Little Strongheart was spending her time by running through the desert of Appleoosa. Getting her blood pumping and her legs aching was proving effective in keeping her mind off certain temptations.

As she sprinted through town, she skidded to a stop, noticing somepony familiar wandering the streets.

“Well hey there, Tempest! What brings you all the way to Appleoosa?”

Tempest flinched in surprise, not expecting Strongheart’s sudden approach. “Oh, I’m just…wandering around. Gotta have something to do all month, you know?”

“I hear that,” Strongheart smiled. “Mind if we keep on wandering for a bit somewhere else?”

The two walked over to the town’s apple orchard, taking refuge from the harsh sunlight in the cool shade underneath the trees.

With a swift kick to Bloomberg’s trunk, Little Strongheart knocked down a couple of apples for the two to share.

“Huh, nice!” Tempest was legitimately impressed by the finesse that the buffalo displayed. It was a lot cleaner than how she would’ve done it: either kicking it with as much force as she had or blasting it with her magic.

“Thanks! Braeburn taught me that,” Strongheart said with pride, tossing Tempest an apple.

Tempest caught the apple, happily taking a bite. “Speaking of, where is he? Thought you’d be hanging out with him instead of somepony like me,” she joked.

“Ah, he’s at home,” Strongheart explained. “If I had to guess, he’s probably cuddling with Feather Bangs right about now,” she said with a playful roll of her eyes. “Probably for the best. Wouldn’t want to be tempted by joining in.”

“Heh, lucky you,” Tempest smirked. “Must be nice having two boyfriends that love you that much.”

“This coming from ‘Miss Two Girlfriends’ over here?” Strongheart laughed, lightly punching Tempest in the shoulder. “What are you doing ‘wandering around’ Equestria instead of spending time with them?”

Tempest nervously rubbed the back of her head. “Ahaha…well, Celaeno’s probably out with her pirate crew, and Kerfuffle’s definitely still home at Hope Hollow.”

“Yeah? So what are you doing here instead of with one of them?”

“Because I…kinda came here looking for you, actually.”

Little Strongheart blinked in confusion. “Me? Why me?” She may have had a few passing interactions with Tempest based on last year’s event, but because of Tempest’s elimination, it’s not like they shared a deep bond or anything.

“Well, you or Braeburn. I didn’t know if Feather Bangs was gonna be here too or not.” Tempest shrugged. “Point is, I was maybe hoping at least one of you could give me some…advice.”

“Advice?” Again, Strongheart was confused. She doubted that she had any sort of knowledge or wisdom that would be helpful to somepony like Tempest.

“You know, about…” Tempest grit her teeth and cringed. Just trying to say it out loud was making her blush. “...our…multiple relationship thing.”

“Ohhh…!” Strongheart started nodding in understanding, then nervously forced a smile. “What, uh…exactly did you need advice on?”

Tempest pressed her hooves together. “I don’t know, a lot! Like, making sure both of them get the attention they deserve and not feeling like you’re playing favorites. Not getting jealous when the other two spend time without you. Or even just…managing without them playing too in this stupid game.”

Little Strongheart’s smile slowly faded. “Honestly? I was kinda hoping you had that stuff figured out. I’ve been stumbling my way through all this myself.”

Tempest was disappointed, but not surprised. “So it’s all new and weird to you too, huh?”

Strongheart took a bite out of her apple. “Yyyep.”

“I swear, there needs to be a support group or something,” Tempest sighed, leaning back against the tree. “Because I have no idea what the fuck I’m doing. Hell, I’d barely know what I’d be doing with just one of them! I’d even take a lecture from Twilight if it meant that I got the answers.”

Strongheart sat down next to the downtrodden mare. “Well, at least we can find out together, right? And hey, if you haven’t figured it out yet, what makes you think Celaeno and Kerfuffle do?”

“That’s…that’s different.” Tempest winced. “They know more about…romance and stuff than I do.”

Strongheart raised an eyebrow. “Yeah? What did one of Celaeno’s exes do better than you?”

The words started getting caught in Tempest’s throat. “N-No, that’s not…She never mentioned any exes to me.”

“So it’s Kerfuffle that’s had more relationships, then?”

“I…No, I’m pretty sure we’re her first-”

Strongheart leaned in with a smirk. “So what makes you think they know any more than you do?”

Tempest was frustrated, but couldn’t find fault with Strongheart’s line of reasoning. “I...just…rggh!”

“At least I know Feather Bangs has tried to hook up with a hundred other mares before. Wouldn’t say he has experience with having multiple lovers at once, though. He told me there were three mares that were all swooning over him at once but he was too much of a nervous wreck.”

“...Heh.” After all the flirting mischief Feather Bangs went through last year, the idea of three mares overwhelming him made Tempest chuckle a little bit.

“But it sounds like all three of you are figuring it out at the same time,” Strongheart chuckled. “So what are you getting so worried about?”

Tempest let out a heavy sigh as her head hung low. “I took part in No Clop because the orgy was the big appeal, you know? I wasn’t trying to look for a relationship or anything. But, then I found somepony I connected with, and…then someone else. They make me…happy, and I want to make sure that they’re happy, too. And I’ve spent too much of my life hurting others that…I’m…scared I don’t know how.”

Little Strongheart put a sympathetic hoof on Tempest’s shoulder. “I’m sure they’re worried about making you happy, too. And I think that you trying your best is more than enough for them.”

Tempest lifted her head up. It wasn’t anything groundbreaking, but it was comforting to hear, all the same.

“And if I do figure something out, I promise you’ll be the first to know,” Little Strongheart winked.

“Heh, same here.”

The two continued eating their apples, enjoying each other's company in the shade.

“So tell me…” Tempest started. “Does Feather Bangs still flirt with any female with a pulse?”

“He does, but he wouldn’t be Feather Bangs otherwise,” Strongheart chuckled. “But he tells us it’s good practice to use the really good lines on us.”

“Still using pick-up lines on the ones he’s dating, huh?”

“Yeah, but it’s sweet.” Strongheart turned her head, finally taking notice of the necklace around Tempest’s neck, adorned with three different colored gems. “That’s a cute necklace, where’d you get it?”

Tempest looked downwards. “Huh? Oh, uh, Kerfuffle made it. She really wanted all three of us to have matching ones, but she didn’t have the right gems, and neither did Celaeno, so we had to go out looking for some.”

“Ooh, an adventure?” Strongheart took another chomp out of her apple. “Was it dangerous?”

“I dunno, it’s a long story,” Tempest shrugged.

“We’ve got a long day ahead of us. C’mon, I’ll tell you what Feather Bangs tried to do for Hearts and Hooves day if you tell me.”

“Pff, deal.”

Author's Note

yeehaw i love polygamy