>https://youtu.be/PDkkSp3bdgE (Ahead of the curve)

>the ride home was… odd
>chrysalis seemed to regain a small bit of her strength throughout the entire ride back
>both you and your friend were now exhausted from all the stress
>burnt out from it all
>the doctor and you were friends now
>it didn’t even have to be stated
>the shared experience back there gave you both a sense of connection
>like it was just the two of you against the world
>it felt less and less like it even mattered what chrysalis said before
>both your minds and bodies were worn down after that trip
>the weird behaviour the half conscious queen had on the trip back only further bonded your friendship
>there was an unnaturaully friendly exchange between you as your smiles widened watching chrysalis roll around the passenger compartment like drunk
>your grins turned to laughter you both desperately tried holding back trying not to wake her

>there was a peculiar feeling of emptiness both of you felt by the time you were back in ponyville
>not in a depressing way, but in an uncaring and disconnected way
>as if you and the doctor were the only real people in the world
>your laughter was still bubbling near the surface
>the kind of humor where the jokes don’t matter at that point
>the kind where the mere existence of sound gets you to the brink of howling with laughter 
>right as you get out you turn back to him
>your curl your lips back and tighten them trying to keep the sound of your snickers to a minimum as you watch him exit the compartment after you
>every movement of his is humorous is the most unexplainable way
>you get an idea and signal him to follow you with a mischievous look
>the two of you sneak inside sweet apple acres
>applejack told you of the secret stash of cider she had
>you get the doctor to carry out a large bottle for each of you as you make your way to the backyard
>the both of you are starving from the long night, the cider was the best thing either of you had ever tasted
>you set up the empty bottles on the grass 
>you both made your way a bit back from them and turned around
>alcohol on an empty stomach was already beginning to take affect on you
>without words exchanged you showed him to aim and pull the trigger and pointed at the bottles
>in a tipsy manner the doctor levitated your rifle and aimed somewhat towards the bottles
>the rifle wobbled back and forth before he pulled the trigger
>he maintained a blank, unreactive stare as the rifle flew back from the recoil 
>the shot hit right near the house with a loud crack against the wood
>once you heard it, the both of you instinctively dropped to the floor faces turning red from the pressure of keeping your comical amusement back
>with the sound of a door opening, you hear what was clearly applejack yelling 
>”who’s there? Ya’ll better get off mah property!”
>the red on your faces spread further from the increasingly humorous situation with applejack
>”what the? WHEN I FIND YOU YA’LL BETTER PAY FOR THESE DAMAGES!”
>at this point you felt you were going to burst a bloodvessel 
>the two of you ‘run’ back away from the house only to stumble horrendously getting covered in grass and mud
>surprisingly, applejack didn’t notice you, or at least didn’t follow you
>by the time you stopped you were near the edge of the everfree
>being the borderlands you felt safe enough to take a seat against the tree
>the two of you felt beyond exhausted
>the stress of the day followed with your mischief was enough to make you pass out a few seconds after sitting

>the early morning sunlight hits your vision
>the events of last night make your body feel miserable
>the achiness is unbearable
>you feel terribly sick
>far too sick too fall back asleep
>so much so you turn over and start gagging
>with nothing in you you just stay on all fours waiting for it to pass
>once it does you force yourself over to your new friend
>you gently shake him awake
“Cmon, get up, I think you gotta go or somethin’”
>he lets out a burp and squeezes his eyes
>”ah… alright…”
>he rolls over and gets up
>you both take your time fully acclimating to wakefulness
>he spoke formally
>”shit, we left chrysalis in the balloon last night…”
>you take a deep breath in preparation for dealing with what he mentioned
>”look, I’ve got to get back to shining about this, he’s probably home by now”
>the humor of last night is completely gone
>the dread of your situation is more apparent to the both of you again
>”dammit, there’s not much either of us can do right now”
>”I don’t know, I’ll let you know if anything comes up”
>”just, try not to cause any panic, seriously, that’s the last thing we need right now”
>”can you just please keep your mouth shut?”
>your still reeling from the hangover and lack of sleep
“Yeah…”
>”thanks, it was fun, but I seriously need to leave…”
>he went back to the balloon while you tried to get back into the house
>you could tell you were still a bit drunk from last night
>and if you were so was he
>operating a hot air balloon drunk isn’t a crime right?
>doesn’t matter
>diplomatic immunity or something right?
>you look to the half empty bottles in the damp grass
>you didn’t even care how bad it was for you
>you were just drinking to forget
>you finished both of the remains of the bottles before taking them inside with you

