Dash awoke to something pulling on her arm, followed by the feeling of fur beneath her. Cold spread around her back, her brain quickly turning the general feeling of cold into water and then rain as she snapped awake. It was pouring.

She was atop Mac's back, bouncing up and down as he trotted towards the cliff with the picnic basket in his mouth. He turned, moving along the steep rocks for a few seconds, looking for something. He seemed to find it a moment later, his eyes flicking to the opening of a cave. He arrived in a few seconds, laying down flat on the ground and sliding her gently off onto the rock. Then he was gone with a flash of lightning, only to return a minute or so later with two large leaves pressed together.

"What's that?" Dash asked, watching him set them down carefully. Mac jumped, making a shocked sort of choking sound before he realized she was awake. Dash couldn't hold back a giggle.

"Dammit, Dash!" He retorted angrily, his fur sticking up all over the place. "Anyway, I grabbed some of the embers before they fizzled out, I hope, and I'm going to start a fire with the wood I stash here and my trusty lighter fluid." He bent down over the fire, pushing a stick around in the ash with his lighter fluid at the ready. He found glowing embers and squirted a few drops of the flammable substance onto the end of the stick, letting it run down into the warmth. It caught immediately, spreading up the twig as Mac added some more of his tinder.

"You really have this planned out, huh?" Dash asked, pushing herself to her hooves. She felt a twinge of soreness, which realistically was to be expected. She was surprised it wasn't worse.

Mac had a little fire going now, lighting up the inside of the cave with its flickering light. He took a few steps back, kicking another stick on and grinning. One of Dash's ears twitched, and just as she turned her head Mac was already spinning.

He leaned back just quickly enough to avoid most of a claw to his face, three scratches quickly running with blood as the stallion backed up a step into the rain. Just as soon as he regained his footing their timberwolf attacker was on him, pushing him onto his back. It went to take a bite out of his neck as Dash's rear hooves collided with thick wood, sending the creature flying with an audible crack. It hit the side of the cave, flopping on the ground as Mac pushed himself to his hooves, a shallow gash on his shoulder where he must've been clipped with some teeth bleeding rather freely.

He didn't miss a beat, throwing a hard shoulder into the beast as it rose, shoving it into the ground roughly. Mac clambered with his hooves, pressing them down onto the shoulders of the wolf. He picked up the shoulders before the wolf could bite him, slamming them back down with another crack that stunned the creature. Dash watched, not sure how to further contribute. She could help, but she didn't want to get in his way, and she definitely didn't want to do something that would make him get hurt worse than he already was. She moved to help hold the enchanted pile of sticks down, unsure of Mac's plan after they got it pinned but willing to help nonetheless.

Before she could intervene Mac pulled back his right hoof, throwing it back in a blur, repeating the motion several times. The crack was resounding, and when Dash looked around Mac's heavily breathing body, she only saw the remnants of a head. He took a few more breaths before he rose, kicking the creature angrily. With another kick, it went into the fire and started to catch. "Ya know, it just has to be the day Ah bring you here that the first predator Ah've ever seen shows his face."

"I mean, it was probably because of the rain..." Dash started, pulling the connecting band of fabric from Mac's saddle bags to tie around his shoulder. "Timberwolves don't really like it too much."

"Why was there rain anyway?"

"I dunno, Mac." She replied, shaking her head angrily. "It shouldn't have moved this way, let alone grown as a storm. It just must've been something about the Everfree. And it shouldn't have happened anyway, all the signs said it would be clear!" Dash's voice cracked, and she blinked away the beginning of a frustrated tear.

"Well as much as Ah hate to say it, we're goin' ta have ta cut this date a little short." Mac put a hoof over his wrapped shoulder and winced, standing up. Dash rushed to his side, pushing herself under his bad side. He nodded at her, but Dash was preoccupied with other things. First of all, the fact that it was realistically her fault that this had taken a turn. She must've overlooked something that pointed to this storm. There must've been a factor she missed. That was the only explanation.

She felt the warmth and wetness of lips against her cheek, and turned in shock to look at Mac. He was bleeding and tired and had every reason to get angry at her for anything. But as usual he was past the supposedly small and unimportant bits of life and was back to his normal self. It didn't make sense.

They started to move towards the cave opening, quickly taking a turn to walk further along the cliff, a trampled path showing the route Mac took. Dash was drenched already. Her feathers were waterlogged, and her fur wasn't faring much better. It only took her a minute or two to start shivering, but Mac stayed warm and solid as ever.

Her mane washed into her eyes, but she didn't have a good way to push it out of the way without the possibility of losing her footing under the fraction of Mac's weight she was taking. Mac made a slight turn and she followed, watching what she could see of the foliage thin out gradually. Mac took his weight off of her as they emerged onto an edge of the Acres, holding himself under his own strength and looking around thoughtfully.

"Look, Dash, Ah know this didn't end exactly how it was supposed to, but hows about we go back to the house? Ah mean, get some food, a warm bed. Ah'm sure Granny'd want you to stay." He paused, gesturing to his shoulder. "Plus, Ah'm pretty sure this just looks bad."

"Mac," her voice cracked once again, to her extreme chagrin. "I think I've already screwed t-this up enough for one day. I'd rather just f-fly home and c-count my losses." If she could just fucking stop shivering too, that'd be awesome.

He just looked dumbfounded. "What?" Before she could respond, he continued. "Whatever. Don't take blame for this stuff, Dash. It's not your fault, and Ah did say it was safe, so..."

"Yeah, but that timberwolf wouldn't have been there without the storm! You wouldn't be a bloody mess!"

"But ya know what Dash? It was still the best date of mah life."

"How can you possibly say that?!" She asked, pointing to his shoulder. "Doesn't that hurt, even a little?"

"Well, yeah... But that's not the point! Ah ended this thing with some cuts and stuff. But Ah also ended up with you, and this nice feelin' in my chest. Plus, they say it's worth uh little pain to stick out the tough bits."

"They don't mean corporal pain!"

Mac had already turned around, and was walking towards his house, shining in the distance. "Look, Dash, yer welcome if ya want." Another pause. "But Ah-" he shook his head, lost for words. "Ah dunno. Please?"

She didn't respond for a moment, and Mac turned, taking a few more steps up a slight hill. Thought after thought flew through her head, before she finally let her hooves carry herself after him. She'd wanted Mac by her as long as she could have him. This was no way to go about it. So with that she took chase, seeing Mac turn and grin at her before beginning to run himself, ignoring any pain he must've felt in his shoulder to insert an air of competition. She really didn't deserve him.

