Author's Note

Yahallo! So, we're currently in the time between arc 3 and arc 4, giving our heroine some much needed downtime. A lot this will be spenting resolving and starting subplots, so if that's your thing, yay! If not, I sorry. :(. Anywho, tell me if you spot any errors, thanks for reading, and enjoy!

Chapter 38: A Fashionable Rainbow

He fell asleep in my arms. That happened with Asriel countless times, but never with anyone else. As Dark’s entire body laid into me, I began to shudder under the weight. I tried to redirect him to the bed as carefully as I could, placing his head on the bed and letting it take the brunt of his weight.

There was a vague soreness in my chest as I rubbed it, getting to my feet and just trying to catch my breath. I took one more look at Dark’s face before I left, a tickle of curiosity in the back of my mind demanding it.

Dried tears sat barely visible on his face, which was slightly scrunched and becoming more relaxed the longer I stared at him. Head tilt back, with a slack jaw and parted lips.

He looked peaceful.

Is that what I looked like last night?

As I walked to Carousel Boutique, I tried to ignore the lingering warmth in my cheeks, keeping my head lowered and eyes locked to the ground as I counted each step I took. Every now and again, I’d glance up to see if the residents of Ponyville were paying attention to me at all. They weren’t, of course, as they hadn’t been the more they got used to me.

That background anxiety was still there though, as it always was. But it was tolerable compared to normal, it was closer to a rock in the back of my throat than a torrent rushing against my ribcage. It was manageable, if nothing else.

I was somewhere near content.

I nearly walked face first into the door of the Carousel Boutique, jogging right past the windows with my nose scraping the wood. I paused, glancing to the backyard behind the building. The CMC were back there with…jars? Various sized jars, some open and some of them had the lids off as they were swinging them around in the air at seemingly nothing.

My gaze lingered on Scootaloo’s wings, which were extended as she hopped around swiftly; cutting the air with her fluid movements. Then, it inched over to Sweetie Belle, whose horn was poking over the edge of the doorway when Rarity and I spoke before I left for Canterlot; She must have heard everything.

And yet, there she was, playing with her friends and smiling the same way she did at the party she threw for me.

I couldn’t let her see me.

I couldn’t take away that smile.

I entered the boutique, as quietly and carefully as I could so I didn’t ring the bell; I was small enough to just fit. Inside, Rarity didn’t have any customers, at least none that I could see. I vaguely heard talking coming from the kitchen, one voice undeniably Rarity’s and the other one I couldn’t make out yet. I took gradual steps towards them, peeking around the corner until I could see where they were.

There was Rarity, of course, sitting at a table closest to the window. She didn’t have any of her sewing stuff on, no tape measure draping her neck like a thin scarf or red pair of glasses that looked more attuned for reading than anything else. She was serving a pot of tea and her fanciest cups, pure white with stripes of blue sparkles in a spiral that came together at the top.

She was laughing, smiling, and not working.

It’s who she was serving tea to that froze my heart.

“Come on, I could totally pull off any dress you’ve got in here. I’ve got a rainbow mane; I go well with all colors.”

Rainbow’s chair was halfway off the ground as she leaned into it, the front legs hovering off the ground as she used her wings like pillows. Holding a half-empty cup of tea that she was idly sloshing around, just barely not spilling over the edges.

“Truly? Well then, why don’t you put your bits where you bite?” Rarity placed her cup on the table, leaning forward and resting her head on her hands with a half-smug smile. “In fact, it’s been far too long since we’ve had a good old fashioned soiree. Let’s have a fashion show, you and I, with Sweetie Belle and her friends as judges!” She got to her hooves, placing her hands on the table as she leaned forward. “I have far too many dresses to spare recently, I’m sure we can scrounge something together.”

Rainbow glared into her tea, clenching her teeth together as she sucked in cold air.

“I don’t knoooooow, Scoots has never seen me in a dress before; might ruin the whole ‘role model athlete’ image she’s got in mind of me.” There was a semi-sarcasticness to Rainbow’s words, almost like she was challenging Rarity.

