Rum Raisin Brandy

Chapter 5

Midi teleported from rooftop to rooftop, until he found a vantage point he could see the farm from. He decided it would be rude to jump right into the farm, so instead he jumped to the archway on the fence line and walked in like a normal pony.

Crescendo was carrying a bucket of apples up to the barn when he noticed his friend coming towards him. "Hey, Midi! Over here!"

"Hi!" Midi trotted over to Cres. "Looks like you got the job, eh?"

"Heh, heh, yeah," the pegasus replied, "Well, not officially. Today's a trial day for me." He dropped the bucket in the barn. "If I do a good job today, Applejack says I'll get to stay on."

"Oh," said Midi, "Well, do ya want me to leave you alone so you can work? I still have things to do in town anyway."

"No, no," said Cres, "I'm sure I can talk and buck at the same time. Unless you're really busy and need to be somewhere now."

"Eh, I don't think I'm in that big of a hurry," Midi replied, "Besides, I had to drop in and let you know I'm OK. You know, what with not exploding in a while and all."

"Yeah, about that," Crescendo said as he picked up an empty bucket, "How were the diamond dogs?"

Midi laughed heartily and then stopped and deadpanned. "Don't ever go into that field alone."

Crescendo's eyes widened. "That bad, huh?"

"Oh yeah." Midi nodded. "And what's worse, the gems here aren't as big as I thought they'd be. I mean, I can still use them, but unfortunately, I only got enough to do some experimenting on."

"So you'll have to go back for more?"

"Mhmm." Midi noticed Applejack heading their way. "Hey, I should get going. See you back at camp?"

Crescendo smiled. "You got it. Take care."

"You too!" Midi teleported away just as Applejack arrived.

"Who was that guy, Crescendo?" Applejack asked.

"Oh, that was Midi," Crescendo said, "He was just checking in and letting me know he was alright. The dogs seemed to have given him a beating."

Applejack gasped. "He's not hurt bad, is he?"

Crescendo chuckled. "Trust me, it'll take more than a few rowdy dogs to take him down. Like I said, he's powerful."

"If ya say so," Applejack sighed, "Think ya could help me load up mah apple cart real quick?"

"Sure thing," Cres eagerly replied, then dropped the empty bucket and followed the earth mare.

Crescendo poked his head out from behind a tree and looked down the orchard row. With Applejack working in town, it was just him and Big Macintosh working on the farm, and the rock solid farm pony was proving to be quite the distraction for the longing pegasus.

I gotta break the ice somehow. I just gotta! Cres was at a loss for how he should approach the stallion he admired so much.

He sighed dejectedly and decided he should just get back to work. Taking up the apples he bucked, he loaded them onto his back and hauled the large wooden bucket back up to the barn.

Setting down the bucket, Crescendo's attention was drawn to a faint glint in the corner of the barn. He moved closer, curious to what was shining in the dark. Hidden behind a crate, the pegasus found a button attached to a piece of cloth. When he pulled it out into the light, he realized it was a rag doll.

Smarty pants! The pegasus beamed and pulled the doll into the open. I don't believe it! It's real! And... He squeezed the doll to his chest. "I'm playing with Smarty Pants!"

He looked around to make sure nopony was nearby and gave the doll a sniff. It smelled just like Big Mac did. Cres smiled and held the doll up. "You're Smarty Pants? Well so am I! And this barn ain't big enough fer the two of us!"

Big Mac carried his load of apples towards the barn and heard voices coming from inside. Peeking in quietly, he saw Crescendo playing with his Smarty Pants doll.

"H-hey! Be careful with that!" The stallion dropped the apples he was carrying and snatched the doll away from the pegasus.

"I'm sorry!" Creacendo whimpered, backing away from the stallion brushing his toy off. "I just, I haven't seen one of those in so long, and it... it reminded me of when I was a young colt."

Big Mac put the doll away and looked surprised at Crescendo. "You played with Smarty Pants when y'all were little?"

"Yeah!" Crescendo said enthusiatically, "She was my favorite, growing up. My friend, Midi, likes to tease me about it. He calls me Smarty Pants sometimes." Cres blushed a little. "I gotta admit, I kind of like being called that."

Mac's expression softened a bit. "Really?"

"Eeyup." Crescendo giggled. "Sorry."

Mac chuckled and shook his head. "No problem. Just be careful an' don't touch her unless Ah say ya can, alright?" He smiled. "Ah prefer to have mah eyes on her when she's out so she don't get damaged. Rare doll and all, y'know?"

Crescendo nodded. "Of course. Maybe we could play with her sometime?"

Mac smiled and nodded. "Eeyup." He picked up his apples and put them away, then headed back to the orchard.

Once the earth stallion was out of earshot, Crescendo let out a fanboy squeal and trotted happily back to work.

"I think I'm getting through to him! I can't wait to tell Midi!" He looked up as he trotted. "Hmm, I wonder if he's found Derpy yet?"

"Are you sure this will work?"

"Not just sure; absolutely possitive. I got a smaller one working back home in my basement."

"You're kidding! Are you serious?"

"Yeah. I've already started collecting samples, too."

"How soon until we're ready to launch the bigger one then?"

"Can't tell. May be months. Took me a few years just to finish the first part. But once I get this next one working, all our troubles will be over."

"And Equestria will be ours! Mwahahahahahahahahahah!"

"...Dude... just, don't."