The morning after

The scent of frying hay-bacon filled her senses as she rolled over in bed.  Pulling the covers over her head and wrapping her wings around her chest.  It's too early mom, let me sleep another five or ten hours. Rainbow Dash thought.

    Sitting up she pushed the covers off her body and looked around at her room.  It was just how it was supposed to be, cloud walls and floors, a ceiling fan that always was on low and basic furnishings.  Did last night really happen?

    Flying downstairs following the smell Rainbow Dash entered the kitchen to see Applejack wearing an apron, Rainbow Dashes favorite apron, that said 'Too awesome to cook' putting some crispy bacon onto a plate with two eggs and some squash and zucchini mix.

"Dashalicious, breakfast is served."

"Dashalicious?  Seriously?" Rainbow Dash frowned as she took her seat at the table as Applejack placed a plate in front of her.

  "Well I won the bet, so I get to choose your nickname.  You can call me Awesome-jack," she said with a giggle as she kissed Rainbow Dash on her cheek.

    "Woah woah woah.  I am not calling you awesome anything, I'm the awesome one."

    "Well that's not what ya said when you passed out last night after what ah did to ya.  Twice.  I even saw a tear leave your eye when you were sleeping."

    "You did not.  It might have been amazing but I didn't-"

    "Amazing ya say?  Sounds like you agree ah won, so ah get to choose.  Now eat yer veggies 'fore they get cold," Applejack said with a warm smile and the confidence she usually had.  With a frown Rainbow Dash furrowed her brow as she took a bite then softened her expression as she bit into the hay bacon. The flavor filled her senses she smiled and moaned softly.

"Dashalicious you make the cutest noises."

    Snapping back to reality Rainbow Dash took a few more bites of the food on her plate to satiate her surprising appetite.  "Well after what you, we, did and that was so amazing.  I'll admit it took a lot out of me.  I haven't had two in the same night ever before but I-"

    With a stern look Applejack stopped Rainbow Dash in her sentence. "Dashalicious, hun, ahm gonna tell you this: if you want there to be an us, there will be.  If not then there won't be, but, don't regret what we did cuz ah won't ever forget it.  Now eat up."

I was gonna say I want to do it again but I'll wait until I can figure a way to stop you from calling me Dashalicious.

    "Applejack?"

    "Awesome-Jack ya mean," she said with a smirk as she chewed her food.

    "I am not calling you that.  How long are you gonna call me that name?  And I swear if you call me that in public I'll buck you in the barrel."

    "First of all, when we're alone ahm gonna call you whatever I feel like no matter how our relationship is and that might count when our friends are round us.  Second, ahm foolin' ya, ya don't gotta call me Awesome-jack," Rainbow Dash sighed with relief, "Unless we're in public, then you gotta say it once a day.  Last and most important," Rainbow Dash prepared herself for another stipulation to losing the bet and starting a relationship, "If'n ya wanna buck me ya just gotta ask.  Let's just finish breakfast first."

    They shared a laugh as they went back to eating.

"AJ, are you sure you wanna be with me?  Twilight's always staying I've got to many branches and that pushes stallions away. "

"Branches?  Dash, what's that mean?"

"You know, ‘branches’. My attitude and how much more awesome I am than everypony else. Branches."

Applejack laughed.  "Sugar you mean brashness.  And no, I like that about you. It's what I noticed first, well, second. There's a reason ah kept looking at yer cutie mark. "

"Applejack!" Rainbow coughed as she laughed.

"C'mon Sugarcube I wanna show you somethin' I learned when I was younger," Applejack said as she walked out of the kitchen walking with an extended sway in her hips.

With a gulp Rainbow Dash hesitantly followed Applejack to the bedroom.

“Whew, that was amazing.  I think, I think I may like this a lot more than what stallions can do.  I have a question AJ.”  Rainbow Dash was catching her breath and laying on Applejacks chest listening to their hearts rapidly beating in succession.

“Ahm gonna pretend that means Awesome-Jack.  What’s up sugar plum?”

Rainbow Dash scrunched her nose at the thought of Applejack being more awesome at anything than her. “I was gonna ask if I could know a few other mares like you.  Like us.  Ones that are in Ponyville,”  Rainbow Dash asked.

    “You gotta give me a kiss first.”

    Rainbow sat up and looked at Applejack; she had kissed Applejack last night in front of a dozen ponies so this should be easy.  She looked at Applejacks smile and listened to the air huffing into and out of her nose as she looked back at her. “I don’t know AJ.  I’m not comfortable kissing my best friend.  I don’t know, it just doesn’t feel right."

