The Game of Apples

Applejack wiped the sweat from her brow.  It was a long and hard day of work, and now all she wanted to do was sit back and relax before supper. She headed back for the farm house, passing the many bales of hay she baled and the numerous buckets filled with goods she filled.  She opened the door and stopped suddenly.
	“Hey big sis!  Wanna play a game?”
	Applejack looked down to see her younger sister before her.  “Uhhh . . . not particularly.  I would like to relax a bit before Granny Smith calls us in for supper.”
	“Awww, please?”  Apple Bloom usually knew that no meant no, but she wanted to ask anyways and see if her charm could win her sister over.
	Applejack twisted her lower lip to the side and gave in.  “If it is a quick game, I guess I can play real fast.  What do you have in mind?”
	“It's called the sneezing challenge!”  Apple Bloom paused as her sister raised her eyebrow.
	“Why is it called that?”  Applejack asked with even less enthusaism.
	Apple Bloom danced her hooves on the floor and quickly continued, “It is this funny challenge that is all the rage right now with everyone!  I did it with Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, Big Mac, and I wanna play it with you!”
	Applejack glanced over to Big Mac who was sitting on the couch reading a book.  He turned over to Applejack and shrugged then went back to reading.
	“This isn't something that is devious or . . .”  Apple Bloom put her hoof on Applejack's mouth to stop her from talking.
	“It is just meant to be fun!”  Apple Bloom said finishing Applejack's negative parade on the topic.
	Applejack sighed in a rather defeated tone and lowered her head with a smile.
	“Alright how do we begin?”
	Apple Bloom smiled as she looked over to Big Mac who quickly got up and whipped out a camcorder from behind the couch.
	“Well, first of all we record it so we can put it online.”
	“I don't want to be online.”
	“We record it for family home movies then.”  Apple Bloom re-buddled.
	Applejack was silent.
	“Okay, take a seat.”  Apple Bloom lightly pushed Applejack down on a cushion and angled her just right for the camera.
	“Next you roll up a tissue like this.”  Apple Bloom rolled a tissue for Applejack to see.  “Now you try.”
	“Like this?”  Applejack held out her rolled tissue.
	“No, like this.”
	“This?”  Applejack showed another attempt.
	“Here, take mine.  Your tissues look like really bad oragami.”
	Applejack took the swipe with an unamused expression as she turned to Big Mac at the camera, who again shrugged, but was smiling.
	“Now what do I do with it?”
	“You stick it in your nose, silly.”
	“Won't that poke my brain or and eye out?”
	“Maybe.”  Apple Bloom answered.
	Applejack started to get up, but was quickly pushed down by Apple Bloom again.
	“This seems awfully reckless.”
	“No, no!  It's just fun!  See!”  Apple Bloom rolled a tissue up quickly and playfully twisted it up her nostril.
	“See . . . no brain poke . . . hehhh . . .” The fillies chest expanded as she built up to sneeze, “Heeeehhh eehhhhh . . .” She then sneezed towards the floor, causing the tissue to fly out.  “Haattsshhhhheeeii!”  The filly bucked at the strength of the sneeze and landed on her rump.
	“See!  It was fun!”  Apple Bloom said as she vigorously rubbed her reddening snout.
	“Oh all right!”  Applejack rolled her eyes and held the tissue up before her.  She gulped then slowly put the tissue up her right nostril.
	“Oh, this ain't so bad!  It doesn't do anything.”
	“You have to twist it around and stuff!”  The yellow filly said as she began climbing up her sister, taking control of the tissue and twisting it playfully.
	“Wow!”  Applejack exclaimed as she squeezed her eyes shut, then with both hooves, grabbed her little sister and lifted her away from the coming blast zone.
	“Hehh ehhhh hhheeeeehhhh  ATTCCHOOO!”  Applejack lifted her sister up and sneezed the damp tissue from her right nostril.  The tickle was still there, but quickly fading.  She knew she could squeak out one more small sneeze as her right nostril twitched and fired off.  “Ehhhhhhaaatttccchhoo!”
