Apple Seedsby StageQuillChaptersLittle TownWarm InsideGive My Regards to You... On Bridleway. The Street. On Top of the WorldLittle Town"What a quaint, rustic town!" Mrs. Orange peered over her spectacles. "I do hope your father finishes his business here quickly so that we can get back to Manehattan." Orange Juice looked up at his mother, nodding as if he agreed. Scarlet Orange gazed out of the window. "Don't worry, my dear. Mr. Rich and I will be done in a week, tops. Then we can return home." Mr. Orange nuzzled his wife, then turned back to driving the wagon. "If the deal goes through, we'll be able to have that new apartment you looked at last week." "If you finish in under a week, can we still stay a little longer?" Scarlet asked. "I think I like it here." "Scarlet, Sweetheart, this is no place for a proper Manehattanite!" Mrs. Orange admonished her daughter. "Let's just- See how this all goes, Sweetheart." Scarlet opened her mouth to answer, but Mr. Orange cut her off. "This is the Rich's place. We'll be staying here. Come on, my dear. Let's get unpacked. Scarlet bounded down into the marketplace excitedly the moment she could escape from her mother's suffocating attention. She never got to wander around on her own in Manehattan- It was much too big a city. Ponyville, however, seemed to be the perfect size. Scarlet shook her head the moment she was out of sight of the Rich's house and her mother couldn't track her. Her mane came out of its carefully arranged updo and flowed down her back. Much better. Now that she blended in better, she could take a look around without sticking out. Well, without sticking out any more than a strange pony in a small town usually would. Scarlet cantered by the Ponyville Golden Oaks Library without giving it a second glance. There were plenty of libraries in Manehattan, and anyway, Scarlet had brought half a million books with her. What Scarlet really wanted to find was the apple seller's stall. She'd heard so many good things about Ponyville apples, and she couldn't wait to try them. Scarlet trotted past the more residential streets, like the one the library was on, and on toward the main square of the little town. The blue sky and Celestia's sun beat down on her make strands of her mane stick to her neck with sweat, but Scarlet enjoyed the feeling. She stopped for a moment to drink in this new world; Her head in the sun, her feet on the ground, the wind blowing lazily all around her. A wagon rumbled by and Scarlet jumped out of the way, off the road. She expected the wagon to just rumble by, but to her surprise, it stopped. The red stallion pulling the wagon looked at her. "Hi, Sugarcube!" The stallion pulling the wagon called. "Where y'all headed? Ah'm goin' to Sweet Apple Acres, and if yer goin' in that direction ah could give y'all a ride." Scarlet grinned. In Manehattan, nopony would ever offer to do someone a favor like this one. Usually, she'd be offended if a stallion she hadn't met called her 'sugarcube', but coming from this one, 'sugarcube' sounded nice, especially in his accent. "Thank you, but I'd rather walk. I don't know the way to the apple farm, though. May I follow you?" "O' course." The stallion continued to trot along, and Scarlet trotted beside him. She looked at the stallion. He looked about her age and very strong, but Scarlet couldn't decide whether he was handsome or not. Maybe he was just very nourished from the country air. Or maybe it was the fact that he didn't have his nose in the air so he could look down on everypony he met, like the stallions Scarlet's mother introduced her to in Manehattan. Like the Rich boy. They two trotted along, and all was quiet but their hooves on the road and the wagon rumbling behind them. It was a very nice change from Manehattan's eardrum-shattering bustle. "I'm afraid we haven't been properly introduced." Scarlet broke the silence. "I'm Scarlet Navella Orange. What's your name?" The stallion chuckled. "That's funny! Ah'm Red MacIntosh. Ah work on Sweet Apple Acres with th' rest of mah family." Red MacIntosh gestured towards a place in front of where they were going. "Red and Scarlet. What a coincidence." "Sweet Apple Acres? I've heard so much about your apples! I'm staying with the Riches, and they sing praises about the apples!" "Ah deliver a bushel of apples to the Riches every day." Red MacIntosh chuckled. "That's funny! I must have missed you." Scarlet laughed. "I'm from Manehattan, and my dad's trying to do business with Stinkin' Rich." "Manehattan? What's it like there? Ah've never been farther away from Ponyville than Appleloosa." Red MacIntosh's Mane swung very nicely when her turned his head to the sun. "You want to know about Manehattan?" Scarlet asked. The stallion- Red MacIntosh- nodded. "It's very- Big. Everypony is very self-absorbed, and nopony would ever meet by walking by each other in a road." "Ah s'pose Ponyville looks real boring next to a city like that." Red MacIntosh said. Scarlet laughed. "I love Ponyville! I haven't seen much of it yet, but from what I have seen? I mean- The first pony I meet, other than the Riches, offers to give me a ride!" Scarlet smiled at Red MacIntosh. He was definitely handsome, she decided. Scarlet heard a swell of sound ahead of them. It was a happy sound- Lots of happy pony voices, laughing and talking and greeting and bartering and bickering. Scarlet could smell food and lot and lot of apples. "The farm's just around the bend." Red MacIntosh told Scarlet. She trotted faster. He laughed and easily matched her pace. The empty wagon almost clattered on the road. Scarlet glanced sideways at Red MacIntosh. She went a smidge faster. Red MacIntosh gave her a competitive grin and went even faster. Scarlet bit her lip and went as fast as she could go. She figured that without the wagon, she'd lose, but with a wagon, even an empty one, she might just win a race against the stronger farm pony. Red MacIntosh caught up to Scarlet. Her hooves beat the ground trying to pass him. He breathed hard. He passed her just as they dashed through the gates of Sweet Apple Acres. Scarlet sat down on the grassy ground, breathing heavily. Red MacIntosh unhitched himself from the wagon and sat beside her. "Ah demand a rematch!" Red MacIntosh exclaimed, smiling evilly. "But you won." Scarlet said, gasping for breath. "Ah know. Ah also know that without the wagon, Ah could win by much, much more." Red MacIntosh nudged Scarlet in the side. It hurt to laugh when she could barely get enough air to breathe after the run. "Now, who's this?" a mare approached behind the two ponies. "Ah haven't seen y'all around town, miss whatever-yer-name-is. Where're you from and why're y'all here?" Scarlet stopped laughing and turned around. She and Red MacIntosh stood up. "I'm from Manehattan. My name's Scarlet Navella Orange." Scarlet smiled. "I've heard so much about Sweet Apple Acres apples, and Red MacIntosh offered to show me the way here- And it turned into a sort of race." "Ah brought the wagon back, Ma." Red MacIntosh pointed his hoof toward the wagon. "Orange?" The green mare- Red MacIntosh's mother- looked at Scarlet suspiciously. "Y'all aren't related in any way to the Lemons, are ya?" Scarlet shook her head. Red MacIntosh's mother turned to the house, satisfied. "Awright. It's near noon. Why don't Miss Scarlet stay here fer lunch?" "Lunch?" Scarlet said, alarmed. "Oh, no. I promised my mother I'd meet her at that baker- What was it- Sugarcube Corner!" Scarlet grimaced. "Can I just buy a few apples and go? My mother'll freak out if I'm not back." Scarlet began to fumble in her saddlebags