With clean up finally done with and the peace dinner taken care of, we can FINALLY get back to Tf2 practice! Unfortunately, with the respwan generator still out of commission, we weren't allowed to make any...lethal blows on each other. So, the next best thing? Wound them and claim a ponit.

As I, Firebrand, Maddy, and Voice, waited for the blue team to show up, we were talking about the peace dinner and how it went...including all that took place afterward.

Firebrand was the first to comment as he said, "So, you all basically got a power up from the rainbow magic?"

"I mean, kinda? We haven't even tested to see if it powered us up or not. Really would like to test that, actually." I replied with a curious tone. Maybe we COULD test to see what other effects Blissy magic did.

I then remembered something I wanted to ask Firebrand and asked, "Hey Fb, your base is also in charge of securing Tartarus and its prisoners, right?"

Firebrand nodded as he said, "Along with keeping Queen Chrysalises forces from invading Equestria borders, yes. Why?"

I think sprouted a wicked smile as I said, "Think by any chance I could go and torment prisoner #126?"

Maddy then looked confused as she began to ask, "I must be missing some context, but who's prisoner 126?"

Firebrand gave a deadpan look as he said, "Sigh, that would be blueblood. After all the charges for assault, investigators found out that his hoofs were WAY more dirty than first thought."

Maddy then gave her own deadpan look as she said, "Ugh, Blueblood. I'm SO glad that Celestia finally kicked his flank out of royalty. Seriously, he has so much of an ego for being a prince that even hades is calling foal.."

"Wait, with Hades, are you talking about? Disney Hades, or Kid icarus Hades? Because both versions are REALLY good for this."

"I'm more of a Disney Hades fan personally, but Kid icarus Hades is a close second." Maddy replied. Honestly, I could go either way.

Voice then looked at the battlefield and was suddenly on high alert, saying, "Um guys? We can compare which Hades is better later. Right now, we have an Obercharged Bliss heading for us!"

Oh boy, that's not good. "Welp, better to go down in a blaze of glory." I said, ready to try (and fail) to shoot down the heavy Blissy.

However, we then noticed Bliss's Obercharge...fading out? And she didn't notice? Perfect! We all surrounded her and got her pinned! "Heh, sorry, Bliss. But you should've had a better plan than charging in blindly like that."

We were getting ready to shoot...till she started crying. Oh man, now I feel bad for her. Maddy then lost interest as she said, "Well. That's a buzz kill." As she and the others headed out. I decided to stay behind and help her calm down.

"Shhhh. It's ok, Blissy. Just tell big bro what's wrong, ok?"

"I-I'm older than you! Waaaaah!"

"Shhhh. It's ok. Just let it all out now."

After five minutes of crying and finding a cupcake for her to eat, she then began to explain what happened. "See, the plan was to have Key Obercharge me and have me mow you guys down, and we would have an easy victory. Only her Obercharge faded by the time I got there!"

I then began to think about this and found it weird. "Hmmm...that's odd. This is such a rookie mistake. I've KNOW Key's a better medic than that. Maybe better go find her and clear this up?"

Lightning nodded as we went to where she came from and found she...with a K.Oed AnY on the ground. Huh.

"What happened? You left me all alone, AGAIN!" Lightning said angrily. Clearly frustrated from basically getting ditched.

The key frame on the other hoof looked annoyed herself and said, "It's not my fault. Blame October-fest here."

I then faced palmed in frustration as AnY then mumbled in his sleep. I said, "Are you kidding me? Did he pass out AGAIN? Seriously, i love cider as much as the next pony. Heck, i could down fifteen to twenty bottles easily. On a good day, but this eye patch wearing, buu drinking bozo is seriously gonna cost us ponits if he keeps this up!"

The key frame was signed as she begrudgingly said, "I'll wake him up."

She then warmly said to him. "Hey Any~" There's a new opening for Red medic~"

He then woke up immediately and shot up like a dasiy when he heard that. However, he quickly figured out it was a trick and said, "You know, after the 15th time, I should really stop falling for that."

Lightning bless then snapped at AnY as she said, "You unsober mule! Lying on your flank, passed out in the battlefield, and you called yourself a demopony?! I should whack you over the head with Starlight here! What do you have to say for yourself?"

AnY, looking confused at the moment, began to choose his words carefully as he said, "Cheers?" He then began to down ANOTHER bottle of cider. Are you kidding me?!

I decided to move to the side and shoot the bottle in half with dead shot (my pistols name) as Key frame had a serious look on her and said,

"Look, AnY, we get the demomen is supposed to drink his brains out and have only reckless abandon. But..." Key then had somber look on her face as she said."It's not a good time for that now. We still done have the regenerator. We're all still weak from the atracks, We're still trying to get a stable way to get our shipments to town, and...who knows when Dusty or...somepony else worse like Tirek or even Chrysalis could show up."

Key then cupped AnY's cheek with her hoof and said, "We NEED to be ready. And we can't have you passed out, covered in cider bottles all the time."

The key was right. It's fine if you wanna drink after work, but during training at the rate he's going...it's too much. He then started to look like he was having a panic attack as he seemed to plead, "B-But I NEED it!"

