Winds of Change

Winds of Change

Epilogue

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An orange hoof landed on the top of an old analog alarm clock with a barely audible click, stopping the annoying buzz. Applejack let out a long yawn and opened her eyes. She sat up on her bed, particles of dust dancing around her, illuminated by the first rays of sunlight that shone through the small slit in the window drapes. The orange mare looked to her right. She could make out a silhouette of a certain blue Pegasus lying beside her, quietly snoring. Applejack briefly considered waking her marefriend up and decided against it. She knew that the Pegasus enjoyed sleeping longer than the Apple family is used to.

Applejack slowly got up from the bed, careful not to wake the cyan mare up. She reached to the nightstand for her stetson, but was met with empty space. She didn’t let this get to her. The mare slowly started walking to the door leading to the corridor, careful not to step on squeaky panels. Years of the same morning routine taught her where those were. She opened the door with a creak, stepped outside, and closed it behind her with a quiet click. The farm pony was just in time to see her big brother exit his room with a yawn.

Applejack always wondered how he managed to look so fresh each morning: his mane was always straight and seemingly combed, his body clean and ready for work immediately after waking up.

“Howdy there Mac,” Applejack whispered to her brother and reached with her hoof to her hat, but touched thin air. She put her hoof down with a flat look on her face.

“Howdy there, sis’,” Big Macintosh whispered back, and headed for the kitchen right away. When he was passing Applejack, she stopped him with a hoof, with an embarrassed smile on her face.

“Wait a sec, Mac. Ah know that today it’s yer turn to make us some plum breakfast, but Ah would like to do that today. Ah have sumthin’ special planned, ya know, for her,” Applejack whispered, pointing at her bedroom door with a hoof.

A small knowing smile crept onto Mac’s face, “OK then,” He responded and chuckled at her sister’s antics.

Applejack smiled and quickly headed to the stairs leading down to the kitchen. She stopped at the stairs, turned her head around and said, “Oh, Ah forgot to tell ya, that means that yer the one to wake up Apple Bloom. Ah’m mighty sorry ‘bout that.” And hastily headed towards the kitchen.

“Hm?” Big Mac responded, half surprised by her sister. “This mare’s impossible,” he concluded playfully, and headed quietly to the door to Apple Bloom’s room. One couldn’t tell it from his features, but Mac was very relieved and genuinely happy to see his sister back to her normal joyous self, full of life and energy. He was seriously concerned for her while Dash was absent on the farm.

Applejack looked at all of the countless cupboards and drawers in the kitchen, pondering on what to do. She told her brother that she had something planned, but now that she thought of it, it was more of an outline of an actual plan. She wanted to somehow kill that routine that infected and nearly demolished her relationship with Rainbow Dash.

With the mentioned Pegasus sleeping soundly upstairs, Applejack estimated that she had roughly an hour to create something spectacular. She knew that Dash really disliked the meals the Apple family were preparing and consuming throughout their entire relationship, so Applejack had to prepare something else to please the mare of her dreams.

‘What does Dash love to eat? Hmm...?’Applejack pondered for a while, smiling suddenly when realization hit her. ‘Pizza! That mare sure does love her pizza!’

“Ah’m a genius!” Applejack praised out loud, keen to start making some delicious pizza. She vaguely remembered how to make pizza, from back when Granny Smith taught her. She started pondering on what ingredients she would need.

‘Hmm... yeast. Ah think Ah’ll need that.’She opened a cupboard that presumably contained yeast, only to discover a sight that both scared and surprised her. What she faced was a cupboard filled to the very brim with apples, threatening to topple over any second. The apples formed a wall, their only support - the cupboard door - removed just seconds ago.

‘Apple Bloom!’ Applejack screamed in her mind. ‘Ah told that filly to segregate the apples and to put them in the right cupboards, but that filly got it all wrong!’ She ranted inwardly, angry about her sister’s, quite usual, behavior.

The farm pony forcefully dug her hooves into the wall of apples that threatened to pour out, even without her hooves being stuck into it. She shrieked as a cupboard worth of apples poured over the edge and went crashing to the ground. Applejack was completely buried under apples as they fell onto and over her in a loud cascade, like a waterfall. The remaining apples rolled all over the kitchen floor, littering every inch of it.

The farm pony’s head emerged from the top of the heap of apples that now resided in the middle of the kitchen. She had her teeth gritted in anger, as well as a heavy scowl on her face.

‘Ah’m goin’ ta go hard on that filly when Ah lay mah hooves on her!’The mare thought, trying to get out of the heap of apples. Despite herself, she was surprised how her sister managed to pack so many apples in such a confined space like the small cupboard. The little filly never ceased to amaze, and mostly anger, Applejack.