for the bits she'd brought, but Red MacIntosh stopped her. "Ah kin drop off a few extra apples at the Rich mansion." Red MacIntosh smiled at Scarlet and she grinned back. "Thank you so much, Red MacIntosh!" Scarlet, to her surprise, found herself hugging the stallion. She stopped herself and stepped back. She was keenly aware of Red MacIntosh's mother's eyes on her. "Call me Red Mac." Red Mac mumbled. He turned and cantered away. His mother winked. Scarlet blushed and ran away, her cheeks reddening with embarrassment. Scarlet closed the scrapbook and looked over at Red. "I'm so glad I came to Ponyville." Scarlet scootched over on the couch so that she could snuggle against Red's side. They fit together perfectly, shoulder to waist to neck to leg. Scarlet and Red stared into the fire. "Me too." Red slid his arm around Scarlet's shoulders, warming her up. she leaned her head against his shoulder, treasuring the moment. With children to take care of and a farm to run, they barely ever got time to just be together, looking at old memories and staring into the fire. "Red?" "Ee-yup, Sugarcube?" "Let's race tomorrow." Scarlet pulled away and looked into Red's orange eyes. "I think I could beat you." She smiled. The firelight reflected in Red's eyes as he grinned. "Ee-nope. Ah could still beat y'all, with or without a wagon on mah back." Scarlet snuggled back into Red's embrace. "We'll see tomorrow." Author's Note Comments and suggestions are welcome! Also, I love hearing about any errors I made... So... Smiles! Warm InsideThe snow whirled loudly around the outside of Sugarcube Corner, contrasting starkly against the warm interior. The smell of baked goods fresh from the oven drifted lazily around the bakery. The bell rang as the door opened and sudden rush of cold air swooped through the room, disrupting the warmth and sending shivers down several ponies' backs. Red Mac quickly stepped in with the wind and shut the door, shaking off snow that quickly melted on the ground and restoring the bakery to its calming warmth. His eyes darted all over the bakery until he found the mare he had been looking for. He took a step forward then stopped, his stomach filling with a mixture of excitement and sudden, unbidden shyness. Scarlet looked at him and waved him over to the corner of the bakery she has grabbed. She smiled nervously as he got closer. Red Mac took off his coat and sat down awkwardly on the loveseat next to Scarlet and looked at her, biting his lip. "So." Scarlet kept listening, so he continued. "What do ya usually do on a first date?" Scarlet's brow furrowed. "I- I don't know. Talk, I guess. Maybe-" Her mouth seemed to hover between shaping the sound 'k' and the sound 'h', then decided on the latter. "Hug?" Red Mac nodded. "Awright. Should we order something?" Scarlet opened a bag next to her on the seat. "I ordered frosted scones and chocolate cookies for both of us, actually. I didn't know-" "That sounds real good." Red Mac said, glad for something to do. He picked up a scone and bit in. He chewed and swallowed. Scarlet watched him nervously. Scarlet smiled at him. Shoot, That mare smiled like nopony else. Red Mac didn't know if it was the way her eyes lit up even if it was a nervous smile, or if it was the way she stuck her teeth out a tiny bit, but her smile never failed to bring a mirroring one out on Red Mac's face. Scarlet took one for herself, blushing. "These taste good?" Scarlet asked. Red Mac nodded. He opened his mouth to say something, then changed his mind. "Gosh darn it, we know each other too well to be sittin' here like nervous schoolfoals. Come on, Scarlet. D'ya have yer coat?" Scarlet stood up. "Yep." Red Mac grinned devilishly as he put on his coat and Scarlet put on hers. "C'mon along then, Sugarcube. Follow me." "Where are we going?" Scarlet asked as she picked up the bag of still-warm baked sweets and followed Red Mac out the door. "You'll see." Red Mac turned to look at her, then trotted out the door. The view from the top of the hill was cold and clear. Snow scratched Red Mac's and Scarlet's cheeks. Scarlet shivered. "This had better be fun." She challenged Red Mac. "Oh, this'll definitely be more fun than sittin' in a bakery fer two hours." Red Mac grinned at Scarlet again and ducked behind a large bush. He emerged with a big, beautiful sled. "Oh my gosh!" Scarlet exclaimed. "Where did you get that?" She trotted to look at it, running her hooves over the edges and admiring it from several angles. Red Mac dropped it on the snow, keeping his foot on the sled to steady it. "Mah brother, sister and ah have been comin' up here in the Winter fer years. Bein' the youngest and havin' them go off ter the far corners of Equestria, ah didn't think 'bout this too much, 'til now." Red Mac sat on the sled and looked at Scarlet. "Y'all comin'?" Scarlet sat on the sled behind Red Mac. "Don't kill us." She put her chin on his shoulder and her arms around his middle. "Ready!" Red Mac let go of the hill. Scarlet's scream was left on the hilltop beside the cookies. She hugged Red Mac tightly as he steered the sled away from a cluster of rocks, then around a tree. The snow hit their faces and the wind swept their manes out straight behind them. At the bottom of the hill, Red Mac turned to face Scarlet, half afraid that she would run away from him. She was panting hard. She licked her lips. "That was amazing!" Scarlet yelled. "We have got to do that again!" "Come on up." Red Mac gave Scarlet a smile as they trudged up the hill. "Y'all havin' fun?" Red Mac asked, reaching for another scone. "That was the best first date a mare could ask for." Scarlet smiled at Red Mac and bit into a cookie. Their eyes met and warmth spread down to their hooves. Scarlet sighed. "What?" "We should do this more often." Scarlet looked at her hoof, then at Red Mac. "I don't know how often my parents'll let me come here." Red Mac bit his lip. Then he brightened. "Ah could take a day trip to Manehattan. Ah'll go on a day when mah parents kin handle the farmwork. Ah kin take a train at night and sleep on it, then spend a day in Manehattan, then come back and sleep on the night train to Ponyville!" Scarlet smiled. "That's brilliant!" She leaned forward and hugged Red Mac tightly. "Red Mac, you're the best." Red Mac looked at Scarlet, who was preparing Big Macintosh's lunch for school. "It's almost sleddin' season." Red Mac said, looking at a picture of them sledding that had been taken later, when the whole Apple family had trooped over to sled. "Should we show them the hill this year?" Scarlet added a layer of cheese to Big Mac's sandwich, thinking. "I guess Mac's old enough. To tell the truth, I think we could've shown them last year, just to play. I just-" Scarlet bit her lip. "They're growing up so fast. Mac already knows most of his alphabet." Scarlet sighed wistfully, looking at Red Mac. "I mean, I know Applejack's still a baby, but seeing Mac go to school every day- He's so grown up." Red Mac nodded. "Ah know, sugarcube. But they're still real young. We'll have them fer years an' years ter come. And remember-we still have one on the way." Scarlet finished making Mac's sandwich and looked at her bulging stomach. "You're right. They'll still be our babies for years. I guess- I can't help wishing they could stay at this age forever." "They cain't, sugarcube. Ah'm sure we'll have a bushel of fun watching 'em grow." Red Mac got up off the loveseat and walked over to his wife. "Watchin' them develop into adult mares an' stallions- With them comin' to us with their li'l problems so we kin help..." "You're right." Scarlet put Big