“Oh, come now. Scootaloo is a gorgeous young filly, and she’s going to grow up just as beautiful. Don’t you want to be the one to show her how fashionable an athlete can be? Or, maybe,” Rarity pursed her lips. “You’re scared.”

“I am not scared; you’re on!”

The chair Rainbow was sitting in flew back as she sprang into the air, spreading her wings to hover just above the table.

They held each other’s eyes for a long second, until the door shut behind me and I heard three pairs of hooves come in.

“Rarity, I got my dress dirty can you—Chara?”

“Chara’s here?”

“Chara’s here! Where ya been?”

And just like that, I was in the crosshairs of Rainbow and Rarity. I vaguely felt the sensation of Sweetie giving me a side hug, which didn’t quite register as all of my senses were enraptured by raw terror as they stared at me.

Perhaps in poor taste, but the only thing that felt comparable was when I first ran into that hydra that came out of the water like a moving mountain in the Everfree Woods. Back then, I feared for my life. I’m not sure what I was afraid of at that moment, but it was worse than anything that could have happened to my wellbeing.

“So she is.” Rarity stated, all the enthusiasm that was dripping from her voice just moments ago completely absent.

“I thought you’d be in Canterlot longer.”

Rainbow did little to hide her disappointment.

I could see the sincere grin on Sweetie’s face fall. It hurt.

“Is something wrong? I thought you’d guys be happy to see her back!”

“Oh no, Sweetie. I am! It’s just,” Rarity and Rainbow exchanged a very brief look. Rainbow shook her head, and Rarity nodded. “Bad timing. Uhm, Sweetie Belle why don’t you and your friends go to your room and you can pick whatever dress you want from my workshop? Leave yours there and I’ll clean it later. Alright?”

“Rarity…” Sweetie Belle trailed off, her brows creasing together.

“Please, Sweetie.”

Sweetie Belle puffed her cheeks, then whispered something to Applebloom and Scootaloo before the two shrugged and began walking up the stairs.

“Fine, meanie.”

I paid far too much attention to their hoofsteps, honing in on their hoofsteps like I was expecting some huge sound or something to go wrong. Instead, it got quieter and quieter until the only sound was the occasional beating of Rainbow’s wings.

“So,” Rarity stood from her chair, going over to a cabinet and retrieving a third cup, pouring the steaming tea into it before hovering it over to me in her magic. I accepted it, bringing it to my mouth and taking a tentative sip. It wasn’t as hot as it looked, and kind of tasted like hot water with sugar sprinkled in. “How was Canterlot?”

Rainbow said nothing, not with words anyway. She lowered herself to the ground, moving over to the chair and bringing it back to the table before sitting in it, all the while keeping her cerise eyes on me. Like she was afraid I would try something.

She didn’t trust me.

“It was pretty, from what I saw.” There was nowhere for me to sit, which was fine. I propped myself against the doorway, holding the cup in my hand as I stared at my reflection in the liquid. I couldn’t really see myself, just a vague outline with the color red in the center. “I didn’t really get to leave the castle that often.”

“Really? That’s a tragedy, Canterlot is gorgeous day and night. I’ve been futily trying to convince Rainbow Dash to come with me for a trip there sooner or later, but she’s of the mind that it’d be boring and there’d be nothing to do there.”

I glanced at Rainbow, making the mistake of eye contact. Even behind those bright eyes of hers, there was a stern anger that stuck out. She wasn’t nearly as upset as when I last saw her, but enough had lingered to unsettle me.

“Well, I mostly just,” I cleared my throat, taking a hefty swig from the tea. The burning on my tongue was immensely preferable to the stinging in my brain the longer Rainbow and I stared at one another. “Read books. Luna took me to her first showing of her theater and I got to see Haylet, which was fine.”

“Princess Luna’s private theater?”

“You got to see Haylet?!”

