she began to wonder if she was doing the correct thing. Rarity was obviously happy with Spike. Obviously might be an understatement - she was clearly very happy with the little dragon, and the earth pony didn't want to ruin this. She should be just happy seeing Rarity happy. Right? ...so why wasn't she feeling happy? It wasn't right. Maybe this was a bad idea. After all, Spike had been fawning after Rarity for years, that much was clear. "Hey, AJ? You coming, silly filly?" Pinkie called from about ten feet ahead; Applejack blinked her green eyes and shook her head to clear the confusing thoughts. "Yeah, Ah'm coming." Just forget about it, AJ. Have fun. Try to act normal. You'll figure this out later. Rarity looked just as lovely as ever, with a gorgeous scarf slung fabulously around her neck, white highlights accenting her blue eyes better than ever. Spike rode atop her back; one could practically see the hearts floating in his eyes as he hugged her neck and sighed. Applejack bit back a fierce burst of envy and simply smiled. "So, where are we gonna get these here gemstones?" The question was directed at Rarity, but Spike answered instead. "They're in a cave a little bit past the train station," the dragon stated proudly, grinning at knowing the answer. Rarity smiled at him and made a little clicking noise with her tongue. "Adorable," she cooed, "but I'm afraid that isn't the right answer." Spike's face fell. "But..." "I know that's what I said...but it seems I was incorrect." Face flushing, the unicorn's horn lit up with a bright blue aura; her saddlebag strap opened and out came a neatly folded map, each crease perfectly made so that it truly looked like the work of an artist such as Rarity. The map opened by use of the levitation, and after clearing her throat with a few loud 'ah-hems,' the unicorn began to speak. "As you can see, I had this point, about a ten minute walk from here, marked." She nodded her head at a point circled in a fancy blue spiral. Applejack and Pinkie Pie nodded their heads simultaneously. "But as we were on the train, I spoke to the kind mare next to me, and she told me that if I wanted some of the topaz shells, there was also another route, one through a delightful forest right outside the buffalo village." Taking a ballpoint pen from her saddlebag, Rarity circled another point, not too far away from the first. "But which one is more likely to have the shells?" Applejack asked, a hint of confusion creeping into her voice. "That's the thing, really." Rarity sighed and blushed. "They're both equally likely, and equally difficult. I'm not quite sure what to do." All were silent for a moment - even Pinkie Pie, who was stroking her chin with one hoof in consideration. Applejack had her own thoughts about the whole scenario - wouldn't a forest be much nicer to travel through then a cave? Ah mean, not like Ah have a problem with gettin' mah hooves dirty every once in a while, but poor Rare... - but decided not to speak them aloud, instead waiting until someone else piped up with their idea. And someone did. "How about we just split into groups of two and each group goes to one location?" Spike suggested warily. All of the ponies stared at him; the little dragon shrunk under their stare. "Was...was that not a good idea?" Pinkie's blue eyes lit up, dancing in the sunlight. "Not just a good idea, silly! A great one!" "How did you come up with that, darling?" Rarity asked, taking one hoof and propping an astonished Spike back up into a straight posture. As the praise filtered through one ear and out the other, Applejack did have to admit that yes, it was a pretty darn good idea. Now if only she could find some way to partner up with Rarity, exploring the beautiful forest with her; a wonderfully romantic scene under the hot sun of Appleloosa as the leaves danced in the wind and the sun dappled bright colors onto the ground... Squelch. Mud. She had stepped in mud. Again. Inwardly groaning, Applejack lifted her orange hoof and shook it wildly, causing the droplets of chocolate-like substance to go flying everywhere. Sure, she didn't mind a little mud every now and then, but this? This was absolutely ridiculous. And of course, she had to put up with the constant babbling. It was horrible. She would rather be alone with Spike, and given her current grudge against him, that was saying something. "And so I told Dashie that