// A Pony is Loyal All of the Way.

by NavyPony

Rating: teen
Tags: Applejack, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Rainbow Dash, Romance
Length: 5761

Rainbow wakes up in the middle of the night, and ponders what it means to be Loyalty. And Honesty.

A violent, unexpected thunderstorm wakes Rainbow up in the middle of the night. Unable to do anything about the storm but unable to sleep, she has nothing to do except lay in bed and think. Ponies, Ponyville, her job, her friends, and the differences between Loyalty and Honesty - not all of them always make sense.
A short swim through Rainbow Dash's stream of consciousness.

Rated ‘Teen’ for language.

Published 2012-07-23 03:24:03 UTC
Last updated 2012-07-23 03:24:03 UTC

Say What You Mean and Mean What You Say

// A Pony is Loyal All of the Way.
by NavyPony

It was a dark and stormy night.

I was expecting to catch some major crap about it tomorrow.

The first part was fine, of course - nights are supposed to be dark. Far and wide, ponies agree. Far be it from me to argue with the natural order. Also, Princesses. They think it’s supposed to be dark at night and bright at day, and I may disagree when I’m especially hungover, but by and large I’m down with their system. It’s simple, it works, and it makes everypony happy.

Weather, on the other hoof, is literally the exact opposite. I sometimes say that I have a harder job than Celestia herself (but only when Twilight’s not around). You see, weather’s the product of hundreds of complex interactions between forces and elements that most ponies, pegasi included, aren’t entirely aware of. It’s intricate, it’s inexact, and ponies tend to get pissed if it doesn’t work out absolutely perfect. And that’s the real problem: nopony understands that being in charge of weather is not the same as controlling it.

Actually no, it isn’t the real problem. The real problem is that ponykind tends to be… well, cowardly isn’t the right word, I think. Timid, maybe? Whatever the case, ponies as a whole aren’t the bravest bunch (and while I’d never admit it to my griffon friends), I can’t really argue it. There are exceptions, badass marebuckers like me and my friends, but most ponies are skittish at best. Take Daisy as an example – she fainted when she saw a bushel of baby bunnies bouncing about. Seriously, true story. So when you have something unexpected and noisy? Like an unscheduled thunderstorm? Everypony gets pretty pissed.

They can’t understand that if Fillydelphia’s team accidentally pushes a cold front through Ponyville while I’m in bed (and worse, doesn’t send somepony to tell me about it), we’re going to get an occlusion. Their cold air is just going to plow right under our nice weather. And even then, this shouldn’t cause storms most of the time. Usually it just makes Ponyville a bit chilly (and ponies will always complain about that, too) and an edge drier than usual. But sometimes not. After all, our nice warm air has moisture in it, and when it rises like that, it runs into a colder mass. Then the water condenses, and clouds form and blah blah blah… This happens on a large enough scale and we’ll get thunderstorms.

So if somepony else bucks up, AND they don’t let me know, AND I’m in bed when everything starts churning, AND an occluded front pops the wrong way, there isn’t much I can do much about it. If I’d been there when everything started, I might’ve been able to minimize the storm. By the time I woke up, winds were above twenty knots and the cloudstack was already in its dissipating stage. Even without the lightning (and I was not going to send my subordinates into a lightning storm, no matter what Mayor Mare was going to say the next day) I’d have had to assemble the best half of the team just to knock the cell a couple degrees off-course.

In other words, it was futile. All I could do was roll back over, get some shuteye, and expect everypony and their grandmother to mention how their night was ruined. ‘Oh, hey Rainbow Dash. Sorry I’m so tired looking – I didn’t get much sleep last night with that thunderstorm. Yeah, my kids were up into the wee hours, crying on account of the thunder and I was worried that lightning might strike the house while we were in it. I guess it just caught us off guard; we must’ve missed the news that there was a thunderstorm planned for last night. Oh, it wasn’t planned? My mistake, I assumed that you had everything under control, but…’ Someponies and their attempts at subtlety, right?

I can’t stand it. It’s crap.

