I Can Explain

Rarity loosed a deep, throaty moan, her voice stifled by a thick rubber bar that suspended her maw open. Her blinded eyes rolled in their sockets, her teeth digging into the rubber bit as hot pain fired up the side of her body. Her legs strained against their entrapment, the muscles in her shoulders and thighs sore from the stress of their confinement and battering. A hard strike on the other flank sent another stinging wave up her side, and the tightly bound mare wailed into her gag and squirmed violently.

Something cold and metallic touched her, making her rigid. The hard object slid around her haunches, poking at her on occasion, until it found its mark and suddenly thrust forward. The alabaster unicorn screamed, struggling against the bar that secured her wrists between her ankles and whipping her head left and right. A rather hard strike from the switch made her tense again and pull at her trapped forelegs, crying into her bridle and grinding her masked face against the bed. She fought the unseen attacker, violently shaking as heat and pressure in her stomach and loins made her more desperate to escape her binding. She twisted and squirmed, groaning loudly as the full length of the metal rod was forced into her, and felt the fight against her coming climax quickly become a losing battle.

She screamed, twisting violently as a final thrust of the rod hit her in just the right spot, and—

“Rarity, can I borrow your—uh, UH!?”

Rarity’s entire body tensed. She had heard the door open, heard her sister speak, but it was too late to stop herself. The shock of her predicament made her lose control of the switch, striking herself much harder than she’d intended, and she shrieked as the sharp sting of crop and dong threw her into a gushing orgasm. She flopped onto her side on the bed, her head rolling wildly and voice spastically letting out moans and squeaks as the painful feargasm enveloped her being. The metal dong shot out of her marehood and struck the wall with a bang, making the stunned filly in the doorway jump and dart out of the room. Rarity tried to call after her, but could not form words for either the bridle that gagged her or the sensation that muddled her thoughts and reduced her to whines and groans.

After nearly a minute, Rarity finally managed to shake off enough of the lingering tingle to regain control of her magic. She unbuckled her gimp suit, throwing off her mask with a gasp, and squinted around the room for her sister.

“Sw...Sweetie Belle,” she called hoarsely.

She unlatched the spreader bar and gently massaged her wrists, blinking the blur from her eyes and attempting to sit. A soreness in her rump prevented her from sitting upright, and she instead shifted and shuffled her way off the bed onto unsteady hooves. She wobbled and shook, holding onto the bed for balance as she continued to recover from her self-laceration, and took a readied glass of water from her nightstand in her magic.

“Sweetie Belle?” she called after a sip, massaging her throat. “I-I can explain this!”

She stumbled down the hall to her sister’s room only to find the door open and space vacant, then hesitantly continued down the stairs. Her mane and tail were a mess, and her rear, sides, and sweat-soaked face were a bright, blushing red, but she cared much less about her appearance than finding her sister and clearing up whatever trouble she was sure she had just gotten herself into.

“Swe – Ahem! Sweetie Belle??”

A quick glance at the open front door shut her up. She groaned and covered her face, reaching out with her magic and shutting the door, and began to massage her sore and stretched jaw as she considered her options.

“Okay, Rarity, be calm,” she instructed herself, resisting the urge to sit. “This is a misunderstanding, surely. Sweetie didn’t know what you were doing.” She ran a hoof through her flattened and frazzled mane and took another gulp of her water, floating a brush over to herself as she sent the glass off to refill itself. “I...suppose she must have known it was...painful though. But then, she certainly saw I was in control of the situation, right? She’s not going to go the police about this, is she?”

The monologing unicorn wandered over to a mirror, distractedly brushing her mane as the now-full glass returned. She drank greedily from the tall glass, letting its cold contents spill out and trickle down her neck as her mind raced to anticipate her sister’s movements.

“No,” she choked, pushing the glass away from her face. “Certainly not the police. She’ll...oh, what’ll she do? She’ll probably...” Rarity’s eyes shot open, the brush jerking suddenly. “She’ll tell her friends! Oh Celestia, she’ll tell the Crusaders!”

