If nothing else so far, Rarity had been correct about one thing: this was indeed going to be a long haul.
Post sunrise the next morning, the conductor of the train broke the news that they wouldn't even be arriving that day at all. Zebrica was in the far corner of the landmass known as Equestria, and even a speedy train such as this couldn't cross the distance that quickly. It would take time, a finite substance that Pinkie didn't want to waste. Her frustration was mildly mitigated with a promise of a hair styling by the local fashion diva.
Some stories were told to pass the time, since other means of distractions weren't easy to find. As the train drove through a scenic forest at sundown, thoughts turned to Fluttershy, a pony no pony had seen for nearly two months—she had been the first to leave Ponyville. She was supposed to be in Zebrica treating animals there. Whether she was still there or not, the group of four were soon going to find out.
At the dawn of the new day, the vehicle's driver shared that they would manage to arrive there this time. It might take until late afternoon, but it would be totally worth it. "The reverstone," Pinkie thought to herself whilst smiling at her reflection in the compartment's window.
From what they were able to see before blowing past it, Zebrica was an amazing place. They saw homes; cottages, tents, even an outhouse or two, all made lovingly with natural building materials. They caught glimpses of zebras of all sizes staring in awe back at them as the train barreled on its predetermined path down the track. Then, it began to slow.
They were rolling up to Zebrica's train station. Or at least what was supposed to pass for it.
A roof made from straw covered the ponies overhead as soon as they stepped outside the door. It was supposed to shade passengers from Zebrica's warm sun, but since it was already so close to sundown, it wasn't very effective this time. Besides that, there wasn't even a building to follow suit; their first hoofsteps were on one of the few patches of grass that has managed to survive out here.
Looking around, they found themselves in a town that, in its own way, resembled Ponyville. It wasn't bustling by any means, rather it seemed like a tight-knit community. More homes and business stands were littered around the area before them, all of them masterfully crafted using material ponies had found mostly obsolete: sticks, unused fabric, even things like mud and stones.
They began their trek forward. None of them truly knew where they were going, but something was bound to pop up. Resident citizens watched the ensemble of colorful equines strolling by them not in hostility, but in wonder.
Rarity had purposely left her coat in the train, feeling as though she needed no further reminders of her stint in Canterlot. Without anything hiding it, her entire body shivered as she stared at a notably unclean-looking house. "Ick..." she whispered to the group, "Zebras live in those things? It's so... old world."
Holding her head up high, her friend wasn't afraid of arguing the point. "That's just you," Applejack stated. "I'm right envious of these folks."
"Envious?" she echoed in shock, "Applejack, even your farm is slightly more sterile than that ugly thing."
The cowpony put on a grin. Maybe she was impressed by Rarity's very first compliment about her farm? "I'm envious because these here zebras could put up normal buildin's if they wanted to. They just don't. They're just as happy as you 'n I without all the junk we have. Friends and family. Do ya need more than that?"
"That was well said, Applejack!" Twilight Sparkle praised.
They didn't make it all that far from the train before they made their first acquaintance in Zebrica. A zebra, tall in structure, approached them calmly from ahead. Where Zecora had a circle thing on her flank, this one had a set of triangles stacked on top of each other, like some ancient symbol; his stripes were also more traditional than Zecora's. A single gold necklace was wrapped around his long neck. Contained inside his voice was a welcoming, almost amused tone. "Ah, more ponies still. Should we expect even more after you?"
Pinkie's confusion peaked. "More ponies still? Who got here before us?"
"There is one who flew in just last night," he answered happily. "But I do not mean to be rude. My name is Muzzo, and I lead this tribe. What takes you all to this land?"
Twilight stepped up. It was like she knew Pinkie was going to shout, "The reverstone!" because she spoke up before it happened. "We're actually here for several reasons, but one of them is a quest for our princess, Luna. She asked us to come here in search for any activity by creatures known as werebears. Have your people been safe, Muzzo?"
Muzzo's head tilted on its side, his pin-sharp black and white mane following it. From that angle, Pinkie could see a little scar underneath his chin. It was probably just a birth mark... or maybe the peaceful land hasn't been so peaceful lately. "In better or worse for your search, I am happy to report that werebears have not attacked us for generations. But what an odd request. I was not even aware ponies knew of them."
