Chapters I woke up. It was always hard when I woke up from a good night's sleep. I looked at the clock that sat on the nightstand and decided that I could lie in bed for another five minutes. My pillow and blanket felt soft and so enticing, I could lie here all day, but I had work.
The alarm went off five minutes later. I groaned, and my muscles ached as I rolled out of bed. I put my hooves to the floor. The soft carpet felt good on my hooves. I walked down the hall, passing pictures of the family, and I passed my sister's room. I sighed. I was going to miss Dinky. Her coltfriend had proposed a week before, and of course she said yes. I liked Pipsqueak, her fiancé… it just got a bit awkward when I tried to talk to him, and I stood at least one and a half feet above him.
I made it to the bathroom. I turned to look at myself in the mirror at; my grayish-red coat and sandy yellow mane, and my off center eyes. I tried my daily ritual. I focused and tried to get my eyes to straighten out. I had strato-something or other, the point was my eyes weren't lined up right. Why couldn't my eyes be normal, or at least like momma's, I would think to myself. As hard as I tried my crooked eyes would not budge. I wasn't disappointed though; I knew it was never going to work. No pony knew that I tried this every morning. It would destroy my parents: they were so proud of me that I held my head high in spite of my condition.
I started the shower as I pondered my situation. My eyes had caused me nothing but trouble over the years. Every new pony that met me immediately thought I was stupid or just plain retarded. My momma told me not to listen to those ponies, because they didn't know what a special boy I was. After a while, her comfort had helped less and less, but the insults always hurt. I washed my mane and coat. I turned the water off, got out of the shower, dried my mane and body, and finally combed my mane. My tail was docked so it naturally fell into its strait form.
I heard the shower running in my parent's bathroom, so I knew that my dad was up. I walked into the kitchen. I rummaged around in the cupboards until I found a package of mini muffins. I didn't know why, but I really liked muffins. I started to walk to the table, but I forgot to close a cupboard at head level and I rammed my head into it. Gosh darn it. I really disliked how clumsy I was.
After I held my head for a moment, I walked over to the table and began to eat the muffins.
"Mornin' Carson." My father's deep voice shook me from my thoughts.
"Mornin' Pa." I responded, trying unsuccessfully to make my voice as deep as his. He started to make our morning pot of coffee. I was the only pony of my age, that I knew, that actually liked the stuff. I guess waking up so early required a boost of caffeine. I heard in the other room that my momma had gotten into the shower.
"Ya excited for y'all dance tonight?" Dad asked. "Ah hope Ah don't need to remind ya to treat her right."
"Ah know pa." I said. Dad brought me a mug and I gave him a look of thanks. I took a sip. My pa seemed to know how nervous I was for this dance. I didn't know how to dance in the slightest. We finished our coffee and went to the front door. We put on our winter gear and started to head off to the farm.
In the winter we didn't have near as much to do as we did in the other seasons. All we had to do was do maintenance on the farm and sometimes we made deliveries with the stored apples. It took us a little longer to trudge down to the farm than usual; the accumulation of snow slowed us down. We walked into the farm house to be greeted by Aunt Applejack.
"Ah thought y'all were never going to get here." Aunt Applejack said. I looked at the clock mounted on the wall; we were two behind when we usually arrived. "Now, Carson, the barn is gettin' leaky, the Cakes ordered some apples, and we need to pull the dead branches off the trees. Macintosh we need that fire wood you cut moved to the east side of the house, the Daisy Joe is sick again, so Ah need ya to get her over to Fluttershy's to have her looked at, and the bills came in for this month. Now, let's get started."
We nodded and dad and I went our separate ways off to work. I gathered my tools belt from inside the barn as I surveyed the damage. Water dribbled down from several places in the barn's roof. A drop hit me at the end of my muzzle. I was always the one to go on the roof, and I didn't like it. I suppose that me being a pegasus saved us time, I could fly onto and down from the roof effortlessly, but admittedly I was a bit clumsy- okay, more than a bit- so I was always worried that I would slip and not be able to deploy my wings fast enough.
I unfurled my wings and gave them a good flap to get me started. It only took me a few seconds to get up to the roof of the barn. I spotted a low spot in the roof, which I knew was where most of the water was leaking in. I wiped the snow off the spot, and observed the damage: the shingles were loose. The barn needs a new roof, but it was winter and we'd have to wait for spring to replace it. I took the hammer out of my belt and a nail, and I pounded the nail into the shingle, securing it. I kept doing that a few times, until I reached one of the last shingles. I swung my hammer to secure another shingle, but I miscalculated.
I said a word that started with a F and ended with an uck. Well, said would be an understatement, it was more like yell. I covered my mouth with my hooves, as if it would bring back the word.
"Carson!" I could hear Aunt Applejack yell. I quickly finished my work before she could come to scold me. I was about to fly down from the roof, but Aunt Applejack was already there. "Did ya just yell what Ah think ya yelled?"
I thought about saying no, but that would have just made her angrier. So I tried to say something clever: "Eeyup."
"Don't ya use that tone with me." She yelled up at me. I didn't think I was using a tone.
I guess the mistake I made at that point was that I felt I was safe up on the roof of the barn. So I said: "What are ya going to do about it?"
She didn't hurt me... per se, she merely destroyed my masculinity and my pride. I didn't think she could scale the side of the barn that fast. She had me by the ear faster than you can say Appaloosa. In the end, I apologized and she said that if she ever heard me shout that word again I might not be having kids.
