Down in the Dirt

by Marshal Twilight

Rating: mature
Tags: Applejack, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Romance, Trenderhoof, Big Macintosh, Sex
Length: 5274

Applejack is fed up by Trenderhoof's attempts to court her, so she decides to give him a simple test: prove he can handle Big Mac, and she'll give him a shot. Imagine her surprise when it turns out that Trenderhoof actually likes stallions

Applejack is fed up by Trenderhoof's persistent attempts to court her, so she decides to give him a simple test: prove he can handle Big Mac, and she'll give him a shot.

Imagine her surprise when it turns out that Trenderhoof actually likes stallions.

Edited by Jake The Army Guy

Published 2014-08-18 00:30:02 UTC
Last updated 2014-08-18 00:30:02 UTC

And Over a Bale of Hay

“I tell ya Mac, that stallion is driving me up the dang wall!” Applejack snapped, pacing around inside the Apple family barn. “Every time I turn around, he’s standin’ there makin’ googly eyes at me!”

Big McIntosh, whose head was moving back and forth to follow Applejack, looked as calm as ever. Privately he had to admit that he was at least a little amused by his sister’s predicament, but like the good brother he was, he was happy to let Applejack vent her frustrations to him.

“And it don’t help any that Rarity’s been followin’ him around! She’s almost as bad as he is!” Applejack continued. With a frustrated sigh, she dropped to her haunches, rubbing her forehead with a hoof. “I can’t get any work done like this!”

“Eeyup,” Big Mac said, only half-listening. He was frowning, but only because he’d spotted a small crack in the wall behind Applejack. He’d have to fix that later.

“I don’t wanna be mean, but that Tremblehoof—”

Mac grunted, giving Applejack a look.

“—Trenderhoof fella has gotta go,” she finished. She gave another frustrated sigh and slumped. “Rarity sure did take a likin’ to him though. Shame it ain’t mutual.”

“Eeyup,” Mac said.

“And really, I’m happy that somepony caught his eye, ya know? I just wish it wasn’t me.”

“Eeyup.”

“If it was anypony else, I’d just wish ‘em luck and be done with it.” She groaned. “I don’t reckon you’ve got any ideas, do ya?”

“Nnnope.”

Applejack rolled her eyes. “Yeah, me neither.”

The two sat in silence for a few moments, Applejack stuck between somber and annoyed, while Mac was feeling increasingly agitated by the crack in the wall. It was bothering him quite a bit, but until Applejack was done ranting he couldn’t see about fixing it.

“Say, Big Mac. Ain’t you into stallions?” Applejack asked.

Mac arched an eyebrow at her. “Eeyup.”

“Hmm…” She stood up and trotted over to him, walking a circle as she looked him up and down. “Ah think I’ve got an idea, actually.”

Mac gulped.

“Don’t worry, you shouldn’t have to do nothin’,” Applejack said, giving him a pat on the back. “I just wanna show him he should look somewhere else.”

Oddly, he didn’t feel reassured.

Trenderhoof frowned at the apple tree in front of him, then glanced down at the still-empty buckets underneath. He’d been trying his best for over an hour, but even his strongest bucks failed to dislodge any of the apples.

If he was honest, he hated it. He had no idea what he was doing, and he felt embarrassed whenever one of the members of the Apple family checked up on him, only to roll their eyes or shake their heads in disappointment.

But he persisted because whenever he thought about giving up, Applejack swam back to the forefront of his mind, and he felt his legs go weak as he imagined her smiling at him.

With a dopey smile on his face, his daydream went further. He pictured her in a nice dress, although still with her stetson on of course, and giving him a slightly sultry grin as she leaned in, puckering her lips for a kiss.

“Yo! Trender!”

And just like that the fantasy was shattered. With a disappointed sigh, Trender turned toward the voice, only to feel a flutter in his chest as he saw the source. Applejack was standing a few feet away from him, as beautiful as always.

“Applejack!” he said, giving her his most charming smile. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“I need ya for a minute,” Applejack said. “Over in the barn.”

