At Rainbow Dash's cloud house, Rainbow awoke feeling a whole lot better than she had previously. Her talk with Fluttershy last night had helped considerably. She just knew today would be the day she got to speak to Pinkie Pie, properly after 3 years. She had considered it, but opted to not tell Pinkie Pie of her love until her condition had improved.

Also, today was the first time she had woken up early. This was confirmed when she looked at the clock to notice it was only seven o'clock in the morning. Visiting hours at Ponyville General didn't start till 9 o'clock, so Rainbow Dash figured she had a good two hours to kill. She decided against going back to sleep.

From the opposite end of the room, she noticed her timid pegasus friend Fluttershy stir from her sleep as well.

"morning Shy"

"Oh hey Rainbow Dash, I didn't think you'd be up yet"

"Well, neither did I. Visiting doesn't start for 2 hours yet. Can I get you something to eat?"

"Oh goodness...thanks for the offer, but I really need to go and check on the animals....Urrrm if that's okay with you"

Rainbow Dash had almost expected that Fluttershy was an early bird. Being an animal caretaker would require it really. "Yeahhh no problem. I'm gonna get something to eat, then go and get Twi, AJ and Spike. Then probably Rarity and the Fillies, then we can come and get you, unless you want to meet us at the hospital at 9"

"Ohh...no, don't worry yourself coming to get me, ill meet you there at 9"

"It's no problem if you want us to meet you"

"No its ok"

"Sure?"

"Of course"

"Ok Shy, will see you there at 9"

With that, Fluttershy left Rainbow Dash's home in the general direction of her cottage. Rainbow Dash had an extra purpose to visit the library. Sure, meeting her friends so they could all go together was a good idea, but she really needed to speak to Applejack about something else as well. No longer was Applejack to feel unwelcome about both being around her and seeing Pinkie Pie. Surely the latter may require a bit of compromise, but Rainbow assumed that's where Twilight would come in useful. She figured she would ask Twilight about this aswell. But first order of service was food.

***

Twilight's talk last night had done Applejack some favours, however, she still couldn't help feel a a bit nervous about going to see Pinkie Pie, and even more apprehensive about seeing Rainbow Dash. Generally, both feelings had loosened, but not disappeared completely. Applejack was awoken early by some sort of commotion.

"Spike! How many times do I have to tell you, I'm not giving you a moustache every time we're going to see Rarity"

"Awww come on Twilight"

"No Spike, keep it down, Applejack might still be asleep"

As it turned out, Applejack was woken by Twilight, she wouldn't say it though, she would say she just naturally woke up. Surely a little lie like that couldn't hurt anypony. She lay awake on the spare bed that Twilight had kindly set up in the main room of the library, whilst Spike and Twilight took there usual beds. Despite her situation, she couldn't help but laugh at Twilight's and Spike's little niggle.

Hoofsteps soon sounded walking down the stairs, and Applejack noticed her purple Alicorn friend approaching her.

"Morning Applejack, Spike didn't wake you up did he?"

"Mornin' Sugarcube. Nah don't you worry none, workin' farm is an early start, I'm used to early mornin's even after late nights"

"Oh, good. How are you feeling today?"

"bit better, still can't help feel a bit nervous about both Dash and Pinkie though"

"Well I'm going to tell you, I think Fluttershy would have spoken to Rainbow Dash as I did with you. Pinkie Pie though, we will all have to figure something out. I'm pretty sure she will forgive you, maybe she might even think it's not your fault. It wasn't, your the only pony who thinks it was, but still we can try and arrange something if it helps you feel better"

"not gonna lie Twi, I'd sure appreciate that."

As soon as Applejack had finished her sentence, there was a loud knock at the door of the library. This confused Twilight, surely, she could have expected somepony to meet herself, Applejack and Spike at the library, but surely not this early. She made her way to see who made such an early call.

Applejack's nerves increased tenfold when she heard a familiar tomcoltish voice behind the door of the library. The voice was that of one of the two ponies she was very nervous about seeing

"Hey Twilight" said Rainbow Dash

"Oh hello Rainbow Dash, your early today"

"well I woke up early, and i didn't want to go back to sleep, so I thought I'd come down and get you, AJ and Spike, then we can go and get Rarity and the Fillies"

"Wait. What about Fluttershy, where is she for that matter?"

"Oh she went back to her cottage to see to her animals, she said she would meet us at the hospital"

"Ok, well visiting hours don't start for another hour and a half, so we have plenty of time, do come in."

