Up High With Feeling (Closed: Foxxy)

[SteelEagle]

Applejack had been to Cloudsdale a few times in her life, which was more than most Earth ponies could say. It had mostly gone well and so she wasn't all that shocked about seeing it once again. What did shock her, kindly or not, was under whose power she was making it there. Normally she'd have to take a balloon of some kind or hitch a ride on a pegasus. Maybe a potion or spell. She guessed some of that was true. There was a potion involved, and it involved a very lovely rainbow pegasus. But it wasn't her wings that were taking the couple up, nor was it a cloud walking potion that gave Applejack the ability to remain up there as she pierced the clouds. Instead, it was Applejack's very own wings- the product of a spell-potion Twilight had made. It gave her temporary wings and cloudwalking. It gave her absolutely nothing else whatsoever and it made her sick for days afterwards, but for RD she'd do it.

 

They were on their way to visit Dash's parents, and were soon going to enjoy the holidays the Rainbow way. She'd still make it back home before the Hearth's Warming Eve with the Apple family, but for now she was going to have a blast with Rainbow and her parents. She had always wondered how the season was celebrated in Cloudsdale, the source of all snow and the merriment that seemed to engender in the young ponies. And now she got to know that, as well as another burning question: Just how was it that RD and her parents celebrated the holiday? What were the pegasi traditions in this most traditionally pegasus of cities? Applejack landed shortly after breaching the clouds, landing not far away from Rainbow herself. "Well, we're here!"

[RainbowFoxxy]

Rainbow took in a breath of crisp clean Cloudsdale air. 

 

"Ahhhh!" She looked over at AJ and smiled. "Yep we're here!" The mare looked a tinsey bit flustered but nothing compared to the days when she had been learning to use her wings effectively. RD couldn't believe how long the wing serum had lasted and wondered if the effects would indeed serve to be permanent. She couldn't decided if she liked this idea or not. Wellll, perhaps she had settled on the fact that even though she was super happy to have her mare in the air with her she knew part of AJ was missing if she wasn't connected to the earth. She'd had inkling that AJ was missing her connection with the earth but she hadn't let on with her whole feelings on the matter. RD was learning to be less and and less self centered and it did make her feel a bit uneasy to have a perma-pega.

 

She stuck it in her mind that she would ask AJ all about this at some point during their holiday stay. But not right now. Now was the time to say hello to parents and to get settled in her old room. It was kinda silly but she was really looking forward to having her wife spend time with her in her old foalhood room. The room where she'd dreamed off different fillies she'd had crushes on over the years. And now here she was with the mare of her dreams!

 

"I love this time of year up here!" She glanced up as a fresh cloud of snow puffed out of the factory and drifted down in flakes to coat the countryside below. It was icy cold out here and they were bundled up but she could still feel the cold starting to nip at her muzzle. 

 

"Brrr! Let's get over to the house and out of this cold for a while!" 

 

She directed AJ over cloud streets and down nostalgic roads towards her old house. Once it was in view she gulped. She had a good relationship with her parents now but it was still a lot to be around them... especially this time of year! There they were out front in the yard. Obviously waiting for the arrival. 

 

"Hey mom, hey dad!" She got out before being engulfed in a hug that encompassed her and AJ.

 

"Rainbow Dash Applejack! Welcome!" Windy spoke as she drew back after the way too long and awkward hug. "Bow and I are so happy you're here!"

 

"And so happy you could bring your lady friend with her new wings an' all!" Bow interjected in true embarrassing fashion. 

 

Rainbow blushed and growled under her breath. "Dad, she's not my lady friend..." She blew her forelocks up and tried to keep calm. "She's my wife."

 

They were ushered inside where it was certainly warmer. "Well, let's head up to the room to get settled," She pointed towards the stairs leading up to RD's old room. 

 

[SteelEagle]

 

 

AJ was a mare built for the ground, the hard ground of earth beneath her hooves. Her first few steps on the cloud were this gentle, tentative, as even with all her experience with spell craft allowing it there was still something terrifying. After a few foalish-esque steps she started to gain and eventually trotted alongside her wife, her wings layered against her barrel as she stuck close to Rainbow. It was hard to say why but something about temporarily being a pegasus made the city feel different. Even her breath seemed less cold. She tied to stop paying any heed to it as she huddled close and kept with her until they made it to The House. "Hehe. It is real good looking up here, Ah'll admit. The snow seems so much whiter up here. Ah wonder if tha snow gets itself a little gussied up on its way down," she wondered aloud as they drew close, her tail clutching a bit of cloud and tossing it into Rainbow's face for fun.