    Applejack sat up and looked at Rainbow Dash with those soft deep green eyes. “Rainbow Dash, ya don’t hafta think of me as yer best friend anymore.  Ah think we’re going to a place beyond that.  We’re still bearers of the elements of harmony and teammates with the others, but, now it’s something more.  More than any other mare’n our group can understand,” Applejack rolled her eyes which Rainbow Dash noticed.

    “AJ what was that?”

    “What Dashalicious?”

    “Don’t do that, what are you hiding?”

    “Sugarcube, can’t we just-”

    “No.  What was that look?  Soarin gave me the same look after our first time when he had to ‘practice’ early.  What’re you hiding?”  Rainbow Dash was sitting upright with her wings open and her face showing growing signs of anger and pain.

    *Sigh*” Well, Twi and me were-”

    “YOU AND TWILIGHT?!?  This can NOT be happening.  Did you two do it right after I left you last night?  Or this morning when I was sleeping?  Or are you going to see her when I go to work?"  Rainbow kicked the covers off and turned away wrapping her wings around her body, "get out AJ!  You’re not going to use me like everypony else.  I won’t let you.”  Applejack wrapped her forelegs around Rainbow Dash as she yelled.

    Rainbow Dash was crying as she tried to get out of bed; her wings and legs scrambling at the same time to get her out of Applejacks grasp.

    “Dashie! Dash! Dash. DASH. RAINBOW DASH I LOVE YOU.”  Rainbow Dash stopped struggling suddenly.

No pony has ever said those words to me.  My parents stopped saying that when I was a filly.  “What?”  Rainbow Dash turned and craned her neck to look at Applejack.

    “Rainbow Dash.  I love you and I have for a very long time, not Twilight.  Ah was gonna tell you about me and Twi.  Yes, we hooked up for a while but, you know her; it’s always ‘study’ this ‘test’ that and ‘Celestia.’  You don’t know how bad it is when you’re goin’ at it and somepony calls out the name of a Goddess just cuz she forgot to dot a ‘j’ in a report,” Applejack was scowling at the memory, “and when you plan something special for a week and tell her all about it, then she doesn’t show cuz she was makin’ a checklist of what to do next time she’s in bed.  Listing moves and positions that work best for her in numbered order that, if I didn’t follow, we’d have to start over or go over the bucking list to see if we could work it in later.  Six months, Dash.  Six months and we made love 17 times.  4 of ‘em we both finished.  She has notes and log books on our entire relationship hid in the basement of the library that she won’t show me cuz she knows I’d burn them soon as read ‘em."  Rainbow was about to make a joke but the look on Applejack's face said that was the wrong thing to do.

    “Sugar, I only wanted you for so long.  You’re the perfect mare; you’re strong, funny, energetic and you love a challenge.  You’re beautiful and kind and you represent loyalty and what is loyalty without honesty?”  Applejack ran her hoof through Rainbow’s mane as she spoke and never broke eye contact.

    “AJ, I-I don’t know what to say.  That’s the most awesome thing I’ve ever heard anypony say in the history of Equestria.  AJ, I’m not ready to say that I love you.  You understand right?”  Applejack nodded and sighed, her eyes falling in defeat. “But I do love your friendship!”

    Leaning in Rainbow Dash kissed Applejack on her cheek quickly then looked at the window, “AJ, it’s a beautiful day let’s go race somewhere.”

    “Oh, ah don’t know.  I’m kinda sore,” Applejack said as she grabbed the sheets behind her covertly, “and I don’t know if it’s a good idea for-” Applejack threw the sheet over Rainbow Dash and held her down as she tied the ends together shouting ‘Yee-Haw.’

    “Race you to the balloon!”

    “No FAIR. I can’t MOVE!”

    Shouting from the stairs Applejack gloated. “No excuses sleepy head, first to the ground in the balloon wins.”  *Slam*

    Fighting her best to get free Rainbow Dash screamed in frustration and used the tips of her hooves to rip her sheets off her and jumped into the air opening her wings she flew to the front door.  Opening the door she flew into Applejack’s open forelegs with a heavy ‘oof’ they fell onto the cloud ground which puffed and absorbed the force of their fall.

    Applejack pulled Rainbow Dash into a passionate kiss before the blue mare could stop flapping her wings.  Her ruby red eyes locked onto Applejacks deep green eyes as she fell into the sensation and feeling of kissing as the clouds wafted over them they closed their eyes.  I love you too, Applejack.  I’ll say it someday out loud to you.  I Pinkie Promise you.”