Apples and Affairs

“Hello? Hello!? Anypony there?”

The cyan pegasus pounded fiercely on the strong wooden door with a front hoof, trying to cause as much of a commotion as she could, trying to attract someone to rescue them. While meanwhile, Applejack, sat dejectedly on the cold floor, waiting for her friend to finish,

“Face it, Rainbow.” Said the farmer earth pony, “Nobody’s comin'.'”

“What about your sister? Or your brother or granny?” Rainbow Dash asked, walking back down the steps into the cellar. The day had started innocently enough, with Applejack offering to show Rainbow Dash her apple cellar, which Applejack had built with her own hooves as another place to keep the apples her family sold. Soon it started to see less and less use, and it started to become more of a place where the family kept supplies: Jars for zap apple jam, tankards for cider season, and bottles of hard cider kept in a mini refrigerator that didn’t work.

Applejack was very pleased with how the underground storage space had turned out when she finished it a year ago, but with all the adventures she had been on, plus an unimaginable amount of work, she had forgotten to fix one critical thing about the cellar: The busted door. The door she had used, taken from the barn, was one of those doors with a little button on the side of the handle that you pushed which would lock the door. This door, however, had that button stuck in place, meaning you couldn’t open it from the other side.

AJ knew there was something she had forgotten to tell Rainbow… “Apple Bloom is at their clubhouse on the other side of the orchard, Big Mac is on the other side of the orchard, and Granny won’t hear us, RD.” Applejack said, looking up at the light on the ceiling. The bulb was old and needed to be replaced, she knew from the constant flickering and twitching, “We just gotta wait until he comes to the barn to drop off the apples.”

Rainbow Dash sprawled on the floor, “But that’s going to take forever!” She whined, before coming to her hooves with a determined grin, “On second thought… Maybe we won’t be down here forever…”

Just as Rainbow Dash took off, Applejack grabbed the mare by the tail, holding her tightly, “Woah there, sugar cube.” She said between a mouthful of rainbow tail. Rainbow Dash squirmed, before ultimately giving up, “That door is mighty tough. Ah’ can’t even buck it, believe me, I tried. Ah’ don’t think breaking your hooves will be worth it, partner.”

“Then what are we supposed to do? Just sit here!?” Rainbow shouted, appalled at the very idea of sitting still and doing nothing waiting for rescue.

“Mhm.” Applejack said, tucking her hooves in, “Don’t worry, you’ll survive.”

“Why the hay did you use THAT door anyways?” Rainbow Dash asked, sitting down peacefully next to Applejack.

“‘Ah thought it would be fine. I guess ‘ah didn’t think it through.” She sighed, “This is all my fault, sugarcube. I’m mighty sorry.”

Rainbow Dash flew a brief circle around Applejack, making her smile, “Don’t sweat it, Applejack. You didn’t know.”

“Well… Technically ‘ah did.” She shrugged, “I shouldn’t have been so stupid when I did it. ‘Ah well. Once we get out of here, ‘ah’m tearing the stupid thing down. Let me tell ‘ya something about apples. We never leave our jobs unfinished.”

Rainbow thought for a moment, “What about that apple buck season?”

“That doesn’t count.” Applejack said, ignoring her friend’s smirk, “And technically ‘ah didn’t leave it unfinished, ‘ah just didn’t ask for help. Don’t tell me ‘yer about to pull a friendship lesson on me, Rainbow.”

Rainbow Dash laughed, “You know that isn’t my line of expertise. Now, if ya want a lesson on awesomeness, then I’M the one you go to.” She held up a hoof and started wriggling it in midair like she was writing something down, “Dear Princess Celestia, Today I learned a very valuable lesson about being awesome.”

Applejack snorted, nudging her with a hoof, unable to keep a grin off of her face, “Oh rainbow… What the hay am I goin’ to do with you?”

“Heh, I really am a hoofful, aren’t I?” Rainbow said, pressing forward, bumping her snout against Applejack’s.

“You sure are, sugarcube…” AJ said, leaning closer toward her winged friend. With Applejack now unguarded, this was the perfect time for Rainbow Dash to pull some regularly scheduled mischief! “Hey!” Applejack reached out in a rage as Rainbow Dash pulled the stetson off of her head and flew to the other side of the cellar.

“Rainbow, you get back here with ‘ma hat!” Applejack snarled.

Rainbow Dash leaped onto an empty table and twirled the hat around a hoof, “What? This hat? You’re going to have to come and get it, AJ!”