 

She made sure to do it right before they drew within sight of the parents. You know, just for extra fun.

 

She had met them a few times before. You didn't marry somepony without meeting their parents, after all. That would be incredibly awkward for everypony involved, right? Having said that, she never got to know them all that well. She knew them from stories, small meetings, Scootaloo's report, and the discussions before the marriage seeking their approval a bit about them. But she had never stayed with them or met them all that long. This would be an experience. She could only hope it was a good one!

Then the hug came in. It was pretty powerful and she returned it, further crushing Rainbow Dash under the extreme care and love of family. Yep, no escape from that! Rainbow wasn't feeling it all the way when Bow made the mistake of calling AJ her lady friend. Hehehe. This was gonna be a fun one.

"Miss Whistles, Mister Hothoof, pleasure ta be spending some of tha holiday with you. Thanks for havin' us!" she said as she imagined all the fun she would be able to have with Rainbow now that she had more terms of endearment with which to attack her with. "Lead tha way!" She said with a nuzzle to Dash, heading into the home and their rooms. "Oh, did y'all receive yer gifts already?"

[RainbowFoxxy]

Dash nuzzled AJ back though she was ever so distracted by her overbearing parents. It was all in love of course, they were her biggest fans. Biggest fans no matter what she decided to do. This was both comforting and at times worrisome to Rainbow as she'd done some really...really...dumb things over the years. Their support of her had never wavered but they also seldom let her know when she was out of line. Thankfully she had the most beautiful and strong mare in the world to help her with that! AJ and RD had come far over the last year or so and with a few tweaks RD was becoming quite the model of a wife and mother! 

 

"Well," She rubbed the back of her head with a hoof. "Here we are," Rainbow trotted into her foalhood room, feeling nostalgia twinge with embarrassment at revealing what had been up until now something she had not shared with her mare. "Don't mind the uh, stuff."

 

Rainbow as a teen came through in overwhelming abundance in this room. A mix of athletic hopes and hot mare dreams permeated pretty much every corner. Posters of famous female athletes from the pony world at large, poised for dominating their chosen sports or reclining in a rather seductive manner, plastered most of the wall space. Trophies and ribbons were affixed as garland to all the other avaible wall and shelf spaces. The quintessential Wonderbolts bedspread, comfy if not well used along with matching pillows and covers. She could still smell the remaining reminders of her teen years, Filly Spirit deodorant, sport mane gloss, her mom's chosen brand of detergent. 

 

"Heh," She glanced around, toying with a model of a Wonderbolt of particular interest to her in her younger years. "Mom and Dad insisted this room stay the way it was in case I ever needed to move home." She rolled her eyes. "I'll always be there little filly," She blew her forelocks out of her eyes. "No matter how much I grow up I guess."

 

Seeing AJ standing there was, well, a bit of a fantasy for RD. She'd countless times dreamed being alone in this room with a mare as intoxicating as Applejack. She pressed a hoof on the bedspread next to her while her heart sped up just a tiny bit.

 

"Want to sit?" She raised her brows, a sly half smile playing on her muzzle.

 

"RAINBOW DASH!!!!" 

 

She blanched, her ears flattening. 

 

"RAINBOW DARLING!?"

 

"Mom! Dad! Give me a second would you?" RD huffed, her mind jumping from thoughts of the bedroom to those of her parents. Not a great combo for seduction. "They probably want us to help with the apples." She rolled her eyes. "Never had a Hearthswarming without candied apples,"

 

She stood up and tortted to the door. "Better get the festivities underway,"

 

She led AJ to the kitchen from which a sweet and buttery smell of issuing. 

 

"Oh there you are sport!" Bow rubbed his hoof into RD's forelocks, mussing them completely. "Time for candied apples!" 

 

"Oh Applejack! I'm sure you'll enjoy this!" Windy called out from over a steaming pot. "Want to help me dunk them?"

 

"So, you uh dunk them in the candy and then we decorate them. To look like each other." She tried to explain this tradition to her wife as fast a possible. 

