Sunset watched as Applejack turned to gaze ahead at the empty lot with her eyes at half-mast. Her friend had gone through such an intense series of tragedies as a child, but to have the community turn on her like that? No wonder the other girl had so much concern for what others thought. The graceless manner in which Bright Mac had passed had brought a lot of scrutiny on the Apples. Cruel and unfair scrutiny. Sunset’s blood boiled to think of those parents at the park that day, watching as they allowed their children to taunt Applejack and Apple Bloom on the anniversary of their father’s passing. People could be so cruel.

Though Sunset supposed she’d done far worse. It was always important to remember that every jerk could pull a heel turn and be a decent person again. It didn’t always happen, but it could happen, and that was the thing to keep in mind. She hated to think of disparaging someone about to start their path to redemption.

And such a long, long road that was!

It had been at least four years since Sunset had changed, and here she was with so much to answer for, still. She wished she could shorten the list.

Then her eyes lit up with the kind of dizzy inspiration one experienced whilst high on weed.

“Woah. I just had a crazy idea,” she said with a hushed voice.

She saw Applejack glance at her out of the corner of her eye. She had the air of someone being roused out of deep thoughts. “Yeah? About what?”

Sunset looked at her with an eager smile. “I think I know how to make things up to that old store owner I stole from!” She ran a hand through her hair. “I had some cash fall into my lap, so I was thinking I could pay back what I stole that day. Hopefully, the man is still alive, at least,” Sunset finished with crossed fingers.

“Where’d you get this money you keep mentioning anyhow?” Applejack asked. She had a cigarette in her hand, and after she rolled down the window a crack, she lit it.

Sunset grinned. She enjoyed the numb heavy feeling that came over her as she stared glassily through the windshield at the vacant lot. Kojote’s weed gave a good body high. She could even feel it in her teeth. “One of my lovers gave it to me,” Sunset admitted without thinking. She chomped her mouth a few times, just to test. Hmm. Her gums were tingly. Her teeth feeling funny made sense then, she supposed.

Applejack choked on her cigarette, coughing and hacking over her steering wheel, sending smoke everywhere. “Lovers?” she gasped. Sunset could see her look at her anxiously from the corner of her eye.

She turned and looked at her, frowning. She had been trying not to tell Applejack, hadn’t she? Why did she blurt that out?

Her eyebrows lifted. Oh. Right. I’m reeeeeeally high.

“Yeah, I have people I like to sleep with,” she said with a small blush. Did she feel ashamed? Not really. A little self-conscious that she had to utter that sentence, maybe, but the feeling was fleeting. She had already figured Applejack would need to know at some point. She just would have preferred saying it differently.

“This lover I’ve been seeing for a while just knew I was having some issues, so they insisted on giving me some cash as a gift. This is the first time they’ve done that.” She said this all so casually. So matter-of-fact.

It was just as well, she’d probably be handling this a lot less calmly if she were sober. And how else did you talk about this sort of thing, anyway? Was she supposed to hem and haw about it? Beg her friend to not think poorly of her?

It felt hard to feel overly bashful after admitting to being a child prostitute.

Applejack blinked thickly at her. She seemed to need to take a moment to process this information, so she took an extra long drag on her cigarette. The truck cab was so quiet the sound of the tobacco leaves crackling under the embers sounded loud. “How many people you sleeping with?” she finally asked. She had the energy of someone who very much wanted to look at the person next to them but was trying to play it off as if the empty lot was somehow more interesting.

Sunset considered the question like a cat confronting some strange new box in their territory. Was her friend asking purely out of platonic curiosity, or…? She decided to test this. Why not? Hadn’t she recognized the unrivaled calm the weed was giving her? Better not to squander the bravado being poured into her with useless second-guessing.

She reached over and rubbed Applejack’s back. “Six,” she answered simply. Like telling the time.

Applejack exhaled her smoke harshly, a stunned smile on her lips. “Where in tarnation do you even find the time?”

Sunset chuckled. Applejack joined her, grinning crookedly.

“I don’t see them all constantly at once or anything,” Sunset explained gently. “It’s pretty open and casual. If they’re free, they’re free, if not, whatever. I just go to the next name on my list. Nothing happens if I’m not in the mood.” Most of the time, anyway. She thought of Kojote, of all the ways he toyed with her time and her consent.

She sighed inwardly. I need to break up with him.

“So when you say casual, you mean–” Applejack broke off as she dropped her cigarette through the open window crack and rolled her window up all the way. The cigarette hadn't even burned halfway through, but the cowgirl didn't seem interested in a nicotine hit anymore.

“We just have sex.” Sunset let her hand trail up her friend’s back. Her fingers grazed over the rough jean fabric just over the shoulder. Applejack rolled hers like she could shrug off her growing tension, but all she succeeded in doing was releasing the shiver she'd been containing. Sunset felt a little thrill pierce through her haze as she kept going, right up the side of her friend’s hot neck.

She touched Applejack’s earlobe. When she spoke, it was soft. “We might go on a date if we have nothing to do, but that doesn’t happen often. Usually, it’s just sex. We even follow some simple rules to keep it from getting too…” She traced Applejack’s earlobe with her finger and held the other girl’s eyes. “Emotional,” she finally breathed.

The rules weren’t written down or anything. It was just something she had come up with over time with her other lovers' input. She could almost recite them if asked. They went as follows:

Rule number one, no kissing. Rule number two, no asking about other lovers. Rule number three, no family meetings. Rule number four, no dates at big functions. Rule number five, no big romantic gestures.

So simple and yet so encompassing, these rules had kept Sunset's love life from getting out of control. She told herself to say them aloud. To share them with Applejack so that she would know how close she could get.

Sunset kept quiet.

Applejack caught Sunset’s hand and sat back. She didn’t let go. “And yer partners, are they…are they all just men, or…?” her voice sounded choked like she was afraid to even hope.