it was totally okay if she went away on her vacation even though I was really, really sad because that meant I wouldn't be able to see or talk to her or Flutters, which meant they couldn't come to any of my parties, but really it was okay because it was totally obvious that once they were alone they were going to whisper cute things to each other and smo-" "Pinkie Pie." Aforementioned pony stopped bouncing relentlessly up and down in a pile of mud, turning with blue eyes bright and lashes fluttering angelically. "Yes, Applejack?" she chirped. "Can you stop babblin' about Celestia knows what and actually start helpin' me find these here gemstones?" Pinkie's ears drooped and her eyelids lowered, but she simply nodded, giving a small, "Oh," and was silent. Applejack exhaled. Much better. Now she and her own private thoughts could once again resume the council that was currently going on in her brain. One side? Let Rarity have her own feelings. This side had been quiet ever since the rejection, mainly because she wanted so badly to have Rarity for herself. But now, seeing how the unicorn was happy with her dragon, she needed to face facts. There were other fish in the sea, and if she tried to take Rarity for her own, she needed to consider Spike in all of this too. But the other side had its valid reasons as well. Though they weren't as moral as the first side's, Applejack impulsively had been leaning toward them all this time. Rarity is yours. Spike has no reason to take her from you. It was true that ever since they were both fillies in school together, a small romantic blossom had formed. But now? Now that Spike had just come prancing in a week after the rejection? That wasn't fair. A war was raging in her head, and one side had to win. One was morally correct; the other feeding off of AJ's hopes and desires. Which one to choose? The war was temporarily interrupted by a pink pony prancing in the middle of the battlefield, calling a name over and over again. "AJ?" The farm pony's eyes snapped open. Pinkie Pie was waving one hoof in front of her face, eyes expressing concern. "Applejack?" she asked, almost in a quiet, most certainly un-Pinkie way. "What's wrong?" Shaking her head, Applejack put one hoof over her hat to secure it. "What're ya talkin' about?" She sighed and stared at the ground. "Nothing's wrong, Pinkie. Ah'm fine. Just a little worked up is all." "That's not it," Pinkie snarled, eyes narrowing. Ears lowering, the orange coated mare stared in horror. How was it that that mare seemed to know everything about everypony - including their emotions at any given time? "Ah promise you that it is," she hurriedly lied; a bad lie, and both she and Pinkie knew it. As Element of Honesty, lying had never, not once been her forte. Pinkie Pie was not going to take this for an answer. Planting herself in front of Applejack she reached out one hoof and placed it on top of the mare's forehead; with her other foreleg and her tail she blocked the other ways through the cave. "Well, listen here, missy," Pinkie spat, eyes narrowed in complete concentration. "I'd like a correct answer and I'd like it stat! You've been acting funny all week! You didn't even have fun at the 'Goodbye Flutters and Dashie' party! I want to know why!" Placing one hoof on Pinkie's shoulder, AJ looked directly into the mare's eyes and exhaled. "Listen here, Pinks. This is some goopy romantic business you don't want to get yer little body tangled up in. Ah know ya don't care a flying feather about it but-" She stopped and stared. Pinkie's face had just become completely and utterly calm. Was that pain in her eyes? ...what was wrong? "Romantic, huh?" the pink mare sighed, a bittersweet smile on her face. "That's alright, AJ. You don't have to tell me." Just like that, she backed off? What in Celestia's name was going on here? Narrowing her green eyes, Applejack took Pinkie's shoulder and began walking again, trying to ignore the squelch of the mud on her hooves and in the cave. "Are you alright, Pinks?" "I understand romantic confusion more than anypony thinks." The bittersweet smile hadn't left; honestly it was kind of sad. "After all, it's been at least three years, and she's not noticed me. Well, that's a lie. She's noticed me for certain, but she hasn't noticed, you know what I mean?" Applejack narrowed her eyes. Was Pinkie Pie - the Pinkie Pie, of all ponies - blushing? She opened her mouth - could Pinkie, the last possible pony in the history of EVER, give her advice on the war going on in her brain? - but stopped as her ears twitched, picking up a low rumble that shook the earth. Grrrrrmnt. "AJ?" Pinkie whispered, voice hardly more than a squeak. Grrrrrrrrmnt! "Was that just me?" GRRRRRRRRNMNT "No, that was defiantly not you." Applejack took her hoof off of the pink mare's shoulder and stood tense at attention, staring around her and waiting for something to happen, even though that was probably the stupidest thing she could have done right then. "That was something else." A boulder crashed behind them; Pinkie screamed and darted ahead to avoid getting gravel in her fur. The snort sounded once again, much, much louder this time. Above its roar, Applejack yelled, "AN' WE'D BEST RUN!" before the boulders began to fall, quickly, like an avalanche inside of a cave. The two mares took off sprinting, ignoring the mud, ignoring everything but their hot, panicked breaths and the ever louder rumble. "Rarity? You've seemed upset." "I know, Spikey...I...I'm fine. Really." "If you say so." "I do. I do." "...Is that a topaz shell, Rarity? Is it?" "No, Spike. That's a sapphire shell. Very different." "Oh...Rarity?" "Yes, Spike?" "Why do you seem so annoyed with me recently?" "What're you talking about? You know I love you very much." "...as a friend, or as a lover?" "Pardon?" "I've seen the way you look at Applejack. You're...you're conflicted, aren't you?" "...you are a very smart dragon, Spikey-Wikey." "..." "But I will never break your heart. You've impressed me so, helping out and being there for me whenever I need you...and I do love you, Spikey. I do. It's just...it's a business for mares. I...I don't think you'd understand. Even if I do feel something...I'm just...I'm so confused!" "...Rarity?" "Yes, Spikey?" "...are you crying?" Author's Note I know I said this chapter would be 4,000 words, but I decided to cut it into two parts.
Five: Her SuccessClear By Drizzle Quill Five Her Success "Run! For Celestia's sake, Pinkie, run!" The two earth ponies pounded through the cave, hooves slamming against the rocks, eyes wide, chests heaving, tongues lolling out of their mouths. Every once and a while Applejack would reach up and feel her head to make sure that her beloved hat was still there; it was, and she continued to run. The two had both run fast before. Applejack was reminded of the Running of the Leaves she had partaken in with Rainbow Dash, where she had been forced to use up all of her speed just to prove a stupid point. Princesses, Pinkie probably darted this fast regularly. But it had never seemed so life-threateningly necessary in either of those times. "Who dares to come in my cave?" something roared behind them; it was a very, very low voice, almost like what the earth would sound like if it could speak. "We didn't know this was yer cave!" AJ called over her shoulder between panicked breaths. "We'll leave if you stop being a meanie pants and trying to make us into pony pancakes by crushing us!" Pinkie screeched; the cowpony groaned as the roars intensified. "Pinkie, that ain't helpin' us one bit right now," she called over the rush of adrenaline in her ears, blocking out almost all sound as another boulder crashed behind her, nearly catching her back left foreleg. "I thought it would be nice to -" Pinkie was cut off as her tail twitched rapidly; she zipped to the side and watched as a boulder slammed right where she had been only moments before and resuming her sentence, "-let him know the truth!" AJ groaned but said nothing more, putting all of her strength into sprinting forward, around the boulders, coughing because of the smoke and rubble that flew in her face. How long did this tunnel go on? How long could she run like this? True, most Apple family members were known to have a lot of stamina, but at some point she was going to have to rest, and who knew how long Pinkie could keep up at the pace she was at. They were doomed. A stalactite fell from the ceiling and landed right next to Applejack's tail, nearly pinning it to the ground. Luckily she whipped it out of the way and silently thanked Celestia. That would have been a disaster. As they ran, the cowpony noticed that the tunnel was going to split into a fork up ahead. Two were pitch black, while the third was shining with a fluorescent