Summer Rain

By Sturm Panzer

“Hurry the hay up, Applejack, or we're gonna miss the darn train!”

“I'm comin' a'ready, Mac!” The young orange filly was just shoving the last couple of things into her saddlebags, and tucking them closed. It took a moment more to sling them over her back as the load was heavier than she anticipated it was, but nothing she couldn't handle. “Can't forget Pa's hat,” she said to herself. The hat was for a pony bigger than Applejack, so when she put it on, it came down a little over her forehead, but kind of stuck in place thanks to her mane.

“Applejack! Yo' get yo' flank out here right now, or ah'm gonna tan yo' hide red!” That loud voice could only belong to dear old Granny Smith. She was such a sweetie, and a real mother figure to Applejack after her parents passed away; but make no mistake, she had plenty of that Apple Family fire.

“I'm comin' Gran!” Applejack called out as she ran out the front door of the Apple Family's home, and skidded to a stop in front of a rather stern-looking Granny Smith. Her brother Big Macintosh was standing beside her, and neither was looking to happy.

“ 'bout time you showed up, Applejack.” Gran looked cross, and her voice had the sting of a switch. “And here I was thinkin' we were gonna have ta' wait 'till t'mara to leave for Hooveston' And that would'a meant maybe missin' the birthin'.”

Lowering her head, Applejack looked down at the ground. “Sorry Granny. Ah had to make sure that Ah had everthin' packed.”

“A'righty then, since we're all here, we 'kin finally go.” Granny Smith motioned with her head off toward Ponyville, and then started heading out, letting the rest follow behind her.

As Applejack was heading down the road, she turned to take a brief look at home. The grand house was old when Granny Smith was born; her grandma said she was born in it too. Generations of Apple Family ponies were born, grew up, and passed away in that big red house. It had seen successive additions over the years; a room here, a shed there. It was the only home Applejack had ever known, having spent all her live on the farm.

The trek into Ponyville took a bit of time, with the Sweet Apple Acres farm being well outside the town boundaries. The afternoon air had a tinge of dampness that was refreshing, invigorating, even.

The time just gave more opportunities for the butterflies in Applejack's belly to kick around some more. She's been to Ponyville lots of times with Granny and her older brother Big Macintosh, and even a few times on her own; but this was only her second time leaving the Ponyville area. That time she went to Manehattan to stay with Aunt and Uncle Orange for a while. That was what led to her getting her Cutie Mark.

Taking a look back along her flank, Applejack could easily see the trio of bright red apples displayed there. It was barely 6 years ago that it had happened, but Applejack could remember it like it was only yesterday. The memory of that moment was still enough to lift her spirits and bring a smile to her face.

“Shoot, the train's a'ready here! Both ya', git on 'er,” Granny Smith ordered Mac and AJ. “Ah'll git the tickets.” And with that, the older green mare headed over to the small outbuilding that held the small train office.

Applejack and Big Mac climbed up onto the train and then settled onto the benches inside the passenger car. “Have ya' ever bin on a train b'fore, Big Mac?”

“Nope.” Mac was as concise as always.

It was only another minute or so before Granny Smith got on, walking along the aisle to take a seat on the bench behind Applejack, and then settle down, pulling her hat down over her face. “Ya' might wanna git a nap or three in. It'll be a borin’ ride.”

AJ was much too excited about the prospect of her first train ride, and hearing the call of “All aboard!” just before the train started moving got her perked right up to watch out the window as the train started pulling out of the Ponyville station.

It was really interesting at first. The feeling of moving on a train was something she'd never experienced before, and the landscape that rolled past her window was new and different. But, it took all about an hour for her to get bored with it. The green hills, trees and occasional river became dull, like the scenery was stuck on a loop. “Takin' a nap sounds like a good idea,” she said softly, noting that Granny and Big Mac were already in a light snooze.

The filly leaned her head to the side, resting it against the back of the bench and let the gentle rocking movement of the train lull her off to sleep.

It only seemed like a short nap before she was awoken by a hoof shaking her. “Wake up Applejack. We're almost there.”