Dash remembered what Thunderlane had said about competition, and wondered briefly if that applied to Mac in his current state. Her grin grew, and she sped up, attempting to match the stallion's land speed. She drew in his lead, laughing as she pulled up alongside him with the thrill of it all. The wind and rain blew against her face, but it didn't feel cold, and her shivers were gone. She felt alive, the bad luck of the day forgotten momentarily as she pushed herself harder to etch out a lead on the guy she loved, now her fierce competition.

Mac grinned back, speeding up as his stride lengthened. Dash lost ground, watching his long legs move majestically as they pushed him along at a breakneck speed. Everything he did reminded her of another thing she loved about him, and couldn't stand to lose. As Mac held his lead and they neared the house, she realized that she may have also found the only pony in the world she was fine with losing to.

Well, fine to an extent.

"What." Applejack said flatly, looking at the dirty, soaked and bloody ponies huffing and puffing in front of her door. "Ah mean, this isn't really how you date, Mac."

She just left the door open, retreating inside. A couple towels landed on the doorstep, and Mac grabbed one and walked inside. Dash tentatively followed.

Applejack was sitting at the kitchen table, looking at them with an expression that really just said she didn't know how to feel.

"It's a long story, sis." Mac said, opening the fridge and grabbing a couple slices of pie. He slid one to Dash as she sat down to join him.

"I figured. I know you're the big brother and all, but you're just so strange." She gestured towards the two of them. "Like, I expect this from you, but how does Dash get dragged into your crazy plans?"

Dash had to think about that statement for a minute. She expected this from him? Him?! In hindsight it made sense, but it was still a foreign thought. She was still somewhat stuck in the common belief that Mac was boring and regular. Pfft. She really needed to adapt.

"Well I'll have you know that everything went perfectly before a timberwolf decided to crash the party." He said rather happily given the context, rolling his eyes at the end of the sentence.

"And you sound rather peppy for having a bloody shoulder and claw marks across your face." Applejack replied with a sigh.

Mac just grinned and shrugged, watching Applejack chuckle. He grabbed Dash's hoof, pulling her gently away from the table. She barely grabbed her dish before it was out of reach, managing a laugh as Mac whisked her off.

Applejack just tilted her hat downward, laughing to herself as the pair left the room. "So long as you had a good time, Mac."

Mac jumped awake, squeezing his arms around Dash gently, checking that she was really there. After that confirmation, he allowed his eyes to wander to the bright outside world, sun streaming in as his mare started to wake up.

Dash opened her eyes, blinking a few times as Mac came into focus. He dwarfed her as usual, but he created a really comfortable space against his body for her to lay. She could hardly keep herself awake, and drifted in and out of consciousness a few times as she slowly and decidedly entered the world of the living.

She kissed Mac on the cheek, nuzzling at his jaw line.

"I guess these things always are a little better when things don't go to plan, huh?" She giggled. "Next time we can try to avoid the predators though, alright?" She still felt bad about that...

"Sounds good ta me." He chuckled back, as Dash turned away for a moment, reaching her hoof out to grab a bottle from the nightstand.

"So this is what you cleaned yourself with, huh?" She asked, showing him the label of the bottle. "Ya Boi Big Mac's Extra Hard Cider?"

Mac broke into laughter, shaking his head. "We don't sell that. Ah make the extra hard cider in test batches, and Ah just sorta started naming it whatever ah felt like. Yer probably the first one outside of the family ta see that one though."

"I didn't know that you even made this stuff. Applejack never talks about it."

"Well it's mah side project, so I'd hope not. Yer not supposed ta know until it actually goes on sale." He chuckled. "But Ah suppose ya could keep yer mouth shut if Ah send one yer way?"

"I mean, I'll try it for your sake, but I can't say I'm into anything that's heavy in alcohol."

"Ya might like it. Ya never know." He replied.

"Want me as another taster, huh?"

"It just seems like it needs somethin', but I don't know what it is. It's real annoyin', cuz Ah've been tryin' stuff forever." He pushed himself up, resting on an arm. "Ah think we should get breakfast."

"How's your sister doing with all of this?" Dash asked, gesturing between the two of them. "It took me forever just to get her to agree to not freak out if we went on a date, and there's no way I would've figured she would just stay cool last night."

"Hey, give me some credit. She's not the head of this household, and as much as ya may think she's got the final say in stuff..." He laughed. "Ah'm still the big brother, and as long as Ah'm happy, Ah'm sure she is."

Dash only laughed in response, before narrowing her eyes suggestively. "I dunno, it'd probably be better to take a shower first. You know, wash off all the dirt we don't have on us?"

"Ah know yer vein' all seductive and such, but Ah do need to clean mah shoulder and such. So no funny business until that's finished, alright?"

"I'll extend a tentative promise."

Mac rolled his eyes with a chuckle, throwing the covers off his body and sliding out of bed. Dash took in the rest of the room she'd missed last night, her eyes flicking around to the belongings he had displayed, which were rather sparse. It was about what she'd expected. Mac had disappeared into the attached bathroom, and sounds of water spilled out into the bedroom a moment later. Dash bounded out of bed, following him inside the equally sparse conjoining room.

The stallion gave her a half grin and stepped into the water, letting it wash over his forehead. The shower stall was almost comically small compared to him, and he had to dip his neck a little to get under the nozzle. But his grin showed he was enjoying it, and with a nuzzle against his side Dash stepped in as well.

It was cramped. Not overly so, but cramped nonetheless. Dash kissed Mac on the lips, the bar of soap he was preparing to rub on his shoulder falling from his hoof with the distraction. He made an annoyed sound, but Dash grabbed it before he could and started soaping up the other parts of his body, making sure to stay away from the cuts. She rubbed at his back, taking her time over the expanse of red fur as she worked her way backwards.

Mac was clearly enjoying her touch, muscles twitching here and there as she caressed them. God, she loved how responsive he could be.

"Dash, Ah sorta need ta-"

"Shh... We'll get to that." The mare moved away just as she got to his flanks, instead working her way down his side, feeling his breaths bow his ribs in and out slowly. His chest was next, easily reachable when he was standing at his full height like he was. She pushed her fur up against his, rubbing her back underneath him as she drifted towards his hind legs.