When she made it out, she looked back at the cupboard, now having no more than three apples inside. She grabbed the bag of yeast she wanted to have in the first place, set it on the counter and looked around the kitchen. Every nook and cranny of the kitchen was littered with apples of various sizes and colors. Applejack looked at the clock that hung above the door, to observe that she already wasted around ten minutes of her precious time, bathing in apples.

She turned the water tap on, and filled a big cup with water. Then she proceeded to pour a bit of the yeast into the water for it to dissolve. After that she slowly opened another cupboard to fetch some flour and spice, half expecting it to be filled with apples. To her fortune, or misfortune, Apple Bloom packed the rest of the apples somewhere else.

’Guess Ah’m in for more surprises then’ Applejack sighed and took the ingredients.

She mixed the flour and various spices together in a mixing bowl, careful not to make any more mess than she already had. After a while she noted that the yeast dissolved, so she headed to the fridge to get some olive oil. She was surprised how well she remembered the recipe for pizza, since she didn’t even recall when she actually made it last time.

When she opened the fridge she noticed a large quantity of apples stacked into nice heaps here and there. There weren’t as much as in the cupboard, but still a lot. Applejack’s only reaction was a scowl, but it soon changed into a small snicker; her anger had almost subsided. Although she didn’t approve of her actions, she perfectly understood her younger sister, for she herself was once a small filly, after all.

She quickly grabbed the oil and headed to the dissolved yeast. She measured out one tablespoon of the olive oil with surprising precision, and poured the oil spoon into the yeast.

She set the tablespoon aside, just as she heard a faint sound coming from upstairs. The mare gasped, scared that Rainbow Dash was coming down early, and ruin the surprise. She frantically looked around the littered room, but it was already too late. The farm mare gulped as she saw the door knob twisting, and the door opening with a creak.

“Howdy there sis’!” a young and happy voice resounded in the kitchen, making Applejack let out a long and relieved sigh. She swiped beads of sweat that formed on her forehead with a hoof and looked at her little visitor, panting slightly.

“Hello there Apple Bloom!” She greeted her small sister, but immediately remembered something. She looked as Apple Bloom stopped in her tracks as she saw in what state the kitchen was. Her joyous smile slowly faded away, being replaced with a sheepish one. The young mare looked around and up to her big sister, gulping.

“Hehehe...” She gently kicked one apple lying near her hooves, sending rolling across the kitchen, “At least Ah got the work... done...?” She ended with an embarrassed smile, slightly lowering her head.

“Look missy, if only Ah would have the time, Ah would teach you a lil’ lesson, but now Ah hafta make something, so go play or sumthin’,” Applejack responded, immediately forgetting her smaller sister and resuming with her work.

As soon as Apple Bloom heard what Applejack said to her, her smile returned, doubled. “What are you doing sis’?” she asked, completely ignoring the first part of the sentence, curious of her sisters doings. She walked up to the counter Applejack was working on and peeked over to see what was on it. She curiously extended her hoof to prod the mug with the yeast in it, nearly making it topple over.

“What is this?” She asked with a innocent voice, looking quizzically at her big sister.

“Look Apple Bloom, Ah know that yer meanin’ no harm, but Ah’m kinda in a hurry here. Can you please go outside?” Applejack asked, looking at her sister with a kind expression. She really didn’t want the whole thing to prolong; she knew that she was very short on time.

Apple Bloom immediately saddened, her ears falling. She mumbled a silent “OK” and dragged herself out of the kitchen, sniffing, and kicking one of the apples on her way.

Applejack smiled, perfectly seeing through her little display. She knew that it took much more to make Apple Bloom this sad. But for now, she needed to focus on the task at hoof. She once again gazed at the clock, and cringed at what she saw. She already wasted half an hour, and only managed to do as much as nothing.

She quickly ran up to the yeast and poured it to the flour, accidentally spilling some on the counter and floor. She paid no attention to that, hurrying too much. She forcefully opened a drawer and retrieved a tablespoon with her mouth, closing the drawer with a thump. She gave the whole thing a quick stir, making the dough harden and become more solid. After that she threw the spoon into the sink, making bits of dough fly all over the kitchen, one landing on Applejack’s face.

She opened yet another cupboard and got a bag of flour and a rolling pin. She poured the flour carelessly onto the working surface of the kitchen, tinting her hoof white, some of it making its way onto the floor. She distributed the flour equally, and threw the bag back to the cupboard, hoping that it didn’t break. The blonde pony took the dough and threw it right in the center of the flour on the counter.

Moving the now empty bowl aside, she dug her hooves into the dough, fiercely mixing it while gritting her teeth from the exertion. After a while, she took the rolling pin and flattered the dough in a few swift and forceful moves. It was anything but round.