“Huh, wha?” Blinking the sleep from her eyes, Applejack noticed that it was in fact a number of hours later, judging by how far the sun had moved across the sky.

The landscape had also changed. The verdant hills of her home had been replaced by flat prairies that were broken by large mesas of stone that rose up. And just ahead, the town of Hooveston. But what Applejack really noticed was the heat; it was well past the hottest point of any summer in Ponyville she'd ever seen.

As the three ponies were disembarking from the train, they were met by another trio of Earth Ponies. “Well howdy there. Good ta' see y'all arrived safe and sound.”

“Stonehoof! Good to see ya', dear nephew,” Granny Smith said with a smile to the burly grey-coloured pony with the dark mane, and bearing a Cutie Mark of hoof breaking a rock. “Cornsilk, ya' look fit ta' burst!” she said to the second pony, a very pregnant-looking mare, golden in both mane and hide and with a the Cutie Mark of an ear of corn. “An' this mus' be yo' son, Braeburn,” she said with a smile to the amber-coloured colt, who looked to be about the same age as Applejack.

Granny Smith nodded to the big red colt that was already bigger than she was. “This is my grandson, Big Macintosh. An’ then lil’ Applejack.”

“Ah ain’t little. Ah’m a big pony,” Applejack huffed, much the amused chuckles of Stonehoof and Cornsilk.

“Shame on y’a, Stonehoof, draggin’ Cornsilk all th’way here, with her all carry’in’ like that, Granny chided the big stallion, who just laughed it off.

“Oh, I tried tellin’ ‘er ta’ stay at home, but she wouldn’t hear nothing of it,” Stonehoof said with a soft chuckle. “She right insisted on comin’ along.”

“Darn right, Auntie. I wouldn’t be stuck at home and let this big lunk get lost on his way to town and back. I’d just have to go out and find ‘im myself, anyway.”

“C’mon, then. It’s about a good hour to the farm. This way,” Stonehoof led them along southward from the train station.

For the first part of that leisurely walk, Applejack was mostly looking at the passing scenery, and idly listening to Stonehoof and Cornsilk talk to Granny about the farm, how their crops were doing, and about her foal, that’s soon to be brought into the world.

“So you’re cousin Applejack,” Braeburn said as he fell in alongside the filly. “Pleasure ta’ meet ya’.”

“Hey there… Braeburn,” it took a moment for Applejack to recall his name, but she made up for it be flashing him a big, bright smile. “How many ponies are coming down for your mom’s birthing?”

“Well, there’s you three. Ma’ Granny’s already here from New Ormanes; I reckon she’s your granny’s sister, then? Ma and Pa Kettle are coming over in the morning. They ain’t family, but they’re my god-parents. They’ve known Pa since he was a foal, grew up together, I’m told.”

Applejack nodded as she listened to the colt walking along side of her. “That’s a few ponies,” she said with a slight nod.

“Yeah,” Braeburn commented. Then nodded to Applejack, “So I heard you’re from Ponyville? What’s it like?”

“Ponyville’s… well, green.” Casting a quick look around at all the brown and gold of short grass and rock that surrounded them, Applejack quickly added, “In the summer, anyway. We get lots of rain up there. It’s also cooler than it is down here in the south.”

“We don’ get a lot o’ rain around here. We have ta’ pump most of our water in from wells in the hills. The water’s pumped up with windmill-powered pumps, an’ then it runs down along these raised irrigation troughs ‘til it gets to where it’s goin’. There’s a lot’a complicated engineerin’ involved, with making sure the water’s constantly runnin’ downhill all the way.” Braeburn sounded downright proud with his knowledge of the farm’s irrigation system.

“Wow, that’s impressive,” Applejack said with a smile. “For us, when we need rain, we just need ta’ put in some paperwork with the weather office so they can get some pegasus ponies to bring the clouds in. An’ if we get too much rain, or we need the sun for our crops, then the pegasus clears the clouds from the sky.”

