"I just don't get what I'm doing wrong, AJ!" Rainbow Blitz groused as the farmcolt finished setting baskets up under one of Sweet Apple Acres' trees, "All I did was ask Glide1 out and she turns me down flat!" He scratched his mane in confusion, "You don't think she's more into mares, do you?"

"Ever thought it might be 'cause the first thing outta yer mouth was, and Ah quote, 'Do ya drink milk? Cause it sure did yer body good'?" Applejack responded before delivering a hard kick to the trunk, dislodging every apple on the tree.

"It was a compliment!"

"Rainbow Blitz, Ah ain't no expert on courtin' and whatnot, but even Ah know how lame that line was."

Blitz attempted to come up with an appropriate response when they both heard someone whistling a jaunty tune not far off. Both stallions looked over to see Elusive walking their way. He was dressed in surprisingly filthy coveralls, carrying a miner's pick on his shoulder and a large bag floating behind him.

"Howdy, Elusive." Applejack called out, "You seem in a good mood, considerin'...well..." He motioned to the dirt-caked clothing.

"And good reason too, dear boy!" The tailor chuckled, opening the bag to show it filled to the brim with gemstones, "I do believe I found the motherload this morning! There's enough here to work with for weeks!" The excited expression on his face faded, "Though, I do admit, while finding it was grand, it was still bittersweet, and quite boring, doing it alone." Neither Applejack nor Blitz needed to guess what he meant.

"Yeah...Barb would probably be dancing around you like a giddy schoolfilly." Blitz said, sighing a bit, "Kinda hard to believe it's been seven years already."

"You ain't kiddin', pard." Applejack adjusted his hat, "Not to mention what all's happened since then, too." He looked over to where the Crystal Palace was visible not too far off, "Ah hope she recognizes the place after what that Tirek did."

"Indeed..." Elusive nodded slightly, "I believe that's the first time I ever saw Dusk Shine well and truly furious."

"Seriously!" Blitz started. "I didn't even know you could do that with someone's horn-"

"Blitz! Ah do not like thinkin' about that!" Applejack barked, paling a little.

"But he snapped it clean off the bastard and shoved it up his-!"

"BLITZ!" Elusive yelled, turning a little green himself.

"Fine, fine, sheesh!" He sulked, "Still, who knew Dusk could be so...brutal?"

Applejack just gave a slight shrug, "Can't say he didn't have cause." He looked back at the palace, "Speakin' of reactions, how y'all think she's gonna take tah Eris bein' free again?"

Elusive glowered a little, " She may have claimed to be 'good' now, but I still find it hard to forgive that...mare? Either way, that so-called 'prank' she pulled on poor Butterscoth was completely uncalled for!"

"Yeah. But it did backfire on her. Y'all remember the look her face after that?" Applejack snickered, "Needed a winch to get her jaw off the ground!"

Blitz, however, just pouted, "Still can't believe Scotch is beefier than me...!"

"Yes, I was surprised too." Elusive responded, he never expected the shy stallion to be second only to Applejack in being muscular, "Though being nearly molested by almost a dozen mares isn't quite what I'd wish on somepony."

Blitz scoffed, "Lucky bastard..."

"Say, have you guys noticed that Eris spends a lot more time with Butter since then?" Berry Pie spoke up over Blitz's shoulder

This caused a moment of silent contemplation among the other three, "...you don't think...?" Elusive started.

"Not very much, no." Berry responded over the triple shriek of their realizing he was there, "Cupcake?"

"Berry, where the hell did you come from!?" Blitz yelled, trying to stop his wings from twitching.

"Ah hate it when he does that..." Applejack grumbled, catching his breath.

Berry just shrugged, "I've asked my mom that same question, but all she does is turn red and mumble something about buttercream frosting and roller skates."

"I...I don't think I wish to know." Elusive said, in a rather small voice,

Blitz and Applejack's heads just slowly tilted to one side.

After a somewhat awkward few seconds, Elusive coughed to recompose himself, "Along that line; how well do you think our little dragoness will take to Dusk's new...accouterments?"

Blitz looked at him "He's got more than two now!? I thought he just got wings when he changed!"

"I meant his wings, Rainbow Blitz..." He sighed.

"Oh. Well, He's still Dusk, isn't he? She probably won't even notice."

"Like how it took you ten minutes to realize Triple Strike2 was ooglin' him durin' his first flight lesson?" Applejack commented, getting a rude gesture from Blitz in return.

"Guys! Guys!" A fifth voice called out, causing them to look over at Butterscotch, who was flying towards them at full speed, wings flapping like mad.

"Whoa there, partner!" Applejack called out once the regularly shy pegasus landed in a skid, trying to catch his breath.

"Butter, what's wrong?" Elusive asked, helping Blitz steady their friend, "You were moving like a Windigo was after you!"

"No, I'm all right." He replied, panting a little, "Dusk got a message from Prince Solaris."

"What is it, dear boy? Is that lout, Lord Chrysalid, attacking again!?"

"One of Eris' pranks get out of control?"

"Prince Artemis eat all the cheddar-barbecue corn chips again!?"

"Huh?" Butterscotch blinked, "N-no, it's Barb! She's on her way back!"

"Truly?/For real?/No foolin'?/WOOT!"

"She graduated yesterday morning, and the train left Las Pegasus a couple of hours ago. She'll be home this evening!"

"Woo-hoo!" Berry whooped again, before stopping mid-hop, "Holy crap! I gotta get started on the party!" He bounded off before any of them could respond.

"Um...Dusk is trying to clean up the palace...maybe we should go help him with that?" Butterscotch offered, watching the partyholic stallion's dwindling dust cloud.