Rarity threw the brush away from herself, opting instead to risk a spell to set her mane and tail in order. She checked them both quickly in the mirror, hastily coating herself in powder to hide the marks on her rear and sides, then bolted out the door and past whatever customer had been about to enter in search of Sweetie Belle.

It wasn’t agony. Not really. But it was painful as all hell to push and nudge and bump through the midday crowd at the farmer’s market. Even more than Rarity remembered, it seemed that no one in Ponyville understood the concept of personal space. She’d been stopped twice by ponies shoving samples in her face or throwing an arm around her and walking uncomfortably close for a few steps as they advertised. On any other day, she might have only been slightly annoyed. Today the pain was physical, more so than the usual mental exhaustion that came from being polite to the many touchy-feely denizens of her hometown.

After the first six such encounters she finally dropped her polite veneer and shrugged off or sidestepped those that approached her. The salesponies were quick to catch on that she wanted to be left alone, but she managed to catch glimpses of them glaring at her as she passed. She would be sure to do something to restore her public image later, but time was of the essence.

Eventually she managed to find the stall she sought, and groaned as she found not only the mare she’d hoped to find, but the town crier as well.

“Hiya, Rarity!” Pinkie squealed as she saw her.

Applejack looked up from the stall and grinned at her as well. “Howdy there, sugarcube. Lookin’ to buy?”

“Have either of you seen Sweetie Belle?” Rarity asked quickly, ignoring both of their greetings.

“Yeah, she just came by and grabbed Apple Bloom,” the farm pony nodded. “Seemed frazzled about something. I think sh—“

“Where would they have gone, do you know?” Rarity cut her off.

Both her friends frowned. “Probably their clubhouse on the farm,” Applejack shrugged. “’S Sweetie in trouble for somethin’?”

Rarity glanced in the direction of Sweetapple Acres, considering the question for a few seconds, then let out a deep sigh and lowered her head.

“I think I’m the one in trouble, actually,” she groaned, rubbing her face.

“What do you mean?” Pinkie asked, her head cocked curiously.

Rarity looked sideways at her, then up at Applejack. The farmer picked up that something was wrong, more so than she wanted their mutual friend to know, and stepped around the cart-turned-counter.

“Pinkie, can you run the cart for a minute? I think I need to talk to Rarity alone.”

“Aw, why? I can help. I’m great at helping, y’know. I even helped Gan—“

“Please watch the cart, Pinkie,” Applejack said, firmly but not angrily.

Pinkie Pie shut herself up and nodded, flashing her friend an apologetic smile, and slipped around the counter to take Applejack’s place. That done, the farmer nodded toward an alley and wandered over to it, Rarity wincing as she followed her out of the street. Once they were definitely alone and away from prying ears, Applejack sat and faced the unicorn.

“Okay, what’s wrong,” she asked, crossing her arms. “You’re not actin’ like yourself.”

Rarity held her mouth open for a moment as she chose her words. “...Sweetie Belle returned home earlier than I had anticipated today,” she started.

Applejack nodded. “Some colt threw up in the schoolhouse. They were let out early.”

Rarity returned the nod, silently hoping whatever illness the colt had was terminal. “Right, well...I had planned some activities that I would have hoped she...not be privy to,” she continued.

Applejack cocked an eyebrow. “She was what now?”

The unicorn creased her brow. “Uh, she...” She rolled her jaw, looking for words. “Well...suffice it to say, she...caught me in a...very unladylike position,” she explained, meaningfully leaning into the words.

Applejack’s confused expression vanished, replaced by surprise. “Uh...o-oh.”

“Yes, and she...well, she didn’t give me a chance to explain,” Rarity went on, “she just up and ran out of the house.”

Applejack uncrossed her arms. “Oh. S-so she’s...probabl—“

“Probably telling her friends what she saw as we speak,” Rarity finished with a sigh. “Yes.”

Applejack looked around, then nervously leaned closer and lowered her hat beside them to further drown out her question.

“Uh...about how unladylike are we talkin’ here?”

Rarity closed her eyes and huffed, knowing the question would come but hating that it had to be addressed. “You remember that bridle I bought from you last year?”

