Chapter Text
In Ponyville, people loved the autumn season. The sun rising in the morning felt different, it released a perfect ray of light upon the mountains, basking everyone in its glow.
They loved the relaxing breeze blowing through the town in the evening, and how the leaves of the trees slowly turned brown.
For the youth of Ponyville, they enjoyed all seasons and one reason why they loved autumn the most was because they were able to jump on piles of dried leaves whenever they could see one.
They would go around everywhere in Ponyville and find a mountain of leaves, feel the thrill of launching themselves towards it and simply watch the leaves fly everywhere in awe. But of course, in return, they would clean up the mess afterwards, making sure to help the townsfolk rake the leaves back to its original form.
Although, despite the loving qualities of the season, autumn rolling in almost meant that it was the end of business for Sweet Apple Acres.
Since all of the leaves would fall off its branches, and no fruit would bear in the kind of temperature it was in.
If Applejack was honest, she didn’t like the season like the others did. Because this season would mean that she wouldn’t be able to work and all she wanted to do was earn more profit for the family.
But Big Mac would always remind her that autumn and winter were the only seasons when Granny Smith could rest. And could never protest that, her grandmother deserved the break.
But it didn’t stop her from resenting the season.
It was the first morning of the season, Applejack was up, bright and early to start apple bucking. Right after a hot cup of coffee and eating the small breakfast Apple Bloom made for her, she started her day of work.
She went to get all the big empty baskets that were kept inside their barn and lugged them into her wagon so she could bring it to the orchard to get the remaining apples that were left on top of her trees.
Once she had everything ready, she placed two baskets on each side of one tree and started kicking the trees with her right leg. She watched the apples fall into the baskets, then double checked the branches if there were any left, if there were none, she would proceed to the next apple tree and do the same thing over again.
A tedious process. Repetitive. But she grew to love it.
As she was about to ready herself to kick the next tree, she stopped when she noticed her big brother walking towards her with Caramel in tow, bringing another wagon.
He approached Applejack and gave her a look that she knew immediately.
“Let me guess, Caramel lost the seeds again?” Applejack asked with a playful glint in her voice. She turned to face the both of them and couldn’t help but smile when Caramel lowered his head with embarrassment.
Big Mac simply sighed and patted his head softly.
“Eeyup. We’re gonna head to town to get another pack,” her big brother said in his thick accent, looking at Caramel with another serious stare. “And he’s payin’ this time.”
Applejack chuckled and grabbed the wagon handle from him and patted Caramel on the back. Feeling slightly sorry for him, but rules were rules.
This was something they agreed on since Caramel had a knack of forgetting and losing things.
She brought the wagon to the side and went back to the both of them, taking out her bag of bits from her back pocket. She threw the small pouch to Caramel who tried to catch it but eventually dropped it, as always.
“It’s fine, Big Mac, I’ll pay. Just make sure he doesn’t lose the bits too. Keep a good eye on him.” She then grinned at them, and Caramel’s face turned bright red. Big Mac could only snort at his sister and shook his head. Applejack then nudged her brother. “I’m just kiddin’ with ya Big Mac.” She chuckled again. “But I’m serious, just use my extra bits for now.”
“T-Thanks, Applejack. I promise not to lose anything this time,” Caramel said softly and very apologetic, then he looked up at the tall farmer next to him.
Big Mac looked down at him and blushed at his friend’s stare. He immediately grabbed Caramel’s wrist and turned to leave the orchard.
“Thanks AJ!” Big Mac shouted before he left with his small companion. Applejack rested her foot on the wagon wheel and watched the two head towards the path that led towards the exit of the Acre.
She smiled, not missing the way Caramel hugged Big Mac’s arm as they disappeared through the trees.
Applejack was happy that Big Mac and Caramel were together, in love and happy. She knew Caramel had been crushing on her big brother ever since he applied for a job in Sweet Apple Acres.
She remembered the times when Caramel would stare at Big Mac carrying the bushels of hay or the baskets of apples, making him forget his chores. Or when Caramel would subconsciously show that he would rather be by Big Mac’s side than Applejack’s.
