Good Morning Sweet Apple Acres
My eyes flicker open and I yawn. I look around me; I see my bed and my room. I slip off the bed onto my bare hooves, letting them relax on the old wooden flooring. I hear the thumping of hooves on the ground outside, however I take no notice. I know it is my big brother, Big Macintosh, out early bucking apples off of the trees outside. I know I should be getting a move on, so I make my way downstairs where I meet Granny Smith lounging on a rocking chair. I meet my Border Collie, Winona, who is sitting on her haunches looking up at me. I give her a friendly smile before shooting off outside where I see apple trees stretched out for miles around. I scan the orchard with my eyes and gallop over to a tree. I set up large baskets around the tree. I stand on my front legs before raising my back legs and bucking the tree with a loud thump, apples falling into the baskets below.
I continue to buck trees. I wipe a bead of sweat from my forehead and say, "Apple buckin' sure is hard work."
Winona runs over to me. I give her a pat on the head; she is such a good dog. Smiling, I proceed to walk over to another apple tree. It is rather thick and the bark is peeling off. I hesitate, but I decide to buck it. I set up some baskets around the old tree, I raise my rear legs in the same fashion as before and smash them down onto the bark. Pain rushes through me as I retract my hooves from the old apple tree. I wince in pain with every step I try to take. I go to find my big brother, presumably bucking apples miles away from my current position; I do not hear apple bucking near so I presume he is far off. I decide to find him, which I regret within a few minutes of limping across the seemingly never-ending orchards in pain. I am determined to find Big Macintosh, as I need his help. The barn and the house are miles away from where I am now, so there is no point of me going back there to seek help. I continue in pain, each individual step getting gradually more pain-free, and hear the thumping of large hooves on a tree, which gives me a glimmer of hope. I continue at a faster pace than before, but still limping, with my big brother in sight.
"Big Macintosh!" I yell.
"Applejack?" he asks. His voice is deep and masculine.
"Yes sugarcube, it's Applejack." I reply.
Big Macintosh sees me limp and gallops over to me. I give a happy tip of my stetson hat, but he doesn't take notice as he looks at my injured legs. He shakes his head as he looks back down at my face. My smile turns to an impatient scowl after looking at him for about five seconds.
"Well then? Ah wanna know the conditions of mah legs, if yah please." I say rather rudely.
"Oh, yeah. Ah think ya'll better go in fer the day. There's no way ah'm letting ya work like that..." Macintosh blurts out.
"Well, ah think ah should stay with ya until the end of the day, Mac. It might get a bit better by then."
"Agreed, Applejack."
Big Macintosh starts his work again, leaving me alone with only my thoughts to keep me company.
"Good morning Sweet Apple Acres..." I mumble to myself, laying down on the green grass that tickles my orange fur.
I sigh contently as I rest my legs on the ground. I feel a lot better than I did. Being the restless pony I am, I look up at the sky to try to calm myself down a little bit. That doesn't work in my favor, so I start tossing and turning on the ground. I mumble a few words to myself and I start picking at the grass. A few daisies grow in the fields among the grass, so I pick one near me. I stare at it for a few moments before tossing it away. I put on a faint smile as I watch the clouds go by and see a few pegasi I know among them. I wave to a few of them. My stetson hat falls off so I lay it next to me.
Midday comes and goes. I smell fresh grass, I see beautiful clouds; taking it all in was hard. I lay still on the grass, therefore getting myself more restless, so I start talking to Big Mac. He offers me a fresh apple, and I take it with gratitude. I hear the thumping of my brother's hooves on the trees, then smaller thumps as the apples fall into the baskets.
Big Mac takes a break and lays next to me. I nibble the apple he gave to me and I look at him. He smiles and begins talking, "Well, it's been a rough day. Without ya we can't get as many apples bucked as we would've liked. But what can ya do?"
I move my injured legs a little too much and groan in pain. It was a painful nevertheless beautiful day. I see Winona, my Border Collie, approaching quickly towards me.
"Howdy," I say to her, "What brings ya'll here?"
Winona barks, snuggling up next to my orange fur.
"Has ya lets got better yet, Applejack?"
"Nope."
Macintosh motions for Winona to come to him. She does so and my brother says, "First aid, Winona."
Winona runs away like lightning towards the direction of the house.
"Well," I say, "It was good we taught her how to get the first aid box."
Macintosh lets out a giggle. "Yeah..."
A few minutes later a brown and white speck in the distance approaches us. I know it is my dog. She is carrying a green box with a white cross on it in her mouth. My big brother gallops over to the Border Collie, takes it off of her and gives it to me. I tip my stetson
hat in gratitude as Big Macintosh wraps bandages around my rear legs. I feel much better than before.
"Ah'd better start bucking again," with this Big Mac goes back to bucking apple trees.
The next thing I know, I hear crying. I walk towards the sound and see a grey and yellow speck sitting under one of the trees. I move closer. I see a familiar face.
