Roots

The week flew by fast, and soon Grass Roots found himself at Sweet Apple Acres, arriving in the morning for his first day of work. He strolled through the gates, and took it all in. The orchard was beautiful, and the Apple Family home was beautifully aged. He saw other farmhands, working on various tasks. Then he heard a voice call his name.

“Hey, Roots! Over here!”, a voice called from his left.

He looked and saw Caramel and a big red stallion standing by the porch of the home. He smiled and made his way over.

“It’s nice to see you, Roots! You excited for your first day?”, Caramel asked.

“You bet, Mel. I’ve never been more excited for anything”, Roots happily proclaimed.

Grass Roots then looked at the stallion beside Caramel, and gulped a bit. He sure was a big stallion. He looked familiar, but Grass Roots couldn’t quite place him.

“Oh, where are my manners. Grass Roots, this here is Big Macintosh, Applejack’s Brother and the most hardworking stallion Ah’ve ever seen. Big Mac, this is Grass Roots. He’s the new farmhand Ah was tellin’ you about. He’s very determined, and gets the job done right every time”, Caramel introduced.

“Ah remember you”, Big Mac said, “You were the fruit vendor, right?”.

Grass Roots nodded, taken back by the stallions deep voice.

“You always did a great job tending to the fruit, Ah’d see them every now and then. Glad to know that we have you on the team, Grass Roots”, Big Mac said happily.

“Call me Roots, my friends call me it”, Roots said.

“Alrighty, Roots. You can call me Big Mac”, the big red stallion said.

Grass Roots nodded, and then the three heard the door open, and there stood Granny Smith.

“Howdy there, boys. Say, aren’t you the stallion that AJ and Mel have been talkin’ bout?”, she asked as she pointed to the green stallion.

“Yes ma’am, I am. Grass Roots is my name, but you can call me Roots if you’d like”, Roots politely said.

“Applejack was right, you are polite. Ah like that, Roots. Anyway, Ah suppose Ah should tell you what yer gonna be doin”, Granny said to him.

Grass Roots nodded, and she spoke.

“Alrighty, so yer job is ta polish and sort the apples that we harvest. Caramel, why don’t you go show him his work space. Granny needs a nap”, Granny said with a yawn.

Caramel nodded and led Grass Roots into the barn, where Roots saw a little filly polishing some golden delicious apples, smiling as she did.

“Well hi there, Caramel! Who’s the stallion beside you?”, the yellow filly asked him.

“Howdy Apple Bloom, this is Grass Roots, he’s the new farmhand. He’ll be polishing and sorting apples with you and the other workers”, Caramel explained.

“Ah see, well it’s nice to meet Mr. Roots, mah name is Apple Bloom”, she said adorably.

“It’s nice to meet you, Apple Bloom. You look like you’re hard at work”, Roots said to the filly.

“You betcha! Ah love helpin’ out around mah farm, it’s what an Apple was born to do!”, she said.

Roots and Caramel laughed a bit, and then Caramel said goodbye.

“Say, Mr. Roots”, Apple Bloom said, “What does your Cutie Mark mean?”.

“Well, my special talent is tending to fruit. My old job was a fruit vendor. I sold fruit for the market”, Roots said as he took a seat beside the filly.

“That’s awesome! Mah special talent is helping ponies find their Cutie Marks!”, Apple Bloom said as she moved on to another golden delicious.

“That’s a very big talent, and I have to say it’s very unique”, Roots complimented.

They talked for two hours as they worked. Apple Bloom learned of the story of how Roots got his job, and Roots learned all about the Apple Family and the Cutie Mark Crusaders. He thought that Apple Bloom adorable, and was already appreciating his new job. Then, Applejack walked into the barn, a fresh basket of apples in tow.

“Howdy everypony, how’s everything going?”, she asked the two.

“It’s going great, AJ! Roots here is a very good polisher, Ah’ve never seen our apples look so shiny”, Apple Bloom said as she admired a red delicious.

“You’re right, Bloom, Ah ain’t seen this much shine to an apple in mah life. Good job, Roots!”, Applejack complimented him.

