Appledisiac

Appledisiac. 3

“We’re the cutie mark crusaders… Doo doo dum dee… hm hm hmmm…” The young mare, Sweetie Belle, happily hummed to herself, dusting the tree house that she and her friends built all those year ago. Over time they’ve had to make adjustments to the structure, making the doors bigger, adding more rooms and whatnot. It basically became a home away from home for the three girls. Whenever they got frustrated with family, they could look forward to a warm bed, a fridge, and they even had a bathroom to escape to. After all that Applebloom finally realized her potential and found her cutie mark as being a builder of just about anything. Looking back, it seemed obvious, but the girls just never saw it up until that point…

Sweetie Belle blushed, the only thing more obvious Applebloom’s talent was her own; singing. It only took forever and a day for it to cross her mind. Breaking into song every other day wasn’t enough to make it click in her head that she was good at it…

Thinking about it, Scootaloo was a pretty obvious situation too. She wasn’t a great flyer, but her wings were great at propelling her forward on her scooter… She had gone out to Hoofington to try her luck at joining a small racing team. Sweetie Belle couldn’t help but miss her; it had been a long time since they got a letter from Scootaloo. The last one didn’t seem too encouraging; she talked about how the team thought that he wings were an unfair advantage, even though other’s used it as well… although she did talk about a new friend she was seeing…

“Sweetie Belle!” Applebloom’s voice cried out as she rushed into the clubhouse, skidding to a halt right next to Sweetie Belle

Sweetie Belle thought something was wrong and quickly put the duster away to focus her attention on the emergency, “What? What is it Applebloom?”

She was breathing heavily, apparently whatever compelled her to run into the clubhouse at full speed was important enough to make her run a long way to get that information here., “I… I found…”

“Calm down… Just relax and get your breath, THEN tell me…”

Applebloom took a few deep breaths, sighing deeply with each intake, “Okay… I’m good… I found a solution to our boy problem!”

Sweetie Belle blinked, “Boy problem?” she wasn’t aware she had a boy problem… at least not one that required Applebloom to nearly pass out from lack of oxygen.

“Yes! Duh! You’re always talking about how you’re always hanging out with Featherweight and he never seems to notice you trying to flirt with him.” She had a very ‘duh’ attitude about the whole situation.

Sweetie blushed a little, “Well, Yeah, I suppose…” she felt a little embarrassed about it. Ever since they had joined the newspaper all those years back, she had a little crush on the scrawny pony… even though he wasn’t the strongest or manliest… he had a certain charm to him, “I guess I just like the silent type…”

Applebloom rolled her eyes, “Of course he’s silent; he’s a mute…”

“I know that! I was just sayin’…” Even though he couldn’t speak, the two seemed to communicate well. He always knew how to express what was on his mind, one way or another; whether it was with hoof gestures, facial expressions, or his greatest asset; his photos. He still took photos all the time and used them to his advantage. As they say; A picture is worth a thousand words, so simply showing a picture to someone was a great way for him to express something, and he always seemed to have the right picture handy.

“But you’re one to talk, falling for the little boy with the British accent.” She grinned at her tease. She knew as well as anyone that Applebloom had a crush on Pipsqueek.

Applebloom felt her cheek turning pink, but she didn’t deny it, “Okay, I do… Is that a problem?”

“Well, no… but…” She knew what she was going to say would hurt… but it had to be brought up, “Are you sure you’re not into him just because Diamond Tiara is after him?”

Applebloom glared, “The only reason SHE wants him is because I like him and she knows it… She’s always been trying to make our lives miserable one way or another… You know that! Every time we do something she’s there to try and ruin our lives. I think she get off from making ponies miserable…” she had a look of hate and pure anger on her face that would scare a pack of timber wolf back into the woods.

“So you DO like him for him, right? For who he is and not anything else?”

“Yes! He’s sweet, kind, really fun to hang out with… and… cute…” her cheeks grew a bit redder at the last compliment for Pip.

“Heh, okay… I believe you… but what do you mean you have a ‘solution’ for our boy problem?” Sweetie Belle tilted her head curiously, wondering what revelation her friend could have had.

“This!” she pulled out a small vial from her bag, filled with an opaque liquid with a dropper in the top. It was still sealed tightly though, apparently it had never been open.

Sweetie Belle stared at the object, obviously confused, “I don’t get it…”

“It’s juice from a special apple in our orchard! I heard Applejack and Big Macintosh talkin’ about it! They said it makes ponies crazy for you!”

This sounded awfully familiar to Sweetie Belle, “You mean like that Love Poison?” Sweetie Belle asked, glaring at Applebloom, “Don’t you remember how much trouble we got into with that?”

“Well, yeah, but this is different. They’ve both used it and they’re fine. And they both are in a relationship now! I hear that Lyra and Bon Bom have been using the stuff for years! And they’re not crazy like Big Mac and Cheerilee got. They seem pretty normal and pretty happy together. It’s gotta work better than that love poison.” She turned the bottle in her hooves, looking at the label intently. It didn’t have much on it, other than the title ‘Appledisiac’ and a small warning, ‘One drop per pony per use is recommended. Take extreme caution when using this in baking. One drop per serving. DO NOT ingest more than 4 drops at a time.’

“Applebloom, I don’t think this sounds right… I mean, it’s not natural…”

She shrugged at the argument, “ ‘course it’s natural! It’s apple juice!” another ‘duh’ expression, as if it was obvious and any argument otherwise was silly.

Sweetie belle sighed, shaking her head, “I mean that we shouldn’t be messing with ponies’ hearts. It’s no different than the Love Poison… I know you’ve been really wanting Pip for a while now, but you gotta be patient…”

“I’ve been patient!” She suddenly snapped, raising her voice, “And then Diamond Tiara cheated and tricked him into thinking she likes him!” She didn’t direct the anger towards Sweetie Belle, it seemed to be directed at Diamond Tiara. Even so, Sweetie Belle was a little worried about her little explosion, “I have to do something’ to tip the scales in my favor… And this will get him to fall head over hooves for me! And you can use it on Featherweight if you want!” She seemed eager with her little plan, “I was thinking of baking some treats and putting a couple of drops on them. Then we’ll have our boys! You really want featherweight, and with this he’ll gladly come to you! You two will fall in love and live happily ever after!”

