When Technical Support is Too Helpful

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Sweat rolled down her tan cheeks and neck, her muscles rippled, and teeth clenched as she heaved the bale of hay onto the wagon already loaded with eleven other bales. She breathed a sigh of relief when the bale landed on the wagon. She wiped the sweat from her neck and ample bosom with a red bandanna while she fanned herself with a light brown cowboy hat. She placed her hat back on her golden hair to shield her scalp from the searing rays of the sun. She tugged on her red flannel shirt, trying to cool herself, her abs peeked from under the shirt at every tug. Thankfully, a cool breeze cooled her down.

"Alma Jeanne!" a woman called from the porch of the yellow house, "C'mere!"

"Comin', momma!" Applejack hollered back. One week has passed since she woke up in this place. It felt strange, at first, but she quickly adapted to the new place since the chores and people seemed all familiar. She had to admit, having hands made things much easier. She ran as fast as her dusty brown boots could take her to the house.

"Alma Jeanne," a woman with short brown hair, green flannel shirt, blue jeans, and a white apron was bent over inside the oven, she pulled out a tray with a rack of ribs, "Once you take that wagon to the south fields, I need you to go to town and buy some cornmeal." She reached into a pocket of her apron and pulled out five coppers. "Stay in the farmers market; do not go into town. You here?"

AJ accepted the money and stuffed them in her pocket, "Will do, momma!"

"There's a good girl," the woman doted, her hazel eyes sparkled.

AJ smiled and went out the screen door. She went to the red barn and saddled up Titan, their largest horse, to pull the wagon full of hay. Now, AJ hated to use animals that were similar to her past self as beasts of burden, but when they were the only animals strong enough to pull wagons, she had no choice. She made sure all the animals were cared for, not that her new family did not take care of them, AJ just felt guilty. Whenever she ate meat though... she could deal with the guilt afterwards and take solace that no one she knew was here. That last thought made her sigh. There was no one she knew here and that made her feel lonely. She did not know where to start to find ways to go back so she just went with the flow of things. After she brushed all the dust off of Titan's mahogany coat, she dust herself off, and headed into town.

"What do you mean eight coppers?" AJ confronted the older gentleman behind the stall, "Last week they were only three!"

"That was last week, this is this week," the gray-haired man answered brusquely.

They glared at each other until a hand slammed on the wood. She followed the hand when it removed itself from the stall, leaving three coppers, to a tall, muscular man, with dark pink hair and light purple eyes.

"Now that she is paid for," he placed a silver coin on the stall, "I need three sacks."

"Kyllgorr?" AJ asked quizzically.

He stared blankly into her green eyes, "No."

She noticed a great, gray wolf at his side that cocked his head at her in a curious manner.

"Sorry, you just..." she cleared her throat, "That's much appreciated. Thanks," she tipped her hat.

"You were taking too long," the man stated bluntly and picked up the three burlap bags of meal and started to walk off with the wolf at his heels.

"Who was that?" AJ inquired to the old man.

"Zander. He lives up on the mountain with Widow Jaleese. They come down here every eighth day to sell yarn. He's her adopted son," the man, who had a freshly lit corncob pipe between his lips, informed her.

AJ decided to follow Zander and the wolf further into town.

AJ's frustration grew. She was certain he had come down this alley now, he is nowhere to be seen. The sun was going down and too many men for her comfort kept staring at her. When she passed a tavern, a drunk, dirty man stepped in front of her.

"What ken I git far twenty coppa?" he slurred.

A second man slunk out of the shadows, "Yeah, good lookin', how much for a little tumble?"

She looked at them disgusted, "I don't know what in tarnation y'all want, but I'm only warnin' y'all this once: get outta my way."

"Oh ho ho!" a man chortled behind her and grabbed her, "Looks like we got ourselves a prim and proper whore!"

AJ stepped on his foot and elbowed his stomach, breaking herself from his hold, "I am no such thing, ya dirty varmin!"

She heard someone rush from behind her and instinctively kicked out connecting her foot to the gut of the first man. The second man growled and lunged at her. She knocked out a few of his teeth with a left hook. She kept the three at bay until a fourth man dropped down on her from above. She scrambled to shake him off her, but the others held her legs.

A yelp and growl caught all of their attention as the second man fell to his knees with a wolf clamped on his neck. With a sickening crack, the man collapsed to the ground. The wolf bared its teeth and his yellow eyes glowed in the dark. The fourth man jumped off her, a blade flashed in the moonlight, she kicked him in the gut, and the wolf pounced on him next. The two other men snapped out of their shock and tried to pull the wolf off. This gave AJ the opportunity to kick the third man to her right on the side of his head with her heel and knee the first man in the face. She jumped onto the first man and began to pummel his face with her fists, shouting at the top of her lungs, full of rage and fear. Another crunch grabbed her attention and she saw the wolf rip the third man's throat out. They both panted heavily.

"Thanks," AJ exhaled a shaky breath.

The wolf nodded and began to trot off.

"Wait!" AJ stood up and saw Zander leaning against a wall a few feet away.

"You must be new. No blonde walks down the Red Light District unless she's a prostitute," he stated and turned to follow the wolf.

She ran up to Zander, "C-could," she struggled to find words under his intense gaze, "I dunno how to get outta here..."

He huffed, "I can take you to where the meal stand is."

"Thank ya kindly."

AJ waved goodbye to Zander who just nodded. He had given her a sack of meal after hers got spoiled in her little tussle. Her mother ran up to her once she saw her open the gate. Her eyes were pink and puffy.

"What happened to ya?" she asked concerned.

"Just got lost..."

"I told ya not to go into town," her mother said sternly, but grew soft seeing bruises form on her baby's arms, "C'mon, go get yerself cleaned up."

"Yes, momma."