Rainbow’s reaction was much more surprising than Rarity’s; nearly identical to Twilight’s, actually.

“Rainbow Dash? You’ve read Haylet?”

“I…well, yes, once or twice.”

“Really now? I thought only eggheads enjoyed reading anything as old-fashioned as that?”

“They do! Twilight dorks out about Haylet every time it comes up. Thing is though, ugh.” Rainbow awkwardly rubbed the side of her head, peering outside the window as she pursed her lips. “A.K.Yearling said she grew up reading the scripts for those plays, and that Haylet is her favorite. So I knew there had to be something awesome in there!”

“And was there?” Rarity asked with a smirk on her face.

Rainbow opened her mouth to say something, her wings retracting to her sides and hugging them tightly as her chin dropped to her chest. Then, gave a reluctant huff as her wings bounced.

“Yeah, it was pretty cool.”

“I can, um,” I made a droning noise, immediately regretting interrupting their banter as they both stared at me. I set the tea on the counter, tucking myself in the corner of the kitchen. “Luna and I are friends—I think— and I have to go back to Canterlot tomorrow. I can ask her to invite you and Rarity to the next showing, and Pinkie, and Twilight, and…” I tried to picture Applejack sitting in the theater completely silent as she watched the play; something about that filled me with a strange dissonance. “Applejack, if she’s interested.”

“Really?” Rarity was in front of me in a few seconds, eyes sparkling like stars as she placed her hands together. “You’d do that for me? For us? That’s—”

“Not going to make us forgive you, you know.”

There it was.

My heart sank, yet at the same time a weight had been lifted off my chest; like a predator that’d been following me had finally made itself known.

Rarity looked back, her expression souring as she said something to her wordlessly.

“What? We were all thinking it and—”

“You’re right.” I pressed my back against the wall, gritting my teeth and trying not to slide down on the floor like I was tempted to. “No amount of ‘I’m sorries’, or gifts, or anything like that can earn your forgiveness. And if it could? I,” I reached for my necklace, catching myself and dropping my arm to my side as I creased my eyebrows. “I wouldn’t want it. I don’t want to be sorry, I want to be better.”

Rainbow’s head jerked back as her ears lowered, the scowl on her face faded into something that looked like she wanted to say something she’d regret.

Rarity was somehow just as speechless, a prospect I’m not sure I’d ever get used to.

With little more than the sound of her hooves scrapping against the floor, Rainbow sat back down in her chair, crossing her arms and propping herself up.

“That doesn’t sound like something you came up with on your own. Who gave you that tidbit of advice?”

I pursed my lips, spinning the pendant in my hand into a circle that made the chain around my neck get tighter with every turn.

“Luna did. And,” Rarity and I made eye contact, just for an instant. “Maybe Rarity, a little bit.”

Rarity placed a hand on her chest, the corners of her lips inching upward.

“It seems Canterlot did you some good then. Chara,” Rarity reached forward, hesitating at first, then shaking her head as she placed a hand on my shoulder. “I’m proud of you.”

That initial terror hit me, then it faded away like a cramp. Each time, it got just a little more tolerable. I still forgot how to breathe for just a second, before sharply inhaling as my entire body tensed up.

Beneath all of that was this tiny pinprick of relief, but it didn’t grow. It sat there, floating like a bubble.

I liked it.

“Thanks.” I muttered as I backed away, breaking the contact as I glanced over her shoulder at Rainbow. “I just want the chance to earn your forgiveness, please.”

Rainbow stared at me for what felt like forever, creasing her eyebrow as she leaned her head in her wings.

“Have you talked to Fluttershy yet?”

“Yeah, a little.”

“Did she forgive you?”

“I think so.”

“Hmmm,” Rainbow stared at her half-consumed cup of tea, tapping her hooves against the ceramic floor before sighing and standing up. “Ok, fine, for Fluttershy.”

