The bustling city of Manehattan was always busy, ponies going this way and that way, all trying to look the best and be the top most popular and smartly dressed citizens. Apart from Canterlot, Manehattan was the place where it all happened! The art centre of Equestria, where competition was fierce and tough, and where some outrageous fashion erupted from!
The nightlife of Manehattan was no different from the daytime in terms of how alive it was. The streetlights were bustling with fancy mares in their little, but extravagant dresses, with purses in hand and ready to explore the town and experience the wonders it held! On the other hoof, colts of every kind had gathered in groups, looking for excitement-- clad in their clean and newly pressed suede clothes, with their mane neatly combed back and immaculate coats.
Theatres, nightclubs and expositions alike were all buzzing with ponies shuffling around, having the time of their lives- bright luminescent lights of every colour and varying levels of brightness obscured the night sky and made the night as bright as day! However, not all Manehatteniates partied the night away, for amidst the crowds of ravenous teen ponies lay a civilized few, mainly adults and foals, all snuggled up warm and cozy in their beds, having dreams of some distant land where dreams came true. Some mumbled in their sleep, and others woke up crying, only to be comforted by their parents and laid back to rest after being reassured there was nothing to worry about.
The life in Manehattan was truly glamorous, but what about all of the other stuff that was hidden? The truly grimy and disgusting things to the most breathtaking sights... nopony paid attention to those, since they weren't important. Not important at all...
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Away from the hustle and bustle of the noisy city lay a simple farm pony with her hat resting over her head, sitting on top of a small hill with all the green you could possible imagine in front of her very being.
The young mare rested, chewing on a toothpick as the majestic anad ever glorious, fascinating sun rose and the darkness of Luna's night gradually disappeared, leaving no indication that it was never there in the first place.
Sights like those were the kind of things that made the simple farmpony's life. In all her years, she never stopped looking at the glorious sights- whether it was through a small window in a room, far away from home, looking into the night sky, or whether it was while in the midst of dozens upon dozens of apple trees- even from the window in her room when she couldn't sleep. Through sadness and happiness, grief and pleasure, the sun and moon along with its companions, had always been with her. Thinking about it brought a tear to her eye, which the orange pony wiped away.
"Aw jeez," she began sniffing, "don't go crying on me now.. you're a stronger pony than that..." Yet, no matter how reluctant she was, her eyes kept tearing up.
The memories of her in that small room, peering out of that tiny window into the busy nightlife of Manehattan... looking across to her old home and tears dripping down her face... it was a mesmerizing feeling, Applejack thought, how she used to be back then, and how she was now... and what would have happened if Rainbow Dash hadn't performed that sonic rainboom and shown her the way back home...
"Rainbow Dash..."
She thought back to the cyan pegasus, how arrogantly ignorant she could be sometimes and at others undyingly loyal. How her rainbow mane gently flew around in the wind, how her wings would go straight outright whenever something particularly arousing or romantic happened, and how they would carry her so fast through that sky. She had to wonder if it hurt when she broke the sound barrier... or whatever it was she had done that day, back when the sonic rainboom was performed as she flew vertically downwards to save the purple maned fashion designer and the two wonderbolts.
Eventually, the farmpony's thoughts went through each of her other friends; Pinkie, Fluttershy, Twilight and Rarity.
Pinkie - the overly energetic pony who got on everyone's nerves sometimes, but ultimately cheered them up and stayed with them through the hardest times. Though it seemed like she had an bottomless pit of energy and happiness, she knew that to not be true. Even Pinkie had her troubles, like everyone else. Memories of the surprise party they had planned for her came back, and the Pinkie that walked in was on nobody had known before... mane and tail straightened, coat darkened as well as a face that had no markings of a smile-- or an attitude with no trace of any happiness. Applejack let out a little chuckle as she remembered the misunderstanding that had happened. Pinkie thought her friends didn't like her anymore, though the young mare knew that no one could ever truly dislike her.
