Applejack of My Eye

~~AppleJack~~

It took several moments for the the fact that there was an injured pegasus in front of her to fully register itself in AppleJack's mind. For several long seconds it seemed quite unreal - like a dream; like it wasn't really happening. She had just been playing and laughing with her little sister, having a wonderful day. Then it had dropped to...this...in an instant. "Sweet Celestia," the stunned mare breathed, staring at the blood staining the ground from the still stranger. He didn't look good. Slowly, reason began to leak back into her mind, and instead of There's a bleeding pegasus in my orchard - holy crap her thoughts became There's a bleeding pegasus in my orchard - I have to help him. Clearing the remaining scraps of shock from her mind, she leapt into action. "Apple Bloom! Go get Big Mac, now!"

"O-okay!" the filly was obviously still shock-ridden, and her big sister's panicked state only made her more frightened. Still, she galloped off toward the farmhouse faster than a stampeding buffalo.

AppleJack sprinted to the grounded pegasus. Splotches of his pristine white fur were matted with red blood. His wings were bent in awkward positions. AppleJack wasn't any pegasus, but she was pretty sure wings didn't get into those positions unless...unless they were badly broken. I have to get him to the farmhouse she realized. If I can get him there, Apple Fritter can help him. Tied up with her love of farm animals, AppleJack remembered her green-maned sister had taken some lessons from Fluttershy on medical care. If there was anypony who could help this stallion, it was her. But I'm gonna have to carry him all the way there...

Couldn't she do it? She'd carried many heavy things around before in her work on the farm. AppleJack could lug one measly pegasus, right? Well, she was going to give it all she had. His life depends on it.

The determined orange mare grabbed the pegasus's limp forearms with her front hooves and lifted his upper body off the ground. Her left hoof jumped down to support his chest. She then turned so she was at a right angle to him and (gritting her teeth, muscles straining - this was no light pegasus) slung him over her back so that his head hung off one side and his hind hooves off the other. AppleJack felt his warm blood seep over her cutie mark, obscuring the apples with it's redness. His weight was crushing her already. She could hardly move, let alone walk all the way back to the farmhouse. She considered dragging him all the way back but dismissed the idea, fearing that approach would tear open his cuts more.

She took several shaky steps forward. Her muscles were tense. Sweat coursed down her face. She kept up her task for quite a few yards, a considerable distance. Then she set her passenger down, taking a small respite to catch her breath. Her flank was covered in blood that was not her own. Damn, this stallion is bleeding a hell of a lot. She hoped desperately Big Mac was on his way. Body straining, she lifted the pegasus onto her back again. It seemed a little easier this time for some reason - maybe her back was getting used to his weight? She walked as far as she could again until she was forced to set him down once more. She repeated this procedure several more times, stopping about every ten trees to rest her muscles for a few moments. Finally, on one stop, she felt too tired to pick the pegasus up once again and carry him any further. Her back and legs were killing her. Luckily, it was then that Big Mac and Apple Bloom arrived. AppleJack's mind was immediately flooded with exhausted relief.

The maroon stallion stared at the injured pegasus in horror for a few seconds before AppleJack noticed his expression. "Just get him the hell back to the farmhouse. He's really fu-" she stopped herself. "Messed up." Her little sister was present, and she didn't want to teach the filly anything vulgar.

"Eeyup," Big Mac said simply, easily slinging the injured pegasus onto his back, seemingly without trouble. How is he so much stronger than me? AppleJack and Apple Bloom followed him as he hurried through the lazy apple trees toward the farmhouse. His pace quickened to a dash as the rest of the farm came into view.

"Is he gonna be okay?" the yellow filly asked worriedly as she ran alongside AppleJack.

"I think so," AppleJack assured her, although she was far from sure herself.

The siblings broke the treeline and ran through the pumpkin field dividing the orchard from the farmhouse, not paying any attention the the young crops that they crushed underhoof. The pegasus swung precariously on Big Mac's back, blood flying out of his back right leg, which up until now AppleJack had not noticed seemed to be the source of his red fluid loss. As they reached the farmhouse Granny Smith, Apple Fritter, and much to AppleJack's suprise, Braeburn, rushed out to meet them.