Sunset leaned her head against the headrest, her smile curling. “No,” she murmured.

Applejack’s eyes widened. She looked down at Sunset’s hand, still gripped in hers. Her thumb caressed Sunset’s skin, making her heart speed up.

Applejack looked at Sunset with tensed eyes. “What are we doing here, Sun?” she asked quietly.

Sunset smirked and slid closer to her on the seat. “Nothing anyone doesn’t want to.”

Applejack’s brow creased. “And what do you want?”

“I want you to have fun with me,” Sunset said with a grin, inching even closer. Their shoulders were nearly touching now.

“For you,” Applejack said, her eyes briefly closing in suffering. “What do you want jes' for yourself, Sunset?”

“I think I gave an answer, AJ,” Sunset said, her grin fading. She delicately touched Applejack’s jean vest, one finger toying with a button. “But if you’d like a different answer, another thing that I want is for you to dance with me.” She tugged a little on the jean fabric.

“Sunset you know I’m in the closet,” Applejack returned, her voice low but quavering. “No one knows about me. If I do that out there–”

“So you’d do it somewhere else where no one could see?” Sunset asked with a raised eyebrow. She turned in her seat so that she was facing Applejack full on, and with a little flirt of her eyelashes, she lightly placed her chin on her friend’s shoulder.

Even in the dark, she could see Applejack’s skin color with a deep blush. “Um…”

“Applejack, you saw the people in the pub right now.” All this time the other girl hadn’t released her hold on her. She put her other hand over Applejack’s. “I don’t think anyone you know is in there, and if they were they probably wouldn’t give a damn, anyway. They’ll be too busy getting drunk, getting head, and enjoying the music to give a crap what we’re doing.”

“And this is all you want to do with me, Sunset Shimmer?” came the pained reply. “Dance? Cuz I ain’t up for playing games.”

Sunset’s eyebrows lifted a little and she gave a small shake of her head. “No.” She looked at Applejack’s parted mouth. “That’s not all I want to do with you.”

Don’t do it.

Rule number one is at the top of the list for a reason, Sunset.

You’ll regret it. You both will.

It was so very tiring being so goddamn careful all of the goddamn time.

Her eyes lifted back to Applejack’s green gaze. “May I kiss you?” she whispered.

A violent tremble went through Applejack. She finally let go of Sunset to pull her hat off her head and pressed it to her chest. She licked her lips and gripped the steering wheel with her other hand, wringing it.

“Yes,” she answered quietly.

Applejack’s heart pounded painfully in her throat. She tried to keep her breathing even, but she was having trouble with a simple pattern of breathing in and out. Sunset brushed noses with her before gently pressing her forehead into Applejack’s. It was no use. Applejack just sucked in air, her lungs filling with Sunset’s sultry perfume, and waited for her whole world to change.

Sunset’s hand rested on Applejack’s cheek, her soft fingers gently caressing before slipping down to touch just under the chin. Sunset tilted her head forward, and just like that, their lips met, feather-light. Almost tickling.

Such a small, small touch and it made Applejack feel like she’d received a jolt from one of Twilight's science machines.

Then came the next pass of Sunset’s mouth, and it was a firmer brush. She was testing. God, why was she testing?! Was she trying to make Applejack crack??

The cowgirl’s grip on the steering wheel tightened as her eyes fell shut. Her head swam. Her entire body felt warm and her heartbeat wasn’t just in her throat, now it was all through her. Every quivering limb, every aching bit of flesh. It was so strong, she fretted that Sunset could feel it pulsing through her lips.

But Sunset gave no indication she sensed anything of the sort. She just pressed in closer, her soft mouth caressing against hers. They were so moist and warm.

Applejack started to feel lightheaded. She finally released the breath she’d been holding in one anxious exhale. She felt self-conscious that she hadn’t let it out slower. She couldn’t think of anything less attractive than having your kissing partner blow into your mouth like a damn leaf blower. “Sorry,” she whispered shakily before the word was swallowed up by another soft kiss.

Sunset lingered there, chuckling throatily, before she parted enough to murmur, “Don’t worry about it. I’m more worried about you. Are you okay?”

Applejack was only now aware of the fact that she’d smashed her hat to her chest, her fingers like claws. She tried to make her hand relax. It took some effort. “I just…uh…” she searched Sunset’s face trying to get her vision to focus. The moonlight was coming over her shoulder just enough to highlight Sunset’s right eye. It was filled with kindness and concern. Thickly, she managed to say, “I haven’t kissed anyone in a while. Like two years.”

Not since the night of her last rodeo.

“Mmm.” Sunset pecked her lips and Applejack’s heart did a little flip at the sudden wet contact. “Wanna know something funny?” she asked. She buried her hand in Applejack’s hair and massaged her scalp a little, making Applejack sigh.

Sunset bit her lip as she smiled. She leaned in and whispered into Applejack’s ear. “It’s been three since I’ve kissed at all.” She shifted back enough to be able to take in the reaction to this news.

Applejack’s eyebrows rose, her eyes snapping wide open as she looked at her, stunned. “Three–??”

Sunset pulled her toward her by the back of her head, her lips pressing against Applejack’s mouth, effectively ceasing her. The cowgirl stilled, her eyes fluttering closed again, before she let go of the steering wheel, tossed her hat aside, and grabbed Sunset with both arms wrapping around her, pulling her in closer. Her bandaged arm stung briefly from the pressure, but she ignored it. A little pain she could handle if it meant holding on to this…

Sunset slid a leg over Applejack, straddling her. Applejack’s breathing hitched, her hands going to Sunset’s curvy waist. She wasn't heavy at all, and she was so warm.