And she was very open-minded about Caramel’s situation, even if it was evident he was showing favorite’s due to his feelings.
She managed to talk with Caramel about it and to her surprise, she found out that Big Mac liked him too. Since she didn’t really expect her brother to be capable of feeling anything beyond love for his family and for his work.
It made her realize that maybe there was so much more to Big Mac that she had yet to discover. Her brother was never really open about his feelings anyway. One small step at a time.
So she was glad that there was someone, who was as nice as Caramel, that was able to make her brother feel safe to express his feelings.
Applejack didn’t protest when she discovered it. She only wanted her family to be happy, since that was what made her happy.
At least Granny Smith didn’t mind either, she said the same thing anyway. As long as Big Mac was happy.
“Seems like Big Mac has a little fooler,” a familiar, playful voice came from above, Applejack jerked to the direction where the voice was from. She smirked when she saw her friend hovering above her, giving a smirk as well.
“And what brings you here, Rainbow Dash? Aren’t ya supposed to be on weather duty?” Applejack asked mockingly with a smile, the wind walker lowered herself to the ground next to her. She tucked her wings on her back comfortably and brushed her rainbow colored hair with her hand.
“I got bored, so I came here to see what you’re up to,” she said looking around the orchard.
That made Applejack scoff playfully. Before responding, she grabbed one of the big baskets on the ground and handed it to Rainbow Dash.
“Well, you can help me get some apples off them trees, so they won’t rot after Sunday,” she said cheerfully and went to the next tree to harvest. She placed the basket down and placed her hands on her waist, waiting for her friend to do the same.
Rainbow’s shoulders slumped, not too keen with the task but eventually shrugged.
“Alright, alright. But I’m only helping ‘cause I’m bored,” Rainbow said as she approached the tree filled with ripe apples and put the basket into place. She stepped back a bit and kicked the tree trunk as hard as she could. Seconds later only a few apples fell into the basket, the wind walker looked up at the tree, confused. “What? Lemme try again.” She backed up some more and ran towards the tree and the blue wings on her back extended, lifting her up giving her more force as she tackled the tree.
The impact made the remaining apples fall and some squirrels fled from the area. The result made her smile smugly and rubbed her nose with her thumb. “Ha! I can totally do this!” She exclaimed proudly.
Applejack sighed, she approached the tree and saw a foot mark imprinted on the trunk. “You can do this alright, but next time, use less force. You don’t want to send this tree flyin’ to Cloudsdale,” she teased. Rainbow chuckled in response and patted Applejack on the back.
“It’ll be fine, AJ. I can control my strength, so you don’t have to worry about your trees.” She then grabbed the filled basket and flew over the wagon and positioned it safely with the others. She leaned on the wagon and wiped the sweat off her forehead.
“Man! That’s a lot of hard work!” Rainbow said, getting another empty basket.
"Hard work? You just did one tree." Applejack chuckled, shaking her head at Rainbow and lifted a heavier basket on her shoulders, her face was filled with sweat and a bit of dirt. “This is only the beginning. Plus I have to make a bunch of deliveries before winter kicks in,” she said, lowering the basket slowly on the cart.
“And one of those deliveries are to Fluttershy?” Rainbow asked teasingly, grinning slyly and raised her eyebrow.
Applejack suddenly felt a blush rushing through her cheeks and looked away angrily. She grabbed another basket fast and walked away to continue. But the thought of their other friend made her stop a bit and she looked back at Rainbow Dash.
“How is she?” she asked softly.
“She’s fine, lonely as usual with her animals,” Rainbow said nonchalantly. Then she walked to Applejack and stood beside her. “Do you still plan to keep your mouth shut or are you gonna ask her out or something?”
That made Applejack blush even harder.
“I-I thought you said she doesn’t like nobody?” She asked frantically, going to another tree, “And I know she don’t want me.” Out of the nervousness in her chest, she kicked it stronger than usual and it made the roots of the tree come out of the ground.
Applejack panicked, she tried to dig the roots back on the ground and picked up the apples that rolled away.
