Diplomatic Troubles

To Twilight's surprise, the books she had discussing the Farmer's Festival were actually quite educating. They contained more expansive knowledge than just simple facts, as she had previously predicted.

She'd finished one of the three books, and was well on her way to finishing the second when she looked to Spike. "Nice job finding these books, Spike," Twilight complimented.

Spike's eyes looked bloodshot and his eyelids looked as if they were extra weight to him as he said, "Well, it comes with the.." He paused, beginning to yawn as he said what Twilight supposed was the word 'job'. To her it sounded more like "Jyeaawwnmmb."

She chuckled for a moment, then yawned herself. She hadn't realized how long she had been reading until she gazed up at the clock. It was eleven o'clock, which was hours after their usual bedtime. "Wow. I guess we oughta head to bed, huh?" Twilight said as she turned back to the dragon, who was already slumping over the table he was reading at.

She marked the place in her book as she shut it, and smiled at Spike. She gently levitated him into the air as she walked quietly  up the stairs into their bedroom. As she passed her own bed, the very thought of sliding under the covers caused her to become exponentially more tired than before.

She tucked the dragon into his own bed, now sound asleep, then walked slowly over to her own bed. Levitating the covers, she climbed into the bed eagerly and let the covers fall. It seemed that immediately after settling into the bed, she fell into a deep sleep.

Upon awakening, she stretched comfortably. She looked in the direction of her window and saw the sun was on the horizon. Suddenly shocked awake, she turned to the clock, and hurried out of bed.

"We overslept!" she exclaimed, rousing Spike from his sleep. He turned over to stare at her with an incredulous look upon her face. "What?" he mumbled in a tired manner.

"It's nine-thirty!" Twilight said, slightly raising her voice in agitation with herself. She moved to the mirror in order to groom herself, only to gasp in dismay. Her mane was a mess, and she expected the Mayor to be at her home within minutes.

A surge of thoughts went through her mind as she began grinding her teeth together in anxiety. "What if the Mayor already came? What if they decided I'm not right for the job? What if they think I'm lazy?" she said, flicking her tail in annoyance.

"Twilight! I'm sure you're overreacting," Spike said as he crawled out of his bed lazily.

"Overreacting!?" Twilight said, slightly annoyed. She began running a brush recklessly through her hair, pulling at knots along the way. "How could I not - Ow! - react like this, - Ouch! - when it's this important!?"

A sudden knock at the door made her heart sink. While they had not arrived before, they were here now, much to Twilight's dismay. "Oh no. Oh no, no, no!" Twilight said, prancing in place and looking nervously around the room.

She rushed downstairs and shut here eyes as she opened the door in terror, ready to face her fate.

"Hi, Twilight," a single voice said, with a country accent tingeing their voice.

She opened her eyes in disbelief, realizing it was only Applejack standing before her, and not the Mayor or Celestia as she had previously expected. "Oh, it's just you," Twilight said with a sigh of relief.

Suddenly catching herself, she hurriedly apologized, "Not that it isn't nice to see you! I just mean, well, I mean that I wasn't expecting you. But here you are!" She tried to fake a smile, but realized she must look ridiculous to the orange mare in front of her.

"Twi', you look mighty stressed," Applejack commented in a caring manner, disregarding Twilight's previous mistake of words. Twilight sighed as she stepped aside to let Applejack in. After thanking her, Applejack moved into the library and sat down in a reading corner, beckoning Twilight over.

"Now are you gonna tell me what's botherin' you?" Applejack asked in a way that suggested she was kidding, but also serious to a degree. Twilight sighed, but nodded as she sat next to Applejack, a few feet away.

She explained what was happening, why she was stressing out, and why she looked the way she did. By the end of the explanation, she had tears welling up in her eyes as she tried to force them back.

Applejack gave her a knowing smile as she nodded once. She moved over to Twilight and sat next to her, closing the gap between the two. "I know," she said plainly. "The Mayor sent me to help you prepare for the Festival, and specifically asked me to help you with it."

"But what about the Festival? Aren't you supposed to represent Sweet Apple Acres?" Twilight asked softly, still holding back tears.

Applejack gently waved a hoof at the statement. "Nah, Granny Smith and Apple Bloom know how to put on a show. With Big Mac there to help 'em with the heavy liftin', I reckon they can get it done right," Applejack said confidently, but then added, "I'll admit, I'd like to attend it with the others. But this is just as important as attending, and I can't pass up the chance to help out one of my friends, now can I?"

Twilight couldn't help but feel reassured by Applejack's statement, due to her confidence. With her experience, Twilight was sure that Applejack would be a big help in the upcoming Festival. "I studied some books on the Festival, so I have a little knowledge of the basics."

Applejack looked to Twilight and chuckled lightly. "That's all well and good, but I reckon it don't teach you about a lot of the things you ought to know," she said surely. Twilight smiled slightly and nodded, knowing experience was more reliable than books in many cases.

"Well then, let's get started. No point in wastin' time, huh?" Applejack said, nodding to Twilight confidently. "Agreed," Twilight said with a smile, glad to have Applejack by her side in the endeavor.