Like my mom used to put it: ‘Say what you mean and mean what say; // A pony is loyal all of the way.’ She had a whole poem about it.

Now I get it, I really do. They don’t want to say how upset they are about everything. They’re worried they’ll hurt my feelings by telling me something went wrong and I’m to blame. Whatever. Even if I couldn’t control it, I’m still responsible. It’s one of the downsides that goes with being weathermare. I get it.

But can’t they just say it? I mean, really. My ego is not that fragile. Sometimes things go wrong. Everypony screws up every once in a while, and even if it happens to me less than average, not even the Dash is an exception to that rule. They don’t need to beat around the bush like that, ‘cuz I can take it. They should just walk up to me and say, ‘Yo, Rainbow, what the buck happened with last night’s weather?’ I’d be cool with it. In fact, I’d have a lot of respect for anypony that came to me like that, assuming they didn’t start with a bout of hooficuffs. I’d tell them exactly what happened. The wrong thing happened at the wrong time. Maybe if I’d stayed awake a couple hours later, I’d have been able to head it off. I’d take the blame, and I’d apologize.

I’d even mean it, which says something.

Apologies are hard for me, because a lot of the time they’re fake. And I don’t mean that my apologies are fake. Usually. What I really mean is that the whole act of apologizing is pretty phony. If somepony gets upset, it doesn’t matter why, the pony they’re mad at owes them an apology. That’s just what society tells us, and frankly, it’s bullshit. It doesn’t matter if you really feel bad about it, or even if you were actually to blame. You’re just supposed to apologize. That’s messed up. I’m not going to apologize unless I’m genuinely sorry, even if I am to blame.

‘Oh? I bucked you in the face? You called Pinkie Pie a skank. Deal with it.’ That actually happened. This one, too: ‘Yeah, I bucked you in the face. You’re about to take home a mare who’s too drunk to see straight. Deal with it.’ Here’s another: ‘Yes, I’m going to buck you in the face if-’ Huh.

I suppose I’ve really only got one type of solution my problems. Whatever. I like to face things head-on – take the minotaur by the horns and all that. It sometimes makes things tough in the short-term, but you get things out of the way, and then the rest of the afternoon is free. I’d rather have a tiny amount of super-intense-total-suck in my life than a load of slightly-painful-mild-unhappiness. After all, the first one leaves more free time for naps.

I think my approach to things like that is one of the reasons I have a tenuous relationship with a lot of other ponies around. Not the nap thing, the fact that I’m so direct. Most folks don’t like being told they should just pony up and deal with their problems, and as I’ve said, I won’t hesitate to tell a pony that she should face the facts. It’s why ponies think I’m insensitive and tactless, and that’s fair. I’m pretty insensitive and I’m definitely tactless, which Rarity will never stop reminding me (good for her because she’s not dancing around the issue). What’s not fair is that other ponies think I’m unsympathetic because of my behavior. I am not unsympathetic. I totally sympathize. In fact, I downright empathize, and that’s what makes me act the way I do.

I know what it’s like to be in those horseshoes. You’re miserable, you waste away with worry, and you can’t face your problems because you can’t even admit that they are problems. It makes my heart ache for AJ, and the hell that Discord put her through. Sure I’m mad at him for screwing my head up like he did, but it doesn’t compare. A disloyal pony is a right cur, but she doesn’t feel bad about it; dishonesty, on the other hoof, eats you alive.

Like my mom used to put it: ‘Say what you mean and mean what you say; // A pony is loyal all of the way.’ She had a whole poem about it.

Now I wouldn’t always have said so, but I’ve got to admit that my mom’s a pretty smart mare. I didn’t understand her until I moved away, I suppose (and maybe I still don’t, but I get her better, at least). She’s a weathermare too, you see, and that makes relationships hard. The pay’s good, but you have crap hours and everypony is putting pressure on you for different things. Weatherponies can get drafted for national duty in the case of an emergency, and they’re the first ones blamed when something goes wrong. I was proud of my mom for being a weathermare, but I couldn’t appreciate it, what with her being gone half the time and stressed out the rest. It’s a job you can’t respect until you work it. Celestia knows that I don’t get enough respect, and that isn’t likely to change with that fluke thunderstorm raging outside.