"So werebears are here!" Pinkie shouted in glee, "Does that mean the rever—"
Twilight muffled the rest of that sentence by keeping Pinkie's mouth shut with magic. Rather rudely, she continued on like it hadn't even happened. "We were instructed to find the werebears' home, too. We have reason to fear that the safety of Equestria might be in jeopardy by them."
The tribe leader was no longer smiling. He was looking each of the ponies over in turn. Pinkie couldn't help noticing that he glanced at AJ twice. "You are a brave group. I trust there's no need to explain to you the dangers of doing such a thing."
"No, sir. We're as prepared as we ever will be."
Muzzo nodded, then started trotting off westward. "Normally, I would not do this. However, an order from a princess is just that. Follow me, and I will show you where it is I believe they stay."
"'Prepared'?" Applejack questioned, moving along with the group. "Twi, we ain't got nothing that we didn't have the last time we fought these darn things."
Rarity gasped, "I resent that! Thanks to me, you have far more sophistication to your team!"
"Ooh," AJ muttered, rolling her eyes. "That'll git them werebears right where it counts."
A rescue from the feud came from an unlikely source. Muzzo looked back at the group, specifically at the purple one. "Twi?" he repeated, "Are you by chance Twilight Sparkle?"
"Y-yes," stammered Twilight, not very confident in what her answer would bring.
It wasn't nearly as negative as she had feared, however. In fact, it was the opposite—Muzzo started laughing. "Ah, yes, this makes much more sense now. You are all Fluttershy's friends."
That statement garnered a predictable response. Pinkie gave a surprised gasp, but Rarity was the one who spoke. She had a long friendship with Fluttershy, so she deserved to be the one to ask the question. "Fluttershy... She is still here? It's been so long since we've heard from her, we were worried she had left to go somewhere else."
"Not at all," Muzzo replied with that grin back on his face. "She has been invaluable since the day she arrived here. Shall we take a detour to go see her before your quest?"
It was an unanimous vote. Those werebears weren't going anywhere, anyway.
The trip would force the team to backtrack; Muzzo had turned around and started making his way to a certain house in the eastern direction. The group of four were happy enough to follow him, asking along the way how the pegasus had been doing. With a smile, he responded that they should see for themselves. In front of them was a hut lacking a door, letting them peer inside prematurely. While small, this building seemed to be assembled more neatly than others they had seen. The walls were almost completely even, while a flat carpet of dirt created easy access.
Of course, what was contained inside was more important than anything else. There were four beds—naturally crafted by stacks of hay—placed evenly away from each other, all of them containing a patient. Two zebras slept on the beds to the left; a noisy mongoose was in the far bed on the right; and a family of gerbils laid in the final one. Standing by the last bed was a yellow-coated pegasus, her head shrouded from view by the large curl in her pink mane. Her wings kept tucked to her side, she seemed to be enjoying a conversation with the small mammals.
Of a particularly startling note was that she didn't stand alone. Hovering above the mongoose with a hypodermic needle in her hooves was a second pegasus. She was no doubt the other pony Muzzo had referred to before. This one bore a familiar coat of cyan with a mane of far more colors. Standing next to her, Pinkie could immediately feel Applejack become tense. Neither, however, got to say anything before Muzzo did. "Miss Fluttershy, you have more patients."
The named pegasus shifted her head towards the doorway. At first, her look was of concern, but it took her less than a second to realize the chief wasn't being serious. Her expression glowed instantly. "Girls!" She left her conference with the gerbils to rush over to her friends.
Pinkie couldn't help herself. This one was hers. She bolted forward to meet Fluttershy halfway, intercepting the hug before any other pony got it. While the two mares embraced, Pinkie secretly waved to Rainbow Dash, who had taken notice of their intrusion. Before she could gauge Dash's reaction, Fluttershy pulled back from the squeeze. "Oh, Pinkie, I've missed you," she said in that hushed whisper she called a voice, "I've missed all of you! How have you all been doing?"