light. Perhaps it led back out into Appleloosa? It made sense, right? AJ looked over to Pinkie and tipped her head to the left; Pinkie nodded and together they darted into the tunnel. For a moment, all they could hear was their own panicked breathing and the stillness of the cave. Whatever had been chasing them had stopped. Applejack started to wipe her brow, but suddenly... "AJ?" Pinkie called, voice starting to get breathless. "What?" "Do you see that?" Green eyes squinting, Applejack looked and stared. They had entered not the outside world, but an even deeper portion of the cave. The reason they had seen light was because of the treasure. So much treasure; so many jewels. They clashed in color and complimented each other beautifully. Some seemed to glow with radiance and some were dusty, not having been polished for what looked to be weeks. Applejack removed her hat and held it over her heart. "Sweet Celestia..." Pinkie's eyes were as wide as the moon. "Shiiiiiiiny..." Together the two earth ponies started towards the jewels, too entranced to realize what they were doing was most likely a horrible mistake. She loves Applejack, not me. I'm fine with that. Fine with it. A-OK. I have to be. Am I keeping her strong? Does she appreciate what I'm doing for her? "Applejack! Applejack! Look at this one!" A frilly hat was placed atop Pinkie's head, a feather sticking out of the pointed ends, and the fabric bedazzled with shimmering rubies. AJ clapped her hooves, nodding in approval. "Pretty spiffy. Bet Rare could use a design like that in her next ensemble. Can't take it with us, though." "Got it covered!" Pinkie scrutinized the hat, squinting her eyes until she just looked silly, though the expression on her face was dead serious. About thirty seconds later, she looked up and grinned. "It's etched forever in my brain!" AJ was incredulous. "Since when do you have a photographic memory?" Pinkie giggled. "Since never!" With a flying kick she sent the hat soaring to the other side of the pile; she rolled her blue eyes and began searching for a new piece of jewelry. Topaz shells...topaz shells. Shutting her eyes tight, Applejack wished she had a photographic memory to remember what the picture Rarity had shown them looked like. There were so many different types of jewels here there had to be at least a few topaz shells, right? They were spiral... ...they had patterns etched onto them... ...they were dark blue... ...were they circular of oval shaped? Applejack groaned and put her hoof to her head. "This hurts," she moaned out loud. "Ah'll just go an' look for the topaz shells. Ah'll have to run into a few sooner or later, an' Ah'll know 'em when Ah see 'em." So that is what she did, beginning at the right end of the pile and moving all the way to the left, scrutinizing every detail that she could find on any remotely blue shell-shaped objects, Pinkie bouncing along behind her with about thirty necklaces all clanging against each other around her neck, when they both heard it. The roar. The horribly loud, ear-shattering, heart-stopping roar. But I love Rarity. I really do. Doesn't that mean I should do what's best for her? If she's happy, shouldn't I be happy too? ...even if she's not with me? Applejack's head jerked up, and she yelped as a giant grey-gold talon smashed onto the ground next to her, creating a large dent in the ground and causing dirt and dust to stream upwards. Darting away, the orange mare watched in horror as into the cave stepped a dragon. It wasn't a terribly big dragon - this made sense, for the cave wasn't terribly big itself, but it was rather large, larger than at least two houses stacked on top of each other, with grey-golden scales and ebony spines going down its back. Its green eyes were narrowed, and sharp teeth were bared as its tail lashed, gaze fixated on the two earth ponies. Pinkie's ears lowered. "AJ?" "Yeah?" The word came out more as a grunt, a grunt of panic and fear. "We should probably go now." "You're not going anywhere," the dragon answered, voice low and rumbling. "Not until you explain why you're in my cave, and why you're taking my treasure." Applejack laughed, sweat pouring down the side of her head. "Treasure? Ha, what treasure?" All eyes turned to Pinkie and her thirty necklaces; the dragon snorted a puff of smoke, engulfing the room and causing the two ponies to cough loudly. "That's not