Author's Note

I made the correcting in the description, but the 'clop' part has been moved to chapter 3 as the more I wrote made the scene feel out of place. I'm hoping to have the next chapter by the end of the month, so see you then!

Chapter 2

A week and three days had passed since Prince Dusk Shine told his best friend Applejack, a great secret with the power to potentially destroy everything the new alicorn had achieved in the past few years. The resulting secret left the simple farm stallion in the precarious predicament to meet his best friend’s lover who happens to be the evil half of Princess Luna, and a major threat to Equestria proper.

Why did he agree? AJ knew why he'd foolhardy asked to meet this dangerous creature, but these second guessing thoughts were bucking him ragged.

Accompanying questions nipped at his mind and the back of his heels with enough frequency to impact his ability to properly work. Big Mac and Marble were still gone, but would be returning in the next day or two, and as a consequence saddled most of the farm work onto the conflicted stallion. He still performed adequately to keep the chores from piling up, but his granny, and younger sister could tell something was plaguing the poor stallion who sought to work as an escape.

His family prodded in the traditional way of not directly confronting him, but instead would ask a series of questions that would somehow reflect the current situation in the hope that he would confess. It didn’t work when Granny would tell a story with a pony nearly identical to AJ having a similar problem, or seeming to carry his name spelt backwards. AJ didn’t feel too offended by their attempts because it meant they cared for his well-being enough to put effort into coming up with the story, but he would brush these attempts off by stating he only needed time to think…

“Ya been thinking longer than I’ve been alive, and look where it's gotten ya! Sadder than an unpicked apple during harvest! If it's thinkin’ you be doing, then do it on practical stuff like harvest or grand foals!”

“Ah not this again.” Applejack groaned as he weaved out of Granny Smith’s deadly reach.

“No sassin! I’m getting spoiled, you and Mac are ripening, and Lil Bloom bless her just can’t seem to grasp the simplest of chores. Have you seen the water trough out back?”

“That wasn’t me! Scootaloo was the one who suggested we…” Before she realized it, Apple Bloom hooves clamped over muzzle in abject horror at her mistake.

“I knew y'all were lying!” Granny Smith shouted more from glee than anger having been proven right, and her entire attention turned to the young filly who found herself desperately fighting on the hill she had stood on.

Suddenly, the two Apples were going back and forth leaving the lone stallion perplexed at his turn of luck and made the most of it by turning tail toward the front door.

Never had he been so thankful then he was now for getting off his flanks to fix the creaking floorboards, for they hardly made a noise as his hooves made for the door. No sooner had he closed the door did he almost hear the muffled cry of a filly trying to escape punishment, but nothing inside mattered as Applejack took the path that led toward the barn, and the outer pastures where the majority of the apple trees were already bucked. Not all of them had been touched, and the stallion figured he could at the very least finish the pasture and come up with a definitive answer to give Dusk by the end of the day.

Or he hoped as much, for this entire matter had gone on long enough, and any longer would drive the stallion mad from all the indecisiveness.

Applejack decided his next course of action would be to make for the western most fields as originally planned. These fields were located on the other side of the barn that acted as the halfway mark for the property, and see if he can get a little extra work in to escape from the world around him where he could be alone for a time to finally sort his thoughts. An act AJ found difficult before from unwarranted stress, but now with that cowpony drive in gear felt he could make some real progress. AJ vowed to lay everything to rest by the end of the day so he could give Dusk an answer he 100% stood behind.

What he’d come to realize over the past week that held him up wasn’t the fact it was Nightmare Moon, but more of the repercussions her existence meant for everypony. The obvious were Luna, Celestia, and Dusk Shine that would be the most affected by the reveal, but it also made the stallion ask questions he never thought about asking until that damn alicorn had to complicate things…

‘What if the Elements were more than for whacking a critter alongside the head? Could they truly redeem any pony if they wanted to?’

