Applejack of My Eye

~~Gabriel~~

I opened my eyes.

At first I didn't even realize they were open - I still felt the same blackness, sleepiness surrounding me. But faraway colors etched their way through the thick darkness almost pasted on my retinas. Colors...so blurry. I couldn't focus. Thinking was out of the question. My thoughts were like mush - I wouldn't have been surprised if my brain was physically a pile of oatmeal inside my skull. There was a loud ringing in my ears - or was there? Was it really present? Did my ears even still work?

There. The sound of my breathing. So they did work! The ambient noise of my exhales and inhales filtered into my oatmeal brain. My sight grew more accurate. The colors became lines. The feelings became real. A room. I was in a room. And I was lying down. In a bed. And my leg hurt like fu...

Leg. Pain. The crash. They had been chasing me. Them. Everything came flooding back into my mind all too quickly. But...I definitely hadn't crashed comfortably in a bedroom. Somepony moved me. Somepony knows I'm here.

I mustered all the strength I could and sat upright, propping myself up on my pillow. I grunted in pain as a sharp sensation shocked my wings. They felt numbish and...wierd. I looked over my shoulder at them - they were wrapped up tightly in bandages. Looks like somepony did save my ass. But who? I was alone in the room.

Speaking of the room, I then turned around and scanned it (brain and eyes fully functioning now). It was a spacious, well-lit bedroom. My bed was in the middle of the room, with the headboard pressed up against the wall behind me. At the far corner of the right wall was a closed door. The wall across from me housed a dresser with a mirror on top, along with several other smaller cupboards flanking it as if they were the dresser's cronies. The left wall showed off a large, open window with beautiful patterned curtains blowing softly in the breeze that was filtering in. Against the wall behind me, on my left, was a large dresser similar to the one across from my bed, and on my right a bedside table with a lamp and several small pictures. All four walls were also strewn with several beautiful paintings of scenes from the most diverse places in Equestria, along with wallpaper, which was patterned with...apples?

Well, of all the crappy places to land, this definitely isn't the worst. Putting my hooves behind my head, I leaned back against the headboard and stared at my relection in the mirror directly across from where I was. My own stunning crystal blue eyes stared back at me. Enough to rival those diamond-like crystal ponies, they had said, although I'd never seen them like that myself. Many of the young mares I'd met had sure admired 'em, though. Anyway, the rest of my body wasn't looking quite so awesome. My dark blue, spiky-ish mane was crusted with dried blood and I had numerous cuts on my chest and forearms. And my leg was definitely not so hot. Memories of what had happened to it filled my mind, and I shuddered.

After staring at the room and thinking for about ten more minutes, I was beginning to wonder if I should get up and explore the house. Who's house was it anyway? Someone who liked apples, it seemed. Or apple-studded wallpaper, at least. I considered calling out, but I wasn't sure if I could find my voice. Plus, who knew if they were friendly? A horrible thought raced through my mind. What if they had recaptured me? No, wait. That notion didn't seem right. They wouldn't bandage me up like this.

I lifted up my sheets and took a peek at my leg. It was well-wrapped, but blood had soaked through even the gauze somepony had applied and had stained the sheets. Oh, yay, I'm sleeping in my own blood! Eh, not really.My brain was exaggerating. It wasn't that much.

I was about to adjust the bandages to a more comfortable format when the door creaked open. I immediately flattened myself into the bed, pulled the sheets up to their previous position, and pretended to be asleep. I heard light footsteps traversing the room. After a few seconds, my curiosity got the better of me. I cautiously opened one eye.

A little yellow filly with red mane and a bow had entered the room carrying a glass of water. She looked harmless, but who knew? You could never be sure with...them. I continued to lie as still as possible.

The filly was almost to my bedside when suddenly a sharp, knifing pain shot through my wing. I must have lain on it wrong or something, and it protested angrily. I couldn't help myself. I let out a cry of pain and rolled over slightly to get it into the right position. I tried to pretend I was unconsious again, that it was just a folly in my sleep. But it was too late. The filly knew I was awake. She dropped the glass she was holding, which promptly shattered at her hooves as it made sontact with the floorboards. Water splashed everywhere in a three-foot radius. Yet the filly didn't even seem to notice. Her eyes widened as she stared in suprise, but she didn't speak or move from her place.

"Hey there." I smiled weakly.

The filly continued to look at me, shocked. "Um, Applejack?" she yelled through the open bedroom door, still not taking her gaze off me. "Could ya come here a sec?" She had a heavy accent, I realized, that sounded similar to a farmpony's. The bow atop her head quivered as she turned to look at the door in wait for this 'Applejack'.

I heard the hoofsteps coming up the stairs seconds later. Three ponies then burst into the room, looking as anxious as the little filly. I waved at them casually as they entered, smiling sheepishly and hoping they weren't going to kill me. I can't even imagine what was going through their minds when they saw me awake. Present were a dull orange-yellow stallion with a cowboy hat, a young yellowish mare with green pigtails, and...hot damn. The most beautiful mare I'd ever seen. Like, ever. And I've seen a lot of mares. Her appearence nearly knocked me right out of the bed.

She was a stunning peach orange, with pale, flowing mane and tail in a hasty braid. She wore a cowgirl hat, and her eyes were a perfect green. I hoped I wasn't drooling as I stared at her, but I very well could have been. Looks like I crashed in just the right place. The words ran through my mind as I relaxed my body and continued to feast my eyes on her.

"You're...awake!" The green-maned mare exclaimed.

