Applejack took her hat in the crook of a foreleg and did her best to fan herself with it as she sized up the coming day from the front porch. “Sun's hardly even up and it’s already swelterin’. Reckon Dash wasn’t kiddin’ when she said them weather ponies had a real hot one in store for today. Can't say I'm lookin’ forward to a full day a workin’ in this.” She situated her trusty stetson back in its rightful place and moseyed off the porch towards the eastern orchards. She reckoned in this heat, she could afford the slower pace of a mosey over her usual canter.
It was the darnedest thing.
Applejack was four trees into the second row, and dragging a bucket beneath the fifth (Matilda) when a shadow fell over her. That didn't seem right, the sky was supposed to be clear all day. She un-mouthed the bucket's handle — Note to self, ask Twilight what word Ah should be usin' for lettin' go of a thing Ah got in mah mouth — and peered skyward, and sure enough there was a cloud overhead. It was only three or four ponies across, floating right above the treetops. She cocked her head as she considered her new discovery. It was puffy and white, and didn't look nearly cantankerous enough to have blown in from the Everfree. Maybe a weather pony let one get loose instead of busting it, or it was part of somepony's house that blew off. Dash had told her before about how the heat could sometimes evaporate enough of the condensed water in a cloudhouse to destabilize the structure. She hoped it wasn't part of Dash's house. Nah, who am Ah kiddin', that mare's too good at weather stuff to let her house get that bad off. Applejack shrugged and returned to preparing the buckets for Matilda. There was no sense in Applejack's head being in the clouds; Rainbow spent enough time up there for all their friends and then some. She congratulated herself on her mental wordplay as her rear hooves made contact with the tree and the satisfying sound of apples dropping into buckets filled her ears.
Quietly thanking the lost cloud for its contribution to her brief reprieve from the sun, Applejack gathered up her bushels, dumped her apples into the wagon, then moved onto tree six (Winnie), content to continue with the rest of her morning when—Hold on there partner, that there cloud is followin' me. She hadn't felt any breeze down here, and hadn't heard the wind rustle the treetops, so how was it moving around? She gave it a good long considering before shrugging. Applejack wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. That little mystery would likely solve itself soon enough, and if it didn't, that'd be just fine, too.
Over the next two hours, Applejack made steady work of her early harvest, clearing another two rows. And the whole time, that little cloud kept pace with her, diligently keeping her in its shadow. And if, on occasion, there happened to be powder-blue flight feathers poking out around the side of the cloud, or a rainbow tail hanging below it, she did her best not to notice. It was real sweet the way Rainbow Dash was looking out for her, and she didn't want to risk spooking her.
Applejack made a show of wiping the sweat from her brow and fanning her face with her hat, then spoke in a too-loud voice. “Phew! Alright, reckon that’ll do me for the mornin’. Maybe for lunch I’ll go pay Rainbow a visit, check in on my best friend—“
“I’m your favorite?!” Rainbow Dash popped her head over the cloud as she interrupted Applejack. The cowpony did her best to school her expression into something less 'self-satisfied smirk' and more 'down-home charm'.
“Well howdy there, Rainbow Dash! Didn't see you fly in. And now, that ain't what I said and you know it.”
“Come on, AJ, I can't be your Best Friend if I'm not also your favorite, that's just basic math!” Rainbow enthusiastically leaned down from her cloud perch. “So how was farm stuff this morning? Anything cool happen?”
“As a matter of fact, something right interestin' happened. That there cloud you're sittin' on just showed up outa nowhere, followed me around all mornin'.”
“Weird, somepony must have missed it.”
“Ah reckon somepony must've. Kept me nice'n shady, though, so I can't complain.”
“Well that's awesome.” Rainbow turned and patted the cloudtop. “Good job, little cloud.”
“And what about yerself? Yer lookin' hotter'n a skillet full'a bacon in a hoedown bonfire!”
Rainbow struck a pose and preened. “Thank you!” A pause. Her posture relaxed as that one rattled around in her head. “I think?”
“That weren't no compliment ya featherbrain,” Applejack huffed. “Yer all lathered up worse'n I am! Get down here so I can keep an eye on you. Don't want you getting' a heat stroke up there in the sky or somethin'.”
“What? I don't need you to 'keep an eye on me,'” Rainbow made air quotes with her wings as she crossed her forehooves, “Applejack. I'm fine!”
Applejack stomped her hoof. “I said get down here, Rainbow.” Her tone softened. “I'm worried and it'll make me feel better.”
Dash made a show of throwing her head back and groaning. “Fine, whatever.” She descended to hover just beside her friend. “There. I'm fine, see? I'm an athlete in peak physical condition, AJ, a little sun isn't gonna—” she froze as Applejack nuzzled against her neck. Her hooves met the ground as her wings, held mid-flap, failed to keep her airborne.