The next job on my list was to make a delivery to Sugar Cube Corner. I was particularly excited to do this job; I was hoping that Pumpkin Cake would be the one to take the delivery. I liked her. I mean, like-liked: she was one of the only mares that wasn't put off by my eyes, and she was nice, pretty, intelligent, and she could bake. I didn't think she liked me as much. I was just a farm worker, who was clumsy, and had crooked eyes.
I hitched myself up to the cart of apples, and started to pull it down the road. It took a bit of effort to pull because of the snow getting caught on the wheels. I got tired of that and decided to fly. I opened my wings and gave a few flaps and lifted it into the air. It was a lot of work, but it got me to Sugar Cube Corner a lot faster. I came to a running landing, and the momentum of apple cart moved me forward a few more feet. I pulled the cart to the back of Sugar Cube Corner, where Mr. Cake, to my disappointment, was waiting.
"Howdy Mr. Cake. Ah got your order for ya." I said, as I unhitched from the cart.
"Thanks, Carson." He paid me. I was about to leave when he spoke up: "I want to talk to you about taking my daughter to this dance."
"Alright?" I asked. I knew this was going to be a one-sided and awkward conversation.
"I love my daughter more than anything, and I want her to have a good time, not a 'good time'." He said. I rubbed the back of my head, trying unsuccessfully to stop a blush. "I know what it's like to be your age, Carson. I know what's going on in your head, and I'm here to tell you, that if you act on those thoughts... it's going to get ugly."
Admittedly I had thought about it before. I was 15 year old stallion, give me a break. I nodded in response to Mr. Cake's statement.
"Now, you're going to get her safely to the dance, have a fun yet responsible time, and get her back here safety right after the dance is done. She is a lady and you will treat her as such. Understand?" He asked. I nodded again. It wasn't like I was afraid of Mr. Cake; it was more I was afraid of what my momma would do if I mistreated Pumpkin, which I would never do. "Now that we have an understanding, she likes tulips, chocolate, and oddly enough action movies." Score. "She's allergic to peanuts. Oh yes, and Pound Cake is coming with you."
I groaned internally. I had a few choice words about that, but I wasn't going to share them. "Alright. Ah'll see y'all later."
I trudged back to the farm. It was about lunch time so I entered the farmhouse. I smelled something good cooking, and I walked into the kitchen.
"Howdy." Aunt Apple Bloom greeted me as I entered the kitchen. I liked Aunt Apple Bloom, she yelled a lot less than Aunt Applejack. Aunt Apple Bloom had a little foal of her own now; her name was Golden Delicious… weird name seeing as she was a little green filly, just like the famed Granny Smith I had heard a lot about. Too bad the relationship that led to her creation didn't work out.
"Howdy. How are ya doing today?" I asked. She looked back at me kindly.
"Ah am fine, how 'bout you?" She asked me back. Before I could respond, Golden Delicious started to cry in the other room. "Can you get that for me, Sugar Cube?"
I nodded and went to a room that was close to the kitchen. I was told this used to be my dad's room, but now it served as Golden's nursery. Luckily for me, the problem was not a dirty diaper. My best guess was that she had woken up from a nap and was cranky. I tickled her on the belly and she stopped crying and started to giggle. The giggle was infectious and I started to laugh too. After a while of that I picked her up in my hooves and brought her out to the kitchen.
"Thanks, Carson." Apple Bloom smiled. "Ya are so good with her."
I put Golden in her high chair that was next to my spot at the table. "Anything for my cousin."
"So Ah heard ya are getting sweet on Pumpkin Cake." I could feel Aunt Apple Bloom smiling even though she was looking away.
"Ah suppose Ah have." I answered. Aunt Apple Bloom placed a plate of food in front of me and Golden. I took a long drink from a glass of water on the table.
"Ah'd suggest you wear a condom." She said plainly. I spit my water into a fine mist, which caused Golden to laugh.
"Wha- it's just a dance, Auntie." I stuttered.
"Ah know. Just take this." Aunt Apple Bloom slid a box across the table. I couldn't help but blush. "Now, ya eat up, ya still have work to do."
"You look fine." Momma told me. It wasn't a formal dance, but I couldn't show up looking like I just came from the farm. "Hold on, you got a little smudge..."
She licked her hoof and rubbed it on my face to clear the smudge. I didn't particularly enjoy my mom rubbing her spit on my face, but my complaints about it were always shunned. So I just let it happen.
"There, perfect." Momma said. "You got your tulip and mints?"
I nodded. It wasn't easy to find a real tulip in the middle of winter, but I did. I decided against bringing chocolate, to avoid coming on too strong.
"Just remember if she wants you to dance, go ahead, and just try to stay in rhythm... Try to be the opposite of your father when it's come to dancing." Momma encouraged, receiving a playful glare from dad, who was standing nearby.
"Good luck, son." Dad said, and patted me on the back with his large hoof. I smiled at him before I left the house. I walked quickly through the cold of winter to Sugar Cube Corner. The store was open so I walked right in. Mrs. Cake was standing behind the counter.
"Hello Carson. Pumpkin will be down in a minute." She smiled at me. "I heard my husband talking to you... I hope he didn't scare you."
"It's fine Mrs. Cake. Ah can respect that he was just looking out for your daughter." I responded. Mrs. Cake gave me a look of relief. At the soft sound of hooves coming down the stairs, I looked over to it hoping that Pumpkin would appear at the bottom, but it wasn't, it was Pinkie Pie. Momma told me that Pinkie Pie used to throw parties all the time. I guess she still did that, but I never went: truth be told, she could be a bit creepy.
