Applejack paced by the front door, her mind uneasy and her mane soaking wet. What she had found was unsettling; some creature underneath one of her apple trees, and it was now in the guest bedroom. A familiar friend trotted down from upstairs. It was Twilight, her faithful companion.

"My traumalocation spell showed that his leg is broken," said Twilight, "so I'll need some help getting it back into place. We can still save it."

Applejack nodded and replied with a concerned look on her face, "We'll have to hold him down in case he wakes up, which I reckon he will."

"You don't have to worry about that. I put him into a deep sleep. He shouldn't feel anything," replied Twilight. Both of them trotted up the stairs and into the guest bedroom, where the Apple family was waiting.

"What is it, Twilight?" Applebloom asked curiously.

"He's called a human," replied Twilight, "I encountered many of them during my trip through the mirror in the Crystal Empire. He's not as colorful as most of them though..."

"Y'all ready?" inquired Applejack, placing her hoof on his foot.

"Eyup," replied Big Mac. Twilight's horn glowed with a purple aura and shot a beam into the boy's leg, making it clear and see-through. They could see his bones easily, but Applebloom chose to look away, trying to keep down her lunch. Big Mac and Twilight pushed the leg down and back into place, getting the broken bone to reconnect.

"Hold it still, please," said Twilight. She shot another beam of magic into the leg, making a cast appear as if from nowhere. "I've casted the healing spell and gave him the cast to keep his leg from moving."

"Good job, everypony," said Applejack. She let out a sigh of relief and wrapped a foreleg around Applebloom, comforting her. "It's ok. You can look now."

"I should write a letter to Princess Celestia about this. She'd want to know there's a human here," said Twilight. She trotted downstairs and out of sight. Applejack looked at the human's face. He looked odd to her. He had no muzzle or any fur except for the hair on his head.

"What do y'all think he was doin' out there?" asked Applejack.

"Maybe he was lost?" questioned Applebloom.

"Maybe he was out there lookin' for free apples!" Granny accused.

"Granny, we can't go around pointin' hooves at anypony without evidence," defended Applejack.

"He was under one of our trees. What else could he be doin? I don't suppose he was out there takin' a stroll!" Granny replied.

"Maybe he was tryin' to hide from the storm?" Applebloom also defended.

"Eyup," chimed in Big Mac. Granny looked at all three ponies with a considering glance.

"I guess we can wait to hear his story before accusin' him..." said Granny, a defeated look on her face.

Applejack looked at the human before turning back to her family. "Let's get some sleep. Tomorrow is a new day, and we could all use a rest after this."

The Next Day

A shrill scream echoed throughout the farm, waking up Applejack. She raced up the stairs to the guest bedroom to find Applebloom in one corner, shivering in fear, and the human boy in the other corner on the bed, also shivering in fear.

"What in the hay is goin on here?!" Applejack asked, looking at the human.

"St-Stay away! Please!" the boy cried. Applejack walked in front of Applebloom protectively and looked at the human's eyes. He was afraid, and she could probably understand that. There weren't talking ponies on the other side of the mirror. Twilight had told her that, so Applejack had to tread carefully.

"Simmer down, sugarcube. We're not gonna hurt ya," Applejack spoke softly, "We're just... regular old ponies. We're just like you... just physically different. You can trust me. I promise. Do ya think you can calm down?" The boy stared at Applejack. He had never seen such a sight. It spoke with the same accent as him though. It settled his fears somehow, and he felt that... it was being honest. He gave a slow nod, staring at the orange pony.

"Y-You won't hurt me? Promise?" he asked with wariness.

"Ah promise," replied Applejack.

The boy looked at Applebloom, feeling a bit guilty for scaring her. "I-I'm sorry... I thought y'all was gonna hurt me."

Applebloom looked into his eyes, seeing that he was sincere in his apology. "It's ok. I didn't know you'd be afraid. I'm sorry, too."

"Are ya hungry?" Applejack asked. The boy felt his stomach growl and reluctantly nodded. "Well, let's get you two downstairs and we can get some breakfast. Granny made oatmeal with apple slices on the side."

The boy got up from the bed and immediately fell down after. A sharp pulse of pain shot through his leg which caused him to cry out.

"Careful now! I forgot you had that cast on. C'mon, put your arm around me and I'll help ya downstairs," Applejack offered. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled himself up, letting her guide him. They were soon downstairs after a bit of struggling.

"Applejack, is that you?" asked Granny from inside the kitchen.

"Yes, Granny! I brought our guest!" she replied.

"Oh... Is what all the screaming was about?" questioned Granny, "I thought Big Mac stubbed his hoof on that loose floorboard again."

After everything was set up, Applejack and her guest sat down at the table, bowls of oatmeal in front of them. Applejack took a spoonful of the breakfast into her mouth as the young boy stared. How did she hold a spoon without fingers? He looked back down at his meal and pondered for the bit before taking a spoonful and slipping it into his mouth. It was warm... and it had a smooth texture. It was nothing like he had at home.

Applejack couldn't hold it in any longer. "Do you have a name?"

He stared back and mumbled, "mmyln..."

"What?" questioned Applejack.

"Dylan, ma'am..." he repeated more clearly. Applejack smiled at him. It was a good name.

Author's Note

Don't know if I got worse. I tried to go at a steady pace. I think I could've done better, but I don't know how.