Fluttershy - the shy young mare who was one of the most kindest and caring ponies Applejack had ever met, never turning down a friend in need and was always there to listen to your troubles and help you through them. A little scared, she had to admit... the filly was afraid of her own shadow, for Celestia's sake! But oh no, she could be brave when she wanted to. Who else could say they single hoofedly tamed a beast from hell and banished a dragon from high atop a mountain? No one. Fluttershy was one of a kind... so loving, even to the nastiest of creatures. She had the patience of a saint too, Applejack thought. Who else could take care of so many woodland and farmland creatures without going insane? However... Fluttershy had her insecurities, too, and faults, she remembered back to the time when a mintoaur called Iron Will came to town. The pink maned pegasus had took a class in assertiveness, and Celestia knows how bad that turned out, for both the timid pegasus and her friends. Of course, Applejack hadn't had the pleasure of seeing this spectacle for herself-- that day she had to help out at the farm as Big Mac was away at some farmers convention near Fillydelphia. From what she had heard from Pinkie and Rarity, though, was quite surprising and worrying but overall, she wouldn't trade anything in the world for her kind and timid friend.
Twilight - Where could one begin with this pony...? Twilight, Applejack thought, trying to be as delicate as possible, was... well, she worried too much about every little thing and it had driven her a bit... insane more than once. She was so immersed in her books- the loveable, adorkable egghead that everyone just had to love. The lavender pony was very organized, to the extent that some though it could not possibly be healthy-- but Twilight was the level headed one in the group, always sorting things out and being fair. She had grouped the elements of harmony together, their little group of friends, and had led them through various obstacles that they could not have overcome alone. Applejack bowed her head in shame when she remembered the whole fiasco with Discord. All of them had been corrupted by him, and it was their actions that ultimately influenced Twilight. She had never succumbed to him... she had only given up due to the fact she had no friends anymore, as they had all turned into jerks, but through Celestia and Spike's help, the scrolls she had sent over the months restored her faith in the magic of friendship, and she set out on a quest to get the elements of harmony- her friends- back and defeat Discord! Even for an earth pony, Applejack knew how powerful Twilight was and about her magic ability. No one in the entire land of Equestria could say they had banished an Ursa Minor from town with no one else's help- they couldn't even begin to do what Twilight had done, after years of practice. She was amazing, yes, but there had been several incidents in which that magic had gotten her into quite a bit of trouble. Like that thing with the doll, the farmpony remembered. She had caused quite a bit of a ruckus that day by casting a spell on a doll that made people fall in love with it, so they would argue... eventually, the whole of Ponyville was tearing each other apart, and Princess Celestia had to step in. Applejack and the others were so scared that day... they didn't want Twilight to leave, but in the end it all turned out fine.
Rarity - The fabulous fashion designer who just had to have everything perfect. The orange mare's thoughts flickered back to that beautiful and luscious purple mane... it felt like silk, and so did her coat... not to mention that she always smelled lovely and, ahem, she coughed, getting her train of thought back. There were several instances where, if one did not know her well, would think she was a narcissist and only did things for herself. The whole group knew that was wrong, as she was the element of generosity and even though it seemed a bit misplaced sometimes, Rarity would always shine through and help her friends. There had been that time when Photo Finish, a big profile fashion designer had come and had offered to make Rarity go big time but the roles had reversed themselves and it had ended up being Fluttershy who was the one who made it big time, going around Equestria to perform fashion shows. The purple maned pony went into a recluse during this time, refusing to speak to anyone and claiming she was hideous and horrible. Applejack couldn't help but let out a chuckle. Heh, hideous, Celestia knows she couldn't be further off the mark. Eventually she came around with the help of her friends.
Together they had triumphed and overcome so many trials and tribulations. They were a force to be reckoned with and had saved the world several times, but one could not live without the other. Together, they were everything... alone, they were nothing, and Applejack would not trade anything in the world for them.
As the moon had almost surfaced below the mountains and hills in the distance, the young mare took a deep breath, stretched and yawned.
"Mmmmm... I really should get back soon... if I don't, the others... will worry about me... mmm..." She slowly trailed off, and before she knew what was happened, was covered in a dark veil of sleep.