A plethora of questions like these crowded his mind, but only a select few were what kept the stallion from fully committing to meeting their first, and arguably most dangerous villain. Dusk even resorted to using the ‘you don’t forget your first’ line, and that earned the alicorn a good laugh from the farm stallion, but ultimately yielded at the time.

Ultimately, it would be the worry for his buddy that kept Applejack from backing out of the Pinkie Promise. AJ was that scared of seeing Nightmare Moon again he would risk her wrath.

“By Celestia and her succulent rump, that Nightmare Moon sure is a looker.” He found the need to say it aloud if to make it seem official, and remove it from his mind. If the end of the world hadn’t been in the cards, the stallion could admit there would have been a bit more ‘admiring the princess’ than running. It wasn’t that big of a surprise Dusk chose an alicorn to build the barn with, and if it had been Princess Luna this wouldn’t have been an issue.

Mostly. Applejack’s limited exposure to the Princess of the Night left him feeling emotions he didn’t know if they were acceptable to have. Happy thoughts were common before Luna's return, so he wasn't worried about those thoughts. No. Instead he was worried for his best friend, as he caught Luna lingering around his dreams more then once. Every encounter felt off since the princess never had anything to discuss, and would keep averting her eyes when the topic shifted to Dusk. The stallion might be a little dense, but he been around the pasture enough to know what was happening, and the last thing Applejack needed was lying to a jealous princess why Dusk Shine wouldn't return her letters!

"Figures the one apple with the worm in it is the one he's interested in, but not the orange I'm telling him about.”

If AJ was being stalked by some mare, no matter how beautiful, and his friends knew it, he would be much obliged if they told him. Now, the farm stallion wasn’t sure if telling Dusk about Luna would be a good idea as it could induce more stress to the situation that desperately wasn’t needed.

“This is what happens when ya care.. I should probably warn Dusk before Luna comes knocking on my door with the guards.”

Of course, the Night Princess would never do that, but AJ didn’t want to poke that bee nest for too long, and chance it happening.

The admittance that Dusk was seeing somepony, lifted a basket worth troubles off his broad shoulders. With the weight gone, AJ found himself beginning to stretch to realign his back; he started by standing as tall and firm as possible before shifting the weight back, elevating his rump into the air as he pushed himself back into his locked rear legs. Once he was sure he could go no further, he released the ‘spring’ in his front legs, the pent up energy in his lower back propelling him forward to shift his entire body mass from his rear to his shoulders.

Applejack found mimicking his dog Willow worked wonders on his back and joints, and had repeated the process every time a kink worked its way down the spine from one reason to another. His forehooves dug into the soft dirt as he shifted his weight from the rear to the front, creating a smooth half arc as his stomach touched the ground allowing his rear legs to fully extend out. Once each leg was properly stretched did the stallion finish with a quick flick of the head to the left and then to right creating a sharp cracking sound that trialed from the back of his skull to the start of his back- he found bliss.

Free from a yoke not his own, his thoughts and mild ramblings ended the moment he discovered himself standing in the middle of a barren row of picked apple trees.

Applejack inhaled a generous helping of that warm, early afternoon air as he stared off into the distance admiring the raw beauty of his home; it always calmed the stallion whenever he was upset as a young colt till this very moment as the land not only provided for his family, but reminded the stallion hard work had been required to achieve everything he held dear. If a pony wanted a change, they had to be willing to make the sacrifices necessary to change their own circumstances.

His thoughts turned back to Dusk Shine and his marefriend, and AJ found himself sighing with guilt. Sure, he had real concerns Dusk Shine was being influenced in some way by the Nightmare, and by all right that is a valid reason to not meet the scary alicorn. Yet, AJ knew there was another reason for his inaction….

‘I’m afraid. Afraid that she was playing him for a fool, and all of us will have to pay for it.’

