Unborn

It took Big Mac's disapproving glare to convince Rainbow to keep her mouth shut. Applejack and Fluttershy had pleaded with her, but she could not stop talking about it until he had come in and put a stop to it.

"Ah told ya this was a bad idea," snarled Granny Smith. "Applejack, you promised me that nopony else would learn about this!"

Applejack lowered her head in shame. "Ah know, Granny. Ah wasn't expectin' Dash ta come in. We was gonna have Fluttershy take lunch out to y'all, picnic style. She just barged right in."

"It's true," confirmed Fluttershy, nodding emphatically. "Don't be mad at Applejack; she didn't do anything wrong."

Granny pointed to Applejack's swollen belly. "Ah think you'll find that she has," she sneered, "but you're right. She's not to blame for this." Her eyes turned to Rainbow. "Didn't Ah tell ya not ta go near the house? Didn't Ah expressly say that Applejack was havin' an issue with her health, and she wasn't ta be disturbed?"

Rainbow pointed to Fluttershy. "Fluttershy was allowed in!"

"Fluttershy is involved in the cure."

"And she delivered good news," interjected Applejack, trying to lighten the mood. She turned to look at Big Mac. "If Ah follow Discord's instructions three times a day, we should be all set up to finish in three weeks."

Granny turned her ire back to Applejack. "Three weeks? Can't he go any faster?"

"It was going to be six months," added Fluttershy. "This is a more aggressive process, which I'm against, but I have faith that Applejack can handle it. She's tough."

"Applejack can," huffed Granny, turning her gaze to Fluttershy. "But can Apple Bloom?"

Fluttershy shrank down, shuffling her hooves.

"Apple Bloom is gonna be fine, Granny," insisted Applejack, stepping between Fluttershy and Granny to act as a shield. "She may just be a little filly, but she's also pretty durable. She can handle this. Ah know she can."

"Just where is she, anyway?" asked Rainbow. "I haven't seen her all day, and Scootaloo says she wasn't in school yesterday."

The whole room fell silent as everypony's head slowly turned to look at Rainbow, eyes filled with dread.

"What? What'd I say?"

Fluttershy swallowed hard and took a deep breath. "She's not able to come out at this time. She should be back in Scootaloo's life by next month."

Rainbow dashed over to Fluttershy and looked her in the eye. Fluttershy was unable to keep eye contact. She then turned and looked into Applejack's eyes. "There's something you're not telling me. Something important. I want the truth: Where is Apple Bloom?"

Applejack glared into Rainbow's eyes. She wanted to tell her the truth, to break down the wall that was forming between them, but unfortunately, that wall was keeping everypony else from finding out as well. The more ponies that knew what happened, the more public her condition would be, until all of Equestria knew what was going on.

"She's safe," Applejack said finally. "Ah can't say where, and Ah can't show you. Discord put her somewhere she ain't s'posed ta be, and Fluttershy's makin' sure he doesn't let anypony hurt her. Meanwhile, Twilight's doin' research ta find out if anypony's ever seen this set of circumstances before. Ah need ya ta trust me. We're workin' hard ta bring her back, and we can do without all the accusations."

For a moment, nopony spoke. Rainbow and Applejack, who'd been the best of friends since they met, were caught in a stalemate, unblinking, scowling with their noses and foreheads pressing against each other. Fluttershy was too scared to move, Granny was less useful when it came to physical combat, and Big Mac's entire body was a coiled spring, just waiting to see what was going to happen next.

Eventually, Rainbow settled down and backed off. "You owe me an answer."

Applejack snorted. "I'll give ya one. Later, when this is closer to bein' over. For now, ya just need ta trust me."

They shook hooves, and the tension in the room faded. Fluttershy nearly fainted as comfort returned to the room. After a few deep breaths, they all sat down at the table and ate in silence, not talking for fear of starting a new fight. When they were all done, Applejack started on washing the dishes.

"Big Mac?" Fluttershy put her hoof on his shoulder. "Applejack was telling me earlier about a drawer in Apple Bloom's room that was stuck. She said you should come and fix it real quick so that she can finish cleaning up in there."

"I can do that," volunteered Rainbow. "I'll have it moving in less than a minute!"

Applejack sighed and rubbed her face with her hooves. As much as she appreciated Fluttershy's attempt to help, Rainbow's butting in had not been accounted for. Big Mac could certainly tell what was meant by this, as it was an excuse to put them in a room together, alone. It was lunchtime, after all, and if Fluttershy had said it outside with Rainbow being none the wiser, then he would have insisted on it, but as of now, there was no good reason he could give to deter Rainbow from taking his place. At least, not without the truth.

"Fine," huffed Applejack, to both his and Fluttershy's surprise. "Let me finish these dishes, and I'll show ya what's wrong with it."

Big Mac looked worried "AJ?"

"Are you sure that's okay?" whispered Fluttershy, joining Applejack at the sink. "I mean... Well, you know."

Applejack nodded. "Nothin' we can do about that now. Rainbow can help me with the stuck drawer, and if she can't, she can tell Big Mac all about it."

"But that won't be necessary," smirked Rainbow. "When I'm done, all of the other drawers are gonna be jealous."

"I'm sure," huffed Applejack.

She finished the dishes and led Rainbow upstairs. Rainbow first insisted on a race, but Applejack just walked. When she arrived thirty seconds later, she reminded Rainbow that they were now a vastly different weight class, and she was carrying a tiny, much more fragile pony, and that was an unfair disadvantage.

"So which drawer is giving you trouble, Apple Smack?"

Applejack locked the door and pulled out her lasso, quickly tying Rainbow up while she wasn't looking. "Ah was tellin' ya the truth about Apple Bloom, but Fluttershy lied about the drawer. She was really tryin' ta give Mac an' Ah some time alone. He an' Ah have somethin' ta discuss, ya see."

"And that required the rope, why?"

Applejack took off her hat and placed it on Rainbow's head. "Ah can't let ya go until ya make me a promise. A vow of silence, if'n ya will. In exchange, Ah will tell ya everythin' right now. Deal?"