“Rainbow, I—”

“For Fluttershy.” I could feel every syllable as Rainbow uttered them, hitting me with a timbre that froze anything I wanted to say. “She cares about you a lot. I don’t know what you said to her to make her give you a second chance, but if you hurt her even half as much as you did on that farm;”

She lowered herself to my eye level, placing the tip of her wing against my chest.

“We’re done. And so are you. Understood?”

I couldn’t form any words in response to that. Even if I could, I had a feeling anything that would have slipped out would have just made things worse. Instead, I nodded.

“Good.” she broke eye contact, straightening her posture and fluffing her wings. “Before you ask, no, I can’t help you with Applejack. I respect her enough to know that, when she’s made up her mind on something, no one in all of Equestria can change her mind.”

Applejack.

Out of the six, she was the one I had the least idea on how to approach. It had crossed my mind to ask Rainbow for help considering how well the two get along, but if she refused I had no idea how to even approach her.

“Unfortunately, Rainbow is quite astute with that; Applejack has buried herself in farmwork more than usual recently. It’s hard to say what would snap her out of it. Regardless, it's out of my capabilities. I can, however, offer you a manecut if you so need it?”

With an aura of light blue, Rarity placed her floating teacup beside mine and floated over a pair of scissors and a handheld mirror. I saw my reflection in that mirror for just a small second, and I was reminded of what Dark said to me.

I fiddled with a random strain of hair, stretching it forward as much as I could as I twirled it in a circle. It hadn’t grown that long, only to just about my chin, but it was noticeable to just about anyone who saw me normally.

Out of instinct, I wanted to say ‘yes’, to let the nearly invisible weight of my hair vanish.

The words that came out of my words instead were—

“No.” I fixed my bangs, letting the entirety of my hair down as I dropped my arms. “I think I’ll let it grow out a little longer.”

Rarity blinked, her glasses dropping to halfway down her face,

Then, she grinned. I could taste the smugness in her voice, yet it didn’t bother me one bit.

“Lovely.” In an instant, the mirror, scissors, and glasses were gone. Rarity puffed up her mane, placing her hands on her hips. “Well then, Rainbow Dash, my deepest apologies, but I think it best we put off our little fashion show to a different time. I think it would be far more beneficial for us to go with Chara to visit Pinkie and Twilight in Sugarcube Corner today. It’s been much too long since I’ve seen them!”

Rainbow’s eyes lit up, shifting from me to Rarity with a fervent enthusiasm.

“Really?” her wings began to beat as she hovered off the ground, smiling so wide I could count each of her shiny white teeth; it reminded me of one of Pinkie’s infectious grins. “Pinkie’s been wanting to get together with everyone for a while now. If only Fluttershy would be able to join us.”

“Actually…” I raised a hand, this time regretting drawing the attention to myself much less. “Fluttershy should be there right now; she came with me to Ponyville and we separated.”

“Oh!” Rarity squealed, clapping her hands together so fast I feared a fire would start from the raw friction. “How splendid! Then, all that’s missing is Applejack! Hmmmm,” I watched as Rarity’s grin died, slowly blinking as her face scrunched up and she tilted her head. “Chara, you’re going to go speak with Applejack, aren’t you?”

I lowered myself, interlacing my fingers as I brought my arms to my back.

“Yeah.”

“I see. I’d offer to come with you, alas I fear my presence would only…deter things.” Rarity pressed her lips together like she wanted to say something else, before reluctantly closing her eyes and sighing. “However, I’m sure Rainbow and I would have no issue escorting you there at the very least. Could you perchance ask her to come to Sugarcube Corner? I’d appreciate it greatly.”

Rainbow shrugged, seeming indifferent either way.

I picked up the tea again, taking a reluctant sip just to make sure it wasn’t as hot as before. Once I was certain it wouldn’t burn my tongue, I drank the rest of the cup, finding that it went down with a pleasant warmth that lingered all the way down to my stomach.

“I’d appreciate that.”

It didn’t strike me until we were halfway there how odd it was that I’d spent so long in Ponyville, and yet I never visited Sweet Apple Acres.