A fair, and by all right a valid concern anypony would have he thought as he weaved his way through the rows of picked apple trees. Once more, the stallion pushed the issue further back for another day when he might be up for tackling it, but AJ had said the same thing the day after his chat with Dusk Shine, and so far that date kept getting pushed back.

Thankfully, his friend is very understanding as it's in his nature being the Prince of Harmony, but everypony has only so much patience regardless of their status in life. It was only a matter of time before Dusk began growing restless waiting for an answer, and acting too rashly…

“And he could get himself into some serious trouble, all because of me being stubborn and selfish.” Applejack thought, even though he had every right to be cautious of the Prince’s request.

Dusk Shine as a pony is very articulate in his mannerism, which was mostly unknown to ponies outside of his immediate friends and family who were unaware of his crippling ability to overthink, leading the general populace to believe the prince is nearly all knowing. But AJ knew better, and the longer he waited to provide an answer could send the young prince spiraling into some kind of scattered brained idea that will only destroy his reputation.

‘Another point to remember.’ AJ thought as he moved further into the orchard looking for work that could distract him for a couple of hours.

He trotted between the nearly mature apple trees looking for any that had been missed, but his family was good at their job, and not including the one rogue apple that didn’t make the cut, the trees were barren. As the stallion continued his search, the barn disappeared behind the growing rolls of densely packed trees as he began entering the patch of property that bordered the Everfree Forest, and not willing to venture any further alone felt dejected at having failed yet another task.

With nothing to search for, Applejack didn’t have to weave through the trees like before, and decided to cut across the orchard to quickly get back.

There was still plenty of work to be done, and some of that did require applebucking the trees that followed the road leading back to town, but he’d wanted to put some distance between the house and himself. It would reduce the chances of being seen, and stopped by Granny or Apple Bloom during a time when the dejected stallion just wanted to think. Yet, ever the stallion raised with strong morality, bit his lip as the barn appeared knowing he would have to cross by the house with the wagon to reach the rows that needed applebucking.

“I went and brought this on myself. If I weren't some yellow pony then I might uh resolved this matter already... not meaning Butters of course." AJ said aloud trying to relieve himself of his concerns, adding that last part in case some pony heard.

There was no real chance anypony heard the stallion's ramblings, but it was always a feeling somepony could that kept AJ walking that narrow path all the time. Still he would continue his one pony conversation as he reached the barn and began harnessing up to pull the wagon for his task ahead- family and house forgotten for the time being.

Distractions could only do so much to the stallion with a purpose and livelihood to maintain, and Applejack won't let his family down. He was already letting one pony down, and at the very least he might prevent more ponies being disappointed with him.

The sun had slowly inched its way over the sky as the day dragged on, causing the shadows to gradually shift toward the east which left the exhausted, and dirty stallion further exposed to the unrelenting sun.

To his great fortune, or by some other force at work Applejack had been left alone the entire day save for a quick visit by Apple Bloom that came offering him cold water, and two sandwiches cut into two halves from corner to corner. He eagerly took the offered refreshments, and learned Lil Bloom was having to repaint the fences surrounding their home as punishment for damaging the water trough. In another week of firsts, the stallion felt a ping of sorrow, and joy when his offer to help was turned down…

“Granny said I have to do it myself…” Apple Bloom repeated as she gouged the ground under her. “... she thinks it's fair, but I say it's not!”

“Well you're the one that went and hid it from her in the first hoof. Celestia’s Sun, and Luna’s Dreams! That’s nearly worse than telling her you kissed that cloud holding colt…”

“YOU KNEW!?” Apple Bloom’s anger was gone and buried. In its place was a look Applejack knew all too well, and unlike then, he could at least comfort his sister.

“His brother, Thunder Lane, came by three weeks ago and told me all about it. Said his lil brother was asking questions he ought not to be asking.” AJ made a show of looking to the left and then to right before leaning close to the filly. “Ya not sick are you?”

“Sick? No, why?” The question was weird to her, but the smile her brother gave quickly left her feeling worried.

