Rarity was slowly being pulled back into the waking world. As she laid there on her side, she slowly realized that she was not only back in her bed, but she was completely clean, as if she had already showered and dried her hair. And her bed sheets were changed, as well.

"...Applejack...?" Rarity muttered sleepily into the air. She couldn't bring herself to open her eyes. She wasn't even sure if the southern belle was even there.

"Yes, Rarity?" came the reply from directly beside her.

"Did you... bathe me while I was asleep?"

"Um... yes?"

Part of Rarity was annoyed by the fact that the two of them apparently shared a bath together and she wasn't even awake for it, but a much larger part of her was grateful for the fact that she didn't wake up covered in sweat and lying in a puddle of her own cum. She eventually decided that Applejack made the right call. Rarity cracked open her eyes, rolled over, and immediately realized that everything hurt.

"Ohhhh..." Rarity moaned in pain. "Oh god..."

"In my defense," Applejack was already explaining herself. "You told me that I could do anything I wanted with you, and you kept telling me to go harder. This was your idea."

"Yes, but I didn't think that you would try to kill me!" Rarity hissed back, now very much awake. She lifted up the covers and checked to see if her genitals were still intact. "Are those bruises??" she shrieked.

"Sorry," Applejack muttered sheepishly.

"You actually left bruises on my pelvis..." Rarity groaned in disbelief.

"I'm sorry, but you kept asking me to go harder," Applejack said again.

Rarity replied with the mother of all pouts. "Fine," she eventually conceded, rolling back over and turning away from Applejack. "You're right. Letting you smash me into paste was my idea. But you know what wasn't my idea? Using our sacred magical powers in order to have sex with strangers for money. Start talking, Applejack."

"What?? No! You should start explaining why one of my closest friends just paid money to sleep with me when you never showed any interest in all the years that I've known you!"

"Well... Well..." Rarity stuttered. "Well... we wouldn't even be having this conversation if you hadn't become a prostitute first. So therefore, you should start talking first!"

"...Fine," Applejack grumbled, already knowing that she wouldn't win this one. "There ain't much to say, though. I wasn't getting enough sex. I wanted more. And I was getting sick of dating guys, only to find out that every single one of them just loved me for my looks."

"I know that feeling," Rarity muttered glumly.

"And you know what...?" Applejack continued. "I just... like using my super strength. It's just fun to use, you know? It's fun being able to throw around giant boulders, or helping you fix the underside of a bus without needing a carjack, or stopping Vignette Valencia's parade float dead in its tracks and lifting it off the ground with one hand while she was still standing on it."

"She definitely had that coming," Rarity smiled fondly at the memory.

"And I guess that I was just wondering if super strength could be fun to use in bed, too. And the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to try it. I also figured that there were probably a lot of guys, and a couple ladies, who had domination fantasies but couldn't find a partner that was comfortable with doing it. And I've always been a "top" kind of gal, so I put out an ad that targeted those specific people. Not only was I right about there being a lot of people struggling to find dominating partners, but I also found out that there were two different strength fetishes that exist!

"And yeah, some people that I've screwed were ugly, terrible in bed, or both. But for the most part, I was enjoying my new job. I got to have more sex. It suddenly became part of my job to use my super strength for the sole purpose of having as much fun as possible, and I loved that too. And to top it all off, I was making two to five thousand dollars a night. And I know that's pocket change for a woman of your salary, but it's a lot of money for somebody who works on the family farm.

"So you can judge my life choices all you want, but I don't regret a damn thing."

The room fell into silence for a long moment after that.

"I see," Rarity finally said. "Well... I can't really agree with this life that you chose, but... I suppose that I do understand it, now."

"Good," Applejack replied. "Now it's your turn. How long have you been into me?"

Rarity responded with a long and dramatic sigh, taking a moment to mull over how she should respond.

"I don't really know exactly when it started. But I guess that just... you know... you liked rodeos, and doing dirty work out in the fields, and going camping, and just... you were practically the exact opposite of me in every way!"

"No arguments here," Applejack smirked.

"But," Rarity continued. "Even though our differences have led to a lot of... admittedly petty squabbles when we were younger, I guess that the fact that I never really understood you just... it really made me want to understand you. You were just so different from everything that I ever knew, that... I guess you just fascinated me."

"Opposites attract?"

"I suppose so. You also had pretty much every quality that I look for in a man. You're kind, dependable, a little headstrong..." Rarity smiled. "I also adore your country girl accent. I could really just listen to you talk for hours."

Applejack couldn't help but smile back. "Y'all reckon that my accent is mighty purty?"

Rarity giggled uncontrollably at that. "I do!" she laughed out loud. "I really do!"

"Alright, so I guess you've always had a thing for me, personality-wise. But what about physically? Why did you want to fuck me so badly?"

"There are a couple of reasons why I desired to make love to you," Rarity replied, her entire demeanor instantly changing to a scolding tone at Applejack's crass language.

"Really?" Applejack raised an eyebrow at that. "After the way you were acting last night?"

"That was obviously a very different atmosphere," Rarity stuck up her nose.

"Oh brother," Applejack rolled her eyes. "But really though, why?"

"Why?"

"Yes, why?"

"Well," Rarity began. "For a while, my preferences in sexual partners was something that ultimately boiled down to the way that we, as a species, perceive the concept of 'beauty' based on a wide variety of changes in our culture over the generations that eventually molds its way into a 'standard' of beauty that is then encouraged by the way in which people are portrayed in popular media, which then leads to many people subconsciously adopting these preferences through the combined forces of basic psychological conditioning and our innate desires for our lives to match the media that we consume."