“There’s only a handful of pegasus ponies that live ‘round here. They don’t much like the heat, and they say that the aridness means they can’t build homes in the clouds. A home in the clouds…” There was a sense of awe in Braeburn’s voice, “That sounds ‘mazing. I’d sure like to see that someday.”

The scenery they saw as they walked was quite impressive in it’s own right. Scattered stone mesas rose up from the ground; some were as big as a house or tree, while some were distant titans that looked like they could fit all of Sweet Apple Acres on top of it. Small scraggly trees sheltered against the bases of these stone buttes.

The ground was unlike anything Applejack had ever seen, too. In most places it was bare soil, hard packed into something not unlike a dry riverbed in the peak of the dry season. In some places, mainly close to the buttes, in some of the valleys, and along the few, meager streams she saw, it was short grass. The arid nature of Hooveston and the surrounding areas really impressed Applejack with the tenacity and ingenuity of the ponies that not only lived here, but also thrived in this rugged landscape.

AJ and Braeburn continued to chat, swapping stories about what it was like in their home towns, she found herself genuinely liking the colt. It wasn’t hard, he was as open and honest as any of the family, and he had that sense of adventure that she admired, which led her to journey to Manehattan.

Before too much longer they finally arrived at the farm, walking along the road that ran between waving stalks of corn. The house wasn’t nearly as impressive as the Apple Family’s, but it was also a lot newer, having been built by Stonehoof’s parents. As they walked up to the house, the sun’s waning light was well down near the horizon, and despite the nap that Applejack had taken on the train, she was already feeling worn out. The stress of traveling, she figured.

AJ’s eyelids were drooping even as she tiredly walked the last handful of feet down the hallway and into the guestroom that she was sharing with Big Mac. “If ya start snorin’ like ya usually do, Mac, ah’m gonna grab one o’ those corn an’ shove it in yer mouth.”

Big Mac just answered with a soft chuckle, “Good night, Applejack.”

Rising early, like she usually did, Applejack found the other members of the household already up and about. Granny Smith was helping Cornsilk prepare breakfast, while Big Mac and Stonehoof could be seen outside the kitchen windows pushing some stones around as they built a firepit.

“Good morning Applejack,” Cornsilk said with a smile, “Oh and good morning, sleepyhead,” she said good-naturedly to a sleepy-looking Braeburn that was just walking into the kitchen. “You two are just in time for breakfast,” she said, starting to move some dishes over to the table with Granny Smith’s help.

Moving up to the table with Braeburn, breakfast was unlike anything that Applejack had had before. Beans, cornbread, warm biscuits fresh from the oven, and an odd corn porridge. It was certainly tasty, and filling.

The two of them had mostly finished eating when Stonehoof and Big Mac came back inside, and over to the table to join in the repast. “Looks like the Red Rock pump’s stopped workin’ again,“ Stonehoof commented between bites of cornbread. “The pump kin go a day or two so it’s not vital. But what can’t wait is a ‘nother leak the south field aqueduct. Prolly gonna have to tear out a whole section and rebuild it, ah think. The fence over on tha’ south side o’ the orchard fallin’ down, too, so we need to get that shored up as well. Looks like a long day.”

“Ahy, I goh ah idaha !” Braeburn mumbled around a mouth full of grits.

“Braeburn, don’t talk with your mouth full,” Cornsilk scolded. “Now swallow that BEFORE you start talking.”

The colt swallowed down the food, looking sheepishly. “Sorry ma. Pa? That aqueduct will prob’ly be an all-day chore if you got to tear it down and rebuild it, even with help.”

“I reckon I kin help with that,“ Big Mac said before sticking an entire biscuit into his mouth.

“ ‘preceate the hoof, Big Macintosh,” Stonehoof said.

“Then me an’ Braeburn can tackle that fence,” Applejack piped in.

“Huhhh. We’re gonna need more wire from town to fix tha’ fence,” Stonehoof mused. “Best leave it fer now. You two can help Big Macintosh and me with the aqueduct, it’s the most important thing on ma’ plate right now.”