She took a pizza stone, which was just a ordinary piece of round stone, and placed the flattened dough on top. She ran up to the fridge, opened it, and rummaged through it while sweat drops dripped down her forehead. She found the tomato sauce, took it in her mouth, and went back to the counter, kicking the door close with a hind leg.

Applejack set the tomato sauce next to the pizza and took the spoon back from the sink with a sigh. She used it to pour the sauce onto the pizza, taking a peek at the clock from time to time. When the sauce was on, she took the stone and nearly threw it into the oven, that was, thank Celestia, open.

She closed the door, and immediately opened it again. While letting out a deep groan, she took two jars with cut mozzarella cheese and cut paprika out of a cupboard. The farm pony emptied both of them onto the pizza and placed it again into the oven. She dexterously set the time and temperature on the dials, and shut the door close.

Applejack let out a long and relieved sigh, leaned on her back on the door of the oven and soon slid to the floor, panting. She looked at the clock and smiled. She had still around ten minutes before Rainbow presumably wakes up. When Applejack looked around the kitchen, her smile fell.

It looked like a battlefield. The floor was carpeted with apples - it was hard not to step on one. The walls near the sink, including the window, were covered in dough, sticking to it like glue. Most of the cupboard and drawers were opened, the table and floor stained with flour. Applejack collected a bit of dough from her cheek, looked at it flatly, and threw it to the sink.

A curt ‘ding!’ meant the end of her short break. She got up and opened the oven door, to reveal as steaming hot pizza. The cheese was nicely brownish and bubbled slightly, still hot. The paprika was coated perfectly, and the dough baked neatly, forming a crisp crust.

She put on a hoof-glove and took the pizza out. She set it on the dining table and went back to the kitchen to fetch four plates and only three sets of cutlery - she knew how Dash was. When she set everything on the table, she took a step back to admire her hard work. Everything looked how it should, perfectly. Applejack allowed herself a smile.

“Mmmm, what’s that smell?” a dreamy voice said, somewhere from around the door.

“Aaaah!” Applejack shrieked in response, grimacing slightly. Soon she was knocked aside by a streak of rainbow, which only added to her bewilderment. While she recovered on the floor, a loud “Ohhhhh!” could be heard, which ended with a high pitched squeal.

Applejack was quickly picked up from the floor. Her face was held tight between the hooves of Rainbow Dash herself. Her eyes were large as saucers, her face a grin that threatened to rip her face in two.

“You did... that?!” She asked, still holding Applejack between her hooves.

“Y... Yes,” Applejack responded, still a little shaken from what she just experienced.

“Oh thanks, thanks, thanks, thank you, I love you!” Dash blurted out, and bombarded Applejack with fast kisses on her face, and a longer one on her lips. Before Applejack registered what transpired, they parted. Dash looked at Applejack with a serene smile. “Thank you,” Rainbow once more said and moved away to sit on her place.

She closed her eyes and smelled the pizza with a long inhale, closing her eyes while doing so. When she reopened her eyes, she looked around and said, “So... What are we waiting for?” Dash took a slice of pizza and placed it on her plate, already looking forward to the meal. “Let’s eat up!”

“OK, just wait a sec sugarcube, Ah need ta call the others,” Applejack responded, and went halfway up the stairs. When she got there, she yelled to Mac And Apple Bloom to come down for breakfast.

“Haha, Applejack, Ah didn’t take you for-” Big Mac started when entering the dining room, but never finished due to a speeding Apple Bloom. She flashed right by him and right onto her seat near the table, again, nearly making the whole thing topple over.

“Ohhhh, so this is what ya were doin’ when ya made this enormous mess in the kitchen!” Apple Bloom said, nearly drooling only from looking at the pizza. Mac raised his eyebrows and looked at his big sister, who only smiled in slight embarrassment.

“Ah never ate somethin’ like that for breakfast!” Apple Bloom confessed, and immediately snached the biggest slice there was.

She packed it in her mouth whole, and swallowed with just a few chews. Dash soon noticed that if she won't start eating soon, there will be nothing left for her. She took her slice and admired it. She could recognize a home made pizza when she saw it. Not wanting to wait any longer she took a bite off her slice. Saying it was delicious was a understatement; the dough was perfectly baked, forming a brittle crust that crumbled perfectly in mouth. The paprika-cheese taste combo was truly genius. Dash tilted her head backwards on her chair, her mind concentrating solely on the scrumptious pizza.