The pink pony glanced back at her three friends, who she found out were all looking at each other with half-smiles. "We've... had some ups and downs," Twilight eventually answered.
That reply seemed to confuse Fluttershy. She wasn't able to inquire about it before a different pony caught her attention. "Hey, Fluttershy. Are you sure he's supposed to take this thing? He won't let me hit 'im with it!"
The winged pony giggled as she turned around to face the other one. Rainbow was beating her wings just above the critter, referencing the needle she was hanging on to. "Yes, I'm sure. Gently offer it to him, and he'll be just fine." Rainbow appeared to get back to work, letting Fluttershy return to her friends. "Rainbow got here just before you did and she's been helping me with the animals," she explained. "She can be a little rough sometimes, but it's so nice having an extra set of hooves around to help."
"She wouldn't help an old mare chokin' on an apple core..."
The mutterings of a southern pony were answered by a swift knee to the ribs by the local librarian. Pinkie watched it happen and could easily sympathize with AJ's pain. It was Rarity, however, that stepped up to move the topic along. "Fluttershy, darling, you look divine. And that bag looks so fashionable!"
Pinkie hadn't even noticed any bags on the pegasus before that had been mentioned; Fluttershy seemed almost as surprised, considering how quickly she turned to look at them. A simple, relatable pair of saddlebags rested over the quiet mare's flank. "Oh, it's nothing special. I just use them to carry my medical supplies around to the different care centers."
That meant that there was more than this dinky place for a hospital. That was a good thing, really. Four beds didn't seem like much.
"So..."
Pinkie cringed at the single word. It had come from Applejack, and she used a tone to say it in that she was too familiar with. When the party pony dared to look at her friend, her fears became a reality. She was talking to Fluttershy, but obviously looking straight at Dash.
"Has Rainbow Dash been tellin' you what she's been up to?"
In the blink of an eye, Rainbow stopped paying any attention to the mongoose. That was a good thing, too. The poor mongoose didn't deserve the steel daggers that she was glaring at Applejack with.
"No, she hasn't!" Fluttershy exclaimed, oblivious to the tension. "We've been so busy with the zebras and animals, we haven't gotten to talk—"
Rainbow wasn't shamed about interrupting. The dangerous voice she used to do it in could have chilled Pinkie's drink with how icy it was. She didn't actually have a drink, but since it was on her mind, she was a little thirsty. "Can I get a private word with you, Applejack?"
"Of course, partner."
Rainbow swooped over to the group having not yet greeted a single one of them. She threw the needle she had still unsuccessfully used at the floor near Fluttershy's hooves, then stormed toward the doorway where an orange earth pony waited. The two of them left together, swiftly walking side by side to a distance far away from where they had started.
Fluttershy blinked in surprise at Rainbow's sudden outburst; even Muzzo's attention was trained on the disappearing ponies. The remaining three shared a nervous glance amongst themselves.
"What was that about?" questioned Fluttershy, still stunned.
Twilight grimaced. She probably realized she was the only one brave enough to answer. "It's a story that's really better kept for another day."
-TRS-
Rainbow Dash granted herself access to the lead. They traveled somewhere around half a mile away from Fluttershy's workshop to a completely barren area. There was sand underhoof, a few boulders scattered around, but most importantly, not a single pony or zebra around. Only then did Rainbow spin around on her front hoof, bringing her face within inches of Applejack's own.
"Are you trying to start something?" she demanded to know. "Because you're about five minutes away from getting it."
Applejack didn't budge. The very brim of her Stetson was touching Dash's mane, which she disliked, but she wasn't about to pull back because of it. "I don't even know what yer on about. I was just askin' Fluttershy a legit question, tryin' t' figure out how much of your exaggerated garbage you've been feedin' her."
Rainbow wasn't happy with that answer. "Yeah, well, hooves off Fluttershy. She doesn't need to get in the middle of us."
"What is it yer tryin' to say? You want me to lie to my friend?"
"You're not going to lie to anypony," Rainbow replied, now snarling. "You're going to keep your huge trap shut. Think back to how Pinkie reacted to our fighting. Pinkie. Fluttershy will freak the hay out if she found out what happened. You talking is what started this in the first place, and I'm not going to let you hurt my best friend the way you hurt—" She paused, looked away, then returned. "—the way you screwed me over."