“I REALLY don’t like this idea, Applebloom…” She quietly thought about her situation though… she had tried dropping hint after hint to Featherweight, but nothing seemed to get him to understand… The idea of a quick fix to get him to finally understand her love for him sounded really nice, “But… I’ll try it…”

“Yes! Come on, I’ll get started on the baking and you go find Featherweight and Pipsqueek. Tell them to meet us this afternoon here.” She bounced around with excitement, placing the vial down on the table before giving Sweetie Belle a hug, “We’re finally gonna get out boyfriends!”

Sweetie Belle smiled, but she had a nervous gut feeling about this whole thing, “Uh, Yeah… I hope…”

While Applebloom was at home baking a few treats, Sweetie Belle went out into town hoping to find the two boys at home. She started off at Pip’s place, figuring it would be easier to talk with him since he wasn’t the object of her affection. Practicing now might make inviting Featherweight a bit easier…

She gave the door a gentle knock, fidgeting nervously as she waited… finally he opened up the door, smiling, “Hey! ‘Ello there Sweetie Belle! What brings you about?”

“Hey Pipsqueek! Me and Applebloom were just uh…” she quietly cursed at herself… she hadn’t thought of an excuse to bring them over to their clubhouse… she paused briefly, and quickly came up with an excuse, “We were… baking! And we were uh… hoping you and Featherweight could come along and try some!”

“Ooo, sounds wonderful! I always love her treats! Although… how late were you planning on having this? I uh… kinda have plans with Diamond Tiara later…” he didn’t seem too excited about his ‘plans’, it sounded more like a dental appointment to get his teeth drilled at rather than a date…

“Not too late, maybe in an hour or so… Probably won’t stay too long…” She shrugged it off, hoping the casual nature would entice him to come along.

“Hm, Alright, I’m sure I’ll have plenty of time… I’ll be there in an hour! Oh I can’t wait to try some of her treats… What did you make? Oh I hope she made some of those cookies! Those are amazing!”

Sweetie Belle giggled, “Uh, not entirely sure, she’s doing most of the baking right now, so… it’s kind of up to her.”

“Ah, alright then. That’s fine though! I’d love to get to see her again, and I’m sure anything she bakes will be delicious! Maybe I’ll run by Featherweight’s place and we’ll head over together.”

It was surprising that the two were friends, Pip and Featherweight, but considering how sparse the male population was in town, it probably wasn’t hard for the two to find one another and become friends.

“Alright! I’ll see you two then! I’m gonna drop by Featherweight’s place and see what he’s up to…” Sweetie Belle began to grow nervous already, fearing the worst would happen… like she would stutter or trip in front of him, embarrassing her somehow…

“I think I saw him running around with his camera!” Pip said quickly before she could leave, “But I’m sure he’s back home by now.”

“Oh, okay! Thanks Pipsqueak!” she gave him a wave before heading down the road a bit towards Featherweight’s place. She looked up at the home as she approached, but her nerves got to her, sending her in another direction. She cursed herself and circled around, heading back to his home, “alright, Sweetie Belle, get a hold of yourself… Nothing is gonna happen, you’re just inviting him for some snacks… and after he has some he’ll be in love with you! Nothing to worry about, just stay calm…”

She gave his door a knock; taking a step back as she waited… she couldn’t help but feel like it was taking forever…

The door finally opened, with a curious face peeking outward. The meek pony flashed a smile, opening it up all the way. He had his camera hanging down from his neck, as he usually did.

“Hey Featherweight! I heard you were running around taking pictures again.” She decided to open up with some small talk, hoping it would ease her in to inviting him.

He smiled, giving a little nod, a look of pride in his eyes. Even after being promoted to Editor and Chief of the newspaper staff when he was a kid, he still enjoyed running around town snapping photos. All the experience easily landed him a job at the town’s newspaper as a photographer. It was a nice job that he seemed to enjoy.

“Neat! Did you get any good ones?” She was trying her hardest to make casual conversation with him, wanting to get some sort of connection before asking him to come over.

He gave her another nod and waved her to come inside. She eagerly accepted and followed him in. He led her up to his room where a large pile of photos laid scattered across the floor. Some of various sceneries, others of pony in their every day lives. They all look really nice and fairly interesting; each one telling a different story. “Wow, these are great! You’ve always been a wonderful photographer.”

He smiled cheerfully, glad to receive the compliment.

A thought occurred to her, remembering an event last week. “Weren’t you at my sister’s fashion show not too long ago? I thought I saw you hopping around taking snapshots…”

He nodded, rushing over to a filing cabinet in the corner. After a brief search he found the box he was looking for, placing it on the table and opening it up. Inside was a stack of almost a hundred photographs, all at a fashion show of Rarity’s latest dresses.

“Oh no… you got pictures of me in there too, didn’t you?” She grimaced at the thought, she wasn’t exactly ecstatic about being forced into Rarity’s dresses, nor was she thrilled about being photographed in them.

Featherweight gave another nod, sifting through them to pull out a dozen photos of her in a bright feathery gown. She seemed to have a smile on her face, but it was all for show.

“Yeah, I saw this one in the paper… At least you got a really good one of me, but I still think you should have used one of these other girls…” she pulled out a few photos of some other mare’s placing them by hers, “They’re so much more pretty than I am…”

Featherweight frowned, shaking his head. He stuck out his tongue in disgust as he swiped away the other mares from view, only leaving hers on the table.

Sweetie Belle blushed at the suggestion, “You think I’m prettier than those girls?”

He blushed a little at his own statement, but he nodded with confidence, still holding his little smile. Sweetie Belle was quiet for a moment, thinking about this new piece of evidence… maybe he DID like her… maybe he already thought she was a nice mare… All she had to do was ask… see if he like her… and that would be it…

No, she didn’t have it in her; she couldn’t bring herself to do it. “You’re too sweet, Featherweight…”

A bright smile crossed his face, happy for the compliment. However it faded away as something came to mind. He sifted through the photos on the floor before moving one to her to present to her. It was a picture of Sweetie Belle walking through town, but she looked upset…

She looked at the photo, but she couldn’t figure out what he was trying to tell her, “What?”