"Ah'm game."

"Yeah, let's go with that."

"I concur..."

"Um, somethin' tells me he's got things under control." Applejack said as the four watched the scene that greeted them on arrival at the palace.

It was almost a tempest of magic as Dusk Shine commanded a small army of cleaning utensils. Hands, horn, and eyes were alight with his aura as he spun and weaved his arms like he was conducting an otherworldly orchestra.

"Dusk? Do..do you need a hand?" Butterscotch called out while Blitz tried to avoid a squadron of feather dusters.

"Huh? Oh hey, guys!" Dusk responded, looking over at the them briefly, "If you want, the main hall could use a sweep. I got the kitchen and almost finished in the map room. And can one of you get those trash bags out..." he pointed to a stack of at least nine bags sitting near the door, "...and maybe break out the air freshener?"

"Oh, by Solaris' mane, Dusk!" Elusive frowned disapprovingly when he caught a whiff of stale chow mien, "You're a prince! This is scarcely the way to live as one!"

"I'm a prince that can't cook, Elusive!" Came the retort, "You guys remember the last time I tried."

"Ohhh yeah." Blitz made a 'blech' noise, "I don't think 'Cthulhu F'tagn' is something you ever wanna hear your lasagna say."

"Ah'd rather it not say anything." Applejack shuddered a little.

"Yeah. Anyway, it's been seven years of ordering out, eating at your places, or at Sugar Cube Corner. But-wait. Waitwaitwait!" He waved his hands in a wild stop gesture, "That's all beside the point; Barb's coming home and I gotta get this place cleaned up!"

"Yes, there is that." Elusive conceded, "Well, with us here it should cut down on the time somewhat." He started levitating the bags out the door while Blitz, Butterscotch, and Applejack snagged some of the brooms.

A few hours later and the palace was spotless, or the areas that really mattered did, at least.

"Dusk, did the letter say when she'd be here." An exhausted Butterscotch asked as he flopped over the side of a couch

Tossing the mop he was holding away, Dusk glanced over to the nearest clock, "Didn't say exactly when, just that, barring any trouble the train encounters, she should be able to make the Evening carriage back home. "

"If that's the case, then Ah'm gonna head home and get me a shower." Applejack wiped off his forehead, "Ain't no sense in smellin' like a timberwolf when she gets here."

"You and me both." Blitz muttered, doing a pit check.

"I think we all could." Dusk added, "Let's do that; and since Berry's not here, I'm guessing he's working on that party he vowed." He got a few noises of confirmation from them, "Well, let's get cleaned up and then we can led him a hand."

With that, the four headed back to their respective homes while Dusk made a beeline to the bathroom.

A couple of hours later, and the Mane Six plus the CMC were at Sugar Cube Corner getting the finishing touches on the Welcome Home party. By then the sun was starting to set and Berry was getting hyper from excitement and junk food.

"Berry, don't you think you've had enough sugar for today?" Silver Bell asked, watching him nearly vibrate.

"I don't know the meaning of the word!" He shouted defiantly, "Seriously no one's ever told me; kinda like when I asked what Scooter meant that time he called Twilight Velvet a 'Milf'."

Said young stallion wilted slightly from the mass stare he received, especially from Dusk. "What...?? She's hot." He scratched his arm shyly.

"Scooter!"

"He's got a point, Dusk, she's a mare that's pretty easy on the eyes."

"She's my MOM, AJ!"

"Still hot." Blitz threw his two bits in, "I'll do her in a heartbeat."

"Guys?" Apple Buck spoke up from the doorway while the others tried to dissuade Dusk from feeding the overconfident pegasus a coffee mug, "Ah see a carriage comin' this way. An' it don't look like any from Canterlot."

The group rushed out side; sure enough, a standard-looking travel carriage came rolling up, coming to a full stop in front of them. The door opened a few seconds later.

Dusk stepped over to take a look in, "Um, hello...?"

"DUSK!" A familiar voice squealed happily as a figure bounded out of the carriage and collided with him with a tight hug. He staggered briefly but held his ground. Getting a good look revealed it to be a VERY female dragon, standing just half a head shorter than him. The purple scales and green spike's however, were unmistakable.

"Barb??" He asked, surprised at how tall she'd gotten in the last seven year

"Of course it's me." She responded, a little cheekily, "Unless you've been hugged by other dragons lately!"

What was once a short, slightly pudgy little dragon girl now stood a rather attractive dragoness with a slender and fit-looking figure. The midriff-baring t-shirt and skintight pants she had on showed off a surprisingly curvy bust and rear that her swishing tail and the way she stood as she hugged him seemed to accentuate even more.

"W-wow..." was all he could really think of saying once he got a better look at her, "You...you've got...grown up." The others just stared with varying degrees of slacked jaws.

Berry, on the other hand, suddenly appeared between the two, hoisting up Dusk in the process of hugging her as well, "Woo-hoo! Barbsy, you're back! I can't believe you've been gone seven years!" He cheered, swinging them both around, "It feels more eight and a half!"

Meanwhile the others had finally regained their voice.

"Gr-grown up? Indeed,...she's certainly...matured" Elusive spoke up, staring.

"Yeah....m-matured..." Applejack gulped.

"I/Ah'll say..." Silver, Buck, and Scooter said in unison.

Butterscotch just whimpered in agreement, "Mm-hmm." Before his wings popped open.

Blitz, however, glared at them a little, "Am I the only one who noticed Barb is now a babe!?"

Author's Note

1: Soarin's R63 name
2: R63 Thunderlane (Tatsurou's suggestion)