Ever since she'd first arrived in Ponyville, Twilight had done everything she could to try and make friendships and forge bonds with the ponies she met. Today she was continuing this work by helping out her friend, Applejack. In the pleasant weather of the day, the two mares were hard at work in the orchards of Sweet Apple Acres, with Applejack herself doing her usual thing of bucking trees and smiling proudly when the apples fell into their basket. But, while the earth pony would have usually preferred doing things manually, there was no denying that having Twilight's magic around was useful. With every flash of her horn, the young unicorn would teleport an entire tree's worth of apples down into the baskets below, almost effortlessly, much to her delight. But, there came a time when both mares needed a break from such work, and Applejack gave a hearty whistle to her friend, calling her over. Twilight smiled upon her approach, seeing that Applejack had prepared a pair of large flagons filled with cider. Taking it, she raised the drink to her friend, which Applejack mirrored before the two took a gulp.

"Very good," Twilight commented.

Applejack chuckled.

"Eyup! Won't find none better than that, Twi!"

Twilight giggled, nodding in agreement, before turning her eyes downwards, to the basket by Applejack's hooves.

"We picked up quite a few today."

Applejack looked down to her fruits, smiling as she did so.

"Yep. Although..."

She reached down, picking up one in particular that she seemed to view with a deal of scepticism.

"...if ya look hard enough..."

Sure enough, a small worm started to poke its head out of the apple, much to Applejack's chagrin.

"...there's always a few bad ones in the bunch."

Sighing, the farmer flung the apple in the air, putting her flagon down briefly before giving said fruit and almighty buck of her back legs. It was sent flying far away, with a speed almost unmatched, but while Applejack would have normally been proud of such a feat, things didn't go the way she planned. For as that apple eventually landed, near a big bush by a particular collection of trees, a voice called out.

"OUCH!!!"

Naturally, both Applejack and Twilight turned, just in time to see, of all people, Pinkie Pie emerge from the bush, rubbing her head. She was so far away that she hadn't noticed Applejack or Twilight, and the latter two, after giving each other a look, started to head on over, no doubt to ask her why she was here. But, as they drew nearer, they also saw, to their surprise, that Fluttershy now emerged from that same bush, looking to Pinkie's head where the apple had collided with it.

"Fluttershy?" Twilight asked.

Immediately, the other two mares turned to her, eyes wide and seeming more than a little nervous.

"Oh! Twilight! Applejack! How...how good to see you!" Pinkie remarked.

Now close enough to them, Applejack raised an eyebrow, looking understandably quite confused right now.

"What are y'all doin’ here?"

The other two looked to each other, seeming as though they were urging the other to try and come up with an explanation. But, as they tried this, Applejack spoke again, pointing to the nearby bush as she did so.

"An' what were y'all doin' in there?!"

Again, Pinkie and Fluttershy struggled for an answer, practically shrinking under the gaze of the orange mare before them. Twilight, on the other hoof, was a touch more perceptive than Applejack, and after looking from those two mares, to the bush, and then back again, her eyes started to widened, realisation coming to her.

"Oh...oh!"

All eyes turned to her.

"Twilight?" Applejack asked.

A blush came to her, and she tired to avoid looking to her friend.

"Well...um...I don't think it's really my place to tell you."

Applejack was getting frustrated now.

"Oh fer the love of...would somepony jus' tell me already?!"

Seeing her like this, Fluttershy took a deep breath, then stepped forward, standing tall, before looking Applejack right in the eye and speaking in a firm but measured tone.

"Applejack...Pinkie Pie and I...are lovers."

A silence fell over the group that was so think that you could have sliced it with a sword. Pinkie, for her part, was far from the usual confidence and energy she usually radiated, and instead became a mare who practically oozed nervousness and uncertainty. Fluttershy, just as she had been moments earlier, was standing her ground, looking towards Applejack with utter seriousness. Twilight, on her side of things, kept looking from one mare to the other, and was starting to quietly regret coming over here in the first place. And then there was Applejack, whose face was almost impossible to read right now. Slowly, she blinked, and after a while, the initial shock of having learned what she had started to sink in for her. She cleared her throat, looking from Pinkie to Fluttershy and then back again, before finally breaking the silence between them.

"So...um...how long has this been goin' on?"

Coughing nervously, Pinkie, at last, spoke up.

"Well...um...a few months ago?"

To that, Applejack raised an eyebrow.

"An'...an' ya never thought ta tell me about it?"

She looked to Fluttershy first.

"We're friends!"

And then to Pinkie.

"An' we're family!"

Fluttershy nodded, taking a step forward.

"I realise that, and I'm sorry for keeping it a secret as long as we did. But the truth is...we rather enjoyed having this be a private thing between us. We didn't really want our relationship to be the source of gossip in Ponyville or...perhaps...to maybe cause you some difficulty."

Applejack seemed taken aback by that.

"Wha...y'all thought ah'd be upset by this?"

Pinkie, joining her lover, sighed.

"Well...maybe a little?"

A frown came to Applejack, and after taking a deep breath, she responded to that.

"Let me tell ya somethin', friends..."

She pointed to them.

"...y'all both mean the world ta me! An' ya know what?"

Then, in a move that shocked both of them, Applejack lunged forward, wrapping her hooves around them and embracing them in a tight and warm hug.

"Ah'm happy fer ya! Both o' ya! It's a surprise...but a good one!"

As one would expect, both Pinkie and Fluttershy were more than a little taken aback by this, and through the hug, they exchanged looks of shock. But, that time passed, and soon, they instead began to wore looks of love and relief, returning the embrace. Twilight, who had been standing to one side for a while now, looked to all of this with near-tears in her eyes, clasping her hooves together and just enjoying this tender family moment. But, there came a time when the hug ended, and the three mares parted from one another, all while Applejack continued to wear that wide and genuine smile of hers.

"So...how'd this start anyway? Ah wanna hear all about it!"

Fluttershy giggled.

"I'd be honoured to tell you. Come over my house later and we'll talk over some nice tea."

Applejack tipped her hat.

"Sounds mighty good. Although..."

Suddenly, her eyes narrowed, and she spoke once more with a degree of seriousness.

"...ah do wanna know one thing."

Nervously, the two lovers looked to one another, and when they looked back, it was Pinkie who ultimately addressed her cousin.

"Um...yeah?"

Giving a solemn nod, Applejack soon pointed to the bush nearby.

"Yeah...jus' how far were ya two goin’ in that there bush?"

Hearing that, the two broke out into some adolescent giggling, culminating in Pinkie responding in her usual upbeat manner.

"Oh, Applejack! Let's just say...we went far enough."