He looked annoyed, poking the picture again. Sweetie looked at it once more, “I don’t know what you’re trying to tell me…” Featherweight sighed, suddenly putting on a sad face. His ears pulled back, his eyes got big and misty, his lip quivered a bit, emphasizing a sad emotion that she seemed to have in the picture…

“Oh… Why do I look like that?” his sad face vanished and he quickly nodded in response, “I just… had stuff on my mind…” She knew exactly what stuff was on her mind… and he was sitting with her in that very room… “Oh! Speaking of which, Applebloom is baking some treats!” she tried to avoid the topic and bring up her own.

Featherweight’s ears perked up at the mentioned of treats, “We were hoping you and Pip could come along! I’ve already invited him.”

Featherweight didn’t like the fact that she was avoiding his question, but he smiled nonetheless, and nodded happily. “Great! I’m glad you could come! I think Pipsqueek has some plans later though, so I don’t think he’ll be staying long…”

Featherweight’s annoyed look returned. He sifted through the photos again before moving one of Diamond Tiara at a coffee shop, poking at her with a questionable look on his face.

“Yeah, he said it was with Diamond Tiara…”

Featherweight opened his mouth, sticking his hoof towards it as if he was gagging. Sweetie Belle giggled, “I feel the same way about her, hehe…”

He smiled at the response. He quickly searched through the pile and pulled a photo of Pip and Applebloom in their own separate photos. He then proceeded to push them together side by side, emphasizing the two being together.

“You think they should get together?” Sweetie seemed a bit surprised by this opinion, and Featherweight nodded to confirm his thought, “Yeah, I think so too! They’re so cute when they’re together…” he nodded again, lifting up the two pictures. He held up the one of Applebloom and began to move his mouth like he was talking, waving her picture around.

“Pip likes to talk about Applebloom a lot?” He nodded quickly, smiling as if he was laughing on the inside, “Do you think he likes her?”

To this, he simply shrugged… he wasn’t entirely sure… or at least, that’s what he decided to tell her. He slowly grew still, as if a thought was plaguing his mind. He looked over at his pile, searching for something with his eyes… but he seemed to give up and stop his search after just a few seconds.

“Something wrong?”

He quickly shook his head, trying to blow off his actions. “Hm… Well, I suppose I should help Applebloom… Meet us at our clubhouse in an hour! Pip said he’ll come over and meet you before going there… I think…” Featherweight nodded once more and walked her to the door before waving goodbye.

Back at the clubhouse, Sweetie Belle found Applebloom finishing up a dozen cupcakes, topping off the decorations with a generous portion of sprinkles. “Hey Sweetie Belle! Are they coming?”

“Yup, they’re on their way soon. How’re the treats?”

“Almost done, I just need to add the laaaast ingredient!” Applebloom smiled, taking the vial from the table and removing the, carefully dabbing each cupcake with a little drop of the liquid. It quickly soaked into the cake, the evidence vanishing from sight.

“Applebloom, are you sure you want to do this? I mean… I want a boyfriend just as much as you do… but…”

“I know what you’re saying Sweetie Belle, but we never get anywhere by NOT taking action!” She seemed pretty pumped up by all of this, excited to finally get her boyfriend.

Sweetie Belle felt like she couldn’t get through to the girl… so she just nodded, going along with the plan… “Alright… well what exactly does this stuff do? I want to know what to expect…”

“Not entirely sure, but when Applejack and Big Mac had it, they were having sex with their lover in just a few minutes with their partners.”

“Whoa! Wait, Sex? Whoa whoa whoa! Hold on a second Applebloom. Are you trying to say that we might be having sex here? In our clubhouse? NOW?”

She blinked, “Well it’s a possibility I guess…”

“What if this is like a LUST poison?” Sweetie Belle’s fear began to boil up again, “I’m not ready for that yet! I just want him to like me! I don’t want it like this!”

Now Applebloom was beginning to worry, “Well, maybe it won’t be like THAT… Let’s just relax and see where the situation goes…”

“And what if the situation goes straight to my VAGINA???” she cried out at her, frustrated by this new bit of information.

“It won’t! I promise! I won’t let it happen. I won’t eat any so I’ll be the one to monitor the situa-“

“Oooooh no, You gotta eat at least one or they’ll think something is up! I’M not going to be eating any of them; You’re the one who came up with this and you’re the one who isn’t worry about it…”

In their argument they heard rustling outside, and quickly clammed up. There was a knock on their door, so Sweetie Belle answered it with her magic, carefully opening it up. She spotted the boys, both with eager smiles on their faces, “H-hey guys! What’s up?”

“What’s up?” Pip tilted his head, “You invited us to eat sweets! That’s what! Hehe.” He chuckled and entered, along with Featherweight, who, of course, had his camera. He snapped a photo of the girls before taking a look around the clubhouse. All Sweetie Belle could think was that this photo was now evidence if something happened… “You two still adding onto this place? Why not add a tea room?”

“We uh, were thinking about that.” Applebloom said with a nervous smile, “But for now we just got our living area here… And cupcakes! And juice!” she walked over to the tray, moving the small vial out of sight before bringing the tray to the table.

“Oooo, they smell wonderful!” Pip quickly sat himself at the table, as did Featherweight, after taking a picture of the tasty treats. “They must be fresh out of the oven.”

“Heh, Yup! Now go on! Try one!” Applebloom insisted, “You’re the guests, you should be the first to have one.”

“You’re too kind Applebloom.” Pip eagerly picked up a cupcake and bit into it without hesitation. The two girls watched cautiously, uncertain as to what to liquid would do to him. Featherweight was next, gladly enjoying the snack that was given to him.

Nothing happened right away… the two boys gladly nibbled on their cupcakes, engulfed in the sweet taste, “Why won’t you two join us?” Pip inquired before taking another bite.

Both girls seemed unsure… the boys didn’t seem to be getting affected by the appledisiac. Sweetie Belle kept an eye on Featherweight’s wings. She heard rumors about how pegasi’s wings would spring up when they got aroused… but so far he seemed pretty normal. The two look at one another, deciding that in order to pretend like nothing was wrong, they would both eat one as well.