“Other than breakfast, you mean, “ Cornsilk said with a soft laugh.

The round of laughing was broken, literally, by Cornsilk dropping a plate from her mouth as she was clearing the table, and suddenly doubling over with a grunt of pain.

Stonehoof was instantly beside the mare with an anxious look on his face. “Are you ok, hun? What is it? Do ya’ need a doctor?”

Cornsilk took a few deep breaths and then stood up once more, looking a little pale, but otherwise ok. “I’m fine. It was a contraction.”

The immediate excited murmuring was broken by Granny Maize. “Relax, it’ll be a few hours yet. Probably not ‘ntil after dark. Plenty of time to get those chores done,” she said, giving Stonehoof a shove with one of her hooves. “Git. You’ll be back in time fer it.”

Stonehoof rolled his eyes slightly, “Yes, Ma,” he said with a resigned tone. “A’right, let’s git tacklin’ the aqueduct, ‘fore Ma starts ‘nother one of her stories.”

Quickly getting shooed out, the four ponies gathered up the supplies they’d need for the repairs, with Stonehoof and Big Mac carrying the timbers and wood needed for the heavy work on the aqueduct.

It was maybe half an hour to actually get to the aqueduct in question. The engineering for it was pretty impressive to Applejack, and she found herself marvelling at its ingenuity. It was basically a miles-long water trough that was raised up on an ‘A’-frame of stilts. The section they were at looked like the stilts on one side had partially broken off the trough, which was canted over to the side. A sluice was closed, so they could work on it without getting soaked.

The warmth of the morning quickly turned into scorching heat, enough so they had to reopen the sluice gate a bit to get a steady trickle of water coming down, dripping onto the dry ground. Water to slake the thirst of working in the heat, and for the wonderful relief of just sticking one’s head under it to help cool off a little.

With four sets of hooves to work on it, the repairs went pretty quick, enough so that it was still late morning when they seemed to get the worst of the tedious part done.

“Ok, I reckon that Big Macintosh and me got this well in hoof now,” Stonehoof said finally. “We should be done in a few more hours. The rest is all heavy lifting which you two aren’t old enough for yet.”

Applejack was silently thankful for the break, but was determined to stand up. “I’m sure Braeburn and I kin help with some of it.”

Stonehoof just laughed as he shook his head, his mane plastered to the back of his head from the sweat. “Naa, this is serious lifting that we got to do now. You two head on back.”

“Hey Pa?” Braeburn said as he looked over to the hills in the distance. “Why don’t Applejack and I go fix the Red Rock pump? It’s prob’ly jus’ stuck ‘gain, right? Little bit ‘a grease, little buckin’ and it should get going again.”

“Huhhh. A’right, I guess you two can handle it,” Stonehoof said as he looked over a piece of the aqueduct. “If it’s actually broke an’ not jus’ stuck, then don’ try ta fix it ya’selves, just c’mon back home.”

“Ok Pa. Let’s go, Applejack.”

Braeburn walked alongside Applejack as they walked alongside the apple orchard. “The Red Rock pump is fer the orchard, so we’ll just follow the aqueduct once we get to it. It’s prob’ly the longest one we have, an’ it takes ‘bout an hour to get to the pump from the orchard.”

Applejack was just thankful for the chance to get into the shade from the trees, giving her a chance to cool off, she wasn’t used to this heat.

The trek south to the pump house was about as bad as Applejack figured it would be. The ground was dry and the soil was packed hard as rock, while the relentless sun beat down on them. They were both sweating profusely the entire way, and the stifling heat made even trying to talk while walking a chore on it’s own. It also increased her respect for Braeburn and his family.

Finally, the pump house came into view. A windmill on top of it was standing still, despite the slight breeze that only carried hot, dry air into their faces, along with bits of sand.

Amazingly, there was green grass growing under where the aqueduct exited the wall of the building, probably from water that leaked down from it. While she was sorely tempted to grab a mouthful of the green grass, there was work to do first.