Sunset held her by the face with both hands as she kissed Applejack, still soft, still tender, like she was afraid of hurting or scaring her. Her body arched into hers. Their bosoms pressed together, and Applejack gasped, her hands squeezing Sunset’s hips before slipping up under her jacket, over that heated soft skin, to press a needy hand in the middle of her bare back.

Don’t let ‘er go, came the delirious thought. Jes’ hold on, before it all slips away forever.

High as she was, it felt like she was caught in some kind of waking dream. Any moment, she was certain she’d open her eyes and things would be normal again.

Lonely and cold.

She wanted to stay here, in this pleasant fantasy, where the shadows weren’t her enemies and the light didn’t judge her.

She wanted to bask in the mysterious in-between with Sunset Shimmer.

But if this wasn’t real and harsh reality was going to make its hated return, then she’d be a fool to pass up on the chance to squeeze this juicy apple-bottomed girl where she was ripest before she lost the chance forever.

Applejack sank her fingers into Sunset’s round ass, pushing up into her soft mouth with a brazen challenge. She wasn’t made of lace. She didn’t need coddling. She wanted more before it was too late. Sunset squealed a little, then laughed from her chest, but she followed Applejack’s suggestion with enthusiasm, their lips pressing more heatedly. It bruised, even.

Then Sunset tasted her lips with her tongue, and Applejack’s breathing stuttered once more as she opened her mouth and their tongues met and swirled with gusto, a passion just shy of outright quarreling. Sunset tasted like a heady mixture of beer, weed, and cigarettes. Applejack loved it. It was so far from any of her expectations of what kissing a girl would be.

It was so far away and different from anything Fluttershy would ever taste like.

She flinched and pulled away suddenly, gasping for breath. She turned her head and cursed herself. She hadn’t meant to think of the other girl. She hated how reflexive it was. When would she stop being plagued by this useless pining?

But maybe she was a greater fool than she thought. After all, did she really think messing around with someone else was going to eradicate years of unrequited love?

Sunset, not deterred by the abrupt change in her friend, just laid a trail of kisses along Applejack’s jaw to her ear.

“Hey,” she panted there. Her hot breath tickled as she braced herself on the seat's backrest. “Applejack, do you… Do you want to…?”

Applejack squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the question she knew she wouldn’t be able to refuse.

“Do you want to get some nachos?”

Applejack’s eyes popped open. Slowly she looked at Sunset. “Nachos?” she repeated thickly, her brow wrinkled with confusion.

Sunset grinned sheepishly. “Yeah! I’m starving! Aren’t you??”

Applejack took a moment to sift through her overwhelming horniness to consider the question seriously. She looked at Sunset, surprised. “Yeah! I am!”

Sunset patted her shoulder with a sympathetic nod then, rather gracelessly, she toppled to the side in a frantic scramble for the passenger door. “Let’s go order some before the pub’s kitchen closes!” she grunted. She managed to get the door open, then yelped when her grip slipped off the handle and she toppled headfirst from the truck, out of sight.

Applejack bolted upright. “Leapin' lizards!! You okay?!”

She let out a breath of relief when Sunset thrust a thumbs up from the ground. “Yep!” Sunset laughed, before standing to her feet with a wince. Her hair was disheveled. She rubbed her shoulder as her other hand dug into her coat pocket. “Ow…”

Applejack leaned on her steering wheel and dropped her face into her hand, laughing. Just like that, the tension was gone from her. How was it that Sunset could be so incredibly self-possessed and yet adorably dorky at the same time? She reached to pick her hat up off the floor. When she looked back at Sunset, it was to see her friend lighting up another cigarette. Here, Applejack paused.

She’d just kissed her friend.

She let that thought just exist for a while, not exploring it or challenging it in any way. That seemed enough for now. It was pretty incredible on its own without any further examination.

Applejack climbed out of the truck, throwing the door shut. She hurried to join Sunset on the sidewalk, and together they walked quickly back to Pandora’s. She eyed her companion on the way. Sunset seemed content to just smoke her cigarette for now. How was she so at ease?

The thought came again, and it had grown on its own.

Applejack had just kissed her friend and she’d loved it.

“It’s the weed,” Sunset said suddenly as if guessing at her friend's thoughts. She looked at Applejack and her lips spread in a shadowy smile. “It can give you the munchies really bad.”

“Makes sense,” Applejack said non-commitally. She looked down at her cowboy boots clicking over the cement. She looked at Sunset again and thumbed over her shoulder, “What doesn’t make sense is where in tarnation that came from.”

Sunset tucked an arm under her breasts, and this she used to prop up her smoking arm. Her hand was limp-wristed. She ashed the cigarette before bringing it back to her lips in what could only be described as the most girly way possible.

“Well,” Sunset said as she exhaled her smoke high into the air. She shrugged her shoulders. “To me, it makes perfect sense.”

Applejack chortled a little. “Oh, yeah? How so?”

Sunset looked at her carefully. “I’ve seen how much you give and care for the people in your life.” She turned over a hand and jutted a lip as if to say, I could stop there if I wanted to. But she didn’t. She kept going. “It's beautiful. And even though setbacks hurt, you don’t let that stop you. Ever,” she murmured. Her lips pulled back in a faraway smile. “And your honesty? It’s beyond admirable. I don’t think I’ve ever met someone as amazingly authentic as you.” A passing car’s headlights lit up the mischievous glint that had suddenly taken over her eyes. “And you look really good in a pair of tight jeans,” she added, laughter evident in her voice.

Applejack wiped at her mouth, her cheeks warming. “That’s alot!” She scratched at her neck. “I suppose I dunno what to say.”

“You can tell me what a good kisser I am,” Sunset said playfully with a little toss of her hair.

Applejack doffed her hat, her smile turning crooked as she bowed a little. Some of her sunflower blonde hair spilled over her shoulder. “I think you already know that, darling,” she said silkily.