Mac's sandwich in a bag and wrote his name on it. "Ah'm always right!" Red Mac exclaimed and Scarlet snickered. "Oh, of course. And that time you thought sugar would help Applejack fall asleep faster? That was right?" "She fell asleep, dint she?" "Four hours past her bedtime." Scarlet laughed and gave Red Mac a kiss on the nose. "It took up all of our alone time." Author's Note I call Big Mac 'Big' Mac even though he's technically a very little mac because, in my headcanon, he demanded a name change. Up to the time he started preschool, he was little Mac. Then in preschool, he demanded to be BIg Mac, because, in his own words, "Ah'm a big boy now." Naturally, Scarlet spent most of that night alternatively crying 'My baby is growing up' tears and sneaking into Big Mac's room to watch him sleep. Give My Regards to You... On Bridleway. The Street. Give My Regards to You... On Bridleway. The Street. Coming out of the theater and into the cold night air was one of the best parts of a night on Bridleway for Scarlet. She looked at Red Mac. Scarlet giggled at the look of awe on her- Well, her coltfriend's face. "Never seen a Bridleway show before?" Scarlet asked as they walked down the Bridleway street. She smiled. Red Mac had sobbed for most of the second act. So had Scarlet, but that was expected of a sophisticated Manehattanite. Scarlet hadn't realized just how sensitive and caring the big farmpony could be. "Well, shoot, how was ah s'posed ter see one in Ponyville?" Red Mac answered. "Ah aint seen one 'til now." "And? you liked it?" Scarlet prompted. "Darn tootin'!" Red Mac smiled at Scarlet. "That there endin'- Aw, shoot. Ah'm tearin' up again." Red Mac looked sternly at Scarlet. "Not a word. Nopony in Ponyville hears how ah cried lahk a filly durin' that show." Scarlet laughed. "Not a word." She promised. Red Mac nuzzled her gently. It sometimes surprised Scarlet how gentle Red Mac could be. She'd seen him buck trees- His strong legs could shake apples from the highest branches, his head could knock down dead trees, and he could pull large wagons on his own. With Scarlet, he used the same amount of force as a butterfly. Or a cat. As Red Mac pulled his head away, Scarlet felt his lips touch her neck for one tantalizing second. From the look in his eyes, she could tell it hadn't been on purpose. She doubted he had even realized that he'd touched his lips to her coat. Scarlet looked in her purse for bits to hide her blush. "Let's go have a bite to eat. I'm starving." Scarlet looked around. "there's a good ice cream place nearby... Inside Scoop..." Red Mac nodded. "Awright. Ah could go for some vanilla ice cream right now." Red Mac never ate apples that weren't grown on Sweet Apple Acres. He claimed they didn't taste right. Scarlet led the way to the ice cream shop, through the bustling crowds and cold air that she both loved about Manehattan and hated. "There it is." Scarlet hip bumped Red Mac playfully. She looked at his lips when he smiled. Scarlet ducked into Inside Scoop and Red Mac followed her. The store was small and busy, late on a Saturday night on Bridleway. Scarlet expertly dodged ponies as she got into line, used to the crowds. Red Mac looked around, interested. "There're so many ponies in Manehattan!" Red Mac exclaimed softly. "Ah wonder what it would be like to have so many in Ponyville." Scarlet laughed. "Yech. Let Manehattan have all the ponies and Bridleway shows. I love Ponyville the way it is." "Y'all love Ponyville?" Red Mac asked Scarlet, surprised. She considered a moment. "Yeah," She said, a smile spreading over her face, "I do." Looking around at the bustle and dirt of Manehattan, Scarlet imagined the green fields and thatched-roof cottages of Ponyville. "I do. I really do." Red Mac nuzzled Scarlet again. He pulled away as they stepped forward in line. Scarlet caught a glimpse of his lips again as he faced the front. She had to tell her heart to slow down. "Next." The ice cream counter pony said. Red Mac and Scarlet stepped up. "Ah'll be havin' a large vanilla in a bowl, not a cone." Red Mac told the pony behind the counter. She lifted an eyebrow at his accent, but took the order. "I'll have the same." Scarlet said. They moved over a step to wait for their ice cream. Scarlet was very aware of Red Mac next to her. When the ice cream pony slid their ice cream across the counter, Scarlet and Red Mac went to find a seat that hadn't been taken. They found one in a corner, set off from the rest of room by a large plant. The ponies at it were just getting up. Scarlet and Red Mac slid into the seats before anypony else. "That show was amazing, wasn't it? I wish I could sing that well." Scarlet took a spoonful of ice cream. "Mmm!" "Ah'm sure y'all can sing." Red Mac reassured her. Scarlet laughed. "You've obviously never heard me sing." She licked her lips, getting all the ice cream off. Then she took another bite. "Ah'm sure you can sing- Some things." "I can sing nursery rhymes." Scarlet twirled her spoon in the air. "Lullabies, the ABCs, that kind of thing. Anything more complicated than 'Mare-y Had a Little Lamb' is beyond me." "Maybe you can sing fer me sometime and ah can be th' judge of that." Red Mac smiled. He had ice cream on his lip. Scarlet had the urge to lean forward and kiss him right on the tiny patch of vanilla. "Maybe I can. If you don't mind losing your ears." Scarlet smiled, suddenly shy. Why could she not stop thinking about how Red Mac's lips would feel on hers? Soft and strong and perfect- "Y'all cain't be that bad." Red Mac leaned in closer. He leaned closer, almost like- Like- Scarlet didn't think. She leaned forward and kissed him. He tasted like vanilla and apples and sun. Red Mac pulled away from her. Scarlet's heart dropped. Had she gone too fast? She looked down, gulped, and forced herself to look into Red Mac's eyes. And he kissed her. The world melted away like ice cream on a hot summer day. Scarlet pulled away. "That's something you don't get every day with three foals to watch." Scarlet joked. "Ah can give it to y'all every night." Red Mac joked. He smiled. Scarlet stood up. "I promised Applejack that I'd check on her in ten minutes ten minutes ago." She said. "She's probably asleep. It'll be quick." Scarlet trotted into Applejack's room on the upper floor, treading as lightly as she could on the old, creaky wood. She did not want to wake Apple Bloom. She'd barely started sleeping through the night. Scarlet silently pushed Applejack's floor open. "Mother?" Applejack sat up. "Ah cain't sleep." Scarlet walked over to sit on her daughter's bed, closing the door and turning on the bedside lamp. The lamp filled the room with a soft glow. "Why, sweetheart?" As Scarlet sat down, Applejack snuggled into her mother's side. Scarlet laid her hoof on Applejack's head, stroking her small ears. "Ah dunno." Applejack looked into Scarlet's eyes. Scarlet melted, like she always did when her foals did something that reminded her that they depended on her, needed her, loved her. "Ah just- cain't." Applejack hugged her mother hard. "Don' go, mother. It's awful dark at night. And the floor creaks." Scarlet gathered Applejack onto her back. "Why don't we go downstairs and you can stay up a while with Pa and I? It's not as dark downstairs." Applejack nodded, holding on to Scarlet's ears. Applejack gave her mother a little kiss on the head. "Ah love ya, mother. Yer th' best mother in Equestria." Scarlet melted again. Scarlet smiled as she trotted downstairs. "And you're the best five-year-old filly in Equestria." As Scarlet entered the living room, Red Mac looked up from the