Not for any particular reason, I just never had the urge to see it or visit Applejack. Though, now that I was making my way there, I couldn’t help but think about the last time I’d even been to a farm. Before Mt. Ebott, certainly; my village had a rather large one. Issue being I wasn’t allowed to tend the fields, or plant, or even go near it.

For reasons I’d…rather not linger on.

Rainbow led me down a dirt trail, taking only a few minutes before the surrounding trees became mostly apple. Fences sprouted up around the perimeters, with the only animals I could see being the occasional bird that was perched on the branches.

Without a sound, Rainbow spun around in the air to face me, pointing towards the ground.

“Wait here.”

I stood exactly where she gestured, watching as she flew off in a seemingly random direction. It didn’t take very long for her to come back, this time with a pony I didn’t recognize. By far the biggest I’d seen so far, taller than Applejack and with arms as thick as my torso. He had a dark red coat and emerald green eyes; identical to Applejack’s.

What stood out most was the thing around his neck; not a necklace or peytral, but some kind of huge, wooden collar. It was big enough for parts of it to rest on his shoulders, the back of it sticking out from over his head. If it bothered him, he didn’t let it show. Walking alongside Rainbow Dash casually , a completely blank expression on his face while he was chewing on a piece of wheat.

Rainbow was talking to him about something as he walked towards me, though I couldn’t tell if he was listening or not. While his eyes were staring in my direction, they weren’t focused at all, like he was looking through me.

“She’s taken on your workload? I know she’s stubborn, but geez.”

“Eeyup.”

“Don’t you ‘eeyup’ me! I nee—nevermind. Here, this is Chara; let them talk it out or whatever.” Rainbow gestured to me, then started gradually floating in the other direction. “Chara, I’m gonna be at Sugarcube Corner. If you need him to take you out of here, just ask him and he’ll guide you, alright?”

I nodded.

Her eyes darted between Big Mac and I one more time before she flew off, leaving us in a silence so tense it weighed me down. He stared through me, waiting for something I couldn’t fathom.

“You’re going to….take me to Applejack?”

Like shattering glass, I broke the silence. His ears plucked upward, then furrowed back as he raised his chin.

“Eeyup.”

He turned on his hooves, walking down the dirt trail he came from and hardly doing so much as tilting his head in that direction; I could only assume that was his way of telling me to follow him.

I reluctantly did, and was soon drenched in the same absolute silence that draped over us just moments ago. I wanted to say something, or ask a question like ‘how’s Applejack been’ or ‘So you’re her brother?’, but I couldn’t bring myself to even clear my throat.

He seemed just as intent on staying quiet, not so much as looking back at me while we walked. I tried to preoccupy myself with the flora and fauna, staring at the various birds that relaxed on the nearby trees; some of which were sporadically missing apples. There wasn’t another pony in sight, or even any buildings aside from the huge one in the center. I presumed that was where The Apple Family lived.

The closer we got, the more fields of crops I could see, and the more bushels of apple trees in the distance became visible. All throughout there was this background of warmth and smell of dirt that was somehow toeing the line between familiarity and being totally foreign to me.

It was almost…peaceful.

“Here.”

Big Mac stopped, and with that I heard a distant thudding noise. It came in intervals, and wasn’t any louder when it happened the first time. I could tell it was coming from somewhere within the crowd of trees, but not where exactly.

“Straight ahead, should find’er.”

He pointed, not really moving from the spot; resembling one of the trees as he rooted himself to the ground.

“Applejack?”

“Mhm.”

“Alright. Thank you.”

He nodded, then turned the direction we came from and started heading back, soon leaving me alone with nothing but the recurring thudding noise. I came to the conclusion, or maybe I just hoped, that the thudding was also Applejack.

I took a deep breath, and began my trek into the forest. There was plenty of space in between the trees, so much so that I could hide behind them if I wanted. Most of the trees I passed lacked any apples at all, having already been harvested presumably by Applejack.