The both took a nervous bite, chewing slowly. The cupcake was delicious, but the two couldn’t taste it. They were too focused on what they were expecting from the Appledisiac…

The boys finished their cupcakes and moved onto the next ones, eating happily. The girls finished their, but declined any more.

“You girls seem awfully quiet... what’s on your minds?” Pip seemed very questioning at to their odd actions, and apparently so was Featherweight. The two look curious at them, wondering what was up…

“Uh…” the girls looked at each other, trying to think of a lie to explain…

“It didn’t work, did it girls?” The four of the young adults looked at the window, where Big Macintosh stood, glaring at his sister, “Boy’s I think it’s time you went home… I need to have a talk with these girls…”

The two boy’s didn’t argue… the normally silent pony always seemed to have something powerful to say when he actually did speak, so when they were asked to leave, they didn’t argue. “Uh, Yes sir. We’ll uh… see you ladies later.” The two nervous boys headed out quickly, leaving the girls alone with Big Mac.

He quietly waited until they were far enough away before speaking up. “Applebloom do you have ANY idea what that was you were trying to put into their food?” he asked a soft but stern voice.

Applebloom was reluctant to answer… she felt like whenever he spoke like this it hurt her more than If granny was yelling at her, “Er, it was… just a little something to get them to like us…”

“No.” he replied, “That’s not what that was… And if I hadn’t replaced it earlier you’d be doing a lot of stuff you’d regret…”

“But, you and Applejack used it!” She argued, hoping to push the attention away from.

“Your sister used it once… she got greedy and ate a dozen of those apples. She was locked in the orchard all day and she couldn’t stop masturbating…” The two girls looked shocked, an apple that made you masturbate? It sounded unreal, “She was crying within twenty minutes… She couldn’t stop…” The way he spoke of this, it sounded like a horrible fate to be subjected to, “And then she had a ‘guest’ who ate too much of it as well, and they were bumping along for hours…” he tried to use gentle terms to the girls, but it still horrified the girls to no end, “You remember that day a couple weeks back? When she was laying in bed for two days because her ‘back hurt’?”

Applebloom did indeed recall that day, her sister was bedridden for two days, and even after that she couldn’t work for too long… not to mention all the yelling she got from Granny… “Yes.. I remember.”

“Than you know how badly she was hurting from abusing those apples… She explained that she was bruised from how rough she got with her friend… It was not a fun time for her… and it’s a miracle that her friend didn’t abandon her for getting them to do the same thing she did. I couldn’t believe that they’re still together after hearing that story.”

“But… what about you and Cheerilee?” Applebloom tried to find some foothole to grab onto so she wouldn’t be completely without reason, “I saw granny put that stuff in your picnic, then you two finally became a couple the next morning…”

“I didn’t use any of that stuff… We waited until the time was right and we were PATIENT.” His voice raised only slightly, but the deepness and power it held shook the girls to their core, “We didn’t use anything to make our love magically appear… And you shouldn’t either!” he raised his voice a bit more with that last part, making Applebloom flinch back a bit, “It’s just like your cutie marks. You may want them now, but you have to wait patiently until the time is right… Now I never want to see you or you Sweetie Belle using this stuff…” Sweetie Belle was hoping to go the length of this without being talked to directly, but the sound of her name made her flinch. “I won’t tell Rarity or oyur parents about this, but if I catch either of you playing around with it again, I won’t hesitate to do so, am I clear?

“Yes sir…” she said softly, feeling ashamed by her actions…

“As for you Applbloom, I think when you get home I’m gonna have Applejack explain to you how she felt when she was using that stuff… It may feel good for a while but it’s dangerous stuff! And you’re FAR too young to be playing with it! Not to mention playing with the hearts of young boys… You may not be happy about it, but you’d be a heck of a lot sadder about it if they abandoned you for tricking them like that!” He stepped back from the window and walked away, leaving the girls to soak in their own guilt…

Sweetie Belle wanted to criticize Applebloom for bringing up the idea in the first place… but Big Mac seemed to do it well enough. Instead the two were quiet, reflecting on their actions and how they should continue on now…

“I think I’m gonna go talk to Featherweight…” she said softly, feeling the need to explain herself and apologize to him…

Applebloom sniffed, starting to tear up. Her emotions were starting to get to her, the guilt building up and beginning to overflow out of her tear ducts, “Y-yeah… I think I’ll stay here a bit… I’ll meet up with you later…”

As much as Sweetie Belle wanted to stay and help her friend, she didn’t think she wanted to be around when she started to bawl. She knew how much she wanted Pip, but now she could tell that her means to getting him was starting to clash with her own morality… Sweetie Belle quietly left, heading towards town on her own.

She took her time, taking the longest possible way she could imagine to Featherweight’s home. In fact her path took him passed his house half a dozen times, but finally she got the courage to go up to his door and knock. Featherweight answered after just a moment, a concerned look on his face. “Hey Featherweight.”

He tried to smile, giving her a little wave… but his concerned expression quickly returned, looking up and down at her, seeing if she was hurt physically…

“I’m fine, I promise… I just… need to talk with you for a moment…” he nodded, allowing her inside once more. He led her upstairs, where he had apparently cleaned up the pile of photos, but he did push a few towards her to show her as soon as she got inside.. The pictures seemed to be from his room’s window, showing Sweetie Belle walking by a couple of time. They seemed like they were just taken moment’s ago, she barely remembered passing by Caramel just a minute ago, whom was in one of the photos.

“So you saw me walking out there?” he nodded in response, still a worried look on his face. “Yeah… I just needed some time to think of how to tell you this…” He tilted his head to the side, taking a seat to listen to her.

“See… Applebloom said she had this… juice… she called it an Appledisiac… something that makes ponies get really attracted to other ponies…” she didn’t dare look up at Featherweight, fearing that he would have a look of disgust in his eyes, “Applebloom thought we could use it on you and Pip to… make you like us… Because… well… we like you two… And I went along with it.” she glanced up, only briefly before pulling her gaze away once more, “But apparently Big Mac replaced it before we could use it… and it didn’t do anything…”

She took in a shaky breath, trying to keep herself under control, “I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have even tried to go along with that plan. I had no idea what it really was! Big Mac said his sister used it and…” She stopped herself, not wanting to get into the details she had learned from Big Mac, “I-I just… I really like you and… well… I wanted you to like me back…” she finally looked up at him for a decent amount of time, seeing a blush on his cheek. He was still, as if composing the words in his head, trying to make sense of it all…

He raised his hooves, trying to signal something to her, but his thoughts were too complex for him to explain like that… Finally he sighed, walked over and putting his hooves around her neck, hugging her gently. Sweetie Belle sat there in disbelief, “You mean… you forgive me? After all that?”