 

"Like this!" Bow proudly held up what looked like a rainbow mess with blue gumdrop eyes and a multi colored licorice mane. "My little filly!" 

 

Rainbow sighed and then smiled. "At least I know you like apples!" She welcomed AJ into this family tradition.

 

 

[SteelEagle]

 

 

Rainbow had asked Applejack to not mind the stuff but Applejack had made the decision to mind it all, and to mind it all a lot. The bedroom was very much like how Applejack had imagined it being. It was drowning in that teenage ambience. Posters of those you admired, sometimes in more than one way? Check. The potential for a mess and needing your parents to help? Check. She'd helped AB more than once, after all. If Applejack tried really hard she could almost imagine the smells. Then she decided to not imagine the smells, chuckling to herself. It was different from her room. Ever since she was  little filly her room had been kept tidier than average for her age. It had far less to do with any personal quality and more to do with growing up fast. She wished she had a smelly, messy, embarrassing teenage room to show off. She'd have to satisfy herself with one such room for the couple.

 

"Aww, they kept all yer little Wonderbolt toys," she said as she picked a highly detailed and very accurate model of Fire Flash, one of the many legendary older Wonderbolts. Applejack was playing at being sloppy with it, getting her big ugly hooves all over it and being rough, though she was actually being as gentle as could be. "What's this dolly worth, you reckon?" She asked as she put it down and started looking at the posters. "These are some mighty fine mares. Bit scrawny though. My posters were mostly...farmin' schedules an' Ah think a rodeo champeen or two. Usually I didn't keep them up for too long," she shot her mare a look, "didn't want to have somepony walk in and embarass me over 'em and my tastes. Ya know. Likin' them buff and athletic," she pondered, "when did that change?"

 

She sauntered over to RD with a smile and was taking her up on her offer for a sit. "Was it when you started takin' notice of some Apple farmer down south way? Maybe-" 

 

"RAINBOW DASH!!!!" 

"RAINBOW DARLING!?"

 

Applejack had to contain herself, stop herself from laughing, as Rainbow panicked at the sound of her mother's voice. Hehehe, yeah. Bad move trying to seduce somepony with your parents home. "R-D, y'all thinking of tryin' ta seduce me when yer parents are home and gettin' shocked when they interrupt- Ah never had that come up an' even Ah know better!" She laughed before rolling her eyes happily. "Let's go make with tha festivities...Rainbow darling."

 

She was led downstairs and yep, candied apples. "Heck yeah! That sounds like a load of fun," Applejack said as she went with the mom. She followed the directions but didn't really need to. "Hehe. I make candied apples all tha time. Big sellers at carnivals and other parties," she said as she looked over Bow's attempt. "Wow, that ain't bad! Now I know why RD likes me. Apples. Always about the Apples. RD, you look even better in Apple form."

[RainbowFoxxy]

AJ certainly was cheeky! RD hadto focus not to allow a blush to creep across her face. AJ was right of course. Not the best move to try to make any moves with her parents around. There was just something about those teenage Fantasies that made her want to takeAJ into her room ASAP! 

 

But for now, there were apples to candy and parents to attend to. RD sighed, happy that at least they had started with something AJ could really get into!

 

Some time passed, RD's memories and present day experiences mingling together in the kitchen where she grew up. When the apples were finished she knew what would be next.

 

"You two better get your coats!" RD's dad beamed while he and Windy went to the door and put on their coats. 

 

"Time for collecting!" Windy took a whicker basket in her muzzle and headed out.

 

"Cloud Clover pie," RD explained. "They aren't actual clovers. They're frozen crystalline water. We sprinkle them with sugar and the sugar crystallizes as the clovers melt. Then we combine them with cream in a pie." She smirked and rolled her eyes. "Yep, we do this every year,"

 

They made their way outside as Bow took the lead.

 

"To the top of the cloud falls!" RD's dad called out while he took to the air!