very healthy," Pinkie wheezed, trying to blow it out of her face with one hoof. "You should really see a doctor about that." The dragon ignored her and instead gave another loud and thunderous roar. "Why have you come to my dwelling?" "We didn't know it was your dwelling, honest-to-Celestia!" Applejack called, placing a hoof over her hat to make sure that it didn't fly off. "We came here to gather some topaz shells for our good friend Rarity!" "Uh-huh!" Pinkie agreed, nodding her head rapidly. The dragon lifted an eyebrow. "Topaz shells? And why would she need topaz shells?" "She's a dressmaker," AJ called. "She makes the most fancy-shmancy designs you ever will see. Hats and gowns, tiaras and scarves, Rarity can make it." Talking about the white mare she had longed for for such a long time gave her strength; Applejack felt her chest puff out a little bit, and before she knew it, she was rambling, and she couldn't stop it, and Pinkie was staring and the dragon was just watching, eyes cold and expression, well, expressionless. "She's the prettiest mare in the world, Rarity. When she's happy, her smile could rival Celestia's sun and Luna's moon, rolled up into one. Her voice is like an angel - heck, her whole bein' is like an angel, like somepony from the stars come to tell me it's alright, that she's still here. Ever since Ah met her I thought she was an angel come to tell me...come to tell me..." The tears started to fall. "...come to tell me that mah parents are alright." Pinkie let out a gasp. Not an extravagant gasp, like she sometimes used, but an actual, honest to Celestia gasp. The dragon's eyes twitched ever so slightly at seeing the pony's tears. "Rarity is one of the kindest, most generous ponies Ah've ever met, ever. Ah need to help her, and Ah need to make her feel better...and Ah need these topaz shells to do that." Applejack's chest was heaving now, heaving because of the tears and heaving because of the smoke. "So please don't kill us, or eat us, or do whatever you were gonna do to us, because right now she's out there lookin' in the forest for the gems she needs, and if Ah bring them to her, she'll know..." Swallow. "She'll know Ah love her." Pinkie put her hooves to her mouth and the dragon's wings lowered. Slowly it turned as if to walk away, and AJ, for a moment, crying in the cave with nopony that understood but herself, wondered if all was lost. Of course it wouldn't care. It was a dragon. But Spike was a dragon too. And he cared about Rarity. Perhaps not as much as Applejack did, but he cared about her. And clearly she cared about him. AJ remembered what Pinkie had said, right before the rocks began to fall. She had been waiting for three years for the pony she loved to notice her. And if Pinkie Pie, the most impatient pony in the world, could wait, why couldn't she? "Here." The voice startled her; Applejack looked up to see a claw-ful of deep blue gems, gripped tightly in front of her. Slowly the dragon placed them on the ground; Pinkie hopped over and began to place them in her back as the cowpony stared up into the green eyes of the dragon, tears still flowing. "Why?" she whispered. "You deserve it," was the answer. "You go now. Go and tell her how you feel, before I get in a bad mood and eat you both for dinner." As they turned to exit the cave, Applejack thought about those words, and a decision was made. Ah'll tell her. Ah'll tell her it's alright that she's datin' Spike. Because Ah just want her to be happy. She can have him. Applejack smiled. Ah think she'll like that. I care about Rarity more than this. If she truly loves Applejack, I should let her have her. I'll tell her it's alright if she wants to date Applejack. Because I just want her to be happy. She can have her. Spike smiled. I think she'll like that. Author's Note Next chapter is the final chapter, which will most likely be the shortest. The title? "Her Decision." Oh, the suspense!