"Hi Carson!" She shouted at me. I gave a nervous smile back.
"Howdy." I tried to break off the conversation before it got started.
"So you're going to the dance with Pumpkin?" She asked. I nodded nervously. Before I knew it, she dragged me under the table. "Shhh... Don't tell anypony but I have something that makes parties a million times better!"
I raised an eyebrow. I was expecting her to say 'Me! Pinkie Pie!' but she didn't. "Some really nice pony gave me it he called it, exs-ta-sy. Ecstasy."
That sounded vaguely familiar. I really didn't want anything Pinkie was going to give me, but she handed me a tin; full of little pills that had little pictures of flowers and stuff on them. I didn't know where I was going to put the tin, Pinkie seemed to realize this and said: "I'll put them in your room!"
She dashed off before I could ask how she knew where my room was. I crawled out from under the table just a Pumpkin was coming down the stairs. She didn't look much different than usual, just without the uniform and wearing simple earrings.
"Hey Carson." Pumpkin greeted me. I just stared dumbfounded, "Carson?"
"Oh! Hi Pumpkin. Ya look pretty tonight." I said, rubbing the back of my head, awkwardly. She blushed slightly.
"Thank you." She looked up the stairs and yelled: "Pound, hurry up!"
"I'm coming!" He yelled back down at her. I liked Pound well enough, we used to hang out, but we've grown apart since then. He pounded down the stairs to stand by his sister. "'Sup, Carson."
"Hey." I greeted awkwardly. I gestured towards the door.
"You guys have fun!" Mrs. Cake said as we left Sugar Cube Corner. We walked along in awkward silence for about half the journey to the community center. Ponyville had just built the center with the bits from a recent economic boom.
"So...Carson, how is work on the farm?" To my surprise Pound Cake broke the silence.
"It's work, Ah guess. Doesn't require much thinking, just a lot of force." I responded. "How is the bakery?"
"Well, it gets a bit boring, but Pinkie makes it fun." He said. "So... Have you ever thought about getting those eyes fixed?"
"Pound!" Pumpkin punched her brother in the shoulder.
"Sorry. I didn't mean anything by it." He apologized. I relaxed a little when I saw he was genuinely sorry for what he said, so I decided to let it slide.
We reached the community center, where other ponies around our age were waiting at the door. We waited for a few minutes before Mrs. Cheerilee came to open the door.
"Have a good time, everypony." She called, before we filled into the community center.
Most of the music was from the musical duo of DJ-Pon3 and Octavia. I didn't like the techno music too much, but the other ponies my age did so I put on a smile and pretended to like it. I exhaled a sigh of relief when Pound finally left us alone.
"You having a good time" I asked.
"What?" She yelled over the music.
"Are you having a good time?" I yelled to make myself heard.
"I don't know if the punch has lime!" She shouted. I took a deep breath.
"No! Are you having a good time?" I almost screamed.
"Yeah! I wonder if they'll play a slow song, so we can dance." She said. I nodded even though I really, really, didn't want to dance.
"Alright everypony clear the way, it's the couples dance." The MC announced. I could feel the sweat form on my brow. I didn't protest, even though I wanted to, when Pumpkin pulled me out on the dance floor.
It started off slow. I tried to follow her movements. I thought I did pretty well, because she didn't complain, but then the beat and rhythm picked up. I tried my best to keep up. Luckily the dance didn't last too long, and Pumpkin pulled me aside.
"You aren't half bad." She said. I felt pretty proud of myself at that moment, seeing as I had never danced before. So we continued to have fun until about ten when the party was over.
"You two go on ahead, I'll catch up." Pound called after them. We walked out of the community center.
"I had fun tonight...we should do something else sometime." She blushed which in turn cause me to blush.
"Eeyup." I staggered out. "Ah guess Ah'll take you home now."
We walked on in silence for a little while, my mind running very fast looking for something to say. Something clever, witty, and funny.
"So what your favorite type of cake?" I asked.
"Red velvet. Yours?" She asked.
"Pumpkin." I said before I thought it through. She blushed.
"That has to be the cheesiest thing I've ever heard." She said with a laugh. We arrived at Sugar Cube Corner before I realized it.
She gave me a quick peck on the cheek. "I had a good time tonight, Carson. Call me."
I was stunned yet again as she walked into her house, then I started to stumble off home.
Thank you all for reading. Thanks to my Beta reader.
Magazine
The early morning sun broke through the darkness shining its bright light straight into my eyes. I jolted myself awake before I realized it was Saturday. It was winter, as I've said before, so I didn't have to work weekends: there just wasn't enough to do to, so Aunt Applejack gives me Saturday and Sunday off. Dad still had to show up, if only for a few hours, and he didn't have to get up early. I wanted to go back to sleep, but I had already jolted myself out of my sleep so I couldn't get back to sleep.
I rolled myself out of bed and trotted down the hall to the bathroom: I tried my daily ritual -failed of course- and proceeded to shower. After that, I dried off, combed my hair, and brushed my teeth. I gave myself a look over before I left the bathroom, I looked acceptable.
I slowly walked the short distance to the kitchen and started to make a pot of coffee. I leaned on the counter, almost asleep, to wait for the coffee to finish.
"G'morning." I was shaken out of my half-sleeping state by a slightly accented voice.
"Mornin.'" was my immediate response. "Ya are up early."
Usually only Dad and I got up this early, sometimes Mom would get up early; because Dad would wake her when he got out of bed, but usually Pipsqueak and Dinky were never up before ten o'clock. Dinky's job as mayor's assistant only required her to get up as early as the mayor did, which wasn't early, and Pipsqueak was a novelist...between you and me I don't think he's that good.