[SteelEagle]

 

The kitchen work fit in just fine with her. She was used to cooking large family meals and that was par for the course. Add in the holidays and she was a mare with her hoof firmly in the kitchen for hours at a time. It meant doing the relatively light work of this holiday treat makin' allowed her all manner of time to talk to Rainbow's mama. She poked and prodded and made sure to make the small talk and ask about all of the Rainbow's most embarrassing family secrets. But mostly, she just made sure to cook well.
It wasn't hard but it was easy enough to make mistakes when you were trying to impress somepony, and she knew that for as casual as she acted she was trying to impress her in-laws in such small ways. Maybe a part of her was just trying to have that bond with an older pony, the way a part of her had longed for since her parent's passing. Maybe it wasn't anything so dramatic and she just liked putting her best hoof forward. What she did know is that she cared a whole heck of a lot.

 

In time they were finished, or at least were shifting away from it, as Bow Hoof started leading them out. Applejack had not brought herself a coat up here. She didn't have one that would wprk with her wings. She had never really prepared herself for that, to be fair to herself and she was always nothing if not fair. Still, she was as hardy as they came and didn't reckon it would hurt much to feel the winter's bite a little bit from so high up. It would be an experience, if nothing else. And all of it for a pie! "Cloud Cover Pie? Well, I can't say that I expected to have a pie made up of cloud. Can't say that it surprises me, though," Applejack said with a deep laugh as she watched Rainbow's parents shoot up into the sky. Her wings ruffled themselves as she looked up, unknowingly signaling a small reservation.
"Hehe. After you, sugarwing."
 

[RainbowFoxxy]

Before too long they had winged to the top of Cloud Falls. RD followed her dad with AJ in tow, trying her very best to make this the least embarrassing for her she possibly could. She could try all she wanted but most of their traditions involved making RD into the little filly she once was. When she was on her own with her adorning parents that was fine, but now she was with her mare! 

 

They landed lightly on the top of the falls. Rainbow's spilled over, turning to mist as they fell. They would be collected by the weather factory later. Rainbow straightened her wing comfortably onto her back and pawed the cloudy ground. Tiny puffs of cloud came up and there was a crystal!

 

"Oh! Look at that Windy!" Bow exclaimed with delight.

 

"Rainbow's found the first crystal! That means first slice of pie!" Windy squished Rainbow's cheeks up in her hooves, planting a motherly kiss of her daughter. 

 

This action quickly dissolved any last vestige of thoughts RD had of seducing a certain orange mane in her fillyhood bedroom...

 

"Mom! Please!" RD shook of her adoring mother and huffed. "I'm trying to find more crystals..." She explained so as not to injure Windy's honest affections.

 

"Let's see if you can find any AJ!" RD encouraged her winged mate. "Bet I'll find more!" Perhaps she could shake her feelings of embarrassment if she engaged in some competition!

[SteelEagle]

 

If there was anything more delightful in this world than watching Rainbow Dash squirm, Applejack didn't know of it. Especially when it was because of affection. She gave it and received it with a sort of tender awkwardness that helped explain why she used to be terrified of being seen getting hooficures. Filly was besides herself trying to impress everypony all the time. Sadly for her and thankfully for Applejack, it almost always failed in a charming fashion. It helped Applejack keep control once they were at the top. It wasn't very cold. Pegasi feathers acted like temperature sinks in hot or cold weather, keeping the pegasi body more even-keeled than others. That was with proper wing-care, of course. If you overheated or overfroze the feather it could actually 'leech' into the bone. That was the leading cause of pegasi wing ailments, especially among the older folk. Applejack didn't have much to worry about when it came to that since the wings are temporary on her, but she did read a lot about it. For Zap's care, ya know.

 

And also to distract her from the fact that she realized she was so very, very high up. She wasn't scared of heights, but she wasn't a fan either. So she distracted herself. Rainbow Dash had found the first crystal and that seemed to get her all the attention in the world. Then Applejack was challenged. A fight broke out. On one hoof, if she failed as bad as she could then she could see Rainbow crumble under the onslaught of her affections. On the other hoof, if she won, then she'd be a winner. And Applejack liked to be a winner.

"Yer on, snowflake," she said teasingly as she started pawing at the falls. Her hooves were bigger than Dash's which meant she could dig pretty well and pretty fast. Of course, she was used to being an Earth Pony and having the peculiar sixth sense when it came to such earthy tasks. Instead, she was just an unusually muscular pegasus clumsily digging holes in the sky! 

[RainbowFoxxy]

The family of pegasi were renowned for their ability to locate clover crystals! It wasn't long before they had gathered enough for their pie! As it  was, RD was caught up in a competition. 