Then, I found her, and with her the apples. Many baskets sat under trees nearby her, most filled with various colored apples except for the ones around the tree she was currently standing in front of. She sized the tree up, peering up at the top of it and then slowly tracing her eyes to the ground before placing three baskets in a sort of circle around the tree in seemingly random spots.

I watched as her entire body coiled, her muscles tightening and her jaw clenching as she raised her right leg, pulling it back like a spring.

Some part of me knew what was coming as I brought my hands to my ears, shielding them as best I could.

Applejack slammed her leg against the tree, and with it the wood actually vibrated with the sheer force that went through it. Yet, just enough was given not to shatter the bark on the surface. Within seconds, apples fell from their home, falling straight into the baskets she had laid out prior. The thudding was followed by the heavy thumping of apples, and then nothing.

Not all of the apples were willing to leave, however. A fair few stubbornly stayed attached, moving back and forth but not quite falling.

“Well I’ll be.” Applejack whistled, lowering her leg and reaching for her hat as she wiped her forehead. Her eyes wandered as she just stood there and breathed, eventually spotting me with widened eyes. “Yer here sooner than ah expected. Ah though you would have spent more time with Fluttershy.”

“I,” Do I start with an apology? Ease my way into it? With the others, I knew how to approach it. Applejack didn’t feel nearly as easy. “I have to go back to Canterlot tomorrow. I wanted to try to make things right while I’m here.”

“Pfft.” Applejack scoffed, putting her hat back on as she shook her head. “‘Make things right’? So, what, yer here to apologize to me? To ask for my forgiveness?”

She brought up her leg again, this time not taking as long before slamming the tree; this thud echoed through the forest and I regretted not placing my hands on my ears tighter. There was an indent in the tree this time as some of the wood snapped, though only on the surface as the tree didn’t break or bend. The last of the apples fell into the baskets, some of them tumbling into the grass. Applejack bit her lip, going around and picking up the ones on the ground.

“Not exactly.” I lowered my arms, watching as she tossed the apples into the baskets without even having to look. “I’m sorry, yes, but I don’t expect your forgiveness. Not yet, at least.”

Applejack paused as she bent down, tossing the last apple in between her hands back and forth. She glanced at me, raising an eyebrow and leaning her back against the tree.

“Alright, ah’m listening.”

“I…I know what I did was wrong, and unforgivable, and I shouldn’t have broken your trust like that—”

What was I even saying? Repeating all the same stuff I told Rainbow, when that barely even worked? It was the truth, but it’s not what she wanted to hear. I stared at my feet, taking in the fresh, warm air of the farm as I ran through my head what I did multiple times.

What Rarity taught me about forgiveness.

What Luna taught me about being sorry.

Strangely, the conversation between her and Limestone came to mind. It felt fitting.

“I’m not happy with who I am, Applejack.”

Applejack pursed her lips to say something, her gaze fixed to the apple in her hands. She slowly leaned forward, taking a hefty bite out of it as she stood there. I watched her chew, trying to read what she was thinking; a failure on my part from the start.

“I make promises I can’t keep, no matter how much I want to, with people who have done nothing but be kind to me. I hurt them,” I grabbed my pendant. “Time and time again. I can say sorry as much as I want, but if I’m still the same person, I’ll just make the same mistakes. I don’t want that.” I let go, making a mental note to stop doing that so often. “If you don’t want to give me that chance, then I’ll understand.”

She half closed her eyes, turning the apple and taking occasional bites out of it until there was less and less of it left. Her eyebrows stayed scrunched, looking at me maybe once or twice before going back to the apple.

“Have ya talked to the others?”

“Yeah, everyone but you.” I said that before I realized that that was only true on a technicality; I met Twilight and Pinkie in a different reset. I glanced elsewhere, hoping Applejack wouldn’t notice my hesitation.

“Mhm. And what did they say? Did any of’em forgive ya off the bat?”