>applejack was up earliest like usual
>when you came through the door she was delighted to see you
>despite your dirty clothes she came to give you a hug
>”it’s so nice to have you back a-”
>she stopped and sniffed you
>”are you… drunk?”
>you couldn’t even try to hide it
>but you couldn’t respond
>you had completely passed out

>https://youtu.be/9-u1JAap8uY (I don’t want things to change)

>when you come back to consciousness you find yourself in bed
>it must have been hours since you passed out judging by the lack of light
>when your eyes finally adjust you see a pleasant orange color covering your view
>your face has been on her chest for who knows how long
>the silence implied she was asleep
>after yesterday, this was a nice change of pace
>you wrap your arms around her and pull yourself closer
>she wakes up and gives herself a big stretch
>she pushes herself down more to eye level with you and presses her nose against yours
>her quiet voice was soothing
>”feelin’ any better?”
>the hangover was awful, especially with the headache that began to set in
>but having her take care of you helped immensely
>still feeling a bit sick, you close your eyes and give her a nod
>”good, I was real worried about you”
>”I would ask ya, but, you seem a bit out of it right now”
>you both stay quiet for a moment and enjoy each others presence
>you let her breath blanket your face in its warmth
>”It got a bit late huh”
>”guess were gonna be a bit nocturnal tonight”
>you crack a smile which causes her to do the same
>there wasn’t a better feeling than being in bed with her
>it’s a special kind of comfort that seemed to block out the rest of the world
>even with your mind still on yesterday, it felt like being here washed away the worries about it
>”hey, if you need me to grab you somethin’ let me know”
>”I don’t think i saw you eat before you left, you must be starving”
>her words ignited your stomach with hunger
>you hesitate to answer
>”well, if i know anything about you, that’s a yes”
>she gets up and makes her way downstairs