"Braeburn! You're...you're here!" The orange mare was astonished.

"Yeah, I literally just arrived," he explained. "What the hell is going on here?"

"We found this pegasus in the Apple Orchard. He appears to be badly wounded, we brought him back as fast as we could."

"Let me have a look," Apple Fritter insisted. She ran over to Big Mac (who still had the white stallion on his back) and observed his wounds. Granny Smith walked over, took Apple Bloom by the hoof, and led her inside the house, fearing the worst news, which the little filly didn't need to hear. "Well, it seems pretty serious," Apple Fritter reported quickly upon finishing her inspection. At the same time, the house's front door shut behind Granny Smith and Apple Bloom. "I'm gonna need to do a full inspection and possibly treatment on him." AppleJack paled with worry as her sister continued. "Big Mac, take him upstairs to the guest bedroom. Braeburn, grab my medical kit. AppleJack...just go get cleaned up. I'll take care of this."

"Good luck, sis," AppleJack told her. Her sister simply nodded back, then hurriedly followed the two stallions inside. But not before AppleJack noticed how she looked pale and quite nervous. She can do this, right? Apple Fritter knew how to  care for small animals but could she really save a heavily wounded stallion? It seemed like a huge jump. Doubt cracked the levies of hope in her mind. What if she can't? What if he doesn't make it? But AppleJack quickly waved these dark thoughts away. Her sister knew what she was doing. It wouldn't do anything but give AppleJack gray hairs to worry about something she wasn't even involved in.

Heart still pounding from her strenuous exercise, she crossed the porch and slipped through the front door after several moments of simply standing alone outside, worrying. The living room met her, empty and quiet. Apple Fritter and the stallions were upstairs in the guest bedroom and AppleJack suspected Granny Smith was comforting Apple Bloom in her room. Poor filly. The nasty suprise of seeing a badly gored pegasus had scared her sister half to death. It's almost as bad as when she and the Crusaders went to see that horror movie. AppleJack chuckled to herself as she carefully traversed the living room, trying not to spot the carpet with bloodstains. Now that was a bad idea. She remembered the whole fiasco. Scootaloo had come up with the bright idea to try for bravery cutie marks, and suggested going to the closest showing of the supposed "scariest movie in town." After sneaking out of the house late at night, Apple Bloom had come home shaken and more frightened than ever to a bewildered Apple family. AppleJack hoped she wouldn't have to relive the weeks of Apple Bloom coming into her room crying from nightmares every night.

Heeding Apple Fritter's advice to get cleaned up, AppleJack entered the bathroom. She shut the door and tossed her hat onto the hook on the back of the door, shaking her mane loose out of it's braid. It was quite a nice bathroom, to say the least. A pearly white sink and toilet were positioned along the left wall and a large shower dominated the right one. A window faced the door directly across from it. The beautifully tiled floor rivaled even Rarity's master bathroom. The room was a little skinny, but AppleJack liked to think of it more as snug.

The mare walked to the sink and turned the faucet on full force. She splashed cool water in her face for several minutes. It felt extremely agreeable and refreshing after a morning of bucking apples and...what had just happened. What the hell did just happen? AppleJack was still wondering.

Finally, she turned off the sink and looked at her reflection in the mirror. She looked like crap. Her flank was caked with dried blood, her mane was messed up and damp with sweat, and her face was soaking wet. She rubbed her eyes, accidentally spreading the water across her cheeks. Well, I can't wash my bloody ass off in the sink, she decided. She moved to the shower and turned on the hot water, then stepped in.Aaah. If the water from the sink had felt good, this warm liquid was heavenly. AppleJack watched as the redness washed off her flank and swirled down the drain, cleansing her. All three apples of her cutie mark eventually became visible. The disgusting blood now off her body, AppleJack turned around, leaned her head back against the wall directly under the showerhead, and closed her eyes. This water did more than just cleanse her flank. All the worries, horror, and panic from the events of the day slowly leaked out of her mind. The only thing, the only feeling, was this placid feel of the water coursing down her body, making small rivulets through her fur, and the steam enveloping her like a seductively calming fog. It felt better than anything. She was totally relaxed and at one with the world.