“It’s my pleasure, Applejack. Good apples need good care, especially these. Plus I had a good partner”, he said motioning to Apple Bloom.

The filly giggled, making AJ smile.

“Well, that’s nice. Say, don’t you have a certain colt to see, Apple Bloom?”, Applejack asked her sister.

Apple Bloom suddenly got wide eyed.

“Oh man, Snails! Ah gotta get goin!”, she leaped up, “It was great meeting you, Roots! Glad you’re here. Bye y’all!”.

The two adults laughed as she sped away.

“Ain’t she adorable? I swear, she’s so sweet she could give these apples a run for their money”, Applejack said with a laugh.

“Yeah, she’s adorable”, Roots said as he pulled the basket closer, “So, Applejack, how’s the harvest been?”.

She looked a bit crestfallen after he said that.

“It’s...uh..Well, it’s not the strongest we’ve had. We have less than usual, and we really need more apples if we want to have enough money for winter. To be honest, it’s a bit stressful”, Applejack said sadly.

“I’m sorry to hear that about the apples, Applejack. Is there anything I can do to help?”, Roots asked the farmer.

Applejack thought for a moment, then spoke.

“There’s not much any of us can do, sugarcube”, Applejack looked down at the ground.

“Applejack, don’t be sad. It doesn’t suit you”, he said.

After he said it, Roots blushes a bit. Applejack was a bit confused, and spoke up.

“What do you mean, Roots?”, she asked him.

“Well”, he said shyly, “I meant that a sad face on you isn’t what I’m used to seeing from you”.

Applejack was still confused, so he explained more.

“In the time of known you, I’ve mainly seen you happy. That’s just how I think of you, honestly”, he admitted.

Applejack blushed a bit, and sat down.

“What else do you think of me?”, she asked him.

Roots was blushing hard now, and tried to find the words.

“I-I think you’re really strong, Applejack. You’ve saved the world a lot, and you’ve done me and a ton of other ponies a good service. Through this whole thing with my accident, you’ve been nothing but kind to me. I appreciate that, Applejack”, he said honestly.

Applejack smiled shyly, making him smile as well.

“Roots, Ah’m glad you think of me like that. Makes me wish I got to know you sooner”, she admitted.

“Well, I work here now. Maybe we can get to know each other a bit, you know. If you ever have free time?”, he boldly asked.

“Ah’d like that, Roots. For now, however, it’s time to work. Ah’m gonna go finish the north orchard, and bring in the last batch of apples for the day. Should take me a few hours. In meantime, you keep doin’ what you do”, she got and began to walk towards the door, until she stopped and looked at him, “Ah’ll see you at dinner, ok?”.

“Ok, Applejack”, he said back with a smile.

“Please, call me AJ, mah friends call me that”, she laughed a bit.

“Ok, AJ. I’ll see you later”, he said to her.

She walked away, leaving Roots with a big smile. For the next few hours, Caramel and Big Mac brought in more baskets, and he handled them as such. It was soon dinner time, and Grass Roots found himself at the Apple Family table. They had tomato soup, with an apple pie for desert. There were laughs and stories all around, and overall it was a good night.

As he was beginning to leave, Applejack caught up to him as he was walking out the door.

“Say Roots”, she said, “Mind if we talk for a minute?”.

“Sure, AJ, I don’t mind at all. What is it you want to talk about?”, Roots asked.

“Well, Ah was wondering if you’d like to come to Pinkie Pie’s party on Saturday. We’re celebrating Lyra and Bon Bon’s one year wedding anniversary, and she said Ah could bring a guest. What do you say?”, Applejack asked.

He was speechless, which Applejack noticed.

“You alright, Roots?”, she asked.

“Uh, yeah, I’m good. I’ll go with you, AJ. It’ll be good to get out and have fun. Not that this job fun or anything! I me—!”, he was stopped by Applejack’s hoof.

“Ah know what you mean, sugarcube”, she said with a laugh, “Ah’m glad you wanna go. It’ll be a good time. Ah’ll see you tomorrow, alright? Take care, sugarcube”, she said and then trotted into to her room.

Roots smiled again and made his way home, where he slept blissfully.