I had to roll over and find a more comfortable position in bed when I thought of that storm. I didn’t like anything about it. It meant the weather patrol was going to lose face. It meant possible flooding, wind damage, or even lightning damage in parts of Ponyville. It meant AJ’s orchards were probably getting thrashed. It meant there were shivering foals out there, scared shitless by the thunder. Maybe worst of all, it meant that I’d let other ponies down.

I hate doing that. Letting other ponies down is just… it’s disloyal. In some weird, egghead, psychobabble sort of way, it means I failed, even if it wasn’t my fault. The rest of Ponyville was counting on me to take care of its weather, and its weather wasn’t taken care of. And even if they won’t say it to my face, they’re all going to be pissed about it.

Well, except for one pony. She’s not going to be mad about it – she’ll just be peeved. Relatively speaking, that is. What’s ‘peeved’ for her is downright livid for most ponies I know, but she’s got a steady heart. She’ll just march right up to me, serious as can be, and have it out first thing in the morning, right there. Then I’ll say my piece, just as down to earth as a pegasus can possibly be. There was nothing I could’ve done, and I’m sorry. And she’ll believe me, because she knows I wouldn’t lie to her, and she knows I wouldn’t leave my friends hanging. It’ll be over, right back to normal, just like that.

It’s one of the reasons that Applejack’s my best friend. Well, one of my best friends; I consider all the girls to be my best friends, in different ways.

Like Twi. She and I have almost nothing in common – we’re both Elements of Harmony, and I kind of like reading (she’s gaga over it), and that’s about it. Twi’s weird. She’s a hoot, but she’s weird. She’s studying ‘The Magic of Friendship,’ after all, and she takes the whole thing way too seriously. Friendship’s an awesome thing, and I’m all for having friends, but it’s not something you’re supposed to study. Friendship is like everything else in life: it’s something you have to practice to get good at. Of course, that’s what makes Twilight different from the rest of us. She likes studying; I think reading secretly turns her on or something.

She’s an egghead, a librarian, and a student. Being Princess Celestia’s student, though, makes something of a difference. It’s a pretty big deal. Plus, she’s the Element of Magic. That’s like, sixty percent more important than the other Elements, and it’s an even bigger deal than being the Princess’ student. Hell, without her, I wouldn’t be the Element of Loyalty, maybe. She’s saved Ponyville about as many times as I have, and she pretty much curb-stomped that bitch Trixie.

None of those are the coolest thing about Twilight; the best thing about her is that she just wants to be friends. To hang out, chat, or do whatever. When I want somepony to watch me try out a new trick, she’ll do it. Or if I want to talk about the newest Daring-Do book, she’ll put down everything just to hear what badass shit Daring did. She hasn’t even read most of them, she just likes talking about books. But even before I started reading, almost from the moment I met her, Twi was one of my best friends. She thinks of her friends before she thinks of herself, like that time with the Gala tickets.

Speaking of putting others first, Rarity. Now this one’s a mystery, considering Rarity and I really don’t have anything in common at all. I sometimes wonder why we’re even friends. She likes dresses and the spa and Canterlot and cocktail parties and art museums and cats and pretty much everything that’s hoity-toity or super-girly. I don’t like any of those; I like working out, or hoof wrestling, or parties, or pranks, or just about anything that Rarity would call uncivilized. Uncouth, uncultured, and uncultivated, that’s me. In fact, it probably looks like the two of us don’t get along at all – that we only tolerate each other for the sake of our mutual friends.

That’s not the case. We may fight more than our fair share, and I probably fight with her more than half the ponies I don’t like, but she’s my friend. Maybe it’s just what we’ve been through together. Dragons, parasprites, poison joke, diamond dogs (and she was spectacular that time), just to name a few. Maybe the first time was in the Everfree, when I saw her buck that manticore right in the face. She’d be mortified to hear it, but I think she’s got a bigger pair than most stallions. That manticore was twenty times her size, and just WHAM, no hesitation.