"I guess I am." He said. I stopped leaning on the counter and rose up to my full height.
"Rough night?" I asked. I really didn't care, but it was polite and I might as well get to know my future brother-in-law.
"You could say that." He chuckled. I clenched my eyes shut...don't think about it...don't think about it...I took a deep breath and tried to think of something to change the subject, but Pipsqueak spoke first. "That's not the only reason I'm up early..."
He stopped. That piqued my interest. He continued: "I wanted to put on some muscle for Dinky."
I couldn't help but laugh. I pounded my hoof into the counter as I belted out laughter. It was a funny image, after all, with how scrawny he was. "You?"
"What? I heard you lift weights on Saturdays and I want to tag along." He said. I felt a bit bad for laughing at him.
"Ya sure?" I asked. He nodded. "Ya know ya don't just build muscle in a day."
"I know that, but hey, might as well start now." He said. I chuckled; he was going to be in for a reality check.
After my coffee finished and I drank it down, I grabbed a duffle bag and we left the house. I went to the gym to work on muscles that working on the farm didn't. I was big like my dad but somehow he could work all his muscles without going to the gym; I think that being a pegasus I'm built to fly, not to put on muscle, so to keep fit I have to go push my limits every week.
We reached the gym in about ten minutes. I presented my pass to the front desk, but Pipsqueak had to pay out of pocket. I walked into the locker room to stow my duffle bag, then I returned to the weight room with Pipsqueak.
I decided to start out easy. I walked up to a rack that was empty. "Alright, we're gonna start out with a simple clean- and-jerk."
"Set ya core." I picked up the bar, it was forty-five pounds, and it felt like a feather on my hooves. I puffed out my chest, tightened my abs and the small of my back. I brought the bar into position leaned over a little then exploded into movement to where the bar was just under my chin.
"Now ya try." I suggested, but he shook his head no. So I continued with my workout, asking periodically if Pipsqueak wanted to try, he always said no. "No need to be intimidated: just give it a try."
"Yeah...no. I don't think this weight lifting stuff is for me." He finally admitted. I put the bar back on to rack and followed him as he tried to leave. I shrugged: I was kind of glad that he was gone.. not that I didn't like him, it was just that I liked to exercise on my own.
I weightlifted for about another hour, and then I decided that it was good enough. I walked back to the locker room to retrieve my bag. I walked over to my locker and put in the combination and slid the tumbler off its hinge. I retrieved the duffle bag from inside. I grabbed a towel from inside the bag and wiped my face clear of sweat. I returned the towel to the bag and slung it over my shoulder.
As I started to walk away, I noticed a magazine sitting on the floor, brushed against a wall in a corner. I thought about leaving it there, but my curiosity compelled me to pick it up.
The cover read: Playcolt magazine. The cover had a picture of a mare in an odd and uncomfortable looking position; legs spread out in a strange, yet oddly appealing manner. Next I read a caption that said: turn to page 6 to see what she wants to show you. I raised an eyebrow and flipped the page to page six. The page was a fold out, I didn't know what this fine lady wanted to show me, but it must have been good to take up a full three page fold out.
I flipped opened the page, and my jaw dropped. I started to blush as my wings stood stiff straight out from my sides. The mare on that page...I couldn't stop looking at her. She was hot, it was kind of embarrassing to admit, but she was smoking hot. Not beautiful, she looked much too slutty to be anything but hot. I would have been like that for a while, jaw dropped, wings jutting off from my sides, but I heard somepony coming into the locker room. I stuffed the magazine hastily into my bag, and tried to make it look like I meant to have my wings out.
As soon as I could force my wings down, I left the gym. I walked quickly through the brisk cold. I didn't have much to do the rest of the day, so I was thinking of what I could do to keep myself busy. I worked out a rough day plan: I would visit the farm to see if Aunt Apple Bloom needed any help - she always did- and then I would spend time with my friends.
I opened the front door to my house and walked inside. I tossed my duffle bag to the side, as I saw my momma lying on the couch reading one of her Daring Doo stories. I remember when I used to read those, when I was like 8, but I guess my mom enjoyed it so I let her be.
"Mornin' momma." I greeted her. She looked away from her book and put on a warm smile.
"Good morning, Carson." Momma said. "How was your workout?"
"It was fine. Ah'm goin' to go out soon." I said as I made my way to the kitchen to get something to eat.
"Okay, sweetie. I'll just clean your towel." She said as I rummaged around in the cupboards. Wait...oh no. I rushed out of the kitchen to forcefully take the bag from my mother's hooves. She looked at me with a confused and slightly hurt look on her face.
"Sorry, momma, Ah'm just gonna take my bag with me." I said quickly, before I left the house. I hated that look that look momma gave me, but I knew if she saw what was in the bag she would give me a lot worse of a look. As I walked quickly to the farm, looking over my shoulder to make sure I wasn't being followed by Momma, I thought about throwing the magazine away, but something was stopping me... And it wasn't my head.
I walked the familiar route to the farm house; I waved to my dad and Aunt Applejack as I passed them, and pushed open the front door. The house seemed empty. Then I heard something and I strained to hear. I was surprised when I realized it was quiet sobbing. At first I thought it might have been Golden Delicious, but it wasn't near loud enough and it was obvious that whoever was making the sound was trying to hide it. I trotted to where I thought I source of the sobbing was.
I reared up when I found Aunt Apple Bloom curled up in a ball, holding Golden Delicious. She looked exhausted; she had deep bags under her eyes.