“Oh, the barn!” Trender said in excitement. “Are you going to show me something? Oh, perhaps how to bale hay? Or herd cattle? Or, or…”

“Alright, calm down now,” Applejack said, rolling her eyes. “Just c’mon, you’ll see when we get there.”

With another dopey smile, Trender fell into step beside her, the two of them trotting along toward the barn in the distance. As they walked, Trender couldn’t stop his mind from wandering, imagining that he and the beautiful mare next to him were taking a romantic stroll through the park.

“You know, Applejack,” he began, only to be cut off when she held up a hoof.

“Jus’ wait ‘till we get there,” she said.

Though he looked a bit pouty, Trender nodded and fell silent. He instead looked around the farm, and not for the first time felt a sense of wonder. He may have been a city dweller at heart, but there was something refreshingly simple about country life. It was more peaceful, and there was less pretense. But what stood out to him most of all was how even though everypony here worked hard, there never seemed to be a rush. As long as everything got done at the end of the day, you could do it at your own pace. It was all so… casual.

Trender was convinced that this was the life for him. Settling down here in Ponyville with a beautiful mare at his side, tending the farm every spring and summer, then spending the winter inside with a loving family. He sighed dreamily at the thought. Now if only he could figure out the proper way to buck those stubborn apple trees…

“And here we are,” Applejack announced.

Trender blinked a few times, only just now noticing that they had indeed arrived at the farm. It was a large building, and to his surprise looked rather new despite the age of the farm as a whole.

“My word,” he said, trotting back and forth as he studied the wall. “How ever do you keep this building in such good condition? Why, it must be years old, but it looks almost new!”

To his surprise, Applejack blushed slightly and gave an awkward cough. “Let’s just say it kinda is new.” She turned and shoved the doors open. “Now come on, get in there,” she said, gesturing with her hoof.

Giving her another smile, Trender trotted through the door into the barn. To his surprise, the inside didn’t smell anything like he’d expected. There was a strong scent of hay and freshly cut wood, but nothing unappealing.

What caught his attention next was the large red stallion who was already there, looking at him curiously. Trender assumed that this was Applejack’s brother, and couldn’t help but feel a little intimidated.

“Er… Hello there,” Trender said shyly. Oh, I hope he’s not one of those overprotective brother types. “Have we met yet?”

“Nnnope,” the stallion said in his deep, rumbling voice.

“I see,” Trender said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Well… I’m Trenderhoof, you see. I’m a traveling writer, and—”

“Eeyup,” the stallion said.

Trender blinked, unsure how to take that.

“He’s sayin’ he knows who ya are,” Applejack said, causing Trender to look back. She’d followed him in, closing the barn door behind them. “Ah already told him about you.”

“Oh, you did?” Trender asked, a smile spreading across his face. “Does that mean…?”

Applejack sighed. “Not what ya think, lover boy.”

Trender folded his ears back and looked away. “Oh.”

“But… Ah’ve decided to give ya a chance,” Applejack said.

“Really?!” Trender asked, bouncing in place a couple of times. “My goodness, thank you!”

Applejack held up a hoof. “There’s another ‘but’. Country life is a lot different from city life. Ah’m bettin’ you’ve already noticed that.”

“Well… Yes,” he said, looking a bit embarrassed.

Applejack gave him a kind smile. “I’ve got good news and bad news for ya. Good news is that this stuff can be learned. Bad news is that it still ain’t for everypony.” Applejack nodded toward Big Mac. “That’s where he comes in.”

Trender looked from one to the other, confusion on his face. “Is this some sort of test?”

“Yep,” Applejack said, giving him another smile. “You prove that you’ve got what it takes, and we’ll take ya in and put you to work. If you still wanna stick around after that…” she shrugged. “I might give ya a shot. How ‘bout it?”

“Yes, of course!” Trender said, looking positively gleeful. He had been worried that Applejack would never notice him, but she was giving him a chance! “What do I need to do? Buck a certain number of trees in an hour? Repair something? Cook an apple pie?”