Sunset blew a loud wet raspberry and gave her friend a small shove. "After three whole years, my technique is sloppy, but I'll just bask in the fact that you're giving me your honest opinion anyway," she giggled.

Applejack feigned shock as she returned her hat to her head. "What? You mean to tell me my word is being taken with a grain of salt?"

Sunset winked at her. "AJ you keep my life well-seasoned!”

Applejack slapped a hand to her heart. “Lord help me over the fence!”

They both cracked up in another haze of laughter.

When they made it back to Pandora’s Box, the bouncer let them in thanks to their ink stamps. Sunset took hold of Applejack’s hand and guided her to the bar. Applejack smiled, feeling happy in the dreamiest sense.

The bar wasn’t as crowded as earlier since more people were pressing in toward the stage. Sunset found a spot for them both to stand side-by-side. The opening band was still performing. The crowd seemed to appreciate them, but the house wasn’t getting rowdy yet. That enthusiasm was being solidly reserved for Red Rooster.

“Mocking bird
Can't you see?
Little girls
Gotta hold on me like glue
Baby, I'm howlin' for you
Yeah!”

Sunset tried to flag Sherry down, but the bartender pointed a warning finger at her and glared. “I told you that was it! Don’t go tryin’ the other bartender either, I already told ‘em you’re cut off for drinks, y’hear?”

“But I want nachos and water!” Sunset whined loudly with several uncharacteristically childish stomps of her boots. She even pushed out a fat bottom lip.

Applejack raised a finger, a bemused look on her face. “Sure would like a water too, please.”

Sherry raised a suspicious eyebrow at them, her gaze flickering back and forth. Finally, she nodded and said, “All right. But I’m watching you!”

“Thank you!” Sunset called after her in as sweet a voice as possible. She looked at Applejack and beamed. “Phew! Looks like we made it in time. Is your mouth dry, too?”

Applejack nodded, her tongue smacking in her mouth. Her mouth was drier than the Mojave. She remembered others mentioning that some weed could do that.

“The water will help,” Sunset said, patting her hand. Her touch lingered long after the action was done.

Applejack gazed down at Sunset’s hand over hers. Her heart sped up a little and she glanced around quickly to see if anyone was looking.

Sunset’s touch went away.

“Hey,” Sunset said, leaning in so that she could be heard over the band. Applejack met her eyes reluctantly. “Are you still nervous that you might get outed?”

“A little,” Applejack admitted with a grimace. “I mean, I hear what you’re saying. You’re right. It doesn’t look like anybody who would know me is here. But it’s just…not normal for me, you know?”

“It isn’t really for me either,” Sunset said with a sympathetic look. “Most of the time, I’m not out in public with my partners.” She flashed a little grin. “I just have a hard time keeping my hands to myself with you. But I can try and behave better.”

“How’d you get into doing that, anyhow? The whole multiple lovers thing,” Applejack asked, her face burning. So all those times when Sunset had touched her before… “Is there a website or something?”

“No websites,” Sunset said with a smirk. “What I do is just feel people out. Do they seem like they want something serious? Are they interested in me? Can they keep a secret?” She shrugged. “That’s all.”

Applejack leaned on the bar. Licking her lips, she asked haltingly, “Would it be too nosy if I asked who–?”

Sunset was already shaking her head. “Sorry, AJ. Part of what makes my relationships work is discretion. Besides, wouldn’t it be a little distracting every time you met someone who vaguely fit my description?”

Applejack pouted. “I suppose.”

The band finished their final song. There was applause as the frontman thanked the crowd.

Sunset smiled wolfishly and leaned in to whisper in her ear. “If you just want to know what we get up to in the bedroom, that’s a different story…”

Applejack looked to the ceiling and said a quick prayer. She didn’t really do that anymore, having quit the church, but she figured she could use a little help before she made a fool of herself.

“Order’s ready!” she heard Sherry Kiss call. The nachos and drinks were placed in front of them.

Oh, yes. Apples appreciated a well-timed interruption.

“Awesome! I’m beyond hungry,” Sunset said, pulling a cheesy nacho from the paper tray. She took a ravenous bite of it, cheese sauce dripping onto her chest. “Ah!” she exclaimed, trying to blow heat from her mouth in a sudden panic. “It’s hot!”

Applejack laughed at her. “Girl, you look like you haven’t eaten for days!” She pointed awkwardly at her chest. “Uh, you got some down there…”

Sunset blinked owlishly and looked down. “Oh!” She looked coquettishly at Applejack. “Do you want to get it?”

Applejack felt herself light on fire and covered her face with her hand. She knew Sunset was confident and comfortable with her body, but if she kept this up, Applejack was going to die.

She felt Sunset tap her shoulder and peeked through her fingers. Her friend was grinning impishly at her. “I got it,” she said with a wink. She tossed the used-up napkin onto the bar counter.

Her legs felt weak, so Applejack pulled over a barstool and sat heavily on it. She shook her head at Sunset, “Sugarcube, if you want me to have a heart attack, trust me, you ain’t gotta do half as much as that.”

“Am I being too much?”

Applejack leaned on the bar and rested her temple on her fist. After a moment of gazing at her friend, she smirked. “Nah. You’re just about right.”

Sunset bit her lip and smiled. She pushed over the nacho tray. “Want some?”

Applejack licked her lips. “Don’t mind if I do.” She snagged a large nacho covered in cheese sauce. This she carefully ate and licked her fingers clean.

Meanwhile, Sunset pulled up a large stack of cheesy nachos and consumed them ravenously. Between the two of them, the nachos were gone in less than a minute.

Sherry, who was mixing a drink nearby, eyed Sunset with reproach. “Girl, how you gonna look so cute, then act so ratchet? Don’t you got any sense of decorum?”

“That would require me to take myself seriously!” Sunset returned unabashedly. She wiped cheese sauce from the corner of her mouth with her thumb, then licked it clean. Using the same thumb, she pointed at herself. “As a rule, I try not to.”