paperwork he was doing. He smiled when he saw the filly on Scarlet's back. "Is Applejack visitin' with us t'night?" Red Mac patted the space beside him on the couch. "C'mon, AJ." Applejack slid off of Scarlet's back and climbed onto the couch next to her father. She put her head in his lap and he petted her mane. Applejack sighed contentedly. "She couldn't sleep." Scarlet told Red Mac. "I think AJ just needs some time alone with her mother and pa." Red Mac gave his daughter a gentle poke in the stomach, making her laugh. "That's fine with me." Red Mac looked at Scarlet. "You're th' one who's picky 'bout bedtime." Applejack grinned at Red Mac. Scarlet sighed. "I just want them to get enough sleep. We have apple fritters in the fridge. Why don't we have a little midnight snack?" Applejack nodded. Scarlet trotted off to the kitchen to grab the fritters. Applejack, snuggled against her pa, thought that she had to be the luckiest filly in the world. Author's Note So. I actually haven't ever really kissed anyone, so if I got the emotion or whatever all wrong, tell me. On Top of the World"So... Y'all gonna stay in Ponyville?" Red asked. Scarlet stirred her apple spice iced tea, not looking Red in the face. "My parents want me to settle down in Manehattan. They think you and I are just a rebellious phase..." She looked up from her drink to see his face fall. "We're not, Red. Five years is not a phase." He brightened and Scarlet thought that nothing would ever feel as wonderful as making Red brighten. "I plan on coming to live out here. I could... I don't know, be an assistant teacher or librarian. Or... Could I help out at the farm?" "Mah parents would love that, Sugarcube. They say Ah take too mud work on mahself. It'd seem like nothing if you were there with me." "Red, you're the sweetest stallion that ever lived," Scarlet whispered, leaning closer to her coltfriend. They shared a quick kiss. No sense in making the Cake colt, Carrot, grimace at PDA any more than he did already. "You just bring it out o' me, Scarlet," Red said. Their next kiss was longer and accompanied by a "Ich!" from Carrot. Scarlet and Red didn't usually go up to the top of the sledding hill for anything other than sledding, but Red had suggested they have a picnic. It was a beautiful spring day. Flowers bloomed, insects buzzed, Red's muscles moves under his sleek red coat as he pulled the wagon up the hill. Scarlet frolicked ahead. She'd offered to pull the wagon but Red had refused, pulling it away from her when she tried. "Ah don't want to look like a wimp, now," he said to Scarlet. She laughed. "Like I'd ever call you a wimp." Wagon or not, she was panting at the top. The sun beat down hard on her back. Her mane didn't help. It locked the heat in like a blanket around her neck. Red didn't look winded at all. "Let's get the food out, Sugarcube," he suggested nervously. Nervously? No, not around her. He had no need to be nervous. Scarlet spread the blanket out. "You'd better not have forgotten the black-and-white cookies," she teased. Red looked startled. "'Course not. Ah made sure Ah brought them-" "Relax, Red." Scarlet smoothed the picnic blanket and gave her coltfriend a soft kiss. "I knew you did. You always do." Red nodded, grinning sheepishly. "'Course." Scarlet and Red set up their blanket the way they usually did, plates at one side, the two ponies sitting beside each other on the other side. "I love Ponyville," Scarlet sighed, looking at the town. Red made a huffing noise and she looked up at him. "Of course I love you. You're the best part." She leaned her head on his shoulder and licked the cookie crumbs off of her lips in a way that would make her mother faint. "Scarlet," Red said suddenly. "Scarlet, Ah..." he moved back and she looked at him. His eyes were wide and he was biting his lip. "Hmm?" Scarlet asked. Her heart started to beat. Was this... Was Red...? Red got down on one knee. "Scarlet, Ah love ya. Ah cain't imagine life without ya. Scarlet, will ya marry me?" His words tumbled out, heartfelt and honest and making Scarlet's breath catch. Red pulled a box out of the wagon. "Scarlet, yer th' most beautiful mare Ah ever met. Yer th' funniest, kindest, best pony Ah've ever met. What do ya say, Sugarcube?" He snapped it open, displaying a fruit-shaped diamond ring that must have cost Red far too much. Scarlet felt tears come to her eyes. "I love you, Red," she said, before catapulting herself into his hooves. They just stayed on the grass and Scarlet felt she never wanted to leave. "Ich!" Big Mac shook his head. "That's a filly story." "Ah think that story's purty," Applejack said, sticking her tongue out at her brother. He stuck his out right back. "Yer a filly." Applejack did the only reasonable thing: She threw herself at her brother, instigating a wrestling match terrifying to behold. "Red, calm them down," Scarlet said, cradling Applebloom. "Calm down, y'all!" Red dove into the fray, meaning to tear them apart but ending up jointing in. Applejack and Big Mac laughed when their daddy started making faces as he there them in the air and fought them. Scarlet sighed. "Red, that wasn't what I meant." Applebloom laughed and clapped her hooves. "Apple!" She cried. It was the only thing she knew how to say. Applejack and Big Mac immediately left the wrestling match, ears alert. Whenever Applebloom said anything, it was cause for celebration. She'd only started talking the previous week. "Apple!" Applejack repeated. "Apple!" Aplebloom laughed. Scarlet tickled her under the chin as Red pounced on the other two, tickling them until they laughed and tried to tickle him back. "Now, let's get some cookies," Red gasped finally. The foals were the only things in the world that could tire him out. "They don't need more sugar!" Scarlet cried in vain, but to no avail. The two older ones had pounced on the black-and-whites. Big Mac remembered to give Scarlet one. "Here, Mother. Yer favorite." Scarlet smiled at his still-foalish voice. She could already hear it growing up; Not deepening, but the edges were getting sharper, his diction less lisping and more solid. Applejack's high, childish laugh brought her back to the now and the fact that they were still babies. "Thank you, Mac." "Ah'm BIG Mac." "You certainly are," Scarlet said, rocking Applebloom and trying to keep the cookie out of the tiny filly's grasp. "You're my Big Mac." Applebloom cooed and drooled after the cookie. "Cain't Applebloom have a cookie?" Applejack asked, crumbs surrounding her mouth. "Not just yet," Scarlet said. Red laughed. "She'll be eatin' soon enough. If she's anything like her mother, she'll be goblin the cookies faster'n y'all can say sugar." "They're my favorite!" Scarlet laughed. "You can eat Apple Brown Betty fast enough." As the sun dropped in the sky, Applejack and Big Mac curled up on the blanket between Red and Scarlet. Red held Applebloom as Scarlet stroked her older children's heads. "They're so sweet," Scarlet said softly. "Spritely, too," Red said back, smiling. "They're already asking to help around the farm." "Applejack asked me about cutie marks the other day," Scarlet said. "I got mine late." "Ah didn't," Red said. "Ah knew Ah was built for apples. Mah parents told me that." Scarlet smiled. "I barely gardened before Ponyville. I'm glad the foals are growing up here. They'll grow up big and strong, like you." "Ah'm sure glad you came here, Scarlet," Red said, nuzzling his wife over the softly breathing sleeping foals between them. "Oh, so am I." Author's Note So! Sorry I haven't been on. I've had school... Other stuff... I just kind of missed FimFiction, and I needed to finish this story. It's almost done.