Her head bumped sideways into what she quickly realized was Mac's rod, and she heard him let out a sound of distress from the hard contact, which surely hadn't felt good. But she also hadn't expected him to be at full mast before she got even close to the teasing that she'd expect would make this appear. Did she really turn him on that easily?

Mac grunted as Dash laid a hoof on his length, his member jumping with her touch and lightly slapping against his stomach. He leaned against the wall of the shower, tilting himself slightly to give slightly easier access to his throbbing stallionhood. Dash allowed both of her hooves to explore his length, remembering how it had felt inside her just the night before. And how sore she was now. Oof. She sat down underneath him, grinding herself slowly on the soapy tiles to the daydream, her wings spreading slightly and bumping against the wall and the curtains.

Dash quickly realized that hoof jobs didn't work quite so well in the shower without a good source of lube that would stick around, and without much of a thought, encased the head of his member with her mouth. Mac let out a half moan, putting an encouraging hoof on her back. He twitched as she pushed on for a few more inches, laughing around his length about his heavy breathing. She'd never known a stallion that could get this aroused from just a little treatment, and Dash loved the mere thought of it. He had no control with her, no fuse. He displayed exactly what he felt, as usual, but this version was a whole lot more arousing. After all, she could concentrate a lot more easily this way.

Dash removed her mouth for a moment, looking back at Mac's face. The top of his head was pushed against the front wall of the shower, his eyes shut tight. He had a blush covering most of his face, and looked like he might die from pleasure. She loved that face. And to think she'd only seen it twice now. Well there were the times in heat, but he had an undertone of fatigue and fear going along with those.

Dash returned to his stallionhood, watching it twitch a couple times before she put her mouth over the tip again and gave it a hard suck. Mac jumped, another groan escaping him as Dash started to go in for the kill, rubbing herself with more need against the floor. She played with his heavy balls with one hoof, driving him further into the throes of passion. He was beginning to thrust just slightly, his every breath filled with a slight undertone of a moan.

A quiet squelch noise broke through the noise of the water, and it took Dash a moment to realize it wasn't her. With as much of a smirk as she could muster, she removed the hoof from his balls and wrapped it around his flank, moving her other free hoof past his balls between his legs. Mac jumped when she began assaulting his pussy with her hooves, melting into the feeling after a few stiff seconds. He winked around the side of her hoof, trying to draw her in as his grunts and groans began to get louder despite his efforts to stay quiet. It was still strange to feel that back there, but it was starting to become just a little more natural. Natural in a relative sense, of course.

Dash was having a bit of trouble making her body go through a variety of different motions in her ministrations, but found herself as imminent as Mac was. He went silent, staccato breathing the only noise as he gave another little thrust into her mouth, rubbing at her wings with a hoof. Dash moaned, realizing that he'd picked that up from last night after all.

Then he just went off. He curled his stomach, letting out a quiet breath of satisfaction as he blew into her mouth. Dash felt his marehood tighten slightly in beat with each pulse of his cock. His orgasm went on for a while, and as he came down Mac looked like he might pass out. Dash got a final grind on the floor that sent her over, but it was nowhere near the feeling she'd had last night. Not that she exactly felt ready for that again so soon, as awesome as it was.

The mare swallowed and stood, giving Mac's fading erection a few careful strokes before she moved to kiss him, his face still covered in a heavy blush.

"That was amazing." He said in almost a whisper, nuzzling against her cheek. "Yer amazin'."

"Hey, don't think too highly of me yet." Dash giggled. "I haven't even gotten started with you. Just give me a week."

"Ah'm not sure if Ah should." Mac replied, laughing weakly back. "Ya might kill me." He grabbed the soap as Dash offered it back, taking a few moments before lathering up his shoulder with a hiss. It had scabbed over most of the way overnight, but Dash was sure it still hurt like crazy.

"So when you come like that..." Dash started, stopping to pick her words. "Does all of you come, or is it just like one bit?"

"Ah'm pretty sure it's just the part that ya pay attention ta." He replied, any amount of blush that had faded coming straight back.

"So despite the fact that you got off, you're still sorta... high and dry?"

Mac took a moment's pause, thinking. "Well, no. Ah mean, a little, but it's not strong or anything so long as Ah end up, ya know, bustin' one. It's like Ah said in heat, beatin one off is more satisfying because of the hormones it releases or somethin' and it cools me down right quick." He stopped again, before opening his mouth to continue. "So basically don't feel guilty."

"I mean, it's hard not to. You should probably tell me these things ahead of time."

"I would, but then you'd feel obliged to try to make everything perfect, and this isn't about me. I mean I guess what we just did sorta was..." He pushed his tongue into his cheek, looking at the wall. "So Ah mean, especially don't worry about it. It's the thought that counts, and now ya know. Not to mention it's still the best and only oral Ah've ever received, and it was perfect in my book."

Dash rolled her eyes, giggling a little. "Apparently it's just going to be pillow talk like this until I've got you figured out, Mac."

"Hey, that's more interesting than a guy you've got pinned on day one, huh?" He asked with a grin, returning to the task at hand and lathering back up the soap. The scratches on his face were cleaned a lot more easily, and after a rinse Mac turned off the shower. He turned to her a moment later, grinning. "Alright, now we can have breakfast."

"Ah see you're finally up, Mac." Applejack greeted as he walked into the room, followed a few moments later by Dash. "Apple Bloom's off ta school already, just so you know."

"Is it that late?" He asked, looking at the clock. It was, apparently.

"Yer gonna have some serious catching up ta do today iffn we're ta stay on schedule."

"Ah know." Mac replied, nodding

"But yer goin' ta the doctor ta get that stuff looked at. Ya can't get any ah that infected."

Mac looked like he was about to argue, but held off. "Ah guess Ah can go in for the usual post-heat checkup as well." He said. Dash caught the slight stiffening of Applejack before she remembered that Dash knew.

"So you two're official now?" She turned away from a sizzling pan, looking more towards Dash than her brother.

"Yeah." Mac said, and Dash nodded in confirmation. "She's the real deal, ah reckon." Dash blushed.

Applejack just grinned, turning back to her cooking. "Ah hope both uh ya're hungry, cuz ah went all out." She walked over, sliding some dishes in front of the pair. "Ah figure today's worthy of a little fanfare, if that's alright with you, Mac."