 

"Rainbow darling?" Bow tried to stop the blue pegasus from continuing her quest. "I think we have enough now."

 

"We certainly do!" Windy backed up her husband. "We can go home and get to baking now!" 

 

"Mom! Dad!" Rainbow spoke around clenched teeth as she continued sifting through the clouds. "Can't you see we're in a competition?" 

 

Applejack had piled up a large assortment of crystals. Her pile was a fraction taller than RD's and there was no way Rainbow was going to let her win! She had grown up doing this and AJ has waltzed right up and was showing her up at her own fillyhood game!

 

"Oh sorry dear!" The parents took a step back. Competition was competition and they of course would cheer Rainbow Dash on! Well, except for she was competing against Applejack and she was family too! Windy and Bow decided to just cheer in general as the mares continued their hunt!

 

"Whew!" RD continued looking for cloud clovers. "I'm sure I'll win! Been doing this since I was a little filly!" 

 

The hunt went on until eventually Bow had to step in. 

 

"Now Rainbow honey, I don't want you to be upset. But we have pies to make." He glanced at the clovers, noting AJ had more in her collection.

 

"Fine," RD sulked a little. She glanced at AJ. Why did she always seem to come out on top? Someday she would win! There had to be something she could best AJ at. Apparently not this though. "You win beautiful." She nudged AJ with a small smile on her face. "You look good up here in the clouds you know?" She spoke softly as Bow and Windy launched off the cloud towards home. 

[SteelEagle]

Applejack had just been digging. She wasn't really concerning herself greatly with what her wife was doing. She just assumed that Rainbow would win. Her big, dumb hooves were digging a lot more of the cloud up but she had no real sense for what was good or bad up here. She just dug and laughed and was having herself a grand ol' time, only once in a while taking a gander at Rainbow's pile. It was pretty dang good! She sure as hay wasn't playin' soft on Apples all the way up here. After what seemed like a good time close to forever it was called. She stopped her digging and looked around, feeling a little bad. She wasn't sure what cloud gardening or care etiquette meant up in Cloudsdale but if they cared at all she was sure she had made somepony upset. Her clouds were everywhere. Some of them were piled up like dirt, others were floating around. Either way, she had made a heck of a mess.

 

She allowed herself a deep breath as she looked around. She hadn't counted them but her pile appeared just a wingtip bigger than Rainbow's. Applejack's eyes narrowed- had Rainbow been taking it easy on her?- then widened back up when she realized there was no way she would do anything of the sort. Not here. Not in front of her family. Which suited Applejack just fine since she didn't like it easy. She liked it hard and she liked the high road, which worked well for her now on account of being in Cloudsdale! "Well, Ah only won on account of being so motivated," she said as she nudged Rainbow back, leaning heavily onto the ever-so slightly smaller mare. "Your mane sure does reflect them rainbow colors somethin' fierce up here, too," she said as she laid a kiss on, putting a wing over RD as she started trotting back to the house.

[RainbowFoxxy]

Rainbow was about to protest the challenge. It of course hadn't been fair! There was no way she could be beat at-

 

Then AJ came in for a kiss. Everything else in her mind settled neatly into the background. Rainbow was super glad her parents had already gone inside. She wasn't one for wanting to share her moments with AJ with, well, her biggest fans. She felt her breath leave her as she kissed her wife back. AJ was both sweet and fierce when it came to kissing, something that made RD fall into a jumble just thinking about. After another moment Rainbow stepped back and grinned. 

 

"You know how to distract me, that's for sure," As AJ put her orange wing over her, Rainbow raised her own, bringing AJ in for one more kiss. 

 

"Might as well get a bit of time in while we can, without my parents." She rolled her eyes and smiled, trotting along with her beautiful mare. 

 

"Mom! Dad!" RD dumped their clovers out on the kitchen table. "We're here!" 

 

"Oh good!" Bow trotted into the kitchen along with Windy. "You two go and get the living room ready would you? Your mom and I will take care of these!"

 

"No problem dad!" RD gulped, a sigh escaping her mouth. "You think all this was different?" She nodded to the living room. "Well, wait til you see what's next!" 

 

"There's nothing better than ice clover pies," RD got out the quilt. "Except clover pies and the feather quilt." 