“Nope,” Applejack said, and her smile turned mischievous. “You wanna be my stallion? You gotta prove you’d be good at it.”

Trender’s jaw dropped open. “B-Bu… Wha… I… So soon?”

Applejack grinned. At least he wasn’t a total idiot. She’d half-expected to have to spell it out to him. She sat down on her haunches, sweeping her tail across her hind legs to keep herself covered.

“See, we do things differently out here,” she said. “Most of the year there’s always work to be done, so we ain’t got much time to spare. That includes time for courtin’ ponies.

“Now, that don’t mean we don’t like a good romp in the hay like anypony else. In fact, it’s a pretty good way to blow off some steam.” She gave Trender another grin, noting his dazed expression. “So ya see, if I’m gonna take the time to let you court me, I wanna know if you’ve got what it takes ahead o’ time. Like ridin’ on a wagon before buyin’ it.”

“I… see,” Trender said dumbly. His cheeks were almost as red as Big Mac’s coat, but he gave a confident nod. “I won’t let you down, Applejack!” He paused then, his blush deepening. “So, er… What would you like to do?”

Applejack grinned. Now for the kicker. “Ain’t ya wondering why Mac is here yet?”

Trender blinked, then shot a look over his shoulder, where Mac was still watching with an impassive look on his face. Trender whimpered, realizing that he’d just agreed to have sex with Applejack right in front of her very large, very intimidating brother.

“Well, he’s gonna be the one to try ya out,” Applejack said. She sat back, a confident look on her face.

“Oh…” Trender said, shifting in place. “Well…”

“There a problem?” Applejack asked, fighting hard to keep herself from smirking.

“Well it’s just… I’ve never been with a stallion before,” Trender admitted. “But I have thought about it.”

“Huh?!” Applejack blurted, at the same moment Mac gave her a sharp look. Trender was looking away, so he missed both their reactions.

“I’ve never been with a stallion,” Trender said again, scuffing his hoof on the ground. His face was redder than a shined apple at that point.

“Uh…” Applejack squirmed, slightly alarmed by the look of displeasure Mac was giving her. “I uh…” Dang it! I thought he was straight! she thought, her mind racing for a solution. “I didn’t know you were a virgin,” she said lamely.

“I’m not,” Trender said, looking back up at her. “I mean, I’ve been with mares before. Just not stallions.”

“Ah…” Mac was giving her a very pointed look by then. “Mac? Conference?”

“Eeyup.”

She and Mac quickly shuffled over to the other end of the barn, leaving Trender standing by himself near the door. Applejack found herself thoroughly cowed by the annoyed look that Mac was giving her.

“Look, Ah’m sorry!” Applejack whispered. “He was lustin’ after me so much I thought he was straight!”

Big Mac didn’t answer, he just continued to stare.

“Well…” Applejack thought for a few moments, squirming underneath Mac’s watchful eye. “We can’t back off now, or he won't ever leave me alone!”

Mac sighed, then cocked an eyebrow at her.

“Well, Ah don’t know!” She paused, a thought occurring to her. “Say, Mac… ya like blondes, by any chance?”

Both his eyebrows went up at that, and he gave her an incredulous look.

“Ah don’t mean me!” she said quickly, cheeks burning. “I mean in general. Like… You wanna go through with it? Maybe he’ll change his mind about me afterwards.”

Mac continued to stare at her, expression impassive.

“...Ah’ll let you take three days off next week.”

No response.

“Four.”

Mac nodded. “Eeyup.”

Applejack breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. ‘Sides, if nothin’ else, maybe it’ll get him more comfortable about stallions.”

Applejack and Big Mac made their way back over to Trender, who was watching them curiously.

“Is everything alright?” he asked.

“Yep,” Applejack said, sitting down on a block of hay. “So how about it? You wanna roll around with Big Mac?”

