She was going to be aggressively assaulted by apples, belted until she was bruised. She was going to be pelted and pummeled by produce. She was... she was...

She was... fine?

Rainbow Burst opened her eyes, looking around. She could see Spike, snickering for some reason as he stood next to the stallion. She could see an orange pegasus mare with bright blond mane landing not far from her (she must have been the one who shouted). Most of all, she saw apples... in baskets.

"You..." she started, staring at the ground. "You got them all to fall into the baskets?"

"Not all," Spike said with a chuckle, pointing at Rainbow Burst.

Rainbow looked at him in confusion before looking up. She caught a glimpse of something, but could not quite making it out. It was red, and looked to be about where her horn should have been.

Reaching up, she poked a hoof up to discover...

"An apple? There's an apple on my horn?"

For some reason, that sent Spike over that edge. He fell onto the ground, holding his stomach as he laughed as hard as he could. With a chuckle, the orange pegasus mare moved closer. She grabbed the apple with one hoof and gave it a firm yank.

"Heh, sorry 'bout that," she said as she offered the apple. "Here. No point in letting it go to waste."

"...thanks?" Rainbow lifted up the apple and looked at it. Somehow, the apple had been cored by her horn perfectly. It had gone in through the bottom and out through the top, piercing from the remnants of the bud to the stem. Closing one eye, she looked through the hole. Finally, not really sure what else to do with it, she took a bite.

It was pretty good. She pushed pieces of the fruit in her cheek and turned to the pegasus mare.

"So, I take it that you're Applejack?"

"That's right," the pegasus said with a grin. "What can I do for ya?"

"My name is Rainbow Burst and that," she pointed at the prone little dragon, "is Spike. We're here to check on the catering."

"Well y'all are just in time then," Applejack stated. "C'mon back to the farm house with us. I'll give your little friend a lift." She grabbed Spike with a wing and tossed him onto her back. "And you can ride with Big Macintosh." She started flapping her wings. "See ya there."

Yeah, Rainbow thought. I could totally ride- She gave a hard shake of her head. Where had that come from? Getting back to the now, she walked over toward the stallion.

"So, your name's Big Macintosh?"

"Eyup."

"You mind giving me a lift?"

"Enope."

Rainbow blinked at him as she moved to climb onto his back.

"You don't talk very much, do you?"

"Hold on tight." Big Macintosh spread his wings wide -- letting Rainbow get a good view of them in their full glory -- and with a single, powerful flap, took off.

The trip back to the farmhouse was quicker than the walk from it. They did not fly very high, just enough to clear the treetops. Technically, it probably did not even count as flying. It was more like an extended glide. All the same, the still landed right in front of the porch to the farmhouse.

"Last stop," Applejack called out. "Everypony off."

Spike hopped off with ease, brushing his stomach and chest as he landed. Rainbow Burst was a bit more reluctant to dismount. Big Macintosh's coat was so soft, and warm (probably from working in the sun). He also smelled like apples and clean dirt. Was that because he worked around them all the time, or did he actually have that as his scent? Whatever the case, it made her want to take a bite of his-

"Hey there!"

The sudden, loud appearance of Apple Bottoms right beside her caused Rainbow Burst to let out a yelp of surprise and fall off of Big Macintosh.

"You okay?"

"Fine," Rainbow said as she stood up.

"Heh," Applejack chuckled. "See you already met our cousin Apple Bottoms. C'mon in. I can introduce y'all to the rest of the family and show you what we're makin' for tomorrow."

Keeping Macintosh between her and Apple Bottoms as long as possible, Rainbow Burst made her way toward the door. She quickly followed after Applejack and Spike as they went inside.

"I'm curious," Spike said to Applejack as they made their way through the house. "You and your brother are both pegasi, but you're farmers."

Applejack stopped looked at the young dragon from the corner of her eyes as they narrowed. She raised an eyebrow and pursed her lips.

"What're you tryin' to say?" she asked. "You don't think a pegasus can be a farmer?"

"What?" Spike yelped, eyes going wide. "N-n-no. I... I j-just mean-"

"Ah, relax," Applejack said with a grin, giving Spike a playful shove with a hoof. "I'm just messin' with ya."

Rainbow was snickering a little herself as she walked up, giving Spike a pat on the back. She felt a little bad for the young dragon, being frightened that he had accidentally insulted their host and was about to get in trouble. At the same time, it was kind of funny. The sign of a sense of humor made Rainbow Burst like Applejack a little more.

"While I can't speak for all of Equestria," Applejack continued, "but most of the Apples are earth ponies, with one or two bein' unicorns. Far as we know, our mom became the first pegasus in the family when she married Dad.

"Apple Bloom!"

At the sound of the shout, a small yellow pegasus filly with a red mane and tail came running up, her wings flickering behind her.

"What is it, Applejack?"

"Apple Bloom, this is Spike and Rainbow Burst. Spike, Rainbow, this is my little sister, Apple Bloom."

"Nice to meet ya," Apple Bloom said, reaching out a hoof to shake Spike's claw.

"I'm gonna take our friends to the dining room. Why don't you go and call the folks in so they can be introduced while we start the samplin'."

"Okay," Apple Bloom said with a grin, wings buzzing. "You can count on me." With that, she ran off and headed outside.

Applejack watched her go before turning back to her guests.

"C'mon. Kitchen and dining room are this way."

Spike and Rainbow followed after her. Rainbow could feel her stomach growling at the thought of food, and something smelled good enough to make her mouth water. She was looking forward to this taste testing.

Wait, Rainbow thought as she suddenly stopped. Did she say "friends?"