Rainbow sighed at the sight and went to help her pick up the ones that rolled far away.
“Chill AJ, I thought you said to use less force?” She chuckled and placed the apples in the basket. But when Applejack couldn’t give a response, she heard Rainbow let out a sigh and approached her again. “I know it hurts that she rejected you. But look at the bright side, AJ. She still treats you like a close friend. So you don’t have to feel bad about yourself.” Rainbow then gently nudged Applejack to look at her. When she did, her friend smiled, shrugging her shoulders. “Just ask her out as friends.”
That made Applejack sigh as well, she took off her hat and held it on her side, enjoying the cold breeze through her blonde hair. She looked at Rainbow with sad eyes but held her smile.
“I just wanted to tell her the truth,” she said softly but her smile didn’t last as she frowned. “And I really wanna move on. But I can't, it's too difficult for me.” She then paused for a moment to think then she chuckled to herself. “You know that I tried to get me a girl to date and all.”
“But?”
Applejack sighed again. “I end up thinking about Fluttershy again, and all them feelings come back to me like a herd of cattle stampeding through Ponyville again.”
Rainbow stayed quiet, keeping her hands in her pockets, stretching her wings a bit and one wing slapping Applejack on the back. “C’mon, AJ! You’re still young, so you can find someone else other than Flutters. I mean, sometimes I feel like she’ll be single till she dies,” Rainbow joked, she probably just wanted to make light of the situation.
And Applejack always appreciated whenever Rainbow did that. It didn’t help all the time, but it was still something. So she smiled and gently punched Rainbow on the shoulder and chuckled.
“Thanks, Rainbow. Means a lot to me. But I still gotta deliver them apples to her.” She wore her hat again and carried the remaining baskets. She looked around the orchard; there were only a few apple trees left.
Rainbow got the rest of the baskets and her wings spread out, she dashed at the remaining trees and quickly positioned the baskets on each side of the trees.
Applejack dropped her basket in shock; she scratched the back of her head and chuckled. Rainbow Dash flew back at Applejack and grinned confidently.
“I am still faster than you, AJ. No doubt about that.” She dropped gently on the ground and leaned on the tree next to her. Applejack returned the smile, and she approached Rainbow then gave the tree a gentle kick. An apple suddenly dropped, and it landed on Rainbow’s head, “Ow! What was that for?!” she shouted at Applejack, rubbing the top of her head in pain.
“Not in this farm,” Applejack said with a grin.
“Oh yeah?” Rainbow’s wings spread out again giving her competitive face to Applejack. “Fastest one to finish bucking has to buy lunch, deal?”
“Heh, get your wallet ready then, Rainbow Dash,” she said, accepting the challenge.
She pulled her hat down, securing it on her head. The two placed a foot behind them, looking at each target and leaned forward, ready to leap from their positions.
Suddenly Winona came running to them and the moment she barked, the two friends dashed towards the apple trees, kicking them quickly but firmly, making all the apples fall into the baskets. Nothing really changed between the both of them, they always loved a good challenge.
Especially if it included food, neither Rainbow nor Applejack could refuse.
Winona kept barking while they kicked each tree trunk and went to the next with agility and speed. Applejack felt relieved that she was keeping her mind off the timid wind walker and getting her job done.
She was lucky that Rainbow helped with her work; she could take the afternoon off and relax with Apple Bloom and Winona. Though, even with the challenge, the rush of the apple bucking, she still couldn’t forget that day she told Fluttershy how she felt for her.
//
Applejack saw Fluttershy sitting by the bench at the park that morning; Angel was sitting with her as usual.
She asked Fluttershy to meet her there because she had something important to tell her. She needed to tell Fluttershy how she felt before it would consume her. Applejack couldn’t sleep anymore because the feelings were starting to overwhelm her.
It was that day that she mustered the courage to finally say it.
With a deep breath, she finally left her spot and approached the wind walker. “Howdy, Fluttershy. Did I kept you waitin’ for too long?”
