"Yeeeehaw!!!" the two farmers said in unison. Despite the significant size difference between them, Amelia had no problems with the ride she had on Applejack's back. The little orange pony had more stamina than a supersized termite, and her rider knew it!



After a few laps, Applejack stopped the ride, rearing up and whinnying triumphantly.



"Phew! You sure have a lotta energy fer such a lil' thing!" Amelia complimented.



"Hah... Thanks, gal... Gotta work hard to stay in shape, y'know?" said a confident Applejack.



"Yeah, Ah hear ya," replied Amelia, wiping sweat from her forehead.



The two blonde beauties stopped and rested on a hill outside of the ranch. Applejack appreciated the uncanny resemblance that Amelia's apple orchard had with her own home, Sweet Apple Acres. She sighed, catching the country human's attention.



"Applejack? Hey... What's wrong, lil' galloper?" Amelia asked.



"It's... It's nothin'," Applejack softly answered. But her words contradicted her expression.



Amelia wasn't about to let Applejack be secretive. "AJ... Ah know something's gotcha on pins and needles. You ain't gonna feel better til ya tell somepony. Trust me on that."



Stubbornly, Applejack retorted, "Ah'm fine, really. Don't worry about me."



"Applejack," Amelia assertively said, giving Applejack a stern gaze. It took a few seconds, but she finally relented.



"Oh, fine..." Applejack mumbled. "Ah'm worried about Twilight. Ah... Ah know she's tryin' to be the best doggone Princess of Friendship she can be, but... Ah don't feel good about how often she's been bringin' ex-baddies into our group lately! Ah mean... Ah don't WANNA think they're up to no good... but Ah just plain can't stop worryin' that one of 'em is just tryin' to get deep in our circle, just to break us all apart! Ah'm… Ah'm worried that they're just takin' advantage of Twi's mercy..."



Amelia was shocked to realize that her Equine double would think that way.



"Aw, shucks!" Amelia exclaimed. "That's a crazy thing to get all het up fer! Ah saw y'all workin' together to stop Agent Wilson and the M.A.A. from roundin' up folks to see if they had 'pony magic' in 'em. Ah don't think fer a second that they'd work so hard with ya, just to stab y'all in the back. Heck, even Sunset Shimmer, after a three-year bullyin' streak, ended up bein' one of the sweetest angels Ah ever done saw! Yer friend earned her title fer a reason, AJ."



"...Ah know," Applejack meekly answered. "The more Ah journey with 'em… the more Ah start likin' 'em. Those ponies started out just bein' a pain, or even bein' evil whose likes Ah never saw before... And thanks to Twilight, they're turnin' a new leaf. Heck, Ah'm even in love with one of 'em. It's just..." She had to pause and exhale. "Ah don't want those folks to go back to their bad pasts..."



With an understanding look, Amelia gave Applejack a side-hug. "Ah wouldn't stress out about that if Ah were you. With how well Ah saw 'em turn out, 'specially ol' Sunset, Ah think you got plenty of good folks to have yer back. Sure, Ah barely know 'em. Then again, you know 'em pretty well. If Ah don't think they'd ever wanna sell ya out to those thugs, Ah don't think you should, either. Y'hear?" she winked.



Pondering Amelia's words of wisdom, Applejack smiled subtly. "...Yeah. Ah think Ah understand." Amelia knew that her extradimensional counterpart had a better understanding of the dangers of doubt, thanks to her. Applejack was sure to have an easier time, thanks to the new advice.



Deep down, though, Applejack's fears continued to brew...