She saw me and looked up at me with a very sad expression on her face. "S-sorry Carson...Ah thought ya didn't have to work...Y-ya shouldn't see me like this..."
I stood in the doorway awkwardly; I tossed the bag into a corner, and took a nervous step towards her. "What's wrong?"
"Ah'm so freaking tired!" She shouted. The sudden change in volume caused me to back up. "Every time Ah try to go to sleep, she starts crying! I haven't slept in two days..."
She decayed into another sobbing fit. I tapped my hoof awkwardly. "Uhhh..."
"Why did he leave me with this foal? Ah never get child support from him..." I was tempted to go and get Aunt Applejack, because I had no idea what to do. "Ah can't even date to find her a proper father because Ah got this foal to take care of!"
"Ah'll go get Applejack." I started to back away.
"No!" I stopped. "Please no...she has enough to worry about."
I was starting to regret coming to see her, it was getting uncomfortable and I still had no idea how to help. So I decided to take a shot at it: "Ah could...possibly...at some point..." I couldn't believe I was going to do this. "Ah could watch Golden...maybe once a week..."
Her face lit up as she carefully put Golden Delicious aside then she tackled me in a hug. "Thankyouthankyouthankyou!"
"Ya are welcome..." I sighed; I decided I might as well start now. "Why don't ya take a nap, Ah'll watch her for a while."
Her hug got tighter to the point I almost couldn't breathe. "Thank ya. Don't ya worry Ah'll reward ya somehow."
"No need." I said; in fact I would very much like a reward, but it was the right thing to do. She read me like a book and I think she knew I would enjoy a reward because she gave a playful wink before she started to trot to her room.
"Diapers are under the counter, and foal food is in fridge." She said before I lost sight of her. I looked down at my little cousin, who looked up at me. I thought that it wouldn't be so bad. I should have knocked on wood, because I smelled that she had made a mess in her diaper. I groaned as I picked her up and put her on the changing table. I had never actually changed her diaper before, but how hard could it be? I undid the little straps and the diaper fell open, and I gagged. My little foal cousin must have taken pleasure in my pain because she giggled when I gagged again.
After I changed her diaper, I placed her in her playpen. I started to walk away, but when I looked back her lip was quivering like she was going to cry. I sighed and walked back. I took her out of her playpen, and grabbed some of her stuffed animals. I gave a fluffy stuffed elephant to her and I took a stuffed puppy. The little green filly giggled as she hugged the elephant, I held back an 'awwwwww'' for the sake of my masculinity, but it was truly adorable. We played around for a while, but I heard a little rumble.
"Sounds like somepony is hungry." I said as I lifted the little filly of the floor, and she carried the fluffy elephant with her. I walked through the house to the kitchen. I set her in the high chair, before I went to the fridge and picked out a mush made out of carrots. I twisted the lid open: the mush looked truly gross, but I guess foals eat that kind of stuff. I rummaged around the drawers for a while before finding a spoon. I scooped up a bit of the mush. I made some flying noises and I used the spoon in a spiral motion on approach to her mouth. "Here it comes."
She opened her mouth wide; I guess this wasn't her first time being fed like this. I kept on feeding her until the whole small jar was gone. Golden gave a small satisfied burp, and her eyes drooped. I pulled her out of her high chair. I thought to myself: hey, this isn't so bad. Then she burped again, then she spit up on me. Or maybe it is.
After about four hours of keeping my little filly cousin busy, Aunt Apple Bloom walked slowly into the nursery where I was playing with Golden Delicious. She still looked tired, but not exhausted. She had a bit more color in her face.
"Thanks, Carson, Ah needed that." Aunt Apple Bloom wrapped her legs around me in an affectionate hug. Golden Delicious held her legs out for her mother to pick her up. "And don't worry, Ah'll find some way to repay ya."
I wasn't going to object to her offer. "Thank ya. Ya have any other time ya want me to watch her?"
"Don't worry 'bout that now, ya just run along." She said as she picked up her daughter. I nodded and grabbed my duffle bag from the corner. I left the farm house as the sun was just at the middle of its downward decent. I was going to meet my friends near the Everfree forest.
It didn't take me long to trudge through the snow to the forest. The Everfree forest didn't have snow in it, it was an unnatural place where the weather came on its own and the animals took care of themselves; it was unnerving, but it was somehow warm in the forest so it was a nice place to meet.
My friends, Chocolate Cookie, an earth pony who had a knack for- what else- making cookies, and Photo Shop, a unicorn who could make a picture look like anything he wanted… not the kind of pony you would want to mess with.
"Hey guys." I greeted.
"'Sup Carson." Cookie responded.
"What's up?" Photo Shop said.
"Not much. Ah found this today." I unzipped my duffle bag and pulled out the magazine and tossed it on the ground. They looked at it for a moment before they realized what it was. Cookie picked it up and started flipping through it until he got to page six, when the fold out fell out.
"Dude...where did you get this?" Photo asked as he pushed Cookie to get a better view.
"Ah found it in the locker room at the gym." I said, but at that point they weren't paying any attention to me. I saw a shadow fly overhead. I looked up...oh no.
"Hey sweetie." My momma called. She was coming into a landing. I quickly grabbed the magazine from Cookie's hooves, but it was too late. "Hey boys, whatcha got there?"
"Oh hi Mrs. Apple, sorry but we gotta run...I left my hat outside..." Cookie stuttered before he ran off.
"Yeah...I think I hear my house on fire." Photo Shop said nervously, before backing away slowly.