“Oh no, it’s fine AJ. Angel kept me company and some new friends,” she said, smiled at the bird sitting on a nearby tree. “Oh dear, forgive me for my rudeness.” She then scooted to the side on the bench and patted on the empty space. “Please take a seat, Applejack. You must be exhausted from work today.”
“Why, thank you Fluttershy,” she said, she sat gently next to her and smiled. She was trying to not look nervous in front of Fluttershy and tried her best not to make her polo damp from sweat, though she did bring a handkerchief just in case. It was her first time confessing to anyone before. Since she was more devoted to work than anything else, but this time she found a reason to take a break from it.
Fluttershy then turned to face her, but she felt increasingly nervous when she realized they were very close to each other. The wind walker immediately turned away and hid her face behind her long wavy hair.
“What did you want to talk about?” Fluttershy asked softly. Suddenly, Applejack was worried that she scared her, and she patted her back gently.
“Are you okay? I didn’t mean to make this look serious and all. I actually just wanted to tell you somethin’.” Her eyes darted around as she tried to find other words to say.
“Is something wrong, AJ?” Fluttershy looked even more concerned, making Applejack even more uneasy. She then took off her hat and faced her slowly, hoping not to startle her again.
She cleared her throat and looked at Fluttershy, who only stared back, waiting for her to speak. “Fluttershy, ya know that I’m the most honest person here in Ponyville and you know that I can’t keep much inside me, right?”
“Uhm, yes,” she responded timidly, “W-What is it?”
“I think I like ya,” she immediately said, then pursed her lips. “Not in a friendly way. Something much, much more than just friends.” She managed to say, her face was filled with fear since she finally got it out of her.
She knew that saying this would jeopardize their friendship, but keeping her feelings in felt like it was also not telling the truth. She could hide and deny it all she wanted but she knew that if she did, it would make her feel incredibly guilty.
But to her dismay, Fluttershy was silent. Nothing came out of her mouth, but she started moving her hands and mouth like she wanted to say something. Applejack was about to say something to relieve the tension, but Fluttershy suddenly stood up from the bench and she ran away with Angel in her arms.
//
Ever since that day, Fluttershy didn’t show herself to Applejack, nor did she say anything to her. But none of their friends knew. Just Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle. Apparently, it was hard to keep it in whenever she was around the magician.
Luckily, they both kept it a secret. Knowing that making their other friends worried about it would cause another problem. Applejack didn't want that.
But despite what happened, Fluttershy still tried to make an effort to make sure that their friendship didn’t end.
She was even the one who asked for the weekly supply of apples for Angel. Though, she didn’t ask Applejack personally.
The farmer had a hunch that Fluttershy was still… shy and made the request through a letter. Probably the rejection made her feel ashamed to face Applejack. Which was totally not the case for her. She could handle the rejection, she believed. She just didn’t like this change.
So, every Monday when Applejack would walk over to Fluttershy’s treehouse, she would always find a note outside her door, instructing her to place the box of apples on the doormat and the note would end with a simple thank you.
For Applejack, it was a relief that she didn’t decide to ignore her, but it made her feel bad that she refused to meet nor talk in person.
She was honestly okay if they remained friends. She didn’t care anymore if Fluttershy refused to return her affection.
Applejack would rather save their friendship. It was more important.
Though, she couldn’t help but feel bad when they bump into each other in public and Fluttershy would avoid her. Or turn around to leave whenever Applejack tried to say hi to her. But at least the wind walker would ask either Rainbow Dash or Pinkie to tell her that she said hi. At least none of them would question it, they would think it’s just another Fluttershy thing.
And for Applejack, it was something; at least they were still friends.
Though, even if this was their situation, that Applejack feelings brought them to this, she still loved Fluttershy. Her care and love for Fluttershy never changed.
She accepted the fact that nothing could possibly discourage her from liking Fluttershy. She just had to promise herself that she would never talk about her feelings ever again.
Fluttershy had absolutely no idea why she was standing in front of the doors of Sugarcube Corner.
Maybe there was something telling her that she needed to hang out with someone that day. Which was slightly off for her since she usually enjoyed spending her time at home, with the animals, in the comfort of her own company.