“Well…” Trender blushed again, and gave Big Mac a sideways look. “He’s certainly very… attractive.”

Big Mac gave him a small grin which caused his blush to intensify.

“That a yes?” Applejack asked impatiently.

“...Okay,” Trender said. “But er… You’ll have to tell me what to do, since I’m new to this.”

“Fair enough.” She nodded at Big Mac. “Your show now. What gets ya goin’?”

He cocked an eyebrow at her, then sat down on his haunches, his hind legs spread to expose himself. Trender’s eyes immediately fell on Big Mac’s groin, the blush on his face deepening as he found it difficult to look away.

Mac’s sheath and balls were black in color, and Trender squirmed at the sight. His balls were, well… large, and he found himself wondering how much cum they held.

A few moments passed before Applejack cleared her throat. “Usually this is when you touch it or somethin’,” she said wryly.

“Oh, right…” Trender took a few steps forward, alternating between eying Mac’s crotch and his face. Only when Mac gave him an encouraging smile did he cross the rest of the distance, getting down on his knees in front of him.

The next thing he noticed was Mac’s scent. It was a musky, masculine smell, one of a true workhorse, and it had Trender rubbing his hind legs together. Steeling his resolve, he reached forward with a hoof and pressed it to Mac’s heavy ballsack.

Big Mac showed no outward reaction, but he didn’t stop him either, so Trender started to rub back and forth, gently kneading his scrotum. Mac was starting to breathe a bit heavier now, shifting slightly as the head of his stallionhood began to emerge from its sheath.

Trender watched in fascination as it poked out, black like the sheath, but mottled with the occasional pink spot. It continued to grow before his eyes as he kept massaging Big Mac’s balls, eventually ending at a good fourteen inches in length. He honestly found it a bit intimidating.

Getting braver, he added another hoof to his ministrations, gently rubbing the shaft up and down with with his other one. Big Mac sighed at the feeling and sat back a little more, leaning against a block of hay. Encouraged, Trender sped up slightly, curling his hoof around the shaft and pumping it.

Mac gave a long sigh at that, his tongue lolling out of his mouth at the feeling. Trender began to speed up, marveling at the intense warmth of Mac’s stallionhood. Just as a bead of precum appeared at the tip, the sound of Applejack clearing her throat caused him to pause and look back at her.

“I think he might appreciate it if ya went a little further,” Applejack said.

Trender frowned, although he kept his hoof curled around Mac’s stallionhood. “What do you mean?”

Applejack sighed. “Your mouth, city boy. Give him a lick or two at least, but I reckon he wouldn’t mind a blowjob.”

“B-but I’ve never performed oral sex on a stallion before!” Trender stammered.

Applejack facehooved at the words “oral sex” but she pressed on. “Look, it ain’t that hard. Just use your tongue and keep your teeth off him. If you feel him start buckin’ his hips, that’s when you decide whether you want his load down your gullet or on your face. Simple enough?”

“Uh… I guess,” Trender said, blushing at the thought of Big Mac’s stallionhood in his mouth. He looked back up at him. Mac nodded toward his groin, causing Trender to look down at it again.

That bead of precum was still clinging to the tip of his cock, but it was starting to slip down the underside now. Trender leaned in and pressed the tip of his tongue to Big Mac’s cock, licking up the shaft all the way to the head and scooping up the cum.

He rolled it around in his mouth for a moment. It was a unique taste, somewhat salty. Not particularly good, but not awful either. He leaned down further and wrapped his lips around the head of Big Mac’s stallionhood, following Applejack’s advice by swirling his tongue around it.

Big Mac gave a low groan, and Trender repeated the motion a few more times. He began working his way down the shaft, the sheer girth forcing his jaw open further and pinning his tongue to the bottom of his mouth. He’d thought that Mac’s stallionhood looked big, but that was nothing compared to having it inside his muzzle.

He pushed on nonetheless, making it all the way down to the medial ring before he paused. He wiggled his tongue around the ring a few times, causing Mac to groan low in his throat, before pulling back. He took a moment to collect himself before moving back down, again filling his muzzle with Mac’s thick cock. He started bobbing his head, moving his tongue as much as he could.