Little Town"What a quaint, rustic town!" Mrs. Orange peered over her spectacles. "I do hope your father finishes his business here quickly so that we can get back to Manehattan." Orange Juice looked up at his mother, nodding as if he agreed. Scarlet Orange gazed out of the window. "Don't worry, my dear. Mr. Rich and I will be done in a week, tops. Then we can return home." Mr. Orange nuzzled his wife, then turned back to driving the wagon. "If the deal goes through, we'll be able to have that new apartment you looked at last week." "If you finish in under a week, can we still stay a little longer?" Scarlet asked. "I think I like it here." "Scarlet, Sweetheart, this is no place for a proper Manehattanite!" Mrs. Orange admonished her daughter. "Let's just- See how this all goes, Sweetheart." Scarlet opened her mouth to answer, but Mr. Orange cut her off. "This is the Rich's place. We'll be staying here. Come on, my dear. Let's get unpacked. Scarlet bounded down into the marketplace excitedly the moment she could escape from her mother's suffocating attention. She never got to wander around on her own in Manehattan- It was much too big a city. Ponyville, however, seemed to be the perfect size. Scarlet shook her head the moment she was out of sight of the Rich's house and her mother couldn't track her. Her mane came out of its carefully arranged updo and flowed down her back. Much better. Now that she blended in better, she could take a look around without sticking out. Well, without sticking out any more than a strange pony in a small town usually would. Scarlet cantered by the Ponyville Golden Oaks Library without giving it a second glance. There were plenty of libraries in Manehattan, and anyway, Scarlet had brought half a million books with her. What Scarlet really wanted to find was the apple seller's stall. She'd heard so many good things about Ponyville apples, and she couldn't wait to try them. Scarlet trotted past the more residential streets, like the one the library was on, and on toward the main square of the little town. The blue sky and Celestia's sun beat down on her make strands of her mane stick to her neck with sweat, but Scarlet enjoyed the feeling. She stopped for a moment to drink in this new world; Her head in the sun, her feet on the ground, the wind blowing lazily all around her. A wagon rumbled by and Scarlet jumped out of the way, off the road. She expected the wagon to just rumble by, but to her surprise, it stopped. The red stallion pulling the wagon looked at her. "Hi, Sugarcube!" The stallion pulling the wagon called. "Where y'all headed? Ah'm goin' to Sweet Apple Acres, and if yer goin' in that direction ah could give y'all a ride." Scarlet grinned. In Manehattan, nopony would ever offer to do someone a favor like this one. Usually, she'd be offended if a stallion she hadn't met called her 'sugarcube', but coming from this one, 'sugarcube' sounded nice, especially in his accent. "Thank you, but I'd rather walk. I don't know the way to the apple farm, though. May I follow you?" "O' course." The stallion continued to trot along, and Scarlet trotted beside him. She looked at the stallion. He looked about her age and very strong, but Scarlet couldn't decide whether he was handsome or not. Maybe he was just very nourished from the country air. Or maybe it was the fact that he didn't have his nose in the air so he could look down on everypony he met, like the stallions Scarlet's mother introduced her to in Manehattan. Like the Rich boy. They two trotted along, and all was quiet but their hooves on the road and the wagon rumbling behind them. It was a very nice change from Manehattan's eardrum-shattering bustle. "I'm afraid we haven't been properly introduced." Scarlet broke the silence. "I'm Scarlet Navella Orange. What's your name?" The stallion chuckled. "That's funny! Ah'm Red MacIntosh. Ah work on Sweet Apple Acres with th' rest of mah family." Red MacIntosh gestured towards a place in front of where they were going. "Red and Scarlet. What a coincidence." "Sweet Apple Acres? I've heard so much about your apples! I'm staying with the Riches, and they sing praises about the apples!" "Ah deliver a bushel of apples to the Riches every day." Red MacIntosh chuckled. "That's funny! I must have missed you." Scarlet laughed. "I'm from Manehattan, and my dad's trying to do business with Stinkin' Rich." "Manehattan? What's it like there? Ah've never been farther away from Ponyville than Appleloosa." Red MacIntosh's Mane swung very nicely when her turned his head to the sun. "You want to know about Manehattan?" Scarlet asked. The stallion- Red MacIntosh- nodded. "It's very- Big. Everypony is very self-absorbed, and nopony would ever meet by walking by each other in a road." "Ah s'pose Ponyville looks real boring next to a city like that." Red MacIntosh said. Scarlet laughed. "I love Ponyville! I haven't seen much of it yet, but from what I have seen? I mean- The first pony I meet, other than the Riches, offers to give me a ride!" Scarlet smiled at Red MacIntosh. He was definitely handsome, she decided. Scarlet heard a swell of sound ahead of them. It was a happy sound- Lots of happy pony voices, laughing and talking and greeting and bartering and bickering. Scarlet could smell food and lot and lot of apples. "The farm's just around the bend." Red MacIntosh told Scarlet. She trotted faster. He laughed and easily matched her pace. The empty wagon almost clattered on the road. Scarlet glanced sideways at Red MacIntosh. She went a smidge faster. Red MacIntosh gave her a competitive grin and went even faster. Scarlet bit her lip and went as fast as she could go. She figured that without the wagon, she'd lose, but with a wagon, even an empty one, she might just win a race against the stronger farm pony. Red MacIntosh caught up to Scarlet. Her hooves beat the ground trying to pass him. He breathed hard. He passed her just as they dashed through the gates of Sweet Apple Acres. Scarlet sat down on the grassy ground, breathing heavily. Red MacIntosh unhitched himself from the wagon and sat beside her. "Ah demand a rematch!" Red MacIntosh exclaimed, smiling evilly. "But you won." Scarlet said, gasping for breath. "Ah know. Ah also know that without the wagon, Ah could win by much, much more." Red MacIntosh nudged Scarlet in the side. It hurt to laugh when she could barely get enough air to breathe after the run. "Now, who's this?" a mare approached behind the two ponies. "Ah haven't seen y'all around town, miss whatever-yer-name-is. Where're you from and why're y'all here?" Scarlet stopped laughing and turned around. She and Red MacIntosh stood up. "I'm from Manehattan. My name's Scarlet Navella Orange." Scarlet smiled. "I've heard so much about Sweet Apple Acres apples, and Red MacIntosh offered to show me the way here- And it turned into a sort of race." "Ah brought the wagon back, Ma." Red MacIntosh pointed his hoof toward the wagon. "Orange?" The green mare- Red MacIntosh's mother- looked at Scarlet suspiciously. "Y'all aren't related in any way to the Lemons, are ya?" Scarlet shook her head. Red MacIntosh's mother turned to the house, satisfied. "Awright. It's near noon. Why don't Miss Scarlet stay here fer lunch?" "Lunch?" Scarlet said, alarmed. "Oh, no. I promised my mother I'd meet her at that baker- What was it- Sugarcube Corner!" Scarlet grimaced. "Can I just buy a few apples and go? My mother'll freak out if I'm not back." Scarlet began to fumble in her saddlebags for the bits she'd brought, but Red MacIntosh stopped her. "Ah