“Cause his little bro claimed to be sick, and that said you gave it to him. When pressed for details, he spilled the beans faster than a mouse in a rainstorm.”

Seeing her face become brighter then an apple sealed the deal for the rest of the day after that. He hugged Apple Bloom and told her he’ll keep her secret until when/if she decided to reveal, and after that the filly departed to resume her punishment.

Feeling refreshed and in higher spirits than before, Applejack managed to tackle his task with a renewed vigor that propelled him nearly through the third row of trees before he finally called it quits. The sun was waning from a bright yellow into its warming orange signaling the day was finally nearing its end, and for every hard working creature to retire for the night.

AJ didn’t waste time loading up the wagon, and making his trips back to the barn even if it was a slow process. It was his fifth trip back to the orchards when he spotted something off…

“The hay? Celestia darn it, I don’t need this right now.” He groaned as he approached the next pair of baskets.

These two baskets had been set in the middle of the wagon’s path, effectively blocking the stallion from continuing his duties in any timely manner; AJ halted just a trot away from the baskets, trying to look around for the culprit as Luna’s guiding light was getting very close to casting itself over the treetops. With no other option, he began the tedious process of unhitching himself from the wagon when a loud thump popped next to his ears. Something lite had collided with the wagon from the sound of it, but before AJ could free himself from his harness entirely, something whipped against his right flank fast enough to create a loud cracking noise.

“OH NELLY!” He yelled in alarm as his rear hoof was immediately flung back to buck the offending thing, but instead found the wagon. The force of his swift buck shattered the front in a flurry of splintered wood, and not only did his hoof get stuck, but somepony even cried as they were pelted with the shrapnel.

“APPLEJACK!”

The stallion paused at his name believing it to be Apple Bloom before the raspy voice flicked a switch within his brain. He didn’t even need to further think about it when a gust hit his back, knocking off his favorite hat, and all the accumulated sweat just before a familiar sky blue pegasus was cradling his muzzle. AJ said nothing as the mare smothered his face against her barrel, all the while muttering a mixture of words in between a sob, and whispering.

He blinked as she pushed herself back to look into his eyes as if she were searching for something, bringing him back into her soft barrel before pushing him away so she could examine him like a mother would do for their foal. The attention Applejack was receiving felt strange, and foreign to the hard working stallion as the area just under his eyes was warming up faster than would like to admit.

Watching the mare he’d grown very fond of over the past year behave in this manner left him feeling conflicted, for her brashness had a certain charm to it. Yet, AJ knew he was seeing another side of the complicated mare that only a select few ever get to see, and to witness this raw gesture was a compliment in itself.

What forced Applejack to lean up, and kiss Rainbow Dash as she came back to check his muzzle once more, he couldn't properly describe. The closest he could put into words was it felt like somepony had whispered the idea to him, and nothing about the suggestion was malicious, so he puckered up and went in.

“Easy there…” Applejack found himself saying as he tried taking a step forward but found himself unable with his rear hoof caught in the wagon.

Rainbow Dash was hovering in place as her mouth and eyes flashed a great number of emotions before settling on what she felt was the appropriate response of anger. Her eyebrows collapsed in as her lips drew up to expose her bright, and well maintained teeth in a great display of primal rage, but the worst of it came in the form of a forehoof striking the stallion’s left shoulder. The actual assault did little to hurt the stallion as it was meant to draw his attention out of the clouds and back to the angry pegasus in front of him.

“THAT’S NOT FUNNY! I THOUGHT YOU SERIOUSLY HURT YOURSELF JUST NOW YOU BIG DOLT!”

“I was only startled sugarcube, and nothing more. See? All I gotta do is just give it a tug and she'll pop right out.”