Applejack shook her head at her friend as she grabbed her glass and raised it to the bartender. “I appreciate the drink, miss,” she told Sherry. She took a big gulp. It felt really good to wet her mouth.

Sherry leaned on the bar and smiled at her. “You’re Applejack, right?”

She blinked at Sherry as she set her glass back down. “Sure am.”

“You go to school with Sunset?”

Applejack nodded, smiling politely. She didn’t know where this conversation was going. Apparently, neither did Sunset. After finishing a drink from her water glass, she rapped the bar loudly and raised an eyebrow when Sherry looked her way.

“What are you up to?” Sunset asked her with squinted eyes.

Sherry held her hands up. “I’m just chatting up my customers!”

“You don’t even work here!”

Sherry looked at her as if she were crazy. “Don’t mean the tips ain’t good!”

“Yeah, Sunset and I go to the same university,” Applejack interjected. “But we been friends since about junior year of high school.” She pointed between her friend and the bartender. “Can I ask how ya’ll met?”

“At a different bar,” Sherry said as Applejack spied Sunset dropping her forehead to the counter with a thud she could feel through the polished wood. “She had snuck in through the back and tried using the exact same card she’s carrying now.”

Sunset raised her head and leaned in with a scowl. “Keep your voice down!” she hissed.

Sherry leaned on the bar and kissed her lips at her. Their faces weren’t that far apart. “Or what?” she purred back.

Sunset tried to glare at her but it was a losing battle. She couldn’t keep the smile off her lips. “You want to tell her about us, don’t you?” she asked with a slow shake of her head.

Sherry fanned herself, her mouth opening in feigned shock. “Whaaat?” Her eyes slid over to Applejack, making the cowgirl sit up straighter as the heat crawled up her neck. “I mean…if you’re sharing…”

“You’re awful,” Sunset said, but laughter rumbled deep in her throat. “And the answer is no!”

Sherry pouted, her eyes going up and down Applejack. “Why don’t we ask your friend?”

Applejack didn’t need any more clues to get what was happening, though she was surprised she hadn’t melted down to the floor yet. She could hardly believe what she was hearing.

“Ahem…” she held up a shaking hand. “I’m, uh… I’m afraid I’m with–” she pointed weakly at Sunset.

Sunset hugged Applejack’s arm and beamed.

Applejack’s heartbeat started pounding through her body again, and she wasn’t so much thinking about what the other people around them were seeing so much as how freaking good Sunset’s body felt against her. Wearing only a bra under that leather jacket left so much of her to feel, and her skin was soft like rose petals.

Sherry waved a hand. “Hey, that ain’t a problem.” She reached into her back pocket and produced a business card. This she placed on the counter and slid it to Applejack. Sherry winked at her as she slinked away. “You let me know when you want someone with more experience, cowgirl.”

“Um… Thank you?” Applejack took the card and stared at it. It read, Sherry Kiss, Bartender. It had the woman’s number and email with a shiny foil inlay of red lips in the upper right corner.

“She did the same thing to me,” Sunset said with an eye roll.

Applejack looked at her carefully. “So she’s one of your…?”

Sunset smiled bashfully and nodded.

“Wow,” Applejack said, peering down the bar at Sherry. It seemed the woman wasn’t in the least bit broken up by her recent rejection because she was already chatting up a girl on the other end of the bar. “She’s gorgeous!”

Applejack looked back at Sunset with a little smirk, “Did you eat nachos in front of her, too?”

Sunset used her finger to wipe up a glob of cheese sauce from the empty paper tray. This she quickly sucked clean before she giggled. “Maybe. It’s important to offset any delusions of grandeur with some timely buffoonery. I do this for partners as much as myself.” She touched a hand to her chest with a little wince. “See, I dunno if you’ve noticed, but me and ego trips are dangerous! Pinkie taught me that it’s important to be able to laugh at yourself. It’s the quickest way to humility.”

Applejack snickered. “So when you went tumbling out of the truck?”

Sunset looked at her with wide eyes. “Oh, that? No way! I just really wanted nachos.”

Applejack laughed. “Sunset, how’d you get to be so amazing?”

Sunset shook her head. “I’m not amazing.” But she looked at Applejack, brimming with warmth. “And I didn’t learn how to be a better person on my own. I learned from all of our friends. From you.”

Applejack felt her skin turn the shade of a ripe red apple. As Sunset had once explained to Flash Sentry at Camp Everfree, she didn’t pull her punches. She said what was on her mind, stating it clearly and assertively. It was a concise sort of honesty that cut straight to the heart of the matter.

But whereas Fluttershy may have occasionally felt forced to speak her mind quickly, Sunset had no sense of rush. Her words existed with great conviction and confidence. She was careful to share only what she believed in, and she was humble enough to profess ignorance when necessary.

So to hear her genuinely attribute overcoming her troubled past to all of their friends, even Applejack?

Applejack leaned heavily on the bar, fanning herself. “Is it hot in here, or is it just me?” she said with a timorous grin.

“Well, you are pretty hot, so…” Sunset’s smile curled as Applejack’s blush worsened. She nudged the cowgirl with a wink. “Sorry. You walked straight into that one.”

Applejack laughed and reached for her glass of water again. “I guess I did!”

Sunset took a quick sip of her drink, then thumbed over her shoulder with a little grimace. “Um, I need to use the restroom really quick. Are you gonna be okay here for a minute?”

“Go ahead,” Applejack said, waving her off. “I’ll just nurse this water till you get back.”

Sunset gave a double-thumbs up as she backpedaled toward a narrow hallway just to the right of the pool table area. A hanging sign indicated it was the way to the bathrooms. “Cool! Maybe after you wanna dance with me?”