kin drop off a few extra apples at the Rich mansion." Red MacIntosh smiled at Scarlet and she grinned back. "Thank you so much, Red MacIntosh!" Scarlet, to her surprise, found herself hugging the stallion. She stopped herself and stepped back. She was keenly aware of Red MacIntosh's mother's eyes on her. "Call me Red Mac." Red Mac mumbled. He turned and cantered away. His mother winked. Scarlet blushed and ran away, her cheeks reddening with embarrassment. Scarlet closed the scrapbook and looked over at Red. "I'm so glad I came to Ponyville." Scarlet scootched over on the couch so that she could snuggle against Red's side. They fit together perfectly, shoulder to waist to neck to leg. Scarlet and Red stared into the fire. "Me too." Red slid his arm around Scarlet's shoulders, warming her up. she leaned her head against his shoulder, treasuring the moment. With children to take care of and a farm to run, they barely ever got time to just be together, looking at old memories and staring into the fire. "Red?" "Ee-yup, Sugarcube?" "Let's race tomorrow." Scarlet pulled away and looked into Red's orange eyes. "I think I could beat you." She smiled. The firelight reflected in Red's eyes as he grinned. "Ee-nope. Ah could still beat y'all, with or without a wagon on mah back." Scarlet snuggled back into Red's embrace. "We'll see tomorrow." Author's Note Comments and suggestions are welcome! Also, I love hearing about any errors I made... So... Smiles!
Warm InsideThe snow whirled loudly around the outside of Sugarcube Corner, contrasting starkly against the warm interior. The smell of baked goods fresh from the oven drifted lazily around the bakery. The bell rang as the door opened and sudden rush of cold air swooped through the room, disrupting the warmth and sending shivers down several ponies' backs. Red Mac quickly stepped in with the wind and shut the door, shaking off snow that quickly melted on the ground and restoring the bakery to its calming warmth. His eyes darted all over the bakery until he found the mare he had been looking for. He took a step forward then stopped, his stomach filling with a mixture of excitement and sudden, unbidden shyness. Scarlet looked at him and waved him over to the corner of the bakery she has grabbed. She smiled nervously as he got closer. Red Mac took off his coat and sat down awkwardly on the loveseat next to Scarlet and looked at her, biting his lip. "So." Scarlet kept listening, so he continued. "What do ya usually do on a first date?" Scarlet's brow furrowed. "I- I don't know. Talk, I guess. Maybe-" Her mouth seemed to hover between shaping the sound 'k' and the sound 'h', then decided on the latter. "Hug?" Red Mac nodded. "Awright. Should we order something?" Scarlet opened a bag next to her on the seat. "I ordered frosted scones and chocolate cookies for both of us, actually. I didn't know-" "That sounds real good." Red Mac said, glad for something to do. He picked up a scone and bit in. He chewed and swallowed. Scarlet watched him nervously. Scarlet smiled at him. Shoot, That mare smiled like nopony else. Red Mac didn't know if it was the way her eyes lit up even if it was a nervous smile, or if it was the way she stuck her teeth out a tiny bit, but her smile never failed to bring a mirroring one out on Red Mac's face. Scarlet took one for herself, blushing. "These taste good?" Scarlet asked. Red Mac nodded. He opened his mouth to say something, then changed his mind. "Gosh darn it, we know each other too well to be sittin' here like nervous schoolfoals. Come on, Scarlet. D'ya have yer coat?" Scarlet stood up. "Yep." Red Mac grinned devilishly as he put on his coat and Scarlet put on hers. "C'mon along then, Sugarcube. Follow me." "Where are we going?" Scarlet asked as she picked up the bag of still-warm baked sweets and followed Red Mac out the door. "You'll see." Red Mac turned to look at her, then trotted out the door. The view from the top of the hill was cold and clear. Snow scratched Red Mac's and Scarlet's cheeks. Scarlet shivered. "This had better be fun." She challenged Red Mac. "Oh, this'll definitely be more fun than sittin' in a bakery fer two hours." Red Mac grinned at Scarlet again and ducked behind a large bush. He emerged with a big, beautiful sled. "Oh my gosh!" Scarlet exclaimed. "Where did you get that?" She trotted to look at it, running her hooves over the edges and admiring it from several angles. Red Mac dropped it on the snow, keeping his foot on the sled to steady it. "Mah brother, sister and ah have been comin' up here in the Winter fer years. Bein' the youngest and havin' them go off ter the far corners of Equestria, ah didn't think 'bout this too much, 'til now." Red Mac sat on the sled and looked at Scarlet. "Y'all comin'?" Scarlet sat on the sled behind Red Mac. "Don't kill us." She put her chin on his shoulder and her arms around his middle. "Ready!" Red Mac let go of the hill. Scarlet's scream was left on the hilltop beside the cookies. She hugged Red Mac tightly as he steered the sled away from a cluster of rocks, then around a tree. The snow hit their faces and the wind swept their manes out straight behind them. At the bottom of the hill, Red Mac turned to face Scarlet, half afraid that she would run away from him. She was panting hard. She licked her lips. "That was amazing!" Scarlet yelled. "We have got to do that again!" "Come on up." Red Mac gave Scarlet a smile as they trudged up the hill. "Y'all havin' fun?" Red Mac asked, reaching for another scone. "That was the best first date a mare could ask for." Scarlet smiled at Red Mac and bit into a cookie. Their eyes met and warmth spread down to their hooves. Scarlet sighed. "What?" "We should do this more often." Scarlet looked at her hoof, then at Red Mac. "I don't know how often my parents'll let me come here." Red Mac bit his lip. Then he brightened. "Ah could take a day trip to Manehattan. Ah'll go on a day when mah parents kin handle the farmwork. Ah kin take a train at night and sleep on it, then spend a day in Manehattan, then come back and sleep on the night train to Ponyville!" Scarlet smiled. "That's brilliant!" She leaned forward and hugged Red Mac tightly. "Red Mac, you're the best." Red Mac looked at Scarlet, who was preparing Big Macintosh's lunch for school. "It's almost sleddin' season." Red Mac said, looking at a picture of them sledding that had been taken later, when the whole Apple family had trooped over to sled. "Should we show them the hill this year?" Scarlet added a layer of cheese to Big Mac's sandwich, thinking. "I guess Mac's old enough. To tell the truth, I think we could've shown them last year, just to play. I just-" Scarlet bit her lip. "They're growing up so fast. Mac already knows most of his alphabet." Scarlet sighed wistfully, looking at Red Mac. "I mean, I know Applejack's still a baby, but seeing Mac go to school every day- He's so grown up." Red Mac nodded. "Ah know, sugarcube. But they're still real young. We'll have them fer years an' years ter come. And remember-we still have one on the way." Scarlet finished making Mac's sandwich and looked at her bulging stomach. "You're right. They'll still be our babies for years. I guess- I can't help wishing they could stay at this age forever." "They cain't, sugarcube. Ah'm sure we'll have a bushel of fun watching 'em grow." Red Mac got up off the loveseat and walked over to his wife. "Watchin' them develop into adult mares an' stallions- With them comin' to us with their li'l problems so we kin help..." "You're right." Scarlet put Big Mac's sandwich in a bag and wrote his name on it. "Ah'm always right!" Red Mac exclaimed and Scarlet snickered. "Oh, of course. And that time you thought sugar would help Applejack fall asleep faster? That was right?" "She fell asleep, dint she?" "Four hours past her bedtime." Scarlet laughed and gave Red Mac a kiss on the nose. "It took up all of our alone time." Author's Note I call Big Mac 'Big' Mac even though he's technically a very little mac because, in my headcanon, he demanded a name change. Up to the time he started preschool, he was little Mac. Then in preschool, he demanded to be BIg Mac, because, in his own words, "Ah'm a big boy now." Naturally, Scarlet spent most of that night alternatively crying 'My baby is growing up' tears and sneaking into Big Mac's room to watch him sleep.