"English, Rarity."

"I like buff and hunky men just like every other girl."

"Okay... Why didn't you just say that?"

"Because you asked me why I liked what I liked. And the evolution of beauty standards is a complicated topic."

"Never mind..."

"Anyways, in my early teen years I fawned over the same type of men that most other girls did. I'm talking all of the gorgeous men with gorgeous bodies that just looked so good... And, at the risk of sounding narcissistic, as my body, well... developed, I found that I didn't have any trouble finding myself with men that had those kinds of bodies. Before long, I confirmed that buff studs not only looked good, but they felt good, too."

"I'm right with you on that one," Applejack smiled, thinking back to a small handful of bodybuilders that she got to fuck senseless over the past few months.

"Right?" Rarity said. "There's just something about a big and strong man just grabbing you and then... you know," she trailed off, sighing dreamily.

"Well, personally I prefer to grab them and then... you know," she playfully mocked her. "But, to each their own, I suppose."

"Anyways," Rarity huffed. "I honestly couldn't tell you when I discovered that I liked women, too. That just sort of came with time."

"Same," Applejack nodded understandingly.

"And beauty standards applied to me for women, as well. I liked pretty girls with pretty bodies."

"Of course."

"But as far as men were concerned, I liked the same type of men that almost every other girl liked. But... that changed after Camp Everfree. After we came back from that trip, every man that I slept with... Well, they were still very nice, but they just didn't feel very strong anymore. Because after that weekend, I knew what real power was. I knew you."

"So I kinda ruined your sex life," Applejack realized. "I'm so sorry, Rarity..."

"Don't be," Rarity chuckled. "It's not your fault that we went on a high school camping trip and came back with super powers."

"I guess not," Applejack figured. "Oh that reminds me, I was wondering... Why was your necklace such a big part of your "script" last night when you never even used it at all?"

"Oh," Rarity chuckled. "Back at the warehouse, I was originally planning on creating a giant platform for us to stand on, and then I was going to take you home on a romantic ride through the city sky. But I changed my mind at the last moment, and... I guess I forgot about the necklace."

"I see..." was Applejack's only response.

"Now where was I..." Rarity muttered. "Oh yeah! Um... Actually, that's basically it. You've always had the personality traits that I looked for in a partner. And you also had all of the best physical traits that I looked for in a woman. But you also possessed one of the physical traits that I love in a man, only thousands of times more than any man could ever hope to have!

"I just couldn't stop thinking about you. For years and years, I couldn't stop wondering what you would feel like. So, when I heard that you were selling your body, I figured that you must be taking anybody. And I was just desperate enough to contact you, even though our friendship would probably never be the same again if I went through with it. I did it anyways because I was that desperate to know. And... I guess that's what let us to what happened last night," Rarity concluded.

There was another long period of silence.

"Do you still have feelings for me?" Applejack eventually asked.

"I... uh..." Rarity tripped over her words for a moment. "I mean physically-"

"You know what I mean, Rarity."

...

...

"I guess I still do," Rarity admitted. "Even after all of these years..."

"Well," Applejack replied. "I'm not sure if I feel the same."

"Ms. Honesty, as always," Rarity said with a bitter-sweet smile.

"No, I mean... I'm really I'm not sure if I feel the same. I dunno... the thought of being more than friends..." Applejack trailed off, legitimately pondering the idea.

Rarity nearly stopped breathing after she heard those words. "Oh no..." her nervous smile grew bigger and her lungs started to convulse in a manner that could have been either laughing or crying. "Don't say that. Don't give me hope."

"Okay okay, I'll give it to you straight. Let's try it."

!!

"R-really?"

"Sure. If it doesn't work, it doesn't work. But, yeah... Let's try it."

"...Okay," was Rarity's only answer. She was fighting back tears as her smile grew even wider. Applejack felt herself returning a similarly happy smile as she wrapped her arms around Rarity and gave her a hug.

"Ow..." Rarity whined.

"Sorry!" Applejack pulled away from her like she had just burned herself.

"I didn't tell you to stop," Rarity said.

Applejack hugged her again, more slowly this time. Rarity winced a little, but she happily dealt with the minor pain as Applejack wrapped her in an embrace that felt infinitely warmer than all of last night's activities combined.

"I'm not giving up my sex life for you, though," Applejack said. "I'm enjoying it way too much."

"Oh, I wouldn't dream of it," Rarity replied with a sly smile. "After all, you are way too good for me to keep to myself."

"Ms. Generosity, as always."

"Soon to be Mrs. Generosity."

"Slow down, girl."

The two shared another laugh together.

"Okay," Applejack said once she was fully dressed. "I'm off to catch my flight home. But I'll be back before you know it, alright?"

"I certainly hope so," Rarity replied with a smile, still laying naked in bed. "Good day, Applejack."

"You're not going to walk me out?" Applejack asked.

"I think you can walk yourself out," Rarity replied.

"...Wow!" Applejack exclaimed, utterly stunned that the most well-mannered person she knew would respond like that. "How come, Rarity? Is it because chivalry is dead, after all?"

"No, Applejack. It's because I can't walk."

Author's Note

Fun fact: That bit about Rarity's idea about a ride through the sky was a bit of an inside joke. The scene she described was, in fact, an idea that I originally had for this story, but I scrapped it for the motorcycle, instead. And I did, in fact, completely forget that the necklace was so relevant in the first two chapters.

Basically, I drew attention to Chekhov's gun, and then I forgot all about it.