Applejack rubbed the back of her neck and looked down at her boots. “I dunno…”

“Just think about it,” Sunset said, still smiling. She swayed her curvy hips a little. “Think about it reeeally hard…”

The cowgirl watched her friend leave with wide eyes. Dance? Here? What in tarnation was she going to do? If she said no, then she’d have to suffer the look of disappointment on her pretty friend’s face. And if she said yes…?

Someone might see.

Someone might run and tell.

She wasn’t afraid of dancing–Apples may have been white, but they knew a thing or two about rhythm. No, what had her worried was the danger of loose lips. Country folk did one of three things: work, drink, and gossip. Something about sitting in a deer stand all day or hanging clothes out to dry had even the most upright of people talking out of the sides of their faces. This terrible habit had lowered her family’s standing out in the countryside after her mother’s death. First, it was the whisperings about Bright Mac’s drunkenness. Then it was about his violent death. The trouble with gossip was that it wasn’t a factual transfer of information. It was all false rumors and backbiting.

“That’s rich, coming from someone who was too afraid to even come out of the closet to begin with! What’s the matter, AJ? Couldn’t boss up?” The memory of Rainbow Dash’s words stung deep. Her friend had already apologized, and Applejack wasn’t mad at her. But it still hurt. It probably would for a long while.

Rainbow just didn’t understand. When she came out as a lesbian, it hadn’t been a big deal. She just got to live honest and free. Even her own terrible father had been supportive! Applejack knew much of the Apple family was accepting of LGBT people, but she was also aware of some distant relatives who might not show up to a family reunion at Sweet Apple Acres if they knew what she really was. She had to think about her immediate family. The business they ran. It had taken them years to recover from the loss of Bright Mac, not just in numbers but in reputation. They’d lost friendships. Business. All it would take was one person to see her being herself here and–

Applejack jumped when she felt a hand roughly tap her shoulder from behind the bar. Turning, she found Sherry Kiss leaning heavily on the counter and leveling a hard stare at her. “What the hell are you doing?” she yelled over the sound of the live music.

“What?” Applejack returned dumbly.

Sherry’s face screwed up like Applejack had dropped her pants and was blowing raspberries out in the middle of the pub. “Girl, Sunset is throwing herself at you! Why you still acting coy?”

Applejack was really getting sick of feeling her skin light on fire tonight. “Look, it’s complicated!”

“Complicated? Are you kidding me right now?” Sherry crossed her arms and looked Applejack up and down. Her critical expression softened. “Lemme guess, you’re still in the closet?”

Applejack slouched and put her head in her hands. “Yes.” She realized with delay that Sherry may not have heard her say this since she was speaking into her palms. When she lifted her head to speak more clearly over the din of the performing band, she found that Sherry wasn’t there. Applejack blinked and looked around. At that moment, she noticed Sherry moving to the far end of the bar, where she lifted the counter to come around to the other side and take a seat on an empty barstool next to her.

Sherry leaned backward onto the counter so that her back arched, her red bodice straining as she pushed her chest into the air. Applejack realized a few seconds too late that she needed to look at the woman’s face, not her ample cleavage.

Sherry smirked knowingly at her. “You need to let that shit go, cowgirl.” She gestured a hand at the pub, causing Applejack to turn and look. “Look out there. Do any of those people look like they give a damn about you?”

Applejack’s lips pressed together. “Maybe not. But–”

The bartender waved a stern finger in front of her face. “Ah, ah! No buts! They. Do. Not. Fucking. Care.” She shrugged as she turned over a hand. “Baby, this is the city! Maybe out in your neck of the woods, it’d be a bigger deal, but unless you can pick out someone you know, you’re gonna have to forget about Cracker Land and just live in the moment. I’m telling you this because I think you’re cute, but also because I can tell… Sunset really likes you.”

“We just have history is all,” Applejack returned with a pout. “Tain’t nothing more than that.”

Sherry pursed her lips. “When I say ‘Sunset really likes you’ I mean, ‘she’ll trust you with shit she ain’t trustin’ with nobody else’. Not even your other friends.”

At Applejack’s nervous fidgeting, Sherry laughed. “Well, goddamn, she already has been, huh?” She shook her head, looking down at her high-heeled shoes. “I’ve known that girl since after she graduated high school. I consider her a friend, but she plays her cards close to her chest. If she’s revealed her hand to you, all I have to say is… bet high. Don’t fold. All right?” Her eyebrow arched. “Otherwise, someone else will steal the pot.” She pointed delicately at the crowd again. “That is what people are really watching for, cowgirl. A chance to swoop in on your friend.” She tilted her head to the side, her eyes squeezing a little. “You gonna let ‘em?”

Applejack listened to the older woman speak with a small frown on her face. She got the poker analogy, she just wasn’t sure how much she could believe it. At the final question, she removed her hat and held it to her chest with two hands. Her green eyes swept over the crowd. Everyone on the dance floor was focused on the stage. The people towards the rear were engrossed in their games and conversation. Her brow knotted when she saw the two men they’d bumped into at the bar sitting at one of the tables and pointing down the hallway Sunset had gone down. The brown-haired fellow was pushing his dark-haired friend like he was egging him on.

She slipped off the barstool. “I’m not a betting gal, but…” Applejack placed her hat back on her head and grinned at Sherry. “I’m not into losing neither.”

Sherry whooped and gave her a high-five. Her smile was so large, that all of her white teeth gleamed in Applejack’s eyes. “Get it, girl!” the older woman laughed with evident delight.

Sunset pressed a folded wet paper towel to the back of her neck, savoring the cool wet contact that eased the heat there. Funny how every time she set foot outside she was freezing her butt off, but inside the pub she felt like she was going to melt. Her gaze locked onto her cyan eyes in the dirty pub mirror. In the corner, just above where the reflective paint had chipped, someone had scribbled a crude drawing of a cock and balls.