The stallion already had a mouth full of food. "Erts perfert." He replied, digging in. Dash only laughed at the hungry stallion, beginning the meal herself, albeit a little more slowly.

"Macintosh?" Called a nurse, squinting at her clipboard to check the name. "The doctor will see you now."

Mac got up, taking a few steps away before gesturing for Dash to follow. She'd not had anything to do after the storm blew away by itself, so going with Mac anywhere seemed a million times more interesting than anything else. They went down a hall, into an office where the nurse gestured to some chairs and they sat.

A few quiet minutes went by, before the door opened and a unicorn with a grey coat and a dark purple mane walked in. "I swear, I never see you for the simple things anymore, Mac." He said, sitting down in his chair. "What is it this time?"

Mac snorted. "You act like Ah'm always in here, Light."

With that the doctor pulled a drawer open, and slapped a thick manilla folder onto the desk. "I can re-read these to you if you want." He threatened jokingly, before gesturing to Dash. "Anyway, why's the pretty mare here? You finally get a marefriend, Mac?"

"Yeah, in fact Ah did." Dash failed to contain a bit of her blush.

"Well good on you, buddy." The doctor stared for a moment, moving a hoof up and down one side of his jaw line.

"She knows." Mac said, and the doctor perked up a bit. "Figured that's what you were trying to ask."

Light stared for a moment. "I'm surprised. I always knew you'd rake in something desirable, but the captain of the weather team... Oof." He got out of his chair, leaning over the desk and opening the folder. "So anyway, you're here for those wounds, and I'm assuming something about heat?"

"Eyyup." Mac replied, in his usual fashion.

"And do you want her to stay?" Light asked, gesturing to Dash. "No offense, but it's policy that I ask."

"I get it." She replied, nodding. To be honest she wasn't really sure what she'd want. She was sort of interested, but at the same time Mac needed his privacy. And she felt awkward enough already.

"She can do what she wants. It's up to her." Well that didn't help her at all.

Light nodded. "Well then let's get started. In the phone call you said timberwolf?"

"Yeah. Claw on mah cheek and teeth on mah shoulder. Ah've cleaned it with hard liquor last night, and washed it again with soap this morning. Applejack wants me to make sure Ah don't get an infection, though. Ya know how it is."

"Can't miss a week or more laid up in bed, yeah." He was scribbling something. "How long after did you clean it?"

"Less than a half hour. Got it pretty good. It was raining too, so that probably helps a bit."

"We'll probably do some bloodwork and clean it again just to be sure. I might prescribe some lower level antibiotics just in case. Those things' teeth are disgusting. We'll do the same for your face, but their claws haven't been known to be particularly dirty other than dirt and the like. Then there's the usual heat stuff that we go through."

"What do you do for heat?" Dash asked.

He took a breath, still looking nervous about talking to anypony but Mac. "Well, it's not a whole lot. I check hormone levels to make sure nothing's abnormal, and then grab a few samples from various parts of him to check for cancer and other abnormalities. It's similar to what I do with mares normally, but with Mac there's no guarantee the cycle doesn't stop halfway and he does't just endlessly produce some hormone, especially on account of the fact that he's never actually fertile. So we mainly check for that. Don't want my buddy here to have anything bad happen to him." He paused. "So just go into the usual room and I'll meet you after a few minutes of paperwork."

"A thrill a minute, I'm sure." Dash said sarcastically.

Light rolled his eyes. "You don't even know the half of it."

"How long have you been doing these sorts of things?" Dash asked, pushing herself onto the usual bed thing with paper on it.

"Well Ah've known that guy since as long as Ah can remember. He's an odd duck, but we're pretty good friends. And about this stuff, it's only been since I actually had my first heat. That freaked everypony out, including myself. Light was the only one that had really thought that it might happen, and he smoothed things out. That was when I was thirteen, then a year and a half passed with nothing. Then I got another, and he's worried now that they're coming closer together as I age."

"Like how close?"

"Well, the heat two times ago was a little less than a year off, but I had one in the middle of winter too." He scratched his head. "That one wasn't actually too bad. The cold kinda dulled that down. But obviously I don't want one every month or something and he wants to test the residual hormones about the same time from each to see what happens to them. I came in in the middle of heat too, but he's waiting on these results before he tries to make some sort of correlation."

"I'm sure it's not easy when you're one of a kind."

"Yeah, he complains a lot about that. That and the fact that he's making a bunch of advances in the study of a very rare set of individuals. He likes the fact that he's doing it and not somepony else, but I know how he feels. Sorta sucks to figure stuff out without a lot of use for the future."

"But I guess you've got to be glad that he cares, right?"

"Yeah." Mac responded with a nod. "Granny Smith vetted him pretty well, so she tells me. I hear that story about every other time I'm alone with her. Showed him who's boss with her little baby boy, blah."

"He looks younger than he is."

"Yeah, well Ah've heard he's pretty damn smart past the jokes and such. Graduated medical school a couple years early. Apparently he also does some fairly involved surgeries from time to time, but given the fact that we're in a small town those don't happen too often. So he does other stuff. Apparently he got a bunch of degrees and licenses and things. I dunno, he doesn't talk a lot about his pre-med life."

"Sounds like he didn't have much time for fun." Dash observed. Mac only shrugged in response as the door opened and the doctor slid inside. He set up some equipment and took a seat on a swivel chair as he scribbled something down.

"Patient has turned blue... become female." He murmured, before Dash heard him and laughed.

"We better operate immediately." She said, getting a grin in return.

"Yeah. Switch places if you will." The two traded spots, and the doctor got out the usual set of observation equipment. Heart rate, breathing, eyes and ears and stuff. It almost made her forget they were here for something rather specific. Dash grabbed a magazine, flipping through it idly as she waited. She figured she'd probably leave the room soon anyway. There was no reason for her to come along other than to keep Mac company, and she doubted he wanted her there when things got... well, when they did mare things to him.

When she eventually looked up the doctor was taking some blood, and Mac was watching the syringe with a slight bit of disgust. After he had enough the doctor left for a moment, presumably putting the sample somewhere. He returned and started looking at Mac's shoulder, and Dash went back to her magazine.

She was halfway through some rag article about a celebrity in Canterlot that really needed rehab when she looked back up, watching a fresh bandage get wrapped slowly around Mac's shoulder. She put down the magazine, looking up at the ceiling. She heard the clock tick, listened in on the white noise. Her eyelids grew heavy as Mac and Light's noises drifted into the background.

