Summer peered at her two partners. "Yer gonna stack them?!"

Maple rubbed at her face with a hoof, squirming with growing uncertainty. "It don't have to be on top of each other..."

Summer worked with her hooves with imaginary houses. "Next to each other then?"

Winter watched the two talk. Talking was not a place for him.

Maple nodded. "Could do that. Our houses are comin' together, figurative and literal-like. Um, if ya like the idea... If ya don't, then we forget that idea."

Summer peeked out a window. "Here, right?"

Maple huffed at that. "I'd rather we moved to my land, but that's a lesser sacrifice than givin' up the house, which ah won't do! The land will still be there..."

Summer tapped her hooves slowly. "We both got one story houses, some attic space, not much more."

Maple nodded slowly at that. "Yeah..." Where Summer was going with that, she wasn't sure.

Summer brought her hooves together. "So if we put 'em side by side, we're gonna have to knock some walls out, 'least to put in doors. Hm... Could... Could put it one ahead of the other, facin' opposite ways, then the front doors ah both become front and back doors of the whole thin'. Then ya just have to do the least 'mount of finessin' to get from one to the other without hurting 'em."

Maple burst into giggles. "Yer gonna make me the back door mare. That ain't right, Summer."

Summer joined her in laughter. "I wasn't thinking that." She swatted at her wife. "I just figured that way would mean the less damage to either house. We don't want them banged up any more than we'd absolutely have to, right?"

Maple peeked towards the back of the small home they were in. "So... yer alright with the idea then?"

"If you are." Summer looked in the same direction. "Havin' a back door won't be so bad. We'll have more space fer the both of us... and our family, which is on the way to gettin' bigger."

Maple colored sharply. "Speakin' ah that!" She thrust a hoof at Winter. "I demand Winter time."

Summer inclined her head slowly. "He is yer husband, you get to have Winter time. Why are ya makin' a formal request?"

Winter perked his ears at the sudden change of topic. He tried to nuzzle Maple, but she pushed him back. "I mean special Winter time. We're married, so..."

Summer leered at Maple. "We're married too."

Maple squeaked with surprise. "I didn't even think you wanted that..."

Summer wagged a hoof. "I don't, not specifically, but yer response tells me maybe you do."

Maple pranced in place. "That wasn't fair! Now, ah ain't no mare chaser. I already let this stallion right here climb up... and enjoyed it... And ah want it again!"

Winter was able to rub his cheek against Maple's, to her smiling consent.

"Ain't arguin' that." Summer waved it away. "What ah was askin' is what our relationship is, which got nothin' to do with how much ya like Winter bein' the top."

Maple nodded. "A lot." Wait, that wasn't a question. She sank to her haunches. "I never tried with no mare before..."

"We can try, if you want. Never did it before neither... Maybe we'll hate it. Maybe we'll love it. Ain't many ways t' find out."

Maple danced slowly. "Not many ways," she mumbled in agreement. "Ah'm a little scared."

"Good of you to admit it." Summer set a hoof on Maple's shoulder, pressing softly. "Ah am too, but we've been friends ferever! So if we don't like it, we just stop. No hard feelin's, just stop."

"Just stop, yes..." Maple suddenly recoiled. "Yer distractin' me!" She pointed at Winter. "Want some alone time with our stallion, that's what ah was askin'."

"And I already did answered that." Summer shoved Maple suddenly towards Winter. "Go on. He's as much yours as mine, and there ain't nothin' he can do to you that ain't already been done."

Maple's recovering cheeks lit up at the implications. "Well, that's true, ah guess... C'mon Winter."

But Winter did not move. Instead he pointed at Maple, then Summer and inclined his head.

Maple wrinkled her nose. "Summer and I can figure that out afterwards. Right now Ah know 'xactly what I want, and yer the one with it. So... Kindly?"

Winter considered the aggressive Maple. That was a new side of her, but not an entirely displeasing side. He kissed her quivering nose, but turned to Summer instead to touch his nose to hers.

"Go on," Summer bade. "I'll be plannin' houses, apparently. Ya got all yer friends signed up to help? Yer a talented spokespony for not ever spokin'. Ah do swear, now, go on! She'll lose it if you keep her waitin' like that."

Winter grabbed Maple in his magic, lifting her from the ground smoothly. He supported her from all angles, it was like the world was moving under her, riding some unseen force that didn't even feel like an elevator. Elevators didn't push up on every part of one's body at the same time, removing most sensation of acceleration. He walked off with her as she squeaked and pedaled at the air.

Summer shook her head slowly. "Time to plan." She went to grab a bit of paper and sketch out what the two houses together would look like in a way that preserved as much as possible of both dwellings.

"Yer overthinkin'." Applejack smiled confidently. "Ah got an idea that's nice an' simple."

Twilight sat up at her desk. "Do share. Celestia's agreed to buy some of the cherries, but not enough to make any real dent in Miss Jubilee's supply. I don't dare press her more than I already have." She swallowed nervously. "I've already asked too much."

"Ya ain't done no such thing." Applejack slapped down a map of Equestia and her hoof a moment later on a town. "Appleloosa. You remember it?"

Twilight squinted at the map and the town. "What about it? We can't redirect the buffalo without lying to them or otherwise causing trouble, so that's out."