>applejack shakes you awake
>”ahm sorry to wake ya, but i think it would be best to at least get somethin’ in ya after the whole thing that happened this morning”
>you open your eyes to see an egg, a piece of toast, and a large glass of water
>”I made sure to keep it light in case you’re still feelin’ a bit unwell”
>”I can always make more after if you’re still hungry, it’s no trouble”
>you immediately sit up in bed and grab the glass
>she climbs onto the bed with you and lays back down
>”ya know, the funniest thing happened early this morning”
>”some hooligans were in the backyard and must have thrown a rock at the house”
>”woke us all up, and I was mad”
>”I went out back and started yellin’ and all that, little buggers ran off n’ ah couldn’t see em through my poor morning vision”
>she snickers a little
>”gotta admit, I was bein’ cranky, but who wakes up that early just to go play in someone elses back yard?”
>you try to hold back a smirk while you keep nursing your glass of water
…
>you were both quiet for a minute while you were taking tiny sips of water
>it was the comfortable kind of silence that only you and applejack could have
>her hushed voice broke it
>”hey, we got a letter in the mail…”
>applejack looked out the window
>”it’s about big mac, they said he was gonna leave with the army soon…”
>you set your glass down feeling the worry radiate from her
>”...”
>she turned to you with teary eyes
>”how bad was it… be honest with me…”
>be honest
>how bad was it
>you were back to your bleak reality
>sure, the lack of changelings in general meant big mac probably would have his conscription cancelled
>but to describe it?
>there wasn’t a single way you could without it sounding suspicious beyond the concern of her brother
>you adopted the best soothing voice you could
“Aj… if big mac was really going to be needed, the doctor would have made me stay longer”
“After the attack on canterlot there was next to nothing there anyways”
“They must have just turned tail and fled”
>gotta love half truths
>”so, you’re sayin’ he’s gonna stay after all?”
“I’m sure of it aj”
>you rub her face a little
>”mmm, that’s the best news i’ve heard in a while…”
>she leans into your comforting hands
>the two of you stayed like this for a while
>though, feeling more awake you felt the need to finish your meal, even if it has gone a bit cold
>your appetite was starting to grow even after finishing it
>it was a very small meal after all, and skipping a meal after a day like yesterday was bound to catch up with you
>you scoot closer to applejack 
“Hey A-”
>you reel back feeling an odd sensation against your skin as you moved along the bed
>you pull the covers up too investigate but immediately pull them back down
>you sit there for a second trying to formulate what you’re going to say
“AJ, where’s my clothes?”
>she faces towards you with a blush but looks off towards the covers 
>”well, I couldn’t have ya bringin’ all that griminess into bed with ya…”
“Meaning…”
>”...”
>she maintained her eyes on the covers
>”cleaned you up…”
“Meaning…”
>she darted her eyes to yours but quickly retracted them
>”gave ya a shower…”
>there was a brief silence between you two
>in that time her face seemed to contort like she was holding back tears
>you look back at her and spoke with a meek voice
“How much did you see?”
>once again she darted her eyes to yours and back to the covers understanding the implication
>”all of it…”
>a part of you felt unnerved, especially since you didn’t feel ready to be so “open” with her about that yet
“So… um… was there any other details besides that?”
>another flick of her eyes happens similar to before
>”um… I was thorough?”
>you could tell she wanted to hold back that little detail, and for good reason
>it felt invasive, but you don’t hold it against her
>you just sort of wish you could have had her see you in that way on your own terms
>there wasn’t much you could do when you passed out and it must have been difficult for her when you did
>besides, you probably needed that shower badly
>with your thoughts collected you close the distance between you and smile
“Thanks aj… I’m sure it must have been hard to deal with me in a situation like that”
“And I can’t tell you how much it means to me”
>you give her a face rub for good measure
>the guilt and worry drop from her face 
>”oh anon, you scared me there a second”
>”ah thought you were gonna hate me or somethin’”
>moving past your hands, she pressed her face against your chest
>you could hear her give a big sigh of relief
>the both of you stayed like this until your stomach rumbled
>applejack snickers before turning her head back up to face you
>”ah heard that”
>”lets get you some more food in yah, heck i could go for a bite too”
>it was difficult to argue with a grin as cute as hers
>”alright, follow me downstairs, quietly though”
>”oh, and by the way, since your home, you gotta get back to doin yer chores”

>despite the sleep deprivation your ability to do all this hard labor seemed incredibly easier than it used to be
>hauling hay instead of dragging it for one
>checking yourself out, you didn’t look a ton bigger, but you just felt stronger
>you felt a lot of pride, and a lot less like you were holding the apple family back
>it was nice to finally contribute in a more meaningful way without applejack’s constant intervention
>speaking of her intervention
>”ANON”
>you could hear her in the distance as she ran up to you
>”how are the chores treatin’ yah?”
>you looked at her then at the pile of split logs and back to her
“Almost through the last of em, what’s next on the list?”
>she squints her eyes at the pile and back at you
>”whadja do with the real anonymous….”
“Oh cmon AJ, is it that hard to believe I can split a few logs?”
>she looks to the side and smirks
>”well, not anymore”
>”just sorta wish I still had an excuse to wander off an help ya with yer chores”
>you look at her with a mischievous grin
“My my, what happened to the hard working applejack I used to know?”
>she lets out a groan
>”oh cmon, can you blame me, you know darn well if you had an excuse to do chores with me ya would”
>she had a point
>”oh yeah, forgot to tell ya, applebloom said there’s a letter in the mail for ya”
“Aw sweet, where-”
>”nah ah ah, not until you finish the list I gave ya”
>now you were the one groaning

>as nice as it was to be competent, it sure gives you less room to get out of work
>but at least it was finally over
>”EERS ER EH-ER EH-AH!”
>applebloom excitedly gives you the letter
>lets hope it’s better news than last time…
>you open the letter on the couch surrounded by the rest of the apple family
>Dear anonymous
>For the sake of time I’ll make this short
>Shining Armour, princess Cadence, and I, need you and Applejack to take the first train to Canterlot tomorrow morning
>I can’t explain as much as I want to both for the sake of time and privacy which I’m sure you’ll understand why once you arrive, but we will meet you right at the train station and we can discuss everything
>this is extremely important, cancel any plans that could possibly get in the way of this
>I’m sure you understand why Anonymous
>Your friend, Doctor Point