"You need HELP is what you need." Lightning said as she carried half of AnY bottles away.

"You'll thank us later." Key frame said as she carried the rest of the bottles away.

This SEEMED like an effective strategy...however, AnY seemed to be... losing it for some reason. I decided to check on him before the mission started. "Hey, AnY...you feeling ok? I know that "sudden cut off" is difficult to deal with. But-"

"W-WERE GONNA DIE OUT HERE!" AnY started to have a panic attack. Which definitely caught me off guard.

And it only got worse when the match ACTUALLY started. He started to cowar in place, putting his shield over his head. Geez, I didn't think AnY had it THIS bad.

Maddy and Sweetie then showed up to see the cowardly AnY and, just like Maddy earlier, she said, "Well...that's a buzz kill."

Maddy then smirked and said, "Hey, look at that. Two buzz kills in one day. A new record. They then left as me, Key frame, and Lightning were honestly speechless.

Lightning then walked up to AnY and said, "Wow...I'm the smallest pony here...and your more scared than me?"

"Why wouldn't I be? Killer robots, mercenaries, gun fire everywhere! We're all gonna die!" AnY said, almost on the verge of crying out of fear.

Lightning walked back to us, feeling bad for him, as she said, "So when he said he needed it."

"He really meant he NEEDED It to help him cope." I said. I was wondering if I should ask Doc to take him in for a session in his office about this.

Keyframe sighed as she said, "Well...if it'll make him quit crying..."

She walked up to him and said, "Yo AnY -"

"Don't shoot me! I promise never to call you pregnant ever again!" AnY said on instant, making me confused. Is there an inside joke I'm not aware of?

She then gave him a cider bottle, and he smiled brightly as he choked the bottle down. Well, at least he's happy. Drunk, but happy.

"You DO realize that I don't allow alcohol on the battlefield, right?" Doc said, showing up a bit earlier, shocking the three of us.

The key frame was the first to respond as she said, "W-Wait... WHAT?!"

Doc then gave a stern look at us and said, "Look, I get that Mr.Spear wouldn't know this, but at least I expected you two to know me better than that."

Lightning bliss then gave a questionable look as she said, "But... What has AnY been drinking all this time?"

Doc then gave a smirk as he said, "Non-alcoholic cider."

I didn't believe it. I looked at the bottle, and sure enough, non-alcoholic cider, right there on the bottle. And it's not even Apple family brand! Geez, maybe I can order some to replace this brand AnY is currently drinking.

Turns out, AnY has been under the placebo effect all this time. Doc had tried to him he wasn't drinking alcohol this whole time, but with all the dental he puts himself, it's almost like if hypnotize himself into thinking he's drunk.

And that logic was making my brain frazzled.

Doc then gave a wicked smile and said, "Well, I suppose I won't beat around the HEDGE and say that a KEY to a happy life is that ignorance is BLISS."

And my brain officially snapped. "You know what? I am done for the day. See you guys later."

I walked off and decided...I needed a drink!

I walked over to sweet apple acres to see if they any barrels of hard cider in hoof. I looked in the barn and saw Applejack heading in the apple celler.

I followed her down to the secret Apple family bar. It's a secret space they had since they didn't need it for Apple storage. So, they converted it to a bar exclusively for the apple family and friends.

It also features a poker table for poker night with the main six, me and Spike. A karaoke machine, some gaming systems, a kitchen, a bathroom, and even some beds in case we had a hang over In the morning. It's like someone can live here if they really want.

Applejack looked like if she was going through the bars alcohol supply with her own mug. Guess she needed a belt, too. "Hey, A.J. You had a hard day, too?"

*Applejacks's P.O.V*

I turn around after refilling the Keg with Apple cider, and who do I see? Spear showing up. I immediately felt redder than one of our prized apples. "H-Howdy Spear! What's b-brings you here?"

I then got a look at him, and one thing was clear as day. He had one of those rough days that drove him to drink. And to be honest, I've been having one of those days, too, after the market.

Some theorist creeps kept yapping about how our apples were mind controlling ponies for our "Alien overlords." Teh, Allen overloads. Even Pinkie pie called them loony for saying that.

Still, getting them cleared out really drained me so much that I needed a night to drink. Big Mac even offered to do my chores tomorrow so I can recover from the hangover I would definitely have the next day.

Who I didn't expect was Spear coming in today in a similar mood I had. Welp, I guess I have a drinking partner tonight. Now that I think about it, it's kinda like we're...on a date....YEEEEHAAA!! This night just got more exciting!

Spear then sat on one of the stalls and said, "A.J, I've dealt with some of the weirdest I've ever dealt with. I can use a drink about now. Wanna join me?"

I tried my best not to smile from ear to ear when he said that. So I said, "S-Sure. I've had to deal with some nutjobs myself today. Wait till you hear this."

So, for the rest of the night, we drank cider and vented out our problems. It wasn't a typical first date, but maybe I can ask him to a real one day.

After twenty mugs of cider, we were smashed like crazy. For some reason, I was feeling brave, so I began to make out with him. And he went along with it! Despite both of us being drunk, we were tongue wrestling more than a couple of lizards in the ring. We went to the bedrooms where we ended up falling asleep in each other's arms. Best. Night. Ever!