"That was weird." Momma said with a very confused look in her face. "Anyway, what you got there son?"
"Uhhh...nothing..." I put the magazine behind my back. She raised her eyebrow.
"Give it here." Momma demanded. I shook my head no, but I accidently lost my grip on the magazine...and it kind of fell to the ground right in front of my mom.
"Carson Apple!"
Thank you for reading, please review. Thanks to my beta reader.
I crossed off another day on my calendar. I had four days. I was grounded from just about everything for two weeks, and once those two weeks were over I would have another month of 'parole,' which was extra chores and stuff. Aunt Applejack had given me extra work to do. Dinky wouldn't let up with her snide remarks about pornography. All-in-all I probably should have thrown the magazine away, and saved myself a whole lot of trouble.
I sighed. I was incredibly bored. I thought back to the moment when the magazine fell in front of my momma. I cringed at the thought. She smacked me upside the head, but - I know this is going to sound cliché - the look of disappointment she gave me hurt a whole lot more. Then she proceeded to tell Dad, Aunt Applejack, and Aunt Apple Bloom. The conversation with my dad was an awkward one, a lot about how what I was looking at was disrespectful to mares, and how I shouldn't be touching myself. Oh yeah, that was another thing, everypony my mother told just assumed I had been touching myself when I had possession of the magazine, which I hadn't. Oddly enough the one pony I hadn't had a long awkward conversation about the magazine, was my momma.
I heard a knock on the door. "Dinner's ready."
I rolled out of bed, and opened my door. Momma was standing there. She glanced at me, I could still see a bit of hurt in her eyes. She looked like she wanted to say something, but she kept her mouth closed. I followed her to the kitchen table. Dinky wasn't at the table, so I assumed that she had went out with Pipsqueak. I sat down at my regular spot, where a plate of food was already waiting.
I stuck my fork into the food and started to eat slowly. I wasn't in any hurry to go back to my room.
"Apple Bloom says she needs ya to foal sit for her tonight." Dad said. I gave a silent thanks: the only time I got to leave the house, besides work, was when Aunt Apple Bloom needed a foal sitter because she was going out on her dates. So far no luck in finding a coltfriend, but she said she had fun anyway. I didn't really know why Aunt Applejack didn't take care of Golden Delicious, but I was glad she didn't so I could leave.
After we swallowed the meal and had some dinner conversation, that I took no part in, I waited at the door for Dad to put his cap and scarf on. He would be escorting me to the farm, so I wouldn't try to ditch or something. Personally, I was kind of offended; I would never ditch Aunt Apple Bloom when she needed me.
He finally got all his gear on and we got a move on towards the farm. We trotted in silence, which got me thinking, would I ever be able to just talk to dad again without him thinking about how disappointed he was in me? I hoped we could, because I wanted to talk to him about Pumpkin Cake. I had managed to get a call out to her to tell her that I was grounded, but I left out the part about the magazine. She had said she'd find some way of contacting me.
"Dad?" I asked. His ears perked up, so I knew he was listening even though he didn't respond. I decided to ask a question that had been on my mind for quite a while. "Do ya hate me?"
That got his attention, he stopped. I turned to look at him and he was looking at me straight in the eye. "Son, Ah could never hate ya, Ah love ya. It's just that Ah thought we raised ya better than to look at that filth. Ah know it was a mistake, Ah know what it's like to be your age. Your momma and Ah will get over it soon, it just takes time."
That made me feel a little bit better. I hadn't realized we already had made it to the farm. Dad opened the front door, and Aunt Apple Bloom was already waiting at the door.
"Good evening." She said. Golden was sitting on her back, looking as content as ever. I brushed my hooves off on the doormat before I walked in.
"Hey." I responded. Golden looked happy to see me. Aunt Apple Bloom passed me Golden Delicious.
"She's just had a diaper change and she is already fed, ya just have to put her to sleep." Aunt Apple Bloom said. I was glad; my job was going to be easy then. "Ah'll be back 'round nine o'clock."
She started out the door, but Dad stood in the way. "If this stallion gives ya any trouble, just let me know."
Aunt Apple Bloom smiled up at him: even when my father's sisters are adults, he still feels the need to protect them. "Thanks, Big Mac."
I was left alone with Golden. She looked tired, which was fine with me. I started to walk to her nursery, but Aunt Applejack stopped me.
"Ah'm going to go out. Ah'm hoping Ah can trust ya." She said. I nodded. "Good."
I was kind of curious where she was going, so I asked: "Where ya going?"
"Out." She said quickly. I raised an eyebrow, but she didn't say anything more. She opened the front door and slammed it behind her. I trotted to the kitchen window to watch her go. To my surprise a pegasus dropped out the sky and landed next to her; I couldn't really see the pegasus because it was dark. Their face's got really close together. Oh...wait...they were kissing. It wasn't just a peck on the cheek. I felt my face burn up and I stopped watching the private moment.
I walked to Golden's nursery. I set her in her crib and tucked her in. She grasped onto the stuffed elephant… I guess she had taken a liking to it.
"Alright, silly filly, would ya like a bedtime story?" I asked, not that I was expecting a response. There was a small bookcase by the crib. I looked through the titles; I saw a few I recognized. I pulled a book out of the shelf. The title read, "The train engine that could."
I stood over the crib as I started to read. I made faces to keep it entertaining for the little green foal. When I was halfway through the story the filly fell to asleep. I kissed her on the forehead, I loved that little filly. I was too invested in the story to stop reading. I finished the story, turned on her nightlight, and shut off the overhead light. I left the door open so if she started to cry I could hear it.