With that, Rainbow Dash made her way into the library. Sure enough, Rainbow Dash caught sight of Applejack, as did Applejack with Rainbow Dash, they both froze. Neither knowing what to do. If there was a scale for measuring how awkward awkward moments were, this would be blowing right off the scale. The ever cunning, Twilight made an escape plan instantly "I'll go and check on Spike"

The departure of Twilight Sparkle (even if she was only upstairs checking on Spike) made Applejack a lot more uneasy. She was now at the complete mercy of the very pony who's true love she drove away, she could not see this ending well for her.

For Rainbow Dash, she had a completely different set of problems. She wanted Applejack to feel at ease, but she didn't know what to say, and she could tell that each passing second, Applejack was getting more uneasy, which made it harder for Rainbow Dash still, yet nothing soon seemed as if it stop the viscous cycle.

"AJ I..."

"Dash I..."

Speaking at the same time only works to heighten the sticky situation the two ponies find there selves in. Now as well as neither really knowing what to say, they are now waiting for the other to take lead, Applejack knowing she's going to get a verbal thrashing, and Rainbow Dash knowing that Applejack thinks she is going to get a verbal thrashing. Rainbow Dash is first for a second try.

"AJ, I'm sorry"

Applejack freezes for a second, unable to comprehend the fact that one of the two ponies she hurt was apologizing to her, she was at a loss for words, which wasn't too bad a problem, as it seemed Rainbow Dash hadn't finished yet.

"I know since Pinkie has ended up in hospital, you've felt like I'm going to be hostile, but I'm not, I loved her, I still do, but I don't entirely blame you for what happened at all. I know we are all taking this hard, even egghead, I can tell she's only putting on a brave face, but the truth of the matter is, the five of us need each other. We need to be strong, for ourselves and for Pinkie. As egghead would say, as a team we are unstoppable."

On finishing she slowly approached Applejack, who still looked uneasy, and unconvinced by Rainbow Dash's words. She didn't move though, no attempt to back away was made, Applejack felt as of her hooves had been glued to the floor, ready for Rainbow Dash to perform some form of punishment on her. Suddenly, her conversation with Twilight last night was for naught. As Rainbow Dash approached closer, she closed her eyes, hoping whatever Dash had in mind for her was painless. Closer, closer, closer still with every second. Until suddenly, nothing.

No hooves striking her, no form of physical or verbal abuse, but rather a hug. Applejack opened her eyes to see Rainbow Dash right in front of her, and felt her warm embrace around her neck, whilst been supported by Applejack and her own hind hooves. Applejack quickly realizes what she's meant to do before returning the embrace

"Ah'm sorry Dash, Ah really shoulda trusted ya. It you who shouldn'ta trusted me. Ah have no right to see Pinkie Pie after all, it's mah fault this happened" Applejack began to cry into Rainbow Dash's blue coat.

Rainbow Dash was far from feeling like she could comfort the crying Applejack, however, she did feel she could at least try one tactic she knew, the same one used on her only the previous night. Slowly she began her wave of "shhhhhhh" Whilst pulling Applejack in tighter.

Never let it go amiss that Fluttershy is a genius when it came to calming an upset friend, so much so in fact, that Rainbow Dash, using the very same technique that Fluttershy had used on her, managed to calm her very upset friend down.

"Don't worry AJ, it will be okay, you'll have us all there for you"

"Thanks Dash, ah really do appreciate that." As soon as the air had been cleared coincidentally too coincidentally Twilight and Spike had now arrived in the reception of the library.

Author's Notes:

Things I do for you lot. It's 3:00 AM here in the UK (at the time of starting this) and my internet at home has just come back on. I apologize for the delay in update. These little inconveniences happen. Never the less, I had no problems with a bit of posting, accompanied by the awesome sounds of Alice In Chains.

Anyway. Chapters will be coming a little slower now unfortunately because this chapter is the last of the content I already had on my tablet.

Ok, a bit of a back story. I originally started writing this out of boredom, and I wasn't going to upload it. I'll admit, I was a bit scared of it, posting my own creative writing on a website full of people who have the same fandom. But my brother read it, and said I should upload it to see what other people think. So I added the first part on his 18th birthday (3rd November). I honestly didn't expect it to do half as well as it has.

Anyhow, during that time, this is the last I wrote before starting to upload, then i stopped writing while I was uploading these 10 chapters (well seven on my tablet). When I come up with new ideas, I will make notes and expand and expand further until I have chapters. I am still going to aim for at least one chapter a week, but I can't promise nothing.

Enjoy this chapter, and I'll do my best to get more done ASAP