Give My Regards to You... On Bridleway. The Street. Give My Regards to You... On Bridleway. The Street. Coming out of the theater and into the cold night air was one of the best parts of a night on Bridleway for Scarlet. She looked at Red Mac. Scarlet giggled at the look of awe on her- Well, her coltfriend's face. "Never seen a Bridleway show before?" Scarlet asked as they walked down the Bridleway street. She smiled. Red Mac had sobbed for most of the second act. So had Scarlet, but that was expected of a sophisticated Manehattanite. Scarlet hadn't realized just how sensitive and caring the big farmpony could be. "Well, shoot, how was ah s'posed ter see one in Ponyville?" Red Mac answered. "Ah aint seen one 'til now." "And? you liked it?" Scarlet prompted. "Darn tootin'!" Red Mac smiled at Scarlet. "That there endin'- Aw, shoot. Ah'm tearin' up again." Red Mac looked sternly at Scarlet. "Not a word. Nopony in Ponyville hears how ah cried lahk a filly durin' that show." Scarlet laughed. "Not a word." She promised. Red Mac nuzzled her gently. It sometimes surprised Scarlet how gentle Red Mac could be. She'd seen him buck trees- His strong legs could shake apples from the highest branches, his head could knock down dead trees, and he could pull large wagons on his own. With Scarlet, he used the same amount of force as a butterfly. Or a cat. As Red Mac pulled his head away, Scarlet felt his lips touch her neck for one tantalizing second. From the look in his eyes, she could tell it hadn't been on purpose. She doubted he had even realized that he'd touched his lips to her coat. Scarlet looked in her purse for bits to hide her blush. "Let's go have a bite to eat. I'm starving." Scarlet looked around. "there's a good ice cream place nearby... Inside Scoop..." Red Mac nodded. "Awright. Ah could go for some vanilla ice cream right now." Red Mac never ate apples that weren't grown on Sweet Apple Acres. He claimed they didn't taste right. Scarlet led the way to the ice cream shop, through the bustling crowds and cold air that she both loved about Manehattan and hated. "There it is." Scarlet hip bumped Red Mac playfully. She looked at his lips when he smiled. Scarlet ducked into Inside Scoop and Red Mac followed her. The store was small and busy, late on a Saturday night on Bridleway. Scarlet expertly dodged ponies as she got into line, used to the crowds. Red Mac looked around, interested. "There're so many ponies in Manehattan!" Red Mac exclaimed softly. "Ah wonder what it would be like to have so many in Ponyville." Scarlet laughed. "Yech. Let Manehattan have all the ponies and Bridleway shows. I love Ponyville the way it is." "Y'all love Ponyville?" Red Mac asked Scarlet, surprised. She considered a moment. "Yeah," She said, a smile spreading over her face, "I do." Looking around at the bustle and dirt of Manehattan, Scarlet imagined the green fields and thatched-roof cottages of Ponyville. "I do. I really do." Red Mac nuzzled Scarlet again. He pulled away as they stepped forward in line. Scarlet caught a glimpse of his lips again as he faced the front. She had to tell her heart to slow down. "Next." The ice cream counter pony said. Red Mac and Scarlet stepped up. "Ah'll be havin' a large vanilla in a bowl, not a cone." Red Mac told the pony behind the counter. She lifted an eyebrow at his accent, but took the order. "I'll have the same." Scarlet said. They moved over a step to wait for their ice cream. Scarlet was very aware of Red Mac next to her. When the ice cream pony slid their ice cream across the counter, Scarlet and Red Mac went to find a seat that hadn't been taken. They found one in a corner, set off from the rest of room by a large plant. The ponies at it were just getting up. Scarlet and Red Mac slid into the seats before anypony else. "That show was amazing, wasn't it? I wish I could sing that well." Scarlet took a spoonful of ice cream. "Mmm!" "Ah'm sure y'all can sing." Red Mac reassured her. Scarlet laughed. "You've obviously never heard me sing." She licked her lips, getting all the ice cream off. Then she took another bite. "Ah'm sure you can sing- Some things." "I can sing nursery rhymes." Scarlet twirled her spoon in the air. "Lullabies, the ABCs, that kind of thing. Anything more complicated than 'Mare-y Had a Little Lamb' is beyond me." "Maybe you can sing fer me sometime and ah can be th' judge of that." Red Mac smiled. He had ice cream on his lip. Scarlet had the urge to lean forward and kiss him right on the tiny patch of vanilla. "Maybe I can. If you don't mind losing your ears." Scarlet smiled, suddenly shy. Why could she not stop thinking about how Red Mac's lips would feel on hers? Soft and strong and perfect- "Y'all cain't be that bad." Red Mac leaned in closer. He leaned closer, almost like- Like- Scarlet didn't think. She leaned forward and kissed him. He tasted like vanilla and apples and sun. Red Mac pulled away from her. Scarlet's heart dropped. Had she gone too fast? She looked down, gulped, and forced herself to look into Red Mac's eyes. And he kissed her. The world melted away like ice cream on a hot summer day. Scarlet pulled away. "That's something you don't get every day with three foals to watch." Scarlet joked. "Ah can give it to y'all every night." Red Mac joked. He smiled. Scarlet stood up. "I promised Applejack that I'd check on her in ten minutes ten minutes ago." She said. "She's probably asleep. It'll be quick." Scarlet trotted into Applejack's room on the upper floor, treading as lightly as she could on the old, creaky wood. She did not want to wake Apple Bloom. She'd barely started sleeping through the night. Scarlet silently pushed Applejack's floor open. "Mother?" Applejack sat up. "Ah cain't sleep." Scarlet walked over to sit on her daughter's bed, closing the door and turning on the bedside lamp. The lamp filled the room with a soft glow. "Why, sweetheart?" As Scarlet sat down, Applejack snuggled into her mother's side. Scarlet laid her hoof on Applejack's head, stroking her small ears. "Ah dunno." Applejack looked into Scarlet's eyes. Scarlet melted, like she always did when her foals did something that reminded her that they depended on her, needed her, loved her. "Ah just- cain't." Applejack hugged her mother hard. "Don' go, mother. It's awful dark at night. And the floor creaks." Scarlet gathered Applejack onto her back. "Why don't we go downstairs and you can stay up a while with Pa and I? It's not as dark downstairs." Applejack nodded, holding on to Scarlet's ears. Applejack gave her mother a little kiss on the head. "Ah love ya, mother. Yer th' best mother in Equestria." Scarlet melted again. Scarlet smiled as she trotted downstairs. "And you're the best five-year-old filly in Equestria." As Scarlet entered the living room, Red Mac looked up from the paperwork he was doing. He smiled when he saw the filly on Scarlet's back. "Is Applejack visitin' with us t'night?" Red Mac patted the space beside him on the couch. "C'mon, AJ." Applejack slid off of Scarlet's back and climbed onto the couch next to her father. She put her head in his lap and he petted her mane. Applejack sighed contentedly. "She couldn't sleep." Scarlet told Red Mac. "I think AJ just needs some time alone with her mother and pa." Red Mac gave his daughter a gentle poke in the stomach, making her laugh. "That's fine with me." Red Mac looked at Scarlet. "You're th' one who's picky 'bout bedtime." Applejack grinned at Red Mac. Scarlet sighed. "I just want them to get enough sleep. We have apple fritters in the fridge. Why don't we have a little midnight snack?" Applejack nodded. Scarlet trotted off to the kitchen to grab the fritters. Applejack, snuggled against her pa, thought that she had to be the luckiest filly in the world. Author's Note So. I actually haven't ever really kissed anyone, so if I got the emotion or whatever all wrong, tell me.