She thought about doing some gardening, maybe tending to the chickens outside, or taking a stroll at the park again so she could greet the birds that flew in during the autumn season.
But for some reason, she didn’t feel like it.
It could be one of those days where her thoughts made her restless, made her less of an introvert. Which, again, was odd. She couldn’t put her finger on it.
So, instead of mulling around and being miserable because of it, she decided to head to town and try to find the answers she was unknowingly seeking.
She thought about visiting Twilight, but the moment she turned to the direction of the library, she could already hear her friend screaming at something Spike did, a couple of noises she made whenever she did her magic and glass shattering. Maybe one or two of them… or more.
Fluttershy could go somewhere else.
But she didn’t have the guts to head to Rarity’s place because she was aware that her friend had been busy for the past few weeks due to a huge project from a fancy person living in Canterlot.
So bugging her was out of the question.
The mere thought of Applejack made her flustered beyond belief, so she had to scratch that option out of the way. She really needed to address that issue soon.
Thoughts of her farmer friend muddled her mind, realizing that maybe it really was the reason why she needed to speak to someone that day.
Fluttershy could fly up to Cloudsdale and ask Rainbow Dash for help, but she knew her friend was also busy. She hated the idea of bothering anyone, really.
So, her only hope at that moment was Pinkie Pie. Fluttershy already prepared herself for the amount of energy and shouting she had to take in as she chose this path.
She took a breath, kept it in for a few more seconds and exhaled slowly.
Then she knocked on the door.
“Coming!” The loud shout coming from Pinkie could be heard from outside. She waited for the door to swing open so she could be greeted by a bright flash of pink, but instead she heard a crash and Fluttershy immediately opened the door and peeked her head in.
“Oh my, are you okay Pinkie?” She asked quickly, worry flooding her chest as she saw her friend face flat on the ground. But as always, Pinkie picked herself up with a jump and rushed to open the door wider for her.
“Fluttershy! So nice to see you!” Pinkie greeted her happily, rushing to hug her tightly.
Fluttershy couldn’t handle her friend’s tight embrace and tried to hug her back. “It’s—“ she tried to inhale, but Pinkie squeezed her even more. “—nice t-to see you too, Pinkie.”
To her relief, Pinkie released her and grabbed her hand to tug her further into the shop. “So, what can I get you? A cupcake? A muffin? Tarts? Gummy!?” She asked the questions at breakneck speed. Then out of nowhere, she brought out her baby alligator and pushed him close to Fluttershy’s face.
She was a bit taken aback by it, but she simply smiled, stroked Gummy’s head, and giggled. “Actually, I was hoping we could spend the afternoon together,” she said shyly, looking down on the ground. “I mean, if it’s okay.” She tucked her long pink locks behind her ear.
“That would be great! I was actually doing some chores for Mr. and Mrs. Cake while they’re gone to the doctor,” she said putting Gummy down on the floor, then she started jumping on her feet, looking excited to spend time together.
Fluttershy nodded slightly and smiled. “I don’t mind, I just wanted to pass the time since the clinic is closed today.”
That wasn’t a lie, nor did it feel like the truth. She knew why she decided to close the clinic that day, she just didn’t want to admit it. Not yet.
Pinkie nodded her head this time, tapping her finger on her chin, as if she was thinking deeply. Fluttershy knew she wasn’t. “I see, I guess you want to take a break since your clinic is open every day of the week,” Pinkie said, leading Fluttershy to the kitchen. She picked up the timer that was on the counter and got her oven mitts ready.
“Well, yes. I haven’t had any patients lately.” She pushed her glasses that were perched on her nose and looked at Pinkie who was watching the oven intently. Fluttershy tilted her head with curiosity. “Are you baking a cake?”
“Mrs. Cup Cake told me to get the cake she baked right after the timer goes off and it’s almost done!” She explained with a bounce, her eyes were still locked on the cake inside the oven.
Ding!
“It’s done!” she shouted, as if she was announcing it to the entire town.
The pink-haired friend excitedly opened the oven and carefully brought out a large foam cake baked to a tender golden brown.