And then there was the Best Young Fliers’ Competition. ‘Oh, I’m so pretty, what with my graceful, unique, and oh-so-very-slow wings. All shall love me as I ruin Rainbow’s life forever.’ I hated her for that. I literally hated her. The whole day, all the way through my routine, I was thinking of what I could do to get even, to ruin her life. I was even happy when she pulled the Icarus. Then I saw her start to fall and… I don’t think I had a choice. I had to save her. Which is funny, looking back on it, because I didn’t think that about the Wonderbolts – I just wanted to save them. And it all worked out. I saved Rarity, and the Wonderbolts, re-pulled-off the Sonic Rainboom, and won the BYFC, all because Rarity tried so hard to one up me. That’s what’s called ‘irony.’

Then there’s Flutters. You might say she’s my PFF, because I’ve known her for as long as I can remember. I care about her the way Applejack cares about her sister, except maybe more, because AJ knows that ‘Bloom can look after herself, and I always forget that about Fluttershy. We all forget that though, even Flutters herself. She’s way stronger than we normally give her credit for, and I know that when she’s not around. But when you go up to her and try to tell her that yes there is a forty percent chance of advisory-level winds, but you’re on weather duty, and you have to finish your qualifications and… you forget that she can do it. She just looks weak, and acts weak, and… yeah. Flutters is Flutters. Nopony can change it. She has her own crap to deal with. She had a pretty shitty foalhood, what with her mother going batshit crazy, and me being her only real friend, and me always wanting to hang out with Gilda, and Gilda being one of her bigger tormentors. It was kind of messed up.

I don’t really know what happened with me and Gilda, or where all of that went wrong. In fact, I don’t actually know that it was ever right in the first place. She and I were close, but… I don’t think that ‘friends’ would have been the right word. Not that I know what the right word is. Our relationship was possessive. Gilda was mine, and I was hers. Then it stopped. I got assigned to Ponyville for weather duty, and… I don’t actually know where Gilda went after that. She was at Cloudsdale as part of a foreign exchange program, so she probably went back to her home. Whatever the case, we didn’t see each other anymore and we drifted apart. I grew, and she didn’t.

It was Pinkie who made me to see that. Pinkie’s incredible. I love her, still do. Crazy sense of humor, enough potential energy to overcome the dielectric resistance of air, and enough optimism to make Celestia’s head spin, that’s Pinkie. I like to describe her as random a lot of the time, but I don’t think that’s really the case. Instead, Pinkie’s just different from the rest of us. She probably looks at the whole world, and everything she does makes totally logical, precision, Twilight-level sense. We’re the random ones to her. Of course her weirdness gets on someponies’ nerves, every once in a while, but they just don’t know how to deal with her.

‘Hey Dashie! It’s been awhile since I’ve been in your head, hasn’t it? This sure is a doozy of a storm, huh?’

‘Hi Pinks. Yeah. Hey, I’m kinda distracted right now - couldja let me have some alone time to hash this out?’

‘Sure! Seeya tomorrow.’

It’s just who she is. The great thing about her is that she’s always putting everypony before her. If she sees someone (pony, dragon, griffon, or donkey) who’s having a bad day, changing that becomes priority number one. If somepony needs help with something, she’ll be the first volunteer – it doesn’t even matter if she’s qualified, or even knows what she’s helping with, she just wants to make everypony happier. There was one time I had to string together an emergency weather detail (for a storm a lot like the one tonight). I was chasing down every pegasus in town, and Pinkie just ran up to me screaming-

‘I wanna help! I wanna help!’

‘I know you do, Pinks, but I don’t think you can with this. I-’

‘Aww… Please?’

‘Sorry. I’ll talk with you tomorrow, though, I promise.’

‘It’s a promise. Tomorrow!’

Anyways, she just wants to help other ponies, regardless of the details, whether or not she’s wanted, or if she’s actually the problem. It’s really sweet, and it’s one of the things I always liked about her. It makes me wish I understood her even better – that I could get in her head the way she gets in mine. Equestria would be a nicer place if more ponies thought like Pinks.