The inside of the pump house was even hotter than the outside, if that was somehow possible. Well lit from holes in the walls to allow some ventilation, but not enough. The pump was a big copper device mounted on the ground, with a rod and a flywheel that was linked to the windmill.

“Yeah, looks like it’s stuck.” Braeburn walked over to the wheel and took a look at it. The picked up a brush that was dunked into a bucket of grease, he slathered it over where the pivot rod was attached to the wheel. “Ok, just buck this arm up and it should work.”

“I got this,” Applejack said with confidence. “Buckin’ is what the apple family does best.” Rearing up, she bucked the iron rod hard with her rear hooves, which jarred the arm. Then with a screech of tortured metal, it started lifting up, the wheel starting to turn. The screech quickly stopped as the grease spread enough to help it along, and the arm came back down. The pair was rewarded by the sound of water rushing down the trough and out the wall of the house.

“Yee haw, we did it,” Braeburn cheered and walked out of the pump house to settle on the sparse grass in the shade. “Let’s take a break before heading back.”

“No complaints from me,” Applejack murmured as she dropped down on the grass, her eyes drifting closed on their own.

It was the crack of thunder that woke both ponies up, and instantly brought them to their hooves, looking up at a slate-grey sky.

“The clouds must’ve just rolled in while we were napping,” Braeburn said excitedly. “Rain! Ah kin smell it!”

As if on command, fat drops of rain started falling from the sky.

“Let’s get headed back.” Braeburn led the way as the pair of ponies started the walk back to the farm.

The rain was warm, and felt very refreshing after the heat of the day. AJ lifted her head eyes closed to feel the warm wetness washing over her face. Ponyville didn’t often get rain like this.

They didn’t speak as they walked along. As if on an unspoken signal, both ponies sped up the pace and started trotting.

They both turned that trot into a jog at the same time.

The next thing Applejack knew, they were both galloping at full tilt through the pouring rain.

As one, they both veered away from the aqueduct that they were following and galloped up the side of the hill, thundering over the crest and then sprinting down into the valley on the other side.

Despite the exertions of the day, Applejack felt like she had limitless energy. There was something deep inside her that was driving her onward, urging her to keep going. It sent a thrill down her spine the like of which she had never felt before.

The two of them galloped along the valley, churning up mud that was ankle deep, but it felt like nothing, it didn’t slow them or impede them in any way. They run through the mud as if didn’t even exist.

As one, they both suddenly turned and started up a hill, thundering along the hard ground at a perfectly matched pace. Applejack didn’t need to look over beside her, she know Braeburn was right beside her. She KNEW. She could practically feel his presence.

As they came over the top of the hill and down the other side, they came to a road, and promptly swung onto it, following it. AJ had no idea where they were going, but she knew they were going to end up somewhere.

Applejack’s chest heaved with her rapid breathing, the heat of her breath felt like a furnace in the back of her throat. She could feel the burning pain in her muscles from the exertion. But she didn’t stop. She couldn’t stop. Something was driving her onward.

As they thundered past a house, Applejack’s throat felt like she was breathing fire, even hotter than the fire in her young, overstressed muscles. She totally ignored the old pair of ponies sitting on the porch that gawked at the young pair that was running through the rain.

“The Run!” Applejack thought to herself. “This must be The Run!” While Applejack had never encountered The Run, like all Earth Ponies, she had heard of it before, from other ponies, from Big Mac. She knew it was a blessing that was for the Earth Ponies alone. Pegasus Ponies could control weather, Unicorn Ponies could control magic, Earth Ponies had The Run. It was something special, that every Earth Pony does at some point after they get their Cutie Mark, and on rare occasions afterward. The significance of The Run was hotly debated, she knew. But it was undeniably, something very special.

Applejack and Braeburn took another sudden turn off the road and up over the hill and into a small wash. It was there that the mud created some treacherous footing, and one of Applejack’s hooves slide out from under her, causing her to suddenly tumble over into Braeburn, knocking him down too. She slid down into the wash on her side, with the colt coming down on top of her other side.