“Thank you. For comin' down, and fer the cloud. It was mighty sweet, you lookin' out fer me. I appreciate it.” She pulled back to make eye contact with Rainbow Dash. “But you can't go hurtin' yerself or makin' yerself sick takin' care of me. Pretty sure we already learned that friendship lesson years ago.” Rainbow just stared, blush coloring her face and ears. Applejack chuckled and turned, lightly swatting Rainbow with her tail as she went. “Now come on, I'll share some lunch with ya, and maybe we'll cool off with a dip in the lake.”
The blonde tail across her face snapped Rainbow out of her stupor. She took off to catch up, then draped a foreleg over Applejack's withers. “Ooh, I do like lunch. What're we having? And did I hear something about cider?”
Without slowing her pace, Applejack answered. “Well first of all, I never said nothin' about cider so you most certainly did not hear that. And second of all,” she shrugged and shoved at the pegasus, “get offa me, it's too doggone hot to be carryin' you around, plus yer all sweaty and ya stink somethin' fierce.”
“Ha! That's rich, coming from you, Miss Farmer Pony!” Rainbow blew a raspberry at her. “Bet I don't smell any worse than you do.” She hummed in thought. Applejack didn't like the sound of that. “In fact!” Yep, Applejack really didn't like the sound of that. Rainbow zipped over onto her back and rubbed her legs, neck, and body anywhere she could reach on Applejack. “There! Now we'll both stink like each other, so we stink the same.” She lifted herself from Applejack's back with a satisfied nod, leaving the cowpony looking and feeling a little bit ruffled.
“Shoot and tarnation, Rainbow, how come you freeze up 'n get all blushy the second I so much as nuzzle you, but you got no problem rubbin' yerself all over me like it ain't no thang?” Applejack did her best to compose herself.
Rainbow spluttered. “Wha—Bu—It's the intent of the thing! Don't make it weird, Applejack!” She crossed her forehooves and looked away, fighting a blush. “You were being all mushy. I was just having fun! It's totally different.”
Applejack shook her head and chuckled in disbelief. “Whatever you say, Dash.” She resumed her trot towards the farmhouse. Rainbow Dash swooped in beside her, and the two ponies fell into companionable silence. A moment passed.
“Wait heck! AJ I just thought of something really cool I should've said!”
“Well, let's hear it.”
“Uh,” Rainbow flapped her forelegs about. “Hang on. Uh. You should thank me again.”
“Wut.”
“You know! You should thank me again!”
“Why.”
“To, you know, set the mood again.”
“'Kay. Thanks, Rainbow.”
“No, come on, you gotta do it right. You gotta—“ Rainbow paused, then mumbled the rest “—nuzzle me again.”
“Come again.”
“I said you gotta nuzzle me again!”
Applejack just stood there, considering her.
“I promise it'll be worth it.”
“Well,” Applejack began. “Rainbow Dash promises me something, I believe her.”
“Wait really?”
“Every time, sugar cube.” Applejack gave her a reassuring smile.
“Wow.” It took Rainbow Dash a moment to recompose herself.
“You ready there?”
“Yeah!”
Applejack leaned over and nuzzled against Rainbow Dash's neck. “Thank you, Rainbow Dash.” As Applejack pulled back, Rainbow cleared her throat.
“Well, the ground's gotta be at least a little cool, since you're down here, Babe.” She ran a hoof through her mane and winked for added effect.
A moment passed.
They both burst into uproarious laughter. Multiple times, one tried to speak but only managed to set them both to laughing too hard again. By the time they settled enough to breathe normally, they were lying on the ground, leaned heavily against one another, clutching their sides. Applejack released a long sigh. Rainbow Dash settled a wing over her back.
“Ah sure am sorry fer laughin' at you, sugarcube.” Rainbow Dash squeezed her with her wing.
“Nah. That was maybe the dumbest, cheesiest thing I've ever said. I knew as soon as I saw your face go all,” she screwed up her face in an imitation of Applejack's surprise.
“But you were tryin' to be sweet and flirty. As you said, it's about 'the intent of the thing'.” Applejack nuzzled her, then stood up. “Now come on, Dash. I'm thinkin' maybe that dip in the lake'll come first, and while we're there you can tell me all about how cool you think I am.”
Author's Note
Who's this writing about a late-summer heat wave in the middle of winter? It's me. In my defense, I started it back in August.
"hotter'n a skillet full'a bacon in a hoedown bonfire" didn't come together until the edit. Until then, she said "[BARELY INTELLIGIBLE COUNTRY-ISM]"