On Top of the World"So... Y'all gonna stay in Ponyville?" Red asked. Scarlet stirred her apple spice iced tea, not looking Red in the face. "My parents want me to settle down in Manehattan. They think you and I are just a rebellious phase..." She looked up from her drink to see his face fall. "We're not, Red. Five years is not a phase." He brightened and Scarlet thought that nothing would ever feel as wonderful as making Red brighten. "I plan on coming to live out here. I could... I don't know, be an assistant teacher or librarian. Or... Could I help out at the farm?" "Mah parents would love that, Sugarcube. They say Ah take too mud work on mahself. It'd seem like nothing if you were there with me." "Red, you're the sweetest stallion that ever lived," Scarlet whispered, leaning closer to her coltfriend. They shared a quick kiss. No sense in making the Cake colt, Carrot, grimace at PDA any more than he did already. "You just bring it out o' me, Scarlet," Red said. Their next kiss was longer and accompanied by a "Ich!" from Carrot. Scarlet and Red didn't usually go up to the top of the sledding hill for anything other than sledding, but Red had suggested they have a picnic. It was a beautiful spring day. Flowers bloomed, insects buzzed, Red's muscles moves under his sleek red coat as he pulled the wagon up the hill. Scarlet frolicked ahead. She'd offered to pull the wagon but Red had refused, pulling it away from her when she tried. "Ah don't want to look like a wimp, now," he said to Scarlet. She laughed. "Like I'd ever call you a wimp." Wagon or not, she was panting at the top. The sun beat down hard on her back. Her mane didn't help. It locked the heat in like a blanket around her neck. Red didn't look winded at all. "Let's get the food out, Sugarcube," he suggested nervously. Nervously? No, not around her. He had no need to be nervous. Scarlet spread the blanket out. "You'd better not have forgotten the black-and-white cookies," she teased. Red looked startled. "'Course not. Ah made sure Ah brought them-" "Relax, Red." Scarlet smoothed the picnic blanket and gave her coltfriend a soft kiss. "I knew you did. You always do." Red nodded, grinning sheepishly. "'Course." Scarlet and Red set up their blanket the way they usually did, plates at one side, the two ponies sitting beside each other on the other side. "I love Ponyville," Scarlet sighed, looking at the town. Red made a huffing noise and she looked up at him. "Of course I love you. You're the best part." She leaned her head on his shoulder and licked the cookie crumbs off of her lips in a way that would make her mother faint. "Scarlet," Red said suddenly. "Scarlet, Ah..." he moved back and she looked at him. His eyes were wide and he was biting his lip. "Hmm?" Scarlet asked. Her heart started to beat. Was this... Was Red...? Red got down on one knee. "Scarlet, Ah love ya. Ah cain't imagine life without ya. Scarlet, will ya marry me?" His words tumbled out, heartfelt and honest and making Scarlet's breath catch. Red pulled a box out of the wagon. "Scarlet, yer th' most beautiful mare Ah ever met. Yer th' funniest, kindest, best pony Ah've ever met. What do ya say, Sugarcube?" He snapped it open, displaying a fruit-shaped diamond ring that must have cost Red far too much. Scarlet felt tears come to her eyes. "I love you, Red," she said, before catapulting herself into his hooves. They just stayed on the grass and Scarlet felt she never wanted to leave. "Ich!" Big Mac shook his head. "That's a filly story." "Ah think that story's purty," Applejack said, sticking her tongue out at her brother. He stuck his out right back. "Yer a filly." Applejack did the only reasonable thing: She threw herself at her brother, instigating a wrestling match terrifying to behold. "Red, calm them down," Scarlet said, cradling Applebloom. "Calm down, y'all!" Red dove into the fray, meaning to tear them apart but ending up jointing in. Applejack and Big Mac laughed when their daddy started making faces as he there them in the air and fought them. Scarlet sighed. "Red, that wasn't what I meant." Applebloom laughed and clapped her hooves. "Apple!" She cried. It was the only thing she knew how to say. Applejack and Big Mac immediately left the wrestling match, ears alert. Whenever Applebloom said anything, it was cause for celebration. She'd only started talking the previous week. "Apple!" Applejack repeated. "Apple!" Aplebloom laughed. Scarlet tickled her under the chin as Red pounced on the other two, tickling them until they laughed and tried to tickle him back. "Now, let's get some cookies," Red gasped finally. The foals were the only things in the world that could tire him out. "They don't need more sugar!" Scarlet cried in vain, but to no avail. The two older ones had pounced on the black-and-whites. Big Mac remembered to give Scarlet one. "Here, Mother. Yer favorite." Scarlet smiled at his still-foalish voice. She could already hear it growing up; Not deepening, but the edges were getting sharper, his diction less lisping and more solid. Applejack's high, childish laugh brought her back to the now and the fact that they were still babies. "Thank you, Mac." "Ah'm BIG Mac." "You certainly are," Scarlet said, rocking Applebloom and trying to keep the cookie out of the tiny filly's grasp. "You're my Big Mac." Applebloom cooed and drooled after the cookie. "Cain't Applebloom have a cookie?" Applejack asked, crumbs surrounding her mouth. "Not just yet," Scarlet said. Red laughed. "She'll be eatin' soon enough. If she's anything like her mother, she'll be goblin the cookies faster'n y'all can say sugar." "They're my favorite!" Scarlet laughed. "You can eat Apple Brown Betty fast enough." As the sun dropped in the sky, Applejack and Big Mac curled up on the blanket between Red and Scarlet. Red held Applebloom as Scarlet stroked her older children's heads. "They're so sweet," Scarlet said softly. "Spritely, too," Red said back, smiling. "They're already asking to help around the farm." "Applejack asked me about cutie marks the other day," Scarlet said. "I got mine late." "Ah didn't," Red said. "Ah knew Ah was built for apples. Mah parents told me that." Scarlet smiled. "I barely gardened before Ponyville. I'm glad the foals are growing up here. They'll grow up big and strong, like you." "Ah'm sure glad you came here, Scarlet," Red said, nuzzling his wife over the softly breathing sleeping foals between them. "Oh, so am I." Author's Note So! Sorry I haven't been on. I've had school... Other stuff... I just kind of missed FimFiction, and I needed to finish this story. It's almost done.