Six: Her DecisionClear By Drizzle Quill Six Her Decision The two groups arrived at the train station at roughly the same time, though it was easy to tell which group had succeeded and which had failed; Rarity and Spike's faces were crestfallen while Pinkie was all smiles and AJ was grinning. "We got them, we got them!" the magenta earth pony crowed, hopping around her unicorn and dragon friend. Spike grinned. "Great job!" "We didn't find any." Rarity's eyes narrowed; she looked steamed. "I'm starting to wonder if that lovely mare on the train was just pulling my hoof." "But it doesn't matter because we got them~!" Pinkie grinned like a madmare and began to dance - or something. AJ couldn't tell if she was trying to make cohesive movements or simply flopping on the ground. "They're in my saddlebag! See, see?" With pink hooves she thrust the bag to Rarity's muzzle, where the unicorn levitated it. Her blue eyes widened as she saw the topaz shells, and she even let out a little squeal of delight. Spike and AJ both smiled lopsidedly, watching her hop up and down. "These are so perfect! I can't believe it! Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Hoofing her ticket to the conductor, Rarity continued to fawn over the topaz shells as they got on the train, walking down the isle steadily. "However did you find them? Where were they?" the unicorn mare asked, inspecting them from every angle as they arrived at their seats; Rarity sat down right away in the first seat, but AJ and Spike both stayed back, looking at each other and ignoring the questions. Applejack blinked. What was he doing? She tipped her head at the seat next to Rarity, welcoming him to sit down. Spike shook his head and pointed with one finger at the seat. AJ narrowed her eyes. The little dragon...what they hay was he trying to pull off? She shook her head and motioned for him to sit down. The exchange continued, Pinkie watching in confusion, seemingly deciding she was bored with this, and plopping down next to Rarity to tell the oblivious mare all about the adventure she and Applejack had had (not all of it, of course. The cowpony had made certain Pinkie would leave out the end part). Spike and AJ looked at each other firmly and sat down together on the seat behind the two mares. "What they hay are ya doin'?" "The real question is what're you doing?" "Why don't you want to sit with yer special somepony?" "She's...well...I..." "Whatcha talking about?" Both of them jumped to see Pinkie Pie leaning over the backseat, blue eyes narrowed mischievously, one hoof under her chin and the other on the seat. "Why're ya arguing?" "We're not arguing," Spike covered quickly, shaking his head in earnest; Applejack nodded rapidly in agreement and both of them visibly winced as Rarity turned her head ever so slightly with confused blue eyes to look at them. Pinkie narrowed her eyes, gaze going solemn, just like it had in the cave before the dragon had charged them. "I doubt that," she murmured, muzzle wrinkled. "I really doubt that...and I know just how to find out!" Seemingly out of nowhere she pulled a magnifying glass and put it to her eye, winking and leaping to the seat behind her; Rarity let out a ladylike gasp as there was a tremendous crash, but Pinkie surfaced, perfectly fine, and let out a little giggle whilst putting her hoof to her mouth. Quickly, before Applejack or Spike could object, the pink mare leapt up to them, pressing the glass against their faces. AJ winced and pulled back; it was cold and stung on her skin as it was pushed farther in. Seeing as Spike leapt back as if he had been stung, she could safely assume that the same had happened to him as well. Finally Pinkie recoiled, scrambling back over the seat, back legs flailing in the air for a minute until she pushed herself over, and popped up, Rarity staring at her in some sort of horrified awe, and Spike and Applejack still reeling from the unexpected investigation. "I think I've got it!" "What is it?" the cowpony asked wearily. "You both have something you want to say to Rarity!" Three ponies yelped in surprise and denial at this; Spike's initial response was "N-no I don't!" AJ's was "Well, shoot" and Rarity's was "Wait...what?" Pinkie nodded, head moving up and down like a light-switch. "Yes you do! And you are going to tell her right now because it's making both of you sad and I hate to see my friends sad!" She glared at them all, eyes suddenly becoming cold and serious. "Hate it!" she repeated for emphasis. "Spikey? Applejack?" Rarity stared at them both in confusion, finally looking away from the topaz shells she cradled fondly in her lap. The train turned into a tunnel, and for a moment everypony was plunged into darkness; all they could hear was the weariness in her voice. "What is it?" Nopony could see each other's expressions, but Applejack guessed that Spike, at