Dash jolted awake, her dream ending suddenly with her falling off a particularly high building. Mac let out a half laugh, and Dash craned her head around Light to see what was going on. From what she could see, Light was just pressing on Mac's stomach. But then she remembered the rest of the procedure, and the fact that Mac's face seemed conflicted made sense.

"You still seem overly sensitive, Mac." Light muttered, humming lightly to himself in a bored tone. "No unusual pains from the week after, right? Unusual bleeding?" Mac shook his head. "Well, everything seems normal to me. I mean, normal for you. No strange developments or changes from last year, prostate seems fine and nothing seems to be bumping up against other parts of you. I'll get any results back in a couple weeks." He took a step back from Mac, who let out a sigh of relief.

"And the shoulder?"

"Those tests should be much faster. I'll either get them to you by the end of the day or tomorrow, but in the meantime I'm going to write a prescription for some antibiotics that I want you to take." He paused, tossing his gloves into a metal bin. Mac noticed Dash was awake and blushed. "That'll run for two weeks, and I want you to take those regardless of how you feel."

Mac grabbed a piece of paper from Light and got up, stretching his legs. "What do ya think about the heat?"

Light shrugged. "I can't tell you anything yet, but we'll see. I don't know why it would be getting closer together in your twenties rather than like sixteen, seventeen. Things should have stabilized. But it could also just be statistical errors. Let's both be honest here, we're not going to figure out what makes you tick in a night. But I'm sure we'll figure everything out soon."

Mac nodded, shaking Light's hoof. "Thanks again, Light." Dash could swear she heard a hint of well-disguised fear in his words. Not that it was out of place.

"Yeah, don't mention it. I know you don't particularly love these things, so I'm hoping it wasn't too bad."

"Eh. Ah had some company, even if she did pass out for a while."

So that was it then. He just wanted company. She couldn't say it surprised her, after all this. Mac was lonely and different in a world that didn't really understand him. He didn't fear criticism, but he sure feared being alone in his struggles. Or maybe he just wanted the luxury of being able to talk openly to her about everything, and this was something where he could sort of just show her. Every day that went by, Dash understood more about what made Mac into who he was, and she could see why he wanted to show her everything. After all, he'd never done this for anypony before. She could imagine he was fairly desperate.

That was funny. Mac was the kind of guy to be more desperate for someone to talk to than to have as a marefriend. The fact that she'd become both was a happy coincidence, for sure, and it definitely simplified Mac's life for once. And to think she'd thought in the beginning that he wouldn't like her because she would bring chaos to his life, while he only desired more of his stable life. It wasn't often you fell in love with somepony only to realize that there was more to them that you loved instead of finding flaws.

"Ready to go?" Mac asked, looking down at her with part of his blush still on his face. Dash nodded and grinned, standing up to kiss him before he turned to the door.

"Yeah, I'm good." Dash replied, stretching. "You have fun?" She asked with a grin.

"Totally." Mac replied with a roll of the eyes. "I'm glad you came though. It's a little less lonely when you're there."

"Hey, that's what I'm for!" Dash exclaimed back, punching him lightly in the upper arm.

It was Mac's turn to chuckle. "Well, marefriend, how about I return the favor and keep you company. Choose somewhere for lunch, we'll do something a little more interesting."

"Gosh, Mac, there's not much I can show off that's interesting. You've pretty well got that category locked down. Most of the stuff I'd want to show you is up there." She said, pointing to the sky. "I know about some cool stuff in Cloudsdale too, but that's the same dilemma."

"But what about that spell mah sister used that one time?"

Dash shook her head. "Unless there's a more stable version of that spell, I don't really want to have the only thing between you suddenly falling through a cloud to be magic Twilight rarely uses. I mean, my friends did it without asking, but even if something did go wrong, I could catch them. You're probably a little past my weight range."

"Ah get it, Dash. Ah'm fat." He said, wiping away an imaginary tear and turning away. "Morbidly obese."

"Yeah, exactly. Point is, I'd rather that be the backup plan."

"Well what about Zecora?" Mac asked, surprising Dash that he knew her name. "Ah'm sure she would have somethin' for walkin' on clouds."

"Why?"

"Well ah mean, it's worth a shot. She had a flower that cured the cutie pox that one time in some cliche manner, so a cloud walking thingy isn't out of the question."

"Oh yeah. I'm surprised you brought that up." Dash laughed to herself, shaking her head. He was a problem solver, this one.

"So as soon as Ah'm all healed, we'll venture out there. Worst case scenario, we just buy a couple spices from her that are delicious and call it a day."

"I like how I can fly, and I'm pretty sure you've seen more of the world than I ever will."

"A lot can hide down here if you're patient enough to look for it." He paused. "By the way, Hole in the Map is doing their spring festival in a few days, so if you're looking for something ta do and ya don't have to move a cloud here or there..."

"You know, asking me out shouldn't be so hard anymore." Dash replied with a smirk.

"Ta be honest, Ah just don't want ta keep ya tied up like this. Don't feel obliged on mah account."

"Got any other spectacular events you'll allow me to be privy to?"

Mac frowned, thinking. "Well, the Crusaders are coming over in a couple days to spend the night and generally destroy things, so write that one off the list unless you can find something really interesting to do that also takes place close enough to keep an eye on them. Then there's the next barrel of hard liquor, which should be aged tomorruh. Ah guess thats- Wait!" He slapped a hoof into his forehead. "AJ's makin' us celebrate mah birthday late, and she told me a couple days ago that if there was-" He broke out the air quotes, "'a hint of anythin' goin' on that's al all romantic in any way, Ah want her here'. So that was that, and to be honest, I was still sort of shocked that I wasn't dreaming at that point. That's tonight though."

"And I was still in shock that you ended up having a vocabulary that was larger than two words." Dash replied. "You better start going back to the norm, because I'm sure you're going to get accused of being a crappy changeling sooner or later." This announcement didn't leave her a lot of time for a gift.

"Eyyup." He replied, humoring her. "It's really easy to use two words when you've got nothing much to say. Ah did a lot of thinking', and ah can't say ah thought replying in specific detail about the weather being nice was necessary."

"Got to be efficient, huh?" Dash asked sarcastically with a slight roll of her eyes.