“Hmph. Alright then.” Before Rainbow Dash could fly onto another surface, Applejack turned around and kicked her powerful hind leg out, knocking one of the legs clean off. Rainbow Dash yelped, sliding down the table as it fell over. When she was within reach, Applejack simply plucked the hat off of her head, “Thank you kindly~” Applejack said politely.

“Aww… No fair!” Rainbow Dash pouted, crossing her hooves stubbornly.

“Hey, you get your fancy wings over there, us earth ponies gotta have somethin’,” Applejack said, sitting down next to Rainbow Dash once again.

“Eh, forgetaboutit. Flying is twenty percent cooler than being super strong anyways.” Rainbow Dash spread and flapped her wings, creating a soft wind between them for a moment, “That was actually pretty cool… I didn’t know you were strong enough to break stuff. That’s a pretty tough table there.”

“‘Ah think you forget that I’ve been buckin’ apple trees since ‘ah was just an itty bitty filly. Every day when ‘ah got home from school, I’d spend hours buckin’ that old tree outside of the girl’s clubhouse, honing my strength. ‘Ah suppose it paid off, huh?” Rainbow Dash examined the earth pony’s body, not like she needed to again. Rainbow Dash had spent lots of time admiring AJ’s muscular, well-built frame. Working on a farm since she was a filly from dusk till dawn every day did wonders for Applejack… More than flying ever could for Rainbow Dash. It made Rainbow Dash look… Less cool whenever she was with the earth pony, but she didn’t care… too much, “Rainbow?”

“Huh?”

“You were spacin’ out. You alright, sugarcube?” Applejack tilted her head with a look of concern, brushing Rainbow’s mane out of her eyes.

“Yeah, I’m fine, don’t worry.” She blew her mane out of her face, “I’m just uh… Thinking about… Us. But not in the gross way or anything.”

Applejack’s concern turned to a playful curiosity. The two mares had been dating for a while now, going on about three months, and it was great… But not for Applejack. She worked hard every day to provide for her family and keep her business afloat often with very little help… But she didn’t expect dating Rainbow Dash would require her to perform so much work. It felt like she was the only one who was trying to make what they had work, and oftentimes, with very little degree of success. Being stood up on dates, being abandoned on walks around town when she saw one of her Wonderbolt friends… They rarely even hugged, or showed any affection at all… Soon, Applejack didn’t have the energy to play this game of disappointment anymore, so she stopped scheduling dates or even talking to Rainbow Dash very much. And the worst thing was that Rainbow Dash didn’t even seem to care.

Applejack sighed, thinking of all the romance movies she sometimes watched on the television, the ones that made love look so easy, “‘Ah think we need to talk, Rainbow Dash. Right now, about us.”

Rainbow Dash blinked slowly, swallowing uncomfortably, “Okay… So what about us?”

Rainbow’s gaze caused guilt to well up inside of her, but as the element of honesty, she knew she had to do this. She couldn’t do it anymore, “‘Ah really like you, honest, but ‘ah feel like you ‘ain’t puttin’ much effort into our relationship.”

Rainbow Dash’s expression softened at this, and she shrugged, “I’ve just been busy! Y’know, with weather patrol and training with the wonderbolts…”

“Rainbow, weather patrol takes two hours, tops, and half ‘o that, you spend sleepin’!” Applejack growled, suddenly annoyed, “And you know you get done with practice around the same time ‘ah finish my work for the day.”

“W-Well I have a life too, you know!” Rainbow Dash said, suddenly defensive, “I’m sorry we aren’t doing enough of the cliche marefriend stuff I know you want, but I’m a busy pony!”

“‘Ah just want to do fun things with ‘ya, sugarcube! All ‘ah’ve been doing since ma and pa died is work the farm for eight long years. ‘Ah want to do things besides workin’ my hooves off… And there isn’t anypony I’d want to do it with than you.”

“And we can! Just… Not now.” Rainbow said, thinking, “Or tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow, or all next week.”

Applejack sighed, realizing she was dancing around the issue herself, “Rainbow, listen. ‘Ah understand if ‘ya don’t want to do those: ‘choice marefriend stuff,’ as you put it, but my point is, ‘ah want there to be more to us. Love takes work, sugarcube, and it takes two ponies to make it work.”

Rainbow Dash looked at her like she just sprouted an extra hoof, “...So what you’re saying is you want to buck more often?”