	“Hoooray!” Apple Bloom waved her hooves around and began to clap! “Again, again!”
	Applejack put Apple Bloom back down on the floor.  “Is this all we do?”
	“Yep!”
	“This ain't so bad.  Actually, it felt kind of good.  Did it feel good to you too, Big Mac?”  Applejack looked over at the large stallion holding the camcorder.
	Big Mac nodded moving the camera up and down.  “Yep.”
	“Okay, give me another tissue!  Lets see how many sneezes I can string together, like in those video games you play, Apple Bloom.”  Applejack held her hoof out.
	“Like a combo!”  Apple Bloom's voice was fully of fillyhood merriment as she handed her older sister another rolled up tissue, so finely rolled, that the tip could cause any pony to sneeze.
	Applejack quickly swirled the tissue into her right nostril and began to spin it around.  Her eyes teared up, but nothing was happening.
	“What's going on?  Did I break it?”  Applejack asked with confusion.
	As if not concerned, Apple Bloom responded from her position sitting on the floor, “No, no!  You just got to switch nostrils maybe!  That works for me.”
	Applejack obliged and moved the tissue to her left nostril and began to spin it.  Her eyes teared up even more, and the tickle quickly began to build.  She began to inhale air as the next sneeze was formulating it's escape from route from her inner sinuses.  She sniffed in and began to fan her face with her free hoof.  Applejack's nostrils twitched and teased as they began to redden.
	“Huhhh Huhhhh . . . huhhhhhhhhh,” Applejack lifted her head back, pulling the tissue out, “Hhhaaaatttsccchhhooooo!”  The sneeze fired out of Applejack with a hint of spray, something Applejack rarely did.  A drop of spit dribbled from her lower lip as she lifted her head back again for an even rarer event, a double sneeze.
	“Hhaaaaatttccchhhoooohh!”  The second sneeze echoed as Applejack began to laugh a bit.
	“Two, two in a row!”  Is that good?”
	“No way!  That is pretty weak!  You wouldn't even be able to defeat a henchmen in a game with a two hit combo, Applejack!”  Apple Bloom said with a giggle.
	“Well how many did you do in a row?”
	Proudly, Apple Bloom got up and put one hoof to her chest.  “Four.”
	“What's the most your friends got?”
	“Sweetie Belle did like eight or nine or something.  She is a really good sneezer.”
	Applejack rolled up another tissue.  “I can at least beat four.”
	“I don't know.  I'm pretty good at this.”  Apple Bloom said building herself up as she prodded her sisters flank.
	Holding the tissue up, Applejack swirled the papery device in her left nostril.  She wanted to let the tickle build, so that it was so strong, she would sneeze many times.  She could feel the tickle build, and tried to hold out, but the urge to sneeze was too great.
	“Haaattcchooo!  Huhhhh Hatchoo!  Haaapppssccchhooo!”  The last sneeze sprayed, and Applejack's nostrils fluttered with the force.  She grabbed another tissue and wiped her nose.
	“Ain't good enough!”  Applejack said as she rolled another tissue and prodded it into her right nostril this time.
	Apple Bloom grinned a toothy smile as she looked over to Big Mac who was still recording, then back to her older sister.
	Applejack's expressions continued to change from one uncomfortable face to another.  The tissue continued to tickle her nose, and she continued to give scrunchy faces to her little sister that made her laugh.  Her nostrils were now bright red.  After several singles, doubles, and even triples, Applejack lowered her hoof and tissue.
	“Okay, Apple Bloom.  This is my last go, and then we eat supper.”
	Apple Bloom simply nodded.
	Applejack closed her eyes as she raised a new tissue up to her left nostril.  She was going to hold out as long as she could.  She could feel the tissue spinning around her sinuses, and the intensity of the tickle grew.  It felt like shoving a handful of down feathers in your nose, or that same handful under your hoof and trying not to laugh.  The tickling built.