Mac nodded briefly. "Ey- shoot!" He took off running, and Dash stared after him, confused. She assumed this wasn't a race. Was it? If it was his belated birthday then she really needed to get him a present. Brain, not the time. Later. But she hadn't gotten one for him before, so... Brain!

Dash took flight, speeding up quickly in order to catch up. The stallion barreled through the middle of town, dodging around ponies that couldn't get out of the way fast enough. If anything accidentally got in his way before he could avoid it, said thing wasn't going to continue in the same direction for long. He neared the end of town in a time that would probably set some sort of record. She also wondered why he never seemed to run in the running of the leaves. He'd blow through the competition. Maybe he wanted the thing to stay competitive.

"God he's fast." Dash muttered to herself, losing elevation as she honed in on what she assumed was his destination. Mac vaulted the fence to the Apple farm, making a bee line for the barn. Dash landed in front of the structure, looking around. "Yo, Mac, what's the deal?"

"Hold on a second!" He returned with the wagon for carrying Apples, leaving it just outside the barn. "Ah've got to get some of these apples before they start to go bad. It's not just a matter of sis gettin' angry anymore."

"Is it really that pressing?"

"Well, Ah want ta have adequate time to sell them." He threw a bunch of containers in the back of the wagon, returning for more. "And besides, Ah'm behind."

"How much do you have to do?" It couldn't possibly be that much, right?

"Well, Ah've got most of the acres around the house, and if Ah'm efficient Ah could get that done today." He was hardly breathing heavily, even after all that running. Maybe she needed to up her ante if she was to compete with him.

"I bet I could buck more trees than you can." Dash blurted out, blushing slightly. That half thought out idea was supposed to stay in her head for just a bit longer.

"Oh yeah?" Mac asked, as more buckets went into the cart. "Ah guess ya did the best at that when mah sister needed help, huh? Flight versus might, then." He disappeared, coming back with a water cooler. "Let's get started."

"Come on, Applebloom. You'll see your friends again tomorrow." Applejack said to the filly, watching her go about her usual pouting maneuvers. The older mare rolled her eyes. "It's Mac's birthday, remember?"

The pouting stopped, replaced with a slight blush. "Oh yeah. See you later, girls!" She yelled to her assembled crusaders before leaving with Applejack.

Picking the filly up from school wasn't something Applejack normally did. Most of the time, Mac would go grab her and bring her home, talk about how the day'd been and so on. It was always something he used as a break, and looked forwards to. Applejack couldn't say she was surprised he hadn't come today, though, considering the circumstances.

"So where is Mac, anyway?" Applebloom asked.

"Well, he went to get a checkup the doctor's earlier today, but Ah'm sure he's out doin' somethin' with Rainbow Dash."

Applebloom snickered. "Are they datin'?"

"Yeah." Applejack replied simply. Applebloom seemed completely surprised.

"They are?! But Ah thought- Well, Ah figured they were only friends!"

"Nah." The farm mare said back. "Besides, Ah can't say they don't look cute together, and Mac deserves something more than farm work and whatever he thinks of to occupy his time." Explosives came to mind.

Applebloom was silent for a moment. "But then why did they wait so long? Those two have known each other for a while, right?"

"Well, Applebloom," Applejack started, "relationships aren't always logical. You'll realize that when you get older."

"Ah mean, it seems pretty simple ta me. Ya just find a pony that ya like, and then stuff happens and ya get married."

Applejack laughed. "Yer leavin' quite a bit out there, missy."

Applebloom didn't respond, which seemed uncharacteristic of the energetic foal. She was just staring at the Acres as they drew nearer, and while something looked off about the view, Applejack couldn't place it. "Where're all the apples?" The foal finally asked, barely above a whisper.

Her elder looked around, finding that every tree in sight was bare. Not a single one of their shiny red apples anywhere. She broke into a sprint, visions going through her head of this disaster or that. Maybe the parasprites had made an energetic return? She'd barely been gone a half hour!

Applejack hopped the fence, cresting a small hill and tripping over something. She sprawled out onto the dirt, rolling a few times before her eyes focused on a wagon filled with a truly massive amount of apples. Her head snapped to the side, meeting the eyes of Dash, who was breathing heavily as she too laid on her side, covered in sweat. Mac walked up to the two of them in a similar state, letting himself collapse next to the weather mare.

He stuck an arm into the air, wiggling it around as Applebloom peered over the hill at them. "Victoryyyyy."

Dash stared across the kitchen table at Applejack, slowly sipping at a glass of ice water.

"So Mac, you decided to have a contest to see who could buck more trees, and I assume your handicap was your shoulder?"

Mac let out a short burst of laughter before nodding.

"And all those trees out there... those were your doing?" She asked, her face full of either doubt or total confusion. Dash couldn't be sure.

"Eyyup." Mac replied. "Ya can add that to the record books."

Applejack grinned, shaking her head. "You know, you can do the stupidest things sometimes." She said, laughing a little herself. "But Ah'll tell you what, it would've been great to have had you two doin' stuff like this years ago."

"It's all about business, huh?" Dash asked, raising a joking eyebrow.

"That, and the sheer accomplishment of that!" Applejack exclaimed, getting excited. "Ah mean, that'd be at least two days full work, and ya'll did it in less than the time Ah've been gone for. We can get that big order Fancypants always wants fulfilled a few days early!"

"It felt like an eternity though." Dash said, rubbing at an arm. She hurt all over. But she let a grin show on her face. She'd fared a lot better against Mac than she'd expected, and she was sure he hadn't expected the kind of competition from her that she'd shown. But then again, she felt like she was going to need to sleep for three days straight. Hopefully Cloudsdale didn't decide she had to put together another storm. "And anyway, I've really got to get back to the house just to check on things. It's been a few days since I've even been inside there. Sorta feels strange."

"Well before ya go, sugarcube, we're having a little get together for Mac's belated-"

"He told me." Dash replied, standing up. "Don't worry, I'll be there." She turned to Mac, pointing her hoof. "And you're getting that gift I mentioned a while back." She exchanged a few goodbyes, giving Mac a stiff hug and messing up Applebloom's mane with a hoof as she left. Not two seconds out the door and she was speeding away, her wings much less sore than the rest of her. She had a little time to herself, which in a way was refreshing. She had time to think, to return to the solitude she occasionally liked without the slight residual stress of a weird relationship with Mac. It was funny. He'd taken up so much of her thoughts over the last two weeks, and while he definitely still was, they were all much more jovial. The unknowns were gone, and she felt like she actually knew him. And with a laugh, she realized that getting his present wouldn't be such a challenge.