Applejack nodded. “For your horse?”

Rarity stared flatly at her, hoping her expression alone would answer the question, then groaned as Applejack seemed oblivious to her meaning.

“Applejack, I don’t have a horse,” she whispered. “That bridle was for me.”

The orange farmer still seemed confused for a few seconds before realization visibly spread across her face and she sat up with a hard, frowning blush.

“O-oh,” she mumbled, glancing sideways. “A-Ah uh...n-never...um...”

Rarity rolled her eyes as her friend started to fan herself with her hat and stepped closer. “Whatever you’re imagining right now, I can assure you that what Sweetie Belle just walked in on is worse. I need to find her and shut her up before the whole town is talking about this!”

Applejack was snapped out of her embarrassment by the thought of Apple Bloom hearing about whatever had happened and slapped her hat back on. “Well I know where they’ll be. Let’s get over there n’ get this sorted out before...well, before anything happens.”

Rarity nodded and followed after her, hissing every time the muscles in her rear complained at being worked as she ran.

“But she was alone.”

“Right?”

“So she could’ve gotten out if she wanted.”

“Could she?”

“I think so. It was her magic holding everything.”

“She could have been struggling, Sweetie,” Apple Bloom said seriously, fixing her friend’s gaze to meet hers. “You ran all the way out here to get us when she could be in trouble??”

The little filly fidgeted uncomfortably. “But...I don’t think she was in trouble,” she defended. “I really think she was doing that to herself.”

“Well that’s just even more reason to worry then, isn’t it?” Scootaloo interjected, buzzing over to the door. “She might have someone messing with her head or be sick or something! We gotta go help her!”

“Or we could go to the police,” Apple Bloom suggested, joining the young pegasus at the door. “If someone’s doin’ mind control ain’t nothing we’d know how to do to help.”

“Her idea’s better,” Scootaloo conceded, focusing on Sweetie Bell. “C’mon, we need to go get help.”

Sweetie Belle scowled, appearing as though she might protest, but sighed and trotted over to join them at the door. “I still think we should check on her first.”

“We’ll split up,” Apple Bloom decided. “Scootaloo, you’re faster than us, you go to the police. We’ll meet you at the boutique.”

“Got it.”

The trio opened the door and filed out, only to pile up on the ramp out of their clubhouse. Rarity and Applejack saw them exit and rushed to meet them, skidding to a stop at the end of the ramp and startling the three fillies into tripping over each other. All five took a moment to recover from the encounter, Rarity and Applejack gasping for breath while the Crusaders untangled themselves and got to their hooves. After all was arranged once again, the fillies and mares fixed each other with a long, awkward, silent stare.

“H-hello girls!” Rarity grinned, breaking the silence and stepping forward. “Ehm, Sweetie, can I talk to you for a minute?”

The young unicorn shied away from her sister, glancing hesitantly at her friends. The other fillies stepped between the two of them and puffed out their chests, sizing up the confused and anxious looking elder sibling.

“How do we know you’re not some mind-slave to a foalnapping pervert nearby?” Scootaloo asked, crossing her forelegs and leaning against the railing.

Rarity’s grin dropped off her face, a hoof shooting up to massage her temple as she processed what she’d heard. “Oh no. She told you, didn’t she?” she groaned.

“Be careful, Applejack,” Apple Bloom warned. “There’s somethin’ fishy goin’ on here.”

Applejack shot a glance toward the farm, ensuring they were alone, then stepped closer, her face flushing red.

“Apple Bloom, Ah can assure you there’s nothin’ ‘fishy’ goin’ on here,” she said in a hushed tone. “Sweetie Belle just had a...misunderstandin’ of what Rarity was doin’.”

Sweetie Belle raised her head above her friends. “Do you know what happened?”

Applejack’s face reddened more and she removed her hat, shifting her weight awkwardly. “Not er....details,” she shrugged, looking away. “But I do know Rarity ain’t bein’ mind controlled by somepony.”

The fillies relaxed slightly. If there was anyone they knew they could trust, it was surely Applejack.