It was either that statement that AJ was very certain was a joke, or how Rainbow Dash was not taking this very serious conversation very seriously, but that actually made Applejack want to kick her teeth in, “Rainbow Dash, listen!!” She growled, “‘Ah really don’t think ‘ah’m askin’ for much. You know how sometimes when you ask to join me for apple bucking, and how ‘ya leave when we’re halfway done? That’s what you’re doin’ here. You told me you loved me, but aren’t willin’ to put in the effort to be a marefriend. You made your bed, and now you don’t wanna lay in it.”

Rainbow Dash spread her front hooves, “Applejack! You know I love you! I just don’t want to be tied down to one pony all the time, that’s all.”

“And if that’s how ‘ya feel, sugarcube, then I don’t think we’re ever going to work out, you and ‘ah.”

When Rainbow Dash heard Applejack’s stern tone, it dawned on her that she couldn’t play this one off, “AJ…”

“‘Ah know what you do when we’re not together, Rainbow.” Applejack said, walking towards the shelves of empty jars, “‘Ah know you bucked that earth pony stallion, the red one with the griffon tattoo?”

Applejack saw Rainbow dash in the corner of her eye, with a look similar to the face Apple Bloom had made when she nearly burnt down the farm trying to get a firefighting cutie mark. “H-How do you know about that?”

Applejack chuckled, “I meet a lotta nice folks sellin’ my apples, Rainbow Dash. Some who sometimes aren’t able to keep their mouths shut.” She smiled, “Fellow pulled me aside, and asked me if I was dating a ‘Rainbow Dash.’ He told me that you had briefly mentioned that you were in a relationship before y’all did it, but… ‘’Ma marefriend wouldn’t mind if ‘ah slept with you.’ He told me you had said. He felt bad and wanted to apologize. I knew right then and there what was goin’ on.”

Applejack heard Rainbow Dash curse under her breath, “You weren’t supposed to know, I-...” Rainbow Dash fumbled, trying to find the words to try and justify this, “It doesn’t mean I love you any less! It was just one time, I swear!”

She turned around, “‘Ah’m goin’ to give you ten seconds to tell me the truth, Rainbow. Was this the only time it happened?”

“Yes! I- No I-” Rainbow Dash said, sputtering nonsense for a minute before correcting herself, knowing lying would make things worse, not like they could get any better. She sighed, “I may have done Soarin and Spitfire, but that’s it, I swear to Celestia.”

Applejack closed her eyes, counting to ten, the thought of being outside, bucking apple trees and making honest bits keeping tears out of her eyes, “‘Ah see.”

“Wait… You’re not mad?” Rainbow Dash caught up to AJ, who was pacing around the cellar now.

“Mad?” Applejack laughed, “‘Ah don’t think there are words that can do justice to how I feel about it. I trusted you, I trusted that we’d able to have an honest, committed relationship, ‘ah guess not.”

“This doesn’t change anything between us! I thought about you the entire time.” Applejack looked away from Rainbow Dash, she couldn’t stand to look at her cheating face any longer.

“That doesn’t justify it, Rainbow. ‘Ah know some ponies don’t care ‘bout who or what their partners do, but ‘ah do. ‘Ah’m not that kinda pony.” She sighed again, “And you’re wrong, it does change things between us. ‘Ah don’t think we should see each other anymore, Rainbow.”

“What?”

“You heard me.” Applejack said, standing in front of her soon-to-be ex-marefriend, “‘Ah don’t think I can be with somepony who’s going to sleep with ponies on the side, or somepony who cannot even stand the thought of being with just one pony.”

Applejack walked up the stairs of the cellar, stopping near the door and bucking it like she did the table. With a soft snap, it came open with hardly any effort on her part, “Huh. Guess this ‘ol door was older than I thought.” She looked back at Rainbow Dash with a shake of her head, “Sorry ‘ah wasted your time. Now if you’ll excuse me, ‘ah got apples to buck.”

And she was gone. Rainbow Dash wanted to chase after her, to beg and plead and apologize for what she did, but Rainbow Dash knew Applejack well enough. When she put her mind to something, it was final, no if ands or buts. Rainbow Dash turned around, noticing the mini refrigerator. Tears formed in her eyes as she saw the small picture on top of it: It was her and Applejack at a rodeo in Applosa, around the time when their relationship was in its heyday. Rainbow Dash took the picture in her hooves, tears falling on the glass as she realized her mistake, and how unbearable things would be without Applejack. Spreading her wings, Rainbow Dash fled for home…