The aroma of the simple cake filled the room; Pinkie placed it gently on the counter and took a moment to enjoy the smell of the newly baked cake.
Fluttershy quietly approached the cake, she couldn’t help but be amazed at how good it looked even if it hadn’t been covered in frosting yet.
“I never knew a simple cake like this would look so tasty.” She giggled and also took a moment to admire the scent of the cake.
Pinkie smiled widely and skipped to the oven to close it.
“Mrs. Cup Cake always makes the best foam cakes! I can’t wait ‘till she places the frosting!” Pinkie said energetically. She removed her oven mitts and covered the cake with one of the plastic lids that was of the perfect size and fit for the cake.
Fluttershy assumed that she wasn’t in charge of decorating it. At least her overly energetic friend knew that it wasn’t her task to do.
Pinkie then cleaned up the remaining mess on the kitchen counter, even running to the corner to grab a mop to clean the floor from the spilled flour.
Fluttershy simply watched her in silence, she knew she didn’t have to wait long since her friend did things pretty quickly.
Once Pinkie was done, she headed over to one of the cupboards and grabbed two glasses, then filled it with water. “Here you go Flutters, you must be thirsty,” she said happily, handing her the glass.
She accepted it timidly and smiled. “Thank you, Pinkie.” Then took a sip from the glass and kept it between her hands.
Fluttershy was about to open up a topic to keep their conversation going but something from outside the window that got her attention.
From her spot, she saw two very familiar figures; it was Applejack and Rainbow Dash riding on a wagon that was pulled by one of Applejack’s horses and the wagon was filled with apples. Rainbow was wearing Applejack's cowboy hat, and they were laughing. Her heart felt a giant tug when she saw the big smile on Applejack’s face and suddenly turned away, blushing heavily.
Pinkie took notice, gulped down her water and peeked out the window. “What’s wrong? Who did you see?” she asked eagerly as she planted her face on the window. Fluttershy giggled again when she saw Pinkie slowly prying herself away and her face was also kissed with a blush.
“You saw her didn’t you?” Fluttershy teased and poked Pinkie on the shoulder, making her friend blush even more. But it didn’t take long for Pinkie to recover from being so flustered, her straight face suddenly turned into a smile, and she started to giggle.
“Rainbow is so cute with Applejack’s hat on,” she said, looking all giddy as she did.
That made Fluttershy smile again. She knew that Pinkie would get silly and very happy whenever she saw Rainbow Dash.
She was aware that her friend had been crushing on Rainbow for a while. It didn’t surprise her, really. Her friends may banter like a bunch of children, but she knew deep down that Pinkie caught feelings because of that.
It was their little secret. Pinkie wasn’t sure if she was ready to share with the others about it. Maybe she was aware that Fluttershy wasn’t a woman of words, so she probably was and forever will be the best person to tell secrets to.
Plus, Pinkie was also aware of her situation with Applejack. In fact, everyone in their group knew. Pinkie just got herself more involved with the others because she was like that.
Twilight and Rarity agreed to keep it to themselves. Both saying that it was none of their business to pry in such personal matters. Plus, they would only get involved if Applejack said something as well.
To their surprise, their farmer friend said nothing. Probably to keep the peace. And that always made Fluttershy feel guilty.
At least Rainbow assured her that she would be the one to make sure that Applejack was okay.
“You should talk to her, you know.” Fluttershy almost jumped in fear when Pinkie suddenly piped up. She held her hand over her chest to calm her beating heart, but she softened her expression when Pinkie was giving her nothing but a gentle smile.
“I-I know,” she replied and looked at Pinkie. “I don’t want to do this to her anymore. I mean, I don’t exactly have the same feelings, but I don’t want this to happen since we’re still friends…” then she started to mumble, fiddling with the sleeves of her sweater. Her nervousness was getting the best out of her again.
She really wasn’t the type to say too much. Usually trailing off when she realized too late that she couldn’t control the words that were coming out of her mouth.