And then there’s AJ. I shouldn’t have to say anything about her, but I do. Applejack is Applejack, but not in the way that ‘Flutters is Flutters’ or ‘Pinkie is Pinkie’. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie both have depths that most ponies can’t grasp, because there’s more going on under the surface than they’re aware of. Shy and Pinkie can do insane, illogical shit, and the mere fact that they’re who they are is enough for most ponies to accept that. It’s a way of saying that ‘there’re hundreds of complex forces and elements interacting in a way that I’m not even aware of, and that’s why this pony is acting in a way I can’t possibly understand.’ Pinkie and Flutters are like weather to most ponies.

Applejack isn’t anything like weather to anypony. If somepony says that AJ is AJ, it’s because she’s exactly what she seems to be: nothing more and nothing less. There’s no chance that an occluded front is going to turn into unexpected thunderstorms, or a rear flank downdraft spins into an anticyclone, or even that a storm’s going to blow off course to Canterlot. No, Applejack isn’t weather, she’s like the sun and moon – simple, efficient, and most everypony likes her.

In fact, that sort of system, what with the sun up in the day and the moon up at night, with a reliable and trustworthy schedule and an outcome that makes ninety-nine percent of ponies happy is exactly the kind of system Applejack would make. Maybe AJ should become an alicorn and run the weather. I’ll bet she could come up with a better system than we’re currently using. There’d definitely be less paperwork.

Anyways, Applejack’s not just my best friend. She’s my best best friend. She and I have more in common than anypony I’ve ever met, and it goes beyond the superficial. Pinkie and I have pretty much the same interests, but we’re different on the inside. Applejack and I are closer than me and Pinkie ever could’ve been. We have… an intimacy that I don’t think I could have with any other pony. I truly understand AJ, and she understands what I am. It’s because we have the same values, really. She may be the Element of Honesty, and I may be Loyalty, but it could just as easily have been the other way around. That time in the Everfree Forest with Nightmare Moon? I could’ve told Twilight she’d have been safe, and Applejack would’ve been even quicker than I to turn down a suggestion like the Shadowbolts’ offer (or in her case, the Applebolts, or whatever crazy team an apple farmer wants to join). In fact, if somepony’d told me about the Elements and asked me which one was most me-ish, I’d probably have answered that I was Honesty, hooves down, and if that pony had asked me about AJ, I’d probably have said that AJ was Loyalty, what with the whole ‘Apple Family Values’ and whatnot.

So AJ’s honest and I’m loyal; AJ’s loyal and I’m honest. Why is she Honesty, and why am I Loyalty? Was it just luck? I really don’t know. Whenever I used to talk to her about stuff like this, Pinkie would tell me that there’s no such thing as chance. She told me once that we’re being watched and cared for by something loving and tolerant, and that everything happens for a reason. She may be the craziest mare I’ve met, and there may be nothing behind it, but I’m half-inclined to believe her. Maybe it’s just a comforting thought. Anyhow…

The fact that AJ’s more honest than me is pretty much a given. They call her ‘Honest Applejack’ for a reason, and even if it’s not as cool as most of my nicknames, it’s way more meaningful. It's not just that she tells the truth. It's that she doesn’t use half-truths, deceptions, pretenses, tricks, or cheats. She’s fair in everything she does. She… I don’t know… she’s good. I think Honesty is more than just the difference between lies and truths – it’s about having decency and integrity. And that’s AJ.

I, on the other hoof, can’t claim so much. Sure, I work about as hard as I can to say things the way I see them, and I don’t muck that up very often. ‘Candid’ is the nice way of putting it. But that’s just the lie/truth issue. I’m not as honest, as good, as AJ when it comes to all the other little things that make up honesty. But even then, even if honesty were only the difference between a lie and a truth, it’s not second nature for Applejack. It is her nature. Plain simple truth: she’s Honesty. I’ve never been sure how I feel about that. I’m competitive, and this is something she’s better than me at. In fact, it’s something important that she’s better than me at, so it’s a pretty big deal.