I bit my tongue, my eyes darting to the side as I wrapped my arms around myself. My first instinct was to say no, since Fluttershy only ‘forgave’ me after I told her everything. Then, Pinkie came to mind.

I still distinctly remembered the way she patted my head, looked me in the eyes, and forgave me. I brought my right hand up to my hair, trying to mimic the motion, and failing in flying colors.

“Pinkie did.”

Something about that must have been funny to her, as Applejack let out a chuckle; tossing the apple core to the ground.

“Yeah, that sounds like’er.” She leaned off of the tree, walking towards me with a casualness to her gait. “Well, ain’t my place to question the Princesses, who decided you should be allowed back here. Ah take it Rainbow was the one who brought you’ere?”

I nodded.

“And did she decide to give ya the chance to ‘be better’?”

“Yeah, but…” I shrank, making myself as small as I could. “She said she was doing it only for Fluttershy.”

“Figured. Hmmmm.” Applejack picked up two of the baskets, leaning her head in the direction of the third. It took me a few seconds to realize what she wanted me to do. The hard part of carrying the basket full of apples wasn’t actually the weight, it was keeping all of them balanced and not falling out. I ended up having to hold some of the apples against my chest.

“Alright, I’ll tell yah what; ah’ve been thinking about this since you were gone, and ah don’t think ah forgive yah. Not now, and not for the foreseeable future. What you did to those diamond dogs was unforgivable; yah could work every day for the rest of your life to make it right and yah can’t because they’ll never come back. Fluttershy, even if she forgives, will never forget what yah did. Neither will I, and neither will the others.”

The wood of the basket dug deeper into my palms as I held onto it, the pain of it stabbing into my skin hardly registering as each of Applejack’s words stabbed into me. All of it were things I was well aware of, just hearing them being said was much more agonizing than I expected it to be.

I couldn’t refute a single word, so I held my tongue.

“That being said,” Applejack stopped, and I followed. She leaned over, taking some of the apples that were on the edge of falling out of my basket and placing them in her baskets. “Ah’m not one to say no to second chances; making mistakes is less of a problem than refusing to learn from’em. If yer willing to try yer darndest to be better, and the others are willing to give ya the chance to do so, who am I to say no?”

“So…you’ll give me a chance?”

“Oh no, ah’m not the one who decided to give yah a second chance; the princesses and mah friends were. If it were up to me, ah’d have nothing to do with ya after what ya pulled.”

I winced at the sternness in her tone, even though I expected it.

“I understand.”

“To be honest, ah don’t know if ah can ever be friends with you again. But, ah can settle for a friend of a friend, at the very least. Maybe, one day, ah can bring mahself to forgive you.”

“I…” That’s really all I could ask for, wasn’t it? The chance of forgiveness? That’s what I’d been asking for from the start, and she was giving it to me despite not wanting to. I sucked in my cheeks, puffed out my chest, and took the deepest breathe I could manage. “Understand. Thank you.”

“Good, takin’ it on the chin. Ah can respect that.”

We made our way to the house in the center of the farm without another word said, luckily not being very far. Once we did, Big Mac was waiting outside, taking baskets already placed there to the inside. I put my basket on the ground as carefully as I could, making sure not a single apple was out of place.

“As much as ah’d appreciate the help, ah’m sure you have better things to do than to help me out on yer last day. Ah can escort you back to Ponyville if ya need it.”

“Actually,” I rubbed my hands, trying to assuage the numbness that lingered in my fingers. “Rarity asked me to invite you to Sugarcube Corner. Everyone else is there.”

“Everyone else? As in all the girls? Even Twilight.”

“Yeah, even Twilight.”

“Huh.” Applejack scratched her cheek, staring at me and then turning back to the baskets as Big Mac approached to pick them up. “Hey Macintosh, can you cover mah workload for the next two hours or so while I go visit the girls?”

He leaned down to pick up the baskets, fitting two on his forearm and one in his actual hand, leaving his other one free.

“Sure.”

“Alright then. Let’s go, Chara. Ah’ll walk you there.”