Big Mac definitely seemed to be enjoying it. His eyes were closed tightly, and the occasional grunt and groan would escape his muzzle. He shifted a hoof to rest it on the back of Trender’s head, giving him further encouragement. Taking the hint, Trender sped up, taking a full half of Mac’s length with each bob of his head. Though he had been a bit reluctant at first, he found that he was starting to enjoy it more and more as time went on. The steady groans from Big Mac carried an air of satisfaction that extended to him, and he was doing his absolute best to hear more of them.

Unseen by Trender, Applejack was starting to get flustered. She had a blush of her own now, and couldn’t tear her eyes away from the scene. She was getting wet too, and while privately she thought that might be a little strange, her body wasn’t one to lie to her.

“Eh, what the hay,” Applejack said with a shrug. She sat back, flicking her tail aside and spreading her legs further to expose her glistening marehood. She pressed a hoof to it, rubbing herself while keeping her eyes fixed on the scene in front of her. Neither of them noticed, focused as they were on each other.

Trender noticed that Big Mac was starting to buck his hips, forcing more of his shaft into his muzzle with each thrust. Remembering what Applejack had said, Trender thought fast about where he wanted Mac to cum.

However, he didn’t give him the time. With a loud grunt Big Mac bucked one last time, and Trender gagged as a massive spurt of warm cum went right down his throat. Another burst followed immediately after, and Trender began to pull back for air. However, he was stopped when Mac placed both forehooves on the back of his head, then yanked him back down, forcing his spurting cock down Trender’s throat until his lips were brushing against his balls.

Now fully buried inside, Mac continued to grunt and buck gently as he emptied his balls directly down Trender’s throat. Trender, for his part, did his best to gulp and swallow, coaxing as much out of the big stallion as he could.

Once he was done, Big Mac finally relaxed and removed his hooves, allowing Trender to pull back and gasp for air, a string of sticky spunk dangling from his lips.

“Kinda rough, ain’tcha Mac?” Applejack asked, panting slightly.

“Eeyup,” he said, looking down at Trender with an expression of satisfaction. Trender was still coughing and gasping for air, but if his own stallionhood was anything to go by, he wasn’t about to complain too much.

“Enjoy yourself?” Applejack asked.

“Um… yeah,” Trender said awkwardly, wiping the errant strand of cum off his mouth.

“‘Course I knew that already. You’re as hard as Mac is!” Applejack said with a chuckle.

Trenderhoof blushed and looked under himself, seeing that he was indeed quite hard.

“So, I reckon Big Mac needs a breather,” Applejack said. “You wanna come over here and keep usin’ that tongue?”

Trender couldn’t nod fast enough, especially when his eyes drifted down to Applejack’s marehood, wet and very much ready. He climbed to his hooves and trotted over, unable to take his eyes off her.

“Well, get to work,” Applejack said as he got down in front of her. “Mac shouldn’t be too long.”

Giving her a nod, Trender leaned in toward her marehood and took a deep whiff, his tongue lolling out of his mouth at the scent. It wasn’t like Big Mac’s musk at all, but he found it just as appealing. He stuck his tongue out and drew a long line right up her slit, causing Applejack to moan softly.

Trender may have been new to stallions, but he knew a thing or two about pleasing a mare. As such he didn’t have much trouble getting into it, expertly swirling his tongue across the surface, teasing Applejack and occasionally flicking her clit to make her gasp.

After a few moments of this he sensed that she was getting impatient, so he moved forward a bit more and slid his tongue inside her. Her juices were quite abundant by now, and Trender lapped them up without complaint as he traced her inner walls with his tongue.

He made sure to keep her off balance, adjusting his pace without warning and pulling back to suckle on her clit at random intervals. Applejack’s panting was much louder now, and her moans more frequent. Trender smiled to himself, hoping that she was impressed.