Of course, it makes sense that the Element of Honesty would be more honest than me. I can get that. But in that case, it would make sense that I’m more loyal than AJ, since I’m the Element of Loyalty.

Honestly, I don’t think I am. In fact, I’m pretty sure that I’m not. Loyalty is about being dependable and reliable. It’s being steadfast and committed. It’s having dedication. It’s faithfulness. Devotion. I think Loyalty is best summed up as doing right by those close to you, no matter the personal cost.

It defines Applejack to the letter.

AJ is probably fifteen percent more loyal than I am. She takes care of everypony she knows. Friends, family, and the rest of Ponyville – if somepony needs help with something she’ll do whatever, and she’ll do it without a complaint. She won’t even think about it. She’ll just throw herself at the problem, because she’s there for us. Like, there was one Applebuck season where she was the only one doing the harvesting for her whole farm, and she still went out of her way to help the rest of the girls when we asked for it. And did I think to help her when she needed it? No, that was Twi. I just ignored what my best best friend was going through, because I figured that AJ would ask for help if she needed it.

I learned the hard way that AJ doesn’t ask for help – she thinks that she’s supposed to be the one to help others. She avoids making problems, because she doesn’t want to inconvenience her friends. She just sits in the background, doing the same thing day after day. She bucks apples, avoids attention, and provides the steadfast voice of reason whenever the rest of us need her. She’s always just there to help. When Flutters couldn’t get up that mountain, AJ went the long way up with her. When me and Derpy busted up the town hall, she practically sold herself into slavery to pay for the repairs. Hell, she got her cutie mark when she realized how important her family was to her – if that’s not loyal, I don’t know what is. Applejack would go to Tartarus and back to help a friend.

And I can’t even compare to that. I’m really only reliable for the girls, and even then, only halfway. I think every one of them has done more for me than I’ve ever done for them. It's like I’m just trying to repay them for everything they’ve helped me with. There's a buzzword they use at the weather factory: ‘synergy’. It means ‘you scratch my withers and I’ll scratch yours,’ and that’s about the best I can do. My so-called ‘Loyalty’ is shit. So why am I the Element of Loyalty?

…

The fuck? This is all messed up, like that damn squall line outside. I’m loyal. I’m totally loyal! Loyalty is the most important thing in Equestria to me. There’s not a single disloyal bone in my body. I’m literally the Celestiadamned Element of Loyalty. It’s who I am. It’s how I was raised.

Like my mom used to put it: ‘Say what you mean and mean what say; // A pony is loyal all of the way.’ She had a whole poem about it.

…

I always thought that it was a funny poem when I was a filly. That line, the one about being loyal all of the way – it was repeated a bunch. It was the thing you were supposed to remember when you heard the poem. It was important, and what my mom wanted me to remember, I figured. A pony is loyal all of the way, and I’m a pony, so I’m supposed to be loyal all of the way. Duh. Everypony should be loyal all of the way.

But that line about saying what you mean was the only other line that came up more than once. It was the first line and one of the last ones, too. I didn’t get that, I guess. Instead of thinking: ‘Hey, Dash. This thing about honesty comes up twice. Don’t you think there’s a reason for that?’ I always assumed it was a mistake, and that the my mom had messed up the poem, or that the poem-writer-pony (I don’t know if author is really the right word for stuff other than books) had accidentally said that one twice. I’m not so sure about it anymore. It’s like, there were a lot of things you had to do to be loyal, but Honesty came up twice when it’d be a stretch to say any of the other Elements came up at all (except Magic, because Friendship is Magic).

Maybe there’s a reason for it. After all, everything happens for a reason. It wouldn’t be hard to say that Honesty is the gut part of Loyalty. You can’t be loyal to somepony if you’re not honest and decent. But on the otherhoof, being honest with ponies is a part of being faithful. Honesty and Loyalty are tied together, like two sides of the same bit. Heads and Tails. Yin and Yang. Evaporation and Condensation. Lightning and Thunder. Celestia and Luna.