He nodded, still hugging her gently. She eagerly hugged him back, thankful that her stupid plan didn’t ruin things, “Thank you.. .You’re amazing…” Featherweight hugged her for a moment until he began to hear her sob, shaking in his hold. He pulled back to see tear streaming down her face, “I-I’m sorry… I just… I just thought I was going to lose you forever for doing something so stupid…” she tried to wipe away the tears, but more took their place…

Featherweight couldn’t help but sympathize with her. He felt terrible for her, although he still wasn’t sure how he felt about her even attempting to use that stuff on him… nevertheless, he couldn’t just let her sit here and cry… he stroked her shoulder to get her attention, before leaning in and pecking her lips briefly.

Sweetie sat in shock, uncertain if what she thought happened had actually happened… Featherweight’s cheeks were bright red as he sat there, nervous about her response to his actions. After a moment passed she move close and pecked him on the lips, letting it last a bit longer, “I… I really like you Featherweight…” she said as he held him close.

Featherweight didn’t say a word. He just embraced her affectionately with the biggest smile planted firmly on his face. He pulled back and released her, giving himself some distance. He knew Equestrian Sign Language, and although he was sure she didn’t, he felt like his words would be easy to understand. He pointed to himself, poking himself for a second. He the put his hooves together in front of him face, spreading them apart going slightly upward before curving around, having them meet once more around his waist. Finally he pointed at her, giving her a bashful smile.

Sweetie Belle blushed fiercely, “You like me too?”

He shook his head, redoing the second symbol once more… obviously in the shape of a heart…

Sweetiee Belle blinked, taking note of how much emphasis he was pushing on the heart symbol, “You… Love me?” he nodded quickly, feeling very bashful about the situation. Although Sweetie Belle felt her cheeks heating up from the shyness she was suddenly feeling, she moved in for another hug, “Thank you…”

Featherweight pecked her cheek once more, enjoying the warmth and comfort she was giving him. After a moment he felt a sense of curiousity overwhelm him. He motioned for her to wait while he went to his cabinet. He went through ha few pictures before pulling one out, bringing it to her.

It was a photo of a familiar bottle being held by an unknown pony. The label clearly said Appledisiac on it. He motioned toward it wit ha curious look.

“Y-yeah… that’s the stuff she wanted to use…” She blushed fiercily, shifting awkwardly as she began to recall how Big Mac described it. She looked back up, seeing him flushed… and his wings sticking out.

“You’ve… you’ve heard of that stuff?” she asked softly. He nodded slowly in response, “and… you know what it does?” He hesitated, but nodded again, feeling very warm as certain thoughts went through his mind, “and even knowing that you still forgive me?”

His smile returned to his face. He gently laid the photo down and held his arms open for another hug, to which Sweetie Belle gladly accepted, “You’re too forgiving… but thank you.”

They held one another for another moment, before she pulled away, “I’m really happy about this, but Applebloom is still upset… I think I should go and talk to her… Maybe get her to talk to Pip…”

Featherweight nodded in understanding, taking a stand. Sweetie Belle seemed confused, “Wait, you wanna come too?” he nodded again, holding his hoof to his forehead in a salute. He was very loyal to his friends, and he felt it was his duty to help. Sweetie Belle grinned, “Alright! Let’s go!” He went to his cabinet and pulled out a folder and stuffing it into his bag before going back to her, ready to go.

The two ventured out back to the clubhouse, still a bit weary about Applebloom’s predicament. She carefully opened the door with Featherweight close behind.

The living room showed no sign of Applebloom, but they could hear noises up in the bedroom. The two carefully went up the small staircase, opening the door. The bed was huge, bug enough to fit the three grown mares comfortably. However Applebloom lay alone, curled up under the blanket, crying into a pillow.

Sweetie Belle carefully made her approach, hoping to comfort her. She sat by her side, stroking her through the fabric. Applebloom jumped a bit in surprise, but she didn’t move much more than that. “Hey… I know you’re upset… but you gotta come on out of there…”

“I’m a horrible person…” she mumbled softly, he voice muffled under the covers, “I’m a horrible HORRIBLE person…”

“No you’re not, Applebloom… you just made a mistake… we all do…” She tried to tug the sheet away, but Applebloom had a pretty firm grip on it.

“I could’ve made Pip do horrible things against his will… I almost did!” she began to get more erratic, raising her voice a bit.

“ALMOST, But you didn’t… Nothing happened and everyone is okay…”

“NO! It’s not okay!” she threw the sheets off, glaring at Sweetie Belle, “I’m greedy! I was willing to do ANYTHING to try to get Pip! I’m jealous that he’s with Diamond Tiara, I’m envious that she’s with him, and I’m angry that I can’t get him! I’m just a horrible person!” she began to wail, flopping her head into the pillow, muffling her sadness.

“Applebloom, that’s what makes us ponies.” She said softly, still remaining calm even after being yelled at, “We’re all a little greedy sometimes… and jealousy and envy are just natural things to feel… It’s admitting these things that make us good ponies, and trying to better ourselves so we’re not as jealous or greedy… Or angry…” She stroked her back gently, still trying to comfort her, “Just calm down and we’ll go talk to Pip… I’m sure he’d think better of you if you’d admit what you did and apologized…”

“Yeah… like that would work…” she mumbled between sobs.

“It worked for me…” Sweetie Belle replied softly. Applebloom looked up curiously, wondering what she meant, and then noticed her looking off to the side. She looked as well and saw Featherweight standing there, a little smile of encouragement on his face.

She blinked hard, unable to believe that he was there with them, “Wait… so… she told you everything? The appledisiac stuff and how we were gonna use it on you? And… you’re okay with that?”

He nodded, but he also waved his hoof back and forth, a bit uncertain with his answer… he noticed a piece of paper and a pen nearby and went over to scribble a note down. He handed it to the girls, and they read it together.

