Braeburned

Apples were the family trade. Apples were the cash crop that kept the town going. Apples were the tribute paid to the Buffalo every year so that they could run through the orchard and not destroy Appleoosa. Apples everywhere a pony could look. Sometimes though a pony wanted something more than an apple. Sometimes a pony wanted to try his luck at a banana or perhaps a peach. Harvest had come and gone, the pies were baked and the apples stored away for the winter. There wasn’t anything left to do but sit and drink cider for the next three months.

Setting his affairs in order Braeburn decided to leave Appleloosa for a time. A vacation of sorts to get away from the orchard and the apples and head towards something different. The first stop was the farm filled with apples. He could have gone to Manehattan and the Oranges but they left a bad taste in his mouth. Even though they were family he couldn’t stomach being around them for very long. Throwing on his hat and saddlebags he boarded the train for an unannounced visit.

The journey took a day and a night leaving him time to contemplate. More than anything he really needed time away from his friend Little Strongheart. Over the past year they’d become close spending nearly every moment they could with each other. As things progressed he started to feel something deep within his heart that he’d locked away years ago when the last pony he’d been in love with had rejected him. She had her legitimate reasons for not wanting to be with him. The fact that they were family was primary on that list. She’d been gracious in turning him down. She’d even been kind but they had already rolled in the hay a few times growing up. Where Braeburn wanted to take it to the next level she backed off and went her own way.

Little Strongheart had unsealed that well of emotion for him and he tried as best as he could to express it. Unfamiliar territory with a Buffalo caused him to blunder a few times. In the end he was about to just straight up tell her how he felt. Even though they were two different species he thought he could make it work. He opened his mouth one morning to tell her three little words and instead found her nuzzling up to another Buffalo. Not being the jealous type he waited and let her explain later on when they were alone together. She’d started dating him a week before when he asked her to go for a run through the cactus under a full moon.

His heart sank that day and the next he loaded up his gear and left Appleloosa. First port of call was Ponyville and from there he’d tour Equestria until he felt that his heart had stopped bleeding enough to go back home. As he departed the train he breathed deeply in the autumn air and shivered slightly at the crisp cold bite. Appleloosa was mostly in the desert and wouldn’t get this type of weather for another month or two. Ponyville looked and felt alive. The fall colors everywhere and the running of the leaves still a couple days away. He trotted down the platform and into the town ready to head off to Sweet Apple Acres.

The journey was short and his hooves brought him to the front gate. All of the trees were harvested except one. A small pony was testing her bucking abilities against the tree. It shook slightly with each kick but the apples failed to fall. He unlatched the gate and headed through closing it behind him. Sneaking up behind the filly he waited until she sat down on her haunches.
“Oh I’ll never get my cutie mark in buckin.” She sighed and lowered her head.
“No pony ever got a cutie mark in bucking.” He leaned in and flipped his hat off his own head and onto Applebloom’s.
“Omph!” She struggled and pushed back the hat then smiled big when she saw who it was. “Braeburn!”
“Howdy Cuz. Don’t ya be fretting about picking up a cutie mark from buckin. It’ll come when it comes. In the meantime need some help?”
“Sure thing!” She gave him a big hug.
“Where’s your sister? I’d think this would be straight up her alley.”
“She’s gone off ta help her friends with something. She’ll be back in a while.” She pushed the hat back and it fell forward over her eyes.
“Tell ya what then.” He leaned down and grabbed her mane with his teeth. Pulling her up he set her on his back and let go of her hair. “This will put ya in reach of the apples. Just buck them off the tree one by one.”

She smiled and pushed the hat back a second time. Once more it fell over her eyes and she set it back on Braeburn’s head. With him serving as a hoof stool and her bucking her back legs they were able to get most of the lower apples off the tree. A couple times Applebloom bucked herself right off his back and he dusted her off then put her in position again. After they couldn’t reach any more of the apples she jumped down and together they picked them up and put them in a basket. The work had taken an hour of laughing and talking. An hour in which he’d forgotten why he had come here in the first place. The sun had started to set behind the mountains and the sky grew to a bright orange.

Granny Smith was out visiting relatives in Trottingham with Big Mac and it was up to Braeburn to make supper. He fixed a special of Appleloosa, apple fritter cakes fried up in a pan. They both ate greedily and cleaned up. While they were washing the dishes Applebloom’s sister came home. She was covered in dust and a bit tousled but to Braeburn she was still one of the prettiest ponies this side of Bad Wolf Bay. She took one look at him then broke into a gallop and gave him a mighty hug with her front legs. He offered a smile and grunted as she crushed him.
“Ya never told us ya’ll were coming. I’d have baked a pie special for ya.” She grinned.
“I just felt it was time to get away from Appleloosa for a bit.”
“Everything alright out there?” Her expression suddenly became serious.
“Ah shucks cuz of course it… it’s… “He shrugged not being able to lie to her.
“Applebloom, Braeburn and I are gonna go for a little walk. We’ll be back in a bit.”

