Dylan and Applejack trotted through Ponyville. Dylan had been hooked up to a wagon full of apples. He had happily volunteered to carry the produce down to the marketplace for her, and he was excited to be off the farm for a while. This was the second time he'd ever gone to Ponyville, with the first being his trip to the boutique.

Other than that one trip, he'd never really gotten to explore the bright and colorful village. He couldn't help but be in awe of all the buildings and the roads. Even thought the buildings were made from stone, they were so full of color.

"Alright, Dylan. Set 'er down here." Applejack had led Dylan over by a water fountain.

He unbuckled himself from the wagon and helped Applejack set up a sign on the wagon advertising apples. "Thanks for lettin' me help ya," Dylan commented as he made sure the sign was straight.

"No problem! It's nice that yer willin' to go out more!" Applejack pulled Dylan close and ruffled up his mane.

Dylan chuckled and swiped away Applejack's hat before putting it upon his own head.

"What in tarnation are you doin?" Applejack asked.

"Wot in tuuuuurrrrrnation you doin?" Dylan copied, giggling to himself.

Applejack smiled and laughed before swiping back her beloved hat. "That's enough now. We gotta get to sellin' these apples."

"Alright!" Dylan responded with excitement.

Hours passed, and many apples were sold. The wagon was just about empty, showing their progress. Just when Dylan was about to ask Applejack if they should go home, he saw a familiar sight that made his heart beat rapidly.

It was the pony from Apple Con about a month back, Amber Harvest, standing by her own wagon just across the street, and she captivated Dylan just like before, with her curly orange mane and her peach-colored fur. Dylan was completely mesmerized by her, even though they were from two different worlds.

"Dylan? You ok there?" Apple waved a hoof in front of Dylan's face, trying to snap him out of his trance.

Dylan blinked and looked at Applejack. "S-Sorry! I don't know what got into me..."

Applejack turned her head in Amber's direction and then looked back at Dylan. Connecting the dots, she simply smiled and led Dylan behind the wagon. "Who's she? Someone ya like?"

Dylan's face turned red from embarrassment. "Wh-Wha?! Nu uh! It's not what it looks like!"

"Dylan, you don't gotta lie to me!" Applejack assured. "I know love when I see it! I've seen Big Mac make the same look at Sugar Belle! You should talk to her!"

Dylan looked at Applejack with a nervous look upon his face. "I c-can't! I don't know anythin' about girls!"

"Well now's the time to learn!" Applejack said as she started pushing Dylan across the street. Dylan's hooves, no matter how hard he tried, just couldn't stop his forward motion towards the one creature that made his heart throb.

Applejack was eventually able to get Dylan to Amber's location. "Howdy there, miss!" Applejack started. "I'm Applejack, and this is my brother, Dylan."

"Dylan?" Amber asked, giving Dylan a once-over glance. "That sure sounds familiar. Have we met?"

Dylan, unable to speak, just stared and made noises. "H-H-H-H-H-H-H... HHHNNNGGHHH..."

Amber couldn't help but giggle at Dylan's predicament. "I guess we haven't. I'm Amber! I'm selling honey my mama got fresh from the beehive! Would ya like some?"

"GRK! Y-Y..." Dylan tried his hardest to get his mouth to form words. "Y-Y-Yes!"

"This one's on me!" Amber insisted as she handed a jar of honey over to Dylan's shaking hooves. "Consider it a present!"

"Th-Th-Thank y-y-you!" Dylan sputtered out. He held the jar close, afraid to drop it.

Amber looked at Dylan with a curious look on her face. "You're really familiar. That stutter is familiar, too. I dunno where I remember it from though."

Applejack wrapped a foreleg around Dylan and nodded at Amber. "It sure was nice meetin' ya, miss! We should get goin'. I wanna make it back before the sun sets!"

"Well, it was nice meetin' y'all!" Amber replied. She giggled once more at Dylan's shaking. "Come back anytime!"

The trip home was peaceful, and dinner had gone by quickly. Dylan laid in his bed, staring up at the ceiling. Many thoughts filled his head. Why did Amber make him feel so nervous? How could he have these feelings toward a pony of all creatures? Was it because he was a pony? Maybe his new pony body was making him feel this way.

A knock on the door startled him. "Come in."

Applejack trotted through the door, a smile on her face. "Dylan, I think we should have a little chat."

"Sure," Dylan replied. "Whatcha wanna talk about?"

"I think it's time we had... the talk," she answered.

"The talk?" Dylan looked at Applejack with confusion.

"Yup! You see, Dylan," she started, wrapping her foreleg around Dylan, "everypony goes through a time in their life where things get confusing. Ya start to have feelings that ya don't quite understand. When a stallion meets a mare, they can sometimes have feelings for each other. When that happens, well... you can get a foal out of the process."

"But... I shouldn't be having these feelings. Not for a pony," said Dylan.

"Dylan, I'm gonna tell ya right now. That's a load of malarky." Applejack ruffled up Dylan's hair playfully. "Love doesn't have to be confined to one species. Why, there's a certain dragon I know who's in love with a pony."

"If you say so..." Dylan looked down at the floor, still a bit unsure.

Applejack just smiled and patted Dylan. "Later on in life, you'll figure it out. I promise ya will. But for now, you shouldn't worry about it."

Dylan leaned against Applejack and they looked out the window at the moon.

Author's Note

I felt like it was time to reintroduce Amber. Later on, she'll appear more often in the story.