I took a seat in the parlor. I leaned back in a recliner chair, and fell asleep. After what I think was an hour, there was a knock on the door. I got out of the chair and went to answer it. To my surprise, it was Pumpkin Cake.
"Hey Carson." She said.
"Uhh...hi. What are you doing here, not that Ah don't enjoy your company." I stuttered.
"I heard you were here, and I came to visit." Pumpkin took a step inside.
"Uhh..sure. Does your dad know your here?" I asked. I really didn't want to get in more trouble than I was already was.
"Well...no, but I don't think he'll notice." She said and that put me a conundrum. I could turn her away, but that would have probably put her off, or I could let her in and take the chance of getting in trouble again. I chose the latter.
"Come in." I said, and she walked into the entryway. Her stomach rumbled. "Ya hungry?"
"Yeah, I didn't eat dinner; I told my dad that I wasn't feeling well." She explained. I showed her to the kitchen and had her sit at the dinner table. I opened the fridge and rummaged around. I decided I could use a little snack too, so I chose a few apples and started to cut them up as I put a frying pan on the stove and turned on the burner. I placed a bar on butter in the pan and waited for it to melt.
"Any reason ya decided to sneak out?" I asked.
"To see you." She answered matter-of-factly. I blushed slightly. The butter melted and I put the apples in with a bit of brown sugar and cinnamon.
"That's nice of ya." I stirred the apples. "Anyway, how was your day?"
"It was fine, got a huge order for an MMMM cake." She responded.
"MMMM?" I asked. I had never heard of such a cake.
"It's my parents' specialty. It's a special mix of cakes and it's absolutely divine...I'll bring you some sometime." She said. I nodded my thanks. "What did you get grounded for anyway?"
Damn. I was hoping she wouldn't bring that up, I was terrible at lying, and I didn't have a good excuse. "Well... Ah had found a Playcolt magazine..."
My face burned up with embarrassment, it was unbelievably awkward to tell the mare you had a thing for that you were caught with porn. To my surprise she started to laugh.
"I bet that was embarrassing." She kept on laughing. I smiled, my cheeks still rosy from embarrassment. I poked the apples; they were soft and ready to eat. I put them on a plate, and then brought it over to the table.
"Looks good...hey, why are you here anyway, if you're grounded?" She asked. As if on cue, I heard Golden stir in her sleep, and I knew she was about to wake up.
"Just a sec." I said before walking into Golden Delicious' nursery. She was indeed waking up. She rubbed her little eyes and looked up at me. I could tell she smelled the cinnamon apples, and she wanted some. I smiled and picked her up out of her crib.
I carried her to the table and placed her in her high chair. "This is why Ah'm here. Meet my cousin Golden Delicious."
"Aww... She's so cute." Pumpkin cooed. Golden wasn't paying any attention to her, she was eyeing those apples. I took a fork and started to feed her: I wasn't sure if she was supposed to have solids yet, but the apples were soft enough that I didn't think it mattered. We ate the apples down in about five minutes.
Golden was trying to keep herself awake, but she was so tired that her head fell straight onto the plate and she was out like a light. I took her and brought her back to her room. I expected her to sleep through the rest of the night. I walked back to the kitchen, but Pumpkin had invited herself to go into the parlor and was sitting on the couch.
"You guys don't have a TV?" She asked.
"Nope. Too much work so we don't have any time to watch one, but we have a radio." I said. I walked over to the radio and turned it to a variety station. I was going to sit in the recliner, but she patted the couch next to her. I sat nervously next to her while we listened to the radio. She leaned her head on my shoulder. I yawned and slyly put my leg around her shoulders. We stayed like that for a half hour.
Crash! A window shattered somewhere in the house. Golden started to cry, and I quickly stood up. Then the crying stopped. I rushed to Golden's room... She was gone. The window was shattered, shards of glass scattered all over the floor. I bolted to the window: a pony was galloping away, and I could see he was holding my sweet little cousin, Golden Delicious.
"Pumpkin, call the police!" I yelled as I dove through the window. I cut myself in several places along my body on the sharp glass that was still attached to the window lining. I broke into a full gallop. The foal napping pony was at a gallop too, but I was gaining. The pony made a quick dash to the left, into the apple tree rows. I turned to intercept.
He was slowing down, and I was gaining speed. In a matter of moments I was on him. I tackled him to the ground; Golden was crying her head off. I heard a swish, then a sharp pain was in the middle if my abdomen, a pain that tore through my being. I looked down, and saw a knife jutting out from my stomach. My eyes dilated as a warm crimson liquid oozed from the wound. The pony laid under me, by the looks of it a stallion, who had a crazed look in his eyes. I didn't have time to react when he pulled the knife from me and forced it through the muscles if my abdomen again. I cringed in pain as blood started to pour from my second wound. I could hear sirens, but they were in the distance and wouldn't arrive in time to save me. I thought fast and did the best thing I knew how. The stallion pulled the knife and stabbed again. I ignored the pain for a moment and kicked with my forelegs to daze, then spun and kicked with my hind legs. There was a sickening crack when my hooves connected.
I fell to the ground; the world was fading in and out. Golden was still crying. I managed to get her into an embrace. "Shhhh... Shhhh... Everything's okay now, sweetie."
I didn't let myself faint until I saw the lights of the emergency vehicles and felt pony gently taking Golden from my hooves.