All righty, Sunset Shimmer, she thought to herself with a wry quirk on her lips. You did it. You snogged one of your closest friends. Now what?

What, indeed. After all, this wasn’t just some random person she’d picked up on a whim. Maybe she should pump the brakes? She could be satisfied with a kiss and leave it at that tonight, right? It’s not like she kissed much.

Sunset reached a hand up to touch her cherry-red lips. Her fingertips brushed over her bottom lip lightly and her gaze became hooded in the mirror reflection. The visceral memory came in bits and pieces.

The feel of Applejack’s uneasy breath. The cool touch of her wet lips. The low groan that had sounded from deep in her throat, like a tension she’d been carrying forever had finally released.

Sunset almost wished she hadn’t used the pricey long-lasting lipstick. Sure, you could have peace of mind it wouldn’t transfer to your teeth or rub off onto glasses, but then you missed the fun of seeing the vibrant trail of kisses you left on your lover...

Sunset gave her head a little shake. Turning on the faucet, she wet the paper towel again and, after a quick squeeze, she pressed it to her neck once more.

It was really hard making a sound decision being this high and horny. Applejack had been right. She’d hit the pipe a little too hard. Dredging up all those memories had just made her desperate to go numb. Maybe she’d gone too far. Had it really been necessary to share so much?

No. Of course not.

Then again, maybe she’d been testing her friend. Testing to see if she’d recoil. Testing to see if she’d run.

Applejack hadn’t stepped back, she’d stepped closer.

Sunset’s heartbeat was in her throat as her reflection tightened with a look of disquiet.

Now what? Now what?

She’d never been on the cusp of something so big before!

When Rainbow Dash had been fretting about whether or not to act on her new feelings for Fluttershy, Sunset had encouraged her to overcome her fear of being that deeply connected with someone again. Lightning Dust had hurt Dashie so badly, and it had been hard for the tomboy to disassemble her defenses. In Sunset’s case? She’d never had to go through a tough relationship to feel this anxiety.

No, she’d just needed her screwed-up life to do that for her.

The fear of getting hurt was still pretty prevalent, but more than that, Sunset knew her strange responsibilities would likely get in the way of any long-term anything. She’d probably spend the rest of her life chasing down and containing magical anomalies. Honestly, who would stick around and wait for someone like that?

Sunset felt her cheeks burn as the obvious name sounded loudly in her head.

Could this be wishful thinking? She wondered uneasily. Do I really want to make Applejack wait on me while I tackle the magic problem?

Twilight Sparkle was frequently encouraging her to find someone to slow down with. Yes, Twi knew about her multiple partners. Not who they were, but she had enough details about them to know the ones she liked and the ones she hated. She’d be pleased to know that Sunset was finally considering dumping Kojote. Sunset tried to imagine what her friend would say if she learned of her and Applejack. They shared many things with one another, but Sunset’s quiet admiration of their mutual friend she’d kept secret. Would Twilight be surprised?

Sunset smirked at her reflection. Probably not. Twilight was frustratingly good at putting together clues and making accurate theories. How many times had Sunset tried to come clean to her spectacled friend about something, only to have the other girl beat her to the punch? She half considered calling Twilight right then, just to get a reality check.

She could almost hear her friend’s flat voice now:

“Sunset, come off it. We both know you’re going to sleep with AJ tonight.”

Her heart did a somersault. Did she really want to take Applejack to bed that evening?

Well, that was a stupid question. Of course she did.

“Look, whatever you do, just be REALLY upfront with Applejack, okay? If you’re not ready to let go of your other partners, say so. But then you've gotta ask yourself: are you still doing the solo-parallel poly thing, or are you gonna make Applejack your primary partner and transition into a hierarchical-poly dynamic with everyone? Let AJ decide if she wants to try that sort of relationship with you. She’s a big girl. Then? I’d advise going slowly, no matter the course you take.”

Sunset squinted her eyes. Slowly, as in…?

Mind Twilight rolled her eyes. “As in don’t make Applejack breakfast, lunch, and dinner.”

Oh.

Sunset’s lips pressed together as she frowned at herself. She’d have to tell Twilight what a great internal voice she made in Sunset’s head. She felt like she’d cut the bullcrap in half and saved a bunch of time.

Still, easier said than done. She’d been known to go through a “honeymoon” period with new lovers. It was exciting, after all. Could anyone blame her? Sherry Kiss liked to tease that during such times, Sunset temporarily forgot everyone else’s number.

So then, the new question was… could she go slow with Applejack?

Sunset looked over at the imaginary corner of her mind where Twilight Sparkle sat reading a book on Quantum Field Theory. The mental specter of her friend peeked over her glasses at Sunset and tilted an eyebrow.

“Tch! Don’t look at me. You only listen to me half the time, anyway.”

Sunset winced. That was fair.

Somewhere else in her mind, she could hear a bass drum kicking repeatedly. She groaned a little.

“Do it,” her mental specter of Pinkie Pie chanted from behind a drum kit. “Do it, do it, do it!”

Pinkie also knew about Sunset having multiple partners. The party girl was fairly open to talking about her sexual experiences, so it had just kinda slipped out one day during a raunchy conversation. Despite Pinkie's excellent ability to keep a secret, Sunset had still refrained from providing as many details as she'd given Twilight for obvious reasons.

The bass drum kicked faster, and it felt like a pulse. “Doitdoitdoitdo–!”

Very obvious reasons.

Mind Twilight sighed acerbically. “I get the tradition of having the Id and the Ego, the Devil and the Angel, but did it need to be so–” she broke off with a wince as Pinkie smashed the cymbals next. “Loud?”

Sunset gave a mental shrug. Maybe she didn’t share her deepest darkest secrets with Pinkie, but their boisterous friend was a top-tier confidante. Who better to root for a bit of reckless abandon?

All right, enough with the inner round table, Sunset thought with a smirk. With a will, the specters of her friends vanished from her thoughts.

