Apples and Affairs

The following morning Rainbow Dash went to a cafe in Ponyville. She got very little sleep that night, and her weather patrol that day was going to be miserable without some caffeine in her system. Usually, Rainbow Dash never enjoyed drinking the foul, bitter stuff, only relying on it when she absolutely had to. This was one of those days.

Rainbow Dash felt horrible that morning. Applejack breaking up with her coupled with her quitting the Wonderbolts made her irritable and depressed in ways words could not describe. She had ordered an expresso five minutes ago, but it felt like she had been sitting in the cafe booth for five HOURS. She was about to cut her losses and try doing her patrol without the help of the stimulant, but just like last night, she was too slow, and someone came in to greet her before she could leave.

A tray of two coffee cups was slid onto the table, and an orange filly wearing a helmet hopped into the seat in front of her. Rainbow Dash’s frown morphed into a small grin. Finally! A distraction from all this stuff!

“Hey!” Scootaloo greeted, taking off her helmet, shaking her head to fix her mane, and placing her helmet next to her, “I brought you something.”

“Thank Celestia!” Rainbow Dash said, taking the coffee and chugging it down in seconds. The coffee burned her throat, but once it was down her throat, Rainbow Dash felt a little better, but only a little, “Ah… Thanks, kid, I owe ‘ya one.”

“No problem!” Scootaloo said, taking the other coffee and doing the same thing Dash had just done, only to spit an entire mouthful of coffee onto an unsuspecting unicorn walking by, “Bleh! How do adults like this stuff?”

“Your guess is as good as mine.” Rainbow Dash said, tossing the cup towards the nearby waste bin, and missing by several inches, “So what’s up? Shouldn’t you be in school?”

“School doesn’t start yet!” Said Scootaloo.

“Really? It’s ten in the morning.”

Scootaloo looked away for a second, “Okay, I might have snuck out and I may have been following you, but I have a very good reason to!” She said frantically. Rainbow Dash folded her hooves, listening, “Yesterday you came to us all sad and stuff, and that’s not like you! Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle are all really worried, but not as worried as I am! I’m your number one fan, and I hate seeing you upset like this! So that’s why I’m here, I want to know why you’re so sad because maybe I can help you, you know?”

Rainbow Dash looked out the window, of course this had to be about what happened that day. She looked back at the filly, who looked so sad at Rainbow’s sadness, even a little scared. She could lie to the filly and say everything was okay, but she didn’t want to do that to the one who loved her like a sister, “Applejack broke up with me.” She confessed, “I wasn’t being a good marefriend.”

Scootaloo’s face seemed to house both sorrow and relief like she was saddened by the news, but glad it wasn’t more serious, “Well that’s dumb! Who wouldn’t want to date Rainbow Dash!? I think this is Applejack’s problem, not yours!”

That remark got a chuckle out of her, “Heh… I make mistakes too, kid. Being me has nothing to do with it.”

“Well, what did you do?” Scootaloo asked.

“I’ll tell ‘ya when you’re older, scoots.” Rainbow said quickly, not ready to get into the finer details with Scootaloo of all ponies, “Still… We’re done, Scoots. We’re through.

“But you still love her, right?” Scootaloo asked.

“Yeah! More than anything!”

“Then you need to tell her that!” Scootaloo said, “You need to admit that you made a mistake and that you love her very much.”

“As much as I wish I could, that’s not going to work, kid. This isn’t something you can just apologize for.”

Scootaloo pounded her hoof on the table, Rainbow Dash jumped at Scootaloo’s sudden ferocity, “Hey! Enough of that! You’re Rainbow Dash, the coolest pony in Equestria! You never give up, never! And look where you are now, you’re a Wonderbolt, you’re an element of harmony, you even did a sonic rainboom!”

She couldn’t help but smile at her accomplishments, “Technically I did two sonic rainbooms.”

Scootaloo got up on her hind hooves to get closer to her, “You see? You’re so awesome and you know it! If you can do all that awesome stuff, then you can get your marefriend back!” She sat back down, “Can you please try, for me?”

Rainbow Dash thought about what Scootaloo had said. She was the greatest pegasus in Equestria, she did two sonic rainbooms, became a Wonderbolt and an element of harmony, she even appeared in a Daring Doo book! In the blink of an eye, Rainbow Dash forgot all about her sadness. If she could do all of those things, she could make up with Applejack, and if not, then she had an excuse to go back to being sad.

“Heh heh… Alright, kid.” Rainbow Dash said, jumping onto the seat and then onto the table, Grabbing Scootaloo up to join her, “Let’s go get my marefriend back.”

“Yay!!” Scootaloo cheered, rearing onto her hind hooves, then turning her head to her flank to look for a cutie mark, finding nothing, as usual. A relationship-fixer cutie mark would look strange anyway. “I’ll go get my scooter!”