As they headed out of the kitchen he heard Applebloom say something about adult stuff. He did not want to include her in his problems. She was still just too young to really understand what he felt. Applejack on the other hand could understand his problems. They’d been close since they were babes and that had developed into something more for a short while. They weren’t that closely related but still being cousins wasn’t looked too kindly upon by some ponies. There had been complications with their relationship and a couple years later the call went out for settlers to head into the desert. He went with them and helped to found Appleloosa.
“Ya gonna tell me what’s goin on?” She had stopped and looked back over her shoulder to him.
“It’s really just nothing Applejack.” He looked up at the nearly full moon.
“Braeburn…”
“Ya remember Little Strongheart?” He stopped and she nodded. “I kinda though we might be having something there between us. She’s off and gone back to the tribe. Shackin up with some Buffalo. I just had to get away from the town for a bit. They don’t need me right now, harvest is done and everything’s taken care of. Sherriff Silverstar’s got it all working like a fancy clock.”
“Ya’ll be more than welcome to stay here. We’ve got the guest room up in the attic that ya can use.”
“That’s mighty fine of ya AJ. I just need some time away from it all ya know? Time to get over her. I should have remembered that we aren’t the same species.”
“Loving someone shouldn’t matter because ya are different species cuz.”
“What if she’s a pony but shied away from her heart?” He looked down from the moon to her.
“That… was a long time ago.” She turned away from him and started trotting back towards the barn.
“Ya ever regret it?” He asked catching up to her.
“I did for a short while. Now days though I have a good thing goin with couple of decent friends. We’ll just have ta find ya a pony out here. I know a couple that might take your mind off Strongheart.”

He merely shrugged his shoulders and they continued to head back in silence. She showed him to the room and he settled in for the night. Slipping off his vest and hat he hung them from pegs and settled onto the bed. There was nothing left to do but sleep and see what the morning brought yet his mind refused to shut down. The last time he’d stayed in this bed had been nearly five years ago. That was the last time he’d been to the farm and seen the family on their own turf. Every summer growing up his parents would let him stay at Sweet Apple Acres until it was time to go back to school. He’d run around in the dirt and mud with Applejack and Big Macintosh. They’d explore the forest and listen to Granny Smith’s stories.

Life had been great back then and when he started noticing that Applejack was a girl instead of just a cousin things had been awkward at first. They eventually settled into fooling around and full out sex. The relationship lasted only a few weeks until she broke away and he had not been back here since. She’d visited him in Appleloosa with her pack of friends and brought Bloomberg. The Orchard had plenty of trees but this one was special. They’d planted it together back on the day they first made love. She brought it as a way to ease things between them but he saw it instead as a way of closing that door forever. She brought him the tree and he planted it but refused to eat an apple that came from it. Bloomberg was proof that they’d once loved each other physically and emotionally.

He hadn’t heard the door open or close. His mind was so deep in thought that at first when somepony climbed onto the bed he hadn’t registered it. It wasn’t until Applejack full on kissed him that he suddenly shifted his attention away from thoughts of the past. He was on his back and she was kneeling over him with her lips against his. She pulled back from the kiss and licked the tip of his nose.
“This aint nothing like we had ya understand. I just can’t stand seeing ya so down.”
“Applejack…”
“No ya aren’t gonna talk. Just sit back and enjoy it.”

She placed her hoof over his mouth and he laid his head back on the pillow. Turning around she started to lick down his belly towards his member. It needed little coaxing before it fully came out. She played around the spotted shaft with her tongue before taking him completely inside her mouth. With a groan he flexed and she nipped him lightly. He winced and she drew him out of her mouth. Looking back over her shoulder she shook her mane.

“Ya gotta be quiet. Applebloom is sleeping two rooms over.” She folded her lips around him again and he stifled another groan as her mouth worked up and down his shaft. This was pure heaven and he wanted to flip her over and ram himself deep until he came. He wanted to use the reckless abandoned they had years ago. He wanted everything he could take from her. Restraining himself though he gave in to her dominance and let her suck him off. She could work her tongue like a carnival cook worked a funnel cake. Every which way constantly spiraling and bringing him closer and closer to feeling that familiar build up start to make its way through his body. He couldn’t help but groan and she pulled away much to his lament. Turning quickly she slammed down both of her front hooves on either side of his head and stared him right in the eye. He was wet and twitching up against her belly.

“I dun told ya to be quiet. Looks like I’m gonna have ta do this the hard way.” She forced her lips down hard on his to keep him quiet. Her tongue started pushing and spiraling against his. The two of them explored each other’s mouths while she lowered herself down on top of him. He was pressed up against her belly and she started rocking back and forth. He’d never quite felt anything like this before. He was harder than he ever had been and she was getting him off with her belly. The base was rubbing up against her other lips and when she would come down towards his balls she’d moan a bit as they touched her sex. He groaned again and she shut him up with an even harder kiss.

The sensation was too much and he felt himself near the brink. Quickly he tensed and came hard and fast. She wrapped her front legs behind his head and pulled him as close as possible while he expelled himself between them. His body shuttered and his head went numb. Long after he was spent he kept pulsing against her. After what could have been an hour or just a few minutes she broke the deep kiss and pushed herself up from the bed. His seed was dripping from both of their chests and she started licking it off his coat. Long luxurious strokes cleaned his chest and belly then she focused upon his semi hard member. Sucking it clean she finally kissed him once more and licked the tip of his nose. He could taste himself in that last kiss. It was tangy and sweet like cider that had sat too long in the barrel and started fermenting. He’d never before tasted anyone’s come let alone his own.

She bent down and whispered in his ear. “That’s the last time for us. Get some sleep Braeburn. In the morning we’ll go find ya a pony.” She licked the fold of his ear then hopped off the bed and headed out of the room. The door closed behind her and he laid there on his back looking up at the ceiling. It’d just happened… he’d just had sex with his cousin again. This time though it was something completely different than he’d ever experienced. It was… better.