After the pizza was devoured, mainly by Dash and Apple Bloom, the table and the whole kitchen were cleaned, which was a considerable effort. After the work was done, Applejack and Dash allowed themselves a moment of break. They both laid on the couch in the living room, enjoying a moment of rest. Rainbow set the side of her head on Applejack’s chest, listening to her calm heartbeat with her eyes closed, while Applejack gently stroked her multi-colored mane with a hoof.

“You remember...” Dash broke the silence. “You remember when I got super excited when I saw that you made pizza for breakfast?” She asked, shifting her head to look at Applejack.

“Yes Ah do, ya were happy as a little filly,” Applejack responded, the recent memory putting a smile to her face.

“I wasn’t so happy because of the pizza itself...” Rainbow slowly confessed, looking Applejack in the eyes. “Rather, I was happy because of the fact that you did it for me, that you wanted to make something special for me,” She concluded, her embrace on her marefrend strengthening. She looked away in slight embarrassment.

Applejack moved Rainbow up, so their faces met. “Ah did that, because Ah love ya. And Ah want ya to be happy.” She gave the simple explanation.

“Thanks. I love you too.” She moved up and the lovers shared a long kiss. When it ended, Rainbow remembered something. “Wait a second here, I think I have a present you’ll be happy about for you.” She said with a mischievous smirk. She got up and flew out of the room before Applejack could protest. She ran up to the window in time to see Rainbow heading for her cloud home, leaving a magnificent rainbow trail in her wake.

The mare circled a few clouds on her way up to her house. She swiftly landed on her porch and entered, disappearing in the house for a few moments. The farm mare was even more astonished when she saw Rainbow flying out of her house, holding something brown in her front hooves. Applejack couldn't recognize what it was from the distance though.

She moved away from the window and quickly headed to the main door, opening it for the colorful Pegasus. She observed her as the rainbow-maned mare made her touchdown.

“Close your eyes!” Rainbow playfully commanded, before Applejack could get a good look at what Dash brought with her. She snickered, but complied. She felt something rough and slightly cold being settled on her head. It felt strangely familiar to the earth pony.

She happily gasped as realization hit her. She opened her eyes and reached to her head and took the thing off. Her beloved, favorite stetson was what she was holding. She threw it atop her head with a laugh: it was as comfortable as she remembered.

Applejack looked at Dash’s smiling face and crossed the distance between them in a fraction of a second. Rainbow found herself in a embrace capable of crushing ribs.

“Thank you darlin’!” The farmer thanked, still crushing the Pegasus.

“I’m happy ’n all too, but... I would also like to breathe,” Rainbow grunted out.

“Oh sorry, heh,” Applejack apologized, releasing Dash from her iron hug. “Ah’m all grateful sugarcube, but where did ya find it?”

“However unlikely this might seem, I found it lying right near the path leading to the farmhouse,” Rainbow explained, smiling. “I hope that you like it.”

“Of course Ah like it, Ah missed it real hard,” Applejack responded, tipping her recovered hat. She looked at the sun, and whistled. “It’s pretty late. Better get ta work.”

Dash immediately saddened when she heard that. She looked down and dug a hoof in the ground.

Seeing this, Applejack once again examined the skies. “Hmm, It looks like there are a few clouds here and there, don’t ya hafta to clear them?” Applejack asked, winking at the Pegasus.

Rainbow only sent a surprised look to the earth pony as a reply.

“Ya no longer hafta work on the farm, bucking trees. Now Ah know that ya really hated it, so ya will do it no more. We can handle the trees mighty good ourselves,” Applejack stated, sending a sincere smile to the Pegasus, who repaid with the same. The cyan mare moved closer to Applejack, and embraced her.

“Thank you Applejack, it means the world for me,” Dash thanked, digging her face into Applejack’s golden hair. “I really love you... and I’m sorry. I’m so sorry for being such a fool. For not seeing what you were doing for me. I was taking, but was too selfish to give,” she said, digging stronger. “And I hope that you can forgive me.” She concluded, nearly whispering.

Applejack moved so they were looking each other in the eyes. “Dash... Ah forgave you long ago, when Ah was danglin’ from that root, and Ah saw ya flyin’ fast towards me. You grabbed me, and the moment I saw the fear in yer eyes, Ah knew that you really love me.” The farm pony sniffed, a lone tear running from her eye, leaving a speck on the dirt road.

“Thank you Applejack. I was such a fool, thank you.” Dash responded, a tear of her own escaping her eye, and rolling down her cheek.

They slowly moved closer together, both closing their eyes. It was just like the first time. Their tongues danced around one another, the nearly extinguished flame of love raging like never before.

The End

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Post story notes: Big thanks to both of my marvelous pre-readers, and of course to you, the reader that managed to make it through this fanfiction. Thanks again, and see you soon, and don't forget to rate and comment!