“Well...okay...” Apple Bloom said, sitting down. “But what were ya doin’ then?”

Rarity continued to massage her temple, her mind working overtime to find vague metaphors for the action. After a moment’s thought she let out a long sigh that ended in a groan.

“I was...” she trailed, looking off to her side and rubbing her neck. “I...” She pursed her lips, frowning at a nearby tree, then turned to Applejack. “Have you and Apple Bloom talked about...?”

Applejack stared at her briefly before catching her meaning and blushing harder. “N-no, Ah...uh...no.” Rarity asked a silent question and the farmer quickly put a hoof over her mouth, very obviously thinking hard about something. After a glance at her sister, she loosed a sigh and shrugged. “Ah mean...Ah guess you know better than Ah do...but, uh...” She covered her face with her hat. “Um...Ah need to hear what you tell ‘er.”

Rarity rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to the Crusaders. “Could we all go up to the clubhouse? Evidently there’s something I need to tell you all.”

The three fillies frowned at each other. “There’s...not a lot of room in there,” Scootaloo murmured.

“The barn then?” Rarity asked, motioning with her head.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders filed down the ramp and toward the barn in silence, shooting nervous and confused glances at each other as they walked. Rarity and Applejack followed a few paces behind, exchanging hushed words with each other.

“You’re not gonna tell them everythin’, right?” Applejack hissed, once again fanning herself with her Stetson.

“Only the very basics,” Rarity assured her. “Though I certainly won’t dismiss any questions they have. I don’t want them to be afraid or confused.”

“But what if they ask about...?” Applejack finished with a pantomime of holding something in her mouth and Rarity fixed her with an unamused stare.

“As I said, I don’t want them to have any confusion. A little healthy exploration never hurts, you know. What does hurt is going into something completely unprepared and with no idea how to be safe about it.”

Applejack’s eyes widened. “You’re actually gonna teach them about that stuff??”

“Not unless they ask!” Rarity shot back.

“Ask what?” Apple Bloom asked, looking back.

“NOTHING!!” Applejack snapped, making the filly flinch. “Ah, uh...just...two seconds.” She stopped outside the barn and held Rarity back. “You are not teachin’ my little sister about...whatever it was you were doin’ with that bridle!” she hissed.

“I’m not going to deny them information if they ask for it,” Rarity hissed back. “I’m certainly not going to show them how to do it, if that’s what you’re so worried about.”

“A-Ah just don’t want...”

“What if it’s something Apple Bloom would enjoy? Have you considered that?” Rarity asked, sassily cocking her head to one side. “Or you? Have you ever tried it?”

“Rarity, Ah just think she’s too young to know about that kind of stuff.”

“Should she be your age before she even hears the word sex, then?”

Applejack’s mouth flew open, but no words came out. Instead, her entire face down to her neck became beet red and she quickly turned her focus somewhere else. “A-Ah think...uh—“

“I mean, surely she’s asked you questions by now, right?” Rarity went on. “Sweetie’s been asking me things for months, I’ve just been busy or predisposed. It certainly takes precedence over work now though.” She sighed and looked back at her friend, frowning to find her still red in the face and slightly sweaty. “Applejack, are you feeling alright?”

The farm pony glanced at her before looking elsewhere, wiping hair out of her face with the brim of her hat. “A-Ah’m fine. Ah guess...Apple Bloom has been askin’ me a few things recently, but...”

Rarity narrowed an eye at her friend, readying a question, but blinked and straightened up.

“Oh my gosh...you’re a blu—you’re literally a blushing virgin, aren’t you?”

Applejack leapt forward and clamped her hooves over Rarity’s muzzle. The startled unicorn stumbled backward, glaring daggers at her companion, but realized she did not meet her scornful gaze. She glanced sideways, twitching as she realized the fillies had wandered back out when they heard their words escalate in volume and that all three were staring at them in shock, all red in the face. She took a very long breath through her nose, clamping her eyes shut and gently tugging herself out of Applejack’s grip, then turned to the fillies with a look of exhaustion.

“Please let me explain this time.”