AppleJack was half asleep when the water started getting cold. She had been in there for a while with the steamy liquid pouring out full blast, and she was beginning to use up all the hot water. Still only half-conscious, she groggily turned off the shower and shuffled past it's curtain. She grabbed a ready white towel from the sink countertop to dry her dripping body. Her respite was over; it was probably time to check on the others. How long had she been in there anyway? No more than half an hour, she hoped. Granny Smith was gonna be pissed if she had no hot water for her shower tonight. AppleJack finished drying off and tossed the towel unceremoniously in the general direction of the laundry basket. She hastily redid her braid and donned her hat before exiting the bathroom. When she walked into the living room, she found Apple Fritter, Big Mac, Braeburn, Granny Smith and little Apple Bloom lounging on the two perpendicular couches and chatting quietly amongst themselves. They looked as exhausted as AppleJack felt. But they also looked rather relieved, so nothing terrible could have happened to the pegasus she rescued, right?

"AppleJack!" her sister smiled as she noticed her now clean sister. "Have a seat, we were waiting for you."

AppleJack plopped down next to her little sister, cuddling her for a second before releasing her. "Sorry I took a while," she apologized. "It...took a while to wash off all the blood." She felt rather embarassed that she had fallen asleep in the shower, but  Apple Bloom wrinkled her nose in digust at this explanation. "Yuck!" she whispered to Granny Smith.

"So....any news?" the orange mare asked hopefully.

"Well," Apple Fritter began. Granny Smith, Apple Bloom, and AppleJack were on the edge of their seats. She hasn't told anypony yet, the orange mare realized.

"He's...going to be okay," her green-maned sister continued. All the Apples present in the room breathed a sigh of relief. "He was badly hurt, but I managed to bandage him up and clean his wounds. Not too much different than caring for a sheep or goat." She chuckled.

"How badly was he hurt? Can ya give me a run-down?" AppleJack asked. Granny Smith quickly covered Apple Bloom's ears with her hooves.

"Both wings broken. Numerous cuts and slices, mostly on his upper body. And a pretty badly gored leg." Apple Fritter shuddered. "It was bleeding like hell. Almost cut to the bone." AppleJack suddenly felt sick at her words.

"Anyway," Apple Fritter continued. Granny Smith released her hooves from the ears of an annoyed Apple Bloom. "He's gonna have to stay and recover here for a while. He's in no shape to go anywhere anytime soon."

"Stay here?" Braeburn seemed suprised. "How long do you think his recovery will take?"

"Judging by the seriousness of his leg injury and broken wings, I'd say at least a month or two."

Braeburn's jaw dropped. "Two months? Do we have enough provisions to house a fully grown pegasus for two months?"

"Sure we do!" AppleJack cut in. She definitely didn't want the stallion leaving and hurting himself again before he was fully healed.

"We don't even know who he is! And what about the fair?"

"I think we can manage," Apple Fritter told him, glaring. Braeburn was being a little overcareful. "And we can just ask who he is, what happened to him, stuff like that when he wakes up. Speaking of that, we should have somepony check on him every once in a while. When he wakes up, I reckon he's not gonna know where he is and will probably be pretty confused. We can't have him trying to get away and end up even more hurt."

"I'll take the first shift," Big Mac immediately volunteered.

"Thanks Big Mac," Apple Fritter smiled at the maroon stallion. "Well, now we wait. When he wakes up, we'll know it. As soon as he's settled in, we'll ask what in Equestria happened to him."

What in Equestria did happen to him? The other mare's words sparked worry in AppleJack's mind. Gored almost to the bone...what the hell was he doing before he crashed here?