Now there’s a relationship I can’t even begin to understand. They got in a fight and Celestia sent her sister away for like, a thousand years, and everything was perfectly fine between them after that. A thousand years. I can’t do that – if I have a problem with somepony, I get it in the open as soon as I can, so that I can finish it as soon as I can. Get the rough patches out of the way fast, because life is too short. Why waste a thousand years avoiding the issue? Why waste ten minutes? It’s a disservice to everypony involved, from yourself to the pony you’re pissed at.

Like my mom used to put it: ‘Say what you mean and mean what say; // A pony is loyal all of the way.’ She had a whole poem about it.

There it is again. Honesty and Loyalty. Me and AJ. Two halves of the same thing. It’s probably why we have the relationship that we do. Two ponies can’t get along, and I mean really get along, unless they care about the same things in life – have the same values. Me and AJ? We do. AJ’s my best best friend, and the best of us, and I love her, and she doesn’t deserve anything less. If anything, she deserves more. She deserves friends as good as she is. Friends like Twi and Rarity and Pinkie and Flutters, because they actually act like their Elements.

I don’t deserve to be as close to AJ as I am. Hell, I don’t even deserve to be her friend. Compared to her, I’m neither honest nor loyal, and those are my best qualities. Applejack deserves somepony better than me. Somepony like… I don’t know. A good pony.

She ought to have somepony more loyal than she is, if such a pony exists. Somepony who’s always on the level with her. Somepony who respects her for what she is. Somepony who’ll put AJ’s needs before their own. Somepony who wants her to be happy. Somepony who’ll do whatever it takes to take care of her – no matter the personal cost.

“Applejack, you deserve better,” I muttered between cracks of thunder.

To my surprise, I got an answer. “You’re soundin’ mighty philosophical there, Sugarcube,” AJ answered from right beside me. “Dumb, too.”

“Sorry – talking to myself. I didn’t know you were awake.” Damn. I’d thought she was still asleep; AJ doesn’t normally wake up in the middle of the night. Hold on. “I’m not dumb.”

She rolled over to face me. “I said ya sounded dumb, not thatcha are dumb. What’s this problem that’s gotcha awake this time ‘o night?”

“I…” I couldn’t lie to AJ. “I think you deserve somepony better than me. You’re honest and loyal, and fair, and decent, and… and good. You’re so good. And I’m none of those things. I’m self-centered, and… and no good with words, and you deserve better.”

She scoffed loudly and started chuckling. The sheets shook in time with her laughter. “Tsk. Now that is the dumbest thing you’ve ever said, Darlin’. Sweetest, too, but that’s another matter. You really believe all ‘o that?”

I guess my face answered the question for her, because she stopped laughing.

“And why, exactly, d’ya think this?”

“Because it’s true.”

“You’re talkin’ crazy tonight. That ain’t true.”

But it was. “AJ?”

“What Dash?”

I needed her to prove it. “What am I to you?”

She didn’t even hesitate. “Rainbow Dash, you’re the most loyal pony I know. And more importantly, you’re the mare I love.”

Wow.

“… Really?”

AJ rolled her eyes. “Rainbow Dash, if I say you’re the most loyal pony I know, and that I love you, then I damn well mean it.”

The Element of Honesty just called me best pony.

It was good enough for me.

“AJ?”

“What, Sugarcube?”

“I love you, too.”

She chuckled again. “I know, Dash. I know. Now go to sleep, Sugarcube. We’re gonna have a right talk ‘bout this storm come the morning.”

It was good enough for me.

Say what you mean and mean what you say;
A pony is loyal all of the way.

Every year, every month, every week, every day,
When you’re in a tough spot or you’re caught in the fray,
Through problems or hardship or times that are grey,
A pony is loyal all of the way.

Never give in or give up halfway,
Always stand fast and don’t run away,
Remember your debts and always repay,
A pony is loyal all of the way.

Remember your friends – don’t lead them astray,
Take care of your family and never give way,
Stay true to your heart and don’t dare betray,
A pony is loyal all of the way.

Say what you mean and mean what you say;
A pony is loyal all of the way.