‘I’m not exactly thrilled with the idea of being tricked into loving someone… but when she came over and admitted her actions to me I could see the guilt within her. I knew she didn’t want to do it, and she truly regretted ever trying it… Plus, I kind of liked her beforehand… And Pip likes you Applebloom, he always seems happy with you.’

Applebloom sniffed, reading over the last line once more, “Yeah… right… Pip never showed interest in me…” She looked up, seeing Featherweight alright looking through his bag. He pulled out a couple of photos and laid them out for her. All of them had Applebloom and Pipsqueak together, one at a fireworks display, one at a carnival, and one just outside the school. In every one they both seemed happy, cheerful, and close…

Applebloom examined the pictures, she saw a happiness in their eyes that she didn’t notice before… like they had a connection… but he doubt still plagued her, “But he’s with Diamond Tiara, he’s happier with her than with me…” again, Featherweight expected the response, and tossed a few more picture onto the bed; These all of Pip and Diamond Tiara.

One featured Pip carrying a stack of bags and boxes on his back while Diamond Tiara seemed to be pointing at something, most like something else she wanted to buy and wanted HIM to carry. Another was the two on what seemed like a dinner date; with Diamond seemingly talking on about something she thought was incredible. Another was just the two walking together, Diamond looking off into the distance… In every picture Pip had the most miserable look on his face. No happiness, no love, nothing…

Applebloom couldn’t help but feel her heart twisting into horrible shapes at the sight of Pip’s sadness… “Are you sure he’s always like this?” Featherweight gave her another nod, assuring her of his own honesty…

“Than what are we waiting for?” She suddenly sprang up to her feet, standing tall with a newfound confidence in her heart. “Let’s go save Pip from Diamond Tiara!” she suddenly bounced off the bed, rushing out the door. Sweetie Belle and Featherweight quickly followed, heading toward Pip’s house.

Applebloom quickly knocked on Pip’s door with a great sense of urgency. After a moment without a response she knocked again, hoping he was home. There was still no reply, “Did he say he was meeting her somewhere else?”

Featherweight shook his head, moving past Applebloom to just open the door. It was unlocked so he walked right in.

“Featherweight! You can’t just break in like that!” Applebloom scorned, but he continued up the steps. Applebloom sighed and headed up anyway…

As they ascended, they began to hear some voices down the hall. The three stayed closed and approached Pipsqueak’s door…

“Aw, Pip… I got all these treats for you, why won’t you have any?”

“I’m full, I had some snacks at Applebloom’s place just a moment ago… why don’t you have one?”

She seemed to ignore his question, “Applebloom???” She sounded disgusted at the name, “You’re still seeing her? She’s a dirty little farm girl! We’re a much higher class than that!”

“She’s fun! I like her.” He quickly replied, trying to defend her.

“You like her? It sounds like you LOVE her! You’re not CHEATING on me, are you?”

“NO! Of course not! I’d never do that!” Applebloom gently pushed the door, cracking it open ever so slightly. Inside she saw Pip and Diamond Tiara setting together on a loveseat with a tray of cookies in front of them.

“Than why are you so defensive of her?” she demanded, sounding irate.

“Because she’s nice! She’s just a fun pony to be around, y’know?”

“She’s a dirty workhorse with no manners, and she’s probably had a night in the hay with every guy in town.” Applebloom twitched, tempted to jump in and strangle the harlot, “We’re better than that my little Pip. We’re practically royalty in this town! We deserve only the best, and that’s why you deserve ME.”

Something seemed to come to Featherweight’s mind, and his urgent tapping on their shoulders got their attention. The two girls looked at him with a confused expressiong while he searched his bag. He pulled out a photo of Diamond secretly showing off something to Silver Spoon. In her hooves was a glass bottle that Applebloom recognized immediately. her eyes turned back and searched the room. Sticking out of a pocket in Diamond Tiara’s purse was a very familiar vial with a very familiar liquid inside… except this one was half empty…

“Now come on Pip, won’t you eat at least one cookie? I spent all day making them just for you…” she held one up, pushing it toward Pip. He rolled his eyes and unenthusiastically opened his mouth.

“STOP!” Applebloom burst into the room, shocking both of the ponies on the couch.

“AH! Applebloom?” Diamond Tiara was probably more scared of her sudden entrance than Pip was, but it was a perfect opportunity to throw mud at her, “You were SPYING on us? How DARE you! See Pip? I told you she was a horrible pony! Tell her to get out of your home.”

Pip ignored Diamond, focusing on Applebloom, “Applebloom, What on earth are you doing here?”

“I wanted to talk, but you didn’t answer… Featherweight let us inside…” Featherweight gave a casual wave from the hall, allowing her the space she needed, “But she’s trying to drug you!”

“WHAT???” Diamond tiara tried to sound as offended as possible, obviously overacting her part. Applebloom glared at her and jumped over the bed toward her purse. Diamond saw what she was doing and leapt after it as well. The two ran into one another, but Applbloom managed to get the vial before her, “With this!”

“Ah! No! That’s mine! Give it back! PIP!” She cried for help in an attempt to take it back.

Pip continued to ignore her, “What is that?”

“It’s an Appledisiac! It’ll mess with your hormones! And I bet Diamond Tiara put them in your cookies!”

Pip turned to Diamond Tiara, expecting an argument against the accusation… but she hesitated, “I… It’s not that! It’s just… a little apple flavoring! Yeah, that’s all it is!”

Pip wasn’t sure who to believe… but he was leaning one way… “Why didn’t you want a cookie, Tiara?”

She hesitated again, “I just… I’m on a diet.” She insisted.

“You sure made an awful lot for me then.” He looked at the pile of cookies, easily enough for four people to chow down on.

“I wanted to make suer you had plenty! That’s all! There’s nothing wrong with those cookies!”

“Well then here…” Applebloom opened the bottle up, removing the dropper with it, “If it IS an Appledisiac, We’ll know… If it’s just apple flavoring… I’m sure it won’t do any harm…” She glared at Diamond Tiara, challenging her lies…

“I don’t need to prove anything to YOU!”