	Applejack pierced her lips shut as her cheeks filled with air and she pressed her tongue down.  Her nostrils grew, as her nose scrunched and eyes squeezed even tighter shut.  The urgency and tickle continued to grow.  It felt like those down feathers were upgraded to super down feathers inside an elephants trunk!  Even bigger!  If a battleship was alive and could sneeze, it felt like those feathers were shoved down a battleship gun barrel!
	Applejack squirmed, her nostrils screamed and were colored a beautiful rosy red.  Tears squeezed out of her closed eyes, and her snout rubbled.  The tickle was reaching it's breaking point, and Applejack wasn't sure how much longer she could hold out!  Inbetween her drive and determiniation to build up a huge combo of sneezes, she wondered if this build up would be big enough to beat four sneezes in a row!  Afterall, Applejack rarely ever sneezes, and she rarely sneezed twice, let alone four times!
	All the bells rang off inside Applejack's head as she continued to twist the tissue in her nose.  It was no longer tickling, no way.  Now it was burning!  The burning was worse then the tickling, and she could feel it in the deepest reccessed of her sinuses!  She was pretty sure she could sneeze once extremely hard, and give herself a headache, so she had to hope this would produce several smaller sneezes to avoid head pain.
	Trying to position herself, Applejack tried to relax her spine, even though she was arching, and her head was leaning back.  Her chest started to expand as her nostrils flared with such width, it was noticeable on camera from several feet away.  Big Mac had to look away from the camcorder viewfinder to make sure what he was seeing was actually happening.
	Apple Bloom scooted several feet from Applejack.  With one swift pull, Applejack yanked the tissue from her nostrils, a mucus string following behind it as it disappeared onto the floor.  “Huhhhhhh . . . “  Applejack's voice was deeper as she sucked in air for some seriously large sneezes. “Huhhhhh . . . heehhhhhhhh . . . “
	Apple Bloom's eyes widened.
	“Hyeeeeuuuhhhhhh . . . Huhhhhhhhehhhhhhhh . . . “  Applejack wanted to put her hooves in front of her face, but decided not too, her chest was out, the fire, the fire burned inside her nose.  It burned and raged like a wild fire on the loose.  There was only one cure, and that was to sneeze.
	“HHUHHHHHHAAAAASSSCCHHHOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooo!!!”  Applejack reared forward as her hair flapped up and tail waved.  She pressed her front hooves firmly on the floor, as the force of the sneeze blasted all the tissues in front of her away.  The second sneeze quickly came.
	“Hhaaaaaaasscchhhhhoooooooooo!  Huh huh huh, Haaapppsscchooooooo!!!  Now a three sneeze combo, Applejack raised her hoof to the front of her face as a fourth sneeze made it's way out.
	“HaaaaaaaaaCCHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOhhhhhhh!”  But no, a fifth came too! “Hhhhaaatttcchhooooooooo!  Huh . . . Ehhh . . .”  Applejack reared her head back for possibly the last time and let the sneeze go.  She gave it all she had.
	“HHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSCCCHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooo!”  The sneeze caused a rush of wind that even Big Mac could feel it from his position.  Apple Bloom's bow on her head flapped from the force as she sat with awe on the floor.  All the tissues and the tissue box in front of Applejack simply knocked over and flew several feet before them.
	There was silence . . .
	Big Mac watched on as the camera simply dropped onto the couch, he was stunned by his sister's display of action and strength.
	Apple Bloom was silent then simply fell sideways from her little sitting position.  She looked up and exclaimed, “Oh my gosh that was awesome!!!!  You are awesome!”  She waved her hooves around continuing to talk at about hundred miles per hour.
	Applejack blushed and tried to act like it was no big deal.
	“Aww, shucks.  It was nothing.”
	But then as quickly as it all began, it ended.
	“Supper is ready!  Get it while the eatin' is good!”  Granny Smith sang as she popped her head into the room then went back into the kitchen.
	Big Mac was the first to get up and head to the kitchen.  Apple Bloom, still yammering about how cool the sneezes were, grabbed the camcorder and followed after her big brother, and Applejack brought up the rear, with a big smile emblezoned on her face.