"I dunno, Pinkie, doesn't this seem a little... tame for people our age?" Applejack asked, looking up at what had to be the slowest-moving drop ride she'd ever seen. It looked nice, she could admit, and it was decently (if far from intimidatingly) tall, but the seats descending at a gentle, highly-controlled rate didn't look like they'd do much to satisfy her itch for something thrilling. Especially when she'd been on similar rides at the county fair that offered a much more satisfying plunge.

"Well, yeah, but I thought you'd like it! It's pretty, it's tall, and the name sounds kinda like something you'd say!" Pinkie grinned.

"Now wait just an apple-pickin’ minute, Pinkie, what in the dang-blasted heck would make ya think I'd ever say somethin' as ridiculous as 'Jumpin' Jellyfish'? Criminy, just what in tarnation..."

"Beats me!"

"And you took us in this line because you thought I'd like it?" Applejack replied, baffled. "You don't even want to be here?"

"I don't mind! Besides, all the other lines are like totally huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu-"

"Guess you got a point there. Well, they're about to let us on anyway, so I s'pose it's too late to back out now."

"uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu-"

"PINKIE!"

"-uge right now. Sorry, what were you saying?"

Applejack drew Pinkie's gaze to the irate-looking cast member frantically motioning for them to board.

"Whoops! My bad!" The two of them got onto the platform and Pinkie bounced to her seat, Applejack following shortly after. Once they'd been securely strapped in, the seats began to rise, and Applejack couldn't help but smile a bit as Pinkie, even knowing this wasn't the most exciting ride, cheered as though it were, and the slow elevation was building to something incredible.

It was a solid view, Applejack noted. They were looking out over Pixar Pier, with a nice look at the action on the nearby swings, the ferris wheel and the Incredicoaster. It was just before sundown, and the sky was a brilliant shade of orange for the magic hour. It gave her a nice feeling just to be there, with Pinkie by her side.

Unfortunately, that feeling was disrupted by the drop, which, for what it was worth, was a bit more sudden than Applejack was expecting based on what she'd seen from the ground. It was too quick, though; they didn't fall very far before gently slowing to a halt and going back up. Pinkie, though, seemed determined to make it feel epic for Applejack, crying "Whee!" and putting her hands in the air each time.

"Thanks, Pinkie."

"No problem! Wheee!"

Just a few unexciting drop cycles later, they were already going back to the ground. The safety instructions came up on the speakers: "It looks like your jellyfish are all jumped out! So please stay seated until your jellyfish comes to a complete stop! To release your safety belt, push the red button..." Applejack noticed the speaker’s voice oddly resembled that of Cozy Glow, one of the 8th graders she'd recently taken on a tour of CHS during a prospective-student event.

The pair disembarked, and once they'd left the attraction Applejack put her hand on Pinkie's shoulder. "Hey, I hope I didn't make you feel bad or anything about the ride choice. Even a kiddie ride is fun with you, y'know. You didn't have to scream yourself silly to make me feel better."

"Aww, it wasn't just for you, Applejack! Sometimes screaming for nothing is just fun! And it's a lot less totally awkward to do it on a ride like that than doing it just anywhere. Or in The Little Mermaid ride. They really don't appreciate it there."

Applejack started chuckling. "That... that's very true Pinkie. Glad I could give you a fun place to cut loose."

"Nooooo problem! Hey look, isn't that Rarity over there?" Pinkie asked, motioning vaguely.

"Jumpin' jellyfish, where?" Applejack wheeled about, looking. She didn't see her anywhere. She turned back and Pinkie was giggling nonstop.

"Told you it sounded like something you'd say." And the giggling turned into uproarious laughter as she saw Applejack steaming.

Next Chapter: Enchanted Tiki Room (Twilight Sparkle & Fluttershy) Estimated time remaining: 40 Minutes