Applejack ignored Rainbow’s yelling as he turned to his stuck hoof, and with some effort managed to wiggle it loose enough to pull out of the wagon without injuring himself too badly. The stallion’s calming display seemed to further enrage the pegasus as she flew to the side to better examine the leg for signs of deceit, but after a solid 20 seconds of intense studying deemed it good enough.

Even visually seeing the leg didn’t improve Rainbow’s mood as she hovered with fore hooves crossed above her barrel. Her muzzle had softened as her initial concern for the stallion left as what emotions remained were heated embarrassment, and guilt from causing the scene in the first place. Applejack minded none of the slaps as he knew they held no harmful intent behind them, and by either his upbringing or affiliation to the Element of Honest felt there was some sort of understanding between the two.

Loyalty and Honesty. Two virtues that shared much with the other sense being loyal to somepony or ideal meant you had to believe the foundation was real, and not a fabrication of falsehoods. While the reverse required the one spreading the honesty required the loyalty…

“Something like that anyway.” AJ shook his head clear of that confusing monologuing, content to leave it to the professionals.

“SOMETHING WHAT!?” Rainbow Dash screeched from irritation of the situation, and lack of reaction from her stallion. Growing up in Cloudsdale had conditioned her young to expect anything that wasn’t a calming look of ease, and this indifference to everything really made the wings flare with excitement. Another moment witnessed that reinforced her growing love for the farmer as it showed perhaps she could be a little more open with him in the future.

“Something that isn’t too important, Rainbow.” He said, having been brought up without the need to resort to yelling back as a response unless it warranted it. “Just know you did nothing wrong except startle me, but not enough to get worked up over.”

“Why aren’t you angry with me?” She whispered this time as opposed to yelling.

Applejack finished unhitching himself from the wagon before walking toward the hovering pegasus, and even in the dimming sunlight he could see her features portrayed a different tone than her accusing voice- worry. A feeling he’d been privy to learn as they started seeing more of each other, and had been told by her parents when they came to visit some months earlier. Their explanation had been heartfelt, and the sole reason the stallion changed his attitude when around Rainbow Dash.

He didn’t want to reopen any more old wounds, and had taken on a ‘softer approach’ Butterscotch would have proudly said.

“It's real simple Rainbow, but just know I find it more of a compliment. So thank ya kindly.” He even leaned in so the unusually timid pegasus could see the wink before turning his focus towards the two baskets in the middle of the path.

Ponies might have called it deflection, or even passive aggressive depending who was asked, yet it was another dynamic in their quest to understand the other. As AJ learned from Rainbow’s folks months ago, all of this brashness was an act that grew to become the leading role. Basically, from what the stallion had discovered was the real Rainbow Dash had been playing the part for so long she’d begun believing it was the truth.

And as the Element of Honest, this left Applejack in another pickle as he had to carefully avoid certain responses( save when they raced) to avoid stirring up something harmful. So, he stuck to his half-truths of sorts. Sure, he did take pleasure knowing Rainbow found himself delightful enough to drop the act sometimes, but AJ didn’t like all of the unneeded force behind everything. It made everything else seem fake by comparison, but ultimately, it was to play on her ego.

An ego that had taken the pegasus far in life...

Applejack was listening as he began clearing the path for anything that would tell him what Rainbow might be doing, and only as the second basket had been placed in the wagon did he finally look toward the now empty space Rainbow had once occupied. He shoved the basket closer to the front to keep the weight centered as his eyes scanned the surrounding treetops for the elusive mare, but found nothing except the open twilight sky. The stallion felt hurt, but had to remind himself he’d been told about this behavior from Windy and Bow, and was forever grateful for the knowledge as the insight had helped explain most of her quirky behavior while navigating two of Rainbow’s biggest pet peeves.

There will come a time he will have to tell Rainbow Dash what her parents told him, but for now he will have to endure whatever troubles, or heartache it might cause…

“Here I am all worked up from a slap on the flank, and Dusk is having to rule a country while keeping that kind of secret from literally everypony. Buck I’m a lousy friend.”