Without warning he heard hoofsteps behind him, and he removed his tongue to look back. Big Mac was looming over him, his stallionhood very much erect and ready for the next round. Following his gaze, Trender gulped as he realized what the massive stallion had in mind.

“Hope you’re ready to take a poundin’,” Applejack said. “Don’t worry though. He’ll start off slow.”

“W-what about lube?” Trender asked.

Applejack shrugged. “Use whatcha got on hoof. Good thing y’all made a mess.” She scooted back, sliding off the block of hay she’d been sitting on.

Trenderhoof then felt a nudge at his rear, urging him forward to rest his belly on the bale of hay. As soon as he’d done so the enormous stallion straddled him, pressing his belly to Trender’s back and planting his hooves on the ground on either side of him. The next thing he felt was the tip of Big Mac’s cock nudging at his tight rear entrance, very warm and still wet with the mixture of saliva and cum. After adjusting himself, Mac began to push his hips forward, gradually applying pressure to Trender’s tight hole.

“Just relax,” Applejack said. “Actually, how ‘bout put your tongue back to work? Take your mind off ‘till he’s in.”

Trender decided to listen, lowering his head and sticking his tongue back into Applejack’s pussy, throwing himself into the act with relish. Meanwhile, he felt himself stretching until, with a pop, Mac’s head slid inside.

Trender gave a quiet whimper at the feeling, but Big Mac was gracious enough to pause and let him get used to it. He continued eating out Applejack in the meantime, and soon she was panting and moaning again, her hoof resting on the back of his head.

When Mac felt Trender relax, he began to carefully push his way further inside. He made it about an inch before he pulled back, then pushed in further on the next thrust. He continued to repeat the motion, rocking his hips and making it further and further each time until, finally, he was fully buried inside Trenderhoof.

Trender was gasping, his face flushed heavily as he felt himself spread wide around Big Mac’s enormous cock. It was an odd sensation to be sure, yet satisfying at the same time. He had never felt so full in his life, and he wanted more.

Big Mac seemed to agree and began to pull back, taking his time like before. As soon as only the head remained inside he started to push back in, this time with one long, smooth motion.

Trender gasped as the medial ring slipped inside him again, stimulating every bit of his inner walls as it pressed deeper, sending jolts of pleasure through his body. With time Big Mac began to speed up, bucking his hips more quickly, but with the same smooth thrusts all the while.

Trender felt almost fragile beneath the massive stallion, and yet Big Mac was quite gentle with him. He was careful not to go too fast or hard, and when he rested his head in the crook of Trender’s shoulder it seemed almost affectionate.

Applejack was watching in fascination, interested in how Big Mac was handling himself. She knew he was a gentle giant, and yet there was something insistent behind his thrusts all the same. But going by the look on his face, it was only a matter of time before he cut loose.

Over the next minute, Big Mac and Trender continued to grunt and groan together, Mac steadily increasing his pace. Trender wasn’t exactly a weakling, but he was starting to feel very frail beneath Mac’s increasingly powerful thrusts. Mac was only going at a moderate pace, but each rock of his hips was strong enough to push him forward slightly against Applejack’s pussy.

Applejack for her part was getting quite into it. If she was honest, she was enjoying the sight of her brother rutting Trenderhoof a lot more than she thought she would. It was really pushing her along toward her climax, not that Trender’s tongue was doing a bad job of it either.

Trender could hardly believe what was happening. With barely any warning he’d found himself sandwiched between the mare of his eye, and her equally attractive brother. He’d had his fair share of mares before, but it was nothing compared to this. The feeling of Big Mac hovering over him, the tight muscles on his belly flexing against Trender’s back as he filled him with each thrust, and the incredible warmth of both Mac and Applejack was utterly intoxicating.

Applejack was starting to buck her hips now, both of her forehooves on the back of Trender’s head, urging him on. He was only too happy to comply, sensing that she was close to her climax.