 

The quilt in question had feathers woven into it. All over. Lots of colors, sizes, shapes. Each one was from a family member. 

 

"You pick a feather and my mom, she's the historian around here, tells you all about who's it was, or is!" 

[SteelEagle]

 

Applejack did know how to distract her mare. She was an expert in the varied and interesting art of trotting out something fetching to catch the eye of that silly bird and her unusual ways of detailing the world around her. This was one of the easier ones, and it helped cool her off. They were both competitive ponies but fact was that of the two Rainbow could get a little hot under the collar if things started to go at an angle. It was always pretty easy to bring her back but after they got married it was one of many reasons why Applejack stopped trying to compete with her as much. Tonight? Well, that was different. They weren't competing with one another as much as they were competing for her parents. Entirely different. And Applejack won, but did she win, really? She had left a heck of a mess. "Ah reckon Ah've gotten pretty good at it, lil' songbird," she laughed and pulled her in close as they got to the house, releasing her to save her the embarrassment.

 

Just from that however; she knew other avenues would open up.
Once they got into the kitchen RD dumped the clovers on the table. A bit unceremonious, but Applejack reckoned that carefree nature came with the lived experiences of her youth that Applejack simply didn't have. Bow told them to get the living room ready and she nodded, deciding that she didn't have to understand the situation to understand what prepping a living room meant. So she had some doubt when Rainbow tried to prepare her for what followed. "Ah'm sure it'll be great, as long as we get to do it together," she said with a chuckle as they moved into the living room and went to work. Applejack busied herself setting things- harder since they were a messy couple it seemed- but did her job as best as she could until her ears perked up and she went to take a gander at a quilt. It was a heck of a quilt. So many colors and types of feathers, each one tied to a wholly separate pony and story. Yeah, Rainbow was right. She wasn't prepared for that!
"Wooo Nelly, that is something. Uhh..." she said as she looked at it before finding a bright pink semiplume feather. "How about that one?"

 

 

[RainbowFoxxy]

The bright pink feather that was selected by AJ was a good one! 

 

"Now, that's a story!" Windy smiled happily. "I know Rainbow knows this one don't you dear?" She glanced endearingly at her daughter. 

 

"I do actually!" Rainbow perked up. She did remember this particular plume! "This is from Auntie Gust isn't it?" She glanced at Windy.

 

"Yes!" Windy was so happy that Rainbow remembered. It made her heart feel so good that her daughter still enjoyed all their traditions and kept them in her heart.

 

"Auntie Gust moved here from out west." Rainbow began to tell the story. It included how her Auntie, actually great Auntie to be more accurate, had come to find her home in Cloudsdale while also raising a herd of cattle on the outskirts of Ponyville. It was a long time ago and the lay of the land had been different in those days. Rainbow told the whole story, never having to think things through. She did have a place in her heart for her family stories.

 

"And that's the story of Auntie Gust!" Rainbow finished, smiling at Applejack. "We've got quite the history too. Just like your side of the family AJ!"

 

After a while and lots of stories Rainbow glanced at AJ's wings. 

 

"So, uh," She smiled, raising a brow. "Seeing as you have feathers right now, you want to add to the quilt?" RD offered a special place in their traditions for her love to take part in. 

 

 

[SteelEagle]

 

Well, wasn't that a nice story! Applejack always had ample affection for the stories of common folk who led common lives. This Auntie Gustie didn't do anything that would make her memory live long in the fabric of society. No stories or poems, no great deeds. Instead, she was a fine representative of Equestria itself- the firmament, the fire, the blood, sweat, and tears that were woven into every second of every day. She was Equestria as much as a heart could beat and as far as the world would see. Applejack knew full well the story herself. The Apple family had plenty of them, recorded in fine detail. Histories dating back generations that helped the family tapestry remain evergreen evermore.

 

Gustie must have been one of the early Ponyville-adjacent ponies at the time of the town's earliest founding days. It really had been little more than a few farms, someplace to drink, a train station, and grazing land. Land-right issues between pegasi grazers from Cloudsdale and unicorn gem hunters on retreat from Canterlot made up a lot of the conflicts that the town had with others in the early day. made Applejack wonder briefly if this Gustie was the same pegasus who had tried to sneak a storm over the farm one season to drown out the Apples! Hehe, she'd have to consult the family history laters.