“If it’s just apple flavoring than you have nothing to worry about… But you’re the one on trial here, and you have to either admit your guilt or try to prove your innocence.” She smiled, she felt like she had her in a corner, there was nothing she could do but admit her wrongdoing to Pip.

Diamond glared back, suddenly snatching the bottle and swigging it’s entirety in a mere second. Applebloom tried to stop her, but she was already finished… she stared in shock at the scene. If a few drops made Big Mac so worried… what was about to happen now that she drank the entire bottle?

“Ha! See? Nothing wrong with me! Just a little apple flavoring… Now then, Pip? Would you be so kind as to tell these INTRUDERS to get out of your house? We’ll eat some cookies together and enjoy ourselves after that…”

Pip sighed, “Applebloom, I’m sorry, but you did enter my home without permission… We’ll talk later, just… head on out for me, okay?”

Applebloom stared at Pip, still shocked at Diamond’s action, “Just, h-hold on a second, she’s-“

“Look, Applebloom, I appreciate you trying to help me, but nothing bad is going on… We’re just sitting here eating cookies… now, can you three just head on-“

Click. The simple sound caused everyone to go silent. Featherweight was looking through his camera, taking a picture of something behind Pip. Everyone turned their heads, looking at Diamond Tiara…

She was fidgeting… like she was itchy all over…she tried her hardest to look natural when everyone started to look at her, “Wh-what? Hey! He said-irk… He said get out! Leave us alone! STOP LOOKING AT ME!”

“Uh… Diamond Tiara… are you feeling alright?” Pip inquired, raising his brow at her.

“I-I’m fine… I’m perfectly fine! Juuuuust fine, nothing BUT fine, hehe…heh…” Everyone was staring at her, seeing the sweat beginning to form on her brow… “WHAT? Just go! Get out! Leave us alone so we can be by ourselves!”

Applebloom began to get worried, “I think… you might want to go see a doctor… or… Granny Smith, I think she’ll know what to do about this… before it get’s worse…”

“What are you talking about? I’m FINE!” She insisted, although she was still fidgeting uncontrollably…

“Applebloom…” Sweetie Belle spoke up, “How strong IS that stuff anyway?”

“I have no idea… It looks like Apple Cider almost… but it looks like it’s concentrated… could be a dozen apples worth of juice in that one vial…”

“And… didn’t your big brother say your sister was crazy all day from a couple of apples?”

“WHAT? Crazy?” Diamond Tiara spoke up, beginning to lose her cool, “What do you mean CRAZY?”

Everyone began to back aside, including Pip. Applebloom tried to explain, “I toldja, it messed with your hormones… makes you want to have sex…” she explained calmly, “But… that’s only a drops worth… you just drank half a bottle…”

Diamond Tiara let out an ‘eep’, starting to get worried, “It’s YOUR fault! You made me drink it!”

“If you hadn’t have lied about it you wouldn’t have to worry about it! You knew what it was and you took it!” Applebloom quickly responded.

“If I die I’m telling my daddy on you!” She let out a frustrated scream, quickly running out of the house with her tail between her legs… Everyone began to calm down, but another click caught their attention. Featherweight was snapping a picture of something on the carpet. They all looked down and saw a suspicious pool of clear liquid… it wasn’t the Appledisiac, and it seemed to trail after Diamond Tiara’s escape… which Featherweight began to document now that she was gone.

“Wow… That… That could’ve been me…” Pip mumbled, walking over to the cookies, taking a sniff at them, “They do smell like apples… I guess she really was trying to drug me…” he quickly stuffed them into the little garbage pail, letting out a sigh, “I knew she was trouble… I mean, what kind of pony would do that to someone else?” he turned around, facing Applebloom again, “Thanks, you really saved me!...” he noticed a bit of a grim expression on her face, her eyes looking at the ground. “Applebloom, what’s wrong?”

Sweetie Belle reached over, pulling Featherweight aside, “Lets leave them alone.” She whispered, pulling him out quickly.

Applebloom didn’t respond, quietly rubbing her foot into the carpet, “I… I’m no better than she is…” she mumbled softly, looking away.

Pip grew concerned, quietly moving closer to her. “What do you mean? You saved me from a sex crazed delusion… How can that make you bad?”

“Because… I was going to do the same thing at the clubhouse today…” she took in a shaky breath, wanting to get her confession out all at once before she burst into tears, “I was going to put the same stuff in your cupcakes because I thought it would make you like me… I didn’t know it was so potent, I thought it would get you to love me instead of Diamond Tiara. If Big Macintosh hadn’t switched the bottle… I-I-“ she didn’t have the breath to continue, she took in one more deep breath but instead of words she released a series of sobs. Her body collapsed onto the ground, covering her head with her hooves, “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry Pip! I didn’t want to hurt you! I just wanted someone to love me! But I‘m a horrible person! I’m no better than Diamond Tiara! I don’t deserve to be loved!”

Her tears seemed to have some affect on Pip… he reached over and stroked her head, trying to get her to stop crying, “Oye… Stop crying… I hate seeing mare’s cry…” Appleblom sniffed, attempting to stop herself. Her wails slowly turned to quiet sobs. “You stopped Diamond Tiara from doing that to me… so you can’t be ALL bad…” she sniffed loudly, parting her hooves to give her a window to look up at him, “But if you had just said something to me instead of trying to drug me, we wouldn’t have any of these problems… Did you really think that was the proper way to get to me?”

She hid herself again, “I just… I couldn’t tell you… I couldn’t bring myself to tell you… I wanted you to come to me… and… I didn’t think about what I was doing…”

Pip sighed, “No, you didn’t think…” He was being very blunt, but he tried to accompany every criticism with some for of encouragement, “But, you tried to make up for your actions once you realized how you were wrong.” He stroked her head gently, thinking quietly for a moment, “I think I can safely say that I’m not going out with Diamond Tiara anymore.”

Applebloom opened up her little window again, “Really?”

“NOR am I going out with you.” He sounded stern, it reminded her of Big Mac’s lecturing, “You were planning on tricking me into being with you just like Diamond Tiara did… I don’t like being tricked…” Applebloom whimpered hiding herself once more, “But… you accepted your mistake and admitted your wrongful actions, while Diamond Tiara constantly denied what she was doing… and I’m happy that you’re mature enough to do that…” Before she could get happy again he shot her down once more, “But it’ll be a long time before I forgive you for this… and you’re going to have to do a lot to make up for it…” Applebloom stared up at him, starting to get confused as to where he stood on all this… “Maybe bake me some REGULAR cookies tomorrow and we’ll share them at lunch… how does that sound?”