The smell of food was what finally awoke me. I was in the farm house, in Aunt Apple Bloom's bed. I looked down at myself: I had three pads where the stab wounds were, and there were bandages wrapped all around my midsection. I tried to turn, but a pulse of pain prevented me from doing so. That's when I noticed Golden was sleeping beside me. I breathed a sigh of relief, I was glad she was alright. By the looks of it, I needed a new bandage: it was red and kind of sticky, so I think my blood had stopped pouring from the wounds.
I could hear quiet talking outside the room. I think I could hear my father's voice; it was hard to miss seeing as it was a deep rumble compared to the rest. I saw Golden Delicious' eyes open.
"Good mornin.'" I said, even though I had no idea what time it was. Golden Delicious cuddled up close next to me, and the door creaked open. Momma stuck her head in the room. Her eyes went wide, and before I knew it she had me in a hug. I couldln't think of what to say, so I said the first thing that came to mind: "Ah'm sorry Ah had Pumpkin over."
"Oh sweetie, I don't care about that. I'm just glad you're okay." Her grasp tightened. I could tell she was about to start crying. "Mac, get in here, he's awake."
I heard heavy hoof steps come into the room. I could see a proud gleam replacing the disappointing stare he had just the day before... Or what I thought is the day before, I still had no idea how long I'd been out. He walked slowly to stand next to momma. Dad looked like he was at a loss for words, which I took as a good thing. Usually he could come up with something to say, even if it wasn't much.
"We are so proud of you, Carson." Momma said. I could see the tears already forming form in my mother's eyes.
"Eeyup." Dad added.
"So, what happened?" I asked. All I knew was a stallion had tried to foalnap my cousin, stabbed me, and I had stopped him.
"Golden's dead-beat dad tried to take her back." Dad explained. He looked rather angry about it; I didn't know very much about Golden Delicious' dad. All I knew was that, he got Aunt Apple Bloom pregnant, left her, and now he tried to get Golden Delicious back. I tried to sit up, but cringed in pain and laid back down. "He's in custody now, and won't be out for a long time."
"Thank goodness that Pumpkin was here to tell us where you went...if she wasn't you would have bled out." Momma started to break up near the end and tears poured down her cheek. Dad put a leg around her.
"We'll let ya get some rest." He said as they started to walk to the door. Mom left first, and Dad turned around to look at me. "Ya made me the proudest dad in all of Equestria. Ya are a hero."
That meant a ton to me. The fact that my dad was proud of me and he called me a hero made me happy. I settled back into the bed, moved Golden a little closer to me, and almost dazed off to sleep, when Aunt Applejack burst into the room.
"Ah ought ta whip ya for having a mare over!" She shouted. "If Ah wasn't so gosh darn proud of ya."
She had me in a headlock, which I have to admit wasn't the most comfortable of things, but Aunt Applejack had her own rough way of showing affection.
"Ah'm not sure if any of us could have reacted quick enough to stop that crazy pony." She admitted. "Ah tried to get the officers to get Macintosh and Ah in the cell with him to 'have a talk' but they wouldn't go for it."
I chuckled. Celestia help the pony that is locked in a cell with my Aunt Applejack when she's mad.
"Ah was just doing my job as a foalsitter." I laughed lightly.
"Yeah? Ah don't know any foal sitter that would do what ya did. Any who, Ah'm sure ya are tired, Ah'll let ya be." She said as she left, but not before she put me in another headlock and tussled my hair. I decided to stay awake for the next incoming visitor, I figured I knew who it would be.
Aunt Apple Bloom was the next. She closed the door quietly behind her. She looked at me with sad eyes as she walked up the bed. Golden Delicious noticed the presence of her mother and held up her little hooves.
"Carson..." Aunt Apple Bloom took a moment to gather her thoughts. She pulled down the covers and saw how red the bandages were. She walked over to a small medical chest and pulled out a new roll of bandages. She started to unwrap the red, sticky mess of bandage from my body, and then quickly replaced it with fresh new ones, which felt a whole lot better.
"Thank ya." I said.
"Thank me? No, Carson, thank you. Ya offer to watch Golden just so Ah can go on a date, and ya save her from being foalnapped, in the process getting stabbed. Carson, Ah don't think Ah can ever repay ya." She grabbed me in a warm embrace. "But Ah can start by making a nice home cooked meal for ya and your marefriend."
"That sounds nice." I admitted.
"Ah know Golden Delicious thanks ya too." Aunt Apple Bloom picked Golden up.
"M-M-Momma...Ca-Carson." Golden said. My eyes went wide when I realized what just happened, her first two words. Aunt Apple Bloom hugged her daughter close.
"Well, Ah'll be..." I said. Aunt Apple Bloom went to go share with everypony, but not before giving me a big kiss on the cheek and a tight hug.
To my surprise, Pipsqueak was the next to come in.
"I just want to thank you." He said.
"For?" I asked. I really hadn't done anything for him.
"For inspiring my next set of books; I decided to write it on your family, the first book I already have a title for...wait for it... Gentle Red. It's a running title… but anyway I have the first chapter done, I wrote it from a third person perspective to make it sound more like a story." He said. I just smiled and nodded: who would ever read a story on my family? He started to read: "Ditzy, or as some of the less kind ponies called her, "Derpy" was having a good day. It started with a warm blueberry muffin, then seeing her daughter Dinky off to school, and now her mail route was going along without a hitch..."
I just sat back and listened.
Thank y'all for reading. I appreciate your thoughts, I know this ending may seem kind of sudden, but I think it is appropriate seeing as I never meant this story to get too long. Thanks to my beta read, BlackRoseRevan you check out some of his stuff.