"So let's not." Applejack nodded in shallow motions. "They go there, so we go there. The cherries can go there. Ya know how they feed 'em now, right?"

"Pies?" Twilight shrugged in memory of the event. "Why?"

Applejack rolled a hoof. "The buffalo don't pay for them pies, which means what they get comes out of the town coffers. Their supply of apples, local grown by Apples, an' other pie 'gredients."

Twilight hopped from her chair. "Sure. Where are you headed with this?"

"Ah'm headed to lettin' Appleloosa keep its apples fer sellin', and instead they can import some of these cherries Miss Jubilee has plenty of. They pay her instead, and maybe everypony wins?" Applejack clopped once with the finality of the idea. "And we've done paid back Cherry Jubilee fer the trouble we done made before."

Twilight went for the door. "There are some numbers there that may work out, or not. We won't know--"

"--'less we ask." Applejack was already at her side, pausing only to let Twilight slip through the door that wouldn't hold them both at once. "Let's do some fancy math. By which ah mean you'll be doin' some fancy math."

They walked side by side down the road of the town. "I appreciate the confidence, but this is math you've done before. You've run an orchard your entire life." Twilight cocked an ear at Applejack. "Nothing new there. We just need to know what margin works for Miss Jubilee, and how much Appleloosa is willing to pay. If they match up..."

"Then we win." Applejack hopped, clopping her hooves mid leap before hitting the ground. "The cherries ain't no apples, but they're a fine pie. The buffalo should be pleased enough with it."

They were not expecting the dubious expression of Miss Jubilee. "Ya want what now? Y'see, that there's very private information..."

Twilight was looking at the filing cabinet she desired, though it was closed. "Of course. This is only requested for your profit and benefit."

Applejack gently pulled Twilight back. "We jus' need to know what price we should ask fer, if we got somepony ready to buy a great big bushel of cherries. It's hard to ask if we don't got no price to quote."

Twilight slipped forward past Applejack's warning arm. "We'd also like to know your basic stocks. Promising too many would not be good for you."

Cherry Jubilee raised both brows as she steepled her hooves. "Now that's a big claim right there. You think you can put the pinch on me? That sounds like the good kind of problem."

Applejack rolled a hoof. "Sure is, ask us any time cider season comes 'round. Still, not havin' enough creates bad blood, and that's never good. Also, you don't get paid fer what ain't sold. Better to make promises ya can keep in the end."

Cherry nodded to herself, hoof tapping at her papers. "Yer not wrong there... Still..." She folded her hooves against one another. "Let's try this else, hm?" She grabbed a pen in her mouth and scribbled a number, pushing it towards them. "Make that vanish in a year, an' we're even. All forgiven. Aim fer that."

Twilight grabbed the paper in her magic, drawing it into easy view. "Hm. This looks like a low estimate."

"'Cause it is," retorted Cherry. "But still a fine number. You get that movin', an' alls forgiven."

Twilight went still, numbers tumbling in her mind. "If we doubled or tripled that, for extra credit, would you be able to handle that?"

Applejack tipped her hat. "More important, what do you want per cherry? We need a number to offer, ma'am."

Cherry Jubilee smiled, a predatory mask. "If you can double or triple that, I'd be willin' to come down in price jus' for knowin' it's all movin'. Hm. Fine." She grabbed the same pen, but a new paper, scribbling busily. "Consider this a rough draft, if you will. You offer these numbers, and ah'll say yes. They want better, they'll have to negotiate with me proper-like." She allowed Twilight to snatch that second paper. "Yer gettin' me excited, and curious, little mares. Don't dissapoint me now."

Twilight placed the two papers together and folded them sharply. "This is enough information to start with. We'll be back."

"Wit' good news," added Applejack. "Hopefully."

Cherry waved gently as they ran off. "Crazy mares..."

"Time for a letter." Twilight willed her quill to dance. "And this time for a pony less... Celestia." That was a point of obvious relief for her. "Hm, actually." She paused in her writing. "Applejack, this may be your place."

"Why's that?" Applejack came over to see what had started to be written. "Don't mind writin' no letters, but whatfor?"

"This is to your family." Twilight waved off. "Appleloosa. Questions and ideas from you will be received better than anything I say."

Applejack pushed the paper away. "Yer not wrong there." She took a fresh paper and snatched the floating quill out of the air with her mouth. "I'll write 'em then." She got to scribbling her note. "Hopefully they'll like the idea."

"The numbers don't work!" wailed a mare, hooves in the air, seated on her chair in the office of the dusty town. "We've gotten peace, but... at what cost?"

Breaburn inclined his head. "Don't look so down, Bitcoin."

Bitcoin threw the papers aside. "They don't work. Twice a year we have to lose a whole lot of inventory to avoid losing a whole lot more inventory! And it's at the worst times, both ways! We can't be givin' up apples right then, but we do..."

"Letter." A local postpony pressed a letter against Breaburn. "Afternoon." He tipped his hat and went on his way without a delay.

"Hm?" Breaburn unfolded the letter to see what was written on it. "Oh, from cousin AJ!" Maybe it would be good news?

Author's Note

Two plot threads, moving forward I say!

I swear they will get back together.

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