As they lay in the gulley, gasping for breath air, the burning in her throat and muscles was suddenly matched by a burning in her haunches of a totally different sort. AJ’s head was swimming as she was still flush with the hormones for The Run, and her body was demanding that she get up and keep running.

Braeburn was still where he’d landed, draped partially over Applejack’s flank. Quite suddenly, she became acutely aware of something under the colt that was pinned between his belly and her flank. Something that was hot, firm and very, very male.

Applejack turned her head to look up at Braeburn, who was looking down at the filly under him. They both froze there, noses a scant inch apart, and just stared into each other’s eyes.

It was like a moment frozen in time. The rain pouring down, dripping from Braeburn’s head onto Applejack’s face. Then, like two magnets, their lips were pulled together. That first touch of their lips was like kissing a live wire, and sent an electric surge through Applejack’s lips, right to her brain, and then down her spine to the heat that was starting to build between her hind legs.

Hungrily, they kissed, lips pressed tightly against each other, eyes closed. It was a perfect moment, and Applejack could have spent the rest of her life just like that, but she was getting distracted by the twitching of that firm ridge that was pressed against her flank. The ridge that was getting longer, and harder with each passing second.

All of a sudden, AJ’s exaused body started making demands of a totally different sort. She felt a twitch run down her spine, and when it hit in between her haunches, it caused her to jerk, rolling over onto her belly, putting her directly underneath Braeburn.

He was squirming on top of her, torn between trying to get back up, and stopping to make sure she was alright. Even with the weight on her flanks, Applejack suddenly lifted her haunches up into the air without even thinking about it. Her mind was swimming, like it was caught in a whirlpool of emotions and sensations.

The colt was probably swimming in his own mental storm, but as soon as AJ felt that warm, hard tip slide from cool mud-covered hide, to her own warm heat, the response was instant and she pushed back against it out of instinct.

There was no thinking, just acting. That fat head of Braeburn’s shaft met and then started spreading AJ’s nethers open. IT felt huge, and the filly had to grit her teeth as she panted harshly. The sensation of being stretched grew quite acute, even painful as she was taken for the first time. Despite the tightness, she was wet enough that his shaft slid into her easily. The sensation of being penetrated for the first time forced a low, soft moan from Applejack, which was abruptly turned into a sharp gasp of pain.

Braeburn’s shaft had hit something a short distance inside her, a barrier of some kind, and it hurt. It took a couple of pants to get over the shock of pain that hit her. Applejack has just exhaled a heavy breath when the colt on her back suddenly bucked into her. It’s hard to scream when your lungs are already empty.

AJ felt like she was being ripped apart. “Stop!” she wanted to scream, but she couldn’t. Her body wasn’t capable of making those words. “Oh please Celestia, make it stop,” she thought for an instant. The pain between her haunches was intense, and then spiked as Braeburn drove his shaft into her fully, bring his hips to contact her’s. Stars swam in front of Applejack’s eyes and she through she was going to pass out from the pain.

But as the starts cleared from her vision, she became aware of a rush of pleasure in her haunches that matched the burning pain she felt from getting stretched around that thick shaft. A pleasure that increased with each thrust of Braeburn’s hard shaft into her tight, receptive passage.

AJ could feel the cold mud under her body. The warmth of Braeburn’s body covering her back. And most of all, that hot girth of the colt’s shaft that was buried inside her passage. The mud was making soft squish sounds under her, but that thick shaft that was taking her in hard, deep strokes was making a wet squish that was almost as loud.

Braeburn’s shaft felt huge inside her, like she’d just be taken with a tree or something. And there was a… A tension , a pressure that was starting to build inside Applejack’s belly.

Her belly tensed and flexed. Her thighs started cramping up, even as they were locked in place, holding Braeburn up over her back. She could feel her rump muscles tensing. It was all building up to... Applejack had no idea what, but it was going to be big.

The pressure inside of her continued to build. Even breathing became hard, as her breath rasped in harsh pants, even with the stars that were bursting in front of her eyes. AJ felt like she was going to explode at any moment.