"Aw, Rainbow," Applejack stated, a wide smirk on her face, "You'd have to have feelings for me to hurt 'em."
It wasn't long after that sentence finished that it happened. A sensation, and an uncomfortable one at that. She reeled from it, falling backwards a few steps. Seconds later, her wits returned to her, and she realized what had brought that feeling on.
Rainbow had driven her front hoof straight into Applejack's forehead.
The cowpony stared at the rival, who was only standing there waiting. The sunset she saw out of the corner of her eye casted a strong light on Rainbow's form. Her blue fur clashed with the orange rays of the sun. Another side effect of the bright star was lighting physics; Rainbow's shadow laid across the ground just as tall as she herself stood. Both of them had their wings extended to their farthest reach. She appeared more prepared for a fight now than she did in Baltimare.
Wide-eyed in a blend of ire and daring, Applejack could think of only one thing to ask. "You're really going to do this with our friends a few yards away?"
Rainbow Dash crouched down into a pouncing position. Her line of sight never swayed from Applejack's own. Once low enough to the ground, she uttered a single, simple word: "Yes."
She jumped. There was no turning back past that point.
Applejack wasn't ready to let her opponent get another easy shot at her. She evaded the dive by leaping to the side. The miss caused Rainbow to slide upon hitting the ground, but her awareness remained at the top level. AJ attempted to buck her from her new position, knowing Rainbow Dash couldn't dodge it by moving away. However, she failed to calculate for a single direction: up. Rainbow lifted herself off of the sand with ease, nearly forcing the other to fall off balance due to her own attack.
Those wings would be a problem, Applejack knew. Pinkie was still left in charge of her rope, or this battle could go much differently. Luckily, she noticed an opening that Rainbow wasn't doing a good enough job defending.
The farmer bounded forward. She didn't get much air on the jump—after all, she didn't need to. Rainbow's multi-colored tail was dangling rather close to the ground. Before she had a chance to pull away, Applejack grabbed the hair with her teeth. She used her momentum from the short hop she had made to slam Dash back to earth, landing next to her right afterward.
The blue body stayed sprawled on the ground for some time. If that crash landing had hurt, then good. "You'd think you would 'a learned from last time."
It wasn't a statement out of cockiness. Rainbow had fallen for something strikingly similar to that last time they needed to go through this. Last time, however, Rainbow hadn't taken advantage of it. Without giving Applejack any time to react to her, the pegasus rose from her prone position on only her front two hooves. Her back two legs wound up, then extended straight into AJ's body.
The strength from the push forced Applejack from her hooves. She got bucked through the air until she fell down, rolling over herself. While trying to pick herself back up from it, Rainbow made her divide some focus towards listening. "You didn't need to try upsetting Fluttershy. We both know that's all you were trying to get out of asking her that. You could have at least started with a, 'Hey, what's up?'"
She would be feeling that one in the morning. Nothing was broken, but dang if it didn't hurt. Still winded, though on all fours, Applejack bit back, "And what's stoppin' our friends from tellin' her why we just stormed off right now, Miss Subtlety?"
That question seemed to catch Rainbow by surprise. It didn't take her long to come up with a response, but AJ saw the weakness that she wanted to see. "At least they might consider how Fluttershy would react. If I had my way, she wouldn't need to find out until after our friendship is buried history."
AJ snorted. "I thought that happened back in Baltimare?"
The first response she received was RD pawing at the ground, looking like she was about to charge. She didn't. Yet. After that coupled with a glare, she got another earful. "Did I ever mention that the Wonderbolts were going to look over internship applications the very next week after you met Soarin'?"
Applejack knew what happened after questions like that. She would get an answer, no doubt, but that wasn't what she cared about. Rainbow wasn't feinting with that hoof. They had more business to attend to.
"Yeah, you made sure they threw away my papers."
Rainbow bounced upward, straight into the sky. She kept herself higher than even Applejack's biggest jump, which meant that she would just need to react to whatever was thrown at her. Even though she had predicted round two was inbound, that didn't mean the situation sucked any less. She let her mind have a passing thought about the information Rainbow had just given her, but without hesitation, quickly set it aside and got her head into the game.