least, was as awkward as she felt. But what could he possibly have to tell her? He was in an amazing spot right now. If he resisted it... Well, she didn't want to think about what would happen then. ...scratch that, she did. But she had to remember Pinkie. Do what's best for Rare. "Ah...Ah wanted to tell you that Ah'm fine with you bein' with Spike." The words were choked and somewhat hurried, but they were spoken all the same. In the darkness, AJ couldn't see the other's faces, but the sharp intake of breath from Rarity and the panicked yelp from Spike both confused her. Why would they be upset? "No!" the voice of the dragon rang out, loud and clear, reverberating around the train. Another sharp gasp, clearly from Rarity. "But...wait, what? Spikey?" A sniffle. Applejack squinted; her eyes were starting to get adjusted to the dark, but all she could see was a silhouette of Spike. It seemed like he was wiping away tears. That...that made no sense. Why would he be upset about this? Wouldn't this be the best opportunity of his life? "Rarity," Spike whispered among sniffles. "Rarity, I...I was going to tell you that if you want to date Applejack, I'm perfectly alright with that." Wait. What? It was like the cowpony had just been hit with a wrecking ball, she was so surprised. The impact of the shock hit her so hard she actually stumbled, eyes going wide and chest heaving in horror. "Spike, what? Why would she wanna date-" But the dragon clearly wasn't done. "I've seen how you look at her, and I'm pretty sure she likes you back. So go ahead and like her." His voice became flat, dull, emotionless. "I'm fine with it." "No!" A hard edge came into Applejack's voice then; it was a hard tone she hadn't meant to inflict but now that it was there she was going to roll with it. "Ah've had years to tell Rare how Ah felt, and it's mah fault for not actin' on it sooner! So you go ahead! You've helped her and impressed her for so much longer than Ah have anyways!" "But she's using me as something that's not love!" The train pulled out of the tunnel; they were nearly at Ponyville now, and AJ could see that Spike was openly crying now, tears dripping down his face and bubbling in his green eyes. "She loves you, Applejack! And I'm not going to stop that!" "She loves you, Spike, and you deserve her, much more than Ah ever have!" "You're going to have her!" "You will!" "You!" "You!" "EVERYPONY, QUIIIIIIET!" The final scream came from Pinkie, whose eyes were fiery and mane already starting to deflate ever-so-slightly. "I wanted you to tell the secret so that you wouldn't be sad, but now I realize that you are sad! And not just you!" She pulled aside to reveal the tear-stricken face of a white unicorn, staring at the pony and dragon fighting over her. She wasn't making any noise. She was just crying. "Why can't you let Rarity have a say in this?" Pinkie demanded, one hoof on her hip. Both Applejack and Spike stopped and stared; AJ's eyes went wide as she realized what she had done while Spike continued to cry. "Rarity," he whispered ever so quietly, moving forward as to stroke her comfortingly, but as his claw moved closer, Rarity's lip trembled; she jerked away. "Don't touch me!" The shriek was audible above the screech of the train coming to a complete stop. They were in Ponyville now. But neither Spike nor Applejack cared. "Celestia, Rare, Ah'm so sorry -" "We didn't realize -" "We weren't trying to hurt you, Ah honestly swear -" "Quit it!" Rarity shrieked again, getting up with horn glowing as she levitated the saddle bag containing the precious shells onto her back. "Quit it right now! Leave me alone!" The tears fell even harder as she turned and cantered away; the last thing both Spike and Applejack could hear was a loud sob. They stared at eachother. Crestfallen. Heartbroken. Not quite sure what to say. But Pinkie had the right words. "...you blew it. Both of you blew it." The End... ... ... nope! To be continued in Garbled coming from Drizzle Quill soon! Author's Note HA! Bet that wasn't what you thought I was gonna pull, huh? Now you'll have to read the final installment in the trilogy, which is going to be around 20 chapters and will switch off POVs. Aren't I evil? >:) ...I hope you enjoyed! c: (PS: If you really, truly hated the ending, please go to my profile and read my blog, titled "Anypony that reads the Misconception Trilogy please read")