"Um...yep?" I wasn't sure how to react exactly. What, did they think I was dead or something? I wouldn't be surprised, I was sure I looked like a zombie when they found me.

"Apple Bloom, how long has he been awake?" The beautiful orange mare asked the filly. She even had an amazing voice! It too had a ridiculously cute farmgirl accent, similar to the filly's.

"Umm...um...I dunno! I just came up an' he was awake!"

"How are you feeling?" The green-maned mare asked me. By now everypony was crowded around my bedside.

"Um...okay. My leg kinda hurts, but...it's nothing serious." I reported.

"Actually, it is pretty serious. What happened to you?" the stallion cut in.

"Braeburn!" scolded the pigtail-clad mare. "Take it slow." she turned back to me. "Can you tell us your name?"

"If you don't mind, I'd appreciate it if you could tell me yours first." I was going to have to be cautious with these ponies. I didn't want to give away too much information about myself. They could never know what I had really been through.

Luckily, the green-maned mare was fully willing to cooperate with my demands. "Of course. I'm Apple Fritter, that's Braeburn," she began, pointing to each pony in turn. "The filly is Apple Bloom and that there is Applejack." Applejack. Even her name was perfect! Why did she have to be so freaking perfect?

Anyway, I returned my answer to their question. "I'm Gabriel," I introduced. "Um...also...would you...would you mind telling me where I am as well? Because I have no idea..." I trailed off.

"'Course. You're on Sweet Apple Acres farm, in Ponyville," Braeburn answered. Well, that explains the apple wallpaper.

"Home of the best apple cider in Equestria!" the filly recited as if it was their motto. I couldn't help but smile.

"Apple Bloom, head on downstairs," Applejack ushered. "It's time fer the big ponies to talk now." Disappointed, the filly trudged out of the room, shutting the bedroom door behind her.

Apple Fritter took a seat on the edge of my bed while the other two remained standing. "Could you tell us where you are from?" She was building up to the big question Braeburn had asked before.

"Cloudsdale," I lied. I'd never even been to Cloudsdale, let alone been born there. But these ponies didn't have to know that. I'll be honest, I felt like crap lying to that beautiful Applejack pony, but I knew I had to keep my past a secret.

"Cloudsdale, huh?" Braeburn asked. For a split second I thought he suspected I was lying. But if he did, he didn't show it. "What were you doing down in Ponyville?"

Craaaaap. I should have thought up a cover story while I was awake and alone in here. "Just visiting."

"Do ya have fam'ly down here?" Apple Fritter queried.

"No, just wanted to....um...come to...Sugarcube Corner!" I'd heard about the wonders of that place before - walls lined with candy and sweets of all kinds. "You know, it's Equestria-famous..." They seemed to believe my tale.

"Well, if you were jus' down fer a visit to Sugarcube corner, what in the hay happened to ya?" Applejack furrowed her brow.

I was gonna have to make up something on the spot, and fast.  Think, Gabriel, think. "Well...on my way there....I was attacked. By...griffins." Okay, I could build from this tall tale. "They just swooped out of the sky! I tried to fight 'em off, but there were too many!"

"How many? Where?" Braeburn questioned.

"Just outside Ponyville. Over the Everfree Forest. As for how many...there were too many to count."

"Too many to count?" Braeburn raised an eyebrow. Was he believing my story? He seemed pretty skeptical.

"Well, it's kinda hard to count griffins when your leg is being torn apart," I covered. The stallion seemed satisfied at this, and I silently breathed an internal sigh of relief.

Meanwhile, Applejack had finally realized that the floor next to my bedside was carpeted with broken glass and spilled water from Apple Bloom's dropped cup. "I'm gonna go get somethin' to clean this up," she told the others, proceeding to leave the room. She slipped through the door and was gone. The butterflies in my stomach finally stopped flitting around and quietly settled.

"Do ya have any family members around? Anypony who might be wonderin' where ya are?" Apple Fritter continued with the questioning.

"No, nopony close." Yeah, really. Not close at all.

"Well, we've decided to keep you here for a while until ya can get better and be on your way," the mare continued. "Your leg and wings 're in pretty bad shape and you won't be able to get around too well until you've fully recovered."

"That's fine. I'd be glad to stay in your company 'till I feel better." I smiled brightly at her. She flushed scarlet and averted her gaze shyly. Whoa. What was that all about?

"Um, well, we should probably let you get some rest." She said, trying in vain to drain the redness from her cheeks. "I think that's enough...interrogating for now." She rose up from the edge of the bed and (Braeburn along with her) trotted out the door, closing it behind both of them. I was left in silence (save for the rapidly fading noise of their hoofsteps descending the stairs). After waiting several seconds, I relaxed onto my pillow, placing my hooves behind my head, reenacting the same pose I had been in before the filly came in.

"Well, these ponies seem fine.Definitely not hostile at all," I said aloud to the ceiling. And that Applejack, she's....she's something. I certainly felt a lot safer now that I knew these farm ponies weren't...them. Mind drifting from thought to thought, I vaguely mused over the recent conversation. The two mares seemed to believe my lies, but that stallion. Braeburn. I was gonna have to be careful around him. Not that I wasn't going to have to be careful around all of them. I hate lying, I really do. But if they found out who I really was...they'd kill me in an instant. Just until you're better, Gabriel. You only have to keep up the lies until you can get out of here. I told myself.

Turning over onto my side, I stared at the broken glass on the floor, waiting for Applejack to return.