But man, she just felt so at home around him now. It was weird, because it just seemed like he belonged somewhere along with her, just by her side. To be honest, she felt kinda lonely when she couldn't just look to one side or the other and crack some stupid joke. But that wasn't even the beginning, was it?

There was the shower this morning. Her wings stiffened briefly and she wobbled in the air before getting herself under control. But what had gotten into her anyway? She wasn't usually like that, especially not after actually having sex for the first time in however long. Maybe it was just what she'd been thinking right after their encounter in the Everfree. It was infectious to push Mac into a state like that, and feel him shake under her touch. And she wanted to find out what made him tick. Maybe it had a bit of competition mixed in. Dash laughed at the thought.

Whatever it was, she was glad there was such an element of spontaneity to their relationship already. She didn't know what to expect from Mac, and she hoped she could preform similarly as she caught onto his style of dates and romance. It was just too perfect not to learn. Her heart swelled.

God, she loved him.

"So then, what should it be?" Dash muttered, looking through the shelves of a store. "I thought this would be easier, but now there are too many choices." The real problem here is that she'd forgotten about his birthday until today, on account of her complete and total stupidity. To be honest, he'd probably like something that she made more than a knickknack of some sort. The most she could probably manage was some sort of inside joke.

Dash rolled her eyes, scanning more items as she slowly walked down the isle and turned into the next one. This was craft stuff, which seemed fairly useless to her. She was never really the artist, and anything up that alley wasn't her strong suit in the slightest. She'd been alright at modeling clay and stuff, but the rest of it just wasn't that interesting. "Gah!" She exclaimed, drawing the attention of an employee. Damn.

"Can I help you find anything?" Ugh. If she couldn't figure out what she wanted, she really doubted they could.

"I'm just looking for a gift, but to be honest I'm just not sure what to get. I feel like I should make something, but I'm strapped for ideas." Maybe the mare would say something that would jog her memory.

"Well, evidently we've got the craft isle, and the next one over has some frames and posters and things, just so you know. But may I ask who it's for?"

"Yeah, one second..." Dash replied, peering around into the next isle. There were a bunch of motivational posters, some of them placeholders in frames. There were also a large number that were shots of nature and the like. Dash grinned. "I think I might have figured it out, actually."

"Hey Mac, when's Dash gettin' back?" Applejack asked, her voice wavering slightly. Mac didn't seem to notice.

"Dunno." He replied. "Knowin' her, she mighta fallen asleep on some comfy looking cloud somewhere." He chuckled. "Ah'm just kidding. She'll be back in time."

"Yeah." Applejack responded. "Ya won't believe how hard it was to keep this from Pinkie. Ah had ta keep tellin' her it was just a thing we normally do as a family, but no, she wanted streamers and confetti and a cake twenty feet tall." Applejack laughed. "She hasn't had the privilege of celebrating your birthday yet, you know."

Mac chuckled. "Ah know. Mare's got too much energy fer me." He said with a shake of the head. He opened a cabinet, pulling out one of his bottles of extra hard cider.

"The tradition continues?" Applejack asked, pulling up a seat across from him.

"It does." Mac replied, pouring her a shot glass.

"To your happiness." Applejack said, raising the glass. Mac only laughed.

"That just sounds ridiculous." He paused. "How's about... to finding the last ingredient in this stupid stuff!"

"Ah'll drink to that." Applejack said, downing the glass. It burned down her throat, creating a pleasant warmth in her gut. "That always wakes ya up."

"Ah'll say." Mac replied. There were sounds of a crash coming from another room, followed by a sound of annoyance from Applebloom. "Applebloom?!"

"Yeah?"

"What're ya doin?" The stallion asked.

"Surely not bouncin' on yer bed!"

Mac opened his mouth to respond, but ended up just returning his attention to Appejack. "'Least she didn't say she was tryin' ta get her mark in bed bouncin'."

"Ah heard that!"

"Eh, lay off the filly!" Granny Smith said from the corner, waking up. "She's doesn't give up, and you should be thankful she's got such a strong will." She eyed the cider. "Ey, why're ya holdin' out on me, Mac? Ya know Ah like to try yer brews from time ta time."

"This is the same one as a week ago, Granny." Mac responded. "The new one's done tomorrow."

"Oh, shh. That's what you say every time." Mac glanced at Applejack and received a shrug, to which he sighed and poured a quarter-shot into a new glass. He turned back to Granny Smith, realizing with a grin that she'd fallen back asleep again.

"Solved itself the same way it did last time." Applejack said with a chuckle, swirling her alcohol around in the bottom of her miniature glass.

"Yeah. But ya know she'd just fall asleep as soon as she got a lick of cider in 'er anyway."

"Or maybe it'd keep her awake and we'd realize that Granny's a super genius in her old age." Applejack noted. They both shared a laugh. "But we'll never know, will we?"

"Ah doubt it." They were silent once more.

"So, to broach a more serious topic, what'd the doctor say?" Applejack asked.

"The usual." Mac's voice got a little quieter. "Tests'll be back in a few days or somethin', but he's not sure why Ah've had a couple heats close together. He says it's probably nothing, but at the same time... this isn't him by the way, it's me, but Ah can't see how they would just happen to be that close. That was a span of weeks, AJ, and while Ah honestly wouldn't care about them with Dash around... Ah mean, not as much, but let's be clear in sayin' that Ah don't want them every month, and Ah sure as hell hate how Ah feel during' the whole affair."

"It's not so bad, Mac." Applejack offered, attempting to comfort him. "And you're right, you've got Dash. You said the last heat was the easiest you've ever had."

Mac sighed, shaking his head. "Yer right. Ah should stop bein' such a downer and enjoy myself, huh? Look on the gigantic bright side?"

"Look, Mac, if by some small chance your heat keeps getting more grouped up, if that happens, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. But enjoy yourself, Mac. There's no need to worry about things that are out of your control."

Mac nodded, thinking for a few more moments before a smile started to break out on his face. "Yer right."

"Hey!" Applebloom yelled from down the hall, trotting towards them. "Ah've got somethin' ta show ya, big brother!"

"And what might that be?" Mac asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You'll have to look, Ah suppose." The filly replied cryptically, trotting back towards Mac's room and disappearing into the dark interior.