 

And then divorce Rainbow Dash immediately if true. No sleeping with the enemy!

"Mah feathers?" Applejack said as she unfolded her wings. Still felt weird to say that, think that, but she did investigate her wings a bit more. Her feathers were orange, like her, but they started to become more yellowish as they went closer to the roots, a lightening of the color wheel. When they were completely unfurled like this and in full bloom it was easier to see the yellow-white that dominated closer to her, and the bright orange that grew in intensity until it was done. "Ah'd be honored, but Ah reckon RD should be the one to pluck one of 'em out."

[RainbowFoxxy]

AJ wasn't used to wings, it would be best to have RD select a feather of course!

 

"Sooo, with your wings. Sometimes you'll have to preen then. When you do, you'll usually find one that's a bit loose. They fall out and regrow just like our coats do!" 

 

Rainbow blushed then as this was something she hadn't been able to share with her mare before. She made sure they were alone in the living room before she made her request.

 

"Would it be ok if I preened your wings for you?" 

 

[SteelEagle]

 

Applejack knew 'bout the necessity of preening a pony's wings. You learned a thing or two when you married one of those flighty types and had a birdcolt for a son. Still, it felt that it was a different venture when it was your own wings. She figured there would be a bigger sign that something was wrong, like a lot of pain or a discoloration. Instead, she would have to learn it was more due to a subtle itch, a change in weight, something minor added on something minor. She allowed her wings to spread once theyw erer in private. Unlike a natural born pegasi who was groomed to understand the intimacy of the action, Applejack would never fully grasp the innate private nature of the act. It was like cleaning a leg after working out or taking leaves out of your mane, right?

"Sure, if ya want. Ah reckon you've got more experience. See anythin' particularly worthy of bein' in that quilt?" Applejack ashed as she sat down on all fours and curled, allowing her wings to remain out and giving rainbow the space she would need. Applejack was trusting of her wife, and happy to contribute to the family project as best she could.

[RainbowFoxxy]

Rainbow inspected AJ's wings, for a moment taking in their beauty. She was sure that one day she would want her earth bound farmpony to return. Buuuut, for now this would do very nicely. She let a sound akin to purring build deep within her chest. Something she wasn't sure anypony else would hear. This was an intimate act and AJ had submitted to the gesture so readily it almost took her aback. Then she remembered that Applejack was not truly a pegasi and didn't really understand the intimacy of preening. That was fine, RD would enjoy this either way. 

 

She laid down near her mare's right wing and slowly moved her muzzle up and down the pinions. This she did for a while, sensing what would need to be done to make this wing perfect. The haphazard flying of a newly learning flier hadn't done anything to help with the state of her feather. RD got to work, straightening a shaft there, reknitting the delicate inner part of a pinion there. It was not fast work, it wasn't supposed to be. She hoped AJ would relax into this. She also left a wing out and in reach just in case AJ wanted to try a little preening herself. 

 

After a good long while she selected what would be a perfect fit for the quilt. It was beginning to come loose and a new feather was already there to take its place. This one she worked for a while, loosing whatever hold it had left in the wing. She didn't say anything, the action of preening was enough for her.  

[SteelEagle]

 

Applejack spread her wings out far and wide for Rainbow to get to work. truth be told, the way her mare asked it made Applejack feel like she was missing something big, maybe something a bit unusual, about the request. Not having grown up winged and having acquired them only recently, and very briefly in the grand scheme of things, she didn't know just how personal a process preening could be. To her, it was no different from asking a family member to help you get some nail outta your hoof after a day in the fields. A mite personal perhaps, but nothing all that unusual when you were as physical as she was. That was what her thoughts were as Rainbow went to work.

 

It felt...very strange. She didn't know how exactly to describe it, nor could she really put her mind on what sound Rainbow made. Was she purring? She had never heard a pony purr before. What in the blazes was that all about? Not that she could really focus on it too much. The way Rainbow was diving into her wing and manipulating all of her feathers was unusual in ways that the long-term Earth pony mare couldn't quite grasp. The way she reknitted and straightened feathers slowly, comprehensively, and dutifully kept on sending all manner of signals. If Applejack were a cat- which she half expected Rainbow was in a past life, what with her purring- then her paws would be stretching and curling claws back and forth.
 

[RainbowFoxxy]

RD looked up from her preening and smiled at AJ. 