The next day

*Normal P.O.V*

As morning came about, Twilight and Spike headed to Sweet apple acres. When Spear didn't come home last night, they only had one idea where he could be. The apple Family Bar. Scootaloo was at a sleepover at Rarity's yesterday, so they had a whole day to look for him and bring him home.

Twilight then saw Big Mac by the barn as she said, "Good morning, Bic Mac. Have you seen Spear anywhere?"

Big Mac then shook his head and said, "Eenope."

Twilight then looked around and asked, "Well, have you seen Applejack?"

Big Mac then pointed at the cellar as Twilight said, "Thank you." As the two of them headed inside, Spike then said,"I guess Applejack had one of those days yesterday, huh?"

Twilight nodded, replying, "Yeah, those conspiracy theories were a pain to deal with. If it wasn't so early in the morning, I might want a drink myself."

Spike nodded, rubbing his tail, saying, "Me too. Those nuts tried to bite my tail, thinking I was a hay burger."

Twilight felt sad for him as she said, "Well, why don't we have breakfast here and relax for the day? Scootaloo won't return home till tomorrow anyway, so let's take advantage of it."

They arrived inside, only to hear a familiar noise. Snoring. And it was familiar to them. They walked past the bar and saw the clearly used mugs of cider on the table. Twilight then gulped. Hoping what she thought didn't happen.

However, when she saw the bedrooms, she saw what she feared. Spear and Applejack, in bed. Together. But smelling the both of them, they probably got so drunk they'll they stumbled into the same bed together.

Applejack was the first one up in a sleepy daze. She looked at the door and was terrified apon seeing Twilight there. She gulped as she said, "H-Hey Twi...Now I know what it looks like, b-but-"

"How many?" Twilight asked blunty.

"Huh?"

"How many mugs did you two down before passing out?"

Applejack, while a bit relieved, was still somewhat on guard. Not knowing what to expect as she said, "I honestly don't know. I lost count after twenty mugs, honestly."

Twilight blinked at Applejack, then smiled. I'm glad to see that it wasn't a clear minded idea.

"Wow, twenty mugs? And I thought my eighteen mugs were impressive. Come on, I'll help you get freshen up. Spike, can you help Spear up and make some breakfast for all of us?" Twilight asked in a happy tone. I'm glad to see her worse fears didn't happen.

Spike nodded and said "Sure Twilight. I'll get him up." Spike then tried to nug his big brother up while Twilight helped Applejack clean herself up.

Twilight decided that while in the privacy of the bathroom, to ask her all about what happened last night. Perhaps it Rarity's influence rubbing off on her to want to "Get the scoop" as Rarity put it.

"So. What happened during the night? And how many times was it?" Twilight asked in a suppressed tone. I'm trying now to not sound excited.

Applejack, however, then have a guilty look on her face. Almost ashamed at what she did. She then admitted, "Twi, I know you're probably mad at me that I made out with your crush. And I also understand that you think I'm a backstabbing vermin. I don't blame you, honestly. I'm sorry."

Twilight blushed hard. How did she know? But she saw her fave and knew she needed to tell her otherwise. "Applejack, I'm glad you were honest with me on this. But I'm not mad at you for having a crush on Spear."

Now it was Applejack's turn to turn red in embarrassment. How did she know about her crush? "I WAS surprised you made out with him while drunk. But I suppose I can't speak since I hypnotize him and made out with him too. So, we're even on that front."

Applejacl blinked slowly at her words. She decided not to open that can of worms and decided to say, "SO, we both have a crush on him. What do we do now? Fight to see who gets him?"

Twilight shook her head and said, "No, that's too old-fashioned for us. Plus, you're my friend first and foremost. And I don't want to hurt you in any way, shape, or form."

The two hugged as Twilight said, "Which is why I had another idea. Why not share him? I know he has a crush on the others, and they probably have a crush on him. So..."

Applejack then managed to put the pieces together and blushed. If she was saying what she was thinking...then this was the best day of her life. "Are you saying you wanna start a...herd with Spear?"

"And Spike too. We both know he had a crush on 'you know who', and having him part of the herd is a good idea in my book. Plus, I've seen how sweet on him you are since he saved you from the timber wolf some time back."

Applejack blushed as she remembered how Spike saved her back then. "Well...if your adamant 'bout this, then why don't we do it now?"

"Because I haven't gotten around to asking everypony yet. I'm waiting for the right time to ask so it won't be too sudden, you know?"

Applejack nodded as Twilight asked. "So, are you up to waiting for longer? You'll already be a part of it already." Applejack then gave a wink as she brushed her teeth, and Twilight fixed her hair.

Twilight's master plan, operation: happy herd, was finally underway. And she didn't show it to Applejack, but she was giggling with excitement for this big change in their lives.

Author's Note

Surprised? Another chapter a few days after the last one? Well, I wanted to deliver after that long wait, and I hope it was worth it. And as a added bonus, the next chapter will be done soon as well! Comment to share your thoughts, and I'll see you guys next chapter!