"Derpy? What ya'll doing out here?"
"I... I..." whispers Derpy, tears streaming from her red eyes. What is Derpy doing out here?
"Why are ya here? Big Mac needs ta get his work done, and he can't concentrate with ya cryin'. Now tell me what's got into ya."
"Okay..." says Derpy in a more audible tone. "I was going... to the spa with friends. I was walking along when I heard crying. I went to see what was going on, leaving my friends to do their own thing. I saw the bullies from flight school mocking a filly, I think her name is Scootaloo... so I went to help her. I told the bullies to get lost and that bullying was horrible. They called me a cross-eyed idiot who can't fly straight. I got really upset, but I still told them to get lost. Then one of them hit me, and hit a flower out of my hair that my daughter picked for me. They stepped on it, then I came here."
"That's not good, sugarcube." I say. Trying to calm the pegasus down, I put my leg reassuringly around the sitting mare's body. I feel her heartbeat; it is rather quick. She looks at me with gleaming, hopeful eyes. I look back into her bright yellow eyes, then I realize what I'm doing. I shake my head.
Don't lose it, I think. I've got to help this pony. I settle myself down on the cool grass. I take off my stetson hat, holding it to my chest, leaving my mane in a yellow mess. The smell of fresh grass fills my nostrils as I take a deep breath, then push all of the air out of my lungs. I take my hoof from around Derpy's body, then silence. I close my eyes for a moment, sigh, then open them again.
"Ah wanna tell ya a story, Derpy."
Derpy sniffs, but she is taking notice of me, so I carry on.
"Well, yer gonna 'ave ta sit 'ere long if ya wanna listen."
Derpy nods.
"When ah was a little filly, ah never got mah way. Ah wished that one day ah'd get mah way, but that time never seemed to come. One day mah friend was gettin' bullied, so ah rushed to her side. Ah stood up ta that bully and, surprisingly, he went because of the strength of mah very words. Words are powerful, ya know."
Derpy looks at me, a true smile forming on her face.
"Ah bet ah sound like somepony who does speeches, don't ah?"
Derpy giggles.
"Whenever ya 'ave a problem, come ta me. Ah'm always open fer ya."
"O-okay..." Derpy wraps her legs around me, crying, but managing a faint smile. Her fur is hot, hotter than a winter coat that just came off of a warm radiator on a cold winter day.
I put my stetson back on and tip it. "Ya'd better get ta the spa."
Derpy laughs. "T-thank you, s-so much..." she releases me from her tight embrace.
Derpy pushes down on her hooves, flaps her wings and flies away, leaving only me and the apple tree. It is a weak apple tree, but it carries on whatever the weather. That reminds me of Derpy. I'll never forget her.
I shake myself out of my thoughts. Derpy is still in view, so I shout, "Derpy! Come back a minute!"
At first she doesn't hear me, but after a few shouts, I have her attention. Tiny clouds dot the skies as she floats down to the ground next to me. I stand on my back legs and pain shoots through my body. I want to recoil and lay down, but I don't. My bandages loosen as I reach up at one of the apples on the apple tree. I reach further.
"Aargh!" I say.
Derpy looks in confusion, then realizes what I'm doing. "No, no, Applejack. I couldn't accept that."
I still try to pick the apple. I reach up and... finally! I've got it! I go back down onto all fours, then hold my hoof out, with a juicy red apple sitting on it. It is cool, refreshing, and (In my eyes) special. My emerald green eyes stare into hers.
"Please Derpy, take it. It reminds me of ya." I say.
"Okay," she says. "But I still feel a bit guilty."
"Don't, ah want ya ta take it." I insist.
Derpy reaches over and takes it in her grey hooves.
"Thank you, bless you." says Derpy, looking into my eyes, her eyes welling up.
"Aww, shucks." I blush.
Derpy wraps me in her hooves.
"What were ya goin' to the spa fer anyway? Was it just to chat with friends or was it somethin' else?" I frown.
"I was going to talk about charity... about how I was going to put 500 bits towards it."
"What charity?"
"Fight Homelessness." she says calmly.
"Ah've heard of that." I reply, a smile forming on my face.
"Every bit feeds one homeless pony for a day."
I don't wan't to let go of Derpy anymore. She's so generous, but nothing lasts forever. She lets go of me and says, "Thank you. You've done so much for me."
"Ya've done so much fer me, Derpy."
We release each other.
"I'd better be off."
"Yep." I reply, looking off into the distance and raising a hoof to my face to block the rays of the sun. The sun would soon be dipping below the horizon and disappearing.
"Now go, Derpy."
Derpy flaps her wings quickly and flies off.
"That pony sure is somethin' special."
I look into the sky, which is beginning to turn into shades of orange as my new found friend glides into the distance. I sigh, giving a tip of my old stetson hat.
"Somethin' special..." I repeat.