"Well, Ah guess Ah'll see what ya were hidin' from me then, Applejack." He said, making the mare chuckle.

"And maybe one day Ah can keep from drawn' suspicion." She replied.

"Maybe, when you're really old, just fall asleep like Granny to keep from raisin' eyebrows."

"Oh man, what a plan." Applejack chuckled, rolling her eyes.

Mac walked into his room, his eyes straining against the darkness. Dash hopped into him, nearly giving him a heart attack as she hugged around his neck. "Happy birthday, Mac!"

"Yeah, Ah love surprises. Ya got me." He replied, dripping with sarcasm.

"Shush." Dash replied, giving him a peck on the cheek before she let go. "Just watch this." She picked up a cord from the ground, poking it in the general area of a light socket before it eventually went in and the room lit up. Little lights were everywhere, hanging from the ceiling here and there, looking like the stars in the night sky.

"Well, Mac?" He didn't respond. "Come on! Lay down!" Dash exclaimed, pushing him towards his bed. He rolled on, looking upwards with a huge grin.

"This is insane, Dash!" He said breathlessly. "You've even got the- how'd you do this?"

"Well, wings and this ball of energy here. The idea may have been mine, but the engineering wasn't."

"God, Betelgeuse is even red." His eyes flickered here and there, and he reached out to just touch a random star with a hoof. "This is so cool."

"Yeah, well you should have seen the look on the hardware store guy's face when I ordered like a million of these tiny lights." Applejack said, laughing.

Mac opened his arms up, beckoning for a hug. "Come here, all of ya." He said, as Applebloom catapulted herself into his arms. The other two joined him after a laugh. "I love you guys so much." He said quietly, still distracted by the lights.

"Well you can thank your marefriend for the idea and the execution. She ended up back here in a panic, telling me about this or that, and I just couldn't say no." Applejack said, gesturing towards the other mare. "Now come on, we've still got cake to eat, and your presents to open. And we've got to get Applebloom off to bed here; she's got school in the morning."

Mac chuckled, giving a final glance at the lights before he rolled off the bed and followed the others into the kitchen. Applejack was already in the process of removing a cake box from the freezer, and she carefully moved it across the room towards the table. Having set it down, she went back to the kitchen and pulled a tea bag from a steaming cup that she'd apparently made earlier.

"What's the tea for?" Dash asked, pointing. It seemed an odd combination.

"Well one time Granny slept through Applebloom's birthday, and she wouldn't let us hear the end of it, so we give her a little pick-me-up." Mac clopped his hooves together in front of the old mare's face loud enough to make her stir, and Applejack pushed the cup into her hoof. "Rise and shine, Granny!"

"Oh, did Ah forget to take mah pill again?" She asked, blinking as she tried to shake off the drowsiness.

"No, Granny, remember?" Applejack asked, gesturing to the assembled guests and the cake.

Granny Smith nodded, letting out a slight chuckle. "Ah'm just joshing' with ya. Gotta act oblivious to allay attention. Ya know, with all mah top secret work."

Dash began to wonder just what Granny Smith was capable of when she wasn't sleeping. She'd heard stories about her from Applejack, but they never really seemed to fit nicely in line with the pony she saw in front of her. But that would eventually be her over there, tired and old. She wondered what her life would seem like at that point, how long it would seem looking back. Even now it just felt like she'd blinked, and while-

"Dash?" Mac asked. "Yer doing the zone out thing again."

"Sorry." She replied. She really had to stop with this philosophical crap.

"Well, Mac?" Applejack started, handing him a large knife. "You're the birthday boy, make the first cut."

"What is it?" He asked, gesturing to the cake with the sharp object. Applejack just grinned.

"Why dontcha' find out?"

Mac looked like he thought briefly of a snarky comeback before deciding instead to keep his mouth shut. Dash was glad about that, for once. Wow, okay. That was the opposite of normal. Well now that thought just sounded sarcastic despite the fact that she really wanted him to talk as often as he- whatever.

She tuned back into the middle of a staring contest between Mac and Applebloom as the stallion pushed the knife through almost unbearably slowly. It smelled of chocolate and raspberry, a combination that she hadn't seen in quite a while. Mac chuckled a moment later at the annoyed look on the foal's face, slicing the cake the rest of the way and moving it over to cut out a piece. He slid it onto a plate, handing it over to Applebloom, who excitedly grabbed it from him and took a seat.

"Ya better wait fer us, Applebloom!" Applejack warned, stopping the filly before she could vacuum the food out of existence.

"Ahh, let her go." Mac said, cutting another slice. "This ornate of a cake doesn't come around every day." He gave the thin slice to Dash. "Could ya give that to Granny?" He asked, and she nodded, making sure the old mare had a firm grasp of her plate before letting go. Mac slid two other plates onto the table, cutting one more slice for himself before sitting down. He looked around the table, trying to slightly draw down his massive grin.

"Well that's a good birthday if'n Ah ever saw one." Applejack remarked, picking up a glass of milk she'd poured. "Ah'll toast to that."

Dash grinned, picking up her own glass and extending her arm across the table to bump her glass against the two other ponies that could reach. They all took a sip.

Applejack shook her head, chuckling. "Ah've gotta say, Dash, when Ah told ya that Ah'd have no problem with you datin' mah brother, ah didn't think it'd mean we'd end up here. Ah guess it's just nice to see ya as happy as ya are."

"Well then, Ah think we need a new toast." He replied. "Not to a good birthday, but to the best!"

Glasses clinked, and the quiet sounds of an Apple Family birthday continued late into the night.

Author's Notes:

Is anyone else getting these random messages underneath the banner? They're getting worse and worse, spreading lies like 'Fluttershy is best pony'. This can't go on. Can you even imagine if someone believes such a ludicrous idea? There goes the neighborhood.

That last sentence would be funnier if I'd written it as a pun and it hadn't just turned out as such.

In any case, this is the new chapter of Disinterest, obviously. It's long, and it took a while. But I enjoyed writing it, and hopefully you guys enjoyed reading it. I was stuck for a while with where to take this story after this chapter, partially because I'm not the best at slice of life. But I have a tentative plot line to edit and start writing now, and that means that with the beginning point of the next chapter in mind, I can finish this one. Yes, it's bad planning to not think ahead farther than I have. But to be honest, I never thought people would like this story enough to want more anyway. I'm glad you guys do, because I really like the personas for the characters in this story, and they're a lot of fun to write about.