Then she did. A sudden rush of warmth spread through AJ’s groin, and a spike of pleasure ran up her spine, slamming into the back of her head. Applejack screamed. Loudly. She couldn’t help it. Muscles that she never even knew existed suddenly woke up and started cramping rhythmically around Braeburn’s hard shaft as AJ’s eyes rolled back into her head.

Then she just collapsed, feeling Braeburn’s weight on top of her, and the strong pulsating of his shaft inside her. The throbbing of that shaft slowed and had finally stop by the time AJ was able to open her eyes.

“Applejack…” Braeburn said in a soft whisper, the first words that either of them had spoken since they left the pump house.

Applejack could only respond with “…Shush…” She experimentally tensed those inner muscles that she had just discovered, feeling them grip around Braeburn’s girth, and drawing a soft groan from the colt over her back.

Quite suddenly, Braeburn pulled out of her as he rolled over onto his back. The feeling of that shaft pulling out of her caused AJ to reflexively bear down around the shaft. Her jaw clamped down hard to try and prevent herself from making any sounds, but a soft whimper still escaped her.

“Don’t look,” she thought to herself, but her eyes were drawn over to where Braeburn was laying on his back beside her and then down along his belly where… “Holy sweet Celestia!” Applejack thought, her eyes widening as she saw what had just been inside her, and how big it was.

AJ’s inner muscles flexed as she tried to bear down, fearing she’s now have a hole the size of a hoof back there, and a moment afterward she felt something warm start leaking down along the backs of her thighs.

They just lay there together in the mud with the light rain coming down, eyes closed and panting softly, their bodies recovering from the exertions they’d just gone through. No words were spoken, that would have been too much effort.

AJ suddenly had the feeling she was being watched and opened her eyes to see a set of red hooves on the ground in front of her.

Applejack tried to sink down father into the ground, while covering her face with one forehoof . “Big Mac…” she said a slightly anguished tone.

“Wha?” Braeburn opened his eyes and stared at the big red pony that was standing there, looking down at them.

Big Mac didn’t say anything. His face was totally neutral, like he was looking at a bucket of apples. Instead of actually saying anything, he simply removed his saddle bags and set them on a large rock. Then turned to look at the pair. “Dinner’ll ready soon. Best get cleaned up and head on back.” And then turned and walked off, leaving his saddle bags there.

“You fergot yer bags, Mac,” Applejack said as she started getting up.

Without even looking over his shoulder, Big Mac replied “Ya’ll need ‘em more’n I will,” and continued walking toward the farm.

Confused, Applejack and Braeburn both walked over to the bags and looked them over. Inside they found some household good that Mac must have picked up in Hooveston, to take home, AJ figured. Then she suddenly realized what Mac was thinking.

“What’s that stuff for?” Braeburn asked, still not having clued in yet.

Mac’s givin’ us an alibi!” Applejack said. “C’mon, we need to get cleaned up and get back.”

“There’s a water pump over on th’ corner of that field over there, we kin borrow that and get washed off,” Braeburn said as he nodded over to one of the neighbouring farms.

“Sounds good, let’s go.”

As they walked along, neither of them said anything, and it wasn’t until they reached the pump that Applejack said what was on her mind. “Braeburn. We’ve got to keep this to ourselves, ya’ know?”

He just nodded as he started working the pump to fill a bucket with water. “Yeah. I reckon Ma and Pa, not to mention your Granny would be none too happy ‘bout this if they found out.”

“Yer mah cousin, Braeburn. I love ya’ like family, that’ll never change. Speaking of family, your ma’s due to pop any time now, we need to get on back as soon as we’re clean.”

It didn’t take too much time to get cleaned up and all the mud washed off. Applejack also cleaned up back there, feeling very self-conscious and slightly embarrassed as she made sure she wasn’t dripping any more. The rain had stopped by the time they were done and they started back toward the farm.

The sun was angling off toward going down as they were walking up and they could hear the cheering and whooping from the walkway. “Looks like yer a big brother now, Braeburn,” Applejack said with a chuckle as they walked up to the house.