Applebloom couldn’t believe it, he was forgiving her! Sort of… At least he wasn’t condemning her! “Yeah! Sure! Of course!”

“Great… Who knows? Maybe you’ll earn my forgiveness and… a spark might happen…” he gave her a smile and she gave him a hug, squeezing him tightly and thanking him a dozen time before letting him go.

“Thank you Pip! I promise, I won’t do anything stupid like that ever again!” she wiped a few rogue tears from her eyes, happy that she had gotten all this off her chest.

“Your welcome… now, didn’t you have a couple more of those cupcakes left over at your place? The uh… the NON-sexual ones…”

She nodded, “Yeah! Wait, no… I threw them out… even though they were clean…” she decided against going into detail about her little breakdown… including how she bucked a few trees until the bark started coming off…

“Well, why don’t all four of us go and bake some more?” he suggested with a little smile.

“Okay! I’m sure the others are downstairs. Let’s go get them!” She rushed down the stairs with a newfound happiness in her heart. Pip followed only to stop as she did. She was staring at something in the living room. Pip circled around her, taking an eyeful of the sight at hand…

Moment earlier, Sweetie Belle led Featherweight down the steps, avoiding the trail the Diamond Tiara had left behind. “That is kinda nasty… I can’t believe that stuff does that to ponies…” A thought crossed her mind as she took a seat on the couch, “I wonder what it would do to a unicorn…” she said aloud.

Featherweight seemed to have a response. He put his hooves to his forehead, pushing them out like little explosions, or sparks coming out of his imaginary horn…

“Heh, like a little fireworks show, huh?... I bet a Pegasus like you would have pretty stiff wings if you took it.” He hoof stroked down his back, going over the extent of his wing from the base to the tip of his last feather.

He blushed brightly, his wings suddenly extending at her touch. She quickly pulled away, feeling embarrassed, “Oh gosh! I’m so sorry. I-I didn’t mean to… I guess I was just thinking about what I was thinking about and… not what I was doing…”

He smiled , rubbing the back of his head. He gave her a look that told her it was okay, that he didn’t mind. He moved closer, extending his wing around her shoulder, pulling her to his side. She eagerly moved into his embrace, snuggling happily into him.

His own curiousity got the better of him… he eyed her horn for a moment before reaching up, running his hoof up it’s length. She squealed, jumping a little at the touch. He quickly pulled his hoof away and put on an apologetic expression.

“Heh… It’s okay Featherweight.” She smiled assuringly at him before moving close once more, “I think horns are just as sensitive as a pegasus’ wings…”

Featherweight nodded, letting out a quiet sigh of relief. “But you know… my lips are just as sensitive…”

He blinked, blushing brightly at the comment. He looked down at her, wondering if she was being serious. She just smiled up at him, teasing him with her grin. He smiled back down at her and leaned close, placing his lips to hers, kissing her with all his heart and passion… Little did they know that the other two had finished their conversation, and were now at the bottom of the steps.

Pip noticed Featherweight’s camera nearby and picked up it, quickly snapping a photo of the two.

Sweetie Belle let out a yelp, and quickly parted from Featherweight, “Oh, you uh… you two are cool already?” Her face beamed bright red, as did Featherweights, “S-sorry, we didn’t mean… I mean… We didn’t come down here to… do that… it just kind of um, happened…”

Applebloom couldn’t help but giggle, And Pip just started to laugh, “Thought I should commemorate the happy couple with a photo.” He said, holding up the camera.

“So… are you two uh… okay, now?” Sweetie Belle asked with a hopefully smile.

“Well… no...” Pip shook his head a bit before continuing, “She’s got a long way to go before I forgive her for this…” Applebloom sunk just a bit, still having a deep pain in her chest from her actions, “But I’m happy that she’s mature enough to admit her mistake…” this caused a little happiness to bubble up in her, a sense of hope in her future. “We were going to go bake some more cupcakes, do you two want to join us?”

“Uh…” Sweetie Belle seemed uncertain, so she turned to Featherweight hoping for an answer from him. The two stared at each other for a moment… Sweetie Belle wasn’t going to say anything because she wasn’t sure… And Featherweight was a mute, so there was a very long pause between the two of them… Finally featherweight made a kissy face, making Sweetie Bell giggle and finalizing their answer, “We’ll catch up to you later…”

Pip laughed, “Well make sure it’s not in MY home, okay? I don’t think my mum would appreciate strangers making out in her living room.”

The two love birds quickly hopped off the couch and headed outside together, their tails wrapped around one another as they trotted away.

Applebloom giggled, the cute sight of her friend kissing her love was adorable… although she couldn’t help but feel like because of her mistake she may never know that feeling…

“Hey uh… Applebloom… I have a confession…” Applebloom turned to Pip, who suddenly had a blush on his cheek. “Just for the record… If I had a choice for whom was gonna give me that stuff… I would have preferred you…”

Applebloom stared in disbelief… was he flirting with her now?

“It was still a deceitful thing to do And it was wrong on SO many levels…” he quickly made sure that she understood his meaning by this confession, and not to get confused, “And I NEVER want you to use that stuff on me against my will EVER again. And even though I’m still hanging out with you I’m still very upset and it’s going to take a LOT of time and effort to regain my trust… But…” his tone softened, and the blush got a little brighter, “I would’ve taken you over Diamond Tiara any day..”

Applebloom blushed brightly, shifting bashfully as she looked away, “Y’know… If you weren’t mad at me I would’ve kissed you for saying something that sweet…”

A little grin appeared on his face, “Well I AM mad at you… but maybe those cookies will make me a little more happy…”

“Eeenough for a kiss?”

“Don’t push your luck Applebloom.” He said it in the nicest way possible… which surprisingly was pretty comforting to Applebloom…

The two began to walk out the door before Applebloom stopped, “What the?” She stepped in something and lifted her hoof to see what the warm liquid was… “EW! Diamond Tiara cum! Ew ew ew ew eww!”