But Fluttershy couldn’t help it. This situation she was in with Applejack was frustrating. Oftentimes, she would blame herself for why they were like this.
She did try. She tried so hard to pretend that nothing happened, that they could just be like they were before. But there was something in her that just felt… scared. That she couldn’t seem to face something that she believed was her fault.
Ordering apples from Applejack was one way to mend whatever was broken. Fluttershy didn’t want her friend to think that even if she confessed, things would change. She loved Applejack, she cared for her deeply and the last thing she would want was for their relationship to be in shambles because she wasn’t able to reciprocate her feelings.
Fluttershy wasn’t even sure she would be able to reciprocate anything to anyone.
“Maybe you should stop giving him notes and finally face him and talk,” Pinkie said, giving her a big smile. “We all know she’s trying her best to make things normal again too. Wouldn’t it be good to also do the same thing?”
She turned away. “I know…”
Pinkie sighed but then she grabbed her hands and held it tightly. “I’m not rushing you. But if I was Applejack, I would want you to talk to me, you know, in person. And if I were you, I would say… I don’t know, ‘I miss my friend and it would be nice to talk to her again?’”
Fluttershy hesitated for a bit, but she knew that Pinkie made a lot of sense. Which was rare, because most of the time, she didn’t really make a lot of sense. But she had to admit, she was also right. She did miss Applejack. She missed talking to her normally, she missed her company, and she missed hanging out with everyone without feeling guilty.
And she knew that Applejack was making a lot of effort just to make sure things weren’t awkward between them. Fluttershy never thought of it that way, but she could definitely see her friend trying. She should do the same. It was only fair, and she owed Applejack that.
With a deep breath, she clenched her fists and tried to nod her head with confidence. “Okay! I’ll talk to Applejack,” she announced it, her voice a bit louder than usual, making her believe that if she said it that way it would be true. Sadly, the confidence was overshadowed again by her fear and nervousness, and her shoulders slumped and started playing with her fingers. “Not now, though,” she added, defeatedly.
“But you should! You can’t keep him waiting, Flutters. She may be a patient gal, but it’s been months already,” Pinkie said with a concerned voice. “Isn’t she supposed to deliver Angel’s apples today? You should go home and receive them!”
“Well, yes—“ she responded, but paused suddenly, that didn’t sound right. Fluttershy turned around and went to the calendar hanging by the wall to read it. “It’s still Saturday, Pinkie,” she corrected her friend with a small giggle.
Autumn had started, but it wasn’t Monday.
The words were probably sinking in to Pinkie, she dashed to the calendar and read it too. When Fluttershy pointed at the date that Mrs. Cup Cake didn’t mark with an X, Pinkie threw her palm on her head and they both giggled.
After calming down from their giggle fit, Pinkie took a deep breath in, she suddenly cupped Fluttershy’s face with both her hands. “I know it’s hard to overcome your shyness, or your feelings about this. But you have to remember that Applejack is your friend, she’ll always be there to listen to you.” Then she gave her another look. “So, when Monday comes, you have to personally receive the apples from her, got it?”
Fluttershy was about to answer but Pinkie’s serious expression transformed immediately, releasing her face to grab onto her shoulders then started jumping on her spot again, shaking Fluttershy a bit. “I can’t wait till you do! I bet Applejack is going to be so surprised to see you!”
She couldn’t help but laugh at her friend, seeing her was definitely a great idea.
Fluttershy didn’t wait for another moment to be interrupted by Pinkie’s sudden bursts of energy and kept her still with a tight hug, effectively surprising Pinking and keeping her in place.
“T-Thank you, Pinkie,” she said in a soft voice. She looked up and smiled at her friend, who simply smiled back and returned the hug, but not in the bone-crushing way. The soft kind, where they could sink into it.
She was grateful to have Pinkie. The friend may have moments of difficulty, where no one could keep her in check, but it always compensated with moments like this. Because Pinkie—and everyone would agree to this—was an amazing friend.
So in moments where she needed to gain her confidence and be strong, she could always count on Pinkie to help her out.
But she didn’t know if that confidence could bleed out until Monday. She hoped it would.