Rainbow Dash suddenly remembered she had a filly who was supposed to be at school next to her, “No, not you. You’re going back to school, I don’t need you getting in trouble for playing hooky.”

“Aww.” Scootaloo groaned.

Rainbow Dash chuckled, “Alright, you can stay with me just a little bit longer. Come on, we just need one more thing: The two things that all mares love…”

***

Rainbow Dash soared back to the Sweet Apple Acres with the speed of a bullet. She knew that Applejack was going to be there at this time of day, that was where the farmer pony was every day, anyway. Armed with new-found confidence, and the two things all mares loved: Flowers and, and a box of chocolates in the shape of a heart, Rainbow Dash was ready to take back her marefriend, and if it didn’t work? Well, she kept the receipt for both of her gifts for a reason.
Spotting Applejack below, Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes and dove, extending her front hooves and tilting her head down as she neared the ground. Doing a flip in the air just as she was about to hit the ground, the pegasus landed right behind Applejack, making her jump, her stetson doing a comedic hop in the air as well.
“What in tarnation?!” Applejack shouted, nearly losing the contents of her saddlebag as she spun around, “Oh, it’s you.”
Rainbow Dash started talking before Applejack could walk away, “Brought you a little something.” She said, presenting the flowers and the box of chocolate.
Applejack looked at them with distaste. During her descent, the bouquet of roses Rainbow Dash had lost almost all of their petals. The box of chocolate was almost unharmed, except for the little dent on the box from when Rainbow Dash dropped it. Her gifts were in sorry condition, but it was the thought that counted, right?
“You shouldn’t have.” Applejack said, her tone making Rainbow Dash think if she really should have, “Are ‘ya tryin’ ‘ta win me over with cheap gifts?”
“Maybe?” Rainbow Dash asked nonchalantly, hovering in the air, “So are you done being mad at me?”
Applejack sighed, walking over to the nearest apple tree and bucking it, “Ah’m not mad at ‘ya, sugarcube. Just disappointed. ‘Ah don’t think ‘ah can stress enough that ‘ah trusted you, now ‘ah feel like ‘ah can’t.”
“Well, I wouldn’t trust me either, if I were you.” She said, flying in front of her, blocking her way, “Uh… Are you ever going to forgive me?”
“Not really.” Applejack said, walking past her and bucking the next apple tree, “Are we done?”
She sighed, “Is there anything I can do to fix this?”
“Yes, You can respect that I am no longer interested in bein’ your marefriend.” Applejack said, picking up an apple that didn’t make it into her baskets and tossing it into her saddlebag, “That’s all ‘ya can do, pardner.”
Rainbow Dash took a breath, she didn’t know what she was expecting. This wasn’t some TV show where everything was going to be forgiven and forgotten after a heartfelt apology. Rainbow Dash knew Applejack better than that. Maybe this was how their little thing ended. Taking another breath, Rainbow Dash found it in herself to accept that this was over. But before she walked away, she wanted one more thing… Then she promised she would leave Applejack alone to do whatever she pleased.
“Then uh… Can we still be friends? Please?” Rainbow asked, “I like you, and I don’t want us to be like enemies or whatever.”
She held out a hoof for Applejack to bump. A surefire sign to tell whether or not she would accept her friendship. The whole world seemed to be holding its breath, even the wind rustling the leaves of the apple trees seemed to quiet down momentarily. Applejack smiled and gave Rainbow’s hoof a gentle bump with her own, “Alright, sugarcube.” She smiled. That beautiful, pearly white smile that Rainbow Dash once fell in love with, “Thank you. Ah’ didn’t think you’d let it go that easy. Glad ‘ta see you’re takin’ this whole thing like a mature adult.”
Rainbow Dash thought back to last night at the bar. “Heh heh, you know me.” She hoped Spitfire would accept her apology if she ever had the guts to return to Cloudsdale. “I promise I won’t do something like that again, Applejack.”
Applejack nodded reassuringly, “Ah’m sure you won’t. ‘Ah’m sure you’ll make some stallion or mare real happy someday, Rainbow.”
Rainbow Dash smirked, “You sure you don’t want to be that mare?”
Applejack snorted, “In your dreams, Rainbow. ‘Jus for that, you’re goin’ to help me buck some ‘o my apple trees.”
Oddly enough, even though the sting of the breakup was still there, Rainbow Dash felt a little happier now, knowing she was back to being friends with Applejack. Maybe this was how it was supposed to be, Applejack and Rainbow Dash sticking together as friends and now lovers, maybe it just wasn’t meant to be that way. Maybe Rainbow Dash would be happier with a different mare, or perhaps a stallion, even? Or maybe she could fly solo for a little while?
“Heh, alright then, cowgirl. Let’s see how many baskets you can fill before me!”
“Ha! You’re on, sugarcube!”
Rainbow Dash didn’t know, but for right now, she was happy remaining friends with Applejack…
For now, anyways…

The end…