 

"You enjoying this?" She asked softly. "It's something very special for pegusi to share together. Only close friends and other ponies we love get to preen each other."

 

She kept moving through the feathers for a while, making sure everything was just right. The feather she wanted had come loose and she sat back. 

 

"Well, here it is!" She moved over to the quilt and added the feather in with the others. 

 

"Now you've got your place in the quilt!" She glanced upstairs. All this preening made her want to get AJ into her room again, so they could be alone for a while.  

[SteelEagle]

 

For a while, Applejack didn't respond. It felt very weird. She had wings for a bit now and while she had gotten used to it, she was very much looking forward to being her old self soon. She had learned how to fly well enough to not make a fool of herself in front of her family in the sky and now she was experiencing all the details small and large that made pegasi what they were. It was all new, all strange, all exciting, but this was a unique and weird feeling. She felt vulnerable and soothed, and also a bit hot under the collar. Hard to put into words when you didn't have any real frame of reference for it. Failing that, she just allowed herself a few moments to search for those elusive words as the plucking and preening and tidying of her wings came to an unusually intimate end.

 

"Ah think Ah did," she said with a smile as she moved in for a kiss when her wife was done, sloppy and perfect in the way she felt it was, even getting strands of vane stuck in her teeth as she pulled back. She looked at the feather Rainbow had plucked out and nodded, her assent based more on her general ignorance of what made it so well suited than any informed thought. It sure did look pretty though. It was soon on the quilt, though AJ knew that there was probably more work behind the scenes in weaving it together, stronger. Like any good marriage, feathers were better bonded. "Ah think y'all've made one heck of a quilt an' Ah'm honored ta be part of it."

[RainbowFoxxy]

Rainbow kissed her mare back in the same sloppy fashion AJ had laid on. It felt good. Her and AJ, in her home. A feeling of sheer bliss travelled through her as she leaned back and let AJ kiss her. Her heart pounded and her wings moved around to envelope her wife in the kind of embrace she knew she would never share with anyone else. She didn't even worry that her parents might see. There was nothing to be embarrassed about. They were wedded and in love. The perfect pair. Nothing would ever separate them. 

 

Time eased by with Rainbow somewhere between bliss and nostalgia. All those fantasies of her younger years coming to fruition and more with the mare she held in her embrace. Eventually they pulled back a little and Rainbow took a moment to compose herself. 

 

"I love you so much," The words came in a raspy voice, full of emotion and desire. "You're everything to me, you know that AJ?" One look in the mare's emerald eyes and her question was answered without words. 

 

It was a good while later when RD's mother poked her head into the den. "Are you girls planning on staying over tonight?" It was asked in the soft motherly way RD was accustomed to. One that invoked that naturally they would stay for dinner and desert. 

[SteelEagle]

 

Applejack had a reputation for being somewhat more closed with her emotions than her friends, at least the emotions that spoke to vulnerability. many told her she was strong for doing so, but the truth was she was a coward. She didn't want to cry in front of others because she was convinced they'd think her weak. She didn't want to reveal her deepest, most secret innermost thoughts because she was worried ponies would think of her differently. Happiness, sternness, optimism and bullheaded work ethic- these had defined her in Ponyville and abroad since she was young. But there was much more to her than that, and as with every stallion and mare her heart was open to the attentions and affections of others. No shallower than any other, it had taken Rainbow time to dig deep through Applejack's endless granite-like resolve to find those deeper emotions.

 

What Rainbow had unlocked was a mare of deep affection and an obsession with togetherness. Far from the friendly workaholic happy to be left alone to her tasks like others thought, Applejack craved others. And as Rainbow nestled herself into Applejack's heart and earned her love, it became impossible for Applejack to hide anything. She was putty in her wife's wings and the two shared a kiss, an embrace, their love and much more. She responded to Rainbow's declaration with a purr, a kiss, a hug, and a desire to have yet another foal. Luckily for this house's current sanctity, the mother-in-law stepped in!
"Yes ma'am we will," Applejack responded the soft purr that had been building in her voice being subdued for now. It seemed pretty well expected that they'd stay. Indeed, Applejack had thought they'd be here for a few days! "Can't imagine why not. Well, next time we come up we need ta show off tha rascals, but Ah reckon we have time. Don't we, RD?"