With a long moan, Applejack bucked against his face one final time as she came, her juices flooding his mouth. He drank them up without complaint, delighting in the taste in his current aroused state. He lapped up all she had to offer until her climax ended.

Big Mac had been increasingly urgent with his thrusts as well, and Trender was expecting him to finish soon. He was panting himself, his own stallionhood drooling precum beneath him as he waited for Mac’s inevitable climax.

And that was when Big Mac decided to cut loose.

Trender felt him shift, leaning forward and pushing his head against the side of his neck. He felt Mac pull back, then slam himself inside with enough force to make Trender scream in a mixture of pain and ecstasy.

Mac didn’t stop there. He continued to pound him, his hips becoming a blur of motion as his heavy ballsack swung beneath him, churning with his load. Trenderhoof was barely able to take it, his entire body shaking with each thrust as his legs trembled and threatened to give out.

Finally, Big Mac thrust one final time and bit down hard on Trender’s shoulder, grunting loudly as he buried his cock inside him.

Trender groaned as he felt a thick burst of cum shoot inside him, filling his rear passage with Mac’s warm, gooey stallion spunk. The pressure was intense, building up against his prostate and sending him over the edge. With a loud cry Trender came, his stallionhood spurting his own load across the ground beneath him, all while Mac continued to empty his own load deep inside.

Big Mac held him close throughout their mutual climax, both of the stallions panting and groaning in unison. Eventually, Mac’s climax came to an end and he let go of Trender’s shoulder. Trender collapsed on top of the bale of hay, Big Mac’s cock slipping out of him and releasing a deluge of cum that trickled down his balls.

Big Mac climbed off him a moment later, panting as his stallionhood softened and withdrew back into its sheath. While things hadn’t exactly gone according to Applejack’s plan, he found it hard to argue with the results.

He and Applejack both settled down on the floor next to Trender, all three of them simply enjoying the afterglow. Trender was exhausted, his muzzle soaked in Applejack’s juices and both his stomach and rear filled with Big Mac’s spunk. Nonetheless, he was quite content and satisfied.

“So…” he said. “Did I, uh… pass the test?”

Applejack blinked, and gave Big Mac a slightly panicked look. When he simply rolled his eyes at her, she knew she was on her own.

“Uh… Well, I reckon so, to be honest,” she admitted. “You’re pretty good with that tongue.”

“Thanks,” Trender mumbled, feeling slightly out of it.

“So… I suppose ya wanna take me on a date now?” Applejack asked.

There was a long pause. “Truthfully… no, actually,” he said.

Applejack cocked an eyebrow. “Huh. Wasn’t expectin’ that.” She climbed to her hooves, shaking herself off.

Big Mac stood up himself a moment later, then offered a hoof to Trender, who took it and climbed to his own hooves as well. His legs were still a bit shaky, but at least he wasn’t about to collapse.

“Well, this was fun ‘n all, but Ah’ve got some work to do,” Applejack said. “What about you, Trender? You stayin’ in Ponyville a while longer, or you gonna head off?”

“Well… about that,” Trender said, suddenly looking shy again. He took a breath, then looked at Big Mac. “Would you like to go on a date with me sometime?”

Big Mac gave a nonchalant shrug. “Eeyup.”

Applejack’s jaw dropped open as she gawked at both of them in disbelief.

“R-really?” Trender asked. He coughed. “Oh, well then… Is there a place you had in mind?”

Big Mac shrugged again, but beckoned to Trenderhoof as he turned to walk toward the barn door.

Trender made to follow, but paused and glanced over at Applejack, who still looked stunned. “Oh, and thank you, Applejack!” he said. “For everything.” He grabbed one of her hooves and shook it vigorously before letting go and trotting over to Big Mac, both of the stallions leaving the barn together.

Applejack stared after them for a few more moments before shaking her head in disbelief. “Well, ain’t what I was expectin’... But I reckon that works too.”

She made sure her hat was on straight before trotting out of the barn, humming to herself as she headed toward the orchard, content to finally be able to work in peace.

Author's Note