Next to her, a short, thick girl with dark auburn hair was washing her hands. She kept glancing at Sunset all the while. When she shut her sink off, her eyes stopped dancing away, and she leaned on the sink, her wine-red lips curling up.

Sunset let her eyes slide over to the stranger but didn’t turn her head. “Hi. Can I help you?” she asked. Her voice lacked malice. Curiosity, more like.

She didn’t normally sleep with girls shorter than her, but she was always open to trying new things.

The girl grinned, leaning over a little to murmur at her. Sunset’s nose tickled with the smell of booze. “I was just wondering...” Her voice was light and nasally. Her eyes were a dark gray flecked with red. Just behind her left ear was a small tattoo of a quill and inkpot.

When she didn’t continue, Sunset threw her paper towel away and looked fully at her. She lifted her eyebrows and asked, “Yes?”

The girl blushed and pointed at the door. “Are you with the blonde?” Her voice dropped to a hot whisper as she stepped a little closer. “Like… with with her?”

Sunset’s eyes widened and she leaned back. The girl was beyond drunk. She probably wouldn’t have done something so clumsy and awkward if she were sober. At least, Sunset would have liked to think so, for the girl’s sake.

Not deterred by Sunset’s reaction, the girl took another step forward, leaning heavily on the counter to keep from slipping on the wet floor. “Because if you’re not–”

Sunset held her hands up, baring an uncomfortable smile. “I’m flattered, but I’m afraid that girl is my date tonight.”

Somewhere in the back of the bathroom a toilet flushed.

The auburn-haired girl just squinted one eye at her. “You?” She laughed. “Hell, no! Girl, I was asking about your friend!”

Sunset blinked.

Well! That was… certainly new.

She pointed stiffly toward the exit just as the bathroom stall in the back opened. “Sure. Sorry for the confusion. I’m, um. I’m gonna… go?”

Another woman with much shorter dark hair and a septum ring was still buttoning her pants up. “Hey, Quill! Did you ask about the blonde beefcake yet?” she asked her friend eagerly. When her eyes lifted from her task and landed on Sunset, she froze.

Sunset spun on her heel and pushed out the exit door. “She’s taken!” she snapped over her shoulder.

Her face burned. The nerve of some people! She’d been on dates in public before, but she’d never once felt like she’d had to compete to hold her date’s attention! Now she hastened down the hallway back to the pub’s main floor. If she wasn’t careful, Sherry wouldn’t be the only one trying to make a pass at Applejack tonight. She doubted her friend would just ditch her like that, but she also had a feeling such advances would just serve to make the cowgirl retreat into her shell.

These horny drunks weren’t going to spoil Sunset’s plans, that was for damn sure.

She didn’t have to go far. Applejack was leaning against the railing that skirted the elevated pool area. Her arms were crossed and she was looking out toward the pub’s dance floor.

“AJ?” Sunset called as she neared.

The country girl turned her freckled face toward Sunset and smiled.

Sunset grinned crookedly. “What are you doing? You look like a bouncer guarding an entrance.”

Applejack squinted one eye as she shoved her hands into her pockets and hitched her shoulders up to her ears. “Ah, y’know…”

Sunset’s grin broadened. “So did you think about dancing with me?” She cocked her hip as she spun a finger through the air. “Because I think the sharks are circling.”

“No kiddin’!” Applejack thumbed toward the tables. “Our friends from earlier are still angling for your digits.”

Sunset stepped close to her, her eyebrow arching. “And that bothers you?”

Applejack licked her lips and pushed off of the railing. Tilting her hat back with a finger, she said with a smirk. “Like a kiss from a horsefly.”

Sunset laced her hands behind her back as she sidled closer, her hips rocking with every step. “If we’d like to be left alone for the evening, we might need to send a clearer signal…”

Applejack pulled off her hat and held her hand out. “Wanna cut a rug, Sunset Shimmer?”

Sunset bit her lip just to keep her smile from spreading too wide.

She jerked forward as the auburn-haired girl and her dark-haired friend shoved past her.

“Don’t do it,” the short girl said to Applejack with an unnecessary booming voice. “Thin Cut Bacon over here thinks she’s the main character!” Then she and her friend hung on each other as they laughed all the way to the bar.

Applejack blinked and looked at Sunset sidelong. “Do you know them, too?” Her hand was still held out.

Sunset threw her head back and laughed. “Thankfully, no!” She took Applejack’s hand and flirted her eyelashes. “Forget them. Forget the people here. Forget everything else and just dance with me, AJ.”

Applejack pulled her into a tight embrace. Her blonde bangs fell into her eyes as she murmured, “Darlin’, I’m here for whatever as long as the creek don’t rise.” Her face pressed in a little closer, and her breath tickled Sunset’s mouth. “And even then, I’d be content to drown in you…” She closed the distance to lay a deep kiss on her lips.

Sunset’s eyes rolled shut. Breathing became more of a challenge as her body ignited with heat and she wrapped her arms around Applejack’s neck. So much for all that effort to cool down in the bathroom.

“Mm-hmm, yeah I can see you going slow with this one,” Mind Twilight sassed from behind her imaginary book.

“Do it faster!” Mind Pinkie squealed.

Sunset snorted into a laugh, dropping her head to hide her blushing face in Applejack's warm neck.

"Did I kiss ya funny?" the blonde asked with amusement.

Sunset pulled back to grin sheepishly at her friend. "Sorry, sorry. I think the weed is giving me an over-active imagination."

"I'll say," Mind Twilight grumbled. Mind Pinkie giggled, and that made Sunset giggle again, harder.

"Come on," she said, laughter still bubbling in her words as she took both of Applejack’s hands and led her to the dance floor. "Let's have fun!"

The song referenced in the chapter does not belong to me. It's Howlin' For You from the Black Keys.