The blue mare waited until she was directly over Applejack's head. Only then did she dive downward at an unbelievable speed, intent on taking her other straight to the floor. The flaw in her plan was obvious—she had started from too high up. AJ had plenty of time to react, and she didn't waste it. Stepping aside, she had a front row view of RD smashing into the ground with a booming thud. Dust from the scorched area was kicked up in all directions; when just enough of it settled, Rainbow was to be found perfectly unscathed by the landing. Carrying a glint in her eye, Dash reached forward and swung her leg low to the ground, attempting to sweep both of AJ's front hooves out from under her. That wasn't smart on her part. The farmer put years of apple bucking to use by steeling her one leg. Dash's trick didn't have a chance at getting any farther than that.
Applejack kicked the intruding hoof away, then proceeded to take to the air herself. With a vertical jump, she was aiming to get some extra momentum behind her next move. One leg was held out, while another braced it; in another two seconds, her knee would be meeting Rainbow's face. Unfortunately, giving someone as speedy as Rainbow two seconds was too much. The pegasus back dashed, flapping once with her wings to make sure she got enough distance away. Applejack had no such tactic to rely on. Her extended limbs, her muzzle, and the rest of her body—in that order—plunged into the sand. Despite hearing the hooves galloping up to her, she was too stunned from her self-inflicted agony to be able to react to them.
Rainbow Dash lifted her front leg high into the air over Applejack's head, then let it drop like a stone. Her hoof pummeled through the cowpony's hat and made contact with her head. For a moment, even if she wanted to, Applejack wasn't able to move.
Rainbow was panting. Even with her face rubbing up against the ground and a blue-colored hoof holding it there, Applejack felt like she was doing something right if she had gotten her rival to pant that heavily. Eventually, said rival spoke. "If I ever... find out that you made Fluttershy cry... we'll be back here. You got that?"
Of course, the morale boost she had received from that knowledge was diminished slightly when it occurred to her that she was panting in exhaustion just as much. Rainbow finally removed her hoof after that stomp, which prompted the orange equine to stand up. Her own legs were shaky, but responsive. "That sure is a funny thing t' say..." Applejack rose her neck. She met Rainbow's eyes instantly to find a fire burning in them almost as big as the one flaring in her own. "Considerin' we ain't even done here yet."
Applejack lunged forward. The ponies were standing inches apart from each other, which meant that she was getting what she wanted. Mid-jump, AJ extended her leg out; she caught Rainbow Dash by the throat. Surprised, the pegasus was forced to go along for the ride, choking along the way.
The momentum from her leap had to end eventually. However, still feeling weakened by the day's thrashing, not even Applejack was able to recover from her own jump. Both ponies tumbled to the ground, rolling over multiple times before coming to a stop on their sides. Applejack's hat had fallen off at the point of impact. Neither of them were in a rush to get up and recover it.
A full minute must have passed. Neither of the mares spoke a word to each other, nor did they try any more assaults. They stayed where they were, breathing heavily and little else. Finally, in an unsure tone, Rainbow broke that silence.
"I forgot how durable you were," she said.
Applejack tried laughing. Her heavy breathing wasn't going to allow it though, and the laughter came out in a fit of coughing instead. "Personally, I'd appreciate it if you slowed down a bit next time," she eventually got to reply.
Another chunk of time escaped from them. A different sound caught Applejack's attention. Without even needing to open her eyes, she could tell that they were galloping hoofsteps. "Shoot," she muttered just loud enough for RD, having a strong feeling she knew who they belonged to.
"Girls!"
Yep. Applejack sighed, then, having caught enough of her breath, decided it was finally time to get off the ground. As a lavender-coated mare with a pink streak in her mane raced toward them, AJ limped toward her abandoned headgear.
"What in Equestria do you think you're doing? Have you two lost it?!"
Applejack grabbed her hat from the ground, took a second to dust it off, and finally set it on top of her head. With a complete ensemble, she gave an ineffective glare at the newcomer. "Couldn't you 'a showed up before she ax kicked me in the head?"
"You," she stated accusingly, her sights set straight on Applejack. "What part of you thought this was a good idea? We can't go werebear hunting with you dead tired and heaven knows how injured!"
"I'll be fine, Twilight," she replied in a semi-convincing tone of voice. "I play rougher 'n that with Winona."
Twilight did something then that legitimately scared the farmer, more than anything Rainbow had done that evening. She sniffled. "No... No, you won't be fine. Because you two are going to kill each other!" A few sudden tears drew lines down the mare's face, but her voice betrayed them. That was a thing already far more hysterical. "I don't care what you say, both of you are my friends and neither of you are going to change that! I thought—I thought you two were just going to yell at each other or something. Then Rarity saw—and showed—but I—"
It took her that long, but she gave up trying. She set her haunches down, bowed her head so her forelock hid her face from view, and broke down sobbing on the spot.
Applejack hadn't even done anything yet, and she was already out of ideas. Her only hope was Rainbow. The pegasus had also gotten to her hooves; it was blatantly clear, however, she was trying to avoid even looking at the unicorn. "Listen, Twilight..." she started off, practically exuding the fact she didn't know what to say afterwards. "I don't really know why you guys are here, or where you're going for this, uh, werebear hunting, but if it's all right, I think I'll just stay here and hang out with Fluttershy."
"Good," she said back as loudly as she could manage. It wasn't very loud. "Go."
Rainbow hesitated. It was obvious it stung her to leave a pony in such a state. Even if she was abandoning her to do all the hard work, Applejack had to give her credit for at least feeling bad. After another second or two, she used her wings to carry herself into the air and began a slow aerial march back to the town.
There was something nagging on AJ's mind. It seemed pointless not to get it out in the open while she was still here. "Dash," she called up to her.
Still looking upset about Twilight, and noticeably not very angry at anything, Rainbow turned around at the beckon. She stayed hovering in one spot without saying a word.
"I ain't gonna hurt Fluttershy. Never was. She's my friend too, y'know."
She didn't get a reaction for awhile. Actually, she never did. The pegasus let the words sink in, then silently continued on her journey to the medical center.
That left just two. Applejack turned from the sky to the trembling pony on the ground. She still didn't know what she was supposed to say here, which made her thrilled when Twilight helped her out.
"It took me up until now to realize Pinkie is the smartest one here." She was still sniffing rapidly, but she had considerably calmed herself down from before. "You were trapped in a cage for weeks. Rarity was borderline homeless in Canterlot. Rainbow can't even look at you without picking a fight... Who wouldn't want to go back in time? Everything is so messed up now, and it didn't seem to be that way just a few months ago."
AJ frowned. "Well, that's prob'ly because it wasn't that way a few months ago," she reported honestly. "I think the stress of this whole thing is just gettin' to you. It's gettin' t' all of us." That didn't seem to be working well; the librarian still kept her head low with her shoulders shaking. When a different alternative crossed her mind, Applejack found a small smile on her own lips. "Can I hug ya?"
Sniff. Sniff. Eventually, she got a nod out of it.
Walking hurt. It was inevitable. Besides the hike up Uppeak Mountain, which was long but not strenuous, and a short bout with a werebear or two, this was the first real workout she'd had since... well, since the last fight she'd had with Rainbow. Nonetheless, she tried to act as naturally as possible. If Twilight saw her in any sort of pain, the situation wasn't going to get any better.
Her arms wrapped themselves comfortably around Twilight's neck. The lavender pony didn't return the embrace, though she did lean into it. Applejack ran a hoof through Twilight's mane, which was still near flawless from Rarity's earlier work.
"Thank you, Applejack," she said, presumably for the hug. "Please, please promise me you won't fight with Rainbow like that anymore."
Applejack thought back to the most important part of that battle—the very end of it. Rainbow had said something to her that was bound to stick with her for awhile. It was a compliment. She certainly hadn't heard one of those from that pegasus anytime lately. Returning to the present, the farmer closed her eyes, her body knowingly catching the very last few of Twilight's tears. "I'll do my part, sugar cube." She chuckled before adding, "I'll even give you a Pinkie Promise for it, with the cupcake 'n everything."
